:00:05. > :00:08.Happy New Year from the Daily Politics. Yes, we're back and we're
:00:08. > :00:13.going for gold in what promises to be a year of Olympic political
:00:13. > :00:16.coverage. And that's not all, is No, it's a new year and we've
:00:16. > :00:26.already achieved our makeover. For 2012, on time and on budget, we've
:00:26. > :00:58.
:00:58. > :01:01.Afternoon, folks. Welcome to the all-new singing and dancing Daily
:01:01. > :01:05.Politics. The Cabinet's holding its first meeting of the year - but not
:01:05. > :01:09.in Downing Street. They've sprinted down to the Olympic Park in east
:01:09. > :01:13.London to mark 2012 as the Year of the Olympics, as if you didn't know.
:01:13. > :01:16.Actually, they all went on the same train. We'll be looking at what the
:01:17. > :01:24.year ahead holds for all the main parties and which leaders might hit
:01:24. > :01:27.the buffers. The Cabinet have been discussing
:01:27. > :01:29.proposals to hold a referendum on Scottish independence. Expect a war
:01:29. > :01:34.of words between David Cameron and Alex Salmond.
:01:34. > :01:41.Timely new year advice from MPs. They're urging us to give up the
:01:41. > :01:50.booze two days a week. Hic! And Adam has been to the gym with
:01:50. > :01:53.the mood box. This week's question - is austerity worth it? A table
:01:53. > :02:01.don't have enough money to spend, and everyone is suffering a? What
:02:01. > :02:06.about your teammates? There is a division.
:02:06. > :02:09.Division in the badminton team. Adam gets the stories. More of that
:02:09. > :02:12.later. All that coming up in the next half
:02:12. > :02:17.hour. And look what I found in my Christmas stocking. A lovely new
:02:17. > :02:23.set from Santa. He's a generous soul. All Jo got was a clementine
:02:23. > :02:26.and some half-eaten chocolate euros. Times are tough.
:02:26. > :02:29.It couldn't sell them for anything these days.
:02:29. > :02:31.And with us for the whole programme today, a panel of bright young
:02:31. > :02:37.things: Conservative MP Sam Gyimah, Labour's Emma Reynolds and Duncan
:02:37. > :02:40.Hames of the Liberal Democrats. Welcome to the show.
:02:40. > :02:43.Now first today, let's jump immediately on the new year detox
:02:43. > :02:46.bandwagon because, not ones to miss a trick, that's exactly what a
:02:46. > :02:49.group of MPs is doing today. The Science And Technology Committee
:02:49. > :02:51.have decreed that drinkers should have two alcohol-free days a week
:02:51. > :02:55.and they say that existing guidelines give the false
:02:55. > :03:02.impression that daily indulgence is healthy. The chair of the committee
:03:02. > :03:08.is Andrew Miller. I spoke to him earlier and began by asking him if
:03:08. > :03:12.the daily guideline is wrong. There is clear, unambiguous
:03:12. > :03:16.clinical evidence that says having a couple of days off a week,
:03:16. > :03:22.drinking no alcohol, is better for your body. Give your body a chance
:03:22. > :03:25.to recover. This is already the guidance in Scotland and all of the
:03:25. > :03:29.clinical experts we spoke to suggested that is the right way
:03:29. > :03:34.forward. But it doesn't mean you would then increase the amount due
:03:34. > :03:37.drink on other days? Absolutely not, this is not a green light for
:03:37. > :03:43.having a binge on one night of the week and having the other six days
:03:43. > :03:47.off. What about the way it is measured? Everyone has heard of
:03:47. > :03:51.units but they don't know what they are. Why not talk about glasses of
:03:51. > :03:57.wine and pints of beer? That is a serious issue and we look very
:03:57. > :04:03.carefully at it. A pint of beer 30 years ago, you could have used that
:04:03. > :04:09.as a sort of useful guide. No longer can you do that, because
:04:09. > :04:14.beer strengths vary so much, and a factor of three is quite often the
:04:14. > :04:20.case. Similarly with wind, the size of a glass of wine varies
:04:20. > :04:25.tremendously -- wine. These are complex issues. We want to try and
:04:25. > :04:30.bring together the clinical experts being with the health side properly
:04:30. > :04:33.and bring behavioural experts into the equation to try and find better
:04:33. > :04:36.ways of communicating what is a very complicated message to the
:04:36. > :04:41.public. That was Andrew Millar. Duncan
:04:41. > :04:47.Hames, not very complicated to say don't drink alcohol for two days a
