16/12/2015

:00:38. > :00:43.It's the final PMQs of 2015, so all eyes on the House

:00:44. > :00:46.With both David Cameron and Jeremy Corbyn wanting

:00:47. > :00:55.to give their troops something to cheer about before the Christmas

:00:56. > :00:57.break, no doubt David Cameron will bring up another drop

:00:58. > :00:59.in unemployment, down over 100,000 this morning.

:01:00. > :01:02.The PM's then off to Brussels, where he'll be attending a dinner

:01:03. > :01:09.Britain's membership of the European Union.

:01:10. > :01:11.We'll be asking if Prince Charles should be given access

:01:12. > :01:18.to confidential documents so that he's properly briefed.

:01:19. > :01:21.And there's another reason to stay tuned because we'll be giving away

:01:22. > :01:31.a special edition festive Daily Politics mug.

:01:32. > :01:33.Yes, the season of goodwill is upon us.

:01:34. > :01:35.We've even dusted off the Daily Politics Christmas tree

:01:36. > :01:40.to add a bit of festive cheer to proceedings.

:01:41. > :01:44.With us for the duration, we've bagged two of Santa's little elves.

:01:45. > :01:47.In charge of children this Christmas - that's a tough job -

:01:48. > :01:51.And in charge of Santa's grotto, the Shadow Housing Minister,

:01:52. > :02:02.MPs will decide today whether fracking should be allowed

:02:03. > :02:03.under National Parks and other protected sites.

:02:04. > :02:07.Campaigners have accused the Government of a U-turn after it

:02:08. > :02:09.promised an outright ban on fracking in environmentally sensitive areas.

:02:10. > :02:11.Earlier, I talked to the Liberal Democrat leader,

:02:12. > :02:24.I asked him since the regulations governing fracking won't see it

:02:25. > :02:29.happening in the National Parks, what's the problem? The point is it

:02:30. > :02:32.will start close to National Parks. The fact it is happening underneath

:02:33. > :02:37.them would be a huge reputational risk when it comes to the marketing

:02:38. > :02:41.and promotion of Britain's most significant National Parks. I'm

:02:42. > :02:44.bound to have an interest in this given that two of them are in my

:02:45. > :02:48.patch, but across the country it will be problematic. I have to say

:02:49. > :02:52.it also comes on the back of a couple of weeks ago, the Government

:02:53. > :02:58.ending the carbon capture and storage programme. That is the

:02:59. > :03:03.programme which made to some people at least shale gas tolerable. The

:03:04. > :03:07.reality is that shale gas without carbon capture and storage is not a

:03:08. > :03:10.long-term runner, either environmentally or in a business

:03:11. > :03:16.sense. What we are seeing today is the kind of landscape issue, issue

:03:17. > :03:20.that will be damaging to the visual landscape, and indeed to our

:03:21. > :03:25.National Parks' integrity. The government proposal would not

:03:26. > :03:29.destroy or spoil the aesthetics of the landscape in the way you've

:03:30. > :03:35.described. National Parks. Begin at a wall, generally speaking they

:03:36. > :03:38.evolve. You drive up the M6and up to my constituency and it is not urban

:03:39. > :03:43.sprawl and suddenly appears Windermere. It is beautiful

:03:44. > :03:47.mountains, hills and lakes and beautiful landscape. And then the

:03:48. > :03:52.National Park begins. And it gets even more beautiful, dare I say.

:03:53. > :03:55.Doing this a kilometre outside a National Park is pretty outrageous.

:03:56. > :03:59.We're not just talking about National Parks, areas of outstanding

:04:00. > :04:06.beauty, allsorts of sites that are culturally all visually, or in terms

:04:07. > :04:10.of biodiversity significant. This is damaging to our natural environment.

:04:11. > :04:14.It also comes on the back of the government undermining the business

:04:15. > :04:18.and environmental case for shale gas and I will vote against it. I take

:04:19. > :04:21.the point about carbon capture, but are you not persuaded by the

:04:22. > :04:26.chairman of the task force on shale gas Chris Smith who said it could

:04:27. > :04:31.cut reliance on coal and reduce emissions. He also said since the

:04:32. > :04:34.ending of the carbon capture and storage scheme that that is not the

:04:35. > :04:41.case now and we are in a situation where shale gas's attractiveness

:04:42. > :04:44.from an energy point of view and indeed from an environmental point

:04:45. > :04:48.of view has been completely dismantled by George Osborne's

:04:49. > :04:51.removal of the funding for carbon capture and storage. It is very

:04:52. > :04:56.clear that it was thought that shale gas was potentially a less damaging

:04:57. > :04:59.fossil fuel than some of the ones we are using. Without cc yes it's in

:05:00. > :05:03.the same place and it's not a long-term bet. Any business person

:05:04. > :05:04.thinking to make a long-term investment in shale gas would not

:05:05. > :05:18.sensibly do that now. -- CCS. Amber Rudd told the House of Commons

:05:19. > :05:21.there would be an outright ban on fracking in National Parks, sites of

:05:22. > :05:25.special interest and areas of outstanding natural beauty. What has

:05:26. > :05:29.happened? Strategically we are in the same place. We believe that

:05:30. > :05:33.shale gas is a bridge to a low carbon future. It's going to make

:05:34. > :05:39.sure we have more secure imagery and be great for the economy. -- secure

:05:40. > :05:44.energy. What has happened to the outright ban? There will be no

:05:45. > :05:47.fracking under National Parks as a result of the regulars and is we are

:05:48. > :05:54.voting on in Parliament today. They will be close to National Parks. --

:05:55. > :05:58.regulations. We're making it very clear, rather than scaremongering

:05:59. > :06:02.Tim Farron is trying to engineer. There will be no fracking under

:06:03. > :06:07.National Parks. Strategically we are in the same place and this is good

:06:08. > :06:14.news in terms of having a secure energy future. Has this ban been

:06:15. > :06:21.overturned? Has this been a U-turn? Tim Farron has had a lapse of

:06:22. > :06:26.memory, it was Amber Rudd who wanted to do what the Government is now

:06:27. > :06:30.doing. They were only stopped by Letta, making sure legislation was

:06:31. > :06:35.changed to put the proper safeguards for the environment in. Personally

:06:36. > :06:38.I'm not against fracking in principle -- Labour's. As long as

:06:39. > :06:41.you have Ian Brown mental safeguards. There should be no

:06:42. > :06:44.fracking in or under National Parks. We debated that in January and it

:06:45. > :06:49.should not be changed. So in that sense this is an about turn Aggers

:06:50. > :06:56.there will be fracking near National Parks, and the way Tim Farron has

:06:57. > :06:58.described it, you are going to see evidence of drilling when driving

:06:59. > :07:04.towards areas of outstanding natural beauty. I have a constituency that

:07:05. > :07:12.has areas of outstanding natural beauty. We will have in this country

:07:13. > :07:18.the best environmental safeguards around fracking and the extraction

:07:19. > :07:21.of CO2 gas. That should give comfort there will be no fracking under

:07:22. > :07:27.National Parks. We will take the best safeguards to make sure the

:07:28. > :07:31.environment is protected. You have axed funding for carbon capture and

:07:32. > :07:36.storage technology which was seen as crucial for building a shale gas

:07:37. > :07:39.industry that would be acceptable. You are clueless and confused on

:07:40. > :07:43.energy policy. You have not got carbon capture and storage policy

:07:44. > :07:47.under way and kicking the legs from underneath the solar industry.

:07:48. > :07:51.Clueless and confused? The Labour Party wants it both ways, on the one

:07:52. > :07:54.hand they say they support the bridge to the low carbon future, but

:07:55. > :07:59.on the other hand they are trying to vote against this, which is about an

:08:00. > :08:02.outright ban. This is carbon energy, you want to give the green light the

:08:03. > :08:07.full go-ahead to fracking in the week that the last coal mine in

:08:08. > :08:12.Britain closes on Friday. Are you in favour of fracking? I said earlier

:08:13. > :08:16.on I'm happy to see fracking some honest there is sufficient... You

:08:17. > :08:21.have not put the proper safeguards in place. What safeguards do you

:08:22. > :08:25.want? You have not put in place yet the sort of rewards that have to

:08:26. > :08:29.come to the areas that have to put up with fracking in the future.

:08:30. > :08:32.Let's deal with carbon capture. Why would you axed the funding for

:08:33. > :08:34.carbon capture and storage technology if you want to go ahead

:08:35. > :08:40.with fracking and creating a shale industry? The most important thing,

:08:41. > :08:44.as I said, is we have the best environmental regulations that we

:08:45. > :08:48.can have. That is where we will end up. Strategically we are in the

:08:49. > :08:50.right place as we should be. I have not heard from the opposition

:08:51. > :08:54.parties anything other than the usual scaremongering over how to go

:08:55. > :08:59.ahead with building this energy security future. There is a panic by

:09:00. > :09:01.the government, faced by the National Grid last month telling

:09:02. > :09:06.industry users to scale back what they are using because they are

:09:07. > :09:09.worried about the lights going out, not having enough power in the

:09:10. > :09:12.country because you haven't got a clear enough plan or the investment

:09:13. > :09:16.to get the new energy generation online. That's the real problem.

:09:17. > :09:20.In just a few minutes, it'll be the final PMQs of 2015.

:09:21. > :09:23.Doesn't time fly when you're having fun.

:09:24. > :09:26.And don't panic if you don't feel up to political speed -

:09:27. > :09:28.maybe you've been aboard the Space Station for the last 12

:09:29. > :09:31.months and have only just landed back on Planet Earth.

:09:32. > :09:33.As a special treat, our JoCo here has the Daily Politics review

:09:34. > :09:48.I liked that introduction. It's the most sought-after stocking filler of

:09:49. > :09:50.the season, The Daily Politics review of 2015.

:09:51. > :09:52.Remember January - David Cameron and Nick Clegg

:09:53. > :09:54.were still running the country together but revving up

:09:55. > :09:58.The polls pointed towards a hung parliament -

:09:59. > :10:04.It was the Conservatives who emerged with the overall

:10:05. > :10:13.The Lib Dems were reduced to a rump of just eight MPs.

:10:14. > :10:17.Nicola Sturgeon's tartan army conquered Scotland.

:10:18. > :10:20.Ed Miliband, Nick Clegg and Nigel Farage all resigned,

:10:21. > :10:24.although the Ukip leader later un-resigned.

:10:25. > :10:27.And the surprises kept coming after the election,

:10:28. > :10:29.as backbench outsider Jeremy Corbyn swept to victory

:10:30. > :10:36.And since then, the Government has made some big decisions.

