:00:13. > :00:14.Hello there, and welcome to Thursday in Parliament.
:00:15. > :00:20.Still in a holding pattern - the Transport Secretary says there'll
:00:21. > :00:25.be no decision on airport expansion before the summer.
:00:26. > :00:28.Fresh calls for a second referendum on our EU membership.
:00:29. > :00:30.And fury in the Commons at the performance
:00:31. > :00:41.I'm getting people writing to me who are being late for work every day,
:00:42. > :00:44.and their bosses are giving them written warnings now.
:00:45. > :00:47.But first - outside the Commons chamber, it was another day full
:00:48. > :00:49.of surprises as the Conservative leadership challengers
:00:50. > :00:51.announced their intention to stand for the top job.
:00:52. > :00:53.The Work and Pensions Secretary Stephen Crabb had
:00:54. > :00:57.There was confirmation from former Defence Secretary
:00:58. > :01:00.Liam Fox and Energy Minister Andrea Leadsom.
:01:01. > :01:03.The Home Secretary Theresa May had long been touted as a contender,
:01:04. > :01:10.But the big surprise was that this man, Michael Gove,
:01:11. > :01:13.currently the Justice Secretary, was launching a bid -
:01:14. > :01:17.and that this man, Boris Johnson, was not.
:01:18. > :01:20.Inside the Commons, as MPs chatted and absorbed
:01:21. > :01:22.the somewhat unexpected line-up, the Transport Secretary had
:01:23. > :01:25.an announcement of his own to make about the airport expansion
:01:26. > :01:34.I had hoped that we would be able to announce a decision on airport
:01:35. > :01:36.Clearly any announcement on airport capacity
:01:37. > :01:38.would have to be made when the House is
:01:39. > :01:40.in session, and being realistic, given recent events,
:01:41. > :01:46.I cannot now foresee an announcement until at least October.
:01:47. > :01:48.Heathrow and Gatwick have been vying to get approval
:01:49. > :01:55.Last July, the Airport Commission recommended Heathrow be expanded
:01:56. > :01:59.with a third runway at an estimated cost of ?18.6 billion.
:02:00. > :02:02.But in December, the Government delayed its decision,
:02:03. > :02:07.saying further work on noise, pollution and compensation
:02:08. > :02:13.MPs on all sides lined up to condemn the further delay.
:02:14. > :02:15.It's another boring day at Westminster.
:02:16. > :02:17.I was rather hoping that the Secretary of
:02:18. > :02:21.State might inject some excitement into it for me.
:02:22. > :02:26.No one can accuse the Secretary of State of rushing this decision.
:02:27. > :02:29.But post-Brexit, with a number of countries now banging on the door
:02:30. > :02:32.of the UK to do trade deals, doesn't he agree with me that
:02:33. > :02:35.increasing airport capacity both at London City,
:02:36. > :02:38.London Heathrow and Gatwick is going to be vitally important
:02:39. > :02:42.to British businesses throughout the whole of United Kingdom?
:02:43. > :02:46.Well, Mr Speaker, I can say I would have liked to have been
:02:47. > :02:49.in a position of asking the House to make a decision and
:02:50. > :02:55.We are not going to be in that position.
:02:56. > :03:00.He may regard this a boring day in the House of Commons,
:03:01. > :03:02.but it's certainly not a boring day in Westminster.
:03:03. > :03:06.Yet more dithering on a decision on whether to expand Hub capacity
:03:07. > :03:09.at Heathrow will harm the regions of this country and
:03:10. > :03:16.What recommendation will be Secretary of State be making
:03:17. > :03:25.Well, I think one step at a time, Mr Speaker, if I don't mind saying
:03:26. > :03:27.to the honourable lady she's assuming a number of events
:03:28. > :03:38.But what I would say to the honourable lady
:03:39. > :03:41.in all seriousness as chairman of the Transport Select Committee
:03:42. > :03:44.is that I think this is a very important and the decision
:03:45. > :03:46.for the United Kingdom, and it is not an easy one.
:03:47. > :03:49.The simple fact is, whichever options we choose will impact
:03:50. > :03:52.a number of people's lives, and therefore it is right to make
:03:53. > :03:54.sure that we do all the work and the preparation for this,
:03:55. > :03:56.all around air quality and the other issues.
