:00:36. > :00:40.There's a sombre mood here at Westminster,
:00:41. > :00:47.as politicians try to come to terms with the murder of Labour MP Jo Cox.
:00:48. > :00:49.Tributes have been paid by politicians from all sides
:00:50. > :00:54.and from around the world to the campaigning MP,
:00:55. > :00:57.who was just at the start of her promising political career.
:00:58. > :01:01.We'll be speaking to a former friend and colleague.
:01:02. > :01:10.Her murder has underlined the risks faced by our elected representatives
:01:11. > :01:13.as they try to remain accessible and meet with their constituents.
:01:14. > :01:15.Her death overshadowed last night's by-election in Tooting,
:01:16. > :01:19.which saw Labour hold the seat and double its majority.
:01:20. > :01:22.We'll be talking about the sometimes uneasy relationship
:01:23. > :01:33.between ministers and civil servants.
:01:34. > :01:37.And with us for the whole of the programme today
:01:38. > :01:43.are the journalists Steve Richards and Toby Young.
:01:44. > :01:46.Westminster and the country are in a state of shock this morning
:01:47. > :01:49.following the murder of the Labour MP Jo Cox in her West Yorkshire
:01:50. > :01:53.The 41-year-old, who was only elected to the Commons at last
:01:54. > :01:56.year's general election, was attacked as she left her
:01:57. > :01:57.constituency surgery in the village of Birstall
:01:58. > :02:06.The mother-of-two came to politics following a career at Oxfam,
:02:07. > :02:08.and had made a name for herself campaigning for the government
:02:09. > :02:12.to accept more child refugees from Syria.
:02:13. > :02:14.The day before the murder, she had been campaigning
:02:15. > :02:19.for the Remain campaign on a flotilla on the Thames.
:02:20. > :02:25.-- watching her husband and children join a flotilla on the Thames.
:02:26. > :02:28.She is the only woman to have been murdered while serving as an MP,
:02:29. > :02:31.and the first MP since Ian Gow was killed by the IRA in 1990.
:02:32. > :02:34.Campaigning ahead of next week's EU referendum has been suspended
:02:35. > :02:38.and politicians from all sides have paid tribute.
:02:39. > :02:43.Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn praised her as a much-loved collague,
:02:44. > :02:47.whle the Prime Minister described her as a committed and caring MP.
:02:48. > :02:49.Yesterday a vigil was held outside Parliament, while hundreds of people
:02:50. > :02:54.filled a church in Birstall for a service of remembrance.
:02:55. > :03:02.A 52-year-old man, named locally as Tommy Mair, has been arrested.
:03:03. > :03:07.He was reported by some to have shouted "put Britain first",
:03:08. > :03:09.though other witnesses have challenged that.
:03:10. > :03:10.Details are emerging indicating past links
:03:11. > :03:12.to far-right groups, though these have still
:03:13. > :03:18.His family say he never talked politics with them.
:03:19. > :03:20.Well, a short while ago, I spoke to our correspondent
:03:21. > :03:33.I asked her about the response today of the local people. Floral tributes
:03:34. > :03:37.have been made here all morning, look at them, and they will be
:03:38. > :03:41.continued to be made here throughout the dated rock people coming here
:03:42. > :03:47.from all backgrounds, all faiths. One card here, Andrew, simply says,
:03:48. > :03:50."To a Yorkshire Rose". Jo Cox was born and bred here in West Yorkshire
:03:51. > :03:55.and in this part of the world, that means a lot. Yes, she did campaign
:03:56. > :03:59.on the major international issues but people here will tell you that
:04:00. > :04:03.no issue was too small. They'll tell you that she was involved with a
:04:04. > :04:07.campaign for a pedestrian crossing, she was supporting a family who had
:04:08. > :04:11.an autistic child, and they'll tell you that they would stop and talk to
:04:12. > :04:17.her in the street and talk about her personal or private problems. One
:04:18. > :04:22.woman said, "We voted for her, we gave her voice, and now it has been
:04:23. > :04:29.silenced". And a local man has been arrested and is in custody. What do
:04:30. > :04:33.we know about him? He's a 52-year-old man. He has been named
:04:34. > :04:37.locally as Tommy Mair but that hasn't been confirmed by West
:04:38. > :04:42.Yorkshire Police. We're learning a bit more about him. Humidity in the
:04:43. > :04:48.village of Birstall for about 30 years. He lived alone. He did local
:04:49. > :04:52.jobs for the local people. There are ports of family members saying that
:04:53. > :04:56.he had mental health issues, that they were dealt with, again
:04:57. > :05:00.something that has not been confirmed by West Yorkshire Police.
:05:01. > :05:03.But here on the ground, the investigation is still very much
:05:04. > :05:07.continuing this morning. Officers have been carrying out a fingertip
:05:08. > :05:14.search outside the library where Joe Cox was stamped and shot yesterday.
:05:15. > :05:18.This huge police cordoned around the heart of Birstall, the Market
:05:19. > :05:22.Square, hasn't moved overnight, and that's something that is very
:05:23. > :05:25.difficult for people... It is a reminder of what happened here
:05:26. > :05:29.yesterday, it's something they are having to expend their children as
:05:30. > :05:34.they were taking them to school this morning, the very school that was on
:05:35. > :05:37.lockdown yesterday because the police weren't entirely sure what
:05:38. > :05:41.was going on at that stage. So difficult to come to terms with this
:05:42. > :05:47.in their daily lives and, of course, the loss of their local MP, who was
:05:48. > :05:50.much loved it. That is the latest from Birstall, the scene of the
:05:51. > :05:54.crime. We had no indication yet from the police as to when they will make
:05:55. > :05:57.another formal statement. So far, they only made a brief one last
:05:58. > :06:04.night which announced the sad death of the MP from the wounds in the
:06:05. > :06:06.attack. The gave no indication as to when the police are going to say any
:06:07. > :06:11.more. Well, as we said, tributes to Jo Cox
:06:12. > :06:14.have been made by politicians of all parties here and her death has also
:06:15. > :06:21.made a big impact around the world. We're expecting to hear from the
:06:22. > :06:23.Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn in the next hour. This has been a major
:06:24. > :06:26.international story. Firstly, a statement
:06:27. > :06:39.from Hillary Clinton: Australian Prime Minister Malcolm
:06:40. > :06:52.Turnbull, posted a tweet saying... Canadian Prime Minister
:06:53. > :07:02.Justin Trudeau tweeted... Well, that maiden speech you heard
:07:03. > :07:05.referred to there was widely Many honourable and right honourable
:07:06. > :07:13.members will lay claim, I'm sure, to their constituencies
:07:14. > :07:16.being constituencies of two halves Batley and Spen is very much that
:07:17. > :07:23.kind of constituency. And it's a joy to represent such
:07:24. > :07:26.a diverse community. Batley and Spen is a gathering
:07:27. > :07:29.of typically independent, no-nonsense proud Yorkshire
:07:30. > :07:33.towns and villages. Our communities have been deeply
:07:34. > :07:37.enhanced by immigration, be it Irish Catholics
:07:38. > :07:39.across the constituency or Muslims from Indian Gujarat or from
:07:40. > :07:44.Pakistan, principally from Kashmir. And whilst we celebrate our
:07:45. > :07:47.diversity, the thing that surprises me time and time again
:07:48. > :07:50.as I travel around the constituency is that we are far more united
:07:51. > :07:53.and have far more in common My constituency is also
:07:54. > :07:59.home to Fox's Biscuits and Lion Confectionery,
:08:00. > :08:05.so I'm sure you will not think it an indulgence, Mr Speaker,
:08:06. > :08:08.if I describe Batley and Spen as a constituency with an industrial
:08:09. > :08:13.heart wrapped in a very rich and pleasant Yorkshire landscape,
:08:14. > :08:16.geographical, The spirit of nonconformity
:08:17. > :08:25.is as prevalent now in my part of West Yorkshire
:08:26. > :08:28.as it was in the time of my two immediate predecessors,
:08:29. > :08:32.Mike Wood and Elizabeth Peacock. They were both known
:08:33. > :08:34.for their own brand of independent, nonconformist service,
:08:35. > :08:40.albeit in very different ways. And I intend to maintain that
:08:41. > :08:42.established tradition Jo Cox making her maiden speech
:08:43. > :08:57.in the Commons last year. She was speaking about the
:08:58. > :08:59.constituency of which she was so proud and where she had been brought
:09:00. > :09:01.up. Well, to talk about Jo Cox's life
:09:02. > :09:05.and her contribution to public life, we're joined by her friend and
:09:06. > :09:12.colleague the Labour MP Mary Creagh. Mary Creagh, Joe Cox was a
:09:13. > :09:17.politician strong principles, strong views on a number of matters, but I
:09:18. > :09:22.always got the impression she was one of the least triable politicians
:09:23. > :09:27.in the House of commons. Is that right? That certainly is. Jo had
:09:28. > :09:32.only been in Parliament for 18 short months but in that time, she was
:09:33. > :09:35.keen to learn, she sought advice, she took a device, and she was
:09:36. > :09:40.absolutely determined to work across parties for the causes that she
:09:41. > :09:43.passionately believed in. And she worked with Andrew Mitchell and
:09:44. > :09:49.other Conservative colleagues to set up the cross-party group on Syria.
