04/11/2015

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:00:10. > :00:16.This is Wednesday in Parliament, our look at the day at Westminster.

:00:17. > :00:19.On the programme, the Government unveils proposals to help combat

:00:20. > :00:32.It will give the men and women of hours security and intelligence

:00:33. > :00:38.agencies and our law enforcement agencies who do so much to keep a

:00:39. > :00:41.safe and secure the powers they need to protect our country.

:00:42. > :00:44.The Prime Minister tackles questions on tax credit cuts and the NHS

:00:45. > :00:53.We suffered a defeat in the House of Lords, so we have taken the tax

:00:54. > :00:56.credit proposals are away and are looking at them.

:00:57. > :01:00.And MPs expressed concern about the future of policing.

:01:01. > :01:05.I believe this government is about to cause serious damage to our

:01:06. > :01:10.police service. But first, the Government has

:01:11. > :01:12.unveiled its latest proposals to help the police and security

:01:13. > :01:14.services tackle criminal and terrorist activity

:01:15. > :01:15.online. The draft Investigatory Powers Bill

:01:16. > :01:17.contains more safeguards, after a previous attempt to update

:01:18. > :01:20.the law in 2012 was dubbed who argued it was too intrusive

:01:21. > :01:24.and had to be abandoned. The Home Secretary said law

:01:25. > :01:25.enforcement and intelligence gathering had become a lot more

:01:26. > :01:46.difficult in the digital age. It is right, therefore, that those

:01:47. > :01:49.who are charged with protecting us should have the powers they need to

:01:50. > :01:52.do so, but it is the role of Government and Parliament to ensure

:01:53. > :01:55.that there are limits to those powers. Let me be clear: the draft

:01:56. > :01:58.Bill we are publishing today is not a return to the draft communications

:01:59. > :02:01.data Bill of 2012. It will not include powers to force UK companies

:02:02. > :02:04.to capture and retain third party internet traffic from companies

:02:05. > :02:07.based overseas; it will not compel overseas communications service

:02:08. > :02:09.providers to meet our domestic retention obligations for

:02:10. > :02:11.communications data; and it will not ban encryption or do anything to

:02:12. > :02:13.undermine the security of people's The Home Secretary said law

:02:14. > :02:16.enforcement agencies would not have access to people's full internet

:02:17. > :02:18.browsing history, and an internet connection record

:02:19. > :02:20.would only demonstrate which social media sites

:02:21. > :02:21.had been accessed. And for communications to be

:02:22. > :02:24.intercepted, there would need to be a warrant from the Home Secretary

:02:25. > :03:10.formally approved by a judge. It will provide safeguarding

:03:11. > :03:13.powers. It will give the men and women of our intelligence agencies

:03:14. > :03:17.and our line force and agencies who do so much to keep us safe and

:03:18. > :03:38.secure the powers they need to protect our country.

:03:39. > :03:41.The issues the proposed legislation seeks to tackle go way beyond party

:03:42. > :03:44.politics. Any Government will face a difficult task in balancing the

:03:45. > :03:46.security of the nation with the privacy and liberties of individual

:03:47. > :03:50.citizens. As someone who was in the Home Office on 7/7, I know that that

:03:51. > :03:53.challenge has got harder in recent years. We will examine carefully the

:03:54. > :03:56.detail of the draft Bill and seek to improve the safeguards to build

:03:57. > :03:58.trust. Having listened carefully to what the Home Secretary has said

:03:59. > :04:01.today, I believe that she has responded to legitimate concerns and

:04:02. > :04:04.broadly got that difficult balance right.

:04:05. > :04:07.Her last Bill on this fraught but important subject hit the buffers.