:03:57. > :03:59.But I very much hope a decision can be made later this year.
:04:00. > :04:01.His answer is exacerbating the profound uncertainty
:04:02. > :04:03.about the future of essential transport projects, including HS2
:04:04. > :04:11.Hundreds of thousands of jobs and apprenticeships
:04:12. > :04:16.Does he not understand that delaying these plans adds to the wider
:04:17. > :04:19.economic shock that was triggered last week, and that public
:04:20. > :04:22.and private investment in our transport networks
:04:23. > :04:28.When she talks about airport capacity, there was an airport
:04:29. > :04:30.capacity issue for 30 years of which her party
:04:31. > :04:32.was in Government, of which they did nothing.
:04:33. > :04:35.Can the Secretary of State not accept that kicking this decision
:04:36. > :04:42.into the long grass yet again is simply and utterly unacceptable?
:04:43. > :04:45.Well, Mr Speaker, we are accused of kicking something
:04:46. > :04:52.I've said that I hope to see a decision by the end of the year.
:04:53. > :04:57.What we've not seen yet is a position which has been
:04:58. > :05:00.expanded from the opposition benches as to which of the options
:05:01. > :05:04.On airport expansion, he has achieved one thing.
:05:05. > :05:05.He's made the Leader of the Opposition look
:05:06. > :05:10.Does he not believe that he owes the select committee,
:05:11. > :05:13.this House and businesses across the UK an apology
:05:14. > :05:21.for the fudge that has become a farce?
:05:22. > :05:24.Well, Mr Speaker, I have often thought the members of the SNP
:05:25. > :05:28.If he thinks I've made the Leader of the Opposition look decisive,
:05:29. > :05:29.he has proved that this morning in spades.
:05:30. > :05:32.I stand by the statement I made earlier on.
:05:33. > :05:35.I would have liked to have been in the position to do it,
:05:36. > :05:38.but realistically that is not possible at a time when the House
:05:39. > :05:41.is not sitting, and therefore I have informed the House this morning,
:05:42. > :05:46.While another MP thought there'd be repercussions well
:05:47. > :05:51.The third runway for Heathrow would allow some 16 billion
:05:52. > :05:54.of private investment at a time that the economy needs it most.
:05:55. > :06:00.The chief executive of George Best Belfast City Airport
:06:01. > :06:03.has said that the Heathrow Hub is vital in making Northern Ireland
:06:04. > :06:05.accessible to business and leisure passengers from all
:06:06. > :06:08.It is really important for Belfast city.
:06:09. > :06:13.Well, the Davis Report made very clear the importance of collectivity
:06:14. > :06:18.in the south-east to the regions, the North of England,
:06:19. > :06:21.to Ulster, Scotland and elsewhere, and we are very mindful of those
:06:22. > :06:23.issues that have been raised by colleagues from
:06:24. > :06:31.There have been calls in the House of Lords for a change in the way
:06:32. > :06:34.allegations of historical child sex abuse are investigated.
:06:35. > :06:37.Some peers were critical of the way the police and the Church of England
:06:38. > :06:42.have treated a number of accused individuals.
:06:43. > :06:45.Conservative Lord Lexden said it was time for a code of conduct
:06:46. > :06:47.for the police and public authorities, with the presumption
:06:48. > :06:53.This month has brought a powerful reminder of some of the principle
:06:54. > :06:57.causes of the disquiet that has arisen.
:06:58. > :07:00.Sir Cliff Richard has been told that he is not to face charges
:07:01. > :07:02.arising from the investigation of allegations relating to purported
:07:03. > :07:10.The allegations were made two years ago,
:07:11. > :07:14.in a blaze of publicity created by the police
:07:15. > :07:16.and the BBC, acting in grotesque collusion
:07:17. > :07:18.before he had even been interviewed.
:07:19. > :07:23.Such a media circus should never have occurred.
:07:24. > :07:26.Could it have been the fact that the initial
:07:27. > :07:29.complainant was under 16 at the time
:07:30. > :07:31.of the allegation which created the temptation that led
:07:32. > :07:34.these two public organisations to take action at Sir Cliff's expense?
:07:35. > :07:39.How can we ensure that nothing of this kind happens again?
