:00:07. > :00:10.Tonight, the battle to prevent the break-up of Britain, has now begun.
:00:11. > :00:14.The Prime Minister says he cares passionately about keeping the
:00:14. > :00:19.country together, and insists that Westminster has the legal right and
:00:19. > :00:23.duty. To call the shots over the referendum on independence. We will
:00:23. > :00:31.ask Scotland's First Minister if he is so confident of winning the vote,
:00:32. > :00:37.why can't compromise with Cameron. The new bad boy of Europe is told
:00:37. > :00:41.its economic policies are sustainable and it is drifting into
:00:41. > :00:45.authoritarianism. Hungary's row with Europe could
:00:45. > :00:49.shake the very foundations of the European Union itself.
:00:49. > :00:54.One man's murder raises new questions of foreign intervention
:00:54. > :00:58.in Iran. A fourth nuclear scientist has been
:00:58. > :01:08.assassinated in Tehran, might this be one case where Iranian claims of
:01:08. > :01:09.
:01:09. > :01:12.an Israeli plot are quite rightment Later:
:01:12. > :01:18.Newsnight proudly presents, in premier vision, David Cameron's
:01:18. > :01:25.quest to mould the movie business. We will be discussing how to fund a
:01:25. > :01:32.hit movie with writer producer, David Baddiel, at producer bridge
:01:32. > :01:35.gent Jones Diary, Jonathan Cavendish.
:01:35. > :01:38.Good evening, there was a rare moment of agreement between the
:01:38. > :01:42.Prime Minister and the leader of the opposition today, both David
:01:42. > :01:47.Cameron and Ed Milliband said that keeping Scotland in the UK is good
:01:47. > :01:49.for all of us. That, of course, is not how it is seen within the
:01:49. > :01:53.Scottish Government, where the First Minister, Alex Salmond,
:01:53. > :01:56.suggested Westminster politicians butt out, of what he calls
:01:56. > :01:59.interference in Scotland's affairs. MrLe Salmond told Newsnight tonight
:01:59. > :02:07.of his of confidence in winning the independence referendum when it
:02:07. > :02:12.comes. Getting this thing painted was long
:02:12. > :02:16.seen as an impossible task, the vital rail link between Edinburgh
:02:16. > :02:20.and the north-east, defied all efforts to keep it looking the part.
:02:21. > :02:25.But they persevered, just as the never say never attitude of
:02:25. > :02:29.Scotland's nationalist leader might be paying off. Indeed, no paint job
:02:29. > :02:34.in the world could conceal Alex Salmond's trade mark grin, as
:02:34. > :02:38.Scottish independence went to the top of the political agenda. We, on
:02:38. > :02:41.this side of the House. The subject loomed large in the first Prime
:02:41. > :02:46.Minister's Questions of the new year. With the Labour leader
:02:46. > :02:52.possibly trying out slogans for the coming pro-union campaign. We are
:02:52. > :02:58.stronger together, and weaker apart. The Prime Minister was all obliging,
:02:58. > :03:01.temporary powers would be giflted to Holyrood -- gifted to hollyed
:03:01. > :03:05.road, allowing the referendum to go ahead. The legal clarification an
:03:05. > :03:10.attempt to put Mr Salmond on the spot. There have been too many in
:03:10. > :03:12.the SNP happy it talk about the process, they don't want to talk
:03:12. > :03:18.about the substance. I sometimes feel when I listen to them it is
:03:18. > :03:23.not a referendum they want, it is a neverendum.
:03:23. > :03:27.Of course, David Cameron won't so lightly dismiss the SNP's leader,
:03:27. > :03:33.who swept to power in last year's Scottish election, under a system
:03:33. > :03:36.set up to prevent an outright majority. Such an opponent is being
:03:36. > :03:41.treated seriously here, I'mle told it is because the issues involved -
:03:41. > :03:44.- I'm told because the issues are involved are so important that
:03:44. > :03:48.Chancellor George Osborne is spearheading plans to keep the UK
:03:49. > :03:52.together. His involvement also reflects the fact that senior
:03:52. > :03:57.Westminster Tories, don't exist north of the border.
:03:57. > :04:04.Indeed, they have been as close to extinction as these beasts, newly
:04:04. > :04:08.resident at bed are you ra Zoo, the great panned -- at Edinburgh Zoo,
:04:08. > :04:13.the great pandas are pulling in the crowds.
:04:13. > :04:17.Alex Salmond is hoping the referendum in 2014 will help voters
:04:17. > :04:21.flock to his cause. He's also coming out against the
:04:21. > :04:25.Thatcherism view that Tories know best. The Tory Government knows it
:04:25. > :04:30.can't look like it is dictating terms to Scotland. What it will be
:04:30. > :04:32.doing is using the consultation process, that has just been launch,
:04:32. > :04:37.to convince voters they have far more to lose than gain by
:04:37. > :04:42.independence. They will be targeting the SNP's
:04:42. > :04:45.wish to put the option of devolution max to the voters. This
:04:45. > :04:50.would involve greater powers for Holyrood, short of separation.
:04:50. > :04:56.Westminster would like to see a simple yes or no vote, Scotland in
:04:56. > :05:00.or out of the UK. But would a referendum actually be legal? The
:05:01. > :05:04.two sides don't agree. It may be a couple of years if Alex Salmond
:05:04. > :05:09.sticks to his plan, before he introduces his bill into the
:05:09. > :05:13.Scottish Parliament, and we know the wording of his proposeded
:05:13. > :05:17.referendum question. Only then can that -- proposed referendum
:05:17. > :05:22.question. Only then can that be referred to the courts. If the UK
:05:22. > :05:29.officers stick to their legal advice, they will be obliged to cha
:05:29. > :05:38.eing it. A bit like the iterimably unpainted bridge, there are many
:05:38. > :05:43.decisive factors in the outcome the UK is - that are being sought.
