Browse content similar to 11/05/2014. Check below for episodes and series from the same categories and more!
Line | From | To | |
---|---|---|---|
Morning, folks. Welcome to the Sunday Politics, where we're talking | :00:34. | :00:37. | |
about the Europe-wide contest that really matters. No, not Eurovision. | :00:38. | :00:46. | |
The European elections. There are local elections across England too | :00:47. | :00:49. | |
on May 22nd. The party leaders are campaigning ahead of polling day. | :00:50. | :00:53. | |
The results could be a pointer to the Big One, May 2015. We'll be | :00:54. | :00:59. | |
speaking to the man in charge of Labour's election battle plan. Has | :01:00. | :01:02. | |
the opposition really got its sights set on all-out victory in 2015? Or | :01:03. | :01:06. | |
will it just be content with squeaking home? And you can't | :01:07. | :01:12. | |
mention elections these days without talking about the impact of this | :01:13. | :01:17. | |
In the South West: the UKIP MEP him if UKIP really | :01:18. | :01:23. | |
In the South West: the UKIP MEP facing questions about land he gave | :01:24. | :01:25. | |
to a family company before ht facing questions about land he gave | :01:26. | :01:26. | |
to a family company before it was to a family company before it was | :01:27. | :01:26. | |
offered to a wind farm developer. And I'm joined by three journalists | :01:27. | :01:40. | |
guaranteed to bring a touch of Eurovision glamour to your Sunday | :01:41. | :01:43. | |
morning. With views more controversial than a bearded | :01:44. | :01:46. | |
Austrian drag act and twice the dress sense, it's Nick Watt, Helen | :01:47. | :01:56. | |
Lewis and Janan Ganesh. So you might have thought you've already heard | :01:57. | :01:58. | |
David Cameron promise an in-out referendum on EU membership in 2017 | :01:59. | :02:02. | |
if he's still Prime Minister. Many times. Many, many times. Well he | :02:03. | :02:08. | |
obviously doesn't think you've been listening, because he's been saying | :02:09. | :02:11. | |
it again today. Here he is speaking to the BBC earlier. We will hold a | :02:12. | :02:15. | |
referendum by the end of 2017. It will be a referendum on an in-out | :02:16. | :02:20. | |
basis. Do we stay in a reformed European Union or do we leave? And | :02:21. | :02:23. | |
I've said very clearly that whatever the outcome of the next election, | :02:24. | :02:26. | |
and of course I want an overall majority and I'm hoping and | :02:27. | :02:29. | |
believing I can win an overall majority, that people should be in | :02:30. | :02:33. | |
no doubt I will not become Prime Minister unless I can guarantee that | :02:34. | :02:34. | |
we will hold a referendum. Here s we will hold a referendum. Here's | :02:35. | :02:45. | |
saying there that an overall majority there will definitely be a | :02:46. | :02:49. | |
referendum. If these are the minority position, he won't form a | :02:50. | :02:52. | |
new coalition unless they agree to a referendum, too. The Lib Dems a | :02:53. | :02:58. | |
pulmonary agree to that. They probably will because the Prime | :02:59. | :03:00. | |
ministers have a strong argument which is I gave you a referendum | :03:01. | :03:04. | |
back in 2010 so the least I need is theirs and the Lib Dems are the only | :03:05. | :03:07. | |
party who have stood in recent elections on a clear mandate to hold | :03:08. | :03:12. | |
a referendum, so it is difficult for them to say no, there was | :03:13. | :03:15. | |
interesting the interview he did earlier today. He named everything | :03:16. | :03:20. | |
was going to ask for. The most controversial with him, as he said | :03:21. | :03:25. | |
in his speech last year, he wants to take Britain out of the commitment | :03:26. | :03:30. | |
to make the European Union and ever closer union. That is a very big | :03:31. | :03:34. | |
ask, but the point is, he may well get it because the choice for the | :03:35. | :03:38. | |
European Union now, France and Germany, is a clear wonderful do | :03:39. | :03:43. | |
Britain in or out? Previously, it was can you put up with a British | :03:44. | :03:47. | |
prime ministers being annoying? I think you'll find the answer is they | :03:48. | :03:51. | |
are willing to pay a price but not any price to keep Britain in. In | :03:52. | :03:56. | |
this scenario, Labour would have lost the election again because we | :03:57. | :04:01. | |
are talking the slowly happen if Mr Cameron is the largest party or has | :04:02. | :04:04. | |
an overall majority. Could you then see Labour deciding we had better go | :04:05. | :04:10. | |
along with a referendum, too? I think that's unlikely because as I | :04:11. | :04:12. | |
think that's unlikely because there's a huge upside for that for I | :04:13. | :04:15. | |
think what's interesting is the idea he would for minority government. | :04:16. | :04:19. | |
Would you get confidence and look at other options that might well happen | :04:20. | :04:23. | |
with the way the arithmetic is going or is he going to hold out and say | :04:24. | :04:26. | |
the only way I will be Prime Minister is in a majority | :04:27. | :04:30. | |
Conservative government? No, the implication of his remarks was I | :04:31. | :04:35. | |
wouldn't form a coalition government unless my coalition partners would | :04:36. | :04:39. | |
also agree to vote for a referendum. He's basically talking about is | :04:40. | :04:42. | |
negotiating strategy in those coalition talks. It's a red line and | :04:43. | :04:48. | |
a huge opportunity for the Lib Dems, because they know David Cameron | :04:49. | :04:51. | |
absolutely has to do, for accidental reasons, as a person who survives as | :04:52. | :04:57. | |
Tory leader, to ask for that referendum, so they can ask anything | :04:58. | :05:00. | |
they want in return and if I was Nick Clegg, I would work out in the | :05:01. | :05:04. | |
next year one absolute colossal negotiating demand for those | :05:05. | :05:11. | |
coalition talks. For a party around 10% in the polls, they will do have | :05:12. | :05:14. | |
the Prime Minister over a barrel on this one, assuming that coalition | :05:15. | :05:24. | |
talks goes well. They could make Michael Gove Tbyte meeting. OK, we | :05:25. | :05:29. | |
need to move on. So, the politicians are out and about on what used to be | :05:30. | :05:33. | |
called the stump ahead of local and European elections in less than two | :05:34. | :05:36. | |
weeks' time. But, without wanting to depress you on a damp Sunday | :05:37. | :05:38. | |
morning, the party strategists are already hard at work on their | :05:39. | :05:41. | |
campaign plans for the General Election next May. Yes, it's less | :05:42. | :05:45. | |
than a year to go. They may have taken their time, but Labour's | :05:46. | :05:47. | |
battleplan for 2015 is starting to take shape. As well as take | :05:48. | :05:50. | |
promising to freeze your energy bills, and reintroduce the 50p rate | :05:51. | :05:53. | |
of tax, Ed Miliband now says he wants to intervene in the housing | :05:54. | :05:58. | |
market to keep rents down. There's even talk that the party leadership | :05:59. | :06:02. | |
wants to bring more railway lines into public ownership. And Labour is | :06:03. | :06:08. | |
gambling that its big push on the cost of living will see it through | :06:09. | :06:10. | |
to the general election despite evidence that growth is firmly back. | :06:11. | :06:14. | |
Labour's campaign chief Douglas Alexander hopes it all adds up to | :06:15. | :06:20. | |
victory next May. But so far, the evidence is hitting home very thin. | :06:21. | :06:25. | |
One survey today shows that 56% of people don't think Mr Miliband is up | :06:26. | :06:30. | |
to the job of Prime Minister. As we head towards one of the least | :06:31. | :06:33. | |
predictable general elections in 70 years, has Labour got a message to | :06:34. | :06:39. | |
win seats up and down the country? And Labour's election co-ordinator | :06:40. | :06:41. | |
and Shadow Foreign Secretary, Douglas Alexander, joins me now. | :06:42. | :06:47. | |
Douglas Alexander, joins me now Welcome to Sunday Politics. A lot of | :06:48. | :06:50. | |
these policies announced polar pretty well. By popular with the | :06:51. | :06:54. | |
country. When you add them together, it's a move to the left and what | :06:55. | :07:00. | |
would be wrong with that? I think is your packet suggests, the contours | :07:01. | :07:03. | |
in the coming campaign are becoming clear. Our judgement is the defining | :07:04. | :07:09. | |
issue of the year in British politics will be the widening gap | :07:10. | :07:12. | |
between the wealth of the country and the finances of ordinary | :07:13. | :07:15. | |
families. We believe it will be a cost of living election and we have | :07:16. | :07:19. | |
been setting out our thinking in relation to energy prices and rent, | :07:20. | :07:22. | |
but you will hear more from Labour Party in the coming months because | :07:23. | :07:26. | |
we're now less than one year away from a decisive moment. If the | :07:27. | :07:30. | |
leftish think tank suggested any of his policies in that Tony Blair | :07:31. | :07:35. | |
years, you would have opposed them. Let's be clear, when not going for | :07:36. | :07:41. | |
an interest but seeking to secure a majority for the only way to do that | :07:42. | :07:44. | |
is not simply to appeal to your base, but to the centre ground. I | :07:45. | :07:47. | |
