05/02/2014

:00:36. > :00:39.Morning, folks. Welcome to the Daily Politics.

:00:40. > :00:42.Commuters in London and the south-east struggled to work today

:00:43. > :00:47.as a strike on the Underground brought problems to the morning

:00:48. > :00:51.rush-hour. The trains are going nowhere, but are the Tories inching

:00:52. > :00:56.towards making it harder for the unions to call a strike?

:00:57. > :01:00.Danny Alexander says the Tories will cut the top rate of tax "over his

:01:01. > :01:03.dead body". As the Lib Dems have another public falling out with

:01:04. > :01:05.their coalition partners, we ask if there's anything they do still agree

:01:06. > :01:09.on. It's Wednesday. That means it's

:01:10. > :01:13.nearly time for your weekly bout of Punch and Judy politics - we'll

:01:14. > :01:20.bring you PMQs live at midday. And Parliament has an infestation.

:01:21. > :01:24.Not it's not the politicians, or the journalists - it's mice. We'll be

:01:25. > :01:30.meeting a cat that could be sent in to clean up the Commons.

:01:31. > :01:35.All that in the next 90 minutes of the finest broadcasting your licence

:01:36. > :01:39.fee can buy. And joining us for the show are two politicians who'd never

:01:40. > :01:42.let a little thing like a Tube strike keep them away from

:01:43. > :01:44.Westminster on a Wednesday - Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude and

:01:45. > :01:52.Shadow Defence Secretary Vernon Coaker. Welcome to you both. They

:01:53. > :01:56.asked to work from home today but we told them to get on their bikes.

:01:57. > :01:58.Let's start today with the latest on this strike affecting commuters

:01:59. > :02:01.coming into London. Yes the 48-hour walk-out by the RMT

:02:02. > :02:04.and TSSA unions started last night, they're striking over proposed job

:02:05. > :02:08.cuts and ticket office closures and with only a limited service until

:02:09. > :02:12.Friday morning there have been big problems for people heading to work

:02:13. > :02:22.in the capital. Let's talk now to our correspondent, Daniel Boettcher.

:02:23. > :02:26.How bad has it been where you are? It is pretty calm at the moment but

:02:27. > :02:30.during the rush hour there were occasions when passengers were

:02:31. > :02:33.queueing onto the pavement, prevented from going into the

:02:34. > :02:39.concourse because it was too busy. The Northern line going through here

:02:40. > :02:45.does have a good service, it is the only one that does. Others are

:02:46. > :02:49.running what they call a special service. London Underground saying

:02:50. > :02:55.eight out of 11 Tube lines have some service. We don't know exactly how

:02:56. > :02:59.many trains are running. The unions are saying the strike is rock-solid,

:03:00. > :03:04.they are describing it as a skeleton service. Both sides in this dispute

:03:05. > :03:08.have a different take on how much disruption there has been. It is

:03:09. > :03:14.clear when you look at the buses and trains and other services, a lot of

:03:15. > :03:18.people have moved on to those. There have been big queues at stations and

:03:19. > :03:22.bus stops as people have tried to find alternative ways of getting

:03:23. > :03:27.into work. They face the same this evening on the way home, again

:03:28. > :03:33.tomorrow and a further 48 hour strike next week. I understand you

:03:34. > :03:42.caught sight of Boris Johnson, what was he talking to commuters about?

:03:43. > :03:46.Firstly he was apologising for the disruption, he said this was a

:03:47. > :03:50.pointless strike and he said there had to be more negotiations. Both

:03:51. > :03:56.sides accusing each other of intransigence over this. Boris

:03:57. > :04:01.Johnson also repeating the idea there should be a 50% threshold for

:04:02. > :04:07.strikes, that 50% of members have to vote in favour on key public

:04:08. > :04:12.services like public transport. Thank you very much. Spirits are not

:04:13. > :04:16.dampened behind him. It is OK if you are a skeleton, you

:04:17. > :04:23.have still got service, not so much for the rest of us. What about the

:04:24. > :04:29.idea of the Mayor's, that at least 50% of people should vote for a

:04:30. > :04:33.strike before they can call one? The first point to make, I am really

:04:34. > :04:37.sorry commuters are being subjected to those disruptions, it is quite

:04:38. > :04:41.unnecessary. TfL are trying to modernise the Tube and do sensible

:04:42. > :04:44.things in a sensible way, and this strike is quite unjustifiable. The

:04:45. > :04:50.right thing to do is to condemn the strike, which we do unequivocally,

:04:51. > :04:53.and which Labour have refused to do. Ed Miliband's helpful contribution

:04:54. > :05:03.was to say there should be negotiations. I don't know what

:05:04. > :05:11.Boris was supposed to do, get out to Rio and negotiate? He has been out

:05:12. > :05:17.since the weekend, Bob Crow. His mind was made up well in

:05:18. > :05:21.advance, Bob Crow wanted a strike. Fewer than 50% of union members

:05:22. > :05:29.voted and within that 50%, not everybody voted for a strike. What

:05:30. > :05:35.about the idea of a 50% turnout before you can call a strike? That

:05:36. > :05:44.is an idea that has been ventilated at various times. We keep it under

:05:45. > :05:48.review. The risk is you would enable union leaders to manipulate the

:05:49. > :05:52.results, so you get the result over 50% which lends greater legitimacy

:05:53. > :05:59.to the result. There are some other oddities with the way strike laws

:06:00. > :06:04.work at the moment. I understand that but it doesn't seem... You say

:06:05. > :06:09.it is under consideration which is a way of saying you're not going to do

:06:10. > :06:13.it. We have no plans to do it at the moment at we will continue to keep

:06:14. > :06:19.it under review. If only 30% of people vote in total, does that

:06:20. > :06:24.undermine the legitimacy of the strike? Absolutely, it makes it a

:06:25. > :06:28.very weak mandate and it means that you can only then get,

:06:29. > :06:32.realistically, if that small number of people have only voted for a

:06:33. > :06:38.strike... If more than those come out on strike, it is likely to show

:06:39. > :06:44.a degree of intimidation behind the strike and that is what I think is

:06:45. > :06:50.bothersome. When Boris Johnson was elected mayor on a turnout of 38% in

:06:51. > :06:53.2012, that was a very weak mandate. No, because that is about the

:06:54. > :07:01.ability of the union to call people out on strike. How can one turnout

:07:02. > :07:06.of between 30 and 40% have no mandate, but a man who gets elected

:07:07. > :07:11.mayor with only a turnout of 38% come out cannot be a mandate? You

:07:12. > :07:20.would have to ask Boris, he is urging the case for a 50% threshold.

:07:21. > :07:25.Which confirms that you are against the 50% threshold. We are keeping it

:07:26. > :07:30.under review. There are risks attached to it. On this strike there

:07:31. > :07:35.are to be no compulsory redundancies. Indeed, some people

:07:36. > :07:38.will be hired. People who are behind ticket offices that almost nobody

:07:39. > :07:44.uses will be redeployed to the platforms. And that will add to the

:07:45. > :07:49.security and safety of the overall operation. What is wrong with that?

:07:50. > :07:53.What we know is that negotiations have taken place. We said the

:07:54. > :08:01.strikes should not have gone ahead. It is clear from the newspapers...

:08:02. > :08:05.What is wrong with it? It is a matter for the unions and the TfL

:08:06. > :08:10.and the Mayor. I am asking you, what is wrong with the system that uses

:08:11. > :08:14.no compulsory redundancies, almost nobody uses ticket offices, you get

:08:15. > :08:19.the people on to the platforms and people are happier, and no

:08:20. > :08:23.compulsory redundancies. I think people are concerned about the lack

:08:24. > :08:26.of ticket offices and face-to-face contact. I have been in Tube

:08:27. > :08:30.stations where the Oyster card has not worked, people are not sure what

:08:31. > :08:36.is going on so they will be concerned. It is a matter for

:08:37. > :08:39.negotiation. It would be helpful if the Mayor of London had met the

:08:40. > :08:45.leader of the union coming hasn't met him in five years. It would have

:08:46. > :08:50.been helpful if Bob Crow had not gone to Rio de Janeiro. Instead of

:08:51. > :08:57.arguing about if we need strike laws, what is clear is that CFO, --

:08:58. > :09:03.TfL, the Mayor of London and the union should sit down and negotiate

:09:04. > :09:08.these things. Is Bob Crow right to call his members on strike? He is

:09:09. > :09:14.right if he thinks there is an issue at stake, he is right to go to his

:09:15. > :09:18.members and say, we think there is a dispute that needs to be pursued and

:09:19. > :09:24.we think the only way is a strike. It is up to him. Why can't you stand

:09:25. > :09:30.up for hard-working people who want to get to work and do their day 's

:09:31. > :09:32.work? We are standing up for hard-working people, we have said

:09:33. > :09:39.quite clearly that the strike should not have gone ahead. What people

:09:40. > :09:43.will be concerned about is we have heard Boris Johnson's only

:09:44. > :09:47.contribution, to start talking about changing the laws with respect to

:09:48. > :09:52.strikes. You have not been able to confirm if it will be Conservative

:09:53. > :09:57.policy. I think he has confirmed it won't be. And he doesn't know what

:09:58. > :10:03.he is talking about. I think people would want to know what Boris's

:10:04. > :10:07.pitch is, to get it resolved, get around the table and sort it out.

:10:08. > :10:16.The truth is that Bob Crow decided to call the strike. It is both of

:10:17. > :10:20.them. He did win the votes for it, his members voted for it. When you

:10:21. > :10:26.have got a mandate to call a strike, it doesn't mean you have to call it.

