0:00:11 > 0:00:16Labour would seek to negotiate a newcomer competences EU customs
0:00:16 > 0:00:24unit, to make sure there are no tariffs with Europe...
0:00:25 > 0:00:31tariffs with Europe... -- new, comprehensive EU customs unit.
0:00:31 > 0:00:33Twenty months since the referendum, and it's a Brexit milestone.
0:00:33 > 0:00:36For the first time, we now have the two main parties committed
0:00:36 > 0:00:37to completely different outcomes.
0:00:37 > 0:00:40Most people had never thought about a customs union two years ago,
0:00:40 > 0:00:43now the choice over whether we stay with the EU in one,
0:00:43 > 0:00:44is stretching partly loyalties.
0:00:44 > 0:00:46We now know enough detail about the party's positions,
0:00:46 > 0:00:49the parliamentary arithmetic and the fracture points to say we're
0:00:49 > 0:00:50entering new territory.
0:00:50 > 0:00:52What is certain is we're heading for a parliamentary bustup.
0:00:52 > 0:00:53Are Labour expecting this could eventually
0:00:53 > 0:00:55bring about a general election?
0:00:55 > 0:00:57And will Tory rebels really line up
0:00:57 > 0:00:58with Jeremy Corbyn, against a central plank
0:00:58 > 0:01:03of their own government's policy?
0:01:03 > 0:01:05Also tonight, should we be worried -
0:01:05 > 0:01:08should China be worried - that President Xi Jinping seems keen
0:01:08 > 0:01:16on ruling indefinitely?
0:01:17 > 0:01:24No matter, keep on... Biscuit... Biscuit... Going down!
0:01:24 > 0:01:26And: Performer Jess Thom takes on Samuel Beckett,
0:01:26 > 0:01:31and her own Tourette's Syndrome.
0:01:31 > 0:01:37I'm often surprised by my ticks and they can be, biscuit, funny, and
0:01:37 > 0:01:44surreal, in a way only the subconscious part of me can dream
0:01:44 > 0:01:47of... Biscuit, biscuit!
0:01:47 > 0:01:49Also this - believe it or not - it's unseasonably warm
0:01:49 > 0:01:52in Greenland, not that you can tell by looking - but it's
0:01:52 > 0:01:53very cold in Britian.
0:01:53 > 0:01:59A meteorologist there explains why.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03Hello.
0:02:03 > 0:02:06Things you never thought you'd hear: business lauding Jeremy Corbyn.
0:02:06 > 0:02:09Yes, suddenly the CBI can see merit in the man now he's firmly committed
0:02:09 > 0:02:15himself to backing a significantly softer form of Brexit.
0:02:15 > 0:02:18It's one measure of just how game changing his move could be -
0:02:18 > 0:02:19potentially turning politics upside down.
0:02:19 > 0:02:23If that sounds like an exaggeration, let me be clear, it may turn out not
0:02:23 > 0:02:25to have any effect at all.
0:02:25 > 0:02:28It is all going to hinge on the next few weeks,
0:02:28 > 0:02:30and whether Mr Corbyn can muster a majority in favour
0:02:30 > 0:02:32of his pro-customs union stance.
0:02:32 > 0:02:35If he can, the whole Brexit negotiation will change.
0:02:35 > 0:02:37Now here's the thing - it is Tory rebels who now really
0:02:37 > 0:02:43decide whether we go for the softer Brexit or not.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46They have to decide whether to vote with Jeremy Corbyn - or Theresa May.
0:02:46 > 0:02:51And they will be less likely to go with Mr Corbyn if they think it'll
0:02:51 > 0:02:51make him prime minister.
0:02:51 > 0:02:52We're in for some interesting times.
0:02:52 > 0:02:55Nick Watt was in Coventry to watch the Labour leader set
0:02:55 > 0:03:03out his new approach.
0:03:08 > 0:03:13It is a British icon which has always had a special, if not always
0:03:13 > 0:03:19welcome, place in Europe. And today, Jeremy Corbyn accused the example of
0:03:19 > 0:03:23the modern mini to demonstrate the need for the UK to establish what he
0:03:23 > 0:03:32called a new, compressive customs system with the EU.
0:03:32 > 0:03:35system with the EU. The Many, or at least parts of it, crosses the
0:03:35 > 0:03:39Channel three times before it rolls off the production line, this
0:03:39 > 0:03:43highlights the need to maintain what Jeremy Corbyn described as a
0:03:43 > 0:03:51frictionless, interwoven supply chain. -- the Mini.We've long
0:03:51 > 0:03:57argued that we need a custom steel. Labour would seek a new,
0:03:57 > 0:04:02comprehensive customs union. To make sure there are no tariffs. And to
0:04:02 > 0:04:08avoid any need whatsoever for any hardboard in Northern Ireland.A
0:04:08 > 0:04:13customs union with the EU would allow the UK to participate in core
0:04:13 > 0:04:17element of the customs union. -- hard board in Northern Ireland. This
0:04:17 > 0:04:22would guarantee tariff free trading with the EU. Minimal customs checks
0:04:22 > 0:04:26with the EU. And levying the common external tariff on goods from
0:04:26 > 0:04:33outside the EU.
0:04:33 > 0:04:36outside the EU. The Labour leader addressed the central reason why
0:04:36 > 0:04:39Theresa May is rejecting both a customs union and the customs union,
0:04:39 > 0:04:44that is the need for the UK to be able to negotiate its own trade
0:04:44 > 0:04:51deals beyond the EU. He would set, as a condition for his proposed new
0:04:51 > 0:04:57customs union, a definitive UK say in future EU trade deals.A new
0:04:57 > 0:05:00customs arrangement would depend on Britain being able to negotiate
0:05:00 > 0:05:05agreement for new trade deals in our national interest. Labour would not
0:05:05 > 0:05:08countenance a deal that left Britain as a passive recipient of rules
0:05:08 > 0:05:14decided elsewhere by others, that would mean ending up as a mere rule
0:05:14 > 0:05:20take.It was no mistake that Jeremy Corbyn chose Coventry, which voted
0:05:20 > 0:05:24leave. He wanted to show that he intends to abide by the letter and
0:05:24 > 0:05:31the spirit of Brexit by negotiating a bespoke relationship with the EU.
