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Transcripts For BBCNEWS The Week In Parliament 20240714

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Now on bbc news, the week in parliament. Hello and welcome to the week in parliament. As the race for number ten nears the finish line, mps start laying down the law. The ayes to the right, 294. The noes to the left, 293. Members of the uks Youth Parliament hear about the risks young people face from knife crime. We have to be very careful. I dont want to leave that Radio Station and weve got 20 young men that have just heard this track waiting outside the front with shanks and machetes and all sorts. And all change on the woolsack but the lord speaker knows his limits. And i have no ambition to do whatjohn bercow does and say that mr brown or lord brown or mr smith. All that to come and more from a week dominated by the race for downing street. Not so long ago, mps would spend their evenings voting. Frequently. Usually to reject Theresa Mays Brexit plan. Since that ran into trouble, votes in the commons have been rather rare. So, when relatively technical legislation on Northern Ireland was tabled, mps seized their opportunity. Power sharing at stormont collapsed more than two years ago and the bill in question is designed to keep Northern Ireland running in the absence of a devolved administration. Mps used the legislation to make changes that could go far beyond public administration. In a moment, well hear more about what it could mean for gay marriage and abortion in Northern Ireland. But first, how opponents of brexit changed the legislation with the aim of making it harder for a new Prime Minister to deliver a no deal brexit, which they say could raise prices and costjobs. With the leadership frontrunner borisjohnson having refused to rule out suspending parliament to allow the uk to leave without a deal, it was clear who the leader of the latest backbench revolt had in mind. I have listened with astonishment to a number of references from people who may be holding high office in the nearfuture, one of whom appears to think that proroguing parliament to achieve brexit is an acceptable form of activity for the leader of the executive, when in fact it is a constitutional enormity and a gross undermining of democracy. The grieve plan would force ministers to update mps regularly on progress towards restoring devolution in Northern Ireland in the hope that would mean parliament would have to be sitting and be able to block a no deal brexit. Ministers smelt a rat. Just simply the requirement for regular fortnightly reporting throughout the autumn subject to a vote on each occasion is an excessive and unnecessary level of procedure, and i would also note that the requirement for fortnightly reports and notions were attached to many the other reporting obligations of the other different topics which have been attached to this bill which various honourable colleagues are seeking to add to this clause. And therefore the amount of parliamentary time which we would be booking up throughout september and on into the autumn should the executive in stormont not have been created would start to amount. But in the end, on the key issue mps agreed by the narrowest of margins. The ayes to the right, 294. The noes to the left, 293. Look for the mp on the left of your screen with her hand over her mouth whipjo churchills mistake in not voting led to the governments defeat. The ayes to the right, 294. The noes to the left, 293. The ayes have it. That isnt the end of it, of course. The bill now goes to the lords and the significance of the vote in terms of brexit is disputed. But when peers begin their debates and votes on the bill in the coming days, there will be other attempts to thwart a no deal brexit. That defeat wasnt the only drama of the evening. Earlier, mps had made two significant changes to the bill that could yet have a major impact on social policy and politics in Northern Ireland. The bbcs Northern Ireland political reporterJayne Mccormack has this analysis from stormont. What happened in the commons on tuesday night was potentially a game changerfor Northern Ireland. Now, the bill was only ever meant to keep Public Services ticking over here in the absence of a government. Instead, we saw the clearest sign of direct rule by westminster yet. One amendment from labours Connor Mcginn sought to extend same sex marriage to Northern Ireland, where currently it is not legal. Another amendment from labours Stella Creasy was to liberalise abortion laws in Northern Ireland, where currently it is only allowed in the strictest of circumstances. Now, they both passed overwhelmingly, and it is safe to say the dup were not pleased about this. They oppose a law change on both those fronts, and they also said they felt the principle of devolution had been breached. There is one very big caveat to all of this, though. The law doesnt automatically change and in fact it will only become law if there isnt a return to power sharing at this place by the 21st of october. Does that mean there could be a return to power sharing anytime soon . That seems unlikely because the other Political Parties in Northern Ireland have campaigned for the law to change, even if that means via