:05:43. > :05:46.There is a preference for sterling to the euro. Would the banking
:05:47. > :05:50.crisis need an interference. There are a whole set of questions about
:05:50. > :05:54.revenues, who owns the North Sea oil, lawyers could be busy for
:05:54. > :05:59.decades arguing about the division of the spoils. The current union
:05:59. > :06:02.between Scotland and England has lasted 300 years. After such a long
:06:02. > :06:05.marriage, separation will be difficult, something a Royal
:06:05. > :06:10.Commission is need -- some think a Royal Commission is needed to
:06:10. > :06:12.decide how the assets might be split. People haven't taken the
:06:12. > :06:17.option of real Scottish independence seriously enough in
:06:17. > :06:21.the past, the pieces of work that we need to see don't exist. I
:06:21. > :06:24.haven't seen a feasiblilty study on the cost of moving our nuclear
:06:24. > :06:27.weapons somewhere else in the UK, how much that would cost. Even on
:06:27. > :06:32.one question, we don't have any of the details we need to know about
:06:32. > :06:37.what independence would mean. Scotland might surprise you.
:06:37. > :06:41.Whether you are after dramatic scenery, or dramatic scenes. This
:06:41. > :06:46.TVad, launched later this week, will mark Scotland's year of
:06:46. > :06:49.culture and creativity. But it is hard fact that is will now be
:06:49. > :06:52.occupying both sides of the referendum campaign. Not least the
:06:52. > :06:58.polling evidence, which has consistently shown the Scots won't
:06:58. > :07:02.vote for independence. The SNP claims that's changing. I have seen
:07:02. > :07:07.an open mindedness that I have never, ever seen before. I think it
:07:07. > :07:10.is incredible. People will willing to listen and be persuadeded. We
:07:10. > :07:13.have seen people move in all the polls and even social attitude
:07:13. > :07:19.surveys are showing that people are moving away from opposition to
:07:19. > :07:28.independence, to open mindedness, or for full square independence.
:07:28. > :07:33.Last month, the Christmas present for Scotland, the Forth Bridge was
:07:33. > :07:36.finally repaint. Satisfaction is being felt in Downing Street too,
:07:36. > :07:39.whatever battles lie ahead, Alex Salmond naming a referendum date,
:07:40. > :07:43.means the debate about independence can truly begin.
:07:43. > :07:48.Just before we came on air, I spoke to Scotland's First Minister, Alex
:07:48. > :07:52.Salmond. First Minister, is it an issue of principle with you that
:07:52. > :07:58.devo max, a fiscal independence, as it is called, more devolution
:07:58. > :08:00.should also be on the ballot for yes or no to independence? No, our
:08:00. > :08:06.issue of principle is that independence will be on the ballot
:08:06. > :08:10.paper, yes or no, but what we have said, we cannot see any reason for
:08:10. > :08:13.ruling out, at this stage, what is a perfectly legitimate strand of
:08:13. > :08:17.opinion in Scotland, and we are in the business of being inclusive and
:08:17. > :08:23.including other strands of opinion, not excluding them like the Tory
:08:23. > :08:26.Government in Westminster. It is seen as a fallback position for you,
:08:26. > :08:32.because you know independence itself is not particularly popper
:08:32. > :08:36.later. More devolution is popular, with -- popular, more devolution is
:08:36. > :08:39.popular, it is your second choice and what you have got? Or David
:08:39. > :08:43.Cameron is frightened of having it on the ballot paper because he
:08:43. > :08:48.thinks it will pass, or have the Scottish Parliament organise our
:08:48. > :08:51.referendum, for which we have a mandate, in 2014 because he thinks
:08:51. > :08:54.independence will pass. They may well be frightened of a range of
:08:54. > :08:57.things. I know independence is getting further support in the
:08:57. > :08:59.polls tomorrow. I'm very confident we can win an independence
:09:00. > :09:05.referendum. Why doesn't Downing Street just let the Scottish
:09:05. > :09:08.Parliament get on with it, and have a referendum, and have a result,
:09:08. > :09:12.and people and politicians can follow the will of the people.
:09:12. > :09:15.will of the people, are you possibly in danger of misreading
:09:15. > :09:18.this mandate, it is a mandate clearly for you to ask people what
:09:18. > :09:23.they think about independence. But it is certainly not a mandate to
:09:24. > :09:28.ignore the Westminster Government, or the Prime Minister of the UK, is
:09:28. > :09:32.it? After the election last year, David Cameron was quite explicit,
:09:32. > :09:39.he said the Scottish Parliament, the SNP have won a mandate to
:09:39. > :09:43.organise a independence referendum, and the Westminster Government
:09:43. > :09:45.won't disappear. They said to let the mandate be carried forward to
:09:45. > :09:48.the Scottish Parliament. It it is the Prime Minister trying to
:09:48. > :09:53.rewrite the rools but trying to pull the strings of -- rules by
:09:53. > :10:01.trying to pull the strings of the Scottish referendum from
:10:01. > :10:07.Westminster. The last time a London politician thought she new best in
:10:07. > :10:11.Scotland, it didn't have a great result for Scottish MPs. You are he
:10:11. > :10:17.can sueding a great deal of confidence about win -- he can
:10:17. > :10:22.sueding a great deal of confidence about winning the referendum, why
:10:22. > :10:25.not just have a yes, no debate on independence? We said we would
:10:25. > :10:28.publish the consultation document in a few weeks time. We will give
:10:28. > :10:33.the community of Scotland an opportunity to comment on what they
:10:33. > :10:38.would like, as well as the SNP Government, what they would like.
:10:39. > :10:42.We will legislate next year to have the referendum in 2014 in a proper
:10:42. > :10:46.and orderly manner. The last referendum Downing Street organised,
:10:46. > :10:52.was the AV referendum, that was organised in a to thelally
:10:52. > :10:57.disorganised manner. With -- totally disorganised manner, and
:10:57. > :11:03.the liberals were truly kippered by the Tories. I'm not Nick Clegg.
:11:03. > :11:06.the issues of the date, you said in 2014, does it really matter the
:11:07. > :11:11.date of 2014, in other words, are you open in this consultation
:11:11. > :11:14.period, during which, undoubtedly you will hear from Michael Moore,
:11:14. > :11:17.the Scottish Secretary, are you open to changing that date?
