:00:17. > :00:20.Welcome to Politics Scotland. Coming up this afternoon: Trump the
:00:20. > :00:30.Tycoon blows into Holyrood to castigate the Scottish Government's
:00:30. > :00:33.
:00:33. > :00:38.policy on wind farms. Scotland, if you pursue this goal of these
:00:38. > :00:40.monsters over Scotland, so got and will go broke. And here at
:00:40. > :00:43.Westminster, questions about the government's economic competence
:00:43. > :00:53.and political integrity on the day the economy goes back into
:00:53. > :00:53.
:00:53. > :00:57.recession and the revelations over Donald Trump has said he was
:00:57. > :01:00."lured" into building a one billion pound golf resort in Scotland on
:01:00. > :01:03.assurances that a nearby wind farm would not go ahead. I'm joined in
:01:03. > :01:11.the studio now by our political commentator for this afternoon,
:01:11. > :01:19.Professor John Curtice. Good afternoon. Good afternoon.
:01:19. > :01:24.do thinks Alex Salmond might be concerned? Central to his vision of
:01:24. > :01:32.how an independent Scotland will be successful, is the idea it will be
:01:32. > :01:38.a renewable capital of the world. Part of that would beat Scotland's
:01:38. > :01:44.reliance on wind power. Now we see one of those gentlemen who hitherto
:01:44. > :01:47.has been quite supportive of Mr Salmond and bringing inward
:01:47. > :01:53.investment into Scotland, the type Scotland would need to five
:01:53. > :01:57.economic league, now turning around to say if you pursue this policy,
:01:57. > :02:02.it will be economically damaging he says because people do not like the
:02:02. > :02:07.sight of them. So there is no doubt that mixed are summoned will
:02:07. > :02:12.doubtless want to brush this off but a well known businessman who
:02:12. > :02:15.has been willing to invest in Scotland saying, this thing that is
:02:15. > :02:22.central to your vision for an economic t successful Scotland is
:02:22. > :02:25.the wrong path, is something politically of a problem. Do think
:02:25. > :02:32.he he is helping to change the debate on wind farms, which had
:02:32. > :02:35.often been put forward as a great saviour for Scotland? It he will
:02:35. > :02:44.raise question-marks. There have been others and areas where the
:02:44. > :02:51.idea of putting wind farm has been thought of as a unattractive. What
:02:51. > :02:55.is also true and what makes this argument important is that what Mr
:02:55. > :02:59.Trump is objecting to is the proposal for an offshore wind farm
:02:59. > :03:05.relatively close to the golf course he has invested in. Some people
:03:05. > :03:09.anticipate that whatever people thought about them on land, for
:03:09. > :03:14.some it is the idea of having them across the hills of Scotland and
:03:14. > :03:19.being unsightly, people may be left -- less concerned that having them
:03:19. > :03:23.offshore. Insofar as perhaps there was some hope that offshore wind
:03:23. > :03:29.might be more acceptable than onshore wind, Mr Trump has
:03:29. > :03:37.indicated that is not necessarily the case. As we will see, it raises
:03:37. > :03:42.questions for Alex Salmond and the former First Minister who Mr Trump
:03:42. > :03:47.says made promises. Insofar as promises might have been made by a
:03:47. > :03:51.previous administration, Mr Salmond would not consider him bound to
:03:51. > :03:55.that. It was a concision - might decision of the Scottish government
:03:55. > :03:58.to allow Mr Trump to go ahead with the golf course and it is a
:03:58. > :04:02.decision the Scottish government will have to make as to whether the
:04:03. > :04:11.proposal for the wind farm of that golf course is also going to go
:04:11. > :04:16.ahead. To that extent, the decision to allow this to go ahead is in the
:04:16. > :04:22.Scottish Government's in-tray and they cannot avoid it - a
:04:22. > :04:26.politically difficult decision. So, Mr Trump gave evidence to the
:04:26. > :04:33.energy committee at Holyrood this morning and here is a flavour of
:04:33. > :04:38.what happened. The fact is that I built, and they
:04:38. > :04:45.brought some magazines a long, I build what I said I was going to
:04:45. > :04:48.built, and beyond, I have spent a tremendous amount of money get free
:04:48. > :04:55.building what many are already considering bake greatest golf
:04:55. > :05:01.course in the world. I don't want to see it destroyed by having it
:05:01. > :05:06.11th monstrosities bill looming over it, literally one mile away.
:05:06. > :05:13.It is actually land-based Because when you are talking about one mile,
:05:13. > :05:18.you were talking about land-based. This is a test centre where they
:05:18. > :05:22.put up all different types of windmills. At least if you took the
:05:22. > :05:27.best looking one, of which there are none, and you put up 11
:05:27. > :05:31.identical ones, but this will be all different ones. It is a
:05:31. > :05:36.redundancy because it is done all over the place. By the way, many
:05:36. > :05:39.countries decided they do not want wind because it does not work
:05:39. > :05:44.without massive subsidies, it kills massive amounts of birds and
:05:44. > :05:49.wildlife and there are lots of other reasons. It is an inefficient
:05:49. > :05:54.form of energy that, when you need it most, you don't get it because
:05:54. > :06:02.the windows and blowing when you need it most. For Scotland, almost
:06:02. > :06:07.most important league, they are so unattractive, so noisy and
:06:07. > :06:12.dangerous that, if Scotland does this, I think Scotland will be in
:06:12. > :06:15.serious trouble. I think you will lose your tourism industry to
:06:15. > :06:23.Ireland and lots of other places who are laughing at was Scotland is
:06:23. > :06:27.doing.... You detail the concerns about the proposed offshore wind
:06:27. > :06:30.farm developments in Aberdeen show. There are a number of Commons I
:06:30. > :06:34.would like to draw to your attention. You say the Scottish
:06:34. > :06:39.government has an obligation to honour its contract so and you go
:06:39. > :06:44.on to say that Scotland, at the highest ministerial level,
:06:44. > :06:50.encouraged me with a overwhelming promises, public statements and
:06:50. > :06:55.various offers to support. Can I ask you what were these promises
:06:55. > :07:00.that were made to you and when where they made and he made them?
