17/07/2013

:00:44. > :00:50.Daily Politics. Shocking failings in the NHS put 11

:00:50. > :00:58.hospitals in special measures, but who's to blame - this government or

:00:58. > :01:08.its Labour predecessor? Or both? David Cameron warned was the next

:01:08. > :01:08.

:01:08. > :01:14.big scandal waiting to happen - so he waited three years to do anything

:01:14. > :01:21.about it. Today we finally get a bill to regulate lobbying.

:01:21. > :01:31.Boris wants to turn it into the 33rd London borough, but Heathrow wants a

:01:31. > :01:34.

:01:34. > :01:39.third runway - the airport's boss joins us live.

:01:40. > :01:44.And you thought the Heathrow flight path was loud? We'll measure noise

:01:45. > :01:51.levels in the Commons as political temperature rises. Order, order.

:01:51. > :02:01.There is still far too much shouting.

:02:01. > :02:03.

:02:03. > :02:05.All that coming up in the next 90 minutes of scorching hot political

:02:05. > :02:09.debate. And keeping cool in our air-conditioned studio this morning

:02:10. > :02:14.is Westminster's hottest political talent. Labour's Chuka Umunna, he's

:02:14. > :02:18.the Shadow Business Secretary, and the Planning Minister, Nick Boles.

:02:18. > :02:26.Welcome to you both. First this morning, yesterday's damning report

:02:26. > :02:33.into serious failings in NHS hospitals continues to resonate here

:02:33. > :02:37.at Westminster. Indeed, the terms of the political debate may have

:02:37. > :02:44.changed with the Health Secretary trying to position himself as the

:02:44. > :02:48.champion of NHS patients rather than the NHS itself. Thousands may have

:02:48. > :02:58.met an early death in the 14 hospitals concerned, but what really

:02:58. > :03:01.

:03:01. > :03:08.seemed to matter in the Commons was who was to blame. Rob the last

:03:08. > :03:12.government left the NHS with a system covering up weak leadership,

:03:12. > :03:19.and failed to prioritise compassionate care. This system's

:03:19. > :03:26.reputation, this is uncomfortable for honourable members, mattered

:03:27. > :03:30.more than individual patients. Targets mattered more than the ball.

:03:30. > :03:40.At health questions, the Health Secretary claimed this was an

:03:40. > :03:48.

:03:48. > :03:55.historical report about the past. I measures. Most viewers, if you asked

:03:55. > :04:04.them, is your treatment good treatment, from the NHS, they would

:04:04. > :04:10.say, yes, I get a good service. Were there failings? Clearly. But in this

:04:10. > :04:14.report, there is a claim that Labour ministers, colleagues of mine in

:04:14. > :04:24.government, deliberately and wilfully sought to cover up failings

:04:24. > :04:27.

:04:27. > :04:35.in the NHS. Nowhere in this report, I would happily handed to Nick Boles

:04:35. > :04:41.now, we know what page it is on, but nowhere in this report didn't say

:04:41. > :04:45.there was evidence that that happened. A lot of this relates to

:04:45. > :04:48.more salad tea. Andy Burnham, he was one of a number of Labour Health

:04:48. > :04:55.Secretary is, in 2009, asked for a proper investigation into those

:04:55. > :05:01.hospitals with high mortality rate. That was produced in April 2010, I

:05:01. > :05:09.believe, and identified hospital trusts which needed to be looked at,

:05:09. > :05:11.50 of them. Do you feel ashamed or at least disappointed that all of

:05:11. > :05:16.these serious failings in the health service still existed after 13 years

:05:16. > :05:20.of Labour government? I would not claim that every element of NHS

:05:20. > :05:24.service provision was perfect under my government, and I am disappointed

:05:24. > :05:27.that failings impacted on families and would have caused upset. People

:05:27. > :05:37.died because of inadequacy of care, in many cases. Sir Bruce Keogh and

:05:37. > :05:38.

:05:38. > :05:44.the NHS has said in defence of this wild claim of 13,000... I did not

:05:45. > :05:47.say 13,000, I understand that it is controversial and it is not in the

:05:47. > :05:54.report, but many people died because of inadequate care. That happened in

:05:54. > :05:58.Mid Staffordshire. Professor Brian John and, he says labour ignored his

:05:58. > :06:05.findings about high mortality rates. We don't accept that. We

:06:05. > :06:13.commissioned in 2009, Andy Burnham asked the NHS to look into high

:06:13. > :06:18.mortality rates. Professor Brian Jarman said he e-mailed Andy Burnham

:06:18. > :06:26.and said there were an alarming number of patient deaths, therefore

:06:26. > :06:33.that was a red flag . Are Ness Thornton said it would be more

:06:33. > :06:37.appropriate to take it up with the Care Quality Commission -- Baroness

:06:37. > :06:44.Thornton said. Andy Burnham looked at the hospitals where there were

:06:45. > :06:52.high mortality rate. This is an independent review, produced and

:06:52. > :06:59.commissioned by the Government, and it has not shown any findings that

:06:59. > :07:06.Andy Burnham did not act properly. Tame side get a very bad press in

:07:06. > :07:11.this. It is claimed that Labour ignored a whistleblower in 2005,

:07:11. > :07:17.warnings to Parliament in 2006, a coroner 's report in 2006 and

:07:17. > :07:27.warnings from Andrew Lansley, when he was the Shadow health minister,

:07:27. > :07:27.

:07:27. > :07:30.in 2009. Both wary as the evidence to back this up? The way in which

:07:30. > :07:40.these hospital trusts were identified was based on mortality

:07:40. > :07:41.

:07:41. > :07:49.figures. It may have got worse under this government. Am I saying the NHS

:07:49. > :07:57.was perfect during my party's time in government? No. Even if we spent

:07:57. > :08:00.the whole of the GDP on the health service, it would never be perfect,

:08:01. > :08:04.but after all the money spent, after the feeling in this country that he

:08:04. > :08:13.helped service is, quote, the envy of the world, that so many people

:08:13. > :08:19.should be dying from substandard care? It is the question of the

:08:20. > :08:28.numbers. Anybody dying is a matter of regret. You would not want that

:08:28. > :08:35.to happen to anyone, it does not matter how many numbers. But what

:08:35. > :08:40.Sir Bruce Keogh says is that, on the whole, the NHS had massively

:08:40. > :08:45.improved after decades of neglect. You would have seen this in the

:08:45. > :08:50.Sunday papers, there has been an attempt to deliberately smear one

:08:50. > :08:55.individual on the Labour front bench at the moment, Andy Burnham, because

:08:55. > :08:59.they have TV tested him, he is one of our most effective communicators.

:08:59. > :09:06.Let me come on to Nick Boles. Stephen Dorrell, the former

:09:06. > :09:10.Conservative Health Secretary, said that patients listening to what

:09:10. > :09:15.happened yesterday will think it is divorced from any focus of what is

:09:15. > :09:21.important to them, the quality of care delivered by the health

:09:21. > :09:26.service. But your party decided to play politics. I don't think it is

:09:26. > :09:32.playing politics to say that when concerns were raised by patients and

:09:32. > :09:38.health service workers that they were not adequately considered or

:09:38. > :09:42.brought into the public domain. It is not Conservatives that were

:09:42. > :09:49.running the Care Quality Commission, are Ness Young was appointed by the

:09:49. > :09:59.last government and the regulator, Bill Moyers, they have both said

:09:59. > :10:09.that there was a real pressure. It derived from the approach of the

:10:09. > :10:10.

:10:10. > :10:15.last government that they could manage the NHS, which is a total

:10:15. > :10:19.error. You cannot manage show an organisation of that size. You

:10:19. > :10:22.guarantee the funding, which the Labour Party would not do, by the

:10:22. > :10:28.way, we stand up for patients' interest. If you weren't playing

:10:28. > :10:31.politics, why was this figure of 13,000 deaths allowed to be briefed

:10:31. > :10:37.out at the weekend to all the major Sunday newspapers when we know that

:10:37. > :10:39.Sir Bruce Keogh said it is clinically meaningless and

:10:39. > :10:49.academically reckless to use such statistical measures? Nobody ever

:10:49. > :10:51.

:10:51. > :10:59.sent me a piece of paper is saying, 13,000 deaths. I am very junior and

:10:59. > :11:04.not a health minister, but you would have thought we would all have been

:11:04. > :11:08.told that. If you see David Cameron's statement following Mid

:11:08. > :11:13.Staffordshire, he said, the author of the report does not blame any

:11:13. > :11:18.specific policy, does not blame the last Secretary of State for health.

:11:18. > :11:24.He says we should not seek scapegoats. Yet you are seeking to

:11:25. > :11:30.scapegoat Andy Burnham. We are trying to hold the Labour Party and

:11:30. > :11:35.its last Secretary of State for health responsible for a system

:11:35. > :11:39.whereby they wanted to manage the NHS, they wanted to resist any

:11:39. > :11:41.attempt to show that things were not working in the NHS. That will never

:11:42. > :11:44.work. They need to take responsibility. The Labour Party

:11:44. > :11:48.does not take responsibility for anything, they need to take

:11:48. > :11:51.responsibility. Two of the places getting a bad rap, Basildon and

:11:51. > :11:53.Tameside health trust 's, they are two of the worst. Since you came to

:11:54. > :11:56.power you have cut 128 nursing post at Tameside and over 300 from

:11:56. > :11:59.Basildon. Severn Trent have cut front-line staff by 1117.

:11:59. > :12:02.Professor Keogh said there is absolutely no financial reason for

:12:02. > :12:08.these decisions. My trust in Lincolnshire is in special measures

:12:08. > :12:13.and as a result of this report it is urgently trying to recruit 200 extra

:12:13. > :12:17.nurses. The government does not any more tell them what they should do

:12:17. > :12:22.with their money. They have a responsibility to spend it

:12:22. > :12:30.responsibly and we have a responsibility to show everyone if

:12:30. > :12:34.things are going one as a result of poor management. Baroness Young

:12:34. > :12:44.claimed that David Cameron misrepresented her comments. She

:12:44. > :12:44.