believe we got genuine opportunities in the next year. You have the | :07:48. | :07:53. | |
Conservatives in a struggle with UKIP on the right of politics. The | :07:54. | :07:57. | |
Lib Dems 9% of trying to find their base, and there's a genuine | :07:58. | :08:01. | |
opportunity in the next year for Labour to dominate the centre ground | :08:02. | :08:06. | |
of politics and secure the majority Labour government we are planning | :08:07. | :08:10. | |
for in the coming year. I notice you didn't deny you wouldn't have | :08:11. | :08:20. | |
opposed. You say you have got an message for aspirational voters in | :08:21. | :08:24. | |
the South. This is what John Denham said. He thinks you're talking too | :08:25. | :08:27. | |
much to your core vote. He is right to recognise we took a | :08:28. | :08:43. | |
terrible beating in 2010. 29%. If you look at what we've done in the | :08:44. | :08:46. | |
last week, for example, the signature policy on rent Ed Miliband | :08:47. | :08:52. | |
announced to launch the campaign, there's now more than 9 million | :08:53. | :08:55. | |
people in the country in the private rented sector, more than 1 million | :08:56. | :09:00. | |
families. Many of them are in the south-east. They are seeing | :09:01. | :09:02. | |
circumstances where, suddenly, landlord will increase the rent and | :09:03. | :09:08. | |
they put the pressure involved in schooling, health care facing the | :09:09. | :09:12. | |
families, so it is important both in terms of policy and in terms of | :09:13. | :09:15. | |
politics that we speak to the whole country, not simply to one part of | :09:16. | :09:19. | |
it falls up what is the average rise in event last year? I don't know. | :09:20. | :09:27. | |
Can you tell me? 1%. 1% not in real terms. I'm not sure what the problem | :09:28. | :09:34. | |
is. It will happen to wages in last year, we are facing circumstances | :09:35. | :09:38. | |
where people will be worse off, up to ?1600 off worse and frankly, if | :09:39. | :09:44. | |
our opponents want to argue that the economy has healed and they deserve | :09:45. | :09:49. | |
a victory lap, good luck to them because actually, what we are | :09:50. | :09:53. | |
hearing from the Buddhist public, not just in the north and south, | :09:54. | :09:55. | |
hearing from the Buddhist public, not just in the north and south is | :09:56. | :09:55. | |
not just in the north and south, is not the cost living crisis is | :09:56. | :10:00. | |
continuing and it affects families. There was nothing aspirational about | :10:01. | :10:02. | |
your party election broadcast for the European elections. It looked | :10:03. | :10:07. | |
like crude class war to money people. That's a bit of it. Bedroom | :10:08. | :10:12. | |
tax. Isn't it going to look bad that two thirds of those affected are | :10:13. | :10:16. | |
disabled? Who cares? They can't fight back. Shall be lay-offs and | :10:17. | :10:22. | |
NHS nurses? The National Health Service? Oh yes. Mr Cameron? Who | :10:23. | :10:36. | |
said that? Me. My gosh. The man has shrunk. He's actually shrunk. What | :10:37. | :10:40. | |
shall we do with him? Can we hunt him? Nothing about Europe, Labour | :10:41. | :10:48. | |
policy. News that the Tories would result in negative campaigning and | :10:49. | :10:53. | |
smear. You didn't tell you would be just as bad. Let's start the party | :10:54. | :10:57. | |
broadcast. The one thing guaranteed to have most people reaching for the | :10:58. | :11:03. | |
remote control these days are the words, there now follows a party but | :11:04. | :11:07. | |
the broadcast. I make no apology in the factory to be innovative in how | :11:08. | :11:12. | |
we presented. It's factual. It was a policy -based critic of this | :11:13. | :11:15. | |
government. And the Lib Dems role within it. So you're claiming it's | :11:16. | :11:21. | |
factual to betray the camera and cabinet is not even knowing what the | :11:22. | :11:29. | |
NHS is, -- the Cameron Cabinet. They attack the disabled because they | :11:30. | :11:33. | |
can't fight back. The Pinellas Tanner severely Prime Minister Sun | :11:34. | :11:38. | |
and he was treated during a short life by the NHS. It's a fact many | :11:39. | :11:44. | |
disabled people across the country including in my constituency have | :11:45. | :11:47. | |
been directly affected by the bedroom tax. And ultimately, this | :11:48. | :11:51. | |
Conservative led government, including the Lib Dems, will be held | :11:52. | :11:55. | |
accountable by the politicians. You say that, the Prime Minister, who | :11:56. | :12:00. | |
had a severely disabled son of. I you not ashamed about? I shadowed | :12:01. | :12:05. | |
Iain Duncan Smith of five months also they don't have the excuses of | :12:06. | :12:10. | |
seeing that saying nobody told them the consequences of the bedroom tax. | :12:11. | :12:14. | |
They went into this with their eyes open. They knew about the hardship | :12:15. | :12:19. | |
and difficulty. If they were one-bedroom properties available | :12:20. | :12:21. | |
across the country for people to move into, their argument would be | :12:22. | :12:26. | |
OK but they knew they were dealing with the most vulnerable people. | :12:27. | :12:29. | |
OK but they knew they were dealing with the most vulnerable people Did | :12:30. | :12:31. | |
you sign off that part of the broadcast? Of course I stand by the | :12:32. | :12:37. | |
fact of it. I wish David Cameron and Iain Duncan Smith would apologise to | :12:38. | :12:41. | |
the disabled people of the country and the poorest people for the | :12:42. | :12:44. | |
effects of the bedroom tax. I hope we get that apology between now and | :12:45. | :12:50. | |
election. As someone who thinks integrity is important in politics, | :12:51. | :12:55. | |
not ashamed of this kind of thing? It's important we scrutinise the | :12:56. | :12:59. | |
policies of this government as well as adding a positive agenda for | :13:00. | :13:05. | |
change. You want that you won't promise this is the last time we'll | :13:06. | :13:10. | |
see such a negative press campaign? I don't think it is negative or | :13:11. | :13:13. | |
personal to scrutinise the government. So we'll get more of | :13:14. | :13:18. | |
this? I'm less interested in the background of the cabinet than their | :13:19. | :13:24. | |
views. You call the upper-class twits. It's for the British public | :13:25. | :13:27. | |
to make a judgement in terms of the British... That's how you depicted | :13:28. | :13:32. | |
them. We are held in accountable for the bedroom tax, the NHS, taxation, | :13:33. | :13:39. | |
and our record they have to defend. One reason are so fearful in this | :13:40. | :13:42. | |
election is actually because they know they have a poor record. Let's | :13:43. | :13:46. | |
look at other part of the election campaign. This poster. Particularly | :13:47. | :13:54. | |
digitally doing the rounds. On that shopping basket, can you tell us | :13:55. | :14:00. | |
which items take the full 20% VAT? It's representative of household | :14:01. | :14:03. | |
shopping, which includes items like cleaning products, and we know that | :14:04. | :14:08. | |
food is not that trouble. People don't go to the supermarket and say | :14:09. | :14:24. | |
this is -- vatable. So you are denying that ?450 extra is being | :14:25. | :14:28. | |
paid? Yes, where'd you get that figure? For an average family to pay | :14:29. | :14:36. | |
?450 a year extra VAT, they would have to spend ?21,600 a year on | :14:37. | :14:43. | |
vatable products at 20%. The average take-home pay is only 21,009. They | :14:44. | :14:48. | |
have got to spend on all sorts of things which are zero VAT. So in | :14:49. | :14:52. | |
addition to the items, has a range of products people face in terms of | :14:53. | :14:59. | |
VAT. How could an average family of ?21,000 a year spent 21,006 and the | :15:00. | :15:06. | |
pound a year on 20% vatable items? It's not an annual figure, is it? So | :15:07. | :15:14. | |
what is it then? If it's an annual, what is it? The increased VAT in | :15:15. | :15:20. | |
this parliament is calculated over the course of a Parliament. For the | :15:21. | :15:25. | |
whole of the Parliament? And you're illustrated this with a shopping | :15:26. | :15:32. | |
basket which almost has no VAT on it at all? People will be buying a | :15:33. | :15:36. | |
weekly shop in the course of this Parliament every week. Did you sign | :15:37. | :15:42. | |
off on this as well? Of course. It didn't dawn on you you're putting | :15:43. | :15:46. | |
things on it which have no VAT? If you want to argue some people go to | :15:47. | :15:51. | |
the shops and say these are vatable or not, I disagree. Even your rent | :15:52. | :15:59. | |
cap announcement went wrong. You're working on the rent rises and it | :16:00. | :16:02. | |
turns out it wasn't. It was a post your policy. It is the exception | :16:03. | :16:12. | |
rather than the rule to have the position we have at the moment. In | :16:13. | :16:17. | |
Northern Ireland we have seen the continued rise in terms of the | :16:18. | :16:21. | |
rented sector but there is a widespread recognition that for | :16:22. | :16:27. | |
those people in the rented sector, change is necessary. Are you | :16:28. | :16:33. | |
coordinating this campaign? It seems accident prone. This is a party that | :16:34. | :16:43. | |
has set the agenda more effectively than a Conservative party that said | :16:44. | :16:47. | |
