:00:19. > :00:20.Hello and welcome to the Week In Parliament.
:00:21. > :00:24.MPs return to Westminster after their summer break and begin
:00:25. > :00:29.debating a bill transferring EU laws into UK legislation.
:00:30. > :00:33.The Brexit Secretary says it's vital for an orderly Brexit,
:00:34. > :00:40.but Labour accuses the government of a power grab.
:00:41. > :00:49.Let me be clear, this bill does only what is necessary for a smooth exit
:00:50. > :00:56.and... The combined effect of the provisions of this bill would reduce
:00:57. > :00:57.MPs to the position of spectators as power pours into the hands of the
:00:58. > :01:11.vicarage. -- of the executive. Jeremy Corbyn calls for an end
:01:12. > :01:14.to the pay cap for nurses - the Prime Minister reckons
:01:15. > :01:23.he's being profligate... As a result of the decisions taken
:01:24. > :01:25.by Labour, we have to spend more on debt interest than on NHS pay.
:01:26. > :01:27.And a Labour peer tries again to end hereditary
:01:28. > :01:35.We had a by-election last year where there was an electorate of three and
:01:36. > :01:36.there were seven candidates. It was no surprise that the first
:01:37. > :01:39.week back after the summer break Talks on the terms of the UK leaving
:01:40. > :01:43.the EU had continued over the summer, with both sides
:01:44. > :01:45.expressing frustration over In the Commons, David Davis provoked
:01:46. > :01:49.laughter in the chamber on Monday when he told MPs that no-one had
:01:50. > :01:52.ever said the negotiations While on Wednesday,
:01:53. > :01:56.at Prime Minister's Questions, a Conservative MP tackled
:01:57. > :01:59.Theresa May over the powers contained in the EU Withdrawal bill,
:02:00. > :02:03.which MPs were due to begin debating The Bill repeals the European
:02:04. > :02:10.Communities Act of 1972 and also transfers EU laws
:02:11. > :02:14.into UK legislation. Whilst some rules and regulations
:02:15. > :02:17.will simply transfer across, many will have to be changed
:02:18. > :02:20.so that they remain However, many MPs are concerned
:02:21. > :02:25.that the Withdrawal Bill gives ministers the ability to make
:02:26. > :02:28.sweeping use of powers, known as Henry VII powers,
:02:29. > :02:47.to change legislation without full Could my right honourable friend
:02:48. > :02:51.assure me that she will look in particular at those amendments which
:02:52. > :02:55.seek to change the EU withdrawal bill so it does not become an
:02:56. > :03:03.unprecedented and unnecessary government power grab? Minister. I'm
:03:04. > :03:08.grateful for my right honourable friend for raising this is you and I
:03:09. > :03:12.know that like me, she wants an orderly exit from the European Union
:03:13. > :03:16.and will be supporting this bill which enables us not just to leave
:03:17. > :03:21.the EU but you do so in an orderly manner with a functioning statute
:03:22. > :03:27.book. We will require certain powers to make corrections to the statute
:03:28. > :03:31.book after the bill becomes law, because negotiations are ongoing. We
:03:32. > :03:36.will do them via secondary legislation which will receive
:03:37. > :03:38.parliamentary scrutiny. An approach that has been endorsed by the House
:03:39. > :03:40.of Lords Constitution committee. Well, the next day that committee
:03:41. > :03:42.released an updated report which was rather less helpful
:03:43. > :03:45.to the government, and we'll be hearing from two of its members
:03:46. > :03:50.later in the programme. When the first day of debate began
:03:51. > :03:55.on Thursday, the Brexit Secretary sought to reassure MPs
:03:56. > :04:05.about its aims. Put simply, this bill is an
:04:06. > :04:10.essential step. Whilst it does not take us out of the European Union,
:04:11. > :04:15.it does ensure that on the day we leave, businesses know where they
:04:16. > :04:20.stand. Workers' rights are held and consumers remain protected. This
:04:21. > :04:24.bill is essential to ensure that when really, we do so in an orderly
:04:25. > :04:28.manner. This bill does only what is this is
:04:29. > :04:35.very for a smooth exit and to provide stability. That we are
:04:36. > :04:40.leaving is settled. How we are leaving is not. This bill encourages
:04:41. > :04:44.us to surrender all power and influence to the government and
:04:45. > :04:50.ministers. That would betray everything we were sent here to do.