:12:45. > :12:51.asked him to correct it. But her quota is on the record. -- her quota

:12:51. > :12:55.is on the record. Now, get your ear defenders ready.

:12:55. > :13:05.That was last week's PMQs, of course, which got pretty noisy - but

:13:05. > :13:07.

:13:07. > :13:12.just how noisy? Order, order, there is still far too much shouting on

:13:12. > :13:22.both sides of the chamber. The Prime Minister, I think, is concluding his

:13:22. > :13:22.

:13:22. > :13:32.answer. Tessa Munt and Alan Cairns, two backbench MPs were there.

:13:32. > :13:33.

:13:33. > :13:38.Look at Tessa Munt, what are you holding? That is my iPad, it is a

:13:38. > :13:43.decibel monitor. I will be using it today, I don't believe it will be

:13:43. > :13:47.any different from normal. You will be using this app on our behalf to

:13:47. > :13:57.measure how noisy it was. How noisy was it last week? I put the decibel

:13:57. > :14:00.count on the iPad and it crossed the 100 mark for the first time. It was

:14:00. > :14:03.a most intimidating environment last week, it was an absolute bearpit.

:14:03. > :14:12.100 on the decibel count is apparently just short of a power

:14:12. > :14:22.drill. If that is on a persistent basis, you can imagine. A jet flying

:14:22. > :14:25.over is 103 decibel is, that is the noise you are putting up with and

:14:25. > :14:27.the noise the party leaders have to fight against. Did John Bercow

:14:27. > :14:34.struggle to keep everything under control? I think it is sometimes

:14:34. > :14:39.quite difficult, it is almost impossible to be heard. You will

:14:39. > :14:43.hear him call for order repeatedly. It gives some indication. It is

:14:43. > :14:46.quite difficult to get us to pay attention. I don't do any shouting,

:14:46. > :14:49.I think it isn't dignified and unnecessary. It is the last one of

:14:49. > :14:59.the term this Wednesday, I would imagine there is no question there

:14:59. > :14:59.

:14:59. > :15:04.will be some shouting. Whose fault is it? Tessa Munt says she does not

:15:05. > :15:13.shout but whose fault is it that they get to that level of crescendo?

:15:13. > :15:16.The week before last, the Prime Minister won convincingly and... So

:15:16. > :15:22.the issue would accept that context and therefore, last week, the Labour

:15:22. > :15:29.Party came out and it was simply survival for Ed Miliband and come on

:15:29. > :15:33.that basis, the whips had probable eyes that probably organised louder

:15:33. > :15:37.voices to support him. If you are on the opposition and your own side

:15:37. > :15:41.behind you are silent, it must be the most lonely place in the world

:15:41. > :15:47.and that's the purpose of the noise behind, to show support for your own

:15:47. > :15:51.site, for your leader, and to give him confidence. You are shaking your

:15:51. > :16:00.head, Tessa Munt. It's childish, pathetic. I would rather hear what

:16:00. > :16:05.they say. I struggle to listen to the little speakers I have on the

:16:05. > :16:10.back of the seats. You can't hear a word said. People on television here

:16:11. > :16:15.it better because they have the equipment. But it is pathetic, and I

:16:15. > :16:20.think it just is despicable, really, because it makes the whole thing an

:16:20. > :16:23.absolute playground. It doesn't give us any respect of politicians. If

:16:23. > :16:28.you did that in the council chamber, there's no question you would be

:16:28. > :16:34.thrown out. That's what should be happen. We should listen, have

:16:34. > :16:38.respect, because how does anybody expect us to get respect if we don't

:16:38. > :16:44.behave in a sensible grown-up manner? How louder do think it will

:16:44. > :16:50.be? I think some people might be frightened of being named by the

:16:50. > :16:56.speaker, and I think it will probably get to about 90 today.

:16:56. > :17:01.think higher than that. All right, we have taken nap addiction. Come

:17:01. > :17:04.back to us after PMQs. Thanks. Now, before the last election, David

:17:04. > :17:08.Cameron said that Lobbying was the next big scandal waiting to happen.

:17:08. > :17:11.Well, he turned out to be quite a clairvoyant. Today the government

:17:11. > :17:15.publishes a bill to regulate the business of lobbying and try to put

:17:15. > :17:21.an end to the perception that politicians are cabs for hire.

:17:21. > :17:24.Here's Jo Le Taxi. Very good. Yes, the debate about lobbying was

:17:24. > :17:27.reignited earlier this year when Conservative MP Patrick Mercer was

:17:27. > :17:33.one a of a number of parliamentarians caught on camera

:17:34. > :17:43.offering themselves out as hired consultants. I could normally

:17:44. > :18:07.

:18:07. > :18:10.wrong-doing but resigned the Tory Whip following the Panorama and

:18:10. > :18:13.Daily Telegraph sting back in May, prompting calls for the government

:18:13. > :18:17.to take action. The Coalition Agreement had promised to regulate

:18:17. > :18:20.lobbying through introducing a statutory register of lobbyists.

:18:20. > :18:23.Over three years later, the government are today publishing a

:18:23. > :18:27.bill that would set up this statutory register and introduce new

:18:27. > :18:30.measures to reform party funding The move comes at a time when David

:18:30. > :18:36.Cameron is facing pressure over decisions to drop plans for plain

:18:36. > :18:39.cigarette packaging and a minimum price for alcohol. With the

:18:39. > :18:42.opposition claiming he has been lobbied by his election strategist

:18:42. > :18:45.Lynton Crosby, whose firm has been advising tobacco giant Philip Morris

:18:45. > :18:49.International. And Labour are also under fire over their links to the

:18:49. > :18:59.trade unions and claims that Unite has been trying to fix parliamentary

:18:59. > :19:00.

:19:00. > :19:06.selection processes. Andrew. Thanks for that. David Cameron thought

:19:06. > :19:12.lobbying was going to be the next big scandal. Why did he hire a

:19:12. > :19:16.lobbyist as his election strategist? Mr Crosby is an expert strategist

:19:16. > :19:23.and has run a series of elections for the Australian Prime Minister,

:19:23. > :19:27.and for Michael Howard. And Boris Johnson's election campaign. What he

:19:27. > :19:31.does in his other time of his own business. He is employed by the

:19:31. > :19:35.Conservative Party, not by the government. Secondly, he's only

:19:35. > :19:42.employed for one day a week and thirdly, the Conservative Party pays

:19:42. > :19:47.him. He will call for paper, calls the tune. The Prime Minister decides

:19:47. > :19:51.what he will do with his time. The unions on the other hand, are paying

:19:51. > :19:56.the Labour Party and have a secure place in the Labour Party's

:19:56. > :20:01.constitution, they vote for the leader and policy. There is a

:20:01. > :20:06.fundamental difference between these two situations. Will Lynton Crosby

:20:06. > :20:09.is that one day a week between now and election? If his time increases,

:20:09. > :20:15.he will be able to less work for other people and more work for the

:20:15. > :20:22.Conservative Party. A lobbyist, it becomes your full-time study just?

:20:22. > :20:27.Should he? He doesn't lobby the Prime Minister, ministers. If

:20:27. > :20:33.anything, we tried to lobby him to make sure he understands why our

:20:33. > :20:37.policies are important. How do you know he hasn't lobbied ministers?

:20:37. > :20:43.Because the Prime Minister has made it clear he's never lobbied him on

:20:43. > :20:49.any other subjects... He's not made it clear he hasn't had a discussion

:20:49. > :20:56.about tobacco with Mr Crosby. said he has not been lobbied. Have

:20:56. > :21:00.you ever had a discussion, Chuka with a union leader about any of

:21:00. > :21:07.your policies? Have they ever had a role in the election of your leader?

:21:07. > :21:11.Yes, he would've lost to David Miliband but for hit their boat. We

:21:11. > :21:16.are paying a relatively modest sum to an election strategist. There was

:21:16. > :21:21.a big difference. It's not one of the great secrets of British

:21:21. > :21:27.politics that the unions have been influencing the Labour Party. A

:21:27. > :21:34.level political science, we learn that. What influence if any Mr

:21:34. > :21:39.Crosby, with his lobbying, has had on your government policy? We have

:21:39. > :21:44.been very clear he's employed by the Conservatives for one day a week to

:21:44. > :21:49.provide election strategy advice. The does not have any role, not any

:21:49. > :21:52.contact with civil servants. He's not lobbying and is not allowed to.

:21:52. > :21:57.I think there is an important distinction to be made between big

:21:57. > :22:02.tobacco, alcohol, commercial interests, and trade unions which

:22:02. > :22:07.represent millions of working people. Many people working in the

:22:07. > :22:12.studio. There is an important distinction but the key thing here

:22:12. > :22:17.is transparency and accountability. The extent to which the Labour Party

:22:17. > :22:21.has contributions from the unions is on public record. The problem with

:22:21. > :22:31.lobbying, this argument Nick is making, we'd paid Lynton Crosby to

:22:31. > :22:35.coming to us and we will be him, I've never heard of anybody

:22:35. > :22:39.suggesting that. Transparency and accountability, will this bill the

:22:39. > :22:43.government is introducing today, we are putting down amendments to this,

:22:44. > :22:46.to makes sure all of the lobbying companies in the country fully

:22:47. > :22:52.disclose who their clients are and the extent to which they get money

:22:52. > :22:57.from them. Secondly, to ensure people like Lynton Crosby are also

:22:57. > :23:01.covered by these rules. The idea he won't have any impact on policy

:23:01. > :23:07.whatsoever is ludicrous. Let me put that to him. Will Lynton Crosby's

:23:08. > :23:12.list of clients the public as a result of this bill? The rules will

:23:12. > :23:19.apply to all people who are lobbying on behalf of companies in the UK.

