:00:38. > :00:41.Hello and welcome to the Daily Politics.
:00:42. > :00:44.Ukip leader Paul Nuttall officially launches his party's election
:00:45. > :00:47.campaign as he says the Brexit battle is only half won.
:00:48. > :00:50.But he refuses to say where he will stand in the forthcoming election.
:00:51. > :00:56.A man carrying knives is arrested on terror charges
:00:57. > :01:01.In separate incidents, police arrest six people
:01:02. > :01:04.in anti-terror raids in London and Kent.
:01:05. > :01:10.The Prime Minister accuses the EU of "lining up" to oppose the UK
:01:11. > :01:14.in Brexit negotiations after German Chancellor Angela
:01:15. > :01:18.Merkel says the UK had "illusions" about how tough the talks will be.
:01:19. > :01:24.We assess the state of play ahead of a crucial EU summit this weekend.
:01:25. > :01:27.And it's been a while since we last had a "dressed down"
:01:28. > :01:41.So why will this year's Queen's Speech be a low key affair?
:01:42. > :01:44.All that in the next hour, and with us for the duration,
:01:45. > :01:47.columnist for The Times Jenni Russell, and the executive editor
:01:48. > :02:00.We are hoping to be joined by him shortly after he has been held up.
:02:01. > :02:02.Now, a man was arrested near the Houses of Parliament yesterday
:02:03. > :02:04.following an intelligence-led operation by the police.
:02:05. > :02:06.The Metropolitan Police said the 27-year-old man was detained
:02:07. > :02:10.Three knives that he was carrying in a rucksack
:02:11. > :02:16.The arrest was carried out just yards from last month's deadly
:02:17. > :02:18.terror attack in Westminster in which five people died,
:02:19. > :02:23.In a separate incident, police say they have foiled
:02:24. > :02:27.an active terror plot after a woman was shot during a raid on a house
:02:28. > :02:38.Let's talk now to our home affairs correspondent Danny Shaw.
:02:39. > :02:48.Danny, take us through the operation last night. This operation that took
:02:49. > :02:51.place in Wilson last night involved armed police, and we are told by
:02:52. > :02:54.Scotland Yard armed police were involved because of the nature of
:02:55. > :02:58.the intelligence they were acting on. They used CS gas to enter a
:02:59. > :03:06.property believed to be a top floor flat in Willesden. During that raid,
:03:07. > :03:12.shots were fired and a woman was injured in the police shooting. She
:03:13. > :03:15.is in a serious but stable condition in hospital. Witnesses saying she
:03:16. > :03:20.was led out and treated on the pavement in front of the property.
:03:21. > :03:24.She appeared to have a bandage on her arm and also on her stomach,
:03:25. > :03:28.though the extent of the injuries hasn't been confirmed. She is not
:03:29. > :03:32.yet been arrested, she is under armed guard in hospital. Six other
:03:33. > :03:41.people have been arrested, however, and three of them are women, two men
:03:42. > :03:44.and a 16-year-old boy. One of the arrests took place in Kent. The
:03:45. > :03:48.others were all in or near the property. Police have confirmed that
:03:49. > :03:55.as a result of their actions, a plot believed to have been targeted at
:03:56. > :03:59.the UK has been foiled. A plot foiled as a result of police actions
:04:00. > :04:05.in Willesden last night. We were just showing footage taken by a
:04:06. > :04:10.witness to that police action on a mobile phone to just explain to
:04:11. > :04:14.viewers. Unrelated, there has been another arrest. A man who was armed
:04:15. > :04:20.with three nights in Westminster. Tell us a bit about that. This was a
:04:21. > :04:23.separate counterterrorism investigation. We understand this
:04:24. > :04:28.individual had been on the police security service radar for some time
:04:29. > :04:33.and then police received some information believed to be from
:04:34. > :04:38.among the community raising concerns about this particular individual,
:04:39. > :04:42.and as a result, he was stopped and searched in Westminster very near to
:04:43. > :04:47.Parliament Square yesterday. As a result of that he's been arrested
:04:48. > :04:53.under counterterrorism laws. At least three knives have been
:04:54. > :04:56.recovered. They were seen on the pavement being forensically examined
:04:57. > :05:02.yesterday. The incident has been under control. The 27-year-old man
:05:03. > :05:07.is still in custody being questioned by police. So two incidents
:05:08. > :05:13.unrelated, both intelligence-lead, and according to police, both have
:05:14. > :05:17.been successfully contained. It comes weeks after the attack at the
:05:18. > :05:22.Houses of Parliament in which several people, including PC Keith
:05:23. > :05:26.Palmer, lost their lives. People might be concerned and asking
:05:27. > :05:31.questions about an increase in what they see as terror-related incident
:05:32. > :05:34.-- incidents and crimes. I think some of these things we've been
:05:35. > :05:39.seeing have been going on every week for the past couple of years. Police
:05:40. > :05:44.have been making arrests, carrying out operations. Some get more
:05:45. > :05:48.publicity than others. The incident that took place at Westminster
:05:49. > :05:53.yesterday was obviously of huge concern because of the proximity to
:05:54. > :05:56.the Houses of Parliament, Downing Street, government officials,
:05:57. > :06:01.ministers and so on. And because of the fact that it had echoes of the
:06:02. > :06:06.tragic events of last month. But the fact is that the police have been
:06:07. > :06:10.working round-the-clock for a number of years on counterterrorism
:06:11. > :06:13.operations. Much of what they do, as the Prime Minister said yesterday,
:06:14. > :06:17.we don't hear about and don't see them do it, but they are working
:06:18. > :06:21.behind the scenes carrying out arrests. And it is possible that
:06:22. > :06:26.some of the activity we are seeing might be some kind of response to
:06:27. > :06:29.the events of last month. Perhaps the police are trying to nip things
:06:30. > :06:34.in the bud a bit earlier because they don't want operations to
:06:35. > :06:37.escalate. But it is clear that what police are doing is acting on
:06:38. > :06:42.intelligence rather than in response to a direct threat on a particular
:06:43. > :06:45.day. And in terms of that intelligence and responding to it,
:06:46. > :06:50.people will be relieved of course if the police have managed to foil, if
:06:51. > :06:55.that turns out to be the case, those plots you were talking about at the
:06:56. > :06:58.beginning. This does of course provide some reassurance to the
:06:59. > :07:01.public that the police are doing their work. The other thing that is
:07:02. > :07:06.striking is that they do rely on information from members of the
:07:07. > :07:09.community. It seems that that information was crucial in
:07:10. > :07:13.yesterday's arrest in Westminster, it's been crucial in other
:07:14. > :07:16.investigations as well. And police are urging anybody with suspicions
:07:17. > :07:20.to come forward. They are emphasising this is not something
:07:21. > :07:27.they can do by themselves. They are the ones who carry out the arrests
:07:28. > :07:29.and investigations but they rely on intelligence and information from
:07:30. > :07:32.members of the public, concerned family, friends, other members of
:07:33. > :07:38.the community, to call in or message them in some way. Thank you very
:07:39. > :07:44.much. Are you reassured rather than concerned, Jenni Russell? I don't
:07:45. > :07:48.know that I've ever reassured by the fact that you have meant walking
:07:49. > :07:53.around carrying three knives, let alone one! I am reassured, actually.