:04:08. > :04:10.The current Bill is a much improved model, although I have the feeling

:04:11. > :04:13.that, under the bonnet, it retains some of the flaws of its

:04:14. > :04:16.predecessor. The Home Office has clearly put in a lot of work, which

:04:17. > :04:19.I welcome, as I do the dropping of some of the key provisions on

:04:20. > :04:35.We are concerned that a hybrid system-involving both political and

:04:36. > :04:37.judicial authorisation-might add an unnecessary layer of bureaucracy and

:04:38. > :04:40.lead to error and delay in urgent situations. Can she give us any

:04:41. > :05:05.We have every confidence that the process will not add greater

:05:06. > :05:07.bureaucracy, but will add the necessary independent judicial

:05:08. > :05:09.authorisation. In emergency warrant cases, the Secretary of State will

:05:10. > :05:12.be able to authorise a warrant immediately, but that will be

:05:13. > :05:15.followed by a speedy review by the judge to ensure there is still

:05:16. > :05:30.However much we all agree that action is necessary to combat

:05:31. > :05:33.terrorism and other forms of criminality, I remain concerned,

:05:34. > :05:36.even if I am one of only a few who do, about the excessive powers that

:05:37. > :05:39.will be given to the security authorities in addition to what they

:05:40. > :05:42.already have, although judicial involvement is better than no

:05:43. > :05:44.The Home Secretary said the bill strengthens safeguards.

:05:45. > :05:47.The bill is still in draft form and can be amended,

:05:48. > :05:48.even before it begins its journey through Parliament.

:05:49. > :05:51.At PMQs this week, both the Prime Minister and the Labour Leader

:05:52. > :05:54.began their stint at the dispatch box by marking Remembrance Sunday,

:05:55. > :05:56.paying tribute to those who lost their lives in conflict.

:05:57. > :06:00.Last week, Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn used all of his allotted

:06:01. > :06:09.Last week I asked him the same question six times. Now he has had a

:06:10. > :06:17.week to think about it. Canny guarantee that next April nobody

:06:18. > :06:24.will be worse off as a result of cuts to working tax credits. Let me

:06:25. > :06:29.be clear. There lobby and 11,000 personal allowance, so you can earn

:06:30. > :06:36.?11,000 before you pay tax. There will be a national living wage of ?7

:06:37. > :06:43.20, giving the lowest paid in our country at ?20 per week pay rise. We

:06:44. > :06:47.suffered the defeat in the House of Lords, so we have taken the

:06:48. > :06:52.proposals away, we're looking at them, we will come forward with new

:06:53. > :06:53.proposals in the Autumn Statement. At that point in three weeks' time I

:06:54. > :06:57.will be able to answer his question. The Prime Minister said that if

:06:58. > :07:00.the Labour Leader wanted to ask the he was sure he would find that

:07:01. > :07:11.very entertaining and interesting. This isn't about entertainment, Mr

:07:12. > :07:16.Speaker. A serving soldier, a private in the Army with two

:07:17. > :07:21.children and a partner with us over ?2000 next April. I ask a question,

:07:22. > :07:28.surely that is the whole point of our Parliament, that we are able to

:07:29. > :07:41.put questions to those in authority? So I have a question from Kieran, a

:07:42. > :07:45.veteran of the first Gulf War. His family are set to lose out. He

:07:46. > :07:48.writes, it is a worry to the family, this fear and trepidation,

:07:49. > :07:55.about whether we are going to be able to get by. Is this how the

:07:56. > :07:59.government treats veterans of the armed services? All soldiers will

:08:00. > :08:04.benefit from the ?11,000 personal allowance, so they will be able to

:08:05. > :08:08.earn more money before they even start paying tax. What I say to the

:08:09. > :08:13.serving soldier is that he is now dealing with an opposition party the

:08:14. > :08:17.leader of which said he couldn't see any use for UK forces anywhere in

:08:18. > :08:21.the world at any time. That serving soldier wouldn't have a job if the

:08:22. > :08:29.honourable gentleman ever got anywhere near power. We remember all

:08:30. > :08:35.sacrifices from the past and present conflict. We sure our respect to

:08:36. > :08:38.service men and women and their families. Many service widows

:08:39. > :08:42.continue to be deprived of their forces pensions if there is a change

:08:43. > :08:46.in their personal circumstances. Does he agree this is a clear breach

:08:47. > :08:55.in the spirit of the military covenant? We made a big change last

:08:56. > :08:59.who had remarried were able to get who had remarried were able to get

:09:00. > :09:03.their pensions. That was a big step forward, welcomed by the British

:09:04. > :09:09.Legion. If there are further steps we need to look at, I am happy to

:09:10. > :09:13.look at them and see what can be done.

