:00:37. > :00:38.Hello and welcome to the Daily Politics.
:00:39. > :00:42.Jeremy Corbyn takes his campaign north of the border,
:00:43. > :00:44.but can he reverse Labour's fortunes in Scotland?
:00:45. > :00:47.Meanwhile, the Labour leader is criticised for appearing
:00:48. > :00:49.to question his party's policy on Trident.
:00:50. > :00:55.The Conservatives dub him a risk to national security.
:00:56. > :00:58.Are the Conservatives planning a tax bombshell in the next Parliament?
:00:59. > :01:02.The 2015 manifesto promised not to raise VAT, income tax
:01:03. > :01:11.The polls might make it look clear, So why is everyone talking
:01:12. > :01:19.It's Macron and Le Pen in the final round of the French Presidential
:01:20. > :01:21.election as voters say au revoir to the established
:01:22. > :01:31.All that in the next hour and with us for the whole
:01:32. > :01:34.of the programme today the Shadow Defence Secretary,
:01:35. > :01:38.Nia Griffith, and the former Conservative minister,
:01:39. > :01:43.First today Jeremy Corbyn is heading to Scotland today to address
:01:44. > :01:47.He will reaffirm Labour's commitment to repeal what he calls
:01:48. > :01:50.the "vicious" Trade Union Act and will say the party will "never,
:01:51. > :01:54.ever apologise" for its close ties to the unions.
:01:55. > :02:01.Let's talk to our correspondent, James Shaw, who's in Aviemore.
:02:02. > :02:09.We know what he is expected to say, is it going to do anything to
:02:10. > :02:15.Labour's political fortunes in Scotland? That is the question. What
:02:16. > :02:18.I think I know this from the bullet points we have heard from what
:02:19. > :02:22.Jeremy Corbyn is going to say, there didn't seem to be anything that was
:02:23. > :02:29.differentiated specifically for Scotland. Note policies tailored to
:02:30. > :02:33.Scotland. It is the message we expect Jeremy Corbyn and the Labour
:02:34. > :02:40.Party to put out across the UK. We have to wonder if it is the right
:02:41. > :02:43.strategy because Scotland is a very different policy than the rest of
:02:44. > :02:47.the UK. Different things matter here and there are different political
:02:48. > :02:52.threats. The most obvious of those threats, as far as Labour is
:02:53. > :02:55.concerned is Nicola Sturgeon's Scottish Nationalists party. What
:02:56. > :03:02.are the voices saying in labour north of the border? It has to be
:03:03. > :03:07.said, they don't look particularly good. We only have to go back to
:03:08. > :03:12.2015 and the fact Labour lost all but one of their 41 MPs in Scotland.
:03:13. > :03:17.Things really haven't improved since. They got worse during the
:03:18. > :03:22.Scottish elections last year, where they dipped below the Conservatives,
:03:23. > :03:27.so they are, according to the polls, in third place. He would think there
:03:28. > :03:31.would have to be a serious effort by Labour to make a distinctive and
:03:32. > :03:40.persuasive offer to voters in Scotland really for them to make any
:03:41. > :03:42.improvement in the polls they have at the moment. Although there are
:03:43. > :03:44.factors like Brexit, which might make some people lean back towards
:03:45. > :03:49.labour, whereas they happens in the past. As you say, it puts a
:03:50. > :03:53.different I mentioned to the selection from Scotland. To steal a
:03:54. > :04:00.phrase from Ruth Davidson, the Tory leader in Scotland, has the Tory
:04:01. > :04:05.party reached its peak, in other words, it is only downwards for the
:04:06. > :04:10.SNP Web both the Tories and Labour could pick up seats and the Liberal
:04:11. > :04:16.Democrats? Ruth Davidson will make that case throughout this campaign.
:04:17. > :04:20.She has suggested the election in 2015 is that is when sentiment in
:04:21. > :04:26.favour of independence was at its strongest and she hopes it is ebbing
:04:27. > :04:29.away. There are a couple of seats in Scotland where the Conservatives are
:04:30. > :04:35.second to the SNP and they will be fighting very hard to try and get
:04:36. > :04:42.into first place, to try and claw back some MPs in Scotland, so that
:04:43. > :04:46.Ruth Davidson can make the case that they have peaked and there is less
:04:47. > :04:50.of a case for an independence referendum. Less of a case for
:04:51. > :04:53.Scottish independence, she would argue. James, thank you very much.
:04:54. > :04:55.The Defence Secretary, Sir Michael Fallon, says
:04:56. > :04:57.Jeremy Corbyn would put Britain's security at risk if he wins
:04:58. > :04:59.the general election and becomes Prime Minister.
:05:00. > :05:01.Mr Fallon, who has been in Bristol this morning
:05:02. > :05:03.at the headquarters of Airbus, attacked the Labour leader
:05:04. > :05:05.for calling into question Labour's commitment to the Trident nuclear
:05:06. > :05:09.weapons system and for suggesting he would be reluctant to authorise
:05:10. > :05:13.a drone strike on the leader of the Islamic State terror group.
:05:14. > :05:15.Labour want to be the next government.
:05:16. > :05:18.himself forward seriously as the next Prime Minister
:05:19. > :05:23.somebody who would not authorise strikes against terrorists, who
:05:24. > :05:25.wouldn't support our nuclear deterrent, and who would undermine
:05:26. > :05:33.So it is very important we do point out this is somebody who
:05:34. > :05:35.could be Prime Minister in six weeks' time.
:05:36. > :05:37.Mr Fallon was responding to Jeremy Corbyn's appearance
:05:38. > :05:42.As well as being asked about how he would deal with Islamic State,
:05:43. > :05:45.the Labour leader was also asked if the party's manifesto
:05:46. > :05:49.would include a commitment to renew the Trident nuclear missile system.
:05:50. > :05:52.The Shadow Defence Secretary, our guest Nia Griffith,
:05:53. > :05:56.had previously said the manifesto would include such a commitment.
:05:57. > :06:03.We haven't completed work on the manifesto yet,
:06:04. > :06:07.as you would expect less than 100 hours into this
:06:08. > :06:13.No, no, we're having that discussion within the Labour Party
:06:14. > :06:15.and we will produce our manifesto early in May.
:06:16. > :06:19.Do you think killing the leader of Isis would be helpful
:06:20. > :06:23.I think the leader of Isis not being around
:06:24. > :06:26.would be helpful and I'm no supporter or defender in any way
:06:27. > :06:28.whatsoever of Isis, I'm sure you would see,
:06:29. > :06:30.but I would also argue that
:06:31. > :06:31.the bombing campaign has killed a large
:06:32. > :06:34.number of civilians, many of
:06:35. > :06:37.whom were virtually prisoners of Isis so you've got to think about
:06:38. > :06:52.Jeremy Corbyn. Nia, we're number wiser as to whether the renewal of
:06:53. > :06:55.Trident will be in the Labour Party manifesto?
