:00:34. > :00:37.Morning, folks. Welcome to the Sunday Politics, where we're talking
:00:38. > :00:46.about the Europe-wide contest that really matters. No, not Eurovision.
:00:47. > :00:49.The European elections. There are local elections across England too
:00:50. > :00:53.on May 22nd. The party leaders are campaigning ahead of polling day.
:00:54. > :01:00.The results could be a pointer to the Big One, May 2015. We'll be
:01:01. > :01:03.speaking to the man in charge of Labour's election battle plan. Has
:01:04. > :01:06.the opposition really got its sights set on all-out victory in 2015? Or
:01:07. > :01:13.will it just be content with squeaking home? And you can't
:01:14. > :01:17.mention elections these days without talking about the impact of this
:01:18. > :01:29.In the North East and Cumbria: him if UKIP really
:01:30. > :01:33.In the North East and Cumbria: Conservative and Lib Dem candidates
:01:34. > :01:35.fight it out as both try to hold onto their seats.
:01:36. > :01:37.And who's voting for UKIP? We've the view from South Shields.
:01:38. > :01:42.And I'm joined by three journalists guaranteed to bring a touch of
:01:43. > :01:45.Eurovision glamour to your Sunday morning. With views more
:01:46. > :01:48.controversial than a bearded Austrian drag act and twice the
:01:49. > :01:58.dress sense, it's Nick Watt, Helen Lewis and Janan Ganesh. So you might
:01:59. > :02:00.have thought you've already heard David Cameron promise an in-out
:02:01. > :02:07.referendum on EU membership in 2017 if he's still Prime Minister. Many
:02:08. > :02:10.times. Many, many times. Well he obviously doesn't think you've been
:02:11. > :02:14.listening, because he's been saying it again today. Here he is speaking
:02:15. > :02:18.to the BBC earlier. We will hold a referendum by the end of 2017. It
:02:19. > :02:22.will be a referendum on an in-out basis. Do we stay in a reformed
:02:23. > :02:25.European Union or do we leave? And I've said very clearly that whatever
:02:26. > :02:28.the outcome of the next election, and of course I want an overall
:02:29. > :02:31.majority and I'm hoping and believing I can win an overall
:02:32. > :02:34.majority, that people should be in no doubt I will not become Prime
:02:35. > :02:45.Minister unless I can guarantee that we will hold a referendum. Here's
:02:46. > :02:49.saying there that an overall majority there will definitely be a
:02:50. > :02:52.referendum. If these are the minority position, he won't form a
:02:53. > :02:58.new coalition unless they agree to a referendum, too. The Lib Dems a
:02:59. > :03:00.pulmonary agree to that. They probably will because the Prime
:03:01. > :03:05.ministers have a strong argument which is I gave you a referendum
:03:06. > :03:08.back in 2010 so the least I need is theirs and the Lib Dems are the only
:03:09. > :03:12.party who have stood in recent elections on a clear mandate to hold
:03:13. > :03:15.a referendum, so it is difficult for them to say no, there was
:03:16. > :03:20.interesting the interview he did earlier today. He named everything
:03:21. > :03:25.was going to ask for. The most controversial with him, as he said
:03:26. > :03:30.in his speech last year, he wants to take Britain out of the commitment
:03:31. > :03:35.to make the European Union and ever closer union. That is a very big
:03:36. > :03:38.ask, but the point is, he may well get it because the choice for the
:03:39. > :03:44.European Union now, France and Germany, is a clear wonderful do
:03:45. > :03:47.Britain in or out? Previously, it was can you put up with a British
:03:48. > :03:51.prime ministers being annoying? I think you'll find the answer is they
:03:52. > :03:56.are willing to pay a price but not any price to keep Britain in. In
:03:57. > :04:02.this scenario, Labour would have lost the election again because we
:04:03. > :04:05.are talking the slowly happen if Mr Cameron is the largest party or has
:04:06. > :04:10.an overall majority. Could you then see Labour deciding we had better go
:04:11. > :04:12.along with a referendum, too? I think that's unlikely because as I
:04:13. > :04:15.think that's unlikely because there's a huge upside for that for I
:04:16. > :04:19.think what's interesting is the idea he would for minority government.
:04:20. > :04:23.Would you get confidence and look at other options that might well happen
:04:24. > :04:27.with the way the arithmetic is going or is he going to hold out and say
:04:28. > :04:30.the only way I will be Prime Minister is in a majority
:04:31. > :04:36.Conservative government? No, the implication of his remarks was I
:04:37. > :04:40.wouldn't form a coalition government unless my coalition partners would
:04:41. > :04:42.also agree to vote for a referendum. He's basically talking about is
:04:43. > :04:48.negotiating strategy in those coalition talks. It's a red line and
:04:49. > :04:51.a huge opportunity for the Lib Dems, because they know David Cameron
:04:52. > :04:57.absolutely has to do, for accidental reasons, as a person who survives as
:04:58. > :05:01.Tory leader, to ask for that referendum, so they can ask anything
:05:02. > :05:04.they want in return and if I was Nick Clegg, I would work out in the
:05:05. > :05:11.next year one absolute colossal negotiating demand for those
:05:12. > :05:15.coalition talks. For a party around 10% in the polls, they will do have
:05:16. > :05:24.the Prime Minister over a barrel on this one, assuming that coalition
:05:25. > :05:29.talks goes well. They could make Michael Gove Tbyte meeting. OK, we
:05:30. > :05:33.need to move on. So, the politicians are out and about on what used to be
:05:34. > :05:36.called the stump ahead of local and European elections in less than two
:05:37. > :05:39.weeks' time. But, without wanting to depress you on a damp Sunday
:05:40. > :05:42.morning, the party strategists are already hard at work on their
:05:43. > :05:45.campaign plans for the General Election next May. Yes, it's less
:05:46. > :05:48.than a year to go. They may have taken their time, but Labour's
:05:49. > :05:51.battleplan for 2015 is starting to take shape. As well as take
:05:52. > :05:54.promising to freeze your energy bills, and reintroduce the 50p rate
:05:55. > :05:59.of tax, Ed Miliband now says he wants to intervene in the housing
:06:00. > :06:02.market to keep rents down. There's even talk that the party leadership
:06:03. > :06:08.wants to bring more railway lines into public ownership. And Labour is
:06:09. > :06:11.gambling that its big push on the cost of living will see it through
:06:12. > :06:14.to the general election despite evidence that growth is firmly back.
:06:15. > :06:20.Labour's campaign chief Douglas Alexander hopes it all adds up to
:06:21. > :06:26.victory next May. But so far, the evidence is hitting home very thin.
:06:27. > :06:31.One survey today shows that 56% of people don't think Mr Miliband is up
:06:32. > :06:33.to the job of Prime Minister. As we head towards one of the least
:06:34. > :06:39.predictable general elections in 70 years, has Labour got a message to
:06:40. > :06:41.win seats up and down the country? And Labour's election co-ordinator
:06:42. > :06:49.and Shadow Foreign Secretary, Douglas Alexander, joins me now.
