09/12/2012 Sunday Politics South


09/12/2012

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Sunday Politics in the South... More money for motorways and high-

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speed broadband. But will anything in the Autumn Statement gets the

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Apology for the loss of subtitles for 2125 seconds

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Welcome to Sunday Politics South. My name is Peter Henley. Coming up

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in the next 20 minutes... It is 40 years in January since we joined

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the Common Market, but Europe is as contentious with the region's

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voters and politicians as it ever was. We will be hearing from some

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of our MEPs about where we go next. More on that later. I am joined by

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the Conservative MP for Winchester and John Denham, Labour MP in

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Southampton. The big story was the Autumn Statement and we had

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handouts specific for this region like money to improve the M3

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motorway and super-fast broadband in Portsmouth and Oxford. The

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Chancellor said it was enough to get the economy -- economy growing

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again. In two years the economy is a small now as it was then and it

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is going to shrink. We have borrowed more money than two years

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ago. We have got less money to spend on public services. We have

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had wasted years. What about the global economy? We have got global

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factors but they are cutting too hard and too fast and everything

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has grounds to lay hold. Countries like Germany, France and America

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have had a higher grades weight because they have had a more

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balanced approach. -- growth wait - - rate. It has taken tough measures

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and it has saved about �6.5 billion. What they have decided he did is in

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debt �5 billion in schools, roads and infrastructure. It is a bit

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which sometimes for the Labour Party to complain. It is like

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coming to a party and trashing the place and knocking down the

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Christmas tree and complaining it is not shipshape the next morning.

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You have got cross -- you have got a situation where you promised to

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clear it up. The economy had a cardiac arrest in 2009. It will

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take time. We have not got any easy ways to pay down the deficit.

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are no easy ways to deal with the consequences of the global banking

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crisis. But you were confident 2.5 years ago that things would improve.

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In other countries, it has done. You have taken the wrong decisions.

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Some money is being put back into schools. But they cut the building

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schools for the future programme. It was going to build schools

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across the South. It would have been better to spend that money Ban

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and have people working building them. Having money in the building

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industry coming back into the economy and that we would have at

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all taxes. It would have had the same effect with debt. Mistakes

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like that have been damaging. if we talk about jobs, we are

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creating 1.2 million jobs in the private sector. We have put a great

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big sign up saying that Britain is open for business. We have got the

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lowest corporation tax in DG 20. 21 %. 1.2 million jobs in the economy

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since we took over. A good sign we are heading in the right direction.

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It will take a long time. We can talk to the Chamber of Commerce. Do

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you think things are moving and what about when it seemed to be

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stalling? Acts are we still having to work out a new system?

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debate as to where his problems started will be running for a long

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time. From a business point of view, we had a situation where the debt

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was just so massive. Frankly it had to be reduced. And confidence was

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restored starting down that road. But are we getting back quickly

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enough? It reflected the reality that getting out of this mess will

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take longer than thought. We can blame everybody else but we have

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got world problems. The Chinese economy is slowing down. We know

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about the Eurozone. This country has got the will power to get out

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of this mess. The Autumn Statement restored some confidence in

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business. Their path Some Things We wish had been included that have

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not been. -- there are some things we wish had been included. The

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banks are struggling to lend money for reasons we all understand. That

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is one problem. We have got a commitment to review the assessment

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regulations. I think these regulations were designed to

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protect and they have actually hindered. They have slowed down

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development. The promise of regulation and getting rid of red

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tape, we have had that before and that must be delivered. Some of

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them are almost political points. You are talking about red tape

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strangling business. But can we afford to make these changes at a

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time when it you just want investment and growth? Getting rid

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of regional development agencies and local enterprise partnerships,

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we have got a period of getting used to new systems. Is that

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slowing things down? I think that is one of the best things this

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government did. We have got local enterprise partnerships in this

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constituency which are quite different but there are making real

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changes. -- Bay are. -- they are. In the regional growth fund, we had

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some money for the M3 motorway. But not a single bit of work has

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started on the 18 major road schemes announced. Money is not

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getting through. And that is frustrating. I think that this is a

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bottom up way of doing it. I have to admit to being a little bit

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confused when I first came in as to whether or not the Government would

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back them and what they would be about. But I have been really

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impressed. I was impressed with the approach being taken. I am guessing

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almost �400,000 spent on junction 9 of the M3 motorway because it has

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been placed as a priority. These are projects that are needed and

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will get underway shortly and will be welcome. The problem is that you

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could have gone too localised development agencies. We have had

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to 0.5 years in which nothing has happened in some areas and they

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have not had resources. -- 2.5. It is a long way off. We have got the

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road at the bottom of the docks in Southampton. I have not seen any

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work in sight. Everything is taking too long. We want to see investment.

