:01:38. > :01:41.And in the Midlands, what price philanthropy. As donations to the
:01:41. > :01:51.arts for by a quarter. Said Doug Ellis tells us about the
:01:51. > :01:51.
:01:51. > :31:18.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 1767 seconds
:31:18. > :31:23.Welcome welcome to the Sunday Politics in the Midlands.
:31:23. > :31:26.Coming up, a sharp fall in donations to the arts. If poor will
:31:26. > :31:30.pick up the mantle of this great Midlands philanthropists of the
:31:30. > :31:34.past? First, let us meet our Mac guests,
:31:34. > :31:39.the new Conservative MP for the West Midlands, Anthea McIntyre,
:31:39. > :31:44.under Labour MP for Wolverhampton South East, Pat McFadden.
:31:44. > :31:47.Unemployment up again, nearly a quarter of a million Midlanders.
:31:47. > :31:52.How can Labour say that you would do anything differently for them
:31:52. > :31:57.given that you would not know reverse the spending cuts? It is
:31:57. > :32:01.really worrying. Unemployment is at a 17 year high. It is even more
:32:01. > :32:06.worrying among young people, where one in five are looking for work.
:32:06. > :32:10.My own constituency has a worse problem than average.
:32:10. > :32:15.But you have muddled your message by saying you would not reverse the
:32:15. > :32:21.cuts, but in many ways are driving these figures? The we are in an era
:32:21. > :32:25.of less money. We fought the election campaign, on having the
:32:25. > :32:28.deficit of four years, and I have always said, had Labour won the
:32:28. > :32:33.election there would be a lot of tough decisions. But that does not
:32:33. > :32:37.mean we agree with the pace and scale of the deficit Reaction
:32:37. > :32:41.propos de -- double -- reduction programme. If we do not agree with
:32:41. > :32:47.abolishing the future jobs fund. What it does mean is, in three
:32:47. > :32:51.years' time, we are going to have to take the situation as we find it.
:32:51. > :32:55.Anthea, not on the is there evidence your policies are working,
:32:55. > :33:00.there is evidence that they are not. The most important thing is to
:33:00. > :33:05.recognise that the way to get employment to increase is actually
:33:05. > :33:08.through stimulating small businesses to grow, and to get to
:33:09. > :33:12.the private sector to mop up the unemployment figures that we are
:33:12. > :33:16.seeing inevitably from the cutbacks in Government spending. So it is
:33:16. > :33:20.important to come up with the incentives that make employers in
:33:20. > :33:26.the West Midlands want to take on people. Let us now get to grips
:33:26. > :33:29.with our tops story, the increase in serious untoward incidents at
:33:29. > :33:34.Stafford Hospital. It is already the subject of two public inquiries
:33:35. > :33:39.into failing standards of care. In another development, the reopening
:33:39. > :33:46.of of a night A&E, originally planned for March, will almost
:33:46. > :33:49.certainly be delayed. Our health correspondent, Anthea McIntyre.
:33:49. > :33:54.Appalling standards of care at Stafford Hospital were confirmed in
:33:54. > :33:58.2009, but despite a focus on quality, a number of serious
:33:58. > :34:02.incidents continued to rise. Although this may in part be back -
:34:02. > :34:10.- down to better reporting. At a public meeting this week, but
:34:10. > :34:14.reasons were openly challenged. you look at the period 2009-2010,
:34:14. > :34:18.and the subsequent year, the numbers seem to have almost doubled.
:34:18. > :34:21.When accident and emergency at the hospital closed overnight, if
:34:21. > :34:25.patients' safety was the reason given. The trust was struggling to
:34:26. > :34:30.recruit key staff. Progress is now being made, but the reopening of
:34:30. > :34:35.A&E is likely to be delayed. What have we learned about the long-term
:34:35. > :34:38.future of A&E in Midlands hospitals? The nature of care that
:34:39. > :34:43.week the nature of care that we provide is changing. We need to
:34:43. > :34:46.make sure that we deliver care for patients out of hours, and that
:34:46. > :34:49.they can access it easily and get the advice they need. That they
:34:49. > :34:53.means that hospital care has to change.
