05/03/2014

:00:38. > :00:41.Morning folks and welcome to the Daily Politics.

:00:42. > :00:44.A date is set for the big Clegg-Farage bout, but Nick Clegg

:00:45. > :00:48.can't wait to land the first punch as he lays into UKIP, saying it's

:00:49. > :00:53.the Lib Dems who'll really deliver EU reform.

:00:54. > :00:59.The waters are subsiding, but how did politicians come off when they

:01:00. > :01:03.waded into the floods crisis? Just two weeks to the budget, is

:01:04. > :01:07.drinking wine and spirits such a sin that it deserves such hefty taxes?

:01:08. > :01:10.And parking tickets, speed cameras and overflowing bins - can anyone

:01:11. > :01:17.bring an end to the annoyances of everyday life in Britain?

:01:18. > :01:23.All that coming up in the next 90 minutes of the very finest public

:01:24. > :01:27.service broadcasting. And joining us, two people who are not the least

:01:28. > :01:30.bit annoying - in fact, they are going to keep you entertained with

:01:31. > :01:33.their easy manner and witty repartee for the duration of the programme:

:01:34. > :01:36.the Communities Secretary, Eric Pickles and the Shadow Europe

:01:37. > :01:48.minister, Gareth Thomas. Welcome to the programme. Good to be here.

:01:49. > :01:53.Could you say that with a bit more enthusiasm? !

:01:54. > :01:56.First this morning: What's the impact of immigration on British

:01:57. > :01:59.jobs? Well, the Government has used figures which claim that for every

:02:00. > :02:04.100 immigrants that arrive here, 23 British jobs are lost. But the BBC's

:02:05. > :02:07.Newsnight programme has claimed that the Government is suppressing a

:02:08. > :02:11.report by civil servants which says that the impact on British jobs is

:02:12. > :02:14.much smaller than that, and it would be "politically awkward" to publish

:02:15. > :02:20.it. Here's Theresa May making that 23 jobs for 100 immigrants claim in

:02:21. > :02:27.a speech in December. We asked the advisory committee to

:02:28. > :02:32.look at the effects of immigration on jobs. They found a clear

:02:33. > :02:38.association between non-European immigration and employment in the

:02:39. > :02:43.UK. Between 1995 and 2010, the committee found and associated

:02:44. > :02:48.displacement of 160,000 British workers. For every additional 100

:02:49. > :02:57.immigrants, they estimated 23 British workers would not be

:02:58. > :02:59.employed. There is a zero displacement fallacy and Government

:03:00. > :03:07.must never make that mistake again of falling for it. Eric Pickles, why

:03:08. > :03:10.is Downing Street sitting on a report suggesting the impact of

:03:11. > :03:15.immigration is much less than first thought? For Gibney, it is not

:03:16. > :03:25.sitting on a report. The report is not ready, and when it is, we will

:03:26. > :03:31.publish it. -- forgive me. Theresa May looked for independent figures,

:03:32. > :03:39.those figures came up and went through rigour, and this report will

:03:40. > :03:43.also go through a degree of rigour. In terms of sitting on the report,

:03:44. > :03:47.we knew some of the conclusions were around at Christmas time. They were

:03:48. > :03:50.leaked at that point and we still haven't seen the report, which is

:03:51. > :03:58.why there is a suggestion Downing Street is sitting on it. It is not

:03:59. > :04:02.finished, I've not seen the report, I will be interested in the report.

:04:03. > :04:07.As far as I know, the Prime Minister has not seen the report. Well, we

:04:08. > :04:16.have been told that the figure in terms of impact on jobs for British

:04:17. > :04:23.workers is virtually mill. -- nil. I have no way of judging whether that

:04:24. > :04:27.is an accurate interpretation. If it does come out with that sort of

:04:28. > :04:33.guidance, will you change your policy? We will look and see how

:04:34. > :04:37.rigorous these figures are. I think that has to be an understanding of

:04:38. > :04:45.the relationship between migration and benefits. We have a tradition of

:04:46. > :04:50.welcoming people into this country who can contribute to national

:04:51. > :04:54.wealth. We need to understand controlled immigration is a good

:04:55. > :04:58.thing for this country. What isn't a good thing is uncontrolled

:04:59. > :05:05.immigration. Over the last couple of years, we will have seen a big

:05:06. > :05:12.influence of people coming to London. Last time I looked, we were

:05:13. > :05:20.the sixth largest French city, bigger than Bordeaux. Do you accept

:05:21. > :05:26.one of the main tenets for your claim for immigration is based on

:05:27. > :05:36.the fact that many jobs are being taken by immigrants, as your

:05:37. > :05:38.Government puts it? Our point is we believe immigration should be

:05:39. > :05:43.controlled. We've gone through a decade or so where immigration was

:05:44. > :05:51.not terribly well controlled. What we need to ensure is that as the

:05:52. > :05:55.economy starts to grow, our population has the necessary skills

:05:56. > :06:02.and knowledge to take up jobs. That is not putting up a ring paints

:06:03. > :06:08.backtrack fence around our borders. We appreciate people who can come

:06:09. > :06:14.and contribute. Can I ask why the Home Secretary made much of that

:06:15. > :06:19.original report in 2012 which seem to show there would be 23 fewer jobs

:06:20. > :06:24.for every 100 people coming? She said, it is clear from this report.

:06:25. > :06:30.But if you read the statistical caveats in this report from two

:06:31. > :06:33.years ago, the report says, results are statistically insignificant when

:06:34. > :06:37.outliers are removed from the data. That means you take away figures

:06:38. > :06:43.that look a bit dodgy. It went on to say, the results may not be robust.

:06:44. > :06:48.That was in the original result, yet your party made so much political

:06:49. > :06:55.significance out of it and never made mention of those caveats. The

:06:56. > :07:01.report was published, it is there on websites for people to read. But the

:07:02. > :07:09.Home Secretary said it is clear that it is 23 for every 100. When you

:07:10. > :07:16.read this report, it is far from clear. To reason made a point, it is

:07:17. > :07:24.in the report. Nobody at the time suggested it was wrong. They did. A

:07:25. > :07:28.research tank the day after it was published put out a huge analysis of

:07:29. > :07:35.this and blue enormous holes in it. So it is not right to say that, I'm

:07:36. > :07:38.afraid. Can I ask about the net migration figure? Do you still think

:07:39. > :07:46.you should be trying to get that to tens of thousands when it is

:07:47. > :07:50.currently over 200,000? I think we need to knowledge the figure is

:07:51. > :07:55.going to vary enormously. But I think it is important we do continue

:07:56. > :08:03.to press down on non-EEC migration figures. It is our aim to achieve

:08:04. > :08:08.it. Really? You are going to be able to get down from 212,000 when you

:08:09. > :08:17.cannot control the bulk of immigration from the EU? It is our

:08:18. > :08:29.aim to get down non-EU figures. If we were to get some control over EU

:08:30. > :08:34.figures, the loss would be to Britain. There are many British

:08:35. > :08:43.workers overseas. I think controlled immigration is a very good way...

:08:44. > :08:47.Well, the figures have gone up. There are fewer criminals being

:08:48. > :08:53.deported, fewer people being found in being deported. The conclusions

:08:54. > :08:57.of the report are virtually out there, Vince Cable says the report

:08:58. > :09:00.is completed and should be published. Surely within the next

:09:01. > :09:04.couple of days these reports could be published and could inform the

:09:05. > :09:13.debate about immigration any more sensible way then clearly Theresa

:09:14. > :09:19.May with her speech. Gareth, your record on immigration is

:09:20. > :09:22.unbelievable. There were ten years of uncontrolled immigration. I've

:09:23. > :09:27.made it clear that when this report is ready, it will be published.

:09:28. > :09:30.Actually, the numbers in terms of immigration are going in the wrong

:09:31. > :09:38.direction according to your own figures. The number of deported

:09:39. > :09:46.criminals and illegal migrants being deported is going down. On the issue

:09:47. > :09:50.of employment and wages being undercut, we know you have to tackle

:09:51. > :09:55.some of the abuses being revealed in the labour market. One area where we

:09:56. > :10:01.know there are problems is the care sector, where agencies are being

:10:02. > :10:06.used to recruit people from aboard. We need to make that illegal. We

:10:07. > :10:11.need to tackle the lack of enforcement over the minimum wage.

:10:12. > :10:21.There have only been two prosecutions since 2000. How many

:10:22. > :10:28.were there under Labour? I don't know exactly, but they were better.

:10:29. > :10:33.We've got the figures, it wasn't. Fewer than ten. And they weren't

:10:34. > :10:39.prosecutions, they were cases raised with people abusing the system.

:10:40. > :10:43.Now, the date for the big televised bout between Nick Clegg and Nigel

:10:44. > :10:47.Farage was announced today - it will be on BBC Two on Wednesday two April

:10:48. > :10:51.at 7pm. But some early salvos are already being fired. This morning,

:10:52. > :10:54.Mr Clegg made a speech on Europe in which he attacked UKIP MEPs as lazy

:10:55. > :11:08.and effective. Here's what he had to say.

:11:09. > :11:11.Martin Horwood from the Liberal Democrats joins us from outside

:11:12. > :11:23.Parliament, and UKIP's Roger Helmer is in Brussels. Mr Clegg criticises

:11:24. > :11:26.Nigel Farage for not voting opera Nona -- often enough in the European

:11:27. > :11:34.Parliament. It turns out they vote more than Mr Clegg. Well, he is the

:11:35. > :11:41.Deputy Prime Minister, what is their excuse? Well, he is the leader of a

:11:42. > :11:50.big party X might you cannot criticise other people for voting

:11:51. > :11:53.when you yourself vote less. Lib Dem MEPs and the liberal group across

:11:54. > :11:57.Europe have a much better record and that is what you should compare it

:11:58. > :12:00.with, not Government ministers in this country who are obviously

:12:01. > :12:06.undertaking a lot of other duties and obviously don't turn up to lobby

:12:07. > :12:10.every day. Mr Clegg was my big new idea is you should close down the

:12:11. > :12:14.Strasbourg bit of European Parliament. Hardly a new idea, most

:12:15. > :12:19.people think it should be, but the French don't and the French have a

:12:20. > :12:24.veto. Explain to us how Mr Clegg will overcome the French veto. I

:12:25. > :12:31.think we do just have to build a consensus. There is a consensus

:12:32. > :12:38.already. Not in France, there isn't. We need to build up the pressure.