:10:37. > :10:39.They decided to cut tax credits, only to be pushed into a U-turn

:10:40. > :10:45.They decided not to make a decision on expanding Heathrow Airport.

:10:46. > :10:48.And it's been a year of Euro headaches for David Cameron,

:10:49. > :10:51.as he's struggled to renegotiate Britain's relationship with the EU.

:10:52. > :10:54.He's off to Brussels tomorrow for the final European Council

:10:55. > :11:11.Let's talk about Europe since there is a big summit meeting coming up

:11:12. > :11:16.tomorrow. Sam Gyimah, clarify what is the status of the Government

:11:17. > :11:21.demand that there should be a four year curb on in work benefits for

:11:22. > :11:26.migrants, where are we with that? It is still very much a demand, still

:11:27. > :11:29.very much on the table for negotiation. The Prime Minister is

:11:30. > :11:33.at a meeting tomorrow in Brussels to talk about this but that's not going

:11:34. > :11:39.to be the final showdown as it were. There is another in February. I know

:11:40. > :11:43.that. It is contrary to rumours and very much on the agenda as the Prime

:11:44. > :11:46.Minister said in his letter to Donald Tusk only in November that

:11:47. > :11:51.using this as a way to curb migration is very much a key part of

:11:52. > :11:55.the renegotiation plan. And if looks likely you don't get that, as Poland

:11:56. > :12:00.has said it won't go along with it, as have others, but Poland in

:12:01. > :12:05.particular, what will you do? Let's be clear what we are asking for. We

:12:06. > :12:08.are asking 4-for years before migrants are entitled to benefits.

:12:09. > :12:12.We think that is ambitious but realistic. If you don't get that

:12:13. > :12:17.what would you do? I'm quite confident that in the spirit of

:12:18. > :12:22.negotiations Poland has said no. If Poland says no that's the end of it.

:12:23. > :12:27.We have not finished negotiating. If Poland says no, as have others, you

:12:28. > :12:32.don't get it. Do you say, that is a deal-breaker? Or do you fall back to

:12:33. > :12:38.something else? As has been said this morning there is going to be

:12:39. > :12:42.known to the meetings tomorrow. This will be raised, this is the only

:12:43. > :12:46.thing on the menu. I'm confident the Prime Minister will be able to

:12:47. > :12:51.deliver an outcome. If he doesn't what is the fallback? The big thing

:12:52. > :12:55.for all of us, MPs and the public, at the end of this there will be an

:12:56. > :12:59.in-out referendum and we can make up our minds. I understand that, you

:13:00. > :13:04.are playing for time. Back to the question, if you don't get the four

:13:05. > :13:08.year curb what is the fallback position? What would be acceptable?

:13:09. > :13:13.We have stated it is something we are going to be negotiating for very

:13:14. > :13:16.hard. You don't have a fallback position? The Prime Minister will

:13:17. > :13:20.negotiate, I'm not going to second-guess the Prime Minister in

:13:21. > :13:25.an a TV studio. Prime Minister said he was fixable on the issue. If

:13:26. > :13:28.someone comes up with another way of achieving it, obviously we would

:13:29. > :13:34.look at it. Curbing migration by looking at a pull factors is very

:13:35. > :13:37.much a part of our renegotiation plan. And one alternative that has

:13:38. > :13:41.been raised is what has been called an emergency brake, that there will

:13:42. > :13:46.be times when governments, because of the substantial influx of

:13:47. > :13:50.immigration, you could say, hold on there are too many coming in to cope

:13:51. > :13:54.with at the moment from elsewhere in the EU and we will put an emergency

:13:55. > :13:58.brake on it for a time-limited period. Would you accept that if

:13:59. > :14:02.that brake could only be committed with Brussels's approval that would

:14:03. > :14:07.not be acceptable -- only be permitted. I've stated what our

:14:08. > :14:11.objective is, if someone can come up with another way of achieving it we

:14:12. > :14:14.should look at it. I'm looking at one, emergency brake has been a

:14:15. > :14:19.possible fallback position, it has been mooted in Brussels and talked

:14:20. > :14:23.about. If a British government could only put the brake on with the

:14:24. > :14:29.approval of Brussels, would that be acceptable? I don't want to answer

:14:30. > :14:33.hypothetical questions, you can come up with four, five, six hypothetical

:14:34. > :14:37.questions about what if, what if, but what is clear is we have stated

:14:38. > :14:41.our position and the Prime Minister is still in negotiations and we

:14:42. > :14:45.should allow him to finish. What economic evidence and research

:14:46. > :14:51.evidence can you produce that shows that even if you got the four year

:14:52. > :14:55.curb on migrant benefits that it would have more than a marginal

:14:56. > :14:59.impact on immigration? I don't think it is just a question of economic

:15:00. > :15:03.benefit, it's a question of what the British people want. I was saying

:15:04. > :15:06.what economic research evidence is there that even if you got what

:15:07. > :15:14.you're for it would have any noticeable impact on EU migration to

:15:15. > :15:17.this country? What I think about as an MP is to reflect what my

:15:18. > :15:22.constituents want. I'm not asking about your constituents. That's

:15:23. > :15:25.fine, that is important to you but I'm looking at the substance of the

:15:26. > :15:31.issue, regardless of what anybody wants. Is there any published

:15:32. > :15:39.evidence that shows that this would have a material impact on numbers

:15:40. > :15:42.coming to this country? The point is as a point of principle saying that

:15:43. > :15:46.people should contribute before they can access... Let's say you are

:15:47. > :15:50.right on the principle, can access... Let's say you are

:15:51. > :15:56.evidence it would have the impact you think it would have? I think it

:15:57. > :16:01.is something we should be looking to do if the British public want that.

:16:02. > :16:04.This is not about arguing the toss between economists, this is about

:16:05. > :16:09.going into a negotiation and reflecting what the British people

:16:10. > :16:13.want, in terms of a reformed European Union. So you have put out

:16:14. > :16:17.the centre piece of jewellery negotiation strategy and issue on

:16:18. > :16:22.which you cannot cite a single piece of research, which shows it would

:16:23. > :16:25.have an impact? We have put out a centrepiece of our negotiation

:16:26. > :16:30.strategy what the British people want, action on immigration, an end

:16:31. > :16:33.to an ever closer union... But you cannot cite to me what impact it

:16:34. > :16:38.would have because there has been worked on it at. I am sure there

:16:39. > :16:42.will be one piece of evidence the other would-be -- the other way. You

:16:43. > :16:51.don't know whether it has an impact or not? Is there any negotiation in

:16:52. > :16:55.history where you have made a major demand and you have no idea what the

:16:56. > :17:01.impact, even if you got your way, would be? You know that it is one of

:17:02. > :17:04.four demands, firstly a stop to an ever closer union, I think that is a

:17:05. > :17:09.big demand, making sure that not being part of the Euro we are not

:17:10. > :17:14.penalised, that is a big demand, competitiveness is a big demand and

:17:15. > :17:18.ultimately the referendum will be about our future prosperity in 50 to

:17:19. > :17:21.100 years' time, so it is not the only plan. Brussels is launching

:17:22. > :17:28.this idea of a paramilitary border force, which could going to

:17:29. > :17:32.countries and man the border is whether the southern state once it

:17:33. > :17:37.or not, are you in favour of that? I have no idea of whether it will work

:17:38. > :17:40.or not. It is a new idea, think it is a measure of how desperate they

:17:41. > :17:45.are to try and do something to do with the huge flows. The real action

:17:46. > :17:50.that is required is to try and stop some of these flows of migrants at

:17:51. > :17:55.source. That is a long-term plan. I come back to this issue, there will

:17:56. > :17:59.be a 2500 border force, a German idea, it will be equipped with

:18:00. > :18:03.helicopters, they will be armed, they will have droned, coastal boats

:18:04. > :18:06.and they could go in for example to Greece where a lot are coming,

:18:07. > :18:13.whether the Greek government asks for it or not. Are you in favour of

:18:14. > :18:17.it? They have been talking about doing this and Britain has tried to

:18:18. > :18:23.be a part of it to stop smugglers from northern Africa, it seems to me

:18:24. > :18:27.a sound idea. It is a sound idea. In the end, it won't work unless we

:18:28. > :18:31.deal with some of the root problems of why a lot of the refugees... I

:18:32. > :18:39.understand, nutrient you come up with how to do that now, it would

:18:40. > :18:43.take a long way to see. Nobody can wave a magic wand over the troubles

:18:44. > :18:48.in the Middle East. Should Britain be part of this border force? I

:18:49. > :18:53.don't we have an obligation to be part of it. I know, but should we?

:18:54. > :18:57.Since you are asking me, we are debating this the first time, we

:18:58. > :19:00.have no obligation, we are not part of the Schengen agreement. If we

:19:01. > :19:05.want to make a contribution as good members of the European Union, the

:19:06. > :19:10.government should consider that. Should we? Identity we should be.

:19:11. > :19:17.Our main alliance in terms of border security is with Nato and I think it

:19:18. > :19:23.should remain so. The Prime Minister has said we will take part in it. I

:19:24. > :19:27.think in terms of where we are, we are out of Schengen, and if Schengen

:19:28. > :19:33.countries want to operate in a certain way to send a border force

:19:34. > :19:36.to Greece, that is up to them. In terms of our security and Borders

:19:37. > :19:41.sits with Nato, in terms of our security we have more control over

:19:42. > :19:45.our borders. Andrew, forgive me, in a way this is all detail. The

:19:46. > :19:51.serious thing is we who we are a mess over the negotiations. At the

:19:52. > :19:55.moment the lead ship of the argument for Britain's place in Europe is

:19:56. > :19:56.going by default. It should be led by David Cameron and he is not doing

:19:57. > :20:00.it. Now should the heir to the throne be

:20:01. > :20:03.given access to confidential documents so that he's

:20:04. > :20:04.properly briefed? Well, a Freedom of Information

:20:05. > :20:06.request from the campaign group Republic has found out that that's

:20:07. > :20:09.exactly what is happening. And they're not best

:20:10. > :20:12.pleased about it. They've even dubbed Prince Charles

:20:13. > :20:14."essentially a minister Let's talk now to their chief

:20:15. > :20:31.executive Graham Smith. Caucus to your campaign to get the

:20:32. > :20:33.information released. It is a fairly routine Freedom of information

:20:34. > :20:38.request -- talk us through your campaign. While Cabinet members

:20:39. > :20:42.tried to resist disclosure of what is called the precedent but,

:20:43. > :20:45.essentially the manual for the Cabinet on how they manage the

:20:46. > :20:49.Cabinet and deal with Cabinet papers, and buried in that document,

:20:50. > :20:54.and they have only released first four chapters so far, buried in that

:20:55. > :21:00.is this revelation that as is routine, all papers are sent to

:21:01. > :21:03.Prince Charles. Is it a great revelation? The Queen gets this

:21:04. > :21:06.information as head of state, he is the heir to the throne, so will

:21:07. > :21:13.people be that surprised, will they care? I think there are a number of

:21:14. > :21:17.problems, because firstly Charles is not the head of state, even the

:21:18. > :21:21.monarchy's own website says he has no constitutional position as such.

