:01:25. > :01:28.And on the Sunday Politics North West:
:01:28. > :01:38.Celebrations in Ellesmere Port as the Vauxhall Plant secures its
:01:38. > :01:38.
:01:38. > :31:41.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 1803 seconds
:31:41. > :31:45.future. Is the region's car Hello, I am Annabel Tiffin. In the
:31:45. > :31:49.next 20 minutes: celebrations in Ellesmere Port as the Vauxhall
:31:49. > :31:53.plant secures its future. It is the region's car industry on
:31:53. > :31:58.the way up? And we held Rolf Harris, too! Would
:31:58. > :32:01.you believe it? Let me introduce our MPs for this week's programme.
:32:01. > :32:07.Stephen O'Brien for the Conservatives and Labour's Paul
:32:07. > :32:10.Goggins. For several months, a shadow has
:32:10. > :32:15.hung over the Vauxhall car plant at Ellesmere Port. General Motors said
:32:15. > :32:20.it had to shut the plant in Europe, and many feared that ours would be
:32:20. > :32:23.the one to go. This week, Vauxhall announced they would build the new
:32:23. > :32:27.Astra there, a multi-million pound investments securing thousands of
:32:27. > :32:32.jobs and creating 700 new ones. How did they manage it? And what does
:32:32. > :32:37.it say about the industry in general?
:32:37. > :32:40.Quietly and without fanfare they arrived. The business Secretary and
:32:40. > :32:47.the head of Vauxhall. He started his career at Ellesmere Port, and
:32:47. > :32:51.now he was back to sell it -- to save the plant. It is great for a
:32:51. > :32:56.young man like me, with a young family. I need a good job.
:32:56. > :32:59.Fantastic news and a well deserved for the whole workforce. Things
:32:59. > :33:03.have been uncertain here for months, with the European arm of the
:33:03. > :33:06.company making big losses for months. Some people feared it would
:33:06. > :33:11.be something as drastic as closing an entire plant that would be the
:33:11. > :33:15.solution. The plan asked for the new Astra and they got it.
:33:15. > :33:20.Ellesmere Port celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, a proud
:33:20. > :33:23.history in the region. What we have done with the allocation of the
:33:23. > :33:26.next generation of Astra to Ellesmere Port us to secure the
:33:26. > :33:29.manufacturing base well into the next decade. As well as
:33:29. > :33:34.safeguarding the jobs of everyone here, the deal to build the new
:33:34. > :33:40.Astra also means 700 new jobs are potentially thousands more in the
:33:40. > :33:45.supply chain. But to secure the car, they have had to make concessions.
:33:45. > :33:48.Staff have been under no illusions, the company said that there were a
:33:49. > :33:53.set of conditions that if you wanted the next after, he had to
:33:53. > :33:57.agree. It was up to the workforce, they were balloted and agreed.
:33:57. > :34:02.of workers voted Yes for the new conditions. It included a more
:34:02. > :34:06.flexible working, which means the plant can be open 24 hours a day 51
:34:06. > :34:12.weeks pair you. A Ford year pay deal, including a two-year pay
:34:12. > :34:15.freeze. Also a new pension deal for new stars. Everyone was the best
:34:15. > :34:21.deal and conditions, we still have decent conditions and decent be,
:34:21. > :34:24.but it is all worth it to keep yourself in a job. They will start
:34:24. > :34:27.constructing the new Astra here in 2015.
:34:27. > :34:33.The business Secretary Vince Cable was in Ellesmere Port for the
:34:33. > :34:37.announcement and he was asked about the choices the workers had to make.
:34:37. > :34:42.There will beat the shift working, it will be hard work. Given the
:34:42. > :34:49.choice between losing the plant and losing at a future and having more
:34:49. > :34:55.flexible working but very good job prospects, they made the right
:34:55. > :35:00.decision. And for the first time in a generation Cobby have a trade
:35:00. > :35:05.surplus in cars. Is there something we may see more of? The changes in
:35:05. > :35:09.terms of pay and conditions to secure jobs? I think that the trend
:35:09. > :35:14.is for maximum flexibility in the labour force. There is a positive
:35:14. > :35:16.side for workers as well, what the Government is proposing to do it in
:35:16. > :35:21.the Queen's Speech is to bring in legislation to help flexible
:35:21. > :35:26.working and family life, so flexibility is not just a negative.
