:01:20. > :01:23.In the East Midlands: Is it time for people with
:01:23. > :01:25.disabilities to make their voices heard? We'll be hearing from the
:01:25. > :01:27.Nottingham man who's become Britain's first ever councillor
:01:27. > :01:37.with Down's Syndrome. And the Chancellor on the East Midlands
:01:37. > :01:37.
:01:37. > :35:58.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 2060 seconds
:35:58. > :36:02.In the East Midlands, is it time for people with disabilities to
:36:02. > :36:09.make their voices heard? We all hear from the Nottingham man who
:36:09. > :36:12.has become Britain's first ever councillor with Down's syndrome.
:36:12. > :36:16.And the Chancellor on the East Midlands economy at. More money for
:36:16. > :36:21.investment in the region and for apprenticeships that you see being
:36:21. > :36:25.taught behind me. More from George Osborne in a moment and this week
:36:25. > :36:29.my guests are David Tredinnick, Conservative MP for Bosworth and
:36:29. > :36:34.Chris Leslie, Labour's MP for Nottingham East. Guy Fawkes would
:36:34. > :36:39.have loved it - plenty of fireworks in Westminster. The return of
:36:39. > :36:45.Michael Heseltine warning David Cameron that he must do more to
:36:45. > :36:49.encourage growth and a rebellion about Europe. Heather Wheeler,
:36:49. > :36:57.Nigel Mills, Andrew Bridgen rebelled on Europe, what do you
:36:57. > :37:02.think about that? The budget being frozen is a very sensible policy.
:37:02. > :37:07.What do you think about the people who did not go along with you?
:37:07. > :37:10.Parliamentarians can vote according to their wishes and according to
:37:10. > :37:15.their innermost beliefs. In my case, I thought the right thing to do was
:37:15. > :37:19.to support the Government who have a sensible position. Chris, you
:37:19. > :37:26.have a lot to say on the EU budget debate. Were you arguing for a cut?
:37:26. > :37:31.Absolutely. If you have got people being asked to give back child
:37:31. > :37:34.benefit, cuts in public transport and policing, public transport, why
:37:34. > :37:41.should the EU budget be exempt from that? We were arguing that freezing
:37:41. > :37:45.the budget - and when they say freezing that includes inflation -
:37:45. > :37:52.it is not ambitious enough. They should be aiming for a reduction in
:37:52. > :37:55.real terms and that is the point we were making. Parliament decided to
:37:55. > :38:02.tell the Prime Minister that was his task and that is what he must
:38:02. > :38:07.now deliver. The other argument is the opposite, which is it is
:38:08. > :38:11.ridiculous going into an untenable position. It is the toughest
:38:11. > :38:15.position we have had a hand and he has said he will veto if he does
:38:15. > :38:19.not get what we want. The Deputy Prime Minister says that he does
:38:19. > :38:23.not want to go down that particular route and the Prime Minister has
:38:23. > :38:27.got one view and we hear today Ken Clarke talking about it being a
:38:27. > :38:32.ludicrous position and the difficulty for the Government is
:38:32. > :38:38.that they are divided into so many different fragments. Can I just ask
:38:38. > :38:43.you, Chris, handed it feel voting alongside right-wing Tories -- how
:38:43. > :38:47.did it feel? It is in the interests of the taxpayer and getting the
:38:47. > :38:50.best deal. At home, so many people are suffering because of the
:38:50. > :38:55.Conservative austerity. Who better to ask about the East Midlands
:38:55. > :38:58.economy than the Chancellor of the Exchequer, he was in Derby talking
:38:58. > :39:01.about apprenticeships at Rolls- Royce but with our region coming
:39:01. > :39:06.bottom of the league when it comes to government cash for regeneration,
:39:06. > :39:10.we wanted to know if you could see more help in the future. Our
:39:10. > :39:14.correspondent asked him about his plans to boost the economy.
:39:14. > :39:20.East Midlands has got so much good about it, some great firms and
:39:20. > :39:22.people and the East Midlands, if it puts forward some new bid, can get
:39:22. > :39:27.government investment in the regional growth projects we want to
:39:27. > :39:31.see. And yet in the recent round of growth funding, we came bottom of
:39:31. > :39:35.the pile, below the south-east of England. Can that be right? We have
:39:35. > :39:41.got a pot of money and the independent panel, not the
:39:41. > :39:44.politicians. That panel look at who bids for that money. So why am
:39:44. > :39:48.willing to work with the East Midlands to improve the quality of
:39:48. > :39:52.the bid to make sure they get the money and the funding they deserve.
