:01:23. > :01:26.In the Midlands, euro crisis, what you're crisis? As more of our firms
:01:26. > :01:36.do business far beyond are concerned, we find out why China is
:01:36. > :01:36.
:01:36. > :31:29.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 1793 seconds
:31:29. > :31:33.fast becoming our business partner Hello again from the Midlands. I'm
:31:33. > :31:35.Patrick Burns. Coming up today: Beyond the eurozone. The firms
:31:35. > :31:39.doing more and more business far away from the troubled currency
:31:39. > :31:45.area. We'll find out why companies here, trading with China, are
:31:45. > :31:48.saying "non" to continental Europe. And with me here today, throughout
:31:48. > :31:51.our part of the programme, one of the Tory rebels who defied their
:31:51. > :31:56.government in Tuesday's vote on Lords reform, and a Labour member
:31:56. > :31:59.of the upper house. Andrew Griffiths is the Conservative MP
:31:59. > :32:09.for Burton, and Peter, now Lord, Snape of Wednesbury is a Labour
:32:09. > :32:11.
:32:11. > :32:15.life peer and former MP for West Bromwich East.
:32:15. > :32:19.Andrew, I am told you manage to persuade yourself that you are
:32:19. > :32:23.helping David Cameron by doing this? How you helping him?
:32:23. > :32:26.I am not sure he would agree with you, but we were standing up for
:32:26. > :32:30.the constitution. This is not an issue that the general public want
:32:30. > :32:34.us to be wasting our time on. They want us to be sorting out the
:32:34. > :32:40.economy, jobs, the benefit system. They do not want this navel-gazing
:32:40. > :32:44.talking about the constitution. Did the whips give you a not that
:32:44. > :32:48.this was just a way of trying to keep the Liberal Democrat happy and
:32:48. > :32:52.it did not really happen? I can absolutely assure you that it
:32:52. > :32:55.was taken very seriously. It is a government Bill that the Deputy
:32:55. > :32:59.Prime Minister and the Prime Minister were committed to, and the
:32:59. > :33:03.whips did the best they could to get it through. But there were
:33:03. > :33:07.sensible people who said they would not get it through.
:33:07. > :33:13.Peter Snape, are you enjoying the misfortunes of others?
:33:13. > :33:18.I am amazed at how you could think the whips would double deal!
:33:18. > :33:21.What are we to make of your party, which cannot make up its mind about
:33:21. > :33:25.progressive principles, the best chance to update the House of Lords,
:33:25. > :33:30.or just behave like opposition for opposition's sense and make trouble
:33:30. > :33:34.for the government? When I was appointed in the House
:33:34. > :33:43.of Lords, there are 800 people, that is indefensible. But the
:33:43. > :33:48.coalition have stuck another hundred and 28 peers into there. --
:33:48. > :33:53.120. There is a big division across your
:33:53. > :33:57.party as well, you cannot just sit there and gloat.
:33:57. > :34:02.Yes, we can. Of course there is a division, there is a division in
:34:02. > :34:07.all parties, even the Liberal Democrat. We are all equally
:34:07. > :34:10.divided. And this is our top story this week.
:34:10. > :34:12.15 Midlands Conservative MPs - that's very nearly half of them -
:34:12. > :34:15.voted against their government's plans for Lords reform. The big
:34:15. > :34:19.concern for David Cameron is that the rebels came from all sections
:34:19. > :34:26.of his party, not just the usual suspects like Bill Cash and Richard
:34:26. > :34:29.Shepherd. This rebellion was led by the Herefordshire MP, Jesse Norman.
:34:29. > :34:33.He's had quite a week. Greeting the Queen in Hereford, a
:34:33. > :34:35.loyal subject but a Parliamentary rebel. The undisputed star of this
:34:35. > :34:37.backbench show scorned his leadership's claims that it was
:34:37. > :34:47.Labour's "opposition for opposition's sake" that had put
:34:47. > :34:47.
:34:47. > :34:50.paid to the government's Lords reform timetable. It is the very
:34:50. > :34:54.substantial opposition from within the Conservative Party that is
:34:54. > :34:58.responsible for the withdrawal of this motion, and not the Labour
:34:58. > :35:01.Party, and that should be perfectly clear and reflected in the record.
