:00:31. > :00:37.The Politics Show in the East... Businesses are hoping for an end to
:00:37. > :00:40.the crisis in Europe. How localism sits with changes to planning that
:00:40. > :00:50.could mean rural towns and villages being forced to accept new
:00:50. > :00:50.
:00:50. > :32:06.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 1876 seconds
:32:06. > :32:10.Welcome to The Politics Show in the East. Coming up... Localism is the
:32:10. > :32:14.second biggest government priority after deficit-reduction but the
:32:14. > :32:21.policy is criticised for being elastic, leading to inconsistent
:32:21. > :32:31.and incoherent approaches. How does it say it would be plans to reform
:32:31. > :32:41.planning laws? What we have to be sensible about is to ask, is there
:32:41. > :32:46.First, David Cameron says the moment of truth for Europe is fast
:32:46. > :32:50.approaching. The impact of the European crisis could pull the
:32:50. > :32:54.European Union apart and create a two-tier Europe in the future of.
:32:54. > :33:00.It is being watched with frustration and dread by European
:33:00. > :33:05.MPs in Brussels. We do one third more trade with Europe than the
:33:05. > :33:15.rest on average. What could being a spectator in the future mean for
:33:15. > :33:20.The crisis over Europe does not just involve banks and politicians.
:33:20. > :33:25.It is being watched by businesses. 60 % of the region's Import and
:33:25. > :33:31.Export come from the European Union. This company in Great Yarmouth does
:33:31. > :33:38.a lot of trade with Europe. It has got branches in France and Spain.
:33:38. > :33:48.Europe is very important to us. A stable you resent his key. We must
:33:48. > :33:56.
:33:56. > :34:00.have strong European partners. -- a In Brussels at the moment, we have
:34:00. > :34:05.got a sense that Europe is at a crossroads. Nobody is sure what
:34:05. > :34:10.will happen next but some are not surprised at what is happening.
:34:10. > :34:15.did not take any pleasure in saying I told you so but I do, to a degree
:34:15. > :34:20.but I do not take pleasure in what is happening in Greece. The problem
:34:20. > :34:28.is confined to the Eurozone. But if it is going badly wrong, what about
:34:28. > :34:33.the political project? That will go the same way. It has caught up with
:34:33. > :34:38.what the rest of us have known for a very long time. We have got
:34:38. > :34:45.profound problems with the whole project. People that believe in the
:34:45. > :34:50.project are also very worried. They say this crisis is an opportunity.
:34:50. > :35:00.The danger of disintegration is acute. We have got to do all we can
:35:00. > :35:02.
:35:02. > :35:08.to salvage the European currency. I think that requires the deepening
:35:08. > :35:12.of political integration. Chancellor was urging greater
:35:12. > :35:16.integration, but not involving Britain. Because we are not in the
:35:16. > :35:23.currency, we have got limited insolence. Some people think that
:35:23. > :35:32.is part of a growing trend. image we have got in Europe is not
:35:32. > :35:36.good. We are experiencing a nationalistic trend. There is a
:35:36. > :35:43.feeling among some that Britain is becoming a spectator in European
:35:43. > :35:50.affairs. When at the British Prime Minister is told to shut up by the
:35:50. > :35:54.French President, it is indicative of the fact that harping on with
:35:54. > :35:59.Euro-sceptic concerns is profoundly counter-productive and David
:35:59. > :36:05.Cameron must learn. What is wrong with criticising what is wrong with
:36:05. > :36:09.Europe? If you do so from the point of view of the British
:36:09. > :36:15.Conservatives, which is saying that you do not want to be part of the
:36:15. > :36:18.club, it is not surprising that people do not want to lessened.
:36:18. > :36:25.Conservatives want to be part of the club but it has to be on our
:36:25. > :36:29.terms. One of the concerns many of us have at the moment is what will
:36:29. > :36:36.happen to countries not in the currency? What will be the
:36:36. > :36:41.relationship? That is something we need to pay much attention to.