:39:52. > :39:56.The money is there of the economy is like here. We put money into
:39:56. > :40:00.this facility, the apprenticeship academy which we are standing in
:40:00. > :40:03.today and that happened under this government so we are committed to
:40:03. > :40:10.the future of the East Midlands. You are saying it is down to the
:40:10. > :40:14.business communities to come up with better bids? We must get more
:40:15. > :40:18.investment into the East Midlands and it cannot be the role of
:40:18. > :40:22.government by itself, it cannot be the business community by itself
:40:22. > :40:27.because then it does not get the support that the Government can
:40:27. > :40:34.provide, it is only when the two worked together. Together we can
:40:34. > :40:39.have success stories like the one behind me. There will be more money
:40:39. > :40:42.for investment in the regions and the East Midlands, more money for
:40:42. > :40:48.the can of apprenticeships that we see been caught behind me.
:40:49. > :40:53.Miss Lesley, you are looking shocked there. -- Chris Leslie.
:40:53. > :40:57.have seen investment in regional growth cut by half under this
:40:57. > :41:00.government so I can't see where this money is coming from. The East
:41:00. > :41:04.Midlands has done particularly badly under this government because
:41:04. > :41:09.they centralised the decision- making under this thing called the
:41:09. > :41:18.regional growth fund thing. Are you suggesting that we have not had the
:41:18. > :41:21.correct bid? Plenty of people criticise the previous systems but
:41:22. > :41:25.at least there where decisions about support in the economy in the
:41:25. > :41:30.actual areas and because these are things made in Whitehall, it is no
:41:30. > :41:34.wonder that London and the essential areas do better than
:41:34. > :41:38.elsewhere. That is the problem, they need to devolve some of these
:41:38. > :41:43.situations. But he was saying he wanted to help businesses make
:41:43. > :41:47.those bids. Unfortunately, those of the words from the Chancellor and
:41:47. > :41:51.the actions do not run the match that. He has recommended more money
:41:51. > :41:57.for the regions, David. Is there an opportunity for the East Midlands
:41:57. > :42:01.here? The regional development funds do work and the Chancellor is
:42:01. > :42:07.saying the money is there but you must have affected birds and it is
:42:07. > :42:12.important that our region put in better bids -- effective bids. We
:42:12. > :42:16.need to fight for the money to come here and there are some great
:42:16. > :42:22.success stories. A company in my constituency is expanding in
:42:22. > :42:26.engineering and Churchill's now have a company in Mexico are taking
:42:26. > :42:30.on apprentices there. We are rejuvenating the economy and a
:42:30. > :42:35.million jobs in the private sector. Does Lord Heseltine's report give
:42:35. > :42:39.us an opportunity? Nothing succeeds like success, he is the man who
:42:39. > :42:42.regenerated the Docklands, got Liverpool going again. He has come
:42:42. > :42:47.up with a very good package to bring different organisations
:42:47. > :42:51.together in the regions so that we can have a more effective way of
:42:51. > :42:56.attracting growth, making people happier in their lives through
:42:56. > :43:02.better jobs. A lot of good ideas there but the reality is, I am
:43:02. > :43:07.afraid, are falling very short of that. Heseltine was very critical
:43:07. > :43:16.of the Government's approach, has in fact I'm it -- we have seen a
:43:16. > :43:21.flat mining economy. What would you do, Chris? An auction of the Forgie
:43:21. > :43:29.mobile phone spectrum which will raise �3 billion -- four Jeatt
:43:29. > :43:34.mobile phone spectrum. That will provide money for affordable homes.
:43:34. > :43:38.People are suffering out there and this Utopian idea that everything
:43:38. > :43:44.is rosy is totally out of touch. The reality on the ground... A
:43:44. > :43:48.chemical plant in Derby, 350 manufacturing jobs cut. It is all
:43:48. > :43:54.very well Rolls-Royce announcing apprenticeships but they cannot
:43:54. > :43:58.said the economy on the bone. Labour Party spent too much and
:43:58. > :44:03.left as a terrible legacy and we are reducing the overspend, giving
:44:03. > :44:08.low interest rate. And we are creating an environment where new
:44:08. > :44:10.businesses can thrive and that is what is important. That is why our
:44:10. > :44:15.international competitors are envious and why we have low
:44:15. > :44:19.interest rates unlike most of Europe. But move on. The success of
:44:19. > :44:25.the Paralympics has proved a people with disabilities can take a full
:44:25. > :44:28.part in sport at the highest level does the same apply to politics?
