:00:05. > :00:08.Welcome to the Politics Show in Manchester where the Conservatives
:00:08. > :00:14.are gathering, troubled by the compromises of coalition and a
:00:14. > :00:18.gloomy economic outlook. We'll ask Party Chairman Baroness Warsi how
:00:18. > :00:21.she responds to those Tories, and there are lot of them here in
:00:21. > :00:27.Manchester, who think the price of coalition has been, well, a bit on
:00:27. > :00:30.the high side. And as George Osborne prepares for his big speech,
:00:30. > :00:33.we ask Tory backbenchers and businesses large and small how we
:00:33. > :00:41.can go for growth? And we'll have details of an exclusive survey of
:00:41. > :00:45.activists on what they want to hear from the Chancellor tomorrow.
:00:45. > :00:49.will be asking the Transport Minister how the capital can avoid
:00:49. > :00:53.gridlock during next year's Olympics. Plus Middle England is up
:00:53. > :01:03.in arms about new plan threatening the green belt. Could they affect
:01:03. > :01:10.
:01:10. > :01:12.But first the news with Chris Good afternoon. David Cameron has
:01:12. > :01:15.again defended the government's strategy for delivering economic
:01:15. > :01:18.growth. He insisted the Conservatives understood how rising
:01:18. > :01:24.prices were making life difficult for many people. And he said being
:01:24. > :01:30.in coalition was helpful at a time of economic difficulty. From the
:01:30. > :01:34.party's conference in Manchester, Ben Wright sent this report.
:01:34. > :01:38.His government under pressure to get the economy growing. This
:01:38. > :01:42.morning he insisted he had a plan for firing up the engine of the
:01:42. > :01:48.British economy. He said he knew people were under pressure but
:01:48. > :01:51.dismissed calls for extra spending. Those people who argue a few more
:01:52. > :01:55.billion now would make all the difference, I would say, over the
:01:55. > :02:01.next four years, we will be spending three trillion pounds,
:02:01. > :02:05.into the economy. Is it really a good risk to spend a few more
:02:05. > :02:09.billion now and potentially put at risk of low interest rates which
:02:10. > :02:14.are so keyed to the economic revival? Housebuilding is a key
:02:14. > :02:18.part of the growth plan and wants to accelerate the council house
:02:18. > :02:23.right-to-buy scheme and build a new house for everyone which is sold.
:02:23. > :02:28.Brownfield sites will be sold for development. The biggest crisis is
:02:28. > :02:31.the eurozone. The Prime Minister said it had to be tackled. What I
:02:31. > :02:36.would relish right now is for European leaders to roll up their
:02:36. > :02:41.sleeves, get the single market working, get the economies trading,
:02:41. > :02:45.working and growing. People up and down Britain on not thinking, if
:02:45. > :02:50.only we could have a treaty change in Europe. They are thinking, get
:02:50. > :02:54.jobs going. That's what my conference and leadership is about.
:02:54. > :02:58.He conceded there were tensions within the coalition. He said it
:02:58. > :03:02.was the right government for the time. One of the benefits of
:03:02. > :03:06.coalition is you put aside some of your immediate interests to achieve
:03:06. > :03:13.long-term good and ask the country to try and come behind what the
:03:13. > :03:17.Government is doing at a difficult time. The fact two parties are
:03:17. > :03:20.making difficult decisions. party faithful are cross about the
:03:21. > :03:24.compromises of coalition and sharing power with the Liberal
:03:24. > :03:28.Democrats. The Tories will use his conference to show voters they
:03:28. > :03:31.understand times are tough and they will try to convince critics I have
:03:31. > :03:35.a credible plan for the economy. George Osborne as likely to
:03:35. > :03:41.announce more growth measures tomorrow but there will be no
:03:41. > :03:43.deviation from his plan to do with the deficit. That deal with the
:03:43. > :03:47.deficit. A leading charity says there has
:03:47. > :03:49.been a surge in the number of people who can't afford basic foods.
:03:49. > :03:51.FareShare, which distributes surplus food from supermarkets and
:03:51. > :03:58.manufacturers, says it's facing an unprecedented demand from families
:03:59. > :04:02.struggling to cope with rising prices. Andy Moore has the details.
:04:02. > :04:06.The charity FareShare takes surplus food from the retail industry and
:04:06. > :04:10.gives it to the charities that needed to like homeless hostels,
:04:10. > :04:14.day centres and women's refuges. It's not giving it individual food
:04:14. > :04:19.parcels but is responsible for providing millions of meals a year
:04:19. > :04:26.to those who need them and that demand is increasing. Their food
:04:26. > :04:30.reaches 35,000 people every day from 29,500 a year ago. Almost two
:04:30. > :04:34.I took three of their clients have gone without a proper meal for a
:04:34. > :04:41.police today in the last year and yet they are disputing only 1% of
:04:41. > :04:45.Britain's food surplus. The vast majority is going to waste. That's
:04:45. > :04:48.why the charity is calling on the food industry to do more to help.
:04:48. > :04:53.It says it is immoral that people are going to bed hungry when
:04:53. > :04:58.thousands of tons of food a day is just being thrown away. The number
:04:58. > :05:03.of charities FareShare helps is growing all the time, up from 600
:05:03. > :05:08.to 700 this year. Those charities are facing an increasing demand for
:05:08. > :05:10.basic food needs and, at the same time, a reduction in their funding.
:05:10. > :05:15.Red Cross officials in Libya say the humanitarian situation
:05:15. > :05:18.situation in Colonel Gaddafi's home-town of Sirte has become dire.
:05:18. > :05:21.Sirte is under siege from forces loyal to the National Transitional
:05:21. > :05:27.Council. A medical team that reached a hospital there yesterday
:05:27. > :05:30.said there was almost no medicine, food or water.
:05:30. > :05:33.700 demonstrators have been arrested in New York as they tried
:05:33. > :05:36.to block the Brooklyn Bridge as part of a protest against Wall
:05:36. > :05:39.Street. The activists halted traffic for several hours. They
:05:39. > :05:44.were part of a larger group crossing the bridge from Manhattan,
:05:44. > :05:53.where they have been camped out near Wall Street for two weeks.
:05:53. > :05:56.Welcome to Manchester and the Conservative party conference,
:05:56. > :05:59.where there is a slight retro feel. Economic troubles, arguments over
:05:59. > :06:03.Europe and, this morning, a Tory Prime Minister offering council
:06:03. > :06:06.house residents the right to buy. So who better to go back to the
:06:06. > :06:08.future this morning than two veterans of political punditry?
:06:08. > :06:13.Polly Toynbee of the Guardian. And Benedict Brogan of the Daily
:06:13. > :06:17.Telegraph. Maybe you're both too young to be called veterans. The
:06:17. > :06:20.interesting thing we saw this morning was the David Cameron
:06:20. > :06:27.interview with the Sunday Times where he seemed to be apologising
:06:27. > :06:32.to women. Has he got women troubles? Yes, profound ones. I'm
:06:32. > :06:37.not sure they made sexist jokes in the Commons. The trouble is it
:06:37. > :06:42.reflects what's happening. Women and children have been hit hardest
:06:42. > :06:46.by a cut after cut after cut, particularly childcare credits,
:06:47. > :06:51.paying more for child care. 600 women a week are now leaving their
:06:51. > :07:00.jobs because they can't afford child care. The costs have gone up
:07:00. > :07:06.and I think these are Exocet right into the heart of how women feel
:07:06. > :07:08.they are suffering the most. Do you think there is polling in the toe
:07:08. > :07:14.ring -- and the Tory party that suggests they have a problem with
:07:14. > :07:18.women voters? Conservatives rely on them but Number Ten has found
:07:18. > :07:22.lately focus groups are telling them that women are going off the
:07:22. > :07:29.Conservatives and David Cameron, so expect to see a lot to soften the
:07:29. > :07:33.image and message. He's also got a problem with Margaret Thatcher, her
:07:34. > :07:37.shadow looming over him in his party. People which he was more
:07:37. > :07:43.conservative inside the coalition. That is the other woman problem he
:07:43. > :07:46.has got. Is there a dissatisfaction, do you think, amongst the grass
:07:46. > :07:51.roots here, that what they are getting is too much of the
:07:51. > :07:54.coalition view that not enough of the Conservative you? There is the
:07:55. > :07:58.basic Conservative complaint which has that they wished this was a
:07:58. > :08:02.more conservative government and they will wish they had the
:08:02. > :08:07.majority in could do more and they say though Lib Dem tail is wagging
:08:07. > :08:14.the Conservative dog. David Cameron will say that this is pushing
:08:14. > :08:17.through Conservative policies. But that perception persists here.
