:00:20. > :00:24.Hello and welcome to Thursday In Parliament, are a look at the best
:00:25. > :00:29.of the day in the Commons and the Lords. On this programme, conspiracy
:00:30. > :00:33.theories strike the Commons. A leading campaigner for the British
:00:34. > :00:38.exit from the EU accuses ministers of doing deals to keep in with the
:00:39. > :00:43.trade unions. Mr Speaker, this stinks. This weeks as cash for
:00:44. > :00:48.questions. The row over anti-Semitism spills over into the
:00:49. > :00:49.Commons. I am sick and tired of people trying to explain it away,
:00:50. > :01:06.and yes, I am talking to you, Ken Livingstone. And
:01:07. > :01:08.an MP talks about life with her son who has autism. The slightest change
:01:09. > :01:10.in the house and all hell breaks loose. But first, the senior
:01:11. > :01:12.Conservative, Bernard Jenkin, has criticised the Government for making
:01:13. > :01:16.changes to the trade union Bill. Ministers had intended to bring in
:01:17. > :01:19.new rules on strike ballots, membership fees and political
:01:20. > :01:25.donations, but they have had a change of heart on many of these
:01:26. > :01:28.issues, asking what is known as an urgent question, Bernard Jenkin said
:01:29. > :01:31.that backtracking by ministers was out of line with what had been in
:01:32. > :01:37.the Conservative manifesto at the general election. It is now being
:01:38. > :01:40.reported on Channel 4 News and in today's papers that these unexpected
:01:41. > :01:45.concessions are linked to the question of a ?1.7 million donation
:01:46. > :01:50.the trade unions may make from their political funds which are now much
:01:51. > :01:55.larger than they would have been to the Labour Three main campaign. He
:01:56. > :02:06.referred to the former cabinet minister Alan Johnson, who chairs
:02:07. > :02:11.Labour In For Britain. He was trying to raise ?75,000 for some balloons
:02:12. > :02:16.and badges. Now they are getting ?1.7 billion. It has been confirmed
:02:17. > :02:20.to me to more than two independent sources that number ten instructed
:02:21. > :02:24.these concessions to be made after the discussions with trade union
:02:25. > :02:27.representatives. This being true, would amount to the sale of
:02:28. > :02:31.Government policy for cash and political figures. What would have
:02:32. > :02:36.been the reaction if a Labour Government had changed a bill in
:02:37. > :02:41.order to favour the Labour Party's ability to support the Government on
:02:42. > :02:46.some controversial policy and to give it money? Mr Speaker, this
:02:47. > :02:51.stinks. This weeks as the same as cash for questions. This shows this
:02:52. > :02:55.Government really is at the rotten heart of the EU. But the banister --
:02:56. > :03:00.Business Minister said the bill was in the process of being batted
:03:01. > :03:03.between the Commons at the Lords, sometimes called parliamentary
:03:04. > :03:08.ping-pong. The trade union Bill is now in ping-pong. That is customary.
:03:09. > :03:10.Ministers have held discussions with Shadow ministers to discuss possible
:03:11. > :03:15.compromises that would secure passage of the bill and delivery of
:03:16. > :03:17.the commitments made in the Conservative Party manifesto. On the
:03:18. > :03:21.basis of the amendments passed by this out yesterday evening, I can
:03:22. > :03:26.reassure my honourable friend that we are well on the way to securing
:03:27. > :03:32.all of our manifesto commitments. Labour welcomed the changes of heart
:03:33. > :03:36.by ministers. It would appear, at least partially, that the minister
:03:37. > :03:40.listened. Well done. But he should have listened earlier, and he needs
:03:41. > :03:44.to keep listening, actually. So can I ask you now to have a view more
:03:45. > :03:48.meetings with trade unions? Who made entirely reasonable proposals on
:03:49. > :03:52.online balloting and facility time that still remain in the bill. Mr
:03:53. > :04:01.Speaker, there is still time for him to think again. These benches are in
:04:02. > :04:05.complete opposition to the Trade Union Bill. Can the Minister confirm
:04:06. > :04:10.that the change to a piece of legislation that affects 6 million
:04:11. > :04:15.work use for the Government not to consult with those 6 million
:04:16. > :04:20.workers. There would be concerned if as part of the ping-pong process any
:04:21. > :04:24.Government at any time made concessions on a bill as a result of
:04:25. > :04:28.something that had nothing to do with that bill. My friend Mike is an
:04:29. > :04:31.honourable man and I'm sure he can confirm that no Government of which
:04:32. > :04:36.he was able heart would ever do that. -- honourable friend. I would
:04:37. > :04:45.just say to my right honourable friend that not every compromise is
:04:46. > :04:50.a conspiracy. This is a shabby political episode where the
:04:51. > :04:53.Government have been caught dilating trade union legislation to persuade
:04:54. > :04:57.the true genius to come on-board with the campaign to stay in the EU.