:04:47. > :04:51.week. Do you think you could manage it? I don't think I could with our
:04:51. > :04:54.schedule! When I first got to Parliament, when I got the House of
:04:54. > :04:58.Lords, a friend told me of an event one lunchtime weather seemed to be
:04:58. > :05:03.quite a lot of alcohol flowing and his warning was that Parliament is
:05:03. > :05:07.like a Petri dish for alcoholism. That bodes well for the future of
:05:07. > :05:11.the political system. You all seem extremely dry. There is a question
:05:11. > :05:16.about information, does it matter what is put out there? Does it
:05:16. > :05:20.change people's habits? I then there is a problem about talking
:05:20. > :05:24.about units, because people don't intuitively understand what a unit
:05:24. > :05:29.consists of. A would you like to see it as a glass of wine or a pint
:05:29. > :05:35.of beer? The big it is done with a cabinet of an average rent for a
:05:35. > :05:40.drink -- even. It would give people guidance. I do think that today's
:05:40. > :05:44.without alcohol, or more, is good guidance -- two days. There are
:05:44. > :05:48.long-term risks of drinking every day, even if you don't get drunk
:05:48. > :05:54.every day. It seems there is a bit of catch-up by the Government, or
:05:54. > :05:57.by MPs, if you like. Scotland already had this in place. Do you
:05:57. > :06:01.think we need to do a bit more, as there seems to be a problem with
:06:01. > :06:04.alcohol levels? There is a real problem with binge-drinking and I
:06:04. > :06:08.think the Government's alcohol strategy is due out in February and
:06:08. > :06:18.one thing they will be looking at in addition to the guidance from
:06:18. > :06:19.
:06:19. > :06:24.this group of MPs is actually putting a floor price. 45p has been
:06:24. > :06:30.the butt forward. Is that the only thing that could work, looking at
:06:30. > :06:33.pricing? It is difficult to see. When you talk about binge-drinking,
:06:33. > :06:37.defining it and controlling it is quite hard. The Government is doing
:06:38. > :06:40.what it can do and what is happening in Scotland works, and if
:06:40. > :06:45.it works, let's see if we get their belated.
:06:45. > :06:48.Parliament could set the standard by closing the bars in the Commons
:06:48. > :06:51.for two days a week. All 27 of them.
:06:51. > :06:54.Then we would maybe take them seriously.
:06:55. > :06:58.So it's our first day back and it's also the Cabinet's first get-
:06:58. > :07:01.together of the year. And the Prime Minister has taken them all on an
:07:01. > :07:05.outing - to the Olympic Park, no less. They're there to mark 200
:07:05. > :07:08.days till the start of the Games. There they are, meeting in a big
:07:08. > :07:11.hall. David Cameron has said the Olympics will provide a "lasting
:07:11. > :07:15.legacy" for east London. Six venues have had their futures secured, two
:07:15. > :07:19.- the main stadium and the media centre - will be sorted in the next
:07:19. > :07:25.few months, before the Games begin. But what does this Olympic year
:07:25. > :07:28.have in store for the party leaders? Jo's been having a look.
:07:28. > :07:31.It's going to be a marathon year for all three party leaders, but
:07:31. > :07:34.have they all got the stamina to see it through?
:07:35. > :07:39.David Cameron's first major hurdle is the economy. The eurozone is
:07:39. > :07:41.still on shaky ground and forecasts for the UK economy remain bleak.
:07:42. > :07:45.He'll be hoping the markets will continue to back his austerity
:07:45. > :07:49.measures. The Prime Minister also needs to
:07:49. > :07:53.keep his rebellious backbenchers in order. After last year's hurdle -
:07:53. > :07:55.when they defied him over Europe - he needs to find ways to keep them
:07:55. > :07:59.happy. The Deputy Prime Minister Nick
:07:59. > :08:02.Clegg also has some Olympic challenges. He's got to flex his
:08:02. > :08:05.muscles and prove he's got the stamina to continue with the
:08:05. > :08:08.coalition. He has a heavy load, with dismal
:08:08. > :08:11.poll ratings, and needs to show the party faithful that the Lib Dems
:08:11. > :08:16.have a strong voice and are getting their policies implemented in the
:08:16. > :08:19.coalition. And Ed Miliband. Well, after a weak
:08:19. > :08:21.start to the year, he'll be wanting to throw off those doubting his
:08:21. > :08:28.leadership credentials. He also needs to demonstrate that
:08:28. > :08:36.the Labour party have a clear message and policies.