:06:56. > :07:00.It will be in the manifesto because that has been our policy and it has
:07:01. > :07:10.been confirmed time after time that the Labour Party is committed to the
:07:11. > :07:15.Trident policy. Have you made it clear to Jeremy Corbyn? I have, and
:07:16. > :07:19.it has been agreed it will be in the manifesto. So are you surprised
:07:20. > :07:23.yesterday he said the Labour policy on this might not be in the
:07:24. > :07:27.manifesto, in fact he said it hadn't been written. It is firmly our
:07:28. > :07:31.policy and it will be in the manifesto. But the Labour Party
:07:32. > :07:35.leader doesn't agree with you that yet isn't in the manifesto so it
:07:36. > :07:39.throws doubt on it. But the important thing is, we have
:07:40. > :07:43.reaffirmed clearly, it is part of our policy and we are firmly
:07:44. > :07:48.committed to the nuclear deterrent. What was your reaction when you
:07:49. > :07:51.heard that yesterday? We know Jeremy Corbyn has had his own personal view
:07:52. > :07:56.on these issues. But this is something we have been committed to
:07:57. > :08:06.for a long time. In 2007 we set the ball rolling for the renewal of the
:08:07. > :08:09.Trident and we are clear what our policy is. You have had these
:08:10. > :08:11.discussions with him presumably, and he is still opposed to it, is that
:08:12. > :08:14.sustainable during an election campaign that his views are at odds
:08:15. > :08:19.as to the Labour Party policy on this issue? When people vote they
:08:20. > :08:25.will be voting for a political policy and it is important they know
:08:26. > :08:30.what that policy is. Our policy is clear, we are committed to the
:08:31. > :08:36.nuclear deterrent. This would be the first time Labour leader didn't
:08:37. > :08:40.agree with something in its own party manifesto? I am setting out
:08:41. > :08:45.what our policy is and exactly where we stand on it for the manifesto.
:08:46. > :08:50.Should people not be voting for Labour if they want to see Jeremy
:08:51. > :08:55.Corbyn as Prime Minister. The important thing is, we are a team,
:08:56. > :09:00.we are working as a party and it is not a presidential election, it is
:09:01. > :09:04.about who is in government and an election between political parties
:09:05. > :09:08.in this country. How can it be a deterrent if Jeremy Corbyn as Prime
:09:09. > :09:14.Minister has stated he would never use it in any circumstance, it is no
:09:15. > :09:20.longer a deterrent? We are prepared to use it. It is important we are
:09:21. > :09:24.clear that you also deal with countries and potential enemies by
:09:25. > :09:28.being clear from the outset that you are prepared to use force, that you
:09:29. > :09:33.have forced to back up your negotiations. Nobody wants to use
:09:34. > :09:38.force as a first option. Everybody wants to negotiate first, try to get
:09:39. > :09:41.peaceful settlements. But if you have the option of force,
:09:42. > :09:52.conventional forces initially, but the ultimate deterrent as well, you
:09:53. > :09:55.are more likely to actually sustain peace and security at the end of the
:09:56. > :09:58.day. New have said you would use it as a last resort, but Jeremy Corbyn
:09:59. > :10:00.has said he won't. And if you win the election, he will be Prime
:10:01. > :10:05.Minister, and it will be him pushing the button, or on this case, not
:10:06. > :10:10.pushing the button. What he said, he will not use a first strike. What we
:10:11. > :10:14.have to be clear about, is we are prepared to use the nuclear
:10:15. > :10:18.deterrent and we are prepared to use it. How is it going to look to
:10:19. > :10:22.voters when you have a party leader who is sticking to the line he has
:10:23. > :10:27.always had and you have a different approach? It is party policy and the
:10:28. > :10:32.overwhelming membership of our party support this policy and that is
:10:33. > :10:36.where we are. It doesn't matter about party policy if the leader
:10:37. > :10:40.will not enact and uphold that party policy? It is important we set out
:10:41. > :10:46.what our party policy is so that people do know. But he wouldn't use
:10:47. > :10:50.it? It is important people know that we are fully committed to the
:10:51. > :10:55.nuclear deterrent. It doesn't really matter, does it in this instance? We
:10:56. > :11:02.know what Jeremy Corbyn's views are, this is a matter of last resort and
:11:03. > :11:06.nuclear weapons will probably never be used? Nia has done a remarkable
:11:07. > :11:11.job, as she does all the time honestly trying to put the point of
:11:12. > :11:15.view of where the party is. But it doesn't stack up. You have
:11:16. > :11:18.circumstances where the Prime Minister is required to make
:11:19. > :11:22.decisions. The Prime Minister alone has to make those decisions. You
:11:23. > :11:27.cannot go into election with a party policy is one thing or the would-be
:11:28. > :11:31.Prime Minister's stated views are another in circumstances such as
:11:32. > :11:43.this. The only deterrent a country has is those who might
:11:44. > :11:47.oppose or threaten the country knows exactly where its leadership is in
:11:48. > :11:50.times of crisis. We do not know that, we cannot know that as long as
:11:51. > :11:53.Jeremy Corbyn leads the Labour Party and says what he says. Nia. It is
:11:54. > :11:56.important people know where we stand on this and it is important we have
:11:57. > :12:01.that deterrent. Are you reassured by Jeremy Corbyn who would be head of
:12:02. > :12:06.this country's national security and defence as if Labour wins the
:12:07. > :12:12.election? We are committed to the deterrent and it is our policy and
:12:13. > :12:16.in the manifesto. Presumably, he would scrap the Trident renewal as
:12:17. > :12:20.Prime Minister? The important issue is we are committed to the nuclear
:12:21. > :12:24.deterrent and we will have a review with the spending commitments in the
:12:25. > :12:29.defence budget and we will have to look carefully, as has every
:12:30. > :12:34.government who have come in before. He did have an opportunity to say
:12:35. > :12:38.that the Trident would stay in place because it is already there, he
:12:39. > :12:42.refused to say that. But I am saying the Trident programme will stay in
:12:43. > :12:46.place and of course we will look at all the other spending commitments.
:12:47. > :12:53.He said he wouldn't necessarily be prepared to use drones to strike on
:12:54. > :12:57.the head of Isis, as the Lee Markham and he has been criticised for that.
:12:58. > :13:01.You are a Foreign Office minister and you have to admit when you look
:13:02. > :13:05.at the Middle East now, we have had coalition air strikes, drone attacks
:13:06. > :13:10.on Jihadi John, there hasn't been a removal of the threat of Isis or
:13:11. > :13:16.peace in Syria? There has been significant depletion of the
:13:17. > :13:21.leadership of Isis overtime. They are still there. Significant figures
:13:22. > :13:24.have been killed. If someone poses a threat to the United Kingdom and you
:13:25. > :13:31.have an opportunity to remove that threat, it is incumbent on a leader
:13:32. > :13:34.to do that. Of course, all the other things about seeking peaceful
:13:35. > :13:40.solutions go without being said. We know that, that is what the process
:13:41. > :13:44.of diplomacy does all the time. But there are occasions in a conflict
:13:45. > :13:47.situation where something arises and an immediate decision is needed and
:13:48. > :13:52.something that can affect what is happening on the battlefield and the
:13:53. > :13:59.the safety of innocent people can be done, can be achieved. That is why
:14:00. > :14:04.the policy of removing leaders of Isis and Al-Qaeda it in the Arabian
:14:05. > :14:08.Peninsula, that is wider policy is being followed. It is not a policy
:14:09. > :14:12.on its own, it is a policy with other things. Let's move on.
