Transcripts For BBCNEWS State Opening Of Parliament 20240713

Uk and around the world on bbc world news. Welcome back. Yes, it is welcome back, just two months since welcome back, just two months since we last gathered in this very room inside the palace of westminster for the state opening of parliament. Back on the 14th october Boris Johnsons government with no parliamentary majority put forward, lets say, a rather thin programme. Today, the queen will present a legislative programme from the conservative government with a big majority in the house of commons following last weekss election. We are politically in a different world. A world in which the parliament, the government and the monarch have been in sharp focus, a course of some tension as well. And a year dominated once again by the brexit question and process. What will the queens speech tell us about the governments other priorities, apart from brexit, for the year ahead . This is Boris Johnsons second queens speech in the sake space of nine weeks. Boris johnson has been resident at number ten sincejuly. He will leave shortly. He has achieved a majority of 80 and in that election he promised to get brexit done. We will see the Prime Minister leaving a short while from number ten because the queen will be here shortly. He needs to be here before she arrives. By needs to be here before she arrives. By contrast, this is expected to be the final time the labour leader Jeremy Corbyn faces mrjohnson at the dispatch box after a queens speech. He left his house at around 8 30am this morning. Good morning, mr corbyn. Who do you want to be your successoi as mr corbyn. Who do you want to be your successor as labour leader . Will you endorse a candidate . Are you in denial about your election defeat . A less than impressed mr corbyn, i think it is fair to say, being questioned on his doorstep as he left for westminster this morning. The timetable for the election of a new labour leader is expected to be confirmed early in the new year. Let me welcome my guests today. Im gratefulfor them for coming. A panel of representatives from the parties with the biggest number of mps at westminster. Nadhim za hawi, with the biggest number of mps at westminster. Nadhim zahawi, a conservative minister. Good morning. Ki rsty conservative minister. Good morning. Kirsty blackman from the Scottish National party. Rachael maskell for labour. And the event would not be com plete labour. And the event would not be complete without our Political Editor laura kuenssberg. What i would like to do first, laura, is simply ask you, what are we expecting today in terms of the substance . We talked a lot about process , substance . We talked a lot about process, but lets talk about the substance of what will happen today. The first thing to say is we are in a completely different universe, just a couple of months since we we re just a couple of months since we were last in this room. Anything could have happened. Borisjohnson has been able to arrive at what was his dream scenario, to have an election and return with a thumping great majority that gives him tremendous power and tremendous ability to get things through this place, both through the commons and the lords. It turns out what he wa nts to the lords. It turns out what he wants to do with it, he wants to think beyond brexit, the Health Service will be his priority. There isa service will be his priority. There is a big debate and im sure we will touch on it today, about his plans and the amount of money he will put into the Health Service will be transformational or not. In terms of changing the political map, i think the government today will try to give the impression that as conservatives they want to put Public Services first, and that doesnt go along with the tradition we would normally expect. There will be about a0 bills, depending on how you count them, there are always plenty of technicalities. The priority of the government immediately is to get brexit legislation through the first of all. We will talk again shortly. And i will talk to my guests in a second and they can pick up on some of the things laura was suggesting there. Throughout the morning we will hear from some of the newest members of the house of commons. Its worth pointing out that those new members will not be enjoying the full ceremonial state opening today, as we did a few weeks ago. This is a scaled down affair just six we did a few weeks ago. This is a scaled down affairjust six days before christmas. The queen will not wear the robes of state and not travelling the state coach, there will be no military escort or regimental presence on the streets outside. But some traditions are a lwa ys outside. But some traditions are always kept for the state opening. Take a look at this. Take up. Lanterns. The movement will move to the left in column. Left, turn. One of the great ceremonies are still in place in the palace of westminster today, the ceremonial search of the cellars of the palace of westminster conducted by the yeomen of the guard, the old est by the yeomen of the guard, the oldest British Military corps still in existence. Henry viis invention in 1509. They start in the Princes Chamber next to the house of lords and they are directly above the sellers where guy fawkes was caught in 1605. Its a ceremonial search, and their reward for the search i am told is half a pint of port afterwards, which i have to say is my idea of a nightmare however, they probably deserve it after that early start. Moving through the chamber of the house of lords, past the famous red benches. Later we will see the contrast with the commons, a sea of green benches. The yeomen of the guard, whose captain isa yeomen of the guard, whose captain is a political office, the captain of the guard is viscount stopford, the government chief whip in the house of lords. Thats the ceremonial search which took place a short while ago. Lets take a peep outside. There we have some Building Work going on because the palace of westminster is having a huge refurbishment programme. Everything ready at the sovereigns entrance, partially covered. At the opposite end to the palace of westminster to the elizabeth tower, which houses big ben. This is where the queen will arrive in about a0 minutes. If we look inside, the peers are gathering. The most Magnificent Space in the palace of westminster, the house of lords, currently 796 members, one of the biggest democratic chambers in the world. Thats to say, democratic in terms of the palace of westminster. The chamber itself is not democratic, before everyone starts to scream at me it includes 92 hereditary peers are all wearing ceremonial robes today, a requirement on the day of the state opening. The queen will read the speech which has been written by the government, from the magnificent throne of the house of lords. She will be accompanied today by the prince of wales. The duke of edinburgh, who used to accompany the queen, is now retired from all public duties. With that in mind, lets talk to our guests. Its a good moment, as we look at the house of lords filling up nicely. Nadhim zahawi, what of lords filling up nicely. Nadhim za hawi, what is of lords filling up nicely. Nadhim zahawi, what is the priority today . First and foremost is get brexit done, and we will hear those three letters a lot, gbd, we will move onto the Health Service. The first bill introduced by this peoples government, is an nhs bill to enshrine in law £3a billion additional spending into the nhs. A0 new hospitals, 20 hospitals that are upgrading and refurbished, and 50,000 more nurses, 15 million more gp appointments. That will be front and centre the queens speech. When you say get brexit done, do you mean in ten years . I mean that tomorrow we will vote on the Withdrawal Agreement bill. And by the 31st january we will be out of the European Union. By december of 2020 we will have a Free Trade Agreement in place, and will have left com pletely in place, and will have left completely after that short transition period. Lots of people think that is ambitious. And some com pletely think that is ambitious. And some completely unrealistic. Think that is ambitious. And some completely unrealisticlj think that is ambitious. And some completely unrealistic. I am the business minister and i will tell you why its not. It is ambitious but it is doable. We begin with our European Partners in complete alignment. We also have heads of agreement in place already. The political declaration, which already deals with some pretty tough issues like, both sides have already agreed that we do not want any tariffs and any quotas. We are in a good place to move very, very quickly forward, to move very, very quickly forward, to get the Free Trade Agreement in place. I am confident we will be able to deliver it by december of 2020 and deliver on the promise we made. Many people have lent us votes in the northern heartlands. In blyth valley, sedgefield and other places. We have to deliver for them because we promised we would get brexit done and then invest in Public Services, invest in the nhs, 1a billion in schools. Get 20,000 Police Officers on our streets. All these things we have to deliver. You will find with borisjohnson, the have to deliver. You will find with Boris Johnson, the one have to deliver. You will find with borisjohnson, the one nation Prime Minister, and i have known boris for 25 years, he will have a laser like focus. He has an incredible memory for detail for stop focus. He has an incredible memory for detailfor stop every focus. He has an incredible memory for detail for stop every time i see him, as one of his ministers, the smallest thing i reported to him three months ago, he will ask me, what happened on that, what is the latest . A remarkable memory. He has a laser like focus on delivery and delivery. Kirsty blackman, you are listening to that, as part of a big contingent from the snp, with a loud voice in the house of commons but not enough votes to stop anything the government wants to do. Whats your perspective on the speech today . I think there are a huge numberof glaring today . I think there are a huge number of glaring omissions. We put forward an alternative queens speech, 12 bills we would expect to be ina speech, 12 bills we would expect to be in a queens speech. The first is that the people of scotland should have an independence referendum. Thats in our manifesto, the platform we stood on. The conservatives lost a number of seats in scotland on standing on a note to a referendum platform. Also in our bill is to protect the nhs, to say it is explicitly excluded from any future trade deals. I dont know how others here feel but i dont trust borisjohnson to not have the nhs in those trade deals. That bill would give us that certainty. We also want to put forward a Social Security bill in order to get rid of the benefits of threes and n order to ensure we can get rid of sanctions, get universal credit roll that halted and do everything we can for people by making sure we put Climate Change front and centre. You didnt mention Climate Change and thats the biggest crisis facing us. We would put forward a Climate Emergency bill as well. We will have time to discuss. I want to sense where you are coming from. Rachel, given labours painful experience in the