Browse content similar to 20/06/2014. Check below for episodes and series from the same categories and more!
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jury did not believe. Now on BBC News: The Week in | :00:00. | :00:11. | |
Parliament. Hello and welcome to The Week in | :00:12. | :00:15. | |
Parliament. We've lost in the football. Could the Prime Minister | :00:16. | :00:21. | |
be about to lose in Europe? Under the treaties, we should choose who | :00:22. | :00:24. | |
runs the European Commission. And I don't mind how many people on the | :00:25. | :00:27. | |
European Council disagree with me, I will fight this right to the very | :00:28. | :00:35. | |
end. The battle to become the next European Commission President comes | :00:36. | :00:38. | |
to a climax. Now, what about that other contest that's hotting up? Are | :00:39. | :00:42. | |
the claims too exaggerated in the Scottish referendum battle? Both | :00:43. | :00:48. | |
sides have made the mistake in the past of getting into negative | :00:49. | :00:50. | |
campaigning, and certainly, the Better Together campaign realise | :00:51. | :00:53. | |
that mistakes were made there, and that it is important to be positive | :00:54. | :00:59. | |
about the future. We talk to both the Yes and the No campaigns about | :01:00. | :01:02. | |
the latest developments. But first, if a Luxembourg politician is the | :01:03. | :01:05. | |
talk of Westminster, it can mean only one thing. Yes, a new President | :01:06. | :01:09. | |
of the European Commission is about to be appointed. The front runner is | :01:10. | :01:13. | |
Jean`Claude Juncker, the former Luxembourg premier. We're just a few | :01:14. | :01:19. | |
days away from the meeting of EU leaders that will, in effect, decide | :01:20. | :01:22. | |
who follows in the footsteps of such notable, perhaps notorious, figures | :01:23. | :01:25. | |
as Jacques Delors, Jacques Santer, and Manuel Barroso. Mr Juncker is | :01:26. | :01:33. | |
far too much of a eurofederalist for the liking of David Cameron, who, | :01:34. | :01:36. | |
not for the first time, is looking increasingly isolated in Europe. It | :01:37. | :01:42. | |
was a former Foreign Office Minister who raised the subject of the next | :01:43. | :01:45. | |
Commission President at Prime stop Mr Juncker? Well, it is a simple | :01:46. | :02:00. | |
issue of principle. It is a simple issue of principle much more | :02:01. | :02:03. | |
connected to the principle than the name. The principle is this, and I | :02:04. | :02:06. | |
think it will be shared on every side of the house, that the members | :02:07. | :02:10. | |
of the European council who are the elected prime ministers and the | :02:11. | :02:12. | |
elected presidents under the treaties, we should choose who runs | :02:13. | :02:16. | |
the commission. And I don't mind how many people on the European council | :02:17. | :02:19. | |
disagree with me, I will fight this right to the very end. And what I | :02:20. | :02:31. | |
would say, what I would say to my colleagues on the European council, | :02:32. | :02:33. | |
many of whom have expressed interesting views about both this | :02:34. | :02:36. | |
principle and this person, if you want reform in Europe, you have to | :02:37. | :02:43. | |
stand up for it. If you want change in Europe, you have to vote for it. | :02:44. | :02:47. | |
That is the message I will take, and it is the right message for our | :02:48. | :02:56. | |
country. Is my right honourable friend aware that at the conference | :02:57. | :02:59. | |
this weekend in Athens of the national chairman of the European | :03:00. | :03:02. | |
select committees, with delegates from all parties, but also, chairman | :03:03. | :03:04. | |
of the European Parliament three committees as well, that the British | :03:05. | :03:07. | |
delegation defeated an attempt to treat the word euroscepticism as | :03:08. | :03:25. | |
equivalent to xenophobia and racism? And furthermore, that on the | :03:26. | :03:27. | |
question of the procedure, the unprecedented procedure relating to | :03:28. | :03:29. | |
the proposed appointment or election of Mr Juncker, that the conference | :03:30. | :03:32. | |
