:00:38. > :00:42.Afternoon folks, welcome to the Daily Politics. You wait ages for a
:00:43. > :00:47.meeting of government ministers in Aberdeen, and then two come along at
:00:48. > :00:50.once. Yes, the UK cabinet is out in force in the North East of Scotland
:00:51. > :00:54.today, and they're gathering just down the road from Alex Salmond and
:00:55. > :00:57.his cabinet. The prime minister's been visiting an oil rig in his
:00:58. > :01:00.latest attack on the campaign for Scottish independence. He says only
:01:01. > :01:12.the UK can deliver the best returns on Scotland's oil and gas reserves.
:01:13. > :01:15.The British Government says it's ready with the chequebook to help
:01:16. > :01:19.support a new government. Russia's furious at the loss of an ally, so
:01:20. > :01:20.what's next for the people of Ukraine?
:01:21. > :01:24.Angela Merkel's coming to London this week. According to officials
:01:25. > :01:27.we're going to roll out the "reddest of red carpets" for the German
:01:28. > :01:30.Chancellor. But will tea with the queen help persuade her to help us
:01:31. > :01:33.renegotiate Britain's membership of the EU?
:01:34. > :01:37.They say clothes make the man, and the woman too. But do our leaders
:01:38. > :01:50.need to look good to get us to listen?
:01:51. > :01:53.All that in the next hour. And with us today is the man once described
:01:54. > :01:56.as the world's most newsworthy hairdresser. He's trimmed the locks
:01:57. > :01:58.of plenty of famous people, including Margaret Thatcher. He's
:01:59. > :02:02.recently appeared on the reality skiing show, The Jump. And as he's
:02:03. > :02:06.got to wait another four years until he can try out for the next Winter
:02:07. > :02:11.Olympics, he's found time to join us on the Daily Politics. Welcome to
:02:12. > :02:14.the show. But first, those of you watching in Aberdeen who've been
:02:15. > :02:16.crying out of a meeting of government ministers on your
:02:17. > :02:20.doorstep, don't worry, your luck is in. Yes, David Cameron has taken his
:02:21. > :02:23.cabinet to the Granite City, just five miles away from where Alex
:02:24. > :02:27.Salmond is meeting with his ministers. And they'll all be
:02:28. > :02:31.avoiding each other as they head out for a series of visits in the local
:02:32. > :02:34.area. The prime minister's opened up a new front in the campaign against
:02:35. > :02:38.Scottish independence, claiming only the UK can deliver the best returns
:02:39. > :02:47.from Scotland's oil and gas reserves. Hear is the Scottish
:02:48. > :02:52.secretary Alistair Carmichael. Every economy has to have a range of
:02:53. > :02:59.sources that contribute to it. North Sea oil is an important one but it
:03:00. > :03:05.is a volatile commodity. The price peaks and troughs. As part of the UK
:03:06. > :03:11.we can share the challenges that these peaks and troughs present. And
:03:12. > :03:18.as a consequence you can see a much smoother path. And you have a great
:03:19. > :03:22.deal more stability. That is the view of the UK government. But
:03:23. > :03:28.supporters of Scottish independence did not agree. Here is the first
:03:29. > :03:34.Minister of Scotland, Alex Salmond. You just have to look to Norway to
:03:35. > :03:38.see a country that is smaller than Scotland but has handled its oil and
:03:39. > :03:42.gas resources much better. Not just the benefit for companies and the
:03:43. > :03:51.workforce but for the benefit of the Norwegian people who have built up
:03:52. > :03:54.an oil fund. Over the last 40 years Scotland could have done something
:03:55. > :04:02.similar. But we still have another 40 or 50 years to get that second
:04:03. > :04:09.chance. Joining me now from Aberdeen is our Chief Political
:04:10. > :04:16.Correspondent, Norman Smith. Those meetings going on this afternoon. It
:04:17. > :04:23.sounds as if it has stepped up a gear. I do not know if you like
:04:24. > :04:29.cricket but it seems that this is body-line politics. It is about
:04:30. > :04:34.bowling very hard and fast, straight at Alex Salmond. Bouncer number one
:04:35. > :04:38.came a few weeks ago when George Osborne said an independent Scotland
:04:39. > :04:43.would not be allowed to keep the pound. Number two came with those
:04:44. > :04:46.questions about whether an independent Scotland could remain in
:04:47. > :04:51.the European union. Bouncer three comes with David Cameron today
:04:52. > :04:55.saying what would happen to North Sea oil if you went it alone? He
:04:56. > :05:01.said it would be less profitable with fewer people employed in it. He
:05:02. > :05:07.says the UK government can provide tax support to enable companies to
:05:08. > :05:12.invest and the financial wherewithal to withstand changes in oil prices.
:05:13. > :05:18.In other words North Sea oil would do better staying in the UK. And
:05:19. > :05:24.that says to a second argument that the UK government seems to be
:05:25. > :05:28.developing, arguing about the purse strings rather than the
:05:29. > :05:33.heartstrings. To say to Scottish voters, think about this. You may be
:05:34. > :05:39.significantly worse off. They seem to calculate that in that the people
:05:40. > :05:43.who really have to be won over, they're not going to be won over by
:05:44. > :05:50.the emotive arguments. What may swing them is the pound in your
:05:51. > :05:56.pocket. And that is what the UK government are concentrating on. So
:05:57. > :06:03.they are cutting rough a little bit. What about the reaction from the
:06:04. > :06:08.SNP? In a way it plays to the advantage of Alex Salmond. This is
:06:09. > :06:15.the first visit from the UK Cabinet north of the border since Lloyd
:06:16. > :06:21.George in 1921. So it is rare. But it plays to Alex Salmond 's
:06:22. > :06:28.narrative. Here comes UK Cabinet to tell us how we should run our oil.
