Browse content similar to 27/11/2017. Check below for episodes and series from the same categories and more!
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Tonight, could this be
the border that sinks Brexit? | 0:00:05 | 0:00:10 | |
Newsnight is live in Dublin,
and we speak to the DUP's Brexit | 0:00:10 | 0:00:13 | |
spokesman here in the studio. | 0:00:13 | 0:00:17 | |
Also tonight, Syria's Aleppo
was a year ago, but a new crisis | 0:00:17 | 0:00:21 | |
is emerging to the east of Damascus. | 0:00:21 | 0:00:23 | |
Tonight, we bring you exclusive
footage from the rebel stronghold of | 0:00:23 | 0:00:26 | |
Eastern Ghoutta. | 0:00:26 | 0:00:29 | |
We'll ask the UN live what they can
do to stop the suffering. | 0:00:29 | 0:00:32 | |
And... | 0:00:32 | 0:00:34 | |
Also tonight - Meghan Markle wows
the nation, as she prepares | 0:00:34 | 0:00:38 | |
to marry Prince Harry. | 0:00:38 | 0:00:44 | |
The corgies took
to you straightaway. | 0:00:44 | 0:00:46 | |
Over the last 33 years,
being barked at. | 0:00:46 | 0:00:48 | |
This one walks in,
absolutely nothing. | 0:00:48 | 0:00:49 | |
Just laying on my feet
during tea, it was very sweet. | 0:00:49 | 0:00:52 | |
Wagging tails, it was just like ugh! | 0:00:52 | 0:00:54 | |
She's also called herself a strong,
confident mixed-race Woman. | 0:00:54 | 0:00:56 | |
How much of a moment is this
for others of mixed heritage? | 0:00:56 | 0:01:03 | |
Good evening. | 0:01:08 | 0:01:10 | |
Tonight, Ireland stands
on the verge of snap elections, | 0:01:10 | 0:01:14 | |
as their Prime Minister promises
to do everything he can to bring | 0:01:14 | 0:01:17 | |
the country back from the brink. | 0:01:17 | 0:01:18 | |
The dispute is a domestic one,
but the implications would be | 0:01:18 | 0:01:21 | |
profound for the EU and for Brexit. | 0:01:21 | 0:01:23 | |
Leo Varadkar has threatened to block
Brexit talks next month, | 0:01:23 | 0:01:25 | |
if he believes insufficient progress
has been made on the future | 0:01:25 | 0:01:28 | |
of the border within
the island of Ireland. | 0:01:28 | 0:01:32 | |
This border is one of the most
intractable issues Brexit has thrown | 0:01:32 | 0:01:35 | |
up - how to preserve the openness
between north and south, | 0:01:35 | 0:01:38 | |
and how to comply with the new terms
that Britain's vote to leave | 0:01:38 | 0:01:41 | |
the EU demands. | 0:01:41 | 0:01:44 | |
Theresa May is desperate to start
pushing talks with Brussels | 0:01:44 | 0:01:47 | |
onto trade, when she meets
negotiators next week. | 0:01:47 | 0:01:49 | |
But they will not be willing to do
so until the Ireland | 0:01:49 | 0:01:52 | |
question is resolved. | 0:01:52 | 0:01:55 | |
Let's head straight to Dublin
and Mark Urban who's there. | 0:01:55 | 0:02:04 | |
Emily, the things were queueing up,
political pressure, messages, | 0:02:04 | 0:02:08 | |
everything queueing up just the way
Ireland wanted it on the border | 0:02:08 | 0:02:11 | |
issues. A couple of weeks back, the
commission in Brussels had got | 0:02:11 | 0:02:15 | |
squarely behind them with more
explicit language than we'd heard | 0:02:15 | 0:02:19 | |
before saying, well, their preferred
solution was that a border be on the | 0:02:19 | 0:02:24 | |
Irish Sea, ie that Northern Ireland
be taken into the same customs and | 0:02:24 | 0:02:28 | |
single market regime if, indeed,
Britain was going to push on and | 0:02:28 | 0:02:31 | |
leave the single market and customs
union. Now suddenly, this political | 0:02:31 | 0:02:36 | |
crisis has blown up. It's about a
police whistle-blower and what the | 0:02:36 | 0:02:42 | |
Prime Minister's Justice Minister
did or didn't know at certain points | 0:02:42 | 0:02:46 | |
in this, the opposition, have called
for her resignation. He's refused, | 0:02:46 | 0:02:55 | |
Prime Minister, Varadkar, the
Taoiseach. It's supposed to come to | 0:02:55 | 0:02:59 | |
a head tomorrow in the Parliament
here right at the time that he | 0:02:59 | 0:03:02 | |
wanted to be honing the final
positions before the Brexit summit, | 0:03:02 | 0:03:08 | |
the European summit in Brussels in
mid-December. It's all remarkable in | 0:03:08 | 0:03:12 | |
just how intense and difficult the
political crisis has become. | 0:03:12 | 0:03:26 | |
Time's arrow is flying in Dublin. | 0:03:26 | 0:03:29 | |
A minority government could collapse
tomorrow while what some are calling | 0:03:29 | 0:03:32 | |
an existential question about Brexit
and the border with the North needs | 0:03:32 | 0:03:36 | |
answering quickly. | 0:03:36 | 0:03:40 | |
And an election poll suggests
would change little. | 0:03:40 | 0:03:42 | |
There is no appetite
for a pre-Christmas election. | 0:03:42 | 0:03:47 | |
TDs, members of Parliament,
went back to their | 0:03:47 | 0:03:49 | |
constituencies this weekend
and people were very vocal about the | 0:03:49 | 0:03:51 | |
fact we don't want an election,
especially on December 19, 20th. | 0:03:51 | 0:03:57 | |
Can you think of a worse
time for an election? | 0:03:57 | 0:03:59 | |
People are deeply
concerned about Brexit. | 0:03:59 | 0:04:01 | |
Irish people on the ground
are very alarmed about | 0:04:01 | 0:04:03 | |
what's happening on the border
and for the economy in Ireland. | 0:04:03 | 0:04:06 | |
In these politically
tense times, the | 0:04:06 | 0:04:09 | |
European Union at least stands
foursquare behind the government | 0:04:09 | 0:04:13 | |
position on the border. | 0:04:13 | 0:04:18 | |
Ready to block progress
in December's EU summit. | 0:04:18 | 0:04:20 | |
And on that issue of the border,
the ruling party and | 0:04:20 | 0:04:23 | |
opposition FINA foil are great too. | 0:04:23 | 0:04:29 | |
-- are agreed too. | 0:04:29 | 0:04:32 | |
If the UK insists on proceeding
with this, and there isn't any | 0:04:32 | 0:04:35 | |
compromise from the British
government on this, | 0:04:35 | 0:04:36 | |
then border controls
in Northern Ireland are inevitable. | 0:04:36 | 0:04:38 | |
That simply can't be
countenanced, there's just | 0:04:38 | 0:04:40 | |
too much at stake. | 0:04:40 | 0:04:41 | |
We must have a written
guarantee and if it isn't | 0:04:41 | 0:04:44 | |
met, obviously, it's
a condition of the trade talks | 0:04:44 | 0:04:50 | |
that this would be met,
then I think that would be helpful. | 0:04:50 | 0:04:53 | |
I think it would be very helpful
if the British government | 0:04:53 | 0:04:56 | |
was willing to look at a special
economic zone for Northern Ireland. | 0:04:56 | 0:05:05 | |
The potential damage to the north
and indeed parts of Ireland, the | 0:05:05 | 0:05:07 | |
potential damage is catastrophic. | 0:05:07 | 0:05:09 | |
The border between North and South
runs a shade under 500 kilometres. | 0:05:09 | 0:05:17 | |
People, goods, money
and electricity move across it | 0:05:17 | 0:05:19 | |
without let or hindrance. | 0:05:19 | 0:05:21 | |
So how can this unique arrangement
be preserved if the UK | 0:05:21 | 0:05:23 | |
leaves the EU's economic space? | 0:05:23 | 0:05:29 | |
Their hand will be
significantly weakened. | 0:05:29 | 0:05:31 | |
Lucinda Crichton was once
Ireland's Europe minister and | 0:05:31 | 0:05:35 | |
now she advises companies on Brexit. | 0:05:35 | 0:05:40 | |
I think it's really interesting how
robustly and strongly the rest of | 0:05:40 | 0:05:43 | |
the EU has stood behind Ireland. I
expect that to continue up to the | 0:05:43 | 0:05:47 | |
summit. There's no question of an
Irish veto. There never really has | 0:05:47 | 0:05:50 | |
been a question of the Irish veto.
