:00:37. > :00:37.Hello and welcome to the Daily Politics.
:00:38. > :00:40.Theresa May is to signal a change in approach by calling
:00:41. > :00:42.for cross-party consensus to tackle the urgent challenges
:00:43. > :00:48.A mature approach or a recognition or her weakened position?
:00:49. > :00:56.The European Parliament's Brexit chief, Guy Verhofstadt,
:00:57. > :00:59.says Theresa May's plans for EU citizens in the UK are a "damp
:01:00. > :01:04.squib" and threatens to veto any Brexit deal unless she offers more.
:01:05. > :01:06.Labour has already pledged to scrap tuition fees,
:01:07. > :01:09.but now the party says would like to go even further
:01:10. > :01:12.and write off all student debt, costing up to 100 billion.
:01:13. > :01:18.The Conservatives call it a shambolic proposal.
:01:19. > :01:21.And it's another big week ahead in Westminster -
:01:22. > :01:34.we'll have all the details of what's in store over the next seven days.
:01:35. > :01:39.And with us for the whole programme today are the Conservative MP
:01:40. > :01:42.Rishi Sunak, and Labour MP Chuka Umunna.
:01:43. > :01:50.First this morning, Theresa May is making a speech tomorrow -
:01:51. > :01:52.her first big speech since the election -
:01:53. > :01:57.in which she will call on other parties to "contribute
:01:58. > :02:06.Acknowledging her weakened position, she will say this is the "reality
:02:07. > :02:08.I now face as Prime Minister" and call on opponents to help
:02:09. > :02:22.Let's get more from our political correspondent, Ben Wright.
:02:23. > :02:27.Is this desperation, calling on opponents to prop her up? It is
:02:28. > :02:31.certainly a dramatic change of tone from Theresa May, never known in
:02:32. > :02:34.Westminster as the most collaborative politicians, but here
:02:35. > :02:39.she is, considerably weakened, having lost the Tories' majority in
:02:40. > :02:46.the Commons. All the muttering round here is how long she has got, weeks
:02:47. > :02:50.or months. This is a speech that has been heavily trial, a couple of days
:02:51. > :02:54.before she makes it, indicating that she is clearly determined to carry
:02:55. > :03:00.on with this as long as she can. She says her appetite is not dimmed. She
:03:01. > :03:04.still wants to tackle all the injustices that she set out to
:03:05. > :03:08.tackle when she first became PM last year, and making this offer for
:03:09. > :03:12.cross-party collaboration on the big issues facing Britain. The briefing
:03:13. > :03:17.suggests she is talking about things like social care reform. I think it
:03:18. > :03:20.does look like desperation. It is very out of character, and a
:03:21. > :03:26.substance is very questionable. There is a high degree of scepticism
:03:27. > :03:37.in the press about this today. In The Times - week and made pleads for
:03:38. > :03:41.support. Another says - may's cry for help to Corbyn. We need to treat
:03:42. > :03:47.this with scepticism and ask how realistic this idea of cross-party
:03:48. > :03:48.working is, but Damian Green this morning was defending the idea and
:03:49. > :03:50.said it was workable. that politicians can work together
:03:51. > :03:55.across party lines is actually Surely we can agree on aspects
:03:56. > :03:58.of counterterrorism policy, or social care policy,
:03:59. > :04:01.or workers' rights and so on. There are issues where
:04:02. > :04:03.the Westminster system it is sensible in this Parliament,
:04:04. > :04:10.if there are things we agree on - and, of course,
:04:11. > :04:15.we disagree on lots of things - but if there are things we agree on,
:04:16. > :04:28.then we should do so. Damian Green saying that the public
:04:29. > :04:31.like the idea of cross-party consensus, and it's true. Voters
:04:32. > :04:35.think it would be a good idea for parties to talk about the big issues
:04:36. > :04:38.that you mention, like social care, but in practical terms, how will it
:04:39. > :04:44.work and is never a positive response from the Lib Dems, the SNP
:04:45. > :04:48.and Labour? Certainly, Labour have said this smacks of desperation and
:04:49. > :04:51.they are not interested in the Tories trying to make what they see
:04:52. > :04:57.as they are perfectly good policy ideas. Damian Green says it is a
:04:58. > :05:02.practical political necessity but Theresa May because she has no
:05:03. > :05:06.majority. She will have DUP support on key events like the budget and
