:01:40. > :01:44.By in the West, the doctor will not see you now - West Country doctors
:01:44. > :01:54.are joining the national strike, but with GPs among the highest paid
:01:54. > :01:54.
:01:54. > :28:49.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 1615 seconds
:28:49. > :28:55.in the world, will their patience In the West this week, would you be
:28:55. > :28:59.happy to retire on �48,000 a year? We will be talking to West Country
:28:59. > :29:02.doctors who say that is not enough, so they are going on strike.
:29:03. > :29:07.Hundreds of non-emergency operations will be cancelled.
:29:07. > :29:13.It has been a rocky week for the Coalition in Westminster, but we
:29:13. > :29:23.are all friends here. Today we are joined by two cloddish and bodies,
:29:23. > :29:23.
:29:23. > :29:29.the Lib Dem MP from Yeovil, David Laws, and the Conservative MP from
:29:29. > :29:32.Kingswood, Chris Skidmore. He co- authored a group with fellow
:29:33. > :29:37.Conservative MPs. One of the biggest issues that came
:29:37. > :29:41.up this week was the church of England talking about gay marriage
:29:41. > :29:46.and saying it could lead to a split from the state. Are you supporting
:29:46. > :29:51.it, Chris? It is important to understand the church's concerns
:29:51. > :29:56.and ensure that there is religious freedom, but personally I believe
:29:56. > :30:03.in gay marriage. Is it a distraction? I think, when you look
:30:03. > :30:10.at this argument, we had an act bringing in indication at the same
:30:10. > :30:15.time it as the D-Day landings in 1944. -- education. The Government
:30:15. > :30:20.can do two things at once. Other Coalition right to focus on this?
:30:20. > :30:24.It is important to take this forward. It affects millions of
:30:24. > :30:29.people's not -- millions of people, not just those in same-sex
:30:29. > :30:33.relationships. I agree, this does not need to take up vast amounts of
:30:33. > :30:37.time, and it is not something the Prime Minister is getting up and
:30:37. > :30:44.spending hours on each day. It is being dealt with by his junior
:30:44. > :30:47.minister. I suspect there will be a lot of support in parliament. It is
:30:47. > :30:53.not de railing the Prime Minister or Deputy Prime Minister from the
:30:53. > :30:57.big priority for the country, which is the economy.
:30:57. > :31:02.The honeymoon is long forgotten, and a couple of years on from the
:31:02. > :31:07.political marriage, tensions are more evident. We are talking about
:31:07. > :31:11.the Coalition allies, who had a bit of an argument in Westminster. But
:31:11. > :31:15.for activists in the West Country, that is no surprise, because
:31:15. > :31:20.relationships between Conservatives and Lib Dems round here have rarely
:31:20. > :31:30.been easy. Politics is never be a bed of roses.
:31:30. > :31:32.
:31:32. > :31:37.There are always thorny issues - blooms fade In Every Rose Garden.
:31:37. > :31:42.Conservatives and Lib Dems in Westminster and the West. Downing
:31:42. > :31:47.Street two years ago, Taunton this week, and top of corporation.
:31:47. > :31:51.were wanted to put aside party differences and work together in
:31:51. > :31:56.the national interest. In Somerset, I am happy to work
:31:56. > :32:01.with anybody who wants to work with this Conservative administration.
:32:01. > :32:04.But someone has caused a rift between the partners - Business
:32:04. > :32:10.Secretary Jeremy Hunt, whom Lib Dems would not support in
:32:10. > :32:19.parliament. If you are let down -- do feel let down by a Deputy Prime
:32:19. > :32:23.Minister? Nick Clegg was not consulted by the
:32:23. > :32:27.Prime Minister on his decision not to refer Jeremy Hunt to the
:32:27. > :32:31.independent adviser, and therefore he cannot condone that decision.
:32:31. > :32:35.That is why we will be abstaining in the vault.
:32:35. > :32:40.That sort of political discord is fairly standard in places like
:32:40. > :32:45.Somerset. Why are they not convinced of their plans, or is it
:32:45. > :32:48.that they are all wrong and you are right? The County Council chamber
:32:48. > :32:56.always has the two parties attacking each other.
:32:56. > :33:00.Cuts, such as to libraries and buses, are big issues. Especially
:33:00. > :33:04.with an all-white election next spring.