:09:14. > :09:14.The Prime Minister answering SNP's

:09:15. > :09:19.Did he use all the questions on the issue of tax credits?

:09:20. > :09:22.No, he moved on to ask the prime about the NHS.

:09:23. > :09:30.I quote Doctor Clive Mantle, the president of the Royal College of

:09:31. > :09:35.emergency medicine, who said this winter will be worse than last

:09:36. > :09:42.winter. Last winter was the worst winter we have ever had in the NHS.

:09:43. > :09:43.Can the Prime Minister guarantee there will be no winter crisis in

:09:44. > :09:46.the NHS this year? Jeremy Corbyn began

:09:47. > :09:48.his questions saying he was awaiting details on the proposals for pay

:09:49. > :09:58.for junior doctors. When it comes to the Royal College

:09:59. > :10:06.of Emergency Medicine, the support what we're saying a 7 day NHS and

:10:07. > :10:12.the junior doctor. I would urge all junior doctors who are watching this

:10:13. > :10:15.to go on the Department of Health website and look at the pay

:10:16. > :10:18.calculator, because they will be able to see there that no one

:10:19. > :10:27.working legal hours will lose out in any way at all. This is only 11%

:10:28. > :10:34.basic pay rise and pottable deliver is a stronger and safer NHS.

:10:35. > :10:37.As for the state of our NHS more generally, it is benefiting from the

:10:38. > :10:40.?10 billion that we are putting in-money that the Labour party at

:10:41. > :10:44.the last election said it did not support. I believe the NHS has the

:10:45. > :10:47.resources that it needs, and that is why we are seeing it treating more

:10:48. > :10:50.patients, with more treatments, more drugs being delivered and more tests

:10:51. > :10:53.being carried out. It is a much stronger NHS, and the reason is

:10:54. > :10:54.You are watching Wednesday in Parliament.

:10:55. > :10:57.The Home Secretary announces ways to tackle online crime

:10:58. > :11:00.Still to come... There is no place like home.

:11:01. > :11:02.Could prefab buildings provide the houses of the future?

:11:03. > :11:04.Now, when are three runways quieter than two?

:11:05. > :11:07.A committee of MPs found the answer when they met

:11:08. > :11:08.Heathrow Airport bosses and Sir Howard Davies,

:11:09. > :11:18.the man who chaired the commission which backed the idea of building

:11:19. > :11:21.a new third runway at Heathrow. Sir Howard was giving evidence

:11:22. > :11:23.to the Environmental Audit Committee, when Labour's

:11:24. > :11:25.Geraint Davies posed the question, how could a third runway

:11:26. > :11:30.On some noise measures, a new three-runway airport would,

:11:31. > :11:32.in fact, be less irritating than an existing two-runway

:11:33. > :11:34.airport, partly because of the different configuration

:11:35. > :11:37.of the flights. You could put them further to the north and over-flying

:11:38. > :11:40.fewer people. You have got flights coming in at a higher level.

:11:41. > :11:43.Some of the flights coming in low over central London in the

:11:44. > :11:45.morning would not be coming in low over central London

:11:46. > :11:48.in the morning. They would be coming in over the less-populated areas

:11:49. > :11:51.a bit further to the north and they would be higher.

:11:52. > :11:53.So, for some of the measures, a three-runway airport

:11:54. > :11:56.is less noisy than a two-runway airport, at that time.

:11:57. > :12:04.Earlier in the session, Heathrow chief executive,

:12:05. > :12:06.John Holland-Kaye, outlined to the committee how successful

:12:07. > :12:13.he believed the airport can be at limiting sound pollution.