The EU position will be determined | 0:05:50 | 0:05:54 | |
by whether Dublin is happy and can
accede to whatever wording is on the | 0:05:54 | 0:05:58 | |
table in December and my view is
that if the Irish government | 0:05:58 | 0:06:01 | |
believes it's not sufficient
progress, then the EU will adopt the | 0:06:01 | 0:06:04 | |
same position. So, the issue of a
veto won't arise. The issue will | 0:06:04 | 0:06:10 | |
simply be delayed for another few
months. You're in the driving seat | 0:06:10 | 0:06:13 | |
then? Absolutely. On this issue. And
the reason, and you know, always in | 0:06:13 | 0:06:19 | |
politics tactics are important. The
reason that the Irish government has | 0:06:19 | 0:06:24 | |
engaged in such strong messaging and
taken such a strong position on this | 0:06:24 | 0:06:28 | |
in the last number of weeks in
particular, is because this is the | 0:06:28 | 0:06:33 | |
period of so-called maximum
leverage. This is the time that the | 0:06:33 | 0:06:37 | |
Irish government can really play its
hand. | 0:06:37 | 0:06:48 | |
Ireland's economy is deeply links to
that of the United Kingdom, we're | 0:06:49 | 0:06:54 | |
deeply concerned that bearing no
responsibility for the United | 0:06:54 | 0:06:57 | |
Kingdom removing itself from the
European Union that we're going to | 0:06:57 | 0:06:59 | |
suffer. And may indeed suffer a
great deal more than the United | 0:06:59 | 0:07:03 | |
Kingdom in terms of economic growth.
In Dublin bay, that volume of trade | 0:07:03 | 0:07:09 | |
moving across the Irish Sea to
Britain, rather than over the border | 0:07:09 | 0:07:13 | |
to the north, is obvious enough. The
border issue is one that is | 0:07:13 | 0:07:22 | |
elemental in Irish politics. This is
a moment for Irish politicians with | 0:07:22 | 0:07:25 | |
the backing of the EU to gain
reassurances about a much bigger | 0:07:25 | 0:07:31 | |
picture, the wider trading
relationship that they want | 0:07:31 | 0:07:35 | |
understandings on at this critical
time in the Brexit process. If the | 0:07:35 | 0:07:41 | |
border issue can be settled, it's
the very depth of those ties that | 0:07:41 | 0:07:45 | |
could then lead Ireland to act as an
advocate of liberal EU market access | 0:07:45 | 0:07:50 | |
for the UK. But that discussion
seems a long way off right now. | 0:07:50 | 0:07:58 | |
Mark's still with us in Dublin,
and our political editor | 0:07:58 | 0:08:01 | |
Nick Watt is with me. | 0:08:01 | 0:08:02 | |
First back to you Mark, | 0:08:02 | 0:08:05 | |
William Hague is warning tonight
that any veto by the Irish | 0:08:05 | 0:08:08 | |
government on this would be
a grave miscalculation. | 0:08:08 | 0:08:10 | |
we heard voices in your film there
saying it's simply -- it simply | 0:08:10 | 0:08:14 | |
won't happen. What will Leo Varadkar
make of that? Well, in a sense, they | 0:08:14 | 0:08:19 | |
know-it-all too well. They
understand just how vulnerable | 0:08:19 | 0:08:24 | |
Ireland is in this situation,
particularly were it to come to that | 0:08:24 | 0:08:29 | |
disaster scenario of a disorderly
Brexit, ie, one without a deal in | 0:08:29 | 0:08:33 | |
March 2019. They also know, by the
way and it's whispered here, that in | 0:08:33 | 0:08:40 | |
that disorderly Brexit scenario, EU
rules lay on Ireland the | 0:08:40 | 0:08:43 | |
responsibility for putting that hard
border into place. So before they | 0:08:43 | 0:08:47 | |
get near that kind of situation,
they want to use what leverage they | 0:08:47 | 0:08:52 | |
V they believe that now is the
moment, because Theresa May wants to | 0:08:52 | 0:08:57 | |
move the discussion on to the
so-called phase two issues, get | 0:08:57 | 0:09:02 | |
beyond those initial separation
issues, citizens' rights, the Budget | 0:09:02 | 0:09:07 | |
and the Irish border and get to the
wider relationship discussions. They | 0:09:07 | 0:09:10 | |
know that because of her desire to
do that and the potential cost to | 0:09:10 | 0:09:13 | |
the UK economy, if that doesn't
happen in December, that now is the | 0:09:13 | 0:09:17 | |
time to try and get the assurances
they want on the border. They know | 0:09:17 | 0:09:21 | |
they're not going to get a done deal
on the border and that the wider | 0:09:21 | 0:09:25 | |
relationship also has to be defined,
but they want in the key EU words | 0:09:25 | 0:09:30 | |
"sufficient progress". They want
reassurances this ethere won't be a | 0:09:30 | 0:09:33 | |
hard border. They also want a nod
and a wink about future trade terms | 0:09:33 | 0:09:38 | |
between the UK and Ireland as well.