:23:19. > :23:23.we will see the company 's he has? don't know the details of the bill.

:23:23. > :23:28.Let's be clear, Andrew, the Labour Party was in government for 13

:23:28. > :23:32.years. We had Bernie Ecclestone giving Tony Blair �1 million and

:23:32. > :23:38.surprise surprise, Tony Blair turns around and does not ban cigarette

:23:38. > :23:48.advertising in the sporting events. Oh please, come on. Of course, it's

:23:48. > :23:51.taken three years. Andrew. didn't you do it in 13 years?

:23:52. > :23:58.tobacco advertising for example, we banned billboard advertising, banned

:23:58. > :24:01.smoking in public places, banned smoking advertising in sport, and

:24:01. > :24:05.actually come as a result of some of the issues raised, Tony Blair said

:24:05. > :24:10.at the time, it wasn't so much what happened but we introduced so many

:24:10. > :24:18.of the disclosable switch mean people know what he contributed. Let

:24:18. > :24:26.me finish. Why didn't you introduce a lobbying register? Let me finish

:24:26. > :24:32.my sentence. Answer my question. As a result of the rules we

:24:32. > :24:36.introduced, we do now know what is paid to political parties and all so

:24:36. > :24:41.there are certain rules where overseas companies can no longer

:24:41. > :24:45.contribute into election campaigns which didn't exist under the

:24:45. > :24:49.Conservatives. Are there more things we can do? Of course there are but

:24:49. > :24:53.why we're putting down amendments to this bill but to say nothing

:24:53. > :25:01.happened about transparency in 13 years is nonsense. Do you think

:25:01. > :25:08.there should be a requirement that trade unions, we have to count an

:25:08. > :25:13.audit of its membership to prove its accuracy? I think there is an

:25:13. > :25:17.independent audit of their members and they are not carrying about at

:25:17. > :25:22.themselves. It will be interesting to see how they propose doing it and

:25:22. > :25:26.who will fund it but transparency and accuracy of membership figures

:25:26. > :25:31.for trade unions is a good thing. I don't think they will disagree with

:25:31. > :25:36.that but let's look at the detail. What does Lynton Crosby get for one

:25:36. > :25:42.day a week? I don't know but is an expert man and I'm sure he charges a

:25:42. > :25:45.lot more than I do, to be frank. It's so sought after, its backstory

:25:45. > :25:48.so compelling, it's so often the topic of conversation for television

:25:48. > :25:52.viewers up and down the country that, naturally, it now has its own

:25:52. > :25:59.Wikipedia page. Of what do I speak? Well, the trusty Daily Politics mug,

:25:59. > :26:03.of course. We've had nothing to do with this page. We wouldn't blow our

:26:03. > :26:07.own mug's trumpet. We'll leave it to our many fans and followers to do

:26:07. > :26:13.that. In fact this one's a mock-up. And we're in good company because

:26:13. > :26:17.Chuka here has a famous wikipedia page. Everyone loves my page.Now

:26:17. > :26:20.the page used to include the flattering quote "may end up as the

:26:20. > :26:28.UK's Barack Obama". Chuka has made it absolutely clear that he had

:26:28. > :26:32.nothing to do with putting that quote on the page. Transparency.

:26:32. > :26:35.Nothing, nothing, nothing. In fact, Chuka has criticised journalists who

:26:35. > :26:41.have compared him to the US President. So it couldn't have been

:26:41. > :26:44.him, could it? I have never compared to the US president though I have

:26:44. > :26:48.once or twice head Barack Obama saying he is really American's

:26:48. > :26:52.Chuka. Now, our mug doesn't need bigging up because we know that

:26:52. > :26:55.hundreds of you will compete to win one in Guess The Year. Particularly

:26:55. > :27:05.after that introduction. We'll remind you how to enter in a minute.

:27:05. > :27:05.

:27:05. > :28:07.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 61 seconds

:28:07. > :28:17.But let's see if you can remember next government. And I am, indeed,

:28:17. > :28:23.

:28:23. > :28:27.Daily Politics mug, send your answer to our special quiz email address.

:28:27. > :28:37.And you can see the full terms and conditions for Guess The Year on our

:28:37. > :28:37.

:28:37. > :28:47.website. I'm going to let you do that next time. It's coming up to

:28:47. > :28:47.

:28:47. > :28:53.midday here. Just take a look at Big Ben. Another glorious sunny day here

:28:53. > :28:58.in Westminster. I hope it's lovely where you are, too. It is PMQs. The

:28:58. > :29:04.final one before the summer recess. We should be in for some fireworks.

:29:04. > :29:14.Nick Robinson is here. I think the situation in Albania may come up.

:29:14. > :29:15.

:29:15. > :29:19.Maybe? Maybe the NHS and lobbying? No, really? The only thing that is

:29:19. > :29:21.equally predictable is the noise level, unless the speaker has

:29:21. > :29:25.decided to intervene. What's intriguing about this is how the

:29:25. > :29:29.Tories have decided in recent weeks to increase the pressure on Labour,

:29:29. > :29:36.to increase the volume. If you saw the tactics Jeremy Hunt used

:29:36. > :29:40.yesterday, they are very similar to what David Cameron did two weeks ago

:29:40. > :29:44.to Ed Miliband on the trade unions in PMQs, to come from nowhere, Bell

:29:44. > :29:52.to your opponent around the head, get your backbenchers screaming

:29:52. > :29:56.behind you, in order to say, we are all together on this. -- belt your

:29:56. > :30:03.opponent. That is believed well for the Tories. They have done it on

:30:03. > :30:11.welfare, the trade unions. And the NHS. I am blaming Len McCluskey for

:30:11. > :30:16.this hot weather, by the way. always his fault! Tactically, what

:30:16. > :30:21.do you do if you are Ed Miliband? Last week, they reacted, they were

:30:21. > :30:25.organised, the whips were there. The tribal loyalties reasserted

:30:25. > :30:31.themselves. The question is whether you try to equal the noise or tried

:30:31. > :30:38.to take the heat out of it and appear statesmanlike. Since this is

:30:39. > :30:43.the last PMQs until September, let's go to the last PMQs until September.

:30:43. > :30:53.Thank you, Mr Speaker, this morning I had meetings... I had meetings

:30:53. > :31:00.

:31:00. > :31:06.with ministerial colleagues and People using Scunthorpe General

:31:06. > :31:12.Hospital today are asking for reassurance. Given Serb Bruce Keogh

:31:12. > :31:16.says now is not the time for hasty reactions or recriminations, will

:31:16. > :31:20.the Prime Minister committed the resource and support as well as the

:31:20. > :31:30.challenge to ensure that the Scunthorpe Hospital delivers

:31:30. > :31:30.

:31:30. > :31:38.high-quality care across all departments? Let me echo what he

:31:38. > :31:47.said about the Keogh reporter. It is a good report and it says that even

:31:47. > :31:57.those hospitals which have been investigated, in many instances they

:31:57. > :32:02.delivered care. This government is putting the money in, �12.7 billion

:32:02. > :32:07.extra over this Parliament. We will help those hospitals that are

:32:07. > :32:12.challenged to make sure they provide the best they can in the NHS.

:32:12. > :32:20.I am sure you will be as delighted as I am to know that unemployment in

:32:20. > :32:25.Watford has fallen once again to the lowest level since the end of 2009.

:32:25. > :32:27.I hope that the Prime Minister will agree with me that this is a good

:32:27. > :32:36.example of government policy is a good example of government policies

:32:36. > :32:46.to small businesses working, because they are the ones that provide the

:32:46. > :32:49.

:32:49. > :32:58.thousands of jobs and apprentices shown at the Watford jobs fair two

:32:58. > :33:03.weeks ago. He is right, today 's unemployment figures are welcome and

:33:03. > :33:07.they show a very significant fall in the claimant count, 20,000 in the

:33:07. > :33:08.last month. It is encouraging, and some of that is because of the extra

:33:08. > :33:11.resources we put into apprenticeships. Over 1 million

:33:11. > :33:13.people have started apprenticeships in this Parliament. I hope the fall

:33:13. > :33:16.in unemployment will be welcomed across the House.

:33:16. > :33:18.The vast majority of doctors and nurses working in the NHS perform to

:33:18. > :33:20.a very high standard, day in, day out. But everybody in the country

:33:20. > :33:22.will be concerned that some hospitals are letting people down.

:33:22. > :33:24.Sir Bruce Keogh's report found frequent examples of an adequate

:33:24. > :33:26.numbers of nursing staff. Will the Prime Minister tell us what he is

:33:26. > :33:30.doing to ensure adequate numbers of nurses? The Keogh report is

:33:30. > :33:35.excellent. When you have a problem of high mortality rates,

:33:35. > :33:41.relatively, in some hospitals, it is important to hold an investigation,

:33:41. > :33:46.get to the truth and then take action to deal with that. We are

:33:46. > :33:53.putting �12.7 billion into the NHS. Over the course of the last year we

:33:53. > :34:00.have seen an extra 900 nurses in our NHS. That backs up the 8500 extra

:34:00. > :34:03.clinical staff since this government came to office.

:34:03. > :34:09.But the reality is thereof 4000 fewer nurses than when the Prime

:34:09. > :34:15.Minister came to power. One of the issues raised in this report was

:34:15. > :34:18.about nursing staff. It was also reflected in the Francis report

:34:18. > :34:25.about benchmarks for the numbers of nursing staff. If there are over

:34:25. > :34:29.4000 fewer nurses, is that helping or hindering sorting out these

:34:29. > :34:32.problems? He makes the link between the 11 hospitals put into special

:34:32. > :34:39.measures and nursing numbers. He might be interested in the figures.

