RIBBLE Valley MP Nigel Evans once again finds himself at loggerheads with his predecessor David, now Lord, Waddington.

In his early days at Westminster, Mr Evans adopted a highly right-wing and euro sceptic line, much the embarrassment of then Prime Minister John Major.

Words were said about his damaging his career and he received a phone call from Lord Waddington, then governor of Bermuda, from the Caribbean to back up the message.

Now the position is reversed. Mr Evans is supporting Michael Portillo for the Tory leadership enthusiastically.

But the new-style compassionate Conservative that the shadow chancellor has become is not to Lord Waddington's taste.

Mr Portillo and Mr Evans are now too Liberal and left-wing for the ageing former Home Secretary, especially over the suggestion that Mr Portillo might reconsider the Tories opposition to repealing Section 28, which bans the promotion of homosexuality in schools, if he becomes leader.

Lord Waddington dismissed the idea as "crazy" adding: "I think it will be very foolish to re-open the issue when it has been put to bed. "The government has not even said it wishes to re-open the subject and try to reverse the decision we made in the Lords last year.

"Why on earth Mr Portillo thinks it would be to anyone's advantage to re-open it, I don't know."

PENDLE MP Gordon Prentice has renewed his attack on the business interests of the royal family.

He has put down a Commons Motion regretting the decision of Buckingham Palace not to bring in a register of Royal Business Interests along the lines of Parliament Register for MPs interests.

He ridicules the idea of having instead "voluntary unpublished guidelines on how the business affairs of working members of the royal family might be so arranged in future as to avoid any suggestion of a conflict of interest with their representational roles."

He does not believe that the Lord Chamberlain having to approve new business activities will work and says that the new arrangements "may still allow hostages to fortune."

Mr Prentice wants an explanation of how the new system will operate in practice.