:00:38. > :00:42.Good morning, happy new year. Some of you may be wondering how to make
:00:42. > :00:47.2012 a little more interesting. Well, there is advice Justine from
:00:47. > :00:52.Joanna Lumley. I have a mobile phone, she says, which I keep
:00:52. > :00:55.switched off at all times. I cannot stand it, it is a waste of a life.
:00:55. > :01:00.I think that is very good. We could all start by giving the little
:01:00. > :01:04.plastic monsters up for a day or two every week and living rather
:01:04. > :01:09.than just texting. Then we could take it from there, worth a go.
:01:09. > :01:12.Joining for the review of the Sunday newspapers, Ann Treneman,
:01:12. > :01:18.from the Times, and Labour MP David Lammy.
:01:18. > :01:22.So, 2012 and we are all in it together, despite horrible economic
:01:22. > :01:26.forecasts. There are things that ought to bring people together, the
:01:26. > :01:31.Diamond Jubilee and the Olympics for starters. But unemployment,
:01:31. > :01:34.tightly squeezed incomes and the continued huge bonuses and salaries
:01:34. > :01:39.for top executives do infuriate many people. Then there is the
:01:39. > :01:43.question of which nation we keep together. Are the Scots finally
:01:43. > :01:46.limbering up to leave the UK? For his first television interview of
:01:46. > :01:49.the year, David Cameron joins me to talk about Britain and the year
:01:49. > :01:52.ahead. Also, that new film about Margaret
:01:52. > :01:58.Thatcher which follows the iron lady from her glory days to her
:01:58. > :02:00.much diminished old age. David Cameron has said he is
:02:00. > :02:04.uncomfortable about it. Meryl Streep talks about being Margaret
:02:04. > :02:08.Thatcher. Then another study in power and the
:02:08. > :02:13.loss of power, actor turned film director Ralph Fiennes talks about
:02:13. > :02:21.his new, pumped-up, new version of Shakespeare's Coriolanus. And we
:02:21. > :02:24.will have music from Nick Lowe. All that is coming up. First, the
:02:24. > :02:28.news with Susanna Reid. David Cameron is promising to give
:02:28. > :02:33.shareholders the right to veto executive pay packages. The move
:02:33. > :02:36.comes against a background of mounting public anger over a large
:02:36. > :02:40.salaries and bonuses paid to bosses of big companies.
:02:40. > :02:44.It's a tale of two economy is. Ordinary workers in offices,
:02:44. > :02:47.schools and shops whose wages have barely risen over the past decade.
:02:47. > :02:52.On the other side, company directors whose pay has soared in
:02:52. > :02:55.that time. The Prime Minister is set to do something about what he
:02:55. > :02:58.describes as crony capitalism and the merry-go-round of directors
:02:58. > :03:02.awarding each other. The Government hopes to re-establish the link
:03:02. > :03:05.between pay and performance by forcing shareholders who own
:03:05. > :03:10.companies to take more responsibility for director's pay
:03:10. > :03:15.packages by making their boats on the issue binding. It also wants to
:03:15. > :03:19.create more accountability by preventing CEOs from one company
:03:19. > :03:23.deciding pay structures for bosses in another firm. Pay packages might
:03:23. > :03:27.become more transparent. Currently it is difficult to decipher them,
:03:27. > :03:31.bearing in mind future bonuses, pensions perks or share prices. The
:03:31. > :03:36.City will argue that top bosses must get top pay packages in a
:03:36. > :03:39.global market for talent, but it also knows that the days of massive
:03:39. > :03:44.salaries for mediocre performance are numbered.
:03:44. > :03:47.A nurse arrested on suspicion of tampering with medical records at
:03:47. > :03:52.Stepping Hill Hospital in Stockport is now being questioned in relation
:03:52. > :03:57.to the poisoning of patients last summer. Police say Victorino Chua
:03:57. > :04:02.is being questioned about three murders and 18 counts of GBH.
:04:02. > :04:05.The nurse was arrested on Thursday on suspicion of tampering with
:04:05. > :04:08.medical records at Stepping Hill Hospital in Stockport. He is now
:04:09. > :04:12.being questioned on suspicion of three counts of murder. The 46-
:04:13. > :04:17.year-old, from Stockport, is also to be interviewed about 18 counts
:04:17. > :04:20.of causing grievous bodily harm. Detectives are investigating the
:04:20. > :04:24.deliberate contamination of products at the hospital between
:04:24. > :04:29.June 1st and July 15th last year. It is understood there were 21
:04:29. > :04:33.people who detectives believe have been poisoned. In a statement,
:04:33. > :04:37.Greater Manchester's assistant chief constable, Terry Sweeney,
:04:37. > :04:40.described the investigation as a difficult and complex piece of work.
:04:40. > :04:44.Last month it was reported another nurse at a hospital, Rebecca
:04:44. > :04:48.Leighton, had been dismissed. She had spent six weeks in prison
:04:48. > :04:54.before charges were dropped. She did admit stealing drugs from the
:04:54. > :04:57.hospital. A pedestrian has died after an
:04:57. > :05:03.accident involving a police car in South Shields on Tyneside. The name
:05:03. > :05:05.of the 52-year-old man has not been released. Two police officers were
:05:05. > :05:08.taken to hospital, although their injuries are not thought to be
:05:08. > :05:12.serious. Police investigating the suspected
:05:12. > :05:19.racial abuse of an Oldham football on Friday have arrested a man. The
:05:19. > :05:23.defender, Tom Adeyemi, broke down in tears during his club's tie
:05:23. > :05:25.against Liverpool at Anfield. A 20- year-old man has been detained on
:05:25. > :05:31.suspicion of a racially aggravated public-order offence.
:05:31. > :05:36.That is all from me for now. I'll be back just before 10 o'clock.
:05:36. > :05:42.Now up to the front pages. The Sunday Times is leading on a story,
:05:42. > :05:46.illegals enter UK of passports for hire. That is from Greece. That is
:05:46. > :05:50.from the reporter who used to be the top investigations guy at the
:05:50. > :05:55.News of the World. The Sunday Telegraph has their Cameron into
:05:55. > :05:59.view. Apology for to Roets Jaya that Ed balls, that is something he
:05:59. > :06:05.said during the interview that he no doubt regrets. The Independent
:06:05. > :06:10.on Sunday has done a special on race in Britain. Cameron to curb
:06:10. > :06:16.fat-cat pay with people power, the Observer. Scotland on Sunday, a bid
:06:16. > :06:20.to give exiles Scots in the UK a split vote. As promised, David
:06:20. > :06:25.Lammy and Ann Treneman, welcome to you both. David, are we going to
:06:25. > :06:32.start with the main political story of the day, the Observer and the
:06:32. > :06:36.Sunday Telegraph have it. The interview? I think this is
:06:36. > :06:40.obviously right centre stage over the next year. We have had a lot of
:06:40. > :06:44.concentration on the undeserving poor, apparently, those that are
:06:44. > :06:50.scrounging on welfare benefits. I think that has deeply concerned
:06:50. > :06:54.most backbenchers in my party. Now, quite rightly, there is a focus on
:06:54. > :07:01.the undeserving rich. I don't know what David Cameron is going to do,
:07:01. > :07:07.but it is clear that a 49% rise in the pay of those in the FTSE 100,
:07:07. > :07:11.at the top levels, very small increases, certainly not inflation,
:07:11. > :07:21.for the poorest workers, that is unacceptable. Something does need
:07:21. > :07:22.