:34:39. > :34:46.Eight of the 11 hospitals identified actually have more nurses today than

:34:46. > :34:52.in 2010. If, for instance, you take the hospital in Scunthorpe that was

:34:52. > :34:56.just mentioned, although that is on the list of the 11 hospitals,

:34:56. > :35:03.thereof 100 extra nurses working there than three years ago. When it

:35:03. > :35:09.comes to clinical staff, ten of the 11 hospitals have higher numbers of

:35:09. > :35:13.clinical staff. In the Francis report, Francis did not support

:35:13. > :35:18.mandatory nursing numbers. All well-run hospitals will have the

:35:18. > :35:25.right number of nurses and doctors and care assistant. One of the

:35:25. > :35:28.purposes of these reports is to make sure hospitals are better run.

:35:28. > :35:35.That his reforms are diverging money from patient care and across the

:35:35. > :35:40.health service the number of nurses is falling -- but his reforms are

:35:40. > :35:44.diverging money from patient care. On deaths from cancer, the

:35:44. > :35:49.government planned legislation on plain cigarette packaging, he

:35:49. > :35:53.changed his view after he hired Lynton Crosby, who also happens to

:35:53. > :35:58.work for big tobacco in the shape of Philip Morris. Are we really

:35:58. > :36:02.supposed to believe it is a coincidence? It is clear he does not

:36:02. > :36:07.want a proper conversation about the health service. He had not done his

:36:07. > :36:12.homework on nursing numbers. He asks about plain packaging on cigarettes.

:36:12. > :36:16.Let me be clear, the decision not to go ahead for the time being is a

:36:16. > :36:21.decision made by me and the Health Secretary. If you don't agree with

:36:21. > :36:27.the decision, you can attack me for making it. Funnily enough, it is the

:36:27. > :36:31.same decision made by the last government. I have got here the

:36:31. > :36:36.latter that the former health Secretary of State roads to a

:36:36. > :36:41.minister explaining why he wasn't going ahead. He said this, this is a

:36:41. > :36:44.letter to the honourable member for Dulwich, he said, no studies have

:36:44. > :36:47.shown that introducing plain packaging of tobacco would cut the

:36:47. > :36:54.number of young people smoking. Given the impact the plan would

:36:54. > :37:00.have, we would need strong and convincing evidence to go ahead. To

:37:00. > :37:05.summarise, if his attack on me is that we are not doing something he

:37:06. > :37:14.decided not to do, I would suggest a different line of questioning.

:37:14. > :37:19.Once again, the Prime Minister doesn't know his fact. In February

:37:19. > :37:24.2010, my right honourable friend in his tobacco strategy set out quite

:37:24. > :37:30.clearly that he was in favour of having plain cigarette packaging.

:37:30. > :37:35.That quote is from earlier. Here is the difference, my right honourable

:37:35. > :37:43.friend moved to that position in February 2010. He used to be in

:37:43. > :37:51.favour of plain cigarette packaging, then changed his mind.

:37:51. > :37:56.Can he now... Can he now... Can he now and so the question that he has

:37:56. > :38:01.not answered four weeks - has he ever had a conversation with Lynton

:38:01. > :38:06.Crosby about plain cigarette packaging? I will answer, he has

:38:06. > :38:12.never lobbied me on anything. But if he wants a lobbying scandal, why

:38:12. > :38:18.doesn't he try the fact that the trade unions by aye his policies and

:38:18. > :38:26.candidates, they even bought and paid for his leadership. The whole

:38:26. > :38:30.of the country will have heard those same weasel words he is sticking to.

:38:30. > :38:35.He can't deny that he had a conversation with Lynton Crosby

:38:35. > :38:45.about this issue. Even by the standards of this Prime Minister,

:38:45. > :38:45.

:38:45. > :38:53.this is a disgraceful episode. His own honourable member of the Totnes,

:38:53. > :39:01.they described it as a day of shame for this government. He is the Prime

:39:01. > :39:05.Minister of Benson and hedge funds is, and he knows it! Can't you see

:39:05. > :39:09.there is a devastating conflict of interest between having your key

:39:09. > :39:16.adviser raking it in from big tobacco and then advising you not to

:39:16. > :39:20.go ahead with plain packaging? this on a day when this government

:39:20. > :39:27.is doing something they never did for 13 years, publishing a lobbying

:39:27. > :39:31.bill. Let us remember why we need one. We had former Labour ministers

:39:31. > :39:35.who describe themselves as cabs for hire, we had Cabinet ministers

:39:35. > :39:40.giving passports for favours, a Prime Minister questioned by the

:39:40. > :39:46.police under cash for honours. They are in no position to lecture anyone

:39:46. > :39:50.on standards in public life. Isn't it remarkable on the day of a

:39:50. > :39:55.massive fall in the claimant count, a fall in unemployment, a rise in

:39:55. > :40:01.employment, he has nothing to say? Last year he said this, next year,

:40:01. > :40:10.unemployment will get worse not better, under his policies. Isn't it

:40:10. > :40:16.time to admit you were wrong? The reality that he cannot admit is

:40:16. > :40:21.against the advice of every major public health organisation, he has

:40:21. > :40:26.caved in to big tobacco. That is the reality about this Prime Minister,

:40:26. > :40:31.and he knows it. It is Andy Coulson all over again. He is a Prime

:40:31. > :40:41.Minister who doesn't think the rules apply to him. Dinners for donors,

:40:41. > :40:45.

:40:45. > :40:49.Andy Coulson and now big tobacco in Downing Street. He always stands up

:40:49. > :40:53.for the wrong people. The reason his leadership is in crisis is he can't

:40:53. > :40:56.talk about the big issues. We are getting to the end of a political

:40:56. > :41:00.session where the deficit is down, unemployment is falling, crime is

:41:00. > :41:10.down, welfare is capped, Abu Qatada is back in Jordan. This country gets

:41:10. > :41:18.

:41:18. > :41:21.stronger every day, every day, he Thank you, Mr Speaker. I know the

:41:22. > :41:27.Prime Minister will want to thank those fantastic NHS staff who are

:41:27. > :41:30.rolling up their sleeves and doing everything they can to Jews avoided

:41:30. > :41:37.the early deaths. They are asking the Prime Minister for minimum unit

:41:37. > :41:41.pricing in order to help them do that job. To stop people falling

:41:42. > :41:46.into addiction in the first place. Minimum pricing is falling into

:41:47. > :41:51.death row, will the Prime Minister give it a reprieve until we know the

:41:51. > :41:55.outcome of the Sheffield report and the Scottish reports, at least?

:41:55. > :42:01.fights a strong and noble campaign on an issue that she cares a great

:42:01. > :42:06.deal about. What we are able to do is introduce something... Order, the

:42:06. > :42:10.question has been asked, let's hear the answer. We can introduce

:42:10. > :42:18.something the last government never did, to say it should be illegal to

:42:18. > :42:21.sell alcohol to lower the price of duty plus VAT. That is something, in

:42:21. > :42:30.all the binge drinking problems we had under Labour, they never managed

:42:30. > :42:33.to do. In February I asked the Prime

:42:33. > :42:36.Minister if he thought it was fair that Mr and Mrs Goodwin, both

:42:36. > :42:40.registered blind, should pay bedroom tax? He promised to look into the

:42:40. > :42:46.case. His family wrote to the Prime Minister but did not receive a

:42:46. > :42:53.reply. Why didn't the Prime Minister keep his word? I will look urgently

:42:53. > :42:57.at this case. I reply to honourable members' correspondence right across

:42:57. > :43:01.the house, and I always will. In terms of the spare room subsidy, we

:43:01. > :43:05.put into place fair rules where it does not affect pensioners and

:43:06. > :43:10.people who need that spare room. I have is when I write back, there is

:43:10. > :43:14.one question I won't be able to answer, which is we still don't know

:43:14. > :43:20.whether the party opposite are going to replace this, because they will

:43:20. > :43:30.not give us an answer. This summer, when Labour members are

:43:30. > :43:32.

:43:32. > :43:36.in Blackpool on their Unite beach towels, can they assure me that his

:43:36. > :43:45.government, free both from week leadership and Len McCluskey, will

:43:45. > :43:51.not put into law the welfare benefits as a human rights? He makes

:43:51. > :43:57.a good point. Last week there was a rare piece of candour from the

:43:57. > :44:03.Labour Party. They now have a welfare reform they are in favour

:44:03. > :44:07.of. They want to make welfare are human rights. That is the policy of

:44:07. > :44:12.the Labour Party. They oppose the welfare cap, they oppose getting the

:44:12. > :44:21.deficit down and they want to make benefits a human rights.

:44:21. > :44:26.Will the Prime Minister joined... Order, let's have some order. Mr

:44:26. > :44:30.Campbell must be heard. Will he join with me in wishing a speedy recovery

:44:30. > :44:36.to the right honourable member for North Belfast, Mr Nigel Dodds, who

:44:36. > :44:38.was injured when seeking to resolve problems in his constituency during

:44:38. > :44:43.the recent unacceptable disturbances? Will he also join with

:44:43. > :44:48.many in Northern Ireland who want to see an initiative headed up by Dr

:44:48. > :44:52.Richard Haass from the USA and the considerable effort and goodwill

:44:52. > :45:00.that will be required to resolve all of the outstanding issues which have

:45:00. > :45:05.been plagued by violent opposition for too long? Everyone was concerned

:45:05. > :45:09.to hear about the honourable member knocked over in his constituency and

:45:09. > :45:15.I gather he is now improving. We look forward to welcoming him back

:45:15. > :45:19.to this House. On this issue, it's very important we see responsibility

:45:19. > :45:23.on all sides in Northern Ireland and we do take steps in making sure

:45:23. > :45:27.these marches can go ahead in a way which respects the fact that

:45:27. > :45:37.communities must be good neighbours to each other. That's what's

:45:37. > :45:39.

