19/07/2017

:00:37. > :00:40.Morning folks - welcome to the Daily Politics.

:00:41. > :00:43.The divorce bill is the big sticking point as negotiators are locked

:00:44. > :00:47.in for a third day of Brexit negotiations in Brussels -

:00:48. > :00:51.might agreement on the final sum only come at the 11th hour?

:00:52. > :01:01.Tuition fees have caused a lot of anger amongst students,

:01:02. > :01:02.But the government have given universities the go-ahead to

:01:03. > :01:05.increase them. Labour want to scrap them

:01:06. > :01:08.altogether, but would that be a good As MPs pack their bucket and spade,

:01:09. > :01:12.we'll bring you the final PMQs And it wouldn't be the end of term

:01:13. > :01:19.without a sports day... Will MPs or journalists win the egg

:01:20. > :01:35.and spoon race? The shock of the News of the egg and

:01:36. > :01:37.spoon race! Is Gary Lineker coming on to do this pick? I hope so.

:01:38. > :01:41.The Defence Secretary, Michael Fallon, called

:01:42. > :01:43.on his colleagues last night to be more disciplined and loyal,

:01:44. > :01:46.and to concentrate their fire on a "dangerous enemy within reach

:01:47. > :01:49.We'll expect nothing less of former soldier, Tobias Ellwood,

:01:50. > :01:52.now a Defence Minister himself, who is with us for the duration.

:01:53. > :01:54.And we have a formidable adversary for him -

:01:55. > :01:57.the Shadow Secretary of Women and Equalities, Sarah Champion.

:01:58. > :02:11.First, in the last hour or so the BBC has published details

:02:12. > :02:15.of the salaries of on-screen talent earning more than ?150,000 from

:02:16. > :02:20.The disclosure was demanded by the Government in the most recent

:02:21. > :02:28.The BBC didn't really want to do it but the government said they had to.

:02:29. > :02:32.Only a third of the highest paid reporters and presenters are women -

:02:33. > :02:34.a situation the director general, Tony Hall, has described

:02:35. > :02:37.The Chairman of the Common's Culture, Media and Sport Committee,

:02:38. > :02:40.Damian Collins, welcomed publication of the salary details.

:02:41. > :02:45.The reason we want a disclosure on salaries is we can see,

:02:46. > :02:47.do these salaries look competitive or not?

:02:48. > :02:50.Everyone will expect the top talent, the top on-screen talent,

:02:51. > :02:52.to be earning high salaries at equivalent levels to people

:02:53. > :02:56.But what will be interesting to see is other people

:02:57. > :02:58.within the organisation, maybe at much more middle-ranking

:02:59. > :03:00.levels, are they on unusually high salaries as well?

:03:01. > :03:02.And that's why I think it's important that those

:03:03. > :03:06.When the BBC is funded by the licence fee payer,

:03:07. > :03:11.and periodically we hear that certain much-loved services

:03:12. > :03:13.or programmes have to be cut, and there are cutbacks on local

:03:14. > :03:15.radio, I think it's not unreasonable the licence

:03:16. > :03:18.fee payers ask the BBC, well, how do you spend

:03:19. > :03:28.Just some of the reaction to this list today. Sarah Champion, is it a

:03:29. > :03:32.worthwhile exercise? I don't think so, personally, I know that might be

:03:33. > :03:36.shocking. I know football players get paid a huge amount and film

:03:37. > :03:42.stars get paid a huge amount but to be quite honest, if I was reading

:03:43. > :03:47.the news... I concede market forces are the way they are. Your Tory

:03:48. > :03:52.colleague says this allows us, his committee and others in public life,

:03:53. > :03:56.to compare if the BBC are paying market levels or not. Can you do

:03:57. > :04:03.that when we don't know what the equivalent presenters in Skye, ITV

:04:04. > :04:07.channel for getting? You illustrate the challenge we face here. Where I

:04:08. > :04:11.disagree is for competitive football players of film stars, this is

:04:12. > :04:16.public money. The nation is paying for this. We don't doubt your

:04:17. > :04:20.talent, but we do want to know... You do. We want to do how much you

:04:21. > :04:26.are paid. Some of these some side large on the BBC needs to respond to

:04:27. > :04:30.that. Most importantly, it has highlighted a gender pay gap. I

:04:31. > :04:36.think that is something Tony Hall must address immediately. He says he

:04:37. > :04:39.will, we will see. Have you had a look at the list yet, did anything

:04:40. > :04:42.jump out? Where it is interesting, I'm Brad Tony Hall has said he will

:04:43. > :04:46.look at the gender pay gap. It's not just about figures but about those

:04:47. > :04:50.structural blocks that prevents women from reaching their full

:04:51. > :04:54.potential. That happens in the BBC, we know it happens in journalism and

:04:55. > :04:59.politics. The figures that come out today, we can now see the scale of

:05:00. > :05:03.the problem. Exactly, when you are looking like for like, if there are

:05:04. > :05:09.differences between men and women doing the same job, commanding the

:05:10. > :05:12.same sort of audience figures, then I think the BBC is right to do

:05:13. > :05:16.something about it and we are right to know that. However, to be quite

:05:17. > :05:19.honest, this is another example, the Tories have in for the BBC on this

:05:20. > :05:25.is another way of having a go at them. Why'd you have it in for the

:05:26. > :05:32.BBC? I don't agree with that, I am huge supporter, as the party is, for

:05:33. > :05:35.BBC, nationally and worldwide. It's part of promoting British influence

:05:36. > :05:39.around the world and respected around the world. To suggest this is

:05:40. > :05:43.some sort of Tory plot... This is taxpayers money, the nation paying

:05:44. > :05:48.for this and that is why we have every right to understand. To put

:05:49. > :05:52.that into context, yes you are in a competitive environment. Let me come

:05:53. > :05:57.back to the point where we began. You said it's a huge challenge, but

:05:58. > :06:04.I'm not sure how we resolve it, since we don't know what Adam

:06:05. > :06:07.Boulton at Sky News is getting all Robert Peston, we don't know what

:06:08. > :06:13.our equivalents in the other networks are getting. It is not your

:06:14. > :06:16.intention, I understand, to force them to publish summaries, you

:06:17. > :06:22.couldn't? They are not taking money from the people. The licence fee

:06:23. > :06:27.means there needs to be... Comparison. That is a case for

:06:28. > :06:31.publishing, I understand that argument. But your colleague was

:06:32. > :06:35.arguing, we can now make comparisons. My point, I will make

:06:36. > :06:39.for a third time and then shut up, you cannot make comparisons because

:06:40. > :06:43.you don't have data that allows you to make the comparison. I understand

:06:44. > :06:48.that. Hopefully we will see some of the private sector coming forward

:06:49. > :06:53.and being more transparent. There is a fundamental issue, that it's right

:06:54. > :07:07.the nation sees... You made that .4-macro

:07:08. > :07:10.times, I haven't contested it. Damian Collins made another point,

:07:11. > :07:12.regional areas, where is money spent? The balance of national and

:07:13. > :07:15.local media is important across the BBC. There is no work being done

:07:16. > :07:17.here today. Everyone is going through these lists! More excitement

:07:18. > :07:19.in the newsroom than I have seen for a while.

:07:20. > :07:22.Now, EU and UK negotiators are locked in a room -

:07:23. > :07:24.several rooms actually - in Brussels for a third

:07:25. > :07:26.day for this second round of Brexit negotiations.

:07:27. > :07:28.We won't get an official statement from either side

:07:29. > :07:31.on progress until tomorrow, but we know a man who's been touring

:07:32. > :07:33.the Brussels' bars for those off-the-record briefings -

:07:34. > :07:44.Where are we on the talks? Very good question. We are getting very little

:07:45. > :07:48.detail about what is happening in those rooms, where they are

:07:49. > :07:52.grappling with the three big issues, citizens rights for people in the UK

:07:53. > :07:55.and British people living on the continent, the financial settlement,

:07:56. > :07:58.the Brexit bill, Northern Ireland and what happens with the border.

:07:59. > :08:02.Occasional details are coming out when we get a call saying, come and

:08:03. > :08:06.meet me in the pub and I'll tell you a bit about what's being discussed.

:08:07. > :08:13.We're waiting for tomorrow lunchtime, when David Davis is

:08:14. > :08:17.supposed to be back in town with Michel Barnier and we will get an

:08:18. > :08:19.understanding of what has happened. My understanding is there is

:08:20. > :08:22.progress on the issue of citizens rights, they are closing on a deal

:08:23. > :08:29.but not there yet. Northern Ireland, it has turned into an academic

:08:30. > :08:32.seminar over Anglo relations in recent years, including the Good

:08:33. > :08:37.Friday Agreement, and the real sticking point when it comes to

:08:38. > :08:40.money. The UK delegation is really probing the legal basis that the

:08:41. > :08:45.European Commission is coming up with for the rationales for the UK

:08:46. > :08:51.paying a big financial lump sum. Could that delay further progress in

:08:52. > :08:55.the talks? That is what we have heard from Brussels and EU

:08:56. > :08:59.diplomats, that Michel Barnier may stall those talks, if there is an

:09:00. > :09:04.agreement in some form on the divorce settlement?

:09:05. > :09:08.That particular report, which appeared on a rival new service, is

:09:09. > :09:13.being disputed by both sides. What they don't dispute is there is

:09:14. > :09:17.frustration on both sides about this financial issue. The EU 's side is a

:09:18. > :09:22.bit annoyed the UK hasn't been more forthcoming about their view on the

:09:23. > :09:25.so-called Brexit Bill. The British side is not quite convinced about

:09:26. > :09:30.the rationales for the bill existing in the first place. It is a crucial

:09:31. > :09:35.thing, because Michel Barnier has made an agreement on a methodology

:09:36. > :09:39.for calculating for some, one of the preconditions for the decision he

:09:40. > :09:42.will make in October about whether sufficient progress has been made in

:09:43. > :09:46.this set of talks, to move to the second set of talks, which is all

:09:47. > :09:50.the stuff about the future relationship on trade and things

:09:51. > :09:54.like that. It is worth remembering, both sides when it comes to the

:09:55. > :09:57.bill, are talking about a methodology, a way of typing numbers

:09:58. > :10:05.into their calculators to work out a final number, not a final number

:10:06. > :10:08.being slid across the table on a post-it note by Michel Barnier. That

:10:09. > :10:10.will come much greater. Talks about talks about further talks and

:10:11. > :10:12.calculating that figure some way down the line. Is there a feeling

:10:13. > :10:17.David Davis and the team haven't been well prepared for these talks?