:11:17. > :11:21.these things must be decided by the Scottish Parliament. I'm willing to
:11:21. > :11:25.talk to the Prime Minister, of course, and I will put forward the
:11:25. > :11:27.view, look our point of principle, there just has to be a referendum
:11:27. > :11:31.built and made in the Scottish Parliament for the Scottish people.
:11:31. > :11:34.Because the people best able to do that, are the people who have a
:11:34. > :11:37.mandate in the Scottish Parliament, and then it will be decided on by
:11:37. > :11:41.the people Scotland. The people best able to decide the future of
:11:41. > :11:45.had country, are the people who live here. I notice that tomorrow
:11:45. > :11:49.morning's Times has a story that Downing Street is warning that an
:11:49. > :11:56.independent Scotland might have to join the euro as a price of
:11:56. > :11:59.independence. What do you make of that? Stuff and nonsense, Sweden is
:11:59. > :12:03.a country which had accession to the European Union after these
:12:03. > :12:06.rules, and of course, Sweden is not a member of the euro, furthermore
:12:06. > :12:10.Scotland wouldn't be applying for membership of the European Union,
:12:10. > :12:17.we are already in the European Union. It would be up to the people
:12:17. > :12:21.of Scotland. The euro currency, is it your aspiration to join that, or
:12:21. > :12:26.is the pound good enough for you at the moment. Will the pound be good
:12:26. > :12:30.enough for you in the foreseeable future? We would stay with sterling
:12:30. > :12:35.until the people Scotland would decide in a referendum. A position
:12:35. > :12:38.not dissimilar to other parties in these islands. A final thought,
:12:38. > :12:42.quite clear from what Michael Moore, the Scottish Secretary is saying,
:12:42. > :12:45.and David Cameron in the Commons today, that they believe under the
:12:45. > :12:48.1998 Scotland Act, they are effectively right. It is not
:12:48. > :12:54.interfering, it it is their duty and right to discuss this with you
:12:54. > :12:58.in the way they are proceeding. Will you publish your legal advice,
:12:58. > :13:02.which seems to suggest something slightly different? They haven't
:13:02. > :13:07.published the legal advice, just said what they think it is. The
:13:07. > :13:12.Professor of Constitutional Law at Edinburgh University, has agreed
:13:12. > :13:15.with our legal opinion on these matters, and a consultant on the
:13:15. > :13:19.referendum the Scottish Parliament has sway. I'm prepared to talk to
:13:19. > :13:22.anybody about these things, as long as we are not dictate to, we are
:13:22. > :13:27.not told what to do, we are not having our strings pulled from
:13:27. > :13:30.London. We are not going to be bullied and intimidate. We have a
:13:30. > :13:36.mandate to conduct and hold a democratic referendum in Scotland
:13:36. > :13:40.the that is exactly what we will do. If it is to be done as a legally
:13:40. > :13:44.binding referendum, so be it. But not with strings attach, not
:13:44. > :13:46.Downing Street telling us who and how people will vote, and how it
:13:46. > :13:48.will be organised. These things will be built and determined in
:13:48. > :13:52.Scotland. Thank you very much for joining us.
:13:53. > :13:58.The European Union has a new problem child tonight, Hungary, the
:13:58. > :14:01.EU is thinking of withholding funds for what it sees as Hungary's
:14:01. > :14:05.failure to get to grips with economic problems, and fears the
:14:05. > :14:09.country is sliding away from the rule of law and towards right-wing
:14:09. > :14:14.populisim. We're in Budapest now. What has been the reaction to these
:14:14. > :14:18.threats from the EU? The EU threat, primarily, centres on Hungary
:14:18. > :14:22.breaching the budget rules, the 3% deficit rule. They have the power,
:14:22. > :14:27.if that is the case, to withdraw structural fund, or withhold them.
:14:27. > :14:30.That would be serious for Hungary, it it is about 2% of GDP, and more
:14:30. > :14:35.or less the only source of funding for businesses at the moment. On
:14:35. > :14:39.top of that, this is another big stick, that is the IMF, currently
:14:39. > :14:43.grilling one of the Hungarian ministers in Washington, and it is
:14:43. > :14:47.going to impose more austerity on the country, as a price for what
:14:47. > :14:50.the markets see as the inevitable bailout this country will need. The
:14:50. > :14:57.reaction has been anger by the far right. The Government refuseded to
:14:57. > :15:00.even acknowledge it, but the party -- refused to even acknowledge it,
:15:00. > :15:05.but the Fidesz Party called for a demo in two weeks time. Most in the
:15:05. > :15:10.markets think it will end up with a climb-down, but it is damaging for
:15:10. > :15:15.the Prime Minister, who has staked his whole future on defying the
:15:15. > :15:19.authorities. Given Hungary's dire economic situation, it could
:15:19. > :15:22.default and it could have a knock- on effect for other countries in
:15:22. > :15:28.Europe? There is feeling the Government is toying with theed
:15:28. > :15:32.idea of defaulting, they have studied Iceland and Argentina, that
:15:32. > :15:36.is something some Government people are briefing, that if we go we take
:15:36. > :15:40.down the whole Europe. They are not big enough to do that. The bigger
:15:40. > :15:44.problem is they are in breach so much else, says the EU, in terms of
:15:44. > :15:48.politics, in terms of the rule law, in terms of the rise of the far
:15:48. > :15:58.right, that really is the biger cultural and political background
:15:58. > :16:00.
:16:00. > :16:09.to the crisis. As I have been Hungary is a country where
:16:09. > :16:15.austerity start early and never stopped. Its currency is collapsing.