:14:13. > :14:14.The Conservative Party chairman, Patrick McLoughlin, has appeared
:14:15. > :14:15.to contradict the Chancellor, Philip Hammond, over
:14:16. > :14:19.Last week The Chancellor said that commitments made
:14:20. > :14:21.in the 2015 manifesto had constrained his "ability to manage
:14:22. > :14:25.Mr Hammond was referring to the so-called tax triple lock
:14:26. > :14:27.in which the Conservatives promised not to make any rises
:14:28. > :14:29.to National Insurance, VAT or income tax.
:14:30. > :14:31.Mr Hammond recently had to drop a planned rise in Class 4
:14:32. > :14:35.National Insurance Contributions because it appeared to contradict
:14:36. > :14:39.Mr McLoughlin was asked about this by Andrew
:14:40. > :14:45.Philip Hammond, the Chancellor said this week that your election promise
:14:46. > :14:49.in 2015, it was in your manifesto, not to raise taxes, had
:14:50. > :14:51.tied his hands when it came to managing the economy.
:14:52. > :14:59.The simple fact is, what we've got to do,
:15:00. > :15:02.is we've got to do the best things for the economy and we will be
:15:03. > :15:05.setting out in our manifesto in a few weeks, what the policies
:15:06. > :15:09.You don't agree with your Chancellor?
:15:10. > :15:14.What Philip was saying is some of the areas he wants
:15:15. > :15:18.What the party will do, in its manifesto, it will set out
:15:19. > :15:22.all the issues which we are fighting on, and it will set out very clearly
:15:23. > :15:31.the choice we have in this country and that's the important thing.
:15:32. > :15:34.Alistair Burt, should there be the triple tax log in the Conservative
:15:35. > :15:44.manifesto? I think there should be considering
:15:45. > :15:48.protection for pensioners, whether it should remain the same in new
:15:49. > :15:53.circumstances, I don't think... Djurdic be explicit in the way it
:15:54. > :15:57.was in the last manifesto that a Tory government will not put up
:15:58. > :16:02.income tax, VAT or national insurance contributions -- should it
:16:03. > :16:07.be explicit? If you are looking for the next manifesto to be exactly the
:16:08. > :16:12.same as the last... On that issue, should it be there, that explicit
:16:13. > :16:16.commitment? I'm quite sure that what will be in the manifesto is
:16:17. > :16:20.protection for pensioners in the way in which a new government seized
:16:21. > :16:24.that likely. I don't know if the triple lock will be there. I'm not
:16:25. > :16:30.asking you about pensioners, and asking you about taxpayers. The
:16:31. > :16:34.triple tax lock, the commitment that the Conservatives made not to
:16:35. > :16:41.increase VAT, national insurance... I would have flexibility. You drop
:16:42. > :16:45.it. I would have flexibility because that is what a Chancellor needs but
:16:46. > :16:48.the circumstances from this manifesto are different from 2015
:16:49. > :16:52.and I don't make taxation policy so I would like a policy that is right
:16:53. > :16:55.for the country and what the government and the Chancellor will
:16:56. > :16:59.propose will set it out in the context of where the economy is
:17:00. > :17:04.going. If it is a contest with any terms of low tax, this is a lower
:17:05. > :17:10.tax party. We will come to the record... You try to put up national
:17:11. > :17:15.insurance contributions which was in direct contravention of the last
:17:16. > :17:20.commitment. The average pay pays ?1000 less than when we came into
:17:21. > :17:24.office, 31 million people have the production altogether. Interns of
:17:25. > :17:28.tax policy, we are absolutely the right place. If it is going to vary
:17:29. > :17:31.from what it was in the past, that is fine. You have made it clear you
:17:32. > :17:37.want flexibility do you agree with Philip Hammond, you don't want that
:17:38. > :17:43.triple tax lock, but you would like to see it dropped but that it would
:17:44. > :17:47.give you flexibility to put up taxes. Flexible the in an economy
:17:48. > :17:50.which would still be a lower tax economy under the Conservative
:17:51. > :17:54.Party. You could put them up. It would give us flexible team in all
:17:55. > :17:59.the centres you need for an economy is growing where growth feeds into
:18:00. > :18:03.revenues. You cannot say at this stage that everything we had in the
:18:04. > :18:08.previous manifesto must automatically be... I'm not saying
:18:09. > :18:11.should be. I'm asking you what is the most effective policy as far as
:18:12. > :18:14.you are concerned in the Conservative policy and you think
:18:15. > :18:18.the triple tax lock was a mistake. I don't think it was a mistake, it was
:18:19. > :18:21.right for that manifesto and it has been followed through but a new
:18:22. > :18:26.manifesto and situation with an election gives a chance for the
:18:27. > :18:30.party to say something. Do you think you could roll out there being any
:18:31. > :18:36.increases in VAT, income tax... Of course I can't. So you can't claim
:18:37. > :18:41.you could be the lower tax party because you could put up taxes. I
:18:42. > :18:44.think if you were to try and assess who might be the lower tax party,
:18:45. > :18:49.you might look at the record and are we not a lower tax party that our
:18:50. > :18:54.rivals and those who would seek to take power? When did you last put up
:18:55. > :19:00.VAT? I can't remember. It was in 2011 and you said you would not do
:19:01. > :19:05.it, but it went up. If the average for those of basic rate income tax
:19:06. > :19:10.lower now than it was in 2010? It is lower, you know is. You promised not
:19:11. > :19:14.to put taxes up, that was the point of the triple tax lock, to promise
:19:15. > :19:19.you would not put up those income taxes. Tax policy has got to take
:19:20. > :19:23.account of what is happening in Ikeme as a whole any government has
:19:24. > :19:28.got the opportunity both to raise and lower element of taxation but it
:19:29. > :19:31.is direct or indirect in order to produce... So it was a mistake in
:19:32. > :19:37.the last manifesto. The Chancellor always need the ability and that
:19:38. > :19:40.constraint it. That policy worked for the time and it was important
:19:41. > :19:47.but of course you want the government that has the ability to
:19:48. > :19:51.change. I understand what it is... It's about trust. I agree with that
:19:52. > :19:56.but if circumstances change and people need to make changes, it is
:19:57. > :20:00.explained and you are able to move forward. If everything is always
:20:01. > :20:04.pinned down, this was in the manifesto, it must never change in
:20:05. > :20:09.the future, we have a new manifesto and we can be judged on that but
:20:10. > :20:13.also on overall tax policy over the past few years which is indisputably
:20:14. > :20:15.lower tax than it was. Let's leave it there for the moment.
:20:16. > :20:18.Now, tactical voting along Brexit lines is the talk of the town
:20:19. > :20:23.The Ukip leader, Paul Nuttall, suggested yesterday that his party
:20:24. > :20:29.may not stand against some MPs who are "good Brexiteers".
:20:30. > :20:34.He gave as examples the Conservative MP David Nuttall
:20:35. > :20:38.And this morning, the Ukip branch in Bournemouth West have said
:20:39. > :20:40.that they will not stand against the sitting
:20:41. > :20:44.They said that because Mr Burns is pro-Brexit, it "does not make
:20:45. > :20:49.Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrat leader, Tim Farron, said yesterday
:20:50. > :20:52.that there are "no circumstances whatsoever" in which his party
:20:53. > :20:58.would enter a coalition with either Labour or the Conservatives.
:20:59. > :21:00.But senior Lib Dem Vince Cable has called the only Green
:21:01. > :21:03.MP, Caroline Lucas, a "good progressive".
:21:04. > :21:07.And he urged Liberal Democrats in Brighton Pavilion to support her.
