30/04/2017 Sunday Politics East Midlands


30/04/2017

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It's Sunday Morning, and this is the Sunday Politics.

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Theresa May says she has no plans to increase tax levels,

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but refuses to repeat David Cameron's 2015 manifesto

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promise ruling out hikes in VAT, national insurance and income tax.

:00:47.:00:53.

The leaders of the EU's 27 member states unanimously

:00:54.:00:57.

agree their negotiating strategy for the upcoming Brexit talks, but

:00:58.:01:00.

And in the last of our series of interviews ahead of Thursday's

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And in the East Midlands: to the leader of Plaid Cymru Leanne

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With low productivity and low wages who's got

:01:16.:01:17.

And the battle to win political control of our counties

:01:18.:01:21.

They hit an all-time low after coalition government,

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but are the Lib Dems poised to bounce back,

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And with me to analyse the week's politics,

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Isabel Oakeshott, Steve Richards, Tom Newton-Dunn.

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They'll be tweeting using the hashtag #bbcsp.

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So when Theresa May was interviewed just over an hour ago

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on The Andrew Marr Show, the Prime Minister was asked

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to confirm that she would repeat David Cameron's 2015 election

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promise not to raise VAT, national insurance and income tax

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We have absolutely no plans to increase the level of tax,

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but I'm also very clear that I don't want to make specific proposals

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on taxes unless I'm absolutely sure that I can deliver on those.

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But it is, would be my intention as a Conservative Government

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and a Conservative Prime Minister, to reduce the taxes

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The Tories like to have a clear tax message in elections, are they

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getting into a bit of a mess? That method wasn't clear, but does it

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mean, saying they have no plans to increase the level of tax? We are

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clear there will not be a rise in VAT, a lot of commentators will get

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overexcited about that, but there was no great expectations there

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would be a rise in VAT. Tempting as it is, because even one percentage

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point on VAT rate is 4.5 billion for the exchequer so it is tempting but

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there has been no speculation that would happen. We can see that she

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clearly wants to reiterate the language about hard-working families

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but I don't think we are that much the wiser. Even if she does not put

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up rates, according to projections the overall tax burden, as a

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percentage of GDP, is rising, will rise in the years ahead. That is why

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it was an odd phrase, I know she is doing it to be evasive but to say

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they have no plans to raise the general level of taxation, they do

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have. We also know they have specific plans because it was in the

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last budget, they had a tax rise which they had to revise, National

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Insurance rises, so very wisely in my view they are keeping options

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open, the 2015 tax-and-spend debate was a fantasy world, totally

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unrelated to the demands that would follow. They now have the

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flexibility, one of the arguments you had heard last time was Philip

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Hammond saying to her, we have to break away from the 2015 manifesto

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commitment and we can only do it this way, that is one of the better

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arguments. The Tories like to talk about tax cuts in elections, whether

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they do it is another matter, but they are not being allowed to talk

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about tax cuts, they are now on the defensive over whether they will

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raise taxes. That is not a healthy position for the campaign to be in.

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If you look at the numbers, quite frankly, if you will not do this at

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this election with eight 20 point lead over Labour, then when will you

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take these tough decisions? Reading between the lines of what Theresa

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May has said all over different broadcasters this morning, income

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tax will go down for low-income families, such as the threshold rise

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that microbes that was already factored in. She has had to commit

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to it again. VAT will be fat, national insurance contributions

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will go up. Do you think they will go up? I think so, she had plenty of

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opportunity to rule it out and she didn't. There was a terrible mess

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with the budget, it is a good tax argument but not a good electoral

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argument that you are eroding the base so heavily with people moving

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into self-employment that as you raise national insurance

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contributions for everybody but the self-employed, it is something the

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Treasury will have to look at. The other triple lock on pensions, we

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don't know if they will keep to that either? If they are sensible they

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will find a form of words to give them flexibility in that area as

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well. I would say there is no question over that, that has gone.

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As Mrs May would say, you will have to wait for the manifesto. That is

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what all the party leaders tell me! Labour have spent the weekend

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pushing their messages Speaking at a camapign rally

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in London yesterday, Jeremy Corbyn promised a Labour

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government would fix what he called People are fed up, fed up with not

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being able to get somewhere to live, fed up waiting for hospital

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appointments, fed up with 0-hours contracts, fed up with low pay, fed

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up with debt, fed up with not being able to get on in their lives

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because we have a system that is rigged against so many.

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I've been joined from Newcastle by Labour's elections

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and campaigns co-ordinator, Ian Lavery.

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Good morning. To deal with this rigged economy, as Mr Corbyn calls

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it, the Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell has a 20 point plan for

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workers out today. When you add up everything he plans to do to help

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workers, how much will it cost? The full costings, one thing I need to

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say at the very beginning, the costings of any policy which we have

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already ruled out and any policy we will be ruling out in the next few

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days and weeks will be fully costed in the manifesto and in addition to

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the fact that it will be fully costed, we will see it in the

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manifesto how indeed it has been funded, so we are very clear,

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anything we have seen already, and there are some exciting policy

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releases and there will be more in the future, anything we are going to

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do will be fully costed and in the manifesto. You announced a 20 point

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plan but cannot tell me what the costs will be this morning so at the

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moment it is a menu without prices? It is not a menu without prices, it

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is a fantastic opportunity. This 20 point plan is something which will

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transform the lives of millions of millions of people in the

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workplace... But what is the cost? It will be welcomed by many people

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across the UK. The fact the costings have not been released, you will

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have to be patient, it will be released very clearly, it will

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identify that in the manifesto. Let me come down to one of the points,

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the end of the public sector pay freeze. Can you give us any idea how

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much that will cost? The end of the public sector pay freeze, so

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important to the future of the Labour Party, it is an massive

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policy decision. Let me say at this stage, Theresa May, the Prime

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Minister, this morning, on The Andrew Marr Show, did not have the

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common decency, courtesy all respect to condone the fact that nurses, the

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heroes of the NHS, have had a reduction of nearly 14% in their

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wages since 2010 and are using food banks to feed themselves! Does that

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not say everything that is wrong with today's society? So can you

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tell me what it will cost, which is what my question was? What I will

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say is everything the Labour Party pledges, everything that we come out

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with, what we will roll out between now and the 8th of June, will be

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fully costed, people will be very much aware of how much the costings

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will be, where the funding will come from, when the manifesto is

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published. What about doubling paternity leave, nu minimum wage,

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four new bank holidays, any idea what it will

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cost? These are exciting new proposals and of course today cost

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money but we are the sixth richest economy in the world. It is about

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redistribution of the wealth we create. We are seeing growth in the

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economy, it is how we utilise the finances in the best way we possibly

:09:39.:09:41.

can for a fairer society for the many and not the few. You just can't

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tell me how much it will cost? That is why I will repeat again that you

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need to be very patient. Do you know the cost yourself? You are the head

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of the campaign, do you know the cost of these things yourself? I am

:09:57.:10:00.

very much aware of how much the costings are likely to be, they have

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been identified, they will be published in the manifesto. You

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really do understand I would not be releasing today, live on your show,

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any costings or predictions with regards the manifesto. Why not? You

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have released the policy, why not the cost? Because there is a fine

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detail and we will identify it to the general public in the manifesto.

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We not only explain how much it will cost but we will explain where the

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funding comes from. Be patient. Will some of the costs be met by

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increasing taxes? I would think at this point in time there is not any

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indication to increase basic taxes and again the taxes and spending of

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the Labour Government with the proposals of the 20 point plan, the

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issues we have got, housing, the NHS, crime, education will all be

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identified with the costings in the publication. Can you tell us this

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morning, we'll tax for most people rise or not to finance this? We in

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the Labour Party are looking to a fair tax system which will be

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clearly identified in the manifesto. Mr McDonnell also wants to ban all

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0-hours contracts. Would that include those who actually like

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those contracts? There are nearly 1 million, depending on which figured

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you'd use, there are nearly 1 million people on zero-hours

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contract and the vast proportion of those want to be able to live a

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decent life, a secure life, they want to understand whether they will

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be at work the next day, they're included hours... I understand a lot

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of people don't like zero-hours contract and your proposal will

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address that, but there are those, I saw one survey where 65% of people

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on zero-hours contract like the flexibility it gives them. Will you

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force them off zero-hours contract or if they like them will they

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continue with them? We will discuss it with employee is to make sure

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individuals in the workplace have the right to negotiate hours in that

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workplace. Guaranteed hours is very, very important. Zero-hour contracts

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are an instrument in which employers abuse and exploit mainly young

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people, mainly female people in the workplace. We would be banning

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zero-hour contract. But there are those, students for example, who

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like them, would they be forced off zero-hour contracts in your

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proposal? Our proposal would be banning zero-hour contract and

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introducing contracts which have set hours in the workplace. You also say

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no company will be able to bid for a public contract unless the boss

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earns no more than 20 times the lowest paid, or the average wage,

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I'm not quite sure which. What would happen if British Aerospace bids to

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build more joint strike Fighters and the boss is paid more than 20 times?