:10:27. > :10:31.Except that there is an oddity in the law which means if you have got

:10:32. > :10:35.a strike mandate, you have to use it within 28 days or you lose it. And

:10:36. > :10:42.once you have used it, it remains in place for ever. That does need to be

:10:43. > :10:46.looked at. Bob Crow called the strike, pushed off on his crews, so

:10:47. > :10:56.the negotiations could not take place. -- on his cruise. But he

:10:57. > :11:00.booked it a year ago. Instead of making sound bites, let's save two

:11:01. > :11:03.of one that millions of people are suffering, let's say two Bob Crow

:11:04. > :11:10.and Boris Johnson, sit down around the table and sort it out. This is

:11:11. > :11:19.the line all oppositions take. What is the alternative? David Cameron

:11:20. > :11:23.says the following, Bob Crow's Tube strike is plain wrong and he should

:11:24. > :11:28.call it off today. Do you agree? We have said it should not have gone

:11:29. > :11:33.ahead, Ed Miliband has said that. You think Mr Crow was wrong to call

:11:34. > :11:41.the strike? We have said it should not have gone ahead. There is no

:11:42. > :11:52.equivocation. You should express a real view. That the strike should

:11:53. > :11:56.not go ahead, that is a real view. I think what everybody wants to say,

:11:57. > :11:59.is to love people like me and you talking about it, get them around

:12:00. > :12:10.the table, talk about it and sort it out. Getting new two around the

:12:11. > :12:12.table hasn't got us very far. -- you two around the table.

:12:13. > :12:16.Fans of a coalition bust-up haven't had to look far this week as the

:12:17. > :12:19.list of things the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats don't agree on

:12:20. > :12:22.just grows and grows. We've already had a very public row over

:12:23. > :12:26.appointments to Ofsted. And today Treasury Minister Danny Alexander

:12:27. > :12:30.says the Tories can cut the top rate of tax "over my dead body". So, are

:12:31. > :12:31.they still in coalition, or are they just cohabiting? Jo-Co has the

:12:32. > :12:34.details. Is the coalition love-in well and

:12:35. > :12:37.truly over? Danny Alexander's previously been accused of "going

:12:38. > :12:41.native". But today he's out to prove he's not true blue, but yellow to

:12:42. > :12:46.the core. He's said the Tories will only be able cut the top rate of tax

:12:47. > :12:50.to 40p "over my dead body" - a position likely to enrage many in

:12:51. > :12:55.the Conservative Party. And, coalition tensions are rising

:12:56. > :12:59.elsewhere in government too. Reports this morning say the Lib Dems have

:13:00. > :13:04.blocked a plan to cap council tax rises at 1.5%. Also this week -

:13:05. > :13:11.coalition cheerleader David Laws got into a rather public row with

:13:12. > :13:14.Michael Gove over Ofsted. He let it be known he was "furious" over the

:13:15. > :13:19.decision not to re-appoint Labour peer Sally Morgan as Ofsted chair.

:13:20. > :13:22.And the slow divorce has been picking up pace in the Lords, where

:13:23. > :13:25.Lib Dems peers are increasingly happy to inflict defeats on the

:13:26. > :13:28.Government on issues like the EU referendum. With Government

:13:29. > :13:33.legislation drying up in the Commons, it seems the coalition's

:13:34. > :13:37.radical phase could be over. And as they don't agree on enough to bring

:13:38. > :13:44.forward any new major bills, there's even less reason for the two parties

:13:45. > :13:51.to avoid fighting in public. Thanks, Jo-Co. Sorry we had a

:13:52. > :13:56.problem with the graphic, nothing animated, it got stuck. I don't know

:13:57. > :14:02.why we didn't take a monkey wrench to it. With us now is our new BFF -

:14:03. > :14:07.that means Best Friend Forever: it's the Deputy Leader of the Liberal

:14:08. > :14:12.Democrats, Malcolm Bruce. He is fresh from his triumph on the Sunday

:14:13. > :14:16.Politics. Malcolm Bruce, the new deputy leader of the Lib Dems. This

:14:17. > :14:23.is now a loveless marriage, isn't it? We will have to go through 16

:14:24. > :14:27.months of the constant tests. It never was a marriage, it was an

:14:28. > :14:31.agreement between two parties to run the government together, they have

:14:32. > :14:37.different agendas and backgrounds but we have had a core objective to

:14:38. > :14:43.turn the country around, which we are succeeding and it doesn't mean

:14:44. > :14:46.we have to agree on every policy. You are staying together for the

:14:47. > :14:51.sake of the kids, also known as the deficit. It is the sake of the

:14:52. > :14:55.people. We are turning the country around, tackling the deficit.

:14:56. > :14:59.Liberal Democrats have cut taxes, boost pensions and we have got the

:15:00. > :15:02.deficit under control, kept interest rates down, we have growth coming

:15:03. > :15:07.back into the economy and you say it hasn't been worth it. I have told

:15:08. > :15:12.you nothing, For many movers and shakers at Westminster

:15:13. > :15:25.we have disagreements. You pick fights, you picked a fight over who

:15:26. > :15:30.would be head of Ofsted. I would suggest the Secretary of State

:15:31. > :15:34.picked that fight. He himself has not put its head above the parapet.

:15:35. > :15:38.Would you thought it would have consulted the schools minister about

:15:39. > :15:42.how to replace and who to replace the inspector of schools with? The

:15:43. > :15:47.fact that he didn't suggests... Why hasn't he said something in public

:15:48. > :15:53.then? I think they have met in the course of the week. That's not

:15:54. > :15:56.public. They work together. He just unleashes his friends, more bad

:15:57. > :16:00.blood into it. They have agreed together a process which was not in

:16:01. > :16:05.place at the weekend. Danny Alexander, who now feels he has to

:16:06. > :16:10.do begin self up to the left of the party because they all think he's

:16:11. > :16:14.gone to Tory, picking an aunt Sally. The Tories know they can't cut the

:16:15. > :16:19.top rate of tax to 40% this side of the election. Even if they wanted to

:16:20. > :16:23.but, all of a sudden, he said they will do it over my dead body. He's

:16:24. > :16:27.picking a fight. He was being challenged by left-wing newspaper.

:16:28. > :16:31.He gave a straightforward answer, which the Lib Dems do not believe

:16:32. > :16:37.the priority between now and the election should be. He's ever Tories

:16:38. > :16:41.wouldn't do it over his dead body. They won't attempt to do it. In

:16:42. > :16:47.which case, his body will be relevant. I think is entitled to the

:16:48. > :16:55.public we don't support it. We know that. It over his dead body. We

:16:56. > :17:00.support carrying on with raising the tax threshold. We are trying to see

:17:01. > :17:04.if we can go on in the next Parliament to go further. We are

:17:05. > :17:07.trying to say the people, this is how we differ, and when you come to

:17:08. > :17:11.an election can do can make choices. You were once quoted as saying Uber

:17:12. > :17:18.fed governing the Lib Dems than a small Tory majority. I said, in

:17:19. > :17:22.2010, when the coalition was formed, it was a real advantage having a

:17:23. > :17:25.coalition with a broad base, in order to do the really difficult

:17:26. > :17:29.things that had to be done to get the deficit down. And that's

:17:30. > :17:33.absolutely the case. At the next section, I want an outright

:17:34. > :17:37.Conservative Government. I get on well with them. I understand

:17:38. > :17:41.completely why the Lib Dems want to pick these fights, because they have

:17:42. > :17:50.paid a heavy political price for being in coalition. I feel like a

:17:51. > :18:01.marriage counsellor here. I'm saving you for the best. You just used the

:18:02. > :18:05.phrase, picking fights. They want to differentiate themselves I

:18:06. > :18:09.understand that. It's politics. We are getting on the long-term plan,

:18:10. > :18:13.doing the job in Government, in a purposeful way, to secure the

:18:14. > :18:18.long-term... You're grateful to have the Lib Dems counteracting your

:18:19. > :18:25.right-wing element. That is not a factor. Isn't it? We don't have an

:18:26. > :18:30.outright majority, and that's what we'll be campaigning for at the next

:18:31. > :18:35.election. You keep the right place because you need Lib Dems support.

:18:36. > :18:41.It's not a factor far as I'm concerned. What is important is we

:18:42. > :18:44.continue to give a stable Government when we still have a deficit that is

:18:45. > :18:49.too high, and would need to continue to do the difficult radical things

:18:50. > :18:52.needed to drive it down. Do you fancy replacing the Tories in a

:18:53. > :18:58.loveless marriage? Not a loveless marriage. We want to replace a Tory

:18:59. > :19:03.led Government at the next election. Even I have worked that out. If you

:19:04. > :19:09.don't get an overall majority, have denied any kind of discussions with

:19:10. > :19:13.the Lib Dems? Not at all. Do you think you might as the election

:19:14. > :19:18.approaches? The Labour Party will be focused on winning... We know that.

:19:19. > :19:24.It's an important thing to state because people will speculate. There

:19:25. > :19:32.is no surprise that you want to win the next election. People speculate

:19:33. > :19:37.but I thinking about it. On a lot of things, the Lib Dems are much closer

:19:38. > :19:41.to you than they are to Frances Maude and his party. You don't want

:19:42. > :19:46.to 40% rate of tax, you want a mansion tax, you want more taxes on

:19:47. > :19:50.the rich, as well. You could possibly get on quite well together.

:19:51. > :19:57.It depends on which part of the Liberal Party you talk to. What

:19:58. > :20:00.about this part? You will find liberals are very different,

:20:01. > :20:05.depending on who you speak to. I go back to the point, we would campaign

:20:06. > :20:10.for an outright Labour majority. In terms of saying to the Liberals,

:20:11. > :20:15.we're not thinking about negotiating with them or what will happen. We

:20:16. > :20:19.would campaign... Isn't that a mistake? Those on your own party

:20:20. > :20:25.criticised the fact you didn't lay the ground for negotiations last

:20:26. > :20:29.time round? I don't think it is a mistake because people want to know

:20:30. > :20:33.you are confident, you're going into the next election believing you can

:20:34. > :20:42.win it. On what major policies do you to disagree on? Nuclear weapons.