0:05:31 > 0:05:35Today's speech was the culmination of painstaking negotiations within
0:05:35 > 0:05:40the Shadow Cabinet. Jeremy Corbyn has historically been wary of the
0:05:40 > 0:05:44EU, which he criticised today for embedding free-market orthodoxy. But
0:05:44 > 0:05:49there are more enthusiastic supporters of the EU in the Shadow
0:05:49 > 0:05:53Cabinet, and they were delighted that the Labour leader also talked
0:05:53 > 0:05:58about forging a close relationship with the single market. I spoke to
0:05:58 > 0:06:03one ally of Jeremy Corbyn, who said it is right he has taken time to
0:06:03 > 0:06:07adapt his position. This person said to me, why let the Blairite
0:06:07 > 0:06:12agitators claimed credit for this? And also, why not let the Tories
0:06:12 > 0:06:19suffer a little on Brexit? One veteran Labour Eurosceptic welcomed
0:06:19 > 0:06:23Jeremy Corbyn's intervention in light of his pledge to shape future
0:06:23 > 0:06:29trade deals to help poorer countries.Jeremy knows that this is
0:06:29 > 0:06:35a game changer for Europe. Not for him. And he will set out his
0:06:35 > 0:06:41position. And he will then show here is somebody more sceptical than me
0:06:41 > 0:06:46about the European Union, who has tried his level best to get an
0:06:46 > 0:06:50agreement off them. And what have they done? I would have thought they
0:06:50 > 0:06:55would tell him to run and jump, but he will show the country that he was
0:06:55 > 0:07:01serious in trying to negotiate and he will get credit for that.The
0:07:01 > 0:07:05icon of the left cited an icon of Britain's motoring history to inject
0:07:05 > 0:07:10new movement into the Brexit process. Theresa May will respond on
0:07:10 > 0:07:14Friday, but her fragile hold over Parliament means the Leader of the
0:07:14 > 0:07:18Opposition may well have a role in shaping the outcome.
0:07:19 > 0:07:21In a moment we'll hear from one of Labour's front bench,
0:07:21 > 0:07:25and a leading Tory, but first I'm joined by Nick Watt and our business
0:07:25 > 0:07:29editor Helen Thomas.
0:07:29 > 0:07:33We will reflect on this. I'm interested in looking at whether
0:07:33 > 0:07:37Labour's support for the customs union membership means will it
0:07:37 > 0:07:41happen and what it means for the Government. It is possible to
0:07:41 > 0:07:47visualise some dramatic consequences of all of this. Let's go through
0:07:47 > 0:07:51this. How do MPs get to exert a vote on the customs union from this
0:07:51 > 0:07:56point?Three ways in which a customs union could be put into law. Jeremy
0:07:56 > 0:08:00Corbyn will table an amendment to the trade bill, calling for a
0:08:00 > 0:08:04customs union. Highly unlikely to see that going through because I
0:08:04 > 0:08:08don't envision Tory rebels voting for that. The second option is this
0:08:08 > 0:08:13cross-party amendment that would be tabled by Anna Soubry for the Tories
0:08:13 > 0:08:17and Chuka Umunna for Labour. We had a precedent where the Tories
0:08:17 > 0:08:22defeated the Government. That could go through. The other option is the
0:08:22 > 0:08:26separate EU withdrawal bill which is currently in the House of Lords. You
0:08:26 > 0:08:31will find that peers will try to amend that bill to put in a customs
0:08:31 > 0:08:34union and the thing for the Government is, they would then have
0:08:34 > 0:08:38to get the numbers in the Commons to overturn that.Let's go through the
0:08:38 > 0:08:45maths. Three key numbers. The Government's working majority with
0:08:45 > 0:08:49the DUP. The number of Labour rebels who will support the Government on
0:08:49 > 0:08:54Brexit, who add to that majority. Then you can calculate how many Tory
0:08:54 > 0:08:57rebels then need to be to make customs union happen. Let's go
0:08:57 > 0:09:04through those.At the risk of trying to outbid you of all people on
0:09:04 > 0:09:07numbers. The Government's effective working majority with the help of
0:09:07 > 0:09:13the DUP and House of Commons is 13. It's widely assumed there are seven
0:09:13 > 0:09:16Labour Brexit rebels, in other words they will vote down the line with
0:09:16 > 0:09:20the Government on Brexit, which effectively gives the Government a
0:09:20 > 0:09:27majority of 27.You must 007.That means you then need 14 Tory rebels
0:09:27 > 0:09:32to overturn that. Although when the Government was defeated in December
0:09:32 > 0:09:34on that Dominic grieve amendment on a future vote he managed to muster
0:09:34 > 0:09:4012 Conservative MPs.Very finely balanced. One of the techniques
0:09:40 > 0:09:45we've heard that the Government may adopt is to say, you are not just
0:09:45 > 0:09:48voting on customs union, you are voting on the future of the
0:09:48 > 0:09:55Government. A confidence motion. Does that work?It is no to John
0:09:55 > 0:09:59Major in 1993. He was in trouble on the Maastricht Treaty. Crucial vote.