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I understand the point you raise but we have an obscene situation in this

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country, Andrew, in which the bosses at the very top make an absolute

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fortune... But what would happen then? Who would build joint strike

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Fighters... The difference in wages between the top earners in the

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country and the people in the factories, in the workshops,

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producing the goods, is vast. I understand that is the reason you

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want a ratio. What I am saying is, what happens if the ratio is

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greater? Who gets the contract if not British Aerospace? Who else

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builds the planes? We are going to introduce a wage rate CEO of one to

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20. -- wage ratio. We want to close the gap between the people at the

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very top and people who produce the goods. Let me try one more Time, who

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would build the joint strike fighter? We would look at the issue

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as it came along but the policy is clear... Can you name a single

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defence contractor weather boss' salary is less than 20 times average

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earnings? We are not reducing, we have rolled that out as part of this

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fantastic plan to transform society to get rid of discrimination, to try

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and bring together our communities. We will introduce a pay ratio of one

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to 20. Fair enough, thank you very much.

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It's a month after the triggering of Article 50, and EU leaders -

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with the exception of Britain - met in Brussels this weekend

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to agree their opening negotiating stance, to get the divorce

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It is inside this psychedelic chamber where Britain's 'Grexit'

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future will be decided over the next two years, but there is a vast gulf

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in rhetoric coming from the UK and the EU. With parallel narratives

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emerging for both sides. There is broad agreement that an orderly

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withdrawal is in the interests of both sides. But Theresa May's

:15:33.:15:37.

position is that the terms of our future trade deal should be

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negotiated alongside the terms of our divorce. Meanwhile the EU says

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the terms of the UK's exit must be decided before any discussion on a

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future trade deal can begin. But don't forget that divorce

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settlement. Don't remind me. In Brussels, many think written should

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pay even more, while in the UK ministers said the divorce bill

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should be capped at 3 billion. After you. Thank you.

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For are you looking forward to it? Isn't that divorce bill a bit high?

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Isn't this about punishing Britain? We are very united, you all seem so

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surprised but it's a fact. How soon can we get a deal? We have to wait

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for the elections. It was the decision of Mrs May. It took over an

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hour for the leaders to make their entrances but once inside it's just

:16:38.:16:40.

a few minutes to agree the negotiating guidelines. They set out

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three main areas. The first phase of talks on the divorce settlement will

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deal with the existing financial commitments to the EU, the Northern

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Ireland border and the rights of EU citizens in the UK. They said a UK

:16:54.:16:58.

trade agreement can be discussed when the first phase of talks

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reaches significant progress. And that there must be unity in the

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negotiations, that individual EU members won't negotiate separately

:17:08.:17:13.

with the UK. They are quite good here at negotiating because they are

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used to it. They set a maximum and then they have to recede a little

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bit depending on what the other side is prepared to offer. I think there

:17:22.:17:28.

is room for manoeuvre in some issues, but I don't think some of

:17:29.:17:31.

the baseline things will change that much. For example I don't think the

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European Union will concede on the rights of citizens who are already

:17:38.:17:41.

in the UK. It will be very difficult for them to accept that they will

:17:42.:17:48.

not be any exit bill, and the question of Northern Ireland is very

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important as well, the hard order question. The baseline things are

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not going to move that much, then you have room for manoeuvring

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between. On security, defence and the fight against terrorism, the

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guidelines said the EU stands ready to work together. And after lunch,

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friendly signs from some EU leaders as they gave individual press

:18:09.:18:13.

conferences. Paul and said the talks should open doors to new

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opportunities and even German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who had

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earlier said some in Britain were deluded about Brexit, softened her

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tone saying there was no conspiracy against the UK. Unity was the

:18:27.:18:30.

buzzword at this summit and for once everybody seemed to be sticking to

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the script. That unity is not only amongst the 27 states, it's also

:18:36.:18:39.

among the institutions so many of the divisions we have seen in the

:18:40.:18:45.

past at European level do not exist. That is very important and it's not

:18:46.:18:49.

be unity that is directed somehow against the UK because I think we

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all want this to be an orderly process and part of that is that the

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EU side is unified. So although there are no surprises here, what

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took place in this room was a significant step towards the real

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Brexit negotiations which will begin soon after the general election in

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June, said to be the most complex the UK has faced in our lifetimes.

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Isabel, Steve and Tom are still with me.

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Isabel, doesn't the British media have to be a bit careful here? We

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would never take at face value anything a British politician tells

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us. We would question it, put it in context and wonder if they are

:19:41.:19:44.

bluffing, but we seem to take at face value anything a European

:19:45.:19:48.

politician says about these negotiations. You only have to look

:19:49.:19:52.

at the front page of the Sunday Times today to see that. They quoted

:19:53.:19:57.

at length Juncker, who didn't like the food at the reception and this

:19:58.:20:02.

and that, and I think the mood is very optimistic. The key thing is

:20:03.:20:06.

the EU trade Commissioner has said we will get a free trade deal and a

:20:07.:20:11.

lot of people seem to be wilfully ignoring that incredibly big

:20:12.:20:14.

concession. That is what will happen in their view. Everything that is

:20:15.:20:21.

said at the moment needs a slight rerun over. They are all in

:20:22.:20:26.

negotiating positions, plus we seem to be completely unaware that they

:20:27.:20:29.

all have their own domestic constituencies as well. Angela

:20:30.:20:35.

Merkel has an important election coming up in September,

:20:36.:20:37.

Euroscepticism is quite different from Britain of course, but there's

:20:38.:20:42.

a different kind of euro scepticism in Germany, she has got to deal with

:20:43.:20:46.

that. Of course she has, which is why you are right, nothing should be

:20:47.:20:50.

taken too seriously out of the mouths of British politicians or

:20:51.:20:56.

European politicians until October this year. We have got to wait for

:20:57.:21:00.

the French elections, then German elections, and if you look through

:21:01.:21:05.

this you can see a way forward. There's no trade talks until pay up,

:21:06.:21:10.

but what was actually written was no trade talks until we make

:21:11.:21:14.

significant progress on the money. You can define significant progress

:21:15.:21:18.

in a lot of ways but come December, fireworks over the summer, we all

:21:19.:21:24.

get very excited about it, in these chairs I'm sure, come December

:21:25.:21:27.

things will look a lot smoother. The German elections are at the end of

:21:28.:21:32.

September but I've seen reports in German press, depending how it goes

:21:33.:21:35.

it could take until Christmas before a new coalition government is put

:21:36.:21:42.

together. The Brussels long-standing negotiating tactic of nothing is

:21:43.:21:45.

agreed until everything is agreed, then I guess the British could say

:21:46.:21:50.

we agree a certain sum of money if that's what it takes but that

:21:51.:21:54.

depends on them, what good trade deal we get. If we don't get that,

:21:55.:22:00.

the sum of money is off the table. In that sense, the two are going

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parallel. However, I wouldn't entirely dismiss what people are

:22:06.:22:09.

saying in their pre-election periods to their own electorates because

:22:10.:22:15.

they have to some extent to deliver subsequently. Of course Angela

:22:16.:22:19.

