11/11/2012 Sunday Politics Yorkshire and Lincolnshire

We asked the former Prime Minister Tony Blair whether he thinks 24 are

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 2143 seconds

were drinking has stretched police Welcome to Sunday Politics. Coming

up: We are four days away from the police commissioner elections. We

speak to Tony Blair as his policy of 24-hour drinking left a bitter

legacy for the forces of law and order. We will be finding out how

the candidates hoping to become North Yorkshire's police and crime

commissioner intend to crack down on drunken behaviour on our streets.

Let us say hello to a guest. Stewart Andrew is the Conservative

MP for Pudsey. In Sheffield is Paul Blomfield. Stewart and true, many

Tories complained when a Labour introduced round-the-clock drinking

but we have a massive problem with binge drinking, don't we? We do.

There is a lot of work going on to tackle that. In the Police Bill

that came through Parliament, the fact we can charge those people

beyond midnight -- we can charge licences beyond midnight is

important. But it is a problem. Paul Blomfield, was that Labour's

biggest mistake, introducing 24- hour drinking? A I do not think so.

We were trying to recognise there is a problem with binge drinking

but to have a more mature attitude to the way we enable people to lead

their lives. The police I talk to do not see it as a difficulty.

There are problems associated with venues turning out. There are

benefits with venues turning out a different times. There is not the

same concentration. I do not think you can lay the problems of

drinking at the doors of licensing changes. Let us hear from Tony

Blair. Remember him? The former Prime Minister came to Hull on

Friday where John Prescott is bidding to become police and crime

commissioner. I caught up with Tony Blair and asked him whether he had

thought about introducing police and crime commissioners during his

time in Downing Street. No, we did not think about it. I was in favour

of elected mayors. The question is, policing is really important and we

need to give them support. They do a fantastic job. They are under

pressure. Crime is such an important issue for people. You

have the position of police and crime commissioner. But if I was

choosing someone, the qualities you look for our people who stand up

for the local area, if necessary stand up to central government, and

to get the crime issue and realise it is the most vulnerable people

that suffer the most from crime. They will tackle issues such as

anti-social behaviour and realise you need tough issues. They need to

believe in it and believe in representing people and their

anxieties. John Prescott has suggested Labour's policy of 24-

hour drinking has made life harder for the police. Do you accept your

cafe culture when it comes to that liberalisation of the drinking laws

has not worked? I think there are many reasons for this. I took the

view, when I was in office, if other places in Europe could do it,

we could. There is a whole range of things here. The most important

thing, one advantage of this system is it will allow decision-making to

come closer to the local people. The PCC will have a significant say

in how policing is done and the relationship is there between pubs

and clubs and violence and drugs and all these things. As a PCC, he

will have the opportunity to study what is going to work locally and

make decisions locally with the local police force. In the end, I

think the most important thing, if you have a PCC, is someone who

understands local communities and is prepared to fight crime and

stand up for the interests of local people. If you could turn back the

clock, would you have changed the law? It is a debate in the light of

experience. That is a debate that is in the past. Thursday's

elections, too difficult time for Labour in Yorkshire. Denis MacShane

has just been forced to step down because of his expenses. Trust in

politicians right now is at a pretty low ebb. Would you agree?

think politics is a difficult business. It is more difficult than

people understand. The vast majority of MPs and local

councillors... I am not making a point about the Labour Party, I am

talking about any political party. Most of them and the people I knew

were committed to public service. You will get, from time to time,

problems. But it would be unfair to cast that over all politics and

politicians. Thank you. That was Tony Blair. You might remember him.

Stuart Andrew, what do you make of that? He did not say a great deal.

For the people of East Yorkshire, I think they have the prospect of

John Prescott as one of their candidates. He is being supported

by Tony Blair. Thank goodness they have other good candidates. Matthew

grave is a good candidate. What the police and crime commissioners will

do is bring the link between the police and the community. That is

important. When I see constituents talking about crime, they want to

see the police on the street understanding the neighbourhood. In

West Yorkshire, we are lucky because we have a good

neighbourhood policing network. Many of the police officers in my

constituency, I know them well. They are out and about and meeting

residents. Paul Blomfield, it is interesting Tony Blair chose not to

defend 24-hour drinking. I think the point he was making his it is

not central to the debate about the drinking culture. I would like to

comment on that Stuart Andrew's comments about the elections. These

are pointless elections. We are opposed to them. I have been out

campaigning for candidates in South Yorkshire. But most people are not

interested. Most people would rather the money being spent on

these was actually going to support frontline policing. The Government

has got this very wrong. We should have stuck with the police are

authority instead of going down this cul-de-sac. BCCI elections are

difficult to justify in the current climate. -- PCC elections. Are I am

not sure. Having people who will respond to their constituents about

the priorities for policing in their area, this is a way to do it.