0:09:59 > 0:10:03He tapped a no-confidence, confidence motion that vote and he
0:10:03 > 0:10:09saw it through. You do that now. The only no-confidence vote you can have
0:10:09 > 0:10:12is strictly prescribed by the fixed term Parliament and the wording in
0:10:12 > 0:10:17that motion has to be that this house has no confidence in that...
0:10:17 > 0:10:24And you cannot bond of it altogether.Exactly. You could do
0:10:24 > 0:10:28yesterday John Major in 1995 when he challenged his party and said, back
0:10:28 > 0:10:32me or sack me. He resigned as leader. You could see Theresa May
0:10:32 > 0:10:36saying to the Conservative rebels, thinking of backing perhaps the Anna
0:10:36 > 0:10:40Soubry amendment, watch out, you would enable Jeremy Corbyn, if you
0:10:40 > 0:10:48do that I will trigger a contest. It's very interesting, the politics.
0:10:48 > 0:10:54But it was interesting to watch business coming out in support...
0:10:54 > 0:11:00Quite positive, wasn't it? The CBI have welcomed this, called it a
0:11:00 > 0:11:03real-world solution. Aerospace in defence. Big industry body, they
0:11:03 > 0:11:07also welcomed this. But it wasn't universal. British Chambers of
0:11:07 > 0:11:11commerce dismissed this as all politics. There was an
0:11:11 > 0:11:16acknowledgement that there is reliance on big business with the
0:11:16 > 0:11:19Labour Party feeling old. The CBI had this morning about businesses
0:11:19 > 0:11:23having their eyes wide open on Labour's overall rhetoric on
0:11:23 > 0:11:28renationalisation. Some of the things Labour is asking for, about
0:11:28 > 0:11:31clarifications to state aid, competition balls, privatisation,
0:11:31 > 0:11:34and so on, reflect domestic policies.Cherry picking from the EU
0:11:34 > 0:11:40the things they wouldn't be able to do but would like to do. In terms of
0:11:40 > 0:11:45the practical differences. Customs union versus no customs union.
0:11:45 > 0:11:48Everybody says they will trade to be as frictionless as possible. It is
0:11:48 > 0:11:52about how you want to achieve that and how realistic that is. The
0:11:52 > 0:11:56Government wants to be able to strike its own trade deals. It wants
0:11:56 > 0:11:58to rely on managed by virgins.
0:11:58 > 0:11:59In order to
0:12:03 > 0:12:15-- it wants to rely on managed divergences. Labour Party want to
0:12:15 > 0:12:20make changes to state aid rules, and so on. They talked about having a
0:12:20 > 0:12:24say in trade deals in the national interest, but they seem to be
0:12:24 > 0:12:29talking about having a say in future EU deals in terms of some kind of
0:12:29 > 0:12:33block, not striking out on their own. When it comes to regulation,
0:12:33 > 0:12:36the position is quite interesting. I spoke to one person to knight who
0:12:36 > 0:12:40said they thought this at least left the door open to staying in the
0:12:40 > 0:12:48single market for goods only. -- tonight he said.Half of the single
0:12:48 > 0:12:53market.And that solves your problem in Ireland. The hit is what happens
0:12:53 > 0:12:59to services crucial to the UK economy and the city, of course.In
0:12:59 > 0:13:02two sentences, is it possible there are people in the Government who
0:13:02 > 0:13:06want the MPs to vote us into a customs union because they want to
0:13:06 > 0:13:10be in one?That's the case. Some remain ministers are hoping
0:13:10 > 0:13:14Parliament will do the heavy lifting. I spoke to somebody not 1
0:13:14 > 0:13:18million miles away from a Labour Cabinet minister who said we hope
0:13:18 > 0:13:22that Parliament will do our work for us.Thanks.
0:13:22 > 0:13:24We did ask the Government if they wanted to come on tonight,
0:13:24 > 0:13:26but they weren't particularly interested.
0:13:26 > 0:13:27But the two really important groups are Labour
0:13:27 > 0:13:30and the Tory rebels and we've got them both
0:13:30 > 0:13:31represented in the studio.
0:13:31 > 0:13:33We're joined by Barry Gardiner, the Shadow International Trade
0:13:33 > 0:13:41Secretary, and the Conservative MP, Sarah Wollaston.
0:13:42 > 0:13:47Barry, some think this is just politicking by the Labour, playing
0:13:47 > 0:13:53games in Parliament, is it that or a principled decision.I think Helen
0:13:53 > 0:14:05was right in singling out the words of the CBI. We think this is
0:14:05 > 0:14:09resolving the uncertainty that has been hanging over business. People
0:14:09 > 0:14:14say we need to know what is happening with your supply chains
0:14:14 > 0:14:18and any tariffs that may arise between us and the other 27
0:14:18 > 0:14:24countries and what we are trying to do is bring some innovative thinking
0:14:24 > 0:14:29here and say, look, this, if we were in government, and we are not, we
0:14:29 > 0:14:33accept that, but if we were, this is how we would want to conduct the
0:14:33 > 0:14:39negotiations.You know that may come to prevail, there may be a vote in
0:14:39 > 0:14:45Parliament.It would provide two solutions, up with to the issue
0:14:45 > 0:14:50businesses face and a good step towards solving the Irish problem.
