:00:25. > :01:59.And freshly showered from the Great North Run and looking as fresh as
:01:59. > :02:10.daisies, the best and brightest Janan Ganesh, Helen Lewis and Iain
:02:10. > :02:16.Now, their leader is our Deputy Prime Minister. They are the junior
:02:16. > :02:19.government. They like the colour yellow and they have not won a
:02:19. > :02:21.general election since dinosaurs walked the earth. Now they are
:02:21. > :02:25.behind UKIP in the polls, so as walked the earth. Now they are
:02:25. > :02:32.party gathers for its annual bash this year in Glasgow, what is on
:02:32. > :02:37.their mind? Who are the people gathering at the Clyde this weekend?
:02:37. > :02:42.their mind? Who are the people Before they started drinking, we
:02:42. > :02:51.councillors in England and Wales, comrade. The first question we asked
:02:51. > :02:54.was, if the next election results in a hung parliament, which team would
:02:54. > :02:57.you rather go into coalition with, the Reds or the blues? Lib Dem
:02:57. > :03:07.councillors said Labour, two to the Reds or the blues? Lib Dem
:03:07. > :03:17.Tories or Labour? It is not for the Reds or the blues? Lib Dem
:03:17. > :03:22.say. We will decide depending on the Reds or the blues? Lib Dem
:03:22. > :03:35.is on the table. Who would you rather play table football against?
:03:35. > :03:51.because I am winning. So in the winning 's which ones are heading
:03:51. > :04:01.popular policy was a mansion tax on house is worth more than £2 million,
:04:01. > :04:04.popular policy was a mansion tax on councillors. The next most popular
:04:04. > :04:09.policy was scrapping the Trident nuclear deterrent, supported by
:04:09. > :04:13.policy was scrapping the Trident of councillors. Then there was the
:04:13. > :04:17.reinstatement of the 50p top rate of income tax. 70% of councillors like
:04:17. > :04:21.the look of that. When it came to the idea of banning the burka in
:04:21. > :04:27.public places like schools and airports, 45% of councillors were in
:04:27. > :04:33.favour. Finally, a ban on topless Page three model is won the support
:04:33. > :04:41.of 33% of councillors. Why is it so popular, the idea of a mansion tax?
:04:41. > :04:45.It is a much fairer tax. We know there are people out there with
:04:46. > :04:53.It is a much fairer tax. We know expensive houses. Which of these is
:04:53. > :04:58.Trident. The cold war ended in 1989. Another one was the idea of
:04:58. > :05:05.banning the burka in public places. whatever they like. If they want to
:05:05. > :05:13.banning the burka in public places. wear the birth or a kilt or if they
:05:13. > :05:20.anything. We are the party of jobs. Thank you. Last night, a fully
:05:20. > :05:24.clothed Nick Clegg rallied his troops, but if he was not around,
:05:24. > :05:29.who would Lib Dem councillors want instead? Business Secretary Vince
:05:29. > :05:36.Cable was most popular, with a third of the votes. In second place, the
:05:36. > :05:42.party's president, Tim Farron, with 27%. 10% went to Danny Alexander,
:05:42. > :05:47.while the business minister Joe Swinson received 7%. The Energy
:05:47. > :05:55.Secretary Ed Davey scooped 6%, and in last place, Steve Webb, the
:05:55. > :05:59.pensions minister, who got 5%. If any of these councillors want to
:05:59. > :06:08.talk to me about it, I would be delighted to hear from them. Is
:06:08. > :06:14.talk to me about it, I would be certainly isn't. What do you think
:06:15. > :06:17.contenders. But our survey is not the only one that has got tongues
:06:17. > :06:22.wagging in Glasgow, because the the only one that has got tongues
:06:22. > :06:30.the party, no matter what they do. Dem leadership have commissioned
:06:30. > :06:36.the party, no matter what they do. Also meeting here this weekend,
:06:36. > :06:38.the party, no matter what they do. Democrats like to think they have
:06:38. > :06:46.got just as much va-va-voom, even if a big chunk of the country doesn't.
:06:46. > :06:57.Add, back in his hometown. So, the Much of their party thinks they
:06:57. > :06:58.Add, back in his hometown. So, the moving in the wrong direction.
:06:58. > :07:01.Earlier, I spoke to former party moving in the wrong direction.
:07:01. > :07:05.leader Paddy Ashdown. He has been put in charge of heading up the
:07:05. > :07:10.leader Paddy Ashdown. He has been election campaign. I asked him if
:07:10. > :07:16.the mood in Glasgow was grim. No. In many ways, as you know, Tory old
:07:16. > :07:20.commentator that you are just as I am a hoary old member at the other
:07:20. > :07:30.end of the camera, we have been midterm of a government, especially
:07:30. > :07:34.when you are in government and the country is going for in a deep
:07:34. > :07:38.economic crisis, has almost no relevance to where you might be
:07:38. > :07:42.economic crisis, has almost no the nipple come to consider how
:07:42. > :07:42.economic crisis, has almost no will vote in 600 days time -- when
:07:42. > :07:47.the people come to consider how will vote in 600 days time -- when
:07:47. > :07:52.will vote. We do not dismiss polls, but they are a snapshot of what
:07:52. > :07:55.will vote. We do not dismiss polls, indication of where we will be.
:07:55. > :07:56.will vote. We do not dismiss polls, guess is, for what it is worth,
:07:56. > :07:57.will vote. We do not dismiss polls, as we come to the election, the
:07:57. > :08:02.public will be in a very serious, as we come to the election, the
:08:02. > :08:05.public will be in a very serious, probably frightened mood. Their
:08:05. > :08:10.public will be in a very serious, thoughts will be, who maintains
:08:10. > :08:13.public will be in a very serious, job, makes sure I don't have to
:08:13. > :08:18.public will be in a very serious, to higher mortgage? The coalition
:08:18. > :08:22.has delivered not only the required policies to make Britain's economy
:08:22. > :08:28.prosperous, but also its society fair. That is what people will want
:08:28. > :08:29.to see. I think coalition politics are here to stay and we have a role
:08:29. > :08:34.to play in it. But you are in a are here to stay and we have a role
:08:34. > :08:38.mood this morning. You tweeted that you were not happy with how the
:08:38. > :08:45.Observer newspaper handled your there anything we can do to help?
:08:45. > :08:53.There is probably something they arguments with the interview. The
:08:53. > :08:58.headline they chose to put on it late last night was outrageous,
:08:58. > :09:03.misrepresentative and in one case in Something about Ashdown wants a
:09:03. > :09:08.coalition with the Tories, or at Something about Ashdown wants a
:09:08. > :09:13.least they gave that in for us Something about Ashdown wants a
:09:13. > :09:21.inference. Let me make this point. election. I am in charge of the
:09:21. > :09:25.campaign. Any journalist who in these next two years says that any
:09:25. > :09:29.Liberal Democrat prefers anything else in terms of the outcome of
:09:29. > :09:32.Liberal Democrat prefers anything coalition but the result of the
:09:32. > :09:33.ballot box dictating that outcome, that any prefer one side to another
:09:33. > :09:45.in the votes, will get a bloody that any prefer one side to another
:09:45. > :10:07.time from me, no matter who they are. We take the warning. A survey
:10:07. > :10:12.of Lib Dem councillors shows that in coalition with the Tories. That
:10:12. > :10:14.of Lib Dem councillors shows that in clear sign that your activists want
:10:14. > :10:17.a change of direction. I don't think it is news that as a left-wing
:10:17. > :10:20.party, we find it more congenial with those on the left wing, but
:10:20. > :10:24.that is not the issue. You saw it election. We are servants of the
:10:24. > :10:26.ballot box. We do watch the British people require us to do to provide a
:10:26. > :10:30.of our country. I am sure you have stable government in the interests
:10:30. > :10:33.of our country. I am sure you have got the point by now. I have fought
:10:33. > :10:39.the Tories all my life. But when responsibility to amend the economic
:10:39. > :10:45.crisis, was this right for the determine who are going to be in any
:10:45. > :10:53.coalition, should there be one, determine who are going to be in any
:10:53. > :10:58.voters and nobody else. It is not about what we like. I understand
:10:59. > :11:06.that. But your own internal polls leadership are not taking the party
:11:06. > :11:09.with them on that. I don't think that is true. Nick Clegg has done
:11:09. > :11:15.what no other party leader has done. that is true. Nick Clegg has done
:11:15. > :11:18.the party, and they voted for it. So it is not true to say that members
:11:18. > :11:24.different direction. I think we it is not true to say that members
:11:24. > :11:28.extraordinarily united. I did not expect them to be so under these
:11:28. > :11:33.pressures, but they have surprised me and made me joyful at the same
:11:33. > :11:43.time. The party has done what it done in local government for a long
:11:43. > :11:51.time. We may have our private likes and dislikes, but the thing that
:11:51. > :11:57.coalition is the ballot box. You have said that three times. I can
:11:57. > :12:01.say it again if you like. Please don't! What if your party votes
:12:01. > :12:06.say it again if you like. Please reinstate tuition fees as party
:12:06. > :12:11.policy afternoon? We will have to listen to that and act accordingly.