:16:15. > :16:20.Its population in the sixth year of crisis, and weary of it. Now, it is
:16:20. > :16:27.dawning on them that the Government they elect to sort things out is
:16:27. > :16:31.becoming the pariah of Europe. Today Hungary's parliament was told
:16:31. > :16:37.that major laws it has just passeded might be illegal, and its
:16:37. > :16:41.budget is in breach of the EU rules. In the space of 18 months, the
:16:41. > :16:44.Prime Minister has achieved a lot. He has introduceded a flat tax,
:16:44. > :16:48.which handed money to the upper- class, but put a hole in the
:16:48. > :16:53.country's budget. To fill the hole he nationaliseded the private
:16:53. > :16:57.pension scheme. To prevent a challenge to that, he neutralised
:16:57. > :17:00.the constitutionlal court, and he has changed the law to give himself
:17:00. > :17:05.a near permanent majority here in the national parliament. And then
:17:05. > :17:09.he has asked the IMF for $20 billion.
:17:09. > :17:14.The Prime Minister was elect in 2010 on a platform of no more
:17:14. > :17:20.austerity, but to deliver that, he has had to impro-advise to tax the
:17:20. > :17:25.banks, large companies, to improvise, to tax the banks, large
:17:25. > :17:30.companies. Last week tens of thousands of Hungarians took to the
:17:30. > :17:34.streets, support what they see as the Prime Minister's coup, NGOs,
:17:34. > :17:39.youth, the usual noises in protests, these voices find little support
:17:39. > :17:47.within the system. This man a leading MP in Hungary's
:17:47. > :17:56.Green Party, he reflects a generation in despair. I think that
:17:56. > :18:01.the Prime Minister more or less left, or lost reality. He is
:18:01. > :18:06.closeded into a very small circle of adviser, and he really doesn't
:18:06. > :18:12.understand what's going on. Elect to fight on pollution and
:18:12. > :18:15.climate change, Hungary's youngest party now has to teach its
:18:15. > :18:21.political elders orthodox economics. He they turned their attention to
:18:21. > :18:30.the national bank, the Central Bank, which has a reserve of 35 billion
:18:30. > :18:36.euros. Half of it would be enough to finance the state budget in 2012.
:18:36. > :18:41.It is extremely dangerous, the reserve of the national bank is the
:18:41. > :18:51.last anchor, or the last backing of the Hungarian authority, if they do
:18:51. > :18:59.that, I think there is no further stop before the bankruptcy.
:18:59. > :19:02.But it is not just money at stake. Club Radio, is the only radio
:19:02. > :19:06.station openly critical of the Government, and reported the
:19:06. > :19:10.protests in depth. Now its license has been revoked. Meanwhile, here
:19:10. > :19:15.at the state TV station, some journalists are on hunger strike
:19:15. > :19:19.after one of the Government's critics had his face blur out of a
:19:19. > :19:23.news report, Soviet-style. I have been working in the public media
:19:23. > :19:28.for the last two decades. I must say that was always a kind of
:19:28. > :19:31.influence trying to meddle in the things the public media, from any
:19:31. > :19:35.Governments we had. But what happened since the change of
:19:35. > :19:39.Government, they are not just trying to make favourable reporting
:19:39. > :19:43.in the public media for the Government, but they are even
:19:43. > :19:48.distorting factsment they are falsifying reports. That is facts.
:19:48. > :19:52.They are falsifying reports, that is the upper limit of the
:19:52. > :19:56.thresholds. The people werele sold the idea that Europe meant
:19:56. > :20:00.prosperity. Despite an export boom, growth has never been high enough
:20:00. > :20:03.to support a welfare state and lower taxes. Now, as in Italy and
:20:03. > :20:08.Greece, they are facing economic slowdown and a debt crisis. But
:20:08. > :20:15.there is a crucial difference. On the Danube, technocratic Government
:20:15. > :20:18.has already been tried. Since we are living in a democracy, it is
:20:18. > :20:23.finally a technocratic Government, followed by a Government elected by
:20:23. > :20:26.the voters. The question is how the voters will react, and what type
:20:26. > :20:29.Government they will choose. This is a questioner for all the
:20:29. > :20:34.countries where a technocratic Government is operating now, but
:20:34. > :20:38.the question is what will happen after. The answer in Hungary was a
:20:38. > :20:42.swing to right, that brought the Prime Minister to power, that swing
:20:42. > :20:48.to the right may have further still to go.
:20:48. > :20:54.This is the Hungarian guard, allied to the far right opposition party,
:20:54. > :20:57.explicitly hostile to the Roma community, and at times, openly
:20:57. > :21:02.anti-semetic. It is riding high in the polls. Forced it disband its
:21:02. > :21:06.militia, it still has an image problem. Its presidential candidate
:21:06. > :21:12.told the Israeli ambassador that Jews were lice invested dirty
:21:12. > :21:22.murders. You don't worry at your -- murderers. You don't worry about
:21:22. > :21:26.your own election candidate using the word such as "lice" and "Jews"
:21:26. > :21:34.is anti-semetic? It is unfortunate terminology. It does not excuse her,
:21:34. > :21:38.it was a private exchange of letters. It is no excuse. At one of
:21:38. > :21:42.Hungary's most prestigious theatre, they will find out what it is like
:21:42. > :21:47.when this opposition party takes control. Here, they are rehearsing
:21:47. > :21:52.a play by Thomas Mann, soon there will be no Thomas Mann, no
:21:52. > :21:56.Shakespeare, the company's director has been sacked to be replaced by a
:21:56. > :22:01.part man, pledged to produce Hungarian -- party man, pledgeded
:22:01. > :22:05.to produce only Hungarian plays. TRANSLATION: In my 13 years here,
:22:06. > :22:09.we put on 50 Hungarian playsment but we also want to be open to the
:22:10. > :22:19.world. But it is important that the balance between national and
:22:20. > :22:22.