:35:26. > :35:30.That may mean shift working, but it may also mean fitting in a more
:35:30. > :35:34.closely with the way families operate, so it is positive. So it
:35:34. > :35:39.is a trade-off, changing terms and conditions in order to secure her.
:35:39. > :35:42.But there has been a trade-off, but the labour force where over
:35:42. > :35:48.whelming. They were not divided, it was well over 90% support for this
:35:48. > :35:52.package. This is not just saving jobs, but there is now a real
:35:52. > :35:56.future for the next decade. Young people will come into the industry
:35:56. > :36:00.as apprentices and they can see a future in manufacturing and car
:36:00. > :36:04.production now. Joining me in the studio is Carol
:36:04. > :36:07.Williams from the University of Manchester, who is an expert in the
:36:08. > :36:12.car industry. Be heard Vince Cable say that futures are secure for the
:36:12. > :36:16.next decade, perhaps at Ellesmere Port, but what does it mean on a
:36:16. > :36:21.wider scale for the car industry in the north-west. We have the power,
:36:21. > :36:26.locally for Ellesmere Port it is a really good news story, because it
:36:26. > :36:31.saves 2,000 jobs. If you look at it regionally, nationally, the
:36:31. > :36:35.benefits are limited. The plant has, until recently, been assembling
:36:35. > :36:40.kits of imported components, and we do not have much of a supply chain
:36:40. > :36:45.around the plant. The company is promising to increase content from
:36:45. > :36:48.a very low level, but they must be held to those promises, and the
:36:48. > :36:52.region really needs to begin thinking about how, be on the
:36:52. > :36:56.assembly plants, be have supply chains which are in the long run
:36:56. > :37:00.clear to keep those plants going. So it is manufacturing that must be
:37:00. > :37:05.secured year to begin with? Stephen O'Brien, of Paisley as a Government,
:37:05. > :37:10.how will you build up that manufacturing? It is excellent news,
:37:10. > :37:14.and it is actually a good reflection, not just one all of the
:37:14. > :37:20.workers at Ellesmere Port who have demonstrated that broad flexibility
:37:20. > :37:23.that is so important for being able to sustain and be competitive,
:37:23. > :37:28.their great products and great skills that they bring to her
:37:28. > :37:32.apprentices also maps her future at, not just for Ellesmere Port but for
:37:32. > :37:35.the supply chain. There is a serious point to be made about how
:37:35. > :37:39.that is deepened in their national manufacturing base. We see as a
:37:39. > :37:42.Government to help create conditions to re-balance our
:37:42. > :37:47.economy back to worsen manufacturing and industrialisation.
:37:47. > :37:50.What can the Government to and to build on this good news?
:37:50. > :37:54.Particularly regarding what has been said about manufacturing?
:37:54. > :37:59.you saw there was everyone pulling together, not just the workers and
:37:59. > :38:02.union representatives, but also management and indeed the Secretary
:38:02. > :38:08.of State and the business minister, and I happen to have the Prime
:38:08. > :38:11.Minister had made phone calls. is talking about Vauxhall and
:38:11. > :38:14.Ellesmere Port and the workers there have had to make sacrifices,
:38:14. > :38:19.but on the wider point, how does this become good news for the
:38:19. > :38:23.region? I think it is an important aspect to try and secure his best
:38:23. > :38:27.we can the supply chain. It all must be competitive, it is very
:38:27. > :38:33.difficult if one was to seek to subsidise it, because that tends to
:38:33. > :38:37.be unsustainable. But it is at the bottom, it relies on good training,
:38:37. > :38:40.good and vocational and further education colleges, apprenticeship
:38:40. > :38:44.options, as you know they have been a nearly have a million of those
:38:44. > :38:50.that have been offered in the past 18 months, which has been a real
:38:50. > :38:53.turn around to help the sport is coming into our manufacturing.
:38:53. > :38:56.Goggins, DG agree with what Stephen O'Brien is saying? That this is
:38:56. > :39:00.what must be done to build manufacturing back-up, supplying
:39:00. > :39:04.the parts as well as putting them together? Of course that is what
:39:04. > :39:08.should happen. This is very good news for Ellesmere Port and their
:39:08. > :39:11.families and the wider community, because it gives them hope for the
:39:12. > :39:16.future. But there had young people in every constituency across the
:39:16. > :39:20.north-west there are asking today, what about us? What is our future?
:39:20. > :39:24.In the absence of any kind of proper strategy for growth from
:39:24. > :39:27.this Government, D are asking this question gain fame in many cases.