election and the fact you will soon the election and the fact you will soon be looking for a new leader, what will be the response labour can credibly offer to the queens speech today given that it is by definition now ina today given that it is by definition now in a position of weakness in the house of commons . We have 203 mps ready to hold the government to account. It is one thing having a sound bite but drilling into the detail is the job of parliament and we will fulfil our responsibilities in parliament, and just saying get brexit done, we know from two parliaments ago, we still have the agriculture bill, trade bill and fisheries bill and so much more. While you have set out a programme, its about the delivery of the programme that we will be scrutinising and there are already inconsistencies, how do you deliver no trade tariffs when the government has ruled out the option of remaining ina has ruled out the option of remaining in a Customs Union . Thats the level of scrutiny we will bring to this government in the next five years. We will pick up on some of those points and chat about it in a while to stop lets take our bearings in the palace of westminster ahead of the queens arrival. Lets explain to you whats going on and where and what you can expect to see. Lets look where the queens car will arrive. Note that it is not a coach, the royal bentley today. At the foot of the royal tower, the tallest tower at the palace of westminster, housing the parliamentary archives, literally tens of thousands of documents and parchments in the victoria tower. Then a detachment of the household cavalry will line the royal staircase. We can see some of the gentlemen at arms ready with distinctive white plumes. They will bejoined by a dismounted attachment of the household cavalry. The queen will make her way to the robing room. Those are the doors just ahead of her. Thats where the imperial state crown will have been placed ready for the ceremony will stop the crown will not be worn today. This isa crown will not be worn today. This is a slightly less formal event than usual. Its an odd thing to say when we see all these gentlemen in their uniforms but it is actually less of a formal event. Her majesty will be accompanied by the prince of wales. They will both then begin the formal procession through this magnificent room, which is called the royal gallery. This is next door to the house of lords. It is between the robing room and the house of lords. It will be full of diplomatic and military guests already gathered there, invited specially to see the state opening. They will make their way to the far end, the little room, which is called the Princes Chamber, and there is an anteroom to the house of lords. Thats where we can see the great white statue of Queen Victoria. That is there, apparently staying down at the moloch, whoever that is, coming in towards the house of lords at the state opening to remind them of their duties, and then into the chamber of the house of lords. As i say, the chamber is part of the process of legislating in the uk, although not democratic in its own right. At this point, the queen will settle on the throne, flanked by the prince of wales, and her majesty will give the signal to summon members of parliament from the house of commons, the other end of the palace of westminster, to come and listen to the speech itself, so borisjohnson listen to the speech itself, so Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn listen to the speech itself, so borisjohnson and Jeremy Corbyn will walk along and lead the mps with the new speaker, lindsay hoyle. They will turn up to listen to the speech. They will pass through the heart of the palace of westminster, and this is the heart, the central lobby, with its wonderful mosaic ceiling and the patron saints of the nations of the United Kingdom, saint david presiding over the entrance to the house of commons. Im bound to say that, arent i . This central lobby connects the two micro chambers between the commons and the lords. And there, enjoying the events, is my colleague, vicki young. Yes, its a great place to watch goings on. Members of the public have already gathered. They will watch the speakers procession, so lindsay hoyle, the first time leading that, and then black rod will be dispatched from the house of lords. He will walk through to the house of commons and have the door slammed in her face, house of commons and have the door slammed in herface, traditionally to show the independence of the house of commons. So the ceremony and tradition states that any but, inside the chamber, things look different this time. The largest conservative contingent for a very long time. Not since Margaret Thatcher won the election with a 101 seat election in 1987 has the conservative party been in sucha 1987 has the conservative party been in such a strong position. Boris johnson wasjust 22 in such a strong position. Boris johnson was just 22 at the time. Johnson was just 22 at the time. John majors of unexpected victory over neil kinnock in 1992 left him with a slender majority, which was eroded as the conservatives argued about europe. In 1997, tony blair led to a landslide win, ending 18 yea rs of led to a landslide win, ending 18 years of conservative dominance with a staggering 178 seat majority. New dawn has broken, has it not . Blairs new labour was based on what he called a third way, a blend of free Market Economics and social justice policies. He promised a country for the many, not the few. Two more election victories followed for labour, 20012005, despite support falling after the iraq war stop gordon brown took over as Prime Minister and had to deal with the fallout from the financial crisis. A hung parliament, the first since the 70s, was the result of the 2010 election. David cameron, supported by nick clegg, in a conservative Lib Dem Coalition which lasted five yea rs. Dem coalition which lasted five years. It was a surprise to many when mr cameron won the election in 2015 with a modest majority. He stuck by the partys manifesto promise to hold an eu referendum. The leave campaign was led by Boris Johnson and the uk voted for brexit. Mr cameron was on the losing side and he resigned, replaced by theresa may, who called a snap general election in 2017, leading to another hung parliament. The second female Prime Minister but certainly not the last. The 2019 election was framed by borisjohnson last. The 2019 election was framed by Boris Johnson has last. The 2019 election was framed by borisjohnson has a chance to get brexit done. This election has been won by the conservatives. The conservatives winning areas that had been labourfor conservatives winning areas that had been labour for generations and the Prime Minister now has an 80 seat majority. After years of division in the party, every tory mp has agreed to back his brexit deal. This country deserves a break from wrangling, a break from country deserves a break from wrangling, a breakfrom politics and a permanent break from talking about brexit. No conservative leader since thatcher has had such power. The question is, what kind of leader will borisjohnson question is, what kind of leader will Boris Johnson be question is, what kind of leader will borisjohnson be and in what direction will he take the country . Soa direction will he take the country . So a lot of unknown questions. Lets find out how some of the new mps are finding all of this and what they are looking forward to for the im joined by flick drummond from the conservatives, Colum Eastwood from the sdlp and Stephen Parry from the alliance. A different make up, actually, mps from Northern Ireland. Its very much dominated by the dup lost time for top what do you think will change . We now have a pro remain voice for Northern Ireland. The majority voice for Northern Ireland in parliament and, with a big tory majority, we want to make our voices heard, and last night we saw what chrisjohnson is going to be announcing today around amnesty for soldiers, which i think isa amnesty for soldiers, which i think is a great step, and it does real damage to the piece progress in Northern Ireland, so we need to be careful. The damage that brexit has done, now this announcement, i think its difficult. We are in the middle ofa its difficult. We are in the middle of a difficult negotiation back home and this doesnt help. What things will you be wanting to talk about in the coming years . The most immediate challenge is brexit, and there is no good brexit or Northern Ireland. Any form of new border is bad news for Northern Ireland. We have to have both the north south and east west. The deal borisjohnson has negotiated is bad for Northern Ireland. He said they will not be a border in the irish sea, but all the experts say there will be, so we have to have an urgent discussion with him to see how we can mitigate that damage. Brexit will dominate, wont it, no matter what anybody says . It will be a huge change for the uk. We had a clear mandate at the uk. We had a clear mandate at the election, to get rid of the uncertainty, like everybody wanted, and we will get brexit done. Plunk a in this queens speech, a lot of pills. Do you think the nhs will catch peoples i . The nhs is crucial to everybody. We will enshrine an extra aa billion into law so the nhs can feel comfortable and plan ahead. Thank you very much indeed. Maybe we will come back to you towards the end of this parliament to see how you found the whole experience. The yeomen of the guard conducted their ceremonial search earlier and, if they had half a point port, they are looking pretty well on it, so they are making their way elegantly and in distinguished dress and uniforms, their medieval tab odds, through the royal gallery and making their way down to the other end of their way down to the other end of the royal gallery, to provide a guard of honour ultimately for the queen, when she arrives for the procession. The captain of the yeomen of the guard is a political office. It is the government chief whip in the house of lords, just as the captain of the gentleman at arms, the ones with the white plumes, is also political, the deputy chief whip for the government in the house of lords. Looking outside on the staircase, we will have a look at the dismounted detachment of the household cavalry, who are lining the staircase behind the gentleman at arms, in their magnificent uniforms. We will take a closer look at them in a short while, when we see precisely who is in this detachment, because there are one or two interesting individuals we can pick out, and i was chatting to them yesterday as they were being put through their paces, and very much looking forward to taking part in this ceremony today. While that is going on, and while the gentleman are about to process into the royal gallery itself, and this will be a moment where we can remind ourselves that there are two groups of royal bodyguards, as part of this ceremonial. We have seen one, the yeomen of the guard, in the royal gallery, but here we have the royal bodyguard, founded by henry viii. His father, henry vii, founded the yeomen, and the gentleman at arms we re yeomen, and the gentleman at arms were founded by henry viii, so very much back to tudor times. Now that the gentlemen have come into the royal gallery, we