:06:29. > :06:32.It also seems to play to his demand for a debate. He can say hang on,
:06:33. > :06:37.David Cameron is just five miles down the road, why cant we just get
:06:38. > :06:42.together and have this debate. There is a danger with all these big UK
:06:43. > :06:46.government initiatives, whether from George Osborne or David Cameron,
:06:47. > :06:51.there is a danger of them backfiring. This is a debate which
:06:52. > :06:56.may be people in Scotland resent. English -based politicians coming
:06:57. > :07:00.north to tell them how they ought to run things. So in a way it is at
:07:01. > :07:07.gamble. But I said Dean Cameron feel that by raising bees have
:07:08. > :07:18.questions, -- raising these tough questions, it is now up to Alex
:07:19. > :07:23.Salmond now to make a move. Nicky Clarke, you think Scotland should
:07:24. > :07:27.stay part of the UK. Do you think that the change from heartstrings to
:07:28. > :07:32.press strings will play better with the Scottish electorate? I think a
:07:33. > :07:39.lot of Scottish people do not necessarily understand the economics
:07:40. > :07:43.of the whole thing. I think once there is some reality there, and
:07:44. > :07:52.certainly the pound possibly not being there, George Osborne is
:07:53. > :07:59.certainly playing heavy now. I think that will get a number of people to
:08:00. > :08:03.rethink. It is closed at the moment and there is not long. The recent
:08:04. > :08:07.opinion polls have actually narrowed slightly perhaps because of that
:08:08. > :08:14.announcement from George Osborne about the pound. What do you think
:08:15. > :08:21.of the campaign so far? I think it needs to step up a gear. David
:08:22. > :08:25.Cameron is starting to do that now. I do not think it is a bad thing him
:08:26. > :08:30.going up there. A coincidence, of course! But I think he will be able
:08:31. > :08:33.to put forward a number of things that people will have to think twice
:08:34. > :08:41.about. Gone will be the days of worrying about the romanticised
:08:42. > :08:44.version of things. Now it's time for our daily quiz, and there's a new
:08:45. > :08:48.health fad sweeping the political world. It's not pilates, or just
:08:49. > :08:51.steering clear of the chips in the Commons dining room. No, the latest
:08:52. > :08:56.thing is a fasting diet championed by celebrities such as Beyonce, it's
:08:57. > :08:59.called the 5:2 diet. So which of these political big beasts is not
:09:00. > :09:05.trying to become a slightly smaller beast? A, Alex Salmond? B, George
:09:06. > :09:13.Osborne? C, Danny Alexander? Or D, Ed Balls? At the end of the show
:09:14. > :09:16.we'll give the correct answer. It's been another turbulent weekend
:09:17. > :09:20.in the history of Ukraine - and that's putting it mildly. This
:09:21. > :09:22.morning we've learned that an arrest warrant has gone out for ousted
:09:23. > :09:25.President Viktor Yanukovych, after MPs voted for his removal on
:09:26. > :09:33.Saturday following months of protests. But how did a nation less
:09:34. > :09:37.than 25 years old get to this point? Ukraine declared independence from
:09:38. > :09:39.the USSR in 1991, making it the largest country with its boundaries
:09:40. > :09:46.entirely within the European continent. The struggles of modern
:09:47. > :09:48.Ukraine first grabbed international attention almost a decade ago, when
:09:49. > :09:55.the Orange Revolution launched pro-Western candidate Victor
:09:56. > :09:59.Yushchenko to the Presidency. Yushchenko began the tug of war
:10:00. > :10:02.between the EU and Russia, as he tried to steer Ukraine towards a
:10:03. > :10:05.European future, before Moscow tugged back dramatically in 2010
:10:06. > :10:12.when pro-Russian candidate Viktor Yanukovych became President. Then at
:10:13. > :10:15.the end of last year President Yanukovych's cabinet announced that
:10:16. > :10:18.it is abandoning an agreement that would strengthen trade ties with the
:10:19. > :10:24.EU, and will instead seek closer co-operation with Russia. From that
:10:25. > :10:28.point thousands of people began taking to the streets in protests
:10:29. > :10:31.which escalated to the point last week where at least 77 people were
:10:32. > :10:36.killed in violent clashes in the capital Kiev. Over the weekend,
:10:37. > :10:39.Viktor Yanukovych reportedly fled the capital and MPs voted to remove
:10:40. > :10:45.him from power and called elections for May. An arrest warrant's been
:10:46. > :10:51.issued for the former president, and a new unity government could be
:10:52. > :11:00.formed by tomorrow. We can speak now to Olexiy Solohubenko who's an
:11:01. > :11:04.expert on the region. What do you think is going to happen to
:11:05. > :11:11.Ukraine? It is a difficult question at the moment. It is the period of
:11:12. > :11:14.first steps, very urgent steps to stabilise the situation now and have
:11:15. > :11:19.a government in place. And after that they would need to get the
:11:20. > :11:25.money. I think the economic problem for Ukraine is absolutely massive.
:11:26. > :11:30.While there is a political dialogue with the European union, Catherine
:11:31. > :11:34.Ashton is coming today to the Ukraine and there are negotiations
:11:35. > :11:38.with different ambassadors will stop I think the urgent question is how
:11:39. > :11:44.the country will be kept on an even keel when there is political turmoil
:11:45. > :11:48.coupled with economic turmoil. So the idea of the cheque-book in
:11:49. > :11:55.opened is critical? I think the finance ministry published the
:11:56. > :11:58.figure today that it needs 35 million US dollars just to keep the
:11:59. > :12:02.country going for a year. The IMF may be involved there were
:12:03. > :12:09.previously discussions with the European union. But the Russians
:12:10. > :12:14.have promised 9 billion pounds. They now seem to have stopped that until
:12:15. > :12:19.further notice. There was also a statement from one of the officials
:12:20. > :12:24.of the Russian federation relating to increase tariffs on Ukrainian
:12:25. > :12:29.goods. So pressure is coming from outside and internally the economy
:12:30. > :12:34.has been terribly mismanaged. It had zero growth. So the economic problem
:12:35. > :12:40.coupled with the political problem and tension in areas like the Crimea
:12:41. > :12:47.will be big challenges for the new government. The question is does
:12:48. > :12:52.anyone know the exact whereabouts of the ousted president? The short
:12:53. > :12:57.answer will be no but probably he is somewhere in the Crimea. There are
:12:58. > :13:02.not many places for him to hide in the Ukraine any more. Most of his
:13:03. > :13:08.allies have now abandoned him. The leader of his action in Parliament
:13:09. > :13:12.basically yesterday blamed the corrupt family for deceiving the
:13:13. > :13:18.party and deceiving millions of honest supporters of his party of
:13:19. > :13:21.regions. All of the governors who wear his keen supporters have either
:13:22. > :13:27.resigned or pledged allegiance to the new authority. The Crimea I
:13:28. > :13:33.think is the only area where there is still support for him. And
:13:34. > :13:40.perhaps he could use the Black Sea route if he really wants to escape.
:13:41. > :13:43.With us now is Chair of the All Party Group on Ukraine, John
:13:44. > :13:48.Whittingdale, and expert on Russia and former Europe Minister, Chris
:13:49. > :13:54.Bryant. Welcome to you both. What does Russia do now? I fear that
:13:55. > :13:59.Russia will want to use heavy boot or aggressive economic tactics
:14:00. > :14:03.against the Ukraine. What we need is the European union working
:14:04. > :14:09.hand-in-hand with the Russians to make sure the physical integrity of
:14:10. > :14:12.Ukraine is maintained. And that minority groups are protected.
