03/03/2013 Sunday Politics East Midlands

In the East Midlands: As the number of hospital admissions for alcohol

related illnesses soar, are we drinking too much? And it's one of

the biggest economies in the world, with strong links to the East

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 2198 seconds

Midlands - but should we be giving In the East Midlands, are we

drinking too much? I've think it is a middle-aged age group who do

their shopping in the supermarket, get Barrar a whole much more

cheaply than they did in the past, and drink in the evening to relax.

One of the biggest economies in the world, with strong links to the

East Midlands, should we be giving aid to India? I stayed it should be

stopped. It is not really helping this country, trader, yes, aid, no.

Hello, I'm Marie Ashby. Joining me this week, the Conservative MP for

Bosworth David Tredinnick, and Labour's MP for Bassetlaw John Mann.

The head of East Midlands Ambulance Service was in Westminster this

week discussing radical changes to the service with Conservative MPs.

It's planning to cut 53 stations around the region and replace them

with 13 hubs. Phil Milligan, the ambulance service chief executive,

told MPs it would improve response times.

There's been a lot of concern over this - this week we heard about an

eighty four year old woman in Leicestershire who had to wait 3

hours for an ambulance after a fall outside her home. Do you think the

changes will improve things? No, I don't. We are not prepared to

accept it. We have put in about 20,000 submissions same we are not

prepared to lose our ambulance stations, with a vast array rethink,

-- we have asked for a rethink. We are not prepared to accept anything

less. I am getting a clear indication that they we think is

going on. They have not been able to argue against the points we have

made, we have pointed out that our ambulances go north to Doncaster or

and Sheffield. There is no logic in having a base that we don't news. I

think they raised a rethink. I think they understand that in rural

areas, it doesn't add up. Do you think there is anything going on?

Babb looked at it, subsequently I am informed that Hinckley will have

a hard station. I feel much more optimistic. There is a real worry

that ambulance services will be focused on the city of Leicester,

to the detriment of the countryside, Market Bosworth, up to Shackleton's.

I feel confident we will have a modern, efficient facility. We have

to accept that there is need for change. Some of the old stations

have to go, we do need a modern service, and the old buildings are

totally unsuitable, and the costs of refurbishing them is way above

that are putting in a new building. Well one thing our ambulance

service certainly has to deal with on a daily basis is alcohol abuse.

And there's been a shocking rise in the number of people in the East

Midlands being admitted to hospital for alcohol related conditions, up

by almost a third in just five years. More and more people are

having problems with alcohol, and at the Royal Derby hospital they

have found that the age group of people are changing.

Teenage years seem to have reduced their drinking in the last years,

the Education put into schools is reaping some benefits. I picked it

is the middle-aged people who do their shopping in the supermarket,

get ban alcohol much more cheaply than they did in the past, and

drink in the evening to relax. On a daily basis they are drinking

alcohol, and adds up to quite a lot. They had been looking more closely

at the causes of alcohol, at this pub, they say a change in drinking

habits has made the situation worse. They are buying cheap alcohol from

supermarkets, and drinking a lot more at home before they come out.

The night-time economy has changed, people are coming out a lot later.

From a landlord's point of view, it is difficult to judge how much

alcohol they have consumed. A recent inquiry into drink and drugs

has found that efforts to tackle drug problems are having an impact.

Now it is alcohol abuse that is on the increase. 44% of violent crime

is alcohol-related. If you look at the drugs side of staff, it is less

socially acceptable in British culture, alcohol has been more

acceptable, that is the attitude we need to change. In recent times the

focus has shifted, and I think they are taking the issue seriously and

providing more funding. Before figures show that in the East

Midlands there has been a 30% rise in admissions to hospital in the

last five years, but if you look more closely, there may be signs of

hope, with admissions falling in the last year. This charity in

Derbyshire say they are finding new ways of tackling the problem. One

of the biggest things is that there are no huge waiting lists, they are

in bed within five days of the referral being made. You have to

strike when the iron is hot. Politician has, health workers and

charities are turning their attentions to tackling the alcohol

crisis, back can any of them end our obsession with booze?