when David Cameron was elected he wasn't going to bang on about | :16:48. | :16:55. | |
Europe. The day after the election we expect the Conservative party to | :16:56. | :17:02. | |
be engulfed in crisis. I'm proud of what we talk about and I think there | :17:03. | :17:06. | |
is a clear contrast about a party talking about issues people care | :17:07. | :17:10. | |
about, and a Conservative party talking about exclusively a | :17:11. | :17:15. | |
referendum. Are you in charge of the campaign? I am coordinating the | :17:16. | :17:23. | |
campaign is, yes. The expensive election guru you have hired, has he | :17:24. | :17:29. | |
been involved in any of this? We have started our discussions with | :17:30. | :17:33. | |
him. You are going to have to brief him about British politics because | :17:34. | :17:38. | |
he doesn't know anything about it. I make no apology for hiring him. He | :17:39. | :17:45. | |
has a lot of experience in winning tight elections and that is what we | :17:46. | :17:48. | |
are expecting. If tight elections and that is what we | :17:49. | :17:54. | |
us to say, they have passed and we have to hold them accountable, then | :17:55. | :18:01. | |
I am sorry but we have a campaign that holds the Government and the | :18:02. | :18:04. | |
Conservatives to account for what I think is a very hopeless record in | :18:05. | :18:15. | |
government. Thank you. He leads a party with zero MPs but | :18:16. | :18:19. | |
his media presence is huge. He's had an expenses scandal, but the public | :18:20. | :18:22. | |
didn't seem to mind. He's got a privileged background but he's seen | :18:23. | :18:24. | |
as an anti-establishment champion. Nothing seems to stick to him, not | :18:25. | :18:28. | |
even eggs. I speak of course of Nigel Farage. We'll talk to him in a | :18:29. | :18:31. | |
moment, but first Giles has been out on the campaign trail ahead of | :18:32. | :18:34. | |
elections that could make or break the UKIP leader. | :18:35. | :18:37. | |
Nigel Farage likes a stage, and at this stage of the Euro and local | :18:38. | :18:40. | |
election campaign he is, like his party, in buoyant mood. They feel | :18:41. | :18:45. | |
they are on the verge of what they see as causing an earthquake in | :18:46. | :18:50. | |
British politics. Today Nigel is filling thousands seat venues and | :18:51. | :18:55. | |
bigger. Not that there's much sign of that at this press launch. But | :18:56. | :19:03. | |
it's a threat with serious money behind it, that they believe the | :19:04. | :19:06. | |
media and the political elite just haven't realised yet, much less | :19:07. | :19:09. | |
learned how to counter it. Not that it's all been plain sailing. | :19:10. | :19:11. | |
Offensive comments from some candidates has not only seen UKIP | :19:12. | :19:14. | |
labelled as racist, but necessitated a rally by the party to visibly and | :19:15. | :19:20. | |
verbally challenge that. The offensive idiotic statements made by | :19:21. | :19:24. | |
this handful of people have been lifted up and presented to the great | :19:25. | :19:27. | |
British public as if they represent the view of this party, which they | :19:28. | :19:33. | |
do not. They never have and they never will. APPLAUSE | :19:34. | :19:44. | |
I don't care what you call us, but from this moment on, please do not | :19:45. | :19:53. | |
call must trust a racist party. We are not a racist party. | :19:54. | :20:02. | |
The need to say that is not just about the European and local | :20:03. | :20:05. | |
elections even at that campaign launch it's clear UKIP's leader has | :20:06. | :20:08. | |
set his sights firmly on the ultimate prize. I come from the | :20:09. | :20:11. | |
south of England and I would not want to be seen as an opportunist | :20:12. | :20:14. | |
heading to the north, north Norfolk or whatever it will be. I will make | :20:15. | :20:19. | |
my mind up and stand in the general election for somewhere in Kent, East | :20:20. | :20:25. | |
Sussex, Hampshire, somewhere in my home patch. Back at UKIP HQ they are | :20:26. | :20:29. | |
still drilling down how the last fortnight of campaigning should go. | :20:30. | :20:39. | |
They aren't taking any chances, and one imagines having offices above | :20:40. | :20:42. | |
those of Max Clifford is a reminder how fragile built reputations can be | :20:43. | :20:45. | |
of the bubble bursting. They want their reputation to be built on | :20:46. | :20:48. | |
votes and they know anything but significant success on May 22nd and | :20:49. | :20:51. | |
some seats in Westminster in 2015 isn't going to be good enough. And | :20:52. | :20:58. | |
after that, having sold yourselves as the honest outsiders, that stance | :20:59. | :21:01. | |
is harder to maintain once your people are on the inside. And subtle | :21:02. | :21:05. | |
changes from the past are already noticeable. The ordinary man of the | :21:06. | :21:11. | |
people stance is still working. Characteristically outside a pub, | :21:12. | :21:14. | |
Nigel Farage is glad handed by a customer. Two weeks to go, let's | :21:15. | :21:20. | |
cause an upset. Wouldn't that be great? The only sign that such an | :21:21. | :21:25. | |
interaction is different now is the ever presence of bodyguards who | :21:26. | :21:37. | |
shadow his every move. Over lunch ahead of Question Time, a radio | :21:38. | :21:40. | |
appearance, and then off to Scotland, I ask him if some of those | :21:41. | :21:44. | |
minded to vote UKIP who see him as a man they'd be comfortable having a | :21:45. | :21:47. | |
drink with are the sort of people he'd be entirely comfortable sitting | :21:48. | :21:50. | |
down with. Every political party attracts support from across the | :21:51. | :21:52. | |
spectrum and there will be some magnificent people who vote for us | :21:53. | :22:01. | |
and some ne'er-do-wells. The one common thing about UKIP voters is | :22:02. | :22:06. | |
that they are often not very political. And it's that people s | :22:07. | :22:10. | |
army that if UKIP can get to a polling booth might just create that | :22:11. | :22:12. | |
earthquake they want. Nigel Farage joins me now. When you | :22:13. | :22:19. | |
decided not to stand at the new work by election coming said if you lost | :22:20. | :22:23. | |
it that the bubble would have burst. What did you mean by that? I | :22:24. | :22:43. | |
was asked at seven 20p -- at 7:21pm if I would stand, I have decided by | :22:44. | :22:49. | |
the next morning that I would not. I didn't know he was going to resign. | :22:50. | :22:56. | |
You claim only a handful of UKIP candidates have ever said things | :22:57. | :22:59. | |
that are either stupid or offensive, I'm right on that, yes? 0.1%, I'd | :23:00. | :23:08. | |
rather it was non-. But why have you chosen a candidate to fight this | :23:09. | :23:11. | |
by-election that has said many things most people would regard as | :23:12. | :23:18. | |
stupid or offensive? Roger is fighting this for us, someone of 70 | :23:19. | :23:23. | |
years of age who grew up with a strong Christian Bible background, | :23:24. | :23:28. | |
in an age when homosexuality was imprisonable. He had a certain set | :23:29. | :23:32. | |
of views which he maintained for many years which he now says he | :23:33. | :23:36. | |
accepts the world has moved on and he is relaxed about it. The comments | :23:37. | :23:42. | |
about homosexuality are not from the dark ages, they are from two or | :23:43. | :23:49. | |
three years ago. From when he was a Conservative, yes, so will you be | :23:50. | :23:55. | |
asking David Cameron that question? I have never seen a single comment | :23:56. | :23:59. | |
from Roger that would be deemed to be offensive. Do you regard his | :24:00. | :24:04. | |
comments on homosexuality as offensive? When he grew up, | :24:05. | :24:09. | |
homosexuality was illegal in this country. But this was in 2012 but he | :24:10. | :24:19. | |
said that. Most people have his age still feel uncomfortable about it -- | :24:20. | :24:29. | |
of his age. In 2012 he said, if two men can be married, why not three, | :24:30. | :24:37. | |
why not a commune. Many people in this country are disconcerted by the | :24:38. | :24:41. | |
change in the meaning of marriage and in a tolerant society we | :24:42. | :24:44. | |
understand that some people have different views. But he has changed | :24:45. | :24:46. | |
his views now in only two years? different views. But he has changed | :24:47. | :24:50. | |
his views now in only two years He his views now in only two years? He | :24:51. | :24:52. | |
says he is more relaxed about it. Was he your candidate? He is a | :24:53. | :25:02. | |
first-class campaigner who has had 30 years in industry, he served in | :25:03. | :25:07. | |
the European Parliament, he is a good candidate. This morning's | :25:08. | :25:12. | |
papers suggest you are about to select Victoria Ayling for Grimsby, | :25:13. | :25:16. | |
but she is on camera saying that, of immigrants, I just want to send a | :25:17. | :25:22. | |
lot back. This is all very interesting, and we can talk about | :25:23. | :25:26. | |
it, all we could talk about the fact that in 12 days we have a European | :25:27. | :25:30. | |
election and every voter across the UK can vote on it and it is really | :25:31. | :25:37. | |
interesting. Are you happy to pick a candidate that says of immigrants, I | :25:38. | :25:45. | |
just want to send a lot back? I have seen the tape, it is a complete | :25:46. | :25:50. | |