Merkel is campaigning and electioneering, who wouldn't, she

:22:20.:22:23.

has a tough election to fight, but she is measured and thoughtful and

:22:24.:22:27.

when she says things like some of the British are delusional, that is

:22:28.:22:31.

unusually strong language for her. What was she referring to? I don't

:22:32.:22:38.

know, it wasn't specific. Have the cake and eat it perhaps the

:22:39.:22:42.

sequencing the British don't want. When they thought the British

:22:43.:22:46.

government was going to effectively demand membership of the single

:22:47.:22:49.

market, that's not going to happen now. Unless you sign up to the four

:22:50.:22:57.

pillars, that's the cake and eat it proposition, which they are right in

:22:58.:23:02.

saying Theresa May has made. But everybody has access, even with no

:23:03.:23:07.

deal you have access. The other side of it is I think there will be a

:23:08.:23:16.

united position from them. And so, as somebody pointed out in that

:23:17.:23:22.

report, they are experienced, tough negotiators, so I don't think it

:23:23.:23:30.

will be quite as easy as some think. I spoke to one of those who drew up

:23:31.:23:36.

Article 50 and they said to me they deliberately put this two year

:23:37.:23:39.

timetable in to make it impossible for anybody to think about leaving.

:23:40.:23:46.

This is really tight, this negotiation. Easy, it isn't.

:23:47.:23:49.

This coming Thursday, voters up and down the country

:23:50.:23:51.

will be going to the polls in this year's local elections.

:23:52.:23:54.

Over the past few weeks I've interviewed representatives

:23:55.:23:56.

of the Conservative Party, Labour, the Liberal Democrats,

:23:57.:23:58.

Today it's the turn of Plaid Cymru and the SNP.

:23:59.:24:01.

A little earlier I spoke Alex Salmond, who until 2014

:24:02.:24:04.

I started by asking him why Scots should vote SNP in local elections

:24:05.:24:08.

when the Scottish Government had just cut central Government funding

:24:09.:24:11.

It's actually a funding increase going into Scottish councils this

:24:12.:24:27.

year, and if you look at the funding position for example between

:24:28.:24:30.

Scottish councils and those in England, which are obviously

:24:31.:24:33.

directly related through the Barnett formula, the funding in Scotland has

:24:34.:24:37.

been incomparably better than that in England so there's a whole range

:24:38.:24:48.

of the -- of reasons... What's happening south of the border

:24:49.:24:51.

indicates the protection the Scottish Parliament has been able to

:24:52.:24:55.

put in that helps vital services in Scotland. But there hasn't been a

:24:56.:25:00.

funding increase, the block grant from Westminster to Edinburgh was

:25:01.:25:04.

increased by 1.5% in real terms but the grant to councils was cut by

:25:05.:25:11.

2.6%. It was going to be a cut of 330 million, the Greens got you to

:25:12.:25:16.

reduce it to 170 million but it is still a cut of 2.6%. Your own

:25:17.:25:26.

Aberdeenshire Council has had a cut to 391 million. You have cut the

:25:27.:25:31.

money to councils. Yes, but councils have available to them more

:25:32.:25:34.

resources this year, and as you say the budget increased that further

:25:35.:25:40.

which is why we put forward an excellent local government budget in

:25:41.:25:42.

Aberdeenshire and resisted a Tory attempts to knock ?3 million off...

:25:43.:25:49.

You asked me about Aberdeenshire, and Aberdeenshire has put forward a

:25:50.:25:53.

budget for investment expansion and resisted a Tory attempts to knock ?3

:25:54.:25:58.

million off the education budget, and I'm very grateful you have given

:25:59.:26:02.

me the opportunity to make that point. The Government in Edinburgh

:26:03.:26:08.

has cut the money to Aberdeenshire by ?11 million. It is a cut. But

:26:09.:26:14.

there is an investment budget in Aberdeenshire that has been made

:26:15.:26:17.

available by the ability to increase the council tax by 2.5% after a

:26:18.:26:23.

nine-year freeze in Scotland, and that has brought more resources into

:26:24.:26:27.

local government and that's why the butchered in Aberdeenshire has been

:26:28.:26:31.

an investment budget including protection of the education budget

:26:32.:26:35.

in the face of a Tory and liberal attempt to cut bit. You have to

:26:36.:26:40.

compare what is happening in Scotland and England, and there's no

:26:41.:26:43.

doubt Scottish local authorities have been much better funded than

:26:44.:26:49.

those in England over the last few years and that's been the ability of

:26:50.:26:51.

the Scottish Government to protect the services at local level. A good

:26:52.:26:57.

reason for voting SNP. If they have been so well funded, why after a

:26:58.:27:03.

decade of SNP rule do one in five Scottish pupils leave primary school

:27:04.:27:11.

functionally illiterate? You have got to take these things... Nicola

:27:12.:27:15.

Sturgeon has made it a top priority to address these challenges but

:27:16.:27:20.

let's take another statistic. 93% of Scottish kids are now emerging from

:27:21.:27:23.

school to positive destinations, that means to further education,

:27:24.:27:31.

apprenticeships or work. Why are one in five functionally illiterate? You

:27:32.:27:37.

argue one statistic, I'm arguing Scottish education is putting in

:27:38.:27:41.

some substantially good performances like the 93% going on to positive

:27:42.:27:46.

destinations. You can't have a failing education system if you have

:27:47.:27:51.

got that 93%, and incidentally a record low youth unemployment in

:27:52.:27:55.

Scotland without the second lowest unemployment rate in Europe. These

:27:56.:28:00.

pupils are being prepared by the Scottish education system. Let's

:28:01.:28:05.

take the figures in the round on education. It's so important. Under

:28:06.:28:09.

your watch, under your government, the Scottish schools in the most

:28:10.:28:14.

important global comparison have fallen from tenth to 19th in

:28:15.:28:25.

science, and 11 to 24th in maths, that is a record of decline and

:28:26.:28:32.

failure. That is by the OECD and first questions about that, but the

:28:33.:28:37.

OECD has also described Scotland is one of the best educated societies

:28:38.:28:42.

in the world. That was from the school system in previous years gone

:28:43.:28:47.

by. For those who are currently in Scottish schools, you have fallen

:28:48.:28:53.

from 11th to 24th in mathematics. The OECD was commenting on

:28:54.:28:56.

introduction of the new curriculum for excellence in which they have

:28:57.:29:00.

given a resounding thumbs up to it, and that's the same source as the

:29:01.:29:05.

rankings which you are comparing. Nicola Sturgeon has said there are

:29:06.:29:09.

challenges on Scottish education, particularly the access through the

:29:10.:29:13.

education system and the attainment gap but don't tell me it's failing

:29:14.:29:17.

when 55% of our pupils have gone on to higher education. That's one of

:29:18.:29:20.

the most impressive figures in the world. Why have you cut 4000

:29:21.:29:28.

teachers? The pupil numbers in Scotland have been falling over

:29:29.:29:31.

recent years as well and now of course we are increasing the number

:29:32.:29:35.

of people going through teachers training so we can make sure that

:29:36.:29:39.

number increases, but listen, the Scottish Government and Scottish

:29:40.:29:44.

Parliament, as you very well know, are subject to real terms spending

:29:45.:29:48.

cuts over the last few years and all public services have been under

:29:49.:29:52.

pressure. The main reason in terms of teacher numbers has been an

:29:53.:29:55.

attempt on the Scottish Government to protect the teacher pupil ratio,

:29:56.:30:00.

and that will now be enhanced by a further taker -- intake. You

:30:01.:30:08.

promised you would reduce primary class sizes to 18 and instead they

:30:09.:30:14.

are now 23.5 and rising. You broke that promise. You didn't mention

:30:15.:30:20.

where we started from. We have kept the teacher pupil ratio very solid

:30:21.:30:24.

in Scotland and that's been against a range of public expenditure cuts

:30:25.:30:29.

but the new intake of teachers into the new teacher training in Scotland

:30:30.:30:30.

I think will enhance the system. You have spent in the pasty in

:30:31.:30:41.

Hollywood 43 hours on Government time debating independence. How many

:30:42.:30:46.

hours have you debated education on Government time? I don't have that

:30:47.:30:51.

they get a hand... The answer is zero, you have spent zero-hours

:30:52.:30:55.

debating education on Government time. Isn't it time the SNP got back

:30:56.:31:01.

to concentrating on the day job? Andrew, as you very well know Nicola

:31:02.:31:05.