0:14:50 > 0:14:54I'm interested, if let's support you get the votes as you want in
0:14:54 > 0:15:01Parliament, to insist on Britain staying in a customs union, is it
0:15:01 > 0:15:05your position that Theresa May can stay in government? Stay as Prime
0:15:05 > 0:15:09Minister to deliver the Brexit she said she doesn't want to deliver?Of
0:15:09 > 0:15:14course I would love to see the Government...Of course you would
0:15:14 > 0:15:17because you're in opposition. Is it your position you don't say she has
0:15:17 > 0:15:22to resign as a result of a defeat upon that vote?That is not in our
0:15:22 > 0:15:26gift. We cannot force the sitting Prime Minister to resign. The only
0:15:26 > 0:15:32people that can do that as I understand it, are the 1922
0:15:32 > 0:15:36Committee or she herself could take that decision, or it would have to
0:15:36 > 0:15:42go to the vote that says, you know, it is no confidence.I want to be
0:15:42 > 0:15:47clear, if she loses that vote, I think Tory rebels maybe interested
0:15:47 > 0:15:52in this, are you going to say, we need an election, a confidence vote,
0:15:52 > 0:15:55get out of office. It is time for Jeremy Corbyn to become Prime
0:15:55 > 0:15:59Minister. Or will you say, there we are, now Theresa May just carry on
0:15:59 > 0:16:04as you carry on most days?I think the real debate here will be in the
0:16:04 > 0:16:09Conservative Party.You're not going to call for it. The Tory rebels
0:16:09 > 0:16:13won't join you if they think it is about getting Jeremy Corbyn in No
0:16:13 > 0:16:1710. They will if it is a customs union.That is why it is important
0:16:17 > 0:16:21to understand whatever we say the day after any vote does not change
0:16:21 > 0:16:27the facts on the ground that this is not in our gift, it is in theirs.
0:16:27 > 0:16:33That does sound like you're wooing Tory rebels by trying to say it is
0:16:33 > 0:16:37not about getting Theresa May out. The people that I am interested in
0:16:37 > 0:16:43here are not the Tory rebels. It is actually the people out there in
0:16:43 > 0:16:47jobs, that are depending on these industries and need to know they're
0:16:47 > 0:16:52going to have jobs in two years time, three years time and that what
0:16:52 > 0:16:59is the move that Jeremy Corbyn's made is going facilitate.You said
0:16:59 > 0:17:03interesting, it is the phrase you have used all day, it is a step
0:17:03 > 0:17:11towards solving the problem of Irish border. It does not solve it.
0:17:11 > 0:17:14Britain has committed to something in the joint report that is being
0:17:14 > 0:17:21written up and we have signed up to alignment of all relative...
0:17:21 > 0:17:25Relevant regulations that would you know be necessary for a border to be
0:17:25 > 0:17:31open. Are you signed up to that? Look, I think there is a really
0:17:31 > 0:17:35difficult problem with the Irish border and I think it's going to
0:17:35 > 0:17:39involve compromise on both sides from us and...It's all been agreed,
0:17:39 > 0:17:45Britain has signed a joint report. It is the Government's agreement.
0:17:45 > 0:17:51Would you renounce what they have signed?Look, don't try and bind us
0:17:51 > 0:17:55by what an incompetent Prime Minister has done to try and make
0:17:55 > 0:18:04sure that she can square the circle within her own cabinet. What are the
0:18:04 > 0:18:12Europeans going to think, are you going to say you're not standing by
0:18:12 > 0:18:17the agreement that was signed. I can dispute the question, Jeremy Corbyn
0:18:17 > 0:18:20set out Labour's position, that we want to honour the Good Friday
0:18:20 > 0:18:26Agreement, we think it is fundamental that we have the border
0:18:26 > 0:18:30without infrastructure.Everybody says this. We have reached an
0:18:30 > 0:18:35agreement that said there will be alignment between the UK and the EU
0:18:35 > 0:18:40on product regulation if it is necessary for no border. And you are
0:18:40 > 0:18:43in agreement with that, you're not renouncing the agreement that
0:18:43 > 0:18:47Britain made in December, so in effect we are half in the single
0:18:47 > 0:18:51market as a result of that aren't we?Actually, we are not the
0:18:51 > 0:18:55Government. We are not conducting these negotiations.But it would be
0:18:55 > 0:19:00interesting to know what you would do if you were.I think what you
0:19:00 > 0:19:07have got to do is see how the whole political situation evolves and with
0:19:07 > 0:19:11that we will try and always as we have done today, keep one step ahead
0:19:11 > 0:19:17of Government, but do it in line with the principles we set out that
0:19:17 > 0:19:21we recognise the benefits of both the single market and the customs
0:19:21 > 0:19:26union.You very rest sent about spelling -- reticent about spelling
0:19:26 > 0:19:31it out but we get the point. You support a customs union. Why is
0:19:31 > 0:19:41that.A customs union, even a partial one. It is about avoiding a
0:19:41 > 0:19:45no deal walkaway Brexit. Not trying to force Theresa May to resign. Of
0:19:45 > 0:19:49course I don't want to see that. But I do think it may help her, she will
0:19:49 > 0:19:56be able to turn around to the 62 who are threatening to force her to,
0:19:56 > 0:20:03into a leadership contest, it would enable her to explain the reality
0:20:03 > 0:20:08there isn't Parliamentary majority for a hard Brexit and she can go
0:20:08 > 0:20:22back...I have done my best.It is absolutely clear that the unintended
0:20:22 > 0:20:26consequences are difficult. Given a free vote, what would be the
0:20:26 > 0:20:31majority nor a customs union? Huge because many ministers and PPSs and
0:20:31 > 0:20:36other people who are not able to sign amendments who would very much
0:20:36 > 0:20:41like to see us come to a customs arrangement of some sort. I think
0:20:41 > 0:20:49this will help.What happened when Theresa May says I'm treating this a
0:20:49 > 0:20:54as confidence issue. Are you going to walk through the lobby with
0:20:54 > 0:20:59Jeremy Corbyn.That is not practical, because of the fixed term
0:20:59 > 0:21:04Parliament Act and the people who are trying to force her into some
0:21:04 > 0:21:08kind of leadership challenge are the 62 who are on the other end of this