:07:54. > :07:57.I'm rather impressed that the police seem to have enough lines into
:07:58. > :08:01.communities and enough trust that people are letting them know ahead
:08:02. > :08:04.of time. There's so much police work we never know anything about but it
:08:05. > :08:07.seems impressive they could stop somebody walking down Whitehall and
:08:08. > :08:13.they had exactly the right person, and indeed he was carrying weapons
:08:14. > :08:16.he intended to use. Let's leave there.
:08:17. > :08:20.Yesterday we found out that the Queen will dress down
:08:21. > :08:23.for the State Opening of Parliament after the general election.
:08:24. > :08:26.So the question for today is when was the last time she did so?
:08:27. > :08:43.You can wait till the end of the show to give us the answer. What we
:08:44. > :08:48.really want to know is what dressed down means. Does it mean jeans and a
:08:49. > :08:53.T-shirt? We will see! All will be revealed!
:08:54. > :08:56.EU leaders are gathering in Brussels tomorrow for a summit to agree
:08:57. > :08:58.the EU's negotiating strategy for the forthcoming Brexit talks.
:08:59. > :09:01.Yesterday the Prime Minister accused the EU of "lining up" to oppose
:09:02. > :09:04.She was responding to comments by the German Chancellor,
:09:05. > :09:07.Angela Merkel, who said the UK had "illusions" about how
:09:08. > :09:11.Let's have a listen to what they had to say:
:09:12. > :09:14.TRANSLATION: To us, it may seem obvious the form
:09:15. > :09:16.negotiations will take, but there are some in Britain
:09:17. > :09:19.who still labour under quite some illusions.
:09:20. > :09:28.We have seen that actually, there will be times when these
:09:29. > :09:38.Yet our opponents are already trying to disrupt them,
:09:39. > :09:40.at the same time as 27 other European countries
:09:41. > :09:50.Let's talk now to our correspondent in Brussels.
:09:51. > :09:57.Let's pick-up festival on Angela Merkel's comments. Has there been a
:09:58. > :10:04.distinct shift by her or is it merely a change in tone? -- pick up
:10:05. > :10:09.first of all. I don't think there's been a shift in tone. There's been a
:10:10. > :10:16.very clear policy throughout. What they may have been is a shift to an
:10:17. > :10:23.indication of frustration, irritation on the German side. The
:10:24. > :10:28.messages they are hearing from the UK, for example. She talked about
:10:29. > :10:31.illusions in the UK and she would specifically talking about the
:10:32. > :10:36.statements by politicians in the UK that they could negotiate a deal
:10:37. > :10:40.with almost the exact same benefits as we currently enjoy. Her point to
:10:41. > :10:44.the German Parliament was that this simply won't be possible for a
:10:45. > :10:47.country that leaves the EU, leaves the single market, leaves the
:10:48. > :10:51.customs union. That leaves behind many of those benefits and would
:10:52. > :10:57.have a different type of deal. She described it as a waste of time even
:10:58. > :11:01.talking about that and I think the concern in the German side is that
:11:02. > :11:05.they feel this could make negotiations very difficult and
:11:06. > :11:10.start from a very difficult point when they really want to get down to
:11:11. > :11:15.business. Is their consensus, then? Would you say the 27 member states
:11:16. > :11:20.agree with both her sentiment and tone on that issue? Pretty much,
:11:21. > :11:24.yes. Interestingly, what you hear, and I've been hearing this morning
:11:25. > :11:28.in Brussels from EU sources, is that they say there was an astonishing
:11:29. > :11:32.amount of consensus. They never actually thought they would be so
:11:33. > :11:37.much consensus so quickly and so easily on the EU side. Now, they
:11:38. > :11:42.have prepared their negotiating position, their guidelines, and
:11:43. > :11:46.those will be agreed tomorrow by the 27 leaders who come here for a
:11:47. > :11:51.summit in Brussels. They feel, I think, that they have very quickly
:11:52. > :11:55.cohere around a united position and that there are very few if any
:11:56. > :12:00.cracks in that. But they are concerned about how the negotiations
:12:01. > :12:03.might go and aspects of that, particularly arguments over things
:12:04. > :12:07.like the financial side, the liabilities the UK has incurred. But
:12:08. > :12:11.they will stick to broadly the line that they want the divorce bill to
:12:12. > :12:16.come first in their mind and then the rest of the negotiations will
:12:17. > :12:24.follow through, even if there are broad outlines? I space people have
:12:25. > :12:27.to remember Angela Merkel has a national audience to appeal to. She
:12:28. > :12:30.has got to say it can't be attractive for a member state to
:12:31. > :12:36.leave the EU in order to deter others. -- I suppose people have to
:12:37. > :12:43.remember. I suppose that's true but I think it's far closer to the EU
:12:44. > :12:49.position as we understand it, that this is simply the basis of their
:12:50. > :12:53.position and that they will agree this and are very unlikely to shift
:12:54. > :12:59.from it, and on the subject about the sequence, that was going to be
:13:00. > :13:04.very clearly laid out as well. This is one of the very clear underlined
:13:05. > :13:08.principles that the EU 27 have agreed and will lay out very
:13:09. > :13:14.publicly tomorrow, which is that there must be an agreement on the
:13:15. > :13:20.withdrawal, that means the amount that the UK has to pay to meet its
:13:21. > :13:24.obligations already entered into in the EU, Citizens' writes, issues
:13:25. > :13:27.around the border with Northern Ireland - all of those things there
:13:28. > :13:31.must be progress on before any discussions about a future trade
:13:32. > :13:34.deal, and there won't even be a possibility to enter those future
:13:35. > :13:41.discussions till those first things are thank you.
:13:42. > :13:45.How did you respond when you heard Angela Merkel, Jenni? One might have
:13:46. > :13:50.said she was stating the obvious, or was this a warning shot to Britain
:13:51. > :13:54.in any serious sense in the negotiations? I think she was
:13:55. > :13:58.meaning what she has said and saying what she said. She has been utterly
:13:59. > :14:02.consistent from the beginning and Britain refuses to take what the EU
:14:03. > :14:06.says seriously. They have a fantasy that they will change their minds
:14:07. > :14:14.and say after all, you can have everything you wanted and we aren't
:14:15. > :14:16.serious about our position. But the EU has been consistent. You cannot
:14:17. > :14:20.have the benefits of membership if you don't want to be a member. You
:14:21. > :14:24.will have to renegotiate your relationship with us from outside
:14:25. > :14:29.the EU. And we keep talking about this in puzzlement, as if we expect
:14:30. > :14:32.these people whom we are defying to give us all the lollipops and
:14:33. > :14:38.sweeties we wanted as if we were children! But it does give Theresa
:14:39. > :14:42.May an opportunity to say, they are also lining up against me, that's
:14:43. > :14:46.why I have to strengthen my hand, even if you believe what she has to
:14:47. > :14:53.do is strengthen her hand against some of those in her own party who
:14:54. > :14:57.want a clean Brexit. I think her rhetoric is extremely damaging. At
:14:58. > :15:01.the moment she wants to say, look at me, standing alone against the
:15:02. > :15:06.world, it's us against the world. But the EU are looking at this in
:15:07. > :15:15.astonishment and saying, why are you making this so negative? And for
:15:16. > :15:17.Theresa May not to recognise that she has two seduce people and
:15:18. > :15:20.persuade people in the EU to give her as good a deal as possible,
:15:21. > :15:25.because we have a very weak and negotiated -- negotiating hand. --
:15:26. > :15:30.she has to seduce people. It matters much more to us that we can get
:15:31. > :15:34.these negotiations done as smoothly and as quickly and effectively as
:15:35. > :15:39.possible than it does to the rest of the EU. Except those very much in
:15:40. > :15:43.favour of Brexit and a swifter Brexit would say the opposite. They
:15:44. > :15:49.would say the EU needs us just as much in terms of future business, in
:15:50. > :15:53.terms of the sale and trade of cars and other manufacturing exports, but
:15:54. > :15:55.importantly, there will also be those who are in favour of a clean
:15:56. > :16:08.and hard Brexit, which ever would you
:16:09. > :16:11.want to use, who will agree with Angela Merkel, and that's why we
:16:12. > :16:13.should leave as soon as possible, and we can come out without a deal
:16:14. > :16:16.and go on to world organisation trade rules. But there will be 10%
:16:17. > :16:19.tariffs on everything coming into the country and we will be paying
:16:20. > :16:24.tariffs on anything we send to the EU. It will be immensely damaging
:16:25. > :16:30.for the EU economy and our trade is much more important to us than to
:16:31. > :16:33.the EU as a whole. Although it is a diminishing amount. But diminishing
:16:34. > :16:39.very little compare to everything else. We are foolish to see we are
:16:40. > :16:42.in a weak position and we need to be really -- realistic that the EU will
:16:43. > :16:57.do exactly what it said right at the beginning. Thank you.