:09:50. > :09:54.She was instrumental in forcing the government to change its policy and
:09:55. > :10:01.getting them to accent the 3000 unaccompanied Syrian asylum seeking
:10:02. > :10:05.children. -- to accept. And she was a force of nature and if there were
:10:06. > :10:09.any obstacles in her path, she would not go around them, she would go
:10:10. > :10:13.straight through them. And at a time when it is a common criticism that
:10:14. > :10:16.so many of our politicians are career politicians, that they've
:10:17. > :10:20.never done anything else but come out of university and go straight
:10:21. > :10:25.into politics, she had a hinterland, didn't she? She had done other
:10:26. > :10:29.things, particularly in the field of development aid, with NGOs, and what
:10:30. > :10:34.she had done in formed her when she became a politician. That's right.
:10:35. > :10:38.Jo had a long and distinguished career in the humanitarian field and
:10:39. > :10:45.she'd worked for Oxfam and Save the Children, NSPCC, so she had a huge
:10:46. > :10:50.amount of experience to call an and she had campaigned globally and she
:10:51. > :10:55.brought all of that wisdom, that insight back-to-back league, back to
:10:56. > :11:03.the area where she was born and brought up. -- back to Batley. To
:11:04. > :11:07.fight on behalf of the people she had grown up with and who loved so
:11:08. > :11:11.dearly. She was noted for her compassion, particularly on these
:11:12. > :11:16.issues, and her decency, but you was also - and this isn't always used of
:11:17. > :11:23.politicians, I would suggest that Mark seen as just normal. She
:11:24. > :11:27.certainly was. She was a mother and we would sometimes chat about our
:11:28. > :11:30.various childcare issues. She would bring her two children into
:11:31. > :11:35.Parliament sometimes to have tea. She lived on a houseboat, she cycled
:11:36. > :11:37.in and out of Parliament and I remember one night trying to catch
:11:38. > :11:41.up with this woman who was going quite a lot faster with me and I
:11:42. > :11:44.drew level with her at the traffic lights and looked across and we both
:11:45. > :11:48.just burst out laughing and I said, "I'm afraid you're going a bit too
:11:49. > :11:54.fast for me, Jo, you'd better crack on without me". So she lived every
:11:55. > :11:57.day to the full. She had an energy, and exuberance and the weight that
:11:58. > :12:03.made every room she walked into light up and it is beyond words that
:12:04. > :12:13.that surely and that life and that brilliance has been snuffed out and
:12:14. > :12:19.taken so cruelly. Mary Creagh, thank you for joining us and sharing those
:12:20. > :12:28.thoughts on Jo Cox to what are your thoughts? There are many. There is
:12:29. > :12:30.sadness about what has happened. What is interesting about the
:12:31. > :12:36.coverage since is that there has been the focus on this dedicated MP
:12:37. > :12:39.the consideration seek -- in the constituency, running a surgery for
:12:40. > :12:44.local constituents, and normally it is that bit of the MP's world which
:12:45. > :12:47.gets very little coverage at all. There is this assumption that they
:12:48. > :12:51.are in the so-called Westminster bubble all the time. Actually, we
:12:52. > :12:55.journalists are in it all the time. I've always thought that we are more
:12:56. > :12:58.of a bubble than MPs because they have to go back to people in places
:12:59. > :13:03.like Birstall. The idea that they are out of touch is one of the great
:13:04. > :13:07.dangerous myths of British politics and there is a tendency and the
:13:08. > :13:14.default position of whatever story comes up to blame politicians, and
:13:15. > :13:18.to give a ten second example, when that Panama scandal about tax came
:13:19. > :13:22.up, I was asked by somebody on a comment desk, "Will you do a piece
:13:23. > :13:26.saying MPs should immediately make all their tax returns transparent
:13:27. > :13:30.and publicly available er" as if they were somehow culpable. It is a
:13:31. > :13:34.default position that they are bunch of crooks and I don't know how we've
:13:35. > :13:39.got to that position. It is a genuine mystery to me to talk we let
:13:40. > :13:42.them so it must be a kind of self-loathing that we let them and
:13:43. > :13:46.then get into this default position that they are all a bunch of crooks
:13:47. > :13:53.and the focus today is entirely different and freakishly unusual.
:13:54. > :13:58.Will this lead to us revaluing, maybe even valuing more, the work of
:13:59. > :14:02.politicians, or is it just an aberration in the sadness of Jo
:14:03. > :14:08.Cox's murder, and it will default back to the previous position? You
:14:09. > :14:12.always hope when something tragic like this happens that something of
:14:13. > :14:18.value will come out of it and one hope is that people will remember
:14:19. > :14:23.just what a good-hearted and hard-working constituency MP Jo Cox
:14:24. > :14:28.was the next time they feel inclined to respond in this knee jerk,
:14:29. > :14:33.hostile way to some sin of the political class. But will things
:14:34. > :14:37.change? One thing I hope doesn't change is that MPs become much more
:14:38. > :14:41.nervous about their security and there is less contact between the
:14:42. > :14:45.MPs and their constituents. We'll talk about that in a minute. Jo Cox
:14:46. > :14:52.was an interesting example of the changing nature of MPs on both sides
:14:53. > :14:57.of the Commons. If you look first at the 2010 but then the 2015 intake,
:14:58. > :14:59.there were different voices on both sides of the House, not
:15:00. > :15:05.traditionally what you would normally expect. We had been talking
:15:06. > :15:10.all along about politics being nothing but a career, you go to
:15:11. > :15:15.university, usually Oxbridge, then you are straight into the House, but
:15:16. > :15:20.she is an example of a number of a new generation of MPs that don't fit
:15:21. > :15:29.that stereotype, was in cheek was Bob -- wasn't she?