:07:22. > :07:26.to be done. We could, conceivably, see some sort of agreement across
:07:26. > :07:31.the House of Commons? It depends what David Cameron says, but this
:07:31. > :07:35.is an area where all of the parties at least feel similarly outraged?
:07:35. > :07:42.It is probably right to say that all of us agree there has to be
:07:42. > :07:45.action. It is what is that action? Doing something about these
:07:45. > :07:50.remuneration committees and companies, giving shareholders the
:07:50. > :07:54.power, that is the key. You are all responsible, it could be said, for
:07:54. > :07:58.letting this happen? It was during the New Labour years when we were
:07:58. > :08:05.going to be filthy rich and it was all fine? I'm not going to deny
:08:05. > :08:09.that we should have done a lot more in this area. Ann Treneman? I have
:08:09. > :08:13.picked up Andrew Lansley's comment on this. I think the words, what is
:08:13. > :08:17.he going to do about it, that is the big question. The parties are
:08:17. > :08:21.not going to agree. David Cameron has had 18 months to do something
:08:21. > :08:27.and there is nothing I can see is happening. We have all heard it
:08:27. > :08:34.before. One or two years ago, the fat cats continued to get fat.
:08:34. > :08:41.David Cameron needs to find a fat cat willing to be paraded, like Bob
:08:41. > :08:48.Diamond down grading himself or something like that. Having just
:08:48. > :08:54.seen The Iron Lady, its deeds, not words. Until now, his deeds have
:08:55. > :09:00.not matched his words. And he's not going to say this morning, I bet!
:09:00. > :09:07.Well, we will see. Let's turn to wear well remunerated fellow next.
:09:07. > :09:17.We are talking of... You can't really call Tony Blair a fat hat,
:09:17. > :09:17.
:09:17. > :09:26.he is sinewy. He works out. -- fat cat. But he is certainly well paid.
:09:26. > :09:31.Well, Tony Blair, he is suddenly very rich. We don't know how rich.
:09:31. > :09:38.His companies are apparently a complex web. How quickly they
:09:38. > :09:43.learn! Nobody can understand it. Somebody has filed some company
:09:43. > :09:50.reports. There is an unexplained �8 million in administrative
:09:50. > :09:54.expenditure. That is a lot of photocopies! The mind boggles at
:09:55. > :09:58.what this means. People talk about transparency, that is another thing
:09:58. > :10:03.that David Cameron and everybody talks about. When you get
:10:03. > :10:07.transparency, this is it. Administrative expenditure, �8
:10:07. > :10:12.million. We would like more information, please. I mentioned
:10:12. > :10:15.the Independent on Sunday's front page. That is after the Stephen
:10:16. > :10:19.Lawrence verdicts, a lot of coverage of race relations in the
:10:19. > :10:24.UK. The Independent has gone to town in a particularly impressive
:10:24. > :10:30.way? I think they have done a great job. All of us expected this week
:10:30. > :10:35.to have deep reflection of where the country is on race relations.
:10:35. > :10:40.The truth is, it has been a peculiar week in which we have not
:10:40. > :10:44.seen that. We've had a lot of concentration on the Diane Abbott
:10:44. > :10:51.story and some of the other race stories involving football in and
:10:51. > :10:54.around. Today we get some serious, considered pieces. The Independent
:10:54. > :10:59.does really well profiling these Tim young men growing up in Eltham,
:10:59. > :11:05.now, white and black, the serious issues that still exist. Huge
:11:05. > :11:12.numbers of stabbings, an enormous amount of violence still happening.
:11:12. > :11:17.More violence. Absolutely. You did a book on the outcome after the
:11:17. > :11:20.riots and so on. Did what he discovered make you kind of angry?
:11:20. > :11:23.Do you think there is warm conversation going on in places
:11:23. > :11:27.like this and in Parliament and something else entirely happening
:11:27. > :11:32.on the streets? In my book, I wanted to get behind the issues and
:11:32. > :11:36.talk about what is happening in these families. What are the key
:11:36. > :11:45.things we don't talk enough about? They awry issues with a lack of
:11:45. > :11:50.fathers. I think they awry issues in popular cultures. Gross
:11:50. > :11:55.materialism, stabbings, weird senses of masculinity in areas like
:11:55. > :12:01.mine. Also, what people are saying that the top end. That is explored
:12:01. > :12:05.in the book. The Independent, in profiling this young black boy, I
:12:05. > :12:08.am four times more likely to be murdered, I think that highlights
:12:08. > :12:18.the significant issues that exist for young men growing up in the
:12:18. > :12:20.
:12:20. > :12:24.inner city. Your next story? Well, this is the Scottish referendum.
:12:24. > :12:28.Apparently, maybe he can confirm or deny this, David Cameron is
:12:28. > :12:33.deciding he might want to tell Scotland how and when they are
:12:33. > :12:42.going to hold a referendum on independence. Free advice, from me,
:12:42. > :12:48.don't go there! Don't even pick up the foam. No e-mails late at night,
:12:48. > :12:53.leave it. I think the voters can figure it out for themselves.
:12:53. > :12:57.Another subject to talk about later room, your next story, David?
:12:57. > :13:04.got the story about the next high- speed rail link between London and
:13:04. > :13:09.Birmingham. A number of MPs, mainly Conservative MPs, potentially, to
:13:09. > :13:16.resign as a consequence of driving a huge railway track through their
:13:16. > :13:20.constituencies. If the Government to go forward, this is a massive
:13:20. > :13:24.decision on millions of pounds spent at a time when we have not
:13:24. > :13:28.got public money. I have to say, as the MP for Tottenham, I would quite
:13:28. > :13:32.like a rail link that got us to Stansted in less than the hour that
:13:32. > :13:36.it does and a proper rail link to White Hart Lane, thank you very
:13:36. > :13:39.much. There are real issues if they go forwards. We could have selected
:13:39. > :13:43.a story about Ed Miliband, but your heart must sink when you pick up
:13:43. > :13:47.the Sunday papers at the beginning of the new year and you see all of
:13:47. > :13:55.these usually hostile pieces? it has been a tough week. But
:13:55. > :14:00.oppositions always have tough weeks. Ed specialises in them! Does he
:14:00. > :14:07.have to do better this year? We all have to do better than the Labour
:14:07. > :14:13.party, frankly. We are going into a year when we need to define better,
:14:13. > :14:18.what would look different and others? I have said that in my book.
:14:18. > :14:23.All of us in leadership positions in the Labour Party need to do that.
:14:24. > :14:30.I think Ed is unfairly taking flak. We have seen the Prime Minister,
:14:31. > :14:34.saying the wrong thing. A lot of it is to do with energy. A sense that
:14:34. > :14:39.there was real drive, he has to communicate that? A certain
:14:39. > :14:43.electricity has to happen between a leader and the electorate? Yes, but
:14:43. > :14:46.there is a period in which you are moving in a time of change, he has
:14:46. > :14:51.to change his party and the country is changing. We are still three
:14:51. > :14:55.years away from an election. That drive, as you get policies moving
:14:55. > :15:00.forward, is where we are heading. think he needs to get more
:15:00. > :15:07.electricity going. This whole issue of fat cats, that is his issue. And
:15:07. > :15:10.we are not seeing him on it. We might be seeing David... He raised
:15:10. > :15:14.it in September, its January! will hear more about it later on.
