:00:36. > :00:39.It's Sunday morning and this is the Sunday Politics.
:00:40. > :00:43.Theresa May unveils plans to build many more affordable homes
:00:44. > :00:46.in England, but with no price tag, timetable or building targets -
:00:47. > :00:53.Labour takes aim at the City with what it calls a Robin Hood Tax
:00:54. > :00:55.to fund public services, but will traders just
:00:56. > :00:58.Don't look at the polls - Jeremy Corbyn, at least,
:00:59. > :01:01.insists he can win this election - so which way will
:01:02. > :01:06.We'll hear from a focus group in Leeds.
:01:07. > :01:08.Here: Labour hits back after the Prime Minister accuses
:01:09. > :01:13.Jeremy Corbyn of abandoning the North East's working-class voters.
:01:14. > :01:14.But have the Conservatives really won
:01:15. > :01:17.and here, what the parties are saying about tackling the air
:01:18. > :01:25.pollution problem in London. And with me, our own scientifically
:01:26. > :01:28.selected focus group of political pundits -
:01:29. > :01:30.they're not so much undecided as clueless -
:01:31. > :01:32.Tom Newton Dunn, Isabel Oakeshott They'll be tweeting
:01:33. > :01:40.throughout the programme. So, we've got two new
:01:41. > :01:42.policies this morning. Labour say they will introduce
:01:43. > :01:44.a financial transaction tax if they win the general election
:01:45. > :01:46.and what they're calling "the biggest crackdown on tax
:01:47. > :01:49.avoidance in the country's history". The Conservatives say they'll work
:01:50. > :01:51.with local authorities in England to build council houses
:01:52. > :01:53.with the right to buy. Theresa May says the policy
:01:54. > :01:56."will help thousands of people get on the first rung
:01:57. > :02:08.of the housing ladder". Steve, what do you make of them? I
:02:09. > :02:13.have been conditioned after doing tax and spend debates in
:02:14. > :02:17.pre-election periods for many decades to treat policy is not as
:02:18. > :02:21.literal but as arguments. In other words if you look back to 2015 the
:02:22. > :02:26.Tory plan to wipe out the deficit was never going to happen and yet it
:02:27. > :02:29.framed and large event. In that sense the Robin Hood tax is a
:02:30. > :02:34.sensible move for Labour to make at this point because it is part of a
:02:35. > :02:38.narrative of reconfiguring taxation to be fair. Treating it as an
:02:39. > :02:45.argument rather than something that would happen in day one of Labour
:02:46. > :02:47.government is sensible. In terms of building houses Theresa May said
:02:48. > :02:51.right from the beginning when she was in Number Ten that there is a
:02:52. > :02:55.housing deficit in this country rather than the economic deficit
:02:56. > :03:00.George Osborne was focusing on, and this is an example of trying to get
:03:01. > :03:03.house-building going. It seems entirely sensible, not sure how it
:03:04. > :03:08.works with right to buy but again as framing of a 90 minute it makes
:03:09. > :03:16.sense. I disagree with Steve on one front which is how sensible Theresa
:03:17. > :03:20.May's policy is on the housing announcement. I think more broadly
:03:21. > :03:24.these two announcements have something in common which is that
:03:25. > :03:30.over the next 24 hours both will probably unravel in different ways.
:03:31. > :03:34.Ye of little faith! The Mayor of London has already said he doesn't
:03:35. > :03:41.agree with this, and when people see the actual impact of what looks like
:03:42. > :03:46.a populist tax will very potentially affect people's pensions, it might
:03:47. > :03:50.become a lot less popular. On the Tory housing plans, I think it is
:03:51. > :03:54.difficult to imagine how they are going to implement this huge, what
:03:55. > :04:00.looks like a huge land and property grab. Through compulsory purchase
:04:01. > :04:04.orders, which are not a simple instrument. They say they will
:04:05. > :04:07.change the law but really the idea of paying people below the market
:04:08. > :04:12.value for their assets is not something I can see sitting easily
:04:13. > :04:19.with Tory backbenchers or the Tories in the House of Lords. Tom. Both
:04:20. > :04:23.would appear superficially to be appealing to traditional left and
:04:24. > :04:30.traditional right bases. What is more Tory than right to buy, then
:04:31. > :04:38.councils sell on these houses, and Labour slapping a massive tax on the
:04:39. > :04:41.city. The Tories' plan, I would say look a bit deeper and all of the
:04:42. > :04:45.Tory narrative from the last six years which hasn't worked well is
:04:46. > :04:50.talking about the private sector increasing supply in the market. Now
:04:51. > :04:57.Mrs May is talking about the role for the state after all so this is
:04:58. > :05:02.the shift creeping in. On the Labour transaction tax, one of the most
:05:03. > :05:09.interesting things I heard in days was from Paul Mason, former BBC
:05:10. > :05:12.correspondent, now a cog in Easter extreme. On Newsnight he said don't
:05:13. > :05:17.worry about whether the Labour manifesto will add up, I'm promising
:05:18. > :05:24.it will, the bigger Tory attack line should be what on earth will be the
:05:25. > :05:29.macroeconomic effect of taking so much tax out of the system. Very
:05:30. > :05:31.well, we shall see. At least we have some policies to talk about.
:05:32. > :05:33.Now, on Tuesday Labour will launch its manifesto.
:05:34. > :05:36.But we've already got a pretty good idea of what's in it -
:05:37. > :05:39.that's because most of its contents were leaked to the media
:05:40. > :05:47.Labour has a variety of spending pledges including an extra
:05:48. > :05:51.?6 billion a year for the NHS, an additional ?8 billion for social
:05:52. > :05:53.care over the lifetime of the next parliament,
:05:54. > :05:55.as well as a ?250 billion in infrastructure over
:05:56. > :06:02.The party will support the renewal of the Trident submarine system,
:06:03. > :06:04.although any Prime Minister should be extremely cautious
:06:05. > :06:07.about its use, and the party will hold a strategic defence
:06:08. > :06:09.and security review immediately after the election.
:06:10. > :06:12.In terms of immigration, Labour will seek "reasonable
:06:13. > :06:14.management of migration", but it will not make "false
:06:15. > :06:20.Elsewhere, university tuition fees will be abolished,
:06:21. > :06:23.and the public sector pay cap, which limits pay rises
:06:24. > :06:26.for public sector workers to 1%, will be scrapped.