:16:58. > :16:59.The SNP leader, Nicola Sturgeon, says the election in Scotland
:17:00. > :17:01.is a straight fight between her party and the SNP.
:17:02. > :17:04.Ms Sturgeon has been campaigning near Glasgow this morning,
:17:05. > :17:05.prioritising public services and community investment.
:17:06. > :17:08.And she said that only her party "can stand up to the Tories".
:17:09. > :17:11.The Conservatives, for their part, are campaigning on a message
:17:12. > :17:12.of opposing the SNP's bid for a second
:17:13. > :17:16.Joining me now from Edinburgh is the SNP MP Tommy Sheppard.
:17:17. > :17:20.Welcome back to the Daily Politics. Are you concerned about the latest
:17:21. > :17:24.polls indicating you are on course to lose a number of seats to the
:17:25. > :17:28.Tories? We know throughout Scotland this will be a battle between the
:17:29. > :17:32.SNP and the Tories and we know in some seats it will be closer than
:17:33. > :17:36.others. But we relish the prospect of taking the battle to them and
:17:37. > :17:41.winning the general election in Scotland. How has this resurgence
:17:42. > :17:50.for the Conservatives happened, bearing in mind you always like to
:17:51. > :17:53.make the joke that there are more pandas in Scotland than Tory MPs,
:17:54. > :17:55.how has this happened when the SNP have been in government? The SNP
:17:56. > :17:59.have been in government for ten years in Scotland and we are more
:18:00. > :18:04.popular than ten years ago. So why are the Tories winning more seats?
:18:05. > :18:08.If they win more seats it will not be many. Tory support is back to the
:18:09. > :18:12.level it was when Margaret Thatcher was in office. There always have
:18:13. > :18:15.been Tories in Scotland, no one has said otherwise. What has changed is
:18:16. > :18:22.the collapse of the Labour Party say we have a too was race between the
:18:23. > :18:25.SNP standing up against a story to add to the rights of Scotland
:18:26. > :18:28.against a Tory government which is trying to do otherwise. Using those
:18:29. > :18:32.words which you have spoken there, what does it say if after the
:18:33. > :18:38.anti-Tory rhetoric, and you talked about austerity, that actually, the
:18:39. > :18:41.governing party, the Tories' presence in Scotland will grow. If
:18:42. > :18:46.it grows, and I don't think it will, it will not be by very much.
:18:47. > :18:50.Elections are won by the party who gets the most votes and the most
:18:51. > :18:52.seats and I do not think it will be the Conservative Party and they are
:18:53. > :18:56.very keen to try and talk up the narrative that by winning one or two
:18:57. > :19:01.seats somehow they have won the election and I do not think that is
:19:02. > :19:05.the case. People will want to judge the Tory rhetoric, they will want to
:19:06. > :19:12.judge the government making low-paid women fill out a form to prove they
:19:13. > :19:15.were raped, a party that is bringing in cuts to disabled people and is
:19:16. > :19:21.now threatening the basic pension. These are the issues we will be
:19:22. > :19:25.taken to the Tories. We will come back to that issue about what you
:19:26. > :19:30.call the rate clause later in the discussion. You say it may only be a
:19:31. > :19:35.few seats, predictions at the moment is that it is eight seats. You can
:19:36. > :19:42.see why the Tories will flag it up as a massive victory. Do you think
:19:43. > :19:45.the chickens are coming home to roost for the SNP after ten years in
:19:46. > :19:50.power in Scotland? You lost your majority and the only way is down?
:19:51. > :19:57.As dead think that is the case at all. I think the SNP is in a very
:19:58. > :19:59.strong position going into this election and actually, the Tories
:20:00. > :20:02.are in a week has issued which is masked by the fact the Labour Party
:20:03. > :20:05.has collapsed, and many people who used to vote Labour are now
:20:06. > :20:08.considering voting Conservative. I think when we expose the
:20:09. > :20:12.Conservatives' record on what their intentions are, people will not want
:20:13. > :20:15.to give this government any more of majority that they have already and
:20:16. > :20:19.I am confident we can win the battle against them. The SNP is in a good
:20:20. > :20:21.position going into this election. We have a proud record in Scotland
:20:22. > :20:39.and a proud record at Westminster of standing up we will be demanding
:20:40. > :20:41.that Theresa May does not stand in the way of the Scottish Parliament
:20:42. > :20:44.and that she will respect the wishes of the people who live in Scotland.