:21:08. > :21:09.The Green Party supports a so-called "Progressive Alliance" and they've
:21:10. > :21:11.said that they won't stand against the Remain-supporting
:21:12. > :21:18.Labour MP, Rupa Huq, in Ealing Central and Acton.
:21:19. > :21:24.And the former Labour Prime Minister, Tony Blair,
:21:25. > :21:32.He has said that it is a big issue than party allegiance.
:21:33. > :21:34.Joining me now is Matthew Goodwin, professor of politics
:21:35. > :21:43.It is going to be a significant issue? It could be if you look at
:21:44. > :21:46.that you could promise to stand out against good Brexiteers. That could
:21:47. > :21:51.have consequences. If Theresa May wins back half of the YouTube vote,
:21:52. > :21:58.it could bring the 40 or 50 Labour seeped into play -- half of the Ukip
:21:59. > :22:03.vote. The Lib Dems are gambling on the Leave voters do not turn out to
:22:04. > :22:07.take advantage of Remainers. You talked about it being as significant
:22:08. > :22:12.in terms of Ukip not standing against good Brexiteers but some
:22:13. > :22:15.people might say they are all about Brexit and this issue so why
:22:16. > :22:20.withdraw from a seat because the sitting MP is pro-Brexit if they
:22:21. > :22:26.have a whole other manifesto? I suppose what they are returning to
:22:27. > :22:29.is the 2010 fact that Lord Pearson essentially made with the
:22:30. > :22:33.Conservatives which was driven by the goal of ensuring the House of
:22:34. > :22:37.Commons is packed with as many Eurosceptics as possible and Ukip up
:22:38. > :22:42.worrying that if they took 15% of the vote in Chester, for example,
:22:43. > :22:46.they could keep Labour in that seat. I thought they were supposed to be
:22:47. > :22:52.about more than just Brexit. I guess they are. They have been trying to
:22:53. > :22:56.get some traction with this anti-Islam issued in the last few
:22:57. > :23:01.days and talking about electoral reform but the reality, most Ukip
:23:02. > :23:06.followers would concede that their share of the national vote will go
:23:07. > :23:10.down as six or 7%. For Theresa May that has massive consequences, for
:23:11. > :23:14.the Labour Party, in the last three years they have been panicking about
:23:15. > :23:18.the rise of Ukip but I think they have too worried about the collapse
:23:19. > :23:22.of Ukip because those votes going back to the Tories will have all
:23:23. > :23:26.sorts of repercussions. What about the progressive alliance between the
:23:27. > :23:32.greens, the Lib Dems and Labour? Will that only function at a local
:23:33. > :23:36.level where individual agreements are made? I imagine so but I'm not
:23:37. > :23:41.sure it will function at all, we're not seeing the kind of unity you
:23:42. > :23:45.need for that kind of pact to take place with less than 50 days until
:23:46. > :23:49.the election. It is complicated, but if you take the Lib Dems as an
:23:50. > :23:52.example, they are hoping they can give the Tories a bloody nose in the
:23:53. > :24:04.south-west but look at some of the seats. Some have a majority Leave
:24:05. > :24:07.vote so how are they going to get traction in seat where voters are
:24:08. > :24:10.saying, my voting tactically for the Lib Dems or what I really want and
:24:11. > :24:12.what I voted for in the referendum which is Brexit? I'm not sure this
:24:13. > :24:15.is going to be a massive realignment, I think the evidence is
:24:16. > :24:20.mixed. I think we will go from one region to the next thinking, how it
:24:21. > :24:25.did playing out? Has Ukip hit the Tories in more northern seat where
:24:26. > :24:29.voters view the Conservative Party is toxic or the Labour Party in
:24:30. > :24:34.southern seats where they are shifting from Ukip to the
:24:35. > :24:38.Conservatives? Are these suggestions of tactical voting from a position
:24:39. > :24:43.of weakness and desperation or come up with social media, could there be
:24:44. > :24:47.quite a impact, not just the split between Ukip and the Tories but in
:24:48. > :24:52.the left as well? My own view is that it is a big, exciting debate
:24:53. > :24:57.that we get into before an election but it never materialises. A bit
:24:58. > :25:01.like 18 to 24-year-olds turning out to vote to change history, it never
:25:02. > :25:04.really happens. We will have this discussion after the election and
:25:05. > :25:11.find that there was very minimal tactical voting generally. We will
:25:12. > :25:15.see a shift from Ukip to the Conservatives, not so much tactical
:25:16. > :25:20.but expressive, traditional social conservatives coming home if you
:25:21. > :25:24.like, I don't think that is tactical. The Labour Party may find
:25:25. > :25:28.itself getting hit on multiple fronts a really bad day, the
:25:29. > :25:32.desertion back to Theresa May, perhaps a drift to the Lib Dems in
:25:33. > :25:36.some seats but also another tactical decision, I'm staying at home. We
:25:37. > :25:39.will talk more about that. Thank you for coming in.
:25:40. > :25:44.What did you make of Tony Blair saying that the issue but Brexit is
:25:45. > :25:47.more important than party allegiance? I think this election is
:25:48. > :25:52.about many things at the economy will feature strongly, taxation
:25:53. > :25:57.policy will figure strongly and we are clear we will not hit lower and
:25:58. > :26:01.middle income earners. It will be the everyday things as much as
:26:02. > :26:05.anything, I don't think Brexit will be the only topic by any means.
