:01:38. > :01:48.of Avon and Somerset Police disagree over whether fixed speed cameras
:01:48. > :01:48.
:01:48. > :38:46.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 2218 seconds
:38:46. > :38:51.should be turned on. Do they save the programme just for us in the
:38:51. > :38:58.West. This is the final programme before MPs go on the summer recess.
:38:58. > :39:03.Coming up today: Smile you are one camera. They are hated by some
:39:03. > :39:09.motorists but should they be switched back on? The new Chief
:39:09. > :39:15.Constable of Avon and Somerset Police says yes. Politicians are
:39:15. > :39:23.there to take the Devil 's own abuse. We have two today. George
:39:23. > :39:31.Ferguson, the Mayor of Bristol. A quick review of their first few
:39:31. > :39:39.months in office. She is in charge of the thin blue line and he is in
:39:39. > :39:42.charge of some large red trousers. Sue Stevens is the Police and Crime
:39:42. > :39:52.Commissioner for, and George Ferguson is Bristol's first elected
:39:52. > :39:53.
:39:53. > :40:00.Mayor. They are both independent of any political party. Sue walked into
:40:00. > :40:04.the job and the Chief Constable pushed off. He was humiliated at
:40:04. > :40:10.being asked to apply for his own job but it was a commissioner who
:40:10. > :40:15.claimed victory. We are delighted that the High Court has said that
:40:15. > :40:20.the decisions were lawful in every respect. For George Ferguson it is
:40:20. > :40:26.the transport policy that caused trouble. He pushed through �37
:40:26. > :40:32.million of cuts with barely a whimper, but try taking away a
:40:32. > :40:42.parking space and there is uproar. His residents parking scheme created
:40:42. > :40:42.
:40:42. > :40:47.the biggest political row in years. Victory was sweet in Europe with
:40:47. > :40:52.Bristol winning Green capital status. So, as the West's most
:40:52. > :41:02.powerful politicians get a bit of sun what is next? As both were
:41:02. > :41:04.
:41:04. > :41:07.elected without a manifesto it is hard to tell. Sue Mountstevens, you
:41:07. > :41:13.replaced an experienced Chief Constable with an inexperienced one.
:41:13. > :41:21.I think the new Chief Constable is very experienced. He was a Chief
:41:21. > :41:25.Constable with the MPI AA. I think he is making a very real difference.
:41:25. > :41:29.It was an improvement agency said there are lots of ways Avon and
:41:29. > :41:37.Somerset Police learn with the experience he has brought. He is
:41:37. > :41:41.very experienced and Avon and Somerset Police stubbornly are the
:41:42. > :41:45.beneficiaries of that. He seems a very likeable man but what is your
:41:45. > :41:52.relationship with him? It should be quite uncomfortable, you are there
:41:52. > :41:58.to keep him in line? We are there to work together, but the important
:41:58. > :42:03.thing is to have one step outside. So when there is criticism to be
:42:03. > :42:12.made, I am very comfortable that that is made. Have you overruled him
:42:12. > :42:19.yet? Not yet. It is early days. We have had some conversations and we
:42:19. > :42:29.are very much in June. Are you on first name terms? Yes. I think it is
:42:29. > :42:33.to do with relationships. I think we have to work closely with the Chief
:42:33. > :42:43.Constable as that relationship has to be very comfortable. George, if I
:42:43. > :42:44.
:42:44. > :42:49.may be on first name terms with you, did you underestimate the
:42:49. > :42:54.opposition to your parking policy? knew that the cuts would be big, and
:42:54. > :42:58.they were, but I think there was a certain amount of realism that was
:42:58. > :43:05.forced on us by the austerity measures from the government, and I
:43:05. > :43:10.think people got real about it. No, I am not surprised by the reaction
:43:10. > :43:14.to the parking measures. The parking measures are part of a much bigger
:43:14. > :43:20.environmental transport picture, about making a better city. I do
:43:20. > :43:27.know that if you slightly restrict any car driver, the wage they can
:43:27. > :43:31.behave, you will get a reaction. I got a reaction. By taking away
:43:31. > :43:36.parking spaces for commuters, which is what you want to do, it means
:43:36. > :43:42.that some people will have �30 extra on their bus fares, one-hour extra
:43:42. > :43:45.at the end of their day because of what they are proposing. You never
:43:45. > :43:52.really listened to that or empathise with that. I do empathise with it.
:43:52. > :43:59.What I want is to get a much much better transport system and this is
:43:59. > :44:04.one element of that. You have got to get more people on the buses and
:44:04. > :44:08.have less people on the roads for the public transport to flow. When
:44:08. > :44:15.you get public transport flowing you get more people willing to use it.