:44:28. > :44:34.Frances Ryan is studying at the University of Nottingham about
:44:34. > :44:38.politics for a PhD and she does not feel disabilities are represented
:44:38. > :44:47.in Westminster. I am researching equal-opportunity
:44:48. > :44:55.I also write about equal opportunities and particularly
:44:55. > :44:59.disability issues. In the summer, people were glued to the TV
:44:59. > :45:02.watching Paralympics, people like Richard Whitehead when gold. It
:45:02. > :45:08.helps get disability into the mainstream and shows the way
:45:08. > :45:11.disabled people can represent their country. People seem uncomfortable
:45:11. > :45:15.with it, particularly in politics. You only need to look at the
:45:15. > :45:23.current Cabinet to see a model of an unrepresentative bit of
:45:23. > :45:28.government. White male, middle- class and not one single disabled
:45:28. > :45:35.person. You can run for your country but not run your country.
:45:35. > :45:43.11 million people have disabilities in the UK. 7% of the population.
:45:43. > :45:49.Lamb only aware of 6% of MPs, 1% of the comet. -- that is only 6% of
:45:49. > :45:54.MPs. David Blunkett is the most famous disabled MP, famous for his
:45:54. > :45:58.guide dog. Why does it matter? Disabled people face a lot of the
:45:58. > :46:06.same issues that everybody else does. But for them, the issues
:46:06. > :46:10.really hit them harder. Disabled people are more likely to face
:46:10. > :46:18.poverty and their interest really do need representing. But how will
:46:18. > :46:22.we do that. How will we get more disabled MPs into Parliament? There
:46:22. > :46:26.are many barriers in the way. Money is important for example. The Home
:46:26. > :46:33.Office released a funds to cover the extra cost that disabled
:46:33. > :46:39.candidates might face. Such as a sign language interpreter and
:46:39. > :46:43.transport. But other more complicated things exist.
:46:43. > :46:46.Management of hours that people must do. A current campaign to
:46:46. > :46:52.allow MPs to job-share, for instance. We need to think about
:46:52. > :46:57.that. Who leads us really does matter and for a lot of
:46:57. > :47:03.marginalised groups getting that thought is the thought of power is
:47:03. > :47:06.an important first move. I am delighted to said that joining
:47:06. > :47:09.us to debate this is a man who has just made history, Stephen Green is
:47:09. > :47:13.thought to be the first person with Down's syndrome to become a
:47:13. > :47:17.councillor anywhere in the country. He has just been appointed to
:47:17. > :47:24.Nuthall Parish Council and he is here with his very proud father,
:47:24. > :47:30.Grenville. Stephen, congratulations. Thank you. How does it feel? I feel
:47:30. > :47:39.better now. You looking forward to it? Yes. Are you nervous about it?
:47:39. > :47:43.No! Do you know what you will do when you will get in at there?
:47:43. > :47:49.will go for it. I am looking forward to it. Stephen does not
:47:49. > :47:59.know what he is in for exactly but the point of this is that it is not
:47:59. > :48:00.
:48:00. > :48:05.a joke. He has been put up for a parish council and are asked him
:48:05. > :48:10.when this came up, would you like to have a go at the parish council?
:48:10. > :48:14.And he said yes. He has done what anybody else can do. It is a shame
:48:14. > :48:24.that somebody did not stand against him because it is only a small area.
:48:24. > :48:25.
:48:25. > :48:28.You must be very proud. I am over It is a great achievement. Do you
:48:28. > :48:37.think we need more people like Stephen coming into politics?
:48:37. > :48:43.think it would be great if more people were. Robert Hall Farm, Jack
:48:43. > :48:47.Ashby, but lots of scope for people to become researchers in the House
:48:47. > :48:52.of Commons and work with MPs and develop skills and perhaps then
:48:52. > :48:55.they can go on and get a vote. Chris Leslie, Frances pointed out
:48:56. > :48:59.that there are very few people with disabilities at Westminster. Is
:48:59. > :49:03.that a problem? I think so because the people want the House of
:49:03. > :49:07.Commons to be broadly reflective of the population as a whole. If
:49:07. > :49:11.people think it is nothing to do with their real lives, they will
:49:11. > :49:15.not feel as if the laws of the land are reflecting their own
:49:15. > :49:19.experiences. If you are able to do the job and you can command the
:49:19. > :49:23.confidence of the electorate - and that is the key thing - then people
:49:23. > :49:29.are free to elect to they like. are a bit of a role model, really,
:49:29. > :49:39.aren't you, Stephen? Yes. They will be looking to you to see how you
:49:39. > :49:46.