0:21:08 > 0:21:15who actually...She may try to pull it and say formally there is no
0:21:15 > 0:21:22thing that forces a confidence vote. But I will resign and there will be
0:21:22 > 0:21:27chaos if my party does not back me. Back me or sack me.Why would she do
0:21:27 > 0:21:35that? The consequence ps would be terrible. S would be terrible.You
0:21:35 > 0:21:39wouldn't believe here.I think the right thing would be to call those
0:21:39 > 0:21:43of us who have concerns about talk to us about the concerns and see if
0:21:43 > 0:21:48we can find a way forward.Why do you think she has given so much. She
0:21:48 > 0:21:53said she became Prime Minister to those 62 to what, the ones who want
0:21:53 > 0:21:59the hard Brexit do you think?Well, I don't know. I think the
0:21:59 > 0:22:03Parliamentary arithmetic is there. There is no majority in Parliament
0:22:03 > 0:22:08or the Lords for a hard walkaway no deal Brexit. There is going to have
0:22:08 > 0:22:14to be a compromise. That addresses the concerns and the fudge around
0:22:14 > 0:22:20the Irish border and that is going to need to address things like
0:22:20 > 0:22:26regulatory alignment: We have to look at all of this.Is it your
0:22:26 > 0:22:32position that we are going to have to align a lot of our product
0:22:32 > 0:22:38regulations with the EU.And we have been told there will be no sector by
0:22:38 > 0:22:43sector deal. The idea there will be a special arrangement to give state
0:22:43 > 0:22:50aid is for the birds.The Conservative Party has the most
0:22:50 > 0:22:54enormous adjustments to make in their expectations.The alternative
0:22:54 > 0:22:59is what we must do is explain what it means. So as chair of the health
0:22:59 > 0:23:04and social care Committee I have been listening to evidence around
0:23:04 > 0:23:07the consequences for pharmaceuticals for example, if we have no
0:23:07 > 0:23:13regulatory alignment. You know we are looking at the supply chains are
0:23:13 > 0:23:20very complex for pharmaceuticals and things like medical devices like
0:23:20 > 0:23:24dialysis tubing that aren't manufactured here. We are looking at
0:23:24 > 0:23:30serious hold ups unless we have some...Theresa May will give a
0:23:30 > 0:23:40speech on Friday, we think we know a lot of it h, if she offers some
0:23:40 > 0:23:49Morsel on a customs agreement, women -- will that do?I don't niend mind
0:23:49 > 0:23:56what we call it. But it must address whether we will see serious hold ups
0:23:56 > 0:24:01at the border and will it address the Northern Ireland issue. We need
0:24:01 > 0:24:09to address them or explain what the consequences would be. We need to
0:24:09 > 0:24:15discuss what it means if we have a hard Brexit.Thank you very much.
0:24:15 > 0:24:21Maybe you will be voting together very soon.
0:24:21 > 0:24:24When you look at the countries with the longest serving leaders,
0:24:24 > 0:24:26you may not always feel they have the most enviable
0:24:26 > 0:24:27political systems.
0:24:27 > 0:24:29Equatorial Guinea, Kazahkstan, Cambodia are all up there,
0:24:29 > 0:24:34with leaders who've been in power for decades.
0:24:34 > 0:24:37And depending how you count it, Paul Biya of Camaroon holds
0:24:37 > 0:24:39the current record - he's been either Prime
0:24:39 > 0:24:40Minister or President there since Harold Wilson
0:24:40 > 0:24:42was in power here.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45But it is to avoid the traps of long-serving leaders losing touch
0:24:45 > 0:24:48that so many countries have limits on the number of terms
0:24:48 > 0:24:51leaders can stay in power.
0:24:51 > 0:24:53Now, in China, the ruling Communist Party has
0:24:53 > 0:24:56proposed a rule change that would remove presidential
0:24:56 > 0:24:58term limits and allow President Xi Jinping
0:24:58 > 0:25:01to extend his rule there indefinitely.
0:25:01 > 0:25:04Not everyone is keen on the change.
0:25:04 > 0:25:08It's provoked a backlash on social media and some critics have
0:25:08 > 0:25:11expressed concerns that the move is reminiscent of the last
0:25:11 > 0:25:13Chinese leader to rule without term limits -
0:25:13 > 0:25:14Chairman Mao.
0:25:14 > 0:25:17Well, I am joined now by author and commentator Diane Wei Liang
0:25:17 > 0:25:19and by Professor Steve Tsang from the School of Oriental
0:25:19 > 0:25:24and African Studies.
0:25:24 > 0:25:30Firstly, is this going to happen do you think?Absolutely it will happen
0:25:30 > 0:25:35and this is actually one of the steps that's been planned over the
0:25:35 > 0:25:42years. If you recall, Xi Jinping was elected core leader of China not
0:25:42 > 0:25:47long ago and he was given the supreme power and now there is a
0:25:47 > 0:25:52constitutional change. So it has been going on and it has been not
0:25:52 > 0:25:58only going on on the surface of the power struggle, but behind the
0:25:58 > 0:26:05doors, where Xi had managed to depose a lot of people who were
0:26:05 > 0:26:10potentially be able to challenge him in power.Let's ask why this is
0:26:10 > 0:26:16happening. What do you think is going on here. Is this man just a
0:26:16 > 0:26:25megalomaniac?Two reasons. One he is doing it now because he can. He has
0:26:25 > 0:26:31consolidated his position. He is in a sweet into t and the resistance
0:26:31 > 0:26:37within the party won't be able to stop him. He liked the idea that
0:26:37 > 0:26:42after 2023 he can still going on formal state visits. That is the
0:26:42 > 0:26:48only...You think he is interested in the trappings of...That is the
0:26:48 > 0:26:52only difference for him to stay on as state president or not.Hang on,
0:26:52 > 0:26:58he is running the country isn't he? He gets to more than just the fancy
0:26:58 > 0:27:02banquets and the nice car?Well, he doesn't run the country as president
0:27:02 > 0:27:09of China. He runs the country as General Secretary of the Communist
0:27:09 > 0:27:15Party of China. There is no term limits to how many time he can serve
0:27:15 > 0:27:19as General Secretary. He indicated last October that he would stay on
0:27:19 > 0:27:26as general Secretary.President itself is irrelevant, but it is the
0:27:26 > 0:27:34trappings of power. Is that correct? I don't believe that is the case.