:39:27. > :39:30.There are 1,200 and people under 25 in my constituency who are
:39:30. > :39:35.surviving on benefits because there is no growth plan and no prospects
:39:35. > :39:40.for them. The mindset there must change. If would Labour have done
:39:40. > :39:43.anything differently than Vince Cable has done? One thing we would
:39:43. > :39:48.have done in relation to John people is that we would have a tax
:39:48. > :39:51.on banker's bonuses and put 100,000 young people into jobs. Let's stick
:39:51. > :39:56.to the issue with the motoring industry in the north-west, what
:39:56. > :40:01.would Labour have done to secure more jobs? Labour initiated some of
:40:01. > :40:04.the supply side reforms which a colleague was referring to the fore.
:40:04. > :40:10.This can feet 3 and provide more jobs on top of the jobs at the
:40:10. > :40:14.factory. This is important and we were actually doing that. We look
:40:14. > :40:17.back 30 years ago at what happened when we had a Government who had a
:40:17. > :40:21.hands-off approach to the economy and it is families and communities
:40:21. > :40:24.that suffer. My fear is that if we do not address this, not just in
:40:24. > :40:28.Ellesmere Port but across the region and nation, we will have
:40:28. > :40:31.another generation of young people disconnected from the jobs market
:40:31. > :40:37.with no hope for the future and none of us, whether we are in
:40:37. > :40:40.Government or opposition, should tolerate that. We have got to
:40:40. > :40:45.politicians you, what d'you think they should be doing to help the
:40:45. > :40:51.car industry? The politics very easily turns into Punch and Judy,
:40:51. > :40:57.and let's be clear, nobody wants to go back to the 1970s. P L subsidies
:40:57. > :41:01.and all of the rest. That is the 30 years ago. There is considerable --
:41:01. > :41:04.considerable scope for an active industrial policy. Outside of the
:41:04. > :41:09.parties, I would like to see both parties pressing for this kind of
:41:09. > :41:13.thing, for example, I would like to see the content level of the Astra
:41:13. > :41:20.published and I would like the company's promises on content at
:41:20. > :41:24.least publicly held to account. Now, the Olympics are just around
:41:24. > :41:27.the corner at a temporary change to the law first proposed by the Fylde
:41:27. > :41:31.MP Mark Menzies brings that supermarkets will be able to stay
:41:31. > :41:34.open for longer on Sundays during the Games. Smaller corner shops in
:41:34. > :41:38.the big supermarkets will run rings around them if they are able to
:41:38. > :41:48.stay open any longer, but some retailers are calling for a
:41:48. > :41:49.
:41:49. > :41:52.permanent change to the law. Bradley Wiggins is a gold medal
:41:52. > :41:55.winner. These are some of Great Britain's
:41:55. > :41:59.finest sporting achievements, but could dreams of an Olympic gold
:41:59. > :42:02.rush generate much-needed brass for the economy? The Government has
:42:02. > :42:07.changed the lot during the Games to me that supermarkets can stay open
:42:07. > :42:10.for longer on Sundays. It gives retailers the opportunity to open
:42:10. > :42:14.if they choose for those eight weeks of the Olympics and
:42:14. > :42:18.Paralympics, at one think that is certain is that the sort of people
:42:18. > :42:21.who would benefit from the additional hours will be people who
:42:21. > :42:30.work in shops. The little bit of additional overtime in the current
:42:30. > :42:34.climate, these people will welcome it. Cast your minds back to 1994,
:42:34. > :42:37.the year of the National Lottery, the Channel Tunnel and Britpop.
:42:37. > :42:42.That year saw a change in the lot that sop large shops to open for
:42:42. > :42:45.six hours on a Sunday, and for small corner shops to open all day.
:42:46. > :42:49.Customers do tend to back a lot more basket shopping.
:42:49. > :42:52.supermarkets able to extend their hours, smaller shops say they will
:42:53. > :42:57.lose out. If all supermarkets are allowed to open for this periods
:42:57. > :42:59.during the Olympics, people will tend to do what they do when they
:42:59. > :43:03.do their bit shocked, they will go straight out of their house, into
:43:03. > :43:07.the car and going to the supermarket, do their bit shop and
:43:07. > :43:11.go straight home. I think it is supermarket greed. They want to
:43:11. > :43:17.take everything they can from the market. It is nothing to do with
:43:17. > :43:21.the Olympics or anything like that. Meanwhile in Chester, this
:43:21. > :43:24.gardening centre wants to -- once a pamphlet extension of trading hours,
:43:24. > :43:27.they are fed up of turning customers away at 4:30pm on a
:43:27. > :43:32.Sunday. There is huge frustration when you turn up one minute after
:43:32. > :43:36.we have closed doors or on a Sunday, in the middle of the afternoon.
