:01:18. > :01:28.We'll be live at George Galloway campaign headquarters in Bradford
:01:28. > :01:29.
:01:29. > :37:45.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 2176 seconds
:37:45. > :37:49.as Yorkshire's newest MP prepares Good afternoon, you are watching
:37:49. > :37:54.the Sunday -- the Sunday Politics for Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. We
:37:54. > :37:57.are live at George Galloway's headquarters in Bradford. We asked
:37:57. > :38:01.what lessons the main parties can learn from the biggest by-election
:38:01. > :38:05.upset for decades. Relief for motorists as toll
:38:05. > :38:11.charges on the Humber Bridge are reduced for today. -- from today.
:38:11. > :38:16.The Chancellor tells us it will boost the economy by �250 million.
:38:16. > :38:24.We will start for the fall-out from the Bradford West by-election. Our
:38:24. > :38:31.guests are Jason McCartney, Mohammed Shafiq, and in Hull, we
:38:31. > :38:36.have Labour MP Alan Johnson. You campaigned in Bradford 4th --
:38:36. > :38:41.Bradford West, what message where voters Senate to Labour? I was
:38:41. > :38:45.there on Tuesday evening, and it did not feel as if it was going to
:38:45. > :38:48.be this extraordinary result. It was extraordinary in every sense of
:38:48. > :38:55.the word. We ought to be magnanimous. George Galloway and
:38:55. > :38:59.the people around him fought a magnificent campaign. We have to
:38:59. > :39:02.learn lessons. In terms of what has happened over the past week and the
:39:02. > :39:06.problems for the government, I do not think this was a seismic change.
:39:06. > :39:11.It was something which was very peculiar to that one constituency,
:39:11. > :39:15.and maybe a few others like it across the country. Alan Johnson
:39:15. > :39:20.says it was not a seismic change. This was once a target seat for the
:39:20. > :39:25.Conservatives, certainly in 2010, your vote collapsed there. You can
:39:25. > :39:31.take little comfort. This was at the end of a very bad week for the
:39:31. > :39:34.government, the Lib Dems lost their deposits -- deposit. This was
:39:34. > :39:41.supposedly a good week for Ed Miliband, if this is how it ends
:39:41. > :39:45.for him, a catastrophic loss of a seat for 30 years, I would hate to
:39:45. > :39:50.see a good week for Ed Miliband. I was there on Saturday, there were a
:39:50. > :39:54.lot of Labour voters with posters, why did they not vote Labour? There
:39:54. > :39:58.was an indication that there was some movement towards Respect. This
:39:58. > :40:02.was a perfect storm. I do not think this will be repeated again. It was
:40:02. > :40:05.a combination of rhetoric and personality of George Galloway
:40:05. > :40:10.engaging with people, which he did very well, and dissatisfaction with
:40:10. > :40:16.the main parties which we have all accepted. Mohammed Shafiq, you have
:40:16. > :40:22.followed his campaign, what was his success? This was a political
:40:22. > :40:25.tsunami. Three major political parties to come knocking. George
:40:25. > :40:32.Galloway connected with young people, I saw young people who have
:40:32. > :40:35.no interest with politics, they will not interested in voting in X
:40:35. > :40:44.Factor and Britain's Got Talent, but he inspired these young people.
:40:44. > :40:49.There was an irritants -- arrogance in the Labour campaign, in round
:40:49. > :40:59.can't refuse to give access -- come on to the Muslim television channel
:40:59. > :41:00.
:41:00. > :41:04.i it work for. During the count, at 10:40pm, they were telling us that
:41:04. > :41:10.Labour had won it. There was an arrogance that they had kept this
:41:10. > :41:16.for 30 years, and they were given a bloody nose. Let's go to Len Tingle
:41:16. > :41:18.at Galloway campaign headquarters. This office, a solicitor's office
:41:18. > :41:22.in the centre of Bradford, thousands of people passed through
:41:22. > :41:26.the doors in the last few weeks. This was the headquarters of a
:41:26. > :41:29.successful campaign that was in many respects I did not expect.