:10:18. > :10:22.Are you talking about a certain photograph that emerged on the first

:10:23. > :10:25.day when David Davis set down in front Michel Barnier? Michel Barnier

:10:26. > :10:29.and his team had a rich pile of papers in front of them, David Davis

:10:30. > :10:33.and his team were pretty much empty handed. It gave critics of the

:10:34. > :10:36.British government a bit more ammunition to say the Brits have

:10:37. > :10:46.commented these negotiations underprepared. It is the EU that

:10:47. > :10:50.have made the running by public -- publishing document after document.

:10:51. > :10:53.They say they have been working on the document for a year ever since

:10:54. > :10:58.the referendum happen. The rumour is in some bits of the talk, the

:10:59. > :11:01.British delegation has piles of paper bigger than their European

:11:02. > :11:05.counterparts and in some areas they feel they are better briefed than

:11:06. > :11:07.the Europeans. Bright, I can see the level of these talks is getting to

:11:08. > :11:15.high maturity levels. Thank you. Tobias, without wanting to compare

:11:16. > :11:20.how big your pilot a breeze compared to mine, is that the perception that

:11:21. > :11:27.the British side is not as well prepared as Michel Barnier? -- your

:11:28. > :11:31.pilot of paper is bigger to mind? Information is plucked from various

:11:32. > :11:35.sources. Your reporter says he's going round Brussels bar is going to

:11:36. > :11:40.get information, that would be as accurate as going to Westminster

:11:41. > :11:43.bars here. From recent parties it's proved productive! You get tittle

:11:44. > :11:47.tattle, the lieutenant speaking about promoting generals on that

:11:48. > :11:50.happens all the time. The amount of airtime you give these, that is up

:11:51. > :11:53.to you. The picture itself is another great example. You know if

:11:54. > :12:00.you walk down number ten Downing St, the last thing you do is show your

:12:01. > :12:05.papers, because it curious that Oliver will take advantage of that.

:12:06. > :12:08.Happens all the time. That particular picture shows a starting

:12:09. > :12:14.point where the media came in. David Davis had a box full of papers. To

:12:15. > :12:19.make a judgment on this is ridiculous. I think we eventually

:12:20. > :12:23.got onto it in the report, that each week, each fortnight we are going

:12:24. > :12:27.through the various issues, the Northern Ireland Borders, the cost

:12:28. > :12:31.of departing, the EU citizenship, one by one these will be done but

:12:32. > :12:34.they will be done behind closed doors and an announcement is made.

:12:35. > :12:39.We need to be patient. How long do you think it will take to get the

:12:40. > :12:42.divorce Bill part of the negotiations sorted out? We know

:12:43. > :12:48.from Michel Barnier, he wants to wrap it up before moving to other

:12:49. > :12:51.things? There is even an absolute determination on both sides to be

:12:52. > :12:55.constructive about this. Also you had in the report is not just about

:12:56. > :12:59.a figure being passed across but a formula being devised to make sure

:13:00. > :13:02.we understand this is fair on both sides. This is part of what

:13:03. > :13:08.negotiation is all about. I said, when do you think...? We haven't got

:13:09. > :13:13.much time. Michel Barnier keep saying the clock is ticking. When

:13:14. > :13:16.would you like to see some sort of announcement on the figure, so that

:13:17. > :13:19.then things could move on to stuff like the free trade agreement? We

:13:20. > :13:24.will hear that in detail tomorrow when a press statement is made. We

:13:25. > :13:27.need to be patient. It is a two-year process and everyone is wanting to

:13:28. > :13:31.have those answers now. All speculate what they might be when

:13:32. > :13:36.they are wandering round Brussels bars. Should the EU go whistle, as

:13:37. > :13:39.Boris Johnson suggested? I think we are sort of trivialising this

:13:40. > :13:44.against a pipe that is what he said and he is the Foreign Secretary.

:13:45. > :13:51.Britain has a lot to offer, one of the three big nations in Europe,

:13:52. > :13:52.financial services, military, defence, intelligence, aerospace,

:13:53. > :13:59.digital, pharmaceuticals, we lead Europe and the world. Was Boris

:14:00. > :14:03.Johnson trivialising the debate? I won't comment on those... He said

:14:04. > :14:07.very clearly they should go and whistle stop to what I'm saying is

:14:08. > :14:12.we have very much to offer, strong hand to play, Europe knows that as

:14:13. > :14:16.well. We must allow these talks to develop at their own pace. What is

:14:17. > :14:23.Labour's Brexit policy? It is quite simple, we want the best deal. The

:14:24. > :14:28.customs union and the single market, what is Labour's policy? We would

:14:29. > :14:31.love to negotiate a deal so we can get rid of tariffs and have a strong

:14:32. > :14:37.trading relationship with them. What we are looking at is how do we get

:14:38. > :14:41.the best working relationship? How do we get the best deal, and how do

:14:42. > :14:46.we maintain that in the long term? To get caught up with are we going

:14:47. > :14:50.for the Common Market or the customs union? I'm less comfortable about

:14:51. > :14:57.that. What I want is the vision. What I'm not seen for the -- from

:14:58. > :15:01.the Tories is any vision or endgame. The EU will want specifics. You say

:15:02. > :15:04.you're not comfortable with the idea of the single market and Customs

:15:05. > :15:09.union, not comfortable coming out of the single market and Customs union

:15:10. > :15:14.or staying in? I don't think the question is where I want to be. If

:15:15. > :15:17.Labour says it wants to end free movement, presumably if you support

:15:18. > :15:22.that part of the manifesto, you will be outside the single market?

:15:23. > :15:32.Absolutely. And if you want to do free trade deals, Labour would be

:15:33. > :15:35.supporting coming out of the customs union or not? At the moment, yes. We

:15:36. > :15:38.would be. But what we're looking for is rather than getting caught up

:15:39. > :15:41.with the labels, it's looking at what is the best deal we can get?

:15:42. > :15:44.What I'm seeing from the Tories is they have got the vision or the game

:15:45. > :15:46.max. They are going in and blustering. That is not working, on

:15:47. > :15:50.us internationally. What we're looking to do at the moment is keep

:15:51. > :15:54.everything on the table, to try and find. Including single market of the

:15:55. > :15:58.single market and customs union? I don't think it will happen. You

:15:59. > :16:10.agree with Caroline Flint who said this week we will look like liars,

:16:11. > :16:12.talking about Labour, if we try and frustrate every government vote on

:16:13. > :16:15.Brexit? We are not trained to do that at all and we haven't been.

:16:16. > :16:18.We're trying to get the best of this country. We are in opposition. We

:16:19. > :16:20.have about 18 months to negotiate something. The fact we're still

:16:21. > :16:23.haggling about whether or not we are paying the divorce Bill seems crazy

:16:24. > :16:27.to me. We could have sorted this out before we got to the referendum. The

:16:28. > :16:31.Great Repeal Bill? At the moment as it stands, no... It transfers

:16:32. > :16:36.exactly what we see at the moment without a problem, you won't support

:16:37. > :16:39.that? You are looking at getting more and more delegated powers to

:16:40. > :16:43.the executive and less and less scrutiny by Parliament. What we're

:16:44. > :16:46.looking for is to make sure we have some accountability. We have been

:16:47. > :16:50.elected to scrutinise, to challenge and to get the best for every one of

:16:51. > :16:56.our electorate. Your bill at the moment is offering that.

:16:57. > :17:03.The bill simply transfers the powers across so that we have stability.

:17:04. > :17:08.The next phase beyond that is how you scrutinise the aspects of bad

:17:09. > :17:12.Bill. But you do accept that there are these powers... And that is

:17:13. > :17:17.where if you have differences, you could then raise them.

:17:18. > :17:23.Lets just a sprain briefly to the viewers the reason that these powers

:17:24. > :17:27.would allow the executive to make changes without going through

:17:28. > :17:32.Parliament. So you are then going to block... ? At the moment we would

:17:33. > :17:37.block it. We want a much better deal on the table that we know is going

:17:38. > :17:41.to enable us to be able to protect workers' rights, to protect

:17:42. > :17:45.environmental rights, to protect trading. As it stands, we would be

:17:46. > :17:51.blocking it. And how much would you pay to settle the divorce Bill? I

:17:52. > :17:54.don't know. Whatever is fair. My region of South Yorkshire has really

:17:55. > :17:59.benefited over decades of investment. It wasn't a charity that

:18:00. > :18:02.we were going to. We have a relationship, we are severing that

:18:03. > :18:06.relationship and we need to do what is fair.

:18:07. > :18:08.Now, the Government wants to let them rise -

:18:09. > :18:10.Labour wants to scrap them altogether.

:18:11. > :18:13.This afternoon MPs will debate university tuition fees.

:18:14. > :18:15.Labour's relative success in the general election has been

:18:16. > :18:18.credited in part to its pitch to younger voters,

:18:19. > :18:23.In April, the Government gave universities the go-ahead

:18:24. > :18:25.to increase tuition fees in line with inflation

:18:26. > :18:31.English students starting in September are set

:18:32. > :18:40.The Labour manifesto promised to scrap tuition fees altogether,

:18:41. > :18:46.But in an interview with NME magazine, Jeremy Corbyn also

:18:47. > :18:50.suggested the party would write off all student debt.

:18:51. > :18:52.He said those who have already graduated shouldn't be

:18:53. > :18:57."burdened excessively" and he would "deal with it".

:18:58. > :19:05.That would cost approximately ?100 billion, roughly equivalent

:19:06. > :19:08.to the annual cost of day-to-day running of the NHS.