:35:01. > :35:09.He wasn't the only normally-loyal backbencher who thought the bill
:35:09. > :35:12.was a bad idea at a bad time. The idea that we create a second
:35:12. > :35:17.chamber that dilutes the primacy of the Commons, I think it is a best
:35:17. > :35:19.before gridlock and deadlock. The other parties were divided too.
:35:19. > :35:21.26 Labour MPs, including Adrian Bailey, Jim Cunningham and Geoffrey
:35:21. > :35:24.Robinson, opposed the bill itself, against their leadership's wishes.
:35:24. > :35:29.Labour's deputy leader in the upper house says the electorate should
:35:29. > :35:34.have its say. If we are differing about a
:35:34. > :35:36.referendum in Europe, why do we not have won about House of Lords
:35:36. > :35:40.reform? Liberal Democrats warn that if the
:35:40. > :35:43.Tories fail to deliver their side of the deal on Lords reform, they
:35:43. > :35:48.might scupper boundary changes worth up to 20 extra Tory seats at
:35:48. > :35:52.the next election. The only grumpy people are the 91
:35:52. > :35:58.Tory MPs who voted against this bill, because at the end of the day,
:35:58. > :36:00.you cannot allow a small number of the MPs to wreck a bill which is in
:36:00. > :36:03.the manifesto of all three of the parties.
:36:03. > :36:07.Leaving David Cameron pulled one way by his coalition partners and
:36:07. > :36:09.the other by his backbenchers. He told them he'd have one more try to
:36:09. > :36:13.find a consensus, possibly with a smaller proportion of elected peers
:36:13. > :36:16.and maybe that referendum, in three years' time. But will this be
:36:16. > :36:20.enough to satisfy the Liberal Democrats and his own Midlands
:36:20. > :36:25.Awkward Squad? And you'll find more on the
:36:25. > :36:33.background to all this in my latest blog post. The address is on the
:36:33. > :36:37.screen. Andrew, 15 Midlands Conservatives,
:36:37. > :36:42.is there something in the water in the Midlands? I UA gang, do you
:36:42. > :36:46.talk to reach a as a group? People obviously talk about this,
:36:46. > :36:49.it is a serious issue. But when you see half of the Conservative
:36:49. > :36:54.backbenchers voting against this Bill, I think you understand just
:36:54. > :36:58.how seriously the Conservative Party took this. We are talking
:36:58. > :37:01.about changing the constitution that has been in place for hundreds
:37:01. > :37:07.of years. This was the best chance to make
:37:07. > :37:12.something happen, surely? The body is against reform. But
:37:12. > :37:17.this built just did not do that. -- nobody is against reform. This was
:37:17. > :37:21.going to cost a lot of money, and the last thing the public want to
:37:21. > :37:25.see is that money being spent on more politicians.
:37:25. > :37:30.Peter Snape, you do not like this bill, but you would stand for
:37:30. > :37:36.election? I represented the good folk of West
:37:36. > :37:45.Bromwich for a long time, but at 70 now, a 15 year term would make me a
:37:45. > :37:50.bad risk! I do not particularly want to go through this business. A
:37:50. > :37:55.15 year term, I suppose at 85 I will not be elected anyway! It is
:37:55. > :38:01.crazy. It is not democratic, people are picked from a party list, I do
:38:01. > :38:06.not understand the thinking behind Looking into the research, I
:38:06. > :38:10.discovered there are 27 peers from the Midlands in the House of Lords.
:38:10. > :38:13.Do you speak up for the West Midlands when you get a chance in
:38:13. > :38:17.the House of Lords? We did not talk about regional lists, this is
:38:17. > :38:24.another issue. We do speak up for the West
:38:24. > :38:26.Midlands, and we are praised for doing so. We do not have to toe a
:38:26. > :38:30.party line. You can say what you think about business and industry
:38:30. > :38:34.and other matters, so you have a much freer voice than when you are
:38:34. > :38:38.tied by the party but in the House of Commons.
:38:38. > :38:42.But is something you did not like, the regional lists, and yet a
:38:42. > :38:45.regional identity may be seen to be a good thing?
:38:45. > :38:49.There are things that would allow for people from the north, for
:38:49. > :38:52.example, to have more of a regional identity, but the idea that we
:38:52. > :38:56.could have this massive change to hour constitution without trusting
:38:56. > :39:01.the people with a referendum, many of us thought that was completely
:39:01. > :39:06.unacceptable. When Nick Clegg introduced this Billin the house,
:39:06. > :39:09.he said it was time for people to decide in an election. He is not
:39:09. > :39:14.prepared to let the people decide in a referendum.
