18/02/2018

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0:00:00 > 0:00:05Now on BBC News, The Papers.

0:00:15 > 0:00:19Hello, and welcome to our look at what the papers say this morning.

0:00:19 > 0:00:23With me are City AM's Rachel Cuncliffe and the Financial Times'

0:00:23 > 0:00:28political correspondent Henry Mance.

0:00:28 > 0:00:32Let's take a look at those front pages.

0:00:32 > 0:00:35The Observer investigates Britain's prison system,

0:00:35 > 0:00:38claiming two-thirds of prisons are providing inadequate

0:00:38 > 0:00:43conditions or unacceptable treatment for inmates.

0:00:43 > 0:00:46The Sunday Express says Theresa May has declared there will be "no

0:00:46 > 0:00:51going back" on Brexit.

0:00:51 > 0:00:55The Telegraph leads on claims prominent members

0:00:55 > 0:00:57of the Labour Party met Eastern Bloc agents during the Cold War.

0:00:57 > 0:01:01The Mail on Sunday has an interview with Brendan Cox -

0:01:01 > 0:01:05the widower of murdered MP Jo Cox - who has stepped down from his role

0:01:05 > 0:01:06in two charities after admitting inappropriate behaviour

0:01:06 > 0:01:08with a colleague.

0:01:08 > 0:01:10The Sunday Times says the Education Secretary is looking

0:01:10 > 0:01:13at a number of university reforms, including cheaper tuition

0:01:13 > 0:01:19fees for some courses.

0:01:19 > 0:01:22And the Sun on Sunday reports on alleged marriage difficulties

0:01:22 > 0:01:25between pop stars Cheryl and Liam Payne.

0:01:25 > 0:01:30So a variety of stories on the front pages.

0:01:30 > 0:01:40Lets kick-off and start with The Mail on Sunday. The Brendan Cox

0:01:40 > 0:01:42story is dominant, The Mail on Sunday have made the running on this

0:01:42 > 0:01:47story.Yes, he has given an extraordinary person an in-depth

0:01:47 > 0:01:53interviews with them. Obviously this is the husband of Jo Cox. She was

0:01:53 > 0:02:00murdered very shockingly, and has been a hero for the charity sector

0:02:00 > 0:02:06and also talking about free speech on migration and making MPs feel

0:02:06 > 0:02:12safe. It is a real fall from grace, these allegations from various

0:02:12 > 0:02:16charities that he made women feel uncomfortable and behaved in an

0:02:16 > 0:02:19inappropriate way. It's quite interesting because obviously you've

0:02:19 > 0:02:24got that incredible headline which is a bit misleading and then a

0:02:24 > 0:02:27couple of pages detailing the allegations in quite a lot of

0:02:27 > 0:02:33detail.The front-page headline which says yes, I was a sex pest

0:02:33 > 0:02:38confesses Jo Cox's Husband.He doesn't use those exact words. In

0:02:38 > 0:02:44the interview lots of apologies, lots of soul-searching, and he's one

0:02:44 > 0:02:49of the few that have actually been accused and come forward and said

0:02:49 > 0:02:55I'm really, really sorry, I've let myself down. It's an interesting

0:02:55 > 0:02:59juxtaposition.What did you make of that?It primarily seems to relate

0:02:59 > 0:03:05to two complaints made in relation to Brendan Cox, one when he was a

0:03:05 > 0:03:10senior figure at Save the Children and another when he was on a

0:03:10 > 0:03:12university course at Harvard University. He says he doesn't

0:03:12 > 0:03:17accept the precise details of the complaint at Harvard but he

0:03:17 > 0:03:20understands that his behaviour might have made people feel uncomfortable,

0:03:20 > 0:03:25might have been inappropriate, that he could be seen as overstepping the

0:03:25 > 0:03:30mark. This comes down to power. He was a very senior figure in the

0:03:30 > 0:03:34charity. The Mail on Sunday links to the former chief executive Justin

0:03:34 > 0:03:38Forsyth. It's trying to save where these figures untouchable, that you

0:03:38 > 0:03:45couldn't make a complaint knowing it wouldn't affect your career. A lot

0:03:45 > 0:03:50of people will find this very sad, given how much Brendan Cox has

0:03:50 > 0:03:55suffered and how much dignity he's had in the aftermath of his wife's

0:03:55 > 0:04:00murder.The paper says it is a remarkable fall from grace, that's