:04:58. > :05:02.Is it not now clear that the Government, big business, big banks,
:05:03. > :05:05.the BBC and is now the big trade are all ganging up on the British people
:05:06. > :05:16.to try to persuade them to stay in the EU? Now that the governments are
:05:17. > :05:22.responding to this barmy idea and that the Government are seemingly
:05:23. > :05:28.prepared to give way on different subjects, can I ask him what is the
:05:29. > :05:38.price for dropping this lousy, rotten Trade Union Bill altogether?
:05:39. > :05:42.Mr Speaker, it is the goal of my life to give pleasure to the
:05:43. > :05:49.honourable gentleman, but I have two, I am afraid, tell him that
:05:50. > :05:53.there is no price because we believe in this bill. We believe in our
:05:54. > :05:59.manifesto, and we are well on our way to delivering it. Nic Bowles.
:06:00. > :06:02.The crisis in the steel industry has come under scrutiny at a
:06:03. > :06:15.parliamentary committee. Last month, the owners of the Port Talbot
:06:16. > :06:19.steelworks put the steelworks up for sale. Many associated jobs are at
:06:20. > :06:31.risk as well as the jobs of the Tata Steel workers. The chief executive
:06:32. > :06:35.of Tata Steel UK has blamed high energy prices and business rates for
:06:36. > :06:40.the company's decision to sell its assets. The cheer of the Commons
:06:41. > :06:43.business committee asked about the timescale for sale. There is an
:06:44. > :06:48.article in the Financial Times this morning. Tata Steel buyers told to
:06:49. > :06:52.table offers by next week. The timescale seems a very, very short
:06:53. > :06:59.to be able to allow potential buyers to be able to pull things together.
:07:00. > :07:04.Why is the timetable so short? In fact, with the advisers that we have
:07:05. > :07:10.and which are world renowned advisers, they do believe that this
:07:11. > :07:15.is quite a liberal time frame compared to what administrators
:07:16. > :07:19.would do. So for the purposes of the committee's understanding, could you
:07:20. > :07:22.tell is the precise timescale? Are there particular milestones the
:07:23. > :07:28.company has along the way and what of those deadlines that potential
:07:29. > :07:31.buyers have to fulfil? We have indicated the time skills. I will
:07:32. > :07:35.have to look at the exact timescale for the different stages of the
:07:36. > :07:38.process, but there is no dead drop time that has been given, although
:07:39. > :07:42.you will appreciate that with the kind of losses that are there,
:07:43. > :07:50.urgency is important because we cannot continue to lose money. He
:07:51. > :07:56.was asked about Tata Steel's pension liability. What are the liabilities
:07:57. > :07:59.to the taxpayers should you determine that you can't any longer
:08:00. > :08:05.support the business? I think we need to be aware that first of all
:08:06. > :08:09.if this pension fund liability is not taking care of their is no buyer
:08:10. > :08:18.sitting up there to buy this business. And if we don't solve that
:08:19. > :08:23.problem, we are staring at some very, very bad consequences for the
:08:24. > :08:27.taxpayers of the UK. The Business Secretary was asked about the same
:08:28. > :08:30.issue. Do you agree there is a potential risk that the public purse
:08:31. > :08:36.is left holding the baby in terms of the pensions liability? No. That is
:08:37. > :08:42.not my focus. I don't think that is the big risk. What I do know is that
:08:43. > :08:46.there are already discussions taking place between the trustees of the
:08:47. > :08:50.pension plan, between the company, I know they have talked to the pension
:08:51. > :08:55.regulator, and they are working on a solution. What I am keen to do and
:08:56. > :09:00.we are involved in is striding to facilitate a solution in any way
:09:01. > :09:06.that we can. You don't think it is a risk? I don't think that is the
:09:07. > :09:13.major risk. She asked me about pensions. I can't be too detailed
:09:14. > :09:22.about the discussions that are going on, but given my knowledge of this
:09:23. > :09:25.-- the discussions, my focus is on how we can facilitate that but I do
:09:26. > :09:30.not sit here thinking that that is a big risk. Ian Wright also pressed
:09:31. > :09:34.the Business Secretary over why he had not gone to the Tata Steel board
:09:35. > :09:40.meeting in Mobile in March at which the decision to sell the UK business
:09:41. > :09:44.had been made. -- Mumbai. You look like you were really on the back
:09:45. > :09:47.foot after that more my meeting and announcement, scrambling around and