:05:07. > :05:14.the Queen 's speech, but beyond that, she will have to compromise
:05:15. > :05:18.and have talks. On big issues like social care, on Brexit, where some
:05:19. > :05:22.MPs have called for a cross-party commission to really try and find a
:05:23. > :05:25.parliamentary consensus on the way forward for Brexit, I don't think
:05:26. > :05:30.the Government are very interested in that. Some of the big reforms
:05:31. > :05:34.that Theresa May wanted to see enacted, that were in the manifesto,
:05:35. > :05:41.on social care and education, they have had to be dropped because she
:05:42. > :05:45.didn't get a majority. She has to say this sort of thing, but you get
:05:46. > :05:49.little sense that Labour are interested. After all, they want to
:05:50. > :05:56.try to bring Theresa May down, not prop her up. It brings a bit hollow
:05:57. > :05:58.from someone like Theresa May because she wasn't exactly
:05:59. > :06:03.collaborative in her previous role in the Home Office. She wasn't keen
:06:04. > :06:08.on working with the Lib Dems, and you were in Government with them
:06:09. > :06:12.together. I have always found her constructive and engaging. On the
:06:13. > :06:15.broader point, Damian Green is right. People do want to see
:06:16. > :06:21.politicians working together. We won't agree on everything, but it
:06:22. > :06:26.seems sensible to work together where there is consensus. The NHS,
:06:27. > :06:30.dealing with counterterrorism, and this isn't about pinching Labour
:06:31. > :06:35.ideas. These are new challenges facing our country. So where we can
:06:36. > :06:38.find common ground, it seems sensible to work together in the
:06:39. > :06:42.national interest. Parties have worked together on things like
:06:43. > :06:49.social care. The fact that nothing has been achieved very much doesn't
:06:50. > :06:54.mean that you shouldn't try. I don't think anyone would disagree. It is
:06:55. > :06:58.nothing new, the idea of different parties working together. We do that
:06:59. > :07:02.on select committees. I have just launched an all party Parliamentary
:07:03. > :07:08.group with Anna Soubry today, which we can talk more about. If it were
:07:09. > :07:11.so imperative and important that we deal with these issues, which, by
:07:12. > :07:18.the way, existed when she went through the door to ten Downing St,
:07:19. > :07:21.why wasn't she calling for the cross-party consensus and for
:07:22. > :07:26.different parties to work together when she gave a speech in front of
:07:27. > :07:31.number ten? The reason was that she didn't feel the need. This idea that
:07:32. > :07:34.she really does believe this, that it is a big imperative of our
:07:35. > :07:38.Government, people will take that with a lorry load of salt. The
:07:39. > :07:41.circumstances emanate from an election where she thought she would
:07:42. > :07:47.have a big majority and she has come out without one. Let's leave it
:07:48. > :07:51.there. Theresa May wants cross-party support on a range of issues, as we
:07:52. > :07:55.have been discussing, but of course, the biggest task facing her
:07:56. > :07:59.Government is negotiating the UK's withdrawal from the European Union.
:08:00. > :08:02.from US President Donald Trump, who said a "very powerful" free
:08:03. > :08:04.trade deal between America and the UK could be signed
:08:05. > :08:10.But today the issue of reciprocal rights for EU and UK citizens
:08:11. > :08:15.after Brexit has once again come to the fore.
:08:16. > :08:17.The European Parliament's chief negotiator, Guy Verhofstadt,
:08:18. > :08:20.and other leading MEPs, have said the UK offer on citizens'
:08:21. > :08:29.rights risks creating "second-class citizenship" for EU residents here.
:08:30. > :08:31.They imply that even Vote Leave, during the referendum
:08:32. > :08:34.campaign, were offering a more generous settlement.
:08:35. > :08:39.But the Government says the letter contains "a number of inaccuracies".
:08:40. > :08:42.The letter from Mr Verhofstadt and colleagues threatens that MEPs
:08:43. > :08:45.will veto any UK-EU deal if the offer for EU citizens
:08:46. > :08:55.Closer to home, a number of MPs from across the Commons have formed
:08:56. > :08:57.a new All-Party Parliamentary Group on EU Relations to scrutinise
:08:58. > :09:01.the Government over the next two years.
