28/06/2016 Newsnight

Explosions and gunfire attack at the international

At least ten people are dead after two suspects blew themselves up.

The attack occurred at about 8 o'clock our time.

Also tonight, turmoil in the Labour Party.

We'll hear from two Labour MPs, one on each side of the Corbyn divide.

And Lord Heseltine on the Conservative's leadership

contest and our relationship with the EU.

And Emily gets the reaction to Brexit, of Marine Le Pen -

Well, it was earlier this evening that news started coming

through of explosions at the Ataturk International Airport in Istanbul.

It's the main airport in the city, the third busiest in Europe.

Explosions and gunfire were heard, the location of the attack

was outside the security checkpoint to the international terminal; this

is one of those airports with security at the entrance,

as well as at departures to the airside terminals.

The latest we have heard is the airport is being evacuated, although

there are still people inside the terminal. You can see here video put

onto social media, about an hour ago, travellers hiding inside the

airport shortly after the explosion. The Governor of Istanbul has, I

believe, confirmed in the last few moments have been 28 fatalities and

many, many more injured. Reports on the ground say a suicide bomber was

rugby tackled to the ground by a police officer, and there were three

separate explosions. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the

attack. Planes in the air are being allowed

to Lambert flight are not taking off from the airport. Earlier we heard

from Turkey correspondent, who was grounded on a plane at the airport,

unable to disembark. I landed this evening about an Aaron half ago on

Flight from nice. We are not allowed to disembark because of what is

happening inside the airport. -- about half an hour ago. Around the

international terminal area, one possibly in the car park as well. We

understand one of the attackers opened fire with a Kalashnikov

before blowing himself up with a suicide belt. We understand there

are reports one of them was wrestled to the ground by police officers. We

are not being told when we can leave the aircraft. For the time being

there has been no claim of responsibility, but as James said,

Turkey has been caught in a terrible grip of a spiral of violence. Some

on Kurdish militants, including a mortar attack in Istanbul's second

airport back in December that was claimed by Kurdish militants. I have

to say, I have lived here for two years and I have often thought

coming into this airport it is a potentially vulnerable place, and an

attack could take place here, because cars are not searched very

often coming into the airport area. That said, as you come into the

terminal building, there are extreme sheens and scammers, so anyone

coming in even before the check in desk. The attackers tonight seem to

have breached the perimeter of the Apple, have got in towards the

terminal building and there they have set off their attacks with

tragic consequences stop by Mark Lowen there.

Istanbul is two hours ahead of us, it's late there now.

There will of course be updates on the News Channel

Now - it's Brexit Day 5, and in both Westminster and Brussels,

The British people voted in favour of exit, why are you here?

We now offer a beacon of hope to Democrats across the rest

Lots to talk about, but we start with Labour.

What happens in a political party when the leader loses the confidence

of three-quarters of the party's MPs, but refuses to step aside?

Until the 1980s, it was the MPs who chose the leader

in the main parties, so the MPs got their way.

But now, grass roots party members have the ultimate say,

and they can disagree with the MPs, and in Labour, Jeremy Corbyn

is pinning his hopes on that activist power.

It really is two sides fighting over a political party,

Neither side seems willing to backdown.

Our political editor Nick Watt reports.

Tonight a historic Labour stand-off shows no sign of abating, the battle

for soul and survival of the Labour Party is in full flow.