:19:09. > :19:10.But senior figures in the party have appeared to row

:19:11. > :19:12.back on the pledge, with Shadow Chancellor

:19:13. > :19:14.John McDonnell saying it was just an "ambition",

:19:15. > :19:18.But with Labour's success amongst young voters

:19:19. > :19:20.at the general election, Theresa May's right hand man,

:19:21. > :19:23.Damian Green, has admitted that there needs to be a "national

:19:24. > :19:36.And drove. Sarah Champion, when Jeremy Corbyn said a week before the

:19:37. > :19:40.election, he told voters that he would deal with historic student

:19:41. > :19:48.debt what did he mean by that? You'll have to ask him. Chance would

:19:49. > :19:53.be a fine thing! I will ask if you'll come on. I don't think it

:19:54. > :19:57.will be possible, to be honest. How do you square it with people who

:19:58. > :20:01.have already paid off their debt, for example? We can't change the

:20:02. > :20:06.past, and I don't think the Treasury would allow us to roll back on

:20:07. > :20:10.something. But I think immediately there are things that the Government

:20:11. > :20:15.can do now, so for example we're looking at the interest rates that

:20:16. > :20:19.students have to pay going up to 6.1%, which is crazy. If you go to a

:20:20. > :20:26.high street bank, you can get a better rate than that. Why are we

:20:27. > :20:31.lumbering students with about ?50,000 now to repay their tuition

:20:32. > :20:35.fees, more for students from poorer backgrounds because they have had to

:20:36. > :20:40.take out maintenance grants to survive, and I'm told the average is

:20:41. > :20:45.?57,000, so the poorer you are, the bigger the amount of debt you have

:20:46. > :20:50.got on your balance sheet. Why on top of that are you charging 6%

:20:51. > :20:54.interest? This is why Damian Green has said that we need to have a

:20:55. > :20:57.debate about this. I think we both agree that we have one of the

:20:58. > :21:03.largest economies in the world, and to continue that, we need to have

:21:04. > :21:07.academics and entrepreneurs that are able to go to university is not feel

:21:08. > :21:10.prohibited because of the finances, said it is important to look at

:21:11. > :21:12.this, but I'm glad that you should the promise made in the general

:21:13. > :21:15.election because I think it diminishes British politics as a

:21:16. > :21:21.whole when these promises are made and then when a Dibon so quickly

:21:22. > :21:26.after so many students took this is the sole issue, the sole reason they

:21:27. > :21:30.support Labour. I tell you what also is in British politics, and I see it

:21:31. > :21:36.first hand almost every day of the week, and that is not answering the

:21:37. > :21:40.question. My question is why are you charging 6% interest on student

:21:41. > :21:44.loans? The package of measures depends on what course you are

:21:45. > :21:51.doing, the length of the course and so on... You pay 6% whatever it is.

:21:52. > :21:55.I agree that these figures need to be challenged, which is why... You

:21:56. > :22:00.know what the rich parents are doing? They are taking that debt,

:22:01. > :22:08.because they can do it, they are borrowing against their homes to

:22:09. > :22:12.repay that debt at a much lower rate of interest, because they can afford

:22:13. > :22:15.to do it. Poorer students from council houses or their parents rent

:22:16. > :22:20.in the private sector, they can't do it. It's another on fairness in the

:22:21. > :22:23.system. Hence the need for the debate. Let's not forget Labour

:22:24. > :22:27.introduced tuition fees, the reason for that is when I went to

:22:28. > :22:32.university, about a fifth of school leavers went to university, the

:22:33. > :22:36.state could afford to pay that. Now it is 45-50% of school leavers

:22:37. > :22:40.looking for a degree, and the state simply cannot pay. Labour understood

:22:41. > :22:45.that before, which is why it is puzzling that they now want to write

:22:46. > :22:50.it off. It was ?1000 contribution but we still had maintenance grants.

:22:51. > :22:54.You have now shifted that alone is. I am 48 in a week, and I got a full

:22:55. > :23:00.maintenance grant and I got all my tuition fees paid for, and I think I

:23:01. > :23:03.have been a reasonable investment on this country. One of the reasons I

:23:04. > :23:07.want a service I want to pay that back, I know it to my country. And

:23:08. > :23:13.if it was a situation now coming from the background I came from, I

:23:14. > :23:17.just couldn't, my family wouldn't even conceive of getting into that

:23:18. > :23:19.much debt. The figures show that there are more kids from

:23:20. > :23:24.working-class backgrounds than ever going to university. It is true,

:23:25. > :23:28.although the most recent figures show a drop. They don't show that an

:23:29. > :23:35.background, but what they do show, this is a good question for Tobias

:23:36. > :23:38.Ellwood. The Government says that despite ?9,000 year fees, university

:23:39. > :23:44.applications have been rising. But not this year, they are down 5%.

:23:45. > :23:49.That sense of the accumulated debt seems to be taking its toll. We need

:23:50. > :23:52.to look in more detail at the numbers. The reason they have

:23:53. > :24:01.dropped is to do with the uncertainty to do with their

:24:02. > :24:07.position on... They are down 6% in England where there are fees, but 2%

:24:08. > :24:13.in Scotland, where there are no fees. 7% in Wales, where there are

:24:14. > :24:20.fees, so clearly fees, it may not be the whole story, but they are a

:24:21. > :24:24.part. 18% down for mature students. There is a concern with the number

:24:25. > :24:28.of overseas students coming here who have been concerned about where

:24:29. > :24:34.things are with Brexit. This is why Damian Green has called for a debate

:24:35. > :24:39.on this matter. I want to see this continue... These are British

:24:40. > :24:45.figures. Let me finish. You can't when you are proceeding on a wrong

:24:46. > :24:50.premise. These are British figures, not overseas.

:24:51. > :24:57.I am asking you to interrogate the numbers accurately. Here is the rub,

:24:58. > :25:01.Sarah Champion. The Labour Party very down on tuition fees, the

:25:02. > :25:06.Labour government in Wales has just increased tuition fees. What is it

:25:07. > :25:11.all about? That is their choice. One of the things that we wanted, one of

:25:12. > :25:14.the things the minister said he would do, was come to the chamber

:25:15. > :25:18.and have a proper debate about this, but the reason we are having the

:25:19. > :25:21.emergency debate today is he has refused to do that, and we have

:25:22. > :25:25.asked him three times. May be the differences you are not in

:25:26. > :25:29.Government in Westminster but you are in Wales, and clearly the Welsh

:25:30. > :25:35.Labour government thinks it is a lot more difficult to abolish tuition

:25:36. > :25:38.fees than you do. And I think voters would rightly think, it could be the

:25:39. > :25:42.same in Westminster if you wrote in the government. They are increasing

:25:43. > :25:46.fees. I can't speak for Wales, but we are committed in government to

:25:47. > :25:53.get rid of fees, because we are seeing the impact that it has had on

:25:54. > :25:54.people. I guess with devolution, you get different answers to the same

:25:55. > :25:58.question. The Tories may have MPs called Hugo,

:25:59. > :26:01.Crispin, Antoinette and... And as we learned yesterday,

:26:02. > :26:04.they were supping Champagne on the Commons terrace

:26:05. > :26:06.at their summer party But is Labour the real party

:26:07. > :26:11.of the affluent classes? Well, a study by Professor Tim Bale

:26:12. > :26:14.has revealed that 77% of surveyed Labour members are in the highest

:26:15. > :26:18.ABC1 social groups. Keir Hardie would be turning in his

:26:19. > :26:33.grave. Now, the Daily Politics

:26:34. > :26:35.is obviously a classy show, So whether you want to fill

:26:36. > :26:39.it with a chai latte, Champagne or just common-or-garden

:26:40. > :26:40.builder's tea, this And we'll remind you how

:26:41. > :26:45.to win one in a moment. First, can you remember

:26:46. > :26:48.when this happened? # Love's got the world in motion,

:26:49. > :27:09.and I know what we can do... # Ladies with an attitude,

:27:10. > :27:12.fellas that were in the mood # Don't just stand

:27:13. > :27:14.there, let's get to it # Strike a pose,

:27:15. > :27:16.there's nothing to it # Nothing compares,

:27:17. > :27:26.nothing compares to you... I am persuaded that I now

:27:27. > :27:34.have a better prospect than Mrs Thatcher,

:27:35. > :27:38.of leading the Conservatives. # Is there still a part

:27:39. > :27:41.of you that wants to give? # Is there still a part

:27:42. > :27:50.of you that wants to live? To be in with a chance of winning

:27:51. > :27:57.a Daily Politics mug, send your answer to our special quiz

:27:58. > :27:59.e-mail address - Entries must arrive by 12.30 today,

:28:00. > :28:06.and you can see the full terms and conditions for Guess The Year

:28:07. > :28:21.on our website - that's You won't have to say that again

:28:22. > :28:22.until the autumn! It is a big weight off your shoulders.

:28:23. > :28:34.It is a grey day in old London town. The final Prime Minister's Questions

:28:35. > :28:36.before the London recess. And that's not all -

:28:37. > :28:44.John Pienaar is here. I guess both the Prime Minister and

:28:45. > :28:48.the Leader of the Opposition will want to send their troops away

:28:49. > :28:52.thinking our person took the part. And to leave an impression on the

:28:53. > :28:58.country watching Prime Minister's Questions time, that proportion of

:28:59. > :29:11.the country that does, that needs to be borne in mind. What are you

:29:12. > :29:15.saying?! We will be watching Theresa May, Jeremy Corbyn, but also the

:29:16. > :29:20.backbenches will be interesting in this context. On the Tory side, they

:29:21. > :29:24.will see their job as rattling their spears and cheering louder and more

:29:25. > :29:30.heartily than we have seen for some time. It will be backing up the

:29:31. > :29:35.message of various people in the party which is, we are behind you,

:29:36. > :29:42.Theresa, but also echoing the rebuke to those around the Cabinet table

:29:43. > :29:46.who have been staring up everything about leadership over austerity,

:29:47. > :29:51.over Theresa May's austerity, so expect a nice row from the Tories.

:29:52. > :29:55.On the Labour side, again that changing dynamic will be interesting

:29:56. > :30:00.to watch. These are the same MPs who sat in sullen silence just weeks

:30:01. > :30:03.ago, and now they are competing with the other side to rattle their

:30:04. > :30:10.spears and cheer along. How things change. Nothing succeeds like a bit

:30:11. > :30:16.of success! We are still waiting for that on this show, but it will come

:30:17. > :30:21.one day. Any idea what Mr Corbyn will choose is the substance of his

:30:22. > :30:25.questions? He will choose his own target, but it is generally on the

:30:26. > :30:31.theme of austerity, so it will be about austerity, and with questions

:30:32. > :30:35.about public sector pay, we have two more public review bodies in the

:30:36. > :30:39.pipeline, and being kept there until September or so. You'd be surprised

:30:40. > :30:41.I guess if he doesn't find time for a little bit of a dig on the public

:30:42. > :30:53.sector. Lets go over and find out. I'm sure members from all sides will

:30:54. > :30:57.wish to thank this house for their dedication to our work here in what

:30:58. > :31:03.has been a particularly challenging year. We saw terrorists attack our

:31:04. > :31:08.democracy and our way of life, not just in the Westminster attack but

:31:09. > :31:12.also obviously in the attacks at Manchester, Finsbury Park and London

:31:13. > :31:17.Bridge. It is thanks to the professionalism and bravery of

:31:18. > :31:22.people like Elisabeth Byron, an off-duty A nurse who ran to the

:31:23. > :31:26.Borough Market attack and is with us in the gallery today, that this

:31:27. > :31:32.shows these attacks will never succeed because we are united in

:31:33. > :31:35.defending the values that define our nation. This morning I had

:31:36. > :31:41.ministerial meetings with colleagues and others and I will have further

:31:42. > :31:53.such meetings later today. Mr Geoffrey Robinson. Thank you. I

:31:54. > :31:59.wonder, could she find time in Coventry, when I can assure her a

:32:00. > :32:03.very warm welcome from the three Labour MPs in Coventry who more than

:32:04. > :32:11.doubled their recent majority. On a serious note, is she aware Coventry

:32:12. > :32:15.is the National centre designated National Centre for the research and

:32:16. > :32:18.development of controls the driverless vehicles? Would she not

:32:19. > :32:25.consider perhaps it might be an appropriate location to relocate her

:32:26. > :32:30.whole government there, where they can see the driverless vehicles in

:32:31. > :32:33.practice? I'm grateful to the honourable gentleman. I'm always

:32:34. > :32:36.happy to visit the West Midlands and I'm particularly pleased to visit

:32:37. > :32:43.the West Midlands under its new mayor Andy Street. Who doing a very

:32:44. > :32:46.good job. He mentions the question of automated vehicles. This country

:32:47. > :32:50.is a leader in automated vehicles. That's part of building a strong

:32:51. > :32:58.economy and that is what this government is doing.