:39:14. > :39:19.Your party support a referendum, Peter, but this book just delayed
:39:19. > :39:24.reform even further? We are in great danger of doing the
:39:24. > :39:27.think that television hates, agreeing with each other. We had a
:39:27. > :39:34.referendum about a may in Birmingham, but you cannot have
:39:34. > :39:37.this put away referendum?! This is barmy.
:39:37. > :39:40.Will there be a new consensus found?
:39:40. > :39:44.A Prime Minister says he will have one more try to get it through, and
:39:44. > :39:48.there will be a charm offensive over the summer, but for many of us,
:39:48. > :39:52.there are guiding principles, we are against an election because it
:39:52. > :39:56.will cause conflict between the Commons and the Lords, and nobody
:39:56. > :39:59.wants to see that. Is the crisis in the eurozone
:39:59. > :40:02.putting off Midlands firms from doing business on the Continent?
:40:02. > :40:05.Latest figures show companies in our part of the country are giving
:40:05. > :40:11.the euro the cold shoulder, and turning instead to markets like
:40:11. > :40:14.China. A shrewd move to protect jobs, you may think. There are
:40:14. > :40:24.flashing images from the start of this report by our Business
:40:24. > :40:27.They might make lights and sirens that warn of danger, but this
:40:27. > :40:35.Birmingham firm still got caught up in the eurozone crisis, losing
:40:35. > :40:38.thousands of pounds when a Spanish distributor when bust.
:40:38. > :40:45.Now, according to the company's sales director, instead of Europe,
:40:45. > :40:48.trade with places like Australia and South Africa is booming.
:40:48. > :40:52.In the first six months of this year, we have doubled our business
:40:52. > :41:02.in those markets outside the eurozone. That has been good for
:41:02. > :41:05.the company. A lot of it has been led by bespoke products, but
:41:05. > :41:07.certainly it seems like it was the right decision for us to do.
:41:07. > :41:10.Selling into new markets isn't cheap, and sometimes that means
:41:10. > :41:13.going in the direction of the banks for additional funding. But
:41:13. > :41:16.persuading them to part with their cash isn't always easy.
:41:16. > :41:20.We will lend to a company that's exposed to the eurozone, but it's
:41:20. > :41:23.far better for us that the risk is spread, so if you look at the new
:41:23. > :41:26.emerging markets so you're getting income coming from China and India
:41:26. > :41:28.as well as the eurozone, that's a better picture for you in terms of
:41:28. > :41:30.sustainability. Official figures suggest that the
:41:30. > :41:34.so-called BRIC economies - that's Brazil, Russia, India and China -
:41:34. > :41:37.only account for a small share of UK exports, but that share is
:41:37. > :41:42.growing as more and more companies like this decide to invest to tap
:41:42. > :41:45.into the emerging market. And here's the evidence. After the
:41:45. > :41:48.USA, Germany used to be the biggest export market for West Midlands
:41:48. > :41:51.manufacturers, but earlier this year a big leap in exports to China
:41:51. > :42:01.saw it move up to second place, making this region one of the
:42:01. > :42:10.
:42:10. > :42:12.biggest exporters to places outside the EU. At this Birmingham machine
:42:12. > :42:14.tool maker, they've been exporting around the world for years, and
:42:14. > :42:18.more recently, it's helped to make them recession-proof.
:42:18. > :42:21.It has been a life-saver for us. China was only the start. We're now
:42:21. > :42:24.probably more active in South America, in Mexico and in fact in
:42:24. > :42:26.the USA itself, where the oil sector is extremely busy, and as a
:42:26. > :42:29.result we're supplying machines to the American continent.