0:27:34 > 0:27:45Let's remember how the term limit came it was put by Deng who was not
0:27:45 > 0:27:53president. But he had power behind the scene. It was after Mao's death
0:27:53 > 0:28:01that the term limits were put in in the power of China to get away with
0:28:01 > 0:28:07what had been in Chinese history, there has never been term limits for
0:28:07 > 0:28:13communist leaders or Emperors. That was his way to reform the system.It
0:28:13 > 0:28:16was a big reform. Do you believe in term limits, you have to look around
0:28:16 > 0:28:21the world and people who have been power more than 12 years generally
0:28:21 > 0:28:27have lost it.Yes I agree. I think ten years is as long as you should
0:28:27 > 0:28:33be holding a top office in any country in any government. I'm not
0:28:33 > 0:28:37saying that Xi Jinping is doing the right thing, I'm saying that he is
0:28:37 > 0:28:44doing it because he thinks this is the right thing for him to do for
0:28:44 > 0:28:50China to Xi Jinping he is China.Do you think it is more than a bit
0:28:50 > 0:28:58ominous. Is this a step back for the idea that Chinese democracy would,
0:28:58 > 0:29:08China as its economy develops would liberalise and become more liberal.
0:29:08 > 0:29:16The west had never been embraced by China. Xi Jinping is what we call
0:29:16 > 0:29:22the red princeling. His father was one of marshals who founded
0:29:22 > 0:29:27communist China and he grew up thinking it was his destiny to rule
0:29:27 > 0:29:31China. Perhaps he feels duty to the country. But it has been in his
0:29:31 > 0:29:34psyche regardless what happened to his father in the cultural
0:29:34 > 0:29:41revolution, where he was deposed by Mao himself. So he grew up in such a
0:29:41 > 0:29:46way and when he took power, I don't believe he would end up in the sweet
0:29:46 > 0:29:52spot by accident. It has been carefully planned.There was a
0:29:52 > 0:29:56social media backlash in China yesterday and people saying he is
0:29:56 > 0:30:01trying to make it like North Korea which is quite a stretch. In a sense
0:30:01 > 0:30:07that is a good sign that the people are willing to say who is this guy?
0:30:07 > 0:30:13And it shows all those voices have been harmonised. They have been shut
0:30:13 > 0:30:19up. And that is how you create a harmonious society. You harmonise.
0:30:19 > 0:30:26You remove the comments section from below the article.I or you if the
0:30:26 > 0:30:30article is not pitching the story in the right tone, that story doesn't
0:30:30 > 0:30:39get pitched at all.We had better leave it there, thank you.
0:30:39 > 0:30:41Samuel Beckett's monologue "Not I" is a notoriously challenging text.
0:30:41 > 0:30:45The playwright's own stage directions require that the only
0:30:45 > 0:30:48thing visible on stage is the actor's mouth
0:30:48 > 0:30:53and this must be eight feet off the ground.
0:30:53 > 0:30:55The latest performer to take the part of 'Mouth' is Jess Thom,
0:30:55 > 0:30:58an English artist in her 30s who has Tourette's Syndrome.
0:30:58 > 0:31:01She - and her audience - have to reckon with the verbal
0:31:01 > 0:31:03and physical tics which are a feature of her neurological
0:31:03 > 0:31:05condition and Jess performs while strapped into a wheelchair
0:31:05 > 0:31:11suspended off the ground by a purpose-built gantry.
0:31:11 > 0:31:15She's been speaking to Stephen Smith before "Not I" opens
0:31:15 > 0:31:19at the Battersea Arts Centre in London later this week.
0:31:19 > 0:31:20Lovely.
0:31:20 > 0:31:22Biscuit.
0:31:22 > 0:31:24I'm going to do a light check.
0:31:24 > 0:31:25Hedgehog.
0:31:25 > 0:31:26Biscuit.
0:31:26 > 0:31:27Cat.
0:31:27 > 0:31:28Hedgehog.
0:31:28 > 0:31:29Biscuit.
0:31:29 > 0:31:32Hedgehog, biscuit, cat.
0:31:32 > 0:31:36Hedgehog.
0:31:36 > 0:31:38Out into this world, this world tiny little thing before
0:31:38 > 0:31:39its time.
0:31:39 > 0:31:41What?
0:31:41 > 0:31:44Girl, yes, tiny little girl into this.
0:31:44 > 0:31:46Sat into this before her time.
0:31:46 > 0:31:49I had never read any Beckett before or seen any
0:31:49 > 0:31:50of his work performed.
0:31:50 > 0:31:51Biscuit.
0:31:51 > 0:31:55In fact, I had no idea who he was.
0:31:55 > 0:31:58But I was instantly drawn to it and it confused and
0:31:58 > 0:32:01challenged me and bored me and intrigued me.
0:32:01 > 0:32:07And I really recognised the character of mouth.
0:32:07 > 0:32:08Mouth before it's time.
0:32:08 > 0:32:09Got to taken time.
0:32:09 > 0:32:10No love.
0:32:10 > 0:32:11Bareback.
0:32:11 > 0:32:12Speechless, all headache.
0:32:12 > 0:32:15It was only when I started to read it and read the words...