:07:00. > :07:06.When I first came to Scotland, my mother was born on the Isle of
:07:06. > :07:12.Lewis so I know something about it, but when I first came to Scotland,
:07:12. > :07:17.I had an option to buy this piece of land. I was going to buy it and
:07:18. > :07:23.I hope there was going to be a big wind farm built off the almost 2000
:07:23. > :07:30.acres of land we are talking about. I said, that is OK but I will not
:07:30. > :07:36.build there. I spoke to Jack O'Connell at the time and there
:07:36. > :07:40.were people talking about putting good tunes that I so cherish and we
:07:40. > :07:47.now call the great tunes of Scotland that have got all these
:07:47. > :07:53.great awards and we have been very careful environmentally, but we
:07:53. > :07:58.were going to go. We said, OK we will not build here we will go
:07:58. > :08:03.somewhere else and not by this land. We actually had a great piece of
:08:03. > :08:10.land in Ireland and it wasn't my first choice but it was a great
:08:10. > :08:14.piece of land. If you remember, there was a big fuss and I was
:08:14. > :08:22.going to build in Ireland because of the fact the wind farm was going
:08:22. > :08:27.to be built fairly near our course in Scotland. As Jack McConnell said,
:08:27. > :08:32.it would not be built and his people were telling George or might
:08:32. > :08:35.people that, it will not happen. They talked about the Ministry of
:08:35. > :08:39.Defence not approving it because it had something to do with their
:08:39. > :08:44.radar and the shipping lanes, because it is near Aberdeen. They
:08:44. > :08:50.said it would not happen and then it totally disappeared. Based on
:08:50. > :08:57.that, nothing in writing, I decided to go forward. In the meantime,
:08:57. > :09:02.Alex Salmond, when I discussed it with him towards the beginning, he
:09:02. > :09:06.pooh-poohed it and said, you have a Ministry of Defence problem and
:09:06. > :09:11.shipping lane problems, I would not worry about that. I went forward
:09:11. > :09:19.and have invested tens of millions of pounds, I have completed ahead
:09:19. > :09:24.of the schedule, I have built something that is spectacular and
:09:24. > :09:28.it will be great for Scotland her and for Aberdeen and for everything.
:09:28. > :09:34.After I have invested this tremendous amount of money, all of
:09:34. > :09:37.a sudden, this really obnoxious and ugly wind farm appears, which is
:09:37. > :09:44.worse than a wind farm because they will have differed looking
:09:44. > :09:49.windmills. It will look like a bad version of Disneyland. So, I felt
:09:49. > :09:57.betrayed because I invested my money based on statements that were
:09:57. > :10:01.made to me and then I get a letter from Alex Salmond a short time ago
:10:01. > :10:04.on April 12th and in one of his parts of the letter, "as I
:10:04. > :10:12.explained, the policies of one government do not bind its
:10:12. > :10:16.successor" so what he is saying is if Jack told me that it was not
:10:16. > :10:21.going to happen and people in the administration tell you that, they
:10:21. > :10:25.are not bound by it. Lots of very smart people with a lot of money
:10:25. > :10:29.are looking to invest in different parts of the world and when they
:10:29. > :10:34.see how I have been treated, they will not invest in Scotland because
:10:34. > :10:39.when you make a statement that, just because one administration
:10:39. > :10:44.says something... It if Jack McConnell says to me and his
:10:44. > :10:48.representatives say to us that it will not happen, and then it goes
:10:49. > :10:54.away and then I'd build and invest all this money and then it re-
:10:54. > :10:58.emerges, I do not think that is fair to an investor. It is clear it
:10:58. > :11:06.is a matter of great importance that the development did not go
:11:06. > :11:10.ahead. I told them I would build in Ireland. But the question is, if it
:11:10. > :11:14.also important to you, why did do not seek something more than just a
:11:14. > :11:20.verbal assurance? I didn't think it was necessary because they talked
:11:20. > :11:24.about something that to do with the Ministry offence -- Ministry of
:11:24. > :11:30.Defence. They also talked about the shipping lanes and that has always
:11:30. > :11:36.been a big problem. The Ministry of Defence has recently come out
:11:37. > :11:43.against the wind farm. So, I feel very good about that but I was told
:11:43. > :11:48.a that a while ago. I did not think it was necessary. Alex Salmond
:11:48. > :11:53.mentioned it in the same way. When they say the Ministry of Defence is
:11:53. > :12:03.Dave -- against it, what do I need? So they yurt me in and I spend the
:12:03. > :12:05.
:12:05. > :12:11.money and now I might regret it. -- they you'd me in. When you proposed
:12:11. > :12:21.the development back in 2006, 2000 and salmon, we were in a different
:12:21. > :12:22.
:12:22. > :12:25.economic time -- 2007. The economic circumstances are different today.
:12:25. > :12:30.If you change your mind about the development, or you are looking for
:12:30. > :12:36.is an excuse to withdraw and it is a face saving exercise. How do you
:12:36. > :12:42.feel about that? The Times today quoted Alex Salmond who said we are
:12:42. > :12:49.satisfied with what we have done. I have invested tens of millions of
:12:49. > :12:53.pounds with no debt on the site. No mortgage, no financing, no nothing.
:12:53. > :13:01.Unlike most other projects going down the Tube, I have invested tens
:13:01. > :13:06.of millions of pounds into my close to 2000 acre site. I have created
:13:06. > :13:09.something magnificent. Some people and myself considerate the best
:13:09. > :13:15.golf course in the world and that is what I said we were going to do
:13:15. > :13:22.because we had the canvas to do it. I'm looking forward to preceding
:13:22. > :13:25.and I want to build a hotel and I want to build further. We are very
:13:25. > :13:30.rich as an organisation and substantial but this is a small job
:13:30. > :13:40.for me. It is important. My mother was born in Scotland and it is
:13:40. > :13:45.important for me but it is not a big job. You know that as soon as
:13:45. > :13:51.this horrendous idea of these 11 all different colours, different
:13:51. > :13:56.styles and looks windmills... One other thing, now it is one mile
:13:57. > :14:01.away. When I first got involved, they would 10 miles away and then
:14:01. > :14:08.three miles away. Now it is one mile away. As this gentleman told
:14:08. > :14:15.me a little while ago, one mile isn't really at sea, it is really
:14:15. > :14:20.on land. This is the equivalent of a 70 storey building, 11 of them,
:14:20. > :14:24.and each one different. There is not a man or woman sitting here who,
:14:24. > :14:28.if they were on my position and they were enticed into making an
:14:28. > :14:33.investment because of the beauty of the site and the views and all of
:14:33. > :14:37.those things and then after I have spent my money they can and
:14:37. > :14:42.announce this atrocious plan. I just have to tell you one other
:14:42. > :14:47.thing, wind is not a good form of energy and it does not work without
:14:47. > :14:52.subsidy. So I think this is just an observation I make as a businessman
:14:52. > :15:02.who has done well. You have to be very careful because if the UK ever
:15:02. > :15:02.
