:00:17. > :00:43.Thank you, Gateshead! Thank you, the North East. Thank
:00:44. > :00:50.you, those that have come across the river from Newcastle. The bridge
:00:51. > :01:03.unites us, the politics unites us, the future gives us hope in unity. A
:01:04. > :01:07.big thank you to all of you for being here tonight, braving the rain
:01:08. > :01:12.which is very unusual in these parts. And thank if I Mayall of my
:01:13. > :01:16.team, all of our Labour head office team and all of our team in Labour
:01:17. > :01:21.North here in the North East in Newcastle for all the work they've
:01:22. > :01:29.done in this incredible election campaign that we've put together.
:01:30. > :01:33.When this started seven weeks ago almost, they said well, yeah, yeah,
:01:34. > :01:37.yeah, yeah OK what are your policies. Then we came out with our
:01:38. > :01:49.manifesto for the many, not the few! And what we have done is put
:01:50. > :01:55.together an offer, an offer to people of a real alternative to the
:01:56. > :02:00.arid future that a Tory Government would offer us. We have put together
:02:01. > :02:07.something that I think is quite remarkable. We are saying many quite
:02:08. > :02:11.blunt terms, those that caused the financial crisis of 2008-09, have
:02:12. > :02:18.left us with seven years of cuts, seven years of closures, seven years
:02:19. > :02:22.of frozen wages, seven years of under-funded schools, hospital
:02:23. > :02:23.waiting lists and so much more. They've sapped the spirit of so many
:02:24. > :02:39.spirit. It is time for a change APPLAUSE
:02:40. > :02:43.And that change is yes on some policy issues and I will mention
:02:44. > :02:49.some in a moment. It is also a change on how we do our
:02:50. > :02:52.politics. How we relate to each other, how we talk to each other and
:02:53. > :03:03.how we support each other and give hope. And what attitude a government
:03:04. > :03:08.takes in that, this region has suffered from the ravages of the
:03:09. > :03:12.great depression in the 1930s, suffered from the ravages of
:03:13. > :03:19.Thatcherite economics in the 1980s CROWD BOOING
:03:20. > :03:22.Seen the brutality of how the miners were treated and the brutality of
:03:23. > :03:28.privatisation and the loss of jobs in so many different industries, one
:03:29. > :03:32.thing in a sense sums it up sums up what this government and what other
:03:33. > :03:41.Tory governments have been about, when the steel industry got into a
:03:42. > :03:45.crisis because of dumped steel and other issues, those that thought
:03:46. > :03:49.they could asset strip the industry in Redcar got away with it because
:03:50. > :03:55.of the Tory government. I will tell you this, a Labour
:03:56. > :03:59.government were on stand-by seeing an industry destroyed, wooden stand
:04:00. > :04:06.by to see those jobs taken away, wouldn't stand-by and allow
:04:07. > :04:11.communities to suffer so much. We instead would invest and investment
:04:12. > :04:17.is what is the key to it. We should start with investment for the
:04:18. > :04:23.future, the future is our children, the future are our young people. The
:04:24. > :04:29.future is their heirs and what they can contribute to make this world a
:04:30. > :04:34.better and safer place. We start at the very beginning, we start the
:04:35. > :04:39.children improve schools, our offer, 30 hours a week for every child in
:04:40. > :04:48.every part of the country in preschool facilities free. So that
:04:49. > :04:54.as in life we can do things together, let our children enjoy
:04:55. > :04:59.those wonderful preschool years together, their first memories will
:05:00. > :05:02.be of doing things together, children from all around, children
:05:03. > :05:07.from different backgrounds learning and doing things together, that
:05:08. > :05:11.surely is what makes humans strong and support each other. And then you
:05:12. > :05:19.look at the crisis facing the risk goes at the moment. Headteachers
:05:20. > :05:23.desperate to know what to do, desperate to know what teacher they
:05:24. > :05:27.will have to dismiss, which teaching assistant they will have too asked
:05:28. > :05:31.to leave, in secondary schools, which subjects they will have to
:05:32. > :05:36.close down and cut off. And then they ask the Government where is the
:05:37. > :05:40.money coming from, what are you doing press and they say there is a
:05:41. > :05:46.new funding formula, if you don't have enough money then have a
:05:47. > :05:51.collection amongst the parents. I'm really sorry about this but it's not
:05:52. > :05:57.on. APPLAUSE
:05:58. > :06:02.We pay our taxes that there should be education for all children and if
:06:03. > :06:06.you rely on the parents that can afford it to fund the schools that
:06:07. > :06:10.can raise the money, look what happens a few years down the line,
:06:11. > :06:15.some schools have got a lot, some schools have got a lot less, some
:06:16. > :06:17.children have got more, some children have got less. Sorry
:06:18. > :06:28.governments but you are totally wrong. You have to put the money and
:06:29. > :06:32.for all children, but do you know what, children going to our schools