:42:29. > :42:32.But not all companies are as active, and experts in international trade
:42:32. > :42:35.say attitudes need to change. It's not uncommon to hear, "Where
:42:35. > :42:39.are the British?" We do hear it when we go down there. That's not
:42:39. > :42:47.to say we're not there. We are there, of course we're there, but
:42:47. > :42:50.we need to be more dynamic about it. In the past, there's talk of an
:42:50. > :42:52.export-led recovery, but without stability in the eurozone, for some
:42:52. > :42:56.firms, exports further afield could also be vital for their very
:42:56. > :42:59.survival. And even though economic growth has
:42:59. > :43:04.slowed to a three-year low in China, 7.6% is still quite spectacular by
:43:04. > :43:07.our standards. Peter Plisner reporting. And we're also joined
:43:07. > :43:11.here today by the man in charge of our major international airport,
:43:11. > :43:14.now a leading voice in the wider business community. Paul Kehoe is
:43:14. > :43:17.best known as the chief executive of Birmingham Airport, but he also
:43:17. > :43:26.chairs Marketing Birmingham, aiming to forge new commercial connections
:43:26. > :43:29.around the globe. Quite a turnaround, really, in the
:43:30. > :43:34.direction of economic trouble, looking east and to China, does it
:43:34. > :43:37.surprise you, the speed of it? It has been very surprising, but
:43:37. > :43:44.you only have to look at the quality of the products we are now
:43:44. > :43:51.making. If you look at the cars at Jaguar Land Rover, 80,000 pound
:43:51. > :43:56.cars that retail in China for almost �200,000. They're all going
:43:56. > :43:59.to China, and Russia and Brazil. Should we be concerned by the
:43:59. > :44:04.reduction in the growth rate in China?
:44:04. > :44:07.It is still a fantastic rate by any standards. Yes, China may slow down
:44:07. > :44:13.because it is exporting to the European Union, and the domestic
:44:13. > :44:18.market has been flat as well, but looking to these new markets, D
:44:18. > :44:21.Brazil's and India's and China's, has been a way forward.
:44:21. > :44:25.One thing that I thought was interesting was that we heard the
:44:25. > :44:30.guy in banking say that having a diversified portfolio, looking with
:44:30. > :44:35.in Europe but also around the world as well, was the best way of
:44:35. > :44:41.attracting back to give investment, to give liquidity to companies.
:44:41. > :44:46.No one likes any risk at all. Having that bread, that geographic
:44:46. > :44:48.spread, is good for business, and people like the things we make. We
:44:48. > :44:53.are a major manufacturing power in the West Midlands, will be should
:44:53. > :44:57.be trading on that. Andrew, you have recently been to
:44:57. > :45:02.China. Are we Ofer obsessing about it, because the Midlands does seem
:45:02. > :45:06.to be at the forefront? A it is fantastic news for the West
:45:06. > :45:11.Midlands. The Prime Minister said he wanted us to be a nation of
:45:11. > :45:15.exporters, and I think we are delivering on that. The figures
:45:15. > :45:21.that have just about show that for the first time since 1976, we are
:45:21. > :45:24.exporting more cars than we import in this country. It shows the level
:45:24. > :45:30.of investment and the skills and the expertise that is in the West
:45:30. > :45:35.Midlands. You look at Toyota, Jaguar, the Mini, it is all getting
:45:35. > :45:41.new investment. And it is bringing back jobs that
:45:41. > :45:46.were in decline in the past. It is tough to compete on price, but in
:45:46. > :45:51.terms of quality... The West Midlands had a bit of a
:45:51. > :45:56.kicking in recent years, and to see us fighting back is great. Quality
:45:56. > :46:00.manufacturing is easy to sell around the world. Jaguar cars, at
:46:00. > :46:04.one time, they were a joke, now they are regarded as some of the
:46:04. > :46:07.best in the world. If we keep producing in this part of the world,
:46:07. > :46:11.could of that quality, we will not have difficulty selling than
:46:11. > :46:17.anywhere else. The market in South Africa and
:46:17. > :46:21.Brazil are about to become in range of the new runway of your airport,
:46:21. > :46:25.so what do we make of the fact that the aviation consultation of the
:46:25. > :46:29.government is being delayed? We want a balanced debate. There
:46:29. > :46:33.has been a lot of emotion attached to this. When you have direct air
:46:33. > :46:37.links from Birmingham to these places, the economy get a massive
:46:37. > :46:41.boost. We want to bring those direct links and watch the trade
:46:41. > :46:45.increase. Is there a danger that the economic
:46:45. > :46:49.prospects could be hit because of your party's difficulties over
:46:49. > :46:53.whether to build a third runway at Heathrow?
:46:53. > :46:56.No, I think what we have here is a trained skilled work force, and I
:46:56. > :47:00.think businesses are recognising that and investing in the West
:47:00. > :47:04.Midlands, because they know we can produce a quality product. It is
:47:04. > :47:09.fantastic. A Peter, you worry former transport
:47:09. > :47:12.spokesman. What do you think of this delayed consultation?