:33:04. > :33:10.A plan on going for the last three years I agree with, and obviously I
:33:10. > :33:12.will be refreshing that plan. It is important that we get out into the
:33:12. > :33:17.community and talk to residents and staff and engage with the more than
:33:17. > :33:23.we have done in the past four stop if we had taken power three years
:33:23. > :33:26.ago, we would have had to take -- we had would have had to do
:33:26. > :33:29.something of his similar manner, but not as deep as the Conservative
:33:29. > :33:34.administration are doing at the moment.
:33:34. > :33:37.But at least the two parties can find common cause in who is
:33:37. > :33:44.responsible for Somerset's financial blows - their colleagues
:33:44. > :33:49.at Westminster. Our Government is cutting our grant substantially. We
:33:49. > :33:55.have to find �22 million of saving in the next financial year. I walk
:33:55. > :33:58.with -- our work with everyone who can come up with a solution. I hope
:33:58. > :34:03.we can lobby together to ensure that the Government gives Somerset
:34:03. > :34:13.be very fair deal. So, prickly issues for both parties.
:34:13. > :34:16.Worried about what voters will do to them at the polls. Do they were
:34:16. > :34:20.both saying that we need more money from central Government.
:34:20. > :34:25.The Lib Dem leader and the Conservative leader. Don't they get
:34:25. > :34:31.it? Have you not told them there is a recession on? They want Somerset
:34:31. > :34:36.to have a fair deal, and they are right that in the past in areas
:34:36. > :34:43.like education, the allocation across the country has not been
:34:43. > :34:47.fair. Something that the commission is going to look at. Everybody's
:34:47. > :34:50.pleads his special case, sometimes with good reason, and if you look
:34:50. > :34:56.at the allocation of something like education funding across the
:34:56. > :35:01.country, it is not national unfair. We want to sort that out, but to do
:35:01. > :35:05.that without creating bigger losers across the country. We can work
:35:05. > :35:09.together on things like that, but we are not in condition at a local
:35:09. > :35:14.Government level, and where we disagree, there should be robust
:35:14. > :35:21.opposition as well as party in Government. There are lots of
:35:21. > :35:31.things -- a lot of things the Conservative -- the Conservatives
:35:31. > :35:32.
:35:32. > :35:38.have done and we do not agree with. I agreed with David. I joined the
:35:38. > :35:44.Lib Dems and Conservatives in calling for a fairer deal. We have
:35:44. > :35:48.missed out in the south-west quite drastically. If you are in national
:35:49. > :35:54.Government, you have budgets you have to sort out. As soon as it
:35:54. > :35:58.comes locally, you say, we are not getting... There is a pot of money
:35:58. > :36:02.that has shrunk, and for too long a time but pop was artificially
:36:02. > :36:11.inflated by a large amount of borrowing that is no longer
:36:11. > :36:16.sustainable. I think, just to add, in terms of what we do locally, the
:36:16. > :36:20.Conservative Party and the Lib Dem party have been able to come into
:36:20. > :36:23.Coalition nationally and locally because we share that common belief
:36:23. > :36:26.in local communities rather than the big state at Westminster.
:36:26. > :36:32.Lib Dem was saying there that we do pretty much what the Conservatives
:36:32. > :36:39.do, we are just not so nasty about it. How do you feel about that?
:36:39. > :36:44.do not feel I am nasty. I went into politics determined to ensure...
:36:44. > :36:54.Sometimes he will do is in -- disagree, but you get more done
:36:54. > :36:56.when you combine your efforts across party. If you look at some
:36:56. > :37:01.of the choices that the Conservatives in Somerset have been
:37:01. > :37:05.making, and compare them with other councils in the south-west and
:37:05. > :37:10.across the country, most of those other councils have not been making
:37:10. > :37:15.the same choices, to decimate the youth service, two at one stage
:37:15. > :37:21.removed the support from young carers under the age of 18... Those
:37:21. > :37:25.things are wrong, and it is quite right that we should sort them out.
:37:25. > :37:29.When he was sorting out the Coalition agreement, and you were
:37:29. > :37:34.behind some of the policy, had the country been growing again, we
:37:34. > :37:40.would not have quite these problems. Is there any part of the financial
:37:40. > :37:45.plan that is actually working? If you look at the deficit we
:37:45. > :37:51.inherited from Labour. If you look at the gap between spending and
:37:51. > :37:56.taxation, it was projected to be �163 billion under Labour two years
:37:56. > :38:01.ago. It has come down by a quarter in just 2 macro years. But of
:38:01. > :38:04.course, with the mess we have in the eurozone, there is a lot to do
:38:04. > :38:09.in order to make sure that growth comes through.