:15:30. > :15:35.There's another thing unreported. There are others on both sides, a
:15:36. > :15:41.big cultural shift and they feel in a way more accountable to their
:15:42. > :15:46.constituents, I think, to say the leaders of the their parties. That's
:15:47. > :15:49.been on both sides absolutely. And that's another important shift. I
:15:50. > :15:55.think probably we political journalists need to get out more and
:15:56. > :16:00.see what their other lives are like. What I'm not saying, is this
:16:01. > :16:06.collective outpouring of genuine grief and sadness across the
:16:07. > :16:11.political spectrum means somehow politics can be without conflict and
:16:12. > :16:17.battles. The whole essence of politics, it's a noble vocation. You
:16:18. > :16:24.decide disputes through word and debate and not force. People who say
:16:25. > :16:28.it should be bland now and everyone should be in agreement... It's not
:16:29. > :16:36.our style. Not what politics is about. But, if we can he is swap
:16:37. > :16:40.this anti-politics asimplings that when anything happens it is the
:16:41. > :16:46.fault of those we elect, that will be healthy. She was an independent
:16:47. > :16:51.Labour MP. Her own woman. There are a number of people on both sides of
:16:52. > :16:55.the House. A number of people who have only recently got into the
:16:56. > :17:00.House, despite you thinking they're on the greasy pole on their way up,
:17:01. > :17:03.you do that by being loyal and don't rock the boat. I can think of a
:17:04. > :17:07.number of MPs on both sides that don't do that. They say what they
:17:08. > :17:13.think and they vote the way they want. That was true of the 2010
:17:14. > :17:18.intake and also true of the 2015 intake. They are much more
:17:19. > :17:23.rebellious, much less likely to tow the party line. More
:17:24. > :17:28.independent-minded. You can see the authority of party leaders and whips
:17:29. > :17:30.declining and the authority the Speaker increasing in the last
:17:31. > :17:34.Parliament and this Parliament. If you believe in politics and MPs are
:17:35. > :17:41.there to represent the views of their constituents and not just tow
:17:42. > :17:45.the party line, that's a good thing. It's remarkable how these things
:17:46. > :17:50.come and hit us. You don't see any of this going and suddenly, we look
:17:51. > :17:57.at trends, look at news events coming up, who's up, who's down and
:17:58. > :18:03.something happens and it changes everything. Exactly. We often on
:18:04. > :18:10.this programme and others follow patterns. Work out what happens
:18:11. > :18:15.next. Something tragically happening like this, the mood has completely
:18:16. > :18:21.changed. There's no campaigning tomorrow, I was supposed to a
:18:22. > :18:28.one-on-one interview with Iain Duncan Smith. My fourth, but that's
:18:29. > :18:36.been changed. Something simple mattic of things which have changed,
:18:37. > :18:40.the by-election when it takes place in Jo Cox's constituency shouldn't
:18:41. > :18:45.be contested by another party. It should be a Labour seat. I've seen
:18:46. > :18:49.suggestions of that. You can't stop people standing in a by-election,
:18:50. > :18:51.independent candidates. Perhaps the main parties will decide not to
:18:52. > :18:52.contest it. Now, this attack on an MP as she
:18:53. > :18:56.held a constituency surgery has raised questions over the safety
:18:57. > :18:58.of our elected representatives Like most MPs, Jo Cox held
:18:59. > :19:05.a well-publicised, regular surgery for her constituents to come
:19:06. > :19:12.to to talk about their problems. The House of Commons yesterday
:19:13. > :19:16.said it has re-issued security advice to MPs,
:19:17. > :19:19.and details of the kind of threats made to them on a regular
:19:20. > :19:22.basis have been emerging. So, just what is the
:19:23. > :19:29.extent of the problem? Well, psychiatrists conducted
:19:30. > :19:31.a sobering study The Home Office report
:19:32. > :19:40.found that 80% of MPs had been victims of intrusive
:19:41. > :19:46.or aggressive behaviour. One in five said they had been
:19:47. > :19:49.subject to attack including one who reported being
:19:50. > :19:55.repeatedly punched in the face and A further 41% said they had received
:19:56. > :20:02.threats of harm against them. One told the researchers "There were
:20:03. > :20:06.numerous reports of death threats, both in person and by mail, and bomb
:20:07. > :20:11.threats." A fifth of MPs reported threats of
:20:12. > :20:14.property damage, including petrol poured through the
:20:15. > :20:18.letterbox, tyres slashed and paint stripper
:20:19. > :20:23.poured over their vehicles. And, worryingly, almost two in five
:20:24. > :20:28.MPs report being stalked, with half of those saying it had
:20:29. > :20:33.gone on for more than a year. The psychiatrists found that younger
:20:34. > :20:38.women were particularly targeted. Earlier today, the Labour MP
:20:39. > :20:42.Stephen Timms, who was previously attacked at his surgery,
:20:43. > :20:46.spoke about how security Well, after I was attacked,
:20:47. > :20:52.six years ago now, the police spoke to,
:20:53. > :20:55.I think, every MP about the arrangements
:20:56. > :20:57.in their constituency surgeries, That perhaps should happen
:20:58. > :21:03.again and there may be But what none of us would want
:21:04. > :21:12.is a big change in the culture of our country, which would make it
:21:13. > :21:18.much harder for people to get We're joined now from Croydon by
:21:19. > :21:36.the Conservative MP Gavin Barwell. Parliament is a fortress surrounded
:21:37. > :21:41.by armed police. It has concrete bunkers and all the rest of it. But
:21:42. > :21:46.the constituencies is where they could be much more vulnerable. We're
:21:47. > :21:50.joined from Croydon by the Conservative MP Gavin Barwell. He
:21:51. > :21:56.was threatened in his constituency surgery in the last month. You were
:21:57. > :22:01.met with an aggressive constituent earlier this month. Talk us through
:22:02. > :22:06.what happened to you? Yes, Andrew, someone had booked to come and see
:22:07. > :22:10.me at my surgery. It very rapidly became apparent the individual was
:22:11. > :22:17.very disturbed. We asked him to leave. He refused to do so. The
:22:18. > :22:20.police were called. He then became very agitated, started kicking the
:22:21. > :22:25.furniture around. Threatened to attack me and kill me. At that
:22:26. > :22:31.point, the police arrived and he was arrested and subsequently discovered
:22:32. > :22:37.to have a knife on him. What's your reaction to this Home Office report,
:22:38. > :22:42.this survey? I may be wrong but I don't remember it getting much
:22:43. > :22:48.publicity at the time. It seems now very pertinent and important. It
:22:49. > :22:52.seems we have a serious problem here which, by and large, has been
:22:53. > :22:56.ignored. Is that fair? It is difficult to strike the right
:22:57. > :23:05.proportion. I wasn't aware of that report. A month ago, eyed aide have
:23:06. > :23:08.said in six years of being an MP I wouldn't feel threatened. The
:23:09. > :23:12.majority of people I deal with are kind and generous. There are often
:23:13. > :23:15.people who have particular health problems that can pose a threat. We
:23:16. > :23:19.have to find a way of making sure MPs think about their security and
:23:20. > :23:24.the security of their staff and families but don't stop doing our
:23:25. > :23:28.job to go out, meet people, go to community events. The job can never
:23:29. > :23:32.be made 100% safe. This is a balance here. It is difficult. I remember as
:23:33. > :23:37.a kid my parents taking me to Downing Street. You could just walk
:23:38. > :23:42.in. You could walk up the street and stand outside the door. There was a
:23:43. > :23:48.policeman there. That was it. Today, there are armed guards, all swords
:23:49. > :23:52.of -- sorts of security measures. You can't just walk in. I could
:23:53. > :23:57.remember party conferences where you could walk in and out. No grate
:23:58. > :24:02.security. Today, there's a ring of steel around the conference of which
:24:03. > :24:07.ever party's in Government. We still have this ability to approach our
:24:08. > :24:13.MPs in constituencies. We can walk in off the street in many areas and
:24:14. > :24:19.speak to them. That would now seem potentially to be dangerous. That
:24:20. > :24:23.could now go, couldn't it? I hope it won't. I think, obviously you were
:24:24. > :24:26.right to say party of the week we work in one of the most secure
:24:27. > :24:29.locations in the country. There are things you can do at your
:24:30. > :24:34.constituency office to increase security. But, even if you do that,
:24:35. > :24:38.I spend a huge amount of my time knocking on people's doors or
:24:39. > :24:42.attending community events. You can't make those locations
:24:43. > :24:46.completely secure. I represent one of the most diverse parts of the
:24:47. > :24:51.country. I regularly meet people from other parts of the world. They
:24:52. > :24:56.are amazed when I knock on their door, bump into them on the street.