:21:22. > :21:24.He is covered by very privileged secrecy laws, completely exempt from

:21:25. > :21:28.Freedom of information commie has unique access not only the ministers

:21:29. > :21:32.but also to all of their Cabinet papers, and we know that he wants to

:21:33. > :21:35.lobby ministers to change public policy on a range of different

:21:36. > :21:48.issues. You say you know that, hang on, give me some examples of where

:21:49. > :21:51.policy has changed, if you know it, as a result of his interference? One

:21:52. > :21:53.other very quick point and then I will come onto those examples. We

:21:54. > :21:56.also believe there is reason to believe that he also influences laws

:21:57. > :21:59.to affect his own interests as Duke of Cornwall. A lot of the course,

:22:00. > :22:10.there are still a lot of publicity around the monarchy. According to

:22:11. > :22:12.the Guardian, we know that he is lobbying ministers, we know from

:22:13. > :22:20.former ministers that have spoken to the BBC last year that he is seeking

:22:21. > :22:22.to change public policy. Very difficult to pinpoint specific

:22:23. > :22:28.policies that are under change because it is all under wraps. As

:22:29. > :22:32.you said, you made a claim that he has influenced policies that

:22:33. > :22:39.directly affect him and the sovereign, but a statement from

:22:40. > :22:45.Buckingham Palace on the matter, he has not affected any. If you believe

:22:46. > :22:51.that statement, they have not turned down anything come in terms of Bill

:22:52. > :22:55.or legislation. Bedene two because what happens is the Duke of

:22:56. > :23:00.Cornwall, Prince Charles, is able to directly influence the legislation

:23:01. > :23:04.process at the very early stages of those discussions, and that is why

:23:05. > :23:08.there is a long list of laws that specifically exempt or privilege the

:23:09. > :23:13.Duchy of Cornwall on whether it is land ownership, planning,

:23:14. > :23:17.environmental protection, a whole host of laws that give them specific

:23:18. > :23:20.privileges for which there is no legitimate reason. So clearly there

:23:21. > :23:21.are some influence going on behind closed doors.

:23:22. > :23:30.Thank you berry much. Your reaction, is it regrettable that this has been

:23:31. > :23:32.made public? I think it is much do about nothing, it is long

:23:33. > :23:38.established practice that the Queen as head of state... Yes, the Queen.

:23:39. > :23:42.And in this case the heir to the throne does do, and I think that is

:23:43. > :23:45.a long established practice and I don't see the problem. Are you

:23:46. > :23:51.pleased it has been made public? It is good it has been made public,

:23:52. > :23:55.personally I can see little justification for this but little

:23:56. > :23:58.harm in it as well. Should Prince Charles have access? I can see

:23:59. > :24:04.little harm in it, the question comes when he actively uses his

:24:05. > :24:07.access to influence particular policies, and this is why Freedom of

:24:08. > :24:10.Information Act and provision is so important, and I would be against

:24:11. > :24:12.watering them down as your government now wants to do.

:24:13. > :24:14.Now, have you finished all your Christmas shopping?

:24:15. > :24:17.Still struggling with what to get that special person in your life?

:24:18. > :24:19.It's OK, JoCo - I've already got your magnum of sparkling

:24:20. > :24:28.Of course, if you're stuck, there's always the special gift that

:24:29. > :24:36.And this week we have a special one-off Christmas edition.

:24:37. > :24:42.This little number could be worth zillions on eBay come the New Year.

:24:43. > :24:46.But that's not all we're giving away today, oh no.

:24:47. > :24:48.We're also giving our lucky winner the number one best-seller

:24:49. > :25:05.And, to see how it works, John and Sam have one too.

:25:06. > :25:10.If you get bored during PMQs, you know what to do.

:25:11. > :25:13.To win this mug though, and that book, first you'll have

:25:14. > :25:47.MUSIC We can never be free in Brent until South Africa is free too.

:25:48. > :26:25.The world is watching, and we have got something to show them.

:26:26. > :26:43.To be in with a chance of winning this Christmas Daily Politics mug

:26:44. > :26:45.and the Jeremy Corbyn colouring book, send your answer

:26:46. > :26:47.to our special quiz email address - that's dpquiz@bbc.co.uk.

:26:48. > :26:50.Entries must arrive by 12.30pm today, and you can see the full

:26:51. > :26:53.terms and conditions for Guess The Year on our website -

:26:54. > :27:07.Generous, aren't we? It is not like you have anything else to do, just

:27:08. > :27:08.read the terms and conditions! LAUGHTER

:27:09. > :27:12.It's coming up to midday here - just take a look at Big Ben -

:27:13. > :27:16.Yes, Prime Minister's Questions is on its way.

:27:17. > :27:20.And that's not all - Laura Kuenssberg is here.

:27:21. > :27:27.Let's talk about the European summit coming up tomorrow night, the big

:27:28. > :27:29.dinner. What do you know? You know what has been really interesting to

:27:30. > :27:36.me in the last 24 hours, obviously we have been trying to talk to

:27:37. > :27:41.people close to what is going on, there is a sense to me that there is

:27:42. > :27:44.almost a set of nerves that the domestic political situation, David

:27:45. > :27:51.Cameron has put himself on this book over this benefit promise, but the

:27:52. > :27:55.rest of the negotiations, there has been progress. They are not done,

:27:56. > :28:02.signed off or sealed. The Europe Minister David Liddington said the

:28:03. > :28:06.technical talks are complete, but it is my understanding that is a

:28:07. > :28:10.technical interpretation of where things are out. Yes, there is sound

:28:11. > :28:15.and fury around the benefits issue because the public rightly cares

:28:16. > :28:21.about it. One of the tangible issues as well. Indeed, and it was in the

:28:22. > :28:24.Conservative manifesto. For Eurosceptics it is an ideal stick to

:28:25. > :28:28.knock David Cameron around the head with, but there is from, sessions I

:28:29. > :28:36.have had with people, a bit of concern that most people would say

:28:37. > :28:41.countries within the Euro and outside the Euro, big fundamental

:28:42. > :28:45.economic questions about how that works for the next ten, 20, 30, 50

:28:46. > :28:49.years, and that is not quite getting the political bandwidth that maybe

:28:50. > :28:54.it deserves. There has been progress there but it is not done. But it

:28:55. > :28:58.also cannot be fully answered, because we know that the German

:28:59. > :29:04.Chancellor and the French president want to move to a more integrated

:29:05. > :29:08.Eurozone, but they are not going to do so before either of their

:29:09. > :29:12.elections in 2017. Until we see the nature of the Eurozone it is hard to

:29:13. > :29:17.find the relationship between the Eurozone and the rest of us.

:29:18. > :29:22.Absolutely, this is all like juggling water. There are so many

:29:23. > :29:25.machinations, and not only just the number of countries involved, not

:29:26. > :29:29.only the number of issues involved, not only the fact that EU regulation

:29:30. > :29:34.and law as it exists is already showing competitive but there is a

:29:35. > :29:39.juju amount of crystal ball gazing. The number of potential machinations

:29:40. > :29:42.are strawberry. Also of course in a negotiation process we might find

:29:43. > :29:47.that one bit in one of the hideously named baskets gets exchanged for

:29:48. > :29:53.another bit that is in one of the other hideously named baskets.

:29:54. > :29:57.Basket swap! Maybe that is the new thing the 2016. We heard political

:29:58. > :30:09.cross trussing, maybe baskets swapping will be the next thing. The

:30:10. > :30:12.complexities of this are enormous. How far they get in benefits is not

:30:13. > :30:17.the best representation of where this debate is and it is very fluid.

:30:18. > :30:22.But the political focus, that is right there, and there is a huge

:30:23. > :30:28.guessing game going on as to where we will get in all of that. Have you

:30:29. > :30:32.had any guidance as to what the Prime Minister hopes to achieve at

:30:33. > :30:38.this dinner? The big thing for Downing Street it is it is political

:30:39. > :30:41.momentum. Officials have been working very hard trying to get some

:30:42. > :30:47.things on all of these issues and there has been some progress. The

:30:48. > :30:50.technical official bit has gone as far as you can go before the bosses

:30:51. > :30:55.say actually I will agree to that bit. You sort out the

:30:56. > :31:01.technicalities. Wren what David Cameron is trying to do the next 24

:31:02. > :31:07.to 36 hours is create a sense of political momentum that can unblock

:31:08. > :31:12.the difficult logjams on this. If you think each lido will have in

:31:13. > :31:16.front of them a sort of menu of options, as many as ten options I

:31:17. > :31:26.understand in each of the different four categories. So that is 40. That

:31:27. > :31:30.is a long night. That will give me something to say in the next couple

:31:31. > :31:36.of days, 40 different things, and they will sort of essentially agree,

:31:37. > :31:41.or start to agree a pick and mix. I see. So I could do that bit about I

:31:42. > :31:47.couldn't do that bit, but there are shreds of information coming out

:31:48. > :31:52.here and there, a good source in the European council yesterday suggested

:31:53. > :31:57.to me that a six-month benefit ban was a starting point. We will now go

:31:58. > :31:58.over to the final Prime Minister's Questions of 2015. Here is the Prime

:31:59. > :32:11.Minister. We all watched his exciting take-off

:32:12. > :32:14.yesterday and is the first Briton to visit the International Space

:32:15. > :32:18.Station it signals a landmark in this country's involvement in space

:32:19. > :32:22.exploration. I'm proud the government took the decision to fund

:32:23. > :32:25.it and we wish him the best of luck. This morning I had meetings with

:32:26. > :32:29.ministerial colleagues and others, and in addition to my duties in this

:32:30. > :32:38.House I will have further such meetings later today. Richard

:32:39. > :32:45.Graham. I welcome today's falling on a month the -- unemployment.