:20:45. > :20:47.That is what this election will be about. What level of result will it
:20:48. > :20:49.take for saying this is another level of endorsement for holding a
:20:50. > :20:52.second referendum? I am not going to speculate. There is only one vote
:20:53. > :20:56.which matters and that is an GDA. Any predictions... You just
:20:57. > :21:00.predicted the Tories will not get many seats! We will be fighting them
:21:01. > :21:04.in every single seat, including the last remaining one they held at the
:21:05. > :21:09.last election and we are confident we can beat the Tories throughout
:21:10. > :21:15.Scotland. If the Unionist parties had more votes, with that muddy the
:21:16. > :21:19.waters in calling for a second referendum? This is why the Tories
:21:20. > :21:24.are banging on about independence. This election is not about a for
:21:25. > :21:28.Scottish independence or even a mandate for a referendum on Scottish
:21:29. > :21:33.independence. That mandate already exists. Is that because you are
:21:34. > :21:42.worried about the result of this election? It is a matter of where
:21:43. > :21:44.the appropriate decision should be taken. This should be a matter for
:21:45. > :21:47.the Scottish Parliament and the Scottish Parliament have voted that
:21:48. > :21:49.in a couple of years' time people in Scotland should be allowed a choice
:21:50. > :21:54.on that. The reason why they reached a decision was in large part because
:21:55. > :22:03.of Theresa May's refusal to consider any differential relationship post
:22:04. > :22:06.Brexit with Scotland and to respect Scottish opinion. Can I get you to
:22:07. > :22:09.ask the question -- can I get you to answer the question, you have made
:22:10. > :22:13.it clear you think you have a mandate and Nicola Sturgeon has said
:22:14. > :22:17.that, for a second independence referendum, but if in this election
:22:18. > :22:21.the Unionist parties together had more votes than the SNP, with that
:22:22. > :22:28.make it more difficult? No, I didn't think so. The mandate would have
:22:29. > :22:31.been daily did. The decision has been taken by the Scottish
:22:32. > :22:39.Parliament and what this election is about in part is a test and a
:22:40. > :22:46.judgment about whether Theresa May is right to -- to refuse to listen
:22:47. > :22:51.to the Scottish people. It is also about the rape clause. Let's talk
:22:52. > :22:55.about that. It was raised in the House of Commons at prime ministers
:22:56. > :22:58.questions. This is about the government's plan to introduce a tax
:22:59. > :23:03.cap on tax credits which would restrict benefits to the first two
:23:04. > :23:07.children in any family, but an exemption exists for children born
:23:08. > :23:12.as a result of rape, but women would have to provide evidence to the
:23:13. > :23:16.state to qualify. What do you want to see happen? I want scrapped, to
:23:17. > :23:23.be honest. This will slipped out last year by George Osborne in the
:23:24. > :23:26.small print of his 2016 budget. The government has faced universal
:23:27. > :23:30.opposition to this, including in the United Nations. It then had a
:23:31. > :23:34.consultation just before Christmas and slipped the results out on the
:23:35. > :23:38.day of Donald Trump is that in operation and has decided foolishly,
:23:39. > :23:42.I think, to go ahead with this quite apparent policy. The idea of making
:23:43. > :23:47.low-paid women prove that they were raped in order to get access to tax
:23:48. > :23:51.credits I think will offend most right minded people's sensitivities
:23:52. > :23:56.in a civilised society. I understand, but can I get your view
:23:57. > :24:01.on the policy more broadly. Are you against a policy which limits
:24:02. > :24:06.benefits, tax credits, to families of two children and not more? Yes, I
:24:07. > :24:10.am. I do not think it is for the government to decide on a two child
:24:11. > :24:13.policy for British families. I think tax credits should be done on the
:24:14. > :24:17.basis of people's need and therefore you should be able to apply on the
:24:18. > :24:20.size of your family. If somebody has three or four children they are
:24:21. > :24:24.trying to bring up I think they are deserving of a larger tax credit
:24:25. > :24:37.than somebody with one or two. That has
:24:38. > :24:41.always been the case up until about a week ago. Stay with us. I am just
:24:42. > :24:44.going to welcome James Delingpole from Breitbart. You have made it.
:24:45. > :24:46.Isn't this a problem with unforeseen or not thought through consequences
:24:47. > :24:52.of a benefit's policy? I think this is the kind of low politics that the
:24:53. > :24:54.SNP specialises. It is white moderate people find something
:24:55. > :24:58.slightly repellent about the SNP which is probably while we will be
:24:59. > :25:04.glad they will lose a few seats in the next election. This is the
:25:05. > :25:08.bedroom tax Redux, a perfectly sensible policy designed to reduce
:25:09. > :25:12.the amount of benefits for women who want to use child-bearing as a
:25:13. > :25:16.career option. That is sensible. What they have done is some
:25:17. > :25:21.foolishly introduce this clause where the third child, if you want
:25:22. > :25:28.claim benefits for a third child, if you have been raped. It has been
:25:29. > :25:34.twisted by the SNP as if it is a bad thing. They bandy about the phrase
:25:35. > :25:38.rape clause. Why is it being twisted? You say it is women who
:25:39. > :25:43.wanted their children as a living, why is it that the government did
:25:44. > :25:47.not think through properly, when they are trying to limit and reduce
:25:48. > :25:51.benefits, which people may arguably say is not going to stop that much
:25:52. > :25:54.more money being spent from the public purse, that they bring in
:25:55. > :25:59.something people would find humiliating and degrading which is
:26:00. > :26:04.to ask women to state in a paper how they have been raped? Because
:26:05. > :26:08.whoever introduced that clause reckoned without the malign cunning
:26:09. > :26:13.of the SNP. It was just designed to look after women who have been
:26:14. > :26:19.raped. It was meant to be kind and instead it turned out to be abused.
:26:20. > :26:23.Tommy Sheppard, malign cunning of the SNP, are you not just focusing
:26:24. > :26:28.on this because you know it is emotive, rather than the policy
:26:29. > :26:32.itself? No, and it is really quite shocking that they are defending
:26:33. > :26:37.this policy and attacking people who criticise it. I should say the
:26:38. > :26:41.criticism comes from right across the political spectrum, including
:26:42. > :26:45.many Conservative people who are rightly, this does offend the
:26:46. > :26:49.sensitivities. The idea of forcing low-paid hard-working women to fill
:26:50. > :26:54.in an eight page form to prove they were raped in order to get access to
:26:55. > :26:57.tax credits should have no place in a civilised society. If the
:26:58. > :27:00.government had any sense they should scrap it in the manifest and make a
:27:01. > :27:06.pledge to get rid of it and I think they would be applauded for that.
:27:07. > :27:12.Jenni Russell, what do you think? Should the government dropped the
:27:13. > :27:17.whole policy? I do not think there is an easy answer to this. It is a
:27:18. > :27:21.difficult situation. Generally the idea that most people should only be
:27:22. > :27:23.able to get tax credits the two children would probably be
:27:24. > :27:27.electorally popular, because there are a small number of people who
:27:28. > :27:30.have a large number of children. But it is wrong to say that these tax
:27:31. > :27:35.credits are applied to people who are staying at home. Tax credits
:27:36. > :27:39.under Universal Credit are there to support people in low-wage jobs, and
:27:40. > :27:42.often people will end up having third children, not necessarily
:27:43. > :27:46.intentionally, but by accident. The problem is, when you look at the
:27:47. > :27:54.form itself, it is absolutely bleak and horrifying to see in heavy type,
:27:55. > :27:59.if your child is born as a form of rape and coercive control. It also
:28:00. > :28:02.means what would the child themselves understand about their
:28:03. > :28:05.conception? Suppose you are a mother and you have three children and then
:28:06. > :28:10.your children realise you're getting money in a household the two
:28:11. > :28:16.children, you might not want any child to know they were born as a
:28:17. > :28:19.result of such incident. There are so many unpleasant and ramifications
:28:20. > :28:24.of this that I think the government may have to pull back because it is
:28:25. > :28:29.so nasty. It was very uncomfortable for Theresa May when she was asked
:28:30. > :28:39.about it at prime ministers and is? Yes. This is the kind of sensitive
:28:40. > :28:43.what about this particular case, what about that? The reason this
:28:44. > :28:48.clause was introduced was to protect women who have been raped, not to
:28:49. > :28:52.stigmatise all women. If we are not going to enforce these rules then,
:28:53. > :28:56.if the government doesn't have the courage to force them then maybe
:28:57. > :29:06.they should not bother. Tommy Sheppard, just before we finish, one
:29:07. > :29:11.of your MSPs said that victims had to describe their trauma to civil
:29:12. > :29:19.servants. That is not the case. They will actually be speaking to a
:29:20. > :29:23.health care professional if this policy is stuck to? Detailed form to
:29:24. > :29:26.fill in. But we come back to the point that this is a disgraceful
:29:27. > :29:31.policy the government should get rid of. Let's not pretend I am opposing
:29:32. > :29:35.this because I am some sort of bleeding heart liberal. This is a
:29:36. > :29:41.difference between people who believe indecency in our political
:29:42. > :29:47.system and people who do not. Sheppard, thank you.