:15:15. > :15:20.We have run at a time to do the silly stories we were going to do.
:15:20. > :15:24.Maybe another time. Now on to the weather, after the gales and rain
:15:24. > :15:29.it has been a quieter weekend. The temperature was actually summary in
:15:29. > :15:39.morning -- London when I got up. Let's find out what the week ahead
:15:39. > :15:39.
:15:39. > :15:45.Hello. I saw some daffodils out yesterday so something is not right.
:15:45. > :15:49.The mild theme continues today. More in the way of cloud around.
:15:49. > :15:53.The cloud is thick enough to give a fair bit of rain across northern
:15:53. > :15:59.areas, especially Scotland but the rain easing down into northern
:15:59. > :16:03.England this afternoon. Eastern Scotland by 3 o'clock this
:16:03. > :16:07.afternoon could see something brighter before the day is done.
:16:07. > :16:14.Western Scotland stays a grey. Grey and damp across northern England
:16:14. > :16:18.but still quite mild. Further south and some bricks in the cloud. The
:16:18. > :16:23.South and the Midlands into East Anglia and the south-east are doing
:16:23. > :16:29.quite well. Temperatures up into double figures. Further west there
:16:29. > :16:33.is more cloud and light rain and drizzle across Cornwall, Devon and
:16:33. > :16:40.western Wales. Even some fog from time to time over the hills.
:16:40. > :16:43.Northern Ireland is struggling in terms of brightness. A much
:16:43. > :16:48.brighter day tomorrow across northern areas. Further south it
:16:48. > :16:58.will be cloudy but still pretty mild. Generally it stays mild for
:16:58. > :16:59.
:16:59. > :17:03.The actor Ralph Fiennes is well known for his work on stage and
:17:03. > :17:07.screen in Schindler's List, the English Patient and as Harry
:17:08. > :17:13.Potter's nemesis, Lord Voldemort. Now he has directed a film of
:17:13. > :17:16.Shakespeare's Coriolanus. He stars in it as well. This new movie
:17:16. > :17:20.version brings it bang up-to-date. This is Shakespeare as you have
:17:20. > :17:30.probably never seen it before. I will be speaking to Ralph Fiennes
:17:30. > :17:39.
:17:39. > :17:45.What's the matter? You dissent just rogues make yourself scabs. We have
:17:45. > :17:50.every your good word. He that will give good words to me will flatter
:17:50. > :18:00.beneath a pouring. What would you have, you KERS but like not peace
:18:00. > :18:06.nor war, one fright Sue, the other makes you proud?
:18:06. > :18:10.Fascinating watching that. A combination of Shakespearean
:18:10. > :18:14.language and filmic techniques. There is lots of fast cutting and
:18:14. > :18:20.the television appears and it feels very, very modern. You presumably
:18:20. > :18:25.had to strip down the full text quite radically. I always felt that
:18:25. > :18:29.Coriolanus which is a very provocative play deals with power
:18:29. > :18:34.could be an exciting film that you would have to take away a lot of
:18:34. > :18:38.dense text which I did with the writer John Logan. When you strip
:18:38. > :18:42.that away you are left with some very potent lines. I love
:18:42. > :18:47.Shakespeare in modern dress. I think it is a potent mix. And it
:18:47. > :18:51.feels very appropriate for the current problems today, this play
:18:51. > :18:57.because it has got the people, the rabble that Coriolanus himself
:18:57. > :19:01.despises. I think Shakespeare, there is no other dramatist who
:19:01. > :19:05.writes so brilliantly about power, politics and the people who hold
:19:05. > :19:11.power and their essential fallibility. This play is always
:19:11. > :19:15.relevant but particularly now. In the play you have a nation state in
:19:15. > :19:19.a deep sense of economic uncertainty. Have into party
:19:19. > :19:24.politics which are rapid and aggressive and the apparent --
:19:24. > :19:28.perennial conflict. At the heart of it you have this extraordinary
:19:28. > :19:34.mother-son relationship. All the strands of the story take you to
:19:34. > :19:40.this conflict. Vanessa grew -- Vanessa Redgrave playing the mother.
:19:40. > :19:47.The action scenes, the war scenes are very, very fast and loud and it
:19:47. > :19:53.will remind a lot of people of the hurt locker. Indeed. I used the
:19:53. > :20:00.cinematographer that I worked with. Coriolanus is a soldier. He is an
:20:00. > :20:04.extreme figure. We understand him by his military background.
:20:04. > :20:09.Shakespeare sets up the story with a battle. I wanted the battle to be
:20:09. > :20:15.as real and frightening and confusing as I imagine a battle is.
:20:15. > :20:19.Is about borders and states fighting each other. Interesting
:20:19. > :20:24.that you filmed it in Belgrade. audience, I hope, can identify it
:20:24. > :20:28.as being anywhere possibly but we shot it in Belgrade so inevitably
:20:28. > :20:33.it has a sense of the recent Balkan conflict but it is not meant to be
:20:33. > :20:37.the Balkans specifically. It could be anywhere today. It could be
:20:37. > :20:42.Afghanistan. In fact, one of the inspirations for the border
:20:42. > :20:45.conflict was the Russian Chechnya conflict of a few years back.
:20:45. > :20:51.difficult to raise money for films these days. You managed to achieve
:20:51. > :20:56.it for Coriolanus. You must have other ambitions for film directing?
:20:56. > :21:01.I love directing. I was very lucky that I was surrounded by an amazing
:21:01. > :21:05.cast like Vanessa Redgrave, Gerard Butler and Brian Cox. I had a lot
:21:05. > :21:09.of steep learning curves, especially editing it but it is
:21:09. > :21:14.hard to raise money. I had some wonderful producers who fought
:21:14. > :21:20.tooth and nail to raise money at a time when no one was Russian
:21:20. > :21:26.forward to make Coriolanus. have also played Lord Voldemort.
:21:27. > :21:29.Everyone in politics looking at Harry Potter says Lord Mandelson.
:21:29. > :21:35.Do you think they will look at Coriolanus and make that
:21:35. > :21:39.identification? They may very well. Just a thought on the end of that
:21:39. > :21:42.enormously long Harry Potter project, of course, hugely
:21:42. > :21:46.successful. Is there a certain relief that it is all over and you
:21:46. > :21:50.have got your nose back? I have got my nose bag which is a good thing!
:21:50. > :21:55.I think it was an amazingly managed story by everyone concerned but
:21:55. > :21:59.there was a point where it had to come to its final climax. There is
:21:59. > :22:05.sadness by everyone. It was an extraordinary ride to be on but
:22:05. > :22:10.there is a sense that we now have to leave it behind and move on.
:22:10. > :22:15.Absolutely. Where better than Shakespeare? It is out in cinemas
:22:15. > :22:20.on 20th January. Good luck with that. Thank you.
:22:20. > :22:23.Meryl Streep is one of the most acclaimed actors working today as
:22:23. > :22:27.well. She has been heaped with praise for her latest film in which
:22:27. > :22:32.she plays Margaret Thatcher. The Iron Lady is controversial because
:22:32. > :22:35.it depicts the former Prime Minister's life now - as a frail,
:22:35. > :22:39.elderly woman struggling with mental decline and the loss of her
:22:39. > :22:44.beloved husband, Denis. But there is no doubt that Meryl Streep's
:22:44. > :22:48.performance is a tour de force. She had to age by 40 years during the
:22:48. > :22:53.course of the movie, as the story is told through a series of
:22:53. > :22:57.flashbacks. Are you saying you want to Prime Minister? This is my duty
:22:57. > :23:01.and ambition. Where there is discord, may we
:23:02. > :23:07.bring harmony. Shoulders back, tummies in.