westminster. The other thing to say about tuesday night is that it is certainly a nod to the effect of politics to have real change on issues that people care about and also a reminder of what has been missing Jayne Mccormack reporting. Boris johnson hasnt spoken in the house of commons since march but as theresa mays time in number ten draws to a close, he dominates debates without actually being there. His failure in an itv Leadership Debate to defend the uks ambassador to the United States was said to have been a factor in Sir Kim Darrochs resignation from that role after his leaked, frank comments about the Trump Administration prompted donald trump to denounce in colourful terms both the ambassador and the Prime Minister. Theresa may said shed told sir kim she regretted his resignation. Sir kim has given a lifetime of service to the United Kingdom and we owe him an enormous debt of gratitude. Good government depends on Public Servants being able to give full and frank advice. I want all our Public Servants to have the confidence to be able to do that. And i hope the house will reflect on the importance of defending our values and principles, particularly when they are under pressure. Some observers thought those remarks a little pointed. A Foreign Office minister accused Boris Johnson of throwing Sir Kim Darroch under a bus. But sir alan duncan was a little more guarded, answering mps questions a day later. While the failure of the former foreign secretary to leap to the defence of sir kim shows a lack of leadership that is lamentable, is not the priority now to restore the shattered confidence of our diplomatic corps . And is not the best way to do that to identify the miserable perpetrator of this act, and then to see them charged with a criminal offence . I hope the house will understand if i will hold back today for making any further comment on my right honourable friend the member for uxbridge. Ithink i. I said enough yesterday to make my position entirely clear. Sir alan duncan, showing that diplomacy isnt confined to the diplomatic service. Its all change in the house of lords well, up to a point. The lord speaker guides and assists the lords rather than managing it. He has no power to call members to order or decide who speaks next in a self regulating house. But we are now seeing and hearing more of lord fowler and his deputies as they explain whats going on. I asked Norman Fowler whats the problem hes trying to fix. Oh, the problem is quite simple. What we are trying to do is to make the house of lords is accessible the house of lords as accessible and as understandable as possible. And, as you know, its not just for those watching from the gallery, its for those watching from outside. Bbc parliament. I mean, you have Something Like approaching two Million Viewers a month. Well, at times, one wonders whether they actually understand what is happening, not because of them but because of us, we dont actually explain it. We dont say this is going to be a private notice question on, shall we say, events in syria. It is simply not set out for them. So, thats the number one aim. Is this the beginning of the end for a self regulating chamber . No. Its not. I dont want to move away from a self regulating chamber. It is not the thin end of the wedge. And, actually, everyone in the lords, virtually everyone in the lords, supported what im doing. I mean, there are very practical reasons for not wanting to move away from a self regulating chamber. I mean, first of all, its better to have a self regulating chamber which is operating by consensus and assent, as opposed to, well, perhaps as opposed to the commons. And i have no ambition to do whatjohn bercow does and say, mr brown or lord brown or lord smith. Because in the house of lords, you not only have to say the name, you would have to say his territorial assignation as well. I mean, calling joan bakewell, i would have to say baroness ba kewell of hartington mandeville. Well, you know, i can just about remember. I can rememberjoan but im not sure i can remember the territorial, so ive got no ambitions in that respect. You say you dont want to be likejohn bercow but there must be a temptation, even an opportunity to become an activist speaker. Well, id quite like to be an activist, but not actually on the floor of the house. I mean, i think its important, well, as you mentioned, i am trying to reduce the numbers in the house of lords itself. That i think is a worthwhile thing to do and i will continue to press on. And we are making progress on it, we are about 60 or 70 down over the last 12 months, which is good. We are making progress in that respect. Lord fowler. More from him in a moment. The authorities in both the lords and the commons have promised another crackdown on bullying and harassment in the palace of westminster. Two reports by senior lawyers highlighted the problem of mps and peers bullying and harassing staff. Gemma white qc said the most common form of offending behaviour by a minority of mps was shouting at, demeaning, belittling and humiliating staff, often in public. But her report said Sexual Harassment was also a problem, with staff being subject to unwanted advances. Let me be clear that there should be absolutely no place for bullying and