:08:17. > :08:23.There are 120 Euro rebels for instance whereas when John Major
:08:23. > :08:31.talked about his baskets, they run a 22. The new intake appears to be
:08:31. > :08:36.on the right side of the party. you think that will cause him
:08:36. > :08:39.problems this week? I think so. I think there is a sense that the
:08:39. > :08:43.party is going in the wrong direction, they want to push it in
:08:43. > :08:49.another direction. Much resentment of the Lib Dems to fight tooth and
:08:49. > :08:54.claw in each consistency. I think Polly is wrong on the Europe
:08:54. > :08:57.question. William Hague and David Cameron in the interviews this
:08:57. > :09:00.morning appeared to be relaxed about the fact there would be a
:09:00. > :09:05.boat in the Commons on the EU, and a lot of their MPs are causing
:09:05. > :09:09.trouble in Europe. The pressure is on but in the end, it won't lead to
:09:09. > :09:12.the kind of trouble John Major had. Both of you, for the moment, thank
:09:12. > :09:15.you very much. Now David Cameron's had a pretty good year. He's got
:09:15. > :09:19.more councillors than he had 12 months ago. He won a thumping
:09:19. > :09:22.victory in the AV referendum. And was mobbed as a liberator on the
:09:22. > :09:25.streets of Benghazi. But, despite all that, his party is not an
:09:25. > :09:27.entirely happy one. For many, the price in Tory policies and Tory
:09:27. > :09:30.principles of coalition has been too high and the economy remains
:09:30. > :09:40.nothing to celebrate. In a moment we'll speak to Tory Chairman
:09:40. > :09:46.
:09:46. > :09:53.Baroness Warsi. But first a guide football, raving and music. Will
:09:53. > :10:00.the Tory grassroots be mad for it? Well, they are certainly happy
:10:00. > :10:05.about Ed Miliband's rocky week in Liverpool. But the Lib Dem
:10:05. > :10:08.coalition is wearing thin for many. They said the Lib Dems are bad too
:10:08. > :10:14.much influence over Europe, health and taxation. As if that wasn't
:10:14. > :10:19.enough, they had to put up with this. We fought against the bankers,
:10:19. > :10:25.the populism of Tories after the riots. What I will not do is
:10:25. > :10:31.provide cover for the ideological descendants of those who once sent
:10:31. > :10:38.children up chimneys. And let that be a warning to the Conservative
:10:38. > :10:42.right. We need no tea-party tendencies in Britain. And no
:10:42. > :10:47.dealing with a depth it has helped the coalition so far. The economy
:10:47. > :10:54.could yet tear them apart again as Tory frustration grows that the
:10:54. > :11:04.Government are not cutting business taxes and tackling the duration --
:11:04. > :11:13.
:11:13. > :11:19.tackling regulation. With me now is Baroness Warsi. Welcome. Would you
:11:19. > :11:24.say you're happy party at the moment? Yes, it's more united than
:11:24. > :11:28.it's been for a long time. We have a broad range of views. They have
:11:28. > :11:32.to make sure that not only do we present a vision of what the party
:11:32. > :11:37.stands for but the party internally as a debate. For the first time
:11:37. > :11:41.after many years, we are having an open Conservative Policy Forum
:11:41. > :11:49.debate where no questions are off the agenda. Isn't there a
:11:49. > :11:53.fundamental dissatisfaction, at the link up Lib Dems on influencing the
:11:53. > :11:57.coalition? Some people would say we're not doing enough, some people
:11:57. > :12:01.who would say we are going to find that the broad basis of what the
:12:01. > :12:06.Conservative Party is about. But I'm very clear what we're doing in
:12:06. > :12:10.government. We are acting in the national interest, making tough
:12:10. > :12:14.decisions and we are making them based upon manifesto commitment
:12:14. > :12:19.that we fought for before the general election. The Human Rights
:12:19. > :12:25.Act. Theresa May says to scuppered. Nick Clegg assets to keep it.
:12:25. > :12:28.is a commission and then we will have a debate. If you're suggesting
:12:28. > :12:34.something as serious at the Human Rights Act should be something we
:12:34. > :12:37.should discuss and move on, it's wrong. Theresa May sounds like she
:12:37. > :12:42.has done just that. That's why we need a commission because we have
:12:42. > :12:47.different people with different views, which need to be fed in.
:12:47. > :12:52.you putting Theresa May in a box? I'm not doing anything of the sort.
:12:52. > :12:56.We have some fantastically established and learned brains who
:12:56. > :13:00.are going to discuss and debate this. Its white a country should
:13:00. > :13:03.feel that decisions it needs to take in the interest of its
:13:03. > :13:10.security should be able to make those decisions without feeling
:13:10. > :13:14.that they are being dealt with on high by somebody else. Another aim,
:13:14. > :13:19.you said you would repatriate powers from the European Union. Can
:13:19. > :13:23.you name one you have a repatriated? We said any further
:13:23. > :13:28.powers which go to Europe will be subjected to a referendum and we
:13:28. > :13:32.would use opportunities to try to win those powers back. Any yet?
:13:32. > :13:38.This will be part of a process. That is what the Conservative view
:13:38. > :13:43.is. We feel too many powers have been given to Europe. Everyone
:13:43. > :13:46.would say three cheers to that, but what have you won back? One thing
:13:46. > :13:49.we have been discussing, for example, is when the Prime Minister
:13:49. > :13:53.went to Europe and said that it can't be the case that when a
:13:53. > :13:58.country at home it is making cuts in its budget, Europe continues to
:13:58. > :14:02.say, increase our budget. It was right for the Prime Minister. The
:14:02. > :14:07.first time for a British prime minister to go out there and say
:14:07. > :14:13.that. We had Labour members of the European Parliament voting against
:14:13. > :14:17.Alan national interests. Planning on the green belt. Are you in tune
:14:17. > :14:23.there? We are Clare with a green agenda. It's something which has
:14:23. > :14:27.been part of what we believe in as Conservatives -- clear. Are you in
:14:27. > :14:32.tune with your grass roots? Yes, if you look at the announcement made
:14:32. > :14:40.yesterday, about housing being built on brownfield sites, empty
:14:40. > :14:49.offices, on the Government... could quote you endless letters
:14:49. > :14:53.about it pulls up. I would still struggle to come up with something
:14:53. > :15:00.as utterly biased and facile as the National Policy Network, this
:15:00. > :15:06.letter says. Our children will cursors it our countryside is
:15:06. > :15:09.spoiled for short-term advantage. - - curse us. It goes on.
:15:09. > :15:14.completely agree, we should preserve the countryside for our
:15:14. > :15:17.children. But what we do need it is a reform in the planning system. We
:15:17. > :15:23.can't carry on in a system which takes years to get off the ground,
:15:23. > :15:27.to have an infrastructure project, which creates a situation under the
:15:27. > :15:30.last government, where we did not build houses, people could not get
:15:31. > :15:34.onto the housing ladder and its white the Government invests in
:15:34. > :15:39.housebuilding. Why do you think you're grassroots are so
:15:39. > :15:44.dissatisfied? I don't think they are. There are people in the party
:15:44. > :15:48.who have different views. I welcome that pulls up a robust party which
:15:48. > :15:54.engages with itself than challenges itself, is a good thing. I can tell
:15:54. > :15:57.you, as party chairman, and I go out and speak to people, and I
:15:57. > :16:02.campaign up and down the country, I know there is one thing this party
:16:02. > :16:07.is united about, that whatever they think in relation to their own
:16:07. > :16:10.political views, they feel about a secondary to what is in the
:16:10. > :16:20.interests of the country. And making sure that is what we might,
:16:20. > :16:28.by doing the right thing by the A survey on Conservative Home van
:16:28. > :16:33.TUPE at least popular minister in the Cabinet. -- Found You the least
:16:33. > :16:38.popular minister in the Cabinet. Why is that? This is not me, it is
:16:38. > :16:43.about us as a party saying that these are difficult times. Of
:16:43. > :16:46.course, in the country, there are families facing hard choices, and
:16:46. > :16:52.we shouldn't do... Is that because they have not seen you fighting the
:16:52. > :16:55.good fight? During the phone hacking scandal, we never saw you
:16:55. > :16:58.defending the government? During the riots, after the riots, we did
:16:58. > :17:02.that see you. You have been slightly invisible, other people
:17:02. > :17:07.have been the voice of the Conservative Party. My job is very
:17:07. > :17:11.simple. It is to make sure we steer a steady ship and win elections.