:09:02. > :09:04.Its members, like Anna Soubry, from Theresa May's own party,
:09:05. > :09:07.and Labour's Chuka Umunna, here with us, say they should
:09:08. > :09:11.be "active players" in the Brexit process.
:09:12. > :09:14.Yesterday Lib Dem leadership hopeful Vince Cable said he was "beginning
:09:15. > :09:16.to think Brexit may never happen," a thought which prompted
:09:17. > :09:21.the Conservative MP Owen Paterson to describe Vince Cable as "behind
:09:22. > :09:37.Chuka Umunna, this new group, it will be seen as a another front in
:09:38. > :09:51.trying to stop Brexit by any means, and that is what it is. Geller
:09:52. > :09:57.McBride -- by hard Brexiters. The three things that unite all of the
:09:58. > :10:01.MPs involved, and a greater membership of this group, is that we
:10:02. > :10:05.want to see the UK leaving with a deal. Leaving without one would be
:10:06. > :10:09.absolutely appalling. Second, we think in the negotiation we should
:10:10. > :10:15.have all options on the table, going confident, with an open mind. We are
:10:16. > :10:18.the third biggest economy in the world and we should be ambitious.
:10:19. > :10:22.And third, we want to see the close as possible relationship with the EU
:10:23. > :10:27.once we have left. If you look at Anna and myself, we both voted to
:10:28. > :10:31.trigger Article 50, so the idea that we want to rerun the referendum or
:10:32. > :10:35.ignore the result, no, we don't. We want to ensure that we have a decent
:10:36. > :10:39.deal for our constituents. That's why we have come together in the
:10:40. > :10:46.national interest. Let's pinpoint what you mean. Do you want to stay
:10:47. > :10:51.in the single market? Personally, I do. Does the group? The members want
:10:52. > :10:55.to see options. Some people want to be in the customs union but not this
:10:56. > :11:00.single market, some people the opposite, some people want both. You
:11:01. > :11:06.will be advocating to remain in the single market? That is my personal
:11:07. > :11:11.opinion. Wouldn't it be more honest for you in your personal capacity to
:11:12. > :11:15.say, actually, I am campaigning to remain in the EU because staying in
:11:16. > :11:19.the single market is effectively remaining in the EU? No, it isn't.
:11:20. > :11:24.There are a number of countries that are not members of the EU but that
:11:25. > :11:29.are part of the single market, such as Norway. As part of the European
:11:30. > :11:32.Economic Area. Some people will say we have not properly left the EU and
:11:33. > :11:36.you will still be under the jurisdiction of the European Court
:11:37. > :11:40.of Justice, like Norway, and therefore you will be part of the
:11:41. > :11:43.EU. In what way with the UK be taking back control? Three things
:11:44. > :11:47.that are raised as problems with staying in the single market - free
:11:48. > :11:52.movement, that is definitely an issue. At the moment, freedom of
:11:53. > :11:55.movement is not unconditional. I believe we could have a system of
:11:56. > :12:03.their movement, free movement of labour. You are right about taking
:12:04. > :12:07.back control and asking about that. I will be interested to see what
:12:08. > :12:11.Rishi Sunak says, but whoever you are, you want to access that market
:12:12. > :12:16.and sell goods and services into it. And there's no reason we couldn't do
:12:17. > :12:20.that. I don't disagree, but we would have to comply with rules, standards
:12:21. > :12:28.and regulations if we had a free trade agreement. But your view... It
:12:29. > :12:33.was proven a dead duck by David Cameron's negotiation, and it isn't
:12:34. > :12:38.possible, it seems. Hang on, David Cameron was trying to keep us in the
:12:39. > :12:42.EU. In the single market and tried to limit one of the four freedoms,
:12:43. > :12:48.freedom of movement. We can come back to that in a moment. Rishi,
:12:49. > :12:51.what is wrong with having an all-party group? Theresa May once
:12:52. > :13:05.you have is consensus, parties coming together, and that is what --
:13:06. > :13:09.wants to have a consensus. They can add to the debate, but we should be
:13:10. > :13:13.honest about what is going on. Chuka Umunna is honest, he would like to
:13:14. > :13:17.stay in the single market and amended the Queen 's speech to that
:13:18. > :13:24.effect. I tried to! He didn't get it through. We have a clear position.