also agreed with the British delegation that this was an | :03:33. | :03:35. | |
unprecedented and unacceptable and unsuccessful procedure? Well, no | :03:36. | :03:55. | |
surprises that my horrible friend was successful in this very | :03:56. | :03:58. | |
important negotiation on behalf of Britain, and there is support right | :03:59. | :04:01. | |
around Europe for the concept of the council of ministers making these | :04:02. | :04:04. | |
choices, but as I say, it requires the elected Prime Minister 's | :04:05. | :04:07. | |
presidents to vote in the way that they believe. The Prime Minister in | :04:08. | :04:19. | |
resolute mood in the Commons. So why is the appointment of the next | :04:20. | :04:21. | |
European Commission president causing such a headache? Claire | :04:22. | :04:24. | |
Gould now explains more about this pivotal role and why David Cameron | :04:25. | :04:28. | |
isn't in the same boat as his fellow European leaders this time around. | :04:29. | :04:41. | |
While the votes were being counted in the European Parliament elections | :04:42. | :04:44. | |
last month, you might not have been aware that another very important | :04:45. | :04:46. | |
European election was just around the corner, the race to become the | :04:47. | :04:49. | |
12th European Commission president. The centre`right European People's | :04:50. | :04:51. | |
Party topped the European parliamentary poll, making their | :04:52. | :04:53. | |
preferred candidate, Jean`Claude Juncker, hot favourite to succeed | :04:54. | :04:55. | |
the current incumbent Jerseyman well Barroso. TRANSLATION: I feel fully | :04:56. | :05:03. | |
entitled to become the next president of the European | :05:04. | :05:16. | |
Commission. The commission president, holder of the most | :05:17. | :05:19. | |
powerful office in the EU, proposes legislation by the European | :05:20. | :05:21. | |
Parliament and oversees the EU's treaties, so if you are a European | :05:22. | :05:24. | |
leader and he wants change your reform in Europe, you the President | :05:25. | :05:39. | |
on side. ``you need the President on side. The trouble is, Mr Juncker's | :05:40. | :05:41. | |
federalist views are a major problem for British Prime Minister David | :05:42. | :05:44. | |
Cameron, who strongly opposes Mr Juncker's candidacy. It has got the | :05:45. | :05:47. | |
British Prime Minister going round in circles, trying to find allies | :05:48. | :05:50. | |
amongst the other European leaders ahead of the crucial decision on | :05:51. | :06:11. | |
Friday. But as former friends, like the Dutch and the Swedish, seem to | :06:12. | :06:15. | |
be melting away could the argument be lost already? Claire Gould | :06:16. | :06:19. | |
reporting. And we're joined in the studio now by Stephen Booth, of the | :06:20. | :06:26. | |
think tank, Open Europe. What is really at stake here? Is it a | :06:27. | :06:30. | |
crucially important post? Well, yes, it is the body that proposes | :06:31. | :06:32. | |
legislation in the European Union, so for someone like David Cameron | :06:33. | :06:36. | |
who wants to see that change, he is in some ways dependent on what the | :06:37. | :06:39. | |
commission is prepared to propose in terms of going forward. How did Mr | :06:40. | :06:42. | |
Juncker become the top candidate, as it were? In essence, we have a power | :06:43. | :06:46. | |
battle between the European Parliament on the one hand, pushing | :06:47. | :06:49. | |
this idea of candidates, and Juncker was the lead candidate, this is the | :06:50. | :06:52. | |
European Council, where the directly elected representatives of national | :06:53. | :06:54. | |
government have traditionally appointed this person. This power | :06:55. | :07:00. | |
battle seems to have the parliament taking the upper hand at the moment. | :07:01. | :07:03. | |
Quite a lot of manoeuvring going on behind`the`scenes. That is the | :07:04. | :07:06. | |
ironic thing. This is being held up by some as the acme of the | :07:07. | :07:09. | |
democratic process, but we are still back into the old horse trading and | :07:10. | :07:13. | |
everything else, and I think that is the case, and however Juncker gets | :07:14. | :07:16. | |