:43:36. > :43:40.People looking for some relaxation. We would like to open with
:43:40. > :43:47.consistency with the powers-that-be trade on during the week. It could
:43:47. > :43:49.add another 10% to their overall tunnel for and what the industry
:43:50. > :43:53.makes for the UK economy. Government says the change to
:43:53. > :43:56.Sunday Hours will only be for the period of the Olympics, but the
:43:56. > :44:01.union representing shop workers say that this could set a precedent
:44:01. > :44:05.that their members are not happy with. We have to all that was the
:44:05. > :44:09.politicians have said, that it is a temporary arrangement, but we are
:44:09. > :44:11.against it. Over 20,000 members that we surveyed were concerned
:44:11. > :44:15.that this will leave not a temporary arrangement for the
:44:15. > :44:19.Olympics, but a permanent one. The reasons they give for not wanting
:44:19. > :44:23.to do it is that they already feel they have flexible hours now and
:44:23. > :44:26.say they need some time on a Sunday to do things with the family.
:44:26. > :44:31.Sunday was once a sacred day of rest, but to shop opening times
:44:31. > :44:35.these to move with the demand to be 247 society? The shops open quite
:44:35. > :44:39.enough, and I think it puts quite a lot of pressure on workers. They
:44:39. > :44:42.will probably not get any extra, there are under pressure to work
:44:42. > :44:46.longer. I do not think it is acceptable for. I think it should
:44:46. > :44:49.stay open longer on a Sunday, because when I go out shopping with
:44:49. > :44:53.my friends there is nowhere to go because the river close early.
:44:53. > :44:59.you do it for the Olympics you will have to do it full-time. People
:44:59. > :45:04.will get used to it. You could do it as a pilot test. Do it for a few
:45:04. > :45:08.weeks to see if it works and if not then call it a day. It is 318 years
:45:08. > :45:13.since a change in the law allowed shops to open on a Sunday. Times
:45:13. > :45:15.have changed but the controversy has not gone away. -- it has been
:45:15. > :45:22.eating ears. As this a good idea, Stephen
:45:22. > :45:26.O'Brien? It is essentially a good idea for the Olympics, I think it
:45:26. > :45:29.is a perfectly satisfactory and sensible thing to do. It means we
:45:29. > :45:34.will have some activity here in Manchester for the north-west, and
:45:34. > :45:38.many people will attend the big screens. I think where we are is
:45:38. > :45:42.the right place to be. A what do you think, Paul? Are a very similar
:45:42. > :45:46.point of view. This is for a limited period, as long as people
:45:46. > :45:50.are not being forced to work on a Sunday, then it is fair enough. We
:45:50. > :45:54.will be in a very flexible summer. We'll have a great time this summer
:45:54. > :45:58.and the Olympic Games will make it very different. It cannot be used
:45:58. > :46:03.as a platform to then produce these as long-term changes and reforms.
:46:03. > :46:07.We must do something to keep Sunday special. It is interesting that you
:46:07. > :46:10.mention some things here in the north-west, that it limited. What
:46:10. > :46:13.benefit bill these longer opening hours on a Sunday during the
:46:13. > :46:17.Olympics have to the north-west? They us was considered by the House
:46:17. > :46:23.of Lords in the eyes of Commons, because inevitably most of the
:46:23. > :46:26.activity is down in London for the Olympics. But because people are
:46:26. > :46:30.watching at all on television, who are not able to get tickets, it
:46:30. > :46:33.will inevitably make everyone's weekend more different and whilst I
:46:33. > :46:39.think at the same time it does not actually break, because it is
:46:39. > :46:41.temporary, this idea of keeping Sunday somewhat special. But no
:46:41. > :46:46.workers are forced to do this. There will be no prejudice to their
:46:46. > :46:52.continued jobs. There is a risk that once something is in place and
:46:52. > :46:55.seems to work that it can just go in. There will be people who use
:46:55. > :47:00.this experience of the eight weeks to argue for the liberalisation of
:47:00. > :47:04.further change. I would be dead set against that. Partly because of the
:47:04. > :47:08.nature of Sunday, but also because the smaller stores, they have an
:47:08. > :47:10.opportunity perhaps by opening at different our sunny Sunday, that
:47:10. > :47:14.may be the difference between them going under and maintaining the
:47:14. > :47:18.business. You could say that times have moved on and we all work very
:47:18. > :47:22.different winner, and we want longer opening hours. They do
:47:22. > :47:26.indeed, but the law caters for that with the six-hour opening on
:47:26. > :47:30.smaller show that -- on a larger stores and the smaller stores can
:47:30. > :47:34.stay open if they want. People must be sure that this is no Trojan
:47:34. > :47:37.horse. The Government has made it clear that this is a quick bill, it
:47:37. > :47:41.has been properly scrutinised at it is for the purpose that it was
:47:41. > :47:46.declared. It is not a platform for those who would want to stop Sunday
:47:46. > :47:53.from being special. Let's get a look at the rest of the
:47:53. > :47:57.week's East. -- the rest of the week's news.