:23:07. > :23:13.Yes, the medicine is harsh but the patient requires it. Cowardice!
:23:13. > :23:18.Meryl Streep, you get the call, will lead to Margaret Thatcher?
:23:18. > :23:28.What do you think? What you know of her, to start with? I did not know
:23:28. > :23:35.very much in the beginning. I was quite reductive in my assessment.
:23:35. > :23:41.As a young woman, I remember her politics did not dovetail with mine
:23:41. > :23:46.or my cohort. I remember in 1979 when she was elected that we were
:23:47. > :23:52.all secretly thrilled that there was now a female head of state in
:23:52. > :23:59.Britain. We thought, if it could happen there, in America, seconds
:23:59. > :24:03.away. Of course, wrong again! you start to think your way into a
:24:03. > :24:09.character like this, not that there are many, how would you start? Do
:24:09. > :24:14.you start with the voice and the way of speaking? I started reading.
:24:14. > :24:21.Reading, reading, reading and trying to learn more about a person
:24:21. > :24:26.that had been caricature or only in our price. And in my own mind and
:24:26. > :24:30.easily emblematic of a certain type of person. What you say to people
:24:30. > :24:34.who say it is all very well doing a film about the Shakespearian
:24:34. > :24:39.Margaret Thatcher, the woman who rises and then falls and people
:24:39. > :24:46.have talked about it as a female deer but is not all right to leave
:24:46. > :24:53.out so much of the politics -- a female Lear. There have been other
:24:53. > :24:58.documentaries made analysing the downfall and those years. For
:24:58. > :25:03.people who want that, there is material out there to look at. Our
:25:03. > :25:07.interest was to look back through her own eyes, looking at the glory
:25:07. > :25:12.days and looking at anything that she might have regretted. She might
:25:12. > :25:18.not regret the same things that history does or people on the left
:25:18. > :25:24.or people the right. I didn't know that you're dropping
:25:24. > :25:30.by today, dear. A but you said yesterday we were going to start on
:25:30. > :25:34.dad's things in the cupboards and I was going to help you dress.
:25:35. > :25:41.Michael is coming for dinner tonight. Yes, of course. We are
:25:41. > :25:47.having halibut. It is an attempt. An attempt to
:25:47. > :25:54.look at her as a human being at the end of her life and to imagine what
:25:54. > :26:00.it felt like to be her. I don't think that that is an unreasonable
:26:00. > :26:04.act of imagining. Douglas Hurd said it was a ghoulish spectacle to have
:26:04. > :26:08.so much of somebody suffering from dementia when we don't quite know
:26:08. > :26:12.what she is really like now. She has not spoken for ten years now.
:26:12. > :26:22.There is always the possibility that she will see this film herself.
:26:22. > :26:22.
:26:22. > :26:27.Did that give you pause? It made me feel more responsible but I feel
:26:27. > :26:34.responsible whenever I have played anyone, even fictional or real. He
:26:34. > :26:39.just tried to get as close to the truth as you can. I have had
:26:39. > :26:44.experience with dementia in my own family. I don't think it is a
:26:44. > :26:50.shameful thing to depict it. I think it is part of nature. It is
:26:50. > :26:57.what happens. An ageing society. Yes, I hope if she did see it, she
:26:57. > :27:01.would understand what we were after. We have got her head next door!
:27:01. > :27:06.If she once asked to take care seriously, she must learn to calm
:27:06. > :27:13.down! If the Right Honourable Gentleman could perhaps attend more
:27:13. > :27:18.closely to what I am saying, rather than how I am saying it, he might
:27:18. > :27:22.receive a valuable education in spite of himself.
:27:22. > :27:26.You a great comic actress among other things, but some people have
:27:26. > :27:30.suggested that actually, you are too self knowing as Margaret
:27:30. > :27:35.Thatcher, that there was less irony and self-knowledge in the real
:27:35. > :27:38.Margaret Thatcher than the Margaret Thatcher you give us. I have heard
:27:38. > :27:44.enough anecdotes to know that she has a sense of humour and to know
:27:44. > :27:50.that she did not really, because of her cloistered upbringing, did not
:27:50. > :27:55.know a lot about blue humour. She was not hip to stuff. I think she
:27:55. > :27:59.felt constrained to either laugh or cry because it would be seen as a
:27:59. > :28:04.sign of weakness. A special rule for the first head of state --
:28:04. > :28:09.first female head of state who cannot cry. Churchill can cry, it
:28:09. > :28:13.is a sign of humanity but if she was to cry it would be a sign of
:28:13. > :28:17.unsuitability. Different rules, I guess. You have been not lucky,
:28:17. > :28:21.because you deserve every inch of it but you have had a fantastic
:28:21. > :28:28.last few years. We talk about old actresses do not get the top roles
:28:28. > :28:32.but you have proved us wrong. yes. It is always based on money.
:28:32. > :28:37.If you make some money for someone they will give you the next picture.
:28:37. > :28:43.That has been happening lately, inexplicably. Very happy to know
:28:43. > :28:47.that the films I have been in have travelled worldwide. It has come as
:28:47. > :28:51.a great shock to people in Hollywood who run studios. But I am
:28:51. > :29:01.not against exploiting it. Are you able to tell us what is coming
:29:01. > :29:07.next? Another film, you mean? Yes, I have made a sort of sex
:29:07. > :29:14.comedy with Tommy Lee Jones. So if not entirely a sequel to this will!
:29:14. > :29:17.Thank you. Meryl Streep discussing her latest film. Margaret Thatcher,
:29:17. > :29:25.The Iron Lady. From a former Prime Minister to the current Prime
:29:25. > :29:29.Minister. David Cameron, good It the big story is what you have
:29:29. > :29:34.been saying about executive pay. I start by getting it clear that, as
:29:34. > :29:37.far as you're concerned, there have been new figures about 87 of the
:29:37. > :29:41.top 100 companies having should executives paid more than �5
:29:41. > :29:45.million, when most of their companies are pretty flat. You
:29:45. > :29:49.think that is morally wrong? What I think is wrong is paid going up and
:29:50. > :29:54.up when it is not linked to the success that companies that having.
:29:54. > :29:57.I am in favour of people setting up great businesses in Britain,
:29:57. > :30:01.expanding those businesses, making lots of money when those businesses
:30:01. > :30:05.succeed. We need the investment and jobs. The Government should not
:30:05. > :30:11.tell people what they are to be paid. But where you have a market
:30:11. > :30:17.failure, and to me this is market failure, we saw between 1998 and
:30:17. > :30:24.2010 the average pay of a FTSE executive go up four times. More
:30:24. > :30:28.than �2 million each? Some people are worth to millions -- �2 million,
:30:28. > :30:31.because they have added massive growth and jobs. But it is
:30:31. > :30:35.excessive payment and related to success that is ripping off
:30:35. > :30:41.shareholders and customers. It is crony capitalism and it is wrong.