:44:15. > :44:20.Somebody has to lay an egg with this. I decided to do this. You are
:44:20. > :44:25.going to lay the egg? I will. We have been paralysed by a lack of
:44:25. > :44:30.action and decision making. I got elected as Mayor to make decisions.
:44:30. > :44:35.We are a bit schizophrenic. We want a better environment... The problem
:44:35. > :44:40.is, the problem with you being independent is that you do not know
:44:40. > :44:48.what it says on the tin. We are getting a bit. We do not really know
:44:48. > :44:52.what you are about. I think you do. I made it clear during my campaign
:44:52. > :44:56.that my priorities were to tackle anti-social behaviour, violence
:44:56. > :45:03.against women and children, burglary, and having allowed a voice
:45:03. > :45:08.for victims. After consultation, road safety came back as being an
:45:08. > :45:15.issue. Those priorities are being tasked to the police and they are
:45:15. > :45:21.being rolled out. As we continue our look back at the political season,
:45:21. > :45:30.who could forget UKIP? The local elections gave them a domestic
:45:30. > :45:32.breakthrough. He used to be a Conservative but Alan Priest was
:45:32. > :45:37.voted back onto Gloucestershire County Council after voting for
:45:37. > :45:41.UKIP. They also won seats in Dorset and Somerset. The big parties
:45:41. > :45:51.struggled. There is a protest vote involved but they are also saying
:45:51. > :45:52.
:45:52. > :45:59.they want to support us. It sends an important message to the government.
:45:59. > :46:05.Of course it is a protest vote. are trying to maintain momentum with
:46:05. > :46:10.events like this recent meeting in South Gloucestershire. People know
:46:10. > :46:14.what we are about but I also think the majority of people coming to
:46:14. > :46:18.UKIP like what we say and like our views on the European union.
:46:19. > :46:25.Frankly, we are speaking the language of the man in the street.
:46:25. > :46:30.European elections have been good for them. UKIP have two Southwest
:46:30. > :46:40.MPs. One of them is departing so the race is on to pick candidates to
:46:40. > :46:46.
:46:46. > :46:51.stand along William Dartmouth in next year's boat. -- vote. It is a
:46:51. > :46:58.pretty good result. So, smaller parties prospering, and the
:46:58. > :47:04.coalition is suffering. The theme this year and properly next year.
:47:04. > :47:09.am joined by the Taunton Deane council and who was elected as a
:47:09. > :47:15.Conservative. He has a shock announcement to make. What have you
:47:15. > :47:21.got to say? I put my name to be elected as a Euro candidate at next
:47:21. > :47:26.year's elections. To be elected to the European Parliament for UKIP. A
:47:26. > :47:29.year ago I told the Conservative party that if they didn't move away
:47:29. > :47:33.from the dogma of the political system that a lot of people are from
:47:33. > :47:40.my generation would migrate to parties like UKIP. That has happened
:47:40. > :47:46.and a number of people like myself are putting their names forward to
:47:46. > :47:51.try and be elected for the European Union. So, you have defected?
:47:51. > :48:01.Effectively, yes, I have. It is no wonder because when you see the
:48:01. > :48:02.
:48:02. > :48:07.current government involved in U-turn after U-turn... How long have
:48:07. > :48:10.you had these inclinations? actually warns about this on your
:48:10. > :48:16.programme a year ago. I said the Conservative party need to embrace a
:48:16. > :48:23.wider range of issues. Why did you stand as a Conservative candidate in
:48:23. > :48:29.May? I was elected as a Conservative candidate and I felt it appropriate
:48:29. > :48:35.to move forward with that election. UKIP did actually asked me to
:48:35. > :48:45.migrate then but I thought that that would be disingenuous if I had gone
:48:45. > :48:46.
:48:46. > :48:51.over at that point. Are you just an opportunist? Not at all. I have been
:48:51. > :48:56.a Euro-sceptic all my life, but as you see, it's UKIP are driving
:48:56. > :49:02.forward a number of key policies in relation to immigration, the EU, and
:49:02. > :49:07.domestic issues. They really are a voice to be listened to. David
:49:07. > :49:11.Cameron's talk about referendum and all that cuts no ice with you?
:49:12. > :49:16.will leave that until the next election. It could go to a vote in
:49:16. > :49:23.Parliament. It will be discussed in Parliament very shortly. Frankly,
:49:23. > :49:30.more importantly, it should be up to the population to vote. You are
:49:30. > :49:36.independent, aren't you? I am.You were a Tory, then an independent,
:49:36. > :49:45.and now you stand for UKIP. Yes. Have political parties had their
:49:45. > :49:49.day? I think political parties still have a part to play in Westminster.