:14:13. > :14:17.Effectively that there is some kind of Marshall plan in place to secure
:14:18. > :14:24.the economic future of the country. When Poland joined the European
:14:25. > :14:28.Union, Poland and Ukraine had the same GDP. Now Poland has double that
:14:29. > :14:35.of Ukraine. It is about the economics. So you really do feel
:14:36. > :14:39.there could actually be Russia marching into the Ukraine? I'm not
:14:40. > :14:45.predicting that but I do get nervous. Deviously Russia has used
:14:46. > :14:49.in its backyard, who is in Georgia. David Cameron while he was leading
:14:50. > :14:54.the opposition wisely went off to Georgia and said they would stand
:14:55. > :14:59.side-by-side with them. That has unfortunately not happened in recent
:15:00. > :15:05.years. I am worried that the European Union rarely gets its act
:15:06. > :15:09.together dealing with Russia. Do you agree that the European union has to
:15:10. > :15:13.step in not just with money but also with some political clout as Mac or
:15:14. > :15:23.they could be a risk of you came disintegrating. -- the Ukraine. I
:15:24. > :15:30.agree with Chris. The Russians are an inextricable part of the solution
:15:31. > :15:35.as well. Yanukovich withdrew from an agreement because of the economy.
:15:36. > :15:39.Vladimir Putin offered him cheap loans to pay off the debt and cheap
:15:40. > :15:43.gas. Those two things are now been withdrawn. So the economy is in a
:15:44. > :15:53.dire straits. To get out of that state will require cooperation right
:15:54. > :15:56.across the board. Will that realistically happen in time? We
:15:57. > :16:01.have seen the shocking pictures from Independence Square of the scores of
:16:02. > :16:05.people who have been killed. But that is going to continue and is
:16:06. > :16:10.likely to get worse in some sort of power vacuum, even though there is
:16:11. > :16:14.somebody supposedly in charge. Is there a realistic chance that this
:16:15. > :16:19.will hold together until May? You are right that the protests will
:16:20. > :16:25.continue because almost everything they wanted has been delivered. They
:16:26. > :16:29.have essentially won in large part, but the problem is that the people
:16:30. > :16:33.in that square do not trust any of the existing politicians. Anyone who
:16:34. > :16:38.has been tainted over the last 20 years in Ukraine is now not trusted.
:16:39. > :16:45.It is Yulia Tymoshenko the answer here, crisp right? That is a
:16:46. > :16:50.question for the people of Ukraine. To some, she is a divisive figure.
:16:51. > :16:55.It is interesting that the interim president is one of her allies. He
:16:56. > :17:04.was the speaker of parliament previously. It may be the kind of
:17:05. > :17:11.moment when a lot of people need to stand to one side so that a uniting
:17:12. > :17:15.figure can take the helm. But it is a decision for the people of
:17:16. > :17:20.Ukraine. 46% of people speak Ukrainian in Ukraine, but 33% are
:17:21. > :17:27.very determined Russian speakers, and they have a strong cultural
:17:28. > :17:31.alliance to Russia. That has to be guaranteed as well. But if we are
:17:32. > :17:36.talking about economics, is there a feeling in your mind, John, that
:17:37. > :17:42.this could turn out well? If Ukraine does manage to ally itself to the EU
:17:43. > :17:45.in a more formal way, even with a significant number of people who
:17:46. > :17:50.feel more allied to Russia, it could be positive. That is what we must
:17:51. > :17:54.work towards. If we can reach the point where Ukraine resumes its
:17:55. > :17:57.discussions with the European Union about becoming closer and signing
:17:58. > :18:00.association agreements, whilst at the same time working out a new
:18:01. > :18:04.relationship with Russia, that is the best outcome. But getting from
:18:05. > :18:09.here to there will be very hard. Everybody has got to stop thinking
:18:10. > :18:14.about it in terms of backyard politics. It is not about Russia or
:18:15. > :18:20.the EU, it is about Ukraine. That is the best way of protecting all
:18:21. > :18:24.interests. The role of Cathy Ashton in this is important. I know some
:18:25. > :18:29.people get sceptical, but if you look at what she has done in the
:18:30. > :18:32.former Yugoslavia in relation to Kosovo and in Croatia, she has
:18:33. > :18:37.played a key role because she can bring together a wider set of people
:18:38. > :18:41.than any one from the individual countries. The other person who
:18:42. > :18:47.could play an important role is President Putin. If he decides to
:18:48. > :18:51.adopt the kind of approach he did in Syria, where he tries to find a way
:18:52. > :18:56.forward which the international community can agree on, it would be
:18:57. > :19:00.a triumph. On the other hand, if he reacts by saying, I am going to do
:19:01. > :19:06.tend Russian speakers and terror of the financial agreements, it will be
:19:07. > :19:10.worse. If that's not more likely? I am no expert on Vladimir Putin, but
:19:11. > :19:14.despite what he has attempted to do with Syria, cynics might say, he
:19:15. > :19:20.thinks he's losing a power base in Ukraine. He will do anything to stop
:19:21. > :19:27.that happening. Is he going to sit back and let that happen? It may
:19:28. > :19:31.affect his own backyard. That is the fear. And in relation to Syria, I am
:19:32. > :19:38.deeply sceptical about his motives. He has still got troops in Georgia.
:19:39. > :19:44.I would say a lot of the deals he has done with other countries
:19:45. > :19:48.bordering Russia to do with oil and gas have been profoundly corrupt.