harassment in this place and we all bear a responsibility to uphold the proper standards of dignity and respect in parliament. And as you know, mr speaker, over the last year we have made significant progress that will help bring about meaningful culture change but there remains more to be done. In the lords, naomi ellenbogan qc found a culture of undue deference, fear and hierarchy that has put members and clerks at the top, and everyone else below. I asked lord fowler what he planned to do about that. Im totally committed to fighting that and fighting any cases of that kind, any evidence of that kind. I mean, thatjust doesnt have any place in the house of lords. It is against our whole tradition. And as far as i am concerned, if cases come to me, they will go straight to the commissioner for investigation. Now, you say that its not part of the tradition of the house of lords but this report talks about known offenders whose behaviour was tolerated. Well, i read that. I dont know who these known offenders are, to be perfectly honest. And, certainly, if people would come to me, tell me who these known offenders are, give me examples of it, im very happy indeed to pass that on to the commissioner, i am very happy to have that investigated. You set up a parliament wide code of behaviour. It comes to something, doesnt it, when lawmakers need a code of behaviour to be told the difference between right and wrong . Yes, but again, i have to say it is not unique. When you look at so many organisations today, but the lords is different, parliament is different. And, yes. But often, the people who are at fault here are not peers, and they are not mps. They are staff on staff. I mean, that is the trouble. If you take the house of lords, i think that the number of cases affecting peers themselves, i dont defend those who have been found guilty, but the majority are staff on staff, and it is the hierarchy in an organisation, it is people who are senior but are not prepared to let it pass as that but wish to actually bang on the table and say, i am the boss. Weve got to get rid of that, and weve done that in other organisations, weve got to do it in the house of lords and in the house of commons. But the report talks about parliamentary royalty. Peers seeing themselves as parliamentary royalty. Well, i also saw that comment as well. No. Weve only had this report for a short time. Ive been trying to find out who this parliamentary royalty are, but as far as i am concerned, if i find out parliamentary royalty who have been doing things wrong, i will become a very staunch republican and seek to take action. Lord fowler, thank you. Thank you very much. The uk Youth Parliaments select committee has been continuing its inquiry into knife crime, exploring the links between gangs and trap and drill music. They heard from a social worker and ex gang member whos now working with young people caught up in gangs. He said many Media Organisations were consciously cashing in on gang culture. The Radio Stations are now literally promoting guys, if you go on youtube you can see them, its a list of guys who come in either with ski masks and if it aint ski masks, they come on and they are literally inciting violence to the point. This is the point that kylie was saying. So i think yes, we have to run and look deeper into the music, of course we do because there are social factors which we are going to talk about later. Because music is just a symptom of this situation. Its just a symptom. Its like a way out for them to release their frustration. But, the frustration is whats causing the mayhem on the street and we have to recognise that. I sat with a young man yesterday and they were taking him to a Radio Station a couple of weeks just to know what its like to be in that kind of environment where people arent smoking weed, they arent drinking, theyre not getting off their face, its a professional environment. I want him to have a taste of that not in somebodys backyard, not in somebodys kitchen, not in somebodys bedroom. I want him to know that also he has the skills, he has these prospects. He can go anywhere he likes with them. What i have heard discussed with him is anything we do put out on the radio, we have to be very careful. I dont want to leave that Radio Station when we have got 20 young men who have just heard this track waiting outside the front with shanks and machetes and all sorts. If you are looking at social media and all you getting is that rubbish that comes up on there from the different young people that tell you to act in a certain way, tells eight year old girls to wear makeup, tell eight year old girls to wear miniskirts, tell guys out there just to go around and do different things. And i am not suggesting that every part of social media does that but i am sorry, most of the things that young people watch on social media is negative. And the reason why is because mum, or dad, is not in control at home. And the Youth Parliament committee will produce a report which will be considered by the government and mps. Time for a look now at some other news in brief. And mps have been told that waiting lists for routine surgery have risen by up to 50 in england because senior doctors say they cant afford to work extra shifts. Consultants