:41:29. > :41:35.With me are some campaigners who have been hearing what has been
:41:35. > :41:39.said in the studio. What is your reaction? If this is not a seismic
:41:39. > :41:46.change, I do not know what is. We have replies so many people who are
:41:46. > :41:49.first-time activists because the main stream candidates were very
:41:49. > :41:53.week. They did not address the needs of the people, the City has
:41:53. > :41:57.been failing for a long time. suggestion from Labour was that
:41:57. > :42:01.this was a one-off. I don't believe that. I think people have come
:42:01. > :42:05.together and are interested in making a change. There were a lot
:42:05. > :42:09.of women involved in the campaign, older people and young people. They
:42:09. > :42:13.all had an agenda, they were all working as one and making plans to
:42:13. > :42:18.move our agendas forward. A lot of recognition of the Galloway name
:42:18. > :42:22.among younger people, I notice that. He is also recognised amongst older
:42:22. > :42:27.people as well. He speaks the truth, and many people do not like the
:42:27. > :42:32.truth. You have got your MP, thumping great majority, where you
:42:32. > :42:36.go from here? I think Mr Galloway will do a great deal for this city.
:42:36. > :42:41.We have needed someone you, someone with a strong voice, someone who
:42:41. > :42:47.can turn this city around and stop it sinking -- at we needed someone
:42:47. > :42:52.new. But he is only one MP out of 650, can one man makes such a
:42:52. > :42:56.different? Maybe there will be more MPs in the future. Maybe we will
:42:56. > :43:00.have Respect councillors in our council in five weeks. Mr Galloway
:43:00. > :43:05.has already said that candidates will be fielded in all walks. I
:43:05. > :43:09.think a change can be made. Local government elections on the way,
:43:09. > :43:14.what you see more candidates? Definitely. I think Respect is
:43:14. > :43:19.growing from strength to strength. The media is focusing on our party,
:43:19. > :43:24.what we stand for is what people want. We must leave it there, I'm
:43:24. > :43:29.afraid. From here at Gallery headquarters, let's now look --
:43:29. > :43:33.Galloway headquarters, let's look at what happened on the night.
:43:33. > :43:37.The polls shut at 10pm. The first ballot boxes started arriving at
:43:37. > :43:43.the count. Even as late as this, Labour was convinced it would
:43:43. > :43:47.retain a seat it has held for 38 years. Within minutes, the doubts
:43:47. > :43:51.were beginning to set him. The first indications that we are
:43:51. > :43:58.hearing is that postal ballots, and there were quite a few here, 10,000
:43:58. > :44:02.people applied, that 10,000 at -- but postal ballots are fifty-fifty
:44:02. > :44:08.between Labour and George Galloway. With his loud, high-profile
:44:08. > :44:11.campaign, George Galloway had been expected to beat Labour, but only
:44:11. > :44:14.in the inner city areas of the constituency, where his absolute
:44:14. > :44:18.opposition to the war in Afghanistan struck a chord with the
:44:18. > :44:23.largely Asian Muslim population. Labour expected to catch up and
:44:23. > :44:29.overtake when ballot boxes from other areas came in. After an hour
:44:29. > :44:33.of them arriving, it was clear that the expected Labour vote simply was
:44:33. > :44:37.not there. By midnight, Liberal Democrats, who finished up losing
:44:37. > :44:41.their deposit on the night, were also well aware of what was
:44:41. > :44:44.happening with the current. Not so much an election, more than a
:44:44. > :44:49.punishment that has been meted out on the Labour Party. The message we
:44:49. > :44:53.ran with in Bradford East in the last general election was that
:44:53. > :44:56.Labour has led to down. Clearly that is a strong feeling within the
:44:56. > :45:02.Bradford West constituency, and they have used George to send a
:45:02. > :45:06.message to Labour. Glum faced Labour supporters found their 6000
:45:06. > :45:12.lead from the general-election shattered. Conservatives put it
:45:12. > :45:17.down to third, shed 10,000 votes. Enter George Galloway. At around
:45:17. > :45:21.1am, with around two hours before the result was officially declared,
:45:21. > :45:28.it was so clear he would win, he arrived and was giving victory
:45:28. > :45:33.interviews. It is a tidal wave, actually. It has swept Labour away,
:45:33. > :45:37.the other parties away. And the reasons are basic. And I warned
:45:37. > :45:44.against them. Over and over again, whilst I was a Labour member of
:45:44. > :45:51.party -- parliament. By 3:30am, George Galloway it was being
:45:51. > :45:57.hoisted shoulder-high by supporters. Now as the new MP for Bradford West.