:17:11. > :17:15.What are the two big collections over the last 12 months? The AV
:17:15. > :17:20.referendum, the mother of all elections, we cut the mother of all
:17:20. > :17:25.results. The local elections, where every pundit and every commentator
:17:25. > :17:29.said we would lose 1,000 seats, but we gained seats. We gained
:17:29. > :17:33.councillors, we won across the country, and that is what I was
:17:33. > :17:36.doing, going out, campaigning, working with activists and making
:17:36. > :17:43.sure we are putting Conservative principles on the doorstep. That is
:17:43. > :17:48.my job. Ben. Your job is to sell the new, compassionate Conservative
:17:48. > :17:53.Party, yet when you hear Francis Maude describing the National Trust
:17:53. > :17:57.in a way that he did, does it make your job more difficult? It is the
:17:57. > :18:01.job of every one officers Conservatives to go out and sell
:18:01. > :18:07.the Conservative message. It is important that we are frank and
:18:07. > :18:11.honest about we feel these things are. Francis Maude has a view, and
:18:11. > :18:16.he will express it in a way that he wants to. My job is to make sure
:18:16. > :18:20.that I lead a united party, that I lead a strong party and we strongly
:18:20. > :18:25.Gazza and fight elections. Why do we fight elections? Not just
:18:25. > :18:28.because we want to win, but if we believe in the party that we are
:18:28. > :18:33.today, we can only put those principles into action if we are
:18:33. > :18:38.winning. You sound as if you are from another planet. People are
:18:38. > :18:43.really suffering, they are losing jobs, they are losing money,
:18:43. > :18:46.households are cut by about 7% in real spending power, inflation is
:18:47. > :18:50.soaring, people are anxious and worried. Women have turned against
:18:50. > :18:54.the Conservatives because it is they and children who have been hit
:18:54. > :18:58.over and over again, and it is sound complacent, and I worry that
:18:58. > :19:03.this conference just does not get it about how great the crisis is
:19:03. > :19:06.and that the economic policy is not working. The deficit is rising, not
:19:06. > :19:10.falling, due to George Osborne's policies. People are worried, they
:19:10. > :19:13.are making difficult choices, but if you ask each and every one of
:19:13. > :19:17.those people that you're making these difficult choices, if you had
:19:17. > :19:22.a choice, would you go for the good life now, or would you actually
:19:22. > :19:27.have a stable and secular, prosperous future for your
:19:27. > :19:31.children? You do not deal with a deficit, Polly, by saying, let's
:19:31. > :19:34.borrow a bit more money that we do not have had spent a bit more money.
:19:34. > :19:37.That is living on a different planet. We are going to talk about
:19:37. > :19:41.the economic aspect of this, because it seems the government
:19:41. > :19:47.does not have a coherent and credible plan for growth. Not my
:19:47. > :19:49.words, not Ed Balls's, but those of the Treasury of the Select
:19:49. > :19:54.Committee, Andrew Tyrie. The government says they have a plan
:19:54. > :19:57.and they will explain more this week, but options can look limited.
:19:57. > :20:03.So what can George Osborne of a conference tomorrow? Here is Max
:20:03. > :20:11.Cotton that some ideas for the Chancellor.
:20:11. > :20:14.You recognise the name of this country, this is the essay. It
:20:14. > :20:18.stands for Birmingham Small Arms, and they used to make rather a bid
:20:18. > :20:23.for motorbikes, but today they manufacture specialist machine
:20:23. > :20:26.tools. -- beautiful motorbikes. A company that many thought of as
:20:26. > :20:34.AdWords to the wall in the 1980s now apparently hold the key to our
:20:34. > :20:38.economic recovery. -- that many of us thought had gone to the war.
:20:38. > :20:42.There is an emphasis on building binges like this in the
:20:42. > :20:46.manufacturing sector. But growth is slowing down, not speeding up, and
:20:46. > :20:49.his is the biggest headache the government has got. The growth plan
:20:49. > :20:53.was written down in March, and in March we had a reasonable degree of
:20:53. > :20:56.confidence that growth in the economy, in 2011 and 2012, would be
:20:56. > :21:00.stronger than it now turns out to be given the worldwide slowdown. So
:21:00. > :21:09.we do not want government to change the plan, we want government to
:21:09. > :21:14.accelerate the plan. The CBI wants plan any, but plus, which means it
:21:14. > :21:20.will deliver more in the short term. Growth is going to come from
:21:20. > :21:24.companies like this, small and medium-sized enterprises make up
:21:24. > :21:29.80% of Britain's private sector. Now, the government are trying to
:21:29. > :21:32.stimulate growth. They provide tax breaks, they produce business rates
:21:32. > :21:35.-- reduce business rates and cut Corporation Tax. They have
:21:35. > :21:40.increased funding for things like apprenticeships. But for many
:21:40. > :21:45.companies like this, it is still not quite enough. Here they have a
:21:45. > :21:49.chronic skills shortage, and they also spend a huge amount of time
:21:49. > :21:55.and money complying with government regulation. We have got the skills
:21:56. > :22:01.in this country, and we must continue to generate them. Steve is
:22:01. > :22:07.managing director of BSA Machine Tools. If you take a ten-man band,
:22:07. > :22:11.the SNA, we are talking skill base, if you, for example, with parental
:22:11. > :22:15.leave, suddenly had one of the individuals, an engineer turning up
:22:15. > :22:21.wanting to take three months off, that could actually put that
:22:21. > :22:25.company down. Now, that is not the intention, so we do have to look at
:22:26. > :22:34.what regulation is doing. Red tape is something that the government is
:22:34. > :22:39.committed to reducing, but apparently it is not happening fast
:22:39. > :22:44.enough. The government has 80 policy, that for every new
:22:44. > :22:49.regulation that is introduced, one must be taken off the books. -- a
:22:49. > :22:53.key policy. They are taking them off by the end of the parliament,
:22:53. > :22:57.but that is three years away. At the moment, the economy has more
:22:57. > :23:00.regulation than at the start of this government. There are
:23:00. > :23:04.Conservatives who are getting fidgety about his lack of progress.
:23:04. > :23:10.This is Bridgwater in the West Country. It has a manufacturing
:23:10. > :23:16.base, too, and it as a right-of- centre Tory MP blames the Liberal
:23:16. > :23:19.Democrat for holding back his party's efforts to stimulate growth.
:23:20. > :23:24.You do not actually have a Conservative government. We have a
:23:24. > :23:29.coalition government, and that has been my frustration from day one.