:13:25. > :13:28.We voted to leave the EU. Staying inside the single market would be a
:13:29. > :13:31.betrayal of that though because we would be subject to the free
:13:32. > :13:35.movement of people, to the European Court of Justice and paying a large
:13:36. > :13:38.amount of money into the EU budget. I think people would view that as
:13:39. > :13:42.staying inside the EU, so we need to be clear about that. There are
:13:43. > :13:46.enough that you can now wants to stay there, and he has made that
:13:47. > :13:50.commitment to his constituents, but the rest of the country voted to
:13:51. > :13:54.leave, and that means removing ourselves from those institutions.
:13:55. > :13:58.On that point, of course, we want to have close relations with the EU
:13:59. > :14:02.after we leave. There's no reason we can't. You don't have to be a member
:14:03. > :14:07.of the single market to have access with it and to trade. Briefly,
:14:08. > :14:11.because we have to move onto other things. David Davies says that your
:14:12. > :14:17.Government's position is that you want to get exactly the same
:14:18. > :14:21.benefits as you got a member. He said that while ago. Michel Barnier
:14:22. > :14:26.has said you cannot get exactly the same benefits if you leave the
:14:27. > :14:31.single market and the customs union. We want to replica late as closely
:14:32. > :14:34.as possible the trading relationship -- to replicate as closely as
:14:35. > :14:44.possible the trading relationship we have within the EU. Canada have just
:14:45. > :14:47.removed 98% of tariffs. There is no reason why we, fifth largest economy
:14:48. > :14:53.in the world and the EU's largest trading partner, no reason why we
:14:54. > :14:58.couldn't do a good trading deal. Who doesn't want that to happen? Let's
:14:59. > :15:01.look at the European Court of Justice, because Theresa May has
:15:02. > :15:07.been very clear that part of leaving the EU must be an end to the
:15:08. > :15:11.jurisdiction of the ECJ in any arbitration issue. A number of
:15:12. > :15:16.senior Tories, your colleagues, if you're talking about clarity within
:15:17. > :15:18.the party, have come out and said we should not be as rigid and absolute
:15:19. > :15:29.as that. Are they right? We need to have our sovereignty, and
:15:30. > :15:34.having a chord that is sovereign to ours, it is not a sensible position
:15:35. > :15:39.to be in. And with respect to EU nationals, and this is where it has
:15:40. > :15:44.come up today, the idea that after we leave the European Union a
:15:45. > :15:51.foreign court would be supervising the rights to... So what are you
:15:52. > :15:54.going to do over the institutions, like the nuclear joint bodies that
:15:55. > :16:01.come under the jurisdiction of the ECJ? If we are voluntarily going to
:16:02. > :16:04.enter into agreements with the European Union which have a set of
:16:05. > :16:09.rules attached, of course, that is something we will choose to do where
:16:10. > :16:13.it makes sense, but having an overarching institution sovereign
:16:14. > :16:17.over our courts is clearly not a sustainable outcome. Let's talk
:16:18. > :16:21.about trade, Chuka Umunna, because we had the conversation and comments
:16:22. > :16:26.from Donald Trump that pretty soon after Brexit the US and the UK would
:16:27. > :16:31.be able to sign up to an extremely large free trade deal. Nothing to
:16:32. > :16:35.worry about? Well, let's see. If you look at the comments of the
:16:36. > :16:41.president of the CBI on what Donald Trump is said, to paraphrase, the
:16:42. > :16:45.president of the CBI, he said you do not agree free-trade agreements
:16:46. > :16:49.through bear hug diplomacy, they are very hard-nosed... But there has got
:16:50. > :16:54.to be a will, and Donald Trump has signalled it extremely publicly, and
:16:55. > :16:59.that is a good thing, isn't it? Of course, because if we leave the EU,
:17:00. > :17:06.Haiti knows we will need to do agreements! The European Union has a
:17:07. > :17:09.huge number of agreements with third-party countries, not least
:17:10. > :17:15.Japan, and we are walking away from that. If we take out those comments
:17:16. > :17:18.from the president of the CBI, Minister David Lidington admitted it
:17:19. > :17:25.would not replace the trade we are currently with the EU. The EU's own
:17:26. > :17:29.forecast shows that 90% of global demand will be coming from outside
:17:30. > :17:34.the EU, and we should be looking towards those other countries, and
:17:35. > :17:39.it is not just the US. It is both. Of course, it is Australia, Canada,
:17:40. > :17:43.and they have been positive about signing new free-trade agreements,
:17:44. > :17:46.and you are right, it is not either/or, we can replicate the
:17:47. > :17:52.arrangements we have with the EU through free-trade agreements. They
:17:53. > :17:57.have said that is not possible, Michel has said that. But you want
:17:58. > :18:03.to renegotiate arrangements within the single market, which people have
:18:04. > :18:05.not said is possible. I should not have reopened that!