You set up the inquiry we mentioned in Bassetlaw. So which was the

bigger problem, drugs or alcohol? It used to be drugs, but we have

got on top of the heroin problem. Many of our addicts are back paying

taxes, or are in treatment. We have had some great results, and have

saved money for the taxpayer. How bad is it? It may not be a new

problem, it was there before. looking at the cost in policing,

the cost to the health service, the cost to employers, and we intend to

challenge that head-on. We are looking at a number of things, but

in particular, the biggest mistake of the last government was bringing

in 24 hour alcohol everywhere. It may work in big cities, but in

market towns, it doesn't work. We don't need pubs that are open all

night, and it has cost us a lot of money. Admission that Labour made

some mistakes? The R idea of 24 hour drinking was to getting line

with the rest of Europe. -- the idea. We are losing our pubs, we

are losing that social interaction. Far too many people are drinking

cheap alcohol, which supermarkets have as loss-leaders.

The doctor in that report, Andrew Austin, supports a minimum pricing

for alcohol. And this week, 70 health groups have said it should

be a minimum of 50 pence per unit. Is that going to happen?

committee which I sit on have looked at it, I have looked at the

situation in Scotland, and I think there are a compelling number of

cases. They are not finding it easy, but that does not mean you don't

have to do it. We live to affect middle-class drinkers? -- will it

affect middle-class drinkers? will affect some of them, but there

is a much bigger issue, awareness of what alcohol does to you. It

will increase your chance to diabetes, it will reduce your

potency, it will make your eyes deteriorate more quickly. Your life

expectancy will be reduced. These are the messages we need to get

across. There are some glimmers of hope. They are very small. I will

back the proposal for a minimum price, I don't know whether it will

work, but it is worth a go. The health message has to be ramped up.

If you are 40 years old, trying to hold on to your looks, and you

drink a lot of alcohol, you will Ajay lot quicker. That message has

not been there. -- tubal you will age. In message doesn't seem to be

getting through, the British are known for their drinking? In some

parts of the country it is getting across. There is work-in-progress.

The supermarkets, three bottles of wine but �10, it is extraordinary

you can get it so cheaply? It has changed to people staying in,

television ratings are going up, people are staying in, doing some

cooking, drinking a bottle of wine, or some beer. They are not

realising how much they are drinking. It is all of us. We are

all doing it. We have to get on top of it. People are not realising

quite how much we drink at home. It is not like the pub, where you hand

over the money. Is it something that worries you personally? It is

another big issue. I will let John think about the answer. They used

to be eight glasses of wine to a bottle, and now you're getting much

bigger glasses in pubs, people are filed into drinking -- are full

into thinking that they are drinking less. I worried about

people driving a black a whole. There is a clear disparity between

the amount people say they are drinking and what they actually do.

I have no idea how much I could see him. Your must know how much you

are drinking? If you go to a reception in Parliament, it is hard

to know. Parliament is one of the worst, they run a copy bars in

Parliament, bars everywhere. Should the UK be giving aid to a

country that's got a space programme? Well, according to the

government, no. Aid to India will end in two year's time. The

government says it is one of the fastest growing economies in the

world - and even the Indian government has said trade is better

than aid. But one of our MPs doesn't agree.

Jon Ashworth, from Leicester South has been in India. Earlier I spoke

to him and asked him what he's seen that's so convinced him aid should

continue. I have seen kids playing next to an open sewer, no shoes,

toddlers walking round in the slums. It is extreme levels of poverty.

Although I don't believe we should keep on giving aid to India for

ever, I don't pick it should have ended abruptly in 2015 -- I don't

think it should have ended abruptly in 2015. I think we will lose

influence with India. I don't think it is in the British national

interest. We are country with deep bonds, deep ties with India. We

needed to maintain a modern relationship. That will help in

terms of trade, and economic development.

Well Jon Ashworth, mentioned business as well as aid there and

we're joined by Uday Dholakia, a Leicester businessman, who's the

chairman of the Indo British Trade Council.

Is Jon right, will we lose influence if we end our aid

donations? Geraghty macro parts to the argument. As a local

businessman, I want to make sure that taxpayers' money means there

is something in it for our institutions. The point that John

is trying to make, he has clearly picked up by a number of serious

issues. I think we have cut the aid programme a bit too quickly, it is

a unilateral decision, we need to be humane and compassionate.