:30:41. > :30:45.The key point, payments for failure, the big rewards when people fail,
:30:45. > :30:48.it makes people's blood boil and it is taking money from the owners,
:30:48. > :30:52.the shareholders and everybody with a pension in Britain, and the
:30:52. > :30:56.employees as well. That is what is wrong, that needs to change and we
:30:56. > :31:02.are going to directly address that. A lot of people will say those are
:31:02. > :31:08.great words, Ann Treneman has said it is going to have to be deeds and
:31:08. > :31:15.not words. Can I test you on what might happen? We agreed that
:31:15. > :31:19.shareholders will be obliged, by law, to agree bonus packages and
:31:19. > :31:23.severance packages for senior executives? That is the key.
:31:23. > :31:28.Everything is on the table. Vince Cable is leading the exercise,
:31:28. > :31:31.consulting with business. The Institute of Directors, the CBI,
:31:31. > :31:35.many people in business know there is a market failure that needs to
:31:35. > :31:39.be dealt with. The absolute key, the thing I can confirm does need
:31:39. > :31:42.to happen and will happen is clear transparency in terms of the
:31:42. > :31:47.publication of proper pay numbers, so you can really see what people
:31:47. > :31:50.are being paid. Then, binding shareholder votes, so that the
:31:50. > :31:55.owners of the company are being asked to vote on pay levels.
:31:55. > :31:58.Absolutely key, they have to vote one any part about dismissal
:31:58. > :32:03.packages and payments for failure. That is that it that has gone so
:32:03. > :32:09.wrong. Those votes, will they have to be published? Will we have to
:32:09. > :32:13.know how, for instance, pension funds have voted? You pretty much
:32:13. > :32:17.know that at the moment. What we should be doing here are what are
:32:17. > :32:22.the best market tools to try to correct this market failure. I
:32:22. > :32:26.think transparency is a key tool. We can all see what is happening.
:32:26. > :32:31.You are empowering the shareholder. When you say transparency, give us
:32:31. > :32:34.some sense of how many salaries, what level we are talking about
:32:34. > :32:38.outside the boardroom itself? we have done with banks is actually
:32:38. > :32:44.the toughest renumeration rules for banks and financial institutions
:32:44. > :32:49.anywhere in the world. The eight top paid people have to be declared.
:32:49. > :32:53.Something similar for other companies? I don't want to steal
:32:53. > :32:57.Vince Cable's tender. He will make announcements early in the new year.
:32:57. > :33:01.-- thunder. I want to explain the key change, where you make more
:33:01. > :33:06.information transparently available, you would Power shareholders to
:33:06. > :33:10.vote on these things and stock rewards for failure. What about
:33:10. > :33:15.putting an employee on to the renumeration committee? Just one
:33:15. > :33:19.employee, surrounded by the guys in suits, to speak up for the workers?
:33:19. > :33:23.The key thing is reforming the remuneration committees themselves.
:33:23. > :33:26.What has happened in the past is that with a lot of chairmen sitting
:33:26. > :33:31.on each other's committees, there has been a bit of back-scratching
:33:31. > :33:34.going on. There has been a circular process of rewards being pushed out
:33:34. > :33:38.across the board. They are rewards which are sometimes earned because
:33:38. > :33:43.they are related to successful stopping too many cases, they are
:33:43. > :33:46.just generally going up. A four times increase in pay levels, but
:33:46. > :33:51.we did not see a four times increase in share prices,
:33:52. > :33:56.shareholder value or people working hard in those companies, they did
:33:56. > :34:01.not see their salaries go up by four times. Would it be fair for
:34:01. > :34:06.those people, working hard, to have one voice on those committees?
:34:06. > :34:11.may be the case. You would not be against that? The key thing is
:34:11. > :34:15.reforming the committees to make them work better. Let's look at...
:34:16. > :34:19.I'm not interested in gimmicks or tokenism. I'm interested in what
:34:19. > :34:25.would work to correct the market failure. I have said today what is
:34:25. > :34:28.absolutely key to me, shareholder votes, transparent information.
:34:28. > :34:33.What about one of the other proposals that have been kicking
:34:33. > :34:38.around, that high pay commission talked about this, at least
:34:38. > :34:41.publishing the ratio between the top people and how much they are
:34:41. > :34:46.paid and the least paid people, people in the middle whatever it
:34:46. > :34:49.might be, so we can get some sense of the spread? Which companies are
:34:49. > :34:53.paying their top people 100 times more than people at the bottom?
:34:53. > :34:57.There are some attractions to this. I think we should start with the
:34:57. > :35:02.public sector. We have led by example, we have cut ministers' pay
:35:02. > :35:07.by 5%, we have frozen it for Parliament, we have published pay
:35:07. > :35:11.levels in local government so the so-called fat cat salaries amongst
:35:11. > :35:15.government executives are coming down. We are dealing with quango
:35:15. > :35:20.paid. There has been a problem of the public and private sector
:35:20. > :35:25.chasing top pay and pushing levels up. The BBC has been a victim, or
:35:25. > :35:29.rather a perpetrator, of that. I think that is now being dealt with
:35:29. > :35:35.in the BBC as well. Pay ratios, I think there is a good argument for
:35:35. > :35:39.it. Maybe in the public sector, before the private sector, but in
:35:39. > :35:43.both. What about legislating to enforce the ratio? There is one
:35:43. > :35:47.problem with ratios that we need to do more work on. Sometimes you
:35:47. > :35:53.actually find that a company like Goldman Sachs as a relatively
:35:53. > :36:00.reasonable ratio. The average pay is relatively high. You might find
:36:00. > :36:05.that Tesco has a bad ratio. It is not the whole answer. When we asked
:36:05. > :36:08.the Work Foundation to look at this issue, they did not say this was
:36:08. > :36:11.the key change that would really make a difference. I want to focus
:36:12. > :36:15.on the things that will make a difference, that will show people
:36:15. > :36:19.that this is a fairer country, that reward is linked to success and not
:36:19. > :36:23.failure. I'm interested in things that make a difference, not just
:36:23. > :36:29.trying to cover the entire waterfront. This is real, we will
:36:29. > :36:34.see legislation this year? It is not going to be just words? We had
:36:34. > :36:37.a Queen's Speech in spring. I don't want to pre-empt it, but it is
:36:37. > :36:42.likely to include legislation on companies and banking. There is
:36:42. > :36:50.room to make legislative changes if necessary. Let's move to the other
:36:50. > :36:58.end of the scale. Depending on how you count it, there are between
:36:58. > :37:02.750,001 million young people without jobs. -- 750,000 people and
:37:02. > :37:06.1 million young people without jobs. Are you haunted by that? I am
:37:06. > :37:09.extremely worried about it. That is why we not only how to work
:37:09. > :37:13.programme, the biggest back-to-work programme any government has done
:37:13. > :37:17.since the 1930s, but we have supplemented that with the youth
:37:17. > :37:21.contract. So young people that have been out of work for only a few
:37:21. > :37:24.months will get help. It might be work experience, it might be a
:37:24. > :37:27.subsidised job in the private sector. What we have seen is that
:37:27. > :37:31.work experience is one of the most cost-effective ways of getting
:37:32. > :37:35.young people into work. For a good reason, the companies can see there
:37:35. > :37:40.are excellent young people ready to work and they can get used to the
:37:40. > :37:44.idea of going in and working. I saw this for myself on Friday, how many
:37:44. > :37:48.successful schemes there have been. At the moment, the hope that you
:37:48. > :37:52.were expressing this time last year, that the private sector would sweep
:37:52. > :37:56.in and compensate and more for the jobs being lost in the public
:37:56. > :37:59.sector, that has not happened, has it? That must be a disappointment.