:06:27. > :06:29.The party also aims to renationalise the railways, the Royal Mail
:06:30. > :06:36.and the National Grid, as well as creating at least one
:06:37. > :06:42.A senior Labour backbencher described it to the Sunday Politics
:06:43. > :06:44.as a manifesto for a leadership who don't "give a toss
:06:45. > :06:46.about the wider public", and several other Labour candidates
:06:47. > :06:48.told us they thought it had been deliberately
:06:49. > :06:52.leaked by the leadership, with one suggesting
:06:53. > :06:55.the leak was intended to "bounce the National Executive"
:06:56. > :06:58.And we're joined now from Salford by the Shadow Business Secretary,
:06:59. > :07:06.Welcome to the programme. The draft manifesto proposed to renationalise
:07:07. > :07:11.the number of industry. You will wait for the franchises to run out
:07:12. > :07:16.rather than buy them out at the moment so can you confirm the
:07:17. > :07:20.railways will not be wholly nationalised until 2030, after three
:07:21. > :07:26.Labour governments, and Jeremy Corbyn will be 80? I'm not going to
:07:27. > :07:33.comment on leaks, you will just have to be patient and wait to see what
:07:34. > :07:36.is in our manifesto. But you have already announced you will
:07:37. > :07:41.nationalise the railways, so tell me about it. We have discussed taking
:07:42. > :07:45.the franchises into public ownership as they expire, however the detail
:07:46. > :07:51.will be set out in the manifesto so I'm not prepared to go into detail
:07:52. > :07:55.until that policy is formally laid out on Tuesday. That doesn't sound
:07:56. > :08:01.very hopeful but let's carry on. You will also nationalise the National
:08:02. > :08:07.Grid, it has a market capitalisation of ?40 billion, why do you want to
:08:08. > :08:11.nationalise that? Again, I'm not going to speculate on leaks, you
:08:12. > :08:18.will just have to be patient. But you said you will nationalise the
:08:19. > :08:22.National Grid so tell's Y. The leaks have suggested but you will just
:08:23. > :08:26.have to wait and see what the final manifesto states on that one. So is
:08:27. > :08:30.it a waste of time me asking you how you will pay for something that
:08:31. > :08:36.costs 40 billion? Be patient, just couple of days to go, but what I
:08:37. > :08:41.would say is there is growing pressure from the public to reform
:08:42. > :08:44.the utilities sector. The Competition and Markets Authority
:08:45. > :08:49.stated in 2015 that bill payers were paying over till debt -- ?2 billion
:08:50. > :08:56.in excess of what they should be paying so there is a clear need for
:08:57. > :08:59.reform. The bills we get are from the energy companies, you are not
:09:00. > :09:03.going to nationalise them, you are going to nationalise the
:09:04. > :09:08.distribution company and I wondered what is the case for nationalising
:09:09. > :09:13.the distribution company? As I said, our full plans will be set out on
:09:14. > :09:16.Tuesday. In relation to the big six energy companies, we know in recent
:09:17. > :09:23.years they have been overcharging customers... There's no point in
:09:24. > :09:29.answering questions I am not asking. I am asking what is the case for
:09:30. > :09:33.nationalising the National Grid? There is a case for reforming the
:09:34. > :09:37.energy sector as a whole and that looks at the activities of the big
:09:38. > :09:42.six companies and it will look at other aspects too. You will have to
:09:43. > :09:49.be patient and wait until Tuesday. What about the Royal Mail? Again,
:09:50. > :09:53.you will have to wait until Tuesday. Why can't you just be honest with
:09:54. > :10:00.the British voter? We know you are going to do this and you have a duty
:10:01. > :10:06.to explain. I'm not even arguing whether it is right or wrong. The
:10:07. > :10:10.Royal Mail was sold off and we know it was sold under value and British
:10:11. > :10:14.taxpayers have a reason to feel aggrieved about that. There is a
:10:15. > :10:18.long-term strategy that would ensure the Royal Mail was classified as a
:10:19. > :10:24.key piece of infrastructure but the details of that will be set out in
:10:25. > :10:26.our manifesto because we want to ensure businesses and households
:10:27. > :10:32.ensure the best quality of service when it comes to their postal
:10:33. > :10:36.providers. You plan to borrow an extra 25 billion per year, John
:10:37. > :10:41.McDonnell has already announced this, on public investment, on top
:10:42. > :10:46.of the around 50 billion already being planned for investment. You
:10:47. > :10:54.will borrow it all so that means, if you can confirm, that many years
:10:55. > :11:00.after the crash by 2021, Labour government would still be borrowing
:11:01. > :11:07.75 billion a year. Is that correct? We have set out ?250 billion of
:11:08. > :11:10.capital investment, and ?250 billion for a national investment bank. Our
:11:11. > :11:15.financial and fiscal rules dictate we will leave the Government in a
:11:16. > :11:18.state of less debt than we found it at the start of the parliament so we
:11:19. > :11:25.won't increase the national debt at the end of our Parliamentary term.
:11:26. > :11:29.How can you do that if by 2021 you will still be borrowing around 75
:11:30. > :11:35.billion a year, which is more than we borrow at the moment? The 500
:11:36. > :11:39.billion figure is set out over a period of ten years, it's a figure
:11:40. > :11:43.that has been suggested by Peter Helm from Oxford University as a
:11:44. > :11:47.figure that is necessary to bring us in line with other industrial
:11:48. > :11:55.competitors. Similar figures have been suggested by groups such as the
:11:56. > :11:59.CBI. By the way I have not included all 500 billion, just the 250
:12:00. > :12:04.billion on public spending, not the extra money. You talk about the
:12:05. > :12:09.fiscal rules. The draft manifesto said you will leave debt as a
:12:10. > :12:15.proportion of trend GDP law at the end of each parliament, you have
:12:16. > :12:19.just said a version of that. What is trend GDP? In clear terms we will
:12:20. > :12:24.ensure the debt we acquire will be reduced by the end of the
:12:25. > :12:31.parliament. We won't leave the Government finances in a worse state
:12:32. > :12:35.than we found them. OK, but what is trend GDP? Our rule is we will
:12:36. > :12:39.ensure public sector net debt is less than we found it when we came
:12:40. > :12:47.to power in Government on June the 8th. But that is not what your draft
:12:48. > :12:51.manifesto says. I'm not going to comment on leaks, you are just going
:12:52. > :12:56.to have to wait until Tuesday to look at the fine detail and perhaps
:12:57. > :13:00.we will have another chat then. You have published your plans for
:13:01. > :13:04.corporation tax and you will increase it by a third and your
:13:05. > :13:09.predictions assumed that will get an extra 20 billion a year by the end
:13:10. > :13:13.of the parliament. But that assumes the companies don't change their
:13:14. > :13:18.behaviour, that they move money around, they leave the country or
:13:19. > :13:23.they generate smaller profits. Is that realistic? You are right to
:13:24. > :13:26.make that point and you will see when we set out our policies and
:13:27. > :13:32.costings in the manifesto that we haven't spent all of the tax take.
:13:33. > :13:35.We have allowed for different differentials and potential changes
:13:36. > :13:40.in market activity because that would be approved and direction to
:13:41. > :13:48.take. But corporation tax is allowed to be cut in France and the United
:13:49. > :13:51.States, it's only 12.5% in Dublin. Many companies based in Britain are
:13:52. > :13:56.already wondering whether they should relocate because of Brexit,
:13:57. > :14:01.if you increase this tax by a third couldn't that clinch it for a number
:14:02. > :14:06.of them? No, we will still be one of the lowest corporation tax rate in
:14:07. > :14:11.the G7. Let's look at what's important for business. Cutting
:14:12. > :14:15.corporation tax in itself doesn't improve productivity, or business
:14:16. > :14:18.investment and there's no suggestion cutting corporation tax in recent
:14:19. > :14:24.years has achieved that. Businesses need an investment in tools in
:14:25. > :14:28.things they need to thrive and prosper, they also need to reduce
:14:29. > :14:33.the burden at the lower end of the tax scale, before we get to the
:14:34. > :14:41.Prophet stage. One key example is business rates. We have made the
:14:42. > :14:44.proposal to government to in -- exclude machinery so businesses can
:14:45. > :14:51.invest and grow operations in the future but the Government refused.
:14:52. > :15:01.Corporation tax has been cut since 2010. When it was 28% it brought in
:15:02. > :15:07.?43 billion a year. Now it is down to 20%, it brought in ?55 billion a
:15:08. > :15:14.year. By cutting it in the last year, it brought in 21% more, so
:15:15. > :15:18.what is the problem? It might have brought in more money, but has it
:15:19. > :15:24.increased business investment in the long term. It is not just about
:15:25. > :15:27.cutting corporation tax, but it is on the ability of businesses to
:15:28. > :15:33.thrive and prosper. Business investment in the UK is below are
:15:34. > :15:40.industrial competitors. Wages are stagnating which doesn't indicate
:15:41. > :15:45.businesses are not doing well. Let me get it right, you are arguing if
:15:46. > :15:52.we increase business tax by a third, that will increase investment? I am
:15:53. > :15:59.not saying that. You just did. Know I didn't, I said reducing business
:16:00. > :16:03.tax isn't enough, you have to invest in the things businesses need to
:16:04. > :16:15.thrive and prosper. You have also got to lessen the burden on
:16:16. > :16:19.business. You have announced a financial transaction tax. Your own
:16:20. > :16:24.labour Mayor of London said he has vowed to fight it. He said I do not
:16:25. > :16:30.want a unilateral tax on business in our city, so why are you proceeding
:16:31. > :16:33.with it? This isn't a new initiative, there is a growing
:16:34. > :16:38.global pressure to make sure we have fairness in the financial sector.
:16:39. > :16:44.Ordinary British people are paying for our banking crisis they didn't
:16:45. > :16:49.cause. Another important point, stamp duty reserve tax was brought
:16:50. > :16:52.in in the 1600 and there have been little reforms. The sector has
:16:53. > :16:58.changed and we have do provide changes to the system for that
:16:59. > :17:02.change. High-frequency trading where we have a state of affairs where a
:17:03. > :17:06.lot of shares are traded on computers within milliseconds. We
:17:07. > :17:14.need a tax system that keeps up with that. What happens if they move the
:17:15. > :17:19.computers to another country? Emily Thornaby said this morning, other
:17:20. > :17:21.countries had already introduced a financial transaction tax, what
:17:22. > :17:30.other countries have done that? There are ten countries looking at
:17:31. > :17:37.introducing a transaction tax. Which ones have done it so far? They will
:17:38. > :17:41.be later announcing a final package, going through the finer detail at
:17:42. > :17:46.the moment. But the European Commission tried to get this done in
:17:47. > :17:50.2011 and it still hasn't happened in any of these countries. But you are
:17:51. > :17:55.going to go ahead unilaterally and risk these businesses, which
:17:56. > :18:00.generate a lot of money, moving to other jurisdictions. There is not a
:18:01. > :18:11.significant risk of that happening. The stamp duty reserve tax is levied
:18:12. > :18:15.at either where the person or company is domiciled or where the
:18:16. > :18:20.instrument is issued rather than worth the transaction takes place.