:15:02. > :15:09.takes away your subsidy, you have One final question, which is only
:15:09. > :15:13.fair to put to you, and that is both Jack McConnell and the current
:15:13. > :15:17.first minister, Mr Salmond, deny they gave you these assurances.
:15:17. > :15:24.have heard that and I note Mr Salmond is denying other things
:15:24. > :15:30.today not related to this. should we believe you? Because he
:15:30. > :15:35.is denying other things today. He is denying everything. Obviously,
:15:35. > :15:45.they even said I wanted windmills. Somebody said that. Who would want
:15:45. > :15:45.
:15:45. > :15:51.them? I was always opposed to them. They asked me if I would write to -
:15:51. > :15:54.- in appropriate areas. I believe Hydro for Scotland is great and you
:15:54. > :16:00.should expand that. Wave technology is great and there should be
:16:00. > :16:08.expanded. But I think you are going to destroy your coastlines. Jack
:16:08. > :16:14.McConnell told me that Alex Salmond told me -- scoffed at the idea at a
:16:14. > :16:19.dinner in York. By the way, this man was there. We had a dinner, we
:16:19. > :16:24.talked hours, we talked about windmills. Who would believe we
:16:24. > :16:27.would talk about windmills? When I originally bought this site, when I
:16:27. > :16:35.heard when mills were going to be there, I would have built in
:16:35. > :16:39.Ireland. I have never heard anyone complain that the Scottish
:16:39. > :16:43.government... I would appreciate if you could give us an idea of
:16:43. > :16:51.anything that your organisations have about how we might meet these
:16:51. > :16:55.renewable targets to include the concerns you have around wind.
:16:56. > :17:00.a practical standpoint, York C02 targets are absolutely ridiculous.
:17:00. > :17:07.China is decimating the atmosphere, they are decimating what is going
:17:07. > :17:12.on in the air. Your targets are less than 1%, if that. And yet
:17:12. > :17:18.China, where you bite your unattractive industrial wind per
:17:18. > :17:25.Bines, is decimating the atmosphere. Here you are destroying the
:17:25. > :17:30.financial well-being of Scotland, destroying it, in order to meet
:17:30. > :17:36.phoney and totally random at the Co 2 targets. You have a company that
:17:36. > :17:40.is making carbines, and by the way, turn at a door making turn bines
:17:40. > :17:43.and getting Scotland to pay them a lot of money, but China is
:17:43. > :17:50.decimating the atmosphere and doing so much damage that there is
:17:50. > :17:56.nothing that you can do at all to bring it back by your so-called
:17:56. > :18:01.wind initiative. Renewable, again, fine. Wind, a fine, if it is in the
:18:01. > :18:06.right location. For you to the setting targets when China and
:18:06. > :18:12.other countries are decimating the atmosphere is very foolhardy.
:18:12. > :18:17.have the biggest poll of all last year. The SNP campaigned strongly
:18:17. > :18:21.during the campaign on a policy of delivering the equivalent of 100 %
:18:21. > :18:27.Renault -- renewables. Surely you can agree that the overwhelming
:18:27. > :18:31.vote for the current government is in support of that policy. It is
:18:31. > :18:35.you who is out of touch with public opinion. Excuse me, that is because
:18:35. > :18:38.the public was not given the fact by you or Alex Salmond. If he were
:18:38. > :18:44.smart, he would stop this now because what is happening to
:18:44. > :18:49.Scotland is going to be terrible. This is the same thinking that gave
:18:49. > :18:56.you are my cry he where they let him out of prison... It is true.
:18:56. > :19:03.This is the same thinking. He would be dead within two weeks. He was
:19:03. > :19:07.seen running in the park last week. This is of topic. As far as jobs
:19:07. > :19:11.are concerned, jobs are created the your industrial Turbo lines. I
:19:11. > :19:16.don't use the word renewables could I feel strongly about certain
:19:16. > :19:21.renewables... On the industrial turn Bines, jobs are being created
:19:21. > :19:25.in other countries. Very few jobs are being created here. Any jobs
:19:25. > :19:29.that are being created here are more than offset by it what you
:19:29. > :19:35.will lose in your most in port -- important industry, which is
:19:35. > :19:41.tourism. I feel very strongly about that. The few jobs you will create
:19:41. > :19:45.will be offset to a much larger extent by the jobs you will lose in
:19:45. > :19:50.terms of... One thing that happened last week, we did not really want
:19:50. > :19:58.to get into it too much, but this is an appropriate time, we were
:19:58. > :20:03.approved for a beautiful little staging area up front on the road
:20:03. > :20:08.for a security house. Beautiful, elegant, we got nice compliments,
:20:08. > :20:12.everything was good except for one thing: Flagpoles. They are one-
:20:12. > :20:19.tenth the size of the windmills. The reason the flagpoles were not
:20:19. > :20:25.approved was, I am quoting, an acceptable impact on the bridge
:20:25. > :20:32.will amenity of the area. -- visual amenity. They are one-tenth the
:20:32. > :20:35.size of the are deterred by his. With that being said, we have a
:20:36. > :20:39.tremendous investment in this development and I would love to be
:20:39. > :20:43.so -- proceed with it. I cannot proceed if the hotel will be
:20:43. > :20:51.looking into industrial turbines, and no one else would if you were
:20:51. > :20:54.in my position. If the job is terminated, I would immediately
:20:54. > :20:59.precede with hotel. I have to tell you, my project is a much bigger
:20:59. > :21:06.project, we are talking about �750 million when it is finished. My
:21:06. > :21:09.project is a much bigger project than the other one which I heard
:21:09. > :21:14.was �60 million. Then I see 200, I see different numbers, I don't
:21:14. > :21:20.think they know what it is, if they want to build it. But I seek 60 and
:21:21. > :21:25.I see 200, but my project is 750 potentially. I will start on the
:21:25. > :21:31.hotel immediately if I hear that that horrendously located wind farm
:21:32. > :21:35.will not be built. Let's speak to our political
:21:35. > :21:39.correspondent in Holyrood now. Interesting what Mr Trump was
:21:39. > :21:43.saying. What's keeping his intervention has achieved?