:04:51. > :04:55.We have got to make sure that on the day of exit, the statute book works.
:04:56. > :04:59.The only way we can achieve it in the timescale with which we are
:05:00. > :05:06.constrained and which are set out in Article 50, is to have a flexible,
:05:07. > :05:13.pragmatic system such as the system laid out in the draft Bill. If you
:05:14. > :05:18.look at the amendments put forward, the very powerful reasons that MPs
:05:19. > :05:22.from different parties have come up with for rejecting this bill, that
:05:23. > :05:26.shows there is something seriously and fundamentally flawed in the bill
:05:27. > :05:30.and it cannot be allowed to go forward in its present form. If that
:05:31. > :05:37.gives a problem for government timetable is, tough. We do not need
:05:38. > :05:41.to legislate in this fashion to carry out the technical task of
:05:42. > :05:49.leaving the EU. I remain bemused as to why the legislation has been
:05:50. > :05:53.drafted in this form. Parliament has a job to hold the government to
:05:54. > :05:58.account and this bill as drafted stocks are standing up for democracy
:05:59. > :06:01.in this House and stops us making sure the government doesn't screw up
:06:02. > :06:07.Brexit in the process as it takes through and its decisions. This bill
:06:08. > :06:12.was always going to be a sows ear because the government started the
:06:13. > :06:17.negotiation without clear objectives or outcomes. Therefore the bill had
:06:18. > :06:22.to take into account any scenario, Deal or no Deal. The government
:06:23. > :06:26.claimed the bill will restore some of the two Parliament and secure
:06:27. > :06:33.certainty post Brexit. That is not the case. It transfers huge powers
:06:34. > :06:39.to ministers, not members of this House over matters that are vital to
:06:40. > :06:44.this House. Like maternity and paternity leave, holidays, and all
:06:45. > :06:48.sorts of other issues. I think the bill could increase uncertainty,
:06:49. > :06:55.including the likelihood of judicial review because the powers in the
:06:56. > :07:00.bill also broadly drawn. You can love Parliament and wanted jealously
:07:01. > :07:03.guard its rights and privileges, but still show pragmatism in the
:07:04. > :07:09.national interest when the times demand it. Because that is politics,
:07:10. > :07:12.that is the job we are sent to hear -- here to do. That is poetry and
:07:13. > :07:13.pragmatism. MPs will conclude that debate
:07:14. > :07:17.and hold their first votes on the bill at around
:07:18. > :07:19.midnight on Monday. Well, to discuss all that
:07:20. > :07:21.I was joined a little earlier by the Conservative peer and member
:07:22. > :07:24.of the Lords constitution Ann Taylor - now Lady Taylor,
:07:25. > :07:28.who was a Labour whip during her party's turbulent time
:07:29. > :07:31.in office in the late '70s. She's also now chair of that
:07:32. > :07:34.constitution committee which released its latest report
:07:35. > :07:37.on the EU Withdrawal And Pete Wishart,
:07:38. > :07:41.the SNP's spokesman I began by asking him, given
:07:42. > :07:59.that the UK was leaving the EU - My view is that there functionality
:08:00. > :08:04.of the repeal bill, the way it applies across the nations of the
:08:05. > :08:08.United Kingdom, suggest this is not the means to deliver it. I have just
:08:09. > :08:14.come from the debate and my sense is that some of the themes of the bill
:08:15. > :08:17.are starting to be set, a sense from the back bench of the Conservative
:08:18. > :08:23.Party and the front bench of the labour and two others of us, there
:08:24. > :08:26.could be progress made on all this. With respect, you haven't answered
:08:27. > :08:32.my question, what would you do differently? The key debate is going
:08:33. > :08:38.to come around the Henry VII powers. To give his government all these
:08:39. > :08:43.powers when it comes to legislation. And I think it was a means to deal
:08:44. > :08:51.with all of these big powers. And less unpalatable of that. Even if
:08:52. > :08:59.the SNP had a bill that dealt with the worst aspects of the Henry VIII
:09:00. > :09:05.powers, I was still be troubled. The idea from us that it is a power