:20:43. > :20:45.I'm not sure what policies on nuclear weapons. You didn't get that

:20:46. > :20:52.at them you were in Government. We are in the favour of the renewal of

:20:53. > :20:57.Trident. In respect of Trident alternative for the future, it's

:20:58. > :21:04.quite clear they wanted very much reduced level of... They'd want like

:21:05. > :21:12.the like. Would that be a deal-breaker? Defence of the country

:21:13. > :21:18.is a huge issue. You asked me for a big policy difference between us and

:21:19. > :21:24.the Liberals. Everybody wants to win the election and be realistic. The

:21:25. > :21:30.truth is... Winning outright victory will be a challenge for us. That

:21:31. > :21:36.shocks me. I may have to have a minutes silence. I think the public

:21:37. > :21:40.would expect parties to have a plan B. Yes, you want to win, but you

:21:41. > :21:45.must have some idea. We're not going to discuss it in public because you

:21:46. > :21:48.set your manifesto and you see what your outcome is pleased we will say

:21:49. > :21:53.what the process will be and we are prepared to negotiate in those

:21:54. > :21:57.circumstances. Can you hold your policy inside the Labour Party that

:21:58. > :22:02.there will have to be a like-for-like replacement of

:22:03. > :22:10.Trident? Absolutely. Ed Miliband is an soft on this? Not at all. What

:22:11. > :22:14.about council taxes? You want a cap of 1.5 percentage to be said,

:22:15. > :22:23.otherwise there has to be a referendum, and the Lib Dems want to

:22:24. > :22:26.be able to do 2%. Yes, I doubt the background to that. It's a story in

:22:27. > :22:32.the papers today. The Conservatives have lost that battle. You would

:22:33. > :22:35.like to reduce it. It will be held at 2%. Something will no doubt be

:22:36. > :22:45.announced in due course in the proper way. There are agreements in

:22:46. > :22:54.coalition. I have seen Borgen, so I know how it works! In the Thatcher

:22:55. > :22:58.years when I was a minister, you come out and start a different

:22:59. > :23:09.views. You argue it out. It's the same in a coalition. We will see you

:23:10. > :23:17.very shortly. For many movers and shakers at Westminster it's one of

:23:18. > :23:20.THE social events of the year. Last year guests paid ?400 to sip

:23:21. > :23:25.champagne and rub shoulders with celebrities like Peter Stringfellow.

:23:26. > :23:38.And Holly Valance. Who is that? And Francis Maude. Yes, he is with us

:23:39. > :23:41.now! In previous years, the organisers have auctioned off City

:23:42. > :23:45.internships for the kids, or a day's shooting on a country estate. To

:23:46. > :23:49.show their commitment to social mobility. And last year someone was

:23:50. > :23:54.said to have paid ?10,000 just to meet Justin Bieber backstage at a

:23:55. > :24:01.gig. That wasn't you, was that, Andrew? I didn't know he was a Tory!

:24:02. > :24:07.That wouldn't even cover his bail these days. So what is this

:24:08. > :24:10.glittering event I hear you ask? Why, it's the Conservatives' Black

:24:11. > :24:17.and White fundraising ball. It used to be called the Blue Ball but now I

:24:18. > :24:20.have to be more diverse. Which is being held tonight at a secret

:24:21. > :24:25.location somewhere in London. It's hardly secret. It's usually in

:24:26. > :24:28.Battersea Park. Good thing they won't have to use public transport.

:24:29. > :24:35.They have all got chauffeur driven cars. Sadly not. But as those Tory

:24:36. > :24:41.donors dig deep into their pockets, there's one prize that won't be up

:24:42. > :24:45.for auction. Inevitably it's the Daily Politics mug. Here's what it

:24:46. > :24:55.would look like if David Cameron had one. And it would raise so much

:24:56. > :24:59.money the party could tell all its donors to pack up and go home. We

:25:00. > :25:05.should point out that the event is no longer black-tie. But it looks a

:25:06. > :25:11.lot better if we put him in black-tie. Artistic licence. We'll

:25:12. > :25:13.remind you how to enter in a minute. But let's see if you can remember

:25:14. > :25:25.when THIS happened. COMMENTATOR: This first London

:25:26. > :25:33.Marathon, even before it started, is already the most remarkable success.

:25:34. > :25:42.# It's my party and I'll cry if I want to # Cry if I want to # You

:25:43. > :25:48.would cry too if it happened to you...

:25:49. > :25:55.# Oh, tainted love # Oh, tainted love # Now I know I've got to run

:25:56. > :26:03.away # We fade to grey. # We fade to

:26:04. > :26:22.grey. # Don't you ever stop being dandy,

:26:23. > :26:24.showing me your hand some # Prince Charming # Ridicule is nothing to be

:26:25. > :26:40.scared of. Dot. To be in with a chance of winning a

:26:41. > :26:43.Daily Politics mug, send your answer to our special quiz email address.

:26:44. > :26:47.Dpquiz@bbc.co.uk. And you can see the full terms and conditions for

:26:48. > :26:53.Guess The Year on our website. It's coming up to midday here. I think we

:26:54. > :26:58.have got the Big Ben camera again. We can afford it for one week only.

:26:59. > :27:04.Prime Minister 's questions is on moon. If you'd like to comment on

:27:05. > :27:06.proceedings you can email us at daily.politics@bbc.co.uk or tweet

:27:07. > :27:14.your thoughts using the hashtag #bbcdp. We will read them out if

:27:15. > :27:22.they are possible to read out on daytime television. Nick Robinson is

:27:23. > :27:26.here. Thank you so much. I meant to bring in a picture which I thought

:27:27. > :27:30.would appreciate that please you. It's a picture of me and Alex

:27:31. > :27:38.Ferguson. Really? I thought that would make you jealous. He plays

:27:39. > :27:42.with a round ball. Things are not going very well at my favourite

:27:43. > :27:47.club. Floods have been in an useful to it's been hard for the to avoid

:27:48. > :27:51.floods. It's been tempting given Prince Charles's criticism

:27:52. > :27:57.yesterday, implied, when he said wider take so long for anything to

:27:58. > :27:59.happen? It would be tempting for Ed Miliband to ask, a signal it's

:28:00. > :28:05.become critical, the fact the Prime Minister is chairing this Cobra

:28:06. > :28:09.emergency meeting. We are a long way off but any politician who remembers

:28:10. > :28:16.New Orleans, and what happened to George Bush, knows you do not ignore

:28:17. > :28:22.something in a particular location when people are saying where are the

:28:23. > :28:26.authorities? It's not on the scale of New Orleans, is not as political,

:28:27. > :28:31.but the pictures are dramatic, and I was talking to a minister the other

:28:32. > :28:35.day and David Cameron was talking about dredging endlessly. He's taken

:28:36. > :28:38.a real interest in this. Maybe because it comes from a rural

:28:39. > :28:41.constituency and has knowledge of flooding, but it could be he got

:28:42. > :28:45.pretty acute political antenna and will realise if those pictures keep

:28:46. > :28:51.going on, and with Prince Charles unit, and Ed Miliband races it

:28:52. > :28:54.today, these things can damage him. It's been the policy of the

:28:55. > :28:59.Environment Agency not to dredge, and do the opposite. The previous

:29:00. > :29:02.head wanted to get rid of the pumping stations and the local

:29:03. > :29:06.advice I understand, if you go down there, not in London, but the local

:29:07. > :29:09.advice, the drainage experts, people who run the water board, say we

:29:10. > :29:15.should never have stopped dredging. It's becoming a big problem. I think

:29:16. > :29:20.that's right for the these are not ordinary rivers but artificial

:29:21. > :29:25.drainage. Built by the Dutch for Charles I, I believe. You have to do

:29:26. > :29:30.dredge them. The pattern has been, you dredge them and put the silt on

:29:31. > :29:35.the field which has the effect of increasing the fertility and raising

:29:36. > :29:38.the level of the land either side but, apparently, there is an EU

:29:39. > :29:43.directive which prevents the silt being put on the land for that you

:29:44. > :29:48.can only put it within one machine's length of the bank which

:29:49. > :29:54.seems a bit bonkers. People just want a sense of urgency. Let's get

:29:55. > :30:01.on with it. That's a big thing I think people want. Why doesn't it

:30:02. > :30:06.just happened? Sympathy. We said dredging was a problem and then we

:30:07. > :30:10.said no, but we won't do it. Local people have always thought dredging

:30:11. > :30:14.in the Norfolk Broads, where they have retained control of their below

:30:15. > :30:19.sea level, they have been dredging and they haven't been flooded. As I

:30:20. > :30:25.understand it, there's quite a gulf between the Government the

:30:26. > :30:28.Environment Agency. And Lord Smith, ex-Labour politician, they are not

:30:29. > :30:34.happy with this performance by the Prime Minister can hardly attack the

:30:35. > :30:38.agency or Chris Smith at PMQ 's. He can't, but he can look like he's

:30:39. > :30:41.taking charge. I'm under Tony Blair with foot and mouth, and it was

:30:42. > :30:44.following the official advice, doing what the Minister of agriculture

:30:45. > :30:48.said, and there was a moment in that scandal where he suddenly thought,

:30:49. > :30:53.and I was called in for a meeting with him and the chief scientist,

:30:54. > :30:55.and a group of journalists, and there was a sense of the Prime

:30:56. > :30:59.Minister thought, forget all this, I'm sick of this advice. I'm taking

:31:00. > :31:04.charge here. Francis would know better than I would, with the Prime

:31:05. > :31:07.Minister has got to that moment but I think Prime ministers tend to have

:31:08. > :31:12.moments where they think, enough of this. I'm in charge. We will ask

:31:13. > :31:14.Francis Lai questioned when we come back. Let's go to Prime Minister 's

:31:15. > :31:39.questions. London is the commercial centre of

:31:40. > :31:43.the Western world. With the economy falling, would he agree that the

:31:44. > :31:49.efforts of the RMT union to bring London to a halt is nothing short of

:31:50. > :31:54.economic vandalism? I absolutely agree with my right-friend-macro.

:31:55. > :32:00.There is absolutely no justification for a strike. We need a modernised

:32:01. > :32:05.Tube line working for the millions of Londoners who use it everyday.

:32:06. > :32:09.The fact is only 3% of transactions involve ticket offices so it makes

:32:10. > :32:14.sense to have fewer people in those offices but more people on the

:32:15. > :32:18.platforms and the stations. I unreservedly condemn this strike.