:34:53. > :35:01.As the Labour Government fine when it closed Kidderminster Hospital's
:35:01. > :35:05.A&E, it is political suicide. The junior minister lost its seat. In
:35:05. > :35:11.opposition that intensive said they would stop the forced closure of
:35:11. > :35:17.A&E and maternity wards. Now they talk of urgent care centres. What
:35:17. > :35:23.do they mean? What it does mean is not a conventional although Mike
:35:23. > :35:27.A&E at every district hospital. Pat, New Cross Hospital in Wolverhampton
:35:27. > :35:31.in your city is one of the cities that is taking the strain of a
:35:31. > :35:35.night from Stafford, so you have a direct role in this.
:35:35. > :35:43.I think it is really sad to see Stafford Hospital running into
:35:43. > :35:47.trouble again. There have been to victims of what has happened there.
:35:47. > :35:50.Unnecessary deaths, was directly those who died and their families,
:35:50. > :35:54.but more directly I think the population in Stafford need to have
:35:54. > :35:59.trust and confidence in their local hospital, and with new figures
:35:59. > :36:04.coming out that are worrying, with problems in the A&E, I think there
:36:04. > :36:07.is an urgent task now for this hospital to rebuild its trust and
:36:07. > :36:11.confidence with the local population.
:36:11. > :36:15.And fear do you think that trust and confidence can be rebuilt?
:36:15. > :36:22.People are going to be concerned about what an urgent care centre
:36:22. > :36:29.means. Do they not expect overnight they need to mean just that?
:36:29. > :36:33.think everybody wants urgent care when they need it. A&E care.
:36:33. > :36:38.Yes, and I think the most important thing is to get to grips with
:36:38. > :36:41.management. I spent many years as a management consultant and I think
:36:42. > :36:46.poor performance nominee equates to poor management. I think we have to
:36:46. > :36:50.look very carefully at the governance of the hospital. There
:36:50. > :36:54.needs to be complete transparency. The public needs to feel that they
:36:54. > :36:57.can go in, see what is happening, if your relative is not receiving
:36:57. > :37:05.proper care you need to fear you can say something and not feel
:37:05. > :37:08.frightened by what the results may be. That is all-important. As I
:37:08. > :37:17.understand it there is a shortage of middle ranking emergency
:37:17. > :37:22.specialist doctors. There have been staff problems there, staff there
:37:22. > :37:25.were cut too much in the past, but I think we have to stand back and
:37:26. > :37:30.say there is no reason why a place the size of Stafford cannot have a
:37:30. > :37:36.good hospital, cannot have a A&E department, and cannot run a local
:37:36. > :37:40.health service that has the trust and confidence of local people.
:37:40. > :37:45.Michele Paduano made the point that political suicide is what is
:37:45. > :37:52.involved with hospital sometimes if they go badly. It did not go well
:37:52. > :37:58.for David Lock in why Forest, or David kidney in Stafford. This is
:37:58. > :38:02.really politically a very sensitive issue for all the main parties.
:38:02. > :38:10.obviously we have said that we will maintain funding for the NHS, and
:38:10. > :38:15.that is very important. Even though it is being fragmented. What people
:38:15. > :38:18.are worried about is getting the care they need when they need it.
:38:18. > :38:21.The Organisation to the individual is not that important - let us
:38:21. > :38:25.sorted in a way that we can see that we are getting the care we
:38:25. > :38:29.need, and that we can trust the clinicians to do their job, and
:38:29. > :38:33.management to allow them to do it. And to monitor and to measure what
:38:33. > :38:38.is happening, and ensure that we are increasingly getting good
:38:38. > :38:45.standards. So far the world has not caved in overnight using this new
:38:45. > :38:48.arrangement. When we left office at the general election, satisfaction
:38:48. > :38:53.levels with the general -- NHS were running at their highest ever
:38:53. > :38:57.recorded. A lot more staff had been recruited, but sadly what we had
:38:57. > :39:01.seen since then is waiting times going up, an increase of all the
:39:01. > :39:05.40% in the number of people waiting more than 18 weeks for treatment.