:21:43. > :21:48.certainly created a good deal of controversy which is something that
:21:48. > :21:52.Donald Trump specialises in, at least he is good at that as he is
:21:52. > :21:58.at creating hotels and golf resorts around the world. There has also
:21:59. > :22:03.been a lot of laughter today. This was perhaps a bit more Holly wood
:22:04. > :22:07.than Holyrood. I have not seen one quite as busy and charged in all
:22:07. > :22:13.the time I have been covering the Scottish Parliament. If I was to
:22:13. > :22:17.pick out one of the lighter moments, it was when Donald Trump was a
:22:17. > :22:22.challenge and asked, where is your evidence? And Donald Trump replied,
:22:22. > :22:27.I am the evidence. Listening to that, it was amusing in some parts,
:22:27. > :22:34.it was a circus, but how damaging the think it was bought Alex
:22:34. > :22:38.Salmond whammy here of the dinner discussions? Donald Trump has
:22:38. > :22:41.certainly made some serious allegations. He has declined not
:22:41. > :22:46.one but two first ministers, saying he would not have gone ahead with
:22:46. > :22:52.his golf resort if he had not had private assurances from both Jack
:22:52. > :22:56.McConnell and Alex Salmond, both as first minister, but there would be
:22:56. > :23:02.no wind development near his golf resort. Of course there is a
:23:02. > :23:07.planning application for of short- term buy-ins which should be seen
:23:07. > :23:13.from the many estate. Donald Trump says it that goes ahead, he will
:23:13. > :23:19.not go ahead with his hotel development. Alex Salmond and Jack
:23:19. > :23:23.McConnell have both strongly denied giving such assurances. Yet at a
:23:23. > :23:27.dinner in New York or elsewhere. One of those who was at the
:23:27. > :23:31.committee today asking the questions is the MS P Patrick
:23:31. > :23:37.Harvey, co-leader of the Scottish Green Party. What did you make are
:23:37. > :23:41.the allegations that Donald Trump made today? Most of Mr Trump's
:23:41. > :23:46.evidence was pretty thin, pretty laughable from my point of the year.
:23:46. > :23:49.But the allegation that has been made was Mr Trump saying one thing
:23:49. > :23:54.and Lord McConnell and Mr Salmond saying another. I don't think we
:23:54. > :24:01.are in a position to judge. There is clearly nothing enlightened. Is
:24:01. > :24:05.something irresponsible was said at the level -- at 11:30pm after a
:24:05. > :24:11.glass or two, some irresponsible small-talk that would be one thing,
:24:11. > :24:13.but it would be quite wrong because a first minister cannot prejudice
:24:13. > :24:18.the outcome of a future planning application in that way. It would
:24:18. > :24:22.be entirely inappropriate to do so. Your point was that even if the
:24:22. > :24:25.assurances had been given, Mr Trump is experienced enough and well
:24:25. > :24:28.enough advised by lawyers to know that the assurances could not have
:24:28. > :24:35.meant anything. Of course it could not amount to anything. He would
:24:35. > :24:38.know about. In his written submission to the committee, he
:24:38. > :24:42.said the Scottish government must honour its contract. There is no
:24:42. > :24:45.way that a small tour conversation like this could be described as a
:24:45. > :24:51.contract Evette it took place. I am perfectly prepared to believe that
:24:52. > :24:56.no such obligation was given. wider attack was on the CO2 targets
:24:56. > :25:00.we have in Scotland. He thinks they are rubbish and is not convinced
:25:00. > :25:05.that climate change is man-made. He thinks wind turbines are ugly and
:25:05. > :25:08.inefficient and will destroy the Scottish economy. I don't think he
:25:08. > :25:13.is a particularly pretty either, but it is very difficult to have a
:25:13. > :25:22.conversation at a serious level with anybody about energy policy
:25:22. > :25:26.when they wholeheartedly reject that mainstream science. We have to
:25:26. > :25:30.begin together. What do we wanted to achieve? Affordable, a reliable
:25:30. > :25:34.supply and as close as we can get to zero car then. Renewables is the
:25:34. > :25:38.only way to achieve that. Thank you very much. One of the other
:25:38. > :25:43.remarkable features of the session today was that it seemed to die
:25:44. > :25:49.together all the big controversy is of our time. We had mention of
:25:49. > :25:53.adults are McGahey's release, the Leveson Inquiry, Rupert Murdoch, as
:25:53. > :25:57.well as the debate on the referendum on independence, the
:25:57. > :26:03.future of Rangers Football Club also got mention that the end. Mr
:26:03. > :26:07.Trump said he might buy it! Leads to turn our attention to the
:26:07. > :26:10.Leveson Inquiry. The got us -- the Scottish government has confirmed a
:26:10. > :26:14.call was scheduled between the first minister Alex Salmond and the
:26:14. > :26:19.UK culture secretary. But it said the conversation about News
:26:19. > :26:25.Corporation's bid of four control of BSkyB did not alter many take
:26:25. > :26:33.place. In an interview with our political correspondent, Mr Salmond
:26:33. > :26:41.dismissed calls that there should be resignations over the issue.
:26:41. > :26:51.There is a legal responsibility and the Sega two it is a... Labour
:26:51. > :26:54.
:26:54. > :26:58.better go back to there are full This shows there is an
:26:58. > :27:02.inappropriate level... This government will always argued on
:27:02. > :27:07.behalf of jobs and investment. Secondly, any politician I have
:27:07. > :27:12.ever known tries to get the press to support them. That is part of
:27:12. > :27:16.their business and politics. That was first minister Alex
:27:16. > :27:20.Salmond. Let's turn to Professor John Curtis from Strathclyde
:27:20. > :27:25.University. Interest in what the first minister was saying. Is he
:27:25. > :27:30.riding the storm well? In truth, it is not that big a storm for him.
:27:30. > :27:35.There is a general problem. Any politician, p 8 Labour,
:27:35. > :27:41.Conservative or nationalist, it does not look that the Lib Dems
:27:41. > :27:45.have had close relations to Murdoch, but any politician who has had any
:27:45. > :27:51.connection with Mr Murdoch within the relatively recent past is in
:27:51. > :27:56.truth embarrassed ever since the phone hacking controversy blew up
:27:56. > :28:02.back in the summer of last year. Mr Salmond is caught in the back of
:28:02. > :28:06.that. If one goes through what was released yesterday in terms of Mr
:28:06. > :28:10.Salmond, it looks as though he indicated willingness to talk to
:28:10. > :28:14.the Culture Secretary, to express his view about the BSkyB bid. At
:28:14. > :28:21.the end of the day, one might say the first minister is entitled to
:28:21. > :28:25.try and contact the government to lobby in favour. More broadly, I
:28:25. > :28:30.expect many people would expect the Scottish government to stand up for
:28:30. > :28:35.what it regards to the Scottish interests. The argument is whether
:28:35. > :28:40.or not to allow BSkyB to take over. The second thing, which some people
:28:40. > :28:46.might regard as more distasteful, and which Mr Salmond has openly
:28:46. > :28:50.admitted, is that he was courting the support of the Sun newspaper in
:28:50. > :28:59.advance stop the Scottish election last year. That is clear from e-
:28:59. > :29:03.mail messages. Mr Salmond was very keen. Mr Salmond is saying that
:29:03. > :29:08.that is part of the game of politics, which is true, but I'm
:29:08. > :29:18.not sure if it is the part that the public like. I don't know whether
:29:18. > :29:27.
