19/04/2017

:00:14. > :00:18.Hello - good morning - welcome to the programme -

:00:19. > :00:20.we're live in Westminster this morning because today Theresa May

:00:21. > :00:23.goes to the Commons to ask Mps to agree to a snap general

:00:24. > :00:39.in Westminster will risk our ability to make a success Brexit it will

:00:40. > :00:44.cause damaging uncertainty and instability to the country, so we

:00:45. > :00:48.need a general election, and we need one now.

:00:49. > :00:57.Not another one! Over God's sake, honestly, I can't stand this,

:00:58. > :01:00.there's too much politics going on at the moment, why does she need to

:01:01. > :01:03.do it? Throughout

:01:04. > :01:04.the programme - we'll look at what that election means

:01:05. > :01:07.for the country, for Brexit, for Scotland,

:01:08. > :01:22.for the various political parties I am just feeling an overwhelming

:01:23. > :01:28.sense of trade, I'll only 20 years old and I am tired of the process. I

:01:29. > :01:31.just feel it is important to make a decision, let's see where we go from

:01:32. > :01:36.there and have some form of stability. I am really excited about

:01:37. > :01:39.the election, I look forward to any form of more democracy but I don't

:01:40. > :01:43.feel there's that much on the table with voting for so I will be

:01:44. > :01:47.demanding a lot more from politicians of they want to get my

:01:48. > :01:51.vote. What about you? Wherever you are in the UK,

:01:52. > :01:54.throughout the programme- if you're tweeting use

:01:55. > :02:11.It looks like Theresa May's plans to hold a general election

:02:12. > :02:14.on June 8th will be voted for by MPs today.

:02:15. > :02:16.The Prime Minister, who's repeatedly ruled out am early election,

:02:17. > :02:19.says she needs a fresh mandate, to strengthen her hand

:02:20. > :02:29.This morning, we're at Westminster, with an audience of around 20 voters

:02:30. > :02:35.hello, good morning, thank you very much for coming here and giving up

:02:36. > :02:37.your time, I'm sure you have much more important things to do, so we

:02:38. > :02:40.are very grateful. And various politicians will be

:02:41. > :02:43.popping in throughout the programme - plus our political guru

:02:44. > :02:51.Norman Smith is here... We will talk to him in a second.

:02:52. > :02:56.Voters, who wants a general election on 8th of June? Most of you. Do you

:02:57. > :03:03.think you are representative of the wider UK? Possibly not. I am Serena,

:03:04. > :03:09.a journalist as well. I think there is a degree of voter fatigue. You

:03:10. > :03:12.wanted an election. Ifill excited their escape to be one, in the

:03:13. > :03:16.period before she gave an announcement yesterday I was rooting

:03:17. > :03:20.for it, let's get out there, but the stamp on Brexit or not if we want

:03:21. > :03:23.to, let's make our voices heard but I do think generally people across

:03:24. > :03:25.the country who are not so interested in politics might be

:03:26. > :03:44.thinking, oh my God, here we go again. I think Theresa May

:03:45. > :03:46.might suffer with a lower than expected turnout, actually. That

:03:47. > :03:48.interesting. Who else things there might be a lower than expected

:03:49. > :03:50.turnout, maybe because of election fatigue? I think less people will

:03:51. > :03:53.vote this time around because less people are feeling confident about

:03:54. > :03:56.the whole process. They don't know who to vote for. People are just not

:03:57. > :03:58.going to come and vote, rather than voting for someone they don't

:03:59. > :04:01.believe in don't understand. Do you want a general election or not? I

:04:02. > :04:05.personally do. I run a business, that is my day job and I know the

:04:06. > :04:11.leadership is important. See you don't want instability during a

:04:12. > :04:14.election campaign? Won I think it is a great idea to have an elected

:04:15. > :04:19.Prime Minister. If she is re-elected what will she bring you? Won she

:04:20. > :04:23.will have a mandate and more firepower behind her to make her

:04:24. > :04:27.stable Brexit. She will have another journeys share new manifesto so I

:04:28. > :04:32.think it is a great opportunity for her to lay out her cards. What

:04:33. > :04:36.promises of David Cameron's would you be ditching if you were Theresa

:04:37. > :04:41.May? I don't know yet and I look forward to what she has to say. Who

:04:42. > :04:48.else is excited about the general election? I am Reese, an SNP voter.

:04:49. > :04:54.A university student. I am excited in the sense that if Theresa May

:04:55. > :05:01.gets re-elected, then it shows if the yes and the re-elected in high

:05:02. > :05:08.enough voters, does Scotland want a referendum? In May 2015, the SNP won

:05:09. > :05:16.56 out of 59 suits -- seats. Can the SNP better that? If it does, will it

:05:17. > :05:19.be opponents of Nicola Sturgeon? In my constituency it is poised that

:05:20. > :05:23.the Conservatives might take that because of Labour's massive defeat,

:05:24. > :05:28.I think the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats will have a good

:05:29. > :05:32.chance of taking some SNP seats. Right. What about the fact that

:05:33. > :05:37.Theresa May changed her mind, does that bother anybody? I think it is

:05:38. > :05:40.Pollock -- problematic because when a politician says they won't do

:05:41. > :05:46.something you wouldn't hope they would. It does show some kind of

:05:47. > :05:49.leadership. She is kind of monopolising the fact that other

:05:50. > :05:54.parties are not showing as much strength in leadership and it has

:05:55. > :06:02.kind of shaken up the status quo. Politics is daily life and you have

:06:03. > :06:06.to change your mind sometimes, it is something you have to do. Even last

:06:07. > :06:16.month, her spokesman saying there will be no quick election. You have

:06:17. > :06:24.to seize the opportunity. BOTS of use. Why did she change her mind? --

:06:25. > :06:43.lots of different views. I have just chaired a meeting of the

:06:44. > :06:46.Cabinet where we agreed that the government should call a general

:06:47. > :06:51.election to be held on the 8th of June. I'm not going to be calling a

:06:52. > :06:55.snap election. I've been very clear that I think we need that period of

:06:56. > :06:58.time, that stability to be able to deal with the issues that the

:06:59. > :07:04.country is facing and to have that election in 2020. Since I became

:07:05. > :07:09.Prime Minister, I have said there should be no election until 2020,

:07:10. > :07:14.but now I have concluded that the only way to guarantee certainty and

:07:15. > :07:22.stability for the years ahead is to hold the selection. It is not so

:07:23. > :07:27.much the Ironman lady as the -- the Iron Lady as the Ioane lady. I have

:07:28. > :07:32.got a plan, she doesn't have a clue. We will not allow Scotland's

:07:33. > :07:39.interests to be steam-rollered. At this moment of enormous national

:07:40. > :07:48.significance, there should be unity here in Westminster, but instead

:07:49. > :07:52.there is division. We recognise the decision is to leave the European

:07:53. > :07:56.Union. If the people of this country think they are going to be

:07:57. > :08:02.cheated... Parliament alone is sovereign. We will reject any

:08:03. > :08:14.attempt to undo the referendum result. A choice is emerging here.

:08:15. > :08:20.But we don't trust the government. We do know that it is a dog's

:08:21. > :08:26.Brexit. We want a red, white and blue Brexit. The eyes to the right

:08:27. > :08:32.331. There shall be a meaningful vote in Scotland. They are in chaos,

:08:33. > :08:39.disarray. If we don't hold a general election now, their political

:08:40. > :08:45.gameplaying will continue. General election, you're joking, not another

:08:46. > :08:55.one! The God's sake, honestly, I can't stand this. There is too much

:08:56. > :09:02.politics going on at the moment. Let me bring in Jonathan Ashworth, a

:09:03. > :09:08.member of Jeremy Corbyn's top speaks for the Labour Party on health

:09:09. > :09:12.matters. Former would be Prime Minister and key leave campaigner

:09:13. > :09:16.Michael Gove. And you know Norman Smith, our political guru. Mr Gove,

:09:17. > :09:19.why is it in the interest of the country as opposed to the

:09:20. > :09:25.Conservative Party and Conservative government to hold a general

:09:26. > :09:30.election the summer? I think we need stability. So have a general

:09:31. > :09:37.election? Are you joking? You are saying that with a straight face!

:09:38. > :09:40.Yes. Nicola Sturgeon and the Liberal Democrats and the guys over there in

:09:41. > :09:44.the House of Lords. They haven't managed it so far. You have decent

:09:45. > :09:48.if not thumping majorities for the Brexit bill in both the Commons and

:09:49. > :09:54.Lords in the end. Absolutely full stop so what is the problem? We have

:09:55. > :10:03.a new piece of legislation, the Great Repeal Bill, which all of said

:10:04. > :10:10.they they are going to deliver thing to make difficult. One of the ways

:10:11. > :10:13.we can do that is by going to the people and saying, look, there are

:10:14. > :10:17.some individuals trying to sabotage the result of the referendum, trying

:10:18. > :10:21.to frustrate the Prime Minister, give her that mandate with a

:10:22. > :10:27.manifesto, a commitment to press ahead with the change you voted for

:10:28. > :10:35.last year. How much has she been swayed? By the poll ratings? I do

:10:36. > :10:38.note. I haven't spoken to her. I think the critical thing is Mickey

:10:39. > :10:43.sure we have a stronger government. How much do you think she was swayed

:10:44. > :10:48.by this lead? Any politician will look at poll ratings, yes, that the

:10:49. > :10:51.critical decision Theresa May is in the national interest. I worked with

:10:52. > :10:54.her, indeed I ran against to be Prime Minister, and one of the

:10:55. > :10:57.things about the reason is that she takes time before she comes to a

:10:58. > :11:04.conclusion about -- about Theresa May. She has decided, as she said

:11:05. > :11:08.reluctantly, is to have the general election is the best thing to do so

:11:09. > :11:11.that she and her team can input about the country wanted. Voters

:11:12. > :11:15.like straight talkers, you know that, you know that, and they

:11:16. > :11:20.thought she was one when she repeatedly said "There will be no

:11:21. > :11:26.early general election". How will they trust her again? When the facts

:11:27. > :11:32.change, you change mine. What has changed? Nicola Sturgeon has made it

:11:33. > :11:36.clear she is going to use the SNP... And that was a surprise? It was the

:11:37. > :11:41.case that Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP had said they would not need to

:11:42. > :11:47.be another Scottish referendum for a generation, she clearly regards for

:11:48. > :11:53.years as a -- the Paw years as a generation. One of the things we

:11:54. > :11:59.will see that this general election is the SNP knocked back... But which

:12:00. > :12:03.facts have changed? The decision by Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP to say

:12:04. > :12:06.we want a second referendum, the fact they said that they would do

:12:07. > :12:09.everything possible to bring that forward earlier, the fact that the

:12:10. > :12:13.Liberal Democrats said they will fight tooth and nail and the

:12:14. > :12:18.Conservatives do not have a majority in the House of Lords. You knew

:12:19. > :12:22.that, that is not a fact that has changed. What has changed is the

:12:23. > :12:25.Liberal Democrats and others using every trick in the book to frustrate

:12:26. > :12:29.the democratic will of the people. They could easily have said look, we

:12:30. > :12:32.understand the referendum result, we're not going to frustrate it. On

:12:33. > :12:37.the night of the referendum, Paddy Ashdown said when the British people

:12:38. > :12:43.have spoken you respect their will, that is democracy. Now Tim Farron

:12:44. > :12:46.has decided no. Tim Farron, a leader of nine MPs. And 100 peers in the

:12:47. > :12:51.House of Lords, one of the good things about it, funny place, is

:12:52. > :12:54.that if you have an election promise in a manifesto, the House of Lords

:12:55. > :12:58.have to back down. At the moment they feel they can play merry hell

:12:59. > :13:02.with the Brexit and the referendum. But in the end they voted for the

:13:03. > :13:06.Brexit bill. They also made it clear that while they were going to accept

:13:07. > :13:10.that, the real battle would begin over the Great Repeal Bill and other

:13:11. > :13:13.legislation. The fact that the House of Commons, having voted so

:13:14. > :13:16.decisively for us to leave, the House of Lords and others said we

:13:17. > :13:20.have got that out of the way, now we are going to fight a guerrilla

:13:21. > :13:22.campaign. That is a changed political dynamic and one to which

:13:23. > :13:25.the Prime Minister has responded anything in the right way.

:13:26. > :13:29.Ultimately the people will decide whether or not they think the Prime

:13:30. > :13:32.Minister is right, and I think when we see Theresa May returned with an

:13:33. > :13:33.increased majority, with a strengthened hand and with the

:13:34. > :13:37.confidence of the country behind confidence of the country behind

:13:38. > :13:41.her, that means we can get on with the calm orderly and successful

:13:42. > :13:44.Brexit for which people voted. Jonathan Ashworth from the Labour

:13:45. > :13:47.Party, even if Prime Minister Theresa May is seen as a Prime

:13:48. > :13:53.Minister who breaks promises, do you think she will win this general

:13:54. > :13:56.election? I never ever take voters for granted. Michael is a good

:13:57. > :14:00.fellow, but Conservative MPs are going around saying it will be a

:14:01. > :14:04.great thumping majority for Theresa May, it sounds a bit arrogant.

:14:05. > :14:08.Voters don't like to be taken for granted and I have been involved in

:14:09. > :14:11.many elections campaign, both behind-the-scenes and as a

:14:12. > :14:16.candidate, and I never predict them, because this is a seven-week

:14:17. > :14:20.campaign, anything can happen. Is Jeremy Corbyn the best person to

:14:21. > :14:23.lead Britain? Yes, he is the Labour Party government and I believe a

:14:24. > :14:29.Labour government would be better forgotten. He would be better than

:14:30. > :14:32.to loser May? Yes, because he would be a Labour Prime Minister, and we

:14:33. > :14:35.need a Labour government to get the NHS off its knees, reversing the

:14:36. > :14:39.cuts that many primary schools are going to have imposed across them

:14:40. > :14:43.across the country. And get people working again where wages are

:14:44. > :14:47.stagnating. They led government will tackle these issues that is why I am

:14:48. > :14:50.a Labour Party MP, and a Labour candidate in this election and I

:14:51. > :14:54.will be campaigning hard across the country for Labour victories. If Mrs

:14:55. > :15:00.May does win, and we are not predicting anything, I am saying if,

:15:01. > :15:06.can Jeremy Corbyn stay on as Labour leader? Politicians never answer

:15:07. > :15:09.these hypothetical questions. We are campaigning hard for every single

:15:10. > :15:14.vote, and I am not going to take for granted or pre-empt the voters in

:15:15. > :15:20.any way. I am not asking you to. You saw the bar, if you are saying if

:15:21. > :15:24.the raise a wins. OK, if Jeremy Corbyn wins, will Labour get behind

:15:25. > :15:34.him finally? We will have a Labour government that will be a Labour

:15:35. > :15:38.parliament. If Mrs May wins, can Jeremy Corbyn stay on? My focus is

:15:39. > :15:41.working hard for a Labour victory across the country. We will see

:15:42. > :15:45.where we are on election night but I don't think that will happen. I

:15:46. > :15:48.think the Labour Party will have a strong message, talking about the

:15:49. > :15:51.free school meals policy, talking about increasing carers allowance

:15:52. > :15:56.for many people who care for elderly people. Increasing the living wage

:15:57. > :16:01.to ?10 an hour. We will be talking about these issues in the campaign.