:49:49. > :49:53.I think they have polluted local politics to a certain extent because
:49:53. > :49:56.people are voting for the party rather than the person and in local
:49:56. > :50:05.politics I think it is important that you engage with the person that
:50:05. > :50:10.you trust to run your city. Sue, do you agree? I am grateful I am not a
:50:11. > :50:17.politician. I am accountable to the public. You while a politician.I am
:50:17. > :50:26.accountable to the public and I am not a politician. Asymmetrically, I
:50:26. > :50:31.think politics has not changed. Okay. Ian, thank you for coming in.
:50:31. > :50:38.Thank you for breaking your news here. They are feared by many
:50:38. > :50:44.motorists but it looks like some fixed speed cameras in the West will
:50:44. > :50:53.be switched back on. The Chief Constable of Avon and Somerset
:50:53. > :50:57.Police stubbornly has been met with a mixed response. These yellow boxes
:50:57. > :51:06.are fixed cameras designed to catch people going too fast. They are a
:51:06. > :51:11.familiar sight on the roads in the police force area. They have not
:51:11. > :51:15.snapped a single soul in the last two years. Why? Because they were
:51:15. > :51:18.switched off as the government removed funding for road safety, and
:51:18. > :51:23.the police and councils said they could not afford to pay for them. It
:51:23. > :51:27.was good news for some motorists. Not everybody can afford a soft top
:51:27. > :51:34.like this but this motoring journalist said the cameras have
:51:34. > :51:41.been misused by police. It is the old chestnut, isn't it? It is the
:51:41. > :51:49.cash cow by punishing the motorists as much as you can. Petrol is
:51:49. > :51:52.through the roof. Let's milk them for a little bit more, they say.
:51:52. > :51:58.the new man in charge at Avon and Somerset Police get his way, wings
:51:58. > :52:02.will change. I was surprised to learn the cameras have been switched
:52:02. > :52:07.off and I learnt from the Mayor of Bristol that he had been calling for
:52:07. > :52:12.them to be switched back on. Some disagree that the fixed speed
:52:12. > :52:16.cameras make our roads safer. balance, these cameras do a lot more
:52:16. > :52:22.good than harm. They are sitting there in the streets and the
:52:22. > :52:28.deterrent effect they have diminishes crimes. It will reduce
:52:28. > :52:33.speed and reduce accidents. There is no evidence that they have saved
:52:33. > :52:39.lives, especially in built-up areas. I do not believe in statistics like
:52:39. > :52:43.that. You take a statistic one day in the winter and compare it in the
:52:44. > :52:53.summer and the statistics don't stack up. The conservatives who run
:52:54. > :52:59.
:52:59. > :53:08.North Somerset Council have ruled chief in Bristol where the Mayor has
:53:08. > :53:12.said that the fixed cameras are about... The leader of Somerset
:53:12. > :53:19.County Council has written to the Chief Constable outlining his
:53:19. > :53:22.concerns. If you can supply evidence that the speed cameras will increase
:53:22. > :53:26.community safety I am more than happy to look at it. At this moment
:53:26. > :53:29.in time he is asking me to pay for it and I am not too keen. If they
:53:29. > :53:39.won the cameras on they have to do come up with a model that is fully
:53:39. > :53:49.
:53:49. > :53:53.funded. In Bath and North Somerset us that they are awaiting further
:53:53. > :53:59.details before making decisions. In the end, the future of these yellow
:54:00. > :54:05.boxes could come down to who is prepared to foot the Bill for them.
:54:05. > :54:09.This is especially at a time when road safety is improving. Many
:54:09. > :54:15.motorists have no idea that these yellow boxes are lying dormant so
:54:15. > :54:20.they could act as a deterrent without drivers knowing. Here is the
:54:20. > :54:24.Conservative Bristol councillor. Thank you for coming in. Our hearts
:54:24. > :54:34.went out to you recently because you lost your sign in a road accident.
:54:34. > :54:36.
:54:36. > :54:41.Yes. I am told the vehicle was not speeding. -- son.What is your view?
:54:41. > :54:47.I want road safety. What the council has done over the years is failed to
:54:47. > :54:51.put in a pedestrian crossing on the road. Cameras were not enough help
:54:51. > :54:59.to my son. All he was doing was crossing the road. They are there
:54:59. > :55:07.now but we lost our son for it. I feel quite strongly through it. I
:55:07. > :55:16.also lost my brother. He was hit by a van at less than ten miles an
:55:16. > :55:20.hour. So, 20 miles an hour does not cut much ice with me. I think my
:55:20. > :55:24.opposition is that the motorists feel under siege in Bristol. They
:55:24. > :55:29.feel they are being Goth sat in all directions. They feel that these
:55:29. > :55:33.speed cameras are another method of raising money. This is not how we
:55:33. > :55:39.should be addressing road safety. Let's bring in Sue Mountstevens and
:55:39. > :55:48.George. The Chief Constable has come up with this idea. What was your
:55:48. > :55:54.reaction? Is it our number-1? came from George. George approached
:55:54. > :55:58.me and said he was interested in turning it on, could we look at it?