:39:05. > :39:09.And I think there must bring the NHS needs in the circumstances it
:39:09. > :39:15.is another huge reorganisation, which the Government seems
:39:15. > :39:19.determined to push through. Next up, a sharp fall in donations
:39:20. > :39:22.to the arts here in the Midlands is revealed in figures just out. The
:39:22. > :39:27.Treasury has since introduced policies to increase donations, but
:39:27. > :39:35.will we ever buy into the idea of philanthropy American-style? Those
:39:35. > :39:40.who do give have been talking to reporter two.
:39:40. > :39:46.He the Big Society - whether it is ideology or a way to plug gaps left
:39:46. > :39:50.by cuts, it means individuals doing and giving more. The Staffordshire
:39:50. > :39:56.Community Trust helps support good causes like this Riding Centre for
:39:56. > :40:01.the disabled near stock. It is convinced wealthy locals to donate
:40:01. > :40:04.�2.5 million in the last two years. This is very much the Big Society,
:40:04. > :40:11.but are you having to twist people's arms to persuade them that
:40:11. > :40:14.it is a good idea to give away money?
:40:14. > :40:22.Well thing people want to know that their hard earned money is going to
:40:22. > :40:25.be used in the right way. -- wealthy people. And that is where
:40:25. > :40:28.community foundations across the country really score highly.
:40:28. > :40:33.The Government wants it to become the norm for everyone to leave
:40:33. > :40:37.money to charity when they die, and in an effort to boost this Big
:40:37. > :40:42.Society idea, in the Budget the Chancellor announced a deal. Leave
:40:42. > :40:45.10% of your estate to good causes, and get a 10% discount on
:40:45. > :40:49.inheritance tax. But there is concern that whatever
:40:50. > :40:52.the encouragement, it will not be enough. The first ever survey of
:40:52. > :40:56.the arts industry showed a sharp decline in donations.
:40:56. > :41:01.Across England there was a drop of 11%, while the West Midlands or
:41:01. > :41:02.decrease of nearly a quarter. The report says the region has "some of
:41:02. > :41:08.the lowest contributions from business, trusts and foundations,
:41:08. > :41:13.and individual giving". Needing one MP to conclude, the
:41:13. > :41:16.rich need to do more. The poor give more of their money in terms of
:41:16. > :41:20.percentage income than the rich. And actually the middle classes and
:41:20. > :41:24.the rich needs to give more of their money.
:41:24. > :41:28.For Man therapy is nothing new. Men like Josiah Wedgwood and George
:41:28. > :41:33.Cadbury believed that with great wealth came great responsibility.
:41:33. > :41:36.So do today's super rich share their sense of duty? Former Aston
:41:36. > :41:43.Villa on a diet Ellis was knighted in the New Year Honours List for
:41:43. > :41:48.his charitable work. -- Dodd Ellis. I know what I know what it is to be
:41:48. > :41:54.humble, and poor, and if I can help poor people, I will do it.
:41:54. > :41:58.A lot more people would be involved in charity in some way or another.
:41:58. > :42:02.And there are so many causes that need money.
:42:02. > :42:08.The question some will be asking, is whether the Big Society will be
:42:08. > :42:16.big enough. Time for some of that responsible
:42:16. > :42:19.of popular capitalism, perhaps. Also with us here today, a
:42:19. > :42:22.representative from the Arts Council in the West Midlands. No
:42:22. > :42:27.surprise in the present times that donations are going down, but maybe
:42:27. > :42:36.the speed at which they have gone down in are part of the country?