:24:57. > :24:59.They come from places where politicians are surrounded by
:25:00. > :25:04.security. You can't go up and shake their hand. Talk to them. That's
:25:05. > :25:12.pricks. It is one of the reasons why when you ask people what they think
:25:13. > :25:16.of lair local MP they have a much higher regard than politicians.
:25:17. > :25:25.Parliament used to be a male monopoly. It's not now. There are a
:25:26. > :25:30.growing number of female MPs. A lot, like Jo Cox, pretty young women
:25:31. > :25:36.beginning their political careers. They seem to be a particularly
:25:37. > :25:41.target in terms of being physically stalked. They seem, most
:25:42. > :25:45.disgustingly of all, in a way, targets on social media? Yes. I
:25:46. > :25:51.think there is a lot of evidence of that. We certainly need to look at
:25:52. > :25:56.what more we can do to address those kinds of issues. Any MP will tell
:25:57. > :26:01.you there is a massive contrast how you get treated when you meet people
:26:02. > :26:04.face-to-face and what you get anonymously on social media. It is
:26:05. > :26:10.really striking. Any MP will say that. You are right to say some
:26:11. > :26:16.female colleagues get particularly bad treatment in that regard. Thank
:26:17. > :26:23.you for joining us. Safety in your constituency and surgeries. Steve, I
:26:24. > :26:27.saw you nodding there when I went through the Downing Street days and
:26:28. > :26:34.party conferences. Clearly MPs are aware of this, striking the balance,
:26:35. > :26:38.there must be a danger even our MPs, when they're in their
:26:39. > :26:44.constituencies, are going to be more can cocooned than they have been? I
:26:45. > :26:49.hope not. I nodded because I had the same experience. You could walk into
:26:50. > :26:55.Downing Street and stand outside Number Ten. Policeman would move a
:26:56. > :27:00.bit. Prime Minister's in there. It felt exciting and accessible. This
:27:01. > :27:04.is one of the problems. The myth they're Alcock cooned. One of the
:27:05. > :27:08.reasons they are seen as that is because of security at key political
:27:09. > :27:13.moments, they are. You can't walk into Downing Street now. The House
:27:14. > :27:17.of Commons is a fortress. Party conferences, it is like trying to
:27:18. > :27:24.get in to, well, it is a security fortress. I think, actually, if
:27:25. > :27:29.won't happen because it will be frankly impossible to police on the
:27:30. > :27:32.scale required. When MPs are wandering around their local
:27:33. > :27:37.constituencies. It can't happen. That level of connect is so
:27:38. > :27:43.fundamental, I don't think it can. But obviously people will be
:27:44. > :27:47.exploring this. My assumption is it would be healthy if that were not to
:27:48. > :27:54.happen. Yet we've seen it in the United States. They don't have quite
:27:55. > :27:59.the same constituency relationship. Centres have security -- senators
:28:00. > :28:04.have security. The chairman of the Federal Reserve has and so on. It's
:28:05. > :28:09.become a feature of the modern world? Yes, bus I think that
:28:10. > :28:13.politicians are at greater risk in the United States than they are
:28:14. > :28:17.here. One of the reasons, what happened to Jo Cox yesterday was so
:28:18. > :28:22.deeply shocking because that kind of thing happens to rarely in Britain.
:28:23. > :28:27.And like Steve, I really hope that this doesn't mean that we move to a
:28:28. > :28:30.much more cocooned system in which politicians don't have that direct
:28:31. > :28:35.contact with ordinary people. We shall see. Bernard Jenkins is
:28:36. > :28:39.telling us because of threats to him, he has to hold his
:28:40. > :28:44.constituency, he has somebody in the room. It is clear he has somebody in
:28:45. > :28:48.the room that can help to look after him should it go wrong. One of the
:28:49. > :28:53.ironies, a lot of these backbenchers are hard working but not hugely
:28:54. > :28:57.powerful figures actually are. There is an awerings they could change the
:28:58. > :29:03.world with a flick of their wrists that's not the case. We've just
:29:04. > :29:08.heard that the Prime Minister is on his way to Jo Cox's constituency in
:29:09. > :29:11.West Yorkshire and will be arriving shortly.
:29:12. > :29:14.Now, yesterday saw Labour hold the seat of Tooting in South London.
:29:15. > :29:20.The vote was triggered by Sadiq Khan's election as London Mayor
:29:21. > :29:26.and, despite being a Conservative target seat, junior doctor
:29:27. > :29:32.Rosena Allin-Khan more than doubled Labour's majority,
:29:33. > :29:39.But there was little applause at the count,
:29:40. > :29:43.and she devoted her speech to Jo Cox.
:29:44. > :29:46.And I do hereby declare that Allin-Khan, Rosena
:29:47. > :29:50.is duly elected for the Tooting constituency.
:29:51. > :29:58.First of all, I would like to give my profound
:29:59. > :30:02.thanks to the people of Tooting for electing me as their MP.
:30:03. > :30:05.But my thoughts and prayers are with Jo's husband
:30:06. > :30:11.She was a proud and passionate campaigner, who will be
:30:12. > :30:19.Jo's death reminds us that our democracy is precious but fragile.