:32:19. > :32:22.When the shadow defence minister was asked to do so today, he said it was

:32:23. > :32:27.a matter for the union. I hope the right honourable gentleman, the

:32:28. > :32:32.leader of the opposition, will get up and unreservedly condemn this

:32:33. > :32:40.strike today. JEERING

:32:41. > :32:45.The ongoing floods and storms are seeing people driven out of their

:32:46. > :32:49.homes and affecting significant parts of the country. Many of those

:32:50. > :32:53.affected feel the government's response has been slow and more

:32:54. > :32:57.could have been done sooner. We'll be Prime Minister tell the house

:32:58. > :33:01.what action is being taken to ensure areas affected have all the

:33:02. > :33:05.necessary support they need? Let me update the house on this very

:33:06. > :33:10.serious situation. I don't accept the government has been slow, we

:33:11. > :33:14.have been having Cobra meetings on a daily basis and taken action across

:33:15. > :33:20.the board. There are currently 328 properties flooded. 122,000

:33:21. > :33:24.properties were rejected last night because of the flood prevention

:33:25. > :33:27.measures in place. 1.2 million protected since December. There are

:33:28. > :33:32.still seven severe flood warnings across the coast of Cornwall, Devon

:33:33. > :33:38.and Dorset and there are 69 flood warnings in place, which means more

:33:39. > :33:43.flooding is expected and immediate action is required. There are 219

:33:44. > :33:46.flood alerts in place. There is a serious situation in Dorset with so

:33:47. > :33:54.many people losing electricity. Over 60,000 homes have been reconnected

:33:55. > :33:57.overnight. Whatever is required, whether it is dredging work, whether

:33:58. > :34:02.it is support for emergency services, whether it is fresh money

:34:03. > :34:05.for flood defences, whether it is action across-the-board, this

:34:06. > :34:11.government will help those families and get the issue sorted.

:34:12. > :34:14.Notwithstanding the prime Minister's response, you know many

:34:15. > :34:19.people in those areas feel the response has been too slow and that

:34:20. > :34:24.they have been left on their own and isolated. Does he agree that the

:34:25. > :34:29.events we have seen demand a comprehensive look at the

:34:30. > :34:34.government's investment in the protection and the speed of

:34:35. > :34:38.response? The Prime Minister 's promise to report by the end of

:34:39. > :34:39.January. Can he tell us when the report will be available -- the

:34:40. > :34:49.Prime Minister promised. I can tell the house he will make a

:34:50. > :34:54.comp offensive statement tomorrow. This government has spent 2.4

:34:55. > :34:59.billion over this four-year period, which is more than the ?2.2 billion

:35:00. > :35:05.spent under the previous government. Let me announce that a further ?100

:35:06. > :35:09.million will be made available to fund essential flood repairs and

:35:10. > :35:14.maintenance over the next year. This will cover ?75 million for repairs,

:35:15. > :35:18.?10 million for urgent work in Somerset to deliver the action plan

:35:19. > :35:22.that is being prepared by the local agencies, and ?15 million for extra

:35:23. > :35:25.maintenance. I would make the point, we are only able to make these

:35:26. > :35:32.decisions because we have looked after the nation's finances

:35:33. > :35:36.carefully. I can confirm it is new money that will protect more houses

:35:37. > :35:42.and help our country more with floods, and we will continue to do

:35:43. > :35:44.what is right. Actually the figures show that investment by the

:35:45. > :35:52.government has fallen over this period, not risen. But the reality

:35:53. > :35:55.is that the scale of challenge we face, from climate change and

:35:56. > :35:59.floods, demands we have a conference of look at the investment that is

:36:00. > :36:02.required and I am glad the Prime Minister has said the environment

:36:03. > :36:09.Secretary will come to the house tomorrow. I wanted to do another

:36:10. > :36:13.subject. The Prime Minister -- I want to turn to another subject was

:36:14. > :36:20.that the Prime Minister said he was going to lead the way on women's

:36:21. > :36:25.equality. Can the Prime Minister tell us, how is that going in the

:36:26. > :36:31.Conservative Party? Let me go back to the very important issue of

:36:32. > :36:34.flooding. Order. People getting very excited on both sides of the house.

:36:35. > :36:43.The question has been put, the answer must we heard. I am that he

:36:44. > :36:48.is asking me about constituency selection with Falkirk going on. Let

:36:49. > :36:55.me return to the issue of floods. If you look at 2010 to 2014, when this

:36:56. > :37:00.government was in office, the funding was ?2.4 billion more than

:37:01. > :37:04.when Labour were in office. Secondly, and this will be of

:37:05. > :37:08.interest to a number of constituency MPs, when it comes to funding, the

:37:09. > :37:17.bell in the scheme also matters because it is the way the government

:37:18. > :37:21.supports local authorities. Order, order, you are an incorrigible

:37:22. > :37:29.delinquent at times. Behave yourself, man. I know that many

:37:30. > :37:33.honourable members with flooded homes in their constituencies will

:37:34. > :37:36.want to hear about this scheme because it is the way that central

:37:37. > :37:42.government helps local government. Let me say that we will be paying

:37:43. > :37:46.local authorities 100% of eligible costs above the grant threshold, we

:37:47. > :37:53.will be extending the eligible... Mr Speaker... However longer session

:37:54. > :37:59.takes, the questions will be heard and the answers will be heard.

:38:00. > :38:06.Order... That is what the public has a right to expect of this house.

:38:07. > :38:10.They claim to be concerned but they won't listen to the answers. We are

:38:11. > :38:15.extending the eligible spending period for the claims until the end

:38:16. > :38:20.of March 2014, recognising that the bad weather is continuing. I can say

:38:21. > :38:24.to colleagues in Cornwall we will make sure they don't suffer from

:38:25. > :38:28.having a unitary authority, which we know they believe is very important.

:38:29. > :38:30.On the important issue of getting more women into public life...

:38:31. > :38:40.CHEERING because we will not represent or

:38:41. > :38:46.govern our country properly unless we have more women at every level in

:38:47. > :38:51.our public life and in our politics. I am proud of the fact that as

:38:52. > :38:56.leader of the Conservative Party, the number of women MPs has gone

:38:57. > :39:01.from 17 to 48, but we need to do much more. I want this to go

:39:02. > :39:06.further. We have also seen more women in work than ever before, a

:39:07. > :39:11.tax cut for 11 million women. We have stopped pensions binned it

:39:12. > :39:14.related against women -- being discriminated against women and we

:39:15. > :39:18.are putting women at the front of international aid programmes. There

:39:19. > :39:24.is more to do but we have a good record of helping women in our

:39:25. > :39:30.economy. Mr Speaker... JEERING

:39:31. > :39:41.I do have to say, a picture tells a thousand words. This is a prime

:39:42. > :39:47.Minister who said... I apologise for having to interrupt again. Calm

:39:48. > :39:52.yourselves, it is only just after midday, many hours of the day

:39:53. > :39:58.remain, don't destroy your systems by exploding. A picture tells 1000

:39:59. > :40:02.words, look at the all-male front bench before us. And he says he

:40:03. > :40:09.wants to represent the whole country. Mr Speaker, I guess they

:40:10. > :40:13.didn't let women into the Bullingdon club either. So there we go. He said

:40:14. > :40:20.a third of his ministers would be women, he is nowhere near meeting

:40:21. > :40:24.the target. Half of women he appointed after the election have

:40:25. > :40:28.resigned or been sacked. In his cabinet, there are as many men who

:40:29. > :40:33.went to Eton or Westminster as there are women. That is the picture. Does

:40:34. > :40:38.he think it is his fault that the Conservative Party has a problem

:40:39. > :40:45.with women? Let me give him the figures. Of the full members of the

:40:46. > :40:52.Cabinet who are conservatives, 24%, one quarter of them are women. Not

:40:53. > :40:56.enough, I want to see that grow. Of the front bench ministers, of the

:40:57. > :41:01.Conservatives, around 20% are women, that is below what I want to achieve

:41:02. > :41:06.in 33%. We are making progress and we will make more progress. Let me

:41:07. > :41:08.make this point, this party is proud of the fact that we had a woman

:41:09. > :41:13.Prime Minister... CHEERING

:41:14. > :41:26.Yes, yes. To be fair... To be fair to the

:41:27. > :41:35.Labour Party... Order, Mr Gove... LAUGHTER

:41:36. > :41:48.Order! You really are a very over excitable individual. You need to

:41:49. > :41:55.write out 1000 times, I will behave myself at Prime Minister's

:41:56. > :41:58.Questions. To be fair to the Labour Party they have had some interim

:41:59. > :42:07.leaders who are women but they have a habit of replacing them with

:42:08. > :42:13.totally ineffective men. HECKLING

:42:14. > :42:25.Of course, he mentions Lady Thatcher. Unlike him, she was a Tory

:42:26. > :42:33.leader who won a general election. And Mr Speaker, I noticed the member

:42:34. > :42:37.for North Essex in his place and he wrote a very interesting article

:42:38. > :42:41.recently. He said we men are all guilty of such unconscious lights to

:42:42. > :42:45.women. The Prime Minister recently greeted a leading high profile

:42:46. > :42:52.business woman at a reception by asking, where is your husband? Mr

:42:53. > :42:56.Speaker, that says it all. The reason representation matters is

:42:57. > :42:59.because it shapes the policies they government introduces and how they

:43:00. > :43:05.impact on women in the country. And he is failing women. Can he say why,

:43:06. > :43:12.for the first time in five years, has the gap between men's and

:43:13. > :43:15.women's pay increased? The fact is there are more women in work in our

:43:16. > :43:20.country than ever before in our history. We have seen a tax cut for

:43:21. > :43:24.12 million women, a pension increase that is benefiting women, tax free

:43:25. > :43:31.childcare that will help women who want to go out to work, or support

:43:32. > :43:35.on childcare. He talks about MPs and candidates, he might enjoy this. The

:43:36. > :43:43.Labour candidate for Wythenshawe has made an endorsement today, he has

:43:44. > :43:49.endorsed Miliband, David Miliband. Mr Speaker... If I were him, I would

:43:50. > :43:55.not be talking about candidates this week, of all weeks. Because what is

:43:56. > :43:58.the Tory Party doing? Removing one of their most senior women and

:43:59. > :44:06.seeking to replace her with an old it's only on. It says it all about

:44:07. > :44:10.the Conservative Party -- old Etonian. I will tell him why the

:44:11. > :44:15.gender pay gap is increasing. The minimum wage has been losing value,

:44:16. > :44:21.there is a growth of zero our on tax and the problem women have accessing

:44:22. > :44:28.childcare. -- zero our contracts. He is going backwards. He runs his

:44:29. > :44:35.government by the old boy network, that is why he is failing women

:44:36. > :44:38.across his party and the country. The win six questions and an

:44:39. > :44:44.invitation to condemn the strike today, not a word. He raises

:44:45. > :44:48.questions in a week when is completely rolled over to the trade

:44:49. > :44:53.unions. Let's be clear about what is happening. They keep their block a