:32:59. > :33:04.Thank you Mr Speaker. Last week our National Health Service was judged

:33:05. > :33:09.the best health care system. Best, safest and most affordable, better

:33:10. > :33:13.than France, Germany, Norway, Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand.

:33:14. > :33:25.Too often in this house we focus on the negatives and I've heard the

:33:26. > :33:29.Labour Party attempt to... Well my right honourable friend, and I hope

:33:30. > :33:40.the Leader of the Opposition when he stands, congratulates NHS staff on

:33:41. > :33:45.their skills, dedication... CHEERING On their skills, dedication and the

:33:46. > :33:51.hard work they have put in to achieve these high standards.

:33:52. > :33:58.Can I thank my honourable friend. I am very happy to stand here and to

:33:59. > :34:01.congratulate all of those NHS staff who are delivering, delivering such

:34:02. > :34:08.a fantastic service, and who have made the NHS once again, because

:34:09. > :34:13.this isn't the first time, once again, the number one health system

:34:14. > :34:19.in the world. We are determined to continue to enable that high level

:34:20. > :34:25.of service to be provided, which is why between 2015-2020 we will be

:34:26. > :34:33.investing over half ?1 trillion in our NHS. Jeremy Corbyn.

:34:34. > :34:36.Thank you Mr Speaker. I join the Prime Minister in thanking all the

:34:37. > :34:40.staff of this house for all the work they do all the year-round. They are

:34:41. > :34:43.fantastic, they are supported, inclusive and great to the public

:34:44. > :34:50.who come here. I want to thank them for everything they do. I also the

:34:51. > :34:54.Prime Minister in thanking the emergency services in how they have

:34:55. > :35:00.coped with all the terrible emergencies we've had in the last

:35:01. > :35:03.few months, and I have my -- thank my communities, like those in

:35:04. > :35:05.Finsbury Park, who come together against those who try to divide us.

:35:06. > :35:14.The emergency services were in action again protecting people from

:35:15. > :35:18.floods. We always rely on those services. The Chancellor said this

:35:19. > :35:26.week that some public servants are overpaid. Given the Prime Minister

:35:27. > :35:28.has had to administer a slap down to her squabbling cabinet, does she

:35:29. > :35:40.think the Chancellor was talking about her own ministers?

:35:41. > :35:43.Can I... Can I first of all join the right honourable gentleman, not only

:35:44. > :35:48.in praising the work of our emergency services but also in

:35:49. > :35:52.recognising their way in which after the terrible terrorist attacks we've

:35:53. > :35:55.seen on the Grenfell Tower fire, that appalling tragedy, the way we

:35:56. > :36:00.have seen communities come together and support those who have been

:36:01. > :36:04.victims of those terrible incidents that have taken place, and I was

:36:05. > :36:08.very pleased, as he knows, to visit Finsbury Park after the attack that

:36:09. > :36:15.took place that and see for myself the work that had been done in that

:36:16. > :36:18.community and the work he had done over that night, in working among

:36:19. > :36:19.his constituents to make sure the community came together after that

:36:20. > :36:23.terrible attack. In terms of public sector pay, I

:36:24. > :36:27.will simply say this, I recognise, as I said when I stood on the steps

:36:28. > :36:32.of Downing Street a year ago, that there some people in our country who

:36:33. > :36:36.are just about managing. They find life a struggle. That actually

:36:37. > :36:39.covers people working in the public sector and some people working in

:36:40. > :36:44.the private sector. That is why it is important that the Government is

:36:45. > :36:49.taking steps, for example to help those on lowest incomes come up with

:36:50. > :36:53.the national living wage, it's why we have taken millions of people out

:36:54. > :37:01.of paying income tax altogether, its wide basic rate tax payers have seen

:37:02. > :37:06.a tax cut the equivalent of ?1000. You only get that with a strong

:37:07. > :37:09.economy and you only get that with a Conservative government. I thank the

:37:10. > :37:13.Prime Minister for what she said about my own community, however my

:37:14. > :37:18.question was about whether the Chancellor had said public service

:37:19. > :37:24.workers are overpaid or not? The reality in this country is simply

:37:25. > :37:30.this, a nurse in a medium salary starts on ?23,000. Police officers

:37:31. > :37:35.?22,800. Job centre car parks on ?15,000. I had a letter from Sarah,

:37:36. > :37:41.who wrote to me this week about her sister-in-law, who is a nurse. I

:37:42. > :37:47.quote, she has sacrificed her health for the caring of others. She's had

:37:48. > :37:52.a pay freeze for the last five years. Only her dedication and

:37:53. > :37:57.passion for her vocation keeps her going. Why is this happening? What

:37:58. > :38:00.is the Prime Minister saying to Sarah and those others working in

:38:01. > :38:06.our NHS? I would say to the right honourable

:38:07. > :38:09.gentleman, what I would say to Sarah and those working in the national

:38:10. > :38:13.health service is we recognise the excellent work they are doing. We

:38:14. > :38:19.recognise the sacrifice they and others have made over the last seven

:38:20. > :38:24.years. That sacrifice has been made because we had to deal with the

:38:25. > :38:29.biggest deficit in our peacetime history, left by a Labour

:38:30. > :38:38.government. And as we look at public sector pay, as we look at that we do

:38:39. > :38:41.balance being fair to public sector workers, protecting jobs, and being

:38:42. > :38:46.fair to those who pay for them. The right honourable gentleman seems to

:38:47. > :38:48.think it is possible to go about promising people more money and

:38:49. > :38:57.promised that nobody is ever going to have to pay for it. He and I do

:38:58. > :39:01.both value public sector workers. We both value our public sector

:39:02. > :39:06.services, the difference is on the side of the House, we know you have

:39:07. > :39:12.to pay for them. The Prime Minister doesn't seem to

:39:13. > :39:20.have any problem finding money to pay for the DUP's support. Her

:39:21. > :39:25.government has been in office, Mr Speaker, the Conservatives have been

:39:26. > :39:31.in office that 84 months, 52 of those months have seen a real fall

:39:32. > :39:35.in wages and income in our country. In the last Prime Minister Question

:39:36. > :39:40.Time before the general election, the Prime Minister, this same Prime

:39:41. > :39:44.Minister said, and I quote, "Every vote for me is a vote for a strong

:39:45. > :39:51.economy, with the benefits felt by everyone across the country." Does

:39:52. > :39:55.the Prime Minister great, you cannot have a strong economy when 6 million

:39:56. > :40:03.people are earning less than a living wage?

:40:04. > :40:07.I will tell the right honourable gentleman when you can't have a

:40:08. > :40:11.strong economy, adopting labour policies, more borrowing, more

:40:12. > :40:16.spending, more borrowing, high prices, higher taxes and fewer jobs.

:40:17. > :40:19.The Labour government crashed the economy, the Conservative government

:40:20. > :40:25.has come in, more people in work, more people in jobs, more

:40:26. > :40:30.investment. Jeremy Corbyn. Can I buy the Prime Minister to take a chat

:40:31. > :40:44.with reality on this? -- check on reality with this? Mr Speaker... One

:40:45. > :40:51.in eight workers in the United Kingdom, that is 3.8 million people

:40:52. > :40:56.in work are now living in poverty. 55% of people in poverty are in

:40:57. > :41:00.working households. The Prime Minister's lack of touch with

:41:01. > :41:05.reality goes like this... Low pay in Britain is holding people back at a

:41:06. > :41:11.time of rising housing costs, rising food prices and rising transport

:41:12. > :41:16.costs. It threatens people's living standards and rising debt and

:41:17. > :41:20.falling savings rate threatens our economic stability. Why doesn't the

:41:21. > :41:27.Prime Minister understand that low pay is a threat to an already

:41:28. > :41:32.weakening economy? The best route out of poverty is

:41:33. > :41:46.through work. What we now see is hundreds to do. Order, order, order!

:41:47. > :41:51.A question has been asked, the Prime Minister's answer will be heard.

:41:52. > :41:55.The best route out of poverty is through that is why it is so

:41:56. > :41:59.important now over the last seven years we are seeing 3 million more

:42:00. > :42:04.jobs being created in our economy. It is why we now see so many

:42:05. > :42:08.thousands of people in households with work rather than in workless

:42:09. > :42:11.households. Many more hundreds of thousands more children being

:42:12. > :42:16.brought up in a household where there is work, rather than a failure

:42:17. > :42:19.to have work. That is what is important. What's important for

:42:20. > :42:23.government as well, is to make sure we do provide support to people.

:42:24. > :42:34.That is why we created the National living wage. Biggest pay increase

:42:35. > :42:37.for people on lowest incomes ever. When did the Labour Party ever

:42:38. > :42:38.introduced the national living wage? Never. That was a Conservative

:42:39. > :42:44.government. Jeremy Corbyn.

:42:45. > :42:49.It was labour that first introduced the minimum wage, with opposition

:42:50. > :42:53.from the Conservative Party. Mr Speaker, wages are lower than they

:42:54. > :42:57.were ten years ago. The Prime Minister has been in office for just

:42:58. > :43:03.one year. During that time, disposable income has fallen by 2%.

:43:04. > :43:08.The economic consequences of false territory are very clear, and so are

:43:09. > :43:17.the social consequences: life expectancy stalling for the first

:43:18. > :43:20.time in 100 years. Today the IFA 's forecast income inequality is going

:43:21. > :43:31.to get worse and that child poverty will rise to 5 million by 2022. Does

:43:32. > :43:35.that Prime Minister... Order, order, members are shouting

:43:36. > :43:41.and shouting excessively. They must calm themselves. Jeremy Corbyn.