:12:11. > :12:15.You must listen to the voice of listen to that and act accordingly.
:12:15. > :12:23.party and take it into account in what you do. I am always quite
:12:23. > :12:25.answering hypothetical questions. I don't think it is likely to happen,
:12:25. > :12:31.but if it did, we would have to don't think it is likely to happen,
:12:31. > :12:33.distinguished Lib Dems was that don't think it is likely to happen,
:12:33. > :12:40.your party conference voted for something, it was in the manifesto.
:12:40. > :12:41.The manifesto is taken in its final form before the party for decision.
:12:41. > :12:49.The party will express views at form before the party for decision.
:12:49. > :12:51.in my leadership, too. The manifesto form before the party for decision.
:12:51. > :12:53.is democratically agreed by the party at the time of the election,
:12:53. > :12:59.not before. The Tory conference party at the time of the election,
:12:59. > :13:02.be about how they think they have been vindicated, that austerity
:13:02. > :13:06.be about how they think they have worked, the economy is turning a
:13:06. > :13:11.corner. But Nick Clegg's conference announcements will be about plastic
:13:11. > :13:15.bags. Have you got the hang of this coalition think? Andrew, you can
:13:15. > :13:23.always be guaranteed to put things in the most discreditable form!
:13:23. > :13:25.always be guaranteed to put things is part of your charm. That was
:13:25. > :13:30.about to be a minor announcement in the middle of his speech. But it was
:13:30. > :13:33.discovered beforehand. It has not the middle of his speech. But it was
:13:33. > :13:36.discovered beforehand. It has not been very popular in terms of how it
:13:36. > :13:40.has been received, but that is not the central message. That leads
:13:41. > :13:47.has been received, but that is not to what I think is the biggest
:13:47. > :13:52.election. Isn't the biggest danger that the Tories, not you, if there
:13:52. > :14:04.is an economic recovery, they will get the credit for it? I don't think
:14:04. > :14:09.think the electorate does gratitude. The only time people cast a thank
:14:09. > :14:12.Thatcher over the sale of council houses. We could have a different
:14:12. > :14:20.discussion over whether that was a good idea. But what you have done is
:14:20. > :14:37.the underpinning for the promise of very tough economic policy. But
:14:37. > :14:39.the underpinning for the promise of you get the credit? What we have
:14:39. > :14:43.done by ourselves, which the Tories would never have done, is make sure
:14:43. > :14:48.that when the pain is felt, it is not the poor who feel it. We have
:14:48. > :14:52.seen the biggest shift of taxation, lifting the poorest in the country
:14:52. > :14:59.out of taxation, that has ever happened, including in the previous
:14:59. > :15:04.Labour government. You are presiding over the biggest squeeze on living
:15:04. > :15:05.standards in modern times. Because it is the biggest recession in
:15:05. > :15:14.modern times. When you speak to it is the biggest recession in
:15:14. > :15:18.2.5 million people who have been lifted out of taxation altogether
:15:18. > :15:31.because of the Liberal Democrats, tax cut. You may be able to make the
:15:31. > :15:35.because of the Liberal Democrats, connection, Andrew, you are a sharp
:15:35. > :15:38.economic crisis and difficulty for everybody. But it is clear that
:15:39. > :15:41.economic crisis and difficulty for the Tories had been by themselves,
:15:41. > :15:44.none of that would have happened. We have sought to shift the burden
:15:44. > :15:48.none of that would have happened. We from the poorest in this country. I
:15:48. > :15:51.am part of that. So when we go into the next election, the message will
:15:51. > :15:54.am part of that. So when we go into be that if you want to continue
:15:54. > :15:57.am part of that. So when we go into have a prosperous economy and a
:15:57. > :16:06.society, only the Liberal Democrats he likes Ed Miliband and he does not
:16:06. > :16:09.want to diss him. Can you confirm he likes Ed Miliband and he does not
:16:09. > :16:14.want to diss him. Can you confirm that there will be no dissing of Ed
:16:14. > :16:19.Miliband? It is not much my style. I've never much liked comments about
:16:19. > :16:26.the other leaders. I do not intend to make it so in the future. Can I'd
:16:26. > :16:30.finish up on Syria? You said after the Syria vote that Britain was
:16:30. > :16:35.finish up on Syria? You said after hugely diminished country. Given it
:16:35. > :16:38.both sides on a course which could now see Syria give up chemical
:16:38. > :16:43.weapons without records to military action, would you like to withdraw
:16:43. > :16:44.these remarks and admit that you should be proud and happy with what
:16:44. > :16:52.Britain has done? No. You and I should be proud and happy with what
:16:52. > :16:58.know, because we are old observers, that that would never have happened
:16:58. > :17:05.underpinning of a threat to use resigned from that. We have no part
:17:05. > :17:08.to play in the fact that Assad and Putin have moved towards peace for
:17:08. > :17:08.to play in the fact that Assad and fear of military action. We decided
:17:09. > :17:14.exactly the opposite. Why would fear of military action. We decided
:17:14. > :17:22.liked to have seen our country join in with those who are serious about
:17:23. > :17:24.upholding an international law which has restrained even than axes and
:17:24. > :17:37.left others to make sure that we talent, but instead we resigned
:17:37. > :17:42.left others to make sure that we Maxis and Stalin. But if it had
:17:42. > :17:44.left others to make sure that we would not have had the time to allow
:17:44. > :17:50.this to happen. It has avoided war. Job done, British Parliament. That
:17:50. > :17:58.would be true if it was accurate but it is not. The resolution proposed a
:17:58. > :18:01.delay, that we should wait until the inspectors came back. That time
:18:01. > :18:05.frame was absolutely nothing to inspectors came back. That time
:18:05. > :18:08.with the parliamentary vote. The vote was going to incorporate that.
:18:08. > :18:15.I do not think you can claim what vote was going to incorporate that.
:18:15. > :18:17.remember that diplomacy, which was not reinforced by the threat of
:18:17. > :18:21.military action, does not work. not reinforced by the threat of
:18:21. > :18:27.is when diplomacy runs with a grain of military action that it works.
:18:27. > :18:31.illustration of that, look at what is happening over the last two
:18:31. > :18:37.weeks. By regret to say that our country, which has always been in
:18:37. > :18:54.disengagement, had no part to play And you we would get to the Balkans
:18:55. > :19:01.eventually, and we did. His biggest challenge is if the economy is
:19:01. > :19:02.get some credit for the Lib Dems, when the Tories will want to halt it
:19:02. > :19:07.all. But his position is not to when the Tories will want to halt it
:19:07. > :19:15.the necessary axeman. That is George the chaser party, taking the edge
:19:15. > :19:21.on about the pupil premium and That is what you will hear from
:19:21. > :19:26.of the cuts. Will that work? They them, how they have taken the edge
:19:26. > :19:27.of the cuts. Will that work? They are in a pretty good position. Even
:19:27. > :19:30.if they have lost two thirds of are in a pretty good position. Even
:19:30. > :19:35.popular support, according to the polls, I do not know anyone in
:19:35. > :19:36.Westminster methinks that will be matched in their parliamentary
:19:36. > :19:40.representation. If they have 56 matched in their parliamentary
:19:40. > :19:48.now, they might lose a dozen but Strategically, they are in a better
:19:48. > :19:52.position than the reading of the polls would tell you. I think Nick
:19:53. > :19:58.Clegg's survival has been one of the stories of this Parliament. He is
:19:58. > :20:03.looking good at the comfort -- at the conference. When he was at his
:20:03. > :20:08.lowest after the AV referendum, people were saying he would survive
:20:08. > :20:12.I thought that was fanciful. Believe and lead us into 2015 and beyond and
:20:12. > :20:14.I thought that was fanciful. Believe it or not... Paddy Ashdown was
:20:14. > :20:21.wrong, you were wrong and... I wasn't. I'm underestimated how bad
:20:21. > :20:26.his rivals are. If you are Lib Dem member, however aggrieved you are
:20:26. > :20:30.with Nick Clegg, you do not think, wouldn't it be great if Christian
:20:30. > :20:34.was in charge? Nick Clegg is the best they have. -- Chris Huhne was
:20:34. > :20:40.in charge. Of course, the people do in charge. Of course, the people do
:20:40. > :20:47.government and it is a consequence of the way they vote, a different
:20:47. > :20:54.and they lose 15 seats in the next pivotal in the next government. It
:20:54. > :20:58.Possibly the most amusing outcome would be a Labour or Tory overall
:20:58. > :21:04.majority, which would be hilarious for the look on Paddy Ashdown's
:21:04. > :21:08.face. The danger is they get trapped constantly in talking about the
:21:08. > :21:16.parliament. And they are very puffed politics of coalition and of a hung
:21:16. > :21:19.parliament. And they are very puffed up and they enjoy Parliament and
:21:19. > :21:22.there is a possibility they will not be. While they are talking about the
:21:22. > :21:25.Polish and themselves, they are be. While they are talking about the
:21:25. > :21:31.talking about the issues facing be. While they are talking about the
:21:31. > :21:36.coalition. It was interesting that he said that we are a left-wing
:21:36. > :21:43.party, not a centre-left party or a centre party, but a left-wing party.