:19:49. > :19:52.And he has thousands of troops in Ukraine as well. Is Vladimir Putin a
:19:53. > :19:57.character people can do business with? It is worrying, because he's
:19:58. > :20:03.worried about his power base. Implications are far-reaching. I
:20:04. > :20:12.don't stick your lily think you have a division in Ukraine which is
:20:13. > :20:15.pro-EU and Russia. -- pro-Russia. I do not think Yulia Tymoshenko is the
:20:16. > :20:22.person for it. She does not really have the kind of support from all
:20:23. > :20:26.over. She is tainted from the past. The one person who is not associated
:20:27. > :20:30.with the past is Vitali Klitschko. He is getting support because he is
:20:31. > :20:34.a newcomer into politics . And he has this international status. The
:20:35. > :20:43.classic misjudgement that Putin has made repeatedly in Ukraine is either
:20:44. > :20:46.violently and aggressively opposing people and therefore the support
:20:47. > :20:51.behind them, or doing the opposite and poisoning. Has William Hague
:20:52. > :20:56.done enough? The challenge for the West is what happens now. We sat and
:20:57. > :21:01.watched people dying with a feeling of impotence. We could not intervene
:21:02. > :21:05.militarily. Now we can help, so the challenge for the next few weeks
:21:06. > :21:09.will be to provide the support Ukraine needs. This is where I
:21:10. > :21:16.disagree, because I think that since 2010, Britain has been rather craven
:21:17. > :21:19.towards Russia. We have just pursued financial and economic interests. If
:21:20. > :21:23.you don't stand up to Putin, if your MPs still sit in the same group as
:21:24. > :21:27.Putin's MPs in the Council of Europe as the Conservatives do at the
:21:28. > :21:35.moment, it is a problem for our relationship for Russia -- with
:21:36. > :21:38.Russia. Well, Putin will be part of the solution whether we like it or
:21:39. > :21:41.not, so we have to talk to him. Does a sharp suit and a winning
:21:42. > :21:45.smile account for more than your view on the welfare state or what to
:21:46. > :21:48.do about the budget deficit? Logicians like to think it is their
:21:49. > :21:54.idea is that win over the voters, but that that is not the case. So
:21:55. > :21:59.does style really matter more than substance? We sent David out for a
:22:00. > :22:04.make over. They say that clothes make the man
:22:05. > :22:09.and presumably the woman, but is that true of politicians? Are we
:22:10. > :22:13.more interested in their policies or how they parked their hair? I don't
:22:14. > :22:20.know, but there is someone here who has strong views on the matter. We
:22:21. > :22:23.are human beings. Our brain has evolved for us to judge someone in
:22:24. > :22:28.part on how they look. We can't not judge them by the way they look. The
:22:29. > :22:32.best thing a politician can do is to think about what he stands for and
:22:33. > :22:37.to make sure his image aligns well with that. Then you get the words
:22:38. > :22:41.and pictures going together. If they are very separate, research has
:22:42. > :22:50.shown that we believe what we see more than what we hear. But can
:22:51. > :22:53.someone like Jennifer really make much difference? We could not find a
:22:54. > :22:58.real politician to pay -- play with because they are also -- too busy
:22:59. > :23:02.washing their hair, so he will have to make do with me instead. Let's
:23:03. > :23:13.get you dressed. It did not begin well. There were a few false starts.
:23:14. > :23:18.But finally, a winner. Now you look like someone with something to say.
:23:19. > :23:24.It is a great suit, but why is this more likely to get me elected? You
:23:25. > :23:27.look authoritative. You have gravitas and you look interesting,
:23:28. > :23:31.and you look like a man of the current world. Our politics is being
:23:32. > :23:37.played out on screen and in the press. Before, you looked like you
:23:38. > :23:42.had been rummaging in the back of the Westminster wardrobe. I spent
:23:43. > :23:48.ages choosing that suit! It did not show, sorry! You may be wondering
:23:49. > :23:53.whether there is any actual proof that image is important. Here is the
:23:54. > :23:57.political science. People often do vote on policy and other factors,
:23:58. > :24:02.but we do want someone who will effectively be attractive, who will
:24:03. > :24:07.have a value we can associate with and therefore, we feel we have some
:24:08. > :24:13.sense of cause to follow. And if it is a straight choice between style
:24:14. > :24:17.or substance? The difficulty is, do we vote for them because of their
:24:18. > :24:20.style, or do we think about whether they have the appropriate leadership
:24:21. > :24:24.qualities outside of being able to manufacture image? Should you vote
:24:25. > :24:29.for someone because you think they are good at their job, or is it the
:24:30. > :24:36.appearance of the England at your job? Most of us would go down the
:24:37. > :24:40.latter line. So, politicians, next time you are slaving away over that
:24:41. > :24:52.policy paper, remember this. Voters go crazy for a sharp dressed man.
:24:53. > :24:56.Joining me now is Dr Caitlin Milazzo, political lecture at Muslim
:24:57. > :25:00.university, Obama, entrepreneur and star of the TV show Made In Chelsea.
:25:01. > :25:04.He is also the founder of a website which rates MPs according to how
:25:05. > :25:14.sexy they are. And of course, Nicky Clarke is with us. You did a study
:25:15. > :25:20.into the attractiveness of MPs, what did you find? We found that before
:25:21. > :25:25.the 2010 British general election, candidates perceived to be more
:25:26. > :25:29.attractive by our students tended to be election winners. They got 2%
:25:30. > :25:36.more votes than their less attractive counterparts. Does that
:25:37. > :25:41.surprise you, Nicky? It doesn't. It is a shame that it has become that,
:25:42. > :25:49.but it is about people being better looking, taller, sharper. But
:25:50. > :25:51.something would worry me about somebody that was taking slightly
:25:52. > :25:55.too much care of themselves and worrying too much about how they
:25:56. > :26:01.present themselves and not having the substance I would want to see in
:26:02. > :26:04.a politician. But do you think the message matters less if it is coming
:26:05. > :26:12.from a more attractive person? I would hope not! I think one should
:26:13. > :26:17.be well groomed. I certainly don't want to go back to the days of
:26:18. > :26:25.Michael Foot in a donkey jacket. But people need to get it into
:26:26. > :26:29.proportion. It is about politics. We have seen in life that people who
:26:30. > :26:35.have those advantages, I am sure Mr JFK was one of the examples of the
:26:36. > :26:42.clean cut looking American. And when up against the likes of Nixon, it
:26:43. > :26:46.did not work. But was it also because he was less likeable? In the
:26:47. > :26:50.end, is being attractive being dressed in a sharp suit and having a
:26:51. > :26:56.good haircut, having great make-up if you are a woman, you look the
:26:57. > :26:59.part? But if you open your mouth and what comes out is not intelligent,
:27:00. > :27:06.doesn't it all gets cancelled out? Well, in the case of SexyMP.co.uk,
:27:07. > :27:11.there is not much relevance to this debate, because it is about
:27:12. > :27:16.incumbent MPs. But the problem is that people who are uninformed make
:27:17. > :27:22.more judgement on people's appearance. If they are informed and
:27:23. > :27:24.they engage with the message of each politician, that is what is
:27:25. > :27:30.important. Unfortunately, most people are not informed, so they
:27:31. > :27:35.make judgements and vote because of how someone looks. But they used to
:27:36. > :27:41.save politics is showbiz for ugly people. Do you think that has
:27:42. > :27:47.changed? Has politics become something that attractive people or
:27:48. > :27:50.people who make themselves attractive can be successful at?