:29:27. > :29:32.It shows how Mr Salmond was to secured the support of these
:29:32. > :29:37.international newspapers and in particular the sun? He clearly
:29:37. > :29:42.regarded getting the backing of the press as crucial. Mr Murdoch in his
:29:42. > :29:50.evidence this morning, has denied that the newspapers are that
:29:50. > :29:55.influential and although the sun may have said once that it is what
:29:55. > :30:00.won it, he has denied that is so. You may say that he would say that
:30:00. > :30:06.but, in truth, all politicians preferred to have the press on
:30:06. > :30:11.their side. To that extent, they are all courting it but whether all
:30:11. > :30:17.politicians are up to concerned about courting the press, I so but
:30:17. > :30:22.-- suspect that is also to as well but Alex Salmond was also keen in
:30:22. > :30:28.the same way that the Labour Party was disappointed when the Sun
:30:28. > :30:35.switched to the Conservatives in the general election. Let us turn
:30:35. > :30:39.our attention to a hugely important subject, the UK economy. It is in a
:30:39. > :30:44.double dip recession. There is no doubt that the UK government is
:30:44. > :30:48.learning that it never rains but palls. Ever since the Budget that
:30:48. > :30:57.George owes borne presented last month, there has been political
:30:57. > :31:01.trouble -- George Osborne. The government has said their policies
:31:01. > :31:06.were set up to avoid a double-dip recession. Some economists have
:31:06. > :31:11.their doubts about the figures and they get revised periodically but
:31:11. > :31:19.at the moment, Britain has met the criteria for recession in that we
:31:19. > :31:25.have had to quarters for no growth. That is embarrassing at a time when
:31:25. > :31:29.the Conservatives political standing is in trouble and the
:31:29. > :31:35.public's doubts about the way the economy is being handled is being
:31:35. > :31:40.seat in. To that extent, the argument that it is all Labour's
:31:40. > :31:47.fault is no longer defending the government with regards to economic
:31:47. > :31:52.back news. -- bad news. To Westminster and while the
:31:52. > :31:56.economy was on the agenda, David Cameron was also forced to defend
:31:57. > :32:04.the Culture Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, following the revelations that the
:32:04. > :32:10.levers an inquiry yesterday. -- the Leveson inquiry. Let us turn our
:32:10. > :32:13.attention to the Culture Secretary. We now know that throughout the
:32:13. > :32:18.time the Culture Secretary was supposed to be acting in an
:32:18. > :32:23.impartial manner, he and his office were providing a constant flow of
:32:23. > :32:28.confidential information to News Corporation about statements to be
:32:28. > :32:32.made in this House in advance, his private discussions with the
:32:32. > :32:36.regulators and his discussions with opposing parties. Having seen the
:32:36. > :32:41.163 pages published yesterday, is the Prime Minister seriously trying
:32:41. > :32:46.to tell us that the Secretary of State was acting as he should of
:32:46. > :32:51.done in a transparent, impartial and fair manner? I said at the
:32:51. > :32:54.inquiry. The terms of reference of the inquiry are agreed by the
:32:54. > :32:59.leader of the Liberal Democrat Party and the leader of the Labour
:32:59. > :33:09.Party. I believe that to step in and try and prejudge that inquiry
:33:09. > :33:20.
:33:20. > :33:27.Let me be clear. Lord Justice Leveson has made that precise. This
:33:27. > :33:32.morning. Let me read to the House what he has said. Perhaps the House
:33:32. > :33:36.would like to listen. Let us hear what the Prime Minister has to say
:33:36. > :33:40.and then the questioning can continue. Not Justice Leveson said
:33:40. > :33:49.this morning that it is very important to hear every side of the
:33:49. > :33:52.story before drawing conclusions. Then he said that although he has
:33:52. > :33:57.seen requests all other inquiries and investigations and, of course I
:33:57. > :34:02.do not seek to constrain Parliament, it seems to be that a better course
:34:02. > :34:08.would be to allow the inquiry to proceed. Having set up this inquiry
:34:08. > :34:13.and having agreed with this inquiry, he should listen to this inquiry.
:34:14. > :34:17.Mr Speaker, Lord Justice Leveson is responsible for a lot of things but
:34:17. > :34:23.he is not responsible for the integrity of the Prime Minister's
:34:23. > :34:27.government. In case he has forgotten, that is his
:34:27. > :34:31.responsibility as the Prime Minister. It beggars belief that
:34:31. > :34:36.the Prime Minister can defend the Culture Secretary because he was
:34:36. > :34:41.not judging this big, he was helping the bid. Two days before
:34:41. > :34:45.the statement to the House on 25th January, the Culture Secretary's
:34:45. > :34:52.office was not only colluding with News Corp to provide information in
:34:52. > :34:57.advance, they were hatching a plan to ensure, "it would be a game over
:34:57. > :35:02.for the opposition" to the bait. Does the Prime Minister really
:35:02. > :35:05.believes that is how a judge and his advisers are supposed to act?
:35:05. > :35:12.The Leader of the Opposition clearly doesn't think that what
:35:12. > :35:20.Lord Leveson this morning said matters. Let me remind him what he
:35:20. > :35:30.said yesterday. He said this, "I think that it is right that the
:35:30. > :35:33.
:35:33. > :35:38.Leveson inquiry takes its course." He went on. "it is important that
:35:38. > :35:45.it is to the bottom of what Labour did, they Conservatives did and
:35:45. > :35:51.that we get to the bottom of that". In the morning, he set out is very
:35:51. > :36:01.clear position but in the afternoon, he cannot resist the party
:36:01. > :36:04.
:36:04. > :36:08.political bandwagon. Totally, totally, totally... I said the
:36:08. > :36:14.Prime Minister must be heard, and now the Leader of the Opposition
:36:14. > :36:20.must be heard. Both will be heard however long it takes. Totally
:36:20. > :36:24.pathetic answers. He is the Prime Minister. If he cannot defend the
:36:24. > :36:29.conduct of his own ministers, his ministers should be out the door.