:06:50. > :06:52.Welcome to Sunday Politics. A lot of these policies announced polar
:06:53. > :06:57.pretty well. By popular with the country. When you add them together,
:06:58. > :07:02.it's a move to the left and what would be wrong with that? I think is
:07:03. > :07:08.your packet suggests, the contours in the coming campaign are becoming
:07:09. > :07:11.clear. Our judgement is the defining issue of the year in British
:07:12. > :07:14.politics will be the widening gap between the wealth of the country
:07:15. > :07:17.and the finances of ordinary families. We believe it will be a
:07:18. > :07:21.cost of living election and we have been setting out our thinking in
:07:22. > :07:24.relation to energy prices and rent, but you will hear more from Labour
:07:25. > :07:29.Party in the coming months because we're now less than one year away
:07:30. > :07:32.from a decisive moment. If the leftish think tank suggested any of
:07:33. > :07:38.his policies in that Tony Blair years, you would have opposed them.
:07:39. > :07:43.Let's be clear, when not going for an interest but seeking to secure a
:07:44. > :07:47.majority for the only way to do that is not simply to appeal to your
:07:48. > :07:52.base, but to the centre ground. I believe we got genuine opportunities
:07:53. > :07:56.in the next year. You have the Conservatives in a struggle with
:07:57. > :08:00.UKIP on the right of politics. The Lib Dems 9% of trying to find their
:08:01. > :08:03.base, and there's a genuine opportunity in the next year for
:08:04. > :08:07.Labour to dominate the centre ground of politics and secure the majority
:08:08. > :08:11.Labour government we are planning for in the coming year. I notice you
:08:12. > :08:22.didn't deny you wouldn't have opposed. You say you have got an
:08:23. > :08:27.message for aspirational voters in the South. This is what John Denham
:08:28. > :08:37.said. He thinks you're talking too much to your core vote.
:08:38. > :08:46.He is right to recognise we took a terrible beating in 2010. 29%. If
:08:47. > :08:51.you look at what we've done in the last week, for example, the
:08:52. > :08:53.signature policy on rent Ed Miliband announced to launch the campaign,
:08:54. > :08:58.there's now more than 9 million people in the country in the private
:08:59. > :09:02.rented sector, more than 1 million families. Many of them are in the
:09:03. > :09:04.south-east. They are seeing circumstances where, suddenly,
:09:05. > :09:09.landlord will increase the rent and they put the pressure involved in
:09:10. > :09:14.schooling, health care facing the families, so it is important both in
:09:15. > :09:17.terms of policy and in terms of politics that we speak to the whole
:09:18. > :09:21.country, not simply to one part of it falls up what is the average rise
:09:22. > :09:30.in event last year? I don't know. Can you tell me? 1%. 1% not in real
:09:31. > :09:36.terms. I'm not sure what the problem is. It will happen to wages in last
:09:37. > :09:42.year, we are facing circumstances where people will be worse off, up
:09:43. > :09:47.to ?1600 off worse and frankly, if our opponents want to argue that the
:09:48. > :09:51.economy has healed and they deserve a victory lap, good luck to them
:09:52. > :09:56.because actually, what we are hearing from the Buddhist public,
:09:57. > :10:00.not just in the north and south, is not the cost living crisis is
:10:01. > :10:02.continuing and it affects families. There was nothing aspirational about
:10:03. > :10:08.your party election broadcast for the European elections. It looked
:10:09. > :10:13.like crude class war to money people. That's a bit of it. Bedroom
:10:14. > :10:16.tax. Isn't it going to look bad that two thirds of those affected are
:10:17. > :10:23.disabled? Who cares? They can't fight back. Shall be lay-offs and
:10:24. > :10:37.NHS nurses? The National Health Service? Oh yes. Mr Cameron? Who
:10:38. > :10:41.said that? Me. My gosh. The man has shrunk. He's actually shrunk. What
:10:42. > :10:48.shall we do with him? Can we hunt him? Nothing about Europe, Labour
:10:49. > :10:53.policy. News that the Tories would result in negative campaigning and
:10:54. > :10:57.smear. You didn't tell you would be just as bad. Let's start the party
:10:58. > :11:03.broadcast. The one thing guaranteed to have most people reaching for the
:11:04. > :11:08.remote control these days are the words, there now follows a party but
:11:09. > :11:12.the broadcast. I make no apology in the factory to be innovative in how
:11:13. > :11:16.we presented. It's factual. It was a policy -based critic of this
:11:17. > :11:21.government. And the Lib Dems role within it. So you're claiming it's
:11:22. > :11:29.factual to betray the camera and cabinet is not even knowing what the
:11:30. > :11:33.NHS is, -- the Cameron Cabinet. They attack the disabled because they
:11:34. > :11:38.can't fight back. The Pinellas Tanner severely Prime Minister Sun
:11:39. > :11:44.and he was treated during a short life by the NHS. It's a fact many
:11:45. > :11:48.disabled people across the country including in my constituency have
:11:49. > :11:51.been directly affected by the bedroom tax. And ultimately, this
:11:52. > :11:56.Conservative led government, including the Lib Dems, will be held
:11:57. > :12:00.accountable by the politicians. You say that, the Prime Minister, who
:12:01. > :12:05.had a severely disabled son of. I you not ashamed about? I shadowed
:12:06. > :12:11.Iain Duncan Smith of five months also they don't have the excuses of
:12:12. > :12:14.seeing that saying nobody told them the consequences of the bedroom tax.