:08:36. > :08:39.Let's just see how a bright Our panel of writing things are. Ed
:08:39. > :08:43.Miliband has been leader of your party for 16 months, the coalition
:08:44. > :08:48.is divided, the austerity package gets worse and worse and yet 66% of
:08:49. > :08:53.voters think he is doing a bad job. Why? It is important to remember
:08:53. > :08:58.the context of where we are. We had our second worst election defeat
:08:58. > :09:05.since World War One. We only got 20% of the vote in 20th May 10. In
:09:06. > :09:10.those 18 months, we have recovered by 11 points. -- May 2010.Nip
:09:10. > :09:14.tuck, sometimes you while behind, sometimes you are a point ahead.
:09:14. > :09:20.Mostly, we are ahead. There have been occasions where we are
:09:20. > :09:30.slightly behind. The one two point ahead in yesterday Boz back Paul.
:09:30. > :09:31.
:09:31. > :09:35.And each one has... Were hoping to do the same been made. Why are 66%
:09:35. > :09:37.of voters, at a time with it is not going the coalition's way and
:09:37. > :09:43.living standards are being squeezed and the austerity package for many
:09:44. > :09:48.people isn't working, 66% think your guy is doing a bad job.
:09:48. > :09:51.think that will begin to change. In April, some of the most unfair cuts
:09:51. > :09:56.that the Government are bringing in are going to hit home. There is
:09:56. > :10:00.going to be a cut to working tax credits, a cut to child tax credit
:10:00. > :10:05.as well and working families across the country with children are going
:10:05. > :10:09.to be hit four times harder than families without children. What
:10:09. > :10:15.happens if all of that was to happen, and the Reynolds, and he
:10:15. > :10:22.still remained with a 66% disapproval rate -- and a
:10:22. > :10:26.Reynolds.? I don't want to speculate on hypotheticals. I think
:10:26. > :10:29.that will begin to change because people are starting to say that the
:10:29. > :10:33.cuts that this government are bringing you are hitting the
:10:33. > :10:36.poorest hardest. You are been very loyal this morning and I understand
:10:36. > :10:39.you have the new Tom Baldwin briefing document and these are all
:10:39. > :10:45.the points in it, and that is your job, but Alan Johnson doesn't agree
:10:45. > :10:50.with you. Alistair Darling doesn't agree. Morris Glassman, the great
:10:50. > :10:55.guru, doesn't agree with you. Nobody in Wolverhampton has heard
:10:55. > :11:00.of him. He is not important? What about Mr Johnson and Alistair
:11:00. > :11:02.Darling it? In the last week, there has been a lot of Westminster
:11:02. > :11:05.tittle-tattle and what is more important is what is happening to
:11:05. > :11:11.families up-and-down the country and life is about to get much
:11:11. > :11:16.harder for them. So Labour knees like to get harder before you can
:11:16. > :11:21.make things better? -- need life. Since then a year, both of the
:11:21. > :11:24.other party leaders, Nick Clegg and David Cameron, have taken on the
:11:24. > :11:28.policy agenda that Ed Miliband are set out in September. He talked
:11:28. > :11:35.about creating responsible capitalism, responsibility at the
:11:35. > :11:37.top and bottom of society. This is the kind of language that the
:11:37. > :11:43.premise that Deputy Prime Minister are adopting. Ed Miliband has set
:11:43. > :11:51.out the stall, so he is ahead of the game. Vitalija Baliutaviciene,
:11:51. > :11:54.the Prime Minister is at war with Brussels -- Sam Jonah. He is at war
:11:54. > :11:58.with his coalition partners, and he will be at war with the
:11:58. > :12:03.backbenchers over the 50p tax, and if he doesn't go further over
:12:03. > :12:07.Europe. Is it sensible to be fighting on all fronts? He is
:12:07. > :12:13.batting for Britain. In terms of Brussels, it was right for the
:12:13. > :12:18.Prime Minister to exercise the veto, to show the signal that Britain is
:12:18. > :12:22.open for business and we will protect the city. On Scotland, the
:12:23. > :12:26.SNP fought an election campaign for a referendum and I think it is
:12:26. > :12:29.their right if they want a referendum to have one, in the same
:12:29. > :12:34.way that the UK government should set out its stall, given it is a
:12:34. > :12:37.matter that affects the UK. can't the Scottish government,
:12:37. > :12:41.which unlike your party actually has a lot of votes in Scotland,
:12:41. > :12:46.indeed a majority, why can't it determine whether referendum should
:12:46. > :12:49.be? What has it got to do with you? Because Scottish independence is a
:12:49. > :12:53.matter that affects all of the UK, so the Westminster Parliament
:12:53. > :12:59.should decide in terms of the timing and in terms of what the
:12:59. > :13:03.question is. When were you last in Scotland? I was actually in
:13:03. > :13:08.Scotland for Duncan's wedding, who is married to a Scottish MP. That
:13:08. > :13:13.was last year. So you haven't been there since last May. What is the
:13:13. > :13:16.aim of the Lib Dems in 2012? continue making a difference in
:13:16. > :13:21.government, starting with taking the poorest paid out of tax, which
:13:21. > :13:26.is what we have managed to do for a million people so far. You expect
:13:26. > :13:33.that process to continue be the next budget? I certainly do.