:38:09. > :38:12.Hospitals across the West are preparing to cancel routine
:38:12. > :38:17.operations and outpatients appointments ahead of its planned
:38:17. > :38:22.day of strike action next Thursday. Also patients needing urgent or
:38:23. > :38:29.emergency treatment will be seen. It is only -- it is all the changes
:38:29. > :38:34.to their pensions. By the last time doctors took
:38:34. > :38:38.industrial action was almost 40 years ago. Much has changed since
:38:38. > :38:41.then, but still the training to become a doctor takes many years,
:38:42. > :38:46.and they say their pay and pensions reflect their unique and demanding
:38:46. > :38:51.role. But now, like many other public sector employees, their
:38:51. > :38:56.pensions are changing. They have to pay higher contributions - up to
:38:56. > :39:00.14% of their salary. Those qualifying now will work until they
:39:00. > :39:04.are 60 it and receive less when they stop working. More than half
:39:04. > :39:09.of the doctors in the BMA voted in the strike ballot, and a clear
:39:09. > :39:17.majority were in favour of action, but many local doctors we spoke to
:39:17. > :39:26.fit it could backfire on them. unsightly ashamed to think that we
:39:26. > :39:32.would strike. I did not vote for it. You can see why doctors are angry
:39:32. > :39:35.and voted to strike, but I think at the end of the day in the current
:39:35. > :39:41.environment, we are not going to gain any sort of public support.
:39:41. > :39:45.The Government say doctors cannot be exempt from pension changes.
:39:45. > :39:51.junior doctor starting out in the NHS could look forward when they
:39:51. > :39:55.retired to be pension equivalent to �68,000 a year. There are people
:39:55. > :39:59.all over the country will say that is an excellent pension. Local
:39:59. > :40:03.hospitals have started to contact patients about rescheduling
:40:03. > :40:08.procedures. The BMA say the Government have been unwilling to
:40:08. > :40:14.negotiate, and unless that changes, strike action was go ahead.
:40:14. > :40:20.Joining me now is Dr up -- a doctor from Bristol, and in medical
:40:20. > :40:25.student just starting out on her career.
:40:25. > :40:29.GPs in this country are the second best paid in the world. Twice as
:40:29. > :40:36.much as the French, and is it because you are worth it? I think
:40:36. > :40:41.we are, but what we are asking for is it level playing field with a
:40:41. > :40:45.senior civil servants. If you have a pension system, but should be a
:40:45. > :40:51.similar deduction from each profession. We are not asking that
:40:51. > :40:56.doctors' pay less, we are arguing that senior civil servants should
:40:56. > :41:03.be paying more. So you would not go on strike if other people employed
:41:03. > :41:08.by the state had to pay the same contribution? Yes. We are looking
:41:08. > :41:14.for a level playing field. It is this unfairness which is bringing
:41:14. > :41:20.about our action. We are all going to be in our places of work, but
:41:20. > :41:27.patients will be seen, and anyone urgent will be seen. I we do not
:41:27. > :41:31.support a strike. Do you know any, you are in your
:41:31. > :41:39.third year, have you got any friends who are not Medix, with a
:41:39. > :41:44.pension deal like the one that you will get? -- who are not doctors.
:41:44. > :41:48.Where are you supporting this action? I have realised just how
:41:48. > :41:52.unfair this is in the pension scheme at the moment. We have a
:41:52. > :41:56.deal that is fair and affordable and sustainable, and what is
:41:56. > :42:00.frightening, particularly for those entering into the profession, is
:42:00. > :42:09.that we are now faced with �70,000 of debt because tuition fees have
:42:09. > :42:18.been tripled, and we are looking... If you are a consultant earning
:42:18. > :42:23.�120,000 a year, so be �1,000 is not much. It is its huge debt, and
:42:23. > :42:31.it might frighten students are we. We have politicians here. Canute
:42:31. > :42:36.convince them not to go on strike? A find it extraordinary that the
:42:36. > :42:39.idea put -- being put forward is that GPs are going on strike simply
:42:39. > :42:44.to increase the pension contributions by the public sector
:42:44. > :42:47.workers. I would point out that the public sector pensions are being
:42:47. > :42:51.reformed across the board for every single group of public sector
:42:51. > :42:55.workers. Including members of parliament whose pension
:42:55. > :42:59.contributions are might be going up by a couple of %, and have doubled
:42:59. > :43:03.over the period of time since I became an MP. All public sector
:43:03. > :43:09.pensions have to be reformed so the art sustainable and affordable, and
:43:09. > :43:14.when we talk about so far -- friend has, it is not just between public
:43:14. > :43:19.sector workers, it is between the public sector and the private work
:43:19. > :43:26.-- private sector. We have massively better pensions than the
:43:26. > :43:29.vast majority. Has he got the diagnosis right? It will be those
:43:29. > :43:33.people but that knee operations and hip operation so will find their
:43:33. > :43:37.operations cancelled. Even though it is not a complete strike, it
:43:37. > :43:42.will mean a lot of distress for those patients who ultimately pay
:43:42. > :43:49.at all our wages and pay for the NHS. A lot of money has gone into
:43:49. > :43:59.it, but if we are going to keep on increasing pensions, I want to make
:43:59. > :44:06.sure... A lot has been talked about increasing pensions, but we are
:44:06. > :44:10.looking for equality. But you are going on strike not because you are
:44:10. > :44:17.unhappy with your pensions, but because you want other public
:44:17. > :44:20.sector workers to pay more? But is not by an -- what I understand.