:18:21. > :18:24.This tax in itself is not enough to make people leave this country in
:18:25. > :18:28.terms of financial services because there is more to keep these
:18:29. > :18:33.businesses here in terms of the investment we are making, the
:18:34. > :18:36.economy that Labour will build, in terms of productivity improvement we
:18:37. > :18:41.will see. Thank you very much, Rebecca Long-Bailey.
:18:42. > :18:47.And listening to that was the Home Office Minister, Brandon Lewis.
:18:48. > :18:53.Over the years, you have got corporation tax by 20%, it is lower
:18:54. > :19:00.than international standards, so why are so many global companies who
:19:01. > :19:05.make money out of Great Britain, still not paying 20%? It is one of
:19:06. > :19:07.the problems with the point Labour were making and Rebecca could not
:19:08. > :19:14.answer, these companies can move around the world. One of the
:19:15. > :19:17.important things is having a low tax economy but these businesses, it
:19:18. > :19:23.encourages them to come at a rate they are prepared to pay. People may
:19:24. > :19:28.say they are right, if they were paying 19, 20% incorporation tax.
:19:29. > :19:38.But they are not. Google runs a multi-million pound corporation and
:19:39. > :19:41.did not pay anywhere near 20%. There are companies that are trading
:19:42. > :19:50.internationally and that is why we have to get this work done with our
:19:51. > :19:54.partners around the world. Has there been an improvement? It is more than
:19:55. > :19:58.they were paying before. Whether it is Google or any other company,
:19:59. > :20:04.alongside them being here, apart from the tax they pay, it is the
:20:05. > :20:08.people they employ. The deal was, if you cut the business tax, the
:20:09. > :20:12.corporation tax on profits, we would get more companies coming here and
:20:13. > :20:17.more companies paying their tax. It seems it doesn't matter how low, a
:20:18. > :20:23.number of companies just pay a derisory amount and you haven't been
:20:24. > :20:26.able to change that. As you outlined, the income taken from the
:20:27. > :20:33.changing corporation tax has gone up. That is from established British
:20:34. > :20:37.companies, not from these international companies. It is
:20:38. > :20:41.because more companies are coming here and paying tax. That is a good
:20:42. > :20:47.thing. There is always more to do and that is why we want to crack
:20:48. > :20:51.down. In the last few weeks in the Finnish Parliament, Labour refused
:20:52. > :20:56.to put to another ?8.7 billion of tax take we could have got by
:20:57. > :21:01.cracking down further. You claim to have made great progress on cracking
:21:02. > :21:06.down on people and companies to pay the tax they should. But the tax gap
:21:07. > :21:12.is the difference between what HMRC takes in and what it should take in.
:21:13. > :21:18.It has barely moved in five years, so where is the progress? He have
:21:19. > :21:22.brought in 150 billion more where we have cracked down on those tax
:21:23. > :21:33.schemes. The gap is still the same as it was five years ago. It's gone
:21:34. > :21:35.from 6.8, 26.5. It has gone down. The Prime Minister and the
:21:36. > :21:39.Chancellor said they want to continue work on to get more money
:21:40. > :21:46.on these companies while still having a competitive rate to
:21:47. > :21:51.encourage these companies. While big business and the wealthy continue to
:21:52. > :21:54.prosper, the Office for Budget Responsibility tell us those on
:21:55. > :21:59.average earnings in this country will be earning less in real terms
:22:00. > :22:05.by 2021 than they did in 2008. How can that be fair? I don't see it
:22:06. > :22:10.that way. I haven't seen the figures you have got. What I can say to you,
:22:11. > :22:15.Andrew, we have made sure the minimum wage has gone up, the actual
:22:16. > :22:24.income tax people pay has gone down. So in their pocket, real terms,
:22:25. > :22:26.people have more money. You are the self-styled party of work. We keep
:22:27. > :22:31.emphasising work. Under your government you can work for 13 years
:22:32. > :22:37.and still not earn any more at the end of it, and you did at the start.
:22:38. > :22:43.Where is the reward for effort in that? I have not seen those figures.
:22:44. > :22:49.There are 2.8 million more people, more jobs in economy than there was.
:22:50. > :22:53.1000 jobs every day and people are working and developing through their
:22:54. > :22:57.careers. This is what I thought was odd in what Rebecca was saying,
:22:58. > :23:01.investing in people is what the apprenticeship levy is about,
:23:02. > :23:07.companies are investing their works force to take more opportunities
:23:08. > :23:10.that there. We are talking about fairness, politicians talk about
:23:11. > :23:15.hard-working people and we know the average earnings are no higher than
:23:16. > :23:19.they were in 2008. We know the pay and bonuses of senior executives
:23:20. > :23:23.have continued to grow and the Institute for Fiscal Studies has
:23:24. > :23:28.shown 3 million of the poorest households will lose an average of
:23:29. > :23:34.?2500 a year in the next Parliament, benefits frozen, further sanctions
:23:35. > :23:39.kick in. 3 million of the poorest losing 2500. Under the Tories, one
:23:40. > :23:45.law for the rich and another for the poor. It is quite wrong. First of
:23:46. > :23:49.all, we have got to be fair to the taxpayer who is funding the welfare
:23:50. > :23:55.and benefit system. Which is why the welfare was right. Get more people
:23:56. > :24:03.in work and then it is important to get more people upscaling. As that
:24:04. > :24:07.allowance rises, people have more of the money they earn in their pocket
:24:08. > :24:14.to be able to use in the economy. People will be worse off. 2500,
:24:15. > :24:19.among the poorest already. They will have more money in their pocket as
:24:20. > :24:26.we increase the allowance before people pay tax. We have seen
:24:27. > :24:30.millions of people coming out of tax altogether. The reason I ask these
:24:31. > :24:34.questions, you and the Prime Minister go on and on about the just
:24:35. > :24:39.about managing classes. I am talking about the just about managing and
:24:40. > :24:43.below that. It is all talk, you haven't done anything for them. We
:24:44. > :24:47.have made sure they have an increasing minimum wage, it has gone
:24:48. > :24:54.up more under us than any other previous government. Their wages
:24:55. > :24:59.will be still lower in real terms. Let me come on to this plan for
:25:00. > :25:04.housing. We have announced a new plan to increase affordable housing,
:25:05. > :25:08.social housing, some council housing and social housing built by the
:25:09. > :25:12.associations. How much money is behind this? It is part of the 1.4
:25:13. > :25:19.billion announced in the Autumn Statement. How many homes will you
:25:20. > :25:22.get for 1.4 billion? That depends on the negotiations with local
:25:23. > :25:30.authorities. It is local authorities, who know the area best.
:25:31. > :25:33.I will not put a number on that. 1.4 billion, if you price the house at
:25:34. > :25:39.100,000, which is very low, particularly for the South, back at
:25:40. > :25:44.you 14,000 new homes. That is it. What we have seen before, how the
:25:45. > :25:48.local government can leveraged to build thousands more homes. That is
:25:49. > :25:52.what we want to see across the country. It is not just about the
:25:53. > :25:56.money, for a lot of local authorities it is about the
:25:57. > :26:02.expertise and knowledge on how to do this. That is why support from the
:26:03. > :26:07.housing communities minister will help. What is the timescale, how
:26:08. > :26:13.many more affordable homes will be built? I will not put a number on
:26:14. > :26:18.it. You announced it today, so you cannot tell me how many more or what
:26:19. > :26:21.the target is? It is a matter of working with the local authorities
:26:22. > :26:25.who know what their local needs are, what land they have got available.
:26:26. > :26:29.What we saw through the local elections with the Metro mayors,
:26:30. > :26:33.they want to deliver in their areas, whether it is the West of England,
:26:34. > :26:38.the north-east, Liverpool, Manchester and we want to work with
:26:39. > :26:42.them. You have said variations of this for the past seven years and I
:26:43. > :26:48.want some credibility. When you cannot tell us how much money, what
:26:49. > :26:51.the target and timescale is, and this government, under which
:26:52. > :26:57.affordable house building has fallen to a 24 year low. 1.2 million
:26:58. > :27:03.families are on waiting lists for social housing to rent. That is your
:27:04. > :27:07.record. Why should we believe a word you say? This is different to what
:27:08. > :27:12.we have been doing over the last two years. We want to develop and have a
:27:13. > :27:19.strong and stable economy that can sustain that 1.4 billion homes. This
:27:20. > :27:25.is important. In 2010, we inherited the lowest level of house building,
:27:26. > :27:30.75,000 new homes. That is about 189,000 over the last four years.