Sturgeon has identified a key priority, closing the attainment gap

:31:06.:31:09.

in Scottish education. That is exactly what she has done. Let me

:31:10.:31:14.

answer the question, it is difficult to be in a remote location, if you

:31:15.:31:19.

talk before I answer the question then the view was will not be able

:31:20.:31:26.

to listen. I let you answer that without saying a word. Is this

:31:27.:31:30.

general election about independence, as you say it is, or not about

:31:31.:31:35.

independence, as Mrs Sturgeon says it is? No, I have said exactly the

:31:36.:31:41.

same as Nicola Sturgeon on that. The issue what independence will be

:31:42.:31:44.

decided in a national referendum of the Scottish people. The mandate for

:31:45.:31:49.

that referendum was gained in last year's Scottish elections. What this

:31:50.:31:54.

election is about is backing the right of the Scottish parliament to

:31:55.:31:57.

exercise that mandate and also providing real opposition to this

:31:58.:31:59.

Tory Government and allowing the Scottish Parliament to reverse

:32:00.:32:05.

austerity and some of the public expenditure cutbacks you have been

:32:06.:32:09.

talking about, that is what this is about, backing our Scottish

:32:10.:32:10.

Parliament. Alex Salmond, speaking

:32:11.:32:12.

to me earlier. I'm now joined by the leader

:32:13.:32:13.

of Plaid Cymru, Leanne Wood. You accuse the Government of wanting

:32:14.:32:20.

an extreme Brexit, those are your words. What is the difference

:32:21.:32:25.

between hard Brexit and extreme Brexit? My concern is the way in

:32:26.:32:28.

which we leave the European Union could be very damaging to Wales if,

:32:29.:32:33.

for example, there are tariffs introduced then that would have a

:32:34.:32:37.

real impact in terms of Welsh jobs, and I want to make sure that we have

:32:38.:32:43.

a Brexit that doesn't cause the damage to Wales that could be

:32:44.:32:47.

caused. But what is the difference between extreme and hard? Anything

:32:48.:32:53.

that puts Welsh jobs at risk is either extreme or hard and

:32:54.:32:56.

unacceptable to Plaid Cymru, and we will do what we can to protect those

:32:57.:33:00.

jobs. You want Wales to remain a member of the single market even if

:33:01.:33:05.

the UK isn't, which would mean Wales having to accept the free movement

:33:06.:33:09.

of people, still being under the jurisdiction of the European Court,

:33:10.:33:21.

and you also want to stay in the customs union which means you could

:33:22.:33:23.

not do your own free trade deals. What is the difference between that

:33:24.:33:26.

and being a member of the European Union? We would be like Norway,

:33:27.:33:28.

outside the European Union and inside the single market. The key

:33:29.:33:31.

question is the issue of jobs and the ability to continue to trade.

:33:32.:33:35.

Wales exports, we are the biggest exporter in the whole of the UK, so

:33:36.:33:39.

there are many jobs reliant upon those goods being able to be sold to

:33:40.:33:48.

the single market. Is it central to the UK? Out of the four countries

:33:49.:33:53.

that make up the UK... Proportionally, yes. If you remain

:33:54.:34:01.

in the single market, it is hard to see how Wales could stay in the

:34:02.:34:05.

single market if the UK -- when the rest of the UK was not, you cite

:34:06.:34:10.

Norway, that has free movement, it has to be said, it effectively have

:34:11.:34:15.

to accept the jurisdiction of the European Court, it is not in the

:34:16.:34:19.

customs union so it can do some of its own free trade deals, but the

:34:20.:34:27.

Welsh people voted to leave. We have to accept the principle of free

:34:28.:34:31.

movement if there is not going to be a hard border between the north and

:34:32.:34:35.

south of Ireland. There is going to be free movement within Ireland and

:34:36.:34:39.

therefore freedom of movement, as we said in the referendum campaign,

:34:40.:34:45.

would be very, very difficult to rule out. You lost that campaign, as

:34:46.:34:50.

you know, Wales voted to leave, 17 Council areas voted to leave, only

:34:51.:34:56.

five voted to remain. Doesn't it explain why your party is going

:34:57.:35:01.

nowhere? A majority in Wales voted to leave but you effectively want to

:35:02.:35:07.

support that and de facto remain in the EU? I don't accept that, we

:35:08.:35:11.

accepted the result but Plaid Cymru now is about defending Wales. There

:35:12.:35:16.

are so many risks facing our people from the jobs perspective, the

:35:17.:35:20.

privatisation perspective, the cuts perspective, and from the fact that

:35:21.:35:24.

the Tories would like to grab power was back from our National Assembly,

:35:25.:35:29.

so the key point... If you look at the Wales bill that went through

:35:30.:35:33.

recently, the list of reserved powers there suggests there are some

:35:34.:35:37.

powers currently within the Welsh Assembly jurisdiction that would be

:35:38.:35:44.

dragged back. Which power was will Westminster take back? They could

:35:45.:35:48.

take powers back over the NHS, for example. There is no indication they

:35:49.:35:55.

want to do that. The Tories have attacked the Welsh NHS. That is my

:35:56.:36:05.

point! Quite viciously. If they increase their mandate, I wouldn't

:36:06.:36:08.

put it past them to try to take power was back over the NHS and then

:36:09.:36:12.

of course we risk our NHS being privatised though this election is

:36:13.:36:17.

all about defending Wales, protecting Welsh people from further

:36:18.:36:20.

privatisation and cuts and a power grab from the Tories. Why is there

:36:21.:36:25.

never a breakthrough for your party, Plaid Cymru? Labour dominated in

:36:26.:36:29.

Wales for years, the Tories do quite well, Ukip had a surge for a while,

:36:30.:36:34.

it looks like the Tories will have another surge, never you, always the

:36:35.:36:39.

bridesmaid, never the bride. Wait until Thursday and I think you will

:36:40.:36:42.

see that in many parts of Wales we will increase our representation at

:36:43.:36:46.

a local council level. In the Rhondda, where I am assembly member,

:36:47.:36:52.

we are looking to increase our representation... You are only 13%

:36:53.:37:00.

in the polls will stop which is half of even the Tories in Wales! If you

:37:01.:37:04.

don't breakthrough in the selection, if the real problem is going

:37:05.:37:11.

nowhere, do you think you will pack it in? Robert Green not, I have a

:37:12.:37:17.

job to do, a vision of Wales which is about building up our nation and

:37:18.:37:21.

standing on our own two feet and my job is not done yet. Thank you for

:37:22.:37:25.

being with us as part of your job, we will see how it goes on Thursday.

:37:26.:37:29.

It's just gone 11.35, you're watching the Sunday Politics.

:37:30.:37:31.

We say goodbye to viewers in Scotland who leave us now

:37:32.:37:33.

The election's in full swing as the Prime Minister

:37:34.:37:45.

But what impact is she having on voters here?

:37:46.:37:51.

Theresa, is it May, I don't know if she's got much idea of what she's

:37:52.:37:55.

And there's another election this week, when voters take to the polls

:37:56.:38:04.

to decide who will run our county councils - we've a special report

:38:05.:38:07.

Across the county, the battle lines are drawn.

:38:08.:38:13.

Will Labour be overrun or will the Tories' dreams be left in ruins?

:38:14.:38:22.

My guests this week - Anna Soubry is the Conservative MP for Broxtowe

:38:23.:38:26.

and Vernon Coaker is the Labour MP for Gedling.

:38:27.:38:29.

Well, Anna the papers are full of the EU telling

:38:30.:38:35.

Theresa May that her strategy of trade first in the Brexit

:38:36.:38:38.

It's worrying that they feel like that at this stage. We've made it

:38:39.:38:54.

clear, and I think the EU also accepts that it is all part of the

:38:55.:38:59.

package. I listen to the interview with the Prime Minister this one.

:39:00.:39:03.

She said that she wants a good striker. That will be part of

:39:04.:39:07.

sorting out any excellent payments. -- she once a good trade deal.

:39:08.:39:13.

They want us to pay the money we owe Brussels and sort out

:39:14.:39:16.

I don't think that they have said we should pay at first. They said we

:39:17.:39:28.

should agree at first. The thing on EU citizens is absolutely right.

:39:29.:39:31.

There is no difficulty with the Government there, I think. The

:39:32.:39:39.

trade agreement. Rather the EU does. trade agreement. Rather the EU does.