:29:48. > :29:50.Now, one party which will be hoping to up its representation
:29:51. > :29:52.at the State Opening of Parliament is Ukip.
:29:53. > :29:54.Recently its one MP, Douglas Carswell, left the party
:29:55. > :29:56.to sit as an independent, meaning that once again Ukip
:29:57. > :29:58.has no representative in the House of Commons.
:29:59. > :30:00.And it heads into this election campaign after
:30:01. > :30:02.a turbulent few years - let's remind ourselves.
:30:03. > :30:05.In 2014, Ukip won the European elections, and their momentum
:30:06. > :30:07.continued during the last year of the coalition government,
:30:08. > :30:09.with Conservative MPs Douglas Carswell and Mark Reckless
:30:10. > :30:16.But the 2015 election result was a mixed bag -
:30:17. > :30:18.despite winning almost four million votes, the party
:30:19. > :30:24.Nevertheless, the EU referendum was a high point for the party -
:30:25. > :30:29.the fulfilment of its ultimate goal in politics.
:30:30. > :30:32.Years of tension between senior figures at the top of the party,
:30:33. > :30:36.and several Nigel Farage resignations, culminated in the
:30:37. > :30:41.With a Conservative government committed to Brexit,
:30:42. > :30:44.Ukip have been trying to carve out a role for themselves
:30:45. > :30:49.Mr Nuttall has had a long-standing ambition to supplant
:30:50. > :30:55.And earlier this week the party outlined an "integration agenda",
:30:56. > :30:58.centred around a ban on full-face veils.
:30:59. > :31:02.The party says it will decide at local level whether to stand
:31:03. > :31:05.against long-standing Brexit backers like Kate Hoey.
:31:06. > :31:08.But the polls haven't been particularly inspiring
:31:09. > :31:12.for Mr Nuttall - this week the party has only breached 10%
:31:13. > :31:16.Well, earlier today Paul Nuttall launched his party's campaign
:31:17. > :31:24.Ukip goes into this snap election, determined to hold the Government's
:31:25. > :31:30.We will act as the Government's backbone in these negotiations.
:31:31. > :31:40.if voters elect a Ukip MP, they can be sure it will be a true Brexiteer,
:31:41. > :31:45.someone who has campaigned all their political lives
:31:46. > :31:51.for a free, democratic and independent Britain.
:31:52. > :31:57.And we're joined now by Ukip's Deputy Leader, Peter Whittle.
:31:58. > :32:09.Welcome back. Will you be standing in this election? I will. Where will
:32:10. > :32:14.you stand? I'm not sure yet. Why is there so much prevarication? You are
:32:15. > :32:18.not sure, the leader isn't sure... We have to think quite clearly about
:32:19. > :32:24.where we stand and what we are going to do. Where you might have a chance
:32:25. > :32:29.of actually winning. As you said, we got 4 million votes in the last
:32:30. > :32:34.election. And now you have none. And we were a bit scatter-gun in our
:32:35. > :32:38.approach. We have been organising on the ground much more in the past two
:32:39. > :32:43.years, we have a greater sense of where we are strong and where we are
:32:44. > :32:50.not. So we will be targeting much more in seats where we are strong.
:32:51. > :32:55.So will you be standing in London, do you think? Probably not. Possibly
:32:56. > :33:01.just outside. We are weighing things up and things will come clearer.
:33:02. > :33:08.What about South Thanet? Where Nigel Farage stood? No, I don't think so.
:33:09. > :33:14.We have to be absolutely right about where we are going to go. It seems a
:33:15. > :33:17.bit strange. Hang on. You are standing but you don't know where.
:33:18. > :33:24.Another senior figure isn't standing, Suzanne. Let me finish the
:33:25. > :33:27.question! Nigel Farage isn't standing and we still don't know
:33:28. > :33:31.from Paul Nuttall, who didn't seem to want to talk to journalists at
:33:32. > :33:34.all, it seems like you are scared of the electorate because you just
:33:35. > :33:39.don't have a chance of winning any seats. You are the last people we
:33:40. > :33:46.are scared of! Bless you in the media, you try to put the agenda all
:33:47. > :33:52.the time... That's our job. It will become quite clear. Paul is making
:33:53. > :33:57.an announcement this weekend. Ukip have been at pains to present
:33:58. > :34:01.themselves as more than a party of Brexit, that you have more to offer,
:34:02. > :34:06.and yet you have agreed to stand aside in particular areas as long as
:34:07. > :34:11.another party's candidate, possibly Tories, have a long-standing
:34:12. > :34:15.Brexiteer. Doesn't that show you aren't anything more than Brexit,
:34:16. > :34:19.really? Not at all. First of all, we're going to be standing all over
:34:20. > :34:23.the country. When you talk about seats we are going to be standing
:34:24. > :34:28.aside for, whether Tory or Labour, it comes down to a small amount, but
:34:29. > :34:34.people have maybe been spending their whole lives doing what we've
:34:35. > :34:37.been trying to do, in getting a strong, complete Brexit... But
:34:38. > :34:42.beyond that you don't have much to offer because otherwise you would
:34:43. > :34:50.stand on your own ticket? When we talked about immigration we were a
:34:51. > :34:54.one-issue party. Things kicked off in the media one we talked about the
:34:55. > :35:01.burqa and immigration. We are moving from a position of being purely
:35:02. > :35:07.about Brexit to being a party, so what we said on Monday and what you
:35:08. > :35:11.will see throughout the campaign is we are very strong on all aspects of
:35:12. > :35:16.policy in Britain and not just about the EU, but of course this is, to an
:35:17. > :35:19.extent, the Brexit election, so we have got -- we have to be absolutely
:35:20. > :35:26.certain people will get what they voted for last year. Paul Nuttall
:35:27. > :35:31.said 350 candidates have been elected and the total would be
:35:32. > :35:38.dissimilar from the 620 15. Will it be closer to 350 or 600? Somewhere
:35:39. > :35:44.in the middle. I'd say nearer to the 600 mark. Is that because you don't
:35:45. > :35:49.have the resources or the money? Where will it come from? In terms of
:35:50. > :35:57.our candidates, a lot of this is about the fact that Theresa May
:35:58. > :36:00.cynically announced an election in six or seven weeks, or whatever,
:36:01. > :36:04.quite cynically putting the fortunes of the Tory Party above anything
:36:05. > :36:09.else, which is something we never do, by the way, in Ukip, so we've
:36:10. > :36:14.had to do this quite quickly. But we're fine, we are secure
:36:15. > :36:19.financially, and so we are going to go forward, and I think it will be
:36:20. > :36:23.an exciting campaign. You talked about the domestic policies. Let's
:36:24. > :36:29.talk about one of them, which is the ban on the burqa. Aaron Banks, who
:36:30. > :36:34.was your main donor, said it was like going to war on the Muslim
:36:35. > :36:38.religion. He's wrong. He was also wrong saying this is going to war...