:07:40. > :07:41.He said there were other examples of what he called
:07:42. > :07:46.The manner in which Field Marshal Lord Bramall
:07:47. > :07:55.So did the distress inflicted on Lord Brittan
:07:56. > :07:58.during his final illness, and the additional pain suffered by
:07:59. > :08:05.The sight of a senior police officer standing outside Sir Edward Heath's
:08:06. > :08:08.former home in Salisbury and exhorting those who had allegations
:08:09. > :08:12.Lord Dear is a friend of Lord Bramall, who retired
:08:13. > :08:19.When it comes to carrying out an investigation,
:08:20. > :08:24.it surely is totally inappropriate to turn up at his house
:08:25. > :08:26.in a small market town with marked police cars with 20,
:08:27. > :08:30.no less than, 20 officers in white scenes of crime
:08:31. > :08:32.suits to carry out a search
:08:33. > :08:37.of his property and a blaze of publicity.
:08:38. > :08:39.It seems that we have lurched as a society from the
:08:40. > :08:44.extremities of the mishandling of the Savile case into the extremes
:08:45. > :08:59.identified in the current cases, and we need to
:09:00. > :09:01.put the balance point back where it belongs.
:09:02. > :09:03.My Lords, I, too, and very troubled by the ease in
:09:04. > :09:06.which complaints going back years can trash, tarnish and destroy
:09:07. > :09:10.Without evidence, in recent years, as we've heard, with the accusations
:09:11. > :09:12.against Lord Bramall, Lord Brittan, Paul Gambaccini, the DJ, and Sir
:09:13. > :09:17.Last October, the Church of England settled a claim from a woman
:09:18. > :09:21.who said she was abused by the late Bishop of Chichester, George Bell,
:09:22. > :09:26.So Bishop George Bell was judged a paedophile
:09:27. > :09:35.The crushing of his memory and magnificent career
:09:36. > :09:42.The man described by Ian Kershaw, the leading historian of
:09:43. > :09:48.the war years, as the most significant English clergyman of
:09:49. > :09:55.the 20th century, is now being ruined, in the words of supporters
:09:56. > :09:59.of George Bell, by an anonymous, unpublished claim upheld by
:10:00. > :10:04.a non-court which won't explain this decision.
:10:05. > :10:07.The Bishop of Chelmsford defended the church's handling of the case.
:10:08. > :10:12.The legal advice was that, had the claim been tested by a court,
:10:13. > :10:17.on the balance of probabilities, Carol would have won her claim.
:10:18. > :10:22.In those circumstances, the proper thing to do was to settle
:10:23. > :10:24.the case rather than putting a survivor through
:10:25. > :10:30.the harrowing process of giving evidence.
:10:31. > :10:33.A Home Office spokesman, Lord Keen, said it was for the police
:10:34. > :10:36.to investigate abuse allegations and the College of Policing -
:10:37. > :10:42.which was independent of Government - issued guidance on best practice.
:10:43. > :10:45.He said the College did have powers, though, to put that guidance
:10:46. > :10:57.You're watching Thursday in Parliament with me, Alicia McCarthy.
:10:58. > :10:59.The mass resignations from Labour's frontbench have thrown up
:11:00. > :11:02.perhaps none more so than the appearance
:11:03. > :11:05.of Paul Flynn, serial rebel and veteran backbencher,
:11:06. > :11:09.speaking as Shadow Leader of the Commons.
:11:10. > :11:12.He served for a year as shadow health spokesman
:11:13. > :11:24.You may be a tad surprised to see me in this position, because
:11:25. > :11:29.for the past 26 years I have been a backbencher by choice.
:11:30. > :11:33.That wasn't just my choice, it was the choice of
:11:34. > :11:43.But today, for very positive reasons, as part of a diversity
:11:44. > :11:45.project in my party of which we have done splendidly,
:11:46. > :11:48.we have a far more women on the front bench in
:11:49. > :12:01.but a total absence on the front bench of octogenarians.
:12:02. > :12:08.post will be a trailblazer which will lead to all
:12:09. > :12:14.short-listed in the party and lead to the wealth of experience and
:12:15. > :12:17.wisdom among fellow octogenarians being available to the House.
:12:18. > :12:20.He turned to Brexit - there should be a second
:12:21. > :12:28.referendum, he said - people had voted on "false agendas".