You're a regular visitor to the Indian High commission what's their

take on stopping aid to India. feel it is a unilateral decision on

part of the government, they feel they should have been bilateral

discussion. Seeing is believing and Jon

Ashworth has clearly been affected by what he's seen. How can we

ignore such obvious poverty? There are pockets like that in all

countries across the world. The perception of aid is not a good one,

people think that the money is pocketed. There is a determination

to make sure aid is targeted on the most bd, and as the fact of the

matter is that people are not going to begrudge the fact they are

trying to target the aid more effectively. Can we really turn our

backs on children in slums? It is not about turning our back, it is

about effectiveness. I was one of the first to call for aid for China

and India to be stopped, and money to be redirected to Africa, where I

think the developer needs are far more great. India is booming as an

economy, their growth rates are very good, we should be co-

operating with our expertise, including water, sanitation and

health. Well our politicians have strong

views on this sensitive issue over to Des Coleman to see what you

think. We give a the �200 million of aid to India every year.

We have come to Derby to hear your thoughts. I think each should be

stopped, it is not helping these countries. Trade, yes, aid, no.

Allowed to the time it goes into the leader's bank account. We need

to make sure goes to the right people. I can accept it going for

humanitarian reasons, but not for armaments. They should be

concentrating on the people. They should spend money on people here,

on cancer, finding cures, rather than sending it to other countries.

I think about all the children that are suffering over there, I have a

child myself, but I also think there are quite a lot of people in

this country but also need help. The homeless, that sort of thing.

So a lot of people thinking we should look closer to home before

we spend money abroad. Surely it would be better to taper it off

rather than cutting off aid so abruptly? There is an argument for

that, I'm not sure exactly what the aid packages. The charities depend

on that money? I don't accept that, the aid could be spent much better

in other areas. You mention Africa, half a million people can be saved.

They have to be judgments in politics, and I think it is the

correct judgment to move aid that are poorer, and let in Diego it's a

way as -- and let India go its way as the successful economy that it

is. There is a huge amount of wealth in India, the growth rate is

9%, and we don't have one. We need to give away expertise, and put

money in, and make sure it makes a big difference, in Africa.

Let's look a bit more closely at our links with India. We've got

such strong connections because of our communities here in the East

Midlands - Uday, can we benefit from that? I think we can, but a

lot of the arguments resonate with me. We need to shift the paradigm,

to make that relationships from. What is the relationship around

giving aid to institutions? Water, sanitation, everything else. We

must also leverage more support. I think I would still like to see

Bally for money for any money we spent. -- value for money. What

kind of benefits would we get? International aid, and trade are

very closely linked. I don't think we have been aggressive enough. I

would like to see more upbeat manoeuvring from the government.

John and Ashworth said he was concerned that we were -- Jon

Ashworth said he was concerned we would lose influence? I think we

would lose some respect. David Cameron obviously realises

the importance of India's economic power for the UK - he's just been

out there, but could we be doing more. It was a powerful statement

of intent. By developing wealth, you develop trade, they are very

closely linked. Can you separate aid and trade

though? You can indeed, there are other ways, it's off to a,

scholarships, ability to get visas, these have been on the agenda,

there is a lot more we can do. We need to build relationships. There

is a lot more to be done? We take a lot of Indian students to this

country, they go back with some fine degrees. And he very much for

coming in. Time for a quick look at some of

the other political stories in the East Midlands this week - here's

our Political Editor John Hess with the 60 second roundup. In so Brain,

a politician of start to think about the council elections, the

finance director has warned about whoever wins at the polls will have

to make more big budget cuts. We need to be more efficient, we

need to be more effective, and put your better goods and services.

new �500 million train station for Elkstone has moved closer with

approval for government funding. Campaigners are confident of

securing the rest of the cash from a government fund. With the cold

spell still fresh in our memories, the SNP has urged homeowners to

warm up with a green deal. -- this MP. The cost is paid back in

savings in fuel bills. The green deal will save energy, and create

thousands of jobs. Looking forward to those council

elections, what preparations are you making?

I am looking forward to the results, because we are going to see the