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A lot of talk has been about investment and energy policy but

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people will not invest because they do not know what the policies will

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be. The potential is up in the air. We need long-term certainty on some

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big projects and enough demand in the economy and then unless we get

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that I think we will be stuttering. Many people watching can expect

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living standards to fall again every year for the next five years.

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Can I ask Jimmy about the Autumn Statement? One of the things that

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slows down infrastructure projects is the enormous application process.

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And the amount of assessment. I think it is a real problem. And as

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far as the ideas were concerned, change is fundamental. The idea of

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bureaucracy controls, these ideas are business lead and controlled.

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We have mentioned business people in the region. We have got top

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businessmen are leading these projects. More than anything else,

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people want a bit of certainty and confidence in government. A we are

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not going to keep changing tack about borrowing more money. A we

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have had nothing but uncertainty into 0.5 years and have not make

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progress. -- in 2.5 years. Now, the three recent parliamentary by

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elections were the most successful ever for the UK Independence Party,

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soundly beating the Lib Dems - and in two of them coming second ahead

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of the Conservatives. Cue talk of electoral pacts and rumours that

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some Conservative Mps have been keen to come to some arrangement -

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which is what I started off asking party leader Nigel Farage when I

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caught up with him in Brussels this week. The by-election has done us

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no harm in terms of standing but it has held at branch level. A lot of

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Conservative Associations would like some kind of arrangement

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because particularly in the South of England it is thriving. We are

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taking votes in the north as well as Conservative votes. A lot of

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people are desperate for a deal otherwise they are afraid that our

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strength means they will lose seats. And if we had by election and we

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have got possibilities, what would your prick the? Would it be

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different from the North? -- your approach be? I am not worried about

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standing down other candidates. I am pushing ahead with the UKIP

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brand. Would Conservative opposition be stronger with a deal?

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We have not had a by-election in the South for a long time and we

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have not had a by-election since UKIP were regarded as a party that

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could do well not just in Europe but domestically. We have got a

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chance of a couple of seats in Hampshire and we might get a by-

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election next year. If these elections happen we will be there.

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And will you be the candidate? not know. We have got a lot of

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speculation but I think it unlikely. Why? I am a national leader of UKIP.

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I want to take his party through to local elections next year which we

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are taking seriously. We have got European elections in 2014. I have

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got a lot to do at the moment. possibility of being UKIP's first

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MP, that is not something that you would turn down, is it? I would

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give it serious thought but we do not know if we are going to get a

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by-election but if we do I will consider it. A would you not be

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letting down your own party? If I stood in a by-election and was

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successful, it would be very difficult during that period to

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lead the party effectively cost up and certainly here, there would be

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--. And certainly here are a lot of people would be asking questions.

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think UKIP have taken a lot of protest votes. They are picking up

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some of that. We have got issues about Europe. But the mainstream

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position I represent is that we are better off in a Europe but I will

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not take everything Brussels is throwing at us. It is a threat for

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Conservatives in the South of England? It is always a correct and

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it is a threat to the Labour Party in the north. I do not think he is

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a one-man band and he is entitled to his view. It is not easy to vote

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against your government and I did that for the first time in my first

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year on the subject of Europe. That was about asking the people of this

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country about our relationship with the European Union. When the

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project began 40 years ago I was not quite warm. But I was two years

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old but lost a we asked a question about Europe. -- quite warm. --

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quite alive. You are both taking UKIP seriously. We should develop

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that idea. Can you remember where Well, to refresh your memory, you

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had just become a member of the Common Market - you had entered

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Europe. Hard to believe it has been 40 years - and maybe today it is

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harder than ever to imagine it Not the most spectacular firework

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display to greet the brave new dawn of Britain in Europe. But it was

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1973 and not everybody was a fan of Prime Minister Ted Heath, who got

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us in the club in the first place. That ambivalence in the

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relationship has been a defining feature in 40 years. So much so we

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have got an in or out referendum. Sound familiar? Back in 1975.

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Margaret Thatcher campaigned to stay in and senior Labour figures

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campaigns to get out. The campaign started in 1957 without ask. Six

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founding members. That was nine when we joined in 1973. 12 by 1986

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and then expanded in 2004, went any Eastern European countries join.