:12:29. > :12:37.Where is the emergency budget? The public are rightly outraged by the
:12:38. > :12:42.missed truth they were told by the propagandists on both sides. It is
:12:43. > :12:47.not a surprise we have a petition of historic dimensions, as big as the
:12:48. > :12:52.chartists and suffragettes put before this House. 4 million
:12:53. > :12:58.signatures and counting of people who say they were deceived by the
:12:59. > :13:01.vote, the propaganda and which was largely determined by the
:13:02. > :13:05.proprietors of the daily newspapers rather than a sensible realisation
:13:06. > :13:07.of the horrors to come. The Commons Leader,
:13:08. > :13:08.a Leave campaigner, If we have a general election
:13:09. > :13:18.and our side loses, we do We had a four-month debate,
:13:19. > :13:24.arguements on both sides, huge amounts of information
:13:25. > :13:26.for the country and they It is our job to follow
:13:27. > :13:30.that decision to And I have to say
:13:31. > :13:34.it is nice after four months of hedging my
:13:35. > :13:41.bets on these benches, Government to be back in a clear
:13:42. > :13:45.way, speaking for the whole government in saying that we now
:13:46. > :13:57.need to get on with the job Scotland will not be taken out of
:13:58. > :14:01.the European Union against their will. We were forced to choose in a
:14:02. > :14:05.Referendum, we have given that decision and it is very clear what
:14:06. > :14:11.Scotland wanted. When will he respect the decision of the Scottish
:14:12. > :14:17.people? Scotland voted to be part of the United Kingdom. The United
:14:18. > :14:21.Kingdom voted to leave the European Union. I am afraid that is
:14:22. > :14:23.democracy. fun at the Tories and Labour
:14:24. > :14:26.over their leadership troubles. Can we have a week long debate
:14:27. > :14:29.on political backstabbing? want to take part, but they are rank
:14:30. > :14:42.amateurs compared to the Right Honourable member for Surrey Heath,
:14:43. > :14:44.the Lord Macbeth of this today is despatching
:14:45. > :14:53.the Prime Minister's greatest rival. What makes the leader of the House
:14:54. > :14:56.think Lord Macbeth's dagger will not soon be turned to him and
:14:57. > :14:58.the Home Secretary? Chris Grayling is supporting
:14:59. > :15:00.Theresa May for the leadership - The Right Honourable member
:15:01. > :15:08.for Surrey Heath has been in my view an excellent
:15:09. > :15:09.education Secretary, excellent chief whip
:15:10. > :15:10.and is now doing an excellent job in
:15:11. > :15:12.the role I used to perform
:15:13. > :15:19.as Lord Chancellor. He has friends and confidence
:15:20. > :15:21.on this side of the House. And for the Scottish National Party
:15:22. > :15:24.he is a formidable adversary. A Labour MP returned
:15:25. > :15:26.to Paul Flynn's appointment... Can I take leave of the House
:15:27. > :15:29.that the contribution of my somewhat younger parliamentary
:15:30. > :15:38.colleague is an illustration of how the army here is always willing
:15:39. > :15:42.to give whatever assistance is necessary when firm leadership
:15:43. > :15:45.at the moment is on both sides? The Speaker, John Bercow,
:15:46. > :15:47.wished Mr Winnick a happy birthday. Could there be health effects
:15:48. > :15:56.of Britain's departure from the EU? Well, a Labour peer has
:15:57. > :15:59.suggested the fight to combat Type 2 diabetes develops
:16:00. > :16:02.when your body can't If untreated, it can cause very
:16:03. > :16:09.serious health problems. It's long been associated
:16:10. > :16:12.with being overweight. In the Lords, peers wanted to know
:16:13. > :16:18.what action the govt was taking. Is it possible he could give
:16:19. > :16:25.a statement, or at least write about, following Brexit,
:16:26. > :16:27.the breakdown in the work that is being done across the whole
:16:28. > :16:39.of the European Union with our United
:16:40. > :16:45.Kingdom colleagues in research to defeat the obesity and indeed
:16:46. > :16:47.diabetes, as director of the European Commission
:16:48. > :16:55.on the Today programme? It is still our intention
:16:56. > :16:58.to announce the Clearly, other events
:16:59. > :17:02.have happened which may But we will be announcing that
:17:03. > :17:09.strategy has soon as possible. I am arranging a meeting
:17:10. > :17:14.for the noble Lord and Lord Morris to meet the research
