:01:28. > :01:30.In the North East and Cumbria: We talk exclusively to Prime Minister
:01:30. > :01:40.David Cameron. And we join the communities
:01:40. > :01:40.
:01:40. > :37:14.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 2134 seconds
:37:14. > :37:19.fighting to stop their local bank Coming up: The communities fighting
:37:19. > :37:27.to keep their high-street bank as a wave of closures hit the region.
:37:27. > :37:33.Can local people do anything about My guests are Martin Callanan and
:37:33. > :37:40.the MP for Blaydon, Dave Anderson. They've, you listen to Ed
:37:40. > :37:44.Miliband's speech, is one nation better than Disraeli? Something you
:37:44. > :37:50.can sign up to? Absolutely. When he explained why he was saying this,
:37:50. > :37:56.he said it is about faith. His face is that we want to build a better
:37:56. > :38:00.world. I have always believe that. People of the trade union movement
:38:00. > :38:04.have always believe that. The sad reality in this area particularly,
:38:04. > :38:10.where things were not better than previously, was all through the
:38:10. > :38:16.1980s. This part of the world was a lot worse off and we are seeing the
:38:16. > :38:22.same thing now, so he is dead right. Martin Callanan, people are saying
:38:22. > :38:27.what was clever is that he put his tanks on your terror Tory. It was a
:38:27. > :38:34.very talented speech to speak without notes. He repeated the
:38:34. > :38:38.phrase, one nation, 47 times. This is not a political philosophy. He
:38:38. > :38:43.stole it from a former Tory prime minister. All the great Labour
:38:43. > :38:47.leader since then have not provided inspiration, apart from the phrase
:38:47. > :38:51.one nation, which I agree with. It was a vacuous attempt and he did
:38:51. > :38:55.not tell us anything year or apologise for the previous Labour
:38:55. > :38:59.government. He certainly didn't tell us how we are likely to get
:38:59. > :39:04.out of difficult economic times. They will have more of that soon.
:39:04. > :39:08.It is the turn of the Conservative sin. Their conference starts today.
:39:08. > :39:13.With the clock ticking to the next election, what can Mr Cameron pull
:39:13. > :39:17.out of the hat that might appeal to voters in this part of the world.
:39:17. > :39:23.Guy of them and has produced his own manifesto to help the Tories
:39:23. > :39:28.win. Top of the list is a freeze on petrol and diesel duty until 2015.
:39:28. > :39:32.He wants a clear industrial policy, investment in transport links like
:39:32. > :39:36.the A1, which she says will be simple and significant. He wants
:39:36. > :39:39.the PM to reject the idea of regional pay for public sector
:39:39. > :39:43.workers. And I met the Prime Minister, I
:39:43. > :39:49.started by asking him about flooding, specifically claims to
:39:49. > :39:53.cuts in the flood defences leading to people in more put having their
:39:53. > :40:02.homes flooded for a second time. heart goes out to anyone who has
:40:02. > :40:05.been flooded. I know what it is like and how frustrating it is. On
:40:05. > :40:10.the flood protection scheme in question, it was not signed off by
:40:10. > :40:15.the last government, it was not properly funded. It is now signed
:40:15. > :40:20.off and under way. Is it taking too long? These things always take too
:40:20. > :40:28.long. Someone said the best time to invest his 20 years ago, the second
:40:28. > :40:31.best is now. We are doing it now. One of your north-east MPs came up
:40:31. > :40:37.with five ideas over the summer for how you could win more more than
:40:37. > :40:43.voters. I want to put a few to year. Invest more in infrastructure, in -
:40:43. > :40:48.- for instance the A1. He we are putting a lot into electrifying
:40:48. > :40:52.train lines, into infrastructure, into road-building. But not in the
:40:52. > :40:57.north-east. We are looking at all schemes. The message from the
:40:57. > :41:05.Treasury is, if you have schemes that are shove already full can be
:41:05. > :41:08.brought forward, come and talk to us. The same is true for the A1?