misquote and she says it in the context of illegal immigrants. I | :25:51. | :25:58. | |
have seen the full quote and in the context it is not about illegal | :25:59. | :26:01. | |
immigrants. Let's come onto the European campaign, you have used a | :26:02. | :26:06. | |
company that employs Eastern European is to deliver leaflets in | :26:07. | :26:11. | |
London and the Home Counties. Have we? I'm told that in Croydon one | :26:12. | :26:17. | |
branch might have done that. Have you found some indigenous Brits to | :26:18. | :26:23. | |
deliver leaflets in Europe? We have thousands joining the party every | :26:24. | :26:26. | |
month and they are not all indigenous because what is | :26:27. | :26:30. | |
interesting is that in today's opinion polls, UKIP is above the Lib | :26:31. | :26:45. | |
Dems and the Conservatives amongst the indigenous voting. | :26:46. | :26:56. | |
We have not agreed a manifesto for the general election, we will do | :26:57. | :27:03. | |
over the course of the summer. This is in your local election. We are | :27:04. | :27:09. | |
having local elections in some part of the country but we are fighting a | :27:10. | :27:13. | |
European election. It is impossible with the British media to have an | :27:14. | :27:17. | |
intelligent debate on the European question. But as I say, we are also | :27:18. | :27:24. | |
fighting the local elections too. You have promised these tax cuts, | :27:25. | :27:31. | |
how much will they cost? I have met -- read the local election manifesto | :27:32. | :27:35. | |
and it doesn't make those promises. We do talk about local services, we | :27:36. | :27:37. | |
We do talk about local services we do talk about the need to keep | :27:38. | :27:42. | |
council tax down but we don't talk about income tax. Absolutely not. In | :27:43. | :27:49. | |
local election campaigning you say you would restore cuts to policing, | :27:50. | :27:56. | |
double prison places, restore cuts to front line NHS, spend more on | :27:57. | :27:58. | |
roads, how much would that cost You roads, how much would that cost? You | :27:59. | :28:05. | |
are obviously reading different documents to me. We are voting for | :28:06. | :28:10. | |
local councillors in district councils who have got little local | :28:11. | :28:17. | |
budgets. Every party in a manifesto puts his aspirations in it. Have you | :28:18. | :28:23. | |
read it? Of course I have, cover to cover, which is why I'm saying you | :28:24. | :28:29. | |
are misquoting it. By the way, on the bubble bursting, you told that | :28:30. | :28:35. | |
to Norman Smith of the BBC. 75% of British laws are now made in the | :28:36. | :28:40. | |
European Union. Now AstraZeneca is potentially going to be taken over | :28:41. | :28:46. | |
by Pfizer. The BBC is refusing to show the public that that decision | :28:47. | :28:51. | |
cannot be taken here but by an elected European commissioner, and | :28:52. | :28:55. | |
we sit and argue about what is in or not in the local election manifesto. | :28:56. | :29:09. | |
It is my job, but let me come on to AstraZeneca. Is it your view that a | :29:10. | :29:12. | |
British government should stop the takeover of AstraZeneca? It cannot. | :29:13. | :29:24. | |
Can we please get this clear. I sat next to Chuka Umunna the other day | :29:25. | :29:28. | |
at question time and he said what could and couldn't be done. He said | :29:29. | :29:33. | |
I am being studiously neutral, and the reason is we don't have this | :29:34. | :29:38. | |
power. That is what the European elections is about. Should France | :29:39. | :29:44. | |
have the takeover of the food company Danan? We seem to do things | :29:45. | :30:02. | |
to the Nth degree and nobody else does, perhaps because we have this | :30:03. | :30:06. | |
culture and we obey it. In your view, you don't think Pfizer should | :30:07. | :30:14. | |
be able to take over AstraZeneca? There is some good science within | :30:15. | :30:18. | |
AstraZeneca which is in danger of being asset stripped and lost. | :30:19. | :30:26. | |
Because it is run by a Swede and a Frenchman and most of its employees | :30:27. | :30:31. | |
are overseas. I understand that but there are still some good science | :30:32. | :30:36. | |
being produced here. What did you think of the Prime Minister saying | :30:37. | :30:39. | |
he would not form a government after the election unless he was able to | :30:40. | :30:45. | |
have a referendum in 2017? I sat here talking to you and you said to | :30:46. | :30:52. | |
me that David Cameron had given a cast-iron guarantee that if David | :30:53. | :30:56. | |
Cameron becomes Prime Minister he will have a referendum on the Lisbon | :30:57. | :30:59. | |
Treaty, but he didn't deliver on that. He knows that people struggle | :31:00. | :31:04. | |
to believe the renegotiation is worth a row of beans. He is saying | :31:05. | :31:11. | |
he will not form a government unless he can go forward with the | :31:12. | :31:14. | |
referendum. I know he is desperately trying to pretend to be Eurosceptic | :31:15. | :31:18. | |
whilst at the same time saying he will campaign for Britain to remain | :31:19. | :31:22. | |
in. In a sense, that is what this election is about. We have three | :31:23. | :31:27. | |
traditional parties, all of whom passionately believe in the | :31:28. | :31:30. | |
continued membership of the European Union and we have UKIP saying we | :31:31. | :31:34. | |
want trade and cooperation but there is a bigger and better world out | :31:35. | :31:40. | |
there. You are now travelling with I think four bodyguards, has this | :31:41. | :31:50. | |
affected you and your family life? I can't stand it. I've always wondered | :31:51. | :31:54. | |
about the place and on my own thing. Sadly we have a couple of | :31:55. | :31:59. | |
organisations out there headed up by senior Labour Party figures who | :32:00. | :32:01. | |
purport to be against fascism and extremism, who received funding from | :32:02. | :32:07. | |
the Department of communities, from the trade unions, who have acted in | :32:08. | :32:11. | |
a violent wait more than once. You are saying the Labour Party is | :32:12. | :32:16. | |
behind the threats? No, I said a taxpayer funded, trade union funded | :32:17. | :32:20. | |
and headed by senior Labour Party figures, and I'm happy for them to | :32:21. | :32:23. | |
come to my meetings and have an itinerant with me, but it's not so | :32:24. | :32:26. | |
much fun when there are banging you over the head. I is still keen to be | :32:27. | :32:32. | |
an MP? Yes, what UKIP will then do is target before the general | :32:33. | :32:38. | |
election next year for the one life be easier if you just went to the | :32:39. | :32:42. | |
Lords? That's the last thing I want to do. There's an awful lot to do. | :32:43. | :32:47. | |
Most of all, I will not rest until we are free from political union and | :32:48. | :32:51. | |
government from Brussels. Nigel Farage, thank you for being with us. | :32:52. | :32:54. | |
It's just gone 11.30am. You're watching the Sunday Politics. We say | :32:55. | :32:57. | |
goodbye to viewers in Scotland, who leave us now for Sunday Politics | :32:58. | :33:00. | |
Scotland. Coming up here in 20 minutes, our panel talks about the | :33:01. | :33:01. | |
Hello, I'm Lucy Fisher. Coming up in big stories of the week. First | :33:02. | :33:17. | |
Hello, I'm Lucy Fisher. Coming up in the Sunday politics in the South | :33:18. | :33:18. | |
West: the UKIP MEP facing questions West: the UKIP MEP facing questions | :33:19. | :33:22. | |
about why he gave land to a family company shortly before it was | :33:23. | :33:28. | |
procured by a wind farm developer. And for the next 20 minutes I'm | :33:29. | :33:31. | |
joined by the Conservative MP for Tiverton and Honiton, Neil Parish, | :33:32. | :33:34. | |
and the Labour MP for Plymotth Moor View, Alison Seabech. Welcome | :33:35. | :33:35. | |
and the Labour MP for Plymouth Moor View, Alison Seabech. Welcole both | :33:36. | :33:37. | |
of you to the programme. Let's start with house pricds. Their | :33:38. | :33:39. | |
Let's start with house prices. Their back on the rise in the reghon and | :33:40. | :33:41. | |
there are growing concerns among there are growing concerns among | :33:42. | :33:43. | |
economists that they are dangerously out of kilter with earnings. This | :33:44. | :33:52. | |
week the International Economic Forum, the OECD, said that Britain's | :33:53. | :33:55. | |
housing market was in danger of overheating. Neil, why is the | :33:56. | :33:57. | |
government not doing more to stop this potential bubble developing? I | :33:58. | :34:01. | |
think what we were keen to do was actually to get the housing market | :34:02. | :34:10. | |
going. Don't forget it wasn't very long ago that we were being | :34:11. | :34:12. | |
criticised for the housing market stagnating. That is why the Help to | :34:13. | :34:21. | |
Buy scheme was put there, to give people a chance to have a deposit | :34:22. | :34:29. | |
who couldn't raise that themselves. So we put position for the Bank of | :34:30. | :34:32. | |
England so that they can actually take action the moment they think | :34:33. | :34:35. | |
that there is anything that government money putting in is | :34:36. | :34:37. | |
stimulating too much the housing market. But at the moment in many | :34:38. | :34:40. | |
respects getting the housing market going is the important thing. So I | :34:41. | :34:44. | |