:06:33. > :06:36.must learn of course, they must learn all of those important
:06:37. > :06:44.subjects but it's very hard to learn when you're hungry, it's very hard
:06:45. > :06:48.to concentrate when are hungry. The Tories propose to take away the
:06:49. > :06:52.limited number of free school meals being offered by the coalition
:06:53. > :06:57.government and replace them with breakfasts at around 7p per head, I
:06:58. > :07:04.don't know when the last time any of them went out to buy breakfast, I've
:07:05. > :07:09.never seen a breakfast for 7p. It's an outrage, disgrace and an insult
:07:10. > :07:13.so what are we going to Lou? Something a bit different. A very
:07:14. > :07:18.bit different, we are going to make sure that every child in every
:07:19. > :07:22.primary school gets a school lunch every day with all of the other
:07:23. > :07:29.children and it will be free and open to all of them so again, that
:07:30. > :07:36.experience of doing things together which I'm very keen on and very
:07:37. > :07:43.proud of, children's schools have wonderful creative abilities and
:07:44. > :07:47.imagination. The brain is like a sponge waiting to suck up ideas and
:07:48. > :07:53.waiting to give us all of their hopes on joints and imagination, it
:07:54. > :07:58.is of course the subjects we know about Burt about creativity and that
:07:59. > :08:03.is why APPLAUSE And that is why I'm very proud of
:08:04. > :08:13.the inclusion in our manifesto of a pupil premium for the arts are every
:08:14. > :08:17.child in every school APPLAUSE Will be able to learn a musical
:08:18. > :08:25.instrument. And again it has the effect on the
:08:26. > :08:31.wonderful imagination and you know what, we will also create a quite
:08:32. > :08:39.big creative fund for the whole country so that wonderful places
:08:40. > :08:43.like the theatres will be properly supported and above all, that
:08:44. > :08:47.creativity music means that our musicians need a place to rehearse
:08:48. > :08:52.and places to perform and we understand that and we're doing all
:08:53. > :08:59.we can to improve those facilities and then later on as young people go
:09:00. > :09:05.through the education career, yes ideas growing demands grow and needs
:09:06. > :09:09.group, but their choices should not be restricted. Either by parental
:09:10. > :09:17.income or the postcode they come from.
:09:18. > :09:20.APPLAUSE And so we will bring back the
:09:21. > :09:26.education maintenance allowance so that youngsters will not be
:09:27. > :09:33.constrained in going on to further education, and then those that want
:09:34. > :09:39.to go to university, those that want to go to college should not be put
:09:40. > :09:44.off by the idea of a massive debt at the end. My heart bleeds for
:09:45. > :09:48.students who are going to be an enormous debt because of the levels
:09:49. > :09:53.of fees at the present time, we have looked into it carefully and we've
:09:54. > :09:56.decided it is in the interests of the individual that they achieve the
:09:57. > :10:00.best in their lives, it is also in the interest of all of us that
:10:01. > :10:12.everyone achieves the best of their lives and so so we will abolished
:10:13. > :10:23.June fees and bring back a maintenance allowance at University
:10:24. > :10:27.because I want us to have icy Nissan is an investment in the future for
:10:28. > :10:37.loss, unlock the potential and unlock that creativity. We heard the
:10:38. > :10:41.one fall remarks of women engineers and what they achieve, they'll
:10:42. > :10:55.struggle to achieve those things, what a waste it is, when we prevent
:10:56. > :11:01.large numbers of our young people we all lose and they all learners and
:11:02. > :11:05.we are all poorer as a society. Achievement enriches all of us. And
:11:06. > :11:11.I'm determined that we will have an education system worthier and the
:11:12. > :11:21.National education service to ensure all of this is delivered.
:11:22. > :11:26.APPLAUSE One of the greatest achievements of
:11:27. > :11:30.my party when it has been in government and I believe of this
:11:31. > :11:36.country is the principle that health care free at the point of use is a
:11:37. > :11:42.human rights for all of us. It is not the case in all parts of the
:11:43. > :11:45.world, if you were in the United States you'd be looking at each
:11:46. > :11:50.other thinking what level of health insurance you had got, whether or
:11:51. > :11:54.not if you had cancer and you would be treated, whether you could go to
:11:55. > :11:58.a doctor or curtains, that is not a choice that is available here
:11:59. > :12:03.because we have an NHS, but I tell you this, if this governments
:12:04. > :12:08.remains in office, what will be the problems in the NHS in five years'
:12:09. > :12:14.time, how much will the debts be in each hospital, what will the level
:12:15. > :12:18.of wages before skilled doctors nurses and technicians in hospitals
:12:19. > :12:24.already having had several years of frozen wages? It's not acceptable
:12:25. > :12:29.that the NHS should be treated in this way so on day one we will
:12:30. > :12:33.suspend the sustainability of transformation plans.