can take a look at the staircase and see the dismounted detachment, because i want to pick out the gentleman, the troop on the left, because you will see on his right sleeve a bit of a tell tale horseshoe, and this is because he is a farrier, and i wanted to say a word about craik ashurst, farrier lance corporal, who served for over a decade in the armed forces, retrained a few years ago as a farrier, and its just retrained a few years ago as a farrier, and itsjust a nice feature of the uniform, the horseshoe, denoting the fact that he is one of the farriers for the household cavalry regiment. It is a pa rt household cavalry regiment. It is a part of just household cavalry regiment. It is a part ofjust a group of the detachment today, the red plumes and the white plumes. We have the blues and royals on the left, being the regiment in navy tunics, and on the right we have the lifeguards, both of them making up the household cavalry. They are waiting for the queens arrival, but the queen will not actually use the staircase today, she will make a more convenient way in to the robing room, but they are lining the staircase, as they usually do. With that in mind, as we wait for more of the ceremonial, lets come back into the ceremonial, lets come back into the room in the house of lords section of the palace of westminster. What i would like to tackle straightaway, because nadeem brought it up, lets deal with this immediately, is the brexit issue. A from laura, first, about how ambitious the ministers target is to get this through, notjust the withdrawal bill, but a future agreement by the end of this year. Its very ambitious, no question, but the first thing the divorce deal, our actual departure from the eu. That piece of legislation will, u nless eu. That piece of legislation will, unless aliens land on planet earth, that will go through by the end of january, and the are therefore going to leave the eu at the end of january. That is what this election included after the will be, wont we, being the central question of british politics for the last three yea rs, british politics for the last three years, so that it will happen unless something very strange happens. What then happens is we go into the departure lounge, where a lot will stay the same. Thats known as the transition period. During that time, borisjohnson claims, transition period. During that time, Boris Johnson claims, as transition period. During that time, borisjohnson claims, as the minister has done this morning, that we can get an all singing, all dancing trait deal done by the end of the year for step now, something being concluded at that kind of speed, that kind of pace has never really happened before. There are therefore fears, which we may hear from opposition politicians here today, but what we might look at is leaving the departure lounge without knowing what is on the other side, go into what would just be a World Trade Organisation deal, where we would have a very abrupt economic break with the situation we have got. However, it is not quite that binary. There is a spectrum of patches and bits and pieces where you could find pieces of a trade deal being concluded in that time, if not an all singing, all dancing version having been done. But, without question, the political debate is going to go round and round and round this issue for much of next year. Take a look at what is happening in Buckingham Palace, because the state cars are leaving, and in the first car we have the imperial state crown, and accompanying the crown is the controller of the lord chamberlains office, Lieutenant Colonel Michael Vernon, and the Police Escort leading the way down the mall. In the second car, we have more royal regalia, the cap of maintenance and the sort of state, and then we have the sort of state, and then we have the third car being the Police Escort. As we look at these pictures, the crown arriving in parliament, a symbol, a supreme symbol of the queens authority. It will take a few minutes for it to get down the mall. We will pick up again on our discussion about brexit, because that will form a big pa rt brexit, because that will form a big part of the queens speech itself. The crown will be carried today, it will not be worn by the queen, and it will be there as a symbol of her authority in parliament. So, with that in mind, letsjoin vicki authority in parliament. So, with that in mind, lets join vicki young again in the central lobby. We were talking about the difference in the make up of the house of commons, Boris Johnson with in the make up of the house of commons, borisjohnson with that huge majority, meaning to some extent he can do what he wants. I am joined by layla moran from the liberal democrats. A pro remain party thread brexit is going to happen at the end ofjanuary for where does that leave you . What voice do you have with only 11 mps . The point of the opposition is to hold the government to account, and we we re hold the government to account, and we were elected on the clear mandate to oppose brexit, and we will continue to do that. I am very worried about this move to not allow any extension to the transition period. That is very dangerous and it means no deal is firmly on the table. We have basically got to the point where we have got to the airport but we have no idea where the destination is going to be, and imagine if you get slightly delayed. Wouldnt you want the safety net of knowing you could still land on a deal . I am worried and i think it is a sign of things to come. And there are other things in the queens speech that concern me. Where is the Climate Action . We have the environment bill, but it is toothless. It will be difficult for opposition benches, who drove Climate Change in the last parliament, to make sure that counts, and then there are things like rolling the department for international to element into the foreign office. We are meant to be an open, development. Thats a huge amount of money that potentially is losing the select committee that will scrutinise it. I have to say these changes, there are populist things in there, the nhs bill will enshrine the amount of money for the nhs, and anything to do with the nhs, and i will try and make sure it has parity of esteem for Mental Health, and where is the social care bill . He has a massive majority and now is the time to bring that bill. I am so disappointed that isnt included. You lost your leader. When you stand for leadership . I cant even decide what to get my family for christmas i will consider it over christmas. Thank you very much. Thank you, vicki young. The crown making its way through horse guards arch and having across the expanse of horse guards parade, past whitehall, the scottish and welsh offices, the cenotaph and to parliament square. As we follow the progress of the crown, i will bring the minister back in, nadhim zahawi, to make the point again, a lot of people think there is a lot of bravado about getting this and that done. We were underlining the point about the ambition. What makes you so sure you can tell our viewers today that you can accomplish such a complex thing in such a short space of time . Letsjust step back a second first of all. Many people, including some colleagues here, said boris was either not serious about getting a deal, or they will not give him a deal. The Withdrawal Agreement will never be reopened by the 27 european countries, but he achieved that in under 100 days, brought it back to parliament. I was the minister responsible to calling businesses across the uk from all sectors on the friday before the super saturday, remember when we try to get the bill over the line, every sector from automotive, to get the bill over the line, every sectorfrom automotive, chemicals, services, across the board, they all had teams looking at boriss deal and they all said it was a good deal. Unanimously, notjusta majority but unanimously. They said it was a good deal and they quite liked the heads of terms as i would put it, the political declaration, which deals with some of the big deals in the Free Trade Agreement. This is why i say, this is not a trade deal with a country we are not already aligned with. We already have alignment with the eu, so it is much easierfor us. Have alignment with the eu, so it is much easier for us. On the have alignment with the eu, so it is much easierfor us. On the nontariff barriers to be able to secure a good Free Trade Agreement with the eu by december. We can just see the crown arrive at the palace of westminster. The scaffolding on the left hand side, a huge amount of work being done on the fabric of the palace, could cost as much as £6 billion apparently, but that work will go on for many years. Thats why there is a temporary construction outside the sovereigns entrance. First of all, we have the crown arriving. A salute, as the crown is taken from the state car by the crown jeweller, mark appleby. The crown having been accompanied by Lieutenant Colonel Michael Vernon, in charge of the chamberlains office, in charge of many important functions in Buckingham Palace, relatively new to the post. Having succeeded Lieutenant Colonel andrew ford. Being presented with the imperial state crown by the crown jeweller. This crown is only seen rarely at the state opening of and and at coronations. Its a rare sight indeed. Unless you are a regular visitor to the tower of london. It has been brought to westminster to be part of this important ceremony today. Two other important items, the cap brought by adrian scully, and the sword of state, which we can get a glimpse of being brought by the usher to the sword of state. These are simply symbols of the sovereigns authority. Ancient symbols. The cap of maintenance, traditionally a cap given by the pope to those monarchs he favoured. How times have changed. And the sword of state, which goes back to the reign of king james. It has been used at coronations and state openings for several centuries. Being taken into the regalia room, as it is called, at the foot of the tower, where it will be prepared for the presentation itself and the royal gallery. These symbols of the sovereigns power are put on display, as they would have been in previous years, they would have been carried through the streets so people could see the symbols of power. Today, the equivalent of that is they are put on display in the royal gallery itself, where people can see them ahead of the sovereigns arrival. And then it will be all change again and the crown will be taken in the procession, today carried before the queen, and then the other symbols will be carried in the procession as well. The procession will be quite long, filling the royal gallery. It is one of those very rare experiences, if you look back through british tradition, where you see this procession in state happening. Its the only time you will see this collection of people in these grand offices of state gathered together as part of the crown in parliament procession, underlining the role of the monarch in parliament and the kind of democracy we have. Lets look inside the house of lords. The peers are there. People with lots of experience of life inside the house of commons. The former clerk of the house of commons on the left, knows it inside out. And the baroness next to him, one of our most senior