:37:59. > :38:04.I wonder whether you and George Osborne are constantly talking
:38:04. > :38:09.about new ways to get more jobs in the private sector? What we have
:38:09. > :38:12.seen since the election is 500,000 new jobs in the private sector.
:38:12. > :38:15.That has not been enough to compensate for the lost jobs in the
:38:15. > :38:19.public sector, which are inevitable when you are making reductions to
:38:19. > :38:25.public said that -- spending, necessary because of the position
:38:25. > :38:28.we inherited. We are not sitting back and just hoping this
:38:28. > :38:33.rebalancing between private and public is going to take place. This
:38:33. > :38:36.is a sleeves rolled up government that is boosting the number of
:38:37. > :38:39.apprenticeships and work-experience places, introducing the regional
:38:39. > :38:44.growth fund, cut in corporation tax and doing everything we can to help
:38:44. > :38:48.businesses start up and grow. The growth will come, I think, from
:38:48. > :38:53.start-up businesses, new businesses, small businesses choosing to employ
:38:53. > :38:57.one or two people. But do you have to go further on all of that in
:38:57. > :39:02.removing regulations or helping on the tax side? Up until now, you're
:39:02. > :39:05.not getting enough of those jobs? That work never stops. If you
:39:05. > :39:09.believe that the free-enterprise economy is the way to get growth
:39:09. > :39:12.and jobs, frankly there is not a government stimulus you can go
:39:12. > :39:15.through public spending because the Government hasn't got any money.
:39:15. > :39:20.There is not a monetary stimulus you can give because interest rates
:39:20. > :39:27.are as low as they could be. It is simply to make it easier for
:39:27. > :39:30.companies to take people on, grow, invest and expand. It is a tough
:39:30. > :39:34.year, but a year when we need to make tough decisions to make that
:39:34. > :39:37.happen. We have the post from the Olympic Games, the Diamond Jubilee,
:39:37. > :39:44.a year when the world is going to be looking at Britain and visiting
:39:44. > :39:47.Britain. So we need to play to our strengths. A showcase year. However,
:39:47. > :39:52.I didn't totally get the sense that you are really getting your
:39:52. > :39:54.Chancellor by the lapels and saying, this is a crisis. Youth
:39:54. > :39:59.unemployment is the worst it has been for a generation. These are
:39:59. > :40:03.people that may never get into work as a result. The work programmes
:40:03. > :40:06.are the biggest ever, the youth contract has added to that. The
:40:06. > :40:10.enterprise zones are up and running this year, the corporation tax cut
:40:10. > :40:15.is coming in. The cut in petrol duty to help families with the cost
:40:15. > :40:20.of living, the frieze of council tax. It is a long list. But at the
:40:20. > :40:24.moment the unemployment rate keeps moving up and we have got very,
:40:24. > :40:27.very low prospects for growth according to the Office For Budget
:40:27. > :40:30.Responsibility? All of the forecasters are forecasting growth
:40:30. > :40:33.this year. The job of the Government is not to sit back and
:40:34. > :40:40.hope it happens. It is to roll up its sleeves and do everything
:40:40. > :40:46.possible to help businesses do that. At the time of the Budget it was
:40:46. > :40:49.going to be 2.5%, now it is 0.7%. For the last quarter of which
:40:49. > :40:54.figures are available, there was growth in private sector employment.
:40:54. > :40:57.The key things are not only helping to boost growth, but also
:40:57. > :41:02.recognising that if you want to protect jobs in the public sector,
:41:02. > :41:05.and I do, and you have got to make reductions in public spending, that
:41:05. > :41:08.means bold welfare reform is necessary. That does not cost jobs.
:41:08. > :41:14.The public sector pension deals, they are necessary because it
:41:14. > :41:20.reduces costs without reducing jobs. Those are three difficult... You
:41:20. > :41:23.know, part of this is making tough and difficult decisions that are in
:41:23. > :41:26.the long term interests of the economy and the country, riding up
:41:26. > :41:30.the difficulty of doing that in the national interest. Doncaster
:41:30. > :41:34.council has suggested that it is going to vote tomorrow on cutting
:41:34. > :41:38.the pay of everybody working for the council so that they can save
:41:38. > :41:42.some jobs. Is that the kind of radical, lateral thinking you would
:41:42. > :41:45.like to see more of? I wasn't aware of that specific situation. But if
:41:45. > :41:51.you look at what happened at the British car industry during the
:41:51. > :41:57.difficult decision -- recession, that is exactly what companies like
:41:57. > :41:59.Honda did to save jobs. Spread the pain? There has been a great show
:41:59. > :42:02.of solidarity in many private sector companies that took
:42:02. > :42:08.difficult decisions on issues like paying in order to keep hold of
:42:08. > :42:12.jobs. I think that is important. cutting everybody's pay to save
:42:12. > :42:16.some people's jobs could be the way forwards? What we have done is have
:42:16. > :42:21.a public sector pay freeze. We have extended that with a 1% increase,
:42:21. > :42:24.rather than anything more. That is a solidarity measure. It is saying
:42:24. > :42:29.if we hold down public sector pay at a time when we hope and believe
:42:29. > :42:33.inflation will fall, we will protect public sector jobs. Beyond
:42:33. > :42:37.the frieze, cutting could be the way forward? I'm not making that
:42:37. > :42:41.suggestion, but I am saying throughout the public sector what
:42:41. > :42:45.happens -- matters is the size of the pay bill. If you could be more
:42:45. > :42:49.efficient and do things better, that is what matters. We are going
:42:49. > :42:53.to see unemployment higher by the end of the year, aren't we?