:41:08. > :41:15.are happy to look at all or any schemes that get the economy moving,
:41:15. > :41:19.to help give infrastructure we need. He said, abandon regional pay. The
:41:19. > :41:25.Liberal Democrats don't like it and northern MPs then I kid. If I don't
:41:25. > :41:31.believe in this idea of regional pay. The idea that you should have
:41:31. > :41:34.some regard to what is happening locally, that is important. The
:41:34. > :41:38.last government introduce it for the Court Service and it is right
:41:38. > :41:43.that it is looked at by other services. Do not accept that it is
:41:43. > :41:48.politically toxic? At the moment it is betrayed that more than teachers
:41:48. > :41:51.and nurses get paid less than southern counterparts. If you take
:41:52. > :41:55.a region like the north-east, you will find that within the region
:41:55. > :42:00.there are particular pressures in one area where you need to pay a
:42:00. > :42:04.bit more to attract or train or retain good staff. What the court
:42:04. > :42:10.service was about was making sure you have that flexibility. That is
:42:10. > :42:14.what we have been thinking about. Freeze feel duty took 2015. It
:42:15. > :42:20.would be popular in the north. have made huge steps on this. We
:42:20. > :42:24.did cut fuel duty and abandon pre- programmed Labour increases. Fuel
:42:24. > :42:28.is 10 p per litre cheaper than it would have been. We are living in a
:42:28. > :42:36.world with a vast debt and deficit where decisions are difficult and
:42:36. > :42:41.every penny you cat... We have done a huge amount already. Thank you.
:42:41. > :42:44.The prime minister talking to me this week. Martin Callanan,
:42:44. > :42:49.upgrading the A1 had been talked about for decades, isn't it passing
:42:49. > :42:54.the buck? He could do something about this tomorrow if he wanted to.
:42:54. > :42:58.I thought his message as popular. You won't find any difference a lot
:42:58. > :43:01.-- among the politicians in the north-east who have been
:43:01. > :43:06.campaigning for years. difference is he has the power to
:43:06. > :43:13.do it and he is not. There is not a great deal of money around, it is a
:43:13. > :43:16.question of priorities. The A1 is a crucial piece of infrastructure, we
:43:16. > :43:21.all have to make the case to the Prime Minister and to government
:43:21. > :43:25.and we did under the last Labour government and it did not happen. I
:43:25. > :43:30.thought his words are quite positive. We can work on that and
:43:30. > :43:36.take the readiness of the scheme to proceed to him. Priorities is the
:43:36. > :43:40.word because the reason I ask that question is the curse when you
:43:40. > :43:45.crunch the figures, infrastructure investment in the north-east has
:43:45. > :43:48.been pitiful. Five times more has been invested in the south-east.
:43:48. > :43:53.That is the truth, the priority is to spend in the south, not the
:43:53. > :43:59.north. A priority is to spend across the whole country. I don't
:43:59. > :44:05.recognise those figures. We get our fair share of investment. We have
:44:05. > :44:08.to fight for our recent -- region. This government has been in office
:44:08. > :44:16.for two years and we took over the brink of bankruptcy so there is not
:44:16. > :44:22.a lot of money around. We have to compete for investment. We will be
:44:22. > :44:28.lobbying for that for the region. The Prime Minister is open to ideas,
:44:28. > :44:33.perhaps if Labour councils came up with more ideas and spend less time
:44:33. > :44:37.bemoaning their fate. If you listen to the words, or watch Question
:44:37. > :44:47.Time every week, his favourite word is we will look into this. Nothing
:44:47. > :44:49.
:44:49. > :44:54.happens. This is about our region. David Cameron said no building
:44:54. > :44:58.happened. There were 30 miles of road improved between whether the
:44:58. > :45:05.and the Scotch Corner. I argued, why on earth are you spending money
:45:05. > :45:10.there when it should have been spent elsewhere. It did not happen
:45:10. > :45:15.under Labour either. I am saying, don't pretend we didn't do anything
:45:15. > :45:22.because there was a lot of infrastructure across the county.
:45:22. > :45:26.You are right, what is true it is that there is more money spent in
:45:26. > :45:31.the south-east. I live and work in London and you see the improvements
:45:31. > :45:37.in transport. Boris Johnson spent millions of Pounds on Prime new
:45:37. > :45:42.buses. We can't get any money in this area. Let's deal with regional
:45:42. > :45:46.pay, local pay. The Prime Minister is not listening there. His own MPs
:45:46. > :45:52.have told him to ditch it, why press ahead? Because it can make a
:45:52. > :45:58.big difference to regional economies. It makes people poorer?