:26:06. > :26:10.Tactical voting could help you, the greens have said they will not stand
:26:11. > :26:16.against the Labour MP, Rupa Huq, and you must welcome that. It is very
:26:17. > :26:20.important that it is only the Labour Party can make an alternative
:26:21. > :26:23.government to the Conservatives and if people want to vote for a
:26:24. > :26:26.possessive -- Progressive party, they have to vote Labour because
:26:27. > :26:31.that is the only way we can deliver change that people want. What about
:26:32. > :26:34.in seat where it might help if you allowed the greens or the Lib Dem
:26:35. > :26:39.and it not be a Tory candidate winning? You would not be in favour
:26:40. > :26:44.of that? It is important people have the choice to vote Labour and we
:26:45. > :26:47.represent the whole country. We have an opportunity to stand in every
:26:48. > :26:54.constituency and we will do. One of the greens keep target seat is
:26:55. > :27:01.Bristol West where the the sitting MP is pro-Remain soap would you then
:27:02. > :27:05.back some sort of pact like that? It is important that people who vote
:27:06. > :27:09.Labour are voting for a Labour government. Green MP does not have
:27:10. > :27:15.enough MPs to make a mini party in Westminster. It is important people
:27:16. > :27:17.understand that Westminster at 650 MPs and you can only have a
:27:18. > :27:23.significant impact and form another government is if you have a large
:27:24. > :27:28.political party. But you could have more seats if you did deals with the
:27:29. > :27:33.Lib Dems and with the Green party and kept Theresa May out of Downing
:27:34. > :27:38.Street. . It is important that we are determined to win the election
:27:39. > :27:42.and as Labour. What do you make about the tactical voting that is
:27:43. > :27:46.being talked about? I agree with Matthew, his talked about an awful
:27:47. > :27:50.lot because it is interesting stuff and part of the democratic process
:27:51. > :27:55.but when push comes to shove, people first weekend to vote in our system
:27:56. > :27:59.knowing that only a vote for their candidate is the most likely thing
:28:00. > :28:02.to get them elected. We have eight straightforward system, the more
:28:03. > :28:07.that your candidate gets, the more likely they are to win. People talk
:28:08. > :28:13.about pacts of the major parties have a vested interest in saying
:28:14. > :28:16.clearly, vote for us. I agreed that people have to realise that the only
:28:17. > :28:19.alternative government is a Labour Party want and that is why they had
:28:20. > :28:23.to vote Conservative to make sure that doesn't happen. We are clear on
:28:24. > :28:27.what people should be doing, they should be voting for us if they want
:28:28. > :28:32.strong, stable leadership which is what we offer. You will welcome the
:28:33. > :28:35.Ukip called the sake you should not stand against good Brexiteers? I
:28:36. > :28:41.welcome the thing that helps a Conservative be elected. We are all
:28:42. > :28:45.very fixed now, now the referendum is out of the way, we are working to
:28:46. > :28:50.make this success, so whether you voted Remain or not, it doesn't
:28:51. > :28:54.matter, what we have to do is commit ourselves as the Prime Minister has
:28:55. > :28:57.said, to making sure that leaving the EU is in the best interests of
:28:58. > :29:00.all of us and that is where the Conservative Party is. I think some
:29:01. > :29:04.people find it difficult to get their heads around that. How
:29:05. > :29:08.difficult will it be for Remain Labour MPs who are in areas where
:29:09. > :29:13.there was a high turnout for Leave? It is very clear what our policy is
:29:14. > :29:18.that we voted for in Article 50 because we of the Democratic vote in
:29:19. > :29:23.the referendum for Brexit but we want to get the best deal we can to
:29:24. > :29:28.ensure we can protect jobs. We want a good rapport with our European
:29:29. > :29:29.neighbours so we can export our goods and keep our factories here
:29:30. > :29:33.and make sure we protect jobs. A Ukip government would explicitly
:29:34. > :29:35.ban Sharia law in Britain. The party has been giving more
:29:36. > :29:38.detail of its integration agenda this morning,
:29:39. > :29:40.after the leader, Paul Nuttall, revealed yesterday that a pledge
:29:41. > :29:43.to ban the burqa would also be Here's the Ukip deputy
:29:44. > :29:51.leader, Peter Whittle. No parallel system should ever be
:29:52. > :29:54.allowed to impinge on the integrity There must be no tolerance
:29:55. > :30:00.of systems which deny The rights of women,
:30:01. > :30:06.for these are the most effected by such practices,
:30:07. > :30:15.should and must extend to all parts of our society regardless
:30:16. > :30:17.of religion or ethnicity. Now the public are
:30:18. > :30:18.rightly alarmed at the growth in Sharia courts
:30:19. > :30:22.and the apparent unwillingness of the political powers to face
:30:23. > :30:30.up to this. I am joined by Margo Parker, Ukip's
:30:31. > :30:42.equality spokesperson. Banning sharia law and sharia
:30:43. > :30:46.courts, they don't have any standing under the British legal system so
:30:47. > :30:51.how are you going to ban them, will you go round and stop them taking
:30:52. > :30:57.place? When we sit down and put this together, which will be part of our
:30:58. > :31:00.manifesto, this will be part of not allowing women to be second-class
:31:01. > :31:05.citizens so they will be represented fairly and only one law of the land.
:31:06. > :31:13.The one law of the land is absolutely supreme. It is supreme.
:31:14. > :31:19.It needs to be clarified. Women that are, for example, perhaps not as
:31:20. > :31:22.loud to have a share of a home, all sorts of things because they are
:31:23. > :31:29.disadvantaged. We must explore this, it has got to be done. How will you
:31:30. > :31:33.do it, how will you stop sharia courts sitting. Today was just a
:31:34. > :31:39.press conference with some small sound bites to tell you this is why
:31:40. > :31:45.we want more integration. We don't want women to be second-class
:31:46. > :31:50.citizens. But all women in this country are under a legal system we
:31:51. > :31:54.all share, whether or not there is a parallel court system that deals
:31:55. > :32:02.with domestic issues like divorce. If they are to be underlined in
:32:03. > :32:08.public in Britain, it has to go through our legal system, so I don't
:32:09. > :32:11.know what will change? A lot of women are disadvantaged by sharia
:32:12. > :32:15.law and we have evidence of that. So we have to make sure women are not
:32:16. > :32:21.subject to being second-class citizens. Paul Nuttall has called
:32:22. > :32:32.the burqa a barrier to integration but wouldn't it be a barrier to a
:32:33. > :32:37.multicultural society? No, you don't have people completely covering
:32:38. > :32:47.their faces working for the BBC. You are against religious freedom? Not
:32:48. > :32:52.at all. Women didn't and were not subjected to cover their faces in
:32:53. > :32:54.Iran, then they have a revolution and women cannot be High Court
:32:55. > :33:01.judges and then they have to cover their face. In Britain when women
:33:02. > :33:07.choose to wear the headscarf, it is their choice. But let me remind you
:33:08. > :33:12.what happened in July the 7th. A man dressed as a woman covered his face
:33:13. > :33:18.and got all the way to Rome so there is a security issue. It is not a
:33:19. > :33:24.barrier to integration? I think it is a barrier to integration. If it
:33:25. > :33:28.is about people'sfaces being covered on CCTV footage, what will you do
:33:29. > :33:35.about people wearing balaclavas, helmets or masks? They cannot in
:33:36. > :33:39.banks. Face covering is banned in France already, it is going to be
:33:40. > :33:45.banned in Germany. It is pending regulation in Austria. Does that
:33:46. > :33:49.make it right? I think it does, I think we are ahead of the curve
:33:50. > :33:53.here, standing of the women and saying, you don't have to do this if
:33:54. > :34:01.it is oppressive just because a man has told you to do it. You are
:34:02. > :34:06.wanting to ban it. Yes we are. Will you be telling women what to do? No,
:34:07. > :34:10.I will be saying that this is religious freedom, you don't have to
:34:11. > :34:16.cover your face because this is what men in a religious order has told
:34:17. > :34:22.you what to do. He want to ban women wearing the veil, you want to ban
:34:23. > :34:29.sharia courts and sharia law, in which way is it not anti-Moslem? It
:34:30. > :34:35.is not anti-Moslem. You could ban the courts the ultraorthodox run but
:34:36. > :34:41.you haven't called for that or any other expressions people might use
:34:42. > :34:46.in terms of their religion, the cross? We have called for
:34:47. > :34:49.integration and not segregation. Their ARC immunities around the
:34:50. > :34:54.country where women are segregated. They don't integrate in society.