:42:53. > :42:57.forecasts are there. It is the job of the Government not just to stand
:42:57. > :43:01.back and say, well, that is what is going to happen, the job of the
:43:01. > :43:05.Government is to help people into work, help people stay in work,
:43:05. > :43:09.help businesses to be created. There is a huge amount of business
:43:09. > :43:13.creation going on in Britain and we are producing the tax systems and
:43:13. > :43:19.other systems to help make that happen. Am I satisfied we are doing
:43:19. > :43:26.enough to deregulate, to make it easier to employ people, to solve
:43:26. > :43:29.the problem, no. The job we have is to bang the table and make sure
:43:29. > :43:33.every government department is a growth department. I don't say to
:43:33. > :43:37.the environment minister or the housing minister that they are just
:43:37. > :43:41.there for that, they are all growth ministers. The whole government has
:43:41. > :43:44.a growth agenda to make sure every avenue of policy is about helping
:43:44. > :43:48.the economy to grow and get people back to work. Let's turn to
:43:48. > :43:52.something that might be getting smaller, rather than bigger. That
:43:52. > :43:56.is the United Kingdom itself. Are you determined to affect the timing
:43:56. > :44:00.and the questions of any referendum on Scottish independence? I think
:44:00. > :44:05.there is a problem today, two problems. One is the uncertainty
:44:05. > :44:09.about this issue. I think it is damaging to Scotland and Scotland's
:44:09. > :44:14.economy. You have companies and other organisations asking what
:44:14. > :44:17.Scotland's future is. Is it within the United Kingdom or not? That is
:44:17. > :44:21.damaging. It's very unfair on the Scottish people themselves, who do
:44:21. > :44:25.not really know when his quest is going to be asked, what the
:44:25. > :44:28.question is going to be, who is responsible for asking it. I think
:44:28. > :44:32.we owe the Scottish people something that is fair, legal and
:44:32. > :44:36.decisive. In the coming days we will be setting out clearly what
:44:36. > :44:42.the legal situation is. I think we do need to more forwards and say,
:44:42. > :44:46.right, let's settle this issue in a fair and decisive way. A what is
:44:46. > :44:50.the legal situation? As most people understood it, Alex Salmond would
:44:50. > :44:53.decide when the referendum is going to happen and the question of
:44:53. > :44:56.whether it is in or out, whether there was a third option, that
:44:56. > :45:01.would be down to the Scottish administration to decide. Is that
:45:01. > :45:04.something you do not believe to be the case? I'm afraid I cannot do it
:45:04. > :45:07.today, but we will be making clear in the coming days what the legal
:45:07. > :45:13.situation is. Then I think we will have a proper debate where people
:45:13. > :45:16.will put forward their views. My view, very strongly, is that
:45:17. > :45:20.Scottish people deserve clarity, decisiveness and they deserve it to
:45:20. > :45:24.be legal and binding. Let me be absolutely clear, my cards on the
:45:24. > :45:27.table, I strongly support the United Kingdom. I think it is one
:45:27. > :45:30.of the most successful partnerships in the history of the world. I
:45:31. > :45:33.think it would be desperately sad if Scotland chose to leave the
:45:33. > :45:37.United Kingdom. I will do everything I can to encourage
:45:37. > :45:41.Scotland to stay in the United Kingdom because I think it is best
:45:41. > :45:44.for all of our economies and all societies. If Scotland did leave,
:45:44. > :45:49.that would be the end of Britain's independent nuclear deterrent,
:45:49. > :45:52.wouldn't it? There would be many disadvantages from a break-up of
:45:52. > :45:56.the United Kingdom. All of those issues would have to be dealt with.
:45:56. > :46:00.But let's not go there. We have this great partnership. This
:46:00. > :46:05.partnership has worked so well for those in the past. We will keep it
:46:05. > :46:09.in the future. Let's have decisiveness, let not drift apart.
:46:09. > :46:12.What Alex Salmond is trying to do is, I think he knows that the
:46:12. > :46:16.Scottish people, in their heart, don't want a full separation from
:46:17. > :46:26.the United Kingdom. He is trying to create a situation where that
:46:27. > :46:29.
:46:29. > :46:35.bubbles up and happens. I think we Just on the timing, he wants the
:46:35. > :46:39.vote in 2014, the and adversity -- anniversary of the Battle of
:46:39. > :46:45.Bannockburn. You are saying, let's have the vote earlier. I think this
:46:45. > :46:49.is a matter for the Scottish people. If there are problems of
:46:49. > :46:53.uncertainty and lack of clarity, I don't think we should let this go
:46:53. > :46:57.on year after year, it is damaging for everyone concerned. Let's
:46:57. > :47:02.clear-up the situation and have a debate. Sooner not later? My view
:47:02. > :47:06.is that sooner rather than later would be better. Let me ask you
:47:06. > :47:11.about the fall-out from the European veto, if I may? We have
:47:11. > :47:16.just had that the French Finance Minister is saying that there will
:47:16. > :47:23.be a transaction tax, a financial transaction tax by the end of this
:47:23. > :47:27.year and we have also heard that Sarkozy and Merkel and the rest are
:47:27. > :47:32.determined to go ahead using the institutions of the EU to progress
:47:32. > :47:39.what they want to do on the euro. First of all, let's deal with the
:47:39. > :47:46.taxation issue. Tax is an issue of unanimity in the European Union.
:47:46. > :47:51.Other countries are at liberty to put forward ideas for taxes. The
:47:51. > :47:55.idea of a transaction tax put in place only in Europe, that does not
:47:56. > :48:00.include other jurisdictions, what that would do is it would cost jobs.
:48:01. > :48:06.It would cost us tax revenue. It would be bad for the whole of
:48:06. > :48:10.Europe. We would see other institutions go to other places. If
:48:10. > :48:14.the French themselves want to go ahead with a transaction tax in
:48:15. > :48:18.their own country, they should be free to do so. I think they are
:48:18. > :48:22.talking about a European wide one. I think the French are talking
:48:22. > :48:26.about doing one in their own country. We have stamp duty on
:48:26. > :48:29.share transactions in Britain. And yet we have one of the most
:48:29. > :48:32.competitive and financial -- successful financial markets
:48:32. > :48:37.anywhere. I would say to other countries if they want to do what
:48:37. > :48:41.Britain does, we have a bank levy, stamp duty on share dealings, you
:48:41. > :48:46.can do those things. But the idea of a new European tax when you're
:48:46. > :48:49.not going to have that put in place in other places, I do not think
:48:49. > :48:56.that is sensible so I will block it. A less than rest of the world
:48:56. > :49:00.agreed then we will not go ahead with it. What about the use of the
:49:00. > :49:08.26 now? We do not know whether it will be 26 or less who go ahead
:49:08. > :49:13.with the new treaty. The 26th ish we will call them, that group, what
:49:13. > :49:17.about them, they seem determined to look at single-market issues as
:49:17. > :49:22.part of the reform to the euro as a currency bloc. Is that something
:49:22. > :49:28.that you will stop or are you talking about attending those
:49:28. > :49:33.meetings as an observer? There is a new treaty being formed outside the
:49:33. > :49:37.European Union that may involve 26 or it may be fewer. At its heart,
:49:37. > :49:40.it is that eurozone countries, countries in Europe having a tough
:49:40. > :49:44.set of rules about the deficits they are allowed and all the rest
:49:44. > :49:49.of it. That is the business of the euro. We are not in the euro, we do
:49:49. > :49:53.not want to join the euro and frankly we are better off with our
:49:54. > :49:58.own currency and hour better interest rates. The key for me is
:49:58. > :50:02.that Britain's interest is in having a strong single market that
:50:02. > :50:07.is determined at the level of the 27. The interesting thing about
:50:07. > :50:11.this new treaty is is says very, very clearly in article 2 of the
:50:11. > :50:17.treaty, that this treaty does not supersede or interfere with or
:50:17. > :50:22.overriding anyway, the treaties of the European Union. It is entirely
:50:22. > :50:26.subservient to them. Yet, in psychological and human terms,