:13:33. > :13:37.are expecting a George Osborne to take another big chunk... To raise
:13:37. > :13:42.this darting point of income tax again in the March budget -- the
:13:42. > :13:45.starting point. We have many just begun. The coalition agreement
:13:45. > :13:49.commits us to reaching �10,000 by the end of this Parliament as the
:13:49. > :13:56.personal allowance. That will do an enormous amount of good for people
:13:56. > :14:00.on low income. What else? people premium. That is set to
:14:00. > :14:04.double this year. I have already visited schools in my constituency
:14:04. > :14:07.and seen the difference that is making, to schools that are taking
:14:07. > :14:13.children from some of the most disadvantaged households. That is
:14:13. > :14:17.important... That has been done, as I understand it? In it is being
:14:17. > :14:22.implemented. It needs to grow over the course of this Parliament. I
:14:22. > :14:25.would like to see us make progress on Lords reform, bring some of this
:14:25. > :14:31.austerity to the boardroom, which we have been talking about. I would
:14:31. > :14:34.take issue with air about this being Ed Miliband's agenda. Vince
:14:34. > :14:37.Cable has been talking about this for some time, his department
:14:37. > :14:41.issued a consultation and he will be responding on behalf of the
:14:41. > :14:46.Government. It is Vince Cable for the Liberal Democrats that is
:14:46. > :14:50.making the running. Are you going to get an employee on remuneration
:14:50. > :14:53.committees? It is clear that stake holder activism, which is what the
:14:53. > :14:57.Government is suggesting, isn't going to be enough to close the gap
:14:57. > :15:03.between those who are very, very highly paid and those who are paid
:15:03. > :15:06.low incomes. It is funny you don't think it is enough. For 13 years,
:15:06. > :15:11.Gordon Brown thought it was enough, and we will achieve more than
:15:11. > :15:19.Labour did on this issue have been 13 years of government. Why is the
:15:19. > :15:22.gum -- isn't the Government going Ed Miliband was talking about tax
:15:22. > :15:26.and predator companies and producer companies, and that was his
:15:26. > :15:29.solution to the stake holder activism issue and what we are
:15:29. > :15:32.talking about is aligning the interest of shareholders with the
:15:32. > :15:36.interests of managers. That is a more effective way of dealing with
:15:36. > :15:41.the problem. His Ed Miliband relaunching himself tomorrow with
:15:41. > :15:47.his big interview on the Today programme? We are back to business
:15:47. > :15:57.and back in Parliament. Easy relaunch in? Not necessarily. -- es
:15:57. > :16:01.That is what politicians normally do, go on programmes, why would
:16:01. > :16:05.that be different in this year? thing the Cabinet has been
:16:05. > :16:09.discussing his proposals to give the Scottish government the legal
:16:09. > :16:14.power to hold a binding referendum on Scottish independence. I am
:16:14. > :16:18.joined by Nicola Sturgeon from the SNP. We have just been talking
:16:18. > :16:20.about it, and it is clear from you and Alex Salmond that you want to
:16:20. > :16:25.hold the referendum in the second half of the parliamentary term,
:16:25. > :16:28.which is what she will do. But the issue we have been discussing, why
:16:29. > :16:32.shouldn't the Westminster parliament also have a say in the
:16:32. > :16:36.question of Scottish independence? The break-up of the UK is not just
:16:36. > :16:39.an issue for Scotland? You could have said the same thing when the
:16:39. > :16:42.Scottish parliament was set up because that change that nature of
:16:42. > :16:47.the relationship between Scotland and the UK, but there was no
:16:47. > :16:50.question that the people who decided whether we had a parliament
:16:50. > :16:54.was the Scottish people. The same is true of independence. That
:16:54. > :16:58.should be decided by the Scottish people and I suspect most people