there, if he does, in the end, it will because a backroom deals and | :07:17. | :07:19. | |
horse trading among member states and everyone else. As it has always | :07:20. | :07:28. | |
been. This seems to keep happening to David Cameron. He looked as if he | :07:29. | :07:32. | |
has allies, and then they are not there. Are his tactics wrong? I | :07:33. | :07:38. | |
think in this case, he was right to fight the principle, because this is | :07:39. | :07:41. | |
not just about the personality. You can like or dislike Juncker as a | :07:42. | :07:44. | |
personality, but this is about how this important post is selected. The | :07:45. | :07:47. | |
Lisbon Treaty is quite clear about how it is meant to happen. The | :07:48. | :07:52. | |
European Council are meant to recommend an appointment, and then | :07:53. | :07:57. | |
the parliament accents or reject it. ``accepts. I think it is important | :07:58. | :08:14. | |
to fight for that principle, because it is about two visions of how to | :08:15. | :08:17. | |
run the EU. Does legitimacy come from national governments or this | :08:18. | :08:19. | |
experiment in pan`European democracy? What is your prediction | :08:20. | :08:23. | |
about what is going to happen? It is quite difficult to predict. It looks | :08:24. | :08:38. | |
like it will go to a vote and Juncker will get the job, and that | :08:39. | :08:41. | |
is bad news for Cameron in one sense, because he has put a lot of | :08:42. | :08:44. | |
political capital into opposing him, but the consolation, ironically, | :08:45. | :08:47. | |
maybe that Britain is offered some kind of compensation for that. I | :08:48. | :08:50. | |
think Angela Merkel has already said that that would be something that | :08:51. | :08:53. | |
would have to happen if Juncker is appointed. So, perversely, it is | :08:54. | :08:56. | |
mostly good thing if Mr Juncker gets appointed, because Britain might | :08:57. | :08:59. | |
benefit. I think it would be a great change in how we run the EU, but in | :09:00. | :09:03. | |
terms of practical day`to`day policy, the UK might be compensated | :09:04. | :09:06. | |
with a better post in the EU than I hope for otherwise. What position do | :09:07. | :09:09. | |
you think they might get? It is difficult to speculate, but the UK | :09:10. | :09:13. | |
does want a more economic portfolio, be that trade, internal markets, or | :09:14. | :09:15. | |
competition. These are areas where the UK has traditionally had a | :09:16. | :09:29. | |
greater interest. Thank you. The battle over Scotland's future | :09:30. | :09:32. | |
continues to attract plenty of interest. On Tuesday the Chinese | :09:33. | :09:35. | |
premier, Li Ka`Shing, backed the No campaign in the independence | :09:36. | :09:37. | |
referendum when he said he favoured a "united United Kingdom". The Yes | :09:38. | :09:40. | |
camp immediately countered by saying "unlike people in China", the Scots | :09:41. | :09:43. | |
will have a "free and democratic vote" on September the 18th. On | :09:44. | :09:46. | |
Monday the No camp organised a photo opportunity to show the breadth of | :09:47. | :09:49. | |
opposition to independence, with the Labour, Conservative and Liberal | :09:50. | :09:51. | |
Democrat leaders in Scotland appearing together at Carlton Hill | :09:52. | :09:55. | |
in Edinburgh. All three parties have promised more tax`raising powers for | :09:56. | :09:58. | |
the Scottish Parliament if Scotland stays in the UK. So that was a sunny | :09:59. | :10:22. | |
Edinburgh last Monday. I'm joined in the studio now by the former Labour | :10:23. | :10:25. | |
Deputy Chief Whip in the Commons, Lord McAvoy. Can I ask you firstly, | :10:26. | :10:40. | |
the results of The Financial Times poll on the effectiveness of the yes | :10:41. | :10:43. | |
and no campaigns, because it was a very interesting result? 51% of | :10:44. | :10:46. | |
people for the yes to independence was fighting an effective campaign, | :10:47. | :10:49. | |
but only 23% thought the no camp had an effective campaign. That is an | :10:50. | :10:52. | |
enormous difference. The referendum debate is now only really hotting | :10:53. | :10:56. | |