:23:29. > :23:32.Liberals are big government, big bureaucracy, they love paperwork,
:23:32. > :23:36.whereas the Conservatives are the opposite, small government, lean
:23:36. > :23:41.government, less regulation. I think that is exactly where we have
:23:41. > :23:44.this dichotomy, and this battle will continue as long as the
:23:44. > :23:49.coalition does. But according to this former Conservative trade
:23:49. > :23:52.minister, when it comes to tackling regulation, it is not just the Lib
:23:52. > :23:56.Dems that are the problem. regulation, everybody agrees that
:23:56. > :24:00.it has risen massively and that there is too much of it. A lot of
:24:00. > :24:03.it is now a EU driven. We are constrained by the EU, particularly
:24:03. > :24:09.if the government is not prepared to stand up to the EU and say, we
:24:09. > :24:13.need to reduce this. But you can take a regulation like money-
:24:13. > :24:16.laundering, EU and global, and say that we will do it in a more
:24:16. > :24:21.sensible way. These concerns are shared by the Tory rank and file. A
:24:21. > :24:23.survey of party members conducted for the Politics Show asked what
:24:23. > :24:29.measures the Chancellor should announce this week to boost
:24:29. > :24:37.economic growth. They favour three policies. At number three, cut
:24:37. > :24:45.business taxes. No. Two, opt-out of EU regulations. Number one, cut red
:24:45. > :24:49.tape. BSA Machine Tools in the West Midlands needs a flow of credit,
:24:49. > :24:54.like every other company, but banks, as we all know, still have that
:24:54. > :25:01.have firmly turned off. This company effectively borrowed from
:25:01. > :25:05.its staff and its customers to stay competitive last year. I think we
:25:05. > :25:07.do need to stimulate growth more, and number one for me would be to
:25:08. > :25:11.create three new banks out of the assets and liabilities in UK
:25:11. > :25:15.banking that the state already owns, raised serious sums of money from
:25:15. > :25:18.the private sector so that he would have a war-chest of money available
:25:18. > :25:24.to lend for people who wanted to back these and projects and
:25:24. > :25:28.businesses that needed money to expand. -- back decent projects.
:25:28. > :25:31.The Chancellor stands up tomorrow at the Conservative conference.
:25:31. > :25:37.British business and party activists are waiting for something
:25:37. > :25:42.new and radical to stimulate growth. Over to you, George.
:25:42. > :25:46.That was Max Cotton reporting. Can you name me one good economic
:25:47. > :25:51.indicator at the moment? Yes, that we have got the second strongest
:25:51. > :25:56.growth rate in the G7. It is not a great growth rate, but it is still
:25:56. > :25:59.the second strongest. It is being downgraded. That is actually the
:25:59. > :26:02.picture that we need to look at. Look, of course things are
:26:02. > :26:06.difficult in this country, if you look at what is happening around
:26:06. > :26:10.the world, if you look at the US market, which is completely
:26:10. > :26:13.stagnating, the crisis in the eurozone, we have got headwinds at
:26:13. > :26:17.tail winds being thrown at his country, but what we do have in
:26:17. > :26:21.this country is a sense of a safe haven, a stability that has been
:26:21. > :26:25.created because of the plan that the government has in place. You do
:26:25. > :26:30.not have a coherent and credible plan for the economic growth rate
:26:30. > :26:34.of the UK economy, Quote unquote, Andrew Tyrie, treasury secretary
:26:34. > :26:39.chairman. Andrew has got great experience on some of these matters,
:26:39. > :26:43.and it is right that he raises some of these issues, but I disagree
:26:43. > :26:46.because I think first of all having a plan to deal with the deficit is
:26:46. > :26:50.essential to get the stability, and then we have to have a clear growth
:26:50. > :26:56.plan, and from what we have already announced, whether support for the
:26:56. > :27:00.regional growth runs... He says the plan is incoherent and inconsistent.
:27:00. > :27:03.Let me tell you what we are doing. We have a clear privatisation of
:27:03. > :27:07.capital projects, so right here in Manchester we have made sure we are
:27:07. > :27:11.putting money into the Piccadilly to Oxford line that will create
:27:11. > :27:15.jobs, that will create enterprise in the local area. The local
:27:15. > :27:20.enterprise partnerships, the money going in to businesses, if you
:27:20. > :27:24.start a business in the regions, we will not charge in national
:27:24. > :27:27.insurance for the first number of employees to take on. It is about
:27:27. > :27:30.investing in scale, putting in more apprenticeships, going out and say
:27:30. > :27:34.we are open for business. Time after time, you are seen as
:27:34. > :27:39.governments try to do all it can to unblock that potential assets,
:27:39. > :27:43.let's try and help growth. promised the bonfire of red tape,
:27:43. > :27:47.and people are still seeing regulation. In that survey, that
:27:47. > :27:50.poll, people feel that you have not done that, that there is still too
:27:51. > :27:58.much regulation and that you should be cutting even more force that we
:27:58. > :28:02.should be. There are two types of regulation. Effectively, you have
:28:02. > :28:05.got two bits of regulation. You have got regulation that is
:28:05. > :28:08.British-made, what we pass in Parliament and put on our
:28:08. > :28:12.businesses. The advent of regulation that comes out of Europe,
:28:12. > :28:18.and that is much harder to control because of the agreements we have
:28:18. > :28:23.entered into. -- you have then got regulation. What we have managed to
:28:23. > :28:26.achieve as a government is that the regulation that is put on by us as
:28:26. > :28:30.a country has slowed down and actually plateau it. We have got a
:28:31. > :28:35.very clear policy in government. What David Cameron has said to
:28:35. > :28:40.ministers, if you want regulation, you must tender one up. It is one
:28:40. > :28:43.in, one out. For the first time, we are beginning to put a brake on the
:28:43. > :28:46.amount of regulation and red tape that surrounds businesses.
:28:46. > :28:49.other thing people say is that not just cutting red tape, you should
:28:49. > :28:55.be cutting spending even more than you are doing it you want to
:28:55. > :28:58.regenerate. Do you think George Osborne is going far enough? Some
:28:58. > :29:02.give of think we are cutting too far, some say we have not cut far
:29:02. > :29:06.enough. It is a plan that has got international credibility, and we
:29:06. > :29:10.are sticking to it. One other question I want to ask you, Ed
:29:11. > :29:13.Miliband got into a spot of bother when he was asked the other day
:29:13. > :29:17.whether he could name the candidates for the Labour
:29:17. > :29:26.leadership. Can you name the candidates for the Tory leadership?
:29:27. > :29:30.Yes, I can! Do you want them? OK,, we have got Murdo Fraser, Carla
:29:30. > :29:34.Jackson, we have got Ruth Davidson, who was fantastic in Glasgow, I
:29:34. > :29:40.have campaigned with or, and we have got Margaret, our 4th
:29:40. > :29:44.candidate, who has just declared. Full marks on that one! There are
:29:44. > :29:48.people applauding in the background, the Tory faithful. We are a party
:29:48. > :29:52.for all the nation, including the Scottish party, and so I should
:29:52. > :29:55.know what is happening, and so should he. On the Liberal Democrats,
:29:55. > :29:59.the insults that were held in York general direction, the descendants
:29:59. > :30:04.of people who send people up chimneys, the Tea Party movement,
:30:04. > :30:10.what did you make of that? thought you go and talk about the
:30:10. > :30:12.insults in the AV referendum. can add that to the pile. It was
:30:12. > :30:17.the Liberal Party conference, and they had to play to their party.
:30:17. > :30:21.You know, you saw Labour claimed to their party last week. This week it
:30:21. > :30:24.will be different, we will be saying to the country, these are
:30:24. > :30:28.serious times, we are showing you some clear leadership, and we are
:30:29. > :30:33.building for a better future. That means putting party politics aside.
:30:33. > :30:37.It is how we started out this Government. Do you like the Liberal
:30:37. > :30:42.Democrats? I love working with them, I have made some great friends. Do
:30:42. > :30:45.I agree with their policies? No, I don't. I am chairman of the
:30:45. > :30:49.Conservative Party, and however much I have enjoyed working with
:30:49. > :30:52.them, and I am proud of the coalition we are in, but at the
:30:52. > :31:02.next general election I will be making sure that we are fighting
:31:02. > :31:08.for a Conservative majority How can you do that you can't talk
:31:08. > :31:11.about tax cuts? The Conservative Party is not just about tax cuts.