:34:55. > :34:59.Perhaps they are not necessarily allow to speak the language. We have
:35:00. > :35:04.all sorts of instances where women are held back. We want them to
:35:05. > :35:09.realise their potential. Alistair Burt, would you support banning the
:35:10. > :35:17.burqa? No, in every society he would not tell people what to wear. There
:35:18. > :35:19.are places where it is part of the procedure where a woman would not be
:35:20. > :35:25.able to be fully covered in court, for example and in other security
:35:26. > :35:30.situations, but you cannot get integration if you tell people what
:35:31. > :35:34.to wear. I agree with Alistair and rather than imposing and dictating
:35:35. > :35:39.and telling communities exactly what Ukip thinks they should do, we are
:35:40. > :35:44.proud we have some Muslim MPs and they are working with the
:35:45. > :35:48.communities. This is on the side of women. Women who have had to have
:35:49. > :35:52.their vote done for them. You have seen this throughout the country
:35:53. > :35:59.where there have been pockets where they have not been allowed to
:36:00. > :36:03.integrate. We have FGM, and a situation for any woman or young
:36:04. > :36:07.child to go through. It has got to stop. There has been no
:36:08. > :36:14.prosecutions. The law is very clear in making sure... Why haven't we
:36:15. > :36:19.prosecuted anybody? The law is there to protect all others and that is
:36:20. > :36:25.the point. Why have we had no prosecutions, they do in France. On
:36:26. > :36:28.the issue of FGM, as I understand, you are proposing the parents of
:36:29. > :36:38.girls who are forced to have that are also prosecuted. That law was
:36:39. > :36:44.extended by David Cameron in 2015. So what are you proposing? Beef it
:36:45. > :36:50.up and make sure you do have prosecutions. It cannot carry on
:36:51. > :36:55.like this. It is shocking that young women are brutalised. How would you
:36:56. > :36:59.go about getting prosecutions? Doctors and health visitors have got
:37:00. > :37:06.to have an examination. There are no prosecutions. The evidence hasn't
:37:07. > :37:11.been brought to court. A couple of weeks back, in the West Midlands
:37:12. > :37:15.there had been a series on television about FGM. On Twitter,
:37:16. > :37:18.somebody from the West Midlands Police said we don't like to
:37:19. > :37:24.interfere with the family system, even though we know this might have
:37:25. > :37:29.happened. It was outrageous. I wrote to the West Midlands Chief Constable
:37:30. > :37:33.and I got a letter back. They must prosecuted vigorously, these
:37:34. > :37:38.actions. It is akin to where domestic violence used to be. It is
:37:39. > :37:42.a domestic, people said. On acceptable. It cannot be right if
:37:43. > :37:47.the law is being broken that any police force allows that to happen.
:37:48. > :37:52.Is it been followed through? When you look at the numbers, they are
:37:53. > :37:58.very high. David Cameron quoted something like over 130,000. It does
:37:59. > :38:03.seem incredible there haven't been prosecutions. Is enough effort being
:38:04. > :38:08.made to follow through? I sincerely hope to. It has risen in public
:38:09. > :38:13.prominence, people were not aware of it a little time ago, so it has to
:38:14. > :38:21.be out there. The answer is make sure people can feel can come
:38:22. > :38:25.forward and not stigmatise them. That is what we need to get the
:38:26. > :38:31.evidence amid the prosecution. What about banning sharia courts and
:38:32. > :38:35.sharia law, so there isn't a parallel legal system in this
:38:36. > :38:43.country? It is not recognised in our law. So the important thing is that
:38:44. > :38:48.we work with the Muslim communities. We have some excellent women Muslim
:38:49. > :38:55.MPs in the Labour Party. So let's make sure that we are working
:38:56. > :39:02.together and we are making sure discrimination in all its forms is
:39:03. > :39:06.eliminated. It absolutely vital we do so. Women's rights must be
:39:07. > :39:10.indivisible in any part of the United Kingdom. Thank you very much.
:39:11. > :39:13.So, we might have our own election to occupy us, but until Theresa May
:39:14. > :39:16.made the surprise announcement last Tuesday, much of our attention
:39:17. > :39:21.was focused on events across the Channel.
:39:22. > :39:23.Last night the 11 candidates in the French Presidential election
:39:24. > :39:25.were whittled down to two: the centrist candidate
:39:26. > :39:29.Emmanuel Macron will face the leader of the Front National,
:39:30. > :39:32.Marine Le Pen, in the final round in a fortnight.
:39:33. > :39:33.Here they are after last night's result.
:39:34. > :39:35.TRANSLATION: Today, Sunday the 23rd of April,
:39:36. > :39:39.As the country is going through an unprecedented
:39:40. > :39:41.moment in its history, marked by terrorism, economic
:39:42. > :39:47.challenges, social suffering of workers and urgent environmental
:39:48. > :39:49.problems, they have responded in the most beautiful way,
:39:50. > :39:58.TRANSLATION: We've made the first step which will take
:39:59. > :40:00.the French people to the Elysee Palace.
:40:01. > :40:08.It confers on me the immense responsibility of defending
:40:09. > :40:13.the French nation, its unity, its security, its culture,
:40:14. > :40:33.He works here in London and is a supporter of Marine Le Pen.
:40:34. > :40:43.Surely it is over her, Fillon is endorsing Emmanuel Macron. If enough
:40:44. > :40:48.of the voters go Emmanuel Macron, he has got it? It is not that clear. We
:40:49. > :40:57.have seen French voters change their minds very quickly in the primary
:40:58. > :41:02.and the Republicans. There is still two weeks to go and there is going
:41:03. > :41:05.to be a debate in about one week where Emmanuel Macron will have to
:41:06. > :41:10.explain his project for fans in front of Marine Le Pen. French
:41:11. > :41:16.people will get a chance, after five years of waiting, to decide if they
:41:17. > :41:23.want to go forward with defending their identity. You are a banker,
:41:24. > :41:29.and some people will say, how are you, who has obviously benefited
:41:30. > :41:38.from globalisation, supporting a woman who is anti-globalisation? I
:41:39. > :41:45.had to leave my country to find my work. It is a minority, there has
:41:46. > :41:53.been millions of jobs destroyed in France. Thousands of women raped and
:41:54. > :41:57.this is the price French people are not prepared to pay. With Marine Le
:41:58. > :42:02.Pen as the President you can go back to France and have a job similar to
:42:03. > :42:05.the one you have here? I will be able to have a decent live in
:42:06. > :42:14.France. I have an education that has been paid for and it doesn't matter
:42:15. > :42:17.how rich I am. You are in favour of her protectionist views and
:42:18. > :42:25.policies? With all this competition from countries with lower social
:42:26. > :42:30.systems which don't respect the work's rights as we do, it is
:42:31. > :42:35.essential we have a state to protect us. One of the things that is
:42:36. > :42:40.interesting, the two candidates have gone against the mainstream
:42:41. > :42:43.candidates, they are painting themselves as the non-establishment
:42:44. > :42:47.candidates. But in a way, Emmanuel Macron doesn't even have a party,
:42:48. > :42:53.isn't he the populist who will ride the wave more than remain the pen
:42:54. > :42:57.who has become more established? It is interesting because I watched the
:42:58. > :43:01.speech of Emmanuel Macron and he painted himself as trying to change
:43:02. > :43:07.the system. I think if you look at the facts, he has been a minister
:43:08. > :43:10.for two years, during which unemployment increased and before
:43:11. > :43:18.that he was an adviser of President Hollande. So his policies were
:43:19. > :43:22.directly inspired by him. The train yourself as an anti-system candidate
:43:23. > :43:29.is hard. You could argue Marine Le Pen has been part of the system for
:43:30. > :43:32.years, as has her party, she has representation at local town hall
:43:33. > :43:41.level and is very much part of the establishment? Do you know any other
:43:42. > :43:45.establishment member who has had their House bombed? No, but I'm
:43:46. > :43:49.trying to say she is part of the political establishment in France,
:43:50. > :43:52.do you not think she is? She is always trying to put the French
:43:53. > :43:59.people ahead of the system, that is why I support her. Were you
:44:00. > :44:02.surprised at how both Francois Fillon and the Socialist candidates
:44:03. > :44:07.are out, the mainstream parties have been voted against? Yes they have,
:44:08. > :44:12.it is an extraordinary situation with the country as apparently as
:44:13. > :44:18.divided into four parts as we have seen from the results. It is not for
:44:19. > :44:23.an outsider to pronounce in terms of individual parties, but the sense of
:44:24. > :44:27.uncertainty in France because of the process, the almost even split
:44:28. > :44:32.between the major blocks. But the two main establishment parties have
:44:33. > :44:36.not gone forward. But we suspect the establishment parties, because of
:44:37. > :44:39.their interest on the issues that they consider important for France
:44:40. > :44:45.may come together and support Emmanuel Macron. It was a terrible
:44:46. > :44:49.showing for the Socialist party in France, you must have felt low
:44:50. > :44:54.watching that? The French system is, they vote once and they can almost
:44:55. > :45:02.experiment, if you like, and see if their candidate can come anywhere.