legal figures. Back to the royal staircase, passing the dismounted detachment of the royal cavalry, the crown is being brought up by the controller of the lord chamberlains office. Its a magnificent sight and it will be brought up into the royal gallery to be placed on display there. It will not be there long because the queen will arrive fairly shortly. And then it will be taken into the robing room itself ready for the procession. It will be placed there now, and the cap of maintenance and sword of state will be placed on a kind of display unit which is to the left of the screen as we see it. And then we will be ready for the queens arrival with the prince of wales in a short while. The yeomen of the guard accompanying sir Michael Vernon in this part of the procession. And the gentleman who is now taking the crown is the mark s of chum, the man in charge of the royal gallery and the shared authority over westminster hall, the most ancient pa rt westminster hall, the most ancient part of the palace of westminster. The marshal in charge of the real sections of the palace of westminster, but that clearly doesnt include the house of commons, because we will see a ceremony later where black rod will have to knock on the door of the house of commons to gain admission because that is a symbol of the house of commons independence. These symbols, the sword and cap being placed on display ready for the queens arrival. We can see the state trumpeters to the left. They will be ready to sound the fanfare when the queen and prince of wales are ready to emerge from the robing room on the left as the procession gets under way. We are quite close to the time where this formal procession will be ready. If we rejoin our guests in our cosy little room in the house of lords, just off the chamber of the house of lords. The minister was making their case about the timetable for brexit, and iam about the timetable for brexit, and i am paraphrasing, about the timetable for brexit, and iam paraphrasing, but about the timetable for brexit, and i am paraphrasing, but you say Boris Johnson has delivered where other people thought he wouldnt deliver. And by extension you think you will deliver this one as well. What is the labour view of that . Is it deliverable . No, it has taken three and a half years to get to this point and to have a negotiation period of 11 months now will be a massive challenge will stop when you hear chief negotiators from the eu saying itll take longer, we have to listen to the experience across the water to ensure we get a deal which we are able to ensure we have continuation of trade. Ultimately behind us we know there are millions ofjobs at behind us we know there are millions of jobs at stake behind us we know there are millions ofjobs at stake and its vital they are not put at risk at a time of these negotiations. We need to build confidence across industry that there is a smooth transition. But now we face a cliff edge at the end of 2020 so we are concerned the government might again be putting out the rhetoric but actually the detail is what will matter. The crown being ta ken detail is what will matter. The crown being taken into the robing room ready for the queens arrival. Everyone in the royal gallery now aware that the queens arrival is imminent. Kirsty blackman, your response to the timetable issue. I know scotland voted strongly to remain. That is clear. There is a question around the mandate that we can talk about in terms of the first ministers case for a second referendum based on the claim that the snp is again receiving an added mandate in that area. Lets have the specific answer to the timetable issue. Do you think its realistic . No, i dont think it is. And anyone who says it is doesnt know how the wto and Free Trade Agreements work to stop you have to have a Free Trade Agreement negotiated for substantially all trade in goods in orderfor it to substantially all trade in goods in order for it to be considered as an actual Free Trade Agreement and the reality is that will not happen. You mentioned their mandate. The first minutes to put forward today the democratic and constitutional case for scotland to have an independence referendum. We won that battle in 2016 and reaffirmed it in 2017 and again in 2019, winning the overwhelming majority of scottish seats. The lady usher of the black rod, the first woman in the role of black rod after 650 years. Accompanied by the garter king of arms. We caught a glimpse ofjacob rees mogg, the lord president of the council still. The government has not been reshuffled yet so well see what happens in the new year. There they are gathering at the top of the staircase, the Earl Marshall greeting them. To the left, the duke of norfolk, who is in charge of so many important, major state events. The planning for major state events is in the hands of the duke of norfolk, who himself was there as pa rt norfolk, who himself was there as part of this important ceremony today. A kind of welcoming party, if you like, which also includes the leader of the house of lords, baroness evans, and black rod, in charge of lots of the security arrangements in parts of the palace of westminster. They are in place, ready for the queen to arrive and for the prince of wales to arrive. I suppose, laura, iwould for the prince of wales to arrive. I suppose, laura, i would ask you at this point, when we see the brexit pa rt this point, when we see the brexit part of the queens speech, and we will come onto other sections of it, you mentioned the nhs and we will come onto that, but when we see the brexit parts of the queens speech, will it tell us that the government is simply determined to do it and what will they add in terms of Background Information about how they do it . The withdrawal bill is a very important piece of legislation and that will be voted on for the first time tomorrow. It will be slightly different to the withdrawal build the government put forward when they were barely scraping majorities together and when Boris Johnson gave up his attempt to get it through. Because with the benefit ofa it through. Because with the benefit of a majority, what he does not have to do is put clauses in there to try to do is put clauses in there to try to entice labour mps to vote for his deal. What he could also do, and we wait for the fine detail, is introduce a notion to give more power to the courts of the uk to overturn decisions made byjudges at the European Court. That can happen at the moment in our supreme court. It isa at the moment in our supreme court. It is a fairly complicated picture with all the overlapping legal institutions, but when we see the detail, it will tell us what Boris Johnson can do, and opposition parties will see this in the coming weeks, he can do things without pandering to them which will make him more provocative and controversial. When we think of the last parliament, the house of lords presented a major challenge in terms of the Governments Authority several times. The house of lords presided over by the gentleman entering now, the lord speaker, lord fowler, who had a very long and distinguished career in the house of commons as sir norman fowler, cabinet minister under Margaret Thatcher, john major and as Party Chairman in the early 1990s when the conservative party was going through a bit of turmoil over the maastricht treaty process. Lord fowler knows a thing or two about managing a turbulent period. He is now lord speaker, a role instigated under the new Labour Government under tony blair. Here we have the queen in the royal bentley with the prince of wales leaving Buckingham Palace for this state opening of parliament, for the second time in nine weeks that her majesty has been asked to perform this role. The prince of wales, who would normally be in his military uniform, and as we can see he is, in royal terms, relatively informal they are making their way around the Queen Victoria memorial, on this familiar ceremonial route to the palace of westminster, a route that the queen and the prince know extremely well. The 66 queens speech of her reign, which is a remarkable statistic in itself. And, of course, the queen isjust remarkable statistic in itself. And, of course, the queen is just really witnessing the shortest session of her reign, the one that was instigated just a few weeks ago, which came to an end when Boris Johnson pulled that election. And that was after one of the longest once in many, many years. So we have had two very notable examples of parliamentary activity, in terms of a sustained long period and a very short period, so the queens bentley making its way down the mall, down towards admiralty arch, and then probably across horse guards per, i would have thought, unless it goes through trafalgar square, and then down to parliament square. Lets look inside the house of lords, because the lord chancellor, Robert Buckland, who shares a hometown with me, ican buckland, who shares a hometown with me, i can say, llanelli, buckland, who shares a hometown with me, ican say, llanelli, Robert Buckland is in the post, and is making his way into the house of lords, because this again is one of the key roles in government, although the lord chancellors role downgraded in that labour reform period, so although the job is to deliver the speech to the queen, and just to the right there is the purse bearer, and the purse is being handed over, and they are checking the speeches inside because, if it wasnt, it might be a bit awkward, because the lord chancellor has to present the speech to the queen in orderfor her to read it and deliver it. They have been told that the queen is within a few minutes of arriving at the palace of westminster, and the garter king of arms there, in the splendid uniform, in charge of the Royal College of arms and all the Heraldic Authority and processes that are part of the tradition of the nobility, of course, and the house of lords. So the queen is on the way, within a few minutes, i think, of arriving, which gives us a chance, laura, to Say Something quite quick about the way that there has been a bit of tension between government and, i suppose, parliament and the monarchy, because of all the talk about what would happen in a hung parliament, if votes were lost, and there was a question about who should be Prime Minister. At least that doubt has been removed by this majority. That has gone away, and its not just majority. That has gone away, and its notjust that, and you wonder, i think, how long its notjust that, and you wonder, ithink, how long it its notjust that, and you wonder, i think, how long it will take for everybody, in parliament certainly, and also around the country, for this different era we are about to enter to sink in. Through one way or another, we have all lived through another, we have all lived through an astonishing period with a triangle of tension between monarch, parliament and the public, and the executive, and an era where there is a stable majority is a totally different political thing. For the last three years, this place has rung every night to shouts and anger at conflict, and whether you love or loathe the idea of there being a solid conservative majority, it is a government with a huge mandate entering into a period where parliament will not be the same well of tension. The