:36:39. > :36:45.This is an integration agenda, first of all. How is it about integration
:36:46. > :36:54.if you are telling women what to wear? The fact is that the full face
:36:55. > :36:57.covering, not the headscarf, is a barrier to integration, it's
:36:58. > :37:03.something that has been banned in France, Belgium, and indeed the
:37:04. > :37:06.biggest party in the European Parliament has just recommended
:37:07. > :37:11.there should be an EU wide ban on it. There is a growing public unease
:37:12. > :37:15.about this and the fact is that also it's a real living symbol of female
:37:16. > :37:20.subjugation, and it's amazing that when it's put forward that this is
:37:21. > :37:24.something which we are telling women what to wear, in many Middle Eastern
:37:25. > :37:29.countries, there have been long-standing campaigns so women are
:37:30. > :37:35.freed from this kind of restriction. In liberal democracies, is it put
:37:36. > :37:38.forward in this way? It wasn't just errant banks. James Carver said he
:37:39. > :37:43.strongly disagreed and said it was misguided. That nobody has the right
:37:44. > :37:48.to dictate what people should wear, and I feel this policy undermines my
:37:49. > :37:53.desire to represent all communities in the West Midlands, the area he
:37:54. > :37:58.has represented. I don't agree with Jim overlap, and the fact is we are
:37:59. > :38:06.not a whipped party. -- with Jim over that. The point is, the full
:38:07. > :38:11.face burqa, and FGM, for that matter, they are not religious
:38:12. > :38:19.practices, they are cultural ones. You say they are not about Muslims
:38:20. > :38:25.but it is all about Muslims. No, FGM is not solely about... But the burqa
:38:26. > :38:31.is? We are actually behind the curve compared to many countries on this.
:38:32. > :38:35.Despite there has been internal opposition to this, Paul Nuttall
:38:36. > :38:39.restated the commitment to the policy of the burqa ban, saying it
:38:40. > :38:47.came from the grassroots. Do you think it is a popular policy among
:38:48. > :38:52.Ukip supporters? Among those supporters or those they want to
:38:53. > :38:57.attract? Both. The major problem is that it was about a cause and a
:38:58. > :39:01.charismatic leader for Ukip previously, and they've lost the
:39:02. > :39:08.cause and a charismatic leader. I don't agree with either of those
:39:09. > :39:12.points. You've lost your charismatic leader, I'm afraid. If you're trying
:39:13. > :39:15.to say Paul Nuttall is the same thing as Nigel Farage. They are
:39:16. > :39:20.sunken in the polls and that's why they are desperately trying to
:39:21. > :39:25.attract attention now. When you say the type of people we are going to
:39:26. > :39:31.attract... They would be interested in voting for you. The ban on the
:39:32. > :39:35.burqa is supported by voters of every single political party,
:39:36. > :39:41.including the Lib Dems, by this country. That's how far this public
:39:42. > :39:46.opinion has moved. What is the support for that? In Ukip it's huge.
:39:47. > :39:49.In the Tory Party it's about 60 something, and then you come down in
:39:50. > :39:55.the 40s to labour, and then much less in the Lib Dems. But the point
:39:56. > :40:00.is it is majorities. Even the Lib Dems are now ahead of you, though.
:40:01. > :40:06.It does look at -- look as though this is the election where Ukip
:40:07. > :40:15.crashes and burns. The Lib Dems are on 10%! We've got six weeks to go.
:40:16. > :40:20.I'm very touched by your face and list of all the things that happened
:40:21. > :40:25.in the last year. What do you think the chances of success for Ukip,
:40:26. > :40:29.though? Put the polls aside for once, but looking realistically,
:40:30. > :40:33.Nigel Farage has gone, as we know Paul Nuttall is the new leader and
:40:34. > :40:39.there has been a huge amount of turbulence. Brexit is happening, and
:40:40. > :40:45.so what is the point? I would dearly love to see one or two Ukip MPs in
:40:46. > :40:50.Parliament, partly to hold Theresa May's feature to the fire, as they
:40:51. > :40:55.say, and partly to talk about issues Conservatives are not addressing at
:40:56. > :41:00.the moment, like social cohesion. Nevertheless, I do regretfully say I
:41:01. > :41:04.don't think Ukip are going to win many if any seats, and I think
:41:05. > :41:09.that's rather sad. Unfortunately a function of fact that Theresa May
:41:10. > :41:14.has nailed her cards to the mast, she is Brexit, it means Brexit, and
:41:15. > :41:19.unfortunately Ukip is still associated, like it or not, with
:41:20. > :41:24.leaving the EU, so the job is done. I don't agree at all. I think you
:41:25. > :41:27.will be surprised. I think the big difference this time is that voters
:41:28. > :41:32.share is one thing, and it probably won't be as high as it was last
:41:33. > :41:35.time, and the fact is, there are no prizes for coming second with first
:41:36. > :41:39.past the post, and we know that this time, so we've been much more
:41:40. > :41:43.focused on a number of seats, so I think you will be surprised... What
:41:44. > :41:50.level do you think you will get in number of seats? Is hard to say. We
:41:51. > :41:54.have the one but I would certainly like us to see... We will be
:41:55. > :41:57.targeting may be around six particular places and I think
:41:58. > :42:06.therefore, you know... We also have a secondary layer. But the reality
:42:07. > :42:10.is that the Ukip vote is going to the Tories. Do you accept that?
:42:11. > :42:14.There is a shift, not only in personnel going to the Tories, but
:42:15. > :42:21.also amongst voters, and that's the story of the first week of the
:42:22. > :42:25.campaign, he says. The personnel who have gone... Basically, you know,
:42:26. > :42:30.they joined us and piggybacked with us for a while and have gone back to
:42:31. > :42:34.where they should always have been. They are not missed at all. What
:42:35. > :42:38.will become clear to people, it's already becoming clear, is that for
:42:39. > :42:42.example, on a big issue like migration, where people do trust and
:42:43. > :42:46.believe we say what we mean, right, there is nothing coming from the
:42:47. > :42:50.Government. That's become quite clear that immigration control and
:42:51. > :42:53.levels have stayed the same for about ten years after we leave.
:42:54. > :43:00.That's going to become clear over the next six weeks. Thank you.
:43:01. > :43:03.Among those MPs choosing to stand down rather than seek re-election
:43:04. > :43:09.According to his local executive council, the majority were set
:43:10. > :43:13.Mr Mackintosh has been criticised for his role in a loan
:43:14. > :43:15.to Northampton Town Football Club, which is now under
:43:16. > :43:17.Mr Mackintosh has denied any wrongdoing.
:43:18. > :43:19.Joining us now from Norwich is the investigations
:43:20. > :43:21.editor for BBC East, Julian Sturdy.
:43:22. > :43:29.Thank you for coming onto the programme. Who is David Mackintosh?
:43:30. > :43:35.He's only been an MP for the last two years with a majority of 1700.