:30:20. > :30:26.Thousands of people voted today and we are all here in recognition
:30:27. > :30:41.And if the terrible events in West Yorkshire hadn't happened yesterday,
:30:42. > :30:48.the winner of the Tooting by-election would have become the
:30:49. > :30:56.100th female Labour MP. Tooting... We were told that the demographics
:30:57. > :30:58.were changing, to sympathise, it was becoming posher and therefore
:30:59. > :31:02.perhaps more Tory. No sign of that in this by-election. It is
:31:03. > :31:09.interesting and it is the second one. When Sadiq Khan first won the
:31:10. > :31:13.moel thing, there was a lot of talk amongst those hoping that Jeremy
:31:14. > :31:21.Corbyn would fall quickly. -- the mayoral thing. It happened just
:31:22. > :31:26.before Christmas... Was at an old, the by-election? Labour won that
:31:27. > :31:34.comfortably. So as far as you can extrapolate much from by-elections,
:31:35. > :31:37.the again cocooned media consumption that Jeremy Corbyn, everything he
:31:38. > :31:45.touches will turn to disaster, is simply not the case. However, of
:31:46. > :31:50.course, at this point in the electoral cycle, you would assume
:31:51. > :31:56.that the party would hold it so that is a qualification. But for those
:31:57. > :32:00.who say that the party is imploding under Corbyn, here is more proof
:32:01. > :32:04.that this is not the case. It confirms a more nuanced picture of
:32:05. > :32:07.the impact of Jeremy Corbyn on Labour's vote, which is that it is
:32:08. > :32:11.not going to have a negative impact in London, particularly in central
:32:12. > :32:14.London. Where Labour didn't fare particularly well in the local
:32:15. > :32:18.elections were areas where it is going to need to do better to win a
:32:19. > :32:22.majority in 2020. It certainly didn't produce any revival of
:32:23. > :32:26.Labour's vote in Scotland, it didn't help much in Wales, and help in the
:32:27. > :32:32.north or the Midlands and so I think we know that Corbyn isn't toxic in
:32:33. > :32:35.London but he is a bit toxic in a lot of areas outside London. It
:32:36. > :32:42.underlines Labour's strength in London. In the general election, bad
:32:43. > :32:54.for Labour but in London, Labour did pretty well. And in 2010. Which way,
:32:55. > :32:58.of course, underlines how unusual it was for Boris Johnson to win as a
:32:59. > :33:05.Tory in a Labour city to talk but this new Labour MP is a junior
:33:06. > :33:09.doctor and Labour has now, like Jo Cox, another strong, intelligent,
:33:10. > :33:13.professional female MP. Yes, and indeed, to counter some of those who
:33:14. > :33:16.were saying Labour could lose the seat, people who knew her Toby she
:33:17. > :33:23.was a really impressive candidate and that she would do well. -- told
:33:24. > :33:30.me. There is quite a high quality of MP coming in from these various
:33:31. > :33:36.recent intakes and was interesting watching the tributes to Jo Cox on
:33:37. > :33:41.Newsnight last night. You saw four young Labour MPs talking about her
:33:42. > :33:44.in an impressive and very engaging way and there are some quite dynamic
:33:45. > :33:48.figures coming into the House of commons. The constant complaint that
:33:49. > :33:55.good people don't go into politics any more and that they are all
:33:56. > :33:57.useless, but actually the recent intakes, as we were indicating
:33:58. > :34:02.earlier, have been rather impressive. One cause for optimism
:34:03. > :34:06.about British politics is that in spite of the public seemingly
:34:07. > :34:09.becoming much more jaundiced about politicians, particularly in the
:34:10. > :34:14.wake of the expenses scandal, it hasn't stopped good people from
:34:15. > :34:15.wanting to become MPs. It hasn't deterred them. You might have
:34:16. > :34:17.thought it would have done. Now, it's traditionally said civil
:34:18. > :34:19.servants advise, ministers decide. But is the relationship between the
:34:20. > :34:22.two quite that straightforward? Here's Giles Dilnot
:34:23. > :34:23.with his latest guide Thanks to British cinema and the TV
:34:24. > :34:38.series Yes, Minister, we've got a rather ingrained sense
:34:39. > :34:41.of the British civil service, as elitist, grey suited,
:34:42. > :34:44.bowler hatted snobs who frustrate government ministers and keep
:34:45. > :34:48.power to themselves. But has Sir Humphrey finally left
:34:49. > :34:51.Whitehall, and what do former Secretaries of State make
:34:52. > :34:58.of who replaced him? That is the thing that is most
:34:59. > :35:01.missed in the Sir Humphrey portrayal, which is that I don't
:35:02. > :35:05.believe that civil servants are engaging in guerilla warfare
:35:06. > :35:08.or tactics to try and stop the Secretary of State doing
:35:09. > :35:10.things, if Secretaries of State give an indication
:35:11. > :35:15.of what they want to achieve. The whole of the Civil Service
:35:16. > :35:18.machine is predicated on the basis that it reports to a senior minister
:35:19. > :35:22.and the senior minister will make decisions,
:35:23. > :35:25.and the civil servants are very uncomfortable indeed
:35:26. > :35:29.if they have to make If you frighten them,
:35:30. > :35:35.if you never smile at them, Well, you know what I mean,
:35:36. > :35:44.human conversation, they don't believe you when you suddenly say,
:35:45. > :35:49."Tell me if I'm wrong". The exact relationship
:35:50. > :35:51.between politicians, who we vote in and out of office,
:35:52. > :35:54.and the vast army of permanent public servants who serve them
:35:55. > :35:59.is a complex one but it's based, I think there are two things that
:36:00. > :36:06.civil servants don't like and that is a minister
:36:07. > :36:11.who doesn't know his own mind and, secondly, a minister who does
:36:12. > :36:17.know his own mind but won't listen to those who try to explain to him
:36:18. > :36:20.the downstream consequences Now, that would suggest that just
:36:21. > :36:24.because the Secretary of State says "do it",
:36:25. > :36:28.it gets done. And that, of course,
:36:29. > :36:32.is not always the case. You have to say, "This
:36:33. > :36:34.is what I want and this is when I want it and I want
:36:35. > :36:38.a progress report on the following frequencies," and then you have
:36:39. > :36:43.to check up to make sure it happens. So it's not a job in which you can
:36:44. > :36:47.wisely go to sleep. That is perhaps where the Yes,
:36:48. > :36:50.Minister image of a civil servant paying only minor lip service
:36:51. > :36:54.to their political masters may We'd have those discussions
:36:55. > :36:59.and eventually I'd say, "Right, well, I've heard all you say
:37:00. > :37:02.but I still want to do it". And then in the early days,
:37:03. > :37:05.nothing would happen. And so after a couple of weeks,
:37:06. > :37:11.I would say, "What's And I'd be told, "Well,
:37:12. > :37:16.the officials want And I'd say, "No, no, no, no,
:37:17. > :37:21.we've had the meeting and I've decided and when I've decided,
:37:22. > :37:27.it's got to be done." Mrs Thatcher loved Yes,
:37:28. > :37:30.Minister so much she appeared with the actors in a sketch,
:37:31. > :37:34.but she was less lovely One of her ministers remembers
:37:35. > :37:44.she walked in on a civil service forum to ask the public
:37:45. > :37:46.what they made of a They brought in some people
:37:47. > :37:52.and she went straight over, and they were elderly people
:37:53. > :37:54.and she just knelt down by their chairs and said, "Now, tell