:18:06. > :18:08.Now, in the run-up to the general election,
:18:09. > :18:14.Labour promised in their manifesto to abolish university
:18:15. > :18:17.tuition fees and reintroduce student maintenance grants.
:18:18. > :18:19.But days before the poll, Jeremy Corbyn indicated
:18:20. > :18:22.that he would want to go further and deal with all student debt.
:18:23. > :18:24.Yesterday, Shadow Education Secretary Angela Rayner
:18:25. > :18:30.told Andrew Marr that would cost up to ?100 billion,
:18:31. > :18:33.and that it was an ambition for the party to announce
:18:34. > :18:36.when they could afford it. This is what she had to say.
:18:37. > :18:38.There's three things I call on the Government to do
:18:39. > :18:41.They can reverse the maintenance grants, abolishing that -
:18:42. > :18:43.that will help the most disadvantaged students.
:18:44. > :18:46.They could stop and reduce the percentage rate that students
:18:47. > :18:53.And they can ensure that the amount that they repay,
:18:54. > :18:56.goes up in line with average earnings.
:18:57. > :18:58.Their things that the Conservatives could do before September
:18:59. > :19:02.Aren't you just spraying around huge spending promises too recklessly?
:19:03. > :19:04.I mean, another ?100 billion on tuition fees
:19:05. > :19:08.right at the last minute - that's some sofa you have to find.
:19:09. > :19:10.Well, like you said, Jeremy said that that is an ambition,
:19:11. > :19:13.it's something that he'd like to do, it's something that we will not
:19:14. > :19:17.announce that we're doing unless we can afford to do that.
:19:18. > :19:26.a senior editor at Novara Media who also lectures in politics.
:19:27. > :19:35.Welcome to the Daily Politics. Abolishing student debt was not in
:19:36. > :19:40.the Labour manifesto, did he miss be? I don't think he did, he is
:19:41. > :19:44.addressing the fact that this country is becoming increasingly
:19:45. > :19:48.debt burdened, so if you pay 9000 fees, you are looking at being
:19:49. > :19:53.burdened with 50 grand debt, those from poorer backgrounds, that can go
:19:54. > :19:58.up to 57 grand, and when you add onto that the increases in household
:19:59. > :20:02.debt, credit cards and stuff, we are now reaching financial crisis
:20:03. > :20:13.levels, right? But you are not paying that
:20:14. > :20:17.money upfront, this is more like a loan that is repaid once you start
:20:18. > :20:20.earning a certain amount of income, some of it will never be paid back,
:20:21. > :20:23.so what you're not incurring debt in the same way as with credit cards.
:20:24. > :20:26.In an ideal world, we would be met with fantastic jobs and we could in
:20:27. > :20:28.the median wage straightaway, but that is not happening when graduates
:20:29. > :20:33.get out of university. But then you don't repay if you don't earn a
:20:34. > :20:38.salary. That seems to me to be a wild way to run an economy, right? I
:20:39. > :20:41.am not an economic lecturer, but it seems to me if you have got a
:20:42. > :20:45.funding model for higher education in which over a third of people are
:20:46. > :20:51.never going to repay that money, that seems to be utterly bananas. So
:20:52. > :20:56.you think it is suggesting, realistically, to abolish all
:20:57. > :20:59.student debt, even if it is ?100 million? When you look at tax
:21:00. > :21:05.collection priorities in this country, things are totally askew.