0:04:00 > 0:04:05their words.Yes, and I think you're right about the power dynamic. Later

0:04:05 > 0:04:11in the interview he links it to the wider More in Common movement. We've

0:04:11 > 0:04:15allegations like this in Hollywood, Westminster, the city, now the

0:04:15 > 0:04:23charity sector. -- the Me Too movement. He makes a point which is

0:04:23 > 0:04:28sometimes intentions don't matter, if there is such a gaping power

0:04:28 > 0:04:35imbalance and such a lack of oversight, you can make women feel

0:04:35 > 0:04:39very uncomfortable and unsafe perhaps without realising. That is a

0:04:39 > 0:04:46culture change that needs to happen across industries.Oxfam, who has

0:04:46 > 0:04:50been so much in the spotlight over the last few days, on the front page

0:04:50 > 0:04:56again of The Sunday Telegraph. This is saying Oxfam new ten years ago of

0:04:56 > 0:05:06a "Urgent sex abuse problem".This is a report in 2008 by Save the

0:05:06 > 0:05:12Children, a report about Haiti saying that people were being forced

0:05:12 > 0:05:17to sell sex in exchange for aid. That was circulated to various

0:05:17 > 0:05:21charities. Oxfam say one of their representatives went to Haiti and

0:05:21 > 0:05:26put some processes in place. However, Oxfam admit the measures

0:05:26 > 0:05:29they put in place will probably insufficient and also that the

0:05:29 > 0:05:36people in charge of those policies, the country director in Haiti for

0:05:36 > 0:05:41example, they couldn't be trusted to do that and may have compromised the

0:05:41 > 0:05:45measures. You have a real question about what happens when complaints

0:05:45 > 0:05:51are raised and why it takes so long to go from evidence of wrongdoing to

0:05:51 > 0:05:55proper procedures in place, and who is ultimately responsible. If there

0:05:55 > 0:05:58are going to be bad eggs in the system, who is in charge of routing

0:05:58 > 0:06:04them out and in searing desperately poor people in places like Haiti are

0:06:04 > 0:06:11protected? -- ensuring desperately poor people in places like Haiti are

0:06:11 > 0:06:16protected.This started with Harvey Weinstein, Hollywood, now the

0:06:16 > 0:06:20spotlight very much on the charity sector and aid agencies.I think

0:06:20 > 0:06:24ultimately that's a good thing, that we are talking about this and

0:06:24 > 0:06:28allegations are coming to like and we are having a conversation. I

0:06:28 > 0:06:31think what you get particularly with the charity sector stories is people

0:06:31 > 0:06:39like to think that harassment and sexual abuse is done by bad people.

0:06:39 > 0:06:42What you're getting with the Brendan Cox story and also with aid workers

0:06:42 > 0:06:47in the charity sector is these can be good people doing good work who

0:06:47 > 0:06:53have families, who have friends who are not what you would consider a

0:06:53 > 0:07:00sexual predator, but who can also do terrible things and use prostitutes.

0:07:00 > 0:07:04This story claims some children as young as six were forced to sell

0:07:04 > 0:07:08sex. The reason it's perhaps taken longer to get the charity sector is

0:07:08 > 0:07:14we have this idea of everyone working in the charity sector is

0:07:14 > 0:07:17doing good work, that doesn't mean you don't need oversight and

0:07:17 > 0:07:21structure and a process for accusations, evidence, policies. I

0:07:21 > 0:07:26think perhaps the charity sector is a bit complacent because we think

0:07:26 > 0:07:32about it in a positive, rosy light. There are repercussions financially

0:07:32 > 0:07:41for people like Oxfam losing money as a result of the publicity.Oxfam

0:07:41 > 0:07:43has told government, but you think ministers might have said the same

0:07:43 > 0:07:49thing anyway, that it won't bid for new contracts. Last year they won 60

0:07:49 > 0:07:54million in contracts to do work in Yemen and South Sudan. Over the

0:07:54 > 0:08:02medium-term, the threat is greater. We know how much Oxfam depends on

0:08:02 > 0:08:06goodwill, how much the government spend on aid. People have the sense

0:08:06 > 0:08:11that that is good work being done by good people and is making Britain's

0:08:11 > 0:08:18name more popular and seen in a good light around the world. Haiti has

0:08:18 > 0:08:21strong words to say about charities so it's not the soft power we