I accept this election is proving quite difficult to get people

engaged. The thought of them going out to vote is not going to be easy.

I accept that. The next election will... Police -- people will have

seen what a PCC can do and they will vote. We need to judge the

people who get elected in November on how they perform. People should

look at what the candidates are offering and understand what it is

they will bring to the community. If Labour are so opposed to the

idea, what is your advice to Labour voters? Should they spoil their

ballot papers as a protest? They should vote for Labour candidates.

Just because we are opposed to the posts as a distraction and a waste

of money, this is in addition to 20% cuts, just because we are

opposed does not mean we will not fight to win. We have some

excellent candidates who will focus on the issues. Get out there, do

vote, however reluctant you are to be participating in the election

for a post which none of us support. I would remind Stuart Andrew when

he talks about connection between the police and local communities,

we have that through police laboratories. They are members

drawn from all walks of life across regions. -- police authorities. It

is a mistake. The problems caused by alcohol related incidents are a

big talking point for the candidates hoping to become North

Yorkshire's police and crime commissioner. Nick Morris has been

out onto the streets of York where drunken behaviour put pressure on

police resources. It is one of the most popular

tourist destinations in all of Europe. Some people say once it

gets dark, the character of the city changes. Crime here is

relatively low, both in York and North Yorkshire but almost half of

incidents reported to the belief -- reported to the police are to do

with anti-social behaviour. York has become something of a mecca for

stag do's and hen parties. It brings in vital money to the city.

With that, comes problems like shouting and swearing and urinating

in the street. Charities and organisations patrol York at night

over the weekend to make sure people who have had too much to

drink get vital assistance. That could be flip-flops for women in

high heels or a bottle of water. I have been to ask people who live

here if they fancy coming out for a drink after dark. It is boisterous

behaviour. But it would be a shame if it impacted on up tourism.

mental on a Friday night. What about on the street Bobby's? A bit

more policing. That is what local people have been telling me. Both

candidates in North Yorkshire are here this evening. We will start

with Julia Mulligan. Anti-social behaviour, it is at the top of your

manifesto. How big a problem is it? About half of crime here is anti-

social behaviour. It is not limited to York. If you look at the

statistics in first, they are similar. It is a problem across

North Yorkshire. A Ruth Potter, you agree with Julia. Anti-social

behaviour is a problem. It is number two on your manifesto. How

much can you do? We have to campaign for communities and make

sure the neighbourhood policing model, the best model for dealing

with crime and anti-social behaviour, you have problem-solving

at the most local level, you can concentrate on who the offenders

are, on supporting the victims, and you can look at the location where

things are happening and put in place measures to stop it from

happening in the future. I think people deserve a rapid response.

That is what I want to see people getting. Sometimes it will be less

than 24 hours. Other times, it might be longer. You have been

clear in your campaign talks of cuts to North Yorkshire Police are

scaremongering but... We have just heard this is a man of power

intensive job tackling anti-social behaviour. Are the resources

available to do that. North Yorkshire police are responding

well to the circumstances. It does nobody any good to get into a

debate, a party political debate, about cuts. I want to bring in new

parish constables. These are auspicious -- special constables

based in towns and villages. They will be a visible deterrent for

anti- social behaviour. They will have that local intelligence that

is so important to solving anti- social behaviour problems. What

about support for people who have been affected by drugs and alcohol?

This is the most rural county in England, the costs of demonstrating

support will be higher. -- administrating support. I think

that is where the partnerships come in and the drug and alcohol teams.

The issue will be whether the funding from the Government remains

the same. If that funding remains the same, that will be pushed

through to the groups who need that funding to provide the service. If

we do not get that money, we will really have to think very hard.

That will be another cut by this Government. That final point to

Julia Mulligan again. It does come back to cuts. Is the money going to

be there? Is that going to be wasted on administration? I it was

in a facility in Norton which looked after people with mental

health problems. A lot of those were alcohol and drug related.