Mark, thanks very much. So Nick | 0:09:38 | 0:09:42 | |
then. Briefly, the UK position on
this? Well the UK is acknowledging | 0:09:42 | 0:09:47 | |
this question of the Irish border is
now a greater threat than the actual | 0:09:47 | 0:09:51 | |
Brexit financial settlement and
unless progress is made then it will | 0:09:51 | 0:09:56 | |
derail UK hopes of moving to the
next stage, which is talking about | 0:09:56 | 0:09:59 | |
transition and talking about the
future trading relationship. The UK | 0:09:59 | 0:10:03 | |
is looking at some new wording, but
this has got to be agreed with the | 0:10:03 | 0:10:09 | |
Irish Republic and with Michel
Barnier and looking in two areas: | 0:10:09 | 0:10:14 | |
Reassuring Leo Varadkar by talking
about where there is north/south | 0:10:14 | 0:10:18 | |
cooperation. This is really serious
stuff. Animal health is an | 0:10:18 | 0:10:23 | |
all-Ireland issue, as is the energy
market. It's talking about those air | 0:10:23 | 0:10:26 | |
quaz. -- areas. There's quite a
feeling, reflected in the William | 0:10:26 | 0:10:33 | |
Hague article that Leo Varadkar has
taken himself to the edge a cliff | 0:10:33 | 0:10:37 | |
and the UK needs to walk him back to
that in a way that is comfortable | 0:10:37 | 0:10:40 | |
for him, but in a way that respects
the key UK red line - respect the | 0:10:40 | 0:10:47 | |
territorial integrity of the United
Kingdom. Nick, thanks very much | 0:10:47 | 0:10:50 | |
indeed. Back to Nick later. | 0:10:50 | 0:10:55 | |
Sammy Wilson is Brexit spokesman
for the Democratic Unionist Party - | 0:10:55 | 0:10:57 | |
who, of course, have strong feelings
about the future of Ireland | 0:10:57 | 0:11:00 | |
and a strong voice in the debate
thanks to their agreement | 0:11:00 | 0:11:03 | |
with Theresa May's Government. | 0:11:03 | 0:11:04 | |
Very nice of you to come in: This is
a massive problem for you, just to | 0:11:04 | 0:11:10 | |
work out where this border lies and
what it looks like? No, it's not a | 0:11:10 | 0:11:14 | |
massive problem. Don't forget this
was a commitment that the UK | 0:11:14 | 0:11:18 | |
Government made before we entered
into any arrangement with them. They | 0:11:18 | 0:11:22 | |
said that the UK would leave the EU
as a whole, would have the same | 0:11:22 | 0:11:27 | |
arrangements and as unionists we
were happy with that. Had the same | 0:11:27 | 0:11:31 | |
arrangements as you, as Ulster? That
Northern Ireland would have the same | 0:11:31 | 0:11:35 | |
arrangements as the rest of the UK
when we left the EU. But this is, | 0:11:35 | 0:11:40 | |
just help us understand it. For
anyone thinking about it, it is a | 0:11:40 | 0:11:44 | |
real brain pain this. Either you
have, don't you, a hard border | 0:11:44 | 0:11:49 | |
between Ulster and the Republic or
else you have a soft border between | 0:11:49 | 0:11:53 | |
those two and the UK mainland stays
outside, which I know you don't | 0:11:53 | 0:11:56 | |
want. Or else there has to be
something that includes all three | 0:11:56 | 0:12:01 | |
parts of this, which is it? To a
certain extent, I know that some of | 0:12:01 | 0:12:05 | |
your reports there said tonight that
the EU were backing the Irish | 0:12:05 | 0:12:07 | |
position. I think the Irish are
being used by the EU who are trying | 0:12:07 | 0:12:12 | |
to force the UK to look again at its
commitment to leave the single | 0:12:12 | 0:12:16 | |
market and the customs union. What
do you think will happen then? First | 0:12:16 | 0:12:21 | |
of all, the UK Government has put
forward, in August, a very, very | 0:12:21 | 0:12:26 | |
detailed position paper in which
they made clear the kind of | 0:12:26 | 0:12:30 | |
anningments which could be put in
place to ensure that there was no | 0:12:30 | 0:12:33 | |
hard border. Don't forget - You
definitely don't want a hard border? | 0:12:33 | 0:12:37 | |
No, we don't want a hard border. The
Irish have said they don't want a | 0:12:37 | 0:12:42 | |
hard border. The UK Government
doesn't want a hard border. The only | 0:12:42 | 0:12:45 | |
people who are pushing this now are
Mr Barnier, who is really wanting to | 0:12:45 | 0:12:50 | |
try and force the UK's hand on
single market membership as the | 0:12:50 | 0:12:55 | |
customs union. Away from the
negotiations, help us envisage what | 0:12:55 | 0:12:59 | |
this looks like - if it's not a hard
border, then you have an ease of | 0:12:59 | 0:13:05 | |
movement of goods between Ulster and
the Republic. Right. If I'm a | 0:13:05 | 0:13:09 | |
British firm, I could set up my
headquarters now in Dublin and then | 0:13:09 | 0:13:13 | |
have access through to the EU like
that? And don't forget - Is that a | 0:13:13 | 0:13:18 | |
yes? There's already a physical
border on the island of Ireland. | 0:13:18 | 0:13:23 | |
Let's take this as a template.
Currently, there are goods which | 0:13:23 | 0:13:27 | |
move freely across the border
between Northern Ireland and the | 0:13:27 | 0:13:31 | |
Irish Republic with different tax
rates on them. They don't require to | 0:13:31 | 0:13:34 | |
be stopped at the border - We know
that. Yes, but we haven't gone | 0:13:34 | 0:13:37 | |
through Brexit yet. No. Look, let me
explain something. The difficulty | 0:13:37 | 0:13:43 | |
which some people see is that once
we leave the EU, there'll be | 0:13:43 | 0:13:47 | |
different tax rates in the UK and in
the Irish Republic. There'll be | 0:13:47 | 0:13:53 | |
duties to be paid. That is already a
situation which exists at present. | 0:13:53 | 0:13:58 | |
You envisage that we would - Trade
does not have to be checked on a | 0:13:58 | 0:14:02 | |
day-to-day basis because what
happens under trusted trader status | 0:14:02 | 0:14:06 | |
because the traders invoice the
goods they're going to sell in | 0:14:06 | 0:14:09 | |
Northern Ireland. Then pay the tax
on a awerly basis. Would the UK | 0:14:09 | 0:14:14 | |
still be inside the customs union?
No, it would not be. But if I wanted | 0:14:14 | 0:14:19 | |
to have a head quarter of a British
firm in Dublin or a Dublin firm | 0:14:19 | 0:14:24 | |
wanted access to other trade deals
they could just move to Belfast and | 0:14:24 | 0:14:27 | |
that would be OK? Well, what would
happen, the Government has led down | 0:14:27 | 0:14:32 | |
- Just answer that, would that be
OK? What Do You Mean you're talking | 0:14:32 | 0:14:37 | |
about is an imagination where none
of the rules applied and people | 0:14:37 | 0:14:40 | |
could do what they wanted? No, the
rules would apply. You would simply | 0:14:40 | 0:14:44 | |
have a different way of tracing the
trade which takes place, of | 0:14:44 | 0:14:49 | |
measuring that trade. If there were
taxes to be paid, paying those | 0:14:49 | 0:14:53 | |
taxes, as happens at the fiscal
border -- physical border at | 0:14:53 | 0:14:56 | |
present. You think they would chase
tariffs, chase goods? They wouldn't | 0:14:56 | 0:15:01 | |
have to chase them, because you
would have invoicing when the goods | 0:15:01 | 0:15:06 | |
leave the Irish Republic, coming
into Northern Ireland. It's a | 0:15:06 | 0:15:09 | |
complete fantasy, that. They've said
it absolutely makes it right for -- | 0:15:09 | 0:15:13 | |
ripe for smuggling and piracy. You
know what people are saying about | 0:15:13 | 0:15:16 | |
this? I don't think you're listening
to me. I am. I'm trying to work out | 0:15:16 | 0:15:20 | |
how it works in practice? It works
at present. For example, if Guinness | 0:15:20 | 0:15:27 | |
send a load from Dublin to Belfast -
Because we're all in the customs | 0:15:27 | 0:15:31 | |
union. Of course it works. No there
are different tax rates when it | 0:15:31 | 0:15:36 | |
comes to the UK than in the Irish
epublic. -- republic. That tax has | 0:15:36 | 0:15:43 | |
to be collected. You simply have an
invoice that under trusted trader | 0:15:43 | 0:15:47 | |
status, the business will submit and
then will pay the tax on a quarterly | 0:15:47 | 0:15:52 | |
basis. One of the proposals that the
Government has put forward is that | 0:15:52 | 0:15:55 | |
80% of the trade across the border
is done by small businesses. I like | 0:15:55 | 0:15:59 | |
your optimism. Let me ask you
briefly No, you've asked me a | 0:15:59 | 0:16:02 | |
question, let me answer it. 80% of
the trade is done by small | 0:16:02 | 0:16:06 | |
businesses. I want to move - That
would be exempt and regarded as | 0:16:06 | 0:16:10 | |
local trade not international trade
so there'll be no restrictions on | 0:16:10 | 0:16:13 | |
it. I'd be interested to hear what
our political editor thinks of that. | 0:16:13 | 0:16:17 | |
If you're suggesting something that
you think is going to go through, | 0:16:17 | 0:16:19 | |
we'll see it in practice Those are
the proposals that the Government | 0:16:19 | 0:16:23 | |
has put. They've simply been
dismissed without any thought of the | 0:16:23 | 0:16:28 | |
Irish Government on the EU because
they seem intent on making this an | 0:16:28 | 0:16:31 | |
issue which is doesn't need to be
made. Thank you very much. | 0:16:31 | 0:16:40 | |
Picking up on that, is that a
realistic budget? Possibly in the | 0:16:40 | 0:16:45 | |
future but I think the view of the
EU is that this is a huge challenge | 0:16:45 | 0:16:49 | |
that needs a huge answer is about
what the relationship is going to be | 0:16:49 | 0:16:56 | |
in the context of the Good Friday
Agreement. Things like the trusted | 0:16:56 | 0:17:00 | |
trader status, electronic mapping.