:16:58. > :17:02.across the UK would think that is a perfectly reasonable position and
:17:02. > :17:06.that is they right position. don't think anyone is denying the
:17:06. > :17:11.Scottish people should have their say, but it does take too, if you
:17:11. > :17:16.like, to separate. Are you saying that MPs and people here should be
:17:16. > :17:21.deprived of that here? I am sure we will continue to have a close,
:17:21. > :17:24.constructive relationship with the other parts of the UK when Scotland
:17:24. > :17:28.is an independent country. Independence will mean a new,
:17:28. > :17:31.modern relationship of equals between the countries of the
:17:31. > :17:35.islands, but whether Scotland becomes independent is a matter for
:17:35. > :17:39.the Scottish people. And when the referendum takes place is a matter
:17:39. > :17:44.for the Scottish government. We stood for an election last May and
:17:44. > :17:46.were elected with a majority, and we have an overwhelming mandate for
:17:46. > :17:50.the notion that the referendum should be in the second half of
:17:50. > :17:56.this term. So no idea of negotiation with David Cameron or
:17:56. > :18:00.the government at all? That has been ruled out? The Scottish
:18:00. > :18:04.government discuss as a whole range of matters constructively and the
:18:04. > :18:09.UK is right for us to want to do that, but when we have a referendum
:18:09. > :18:14.to determine the future it is determined correctly that it should
:18:14. > :18:20.be by the Scottish people. Far more importantly than that, the people
:18:20. > :18:23.of Scotland voted for this. This is a question of fairly basic
:18:23. > :18:26.democratic principle. The timing of the referendum is for the Scottish
:18:26. > :18:31.government and the outcome is for the Scottish people. Nicola
:18:31. > :18:35.Sturgeon, thank you. Well, Sam, that was pretty clear. It will be
:18:35. > :18:39.ignored, and they will have the referendum will be had whatever the
:18:39. > :18:44.government says. We are going to have difficult discussions over the
:18:44. > :18:50.next few months. And we are going to get legal advice and state the
:18:50. > :18:55.position quite clearly so we have to be clear and decisive and legal.
:18:55. > :19:00.The UK government's position at the moment is that to achieve all three,
:19:00. > :19:04.Westminster has to decide on the timing and wording of the
:19:04. > :19:08.referendum, and I think that is right. When you say legal advice,
:19:08. > :19:12.what is clear is constitutionally it is not binding unless
:19:12. > :19:15.Westminster has a final say or the government hands the powers over?
:19:15. > :19:20.But there is nothing to stop the Scottish government having a
:19:20. > :19:23.referendum and whatever the outcome is, it would be politically
:19:23. > :19:29.difficult for David Cameron to say that that is not binding or they do
:19:29. > :19:34.not support the outcome of the election, referendum, Surrey.
:19:34. > :19:37.will be difficult for Alex Salmond to want a referendum and then say
:19:37. > :19:41.that having a referendum sooner rather than later is something that
:19:41. > :19:44.he does not want. I think that would be difficult for him
:19:44. > :19:50.politically as well. Except he stated clearly would be in the
:19:50. > :19:53.second half, for whatever reason. Do you support that idea? Should
:19:53. > :19:59.the government give those legally binding powers over to Scotland
:19:59. > :20:02.with conditions attached or not? think it is important a referendum
:20:02. > :20:06.is fair and the question is there. We had a net referendum last year
:20:06. > :20:10.and we were on the losing side and we accepted the result. The
:20:10. > :20:14.question was said by eat the electoral commission. People need
:20:14. > :20:19.to have confidence in the democratic practices that on going,
:20:20. > :20:22.so they resurrect them -- a referendum being judged by those
:20:22. > :20:26.taking part in the mandate is important for public confidence.