role of mps will go back to the vastly important one of scrutiny, but scrutiny is very different from us living in a situation where, almost on any given day, the opposition might be able to try and bring the government down, ora try and bring the government down, or a situation where the government almost felt, under Boris Johnson or a situation where the government almost felt, under borisjohnson or theresa may, kind of on the edge. And that tension with the palace, that prorogation, where Boris Johnson suspended parliament, arguing he had every right to do it, but the circumstances in which he did it were enormously controversial, and he ended up falling foul of the supreme court. We know there was displeasure in the palace at all of that. As ever, on these huge occasions, you just wonder what must be in the queens mind as she arrives in parliament for the 66th time. She probably couldnt have predicted what would happen by the time she got to this. This is the scene, and it was raining earlier, but it looks a bit brighter now, as the queens bentley is arriving at westminster, passed all of the security barriers, which have been erected in recent years, and arriving at the foot of the victoria tower, ready to enter the palace itself. This is the sovereigns entrance, the way the suffering enters the palace of westminster at all times, and the bentley safely inside. The way the sovereign enters the palace of westminster at all times. So, the monarch has a right inside the palace of westminster, and in time honoured tradition the union flag having been lowered, the Royal Standard will soon be flying above the victoria tower, just on the banks of the river thames, just to signal that the queen is in the building. There we are. What a beautiful timing. And, building. There we are. What a beautifultiming. And, in building. There we are. What a beautiful timing. And, in the breeze, the Royal Standard fluttering gently, signalling that the queen has arrived inside the palace of westminster. The top of the staircase, we have the lords speaker and the leader of the lords speaker and the leader of the commons, followed by the duke of norfolk and the lord chancellor, and inside the lobby area, if you like, just outside the robing room, they are awaiting the queens arrival, andi are awaiting the queens arrival, and i think that we are just to the left of the staircase, but her majesty, very wisely, using the lift that has been handily placed there just by the robing room itself, so that it just by the robing room itself, so thatitis just by the robing room itself, so that it is a bit easier to get in at this stage and, in timely fashion. And there, ourfirst this stage and, in timely fashion. And there, our first proper this stage and, in timely fashion. And there, ourfirst proper glimpse of her majesty being welcomed by the master and the duke of norfolk, and making her way into the robing room, ready for the procession into the house of lords. In the central lobby, the Police Inspector getting ready for the speakers procession, and the order for the strangers to ta ke and the order for the strangers to take their hats off. So the speaker is on his way, sir lindsay hoyle, his first state opening of parliament. Having succeeded john bercowjust opening of parliament. Having succeeded john bercow just a few weeks ago at the end of the last session. So we are waiting for the shout that says that the speaker is on his way. Loud shout of speaker. No doubt, the speaker is coming. And we are waiting for the instruction. Hats off, strangers strangers being those who are not members of parliament. The spea kers procession, which is a feature of daily life in the palace of westminster, and sir lindsay hoyle, who was a very popular choice as speaker of the house of commons, respected on all sides as a person of integrity, and has been warmly welcomed back into the speakers chair after the election. Speaker and his passage being announced in advance, into the members lobby of the house of commons, where the members gather, pick up their messages, and sir lindsay acknowledging lots of those who are lining the members lobby. Winston churchill, the statue on the left, and for me far more important, David Lloyd George on the right, and i am not taking any complaints from viewers on that, all right . Inside the chamber. A loud cheer. And even a whistle how times have changed. The mace has been placed, and there we see the shadow chancellor, john mcdonnell, who acknowledged the other day that he took his share of responsibility for labours heavy defeat in the election. Back in the royal gallery. The state trumpeters are in place. And they will be given the signal to sound the fanfare, which tells eve ryo ne sound the fanfare, which tells everyone that the procession in state is about to get under way. The queen today will be accompanied by the prince of wales. And awaiting the signal from the earl martial that her majesty is ready to begin the procession. So nothing can happen before he gives the signal. Everyone waiting patiently. Doesnt take as long as usual, of course, because the queen is not having to wear state robes for this procession today. And, indeed, doesnt have to wear the crown, which is a very heavy thing to have to wear, and has to be adjusted very carefully, so there is lots of preparatory work. None of that today, because the crown will be carried in the procession before the queen, and there will be heads of the armed forces and other Senior Officers of state as part of the procession. He plays a fanfare. And the state opening of parliament of december 2019 is under way. Her majesty the queen, accompanied by his royal highness, the prince of wales, making their way through the royal gallery as part of this great procession. Lord great chamberlain, marquis of cholmondeley, with the responsibility of carrying the crown. And then preceding them we have black rod, the lady usher of black rod, the lord high chancellor, the earl marshal, the duke of norfolk, the cap of maintenance, being carried by baroness evans of bowes park, and the sword by the marshal of the royal air force, lord stirrup. And then the queen and the prince, honoured by the lady in waiting, the lady elton. And following the lady in waiting, as they make their way to the Princes Chamber, we have the captain of the yeomen of the guard and the captain of the gentleman at arms. They walk past the statue of Queen Victoria, whose record of course, in terms of raining, the queen has broken. A remarkable record it is, and into the chamber of the house of lords itself, where all the peers of the realm are waiting for this queens speech. The queen takes her place on the throne. The prince of wales, too. The crown placed to the left. My lords, please be seated. The queen asks for everyone to be seated and will give the signal for black rod to summon the mps. The signal is given. And the signal is received by black rod. Black rods approach to the house of commons is sounded out. Black rod, as usual, will be reminded that the house of commons is an independent chamber. Close the doors black rod into the chamber of the house of commons to summon the mps to come and listen to the queen s speech. Mr speaker, the queen commands this honourable house. To attend her majesty immediately in the house of peers. The order has been given. One familiar feature missing this year. We often have a bit of heckling going on at that point from the vetera n going on at that point from the veteran labour man dennis skinner, who was not re elected at the general election for bolsover and is no longer in the commons. He would have been the father of the house, the most senior and longest serving member had he been elected. So the serving mps, including john mcdonnell, andrea leadsom, making their way, following black rod and their way, following black rod and the speaker. Through the central lobby, down back to the house of lords will stop a rather grim looking Jeremy Corbyn, with the Prime Minister, we may get another glimpse of them to see if they are chatting. Laura . This is always the shot to look for. It looks like Jeremy Corbyn is absolutely determined not to exchange one single word with the Prime Minister. Doesnt look like there is much love lost between the two of them. Jeremy corbyn looks like he would rather be anywhere but here as they walk through central lobby. Borisjohnson appears to be nodding to some members of the public. Whether they area members of the public. Whether they are a friendly crowd or people who have come to watch him on this day Jeremy Corbyn resolutely staring ahead grim faced, as he left his house this morning, we didnt see him say even hello to reporters gathered outside. We do often see them make an effort to chat to each other. Careful. One warning from Jeremy Corbyn to a cameraman. A bit ofa Jeremy Corbyn to a cameraman. A bit of a rush from the backbenches to get a vantage point. There is not a lot of room there really to see whats going on. They are now inside the chamber. When they have settled and the queen is happy, with the Prime Minister looking around, surveying the scene. I wonder whats on his mind. He is here with his majority of 80 seats, the biggest since Margaret Thatchers conservative majority in 1987. Quite the moment for him. The mps are settling. The marshall asking the lord chancellor to deliver the speech, and Robert Buckland makes his way towards the throne. Presenting it to her majesty. Turns around. And the queens speech of this new conservative government is about to be unveiled. My lords and members of the house of commons. My my governments priority is to deliver the United Kingdoms departure from the European Union on the 31st of january. My ministers will bring forward legislation to ensure the United Kingdoms exit on that date. And to make the most of the opportunities that this brings to all the people of the United Kingdom. Thereafter my ministers will seek a future relationship with the European Union based on a Free Trade Agreement that benefits the whole of the United Kingdom. They will also begin trade negotiations with other leading global economies. The integrity and prosperity of the United Kingdom is of the utmost importance to my government. My ministers will work urgently to facilitate talks to restore devolved government in Northern Ireland. My government in Northern Ireland. My government will embark on an Ambitious Programme of domestic reform that delivers on the peoples priorities. For the first time, the national Health Services multi year funding settlement agreed earlier this year will be enshrined in law. Steps will be taken to grow and support the national Health Services workforce, and a new visa will ensure qualified doctors, nurses and Health Professionals have fast track entry to the United Kingdom. Hospital car Parking Charges will be removed for those in greatest need. My ministers will seek Cross Party Consensus on proposals for long term reform of social care. They will ensure that the social care system provides eve ryo ne the social care system provides everyone with the dignity and security they deserve. And that no one who needs care has to sell their home to pay for it. My ministers will continue to work to reform the Mental Health act. A modern, fair, points based immigration