:43:36. > :43:37.He was a prominent supporter of the homelessness reduction Bill and
:43:38. > :43:42.championed the rights of grandparents. He had a question at
:43:43. > :43:45.Prime Minister's Questions last week and was photographed with Jeremy
:43:46. > :43:51.Hunt a couple of days ago, so last week he put out a video saying he
:43:52. > :43:55.intends to stand again. What has changed his mind? Well, he has
:43:56. > :43:59.jumped before he was pushed. He attended a deselection meeting and
:44:00. > :44:05.the majority of that council were going to vote against him, they told
:44:06. > :44:09.us, and at least 60 of those at the meeting were going to vote against
:44:10. > :44:14.him. He could well have gone on the short list but even then his name
:44:15. > :44:18.had become toxic in Northampton. One prominent Tory told me he would
:44:19. > :44:24.resign if his name was on the ballot paper. Explain why he had become so
:44:25. > :44:28.toxic and unpopular on the ballot paper. It goes back to his days of
:44:29. > :44:34.the council leader in Northampton. In the run-up to the election, he
:44:35. > :44:38.oversaw a ?10 million loan to the owners of Northampton football club.
:44:39. > :44:42.It was to redevelop one of the stands. That ground to a halt, the
:44:43. > :44:46.money ran out and now there is a police investigation into where the
:44:47. > :44:50.money went. David Mackintosh says he has done nothing wrong and he will
:44:51. > :44:56.co-operate with the police inquiry, but in order to find he had rushed
:44:57. > :45:02.through the loan and his Cabinet were not given the full information
:45:03. > :45:07.about the risks of that loan. What part has central office played in
:45:08. > :45:11.his decision to quit? They saw off a rebellion by the party back in
:45:12. > :45:15.December, when the party wanted to vote no confidence in him. We were
:45:16. > :45:19.told at the time he would only be a one-time MP. He obviously didn't
:45:20. > :45:29.expect the election to now, but I think in the last local elections on
:45:30. > :45:32.the doorstep is named just wasn't getting popular vote. The brand was
:45:33. > :45:36.being destroyed. It is the local party that has effectively forced
:45:37. > :45:40.him to stand down and they now two weeks to find a replacement. We are
:45:41. > :45:43.told this lunchtime there is a consideration that the former MP,
:45:44. > :45:46.the long serving Brian Binley, might be asked to come back. Thank you.
:45:47. > :45:48.Now, as well as electing local councillors in next
:45:49. > :45:50.month's local elections, in six areas of England
:45:51. > :45:53.they'll also be choosing new kinds of mayor -
:45:54. > :45:55.metro mayors - that don't just represent one city,
:45:56. > :46:04.He's a monkey and Hartlepool's football mascot.
:46:05. > :46:06.Oh, and 15 years ago, people here voted for him
:46:07. > :46:13.But ten years later, they dumped him.
:46:14. > :46:16.They had a referendum and decided to get rid of the whole idea
:46:17. > :46:21.But now people here in Hartlepool will soon be getting
:46:22. > :46:24.one of the country's first regional mayors.
:46:25. > :46:28.That's because Hartlepool, together with five other councils,
:46:29. > :46:33.have joined forces to create the Tees Valley Combined Authority.
:46:34. > :46:38.Well, the Government's told them that if they work together
:46:39. > :46:41.and have an elected mayor to lead on things like housing
:46:42. > :46:43.and transport, then they'll get more cash and power
:46:44. > :46:49.But do people here want a regional mayor?
:46:50. > :46:54.There's a lot of money that could be put to better uses, I think,
:46:55. > :47:00.Are we doing it to satisfy Westminster?
:47:01. > :47:02.We could maybe use the money in better ways.
:47:03. > :47:07.I'll vote anything that'll be good for the town.
:47:08. > :47:09.I think a lot of the decisions will go with Middlesbrough,
:47:10. > :47:12.you know, and I think it'll affect Hartlepool in a negative
:47:13. > :47:29.The idea is that these new metro mayors will bring growth to flagging
:47:30. > :47:31.economies and get people more involved in local government.
:47:32. > :47:34.But some academics argue there's a lot of hype and hope
:47:35. > :47:57.Some of these mayors will be looking at areas about how we connect
:47:58. > :47:59.transport to new housing and looking at jobs. That is not currently
:48:00. > :48:02.happening in our cities. Some mayors preside over strongly
:48:03. > :48:03.performing economies, other mayors preside over
:48:04. > :48:05.weakly performing economies. It's very difficult
:48:06. > :48:11.to establish a relationship. do high-profile mayors
:48:12. > :48:16.contribute to increased Again, very little evidence
:48:17. > :48:19.of that around the world. On the contrary, actually,
:48:20. > :48:21.declining turnout seemed to be Despite the high-profile campaign
:48:22. > :48:26.of H'Angus the Monkey in Hartlepool, only a third of the electorate
:48:27. > :48:28.bothered to vote. If turnout is also low
:48:29. > :48:30.for the metro mayor elections, it could leave whoever wins the job
:48:31. > :48:33.facing questions And we're joined now
:48:34. > :48:51.by Dr Jo Casebourne Will they prove any more popular
:48:52. > :48:58.than the city mayors did? These ones are a very different thing. Unlike
:48:59. > :49:01.being an air for a single local authority and not having very much
:49:02. > :49:05.power which is why people voted not to have won previously, these people
:49:06. > :49:09.will have more power and will be visible local leaders and will be
:49:10. > :49:13.accountable and people will know who they are. Is there evidence that
:49:14. > :49:18.people are willing for this to happen? When people are asked if
:49:19. > :49:23.they want more local government they tend to say no. When people think
:49:24. > :49:26.there is an additional layer of government being imposed on them,
:49:27. > :49:30.they are not keen. The very few people in London would not want one
:49:31. > :49:34.because they have seen positive changes in terms of their lives and
:49:35. > :49:38.transport. You see the kind of sustainability of mayors over time
:49:39. > :49:43.as they get more power and deliver more for local people. Do you think
:49:44. > :49:48.people understand the concept of Metro mayors and do they understand
:49:49. > :49:51.the costs? I think that has been less engagement with the public this
:49:52. > :49:55.time than we might have hoped. The fact that we will have a general
:49:56. > :49:58.election so soon after the mayoral elections means there will be less
:49:59. > :50:03.turn out that we would have liked. But once people see things people
:50:04. > :50:08.have been campaigning about, these are issues which really impact
:50:09. > :50:16.people and impact people's lives. Do they convince you? Will be be a good
:50:17. > :50:19.thing? I do not think they will but I am very enthusiastic about it. I
:50:20. > :50:25.was in Birmingham on Wednesday night for the times where we were chairing
:50:26. > :50:31.an event with the two main campaigners for now. One was the
:50:32. > :50:36.previous chief executive of John Lewis. He says he has the power to
:50:37. > :50:39.bring together 22 local councils and will bring transport, council and
:50:40. > :50:45.investment and be a face for that area. It is a pretty depressed area.
:50:46. > :50:48.Both he and the Labour candidate are making the very powerful case that
:50:49. > :50:52.there needs to be something to galvanise that region because the
:50:53. > :50:57.existing system has not worked. If they can go and be ambassadors and
:50:58. > :51:00.spokesmen and coordinators and cheerleaders for the region, then
:51:01. > :51:06.perhaps something will begin to happen. If we say the existing
:51:07. > :51:10.system is fine, it is not working for the country outside London.