:39:40.:39:43.

election, many good things about the election, many good things about the

:39:44.:39:46.

forthcoming general election, it will extend the amount of time left

:39:47.:39:50.

to the Prime Minister to make sure that if we need to extend the no

:39:51.:39:53.

cogitations beyond two years then she's got the time to do that. --

:39:54.:40:00.

the negotiations beyond two years. She's also got time for transitional

:40:01.:40:02.

negotiations. Your opinions can be at odds

:40:03.:40:06.

with others in your party. Vernon, you resigned

:40:07.:40:16.

from Jeremy Corbyn's Shadow Cabinet, now you're telling us to vote

:40:17.:40:18.

to make him Prime Minister. Not really. People knew my position

:40:19.:40:28.

about Jeremy Corbyn. Now I am contending with everybody in the

:40:29.:40:32.

general and council elections to vote Labour. People see the choices

:40:33.:40:35.

that are there and we've been talking about Brexit. We saw the

:40:36.:40:41.

Prime Minister this one. It's very unclear what is going to happen in

:40:42.:40:45.

the discussions with the European Union. There could us that they will

:40:46.:40:52.

be tough about that. I think in the circumstances it's important to have

:40:53.:40:54.

Labour MPs in a stronger position working with people like Anna. -- in

:40:55.:41:06.

extra on opposition. So that Theresa May doesn't have a budget. And you

:41:07.:41:13.

will be opposition, want you? We have to see which records. It's

:41:14.:41:16.

really important that rather the opposition is that they are strong.

:41:17.:41:21.

The Government have to be held to account. That is important

:41:22.:41:25.

particularly in the run-up to Brexit negotiations. We don't want a hard

:41:26.:41:31.

Brexit. It's about jobs, industry, the rights of people that of you.

:41:32.:41:35.

The Labour Party have said that they would immediately guarantee the

:41:36.:41:40.

rights of EU nationals already have. It doesn't sound like you expect of

:41:41.:41:45.

them, though. The pollster deflector. We have an awful lot of

:41:46.:41:47.

work to do. A sign of the difficulties you face

:41:48.:41:49.

is you've had to step aside this week from Open Britain,

:41:50.:41:52.

which promotes a soft Brexit, now in reality you've got to fight

:41:53.:41:54.

for whatever type of No, no, no. Absolutely not. First of

:41:55.:42:10.

all, Theresa May made it clear that she wants this election to

:42:11.:42:15.

strengthen our hand. She's also made it clear she does not want a hard

:42:16.:42:20.

Brexit. She wants a deal. I agree with her. The next thing about open

:42:21.:42:25.

Britain, the reason I stepped away from it is because quite without any

:42:26.:42:29.

consultation they chosen to back certain candidates which placed

:42:30.:42:34.

those candidates in direct opposition to friends and colleagues

:42:35.:42:38.

of mine. Two in particular I was horrified... So I get you to do

:42:39.:42:44.

that? Absolutely. That's why it made it clear to them that I think that

:42:45.:42:52.

Open Britain has lost the plot. The most important thing is that we get

:42:53.:42:56.

out and we make the case, whichever point of view might have. Most

:42:57.:43:05.

people that I speak to, I'd be campaigning for the county averages

:43:06.:43:08.

for ages. They are bored with Brexit. They are worried about the

:43:09.:43:12.

outcomes, though. I'm sure they are. From now until June the 8th,

:43:13.:43:18.

there'll be no escaping the politicians out

:43:19.:43:21.

to grab your vote. But what are the big issues

:43:22.:43:23.

that might affect us From low wages to problems

:43:24.:43:25.

in the NHS, there are a lot of challenges in our region

:43:26.:43:29.

for whoever wins the election. Our political editor, Tony Roe,

:43:30.:43:31.

has been casting his eye over them. On the campaign trail in Derbyshire

:43:32.:43:34.

at a roofing company in Clay Cross, IKO Polymeric has been in business

:43:35.:43:37.

across Europe for over 40 years. How that trade works

:43:38.:43:40.

after Brexit will be down What businesses are looking

:43:41.:43:42.

for is certainty, so a clear direction of travel from Brexit,

:43:43.:43:53.

what will be details of those Brexit negotiations be,

:43:54.:43:58.

particularly around trade deals, It results in investment and that

:43:59.:44:01.

results in job creation. Theresa May was on a quick stop-off

:44:02.:44:10.

in the most marginal Labour seat in the East Midlands,

:44:11.:44:13.

North East Derbyshire. New businesses have brought

:44:14.:44:21.

a new kind of employment to former mining communities which used to be

:44:22.:44:24.

Labour strongholds. Linney in Mansfield started

:44:25.:44:26.

as a book shop in the town Now it's a digital marketing company

:44:27.:44:29.

with over 800 staff and is one If you worked down a pit, you could

:44:30.:44:33.

see the coal was running out. People just did what people do,

:44:34.:44:39.

they make other arrangements. The town is full of great people

:44:40.:44:42.

and we're still here. Mansfield has a high level

:44:43.:44:45.

of economically inactive - almost 14,000 - that's

:44:46.:44:52.

people of working age Almost half are defined

:44:53.:44:54.

as long-term sick. Figures like that perhaps go some

:44:55.:44:57.

way to explaining the East Midlands' The Prime Minister says

:44:58.:45:00.

Conservatives are the party That's a phrase coined

:45:01.:45:04.

by Harold Macmillan 60 years ago. Labour, meanwhile,

:45:05.:45:13.

say they are the party What they say and what they dish out

:45:14.:45:14.

is two different things. Every party says the same thing

:45:15.:45:22.

but in a different way. They're going to make

:45:23.:45:25.

changes, change that, They were voted out

:45:26.:45:38.

Because Theresa May, I don't know if she's got much idea

:45:39.:45:43.

This week, Leicester's new ?48 million accident

:45:44.:45:50.

and emergency department opened, an investment in the NHS which it's

:45:51.:45:52.

Labour also revealed plans this week they say will increase morale

:45:53.:45:56.

They've promised to raise the wages of NHS staff and also reintroduce

:45:57.:46:00.

training bursaries for nursing staff which were scrapped

:46:01.:46:02.

The Royal College of Nursing says a shortage of nurses and the effects

:46:03.:46:10.

of Brexit on recruitment are of grave concern.

:46:11.:46:17.

Surely the people that are here from other EU nations,

:46:18.:46:20.

that trusts have worked really hard to bring over to fill the shortages

:46:21.:46:23.

here, surely it's time that those people need certainty

:46:24.:46:25.

about their future employment rights.

:46:26.:46:26.

Employers are between a rock and a hard place at the moment

:46:27.:46:29.

knowing how on earth they're going to fill the vacancies

:46:30.:46:31.

Economic growth has slowed significantly this year,

:46:32.:46:36.

with prices up and people not spending as much

:46:37.:46:38.

The Lib Dems have seized on this, saying the Brexit squeeze

:46:39.:46:43.

is beginning to bite and they say a hard Brexit will leave

:46:44.:46:46.

You met Theresa May this week and you've been talking

:46:47.:46:55.

How's the general election playing out in the East Midlands?

:46:56.:47:03.

It'll be interesting to see whether Theresa May does what she says she

:47:04.:47:09.

enjoys doing, going on to the doorsteps and meeting people. There

:47:10.:47:13.

was no sense of that disease interpreter. She came to a factory

:47:14.:47:18.

which was pretty empty. -- there was no sense that this weekend option.

:47:19.:47:22.

We got one question each. But much every chance to interrogate her

:47:23.:47:27.

about any issues you. -- not much of a chance. She is taking flak from

:47:28.:47:33.

some of the parties that she start talking to ordinarily people. We've

:47:34.:47:40.

not had laboured here yet. I imagine if Jeremy Corbyn comes he will come

:47:41.:47:46.

to somewhere like Derby. Mansell put it yesterday and he got a May Day

:47:47.:47:55.

rally but I recognise the crowd. How do you tackle these issues, is it on

:47:56.:48:00.

the agenda? Low productivity has been a big problem which has been

:48:01.:48:05.

difficult to solve. When I used to be the Business Minister we looked

:48:06.:48:08.

at it. The new industrial strategy, tries to drill into it. It is to

:48:09.:48:14.

accommodated and there are many different factors to what causes it

:48:15.:48:22.

and what he can do to sorted. Mansell, like many errors in our --

:48:23.:48:31.