up. I wouldn't say there was a phoney war before, because both | :10:57. | :10:59. | |
sides fought hard, but it is the message that counts, and the facts | :11:00. | :11:03. | |
are, if the no campaign is that bad, they would be behind in the opinion | :11:04. | :11:11. | |
polls, and they are not. So it is about the message, and we will | :11:12. | :11:14. | |
continue to re`emphasise that message, that we do not want | :11:15. | :11:17. | |
Scotland to separate, and the closer it gets to the referendum, I think | :11:18. | :11:20. | |
that message will resonate with the Scottish people. They are remarkable | :11:21. | :11:32. | |
figures, though, aren't they? I would accept that it has taken | :11:33. | :11:35. | |
longer for the Better Together campaign to get fully up to speed | :11:36. | :11:43. | |
than it has for the Yes campaign. The reasons for that, I think, first | :11:44. | :11:47. | |
of all, it is much easier to campaign for the word Yes than it is | :11:48. | :11:51. | |
for the word No, and I think it has taken the Better Together campaign | :11:52. | :11:54. | |
some time to work out its best strategy. Also, the Yes campaign is | :11:55. | :11:59. | |
effectively part of the SNP, whereas the Better Together campaign is a | :12:00. | :12:02. | |
coalition of three parties, and it takes longer for the three to start | :12:03. | :12:05. | |
working together than it does for one party, but I am confident that, | :12:06. | :12:08. | |
particularly with last Monday's announcement between the three | :12:09. | :12:11. | |
parties about more powers for the Scottish Parliament, I am confident | :12:12. | :12:13. | |
that the Better Together campaign is fully up to speed, and that the | :12:14. | :12:16. | |
Scottish people will realise that the future is best staying within | :12:17. | :12:19. | |
the United Kingdom. But putting your allegiance to one side, have you | :12:20. | :12:22. | |
actually been impressed by the professionalism of the Yes campaign? | :12:23. | :12:37. | |
It is a hard sell to traditional Labour voters, particularly in the | :12:38. | :12:47. | |
west of Scotland. For many Labour voters, they make six the Tories as | :12:48. | :12:56. | |
a class enemy? Made me do. We are talking about the future of our | :12:57. | :13:04. | |
country, to divide our country from the rest of the United Kingdom. Your | :13:05. | :13:20. | |
opinion polls and other indicators although some Labour voters may have | :13:21. | :13:23. | |
reservations about the Conservative party, I think the declaration, if | :13:24. | :13:28. | |
we are honest about it, people like to see us one to get a. Another | :13:29. | :13:35. | |
problem for the campaign is the fact that there will be a disaster if | :13:36. | :13:41. | |
Scotland votes yes, it will be awful if Scotland vote yes, you can build | :13:42. | :13:43. | |
up too many disasters consequences and the public then start to be very | :13:44. | :13:50. | |
sceptical. We are making the focus of our campaign what will happen if | :13:51. | :14:01. | |
we stake in the UK. If people take a pessimistic future, it can rebound | :14:02. | :14:06. | |
on them and that's what we have, what our campaign is not to do that. | :14:07. | :14:14. | |
At one point, it was called Project Fear. Well, that is what the SNP | :14:15. | :14:18. | |
labelled the campaign. It must be pointed out that negative | :14:19. | :14:20. | |
campaigning is not just on the no side of the argument. We get a lot | :14:21. | :14:24. | |
of nonsense from the SNP, claiming that if it is a no vote, the | :14:25. | :14:27. | |
Scotland budget will be cut, powers will be taken away from the Scottish | :14:28. | :14:30. | |
parliament. That is just nonsense. Both sides have made the mistake in | :14:31. | :14:34. | |
the past of getting into negative campaigning, and certainly, the | :14:35. | :14:36. | |
Better Together campaign realise that mistakes were made there, and | :14:37. | :14:39. | |
it is important to be positive about the future. All three of the UK | :14:40. | :14:44. | |
national parties have come up with their own plan for what would happen | :14:45. | :14:47. | |
to Scottish devolution in the event of a no vote, but what about a | :14:48. | :14:51. | |