:12:39. > :12:44.This is a colossal waste of money. It is just one example of how we can

:12:45. > :12:49.still tackle waste. We know that, no one disagrees with you on that. Name

:12:50. > :12:55.me one mainstream ranch politician that thinks that should be closed.

:12:56. > :13:00.Well, it is in the treaty that the Strasbourg parliament is part of the

:13:01. > :13:04.process. So this needs to be on the political agenda and we are trying

:13:05. > :13:09.to do that. We are saying there are things that can be tackled. Could

:13:10. > :13:14.you name me one mainstream French politician that think that

:13:15. > :13:25.Parliament should be closed? The top of my head, no. That's because there

:13:26. > :13:29.isn't one. We need to look at areas where the EU can focus more

:13:30. > :13:35.resources on creating British jobs, fighting cross-border crime and

:13:36. > :13:40.environment. Roger, you get paid a fair bit with decent expenses for

:13:41. > :13:44.growing -- going to Brussels. Don't you think you should do some work

:13:45. > :13:52.for it? My voting participation rate in the Europe where -- European

:13:53. > :13:59.Parliament is better than the average of Lib Dems. The

:14:00. > :14:04.participation rate is actually double Nick Clegg's participation

:14:05. > :14:08.rate in London and he lives near his Parliament wearers Nigel Farage has

:14:09. > :14:13.to travel eight hours to get to Strasbourg. So these comparisons are

:14:14. > :14:16.outrageous. One other point to - we in UKIP are much more focused on

:14:17. > :14:22.what is going on in Britain in Europe, and if you look at our 150

:14:23. > :14:26.or so councillors, a recent study in the times of the four major parties

:14:27. > :14:30.showed that, of those parties, UKIP councillors have the top rate of

:14:31. > :14:36.participation and Lib Dem councillors have the bottom. What do

:14:37. > :14:43.you say to that, Martin? We're not talking about councillors, we're

:14:44. > :14:50.talking about MEPs. But he said his voting record is on average better

:14:51. > :14:56.then Lib Dem MEPs. Well, he must be an outlier. You get as a whole has

:14:57. > :15:00.the worst record of any British and European party, and they are paid to

:15:01. > :15:05.fight Britain's corner in the European Parliament. They are not

:15:06. > :15:09.doing it. We are paid to serve the interests of our electors. Our

:15:10. > :15:15.electors in UKIP voted for us because they want is to get Britain

:15:16. > :15:19.out of the European Union and work. Your leader served our interests by

:15:20. > :15:22.not turning up to the European fisheries meeting apart from one

:15:23. > :15:28.meeting in an entire year. That was when he was lecturing everyone else

:15:29. > :15:33.about how terrible European policy was.

:15:34. > :15:41.UKIP voted the right way on that issue. Nigel Farage, as has been

:15:42. > :15:44.rightly pointed out, is the leader of a large and growing political

:15:45. > :15:48.party and he has enormous calls on his time. I have never met a man who

:15:49. > :15:53.work so hard or deliver so much value. Let me tell you how

:15:54. > :15:58.representative democracy is supposed to work, it is not to advance your

:15:59. > :16:04.poetical party but to do a job of work. That is what we do here --

:16:05. > :16:07.your political party. We are doing what our electors want us to do and

:16:08. > :16:14.you will find that out on May the 22nd. Do you agree with Paul

:16:15. > :16:18.Nuttall, number two in your party? It says, my attendance record is

:16:19. > :16:24.flaky to say the least but so what, I treat Brussels with the contempt

:16:25. > :16:27.it deserves. I treat Brussels with a fair measure of contempt. They're in

:16:28. > :16:32.mind that we have a different objective. The Lib Dems want to

:16:33. > :16:36.build Europe and sit in dusty committee rooms passing European

:16:37. > :16:40.laws and maxing out on daily allowances. We are concerned about

:16:41. > :16:44.arguing the case and spreading the message at home. Some of our MEPs

:16:45. > :16:48.have more emphasis on the work in Brussels, some have more emphasis on

:16:49. > :16:54.the work at home. The voters are the people who decide if we are doing a

:16:55. > :16:58.good job. We have a Euro election on May 22 and I think you may find that

:16:59. > :17:04.the voters agree that we are doing the things they elected us to do.

:17:05. > :17:07.Martin Horwood, at the last election, your party said, Liberal

:17:08. > :17:14.Democrats think we should have a real vote. It should be in or out of

:17:15. > :17:17.Europe, that is the vote we want. Yet when George Osborne proposed

:17:18. > :17:21.that in the cabinet yesterday, Lib Dems opposed it. He proposed a

:17:22. > :17:25.referendum bill which we have ready had in this Parliament, based on

:17:26. > :17:32.Conservative Party policy. We did support and in-out referendum at the

:17:33. > :17:36.time of the Lisbon Treaty and we will continue to support it under

:17:37. > :17:43.similar circumstances. You are frightened to death of it. We are

:17:44. > :17:48.not, we proposed it. Why don't you want one now? We proposed it not

:17:49. > :17:52.when the Lisbon Treaty was going through but at the time and we would

:17:53. > :17:57.do that again. What is wrong with having one now? The timing, as we

:17:58. > :18:00.know, is not right. We are not looking for a referendum to pave the

:18:01. > :18:08.way for exit from the European Union. Why not have a real vote now?

:18:09. > :18:15.At the time, most other parties were not supporting an in-out referendum.

:18:16. > :18:19.We have consistently supported an in -out referendum. Conservative Party

:18:20. > :18:21.policy at the time was to have a referendum only on particular

:18:22. > :18:26.transfers of power. We went along with that in the coalition and we

:18:27. > :18:29.have legislated for that. We have spent an enormous amount of

:18:30. > :18:33.government time and Parliamentary time for baiting a government bill,

:18:34. > :18:37.then a Tory Private Members' Bill. I think we have more important things

:18:38. > :18:43.edge time debating a government bill.

:18:44. > :18:50.There is room, if the Lib Dems want to change their mind. We could put

:18:51. > :18:55.this into the Queen's Speech. I could leave the programme, to be

:18:56. > :19:01.Prime Minister, we could make an announcement straightaway. They

:19:02. > :19:04.haven't found time for the legislation to put .7% of gross

:19:05. > :19:06.national income being devoted to international development as

:19:07. > :19:11.promised in the coalition agreement. That would be my first preference.

:19:12. > :19:15.If he agreed to that, would you agree to a referendum? We haven't

:19:16. > :19:19.got time for the international developer built, then I don't see

:19:20. > :19:30.how we can create time for a third attempt... Mr pickles says he can

:19:31. > :19:36.offer the 0.7%... Will you therefore agree to a referendum? We have never

:19:37. > :19:42.objected to the principal. He is offering what you wanted. Let me

:19:43. > :19:47.finish. We have never objected to the principle of a referendum. I did

:19:48. > :19:50.not oppose the referendum bill that went through recently. We just

:19:51. > :19:54.disagreed with the detail. We'll have different formulas, we don't

:19:55. > :19:58.support the one the Conservatives have come up with -- we all have. We

:19:59. > :20:05.will not be agreeing to the bill they are proposing. What kind of

:20:06. > :20:08.in-out referendum would you like? This is the same position we have

:20:09. > :20:12.had since the Lisbon Treaty. When there is a transfer of power, or if

:20:13. > :20:15.there is a transfer of power, presented as part of the treaty

:20:16. > :20:21.change, we would have an in-out referendum. We did not have that.

:20:22. > :20:25.When the Lisbon Treaty went through, we supported it at the time

:20:26. > :20:29.and the Conservative Party did not support us. The Lisbon Treaty was

:20:30. > :20:33.job done by the general election campaign. In the general election

:20:34. > :20:38.you are still saying, Liberal Democrats think we should have a

:20:39. > :20:43.real vote, in or out. At the time of the treaty, we supported an in-out

:20:44. > :20:49.referendum. And in the election campaign. The election manifesto

:20:50. > :20:54.said the same thing. At the time of the transfer of power we would

:20:55. > :20:59.support an in-out referendum. Don't expect us to pave the way for

:21:00. > :21:01.something that will damage British jobs and our ability to fight

:21:02. > :21:09.cross-border crime, to protect the environment. Rubbish, rubbish,

:21:10. > :21:15.rubbish. Let me bring in Labour. Will you ever come out for a

:21:16. > :21:18.referendum? We support the 2011 sovereignty act. If there were to be

:21:19. > :21:21.a further transfer of power to Brussels it is right there is a

:21:22. > :21:28.referendum and British people are asked if they want to support the

:21:29. > :21:33.transfer of power. But not in-out. We don't support the idea of an

:21:34. > :21:39.in-out referendum fix for 2017. For similar reasons to those that Martin

:21:40. > :21:43.has expressed. Perhaps best underlined by the engineering

:21:44. > :21:47.Federation yesterday who made clear that the uncertainty that that

:21:48. > :21:52.referendum is causing is a ready having an impact on investment

:21:53. > :21:56.decisions by British business. The engineering employers Federation,

:21:57. > :22:02.their businesses spoke yesterday about the way in which investment

:22:03. > :22:08.decisions... Give me an example. I don't have the detail. Don't you

:22:09. > :22:11.think you should have the detail before you make the claim? It was

:22:12. > :22:18.reported in The Financial Times, a perfectly reputable newspaper. That

:22:19. > :22:21.is not the point, can you give me an example of one company who has said

:22:22. > :22:29.they will not invest until the referendum is in -- is resolved. I

:22:30. > :22:33.can't but perhaps the question is to those business organisations. There

:22:34. > :22:36.are a series of business organisations, the CBI as well as

:22:37. > :22:44.the F. We know in terms of construction,

:22:45. > :22:49.soap manufacturing, the motor industry has never been better, in

:22:50. > :22:52.terms of what is happening on the ground, I can't see any evidence. I

:22:53. > :23:01.will have a look at The Financial Times piece. Will you come first in

:23:02. > :23:04.the European elections? We have every chance, we are working hard in

:23:05. > :23:09.that direction, we can't afford to give up and be complacent but I

:23:10. > :23:12.think we will create an earthquake in British politics. Let me send you

:23:13. > :23:17.a book on the management of expectations. Thanks to both of you.