:09:06. > :09:10.grab. Let's pick up on this power grab. It's a real concern. The
:09:11. > :09:13.committee described it as breathtaking in its scope and
:09:14. > :09:20.potential. Doesn't the government have to this? It is not challenging
:09:21. > :09:24.the principle of the bill, if you have withdrawal, you have to get the
:09:25. > :09:29.mechanisms and right. We are focusing on what is the mechanism,
:09:30. > :09:35.and the government has introduced into the bill some provisions which
:09:36. > :09:39.are moving in the right direction but there is still an awful long way
:09:40. > :09:44.to go to ensure the relationship between Parliament and the executive
:09:45. > :09:49.is right and enabling Parliament to be involved in scrutiny and approval
:09:50. > :09:52.of the measures. The way it is done at the moment, it is complex and
:09:53. > :09:59.confers on ministers exceptional powers. Ann Taylor, whether you like
:10:00. > :10:04.it or not, Henry VIII powers are perfect the legitimate, they are
:10:05. > :10:08.used all the time? There has been an increase in the use of Henry VIII
:10:09. > :10:13.powers and we have been experts in concern about that. This is on a
:10:14. > :10:17.totally different level. Call 17 more less says that government
:10:18. > :10:22.ministers can make themselves any act of Parliament that Parliament
:10:23. > :10:32.would normally make. This is giving totally different powers. Let's put
:10:33. > :10:39.your whip's hat on. If you were in the government whips' office and you
:10:40. > :10:43.were facing no majority at all in the Commons, what would you be
:10:44. > :10:48.doing? How would you be trying to keep your team onside? Is not just
:10:49. > :10:52.your team, is the whole of Parliament. If you alienate
:10:53. > :10:56.Parliament, you will run into more and more difficulty. What we have
:10:57. > :11:00.done on the House of Lords Constitution committee its router
:11:01. > :11:04.provides mechanisms which would help Parliament to deal with a situation
:11:05. > :11:09.which could end up as a crisis if we are not careful. We have said that
:11:10. > :11:13.with the Henry VIII powers and the delegated legislation, every measure
:11:14. > :11:17.that the government rings forward should have a certificate saying
:11:18. > :11:22.whether it is any change to current law. And if it is, we should have
:11:23. > :11:25.special measures to give it more scrutiny than if it is just a
:11:26. > :11:32.straightforward transition. That is a very simple thing but we have to
:11:33. > :11:34.make sure that Parliament has the power and committee and
:11:35. > :11:41.parliamentary time to deal with this. The key thing about this is
:11:42. > :11:46.that we normally have eight days in the -- we only have eight days...
:11:47. > :11:50.But the government's counterargument is that this is technical. Treated
:11:51. > :11:58.like Maastricht were changing the law. This is changing the whole of
:11:59. > :12:02.UK law. Disentangling us from an institution. Pretending that you can
:12:03. > :12:09.do this in a days when there will be thousands of is nonsense. But the
:12:10. > :12:19.clock is ticking. Maastricht took many days. To have eight days for
:12:20. > :12:23.just -- is just bizarre. If the government suffered defeats in the
:12:24. > :12:26.Commons and Lords, how serious is that? Is that something that will be
:12:27. > :12:32.the end of the government? Because it's not an issue of a policy, it's
:12:33. > :12:38.a principle and people have voted in a referendum. The task of both
:12:39. > :12:43.houses is to improve the bill. There are two elements to it. One is to
:12:44. > :12:49.ensure that there is proper Parliamentary scrutiny of the
:12:50. > :12:54.process and the other is certainty in law once it is enacted. We have
:12:55. > :12:57.to get the bill right, and the government doesn't accept it, it is
:12:58. > :13:01.defeated. I don't see a problem with that and the government should be
:13:02. > :13:07.looking to itself to ensure the outcome is a bill that actually
:13:08. > :13:11.achieves those objectives. I am sure this is something we will return to.