:32:46. > :32:47.Stalking is a horrible crime. AGP in Gloucester and resident in

:32:48. > :32:51.Cheltenham was harassed for several years by a stalker who slashed her

:32:52. > :32:58.tyres, hacked her water pipe, cut off her gas and put via items in her

:32:59. > :33:01.letterbox. She and her family suffered. The judge said if he could

:33:02. > :33:05.give more than the maximum five years he would have done. My

:33:06. > :33:08.honourable friend for Cheltenham has raised sentencing guidelines with

:33:09. > :33:11.the Justice Secretary. Would my Right Honourable friend the Prime

:33:12. > :33:16.Minister today give his support for greater flex ability where it is

:33:17. > :33:22.clear a stalker is a real menace? -- flexible itty. I agree with my

:33:23. > :33:24.honourable friend that stalking is a terrible crime. We have introduced

:33:25. > :33:27.to Muqrin you stalking offences during this parliament and I will

:33:28. > :33:33.make sure the honourable member for Cheltenham has his meeting with my

:33:34. > :33:35.Right Honourable friend the Justice Secretary. I cannot comment on the

:33:36. > :33:39.case without looking at it in more detail but we are taking the

:33:40. > :33:42.necessary action and will continue to do so. On unemployment I'm sure

:33:43. > :33:45.the whole house will want to welcome the fact there are half a million

:33:46. > :33:52.more people in work in our country in the last year alone. We have had

:33:53. > :33:59.wages growing above inflation every month for a year. The claimant count

:34:00. > :34:03.is at the lowest level since 1975. I'm sure this will be welcomed right

:34:04. > :34:12.across the House. SPEAKER: Jeremy Corbyn.

:34:13. > :34:18.Thank you, Mr Speaker. Could I start by wishing you, and all Members of

:34:19. > :34:26.the House and all of the staff here and major Tim Peake, who is not on

:34:27. > :34:31.the planet at this time... LAUGHTER

:34:32. > :34:43.A very happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year.

:34:44. > :34:47.Thank you, Mr Speaker. Mr Speaker, the number of days that

:34:48. > :34:51.patients are being kept in hospital because there is nowhere safe to

:34:52. > :34:56.discharge them to has doubled since the Prime Minister took office. On

:34:57. > :35:00.the 4th of November I asked him if he could guarantee there would be no

:35:01. > :35:04.winter crisis in the NHS this winter. He didn't answer then, I

:35:05. > :35:08.wonder if he would help us with an answer today.

:35:09. > :35:12.First of all let me join the Right Honourable gentleman and be clear I

:35:13. > :35:15.don't want to wish him the season's greetings, I want a full happy

:35:16. > :35:19.Christmas for the Right Honourable gentleman and everyone in the House.

:35:20. > :35:24.He asked specifically about the NHS and let me answer specifically about

:35:25. > :35:29.the NHS. The average stay in hospital has fallen since I became

:35:30. > :35:33.Prime Minister from five and a half days, to five days. One of the

:35:34. > :35:37.reasons for that is we kept our promise is on the NHS, we put an

:35:38. > :35:41.extra 12 billion in in the last Parliament and we will be putting

:35:42. > :35:47.?19 billion in cash terms in the NHS in this Parliament. Jeremy Corbyn.

:35:48. > :35:53.Just for the record, Mr Speaker, I did say happy Christmas. But maybe

:35:54. > :36:00.the Prime Minister wasn't listening at the time. As always! If he is so

:36:01. > :36:03.happy about the state of the national health service, could he

:36:04. > :36:09.explain why he's decided to cancel the publication of NHS performance

:36:10. > :36:14.data this winter? There was a time when the primers to was all in

:36:15. > :36:21.favour of transparency. It's not that long ago. In fact, it was 2011

:36:22. > :36:25.when he said," Information is power, it lets people hold the powerful to

:36:26. > :36:31.account, giving them the tools they need to take on politicians and

:36:32. > :36:36.bureaucrats. Is it because the number of people who have been kept

:36:37. > :36:39.waiting on trolleys in accident and emergency has gone up fourfold that

:36:40. > :36:42.he doesn't want to publish these statistics?

:36:43. > :36:46.First of all, the data he quoted in his first question was not published

:36:47. > :36:50.before this government came to office. That's right! And let me

:36:51. > :36:55.quote him some data about the NHS: let me take an average day today

:36:56. > :37:00.compared with five years ago when I became Prime Minister. On an average

:37:01. > :37:07.day in the NHS today there 4400 more operations. There are 21,000 more

:37:08. > :37:12.outpatient appointments. Yes, there are challenges in a any but there

:37:13. > :37:18.are 2100 more people seen within four hours today than five years ago

:37:19. > :37:24.-- challenges in A There is more data published in our NHS and there

:37:25. > :37:29.ever was under Labour. Mr Speaker, there are huge pressures

:37:30. > :37:33.on the NHS and they are largely due to the pressures on the adult care

:37:34. > :37:38.system which is under enormous pressure at the moment but there has

:37:39. > :37:42.been huge cuts in adult social care because of cuts in local government

:37:43. > :37:44.funding. The NHS Chief Executive Simon Stevens has called for a

:37:45. > :37:48.radical upgrade in prevention of public health. With the Prime

:37:49. > :37:51.Minister agree with me that cutting these crucial services is indeed a

:37:52. > :37:57.false economy? First of all, we are increasing the

:37:58. > :38:01.money that is able to go into social care by having the 2% precept on the

:38:02. > :38:08.council tax so that local councils can spend more. But I notice that

:38:09. > :38:12.the Right Honourable gentleman mentioned Simon Stevens, our NHS

:38:13. > :38:20.plan is Simon Stevens's plan, the NHS for the first time got together

:38:21. > :38:25.and wrote their plan. They asked us for ?1 billion, we are committed to

:38:26. > :38:30.the plan, unlike Labour in the last election and we funded it upfront

:38:31. > :38:34.and that is why we see a bigger and better NHS -- ?8 billion. None of

:38:35. > :38:38.this would be possible, including the action on social care we are

:38:39. > :38:41.taking with the Better Care Fund, none of it would be possible without

:38:42. > :38:47.the growing economy we have and the more jobs being created.

:38:48. > :38:51.Mr Speaker, the problem is to do with adult social care for stop this

:38:52. > :38:58.morning the NHS Confederation said on BBC Radio 4, and I quote, "Cuts

:38:59. > :39:02.to social care and public health will continue to pile more pressure

:39:03. > :39:07.on hospital and will worsen deficits in the acute sector." What was

:39:08. > :39:11.announced on social care in the Autumn Statement falls well short of

:39:12. > :39:16.what was needed. The health foundation estimates a funding

:39:17. > :39:20.shortfall of 6 billion will be in place by 2020. How is the Government

:39:21. > :39:25.planning to me that shortfall? I'm glad the Right Honourable

:39:26. > :39:32.gentleman listens to the Today problem, he might bother to go on it

:39:33. > :39:38.one day. A bit of cans bouncy would be welcome. If he wants to swap

:39:39. > :39:41.quotations -- transparency. This is what the chairman of the Local

:39:42. > :39:43.Government Association says, the Local Government Association has

:39:44. > :39:46.long called for further put civility in the setting of council tax, and

:39:47. > :39:51.today's announcement will go some way to allowing a number of councils

:39:52. > :39:55.to raise the money needed. -- flexible at evil stop 1.5 billion

:39:56. > :39:58.more in the Better Care Fund announced today is good news. It is

:39:59. > :40:02.this government that funded the NHS, they didn't, it is this government

:40:03. > :40:06.that set up the Better Care Fund, they opposed it, this government at

:40:07. > :40:10.the strong and growing economy, and I note that question four and still

:40:11. > :40:16.but they welcome for the unemployment figures.

:40:17. > :40:20.Mr Speaker, the issue of adult social care and cuts in local

:40:21. > :40:24.government spending are very much the responsibility of central

:40:25. > :40:30.government. Can he confirmed that NHS trusts are forecasting a deficit

:40:31. > :40:35.of 2.2 billion this year, and indeed I understand that the Prime Minister

:40:36. > :40:39.as part of the Oxford anti-austerities movement will be

:40:40. > :40:43.concerned about this, but his own local health care trust is

:40:44. > :40:49.predicting a 1.7 million deficit. There is a problem of NHS funding.

:40:50. > :40:52.Has he forgotten the simple maxim that prevention is cheaper and

:40:53. > :40:57.better than cure? How can he possibly complain about

:40:58. > :41:07.NHS funding when his party didn't commit to fund the Stevens plan? We

:41:08. > :41:10.are spending ?19 billion more on the NHS, money that wouldn't be

:41:11. > :41:16.available if we'd listened to the Labour Party. He says that social

:41:17. > :41:19.care is a responsibility of government. Everything is a

:41:20. > :41:24.responsibility of government, but in fact it is local councils that

:41:25. > :41:27.decide how much to spend on social careful stop with the Better Care

:41:28. > :41:32.Fund they have more to spend. But I challenge him again, how do we pay

:41:33. > :41:37.for the NHS? We pay for it by more growth, more jobs and more people

:41:38. > :41:40.having a livelihood. Is he going to welcome back at Christmas time, or

:41:41. > :41:47.doesn't he care about the reduction in unemployment? SPEAKER: Jeremy

:41:48. > :41:59.Corbyn. Mr Speaker, I have a question from

:42:00. > :42:03.Abby. Abby wants to train to be a midwife and she says, I'm 28 years

:42:04. > :42:08.old, this year I left my successful career to go back into university to

:42:09. > :42:13.retrain as a midwife. I already have a debt of 25,000 from my first

:42:14. > :42:18.degree, well over half of my cohort have studied a first degree in

:42:19. > :42:20.another subject and many of my fellow colleagues have children and

:42:21. > :42:26.partners with elderly parents and mortgages. Many people were put off

:42:27. > :42:29.by the lack of financial support and massive debts. In the spirit of

:42:30. > :42:32.Christmas, will the Prime Minister have a word with his friend the

:42:33. > :42:36.Chancellor who is sitting next to him, it could be done very quickly,

:42:37. > :42:41.to reverse the cuts in the nurse bursary scheme so that we do get

:42:42. > :42:45.people like Abby training to be midwives which will help all of us

:42:46. > :42:50.in the future? First of all I want Abby to train as

:42:51. > :42:54.a midwife and I can guarantee the funding will be there for her

:42:55. > :42:57.training. There are thousands more midwives operating in the NHS today

:42:58. > :43:02.than when I became Prime Minister. He mentions the question of nurse

:43:03. > :43:05.bursary is. The truth is today two out of three people who want to

:43:06. > :43:11.become nurses can't do that because of the constraints on the system and

:43:12. > :43:15.our new system will mean many more doctors and many more nurses.