:16:02. > :16:05.And you haven't mentioned Brexit. The number one issue for the UK

:16:06. > :16:10.population apparently? Actually the NHS is pretty high up. In the

:16:11. > :16:16.Observer Mori polling the NHS had overtaken Brexit. But Theresa May's

:16:17. > :16:19.campaign is all going to be about Brexit, she doesn't get to decide

:16:20. > :16:28.what it will be about. What is Labour's Brexit vision? We have got

:16:29. > :16:32.Brexit. I campaign for remain. We are not frustrating, we voted for

:16:33. > :16:36.the relevant legislation. What is your Brexit vision? We don't want a

:16:37. > :16:43.Brexit deal that means a race to the bottom where people's rights at work

:16:44. > :16:45.are dilutive, where approach to international trade and attracting

:16:46. > :16:50.investment is to become a sort of bargain basement economy with low

:16:51. > :16:53.levels of corporation tax. That kind of approach to corporation tax I

:16:54. > :16:59.don't believe is in the interest of public service is.

:17:00. > :17:06.Where will Theresa May pick up these new seats if she wants to increase

:17:07. > :17:10.the Conservatives' working majority? He is right, you should never take

:17:11. > :17:14.any vote for granted but it is the case that across the country you see

:17:15. > :17:19.many people who voted leave in the referendum, whatever their previous

:17:20. > :17:23.allegiance, who want a strong Prime Minister, and other people who do

:17:24. > :17:27.not regard themselves as this or that tribally who also want a strong

:17:28. > :17:30.leader and in a General Election where leadership will be important

:17:31. > :17:33.Theresa May is well-placed to attract support from a range of

:17:34. > :17:37.people who may have never voted Conservative before. You want to put

:17:38. > :17:41.numbers on how increased the Conservative majority will be? By

:17:42. > :17:46.Jonathan, I don't have the capacity to see into the future. You expected

:17:47. > :17:50.to go up? I hope it will and the potential is there and I'm convinced

:17:51. > :17:52.when people have the opportunity to compare Theresa May with Jeremy

:17:53. > :17:56.Corbyn and reflect on who they would like to have in No 10 it is bound to

:17:57. > :17:59.be the case that more people will vote for Theresa May. And you will

:18:00. > :18:05.have heard the theory that she wants to win a bigger majority than David

:18:06. > :18:09.Cameron achieved in 2015 in May. In order to also strengthen her own

:18:10. > :18:15.hand with hard-line backbench Brexit ear Conservative MPs, perhaps like

:18:16. > :18:19.yourself, and that would allow her to deliver a softer Brexit. She has

:18:20. > :18:23.got the big calls on Brexit Risoul find my view is the Prime Minister

:18:24. > :18:27.is the person who is there at the negotiating table, who has the heavy

:18:28. > :18:31.responsibility of judging what is best in the national interest and as

:18:32. > :18:34.far as I'm concerned the bigger majority and stronger her hand the

:18:35. > :18:37.better. I'm not going to second-guess the Prime Minister on

:18:38. > :18:44.that because she won an election as Conservative Party leader on

:18:45. > :18:47.incrementing Brexit and all of my Conservative colleagues would say

:18:48. > :18:51.this, certainly those that voted for Brexit, would say she has played a

:18:52. > :18:54.blinder so far. Come a little nearer because I want you to talk to the

:18:55. > :18:58.voters who are here from across the UK. We are grateful for your time.

:18:59. > :19:04.Michael Gove, Jonathan Ashworth, tell them what you think of an

:19:05. > :19:09.election in six or seven weeks' time. Introduce yourself. My name is

:19:10. > :19:12.Harry, I am a student and a Liberal Democrat voter. I have to say, I

:19:13. > :19:16.think an election in six or seven weeks' time is brilliant because it

:19:17. > :19:20.allows us to change the our country is going in. Listening to your

:19:21. > :19:23.interview, Mr Gove, I am astounded that you say the Liberal Democrats

:19:24. > :19:27.are trying to wreck the will of the people. It was your campaign who

:19:28. > :19:34.campaigned for Parliamentary sovereignty in the EU referendum and

:19:35. > :19:37.it was our amendment in the House of Lords and our attempt in the House

:19:38. > :19:39.of Commons to make sure the final vote on the deal for Brexit is in

:19:40. > :19:42.parliament. That is something you campaign for. It is not breaking the

:19:43. > :19:47.will of the people to seek to guarantee the rights of EU citizens

:19:48. > :19:50.who work in our NHS, in our schools, and contribute to our society. It is

:19:51. > :19:53.not wrecking the will of the people to try and guarantee their rights

:19:54. > :19:58.during Brexit and Labour voted against that as well.

:19:59. > :20:03.I am Richard and I want to take issue with what has been said. The

:20:04. > :20:07.Lib Dems are acting as if they did during the tuition fee debate, going

:20:08. > :20:11.into this election saying vote Lib Dem and we will overturn Brexit.

:20:12. > :20:15.There is no way the Lib Dems are in any capacity to overturn for Brexit.

:20:16. > :20:21.We don't have a Lib Dem representative at the moment, as you

:20:22. > :20:26.can see. We will talk to one of them later. Introduce yourself. My name

:20:27. > :20:36.is Nick, I am a long-standing Labour supporter from Surrey. We live in an

:20:37. > :20:42.elective democracy... What is your name? Nick. Do you think Labour

:20:43. > :20:47.should vote for the selection in the Commons? I was going to take issue

:20:48. > :20:53.with Michael Gove on this point. Do you want your party to vote for a

:20:54. > :21:01.General Election? Yes I do. Sorry, you are going to take issue with

:21:02. > :21:04.somebody I am in a position where I feel horribly betrayed by the

:21:05. > :21:10.political classes around Brexit, not just here but nationally and

:21:11. > :21:12.internationally. And to say that this election has been cold for

:21:13. > :21:18.anything other than political expediency is clearly not honest and

:21:19. > :21:23.that is a betrayal on a level. I understand it and see the necessity

:21:24. > :21:28.to make the dance. But it feels like it is disingenuous. What would be

:21:29. > :21:33.wrong with Theresa May being honest and saying, you know what, we have a

:21:34. > :21:36.good opportunity to increase our majority. Let's do it because it

:21:37. > :21:42.will help with Brexit negotiations? She has been honest, I've worked

:21:43. > :21:45.with Theresa May and disagree with her on some issues but she is a

:21:46. > :21:48.deeply moral and ethical person and will have come to this conclusion

:21:49. > :21:53.because she thought it was in the national interest to ensure a strong

:21:54. > :22:00.government has the it requires, as a manifesto endorsed by the public, to

:22:01. > :22:05.press ahead with her plans. Hello. You made an interesting comment

:22:06. > :22:13.earlier about democratic energy. That seems to me a bit of political

:22:14. > :22:17.speak from Yes, Minister. It is not about democratic energy, people are

:22:18. > :22:22.tired, it is more just an inconvenient truth, a fact of

:22:23. > :22:26.necessity. We are just fed up with the boundary is always changing, the

:22:27. > :22:31.goalposts always moving, wonder it is this and the next day it is that.

:22:32. > :22:35.I understand a week is a long time in politics. I understand that. I

:22:36. > :22:40.just find it is a bit disingenuous to present it as this amazing

:22:41. > :22:43.opportunity which everybody is really energised. We are tired but

:22:44. > :22:48.understand it needs to happen. Let's get it done and see what goes on

:22:49. > :22:53.from there. Can I pick up on your question about whether or not Labour

:22:54. > :22:56.should be backing the move to cool a General Election? Don't you think it

:22:57. > :23:01.would be better for the Labour Party to continue to get itself together?

:23:02. > :23:05.The last few weeks have seen some decent policy announcements for the

:23:06. > :23:08.first time that I has a long-term Labour supporter can remember. It

:23:09. > :23:13.might give you time to get a different leader who does not poll

:23:14. > :23:17.so terribly with the country as Mr Corbyn currently is. Isn't it your

:23:18. > :23:24.responsibility to be an effective opposition and oppose the

:23:25. > :23:27.government? Answer her question. I am answering the question. If we

:23:28. > :23:30.think this government is doing terrible things, running down the

:23:31. > :23:34.NHS and cutting school budgets and the economy is not working, we have

:23:35. > :23:37.a responsibility to scrutinise the government and take our message to

:23:38. > :23:44.the country and trying to defeat them in a General Election. That his

:23:45. > :23:49.wife... You could do that in 2020 -- that is why. The Prime Minister has

:23:50. > :23:52.asked parliament to pass the legislation to allow her to have a

:23:53. > :23:57.General Election. You don't have to agree with the Prime Minister. Given

:23:58. > :24:02.that we think this government is doing dreadful things to many of the

:24:03. > :24:06.communities that we represent we have a responsibility to try and get

:24:07. > :24:09.this Conservative government out of power. Governments have done this in

:24:10. > :24:16.the past. Harold Wilson was elected in 64 and went to the country in

:24:17. > :24:19.1966. What I think is a problem here is Theresa May, Mike Harold Wilson,

:24:20. > :24:24.has said for the last six months she would not have a General Election

:24:25. > :24:30.and now changed her mind -- like Harold Wilson. It begs the question,

:24:31. > :24:33.can you trust Theresa May's word? I am an entrepreneur and one of the

:24:34. > :24:36.things about the business of disruption is it annoys a lot of

:24:37. > :24:40.people and also tends to clean things up. While it may feel painful

:24:41. > :24:44.for some people who would like to see the Labour Party, as you just

:24:45. > :24:47.mentioned, have time to get themselves together, ultimately

:24:48. > :24:51.sometimes pressure causes people to sort themselves out, tidy up their

:24:52. > :24:54.shop and clean up their house. Perhaps in actual fact this is an

:24:55. > :24:58.opportunity for the opposition to get together and recognise Jeremy

:24:59. > :25:01.Corbyn isn't the sort of leader most people would like and perhaps

:25:02. > :25:05.actually find it is a great thing that we will have a great opposition

:25:06. > :25:10.because I am not a Labour supporter. It is your chance to dump him after

:25:11. > :25:13.the selection. Jeremy Corbyn is the leader of the Labour Party and I

:25:14. > :25:17.want a Labour government, we have 500,000 members in the Labour Party

:25:18. > :25:21.who have been asked to form a judgment on Jeremy Corbyn two years

:25:22. > :25:25.in a row and have said they want them to be candidate for Prime

:25:26. > :25:35.Minister. My message is for anyone watching, join as campaigning in

:25:36. > :25:37.communities across the country because we really need all of those

:25:38. > :25:39.500 members knocking on doors and delivering leaflets and taking on

:25:40. > :25:42.what will be a well-financed Tory campaign. Can I ask generally when

:25:43. > :25:44.it comes to the manifestos of all the political parties in the next

:25:45. > :25:47.few weeks, when Theresa May stands up and makes promises about whatever

:25:48. > :25:52.it may be, reducing immigration to the tens of thousands, for example,

:25:53. > :25:59.will you believe her? I won't believe any of the parties, to be

:26:00. > :26:01.honest. Is that fair? It is fair because to be honest there are lots

:26:02. > :26:05.of times when students have been screwed over, by the Lib Dems in

:26:06. > :26:09.particular, with the tuition fees, they said they wouldn't and they

:26:10. > :26:12.did. I know you can say politicians can't always predict the future and

:26:13. > :26:15.how things will turn out but that was a really big promise they made

:26:16. > :26:21.and they basically betrayed us on that. Specifically on this question

:26:22. > :26:24.because she has changed her mind on the General Election. The Tory party

:26:25. > :26:28.and the Labour Party about so many things they say in their manifesto

:26:29. > :26:32.they say they will do and they will protect you but they don't. My

:26:33. > :26:35.parents are letting agents and you said you would protect them when

:26:36. > :26:38.they voted for you in 2015 and now you have put their livelihood at

:26:39. > :26:42.risk because you have not done what you said you would and changed your

:26:43. > :26:48.mind. My name is Sarah and I am a teacher. Hello, Sarah. The current

:26:49. > :26:52.government never said they would cut ?3 billion from school budgets when

:26:53. > :26:56.they came to power. I want to know what other party is going to do

:26:57. > :26:59.about education? We are facing irreparable damage, children are

:27:00. > :27:04.coming to school and sitting with their coats on to save money on the

:27:05. > :27:06.heating bills because schools don't have enough money. Headteachers are

:27:07. > :27:14.beside themselves and parents are beside themselves. I do recognise

:27:15. > :27:17.him. I think this will be a referendum on education and funding

:27:18. > :27:23.it properly and also on the NHS, it is a chance to save the NHS and save

:27:24. > :27:27.education. Would you like to respond? Absolutely and I do not

:27:28. > :27:30.underestimate for a moment how challenging it is in some particular

:27:31. > :27:34.schools and for some particular heads and teachers because money is

:27:35. > :27:36.tight and has been in the past but public services everywhere are

:27:37. > :27:40.facing that as a result of what happened with the financial crash in

:27:41. > :27:44.2008 and the consequences. One of the things I have argued for

:27:45. > :27:48.consistently is to make sure we concentrate education funding on the

:27:49. > :27:52.very poorest. With the help of the Liberal Democrats to be fair we

:27:53. > :27:55.introduced a Pupil Premium, ?2.5 billion additional cash to help the

:27:56. > :28:00.poorest children do well. One of the things about education is that, yes,

:28:01. > :28:03.there are going to be challenges in funding terms but it is also the

:28:04. > :28:08.case thanks to people like you that our education system is better than

:28:09. > :28:11.ever before, there are more children in good and outstanding schools than

:28:12. > :28:14.ever before, 1.8 million extra children in those good and

:28:15. > :28:17.outstanding schools as a result, not so much of the changes that

:28:18. > :28:20.ministers like me have made, but as a result of the fact we have the

:28:21. > :28:27.best generation of teachers ever in our schools. The truth is that

:28:28. > :28:30.teacher retention, the number of people who stay in the classroom, is

:28:31. > :28:33.the same as it has been over the course of the last ten years and we

:28:34. > :28:38.are recruiting loss of talented people. On the Pupil Premium you

:28:39. > :28:41.will know that certain heads are using the Pupil Premium to plug

:28:42. > :28:45.funding gaps because they are short of money. I absolutely get the fact

:28:46. > :28:49.that we do need to listen to those on the front line about the funding

:28:50. > :28:53.situation and Justine Greening, the Education Secretary, is thinking

:28:54. > :28:56.hard about how to make sure we get the right deal. The one thing I

:28:57. > :28:59.would say about education is we have come on leaps and bounds over the

:29:00. > :29:03.course of the last ten years, particularly but not exclusively in

:29:04. > :29:06.London. There is more to do in some communities where the gap between

:29:07. > :29:11.rich and poor is too great. One of the things all us can agree on is

:29:12. > :29:14.whether it was under Labour or my colleague who is a Liberal Democrat,

:29:15. > :29:18.or Justine Greening now, there has been consensus about some of the

:29:19. > :29:22.things needed to change in education and the good thing is we have good

:29:23. > :29:25.teachers making a difference. Your old friend David Cameron made

:29:26. > :29:31.various promises in the last manifesto. What are his promises

:29:32. > :29:34.from 2015 would you like to dump? I don't think I would dump any of

:29:35. > :29:38.them. We need more detail on what we can do now we have left the European

:29:39. > :29:43.Union. Triple lock on the pensions? You wouldn't get rid of that? I

:29:44. > :29:46.personally wouldn't but I'm not responsible for welfare policy.