:37:55. > :38:00.me, do you understand this form? Hoping, of course, that they would
:38:01. > :38:06.denounce the form which, inevitably, they did,
:38:07. > :38:09.because they were awful. And so she would summon civil
:38:10. > :38:12.servants to hear the torrent However, Chris Huhne observed
:38:13. > :38:18.in government first-hand one of the ways the civil
:38:19. > :38:23.servants could fight back. The one that Whitehall
:38:24. > :38:25.is particularly in favour And the doctrine of un-right time
:38:26. > :38:30.says, "Oh, minister, that is an absolutely
:38:31. > :38:31.brilliant thing to do, we're totally committed to it,
:38:32. > :38:34.but is this absolutely the perfect moment at which one ought to launch
:38:35. > :38:38.such a bold, ambitious Liam Fox entered the MoD at a time
:38:39. > :38:44.when the state of the nation's finances meant he had
:38:45. > :38:48.to be bold and tough. His civil servants were asked
:38:49. > :38:50.to come in and justify some of their key projects and they got
:38:51. > :38:54.quite a shock. I remember the first board
:38:55. > :38:58.that we had and they obviously thought this was a charade of some
:38:59. > :39:02.sort and we weren't really serious, I wanted to send a very clear
:39:03. > :39:07.message out that we were serious about this and within a few
:39:08. > :39:10.quarters, all our projects came back within time and within budget, or at
:39:11. > :39:15.least what they said was in budget. But what is it like when you've
:39:16. > :39:18.heard all the evidence and advice and decided, in the end,
:39:19. > :39:23.not to take any of it? When you've got official
:39:24. > :39:25.opinion saying to you, "This is what we should do,"
:39:26. > :39:28.and you have to then say, "No, I'm not going to go with that,
:39:29. > :39:31.I'm going to go with something else," that's
:39:32. > :39:33.a difficult thing to do. But, you know, any Secretary
:39:34. > :39:36.of State worth their salt must be prepared to do that
:39:37. > :39:38.at some point in time. The civil servants clearly serve
:39:39. > :39:42.Secretaries of State but equally clear is the state of that
:39:43. > :40:03.relationship is far more than simply We're getting reports that the Prime
:40:04. > :40:10.Minister and the leader of the and are heading to Birstall, the scene
:40:11. > :40:14.of Jo Cox's murder yesterday, where they will appear together and make a
:40:15. > :40:20.joint statement. We haven't yet got the time for that. When we do, we
:40:21. > :40:27.will let you have a. The civil service... When I did political
:40:28. > :40:31.science at University, it had at particular esprit de corps. It was
:40:32. > :40:38.overwhelmingly male. It was posh public school Oxbridge, they dressed
:40:39. > :40:44.in Pinsky suits, bowler hats, even meant it that has totally changed.
:40:45. > :40:47.-- dressed in pinstriped suits. When I go there, some of them seem pretty
:40:48. > :40:52.scruffy to me! Does it still have that esprit de corps that it used to
:40:53. > :40:57.have in the 1960s and 1970s? Or has it gone? I think it has gone a bit
:40:58. > :41:01.but we were talking earlier about the underreported role of MPs in
:41:02. > :41:04.constituencies, the other unreported element is how ministers deal with
:41:05. > :41:07.their civil servants because we don't see it and yet it is
:41:08. > :41:13.absolutely fundamental, as that report suggested. I think in some
:41:14. > :41:17.blazers, there is still a slight sense of entitlement. One of the
:41:18. > :41:23.important dynamics is the senior officials know they can be there for
:41:24. > :41:28.a long, long time. Cabinet ministers could be out within ten minutes and
:41:29. > :41:33.I think that gives them a sense of, at times, in some cases, superiority
:41:34. > :41:36.over the Cabinet minister, and the test of a Cabinet minister is how
:41:37. > :41:39.they deal with that. Some are brilliant at it, some are useless at
:41:40. > :41:42.it, and it is one of the bits we don't get to see but one of the
:41:43. > :41:46.reasons why some people are reshuffled pretty quickly is because
:41:47. > :41:50.they can't work this relationship. Is at the Cabinet minister or the
:41:51. > :41:56.civil servant that is reshuffled? The Cabinet minister! Hence the name
:41:57. > :41:59.of the permanent secretary. The vulnerable ones are the Cabinet
:42:00. > :42:02.ministers, who are supposed to be all-powerful and they quite often
:42:03. > :42:05.aren't. As Andy Burnham suggests, it is a brave Cabinet minister that
:42:06. > :42:09.challenges the advice of senior officials. Sometimes they do it and
:42:10. > :42:13.our right to do it, other times they do it and I want to do it. Sometimes
:42:14. > :42:17.there is tension because the Prime Minister feels a minister has been
:42:18. > :42:22.captured by his civil servants. I know that was the view of Gordon
:42:23. > :42:27.Brown about Alistair Darling and the Treasury, captured by the Treasury,
:42:28. > :42:31.I heard that a few times. So it is absolutely fundamental but we don't
:42:32. > :42:36.see it in front of our eyes. Here is a test of the British civil service.
:42:37. > :42:41.Your side wins the referendum. That's just an assumption, not a
:42:42. > :42:45.forecast. We vote to leave. There is a challenge because I would suggest
:42:46. > :42:55.that the civil service, certainly be of echelons, are overwhelmingly for
:42:56. > :42:58.remain. -- the upper echelons. We have learned that they have Wall
:42:59. > :43:06.gained various and arias in different departments for coping
:43:07. > :43:12.with a leave vote. -- war gamed. But it is interesting because people on
:43:13. > :43:15.the Leave site will be very alert to any hint of betrayal or disloyalty
:43:16. > :43:18.on behalf of the government or the civil service, particularly jarring
:43:19. > :43:21.what will be a very fraught negotiation with the rest of the EU,
:43:22. > :43:26.in which various concessions will have to be made on both sides, so it
:43:27. > :43:31.will be a difficult position. It will be logistically a massive
:43:32. > :43:34.disentanglement of the UK from all the treaties, trade agreements, and
:43:35. > :43:37.there is talk that they going to have to bring in specialists from
:43:38. > :43:41.all over the place to deal with this because they're not equipped to come
:43:42. > :43:48.visit, because they haven't had to before. Canadians? There could be
:43:49. > :43:52.plenty more work for Canadians! To keep you up-to-date with some
:43:53. > :43:56.breaking news, the Daily Mail is reporting that the Conservatives
:43:57. > :43:59.will not contest Batley and Spen. We don't want to talk about
:44:00. > :44:03.by-elections at the moment as a result of Jo Cox's death, and we
:44:04. > :44:08.won't, but inevitably there will be a by-election at some stage and we
:44:09. > :44:11.understand from the Daily Mail that the Conservatives will not contest
:44:12. > :44:12.it. We haven't yet been able to corroborate that.
:44:13. > :44:14.Now, digital campaigning and social media hasn't yet taken over
:44:15. > :44:16.from more traditional means of reaching the voters.
:44:17. > :44:19.You still need to tramp the streets or come on shows like this
:44:20. > :44:22.if you really want to get your message home.
:44:23. > :44:24.But things are clearly changing, and both sides in the EU referendum
:44:25. > :44:28.campaign are using Facebook, YouTube and Twitter to try to mobilise
:44:29. > :44:32.their own voters and reach out to new ones.
:44:33. > :44:41.Tuning into social media this past month, there's been...