:31:11. > :31:15.The compassionate Conservative Party I have been involved in talks
:31:15. > :31:19.about making sure those who have the broad shoulders to bear the
:31:19. > :31:22.greatest burden. It's about saying kids from deprived backgrounds
:31:22. > :31:25.should have the biggest support when they start out in life. It's
:31:26. > :31:31.about giving a sense of opportunity for every child, whatever
:31:31. > :31:35.background, we are not a party obsessed with taxation. Of course
:31:35. > :31:39.we support Business and a low-tax economy always helps enterprise,
:31:39. > :31:43.but there are serious issues for us to do it as a country, and you're
:31:43. > :31:47.getting to grips with those for I think a lot of people listening to
:31:47. > :31:52.you today will say they don't seem to get it. Everything is fine,
:31:52. > :31:57.steady-as-she-goes, but it's not working. The deficit is rising, not
:31:57. > :32:01.falling. If you could say it is very tough now but the deficit is
:32:02. > :32:07.falling, we've had a big devaluation, a balance of trade,
:32:07. > :32:12.there are no economic indicators which show that things are going
:32:12. > :32:16.right. A lot of people listening to you today, with all due respect,
:32:16. > :32:20.will be thinking, if the only answer that they have to this debt
:32:20. > :32:26.crisis is to say let's borrow a bit more and get into a bit more of a
:32:26. > :32:29.mess, they will say thank God the Government has changed. That's not
:32:29. > :32:35.what Matt Roberts said. Thank God the Government has changed and for
:32:35. > :32:45.the future of our country and our children, but they are taking
:32:45. > :32:47.
:32:47. > :32:49.control for a better future. Thank you very much for that. So, we've
:32:49. > :32:53.heard today about plans to reinvigorate the right to buy in
:32:53. > :32:56.part to help boost the economy. Labour opposed it in the 80s. Will
:32:56. > :32:58.they back it today? We're joined now from Southampton by the Shadow
:32:58. > :33:02.Business Secretary John Denham. Welcome to you. Do you support the
:33:02. > :33:06.plans? Well, we did keep the right to buy in place when we were in
:33:06. > :33:09.government but we kept a balance so the discount wasn't so high that we
:33:09. > :33:13.lost too many homes that we couldn't replace and the critical
:33:13. > :33:17.questions here are going to be whether, if you change the system,
:33:17. > :33:21.we actually increase the number of homes for people who otherwise
:33:21. > :33:26.won't have anywhere else to live, and I am sceptical about what I
:33:26. > :33:30.hear so far. A bigger priority for me would be to put up the tax on
:33:30. > :33:34.bank bonuses and put that money into building social housing which
:33:34. > :33:41.is needed today for people who can't get anywhere to live and
:33:41. > :33:45.would help to create jobs and boost the economy. What about the policy
:33:45. > :33:51.that you will not be able to take an unfair dismissal case against an
:33:51. > :33:57.employer if you haven't worked for them for two years? At the moment,
:33:57. > :34:01.it is for one year. I think, I don't see the pressing need to make
:34:01. > :34:06.life worse for people who work in that way but let me tell you this,
:34:06. > :34:11.the Government to sell things that will make 3,000 cases different in
:34:11. > :34:15.a whole year. If anybody wants to tell me or you that growth in this
:34:15. > :34:20.country is being held back massively by 3,000 a tribunal cases,
:34:20. > :34:30.I think they are wrong. Secondly, there are huge frustrations a month
:34:30. > :34:34.employees about the way tribunal's work. Let me just introduce... You
:34:34. > :34:38.said you don't see a pressing need for this to change. Is under
:34:38. > :34:43.government seeing the pressing need of employers? -- isn't the
:34:43. > :34:47.Government's seeing the pressing need of employers? Yes, each yeah
:34:47. > :34:52.cases in tribunals cost employers a lot of money when there's no
:34:52. > :34:57.grounding -- each year. We have to sort out the weather tribunal
:34:57. > :35:02.system operates, make sure people can't make cases last for ages and
:35:02. > :35:08.ages and ages, and make sure tribunals are not dropped because
:35:08. > :35:12.listings have gone wrong. Then we can sort out the legitimate
:35:12. > :35:16.grievances between employees and employers. The Government would
:35:16. > :35:19.argue that what they're trying to do is to change something
:35:19. > :35:27.fundamental on the supply a site. The regulation, cutting corporate
:35:27. > :35:33.tax. Are there any of those that you agree with? Last year planning
:35:33. > :35:37.laws were changed. Today we have 200,000 less planning permissions
:35:37. > :35:42.for homes in this country than a year ago. If they had not done that,
:35:42. > :35:47.they wouldn't have made the situation work. For all the bluster
:35:47. > :35:53.we have had to about planning, it's now in chaos, and they are locked
:35:53. > :35:58.into an increasingly abusive debate with a National Trust about
:35:58. > :36:05.building on good countryside when a year ago, they had 200,000 more
:36:05. > :36:09.planning applications on brownfield sites. Nothing they can do well
:36:09. > :36:13.change the deficit. They are cutting the deficit to fast and
:36:13. > :36:20.it's harming economic growth which is why we had the lowest of any G7
:36:20. > :36:24.country last year, apart from Japan. Get that right, cut to VAT, put a
:36:24. > :36:31.tax on bank bonuses, encourage businesses to cut national
:36:31. > :36:33.insurance, and we will get back on track. Thank you very much. In a
:36:33. > :36:43.moment I'll be talking to three Conservative MPs about their hopes
:36:43. > :36:46.
:36:46. > :36:49.for the week ahead. But first it's We are in Manchester for the
:36:49. > :36:55.Conservative Party conference and we start today wandering about the
:36:55. > :36:59.Olympics next year and how London's transport system and day-to-day
:36:59. > :37:01.business will cope with the influx of millions of visitors. It is
:37:01. > :37:10.worrying Transport bosses themselves which is why they are
:37:10. > :37:13.raising awareness to get people to There are now less than 300 days to
:37:13. > :37:19.go until the Olympics begins for that when they do, the capital
:37:19. > :37:22.could prove to be absolutely manic. Organisers say they're expecting
:37:23. > :37:27.5.3 million extra visitors in London during the Games. They won't
:37:27. > :37:31.all be here at the same time for that us roughly equivalent to the
:37:31. > :37:34.capital's population doubling for the if you thought this was a busy
:37:35. > :37:39.city, difficult to get around, during the Games, Transport bosses
:37:39. > :37:43.think they will need is to make 30% fewer journeys in central London
:37:43. > :37:46.and we normally would, because at certain points in certain places,
:37:46. > :37:52.it's going to be even more pronounced balls of Canary Wharf
:37:52. > :37:56.will need to see a 60% reduction in abnormal trouble. London Bridge can
:37:56. > :38:01.be busy at the best of time. Transport for London say during the
:38:01. > :38:06.Games, there could be accused of three hours just to get into the
:38:06. > :38:12.station. Transport for London are so concerned about pinch points,
:38:12. > :38:17.they want a loan but organisers to sell fewer tickets to the
:38:17. > :38:21.equestrian events at Greenwich. The Olympic route network, 109 miles of
:38:21. > :38:26.road to get people to and from the game's quicker. Traffic lights will
:38:26. > :38:30.stay on green for longer and turning them on and off will be
:38:30. > :38:36.restricted but on other roads things will not move so smoothly.