:22:22. > :22:30.international. We just cannot close our window to the world. Next year
:22:30. > :22:34.the actors will be asked to perform the work of a Hungarian writer who
:22:34. > :22:38.supports anti-semetic views. Under pressure from the far right and
:22:38. > :22:42.European centre, the Hungarian Government feels friendless. We are
:22:42. > :22:46.open for dialogue and we are part of a family. We are part a
:22:46. > :22:52.community. We want to abide by the rules, and if there is a problem,
:22:53. > :22:56.that again, as I said before, we have a legal order, to rectify such
:22:56. > :22:58.problems. The strength of language in the international community is
:22:58. > :23:02.not just about economic, it is about the Central Bank, the media
:23:02. > :23:08.law, it it is about the closure of radio stations. It is about putting
:23:08. > :23:13.far right actors in charge of major theatres? Then you refer to major
:23:13. > :23:19.theatres, you probably refer to a single smaller thee tr,
:23:19. > :23:23.representing less than 1 -- theatre, representing less than 1% of the
:23:23. > :23:26.called Hungarian theatre market, if I put it that way. When you speak
:23:26. > :23:33.about the media law, you forget that the European Commission made
:23:33. > :23:36.some observations and suggestions and all of these suggestions were
:23:36. > :23:40.immediately adopt and incorporated in the amendments the legislation.
:23:40. > :23:42.Do you see the point, though, the interle national community are
:23:43. > :23:46.worried the erosion of -- international community are worried
:23:46. > :23:53.about the erosion of checks and balances. They see the far right
:23:53. > :23:59.party applauding what you are doing? The far right party is
:23:59. > :24:03.violently disagreeing with us. They disagree with us practically on all
:24:03. > :24:07.economic and political points. The agreement with the IMF we are
:24:07. > :24:12.working on, they completely reject that, they demand, First Minister,
:24:12. > :24:19.non-payment of debts, and such absurdties, and impossible things.
:24:19. > :24:22.In the late night bar of Budapest, life goes on. This begin never knew
:24:22. > :24:26.communism, but it is getting know economic nationalism well. The
:24:26. > :24:34.promise was that the European Union would guarantee liberal social
:24:34. > :24:40.values, democracy and prosperity. All of that is now in question.
:24:40. > :24:44.I'm joined now by Hungary's ambassador here, on the national
:24:44. > :24:50.consultative body for Hungary's new constitution.Ed good evening. How
:24:50. > :25:00.is it -- good evening, how is it in such a short space of time your
:25:00. > :25:00.
:25:00. > :25:04.country has managed to offend human rights activists, the EU, the
:25:04. > :25:07.markets, about what is going on in your country? Let's start with the
:25:07. > :25:11.facts, my background is economy, so I will start with the economic
:25:11. > :25:18.facts rather than political. When you look at the country you look at
:25:18. > :25:22.four or five major indicators. The budget deficit in Hungary this year,
:25:22. > :25:27.for 2011, is below 3%. Only seven countries in the whole of Europe
:25:27. > :25:35.can deliver that. The European Union average is 6.6%, and your
:25:35. > :25:39.country, the UK delivers 10%. bond yields are 9.5%, completely
:25:39. > :25:43.unsustainable, we can go through lots of economic figures. We know
:25:43. > :25:48.your currency is declining also. You need IMF money. You will have
:25:48. > :25:57.to change to get it? We have to get down to the basics. When we
:25:57. > :26:01.negotiate with the IMF or the EU, we are negotiating in issues of
:26:01. > :26:07.economic policies, and what kind economic policies can deliver
:26:07. > :26:14.results? Again, budget deficit. We have still a 1.5% GDP growth, that
:26:14. > :26:18.is the third quarter data. You have 0.5%. But we're not being grilled
:26:18. > :26:24.by the IMF at the moment for money, we are not being told by the EU
:26:24. > :26:28.they will withle hold funds. You are in -- withhold funds. You are
:26:28. > :26:31.in real trouble, why aren't you facing up to it? We are. Why don't
:26:31. > :26:36.you change law, independence of the Central Bank people are asking for
:26:36. > :26:43.it? Have you read the letter that we got from the ECB, because they
:26:43. > :26:52.had 15 issues in had their letter, 13 has been enshrine. They had two
:26:52. > :26:57.issues, still under debate. One is suggested exactly by the Brussels
:26:57. > :27:02.authorities, that we face, globally, a systematic risk. This is why the
:27:02. > :27:07.national banks, or the central banks, and the financial
:27:07. > :27:14.supervisory boards could work closely together, to make sure that
:27:14. > :27:16.the macro Prudential issues are dealt with. Out of the 15 it is
:27:16. > :27:22.only two. Although they are considered very significant by the
:27:22. > :27:27.IMF. To of move to the wider points here, the real problem many
:27:27. > :27:30.observers see, the judicial system has been limit, new judges helping
:27:30. > :27:34.the Government, the Electoral Commission back packed with
:27:34. > :27:38.Government supporters, the new media law, none of fitting with a
:27:39. > :27:45.modern European democracy. Did you hear my Foreign Minister. I did?
:27:45. > :27:49.said in the spring the media law was scrutinised by the European
:27:49. > :27:53.Commission, there were suggestions, in two weeks time Hungary made the
:27:53. > :27:58.necessary decisions. Club Radio is still close, Hillary Clinton asked
:27:58. > :28:08.that independent radio stations? Club Radio applied for a license,
:28:08. > :28:13.
:28:13. > :28:16.they failed to measure up to the legal obligations, or criteria.
:28:16. > :28:19.was nothing to do with the fact that they were critical of the
:28:19. > :28:22.Government. Why would Hillary Clinton want you to owe reopen this
:28:22. > :28:25.radio station. Why would Hillary Clinton among others suggest
:28:25. > :28:31.reopening the radio station, saying independent media would be a good
:28:31. > :28:37.idea? Next time Club Radio, when it comes to the next licensing round,
:28:37. > :28:40.they should apply, but Hungary is a country of the rule law. Everybody
:28:40. > :28:49.has to abide with the rule law. are changing the rule law, you are
:28:49. > :28:52.packing the courts? No, no, no. Let me guff you an example, what I love
:28:53. > :28:55.-- let me of give you an example. What I love in this country and the
:28:55. > :28:58.US, you have a long history of building institutions. Two examples
:28:58. > :29:03.are from the UK. We're very familiar with the UK position, but
:29:03. > :29:08.it is really your own position, we love our institutions, but it is
:29:08. > :29:18.your institutions? We have to establish institutions.