:36:29. > :36:35.He should fire them. He doesn't even try to defend the Secretary of
:36:35. > :36:40.State and what he did. The Secretary of State told this House
:36:40. > :36:43.on 3rd March in answer to a question and I quote, "today we are
:36:43. > :36:50.publishing all the consultation document, all the submissions we
:36:50. > :36:57.received, all the exchanges between my department and News Corporation",
:36:57. > :37:01.but he did not. 160 Freepages have now emerged. The Prime Minister
:37:01. > :37:05.does not defend him over giving confidential information to one
:37:05. > :37:09.party in the case, he doesn't defend him over collusion, is he
:37:09. > :37:18.really going to defend him about not being straight with this House
:37:18. > :37:22.of Commons? Let me make absolutely Clare -- Clear that the Culture
:37:22. > :37:29.Secretary has my full support... short time ago, Harriet Harman
:37:29. > :37:35.accused Jeremy Hunt of backing News Corp's bid to take over BSkyB
:37:35. > :37:39.instead of backing -- looking at it objectively. Let us stay in London
:37:39. > :37:45.and speak to David Porter who is standing by at portcullis House.
:37:45. > :37:50.Thanks for joining me. A lot of talk of tycoons today. Here we have
:37:50. > :37:56.Mr Trump in Scotland and Mr Murdoch appearing before the Leveson
:37:56. > :38:00.inquiry in London? Yes, no shortage of drama and good, hard news
:38:00. > :38:05.stories at Westminster and the environment today. I have two
:38:05. > :38:13.guests with me and no shortage of topics to talk about. I am joined
:38:13. > :38:20.by Margaret come and, the shadow Scottish Secretary, -- Magaret
:38:20. > :38:26.Curran. The opposition were unable to put a representative for wood.
:38:26. > :38:29.Before we go on, There are some very important economic news
:38:29. > :38:37.stories today and presumably something you will be discouraged
:38:37. > :38:41.by. Officially the UK is in recession. Yes, depressing news
:38:41. > :38:50.with a direct consequence of the Tory Government's failure to tackle
:38:50. > :38:56.the economic problems we face and particularly experienced --
:38:56. > :39:00.particularly relevant for young unemployed and women unemployed.
:39:00. > :39:06.The government has to change course and the Scottish government has to
:39:06. > :39:09.step up and do more more effectively to help families who
:39:09. > :39:15.are desperate the study -- struggling. Is it time for the
:39:15. > :39:21.government to repay up its economic strategy? Yes. We have been warning
:39:21. > :39:27.about a double dip recession since 2010. Now we have won driven by a
:39:27. > :39:30.fall in construction output which is why we have been calling for
:39:30. > :39:34.direct capital investment which is the most effective way to grow the
:39:34. > :39:40.economy. This government has not listened and now ordinary people
:39:40. > :39:47.are paying the price. The Coalition government has always argued that
:39:47. > :39:57.you have to get the deficit down before you can start on the economy.
:39:57. > :39:58.
:39:58. > :40:02.When people like their BBC and the venture capitalist organisations...
:40:02. > :40:06.They should listen. We need to get the construction sector moving
:40:06. > :40:10.again and jobs back into the economy and out of this recession
:40:10. > :40:16.in double-quick time. This medicine is killing the patient. Margaret
:40:16. > :40:24.Curran, the Coalition says that if your party had not left Britain in
:40:24. > :40:33.such a bad set date, week would not be where we are now. This crisis
:40:33. > :40:37.was made in Wall Street not Downing Street. Borrowing has now increased
:40:37. > :40:43.by �160 billion so it is a failing strategy and the people who are
:40:43. > :40:48.suffering are ordinary hard-working families. It is time the government
:40:48. > :40:55.changed course. The talk down here is very much an of what is
:40:55. > :41:01.happening at the Leveson inquiry and the evidence by the to Murdochs.
:41:01. > :41:08.Are we seeing from what we have heard, AC change in the way
:41:08. > :41:13.politicians and the media interact with each other? These are seismic
:41:13. > :41:20.events in Scotland and Westminster. It is deeply depression for someone
:41:20. > :41:27.like me to see a Tory minister and answer his critics and we see Alex
:41:27. > :41:34.Salmond refusing to do that in Scotland and not be accountable. At
:41:34. > :41:40.least Alex -- Jeremy Hunt did that. We know about the exchanges of e-
:41:40. > :41:45.mails. He said he never made the call but we need to know what he
:41:45. > :41:50.intended to say but was only called off because Jeremy Hunt made the
:41:50. > :41:55.announcement the next day. We need to know the extent of lobbying and
:41:55. > :42:01.collusion in Alex Salmond's of this and why he is using the office of
:42:01. > :42:06.the first minister to be a lobbying agent for Murdoch. Therefore, your
:42:06. > :42:15.first minister in Scotland has questions to answer as well. This
:42:15. > :42:19.is crass opportunism. Let us understand the facts. This is a
:42:19. > :42:26.decision on the takeover of BSkyB. There is nothing the Scottish
:42:26. > :42:36.government could offer. Why did you offer? The decision was taken out
:42:36. > :42:37.
:42:37. > :42:44.of the House of Vince Cable. Jeremy Hunt expected... No representations
:42:44. > :42:47.were made to him either. But if a large investor wanted to talk to
:42:47. > :42:51.the Scottish government, they are entitled to do so and the Scottish
:42:51. > :42:56.government is entitled to have those discussions. The problem
:42:56. > :42:59.Labour has is that they are so desperate to pin anything on Alex
:42:59. > :43:05.Salmond, they are losing sight of the fact it is the right thing to
:43:05. > :43:10.do to protect new investment and the thousands of jobs in Scotland.
:43:10. > :43:16.That is not adequate. No one is saying the first minister shouldn't
:43:16. > :43:18.fight to protect jobs but he should not do inappropriate lobbying on
:43:19. > :43:25.behalf of one organisation as serious questions still pertain to
:43:25. > :43:29.that. Why did he think it was proper for him to phone Vince Cable
:43:30. > :43:39.on as he suggested he would do and also Jeremy Hunt are to lobby for
:43:39. > :43:42.one side. Why did he do that? Can I ask you, do not think Alex Salmond
:43:43. > :43:48.should come to make his statement? Would that not have been fitting?
:43:48. > :43:55.It is right and proper that the Scottish government explains in
:43:55. > :44:02.full today exactly the circumstances that no lobbying was
:44:02. > :44:08.made to Vince Cable or Jeremy Hunt and that the proper discussion with
:44:08. > :44:11.major investors... De except that Alex Salmond is accountable to the
:44:11. > :44:18.Scottish Parliament and that it has the right to have answers? Why
:44:18. > :44:27.should the Scottish Parliament get less than Westminster gets? There
:44:27. > :44:34.is no collusion. Yes there is. We are not getting information from
:44:34. > :44:44.Alex Salmond that Parliament is getting from Jeremy Hunt. There are
:44:44. > :44:46.