:38:36. > :38:41.Official documents marked out the disruption TfL are expecting. Some
:38:41. > :38:44.journeys are expected to double on some routes for for so, will London
:38:44. > :38:49.grind to a halt? Not if they plan ahead according to Transport for
:38:50. > :38:53.London. We are confident we will achieve the reductions we need in
:38:54. > :38:58.transport demand this summer. We have a programme working for
:38:58. > :39:02.businesses across London to encourage them to speak to us so we
:39:02. > :39:06.can give advice on what they can do differently. Is it getting through
:39:06. > :39:13.to businesses? We decided to conduct a straw poll in London
:39:13. > :39:20.Bridge? Of the 25 we spoke to, none said they had any contact with
:39:20. > :39:24.anybody. We've had no Correspondent at all. Eight at a 25 businesses
:39:24. > :39:28.thought they would change their working practices because of
:39:29. > :39:36.trouble -- trouble at the game's up I am quite quickly, because we are
:39:36. > :39:40.small, we can manage with what ever comes at short notice. London's
:39:41. > :39:48.local authorities say they yet to be convinced that the targets can
:39:48. > :39:56.be met. You can say the 60% figure is realistic and we need to see it
:39:56. > :40:00.written down plan. Or you could say this is a bit like Josef Stalin's
:40:00. > :40:06.Planner, which may or may not happen. It's a very ambitious
:40:06. > :40:11.target. We need to test that. If that's the case, what are the steps
:40:11. > :40:15.we need to take to achieve that reduction? Organisers will be
:40:15. > :40:20.hoping the message does get through that we are going to have to travel
:40:20. > :40:26.differently. I'm joined by a transport minister
:40:26. > :40:30.and MP for Chipping Barnet. Art TfL right to be worried about how
:40:30. > :40:34.London is going to come through this? They are absolutely focused
:40:34. > :40:39.on keeping London moving during what is going to be the biggest
:40:39. > :40:43.event ever hosted in this country. It's going to be fabulous for the
:40:43. > :40:47.capital, for the economy, leave a lasting benefit for the transport
:40:47. > :40:51.system, but it will mean it disruption and pressure on the
:40:51. > :40:55.transport system, which is why the mayor is working hard to engage
:40:55. > :40:59.with businesses, to help people to minimise the disruption they are
:40:59. > :41:04.going to experience during the Games. Is this a bit late? Are you
:41:04. > :41:11.worried about the timescale? Our straw poll, 25 businesses in London
:41:11. > :41:17.Bridge, one of the busy hubs, don't know of any kind of plans and what
:41:17. > :41:22.they're supposed to do during the Games? Employers with staff between
:41:22. > :41:26.them of around half a million, are already actively engaging with a
:41:26. > :41:31.TfL on this programme. Yes, there is more to do, in particular the
:41:31. > :41:35.pokers is going to be on smaller businesses and engaging with the
:41:35. > :41:41.general public -- focus. A lot of work has been done. There is a
:41:41. > :41:45.positive response from the businesses. TfL and the mayor will
:41:45. > :41:51.give more information. And big transparent about where the hot
:41:51. > :41:55.spots are. It won't be the whole of the capital affected. We need to
:41:55. > :41:59.get over to people like London Bridge and the Bank are going to be
:41:59. > :42:03.extremely busy during the Games. If they can change their routine and
:42:03. > :42:09.avoid those hot spots, it will be good for them and good for the
:42:09. > :42:14.Games and the capital. What would you like to see businesses doing?
:42:14. > :42:17.We are asking businesses to consider what their staff, options
:42:17. > :42:23.of working at home, more flexible working so people are travelling
:42:23. > :42:27.off peak, also recruiting, choosing a different route on their way to
:42:27. > :42:32.work if their normal one clashes with the place which is going to be
:42:32. > :42:38.very crowded as a result of Olympic traffic. Other Olympic cities have
:42:38. > :42:43.managed to do this. A pilot was run over the summer and we were able to
:42:43. > :42:50.carry out the same work as normal and yet, 69% of the journeys by
:42:50. > :42:55.staff, were altered in some way and diverted. Do you accept some
:42:55. > :42:57.businesses will lose money during the Games? I think it a tremendous
:42:58. > :43:03.opportunity for business are to have a boost from this and with
:43:03. > :43:07.careful planning, it's possible. terms of what people are buying?
:43:08. > :43:13.Absolutely. Clearly with the world's eyes on London, there will
:43:13. > :43:19.be tremendous opportunities for people in terms of tourism, hotels,
:43:19. > :43:24.all these sorts of things. chartered surveyors company in
:43:24. > :43:27.bank? If they plan ahead it's perfectly possible for them to
:43:27. > :43:32.carry on their businesses in more or less the same way they always do
:43:32. > :43:37.but it requires thought, and other Olympic cities like Sydney have
:43:37. > :43:47.managed to do it and it has had a long-term effect. A always hear
:43:47. > :43:47.from you guys about the economic costs of strikes on the Tube when
:43:47. > :43:52.people strike. If journeys are much longer and journey times could
:43:52. > :43:58.double, it could lead to more congestion. It could lead to a loss
:43:58. > :44:02.to the economy in London. Overall, London will benefit. Absolutely,
:44:02. > :44:08.but there will be a downward effect on some businesses from greater
:44:08. > :44:11.journey times etc? Remember, the disruption will only be for a few
:44:11. > :44:18.weeks, whereas the legacy and improvements to the Jubilee line,
:44:18. > :44:23.the DLR, the way traffic signals work in London, that will leave a
:44:23. > :44:27.lasting legacy which would boost our economy in the capital. What
:44:28. > :44:31.about Greenwich and equestrian events? TfL are worried they might
:44:31. > :44:38.sell too many tickets and too many people might go to Greenwich for
:44:38. > :44:42.equestrian events. Where do you stand on this? We have got to get
:44:42. > :44:45.the balance right. I know there is ongoing discussions about that and
:44:45. > :44:49.more work to be done but we are determined to get the balance right
:44:49. > :44:53.so we have a successful games. But we also find a way to keep London
:44:53. > :44:58.moving, which is why the process of engagement with businesses is so
:44:59. > :45:02.important in the next few weeks. You think things are on track? Have
:45:02. > :45:07.a businesses responded to these warnings earlier and that all do
:45:07. > :45:12.TfL have a job to get his message out? TfL Dunbar so far but they are
:45:12. > :45:16.well aware more needs to be done. That TfL have done well so far.
:45:16. > :45:20.They need a broader message from the bigger businesses it's focused
:45:20. > :45:25.on, in the early stages, to smaller businesses and of course it's very
:45:25. > :45:35.important to ensure people accept freight in London and colour that
:45:35. > :45:36.
:45:36. > :45:42.their plans so we can keep freight A couple of other things while we
:45:42. > :45:47.have got you, are you doing anything about putting services
:45:47. > :45:51.back into areas like Denmark Hill, south-east London? He was the mayor
:45:51. > :45:54.who took that decision, and we are looking at various options that
:45:54. > :46:00.might involve changes to services elsewhere. Haven't made a decision
:46:00. > :46:04.yet? Those decisions have not yet been made. Turning to motorways,
:46:04. > :46:09.are you someone that routinely or sometimes find yourself driving at
:46:09. > :46:16.80 mph? Well, I tried to stick to the speed limit, I have is a poor
:46:16. > :46:21.start I think we all do, yes. But it is time that we refreshed our
:46:21. > :46:26.thinking on the speed limits. The speed limits were set for the end -
:46:26. > :46:30.- 40 years ago, when technology was very different. Do you feel
:46:30. > :46:33.comfortable at 80 mph? What we are looking at, what we have announced
:46:33. > :46:37.his we think it is high time that we look at the limits on motorways
:46:37. > :46:42.and took a rational judgment on what is an appropriate, modern
:46:42. > :46:48.speed limit. Some figures suggest it would only lead to a 1% increase
:46:48. > :46:53.in deaths. You know how many more injuries and 80 mph speed limit
:46:53. > :46:59.would cause? We have made very clear that we are going to be
:46:59. > :47:02.consulting on this proposal. You do not know yet, then? A There has
:47:02. > :47:07.been analysis of these figures, as the Secretary of State said on
:47:07. > :47:12.Thursday when this was announced. But we will be looking with care at
:47:12. > :47:17.all the arguments. We think there is a case for moving to an 80 mph
:47:17. > :47:20.limit. We think it is perfectly possible to do that. We can still
:47:21. > :47:24.ensure high standards of road safety on our motorways. Car
:47:24. > :47:29.technology is so much more advanced than when the 70 mph limit was
:47:29. > :47:34.first set. The story of the day, was David Cameron right to
:47:34. > :47:38.apologise to women? Did he get that wrong in some of the Commons he has
:47:38. > :47:42.made? Do think he came across as chauvinistic? I know some of those
:47:42. > :47:46.comments were controversial, and he has always been the sort of person,
:47:46. > :47:51.Mickey thinks something has been done wrong in the wrong way, he is
:47:51. > :47:56.only too happy to accept that. -- if he thinks. It is important that
:47:56. > :48:00.as a government, we do all we can to engage with women voters, to
:48:00. > :48:03.ensure that the decisions we take... So was he right to make it clear
:48:03. > :48:07.that some of his comments were ill judged? Did you find them ill-
:48:07. > :48:10.judged at the time? The important thing is to make sure that the
:48:10. > :48:16.tough decisions that we take as a government and have detected deal
:48:16. > :48:19.with the deficit, that we think through their impact on all
:48:19. > :48:24.sections our society. The Prime Minister is determined to do that.