:21:43. > :21:47.I'm going to put myself in the firing line and say that there is a
:21:48. > :21:52.big split between the Tim Farron line who say they like Ed Miliband,
:21:52. > :21:55.and another one, Jeremy Browne in the Home Office saying that Labour
:21:56. > :22:04.are intellectually lazy. The risk clearly a clique around Nick Clegg
:22:05. > :22:11.who wants to be a synthetic party, but that is not where the membership
:22:11. > :22:15.who wants to be a synthetic party, activists are clearly of the left,
:22:15. > :22:21.not just the centre-left. They are very pro-immigration and they want
:22:21. > :22:25.to the centre. The something not strategy has to be to take the party
:22:25. > :22:25.to the centre. The something not happen at some stage? The poll
:22:25. > :22:29.suggests it is a left-wing party. happen at some stage? The poll
:22:29. > :22:32.Very left-wing. Other think the happen at some stage? The poll
:22:32. > :22:39.would have yielded -- would have yielded the same results before
:22:39. > :22:40.would have yielded -- would have 2010 election. This is reflected by
:22:40. > :22:42.the arithmetic. Whichever party 2010 election. This is reflected by
:22:42. > :22:44.biggest will most likely be the 2010 election. This is reflected by
:22:44. > :22:48.in coalition with the Lib Dems. 2010 election. This is reflected by
:22:48. > :23:00.Clegg's on latitude to choose is exaggerated by us. The choice is no
:23:00. > :23:03.parliamentary arithmetic. But if you remember the structure of the Lib
:23:03. > :23:14.Dems, they can tie themselves up in infighting. -- the choice is not
:23:14. > :23:17.stable. And Nick Clegg has had a good conference last year, and will
:23:17. > :23:21.have another one this year. The economy is better than it was a
:23:21. > :23:21.have another one this year. The ago. It could still go quite well
:23:21. > :23:26.for him. Yes, it is one of the ago. It could still go quite well
:23:26. > :23:30.stories of this Parliament, his survival and the way in which he has
:23:30. > :23:36.prospered. But there are a lot of campaigners, labour activists who
:23:36. > :23:40.have not forgotten what he has done in government and are determined to
:23:40. > :23:46.get him. It will be a tough year and a half. Tougher than he imagined.
:23:46. > :23:49.Now, not so long ago they were writing George Osborne's political
:23:49. > :23:54.obituary. Be on the Omni shambles budget of 2012 and a lacklustre
:23:54. > :24:03.performance of the British economy the dirt. -- the omnishambles. But
:24:03. > :24:12.things have changed. The Chancellor is saying he has been vindicated. If
:24:12. > :24:14.runway, it looks as though the British economy has taken off,
:24:14. > :24:20.quarter. Forecasts for the rest British economy has taken off,
:24:20. > :24:27.the year have been revised up words. What's more, the office for National
:24:27. > :24:32.recession never actually happened. Unemployment is down in the three
:24:32. > :24:41.months to July and the number of spasticity rate since 1997. On
:24:41. > :24:45.Monday, George Osborne said his policies were bearing fruit. We
:24:45. > :24:49.Monday, George Osborne said his our nerve when many told us to
:24:49. > :24:54.abandon our plans. As a result, thanks to the efforts and sacrifices
:24:54. > :25:00.of the British people, Britain is turning a corner. The message for
:25:00. > :25:06.his Labour critics was clear. The Chancellor thinks he was right and
:25:06. > :25:21.Good afternoon. Good afternoon.Do you accept that the economy has
:25:21. > :25:27.turned a corner? I think it is good that a stalled recovery appears
:25:27. > :25:28.turned a corner? I think it is good get this in perspective. We have had
:25:28. > :25:39.three wasted years. We have the worst economic recovery in history.
:25:39. > :25:44.programme if they feel better or worse off, compared to 2010, the
:25:44. > :25:50.majority will tell you they feel worse because, on average, wages are
:25:50. > :25:59.down by £1500 compared to May of 2010. That is the situation. The
:25:59. > :26:04.one of the things we have seen talked about, Vince Cable has been
:26:04. > :26:07.talking about this as well, is what is happening in the housing market.
:26:07. > :26:13.It seems that much of the solution to powering the recovery in the
:26:13. > :26:15.It seems that much of the solution of George Osborne lies in sorting
:26:15. > :26:18.out the housing market but the problem is, we are at risk of being
:26:18. > :26:23.another housing bubble. Because problem is, we are at risk of being
:26:23. > :26:25.research that came out this week, we know that housing in the UK is three
:26:25. > :26:29.times more expensive than in the US. know that housing in the UK is three
:26:29. > :26:31.We know that house prices are rising five times faster than wages, but we
:26:31. > :26:38.also know that the government is five times faster than wages, but we
:26:38. > :26:45.building new housing at a slower rate, the slowest rate that we have
:26:45. > :26:52.complaining about a housing bubble, isn't that like Satan complaining
:26:52. > :26:55.about seven? -- seven. We all know that we cannot go back to business
:26:55. > :27:01.as usual. We need to build a new model of growth. But the housing
:27:01. > :27:06.bubble you talk about, it is not a bubble. It might turn into one.
:27:06. > :27:07.bubble you talk about, it is not a said the risk of a bubble. It is
:27:07. > :27:14.nothing like what happened on the I said, in 2009, we had the crash
:27:14. > :27:19.and we knew we needed to reconfigure the way that our economy works.
:27:19. > :27:26.Having an economy based on crisis is rebalance the economy. We saw the
:27:26. > :27:31.unemployment statistics this week, and it is welcomed overall, that
:27:31. > :27:41.unemployment has come down. At half up. And it went down in other parts.
:27:41. > :27:48.We know that we need to rebalance our economy, so that we do not just
:27:48. > :27:52.rely on consumption, but that we grow our productive sectors. And
:27:52. > :28:00.also that we grow our exports as well. We know we have a continuing
:28:00. > :28:11.deficit. We always have a trade deficit. There was never a trade
:28:11. > :28:14.surplus under Labour. Want to come onto what you have mentioned but
:28:14. > :28:18.scheme? We have not said that we would you scrap the help to buy
:28:18. > :28:20.scheme? We have not said that we would do that. Why not if it is
:28:20. > :28:27.causing the bubble? If you let me finish, on one hand what that scheme
:28:27. > :28:33.does at the moment, at the moment it is inhalation to a new scheme but
:28:33. > :28:38.tomorrow -- next year it will be in you do not sort out the supply of
:28:38. > :28:41.housing, then that is a recipe for the problems we have seen. Our
:28:41. > :28:48.argument is build more houses. the problems we have seen. Our
:28:48. > :28:53.you will end up with rising prices. That is obvious. Labour said that
:28:54. > :28:59.government austerity would prevent the return of growth. Austerity
:28:59. > :29:00.government austerity would prevent were wrong. We never said that
:29:00. > :29:04.growth would never return. What were wrong. We never said that
:29:04. > :29:05.said was that if you went for an were wrong. We never said that
:29:05. > :29:13.overly extreme deficit reduction recovery and you would choke growth.