:43:16. > :43:20.Already we have got 10,000 more doctors in the NHS since I became

:43:21. > :43:24.Prime Minister and 4500 more nurses. At all of this is happening, Mr

:43:25. > :43:28.Speaker, because the economy is growing, because the deficit is

:43:29. > :43:31.falling, unemployment is coming down, you could fill up a tank of

:43:32. > :43:36.gas at less than ?1 a litre, wages are going up, Britain is getting

:43:37. > :43:39.stronger as we go into Christmas because our economy is getting

:43:40. > :43:50.stronger too. Anne-Marie Drozdz thank you, Mr Speaker. Yesterday

:43:51. > :43:54.colleagues from across the House formed the Armed Forces covenant

:43:55. > :44:00.scrutinising the support of the government's fulfilment of support

:44:01. > :44:04.to servicemen and their families. With the primaries to join me in

:44:05. > :44:07.praising the bravery of With the primaries to join me in

:44:08. > :44:11.Forces especially in my constituency at this festive time when many are

:44:12. > :44:15.separated from their loved ones. And can he reaffirmed his personal

:44:16. > :44:18.commitment to the House for delivering his Armed Forces Covenant

:44:19. > :44:22.in practice and in full? I thank my honourable friend for her question.

:44:23. > :44:27.It is right, as all of us get ready to spend time with our families this

:44:28. > :44:30.Christmas there will be many in the brave armed services who will not be

:44:31. > :44:33.able to because they are serving abroad or at home. We should wish

:44:34. > :44:37.them the very best as Christmas comes. In terms of the military

:44:38. > :44:41.covenant it is one of the things I'm proudest of that we did in the last

:44:42. > :44:45.five years, putting that into law, and every year adding to the

:44:46. > :44:49.military covenant, giving veterans priority in health care, increasing

:44:50. > :44:53.funding for veterans' mental health service, prioritise and school

:44:54. > :44:56.places for children. Every year we've made progress on the Armed

:44:57. > :44:58.Forces Covenant and every year I stand at this dispatch box and will

:44:59. > :45:08.continue to do so. Angus Robertson. The Prime Minister will meet shortly

:45:09. > :45:15.with heads of state and governments of the European Union. Will he heed

:45:16. > :45:20.the advice of John Major and stop flirting with leaving the European

:45:21. > :45:25.Union, which would be in his words very dangerous and against our

:45:26. > :45:29.national interest? I will be getting the best deal for Britain. That is

:45:30. > :45:34.what we should be doing. This government was the first to cut the

:45:35. > :45:38.EU budget and veto a treaty and bring back substantial powers to

:45:39. > :45:44.Britain. We have a great record on Europe and will get a good deal for

:45:45. > :45:50.Britain. We were reminded that there is a very strong majority in

:45:51. > :45:55.Scotland to remain within the EU. The Prime Minister has failed, I

:45:56. > :45:59.know his side doesn't like to hear it, but he has failed to give any

:46:00. > :46:06.guarantees that Scotland won't be forced out of the EU by the rest of

:46:07. > :46:10.the UK. Does he have any idea of the consequences of taking Scotland out

:46:11. > :46:18.of the EU against the wishes of voters in Scotland? This is a United

:46:19. > :46:23.Kingdom and this is a UK issue. I would say to him, why is he so

:46:24. > :46:27.frightened of listening to the people and holding this historic

:46:28. > :46:32.referendum, passed through both of these houses in the last week. Get a

:46:33. > :46:42.good deal for Britain and trust the people. The Prime Minister has

:46:43. > :46:46.visited RAF Waddington in my constituency and would wish all the

:46:47. > :46:51.service personnel and their family well as they carry out operations

:46:52. > :46:55.throughout the Christmas period. Given we are now conducting air

:46:56. > :47:03.strikes over Syria, why is our country now not at the highest level

:47:04. > :47:08.of threat? Let me join him in praising those at RAF Waddington who

:47:09. > :47:12.are doing such a vital work. As he will know, the threat level is set

:47:13. > :47:20.in this country not by politicians but by the joint terrorism

:47:21. > :47:26.assessment centre. They set it at severe, the second-highest level. I

:47:27. > :47:29.confirm what I said on 26 November, the UK is in the top level of

:47:30. > :47:48.countries threatened by Daisy Makro. The highest level is that we believe

:47:49. > :48:03.an attack is imminent. But that would be for JATAC to set and not

:48:04. > :48:10.ministers. Last night, Donald Trump reiterated that one of the

:48:11. > :48:14.communities would not be allowed into America because of religion,

:48:15. > :48:24.seemingly unaware of how divisive this is. We have legislation that

:48:25. > :48:30.stops people entering the country if it is not believed to be in the

:48:31. > :48:35.public good. Should we be making exceptions for billionaire

:48:36. > :48:39.politicians? Let me join the honourable lady in being proud of

:48:40. > :48:45.representing a country which I think has some claim to say we are one of

:48:46. > :48:50.the most successful multiracial, multi-faith, multiethnic countries

:48:51. > :48:54.anywhere in the world. There is more to do to bring opportunity and fight

:48:55. > :48:59.discrimination. I think it is right that we exclude people if they are

:49:00. > :49:05.going to radicalise and encourage extremism. I disagree about Donald

:49:06. > :49:08.Trump. I think his remarks are divisive, stupid and wrong. If he

:49:09. > :49:16.came to our country, it would unite as all against him. By the time the

:49:17. > :49:20.house next meets, many people will have started their New Year 's

:49:21. > :49:25.resolutions. For many that will be to give up smoking. Given that

:49:26. > :49:31.Public Health England has recently stated that e-cigarettes are 95%

:49:32. > :49:35.safer than tobacco and half of the population is unaware of that, will

:49:36. > :49:40.he highlight the role that e-cigarettes can play in helping

:49:41. > :49:44.people give up tobacco? As somebody who has been through this battle a

:49:45. > :49:48.number of times, eventually relatively successfully, lots of

:49:49. > :49:52.people find different ways of doing it. For many e-cigarettes are

:49:53. > :49:58.successful. We need to be guided by the experts. We should be looking at

:49:59. > :50:02.Public Health England. It is promising to see that 1 million

:50:03. > :50:09.people are estimated to have used e-cigarettes to help them quit. We

:50:10. > :50:11.should be making clear that this is a very legitimate path for many

:50:12. > :50:16.people to improve their health and the health of the nation. During the

:50:17. > :50:21.referendum, the Prime Minister pledged to deliver carbon capture

:50:22. > :50:26.and storage at Peterhead, reiterated in the Tory manifesto. On the eve of

:50:27. > :50:30.the Paris climate talks, he pulled the plug. Which is the greatest

:50:31. > :50:39.betrayal, of Scotland, of the manifesto or of the entire planet?

:50:40. > :50:43.The greatest success is the Paris climate change talks. I would like

:50:44. > :50:47.to pay tribute to the Secretary of State who was one of the key

:50:48. > :50:52.negotiators who helped deliver this global goal which is so much better

:50:53. > :50:56.than Copenhagen and better even than Kyoto. On carbon capture and

:50:57. > :51:00.storage, in government you have to make tough choices and decisions

:51:01. > :51:06.about technology that works and technology that isn't working. We

:51:07. > :51:11.are spending the money on innovation and energy storage, an small nuclear

:51:12. > :51:15.reactors and other things, energy heat systems for local communities

:51:16. > :51:24.that will make a difference. We made the right choice. This Friday,

:51:25. > :51:31.sadly, sees the closure of Britain's deep coal mine in my constituency.

:51:32. > :51:35.Will my right honourable friend join me in thanking the hundreds of

:51:36. > :51:40.workers who will be working there final shift this Friday. Also,

:51:41. > :51:45.praise the thousands of workers whose bravery and hard graft over 50

:51:46. > :51:51.years has helped warm our homes, power factories and keep our lights

:51:52. > :51:56.on? I think my honourable friend speaks very strongly for his

:51:57. > :52:00.constituents. I join him in thanking people who've worked so hard at that

:52:01. > :52:07.mine and elsewhere. It is a difficult time. As part of the

:52:08. > :52:11.closure process we have ?80 million to ensure that the miners received

:52:12. > :52:15.the same package as the recently closed mine at Busby. Can I just

:52:16. > :52:24.tell the honourable members opposite, this is the official

:52:25. > :52:32.policy of the Labour Party. We must take action to keep fossil fuels in

:52:33. > :52:37.the ground. That is their policy. We have also seen they have a policy of

:52:38. > :52:42.reopening, is. Are they going to open a big Colin the ground and sit

:52:43. > :52:46.there and do nothing? What a metaphor for the leadership of his

:52:47. > :53:03.party? -- to open a big hole in the ground. Alison Pulis. The Prime

:53:04. > :53:08.Minister promised during the election campaign that he would not

:53:09. > :53:20.restrict child benefit to to children. Not only has he reneges on

:53:21. > :53:29.that, he has been asked a number of time and has not been able to

:53:30. > :53:35.explain how he will do this. Will he dropped this and the rape laws?

:53:36. > :53:37.There is no question that anyone who has a child through rate losing

:53:38. > :53:54.their benefit at all. Is my right honourable friend aware

:53:55. > :53:59.that thanks to the Chancellor's detection of the police budget, 108

:54:00. > :54:03.more police officers are being recruited to protect the people of

:54:04. > :54:08.Hampshire. While there is more to do in tackling crime in Rowell areas,

:54:09. > :54:13.would he agree that this is an important step in prioritising the

:54:14. > :54:16.front line and the Home Office and Hampshire Constabulary have made

:54:17. > :54:22.real progress in making our police more effective and resilient? It was

:54:23. > :54:25.the right decision to make sure we have this

:54:26. > :54:28.the right decision to make sure we By the end of the spending

:54:29. > :54:34.settlement it is an increase of ?900 million in cash terms by 2020. I am

:54:35. > :54:40.delighted there will be more officers on the street in Hampshire.

:54:41. > :54:43.You cannot find the NHS, the Home Office, the police unless you have a

:54:44. > :54:49.growing economy with more jobs and people paying taxes. A strong and

:54:50. > :54:56.stable economy. That is what is happening in Britain today. In his

:54:57. > :55:01.farewell speech, the outgoing director of the British museum said,

:55:02. > :55:06.the British Museum is perhaps the noblest dream that Parliament has

:55:07. > :55:11.ever dreamt. A collection free to all, native or foreign, where every

:55:12. > :55:16.citizen has the right to information and were all enquiry will be outside

:55:17. > :55:24.political control. Does the Prime Minister agree that the partnership

:55:25. > :55:30.working with museums and like those in Birmingham, will not happen

:55:31. > :55:35.unless museums and galleries continue to be funded properly? Let

:55:36. > :55:40.me join her in paying tribute to the British Museum, a jewel in the

:55:41. > :55:47.cultural crown, and also to Neil MacGregor, who gave it such

:55:48. > :55:57.extraordinary leadership. Given her heritage, she might be amused by the

:55:58. > :56:01.fact that when they took that brilliant exhibition on Germany, I

:56:02. > :56:06.took Angela Merkel, and later on they poached Neil MacGregor to look

:56:07. > :56:13.after their museums. I do want to see the British Museum Comp Lea to

:56:14. > :56:17.all of its partnerships, not just across the united kingdom and also

:56:18. > :56:22.internationally. She will have seen in the Autumn Statement that they

:56:23. > :56:30.got a funding settlement with which they were rightly pleased. According

:56:31. > :56:35.to Oxfam, the UK has donated a generous 229% of its fair share of

:56:36. > :56:41.aid in support of Syrian refugees. The highest proportion of the G8.