united plan, one you could all absolutely agree on? You are right, | :14:52. | :15:10. | |
each of the three parties have different emphasis, different detail | :15:11. | :15:16. | |
but the Secretary of State for Scotland has said that within a | :15:17. | :15:22. | |
month of Scotland voting, he will convene at the future convention and | :15:23. | :15:26. | |
bring everyone together, including the SNP. Just the same as the | :15:27. | :15:32. | |
Constitutional Convention in the 1980s and 90s we will leap to | :15:33. | :15:39. | |
agreement on future powers. There may be a difference in detail. A | :15:40. | :15:46. | |
particular question for you, Ed Miliband's fortunes do seem to be in | :15:47. | :15:51. | |
decline. There may be thought that the only way they can avoid another | :15:52. | :15:55. | |
Tory led government at the next election is to vote yes to Scottish | :15:56. | :15:59. | |
independence in September. Is a worry? It may seem that way if that | :16:00. | :16:06. | |
particular scenario, if people feel they are going to be led by a Tory | :16:07. | :16:12. | |
government, to get away from it. I have not done on the ground. It is | :16:13. | :16:16. | |
up to the Labour Party to make sure we come across as a credible | :16:17. | :16:22. | |
election for Westminster. I do not think it is any doubt about that. | :16:23. | :16:29. | |
Finally, a question to both of you. The in is at headbutt it is not huge | :16:30. | :16:37. | |
lead in the polls. A few months ago on to the polling on September 18. | :16:38. | :16:42. | |
It must be that thought that the yes campaign is going to come through | :16:43. | :16:45. | |
with big support for yes piling through in the last few weeks. Is | :16:46. | :16:49. | |
that the thought that goes through the" at is not really in the bag? I | :16:50. | :16:55. | |
do not like to pursue a victory is in the bag, you are right, no | :16:56. | :16:59. | |
campaign has been ahead in every single poll. I echo that | :17:00. | :17:11. | |
completely. The fate is now getting to the nitty`gritty stages. Thank | :17:12. | :17:17. | |
you very much for joining us. The views of two unit auditions from | :17:18. | :17:24. | |
north of the border. What's the yes camp viewed now that the Unionist | :17:25. | :17:28. | |
parties have come closer together on extra devolutionary powers for | :17:29. | :17:30. | |
Scotland if the voters reject independence. I very much welcome | :17:31. | :17:47. | |
the fact that the Unionist parties have moved a week from the line in | :17:48. | :17:51. | |
the sand approach. I do not think under any circumstances you could | :17:52. | :17:58. | |
describe it as Betamax. Most of the money raised would still, under | :17:59. | :18:03. | |
their proposals, be decided here in Westminster. The only wait to | :18:04. | :18:08. | |
guarantee more powers is to vote yes. The campaign seems to be good | :18:09. | :18:11. | |
at winning hearts but are they willing minds? Are there be more | :18:12. | :18:16. | |
affected by talking about people 's pensions and what might happen to | :18:17. | :18:21. | |
the pound? There has been a lot of scaremongering but more people think | :18:22. | :18:24. | |
about the issues and the more they are just began public finances in | :18:25. | :18:28. | |
Scotland, the more they are coming around to a "yes" vote. That is what | :18:29. | :18:31. | |
of the reasons you see the narrowing of the polls as the campaign heats | :18:32. | :18:35. | |
up over the summer. I am really struck by the number of people | :18:36. | :18:40. | |
getting engaged with politics. People who have never voted before | :18:41. | :18:43. | |
are determined to, and how to say because they think it is an | :18:44. | :18:49. | |
important issue. Now, look at some of the other stories around | :18:50. | :18:52. | |
Parliament in the last seven days. The controversy over on the runs in | :18:53. | :18:56. | |
Northern Ireland has produced a confrontation. Ian Paisley wondered | :18:57. | :19:03. | |
why the ex` Northern Ireland Secretary had previously mentioned | :19:04. | :19:06. | |
significant correspondence sent to the judge in the case of John | :19:07. | :19:12. | |