:29:13. > :29:17.That is what we saw for three years. If you say, look at the US economy,
:29:17. > :29:26.it has grown at three times the If you say, look at the US economy,
:29:26. > :29:28.economy has grown at twice the rate. But the British economy is growing
:29:28. > :29:33.quicker than the American or German economy is now. But over time we
:29:33. > :29:36.have not seen that happen. But it is now. That may be the case. But my
:29:36. > :29:42.point is that those three years now. That may be the case. But my
:29:42. > :29:46.people undergoing huge stress and worry. It is good that we have
:29:46. > :29:52.growth back again but the question is, what kind of growth? What we
:29:52. > :29:55.have said... I'm going to come onto that but your credibility depends on
:29:55. > :30:00.your previous analysis. And there are doubts about it. This is what
:30:00. > :30:05.you said not that long ago. In 2012. Our economy has flat lined
:30:05. > :30:33.You and the Labour Party said it had choked off growth. You were wrong.
:30:33. > :30:37.We were not wrong, because we had three years where the economy was
:30:37. > :30:41.not moving. Let's remind ourselves. Claude Osborne was predicting that
:30:41. > :30:46.the economy was going to grow by 6.9% between the start of this
:30:46. > :30:55.Parliament and now. It has grown by 1.8%. We did not say we would never
:30:55. > :30:58.have a return to growth. You never said that austerity would only
:30:58. > :31:03.temporarily delay growth. We have looked through your speeches and Ed
:31:03. > :31:08.Balls'. We can't find any reference to say this is simply delaying the
:31:09. > :31:13.recovery. You said austerity would choke off growth. If that is true,
:31:13. > :31:18.why has it returned now? Did we choke off growth. If that is true,
:31:18. > :31:26.it would choke off growth for ever? choke off growth. If that is true,
:31:26. > :31:28.We did not. You have changed your tune. I think your package at the
:31:29. > :31:33.top of this programme, to frame tune. I think your package at the
:31:33. > :31:39.around George Osborne, this is not a people's lives, and the people who
:31:39. > :31:46.deserve huge credit for the growth we are seeing are our country's
:31:46. > :31:49.businesses, who despite the tough economic times, have succeeded.
:31:49. > :32:01.businesses, who despite the tough are the ones who have powered this
:32:01. > :32:02.growth. So therefore, when the growth comes, the government has to
:32:03. > :32:08.situation Britain is in now. We growth comes, the government has to
:32:08. > :32:12.the recovery still has to reach growth comes, the government has to
:32:12. > :32:20.parts of the country, but this is the OECD annualised growth in the
:32:20. > :32:29.G-7, the world's guest economies. That is looking pretty healthy.
:32:29. > :32:31.G-7, the world's guest economies. is a recovery. I am not denying
:32:31. > :32:36.G-7, the world's guest economies. we are seeing a stalled recovery,
:32:36. > :32:42.but who benefits from the growth? On average, your viewers have sustained
:32:42. > :32:51.a £1500 pay cut. That is the second biggest fall in the G20 since May
:32:51. > :32:58.2010. Because we had the biggest financial services sector and took
:32:58. > :33:07.services are still in decline. the economy. They are not the only
:33:07. > :33:14.contributor to the economy. The point is, who benefits? Unemployment
:33:14. > :33:17.is falling, but we don't just want people to have any job, we want
:33:17. > :33:20.is falling, but we don't just want to have decent jobs that pay a
:33:20. > :33:41.weight you can live off and that are more secure. Let me show you the
:33:41. > :33:48.employment, up 94,000. This is a short time frame. It is since the
:33:48. > :33:57.recovery began. Half the jobs that have been part-time jobs. Roughly
:33:58. > :34:03.who would like to work full-time. Over the last 20 years, people now
:34:03. > :34:06.feel more insecure at work than ever. The question is about what
:34:07. > :34:07.feel more insecure at work than kind of growth and employment you
:34:07. > :34:13.are getting. The other point is kind of growth and employment you
:34:13. > :34:23.uneven spread of this across our north-east and north-west, the
:34:23. > :34:33.Humber, the east of England, they agree that there was a regional
:34:33. > :34:39.imbalance, but the service sector is growing, cheering and construction
:34:39. > :34:44.are growing and financial services are in decline, so the rebalance is
:34:44. > :34:50.happening. It is not happening to the degree we need to transform
:34:50. > :34:54.happening. It is not happening to long-term, sustainable model of
:34:54. > :35:00.comprehensive industrial strategy towards. Your party conference is
:35:00. > :35:08.coming up. I am sure you are looking towards. Your party conference is
:35:08. > :35:17.people see of him? I don't accept approval ratings get worse the more
:35:17. > :35:21.people see of him? I don't accept that. I have given you the figures.
:35:21. > :35:27.Polls go up and down. I have said that on this programme before. But
:35:27. > :35:33.his approval rating has consistently gone down. What actually matters our
:35:33. > :35:38.leadership, the Labour Party have gone down. What actually matters our
:35:38. > :35:50.put on almost 2000 extra councillors in places like Canada case, even
:35:50. > :35:56.Whitney. What is wrong with Whitney? We have been putting on votes. Let
:35:56. > :36:00.me show you this. This is the net satisfaction rating. Your leader is
:36:00. > :36:06.now more unpopular than Gordon Brown was when he took Labour to the worst
:36:06. > :36:13.defeat in living memory. Gordon Brown did not put on anything like
:36:13. > :36:20.this number of councillors. Votes are what matter, Andrew. Few people
:36:20. > :36:25.think Ed Miliband is a capable leader. Twice as many people think
:36:25. > :36:31.over Spurs who lives on the moon. These are polls. If you are talking
:36:31. > :36:42.to me about over Spurs lit, that puts this into context, Europe
:36:42. > :36:45.Presley. Since 2010, we have put on thousands of members. Compare that
:36:45. > :36:53.to the Conservative Party, which has not won a general election since
:36:53. > :36:59.1992. They will not disclose their membership figures. Why -- why won't
:36:59. > :37:03.you pledge to renationalise Royal Mail? Because that would be like
:37:03. > :37:07.writing a blank cheque. We don't know at the moment how much the
:37:07. > :37:11.government would receive for the sale of Royal Mail? So how can I
:37:11. > :37:14.judge how much it would cost to buy it back? That would be
:37:14. > :37:21.irresponsible. But the government does not need to do this right now.
:37:21. > :37:24.The entire country is against it. Sources in the City and Whitehall
:37:24. > :37:29.tell me that if Labour pledged to renationalise it, it would kill off
:37:29. > :37:35.the flotation. So if you are against it, why don't you do it? For me to
:37:35. > :37:42.pledge to renationalise Royal Mail would be like writing a blank
:37:42. > :37:46.cheque. But if you put it in the prospectus, people in the City, who
:37:46. > :37:51.know more about these things, say it would not happen, so why not do it?
:37:51. > :37:56.Because that would be irresponsible. It would be like writing a cheque
:37:56. > :38:01.for billions to renationalise Royal Mail. You would not have too right
:38:01. > :38:06.at the check if it did not happen. I have to deal with the facts. I am
:38:06. > :38:10.not good deal with the plot somebody might be speculating about in the
:38:10. > :38:14.City. We have to be careful about this. For me to pledge to
:38:14. > :38:18.renationalise it now this. For me to pledge to
:38:18. > :38:21.writing a bank cheque . We are going to be a fiscally responsible
:38:21. > :38:27.government. That is why I am not prepared to do that. Ed Balls will
:38:27. > :38:29.not be talking to you. You are watching the Sunday Politics. Coming
:38:29. > :38:43.Good afternoon. You are watching the up in 20 minutes,
:38:43. > :38:49.Good afternoon. You are watching the Sunday Politics for Yorkshire and
:38:49. > :38:51.Lancashire. Coming up today: The Government's foreign aid budget is
:38:51. > :38:55.under fire again, this time from a Tory councillor who is suffering
:38:55. > :39:03.from terminal cancer. Nick Clegg tells us that there will be no
:39:03. > :39:10.change of policy. Our guests today by the Labour MP
:39:10. > :39:14.for Bradford South, the Conservative MP for Calder Valley, and in our
:39:14. > :39:25.Glasgow studio is the Liberal Democrat MP for Surrey East —— a
:39:25. > :39:30.local area. What is at stake. What is at stake? We have had more press
:39:30. > :39:34.interest than ever before. There are a thousand members of the press.