:20:26. > :20:34.The that should there be this interference from the British
:20:34. > :20:37.government -- but should there be? They should be an independent
:20:37. > :20:40.organisation playing a role in the organisation of the referendum.
:20:40. > :20:43.Other than that you have a situation where one side of the
:20:43. > :20:46.argument is pulling the strings and Alex would not accept that if it
:20:46. > :20:52.was Westminster and I think the Scottish people deserve to know
:20:52. > :20:57.that their referendum which makes a big difference to their future were
:20:57. > :21:01.it is the position of Ed Miliband? The referendum should take place as
:21:01. > :21:05.soon as possible and that the economic uncertainty that the delay
:21:05. > :21:10.is causing is not good for Scotland and the rest of the UK. So so
:21:10. > :21:16.Labour totally supports the position of Ed Miliband West --? So
:21:16. > :21:20.what you say is that it is Labour's loss of support in Scotland that
:21:20. > :21:25.has given the SNP such a boost in confidence but they feel like
:21:25. > :21:29.controlling it. If they feel so confident, why not have it the she?
:21:29. > :21:33.During the campaign they want to be later because it was pure
:21:33. > :21:36.opportunities and -- opportunism. They want to have time to convince
:21:36. > :21:40.people because the polling at the moment shows they would not win it
:21:40. > :21:48.if it took place. They do show that although there has been a slight
:21:49. > :21:52.improvement in favour. But we have For many of us it looks like being
:21:52. > :22:01.the same will story when it comes to it the economy this year. The
:22:01. > :22:04.crisis in the macro Eurozone is rumbling on, and Mr Merkel and --
:22:04. > :22:08.Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy will be meeting every 10 days.
:22:09. > :22:12.Government cuts are biting as the standard of living goes down and we
:22:12. > :22:17.feel poorer at the end of the day. His austerity worth it? We sent
:22:17. > :22:21.Adam Fleming to find out. One of the grimmest things about new year
:22:21. > :22:25.is coming back to work, but we are brightening things of the commuters
:22:25. > :22:32.on this windy morning with a Daily Politics mood box. We are asking
:22:32. > :22:37.about the austerity drive. Is it worth it or not worth it? We are in
:22:37. > :22:44.no better state than we were. July to vote in the poll? -- would
:22:44. > :22:48.you like to vote? Not much goodwill around here. A lot of money is
:22:48. > :22:54.wasted on completely idiotic nonsense. They put up very odd
:22:54. > :22:58.posters where I live telling people that lesbians ought to be able to
:22:58. > :23:02.adopt people's children. What a waste of money. It doesn't sound
:23:02. > :23:08.very expensive. But they could cut it, it would be a start. We can't
:23:08. > :23:13.live beyond our means as we have been doing. After all that, voters
:23:13. > :23:17.seem pretty divided. But what about that other new year tradition,
:23:17. > :23:21.working off the turkey at the gym? Let's find out what people think at
:23:21. > :23:25.the YMCA. A I think it is worth it, but there are things they don't
:23:25. > :23:34.need to be pushed as much. I think one of these is too big. I don't
:23:34. > :23:41.think it will go in a hole. Would you like to come and vote in our
:23:41. > :23:44.survey? No thanks. One do you say I think it is impacting on the
:23:44. > :23:48.spending and it will choke off the economy so people don't have enough
:23:48. > :23:54.money to spend and everyone else suffers. What about your team mate?
:23:54. > :23:57.I think it is worth it. It has got to be done. We have to save the
:23:57. > :24:03.money and the debt has to be paid back. Well, the number who think it
:24:03. > :24:07.is not worth it is definitely going up. So there is just enough time
:24:07. > :24:11.for our last new year tradition, hitting the sales. Targeting the
:24:11. > :24:15.middle man, who is already getting taxed and working hard, they are
:24:15. > :24:20.the one they are squeezing. private sector pays to everything
:24:20. > :24:24.in this country. There is far too much public sector. We need to see
:24:24. > :24:27.the beginning of a new movement where people are talking about
:24:27. > :24:32.things and challenging the way things are done. You can keep one
:24:32. > :24:36.as a present. Thank you. After all that, the people think austerity is
:24:36. > :24:46.not worth the largest in the lead. But through the whole process
:24:46. > :24:47.