:17:15. > :17:16.community and discuss the outlook for research
:17:17. > :17:23.for diabetes, and the impact
:17:24. > :17:38.Brexit might have. People can reduce their weight and
:17:39. > :17:42.take modest exercise and in a significant number of cases the
:17:43. > :17:48.effect of diabetes can be put into long-term remission with reduction
:17:49. > :17:54.on the pressure on the NHS resources and capacity, but less than 10% of
:17:55. > :18:00.people with diabetes get any such help in reducing their weight and
:18:01. > :18:09.increasing exercise and having the option and opportunity of turning
:18:10. > :18:13.off their diabetes. She is clearly right. Weight reduction can reverse
:18:14. > :18:18.diabetes. My own father, for example. He has lost weight and his
:18:19. > :18:23.diabetes was effectively put in remission. There is no question it
:18:24. > :18:29.works. It is very difficult to lose weight. Once you are overweight. I
:18:30. > :18:35.think the figure is only one out of 210 people who have a BMI above 30
:18:36. > :18:40.can reduce it down to a normal level, hence the emphasis the
:18:41. > :18:44.Government is putting on explaining to children, young people, before
:18:45. > :18:48.they get fat, that is the critical phase to aim but I'm timely agree
:18:49. > :18:54.that making greater access to structured education programmes is
:18:55. > :18:59.very important. In endorsing that reply from the Minister, can I ask
:19:00. > :19:04.into also make sure the guidance includes recognition of emerging
:19:05. > :19:08.research, that in children if they never become a beast, they have a
:19:09. > :19:17.different type of fat, a brown fat, which keeps a higher metabolic race
:19:18. > :19:20.and decreases their diabetes, so the importance of avoiding obesity in
:19:21. > :19:24.the first place, especially in children and women, in preference
:19:25. > :19:30.eight and afterwards, means that is the only way we will stop this
:19:31. > :19:35.ever-growing curve of diabetes associated with adult obesity?
:19:36. > :19:38.Back in the Commons proposals that could lead
:19:39. > :19:40.to the privatisation of the Land Registry have faced
:19:41. > :19:43.The registry records and keeps details of property ownership
:19:44. > :19:47.The Labour MP, David Lammy, who had secured a backbench debate
:19:48. > :19:50.on the future of the Land Registry, said ministers were selling off
:19:51. > :19:56.the family silver in a bid to make their sums add up.
:19:57. > :20:00.There is no economic rationale for the privatisation.
:20:01. > :20:02.If the Land Registry were making a loss
:20:03. > :20:04.and being subsidised by the taxpayer, I could
:20:05. > :20:13.understand the Government's enthusiasm for privatisation.
:20:14. > :20:19.But it has made a surplus in 19 of the last 20
:20:20. > :20:22.years and returned over 100 million to the Treasury last year alone.
:20:23. > :20:24.Any doubts over it or the possibility of
:20:25. > :20:27.conflict of interest or misuse of information could affect
:20:28. > :20:32.what is a central part of our capitalist system.
:20:33. > :20:35.We must also recognise the Land Registry is a natural monopoly.
:20:36. > :20:38.Like the police and other such institutions, which do not lend
:20:39. > :20:40.Such monopolies which are of such importance
:20:41. > :20:42.to the very fabric of the
:20:43. > :20:46.system must be treated with great care.
:20:47. > :20:51.Public ownership has been ruled out from the start.
:20:52. > :20:54.If the Government is foolish enough to press ahead with
:20:55. > :20:58.this privatisation, it must be defeated.
:20:59. > :21:02.This delicate and vital work must be entrusted to
:21:03. > :21:04.civil servants, working for our public service, where trust and
:21:05. > :21:10.It is right that as a responsible government we
:21:11. > :21:16.do keep under review the questions about
:21:17. > :21:21.whether and how we have, we
:21:22. > :21:24.can take those functions currently the monopoly and responsibility of
:21:25. > :21:29.the state and see if they can be financed better, if they could be
:21:30. > :21:35.liberated and thrive better under new freedoms and to see whether
:21:36. > :21:39.indeed, I will give way in a moment, whether indeed we could in so doing
:21:40. > :21:41.put the public finances on a stronger footing.