:23:18. > :23:21.It is called optimism! The waters are subsiding but how did

:23:22. > :23:25.the politicians fare when they waded into the floods at the height of the

:23:26. > :23:28.crisis? Here was Eric Pickles on The Andrew Marr Show last month. We made

:23:29. > :23:33.a mistake, there is no doubt about that. We perhaps relied too much on

:23:34. > :23:39.the Environment Agency's advice. I think we recognise now that we

:23:40. > :23:43.should have done... We should have dredged. It is important that we get

:23:44. > :23:49.on the process of getting those people back into their houses. We

:23:50. > :23:53.are able to do some serious pumping but at the moment the level is too

:23:54. > :24:01.high. Don't you think ministers should apologise to farmers who said

:24:02. > :24:03.you need to dredge now? I will apologise, I apologise unreservedly

:24:04. > :24:09.and I am sorry that we took the advice that we did. Eric Pickles is

:24:10. > :24:13.still here, do you still blame squarely be in by at agency rather

:24:14. > :24:23.than ministers taking responsible at sea? -- responsibility. There is now

:24:24. > :24:26.a growing consensus on the need to dredge the Somerset Levels, they

:24:27. > :24:30.were man-made, but that does not mean to say dredging is appropriate

:24:31. > :24:35.everywhere. I have worked closely with the bar and agency for the last

:24:36. > :24:39.month. I have seen what they are doing -- with the Environment

:24:40. > :24:45.Agency. In Parliament and on that programme I praised the work of the

:24:46. > :24:51.biomed agency. Given that there is a consensus -- I praised the work of

:24:52. > :24:54.the Environment Agency. People were suggesting we should have dredged,

:24:55. > :24:57.perhaps we should have paid more attention to them. Sometimes in

:24:58. > :25:05.government, we are kind of reluctant to say sorry. It is a compensated

:25:06. > :25:12.situation. Fortunately the levels are likely to drop. -- complicated

:25:13. > :25:16.situation. If you look at different rivers, different measures will be

:25:17. > :25:21.necessary. We will still have ground water for months to come. Do you

:25:22. > :25:25.think at the time, there was too much of a blame game? Too much

:25:26. > :25:29.finger-pointing going on between ministers, including yourself, when

:25:30. > :25:35.people were just revelling to keep their places dry? It was not the

:25:36. > :25:39.intention. I accepted I made a mistake of answering the question,

:25:40. > :25:46.which sometimes politicians should not do. There is now a consensus

:25:47. > :25:53.around what needs to be done. Owen is back... Are you friends with Owen

:25:54. > :25:57.Paterson again? Never ceased to be friends. We reported he was cross

:25:58. > :26:05.about you grandstanding, as he called it. We remain friends, the

:26:06. > :26:10.condition here's -- he is suffering from isn't to my wife is suffering

:26:11. > :26:12.from minor how difficult it is and he is doing a fantastic job to be

:26:13. > :26:17.back. We have an apology to make. I am

:26:18. > :26:20.afraid that there's been a serious breach of security here at the Daily

:26:21. > :26:23.Politics. One of the programme's presenters walked into the building

:26:24. > :26:25.here at Westminster earlier this morning carrying unconcealed

:26:26. > :26:29.documents which were caught on camera by waiting photographers.

:26:30. > :26:34.Amongst those documents was the answer to today's Guess the Year

:26:35. > :26:42.competition. It has come to our attention that the photograph is

:26:43. > :26:46.doing the rounds on Twitter. Here it is for any of you tempted to cheat.

:26:47. > :26:49.Don't get too excited - we've blurred out the date.

:26:50. > :26:53.Yes - I apologise - I've offered my resignation to the BBC - but was

:26:54. > :26:55.told I would have to endure the on-screen humiliation of having my

:26:56. > :26:58.misdemeanour revealed on telly instead. Good job nothing like that

:26:59. > :27:06.ever happens in government, hey, Eric? I am happy to accept your

:27:07. > :27:14.resignation. I am happy you don't employ me! I do indirectly. That was

:27:15. > :27:16.very quick! We'll remind you how to enter in a minute, but let's see if

:27:17. > :27:29.you can remember when this happened. If some of my former colleagues are

:27:30. > :27:32.to be believed, I must be the first minister in history who resigned

:27:33. > :27:39.because he was in full agreement with government policy. British beef

:27:40. > :27:57.is safe. # I've got the power. I can no

:27:58. > :27:59.longer follow Solly the mandate of the Communist Party of the Soviet

:28:00. > :28:20.Union. -- To be in with a chance of winning a

:28:21. > :28:26.Daily Politics mug, send your answer to our special quiz email address -

:28:27. > :28:30.that's dpquiz@bbc.co.uk. And you can see the full terms and conditions

:28:31. > :28:35.for Guess the Year on our website - that's bbc.co.uk/dailypolitics.

:28:36. > :28:39.It's coming up to midday here - just take a look at Big Ben - and that

:28:40. > :28:46.can mean only one thing: Yes, Prime Minister's Questions is on its way.

:28:47. > :28:55.It is a beautiful spring day and Nick Robinson is here. Patrick Rock,

:28:56. > :28:58.a senior adviser, he had to resign over allegations of child abuse

:28:59. > :29:03.images, he has been arrested but not charged. Jonathan Ashworth MP writes

:29:04. > :29:07.to the head of the civil service, when was Number ten first made aware

:29:08. > :29:11.of these allegations? When was the Prime Minister first made aware?

:29:12. > :29:14.When were you as Cabinet Secretary made aware? What advice did you

:29:15. > :29:22.give? A lot of unanswered questions. There are. When you are

:29:23. > :29:26.in opposition and you want to keep a story running, you always say there

:29:27. > :29:30.are a lot of unanswered questions. That is what Eric's party did when

:29:31. > :29:35.they were in the opposition. What is at the root of this is that we do

:29:36. > :29:38.not know the timeline of when Patrick Rock was arrested and

:29:39. > :29:42.dismissed. There was a three-week gap between it and the news

:29:43. > :29:47.emerging. Some newspapers feel very strongly that after the Leveson

:29:48. > :29:51.enquiry, all the talk that police were too close to the press, there

:29:52. > :29:55.is an increasing policy of keeping the media in the dark about ordinary

:29:56. > :29:59.police operations. The question underlying all of this detail is was

:30:00. > :30:05.there a deliberate attempt by people close to Patrick Rock and the police

:30:06. > :30:10.to keep this quiet, in the hope that he was cautioned and never charged,

:30:11. > :30:14.because he has not been charged. I think that is what underlies many

:30:15. > :30:18.questions about who knew what and when. Jonathan Ashworth says, how

:30:19. > :30:24.much time passed between Number ten first becoming aware and Patrick

:30:25. > :30:29.Rock being spoken about them, the police being alerted and Mr Rock's

:30:30. > :30:32.resignation. Some commentators have thought it is a strange situation

:30:33. > :30:35.for a democracy where someone who is at the heart of government can be

:30:36. > :30:41.arrested and it takes a long while for anyone to know about it. That is

:30:42. > :30:46.right, there is secrecy built into this and it causes concerns. It may

:30:47. > :30:49.get raised by a backbench Labour MP Joan Prime Minister's Questions. It

:30:50. > :30:54.won't be raised by Ed Miliband will stop my hunch is that it will be

:30:55. > :31:15.Ukraine that is the subject he deals with.

:31:16. > :31:30.Russian lake is a major retail park which will create 2000 new jobs. My

:31:31. > :31:33.listening campaign and the local Telegraph have supported this

:31:34. > :31:38.proposal. In nine years in Parliament, I've never known of a

:31:39. > :31:42.development to have so much public support. Could the Prime Minister

:31:43. > :31:48.used his best efforts to ensure the outcome of the public enquiry is

:31:49. > :31:51.announced as soon as possible? I know my honourable friend campaigns

:31:52. > :31:57.vigorously for job creation and his local constituents. I'm sure years

:31:58. > :32:01.where I'm not able to get involved in specific planning decisions but I

:32:02. > :32:05.understand a decision will be made as soon as possible. That will

:32:06. > :32:17.involve the secretary of state taking into account all points of

:32:18. > :32:20.view. Mr Speaker, the whole House and country have been watching

:32:21. > :32:26.events in the Ukraine with great concern. Does the Prime Minister

:32:27. > :32:31.agree Russia's actions violate Ukraine's sovereignty and

:32:32. > :32:36.territorial integrity and without justification? Does he further agree

:32:37. > :32:41.these actions deserve to be condemned unreservedly across the

:32:42. > :32:47.international community? I agree that what Russia has done is

:32:48. > :32:50.completely unacceptable. We should be clear about our national interest

:32:51. > :32:54.and our aim in all this. Our national interest is that we have an

:32:55. > :33:02.interest in a world where the rule of law is upheld and territorial

:33:03. > :33:08.integrity is expected. We should be clear our aim is to deter further

:33:09. > :33:11.action and to de-escalate the situation. He is right to say the

:33:12. > :33:16.action by the Russian Government should be condemned by the whole

:33:17. > :33:20.world. I'm sure we agree there needs to begin to new pressure on the

:33:21. > :33:25.Russian Government, but all members will welcome the talks that are

:33:26. > :33:29.going on as we speak between John Kerry and the Russian Foreign

:33:30. > :33:32.Minister. Given the fragility of the situation on the ground, does the

