英國新首相有新規 禁止開會打手機
Britain's new Prime Minister David Cameron on Thursday banned the use of mobile phones at cabinet meetings in a bid to ensure his top team stay focused on the challenges facing them, his spokeswoman said.
Chairing his first meeting of the cabinet, Cameron told senior ministers from his Conservative party and their coalition partners, the Liberal Democrats, that the distraction of mobiles would not be welcome.
The new team faces the daunting task of implementing public spending cuts to reduce a record budget deficit, while ensuring Britain stays on the road to recovery following a deep recession.
Politicians here have come to rely on mobile technology such as BlackBerrys so much that parliamentary authorities now allow their use in the House of Commons main debating chamber, albeit silently.
Newly-installed Justice Secretary Kenneth Clarke became the first to break the rule, drawing a rebuke from Cameron at the inaugural meeting of top ministers.
To laughter from the rest of the cabinet, the prime minister ordered him to cut short a telephone conversation so he could get down to the business of running the country.
Cameron has not spared himself from the ban, added his spokeswoman.
He brought his cabinet together for the first time Thursday, after forming a coalition government earlier in the week by striking a deal with the Lib Dems following polls on May 6 that failed to produce a clear winner.
英國新任首相大衛•卡梅倫的一位女發言人日前稱，卡梅倫於本週四提出禁止內閣成員在開內閣會議時使用手機，以確保新政府集中精力應對當前挑戰。
當天，卡梅倫在主持召開首次內閣會議時向他所領導的保守黨及其聯盟自由民主黨的高級內閣大臣們表示，今後在開會時禁止使用手機。
目前，新一屆政府正面臨削減公共開支以減少鉅額財政赤字的艱鉅任務，同時還要確保英國在嚴重的經濟衰退後保持復甦勢頭。
英國的政壇人物十分依賴黑莓等移動科技，因此議會機關目前允許在下院主辯論廳使用手機，不過要調爲靜音。
新任司法大臣肯尼斯‧克拉克在部長大臣就職會議上首破新規，受到卡梅倫的批評。
卡梅倫要求他縮短通話，集中精力考慮國家大事。其他內閣成員則笑了起來。
卡梅倫的女發言人稱，手機禁令對首相自己也不例外。
卡梅倫於本週四召開了上任後的首次內閣會議。因本月6日的大選未能決出勝負，本週早些時候，卡梅倫領導的保守黨與自民黨達成協議，組建了新一屆的聯合政府。
Vocabulary:
albeit：although; even if（儘管，雖然）
cut short：to end abruptly; terminate（打斷，縮短）
strike a deal：達成協議