:12:15. > :12:19.They went into this with their eyes open. They knew about the hardship
:12:20. > :12:21.and difficulty. If they were one-bedroom properties available
:12:22. > :12:26.across the country for people to move into, their argument would be
:12:27. > :12:31.OK but they knew they were dealing with the most vulnerable people. Did
:12:32. > :12:37.you sign off that part of the broadcast? Of course I stand by the
:12:38. > :12:41.fact of it. I wish David Cameron and Iain Duncan Smith would apologise to
:12:42. > :12:45.the disabled people of the country and the poorest people for the
:12:46. > :12:51.effects of the bedroom tax. I hope we get that apology between now and
:12:52. > :12:56.election. As someone who thinks integrity is important in politics,
:12:57. > :12:59.not ashamed of this kind of thing? It's important we scrutinise the
:13:00. > :13:06.policies of this government as well as adding a positive agenda for
:13:07. > :13:11.change. You want that you won't promise this is the last time we'll
:13:12. > :13:13.see such a negative press campaign? I don't think it is negative or
:13:14. > :13:18.personal to scrutinise the government. So we'll get more of
:13:19. > :13:24.this? I'm less interested in the background of the cabinet than their
:13:25. > :13:28.views. You call the upper-class twits. It's for the British public
:13:29. > :13:32.to make a judgement in terms of the British... That's how you depicted
:13:33. > :13:39.them. We are held in accountable for the bedroom tax, the NHS, taxation,
:13:40. > :13:42.and our record they have to defend. One reason are so fearful in this
:13:43. > :13:47.election is actually because they know they have a poor record. Let's
:13:48. > :13:54.look at other part of the election campaign. This poster. Particularly
:13:55. > :14:01.digitally doing the rounds. On that shopping basket, can you tell us
:14:02. > :14:04.which items take the full 20% VAT? It's representative of household
:14:05. > :14:08.shopping, which includes items like cleaning products, and we know that
:14:09. > :14:24.food is not that trouble. People don't go to the supermarket and say
:14:25. > :14:28.this is -- vatable. So you are denying that ?450 extra is being
:14:29. > :14:36.paid? Yes, where'd you get that figure? For an average family to pay
:14:37. > :14:44.?450 a year extra VAT, they would have to spend ?21,600 a year on
:14:45. > :14:48.vatable products at 20%. The average take-home pay is only 21,009. They
:14:49. > :14:53.have got to spend on all sorts of things which are zero VAT. So in
:14:54. > :15:00.addition to the items, has a range of products people face in terms of
:15:01. > :15:07.VAT. How could an average family of ?21,000 a year spent 21,006 and the
:15:08. > :15:14.pound a year on 20% vatable items? It's not an annual figure, is it? So
:15:15. > :15:20.what is it then? If it's an annual, what is it? The increased VAT in
:15:21. > :15:26.this parliament is calculated over the course of a Parliament. For the
:15:27. > :15:32.whole of the Parliament? And you're illustrated this with a shopping
:15:33. > :15:37.basket which almost has no VAT on it at all? People will be buying a
:15:38. > :15:42.weekly shop in the course of this Parliament every week. Did you sign
:15:43. > :15:46.off on this as well? Of course. It didn't dawn on you you're putting
:15:47. > :15:51.things on it which have no VAT? If you want to argue some people go to
:15:52. > :16:00.the shops and say these are vatable or not, I disagree. Even your rent
:16:01. > :16:03.cap announcement went wrong. You're working on the rent rises and it
:16:04. > :16:13.turns out it wasn't. It was a post your policy. It is the exception
:16:14. > :16:17.rather than the rule to have the position we have at the moment. In
:16:18. > :16:21.Northern Ireland we have seen the continued rise in terms of the
:16:22. > :16:28.rented sector but there is a widespread recognition that for
:16:29. > :16:33.those people in the rented sector, change is necessary. Are you
:16:34. > :16:44.coordinating this campaign? It seems accident prone. This is a party that
:16:45. > :16:47.has set the agenda more effectively than a Conservative party that said
:16:48. > :16:56.when David Cameron was elected he wasn't going to bang on about
:16:57. > :17:02.Europe. The day after the election we expect the Conservative party to
:17:03. > :17:06.be engulfed in crisis. I'm proud of what we talk about and I think there
:17:07. > :17:11.is a clear contrast about a party talking about issues people care
:17:12. > :17:15.about, and a Conservative party talking about exclusively a
:17:16. > :17:23.referendum. Are you in charge of the campaign? I am coordinating the
:17:24. > :17:29.campaign is, yes. The expensive election guru you have hired, has he
:17:30. > :17:34.been involved in any of this? We have started our discussions with
:17:35. > :17:38.him. You are going to have to brief him about British politics because
:17:39. > :17:45.he doesn't know anything about it. I make no apology for hiring him. He
:17:46. > :17:50.has a lot of experience in winning tight elections and that is what we
:17:51. > :17:56.are expecting. If you are expecting us to say, they have passed and we
:17:57. > :18:03.have to hold them accountable, then I am sorry but we have a campaign
:18:04. > :18:12.that holds the Government and the Conservatives to account for what I
:18:13. > :18:17.think is a very hopeless record in government. Thank you.
:18:18. > :18:21.He leads a party with zero MPs but his media presence is huge. He's had
:18:22. > :18:23.an expenses scandal, but the public didn't seem to mind. He's got a
:18:24. > :18:26.privileged background but he's seen as an anti-establishment champion.
:18:27. > :18:30.Nothing seems to stick to him, not even eggs. I speak of course of
:18:31. > :18:33.Nigel Farage. We'll talk to him in a moment, but first Giles has been out
:18:34. > :18:36.on the campaign trail ahead of elections that could make or break
:18:37. > :18:39.the UKIP leader. Nigel Farage likes a stage, and at
:18:40. > :18:43.this stage of the Euro and local election campaign he is, like his
:18:44. > :18:47.party, in buoyant mood. They feel they are on the verge of what they
:18:48. > :18:52.see as causing an earthquake in British politics. Today Nigel is
:18:53. > :19:02.filling thousands seat venues and bigger. Not that there's much sign
:19:03. > :19:05.of that at this press launch. But it's a threat with serious money
:19:06. > :19:07.behind it, that they believe the media and the political elite just
:19:08. > :19:10.haven't realised yet, much less learned how to counter it. Not that
:19:11. > :19:13.it's all been plain sailing. Offensive comments from some
:19:14. > :19:16.candidates has not only seen UKIP labelled as racist, but necessitated
:19:17. > :19:24.a rally by the party to visibly and verbally challenge that. The
:19:25. > :19:26.offensive idiotic statements made by this handful of people have been
:19:27. > :19:31.lifted up and presented to the great British public as if they represent
:19:32. > :19:34.the view of this party, which they do not. They never have and they
:19:35. > :19:50.never will. APPLAUSE I don't care what you call us, but
:19:51. > :20:01.from this moment on, please do not call must trust a racist party. We
:20:02. > :20:04.are not a racist party. The need to say that is not just
:20:05. > :20:07.about the European and local elections even at that campaign
:20:08. > :20:10.launch it's clear UKIP's leader has set his sights firmly on the
:20:11. > :20:12.ultimate prize. I come from the south of England and I would not
:20:13. > :20:17.want to be seen as an opportunist heading to the north, north Norfolk
:20:18. > :20:23.or whatever it will be. I will make my mind up and stand in the general
:20:24. > :20:28.election for somewhere in Kent, East Sussex, Hampshire, somewhere in my
:20:29. > :20:37.home patch. Back at UKIP HQ they are still drilling down how the last
:20:38. > :20:40.fortnight of campaigning should go. They aren't taking any chances, and
:20:41. > :20:43.one imagines having offices above those of Max Clifford is a reminder
:20:44. > :20:46.how fragile built reputations can be of the bubble bursting. They want
:20:47. > :20:49.their reputation to be built on votes and they know anything but
:20:50. > :20:57.significant success on May 22nd and some seats in Westminster in 2015
:20:58. > :21:00.isn't going to be good enough. And after that, having sold yourselves
:21:01. > :21:03.as the honest outsiders, that stance is harder to maintain once your
:21:04. > :21:10.people are on the inside. And subtle changes from the past are already
:21:11. > :21:12.noticeable. The ordinary man of the people stance is still working.