have begun refusing to work beyond their planned hours after receiving unexpected tax bills following new pension rules. A conservative asked an urgent question. Can we imagine the conversation between couples along the lines of, so you are leaving me and the children again this weekend to go voluntarily to work to make our family worse off . Its not going to happen, is it . The same applies for gps, many of whom are now doing less sessions each week than they want to and patients desperately need in order not to be made worse off by breaching their annual pension allowance. Peers have been urged to consider moving parliament away from london while a restoration of the palace of westminster goes ahead. That was one idea floated when the lords debated the legislation paving the way to set up organisations that will oversee the work. The leader of the lords said the horrific fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in paris had served as a reminder of the risks to the historic and iconic building which now required regular fire patrols. Other issues which have affected the palace in recent months include falling masonry, water leaks, floods, sewage leaks, lighting and power outages, and toilet closures. Whatever individual position members may take on particular elements of this programme, i think your lordships would all agree that significant Maintenance Work cannot be delayed any longer. Peers will now consider the bill in more detail. Fresh from his appearance at glastonbury, Sir David Attenborough headed to the business and energy committee, where he gave a stark warning about the future of the planet. Im ok, you know, for the next decade. Im ok, and all of us here are ok because we wont face the problems that are coming. But the problems in another 20 30 years are really major problems that are going to cause great social unrest and great changes in the way that we live, in what we eat and how we live and so on. Its going to happen. The mps liked what they heard. This for us i think has probably been the most inspiring session certainly since ive become chair of the select committee to have the privilege to chair so thank you for everything you do and thank everybody for coming to observe today. Thank you. Thank you very much. Applause its fair to say that not all witnesses at committees get that sort of reception. Now, one of the most notorious events in 19th century politics, the peterloo massacre in manchester, when peaceful campaigners calling for political reform were mown down by a cavalry charge is being remembered in parliament. Simon vaughan reports on a bicentenary exhibition. Manchester, august 1819. Thousands attend a peaceful political meeting at st peters fields. But the authorities fear trouble. As well as it being a protest and a campaign for parliamentary reform, its also about much more than that as well. Its about the way in which the country is ruled and there are many people within the groups who coalesce around the reformers at peterloo who wanted much more than just parliamentary reform, they want revolution. The local yeomanry charged the crowd. At least 18 people are killed and hundreds injured. In an ironic echo of that famous victory at waterloo, this became known as the peterloo massacre. A new exhibition in Westminster Hall charts its political impact. In 1819, few people could vote. Industrial cities like manchester had no mps. Many seats in the 1818 election had gone uncontested. This is showing that particular election which is the background really to peterloo. They want to have parliamentary reform, they want to have a vote. Eyewitness accounts of peterloo sent to parliament by those seeking redress are on display for the first time. So, for example, this is one of the only original petitions actually hand written version that we found and presented to the house of lords in november 1819. And it is from a working class radical reformer who was actually arrested at peterloo. Another is from a 76 year old man who was trampled on by horses. He ended up in an infirmary for seven weeks, subsequently lost hisjob and ended up in the workhouse. Petitions really werent successful. The main thing was the government responded with what is known as the six acts, six pieces of really repressive legislation that clamped down on things like Public Meetings and newspapers. But in the longer term, peterloo did help bring about social change. You end up with petitioning campaigns, electoral pressure being brought on government, and by the time you get to, say a decade later, you have seen all of the repressive legislation against the dissenters being removed with the test and corporations act, youre seeing all the repressive stuff against catholics being removed in 1829. So, you are seeing the dismantling of the sort of protestant establishmentjust a decade after peterloo. And i think it is only now that historians realise the iconic role that peterloo played in that process. Parliament peterloo is on until september. Tickets are free and booked via the parliament. Uk website. Time now for some birthday greetings now. For the bell which is an International Symbol of westminster. Duncan smith takes up the tale. Bell tolls. The great bell of the elizabeth tower, known throughout the world as big ben, turned 160 years old on thursday. The mighty 13 tonne bell chimed the hour for the first time on the 11th ofjuly 1859 and had been ringing out across london ever since. Until restoration work starting in 2017 silenced it. Big bens birthday coincides with the Halfway Point of a huge project to preserve and revive parliaments clock tower. The work is due for completion in 2021. As the painstaking process continues around it, the birthday bell has remained in place. The clock faces themselves are receiving a detailed spruce up. You can see the first of the completed clock faces. The clock face itself is 6. 