:44:54. > :44:57.vote, they get more power over their discretionary funding, and they get

:44:58. > :45:00.90% of the votes for the leader. He told us he was going to get that of

:45:01. > :45:20.the red flag. All he's done is run up the white flag. Mr Speaker, with

:45:21. > :45:25.40 farms in West Norfolk led by expansion plans, unemployment has

:45:26. > :45:28.fallen by 20% since March last year. If the awareness means another 440

:45:29. > :45:36.hard working families receiving a pay packet facing a brighter future

:45:37. > :45:41.and our long-term economic plans? My honourable friend is absolutely

:45:42. > :45:47.right. We saw, two weeks ago, the biggest increase in employment in

:45:48. > :45:51.one quarterly figure since records began in the 1970s. We are seeing an

:45:52. > :45:57.employment come-down, more people in work, new jobs, the overwhelming

:45:58. > :46:00.majority, full-time jobs. Nine out of ten of them in the last year have

:46:01. > :46:05.been in better paid professions rather than low paid jobs. We are

:46:06. > :46:08.seeing economic success and every one of those jobs isn't just a

:46:09. > :46:12.statistic, but some on the pay packets can help take care of their

:46:13. > :46:16.family and have the dignity and security that work brings. Isn't it

:46:17. > :46:20.surprising, not a word about the economy today from Labour? They know

:46:21. > :46:28.it's growing and their forecasts were wrong. In evidence to the Welsh

:46:29. > :46:35.select committee, the leader of the Welsh Conservative assembly group

:46:36. > :46:38.said about the income tax in the draft Wales Bill, it was not a

:46:39. > :46:42.sensible course of action. Subsequently, that day, the

:46:43. > :46:46.Secretary of State for Wales and said he was expressing very much a

:46:47. > :46:52.personal view of his own. Later, he received a letter from the Welsh

:46:53. > :46:57.Assembly group, the Conservatives, saying it was worry much their

:46:58. > :47:00.opinion. Who speaks for Wales? The leader of the assembly or the sect

:47:01. > :47:07.of state for Wales? He's doing a superb -- superb job standing up for

:47:08. > :47:12.Wales. The NATO conference in Wales will be a success for the Welsh

:47:13. > :47:16.economy. In terms of the future of devolution, we are in favour of

:47:17. > :47:20.taking these further steps, we will bring forward legislation, taking

:47:21. > :47:24.steps in making sure that people in Wales have a real say and I want the

:47:25. > :47:28.Conservatives in Wales to stand up as a lone tax party in Wales and,

:47:29. > :47:34.under our devolution plan, that's exactly what they will do. A couple

:47:35. > :47:37.of weeks ago, the Daventry University technical College open

:47:38. > :47:42.the doors to its new campus where, under the stewardship of it

:47:43. > :47:44.excellent principle, its first 96 students will be learning the

:47:45. > :47:50.vocational skills young people need to compete in the future. Does he

:47:51. > :47:53.agree with me University technical colleges like this will ensure young

:47:54. > :47:57.people across the country have a brighter and more secure future and

:47:58. > :48:03.can be the benefits of the long-term economic plans? He's absolutely

:48:04. > :48:08.right. Making sure we have the best skills and the best schools is a key

:48:09. > :48:12.part of our long-term economic plan. I support very much the University

:48:13. > :48:15.technical college movement. The number of pupils taught in

:48:16. > :48:21.underperforming schools under the Scotsman has fallen by 250,004

:48:22. > :48:25.years, that is tens of thousands of young people who will have the

:48:26. > :48:31.chance of a good future and the chance to get a job and get involved

:48:32. > :48:36.in the modern economy. These buildings help people in that way.

:48:37. > :48:43.On the 22nd of February 2012, I ask the Prime Minister about fraud at a

:48:44. > :48:46.company working with job-seekers. He told me he was waiting for the truth

:48:47. > :48:52.before he would act. This week's guilty pleas by staff reveal a

:48:53. > :49:02.culture of fraud in Co. Isn't the list taxpayer fraudsters getting too

:49:03. > :49:05.long? When is it going to stop? She makes an important point, but the

:49:06. > :49:09.answer I would give is, instead of banding around names of companies

:49:10. > :49:14.where many people in those companies will be working hard to do a good

:49:15. > :49:18.job, what we should do is investigate wrongdoing properly, and

:49:19. > :49:28.make sure cases are properly taken to court as in this case, it clearly

:49:29. > :49:33.was. Does the Prime Minister share my outrage at the false choice

:49:34. > :49:39.prevented that was ended by the Environment Agency between urban and

:49:40. > :49:44.rural areas from flooding? Does he recognise my constituents and

:49:45. > :49:51.elsewhere expect this and maintenance, dredging and not

:49:52. > :49:54.abandonment? I think is absolutely right, there shouldn't be a false

:49:55. > :50:00.choice between protecting the town or the countryside. I think what we

:50:01. > :50:06.need to see, and where I think the debate is now rightly going, is,

:50:07. > :50:10.from the late 1990s, for far too long, the Environment Agency

:50:11. > :50:14.believed it was wrong to dredge. Those of us with rural

:50:15. > :50:18.constituencies affected by flooding, have seen the effectiveness of some

:50:19. > :50:21.dredging taking place. If it's good to some places, I think we need to

:50:22. > :50:27.make the argument it would be good for many more places. I have said we

:50:28. > :50:31.were the dredging in the Somerset Levels because that will make a

:50:32. > :50:35.difference, but I believe it's time for the Environment Agency, natural

:50:36. > :50:40.England, and the departments to work out a new approach to make sure

:50:41. > :50:46.something which did work, frankly, for centuries, is reintroduced

:50:47. > :50:53.again. Mr Speaker, Queen Victoria was on the throne when the Dunlop

:50:54. > :51:02.factory in my constituency first produced tyres for the motorsport

:51:03. > :51:07.industry. Jaguar Land Rover now welcome the expansion of the Jaguar

:51:08. > :51:10.plant. The Business Secretary and Birmingham City Council have

:51:11. > :51:14.identified three sites and a financial package to relocate. Will

:51:15. > :51:19.Prime Minister join with a Business Secretary and me in urging the

:51:20. > :51:25.company to look at those alternatives, and not walk away from

:51:26. > :51:28.125 years of manufacturing history? I was briefed on this issue just

:51:29. > :51:33.before coming to the chamber and I'm happy to look carefully at it and

:51:34. > :51:35.see what can be done. The recovery of the automotive sector,

:51:36. > :51:40.particularly in the West Midlands, has been hugely welcomed for our

:51:41. > :51:43.country. Dunlop is a historic brand and I will do everything I can to

:51:44. > :51:53.work with a Business Secretary to get a good outcome. South Essex is

:51:54. > :52:00.proof our long-term economic plan is working. However, the current

:52:01. > :52:04.options under consideration for an additional Thames crossing are

:52:05. > :52:08.limited in their ambition and do not maximise the economic potential of

:52:09. > :52:13.the Thames Gateway. Will he therefore agreed to meet with me and

:52:14. > :52:16.other interested people so he can hear why the first option and the

:52:17. > :52:22.third option are not the right answer? Where Essex goes, the rest

:52:23. > :52:26.of the country follows, as my honourable friend says. This is an

:52:27. > :52:29.important issue and we have to look at the potential bottlenecks which

:52:30. > :52:33.were held back the economy. I'm happy to meet with him. The Thames

:52:34. > :52:37.Gateway is a vital development for our country. I want is economic

:52:38. > :52:43.environment spread throughout the country and I'm happy to hold that

:52:44. > :52:47.meeting. Royal Mail shares are trading at 580 7p, 80% higher than

:52:48. > :52:53.when the Government sold off its share. Does the Prime Minister still

:52:54. > :52:58.believe that his Government properly valued Royal Mail and the price was

:52:59. > :53:03.set at the best deal for the taxpayer? I think the Government did

:53:04. > :53:08.a good job to get private-sector capital into Royal Mail, something

:53:09. > :53:12.which, frankly, has evaded Governments of all colours and

:53:13. > :53:15.persuasions for decades, and I well remember sitting on that side of the

:53:16. > :53:20.House and hearing about the appalling losses in Royal Mail, tens

:53:21. > :53:24.of millions, hundreds of millions of pounds, and the fact it's now well

:53:25. > :53:31.managed, well-run, with private-sector capital is a great

:53:32. > :53:39.environment for our country. -- of element. -- of element. We have a

:53:40. > :53:44.strong history of supporting apprenticeships across a range of

:53:45. > :53:48.sectors. With national apprenticeship week approaching next

:53:49. > :53:51.month, does he agree with me the emphasis by this Government on

:53:52. > :53:56.increasing apprenticeships for men and women is exactly what is needed

:53:57. > :54:01.to support people getting back into work and training? She is absolutely

:54:02. > :54:06.right. This Government has invested record amounts in apprenticeships,

:54:07. > :54:12.over 1.5 million people have started, including many the East

:54:13. > :54:15.Midlands, and I met them in her constituency. Each and every one of

:54:16. > :54:19.these apprentices if someone is getting a chance, skilled, a job,

:54:20. > :54:24.and the opportunity to build a life for themselves and stability and

:54:25. > :54:30.security which the birthright of every single person in the country.

:54:31. > :54:37.Can I tell Prime Minister the loss of the railway line at Dawlish in

:54:38. > :54:41.the storms is a devastating blow to the economy of Devon and Cornwall

:54:42. > :54:46.and it comes just a year after we lost the railway service from whole

:54:47. > :54:50.month in last year's floods. Does he accept we have to spend a great deal

:54:51. > :54:54.more investing in the resilience of our transport infrastructure and

:54:55. > :54:58.leave the Government United both in its acceptance of and determination

:54:59. > :55:05.to do something about climate change? I agree wholeheartedly on a

:55:06. > :55:08.number of points, first of all, we need to make sure urgent action is

:55:09. > :55:13.taken to restore these transport links, and I will cheer a meeting

:55:14. > :55:19.this afternoon bringing together the problems of the floods and the

:55:20. > :55:22.effect on transport. Secondly, we have to go on investing in rail

:55:23. > :55:30.schemes for them we are putting record amounts into rail schemes.

:55:31. > :55:33.The third point, we have done a real analysis of the resilience of the

:55:34. > :55:38.infrastructure, something carried out by the Cabinet office, and where

:55:39. > :55:46.extra production and infrastructure is needed, it will be put in place.