:09:48. > :09:50.looking to try to get the initiative rather than saying that we were
:09:51. > :09:55.aware of this and have been working with Tata Steel as a company and it
:09:56. > :09:58.is a secure transition to try to get a responsible seller. We saw none of
:09:59. > :10:02.that in the aftermath of the meeting. If people are interested in
:10:03. > :10:08.how things look, then that is a different issue. Business confidence
:10:09. > :10:16.is important in terms of perception as well. Of course perception is
:10:17. > :10:21.important, but frankly if my order -- if my and my advisers had turned
:10:22. > :10:26.up just before the meeting, that would have been too late. What is
:10:27. > :10:29.crucial is the work that is done before the meeting. If I want to
:10:30. > :10:32.turn up for a photo opportunity before the meeting, that may look
:10:33. > :10:36.great in the papers, but it would not have helped the workers of the
:10:37. > :10:40.situation. The crisis in the steel industry. Well, the controversy over
:10:41. > :10:46.anti-Semitism and the Labour Party has intensified over the last 24
:10:47. > :10:49.hours. An argument broke out inside the BBC premises in Westminster
:10:50. > :10:53.between the Labour MP John Mann and the one-time Mayor of London, Ken
:10:54. > :11:04.Livingstone. Go back and check what Hitler did. There is a book.
:11:05. > :11:07.Factually wrong. Racist remarks. The heated argument followed remarks
:11:08. > :11:18.made by Ken Livingstone and he defended the MP suspended this week
:11:19. > :11:22.by the Labour Party Nas Shah, who was reprimanded for commenting that
:11:23. > :11:27.is real should be moved to America. Ken Livingstone said that she had
:11:28. > :11:30.not been racist. As Passover ends on Saturday, let me say again, as
:11:31. > :11:37.clearly as I possibly can, anti-Semitism is wrong, end of
:11:38. > :11:42.story. I am sick and tired of people trying to explain it away and yes, I
:11:43. > :11:46.am talking to you, Ken Livingstone. Of course, the illegal settlements
:11:47. > :11:53.are wrong and the Palestinians deserve a better deal. Of course,
:11:54. > :11:59.rocket attacks on Jewish kibbutzim are wrong. It is no better when a
:12:00. > :12:02.senior politician looks at the president of the United States of
:12:03. > :12:10.America and only sees the colour of his skin and his part Kenyan
:12:11. > :12:15.ancestry, when Tory candidates run a deliberately racially charged
:12:16. > :12:19.campaign against Labour opponents. It is profoundly irresponsible and
:12:20. > :12:22.offends the fundamental decency of the British people, so I hope I
:12:23. > :12:27.speak for all sides of this house when I say racism and racial
:12:28. > :12:33.prejudice are simply not welcome in our political system or in our
:12:34. > :12:40.political parties. His opposite number focused on words used by the
:12:41. > :12:44.Labour MP. There has been naivete on these benches this morning. A member
:12:45. > :12:52.said this morning that she regarded the events as trial by Twitter and
:12:53. > :12:56.likened the events as tweaking a picture of an MP on a zip wire. She
:12:57. > :13:00.clearly does not understand the gravity of the situation. Despite
:13:01. > :13:03.the wise words of the shadow leader, and I respect him for it, although I
:13:04. > :13:08.profoundly disagree over what he said about my honourable friend, he
:13:09. > :13:11.makes a powerful point. He is a beacon of sense in his party on
:13:12. > :13:16.this, but where is the sense from the rest of these benches on what is
:13:17. > :13:21.a deeply, deeply serious matter? Chris Grayling. You are watching our
:13:22. > :13:26.round-up of the day in the Commons and the Lords. Still to come: MPs
:13:27. > :13:32.discuss how to stop drones being a hazard to commercial aircraft. There
:13:33. > :13:37.are more than half a million people with autism in the UK, according to
:13:38. > :13:41.official figures. That is around one in every hundred people, and if you
:13:42. > :13:47.include families, autism touches the daily lives of over 2 million
:13:48. > :13:50.people. To mark World Autism Awareness Week, the Commons has
:13:51. > :13:53.focused on aspects of dealing with the condition, the causes of which
:13:54. > :13:57.are not known, that have been under investigation for yields. -- four
:13:58. > :14:08.years. First, a Conservative spoke about
:14:09. > :14:12.her son, who has Asperger's syndrome. It was evident to me that
:14:13. > :14:16.my very bright and articulate boy was not like other boys of his age.