0:32:15 > 0:32:16Come completely, sometimes, some urge.
0:32:16 > 0:32:19One twice a year, always winter for some strange reason.
0:32:19 > 0:32:21The long evenings, hours of darkness and
0:32:21 > 0:32:22a sudden urge to tell.
0:32:22 > 0:32:23Certain lines in the play.
0:32:23 > 0:32:24Biscuit.
0:32:24 > 0:32:27That when I read them I had a deep connection to.
0:32:27 > 0:32:28Biscuit.
0:32:28 > 0:32:29Lines like, "Whole body like gone".
0:32:29 > 0:32:31Biscuit.
0:32:31 > 0:32:32And, "Mouth on fire".
0:32:32 > 0:32:33"Stream of words."
0:32:33 > 0:32:34Biscuit.
0:32:34 > 0:32:36They're not things that I need to imagine.
0:32:36 > 0:32:37Biscuit.
0:32:37 > 0:32:38They're part of my living experience,
0:32:38 > 0:32:40biscuit, every day.
0:32:40 > 0:32:42There are some bits that made me laugh out loud and
0:32:42 > 0:32:46if it hadn't been written years before I was born, I might have been
0:32:46 > 0:32:47tempted to call a lawyer.
0:32:47 > 0:32:48Cat.
0:32:48 > 0:32:49Biscuit.
0:32:49 > 0:32:50Long hours of darkness.
0:32:50 > 0:32:52Now this - quicker and quicker the words to blame.
0:32:52 > 0:32:53Flicker away like mad.
0:32:53 > 0:32:56And somewhere else...
0:32:56 > 0:32:59Beckett's "Not I" is a woman's oblique and rambling
0:32:59 > 0:33:04account of her life and its sometimes traumatic experiences.
0:33:04 > 0:33:06Not know knowing what, what she was trying.
0:33:06 > 0:33:07No matter keep on.
0:33:07 > 0:33:08Biscuit.
0:33:08 > 0:33:09In the end.
0:33:09 > 0:33:14Biscuit, biscuit, biscuit biscuit, biscuit, biscuit.
0:33:14 > 0:33:17I'm often surprised by my tics and they can certainly -
0:33:17 > 0:33:20biscuit - because it's funny and surreal in the way that the
0:33:20 > 0:33:22conscious way of me can only dream of.
0:33:22 > 0:33:23Biscuit.
0:33:23 > 0:33:24Hedgehog.
0:33:24 > 0:33:25Cat.
0:33:25 > 0:33:29When you get home, is this area all bruised here?
0:33:29 > 0:33:31Is that you, a tic, or that is you controlling
0:33:31 > 0:33:33your tics, or what is it?
0:33:33 > 0:33:34No, that's a tic.
0:33:34 > 0:33:37That's just a motor tic.
0:33:37 > 0:33:39I have had that tic for many years.
0:33:39 > 0:33:40Biscuit.
0:33:40 > 0:33:42When it first started, the first few months, my
0:33:42 > 0:33:43chest bruised terribly.
0:33:43 > 0:33:46But then my body adapted and I've got a nice
0:33:46 > 0:33:48smooth lump there, but it doesn't bruise at all any more.
0:33:48 > 0:33:50I do wear padded gloves.
0:33:50 > 0:33:51Biscuit.
0:33:51 > 0:33:53They're mainly to stop my knuckles getting
0:33:53 > 0:33:55cracked and bloody.
0:33:55 > 0:33:58It's funny that my chest is quite strong and my
0:33:58 > 0:33:59knuckles are the weakest link.
0:33:59 > 0:34:00Cat.
0:34:00 > 0:34:02Jess Thom sometimes appears in the persona
0:34:02 > 0:34:06of the Tourette's Hero.
0:34:06 > 0:34:08Her production of "Not I" is nothing if
0:34:08 > 0:34:10not inclusive and will be interpreted in British Sign Language
0:34:10 > 0:34:16for deaf spectators.
0:34:16 > 0:34:20There's a strange line to be walked between being very familiar with it,
0:34:20 > 0:34:25so it is almost like a dance and also being loose enough with it
0:34:25 > 0:34:28and listening carefully enough that if a "biscuit" gets thrown
0:34:28 > 0:34:31in or a hedgehog, I can put that in as well.
0:34:31 > 0:34:32Back in warning, facing the grass.
0:34:32 > 0:34:33Biscuit. Biscuit.
0:34:33 > 0:34:35Biscuit.
0:34:35 > 0:34:40Biscuit, biscuit, biscuit.
0:34:40 > 0:34:44When I am performing I feel mostly most of the
0:34:44 > 0:34:48images take place in this area and then the "biscuit" takes me away.
0:34:48 > 0:34:49But you know...
0:34:49 > 0:34:52That's the tic.
0:34:52 > 0:34:54So that's what it is.
0:34:54 > 0:34:57So it is very much, you know that people in the
0:34:57 > 0:34:59theatre like to say, "Oh it's a different show
0:34:59 > 0:35:01every night," but it really is, isn't it?
0:35:01 > 0:35:02Yes.
0:35:02 > 0:35:03It is.
0:35:03 > 0:35:06I got drawn to performing, because of
0:35:06 > 0:35:09some very difficult experiences that I had accessing live performance,
0:35:09 > 0:35:12particularly a show where I was asked to move to a sound
0:35:12 > 0:35:15booth at the interval, because of the noises I was making,
0:35:15 > 0:35:21despite having done lots of preparation beforehand
0:35:21 > 0:35:23and the performer and the theatre knowing and introducing
0:35:23 > 0:35:24me to the audience.
0:35:24 > 0:35:26Despite all that planning, I was still asked to move
0:35:26 > 0:35:32and it made me feel like theatre wasn't a space that I could occupy.