:27:51. > :27:53.There is evidence to show that more attractive people in business are
:27:54. > :27:57.generally more successful. People treat them better and put more trust
:27:58. > :28:06.in them. In politics, the best evidence I found was a study by UCLA
:28:07. > :28:13.about Congress law candidates. They looked at about 1000 candidates and
:28:14. > :28:18.found there was nothing indicating that looks had an effect on them
:28:19. > :28:28.winning elections. But they did find that good-looking people tended to
:28:29. > :28:37.stand for congressional constituencies where they were more
:28:38. > :28:44.likely to win. And is it different in America than Britain? Actually,
:28:45. > :28:47.you would expect that in the US, attractiveness would matter more,
:28:48. > :28:51.because that is our culture. But all the studies of the US find that it
:28:52. > :28:56.is not attractiveness that matters, it is perceptions of confidence. Do
:28:57. > :29:01.you perceive someone to be a capable leader? That is why we were amazed
:29:02. > :29:05.when refined out that it was not surly confidence in ASEAN
:29:06. > :29:11.elections, it was more attractiveness but was driving
:29:12. > :29:15.things -- in British elections. If people come to you and say, I want
:29:16. > :29:24.to project this sort of image, can you do that? You certainly can. The
:29:25. > :29:27.business I am in is all about the image somebody wants to project.
:29:28. > :29:33.Whether that happens to be a famous actor or a politician, I have been
:29:34. > :29:38.fortunate over the last 40 years to do all of those. It is important
:29:39. > :29:45.that people want to be seen as they see themselves. There is certainly a
:29:46. > :29:51.power, whether it is a well groomed outfit or hair or make-up that is
:29:52. > :29:55.important. No matter what you do, it is important. George Osborne changed
:29:56. > :29:59.his hair. He has brushed it forward more. Does that change the way we
:30:00. > :30:07.view him? You have to remember that people are people. We have seen Ed
:30:08. > :30:11.Balls running and being in touch with his fitness levels. We have
:30:12. > :30:15.seen people on the 5:2 diet, George included. That is more about them
:30:16. > :30:20.being able to do the job than wanting to be seen to be fit to do
:30:21. > :30:23.the job. I don't think that is necessarily a massive image crisis,
:30:24. > :30:33.it is more about the fact that his hairline was receding. We talked
:30:34. > :30:40.about David Cameron letting himself go grey. Does that matter? Does
:30:41. > :30:49.gravitas come with maturity and age? That is the strain of the job!
:30:50. > :30:54.Youth and age is another component of this. Would you feel more
:30:55. > :31:01.supportive of our younger politician? I would support a
:31:02. > :31:13.politician I was in agreement with. No matter what they looked like? I
:31:14. > :31:19.am not that shallow! Every now and again there is always someone who
:31:20. > :31:23.throws it to the wind. Youth is fine in terms of the energy brings but
:31:24. > :31:29.every now and again you get someone like Vince Cable who is clearly
:31:30. > :31:36.trying to prime himself as the next leader. I do not think there will be
:31:37. > :31:42.any sudden make over with him! I would not vote for someone if they
:31:43. > :31:49.were model, in spite of their views. I like people who have actually
:31:50. > :31:51.lived in the real world. The Labour MP Sadiq Khan has
:31:52. > :31:56.attacked the Conservatives today. Nothing unusual about that. But he's
:31:57. > :31:59.questioned the party's record when it comes to engaging with ethnic
:32:00. > :32:02.minorities, and says Tory attempts to reach out to black and Asian
:32:03. > :32:07.voters should be viewed with suspicion. Writing in the Mirror
:32:08. > :32:10.this morning he says, "Having grown up as an Asian boy in Thatcher's
:32:11. > :32:14.Britain, I'm suspicious of the Tories on race. They ignored Stephen
:32:15. > :32:19.Lawrence's family after his murder and they were never on my side when
:32:20. > :32:22.I suffered racism. Britain will know when the Tory party has finally
:32:23. > :32:34.changed on race and ethnicity - after all, seeing is believing." The
:32:35. > :32:38.Tories say they have changed. Sadiq Khan joins us now, and the
:32:39. > :32:46.Conservative MP Paul Uppal joins us from Birmingham. Is the Conservative
:32:47. > :32:52.party a racist party in your mind? I do not think the party is racist.
:32:53. > :33:04.Nikki and I last met in the green room of Newsnight. The member of
:33:05. > :33:08.Parliament we appeared with is no longer in her job. David Cameron
:33:09. > :33:16.promised more women, more ethnic minorities. And he has gone
:33:17. > :33:23.backwards. And asking Lynton Crosby the man who ran the campaign for
:33:24. > :33:30.Boris Johnson and did not want to focus on Muslim voters, I think that
:33:31. > :33:34.is a step backwards. I would hope there would be an arms race to try
:33:35. > :33:40.to win every one does not vote and not simply cater for some. You said
:33:41. > :33:48.that the Conservative party has not changed since the 1980s. What is the
:33:49. > :33:54.evidence for that? Mrs Lawrence said her experience as a black woman was
:33:55. > :34:03.similar to date to that of the 1980s. Young black men are still
:34:04. > :34:07.being stopped and searched now. There is an argument about changing
:34:08. > :34:15.those laws. Unemployment is going up for black and ethnic minority
:34:16. > :34:26.people. Last year the Conservative lead government had advertisements
:34:27. > :34:31.saying, go home, a run -- around the most mixed parts of London. The
:34:32. > :34:37.Labour Party has fallen over itself to apologise for what it is called
:34:38. > :34:42.an open-door immigration policy. They apologised for the pressure put
:34:43. > :34:46.on working class communities. So in a sense the Labour Party has been
:34:47. > :34:51.playing the same game as the Conservative party. We held a public
:34:52. > :34:55.enquiry into the death of Stephen Lawrence within one month of being
:34:56. > :35:05.let did. We brought about changes... Doreen Lawrence says very
:35:06. > :35:08.little has changed. Paul Apple, do you recognise that characterisation
:35:09. > :35:19.of the Conservative party and of Britain as a whole? Well I grew up
:35:20. > :35:26.in the 1970s and faced racism almost on a daily basis. I actually
:35:27. > :35:32.represent Enoch Powell's old seat. So the critique that the party has
:35:33. > :35:36.not changed I think is far-fetched. What has changed is the approach of
:35:37. > :35:45.both parties engaging with communities. I am the only seek
:35:46. > :35:52.member in the House of parliament. -- Seikh. I have used the values to
:35:53. > :36:02.enhance educational opportunities for everyone. Just a few years ago
:36:03. > :36:11.we had three boys in the state system get the highest marks. We now
:36:12. > :36:17.have educational opportunities for all communities. To look at the
:36:18. > :36:21.evidence, even people in your own party think that the Conservatives
:36:22. > :36:25.have a problem. One candidate for Dudley said the general perception
:36:26. > :36:32.was that the party remained a racist party. Ethnic minority voters make
:36:33. > :36:35.up almost one tenth of the electorate but just 16% of them
:36:36. > :36:41.voted Conservative in the last election. What has changed? What has
:36:42. > :36:47.changed in my experience, we have interaction with younger voters in
:36:48. > :36:52.particular. We do have some baggage from the past about this. But what
:36:53. > :36:57.is a real differentiation between us and Labour, Labour still see the
:36:58. > :37:07.black and ethnic minority vote as a block vote. What he now found --
:37:08. > :37:16.what you now found is people are asking who can provide education and
:37:17. > :37:18.employment opportunities? The Labour Party has taken the ethnic minority
:37:19. > :37:24.vote for granted and is now beginning to pay the price? People
:37:25. > :37:28.are now beginning to be a little more discriminatory when they look
:37:29. > :37:33.at the parties. They're not just giving their vote to the Labour
:37:34. > :37:43.Party. In the past we have taken it for granted. I want an arms race. I
:37:44. > :37:52.want every single vote to be courted. Every vote the urn. The six
:37:53. > :38:04.people drafted in the Conservative manifesto are all male and pale. In
:38:05. > :38:09.London more than 70% of our candidates in target seats are
:38:10. > :38:17.women. So you're saying it is about the way the party looks and about
:38:18. > :38:21.the Cabinet? Is that not a problem for the Conservatives and the
:38:22. > :38:28.Liberal Democrats that there is not enough representation? We have
:38:29. > :38:41.increased the number of MPs, sixfold from the intake period. It was from
:38:42. > :38:47.a very low bar. I am involved with the policy board and helping to form
:38:48. > :38:52.Conservative party policy. People in glass houses should not throw
:38:53. > :38:59.boulders. The reality is that this article has appeared because they
:39:00. > :39:05.have always taken the black and ethnic minority vote for granted. Do
:39:06. > :39:10.you think the Conservative party should do more to attract ethnic
:39:11. > :39:16.minority voters? I would love to think the Conservative party of
:39:17. > :39:21.today is not that that you grew up with in the 1980s. David Cameron
:39:22. > :39:27.would love to have a more diverse looking cabinet. Wide doesn't he?