:27:31. > :27:34.That is a big step forward after the crash, getting people back into the
:27:35. > :27:45.industry. More first-time buyers onto the market. Final question, in
:27:46. > :27:50.2010, 2011, your first year in government, there were 60,000
:27:51. > :27:58.affordable homes built. May not be enough, but last day it was 30 2000.
:27:59. > :28:05.So why should we trust anything you say about this? On housing, we have
:28:06. > :28:10.delivered. We have delivered more social housing. Double what Labour
:28:11. > :28:14.did in 13 years, in just five years. This is what this policy is about,
:28:15. > :28:15.working with local authorities to deliver more homes to people in
:28:16. > :28:20.their local areas. Thank you. Now, they have a deficit
:28:21. > :28:23.of between 15 and 20% in the polls, but Jeremy Corbyn and those
:28:24. > :28:26.around him insist Labour can win. If the polls are right they've got
:28:27. > :28:29.three and half weeks to change voters' minds and persuade those
:28:30. > :28:31.fabled undecided voters We enlisted the polling organisation
:28:32. > :28:36.YouGov to help us find out how the performance of party leaders
:28:37. > :28:38.will affect behaviour Leeds, a city of three quarters
:28:39. > :28:47.of a million people, eight Parliamentary seats and home
:28:48. > :28:52.to our very own focus group. Our panel was recruited
:28:53. > :28:55.from a variety of backgrounds and the majority say they haven't
:28:56. > :28:59.decided who to vote for yet. Watching behind the glass,
:29:00. > :29:01.two experts on different sides Giles Cunningham, who headed up
:29:02. > :29:08.political press at Downing Street under David Cameron
:29:09. > :29:14.and Aaron Bastani, Corbin supporter, under David Cameron
:29:15. > :29:16.and Aaron Bastani, Corbyn supporter, I think Theresa May sees herself
:29:17. > :29:21.as a pound shop Thatcher. Milliband's policies but when it
:29:22. > :29:40.came about who you want,
:29:41. > :29:44.if you wake up on maybe a 2015, We found in a couple of focus
:29:45. > :29:48.groups, people saying we'd be quite relieved,
:29:49. > :29:51.even though some of those same people have been saying we quite
:29:52. > :29:53.like the Labour policies. I think the fact that Corbyn's
:29:54. > :29:57.going so hard on his values, this is a really progressive
:29:58. > :29:59.manifesto, they live But I think that's a new challenge,
:30:00. > :30:03.that wasn't there in 2015. Is there anyone here that
:30:04. > :30:05.you don't recognise? After a little warm up,
:30:06. > :30:08.the first exercise, recognising I think it's nice to have a strong
:30:09. > :30:14.woman in politics, I do. But I've got to say,
:30:15. > :30:17.when she comes on the news, I kind of do think,
:30:18. > :30:19.here we go again. Tell me about Tim Farron, what
:30:20. > :30:22.are your impressions of Tim Farron? It isn't going to do anything,
:30:23. > :30:26.it isn't going to change anything. You'll be surprised to hear it's
:30:27. > :30:35.actually the Greens. Strong and stable leadership
:30:36. > :30:48.in the national interest. Yes, Team May, it's
:30:49. > :30:52.the British equivalent of make What do we think about this one
:30:53. > :31:02.for the many and not the few? It's not quite as bad
:31:03. > :31:04.as strong and stable, but it will probably get
:31:05. > :31:07.on our nerves after a while. We must seize that chance today
:31:08. > :31:18.and every day until June the 8th. But that's not quite my
:31:19. > :31:25.question, my question is, if you are Prime Minister,
:31:26. > :31:28.we will leave, come hell or high water, whatever is on the table
:31:29. > :31:31.at the end of the negotiations? If we win the election,
:31:32. > :31:34.we'll get a good deal with Europe. Assertive and in control
:31:35. > :31:36.and he felt comfortable But the second one, I thought
:31:37. > :31:41.he was very hesitant. I thought he was kind of,
:31:42. > :31:50.hovering around, skirting around and that's the second
:31:51. > :31:52.time I've seen a similar interview with the question
:31:53. > :31:54.being asked regarding Brexit. I don't think I'd have
:31:55. > :31:56.any confidence with him You think you are going up
:31:57. > :32:00.against some quite strong people, how are you going to stand
:32:01. > :32:02.up for us? When you are in negotiations,
:32:03. > :32:07.you need to be tough. And actually is right
:32:08. > :32:09.to be tough sometimes, particularly when you are doing
:32:10. > :32:11.something for the country. There's a reason for talking
:32:12. > :32:14.about strong and stable leadership. It's about the future
:32:15. > :32:16.of the country, it's It's just that people kind of listen
:32:17. > :32:20.to that kind of thing and think Both on The One Show
:32:21. > :32:26.and in the news. She attracts the public better
:32:27. > :32:32.than what Corbyn does. She didn't answer the question
:32:33. > :32:35.in a more articular way than Corbyn Imagine that Theresa
:32:36. > :32:41.May is an animal. So, in your minds,
:32:42. > :32:44.what animal is coming to mind I've done a Pekinese because I think
:32:45. > :32:58.she's all bark and no bite. Alpaca because she's
:32:59. > :33:04.superior looking and woolly I don't think his policies
:33:05. > :33:20.are for the modern, real world. A mouse because they are weak
:33:21. > :33:23.and they can be easily bullied, but also they can catch
:33:24. > :33:26.you by surprise if you're What do you take away
:33:27. > :33:34.from what you saw then, and what message would you send back
:33:35. > :33:36.to the Tories now? I think what came over is people see
:33:37. > :33:40.Theresa May as a strong politician, not everyone likes her,
:33:41. > :33:42.but you don't need to be liked to be elected,
:33:43. > :33:44.because ultimately it's about who do you trust with your future
:33:45. > :33:46.and your security. I think what I also take out
:33:47. > :33:49.of that focus group, was it was a group of floating
:33:50. > :33:52.voters, there was no huge appetite for the Lib Dems and there was no
:33:53. > :33:55.huge appetite for Ukip. So my messaged back to CCHQ
:33:56. > :33:58.would be stick to the plan. I thought the response
:33:59. > :34:01.to the manifesto was excellent. It's clear that people aren't
:34:02. > :34:04.particularly keen on Theresa May, There are some associations with her
:34:05. > :34:08.about strength and stability, which is exactly what the Tory party
:34:09. > :34:12.want of course, but they are not positive and nobody thinks
:34:13. > :34:14.that she has a vision So, what I'd say the Jeremy Corbyn,
:34:15. > :34:20.what I'd say to the Labour Party is, they need to really emphasise
:34:21. > :34:22.the manifesto in Jeremy Corbyn himself has to perform
:34:23. > :34:29.out of his skin and I think he has to reemphasise those
:34:30. > :34:31.characteristics which may be have come to the fore may be
:34:32. > :34:34.over the last 12 months, resilience, strength and the fact
:34:35. > :34:36.that he's come this far, why not take that final step and go
:34:37. > :34:39.into ten Downing Street? We're joined now by the American
:34:40. > :34:47.political consultant For the sake of this discussion,
:34:48. > :34:54.assume the polls at the moment are broadly right, is there any hope for
:34:55. > :35:00.Mr Corbyn in the undecided voters? Know, and this is a very serious
:35:01. > :35:03.collection with serious consequences to who wins. Nobody cares whether
:35:04. > :35:07.you can draw and what animal they represent, they want to know where
:35:08. > :35:12.they stand, and I felt that was frivolous. I come to Britain to
:35:13. > :35:17.watch elections because I learned from here. Your elections are more
:35:18. > :35:21.substantial, more serious, more policy and less about personality
:35:22. > :35:26.and that peace was only about personality. That's partly because
:35:27. > :35:35.Mrs May has decided to make this a presidential election. You can see
:35:36. > :35:43.on the posters it is all Team May. I agree with that, and in her language
:35:44. > :35:47.she says not everyone benefits from a Conservative government, I don't
:35:48. > :35:51.see how using anything Republicans have used in the past. In fact her
:35:52. > :35:56.campaign is more of a centrist Democrats but it is a smart strategy
:35:57. > :36:01.because it pushes Corbyn further to the left. Of course you said Hillary
:36:02. > :36:06.Clinton have won. On election night the polling was so bad in America,
:36:07. > :36:12.the exit polls that were done, the BBC told America she had won. No, I
:36:13. > :36:20.was anchoring the programme that night, I ignored your tweet. The BBC
:36:21. > :36:25.had the same numbers. Yes, but we did not say she had won, I can
:36:26. > :36:30.assure you of that. Because of people like you we thought she had
:36:31. > :36:37.but we didn't broadcast it. That was a smart approach. My point is other
:36:38. > :36:43.than teasing you, maybe there is hope for Jeremy Corbyn. I think you
:36:44. > :36:48.will have one of the lowest turnout in modern history and I think Labour
:36:49. > :36:51.will fall to one of the lowest percentages, not percentage of
:36:52. > :36:55.number of seats they have had, and this will be a matter of
:36:56. > :37:01.soul-searching for both political parties. What you do with a sizeable
:37:02. > :37:04.majority, and she has a responsibility to tell the British
:37:05. > :37:10.people exactly what happens as she moves forward. He and Labour will
:37:11. > :37:15.have to take a look at whether they still represent a significant slice
:37:16. > :37:19.of the British population. Do you see a realignment in British
:37:20. > :37:24.politics taking place? I see a crumbling of the left and yet there
:37:25. > :37:27.is still a significant percentage of the British population that once
:37:28. > :37:36.someone who is centre-left. And they like a lot of Mr Corbyn's policies.