Maybe you can have that at some time | 0:17:00 | 0:17:04 | |
in the future when you have a future
trade relationship between the UK | 0:17:04 | 0:17:08 | |
and the EU embedded. A quick word on
the Brexit papers, as we are calling | 0:17:08 | 0:17:15 | |
them, rumblings with Keir Starmer.
The Shadow Brokers executor is | 0:17:15 | 0:17:20 | |
saying that David Davies is arguably
in contempt of the house because | 0:17:20 | 0:17:24 | |
these papers have been released to
the Brexit select committee but in | 0:17:24 | 0:17:27 | |
heavily redacted terms. David Davies
says that is because it is | 0:17:27 | 0:17:32 | |
commercially sensitive and they
don't want to do things that harm | 0:17:32 | 0:17:37 | |
the negotiations. Keir Starmer said
that they were meant to be posted in | 0:17:37 | 0:17:42 | |
their entirety. Thank you very much. | 0:17:42 | 0:17:48 | |
Meghan Markle gave her first
television interview | 0:17:48 | 0:17:50 | |
since her engagement to Prince Harry
to the BBC this evening, and in one | 0:17:50 | 0:17:53 | |
fell swoop she wowed a nation. | 0:17:53 | 0:17:55 | |
Confident, articulate,
and unafraid to express her emotion. | 0:17:55 | 0:17:57 | |
She reassured many she was her own
person and already had an easy | 0:17:57 | 0:18:00 | |
relationship with her husband to be. | 0:18:00 | 0:18:01 | |
This is how the couple described
the moment Prince Harry proposed. | 0:18:01 | 0:18:05 | |
It was, what were we doing,
just roasting chicken? | 0:18:05 | 0:18:07 | |
Roasting a chicken,
trying to roast a chicken. | 0:18:07 | 0:18:09 | |
And it just, just
an amazing surprise. | 0:18:09 | 0:18:13 | |
It was so sweet and natural
and very romantic. | 0:18:13 | 0:18:16 | |
He got on one knee. | 0:18:16 | 0:18:19 | |
She's already a celebrity
in her own right, of course. | 0:18:19 | 0:18:21 | |
An actress and an American. | 0:18:21 | 0:18:24 | |
And she's described her pride
at being in her words a "strong, | 0:18:24 | 0:18:27 | |
confident, mixed-race woman". | 0:18:27 | 0:18:29 | |
Last year Kensington Palace issued
a statement which revealed how | 0:18:29 | 0:18:32 | |
worried Prince Harry had been
about the wave of abuse | 0:18:32 | 0:18:37 | |
and harassment Meghan had
faced from some quarters | 0:18:37 | 0:18:39 | |
when their relationship began. | 0:18:39 | 0:18:40 | |
It pointed to the racial
undertones of comment pieces, | 0:18:40 | 0:18:45 | |
the sexism and racism of social
media trolls, the smear on the front | 0:18:45 | 0:18:48 | |
page of a national newspaper. | 0:18:48 | 0:18:51 | |
In a 2015 piece for Elle Magazine,
Meghan Markle herself wrote | 0:18:51 | 0:18:55 | |
of her own difficulties in the past
with describing her ethnicity. | 0:18:55 | 0:18:58 | |
Her words here are
spoken by an actor. | 0:18:58 | 0:19:01 | |
There was a mandatory census I had
to complete in my English class. | 0:19:01 | 0:19:04 | |
You had to check one of the boxes
to indicate your ethnicity. | 0:19:04 | 0:19:08 | |
White, black, Hispanic or Asian. | 0:19:08 | 0:19:13 | |
There I was, my curly hair,
my freckled face, my pale | 0:19:13 | 0:19:15 | |
skin, my mixed race. | 0:19:15 | 0:19:17 | |
Looking down at these boxes,
not wanting to mess up | 0:19:17 | 0:19:20 | |
but not knowing what to do. | 0:19:20 | 0:19:24 | |
You could only choose one but that
would be to choose one parent over | 0:19:24 | 0:19:27 | |
the other and one half of myself
over the other. | 0:19:27 | 0:19:29 | |
My teacher told me to check
the box for Caucasian, | 0:19:29 | 0:19:32 | |
"Because that's how you look,
Meghan" she said. | 0:19:32 | 0:19:38 | |
I put down my pen, not as an act
of defiance but rather | 0:19:38 | 0:19:41 | |
a symptom of my confusion. | 0:19:41 | 0:19:43 | |
So what does this wedding tell
us about Britain now? | 0:19:43 | 0:19:46 | |
Does it feel like a watershed moment
for those of mixed heritage? | 0:19:46 | 0:19:49 | |
Or is it anachronistic to even think
it matters any more? | 0:19:49 | 0:19:51 | |
Joining me now are the Guardian
columnist Georgina Lawton, | 0:19:51 | 0:19:56 | |
Charlie Brinkhurst-Cuff of gal-dem,
an online magazine | 0:19:56 | 0:20:00 | |
for women of colour -
and with us from Madrid | 0:20:00 | 0:20:02 | |
is the presenter Amal Fashanu. | 0:20:02 | 0:20:03 | |
Thank you for joining us. Is it a
moment for you? Personally I think | 0:20:03 | 0:20:11 | |
it is a moment. For me, I grew up in
Spain and went to school and a log | 0:20:11 | 0:20:16 | |
of what Meghan was saying, I really
identified with. The fact that she's | 0:20:16 | 0:20:22 | |
standing out, saying she is mixed
race, for me it helps me a lot. I've | 0:20:22 | 0:20:27 | |
been in many occasions at school,
exactly what she describes, I don't | 0:20:27 | 0:20:31 | |
know who I was, why do I have to
choose, do I have to be white or | 0:20:31 | 0:20:34 | |
black? If I want to straighten my
hair and I'm all white? It is a big | 0:20:34 | 0:20:44 | |
deal. -- and I am more white. People
have said it shouldn't be a big eel | 0:20:44 | 0:20:50 | |
but it is, for people who are mixed
race I think this is a big step | 0:20:50 | 0:20:54 | |
forward. -- shouldn't be a big deal.