:45:57. > :46:00.With me is Mohammed Ayub, who runs the solicitors' practice. You
:46:00. > :46:04.really put your money where your mouth was, you backed Georgia
:46:04. > :46:11.Galloway, why did he do that's but is a very good question and that
:46:11. > :46:13.has no one asked. We have participated be simply because we
:46:13. > :46:18.know and believe that George Galloway has a strong voice in
:46:18. > :46:23.human rights, but is an area we specialise in. You just did not
:46:23. > :46:27.just back him by giving him your building, you got a mobile
:46:27. > :46:33.advertising hoarding, and all sorts of stuff for two weeks. That is a
:46:33. > :46:37.lot for local business 4 yours to do. It was quite easy to do because
:46:37. > :46:42.we believe in George Galloway's campaign. And quite rightly, we put
:46:42. > :46:46.our money where our mouth was. George Galloway himself, there is
:46:46. > :46:50.steam come out of his is when you say to him, you went for the Muslim
:46:50. > :46:56.vote. What you are saying is, you prime purpose here was because of
:46:56. > :47:02.his credentials as the man who was the anti-war candidate. Absolutely
:47:02. > :47:06.right. We believed in these credentials, and also, I felt, he
:47:06. > :47:10.inspired us after speaking to him at his campaign team. It is pretty
:47:10. > :47:15.bleak the reason why so many people came together. He has the ability -
:47:15. > :47:20.- that is principally the reason. He has the ability to inspire.
:47:20. > :47:25.you surprised? Not at all, I thought we would be miserable
:47:25. > :47:30.losers or it would be a landslide. That is it from Galloway HQ. Back
:47:31. > :47:34.to you in the studio. Let me get back to Alan Johnson in
:47:34. > :47:38.Hull. How much will George Galloway's victory increase the
:47:38. > :47:42.pressure on Ed Miliband's leadership of your party? I don't
:47:42. > :47:46.think it had anything to do with Ed Miliband. You heard from the
:47:46. > :47:50.solicitor, he was the anti-war candidate. It was a one-off. George
:47:51. > :47:55.Galloway is apparently a devout Muslim, which is news to ask who
:47:55. > :47:59.were with him in the Labour Party. This is a one-off. They cannot
:47:59. > :48:05.replicate George Galloway. Just has his victory in Tower Hamlets did
:48:05. > :48:09.not lead to an increase in Respect MPs, there was a minor increase in
:48:09. > :48:13.local government and then it faded away when George Galloway left.
:48:13. > :48:17.This was a one-off, it has nothing to do with Ed Miliband. Ed has said
:48:17. > :48:21.it is his responsibility, there are lessons to be learnt, but let's
:48:21. > :48:25.move on to the big issues of the last week, which is, if you set it
:48:25. > :48:30.to music, it would be called Send In the clowns. Is it time to move
:48:30. > :48:34.on, Jason McCartney? We are moving on already. Conservative MPs across
:48:34. > :48:40.the region have been working hard throughout the Easter break already,
:48:40. > :48:50.I was out and about in my constituency on Friday. Opening a
:48:50. > :48:50.
:48:50. > :48:54.new house,... You have done a mine of pasta, it is time to move on? --
:48:54. > :48:57.than your manifesto. It is about finding jobs for young people,
:48:57. > :49:03.training, transport infrastructure, these other things that we have
:49:03. > :49:08.been judged on -- we will be judged on in 2015. It seems to me that the
:49:08. > :49:14.campaign was fought a long the issues of the wars in Afghanistan
:49:14. > :49:19.and Iraq, which was 10 years ago. Alan's answer -- answer gives you
:49:19. > :49:23.the arrogance of the Labour Party. They tried to belittle his victory.