:24:47. > :24:53.And off he goes into the sunset. Sam, 2011 was the era of austerity,
:24:53. > :24:59.is 2012 as well? Austerity and growth. We have to stick to the
:24:59. > :25:03.plan. We have announced austerity measures in everything from the
:25:03. > :25:11.financial markets is telling us we have to stick to it. So this will
:25:11. > :25:15.be our second year? Are we heading for a third? For the Chancellor
:25:15. > :25:17.said before the Autumn Statement that we would be going beyond 2015
:25:17. > :25:22.in terms of eliminating the structural deficit and that is how
:25:22. > :25:26.long it will take to clear up the mess we inherited. But, it is not
:25:26. > :25:31.just about clearing up the mess, it is about ensuring we have economic
:25:31. > :25:40.growth. The economy is not going to grow by much this year though, is
:25:40. > :25:45.it? Maybe 1%. It is not forecast by the offer to budget responsibility
:25:45. > :25:48.to grow by that much. -- office of budget responsibility. He wanted to
:25:48. > :25:54.grow to mop of the increase in the labour force at least. So at that
:25:54. > :25:56.level of growth, unemployment will rise. It is a tough time. I looked
:25:56. > :26:01.at what was happening in the Eurozone and the markets have gone
:26:01. > :26:05.down today because everyone is looking to what's Angela Merkel and
:26:05. > :26:10.Nicolas Sarkozy will come up with. We have had this problem for long
:26:11. > :26:15.time and we are giving up 40 % of back exports, and it is going to be
:26:15. > :26:20.a challenging time to stimulate growth while we have the global
:26:20. > :26:24.economic slowdown. We have now heard from a Conservative MP that
:26:24. > :26:28.we are heading for three years of austerity. We have had one, we have
:26:28. > :26:34.started a second, and another three are looming. Yet, on the economy,
:26:34. > :26:38.Labour is not trusted to run it. Even George Osborne has a 16 point
:26:38. > :26:42.lead over Labour interest on financial matters. What has gone
:26:42. > :26:46.wrong? Let me take issue with something sound just said. The
:26:46. > :26:49.government like to blame us for the first 18 months and now they are
:26:49. > :26:53.trying to blame the Eurozone. Growth has been flat lining for the
:26:53. > :26:57.last year. It is not to do with the Eurozone. It is to do with the fact
:26:57. > :27:04.that the government has been cutting too deep and too fast and
:27:04. > :27:09.that without growth our borrowing will go well. If that was true, why
:27:09. > :27:14.do all of the surveys showed that the Conservatives and the coalition
:27:14. > :27:19.are more trusted than Labour to run the economy? We had a very bad
:27:19. > :27:23.election result. We do have to regain economic credibility. That
:27:23. > :27:27.is something that the whole Shadow Cabinet and Shadow frontbench
:27:27. > :27:30.recognise. As I said before, I think that is something that will
:27:30. > :27:34.start to change during the year. Aren't you getting worried that
:27:34. > :27:38.your whole gamble in joining a coalition was there would be a
:27:38. > :27:41.couple of years of pain and then it was off to the sunny uplands. It
:27:42. > :27:46.doesn't look like you're going to get many sunny are plans this side
:27:46. > :27:50.of the election. Maybe not, but I don't think it was a gamble. It was
:27:50. > :27:55.about trying to clear up the economic mess the country was in.
:27:55. > :27:58.We have seen that compounded by European sovereign debt crisis, but
:27:58. > :28:02.our country can now borrow more cheaply than any other in Europe
:28:02. > :28:06.because of the measures this government has taken to make sure
:28:06. > :28:10.that our public finances are brought back under control. It will
:28:10. > :28:13.be a difficult time ahead for we are taking the long-term decisions.
:28:13. > :28:16.I was very pleased to see the end of last year that we were winning
:28:16. > :28:22.the argument on the importance of capital investment in the
:28:22. > :28:31.infrastructure and making sure... The coalition or the Lib Dems?
:28:31. > :28:34.colleagues. The argument was won. I am glad that the coalition was
:28:34. > :28:37.united behind the position of the Autumn Statement, because we need
:28:37. > :28:43.to do that and work on youth unemployment. We are going to leave
:28:43. > :28:47.it there. Plenty more to come though. Thanks to all our guests.
:28:47. > :28:51.Joe will be back flying solo tomorrow at 12:00pm tomorrow.