Downey. The suspect wrongly sent a letter, telling him he was not being | :19:13. | :19:19. | |
sought by police. I have a lot of respect for you, outside this | :19:20. | :19:23. | |
committee I regard it as a friend. That is an outrageous suggestion. I | :19:24. | :19:28. | |
demand you withdraw it. I demand you withdraw at! I think the word was | :19:29. | :19:42. | |
used and the suggestion was that the memory... The letter is there. That | :19:43. | :19:50. | |
is outrageous! Dilemma I have come to this committee in good faith and | :19:51. | :19:53. | |
have stayed extra time as you asked me to do. I will answer all your | :19:54. | :19:56. | |
questions but that is outrageous. They might make shopping simpler but | :19:57. | :20:03. | |
loyalty cards and mobile phones simply mean someone, somewhere has a | :20:04. | :20:06. | |
lot of information about us. Time to take action, declared one peer. They | :20:07. | :20:11. | |
are able to collate data about who we are, where we go, what we buy, | :20:12. | :20:17. | |
who we speak to an even the state of our health. Next year is the hundred | :20:18. | :20:23. | |
anniversary of Magna Carta. To celebrate this in a modern setting, | :20:24. | :20:28. | |
should be introduced digital Magna Carta, designed to guarantee our | :20:29. | :20:33. | |
online rights and privacy. Alongside those queues at passport offices, a | :20:34. | :20:39. | |
queue of apologies in Parliament. Sorry seems to be the easiest word. | :20:40. | :20:43. | |
The first came on Tuesday that the would you like to apologise? | :20:44. | :20:48. | |
Absolutely. I recognise the anger and distressed that people have, | :20:49. | :20:52. | |
some people have suffered and I would like to apologise and say that | :20:53. | :20:57. | |
in every case where we have not met our standards, where we have not met | :20:58. | :21:00. | |
the customers needs, yes we are sorry for that. So we take that as | :21:01. | :21:08. | |
an apology? Yes. The second one came the next day. A number of people | :21:09. | :21:11. | |
waiting to long for their passport applications. I would like to say to | :21:12. | :21:16. | |
anybody who is unable to travel because of a delay in processing | :21:17. | :21:21. | |
their passport application that I am sorry and government is sorry for | :21:22. | :21:25. | |
the inconvenience they have suffered and we are doing all we can to put | :21:26. | :21:31. | |
things right. Is it time to abandon this annual site at the Palace of | :21:32. | :21:35. | |
Westminster? The traditional sea appears at the State opening. Labour | :21:36. | :21:41. | |
says it must be brought to an end. It might make for good television | :21:42. | :21:46. | |
but it does nothing but detract from our very positive conclusions to the | :21:47. | :21:53. | |
working of our democracy. Picking up on occasion in robes helps people | :21:54. | :21:59. | |
understand who I am, what I am about and what they represent. Whenever | :22:00. | :22:05. | |
there is a photograph of this house, is always wearing the robes and we | :22:06. | :22:09. | |
look totally out of date with modern times. Frankly, it is just not a | :22:10. | :22:16. | |
sensible way forward. Scrutinising our hospitals and healthcare | :22:17. | :22:22. | |
systems. An MP who is a GP wins the chairmanship of the health | :22:23. | :22:25. | |
committee. Doctor Sarah Wollaston was elected chair with 226 votes. | :22:26. | :22:33. | |
The other candidate in that round was Doctor Philip Ni who received | :22:34. | :22:40. | |
195 votes. I think the role of the committee is to ask those | :22:41. | :22:45. | |
challenging questions on behalf of patient and taxpayers so that this | :22:46. | :22:50. | |
most cherished of our institutions in this country can continue to be | :22:51. | :22:53. | |
there for all of our constituents when they need it most. Delighted to | :22:54. | :22:58. | |
have got her new job at Westminster. You are watching the week in | :22:59. | :23:02. | |
Parliament after a week when manoeuvrings continued over who gets | :23:03. | :23:13. | |
the big job in Brussels. We have got some pretty decent | :23:14. | :23:14. |