0:08:21 > 0:08:28imagined.Let's move onto happier news which is Queen Lizzy as The

0:08:28 > 0:08:32Sunday Telegraph calls her. Lizzy Yarnold with gold again, waving the

0:08:32 > 0:08:40union flag, a great moment.We weren't doing so well in the Winter

0:08:40 > 0:08:49Olympics up until this point. We got four medals in 48 hours. I watch

0:08:49 > 0:08:53what they do and it's absolutely terrifying. How quickly can you

0:08:53 > 0:08:59throw yourself down a chute of ice? It's a real success story, she is

0:08:59 > 0:09:04the first Brit to have defended her title in two Olympics in a row.Are

0:09:04 > 0:09:09you a fan of the Winter Olympics? It's exciting, it's just terrifying.

0:09:09 > 0:09:15You watch with your heart in your mouth.Are you watching it?I am.

0:09:15 > 0:09:18You need a moment like this to get people interested. You don't want to

0:09:18 > 0:09:25see Brits losing. There was another sad except for Elise Christie. It

0:09:25 > 0:09:29wasn't all good news. Once you see it's not just the Germans and the

0:09:29 > 0:09:33Dutch who are going to win everything, you get involved. We are

0:09:33 > 0:09:38just behind Belarus in the medals table.The Winter Olympics are not

0:09:38 > 0:09:46our strongest sporting event, we are good at cycling, running, those sort

0:09:46 > 0:09:50of things.The thing everyone says about the summer Olympics is we are

0:09:50 > 0:09:54good at the sitting down sports. Rowing, horse riding, cycling and

0:09:54 > 0:09:59now this as well.And running with Mo Farah.She's using the technology

0:09:59 > 0:10:08that these British spy -- that the British cyclists use for their

0:10:08 > 0:10:19suits.Prisons in The Observer

0:10:19 > 0:10:20British cyclists use for their suits.Prisons in The Observer.

0:10:20 > 0:10:26Another depressing report.We have a new prisons minister, Rory Stewart.

0:10:26 > 0:10:30He's come out and said that the state of some jails is deeply

0:10:30 > 0:10:35disturbing. This is fairly amazing. You see various people in charge of

0:10:35 > 0:10:40prisons in the government come out and almost trash the government's

0:10:40 > 0:10:44record and admit things haven't been at all good.It's not just this

0:10:44 > 0:10:49government, this is a problem that's been going on for decades.That is

0:10:49 > 0:10:55the case. The type of language being used is really strong. In terms of

0:10:55 > 0:11:01figures we are talking about self harm going up over 10% in the past

0:11:01 > 0:11:08year, assaults going up 10%, a lot of those on staff. Fewer than 10% of

0:11:08 > 0:11:12prisons are seen as good. If you're thinking about rehabilitation, in

0:11:12 > 0:11:16the earlier years of the Cameron government there was this idea that

0:11:16 > 0:11:20people should be spending less time in prison, get them out,

0:11:20 > 0:11:24rehabilitate them. Michael Gove have the same idea. The facilities

0:11:24 > 0:11:29themselves are not living up to that.There are people who will say

0:11:29 > 0:11:34actually prisons aren't meant to be nice, who cares if they are awful

0:11:34 > 0:11:40because they're awful people prisons.They are meant to be safe

0:11:40 > 0:11:44for both the prisoners and the staff who work there. The government has a

0:11:44 > 0:11:50duty of care, which is clearly failing. One of the statistics is

0:11:50 > 0:11:5444% of prisons are unsafe. The second one is an economic argument

0:11:54 > 0:11:58which is it costs a lot of money to keep people in prison and you should

0:11:58 > 0:12:05want people leaving and trying to rebuild their lives afterwards.

0:12:05 > 0:12:08There's an interesting quote from the Conservative chair of the

0:12:08 > 0:12:11Justice select committee Bob Neill who says we need to have a

0:12:11 > 0:12:15discussion about what is the point of prisons. If they are just for

0:12:15 > 0:12:22punishment, then your argument is OK but if we actually want people

0:12:22 > 0:12:26engaged with society when they leave and we want to stop them going back

0:12:26 > 0:12:30and save money, we need to be focusing on education and

0:12:30 > 0:12:34rehabilitation. So many people, like you say, don't want to spend money

0:12:34 > 0:12:39on prisons, because it seems like a waste. It's an easy way to cut the

0:12:39 > 0:12:43budget and looks like there are no consequences but clearly they are.