:44:46. > :44:52.a couple of e-mails which mention We have first minister's questions
:44:52. > :45:00.tomorrow. Half-an-hour is not enough. Surely ms appeased have the
:45:00. > :45:07.right to question Alex Salmond? On that principle, is that right?
:45:07. > :45:17.he is able to construct a sensible... We are not independent
:45:17. > :45:22.
:45:22. > :45:27.yet. Margaret, don't harangued... Quick question to both of you.
:45:27. > :45:34.can seem be a motion that this issue raised is. Very briefly,
:45:34. > :45:38.first of all, Margaret, I'll be going to be in a new frame? Do we
:45:38. > :45:43.need more transparency, do we need to know more about the relationship
:45:43. > :45:47.between the press and politicians? The first principle of that is
:45:47. > :45:52.accountability to Parliament, but ultimately accountability to the
:45:52. > :45:55.people we represent. When the Leveson Inquiry is finished and the
:45:55. > :46:01.work is produced, there will be a great number of recommendations,
:46:01. > :46:06.many of which will be eminently sensible. Most will be implemented?
:46:06. > :46:10.Mate -- quickly, I suspect. A thank you for joining me. Thank you for
:46:10. > :46:13.what we can only describe as a spirited discussion. That gives you
:46:13. > :46:21.some indication of the strength of feeling about this issue in
:46:21. > :46:25.Westminster. Earlier we covered Donald Trump,
:46:25. > :46:33.Mount -- Donald Trump's session with the parliamentary committee.
:46:33. > :46:37.Let's cross to our Edinburgh studio now. Good afternoon and thank you
:46:37. > :46:43.for joining us, it is in. We have been watching the evidence says and
:46:43. > :46:47.there. I saw you in evidence behind Mr Trump, and we saw some of the
:46:47. > :46:51.protests outside when he arrived. The think it helps or hinders your
:46:51. > :46:56.organisation to have such a controversial figure as Mr Trump
:46:56. > :47:00.involved in the debate was marked I think it is helping us a lot.
:47:00. > :47:04.has really raised the profile bought all the communities who feel
:47:04. > :47:08.persecuted by this issue across Scotland. I know you feel very
:47:08. > :47:12.strongly about this, but he not think that what Mr Trump says could
:47:12. > :47:20.be regarded as may be rather overblown, that wind farms were
:47:20. > :47:24.destroyed Tote -- tourism? He has a very valid point. When councils and
:47:24. > :47:32.the Scottish government are allowing wind farms to beat sighted
:47:32. > :47:36.ever closer to national parks and places like the part in air show
:47:36. > :47:43.that there is a real danger to tourism. We have been it hearing
:47:43. > :47:48.from people in the committee that the wind farms were actually
:47:48. > :47:53.increasing tourism. I think that is the case in at Whiteleys, which is
:47:53. > :47:56.a very big wind farm south of Glasgow. They have created a good
:47:57. > :48:03.tourist attraction that. It is a great place for people to go
:48:03. > :48:08.jogging and see the wind turbines, but I don't think that in the wild
:48:08. > :48:13.lands over Scott lined -- Scotland where people go for peace but they
:48:13. > :48:18.want to find a visitor centre. It is like putting Alton Towers over
:48:18. > :48:22.Scotland. The feeling was very much in evidence by the two opposing
:48:22. > :48:27.parties outside Parliament there. We have pictures of that. Mr Trump
:48:27. > :48:31.says Scollan will go broke if the UK with draws the wind farm subsidy.
:48:31. > :48:36.Is that true? What about Mr Sam and talks about, the re
:48:36. > :48:40.industrialisation has gone and? Scotland has never been an
:48:40. > :48:45.industrial nation. The central belt may have had quite a lot of
:48:45. > :48:49.industries and a bit around the cities, but Scotland is famous for
:48:49. > :48:57.its wild plants and its beautiful scenery. People come to Scotland
:48:57. > :49:02.for the tourism industry and expect to experience that. I really don't
:49:02. > :49:11.agree with tit Brodie at all. thank you very much for talking to
:49:11. > :49:15.Let's head to Holyrood and get reaction from there. Done well
:49:15. > :49:22.Senate from the SNP, the deputy convener, and Lewis Madonna from
:49:23. > :49:32.Labour. Good afternoon and thank you for joining us. Mr Fraser, D B
:49:33. > :49:35.
:49:35. > :49:39.Mr Trump's appearance was a good? There was a lot of heat and colour.
:49:39. > :49:46.I think Mr Trump does have a fair points to make and he does
:49:46. > :49:50.represent many people who share his concerns in the community. He does
:49:50. > :49:54.represent a lot of people in rural Scotland with legitimate issues. Of
:49:54. > :50:00.course there is a danger when you invite someone like him, because of
:50:00. > :50:05.his celebrity status, but that has the issue, but what his appearance
:50:05. > :50:08.in Parliament has done is brought a lot of wider public interest in the
:50:08. > :50:13.whole debate, not just around wind power, but around renewable energy.
:50:13. > :50:16.I don't think that is a bad thing that we are engaged in the wider
:50:16. > :50:20.public on a very important political decision that we are
:50:20. > :50:30.taking for our country's future. chairman of the committee, what do
:50:30. > :50:31.