:21:42. > :21:45.Back to transport questions, where MPs claimed
:21:46. > :21:48.commuters are being given written warnings by their bosses
:21:49. > :21:51.because they are consistently late for work as a result
:21:52. > :21:55.of the "shameful" service provided by Southern Rail.
:21:56. > :21:58.Southern Railway services, including those
:21:59. > :22:00.into London Victoria, have been disrupted for weeks
:22:01. > :22:02.because of industrial action and high levels of staff sickness.
:22:03. > :22:04.The Transport Minister was asked what economic impact
:22:05. > :22:16.There is no formal economic assessment, surprisingly.
:22:17. > :22:24.But I am in no doubt, I would agree that a
:22:25. > :22:27.disrupted railway is not good for the economy and passengers.
:22:28. > :22:29.That is why we are committed to returning it
:22:30. > :22:33.This shambles we have seen is turning into a crisis.
:22:34. > :22:37.People are writing to me and they are late for work
:22:38. > :22:40.every day and their bosses are giving them written warnings.
:22:41. > :22:41.The government seems to expect people to
:22:42. > :22:43.turn to their bosses and say, do not worry,
:22:44. > :22:49.Can the Minister tell us when this crisis will
:22:50. > :22:50.end and people can go to
:22:51. > :22:52.their bosses and say things will get better?
:22:53. > :22:58.The honourable gentleman and I talk about this a lot.
:22:59. > :23:03.He knows there was disruption because of this
:23:04. > :23:05.investment, that things were getting better.
:23:06. > :23:08.In April we were getting up to an 84, 83.8% PPM.
:23:09. > :23:15.bosses, may I suggest they write to the union bosses involved, who I
:23:16. > :23:18.think are doing their members a grave disservice by bringing them
:23:19. > :23:28.This is about who presses the buttons
:23:29. > :23:31.operating the doors and the change in the role of the second member.
:23:32. > :23:34.There are no job losses and changes in terms and conditions.
:23:35. > :23:38.This shameful performance is affecting commuters.
:23:39. > :23:47.Across the south coast, going to the airport
:23:48. > :23:50.and heading up to Gatwick, flights are being missed and jobs are
:23:51. > :23:58.Can the Minister say the big impact this failing franchise is
:23:59. > :24:00.Again, everybody understands this railway
:24:01. > :24:09.That is why the money is being spent and so much
:24:10. > :24:12.much work is going on but I say again that there are ?2 billion of
:24:13. > :24:15.new trains coming from the production line now which the
:24:16. > :24:17.company would like to be running on these routes
:24:18. > :24:18.and the introduction of
:24:19. > :24:21.those trains is being held up and it is not just on GTR,
:24:22. > :24:23.it is the same in Scotland, it is a nationwide
:24:24. > :24:26.dispute about who presses the buttons opening the doors.
:24:27. > :24:28.It is no good having more rolling stock if they
:24:29. > :24:31.It isn't good enough blaming the unions on
:24:32. > :24:34.Her department has got to get a grip.
:24:35. > :24:41.They are paying through the nose for an appalling service
:24:42. > :24:44.threatening jobs, robbing them of time with their family and the CEO
:24:45. > :24:49.of Go Ahead is on a pay deal rising to over ?2 million last year.
:24:50. > :24:51.Will she get a grip, stop defending the
:24:52. > :24:53.failing private sector, remove the franchise
:24:54. > :24:55.and put the service into
:24:56. > :25:00.transparent and accountable public hands now?
:25:01. > :25:08.She accepted a very large donation from the RMT before
:25:09. > :25:11.the last election and the union have awarded themselves a 16% pay
:25:12. > :25:15.They need to stop objecting to the introduction of new
:25:16. > :25:16.technology which benefits constituents and constituents right
:25:17. > :25:24.Which brings us to our final stop for this edition of the programme,
:25:25. > :25:28.but do join me on Friday night at 11 for The Week in Parliament
:25:29. > :25:30.when we look back at a tumultuous few days,
:25:31. > :25:32.as MPs, peers and the UK's other legislators get
:25:33. > :25:41.And we hear from a former Clerk of the Commons
:25:42. > :25:46.will start to unpick British laws from the EU.