:21:13. > :21:19.Characteristically outside a pub, Nigel Farage is glad handed by a
:21:20. > :21:24.customer. Two weeks to go, let's cause an upset. Wouldn't that be
:21:25. > :21:27.great? The only sign that such an interaction is different now is the
:21:28. > :21:39.ever presence of bodyguards who shadow his every move. Over lunch
:21:40. > :21:42.ahead of Question Time, a radio appearance, and then off to
:21:43. > :21:46.Scotland, I ask him if some of those minded to vote UKIP who see him as a
:21:47. > :21:49.man they'd be comfortable having a drink with are the sort of people
:21:50. > :21:51.he'd be entirely comfortable sitting down with. Every political party
:21:52. > :21:54.attracts support from across the spectrum and there will be some
:21:55. > :22:02.magnificent people who vote for us and some ne'er-do-wells. The one
:22:03. > :22:08.common thing about UKIP voters is that they are often not very
:22:09. > :22:12.political. And it's that people's army that if UKIP can get to a
:22:13. > :22:17.polling booth might just create that earthquake they want.
:22:18. > :22:21.Nigel Farage joins me now. When you decided not to stand at the new work
:22:22. > :22:28.by election coming said if you lost it that the bubble would have
:22:29. > :22:47.burst. What did you mean by that? I was asked at seven 20p -- at 7:21pm
:22:48. > :22:53.if I would stand, I have decided by the next morning that I would not. I
:22:54. > :22:57.didn't know he was going to resign. You claim only a handful of UKIP
:22:58. > :23:04.candidates have ever said things that are either stupid or offensive,
:23:05. > :23:10.I'm right on that, yes? 0.1%, I'd rather it was non-. But why have you
:23:11. > :23:14.chosen a candidate to fight this by-election that has said many
:23:15. > :23:20.things most people would regard as stupid or offensive? Roger is
:23:21. > :23:26.fighting this for us, someone of 70 years of age who grew up with a
:23:27. > :23:31.strong Christian Bible background, in an age when homosexuality was
:23:32. > :23:35.imprisonable. He had a certain set of views which he maintained for
:23:36. > :23:41.many years which he now says he accepts the world has moved on and
:23:42. > :23:46.he is relaxed about it. The comments about homosexuality are not from the
:23:47. > :23:52.dark ages, they are from two or three years ago. From when he was a
:23:53. > :23:56.Conservative, yes, so will you be asking David Cameron that question?
:23:57. > :24:04.I have never seen a single comment from Roger that would be deemed to
:24:05. > :24:09.be offensive. Do you regard his comments on homosexuality as
:24:10. > :24:14.offensive? When he grew up, homosexuality was illegal in this
:24:15. > :24:25.country. But this was in 2012 but he said that. Most people have his age
:24:26. > :24:32.still feel uncomfortable about it -- of his age. In 2012 he said, if two
:24:33. > :24:38.men can be married, why not three, why not a commune. Many people in
:24:39. > :24:43.this country are disconcerted by the change in the meaning of marriage
:24:44. > :24:47.and in a tolerant society we understand that some people have
:24:48. > :24:52.different views. But he has changed his views now in only two years? He
:24:53. > :25:03.says he is more relaxed about it. Was he your candidate? He is a
:25:04. > :25:07.first-class campaigner who has had 30 years in industry, he served in
:25:08. > :25:12.the European Parliament, he is a good candidate. This morning's
:25:13. > :25:17.papers suggest you are about to select Victoria Ayling for Grimsby,
:25:18. > :25:22.but she is on camera saying that, of immigrants, I just want to send a
:25:23. > :25:26.lot back. This is all very interesting, and we can talk about
:25:27. > :25:30.it, all we could talk about the fact that in 12 days we have a European
:25:31. > :25:37.election and every voter across the UK can vote on it and it is really
:25:38. > :25:45.interesting. Are you happy to pick a candidate that says of immigrants, I
:25:46. > :25:50.just want to send a lot back? I have seen the tape, it is a complete
:25:51. > :25:58.misquote and she says it in the context of illegal immigrants. I
:25:59. > :26:01.have seen the full quote and in the context it is not about illegal
:26:02. > :26:06.immigrants. Let's come onto the European campaign, you have used a
:26:07. > :26:11.company that employs Eastern European is to deliver leaflets in
:26:12. > :26:17.London and the Home Counties. Have we? I'm told that in Croydon one
:26:18. > :26:23.branch might have done that. Have you found some indigenous Brits to
:26:24. > :26:27.deliver leaflets in Europe? We have thousands joining the party every
:26:28. > :26:30.month and they are not all indigenous because what is
:26:31. > :26:46.interesting is that in today's opinion polls, UKIP is above the Lib
:26:47. > :26:56.Dems and the Conservatives amongst the indigenous voting.
:26:57. > :27:03.We have not agreed a manifesto for the general election, we will do
:27:04. > :27:09.over the course of the summer. This is in your local election. We are
:27:10. > :27:13.having local elections in some part of the country but we are fighting a
:27:14. > :27:18.European election. It is impossible with the British media to have an
:27:19. > :27:24.intelligent debate on the European question. But as I say, we are also
:27:25. > :27:31.fighting the local elections too. You have promised these tax cuts,
:27:32. > :27:35.how much will they cost? I have met -- read the local election manifesto
:27:36. > :27:40.and it doesn't make those promises. We do talk about local services, we
:27:41. > :27:48.do talk about the need to keep council tax down but we don't talk
:27:49. > :27:52.about income tax. Absolutely not. In local election campaigning you say
:27:53. > :27:58.you would restore cuts to policing, double prison places, restore cuts
:27:59. > :28:05.to front line NHS, spend more on roads, how much would that cost? You
:28:06. > :28:10.are obviously reading different documents to me. We are voting for
:28:11. > :28:17.local councillors in district councils who have got little local
:28:18. > :28:23.budgets. Every party in a manifesto puts his aspirations in it. Have you
:28:24. > :28:29.read it? Of course I have, cover to cover, which is why I'm saying you
:28:30. > :28:36.are misquoting it. By the way, on the bubble bursting, you told that
:28:37. > :28:41.to Norman Smith of the BBC. 75% of British laws are now made in the
:28:42. > :28:46.European Union. Now AstraZeneca is potentially going to be taken over
:28:47. > :28:51.by Pfizer. The BBC is refusing to show the public that that decision
:28:52. > :28:55.cannot be taken here but by an elected European commissioner, and
:28:56. > :29:09.we sit and argue about what is in or not in the local election manifesto.
:29:10. > :29:12.It is my job, but let me come on to AstraZeneca. Is it your view that a
:29:13. > :29:24.British government should stop the takeover of AstraZeneca? It cannot.
:29:25. > :29:29.Can we please get this clear. I sat next to Chuka Umunna the other day
:29:30. > :29:34.at question time and he said what could and couldn't be done. He said
:29:35. > :29:38.I am being studiously neutral, and the reason is we don't have this
:29:39. > :29:44.power. That is what the European elections is about. Should France
:29:45. > :30:02.have the takeover of the food company Danan? We seem to do things
:30:03. > :30:06.to the Nth degree and nobody else does, perhaps because we have this
:30:07. > :30:15.culture and we obey it. In your view, you don't think Pfizer should
:30:16. > :30:16.be able to take over AstraZeneca? There is some good science within
:30:17. > :30:26.AstraZeneca which is in being asset stripped and lost.