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Today, 27 countries and almost 500 million citizens. And what a

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difference 40 years makes. This is the European Parliament's visitor

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centre in Brussels. A chance for the parliament to explain to the

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voters what it is doing. A mere 20 million euros to you. They have

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elected members for the past 30 years. But plenty of people would

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struggle to name their MEP or tell you what they are doing or even

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what Europe has ever done for us. The political union has got to be

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the one that has been the biggest benefit. Europe has not had any

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major conflict. Countries had been at war with each other. If we look

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at the protection measures in terms of environmental protection, the

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air quality directed, clean water, alongside the food and consumer

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protection, these are all European achievements. This is what Europe

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is good at. These are the original buildings in Luxembourg. Much of it

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has moved to Brussels where the council of ministers meet with the

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European Commission and members of the European Parliament. But they

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also have to go to Strasbourg in France and that is more

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controversial. What else it has been, the European Union has been

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good to architects. This parliament building in Strasbourg is 13 years

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old and cost 470 million euros. It is used for just 48 days of the

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year. The cost of the European project is one of the days doing --

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things that has annoyed critics in the past 40 years. We have got too

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much of Europe interfering in Britain. We must find our feet in

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our own circumstances with our relationships right across the

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world. Britain is unlike any other European country. We are a club or

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country. We are a global power with a global language. We can make

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connections with 200 billion people. Not 500 million people. We are a

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different sort of country. We have a different future. The European

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Parliament represents the second biggest electorate in the world

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after India. But with turnout falling in every election, how

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democratic is it? I have got more enthusiasm for the European idea

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but I recognise this is something that will develop. It will develop

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as we work with partners. Well, not quite. Scepticism has risen

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steadily and is higher than ever. We have got such an unbalanced

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debate on this side of the European Union about the role of UKIP. Many

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people would think that the European Union is an intellectual

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discussion but it is not. It is very practical. We are part of a

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big economy. We do 60 % of trade with members. Thousands of

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companies do business in the European Union. About 3.5 million

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people benefit in terms of jobs because they are involved in the

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European Union. It started as a common market and it is still the

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economic impact that is looming largest for friends and foes in

:55:29.:55:39.
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Europe alike. It really has not get away. Where are things going?

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look back to the European project after the war, who could doubt that

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was a good thing and that it brought peace in Europe? It was

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supposed to bring that forever more. When I look at Greece when Angela

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Merkel visited and all of the Troubles in Europe, it was

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thoroughly predictable. I wonder if people see these original ideals

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and see them falling apart. I am sceptical but I am not wide-eyed

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and mad about it. It is time we asked people again. Anybody under

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the age of 55 has not had a chance. When I am told that I am a little

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Englander, I could not reject that more. I am not that all a little

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European. Brazil has got a bigger economy than us. We should be

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global. We are a trading nation and we should at bigger ambitions than

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Europe. He is a younger generation and missed the original decision.

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But big things that happened in your lifetime. When the Iron

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Curtain came down, it was not all the as Poland would become a

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democracy that we could trade with and we did not go to war with and

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it did not become corrupt. It is that vision of bringing Europe

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together. We have got economic difficulties. The Eurozone has been

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disastrous compared to what the bounders fought -- founders thought.

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We would be better to be engaged actively in putting right the

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things that have gone wrong in Europe instead of saying we should

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be outside. We are running out of time but thank you. And we will

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have another report on our 40th European birthday in next week's

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programme - looking at the single market. Now our regular round-up of

:57:37.:57:47.
:57:47.:57:49.

the political week in the South in They are printing money in Sussex.

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These will be cashed in after Christmas to give local shops a

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boost. Perhaps they are thinking about all of the cards they have

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got it right. The Prime Minister had a stumbling start to Prime

:58:01.:58:07.

Minister's Questions. In a disused to duties in my house... Under fire

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on defence issues. The future of shipbuilding in Portsmouth is

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proving controversial. Vince Cable was sent south but offered little

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reassurance. We do not have the ability to build ships and if that

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is right we are staff. -- in trouble. We have not yet come to a

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decision. Campaigners are saying that this would be worth �30

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million to the local economy. But if you would prefer something

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warmer, Gatwick bosses want your business. They have said that they

:58:45.:58:52.

rail links are ripe for expansion. We had started talking about

:58:52.:58:55.

infrastructure in the Autumn Statement. In some ways, broadband

:58:55.:59:01.

is more important than the roads, isn't it? Portsmouth is very

:59:01.:59:06.

pleased. Winchester is pretty well connected but some rural areas in

:59:06.:59:09.

my constituency, certainly up in the North have got that coverage

:59:09.:59:15.

and we must do much better on that. We are a couple of years behind the

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broadband programme that was in place at the last election. The

:59:18.:59:21.

Government came in and changed it and it hasn't happened. They are

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struggling to catch up. You changed the programme that he already had

:59:29.:59:35.

in place quite unnecessarily. has cost time and held back growth.

:59:35.:59:40.

Too many things like that have happened. And on the video games

:59:40.:59:44.

decision as well. It all comes back to Europe in the end. That is where

:59:44.:59:47.

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