:51:11. > :51:14.There will not be much of an infrastructure. It will be more
:51:15. > :51:18.about the powers of bringing people together and working out strategies
:51:19. > :51:22.which suit everybody and not one little council area. This will be
:51:23. > :51:25.proper devolution, not just politicians and central government
:51:26. > :51:30.saying it is great and then they will give the powers that people
:51:31. > :51:38.need? I would love to know how they will have this new powerful sub
:51:39. > :51:41.government. I am pleased we are attracting candidates of the calibre
:51:42. > :51:45.of the guy from John Lewis. I was going to say the problem with local
:51:46. > :51:52.government is the people they tend to attract an low grade. But if you
:51:53. > :51:58.have real power then you will attract more people. They have money
:51:59. > :52:04.which is given to them to spend locally. The infrastructure will not
:52:05. > :52:09.be very expensive and that is what people worry about. Absolutely. We
:52:10. > :52:14.will see they are big powerful political figures by the calibre of
:52:15. > :52:19.the candidates. Have careered trajectories in politics are about
:52:20. > :52:27.to get more interesting -- perhaps career trajectories are about get
:52:28. > :52:30.more interesting. What areas will they have impact? Greater Manchester
:52:31. > :52:34.has been doing this and they will be able to work with health and social
:52:35. > :52:37.care locally to try and bring systems together. I think people
:52:38. > :52:41.will be watching Greater Manchester to see what happens and no doubt
:52:42. > :52:48.more powers will be devolved over time. Police and Crime Commissioners
:52:49. > :52:52.have not turned out to be popular. In some cases they have been rolled
:52:53. > :52:57.into the mayor's new powers so some will be taking over the role of
:52:58. > :53:00.Police and Crime Commissioner. Dr Jo Casebourne, thank you.
:53:01. > :53:02.Well, it's been a busy week on the campaign trail,
:53:03. > :53:05.so here's Ellie with the definitive campaign week in 60 seconds.
:53:06. > :53:07.In this first full week of campaigning, Jeremy Corbyn wasn't
:53:08. > :53:10.turning his back on core voters, making promises on housing,
:53:11. > :53:15.Tony Blair still thinks Labour's heading in the wrong direction
:53:16. > :53:21.Meanwhile, she's been promising strong and stable leadership
:53:22. > :53:24.over and over again, which may be why it was the longest
:53:25. > :53:28.Boris Johnson went off that script and call Jeremy Corbyn a...
:53:29. > :53:32...Herbivore muddleheaded Mugwump, or whatever.
:53:33. > :53:35.And no-one knew what he was talking about, not least his sister,
:53:36. > :53:37.who announced she's joining the Lib Dems.
:53:38. > :53:40.A boost for Tim Farron, who had to sack one of his candidates
:53:41. > :53:45.And then he earned his own hashtag "smell my spaniel"
:53:46. > :53:48.Can you smell my spaniel, maybe, maybe?
:53:49. > :53:51.Elsewhere, the Ukip leader denied he thought he was a bit like Gandhi
:53:52. > :53:54.and insisted beekeepers would be exempt from their proposed
:53:55. > :53:56.ban on wearing of face coverings in public.
:53:57. > :54:02.And in Scotland, the party leaders have agreed to a leadership debate,
:54:03. > :54:11.and Nicola Sturgeon road a motorbike.
:54:12. > :54:21.It's time to find out the answer to our quiz.
:54:22. > :54:24.Yesterday we heard that the Queen will dress down for the State
:54:25. > :54:25.Opening of Parliament after the general election.
:54:26. > :54:29.So the question for today is, when was the last time she did so?
:54:30. > :54:39.So, James and Jenni, what's the correct answer?
:54:40. > :54:49.Do you know, I think I was given the answer and I have forgotten it. You
:54:50. > :54:55.cannot have forgotten it! Is it 1959? No, Jenni have another go. I'm
:54:56. > :54:59.going to have a wild guess it was 1974 when they had two elections
:55:00. > :55:02.given that they could not be bothered to put their grand things
:55:03. > :55:05.on twice a year. That is correct. And we are joined by the BBC's royal
:55:06. > :55:12.correspondent Peter Hunt. Before we get to the 1974 election
:55:13. > :55:17.and the dressing down, what does it mean to dress down for the Queen?
:55:18. > :55:23.When you get to the Royals this is all rather relative. I have heard on
:55:24. > :55:30.social media there were suggestions of a regal onesie. We are moving
:55:31. > :55:35.from the royal fling we are used to which is a full evening dress, the
:55:36. > :55:40.long gloves and when she gets to the house of parliament the rapist put
:55:41. > :55:51.on and the Imperial State Crown. Very heavy -- the MP real road --
:55:52. > :55:59.the Imperial robe is that on. What we get is the day dress. A1 is the
:56:00. > :56:03.is what people wear now. That may be your day dress. All these
:56:04. > :56:10.suggestions are being taken on board at Buckingham Palace. Day dress plus
:56:11. > :56:15.hat and handbag. That is important, the handbag. Why is it dressed down?
:56:16. > :56:19.The timings they say. There is the Trooping the Colour, the Queen's
:56:20. > :56:23.official birthday on the Saturday before, this happens on the Monday
:56:24. > :56:30.and they do not have time to rehearse. But they have done it so
:56:31. > :56:34.often. But it takes so much preparation. Take us back to the
:56:35. > :56:40.last time there was a dressing down. This is where we put it in context.
:56:41. > :56:44.You see this footage that she is in day dress as you both correctly
:56:45. > :56:50.identified. She is being driven, she's going by motorcar and not the
:56:51. > :56:56.carriage. You would normally see the State coach with horses, the
:56:57. > :56:59.Household Cavalry, soldiers and a full military escort. All that went
:57:00. > :57:05.in 1974 and that will go this year. That is because there is not enough
:57:06. > :57:09.time to preparing to rehearse. Does it save money? You should have
:57:10. > :57:16.someone from the government here and not me! Saving money, that is a
:57:17. > :57:27.traditional lefty position. I was just wondering whether it was the
:57:28. > :57:32.case in this time of austerity. And in 1974 was it also a snap election?
:57:33. > :57:35.Yes, and when the election was called the Queen was in Australia.
:57:36. > :57:41.She came back, dealt with it and then went back for her tour. How
:57:42. > :57:47.much time does the Royal household need? Is their extensive rehearsal,
:57:48. > :57:50.even if you have done it numerous times... The key thing to be
:57:51. > :57:59.rehearsed is not necessarily a woman who is 91 and has done it since
:58:00. > :58:04.1952, it is the Household Cavalry, the horses and carriages in place.
:58:05. > :58:09.This has been rearranged for a Monday which means the order of the
:58:10. > :58:15.Garter has gone. That has been cancelled? Andrew Neil of this
:58:16. > :58:19.parish I have seen is a future member of the Garter. Does it matter
:58:20. > :58:27.that she is dressing down? Will anybody mind? We would not even have
:58:28. > :58:33.noticed. She looks like the Queen still in that footage. That is
:58:34. > :58:38.footage from 1974. Do you think it matters, Jenni? I hate to challenge
:58:39. > :58:44.James' preconceptions, but I happen to like the ritual. We have nothing
:58:45. > :58:48.left in these Brexit days apart from to say look at our Queen and
:58:49. > :58:50.ridiculous outfits. People like it. Thank you for coming in in your day
:58:51. > :58:51.dress. There'll be a couple of hours of
:58:52. > :59:07.just fantastic music, really, all the Ella classics, as well as
:59:08. > :59:11.some very special guests,