:30:27. > :30:31.Because it is run by a Swede and a Frenchman and most of its employees
:30:32. > :30:36.are overseas. I understand that but there are still some good science
:30:37. > :30:39.being produced here. What did you think of the Prime Minister saying
:30:40. > :30:45.he would not form a government after the election unless he was able to
:30:46. > :30:52.have a referendum in 2017? I sat here talking to you and you said to
:30:53. > :30:56.me that David Cameron had given a cast-iron guarantee that if David
:30:57. > :31:00.Cameron becomes Prime Minister he will have a referendum on the Lisbon
:31:01. > :31:05.Treaty, but he didn't deliver on that. He knows that people struggle
:31:06. > :31:11.to believe the renegotiation is worth a row of beans. He is saying
:31:12. > :31:15.he will not form a government unless he can go forward with the
:31:16. > :31:18.referendum. I know he is desperately trying to pretend to be Eurosceptic
:31:19. > :31:23.whilst at the same time saying he will campaign for Britain to remain
:31:24. > :31:27.in. In a sense, that is what this election is about. We have three
:31:28. > :31:30.traditional parties, all of whom passionately believe in the
:31:31. > :31:34.continued membership of the European Union and we have UKIP saying we
:31:35. > :31:40.want trade and cooperation but there is a bigger and better world out
:31:41. > :31:51.there. You are now travelling with I think four bodyguards, has this
:31:52. > :31:55.affected you and your family life? I can't stand it. I've always wondered
:31:56. > :31:59.about the place and on my own thing. Sadly we have a couple of
:32:00. > :32:01.organisations out there headed up by senior Labour Party figures who
:32:02. > :32:07.purport to be against fascism and extremism, who received funding from
:32:08. > :32:11.the Department of communities, from the trade unions, who have acted in
:32:12. > :32:16.a violent wait more than once. You are saying the Labour Party is
:32:17. > :32:20.behind the threats? No, I said a taxpayer funded, trade union funded
:32:21. > :32:23.and headed by senior Labour Party figures, and I'm happy for them to
:32:24. > :32:27.come to my meetings and have an itinerant with me, but it's not so
:32:28. > :32:33.much fun when there are banging you over the head. I is still keen to be
:32:34. > :32:38.an MP? Yes, what UKIP will then do is target before the general
:32:39. > :32:43.election next year for the one life be easier if you just went to the
:32:44. > :32:47.Lords? That's the last thing I want to do. There's an awful lot to do.
:32:48. > :32:51.Most of all, I will not rest until we are free from political union and
:32:52. > :32:54.government from Brussels. Nigel Farage, thank you for being with us.
:32:55. > :32:57.It's just gone 11.30am. You're watching the Sunday Politics. We say
:32:58. > :33:00.goodbye to viewers in Scotland, who leave us now for Sunday Politics
:33:01. > :33:02.Scotland. Coming up here in 20 minutes, our panel talks about the
:33:03. > :33:15.big stories of the week. Hello and welcome to your local part
:33:16. > :33:19.of the show and the second of our European election specials. Last
:33:20. > :33:23.Sunday Labour and UKIP candidates in the North East argued over migration
:33:24. > :33:25.and jobs. This week it's the turn of Conservative Martin Callanan and
:33:26. > :33:32.Liberal Democrat Angelika Schneider to go head`to`head. UKIP are a
:33:33. > :33:35.potential threat to their hopes. We're in South Shields a year after
:33:36. > :33:39.they came second in the by`election there. We've been talking to voters
:33:40. > :33:44.to see if Nigel Farage's party can build on that success. And we'll be
:33:45. > :33:47.talking to the Greens who say it's time to put fracking and nuclear
:33:48. > :33:50.power on the election agenda. Well, Labour believe they can
:33:51. > :33:54.overcome the threat from UKIP to top the poll in the North East on May
:33:55. > :33:57.22. The party leader Ed Miliband took his campaign to Tyneside on
:33:58. > :34:01.Friday afternoon with a visit to Newcastle's Grainger market. There
:34:02. > :34:04.may be elections for the European Parliament but Labour has chosen to
:34:05. > :34:07.focus mainly upon economic themes and its familiar message about what
:34:08. > :34:16.it calls the "cost of living crisis". Angelika Schneider, you
:34:17. > :34:21.have tried to position yourself as the party who are pro`EU. Our labour
:34:22. > :34:30.just as pro`EU as you are, and they are not sullied by being in
:34:31. > :34:33.government with the Conservatives? If you look at the Labour election
:34:34. > :34:38.broadcast, if you listen to Ed Miliband, the real issue for the
:34:39. > :34:41.European elections is to actually talk about Europe and make the case
:34:42. > :34:44.for Europe, and talk about what you want to do in Europe. We don't hear
:34:45. > :34:51.anything from Labour about these issues. The polls suggesting people
:34:52. > :34:57.not buying that. Your poll ratings are pretty terrible. You might not
:34:58. > :35:01.keep your seat here? I agree that the polls are looking challenging
:35:02. > :35:06.for the Liberal Democrats. In life, when the going gets tough you have
:35:07. > :35:09.two choices, you can either go in the corner and feel sorry for
:35:10. > :35:13.yourself or you can go out and speak to more people, make the case for EU
:35:14. > :35:18.membership, make the case for jobs and growth here in the north`east,
:35:19. > :35:25.make the case for tackling crime, tackling crack `` climate change.
:35:26. > :35:30.That is what we're doing is Liberal Democrats, standing proud and
:35:31. > :35:37.fighting EU membership. Is it good by Brussels? I don't think so
:35:38. > :35:46.actually. There has been no specific regionwide Paul's, but a revolt is
:35:47. > :35:50.solid, I have been going out. The Conservatives have never been that
:35:51. > :35:56.strong in the north`east. We have always managed to get a seat in the
:35:57. > :36:03.last three European elections, so I am quietly optimistic. I am not
:36:04. > :36:09.taking anything for granted. Why do you think the Conservatives are not
:36:10. > :36:11.reaping any benefits? We have been traditionally, the north`east has
:36:12. > :36:22.been a Labour area, a difficult battle for us. It was a lot better
:36:23. > :36:26.under Margaret Thatcher's time? If you look at some of the performance
:36:27. > :36:29.of many of our labour authorities in the region, many people have been
:36:30. > :36:34.let down, they are still living in poor conditions. Primarily driven by
:36:35. > :36:36.the Labour Party. It is a hard message to get across but we're
:36:37. > :36:40.trying to do that. Well, it was a year ago this week
:36:41. > :36:43.that UKIP made one of its big breakthroughs in the North East,
:36:44. > :36:46.coming second in the South Shields by`election. Since then the party
:36:47. > :36:49.claims it's been winning new members and gaining support daily across the
:36:50. > :36:52.region. Our correspondent Mark Denten has been back to South
:36:53. > :36:56.Shields to try and gauge levels of support for UKIP ahead of this
:36:57. > :37:00.month's elections. A year ago, the South Shields
:37:01. > :37:05.by`election, Labour holding onto a seat they have had since 1935.