:29:47. > :29:49.Personally I wouldn't but I am prepared to listen to any argument.

:29:50. > :29:52.What we should do is concentrate on policies to make sure we extend

:29:53. > :29:57.homeownership and house-building because we need more social housing

:29:58. > :30:02.for rent, we should do more to improve technical education, that

:30:03. > :30:05.has been one area, on my time as Education Secretary, we should have

:30:06. > :30:09.done more. We need to have a country that works for everyone meaning

:30:10. > :30:12.people who have been locked out of the academic opportunity and out of

:30:13. > :30:15.the housing market need to have those opportunities and that is what

:30:16. > :30:19.I have the manifesto will concentrate on. Final four from

:30:20. > :30:22.Jonathan Ashworth for the Labour Party? This election will be about

:30:23. > :30:27.the future of the NHS and primary schools, as the teacher outlined

:30:28. > :30:31.eloquently, and the feature of the economy, not just Brexit. OK, and

:30:32. > :30:35.Theresa May has said it is not just going to be about Brexit as well. We

:30:36. > :30:38.have had eloquently conservative spokespeople on the media such as

:30:39. > :30:43.Michael saying it is all about Brexit! Thank you, gentlemen, thank

:30:44. > :30:47.you for the voters participation. Can I speak to Norman over here. You

:30:48. > :30:51.are still attached to a microphone so don't wander off yet. Norman,

:30:52. > :30:54.what will happen in the Commons today? Today we get the vote on

:30:55. > :30:58.whether there should be an election. There will be an election because

:30:59. > :31:02.Labour have agreed to vote for it, the Liberal Democrats will vote for

:31:03. > :31:06.it and the SNP will abstain. The brutal truth is that they dare not

:31:07. > :31:15.vote against it because if they did vote against it it would look like

:31:16. > :31:18.they are frightened, they didn't want to give the electorate a choice

:31:19. > :31:20.and it would just seem incomprehensible when you have both

:31:21. > :31:22.Labour and the Liberal Democrats passionately opposed to what Theresa

:31:23. > :31:25.May is trying to do to turn up the prospect of a General Election.

:31:26. > :31:28.While there are plenty of Labour MPs looking over the cliff and thinking

:31:29. > :31:32.oh my God, they cannot run away from this. They know they have to go for

:31:33. > :31:36.the election and they will be an overwhelming vote to have the June

:31:37. > :31:40.the 8th election. What kind of campaign do you think this will be?

:31:41. > :31:44.I'm afraid I think it will be a Brexit campaign. I think that's

:31:45. > :31:47.partly to do with the fact Mrs May wanted to be a Brexit campaign and

:31:48. > :31:52.partly because she wants to be the Brexit candidate. But if we are

:31:53. > :31:55.honest Brexit is bigger than everything, it is the biggest

:31:56. > :31:59.gargantuan generational decision any of us will take in our life and it

:32:00. > :32:02.shapes absolutely everything. The chips potentially how much money we

:32:03. > :32:06.have, what sort of society we are going to be, it is colossal. Of

:32:07. > :32:11.course there are very important fundamental issues about the future

:32:12. > :32:14.of social care, the NHS, public services, massive, massive issues.

:32:15. > :32:18.But I just think they are sort of encompassed by the enormity of

:32:19. > :32:22.Brexit and the timescale too. The fact that we know we are going to

:32:23. > :32:26.leave in a couple of years' time. That focuses everything massively. I

:32:27. > :32:30.think the real difficulty for the other parties is how they break out

:32:31. > :32:34.of the Brexit stranglehold. How do they get a hearing for some of their

:32:35. > :32:38.policies which do seem popular. Some of the policies Jeremy Corbyn has

:32:39. > :32:43.been articulating in recent weeks about free school meals, using VAT

:32:44. > :32:50.from private schools etc. Those seem genuinely popular. Whether he will

:32:51. > :32:53.get a hearing for them or whether he will be crowded out by the enormity

:32:54. > :32:56.and noise of the Brexit debate is the real danger for them, I suspect.

:32:57. > :32:59.Thank you, Norman, thank you for coming on the programme. What is the

:33:00. > :33:02.number one issue for you as a group of voters, hopefully vaguely

:33:03. > :33:05.representative of the UK, although far too many of you are excited

:33:06. > :33:12.about having a General Election in six weeks' time for my liking. What

:33:13. > :33:20.is the main issue for you? Brexit. Brexit. The NHS. Brexit. Brexit.

:33:21. > :33:24.Tell me why you think Brexit is the issue when we had a referendum on

:33:25. > :33:29.Brexit last year when the majority said let's leave.

:33:30. > :33:35.'S I think Brexit can be slightly overdone, you get too involved in

:33:36. > :33:40.it, people might think what is the point of having it, getting worked

:33:41. > :33:43.up, do you understand what I mean? There are so much publicity about it

:33:44. > :33:51.and so much of the papers, people might get fed up with it after a

:33:52. > :33:55.while. Yeah, but it is your view. We will talk more after the news and

:33:56. > :34:00.sport coming up right now. What time is it? Just look at Big Ben, it is

:34:01. > :34:01.25 to ten, which means we are slightly late for the news

:34:02. > :34:07.headlines. Brendan Rogers The Prime Minister has denied claims

:34:08. > :34:14.of political opportunism and insisted that it's

:34:15. > :34:16.in the national interest to hold MPs are expected to approve

:34:17. > :34:20.the Prime Minister's plan Speaking this morning,

:34:21. > :34:23.Mrs May said going to the country now rather than 2020 meant

:34:24. > :34:25.the government would be able to focus on Brexit negotiations

:34:26. > :34:30.for the next couple of few years. when I became Prime Minister last

:34:31. > :34:34.July, I felt the most important thing was stability for the country.

:34:35. > :34:40.We've had the referendum which had come out for the resort in terms of

:34:41. > :34:45.voting to leave the EU which had not been expected. Obviously David

:34:46. > :34:48.Cameron had resigned, I had taken over as Prime Minister. I felt it

:34:49. > :34:53.was important to have a period of stability and to ensure that the

:34:54. > :35:01.British people could have confidence. So getting through that

:35:02. > :35:10.process of the early work of preparation for and then triggering

:35:11. > :35:15.Article 50 was very clear. It became clear the extent to which the

:35:16. > :35:23.opposition parties in Westminster were intent on frustrating the

:35:24. > :35:27.Brexit process. Brexit is not just about wanting to leave, it is about

:35:28. > :35:35.getting the right deal for Europe. When we have been told by the

:35:36. > :35:40.Liberal Democrats that they want to, the SNP, the Scottish Nationalists,

:35:41. > :35:43.saying they would vote against us, legislating to leave the European

:35:44. > :35:48.Union, I felt it was important that the country is united. You are

:35:49. > :35:55.blaming the opposition for your change of mind. You have changed my

:35:56. > :35:59.Ofcom you are now saying exactly the opposite and it is only a matter of

:36:00. > :36:06.weeks ago that you said in Scotland now is not the time, you said. All

:36:07. > :36:09.of our energies should be focused on the European Union. Everything you

:36:10. > :36:14.just ascribe you knew when you said that. We are now going to be up to

:36:15. > :36:16.do I believe that this election is strengthen our position in terms of

:36:17. > :36:27.our negotiations with the European Union. Why? I think people have a

:36:28. > :36:35.unity of purpose. The public want us to deliver on leaving the European

:36:36. > :36:39.Union and then want us to build that stronger union, it gives us that

:36:40. > :36:42.opportunity for stability and certainty.

:36:43. > :36:44.Labour MPs have been told they will be automatically

:36:45. > :36:46.re-selected as candidates to fight the general election

:36:47. > :36:51.Jeremy Corbyn told a meeting of Labour Mps last night

:36:52. > :36:53.that he didn't under-estimate the challenge ahead,

:36:54. > :36:55.but welcomed the chance to give British voters an alternative

:36:56. > :37:02.Prince William has revealed that the shock of his mother's

:37:03. > :37:05.death is still with him, 20 years after Princess

:37:06. > :37:08.The Duke of Cambridge made the comments in a BBC documentary

:37:09. > :37:11.which follows a group of runners with mental health problems

:37:12. > :37:13.who are training to run the London marathon

:37:14. > :37:16.I still feel 20 years later, about my mother,

:37:17. > :37:21.20 years later, people think shock cannot last that long but it does.

:37:22. > :37:25.It's such an unbelievably big moment in your life

:37:26. > :37:30.that it never leaves you, you just learn to deal with it.

:37:31. > :37:32.President Trump has signed an executive order designed to curb

:37:33. > :37:35.abuses of a long-standing visa programme which he says

:37:36. > :37:37.will encourage companies to 'buy American and hire American'.

:37:38. > :37:39.Mr Trump said widespread abuse of the immigration system

:37:40. > :37:41.was allowing US workers to be replaced by people brought

:37:42. > :37:44.in from other countries to fill the same job for sometimes less

:37:45. > :37:53.The former American President, George Bush Senior, is in hospital

:37:54. > :38:04.His spokesman said he had a mild case of pneumonia but was in "good

:38:05. > :38:08.The 92-year-old was treated in hospital in January for more

:38:09. > :38:09.than two weeks for the same illness.

:38:10. > :38:13.Police have named a man they want to speak to about a suspected acid

:38:14. > :38:18.Arthur Collins is wanted for questioning after a corrosive liquid

:38:19. > :38:20.was sprayed during an argument in the early hours

:38:21. > :38:25.An asteroid as big as the Rock of Gibraltar

:38:26. > :38:35.Nasa say it will get 'uncomfortably close' to earth,

:38:36. > :38:40.It's the largest asteroid to come this near us since 2004 -

:38:41. > :38:45.but it'll still be about a million miles away.

:38:46. > :38:52.That's a summary of the latest BBC News - more at 10.00.

:38:53. > :39:00.Leicester's incredible Champions League journey is over after their

:39:01. > :39:06.quarterfinal defeat against Atletico Madrid last night, trailing 1-0 from

:39:07. > :39:11.the first leg, sounding as head of the Spaniards in front. Jamie Vardy

:39:12. > :39:16.-- Saul Niguez headed the Spaniard in front, Jamie Vardy equalised but

:39:17. > :39:20.they lose 2-1. Back to business as usual for Craig Shakespeare's site.

:39:21. > :39:24.Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat-trick to take a Champions League tally to

:39:25. > :39:27.100 goals as holders will Madrid is past ten man Bayern Munich in extra

:39:28. > :39:30.time for them to reach the semifinals. Elsewhere, Warren

:39:31. > :39:37.Gatland names is British and Irish Lions squad at midday today.

:39:38. > :39:40.England's captain Dylan Hartley set to miss out. Welshman Sam Warburton

:39:41. > :39:48.expected to be confirmed as captain with the shock inclusion said to be

:39:49. > :39:53.Jamie Roberts. Adam Peaty booked his place at the 2017 world British

:39:54. > :39:56.championship is with victory at the British Championships in Sheffield.

:39:57. > :39:59.He took the British 100 metres brushstroke title last night and

:40:00. > :40:15.gave his medal away to a young fan in the crowd. -- brushstroke.

:40:16. > :40:24.For a much looking forward to getting in touch. There was likely

:40:25. > :40:30.to be a general election on the 8th of June, we have the wait for a

:40:31. > :40:33.vote. According to our political guru, Norman Smith, a majority will

:40:34. > :40:37.vote to have a general election in a few weeks' time. Damian Green is

:40:38. > :40:41.here, the Work and Pensions Secretary. You have known Theresa

:40:42. > :40:46.May the years and years, why is she undermining her reputation as a

:40:47. > :40:50.woman of her word? She isn't, she said very openly that she changed

:40:51. > :40:55.her mind, she did not want to have an open early general election but

:40:56. > :40:59.it became apparent that the negotiations for Brexit required, it

:41:00. > :41:03.would make Britain's position stronger and would enable us to get

:41:04. > :41:07.a better deal if she had a new strong mandate to ensure that the

:41:08. > :41:10.British people had spoken and when we go into those negotiations with

:41:11. > :41:14.the other European countries, she has the strongest possible mandate

:41:15. > :41:19.to lead us into those. Why are you assuming you are going to win? I am

:41:20. > :41:25.not assuming. She would not be calling an election if she thought

:41:26. > :41:29.she was not going to win. We are confident, but everyone vote counts.

:41:30. > :41:32.Elections and referendums have thrown up some unexpected results of

:41:33. > :41:37.the past, so we will be fighting for every vote because every vote will

:41:38. > :41:40.give a stronger leadership after the election, which will be better for

:41:41. > :41:45.Britain in those Brexit negotiations. You have known her

:41:46. > :41:49.since university, I think. Is this the most spectacular U-turn you have

:41:50. > :41:54.ever seen her mate? It is the biggest decision any Prime Minister

:41:55. > :41:58.can have to make. She has explained why she reluctantly changed her

:41:59. > :42:02.mind. But as you terms go, all the time you have known her, as is the

:42:03. > :42:07.biggest one? This is the biggest decision anyone could ever take. If

:42:08. > :42:11.you aspire to be Prime Minister, the biggest decision you can take is to

:42:12. > :42:16.hold a general election. And she could have done that in 2020 as she

:42:17. > :42:21.said numerous times. It shows she is strong, she is capable of changing

:42:22. > :42:27.her mind when the facts change. That is what she has done. It shows that

:42:28. > :42:30.she is a leader who is prepared to take difficult, tough and strong

:42:31. > :42:35.decisions in the interest of the country because it will clearly be

:42:36. > :42:38.good for Britain to have a leader with a strong mandate. We have a

:42:39. > :42:41.small majority in the House of Commons, we hope we have a bigger

:42:42. > :42:46.majority after the election and that will make us as a country stronger

:42:47. > :42:49.in those Brexit negotiations. Who should people vote for in this

:42:50. > :42:53.general election if they voted remain last year? They should vote

:42:54. > :42:59.Conservative. I voted remain last year. Nobody campaigned harder than

:43:00. > :43:02.I did. The patriotic duty now is to make sure that the British people

:43:03. > :43:05.are spoken, we are going to leave the European Union. What really

:43:06. > :43:10.matters now is that we get the best deal possible so we have the close

:43:11. > :43:13.partnership with the rest of Europe from the outside that the Prime

:43:14. > :43:16.Minister has set out in her speeches. Thank you very much for

:43:17. > :43:20.your time, thank you per waiting, we are grateful for your patience,

:43:21. > :43:25.Damian Green, the Work and Pensions Secretary. For those who voted

:43:26. > :43:31.remain, who speaks for you now? The Liberal Democrats. They are the only

:43:32. > :43:34.party, the only major national party, who is standing up for people

:43:35. > :43:39.who voted remain, who want to keep us in the single market, who want to

:43:40. > :43:48.guarantee the rights of EU citizens of this country. While 76% of Labour

:43:49. > :43:52.MPs voted for a hard Brexit, it is only the Liberal Democrats who are

:43:53. > :43:57.keeping that vision. No one is representing us, no one is doing us

:43:58. > :43:59.justice. I agree, there is clear blue water between the Liberal

:44:00. > :44:04.Democrats and Labour and the Tory party but no one is really

:44:05. > :44:07.representing us. It is just in a Myers of ambiguity around where we

:44:08. > :44:15.are, there is no real clarity the difference. We are leaving, so let's

:44:16. > :44:19.move on and choose people who can make is make good decisions. No

:44:20. > :44:24.political expedience got us here, it won't carry us out of there and that

:44:25. > :44:27.is what we are being represented by. Tory politician saying the same old

:44:28. > :44:30.line about strong leadership and she has changed her mind. That is

:44:31. > :44:36.political expedience that gave us Brexit in the first place. It is an

:44:37. > :44:41.absolute shocker. A my as matter of ambiguity, I like it. In the middle

:44:42. > :44:49.of this miasma of ambiguity, I am going to introduce a more guests.