:45:39. > :45:44.required and I know we will help in any way we can. Overall, over 4500

:45:44. > :45:54.foreign national offenders were removed from the UK in 2012 and the

:45:54. > :45:55.

:45:55. > :45:58.rate has remained consistent by then that the number of foreign nationals

:45:58. > :46:01.in England and Wales is still too high and while it is lower than at

:46:01. > :46:03.the election, we can do more and which is why the Justice Secretary

:46:03. > :46:06.is looking to secure transfers with countries in the high as the portion

:46:06. > :46:13.of offenders. Foreign national offenders will be deported except in

:46:13. > :46:16.exceptional circumstances but I do think everyone can celebrate the

:46:16. > :46:22.removal of Abu Qatada who went back to Jordan and can I congratulate the

:46:22. > :46:28.Home Secretary on her hard work? the Home Secretary has deported Abu

:46:28. > :46:32.Qatada, something the previous government failed to do, will he do

:46:32. > :46:37.all he can to send foreign nationals in prison in our country back to

:46:37. > :46:43.prison in their own country and saving British taxpayers hundreds of

:46:43. > :46:46.millions of pounds as a result? absolutely agree about this issue

:46:46. > :46:50.and the fact it requires real drive from the centre of this government

:46:50. > :46:58.and which is why we held a national meeting on this, why we are trying

:46:58. > :47:02.to sign compulsorily agreement with Albania and Nigeria and I will make

:47:02. > :47:05.sure these issues are raised in meetings with foreign national

:47:05. > :47:10.prisoners to be returned. We shouldn't rule out steps, including

:47:10. > :47:14.helping countries like Jamaica, with around prison regimes so it easier

:47:14. > :47:19.to return people. It's a major priority for the government and they

:47:19. > :47:27.want us to do better. The Prime Minister claims he did not know that

:47:27. > :47:32.Lynton Crosby worked for a tobacco company but he's the heart of Tory

:47:32. > :47:39.party strategy. Why is he developing a bad habit, perhaps an addictive

:47:39. > :47:44.one, of turning a blind eye as to who his advisers actually work for?

:47:44. > :47:50.Let me explain, the role of Lyndon Crosby is to advise me about how to

:47:50. > :47:59.defeat a divided and useless Labour Party. And I have to say, on the

:47:59. > :48:08.basis of today's evidence, I'm not sure he's really necessary. In my

:48:08. > :48:13.Welsh constituency... Order, we must have a question from Mr Davies.

:48:13. > :48:18.my Welsh constituency, patients have to wait 36 weeks for treatment. Next

:48:18. > :48:22.door, English constituencies wait 18 weeks. What lessons does the Prime

:48:22. > :48:27.Minister believed the government can learn from how the NHS has been

:48:27. > :48:32.managed in Wales over these years? There's a very clear lesson which is

:48:32. > :48:37.going to vote Labour. You can see what's happening in Wales, where

:48:37. > :48:43.Labour are in control of the NHS, they cut the budget by 8%, and, as a

:48:43. > :48:49.result, you can now see in Wales, they haven't met a single waiting

:48:49. > :48:53.time targets since 2009. Meanwhile, in England, we are increasing

:48:53. > :48:59.spending on the NHS. The Shadow Chancellor keeps pointing at the

:48:59. > :49:05.Health Secretary, but here's the man who said it would be irresponsible

:49:05. > :49:15.to increase spending on the NHS. If you want to do better, you need to

:49:15. > :49:18.

:49:18. > :49:24.move the two people next to you, and you need to do it fast. Order.

:49:24. > :49:32.Flynn should be heard with courtesy. Will the Prime Minister study the

:49:32. > :49:37.precise meaning of the word" question" and" answer" and the need

:49:37. > :49:43.for a link between the two? Following the record number of

:49:43. > :49:49.unanswered questions, and the record number of preprepared party

:49:49. > :49:53.political diatribe last week at question Time. A demeaning spectacle

:49:53. > :50:02.which changed him and his office. Can he give me an answer today to

:50:02. > :50:06.this question. Which is relevant and courteous? I'm assuming that one was

:50:06. > :50:09.quite complicated for a whips question is how we obviously thought

:50:09. > :50:13.of it himself, but this government is far more transparent than its

:50:13. > :50:23.predecessors about the information be published, the public spending

:50:23. > :50:25.data, far more transparent than the last government. I'm pleased to say

:50:26. > :50:31.unemployment in Northampton North continues to go down. Does the Prime

:50:31. > :50:35.Minister agree with me that today's jobs figures prove that this

:50:35. > :50:38.government's economic policy has not led to the disappearance of 1

:50:38. > :50:45.million jobs which was a forecast made by the leader of the

:50:45. > :50:49.opposition? I do think it's extraordinary, on this day there is

:50:49. > :50:53.a fall in unemployment at the leader of the opposition had nothing to say

:50:54. > :51:00.about it. He hasn't asked a full set of questions about the economy since

:51:00. > :51:03.February because he knows that our policies are working, Britain's

:51:03. > :51:11.economy is mending, and he's absolutely right, the forecast was

:51:11. > :51:15.made that, we would not make up for the loss of public sector jobs with

:51:15. > :51:19.jobs in the private sector. They are shouting because they don't want to

:51:19. > :51:27.hear good news about falling unemployment. People do want to know

:51:27. > :51:34.about more businesses, and the economy making progress. Too much

:51:34. > :51:38.shouting on both sides of the House. How many of the Conservative

:51:38. > :51:44.Party's millionaire donors asked the Prime Minister to cut the 50p top

:51:44. > :51:52.rate of tax? That was definitely a whips hand-out, no doubt about that

:51:52. > :51:58.one. Let me explain to the honourable lady and it dashed an

:51:58. > :52:05.important distinction... Order, calm down. The top rate of tax and this

:52:05. > :52:10.government is higher in every year than in any year under the previous

:52:10. > :52:16.government. The way it works in her party is that trade unions give

:52:16. > :52:21.Labour money which buys the policies, the candidates, the MP,

:52:22. > :52:27.even the leader. I'm not surprised they are worried about the product

:52:27. > :52:34.they ended up with. Enfield has the early advantage of a welfare cap for

:52:34. > :52:38.the last three months. With JS a falling twice the rate of the rest

:52:38. > :52:44.of the country. With youth unemployment at a lower level, the

:52:44. > :52:49.lowest since early 2009, can the Prime Minister ensure where Enfield

:52:49. > :52:53.leaves, the country follows. I paid tribute to the people in Enfield to

:52:53. > :52:57.find jobs. The welfare cap is not only bike because it would be wrong

:52:57. > :53:05.for people out of work to be able to earn more than a typical family in

:53:05. > :53:11.work, but people seeing a welfare cap coming down the road, are

:53:11. > :53:16.finding jobs and that's good news for them and the economy. Would

:53:16. > :53:26.Adrian B Croft, being asked to provide a report on government

:53:26. > :53:26.

:53:26. > :53:34.regulars, is the doughnut for the party? That is he a donor for the

:53:34. > :53:39.party? I think his report was an excellent report. In terms of

:53:39. > :53:44.encouraging enterprise, jobs. Wealth creation. Let me explain one more

:53:44. > :53:47.time, there is a big difference, if you are a trade union and you give

:53:47. > :53:52.money to the Labour Party, you can pick the candidates and vote for

:53:52. > :53:59.them, you can pick the leader and vote for him, pick the policies and

:53:59. > :54:09.vote for him. I was elected by a one member, one vote membership system.

:54:09. > :54:09.

:54:09. > :54:13.He was elected by a trade union stitch up. Thank you, Mr Speaker.

:54:13. > :54:18.Any government should be able to introduce a reasonable cap on very

:54:18. > :54:23.high claims for taxpayer funded benefits but if we are all in it

:54:23. > :54:26.together, then why is the government resisting the introduction of a cap,

:54:26. > :54:28.sometimes hundreds of thousands of pounds, individual case is the

:54:28. > :54:34.government resisting the introduction of a cap, sometimes

:54:34. > :54:41.hundreds of thousands of pounds, individual cases over �1 million,

:54:41. > :54:45.farm support system? This government has the huge amount of tax reform to

:54:45. > :54:54.make sure people pay their taxes they owe. And of course, we always

:54:54. > :55:00.look at the Common agricultural policy to make sure it's fair.

:55:00. > :55:08.Speaker, in order to save the Prime Minister time, I was a member of the

:55:08. > :55:18.Unite union since the age of 16 as an engineering apprentice, and I'm

:55:18. > :55:18.