:37:37. > :37:39.I'm listening to Michael foot. I went to school here in the 1980s and
:37:40. > :37:42.I feel like I'm watching the Labour Party of 35 years ago, in a
:37:43. > :37:49.population that wants to focus on the future, not the past. Thank you.
:37:50. > :37:51.It's just gone 11.35, you're watching the Sunday Politics.
:37:52. > :37:54.We say goodbye to viewers in Scotland, who leave us now
:37:55. > :38:07.Hello and welcome to your local part of the show -
:38:08. > :38:10.live from Newcastle - in the week the Prime Minister came
:38:11. > :38:12.to the North East and claimed Labour's leadership was abandoning
:38:13. > :38:25.Labour's campaign co-ordinator and Wansbeck candidate Ian Lavery -
:38:26. > :38:27.working-class to his core - will no doubt have plenty
:38:28. > :38:32.Also with me this week: Fiona Mills who's standing for Ukip
:38:33. > :38:35.in Carlisle, Simon Clarke - who's aiming to take the marginal
:38:36. > :38:37.seat of Middlesbrough South for the Conservatives, and Julie Porksen
:38:38. > :38:40.who's trying to win back Berwick for the Liberal Democrats.
:38:41. > :38:42.Also coming up: We're in County Durham with the first
:38:43. > :38:44.of our films looking at the big issues of
:38:45. > :38:55.Let's start though with that visit to the North East
:38:56. > :38:59.The Prime Minister had a message to working-class voters and she went
:39:00. > :39:02.deep into Labour territory in North Shields to deliver it.
:39:03. > :39:04.In a visit that also included brief stops
:39:05. > :39:06.in Northumberland and Darlington, she said Jeremy Corbyn didn't
:39:07. > :39:13.Millions of people here in the north-east of England
:39:14. > :39:20.and across our country have loyally given their support to
:39:21. > :39:24.We respect that parents and grandparents
:39:25. > :39:25.taught their children and
:39:26. > :39:27.grandchildren that Labour was a party that
:39:28. > :39:28.shared their values and
:39:29. > :39:31.But across the country today traditional
:39:32. > :39:33.Labour supporters are increasingly looking at what Jeremy Corbyn
:39:34. > :40:01.He, I'm sure you will scoff at the talk of taking working-class Labour
:40:02. > :40:07.votes. She wants is secretly into an airfield miles away from anywhere to
:40:08. > :40:10.an invited audience of 20 to 25 invited people without speaking and
:40:11. > :40:17.listening to ordinary working class people and then being moved to North
:40:18. > :40:22.Shields, somewhere that the Tories tried to close down 13 years ago to
:40:23. > :40:26.an invited audience. This is an insult to the people of the
:40:27. > :40:30.north-east. It is the ultimate insult for a Prime Minister to waltz
:40:31. > :40:33.into this area and not speak to anybody other than invited guests
:40:34. > :40:39.and claim to be a champion of the workers. They shouldn't take the
:40:40. > :40:49.voters of this region as fools and I'm sure they are not. Let's put
:40:50. > :40:55.that point assignment. -- to Simon. If she is so keen on appealing to
:40:56. > :41:04.these voters why should not talking to any? I imagine the doorstep Day
:41:05. > :41:06.in and day out. The number of conversations I have with photos
:41:07. > :41:19.that begin with I have always voted Labour backed is quite striking. --
:41:20. > :41:29.but... She is taking questions day in and day out. From party
:41:30. > :41:33.activists. From journalists. What I see in community and community
:41:34. > :41:38.across the area and rural and urban areas as well is that people are out
:41:39. > :41:43.fed up with a complacent labour establishment which is totally out
:41:44. > :41:52.of tune with them. Ian, you must have heard from Labour candidates in
:41:53. > :41:58.the doorstep who have heard of some voters wanted to go Theresa May. I
:41:59. > :42:05.haven't heard anyone say to me that they will be turning from the Labour
:42:06. > :42:16.Party. Even in the marginal constituencies such assignments? --
:42:17. > :42:22.as Simon? When I have been on the doorstep that has not been anybody
:42:23. > :42:29.who said that to me. Not one. That suggest the polls are wrong. It
:42:30. > :42:34.would be the first time. What might convince the voters of some more
:42:35. > :42:44.sincerity for the Prime Minister is word of some investment? The
:42:45. > :42:49.platform is not about making big announcements but delivering strong
:42:50. > :42:53.and stable leadership. We're not in the business of promising money like
:42:54. > :42:57.sweeties like the Labour Party. We are about making sure that as a
:42:58. > :42:59.credible programme for jobs and growth. Unemployment in the
:43:00. > :43:07.north-east is down sharply since 2010. The strong and stable stand by
:43:08. > :43:16.it. Don't hold on for investment. -- sound bite. People want credible
:43:17. > :43:20.Government for serious times and we are providing that. Fiona Mills,
:43:21. > :43:25.these traditional Labour voters Theresa May is appealing to other
:43:26. > :43:31.very people recruited to Ukip and flooding away from you? She is right
:43:32. > :43:36.that the Labour Party don't represent the traditional working
:43:37. > :43:47.class people in a morbid Ukip two. Voters tell me I can't possibly vote
:43:48. > :43:52.Conservative but I will vote Ukip. The reason that Labour voters might
:43:53. > :44:01.ford Conservative this time is to get Brexit and no other reason. --
:44:02. > :44:05.vote. Julie is this not a problem in Berwick where conservatives may
:44:06. > :44:10.shore up the boat but people will be put off by Labour who want to see
:44:11. > :44:15.Brexit happen? Brexit has hardly come up on the doorstep and I had
:44:16. > :44:20.been out and about. I meet a lot of people say I have always voted
:44:21. > :44:25.Labour but I really need to defeat the Tories. The other clueless
:44:26. > :44:33.Government we have had a long time. -- the most cruel Government. You
:44:34. > :44:39.don't hear anyone saying I want Brexit so I'm not voting Liberal
:44:40. > :44:43.Democrat? And maximum I have met one day. I have also met a lot of
:44:44. > :44:46.conservatives who are really crossed that the Conservative MP did not
:44:47. > :44:53.tell anybody that she was Brexit here before standing in 2015. It
:44:54. > :44:57.will affect rural areas are significantly. Let's talk about who
:44:58. > :44:59.will be standing. Now, let's talk about who'll be
:45:00. > :45:02.standing in the General Election - Nominations have closed
:45:03. > :45:04.and Labour, Conservative and the Liberal Democrats
:45:05. > :45:06.are fielding a full slate of candidates in all 39
:45:07. > :45:10.constituencies across Cumbria But there's been some
:45:11. > :45:13.informal deals done The Greens won't be standing
:45:14. > :45:23.in Carlisle, Copeland, Workington, Bishop Auckland or Hartlepool
:45:24. > :45:30.in the hope of consolidating the Labour vote - and stopping
:45:31. > :45:32.a Conservative landslide. has decided not to stand in seats
:45:33. > :45:37.where they believe there's another That includes Blyth Valley,
:45:38. > :45:52.Berwick and Middlesbrough South. I am the only candidate in the seat
:45:53. > :45:57.we did a back Brexit. I think Fiona and I would be as one that we remain
:45:58. > :46:02.very distinct parties with very distinct agendas. The Ukip agenda is
:46:03. > :46:07.not mine. There has been no deal done and as far as I'm aware Ukip
:46:08. > :46:15.couldn't find a candidate to feel. -- field. In some of the seats are
:46:16. > :46:21.you saying we will leave it to the Conservatives? Ukip puts country
:46:22. > :46:27.sitting MP who was a Brexit MP and sitting MP who was a Brexit MP and
:46:28. > :46:34.campaign to leave we will not oppose them. In Stockton South the
:46:35. > :46:40.candidate put a referendum bill in Parliament. I am standing in
:46:41. > :46:43.who was for remain and I don't think who was for remain and I don't think
:46:44. > :46:53.his heart was fully in it. I think it was along party lines. In the
:46:54. > :46:57.north-east you're fielding 26 candidates, 25 men and one woman.