0:35:32 > 0:35:34I promised myself that I - biscuit, hedgehog -
0:35:34 > 0:35:36would never set foot in another theatre again.
0:35:36 > 0:35:37Biscuit.
0:35:37 > 0:35:39But thankfully that is not a promise I kept.
0:35:39 > 0:35:41Going down.
0:35:41 > 0:35:42Level 4.
0:35:42 > 0:35:43Biscuit.
0:35:43 > 0:35:44Underwear and videos.
0:35:44 > 0:35:45Hedgehog.
0:35:45 > 0:35:46Lovely.
0:35:46 > 0:35:47Landing.
0:35:47 > 0:35:48Biscuit. Biscuit.
0:35:48 > 0:35:49More wheels than the moon landing.
0:35:49 > 0:35:50Hedgehog.
0:35:50 > 0:35:51Biscuit.
0:35:51 > 0:35:53I can get out now.
0:35:53 > 0:35:55Britain has a remarkably mild climate for a country so far north.
0:35:55 > 0:35:58When you look at Pyeongchang - where the winter olympics have just
0:35:58 > 0:36:01closed, or at other host cities of past years - from Sochi,
0:36:01 > 0:36:04to Salt Lake City to Sarajevo - it is interesting to observe that
0:36:04 > 0:36:08many of them are well south of the UK.
0:36:08 > 0:36:10Take another one for example, Sapporo in Japan.
0:36:10 > 0:36:15It is much closer to the equator than the Isle of Wight is,
0:36:15 > 0:36:17and yet Sapporo is so freezing that it's famous for its amazing
0:36:17 > 0:36:18annual snow festival.
0:36:18 > 0:36:22You can see some of the images here.
0:36:22 > 0:36:25We are spared all that, here because unlike Sapporo,
0:36:25 > 0:36:27we have winds from the west coming off a warm sea.
0:36:27 > 0:36:32We are usually spared, at least.
0:36:32 > 0:36:34But occasionally, like this week, the wind flips round,
0:36:34 > 0:36:36and we go full Siberia.
0:36:36 > 0:36:39And there's a paradox here - we get the cold weather, but up
0:36:39 > 0:36:46north it is unseasonably warm.
0:36:46 > 0:36:53On and on and in north-east Greenland's weather stations. --
0:36:53 > 0:36:58earlier spoke to Erik Pedersen. He told us about the unusually warm
0:36:58 > 0:37:02weather they are experiencing.Its unusual because normally it should
0:37:02 > 0:37:13be 17.1 minus. It is a bit warmer than normal.That is warm. Well, it
0:37:13 > 0:37:16isn't warm, but it is a big difference between normality of
0:37:16 > 0:37:23where you are. Does it matter if it is much warmer where you are?It's
0:37:23 > 0:37:35difficult to move around with our snowmobiles. It's like driving
0:37:35 > 0:37:42around in a cream. But it's OK. We have tried it before.Connect the
0:37:42 > 0:37:46warm weather you are having to the cold weather we are having. Our
0:37:46 > 0:37:52temperature isn't very different. Which is ridiculous. What happening
0:37:52 > 0:38:08here?-- what is happening here? We have a low point in the middle
0:38:09 > 0:38:13have a low point in the middle sea. It is turning that around. It means
0:38:13 > 0:38:19all of the weather from Siberia is going over Europe.We are getting
0:38:19 > 0:38:22the Siberian cold air and you are getting the warm air. The whole
0:38:22 > 0:38:27thing is going round the wrong way. So when we hear about global
0:38:27 > 0:38:33warming, it's people like you who are out there in these more remote
0:38:33 > 0:38:44parts measuring it and monitoring it.Yes. If you look at what's been
0:38:44 > 0:38:48happening in the middle of Greenland, you will get a diary from
0:38:48 > 0:38:53there from many years back. You will see we are on our way into a warmer
0:38:53 > 0:39:03period. Our ice is sin. This year it had broken up. You can see that the
0:39:03 > 0:39:11ice is broken up. If we get the north wind we have a big space with
0:39:11 > 0:39:21open water we can sail in and hunt from boats. It's really unusual.
0:39:21 > 0:39:25Maybe you could give us some advice on how to cope with the cold, now we
0:39:25 > 0:39:29have your weather. How do you keep warm when you go outside, for
0:39:29 > 0:39:34example?
0:39:34 > 0:39:48example?I have good clothes. I have long johns under them. I have my
0:39:48 > 0:39:52working trousers insulated, so I don't have to take lots of clothes.
0:39:52 > 0:39:58If we have to go on a very long trip on a snowmobile, we have two jackets
0:39:58 > 0:40:11on. I have a very, very big Parker jacket.Not much, you just have to
0:40:11 > 0:40:16dress very warmly, I guess. Thank you. Lovely to talk to you. Thank
0:40:16 > 0:40:19you for joining us.You are welcome.
0:40:19 > 0:40:23That's it for tonight.
0:40:23 > 0:40:26We leave you with news that Remainers were gifted a fresh
0:40:26 > 0:40:28rendition of an old anthem at the weekend by
0:40:28 > 0:40:29musician Paul Weller.
0:40:29 > 0:40:32On stage in Leeds, the former Jam singer dedicated one of his most
0:40:32 > 0:40:34famous classics specifically to Old Etonian Jacob Rees Mogg,
0:40:34 > 0:40:37though why he picked out poor Jacob over fellow pupils David Cameron
0:40:37 > 0:40:39or Boris Johnson he didn't explain.
0:40:39 > 0:40:41With thanks to Casper Eatwell on Youtube for capturing
0:40:41 > 0:40:43the performance, no prizes for guessing the song.
0:40:43 > 0:40:51Goodnight.