:13:12. > :13:15.Where will see what happens on Monday. But for the moment, thank
:13:16. > :13:18.you very much for coming into the programme.
:13:19. > :13:21.And if you'd like to see a longer version of that interview it's
:13:22. > :13:22.available on our website, bbc.co.uk/parliaments.
:13:23. > :13:25.Now let's go back to Wednesday and Prime Minister's Questions.
:13:26. > :13:28.Jeremy Corbyn used the first session since the summer break
:13:29. > :13:34.With nurses protesting outside, he stepped
:13:35. > :13:44.up his calls for an end to the public sector pay cap.
:13:45. > :13:51.Today, thousands of nursing and other health care staff are outside
:13:52. > :13:57.Parliament. They are demanding that this government scrapped the 1% pay
:13:58. > :14:03.cap. Wolpe means experienced staff are leaving and fewer people are
:14:04. > :14:08.training to become nurses. There is already a shortage of 40,000 nurses
:14:09. > :14:13.across the UK. Will the Prime Minister see sense and any public
:14:14. > :14:14.sector pay cap and ensure our NHS staff are properly paid.
:14:15. > :14:17.Theresa May said pay guidelines would be published later in the year
:14:18. > :14:19.but it was balance between those being paid
:14:20. > :14:32.He asks consistently for money to be spent. He can do that in opposition
:14:33. > :14:36.because he knows he doesn't have to pay for it. The problem with Labour
:14:37. > :14:44.is that they do it in government as well. As a result of the decisions
:14:45. > :14:50.Labour Party took in government, we now have to pay more on debt
:14:51. > :14:52.interest than on NHS pay. That is the result of Labour!
:14:53. > :14:54.The SNP's Westminster leader turned to a leaked document suggesting
:14:55. > :14:57.the Government would take a much tougher line on EU
:14:58. > :15:11.Does the Prime Minister agree with me that immigration is essential to
:15:12. > :15:18.the strength of the UK as well as enhancing our cultural and diversity
:15:19. > :15:23.fabric. As I have said many times before, immigration has been good
:15:24. > :15:25.for the UK. But what people want to see is control of that immigration.
:15:26. > :15:28.Meanwhile, Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has
:15:29. > :15:30.outlined her programme for Government - pledging to scrap
:15:31. > :15:32.the 1% cap on public sector pay rises.
:15:33. > :15:33.Our Scotland political correspondent, Glenn
:15:34. > :15:43.Having lost seats in the UK general election, this was a chance for
:15:44. > :15:49.Nicola Sturgeon to refresh, if not we launch, the SNP government.
:15:50. > :15:53.Independents got just one mention. Instead the blizzard of
:15:54. > :15:58.announcements on devolved topics. Education, she said, was her top
:15:59. > :16:01.priority with school reform and more power for head teachers. On just she
:16:02. > :16:06.wants to do away with short jail terms of less than one year in most
:16:07. > :16:16.cases. On the environment she wants to end the sale of petrol and diesel
:16:17. > :16:23.cars in Scotland by 2032, eight years ahead of the UK. The First
:16:24. > :16:25.Minister also proposes to lift the 1% cap on public sector pay rises,
:16:26. > :16:28.prompting some to speculate she might be prepared to raise income
:16:29. > :16:31.tax to pay for it. She has committed to a fuller debate on that topic. In
:16:32. > :16:35.order to get anything done as leader of a minority government the First
:16:36. > :16:37.Minister has been careful to choose a programme that will avoid uniting
:16:38. > :16:40.all the opposition against her. Now let's take a look
:16:41. > :16:43.at some other news Boris Johnson updated MPs
:16:44. > :16:47.on North Korea's missile tests. The country has fired a missile over
:16:48. > :16:50.Japan and claims to have Boris Johnson set out
:16:51. > :17:11.the gravity of the situation The House must be under no illusion
:17:12. > :17:17.that this is another advance in North Korea's clear ambitions. In a
:17:18. > :17:21.country blighted by economic failure where hundreds of thousands people
:17:22. > :17:26.died of starvation or reduced to eating grass and leaves to survive,
:17:27. > :17:30.the regime has squandered its resources on building an illegal
:17:31. > :17:35.armoury of nuclear bombs. The house will wish to join me in condemning a
:17:36. > :17:39.nuclear test that poses a grave threat to the security of every
:17:40. > :17:40.country in East Asia and the wider world.