0:12:43 > 0:12:50The Sunday Times with a focus today on the cost of going to university.

0:12:50 > 0:12:56University fees which has been a big political headache for Labour, the

0:12:56 > 0:13:02lbw Democrats and conservatives. A lot of older people who know their

0:13:02 > 0:13:08children might incur these costs are concerned about it as well. The new

0:13:08 > 0:13:12Education Secretary Damian Hinds is launching a consultation which could

0:13:12 > 0:13:14see the Fifa certain subjects dropped. If you've got subjects

0:13:14 > 0:13:24which are less expensive to teach compared to medicine or physics, the

0:13:24 > 0:13:27arts degrees and social science degrees would be cheaper. Also the

0:13:27 > 0:13:35interest rate at which students paid back would be cut.It is currently

0:13:35 > 0:13:396.1%, which seems...You can accrue £5,000 worth of interest before you

0:13:39 > 0:13:45finish your course. Is linked to RPI. Basically no one is going to

0:13:45 > 0:13:49pay back their student loan. I did classics, another useless degree.

0:13:49 > 0:13:53They say the ones that are cheaper to teach should be cheaper to

0:13:53 > 0:14:00students. I've heard the alternate which is the one is more useful to

0:14:00 > 0:14:04society, I mean I think Classics is useful but medicine and engineering,

0:14:04 > 0:14:09we talk a lot about the skills gap. If you're doing something to fill

0:14:09 > 0:14:13the skills gap you should be subsidised more. There are different

0:14:13 > 0:14:17arguments. I think that politically the Conservatives are never going to

0:14:17 > 0:14:23win over a majority of students. They will never beat Labour which is

0:14:23 > 0:14:28the policy of scrapping tuition fees. The Conservatives have a youth

0:14:28 > 0:14:31problem, its defining youth. Really it's anyone under 40. If they want

0:14:31 > 0:14:36to increase their voucher rather than going after students they

0:14:36 > 0:14:41should go after people in their late 20s and 30s and talking about

0:14:41 > 0:14:47housing and policies to do with building on the green belt or

0:14:47 > 0:14:50liberalising planning laws. That would be better for them politically

0:14:50 > 0:14:54than trying to win over students which they are never going to do.

0:14:54 > 0:14:59We're going to end up with The Sunday Times again and an

0:14:59 > 0:15:08interesting new rule about how to film sex in the movies. I suppose

0:15:08 > 0:15:16it. As with the Harvey Weinstein and the idea that you wouldn't have any

0:15:16 > 0:15:20nudity in auditions, very strict rules on how they filmed. What did

0:15:20 > 0:15:29you make of this?This is something coming out of Equity. We've been

0:15:29 > 0:15:34told by actors that sex scenes are very unsexy, but it's not a nice

0:15:34 > 0:15:38thing to film. There are some issues such as do you kiss with tongues

0:15:38 > 0:15:47when filming these themes. -- these scenes. The problem again is power.

0:15:47 > 0:15:51Male writers, male directors, male actors being paid more and female

0:15:51 > 0:15:58actors may be feeling cajoled. Maybe these restrictions would balance

0:15:58 > 0:16:09things a bit.Is this a reform we need?These are professionals. One

0:16:09 > 0:16:14of the examples in the story is an actress at 19 filming a sex scene

0:16:14 > 0:16:17where there was quite explicit content but the director

0:16:17 > 0:16:21deliberately didn't tell her about it because he wanted her to "React

0:16:21 > 0:16:27as a girl not have an actress". That is very sinister and not treating

0:16:27 > 0:16:32her as a professional. I think it is about giving them respect. Clearly

0:16:32 > 0:16:35they can film realistic sex scenes in a professional and safe way and

0:16:35 > 0:16:41they should be doing that.Thank you for coming in to review the papers

0:16:41 > 0:16:43today.

0:16:43 > 0:16:45That's it for The Papers this morning.

0:16:45 > 0:16:48Don't forget you can see the front pages of the papers online

0:16:48 > 0:16:49on the BBC News website.

0:16:49 > 0:16:52It's all there for you - seven days a week at bbc.co.uk/papers -

0:16:52 > 0:16:54and if you miss the programme you can watch it

0:16:54 > 0:16:55later on BBC iPlayer.

0:16:55 > 0:16:56Thank you Rachel and Henry.

0:16:56 > 0:17:03Goodbye.