:55:58. > :56:02.I asked the chief to do a proper review and look at the evidence and
:56:02. > :56:08.figures, and that is what he has done. Having looked at the evidence
:56:08. > :56:14.and funding issue, we believe, and this is a conversation we are having
:56:14. > :56:24.with local authorities, that we will... Ye whose decision is it?
:56:24. > :56:33.is mine. Having gone to consultation, it came out that road
:56:33. > :56:37.safety is a big issue. The thing about fixed cameras is that it is
:56:37. > :56:43.just one element. The point is that we want fixed cameras, mobile
:56:43. > :56:48.cameras and a community speed watch. It is a deterrent. We want to deter
:56:48. > :56:54.people from driving fast. We do not want to catch them, we want to deter
:56:54. > :57:00.them. George, where'd did this come from? It was not out of the blue.
:57:00. > :57:04.People said to me, we have cameras, they are not working. The fact is
:57:04. > :57:09.that the slower the car goes, the less likely someone is to be killed
:57:09. > :57:12.by it. It seems to me that if we have the cameras we should either
:57:12. > :57:22.use them get rid of them. I mentioned this to the Chief
:57:22. > :57:27.
:57:27. > :57:32.Constable... The fact is that they do save lives as will be 20 miles an
:57:32. > :57:36.hour limit. The research states that it will save lives but they point to
:57:36. > :57:44.a number of cameras where the number of fatalities around them has gone
:57:44. > :57:50.up. The number has increased? The speed cameras are not on at the
:57:50. > :58:00.moment. People are relaxed around them and it will not have any
:58:00. > :58:02.
:58:02. > :58:07.effect, is it? Yellow I do not welcome a conversation about them
:58:07. > :58:12.being off. We either get rid of them or put them back on again. They are
:58:12. > :58:19.there to stop idiots driving irresponsibly and they are not there
:58:19. > :58:29.as an anti-car measure. Thank you for coming in, Peter. Now, for a
:58:29. > :58:29.
:58:29. > :58:35.canter through the political news in just 60 seconds. The Chancellor,
:58:35. > :58:38.George Osborne, remember the name? He came to visit this week. Remember
:58:38. > :58:42.his new Conservative cabinet in Chippenham needs a reminder that
:58:42. > :58:50.they are actually in government. is about bringing local jobs into
:58:50. > :58:56.the area. That is why we have Gordon Brown here today. It is rare for a
:58:56. > :59:01.politician to comment on their own salary. We need a broad spectrum of
:59:01. > :59:05.people and none of us should worry about money. More part-time
:59:05. > :59:11.firefighters will be used in Somerset to fill a hole in the
:59:12. > :59:17.budget. A full-time crew is to be lost. A carnival committee in
:59:17. > :59:22.Wiltshire has caused an outcry by adding the town's baby competition.
:59:22. > :59:32.It is political correctness gone mad according to this mother.
:59:32. > :59:34.
:59:34. > :59:40.Apparently, they have also scrapped the carnival queen. For getting the
:59:40. > :59:47.Chancellor's name is a slip of the tongue but he is the man who has
:59:47. > :59:55.handed some large budget cuts to you too. What effect has it had and what
:59:55. > :59:59.is in the pipeline? We have already cut 35 million out of the budget and
:59:59. > :00:03.it shows what the police can do because crime is coming down and
:00:03. > :00:07.detection is going up. We will have to find another 15 million over the
:00:07. > :00:12.next two years which is a tough call. That is the equivalent of 200
:00:12. > :00:16.officers. We need to look very smartly at how we can use what we
:00:16. > :00:21.have more effectively, and look at our buildings and fleet, and see it
:00:21. > :00:28.we can squeeze more out of it. the speed cameras go back on, do you
:00:28. > :00:33.keep the fines? The money goes to the Treasury. The money you have cut
:00:33. > :00:37.is huge but who is suffering as a result? We have cut as much out of
:00:37. > :00:47.the system as we can so far without cutting major services. That is my
:00:47. > :00:48.
:00:48. > :00:53.aim. It is how we deliver efficiently. It is also how we find
:00:53. > :01:00.new income streams as well. I need to cut 75 million over the next
:01:00. > :01:05.three years, which is huge. At least half of that can be done without
:01:05. > :01:10.cutting services. Undoubtably, we will need to dig into some services.
:01:10. > :01:14.There is where we must make hard decisions. I am doing something much
:01:14. > :01:18.more fundamental than usual and going back to base really. I am
:01:18. > :01:25.thinking about what local government is for and then holding up a budget
:01:25. > :01:29.for three years rather than just the salami slicing process we have had.