:47:12. > :47:16.To I think the Conservatives in particular, certain elements of the
:47:16. > :47:21.coalition, have put themselves in a bad position by ruling out a third
:47:21. > :47:24.runway at Heathrow right from the start, and now they are under
:47:24. > :47:28.considerable pressure to have a rethink. The fact is that in the
:47:28. > :47:33.West Midlands, we are having a -- we are getting on with things while
:47:33. > :47:36.they are arguing. We can make progress.
:47:36. > :47:40.It are we saying that the bigger airport is like an escape route
:47:40. > :47:45.from the eurozone are -- all together?
:47:45. > :47:50.It has to be balanced. We need the eurozone, but we also need a new
:47:50. > :47:55.market. Will we see flight to China?
:47:55. > :48:00.I am working hard on it. Do you see it as an escape route?
:48:00. > :48:06.I think the fact that we are diversifying, GCB in my
:48:06. > :48:11.constituency have had a massive order for Brazil. -- JCB. It is
:48:11. > :48:16.really important that we continue to attract these new markets. With
:48:16. > :48:20.High Speed Two, that will walk back -- that we will get to Birmingham
:48:20. > :48:25.from London very quickly, it is a very exciting prospect.
:48:25. > :48:30.Yes, the fat that we are selling quality goods outside and inside it
:48:30. > :48:33.EU, it can only be a good thing. Now our regular round-up of the
:48:33. > :48:39.political week in the Midlands in 60 seconds, with BBC WM's Breakfast
:48:39. > :48:42.presenter, Pete Morgan. A big deal for a small car. A
:48:42. > :48:51.multi-million pound boost for the Hams Hall factory near Birmingham
:48:51. > :48:53.will help take the Mini to the max. Meanwhile, a report by an
:48:53. > :49:00.influential group of MPs says banks should give the industry's supply
:49:00. > :49:04.chain better access to finance. least have the right support to
:49:04. > :49:08.nurture it for the future, and that is particularly the case in small
:49:08. > :49:11.and medium-sized companies that are vital for the future.
:49:11. > :49:14.The Diamond Queen kicked off a two- day visit to the Midlands in
:49:14. > :49:17.Hereford as part of her Jubilee Tour. What a gem.
:49:17. > :49:23.More problems with the Olympic security firm G4S after 180 staff
:49:23. > :49:27.failed to register ahead of the football in Coventry. Police will
:49:27. > :49:30.be asked to step in. And Midlands dairy farmers joined a
:49:30. > :49:36.national protest in London to say they're being milked by cuts to
:49:36. > :49:46.prices paid by processors. They warn they're being driven out of
:49:46. > :49:46.
:49:46. > :49:51.business. The dairy farmers' protest gathering momentum all the
:49:51. > :49:55.time. It started in Staffordshire a couple of weeks ago, and Andrew,
:49:55. > :50:00.you have been involved in Westminster?
:50:00. > :50:03.The dairy industry is in crisis. But all the can do is talk, you
:50:03. > :50:07.have no leverage. You have got rid of the government agencies that
:50:07. > :50:11.could do it -- that could do anything about it.
:50:11. > :50:15.The blame lies with the supermarket and the middlemen who last week in
:50:15. > :50:21.the farmers and driving prices down. Do you have sympathy with the
:50:21. > :50:28.farmers? A I do, but these -- are the story is not just as he says it
:50:28. > :50:31.The price for milk was set, but I did an interview, when others in
:50:31. > :50:35.the House of Commons, saying they would come to regret this, and that
:50:35. > :50:44.is now what is happening, the supermarkets have a stranglehold
:50:45. > :50:51.over the price. 46p is the price, but of course, you will know that!
:50:51. > :50:55.Only about 24p of that goes to the farmer. When is it going?
:50:55. > :50:58.Andra, there is talk about a direct action in August when the new
:50:58. > :51:03.prices coming. Is that a serious possibility?
:51:03. > :51:06.I understand the anger, but it is a voluntary code of conduct cannot be
:51:06. > :51:11.agreed, then maybe the government does have to intervene, perhaps we
:51:11. > :51:14.do have to have a mandatory code. That's it. My thanks to Andrew