:42:36. > :42:39.Those figures were over the three years up to 2009, 2010. But I think
:42:39. > :42:45.the figures are a fair reflection of the impact that the recession is
:42:45. > :42:48.having on the region, and also the creation of a very tough climate
:42:48. > :42:52.for arts organisations. They are looking to attract money from the
:42:52. > :42:57.private sector and from individuals. Is one of the worry is that if you
:42:57. > :43:02.look at the top end, the big organisations like the City of
:43:02. > :43:07.Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, they have got very sophisticated fund-
:43:07. > :43:13.raising operations - smaller, more community focused organisations may
:43:13. > :43:17.not have a so many sophisticated means? It is much harder for arts
:43:17. > :43:21.organisations in the region outside of London, and those that may be do
:43:21. > :43:25.not have the profile and the connections that some of the larger
:43:25. > :43:28.organisations do. That is why we have been working with Government
:43:29. > :43:37.and the Department of Culture on a new scheme to try and incentive
:43:37. > :43:42.fires and match new money... does that work? It is a scheme,
:43:42. > :43:46.with �100 million investment, although the next few years. One of
:43:46. > :43:49.the aspects is about increasing endowments, particularly for larger
:43:49. > :43:53.fund raisers, but there is also something about building the
:43:53. > :44:01.capacity and looking at helping organisations find more innovative
:44:01. > :44:06.ways of making that money. Every pound raised will be matched out of
:44:06. > :44:12.that �100 million national programme. Anthea, presumably part
:44:12. > :44:17.of the idea is to wean the arts of the public purse? I think it is
:44:17. > :44:22.great to see public involvement, people spend their money more
:44:22. > :44:27.wisely, and let us encourage it. We have a terrific history in the
:44:27. > :44:34.Midlands of philanthropy over the years, the proprietor of the
:44:34. > :44:38.Birmingham Daily Post, half of the art galleries are due to him. If we
:44:38. > :44:43.can encourage more people to be like Doug Ellis, that is fantastic.
:44:43. > :44:47.It is not really the role of the state to be like a zoo keeper at
:44:47. > :44:51.throwing fish out to performing seals, it is much better if they
:44:51. > :44:56.get direct ownership in what they are doing? I think of public and
:44:56. > :45:02.private sector and private giving have a role to play here. I do
:45:02. > :45:06.think Government has its job to do here, but I also hope, we heard the
:45:06. > :45:10.names like Josiah Wedgwood and George Cadbury - their equivalents
:45:10. > :45:16.today do have a role to play. This is important, not just in terms of
:45:16. > :45:21.the arts as quality of life, we do not live by bread alone. But we
:45:21. > :45:26.should not underestimate the economic impact. The creative
:45:26. > :45:32.industries on the hall are now about 7% of our economy. This is an
:45:32. > :45:37.area where Britain excels. So we should back what we are good at, as
:45:37. > :45:41.our economy changes in the future. Have the arts in the past been
:45:41. > :45:45.guilty of a kind of dependency culture as far as state handouts
:45:45. > :45:49.are concerned? I think one of the rules strengths of the English
:45:49. > :45:54.funding system is that mixed funding model. So that you get that
:45:54. > :46:00.relationship between the public, the private, and individual giving.
:46:00. > :46:03.When you have a dependency on any one sort of funding, the
:46:03. > :46:08.Organisation has become less resilient, and ought not in a
:46:08. > :46:11.sustainable. One thing Tristram Hunt said, the less well off,
:46:11. > :46:19.proportionally are more generous, does that tally with you reading of
:46:19. > :46:23.this? We have heard a lot about responsible capitalism lately,
:46:23. > :46:27.including from our party, and I have got no objection to somebody
:46:27. > :46:31.working hard and doing well and enjoying the rewards, but I hope
:46:32. > :46:35.people are in that position -- I hope that people in that position
:46:35. > :46:39.to put something back, for the cultural well-being of society and
:46:39. > :46:46.also because it has a good economic impact too.