:17:41. > :17:42.The British Government has promised urgent assistance to territories
:17:43. > :17:44.and Commonwealth countries hit by Hurricane Irma.
:17:45. > :17:47.Believed to be one of the most powerful storms on record, it's
:17:48. > :17:53.Among the islands - hit by winds of more than 180mph -
:17:54. > :17:56.were British overseas territories and members of the Commonwealth,
:17:57. > :18:02.including Anguilla, Montserrat and the British Virgin Islands.
:18:03. > :18:04.The United Nations says the number of Rohingya refugees
:18:05. > :18:07.crossing from Myanmar - also known as Burma -
:18:08. > :18:11.into Bangladesh has surged in recent days.
:18:12. > :18:13.The Rohingya are a stateless, mostly Muslim, ethnic
:18:14. > :18:17.minority who have faced persecution in Myanmar.
:18:18. > :18:19.More than 123,000 are now said to have fled violence
:18:20. > :18:33.This is one of the worst outbreaks of violence in decades and the
:18:34. > :18:38.international community is effectively staying silent.
:18:39. > :18:41.Peers also wanted to know what the UK government was doing to help.
:18:42. > :18:47.The minister there insisted its concerns had been made clear.
:18:48. > :18:53.We do condemn this violence and we're trying to look to ways to
:18:54. > :18:55.assist Burma and to assist those who are directly affected.
:18:56. > :18:57.Twelve weeks after the Grenfell Tower tragedy, the Communities
:18:58. > :19:00.Secretary Sajid Javid told MPs that just two families had moved
:19:01. > :19:03.Of the 196 households affected, 29 more had moved
:19:04. > :19:18.One reason for the low take-up of temporary home offices some
:19:19. > :19:24.residents do not want to move twice. They have said it is Tuesday where
:19:25. > :19:30.they are until a permanent home becomes available. I don't want to
:19:31. > :19:34.see anyone living in emergency, a -- accommodation for longer than is
:19:35. > :19:36.necessary. Nor do I want to see families make snap decisions simply
:19:37. > :19:38.because I have better numbers to report at the dispatch box.
:19:39. > :19:41.The Government says it has no plans to review the new law banning
:19:42. > :19:43.psychoactive substances - formerly known as "legal highs" -
:19:44. > :19:46.following the collapse of a prosecution last month.
:19:47. > :19:48.The Crown Prosecution Service is reviewing two cases
:19:49. > :19:51.after a judge said nitrous oxide, better known as "laughing gas",
:19:52. > :20:03.was exempt from the ban, as it's used by doctors for pain-relief.
:20:04. > :20:09.It has not taken long for the courts to expose the vulnerability are part
:20:10. > :20:14.of the legislation. Based with the pressing problem of psychoactive
:20:15. > :20:21.substances will the Government seem reason and accept that prohibition,
:20:22. > :20:26.orthodoxy of the last century and reiterated on a crude model in the
:20:27. > :20:29.20 16th act has failed with disastrous consequences in terms of
:20:30. > :20:32.the growth of crime, the blighting of innumerable lives were not to
:20:33. > :20:35.mention chaos in our prisons? From this month, all three
:20:36. > :20:37.and four-year-olds in England are entitled to 30 hours of free
:20:38. > :20:41.childcare a week, up from 15 hours. But Labour says parents
:20:42. > :20:52.are in "limbo" because of failings This childcare has been advertised
:20:53. > :20:59.as free but it will be subsidised by carers or providers. Will he now
:21:00. > :21:08.listen and commit to re-evaluating the policy's funding? As we are only
:21:09. > :21:11.six days into September, 152,829 parents have secured a place. That
:21:12. > :21:13.is 71%. Now there's a row brewing over
:21:14. > :21:16.the make up of a handful Public bill - or standing
:21:17. > :21:19.committees - scrutinise The Government wants
:21:20. > :21:25.to have a majority on the committees in this session of Parliament,
:21:26. > :21:42.even though it doesn't This government has no means to
:21:43. > :21:48.expect a majority. They do not command the majority. This is a
:21:49. > :21:53.House of minorities. That has to be reflected into the Parliamentary
:21:54. > :21:56.standing committees of this house. The make-up of those committees is
:21:57. > :22:00.due to be voted by MPs next weeks will stop -- next week.