:37:06. > :37:12.Labour supporters celebrated, there are party's majority dropped by over
:37:13. > :37:16.4000, putting on the squeeze UKIP. UKIP got nearly a quarter of the
:37:17. > :37:20.votes here in South Shields in that election. 5000 people voted for
:37:21. > :37:26.them, 3000 more than voted Conservative, 17 times more than
:37:27. > :37:32.voted Liberal Democrat. Flash in the pan or platform for success at the
:37:33. > :37:37.European elections? What do the voters of South Shields make of
:37:38. > :37:43.UKIP? The Conservatives promised this and that for the country. It
:37:44. > :37:52.has gone downhill badly. Labour have done the same thing. I used to vote
:37:53. > :37:59.Labour, now I have gone to UKIP. Listening to the people and picking
:38:00. > :38:05.up on what people want, not just saying what people want to hear.
:38:06. > :38:11.What do you want? More control on immigration. I don't agree with a
:38:12. > :38:16.lot of the policies. The immigration ones I don't agree with. My family
:38:17. > :38:24.actually came from Arabia originally. I think that a lot of
:38:25. > :38:32.the workers that do immigrate work really hard. How UKIP's policies
:38:33. > :38:36.going down here? If there is a bit of an international flavour here,
:38:37. > :38:40.that is really no surprise because South Shields has a history of
:38:41. > :38:44.immigration going back over 100 years. With UKIP calling for tougher
:38:45. > :38:51.immigration policies, is that encouraging the voters around here
:38:52. > :38:58.or is it a turn`off? I wouldn't be one for voting for it if that was
:38:59. > :39:05.the case. It brings in, it helps the economy as well. The UK has an open
:39:06. > :39:12.door policy for everyone, basically. Migrants are coming in from
:39:13. > :39:15.everywhere. Obviously, the way the country is at the moment with the
:39:16. > :39:25.Conservatives, working`class people worse off now. The cost of living
:39:26. > :39:28.has gone through the roof, we just have to come in line with the cost
:39:29. > :39:37.of living. I think change is needed, definitely. Would you vote UKIP? If
:39:38. > :39:44.they could make the change, yes. I hear on from that election, we're
:39:45. > :39:46.ready for more voting. Our UKIP just a protest vote easily dismissed, or
:39:47. > :39:53.the stuff of nightmares for the other parties?
:39:54. > :40:02.We still have the Liberal Democrat and Conservative parties candidates
:40:03. > :40:06.still here. And also here is the Green Party's lead candidate in the
:40:07. > :40:12.North East, Shirley Ford. We would like to have voters backing us. UKIP
:40:13. > :40:18.is a party of protest and anger, we are a party of answers. We are the
:40:19. > :40:22.only party that is able to deliver a referendum on the European Union, so
:40:23. > :40:25.if you want to leave like some of those voters did, you're only going
:40:26. > :40:28.to be able to do that through a referendum only we can do. UKIP
:40:29. > :40:35.never turns up the European Parliament. Whatever their
:40:36. > :40:39.complaints, they have no mechanism. It is a protest vote. They should be
:40:40. > :40:45.looking to a party that will actually deliver a solution. Your
:40:46. > :40:51.party has moved as far in Europe as it possibly can without pulling out.
:40:52. > :40:54.All UKIP want to do is leave the EU, and you can't offer seeing you will
:40:55. > :41:02.leave the EU, you have promised referendums before and not deliver
:41:03. > :41:07.them. There will be a referendum in our general election manifesto, we
:41:08. > :41:11.have tried to put a bill through the House of Commons which was vetoed by
:41:12. > :41:15.Labour and the Liberal Democrats. Unfortunately we don't have a
:41:16. > :41:18.majority in our own right, but David Cameron said last week if he is
:41:19. > :41:23.Prime Minister there will be a referendum on the European Union.
:41:24. > :41:27.Whatever UKIP say in protest, they cannot deliver that. If you want at
:41:28. > :41:35.referendum on EU must vote Conservative. Angelika, it must be
:41:36. > :41:42.depressing, you call yourselves the party of in, it is actually the
:41:43. > :41:49.party of oat. As Martin was saying, UKIP is a party of protest and fear
:41:50. > :41:54.and anger. It is a party that doesn't believe in staying in the
:41:55. > :41:58.European Union. We are looking for answers to very complex issues, and
:41:59. > :42:03.it is up to us as Liberal Democrats to make the case for more, located
:42:04. > :42:09.answers, which is being constructively involved in the
:42:10. > :42:14.European Parliament. Those arguments don't seem to be holding water with
:42:15. > :42:20.people. People do believe that jobs through Europe are very important
:42:21. > :42:26.for the north`east. 156,000 jobs in trade with the EU, a lot of people
:42:27. > :42:32.are working here, in Sunderland, big companies have come out to say they
:42:33. > :42:42.would reconsider investment. People do know what it is like when big
:42:43. > :42:47.industry dies. You actually might end up sliding down fifth, sixth, in
:42:48. > :42:53.these elections? What we're trying to achieve is say, look, we're the
:42:54. > :42:58.only pro`European party, appealing to one third of the British
:42:59. > :43:05.population that is pro`European. And we say, please do back the Liberal
:43:06. > :43:08.Democrats in this election. Shirley Ford, what sense do you get
:43:09. > :43:16.campaigning about why people might be turning to UKIP? `` to you?
:43:17. > :43:20.Because people are very angry, both with the Conservative and Liberal
:43:21. > :43:23.Democrat government, but they feel abandoned and disillusioned with the
:43:24. > :43:27.Labour Party. They are looking for an alternative, and when we talk to
:43:28. > :43:33.people, when they hear our policies, which offer a living wage for
:43:34. > :43:39.stopping fracking and nuclear, which they might expect, but also for
:43:40. > :43:49.bringing banks into public hands and ending, excuse me, ending Lope
:43:50. > :43:53.culture. Those are things... There is a danger that you are just
:43:54. > :44:00.getting a protest vote. It is a very dangerous place to be. But I think
:44:01. > :44:06.people are fed up with the way that the Big three ignore real people. I
:44:07. > :44:11.work in a primary school in South Shields, every day I can see and
:44:12. > :44:17.hear people saying how angry and fed up and stressed out they are. People
:44:18. > :44:21.really do want to change, we are offering hope, we are offering a
:44:22. > :44:27.referendum, we agree on a referendum, to give people the
:44:28. > :44:35.vote, but we say we want to vote to change the inside. Martin, the other
:44:36. > :44:42.danger of this is that UKIP's vote, you could easily lose a few seats?
:44:43. > :44:46.UKIP did very well in the elections then there are support plummeted in
:44:47. > :44:50.the general election. When people feel that they have what they regard
:44:51. > :44:55.as a serious decision to make in the general election, who was Prime
:44:56. > :45:00.Minister? Is it David Cameron or Ed Miliband? That is the decision
:45:01. > :45:03.people face. I am sure you will see people coming back to us to support
:45:04. > :45:10.us. In the choice between David Cameron or Ed Miliband, I cannot
:45:11. > :45:13.believe that anyone... Angelika, the danger also for you in Redcar and
:45:14. > :45:23.Berwick, you could have no MPs in the north`east? Are candidates are
:45:24. > :45:32.absolutely fantastic candidates. They do have great support on the
:45:33. > :45:36.doorstep. Quite frankly, are polling suggests that we can hold onto both
:45:37. > :45:43.of the seats and we will fight very hard to do this. I want to make this
:45:44. > :45:49.point, it is essential to have a political alternative in the
:45:50. > :45:52.north`east. There is no joy if the whole region is represented by
:45:53. > :45:58.Labour, because political alternatives give people the
:45:59. > :46:01.choice. We'll have to leave it there, you have made your point.