:44:50. > :44:53.Lining up very formally. It is not an ID parade. Not guilty! If you

:44:54. > :44:59.wouldn't mind introducing yourself to our voters. Tom Brake, Liberal

:45:00. > :45:03.Democrat member of Parliament, the foreign affairs spokesman and Chief

:45:04. > :45:09.Whip with the Liberal Democrats. Stephen Kane, Labour MP. Caroline

:45:10. > :45:16.Lucas, co-leader of the green party. Iain Duncan

:45:17. > :45:24.-- Iain Duncan Smith. Peter Little, deputy leader of Ukip. A slight

:45:25. > :45:29.technical issue, a lot of you, and one microphone. Please invade each

:45:30. > :45:38.other's body space if you don't mind. For those who voted remain,

:45:39. > :45:39.Tom Brake, you are the great white hope in this election. Is this the

:45:40. > :45:46.start of the Lib Dem comeback? I hope so, the Prime Minister chose

:45:47. > :45:50.to fight this on the ground the Liberal Democrats want to fight it

:45:51. > :45:54.on. She will pursue a higher Brexit and we think that is the wrong

:45:55. > :45:57.approach and that is the key focus of this campaign. However, for us it

:45:58. > :46:00.will not be the exclusive focus because I think the second issue

:46:01. > :46:03.people are really worried about at the moment is the future of the

:46:04. > :46:06.National Health Service and the underfunded, threats to hospitals

:46:07. > :46:11.and waiting times going up so it's not just going to be about Brexit.

:46:12. > :46:15.We keep using soft and hard Brexit, what do you mean about hard Brexit?

:46:16. > :46:20.Hard Brexit would take us out of the Single Market, out of the customs

:46:21. > :46:23.union and puts at risk millions of jobs in Britain but in the

:46:24. > :46:31.livelihoods of millions of people at risk. All right, Kinnock, of Labour,

:46:32. > :46:34.what is one of the reasons Mrs May has been able to cool this election

:46:35. > :46:38.because of the weakness of your party? This is an exercise in

:46:39. > :46:42.opportunism. Nothing to do with their weakness of Labour? Ran

:46:43. > :46:47.merrily because Mrs May couldn't handle the factionalism in her

:46:48. > :46:51.party, she has 30 or 40 pro Remain Tory MPs she didn't feel she could

:46:52. > :46:55.keep the discipline on and that is why once again we see a Conservative

:46:56. > :46:59.leader putting party before country. We saw it with David Cameron who

:47:00. > :47:06.cold a referendum that he didn't want, took the European Union by

:47:07. > :47:12.accident, and a total failure of leadership again from the

:47:13. > :47:16.Conservatives. We were told many times they would not be a snap

:47:17. > :47:21.election and now because she is opportunity stick she sees an

:47:22. > :47:27.opportunity to discipline her party -- she is opportunistic. In this

:47:28. > :47:31.turbulent time after the Brexit referendum. Is Steven connect right

:47:32. > :47:35.after Dominic in that assessment? I will not agree with Stephen over

:47:36. > :47:41.that, the reality is it is right to hold this election now. It is about

:47:42. > :47:46.her own fortunes rather than the future of the country. Hang on,

:47:47. > :47:49.we're just about to embark on a huge negotiation with the European Union

:47:50. > :47:53.and a huge bill going through domestically which will be

:47:54. > :47:58.incredibly complex. It is right for her to ask the country if this is

:47:59. > :48:02.the leadership you want. You made the decision to lead Dominic Grieve,

:48:03. > :48:07.who do you want to take you through that process domestic Leander

:48:08. > :48:11.nationally? It would be Theresa May, the Prime Minister, her job, people

:48:12. > :48:14.are saying get on with it. Nothing much will happen in the next month

:48:15. > :48:19.and a half because France is having their election. Not now because we

:48:20. > :48:27.are having an election! France is having their own election and they

:48:28. > :48:31.will be no discussions. Terrible language I apologise! There is

:48:32. > :48:34.always one, I do apologise. Why is it all right for Theresa May to say

:48:35. > :48:37.in Nicola Sturgeon in Scotland now is not the time for a second

:48:38. > :48:41.independence referendum but apparently it is the to have a

:48:42. > :48:44.General Election? We want to get through Brexit and after Brexit they

:48:45. > :48:50.can discuss whether Scotland stays in the UK in a referendum. The

:48:51. > :48:54.reason was to concentrate on Brexit negotiations. We will concentrate on

:48:55. > :48:58.Brexit negotiations. This is the key... Hold on a second, let me have

:48:59. > :49:02.a chance to speak. The reality for Theresa is she wasn't elected as

:49:03. > :49:09.Prime Minister. We have had a huge vote over Brexit, the public decided

:49:10. > :49:13.to leave and it is right, with the accusations thrown at her by the

:49:14. > :49:17.Liberals and Labour and the Lords said you did have a mandate to push

:49:18. > :49:20.this through, it is right to have an election to say if you want this

:49:21. > :49:24.leadership and what I've set out already as my plan and you vote for

:49:25. > :49:27.that then I will have a strong position when I negotiate with the

:49:28. > :49:30.European Union and a strong position here to tell the Lords to get on

:49:31. > :49:43.with it. By the way this hard and soft Brexit is total nonsense. We

:49:44. > :49:46.are in a negotiation with the European Union and they have made it

:49:47. > :49:49.clear to us we are not staying in the Single Market so we have to

:49:50. > :49:51.negotiate a new trade deal. The idea you can certainly say, I tell you

:49:52. > :49:55.what, we want to stay in the Single Market so we can, they don't want us

:49:56. > :49:58.to and have already said we weren't so we are not going to do it so

:49:59. > :50:00.let's grow up on this one. I am hearing some disagreement, are you

:50:01. > :50:02.being immature on this, Iain Duncan-Smith says grow up. There was

:50:03. > :50:08.nothing about the Single Market, customs union and environmental

:50:09. > :50:14.protection in the manifesto. We are coming out of the EU but there is no

:50:15. > :50:20.clear destination which is the reason why it is right to have an

:50:21. > :50:24.election. Theresa May might be being opportunistic but the only way to

:50:25. > :50:27.fight against extreme form of Brexit she is pursuing for which she

:50:28. > :50:33.doesn't have a mandate and also alternatives for the incredibly

:50:34. > :50:37.damaging social policies she is pursuing. We will have 5 million

:50:38. > :50:42.children facing poverty, and food parcels being given out and that is

:50:43. > :50:46.a shame and DStv right people want to have an alternative. -- it is

:50:47. > :50:50.right. Peter Whittle, good morning. It is either about Theresa May or

:50:51. > :50:55.Jeremy Corbyn, not Paul Nuttall of Ukip. I would agree with what has

:50:56. > :51:00.been said, this has hugely been a cynical way of doing it. It is all

:51:01. > :51:04.about winning the Tory party first and the interests of the Tory party

:51:05. > :51:07.over the country. But having said that it is happening so we are

:51:08. > :51:11.excited to be giving people the chance to vote for us. Who would you

:51:12. > :51:16.prefer, Theresa May or Jeremy Corbyn? I don't play that game at

:51:17. > :51:20.all. It is not a game, it is either Theresa May or Jeremy Corbyn, so

:51:21. > :51:24.which one? You don't have a preference? You don't mind? Not

:51:25. > :51:29.given that preference, absolutely not. That is the realistic choice,

:51:30. > :51:33.it's not about Paul Nuttall of Ukip. What it is about as my party needs

:51:34. > :51:36.to put the agenda for political action as discussion in this country

:51:37. > :51:39.and it still is doing that and we are going to be doing that during

:51:40. > :51:43.this election campaign, talking not just about Brexit and the fact that

:51:44. > :51:47.for example the Tory government has said virtually nothing about its

:51:48. > :51:51.plans for migration, one of the biggest reasons people voted to

:51:52. > :51:54.leave the EU, we had even heard migration levels might go on at

:51:55. > :51:57.these levels for ten years. In other words there is no assurances on that

:51:58. > :52:05.forced up we will see what happens in the Conservative manifesto, the

:52:06. > :52:09.promise to reduce migration down to the tens of thousands. Is this

:52:10. > :52:13.election about Brexit or a second independence vote for Scotland or

:52:14. > :52:17.ever issues, all of those? Good points have been made in the sense

:52:18. > :52:21.that the EU referendum was about David Cameron trying to get the Tory

:52:22. > :52:24.awkward squad into shape and this General Election about Theresa May

:52:25. > :52:29.trying to get the Tory awkward squad into shape. Parliamentary scrutiny

:52:30. > :52:32.is a good thing and people from different political parties can put

:52:33. > :52:35.in different good ideas. We are about to go through the biggest

:52:36. > :52:38.upheaval people will ever go through, it will impact the

:52:39. > :52:41.environment, rights and opportunities for young people and

:52:42. > :52:44.through that process you should have a strong sense of Parliament to

:52:45. > :52:48.scrutiny and Theresa May is terrified of that, she won't even

:52:49. > :52:52.debate with anybody, never mind give anybody that say in Parliament. This

:52:53. > :52:58.is about a Tory civil war rather than any sense of democratic

:52:59. > :53:01.process. The SNP did so well in the General Election last time the

:53:02. > :53:04.Mayfest lead back a bit you would expect opponents to say, support for

:53:05. > :53:13.a second independence vote is waning. You would be extraordinary

:53:14. > :53:15.to say winning 95% of the seats is the only way to win a General

:53:16. > :53:20.Election. Matas see how the Tories get on with that. Wheeze provide

:53:21. > :53:23.strong opposition and a voice for Scotland in Westminster and we have

:53:24. > :53:29.provided a strong voice for Scotland and that is what we will campaign

:53:30. > :53:33.on. -- we provide strong opposition and a voice for Scotland. Thank you

:53:34. > :53:37.all for joining us. We had a representative from Ukip,

:53:38. > :53:45.the SNP, the Greens, the Conservatives, the Lib Dems and from

:53:46. > :53:50.Labour. And what times it now? It is coming up to 9:55am so we will bring

:53:51. > :53:55.you the latest news and sport at 10am. We have a selection of voters

:53:56. > :54:00.here, thank you for joining us this morning. We also have, do come in.

:54:01. > :54:04.What we call pundits. I hope you don't mind me describing is that.

:54:05. > :54:12.Anushka Asthana, political editor of the Guardian, Jo-Anne Nadler,

:54:13. > :54:15.political author and chief political correspondent at the Brussels-based

:54:16. > :54:19.European affairs weekly newspaper Politico. Why has she called the

:54:20. > :54:24.selection in your view? I think two reasons, first of all there is

:54:25. > :54:28.hugely dumb are clearly a huge poll lead she can take advantage of and

:54:29. > :54:31.get the big majority. Why does she want that? She has a lot of

:54:32. > :54:33.legislation to get through, not just the Great Repeal Bill but a whole

:54:34. > :54:38.load of other pieces of legislation linked to Brexit, and frankly she

:54:39. > :54:41.doesn't want to be in a position where she is struggling to get any

:54:42. > :54:45.of that through and where she has to play games both with the Remainer is

:54:46. > :54:53.on her backbenchers but also with the hardline Brexiteers. What do you

:54:54. > :54:58.think? She needs a majority. She has 17, isn't that enough? Not when you

:54:59. > :55:01.have 60 on the backbenches who are organised on a WhatsApp group

:55:02. > :55:04.telling each other we need to keep her feet to the fire on Brexit so

:55:05. > :55:07.she must keep them on side and on the other side she has the

:55:08. > :55:13.pro-Europeans who are small in number but can still cause damage,

:55:14. > :55:16.5-10 of those. What is your view? She needs political legitimacy and

:55:17. > :55:21.accountability and without a mandate from the public it is difficult for

:55:22. > :55:25.her to argue she has that. She is also Conservative leader who wasn't

:55:26. > :55:29.voted for by the Conservative Party which is relatively unusual in

:55:30. > :55:34.modern times. I think she's doing the right thing here. OK, in

:55:35. > :55:39.Brussels, your newspaper, that's where you report from, is an

:55:40. > :55:43.increased majority if she gets it going to help her in the Brexit

:55:44. > :55:47.negotiations? I don't think it will help her with the European partners,

:55:48. > :55:50.it will help domestic league. In Brussels they are aware of that and

:55:51. > :55:54.quite happy about it because Theresa May is seen as somebody they can

:55:55. > :56:00.deal with, they can work with her, they like her, she is seen as a hard

:56:01. > :56:04.negotiator but a grown-up. They are more concerned about Boris and

:56:05. > :56:06.Eurosceptics on her right flank. Boris Johnson, the Foreign

:56:07. > :56:12.Secretary. What sort of campaign will it be? She made clear she

:56:13. > :56:16.wanted it to be about leadership and that will be about contrast in

:56:17. > :56:21.herself to Jeremy Corbyn. They will do what they did in 2015 which was

:56:22. > :56:25.effective, they will say it will be a 1-party Tory government or a

:56:26. > :56:30.coalition in which Jeremy Corbyn will be propped up by the SNP.

:56:31. > :56:34.During the 2015 election that message was the single most powerful

:56:35. > :56:38.message on doorsteps. A lot of that, I am told, they don't want to get

:56:39. > :56:42.too personal about Jeremy Corbyn but I'm sure they have it in their back

:56:43. > :56:48.pocket. If Lynton Crosby will be involved again, the arch Tory

:56:49. > :56:52.strategist, he doesn't know -- he knows how to run a negative

:56:53. > :56:56.campaign. What kind of campaign do you think it will be? It will be

:56:57. > :57:01.dominated by Brexit. Will it be down and dirty or will it be a clean

:57:02. > :57:04.fight? I think Theresa May will hold herself above the fray and want to

:57:05. > :57:11.be talking about domestic issues as well is about Brexit. She does have

:57:12. > :57:14.an agenda of her own and we heard a bit about that when she was first

:57:15. > :57:18.elected but it has somewhat disappeared with all the talk about

:57:19. > :57:23.Brexit over the last ten months. She will want to keep it very much on

:57:24. > :57:26.the issues. Whether other people choose to make it about personality

:57:27. > :57:31.it will be hard to resist that for some of them, I suspect. Is it going

:57:32. > :57:34.to be a bit of a rerun of the referendum vote last year? There

:57:35. > :57:38.will be an element of that but like Anushka Asthana said it will be a

:57:39. > :57:42.2015 rerun but probably on steroids, there is no way this is not getting

:57:43. > :57:46.down and dirty. They have a list of things Jeremy Corbyn has said over

:57:47. > :57:53.his 30 years in here from being friends with Hamas to his support

:57:54. > :57:56.for getting rid of the nuclear deterrent. These will be trotted out

:57:57. > :58:01.endlessly over the next six weeks. They have employed so Lynton Crosby

:58:02. > :58:05.who was effective in 2015, less in the London mayoral contest. What

:58:06. > :58:10.difference will that make? Talking about being above the fray. I will

:58:11. > :58:16.pause you there because we are going to it out for our viewers on BBC

:58:17. > :58:19.Two. That is where you will see the World Snooker Championship in a

:58:20. > :58:23.moment. I apologise for cutting you off mid-flow. If you want to carry

:58:24. > :58:26.on watching our programme, switch to the BBC News channel where coming up

:58:27. > :58:30.in the next half an hour we will hear much more from our audience of

:58:31. > :58:34.voters and from you, wherever you are in the country get in touch, if

:58:35. > :58:51.you are tweeting news #Victoria live.