:12:14. > :12:15.And he was pushed on limiting night flights

:12:16. > :12:30.It is something we need to keep working on. We need to discuss it

:12:31. > :12:42.with airlines and the government. We will make our statement on that in

:12:43. > :12:45.due course. When is that? When we have concluded the agreement. We are

:12:46. > :13:01.not in a position to do that at the moment. With regard to what John

:13:02. > :13:11.said about Nate flakes, the fourth runway as a matter for government. I

:13:12. > :13:15.realise this is an easy of great controversy, but I have to as people

:13:16. > :13:22.watching in the public gallery not to intervene. Please, beer weathers,

:13:23. > :13:39.listen to the evidence. My apologies. I am interested in your

:13:40. > :13:47.views on the fourth runway. The session last year, you said the

:13:48. > :13:53.succession of a third runway would pave the way for the campaign for a

:13:54. > :14:01.fourth runway. What we have said is that Heathrow is capable of

:14:02. > :14:13.expanding, if that were the case. That is entirely a question for the

:14:14. > :14:14.future. On the specific question, this is for the government to

:14:15. > :14:19.decide. The government has said it

:14:20. > :14:21.will make a decision on whether to go ahead with expansion

:14:22. > :14:23.at Heathrow At Lords' Question Time,

:14:24. > :14:27.Liberal Democrat peer Lord Marks asked a question on the current

:14:28. > :14:29.policy towards the treatment of transgender individuals

:14:30. > :14:31.In the criminal justice system. Prison rules say that prisoners

:14:32. > :14:33.should be placed according to their gender,

:14:34. > :14:35.as recognised by UK law, usually, as stated on

:14:36. > :14:37.their birth certificate or, if a person has a gender

:14:38. > :14:39.recognition certificate, giving them a new birth certificate

:14:40. > :14:41.in their acquired gender. The National Offender Management

:14:42. > :14:47.Service Policy on the care and management of transexual

:14:48. > :14:51.prisoners states that prisoners are normally placed

:14:52. > :14:54.according to their legally-recognised gender.

:14:55. > :14:56.The guidelines allow, however, some room for discretion and,

:14:57. > :14:58.in such cases, senior prison management will review

:14:59. > :15:01.the circumstances with relevant experts,

:15:02. > :15:05.to protect the prisoner's safety and well-being and that

:15:06. > :15:08.of other prisoners. Tara Hudson, a woman after

:15:09. > :15:11.six years of gender reconstruction, was originally imprisoned

:15:12. > :15:12.at HMP Bristol - a tough prison for 600 men,

:15:13. > :15:21.causing her great distress. She was moved to a women's

:15:22. > :15:24.prison only after the judges considering her case appeal

:15:25. > :15:26.suggested that the prison service reconsider. How can prison

:15:27. > :15:29.allocation be so insensitive to transgender offenders,

:15:30. > :15:31.particularly in light of the noble lord's answer?

:15:32. > :15:40.And will the noble lord's department ensure that,

:15:41. > :15:42.in the future, if a transgender offender

:15:43. > :15:44.is at risk of a custodial sentence, then full and careful

:15:45. > :15:48.thought should be given to allocation before sentence,

:15:49. > :15:54.rather than after placement? It is the policy of the Ministry

:15:55. > :15:56.of Justice Executive Agency But I can, however, without

:15:57. > :16:02.breaching any of the obligations, assure the House that she is being

:16:03. > :16:05.held in an appropriate environment and is receiving the care

:16:06. > :16:10.that she needs. There is deep concern about

:16:11. > :16:12.treatments within the criminal justice system.

:16:13. > :16:15.There are, however, good works being undertaken,

:16:16. > :16:18.such as at HMP Stafford. Will he commit and reassure

:16:19. > :16:22.the House that there is ongoing training and awareness-raising

:16:23. > :16:24.on the issue of transsexuality, particularly when the criminal

:16:25. > :16:33.justice aspects are outsourced? There is an emphasis on the prison

:16:34. > :16:36.officer training, which has been extended in its length

:16:37. > :16:38.and its content refreshed. It is all about respecting the needs

:16:39. > :16:41.and the rights of each individual prisoner in their care

:16:42. > :16:45.and there is a component of the mandatory training which

:16:46. > :16:48.addresses the Equality Act, and the nine characteristics

:16:49. > :16:50.protected under that legislation. The minister seem to suggest that it

:16:51. > :16:55.was at the point of prison Surely, when a person is

:16:56. > :17:00.leaving court, they need to be in the right van to go to the correct

:17:01. > :17:03.person. So, should the decision not be taken earlier, before they leave