:45:58. > :46:02.It could also make them richer, that is the point. It is to provide
:46:02. > :46:06.flexibility to adjust pay levels to reflect circumstances. Some areas
:46:06. > :46:11.of very expensive to live in and would benefit from higher pay. We
:46:11. > :46:17.already have it, there is London weighting reflecting the fact that
:46:17. > :46:19.it is more expensive to live in London. It is giving public
:46:19. > :46:24.authority is the flexibility to deal with circumstances in their
:46:24. > :46:30.own area. Isn't that the point that some people in the North might be
:46:30. > :46:34.paid more? The difficulty is recruiting people in Newcastle, for
:46:34. > :46:40.example. This is an example of how far removed these people are often
:46:40. > :46:50.the real world. I spent years negotiating for people in this part
:46:50. > :46:51.
:46:52. > :46:58.of the world. I live in Hedley whole, a cheap place to live. It is
:46:58. > :47:05.nonsense. It is about breaking up appear bargaining. Labour did that
:47:05. > :47:09.in the Court Service. Absolutely, I am saying that what is good is the
:47:09. > :47:13.vast majority of people in the country don't believe in regional
:47:13. > :47:18.pay. Teacher should be paid the same in Newcastle as the rest of
:47:18. > :47:22.the country. We already have local pay throughout the private sector
:47:22. > :47:28.because employers have to pay the going rate. It is more expensive to
:47:28. > :47:32.employ in the south-east and the north-east. We are talking about
:47:32. > :47:36.the more effective use of public money. Am sure we will come back to
:47:36. > :47:40.this. In five days, he HSBC will close
:47:40. > :47:45.his branch in shall then and the people will be left without any
:47:45. > :47:48.high-street bank. 18 banks have closed in Cumbria and the north-
:47:48. > :47:57.east since 2010, but is there anything local people can do about
:47:57. > :48:02.If being Britain's most vilified professionals was a contest,
:48:02. > :48:07.bankers would have been the undisputed champions since 2007.
:48:07. > :48:14.Five years on, people are still laying into them. Bank closures is
:48:14. > :48:18.the issue upsetting people in Shildon. Campaigners have their
:48:18. > :48:23.bayonets sharpened for one bank in particular. This branch of HSBC is
:48:23. > :48:29.set to close and the local MP is livid about it. For the very people
:48:29. > :48:34.are using this bank's 700 times per week. 180 businesses are banking
:48:34. > :48:40.here in Shildon. They are told it is not economic. Somehow it is
:48:40. > :48:46.economic for the top man to pay himself �8 million per year. Last
:48:46. > :48:50.year they made profits of 13.7 billion. One of the main concerns
:48:50. > :48:55.people have about the closure is the impact on people who do not use
:48:55. > :49:02.the internet, particularly the elderly. If someone in my plays, I
:49:02. > :49:09.am using a mobility scooter, it is not easy for me to get to the
:49:09. > :49:13.nearest branch. Then there is the effect it could have on businesses.
:49:13. > :49:17.Like this shop which has been selling sweets since 1909.
:49:17. > :49:22.people go to the bank they are coming into the town which helps us
:49:22. > :49:27.local shops. If there is no bank, they have no reason to come up to
:49:27. > :49:34.the town. It is not just in Shildon where he HSBC has left the taste
:49:34. > :49:41.more sour than this range of extreme sweeties. Shildon's HSBC is
:49:41. > :49:45.due to close on Friday. Appleby's will shut in November. The Prime
:49:45. > :49:49.Jim Holt whistle ref last month. Research for the campaign shows
:49:50. > :49:56.that HSBC is not the only bank closing branches in our region,
:49:56. > :50:02.though it is the most prolific. Barclays has close to brunches,
:50:02. > :50:08.NatWest has shed five branches and HSBC has closed 11 branches. With
:50:08. > :50:12.three more to come. What has really upset campaigners is that Barclays,
:50:12. > :50:17.NatWest and Lloyds TSB have all promised not to close at branch if
:50:18. > :50:23.it is the last bank in town. HSBC refuses to make such a pledge which
:50:23. > :50:28.is why I shall then will soon have 10,000 people and no banks.