:55:47. > :55:50.We recently visited a company in my constituency who brought

:55:51. > :55:56.manufacturing jobs back to this country from China. Can he say what

:55:57. > :56:02.the Government is doing to encourage more bring jobs to the UK as a

:56:03. > :56:06.long-term economic plan? It was a huge pleasure to see a company which

:56:07. > :56:12.makes ventilation decrement, bringing jobs from China back into

:56:13. > :56:19.the UK. This is a small trend at the moment, 1500 jobs in manufacturing

:56:20. > :56:22.coming back since 2011. If we manage to make sure energy is competitive,

:56:23. > :56:30.the labour market is flexible and competitive, a friendly company for

:56:31. > :56:33.business with low tax rates including local low corporate tax

:56:34. > :56:37.rates, there's no reason more companies shouldn't come back to

:56:38. > :56:45.Britain. We won't have that every Avenue anti-Labour Party policy.

:56:46. > :56:51.Lastly, the CQC issued an appalling and damning report on Liverpool

:56:52. > :56:55.community health. Will the Prime Minister have the historic HR

:56:56. > :56:58.practices, the disciplinary actions, and the subsequent payoffs, which

:56:59. > :57:02.were used as a mechanism to bully staff, forensically examined and

:57:03. > :57:07.ensure the executive team and the board are held to account and

:57:08. > :57:14.actually make this huge statement that bullying is not acceptable in

:57:15. > :57:17.the NHS? I think she's absolutely right to raise this specific case,

:57:18. > :57:22.but also the general lessons it brings. Of course, we have more to

:57:23. > :57:27.do, but the CQC is a hugely improved organisation. We have got a chief

:57:28. > :57:31.inspector of hospitals, and this is much more transparent than has been

:57:32. > :57:35.in the past, but we're happy to look at the specific concerns about

:57:36. > :57:39.bullying and we can make sure the CQC deals with this. This week, the

:57:40. > :57:44.anniversary of that dreadful report into Stafford Hospital, and she's

:57:45. > :57:49.absolutely committed to making sure there was a change of culture in the

:57:50. > :57:54.NHS where we don't put up with poor practice and we're not afraid or

:57:55. > :58:00.ashamed to surface these problems and deal with them. In my

:58:01. > :58:04.constituency, business confidence is growing and unemployment has fallen

:58:05. > :58:07.by over a quarter in 12 months. Will he agree with me we should take no

:58:08. > :58:14.lectures from the Shadow Chancellor? We should, given the

:58:15. > :58:18.report, the Green budget, which said, and I quote from last week, "

:58:19. > :58:22.the latest challenge for the Chancellor remains have into content

:58:23. > :58:29.of recession caused by the party opposite? " he's making an important

:58:30. > :58:33.point. The Institute of fiscal studies report at this morning does

:58:34. > :58:36.say the change in economic outlook from a year ago is really quite

:58:37. > :58:42.remarkable. The UK recovery is getting ever closer to achieving

:58:43. > :58:45.escape velocity. We keep being told by the Shadow Chancellor it's about

:58:46. > :58:50.time. If we had listened to him, there would be more borrowing,

:58:51. > :58:54.spending, more debt, and his view is very clear that if we gave him back

:58:55. > :58:57.the keys to the car, he would drive it just as fast into the same wall

:58:58. > :59:06.and wreck the economy all over again. Can the Prime Minister make

:59:07. > :59:14.clear whether he still, quite wrongly, is going to try to end the

:59:15. > :59:17.ban on fox hunting? My view remains what was in the manifesto on which I

:59:18. > :59:23.stood with his House of Commons and the opportunity to have a debate and

:59:24. > :59:27.a vote on this issue. Does he share the anxiety of many of us that the

:59:28. > :59:35.programme for the destruction of chemical weapons in Syria has fallen

:59:36. > :59:38.so badly behind? I agree with my right honourable friend, what is a

:59:39. > :59:44.promising start with chemicals not only being discovered and removed

:59:45. > :59:49.but also destroyed, there do seem to be indications that the programme is

:59:50. > :59:53.slowing, and not all the information necessary is forthcoming. I

:59:54. > :59:57.discussed this with President Putin 48 hours ago. Britain will continue

:59:58. > :00:04.to put pressure on all parties to make sure the chemical weapons are

:00:05. > :00:08.produced and destroyed. Overseas students who are offered places at

:00:09. > :00:11.top British universities get extra coaching in English and maths but

:00:12. > :00:13.hard-working Hackney students from poor backgrounds with top A-level

:00:14. > :00:18.predictions are not even offered a place if they have a C grade in

:00:19. > :00:22.maths. It's not fair and doesn't help social mobility. What will he

:00:23. > :00:26.do to support hard-working Hackney students? We must continue with

:00:27. > :00:32.what's been happening in Hackney, the introduction of the academy

:00:33. > :00:35.schools, like the mothball academy, which is one of the most impressive

:00:36. > :00:41.I have visited anywhere. We need to continue with the Chancellor's plan

:00:42. > :00:48.to add an cap student numbers at universities, so anyone can get a

:00:49. > :00:53.place of those universities. About GCSE grades, we have to be clear, in

:00:54. > :00:56.the end, universities set the criteria rather than the Government,

:00:57. > :01:01.but I'm happy to look at the specific issue. I also believe that

:01:02. > :01:07.if people don't make the correct grades, in GCSEs, poetically innings

:01:08. > :01:13.in maths, we ought to encourage retakes and more work. There isn't a

:01:14. > :01:19.job in the world that doesn't require good English and maths, and

:01:20. > :01:21.that's a very important message. No doubt the Prime Minister saw the

:01:22. > :01:27.scenes of destruction resulting from storm damage in Dawlish, in my

:01:28. > :01:32.constituency. The rail line is out of action, 25 families evacuated.

:01:33. > :01:36.One House is about to fall into the sea. Devon and Cornwall feel cut

:01:37. > :01:42.off. Is he taking all action possible to take transport systems

:01:43. > :01:47.back in action and families back in their homes and Willie review the

:01:48. > :01:53.funding to protect the railway line which can't be implemented for lack

:01:54. > :01:59.of funding -- will he review? I'm happy to look at the suggestions she

:02:00. > :02:04.makes. That's why we're having a meeting this afternoon not only is

:02:05. > :02:08.this a vital artery for the south-west of our country, but also

:02:09. > :02:11.one of the most before railway lines anywhere in the country, so it's

:02:12. > :02:17.hugely upsetting and disturbing what is happening, and we will look at

:02:18. > :02:20.the options, with great urgency. The Prime Minister will be aware of the

:02:21. > :02:27.investigation into the systematic beating abuse of young men and boys

:02:28. > :02:33.at a detention centre in my constituency. The victim toll has

:02:34. > :02:38.topped 300. This is the biggest investigation ever undertaken by

:02:39. > :02:42.Durham Constabulary, a relatively small police force. Will he commits

:02:43. > :02:45.that, if it proves necessary, the Home Secretary will meet with the

:02:46. > :02:49.PCC, the chief comes to land myself, to ensure the highly

:02:50. > :02:53.successful team have the resources it needs to see this investigation

:02:54. > :02:56.to its conclusion? The victims deserve no less. I'm very glad to

:02:57. > :03:02.give the honourable lady that assurance because I don't support

:03:03. > :03:06.the police merger ideas of the past. I think some of the smaller police

:03:07. > :03:09.forces are hugely capable, but when they are doing very large

:03:10. > :03:13.investigations like this, on occasion, they need help and support

:03:14. > :03:16.so we should make sure that is available. I'm pleased with the

:03:17. > :03:19.support the National Crime Agency is doing and they are fully established

:03:20. > :03:24.and able to deal with the new serious crimes in terms of people

:03:25. > :03:27.smuggling and sexual abuse and the like, and I think we will hear more

:03:28. > :03:38.from them about the great work we're doing. I congratulate him on EU

:03:39. > :03:46.referendum Bill. And also the whole of the House of Commons in passing

:03:47. > :03:54.it. Will he tell us whether the dead parrot is merely resting? Does he

:03:55. > :04:00.have a plan to introduce the Parliament act so we can get the

:04:01. > :04:04.parrots squawking again? I hope this parrots which has beautiful plumage

:04:05. > :04:08.can be resuscitated if one of my colleagues Windsor Private members

:04:09. > :04:11.Bill on their side of the House, because we know the British public

:04:12. > :04:15.deserve it, and I'm sure my colleagues will be delighted to

:04:16. > :04:18.bring the bill back in front of this House but let's be clear, because

:04:19. > :04:25.they've all gone a bit quiet over there, about why this bill was

:04:26. > :04:28.killed in the House of Lords. The Labour Party, and I'm afraid to say

:04:29. > :04:33.the Lib Dem party, do not want to give the British people say. Now,

:04:34. > :04:37.this House, frankly, should feel affronted. We voted for this bill

:04:38. > :04:46.and supported bill, so I hope this House will come together as one and

:04:47. > :04:49.insist on this bill. In the Chancellor's budget of 2012, he made

:04:50. > :04:54.a welcome announcement about tax breaks or the computer games

:04:55. > :04:56.industry. This was passed by the European Commission last April and

:04:57. > :05:03.since then, we've heard nothing and the game 's body is having a rough

:05:04. > :05:10.time. Can the Prime Minister address this wretched Mark I absolutely sure

:05:11. > :05:14.his frustration. I think it's perfectly within the Government's

:05:15. > :05:18.right to set out a way of helping and supporting vital industries like

:05:19. > :05:21.this would so important for the future of our country. We are

:05:22. > :05:24.discussing it with European Commission and hopefully there will

:05:25. > :05:30.be good news to come shortly. Following the questions from the

:05:31. > :05:35.honourable member, of course it's absolutely true that resident in

:05:36. > :05:39.Cornwall following the recent storms have been concerned that England

:05:40. > :05:44.would be completely cut off. And, in view of that, whilst MPs from

:05:45. > :05:51.Cornwall and the south-west of being content to support the billions for

:05:52. > :05:55.HS2 and transport logics to the north, where they accept the

:05:56. > :05:58.relatively small amounts needed to ensure the resilience of the rail

:05:59. > :06:04.line between Penzance and Paddington? I know from personal

:06:05. > :06:08.experience how vital the Penzance to Paddington link is and how many

:06:09. > :06:12.people rely on it. I'm happy to look at this very urgently. Let me just

:06:13. > :06:14.repeat something I was trying to say at the beginning of questions about

:06:15. > :06:18.the bell rings scheme because Caucus members of Parliament are concerned

:06:19. > :06:22.that now they have unitary authority, they need a big claim for

:06:23. > :06:26.triggering it, and we are sorting it out so the money will be there. On

:06:27. > :06:27.the transport links, it's an urgent requirement to get this right.