:29:18. > :29:22.Unfortunately, every fourth year, every election, the old one
:29:22. > :29:27.abolishes what the former one did. This is why we need a you new
:29:27. > :29:32.system. The new constitution was presented to the committee, the
:29:32. > :29:36.underlying statement was that the constitution represents a
:29:36. > :29:42.democratic constitution baseded on the rule of law. All the words --
:29:42. > :29:49.based on the rule of law. All the words were appreciative, and we had
:29:49. > :29:53.all the words considered. Have you seen it? I will send a copy for you.
:29:53. > :30:01.You must have been surprised with the reaction so manyed bodies, with
:30:01. > :30:04.the suggestion that -- many bodies, with the suggestion that it is not
:30:04. > :30:09.good? When I talk about the economic facts and documents and
:30:09. > :30:14.facts in our correspondence between Brussels and my Government then you
:30:14. > :30:19.come back to these kinds of accusations. My Government is based
:30:19. > :30:26.on facts. I think that the committee's opinion is right. I
:30:26. > :30:30.know that there are many political adversaries, it is a values issue,
:30:30. > :30:35.values are represented in the political sphere. Often times
:30:35. > :30:38.talking about institutions. It is like the Scottish election.
:30:38. > :30:43.sure the Scots will love that. Thank you very much.
:30:43. > :30:49.Coming up in a moment. Will films like this meet David Cameron's idea
:30:49. > :30:53.of a likely box-office hit. So, qualifying for taxpayer funding.
:30:53. > :30:58.First the mysterious and violent death of yet another Iranian
:30:58. > :31:04.scientists working on the country's nuclear programme. It reads
:31:04. > :31:08.something from a spy thriller, Iran accused the Americans and they
:31:08. > :31:12.robustly denied any American involvement. We tried to find out
:31:13. > :31:19.what is going on behind the usual diplomatic exchanges. What happened
:31:19. > :31:22.in Tehran? This is an attack of the kind that is seen before. The
:31:22. > :31:27.scientist professor, Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, was attacked in his car, by
:31:27. > :31:31.people in a motorcycle who attached a bomb to the car, turned away, and
:31:31. > :31:35.shortly afterwards the bomb went off killing the scientist and his
:31:35. > :31:39.driver. If we look at the wreckage, you can see a directional type of
:31:39. > :31:43.device, which has left the head lamps and various other parts of
:31:43. > :31:50.the car intact. But served its purpose of killing the people
:31:50. > :31:54.inside without causing any real risk to bystanders and others. A
:31:54. > :31:56.sophisticated attack. The Iranians have blamed Israel for all kinds of
:31:56. > :32:01.things, why are they particularly concerned about Israel in all of
:32:01. > :32:11.this? There clearly is a group of nations acting to try to frustrate
:32:11. > :32:11.
:32:11. > :32:15.their nuclear ambitions. Now, today, the US issued a particular de --
:32:15. > :32:22.denial. I want to categorically deny any United States involvement
:32:22. > :32:28.in any kind of act of violence inside Iran. We believe that there
:32:28. > :32:34.has to be an understanding between Iran, its neighbours and the
:32:34. > :32:38.international community. That finds a way forward, for it to end its
:32:38. > :32:42.provocative behaviour. Mrs Clinton's statement very
:32:42. > :32:49.carefully worded there. Any US involvement, for example, not using
:32:49. > :32:52.proxies, in any act violence. So the role that the US, or the UK may
:32:52. > :32:56.play in frustrating Iran's ambitions through covert action,
:32:56. > :33:00.might be limited to denying them certain access to materials that
:33:00. > :33:05.might have nuclear uses. Perhaps using computer viruses, that type
:33:05. > :33:08.of thing. The Israeli role, people in the secret world, are quite
:33:08. > :33:14.unambiguous about it, does include this programme assassination. Now,
:33:14. > :33:18.they are acting, I'mle toll, through Iranian prox -- I'm told,
:33:18. > :33:23.through Iranian proxies. This started two years a the first
:33:23. > :33:29.scientist was killed. He was killed by a bomb in a motorcycle beside
:33:29. > :33:33.the road, that exploded as his car pass. Several months later, a
:33:33. > :33:37.double attack, Majid Shahriari was killed, but another scientist was
:33:37. > :33:40.seriously wound in identical attacks to today. Bombs with
:33:40. > :33:45.magnetic devices being clamped on to cars and then going off. Last
:33:45. > :33:49.year a further attack, a shooting attack, and today's as well. Now,
:33:49. > :33:54.it is widely assumed within the intelligence world that the
:33:54. > :34:00.Israelis are doing it. They are using Iranians toer carry out the
:34:00. > :34:04.bombings. While -- to carry out the bombings, while the Iranians know
:34:04. > :34:09.who they are carrying it out for. Does it make a military attack on
:34:09. > :34:12.Iran more likely? Military action does seem increasingly likely,
:34:12. > :34:19.because of the alarming rise in tensions in the region. People say
:34:19. > :34:23.the US will not resolve whether or not to use action on the nuclear
:34:23. > :34:26.point until after the next general election. There is so much going on,
:34:26. > :34:30.flash points and other incidents, there could be military action
:34:30. > :34:34.before then. On the one hand, might seem like a
:34:34. > :34:37.statement of the obvious, with cash very tight, the Prime Minister
:34:37. > :34:41.today suggested that any investment in British films should be to
:34:41. > :34:45.mainstream films more likely to become hits at the box-office. If
:34:45. > :34:50.the Prime Minister knows the secret to producing and predicting hits,
:34:50. > :34:55.would be good to know what it is. A film about a television presenter
:34:55. > :35:01.talking it a retired politician, might not at first have seemed the
:35:01. > :35:08.hit that frost/Nixon had become. Well talk to two producers with
:35:08. > :35:17.different points of views. This report contains flash imagery.