Earlier today Jeremy Corbyn invited television cameras in, to show off

his new Shadow Cabinet to the world. It was eight had awkward. -- a bit

awkward. Within hours Labour MPs were taking part in the confidence

vote, more than three quarters withdrew their support. A mere 40

supported their leader, prompting one to say that Jeremy Corbyn had at

least improved on the 36 and nominated him last year. He was

defiant. Jeremy Corbyn supporters rushed out

of Parliament to put their mark on the result. They said that unless he

stands down, the politics of Corbyn and his supporters could threaten

the very existence of the Labour Party. This is what we saw with the

air strikes. Jeremy's responses to turn to the mob and an MPs and they

are is all their fault. I think he needs to understand MPs are elected

by their constituents, they got between 20-30,000 roads in their

constituency. That is a huge mandate. We have to represent those

people. -- votes in their constituency. They are the people we

go to, they are the people we listen to, but what I would also say is

Jeremy does have a huge mandate, but if you think 170 MPs who have all

been voted for by 30, 40,000 people, that is a big mandate as well. We

have a duty, I have a duty to my constituents first, my party second

and then to my leader. I would love for that to be in synergy but at the

moment it's not. The atmosphere is so gloomy there is

even talk of a split in the Labour Party, reviving memories of the

breakaway gang of Watt 1981. I asked one party veteran if history could

repeat itself. It's good, it could. The reality is, if he stays and he

wins... I mean, there has to be a real effort made to stop that.

Friends of Jeremy Corbyn say they sense weakness in their opponents

because they have not followed official Labour Party Rawls, which

stipulate a leader can only be challenged if 51 MPs support a rival

candidate. The message from the Corbyn camp tonight is, bring on the

fight. Jeremy Corbyn supporters feel so strongly because they believe the

battle goes to the heart of where power should lie in the Labour

Party. They say ultimate authority must rest with thousands of Labour

members and not a few hundred MPs. It is actually Labour Party members

who spend their time knocking on doors, speaking to people in their

communities, trying to build the Labour vote, the labour movement and

trying to build an organisation. It is them who are closest to the

voters, not the MPs. The MPs are incredibly out of touch, I think.

That is why we have seen the shocks politics, nobody knows what has is

going on. That is why we have seen the rise of the SNP, Brexit.

Research published today shows Jeremy Corbyn enjoys strong support

among party members. When asked if Corbyn should automatically be on a

future leadership ballot, 77 cents of Labour Party members agreed. A

figure which goes up to 89% among those who joined after the general

election last year. 59% of Labour Party members said they would vote

for Corbyn if he was challenged by another MP, compared with 80% among

late joiners. Labour grappled with its future on a

typical English mid-summer 's day, but there was a very un-British feel

of revolution in the air, as Westminster comes to terms with the

after-shocks of last week's referendum earthquake.

It was all smiles when the then Shadow Cabinet but on a show of

unity during the referendum campaign, but tonight they are

trying to agree on a unity candidate to challenge Jeremy Corbyn. The

names in the frame are Tom Watson, Angela Eagle and Owen Smith.

Joining me now is Barry Gardner. This isn't sustainable, is it? I

think people will find it incredible that at a time when the pound has

dropped to 35 year low, when there is a 12% cut in the value of

annuities for pensioners and when the Prime Minister has been forced

to resign because he called a referendum and then didn't win it.