system will welcome skilled workers from across the world to contribute to the United Kingdoms economy, communities and Public Services. My government will bring forward measures to support working families, raising the National Insurance threshold, and increasing the National Living wage. To ensure every child has access to a high quality education, my ministers will increase levels of funding per pupil in every school. Measures will be brought forward to encourage flexible working, to introduce the entitlement to leave for unpaid ca re rs entitlement to leave for unpaid carers and help people save for later life. New measures will be brought forward to protect tenants and to improve building safety. My government will take steps to support Home Ownership including by making a home is available at a discount for local, first time buyers. My ministers will develop legislation to improve internet safety for all. My government is committed to a fairjustice system that keeps people safe. My ministers will establish a Royal Commission to review and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the criminal justice process. New sentencing laws will ensure the most serious violent offenders, including terrorists, serve longer in custody. New laws will require schools, police, councils and Health Authorities to Work Together to prevent serious crime. My government will ensure those charged with knife possession face swift justice and those charged with knife possession face swiftjustice and that the courts work better for all those who engage with them, including victims of domestic abuse. Legislation will be brought forward to support victims of crime and their families. Measures will be developed to tackle hostile activity conducted by foreign states. My ministers will bring forward measures to ensure that every part of the United Kingdom can prosper. My government will invest in the countrys Public Services and infrastructure whilst keeping borrowing and debt under control. Maintaining the sustainability of the public finances through a responsible fiscal strategy. My government will prioritise investment in infrastructure and world leading Science Research and skills in order to unleash productivity and improve daily life for communities across the country. It will give communities more control over how investment is spent so that they can decide what is best for them. To support business, my government will increase tax credits for research and development, establish a National Skills fund and bring forward changes to Business Rates. New laws will accelerate the delivery of gigabit capable broadband, to ensure people can depend on the transport network, measures will be developed to provide for minimum levels of service during transport strikes. My government will continue to take steps to meet the world leading target of a net zero Greenhouse Gas emissions by 2050. It will continue to lead the way in tackling global Climate Change, hosting the 2020 cop 26 summit. To protect and improve the environment for future generations, a bill will enshrine in law environmental principles and legally binding targets, including forair legally binding targets, including for air quality. It will also ban the export of polluting Plastic Waste to countries outside the organisation for economic co operation and development and establish a new world leading an independent regulator in statute. A constitution, democracy and Rights Commission will be established. Work will be taken forward to repeal the fixed Term Parliaments act. My government will continue to invest in our gallant armed forces. My government will honour the Armed Forces Covenant which will be further incorporated into law, and the nato commitment to spend at least 2 of National Income on defence. It will bring forward proposals to tackle vexatious claims that undermine our armed forces, and will continue to seek better ways of dealing with legacy issues that provide Better Outcomes for victims and survivors. My government will work to promote and expand the United Kingdoms influence in the world, and integrated security, defence and Foreign Policy review will be undertaken to reassess the nations place in the world, covering all aspects of International Policy from defence to diplomacy and development. My ministers will promote the United Kingdoms interests, including freedom of speech, human rights and the rule of law. My government will work closely with International Partners to help solve the most complex International Security issues and to promote peace and security globally. It will stand firm against those who threaten the values of the United Kingdom, including by developing a sanctions regime to directly address human rights abuse, and working to ensure that all girls have access to 12 yea rs of that all girls have access to 12 years of quality education. Members of the house of commons, estimates for the Public Services will be laid before you. My lords and members of the house of commons. Other measures will be laid before you. I pray that the blessing of almighty god may rest upon your counsels. So, the queens speech has been delivered for this new conservative government, and that was quite a list of proposed legislation, the most packed list we have heard for a very long time, and the queen outlined proposed legislation in a wide range of areas of activity there, certainly more than enough to fill a five year period, though questions about how long a parliamentary period is will be asked again, given what was said there in terms of the fixed Term Parliament act, which we can possibly refer to with my guests in a few moments, but the queen and the prince of wales leaving the chamber of the house of lords now, back in the procession and making their way back into the royal gallery, and back into the royal gallery, and back into the robing room, ready for the queen to leave, and ready, i suppose, to prepare for christmas with the family, normally spent in sandringham, so that is just six days away, but a bit of work to be donein days away, but a bit of work to be done in parliament before then, including tomorrow, as laura was saying earlier, with the Withdrawal Agreement bill, so, as the crown is being taken, and the queen and the prince are making their way, laura, your Immediate Response to that long list of proposed activities. Top off the list is getting the brexit legislation through, as wed expect, and second to that Health Service, but beyond that there is tonnes on this agenda, notjust things that we re this agenda, notjust things that were in the conservative manifesto, which was quite a slim document, deliberately, not trying to create too much risk as they went into the election, but there is plenty of legislation there, whether it is toughening up criminal sentencing, acting to look at potential injustices in terms of prosecutions of former soldiers in Northern Ireland, and we were hearing from one of the new Northern Irish mps had controversial that kind of action might be, but beyond the legislation they have planned, something standing out. Promises of reviews of Foreign Policy and defence and security in the world, a review as well of how the courts operate, a review of the constitution and Rights Commissions, so that will be a new Commission Set up so that will be a new Commission Set up to look at the constitution, how government works, what the relationship is between whitehall. Now, that is the kind of thing where you think today might be the start of this governments ambition, not the limit of it. There are quite a few openings of doors there that might create rather a lot of interest, raise a few eyebrows, and think that, ultimately, once we get into the sort of proper day to day of chris johnstons into the sort of proper day to day of chrisjohnstons government, which i think will be after brexit, in february, the government may come forward with plans that might seem, by todays comparison, to be rather radical. Borisjohnsons government put up with a majority like this, there is a lot that this government can do, but how many fights do they want to pick . Do they wa nt to fights do they want to pick . Do they want to focus on two or three issues and really plough through them, or do they want to start really trying to unplug the way the country works . You can see some mps leaving the chamber, some new and old faces, as they come through. And dont underestimate also just the change in the cast list. That will give the parliament a completely different feel, from the new speaker, who will change things dramatically by being more conventional, in a funny way. John bercow change things because he was very unconventional in lots of ways. But there are plenty of new faces and geographic changes in where the different parties are represented, so it may feel very profound, and you can see theresa may. Who we were talking to on Election Night in maidenhead, and she was asked a direct question by andrew neil, you know, what did borisjohnson do andrew neil, you know, what did Boris Johnson do right andrew neil, you know, what did borisjohnson do right that you did wrong . I think its fair to say we didnt really get an answer to that but certainly the gambit that she took on in 2017 did not pay off, but Boris Johnsons strategy took on in 2017 did not pay off, but borisjohnsons strategy has paid off handsomely, because he has a majority of 80 and can do just about what he likes in this new house of commons, and former Prime Minister may knows that full well, and i am just thinking, at this point, as we see the mps going back in, given that i have three mps with me, including a minister, rachel, for labour, we saw mr corbyn there, understandably may be not enjoying the event, because why would he enjoy it . He wanted to be Prime Minister himself. It opens the question though over where you are going to focus your role as an opposition. There is increased spending on the Health Service was you would surely welcome that. I think its fair to say its less in the Labour Government was going to do, an average of 6 , its about 3. A , but nonetheless its an increase. What would you say to the nhs agenda . I worked in the nhs for 20 years and i know investment is desperately needed, but he was talking about more nurses and doctors, but we take ten years to traina doctors, but we take ten years to train a doctor and there is a massive shortfall, so it is how you integrate the system that is crucial. The investment in social ca re crucial. The investment in social care which is needed, 7 billion already cut out of the system, that will have a massive impact for years to come unless proper investment is made, and talking about providing permanence for foreign nationals to come and work in our nhs, which is absolutely crucial at this time, but only talking about a small number of professionals to do that, so i cant see how the jigsaw holds together. We will continue the discussion closer to look good because it is important, but we want to mark the queens departure from the palace of westminster with the prince of and thanking the key players, the lord speaker, the leader of the commons, and lord president of the council, jacob rees mogg, baroness evans, the leader of the lords, and the duke of norfolk field marshal, who the queen is familiar