:45:03. > :45:08.That is what we have seen. The socialist candidate got 6%. They
:45:09. > :45:14.have been looking elsewhere, looking clearly for Emmanuel Macron in this
:45:15. > :45:18.case. I think we will see a coalescence of people coming
:45:19. > :45:25.together to back Mr Macron because he can appeal both to the more
:45:26. > :45:28.left-wing socialist side and also to the business minded right-wing side.
:45:29. > :45:31.I think he will go forward. Thank you for coming in.
:45:32. > :45:33.So let's see what else is happening in The Week Ahead.
:45:34. > :45:35.As we've already heard, both Jeremy Corbyn and Nicola Sturgeon
:45:36. > :45:37.are addressing the Scottish TUC conference today.
:45:38. > :45:40.Wednesday is a big day in the Prime Minister's diary,
:45:41. > :45:45.as it's the last PMQs before parliament dissolves next week.
:45:46. > :45:48.She's also playing host to Jean-Claude Juncker
:45:49. > :45:50.in Downing Street and possibly the EU's chief Brexit
:45:51. > :45:54.Thursday is "Prorogation" or the formal end of
:45:55. > :46:01.It starts the period between the end of one session and the State Opening
:46:02. > :46:05.Not to be confused with dissolving parliament when an election
:46:06. > :46:08.is formally called, which will be next Wednesday.
:46:09. > :46:11.And the week rounds off with the European Council meeting
:46:12. > :46:13.on Saturday where EU Heads of Government are set
:46:14. > :46:17.to agree on the negotiating terms of Brexit talks.
:46:18. > :46:20.We're joined now by Fraser Nelson from the Spectator and Kate Proctor
:46:21. > :46:34.Welcome to both of you. We heard Tony Blair calling for voters to put
:46:35. > :46:38.party allegiance aside and focus more on backing candidates who are
:46:39. > :46:42.Andy Hodd Brexit. How much is tactical voting is going to be
:46:43. > :46:51.present in this election -- antique hard Brexit. Not so much in England.
:46:52. > :46:55.In Scotland there will be a lot of tactical voting anti-nationalist
:46:56. > :46:58.voting because there is another referendum on the cards and anybody
:46:59. > :47:03.who's does not want it is likely to vote for a candidate most likely to
:47:04. > :47:08.stop the SNP. Scotland is where the tactical action will be. Do you
:47:09. > :47:12.agree that this is being done from a position of weakness rather than
:47:13. > :47:17.strength? Tactical voting comes up every time but there is something
:47:18. > :47:21.serious behind this and I think in England it will be the way forward
:47:22. > :47:24.for a lot of people. Speaking to people over the weekend, they are
:47:25. > :47:29.making it their agenda to choose a party they would not normally
:47:30. > :47:36.choose. In terms of the issues, we talk about tax and security, but in
:47:37. > :47:39.last week's PMQs Jeremy Corbyn focused a lot on the debt and
:47:40. > :47:46.deficit. If the economy still going to be centre stage? Not to the same
:47:47. > :47:50.extent. The Conservatives are moving to the left economically, Theresa
:47:51. > :47:55.May is stealing Ed Miliband's plans for up energy ice cap and wants to
:47:56. > :48:01.clear the way for more tax rises as they did in the last budget. The
:48:02. > :48:05.pledge not to raise taxes will vanish in this manifesto for the
:48:06. > :48:08.Tories and they will move towards the Labour Party is economically. I
:48:09. > :48:13.don't think there will be as big a battle ground. She will be teased
:48:14. > :48:18.for stealing Miliband's policies but she will say, if you don't like
:48:19. > :48:24.that, you are you going to vote for? And on energy, she will be teased
:48:25. > :48:28.for that, but in your mind are they literally stealing some of the
:48:29. > :48:31.proposals from Labour? They even said state intervention in the
:48:32. > :48:36.energy market would be a terrible thing. They seem to be doing that a
:48:37. > :48:39.lot at the moment, it is about positioning. I know Theresa May is
:48:40. > :48:46.unlikely to think that Jeremy Corbyn is much of a threat but if you hark
:48:47. > :48:49.back to Miliband's policies, that is where the crossover between Cameron
:48:50. > :48:53.and an Miliband existed previously and Theresa May will go after those
:48:54. > :48:58.policies to get back some of those voters. One of the other policies
:48:59. > :49:01.Labour is committed to is the triple lock on pensions which some people
:49:02. > :49:05.might be surprised about but we're talking about a group of people who
:49:06. > :49:14.do vote. And the Conservatives are yet to confirm that. Will it be in
:49:15. > :49:17.the manifesto? I don't think so, it is a very expensive pledge and it
:49:18. > :49:20.was only in there to bribe pensioners at the last election and
:49:21. > :49:24.it worked and they got a majority but now Theresa May does not need to
:49:25. > :49:30.bribe anybody with Labour as weak as they are. Expensive badges like that
:49:31. > :49:36.and other promises to pensioners will vanish. -- expensive pledges.
:49:37. > :49:41.And it also has done its job. There was a time when pensioner income was
:49:42. > :49:45.below that of the working age but now disposable income is almost the
:49:46. > :49:49.same for pension houses and working age houses so it's time to abolish
:49:50. > :49:55.it. And raising the state pension age is something on the agenda.
:49:56. > :49:58.Interesting to see if that comes up in the manifesto or if it will be
:49:59. > :50:01.kicked into the long grass because raising the state pension age, there
:50:02. > :50:07.was meant to be an announcement on that. Were you surprised that the
:50:08. > :50:12.Labour Party has committed itself to keeping the triple lock on pensions?
:50:13. > :50:17.Not at all. It is hugely expensive and it sounds like the kind of thing
:50:18. > :50:23.they think is a good idea and it is a vote winner, especially those over
:50:24. > :50:30.55 and 16 onwards. It is hugely popular but as evidence has shown,
:50:31. > :50:36.it is financially in viable -- 55 and 60. It will be difficult for
:50:37. > :50:42.them to see it through. And PMQs on Wednesday, what are you expecting?