:48:24. > :48:28.He has made it very clear that he believes that the support of women
:48:28. > :48:31.and the concerns of women are very important to the coalition. And I
:48:31. > :48:34.think the debate around what he might or might not have said at
:48:35. > :48:38.Prime Minister's Questions is a bit of a sideshow, really. The
:48:38. > :48:42.important thing is the commission is taking the tough decisions to
:48:42. > :48:46.put the economy back on track. Because it is a sideshow, we will
:48:46. > :48:49.move on. Thank you for coming in. The government proposals to relax
:48:49. > :48:53.planning laws have been causing anxiety in the shires, but what
:48:53. > :48:56.were they mean for the capital? Not known for its green belt but with
:48:56. > :49:01.plenty of green space none the less, we will at one of the ministers
:49:01. > :49:05.involved after this from Jennifer Conway. -- Ask.
:49:05. > :49:10.Across parts of London, you do not have to look very far to see new
:49:10. > :49:14.buildings springing up, but to decide what can be built and where?
:49:14. > :49:18.-- Who decides? In some cases, neighbourhood planning teams
:49:18. > :49:21.influence what happens in their local area. This will become part
:49:21. > :49:26.of the local council's planning policy. In the capital, we have an
:49:26. > :49:30.extra layer with the regional policy, the London plan. The new
:49:30. > :49:33.national planning proposals came out over the summer. Critics are
:49:33. > :49:37.worried that developers are being handed to much freedom to build on
:49:37. > :49:42.London's already scarce green spaces. At the moment there is a
:49:42. > :49:45.very clear brownfield first policy, saying that developers need to look
:49:45. > :49:49.at brownfield sites before they proposed green field development.
:49:49. > :49:52.Now, that has gone in the new framework. Areas like Kings Cross
:49:52. > :49:58.are being developed because of the successes of our current planning
:49:58. > :50:02.rules. In London, there are over 2000 brownfield plots, areas of
:50:02. > :50:05.land that have already been developed before. Building on the
:50:05. > :50:12.site has regenerated previously wasted land such as the Docklands
:50:12. > :50:15.Some say these new planning proposals but economic growth first,
:50:15. > :50:19.and despite streamlining regulations, more development is
:50:20. > :50:24.not a certainty. The question is how much is the planning system the
:50:24. > :50:29.problem, and how much is the lack of money for housebuilders and
:50:29. > :50:32.industries to build? There are huge amounts of land available for
:50:32. > :50:35.housebuilders to start building on straight away, tomorrow, but they
:50:35. > :50:39.are not building because of economic problems and not because
:50:39. > :50:42.of problems with the planning system. With no mention of London's
:50:43. > :50:48.planning policy in a new framework, it remains unclear how these
:50:48. > :50:53.proposals will work in the capital. Jennifer Conway reporting there. It
:50:53. > :50:57.remains unclear, but Grant Shapps, Housing Minister, is with us now,
:50:57. > :51:03.and you may be able to clarify this. Where does London fit in? It has
:51:03. > :51:06.its own London Plan. That is right. It does not get any mention in here,
:51:06. > :51:10.how is it going to affect London? Just to explain to viewers,
:51:10. > :51:15.planning regulations in this country are a nightmare. Anyone who
:51:15. > :51:20.has applied for planning permission will no that it is complex,
:51:20. > :51:23.bureaucratic, full of red tape, time consuming. -- will know. We
:51:23. > :51:31.are boiling it down to a 50 two- page document which actually makes
:51:31. > :51:35.sense, it is no longer contradictory. -- 52-page. It is a
:51:35. > :51:38.framework, rather than... If you have 6,000 pages of planning
:51:38. > :51:43.guidance, of course you are going to go into every nook and cranny.
:51:43. > :51:47.If it is only 52 pages, there are lots of things we do not go into in
:51:47. > :51:52.detail, because we want the local authorities to set the ground rules
:51:52. > :51:56.for London. Boris has been doing that in London with housing. Does
:51:56. > :52:02.the London Plan, as dance, that will remain? It is not having any
:52:02. > :52:08.impact. If anything, it means that the mayor gets more flexibility,
:52:08. > :52:14.the London Plan, working with the virus, gets to be implemented. --
:52:14. > :52:21.boroughs. The two documents are complementary in that sense. Boris
:52:21. > :52:27.has pledged to get affordable homes built. One year later than he first
:52:27. > :52:30.promised. I disappointed the pledge has lived? You get the blame if he
:52:30. > :52:33.does not hit his target. I do not think anyone would have guessed
:52:33. > :52:37.what was going to happen in the economy, and it has been tougher
:52:37. > :52:43.than anyone possibly could imagine back in the days when the plans
:52:43. > :52:48.were put in place. He tells me that he is likely to get there. I have
:52:48. > :52:52.looked at his numbers, and my view, I will put it on record, is that is
:52:52. > :52:58.probably going to exceed it, but we will see by next year. Getting back
:52:58. > :53:01.to the issue of... If you are saying they complement each other,
:53:01. > :53:05.some of the principles in the London Plan are broadly what you
:53:06. > :53:10.want to see come in nationwide. What we want to see happen is that
:53:10. > :53:15.areas are able to develop policies which work for that area. Now,
:53:15. > :53:19.London is, if you like, a pro- growth area. We have got the city,
:53:19. > :53:23.the incredible engine of the economy. We want London to be able
:53:23. > :53:29.to excel. I want the planning framework to allow London the
:53:29. > :53:32.freedom to do that. We have got lots of green spaces, and we know
:53:32. > :53:37.the playing Fields Association are worried this will enable people to
:53:37. > :53:40.build on playing fields. So a guarantee that there will be no
:53:40. > :53:45.loss of playing fields under a Conservative mayor or a
:53:45. > :53:50.Conservative minister by 2015. be clear about it, the national
:53:50. > :53:55.framework that we are talking about, is 52 page document, does not make
:53:55. > :53:59.this any more likely. In fact, it includes key protections for green
:53:59. > :54:02.space, green belt, as you say, which in outer London may come into
:54:02. > :54:07.effect, but none the less green spaces, playing fields, they are
:54:07. > :54:09.properly protected, as they should be. We are the government who have
:54:09. > :54:14.scrapped the garden grabbing clauses in planning which were
:54:14. > :54:18.causing all those gardens to be built over. We have got rid of that
:54:18. > :54:23.as well. The protection is there. Why does this help or push people
:54:23. > :54:26.to develop more and build more houses in a place like London,
:54:26. > :54:30.where we still have huge areas of brownfield sites and they are not
:54:30. > :54:36.being built and? That is because of lack of government investment,
:54:36. > :54:39.isn't it? First of all, you are right that brownfield sites are
:54:39. > :54:43.used, they should be used first, and were giving flexibility to
:54:43. > :54:46.local authorities. People have said, You are scrapping the targets, but
:54:46. > :54:50.we are giving power to local authorities to raise the targets
:54:50. > :54:54.for building on brownfield first. The Prime Minister has been talking
:54:54. > :54:58.about bringing back the right to buy in a big way. Everybody who
:54:58. > :55:02.buys a house under the new 21st century right to buy, will get that
:55:02. > :55:07.money and will use it to build another affordable home to rent.
:55:07. > :55:10.This is a new policy. You do not think the enthusiasm with which a
:55:10. > :55:15.Conservative government sold houses has been the origin of a problem we
:55:15. > :55:19.have never recovered from? That is why you have to be 37 before you
:55:19. > :55:24.buy a home now. You have to be 30 to remember Thatcher bringing in
:55:25. > :55:28.the right to buy, it is a 30-year- old policy. I would say that it was
:55:28. > :55:31.an incredible policy at giving people the right to roam their own
:55:31. > :55:36.home. It took some of the most hard-working people in the country
:55:36. > :55:40.and gave them a chance. Actually, the money was not recycled into by
:55:40. > :55:45.more affordable homes, and nor was it under the last government either.