:35:17. > :35:20.Tonight, in a time austerity. Newsnight proudly presents, in
:35:20. > :35:30.super-sharp, premier vision. One man's qs to mould the movie
:35:30. > :35:30.
:35:30. > :35:33.business, the The Director's Cut. Hor ray for Pinewood, perhaps the
:35:33. > :35:38.close -- hurray for Pinewood, perhaps the closest thing that the
:35:38. > :35:43.English film industry has to a home. It makes �4 billion a year. Like
:35:43. > :35:47.ale Hollywood player, David Cameron was on the lot today, gladhanding
:35:47. > :35:51.film makers, then ruthlessly mixing art house and experimental movies
:35:51. > :35:55.in favour of block busters. I ask the right honourable gentleman,
:35:55. > :36:00.whose fault is that? Very likely the Prime Minister, the current one,
:36:01. > :36:09.was thinking of smashes like The Iron Lady, which took more than �2
:36:09. > :36:13.million at the UK box-office when opened last weekend. A Tory peer,
:36:13. > :36:19.and Oscar-winning screen writer, seemed to share Mr Cameron's view
:36:19. > :36:23.of cinema. I had been critical of theed idea that all public money
:36:23. > :36:26.should go into minority and obscure films, it is in the interests of
:36:26. > :36:30.the industry and the public that we start building up and making more
:36:30. > :36:35.films that people want to see. It doesn't mean they are the only
:36:35. > :36:43.films we should make, I don't want to be sort of cornered into saying,
:36:43. > :36:49.it has to be nothing but rom-coms and blockbusters, we don't want
:36:49. > :36:53.that, we want a broad range, but we want to build our audiences and
:36:53. > :36:58.international audiences. This is the kind of oven-ready globaler,
:36:58. > :37:03.that gives British films the bad names. The Sex Lives of the Potatop
:37:03. > :37:09.Machine, we think it is getting its greatest *Ever audience right now.
:37:09. > :37:13.We wouldn't miss stuff like this. A Government review, out next week,
:37:13. > :37:17.is expected to back funding of films with mainstream potential.
:37:17. > :37:27.What are we film fans to make of the Government's policy on the
:37:27. > :37:27.
:37:27. > :37:37.movies? Fbgts Is it going to be sin -- is it going to be cinema para it
:37:37. > :37:43.diso, or the Last Picture Show. This is a film made with no starsa
:37:43. > :37:46.no sound. Can I have one for The Artist. If I pitched you a film
:37:46. > :37:51.about a Prince's speech defect, or a couple of guys living in the
:37:52. > :37:57.slums of Bombay. You wouldn't have thought commercial, they made
:37:57. > :38:01.millions of pounds, and won Oscars, I would like to know what is
:38:01. > :38:05.commercial. Commercial means business, he wanted to fuel the
:38:05. > :38:10.entreprenurial spirit, we have to be incredibly like that to get the
:38:10. > :38:14.films made, given the economics. What we are asking and hearing the
:38:14. > :38:17.review may deliver, is a better way to use public money to make
:38:17. > :38:22.business grow and do better. Film buffs have been on social
:38:22. > :38:29.media sites all day, suggesting highly-fundable sounding titles,
:38:30. > :38:36.such as The Royal ska. Monty. Newsnight has acquired a leaked e-
:38:36. > :38:44.mail about the movies Downing Street would like to see. There's
:38:44. > :38:49.Something About Maggie, Ice Cold On skal Alice. Free skal school Willie.
:38:49. > :38:54.We want to see films that audiences want to see, we also want to
:38:54. > :38:58.stretch the audiences as well. And do something that is a broader
:38:58. > :39:04.cultural content. If the Prime Minister gets his way, the range of
:39:04. > :39:10.British films may get narrower, with apologise to Billy Wilder's
:39:10. > :39:16.classic, Sunsetp Boulevard. movies are still big, it is the
:39:16. > :39:20.budgets that got smaller. With me now are two film makers
:39:20. > :39:30.from opposite side of the funding scales, David Baddiel, a writer and
:39:30. > :39:34.director, and Jonathan Cavendish, producer of Bridgette Jones Diary.
:39:34. > :39:40.-- Bridgetp Jones Diary. There is a limited amount of money, should it
:39:40. > :39:44.go to the mainstream? Yes, I think there are a few complicate issues
:39:44. > :39:48.here, which Camion is skating over. The new -- Cameron is skating over.
:39:48. > :39:52.The new BFI, a commission were reporting on Monday, with very good
:39:52. > :39:56.people sitting on it. It is Lord Schmitt from the British Film
:39:56. > :40:02.Institute? Very sensible people. They are not going to stop the
:40:02. > :40:06.support of new talent, they will not stop culturally important
:40:06. > :40:09.movies. They will support the British Industry as best they can.
:40:09. > :40:14.A bigger issue is how to get the Government, whose interest in the
:40:14. > :40:17.film industry is to be applaud, how we can get them to hp us build a
:40:17. > :40:20.big and sustainable -- help us build a big and sustainable
:40:20. > :40:24.industry on the back of all the talent we have in this country.
:40:24. > :40:28.Stkph they are talking aboutle value for money, in effect, -- they
:40:28. > :40:31.are talking about getting value for money in effect, and maximising
:40:31. > :40:35.returns, and people are in favour of that. Is he on to something?
:40:35. > :40:38.He's on to something, it is glib, but he's on to something. What I'm
:40:38. > :40:43.excited by is the Government have turned their attention to the film
:40:43. > :40:45.industry, which has, in the past, been reviewed as a bit of a cottage
:40:45. > :40:49.industry. Saying we have the best people in the world, the films make
:40:49. > :40:53.a lot money, as very profitable business. Let's get institutions in
:40:53. > :40:57.the City, for example, to back British film companies and British
:40:57. > :41:00.film makers. Ken Loach today said that, the trouble is, it is all
:41:00. > :41:05.about maximising profit, that is the wrong way to go, because we
:41:05. > :41:09.will be culturally poorer. Are you worried about some of this?