:58:52. > :59:45.cool start to the day, so this poster art, it has

:59:46. > :59:50.into Friday the weather front starts to work into Scotland, Northern

:59:51. > :59:55.Ireland, bringing outbreaks of rain, over the hills, introducing cold

:59:56. > :59:59.air. While you have sunny spells in the South, with that lighter winds

:00:00. > :00:03.and temperatures may be reaching 17 or 18. The cold front will work

:00:04. > :00:07.southwards into the weekend and temperatures will drop once again.

:00:08. > :00:25.More updates later on the BBC News channel but now back to Victoria.

:00:26. > :00:27.We're at Westminster where MPs are expected to vote this afternoon

:00:28. > :00:35.to back Theresa May's call for a snap general election in June.

:00:36. > :00:40.Division in Westminster will risk our ability to make a strong Brexit

:00:41. > :00:44.and it will risk damage and instability to the country, so we

:00:45. > :00:46.need a general election, and we need one now.

:00:47. > :00:53.With us this morning - an audience of 20 or so voters who've

:00:54. > :00:56.told us exactly what they think of the snap election.

:00:57. > :01:00.It's just a bit disingenuous to present it as this amazing

:01:01. > :01:03.opportunity, which everyone is fully energised by. We are tired but we

:01:04. > :01:09.just understand it needs to happen. Lopes get it done and see what

:01:10. > :01:12.happens. Pressure causes people to sort themselves out, and tidy up

:01:13. > :01:15.their shop and clean out their house, so maybe this is an

:01:16. > :01:21.opportunity for the opposition to get themselves together. No one is

:01:22. > :01:23.representing us, it is a miasma of ambiguity around it, there is no

:01:24. > :01:25.real clarity around the difference. Over the next hour -

:01:26. > :01:27.we'll look in particular at what the eleciton could mean

:01:28. > :01:30.for Scotland and for Labour - and, as always, really

:01:31. > :01:33.keen to hear from you - if you're tweeting use

:01:34. > :01:38.the hashtag VictoriaLIVE We haven't read any of your comments

:01:39. > :01:51.so far, but I promise we will when I have found my phone!

:01:52. > :01:55.Let's bring you the latest BBC news with Joanna.

:01:56. > :01:59.The Prime Minister has denied claims of political opportunism

:02:00. > :02:02.and insisted that it's in the national interest to hold

:02:03. > :02:05.MPs are expected to approve the Prime Minister's plan

:02:06. > :02:15.Speaking this morning, Mrs May said going to the country

:02:16. > :02:18.Speaking this morning, Mrs May said going to the country now,

:02:19. > :02:20.rather than in 2020, meant the government would be able

:02:21. > :02:28.to focus on Brexit negotiations for the next couple of few years.

:02:29. > :02:32.No politician wants to go into an election just for the sake

:02:33. > :02:36.I have taken this decision because I genuinely believe

:02:37. > :02:40.You described me earlier as someone who likes to roll up my sleeves

:02:41. > :02:44.I do, but I also want to take the right decisions,

:02:45. > :02:46.and the right decisions for the UK in the long-term.

:02:47. > :02:49.Labour MPs have been told they will be automatically

:02:50. > :02:51.re-selected as candidates to fight the general election

:02:52. > :02:54.Jeremy Corbyn told a meeting of Labour MPs last night

:02:55. > :02:56.that he didn't under-estimate the challenge ahead,

:02:57. > :02:58.but welcomed the chance to give British voters an alternative

:02:59. > :03:02.Prince William has revealed that the shock of his mother's

:03:03. > :03:04.death is still with him, 20 years after Princess

:03:05. > :03:08.The Duke of Cambridge made the comments in a BBC documentary

:03:09. > :03:11.which follows a group of runners with mental health problems

:03:12. > :03:13.who are training to run the London marathon

:03:14. > :03:18.I still feel 20 years later, about my mother,

:03:19. > :03:27.20 years later, people think shock cannot last that long but it does.

:03:28. > :03:34.It's such an unbelievably big moment in your life

:03:35. > :03:37.that it never leaves you, you just learn to deal with it.

:03:38. > :03:39.President Trump has signed an executive order designed to curb

:03:40. > :03:41.abuses of a long-standing visa programme which he says

:03:42. > :03:44.will encourage companies to 'buy American and hire American'.

:03:45. > :03:46.Mr Trump said widespread abuse of the immigration system

:03:47. > :03:48.was allowing US workers to be replaced by people brought

:03:49. > :03:51.in from other countries to fill the same job for sometimes less

:03:52. > :03:57.Police have named a man they want to speak to about a suspected acid

:03:58. > :04:03.Arthur Collins is wanted for questioning after a corrosive liquid

:04:04. > :04:06.was sprayed during an argument in the early hours

:04:07. > :04:11.An asteroid as big as the Rock of Gibraltar

:04:12. > :04:18.Nasa say it will get 'uncomfortably close' to earth,

:04:19. > :04:23.It's the largest asteroid to come this near us since 2004 -

:04:24. > :04:25.but it'll still be about a million miles away.

:04:26. > :04:32.That's a summary of the latest BBC News - more at 10.00.

:04:33. > :04:43.Leicester's manager Craig Shakespeare has challenged the club

:04:44. > :04:48.to reach the Champions League again after their quarterfinal defeat to

:04:49. > :04:50.Atletico Madrid last night. The Premier League champions were the

:04:51. > :04:57.last arriving English team in the competition. But it was an uphill

:04:58. > :04:59.task. Saul Nigez headed the

:05:00. > :05:01.Spanish side in front. Jamie Vardy equalised

:05:02. > :05:12.for the Premier League champions It was the Spanish side who

:05:13. > :05:17.progressed to the semifinals with a 2-1 aggregate win. They are very

:05:18. > :05:20.disappointed in there but ultimately I have said to them they can be

:05:21. > :05:23.proud of what they have achieved. As a football club we can be proud of

:05:24. > :05:26.how we have conducted ourselves and how we have gone about it. But they

:05:27. > :05:32.should want more of this because ultimately all players want to play

:05:33. > :05:35.at the highest level, and the Champions League is the highest

:05:36. > :05:41.level, but we have to get back to winning ways in the Premier League

:05:42. > :05:45.now. For Craig Shakespeare and Leicester's players, it is back to

:05:46. > :05:50.business as usual after an amazing European journey that saw them beat

:05:51. > :05:54.Club Brugge, Porto, FC Copenhagen and Sevilla. We tried our best. We

:05:55. > :05:57.needed to get three goals and Indian Runner could only get one but a big

:05:58. > :06:05.effort from the boys and was a good game. We score that one, I had a

:06:06. > :06:08.feeling that we were going to do it. Maybe a couple of chances after that

:06:09. > :06:16.going, and I feel like we would have done it. We gave our alter that

:06:17. > :06:21.game. We have lost the game over two legs but the lads were terrific

:06:22. > :06:24.tonight and deserved more. We were disappointed to go out of the

:06:25. > :06:26.competition, it has been a great journey but it is over now and we

:06:27. > :06:31.have to focus on the league. Warren Gatland names his British

:06:32. > :06:33.and Irish Lions squad at midday today for this summer's tour

:06:34. > :06:36.of New Zealand. Welshman Sam Warburton is set to be

:06:37. > :06:38.confirmed as Lions captain for the second time with Wales

:06:39. > :06:41.centre Jamie Roberts expected England captain Dylan Hartley

:06:42. > :06:44.is set to miss out. Welshman Sam Warburton is set to be

:06:45. > :06:47.confirmed as Lions captain for the second time with Wales

:06:48. > :06:49.centre Jamie Roberts expected Let's go back to Victoria at

:06:50. > :06:56.Westminster. Poli good morning, hello, it is

:06:57. > :07:00.Wednesday morning, we are at Westminster, it is bright and sunny

:07:01. > :07:04.and hot, in my winter jacket. Last time I was here on college green, we

:07:05. > :07:10.froze, so we thought we would wrap up today. Obviously we are talking

:07:11. > :07:14.about a general election, likely to be on the 8th of June. Today MPs in

:07:15. > :07:18.the Commons will vote on whether they want that general election to

:07:19. > :07:21.take place. According to our political guru, Norman Smith, the

:07:22. > :07:22.majority will back the call of Theresa May.

:07:23. > :07:25.If this election is to be a referendum on Brexit in much

:07:26. > :07:28.of the UK, then in Scotland it will be dominated by arguments over

:07:29. > :07:32.whether there should be another referendum on Scottish independence.

:07:33. > :07:35.You will have heard what Nicola Sturgeon said yesterday.

:07:36. > :07:38.SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon claims Theresa May has made a "huge

:07:39. > :07:41.political miscalculation" in calling a snap election - but is she right,

:07:42. > :07:43.and what could this election mean for Scotland's future?

:07:44. > :07:45.We can speak now to Alistair Carmichael,

:07:46. > :07:47.Liberal Democrat for Orkney and Shetland - the Lib Dems

:07:48. > :07:53.-- let's speak to Lorna Gordon in Edinburgh. It is interesting you say

:07:54. > :07:58.most MPs are likely to back that vote today. Not the SNP. The SNP MPs

:07:59. > :08:03.met last night to discuss their position and they are likely to

:08:04. > :08:09.abstain, we are told, in the vote today. Remember the SNP are the

:08:10. > :08:14.dominant force in Scottish politics, they have the rump of the seats with

:08:15. > :08:18.a won 56 seats in the last general election, all but three of

:08:19. > :08:23.Scotland's constituencies. Their big challenge this time around is to

:08:24. > :08:26.repeat that phenomenal success. You can see they are positioning

:08:27. > :08:31.already, the SNP saying they are the party to stand up for Scotland. Alex

:08:32. > :08:36.Salmond, their former leader, arguing this is all about opposing

:08:37. > :08:39.what he calls the hard right agenda of the Conservatives. Yes, they will

:08:40. > :08:46.argue that a strong showing would reinforce their calls for a second

:08:47. > :08:53.independence referendum. That referendum also a topic of, session

:08:54. > :08:56.among the Unionist parties. Theresa May in an article in the Scotsman

:08:57. > :09:00.this morning explicitly dealing with what she sees as a challenge and

:09:01. > :09:06.saying this is a chance to stand up for the United Kingdom. Saying it

:09:07. > :09:09.would send a vote for the Conservatives, a clear message of

:09:10. > :09:15.opposition to what she calls the SN People's Bank divisive plans for a

:09:16. > :09:18.second independence vote. It is a general election, some domestic

:09:19. > :09:24.issues may be in play, maybe a bit about Brexit as well but inevitably

:09:25. > :09:33.here in Scotland it will all be about the independence issue,

:09:34. > :09:36.independent union, going forward. Thank you very much. Let me

:09:37. > :09:38.introduce you to various guests. We can speak now to

:09:39. > :09:40.Alistair Carmichael, Liberal Democrat for Orkney

:09:41. > :09:42.and Shetland - the Lib Dems only MP in Scotland -

:09:43. > :09:52.who was Scotland Secretary That seems an awfully long time ago

:09:53. > :09:53.now. A lot has happened. I distinctly remember it fondly.

:09:54. > :09:55.Ian Murray, Labour MP for Edinburgh South -

:09:56. > :09:58.Labour's only MP in Scotland - who was shadow Scotland

:09:59. > :10:01.Hannah Bardell SNP MP for Livingston, who's also the SNP's

:10:02. > :10:06.And Craig Williams, Conservative MP who sits

:10:07. > :10:18.Mrs May says now is not the time for a second independence vote, because

:10:19. > :10:22.as a country we need to concentrate on the Brexit negotiations, so why

:10:23. > :10:25.is at the time for a general election? She set out very clearly

:10:26. > :10:33.yesterday about the need for strong leadership for the whole of Britain.

:10:34. > :10:41.She doesn't need a general election for that? Why not? I agree with the

:10:42. > :10:44.second in the vote, I agree that we had one, it was a once in a

:10:45. > :10:49.generation opportunity and that has been an awfully small generation.

:10:50. > :10:56.But a general election is not a distraction? It will give Theresa

:10:57. > :10:59.May that strong mandate. As a Welsh MP I believe strongly in that union

:11:00. > :11:07.and I think that will feature very strongly. Is that logical to you, as

:11:08. > :11:14.an SNP MP? Absolutely not. We are having this imposed upon us, as we

:11:15. > :11:17.did with Brexit. Scotland voted to remain overwhelmingly. We have also

:11:18. > :11:21.said this is not the time for a Scottish independence referendum. We

:11:22. > :11:25.have said once been over details of Brexit, when people can make a

:11:26. > :11:29.reasoned and sensible choice, which to be quite frank I cannot at the

:11:30. > :11:32.moment. Michael Gove was on the programme earlier, you did not have

:11:33. > :11:36.any clear answers as to why the Prime Minister has changed her mind,

:11:37. > :11:40.it is blatant opportunism. She has seen a weak Labour Party, seen the

:11:41. > :11:45.polls, and decided now is the time to go for it. A third of Scotland's

:11:46. > :11:52.nationalist voters backed leave. What is the SNP's vision Brexit? We

:11:53. > :11:55.set our vision out very clearly. It was about Scotland having access to

:11:56. > :11:58.the single market, having that membership, having a very strong

:11:59. > :12:02.voice in Europe but still remaining in the UK and Theresa May was

:12:03. > :12:05.unwilling to give that decent consideration. This is a party that

:12:06. > :12:09.had no plan going into Brexit and it has no plan if there is no deal. She

:12:10. > :12:13.just seems to change her mind with the weather. How can she be trusted

:12:14. > :12:19.to lead this country? How can she be trusted? I think she will set out

:12:20. > :12:23.her stall, she will be trusted because she is going to the country

:12:24. > :12:27.to say to them, trust me, give us a verdict. She cannot be fairer than

:12:28. > :12:30.to go to the whole of the United Kingdom to say give me the mandate

:12:31. > :12:35.to deliver this. That is how she will be trusted. It is an incredible

:12:36. > :12:38.mood for a Prime Minister with a majority, although a small working

:12:39. > :12:43.majority, to go to the country and you say it is time for that refresh

:12:44. > :12:48.mandate. Yes, you believe in my strong leadership for Britain and

:12:49. > :12:52.come back with that trust. An incredible U-turn. Yes, there is no

:12:53. > :12:56.way of doubt get, two weeks ago the Prime Minister was very clear that

:12:57. > :13:00.we were going to try and deliver the 2020, get Brexit delivered, get that

:13:01. > :13:03.good deal for Britain and now she is very clearly come out, fronted it

:13:04. > :13:10.herself, and said I have gone walking in Wales, brilliant that is,

:13:11. > :13:16.taken a sneaky look at the polls, why don't you just be honest about

:13:17. > :13:22.this! Anyone who knows where she was walking, Snowdonia in Wales, knows

:13:23. > :13:32.that she will not have been looking at her phone. She is running scared

:13:33. > :13:36.from the police. You can't be running scared and calling a general

:13:37. > :13:40.election. From the investigation into 30 members of your parliament.