:22:01. > :22:02.Now to the Lords where, although most hereditary peers
:22:03. > :22:05.were kicked out of the House of Lords in 1999,
:22:06. > :22:08.Vacancies in their ranks are filled by a system
:22:09. > :22:12.A bill to scrap the system was talked out by opponents last year.
:22:13. > :22:14.Now its author, Labour life peer Lord Grocott,
:22:15. > :22:17.is trying again and his bill had its second reading
:22:18. > :22:30.We had a by-election last year. I'll have to say this slowly because it
:22:31. > :22:34.was unbelievable. There was an electorate of three and 07
:22:35. > :22:38.candidates. I don't know of any electoral system anywhere on the
:22:39. > :22:41.planet or in history where you have twice as many candidates as they our
:22:42. > :22:49.electorates will stop I have no doubt that 90% of peers in the House
:22:50. > :22:56.of Lords would actively like to see this by-election system scrapped all
:22:57. > :23:01.at least are indifferent to its whole continuation. It was blocked
:23:02. > :23:07.last year by a handful, a very small number, largely hereditary peers.
:23:08. > :23:12.That go on forever. They may think it can but you can only be King
:23:13. > :23:16.Canute was so long. Be very nice if the Government said, yes, this is an
:23:17. > :23:21.indefensible system which they know it is and we will give you full
:23:22. > :23:24.backing. The Government is or is able to say we have far more
:23:25. > :23:31.important things to do, which is true. This is a two year session.
:23:32. > :23:35.Mine is a two clause bill. It would take a day maximum if people were
:23:36. > :23:39.sensible about it. It is only a small improvement but it is an
:23:40. > :23:41.improvement in our parliamentary system and just time you got on and
:23:42. > :23:43.did it. And Lord Grocott's Bill will now
:23:44. > :23:46.move on to scrutiny by a committee Let's take a look at some
:23:47. > :23:50.of the other stories making Here's Richard Morris
:23:51. > :24:02.with our countdown. Five, four, three, two, one. Over
:24:03. > :24:07.the summer Big Ben fell silent for repair work. That has caused upset
:24:08. > :24:12.in the Commons where one MP had the question. If Big Ben's bonds are
:24:13. > :24:15.silent, they are loved by the community and international
:24:16. > :24:21.visitors, could we please have a debate as to why this has happened
:24:22. > :24:24.and is it beyond the rich man manful silencers to be worn by the workers?
:24:25. > :24:34.First week back in the first defeat for the Government in the Lords.
:24:35. > :24:37.There was surprise in the Commons on Thursday after Labour's and fluid
:24:38. > :24:42.revealed she had missed a vote because she was stuck in a lift. The
:24:43. > :24:49.leader of the Has promised to elevate the issue. I hope she won't
:24:50. > :24:54.take it out of good humour if I say I am rather surprised the lift
:24:55. > :24:59.dared. Protest descended on Parliament to oppose the Henry VIII
:25:00. > :25:02.powers which could be used under the EU withdrawal bill. Protesters claim
:25:03. > :25:10.it could amount to a ministerial power grab. In Brussels, a fire
:25:11. > :25:14.alarm interrupted the chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier on
:25:15. > :25:20.Thursday. It is the monthly drill. Was this a sign of a swift and
:25:21. > :25:26.orderly exit? I was talking about something quite important.
:25:27. > :25:31.And that's it from me for now, but do join Keith Mcdougall on BBC
:25:32. > :25:33.Parliament on Monday night at 11 for a full round up
:25:34. > :25:38.of the day at Westminster, including the second day of debate
:25:39. > :25:47.But for now from me, Alicia McCarthy, goodbye.