:39:34. > :39:38.They will certainly be looking for, as we always do at conferences, they
:39:38. > :39:42.will be looking for divisions and arguments because that is the stuff
:39:42. > :39:46.of the media, but there are some great debates, some great meetings,
:39:46. > :39:59.and I am really looking forward to it. Have you got your kilt?To draft
:39:59. > :40:05.the! —— too much wind! What are you going to do when Ed Miliband's
:40:05. > :40:10.conference gets under way? Well, they are now showcases about putting
:40:10. > :40:16.leaders and their point of view forward. We're going to put out
:40:16. > :40:19.where we are heading. And Cameron and Osborne are trying to flag up
:40:19. > :40:22.every bit of good news on the economy now. Is there a danger that
:40:22. > :40:27.complacency could start to creep in? Adult think so. From what we
:40:27. > :40:31.have seen of what the Government has done over the past few months, I
:40:31. > :40:33.think we will see that the Conservative party conference, we
:40:33. > :40:37.will seek manifesto announcements about what we're going to put
:40:37. > :40:42.forward, hopefully becoming the next Conservative Government in this
:40:42. > :40:45.country. One of the big talking point of the summer has been the
:40:45. > :40:49.billions of pounds the Government spends on overseas aid. Yorkshire
:40:49. > :40:54.'s's you catch MEP, Godfrey Bloom, apologise for any offence he may
:40:54. > :40:58.have caused after he suggested that this country should not be sending
:40:58. > :41:01.money to "bongo bongo land" . But today we have a very different
:41:01. > :41:04.perspective on that debate from a Conservative councillor in
:41:04. > :41:08.Lincolnshire who is suffering from terminal cancer. He believes the
:41:08. > :41:15.foreign aid budget would be better spent here on the NHS.
:41:15. > :41:18.Conservative councillor Chris Underwood has been fighting a 15
:41:18. > :41:23.year battle with cancer which started on his skin but has now
:41:23. > :41:27.spread to his brain. He has nothing but praise for the medical staff who
:41:27. > :41:30.have treated him, but he says he is angry that billions of pounds worth
:41:30. > :41:38.of taxpayers money is being spent on overseas aid. It is far better that
:41:38. > :41:44.we spend any money in this country to prop up the NHS, to keep people
:41:44. > :41:50.alive and unfortunately, I am now terminal and therefore, I think that
:41:50. > :41:58.some of this overseas money should be spent here for people, especially
:41:58. > :42:04.to make sure that people can be treated locally. The Government is
:42:04. > :42:08.committed to spending 0.7% of our national income on overseas aid.
:42:08. > :42:13.That had up to around £11 billion per year. A controversial figure
:42:13. > :42:19.that has attracted some controversial criticism. And how we
:42:19. > :42:22.can possibly be given £1 billion a month when we are in this sort of
:42:23. > :42:29.debt to "bongo bongo land" is completely beyond me... UKIP MEP
:42:29. > :42:35.Godfrey Bloom was last month forced to defend his "bongo bongo land"
:42:35. > :42:39.comments. But the road reopened the debate about the Government's moral
:42:39. > :42:44.duty to spend money on less fortunate parts of the world. In
:42:44. > :42:50.this country, we are in serious problems. And when we have certain
:42:50. > :42:58.problems, nobody seems to put their hand in their pocket to give us any
:42:58. > :43:03.money. Here we are with places like India who are seriously financing
:43:03. > :43:09.their own budgets for their own space race and all that sort of
:43:09. > :43:12.thing. I put the points made by Chris Underwood to the Deputy Prime
:43:12. > :43:15.Minister. On the overseas aid budget, can you understand why many
:43:15. > :43:20.people believe that that money should be spent at home? Of course I
:43:20. > :43:27.understand it. It is significant. It means that we try and help other
:43:27. > :43:31.countries dealing with poverty, violence, extremism, and conflict
:43:31. > :43:35.which in turn creates a much more stable world, and also means that
:43:35. > :43:39.people are encouraged to stay at home rather than move across
:43:39. > :43:42.continents and borders. It is a subject that polarises opinion but
:43:42. > :43:49.despite the Government's arguments, there will be many who insist that
:43:49. > :43:52.charity should begin at home. Craig Whitaker, is it right that the
:43:52. > :43:58.Government continues to ring fence the overseas aid budget? Yes, it is.
:43:58. > :44:03.I think we should be incredibly proud that as a nation we do that.
:44:03. > :44:07.Takes area for example. We currently have 1 million children living in
:44:07. > :44:13.tents, we have for the million women and elderly people as well. If one
:44:13. > :44:17.of the five most powerful nations on earth cannot help those people, then
:44:17. > :44:21.who is going to do it? So, we should be incredibly proud that as a
:44:21. > :44:26.nation, we are stepping up well above are punching weight in this
:44:26. > :44:37.area. Would you like to see a future Labour Government matchless? ——
:44:37. > :44:41.match this? It was actually the Labour Government that brought in
:44:41. > :44:45.the 0.7%. But we have a leading role to play. I think it helps those
:44:45. > :44:52.countries to be more stable. But there is also a moral duty in terms
:44:52. > :44:59.of our influences in parts of the world —— in terms of as having a lot
:44:59. > :45:05.of influence over the world and we should be able to help it. The major
:45:05. > :45:11.countries finance this in a way that is acceptable so that more aid can
:45:11. > :45:14.go into more areas. David Ward, can we justify giving aid to countries
:45:14. > :45:19.like India that have a space programme? That I was Chris, I would
:45:19. > :45:24.probably feel exactly the same. You have to understand the position that
:45:24. > :45:29.he's in, or indeed a member of your family or a loved one. But if
:45:29. > :45:34.charity begins at home, where is home? Is at looking after myself, is
:45:34. > :45:39.it my family, is it my street? Is it Bradford, is that this country, or
:45:39. > :45:42.is that the world? And we are all citizens of the world. And if you go
:45:42. > :45:50.out into the street and asked ten people that the priority should be
:45:50. > :45:55.for one person, that would be education or, now, spend it on
:45:56. > :45:59.transport, now, spend it on health. And I am proud that in a very
:45:59. > :46:03.difficult time for the country in economic terms that it has managed
:46:03. > :46:09.to keep this going. It goes back for decades, to the 70s. Craig Whitaker,
:46:10. > :46:12.you might not have agreed with the language he used, but when Godfrey
:46:12. > :46:16.Bloom talked about sending money to "bongo bongo land", he hit a chord
:46:16. > :46:21.with many people and I am assuming many people in your constituency
:46:21. > :46:25.would have agreed. It is just politics, isn't it? He is using that
:46:25. > :46:29.particular section of the constituency. The reality is that
:46:29. > :46:34.the average British person, when they see what is happening in places
:46:34. > :46:38.like Syria, and we have had the debate about Syria in Parliament,
:46:38. > :46:41.one thing that everyone has said in the letters I have received from my
:46:41. > :46:46.constituents is, "let's get involved in humanitarian aid. " And we are
:46:46. > :46:51.punching above our weight of the country in that area, and we should
:46:52. > :46:56.be incredibly proud of what we do. But people are very cynical Arctic,
:46:56. > :47:03.about how this money is spent. PC despots in Africa buying cars and
:47:03. > :47:13.watches. —— VCDs despots. —— they see these despots. I think it
:47:13. > :47:17.depends on how they get the money. I think we are very careful about
:47:17. > :47:21.making sure the aid goes to the right people. We should be proud of
:47:22. > :47:27.our country and what we do in the rest of the world, and in areas like
:47:27. > :47:30.Syria, and another less fortunate countries, this money needs to be
:47:30. > :47:36.spent otherwise dictators and extremists could take over those
:47:36. > :47:38.countries. And you are happy, David Ward, when people in your
:47:38. > :47:43.constituency come to you and ask why the Government is not spending more
:47:43. > :47:46.on cancer treatment and policing or fixing the roads? You are happy to
:47:46. > :47:52.say to them that that £11 billion is money well spent on overseas aid? I
:47:52. > :47:55.would need to make sure it is well spent, and that is the point that is
:47:55. > :48:00.being made. We cannot waste it. Because of all the pressures that
:48:00. > :48:04.there are on our public expenditure, it is even more vital now to ensure
:48:04. > :48:09.that the money spent on foreign aid is done so in the right way and does
:48:09. > :48:13.not go to the wrong places. Interesting debate. Now, with a
:48:13. > :48:16.little over 18 months until the next general election, Nick Clegg is
:48:16. > :48:21.facing a race against time to rebuild support the Liberal
:48:21. > :48:25.Democrats. Nowhere more so than in his own backyard in Sheffield. There
:48:25. > :48:30.was such a backlash over his U—turn on student tuition fees they
:48:30. > :48:35.recently. So, at the Lib Dem party conference, James Vincent looks at
:48:35. > :48:39.some of the challenges facing the Deputy Prime Minister.