with, given his role in organising great state events. So a couple of friendly words from the prince of wales, and they will be living quite soon in that royal bentley to go back to Buckingham Palace. Minister, can we pick up on the nhs . It is such an important pa rt the nhs . It is such an important part of what you are proposing and, judging by what people said to us in the campaign, yes, of course, brexit was a big issue, but lots of people put the nhs way above brexit and made the point that it needs money because you, as conservatives, have starved it of money, as they see it, over the last nine years, so you are simply putting right what you got wrong. It is fair to ask me that question, but id just remind the viewer is that, when we took office in 2010, the exiting chief secretary, liam bernal of labour, said, there is no left, good luck to you for every £a the government was spending, it was a boring account. Today, for every we borrow a pound, so we are in a good place to make that investment. The chief executive of nhs england, who tony blair discovered at the time, who is still in post, doing a greatjob, said that this five year ambitious plan, 3a billion pounds additional investment, is exactly what the nhs needs. This is a peoples queens speech, dare i say, from a peoples government. If you look at what we are doing on housing, discounts for local people to get onto the housing ladder, and that discount will then stay with them, so it is not for them to buy a property and then trade it at a higher price. So security. Weve listened to the people and we are delivering for them. The queen isjust leaving the palace of westminster after this second queens speech in the space of nine weeks, and the royal bentley making its way back to Buckingham Palace, along their to parliament square, and we will soon see the departure of the crown and the other regalia as well, because the formal pa rt regalia as well, because the formal part of this ceremony is all done, its over. These are just the final few formal sequences, if you like, of the events of the day, so the crown is leaving at a cap of maintenance and the sword of state leaving as well put up for the Scottish National party, you will not oppose extra money the nhs, are you . We asked in our manifesto for extra spending in scotland, we spent £136 per person more than they do in england, and we asked the uk government to uplift that amount by amount that we spent the uk covenant are not quite pledging to do what we asked, but they are going some way towards it, which is positive, but this doesnt solve the structural deficits, the issues with the Social Security system, which we know contribute significantly to ill health. Having a visa system in place to ensure doctors and nurses can come here, if that is as wide ranging as it can be, urging as many to come as possible, that is grand, but it doesnt ensure we have got enough people to make sure the rest of the nhs runs, the porters, the people who are radiographers who are working, all the admin in the nhs, we need them to come as well. Why would they want to come here when they are faced with a xenophobic situation, when we are seeing the amount of hate incidents increasing, when we are seeing people made to feel unwelcome by this uk government and the previous uk government . I dont understand. We have a situation. That isjust not true for the its a big, fat lie. The uk covenant could have said all eu nationals are welcome to stay without jumping through hoops. All eu nationals are welcome to stay withoutjumping through hoops. 2. 6 million have gone online with no trouble, no cost, and registered, and we welcomed them. The minister in charge is constantly reminding people how welcome this country is, the Prime Minister talked about this during the campaign, and its unfair of you to spin this. Its about the lie about the nhs are being privatised which labour tried to spin, thank goodness, failed. My constituents have to take a three hour journey to get constituents have to take a three hourjourney to get glasgow. Constituents have to take a three hourjourney to get glasgowm youd focused on Health Rather than a second referendum for the scottish vote rs wa nt a second referendum for the scottish voters want the Health Service and education to work in scotland. If you focused on that rather than a second referendum, you might get somewhere. Our nhs is more successful and doing better than the nhs in england and wales. This is the final part of our ceremonial today, with the cap of maintenance and the sort of state being taken away from westminster until we next see them, whenever the next queens speech will be, given that we have been spoilt with two in two months. We dont know when the next one will be for the we have been through several patterns recently. This is the final part of the ceremonial today, but i do think, i am bound to ask, given that the minister has asked this, and i will put this point to the minister first, you are going to talk a lot about your mandate, which is very solid, with an 80 seat majority, but Nicola Sturgeon is leading a party which has done remarkably well in scotland and increased its share of the vote and increased its share of the vote and its number of mps. She will say she has a mandate, and the mandate, she has a mandate, and the mandate, she will say, people are very clear, the snp wants a second referendum, people voted for that. How do you a nswer people voted for that. How do you answer that . Nicola sturgeon also said that the referendum they have had on separation was once in a lifetime. Nothing ever changes . I am not saying that. If you look at the data from scotland, scottish voters wa nt data from scotland, scottish voters want the Scottish Government to focus on delivery of good education and health care. They are not obsessing about a second referendum. Why are they voting snp . Labour collapsed in scotland and the snp got some of those votes. Is a voted snp in massive numbers. The snp would do well to focus on delivery of services. Are you denying she has a mandate . She has a mandate to deliver for the people on a mandate . She has a mandate to deliverfor the people on Public Services. On the promises she has made. I dont believe there is a mandate for a second referendum. You think people voted not on having a second referendum . Think people voted not on having a second referendum . If you look at the evidence as to what people want the evidence as to what people want the snp to do, they want them to focus on Public Services. The appetite for a second referendum is not ina appetite for a second referendum is not in a majority. I dont think he has been looking at the polling or the fact that a number of prominent labour politicians, for example in scotland, have said they support scotland, have said they support scotland boss encrypt democratic rights. We won 80 of the seats in scotland, higher than the conservatives won in the uk as a whole. There are a number of conservative mps who are no longer mps because we won back their seats and reduced their vote share. Scottish conservatives stood on a policy that said no to indyref. I was driving up the a96 earlier and they were big signs saying that for they were big signs saying that for the we cant say that was not their proposal in scotland, and they lost seats, because the people of scotland want an independence referendum because they do not want to be dragged out of the eu against our will, and Nicola Sturgeon has put forward a democratic and consta ntly put forward a democratic and constantly democratic put forward a democratic and constantly democratic and constitutional case and its up to the uk covenant to come back and give us that. Are we heading towards a constitutional clash between the uk government and a Scottish Government which clearly wants Something Else . We are seeing a real need for constitutional reform, and we have been reflected on the lords, an unelected chamber, and there is a need to reform back to ensure it is truly democratic, and we are going to be facing a clash between what happens to peoples lives in our country and what this government is doing, and labour will be the voice of the people in this parliament as we move forward, because we are deeply concerned about the headlines differentiating from the reality of peoples lives, and that divide has got greater under this government. One of the real themes of this parliament will be the tension between a blue england and a yellow scotland, which is a generalisation, but if you look at the map it is very stark, and clearly the conservatives have no intention of giving Nicola Sturgeon an independence referendum she stood on in her manifesto, very clearly, and there can be no argument that that was what the snp was putting forward. That said, it is also the case, when you talk to voters in scotland, the snp is now the opposition to the conservatives. Labour are opposition to the conservatives. Labourare in so opposition to the conservatives. Labour are in so much in the doldrums in scotland, and that has been the position for a long time, and they went back down to one mp, and they went back down to one mp, and we met voters during the campaign and it is the case that not everybody voted snp because they wa nt everybody voted snp because they want another independence referendum. Obviously, lots of people did, butjust because the snp did extremely well in this westminster election it doesnt mean that they can be sure of there being a positive outcome for them in another independence referendum, if they got to that point. You know, we talked to voters who were voting snp because they couldnt face voting for borisjohnson, because they couldnt face voting for Boris Johnson, many scottish vote rs for Boris Johnson, many scottish voters felt that way, but they were not always voting snp because they we re not always voting snp because they were desperate to have the question of independence put again, so it is more nuanced. We will have a few more minutes to talk when we come back. We would like to get some more reaction from other parliamentarians so we can join vicki young in central lobby. Iamjoined by join vicki young in central lobby. I am joined by the dup westminster leader geoffrey robinson, green mp Caroline Lucas and an mp from plaid cymru. What stands out from the queens speech for you . What isnt in it is one of the most important things. We said it was the climate election and this has to be the climate parliament, the next ten yea rs a re climate parliament, the next ten years are crucial, but in the queens speech we had to yet more rhetoric about how we will be the greenest government and country in the world. Rhetoric is fine but it will not get you to the action we need to see. What i was looking for was far reaching action on reducing, overturning the ban on onshore wind. I was looking for real money going into insulating every building in britain, action commensurate with what the science demands. Brexit will still dominate, despite the uk leaving at the end of january, and asa leaving at the end of january, and as a pro remained party do you still have a voice in the argument . We will do our level best to hold the government to account will stop i was disappointed in the queens speech, looking