:33:33. > :33:35.Prime Minister believes one important outcome for these talks is

:33:36. > :33:43.if they lead to direct high-level talks between Russia and the

:33:44. > :33:47.Ukraine's to de-escalate this situation, the most important thing

:33:48. > :33:51.is a forum for discussions in which both parties can speak to each

:33:52. > :33:55.other. There have been some contacts between Russian and Ukrainian

:33:56. > :33:58.ministers. This morning, there are meetings taking place in Paris

:33:59. > :34:03.covering other issues as well, but that has been some progress in

:34:04. > :34:08.putting together a contact group, an idea I proposed to the Polish Prime

:34:09. > :34:12.Minister back in January, to start having a group of countries around

:34:13. > :34:19.Russia and Ukraine to encourage such dialogue to take place. That is the

:34:20. > :34:24.single most important thing. Clearly we all hope for a good outcome from

:34:25. > :34:29.those talks, but the EU also has a crucial role to play. Does he agree

:34:30. > :34:33.be you must show it is up to the task of dealing with the biggest

:34:34. > :34:37.security crisis on this continent since Kosovo? Given the issues

:34:38. > :34:43.raised about the UK's position from the leaked Downing Street document,

:34:44. > :34:51.can the Prime Minister tell me what he will be tailored billing --

:34:52. > :34:56.tabling tomorrow? It is important the EU shows a unity of purpose at

:34:57. > :35:01.tomorrow's leaders meeting. What we need to do is be clear that the

:35:02. > :35:05.status quo we are faced with today, where Russian troops are outside

:35:06. > :35:10.their bases in the Crimea, is an acceptable. As I've said, costs and

:35:11. > :35:17.consequences need to follow. That is why we'd suspended preferences --

:35:18. > :35:21.preparations for the G8 meeting. It is hard to see in these

:35:22. > :35:27.circumstances how a G8 meeting could go ahead. We've withdrawn royal and

:35:28. > :35:32.ministerial visits to be Paralympic Games. There are further options we

:35:33. > :35:39.should consider, but we also need to consider what extra steps, extra

:35:40. > :35:46.political, economic and bloom at it steps, to discourage Russia from

:35:47. > :35:50.taking further steps in terms of disrespecting the territorial

:35:51. > :35:55.integrity of Ukraine. I completely share his view on the G8 and other

:35:56. > :36:03.issues mentioned. When he was leader of the opposition in 2008, at the

:36:04. > :36:07.time of the invasion of Georgia, he said Russian armies cannot margin to

:36:08. > :36:11.other countries while Russian shoppers carry on shopping in

:36:12. > :36:16.Selfridge's. Does he agree that we should look at asset freezes and

:36:17. > :36:18.travel restrictions on designated individuals so that Russia is clear

:36:19. > :36:25.about the consequences of its actions? When we look at the

:36:26. > :36:34.diplomatic steps we can take, nothing should be on the table. --

:36:35. > :36:40.off the table. We've already taken steps to making sure corrupt

:36:41. > :36:45.Ukrainian oligarchs are dealt with appropriately in the UK. I think

:36:46. > :36:50.there is a steps we need to take a next -- in respect of the current

:36:51. > :36:59.situation, and then agree with our European partners, and I will be

:37:00. > :37:07.speaking to Mr Obama this afternoon, about further steps. I'm sure he

:37:08. > :37:11.will push for as broad an agreement as possible and I welcome that. Let

:37:12. > :37:15.me ask him about Ukrainian support. Does he agree that the way forward

:37:16. > :37:18.is providing them with their support, while making it clear that

:37:19. > :37:22.their Government needs to be inclusive and protect the rights of

:37:23. > :37:26.the Russian speaking population within the Ukraine? And does he

:37:27. > :37:30.further agree there is no reason for rushing to believe that

:37:31. > :37:36.strengthening ties between the EU and Ukraine does not have to be at

:37:37. > :37:43.the expense of Russia's I agree it is important that should not be seen

:37:44. > :37:47.as a tug-of-war. We should be in favour of the people of Ukraine

:37:48. > :37:53.being able to decide their own future. In my view, this has been as

:37:54. > :37:56.much about Ukraine wanting to lean towards the as wanting to get rid of

:37:57. > :38:05.their appalling levels of corruption may pad to put up with in the

:38:06. > :38:12.Government. -- they've had to put up with. Two important points have been

:38:13. > :38:19.made. They must make sure they have an inclusive step -- set of

:38:20. > :38:22.institutions and laws that do not discriminate against minorities or

:38:23. > :38:27.Russian speakers, but also that we stand ready, as members of the

:38:28. > :38:33.European Union, as leading players in the IMF, to help the Ukraine in

:38:34. > :38:36.its time of need. There are all sorts of steps Ukrainian Government

:38:37. > :38:42.will have to make to make that possible, but if they can do that,

:38:43. > :38:48.we should stand by them. I welcome that. Let me say this. All of us

:38:49. > :38:52.recognise this as a delegate and dangerous moment for international

:38:53. > :38:54.security. It is the combination of diplomacy, resolve in the

:38:55. > :38:59.international community and support for the Ukrainian Government and

:39:00. > :39:03.Ukrainian self-determination that is the best hope for ensuring an end to

:39:04. > :39:10.this crisis. I can assure the Prime Minister that the Government will

:39:11. > :39:12.have our full support. I'm grateful for what the Right Honourable

:39:13. > :39:17.Gentleman has said this morning. Just as we need to see tomorrow a

:39:18. > :39:20.voice of unity and clarity from the countries of the European Union

:39:21. > :39:24.Daschle not always easy when there are 28 countries around the table -

:39:25. > :39:28.but it is also welcome when there is a unified voice going out from this

:39:29. > :39:31.House to say to the Russian Government, what you have done is

:39:32. > :39:48.wrong and should not be allowed to stand. Last week, a judge sentenced

:39:49. > :39:52.a man to nine years in prison for causing the death by dangerous

:39:53. > :39:55.driving of two teenage girls. Given that that amounts to objectively for

:39:56. > :40:00.years per life, does the Prime Minister agree it is high time we

:40:01. > :40:06.looked again at the maximum sentence for causing death by dangerous

:40:07. > :40:09.driving? First of all, I congratulate my honourable friend

:40:10. > :40:13.for a happy news on the weekend. I'm sure members across the House want

:40:14. > :40:17.to join me in that. The point she raises is an issue that was raised

:40:18. > :40:23.at prime ministers questions last week. As I said then, I think it is

:40:24. > :40:27.important the Chancellor looks at what more we can do to ensure we

:40:28. > :40:37.send the clearest possible message about this being unacceptable. Last

:40:38. > :40:42.July, the Prime Minister rightly promised legislation regarding

:40:43. > :40:46.Internet rape porn. So canny explain why clause 16 of his criminal

:40:47. > :40:54.Justice Bill does not ban simulated child abuse or stage rape online?

:40:55. > :40:59.The Honourable Lady has a long record of fighting on these issues

:41:00. > :41:02.and a ban on rape porn is being carried through. I will look

:41:03. > :41:06.carefully at the issues she is raising now. I think we do have a

:41:07. > :41:11.good record of putting in place stronger Internet filters, working

:41:12. > :41:15.with the industry to make sure searches for unacceptable terms

:41:16. > :41:19.can't be made, and for separate legislative steps like banning rape

:41:20. > :41:29.porn. I will look carefully at the specifics. In 2009, there were 610

:41:30. > :41:32.18 to 24-year-olds in Chester who were out of work and claiming

:41:33. > :41:40.jobseeker's allowance. Last month, that number was halved. This week is

:41:41. > :41:42.National apprenticeship week. We'll Prime Minister congratulate

:41:43. > :41:50.employers who are creating apprenticeships and jobs so we never

:41:51. > :41:58.again see the massive waste of young talent? My honourable friend is

:41:59. > :42:01.right to raise national apprenticeship week. It is an

:42:02. > :42:05.important week to advertise to businesses large and small the

:42:06. > :42:09.advantages of taking on apprentices. What we will see during this

:42:10. > :42:13.parliament is 2 million apprenticeships start. That is what

:42:14. > :42:18.we are aiming for. 1.6 million have already taken place. As he says,

:42:19. > :42:22.unemployment in his own constituency has fallen, as has the claimant

:42:23. > :42:30.count, but we want to see smaller firms coming forward and taking on

:42:31. > :42:34.their first apprentice. In 2006, a seven-year-old girl and her brother

:42:35. > :42:40.died of carbon monoxide poisoning, caused by a faulty boiler at their

:42:41. > :42:43.hotel in Greece. Their father and his partner narrowly escaped with

:42:44. > :42:49.their lives. After seven agonising years, the inquest into their deaths

:42:50. > :42:53.is about to begin, but the legal aid agency has refused funding to be

:42:54. > :42:58.legally represented at being quest. On Friday, Thomas Cook tried to

:42:59. > :43:01.prevent the Kong -- the inquest from even taking place. Will the Prime

:43:02. > :43:05.Minister meet with me and the parents to hear why it is imperative

:43:06. > :43:11.the parents are legally represented at this inquest said the fullbacks

:43:12. > :43:19.are what -- full facts are learnt surrounding their children's deaths?

:43:20. > :43:22.I do remember this absolutely tragic case and it is appalling it has

:43:23. > :43:26.taken so long for the inquest to take place. When you've lost a

:43:27. > :43:30.child, you want to know the answer is and whether it could have been

:43:31. > :43:34.prevented, and that lessons will be learned for the future. I'm very

:43:35. > :43:37.content to arrange the sort of meetings she is talking about a help

:43:38. > :43:42.in this case and make sure the Foreign Office, who do, I think, an

:43:43. > :43:49.excellent job of helping people when they are dealing with overseas

:43:50. > :43:58.issues, is doing all it can. In Braintree, an employment has

:43:59. > :44:03.dropped, and youth unemployment has dropped 6.3% to 4.4% since 2010.