Everest in our country. With all these communities that have had

:48:32.:48:35.

generation upon generation of not working, lack of aspiration and so

:48:36.:48:41.

on. Normally in labour Everest. -- labour Everest. That is right

:48:42.:48:47.

apprenticeship training is so of water. I always argued for a change

:48:48.:48:55.

in the rating systems so that when businesses invested in new machinery

:48:56.:49:00.

they didn't get penalised. Is the Government doing enough on this? The

:49:01.:49:06.

Government isn't doing enough but there is a challenge for

:49:07.:49:12.

governments. It is interesting about Nottinghamshire. One of the pledges

:49:13.:49:16.

of the Labour Party in Nottinghamshire, they will do more

:49:17.:49:20.

to generate the skill base that we need three apprenticeships and

:49:21.:49:25.

vocational training. Through working with the agencies. -- we need

:49:26.:49:35.

apprentices. It is being good to see Labour in Nottinghamshire promising

:49:36.:49:38.

that as one of their specific collection pledges. Places like

:49:39.:49:47.

manslaughter to ageing. The big employer, maybe that's changed from

:49:48.:49:51.

the coal-mining history. -- places like Mansfield are changing. Maybe

:49:52.:49:57.

this is why Labour are struggling in these traditional strongholds. We

:49:58.:50:02.

are speaking to vote and thing we want to give people the opportunity

:50:03.:50:05.

and chance to work in these new jobs. Talking about his new jobs,

:50:06.:50:10.

bringing the new investment in. Investment by the Government and

:50:11.:50:15.

using investment more effectively in service like -- into areas like

:50:16.:50:23.

that. It is about raising aspiration in these communities. Donny, what is

:50:24.:50:29.

your sense of how the other parties are putting the election? Lib Dems

:50:30.:50:32.

clearly feel they can take them sit clearly feel they can take them sit

:50:33.:50:39.

in -- some seats in Leicestershire. Lobbies

:50:40.:50:45.

for anything after Brexit? This will for anything after Brexit? This will

:50:46.:50:54.

be crucial. Who is the party for working people? Both parties are

:50:55.:50:56.

positioning themselves as that. That's traditionally a Labour claim,

:50:57.:51:02.

can you really make it? The Tories have always wanted to

:51:03.:51:12.

represent everybody, not interested as to their background, just where

:51:13.:51:15.

they are going. I've been knocking on doors for months now. The thing

:51:16.:51:23.

that is really, really striking is that Labour has a real problem with

:51:24.:51:27.

its working-class, whatever that means. Most people get what that

:51:28.:51:35.

means. They find themselves unable, understandably, to back Jeremy

:51:36.:51:41.

Corbyn. It's a challenge for all parties with specific parts of the

:51:42.:51:46.

electorate. There is a challenge from Labour to ensure that people

:51:47.:51:49.

understand its policies and believe in them. That is why, alongside

:51:50.:51:58.

other parties, we are canvassing across the whole of Nottinghamshire

:51:59.:52:00.

and these midlands. People are and these midlands. People are

:52:01.:52:04.

saying to people, listen to what we are saying, listen to what Labour is

:52:05.:52:11.

actually saying and offering to the working class. George ours on what

:52:12.:52:15.

we are saying and not what you were being told. -- George ours. In 2016,

:52:16.:52:29.

we heard it was going to be really bad from Labour. It didn't turn out

:52:30.:52:31.

as bad as people were saying. Well, of course, there is another

:52:32.:52:37.

election going on at the moment - voters will go to the polls this

:52:38.:52:40.

Thursday to decide who runs All of the seats in Nottinghamshire,

:52:41.:52:43.

Derbyshire, Leicestershire The closest fight is expected to be

:52:44.:52:46.

in Nottinghamshire. Labour are in charge here,

:52:47.:52:52.

but there's no overall control - they have 32 seats, two short

:52:53.:52:55.

of the number needed for a majority. In Derbyshire, Labour have

:52:56.:52:58.

an overall majority of ten seats. In Leicestershire, the Conservatives

:52:59.:53:02.

have a majority of three. In Lincolnshire, there's

:53:03.:53:04.

no overall control, but the Conservatives

:53:05.:53:06.

are the largest party with 36 seats. With the county council

:53:07.:53:08.

elections coming so close to a general election, the results

:53:09.:53:10.

will be watched carefully. Our political reporter, Peter Saull,

:53:11.:53:12.

has been taking a look at the battle From the Civil War to the miners'

:53:13.:53:15.

strikes, Nottingham has often And these county council

:53:16.:53:21.

elections are no different. Labour is besieged on all

:53:22.:53:29.

sides and the Tories This is what Nottinghamshire

:53:30.:53:33.

could be like. The local Conservative leader thinks

:53:34.:53:39.

tearing down part of County Hall I completely trust the Conservatives

:53:40.:53:41.

to manage things in a proper, We need to raise the profile of this

:53:42.:53:48.

council, we need to raise the profile of the county

:53:49.:53:56.

across England, start We've done this once

:53:57.:53:58.

and I know we can do it again. Also on the attack,

:53:59.:54:02.

the Liberal Democrats, hoping for an anti-Brexit surge

:54:03.:54:04.

from the south of the Trent. We're the one party

:54:05.:54:06.

that support Remain. It's not only about that,

:54:07.:54:12.

it's also about education and making sure that we have an education

:54:13.:54:15.

system that suits everybody, It's about making sure

:54:16.:54:17.

that we have good social care, which at the moment is being

:54:18.:54:24.

absolutely starved of funding. People are ready

:54:25.:54:26.

to vote differently. The Lib Dems have new

:54:27.:54:27.

allies in the Greens. They've agreed not to stand

:54:28.:54:30.

against each other in one area. The Lib Dems and the Green party,

:54:31.:54:35.

be sure quite a lot of policies, so we thought it makes sense to do

:54:36.:54:38.

a pact, so voters don't have to consider voting either Green

:54:39.:54:42.

or the Lib Dems if they agree To the west, along

:54:43.:54:45.

the Nottinghamshire coalfield, unruly bands of independents

:54:46.:54:52.

are planning more raids. One day I might agree

:54:53.:54:59.

with a Conservative point of view, another day with the Labour

:55:00.:55:01.

point of view. I can vote whichever way

:55:02.:55:03.

I want, whichever I think And don't forget Ukip,

:55:04.:55:06.

looking to make inroads Locally, we've been very strong

:55:07.:55:09.

in the past, we are representing people whose voice aren't heard

:55:10.:55:12.

in the other parties, people are fed up of paying more

:55:13.:55:15.

and more and receiving less services and it's about time we give them

:55:16.:55:18.

a decent opposition. When under attack, the key

:55:19.:55:20.

is to hold firm and staunchly I'm confident that we can do

:55:21.:55:23.

well in these elections. We don't take anything

:55:24.:55:34.

for granted but the response I'm confident that Nottinghamshire

:55:35.:55:37.

will return a Labour county council. People are very concerned

:55:38.:55:40.

about the future of their local services and they know that we've

:55:41.:55:43.

had for years, we've delivered and that their services

:55:44.:55:51.

are safe in our hands. Across the county,

:55:52.:55:56.

the battle lines are drawn. The Labour be overrun or will

:55:57.:56:00.

the Toriess dreams be left in ruins? And I can assure you that

:56:01.:56:06.

Newark Castle was not harmed in any way during the making

:56:07.:56:09.

of that report. As Peter mentioned, there

:56:10.:56:13.

are independents standing in several parts of Nottinghamshire,

:56:14.:56:16.

including the Ashfield Independents group and the Hucknall

:56:17.:56:17.

First Community Forum. It's easy to forget

:56:18.:56:19.

these county council Pretty vital for Labour,

:56:20.:56:21.

what does it mean if you do as badly I agree. We are confident the devil

:56:22.:56:42.

do well. Just a couple of months ago, one of the worst county council

:56:43.:56:48.

meetings, the Conservatives proposed an amendment that would have got

:56:49.:56:53.

money going to adult social care and 1.5 million to children and young

:56:54.:56:58.

people services. -- one of the first county council. That's what it will

:56:59.:57:03.

mean. The Nottinghamshire Tories joining in and adding the cuts. That

:57:04.:57:08.

is the choice people have got. That is what people will vote this

:57:09.:57:16.