do not think it has overheated yet. And you wouldn't recommend stopping | :34:45. | :34:45. | |
perhaps the Help to Buy scheme? And you wouldn't recommend stopping | :34:46. | :34:47. | |
perhaps the Help to Buy scheme? No, you're helping people who c`nnot get | :34:48. | :34:48. | |
the deposit together. If you you're helping people who cannot get | :34:49. | :34:50. | |
the deposit together. If yot take that away you don't necessarily stop | :34:51. | :34:53. | |
prices rising, you just stop those people being able to get their help. | :34:54. | :34:55. | |
people being able to get thdir help. Alison, is Neil right? You need to | :34:56. | :34:58. | |
start the ladder, you need to start things moving? | :34:59. | :35:00. | |
Alison, is Neil right? You need to start The issue here is the supply | :35:01. | :35:04. | |
of housing available. If you start The issue here is the supply | :35:05. | :35:16. | |
of housing available. If yot look start The issue here is the supply | :35:17. | :35:16. | |
of housing available. If you look at of housing available. If yot look at | :35:17. | :35:17. | |
the comments from former chancellors, three Conservative, | :35:18. | :35:18. | |
the comments from former chancellors, three Conservative one | :35:19. | :35:18. | |
chancellors, three Conservative, one Labour, all seeing that we've had | :35:19. | :35:20. | |
bubble after bubble and thex've Labour, all seeing that we've had | :35:21. | :35:21. | |
bubble after bubble and they've all burst. The problem is one of supply. | :35:22. | :35:25. | |
To be fair, Alistair Darling has put his hands up on that one and said we | :35:26. | :35:28. | |
should have focused more on getting more homes built and that is what | :35:29. | :35:32. | |
has to happen. We've got the lowest house`building level since the | :35:33. | :35:34. | |
1920s, and that is fuelling this constant upward movement in prices. | :35:35. | :35:36. | |
OK, that's that for the mintte. We OK, that's that for the mintte. We | :35:37. | :35:39. | |
have to move on. But plenty more to discuss. | :35:40. | :35:40. | |
It's no surprise to find a UKIP discuss. | :35:41. | :35:41. | |
It's no surprise to find a TKIP MEP It's no surprise to find a TKIP MEP | :35:42. | :35:43. | |
that against wind farms. Indeed the party says its strong opposition | :35:44. | :35:44. | |
that against wind farms. Indeed the party says its strong opposhtion to | :35:45. | :35:46. | |
them has been a big vote`winner in the region. But some have bden | :35:47. | :36:01. | |
shocked to learn that UKIP's William Dartmouth, who's standing for | :36:02. | :36:04. | |
re`election as a South West MEP used to own a piece of land where | :36:05. | :36:12. | |
three turbines are now proposed. Slaithwaite Moor lies about six | :36:13. | :36:15. | |
miles to the west of Huddersfield and Yorkshire. The plan for 399 | :36:16. | :36:19. | |
metre tall wind turbines here has attracted vocal opposition, but it | :36:20. | :36:21. | |
is also causing concern in the south`west. Lord Dartmouth has | :36:22. | :36:23. | |
publicly always opposed the development of wind power. Hf | :36:24. | :36:25. | |
publicly always opposed the development of wind power. If he is | :36:26. | :36:26. | |
development of wind power. Hf he is involved in putting up wind turbines | :36:27. | :36:29. | |
than I think his constituents should know about it. William Dartlouth is | :36:30. | :36:32. | |
one of the region's two existing UKIP MEPs. In February 2011 he gave | :36:33. | :36:35. | |
Yorkshire to a family company. 1 Yorkshire to a family company. 1 | :36:36. | :36:39. | |
weeks later the wind farm developer Valley Wind secured an agredment | :36:40. | :36:40. | |
weeks later the wind farm ddveloper Valley Wind secured an agreement to | :36:41. | :36:43. | |
lease the land. This title plan from the Land Registry shows the land | :36:44. | :36:46. | |
which William Dartmouth transferred. This is the boundary to the area of | :36:47. | :36:49. | |
land. This planning application document shows the area now under | :36:50. | :36:52. | |
control of the wind farm developers. These points marking out the | :36:53. | :36:54. | |
These points marking out thd proposed wind turbine locations. | :36:55. | :36:55. | |
These points marking out the proposed wind turbine locathons As | :36:56. | :36:55. | |
you can see, the two areas appear proposed wind turbine locations. As | :36:56. | :36:57. | |
you can see, the two areas `ppear to match exactly. I do not move in | :36:58. | :37:00. | |
match exactly. I do not movd in circles where people give away large | :37:01. | :37:04. | |
parcels of land, so perhaps I do not understand how these things work, | :37:05. | :37:07. | |
but to me it seems rather strange and I think he could give us a | :37:08. | :37:10. | |
little bit more of a detaildd explanation on that. The question | :37:11. | :37:11. | |
little bit more of a detailed explanation on that. The qudstion as | :37:12. | :37:12. | |
explanation on that. The question as to why William Dartmouth tr`nsferred | :37:13. | :37:23. | |
this land remains unanswered. The developer's website reveals that | :37:24. | :37:25. | |
after years of searching for the best site for the wind farm we found | :37:26. | :37:28. | |
a suitable location on Slaithwaite Moor. Valley Wind Co`operathve | :37:29. | :37:32. | |
a suitable location on Slaithwaite Moor. Valley Wind Co`operative was | :37:33. | :37:34. | |
created in 2009 to take the idea forward. We asked Valley Wind when | :37:35. | :37:39. | |
they first approached the l`ndowner they first approached the l`ndowner | :37:40. | :37:42. | |
about the project and who that landowner was, but our questions | :37:43. | :37:45. | |
were met with this brief statement... | :37:46. | :37:49. | |
William Dartmouth declined our request for an interview. In a | :37:50. | :37:56. | |
statement he said he derives no benefit, financial or otherwise | :37:57. | :37:59. | |
from the land as it stands, and nor would he if the planning application | :38:00. | :38:02. | |
were successful. He goes on to say he fully endorses the party policy | :38:03. | :38:07. | |
to oppose onshore wind development. Many of our leading politichans | :38:08. | :38:08. | |
to oppose onshore wind development. Many of our leading politicians have | :38:09. | :38:10. | |
family members who are, or who have been associated with, the whnd | :38:11. | :38:11. | |
been associated with, the wind energy industry. It's very good for | :38:12. | :38:16. | |
rich people very, very good indeed. If you're a landowner and you get | :38:17. | :38:19. | |
?1000 a day for just putting wind turbines on your land, isn't that | :38:20. | :38:25. | |
great? The difference between what UKIP are | :38:26. | :38:27. | |
saying and what apparently hs happening with this land, yes, | :38:28. | :38:29. | |
saying and what apparently is happening with this land, yds, I | :38:30. | :38:30. | |
think there are questions still outstanding. Obviously UKIP are | :38:31. | :38:33. | |
trading on the fact that people are disillusioned with the three | :38:34. | :38:34. | |
disillusioned with the thred Westminster parties, but I think | :38:35. | :38:37. | |
this shows that actually, as some of us suspected, they don't re`lly have | :38:38. | :38:40. | |
higher standards themselves, and it really does look a little bht | :38:41. | :38:41. | |
higher standards themselves, and it really does look a little bit dodgy | :38:42. | :38:41. | |
in terms of, just double st`ndards in terms of, just double standards | :38:42. | :38:44. | |
really. William Dartmouth owns land adjacent to this proposed whnd | :38:45. | :38:45. | |
really. William Dartmouth owns land adjacent to this proposed wind farm | :38:46. | :38:51. | |
site. Some will be expecting him to lodge an objection. | :38:52. | :38:53. | |
We asked William Dartmouth to join us to discuss this. Both he and the | :38:54. | :38:58. | |
UKIP party chairman declined our request for an interview. And we | :38:59. | :39:02. | |
were told by a party press officer that no one from UKIP would be | :39:03. | :39:07. | |
available to talk about this. We should also say that a full list of | :39:08. | :39:09. | |
candidates standing in the European candidates standing in the European | :39:10. | :39:11. | |
elections in the south`west is available on the BBC websitd. | :39:12. | :39:14. | |
elections in the south`west is available on the BBC website. Neil, | :39:15. | :39:14. | |
available on the BBC websitd. Neil, what do you make of this story? I | :39:15. | :39:18. | |
think it is something that the UKIP party must answer, because there is | :39:19. | :39:30. | |
obviously confusion here. Who did own the land and at what tile was | :39:31. | :39:34. | |
Lord Dartmouth tenant of th`t land? But that is very much for the party | :39:35. | :39:37. | |
to identify and answer, bec`use they're the ones that are opposing | :39:38. | :39:40. | |
wind farms. They have to be absolutely sure that their lembers | :39:41. | :39:41. | |
absolutely sure that their members are not actually building whnd | :39:42. | :39:43. | |
are not actually building wind farms. But it is not for me as | :39:44. | :39:46. | |
another party to actually throw too many bricks at them, but I think the | :39:47. | :39:50. | |
public out there will want to know, if UKIP are against wind farms, are | :39:51. | :39:53. | |