:36:41. > :36:47.Great Yarmouth, they want to be a big player in Europe. They fear
:36:47. > :36:54.constantly attacking the Union will not be good. We need European
:36:54. > :37:02.clients. We need to work with them. If we are constantly bickering and
:37:02. > :37:06.putting them down, that is not going to be good. The European
:37:06. > :37:11.Parliament has just opened this centre in Brussels. Nobody is
:37:11. > :37:17.certain whether the current crisis will make people more or less in
:37:17. > :37:27.favour of the European project. But everybody is agreed that like all
:37:27. > :37:34.
:37:34. > :37:41.not be the same again. -- life will We will look at the cases for and
:37:41. > :37:49.against. Is the European currency leads on without breaking up, that
:37:49. > :37:55.will sap market confidence, surely? I think this is the greatest
:37:55. > :38:01.existential -- existential crisis ever. Perhaps they knew this was
:38:01. > :38:07.coming down the line. Germany has to face up to the fact that
:38:07. > :38:11.ultimately it is going to have to pay to keep his club together. But
:38:12. > :38:17.it is perfectly legitimate for Germany to say that these are the
:38:17. > :38:25.terms and the conditions that other countries have to follow in return
:38:25. > :38:29.for support. It looks like Greece and Italy are putting governments
:38:29. > :38:37.in plays that are supported by their MPs to put in place the
:38:37. > :38:42.various reforms that are necessary to. I will go out on a limb and go
:38:42. > :38:47.against the line that I think Greece is going to be a member of
:38:47. > :38:57.the Eurozone, as is it too late. The alternative is too terrible to
:38:57. > :38:57.
:38:57. > :39:01.contemplate. -- Italy. Are you anticipating a break up? A split
:39:01. > :39:05.between the sock and and competitive and northern European
:39:05. > :39:11.economies -- between the competitive Northern European
:39:11. > :39:17.economies and the South? France and Germany will always have a strong
:39:17. > :39:24.currency. I think there will be a fudge in Europe. It will limp along
:39:24. > :39:29.in some form. Greece might disorderly default. We might limp
:39:29. > :39:35.on for a while. But we must be clear, thank goodness we were not
:39:35. > :39:39.in the currency. We must get rid of this stupid idea that businesses in
:39:39. > :39:44.this region have to be part of this club to export to the Continent.
:39:44. > :39:54.People are saying if we are not in the Europe, we cannot export and
:39:54. > :39:55.
:39:55. > :40:05.that is rubbish. -- the euro. There are other markets. A share, India,
:40:05. > :40:10.
:40:10. > :40:14.China and Latin America. -- a share. -- the Asian market. 60 % of people
:40:14. > :40:23.here rely on trade in Europe. What do you think about what has been
:40:23. > :40:28.said? The fact is that Europe, not just in the east but in the United
:40:28. > :40:38.Kingdom is by far our biggest export destination. We export 4% of
:40:38. > :40:39.
:40:39. > :40:43.goods to China and one % to India. And we have to do better. We export
:40:43. > :40:48.more than 50 % to the European Union. We saw that in the package.
:40:48. > :40:54.Business leaders are concerned in this region, in the east, about
:40:54. > :40:59.their relationship with the European Union. It is pretty
:40:59. > :41:04.obvious stuff. The three political parties and the vast majority of
:41:04. > :41:14.business leaders support our membership of the European Union
:41:14. > :41:23.because it is vastly in our economic interest. That is
:41:23. > :41:28.something that these new debates are quite dangerous for asked.