:46:58. > :47:05.Whether the woman? Are they behind the fridge? We have two women can do
:47:06. > :47:10.Cumbria. We don't have all women short list for other parties do. It
:47:11. > :47:15.is absolutely true merit. Through merit there is only one woman? There
:47:16. > :47:23.must of been. We do not discriminate. Should you not have
:47:24. > :47:30.followed the green example, Julie? In Bishop Auckland and Hartlepool
:47:31. > :47:39.Labour could lose because the Liberal Democrats could peel off
:47:40. > :47:51.from Labour? We are really pleased that Caroline Lucas in Brighton has
:47:52. > :48:00.been spotted. It is madness if you want to stop Brexit. I think what is
:48:01. > :48:02.really important is that we have strong individuals representing
:48:03. > :48:07.local areas and key issues and that is why we are really pleased that
:48:08. > :48:14.Caroline Lucas will hopefully when Brighton. I am in force interested
:48:15. > :48:17.in Brighton, I have to tell you. Ian, you have a full list of
:48:18. > :48:28.candidates not all of them are running the local campaigns. I'm
:48:29. > :48:33.looking at a leaflet by a candidate and it does not mention she's a
:48:34. > :48:39.Labour candidate. We are standing candidates in every constituency.
:48:40. > :48:45.That is really important. There are no deals being done
:48:46. > :48:49.behind-the-scenes to let one party have an advantage. We're looking at
:48:50. > :48:58.every vote in every town and in this country to stop some of them are
:48:59. > :49:01.looking for every bought by making sure it is a personal vote for them
:49:02. > :49:07.and not to mention Jeremy Corbyn on even the Labour Party. I have been
:49:08. > :49:11.campaigning since I was a young boy and different people camping in
:49:12. > :49:15.different ways. The two different things on the leaflet. Some include
:49:16. > :49:20.some things and some others. That is the nature of the game. Things have
:49:21. > :49:24.not changed in that. But the reason why these deals are being done with
:49:25. > :49:28.Ukip and the Conservatives, quite obvious that has been a lot of deals
:49:29. > :49:34.done with them, is because Theresa May has taken the Conservative Party
:49:35. > :49:42.that far to the right and the one of the party with Ukip. I disagree
:49:43. > :49:46.completely. We have an excellent manifesto which is much better than
:49:47. > :49:48.the conservative one. I will be sending it off in London on
:49:49. > :49:55.Wednesday. Completely severed parties. One thing that hasn't
:49:56. > :50:03.changed about the conservative is a bunch of southern candidates in
:50:04. > :50:09.northern seats. Hastings and Chelsea and Westminster. We have a strong
:50:10. > :50:21.slate of north-east candidates and I grew up in Middlesbrough in the
:50:22. > :50:25.constituency I am representing. In terms of my fellow candidates, Jacob
:50:26. > :50:34.Young is from Middlesbrough and Peter Gibson in Redcar grew up
:50:35. > :50:36.there. The idea that Peter Mandelson was from Hartlepool or Tony Blair
:50:37. > :50:38.was from Sedgefield, it's about getting the right person for the
:50:39. > :50:43.right job. Now: Labour said this week they want
:50:44. > :50:46.a "Brexit for Jobs" - And where will the new jobs
:50:47. > :50:49.of the future come from? Our reporter David Macmillan has
:50:50. > :50:52.been to the constituency of Sedgefield in County Durham
:50:53. > :50:56.to try and find out.. It's a prize all our
:50:57. > :50:57.politicians are chasing. A world-famous company creating jobs
:50:58. > :50:59.and investing millions in their patch, In the
:51:00. > :51:01.Sedgefield constituency This constituency was made famous
:51:02. > :51:10.by its former MP Tony Blair, who entertained world
:51:11. > :51:13.leaders including George W It's still held by Labour
:51:14. > :51:16.but these days the Making things is what
:51:17. > :51:19.people like to do in They build showers at this
:51:20. > :51:23.plant in Newton Aycliffe. The boss here says
:51:24. > :51:26.it is a great time to It has been a good couple
:51:27. > :51:29.of years for Newton Aycliffe, and the estate's
:51:30. > :51:31.very busy, very full. I think the inward investment
:51:32. > :51:34.with Hitachi has made a and I think we've seen
:51:35. > :51:44.a few things smartened up but the estate is full and it's busy
:51:45. > :51:48.and it's good to see. The strong manufacturing base helps
:51:49. > :51:50.keep unemployment rates low and wages high compared
:51:51. > :51:58.to the north-east average. But there are parts of this
:51:59. > :52:00.constituency where pay and opportunities seem far from
:52:01. > :52:07.abundant, especially in old coalmine At this job club in Ferryhill,
:52:08. > :52:11.people say the few vacancies available
:52:12. > :52:12.are low-paid and insecure. I went in on Tuesday after the bank
:52:13. > :52:17.holiday and they said, Oh, you've Then turned around and said,
:52:18. > :52:24.We'll have you back I've gone in on night
:52:25. > :52:30.shift, half past ten, and they've sent us home at 11 o'clock,
:52:31. > :52:33.Go home, we don't need you. The unemployment rate
:52:34. > :52:39.in the north-east is still but that masks big variations
:52:40. > :52:43.across the region. The rate of people claiming
:52:44. > :52:49.unemployment benefit is just 2.3% in the City of Durham yet
:52:50. > :52:51.it is 8.3% in Middlesbrough. And while wages in
:52:52. > :52:54.Stockton South are close to the national average,
:52:55. > :52:56.in Redcar weekly pay packets The impact of public sector cuts
:52:57. > :53:00.which has led to job losses and pay freezes has also been
:53:01. > :53:03.felt across the region. What we've seen is tens
:53:04. > :53:05.of thousands of public So that is an impact
:53:06. > :53:27.on real human beings, real On people who are still
:53:28. > :53:40.in the public sector because of the Government continued
:53:41. > :53:42.public pay cap, actually their wages have dropped
:53:43. > :53:43.in real value and people
:53:44. > :53:45.are reliant on food banks. Back in Sedgefield high-tech firms
:53:46. > :53:49.at NETPark are trying to The outcome of Brexit could be
:53:50. > :53:53.a decisive factor for them. I think if we had
:53:54. > :53:55.access to the single market, it would certainly
:53:56. > :53:57.make our life easier. We have to have a plan
:53:58. > :53:59.for all eventualities. As long as there are
:54:00. > :54:02.opportunities and we can still get in there with a minimum of red
:54:03. > :54:05.tape and a maximum of open opportunity of cross-border
:54:06. > :54:07.trading with no tariff, The local Chamber of
:54:08. > :54:10.Commerce say the region's be given a prominent role in the
:54:11. > :54:13.next Government's economic plans. If we can be given the power
:54:14. > :54:17.to invest now in developing our key sectors, things like logistics
:54:18. > :54:19.in this region like bio-sciences, silence we can start to be
:54:20. > :54:21.the development be at the forefront of an industry
:54:22. > :54:23.that is world-leading. And that is the way
:54:24. > :54:26.we will work our way out of The economy is always
:54:27. > :54:29.a key political battleground. And the issues raised
:54:30. > :54:31.in Sedgefield will be crucial in deciding the outcome
:54:32. > :54:33.of this general election. Well the Green Party wants
:54:34. > :54:36.to increase public spending to create jobs while tackling low
:54:37. > :54:39.pay and zero hour contracts. Our reporter Bob Cooper
:54:40. > :54:41.asked how their approach I think it seems like Jeremy Corbyn
:54:42. > :54:46.has been reading our manifesto from 2015
:54:47. > :54:48.to get lots of his ideas. Well the Green Party wants
:54:49. > :54:51.to increase public spending to create jobs while tackling low
:54:52. > :54:54.pay and zero hour contracts. Our reporter Bob Cooper
:54:55. > :54:56.asked how their approach I think it seems like Jeremy Corbyn
:54:57. > :55:01.has been reading our manifesto from 2015
:55:02. > :55:03.to get lots of his ideas. distinctions in how
:55:04. > :55:06.we want to spend money. Its proven that further
:55:07. > :55:08.investment that are more jobs renewable
:55:09. > :55:10.energy then there are things like nuclear,
:55:11. > :55:11.which So I think that accept the
:55:12. > :55:16.differences in how we would want to We were talking
:55:17. > :55:18.about the Living Wage Foundation before it something that
:55:19. > :55:20.Labour was talking about. Jack Lenox who was going to be
:55:21. > :55:27.the Green's candidate in Copeland - until the party stood aside
:55:28. > :55:33.in the seat this week. You always hear that unemployment
:55:34. > :55:39.has fallen but when you scrape the surface, the clip you have seen
:55:40. > :55:43.shows that not only have got below average wages in this region but
:55:44. > :55:47.double the average unemployment rates. We have people who are
:55:48. > :55:51.underemployed. It is a blackspot for people working on serial our
:55:52. > :55:58.contracts. Part-time employment. We're going to change that. With
:55:59. > :56:02.regard to Brexit the Labour is fully behind the triggering of Article 50
:56:03. > :56:07.Brexit, quite simply is a Brexit in Brexit, quite simply is a Brexit in
:56:08. > :56:10.the best interests of the nation. The people of this nation. Not the
:56:11. > :56:17.best interest of our political parties. What are you going to do
:56:18. > :56:21.about wages and contracts? We will be setting up investment banks in
:56:22. > :56:24.the regions and bringing investment aid and better jobs and highly
:56:25. > :56:30.skilled jobs with better wages and conditions. Our business is not
:56:31. > :56:35.going to bring those jobs and you will bring them more tax? We will
:56:36. > :56:40.bring secure jobs and highly skilled jobs in this region, something we've
:56:41. > :56:48.been suffering from for many years. Simon, watches saw in the film is
:56:49. > :56:50.typical of employers. They are happy at the moment but concerned about
:56:51. > :56:59.any future but they don't have access to the single market and
:57:00. > :57:05.might be tariffs? What I have from Ian was rhetoric. Labour have no
:57:06. > :57:09.plan to create the jobs we need. I have been speaking to employers
:57:10. > :57:13.across Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland. That is back to my job
:57:14. > :57:17.and I went to an engineering from a few weeks ago that is a major
:57:18. > :57:21.exporter in defence and energy. They are sending products all over the
:57:22. > :57:26.world. What I had from them as they are not concerned at this stage
:57:27. > :57:32.about the outline of the deal. They are in fact happy that as an
:57:33. > :57:34.exporter, we are the only exporting region in the country. Nissan went
:57:35. > :57:39.to Downing Street because they were concerned about what might be an
:57:40. > :57:44.offer and tariffs would be death for exporters and jobs in this region.