:21:06. > :21:09.In 2016, Revenue and Customs announced there was 36 billion in
:21:10. > :21:13.uncollected tax, and that is before you get to profit sharing. In other
:21:14. > :21:16.European countries, there are different models. Germany, for
:21:17. > :21:22.instance, does not charge tuition fees, and these countries also pay
:21:23. > :21:25.their lecturers and other staff more, cleaners and catering staff
:21:26. > :21:30.are paid more. They improve conditions for everyone. What is
:21:31. > :21:36.your view about abolishing student debt? Is it realistic? Having it as
:21:37. > :21:41.an aspiration has to be a goal for a Labour Party that wants to ensure
:21:42. > :21:46.that, regardless of your creed, colour or background, you can get on
:21:47. > :21:50.and it is not a barrier to higher education. But it has not proven to
:21:51. > :21:55.be a barrier, poorer students are less likely to go to university
:21:56. > :21:59.overall, but since tuition fees, introduced by the Labour government,
:22:00. > :22:04.were brought in, it has not actually detailed poorer students - it is now
:22:05. > :22:14.static, but it has gone up since 2013. Hang on just a minute, I was
:22:15. > :22:17.about to make the point, about to make the point that what we expected
:22:18. > :22:22.would happen, which was that you would see a reduction in the numbers
:22:23. > :22:25.of people from lower income households, that did not happen,
:22:26. > :22:31.because in constituencies like mine, where one in three is living in
:22:32. > :22:37.poverty, people are not going to let that be a brake on their ambition.
:22:38. > :22:40.But this issue about debt, you are absolutely right, Ash, people are
:22:41. > :22:45.saddled with this for up to three decades before it is written off,
:22:46. > :22:49.and that is a massive barrier to everything you want to do. But the
:22:50. > :22:53.language you are using, people saddled with debt, is that a fair
:22:54. > :22:58.representation of the current policy, which is, as I say, a loan
:22:59. > :23:03.that is taken out, you do not pay upfront fees, you only pay when UN a
:23:04. > :23:11.certain amount of money? For low income students, debts of ?57,000,
:23:12. > :23:16.to me that is saddling young people with a huge level of debt. It is eye
:23:17. > :23:21.watering, if you think about what young people are having to deal with
:23:22. > :23:24.once they leave university, if the well-paid jobs were there for the
:23:25. > :23:29.vast majority of them, to start repaying it back in a reasonable
:23:30. > :23:33.fashion, because I take the point about interest rates, the loans are
:23:34. > :23:39.not as expensive as on the market, but it is still off putting. You
:23:40. > :23:42.have mentioned the fact that, the fact that people from less
:23:43. > :23:47.disadvantaged backgrounds are more likely to go to university, the gap
:23:48. > :23:50.has closed, we are in a better situation than Scotland, which
:23:51. > :23:53.abolished tuition fees, where children from those backgrounds are
:23:54. > :24:01.twice as likely to go to university in this country. The ?50,000 sounds
:24:02. > :24:05.like a lot blog well, it is a lot! The benefit of being a graduate is
:24:06. > :24:09.close to ?1 million, so that is what it should be set against, you will
:24:10. > :24:14.earn considerably more than someone who does not. If you have the
:24:15. > :24:19.ability to pay it, you should pay some back. It is progressive, it is
:24:20. > :24:27.fair, it ensures universities are well funded. Let Ash come back on
:24:28. > :24:33.that, because it is progressive in the sense that people have a long
:24:34. > :24:37.time to pay it back. We have to make sure that corporations pay their
:24:38. > :24:42.fair share, and to come back on the issue of stats, dropout rates have
:24:43. > :24:47.increased since the introduction of fees. What are they? 6% of first
:24:48. > :24:55.years will fail to move on to their second year. As a result of tuition
:24:56. > :24:58.fees? There has been a 0.5% increase year-on-year in that number. When
:24:59. > :25:03.you look at the attainment gap, especially pronounced for working
:25:04. > :25:12.class and BAME students, that widens in higher education. So with all due
:25:13. > :25:15.respect, your stats are meaningless. Was it a mistake for the coalition
:25:16. > :25:20.government to abolish maintenance grants? Because that has been a big
:25:21. > :25:24.deterrent to a lot of students from poorer backgrounds to try and reach
:25:25. > :25:28.university in the first place? The issue with Gran says that when we
:25:29. > :25:32.have a sum of money to allocate to benefit the highest number of
:25:33. > :25:36.people, it means we have a cap on the number of people who we can
:25:37. > :25:40.benefit. Transitioning to the system of loans means more people can go to
:25:41. > :25:45.university. Ash mentioned Germany, Germany can afford a different
:25:46. > :25:49.system because only 20% of German students go to university. In this
:25:50. > :25:52.country, it is closer to half, so in a system with more people going to
:25:53. > :25:56.university, we need a fair system to pay for it, and loans means we can
:25:57. > :25:58.offer that opportunity to everyone who wants it.