:44:04. > :44:09.Would the Prime Minister agree with me that the Chancellor's long-term

:44:10. > :44:15.economic plan is working? And following the recent success, will

:44:16. > :44:20.you join me in thanking Braintree District Council and job centre plus

:44:21. > :44:26.for all they are doing in encouraging local businesses to hire

:44:27. > :44:30.young people? My honourable friend has a very strong track record of

:44:31. > :44:36.campaigning and fighting for these issues. He co-founded a campaign,

:44:37. > :44:40.and let's recognise the fact we have created 1 million new jobs under

:44:41. > :44:44.this Government. One thing my honourable friend was pushing for

:44:45. > :44:49.was under 21 's should not have to pay national insurance contributions

:44:50. > :44:53.when they are employed. That is something brought in to the Autumn

:44:54. > :44:56.Statement which I think will make a huge difference. The Braintree jobs

:44:57. > :45:02.there has also made a huge difference. I noticed the opposite

:45:03. > :45:05.party seemed to groan as soon as falling unemployment was mentioned,

:45:06. > :45:15.but it is falling, and it is a welcome sign. Does the Prime

:45:16. > :45:22.Minister share my astonishment at a decision announced yesterday that

:45:23. > :45:26.trans-Pennine express, which covers train services across the whole of

:45:27. > :45:31.the North of England, is to lose one in eight of its trains, which are to

:45:32. > :45:35.be transferred to Chilton rail for the greater comfort and convenience

:45:36. > :45:43.of commuters in the south of England? Isn't that your

:45:44. > :45:47.constituency? LAUGHTER

:45:48. > :46:08.JEERING Is he aware that the trans-Pennine

:46:09. > :46:17.services are already amongst the most overcrowded in the country?

:46:18. > :46:23.HECKLING There is quite a simple matter of

:46:24. > :46:26.courtesy, the right honourable gentleman will be heard however long

:46:27. > :46:32.it takes so the quicker people remember their manners, the better.

:46:33. > :46:36.I say to members opposite, this may be a laughing matter to them, it is

:46:37. > :46:41.certainly not a laughing matter to people in the North of England.

:46:42. > :46:44.Could he bear in mind that this decision has been made without the

:46:45. > :46:55.agreement of the train operating company, but by Porter Brook and the

:46:56. > :47:00.leasing company. The Prime Minister! Order! I was fair to the right

:47:01. > :47:06.honourable gentleman but the question was, frankly, too long. I

:47:07. > :47:10.will look very carefully at the point the right honourable gentleman

:47:11. > :47:13.raises. We have announced plans to electrify the trans-Pennine railway

:47:14. > :47:17.line which I think will make a big difference. We are going ahead with

:47:18. > :47:22.the northern hub that will also make a difference. These are big steps

:47:23. > :47:25.forward. I hope he won't find it too cheeky if I point out that the line

:47:26. > :47:30.that he and I use, the Cotswold line, has also received a lot of

:47:31. > :47:35.extra investment under this government and he now enjoys a

:47:36. > :47:39.double track line when he makes his journey from my constituency into

:47:40. > :47:48.London. CHEERING

:47:49. > :48:04.Thank you, sir. Not me? Not Hugh! Another time, if the honourable

:48:05. > :48:07.gentleman is lucky -- not you! Can I put on record my thanks to the Prime

:48:08. > :48:12.Minister for the efforts he puts in to securing export orders, but can I

:48:13. > :48:20.ask is assurance that his government will leave no stone unturned in the

:48:21. > :48:26.pursuit of exports to pursue -- support apprenticeships and highly

:48:27. > :48:30.skilled jobs. It was a huge pleasure to see the quality of the

:48:31. > :48:35.apprenticeships that BAE Systems are offering in building the Typhoon

:48:36. > :48:40.aircraft. I can give him my assurance that I will go on banging

:48:41. > :48:44.the drum for British exports, including defence exports. We had

:48:45. > :48:49.very good progress with the order from an -- from

:48:50. > :48:54.I was criticised by the party opposite for taking defence

:48:55. > :48:59.contractors on trade missions overseas. They don't think it is

:49:00. > :49:01.appropriate, I think it is appropriate, we should stand up for

:49:02. > :49:08.our defence industry and defence jobs. Cook the Prime Minister and

:49:09. > :49:12.the speculation over the future of the Hunting Act by confirming he

:49:13. > :49:16.doesn't instance to use a statutory instrument to repeal or amend the

:49:17. > :49:22.act by removing the limit on the number of dogs that can be used?

:49:23. > :49:26.This will quite properly be a matter for the House of Commons. As he will

:49:27. > :49:32.know, what has happened is a group of Welsh and other members of

:49:33. > :49:34.Parliament have looked at a particular problem of pest control

:49:35. > :49:38.in upland areas of Wales and other parts of the country, they are

:49:39. > :49:41.making a proposal. It will be properly examined by the Department

:49:42. > :49:50.and the House of Commons will be able to decide. Further to my

:49:51. > :49:54.honourable friend's question and during National apprenticeships

:49:55. > :49:57.week, we should celebrate the fact that in the last year, half a

:49:58. > :50:02.million people began an apprenticeship, nearly double the

:50:03. > :50:07.number who started in 2009-10. We should not rest there. Does the

:50:08. > :50:13.Prime Minister agreed we need to do more to incentivise schools to

:50:14. > :50:17.promote apprenticeships and to do more to get employers to come

:50:18. > :50:22.forward, particularly for young people? My honourable friend speaks

:50:23. > :50:26.with great commitment because of his chairmanship of the education select

:50:27. > :50:30.committee. The point he and I have discussed is we need to make sure we

:50:31. > :50:33.are giving the clearest possible information to young people in

:50:34. > :50:37.schools about the choices they can make. I think the academic path of

:50:38. > :50:40.A-levels and UCAS and universities has been well set out and

:50:41. > :50:45.understood, including by Britain's teachers. We need it as well

:50:46. > :50:48.understood what the opportunities are for vocational education and

:50:49. > :50:52.apprenticeships, not least because you don't have to choose long-term

:50:53. > :50:55.between the two, you can carry out an apprenticeship and carry out a

:50:56. > :51:03.degree earning and learning at the same time. This year is the EU year

:51:04. > :51:07.of tackling food waste. Given the absolute scandal of up to 40% of

:51:08. > :51:10.food being wasted in this country, and huge numbers of people going to

:51:11. > :51:14.food banks because they can't afford to feed themselves and their

:51:15. > :51:17.family, will the Prime Minister throw his weight behind this

:51:18. > :51:22.initiative and support efforts to reduce food waste in this country?

:51:23. > :51:25.It is important to tackle the issue of food waste and a number of

:51:26. > :51:30.important debates have been held in this house and Westminster Hall

:51:31. > :51:33.about this issue. The most important thing in terms of helping people

:51:34. > :51:37.with weekly budgets is to make sure we keep growing the economy, getting

:51:38. > :51:41.people back to work, creating jobs and keeping taxes down so they have

:51:42. > :51:47.more of their own money to spend as they choose. Over the last few

:51:48. > :51:54.months in Somerset, we have had a dead huge of press, media and film

:51:55. > :51:58.cameras which has now receded and is barely a trickle but this lunch is

:51:59. > :52:04.still with us -- we have had a deluge. But the floods are still

:52:05. > :52:09.with us. Long-term local management of the rivers cannot be met within

:52:10. > :52:13.the constraints of local government finance. Will he commit to me that

:52:14. > :52:16.whatever needs to be changed, will be changed, in order to give a

:52:17. > :52:21.sustainable management for the future? I would commend all of the

:52:22. > :52:26.Somerset MPs for working together extremely well, ringing together the

:52:27. > :52:31.local agencies, local councils, farmers and others to come up with

:52:32. > :52:35.the right long-term solution for the people of Somerset -- bringing

:52:36. > :52:38.together. I agree the cameras and press have departed and it is

:52:39. > :52:42.important we don't take our eye off the important issue of training the

:52:43. > :52:45.Somerset Levels. I am getting regular reports and I look forward

:52:46. > :52:52.to seeing the report from him and other colleagues. We have known for

:52:53. > :52:56.months that are A departments in our hospitals are in trouble but now

:52:57. > :53:02.we find that almost 30,000 ambulances are stuck in queues

:53:03. > :53:07.outside hospitals -- have been stuck in queues. Does the Prime Minister

:53:08. > :53:11.regret not having had a grip on this more quickly? The point I would make

:53:12. > :53:15.is that we have met the A targets more times this winter than when the

:53:16. > :53:21.shadow health secretary was sitting in the cabinet with responsible for

:53:22. > :53:25.the NHS -- responsibility. I would commend what A departments have

:53:26. > :53:29.done because they are coping with around 1.2 million more A

:53:30. > :53:34.attendances every year than when we can to power in 2010. I think they

:53:35. > :53:37.have Do You Feel What I Feel doesn't work and they are doing it on the

:53:38. > :53:47.basis of having not only many thousands more doctors, but I can

:53:48. > :53:56.tell the house there are more nurses in the NHS than at any time since

:53:57. > :54:03.the 1940s and it is a record the government can be proud of.