:44:20. > :44:28.think it is fair in this climate that the others should be paying
:44:28. > :44:34.more. It is not just doctors, it is the BMA. It is a union. Ken Clarke
:44:34. > :44:38.said it was a union of the worst sort back in 1992, and a lot of
:44:38. > :44:44.other doctors do not want to get involved with it. If you look at
:44:44. > :44:50.the evidence, in mid- January we surveyed our members, and eight out
:44:50. > :44:56.of ten rejected the Government's reforms. But why did so few
:44:56. > :45:00.respond... They did not actually, it was in huge numbers. When you
:45:00. > :45:05.are on the wards and you see the patients, most of them will be a
:45:05. > :45:13.lot poorer than you. Canute look them in the eye and say, I am not
:45:13. > :45:17.getting a good deal? But it is not fair... Life is not fair.
:45:17. > :45:23.average contribution from the employees and the employer, the
:45:23. > :45:28.taxpayer, to our pensions, is around 30% of pay. In the private
:45:28. > :45:38.sector is this something between nothing and 10%. Are you worried
:45:38. > :45:38.
:45:38. > :45:48.about alienating patients? When you say the word strike, it is not his
:45:48. > :45:50.
:45:50. > :45:56.strike. You are talking of... your receptionist will not say, I
:45:56. > :46:00.am sorry, the doctor is on strike? If the patient says it cannot wait
:46:00. > :46:04.until tomorrow, it cannot wait. There are a lot of things which
:46:04. > :46:09.will still be held up and Deniz put in place because he will on the be
:46:09. > :46:17.seen people who are emergencies. But every week, we have the weekend.
:46:17. > :46:22.It is held up then. We have to leave it there. Thank you for
:46:22. > :46:32.coming in today. Time now for a spin through the
:46:32. > :46:34.
:46:34. > :46:38.political week. A villagers of Stanton Wick are
:46:38. > :46:42.preparing to do battle over proposals to turn this land into a
:46:42. > :46:46.pan a travellers' site. The council say they need to provide permanent
:46:46. > :46:50.sites for travellers, but villagers claim it would ruin their village.
:46:50. > :46:55.A High Court battle will decide if North Somerset council acted
:46:55. > :47:00.illegally by cutting its youth services by 70%. These campaigners
:47:00. > :47:04.are awaiting the judge's ruling. A 60-year-old man from Gloucester
:47:05. > :47:10.who sent threatening e-mails to the Conservative MP Louise Mensch was
:47:10. > :47:14.given his six-month suspended sentence. He was also served with a
:47:14. > :47:18.restraining order. Campaigners against a new stadium
:47:18. > :47:24.in Bristol have agreed to drop a High Court challenge against
:47:24. > :47:28.brittle City Council. Half of this land has been protected. -- Bristol
:47:28. > :47:34.City Council. It is still to be decided whether Bristol City
:47:34. > :47:41.football ground can build their new stadium here.
:47:41. > :47:46.That Was the Week in just one minute. Let us pick up on the man
:47:46. > :47:50.with the suspended prison sentence. It has opened up a can of worms.
:47:50. > :47:57.The business of Government -- is in the business of Government to get
:47:57. > :48:00.involved? Sadly, I think it is. I hate to say -- I hate to see what
:48:00. > :48:06.Government interference, but we have the Leveson Inquiry going on
:48:06. > :48:10.about standards in the press and the broadcast media, so we cannot
:48:10. > :48:14.take the Pulborough tit attacks on people seriously if we only by --
:48:14. > :48:18.unwarranted attacks on people seriously if we only applied them
:48:18. > :48:22.to newspapers. We have a new board of communication were sometimes
:48:22. > :48:28.people can be attacked Totley unfairly.