I'm over the moon, I couldn't be | 0:20:54 | 0:20:59 | |
happier. Does it feel like a big
deal for you, is it important to | 0:20:59 | 0:21:05 | |
talk about being mixed race without
being one thing or the other? To a | 0:21:05 | 0:21:10 | |
degree but when it comes to the
representation of mixed race and | 0:21:10 | 0:21:13 | |
black people we have to remember
that extra race people are the | 0:21:13 | 0:21:18 | |
acceptable face of blackness
already. And that's why we are | 0:21:18 | 0:21:23 | |
fetishised by the elite. So I'm not
that excited at the prospect of | 0:21:23 | 0:21:28 | |
Meghan Markle marrying Prince Harry,
because I'm aware of the nuances | 0:21:28 | 0:21:33 | |
around it and I suppose there is a
long way to go when it comes to the | 0:21:33 | 0:21:40 | |
representation of black people,
mixed race people, in general. Does | 0:21:40 | 0:21:44 | |
this confuse you, as a Republican?
It does, I found it quite funny | 0:21:44 | 0:21:50 | |
because a lot of my black peers are
very excited by everything that's | 0:21:50 | 0:21:54 | |
going on today whereas I think we
should abolish the monarchy! Let's | 0:21:54 | 0:22:00 | |
bring an end to it all. Georgina,
could it have that effect, could it | 0:22:00 | 0:22:05 | |
bring more people of colour towards
the monarchy? Definitely, I think | 0:22:05 | 0:22:10 | |
it's going to make the royal family
Morgan 11 and I think it's important | 0:22:10 | 0:22:15 | |
to have greater representation of
mixed race people in the UK. -- more | 0:22:15 | 0:22:21 | |
representative. We are held up as a
beacon of a post-racial society and | 0:22:21 | 0:22:28 | |
Meghan's closeness to the Palace
destroys the notion that to be regal | 0:22:28 | 0:22:34 | |
or accept it you must be white. It's
interesting that we have someone | 0:22:34 | 0:22:38 | |
close to the Palace like Meghan and
it's exciting times. It is a huge | 0:22:38 | 0:22:45 | |
burden on a young woman's shoulders
to think she's suddenly carrying all | 0:22:45 | 0:22:49 | |
these expectations with her in this
new role. To be honest with you I | 0:22:49 | 0:22:56 | |
think she's going to be great. Can
you hear me, sorry? Yes. I think | 0:22:56 | 0:23:02 | |
she's going to be a great role model
and I think we don't have anyone who | 0:23:02 | 0:23:06 | |
is mixed race in the Royal family
until now and look, it's something | 0:23:06 | 0:23:11 | |
positive. I understand there's a lot
of work to be done but any step is a | 0:23:11 | 0:23:15 | |
good step. The fact that she stood
up and said she doesn't have to | 0:23:15 | 0:23:20 | |
choose who she is, she can be mixed
race, it gives a lot of mixed race | 0:23:20 | 0:23:25 | |
girls the chance to just be mixed
race, you don't have to be white or | 0:23:25 | 0:23:28 | |
black, you are simply mixed race.
Can I come in on that? It's | 0:23:28 | 0:23:34 | |
interesting because I know that
growing up I really resisted being | 0:23:34 | 0:23:40 | |
called black, I strongly identified
with being mixed race and not being | 0:23:40 | 0:23:43 | |
one or the other but as I got older
I realised a lot of the reasons I | 0:23:43 | 0:23:49 | |
felt I did not want to be called
Black is because I had internalised | 0:23:49 | 0:23:52 | |
anti-blackness. That's why we have
to be careful when we discussed | 0:23:52 | 0:23:58 | |
that, as mixed race people, the
reason why we don't want to be | 0:23:58 | 0:24:02 | |
identified as black even know that
ceremony people see us, and not tied | 0:24:02 | 0:24:06 | |
up with our own prejudices? Do you
agree with that? Sorry to interrupt. | 0:24:06 | 0:24:14 | |
Personally I don't agree, I think
you know, I've never wanted to be | 0:24:14 | 0:24:19 | |
not called black or white. My mum is
white and my father is black and | 0:24:19 | 0:24:24 | |
white embrace both races -- and I
embrace both races, so why do I need | 0:24:24 | 0:24:30 | |
to choose? I don't think you have
do, I think that's the beautiful | 0:24:30 | 0:24:36 | |
thing about being mixed race. It was
an interesting phrase, you talked | 0:24:36 | 0:24:41 | |
about the acceptable face of a woman
of colour. If she had identified as | 0:24:41 | 0:24:46 | |
black or if she was black? If she
was darker skinned it is unlikely | 0:24:46 | 0:24:51 | |
she'd be marrying Prince Harry. This
is uncomfortable territory. If | 0:24:51 | 0:24:56 | |
Harry, let's say, was next in line
to the throne, do you think there | 0:24:56 | 0:25:01 | |
would have been more racism that
would have surfaced? Would it have | 0:25:01 | 0:25:04 | |
been harder? I definitely think
there would have been. People who | 0:25:04 | 0:25:10 | |
are commenting on the issue and
saying we don't need to discuss it, | 0:25:10 | 0:25:14 | |
it's just two people falling in
love, you only need to look at his | 0:25:14 | 0:25:17 | |
statement last year, them in the
racial undertones of the press | 0:25:17 | 0:25:21 | |
coverage, going through the horrific
Twitter comments on the article is | 0:25:21 | 0:25:25 | |
about the relationship and about the
marriage being announced to see that | 0:25:25 | 0:25:31 | |
we don't live in a post-racial
society and we need greater | 0:25:31 | 0:25:35 | |
representation of extra race people
and greater proximity to Buckingham | 0:25:35 | 0:25:39 | |
Palace will promote cultural change.