:54:04. > :54:11.The village of Barrow has fewer than 300 houses, the local authority has

:54:12. > :54:13.given permission for over 100 houses but the planning inspector has

:54:14. > :54:18.overturned a refusal of the planning authority and will impose 504 more

:54:19. > :54:23.houses into that village, against the wishes of the local MP, local

:54:24. > :54:27.authority and local people. Will my right honourable friend look again

:54:28. > :54:34.at the workings of the working Inspectorate to ensure that from now

:54:35. > :54:39.on, the planning inspector puts the wishes of local people at the heart

:54:40. > :54:44.of the localism act as he intended? I will look very carefully at the

:54:45. > :54:51.specific incidents that the honourable member brings to the

:54:52. > :54:54.house. Under the localism act, local authorities are able to produce a

:54:55. > :54:58.local plan and get that agreed, which will give local people greater

:54:59. > :55:04.control over what is built and where. In the meantime, things are

:55:05. > :55:08.judged against the national planning policy framework which does have

:55:09. > :55:13.protections for green belt. It does insist on going out with Brownfield

:55:14. > :55:17.development and it does take into account pre-existing local plans. If

:55:18. > :55:24.that needs to be clarified, clarify it we will. First the government

:55:25. > :55:29.told Northern councillors to stop doffing their caps in the hopes of a

:55:30. > :55:32.hand-out. Then the High Court ruled that government cuts in European

:55:33. > :55:39.funding for Liverpool and Sheffield were illegal. What does this say

:55:40. > :55:45.about the government? What I would say to the honourable lady is of

:55:46. > :55:49.course, Liverpool, the city she represents, has huge needs in terms

:55:50. > :55:54.of funding. I believe the funding it gets reflects those needs. If you

:55:55. > :56:03.look at the spending per dwelling in Liverpool, for 2014, it is ?2595 per

:56:04. > :56:06.dwelling. Obviously the needs for her constituency are much greater

:56:07. > :56:15.than the needs of my constituency. But it is a full ?700 more per

:56:16. > :56:17.dwelling than is spent in my constituency. So I don't believe

:56:18. > :56:20.that the people of Liverpool are being short-changed. They are

:56:21. > :56:25.properly funded for the services that they need.

:56:26. > :56:32.Last year I met the surgeon Tim Underwood who leads the outstanding

:56:33. > :56:41.sufferable cancer team at Southampton General. --

:56:42. > :56:51.surgery is gruelling, and many people are unaware that persistent

:56:52. > :56:55.heartburn and difficulties swallowing can be a symptom of this

:56:56. > :57:03.type of cancer. Will he commit to raising awareness of this terrible

:57:04. > :57:08.disease and ensure the NHS as the chance to diagnose it earlier. How

:57:09. > :57:14.we raise the awareness of cancer has an important effect in terms of

:57:15. > :57:17.early diagnosis. A pilot is being run in the north-east and Cumbria to

:57:18. > :57:23.raise awareness of this type of cancer, and we are committing more

:57:24. > :57:28.than ?350 million of additional funding to support early diagnosis.

:57:29. > :57:32.The key is making sure more people have their cancer discovered from

:57:33. > :57:35.trips to the GP and their own inspections and self-awareness,

:57:36. > :57:43.rather than finding out these things in emergency, often when it is too

:57:44. > :57:47.late. There is almost 1 million young people unemployed in the UK,

:57:48. > :57:55.more than 1 million people on zero our contracts. In my constituency,

:57:56. > :57:59.people are ?1811 worse off since 2002. How does the Prime Minister

:58:00. > :58:06.have the audacity to suggest that his party is a worker 's party? Let

:58:07. > :58:10.me give him the figures for the north-east since the last election.

:58:11. > :58:15.There are 24,000 more people in work in the north-east since the last

:58:16. > :58:18.election. There are 40,000 more private-sector job since the last

:58:19. > :58:23.election. Unemployment has fallen... He is shouting because he

:58:24. > :58:27.doesn't want to hear the answers about the long-term economic plan.

:58:28. > :58:31.The honourable gentleman should not be shouting, he has asked the

:58:32. > :58:37.question, let him hear the answer. He could be asking about the massive

:58:38. > :58:41.expansion that Nissan in Sunderland provided jobs in the north-east, the

:58:42. > :58:46.new Hitachi train factory that will be built. All of this shows the plan

:58:47. > :58:49.is working and frankly, more important than these figures is the

:58:50. > :58:53.fact that every single job means another family with a pay packet, a

:58:54. > :58:55.stability, security and peace of mind that this government is all

:58:56. > :59:12.about. A small family run business in

:59:13. > :59:15.Felixstowe is taking an as this. Adding to an excellent scheme and

:59:16. > :59:20.announcement by BT they are creating 100 new apprenticeships. Would my

:59:21. > :59:22.right honourable friend agree that earning while you are learning is

:59:23. > :59:27.great for young people in Suffolk and they are building the skills

:59:28. > :59:33.that are vital to deliver our long-term economic plan. I would

:59:34. > :59:36.certainly agree. The big companies in Britain are taking on apprentices

:59:37. > :59:41.in larger and larger numbers and that is hugely welcome. I think the

:59:42. > :59:45.challenge is to encourage the small and medium-size enterprises of

:59:46. > :59:50.Britain to take on apprentices, too. We need to make it simple, we need

:59:51. > :59:52.to make sure it pays and we need to advertise to promote to these

:59:53. > :00:03.companies what a great job apprentices can do. To coincide with

:00:04. > :00:05.today's launch about youth unemployment, figures have been

:00:06. > :00:10.published in the House of Commons library which showed that despite

:00:11. > :00:16.the figures just quoted, the dole queue for under 25 still reaches

:00:17. > :00:21.from London to Edinburgh. Does the Prime Minister think that reflects

:00:22. > :00:29.the success in this policy? Would he be prepared to meet to discuss

:00:30. > :00:33.long-term solutions? Of course there are still too many people unemployed

:00:34. > :00:37.in our country but there are 1.6 million new private-sector jobs, 1.3

:00:38. > :00:41.million more people in work, big cuts in unemployment, big reductions

:00:42. > :00:47.in claimant count and almost half a million fewer people reliant on out

:00:48. > :00:51.of work benefits. That is what we want to do and we haven't forgotten

:00:52. > :00:55.the record of the Labour Party. Unemployment rose by nearly half a

:00:56. > :01:01.million, female and implement rose by 24% and use and implement went up

:01:02. > :01:10.by 45%. They should be making an apology instead of giving lectures.

:01:11. > :01:15.In recognising British success at the Oscars, with the Prime Minister

:01:16. > :01:19.join me in congratulating Bournemouth University and the arts

:01:20. > :01:25.university, where over 50 graduates helped with the design effects for

:01:26. > :01:29.that amazing British film, Gravity. Does it not prove that Bournemouth

:01:30. > :01:35.leads the way in digital media, as a great tourism destination, and also

:01:36. > :01:43.does amazing party conferences as well... He is right about all of

:01:44. > :01:47.those things. Bournemouth University does have excellent courses that

:01:48. > :01:49.have helped to build up the British postproduction and facilities

:01:50. > :01:54.industry which is now so busy helping to create these blockbuster

:01:55. > :01:57.films. It is very good to see that not only are we winning Oscars for

:01:58. > :02:04.British films but the British Judeo 's are -- studios are full to

:02:05. > :02:06.bursting point and the postproduction industry is leading

:02:07. > :02:11.the world. We need to go on backing this industry. That is why my right

:02:12. > :02:14.honourable friend the Chancellor has been making steps with things like

:02:15. > :02:21.elbowing the computer games industry, -- helping the computer

:02:22. > :02:28.games industry and continuing to back the important film tax credits.

:02:29. > :02:31.Recently is Coast ambulance service, a private company, has gone bust,

:02:32. > :02:36.owing thousands of pounds in wages to hard-working staff -- East Coast

:02:37. > :02:41.ambulance. But the prime Minister agree that the best way to protect

:02:42. > :02:45.patients, staff and NHS resources is to extend Freedom of Information to

:02:46. > :02:49.private companies bidding for contracts and stop the invasion of

:02:50. > :02:55.our NHS by predatory private health care companies. I will look

:02:56. > :02:59.carefully at the individual case he raises. This government is putting

:03:00. > :03:02.?12.6 billion into the NHS and I don't believe we should rule out

:03:03. > :03:09.saying other organisations cannot help to deliver NHS services with if

:03:10. > :03:12.we look at the hinge in Brook Hospital in Cambridge it is

:03:13. > :03:17.providing better services because of the changes we have made. I will

:03:18. > :03:22.look at the Freedom of Information request but I think it is important

:03:23. > :03:29.we have a health service that can access the best of private, public

:03:30. > :03:32.and voluntary. It is good news that the Prime Minister has apparently

:03:33. > :03:35.resuscitating plans for a recall the bill but can he confirmed he intends

:03:36. > :03:40.to push ahead with a genuine system of record and not fall back on the

:03:41. > :03:44.Deputy prime minister's Bill and which is recall in name only and

:03:45. > :03:51.would not empower voters in any meaningful sense at all. I fear it

:03:52. > :03:56.will be difficult to satisfy my honourable friend on this point. I

:03:57. > :03:58.think we should take the draft clauses as the starting point for

:03:59. > :04:02.what I think would be an excellent reform, that we committed to in our

:04:03. > :04:06.manifesto, in the coalition agreement. That is to say that if

:04:07. > :04:11.members of Parliament are seriously in breach of standards and judged to

:04:12. > :04:13.be so, they shouldn't have to wait for a general election to receive

:04:14. > :04:32.the verdict of their constituents. Exchange between the two

:04:33. > :04:35.frontbenchers dominated by Ukraine and by consensus. Both agree

:04:36. > :04:40.something must be done although neither had much of an idea what

:04:41. > :04:46.that something should be. The leader of the opposition in Plyed --

:04:47. > :04:50.implied a tougher line, but that is what you tend to do when you are in

:04:51. > :04:59.opposition, just as Mr Cameron did over the invasion of Georgia. So a

:05:00. > :05:07.low-key, consensual PMQ and I think some of you did not like it. It

:05:08. > :05:13.provoked a mixed response. Beginning with the positive, one viewer said

:05:14. > :05:19.this was a rare occasion when both leaders looked and talked like

:05:20. > :05:27.proper, democratic politicians. On Twitter, one person said, it is like

:05:28. > :05:31.they have grown up this week. But Philip Jones tweeted, boring

:05:32. > :05:41.questions from Ed Miliband on Ukraine, and another Tweet said, the

:05:42. > :05:46.dullest PMQ in history. Someone else said, Ed Miliband did not ask

:05:47. > :05:55.anything of substance, he may as well have not been there. Sometimes

:05:56. > :06:00.you cannot win. At least the Ukrainian issue was addressed last

:06:01. > :06:09.week -- this week, which it failed to do last week. It is still very

:06:10. > :06:13.hard to pin down, when they say there will be consequences, what

:06:14. > :06:19.these consequences will be. In part, that is because countries are

:06:20. > :06:22.defending their own interests. That document is seen outside Downing

:06:23. > :06:26.Street made clear Britain did not want our trade sanctions or stop

:06:27. > :06:32.Russians investing in the City of London. And in part it is because

:06:33. > :06:35.there simply isn't agreement. I think the Government and the US are

:06:36. > :06:38.of the view it would be a disaster for different countries to announce

:06:39. > :06:44.different things at different times. There has to be agreement.