:55:19. > :55:23.quite happy to debate who spent their youths more productively. On

:55:23. > :55:31.the 26th of June, in response to a question from my honourable friend

:55:31. > :55:36.from Ealing North, on the Tory dinners for donors, the Prime

:55:36. > :55:39.Minister said he would be happy to publish the Gold report. Is there a

:55:39. > :55:46.reason he hasn't done so, is because he hasn't done so, is it because

:55:46. > :55:53.he's ashamed of the fact his party has had more donors than a late

:55:53. > :56:00.night kebabs shop? It's a time when we ought to remember the donation of

:56:00. > :56:03.Mr Mills. �1.6 million to the Labour Party, who got advice about how to

:56:03. > :56:12.dodge his taxes. When they get an answer to when you're going to pay

:56:12. > :56:17.the money back, I will answer his question. While still hoping the

:56:17. > :56:22.Prime Minister will agree with the CBI and me and withdraw support for

:56:22. > :56:29.HS2, he will remember last November giving me an undertaking that people

:56:29. > :56:36.who are disrupted by this project will be generously compensated. It's

:56:36. > :56:41.here where, on phase one, HS2 has not yet the basic consultation and

:56:41. > :56:45.on current plans, won't do for three months. Really please intervene,

:56:45. > :56:51.speed up the process, before those constituents and other peoples whose

:56:51. > :56:56.lives are affected, are totally ruined? She's absolutely right to

:56:56. > :57:01.raise this. We will set out further consultation later this year. We are

:57:01. > :57:03.committed to a very generous and fair compensation scheme. Matters

:57:03. > :57:06.relating to compensation are important which is why we must make

:57:06. > :57:15.sure we get the decisions right but the Transport Secretary will be

:57:15. > :57:19.happy to meet with hair and discuss her constituents concerns. The Prime

:57:19. > :57:27.Minister has certainly been helping the Jersey registered companies with

:57:27. > :57:32.their ex-sports. Perhaps he could tell the House whether the reason he

:57:32. > :57:40.took a man with him to Kazakhstan was because he donated �300,000 to

:57:40. > :57:45.the Tory party. -- exports. Let's remember which government it was who

:57:45. > :57:49.will make sure Jersey, Guernsey, the Isle of Man, pay taxes properly,

:57:49. > :57:56.it's this one. I will tell you directly why I took him to

:57:56. > :58:01.Kazakhstan. His company employs tens of thousands of people in this

:58:01. > :58:06.country, it's investing billions into the North Sea, and major

:58:06. > :58:09.British energy company and I'm proud of the fact that we fly the flag for

:58:09. > :58:15.British energy companies and so, when I finished taking them to

:58:15. > :58:18.Kazakhstan, I will take them to India, China, Malaysia. We are not

:58:18. > :58:28.embarrassed about business, industry, enterprise and jobs on

:58:28. > :58:45.

:58:45. > :58:53.this side of the House. We want more Angela Merkel, have they examined

:58:53. > :59:00.the evidence that it is the existence of the European single

:59:00. > :59:05.currency, which is a major cause of despair which is now sweeping across

:59:05. > :59:14.southern Europe, and threatens democracy of Portugal, Spain and

:59:14. > :59:18.Greece? When I meet with Angela Merkel, we often discuss the single

:59:18. > :59:22.currency. I think it's important that, whatever 1's personal views

:59:22. > :59:24.about the single currency, and I never want Britain to join it, we

:59:24. > :59:28.have to respect those countries which are in the single currency and

:59:28. > :59:32.want to make it work. I believe there's an opportunity for Britain,

:59:32. > :59:36.at the same time is doing that, to argue that the European Union itself

:59:36. > :59:41.needs to change. We need make this organisation where members of the

:59:41. > :59:45.single currency can be comfortable and members want not, can be

:59:45. > :59:49.comfortable also. I think Angela Merkel understands that. I think the

:59:49. > :59:52.Prime Minister from Italy, who I will be meeting with straight after

:59:52. > :59:56.the session, understands that, as well, which is why it is achievable

:59:56. > :00:01.to get a better settlement for Britain, and one we can get in a

:00:01. > :00:05.referendum by the end of 2017. Prime Minister failed to say next

:00:05. > :00:11.week when it's going to give back the stolen cash given to the

:00:11. > :00:16.Conservative Party. When will you give it back? I have to say, the

:00:16. > :00:22.whips hand out have been very active this week. What we need to see is

:00:22. > :00:26.when are we going to get the payers money given back from Mr Mills's

:00:26. > :00:32.donation? Never mind a donation which happened 20 years ago. This

:00:32. > :00:38.happened at 20 weeks ago. One of the first activist government was to

:00:38. > :00:43.bring a request to fund a security measures in Jewish free schools.

:00:43. > :00:49.Parents in Hendon in my constituency where paying for this additional

:00:49. > :00:54.security measures from their own pocket. After the last government

:00:54. > :00:58.refused to help. As his funding arrangement ends in 2015, can I ask

:00:58. > :01:02.them to support my campaign for the Education Secretary to continue with

:01:02. > :01:08.this scheme? I will look very carefully about my honourable friend

:01:08. > :01:15.says. I'm a strong supporter of free schools and also, the community

:01:15. > :01:17.Security trust which has provided a lot of security for schools. My

:01:17. > :01:22.right honourable friend, the Education Secretary, will be happy

:01:22. > :01:26.to look to see how we can continue to give support. Given the scandal

:01:26. > :01:29.of price-fixing in the oil and gas industry, is currently being

:01:29. > :01:33.investigated by the European Union, does the Prime Minister agree with

:01:33. > :01:41.me that it's important to be absolutely transparent about the oil

:01:41. > :01:45.and gas companies that Lynton Crosby's firm represents? Have they

:01:45. > :01:52.got nothing to say about unemployment, improving education,

:01:52. > :01:59.capping welfare? It pains me to point this out to the honourable

:01:59. > :02:02.lady but she has received �32,000 from affiliated trade unions. Let me

:02:02. > :02:07.explain the difference. With Lynton Crosby, the Conservative Party gives

:02:07. > :02:11.them money to help us get rid of labour. That's the way it works.

:02:11. > :02:18.With the Labour Party, the unions give you money and that's the way it

:02:19. > :02:24.works. And yet she says this. On her website, " I'm a member of Unison

:02:24. > :02:34.and Unite and I rightly raise trade union issues in Parliament." That is

:02:34. > :02:48.

:02:48. > :02:53.will be heard. Many water companies in England are

:02:53. > :02:59.paid huge dividends. They've avoided paying tax and are not properly

:02:59. > :03:04.accountable. And proposing an annual increase of �80 a year on water

:03:04. > :03:09.rates. With the primers to make sure no public subsidy is given to Thames

:03:09. > :03:12.Water or any other water company which puts the profits and its

:03:12. > :03:18.shareholders had the interests of ordinary ratepayers and the tax

:03:18. > :03:22.payers of his undermine? Let me be clear, I've always had companies

:03:22. > :03:27.should pay the tax they owe. I don't want to comment on individual

:03:27. > :03:32.companies but that is the case. Any support from government must be

:03:32. > :03:35.targeted to benefit customers bills and provide value for taxpayers.

:03:35. > :03:38.There is merit in the Thames tunnel proposal and we need to look back

:03:38. > :03:42.carefully because it would be a benefit for London, for his

:03:42. > :03:45.constituents, and for everybody in London but I sure we will use

:03:45. > :03:55.everything at our disposal to get the best deal for London, and for

:03:55. > :03:58.

:03:58. > :04:02.taxpayers. Did the Prime Minister asked Lynton Crosby... ? We can run

:04:02. > :04:07.through this one again. Let me have another go at explaining it. It

:04:07. > :04:13.works like this. The Conservative Party gives Lynton Crosby money and

:04:13. > :04:18.he helps us attack the Labour Party, right? But trade unions give

:04:18. > :04:24.money to the Labour Party. The other way round. For that, they buy your

:04:24. > :04:31.candidates. They buy your MPs. They buy your policies and even give you

:04:31. > :04:40.this completely hopeless leader. Last but not least, Andrew

:04:40. > :04:46.Griffiths. My constituent was diagnosed with cervical cancer at

:04:46. > :04:49.the age of 25 when she had her first smear test. Sadly, she had to have a

:04:49. > :04:53.hysterectomy. We'll Prime Minister join me in congratulating her on her

:04:53. > :05:00.drop your pants and save your life campaign, to raise awareness of

:05:00. > :05:05.cervical cancer? Willingly agreed to talk to the Health Secretary about

:05:05. > :05:12.her wish to bring the age at which young people can have a smear test

:05:12. > :05:15.down from 25 down to 20? I paid tribute to his constituents for the

:05:15. > :05:20.bravery in raising this campaign and speaking so frankly about it. This

:05:20. > :05:23.screening programme we have had in the NHS has been one of its greatest

:05:23. > :05:26.successes in terms of early diagnosis of saving lives and we

:05:26. > :05:30.should always be asking what the latest evidence is for the screening

:05:30. > :05:40.programme and when it should start and I'm sure my right honourable

:05:40. > :05:51.

:05:51. > :05:56.friend will want to talk to him of this session. We will not see the

:05:57. > :06:00.light can until the 13th of September. The NHS and lobbying

:06:00. > :06:03.dominated the exchanges between the front benches, and also the

:06:04. > :06:07.backbench exchanges with the Prime Minister. It was another rowdy

:06:07. > :06:12.house, very noisy, we will give you the exact decibel count a little

:06:12. > :06:17.later. The Prime Minister was in a kind of boisterous mood, I think,

:06:17. > :06:22.would be the best way to describe them. We will see what it means in a

:06:22. > :06:25.second. Let's find out what you thought. Ian Whiteley said, a win

:06:25. > :06:32.for Dave, although Ed landed a couple of blows.

:06:32. > :06:35.The Prime Minister for Benson and Hedges was a good one. He should

:06:35. > :06:39.have stuck to the Keogh reports and left Lynton Crosby to the

:06:39. > :06:42.backbenches. Jim from Nuneaton, by linking to a

:06:42. > :06:49.hospital care to nursing staff numbers, Cameron had Miliband in a

:06:49. > :06:53.tight corner by explaining that the worst hospitals had more staff than

:06:53. > :06:57.three years before. Another viewer says, I can't tell of Miliband is

:06:57. > :07:02.waving or drowning. For once, David Cameron has found

:07:02. > :07:06.the right way to answer a question with an answer which is relevant to

:07:06. > :07:11.the question. A good set of questions from Miliband. Cameron's

:07:11. > :07:14.claims are not justified. PMQs is nothing more than

:07:14. > :07:19.prearranged soundbites and preplanned noise. At the end of

:07:19. > :07:29.term, Ed Miliband had a very good day, clearly highlighting his

:07:29. > :07:30.