they absolutely certain that none of their members have actually | :39:54. | :39:55. | |
benefited from having wind farms. That's the question that thdy have | :39:56. | :39:57. | |
to answer. benefited from having wind farms. | :39:58. | :40:00. | |
That's the What would the Conservatives do if one of their | :40:01. | :40:03. | |
party members were in this situation, do you think Western | :40:04. | :40:05. | |
marketing they would take qtite strong action and Ailsa think that | :40:06. | :40:08. | |
probably they would actually put somebody up to answer it, whether we | :40:09. | :40:13. | |
like it or not. The final point I will make, it is no good UKHP | :40:14. | :40:15. | |
like it or not. The final point I will make, it is no good UKIP saying | :40:16. | :40:17. | |
they are not a political party, they are both politics, when the | :40:18. | :40:20. | |
obviously have managed this story in a way in which nobody has been | :40:21. | :40:21. | |
obviously have managed this story in a way in which nobody has bden put | :40:22. | :40:26. | |
up able to speak on behalf of UKIP. If anything is being managed, media | :40:27. | :40:29. | |
managed, I suggest that that is Would you agree with Neil on this? I | :40:30. | :40:33. | |
think Neil's comments about media management on this are absolutely | :40:34. | :40:34. | |
right. This is something which management on this are absolutely | :40:35. | :40:35. | |
right. This is something whhch does right. This is something which does | :40:36. | :40:36. | |
need to be properly scrutinhsed right. This is something whhch does | :40:37. | :40:38. | |
need to be properly scrutinised. The need to be properly scrutinised. The | :40:39. | :40:40. | |
public really do deserve to know a little bit about the people who are | :40:41. | :40:46. | |
seeking their votes. The media are certainly looking at this, I'd | :40:47. | :40:47. | |
seeking their votes. The media are certainly looking at this, H'd be | :40:48. | :40:49. | |
very surprised if, in the coming week, we don't see a little bit more | :40:50. | :40:55. | |
about the background to this story. Alison, we are in an election | :40:56. | :40:58. | |
period, there is an element that this could just be dirty campaigning | :40:59. | :41:01. | |
by the opponents and a bit of opportunism. No, no. I think this | :41:02. | :41:16. | |
has all come out and it is clearly something which the UKIP candidate | :41:17. | :41:26. | |
himself needs to speak on. Ht's disappointing that he is not here | :41:27. | :41:29. | |
today to explain precisely what happened and that way of course | :41:30. | :41:30. | |
today to explain precisely what happened and that way of cotrse we | :41:31. | :41:31. | |
happened and that way of course we would know, wouldn't we? It would | :41:32. | :41:34. | |
have been best for him to come on and answer it, then we would know. | :41:35. | :41:37. | |
Moving on, alongside the Euro elections in just over a week's | :41:38. | :41:39. | |
elections in just over a wedk's time, there will be local elections | :41:40. | :41:40. | |
in Plymouth, Exeter and Weylouth time, there will be local elections | :41:41. | :41:41. | |
in Plymouth, Exeter and Weymouth And in Plymouth, Exeter and Weylouth And | :41:42. | :41:46. | |
Portland. We have been to one ward in Plymouth where the battle | :41:47. | :41:47. | |
Portland. We have been to one ward in Plymouth where the battld for | :41:48. | :41:48. | |
in Plymouth where the battle for votes is being fought alongside | :41:49. | :41:49. | |
major plans to redevelop one of votes is being fought alongside | :41:50. | :41:50. | |
major plans to redevelop ond of the major plans to redevelop one of the | :41:51. | :41:54. | |
city's key landmarks. With the opening of John Lewis, and | :41:55. | :41:57. | |
imminent arrival of IKEA, Exeter appears to be on the up. Plxmouth, | :41:58. | :41:59. | |
appears to be on the up. Plymouth, too, is aiming to up its gale, | :42:00. | :42:01. | |
appears to be on the up. Plxmouth, too, is aiming to up its game, but | :42:02. | :42:01. | |
too, is aiming to up its gale, but not quickly enough for some. The | :42:02. | :42:06. | |
council needs to be more ambitious, and that is why we need a | :42:07. | :42:08. | |
Conservative`led council in Plymouth. It will mean we c`n | :42:09. | :42:10. | |
Conservative`led council in Plymouth. It will mean we can bring | :42:11. | :42:12. | |
in IKEA, John Lewis, and evdry other bid that we want to. I think that | :42:13. | :42:14. | |
the bidding system in Plymotth bid that we want to. I think that | :42:15. | :42:16. | |
the bidding system in Plymouth City the bidding system in Plymouth City | :42:17. | :42:17. | |
Council has been poor recently, as we look at last year's City of | :42:18. | :42:20. | |
Culture bid that failed. The Labour`led administration h`s | :42:21. | :42:22. | |
rebranded Plymouth as Britahn's Ocean City. And it has ambitious | :42:23. | :42:39. | |
plans for the city centre. We're providing more than shopping, we're | :42:40. | :42:41. | |
providing experiences, we'rd providing a range of restaurants, | :42:42. | :42:44. | |
we're providing a cultural offer, a history centre. We're revamping our | :42:45. | :42:47. | |
libraries, we're doing a range of different things, not just going to | :42:48. | :42:48. | |
a mall. Exeter is right to up its a mall. Exeter is right to tp its | :42:49. | :42:54. | |
game, and so too are we. And I don't think we're doing anything less than | :42:55. | :42:59. | |
Exeter City Council is doing. I think we're probably doing lore | :43:00. | :43:02. | |
Exeter City Council is doing. I think we're probably doing more. For | :43:03. | :43:04. | |
many people arriving in Plymouth the first welcome they get is from this | :43:05. | :43:07. | |
somewhat tired`looking coach station here at Bretonside. The Labour`led | :43:08. | :43:10. | |
City Council has announced plans to sell the site for redeveloplent The | :43:11. | :43:14. | |
?50 million plans will mean a 12`screen cinema complex, 13 | :43:15. | :43:15. | |
restaurants, and parking spaces 12`screen cinema complex, 13 | :43:16. | :43:16. | |
restaurants, and parking sp`ces for restaurants, and parking sp`ces for | :43:17. | :43:20. | |
around 400 cars. The coach station would move from here, to here, on | :43:21. | :43:23. | |
the site of this disused car park, which is much nearer to the mainline | :43:24. | :43:31. | |
train station. The Conservative candidate for this area is in | :43:32. | :43:32. | |
train station. The Conservative candidate for this area is hn favour | :43:33. | :43:33. | |
candidate for this area is in favour of the plans. But some in hhs party | :43:34. | :43:36. | |
of the plans. But some in his party question the need for anothdr cinema | :43:37. | :43:42. | |
and more restaurants. The ruling Labour group on the City Cotncil | :43:43. | :43:43. | |
and more restaurants. The rtling Labour group on the City Council say | :43:44. | :43:45. | |
the relocation of the bus station could bring much`needed invdstment | :43:46. | :43:46. | |
could bring much`needed investment into the west end of the city. This | :43:47. | :43:51. | |
part of the town has been struggling in recent times. They estimate the | :43:52. | :43:57. | |
in recent times. They estim`te the relocation will bring around 200,000 | :43:58. | :44:01. | |
visitors to this area. The Liberal Democrats don't have any councillors | :44:02. | :44:02. | |
in Plymouth at the moment btt Democrats don't have any cotncillors | :44:03. | :44:03. | |
in Plymouth at the moment but they in Plymouth at the moment btt they | :44:04. | :44:05. | |
still have ideas about what needs to happen. Pulling all that down, | :44:06. | :44:13. | |
completely redeveloping the whole of the western approach so that you | :44:14. | :44:15. | |
have a broad highway that nded have a broad highway that need | :44:16. | :44:21. | |
something special for it. So that this part of the city is as | :44:22. | :44:24. | |
attractive to everybody as the East End of the city. The elections are | :44:25. | :44:27. | |
unlikely to affect the redevelopment proposals, although the | :44:28. | :44:29. | |
Conservatives have some criticisms they are properly supported. | :44:30. | :44:38. | |
``broadly supportive. And even if they did oppose them they would need | :44:39. | :44:42. | |
to make huge gains to overcome Labour's majority of eight | :44:43. | :44:44. | |
councillors and wind control of the city council. | :44:45. | :44:46. | |
There are three other candidates standing in that ward. Andy Dale | :44:47. | :44:49. | |
represents the Green Part, Roy Kettle is the candidate for UKIP, | :44:50. | :44:50. | |
and Paddy Ryan for the Tradd and Paddy Ryan for the Trade | :44:51. | :44:53. | |
Unionists and Socialists Ag`inst Cuts. | :44:54. | :44:59. | |
And to discuss this we're joined by Lib Dem councillor Keith Baldry | :45:00. | :45:02. | |
Welcome to the programme. Thank you. Before we come to you, I am going to | :45:03. | :45:08. | |
start this discussion with @lison. We had a Conservative candidate in | :45:09. | :45:11. | |
the film there who said that if the Tories were in charge in Plymouth he | :45:12. | :45:15. | |
would have a John Lewis and an IKEA now in Plymouth. What do yot | :45:16. | :45:16. | |
would have a John Lewis and an IKEA now in Plymouth. What do you think | :45:17. | :45:17. | |
now in Plymouth. What do yot think of that? The Labour council have | :45:18. | :45:19. | |