:06:45. > :06:49.David Cameron says today it is hard to see, I think was the phrase he

:06:50. > :06:53.used, how the G8 summit should go ahead. Yesterday, the Italian

:06:54. > :06:57.Foreign Minister said he thought it could go ahead. Unless they can

:06:58. > :07:07.agree, it is no use the prime ministers saying anything. Germany

:07:08. > :07:13.didn't say it shouldn't go ahead, but he said it is our chance to talk

:07:14. > :07:17.to Mr Putin. And the German factor is important. Not only have

:07:18. > :07:25.historically the Germans been in favour of a more diplomatic approach

:07:26. > :07:30.to Russia - Berlin is not that far from the Black Sea, so there are

:07:31. > :07:37.historical reasons, there are also economic and political reasons. The

:07:38. > :07:42.German Foreign Minister comes from the social Democratic party, he is

:07:43. > :07:56.an alley of the former Chancellor who is on the board of gas problem

:07:57. > :08:02.-- Gazprom. Having said that, pushed by Ed Miliband with this quote,

:08:03. > :08:08.Russian armies cannot march into other countries while Russian

:08:09. > :08:12.shoppers march into Sainsbury's, the Prime Minister did say there would

:08:13. > :08:16.have to be more actions. My guess is there will be targeted sanctions on

:08:17. > :08:20.certain individuals in the Russian Government to do with their visas

:08:21. > :08:33.and assets being frozen. And now would it be left at that? Just a few

:08:34. > :08:37.individuals? Well, there is encouraging news that there has been

:08:38. > :08:44.contact between Ukrainian and Russian ministers. We need to see

:08:45. > :08:49.things de-escalate. The second important thing, following on from

:08:50. > :08:53.what Nick said, is EU Council of foreign ministers is meeting

:08:54. > :08:59.tomorrow, and that provides an opportunity to get a more

:09:00. > :09:03.co-ordinated response. Well, it provides an opportunity, but will it

:09:04. > :09:06.do anything? The Germans are the key in this because they have the

:09:07. > :09:10.biggest trade relations with Russia, as Nick said, they are

:09:11. > :09:17.hugely dependent on Russian oil and gas. And a third of all European

:09:18. > :09:23.union exports to Russia come from Germany. In the first nine months of

:09:24. > :09:34.last year, 27 billion euros from Germany alone - three times what

:09:35. > :09:38.America exports to Russia - at a time when the German economy is

:09:39. > :09:46.struggling to recover from recession. Well, the German economy

:09:47. > :09:55.is probably one of the strongest in Europe. The British economy is

:09:56. > :09:59.growing faster. I think the point of Germany is I would hope it

:10:00. > :10:07.recognises the importance of sending a strong message. What would you

:10:08. > :10:11.like that message to be? There needs to be clarity about the timetable

:10:12. > :10:15.and steps we need to see from President Putin. He needs to know

:10:16. > :10:21.the European Union would be as one around a series of diplomatic events

:10:22. > :10:24.such as attendance at the G8, and he needs to know there would be

:10:25. > :10:38.agreement around issues such as travel and these bands. -- and visa

:10:39. > :10:45.bands. So that sense of risk. Do you think he cares? In the past, I think

:10:46. > :10:48.he is recognised there is a significant relationship with the

:10:49. > :10:55.EU. So there are economic risks for him. What is the risk he is running?

:10:56. > :11:01.He has a huge surplus because he sells oil and gas. No European

:11:02. > :11:07.leader can see its country run out of gas, so where is the risk? The

:11:08. > :11:10.risk is from other parts of the Russian economy. Many Russian

:11:11. > :11:16.businesses trade with the European Union and will not want to break off

:11:17. > :11:20.those relationships. Actually, there are now many. Most of Russian

:11:21. > :11:37.exports to the EU are oiling gas. That's it. When did you last by

:11:38. > :11:41.something that was made in Russia? -- oil and gas. That's it. When did

:11:42. > :11:48.you last buy something made in Russia? There's been a whole series

:11:49. > :11:53.of things, you mentioned Georgia, problems in Moldova. Russia is

:11:54. > :12:01.surrounded by former states who are attempting to weaken it. What

:12:02. > :12:15.penalty did the pen name -- Kremlin paid full backing to chunks of

:12:16. > :12:20.Georgia? -- pay for bagging two chunks of Georgia? We now know they

:12:21. > :12:29.are seeking to recreate the influence it had before. But that

:12:30. > :12:34.was not intended. It was only the image sure departure of the

:12:35. > :12:42.president. Which Mr Putin in the press conference yesterday said was

:12:43. > :12:48.the rightful leader and should be returned to power. Nobody apart from

:12:49. > :12:57.him thinks that he is the rightful leader. Well, he is the one matters!

:12:58. > :13:01.What are the sanctions? I still don't understand, what is the

:13:02. > :13:11.punishment for Vladimir Putin for pursuing a policy that may not have

:13:12. > :13:17.been planned, but he is pursuing now nevertheless? Well, we have to act

:13:18. > :13:24.together. Military sanctions are utterly out of the question. Can you

:13:25. > :13:27.hear them in the pocket that hard? His machine, his cronies, can you

:13:28. > :13:33.hit them hard by freezing the assets? Well, they are on average

:13:34. > :13:41.20% poorer than there were on the weekend because of the ruble. That's

:13:42. > :13:47.the kind of point I'm making, creating a more unstable position

:13:48. > :13:54.for the regime. The dictatorship in Belarus is going to face social

:13:55. > :13:58.pressures. I've been to the Ukraine and number of times, I can remember

:13:59. > :14:09.the enormous optimism in the early 1990s. It has fallen into my asthma

:14:10. > :14:13.of corruption. -- into a miasma. There is a sense that you do not

:14:14. > :14:18.hold a meeting unless you are going to say something at the end of it.

:14:19. > :14:21.And you have to do something at the end of it. I thought it was

:14:22. > :14:26.interesting the Prime Minister was saying he'd had meetings with

:14:27. > :14:30.Chancellor Merkel and the French president. I don't know whether that

:14:31. > :14:33.was together or separately at this stage, but it suggests to me there

:14:34. > :14:37.will be awareness among those leaders that they cannot afford to

:14:38. > :14:44.go to Brussels for an emergency summit on Ukraine having issued

:14:45. > :14:47.those kinds of condemnations and not then have something substantial to

:14:48. > :14:52.show for it. You may be right, Andrew, people may say, is that it?

:14:53. > :14:57.But I think they know people want them to say some link. John Kerry

:14:58. > :15:01.yesterday, the US secretary of state, sounded as if he was partly

:15:02. > :15:06.putting pressure on Europe, but partly beginning to gain confidence

:15:07. > :15:10.Europe might just be about to do something, which would be hitting

:15:11. > :15:18.two things. It would hit Russia's international standing. The Sochi

:15:19. > :15:22.Summit is actually quite important to give them the money he spent for

:15:23. > :15:28.the Winter Olympics. And also hitting the lives of people around

:15:29. > :15:33.him. I agree with you, it is hard to seek trade sanctions. It was

:15:34. > :15:38.interesting that after the Russian stock market went into freefall and

:15:39. > :15:43.the ruble hit its lowest level in recorded history, even though the

:15:44. > :15:48.Kremlin spent 10% of its massive reserves trying to prop the ruble

:15:49. > :15:59.up, Mr Putin announced a stand-down of the Army on the border with East

:16:00. > :16:03.Ukraine. So that would suggest it did have an effect. It might not be

:16:04. > :16:12.sanctions, but the finances do play a role for Mr Putin. We shall see.

:16:13. > :16:16.One final point is we can't see it here but my colleagues are tweeting

:16:17. > :16:22.about it. The wife of the Prime Minister was in the gallery watching

:16:23. > :16:26.Prime Minister 's questions. We think she's only done it once since

:16:27. > :16:38.David Cameron was Prime Minister. Maybe she fancied seeing how he was

:16:39. > :16:45.getting on. Always nice when the wife turns up.

:16:46. > :16:49.Who remembers what now seems like a quaint tradition on budget day? Ken

:16:50. > :16:52.Clarke, at the despatch box with a whiskey, Geoffrey Howe sipping a gin

:16:53. > :17:02.and tonic. Andrew, you might even remember Disraeli with his brandy.

:17:03. > :17:05.Who writes this?! More recent chancellors, however, including

:17:06. > :17:09.George Osborne, have had just a glass of water to keep the thirst at

:17:10. > :17:13.bay, as in budget after budget since 2008 they have raised duty on wine

:17:14. > :17:16.and spirits by inflation plus 2%. In our soapbox this week, wine critic

:17:17. > :17:31.Peter Richards puts the case for calling time on the duty escalator.