They're optimistic for the future. They feel resources coming into

projects and facilities that really work a great. Dubai was the IPCC, I

would keep doing that. -- if I it was that PCC. For a full list of

the candidates, you can go to bbc.co.uk/policeelections. Stewart

Andrew, North Yorkshire, unique, two female candidates. There are

not many women in this race? In a our party, nearly half of them are

women. We have done very well. That is a wider debate about who stands

for election. What is important is what the people are putting forward.

Julia hit the nail on ahead. She is proposing an anti-social behaviour

task force. That is what people want to hear about, not whether

Julia is a man or a woman. That work, the idea of bringing in a

parish police officer, will be hugely important to the widespread

different communities in North Yorkshire. Paul Blomfield, Labour,

why are there not more female standing for your party? I agree

with Stewart. We want more women involved. -- with Stuart Andrew.

The issue is what is happening to our police forces. You cannot say,

let us not have a party political debate about cuts because that is

at the heart of the difference between Labour and the

Conservatives. We would not be cutting at this pace to the step

and undermining the police force in the way it -- in the way is

happening. We will lose 6,000 police officers. People want more

police at the front line. It is disingenuous to say they would have

no cuts a tall. Their own spokesman before the election could not

promise there would be no cuts to the police force. Where are the

savings coming from? They never answer this. The police inspector's

own report said policing in the austerity, they are managing to do

it and managing to do it well. Let us leave the number-crunching.

is the ballot paper people will be using on Thursday. It is a bit

different from other elections. You can put a first and second-choice

on a that a ballot paper. If the candidate does not get 50% of the

first ballot, the second preference votes are taken into account. Do

people understand it? We went out onto the streets to find out.

Do you know you will get a second choice? No. I thought it was one

vote. You would be voting under the supplementary voting system. Never

heard of a? A never. Have you seen that before? No. It is one choice.

Isn't it? I would not vote any way. I am going to vote. Simply because

of your programme. We did not pay him to say that! Do people

understand the system? It's is quite straightforward, you have a

second choice. I have already cast my vote by post. I have only used

one of my choices because I want to see Labour win in South Yorkshire.

Can I returned to Stuart Andrew's point? I am tired of the accusation

that we do not say where we would make cuts. In policing, we would do

it at 12%, about half of the cuts are Conservatives are doing. That

level of cuts is managing without damaging the frontline policing.

That is the difference between us and the Conservatives. Stu what

Andrew, back to the voting system. -- Stuart Andrew. It could throw up

with results? It could. My preference is first past the post.

Whoever gets the most votes should be elected. We should not have gone

for that voting system. Everybody understands you choose who you want

as your candidate, you vote for that person and the person with the

most votes wins. This is the system we are using. I will do the same as

Paul Blomfield and have one vote. Here is the round-up.

Under starter's orders. Labour asked the Speaker to issue the writ

for the by-election. It will be held in two and a half weeks' time.

This is concerning the Rotherham. It is about Denis MacShane. Police

say they will be taking a fresh look at whether Denis MacShane's

fraud broke the law as well as House of Commons' rules. There will

be plenty to campaign about. This local pit has been mothballed.

Kevin Barron says there is no immediate alternative. Geological

problems were around when I worked down there. The work force will be

the first people to tell you it is unsafe. Another report saying the

decision to stop child heart surgery in Leeds was wrong. This

from the region's local councils following a public inquiry in the

summer. What are the chances of saving

children hard's surgery in Leeds? get optimistic. -- children hard's

surgery. It is now in an independent panel and that is good.

They can check everything has been done correctly. We must make a note

that Bristol has now been found to be unsafe in terms of the level of

staff. I think this throws the whole review into chaos. We have

got to stop it. We have got to carry on keeping our excellent

heart surgery unit. That is what the parents and patients want.

let us talk about Rotherham and the by-election. How will you get

Labour Party voters out when the last bloke they trusted their vote

to was on the fiddle? Denis MacShane's activities were

disgraceful. They discredit everybody in politics. It is right

the police should look to see if there is a case to be brought

because there cannot be one rule for politicians and another rule

for everybody else. Having said that, the rules are now have a --

are now more robust. This could not happen again. That is great news.

In terms of Rotherham, people will be motivated to vote because they

are deeply angry with the way this government is treating people and

treating people in the north in particular. When you look at the