:13:41. > :13:44.The Conservatives have always made it clear they will let the legal

:13:45. > :13:52.side of things take its due cause. Let me bring in Ian Murray and

:13:53. > :13:56.Alistair Carmichael. Labour in Scotland defending a single

:13:57. > :14:00.Westminster seat, yours. Yes, but I think what you'll have seen in the

:14:01. > :14:03.last 24 hours as you have a First Minister in Scotland and a Prime

:14:04. > :14:10.Minister at UK level whose first priority is to put party politics

:14:11. > :14:14.above the country. That is all about their ideology of making sure they

:14:15. > :14:30.put the party first. What is your vision for Brexit? To make sure we

:14:31. > :14:34.can have close accents. Hannah did not same bishop of the EU, she said

:14:35. > :14:39.membership close to the single market. We have a First Minister

:14:40. > :14:43.fighting for independence and a Prime Minister fighting to sort out

:14:44. > :14:47.her own party while Rome burns. They should both be ashamed of

:14:48. > :14:51.themselves. We need the country to be sorted out in terms of Brexit. It

:14:52. > :14:56.should be the number one primary to -- priority including the Prime

:14:57. > :15:00.Minister. She has gone for a general election that she promised she was

:15:01. > :15:06.not doing. She was already working on it, she has lied to the British

:15:07. > :15:10.public. It is a piece of colossal opportunism on the part of Theresa

:15:11. > :15:13.May. Only Theresa May can answer if it was a lie, I am saying it is

:15:14. > :15:18.opportunism. I don't think there is anything more that needs to be said

:15:19. > :15:21.about that. She was telling us for months this was the wrong thing to

:15:22. > :15:25.do, now it is not just the right thing to do, it is absolutely

:15:26. > :15:29.essential. But this is all yesterday's story. What we need to

:15:30. > :15:33.be talking about now is the issues in this election. In Scotland, yes,

:15:34. > :15:39.the determination of the SNP to break up the UK and have a second

:15:40. > :15:47.referendum will be at the heart of the debate, let's not get that. --

:15:48. > :15:51.kid that. Hannah is right in saying it is important that we remain part

:15:52. > :15:56.of the single market that is the European Union but at the same time

:15:57. > :16:00.it is so important that we should come out of the single market that

:16:01. > :16:04.is the United Kingdom. 15% of Scotland's exported goods go to the

:16:05. > :16:07.single market in the European Union. Over two thirds go to the single

:16:08. > :16:14.market that is the United Kingdom. OK. Polling suggests, we take for

:16:15. > :16:17.the caveats about it, and perhaps this general election is an

:16:18. > :16:20.opportunity for the pollsters to redeem their election a little,

:16:21. > :16:27.polling suggests a third of British people don't know who Tim Farron is.

:16:28. > :16:33.Do you want to tell audience? He is the new thing in British politics.

:16:34. > :16:38.The new thing? He is a remarkably fresh voice, somebody who has

:16:39. > :16:42.tremendous energy, genuinely committed liberal, and once he has

:16:43. > :16:46.the exposure that he will get as a leader in a general election

:16:47. > :16:49.campaign, you will find if you get the pollsters to ask that question

:16:50. > :16:54.again and it will be a very different story. I think Tim will be

:16:55. > :16:58.a fantastic advocate for liberal values in this election. Let's talk

:16:59. > :17:04.to voters, in terms of the fact that this is an opportunity for Nicola

:17:05. > :17:07.Sturgeon to really ramp up, to make this general election actually about

:17:08. > :17:11.a referendum on a second independence vote.

:17:12. > :17:17.I am a strong believer in countries having the right to decide their own

:17:18. > :17:21.future but the SNP is not Scotland, they had a poll on this before and

:17:22. > :17:24.poll after poll shows the Scottish people firstly would not vote for

:17:25. > :17:28.independence and don't actually want a second referendum at this point

:17:29. > :17:31.and I think it's the wrong thing to be talking about at the moment, we

:17:32. > :17:34.need to get Brexit sorted out and get a good deal for the country and

:17:35. > :17:41.then talk about that later down the line if you wanted. My name is Rhys

:17:42. > :17:46.Roberts and I am an SNP voter and I am Scottish and it's 50-50. There is

:17:47. > :17:52.a 50-50 split of do we want Scottish independence or not? Do you want a

:17:53. > :17:55.second vote? I believe there should be a second referendum but we need

:17:56. > :17:59.to have an understanding of what Brexit is and where the SNP go on

:18:00. > :18:03.from because there is no understanding and when you have the

:18:04. > :18:06.Scottish Secretary treating Scotland like a principality rather than a

:18:07. > :18:10.country that is when you start belittling a nation and sort of

:18:11. > :18:13.saying you will go with what we say whereas Scotland is a country,

:18:14. > :18:17.Scotland democratically voted for the SNP, Britain may have

:18:18. > :18:21.democratically voted for Brexit and we accept that but democratically

:18:22. > :18:29.Scotland voted for the SNP and the Democratic vote of Scotland should

:18:30. > :18:32.be listened to. Say that again, sorry. Scotland democratically voted

:18:33. > :18:36.no to independence and they wanted to remain in the UK. Di Wu just

:18:37. > :18:41.ignore election results until they give us the result we want? Do you

:18:42. > :18:45.think a General Election hastens a second independence vote in

:18:46. > :18:48.Scotland? I think we could see the SNP losing some seats and that will

:18:49. > :18:54.prove it is not wanted. I think we will have to wait and see what

:18:55. > :18:58.happens. If you drop back from your 56 out of 59 seats which is what

:18:59. > :19:03.happened in May 2015, if you drop back from that your opponents will

:19:04. > :19:06.suggest, look, the evidence shows that support for independence or a

:19:07. > :19:14.second vote is waning. With respect I think, to the lady, and her point,

:19:15. > :19:18.it is misguided because we stood in 2016 in the Scottish elections on a

:19:19. > :19:22.manifesto commitment which said, if there is a material change in

:19:23. > :19:25.circumstances and Scotland is taken out of the European Union against

:19:26. > :19:29.its will, which it now is being then there is grounds for a second

:19:30. > :19:34.referendum. The Scottish Parliament has now voted by a majority to hold

:19:35. > :19:38.a second referendum. How many mandates do we need? We stood on a

:19:39. > :19:41.manifesto commitment in the General Election in 2015 to come to

:19:42. > :19:45.Westminster and stand up for the people of Scotland against the Tory

:19:46. > :19:49.government and that is the manifesto commitment we will continue to

:19:50. > :19:53.pursue. This General Election will be about Scotland's voice at

:19:54. > :19:56.Westminster and standing up against the Tories which Scotland has an

:19:57. > :20:00.voted for. To be clear about the question of mandates, Hannah and her

:20:01. > :20:05.colleagues stood on a platform that said there would be a referendum if

:20:06. > :20:07.there was a material change in circumstances. They lost their

:20:08. > :20:13.majority in the Scottish Parliament. The Greens who voted for that in the

:20:14. > :20:18.Scottish Parliament said that they would only support a second

:20:19. > :20:21.referendum if there was a petition with 1 million signatures on it.

:20:22. > :20:24.Suddenly that is forgotten about. Let's talk about manifesto

:20:25. > :20:32.commitments, no tuition fees, S close to the Single Market as we can

:20:33. > :20:40.get and 50% top rate of tax, ditched in the manifesto. What about

:20:41. > :20:43.Labour's manifestos? Not ditched from the manifestos. People always

:20:44. > :20:47.go back to the manifesto when it suits democracy, it only works when

:20:48. > :20:52.it suits the answer you want. The Scottish people voted no, 85% of

:20:53. > :20:55.people turned up 55-40 52 years ago and people have voted in this

:20:56. > :21:06.country in 2015 for the government we have at the moment -- 55-45. It

:21:07. > :21:11.is damaging my constituents' livelihoods and I will protect them.

:21:12. > :21:17.Lib Dems did introduce tuition fees when they promised not to. Thank you

:21:18. > :21:19.for your time. Welcome to the programme.

:21:20. > :21:22.We're live from Westminster as you can see. We're discussing the fact

:21:23. > :21:23.this country will have a General Election in a few weeks' time.

:21:24. > :21:26.Was Theresa May right to call the election now?

:21:27. > :21:43.Which parties will gain and which will lose out?

:21:44. > :21:46.He refers to the situation of some workers who might have some job

:21:47. > :21:52.insecurity and potentially unscrupulous bosses.

:21:53. > :21:54.When I launched my leadership campaign I said that

:21:55. > :22:05.Let everybody put forward their proposals for Brexit and their

:22:06. > :22:23.We want to put a case out there to the

:22:24. > :22:27.people of Britain of a society that cares for all, an economy that works

:22:28. > :22:31.for all and a Brexit that works for all.

:22:32. > :22:34.We lost the election, I believe, because we didn't offer a

:22:35. > :22:54.I thought for a moment the Prime Minister was

:22:55. > :22:56.going to say Brexit means Brexit again.

:22:57. > :23:22.I'm sure she will tell us one day what it actually means.

:23:23. > :23:28.Do you think it is wrong to demonise immigrants, the young, the poor,

:23:29. > :23:40.foreigners, Brussels, the English, the Scots? Join us.

:23:41. > :23:49.This is a big issue. In recent political history. It is clear the

:23:50. > :23:53.Prime Minister's announcement today is one all about the narrow

:23:54. > :24:22.interests of her own party, not the interests of the country.

:24:23. > :24:41.People will learn what Ukip is about. There is only 5000 majority.

:24:42. > :24:49.The snap General Election is squeeky bum time for some MPs who scrapped

:24:50. > :24:52.through at the last election in 2015 by just a few votes.

:24:53. > :24:57.We have gathered three of them here. Amanda Solloway, Conservative MP for

:24:58. > :25:03.Derby North, who has the second smallest majority of all MPs in

:25:04. > :25:08.England. The smallest majority in England, actually. 27 was Gower,

:25:09. > :25:13.Wales. You beat your opponent in second place by 41 votes. Chris

:25:14. > :25:17.Matheson, Labour MP for the City of Chester who has the most marginal

:25:18. > :25:23.Labour seat in the whole country with a majority of 93 votes. River

:25:24. > :25:28.Tucker for Ealing Central and Acton, a majority of 274. Are you cross

:25:29. > :25:33.with Theresa May for calling a General Election? Not the slightest,

:25:34. > :25:40.it is a good thing to do. You might be out of a job in a few weeks. I am

:25:41. > :25:44.philosophical. I have done lots for the constituency. Just think what

:25:45. > :25:48.you could have done in another few years. I hope to have another five

:25:49. > :25:53.years. I know we were talking earlier that I've done absolutely

:25:54. > :25:56.everything. I don't have any staff in London, everything is in the

:25:57. > :26:01.constituency and I am out there as often as I can, loss of focus on

:26:02. > :26:04.mental health, education, and I'm standing here now thinking I've done

:26:05. > :26:09.the very best I can do and I think the country will benefit from having

:26:10. > :26:15.a General Election, so here we go, the fight is on. Chris Matheson.

:26:16. > :26:18.Before we talk about your thin majority, with the vote this

:26:19. > :26:23.afternoon and what are you going to do? I will not vote in favour, it

:26:24. > :26:27.has nothing to do with squeaky bum time, this is an naked political

:26:28. > :26:31.opportunity from Theresa May. Only four or five years ago she voted for

:26:32. > :26:34.the Fixed-term Parliaments Act to embed herself with the Lib Dems in

:26:35. > :26:38.the coalition government. You will vote against? The first time she

:26:39. > :26:43.gets she is looking to junket, it's purely about the interests of the

:26:44. > :26:49.Conservative Party. You will vote against it? I will vote against it

:26:50. > :26:53.or I will abstain. What is the point in abstaining if you really believe

:26:54. > :26:58.it? They need two thirds of the majority, you might convince me to

:26:59. > :27:03.vote against. I'm asking why you are not if you are so opposed which you

:27:04. > :27:07.clearly are. I am and it is about the naked political interests of the

:27:08. > :27:11.Conservative Party and they are putting their interests ahead of

:27:12. > :27:16.those of the country. Are you going to be out of a job in a few weeks'

:27:17. > :27:19.time? No, because we have a strong campaign in Chester and the people

:27:20. > :27:22.in Chester know how hard I've worked for them and they know the failings

:27:23. > :27:26.of the Tories, every school in Chester is looking to cut teachers

:27:27. > :27:31.and increase class sizes because of the education cuts. We have 80 or 90

:27:32. > :27:35.people who can't go anywhere from the hospital because the social care

:27:36. > :27:39.system is collapsing, we have people in Chester, adults with children who

:27:40. > :27:44.can't get a new home because they can't afford the rent or to buy a

:27:45. > :27:47.house. The system isn't working for married people, people in Chester

:27:48. > :27:51.know that and that's why I think I will win. Will you put Jeremy Corbyn

:27:52. > :27:54.on your election literature? I might well do but I will put the issue is

:27:55. > :27:59.about school cuts, hospital cuts, the failure of the social care

:28:00. > :28:02.system, and a lot of my own achievements in the constituency as

:28:03. > :28:06.well, whether it is delivering broadband, fighting to get better

:28:07. > :28:10.rail and road connections. I've done a lot in Chester and have lots of

:28:11. > :28:15.positive things to tell my electors as well. Rupa Huq, majority of 274,

:28:16. > :28:21.Labour leader for Ealing and Acton Central. Who came second? Nobody

:28:22. > :28:26.remembers that, do they? You must be worried. If I looked at the majority

:28:27. > :28:32.of who won last time I wouldn't have bothered standing at all. We won the

:28:33. > :28:35.seat and London is different, I have the most marginal Labour seat in

:28:36. > :28:41.London but our trends were up on the mayoral results last year, we are a

:28:42. > :28:46.massive leak Remain area, I voted against triggering Article 50 and I

:28:47. > :28:51.will stand on my record. You feel you are in tune with your

:28:52. > :28:54.constituents? Yes. It has been the greatest honour of my life to

:28:55. > :28:58.represent the streets where I grew up and I still live in Ealing and I

:28:59. > :29:01.want to carry on doing what I've been doing. All of the polls

:29:02. > :29:06.indicate it will be a Conservative majority. In that case we need

:29:07. > :29:10.people to oppose their disastrous plans for the NHS which has been cut

:29:11. > :29:16.to ribbons in my area and the hard Brexit which nobody voted for. Byron

:29:17. > :29:20.Davies has joined us. Good morning. I wasn't expecting you but I'm

:29:21. > :29:24.delighted to see you. Irene Davies, elected Conservative MP for Gaelic

:29:25. > :29:29.two years ago, we talked about him a few moments ago -- Byron Davies. He

:29:30. > :29:32.got 27 more votes than his nearest rival and you have the smallest

:29:33. > :29:39.majority of any single MP. How worried are you? I am not worried

:29:40. > :29:43.but also not overconfident. I think on a local basis I have performed

:29:44. > :29:48.quite well in the last two years. Quite well? There is only 27 votes

:29:49. > :29:51.in it, you will have to do better, would you? As I said I have

:29:52. > :29:55.performed quite well and the electorate are happy with what I've