:06:28. > :06:43.Order. It overran a little bit but Prime

:06:44. > :06:48.Minister's Questions have come to an end. Two main themes, one was the

:06:49. > :06:52.flooding situation, how much money is being spent, the length of time

:06:53. > :06:56.that people particularly in the Somerset Levels have been

:06:57. > :06:59.underwater. Mr Miliband moved on to women, or lack of, in the

:07:00. > :07:04.Conservative Party, according to him, cleverly stacking his front

:07:05. > :07:07.bench role of women to make the point, nothing like symbolic

:07:08. > :07:12.politics. I suppose it did not mean anything if you are listening to

:07:13. > :07:15.this on radio. I am not sure we even got a cutaway of the front bench

:07:16. > :07:22.from the House of Commons. We will talk about that in a minute. Let's

:07:23. > :07:25.hear what you thought. Those issues sparked a lot of interest from our

:07:26. > :07:29.viewers, we have had lots of e-mails, and about the general tone

:07:30. > :07:34.of performance in the chamber as always. This from Ian Jordan, a

:07:35. > :07:38.commanding performance from Ed Miliband who has captured the

:07:39. > :07:44.concerns on another key issue, the floods, and left David Cameron

:07:45. > :07:49.rattled. 90% of the country has no interest in tubes strikes and point

:07:50. > :07:53.scoring about it. This came from Diane intro in Cornwall. The

:07:54. > :08:00.devastation affecting large parts of the South West was down to feature

:08:01. > :08:04.at the Jews, Mr Miliband clearly understands our concerns, as does

:08:05. > :08:09.Prince Charles, but David Cameron does not get it. This from Tim Bass,

:08:10. > :08:14.a poor performance by Ed Miliband, he is in the pocket of the unions

:08:15. > :08:19.and cannot condemn the Tube strike. He did not land a punch on women's

:08:20. > :08:23.issues. Women in the Conservative Party, says Gordon, shows Miliband

:08:24. > :08:27.has nothing useful to ask on national or international issues,

:08:28. > :08:33.but on Twitter, Cameron Ratcliffe said Ed Miliband is on strong ground

:08:34. > :08:36.talking about women, as half the Shadow Cabinet are female. This will

:08:37. > :08:46.play well at the election against Hoff Tories. -- toff Tories. A

:08:47. > :08:46.couple of people thought the Speaker's performance was

:08:47. > :08:57.inappropriate. It did it did seem to be mannered and

:08:58. > :09:11.preplanned. As the deacons the deselection of an Macintosh, was

:09:12. > :09:17.that the reason this was triggered off by Ed Miliband? I think there is

:09:18. > :09:20.that, she is a prominent conservative woman and the fact she

:09:21. > :09:26.is about to be replaced by an old Tony was a gift the Labour Party.

:09:27. > :09:29.Four women MPs new to the House of Commons have also announced they are

:09:30. > :09:35.not running again. One of them, unfortunately the only woman to ask

:09:36. > :09:41.a question from their benches today. They have chosen not to run again.

:09:42. > :09:46.In his own lights, David Cameron has a woman problem. A third of

:09:47. > :09:51.ministers to be women was his target, by his own figures it is

:09:52. > :09:55.about a quarter of a cabinet and a fifth of ministers overall. The

:09:56. > :09:58.truth is these things matter. They did actually cut away. The pictures

:09:59. > :10:02.are pretty devastating. Of course Labour pact its front bench and

:10:03. > :10:05.unusual for the Conservatives, there was not a single woman inside.

:10:06. > :10:14.Theresa May was not there, Maria Miller, Theresa Villiers. Why didn't

:10:15. > :10:17.you see that coming? There are four women in the Cabinet and they are

:10:18. > :10:21.usually there, Justine Greening has an international role and she may be

:10:22. > :10:24.brought. Theresa Villiers is Northern Ireland Secretary so she

:10:25. > :10:30.may be in Belfast. I don't know the reasons why they are not there. It

:10:31. > :10:35.is very unusual. The only two women, one is Miss McIntosh is being

:10:36. > :10:37.deselected, and the other is an who is standing down. It is not quite

:10:38. > :10:49.the only people who were in shock. -- who were in a shot. We have many

:10:50. > :10:51.more women MPs than before, as the prime ministers said it is not

:10:52. > :10:55.enough and we would like there to be more. Labour solve the problem by

:10:56. > :10:59.having all women short lists. I remember a senior colleague saying

:11:00. > :11:03.what you are doing will never work, it only worked for us when we forced

:11:04. > :11:09.it by having all women short lists. My reply was, that means you did not

:11:10. > :11:12.change your party. If we succeed in significantly increasing the number

:11:13. > :11:23.of women candidates and women MPs, without coercion, then we will have

:11:24. > :11:24.done something more significant. You don't reflect modern Britain, that

:11:25. > :11:37.is the reality. I hear that. You need to do something about it.

:11:38. > :11:40.Every constituency association that selected a woman could have selected

:11:41. > :11:44.a white male, and they didn't. That is evidence that the party is

:11:45. > :11:45.changing. I don't know what was going on in the constituency of Miss

:11:46. > :12:02.McIntosh. How can in her constituency party, one of

:12:03. > :12:08.the people in the particles are a silly little girl. What an

:12:09. > :12:12.incredible thing to say. That is a bit of a generalisation from one

:12:13. > :12:16.example. There have been three deselection attempts on Conservative

:12:17. > :12:21.MPs, two have been men, one has been a woman. It is hard to discern a

:12:22. > :12:25.pattern from that. Maybe it is a Tory equivalent of the Arab Spring.

:12:26. > :12:29.Maybe your rank and file have decided they have minds of their

:12:30. > :12:37.own. They have always had minds of their own and have vigorously

:12:38. > :12:41.expressed them. The number of Tory women MPs who are standing down is

:12:42. > :12:48.the same proportion as in Labour. It is of no great significance. That is

:12:49. > :12:52.a man clutching at straws. Half the Shadow Cabinet are women, half

:12:53. > :12:56.candidates listed in seats that are winnable at the next general

:12:57. > :13:02.election... There are women candidates. You try doing what we do

:13:03. > :13:08.and not having all women short lists. I am proud that we have a

:13:09. > :13:15.Moura presence to party. You have a front bench pack full of men -- a

:13:16. > :13:19.more representative party. Neither of you would be held in government

:13:20. > :13:29.are the Lib Dems because they offered no women in the Cabinet. You

:13:30. > :13:32.have to think about that. I think the reason this is politically

:13:33. > :13:38.potent at this time is the difference in attitudes of women and

:13:39. > :13:42.men to austerity, for example. You can theorise about why this is, it

:13:43. > :13:46.may be that women are in control of spending in households, often, they

:13:47. > :13:50.are trying to make ends meet, they are worrying about the weekly shop.

:13:51. > :13:54.It is a generalisation, it is not always true but if you look at

:13:55. > :13:57.opinion polling, men are much more sympathetic to cutting public

:13:58. > :14:06.spending than women, there is quite a big tap in attitudes. The reason

:14:07. > :14:10.Labour can make a deal of this is there is evidence in the opinion

:14:11. > :14:15.polls and on the doorstep that women are much less pathetic to the cuts,

:14:16. > :14:20.to benefits changes, to the pressure on their finances, and that is

:14:21. > :14:26.hurting the Tories. I need to move on to floods. People have still got

:14:27. > :14:30.stagnant water coming up to their front doors, whether they are men or

:14:31. > :14:37.women. Is there any doubt in your mind that the government has taken

:14:38. > :14:41.over events in the Somerset Levels from the Environment Agency? This

:14:42. > :14:47.government is now in the driving seat? No doubt that it is the Prime

:14:48. > :14:52.Minister rather than the bar and secretary. Two things we noticed,

:14:53. > :14:58.invited to criticise -- rather than the Environment Secretary. Chris

:14:59. > :15:01.Smith clearly said he is wrong about the choice between town and country

:15:02. > :15:05.and the issue of dredging, and he made it absolutely plain that he

:15:06. > :15:09.would be chairing the emergency committee of Cobra this afternoon.

:15:10. > :15:15.David Cameron, in the clearest possible way, said he is in charge

:15:16. > :15:18.now. Given the Prime Minister is in charge, why would he claimed this

:15:19. > :15:23.government is spending more on flood defences when it is clearly not? He

:15:24. > :15:26.is saying there is more public spending on flood defences. If you

:15:27. > :15:30.take all the money that is being spent by the government and local

:15:31. > :15:41.authorities on flood defences, that has risen. Total expenditure on

:15:42. > :15:46.flood defences is expected to fall from 646 million from the EU came to

:15:47. > :15:54.power, to 546 million x 2015. In real terms, total spending falls to

:15:55. > :16:06.100 million. My understanding is if you look at all of the spending, tax

:16:07. > :16:13.payer funded then , it has risen. Government grants down, local

:16:14. > :16:17.councils are spending more. People might say councils are having to cut

:16:18. > :16:21.other things to subsidise the fact the government have cut their

:16:22. > :16:25.grants. In terms of what is being spent on flood defences, it is up.

:16:26. > :16:32.Mr Cameron can't take credit, central government spending is down.