:14:17. > :14:24.He had an extraordinary high level of concentration and high reading
:14:25. > :14:28.skill and could converts with adults in a very unusual way. However, he
:14:29. > :14:33.was also very anxious, fearful of bright lights and unable to cope
:14:34. > :14:36.with anything unexpected in his day. Literally the slightest change in
:14:37. > :14:45.the time we left the house and all hell broke loose. Many great artists
:14:46. > :14:50.and writers have been on the spectrum, rather than those of us
:14:51. > :14:58.who are typical... They are vital to our growth as a
:14:59. > :15:02.nation both culturally and economically. The great Alan
:15:03. > :15:07.cheering's genius brought us the computer, possibly the greatest leap
:15:08. > :15:12.since the steam engine. -- Alan Turing. You read about his school
:15:13. > :15:16.years and they were truly awful. He was misunderstood throughout his
:15:17. > :15:21.life. We took a holiday to Disneyland Paris and the first few
:15:22. > :15:29.years Cinderella was out and about and we took her to meet her and her
:15:30. > :15:32.friends. But of course once she met the small characters, they were
:15:33. > :15:35.bigger than her and she could simply not cope with that, it was not what
:15:36. > :15:39.she had expected. Like other families, we spent the rest of the
:15:40. > :15:46.holiday checking where the characters would be on each and
:15:47. > :15:52.every day, to not to meet them but to find roots of avoiding them.
:15:53. > :15:56.Suddenly we saw everything was not quite as it should be, particularly
:15:57. > :16:04.taking him to things like swimming and football, and it is a very hard
:16:05. > :16:09.moment when you see that diagnosis and there is no denying there is a
:16:10. > :16:14.sense of anger, a sense of guilt, sometimes a sense of shame. But
:16:15. > :16:19.there is also sometimes a sense of relief. For many parents they will
:16:20. > :16:22.be looking for that diagnosis and that sense of relief that comes from
:16:23. > :16:27.that. Of course there are big consequences for family life. There
:16:28. > :16:36.is a lack of understanding of autism. Families face stigma and
:16:37. > :16:43.stereotypes and the complexion of autism is not understood. People
:16:44. > :16:46.with autism, high functioning people with autism, frequently have a high
:16:47. > :16:52.degree of focus, meaning that they can spot patterns or errors in data
:16:53. > :16:58.that are not readily recognised by other people. Making them attractive
:16:59. > :17:01.to employers for software firms. Even people more significantly
:17:02. > :17:06.affected by autism can also hold down jobs successfully, they often
:17:07. > :17:09.benefit from working in highly structured working environments,
:17:10. > :17:14.sometimes thriving on jobs of a repetitive nature. The debate to
:17:15. > :17:19.mark World Autism Awareness Week. The Government has been urged to
:17:20. > :17:23.regulate the use of drones after reports that a plane approaching
:17:24. > :17:30.Heathrow Airport was struck by one. The Transport Secretary has told MPs
:17:31. > :17:34.he was talking to the pilot's union BALPA and others but it is now
:17:35. > :17:41.thought the incident did not involve a drone. MPs continued to raise
:17:42. > :17:44.concerns. Shouldn't the Government hit the warning of Heathrow and
:17:45. > :17:49.instead of the rather complacent position taken up realise the ten
:17:50. > :17:54.shall for catastrophes by vandals or careless people using drones, but
:17:55. > :18:01.the dreadful possibility of terrorists using drones on nuclear
:18:02. > :18:08.power stations? Already drones are being used to sneak mobile phones