:41:09. > :41:12.problem is what constitutes commercial viability as far as
:41:12. > :41:18.David Cameron might think it. The film I made last year, or two years
:41:18. > :41:21.ago, it was funded independently, privately, cost �1 million, it has
:41:21. > :41:25.taken $5 million worldwide, it is commercially viable, in his terms.
:41:25. > :41:28.It it is about a Muslim who discovers he was born a Jew. I was
:41:28. > :41:32.convinced at the time, because people did say no, that if I took
:41:32. > :41:36.this to the quango, whatever it is set up by David Cameron, looking
:41:36. > :41:40.for commercial viability, they would say it is not a commercial
:41:40. > :41:44.idea, and it is niche, it turns out not to be true. You got it made,
:41:44. > :41:48.because you are good at these things, you didn't need the money?
:41:48. > :41:53.We did need the money. The money took a while to come in and people
:41:53. > :41:56.took risks on it. The point being, I'm an independent film maker,
:41:56. > :42:01.different from Ken Loach, I am interested in the films beingp
:42:01. > :42:04.popular, people coming it see them and it being a -- being popular and
:42:05. > :42:09.people coming to see them and it being a mainstream thing. That
:42:09. > :42:13.being discovered by David Cameron and a bunch of people looking at
:42:13. > :42:16.pictures thinking what constitutes commercial film is doubtful. They
:42:16. > :42:20.will go on what happens before, that is not the way to make art or
:42:20. > :42:24.find popular films. There is a point there, the idea of
:42:24. > :42:28.Governments or anybody in a quango being able to spot a hit when
:42:28. > :42:35.nobody else can, including film makers, it it is hard to have a hit
:42:35. > :42:41.or not? Nobody knows anything in the movey business, as William Gold
:42:41. > :42:46.beman said, I don't think David Cameron will go and run the FMI,
:42:46. > :42:51.and the money will increase after the Olympics. I think it is a bit
:42:51. > :42:58.of a scare story. The real thing is we go on supporting our young film
:42:58. > :43:02.makers. I have just started a new company with Andy Serkis, it is a
:43:02. > :43:09.technical company makes performance capture films. Next year we are
:43:09. > :43:18.making a film with a director who made his first small film, The
:43:18. > :43:25.Escapist, supported by small arts groups. Went on to make The Rise of
:43:25. > :43:29.the Planet of the Apes. We will come back next week and adapt a
:43:29. > :43:34.famous book, that is how works. Whatever criticism Cameron gets, I
:43:34. > :43:38.wonder might itp help the film industry immensely to say this is a
:43:38. > :43:42.major employer, and industry, we are really good at it in this
:43:42. > :43:47.country, sometimes going abroad, but we are really good. At a time
:43:47. > :43:50.when he has to cut everywhere, it might project some of the money?
:43:50. > :43:58.This are lots of ways of funding films, in Denmark and France France
:43:58. > :44:04.they have a levy, meaning 12% all films have to be French ordainish.
:44:04. > :44:09.There is a notion -- or Danish, there is a notion that we shouldn't
:44:09. > :44:14.have English films because we have American films.
:44:14. > :44:17.The thing is, film is an incredibly vietlal thing. Gradually it seems
:44:17. > :44:22.to me that we are building up films that people do want to go and see.
:44:22. > :44:26.One of the good things what Cameron said, drawing attention to The
:44:26. > :44:30.King's Speech, does suggest that if, for example, 12% of the cinemas did
:44:30. > :44:33.just show British films, people would go and see them now. They
:44:33. > :44:36.would, five or ten years ago they probably wouldn't, there is a
:44:36. > :44:40.groundswell really good British films. There are some very good
:44:40. > :44:44.people out there. Crucial low, foinlally, lots of very good
:44:44. > :44:50.British pro-- finally lots of very good British producers thinking
:44:50. > :44:55.about the audience, using great writers and fantastic actors,s
:44:55. > :44:59.becoming extreme low profitable. This austerity cull -- extremely
:44:59. > :45:05.profitable. This austerity culture, the film Friday can't be immune
:45:05. > :45:09.from that? It it is not, one of the things that tends topp happen, is
:45:09. > :45:12.there used to be tax breaks to help people invest in film, those have
:45:12. > :45:16.all gone. People areer worried about it. What I think should
:45:16. > :45:20.happen is there could be more radical ways creating a market and
:45:20. > :45:23.creating money it flow into British film that weren't just having to
:45:23. > :45:26.provide Government money, which has always been very small in this
:45:26. > :45:36.country compared to other places in Europe.
:45:36. > :45:45.
:45:45. > :45:55.A quick lock at the front pages. That's all tonight, Emily is here
:45:55. > :46:23.
:46:23. > :46:28.A windy night expects across Scotland, fusy winds. Easing
:46:28. > :46:32.through the morning, behind a band of rain pushinging through England
:46:32. > :46:37.and Wales -- pushing through England and Wales. Brightening up
:46:37. > :46:40.sunshine from the rest of the day. Tolder weather following from the
:46:41. > :46:45.weather front, straddling across southern parts of England drurg the
:46:45. > :46:50.afternoon. Thicker cloud in places, -- during the afternoon. Thicker
:46:50. > :46:54.cloud in places. Sunny spells possible. You will notice colder
:46:54. > :46:57.conditions starting to work into the north of Wales, not desperately
:46:57. > :47:00.chilly at this stage, with it comes a bit more sunshine. Northern
:47:00. > :47:04.Ireland, after some early morning cloud, long spells sunshine, taking
:47:04. > :47:08.you right through the day. Aed good dole sunshine through central,
:47:08. > :47:13.southern -- a good deal of sunshine through central and southern
:47:13. > :47:17.Scotlandment watch out for wintry showers, the -- southern Scotland.
:47:17. > :47:19.Watch out for wintry showers. A frosty start for Friday, one or two
:47:19. > :47:23.lingering fog much patches particularly across North West
:47:23. > :47:29.England and Wales. The big changele really will be noticable across
:47:29. > :47:32.southern areas, the temperatures Thursday around 10-11, Friday sixes