Thursday. We didn't vote for your budget, we proposed own budget,

:57:17.:57:21.

which are devoted against. It was an extra 3% on the social care precept,

:57:22.:57:26.

more money going in. A ?1 million portal fun. -- a ?1 million pothole

:57:27.:57:39.

fund. We both agree that adult social care needs to be helped.

:57:40.:57:41.

This is about the services that local people receive. Would you be

:57:42.:57:53.

in trouble? It's the general election that Jeremy Corbyn is

:57:54.:58:00.

standing in. -- would he be in trouble. I think we will do it in

:58:01.:58:05.

the... If you didn't do well, should you step aside? He's not going to

:58:06.:58:10.

step aside, residing in the general election. They deserve to do well,

:58:11.:58:12.

the Labour candidates. Are you expecting a low turnout

:58:13.:58:14.

in the county council elections? There is a difficulty because of the

:58:15.:58:25.

general election on June the 8th. People get it. They are not stupid.

:58:26.:58:31.

They are looking for to voting on Thursday. People get it. I do

:58:32.:58:40.

genuinely believe that. We've got a cracking team of candidates. On the

:58:41.:58:44.

doorsteps, I've been on every many months, we are going down very well.

:58:45.:58:49.

Everybody has to get out there. I hope they will vote Conservative.

:58:50.:58:55.

Different doorsteps to me, then, Anna.

:58:56.:58:57.

You can see a full list of candidates on the county

:58:58.:59:00.

councils' websites and you can hear more from the candidates

:59:01.:59:02.

on the Facebook pages of our local radio stations.

:59:03.:59:04.

Time now for a look at some of the other political stories

:59:05.:59:07.

in the East Midlands this week, here's Rob Pittam with 60 Seconds.

:59:08.:59:15.

The Government has been told it must publish its plans for tackling air

:59:16.:59:18.

Two cities in the region, Nottingham and Derby,

:59:19.:59:23.

have some of the highest levels of pollution in the country.

:59:24.:59:26.

They've been designated clean air zones.

:59:27.:59:28.

Dangerous dogs are clearly a very serious problem.

:59:29.:59:32.

The Loughborough MP Nicky Morgan wants to change the law to tackle

:59:33.:59:35.

dog owners who allow their pets to attack other dogs.

:59:36.:59:37.

She held a debate in Parliament calling for all dogs

:59:38.:59:41.

to have the same legal protection as assistants and guide dogs.

:59:42.:59:45.

Another of the region's long serving MPs is to stand down.

:59:46.:59:48.

The Conservative Sir Edward Garnier, who has represented

:59:49.:59:50.

Harborough for 25 years, has announced his retirement.

:59:51.:59:54.

Graham Allen, who's served 30 years as the Labour MP

:59:55.:59:57.

for Nottingham North, is also stepping down.

:59:58.:59:59.

Nottingham and Derby are bearing traditional

:00:00.:00:01.

-- Nottingham and Derby are burying traditional

:00:02.:00:18.

The councils are planning to introduce a new metro card

:00:19.:00:22.

which would allow residents to use libraries and leisure

:00:23.:00:24.

They'll also collaborate to promote Nottingham

:00:25.:00:26.

That's the Sunday Politics in the East Midlands,

:00:27.:00:29.

thanks to Anna Soubry and Vernon Coaker.

:00:30.:00:31.

Next week, full coverage of those county council results.

:00:32.:00:33.

we will take the mandate that we want. To all three of you, thank

:00:34.:00:40.

you. Andrew, back to you. So, how will Thursday's local

:00:41.:00:53.

election results affect Who's winning the

:00:54.:00:54.

election ground war? And as he celebrates 100

:00:55.:00:57.

days in the White House, We have the local elections, Metro

:00:58.:01:15.

elections in Liverpool, greater Birmingham, West Midlands, how will

:01:16.:01:19.

they play into the general election? Significantly, it is very unusual.

:01:20.:01:23.

People keep comparing this with the election in 83, not! Margaret

:01:24.:01:28.

Thatcher was nervous and to wait until after the local elections to

:01:29.:01:31.

call the election to see the result. We are getting these result in the

:01:32.:01:35.

middle of an election campaign so it will be important, whoever does

:01:36.:01:41.

badly will suffer a dent in confidence in terms of how they

:01:42.:01:44.

approach the election and we are also going to have mayoral figures

:01:45.:01:49.

as a reminder of another big difference with the 80s that however

:01:50.:01:54.

big, say, the Conservatives win in Westminster, there are now sectors

:01:55.:01:58.

of power in other parts of the United Kingdom which were not there

:01:59.:02:02.

in the 80s. One of the reasons niches that are rated in 83 was

:02:03.:02:06.

memories were still alive in political circles of 1970, Wilson

:02:07.:02:12.

saw the local election results and thought, I can win, he was told he

:02:13.:02:16.

would win by the Economist magazine, who had done the analysis, and of

:02:17.:02:20.

course he lost, so that is why she waited, Mrs May does not need to

:02:21.:02:28.

wait for that at all now, and on the Metro elections, the one she will be

:02:29.:02:31.

looking at is the West Midlands, that is the one that is a

:02:32.:02:35.

competition. I think she can really lose on Thursday in the local

:02:36.:02:38.

elections, governing parties are supposed to take effect again,

:02:39.:02:43.

losing lots of council seats. She is projected to put on 100 or so seats,

:02:44.:02:49.

Labour projected to lose around 200, the first time the main opposition

:02:50.:02:53.

party has shed seats since something like 83 so clearly the local

:02:54.:02:57.

elections give Mrs May great momentum going into the general

:02:58.:03:00.

election campaign but there is a downside in that, which is what we

:03:01.:03:04.

have already heard fighting about this morning, if it looks like it is

:03:05.:03:09.

going too well for the Tories, it says to voters, why bother turning

:03:10.:03:13.

up? Sushi comes up with totally unbelievable sound bites this

:03:14.:03:16.

morning that this is the most important general election in her

:03:17.:03:23.

lifetime. Really?! For her it is! It always is until the next one! I

:03:24.:03:29.

wonder if voter turnout is a problem? Tory voters are more likely

:03:30.:03:34.

to vote than Labour voters. If there is a sense that it is all over bar

:03:35.:03:39.

the shouting, the overall turnout will be low that Tory voters are

:03:40.:03:43.

still likely to turn out more than Labour voters so she would still win

:03:44.:03:48.

some. I don't think she needs to be too worried, I think there will be a

:03:49.:03:52.

significantly low turnout, even I am finding it hard to be that excited

:03:53.:03:59.

about this general election. Really, the policies, we have spent a lot of

:04:00.:04:03.

time talking about them today and we have to examine them, but all this

:04:04.:04:08.

is about is, do you want Theresa May or Jeremy Corbyn in Number Ten?

:04:09.:04:12.

Those are the only question is, apart from possibly how strong do

:04:13.:04:16.

you feel about Brexit, that will be on the voters' minds. You may say

:04:17.:04:21.

that but I will not be put off from going through a list of policies

:04:22.:04:25.

that we have already had in the last 24 hours. On the Conservatives, more

:04:26.:04:32.

powers to stop company bosses under pensions, of course Philip Green was

:04:33.:04:39.

in mind there. Labour has come up with quite a few policies, actually,

:04:40.:04:44.

give all work of equal rights, whether part-time or full-time,

:04:45.:04:54.

temporary or permanent. Ukip, scrap VAT or takeaway -- on takeaway food

:04:55.:04:58.

and end the BBC licence fee. The Liberal Democrats have come out

:04:59.:05:04.

posed to the runway at Heathrow. I thought I knew that already? Will

:05:05.:05:11.

any of these policies make a difference? They are all nice handy

:05:12.:05:17.

things that people quite liked but probably not, is the answer. They

:05:18.:05:22.

are an awful way away from polling day now for people to remember and

:05:23.:05:25.

latch onto. I don't think you make your mind up on small issues like

:05:26.:05:31.