:49:23. > :49:29.This was a political tsunami, and the Labour Party are trying to
:49:29. > :49:36.belittle George Galloway. I gave him credit. The Labour Party have
:49:37. > :49:40.do give him respect, Labour was coming up for his victory parade.
:49:40. > :49:46.All political parties have a duty to respect -- reflect on this
:49:47. > :49:52.rather than making cheap political points at the end of George
:49:52. > :49:57.Galloway. This is a real hammer blow to a party, isn't it? We have
:49:57. > :50:01.to be magnanimous about this. This was an extraordinary victory by
:50:01. > :50:05.George Galloway. He has tremendous -- tremendous powers of oratory.
:50:05. > :50:13.Having said all that, is it indicative of a sea-change in
:50:13. > :50:18.British politics? Of course is is is not. George Galloway came into
:50:18. > :50:23.politics by beating Roy Jenkins in Glasgow it invited 87, and Roy
:50:23. > :50:28.Jenkins winning in Glasgow, that was the SDP as their high point in
:50:28. > :50:35.the early 1980s. George Galloway knows how these things fizzled out
:50:35. > :50:38.if it is just a one-off by-election result, and this was a one-off.
:50:38. > :50:42.Will George Galloway be a welcome addition to the House of Commons?
:50:42. > :50:48.It is often said there are not many characters in politics nowadays.
:50:48. > :50:51.have got lots of good characters on my side, Alan is coming with a real
:50:52. > :50:55.life background, he is a good character. I hope he is going to be
:50:55. > :50:59.a good MP for Bradford. The people of Bradford deserve a good Member
:50:59. > :51:02.of Parliament. I wonder how many of those who voted for number two on
:51:02. > :51:07.the ballot paper, not even knowing the name of the candidate, know
:51:07. > :51:11.that the last time he was in Parliament, he only attended 8% of
:51:11. > :51:17.the vote. I hope he will be a good voice for Bradford, but I fear may
:51:17. > :51:22.be not foot. How much can he do for Bradford? In his victory tweet, he
:51:22. > :51:26.said long-leg -- long live Iraq, long live Palestine. He has got his
:51:26. > :51:32.eye on bigger issues. Those issues resonate with young Muslims in
:51:32. > :51:36.Bradford. You look at the legal -- illegal war in Iraq, started well
:51:36. > :51:39.by Labour and encouraged by Conservatives, and the issue of
:51:39. > :51:43.Afghanistan. We have seen brave men and women in our army being killed
:51:43. > :51:47.by the Taliban in Afghanistan, when there is no chance of success and
:51:47. > :51:54.people want to bring the troops back home. There is the injustice
:51:54. > :52:02.of Palestine. On all these issues, George Gallery resonate with the
:52:02. > :52:06.public. He was not a Muslim candidate, he was the Labour
:52:06. > :52:11.candidate saying, vote for me because I am a Muslim. But George
:52:11. > :52:19.Galloway was winning in the white areas, I was there looking at the
:52:19. > :52:22.count in those areas. For many years, drivers to cross to
:52:22. > :52:26.the Humber have paid the highest bridge tolls in the country but
:52:26. > :52:31.from today, told charges on the Humber Bridge will be reduced in a
:52:31. > :52:34.move the government claims will boost the regional economy by �250
:52:34. > :52:38.million. It was the moment many motorists
:52:38. > :52:45.have been waiting for. On the stroke of midnight, these bikers
:52:45. > :52:49.took part in a celebratory crossing of the Humber. For the first time
:52:50. > :52:54.in the bridge's 31 year history, there is now no charge for
:52:54. > :53:00.motorcycles. I think it feels quite good. It would be lovely if we were
:53:00. > :53:05.down hit celebrating that all the polls had gone. I also put H G Bs
:53:05. > :53:08.across this bridge quite regularly, so it would nice to think that all
:53:08. > :53:13.the tolls would go eventually. But for bikes it is fantastic. Adding
:53:13. > :53:18.the cost of going over the bridge to the fuel has been barely
:53:18. > :53:24.prohibitive for a few people on low wages. It is good news. Drivers
:53:24. > :53:30.were paying �3 each weight to use the Humber Bridge. That will now be
:53:30. > :53:33.halved to one pound 50 each way. The high price of bridge tolls on
:53:34. > :53:39.the Humber are a legacy from the spiralling construction costs of
:53:39. > :53:45.the 1970s. By the time the bridge opened in 1981, it was heavily in
:53:45. > :53:51.debt. Last year, the Chancellor agreed to write down almost half of
:53:51. > :53:56.the remaining debt, which stood at �330 million. In many ways,
:53:56. > :54:02.reducing Humber Bridge tolls in a gamble for the government. It will
:54:02. > :54:05.cost �150 million in tax payer's money. But the Chancellor believes
:54:06. > :54:10.the long-term impact on the regional economy will be huge.