done brilliantly well. The Bretonside development as proposed | :45:20. | :45:21. | |
brings multi`million pound development into the city, `n IMAX | :45:22. | :45:22. | |
development into the city, an IMAX cinema, one of only eight in the | :45:23. | :45:31. | |
country. The nearest is in Cardiff. You're bringing 200,000 people and | :45:32. | :45:32. | |
passengers in on the new coaches passengers in on the new coaches | :45:33. | :45:35. | |
directly into the heart of the retail and that is hugely important | :45:36. | :45:38. | |
in terms of improving retail sales, but more importantly we are moving | :45:39. | :45:41. | |
towards looking more like M`nchester are Liverpool, for you have the old | :45:42. | :45:43. | |
city centre models gone, you are Liverpool, for you have the old | :45:44. | :45:44. | |
city centre models gone, you have leisure, commerce, housing `s well | :45:45. | :45:47. | |
as retail. You've never been tempted to shop in Exeter? No, I haven't, | :45:48. | :45:53. | |
actually. I genuinely haven't shopped in Exeter. Plymouth has .. | :45:54. | :45:59. | |
Exeter is doing well, that's great for Exeter, it's half the size | :46:00. | :46:01. | |
Exeter is doing well, that's great for Exeter, it's half the shze of | :46:02. | :46:01. | |
for Exeter, it's half the size of Plymouth. We are the economhc driver | :46:02. | :46:03. | |
Plymouth. We are the economic driver in the region and I believe that | :46:04. | :46:06. | |
John Lewis, who are slowly loving their interests down the peninsula, | :46:07. | :46:09. | |
I'm sure there are already looking at Plymouth. Next hotspot. Indeed. | :46:10. | :46:14. | |
at Plymouth. Next hotspot. Hndeed. Is Alison right here, Labour are | :46:15. | :46:17. | |
doing well, they're rejuven`ting Plymouth, we don't need the Tories | :46:18. | :46:26. | |
to take control? I think it's a case of who is running the country and | :46:27. | :46:29. | |
the overall economics and it's great to see the economy picking tp, | :46:30. | :46:32. | |
especially here in the West Country, and I'm especially keen to see | :46:33. | :46:35. | |
Plymouth grow and Exeter grow. It's not a case of one or the other and I | :46:36. | :46:40. | |
think they have to be combined and I think that if we can bring a | :46:41. | :46:42. | |
think they have to be combined and I think that if we can bring ` John | :46:43. | :46:44. | |
Lewis, an IKEA in here, it would be great. I think they will come here. | :46:45. | :46:50. | |
great. I think they will cole here. It is a combination of not only how | :46:51. | :46:54. | |
city councils are run but how the County of Devon is run. Your | :46:55. | :46:57. | |
colleague has not been making grand claims? Hopefully he can | :46:58. | :46:59. | |
substantiate those claims. Without him here I cannot comment. Obviously | :47:00. | :47:02. | |
he thinks he can. Keith, have the Lib Dems given up on Plymouth? You | :47:03. | :47:06. | |
are fielding for candidates only in this election, aren't you? Xes, | :47:07. | :47:07. | |
are fielding for candidates only in this election, aren't you? Yes, but | :47:08. | :47:07. | |
this election, aren't you? Xes, but we're fielding for high`quality | :47:08. | :47:10. | |
candidates. All parties find it difficult to find candidates. We've | :47:11. | :47:16. | |
seen with some parties what happens when you select some, shall we say, | :47:17. | :47:19. | |
less able candidates and we had gaffes from some parties, all | :47:20. | :47:24. | |
parties. We took a decision in Plymouth that we would get far | :47:25. | :47:27. | |
higher quality people who could slot straighteners high`quality | :47:28. | :47:37. | |
councillors. We have just hdard .. You've not had a presence on the | :47:38. | :47:41. | |
council for nearly a decade. This is your new strategy? Slim down the | :47:42. | :47:44. | |
number of candidates and make sure they are more electable? We don t | :47:45. | :47:45. | |
they are more electable? We don't kid ourselves were going to take | :47:46. | :47:48. | |
control, but to have for high`quality candidates that could | :47:49. | :47:50. | |
become councillors would be a great stepping stone. We've just seen an | :47:51. | :47:52. | |
example of the candidate th`t has example of the candidate th`t has | :47:53. | :47:55. | |
got enormously exulted views of what backbench Conservative councillor | :47:56. | :47:57. | |
can do. Let's be realistic. We want councillors that are on there that | :47:58. | :47:59. | |
will fight for Plymouth in a will fight for Plymouth in ` | :48:00. | :48:00. | |
realistic way. Are you worried will fight for Plymouth in a | :48:01. | :48:02. | |
realistic way. Are you worrhed you realistic way. Are you worried you | :48:03. | :48:02. | |
will lose votes to Labour? H'm realistic way. Are you worrhed you | :48:03. | :48:04. | |
will lose votes to Labour? I'm not will lose votes to Labour? H'm not | :48:05. | :48:05. | |
worried about losing votes hn any direction. We're probably just | :48:06. | :48:09. | |
worried about losing votes in any direction. We're probably jtst as | :48:10. | :48:09. | |
direction. We're probably just as likely to lose votes to UKIP as we | :48:10. | :48:11. | |
are to the Conservatives. T`lking likely to lose votes to UKIP as we | :48:12. | :48:12. | |
are to the Conservatives. Talking of are to the Conservatives. Talking of | :48:13. | :48:14. | |
losing votes to UKIP, Neil, how worried are you? Hugo Swire has | :48:15. | :48:17. | |
already said that he is very concerned down in south`west. Bound | :48:18. | :48:25. | |
to be concerned, but UKIP is picking up votes from all parties because | :48:26. | :48:26. | |
to be concerned, but UKIP is picking up votes from all parties bdcause it | :48:27. | :48:26. | |
is protest votes they are picking up is protest votes they are picking up | :48:27. | :48:30. | |
and it clearly comes to these elections, who is actually going to | :48:31. | :48:31. | |
deliver referendum on Europd, that deliver referendum on Europe, that | :48:32. | :48:39. | |
is the Conservative Party. We are naturally concerned, concerned | :48:40. | :48:42. | |
whenever we lose votes, but from then Liberal Democrats point of view | :48:43. | :48:49. | |
in Plymouth, when it comes to the percentage of vote that you then | :48:50. | :48:52. | |
actually achieve in Plymouth, it will be much lower. It is a good | :48:53. | :48:58. | |
idea to field as many candidates as possible. Parties do generally known | :48:59. | :49:12. | |
I that the local elections will be a better guide than European dlections | :49:13. | :49:14. | |
better guide than European elections in terms of how general elections | :49:15. | :49:20. | |
will pan out. Labour has to do well. We would hope to pick up se`ts in | :49:21. | :49:23. | |
We would hope to pick up seats in elections across the south`west | :49:24. | :49:28. | |
but, to come back to your point about UKIP, and where voter coming | :49:29. | :49:32. | |
from for them, what we're phcking up from for them, what we're picking up | :49:33. | :49:39. | |
now is that people who were previously saying they were going to | :49:40. | :49:40. | |
vote UKIP, now they are acttally vote UKIP, now they are actually | :49:41. | :49:45. | |
saying that we were thinking about 14 UKIP, as more of their policies | :49:46. | :49:51. | |
are coming out, people are beginning to ask questions. It is time | :49:52. | :49:53. | |
are coming out, people are beginning to ask questions. It is timd to | :49:54. | :49:53. | |
are coming out, people are beginning to ask questions. It is time to move | :49:54. | :49:57. | |
on. Thank you very much for joining us. It is time for our regular | :49:58. | :50:01. | |
round`up of the political week in 60 round`up of the political wdek in 60 | :50:02. | :50:07. | |
seconds. There were claims a hospital in | :50:08. | :50:09. | |
Cornwall might have to closd There were claims a hospital in | :50:10. | :50:11. | |
Cornwall might have to closd because of a long`term health funding | :50:12. | :50:16. | |
shortfall in the county. As a result of underfunding it has left a legacy | :50:17. | :50:20. | |
of ?220 million which the government has not given us which we deserve. | :50:21. | :50:23. | |
has not given us which we ddserve. Concern about the security of the | :50:24. | :50:28. | |
deal to build a new nuclear reactor at Hinkley Point after warnhngs that | :50:29. | :50:31. | |
the contract could violate European the contract could violate European | :50:32. | :50:40. | |
rules on state subsidies. It has to be put forward with fracking relates | :50:41. | :50:48. | |
will go out in the near future. I have about ?50 million worth of | :50:49. | :50:54. | |
maintenance backlog, I am ndver going to achieve it. A woman refuses | :50:55. | :50:59. | |
to pay her council fine and feeding seagulls. `` fine after feeding | :51:00. | :51:14. | |
seagulls. Alison, let us look at this issue of | :51:15. | :51:18. | |
feeding seagulls. It is interesting. The only way that the counchl could | :51:19. | :51:23. | |
find this woman was for littering when she was feeding these seagulls. | :51:24. | :51:27. | |
What do you think about it? Should it be allowed? Councils need to make | :51:28. | :51:30. | |
sure they have the appropriate sure they have the appropri`te | :51:31. | :51:35. | |
bylaws in place. Seagulls have bylaws in place. Seagulls have | :51:36. | :51:37. | |
voracious appetites and thex will voracious appetites and they will | :51:38. | :51:41. | |