We know how bad it is, what is the answer? It is incredible, the public

will think how could it be, at that moment, when the government most

needed to be held to account, that the Labour Party, instead of

thinking about the country, thought more about its own internal

leadership 's bat and turned in on itself. Maybe they felt Jeremy

Corbyn wasn't the man to point out all the things you've just been

pointing out, that almost anybody else could be doing it more

effectively. Isn't that a fair critique? If he isn't the man, he

isn't the man? I don't think it is a fair critique. I think this was

always the plot waiting for its opportunity. There may be an

election soon and that put a bit of urgency into it. That is exactly why

those who want to get rid of Jeremy should go by the party rule and put

up a candidate... They will. That is the democratic way. The way they

tried to do it was to get people to resign. Now, all those mass

resignations, the effect of that would have been nobody at the

dispatch box against the government ministers. People will have looked

at the House of Commons unthought, where has the Labour Party gone? Why

have they aggregated their responsibility to hold this

government to account? I think about 100 MPs on the payroll, the Shadow

ministerial team, it is a lot, we saw the picture. If the leader of

the party cannot assemble a shadow ministerial team because there are

not MPs to work with him, would that for you be a cause for him to say,

OK, the game is up? There is only one way to change the leader and

it's the way our party has set out, and that is that the candidate to

come forward, supported by 50 MPs and then go to the party. We do not

own this party is members of Parliament. Just on the resignation

issue, you resigned on Sunday. Did you coordinate the timing of your

resignation with anybody else, so that there was this trip grip on the

hour, every hour, and ministerial resignation? I did not coordinate

the timing. I resigned after I had a chance to talk to John McDonnell and

explain my reasons for stepping down. Is it coincidence there has

been this stream of regular resignations that do appear to be

designed to maximise the news value of the resignations and elongate the

process? I wish this hadn't happened. Is it coincidence that

happened? There was a turning point, and the turning point was the

sacking of Hilary Benn. To do that in the middle of the night, and in

that way, I believed was not right. The truth is Jeremy was likely to

face a vote of no-confidence it became clearer he would lose that

vote of no-confidence. I don't believe that was right for him to go

through and I don't believe it was right for the party. For all his

qualities, Jeremy is not the leader we need to take us forward.

Tomorrow we expect Angela Eagle or Tom Watson to put themselves forward

as a challenger and it will be difficult for them to get 50 behind

them. I do not know who it will be. You must have been involved in

discussions. It comes down to this fundamental. That we have an

unelectable leader. If we lose the elections then the price of our

failure is paid by the working people of this country and their

families who do not have a government to stand up for them. I

believe we need a Labour leader who can lead us to be a credible

opposition look like a government in waiting and reach out to the voters

we have lost. The problem for you, as we see from the opinion poll

potentially the members will put Jeremy Corbyn back as leader. What

are your choices at that stage come and take me through the menu of

options. I understand that and also understand the dilemma Jeremy faces

because he does believe he has a responsibility to those members who

elected him but we have a bigger responsibility to our country. I

hope he will still do the right thing, there is still time for him

to resign with dignity. If he does not do that, there is an option,

called the nuclear option, effectively you say is the

Parliamentary party, you are collecting Angela Eagle as your

leader in the House of Commons. We are taking this one day at a time,

this is unprecedented in the history of our party. I do not think we want

to see this getting any worse. It is affecting mood and morale and it is

deeply distressing in the party and for staff. We want this to end. At

some point there must be a separation and the Parliamentary

party would save for our purposes, so and so is in. We have not got to

that point, we have a responsibility to be an effect of opposition. We

need a fresh start and a change of leader. The two of you are not here

to argue against it either, but could you teach reflect how on earth

Labour will get out of this because you are essentially playing a game

of chicken and you're going to destroy your party, one of you have

got to give in, Jeremy Corbyn has got to go with the Parliamentary

party gives him or you destroy the party in the next election. No one

thinks you could win with a leader who does not have the confidence of

the MPs. The biggest issue is the confidence of people in the Labour

Party. I had a message today from a floating voter who said if Jeremy

Corbyn does not stand aside with that result, it will undermine

everything the Labour Party says or doors. Your solution then is Jeremy

Corbyn yields to you. His solution would be that you yield to him. I do

not see this as my giving in, we have been colleagues for many years.

The issue is do you follow the process that the party collectively

agreed or do you try to do a back door manoeuvre to undermine the

elected leader. As I say the party does not belong to us. What is your

solution when the bulk of the elected representatives, those who

have been elected by people outside the party, said we do not like the

guy who is leading the party. Do you go into an election with them saying

they do not like the leader, that will not work? You have got to trust

the electorate but we have, which is the entire membership of the party

including Members of Parliament, who have the power to nominate

candidates. To trust the party to arrive at the right decision. And

the last word? I still say this is about as being an effective

opposition and looking like the government in waiting. The rules of

the rules. In a sense the rules have been followed. If he is fit, ...

This is about the spirit as well as the rules. And if you have a leader

that has lost the confidence of the party then that sends out a message

to the country. I think Jeromy can play a leading role in the party in

a different way. I think we now desperately need a fresh start. But

he will not effectively rally behind the leader even if he is elected by

the Constitution? I do not know why Jeromy would want to go through

this. It will not be the same as the readership election before, it will

be bruising and distressing. Jeromy never had the confidence of the

majority of the Parliamentary Labour Party. When he was nominated he

scraped 36 nominations. They tried to make it work and is now think it

does not work. Many of our colleagues work hard. My point is he

has never had the confidence of the vast majority of Labour MPs. I did

not vote for him, I did not nominate him. But the party shows in its

wisdom, it chose him as his leader and we must work with that and then

use the rules of the party has set to change the leader if we do not

like it. We have got to leave it there.