:41:28. > :41:37.are working on a special committee. What about the exposure of our
:41:37. > :41:42.banks in the UK and in the east to European debt? We were prudent
:41:42. > :41:49.about not piling into Greek government bonds. But if there is a
:41:49. > :41:55.big melt down in the Eurozone, unfortunately, that will affect the
:41:55. > :41:58.British banking system and the British economy. We must accept the
:41:58. > :42:05.mistakes of the Eurozone ministers. I think they were weak and
:42:05. > :42:09.incompetent. We will inevitably suffer. We were told by businesses
:42:09. > :42:19.endlessly that unless we join the euro, British business will lose
:42:19. > :42:25.out. Because our export markets in Europe could be plunging, because I
:42:25. > :42:31.think these economies will be pretty flat in the next few years,
:42:31. > :42:36.countries in the region will have to look beyond Europe. How do you
:42:36. > :42:43.think this has been handled so far? Some people are not happy with how
:42:43. > :42:49.it has been dealt with. What does the uncertainty mean for business?
:42:49. > :42:55.All across Europe, we have had a pretty severe failure of political
:42:56. > :43:00.leadership. That is not something we can get away from. Some people
:43:00. > :43:05.have said we understand what needs to be done but we do not understand
:43:05. > :43:11.how to get elected again once we do it. This crisis is more important
:43:11. > :43:16.than that. The point about global export is that global demand
:43:16. > :43:24.everywhere is flat. We have to look to the reality of the present and
:43:24. > :43:27.make certain that is sustained. Localism against planning. This
:43:28. > :43:34.week the localism Bill past Ready final parliamentary stages and will
:43:34. > :43:39.become law next week. It is about a shift in power away from
:43:39. > :43:43.Westminster towards local people. But is that working against the
:43:43. > :43:47.Government's reform are planning laws? Opponents say it is the
:43:47. > :43:53.greatest threat to the countryside for generations. What does localism
:43:54. > :43:56.mean in practice? The Government wants more directly elected local
:43:56. > :44:01.officials and for communities to have the right to buy buildings and
:44:01. > :44:06.businesses that are vital to local light like pubs and shops. Perhaps
:44:06. > :44:10.the biggest change will be in planning. The Government wants to
:44:10. > :44:16.abolish regional strategists and had regional neighbour had plans
:44:16. > :44:25.instead. For local authorities are taking part in a pilot scheme. One
:44:25. > :44:29.is in Norfolk. This is the town of Aylsham on market day. 6,000 people
:44:29. > :44:34.live here and it is a thriving community. We have got more than
:44:34. > :44:42.200 clubs and societies. It localism is going to work anywhere,
:44:42. > :44:48.it should work here. Be people I spoke to were deeply cynical.
:44:48. > :44:53.do not do anything, the Government. It is no good. The Government wants
:44:53. > :45:00.to devolve more power to local communities. Of course it does. But
:45:00. > :45:06.they do not want to do it themselves! Many words but a garden
:45:06. > :45:10.full of weeds. You think they do not want to do it themselves.
:45:10. > :45:16.cannot. That is the truth. They push it to one side and let
:45:16. > :45:23.somebody else make a mess of it. Aylsham has changed enormously over
:45:23. > :45:27.the years. But they are not afraid of change, far from it. Eileen is
:45:27. > :45:34.the chair of the town council and is excited about the prospect of
:45:34. > :45:38.having more say in the wake Aylsham is run but she has concerns. We are
:45:38. > :45:46.up for the extra responsibility. But we have got to be sensible and
:45:46. > :45:51.ask, is there money coming with it? That is important. I would hope
:45:52. > :45:58.that bypass taking responsibility, it would be less of a cost to the
:45:58. > :46:08.council but we cannot do it for free. In Aylsham, the Football Club
:46:08. > :46:09.
:46:09. > :46:16.has played a big part in local life. We have got 10 pitches and the club
:46:16. > :46:21.house and the pavilion. The club is running 17 teams from under the age
:46:21. > :46:26.of nine and up but it struggles to find pitches and the club plans to
:46:26. > :46:33.build a new facility would 10 pitches on the edge of town, if the
:46:33. > :46:38.scheme gets approval. 250 houses will also be built. As far as local
:46:38. > :46:42.as it is concerned, what do you think? This is localism. I have
:46:42. > :46:47.seen it on television and it is about local people making things
:46:47. > :46:55.happen. Not just talking about it but doing it for the community.