:50:28. > :50:31.HSBC says the decision was not taken lightly. Fought for has
:50:31. > :50:35.fallen significantly as people turn to the convenience of phone and
:50:35. > :50:41.internet banking. From spring, customers will be able to use the
:50:41. > :50:46.Post Office so could it provide a lasting solution? The Post Office
:50:46. > :50:51.is not set up to be a bank. They are providing some services to help
:50:51. > :50:55.the local community and give people access to them many in the hope
:50:55. > :50:59.than the easy way, but they are not fundamentally there as a bank. If
:50:59. > :51:04.you were a small business person wanting to take out a loan, that is
:51:04. > :51:10.not what they are there to do. describes itself as the world's
:51:10. > :51:15.local bank, but she'll done and Helmsley are the latest places to
:51:15. > :51:18.vanish from its thin it -- vision of the planet.
:51:18. > :51:24.They are still a survey, when did you last visit your local bank
:51:24. > :51:29.branch? For the last time I visited the local bank would have been two
:51:29. > :51:34.weeks ago. I was in Manchester for a week and then the South West for
:51:34. > :51:39.a week. I never used a website. are someone who does need a branch
:51:39. > :51:44.then. How about you? I was at a bank in Brussels this week getting
:51:44. > :51:48.some euros to spend in Brussels. The last time I was in a local bank
:51:48. > :51:54.was a good few weeks ago because I do use internet banking and credit
:51:54. > :51:58.cards. That is the reality. It is very difficult for those who can't
:51:58. > :52:03.use their services, but banks are reacting to the fact that a lot of
:52:03. > :52:08.us don't go into branches anymore. You can charge up cards with
:52:08. > :52:13.electronic money to make even small payments on. It is difficult for
:52:13. > :52:18.people who don't use their services which is why the Post Office is
:52:18. > :52:22.another public institution that should step in to help. It is an
:52:22. > :52:27.inevitable consequence and we are lying if we say we can make these
:52:27. > :52:32.companies keep branches open. banks are not charities, if people
:52:32. > :52:37.aren't using them they were shut. They are responsible and should act
:52:37. > :52:43.responsibly. To some extent, some of them are partly publicly owned
:52:43. > :52:48.and we should use the power we have got by having a share in the bank's.
:52:48. > :52:53.To do that, they have to spend money. It will be taxpayers' money
:52:53. > :53:02.keeping branches open. Can we afford to do that? They can take
:53:03. > :53:06.some money some salaries. Also not maximising profits, putting it back
:53:06. > :53:10.into the branches. We also had clear policy within the Labour
:53:11. > :53:17.government as we went out of power to say we would give Post Office is
:53:17. > :53:22.more power to settle post banks. This government all that up. Would
:53:22. > :53:27.that have been a lot easier if you have not all of those plans? Many
:53:27. > :53:32.post offices offer banking services. But not the full range that would
:53:32. > :53:36.substitute for a bank. Everything that a community needs. These are
:53:36. > :53:41.difficult decisions, it requires investment. It is a question of
:53:41. > :53:46.priorities. If more people use local banks, banks would keep them
:53:46. > :53:53.open. That is the reality. These are difficult decisions driven by
:53:53. > :53:59.commerce. Driven by the number of people that go in branch. It is no
:53:59. > :54:05.help to those in Shildon that do not use internet banking. Given the
:54:05. > :54:12.taxpayer does not own part of HSBC, had to stop this happening?
:54:12. > :54:16.probably can't stop it happening. You can say, do we believe that
:54:16. > :54:22.people have social responsibility? And they should have. We should
:54:22. > :54:31.write in a legislation that banks, if they want to operate in our
:54:31. > :54:34.country, they should show more responsibility. You would move some
:54:34. > :54:39.of the money around instead of putting it offshore and hiding
:54:39. > :54:44.money away from the British public, they should deliver service.
:54:44. > :54:49.Without the service and customers, they would not be able to stay open.
:54:49. > :54:55.If there is one thing that brings together our nation it is the next
:54:55. > :55:05.part of the programme. He may not be Disraeli, but here is Fergus
:55:05. > :55:09.