Meanwhile the real drama is still surely the European one -

What kind of deal we'll strike with the EU.

The action moved to Brussels today, with the European Council meeting

for the first time since Thursday and the Parliament debating Brexit.

It is hard to know from the chorus of diverse voices out

there which ones really matter, which ones are noises off,

Our diplomatic editor Mark Urban is in Brussels.

The long simmering antagonism from train Brussels and British

Euroscepticism erupted like a summer storm today, finally. The man whose

political life had led to this moment, savouring his hour of

triumph. I said I wanted to lead a campaign to get the UK to leave the

European Union. You all laughed at me. Well I have to say you are not

laughing now. The manner of victory too much for some. Argent

federalists denounced the man and his campaign. It is the way it

succeeded, the absolute negative campaign. The posters of Nigel

Farage showing refugees like Nancy for the gander. Jean-Claude Juncker

joined in. I'm really surprised you're here. You were fighting for

the exit, the British people voted in favour of exit, why are you here?

Extraordinary as the scenes where, the European Parliament is not

controlling the pace of the UK exit. That is a matter for Europe's

leaders and it was the arrival of David Cameron presumably for the

last time that heralded the main event of the day. Even at this

moment of high dramatic drama, there are people trying to slow down the

pace. Most obviously and importantly the Germans, who seem increasingly

open about their motive. The worst thing that can happen is Brexit and

it remains the worst thing. Now after the referendum which is not

legally binding, I think there is no sense, really no sense in urging the

British to accomplish what is considered by all of us to be the

worst outcome we can think of. Needing both trying to close off any

way negotiation or other British verification, President Francois

Hollande. I regret this choice but want to respect it. I cannot imagine

a British Government not respecting the choice of their own people. It

is a difficult situation. Luxembourg reminded the UK that EU membership

was a binary choice. The government decided now with the referendum to

get divorced. When not on Facebook is not obligated, it is not one step

in and one step back. And the Belgians added to the chorus. We

cannot accept that it should be a double game, that despite the

referendum there should be anyway opened to block the European project

for months and months. Listen to those in no hurry. Ireland. The

party will let the new Prime Minister and he will then decide

what the viewers. They may need some short time you cannot have a drift

into uncertainty. And then the Estonians suggesting that talking

was not over yet. The possible future talks with the UK should not

be carried on in the spirit of revenge. That has to be clear. The

UK remains an important player for us economically and politically and

security wise. And what would Lithuania say if the UK never

invoked Article 50? Welcome back. You can delay Article 50 but does it

really get you anywhere? The assumption seems to be it could

create an opportunity for the UK to think again. Superficially at least

the government here or accept the result of the referendum and with it

that the UK is on its way out of the EU. And yet despite the fact that

just today they have said they do not want any kind of informal

negotiations before UK formally says it is going, some kind of talks on

the margins must be a possibility. Tonight intriguingly we heard David

Cameron had told fellow leaders he would have to do something about

freedom of movement. Negotiating, no. Maybe laying down a marker for

his successor. And their message to him, well here is one German

version. We think how this story goes on, you think there is a

chance, a potential, for making it better than it seems now in what

Europeans can do to rescue the relationship. Britain ends this day

still heading for the exit but the debate is ongoing about whether

anything can or should be done to stop that.

I have come from the Minister 's news conference and little comfort

for those who think that perhaps the UK might change its mind. He said

the result of the referendum will be carried through. And he referred to

himself repeatedly as a Democrat. He also gave a fascinating insight into

what lies ahead. He talked about the kind of advice he would give his

successor. It is clear in his mind these credible choices between

different models have got to be made before the UK invokes Article 50.

That suggests many more months of thought will need to be given to

this during which time of course all kinds of economic and political

events might intervene. Thank you very much.

Well, suddenly the Tory party's leadership election -

the one that picks our Prime Minister - looks like the most

sedate of the various dramas surrounding us.