:50:31. > :50:36.you think the killer line was? Was Mr Trump, did he Mail Alex Salmond,
:50:36. > :50:41.all was that not the case? Mr Trump was very clear in his view that the
:50:41. > :50:47.assurances were given to him up by Mr Salmond, and by Mr McConnell. It
:50:47. > :50:51.is fair to say both Mr McConnell and Mr Salmond denied that. It is
:50:51. > :50:56.not a matter for myself for other committee members to act as judge
:50:57. > :50:59.and jury on that. But there is an interesting panel there be to eat -
:50:59. > :51:05.- parallel between what is happening in London with the
:51:05. > :51:13.Leveson Inquiry and what is being exposed in Mr Salmond's dealings
:51:13. > :51:16.with Mr Murdoch. Perhaps Mr Salmond needs to choose his friends more
:51:16. > :51:21.carefully in the picture. Is there a lesson for Mr Salmond when it
:51:21. > :51:27.comes to getting involved with big tycoons, whether that be Mr Murdoch
:51:27. > :51:31.or Mr Trump? The issue in terms of Mr Trump, and the same issue with
:51:31. > :51:34.Mr Murdoch, the first minister is there to represent Scotland and its
:51:34. > :51:41.interests are. In terms of the Leveson Inquiry and the issues that
:51:41. > :51:45.came out today, in terms of the dealings with Mr Murdoch, the first
:51:45. > :51:50.minister was looking to protect the interests of Scottish workers. As
:51:50. > :51:55.we heard earlier, 6,800 workers are based in Scotland and work for
:51:56. > :51:59.BSkyB. If the first minister did not go in up to speak to BSkyB and
:51:59. > :52:04.Rupert Murdoch about protecting and securing the jobs and trying to
:52:04. > :52:07.grow the jobs, he would be accused by the opposition of failing to
:52:07. > :52:12.protect Scottish interests. The opposition have to be very careful
:52:12. > :52:15.what they are asking for. They say the first minister has denied the
:52:15. > :52:19.opportunity to speak to multi- millionaires, high-profile
:52:19. > :52:22.businessman, to protect Scottish interest, or do we leave them alone
:52:22. > :52:26.and let the Investment go elsewhere? We have to be very
:52:26. > :52:29.careful because what the first Minister was doing with both dental
:52:29. > :52:33.man was trying to protect the investment that we have already got
:52:33. > :52:40.in Scotland and further commitments to invest in the future. We are
:52:40. > :52:43.looking at taking forward the issues. The first minister of
:52:43. > :52:49.Scotland is entitled to speak in whether he feels would be relevant
:52:49. > :52:54.to secure and increase investment in Scotland. It is rather a plague
:52:54. > :52:58.on all your houses when it comes to this conflated issue. The former
:52:58. > :53:04.First Minister Jack McConnell was brought up, his promises to Mr
:53:04. > :53:14.Trump, and of course they have been talking about Labour's in bald man
:53:14. > :53:22.
:53:22. > :53:26.People realise the decisions were made when Alex Salmond was first
:53:26. > :53:30.minister. Donald Trump was talking today about the assurances that
:53:30. > :53:33.Alex Salmond gave him. There is confusion about two different
:53:33. > :53:37.issues, namely the proper responsibility of all polisher
:53:37. > :53:41.since to protect jobs in the economy with improper use of
:53:41. > :53:45.political office and power to lobby on behalf of a commercial
:53:45. > :53:50.organisation. If John Wilson is confusing that, I can only take it
:53:50. > :53:54.that Alex Salmond confuses it too. The evidence is there that Alex
:53:54. > :54:01.Salmond has said things, been reported to say things, to Rupert
:54:01. > :54:09.Murdoch and on promises. He should not have used the office of first
:54:10. > :54:13.minister to make them. Thank you to everyone for joining me.
:54:13. > :54:17.Back to the Leveson Inquiry and in the last few minutes, the News
:54:17. > :54:24.Corporation chairman Rupert Murdoch has been giving evidence. He has
:54:24. > :54:33.been responding to questions on his support for the SNP.
:54:33. > :54:41.Why did you support Mr Salmond's party? Well, it is a little
:54:41. > :54:45.emotional, but I am attracted by the idea. I am not convinced and so
:54:45. > :54:49.I said we should stay neutral on the big issue of.
:54:49. > :54:56.That was Rupert Murdoch. Let's have some final thoughts in the company
:54:56. > :54:59.of Professor John Curtis. John has been -- John, it has been a day at
:54:59. > :55:04.tycoon's north and south of the border! It shows how difficult it
:55:04. > :55:08.is for politicians to tread that tight rope. Indeed. It is one of
:55:08. > :55:12.our contributors, sometimes politicians have to be careful
:55:12. > :55:16.about the friends they keep. But when you make it friend of someone,
:55:16. > :55:21.you sometimes do not realise until afterwards that it was unwise. It
:55:21. > :55:26.is interesting to hear what Mr Murdoch said. He is sufficiently
:55:26. > :55:31.sympathetic to the idea of an independent Scotland. He said he
:55:31. > :55:37.remains to be convinced. There is a great consistency because he is
:55:37. > :55:42.also someone who is not that keen on the due -- the European Union.
:55:42. > :55:50.To some degree at least, some of the arguments that what happens to
:55:50. > :55:56.Europe, some people say it Europe should not meddle in our affairs.
:55:56. > :56:00.The arguments are a similar that the SNP used about London not
:56:00. > :56:08.meddling in Scottish affairs. Some might understand why Mr Murdoch
:56:09. > :56:13.Let's try and tie up these issues now. We have got the Scottish local
:56:13. > :56:20.government elections next week and the Mail elections in London as
:56:20. > :56:25.well. Mr Cameron will not be happy at this misery on these already bad
:56:25. > :56:33.few weeks. The Conservatives are now in electoral trouble for the
:56:33. > :56:37.first time since they came to power. This has happened at a very bad
:56:37. > :56:41.time. The trip is the Conservatives never had I prospect north of the
:56:42. > :56:47.border. They are not hoping to do much more than hang on to what they
:56:47. > :56:54.have. The south of the border, they will lose seats, but they helped to
:56:54. > :56:58.extend those losses. They have reason to believe that Boris
:56:58. > :57:03.Johnson would beat Ken Livingstone. He may still do so, but the most
:57:03. > :57:06.recent poll that came out yesterday paid his lead back to two points.
:57:06. > :57:10.There must now be a concern that with the Labour Party within an
:57:11. > :57:17.eight-point lead in Westminster opinion polls, maybe even Boris
:57:17. > :57:21.Johnson's chances of returning mayor of Westminster are challenged.
:57:21. > :57:25.There will not be any silver lining to what may be a disappointing set
:57:25. > :57:30.of results for the Conservatives. Just a few weeks ago, people were
:57:30. > :57:40.saying, will these be good enough for Mr Miliband to stem further Pep
:57:40. > :57:48.
:57:48. > :57:52.-- further speculation about his Alternatively, if that does not
:57:52. > :57:59.happen, will the contrast between what might be another disappointing
:57:59. > :58:06.form north of the border... Beetroot this with a little more
:58:06. > :58:11.than a week to go, we have very little idea what will play out.
:58:11. > :58:15.councils to look out for? The won the SNP wants to focus on his
:58:15. > :58:21.Glasgow. It will be extremely difficult for them to win. They are
:58:21. > :58:27.not putting in the high quality campaign they need. Look for places
:58:27. > :58:30.like Dundee and Perth. Given we have poor representation, most
:58:30. > :58:35.councils will still be a honk and it will be negotiations afterwards
:58:35. > :58:38.rather than votes on Thursday that will be crucial in determining who
:58:38. > :58:44.runs Scottish local authorities. Thank you very much.
:58:44. > :58:47.That is all we have time for. I will be back next week at the same