:07:30. > :07:33.difficulty when dealing with facts over spin, validating the difference

:07:33. > :07:36.between what Keogh said and what the Tories have spun. Jacqueline says

:07:36. > :07:43.that David Cameron plays with words. Obviously he had a conversation

:07:43. > :07:46.about the cigarette packaging. Nick, summer recess, we are right in

:07:46. > :07:49.the middle of the electoral cycle. The polls don't help us too much,

:07:49. > :07:56.one Pole said Labour were 11 points ahead, then another one said that

:07:56. > :08:00.Labour and the Tories were neck and neck. Although it is not exactly

:08:01. > :08:10.clear what is happening, the Tories head to this recess in a better mood

:08:10. > :08:13.than they thought a couple of months ago? Much better. You describe David

:08:13. > :08:17.Cameron as boisterous. His backbenchers were cheerful. The

:08:17. > :08:24.opposite is the case at times with Labour, they looked alarmed at

:08:24. > :08:28.times. Organised, but not looking as cheerful. Why are they cheerful?

:08:28. > :08:37.Partly the list which the Prime Minister gave out, the deficit is

:08:38. > :08:42.down. Compared to 2010.Abu Qatada has gone home, the European

:08:42. > :08:48.referendum private member's bill the other day, it does not get them

:08:48. > :08:52.closer to rest the random but it has cheered them up and got them onside.

:08:52. > :08:56.The economic news is possibly the most important, which is it is a

:08:56. > :08:59.little bit better than it was. Everybody is waiting for the next

:08:59. > :09:06.GDP figures, but if it confirms that not only was there no trouble dip,

:09:06. > :09:12.there was no double-dip, it feels like relatively good news. The

:09:12. > :09:17.Tories feel better about themselves, which is why David Cameron has

:09:17. > :09:20.spurned a mini reshuffle which was down for tomorrow. It was going to

:09:20. > :09:24.involve, I am told, a widespread reshuffle underneath the Cabinet to

:09:24. > :09:32.prepare for a Cabinet Mac Pro reshuffle ahead of the election, but

:09:32. > :09:36.the Prime Minister thought, why disrupt the good mood? A reshuffle

:09:36. > :09:42.upsets some people you fire, disappoint those who do not get

:09:42. > :09:47.promoted and you perhaps upset those who feel passed over. And yet the

:09:47. > :09:51.fundamental feature of British living standards at the moment is

:09:51. > :10:00.they are still in decline. We saw worse than expected inflation

:10:00. > :10:05.figures, last week, and although average earnings rose a bit, 1.7,

:10:05. > :10:15.earnings are still not keeping pace with prices. I would suggest that

:10:15. > :10:19.

:10:19. > :10:23.for all the bluster and boisterous behaviour and so on, the

:10:23. > :10:29.Conservatives can't really feel good about themselves until living

:10:29. > :10:39.standards start to rise again. It is very difficult to win an election

:10:39. > :10:45.

:10:45. > :10:51.with living standards in decline. Nobody is pretending we are out of

:10:51. > :10:58.the woods, but employment is growing and jobs have been created in a way

:10:58. > :11:02.that has surprised all of us, I don't think anybody would expect

:11:02. > :11:07.that jobs would come through as constant -- consistently as they

:11:07. > :11:11.have. Families are still feeling squeezed. The only answer to that is

:11:11. > :11:13.the one which we have been pushing since 2010. We have to get

:11:13. > :11:15.government borrowing down, jobs growing and we have to help

:11:15. > :11:17.businesses export. Those are arguments being made very

:11:17. > :11:21.effectively in Prime Minister's Questions by the Prime Minister, and

:11:21. > :11:25.it is just showing signs that it might work. That is why I think

:11:25. > :11:28.there is room for optimism, but no sense of comfort about where we are.

:11:28. > :11:32.Lynton Crosby was mentioned a lot, the Australian lobbyist and election

:11:32. > :11:34.Guru now working for the Conservatives. He is expected to

:11:34. > :11:38.lead the Conservative election campaign, to be the chief adviser,

:11:38. > :11:41.come 2015. He has just been door step to buy a television crew.

:11:41. > :11:44.Did you ever lobby the Prime Minister on tobacco? The Prime

:11:44. > :11:50.Minister has said everything that needs to be said on that issue.

:11:50. > :11:58.Well, that was a piece of seminal television! It took the debate on

:11:58. > :12:03.enormously! You may mark! I've now got six seconds of Lynton Crosby, I

:12:03. > :12:10.was told this morning I only had four! Six seconds of public service

:12:10. > :12:14.broadcasting at it finest! At least we know what he looks like now! You

:12:14. > :12:20.out to get Crosby because you are frightened of him? I don't think we

:12:20. > :12:24.are frightened of him. He has sharpened up the Tory act, you can

:12:24. > :12:31.data the resurgence of Mr Cameron two when Mr Crosby got stuck into

:12:31. > :12:35.providing strategy. The big issue is about their potential conflict and

:12:35. > :12:39.what conversations the Prime Minister has had with Lynton Crosby

:12:39. > :12:43.in respect of tobacco. Time and time again, we saw it in the exchange is

:12:43. > :12:46.now in the House of Commons, the Prime Minister has been asked, have

:12:46. > :12:52.you had a conversation involving any mention of tobacco with Lynton

:12:52. > :12:56.Crosby? Time and again, you has failed to answer. You are right in

:12:56. > :13:01.the sense that Crosby undoubtedly has changed the way in which they

:13:01. > :13:06.are seeking to campaign. My prediction is that we will see the

:13:06. > :13:12.most vile, nasty and personal campaign in the lead up to this

:13:12. > :13:16.election. We have 95 weeks to go. I think it will be the most vile we

:13:16. > :13:21.have seen in political history. You have seen the kind of personal

:13:21. > :13:25.remarks and smears that have been heaped on Andy Burnham over the last

:13:25. > :13:30.48 hours. Actually very different to when the Prime Minister gave his

:13:30. > :13:35.statement on Mid Staffordshire. I think we will see more of that. I

:13:35. > :13:41.understand that is the way Mr Crosby does things. But the reason for

:13:41. > :13:47.junking the policy... There were two policies, and the reason for junking

:13:47. > :13:51.the minimum pricing for alcohol policy and the policy for having

:13:51. > :13:57.plain packaging for cigarettes could be that the Prime Minister has

:13:57. > :14:04.succumbed to lobbying from Mr Crosby, that is a possibility. We

:14:04. > :14:08.have no evidence. The other reason could be that Mr Crosby gave advice

:14:08. > :14:12.in a get the barnacles off the ships strategy, get rid of politics

:14:12. > :14:18.involving posh boys telling ordinary people what to do. That second

:14:18. > :14:23.reason, you can agree or disagree with it, but it would be an entirely

:14:23. > :14:27.legitimate piece of political advice to give, correct? That may or not be

:14:27. > :14:33.the case, I don't know. But if they will go down the politics of smear

:14:33. > :14:38.route, I don't actually think... are smearing the Prime Minister by

:14:38. > :14:46.saying he is in the pocket of big Tobacco. He needs to answer the

:14:46. > :14:56.question. I have lots of years in the pockets of big Tobacco. Pension

:14:56. > :14:57.

:14:57. > :15:01.and Dell -- bends -- Benson and Hedge fund is, I believe was said.

:15:01. > :15:07.We are talking about the decibel levels in the House of Commons, but

:15:07. > :15:12.I think we have a general problem in British politics at the moment. Does

:15:12. > :15:17.this type of thing, the politics of smear, the shouting you see in the

:15:17. > :15:21.House of Commons, encourage more people to engage with politics or to

:15:21. > :15:25.walk away from it? One of the challenges for both parties in the

:15:25. > :15:29.lead up to the general election is, is the way we conduct ourselves and

:15:29. > :15:33.do our politics going to encourage people to take an interest and vote,

:15:33. > :15:38.or will it switch them off? I think people are more political than ever

:15:38. > :15:41.but I think one of the big problems we have is that they are switched

:15:41. > :15:44.off party politics more than ever. A lot of people watching this

:15:44. > :15:49.programme will watch it because they like PMQs, but a lot of people

:15:49. > :15:53.don't. Reign I don't think the suggestion that Lynton Crosby simply

:15:53. > :15:58.said to get rid of these policies because it is a way of pursuing a

:15:58. > :16:03.Tory election strategy free of distractions gets him or the Prime

:16:03. > :16:08.Minister quite off the hook. Mr Crosby is in the room and is in

:16:09. > :16:13.effect wearing two have, one is the paid representative of what Labour

:16:13. > :16:19.calls big Tobacco, the large tobacco firms, particularly Philip Morris,

:16:19. > :16:22.if he is in Norris but happens to be there on one occasion because he is

:16:22. > :16:32.being paid for by the Conservatives, there is not transparency about why

:16:32. > :16:36.he is giving the advice he is giving and on whose behalf. The sooner he

:16:36. > :16:43.takes a full-time position with the Tories, if he is doing their

:16:43. > :16:47.election campaign, the better, I would imagine? The Lib Dem leader

:16:47. > :16:52.Nick Clegg is also saying that he is not a government policy adviser, but

:16:52. > :16:57.here's highly influential with the Prime Minister and the Chancellor.

:16:57. > :17:01.In part, that is about telling them what not to do, policy wise. It just

:17:01. > :17:05.happens that one of the things he told them not to do, because it

:17:06. > :17:15.would be a destruction, was in the interest of one of his paid clients.

:17:16. > :17:18.

:17:18. > :17:28.We will see if he survives over the summer. Thank you. It might as well

:17:28. > :17:34.