Let me give you the last word. I | 0:25:39 | 0:25:44 | |
totally agree with that. You know,
it is opening up the conversation. | 0:25:44 | 0:25:50 | |
Yeah, fair enough, if Harry was next
in line, you know, maybe it would be | 0:25:50 | 0:25:58 | |
more important or maybe she would
have suffered more abuse but I don't | 0:25:58 | 0:26:02 | |
think it wouldn't have happened. I
think that love conquers all, we are | 0:26:02 | 0:26:07 | |
in 2018 and they prove it. We have a
very modern royal family which is | 0:26:07 | 0:26:12 | |
great. Thank you for joining us. | 0:26:12 | 0:26:23 | |
The eighth round of Syrian peace
talks begins tomorrow. | 0:26:23 | 0:26:25 | |
Syria's government will not attend. | 0:26:25 | 0:26:30 | |
This long, bloody and seemingly
intractable civil war has now been | 0:26:30 | 0:26:33 | |
going on six years. | 0:26:33 | 0:26:34 | |
You could be forgiven
for having lost | 0:26:34 | 0:26:36 | |
your way in the twists
and turns of this conflict. | 0:26:36 | 0:26:38 | |
A brief reminder then
of how we got here. | 0:26:38 | 0:26:40 | |
The pro-democracy protests
of the Arab Spring erupted in 2011. | 0:26:40 | 0:26:43 | |
Security forces opened
fire on demonstrators | 0:26:43 | 0:26:44 | |
and by the end of that year,
the violence had escalated | 0:26:44 | 0:26:47 | |
into war. | 0:26:47 | 0:26:48 | |
Casualties are estimated to be
over 400000 and the UN | 0:26:48 | 0:26:50 | |
believes there are some
5 million Syrian refugees. | 0:26:50 | 0:26:52 | |
The unrest allowed the so-called
Islamic State to rise | 0:26:52 | 0:26:55 | |
in the region. | 0:26:55 | 0:27:00 | |
By 2015, the country was split
between the government, | 0:27:00 | 0:27:02 | |
anti-government forces and Isis. | 0:27:02 | 0:27:05 | |
One of the bloodiest battles
centred around Aleppo. | 0:27:05 | 0:27:09 | |
Government forces surrounded
the rebel-held city. | 0:27:09 | 0:27:11 | |
Ordinary civilians,
unable to escape. | 0:27:11 | 0:27:15 | |
Many starved until an evacuation
corridor was agreed. | 0:27:15 | 0:27:17 | |
Since then, Isis has
been in retreat. | 0:27:17 | 0:27:21 | |
The Assad regime in the ascendant
but there are areas still | 0:27:21 | 0:27:23 | |
held by the rebels. | 0:27:23 | 0:27:24 | |
One is eastern Ghouta,
just east of Damascus, | 0:27:24 | 0:27:34 | |
where there are fears that another
Aleppo-style crisis could emerge. | 0:27:34 | 0:27:36 | |
Mike Thomson reports. | 0:27:36 | 0:27:37 | |
We should warn you that
his film features | 0:27:37 | 0:27:39 | |
distressing scenes which some
may find upsetting. | 0:27:39 | 0:27:42 | |
Many believe the war in Syria
is now virtually over. | 0:27:42 | 0:27:50 | |
Try telling that to the people of
bombed and besieged eastern Ghouta. | 0:27:50 | 0:27:57 | |
This has been the area's
last two weeks. | 0:27:57 | 0:28:07 | |
A senior UN spokesman has called
what's been happening an | 0:28:07 | 0:28:10 | |
outrage. | 0:28:10 | 0:28:11 | |
Casualty figures are impossible
to verify given the siege | 0:28:11 | 0:28:13 | |
situation. | 0:28:13 | 0:28:16 | |
But they've evidently
been mounting steadily. | 0:28:16 | 0:28:19 | |
We have more than 121 civilians. | 0:28:19 | 0:28:27 | |
Killed and 905 injuries by 336
air strikes and 2450 | 0:28:27 | 0:28:30 | |
mortars. | 0:28:30 | 0:28:36 | |
That's all in only ten days. | 0:28:36 | 0:28:40 | |
The Syrian government claims
they are responding to an attack by | 0:28:40 | 0:28:44 | |
rebel forces on a military base in
Ghouta but residents there say they | 0:28:44 | 0:28:49 | |
are the ones in the crosshairs. | 0:28:49 | 0:28:54 | |
TRANSLATION: These missiles
were targeted at civilians. | 0:28:54 | 0:28:55 | |
We don't understand why
they keep aiming at | 0:28:55 | 0:28:57 | |
civilians. | 0:28:57 | 0:28:59 | |
Behind me you can see
an example of this. | 0:28:59 | 0:29:01 | |
A whole family, a mother
and her four children died | 0:29:01 | 0:29:03 | |
there. | 0:29:03 | 0:29:06 | |
We found them in pieces
under the rubble. | 0:29:06 | 0:29:11 | |
Eastern Ghouta has
known horrors before. | 0:29:11 | 0:29:18 | |
In August, 2013, it was the site
of a sarin gas attack | 0:29:18 | 0:29:21 | |
by Syrian government forces. | 0:29:21 | 0:29:22 | |
Hundreds died. | 0:29:22 | 0:29:25 | |
Now, locals claim, similar
tactics are being used | 0:29:25 | 0:29:27 | |
against them again. | 0:29:27 | 0:29:31 | |
Three days ago the regime has
targeted our brothers | 0:29:31 | 0:29:33 | |
with chlorine gas in Harasta. | 0:29:33 | 0:29:35 | |
There are no deadly weapons
that we haven't been targeted with. | 0:29:35 | 0:29:42 | |
You who are listening
to me, what more are | 0:29:42 | 0:29:44 | |
you waiting for? | 0:29:44 | 0:29:45 | |
Our extermination? | 0:29:45 | 0:29:46 | |
There is nothing we can do. | 0:29:46 | 0:29:49 | |
A doctor at Dummar
hospital in eastern Ghouta | 0:29:49 | 0:29:54 | |
tells me he's seen signs that
back up such claims. | 0:29:54 | 0:29:59 | |
Yes actually we had several
casualties in Harasta where | 0:29:59 | 0:30:03 | |
there was a chemical
attack took place. | 0:30:03 | 0:30:10 | |
We have signs of phosphorus
material were used. | 0:30:10 | 0:30:14 | |
We can't tell the material
because we don't have | 0:30:14 | 0:30:17 | |
the analysis but from
the signs we can say | 0:30:17 | 0:30:25 | |
that it is phosphoral gas. | 0:30:25 | 0:30:27 | |
The evidence, he says, was plain
to see with many patients suffering | 0:30:27 | 0:30:30 | |
from severe breathing
difficulties after air strikes. | 0:30:30 | 0:30:34 | |
Malnutrition is another killer
in this long besieged | 0:30:34 | 0:30:36 | |
area. | 0:30:36 | 0:30:38 | |
Few will forget this
photo, taken last month. | 0:30:38 | 0:30:43 | |
The baby died soon after. | 0:30:43 | 0:30:48 | |
It's very widespread now. | 0:30:48 | 0:30:51 | |
We have very large
number of children. | 0:30:51 | 0:30:54 | |
From one statistic we have around
30% of children have malnutrition | 0:30:54 | 0:30:57 | |
from severe or moderate. | 0:30:57 | 0:31:06 | |
Two relief convoys were
allowed into eastern | 0:31:06 | 0:31:09 | |
Ghouta recently but the missile hit
the roof of a food warehouse and | 0:31:09 | 0:31:15 | |
destroyed much of the
aid they brought in. | 0:31:15 | 0:31:18 | |
And this man told me he and many
others see little point in | 0:31:18 | 0:31:21 | |
sending in any more. | 0:31:21 | 0:31:27 | |
If the United Nations get
or enters every day, aid | 0:31:27 | 0:31:32 | |
convoys, that will not be
enough for the people | 0:31:32 | 0:31:37 | |
here and people demand
to | 0:31:37 | 0:31:42 | |
break the siege and open the
crossing of eastern Ghouta, not to | 0:31:42 | 0:31:45 | |
have aid. | 0:31:45 | 0:31:50 | |
Some see a parallel here
with another formerly besieged | 0:31:50 | 0:31:52 | |
rebel enclave. | 0:31:52 | 0:31:53 | |
The regime seems to be
following a strategy in | 0:31:53 | 0:31:56 | |
Ghouta similar to what it followed
in eastern Aleppo, a strategy of | 0:31:56 | 0:31:59 | |
besiegement and starvation
followed by heavy bombardment. | 0:31:59 | 0:32:05 | |
Yesterday, 23 more people are
reported to have died in the latest | 0:32:05 | 0:32:08 | |
air attack by Syrian
government planes. | 0:32:08 | 0:32:13 | |
And with winter closing in,
bitter cold will be added to the | 0:32:13 | 0:32:16 | |
growing casualties. | 0:32:16 | 0:32:17 | |
Malnutrition and lack
of fuel and medicines. | 0:32:17 | 0:32:21 | |
There are children
here, there are women | 0:32:21 | 0:32:26 | |
here, there are 400,000 people
in this small place in the world. | 0:32:26 | 0:32:31 | |
Nobody is talking about them. | 0:32:31 | 0:32:34 | |
All of the world
will regret not doing | 0:32:34 | 0:32:38 | |
anything when the worst will happen. | 0:32:38 | 0:32:39 | |
There is hope. | 0:32:39 | 0:32:43 | |
Peace talks are due to begin
in Geneva tomorrow and | 0:32:43 | 0:32:47 | |
today, Russia called for a ceasefire
to be imposed in eastern Ghouta. | 0:32:47 | 0:32:52 | |
But with government forces seemingly
determined to retake this shrinking | 0:32:52 | 0:32:55 | |
rebel enclave, its people may
need to see it before | 0:32:55 | 0:32:58 | |
they believe it. | 0:32:58 | 0:33:04 | |
Joining me now Panos Mountzsis, UN's
Regional Humanitarian Coordinator | 0:33:04 | 0:33:06 | |
for the Syria crisis. | 0:33:06 | 0:33:09 | |
He's in Amman in Jordan tonight
and joins us on Skype. | 0:33:09 | 0:33:12 | |
How does this compare to Aleppo? | 0:33:12 | 0:33:16 | |
We have seen the horrific scenes in
the film. How on the ground does | 0:33:20 | 0:33:23 | |
this compare to what happened in
Aleppo? The situation is really | 0:33:23 | 0:33:30 | |
extreme in terms of military needs.