:50:43. > :50:47.Theresa May is in good form and seems to be relishing this election
:50:48. > :50:52.and she will try to handbag Jeremy Corbyn as much as possible. He might
:50:53. > :50:56.attack her from the right, we have had this effective Tory tax
:50:57. > :50:59.bombshell line from Labour and he might try that again is the strange
:51:00. > :51:03.to see him resorting to it but he does not have that much ammunition.
:51:04. > :51:04.Thank you very much. Enjoy the campaign.
:51:05. > :51:06.Now, on Friday's programme, Laura Perrins from the Conservative
:51:07. > :51:09.Woman website claimed that the Shadow Brexit Secretary,
:51:10. > :51:11.Keir Starmer, sent his children to private school.
:51:12. > :51:16.Keir Starmer says his children go to a local state primary in Camden,
:51:17. > :51:21.Laura Perrins has since issued an apology and we're also happy
:51:22. > :51:27.Now, with the election every political party
:51:28. > :51:30.will be taking a long, hard look at their priorities
:51:31. > :51:33.As they write their manifestos, they'll be trying to decide
:51:34. > :51:35.where to be generous, and where to make savings.
:51:36. > :51:38.When it comes to a government's first duty, the defence
:51:39. > :51:40.of the realm, we spend what is the Nato target -
:51:41. > :51:47.But the writer Andrew Sabisky argues that isn't enough,
:51:48. > :51:49.and is challenging the parties to commit to trebling -
:51:50. > :52:20.This London memorial, honouring the thousands of
:52:21. > :52:24.airmen who died flying Bomber Command in the Second World
:52:25. > :52:26.War, is a magnificent reminder of our glorious
:52:27. > :52:30.But here in the present, decades of funding cuts have
:52:31. > :52:43.But the problem is not just recruitment.
:52:44. > :52:46.We are building aircraft carriers but without the escorts needed
:52:47. > :52:51.The Army has fewer than 200 main battle tanks left and
:52:52. > :52:56.we've lost the capacity to build more.
:52:57. > :52:58.In Iraq and Afghanistan our troops fought bravely but lacked the
:52:59. > :53:01.resources to defeat the insurgencies they faced and had to be bailed
:53:02. > :53:13.At the moment we spend 2% of our national
:53:14. > :53:19.But if we want to be a truly global power, then we
:53:20. > :53:30.And that means increasing the military's budget.
:53:31. > :53:33.On our doorstep, a weak Europe faces the
:53:34. > :53:36.terrifying threat of a resurgent Russia that could conquer our
:53:37. > :53:41.allies, Estonia and Latvia, in just 60 hours.
:53:42. > :53:44.And our Ministry of Defence is not equipped to deal with
:53:45. > :53:52.We are far too reliant on the US, with the unstable
:53:53. > :53:59.A dangerous and uncertain world calls
:54:00. > :54:07.Now that there's an election, I'm challenging the parties to commit to
:54:08. > :54:10.trebling our defence expenditure from 2% to 6% of GDP.
:54:11. > :54:25.Protect our nation, save our military, and spend the six.
:54:26. > :54:41.Well done for timing it with the procession. Why 6%, why not four or
:54:42. > :54:47.five? Could we have lost so much capability over the last few decades
:54:48. > :54:52.and particularly since 2010, the Defence Select Committee report in
:54:53. > :54:55.2016 that since then we had lost 20% of our conventional capabilities.
:54:56. > :55:02.I'm not saying we should spend 6% for ever but maybe for the next five
:55:03. > :55:08.years, a really big boost, some heavy equipment buying and then
:55:09. > :55:14.taper down toward a long-term target of 4%. Let's get reaction to that,
:55:15. > :55:18.do you back that? We are absolutely committed to the 2% spending that
:55:19. > :55:27.Nato requires. That will be in the manifesto. Definitely. Does Jeremy
:55:28. > :55:31.Corbyn support that? He does and has talked about it at the dispatch box
:55:32. > :55:36.and we have talked about in treating B 2% but what we will be doing is
:55:37. > :55:39.not fiddling the figures in the way that I have to say that the
:55:40. > :55:44.Conservatives have done. How have they done that? Trying to include
:55:45. > :55:49.things like pensions as part of that 2%, we want it to be as we can delay
:55:50. > :55:54.did it in 2010 but Andrew highlighted the point that we have
:55:55. > :55:58.spending slashed since the 2010 defence review and that is the
:55:59. > :56:03.problem we have got. You indicated you would like to spend more than
:56:04. > :56:06.2%? How much more? I said we're looking carefully at what we would
:56:07. > :56:09.need to spend and we would want a proper review to look at some of the
:56:10. > :56:15.gaps that Andrew is highlighting and where we might need to put in more
:56:16. > :56:22.money. That might not be enough for you, not even America spends that
:56:23. > :56:26.much of GDP, 6%. White should we? Again, I'm not saying we should do
:56:27. > :56:29.it for ever and it is not a partisan issue, there is plenty of blame for
:56:30. > :56:32.the last Labour government as well as the Tories but because of the
:56:33. > :56:37.capabilities we have lost and we urgently need to restore, such as
:56:38. > :56:42.the fact that we don't have the airborne capabilities to patrol our
:56:43. > :56:49.season against submarines, it is gone. The figures when we get down
:56:50. > :56:52.to it, we spend around 50 billion on defence now, that would put it up to
:56:53. > :56:58.150 billion and it would be bigger than the NHS budget. Where does that
:56:59. > :57:03.extra ?100 billion come from? Are you comfortable with the defences as
:57:04. > :57:06.they are now, particularly as outlined? I'm comfortable that from
:57:07. > :57:12.the time of the last election we increased the commitment to that 2%
:57:13. > :57:16.of GDP and we said the cuts were done and we have an investment
:57:17. > :57:21.programme in machinery and the goods people need and it is stable in
:57:22. > :57:25.company with partners and Nato to go to the sort of figures you are
:57:26. > :57:28.talking about I think is impractical. We have to work with
:57:29. > :57:33.others for our defence capability. It would mean massive cuts to other
:57:34. > :57:36.parts of public spending. It would mean a few. I think certain
:57:37. > :57:41.sacrifices may have to be made particularly by the older generation
:57:42. > :57:47.who are currently recipients of extremely expensive pledges like the
:57:48. > :57:51.triple lock, free NHS prescriptions and so on. In order to fund defences
:57:52. > :57:57.but are you saying we are in a more dangerous world than in the Cold War
:57:58. > :58:01.for example? I wouldn't say it was necessarily less dangerous given the
:58:02. > :58:05.highly unpredictable and unstable leadership in Russia, North Korea
:58:06. > :58:11.and of course the Middle East is a powder keg. You would agree with
:58:12. > :58:16.that? We are living in a dangerous world, whether as dangerous as the
:58:17. > :58:21.Cold War, and there were cuts to defences. You're been accused of the
:58:22. > :58:25.figures. I don't think we did that at all but what we said at the last
:58:26. > :58:31.election was those cuts came to an end, we would go back to the 2% and
:58:32. > :58:34.we make that pledge which people said we would not do but we have
:58:35. > :58:38.done and it means more money is coming into the forces now. It is
:58:39. > :58:42.essential we keep up our defenders and work with others and you need a
:58:43. > :58:46.strong economy to do that. I don't think you would get it by trying to
:58:47. > :58:51.put in as much as you are suggesting. I'm afraid we have run
:58:52. > :58:55.out of time. Thank you for coming in and to you two. From all of us here,
:58:56. > :58:58.goodbye.