:46:02. > :46:03.Well, it's not only UKIP putting forward an anti`EU message at these
:46:04. > :46:07.elections. An Independence from Europe was set up by a former UKIP
:46:08. > :46:10.member and is standing a full slate of candidates in the North East.
:46:11. > :46:13.Candidate Sheridan Forbes outlined the platform her party is standing
:46:14. > :46:19.on. The principles would be leaving the EU, taking back UK border
:46:20. > :46:23.control, making sure we have more scrutiny on the borders, which would
:46:24. > :46:28.take pressure off the National Health Service, schools, local
:46:29. > :46:32.authorities, and places where, at the moment, we are feeling the pinch
:46:33. > :46:35.because of posterity that Europe has put on us.
:46:36. > :46:38.Meanwhile the English Democrats are also standing. Kevin Riddiough is
:46:39. > :46:42.its lead candidate in the region. He says the North East wouldn't miss
:46:43. > :46:45.out economically if we left the EU. There is no reason why trade
:46:46. > :46:51.barriers should change from us leaving the European Union. The
:46:52. > :46:55.European Union is purely a title. We have got a European free trade
:46:56. > :46:58.agreement, no one needs to move their businesses, big businesses can
:46:59. > :47:05.come back to us. It is as simple as that. The EU is a diktat, if you
:47:06. > :47:09.like, making the rules, which is stifling trade if anything, rather
:47:10. > :47:12.than opening a free`market economy. The BNP are also contesting the
:47:13. > :47:15.elections and had the national launch of their campaign this week
:47:16. > :47:18.with party leader Nick Griffin, who's also an MEP in the North West.
:47:19. > :47:21.They say the main issue is immigration and have pledged to
:47:22. > :47:25.withdraw from the EU. The party, however, have so far declined to
:47:26. > :47:27.offer up one of their North East candidates for an interview.
:47:28. > :47:31.Well, the last time European elections were fought in the North
:47:32. > :47:34.East, back in 2009, almost four out of every ten votes did go to parties
:47:35. > :47:38.other than Labour, the Conservatives and the Lib Dems. Shirley Ford, what
:47:39. > :47:48.are your ambitions in the north`east elections? We are getting closer, if
:47:49. > :47:53.you look at the poll ratings, we are overtaking in some polls, the Lib
:47:54. > :47:56.Dems. It is very volatile with this PR system. If you look at the
:47:57. > :48:00.Northwest, we are very, very close to winning that final seat they are
:48:01. > :48:04.that Nick Griffin one last time around. The change of dynamics will
:48:05. > :48:08.mean that we are seriously contending for the North West seat.
:48:09. > :48:13.We are looking for a very strong results in the north`east. But if
:48:14. > :48:22.people analyse your policies for the north`east, industries such as
:48:23. > :48:27.steel, high carbon industries, people want to save their jobs and
:48:28. > :48:34.won't want to vote Green? You need to invest in the right sort of jobs.
:48:35. > :48:39.Are we paying for people who are in the wrong sorts of jobs, is that it?
:48:40. > :48:45.Public investment is currently going into nuclear. Public money is going
:48:46. > :48:50.into researching fracking and underground gas. That money needs to
:48:51. > :48:55.be going into renewable energies that are safe, clean and green. That
:48:56. > :49:05.would bring people's Energy Bill stone. Martin, parties that are
:49:06. > :49:10.hostile to Europe, a reflection that Westminster parties have failed to
:49:11. > :49:19.resolve the issue? In many respects, yes. That is why we are seeing ``
:49:20. > :49:26.saying... You have been dragged down by these parties? Not necessarily.
:49:27. > :49:30.There should be a referendum, party leadership has adopted that as a
:49:31. > :49:42.policy, we're the only major party who can deliver a referendum.
:49:43. > :49:49.Caroline Lucas says thank you. Would you help yourself that you promised
:49:50. > :49:57.an in dash out referendum? We are with the Conservatives in
:49:58. > :50:03.government. A deal on the table that we can actually decide upon needs to
:50:04. > :50:08.happen, but at the moment there is nothing new coming out of Brussels.
:50:09. > :50:14.A lot of people would say, as Martin said, it is a very different
:50:15. > :50:18.organisation to the way it is now. If you said, look, we will offer you
:50:19. > :50:25.a vote on this, what is wrong with that? We have said we would have a
:50:26. > :50:28.referendum. When there is a big change and people can have the
:50:29. > :50:35.choice then. We have legislated in government that there will be a
:50:36. > :50:36.referendum as a treaty change. We will have to leave it there I'm
:50:37. > :50:39.afraid. Well, if our interviews with the
:50:40. > :50:42.Euro election candidates have left you frustrated, angry or just plain
:50:43. > :50:45.bemused, there's something you can do about it. Why not come along to
:50:46. > :50:48.Gateshead tomorrow lunchtime when there's an opportunity to put your
:50:49. > :50:51.questions face`to`face to today's Conservative and Lib Dem guests, as
:50:52. > :50:55.well as candidates from Labour and UKIP. I'll be there too keeping
:50:56. > :50:58.order with our world famous "hot seat" or "chaises chaud" as they
:50:59. > :51:02.might be known in the continent. You can find us in Trinity Square in the
:51:03. > :51:06.middle of Gateshead tomorrow from 12 noon until 2pm. And if you can't
:51:07. > :51:10.make it, we'll be showing the best of the questions, and the answers of
:51:11. > :51:12.course, on Look North later in the week.
:51:13. > :51:15.Now we've talked lots about the Euro elections. There's the locals too in
:51:16. > :51:18.some areas. Then there's the small matter of the Scottish referendum in
:51:19. > :51:22.September. But that's not enough for a small corner of Teesside which is
:51:23. > :51:25.holding its own vote about whether to become part of North Yorkshire.
:51:26. > :51:35.Here's Fergus Hewison with that and the rest of the week's news in 60
:51:36. > :51:39.seconds. One County Durham man has taken his
:51:40. > :51:45.case for tougher gun controls the Westminster. His sister and mother
:51:46. > :51:54.were shot dead, and he met the Shadow Secretary of State Cooper. ``
:51:55. > :52:00.Yvette Cooper. South Shields MP has challenged David Cameron over
:52:01. > :52:03.welfare cuts. My constituent's disability means he needs a
:52:04. > :52:08.specially adapted bed and cannot share a room with his wife, yet
:52:09. > :52:10.still we are hit by the bedroom tax. Can the premise to explain why this
:52:11. > :52:17.government is punishing his disability? As the honourable lady
:52:18. > :52:21.knows, we have discretionary housing payments are exactly the sort of
:52:22. > :52:25.case, the money has been topped up, so there is no reason poor people
:52:26. > :52:32.can be disadvantaged. Finally, people will get a vote, but the Paul
:52:33. > :52:39.on May 27 will not be legally binding.