In terms of civilians, people being | 0:33:30 | 0:33:36 | |
caught up in extreme situations,
(inaudible) Civilians are being | 0:33:36 | 0:33:44 | |
caught up in the situation.
(Inaudible) in the last two weeks or | 0:33:44 | 0:33:54 | |
several months, I would say, going
recently from Raqqa itself, | 0:33:54 | 0:33:59 | |
including the last few days, looking
at actually multiple locations where | 0:33:59 | 0:34:05 | |
civilians have been caught up and
lost their lives. So that's really a | 0:34:05 | 0:34:08 | |
huge concern from us. But also, in
terms of the humanitarian need, and | 0:34:08 | 0:34:15 | |
assistance, looking at malnutrition,
we were there with a convoy about 11 | 0:34:15 | 0:34:19 | |
days ago. A number of children are
severely malnourished. We have close | 0:34:19 | 0:34:25 | |
to 500 cases of people who need to
be Medically evacuated out of | 0:34:25 | 0:34:31 | |
Ghouta. Sadly every day we get
reports of several of them who lose | 0:34:31 | 0:34:35 | |
their lights because the evacuations
do not take place. Very importantly, | 0:34:35 | 0:34:41 | |
the need to urgently be able to
provide humanitarian assistance to | 0:34:41 | 0:34:45 | |
people who are besieged. There is
over 420,000 Syrians who are | 0:34:45 | 0:34:51 | |
besieged at the moment in Ghouta in
an extreme situation. Clearly your | 0:34:51 | 0:34:56 | |
concentration is what's happening on
the ground. When you look to the | 0:34:56 | 0:34:59 | |
Peace Talks tomorrow, which Damascus
will not attend, do you see any | 0:34:59 | 0:35:03 | |
relief coming from there? Well, the
need for peace, the need for | 0:35:03 | 0:35:11 | |
stability is really of huge urgency,
a conflict on its sixth year with | 0:35:11 | 0:35:17 | |
huge impact. On the ground there is
more than six million internally | 0:35:17 | 0:35:21 | |
displaced people. Just this year, we
have had an average of close to | 0:35:21 | 0:35:26 | |
7,000 people leaving their homes
every day since January 1, because | 0:35:26 | 0:35:30 | |
of the insecurity. More than five
million refugees in the neighbouring | 0:35:30 | 0:35:34 | |
countries. More than 13 million
people who are in need of life | 0:35:34 | 0:35:39 | |
saving humanitarian assistance. So
the Peace Talks really are | 0:35:39 | 0:35:42 | |
desperately needed to bring some
stability on the ground. Thank you | 0:35:42 | 0:35:46 | |
very much indeed. Thank you for
joining us. | 0:35:46 | 0:35:50 | |
It was 11 long months ago
that the Prime Minister first | 0:35:50 | 0:35:53 | |
launched her vision
of an industrial strategy - | 0:35:53 | 0:35:55 | |
a more hands-on approach
by Government to a part | 0:35:55 | 0:36:00 | |
of the economy her conservative
predecessors would have been much | 0:36:00 | 0:36:02 | |
happier to let the market dictate. | 0:36:02 | 0:36:04 | |
Today, we saw it -
intervention in to boost growth | 0:36:04 | 0:36:07 | |
in four key sectors -
construction, life | 0:36:07 | 0:36:08 | |
sciences, automotive,
and artificial intelligence. | 0:36:08 | 0:36:10 | |
The announcement came with news
of a major new investment | 0:36:10 | 0:36:13 | |
from the healthcare firm MSD. | 0:36:13 | 0:36:14 | |
Labour has condemned the strategy
as reannounced policies | 0:36:14 | 0:36:16 | |
and old spending commitments. | 0:36:16 | 0:36:20 | |
So does it stack up? | 0:36:20 | 0:36:22 | |
And can a policy on industry
ever actually work? | 0:36:22 | 0:36:24 | |
Here's Helen Thomas. | 0:36:24 | 0:36:29 | |
There is a long history
of governments trying | 0:36:29 | 0:36:31 | |
to put their stamp on the economy. | 0:36:31 | 0:36:34 | |
The rationalisation of industry
in the 1930s, nationalisation | 0:36:34 | 0:36:36 | |
a few decades later. | 0:36:36 | 0:36:43 | |
Archive: | 0:36:43 | 0:36:45 | |
The Britain that is going to be born
in the white heat of this revolution | 0:36:45 | 0:36:48 | |
will be no place for restrictive
practices or for outdated methods | 0:36:48 | 0:36:51 | |
on either side of industry. | 0:36:51 | 0:36:52 | |
Then, privatisation. | 0:36:52 | 0:36:54 | |
Three and a half years ago,
defenders of the status quo tried to | 0:36:54 | 0:36:57 | |
ban denationalisation as irrelevant. | 0:36:57 | 0:37:05 | |
How absurd it would seem in a few
years' time for the state to run | 0:37:05 | 0:37:09 | |
Pickfords removals and Gleneagles
Hotel. | 0:37:09 | 0:37:15 | |
And here's the latest iteration. | 0:37:15 | 0:37:18 | |
The future is unfolding
before our very eyes. | 0:37:18 | 0:37:20 | |
New technology is creating
new industries are changing | 0:37:20 | 0:37:26 | |
interesting ones and transforming
the way that we live our lives. | 0:37:26 | 0:37:28 | |
We need to ensure that we are well
prepared to prosper in this future. | 0:37:28 | 0:37:32 | |
It's been a long time since any
government tried to put industrial | 0:37:32 | 0:37:35 | |
strategy at the centre of strategy. | 0:37:35 | 0:37:41 | |
The problems frankly
are rather familiar. | 0:37:41 | 0:37:42 | |
Ailing productivity, stagnant wages,
a London-centric economy. | 0:37:42 | 0:37:47 | |
And so are some of the solutions,
skills, infrastructure, digital. | 0:37:47 | 0:37:52 | |
So what determines if this
is another helping of government | 0:37:52 | 0:37:55 | |
jargon or is the basis
of a long-term overhaul? | 0:37:55 | 0:38:01 | |
One criteria for success will be
whether the benefits | 0:38:01 | 0:38:03 | |
are genuinely spread around. | 0:38:03 | 0:38:08 | |
The main problem we have pain
related to colonoscopy. | 0:38:08 | 0:38:13 | |
Work at Leeds University ticks a lot
of government boxes. | 0:38:13 | 0:38:17 | |
This colonoscopy robot could mean
a pain-free experience for patients. | 0:38:17 | 0:38:22 | |
High-tech robotics solving real life
health problems and outside London. | 0:38:22 | 0:38:28 | |
It would be as easy
as playing a video game. | 0:38:28 | 0:38:32 | |
This robot finds and fixes potholes. | 0:38:32 | 0:38:35 | |
It's come out of the national
robotics facility in Leeds but only | 0:38:35 | 0:38:38 | |