:25:59. > :26:00.Now, the summer recess is not far away,
:26:01. > :26:02.but there's still a busy week ahead in Westminster.
:26:03. > :26:07.Later this afternoon, Theresa May will update MPs
:26:08. > :26:09.on the G20 summit that took place in Hamburg.
:26:10. > :26:12.Tuesday, and as part of Theresa May's speech
:26:13. > :26:15.on building a fairer Britain, the Government is expected
:26:16. > :26:20.of employment practices in the modern economy.
:26:21. > :26:23.On Wednesday, it's the return of the weekly showdown
:26:24. > :26:25.between Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn
:26:26. > :26:30.It's also election time for the chairs
:26:31. > :26:36.Thursday marks Theresa May's first year as Prime Minister
:26:37. > :26:39.and will see the introduction of the Government's Repeal Bill,
:26:40. > :26:41.formerly known as the Great Repeal Bill.
:26:42. > :26:43.That seeks to copy and paste all existing EU law
:26:44. > :26:46.On Friday, MPs return to their constituencies,
:26:47. > :26:49.with just one more week to go before the House rises for summer recess.
:26:50. > :26:55.Let's quickly pick up with one of those stories, 11 select committee
:26:56. > :26:59.chairs are up for grabs, including the influential Treasury Committee,
:27:00. > :27:05.until recently chaired by Andrew Tyrie. Who would you like to see as
:27:06. > :27:10.chair? I haven't actually made up my mind, I am an undecided voter! There
:27:11. > :27:14.has high quality candidates from across-the-board, both sides, Brexit
:27:15. > :27:19.and Remain, if that is important. I am not sure it needs to be the most
:27:20. > :27:22.important factor in it, you want someone who will hold the Government
:27:23. > :27:27.to account, that is their role, and there are good examples of us
:27:28. > :27:31.working cross and Parliamentary interests. Will you have Brexit at
:27:32. > :27:36.the forefront of your mind when it comes to the chairs of these
:27:37. > :27:38.committees? Nicky Morgan, one of your open Britain colleagues,
:27:39. > :27:42.obviously thinking along the same lines as you. It is an important
:27:43. > :27:47.issue for you, and I have said publicly I want to see Nicky on the
:27:48. > :27:50.Treasury Select Committee, for reasons beyond Brexit. I used to
:27:51. > :27:53.serve on the Treasury Select Committee, I would like to see a
:27:54. > :28:01.woman chair it, I think she is the best person for the job, gender is
:28:02. > :28:04.not striving my vote. Tom Tugendhat is standing for the Foreign Affairs
:28:05. > :28:08.Select Committee, you could do some incredible things. Norman Lamb as
:28:09. > :28:15.well. There are lots of you, what about the 2015 intake? Will there be
:28:16. > :28:18.people from your intake? Tom Tugendhat and Johnny Mercer is
:28:19. > :28:23.standing for chairman of the Defence Select Committee, I think that is
:28:24. > :28:32.interesting, as an intake we are a relatively decent sized part of the
:28:33. > :28:35.party, there should be some of the younger generation coming through.
:28:36. > :28:38.We will know fairly shortly, I suppose, won't we? Thank you very
:28:39. > :28:40.much to my guests. If you haven't had enough
:28:41. > :28:43.Daily Politics, you can head over to the BBC Politics Facebook page,
:28:44. > :28:46.where Ellie Price and I will be going live straight
:28:47. > :28:48.after this programme. And I'll be back here
:28:49. > :28:50.on BBC Two at 11:30 tomorrow, BBC TWO reveals the bittersweet
:28:51. > :29:08.history of sugar. This is really a chance
:29:09. > :29:12.to create pure magic.