:49:46. > :49:52.get on. The policies on the school... This is where our Amber
:49:52. > :49:55.his personal assistant. We are talking about places in the City
:49:56. > :50:01.and he is a volunteer at a school with children with learning
:50:01. > :50:05.disabilities. Getting that the election, the parish councils and
:50:05. > :50:10.town councils should not be political. It should reflect the
:50:10. > :50:16.grassroots and this is Stephen reflecting his grass roots, if you
:50:16. > :50:20.like. He decided he wanted to do it. You are hoping that other people
:50:20. > :50:25.will follow in his footsteps? course. We have a person who picks
:50:25. > :50:35.letter, you never hear anything about him, he is a great man. He
:50:35. > :50:35.
:50:35. > :50:39.picks letter. He should be on the parish and town councils. -- litter.
:50:39. > :50:43.Are you playing at politics, Chris? We need to get people from all
:50:43. > :50:47.sorts of backgrounds but we can also disagree with each other. It
:50:47. > :50:50.is ultimately about the legacy you leave behind but you look at some
:50:50. > :50:58.of our colleagues who have a disability, David Blunkett for is
:50:58. > :51:02.an -- for example, he has achieved a matter mat in spite of his
:51:02. > :51:05.disabilities. Love him or hate him, people have got lots of opinions
:51:05. > :51:11.about what he did when he was in Westminster, and that is what
:51:11. > :51:16.matters most. A serious point is being raised, especially when
:51:16. > :51:20.benefits are being cut. You are changing eligibility. We British
:51:20. > :51:23.people about this issue and they said that they are very worried
:51:23. > :51:28.that nobody is speaking up for them in Westminster. You touched on that
:51:28. > :51:34.but that is a real problem. I don't agree with that, I think we will
:51:34. > :51:39.always represent those who are as capable as we are because of
:51:39. > :51:43.disabilities. We are always making it a priority in Westminster, the
:51:43. > :51:47.benefits system is chaotic. One universal benefit is the right way
:51:48. > :51:52.forward and it is also right unpopular with most people that it
:51:53. > :51:57.should always be better to be in work than on benefits. That is a
:51:57. > :52:00.financial inducement to get into work. I am sure we all wish Stephen
:52:01. > :52:10.the very best in your new role. Good luck. Let us know how you get
:52:10. > :52:16.on. He was there until 2015, he is there until that date so he never
:52:16. > :52:18.gives up. Good for you, Stephen. We have been saying for weeks but the
:52:18. > :52:27.Police and Crime Commissioner elections are now just two weeks
:52:27. > :52:31.away. This week is art look at all the candidates in Leicestershire.
:52:31. > :52:35.Three candidates for Leicestershire and Rutland. Sir Clive loader is
:52:36. > :52:43.standing for the Conservatives, a former front line pilot with the
:52:43. > :52:47.RAF Flying ing campaigns in the Falklands, Iraq and the Balkans. He
:52:47. > :52:53.is now retired and has a parish councillor in Rutland.
:52:53. > :52:56.So Russell is Labour's candidate, a Leicester City councillor and
:52:56. > :53:00.chairs the safe at Leicester partnership. She is a mother with
:53:00. > :53:05.two children. The Independent councillor has been
:53:05. > :53:10.a community leader for more than 30 years and a former magistrate and a
:53:10. > :53:16.community advocate. All three have been at the hustings event at a
:53:16. > :53:20.market Harborough Church and our reporter caught up with them there.
:53:21. > :53:26.The candidates are ready and the public are arriving and before they
:53:26. > :53:29.arrive I will talk to people. Clive, you are the Conservative councillor,
:53:30. > :53:34.what do you know about policing in the City? Quite a lot are for the
:53:35. > :53:38.last five months. I have educated myself a lot about the police and
:53:38. > :53:43.about the concerns and aspirations of the people who live in Leicester
:53:43. > :53:51.City. I think I am pretty well versed. Sir Russell, the Labour
:53:51. > :53:58.Party candidate, what do you know about rural policing -- Sarah
:53:58. > :54:03.Russell? Have been working on the strategic partnership initiative
:54:03. > :54:08.looking at issues across the board. I am hoping that will come in handy.