:56:42. > :56:45.Worldwide, only 44% of what is needed has been donated. Does the

:56:46. > :56:48.Prime Minister agree that it is critical that other countries step

:56:49. > :56:54.up to the plate as the UK has more than done? Would he update the house

:56:55. > :56:58.on progress in support of Syrian refugees? I agree with my honourable

:56:59. > :57:03.friend. Written is doing its moral duty in terms of funding refugee

:57:04. > :57:06.camps. We are holding a conference bringing the world together to make

:57:07. > :57:11.sure there is more funding in future. In terms of the number of

:57:12. > :57:15.refugees we have resettled, I promise to resettle 1000 by

:57:16. > :57:21.Christmas. I can confirm today that we have met our commitment. The

:57:22. > :57:29.charter flights arrived yesterday at Stansted and Belfast meaning that

:57:30. > :57:33.over 1000 have been settled. Another flight is coming today. We're making

:57:34. > :57:37.sure that these people get health care and education and I want to

:57:38. > :57:42.thank all those who have worked so far, including the right honourable

:57:43. > :57:47.member for Watford, because I said Britain would do its duty and with

:57:48. > :57:53.these 1000 we have made a good start. Three years ago, the Prime

:57:54. > :57:57.Minister couldn't have been clearer, his EU renegotiation would mean

:57:58. > :58:03.retaining control over social and employment law, is he still seeking

:58:04. > :58:10.that? I always find it hard to satisfy the honourable gentleman. He

:58:11. > :58:14.joined the Conservative Party when we weren't committed to a referendum

:58:15. > :58:19.and left after we had committed. I'm not surprised that he is giving his

:58:20. > :58:27.new boss as much trouble as he gave me. With that, I wish them both a

:58:28. > :58:36.very festive Christmas. Thank you, Mr Speaker. The triumphant Star Wars

:58:37. > :58:47.saga began life at Elstree Studios in my constituency. It continues to

:58:48. > :58:50.produce hits... SPEAKER: the honourable gentleman is banging on

:58:51. > :58:56.eloquently about Star Wars and I want to hear it. Will the Prime

:58:57. > :59:03.Minister join me in pledging support to the thriving film industry making

:59:04. > :59:08.such a valuable social and economic contribution in my constituency and

:59:09. > :59:14.across the United Kingdom? He raises an important point. This is not only

:59:15. > :59:18.very exciting for children and parents who are looking forward to

:59:19. > :59:22.this film but it is being made in Britain with many British actors and

:59:23. > :59:27.technicians showing the strength of the British film industry. Also,

:59:28. > :59:33.backed by the British government and taxpayers with excellent resources.

:59:34. > :59:43.Let me say, as I have worked with him in so many ways, I know that he

:59:44. > :59:55.will never join the dark side. Thank you, Mr Speaker. Resign! Despite

:59:56. > :00:02.ongoing efforts of the Scottish steel task force, my constituents

:00:03. > :00:08.are starting to receive redundancy notices. Will the Prime Minister put

:00:09. > :00:15.pressure on the EU now to reach a quick decision on permitting the PII

:00:16. > :00:19.compensation scheme and if this permission is granted, will be also

:00:20. > :00:24.commit to implement the scheme as soon as possible to provide

:00:25. > :00:28.breathing space for our steel sector and to give hope for my constituents

:00:29. > :00:35.this Christmas? The honourable lady is absolutely right to raise this.

:00:36. > :00:41.We are working hard to try and get the energy in sensitive industries

:00:42. > :00:46.plan, firmed. As soon at is cleared, money will be available for British

:00:47. > :00:50.still making companies. We expect this to be in place no later than

:00:51. > :00:56.April 2017 but it should be much earlier than that and we are working

:00:57. > :01:15.around the clock to try and help it happen. I'm sure the house will want

:01:16. > :01:27.to send condolences to those involved in

:01:28. > :01:33.As my honourable friend's constituency neighbour I was shocked

:01:34. > :01:36.by what happened in Abingdon and my heart goes out to the family of

:01:37. > :01:39.those who suffered. She is right to ask the question about offensive

:01:40. > :01:44.weapons and how available they are and I'm happy to look at that. I

:01:45. > :01:48.also think with that attack and the Leytonstone attack, although

:01:49. > :01:50.unrelated, it is right also to look at the resources that are police

:01:51. > :01:56.have in terms of equipment they have. There is a very different

:01:57. > :01:59.usage pattern for tasers across the country and this is something the

:02:00. > :02:04.Home Secretary, Metropolitan Police and I are discussing. There is

:02:05. > :02:12.nothing I believe more passionately than in the union, and yet with

:02:13. > :02:15.Scottish National is, English votes for English laws and various

:02:16. > :02:21.powerhouses and city deals and the creation of numerous other measures

:02:22. > :02:23.that may threaten the union, what is the Prime Minister's vision for that

:02:24. > :02:28.union and holding the four countries together. Would he please come and

:02:29. > :02:33.speak to the union all-party group at some stage in the future. But

:02:34. > :02:35.even more importantly, would he help with the campaign throughout the

:02:36. > :02:40.union because we are better together?

:02:41. > :02:43.Like the honourable gentleman I'm passionate about our United Kingdom

:02:44. > :02:46.and I believe we can make it stronger by accepting that it is a

:02:47. > :02:49.partnership of nations and a partnership of nations where we

:02:50. > :02:54.should treat each other with respect. I don't want to listen to

:02:55. > :02:58.the SNP. They don't want a partnership, they want a separation.

:02:59. > :03:01.At one of the things that is so strong about the United Kingdom and

:03:02. > :03:06.that I think other countries frankly are quite jealous of is we have

:03:07. > :03:10.demonstrated that you can have multiple identities, you can be

:03:11. > :03:14.proud of being an Ulster man and a Britcom you can be proud of being a

:03:15. > :03:17.Hindu and a Scot, you can be proud of being both Welsh and British ball

:03:18. > :03:21.so we've solved one of the problems the rest of the world is grappling

:03:22. > :03:27.with and that's why we should keep our United Kingdom together. Mr

:03:28. > :03:36.Speaker, as we approached the festival marking the birth of

:03:37. > :03:42.Jesus... SPEAKER: There was some noticeably eccentric jesty chelation

:03:43. > :03:46.from you, Mr McNeil but calm yourself. We must hear the

:03:47. > :03:52.honourable gentleman and he will be heard. Mr Speaker, as we approach

:03:53. > :03:55.the festival marking the birth of Jesus Christ, may ask the Prime

:03:56. > :03:58.Minister send out a message of support to those millions of fellow

:03:59. > :04:03.Christians around the world who are suffering persecution. May I also

:04:04. > :04:09.remind him once again to remind British people that we are a country

:04:10. > :04:12.fashioned by our Christian heritage, and it is that heritage which has

:04:13. > :04:17.resulted in our giving refuge to so many of other faiths over 70

:04:18. > :04:22.centuries. But we will not tolerate those who abuse our freedom to try

:04:23. > :04:30.to inflict their alien and violent fashion is upon us here,

:04:31. > :04:33.particularly in the name of Islam? First of all let me join him in

:04:34. > :04:36.saying we should do everything we can to defend the rights of

:04:37. > :04:42.Christians to practice their faith the world over. That is an important

:04:43. > :04:45.part of our foreign policy and let me commend also Justin Welby, the

:04:46. > :04:47.Archbishop of Canterbury, for the excellent work he does on the basis.

:04:48. > :04:51.I believe that Britain is Christian country and the fact we

:04:52. > :04:58.have an established Christian country and the fact we

:04:59. > :05:00.understand the place of faith in our national life makes us a more

:05:01. > :05:05.tolerant nation and better able to accommodate other faith groups in

:05:06. > :05:08.our country. That's why as I said earlier in this session I think we

:05:09. > :05:13.should be proud of the fact that this is one of the most successful

:05:14. > :05:17.multiethnic, multi-faith, multi-religion democracies anywhere

:05:18. > :05:20.in the world, and that is not in conflict with our status as a

:05:21. > :05:25.predominantly Christian country, I think it's one of the reasons we

:05:26. > :05:29.have done it. Prime Minister, I know the Prime Minister is aware of the

:05:30. > :05:32.flooding that has taken place in my constituency and the damage to the

:05:33. > :05:36.town of Cockermouth. I've had a call from a constituent this morning to

:05:37. > :05:40.say insurance companies are refusing to pay or help my constituents until

:05:41. > :05:44.they have paid the excess in full. Does he agree with me that this is

:05:45. > :05:48.absolutely outrageous? Some of the excesses are up to ?10,000, and what

:05:49. > :05:51.can be done to ensure they fulfil their operations to my constituents?

:05:52. > :05:56.She's absolutely right to raise will stop the Minister for

:05:57. > :05:58.government policy of the Right Honourable member for West Dorset,

:05:59. > :06:03.had meetings with the insurance companies to make sure this sort of

:06:04. > :06:06.practice doesn't happen. That's the first point. The second is we have

:06:07. > :06:09.announced putting money into the community funds that will form

:06:10. > :06:12.hardship funds to help people potentially who don't have

:06:13. > :06:19.insurance. The third and vital thing is the establishment of a flood

:06:20. > :06:26.decision made by the last government to make sure people have insurance.

:06:27. > :06:35.We have come to the end of the final Prime Minister's Questions of 2015,

:06:36. > :06:37.no more until the first or the second Wednesday, I think it's the

:06:38. > :06:42.first Wednesday in January will stop you will have to wait until then.