:43:42. > :43:46.I will try and help the honourable member, Mr Speaker. Does the Prime

:43:47. > :43:51.Minister not realised that her talk of a strong economy doesn't remotely

:43:52. > :43:57.match the reality that millions of people face, with low wages and

:43:58. > :44:00.poverty at home? The right honourable gentleman is of

:44:01. > :44:05.course wrong in some of the fact he is putting forward. In fact,

:44:06. > :44:10.inequality is down, life expectancy is continuing to rise. But what we

:44:11. > :44:15.know, in terms of a strong economy, is that what will not deliver a

:44:16. > :44:19.strong economy for this country is Labour's policy of more borrowing,

:44:20. > :44:22.more spending, higher taxes and fewer jobs. What the right

:44:23. > :44:28.honourable gentleman wants his country living beyond its means.

:44:29. > :44:32.That means making future generations pay for his mistakes. That is

:44:33. > :44:37.Labour's way and the Conservatives will never do that.

:44:38. > :44:42.Mr Speaker, what we want is a country where there are not 4

:44:43. > :44:47.million people living in poverty. Where homelessness does not rise

:44:48. > :44:52.every year, and I look along that front bench opposite, Mr Speaker,

:44:53. > :44:54.and I see a Cabinet to grin and backbiting was the economy gets

:44:55. > :45:03.weaker and people are pushed further into debt. You can try talking to

:45:04. > :45:12.each other... Mr Speaker... The economy... Order, order! The

:45:13. > :45:20.honourable gentleman for Stratford-upon-Avon is gesticulating

:45:21. > :45:23.in a distinctly eccentric manner. Shakespeare's county deserves

:45:24. > :45:29.better. Jeremy Corbyn. The reality is, wages are falling, the economy

:45:30. > :45:34.is slowing, the construction sector in recession, trade deficit widening

:45:35. > :45:37.and reflects crucial Brexit negotiations. Isn't the truth that

:45:38. > :45:41.this divided government is unable to give this country the leadership it

:45:42. > :45:47.so desperately needs now, to deal with these issues?

:45:48. > :45:52.I will tell The right honourable gentleman the reality. The reality

:45:53. > :45:58.is he is always talking Britain down, and we will lead Britain

:45:59. > :46:02.forward. Let's look at the record of the Conservatives in government. 3

:46:03. > :46:06.million more jobs, 4 million more people out of paying income tax

:46:07. > :46:09.altogether, 30 million people with a cut in income tax, record levels of

:46:10. > :46:16.the Berlin employment, record numbers of women in work, deficit

:46:17. > :46:19.cut by three quarters, inequality Dan, record levels of foreign direct

:46:20. > :46:22.investment. That is a record to be proud of, and you only get it with a

:46:23. > :46:40.Conservative government. SHOUTING. I don't think the

:46:41. > :46:48.honourable gentleman knew how popular he was! Will the Prime

:46:49. > :46:52.Minister join me in again congratulating Gracie Shepherd, who

:46:53. > :46:55.designed the black flag when she was just 12 years old, reflecting our

:46:56. > :46:59.industrial heritage, and does she agree that the latest figures

:47:00. > :47:04.showing the West Midlands as the fastest-growing part of this country

:47:05. > :47:12.shows once again that the Black Country remains a great place to do

:47:13. > :47:15.business? As my honourable friend says, he is right. The Black Country

:47:16. > :47:19.remains a great place to do business, and I would like to

:47:20. > :47:23.congratulate Gracie on designing that flag at the age of only 12

:47:24. > :47:30.years, and I have to say I think I'm sure that she and others including

:47:31. > :47:34.the Express and Star have been surprised at the attitude of the

:47:35. > :47:37.benches opposite on this. I commend my honourable friend and my other

:47:38. > :47:43.honourable friends in the Black Country and indeed the Express and

:47:44. > :47:48.Star for the work they are doing to promote the Black Country is a great

:47:49. > :47:55.place to do business, to live and to bring up children like Gracie. Does

:47:56. > :47:58.the Prime Minister believe that her Government has delivered pensions

:47:59. > :48:05.fairness from women who, like her, were born in 1950s? What the

:48:06. > :48:08.Government is delivering for women is a better state pension for women

:48:09. > :48:12.so that women in future will be better off under the state pension

:48:13. > :48:16.that they have been in the past. We are equalising the state pension age

:48:17. > :48:21.I think across the whole has everybody will Buckley denies that

:48:22. > :48:30.is the right thing to do. The Prime Minister has found up to ?35 billion

:48:31. > :48:38.for Hinkley point C nuclear power station. Up to 200 billion to

:48:39. > :48:43.replace Trident, and 1 billion for a deal with the DUP just so she could

:48:44. > :48:48.keep her own job. She seems to be to the magic money tree when she wants

:48:49. > :48:54.to. Can the Prime Minister now end the injustice for those women who

:48:55. > :49:02.are missing out on their pensions before she herself thinks about

:49:03. > :49:04.retiring? I have to say to the honourable gentleman I am a little

:49:05. > :49:09.surprised given his background that he said what he did about Hinkley

:49:10. > :49:15.point. It is privately funded. This is not money that is coming from the

:49:16. > :49:22.Government to developing viewpoint, so I find that a little strange. We

:49:23. > :49:27.have put ?1 billion extra into this question of the change of the state

:49:28. > :49:30.pension age to ensure that nobody sees their state pension age

:49:31. > :49:34.increased by more than 18 months from that which was previously

:49:35. > :49:37.expected. But I have to also say to the honourable gentleman that the

:49:38. > :49:46.Scottish Government does also have extra powers in the area of welfare.

:49:47. > :49:49.And perhaps... Perhaps it is time the Scottish Government got on with

:49:50. > :49:57.the day job and stop talking about independence. Mr Speaker, businesses

:49:58. > :50:01.in Stafford and other constituencies need as much certainty as possible

:50:02. > :50:05.now about what will happen after we leave the EU in March 2019 for

:50:06. > :50:09.investment decisions they are making in the coming weeks and months. As

:50:10. > :50:14.the Government works on the cob rents a future relationship with our

:50:15. > :50:18.European neighbours, would it also negotiate time bound transitional

:50:19. > :50:22.arrangements which prioritise the jobs of our constituents and the

:50:23. > :50:25.health of our economy? My honourable friend is absolutely right. As I

:50:26. > :50:28.have said in this chamber and elsewhere before, we want to avoid a

:50:29. > :50:32.cliff edge from businesses, because people want to know where they stand

:50:33. > :50:38.and Tobia Arlt to carry on investing in the UK and creating those jobs

:50:39. > :50:47.that we have seen being created. -- to be able to carry on investing in

:50:48. > :50:50.the UK. We want to know what the end state relationship for the UK and

:50:51. > :50:55.the EU will be in the future, and then we need a period to adjust to

:50:56. > :50:58.that new end state, practical things will need to be done during that

:50:59. > :51:02.period, and as part of the negotiations it will be important

:51:03. > :51:09.for us to agree on that implementation period and what the

:51:10. > :51:17.arrangements will be during that. Mr Speaker, since Winnie Ewing's maiden

:51:18. > :51:20.speech 50 years ago this year, MSP is happening arguing for the voting

:51:21. > :51:25.age to be lowered. In recent elections, young people have proven

:51:26. > :51:29.themselves to be the most knowledgeable and engage they have

:51:30. > :51:34.ever been. I believe there is a majority in this House in favour of

:51:35. > :51:37.lowering the voting age. All the prime Ministers avoid giving the

:51:38. > :51:40.vote to 16 and 17-year-olds? This is one of those issues on which people

:51:41. > :51:45.will obviously have different views, my view continues to be that 18 is

:51:46. > :51:48.the right edge. We expect people to continue in education or training,

:51:49. > :51:55.and I think that is the right point for the voting age. In Harrow and up

:51:56. > :52:00.and down the country, young people will be eagerly anticipating their

:52:01. > :52:04.A-level results to see if they will qualify for a university education.

:52:05. > :52:08.Could my right honourable friend confirmed the dramatic increase of

:52:09. > :52:12.people from disadvantaged backgrounds going to universities,

:52:13. > :52:23.and can she think of anyone that should apologise for misleading the

:52:24. > :52:26.British public? Well, I think it is a very important as people are

:52:27. > :52:32.thinking about going to university that they are not misled in any way.

:52:33. > :52:36.It is the case that more disadvantaged 18-year-olds are now

:52:37. > :52:39.applying to university than ever before. I believe the Leader of the

:52:40. > :52:45.Opposition said exactly the opposite, and I think you should

:52:46. > :52:50.apologise for having said that. But I think the Labour Party should go

:52:51. > :52:53.further at the election. The Leader of the Opposition vowed to deal with

:52:54. > :52:59.student debt, Labour were going to abolish it, now there a promise at

:53:00. > :53:10.all. Students know Labour can't be trusted on student fees. The Prime

:53:11. > :53:14.Minister will now know what it is like to have a job but lacked job

:53:15. > :53:20.security. Sometimes it can even bring a tear to the eye. Given her

:53:21. > :53:24.new-found empathy for millions of workers in insecure work, why is she

:53:25. > :53:28.now cutting six DWP job centres in Glasgow, and also BRCA office staff

:53:29. > :53:34.in my constituency where unemployment is twice the national

:53:35. > :53:38.average? I start by welcoming the honourable gentleman to his new job

:53:39. > :53:43.in this House. What is happening in relation to job centres in Scotland

:53:44. > :53:47.is we are ensuring that it is using the estate properly to the best

:53:48. > :53:51.advantage, and as a result of what is happening, no service is going to

:53:52. > :53:57.be cut. In fact services to people using job centres will be enhanced

:53:58. > :54:05.in future. What matters is actually the service that is provided to

:54:06. > :54:09.people attending those job centres. The brave men and women of our Armed

:54:10. > :54:14.Forces put themselves in extremely challenging situations in their

:54:15. > :54:16.efforts to keep us all safe. We owe it to them therefore to do all we

:54:17. > :54:23.can to support them and their families when they have completed

:54:24. > :54:27.their service. I warmly welcome the launch of the mental health and

:54:28. > :54:31.well-being strategy yesterday, but can my right honourable friend tell

:54:32. > :54:35.the House how we can call Wood and eight this excellent programme with

:54:36. > :54:38.our international allies, and may I wish her a very well-deserved break

:54:39. > :54:46.when she finally decides to take recess. The issue Moura boyfriend

:54:47. > :54:51.has raised is a very important one. Across this House we recognise the

:54:52. > :54:58.importance of ensuring that we are providing the support -- the issue

:54:59. > :55:04.my honourable friend has raised is a very important one. I welcome the

:55:05. > :55:06.new strategy for mental health and well-being in the Armed Forces that

:55:07. > :55:17.is being produced, and I also like to pay tribute to the tireless work

:55:18. > :55:21.of my honourable friend from Plymouth, but he raises an important

:55:22. > :55:25.issue. This isn't just for us in the UK, we need to work internationally

:55:26. > :55:30.on this, which is why we launched the strategy at an international