:39:28. > :39:33.Things are changing. But just not fast enough perhaps. We had the same
:39:34. > :39:37.issue with the black and Muslim community as with women, there are
:39:38. > :39:45.not enough women either. Do we want positive discrimination? I'm not so
:39:46. > :39:48.sure that we do. On Thursday 13 February during a
:39:49. > :39:52.discussion about Gordon Brown and his life outside of Parliament, a
:39:53. > :39:55.guest on the show made remarks about the use of the money raised from
:39:56. > :39:59.those engagements. Gordon Brown's office has asked us to make it
:40:00. > :40:03.clear, and we are happy to do so, that he receives no personal gain
:40:04. > :40:06.from any of his speeches or his writings and the money goes to
:40:07. > :40:11.charity and to charitable and public service work carried out by himself
:40:12. > :40:16.and his wife. MPs are back from a week-long
:40:17. > :40:21.parliamentary recess. So what have they got to look forward to now
:40:22. > :40:24.they're back at Westminster? As we've been discussing, the UK
:40:25. > :40:26.cabinet's gone to Aberdeen today in the government's latest offensive
:40:27. > :40:31.against Scottish independence. By Wednesday they'll be back for PMQs.
:40:32. > :40:36.Will it be a session of "yobbery and public school twittishness" - in the
:40:37. > :40:39.words of the Speaker - or will it be an altogether more sedate affair? On
:40:40. > :40:42.Thursday, the Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith and the
:40:43. > :40:46.Education Minister David Laws will unveil a new strategy to tackle
:40:47. > :40:51.child poverty. Also, on Thursday, German Chancellor, Angela Merkel
:40:52. > :40:58.visits the UK. She's expected to address both houses of Parliament.
:40:59. > :41:02.No doubt, discussion on reforming the UK's relationship with the EU
:41:03. > :41:05.will be on the agenda. On Friday, both UKIP and the Green party begin
:41:06. > :41:08.their spring conferences. And on Saturday, the Labour party will hold
:41:09. > :41:15.a special conference to decide whether to approve reforms over the
:41:16. > :41:18.party's links with trade unions. Joining me now are Pippa Crerer from
:41:19. > :41:25.the Evening Standard and James Lyons from the Daily Mirror. Welcome to
:41:26. > :41:30.you both. The UK Cabinet meeting up in Aberdeen alongside Alex Salmond
:41:31. > :41:35.and the Scottish government. How is that going to play out? It is the
:41:36. > :41:43.clash of the cabinets and oil is the issue of the day. Do not forget the
:41:44. > :41:49.slogan it is Scotland's oil helps the SNP to their largest Westminster
:41:50. > :41:55.victory years ago. It is an important issue. And it is the
:41:56. > :42:01.latest in a long line of issues brought up by the UK government to
:42:02. > :42:11.hector the Scottish people. That is what the SNP want Scottish voters to
:42:12. > :42:24.think. This is just the latest in a long line. There is Jeb --
:42:25. > :42:33.definitely a ground swell of opinion towards independence. And there is a
:42:34. > :42:39.closing of opinion and moved towards people being open to the idea. The
:42:40. > :42:45.SNP have called that bullying, you think it will backfire? The danger
:42:46. > :42:49.is that David Cameron takes the Cabinet up to Scotland and there is
:42:50. > :42:55.a huge win for the independence campaign. Because the Conservatives
:42:56. > :42:58.are still toxic brand. Some pro-Unionist believe that the fate
:42:59. > :43:06.of the UK is in the hands of Nigel Farage of all people. If UKIP do not
:43:07. > :43:13.do too well this year, that could hand to give to the SNP. The most
:43:14. > :43:16.convincing argument in many parts of Scotland and Glasgow in particular
:43:17. > :43:24.that the SNP are using that you will get rid of the Tories for ever if
:43:25. > :43:30.you vote for independence. Angela Merkel comes to town later this
:43:31. > :43:35.week. Is that significant? Hugely. The red carpet has been rolled out
:43:36. > :43:42.for her. A state visit in all but name. Contrast that to the visit of
:43:43. > :43:49.Francois Hollande. She is the single most important figure when it comes
:43:50. > :43:52.to David Cameron's hopes of renegotiating the European Treaty.