:18:09. > :18:12.and drugs into Wandsworth prison. Shouldn't the Government wake up and
:18:13. > :18:20.realise that this new menace is a potential great threat and take
:18:21. > :18:24.precautions in order to reduce the universal access to drones that
:18:25. > :18:28.exists now? Mr Speaker, there is no complacency whatsoever by the
:18:29. > :18:32.Government on the use of drones. As I said, there is a prison sentence
:18:33. > :18:38.which is available and that I will obviously keep the situation under
:18:39. > :18:42.review. But it is also important to find out the facts behind certain
:18:43. > :18:46.incidents. The incident that was reported on the 17th of April is now
:18:47. > :18:52.thought that that was not a drone incident. There are growing concerns
:18:53. > :18:56.about incidents involving drones which threaten public safety and it
:18:57. > :19:00.is not very clear if it is a problem to do with regulations themselves or
:19:01. > :19:06.the enforcement of those regulations. With the Secretary of
:19:07. > :19:12.State look at those issues? I certainly will. -- would the
:19:13. > :19:16.Secretary of State look at those issues? I certainly will. I had a
:19:17. > :19:21.planned meeting with BALPA to discuss this and also laser pen use
:19:22. > :19:25.and the problems that that is using for civil aviation in this country
:19:26. > :19:29.and I certainly will keep these things very much under review and do
:19:30. > :19:37.further work along with BALPA and the industry, the CAA, on drones and
:19:38. > :19:42.drone use. Can my honourable friend assure me that all regulations and
:19:43. > :19:44.guidance with regards to drones and air safety will apply and be
:19:45. > :19:49.communicated to airports outside London? Such as East Midlands
:19:50. > :19:53.Airport in my constituency, to make sure we have a consistent policy
:19:54. > :19:57.with regard to air safety across the country. Yes, I think my honourable
:19:58. > :20:01.friend gives a very good point, this is not just a matter for London
:20:02. > :20:05.airports but any airports. It's also a matter of the airports outside
:20:06. > :20:11.London, which are very important international connections right
:20:12. > :20:14.across the country. Mr Speaker, I hear what the Transport Secretary is
:20:15. > :20:19.saying about his engagement with airports but it's also an issue for
:20:20. > :20:23.stadiums, railway stations and other places where the public gathering
:20:24. > :20:27.huge numbers. Can he tell us what discussions he has had with the
:20:28. > :20:30.widest possible range of stakeholders, including for example
:20:31. > :20:36.local authorities on the use of drones? Well, Mr Speaker, the issue
:20:37. > :20:41.that I was addressing in this country is in this question was
:20:42. > :20:45.related to aviation. And that is the point that I have updated the house
:20:46. > :20:48.on. Of course there are wider issues right across the Government and the
:20:49. > :20:54.Government keeps these matters consistently under review. With the
:20:55. > :20:58.ministers say in a written answer that he's not even going to consult
:20:59. > :21:04.on anything until the European aviation agency has not decided
:21:05. > :21:08.itself what to do? All of this while there are reports of drones hitting
:21:09. > :21:12.aircraft and drones being and over London altogether when President
:21:13. > :21:15.Obama is in town. Other countries have already brought in other
:21:16. > :21:18.initiatives so when are we going to see some real proposals from the
:21:19. > :21:24.Government without having to wait for a US president to come to town?