:29:56. > :29:59.done and we have a strong leader going to the country for unity and

:30:00. > :30:03.I'm quite confident that I will decrease might majority. Are you

:30:04. > :30:05.delighted as your conservative colleague is Amanda Solloway with

:30:06. > :30:11.another small majority, that Theresa May is calling a General Election? I

:30:12. > :30:13.think we need it and we have a Labour Party saying that perhaps

:30:14. > :30:17.they would support the agreement at the end with the European Union and

:30:18. > :30:20.the House of Lords saying they will not agree and the Lib Dems want to

:30:21. > :30:24.grind parliament to a halt so I think she has to. As you know both

:30:25. > :30:27.the Commons and Lords voted for the Brexit bill in the end with a really

:30:28. > :30:32.decent majority is. There is no one standing in the way of Brexit

:30:33. > :30:36.negotiations, if you are honest. Politics is dynamic and never has

:30:37. > :30:39.been more dynamic than it is now is, so who knows? You think Piers and

:30:40. > :30:43.some colleagues in the Commons would go against the will of the people? I

:30:44. > :30:50.cannot answer for them but there is always the possibility -- piers. To

:30:51. > :31:03.those voters, and some of them are here today, who are a bit tired of

:31:04. > :31:07.elections, what do you say to them? This is a great opportunity. I feel

:31:08. > :31:12.buoyed by this. What would you say to voters who are fatigued

:31:13. > :31:17.by-elections, Brexit last year, the general election before, and the

:31:18. > :31:20.Scottish referendum vote? I have been listening to some constituents

:31:21. > :31:24.on my local radio saying they are looking forward to this as an

:31:25. > :31:27.opportunity. It will verify the fact the Conservative government is doing

:31:28. > :31:31.the right thing and we have an opportunity for the whole country to

:31:32. > :31:36.do that. What do you say are people who are fatigued of elections? Even

:31:37. > :31:40.more fatigued in Wales, council elections, and assembly election,

:31:41. > :31:43.European elections, general elections, but this is democracy at

:31:44. > :31:49.work and I am afraid we have to support this one. Thank you to all

:31:50. > :31:54.of you. Good luck on all the best. Let's hear from our audience. I am

:31:55. > :31:58.aware that some will haven't spoken, so please let me in the eye, Claire,

:31:59. > :32:01.if you want to say something, if you are looking forward to the selection

:32:02. > :32:06.or if you are a bit fed up with how you have to cast your vote. I find

:32:07. > :32:13.it profoundly depressing when people say they have voter fatigue. All

:32:14. > :32:17.around the world there are people in Syria, in Turkey, dying to have the

:32:18. > :32:24.rights that we do. It makes me so sad, it really does, to hear this

:32:25. > :32:28.sort of thing. We are so lucky here and I think we are also pretty lucky

:32:29. > :32:33.with Mrs May, because I think she has absolutely stepped forward. Of

:32:34. > :32:35.course it is opportunistic, a lot of Labour MPs whingeing about it but

:32:36. > :32:40.there would have done the same thing. We are in the situation, the

:32:41. > :32:45.people voted for Brexit, let's get over it, get on with it and give her

:32:46. > :32:48.a decent period to be able to get in there and negotiate the thing

:32:49. > :32:56.properly. We have the jobs of the future generations at stake here. We

:32:57. > :33:02.have to clarify that Europeans who are settled here with their

:33:03. > :33:07.families, we have to clarify their own position. If Mrs May gets an

:33:08. > :33:13.increased majority, it will make it easier for her to do the Brexit

:33:14. > :33:17.negotiations? Inevitably there will be lots of hillocks along the road,

:33:18. > :33:23.of course, but we are where we are. Please give her a chance to just get

:33:24. > :33:27.on with it. If I may say Chris Matheson gave us a really great

:33:28. > :33:33.example of why Semenuk people are disillusioned with voting. He stood

:33:34. > :33:40.there and gave us -- why so many people are disillusioned. When asked

:33:41. > :33:44.how he was going to vote, he said he would abstain. That is just

:33:45. > :33:48.something I find very unpalatable. That is not leadership, someone

:33:49. > :33:51.standing here and the something, and then saying he will abstain. At

:33:52. > :33:56.least than up for what you believe in. It is more than just taking

:33:57. > :34:05.advantage of rights that we have treating them as unimportant. In the

:34:06. > :34:08.kind of political climate we are in, a number of positions were not

:34:09. > :34:11.clarified in the first place. You don't want to have election upon

:34:12. > :34:14.election because it becomes meaningless, that is why you have

:34:15. > :34:19.term times and a space between elections. That is incredibly

:34:20. > :34:23.important now to clarify what every consequence means. What is Brexit?

:34:24. > :34:27.It is not just leaving the European Union, this is the effect it will

:34:28. > :34:32.have on local services, on immigration, make that clear and let

:34:33. > :34:36.people make the decisions. Did we not have those arguments a year ago?

:34:37. > :34:45.Now, because we don't go out Brexit now and we it was not a depth

:34:46. > :34:49.argument, it was very partisan. Two factions against each other and it

:34:50. > :34:56.didn't work. Very partisan, the Brexit referendum, it is going to be

:34:57. > :34:59.partisan in the next few weeks. Yes, because Brexit is such a bind

:35:00. > :35:03.reissue and one of those issues that goes beyond politics, it crosses all

:35:04. > :35:08.parties and is almost more about identity than politics. It is a gut,

:35:09. > :35:11.visceral issue that people feel extraordinarily passionate about and

:35:12. > :35:14.I don't think that will go away. It will always be one of those defining

:35:15. > :35:19.issues was that the other thing that strikes me is we are moving into a

:35:20. > :35:22.different era, politically, where the old tribal blocks, they have

:35:23. > :35:27.been breaking down for a long time but they are really breaking down

:35:28. > :35:30.now, and part of it is you see it with Donald Trump in America, people

:35:31. > :35:35.are voting by different dynamics and I think a lot of it is to do with a

:35:36. > :35:39.sense of place, a sense of culture, history, who we are. So you mean we

:35:40. > :35:44.are now more likely to be remain or leave than Labour, Tory, Lib Dem,

:35:45. > :35:47.SNP Vostok absolutely. The other thing that has totally changed

:35:48. > :35:53.everything is we live in an age where social media totally changed

:35:54. > :35:54.the terms of political debate. Without social mediators

:35:55. > :35:59.questionable whether Jeremy Corbyn ever would have become leader,

:36:00. > :36:01.because let's be honest, he had most of the mainstream newspapers hitting

:36:02. > :36:06.him every day and yet he still won quite comfortable. I think social

:36:07. > :36:10.media has changed a lot of the way the dialogue of politics and the way

:36:11. > :36:13.people converse. You can say there are good things and bad things about

:36:14. > :36:18.it, there is fake news, but then it is democratic and empowering people.

:36:19. > :36:23.All of that is fundamentally changing politics, so where we are

:36:24. > :36:26.is a much more volatile, uncertain, unpredictable sort of politics, so

:36:27. > :36:30.for everyone kind of thinking Labour has no chance in this election, I

:36:31. > :36:33.would just suggest let's be a little bit cautious about this, because

:36:34. > :36:39.people like me have been getting it wrong time and time again, got it

:36:40. > :36:41.wrong with David Cameron getting the majority, the Brexit referendum,

:36:42. > :36:47.Jeremy Corbyn, Theresa May, we really have to go into this with

:36:48. > :36:52.some humility. We live in extraordinary uncertain but quite

:36:53. > :36:54.exciting times. Thank you, Norman. See you soon. Let's bring you the

:36:55. > :36:57.latest news. The Prime Minister has denied claims

:36:58. > :36:59.of political opportunism and insisted that it's

:37:00. > :37:01.in the national interest to hold MPs are expected to approve

:37:02. > :37:05.the Prime Minister's plan Labour MPs have been told

:37:06. > :37:29.they will be automatically re-selected as candidates to fight

:37:30. > :37:31.the general election Jeremy Corbyn told a meeting

:37:32. > :37:35.of Labour MPs last night that he didn't under-estimate

:37:36. > :37:36.the challenge ahead, but welcomed the chance to give

:37:37. > :37:39.British voters an alternative Prince William has revealed

:37:40. > :37:42.that the shock of his mother's death is still with him, 20 years

:37:43. > :37:45.after Princess Diana was killed. The Duke of Cambridge made

:37:46. > :37:48.the comments in a BBC documentary which follows a group of runners

:37:49. > :37:50.with mental health problems who are training to run

:37:51. > :37:52.the London marathon. Police have named a man they want

:37:53. > :37:55.to speak to about a suspected acid Arthur Collins is wanted for

:37:56. > :37:59.questioning after a corrosive liquid was sprayed during an argument

:38:00. > :38:16.in the early hours That is a summary of the latest

:38:17. > :38:20.news. Now some sport. Wales flanker Sam Warburton will captain the fish

:38:21. > :38:29.and Irish Lions this summer in their tour. He is only the second player

:38:30. > :38:32.after Martin Johnson to captain the Lions and two tours. Head coach

:38:33. > :38:36.Warren Gatland will announce that full squad at midday today.

:38:37. > :38:42.Leicester's incredible Champions League journey is over after their

:38:43. > :38:45.quarterfinal defeat against Atletico Madrid last night. Saul Niguez

:38:46. > :38:49.headed the Spanish side in front. Jamie Vardy equalised but it was not

:38:50. > :38:50.enough and it is back to business as usual for Craig Shakespeare Fozz

:38:51. > :38:58.backside. Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat-trick

:38:59. > :39:01.to take his Champions League tally to 100 goals as holders

:39:02. > :39:03.Real Madrid eased past 10-man Bayern Munich in extra time

:39:04. > :39:12.to reach the semi-finals. So with a general election like to

:39:13. > :39:19.be on the 8th of June, just six or seven weeks away, it is a time for

:39:20. > :39:24.possibly political comebacks. You will remember Sir Vince Cable,

:39:25. > :39:28.Liberal Democrat, former Cabinet Mr, who plans to stand again, is that

:39:29. > :39:32.correct? Yes, all of you see there are the formalities of adoption, but

:39:33. > :39:36.I would like to throw my hat into the ring. I worry the country is

:39:37. > :39:39.going in the wrong direction, with Brexit and particularly very hard

:39:40. > :39:45.version the Prime Minister favours, so I want to win back a seat I held

:39:46. > :39:49.her 18 years. And Mary Macleod, former Conservative MP, lost your

:39:50. > :39:51.seat in 2015, and you also fancy a seat I held her 18 years. And Mary

:39:52. > :39:54.Macleod, former Conservative MP, lost your seat in 2015, and you also

:39:55. > :39:56.fancier,? Absolutely. It was an honour and privilege being a member

:39:57. > :39:59.of Parliament for five years the Brentford Isaiah Burse and Chiswick

:40:00. > :40:05.and I want to continue the work I was doing and try to make --

:40:06. > :40:08.Isleworth. I will be putting my cell forward for selection. It was only a

:40:09. > :40:13.couple of years ago that they kicked you both out. What makes you think

:40:14. > :40:18.you want it back? People want to get rid of the uncertainty that exists

:40:19. > :40:24.right now. Why if they voted you back in with that means certainty?

:40:25. > :40:27.Because we have a plan that can deliver real stability to the

:40:28. > :40:32.country. What we have in Theresa may as a Prime Minister, and hopefully

:40:33. > :40:37.will she will get that backing to lead the country with strength, we

:40:38. > :40:41.need someone that can pull all of this together following the Brexit

:40:42. > :40:49.vote and the referendum, where we can get rid of the uncertainty that

:40:50. > :40:52.exists and allows Theresa May as Prime Minister to lead with strength

:40:53. > :40:56.and have the Parliamentary backing to deliver for the country, and we

:40:57. > :41:02.need that, in terms of the negotiations we are getting into.

:41:03. > :41:05.Serious times. What are the Lib Dems offering? We have been consistent

:41:06. > :41:11.and principled on the issue of Europe, the only party that has

:41:12. > :41:14.been. The reason part -- Theresa May has changed radically, the Labour

:41:15. > :41:19.Party had been all over the place, we think Britain should be in

:41:20. > :41:22.Europe, we have opposed the way that Brexit has been handled, so on that

:41:23. > :41:27.issue very much so. But it won't just be that. In Twickenham, which I

:41:28. > :41:30.represented, there are other issues bubbling up around cuts in schools,

:41:31. > :41:34.which go way beyond what is fiscally necessary. Bits of environmental

:41:35. > :41:42.issues, Heathrow Airport. There was a lot to fight over. We mention this

:41:43. > :41:46.earlier, quite a lot of people don't know who your leader is, the Liberal

:41:47. > :41:51.Democrat leader. Tim Farron has done a very good job over the last year.

:41:52. > :41:54.It always happens, I remember when Charles Kennedy first came in as

:41:55. > :41:57.leader, became immensely popular but at the beginning never knew who he

:41:58. > :42:01.was, Paddy Ashdown have the same problem. It requires a general

:42:02. > :42:07.election to have the necessary protection but he has done very well

:42:08. > :42:11.and he will do well. Mrs May said the country was coming together but

:42:12. > :42:16.Westminster wasn't. Is she right, is the country coming together? I think

:42:17. > :42:20.so. When we live that some of the polls today saying 68% of the

:42:21. > :42:32.electorate of people in this country want a general election right now,

:42:33. > :42:36.so I think that speaks for itself. They also want debate and argument

:42:37. > :42:40.and opposition and scrutiny. That will always happen. When she said

:42:41. > :42:46.that Westminster wasn't coming together, it seemed to be as if she

:42:47. > :42:49.was criticising the normal rough-and-tumble of politics in a

:42:50. > :42:54.Parliamentary democracy. No, what it is we need to have the ability to

:42:55. > :43:01.make decisions, push them through Parliament. With no opposition,

:43:02. > :43:06.debate or scrutiny? You will never anticipate what the result of an

:43:07. > :43:09.election. That shows the strong, stable leadership we have in Theresa

:43:10. > :43:15.May. That is a bold decision to go to the country. She believes it is

:43:16. > :43:18.right for the country, it is right for the country, the time is right

:43:19. > :43:22.and let's get together and pull the country together to deliver for we

:43:23. > :43:27.need in the future. Rider nephew have seen the front page of the

:43:28. > :43:31.papers today, the Daily Mail suggesting the use a is crushing the

:43:32. > :43:37.saboteurs. Anyone who is a Remainer, is that how you feel, Vince Cable?

:43:38. > :43:41.That is deeply concerning when you get that level of argument, it makes

:43:42. > :43:47.us sound like Turkey or Russia, and actually button is a healthy

:43:48. > :43:53.democracy. We want proper debate. We are very much up for that. When I

:43:54. > :43:57.hear that Daily Mail language about saboteurs, it is very worrying and

:43:58. > :44:00.authoritarian, and I sincerely hope Theresa May doesn't share that view.

:44:01. > :44:06.I don't think it is her. Thank you both. Mary Macleod and Sir Vince

:44:07. > :44:08.Cable, thank you, and thank you for your patience. We appreciate it.

:44:09. > :44:11.Now, by any measure, Labour have had a challenging few years.

:44:12. > :44:13.They haven't won a general election since 2005

:44:14. > :44:16.and the election of Jeremy Corbyn - a lifelong socialist who had never

:44:17. > :44:18.before held a senior position in the party -

:44:19. > :44:19.has taken them into uncharted waters.