:57:45. > :57:49.She said no deal was better than a bad deal. No deal is better than a
:57:50. > :57:53.bad deal but tariffs are very sectoral. In the car industry
:57:54. > :57:56.tariffs are not nearly as high as in some other areas. I am saying that
:57:57. > :57:59.as a deal to be done but don't think as a deal to be done but don't think
:58:00. > :58:04.we should scaremonger about the impact of tariffs if that is where
:58:05. > :58:07.we end up. I don't think it is in our best interests are the best
:58:08. > :58:12.interests of Europe. I think that is a deal to be done. We know the
:58:13. > :58:16.Liberal Democrat position is on Brexit but not too much about how do
:58:17. > :58:26.you ensure the economy rise in the north-east. -- thrives. We depend a
:58:27. > :58:29.lot on Europe. I have read from companies who are very concerned
:58:30. > :58:34.because that is all this talk about if we leave this single market with
:58:35. > :58:36.another trade deal. You don't get exports from trade deals, you get
:58:37. > :58:44.them from companies having customers. Another really big issue
:58:45. > :58:47.that comes up on the doorstep, we find, as with the NHS and education
:58:48. > :58:56.and with the Conservative cuts to the public sector it is a really
:58:57. > :59:01.important employer. In Northumberland would apply on
:59:02. > :59:05.tourism a lot so we don't have that and it comes from outside and also
:59:06. > :59:10.the region, so they don't have good jobs and people with money to spend
:59:11. > :59:13.the whole of Northumberland is at risk in that sector. Fiona Mills
:59:14. > :59:18.you're still asking businesses to take a step into the unknown of
:59:19. > :59:23.Brexit. There are no guarantees the economy will stay on track. It will
:59:24. > :59:27.flourish. I agree with the Conservative position that no deal
:59:28. > :59:34.would be better than a bad deal. We buy more from Europe than they buy
:59:35. > :59:38.from us that is not a problem there. No deal would be tariffs on
:59:39. > :59:41.employers across the region they would have to try to sell their
:59:42. > :59:47.goods into Europe with those tariffs on top. I really don't think that
:59:48. > :59:52.will happen. It is not interests of European countries to do that. I
:59:53. > :59:55.would like to say about Ukip that we support small businesses and that
:59:56. > :59:59.would generate jobs in the region. We want to get rid of EU red tape
:00:00. > :00:08.and Abbott encouraged people to set up their own businesses and employ
:00:09. > :00:13.people. One specific idea, Ian. I note your idea still to be fully
:00:14. > :00:17.published. To create jobs in the north-east. To have an investment
:00:18. > :00:30.back here in the north-east. -- investment bank. Simon. We have the
:00:31. > :00:36.new Tees Valley mayor delivering targeted investment. We have to stay
:00:37. > :00:39.part of the single market because we need that for agricultural produce
:00:40. > :00:41.we cannot survive on the world market.
:00:42. > :00:46.206 candidates are now about to come knocking on your door -
:00:47. > :00:48.including the Durham Cobbler who's standing in Tynemouth.
:00:49. > :00:51.And the intriguingly-named Mr Fishfinger in
:00:52. > :00:55.There's a full list by the way on the BBC election website.W
:00:56. > :00:57.Tories are saying. It is a very emotive subject and we have run out
:00:58. > :01:04.of time. On Thursday nominations closed
:01:05. > :01:09.in the 650 parliamentary seats across the country,
:01:10. > :01:11.so now we know exactly who's We've been analysing the parties'
:01:12. > :01:18.candidates to find out what they might tell us
:01:19. > :01:21.about the make-up of the House Well, we know Theresa May is
:01:22. > :01:26.committed to delivering Brexit and analysis of Conservative
:01:27. > :01:31.candidates has shown that in their top 100 target seats,
:01:32. > :01:33.37 candidates supported leave during last year's referendum
:01:34. > :01:41.campaign and 20 supported remain; 43
:01:42. > :01:43.have not made public In the last parliament,
:01:44. > :01:49.the vast majority of Labour MPs were hostile to Jeremy Corbyn so how
:01:50. > :01:52.supportive are Labour Well, of 50 of Labour's
:01:53. > :01:58.top 100 target seats 17 candidates have expressed
:01:59. > :02:01.support for Mr Corbyn. 20 candidates supported Owen Smith
:02:02. > :02:05.in last year's leadership contest or have expressed
:02:06. > :02:10.anti-Corbyn sentiment, and If they won those,
:02:11. > :02:15.the Labour benches would be marginally more sympathetic
:02:16. > :02:17.to Mr Corbyn than they are now. What do the figures tell us
:02:18. > :02:20.about where the other Well, the Lib Dems have decided not
:02:21. > :02:24.to stand against the Greens in Brighton Pavilion,
:02:25. > :02:26.and are fielding 629 candidates this year -
:02:27. > :02:28.that's two fewer than 2015. The number of Ukip candidates has
:02:29. > :02:32.fallen dramatically. They are standing in 247 fewer
:02:33. > :02:38.constituencies than 2015, throwing their support behind
:02:39. > :02:41.solidly pro-Brexit Tories in some areas such as Lewes
:02:42. > :02:45.and Norfolk North. The Greens are fielding
:02:46. > :02:48.103 fewer candidates than at the last election,
:02:49. > :02:59.standing down to help other progressive candidates
:03:00. > :03:13.in some places. The most liking statistic is the
:03:14. > :03:19.demise in Ukip candidates, is this their swansong? And I think so. It
:03:20. > :03:26.is remarkable how few Ukip candidates are standing. It is hard
:03:27. > :03:37.to see they will suddenly revive in the next couple of years. I think
:03:38. > :03:41.this is probably the end. Frank Luntz mentioned the fragmentation of
:03:42. > :03:44.the left was a feature of this election, but also there is the
:03:45. > :03:47.consolidation of the right, and if you take the things together that
:03:48. > :03:51.could explain why the polls are where they are. Absolutely, that's
:03:52. > :03:58.precisely what happened at the start of the 1980s, the right was
:03:59. > :04:03.incredibly united and that's when we started talking about majorities of
:04:04. > :04:10.over 100 or so. No matter what the size of Theresa May's majority, it
:04:11. > :04:15.will be the total collapse of Ukip, but not just because we are now
:04:16. > :04:20.leaving the EU and that was their only reason for being, but a whole
:04:21. > :04:28.lot of people voted for Ukip because they felt the Tories were no longer
:04:29. > :04:31.listening. Theresa May has given the impression that she is listening,
:04:32. > :04:40.and that is the biggest possible thing that could happen to the Tory
:04:41. > :04:45.vote. Fragmentation of the left, consolidation of the right? It's one
:04:46. > :04:49.of the lessons that is never learnt, it happened in the 1980s, it doesn't
:04:50. > :04:53.take much for the whole thing to fracture so now you have on the
:04:54. > :04:59.centre-left the SNP, the Labour Party, the Greens, the Liberal
:05:00. > :05:04.Democrats all competing for the same votes and when you have, fleetingly
:05:05. > :05:10.perhaps, large numbers coalescing on the right in one party, there is
:05:11. > :05:14.only going to be one outcome. It happens regularly. It doesn't mean
:05:15. > :05:20.the Tories haven't got their own fragility. Two years ago, David
:05:21. > :05:23.Cameron and George Osborne the dominant figures, neither are in
:05:24. > :05:28.Parliament now which is a symptom of the fragility this election is
:05:29. > :05:34.disguising. Mrs May's position in a way reminds me of Mrs Thatcher in