Candidates must declare by Thursday at noon,

the winner will be selected by the 9th September, a week later

And there's a lot of talk of a possible election soon after.

Keep the Thursdays on or after October 13th free,

cos we haven't had enough chance to vote lately.

What news from the leadership campaigns? We have the first

contender out of the blocks tomorrow, Stephen Crabb, recently

appointed Work and Pensions Secretary who will form a dream

ticket with Business Secretary Sajid Javad and they will say they are of

a new generation and from a different background. Stephen Crabb.

By a single parent and once had to protect his mother from his violent

father. Then on Thursday the big beasts, Boris Johnson and Theresa

May. MPs have until the end of the summer recess to whittle down to

two. Boris Johnson are confident, they reported tonight he has around

100 Conservative MPs supporting him. The Sun newspaper also reports the

stand-off between Ross Johnson and Theresa May but generally it is

quite a good-natured contest. During the referendum campaign you remember

Amber Rudd, the climate and Energy Secretary, said to Boris Johnson I

would not trust you to drive me home at night and was Johnson said to

her, can I drive you home! It looks like on paper Boris Johnson is the

front runner and Theresa May is in second place. But the lesson I have

learned from covering Tory leadership campaigns is never make

predictions. And Lord Heseltine will be able to say that the front runner

rarely wins. One grandee to date set that not since 1955 and Sir Anthony

Eden has the front runner in the winner. Thank you, Lord Heseltine.

He has had a few battles himself. Are you going to tell us who you are

supporting? I'm not because to me that is not the fundamental issue we

are dealing with. We have a constitutional crisis of the scale

that has never existed in my life. The real trauma is that every day

that goes past in the boardrooms of the world and of course this

country, decisions are being delayed. And they will go on being

delayed until there is a clarity about the economic future of

Britain. I'm appalled that the idea that we will take months to get to a

position where we can decide how to proceed and then years for we come

to a conclusion. And the damage that that will do in terms of lost

investment and avoided decisions is incalculable.

You would say speed this process up so we get Prime Minister soon? It

took five days when you were competing with John Major post

Margaret Thatcher. We are now in a position of 12 weeks or something,

ten weeks or something? 12 weeks before we have a Prime Minister but

there is no need for the negotiations to wait, because the

negotiations will be the same. Will they? Of course. The store has been

set out by the Europeans. There will be no negotiations until you have

triggered clause 50. What is happening, the British people have

been sold a deceitful pup. We were told by the Brexit campaign that it

would be OK, because the Europeans are desperate to keep us in, so we

will have a conversation and get a sensible arrangement. The truth is,

the Europeans have said, on your bike. You took the trouble to make

this decision, we're not negotiating. And every day that

passes, the uncertainty profiles. This is why you want us to see

exactly what out looks like and then have a second referendum, which

chooses between in or out again? I want something just a little

different but fundamentally so. I want to put Boris Johnson and his

colleagues in charge of the negotiations. He doesn't need to be

the Prime Minister or the leader of the Conservative Party to do that.

But he got us into this mess, on a range of platitudes about how

glorious the alternative future would be. Let him show us what that

future is. My own view, it has to be shown, is it will be totally

unattractive to the majority of members of Parliament. And so how do

you carry out the will of the people in this referendum, which I believe

you should? The only way is to negotiate so the members of the

House of Commons, where sovereignty lies, can come to a judgment about

whether they would vote for it. My view is they won't, but they must be

given the chance. And when it comes to it, there are only two ways to do

that. One is to have a general election, the second is to have

another referendum. And overturn the first one? Thank you very much, Lord

Heseltine. The next French presidential could

see Marine le Pen as one of the last two on the ballot. She has been

given her party something of a makeover, softening the tone whilst

keeping the line of the hardline message, framed by her father, the

party founder. Emily went to meet her yesterday.