about 10% of research spending goes
to the north of the country. | 0:38:38 | 0:38:42 | |
And the bulk of planned
infrastructure is | 0:38:42 | 0:38:43 | |
earmarked for the South. | 0:38:43 | 0:38:46 | |
Some see benefits from money
being spent more widely. | 0:38:46 | 0:38:51 | |
I think it's great that
the government is recognising that | 0:38:51 | 0:38:53 | |
excellence is across the entire UK. | 0:38:53 | 0:38:55 | |
Every part of the UK has
been to offer, be it | 0:38:55 | 0:38:57 | |
through research, training, skills. | 0:38:57 | 0:38:59 | |
I think that's important. | 0:38:59 | 0:39:00 | |
Here at Leeds and I think
we are a good example of a success | 0:39:00 | 0:39:04 | |
story where investment has come in,
it's made a massive difference, | 0:39:04 | 0:39:07 | |
not just to the university but more
widely, also the region. | 0:39:07 | 0:39:09 | |
When it comes to sectors,
every government has its favourites. | 0:39:09 | 0:39:12 | |
But focusing on the biggest
or most advanced may not | 0:39:12 | 0:39:15 | |
yield the best result. | 0:39:15 | 0:39:18 | |
60% of jobs are at firms with
productivity below the UK average. | 0:39:18 | 0:39:23 | |
Many in services. | 0:39:23 | 0:39:26 | |
About 40 times as many people work
in retail as in pharmaceuticals. | 0:39:26 | 0:39:31 | |
The UK has a huge
productivity problem. | 0:39:31 | 0:39:33 | |
Sectors such as retail,
tourism and hospitality, | 0:39:33 | 0:39:36 | |
like manufacturing, that's
where our productivity is much less | 0:39:36 | 0:39:38 | |
than that of our major competitors
in Europe and the United States. | 0:39:38 | 0:39:43 | |
What we need to see in an industrial
strategy is a focus on those sectors | 0:39:43 | 0:39:47 | |
and not always on the frontier
sectors that are the sexy ones | 0:39:47 | 0:39:50 | |
for government announcements. | 0:39:50 | 0:39:55 | |
So, good industrial strategy needs
to be about Leeds as well as London, | 0:39:55 | 0:39:59 | |
shopping as well as a science but it
also needs to do something simpler. | 0:39:59 | 0:40:04 | |
It needs to last. | 0:40:04 | 0:40:06 | |
This stalwart of British retail
started here in 1884 | 0:40:06 | 0:40:10 | |
and to be successful,
industrial strategy also | 0:40:10 | 0:40:12 | |
needs to go the distance. | 0:40:12 | 0:40:16 | |
No chopping, no changing. | 0:40:16 | 0:40:17 | |
This needs to survive
a new Business Minister, | 0:40:17 | 0:40:21 | |
a new Prime Minister and yes,
successive governments, | 0:40:21 | 0:40:23 | |
meaning cross-party support. | 0:40:23 | 0:40:28 | |
My biggest concern about
the strategy is that it | 0:40:28 | 0:40:30 | |
won't necessarily be embedded
over the long-term. | 0:40:30 | 0:40:32 | |
They are recommending
an advisory council. | 0:40:32 | 0:40:37 | |
It's a different arrangement from
the Office for Budget Responsibility | 0:40:37 | 0:40:40 | |
for example which is an obvious
analogue where it has | 0:40:40 | 0:40:43 | |
independent experts,
its own staff and budget. | 0:40:43 | 0:40:47 | |
There's nothing like that so there's
nothing to stop the seesaw in policy | 0:40:47 | 0:40:52 | |
that we've seen so often in the past
that's been incredibly damaging. | 0:40:52 | 0:40:55 | |
Will today's government blueprint
still be thought useful or relevant | 0:40:55 | 0:40:59 | |
in 20 or 30 years' time? | 0:40:59 | 0:41:04 | |
Let's briefly whiz you through the
front pages. There's happy smiles on | 0:41:08 | 0:41:11 | |
the front | 0:41:11 | 0:41:12 | |
front pages. There's happy smiles on
the front of the Daily Mail. The | 0:41:12 | 0:41:14 | |
stars were all aligned, this
beautiful woman just fell into my | 0:41:14 | 0:41:17 | |
life. A radiant Markle and Harry
there. The Daily Mirror has | 0:41:17 | 0:41:23 | |
something similar. "She tripped and
fell into my life" a line from the | 0:41:23 | 0:41:28 | |
BBC interview this afternoon. He
surprised her on one knee as he | 0:41:28 | 0:41:32 | |
tooked her roast chicken. The
Guardian has the MPs fury over | 0:41:32 | 0:41:37 | |
edited Brexit impact report. Davis
in context risk as politically | 0:41:37 | 0:41:41 | |
embarrassing facts are level out of
studies that. Was the story that | 0:41:41 | 0:41:44 | |
Nick brought us earlier. A story at
the bottom that John Profumo, the | 0:41:44 | 0:41:49 | |
Conservative minister who resigned
over the sex scandal in the 60s, had | 0:41:49 | 0:41:52 | |
previously had a long running
relationship with a glamorous Nazi | 0:41:52 | 0:41:56 | |
spy. | 0:41:56 | 0:41:57 | |
That's all we've got
time for this evening. | 0:41:57 | 0:41:59 | |
No doubt you've spent the whole day
watching the wall to wall coverage | 0:41:59 | 0:42:02 | |
of Meghan Markle's engagement
to Prince Harry. | 0:42:02 | 0:42:04 | |
An all around feel good
story you might think? | 0:42:04 | 0:42:06 | |
Well, not if you've watched
the drama Ms Markle used to act in. | 0:42:06 | 0:42:09 | |
Fans of Suits will know that,
somewhere out there, | 0:42:09 | 0:42:11 | |
there's a lawyer called Mike who may
well be crying his eyes out. | 0:42:11 | 0:42:14 | |
Good night. | 0:42:14 | 0:42:17 | |
MUSIC: "Best Thing I
Never Had" - Beyonce | 0:42:17 | 0:42:19 | |
# What goes around comes back around | 0:42:19 | 0:42:21 | |
# Hey my baby | 0:42:21 | 0:42:22 | |
# I say what goes around
comes back around | 0:42:22 | 0:42:25 | |
# Hey my baby | 0:42:25 | 0:42:32 | |
# I say what goes around
comes back around | 0:42:32 | 0:42:34 | |
# Hey my baby | 0:42:34 | 0:42:36 | |
# there was... Don't talk to me.
A time. | 0:42:36 | 0:42:40 | |
# I thought that you
did everything right | 0:42:40 | 0:42:45 | |
# No lies, no wrong | 0:42:45 | 0:42:50 | |
# Boy I, must've been outta my mind | 0:42:50 | 0:42:56 | |
# So when I think of the time
that I almost loved you | 0:42:56 | 0:43:01 | |
# You showed your ass and I,
I saw the real you | 0:43:01 | 0:43:08 | |
# Thank God you blew it
Was it romantic? | 0:43:08 | 0:43:14 | |
# Thank God I dodged the bullet | 0:43:14 | 0:43:17 |