:05:35. > :05:38.the 1980s, I won't be outflanked on the right, Nicolas Sarkozy in
:05:39. > :05:42.France, I won't be outflanked on the right, so the National Front didn't
:05:43. > :05:47.get through either timed he ran to the second round on like this time,
:05:48. > :05:52.and now Mrs May on Brexit won't be outflanked Iver and as a result has
:05:53. > :05:57.seen off right flank. And also she is looking to the left as well with
:05:58. > :05:59.some of the state interventions. What was interesting about the
:06:00. > :06:03.analysis you showed a few minutes ago was the number of Tory
:06:04. > :06:08.candidates who have apparently not declared which way they voted in the
:06:09. > :06:12.referendum, and you would have thought if this election was all
:06:13. > :06:16.about Brexit, as some would claim, that would become an unsustainable
:06:17. > :06:21.position, and actually more it's about leadership. But the point that
:06:22. > :06:27.I'm now hearing from a number of Labour candidates that they are
:06:28. > :06:33.seeing Tory leaflets that don't even have the Tory candidate's name on
:06:34. > :06:37.them, it is just about Theresa May. I am glad they are keeping to the
:06:38. > :06:42.law because by law they have to put it on. It has been harder for some
:06:43. > :06:49.of the smaller parties too because of the speed of the election being
:06:50. > :06:54.called. We have the manifesto is coming out this week. I think Labour
:06:55. > :06:59.Forshaw on Tuesday, we are not yet sure when the Tories will bring
:07:00. > :07:04.bears out. I suggest one thing, it will at least for people like me
:07:05. > :07:11.bring an end to the question you will have to wait for the manifesto.
:07:12. > :07:20.And Rebecca Long baby will never have that excuse again, isn't it
:07:21. > :07:24.wonderful! She is not the only one. When you are trying to take the
:07:25. > :07:30.north and Midlands from Labour, I would go to one or the other. For
:07:31. > :07:35.me, I can barely hold back my excitement over the Tory manifesto.
:07:36. > :07:38.This will be, I think, the most important day for the British
:07:39. > :07:46.government for the next five years. That wasn't irony there? You
:07:47. > :07:51.actually meant that? I'm not even being cynical at all on Sunday
:07:52. > :08:00.Politics! This is a huge day and it's because I think we will see...
:08:01. > :08:04.I don't think Mrs May will play it safe and I don't think we will get
:08:05. > :08:08.the broadbrush stuff that she might be advised to do. I think she will
:08:09. > :08:14.lay out precisely what you want to do over the next five years and take
:08:15. > :08:17.some big risks. Then finally after a year of this guessing and
:08:18. > :08:21.theorising, we will finally work out what Mrs May is all about. She will
:08:22. > :08:24.say she doesn't want the next parliament to be all about Brexit,
:08:25. > :08:28.though she knows that's the next important thing she has to deliver
:08:29. > :08:31.in some way, so she gets a mandate for that if the polls are right but
:08:32. > :08:44.she does have very different ideas from
:08:45. > :08:47.Mr Cameron about how to run a country. She will I assume one to
:08:48. > :08:49.mandate for what these different ideas are. Otherwise there is no
:08:50. > :08:53.point in holding an early election. You will get a majority, but if you
:08:54. > :08:56.get a mandate to carry on implementing the Cameron and Osborne
:08:57. > :08:59.manifesto it would be utterly pointless. I agree, it is the
:09:00. > :09:03.pivotal event of the election and it will be interesting to see the
:09:04. > :09:08.degree to which she expands on the line which interests me about its
:09:09. > :09:13.time to look at the good that government can do. Because in a way
:09:14. > :09:18.this moves the debate on in UK politics from, from 97 the Blair
:09:19. > :09:22.Brown governments were insecure about arguing about the role of
:09:23. > :09:26.government. Cameron Osborne government similarly so, so here you
:09:27. > :09:30.have a Labour Party talking about the role of government and the
:09:31. > :09:34.state, and Tory leader apparently doing so was well. I think that will
:09:35. > :09:40.be really interesting to see whether it is fleshed out in any significant
:09:41. > :09:44.way. And it is not a natural Tory message. Harold Macmillan talked
:09:45. > :09:52.about the role of the state, Ted Heath Mark two was pretty big on the
:09:53. > :09:57.state, the industrial policy and so on, and even if it is not thought to
:09:58. > :10:02.be that Tory, does she get away with it because she deliver such a big
:10:03. > :10:07.victory if that's what she does deliver? Just inject a little note
:10:08. > :10:14.of scepticism, I wonder how much of this is authentically Theresa May. I
:10:15. > :10:19.was interested to and talk to someone who used to sit in cabinet
:10:20. > :10:23.meetings during which Theresa May never expressed an opinion on
:10:24. > :10:29.anything outside the Home Office briefs. Other ministers were roving
:10:30. > :10:36.all over their colleagues' briefs. So where are the ideas coming from?
:10:37. > :10:41.I think we can point to Nick Timothy. One of her closest advisers
:10:42. > :10:48.in Downing Street. It will be interesting to see how that evolves.
:10:49. > :10:59.On Thursday I think we will all be talking about something called
:11:00. > :11:03.Urdington Toryism. Urdington is the suburb of Birmingham where Nick
:11:04. > :11:09.Timothy comes from, who is very much Theresa May's policy brain and
:11:10. > :11:13.leading inspiration. Urdington Toryism is about connecting the
:11:14. > :11:18.party with traditional working class voters, and their belief to do that
:11:19. > :11:22.is not just taking away government out of their lives but showing them
:11:23. > :11:31.that government can actually help their lives. It can be a force for
:11:32. > :11:37.good to rebuild the trust. A lot of what Mrs May talks about is all...
:11:38. > :11:46.It is talk and then a lot of it suddenly goes by the wayside. What
:11:47. > :11:50.happened to worker directors on the boards. It is designed to appeal to
:11:51. > :11:55.that constituency and then nothing happens. She had an excuse before in
:11:56. > :11:59.the sense that it wasn't in the 2015 manifesto and she had a small
:12:00. > :12:03.majority so therefore she arguably had to water down some of the stuff
:12:04. > :12:07.for example in her Tory conference speech, which had a lot of this
:12:08. > :12:12.active government material in it. If she puts it in the manifesto, it is
:12:13. > :12:17.a sign she plans to do it and will have no excuse if she then gets
:12:18. > :12:22.nervous afterwards because it will be in there. If it wasn't for
:12:23. > :12:26.Brexit, this great overwhelming issue, I think this election will be
:12:27. > :12:31.seen as quite a significant development in terms of an argument
:12:32. > :12:35.around the role of government, much-needed. But Brexit
:12:36. > :12:39.unfortunately overshadows it all. As much as we like our arguments over
:12:40. > :12:47.the role of government we will hear strong and stable, stable and strong
:12:48. > :12:51.ad nauseam, aren't we? Absolutely, and we heard the same old lines from
:12:52. > :12:59.the Labour Party as well so they are all at it. It will be a fascinating
:13:00. > :13:01.week, stop talking it down! Thanks to our panel.
:13:02. > :13:04.The Daily Politics will be back on BBC Two at noon
:13:05. > :13:08.I'll be back here at the same time on BBC One next Sunday.
:13:09. > :13:42.Remember - if it's Sunday, it's the Sunday Politics.
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