:55:31. > :55:33.conference. The Secretary of State for Defence yesterday launched this

:55:34. > :55:37.at an international conference with counterparts from the United States,

:55:38. > :55:40.Australia, Canada and New Zealand. We will all campaign against the

:55:41. > :55:47.stigmas around mental health so that members of our Armed Forces veterans

:55:48. > :55:50.can get the help they need. In Liverpool Walton, my constituency,

:55:51. > :55:56.almost 40% of children are growing up in poverty. With schools closing

:55:57. > :56:01.this week and local support services cut to the bone, Oster bites and

:56:02. > :56:06.kids don't get fed. The Prime Minister's mission as she says it is

:56:07. > :56:10.to make Britain a country that works for everyone. What is she doing now

:56:11. > :56:16.to stop kids going hungry this summer in Liverpool Walton? I

:56:17. > :56:21.welcome the honourable gentleman to his place in this House. He is right

:56:22. > :56:26.that it is important that we look at the provision that is made in school

:56:27. > :56:30.for children. We look at the issue of households on poverty. But as I

:56:31. > :56:35.said to his writer or friend the Leader of the Opposition, the best

:56:36. > :56:39.route out of poverty is for people to get into the workplace and for us

:56:40. > :56:49.to ensure that there are better paid jobs being provided for people in

:56:50. > :56:53.the workplace in the future. A young woman in Telford who gave evidence

:56:54. > :56:59.in an horrific child sexual exploitation case five years ago is

:57:00. > :57:03.living in fear. The perpetrator, who received a 22 year sentence, is

:57:04. > :57:08.about to be released early. CSE victims are too often overlooked and

:57:09. > :57:12.ignored. Does the Prime Minister agree with me that CSE victims

:57:13. > :57:15.should be properly consulted upon the release of perpetrators, and

:57:16. > :57:20.that in this case the perpetrator should not be returned to Telford?

:57:21. > :57:25.This is a very important issue that my honourable friend has raised, and

:57:26. > :57:29.we all know that child sexual exportation is a horrific crime

:57:30. > :57:33.takes place, and it is right that if victims are going to come forward to

:57:34. > :57:38.report this abuse, they need to know that they will have the support and

:57:39. > :57:42.the confidence that they can do that, and be confident in their

:57:43. > :57:45.future security and safety as well. The victim contact scheme is

:57:46. > :57:49.supposed to treat victims properly, and it is supposed to ensure that

:57:50. > :57:54.consideration is given to victim related conditions when they are

:57:55. > :57:57.looking at the offender's license, and somebody being released. If she

:57:58. > :58:05.would like to write tomorrow but friend the Justice Secretary, he

:58:06. > :58:09.will look at it carefully. The interim Prime Minister has

:58:10. > :58:15.repeatedly refused to answer the question from my right honourable

:58:16. > :58:20.friend the Leader of the Opposition. It was reported at the weekend that

:58:21. > :58:24.the temporary Chancellor said that some public sector workers were

:58:25. > :58:29.overpaid. So can she tell the House and the country and those public

:58:30. > :58:34.sector workers which ones she thinks are overpaid, which ones she thinks

:58:35. > :58:40.are underpaid and what she is going to do about it? As I said earlier, I

:58:41. > :58:43.recognise that there will be be born working in the public sector who do

:58:44. > :58:46.find life a struggle, who are just about managing. There will be people

:58:47. > :58:54.working in the private sector in the same place as well. I also say to

:58:55. > :58:58.the honourable gentleman that some people working in the public sector

:58:59. > :59:08.are very well paid, as we have seen in the figures released today. What

:59:09. > :59:13.I also say is that we need to ensure that when we look at public sector

:59:14. > :59:18.pay that we balance being fair to workers, protecting jobs and being

:59:19. > :59:21.fair to those who pay for the public sector, and that also we give

:59:22. > :59:25.support to people to ensure that they can keep more of the money that

:59:26. > :59:33.they earn. That's why we believe it cutting taxes.

:59:34. > :59:38.Mr Speaker, the Government is under predictable pressure on public

:59:39. > :59:43.sector pay and spending, which we would all like to respond to, if it

:59:44. > :59:47.was actually sensible to respond to some of these demands. But does my

:59:48. > :59:52.right honourable friend agree that the only way in which a responsible

:59:53. > :59:58.government can actually increase public sector pay is if we restore

:59:59. > :00:02.to this country strong economic growth and a sensible government

:00:03. > :00:06.fiscal balance sheet? And that the biggest threats to our achieving

:00:07. > :00:10.either of those over the next two years are a bad Brexit deal putting

:00:11. > :00:14.barriers to our trade and investment, or the return of a hard

:00:15. > :00:21.left old-fashioned socialist government?

:00:22. > :00:28.My right honourable friend is absolutely right. As a very

:00:29. > :00:31.successful former Chancellor of the Exchequer with expertise on this

:00:32. > :00:35.particular issue, he is right that we need to get a good Brexit deal,

:00:36. > :00:38.but he's also right that the policies of the Leader of the

:00:39. > :00:41.Opposition and the Shadow Chancellor, where they ever to get

:00:42. > :00:45.the opportunity of putting them into practice, would not lead to more

:00:46. > :00:50.money for nurses or for our National Health or more money for the health

:00:51. > :00:54.sector. It would lead through its higher borrowing, higher spending,

:00:55. > :00:58.higher taxes, we would see jobs going, we would see higher prices,

:00:59. > :01:00.higher taxes for people, and we would see less money available for

:01:01. > :01:10.our health service and our nurses. Does the Prime Minister know how

:01:11. > :01:18.universal processes failing my constituents? Vulnerable Blackpool

:01:19. > :01:22.people are juggling a month's money without help, a six-week wait for

:01:23. > :01:27.money coming, causing more stress on a phone helpline which Citizens

:01:28. > :01:35.Advice says can cost claimant 's 55p a minute. Couldn't she start by

:01:36. > :01:39.getting a free phone number? I think the importance of the

:01:40. > :01:43.Universal Credit scheme is it is ensuring that being in work always

:01:44. > :01:48.pays. What we see from the Universal Credit scheme is we are seeing more

:01:49. > :01:52.people getting into the workplace. The DWP is constantly looking at the

:01:53. > :01:56.scheme and how it is operating around the country, to ensure any

:01:57. > :02:05.problems that are being raised by people are being addressed.

:02:06. > :02:09.Mr Speaker, thousands of my constituents are millions of

:02:10. > :02:13.consumers in this country have to pay surcharges when they use their

:02:14. > :02:20.credit or debit card, a highly unfair practice. Good my right

:02:21. > :02:24.honourable friend outlined the impact of lifting of surcharges on

:02:25. > :02:27.consumers in this country? My honourable friend is absolutely

:02:28. > :02:30.right and I think it is very important this issue is being

:02:31. > :02:34.addressed. We believe rip-off charges have no place in modern

:02:35. > :02:39.Britain and that is why card charging abuse is going to come to

:02:40. > :02:42.an end. This is about fairness and transparency. We don't want people

:02:43. > :02:46.to be surprised when they come to pay for something, that they see an

:02:47. > :02:52.extra surcharge suddenly being added because they have used a particular

:02:53. > :02:59.card. We estimate the charges can add up and the total value of these

:03:00. > :03:03.fees in 2010 was estimated at ?473 million. That money is going to be

:03:04. > :03:06.put back in the hands of shoppers across the country, so they have

:03:07. > :03:13.more cash to spend on the things that matter to them.

:03:14. > :03:18.In her Lancaster House speech, the Prime Minister said the UK would be

:03:19. > :03:23.leaving the single market. Can she tell the House whether that red line

:03:24. > :03:26.on the single market also applies to any transition agreement or

:03:27. > :03:31.implementation period that might be agreed for the period after March,

:03:32. > :03:34.2019? We said we would no longer be

:03:35. > :03:43.members of the single market because we will no longer be members of the

:03:44. > :03:46.European Union. The four pillars of the European union are indivisible,

:03:47. > :03:51.and therefore the other issues that we wish also to not be subject, like

:03:52. > :03:54.the European Court of Justice and freedom of movement requirements,

:03:55. > :03:58.mean we would no longer be members of the single market, at the end

:03:59. > :04:03.point, at the end of the two years, when we have negotiated the deal,

:04:04. > :04:08.there will be an end-stage agreement for that deal. We are clear, at the

:04:09. > :04:12.point at which we reach the end of those negotiations, we will be out

:04:13. > :04:18.of the EU. Can I welcome the report from the

:04:19. > :04:23.IFS this week on income inequality in the UK. Contrary to Labour

:04:24. > :04:27.propaganda, often repeated during the general election, the income gap

:04:28. > :04:34.between rich and poor in our country has reduced every year since 2010.

:04:35. > :04:38.Does my right honourable friend agree with me that this clearly

:04:39. > :04:42.shows that those with a broader shoulders are bearing the heaviest

:04:43. > :04:46.burden of dealing with the debt inherited from the last Labour

:04:47. > :04:50.government? No, my honourable friend is

:04:51. > :04:56.absolutely right. The IFS report very clearly shows what he has said

:04:57. > :05:03.today. As we know, the top 1% of taxpayers are bearing 27% of the tax

:05:04. > :05:06.burden. That is a higher burden than in any year under the Labour

:05:07. > :05:15.government. NHS England commissioned child and

:05:16. > :05:20.adult mental health beds in my constituency recently received a

:05:21. > :05:24.damning si QC report. It was found on safe because they found a young

:05:25. > :05:29.woman with MRSA with open wounds on a ward. Does the Prime Minister

:05:30. > :05:34.share my concern that a shortage of mental health beds risks the NHS

:05:35. > :05:38.placing very young and vulnerable people in unsafe environments? Will

:05:39. > :05:41.she consider giving NHS England the responsibility and resources to

:05:42. > :05:45.investigate the quality of care before the commission?

:05:46. > :05:49.I think the honourable lady has raised a very significant point.

:05:50. > :05:52.First of all, mental health we are boosting the funding going into

:05:53. > :05:56.mental health and the national health service. We are taking a

:05:57. > :05:59.number, and across the picture, across government in terms of

:06:00. > :06:02.dealing with mental health, and taking a number of steps to improve

:06:03. > :06:06.mental health. She has raised a very particular case, which I'm sure

:06:07. > :06:10.everybody around this house will have been concerned here I will

:06:11. > :06:22.ensure the Secretary of State looks into the case she has raised.