Emily talking to Marine le Pen who of the state doesn't like Hillary

Clinton. Financial markets had

a referendum jolt last week, The pound and the FTSE both had

a good day today, recovering some But while shares and currencies do

provide an instant guide to the latest jumps in sentiment,

there is a real economy underneath Let's ponder on some

of the economic effects - I am joined by Anthony Jenkins and

Julia Tet. Bank shares pummelled more than most, down by about 30%,

what is going on? Banks hate uncertainty. They are basically a

leverage play on the state of the economy, people think the economy

will be weaker and with the prospect of lower interest rates for longer

that affect banks. Banks have been under pressure for many months and

years. If you look at the decline in bank stocks, because of global

economy. This is another problem that. A big problem. What about

passport in? People say you might lose your passport operate through

the single market. Obviously they can operate still, it's just a bit

more of a burden. How much per problem will that be, if they lose

the passport? It is key to our participation in financial services

across Europe. Remember, the European banks also passport into

the UK, so there is a reciprocity here. But like with many things in

this debate, it's going to be in the

detail of the negotiations. What you think about the banks? Banks have

been very badly damaged, clearly. It is partly because of the extreme

uncertainty and also the people have been ignoring the degree to which

expectations have collapsed in the last few days, not just in the UK

but globally and that is hurting insurance companies as well. There

is another important point here. If you look at US banks and see how

they are performing relative to European ones, there is a huge

transatlantic split opening up. I am based in New York normally fuzzed up

when I spoke to New York financiers are couple of days ago, as far as

they are concerned, this has sealed the victory of the American banking

sector on the global stage may think European banks are in the dust. Is

that that assessment? I think there are lots of reasons why people might

think that, typically the size of the US economy, six times the size

of the UK. When you're trying to support a banking system which is

big, it is more difficult in a small economy. I think there are a lot of

pressures on the bank and we will probably see a fragmentation in

Europe, and more regional and local focus. Far as the Americans are

concerned, what has happened with Brexit is a complete self-inflicted

wound on an extraordinary scale. Most Americans I know are absolutely

shocked. Absolutely. Weather is banks, the economy or anything else,

this is regarded as very big. Let's be clear about potential for

short-term financial can take contagious. You worried about the

next six months and getting for it, Anthony? What matters for banks in

the system is do you have enough liquidity? The Bank of England has

been clear they will provide liquidity. Do you know you're

trading positions, do you have them under control and are you hedging

them appropriately? Are we keeping your clients and on people onside

estimate this is massively disruptive when you go through these

changes. That is the short-term agenda is the bank CEOs. I think

they are doing a pretty good job in partnership with the authorities.

We'll earned a lot from 2008 and learned some lessons. Are you

worried? I am going to be optimistic and they won good lesson of the last

few days as the financial system as a whole has weathered it pretty

well. Frankly, regulators and bankers have been to boot camp and

back in terms of risk management, because of all the things as

happened since 2008. They can do this. The big issue is the medium to

long term, the economic impact. Low interest rates, which are terrible

for pensioners, savers and insurance companies, that can be very

damaging. What really frightens people right now is the prospect of

years of soggy growth. Can I suggest something... This is an optimistic

scenario. For years the success of the city, Anthony, has kept Sterling

very high and has made lots of other industries in part of the country

very uncompetitive, very difficult for Middlesbroughs to compete

internationally, when it is stuck with a city pushing up the exchange

rate. What this appears to have done is knocked the exchange rate down.

Maybe if that is a permanent effect we will have a rebalancing? One of

the things Thursday showed us was this massive fracture in our

society, which is not good. If this can be a catalyst for a rebalancing

of the economy... My own view, and I have been quite open on this, the

financial sector itself is going to contract over the coming years all

sorts of reasons, technology among them, so it will inevitably become

smaller. We will have to seize this, difficult though it is, the

uncertainty has to be removed. We have to seize this opportunity now

to build the future of Britain. Can I jump in and say if you look at the

Financial Times, tomorrow's paper or what is on the website, you will see

stories like the fact Vodafone is thinking of moving its headquarters

out of the UK. Virgin has cancelled deals. You see so many indications,

it's not just the financial sector that has had a heart attack and is

now basically freezing investment or preparing to move, it's other

companies as well. I would love to see the UK economy rebalanced,

desperately love to see it, but what I fear is we are going to see a

re-balance all down to a lower level and that is a tragedy. Thank you

both very much. That is all we have time for, such a busy week. I will