Heathrow, unless you live in Richmond-upon-Thames, maybe, but the

:05:32.:05:34.

problem Labour have got with unfailing a lot of these retail type

:05:35.:05:39.

policies which, in themselves, are very popular, is no one will listen

:05:40.:05:43.

to them until they get over the leadership credibility issue. Jeremy

:05:44.:05:47.

Corbyn could the world on a stick, but if no one believes he can

:05:48.:05:50.

deliver it then he will not be listened to and he has not done much

:05:51.:05:54.

apart from a speech yesterday in which is claim to fame was getting

:05:55.:05:57.

arrested, I don't see how that would work for him getting to Number Ten.

:05:58.:06:03.

They are not making progress on it. Labour has rolled out a number of

:06:04.:06:09.

policies which, taken individually, would have certain traction in

:06:10.:06:14.

normal times, quite interesting ideas, this sense of unfairness, a

:06:15.:06:17.

feeling that ordinary workers have not done well out of the recovery,

:06:18.:06:23.

those who caused the crash have, 20 points, I went through some of them

:06:24.:06:27.

earlier, putting aside they are not costed, we are assured they will be.

:06:28.:06:31.

The problem I suggest is not the costing but the cut through? Every

:06:32.:06:38.

election has a context which is determined by opinion polls, however

:06:39.:06:41.

sceptical we are these days, and if one party is way ahead it is

:06:42.:06:44.

difficult for the other party to appear relevant, because if people

:06:45.:06:50.

assume they are not going to win, even some of its own MPs are saying,

:06:51.:06:54.

we are not going to win this, so you can vote for us, it is very hard to

:06:55.:07:02.

get attention and relevance. Where I think all the parties are bad with

:07:03.:07:05.

their current leaders is framing arguments, so those policies you

:07:06.:07:11.

have highlighted makes sense. The best leaders are brilliant framers

:07:12.:07:15.

of an argument and neither Theresa Maynor Jeremy Corbyn R. They have

:07:16.:07:21.

been campaigning, their manifestos are not out yet, both sides have

:07:22.:07:26.

been telling us we have to wait for costings, but it has not stopped

:07:27.:07:29.

them campaigning. Let's remind you of where they have been and what

:07:30.:07:34.

they have been doing so far. Let's start with Jeremy Corbyn, his

:07:35.:07:39.

first official visit was in the ultra-marginal Conservative seat of

:07:40.:07:43.

Croydon Central where the MP Gavin Barwell has a lead of just 165. That

:07:44.:07:48.

is not the only Conservative seat he has visited, along the way he popped

:07:49.:07:53.

in on Bristol North West, a Conservative majority of nearly

:07:54.:07:59.

5000. The Tory seat of Cardiff North, a lead of just over 2000,

:08:00.:08:06.

Warrington South, just over 2700, and Crewe and Nantwich, Tory

:08:07.:08:11.

majority of three and a half thousand. Yesterday he visited

:08:12.:08:17.

Bethnal greed and Bob, a Labour lead of 20 4000. Theresa May kicked off

:08:18.:08:22.

her campaign in Bolton, Labour majority of over 4000. On her way

:08:23.:08:27.

round the UK she had a comfy stop in her own maidenhead seat, where she

:08:28.:08:31.

is defending a majority of nearly 30,000, before travelling to other

:08:32.:08:35.

Labour marginals including Dudley North, a Labour lead of 4000.

:08:36.:08:42.

Bridgend, a lead of just under 2004 Labour, before becoming ambitious

:08:43.:08:44.

and visiting shadow minister Richard Bergen's Leeds East seat, which he

:08:45.:09:00.

won by over 12,500 votes. Yesterday she went north of the border to

:09:01.:09:02.

Aberdeenshire, where amongst other places she visited the SNP seat of

:09:03.:09:04.

West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine, where the Tories would have to gain

:09:05.:09:05.

over 7000 votes to unseat the NP. What do you make of it all so far?

:09:06.:09:13.

It is remarkable she is doing these visits in Scotland. Past but even

:09:14.:09:17.

five years and the idea of a Tory Prime Minister going round Scotland

:09:18.:09:21.

would be utterly counter-productive, and actually they are ambitious for

:09:22.:09:26.

Scotland now under with Davidson, a prospect of multiple seats, and that

:09:27.:09:29.

would be a real genuine shift in Scottish politics, the likes of

:09:30.:09:32.

which we have not seen for 15 or 20 years. If she gets that, that helps

:09:33.:09:42.

towards 100 seats, because if she wins ten in Scotland, it is

:09:43.:09:47.

effectively 20, the SNP lose ten, she gains ten, she wants to do that

:09:48.:09:51.

in the Midlands with Labour, and the North. To get the 100 majority,

:09:52.:09:57.

other than Scotland, she has to win Labour seats, that is all that is

:09:58.:10:02.

there. And clearly she has been told, it is obvious, that she has a

:10:03.:10:06.

chance of doing so, otherwise you don't go to these parts of the

:10:07.:10:09.

country in the first few days of the campaign. All logic points to her

:10:10.:10:15.

being able to pull it off as well. The opinion polls, the state of the

:10:16.:10:19.

Labour Party. The only qualification I have in this is that politics is

:10:20.:10:23.

so wild and free Braille at the moment, it doesn't feel like

:10:24.:10:31.

landslide to rain. That is true, it doesn't. It is early days, we

:10:32.:10:36.

haven't yet had the manifestos, the campaign is yet to gather momentum.

:10:37.:10:40.

It doesn't feel like landslide territory. I disagree, look at every

:10:41.:10:49.

single poll, the Tory lead is 10% in Wales, you can see her picking up 20

:10:50.:10:53.

seat there. Put this together, I am told by the way she is going into

:10:54.:10:58.

traditional Labour heartland again tomorrow, the key is the Ukip vote.

:10:59.:11:03.

That will implode... Crumble towards Tories? If she can hoover that up

:11:04.:11:22.

and retain the Tory vote, she will have a majority of 150.

:11:23.:11:23.

I cannot let you go without reminding you that it is Donald

:11:24.:11:23.

Trump's 100 days. He's not making a lot of it now, this is what he said

:11:24.:11:24.

last night. We are just beginning in our fight

:11:25.:11:26.

to make America great again. Now, before we talk about my first

:11:27.:11:29.

100 days, which has been very exciting and very productive,

:11:30.:11:39.

let's rate the media's 100 days. Because, as you know,

:11:40.:11:43.

they are a disgrace. There you go, still bashing the

:11:44.:12:03.

media, that was at a rally in Virginia, the 100 days was last

:12:04.:12:08.

night. He seems happier campaigning than running the country. You each

:12:09.:12:12.

have 20 seconds to give me your board on the first 100 days.

:12:13.:12:20.

Remarkable, he will not stop slagging off the media but America

:12:21.:12:25.

first has not meant America first in terms of national policy, he has

:12:26.:12:28.

reneges on what he said about Nato being obsolete. He is moving from

:12:29.:12:34.

the old right to the centre because that is where you get things done,

:12:35.:12:42.

he is a pragmatist, also is about's friend Nigel Parrott is no longer

:12:43.:12:47.

welcome, we read this morning! Allegedly! He loves campaigning but

:12:48.:12:53.

finds governing much more difficult. Who would have thought being

:12:54.:12:56.

president of the United States was a difficult job?! He loves rallies but

:12:57.:13:00.

being president and politics is a very difficult thing indeed. Thank

:13:01.:13:06.

you, there we go, Mr Trump's 100 days, we will see what the next 100

:13:07.:13:07.

brings. The Daily Politics is back

:13:08.:13:10.

on BBC Two after the bank holiday on Tuesday at midday,

:13:11.:13:13.

with all the latest And I'll be back here

:13:14.:13:15.

on BBC One next Sunday Remember - if it's Sunday,

:13:16.:13:18.

it's the Sunday Politics. The East End girl who became the

:13:19.:14:25.

nation's favourite. We don't know what it is,

:14:26.:14:28.

but she definitely has... Something. From stage to screen

:14:29.:14:32.

and into our hearts. Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!

:14:33.:14:38.

Ooh, in't she wonderful? If you're not careful, you'll end up

:14:39.:14:45.

playing this sexy little blonde

:14:46.:14:49.

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