:06:23. > :06:25.Daesh's atrocities have failed to deliver a caliphate. Does my right

:06:26. > :06:31.honourable friend our international partners must commit resources to

:06:32. > :06:38.bring prosecutions against Daesh fighters and those who join with

:06:39. > :06:45.them? Making sure where ever a death cult had terrorist hides, we will

:06:46. > :06:47.find them and hold them accountable? My honourable friend is absolutely

:06:48. > :06:52.right about this. It is important that those who have committed these

:06:53. > :06:56.horrific crimes are brought to justice. We have done good work as

:06:57. > :06:59.the United Kingdom, in helping those in those theatres to see how they

:07:00. > :07:02.can collect evidence which can be used in prosecutions. We want to do

:07:03. > :07:07.this work internationally through the United Nations and is an issue

:07:08. > :07:10.that yesterday I was speaking to the Prime Minister of Iraq about and we

:07:11. > :07:16.want to work with them and others, to make sure we send a clear message

:07:17. > :07:20.that my friend identified. Does the Prime Minister agrees a

:07:21. > :07:24.huge increase in knife crime has tragic consequences for families in

:07:25. > :07:28.constituencies like mine? What with the Prime Minister do to work with

:07:29. > :07:33.me and other MPs across this house, to find solutions to this blight on

:07:34. > :07:38.young lives, including looking again at the budget for policing?

:07:39. > :07:43.Can I also welcome the honourable lady to the House, to her place in

:07:44. > :07:46.the House. Her presence here, of course, has enabled me to have a

:07:47. > :07:57.very good chief of staff appointed into my office at number ten. She

:07:58. > :08:01.raises this issue... This... This issue is, the issue of knife crime,

:08:02. > :08:04.she has raised a very serious issue of macro. The Government has been

:08:05. > :08:08.taking a tougher stance on knife crime. We do think this is an issue.

:08:09. > :08:13.We have done this in a whole variety of ways, so that now a a knife in

:08:14. > :08:17.public you are much more likely to go to prison. We do recognise there

:08:18. > :08:21.is more to do in this area. That is why yesterday the Home Secretary did

:08:22. > :08:28.announce plans to consult on new offences to toughen up knife crime

:08:29. > :08:31.laws, including restricting the online sale of knives. We have done

:08:32. > :08:34.some of that already, and banning possession of dangerous or offensive

:08:35. > :08:38.weapons on private property. The honourable lady has raised an issue,

:08:39. > :08:41.the Government is addressing this, we recognise we need to do more and

:08:42. > :08:46.that is what the Home Secretary is doing.

:08:47. > :08:51.Before the election, the Government committed to removing the faith

:08:52. > :08:54.-based cap for free schools and even included this promising a la

:08:55. > :09:00.election manifesto. Catholic dioceses up and down the country are

:09:01. > :09:04.anxious to open free schools and some of purchase sites. Will the

:09:05. > :09:10.Prime Minister, her government to honouring a solemn pledge in our own

:09:11. > :09:14.manifesto? My honourable friend will recognise

:09:15. > :09:17.that the reason we put that in our manifesto and the reason it was in

:09:18. > :09:22.the school's green paper that we published before the election was we

:09:23. > :09:26.do believe it is important to enable faith schools, more faith schools to

:09:27. > :09:30.be set up a more faith schools to expand. This is an issue my right

:09:31. > :09:33.honourable friend the Secretary of State for Education is considering

:09:34. > :09:37.and she will be publishing further details on our overall view, in

:09:38. > :09:41.terms of improving school diversity and encouraging more good school

:09:42. > :09:45.places to be created in the near future.

:09:46. > :09:49.Last week the Prime Minister refused to make public a report on the

:09:50. > :09:55.foreign funding of extremists in the UK, despite pressure from all sides

:09:56. > :10:02.of this house and beyond. With survivors of 9/11 urging her to make

:10:03. > :10:05.the report available, would she explain if this refusal is because

:10:06. > :10:08.the contents of the report will embarrass the Government's trends in

:10:09. > :10:12.Saudi Arabia or because they came about arms sales to Riyadh more than

:10:13. > :10:21.public safety? It is absolutely nothing to do that.

:10:22. > :10:33.Are certain elements of, and confidential elements in the report

:10:34. > :10:37.that could not be made available. Mr Speaker, for signs of the strong

:10:38. > :10:42.economy that Prime Minister has so eloquently been outlining this

:10:43. > :10:49.morning, you need look no further than Taunton Deane. It is a

:10:50. > :10:54.microcosm of the national picture, with record house-building, record

:10:55. > :11:01.employment and record government investment in road schemes, like the

:11:02. > :11:04.A358. Would the Prime Minister agree with me, to further fuel the

:11:05. > :11:08.economic success this government is everything, these key road projects

:11:09. > :11:15.should not just speed up traffic and ease congestion but more jobs,

:11:16. > :11:20.further food and in productivity? I am very happy to recognise Taunton

:11:21. > :11:23.Deane is a microcosm of the excellent economy we see across the

:11:24. > :11:27.country. My honourable friend has made an important point and it is a

:11:28. > :11:32.point the Government readily understands and accepts, the

:11:33. > :11:35.importance of investing in infrastructure to boost our economy.

:11:36. > :11:39.That's like the ordinance statement latte the Chancellor of the

:11:40. > :11:43.Exchequer announced the investment fund, considerable proportion of

:11:44. > :11:46.which will be going to infrastructure and we fully

:11:47. > :11:51.recognise the importance not just of large-scale transport projects like

:11:52. > :11:55.Crossrail and HS2 and the expansion of Heathrow, but also of investment

:11:56. > :11:58.in projects at a more local level if we're going to unlock further

:11:59. > :12:07.economic growth in areas like Taunton Deane.

:12:08. > :12:13.Without legal powers, funds, criteria is all schools or

:12:14. > :12:17.Parliament open, this in Keleher TriStar consulting on the closure of

:12:18. > :12:22.the hospital and the building of a new ?400 million hospital in

:12:23. > :12:27.Belmont. After five consultations over 18 years, wasting ?40 million

:12:28. > :12:30.of tax payers money, isn't it time for the Prime Minister to step in

:12:31. > :12:35.and put a stop to it and allow this important hospital to get on with

:12:36. > :12:40.the day job? I would say to the honourable lady

:12:41. > :12:52.that I understand Jepson Anson Keleher trust are seeking views on

:12:53. > :12:58.specialist -- Epsom and St Helier. No final decisions have been made

:12:59. > :13:02.and any decisions for further change will be subject to consultation.

:13:03. > :13:07.Not only has the Institute for Fiscal Studies said we have the

:13:08. > :13:09.lowest income gaps for a decade but the Office for National Statistics

:13:10. > :13:16.has also said Britain has some of the lowest levels of persistent

:13:17. > :13:20.poverty in all of Europe. Does my right honourable friend agree that

:13:21. > :13:25.it is right that this country is governed by the true facts and not

:13:26. > :13:31.the fake news? And that this government is committed to building

:13:32. > :13:35.a strong economy for all? Can I start by welcoming my

:13:36. > :13:41.honourable friend to her place in this chamber. Can I say she is

:13:42. > :13:45.absolutely right. We owe it to our constituents and the public that we

:13:46. > :13:49.actually ensure when we debate these issues, we debate on the basis of

:13:50. > :13:58.the facts are not the basis of the sort of fake news we hear too often

:13:59. > :14:01.being put forward in chamber. Mr Speaker, Lakeside children's

:14:02. > :14:05.Centre is a lifeline for often struggling kids and their parents in

:14:06. > :14:12.one of the poorest wards in Britain, giving them the best possible start

:14:13. > :14:16.in life. Yet Lakeside and 26 children's Centre now face closure

:14:17. > :14:22.in Birmingham. Does the Prime Minister understand that the

:14:23. > :14:26.consequences of her actions, ?700 million of cuts to the City

:14:27. > :14:31.Council's budget, is having a devastating impact on the provision

:14:32. > :14:36.of children centres and Wilshire act properly to fund and reverse the

:14:37. > :14:40.tidal wave of closures that will otherwise have a devastating impact

:14:41. > :14:44.on the life chances of a whole generation of children?

:14:45. > :14:47.Can I say to the honourable gentleman that obviously decisions

:14:48. > :14:52.on this issue are being taken by the Birmingham Local Authority. It ill

:14:53. > :14:58.behoves any member of the Labour Party to stand up and complain about

:14:59. > :15:03.the issues we have had to address with public spending because they

:15:04. > :15:04.are the direct result of a failure of a Labour government to manage our

:15:05. > :15:20.economy. Order. And there we have it, another 45

:15:21. > :15:31.minute session from Prime Minister's Questions, that is becoming the norm

:15:32. > :15:37.under Speaker Bercow. On the 6th of September, they will be back,

:15:38. > :15:41.briefly before they go off again for conference season. Jeremy Corbyn

:15:42. > :15:44.going strongly on the need to increase public sector pay,

:15:45. > :15:49.particularly at the lower end, teasing the Chancellor with the

:15:50. > :15:53.reports, or teasing the Prime Minister with the reports that said

:15:54. > :16:01.that public sector workers were overpaid. Broadening out his attack

:16:02. > :16:06.into general low pay and inequality. The Prime Minister giving the

:16:07. > :16:08.standard response that we need a strong economy to be able to tackle

:16:09. > :16:14.all of these things, and that is what she is trying to provide and

:16:15. > :16:18.wouldn't happen under Mr Corbyn. So, nothing we haven't heard before, but

:16:19. > :16:24.it has been the theme of the past several weeks and months of this

:16:25. > :16:28.battle between the two sides. We would just like to apologise to Keir

:16:29. > :16:34.Hardie who I said would turn in his grave at how posh the Labour Party

:16:35. > :16:41.has become. Somebody kindly treated to remind me that he was actually

:16:42. > :16:47.cremated and his ashes scattered, so turning over in his grave would be a

:16:48. > :16:52.physical impossibility. In fact, even if he had been buried, it would

:16:53. > :16:56.be a physical impossibility! In the finest traditions of accuracy. No

:16:57. > :17:05.fake news. On the issue of pay, more wind is

:17:06. > :17:10.said that praising emergency services was keeping payload is an

:17:11. > :17:13.insult, it is astounding that the Prime Minister cannot see it. Joe

:17:14. > :17:17.Stuart said he doesn't think on his feet enough, Jeremy Corbyn, he

:17:18. > :17:21.missed an open goal regarding the NHS. Ian White Lee says, Jeremy

:17:22. > :17:27.Corbyn going on the economy was never going to go well as Mrs May

:17:28. > :17:43.just batted him on his policies. She seems to have a spring in Hurst --

:17:44. > :17:46.her step, and it appears these jobs are so poorly paid, these new

:17:47. > :17:50.created jobs, that they don't pay income tax. And I would like to draw

:17:51. > :18:01.everyone's attention to this, showing an SNP MP wearing a football

:18:02. > :18:06.shirt. Hannah Ba Dell says, is that unparliamentary to show up in the