:06:43. > :06:48.A more traditional PMQs for the season of tradition, Mr Corbyn the

:06:49. > :06:52.Leader of the Opposition went back to asking a series of questions also

:06:53. > :07:01.only in his final question did he crowd source it to Abby but it was

:07:02. > :07:05.within his theme because she is a midwife and his questions had been

:07:06. > :07:08.about the NHS. Removed from the bed blocking crisis, the lack of social

:07:09. > :07:11.care, the cuts in social care, whether the increase in the local

:07:12. > :07:15.government precept would be enough to make up for the cuts. He thought

:07:16. > :07:18.not. There was some detailed questions from Mr Corbyn we didn't

:07:19. > :07:25.quite get full answers from the Prime Minister. Donald Trump got a

:07:26. > :07:31.mention as well, not very popular in the House of Commons. He lost in the

:07:32. > :07:38.Supreme Court his appeal to try and stop the offshore wind, the

:07:39. > :07:43.Aberdeenshire golf course he has built, the reaction to that is he

:07:44. > :07:49.called the Scottish Government foolish, small-minded and with a

:07:50. > :07:53.parochial mentality. Given what he called the Mexicans the Scots have

:07:54. > :07:57.got off quite likely! What did our viewers make of it? They were not

:07:58. > :08:05.quite so insulting, our viewers. Noel on Twitter said Shirley David

:08:06. > :08:10.Cameron -- Jeremy Corbyn can't wish me Corbyn Americus was without his

:08:11. > :08:15.words being distorted. Did Diane Abott go to sit by Jeremy Corbyn for

:08:16. > :08:18.moral support? On the substance Jeremy Corbyn was weak. To argue the

:08:19. > :08:22.NHS is underfunded when not committing his party to fund it is

:08:23. > :08:26.pathetic. Labour relying on the magic money tree and not hard

:08:27. > :08:29.choices. Jo says politicians cannot all be wrong and nor can they all be

:08:30. > :08:32.right but by listening to David Cameron one would think the NHS has

:08:33. > :08:38.no problems at all. Jeremy Corbyn comes over as more believable, and

:08:39. > :08:42.surely has ended 2015 on a winning note. And this from Luke on Twitter,

:08:43. > :08:49.this is the first Cameron-Corbyn PMQs I properly watched. Have to say

:08:50. > :08:53.Cameron is bossing it, Corbyn seems out of his depth also when many

:08:54. > :08:56.people saw the rise of Mr Corbyn this summer and his subsequent

:08:57. > :09:01.victory but this was an interregnum, a short, brief period in British

:09:02. > :09:06.politics before a return to more normality. When you have seen that

:09:07. > :09:11.today it doesn't look like it's true, does it? This is the shape of

:09:12. > :09:15.British politics now. Certainly for some time that it depends on who you

:09:16. > :09:17.talk to post up one MP said to me the other day they are

:09:18. > :09:21.characterising this year as having been a completely extraordinary year

:09:22. > :09:25.in politics and allsorts of things happened that were unpredictable. He

:09:26. > :09:33.went on to say that next year, maybe what he described as a year of the

:09:34. > :09:36.unthinkables where we might have something completely unexpected on

:09:37. > :09:41.the European Union, which would have consequences in the way that Angus

:09:42. > :09:48.Robertson suggested, if UK decided to leave. There are people inside

:09:49. > :09:53.the Labour Party who are planning for a leadership contest, they are a

:09:54. > :09:58.minority. Not much on the paper you would call a concrete plan but that

:09:59. > :10:01.is under consideration by people. There is a sense somehow that the

:10:02. > :10:07.last few months have been extraordinary, but next year maybe

:10:08. > :10:12.equally extraordinary. We are at a sense that is not an interregnum, it

:10:13. > :10:15.seems to have settled down a bit. I don't think we should love ourselves

:10:16. > :10:21.into a sense that next year things will carry on as they have done.

:10:22. > :10:24.Presumably, we focus very much on Jeremy Corbyn and his leadership and

:10:25. > :10:30.understandably so. One thing we said during the election is it is about

:10:31. > :10:33.competence versus chaos and that was derided in some quarters. What we

:10:34. > :10:38.have seen is the Labour Party descend into chaos immediately post

:10:39. > :10:43.the election. Ukip is a party of chaos. Whatever configuration we are

:10:44. > :10:47.in next year I'd see a scenario in which Labour moves from being a

:10:48. > :10:48.party of chaos to a party of competence, Corbyn or no Corbyn.

:10:49. > :10:53.What do you say to that? You may competence, Corbyn or no Corbyn.

:10:54. > :10:57.have the best insight into that but some people's chaos is other

:10:58. > :11:00.people's recognition of differences. Recently we had the free vote on

:11:01. > :11:05.Syria which reflected differences of view widely held in the public,

:11:06. > :11:08.including in your party. That was part of what we were saying about

:11:09. > :11:12.politics and needing to be done differently. I think it has been

:11:13. > :11:18.welcomed. I think today we saw again quite an understated style, and I

:11:19. > :11:22.think by not being so combative, to being more reasonable, one of your

:11:23. > :11:26.viewers said he was believable. I think that has allowed him to make

:11:27. > :11:30.some headway, particularly when he does quote from ordinary people it

:11:31. > :11:35.reinforces the sense that he is in touch, he's expressing what people

:11:36. > :11:40.are really feeling. He's doing OK at Prime Minister's Questions and

:11:41. > :11:43.winning on things like tax credits for single climb-down and

:11:44. > :11:47.backpedalling because of that sort of approach. One of the interesting

:11:48. > :11:53.things if you stand back from the weekly joust between those two men,

:11:54. > :11:56.David Cameron hasn't really looked under very much pressure since the

:11:57. > :12:02.General Election. This government is doing lots of things not

:12:03. > :12:05.particularly well. They have had some individual successes and some

:12:06. > :12:09.individual huge problems like the mess over tax credits that they got

:12:10. > :12:14.into. But there are a lot of areas where in a more traditional era they

:12:15. > :12:17.might be under real pressure. Today, for example, David Cameron is in a

:12:18. > :12:20.high-stakes renegotiation trying to do something nobody has really

:12:21. > :12:24.managed to do before with the rest of the EU. It's not going entirely

:12:25. > :12:28.according to plan and yet he got through that session and the last

:12:29. > :12:34.few days and the last few weeks relatively un-rattled by all of

:12:35. > :12:36.this. As an observation, the Government is not doing everything

:12:37. > :12:41.brilliantly well and have taken some big risks, they don't look under

:12:42. > :12:45.pressure really. Are we right to think that Mr Cameron and Mr

:12:46. > :12:49.Osborne, they would quite like to get the referendum out of the way

:12:50. > :12:53.next year rather than wait until 2017? There is no question about

:12:54. > :12:58.that, they desperately want to get this, in June if they can. That is

:12:59. > :13:03.their preferred date. They think that is still possible, because they

:13:04. > :13:07.hope and it does look feasible that they could be a deal in February.

:13:08. > :13:12.That would give them the four months required to have a decent period of

:13:13. > :13:16.debate. Could they have it in June? I was told the ritual commission

:13:17. > :13:20.didn't like the idea of a referendum campaign taking place while the main

:13:21. > :13:22.elections in local government in England, the Scottish Parliament and

:13:23. > :13:29.the Welsh assembly and Northern Ireland. It would certainly be

:13:30. > :13:36.complicated. But that is their hope, their preferred option. To do it in

:13:37. > :13:41.June? To do it in June. Even with the polls narrowing as they have?

:13:42. > :13:45.They sense that the longer they leave it the more they risk it is.

:13:46. > :13:49.They want it in June before next summer's migrant crisis gets

:13:50. > :13:53.underway. Indeed and other European leaders want its too because then

:13:54. > :13:58.you get into the convocation of French and German elections in 2017

:13:59. > :14:02.-- complication. There is a desire to do it quickly. It is pencilled

:14:03. > :14:06.into the diary as a political hope in as far as this government is

:14:07. > :14:10.concerned. Given the complexities of it all that we were discussing

:14:11. > :14:14.before Prime Minister's Questions there is nothing certain about it

:14:15. > :14:19.happening. If there is another migrant crisis September could be an

:14:20. > :14:29.even worse time because you have the whole summer of these same pictures

:14:30. > :14:34.again. Were you surprised to learn, that the hospitals are running up a

:14:35. > :14:41.deficit of 2.2 billion and the Government's response to that is to

:14:42. > :14:48.force them to borrow the money? The demands on our health service are

:14:49. > :14:53.immense. The starting position is committed to fund the Stevens plan,

:14:54. > :14:55.that is not a plan generated by the Government, it is the independent

:14:56. > :15:01.chief executive of the NHS, which we have done. Except they are in a

:15:02. > :15:08.deficit of over 2 billion now and 21 NHS trusts and ten foundation

:15:09. > :15:12.Hospital trusts have had to borrow ?500 million from the government.

:15:13. > :15:18.Traditionally this was done as a grant, it was done through the

:15:19. > :15:22.public dividend capital, but they are now having to borrow and pay

:15:23. > :15:28.interest to be able to pay this month's doctors' salaries, this

:15:29. > :15:33.month's nurses' salaries and this month's administration salaries. Is

:15:34. > :15:36.that sensible? We fully funded the Stevens plan. If there is a need to

:15:37. > :15:42.get short-term capital and there is a proper structure in place to do so

:15:43. > :15:44.by all means that is fine. It's not capital, its running costs. Doctors

:15:45. > :15:52.a bust of the salaries are not capital. They need extra funding --

:15:53. > :15:56.doctors' salaries. They are borrowing money and they will have

:15:57. > :15:59.to pay it back. Is that feasible? What the Prime Minister said in

:16:00. > :16:02.Prime Minister's Questions, we should be looking to fund this,

:16:03. > :16:05.there might be short-term pressures in which case we should put in place

:16:06. > :16:09.the appropriate structure for them to get together the funds they need

:16:10. > :16:14.so that they can treat all of those people in winter who need care

:16:15. > :16:19.immediately and that is what we should be doing. The Government must

:16:20. > :16:25.hope that it is absolutely right about climate change and that this

:16:26. > :16:30.winter stays as mild as it is. Because, if we had a severe winter

:16:31. > :16:33.like four or five years ago with already a deficit of over two

:16:34. > :16:38.billion and the deficit would soar in the NHS.