:46:46. > :46:51.We have seen Doug Ellis, we also know others - but where is the new
:46:51. > :46:56.generation coming from? I think a lot of people are contributing at
:46:56. > :47:01.as much smaller level to their local community. In my own region,
:47:01. > :47:05.the local community have taken on a dilapidated old community centre,
:47:05. > :47:09.complete the turned it round, local businesses have done it, and it is
:47:09. > :47:14.a will committee assets now. Do you think we have been meeting of
:47:14. > :47:18.minds? Yes, but I think there is a real challenge in terms of in some
:47:18. > :47:24.devising new money from the private sector. Not as a replacement for
:47:24. > :47:27.public funding, but to complement it. Individual givers will always
:47:27. > :47:32.want to see their contributions making a difference and adding
:47:32. > :47:36.value, not replacing the sort of revenue funding... So there is an
:47:36. > :47:40.incentive for business to get involved? That is what our scheme
:47:40. > :47:46.will provide - to really start to change that culture of asking and
:47:46. > :47:48.giving in to the arts. Now for our summary of the
:47:49. > :47:58.political week in the Midlands, with BBC WM's Breakfast presenter
:47:59. > :48:04.
:48:04. > :48:07.Staff at a Birmingham primary school will walk out on Wednesday
:48:07. > :48:11.over plans to convert it into an academy. They say they have been
:48:11. > :48:15.kept in the dark. Labour MP and former union leader
:48:15. > :48:21.Jack Dromey had to apologise for breaking financial roles. If he
:48:21. > :48:25.failed to declare almost �30,000 from the unit -- Unite union.
:48:25. > :48:28.I want to apologise unreservedly to the house, and I will in future
:48:28. > :48:32.fully abide by the Rules of the house.
:48:32. > :48:35.Two months ago they won a High Court battle to keep
:48:35. > :48:39.Gloucestershire's library is open, if but now campaigners fear new
:48:39. > :48:45.plans are being drawn up. It is thought proposals would affect
:48:45. > :48:50.three fewer libraries this time. After being incinerated on the
:48:50. > :48:53.Government's quangos, British Waterways is preparing for life as
:48:53. > :48:57.a charity. They want volunteers to work on the Midlands locks fall
:48:57. > :49:01.stop and start at BBC Birmingham what out on strikes this -- walked
:49:01. > :49:07.out this week over plans to move gardener's World and farming Today
:49:07. > :49:12.to Bristol. Taking up that story about the
:49:12. > :49:17.proposed academy, they feel that they are in the dark - so much for
:49:17. > :49:24.community focused... This academy is a top-down idea by Michael Gove.
:49:24. > :49:28.No, individual schools have applied to become academies. I do not know
:49:28. > :49:32.about that particular case, but in the majority of cases it has very
:49:32. > :49:35.much been a case of staff, governors, joining together and
:49:35. > :49:39.saying they want to take the school forward. If there are many places
:49:39. > :49:44.who want to become an academy. academies were also involved during
:49:44. > :49:47.your watch. We have got to developing in
:49:47. > :49:51.Wolverhampton, and I am very strongly in favour of that. We
:49:51. > :49:56.could not tolerate a situation where children, often the children
:49:56. > :50:00.who were not built the best hand in terms of advantages, were
:50:00. > :50:04.continuing to get poorer education results, and academies are a way of
:50:04. > :50:09.addressing that and really lifting aspiration and standards.
:50:09. > :50:11.Turning to the case of Jack Dromey, your political opponents have said
:50:11. > :50:16.it provides yet again the question surrounding the relationship
:50:16. > :50:20.between your party annual union paymasters? Jack gave a statement
:50:20. > :50:24.of apology in the House of Commons, he was found to have broken the
:50:24. > :50:28.rules on funding, and I think it is important if somebody has broken
:50:28. > :50:33.the rules, but they apologise for that, because after everything that
:50:33. > :50:38.has happened between funding and politics in recent years, it is a
:50:38. > :50:44.real job to restore trust. And fear, is there a serious political point
:50:44. > :50:50.to this? -- and fear. I think he has done the right thing in
:50:50. > :50:54.apologising - it has become very important for all of us in any of
:50:54. > :50:57.this that we can rely on each other, in every party, to do the right