:43:53. > :43:58.He will invest a lot into making sure it is a good visit and she has
:43:59. > :44:03.some ideas to give him on any compromises to be made. I think it
:44:04. > :44:09.is unlikely that he will get the wish list that he wants. But he
:44:10. > :44:17.wants to keep her onside. How much support to think he will get? In
:44:18. > :44:20.terms of cosmetic changes may be. Certainly support for general
:44:21. > :44:28.reform. What about the big stuff is Mac things that would require treaty
:44:29. > :44:33.change? After all the disobliging remarks that David Cameron's
:44:34. > :44:37.colleagues have made about France in the recent past I'm not surprised
:44:38. > :44:42.that there are not supported by Francois Hollande. Downing Street
:44:43. > :44:48.are talking up the chances of her helping them out. But even if they
:44:49. > :44:50.do believe that and are not just trying to delay the inevitable
:44:51. > :44:55.disappointment, the danger is that David Cameron has this read the
:44:56. > :45:01.situation. He has a high opinion of his own powers of persuasion. We saw
:45:02. > :45:07.what happened with President Putin, when Cameron returned from Sochi. He
:45:08. > :45:15.said he had made huge progress and then the Russian leader humiliated
:45:16. > :45:25.him at the G8. The Conservative MP Andrea Leadsom, Hazel Blears and
:45:26. > :45:34.Lorely Burt joint as now. -- join us now. What do you want to hear from
:45:35. > :45:40.Angela Merkel? David Cameron's agenda is clear, and Angela Merkel
:45:41. > :45:47.has been clear that she once Britain to remain part of the EU. So I am
:45:48. > :45:52.sure they will make progress towards that. William Hague said yesterday
:45:53. > :45:55.that Angela Merkel's visit was just be starting point. David Cameron
:45:56. > :46:00.gave his Europe speech over a year ago. What has happened in between? A
:46:01. > :46:04.lot of discussion has happened behind the scenes. But have any of
:46:05. > :46:10.the demands from your group been met? There is real progress. You
:46:11. > :46:16.can't set a timetable and start negotiating something before you
:46:17. > :46:19.even see whether the 2015 general election is won by the Conservatives
:46:20. > :46:25.and whether David Cameron gets the opportunity to hold his EU
:46:26. > :46:27.referendum. So there is a lot of work going on behind the scenes and
:46:28. > :46:34.there is a lot of support across the EU. So you accept that none of the
:46:35. > :46:37.serious negotiations will take place until after 2015? No, there was a
:46:38. > :46:42.lot of negotiating behind the scenes. But it is all talk. Nothing
:46:43. > :46:46.has been agreed. If you look at some of your demands for opt outs from
:46:47. > :46:53.intolerable labour and social market legislation, boycotting defence
:46:54. > :47:00.initiatives, are these things going to be done in two years before the
:47:01. > :47:05.referendum in 2017? David Cameron has pledged to a fundamental
:47:06. > :47:08.reform, and he is clear that that is to the advantage of the EU. It is
:47:09. > :47:16.not about cherry picking for the UK. So what he negotiates with his
:47:17. > :47:20.EU partners will be for him to decide and it will be dependent on
:47:21. > :47:24.the outcome of the election in 2015. Hazel Blears, Number Ten is right.
:47:25. > :47:30.Angela Merkel doesn't want the UK to leave the EU. So in that sense, they
:47:31. > :47:34.are playing to an audience with open ears. Well, Angela Merkel is
:47:35. > :47:37.incredibly important to David Cameron in all of this. If he does
:47:38. > :47:43.not get her onside, he is in trouble. He has got her onside. We
:47:44. > :47:50.shall see. But David Cameron is under huge pressure from UKIP. If
:47:51. > :47:52.you look at some of the recent by-elections and council elections,
:47:53. > :47:58.you can see the Tories haemorrhaging votes to UKIP. So this is David
:47:59. > :48:02.Cameron's attempt to stave that off. In many ways, I wish him well, cos I
:48:03. > :48:08.do think the view of the public is that they want to see Europe
:48:09. > :48:13.reformed and they would like a say. So why won't labour give people a
:48:14. > :48:18.say? In my view, it is essential that the people of this country do
:48:19. > :48:23.have a say. So Ed Miliband should do that before the next election? It is
:48:24. > :48:31.about reform of the system. The EU was about economics and jobs. Now we
:48:32. > :48:36.are getting decisions about the deportation of foreign criminals. I
:48:37. > :48:41.think the public want that to be changed. When are we going to see
:48:42. > :48:49.that debate between Nick Clegg and Nigel Farage? Soon, I hope. A lot
:48:50. > :48:55.rides on it. We have our credentials. We owe -- we are the
:48:56. > :49:00.only party of in the EU. We believe there are about 3 million jobs at
:49:01. > :49:04.stake, and we are not afraid to put our head above the parapet. I wish
:49:05. > :49:09.you would speak to young Edward, Hazel, and get him to come on board
:49:10. > :49:14.as well. But you are not promising a referendum. We are promising an
:49:15. > :49:20.in-out referendum, should there be any treaty change. But everybody has
:49:21. > :49:24.agreed to that. You say you are the only party for in, so why not
:49:25. > :49:30.campaign for in in an in-out referendum? We will campaign for in,
:49:31. > :49:34.should a referendum arise. We will see how things pan out. We will see
:49:35. > :49:38.what happens after the 2015 elections. That will be an
:49:39. > :49:46.interesting time for the future of Britain and Europe. You say the
:49:47. > :49:53.Liberal Democrats are the only party for in. David Cameron has been clear
:49:54. > :49:56.that he wants to see a reformed EU. Having spent a lot of time in
:49:57. > :50:02.Strasbourg recently, the rest of Europe still thinks it is a way for
:50:03. > :50:06.Britain to leave the EU. They see it as a tactic for pushing at the door
:50:07. > :50:12.to exit. That is not my understanding. It might not be your
:50:13. > :50:18.understanding, but that is the danger. You have got UKIP reading
:50:19. > :50:26.down your neck on this. It is not the case. This is a positive
:50:27. > :50:31.campaign. So nothing to do with UKIP or the people who do just want to
:50:32. > :50:34.leave? David Cameron is trying to lead the country into a position
:50:35. > :50:43.where the EU is globally competitive. With one hand behind
:50:44. > :50:47.his back. What are you basing the evidence on that actually, the rest
:50:48. > :50:52.of Europe does see it as a quick exit out of the EU? I have not got
:50:53. > :50:57.the perspective of the whole of Europe, but I see what is happening
:50:58. > :51:02.in Britain. In the Conservative Party, there are some pro-European,
:51:03. > :51:09.good Conservatives, but they are hopelessly split and they are
:51:10. > :51:13.fearful of UKIP. It just isn't the case. There are few in the
:51:14. > :51:18.Conservative Party would like to see Britain leave. Most are behind David
:51:19. > :51:23.Cameron's view that the EU needs to be more globally competitive and
:51:24. > :51:28.more democratically accountable. PMQs has been a little rowdy of
:51:29. > :51:32.late, so much so that last week, the speaker said the "twittishness"
:51:33. > :51:36.needed to end. Labour leader Ed Miliband said he has agreed to
:51:37. > :51:44.that. Here is an example of how difficult it can get. Anne-Marie
:51:45. > :51:54.Morris. This government has a great record on educational reform.