:55:09. > :55:13.Hewison with the week's political A decision on whether Cumbria
:55:13. > :55:21.should have an underground nuclear waste all has been delayed. They
:55:21. > :55:28.will not decide until January. The eastern coast rail works will be
:55:28. > :55:34.nationalised. The RMT union says the private side system is now
:55:34. > :55:36.discredited. Cleveland is looking for a new chief constable after
:55:36. > :55:41.Sean Price was found guilty of gross misconduct.
:55:41. > :55:48.James Walton gave his reaction. have to take it as an opportunity
:55:48. > :55:53.to move forward and deliver the right police force for local people.
:55:53. > :55:55.And to appoint a new chief constable. The �6 million flood
:55:55. > :56:01.protection scheme has opened in Keswick to protect the town from
:56:01. > :56:05.floods that hit in 2009. A new banner has been unveiled to mark
:56:05. > :56:14.the centenary of the National Union of journalists. It features Joseph
:56:14. > :56:19.Cowen. The ever so there Fergus Hewison.
:56:19. > :56:24.Business with the West Coast line, a complete shambles. Isn't it time
:56:24. > :56:30.to end the system for good? It is probably the best alternative you
:56:30. > :56:34.have. To nationalise the railways that will cost billions of pounds
:56:34. > :56:39.that we do not have. The last government got into the same
:56:39. > :56:45.problems with the East Coast franchise. It is falling apart
:56:45. > :56:47.though, isn't it? I'm not trying to excuse its, the Department of
:56:47. > :56:53.Transport should take responsibility for an enormous
:56:53. > :56:59.cock-up. I'm not sure there is an alternative system that would work
:56:59. > :57:03.better. The principle of having companies compete for the lowest
:57:03. > :57:07.cost should be one we should all support. There must have been talk
:57:07. > :57:15.at the conference about this, yet Labour does not say it will tear
:57:15. > :57:24.the system apart, but tinker with it. I'm very clear, the public need
:57:24. > :57:29.one railway service. This was probably the worst. The worst of
:57:29. > :57:33.all the privatisations the way it was botched. We had to take Network
:57:33. > :57:39.Rail back to public ownership. We have to run the East Coast main
:57:39. > :57:43.line under public ownership. The system has failed. It is his
:57:43. > :57:49.secretary of state and his ministers who have failed. There
:57:49. > :57:54.were problems under Labour. You have to pick this apart and how?
:57:55. > :58:02.Depict the deals are part or not renewed new deals? You wouldn't
:58:02. > :58:06.need to pick them apart, when the franchise ends, it ends. We were
:58:06. > :58:12.forced to do this with the East Coast and the public purse had to
:58:12. > :58:21.pick it up. A franchise under your government. We were let down by
:58:21. > :58:29.people who did not do it properly. This has fallen apart while
:58:29. > :58:33.ministers have fallen apart. Their idea of a golden age of rail was
:58:33. > :58:40.nonsense. It has to compete for investment with all other aspects
:58:40. > :58:46.of public service. This is the best option and I still believe that.
:58:46. > :58:51.The east terrace, under public ownership, has contributed �360
:58:52. > :58:56.million to the Treasury. It should have contributed 1.4 billion which
:58:56. > :59:01.was the original contract. This idea of nationalising something is
:59:01. > :59:06.nonsense. The East Coast franchise is profitable. To run it you have
:59:06. > :59:12.to pay the government a lot of money. The government makes money
:59:12. > :59:17.out of them. Briefly, this is you looking through rose-tinted
:59:17. > :59:22.spectacles, basically? I am looking at what the people of this country
:59:22. > :59:27.want and have experienced over the last 15 years were privatisation
:59:27. > :59:31.failed the country massively. This was ministers who fell asleep on
:59:31. > :59:37.the job and it will cost �40 million at least. Thank you very
:59:37. > :59:43.much. There is more on my blog this week. Two things to look out for,
:59:43. > :59:50.tomorrow evening end Inside Out special reporting on proposals to
:59:50. > :59:54.store nuclear waste underground. Also tomorrow, BBC with local radio
:59:54. > :59:58.and Look North will be looking at life either side of the border with