:55:45. > :55:49.What we are announcing today is a reinvigorated right to buy with all
:55:49. > :55:53.the money being taken and invested in rebuilding new affordable homes
:55:53. > :55:59.for rent. We know the farce that the planning framework has caused
:55:59. > :56:03.in the shires, at the concerns, Francis Maude describing it as
:56:03. > :56:08.something we cannot repeat, colourful language. Very quickly,
:56:08. > :56:12.what are you telling the people of your constituency, Welwyn and
:56:12. > :56:15.Hatfield, economics must win over the environment? No, my area has
:56:15. > :56:18.been one of the third fastest growing areas in the country for
:56:18. > :56:22.housing, but what we did not like was been told by government, this
:56:22. > :56:26.is the target, these are the number of homes you will build. This new
:56:27. > :56:30.framework is to say, look, local area, you know what is right in
:56:30. > :56:34.judging growth, and we will leave it to you. It has been less
:56:34. > :56:37.controversial end my career as a result. We will see what the people
:56:37. > :56:47.of Welwyn and Hatfield think of it. The consultation ends later this
:56:47. > :56:51.
:56:51. > :56:57.The growth, Europe, planning rules, sexism, human rights, how to make
:56:57. > :57:02.sense of it all. I'm joined by two of the brightest young things from
:57:02. > :57:09.the back benches, and a little older but no less exciting, Brian
:57:09. > :57:13.Binley MP. Hello to you. You are very kind. You have a book coming
:57:13. > :57:19.out, the future of Conservatism. have got 26 people who have
:57:19. > :57:25.contributed to the book, but it is not a broadside, it is a very real
:57:25. > :57:29.support to conservatism. What we all want is a Conservative
:57:29. > :57:33.government next time, and that is what we are looking for. What
:57:33. > :57:37.should the Tories be doing that they are not doing at the moment?
:57:37. > :57:41.We need a proper policy for growth, particularly for the SME sector,
:57:41. > :57:46.and that means banks lending, wore encouragement on the demand side,
:57:46. > :57:51.and there are things we can do. Secondly, we need to give first-
:57:51. > :57:55.time housebuyers a real opportunity. I do not like talk that says that,
:57:55. > :57:58.you know, a property owning democracy should not be part of the
:57:58. > :58:02.game. I was delighted to hear David Cameron talk more about housing.
:58:02. > :58:07.There are lots of things we can do, but we can also make sure the dog
:58:07. > :58:11.is more in control of the tale. other words, the Liberal Democrats
:58:11. > :58:15.are having too much say. I think they are wagging a little bit too
:58:15. > :58:19.hard. I agree with Brian that we have to be focused on winning the
:58:19. > :58:22.election in 2015. To me, the biggest job was dealing with the
:58:22. > :58:26.deficit, and the last government gave us a great style deficit. This
:58:26. > :58:30.government but in a plan which means we borrow at German levels.
:58:30. > :58:34.That was one of the great benefits of a coalition, that we got both
:58:34. > :58:37.parties to focus on that. There are policy disagreements, we are
:58:37. > :58:41.furthest apart on Human Rights and Europe, but I think what we're
:58:41. > :58:46.doing is working on conservative policies for the 2015 manifesto. I
:58:46. > :58:50.think we will hear a lot about growth from the conference,
:58:50. > :58:53.especially from the Chancellor tomorrow, and we have had a
:58:53. > :58:58.dreadful headwind from the global economy, and it is time to get
:58:58. > :59:02.Britain growing again. Look, the coalition is a joint venture. This
:59:02. > :59:07.is not a merger or a takeover. In joint ventures, there is always
:59:07. > :59:15.difficulties, but the main things... Do agree that the tail is wagging
:59:15. > :59:19.the dog? No, I don't. If you think about the coalition agreement, Our
:59:19. > :59:22.red line was deficit-reduction, and the Lib Dems went along with it.
:59:22. > :59:25.The second red line for us was on dealing with tuition fees, very
:59:25. > :59:30.important that we get education right, both for schools and
:59:30. > :59:32.universities. They absolutely supported. There are lots of issues
:59:33. > :59:36.that the Lib Dems have taken flak on that we have actually put
:59:36. > :59:40.forward, but it is a coalition. What we have to remember is that we
:59:40. > :59:44.did not win the election outright. Next time round, we want to win it
:59:44. > :59:47.outright. Don't we see problems when Theresa May says that she
:59:47. > :59:57.wants to get rid of the Human Rights Act and Nick Clegg says it
:59:57. > :00:01.There will be areas where there is a conflict of political objective
:00:01. > :00:05.between the members of the coalition. I understand that. I
:00:05. > :00:11.think it was a price worth paying but, at the end of the day, I
:00:11. > :00:15.believe most people out they genuinely want a government, a
:00:15. > :00:18.Conservative government, which does what it says. I think there is an
:00:18. > :00:24.element of the Liberal Party which is trying to stop us doing what we
:00:24. > :00:29.say, and I want to change that at the next election. Do you think
:00:29. > :00:33.David Cameron should be more robust now? I understand his difficulties,
:00:34. > :00:37.genuinely understand them. Do you think you should be more robust
:00:37. > :00:43.now? I'm coming back to your question but I think there will be
:00:43. > :00:47.time to be more robust. I fear it, but I want to see it in action in
:00:47. > :00:51.terms of legislating in the House. That's why I'm talking about the
:00:51. > :00:56.growth agenda that really works, the housebuilding programme which
:00:56. > :01:01.helps first-time buyers amongst many other things. The reality is,
:01:01. > :01:05.you have hundreds more Conservative MPs than liberals. We have achieved
:01:05. > :01:10.dozens of Conservative policies. I think all of us want this
:01:10. > :01:15.government to last until 2015, so we can get the economy balanced and
:01:15. > :01:19.the coalition ensures we do that. You may see ritual Liberal bashing
:01:19. > :01:26.this week but ultimately, we have to get the coalition working until
:01:26. > :01:30.2015. The attitude of the coalition towards women, and whether you are
:01:30. > :01:34.somehow a sexist against women. David Cameron this morning in into
:01:34. > :01:39.the apologised for that. I think was a feminine thing to do, in
:01:39. > :01:46.contrast to the last government, when the Prime Minister never said
:01:46. > :01:49.sorry for anything, including screwing up the economy. We went to
:01:49. > :01:54.almost 50 a new female Conservative MPs at this election and have been
:01:54. > :01:59.implementing policies. If you look at the policies, the public sector
:01:59. > :02:02.pay freeze, for all but the lowest paid in the public sector, who are
:02:02. > :02:08.usually women working part-time, that was deliberately designed to
:02:08. > :02:12.help working women, so I think we have a communication problem. Where
:02:12. > :02:17.was Yvette Cooper and the Labour Party at the abolition of the 10 p
:02:17. > :02:22.tax rate which damaged women's economic prospects? Let's be proud
:02:22. > :02:29.of what we're doing to help women. What do you want to see come out at
:02:29. > :02:38.the end of this week? I think it's the economy. What I would like to
:02:38. > :02:41.see his, what are the things you're going to do on the Budget, which
:02:41. > :02:46.was delivered for the country, what are we going to do to get growth
:02:46. > :02:50.back in the country. It's about leadership, not just political but
:02:50. > :02:54.the business leadership. We have to go businesses are saying, before we
:02:54. > :02:57.are going to do for our country. Thank you all and enjoy your time
:02:57. > :03:01.in Manchester force of its good to have your Politics Show. And that's
:03:01. > :03:03.it for this week. Thanks for being with us. Pienaar's politics will be
:03:03. > :03:06.live from the conference bar tonight at 7:00pm on Radio Five
:03:06. > :03:10.Live with an exclusive interview with Boris Johnson. And remember
:03:10. > :03:12.the Daily Politics on BBC Two will bring you all the news from here at
:03:12. > :03:15.the conference throughout next week. Until then, as Tory Cabinet
:03:15. > :03:24.ministers and delegates prepare to address the Tory faithful, here's a
:03:24. > :03:33.reminder of how it's done. Half of you won't be heard in 30 or
:03:33. > :03:41.40 years' time -- here. The Lady's not for turning. He got on his bike
:03:41. > :03:46.and looked for work and the captain looking until he found it. -- and