:18:07. > :18:11.house wearing a football shirt? I believe it is unparliamentary, this

:18:12. > :18:16.is coming from a woman who was told I have unparliamentary hair. I'm not

:18:17. > :18:19.sure she wants to wear that as a badge of honour or shame. I don't

:18:20. > :18:23.know this for a fact, but there has been a sports day event between MPs

:18:24. > :18:28.and journalists, and she may have come straight from that, but will

:18:29. > :18:32.she be told off? I think there will be a quiet word, yes. And you are

:18:33. > :18:38.not in unparliamentary attire now, but still not wearing a tie. Is this

:18:39. > :18:45.opening the floodgates? I'm not making a statement, it is just warm

:18:46. > :18:50.in here! What did we see today? We saw the Chancellor giving a very

:18:51. > :18:53.clear indication of what is going to happen to the public sector pay cap

:18:54. > :18:58.in the long term. He has dug his heels in on the 1% cap from what we

:18:59. > :19:04.hear, and we hear just about everything that goes on in Cabinet

:19:05. > :19:07.now. It's like we are there! And the Prime Minister is standing behind

:19:08. > :19:10.him for a good reason, the Cabinet, the Government, the Prime Minister

:19:11. > :19:15.and the Chancellor see an obvious need to retake the high ground of

:19:16. > :19:19.the economic argument, to reassert the case for fiscal competence,

:19:20. > :19:23.because that ground was slipping. It slipped during the election, they

:19:24. > :19:26.didn't expect that to happen, and before they move on the question of

:19:27. > :19:32.the pay cap, there is an eminent possibility of that. They want to do

:19:33. > :19:35.it from the position of strength and not weakness, and not allow Jeremy

:19:36. > :19:39.Corbyn to claim all of the credit. We will see what happens in the

:19:40. > :19:42.budget, because our vision only extends as far as the budget when

:19:43. > :19:46.the Chancellor has to make fresh calculation is an way up the

:19:47. > :19:49.politics. On the question Time session overall, Theresa May and

:19:50. > :19:55.Jeremy Corbyn, we thought they would give some wellie, and they both did.

:19:56. > :20:03.On her side, you could argue that that is perhaps low expectation, her

:20:04. > :20:07.side are lining up behind her and propping her up, she can't be seen

:20:08. > :20:10.to be stronger now than she was after the election, but she is more

:20:11. > :20:15.stable, and that is a lot because the party as a whole are sticking

:20:16. > :20:18.with her as strong as they possibly can. Survival equals stability in

:20:19. > :20:26.their mind at the moment, and that means keeping her where she is for

:20:27. > :20:31.the immediate future. Jeremy Corbyn was in campaign mode, and he will be

:20:32. > :20:37.heading off to do that over the summer holidays, 70 something

:20:38. > :20:41.constituents. Sarah is looking forward to it! That's my holiday!

:20:42. > :20:55.You need to get out more. The Prime Minister claimed that work

:20:56. > :20:59.is the route out of poverty, so why do 55% of poor families have

:21:00. > :21:03.somebody in work? The essence of what she was saying is that every

:21:04. > :21:07.week, a thousand people are coming in to work, 3 million people have

:21:08. > :21:13.been employed since 2010, our economy has grown since 2010 by 15%.

:21:14. > :21:22.That is the importance we need to focus on. Why are so many people in

:21:23. > :21:26.work still poor? There won't be the money for any breach of the 1% pay

:21:27. > :21:31.freeze if the economy doesn't grow. Let's come back to what I ask for

:21:32. > :21:35.other than generalise about the economy. If work is the route out of

:21:36. > :21:41.poverty, why are so many people in work in poverty? One in five workers

:21:42. > :21:51.are in poverty. I'm not sure whether is figures are coming from. The

:21:52. > :21:54.office of the National statistics. People have been taken out of paying

:21:55. > :21:58.tax altogether, we have increased the national minimum wage, and we

:21:59. > :22:02.need a working economy, going back to that point... You don't think

:22:03. > :22:07.there is a problem in this country now with low paid, with low pay,

:22:08. > :22:11.that people are working hard, following the Government's advice,

:22:12. > :22:14.they are told the work is the route out of poverty, get a job, welfare

:22:15. > :22:19.has been reconfigured to change the balance in favour of work and

:22:20. > :22:24.against welfare, and you think that after doing all that, there are

:22:25. > :22:29.still so many people on such low pay. There are 6 million people on

:22:30. > :22:32.less than the living wage. This is unfinished business, we need to keep

:22:33. > :22:36.working forward. But the alternative, which is to borrow

:22:37. > :22:41.more, tax more, we'll see unemployment rise, it will see

:22:42. > :22:44.interest rates rise as well, it will see inflation rise, too, and that

:22:45. > :22:54.would mean that the debt will rise as well. Tobias, the alternative...

:22:55. > :22:58.The alternative could be to invest in our workers, to skill them up and

:22:59. > :23:03.try to get a high-income generating economy, because then we all benefit

:23:04. > :23:06.from it, whereas we seem to be going to the lowest nominator. We are

:23:07. > :23:13.doing that with apprentice schemes... We could be doing that

:23:14. > :23:17.across-the-board. 3 million more British it introduced in 2010. They

:23:18. > :23:22.are not apprenticeships as the Germans would recognise them. Both

:23:23. > :23:28.parties have been pretty useless at this. They have never managed to

:23:29. > :23:31.introduce a German or Austrian type apprenticeship. But I have a

:23:32. > :23:38.question for you. The Leader of the Opposition said using an e-mail or

:23:39. > :23:42.something he had had from a nurse, claiming in effect that nurses have

:23:43. > :23:47.not had a pay rise for many years. That's not true, is it? It's not

:23:48. > :23:51.technically true. It is not accurately true. They would be

:23:52. > :23:56.getting their increase to the top of their banding, they have been

:23:57. > :24:02.getting 1%... No, the 1% is separate. A nurse starting in

:24:03. > :24:10.London, Tate London for an example, on ?26,500. Over seven years gets 4%

:24:11. > :24:19.per year of increments, progression, on top of whatever the 1% or 2% or

:24:20. > :24:27.0% may be. So after seven years, the salary is ?34,500. If they become a

:24:28. > :24:32.senior nurse. These are not huge salaries, I understand that, but it

:24:33. > :24:37.is not right to say that nurses' pay has been frozen, is it? Yes and no.

:24:38. > :24:41.What is happening with those nurses as they are getting more experience,

:24:42. > :24:45.more skills, moving up their pay grade, so they are getting more

:24:46. > :24:50.remuneration for that. What they are not getting was you would get a cost

:24:51. > :24:54.of living increase year-on-year. On top of that, but the pay hasn't been

:24:55. > :24:58.frozen, it may still not be enough and we have a shortage of nurses,

:24:59. > :25:02.which is a labour markets go to say it may not be enough, but I just

:25:03. > :25:06.wanted to establish that it hasn't been frozen. We need to move on, but

:25:07. > :25:10.John, she has made it to the summer recess. The Prime Minister. But they

:25:11. > :25:14.will all come back in September, fully refreshed, and she is straight

:25:15. > :25:20.into the Tory party conference. That's right. There is a common

:25:21. > :25:24.understanding that they can't afford a break-up crisis, a collapse in the

:25:25. > :25:28.party, which means the entire party, at this stage of the game. So they

:25:29. > :25:31.go into the summer recess very grateful that they have got as far

:25:32. > :25:36.as Thursday without anything blowing up. They might have a build-up to

:25:37. > :25:40.the party conference, we have seen that before in past years. There

:25:41. > :25:42.will be a great build-up of headlines and speculation and

:25:43. > :25:48.punditry that says this conference will be a car crash, a beauty

:25:49. > :25:54.contest for potential successors. It will be make or break the Theresa

:25:55. > :25:57.May. She will get a massive cheer, and everyone will walk away again,

:25:58. > :26:02.and the day after conference, it all begins again. It all begins again.

:26:03. > :26:04.John, thank you for that. We need to move on.

:26:05. > :26:07.Now, whilst we've been on air, MPs and journalists have been competing

:26:08. > :26:10.In a moment we'll find out who won the egg-and-spoon,

:26:11. > :26:14.three-legged and sack races, but we didn't want our studio

:26:15. > :26:17.guests to miss out - we know they are both very

:26:18. > :26:20.competitive - so Sarah and Tobias will be competing in that epic

:26:21. > :26:32.You don't have to jump over anything all run around the studio.

:26:33. > :26:34.Whilst you're doing that here's the Daily Politics'

:26:35. > :26:45.sports correspondent, Jenny Kumah.

:26:46. > :26:51.Journalists are used to chasing stories. MPs familiar with

:26:52. > :26:59.overcoming parliamentary hurdles. But who will come out the winner of

:27:00. > :27:08.this political sports day? We have named ourselves the Sporty Spices,

:27:09. > :27:17.Damian hasn't decided which one he is! We will do our best. The

:27:18. > :27:23.journalist who was fittest was the one who has all the long lunches!

:27:24. > :27:28.First up, the egg and spoon race. Won by times journalist Matt

:27:29. > :27:40.Chorley. I am elated. I was so pleased my egg didn't drop off! Vela

:27:41. > :27:47.cross-party team of the sports minister and her shadow member in

:27:48. > :27:53.the three legged race. But they're in initial joy turned sour after

:27:54. > :27:59.they were disqualified. The video clearly shows that you were not in

:28:00. > :28:07.fact three legged it. Pushing the Telegraph team into first place. So,

:28:08. > :28:14.can the MPs pull it back to win the tug-of-war?

:28:15. > :28:23.But had the politicians done enough to triumph over the media? In last

:28:24. > :28:28.place, MPs, if you would like to come and collect...

:28:29. > :28:32.This wasn't just all about winning or losing. The money raised from

:28:33. > :28:40.today's charity event will go to the Met police benevolent fund. Clearly

:28:41. > :28:43.they cheated. We played honourably. Damian Welch run an inquiry and

:28:44. > :28:48.unsubscribe to all of the newsletters. We can build on this. I

:28:49. > :28:51.am over the moon, my dreams have come true.

:28:52. > :28:58.I have been umpiring this fearsome game of tiddlywinks, and they are

:28:59. > :29:08.both doing reasonably well! Useless! I have given up.

:29:09. > :29:15.Guess the year was 1990, the poll tax riots gave it the clue. Tobias,

:29:16. > :29:17.could you press the button? And Andy from Birmingham, you got the answer

:29:18. > :29:18.right. The One O'Clock News is starting

:29:19. > :29:21.over on BBC One now. I will be here at noon tomorrow

:29:22. > :29:23.with all the big political The BBC Proms celebrates

:29:24. > :29:44.the extraordinary film music