:12:34. > :12:42.APPLAUSE And look again at the issue of
:12:43. > :12:49.national health service, and investing the money in the next
:12:50. > :12:59.Labour government because I want there to be that health service for
:13:00. > :13:07.all time. It will last as long as we can fight for it. But there are
:13:08. > :13:12.other aspects that have to be looked at and at this very moment there are
:13:13. > :13:18.a million people waiting for some kind of social care, often times in
:13:19. > :13:27.great distress, sometimes those with special needs. A million people
:13:28. > :13:36.waiting, that is simply wrong. It is very well for a Tory government to
:13:37. > :13:39.do one after the other, sorry that is not acceptable, we will
:13:40. > :13:48.immediately put emergency funding into social care to remove those
:13:49. > :13:56.people from the waiting list and we will set up a national care service.
:13:57. > :14:04.At the moment there's something wrong, if you suffer from Cannes to
:14:05. > :14:08.get treated and supported correctly however if you suffer from dementia
:14:09. > :14:16.and need that care it is not the same at all, we support education,
:14:17. > :14:19.we support health in all of its aspects.
:14:20. > :14:28.APPLAUSE I also would say this, Ian mentioned
:14:29. > :14:35.it earlier, the question of the mental health crisis, let's
:14:36. > :14:39.collectively create we won't make rude remarks, jokes or stigmatise
:14:40. > :14:42.those who are going through mental health 's conditions or stress, we
:14:43. > :14:49.will reach out and help people instead. And in governments we will
:14:50. > :14:59.find our mental health services so the supporters there so again we
:15:00. > :15:10.have that inclusive approach to our society. But election is about
:15:11. > :15:13.choices, it is about services I mentioned including the housing
:15:14. > :15:21.programme today where we will build a large number of council houses as
:15:22. > :15:26.well as affordable homes for sale including the private rented sector,
:15:27. > :15:37.these are all crucial things. But it is also about economic... So many
:15:38. > :15:40.other part of this country have seen no investment since the coal
:15:41. > :15:46.industry was shut down by Margaret Thatcher and her friends. That's the
:15:47. > :16:05.correct response. The opportunities for investment having missed out,
:16:06. > :16:12.despite George Osborne 's claims no doubt he will write it in the
:16:13. > :16:18.Evening Standard sometime, we will establish that there will be a
:16:19. > :16:21.national investment bank ten years, ?500 billion spread across every
:16:22. > :16:27.region of England and in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland so it
:16:28. > :16:32.will ensure proper investment and I absolutely support a new Crossrail
:16:33. > :16:42.of the North from Newcastle across Manchester. Because it is about
:16:43. > :16:53.investments in high-tech industries and jobs. Look at what's local
:16:54. > :16:57.authorities have done to their enterprise systems, surely we need a
:16:58. > :17:02.government that has the same approach of investing in our futures
:17:03. > :17:15.and our economy and not leaving that to else.
:17:16. > :17:22.An awful lot of jobs on the north-east depend on trade in Europe
:17:23. > :17:31.and we will make sure there is a trade access there. But the
:17:32. > :17:37.selection also is about how we divide up the cake. How we divide
:17:38. > :17:41.our national resources, public sector workers on a pay freeze, 6
:17:42. > :17:47.million people earning less than a living wage and a billion people in
:17:48. > :17:53.zero hour contracts, many people are going to the most appalling stress
:17:54. > :18:00.because of a combination of benefits frozen or cut, disability frozen or
:18:01. > :18:06.cut and many people go through the terrible stress of trying to
:18:07. > :18:11.survive. On the other end of the scale this seems to be a magic
:18:12. > :18:18.manage true. That's monetary magically cuts tax for the biggest
:18:19. > :18:25.corporations, seems unaware of the money that is siphoned off in havens
:18:26. > :18:29.around the world and I'm concerned about the lack of investment in the
:18:30. > :18:36.database services that we all need support and enjoy so yes there will
:18:37. > :18:46.be tax rises are not for 95% of the population. Those with the broader
:18:47. > :18:57.shoulders will be asked to pay so the rest can benefit from decent
:18:58. > :19:09.services that renewed. This is for the selection is fundamentally about
:19:10. > :19:13.there is a creative support of community that does things together,
:19:14. > :19:16.look at the way that they can come together in the face of adversity,
:19:17. > :19:25.supporting each other and changing things. Look at the gatherings in
:19:26. > :19:37.London tonight in exactly the same mood. It is about supporting each
:19:38. > :19:45.other, and the last few days that we have available, think about the
:19:46. > :19:49.choice, think about this country, re-elect this Tory governments and
:19:50. > :20:02.it is a choice between Labour and the Tories. We are fighting the way
:20:03. > :20:12.as a Labour Party to form a Labour government. Five more years of Tory
:20:13. > :20:21.government and maybe a million more children living in poverty. Hammy
:20:22. > :20:27.libraries close or school classes overcrowded, how many people living
:20:28. > :20:33.in desperate poverty, how many people either end of their tether
:20:34. > :20:41.spitting on the streets -- sleeping on the streets, the answer is we
:20:42. > :20:48.should not and we will not. And so what I ask you to do is understand
:20:49. > :21:10.how things ever happen in politics. Six weeks ago we started our
:21:11. > :21:18.campaign on issues such as integration and fundamentalist
:21:19. > :21:21.Islam, at the time many people disapproved, at the time many people
:21:22. > :21:24.said it was completely