:46:55. > :46:59.That is what it is for me. This woman lives close to the proposed
:46:59. > :47:07.new development. She is sympathetic to the good ball club's ambitions
:47:07. > :47:12.but cannot work out why it must be so big. -- football. It is very
:47:12. > :47:17.limited. I am very aware of that. This is a massive development on
:47:17. > :47:22.the edge of town, outside the town and it will have an impact. What
:47:22. > :47:25.will localism mean for the planning process? The Government wants to
:47:25. > :47:29.replace regional planning with neighbourhood planning. But that
:47:29. > :47:37.does not been people will find it easier to block developments they
:47:37. > :47:41.did not like. The right to say it now does not exist in this planning.
:47:41. > :47:47.It is the right to get to a situation where you can get
:47:47. > :47:50.development in the area in the way the Community wants to see it. If
:47:50. > :47:56.they want one place to but instead of another, that is their
:47:56. > :48:00.opportunity. -- developed instead of another. They want to devolve
:48:00. > :48:07.power to create communities. Some communities like Aylesham have
:48:07. > :48:10.already got a fair amount of self- governing but how many people want
:48:10. > :48:18.to get involved in decision-making, volunteering and running local
:48:18. > :48:24.services over and above what happens now? It is open to question.
:48:24. > :48:29.We are joined by the chairman of the campaign to protect rural
:48:29. > :48:31.England in Cambridgeshire. I will start with you, Michael. Your
:48:31. > :48:36.organisation is in a babel of neighbour that planning but how
:48:36. > :48:44.effective will it be if we have got a presumption in favour of
:48:44. > :48:52.development? We are concerned that the Government framework left
:48:52. > :48:55.certain key areas open to question. We are very nervous that they will
:48:55. > :49:01.actually allowed development to take place where people do not want
:49:01. > :49:07.it. We have got tension here, I think between what the Government
:49:08. > :49:11.is aiming to do and what the proposals will deliver. When David
:49:11. > :49:16.Cameron introduced the idea of localism it was about people
:49:16. > :49:21.getting more community control. But even the idea of the decor
:49:21. > :49:28.referendum is being watered down. With his presumption in favour of
:49:28. > :49:34.development, local views could be overlooked the. That is why I
:49:34. > :49:38.disagree with government policy. To take an example, in a village near
:49:38. > :49:47.Bury St Edmunds, a decision by the council could backbite hundred
:49:47. > :49:52.houses next to that village and the local people will not have a vote
:49:52. > :49:59.to reject it and even if they do reject it they do not have power to
:49:59. > :50:05.stop the 500 houses. The only power they have got is to say exactly
:50:05. > :50:10.where the homes should go. But it he did not want by public houses,
:50:10. > :50:16.local villages will not have the power to reject the proposal. They
:50:16. > :50:25.should have the power to do that. The Government should think again
:50:25. > :50:30.bus-stop some --. Some people are worried about a shortage of housing.
:50:30. > :50:35.Objections like that are simply stopping necessary buildings.
:50:35. > :50:42.is not correct. We are not totally against development. People have
:50:42. > :50:44.got to find homes delivered. The problem of house building is more
:50:44. > :50:50.down to the general economic situation and people not being able
:50:50. > :50:55.to get mortgages and at the planning system. If we look at the
:50:55. > :51:01.Government suggestions, at the moment, councils are required to
:51:01. > :51:08.provide five years' worth of house land. The Government says that is
:51:09. > :51:18.not enough and it ought to be sex. Adding one more year on 25 will not
:51:19. > :51:22.
:51:22. > :51:26.solve the problem. -- six. -- on to the five. What next? We have got to
:51:26. > :51:34.look at thinking again. The current regime is a development charter and
:51:34. > :51:40.that has got to be chopped -- stopped. We have got a number of
:51:40. > :51:45.framework problems. We want brownfield sites developed as a
:51:45. > :51:52.priority above green field. There must be proper transitional