:50:27. > :50:32.being the one outside, would be an uncomfortable position for the year
:50:32. > :50:36.ahead. Do you intend to make sure you are back inside? I think that
:50:36. > :50:40.is a slight myth. When the euro was created, that was the moment at
:50:40. > :50:43.which, those countries with their own currency and frankly now Baron
:50:43. > :50:47.problems to deal with, inevitably had to spend more time talking to
:50:47. > :50:51.each other and deepening their relationship together. They have
:50:51. > :50:53.been having separate meetings were that the United Kingdom being
:50:53. > :50:58.present for years now and frankly they need to have more meetings to
:50:58. > :51:01.sort out their problems. If they want to discuss something like the
:51:01. > :51:05.fact that the Germans are understandably angry that they
:51:05. > :51:08.retire in their mid-60s and Greeks retire in their mid-60s -- mid-50s,
:51:09. > :51:12.that is something they can talk about which does not have an effect
:51:12. > :51:18.on Britain. I'm happy for them to have their discussions. What
:51:18. > :51:21.matters for Britain is, is the single work -- is the single market
:51:21. > :51:26.work in? Are we increasing enterprise and jobs in that way and
:51:26. > :51:30.that is where my efforts will be put this year. Are you taking this
:51:30. > :51:34.country in a fresh direction when it comes to Europe, politically as
:51:34. > :51:41.well as this particular row? Are we Marcham off finally in a new
:51:41. > :51:44.direction? We are committed members of the European Union. We are
:51:44. > :51:49.committed members of the single market. I am relaxed about the fact
:51:49. > :51:54.that when it is in the national interest to be in something, like
:51:54. > :51:58.the single market or NATO we are in it. When it is not in our interests
:51:58. > :52:02.that the Schengen Agreement, I do not want us to be in. With the euro
:52:02. > :52:05.we are better off outside it so we are not going to join it. Standing
:52:05. > :52:09.up for your national interest and choosing which things really matter,
:52:09. > :52:13.I think that is a very sensible approach. The let me ask you that
:52:13. > :52:16.two other things which have been in the news. One is the increasing
:52:17. > :52:22.worry about the rhetoric from Argentina about the Falkland
:52:22. > :52:25.Islands. We had just had the film about The Iron Lady reminding us
:52:25. > :52:30.about 1980. The Argentines have brought up -- built up a lot of
:52:30. > :52:34.support among other South American nations, are you worried about the
:52:34. > :52:40.tone that is going on out there? For obviously, it is an important
:52:40. > :52:44.anniversary this year. I remember being at school listening to the
:52:44. > :52:47.radio and following really closely what happened in 1982 and the
:52:47. > :52:52.incredible bravery of hour service personnel in recovering the
:52:52. > :52:56.Falkland Islands and we must never put them at risk. We must make sure
:52:56. > :52:59.our defences are strong and that is what we are doing. There is no
:52:59. > :53:03.question of negotiating on the question of the sovereignty of the
:53:03. > :53:06.Falkland Islands. We need to build strong relationships with all
:53:06. > :53:11.countries in South America and we are doing that with countries like
:53:11. > :53:15.Brazil. There is nothing immediate to be worried about? We are
:53:15. > :53:18.permanently vigilant about the protection of the Falkland Islands
:53:18. > :53:23.and their defence and I have spent a serious amount of time making
:53:23. > :53:28.sure that is the case. One final point, Ed Balls is not your
:53:28. > :53:33.favourite Labour politician, you said it was like being confronted
:53:33. > :53:40.by somebody with Tourette's syndrome. By -- an unfortunate
:53:41. > :53:44.choice of words? I was speaking off the cuff. I did not intend to
:53:44. > :53:50.offend anyone. I think it is a lesson to me that I have to tune
:53:50. > :53:54.out and answer the question. I think Meryl Streep saw that it can
:53:54. > :53:57.be challenging at moments. A busy year ahead and thank you for
:53:57. > :54:02.joining us, Prime Minister. The Prime Minister has promised
:54:02. > :54:05.action to curb the pay of some top executives. David Cameron said that
:54:05. > :54:08.had been excessive growth in salaries and bonuses in recent
:54:08. > :54:12.years which sometimes was not related to the success of the
:54:12. > :54:16.companies involved. He described the trend as a market failure which
:54:16. > :54:20.was ripping off shareholders. He said he expected the government to
:54:20. > :54:24.bring forward legislation later this year to introduce greater
:54:24. > :54:28.transparency. A nurse arrested on suspicion of
:54:28. > :54:32.tampering with medical records at Stepping Hill Hospital in Stockport
:54:33. > :54:37.is now being questioned in relation to the poisoning of patients there
:54:37. > :54:40.last summer. Police say Victorino Chua is being questioned on
:54:40. > :54:46.suspicion of three murders and 18 counts of grievous bodily harm.
:54:46. > :54:48.That is all from me for now. The next news on BBC One is at midday.
:54:48. > :54:54.Back to Andrew and guests in a moment. First a look at what is
:54:54. > :54:58.coming up next. Good morning. Did Mrs Thatcher
:54:58. > :55:02.changed Britain for the better? Derek Hatton and Edwina Currie are
:55:02. > :55:07.limbering up to do battle on that one. And, has the time come to
:55:07. > :55:10.repent? Some say 2012 might be the end of the world. Join us at 10
:55:10. > :55:14.o'clock on BBC One for The Big Questions.
:55:14. > :55:18.We will end this morning with some music from Nick Lowe. He has
:55:18. > :55:23.written some brilliant songs over the last 40 years, a pioneer of
:55:23. > :55:28.punk, have collaborated with Elvis Costello and is a well-known
:55:28. > :55:31.performer in his own right. He has a new album out and he is with me
:55:32. > :55:37.now. It is unfair to show pictures from 40 years ago but nonetheless!
:55:37. > :55:42.Painful! You have been doing a lot of performing and gigs in the
:55:42. > :55:46.United States but we have not seen so much of you in this country?
:55:46. > :55:50.I have rather neglected this country. I am hoping to put that
:55:50. > :55:54.right starting at the end of this month. Much harder for young
:55:54. > :55:58.performers starting out than in your day, there are no pioneering
:55:58. > :56:04.people who could make money out of selling records, that is no longer
:56:04. > :56:07.the case, is it? It is very much more difficult these days. Tell us
:56:07. > :56:16.about the music you are making now and what you are going to sing for
:56:16. > :56:20.us. It is a sort of hip croon. sounds all right! That is what I am
:56:20. > :56:24.punting now. We will hear it in a moment. Thank you for joining us.
:56:24. > :56:29.That is almost it for this morning. A reminder that the new radio
:56:29. > :56:32.series examining David Cameron's Premiership starts on Radio 4 today
:56:32. > :56:38.at 1:30pm. We are back at the same time next week and I will be
:56:38. > :56:42.talking to the Laban leader Ed Miliband and the painter David
:56:42. > :56:47.Hockney -- Labour leader. But now we leave you with Nick Lowe and a
:56:47. > :56:50.song from his new album which is called House For Sale. Goodbye. #
:56:50. > :56:53.House for sale. # I'm moving out.
:56:53. > :56:57.# I'm moving on. # This bird has flown.
:56:57. > :57:07.# House for sale. # I'll tell you where to redirect
:57:07. > :57:13.
:57:13. > :57:16.# House for sale. # Take a look inside.
:57:16. > :57:20.# This is where love Once did reside.
:57:20. > :57:26.# But now it's gone. # And that's the reason I'll be
:57:26. > :57:36.traveling on. # Well the roof has given in to the
:57:36. > :57:36.
:57:36. > :57:41.weather. # And the windows rattle and moan.
:57:41. > :57:47.# Paint is peeling, cracks in the ceiling.
:57:47. > :57:53.# Whatever's happened to my happy home.
:57:53. > :58:01.# House for sale. # I've had enough.
:58:01. > :58:11.# I'll send a van to get my stuff. # House for sale.
:58:11. > :58:14.
:58:14. > :58:19.# I'm leaving like I'm getting out # The stairs are alarmingly shaky.
:58:19. > :58:24.# And the carpet threadbare and worn.
:58:24. > :58:33.# Fence needs mending. # Garden needs tending.
:58:33. > :58:42.# How soon it's become overgrown. # Oh house for sale.
:58:42. > :58:44.# I've had enough. # I'm leaving like I'm getting out