:47:57. > :48:01.The Prime Minister has said that he will much consider a -- that he
:48:01. > :48:05.will consider a serious case review following a conviction that from
:48:05. > :48:11.nine men in Rochdale for trimming young girls. The men were jailed
:48:11. > :48:17.for various sex offences against children. I understand that the
:48:17. > :48:21.local board has concluded a review that will be published. The Chief
:48:21. > :48:25.Constable of Merseyside has called on the Government to be tougher on
:48:25. > :48:28.gun crime after eight shootings in nine days last month. Jon Murphy is
:48:28. > :48:33.lobbying the Government for tighter border controls to cut down on the
:48:33. > :48:37.supply of weapons. He says he wants Tupper -- tougher punishments for
:48:37. > :48:41.offenders. Wider share County Council has this
:48:42. > :48:45.this concerns about the way it has managed its finances. The district
:48:45. > :48:48.auditor published a report earlier this year, it complains that there
:48:48. > :48:58.have been unexpected borrowing and a lack of oversight. The County
:48:58. > :48:59.
:48:59. > :49:03.Council said those issues are minor and will be sorted out.
:49:04. > :49:09.We promise you will harass earlier, and I would not like to disappoint.
:49:09. > :49:13.The Artist and all-round general superstar Rolf Harris has opened a
:49:13. > :49:17.major exhibition of his work at the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool.
:49:18. > :49:21.One of his favourite subject at the Palace of Westminster, which he has
:49:21. > :49:26.painted many times. Our political editor Arif Ansari has been getting
:49:26. > :49:30.a break from politics this week and has gone along to meet Rolf Harris.
:49:30. > :49:36.You have painted Parliament many times, what has drawn me to end?
:49:37. > :49:43.Why have you done that? It is such an icon, isn't it? It is such a
:49:43. > :49:46.stately, gorges building. At such a tricky one to paint. It looks very
:49:46. > :49:50.straightforward, the side are parallel up to there and suddenly
:49:50. > :49:57.it goes slightly wider and if you make it to wipe it is wrong and if
:49:57. > :50:04.you make it not white enough it is wrong,. What draws you back to keep
:50:04. > :50:07.doing it? It is marvellous from any angle, from whatever -- from
:50:07. > :50:11.wherever you are. Particularly in different lighting conditions, if
:50:11. > :50:14.you get it like this in the dusk when the sky is the latest thing in
:50:14. > :50:22.the place as the building is a select, and you get this bird
:50:22. > :50:28.flapping across there, going across and the suspended lights on those
:50:28. > :50:33.wires. Every time it is a different image. It is a different picture.
:50:33. > :50:37.When you are painting it, is it purely about the Architecture, or
:50:37. > :50:43.RG trying to capture some of the meaning of the building and the
:50:43. > :50:46.draw politics that is going on in their? Time everything about the
:50:47. > :50:53.meaning of the building, I am just looking at the visual impact it has
:50:53. > :50:57.on me. What you paid it again? definitely will. I look forward to
:50:57. > :51:00.seeing it. It has been a great pleasure to meet you.
:51:00. > :51:05.What lovely paintings, it sent ridiculous but you forget what a
:51:05. > :51:10.fabulous artist he is. Absolutely. I would take any excuse just to go
:51:10. > :51:15.and meet him and see the paintings. I and not to politics for a that!
:51:15. > :51:19.It is a good break from serious politics. He will have to get your
:51:19. > :51:23.politics head back on, I am doing a break from this for a while to do