:17:04. > :17:11.court? And can he assure us that the staff there are properly trained

:17:12. > :17:14.and a decision is taken My noble lady makes an

:17:15. > :17:16.important point. The National Offender Management

:17:17. > :17:19.Service is currently looking at ways of facilitating the proper

:17:20. > :17:21.recording of this information, through the introduction of an

:17:22. > :17:23.equalities self-declaration form, to be completed by all defendants

:17:24. > :17:31.who are adjourned for Labour has predicted

:17:32. > :17:33.a dangerous future for policing if the government proceeds with

:17:34. > :17:34.funding cuts. Shadow Home Secretary Andy Burnham

:17:35. > :17:36.warned that, if cuts went beyond 10%, public

:17:37. > :17:40.safety would be put at risk and some But Home Secretary Theresa May

:17:41. > :17:43.insisted that communities in England and Wales were safer than ever

:17:44. > :17:46.and accused Labour When the Home Secretary gets it

:17:47. > :17:53.right, she will have my support. I have just offered her that

:17:54. > :18:01.on the Investigatory Powers Bill. But where she

:18:02. > :18:03.and the government get it wrong, then, Madam Deputy Speaker,

:18:04. > :18:06.I am not going to hold back from saying so, particularly where public

:18:07. > :18:14.and community safety is at risk. I believe this government is

:18:15. > :18:20.about to cause serious damage to I spoke to my Police

:18:21. > :18:25.Crime Commissioner yesterday. He confirmed to me, and I quote,

:18:26. > :18:35."We are in a strong position to face future financial challenges, whilst

:18:36. > :18:36.maintaining frontline services." Does he agree with me, that many

:18:37. > :18:39.factors influence performance, That may well be the case,

:18:40. > :18:42.Madam Deputy Speaker. But could I gently point out to her

:18:43. > :18:50.that it is not the case everywhere. I would refer her to

:18:51. > :18:52.the comments made by the Chief Constable of Lancashire

:18:53. > :18:54.yesterday, before the Home Affairs Select Committee, when he said,

:18:55. > :18:57."Going forward, if the cuts come through, people in Lancashire will

:18:58. > :19:04.not be as safe as they are now." Three weeks from now,

:19:05. > :19:13.the Chancellor of the Exchequer will be standing at the dispatch box

:19:14. > :19:15.announcing his spending review. If he follows through

:19:16. > :19:18.on what he said at the Budget, the country will soon have

:19:19. > :19:20.a very different police force, providing a much-reduced service

:19:21. > :19:23.from the one he has just described. As it stands, like other unprotected

:19:24. > :19:25.departments, the Home Office is in line for cuts over the next five

:19:26. > :19:32.years of between 25-40%. If we assume the government are

:19:33. > :19:35.working towards keeping it at the lower end of that spectrum, that is

:19:36. > :19:41.still a massive hit on resources. As I understand his position,

:19:42. > :19:44.he is saying that cuts of up to 10% could safely be made now, because

:19:45. > :19:50.he accepts, in the terms of this motion, that further efficiencies

:19:51. > :19:53.could be made in the police budget. Therefore, by definition,

:19:54. > :19:55.he has accepted the efficiencies that have been made so far have not

:19:56. > :20:01.damaged policing - by definition. If further cuts can be made,

:20:02. > :20:08.up to 10%, he therefore accepts that the reductions which have been made

:20:09. > :20:13.to date have not damaged policing. Is it not, therefore,

:20:14. > :20:16.not extraordinarily that the Labour Party opposed those

:20:17. > :20:18.reductions in spending, said that Is it not the case that they are

:20:19. > :20:24.saying exactly the same thing now? I am glad the honourable

:20:25. > :20:32.gentleman has intervened. I am not saying anything

:20:33. > :20:34.of the kind. I am not saying that

:20:35. > :20:37.the cuts they have managed, to date, I have just been describing how

:20:38. > :20:40.functions as important as I have also pointed to

:20:41. > :20:48.the fact that crime is rising. These reforms are working

:20:49. > :20:51.and crime is falling. This government has achieved

:20:52. > :20:53.something that no other We have proved that it is possible

:20:54. > :21:00.to improve services and maintain public trust and confidence, whilst