:54:08. > :54:13.The only independent candidate, this is an extremely diverse patch,
:54:13. > :54:18.how will you be able to have an opinion about both sides, the City
:54:18. > :54:24.and the two counties? I am a resident of the city for 30 years
:54:24. > :54:29.and my role in both the county and the City and there have been
:54:29. > :54:34.involved with the police force for 15 years and I understand both
:54:34. > :54:38.sides of the border. Clive, you have a military background, what
:54:38. > :54:41.use will that be to you if you were to be the Police and Crime
:54:41. > :54:48.Commissioner here in Leicestershire and Rutland? He is enormously
:54:48. > :54:52.important. In my last job, I commanded a lot of people, 31,500.
:54:52. > :54:55.�2.6 billion budget and I think those will be critical skills.
:54:55. > :55:00.Leadership and management, certainly budgetary knowledge and
:55:00. > :55:06.the fact that I have taken some very hard decisions with regard to
:55:06. > :55:08.budget and staying within them. These are skills that will be
:55:08. > :55:12.required in big measure for a successful Police and Crime
:55:12. > :55:17.Commissioner. Sarah, you have got tough competition, why should
:55:17. > :55:21.people that for you? I am approachable, people know me very
:55:21. > :55:26.easily. I work across partners and bringing people together is a skill
:55:26. > :55:30.of mind. I have got a track record with results, leading difficult
:55:30. > :55:35.budget, working with community safe project and making things better
:55:35. > :55:42.for people. The only other two candidates are both from main
:55:42. > :55:45.political parties. Don't you need that kind of backing to win? I do
:55:45. > :55:49.not think so. It should be independent because it is something
:55:49. > :55:52.we must guard. However I feel that all three candidates that are
:55:52. > :55:57.looked at in this race our friends and we have formed a good
:55:57. > :56:01.friendship with each other understand away from party politics
:56:01. > :56:05.nevertheless. Don't forget, these elections are
:56:06. > :56:10.taking place right across the East Midlands and you can find out about
:56:10. > :56:13.your candidates in your area by going to the politics pages of the
:56:13. > :56:19.BBC website. You certainly can and next week we
:56:19. > :56:29.will look for the Lincolnshire candidates. Now a round in 60
:56:29. > :56:31.
:56:31. > :56:34.The future of the region's biggest newspapers is up for debate.
:56:34. > :56:39.Northcliffe Media, owner of the Derby Telegraph and the Nottingham
:56:39. > :56:42.Post, is in talks with Trinity Mirror over the creation of a new
:56:42. > :56:47.local newspaper group. Regional papers have lost thousands of
:56:47. > :56:51.readers as the recession and the internet have hit sales. Dick East
:56:51. > :56:54.Midlands Euro-MP Emma Cartland has added her voice to calls for a
:56:54. > :56:57.super-fast broadband system to be rolled out across the region. She
:56:57. > :57:01.has told the UK Government that technology is vital for business
:57:01. > :57:05.growth. Key bars wants to hear from victims
:57:05. > :57:08.of anti-social behaviour. -- Keith Vaz. He is chairing a select
:57:08. > :57:12.committee which is about to take a closer look at government plans for
:57:12. > :57:15.new laws. Safer cycling and tougher laws for
:57:15. > :57:20.cyclists - that is the call from Nottingham North MP Graham Allen.
:57:20. > :57:25.Seven cyclists have died so far this year on Nottinghamshire's
:57:25. > :57:35.roads compared with two last year. Graham Allen is lobbying for light
:57:35. > :57:35.
:57:35. > :57:42.Cycle safety, a serious issue that Graham Allen has raised. Are you
:57:42. > :57:46.for helmets being warned? So to me for lights and it is already too
:57:46. > :57:50.not ride with light. I am not convinced about helmets. For short
:57:50. > :57:54.journeys and on roads that are not a long traffic it is not necessary
:57:54. > :58:02.and peoples must make their own journeys. I have written a cycle
:58:02. > :58:07.and I like to feel the wind on my face -- with in a cycle. The roads
:58:07. > :58:11.are dangerous. Seven killed on Nottinghamshire's roads. Seven
:58:11. > :58:16.people is a tragedy but in proportion... Look at the number of
:58:16. > :58:19.cyclists out there, a very tiny amount. I am sorry but the trade-
:58:19. > :58:24.off, the wind in your hair versus the harm that can come from some of
:58:24. > :58:28.these accidents. You must ensure that we have decent cycle safety.
:58:28. > :58:32.People used to make this argument about wearing a seatbelt and what