:17:32. > :17:37.These beautiful surroundings of the South Downs and I am at Hambledon,

:17:38. > :17:44.England's oldest commercial vineyard. It is one of nearly 450

:17:45. > :17:47.vineyards in the UK and a make up part of a Wine and spirit industry

:17:48. > :17:53.that is worth ?20 billion to our economy. The Chancellor has said

:17:54. > :17:57.that he wants to support growth and employment. So he should be toasting

:17:58. > :18:01.this vibrant sector. But instead, with every budget committee raises

:18:02. > :18:05.the amount of tax we pay on wines and spirits through an alcohol duty

:18:06. > :18:12.escalator. Effectively punishing business, the wider economy, and you

:18:13. > :18:16.and me, the consumers. Taxation now accounts for a whopping 57% of the

:18:17. > :18:20.price of your average bottle of wine. It is even more for sparkling

:18:21. > :18:26.wine and spirits. If the escalator domains in place, tax on wine will

:18:27. > :18:37.increase by 30% by 2018. It is undoubtedly true that alcohol

:18:38. > :18:43.can contribute to a number of social and health problems. But overall,

:18:44. > :18:47.alcohol consumption in this country is in long-term decline. Plus, when

:18:48. > :18:50.it is consumed sensibly, as the majority of us do, it cannot only be

:18:51. > :18:56.good for your health but it gives great pleasure, brings people

:18:57. > :19:00.together and acts as a profoundly civilising rather than anti-social

:19:01. > :19:05.force. The trade also has an economic benefit. An independent

:19:06. > :19:09.study found that scrapping the alcohol duty escalator would

:19:10. > :19:16.generate an extra ?230 million for public finances, and create 6000 new

:19:17. > :19:20.jobs. But raising duty again this year would actually produce less

:19:21. > :19:25.revenue and cost jobs. UK drinkers pay more duty than Germany, France,

:19:26. > :19:30.Italy, Spain and Poland combined, despite drinking less. It is time

:19:31. > :19:35.for government to take a sober look at the facts and call time on duty.

:19:36. > :19:39.And from the vineyards of the South Downs to our studio here in

:19:40. > :19:46.Westminister - but without even a glass of bubbly for us, we're joined

:19:47. > :19:51.by Peter Richards. One of the issues is that alcohol has become more

:19:52. > :19:55.affordable, hasn't it? By 2010, alcohol was 20% more affordable than

:19:56. > :20:00.in 1980 so one could say, what are you complaining about? If you asked

:20:01. > :20:02.most people on the street if the price of alcohol has gone up, you

:20:03. > :20:08.would get the same answer, absolutely. I hear it from a lot of

:20:09. > :20:11.people. From my experience of working on Saturday kitchen, my job

:20:12. > :20:16.is to find affordable wines for people. When I started eight years

:20:17. > :20:24.ago finding a good affordable wine at ?67 was pretty easy. -- six or

:20:25. > :20:28.?7. The general impression if you look back 20 years ago, there is a

:20:29. > :20:32.lot more variety out there and a lot more good wine that is more

:20:33. > :20:35.affordable than it used to be. Things are getting better but if you

:20:36. > :20:40.took to businesses who are trying to sell this stuff, it is increasingly

:20:41. > :20:44.difficult for them to do business -- if you talk to businesses. I was

:20:45. > :20:48.talking to one wine producer who said there will be three results.

:20:49. > :20:51.First is that prices go up, the second is that quality is lowered

:20:52. > :20:56.and the third is I start looking for a different market to sell my wine.

:20:57. > :21:00.That what worries me, there is a danger that we lose our status as

:21:01. > :21:04.one of the best places to enjoy wine in the world. That is historically

:21:05. > :21:08.what Britain has done best and I think it is in danger. Because of

:21:09. > :21:14.the Chancellor's policies it is fundamentally counter-productive,

:21:15. > :21:19.you lose more money than you gain. What do you say to that, that it is

:21:20. > :21:22.counter-productive? At the point of it, probably for health reasons and

:21:23. > :21:28.also to raise revenue, is working against you. We made a number of

:21:29. > :21:35.changes to make it easier to have a cheaper pint. We are a couple of

:21:36. > :21:42.weeks away from the Budget. I can't think of anything more career

:21:43. > :21:46.limiting for a member of the Cabinet to suggest anything with regard to

:21:47. > :21:53.taxation. You don't think Peter will get his wish? Taxation is rightly a

:21:54. > :21:59.matter for the Chancellor. You are going to make a deal earlier on in

:22:00. > :22:03.the programme. I realised I had exceeded my authority so to do that

:22:04. > :22:07.twice on the same programme... Why are wine and spirits being treated

:22:08. > :22:14.differently to beer? I think beer was regarded as the local, able

:22:15. > :22:23.traditional drink in Britain. -- a more traditional drink. 42% of what

:22:24. > :22:35.is sold in pubs and bars is wines and spirits. You are still not going

:22:36. > :22:44.to tempt me... Is it because wine is too middle class? I drink wine and I

:22:45. > :22:51.am not middle-class. Is that why it is treated different league? --

:22:52. > :22:57.differently? The Chancellor took the view to beer which was widely

:22:58. > :23:02.welcomed. Community pubs remain open. The gentleman makes a

:23:03. > :23:05.reasonable point but I don't want to give any indication that I know what

:23:06. > :23:13.the Chancellor may or may not do with regard to wine duty. Does PETA

:23:14. > :23:17.have a case? I think he has a case and I agree with his suggestion that

:23:18. > :23:26.they should be a proper look at the economic arguments. I think when new

:23:27. > :23:30.evidence comes forward, you should always look at it. Like Eric, I

:23:31. > :23:38.think it would be career limiting for me... They are so timid on this

:23:39. > :23:42.programme. We are shifted by nature. You say it is good for your health,

:23:43. > :23:47.it was brought in because there were fears about the cost of people who

:23:48. > :23:51.did drink too much, who abused alcohol and the cost to the NHS and

:23:52. > :23:58.the taxpayer, do you not think that is still a pertinent case? You

:23:59. > :24:01.couldn't deny that alcohol can contribute to social and health

:24:02. > :24:04.problems for it is only sensible to say that. If you look at the facts,

:24:05. > :24:08.and it is important to look at the facts, it is not necessarily a clear

:24:09. > :24:16.origin between controlling price and abuse. I would also say -- not

:24:17. > :24:19.necessarily a clear correlation. I would also say alcohol abuse has

:24:20. > :24:28.gone down and the incidence of industry and King have reduced. --

:24:29. > :24:32.incidents of binge jinking. -- drinking. I think we should get

:24:33. > :24:34.legislators and the goal industry and the health lobby together,

:24:35. > :24:39.rather than having this disparate dynamic, to try to work towards a

:24:40. > :24:46.sensible way of moving forward on the health front and not penalising

:24:47. > :24:52.the vast majority of consumers who drink alcohol responsibly. According

:24:53. > :24:57.to Reuters, President Putin has been nominated for the Nobel Peace

:24:58. > :25:05.Prize... Who says satire is dead... Another 200 have been nominated, I

:25:06. > :25:07.don't think Paddy Power will make in favour but he has nevertheless been

:25:08. > :25:10.nominated. Since he became Communities

:25:11. > :25:13.Secretary in 2010 our guest of the day, Eric Pickles, has made a number

:25:14. > :25:18.of populist pledges. Try saying that after a few drinks. Mr Pickles has

:25:19. > :25:21.backed weekly bin collections. In 2011 he said it was "a fundamental

:25:22. > :25:25.right for every Englishman and woman to be able to put the remnants of

:25:26. > :25:27.their chicken tikka masala in the bin without having to wait for two

:25:28. > :25:43.weeks for it to be collected." In July last year he proposed a

:25:44. > :25:45.grace period of 15 minutes for people parking on double yellow

:25:46. > :25:49.lines. Mr Pickles has also pledged to ban fixed cameras and so-called

:25:50. > :25:53."spy cars" used to catch people parking illegally. And in November,

:25:54. > :25:57.he endorsed a number of proposals designed to help lower council tax

:25:58. > :25:58.rates - one of which was the suggestion that councils should use

:25:59. > :26:09.sheep instead of lawn mowers. That was one of many, it was not

:26:10. > :26:13.number one. That'll shear a few pounds off the budget. Eric Pickles

:26:14. > :26:18.is still with us here in the studio. How is the weekly bin collection

:26:19. > :26:22.coming on? We have protected 6 million people so they get

:26:23. > :26:26.collections weekly. We have introduced new changes in building

:26:27. > :26:33.regulations to ensure that we don't have been blight. 70% of bins are

:26:34. > :26:39.now collected fortnightly. It is a matter of for the local authority

:26:40. > :26:43.but I have removed the inevitability of fortnightly collection. It had

:26:44. > :26:47.disappeared in Northern Ireland, just about disappeared in Scotland.

:26:48. > :26:52.You are not responsible for Northern Ireland or Scotland. The country you

:26:53. > :26:58.are responsible for is called England. 70% of ins are still

:26:59. > :27:07.collected fortnightly. We have only been in office a little while. Four

:27:08. > :27:15.years. The canned -- context, a weekly basis. -- the contracts come

:27:16. > :27:22.up on a weekly basis. Do you want to do parking? The ban on fixed cameras

:27:23. > :27:26.and Spike cars, you said below could be changed before Easter -- spy

:27:27. > :27:32.cars. You said the law could be changed. Government can't act by

:27:33. > :27:39.diktats, all of these things we put out for consultation. The

:27:40. > :27:44.consultation has just ended, I am carefully considering it. I ought to

:27:45. > :27:51.make an announcement imminently. It will happen before Easter? I can't

:27:52. > :28:00.prejudge what I am going to say. Why not? You know what imminently is? In

:28:01. > :28:09.your case, no. Are there lots of sheep boy is it still silence of the

:28:10. > :28:13.lambs? -- or is it? We did suggest a lot of other things about joint

:28:14. > :28:17.poetry and but I'm glad you enjoyed the sheep! Now, it's time to put you

:28:18. > :28:21.out of your misery and give you the answer to Guess the Year - yes, it

:28:22. > :28:27.was 1990 - Geoffrey Howe resigning was the clue. Eric - press the

:28:28. > :28:30.button. Well done, Larry, the mug is yours.

:28:31. > :28:34.OK, that's all for today. Thanks to our guests. The One O'Clock News is

:28:35. > :28:37.starting over on BBC One now. We'll be back tomorrow at noon with all

:28:38. > :28:45.the big political stories of the day. Do join us then. Do we know

:28:46. > :28:51.what we are doing? No, but we will both be here.

:28:52. > :28:57.I will be here on Friday. I won't be! Bye-bye.