:21:25. > :21:27.Mr Speaker, I think the point the honourable member made in his
:21:28. > :21:33.question, he said it might have been. Governments don't legislate on
:21:34. > :21:38.what might be, they act on what are the dangers. As I've said, we are in
:21:39. > :21:44.discussions with BALPA, the airline pilots's union, as well as the CAA
:21:45. > :21:49.as to the right way to develop this. If you will remember me saying all
:21:50. > :21:54.drones should be banned completely, that is something they never thought
:21:55. > :21:56.about when they were in office. Patrick McLoughlin. The Government
:21:57. > :22:01.has been accused of blatant rationing of treatment for patients
:22:02. > :22:11.with the blood-borne virus hepatitis C. The claim was in the Lords, as
:22:12. > :22:22.peers called for more sufferers to be given a drug. ... Chronically
:22:23. > :22:26.infected with hepatitis C virus. The deaths of cancer Jude to the virus
:22:27. > :22:32.in under 60s doubled in the last decade. We have a treatment, a drug
:22:33. > :22:37.that is effective in both successfully reducing the disease as
:22:38. > :22:42.it reduces the viral load in 98% of patients treated to virtually zero
:22:43. > :22:45.in the whole spectrum of the gene of the hepatitis C virus. It has the
:22:46. > :22:51.potential to eradicate the disease in the population. In that scenario,
:22:52. > :22:56.why would we only treat 10,000 patients per year, as the guidance
:22:57. > :23:02.says, for the next two years? There are clear budgetary constraints
:23:03. > :23:07.here. 220,000 people is the number that the Lord mentions, I thought it
:23:08. > :23:11.was slightly lower, this may cost many tens of thousands of pounds per
:23:12. > :23:16.treatment and clearly, however much we would like to treat 220,000
:23:17. > :23:19.people, it's just not feasible to do so. Good my honourable friend the
:23:20. > :23:25.kind enough to tell the house what the 200,000 people who will not
:23:26. > :23:29.receive treatment this year are expected to do? How long they are
:23:30. > :23:34.expected to wait for treatment? Bearing in mind that most or many of
:23:35. > :23:37.them will develop cirrhosis or liver cancer and go on to die, how much it
:23:38. > :23:42.would cost the taxpayer and the National Health Service to care for
:23:43. > :23:45.and treat each one of those patients through to death and how much less
:23:46. > :23:50.it is than the cost of providing treatment today? My lord, there are
:23:51. > :23:55.many people who suffer from hepatitis C who are asymptomatic and
:23:56. > :24:00.don't actually know that they've got hepatitis C will stop the figure of
:24:01. > :24:08.220,000, I don't know if that figure is true or not. But people who do
:24:09. > :24:13.have it can have treatment using interferon, the drug, which is an
:24:14. > :24:19.extremely unpleasantly than bagging take up to a year and have many
:24:20. > :24:23.side-effects. In some ways it is a miracle drug but it is incredibly
:24:24. > :24:26.expensive. We have to accept not just with hepatitis C but many
:24:27. > :24:30.cancer treatment as well, there are some drugs that are similar going to
:24:31. > :24:35.be too expensive to spend on large and other people. If there are large
:24:36. > :24:39.budgetary constraints, surely those victims who are infected by state
:24:40. > :24:44.action should have priority? Is the noble Lord aware that there are many
:24:45. > :24:48.Welsh patients were infected with contaminated blood in English
:24:49. > :24:52.hospitals and they are now being used in a game of pass the parcel
:24:53. > :24:57.between the UK Government and the Welsh Government. Can he now say
:24:58. > :25:02.what was agreed at the meeting on the 24th of March between his
:25:03. > :25:05.officials and officials of the Welsh Government, because patients in
:25:06. > :25:09.Wales have not been able to get an answer from the Acting Chief Medical
:25:10. > :25:16.Officer of the Welsh Government about this, or perhaps he could
:25:17. > :25:23.write to me. My Lords, the basis of making available this new drug for
:25:24. > :25:26.hepatitis C is based... Not the route of infection. There is a
:25:27. > :25:30.consultation going about whether a special fund might be established
:25:31. > :25:33.for those who have received infected blood. I can't answer specifically
:25:34. > :25:41.on the issue about the Welsh people but I will write about it. That's it
:25:42. > :25:44.for this programme. Join me for the Week in Parliament when we not only
:25:45. > :25:48.look back at the last few days in the Commons and the Lords but also
:25:49. > :25:54.report on why the familiar chimes of Big Ben may not be ringing out soon.
:25:55. > :25:56.Until then, from me, Keith McDougall, goodbye.