9 metres in diameter. And the glazing, there are 324 pieces of glass in there, all of which have been renewed including the glass cover strips that you can see. Each and every piece is a different size so they have all had to have individual templates made and be individually cut out and then glazed from the back. When the conservation work is complete, the clock parts will be reassembled, the mechanism reattached to the hands and the bells, and that most famous of westminster sounds will make a welcome return. Bell tolls duncan smith reporting. Before we go, theres just time for a quick look at the papers. And the Daily Telegraph reveals how bbc parliament, tvs geekiest channel, became a surprise ratings hit with record viewing figures as the only bbc channel to increase its audience. Time for me to get my anorak. Do join mandy baker on tvs geekiest channel on monday evening at 11pm for the latest from the commons and the lords. Thank you for watching. From me, david cornock, bye for now. With the weekend upon us, the weather is looking generally dry and settled for many of us. It has been quite a warm, humid week, but actually things have been turning a little bit fresher. Through the weekend, plenty of spells of sunshine, one or two showers around. It wont be quite as hot and humid as it has been earlier in the week. The reason for the dry and settled theme is this area of High Pressure that is building its way in from the west. Slowly, that will squeeze away a ny leftover showers. We will still have one or two showers on saturday morning, particularly for parts of northern and eastern scotland. Later in the day, a few cropping up down the pennines, in towards the midlands, and perhaps the odd one reaching the south east of england as well. Elsewhere, a lot of dry weather. The cloud should thin and break during the day and allow some sunshine to break through. With temperatures in the region of around 17 24 degrees. So reasonably warm still through the day on saturday. Of course, the action continues at the championships in wimbledon. During saturday, we are expecting mainly dry, unsettled weather. There is just the outside chance of a shower or two. By sunday, it looks like things should be dry at wimbledon. So heading through saturday evening, you can seejust a few showers continuing through the spine of england. They should tend to fade away overnight as we move on into sunday as higher pressure builds in from the west. Temperatures a fraction cooler, i think, first thing sunday morning. It wont be too warm or humid. Some spells of sunshine from the word go for many of us, but still some patchy cloud drifting about. The wind turning more northerly, so that will draw in a bit more cloud and a bit of a cooler feel around these eastern coasts of england and scotland too. Just the off chance that we might catch one or two showers further west by the time we get to sunday. It will probably be warmest towards the south west of england and wales, 23 degrees there in cardiff, cooler where you have got that breeze coming in from the north sea further east. Of course, it is the british grand prix at silverstone on sunday. It should be dry we are expecting a fair amount of cloud, 19 degrees or so with just a gentle north easterly breeze. And for the cricket World Cup Final as well at lords, a dry theme to the weather through the day on sunday. Not quite as hot or as humid as it has been. Then that largely settled and bright theme continues into the first part of the working week before it then turns unsettled from midweek onwards. Before i let you go, lets have look at what is happening on the side of the atlantic because Tropical Storm barry is strengthening. It is likely to strengthen quite soon into a hurricane before making landfall in louisiana. This is likely to bring some very damaging winds, intense heavy rainfall as well as a significant storm surge which is bringing dangerous conditions and flooding to parts of louisiana. We have got more details on Tropical Storm barry on our website. Bye bye. Welcome to bbc news, im reged ahmad. Our top stories. Braced for storm barry, louisiana declares a state of emergency, with warnings of high winds and heavy flooding as the Tropical Storm gathers strength. Facebook reportedly faces a multi billion dollar fine over the misuse of personal data and privacy breaches. The us state of lousiana has declared a state of emergency as Tropical Storm barry approaches hurricane strength and nears landfall. New orleans is bracing itself as the storm approaches shore. The city has already seen severe rain and flooding

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