:44:20. > :44:22.They're divided over Brexit and have held two leadership

:44:23. > :44:27.So... can they win?

:44:28. > :44:38.One of those who backed Mr Corbyn from the start is Ken Loach -

:44:39. > :44:43.I will introduce them in just a second that we have some Labour

:44:44. > :44:48.voters here. Identify yourselves. What does Jeremy Corbyn have to do

:44:49. > :44:56.to really punched through in this election? Resign. Seriously? I think

:44:57. > :45:00.that is the only hope for the party. Maybe they should consider bringing

:45:01. > :45:04.in Tony Blair with the campaign. I heard the Lib Dems are quite keen to

:45:05. > :45:08.get them campaigning alongside them. Despite Iraq and the past flaws, he

:45:09. > :45:13.is one of the few people who has actually spoken sense about how

:45:14. > :45:18.Labour can take Brexit and take it forward. Who else said resign? My

:45:19. > :45:21.advise to Jeremy Corbyn would be to follow the example of George

:45:22. > :45:25.Lansbury, Labour leader in the 1930s, who resigned a month before

:45:26. > :45:28.the general election because he knew that his hard-line pacifism would

:45:29. > :45:31.not go down with the electorate. Clement Attlee led us into that

:45:32. > :45:36.election and brought us eventually the greatest Labour government we

:45:37. > :45:40.have ever had. So you want a leadership election or a caretaker

:45:41. > :45:44.leader? Who would that be? Tom Watson. The current deputy you would

:45:45. > :45:51.have is the leader. What about you, Nick? Won I want to put an end to it

:45:52. > :45:56.once and all. For this election, I think you have to say that Corbyn

:45:57. > :45:59.has to go. I don't think it will happen until after the election in

:46:00. > :46:03.all honesty. Then we will have to wait and see what emerges. I don't

:46:04. > :46:07.think there is anything Corbyn can do now, I think the die was cast

:46:08. > :46:11.with Brexit and his failure to lead decisively at that point. From then

:46:12. > :46:15.forward, he is doomed and we have to pay the price for that. What about

:46:16. > :46:18.some of the policies Jeremy Corbyn has been talking about in the last

:46:19. > :46:24.few weeks, some of which are really popular?

:46:25. > :46:30.NHS, health and education are his key areas but the Labour Party is

:46:31. > :46:35.not leading in terms of immigration and has not got any cut through

:46:36. > :46:38.policies on immigration, no cut through policies on housing. Both

:46:39. > :46:42.the Tories and them are saying the same things, they are dancing around

:46:43. > :46:47.the same issues. There is no clear blue water as far as I can make out

:46:48. > :46:56.between them. Ken Loach, good morning. Good morning. Celebrated

:46:57. > :46:59.film-maker, welcome. You blame Labour's previous leaders and MPs

:47:00. > :47:04.who opposed Jeremy Corbyn for the party's track position in the polls.

:47:05. > :47:08.That is right. What Labour has suffered is a leader who has been

:47:09. > :47:15.elected massively by the party who stands on the right side of politics

:47:16. > :47:19.throughout his career. He stands to stop the NHS being privatised, to

:47:20. > :47:23.invest in work, which is what people need above everything else. They

:47:24. > :47:29.don't need zero-hours contracts, they don't need casual agency work.

:47:30. > :47:32.They don't need low wages. They need real work and Labour under Corbyn

:47:33. > :47:36.will invest in that. People need houses and if you care about the

:47:37. > :47:40.destruction of our society, if you really care, you will get behind the

:47:41. > :47:44.Labour Party under this leadership are closet is the only leadership.

:47:45. > :47:50.If you want Tom Watson you won't get that. If you want Tony Blair you

:47:51. > :47:53.will get another illegal war if you are not careful. The only party that

:47:54. > :47:57.stands for the interests of the people, really stands for them, is

:47:58. > :48:01.the Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn, he is a man of principle and

:48:02. > :48:04.integrity and don't let them tell you otherwise. I will introduce

:48:05. > :48:08.Jonathan Ashworth again, a member of Jeremy Corbyn's top team and Rachel

:48:09. > :48:15.Godfrey Wood from Momentum from Momentum, a Labour grassroots

:48:16. > :48:21.campaign group. Passionate plea from Ken Loach, you've got to get behind

:48:22. > :48:28.Jeremy Corbyn. Two leadership elections, one with a massive

:48:29. > :48:31.mandate from the party members. It's a democratic vote, we should get

:48:32. > :48:36.behind him. He is a person with principles. I think he has got an

:48:37. > :48:43.excellent position on immigration. I think he is anti-racist, I think he

:48:44. > :48:50.is for letting the children... What about Ken Livingstone? He is for

:48:51. > :48:54.letting the children in Calais over here under the dumps Amendment. A

:48:55. > :48:57.lot of that comes down to grandstanding and standing on

:48:58. > :49:01.burning platforms around key issues like children refugees. There are

:49:02. > :49:04.other issues that are going to take the country forward. I understand

:49:05. > :49:08.issues of principle which is great but leadership is about compromise,

:49:09. > :49:11.it's about an amalgamation of ideas and enabling this country to go

:49:12. > :49:16.forward and Jeremy Corbyn has let us down time and time again on that, as

:49:17. > :49:19.the Parliamentary Labour Party knows. There not much they can do

:49:20. > :49:23.about it and not much any of us can do about it. The destruction of your

:49:24. > :49:28.society, go ahead and vote Tory because that is what happening.

:49:29. > :49:32.Where are your libraries, parks, work, houses, what about the

:49:33. > :49:36.privatised NHS? Think what you will vote for if you let this lot

:49:37. > :49:41.continue. I didn't hear what you said about voting. The Labour Party

:49:42. > :49:47.doesn't give clear leadership on Brexit I will vote Liberal Democrat.

:49:48. > :49:54.That's not funny. Tories by another name, I'm afraid. Think what they

:49:55. > :50:01.did in the coalition. A Labour voter... I'm not dismissing him. It

:50:02. > :50:04.sounded like it. No, they supported the austerity programme and the

:50:05. > :50:07.coalition and put in place what is happening now so if you vote for

:50:08. > :50:12.them that is what you will get again. We have no choice! We have no

:50:13. > :50:17.choice! You can hear disgruntled Labour voters who would love to vote

:50:18. > :50:19.Labour and you have heard from just one but we have heard it,

:50:20. > :50:23.disillusioned Labour voters might vote Lib Dem in this election, what

:50:24. > :50:28.would you say to them? I would plead with you not to vote for the Liberal

:50:29. > :50:31.party. The Liberals went into coalition with the Conservatives,

:50:32. > :50:35.Tim Farron the Liberal leader has refused to rule that out at the next

:50:36. > :50:37.election and when they went into coalition with the Conservatives

:50:38. > :50:41.they trebled tuition fees when they said they wouldn't, they put VAT

:50:42. > :50:45.when they said they wouldn't, they supported a whole host of cuts to

:50:46. > :50:51.public services when they said they wouldn't. One final point if I may.

:50:52. > :50:54.You might be disappointed with me but I voted for Yvette Cooper, I

:50:55. > :51:02.thought it was time the Labour Party had a female leader but she didn't

:51:03. > :51:04.win. I'm behind the Labour Party because a Labour government is

:51:05. > :51:11.better than a Tory government ruining the NHS and cutting schools

:51:12. > :51:15.and creating zero-hours contracts with wages stagnating. The Jeremy

:51:16. > :51:19.Corbyn do better when it comes to leadership on Brexit? I think Jeremy

:51:20. > :51:24.Corbyn is a fantastic leader. Could he do better on Brexit? His position

:51:25. > :51:28.on Brexit is clear, we read Democratic Party and campaigned for

:51:29. > :51:32.the remainder as did lots of Labour Party members but Labour is the only

:51:33. > :51:35.party trying to do something with Brexit to the benefit of the

:51:36. > :51:40.majority of people. What is his policy on immigration which is

:51:41. > :51:43.something that Nick raised? Labour has a migration impact fund which

:51:44. > :51:51.would support areas which are receiving the majority of migrants.

:51:52. > :51:55.If you look at Brexit, public procurement, Labour are looking for

:51:56. > :51:58.ways to force public procurement to drive up standards in the public

:51:59. > :52:02.sector. No other parties are doing that because the Tories just see

:52:03. > :52:05.Brexit as an opportunity to turn this country even more into

:52:06. > :52:09.basically a tax haven for their friends and the Liberals are just

:52:10. > :52:12.looking for short-term political opportunism which is the only form

:52:13. > :52:15.of politics they understand. You don't believe the Liberal Democrats

:52:16. > :52:25.when they say they will fight hard to maintain access to the Single

:52:26. > :52:28.Market? Why would anyone believe the Liberal Democrats? These are people

:52:29. > :52:30.who went into government saying they would oppose tuition fees and they

:52:31. > :52:33.renege on that promise within a very small amount of time? The issue of

:52:34. > :52:38.tuition fees need still be addressed once and for all. This is really

:52:39. > :52:42.important. It was a mistake of hours but our leader didn't vote for them,

:52:43. > :52:45.our leader wasn't in coalition government and we apologise to.

:52:46. > :52:48.Labour when they introduced them never apologised and when they

:52:49. > :52:52.increased them don't apologise and the Conservative government

:52:53. > :52:55.increasing them again, not apologising. Yes, we made a mistake

:52:56. > :52:58.but when the call came we stepped up and governed in the national

:52:59. > :53:02.interest while Labour are standing by and will let a Conservative

:53:03. > :53:07.majority in by their inept leadership. You are laughing at

:53:08. > :53:10.this. The national interest is not introducing austerity, not enforcing

:53:11. > :53:14.a low-wage economy, not market eyes in the NHS and selling it to private

:53:15. > :53:21.companies. The Liberals were part of the destruction of the NHS and this

:53:22. > :53:27.is critical, you left whole areas of the country desolate with no work.

:53:28. > :53:31.The old industry gone and nothing put in its place. The Liberals were

:53:32. > :53:35.part of that with the Tories. Labour would invest with the national

:53:36. > :53:39.investment bank to revitalise those areas of the country with real work,

:53:40. > :53:44.real apprenticeships, real jobs to follow, producing real goods that

:53:45. > :53:48.people need. There is a whole area of investment that can be made and

:53:49. > :53:52.needs to be made and please, Labour voters, don't turn your back on

:53:53. > :53:55.that, it is too important. The future of our young people, and I've

:53:56. > :54:00.got grandchildren, the future of our young people depends on good jobs.

:54:01. > :54:07.It's only the Labour Party that will invest under Corbyn. The others

:54:08. > :54:11.won't. The others won't... Don't turn your back on the young people.

:54:12. > :54:18.You need to get a Labour government that will do that. This is why

:54:19. > :54:23.Theresa May is having an election because the left are attacking each

:54:24. > :54:29.other. Who is left? Who is far left? Who is centrist? We need to band

:54:30. > :54:32.together, if we want to stop the Conservatives, Labour, the Liberal

:54:33. > :54:37.Democrats, the Greens and SNP must band together and make a strong left

:54:38. > :54:41.voice, not attacking your audience but making a strong left voice. This

:54:42. > :54:45.is why 18 and 24-year-olds should be approached by Labour and the left

:54:46. > :54:49.and safe vote, your votes matter, we shouldn't have a member of the panel

:54:50. > :54:54.saying they will abstain from voting because they feel it's not right. We

:54:55. > :54:57.should be appealed to and give us a voice and stop arguing and bickering

:54:58. > :55:02.between each other. A quick final word. This is not just a party

:55:03. > :55:05.political game, it is a fundamental question over who governs Britain.

:55:06. > :55:09.We live in a society with the highest levels of concentration of

:55:10. > :55:12.wealth since the 1930s meaning the richest people have been able to

:55:13. > :55:19.distort the rest of the political system. If you look at HMRC... Will

:55:20. > :55:22.Labour tax the rich more if it wins? Labour will force those people into

:55:23. > :55:26.transparency over their tax collection and use it to clamp down

:55:27. > :55:30.on tax evasion and avoidance, and taxed down on impunity in the

:55:31. > :55:35.society. I will have to pause there. Thank you for joining us. Thank you

:55:36. > :55:38.for having a good debate here today. In the last few minutes of the

:55:39. > :55:43.programme I want to hear from you what your message is to the

:55:44. > :55:48.politicians over the next few weeks. What sort of campaign do you want to

:55:49. > :55:54.see and hear? Defend education, stop cuts to schools and protect the NHS.

:55:55. > :55:57.Start listening to young people, we are telling you we are not happy and

:55:58. > :56:02.disenfranchised and you are ignoring us and not listening to us. You need

:56:03. > :56:05.to take the public and Brexit vote seriously. Our demand for democracy

:56:06. > :56:08.and more freedom needs to be answered and it currently is not

:56:09. > :56:13.being answered by any politicians standing for election right now. I

:56:14. > :56:17.want you to introduce ourselves. My name is even and I'm an A-level

:56:18. > :56:23.student. You are going to vote for the first time in June? Yes, and I

:56:24. > :56:27.am registered. This is my first vote, I am in sixth form now and

:56:28. > :56:32.Jeremy Corbyn is my local MP so I will vote for him. Hello, I'm

:56:33. > :56:36.registered to vote, this will be my second General Election, I scraped

:56:37. > :56:39.into the last one by a few weeks and I will vote Tory. What do you think

:56:40. > :56:45.about the fact there is an election just two years after the last one? I

:56:46. > :56:49.was quite surprised. After Theresa May said multiple times she would

:56:50. > :56:52.not hold an election until 2020, it was shocked to hear her announce we

:56:53. > :56:56.would have on this soon and I was worried about the fact I have to

:56:57. > :57:02.make up my mind in seven weeks about who to vote you have no idea? No, I

:57:03. > :57:06.do, but just being thrown into it is quite surprising but it will be nice

:57:07. > :57:11.to have a voice when I didn't have won the last time round. How do you

:57:12. > :57:14.feel? I'm happy because the 16 and 17-year-olds who didn't have a vote

:57:15. > :57:18.last time have an opportunity to say something which is important because

:57:19. > :57:22.it is our future. I like the fact we can vote this time around. Your

:57:23. > :57:28.message to politicians as we head into this General Election campaign?

:57:29. > :57:30.I think it was the right decision firstly because Theresa May needs to

:57:31. > :57:35.strengthen her negotiating hand in the EU but focus on the big issues,

:57:36. > :57:38.Brexit, housing, education, the things that matter that have been

:57:39. > :57:41.neglected for a while. Because we are leaving the EU a lot of policy

:57:42. > :57:45.areas will open up and we can legislate on those as well. We have

:57:46. > :57:49.literally seconds so let me hear from you. How much do you think you

:57:50. > :57:54.will get the truth in this General Election campaign? They have not

:57:55. > :58:00.told the truth much does find the whole context of Brexit, so where

:58:01. > :58:09.the general public stands, where the politicians stand is up in the air

:58:10. > :58:13.so it is scary. Will be get facts in this campaign? I hope so, everyone

:58:14. > :58:16.needs the facts and information, if they are going to vote they need to

:58:17. > :58:23.know what they are voting for, surely. Well, we will see. Thank you

:58:24. > :58:26.for giving up a whole morning. Good to meet you. Thank you for your

:58:27. > :58:30.company. Back tomorrow at 9am.