:16:33. > :16:34.People are suffering flooding, notwithstanding the debate about who

:16:35. > :16:38.is spending what, they want the government to get a grip and they

:16:39. > :16:46.want it sorted with a sense of urgency. I think they are getting

:16:47. > :16:50.that. It has taken a few weeks. You are not getting that we have run out

:16:51. > :16:54.of time. We have to move on, we have important matters still to content

:16:55. > :16:59.with. Nick, you are raised. Pay the fee on the way out. -- you are

:17:00. > :17:02.released. The teaching of creationism is

:17:03. > :17:08.banned in state funded schools but that is not the case in the

:17:09. > :17:13.independent sector. For the academic and television presenter Alice

:17:14. > :17:17.Roberts, the answer is yes and she argues that teaching the subject as

:17:18. > :17:17.a science could have dire consequences for a child's

:17:18. > :17:38.education. Welcome to at Bristol, one of the

:17:39. > :17:43.UK's biggest interactive science centres. Here, children and adults

:17:44. > :17:48.can learn about the stars in the sky, see what our brains look like

:17:49. > :17:50.and find out about our Jeanne Emms. Science helps us understand

:17:51. > :17:55.ourselves and the world around us. -- our Jeanne

:17:56. > :18:00.a think it is incredibly important that we are honest in children --

:18:01. > :18:07.with children and that includes being honest about the overwhelming

:18:08. > :18:12.evidence of evolution. Teaching a religious story as scientifically

:18:13. > :18:17.valid is nonsense. I don't have a problem with creationism being

:18:18. > :18:19.discussed in religious education lessons but it has no place in

:18:20. > :18:36.science education. Our government agrees that

:18:37. > :18:40.creationism should not be taught as a scientifically valid theory in any

:18:41. > :18:43.state funded schools, and that includes free schools. But in the

:18:44. > :18:50.private sector, there are schools teaching creationism as science.

:18:51. > :18:54.Should we allow creationist schools at all in the UK? Should we validate

:18:55. > :18:56.creationist exams? I think there needs to be more debate on this

:18:57. > :19:11.issue. Science is more than just a load of

:19:12. > :19:15.facts, it is based on evidence, and it is a way of thinking that teaches

:19:16. > :19:19.us to question everything we think we know. I think that is what we

:19:20. > :19:26.should be teaching our children, rather than some unswerving belief

:19:27. > :19:39.in ancient texts. In fact, I think creationism has the potential to

:19:40. > :19:42.ruin a scientific education. It And Alice Roberts joins me now from

:19:43. > :19:46.Bristol. She was meant to be here with us in Westminster but her train

:19:47. > :19:51.was cancelled, presumably due to the travel disruption in London! It was

:19:52. > :19:57.the weather. What evidence to you have that teaching of creationism

:19:58. > :20:02.can ruin a scientific education? It produces a very narrow minded

:20:03. > :20:06.approach to the world. I think a really good example of the kind of

:20:07. > :20:15.impact it can have on somebody's life is out there. A man was

:20:16. > :20:18.educated in one of these schools which ran this is part of the

:20:19. > :20:21.curriculum and he's been quite outspoken about what it was taught

:20:22. > :20:29.in school about anybody who believes in evolution was dishonest, it was

:20:30. > :20:31.an indefensible theory, so it teaches and narrow-minded attitude.

:20:32. > :20:37.In fact, he's published an article in the new statesman today, talking

:20:38. > :20:40.about this whole issue, and giving some excerpts from the accelerated

:20:41. > :20:45.Christian education curriculum as well. It does talk about evolution

:20:46. > :20:51.as an indefensible failure. Do you think people have the fact choose

:20:52. > :20:56.whether their children are taught creationism, even in the remit of

:20:57. > :20:58.science? I think people have the right to choose, obviously, how

:20:59. > :21:03.their children are educated to a certain extent but the Government

:21:04. > :21:07.has a clear policy about this. Pseudoscience shouldn't be taught in

:21:08. > :21:11.science. I'm not talking about what gets stored outside of science

:21:12. > :21:17.lessons. The Department for Education is very clear that

:21:18. > :21:20.pseudoscience, including teaching creationism science has no place in

:21:21. > :21:23.science lessons. It seems odd to me to have one rule for one set of

:21:24. > :21:28.schools and one rule for another. When state schools are inspected,

:21:29. > :21:32.they are looking at that issue but when independent schools are

:21:33. > :21:35.inspected, sometimes by Ofsted, sometimes by other inspectors, they

:21:36. > :21:42.don't seem to mind any more. That seems to me to be very inconsistent.

:21:43. > :21:44.Do you have a problem with faith schools generally? Is it

:21:45. > :21:52.specifically this point? Specifically the fact that, when we

:21:53. > :21:55.are looking at science, we should be teaching science, not allowing

:21:56. > :22:01.pseudoscience to creep in to education in this way. Do you agree

:22:02. > :22:08.with that? Should be banned in all schools? There's a personally

:22:09. > :22:16.distinction -- as a personal distinction. They don't necessarily

:22:17. > :22:20.have a choice. Independent schools, people do have a choice. As long as

:22:21. > :22:24.it's transparent. The point about inspection is important. As long as

:22:25. > :22:31.this is made clear, I think parents have a right to choose a particular

:22:32. > :22:33.way of religious education, religious approach, if that's what

:22:34. > :22:39.they want full survey is not something I would do myself. There

:22:40. > :22:43.was a perfect sensible distinction to be made. You don't think it harms

:22:44. > :22:49.the teaching of science? If it does harm it, then it shouldn't be taught

:22:50. > :22:53.in any school? As long as it's made clear, parents can make that choice.

:22:54. > :22:57.And then it's up to them. I'm in favour of people, on a well-informed

:22:58. > :23:06.basis, making that choice themselves. Alice, come back. Surely

:23:07. > :23:09.Ofsted have a problem if they visited an independent school and it

:23:10. > :23:15.was teaching of the Earth was flat? Surely there would have a problem

:23:16. > :23:18.with that? It's one thing to point it out and make it clear it's

:23:19. > :23:25.happening. And to comment on it for some it's another thing to ban it. I

:23:26. > :23:29.think we have to be wary, of simply disapproving of something and

:23:30. > :23:36.banning it. Are they not certain basic standards? Why would that not

:23:37. > :23:41.apply across the board? The key thing is this is somewhere where

:23:42. > :23:45.parents have a choice. As long as they know what the choices, they

:23:46. > :23:53.know what the locations. It should be left up them. Creationism is best

:23:54. > :23:56.taught within the context of its education. Within the context of

:23:57. > :24:00.saying this is one thing that some people think but it needs to be done

:24:01. > :24:07.alongside the other things that people think. I think it's a belief

:24:08. > :24:12.rather than fact. It's about where it's appropriate sleep taught.

:24:13. > :24:16.Alice, thank you very much for that we have to leave it there but thank

:24:17. > :24:22.you very much. Now MPs like Francis and Vernon have a lot to put up

:24:23. > :24:25.with. All the voting. The cut-price bars. The demands of representing

:24:26. > :24:31.their constituents. The cut-price bars. The pesky media. The cut-price

:24:32. > :24:34.bars. And to cap it all the Houses of Parliament are apparently

:24:35. > :24:38.infested with mice. The problem's so bad that some MPs have demanded that

:24:39. > :24:41.the Commons authorities get a new cat. We didn't have a cat to send,

:24:42. > :24:54.so we sent Giles over instead. Hello there. Is it news the House of

:24:55. > :24:59.Commons is full of rodents? You think Lott anyway. I'm talking about

:25:00. > :25:06.the little brown fairy things, rats and mice. No, this building is full

:25:07. > :25:13.of them. It's an old building. Looks and crannies and, no, I don't mean

:25:14. > :25:21.the bars where MPs drink. But they are looking to a solution. Come

:25:22. > :25:25.here, you. Yes, eight out of ten overpaid consultants would tell you

:25:26. > :25:30.within a whisker the answer is cats. Introducing a couple in this

:25:31. > :25:36.building and the mice might vanish. Downing Street cat, Larry, is about

:25:37. > :25:42.as active as a tired sloth and prefers publishing diaries to

:25:43. > :25:49.killing, but some MPs are demanding cats. I want them dead. It's not

:25:50. > :25:55.nice when they are polling and you relating alike in the next day and

:25:56. > :25:58.it's covered. It is disgusting. -- you relating. In my personal space,

:25:59. > :26:02.I'm now frightened to go in at night, switch the light on in case

:26:03. > :26:11.they are scurrying away. The problem is, will people be frightened?

:26:12. > :26:18.Giles Dilnot. And he's still standing on a chair somewhere in the

:26:19. > :26:24.Commons so if you see him, please do help. Or just leave him there. Now

:26:25. > :26:27.in the interests of helping MPs and peers with their problem we asked

:26:28. > :26:31.viewers of the Daily Politics if their cats were up to the job. In a

:26:32. > :26:35.moment we'll see some of them, but first we're joined by Phoebe the cat

:26:36. > :26:38.and Vicky Snook from the Battersea Cats Home. Welcome. Phoebe, good

:26:39. > :26:42.mouse? She does like to hand but is looking for a slower pace of life

:26:43. > :26:47.these days. Aren't we all? She could join Daily Politics. You know how

:26:48. > :26:53.big the Palace of Westminster is. One cat wouldn't be enough, would

:26:54. > :26:56.it? It depends on how good a hand to the catches. The presence of a cat

:26:57. > :27:01.in itself would be enough to start to scare the mice away for them they

:27:02. > :27:09.will be aware that the pubs around. You should take over this afternoon.

:27:10. > :27:16.That there is a predator around. We pull rehab got mice in the studios.

:27:17. > :27:21.-- we have possibly got mice in the studios. We have up to 190 cats

:27:22. > :27:26.across the three centres looking for homes. Phoebe is one of them. We

:27:27. > :27:35.urge people to get in touch through the website. Or call one of the

:27:36. > :27:41.re-homing centres in London, old Windsor or brands Hatch. I'm sure

:27:42. > :27:49.they will. My cat is from Battersea Cats Home. He's a great mouse. It's

:27:50. > :27:56.a match made in heaven. It's time to see the winner of Guess The Year. It

:27:57. > :28:01.was 1981. Francis, press that button. Richard Williams in Cardiff,

:28:02. > :28:08.well done. OK, that's about all for today. Thanks for bringing Phoebe

:28:09. > :28:12.in. Thank you for the guests. The one o'clock News started on BBC One

:28:13. > :28:19.in a moment. I'll be back tomorrow at noon with all the big political

:28:20. > :28:22.stories of the day. And, as promised, we believe you have some

:28:23. > :28:30.pictures of your cats that have sent in. Bye bye.

:28:31. > :28:46.# Pussycat, pussycat, I've got flowers and lots of hours to spend

:28:47. > :28:49.with you # Your cute little pussycat # Pussycat, pussycat, I love you #

:28:50. > :28:53.Yes, I do.