:17:34. > :17:36.rain until September. I remember when he went to arrest and in rails

:17:36. > :17:43.unasked for some asparagus tips and she came back and said, we haven't

:17:43. > :17:48.got any but we do have some Benson & Hedges. Good one. I've not had that

:17:48. > :17:53.one before. We could get you a gig somewhere else. Now earlier we asked

:17:53. > :17:57.two MPs to measure the noise levels in the commons during PMQs. We will

:17:57. > :18:03.get them to do stand-up comedy next time. Tessa Munt and Alun Cairns

:18:03. > :18:08.join us now again from Central Lobby. How loud was it? 89. It was

:18:08. > :18:12.quite loud but didn't quite cross the 90 mark I suggested. It was more

:18:12. > :18:17.subdued in last week. There was cautioned a little bit by the whips

:18:17. > :18:23.not to be too loud about, as I said earlier, last week there was a web

:18:23. > :18:27.operation to come out in strong support for Ed Miliband and then we

:18:28. > :18:33.retaliated on our side. Your decibel reading was the same as the food

:18:33. > :18:40.blender so pretty noisy. What about you Tessa Munt? Somebody was looking

:18:40. > :18:47.over your shoulder because it wasn't from you, to say you hit 92?

:18:47. > :18:57.actually went to 95 and 96 and then 97. Oh my goodness. Yours was lot

:18:57. > :18:58.

:18:58. > :19:03.higher. That is Liverpool Anfield football ground which can get to 98.

:19:03. > :19:07.It was terrifically loud. You were sitting at the back and I was the

:19:07. > :19:12.front. My Lib Dem colleagues were quieter but I had some extremely

:19:12. > :19:20.noisy colleagues behind me. Allah coalition partners. You're blaming

:19:20. > :19:27.the Conservatives. -- oh, you are blaming your coalition partners.

:19:27. > :19:36.They were in full song behind me. I suspect my gadget picked them up

:19:36. > :19:43.clearly. Where you out of the chamber, only getting 94 question

:19:43. > :19:49.mark. I suggest the reason it went high at the front is because the

:19:49. > :19:53.noise came from the other side, rather than from our side but I

:19:53. > :19:56.think the important issue to recognise if it's a terrible

:19:56. > :20:01.environment to ask a question and a difficult environment to answer it,

:20:01. > :20:06.and that's why each side is basically trying to put the other

:20:06. > :20:10.side. That's not the purpose of PMQs. The purpose is to scrutinise

:20:10. > :20:14.the Prime Minister. He told me it serves the purpose, Tuesday night is

:20:14. > :20:18.the time of the week he gets to know everything which is going on in

:20:18. > :20:22.every department in case the question comes up. OK, thank you

:20:22. > :20:30.very much for being our noise level watchers and have a good summer

:20:30. > :20:38.break. Is that what you do with your Tuesday night? Absolutely, I do

:20:38. > :20:41.symptoms from the Commons din over their long summer break, well, they

:20:42. > :20:44.could spend some time under the Heathrow flight path. That's where I

:20:44. > :20:47.live. According to a government report, noise pollution levels of at

:20:47. > :20:50.least 57 decibels affect almost 260,000 people living near the

:20:50. > :20:56.airport. But Heathrow insists it needs a third runway and today is

:20:56. > :20:58.making its submssion to the Davies Commission on airport capacity. It

:20:58. > :21:01.conveniently won't report until after the next general election.

:21:01. > :21:11.Heathrow's Chief Executive, Colin Matthews, has got on his soapbox for

:21:11. > :21:20.

:21:20. > :21:24.travelling nearly half a million flights. Heathrow is how the world

:21:24. > :21:31.'s conscience come to the UK and how the UK connects to the world. --

:21:31. > :21:36.continents. They bring trade, which brings economic growth, which brings

:21:36. > :21:40.jobs, and the world economy is changing. The fastest growing

:21:40. > :21:44.economies are the most distant ones today and the UK is in the global

:21:44. > :21:48.competitive race to win in those marketplaces before our competitors.

:21:48. > :21:53.We are one of the world 's most successful airport and, unlike other

:21:53. > :22:00.UK airports, we had the scale to compete with Paris, Amsterdam,

:22:00. > :22:05.Frankfurt, and Dubai. We bring transfer traffic from right across

:22:05. > :22:08.Europe to Philip Long haul aircraft every single day of the year. That

:22:08. > :22:15.makes them efficient, economically viable, and means we fly long-haul

:22:15. > :22:19.routes we wouldn't otherwise have flown from the UK. But there is no

:22:19. > :22:22.more room here to put on new flights to many of the world 's

:22:22. > :22:25.fastest-growing economies. The choice for government is this, do we

:22:25. > :22:27.build on the strength of Britain has had to many of the world 's

:22:27. > :22:36.fastest-growing economies. The choice for government is this, do we

:22:36. > :22:42.build on the strength of Britain has had to throw or close it and at and

:22:43. > :22:50.new airport would. Closing Heathrow as the Mayor would suggest would

:22:50. > :22:54.cost 100,000 jobs and be bad news and thousands of businesses which

:22:54. > :22:57.are based around Heathrow in the last 50 years want more

:22:58. > :23:02.international links on their doorstep, not fewer. Today we have

:23:02. > :23:06.put forward new options for a third runway at Heathrow. Our proposals

:23:06. > :23:10.show how we can add more flights at Heathrow and still improve the

:23:10. > :23:14.environmental performance of the airport and with new aircraft

:23:14. > :23:20.technology, we show how we can have more flights and reduce the amount

:23:20. > :23:23.of noise. The debate is complex and there is no easy answers but

:23:23. > :23:28.Heathrow is more convenient for passengers, better placed for

:23:28. > :23:38.business and will deliver economic growth more quickly and cost less so

:23:38. > :23:45.

:23:45. > :23:50.Welcome to the programme. During the enquiry into terminal five, in 1999,

:23:50. > :23:54.BAA said they did not want a third runway so what's changed? People

:23:54. > :23:58.recognise just how important it is to the UK that we have direct

:23:58. > :24:02.connections to economies around the world. Those economies which are

:24:02. > :24:05.growing, China, India, they are a long way away and you can't take a

:24:05. > :24:13.shorthaul flight there, you can't take a train and you have to have

:24:13. > :24:19.long haul flights. We trade 20 times more with countries whom we have

:24:19. > :24:23.direct, rather than directing in transit. There's an element of trust

:24:23. > :24:29.for people living under the flight path, your proposal doesn't rule out

:24:30. > :24:32.a fourth runway, so your plan has no limit? There is a trust question and

:24:33. > :24:42.Dubai can airport commission taking an objective data driven view of

:24:43. > :24:44.

:24:44. > :24:49.what's best for this country. -- and we welcome. It is fundamentally a

:24:49. > :24:53.political decision. I think the economic cycle. We need the growth

:24:53. > :24:59.but noise is a real issue. It impact on local people is an issue and

:25:00. > :25:05.therefore it's right we choose the best option. But you can't rule out

:25:05. > :25:09.plans for a fourth runway in ten years time? I don't know on what

:25:09. > :25:13.basis someone historically said that because it's not our decision. It's

:25:13. > :25:17.a government decision which says what is our aviation policy. We are

:25:17. > :25:21.making our case today to the Davies Commission and we look forward to

:25:21. > :25:27.them coming to view. We think there's good evidence to say it

:25:28. > :25:31.matters to the UK. Over 700,000 people live under the current flight

:25:32. > :25:37.path. You mentioned the environmental impact. If a third

:25:37. > :25:41.runway was used to capacity, it would lead to 220,000 extra

:25:41. > :25:48.aeroplanes flying over London every year emitting 23.6 million tonnes of

:25:48. > :25:54.CO2 every year. If you want the globally low carbon solution, you

:25:54. > :25:58.would put your most efficient hub as close as possible to London. If you

:25:58. > :26:03.want low carbon solutions, you would definitely have your best hub as

:26:03. > :26:07.close as possible to London. In terms of noise, it's a real issue.

:26:07. > :26:12.We can drive noise down with a third runway because aircraft are getting

:26:12. > :26:19.quieter, we can develop operating procedures which means less of a

:26:19. > :26:22.noise reaches the ground and we can improve the scheme on the ground.

:26:22. > :26:29.third runway at Heathrow, no efforts and bats, that's what David Cameron

:26:29. > :26:32.said before the last election. have you said up a commission which

:26:32. > :26:38.is considering a third runway at Heathrow? We are looking at all the

:26:38. > :26:42.options. Like many commitments made in the manifesto, we are going to

:26:42. > :26:47.stick to my commitment until the next election. And beyond, and wait

:26:48. > :26:51.for the Davies Commission to report. It's overwhelmingly in our

:26:51. > :26:56.country 's national interest to have a hub airport capable of connecting

:26:56. > :27:06.us with a growing market of the world. You would like to see a third

:27:06. > :27:10.runway? We don't know where to put it. What about expanding Gatwick and

:27:10. > :27:16.Stansted where you have more room? They are all options we are looking

:27:16. > :27:21.at. They have intense political difficulties attached to them, as

:27:21. > :27:24.does the third runway at Heathrow. None of these things are easy. None

:27:25. > :27:28.of them is politically comfortable, but all of us, as parties, have to

:27:28. > :27:35.grapple with it and I think we all agree the Davies Commission is the

:27:35. > :27:39.right way to get very high quality objective answers. Lynton Crosby,

:27:40. > :27:44.let's think of him, is this another barnacle you have to get off the

:27:44. > :27:48.boat? We have a clear policy which we are going to maintain. We will

:27:48. > :27:52.only look at it again once we have the full advice from the Davies

:27:53. > :27:58.Commission in 2015. After the next election, which is kicking it into

:27:58. > :28:08.the long grass. It's not, it's a huge important project and it's

:28:08. > :28:14.important we look at it thoroughly. Labour has flip-flopped on this. The

:28:14. > :28:17.issue is, the difference between our position, we don't have an automatic

:28:17. > :28:22.preference for a third runway but the shame of this is it a classic

:28:22. > :28:26.example of the big infrastructure decision where you need cross-party

:28:26. > :28:34.agreement and we reached it two and half years ago... I hate to

:28:34. > :28:39.interrupt you but we have to do is leave it. Just time to give you the

:28:39. > :28:47.result to Guess the Year. The answer was 1970. James Fletcher is the