:51:55. > :52:07.Will the prime minister confirm he will support a further round this
:52:08. > :52:27.autumn so that businesses and universities... We got the gist of
:52:28. > :52:31.that. Very good to see the honourable lady on such feisty form.
:52:32. > :52:37.Well, she would have to be to be heard. She had already broken her
:52:38. > :52:44.arm. That is amusing, but is it acceptable? Absolutely not. When you
:52:45. > :52:49.stand to ask the prime minister question, there is a microphone. She
:52:50. > :52:57.did not need to shout. We had a laugh about that. But there is a
:52:58. > :53:01.serious point here. I think agreement has broken out between us
:53:02. > :53:10.here, because we all find it distasteful. We would all like to
:53:11. > :53:12.see more of a sensible approach. People ask the Prime Minister's
:53:13. > :53:16.Questions because they are interested in knowing the answer.
:53:17. > :53:20.But does it actually put people off? In your postbag, Hazel, do you get
:53:21. > :53:26.letters saying, can you please do something about the noise and the
:53:27. > :53:31.general, but if they drop PMQs? I get more letters about housing,
:53:32. > :53:35.education and social services. But I do get comments. Sometimes when I go
:53:36. > :53:39.to schools, young people say, what happens on a Wednesday afternoon? It
:53:40. > :53:43.looks like bad behaviour. If they behaved like that at school, they
:53:44. > :53:47.would get sent out. But having said that, I liked our Parliament for the
:53:48. > :53:51.two for a debate that we get. When you go to the European Parliament
:53:52. > :53:55.and people just read speeches, it is so boring. There needs to be a
:53:56. > :54:03.better balance between being boring and being boorish. How do you do it?
:54:04. > :54:07.It seemed that we all reported on the idea that after Christmas, Ed
:54:08. > :54:12.Miliband had agreed to try and turn it down a bit. And it seems
:54:13. > :54:17.impossible to do. Can you achieve it without it becoming boring? I think
:54:18. > :54:22.you need an agreement between everybody that when there is a
:54:23. > :54:26.question, you get an answer. If people tried to answer the questions
:54:27. > :54:33.more, that might calm it down. What about the Punch and Judy, and ending
:54:34. > :54:38.it? Like the other ladies, I find it distasteful. I was recently at a
:54:39. > :54:42.human day with a group of year 12 and 13s, all of whom said the only
:54:43. > :54:46.time I see the chamber of the House of Commons is during PMQs, and they
:54:47. > :54:52.all thought it was just funny. It is not good for serious politics. Most
:54:53. > :54:55.of the time in the chamber, it is intelligent and courteous debate.
:54:56. > :55:00.But this is the showcase. David Cameron said he would end Punch and
:55:01. > :55:05.Judy. Is it that they don't want to, or is it that they can't find a way
:55:06. > :55:09.of doing it? I think it is the most tense period of the week, where the
:55:10. > :55:16.leaders of both parties are being held to account. So tempers and
:55:17. > :55:20.tensions are high. It is partly down to yourselves as well. Because the
:55:21. > :55:24.press judge you on that half hour on a Wednesday, are you up, are you
:55:25. > :55:28.down, other threats to your leadership, are you going to be
:55:29. > :55:32.deposed next month? It is all on that moment, and it becomes like a
:55:33. > :55:35.theatre. The atmosphere is so intense, so maybe journalists need
:55:36. > :55:41.to be part of this as well. No, let's leave it to the politicians!
:55:42. > :55:47.But does it put off women? That has always been the claim, that it puts
:55:48. > :55:52.off women, voters, viewers and MPs themselves. Is that true? To a
:55:53. > :55:57.degree. I remember standing to ask the prime minister a question and,
:55:58. > :56:00.forgive me, Hazel, but if the opposition sense that you are going
:56:01. > :56:06.to say something that is in anyway derogatory to them or critical, you
:56:07. > :56:10.get a wall of noise hitting you. That is very intimidating. Is that
:56:11. > :56:18.the reason you are standing down? Have you had enough of the toing and
:56:19. > :56:22.froing of it all? No, I have in here nearly 20 years. As a minister, I
:56:23. > :56:25.have stood in that chamber. I was at one of the last all-night sittings
:56:26. > :56:29.at four o'clock in the morning on very controversial legislation when
:56:30. > :56:34.one or two members had perhaps had one or two drinks. I have been
:56:35. > :56:38.there, done that, got the T-shirt. Not at all. I just feel that at this
:56:39. > :56:42.point, it is time for the next generation in my seat to come along.
:56:43. > :56:47.I genuinely want to choose bend more time with my family. And I am
:56:48. > :56:54.looking for new challenges. We have all been in local politics for
:56:55. > :57:00.years, and I don't want to become part of an institution. What is your
:57:01. > :57:05.proudest achievement? Introducing neighbourhood policing, and changing
:57:06. > :57:11.the whole way we do policing in this country. The Liberal Democrats and
:57:12. > :57:13.the Conservatives and people around the world now think that
:57:14. > :57:20.neighbourhood policing is the best thing for our country. Biggest
:57:21. > :57:24.regret? You always think there is more you could have done. But I am
:57:25. > :57:30.not a person for regrets. My biggest regret would be leaving the people
:57:31. > :57:33.of Salford. I would still live there, but they will have a new
:57:34. > :57:43.voice and I hope they get a strong champion. Just briefly go back to
:57:44. > :57:47.atmosphere of how we do politics, do you think the speaker is the problem
:57:48. > :57:51.or part of the solution? I actually think he is rather a good speaker.
:57:52. > :57:55.He defends the backbenches very well in terms of their right to speak. He
:57:56. > :57:59.keeps us all to order. This is my first time, but I understand he gets
:58:00. > :58:06.through the questions so that he gives loads of people the chance to
:58:07. > :58:12.have their say. He is unpopular with a few of your colleagues. I don't
:58:13. > :58:15.like him insulting colleagues. He is as bad as anyone when it comes to
:58:16. > :58:20.personal insults. Sometimes it is hurtful. Just time before we go to
:58:21. > :58:25.find out the answer to our quiz. Question was, which politician is
:58:26. > :58:30.not on the 5:2 diet? Is it Alex Salmond, George Osborne, the
:58:31. > :58:39.Alexander or Ed Balls? They are all men! And who is not on it? I have
:58:40. > :58:45.worked for Danny, and I don't think he is on it. You are right! Danny
:58:46. > :58:50.Alexander is not on the 5:2 diet. I am! That is all for today. Thanks to
:58:51. > :58:53.our guests. The one O'Clock News is starting on BBC One now. I will be
:58:54. > :58:55.here at noon tomorrow with all the big political stories of the day.
:58:56. > :59:03.Thanks. Bye-bye.