:54:10. > :54:15.evidence we have got is that the cut in the tolls or actually boost
:54:15. > :54:19.the local economy but -- by around �250 million. It is really good for
:54:19. > :54:24.jobs and people looking for work, they will be able to find work on
:54:24. > :54:29.the other side of the estuary. exclusive poll commissioned by the
:54:29. > :54:35.BBC asked a sample of 500 people which area would benefit most from
:54:35. > :54:40.Lower Bridge tolls. 31% said Hull. Far more than north and north-east
:54:40. > :54:46.Lincolnshire, and the East Riding. A figure that may well boost
:54:46. > :54:49.visitor numbers to Hull's tourist attractions. I think it'll be great
:54:49. > :54:53.for both sides of the river. People from the law -- north bank will be
:54:53. > :54:57.going to Lincolnshire to seek the attractions they have and vice
:54:57. > :55:03.versa. It can only be good for the whole community. So after three
:55:03. > :55:08.decades of rising tolls, there is some relief at last on motorists
:55:08. > :55:11.who have paid a high price for us and the Humber.
:55:11. > :55:15.Alan Johnson, your constituency covers the whole north bank of the
:55:15. > :55:19.Humber where the Humber Bridge start or end, depending on your
:55:19. > :55:23.opinion. The Chancellor says it will boost the economy, do you
:55:23. > :55:28.except that figure? That is the Buchanan report that we
:55:28. > :55:31.commissioned up there and that sparked this off. Under the last
:55:31. > :55:35.government. This government has taken it on, Justine Greening has
:55:35. > :55:40.done a tremendous job. He was a Treasury minister and then became
:55:40. > :55:44.transport Secretary of State. They recognise the power of the argument
:55:44. > :55:48.that it is like a house being divided, the kitchen being cut off
:55:48. > :55:53.from the sitting room. You cannot get the Humber estuary, realise its
:55:53. > :55:58.potential, while you have got this very high toll across from one side
:55:58. > :56:03.to the other. It has been cross- party come across Humber, and it is
:56:03. > :56:06.a day for celebration. An exclusive poll for the BBC suggests that Hull
:56:06. > :56:13.will benefit more than northern England should. The you accept
:56:13. > :56:16.that? I do not in the B Cannon report, the -- the Buchanan report
:56:16. > :56:22.suggested it would be the other way round. But who cares, it is the
:56:22. > :56:29.region, you have to think, the Humber, the opportunity in
:56:29. > :56:32.renewables, it seemed as look as if they are going to move their big
:56:32. > :56:39.plants in took Alexandra Dock. There is a supply chain coming, and
:56:39. > :56:44.a cluster of renewable companies, we have to think about the Humber
:56:44. > :56:52.rather run the north or south bank. A bittersweet day, the white van
:56:52. > :56:58.man pays more for his pasty but less for his tolls. This is a good
:56:58. > :57:06.example for -- of politicians working together to make their
:57:06. > :57:15.lives better for people in our part of the world. The Trans Pennine
:57:16. > :57:19.route will be electrified, yes you have got a pasty here, I have to
:57:19. > :57:26.have a pasty from breaks every week, but it is from Greg, my local