:48:39. > :48:45.Nick Clegg is a politician facing challenges within his own party, and
:48:45. > :48:48.in his constituency. As the Lib Dem conference, he has got some
:48:48. > :48:58.Sheffield voters to win over before the next election. I acknowledge
:48:58. > :49:02.that both myself and my party has obviously taken a hit because of the
:49:02. > :49:05.difficult decisions we have taken over the past two years. They are
:49:05. > :49:13.decisions Mr Clegg has previously apologise for. I'm sorry, I'm sorry.
:49:13. > :49:22.But now he's earned more confident that students themselves understand
:49:22. > :49:29.why fees were raised —— he says he is. The system is now better
:49:29. > :49:37.understood. But students might not feel that way. Students do feel
:49:37. > :49:45.betrayed by neck like. —— betrayed by Nick Clegg. This was a major
:49:45. > :49:50.source of undergraduate anger, but it looks like there is a new source
:49:50. > :49:54.of anger. I think Nick Clegg might be in for a little shock. We have
:49:54. > :50:00.not forgotten the fees, and the new proposal to bring in a £200,000 levy
:50:00. > :50:04.for international agency use the NHS amongst other measures against
:50:04. > :50:06.international students will prove extremely unpopular not just with
:50:06. > :50:14.students, but with the City as a whole. There are also issues within
:50:14. > :50:17.the party. This Bradford East MP was suspended by the Lib Dems for
:50:17. > :50:25.putting a statement on his website at using what he referred to as "the
:50:25. > :50:30.Jews" in Israel inflicting atrocities on Palestinians every
:50:30. > :50:36.day. He voted against our existing party policy on tuition fees.
:50:36. > :50:41.Holding a view contrary to consistent party policy, I am sure
:50:41. > :50:44.—— I'm not sure why that is an offence that leads to a suspension.
:50:44. > :50:49.But in any case, I have not said that. I am a little bit unhappy
:50:49. > :50:56.about that and disappointed, but I hope we can resolve it. As is said
:50:56. > :50:59.to David, I am not wanting to silence him, and nobody in the
:50:59. > :51:03.Liberal Democrats wants to. I sure a lot of his sorrow. But is very
:51:03. > :51:06.important that we make it clear that those criticisms are criticisms of
:51:06. > :51:11.the Israeli Government and not to somehow paint a whole people, the
:51:11. > :51:15.Jewish people, with one single brush. That is a very important
:51:15. > :51:19.distinction which my party, the Liberal Democrats, everyone
:51:19. > :51:25.connected with us, we felt it was very important. So trouble inside
:51:25. > :51:32.and outside for the Lib Dems, and perhaps a bumpy road towards the
:51:32. > :51:36.2015 election for Nick Clegg. OK, David Ward, clarify the
:51:37. > :51:40.situation. As people watch this programme on Sunday afternoon, I
:51:40. > :51:49.knew now a Liberal Democrat MP again? Yes. From midnight on last
:51:49. > :51:51.Friday night. And you are now a proud Liberal Democrats again, and
:51:51. > :51:59.have been told to keep your eyes shut. I have served my time. I am
:51:59. > :52:04.suspended for a period of time, that ended on Friday, and I am now back
:52:04. > :52:10.in the group. Serving time suggests you committed a crime. But you do
:52:10. > :52:15.not send very sorry for you said. One thing that Nick is very clear
:52:15. > :52:20.about is that he shares my very, very strong views about the
:52:20. > :52:24.oppression faced by the Palestinians and somehow we have to resolve it.
:52:24. > :52:30.At the party conference this week, there is a Lib Dem Friends Of Israel
:52:30. > :52:34.meeting and I will be looking at the sensitivity of language and how we
:52:34. > :52:38.can continue to get across the message about the oppression faced
:52:38. > :52:42.by the Palestinians but in a way which does not lead to such
:52:42. > :52:47.controversy. So you would now describe yourself as a friend of
:52:47. > :52:51.Israel? Well, I have always said that I'm a friend of Israel and if I
:52:51. > :52:56.am critical, I would say that if the Government of Israel is not a friend
:52:56. > :53:00.of Israel, there are many, many people within Israel who are upset
:53:00. > :53:05.by the behaviour towards the Palestinians and any true friend of
:53:05. > :53:12.Israel will be a critic of the Israeli Government. Closer to home,
:53:12. > :53:15.there is a survey out this week conducted by the Sunday Politics
:53:15. > :53:19.that suggests that the vast majority of Lib Dem councillors would rather
:53:19. > :53:23.the party went into coalition with Labour next time and ban the
:53:23. > :53:26.Conservatives. I don't like coalition governments. I am old
:53:26. > :53:35.enough to remember the last time it happened. I think that Nick Clegg
:53:35. > :53:38.has lost the confidence of many of his old supporters and voters, and
:53:38. > :53:41.it will be difficult for the night to separate themselves from the
:53:41. > :53:46.Conservative party at that next general election —— difficult for
:53:46. > :53:48.them. I think we should not be talking about coalitions of the
:53:48. > :53:53.future. I think the Liberal Democrats have got to restore the
:53:53. > :53:58.confidence that they can amongst the electorate. So even if the electoral
:53:58. > :54:00.mathematics stacks up that way, the only way Labour could get back into
:54:00. > :54:08.power is doing a deal Dems, you would be against that. I
:54:08. > :54:15.would. The phrase is "over my dead body". I think we need to try and
:54:15. > :54:22.get our programme through and move on. That is not to say we can find
:54:22. > :54:26.points of agreement. But we had the European elections next year, and I
:54:26. > :54:29.think it will be very difficult for the Lib Dems to get back on track
:54:29. > :54:35.and gather the support that they need. Many Tories now are openly
:54:35. > :54:40.talking about this coalition continuing after the next general
:54:40. > :54:44.election. It will be whatever the British public, whatever hand the
:54:44. > :54:48.deal to the politicians, that'll happen. Personally, I would prefer a
:54:48. > :54:52.Conservative Government. I am a Conservative MP and that is what I
:54:52. > :54:56.will fight for. But what you were saying there, you were talking about
:54:56. > :54:59.the councillors. If you have a look at what liberal photos preferred,
:54:59. > :55:03.49% of them who were recently surveyed this week said that they
:55:03. > :55:08.would prefer a coalition with the Tories whereas only 32% said that
:55:08. > :55:12.they would want to be with Labour. What is the mood there this weekend,
:55:12. > :55:18.David? Are people still happy with Nick Clegg's leadership? That survey
:55:18. > :55:22.we have or are programmes suggests that Vince Cable would be the most
:55:22. > :55:30.popular to take over. I leadership ramblings happening? —— are at their
:55:30. > :55:33.leadership ramblings happening? I don't think so. We are here until
:55:33. > :55:41.2015. Nick Clegg is easy just to sit on the opposition
:55:41. > :55:45.benches, though not of stones across, but we are in the midst of a
:55:45. > :55:48.terrible economic crisis and we needed a Government. Labour did not
:55:48. > :55:53.have the numbers and they did not want to come into coalition with us
:55:53. > :55:57.anyway. Somebody had to form a Government. Coalition politics is
:55:57. > :56:02.here to say. After the Second World War, 95% of the electorate voted
:56:02. > :56:06.Labour or Tory. That just does not happen now. We have got coalition
:56:06. > :56:11.politics possibly for ever, and what we need to do is get better at it.
:56:11. > :56:17.You would be happy on a personal level to get into bed with Labour?