:44:42. > :44:45.This is more of a comment than a question and it will be
:44:46. > :44:50.Thank you very much for postponing your bedtime!
:44:51. > :44:52.They're trying to make television social.
:44:53. > :44:55.Boris's ITV appearance keeping Twitter busy,
:44:56. > :45:05.Five seconds to stop others... WHISTLE ..with your future.
:45:06. > :45:11.We have a dominatrix, where Europe is the dominatrix
:45:12. > :45:15.and the Union Jack is on its knees and is being told what to do.
:45:16. > :45:18.Ah, efforts to reach new voters must be in overdrive, then.
:45:19. > :45:20.We'll find out what's going on because we're going to meet
:45:21. > :45:23.the two women who run the biggest Twitter dataset in the UK.
:45:24. > :45:25.Or at least that's what they tell me.
:45:26. > :45:27.So we have created a little Twitter lab.
:45:28. > :45:38.We want to find out how both the Leave and Remain campaigns
:45:39. > :45:40.are using the internet to get their message
:45:41. > :45:45.When we count those, we see that the number of hashtags
:45:46. > :45:48.that are being tweeted out are 3% for Remain and 97% for Leave,
:45:49. > :45:50.at the beginning of the campaign in August.
:45:51. > :45:53.When we look at it now, we have around 25% to 35% Remain
:45:54. > :45:58.The story is always, it's the ones most motivated,
:45:59. > :46:01.the ones with most of an axe to grind, that act on Twitter.
:46:02. > :46:03.That might explain some of the disparities.
:46:04. > :46:07.So what's the nature of the debate like on Twitter?
:46:08. > :46:12.So here's the big question - what percentage of people
:46:13. > :46:14.who are on Twitter are talking about the referendum?
:46:15. > :46:20.We reckon from our study that about 0.06% of those who are talking
:46:21. > :46:24.on Twitter are actually talking about the European referendum,
:46:25. > :46:27.so it's a really tiny amount of that motivated public.
:46:28. > :46:31.But there's still tens of millions of people tweeting
:46:32. > :46:35.Beyond the echo chamber of Twitter, though, researchers
:46:36. > :46:38.from Think Tank Demos have found that social media has been
:46:39. > :46:43.motivating large numbers to get out and vote.
:46:44. > :46:45.During research we've done on the general election,
:46:46. > :46:48.figures coming in the next few weeks, we've found that social media
:46:49. > :46:51.is an incredibly important voter mobilisation tool.
:46:52. > :46:54.It's probably convinced millions across the UK to actually vote,
:46:55. > :46:55.whereas they otherwise wouldn't have.
:46:56. > :46:59.And you think that will be reflected in the referendum?
:47:00. > :47:03.I think that digital politics is only becoming more important.
:47:04. > :47:05.This referendum campaign has also seen Facebook tighten its grip
:47:06. > :47:10.As well as its tried and tested targeted ads that helped the Tories
:47:11. > :47:14.win the last general election, there have been 38 million comments,
:47:15. > :47:18.shares and likes globally during chat about the referendum,
:47:19. > :47:23.in just 13 weeks, in which 30 million daily UK users have
:47:24. > :47:26.discussed the economy, health and immigration the most.
:47:27. > :47:29.In order to have success in digital advertising, you need both
:47:30. > :47:33.The Remain side has within it the central strategist from the very
:47:34. > :47:38.They also need money to do that and that's where
:47:39. > :47:43.I don't think that the main impact of social media is really how
:47:44. > :47:45.the central campaigns are doing it, I think the main impact
:47:46. > :47:48.is in the grassroots ground swell of activity that we see
:47:49. > :47:51.There is something in the antiestablishment message
:47:52. > :47:54.of Brexit, there is something in the electricity and energy
:47:55. > :47:57.which we can see Brexit throwing into this at a grassroots level,
:47:58. > :48:00.which I think has to imply that they're getting more of a boost
:48:01. > :48:06.So, how significant could social media be
:48:07. > :48:11.Well, hot off the press - thank you - we've been handed
:48:12. > :48:14.the latest YouGov poll, which suggests that one in five
:48:15. > :48:18.swing voters use Twitter or Facebook as their main source of information,
:48:19. > :48:24.But - and here's the catch - many of them don't trust
:48:25. > :48:27.what they read online, preferring instead what their friends
:48:28. > :48:29.or family have to say or, believe it or not,
:48:30. > :48:40.And we're joined by Marcus Roberts from the polling firm YouGov.
:48:41. > :48:48.Treat has confirmed the Conservatives will not put of a
:48:49. > :48:53.candidate at the Batley Spen by-election when it comes after the
:48:54. > :49:00.murder of Jo Cox MP yesterday. The Conservatives will not contest it.
:49:01. > :49:03.We're also seeing reports from Paul Waugh of the huffing ton post. We
:49:04. > :49:08.are expecting a recall of the Commons. We've not been able to
:49:09. > :49:12.confirm that. Paul, a reliable reporter. That's what he's saying.
:49:13. > :49:19.When we hear about it confirmed, we'll let you know too. We're joined
:49:20. > :49:20.by Marcus Roberts from the polling service YouGov.
:49:21. > :49:22.He's got experience of working on digital campaigns,
:49:23. > :49:32.Would it be fair to say digital campaigns are an essential part of a
:49:33. > :49:39.political campaign? You need them? Absolutely. Let's understand what
:49:40. > :49:46.social media's good for con campaigns. Twitter is good for
:49:47. > :49:51.rallying existing supporters. It is good tor he can echoing the elite
:49:52. > :49:58.shameer of the SW 1 postcode. It is not a good tool for reaching out to
:49:59. > :50:04.voters. What is, is Facebook. Whilst Facebook is still only trusted as a
:50:05. > :50:12.major source of information by about 15% of voters, voters in are YouGov
:50:13. > :50:17.surveys consistently tell us they trust in politics information from
:50:18. > :50:24.friends and family another than any other source of information,
:50:25. > :50:29.television or newspapers. The prize for Leave or Remain is to get their
:50:30. > :50:34.supporters through Facebook, to tell their friends and family, this is
:50:35. > :50:37.how I'm voting. It is not perceived as a social media influence, it is a
:50:38. > :50:42.personal one which has power. Interesting on this evidence on
:50:43. > :50:46.Facebook. More and more I see people are getting their news from
:50:47. > :50:52.Facebook. It's not Facebook news. From other sources but they are
:50:53. > :50:57.reading it on their Facebook areas. And their friends are sharing
:50:58. > :51:02.stories. Have a look at this. ' You see that and so on. A number of
:51:03. > :51:06.Labour politicians said to me in the aftermath of their defeat last year
:51:07. > :51:09.instead of going on and on about the ground campaign, they had this
:51:10. > :51:15.wonderful ground campaign they should have spent a lot more money
:51:16. > :51:19.on Facebook. Sement Murphy says if he had his time again as Scottish
:51:20. > :51:25.Labour Leader, he would have spent almost all his money on Facebook.