:16:39. > :16:42.There is no question there is an enormous strain on the health

:16:43. > :16:46.service and the figures that Jeremy Corbyn was bringing up, some

:16:47. > :16:53.hospitals having to phone the bank manager... The bank manager being

:16:54. > :16:57.Jeremy Hunt. The central problem is that, if you talk to ministers, they

:16:58. > :17:02.believe that the Simon 's plan, put together by the boss of the NHS,

:17:03. > :17:08.will, in two or three years, in theory, start to deliver the money

:17:09. > :17:12.back as well as making a system that should be more joined up, function

:17:13. > :17:16.better, where you don't have crazy things like an elderly person being

:17:17. > :17:19.stuck in hospital because there is nobody to take them home or make

:17:20. > :17:27.sure they are OK in their own house. The crunch is the time lag. If the

:17:28. > :17:31.savings you can get from the NHS and quite significant reforms that most

:17:32. > :17:35.people in government would say it have to happen, if they can't be

:17:36. > :17:39.delivered for three or four years, there will be a tricky point in the

:17:40. > :17:45.interim. We shall keep an eye on that. Merry Christmas. I was meant

:17:46. > :17:49.to bring mince pies but I didn't have time. Can I have a colouring

:17:50. > :17:54.book was to mark you didn't bring mince pies! I think you will find

:17:55. > :17:59.that is the prize, before you give it away. OK. I will get Jo one for

:18:00. > :18:02.next year. Happy Christmas. Should motorists over

:18:03. > :18:04.the age of 70 be retested Currently those over 70 must fill

:18:05. > :18:08.in a self-assessment form every three years to renew their licences,

:18:09. > :18:11.however Benjamin Brooks-Dutton, whose wife was killed by an elderly

:18:12. > :18:15.driver who mistook the accelerator for the brake, has started an online

:18:16. > :18:19.petition calling for over-70s to be It's received over 200,000

:18:20. > :18:48.signatories, here's his soapbox. And our cars reach a certain age,

:18:49. > :19:00.they have to have a regular MOT, so why don't we? -- after our cars. In

:19:01. > :19:05.the court case against the 83-year-old driver who struck and

:19:06. > :19:09.killed my wife three years ago, his defence barrister admitted that in

:19:10. > :19:12.this country we don't have a system to properly check the fitness of

:19:13. > :19:18.people to continue to drive over a certain age. His barrister stated

:19:19. > :19:23.that the driver was on a three-year licence renewal and his doctor did

:19:24. > :19:27.ever suggest he shouldn't continue to drive, a fact which amazed the

:19:28. > :19:34.court. He was actively encouraged to continue doing so. When drivers turn

:19:35. > :19:39.70, they have to reapply for their driving licence every three years

:19:40. > :19:44.simply through assessment. Nobody checks a person's ability to

:19:45. > :19:49.continue to drive, nobody checks their hearing, eyesight, skills or

:19:50. > :19:52.ability to stop. In fact, when a person has passed their driving

:19:53. > :19:57.test, their decision to keep driving into old age is mainly self

:19:58. > :20:01.regulated. Those suffering heart rhythm problems have two inform the

:20:02. > :20:12.DVLA but those who suffer heart attacks do not. It is family and

:20:13. > :20:15.friends who carried the burden of explaining to relatives that

:20:16. > :20:18.potentially they are a risk to themselves and others. It is never

:20:19. > :20:22.easy to tell somebody you love that they should probably stop driving

:20:23. > :20:24.and it can be very damaging to relationships. I want the law to

:20:25. > :20:30.change. I want this issue relationships. I want the law to

:20:31. > :20:34.shifted from personal to policy. It is time to drop self-assessment and

:20:35. > :20:39.introduce official retesting for drivers over 70. Nobody wants to

:20:40. > :20:43.cause death on the roads and nobody wants to damage a relationship with

:20:44. > :20:46.somebody they love. It's not that big and ask. Motorists over 70

:20:47. > :20:51.already have to reapply for their driving licence every three years

:20:52. > :20:56.and our cars have to have an annual MOT, so why not drivers?

:20:57. > :21:04.What has been the response to your campaign? It has been overwhelming,

:21:05. > :21:08.with over 200,000 signatures within a couple of weeks. The most

:21:09. > :21:12.important thing is that so many people over 70 have got in touch.

:21:13. > :21:16.After the first response of saying, I don't want to have to take a test,

:21:17. > :21:20.and they have read the book into it, a lot of people have said, I think

:21:21. > :21:24.this is a good idea, I want to know I am safe on the road, I don't want

:21:25. > :21:28.to cause an accident, I don't want to take it that far before my

:21:29. > :21:37.fitness to drive is judged. What about politicians, in terms of green

:21:38. > :21:42.-- in terms of agreeing to be test? You are the first two politicians I

:21:43. > :21:48.have spoken to. Would you sign up to what Benjamin is calling for, a

:21:49. > :21:54.proper test for the suitability to drive for over 70s? I am sorry about

:21:55. > :21:58.what you have had to go through and congratulations on your campaign.

:21:59. > :22:03.You have 200,000 signatures which I believe means your issue has to be

:22:04. > :22:07.debated in Parliament, which will happen by the minister responsible

:22:08. > :22:13.in the transport department. I will speak to him directly. I think you

:22:14. > :22:18.deserve it constructive engagement. So you will speak to the Minister

:22:19. > :22:22.responsible? I will speak to the Minister responsible. And you will

:22:23. > :22:26.be in touch with Benjamin. We will have to check about whether 200,000

:22:27. > :22:36.signatories qualifies for a debate. I'm not sure. Certainly... I welcome

:22:37. > :22:40.that. Would you support it? I will do the same without Shadow Secretary

:22:41. > :22:44.of State. That a very serious report that you did. You have been through

:22:45. > :22:48.a hell of a lot with this so good on you for picking it up. There has to

:22:49. > :22:55.be a strong case for this. Something I think would benefit from a wider

:22:56. > :22:58.public debate, Parliament, public debate and possibly proposals from

:22:59. > :23:03.government for doing that. Whether 70 is the right limit, whether 80 is

:23:04. > :23:07.the right limit... But the principle that people lose their faculties

:23:08. > :23:11.when they get older, and the fact that they're so many horror stories

:23:12. > :23:17.about experiences like yours, suggests that this is something we

:23:18. > :23:19.should look. A significant number of over 70s have got in touch with

:23:20. > :23:25.Benjamin saying that they themselves would not like to be judged on that

:23:26. > :23:28.basis. Are you surprised it is self-assessment, just happy to fill

:23:29. > :23:34.in a form, and your eyesight isn't tested? Not really, because people

:23:35. > :23:38.of all ages become complacent after they passed their driving test. They

:23:39. > :23:43.don't drive as well as they should. Perhaps they lose faculties. I think

:23:44. > :23:47.this is a particular case for a group of older people, which is your

:23:48. > :23:51.argument, and I think we should take a Sirius look at it. Benjamin you

:23:52. > :23:55.alluded to the fact that it might not be popular with people being

:23:56. > :24:01.told that they have to have a test or they may not be physically

:24:02. > :24:06.suitable for driving after 70. Also, it could be isolating for old

:24:07. > :24:10.people. This is something that guarantees their independence. And

:24:11. > :24:15.70 isn't old any more. That is not old these days. What I have done

:24:16. > :24:19.with the case I put forward is completely mirroring what is in

:24:20. > :24:23.place with the DVLA. At the moment, you have to reapply for your driving

:24:24. > :24:28.licence every three years from 70. I have to assume there is a good

:24:29. > :24:32.reason for that. A paper recently suggested shifting that 80. The

:24:33. > :24:36.biggest reason I could find was because it might save ?1.8 million a

:24:37. > :24:40.year, which isn't much if you look at how the state is to care for

:24:41. > :24:43.people like me and my son when we have been through this. I am

:24:44. > :24:47.mirroring that at the moment. This is open to debate. It is a big issue

:24:48. > :24:52.and I think it can't be just an isolated thing. There are many ways

:24:53. > :24:56.to retest people. At the moment, nobody is arguing against

:24:57. > :25:00.self-assessment every three years, so it is just making it a more

:25:01. > :25:06.thorough version of that. I don't see why people would have an issue.

:25:07. > :25:11.Who do you think should pay for it? Should it be drivers themselves or

:25:12. > :25:15.the government? There are many creative ways to look at this. If

:25:16. > :25:20.you look at the price comparison industry, insurers, they all look,

:25:21. > :25:24.they all pay for the acquisition of those customers. There are ways and

:25:25. > :25:31.means but it needs to be debated. Do you think it would be unpopular with

:25:32. > :25:35.elderly voters? It is a new regime. John made the point about what

:25:36. > :25:39.really is the limit, 70, 80, whatever. We have to go through all

:25:40. > :25:43.of those. If it is done in the right way, and that is why there should be

:25:44. > :25:46.a discussion, something could be done. Thank you.

:25:47. > :25:49.Now, before PMQs, you may remember we set John and Sam a little task -

:25:50. > :25:52.we gave them copies of this and asked them to get

:25:53. > :26:05.Well, let's see how seriously they took their task.

:26:06. > :26:12.Some looked confused at the start but John got cracking. It didn't

:26:13. > :26:17.take long for the creative juices to start flowing. Sam decided Jeremy

:26:18. > :26:23.Corbyn's bid was read. Even our esteemed political editor got in on

:26:24. > :26:27.the act. A lovely treatment of the picture involving lots of real

:26:28. > :26:33.balloons. As you can see, there was a lot of thinking as our guests not

:26:34. > :26:40.to grips with the task. The result was a veritable cornucopia of

:26:41. > :26:44.colour. Towards the end, Laura got a bit bored and started playing with

:26:45. > :26:45.her phone. Probably doing her Christmas shopping. She knows what I

:26:46. > :26:52.want. We are joined now by the illustrator

:26:53. > :27:00.behind the Jeremy Corbyn colouring book. Welcome. Why Jeremy Corbyn? I

:27:01. > :27:04.can clear up the thing with Laura and her phone. She was using the

:27:05. > :27:13.Jeremy Corbyn Which is also available. You revealed her great

:27:14. > :27:19.secret. Why Jeremy Corbyn? When it was Cameron King or Corbyn,

:27:20. > :27:20.unfortunately I am an illustrated of long standing but I can't quite get

:27:21. > :27:29.Cameron King. I have long standing but I can't quite get

:27:30. > :27:33.jacket potato and put a tie on him. Have you attempted to capture things

:27:34. > :27:40.about him in this colouring book? We have tried to move away from the

:27:41. > :27:44.image of him... A lot of suggestions earlier on was that he has terrible

:27:45. > :27:54.dress sense. We have done a page to dress Jeromy, the option... Oh, well

:27:55. > :28:00.done. You have got him a superman. You have the bullying uniform, you

:28:01. > :28:05.can have a pearly king, you can win the Scottish vote with a kilt. --

:28:06. > :28:13.you have the Burlington uniform. Has it been selling well? 'S very well.

:28:14. > :28:16.You will be getting one of those in your stocking. That is next year's

:28:17. > :28:18.Christmas presents sorted. There's just time to put you out

:28:19. > :28:20.of your misery and give Sam, push that big red buzzer

:28:21. > :28:36.and pick the lucky winner. It is Peter rain bird from

:28:37. > :28:41.somewhere. I think you need is to get in touch with us to tell us

:28:42. > :28:44.where so we can send you the prize. Somewhere in the country of nowhere.

:28:45. > :28:47.The News at One is starting over on BBC One now.

:28:48. > :28:50.I'll be here at noon tomorrow with all the big political stories

:28:51. > :28:53.Jo's off Christmas shopping in Strasbourg.