:56:17. > :56:20.Well, if there is a hung parliament, there is nothing to stop the
:56:20. > :56:24.Conservatives and Labour jumping into bed with each other. They have
:56:24. > :56:31.many views which are similar to each other on many, many issues. So, who
:56:31. > :56:38.knows what could happen. From my experiences, I see no. And we're not
:56:38. > :56:43.in the sad place that the Liberal Democrats are in at the moment. And
:56:44. > :56:48.there will be many people in his party who will be shocked and
:56:48. > :56:50.saddened by the Liberal Democrats supporting right—wing Conservative
:56:50. > :56:54.policies. I think the confidence in the Lib Dems has been eroded. Let's
:56:54. > :57:04.get some more of the week's political news now with our round—up
:57:04. > :57:15.in 60 seconds. The transport secretary went on a PR
:57:15. > :57:20.and London will boost the local economy by nearly £2 billion per
:57:20. > :57:26.year. High—speed two will make Liverpool stronger, lead stronger,
:57:26. > :57:30.Sheffield stronger. A controversial housing development in North
:57:30. > :57:33.Yorkshire has been —— been given the go—ahead after a council pressed the
:57:33. > :57:38.wrong button on an elegant running voting system. The counsellor went
:57:38. > :57:45.on record opposing the development, but his mistake involved meant
:57:45. > :57:49.permission was granted. The UKIP leader on Lincolnshire County
:57:49. > :57:53.Council has been removed. Councillor Payne had earlier been told he would
:57:53. > :57:58.face police action relating to racist remarks on Facebook. And
:57:58. > :58:01.unemployment in Yorkshire is the third highest rate in the country at
:58:01. > :58:10.9%. That went up between May and July.
:58:10. > :58:14.So, Craig Whittaker, the Government trying to persuade us this week that
:58:14. > :58:26.the HS two rail project is worth the money. Well basic seed? —— will
:58:26. > :58:32.basic seed? —— will they succeed? We need capacity on a real waves. We
:58:32. > :58:36.need that to happen fairly quickly. Both of our main lines are getting
:58:36. > :58:41.towards full capacity. More people are using the railways and we have
:58:41. > :58:49.to create some form of capacity. HS2 is the right thing to do. People
:58:49. > :58:54.will have you think that the cost is too big, but that is not true. We
:58:54. > :58:56.need it for Yorkshire. And you are not keen on a future Labour
:58:56. > :59:02.Government scaling back of the project? We understand the need for
:59:02. > :59:07.infrastructure improvements, but this will take 22 years and we are
:59:07. > :59:11.not sure about the costs. The Shadow Chancellor has said he is got
:59:11. > :59:14.concerns about the cost and how they are starting to spiral. And who
:59:14. > :59:18.knows whether or not in 22 years time that the technology we are
:59:18. > :59:22.investing in now will be the right one? I am very cautious about it. I
:59:22. > :59:25.think we need to make sure that northern cities do have the benefit
:59:25. > :59:33.of infrastructure spending, but I think we must beat. What is your
:59:33. > :59:37.view on HS2, David Ward? I don't think it should be at the expense of
:59:37. > :59:41.improving railways generally. I took a six hour train journey from Leeds
:59:41. > :59:47.to London last week. I was on a six hour journey up to Glasgow from
:59:47. > :59:55.Bradford this week. That is not good. And if the existing
:59:55. > :00:00.infrastructure in some way is jeopardising or is not supporting
:00:00. > :00:05.itself as money is pushed into the project, then that would not be a
:00:05. > :00:10.good thing. But what we do know is that the Government has announced a
:00:10. > :00:13.further £35 billion, on top of the first 10 billion, already spent on
:00:13. > :00:19.current infrastructure. So this is not instead of, it is as well as,
:00:19. > :00:23.and that is important to remember. But that's millions of pounds of
:00:23. > :00:28.investment that is going to have one train per hour. I think there is a
:00:28. > :00:32.lot of work to be done. £35 million. That is not chicken feed. But we
:00:32. > :00:38.must make sure we get the balance right. Very briefly, I went to ask
:00:38. > :00:45.you as a former sports minister, argue happy with the World Cup being
:00:45. > :00:49.held in Qatar? I would rather it had been in England, but I think they
:00:49. > :00:52.will host. My preference would be for the players and the families
:00:52. > :00:56.that it should be in the winter and not in the summer, and I hope that
:00:56. > :01:01.they will look at that again. If it means a Premier League you must be
:01:01. > :01:06.rescheduled, that not stop it. I do happy to watch football and 50
:01:06. > :01:10.degrees heat? I grew up in a steely, and I think for the Australian team,
:01:10. > :01:19.it is vitally important it stays in the summer. —— Australia. And for
:01:19. > :01:25.Bradford? As you know, during the season, the scarf is a permanent
:01:25. > :01:29.feature. It does seem to be complete madness and let's hope that good
:01:29. > :01:32.sense prevails. Thank you all for your time today. Now back to Andrew
:01:32. > :01:44.deserves a programme all to itself. in London.
:01:44. > :01:51.deserves a programme all to itself. In a moment, more from our political
:01:51. > :01:54.Good afternoon. Nick Clegg says victory for either the Conservatives
:01:54. > :02:02.Good afternoon. Nick Clegg says or labour at the next election would
:02:02. > :02:04.Good afternoon. Nick Clegg says he said a coalition would allow
:02:04. > :02:07.Good afternoon. Nick Clegg says party to balance politics and enable
:02:07. > :02:09.the government to finish the job of repairing the economy fairly. It is
:02:09. > :02:15.my genuine belief that if we go repairing the economy fairly. It is
:02:15. > :02:19.coalition and Islands politics, repairing the economy fairly. It is
:02:19. > :02:24.dominating blood on their own, you will get a recovery which is neither
:02:24. > :02:27.fair nor sustainable. Labour would wreck the recovery, and under the
:02:28. > :02:30.fair nor sustainable. Labour would same commitment to fairness as
:02:30. > :02:37.ours, you would get the wrong kind Two 19-year-old woman arrested after
:02:37. > :02:40.a stabbing on Thursday have been released without charge. Police
:02:40. > :02:43.a stabbing on Thursday have been trying to discover if there is a
:02:43. > :02:49.link between the killing and a fire four hours later in which four
:02:49. > :02:52.Five people are being questioned in connection with that blaze. A Syrian
:02:52. > :02:58.government minister has described the agreement drawn up by America
:02:58. > :03:03.country's chemical weapons as a The minister claims the deals helps
:03:03. > :03:07.the Syrians out of a crisis and others war. The US Secretary of
:03:07. > :03:10.State John Kerry is in Israel to brief the prime minister, Benjamin
:03:10. > :03:14.Netanyahu, on the proposal. China and France have also welcomed the
:03:14. > :03:19.deal, which says Syria has until Friday to submit a competence of
:03:19. > :03:22.list of its chemical stockpile. Britain's Mo Farah has missed out on
:03:22. > :03:26.winning his first half marathon Britain's Mo Farah has missed out on
:03:26. > :03:28.He was taking part in the Great North Run between Newcastle and
:03:28. > :03:42.Ethiopian's can mean many Serb North Run between Newcastle and
:03:42. > :03:52.Kenenisa Bekele in a sprint finish. A carnival atmosphere for the start
:03:52. > :03:59.walking it, so I have no time in simply dressing up for fun. I am
:03:59. > :04:01.walking it, so I have no time in mind. I just want to enjoy it and
:04:01. > :04:08.appreciate the crowds and have a fantastic time. For elite athletes,
:04:08. > :04:12.today's race was about who would be first over the line. Despite the
:04:12. > :04:16.wind and rain, large crowds turned out for the world's most popular
:04:16. > :04:24.half marathon, which attracts some of the finest women runners, two,
:04:25. > :04:28.including the Kenyan. There were high hopes for Britain's double
:04:28. > :04:35.Olympic champion Mo Farah, but after Shields, he was narrowly beaten
:04:35. > :04:46.Ethiopian's Kenenisa Bekele. It Shields, he was narrowly beaten
:04:46. > :04:50.thought I would come back and close the gap slowly. I managed to close
:04:50. > :04:56.it a little bit, but you can't take away what he has. Wheelchair athlete
:04:56. > :05:00.David Weir won his race for a fourth time. More than £200 million has
:05:00. > :05:15.been raised since the Great North That is it for now. There will be
:05:15. > :05:18.more news on BBC One at 6:35pm. So, did anything happen while we
:05:18. > :05:26.were away this summer? I thought heading now? Who better to answer
:05:26. > :05:33.than the best political panel we could cobble together for a tenner?