:51:26. > :51:29.But that spending falls into two categories. Advertising, promoted
:51:30. > :51:35.posts from the campaign and two, something we really don't know
:51:36. > :51:41.about, targeted sharing. That's where you ask as a campaign an
:51:42. > :51:45.existing supporter to press a butt to share a suppress I'vic link with
:51:46. > :51:49.specific friends and family members that the campaign's targeted as
:51:50. > :51:58.being more susceptible to your inflewence. On the Obama campaign in
:51:59. > :52:02.2012, they believe about 600,000 voters used target sharing ability
:52:03. > :52:07.to influence 500,000 voters across America ma. We don't know the scale
:52:08. > :52:10.the leave and remain are sharing. But we'll see this was a major
:52:11. > :52:15.factor in the spending of both campaigns. It changes the nature of
:52:16. > :52:20.our campaigning in terms of finance forever in this country. Unlike the
:52:21. > :52:25.United States and some other countries, you cannot buy political
:52:26. > :52:29.advertising. One of the reasons American campaigns are so expensive.
:52:30. > :52:35.Billions of pounds are spent on spot advertising. There's no regulation
:52:36. > :52:41.of buying political advertising on social media. You can make video and
:52:42. > :52:47.American-style TV commercials. You can. Won of the worries about the
:52:48. > :52:50.forthcoming presidential election, Facebook and the people who own
:52:51. > :52:57.Facebook appear to be pro-Hillary and will do what they can to promote
:52:58. > :53:02.Hillary and do down Trump. Can they do anything? There was an argument
:53:03. > :53:06.that theal rhythms were biased to the left. It is not Facebook
:53:07. > :53:10.providing here is the news from Facebook. You go on to your Facebook
:53:11. > :53:15.account and you've got certain news you follow. People, your friends
:53:16. > :53:20.send you news as well. It's news from the BBC or the newspapers or
:53:21. > :53:25.whatever. Yeah, it is interesting. I follow all of you on Twitter. Are
:53:26. > :53:29.gripped by Twitter. I've been told this is marginal, as you confirm, in
:53:30. > :53:35.terms of the wider political spectrum. It's all on Facebook. At
:53:36. > :53:38.the last election, the Conservatives had some brilliant social media
:53:39. > :53:43.strategists who had this completely in their minds. All that talk about
:53:44. > :53:48.Labour winning a ground war and so on was completely surpassed by these
:53:49. > :53:52.geniuses at Conservative headquarters targeted voters through
:53:53. > :53:56.this Facebook mechanism. They'd been hired by the Remain group now who
:53:57. > :54:03.are clearly trying to do the same. I imagine the outers are also on to
:54:04. > :54:06.this. If you're right, it's of greater significance than landing of
:54:07. > :54:10.a newspaper, the online stuff and all the rest of it, that this
:54:11. > :54:16.passing of information through friends. What's important is it's
:54:17. > :54:21.only as good as the message that you're selling. The problem the
:54:22. > :54:25.Labour Party field organisers and regional staff and campaign staff
:54:26. > :54:31.had last year was how good was the product they were really selling.
:54:32. > :54:36.The problem Remain and Leave will be asking, is how good is the product
:54:37. > :54:40.they're selling? Facebook, social media, ground campaigns can be great
:54:41. > :54:44.and very well targeted and professionally executed. If the
:54:45. > :54:50.message doesn't resonate, you'll always have a problem. Good to know
:54:51. > :54:51.wherever the media is the message still matters.
:54:52. > :54:53.So, it's been a week defined by increasingly hectic campaigning
:54:54. > :54:56.ahead of next week's EU referendum and by tragedy,
:54:57. > :55:03.Here's Giles with our regular round-up of the week in 60 seconds.
:55:04. > :55:06.On Monday, a rainbow coalition of MPs turned out for a vigil
:55:07. > :55:09.to remember the victims of the mass shooting at the Pulse gay
:55:10. > :55:15.Labour ramped up the case for Remain in the EU referendum campaign
:55:16. > :55:17.this week, with a number of Shadow Cabinet members delivering
:55:18. > :55:20.speeches, despite one or two vocal opponents.
:55:21. > :55:23.George Osborne warned on Wednesday that he'd have to slash
:55:24. > :55:25.spending and increase taxes in the event of Brexit,
:55:26. > :55:28.but 65 of his own MPs immediately responded,
:55:29. > :55:30.saying they'd never support what they described
:55:31. > :55:35.The Chancellor basically needs to calm down and, regrettably,
:55:36. > :55:40.Philip Green did appear in front of a select committee to answer
:55:41. > :55:45.He said he shouldn't have sold the company to Dominic Chappell
:55:46. > :55:51.and vowed to sort out its pensions problem.
:55:52. > :55:53.On Thursday afternoon, the EU referendum campaigns
:55:54. > :55:56.were suspended following the news that MP Jo Cox had been
:55:57. > :56:00.A minute's silence was held in memory of the Batley
:56:01. > :56:12.So, campaigning has been suspended ahead of next week's EU referendum
:56:13. > :56:19.But the Remain campaign has confirmed to the Daily Politics
:56:20. > :56:22.that their campaign will resume tomorrow,
:56:23. > :56:24.and continue through until next Thursday.
:56:25. > :56:27.We've not been able to confirm when the Leave campaign
:56:28. > :56:37.. But we've not been able to confirm that. It is a short break. There are
:56:38. > :56:41.some thinking that perhaps it should be suspended through the weekend and
:56:42. > :56:46.the Commons should come back. That doesn't look like it will happen?
:56:47. > :56:51.The Commons might come back but not that long break in the campaign? No.
:56:52. > :56:57.If you think about it, there are just a few days to go. It would have
:56:58. > :57:02.been impossible to extend it however tragic the context of yesterday. So,
:57:03. > :57:06.it is inevitable. It will still have an impact on the tone and people
:57:07. > :57:11.will have to be very careful, the leading figures on both sides, how
:57:12. > :57:16.they play that resuming of the campaigning as from tomorrow. So, I
:57:17. > :57:21.think there will be an ongoing impact. If Parliament is recalled on
:57:22. > :57:26.Monday, that also will have an impact on the campaign. They can't
:57:27. > :57:30.really be campaigning that day? No, they'll all be back here. It will be
:57:31. > :57:34.interesting to hear if that's confirmed. It will have an impact on
:57:35. > :57:41.Monday. Getting close. Only two days after that. Both sides of the
:57:42. > :57:46.campaign will feet the weight of Jo Cox's murder as they do return to
:57:47. > :57:52.campaigning. They will be careful, I would think, of the tone? Yes. I
:57:53. > :57:57.think it would be wrong to assume even in the absence of Jo Cox's
:57:58. > :58:02.murder the tone would deteriorate further and the atmosphere become
:58:03. > :58:05.more February rile. I was talking to a senior campaign strategist who
:58:06. > :58:08.said in the final week of the campaign what both sides need to do
:58:09. > :58:12.is produce a positive, optimistic message. That tends to be the
:58:13. > :58:17.pattern in campaigns. It's easier, I think, for the Brexit side, Steve
:58:18. > :58:23.May disagree, to come up with an optimistic reason to vote Leave than
:58:24. > :58:27.the Remain side to come up. I disagree with that. I knew you
:58:28. > :58:31.would. We don't know yet. We won't go into it. Too early yet. But we
:58:32. > :58:36.don't know yet what the impact of this will be on the referendum. That
:58:37. > :58:39.is for days to come. I thank you both for being with me on this day.
:58:40. > :58:41.I think all of our guests. The one o'clock news is starting
:58:42. > :58:44.over on BBC One now. And I'll be back on Sunday
:58:45. > :58:48.with the Sunday Politics,