:21:01. > :21:02.saving money for the taxpayer. It is with some dismay that I see

:21:03. > :21:05.the party opposite making exactly the same mistakes as they did

:21:06. > :21:08.in 2010 - misusing statistics, worrying decent members of the

:21:09. > :21:11.public and wilfully ignoring the I am really surprised to hear

:21:12. > :21:17.her say that crime is falling. In Cleveland, we have seen

:21:18. > :21:21.an increasing in crime of 21% - that includes a 77% increase

:21:22. > :21:25.in violence against the person. That does not accord with what

:21:26. > :21:28.she says about crime falling. Under the last Labour government,

:21:29. > :21:31.crime fell by 43%. We are very proud of that record

:21:32. > :21:35.and it is disappointing to see this I think I am right in saying that

:21:36. > :21:45.the figures she quotes for crime falling under the last Labour

:21:46. > :21:47.government were from exactly the same basis as the figures I have

:21:48. > :21:51.quoted for crime falling over the last five years -

:21:52. > :21:53.namely the Independent Crime Survey. Now, could prefab buildings be

:21:54. > :21:58.the solution to Britain's housing They were the answer to many

:21:59. > :22:02.of the housing problems after World War II and they conjure up

:22:03. > :22:04.images of flat-roofed, wooden-clad, In Westminster Hall,

:22:05. > :22:10.Conservative MP Damian Collins said new techniques and technologies

:22:11. > :22:12.for building homes and factories While the number

:22:13. > :22:21.of finished new homes was increasing at 130,000 per year, he says it

:22:22. > :22:27.remains below the target figure. Modern prefabrication could be

:22:28. > :22:45.the solution. The warrant prefabrication conjures

:22:46. > :22:52.up images for many overs of the post-World War II situation, brought

:22:53. > :23:02.into solve the huge housing need we were faced with. But on-site

:23:03. > :23:12.manufacturer assembly have transformed the application for a

:23:13. > :23:16.modern housing. A project in Islington Manchester can pre-order

:23:17. > :23:21.and design their own home before it is assembled. It can be assembled

:23:22. > :23:30.on-site at a lower cost than would normally be the cost for standard

:23:31. > :23:36.construction. Other companies will have similar schemes. I think we are

:23:37. > :23:36.having an exciting new technology which will revolutionise

:23:37. > :23:38.house-building in this country. The Local Government minister,

:23:39. > :23:39.Brandon Lewis, was similarly optimistic

:23:40. > :23:50.about the possible solutions offered We need to build more homes in our

:23:51. > :23:59.country. We need to build them in our communities. We all appreciate

:24:00. > :24:05.the high quality, thoughtful design and built quickly in the right

:24:06. > :24:11.places. Fast housing manufacturer can achieve all this. It has a

:24:12. > :24:15.normal potential for new growth as the factory industry. I would

:24:16. > :24:24.recommend that we look at this more often. And finally, what do you do

:24:25. > :24:31.in the absence of the front bench spokesman? This was faced by the

:24:32. > :24:39.Melbourne-based Deputy Speaker. We now come, I am purposely speaking

:24:40. > :24:47.rather slowly. We know come to the opposition Day motion in the name of

:24:48. > :24:53.the leader, I cannot go much more slowly than this. Some filling and

:24:54. > :25:04.was provided by an honourable member from the Conservative benches. On a

:25:05. > :25:08.point of order, obviously, the house is in anticipation of important

:25:09. > :25:17.papers. What procedures are in place if someone does not cannot? The

:25:18. > :25:24.honourable gentleman makes an excellent and most immediate point.

:25:25. > :25:33.All is well that ends well. Just as I was looking for a solution, the

:25:34. > :25:37.passion of a certain member of a person appearing at the door, I no

:25:38. > :25:47.longer need to consider that solution. We know come to the

:25:48. > :25:52.opposition day motion, to be moved. Thank you very much and I beg to

:25:53. > :25:58.move the motion in my name and those of my right honourable and

:25:59. > :26:02.honourable friends. Why see a little out of breath? That is all for me.

:26:03. > :26:04.Thank you for watching. Goodbye.