:52:40. > :52:42.And that's about it from us. If you live in Cumbria and would like to
:52:43. > :52:45.hear from the Europan election candidates standing in the North
:52:46. > :52:49.West, then BBC Radio Cumbria is the place. They will be debating the
:52:50. > :52:52.issues on Friday morning from 11. Meanwhile in the North East BBC
:52:53. > :52:55.Newcastle will be talking to candidates from the main parties
:52:56. > :53:00.each weekday morning, starting on Tuesday with UKIP. That's at 9am.
:53:01. > :53:04.We're back same time, same place next Sunday with a look at the local
:53:05. > :53:05.elections. Bet you're counting the minutes already. For
:53:06. > :53:17.the website now. Now it is back to you, Andrew.
:53:18. > :53:26.Welcome back, let's go straight to our panel. What did you make of Mr
:53:27. > :53:29.Alexander's defence of the Labour party election broadcast? It is
:53:30. > :53:33.difficult for them because they started by saying they were not
:53:34. > :53:38.going to do negative campaigning and they have thrown that away for an
:53:39. > :53:46.advert which is funny but crude in the class war sense. He didn't look
:53:47. > :53:52.thrilled to be defending it. There is a page in Tony Blair's memoirs
:53:53. > :53:55.talking about negative campaigning, and he says that anything too
:53:56. > :54:07.extreme turns off the average voter so his line of attack on Hague was
:54:08. > :54:12.funny jokes but... I think this failed the Blair test, it was too
:54:13. > :54:19.vicious. If your strategy is to shore up your car vote, that advert
:54:20. > :54:25.was genius. If your strategy is to reach out to a broader number of
:54:26. > :54:29.voters, Middle Britain, then that advert was a complete disaster. It
:54:30. > :54:33.looks like there is a lot of negativity and smears all round in
:54:34. > :54:52.the next year. That definitely looks the way we are going. They will be
:54:53. > :55:03.essentially trying to re-run by -- the American election. I am slightly
:55:04. > :55:09.puzzled why we cannot have our own election gurus who live here and
:55:10. > :55:15.understand the country. I should point out that the ?450 extra VAT
:55:16. > :55:21.that was claimed in that Labour poster, both Ed Balls and the Labour
:55:22. > :55:27.Treasury team have said that is ?450 per year. Nonsense the VAT rise, one
:55:28. > :55:31.year. I should also point out that Nigel Farage said to Norman Smith,
:55:32. > :55:38.the BBC is always reliable Norman Smith that if you run in Newark and
:55:39. > :55:43.lost the bubble would burst. I should also point out that although
:55:44. > :55:48.a number of the tax rises I mentioned on council tax, minimum
:55:49. > :55:53.wage tax and some other things that UKIP wants to cuts, a couple of
:55:54. > :55:59.these are in the local manifesto but several are not. They are on the
:56:00. > :56:06.UKIP website, which is still current and dated 2014. We like to make sure
:56:07. > :56:12.we are absolutely right. Let's talk about Nick Clegg and Michael Gove
:56:13. > :56:19.and the latest spat. Let me show you this headline in the Observer this
:56:20. > :56:31.morning. From both the Independent, he called him a zealot, lunatic is
:56:32. > :56:36.of -- another word. Do we take this seriously? It hinges on this
:56:37. > :56:41.question of what counts as an area of need in education. The Lib Dems
:56:42. > :56:45.say an area of need is one where there are not enough school places
:56:46. > :56:49.to meet local demand. He says it can also be a place where there are
:56:50. > :57:01.surplus places but that is for a reason. Local places don't trust
:57:02. > :57:07.those schools to do a good job for their kids. It surprises me because
:57:08. > :57:11.there isn't a yawning distance between David Laws and Michael Gove.
:57:12. > :57:16.David Laws has found himself between a rock and a hard place because I
:57:17. > :57:20.asked -- as I understand it most Lib Dems don't like the free schools but
:57:21. > :57:28.Mr laws was quite sympathetic to it and he is now having to this respect
:57:29. > :57:31.it. When they asked people who are the most hated politicians in a poll
:57:32. > :57:47.were this week, Michael Gove is off the charts, far above David Cameron
:57:48. > :57:50.or George Osborne. This is tit-for-tat war. The Liberal
:57:51. > :57:55.Democrats believe Michael Gove had a hand in leaking the document that
:57:56. > :57:58.showed Nick Clegg was opposing the tougher Chris Grayling position on
:57:59. > :58:03.knife crime. They are saying there were Cabinet ministers who never
:58:04. > :58:08.usually attend the sub Cabinet meeting, they turned up and the
:58:09. > :58:12.document is leaked so what we are getting is tit for tat on that. It
:58:13. > :58:17.is inevitable but it is not good for either side of the Coalition. Voters
:58:18. > :58:22.will look at it and say it is politics of the playground. I read
:58:23. > :58:33.in the Mail on Sunday this morning that some Tory insiders are accusing
:58:34. > :58:37.Lib Dems of spreading rumours about the camera in marriage. The
:58:38. > :58:51.rebuttals of education story is that the free school meals is sucking
:58:52. > :58:57.money away. I always thought they would work together without fuss and
:58:58. > :59:02.yet it has been more the source of disagreement then I would have
:59:03. > :59:07.expected a couple of years ago. Is it serious? It is serious obviously,
:59:08. > :59:12.using that language, but is it fatal for the Coalition? I think it is a
:59:13. > :59:17.road bump because I don't think anybody wants to dissolve the
:59:18. > :59:21.Coalition. It is a challenge for Labour because where do they stand
:59:22. > :59:25.on the free schools? They invented the Academy programme so it is
:59:26. > :59:28.difficult for them to take a hands-off approach at this stage.
:59:29. > :59:32.There was a danger for Michael Gove that he looks ideological but the
:59:33. > :59:35.danger for the Liberal Democrats is that they are breaking the rules for
:59:36. > :59:39.the Coalition they said that they wouldn't break which is that they
:59:40. > :59:47.looked like opposition in government. Is Michael Gove's
:59:48. > :59:55.position safe? Very safe. If he moves in a reshuffle that will be to
:59:56. > :59:58.a a job. That's all for today. The Daily Politics will be back on BBC
:59:59. > :00:01.Two at lunchtime from Tuesday onwards. I'll be back here on BBC
:00:02. > :00:02.One at 11am next week. Remember if it's Sunday, it's the Sunday
:00:03. > :00:51.Politics. What if the person
:00:52. > :00:52.that killed her... I found out she'd been taking drugs.
:00:53. > :00:56.Just let me explain. You wasn't at that party all night.
:00:57. > :00:59.Yeah, I was. What was she even doing there?
:01:00. > :01:02.Oi, you keep your mouth shut. She was exchanging a significant
:01:03. > :01:04.number of texts and calls with someone in the weeks
:01:05. > :01:07.leading up to her death. It's like we didn't
:01:08. > :01:10.really know her at all.