:05:33. > :05:37.Putting foreign affairs to one side for a moment, it seems that what
:05:37. > :05:41.happened mystically was that it became more apparent that some sort
:05:41. > :05:47.of recovery was underway at last, and that Mr Miliband still has not
:05:48. > :05:54.yet resonated with the British public. These things are a problem
:05:54. > :05:56.for Labour. Ed Miliband's mistake over the summer holiday was to take
:05:56. > :06:00.a summer holiday. And it looked over the summer holiday was to take
:06:00. > :06:04.the rest of the Labour Party had taken one too. They were not finding
:06:04. > :06:08.issues they could make their own. The only person who made an impact
:06:08. > :06:12.was Stella Creasy on online abuse. That is a huge problem, and it is
:06:12. > :06:14.partly down to the fact that there is this intense message discipline.
:06:14. > :06:18.They don't want to say anything is this intense message discipline.
:06:18. > :06:21.of line until they have got all their ducks in a row. It makes the
:06:21. > :06:26.party do at the moment. The terms of party do at the moment. The terms of
:06:26. > :06:30.trade have swung in David Cameron's favour, but the political rhetoric
:06:30. > :06:39.look at this headline from the is still with Mr Miliband. Let's
:06:39. > :06:40.look at this headline from the Sunday Telegraph. That headline
:06:40. > :06:48.significant in that Mr Cameron is Sunday Telegraph. That headline
:06:48. > :06:51.significant in that Mr Cameron is still in danger on his right flank
:06:51. > :06:55.significant in that Mr Cameron is doesn't need an enormous share of
:06:55. > :07:01.the vote to get an overall majority? Westminster group think. Of course
:07:01. > :07:06.Ed Miliband is in trouble. The Tories are reserved and. They are
:07:06. > :07:09.better organised, the economy is recovering. That poses difficulties
:07:10. > :07:14.for Labour, but if you look at what is happening on the ground, UKIP
:07:14. > :07:17.still pose a danger to Cameron. is happening on the ground, UKIP
:07:17. > :07:19.don't need to poll 15% in a lot is happening on the ground, UKIP
:07:19. > :07:22.those marginal seats, they just is happening on the ground, UKIP
:07:22. > :07:24.to get five or 6% of the vote, and that could potentially destroy the
:07:24. > :07:34.Tory lead. Lots of commentators that could potentially destroy the
:07:34. > :07:41.to say, this guy will never be prime minister, but it is possible that by
:07:41. > :07:47.default or by accident, in a very Miliband could end up as prime
:07:47. > :07:52.minister. It is still all to play for on both sides. If UKIP remains a
:07:52. > :07:55.threat to the Tory right flank and the Tories themselves are not really
:07:55. > :07:59.a national party any more, I am the Tories themselves are not really
:07:59. > :08:03.they will only target a few seats in Scotland, they don't get any big
:08:03. > :08:07.seats in the big cities of the north any more, they don't get the Ulster
:08:07. > :08:10.vote they used to get, so it is possible that Labour, which is more
:08:10. > :08:14.nationally based and has seats in the Midlands and the north and in
:08:14. > :08:24.Wales, so they could get in. I summer is that Ed Miliband can go to
:08:24. > :08:28.expectations. All he has to do is not dribble on the lectern, and
:08:28. > :08:30.expectations. All he has to do is will be written up as spectacular.
:08:30. > :08:38.expectations. All he has to do is He might not even use a lectin.
:08:38. > :08:43.position. The electoral vagaries of the system work in his favour. He
:08:43. > :08:47.still has a narrow poll lead, he is not out of the game at all. Of the
:08:47. > :08:53.three main party leaders, the only one who can be confident about being
:08:53. > :09:00.three main party leaders, the only in government after 2015 is Nick
:09:00. > :09:06.electorally. But if it is this bad for Labour at the moment, what will
:09:06. > :09:13.it be like if this recovery turns out to be real? It depends how much
:09:13. > :09:16.they succeed. Chuka Umunna was shifting the debate are living
:09:16. > :09:19.standards. They don't want to keep arguing about who called it right.
:09:19. > :09:23.Do people feel richer than they arguing about who called it right.
:09:23. > :09:27.in 2010? The data suggests that people don't feel richer than in
:09:27. > :09:32.2010. Because they are not.That people don't feel richer than in
:09:32. > :09:38.the basis on which Labour will fight the next election. It is clear that
:09:38. > :09:42.Labour are unclear on what to say or do next. They have just got to hope
:09:42. > :09:45.and pray that the economy is not as soundly based as it appears to be
:09:45. > :09:57.and that George Osborne is Tony Barber, who thought he fixed the
:09:57. > :10:01.China, the bond market, the housing bubble might be blown up, and Labour
:10:01. > :10:07.just had to hope something goes wrong for Osborne. Chuka Umunna
:10:07. > :10:10.just had to hope something goes he would not get rid of help to
:10:10. > :10:12.just had to hope something goes There are all these criticisms about
:10:12. > :10:17.just had to hope something goes artificial schemes pumping up house
:10:17. > :10:22.prices, but he would not say that. It is tortuous. You see this again
:10:22. > :10:28.and again. When asked if Labour would repeal the bedroom tax, or the
:10:28. > :10:41.happens again. They will be falling on people who have not had a meal in
:10:41. > :10:44.coming out of the Labour Party. There is a kind and Gillette in
:10:45. > :10:47.coming out of the Labour Party. them to a politician's career. When
:10:47. > :10:51.they are under attack for a long time, the media get bored after
:10:51. > :10:55.they are under attack for a long while and switch the story. It
:10:55. > :10:59.happened to Osborne, who had a horrific 2012 and has recovered
:10:59. > :11:08.bad press as he is getting at the moment, because people find it
:11:08. > :11:10.tedious. Syria has been the big foreign-policy event this summer. It
:11:10. > :11:19.has remarkably led to a Soviet- American initiative to get Syria to
:11:19. > :11:24.give up its chemical weapons. The world will now expect the Assad
:11:24. > :11:44.anything less than full compliance. John Kerry. Is this too good to
:11:44. > :11:45.anything less than full compliance. true? Even superficially, it is
:11:45. > :11:48.anything less than full compliance. very good. The only people who
:11:48. > :11:52.emerge with any sense of triumph are the Russians, who have had their
:11:52. > :11:55.emerge with any sense of triumph are biggest diplomatic coup. They are
:11:55. > :12:01.back on the stage again. B if you want to know why Putin even has
:12:01. > :12:03.back on the stage again. B if you because of moments like this. They
:12:03. > :12:08.were humiliated after the end of the Cold War, and a Nou Camp is a great
:12:08. > :12:13.power again. Then you have the Obama situation, because he has ended
:12:13. > :12:16.power again. Then you have the Obama where he wanted to end up. He has
:12:16. > :12:16.power again. Then you have the Obama concession from Syria, but the way
:12:16. > :12:20.he got there was so embarrassing. It concession from Syria, but the way
:12:20. > :12:24.made him look weak and erratic as a leader. There were contradictions
:12:24. > :12:31.between himself and his Secretary of State last week, and it has not
:12:31. > :12:37.between himself and his Secretary of him any good. I was in the States,
:12:37. > :12:41.and it was open season on him. I have never understood the idea of
:12:41. > :12:45.chemical weapons as a red line when you can massacre people in their
:12:45. > :12:49.thousands through other means. But chemical weapons are beyond the
:12:49. > :12:57.pale. The rebels are miserable. chemical weapons are beyond the
:12:57. > :12:59.have run out of time. I will have to ask you what you think about Syria
:12:59. > :13:03.next week, which gives you time ask you what you think about Syria
:13:04. > :13:08.prepare. Your book on Fred the ask you what you think about Syria
:13:08. > :13:12.is going well? It is.I am back tomorrow at noon with the Daily
:13:12. > :13:14.Politics at noon on BBC Two, where we will have more from the Liberal
:13:14. > :13:18.Democrat conference in Glasgow. we will have more from the Liberal
:13:18. > :13:21.is the start of our Daily Politics conference coverage. Next week,
:13:21. > :13:23.is the start of our Daily Politics will be back here at our normal
:13:23. > :13:28.is the start of our Daily Politics of 11am, when we will be joined
:13:28. > :13:30.is the start of our Daily Politics Grant Shapps. Remember, if it is
:13:30. > :13:50.Sunday, it is the Sunday Politics.