eat almost anything. They frighten off other smaller birds that we want | :51:42. | :51:42. | |
to see in our towns and cities. off other smaller birds that we want | :51:43. | :51:44. | |
to see in our towns and cithes. I to see in our towns and cithes. I | :51:45. | :51:44. | |
have evidence of people here have have evidence of people here have | :51:45. | :51:49. | |
regularly fed smaller birds through winter but the seagulls come along | :51:50. | :51:50. | |
winter but the seagulls comd along and those smaller birds are no | :51:51. | :52:00. | |
longer present. Is she right? I think so. We have to be careful we | :52:01. | :52:02. | |
think so. We have to be cardful we do not become Big Brother, I accept | :52:03. | :52:04. | |
do not become Big Brother, H accept that. But if you feed seagulls, | :52:05. | :52:10. | |
especially in the city, then they will come. We had a photograph | :52:11. | :52:12. | |
especially in the city, then they will come. We had a photogr`ph taken | :52:13. | :52:14. | |
one day and we put some fish and chips on top of all waste bhn and | :52:15. | :52:16. | |
chips on top of all waste bin and down came the seagulls, thex | :52:17. | :52:23. | |
immediately had the fish and off it went. If you feed them more then | :52:24. | :52:24. | |
they will come back for mord. We they will come back for mord. We | :52:25. | :52:26. | |
have to be careful. I was have to be have to be careful. I was have to be | :52:27. | :52:31. | |
got right and I think that the small birds are the ones that we should | :52:32. | :52:33. | |
concentrate on. Seagulls are birds are the ones that we should | :52:34. | :52:35. | |
concentrate on. Seagulls ard not birds are the ones that we should | :52:36. | :52:35. | |
concentrate on. Seagulls are not in concentrate on. Seagulls are not in | :52:36. | :52:37. | |
Endangered Species Act. Maybe we should organise a call? `` seagulls | :52:38. | :52:48. | |
are not an endangered species. Sometimes there are too manx | :52:49. | :52:49. | |
are not an endangered specids. Sometimes there are too many of | :52:50. | :52:49. | |
Sometimes there are too manx of them. We have to be careful about | :52:50. | :52:55. | |
feeding them, we really do. I am going to stop you there, that | :52:56. | :53:00. | |
feeding them, we really do. I am going to stop you there, th`t is the | :53:01. | :53:00. | |
going to stop you there, that is the Sunday Politics in the north`west. I | :53:01. | :53:02. | |
will hand the website now. Now it is back to | :53:03. | :53:04. | |
you, Andrew. Welcome back, let's go straight to | :53:05. | :53:23. | |
our panel. What did you make of Mr Alexander's defence of the Labour | :53:24. | :53:27. | |
party election broadcast? It is difficult for them because they | :53:28. | :53:30. | |
started by saying they were not going to do negative campaigning and | :53:31. | :53:34. | |
they have thrown that away for an advert which is funny but crude in | :53:35. | :53:42. | |
the class war sense. He didn't look thrilled to be defending it. There | :53:43. | :53:49. | |
is a page in Tony Blair's memoirs talking about negative campaigning, | :53:50. | :53:53. | |
and he says that anything too extreme turns off the average voter | :53:54. | :53:58. | |
so his line of attack on Hague was funny jokes but... I think this | :53:59. | :54:10. | |
failed the Blair test, it was too vicious. If your strategy is to | :54:11. | :54:17. | |
shore up your car vote, that advert was genius. If your strategy is to | :54:18. | :54:21. | |
reach out to a broader number of voters, Middle Britain, then that | :54:22. | :54:26. | |
advert was a complete disaster. It looks like there is a lot of | :54:27. | :54:30. | |
negativity and smears all round in the next year. That definitely looks | :54:31. | :54:42. | |
the way we are going. They will be essentially trying to re-run by -- | :54:43. | :55:01. | |
the American election. I am slightly puzzled why we cannot have our own | :55:02. | :55:06. | |
election gurus who live here and understand the country. I should | :55:07. | :55:11. | |
point out that the ?450 extra VAT that was claimed in that Labour | :55:12. | :55:16. | |
poster, both Ed Balls and the Labour Treasury team have said that is ?450 | :55:17. | :55:23. | |
per year. Nonsense the VAT rise, one year. I should also point out that | :55:24. | :55:29. | |
Nigel Farage said to Norman Smith, the BBC is always reliable Norman | :55:30. | :55:36. | |
Smith that if you run in Newark and lost the bubble would burst. I | :55:37. | :55:40. | |
should also point out that although a number of the tax rises I | :55:41. | :55:45. | |
mentioned on council tax, minimum wage tax and some other things that | :55:46. | :55:50. | |
UKIP wants to cuts, a couple of these are in the local manifesto but | :55:51. | :55:56. | |
several are not. They are on the UKIP website, which is still current | :55:57. | :56:03. | |
and dated 2014. We like to make sure we are absolutely right. Let's talk | :56:04. | :56:08. | |
about Nick Clegg and Michael Gove and the latest spat. Let me show you | :56:09. | :56:13. | |
this headline in the Observer this morning. From both the Independent, | :56:14. | :56:22. | |
he called him a zealot, lunatic is of -- another word. Do we take this | :56:23. | :56:33. | |
seriously? It hinges on this question of what counts as an area | :56:34. | :56:39. | |
of need in education. The Lib Dems say an area of need is one where | :56:40. | :56:42. | |
there are not enough school places to meet local demand. He says it can | :56:43. | :56:47. | |
also be a place where there are surplus places but that is for a | :56:48. | :56:51. | |
reason. Local places don't trust those schools to do a good job for | :56:52. | :57:04. | |
their kids. It surprises me because there isn't a yawning distance | :57:05. | :57:09. | |
between David Laws and Michael Gove. David Laws has found himself between | :57:10. | :57:14. | |
a rock and a hard place because I asked -- as I understand it most Lib | :57:15. | :57:18. | |
Dems don't like the free schools but Mr laws was quite sympathetic to it | :57:19. | :57:22. | |
and he is now having to this respect it. When they asked people who are | :57:23. | :57:29. | |
the most hated politicians in a poll were this week, Michael Gove is off | :57:30. | :57:34. | |
the charts, far above David Cameron or George Osborne. This is | :57:35. | :57:48. | |
tit-for-tat war. The Liberal Democrats believe Michael Gove had a | :57:49. | :57:51. | |
hand in leaking the document that showed Nick Clegg was opposing the | :57:52. | :57:56. | |
tougher Chris Grayling position on knife crime. They are saying there | :57:57. | :58:00. | |
were Cabinet ministers who never usually attend the sub Cabinet | :58:01. | :58:05. | |
meeting, they turned up and the document is leaked so what we are | :58:06. | :58:09. | |
getting is tit for tat on that. It is inevitable but it is not good for | :58:10. | :58:14. | |
either side of the Coalition. Voters will look at it and say it is | :58:15. | :58:20. | |
politics of the playground. I read in the Mail on Sunday this morning | :58:21. | :58:31. | |
that some Tory insiders are accusing Lib Dems of spreading rumours about | :58:32. | :58:36. | |
the camera in marriage. The rebuttals of education story is that | :58:37. | :58:43. | |
the free school meals is sucking money away. I always thought they | :58:44. | :58:52. | |
would work together without fuss and yet it has been more the source of | :58:53. | :58:58. | |
disagreement then I would have expected a couple of years ago. Is | :58:59. | :59:04. | |
it serious? It is serious obviously, using that language, but is it fatal | :59:05. | :59:11. | |
for the Coalition? I think it is a road bump because I don't think | :59:12. | :59:14. | |
anybody wants to dissolve the Coalition. It is a challenge for | :59:15. | :59:18. | |
Labour because where do they stand on the free schools? They invented | :59:19. | :59:22. | |
the Academy programme so it is difficult for them to take a | :59:23. | :59:26. | |
hands-off approach at this stage. There was a danger for Michael Gove | :59:27. | :59:30. | |
that he looks ideological but the danger for the Liberal Democrats is | :59:31. | :59:33. | |
that they are breaking the rules for the Coalition they said that they | :59:34. | :59:37. | |
wouldn't break which is that they looked like opposition in | :59:38. | :59:43. | |
government. Is Michael Gove's position safe? Very safe. If he | :59:44. | :59:50. | |
moves in a reshuffle that will be to a a job. That's all for today. The | :59:51. | :59:56. | |
Daily Politics will be back on BBC Two at lunchtime from Tuesday | :59:57. | :59:59. | |
onwards. I'll be back here on BBC One at 11am next week. Remember if | :00:00. | :00:02. | |
it's Sunday, it's the Sunday Politics. | :00:03. | :00:50. | |
What if the person that killed her... | :00:51. | :00:52. | |
I found out she'd been taking drugs. Just let me explain. | :00:53. | :00:56. | |
You wasn't at that party all night. Yeah, I was. | :00:57. | :00:59. | |
What was she even doing there? Oi, you keep your mouth shut. | :01:00. | :01:01. | |
She was exchanging a significant number of texts and calls | :01:02. | :01:04. | |
with someone in the weeks leading up to her death. | :01:05. | :01:07. | |
It's like we didn't really know her at all. | :01:08. | :01:13. | |
You never know what goes on behind closed doors. | :01:14. | :01:17. |