back over the tory manifesto, they are repeating what they have said before without much evidence they will do much about it. In wales where we have been so dependent on european structural funds and funding that comes from agriculture, i am wanting funding thatis agriculture, i am wanting funding that is exactly the same if not more than that which we got from the eu. I greatly fear that this government, which has promised no extra money for local authorities, i fear we will see a great centralisation Going Forward and somewhere like wales, where we have had 20 years of our own parliament, it should be strengthened and not weakened. I wa nt strengthened and not weakened. I want to see where the money will be spent, not strengthening inequality, being used to buy votes. The dup helped the conservatives last time around but they dont need your help any more with their majority. Have you lost any power and has your voice been diminished in this parliament . Like other parties we will still have influence here. The house of commons operates on the principle of parliamentary democracy so we will be their having our say we welcome the government commitment to restore devolution in Northern Ireland, thats an absolute priority for us. We welcome the measures the government intends to introduce to protect our armed forces from the kind of prosecutions we have seen and want to see the detail on that. And on brexit we are concerned about the impact on the Northern Irish economy so we will look to see what changes can be made to protect the economy in Northern Ireland and mitigate the impact of any customs arrangements between Northern Ireland and great britain. Isnt it too late for that, the argument has gone . These are internal matters for the uk. Its about trade internally within the uk. Working within the framework of the eu Withdrawal Agreement it is possible for our government to introduce measures to mitigate the impact on any customs arrangements that would be to the detriment of the Northern Ireland economy. Caroline lucas, thinking about brexit, we are leaving at the end of january so what will you argue for in the coming months and yea rs . Argue for in the coming months and years . Certainly one thing i will argue for is a really strong regulator with teeth that will take over the role that the European Commission and European Court of justice have played to date in terms of being one of the most effective ways of enforcing environmental legislation in the country. We have had fine words but i want to see the small print because what we have seen up to now is nothing like Strong Enough to enforce those environmental standards. Only the threat of fines has taken the government in london take action on air quality. They need the same powers and im not sure they will be provided. Another striking thing in the queens speech was the nhs, so how does that impact in wales . This government has the means of directing the budget as they see fit. Will it actually result in more money coming to wales under the barnett formula in the way the nhs is funded . In all honesty, when i met people on the street and out canvassing, the impact of austerity has been with us for ten years and there is nothing in this queens speech today that i honestly think will make a considerable difference to those impacts, the services we have lost, the effect of losing those services in our communities. Thank you to list sabra roberts, Jeffrey Donaldson and Caroline Lucas. To liz saville roberts. Everyone in the house of commons getting used to this large conservative majority. Thank you to vicki young. And thank you to your guests. We are in the house of lords section of the palace of westminster here after this state opening. Just a few minutes left, so what i really want from my political guests is a sense of where the momentum for each party will be when we get into the new year and what you will be focusing on. We have dealt with Health Spending and brexit. There were lots of other parts to the queens speech. Laura has listed some of them. I will start with kirsty blackman, the Scottish National party, you have made your point about independence, but in other policy terms, what will you focus on when the house reconvenes . We will carry on being the real opposition, as we have been in the last number of years and we will focus on protecting our nhs, focus on protecting the Social Security system and making sure it is fairand Security System and making sure it is fair and catches people. We will focus on increasing the living wage and making sure it is a fair living wage paid to everybody regardless of the barriers of fairness such as those for the wasp be women. And in terms of Climate Change, we want to ensure oil and gas revenues are ring fenced in meeting those net zero targets. We have more ambitious targets. We have more ambitious targets in scotland than the uk does. We intend to meet them and we need to make sure those technologies are in place to meet that. Rachael maskell, to ask you a direct question on behalf of lots of labour people watching. Lots of labour collea g u es people watching. Lots of labour colleagues of yours will have worked ha rd colleagues of yours will have worked hard in constituencies and be terribly disappointed with the result and they will want a signal over when the party will have a new leader and what kind of leadership you would like to see the party having. There has been some doubt about timetable and how soon a new leader can be in place. What would you say to your Party Colleagues about that . Clearly what we still need to do as a party is address the economic injustice we are seeing across the country. That has not gone away. Ten years of austerity has really hurt many communities that have lost out at this election and green to reinvest back into those communities and make sure we see that north south divide closed. There was not a strong indication at all, there were warm words about infrastructure and investment but we have to see those jobs go into those communities and that jobs have to see those jobs go into those communities and thatjobs are not lost from many communities under the brexit deal this government will strike. That priority is clear and you have underlined it clearly. Under whose leadership and when will there be a new leader. What guidance can you give us . The nec will meet injanuary and can you give us . The nec will meet in january and set out can you give us . The nec will meet injanuary and set out a timetable. I expect in the first couple of months, and may be by the end of march we will see a new leader in place to put forward an agenda to rebuild the party and rebuild the country. In the intervening time we all have the responsibility in parliament to hold this government to account and make sure their actions match up with the words they have said and we will be scrutinising everything that the government put forward. From your point of view, and given your own experience, you mentioned the Health Service and the priorities you have, would you want to see a leader who is going to develop and expand on the kind of thingsJeremy Corbyn has been doing . Or do you want somebody who will distance themselves from that . I think the agenda labour is pursuing is setting out a vision for the kind of country we need over a long period of time and thats crucial, not least when we look at issues around climate will stop the government today is talking about net zero by 2050 and thats 20 years too late. Therefore putting forward a radical and tra nsformative too late. Therefore putting forward a radical and transformative agenda on the climate with jobs behind it is crucial as we rebuild our Public Services as well. The crucial thing is to get politics back to the basics, putting in houses people can afford to live in, a Health Service people dont have to wait to use and making sure we look after the most vulnerable in society. Those have a lwa ys vulnerable in society. Those have always been the core labour values, over 120 years and that should continue. Who is the person best placed to deliver that . Tell us there are many people coming forward. Who do you think can best deliver. You have eloquently expressed what the party should be offering so who is the person best equipped to deliver that in your point of view . Later on i will declare who i support. Have you decided . From the names i have put forward , decided . From the names i have put forward, absolutely. Somebody who is radical, progressive, and putting the agenda in that place of saying, we have a Climate Crisis that we need to address, we have economic injustice and the labour responsibility be to re close that gap and make sure every member matters. Who will you support . Clyde lewis. Does that surprise you, laura . Clive lewis. Lewis. Does that surprise you, laura . Clive lewis. He is someone from the left of the party but not from the left of the party but not from the left of the party but not from the last year or so, he has not been tucked into the corbyn project although initially he was a strong supporter ofjeremy although initially he was a strong supporter of Jeremy Corbyn. But perhaps not a stampede, but there will be a long list of names coming forward. The labour party has to decide, notjust who it is, but what they are about. The speed with which they are about. The speed with which they can do that, rather than descending into a really bitter fight over what went wrong, and we have seen flickers of that already, isa have seen flickers of that already, is a huge question for them. A lot of labour mps have been arriving here in the last couple of days who are worried about whether they can get quickly into a healthy discussion about how they can win again rather than going over. They obviously have to understand what we nt obviously have to understand what went wrong, but rather than descending into some kind of bitterness, which is quite likely. Nadhim zahawi, you have raised expectations with this victory. You have made lots of promises, as has borisjohnson. You have won seats in areas you have ever been before. People expect you to deliver. You have been celebrating but surely you must also feel a sense of immense pressure not to let people down who, as you have said, lent to you their vote. Absolutely, and this will be a government for scotland, wales, Northern Ireland and england. For places like blyth valley and sedgefield as well as stratford. We will have cop 26 in 2020 in glasgow. Net zero by 2050 is incredibly important to me. We need the Energy Industrial strategy. More money for schools, making sure the per pupil funding is there for them. More money into security, knife crime. Incredibly important on the doorstep all over the country. And more money for the nhs. Thats a one nation agenda. And for business, Business Rates and a National Skills fund, all about skills in the future of the stuff thats how you deliver a dynamic economy that can deliver all the Public Services we want. We shall see. Minister, thank you. Thank you to all our guests. Thats all from westminster for now to stop all from westminster for now to stop a new session of parliament has opened. The second in the space of two months, but this time, the queens speech, as we have said, written by a government with a majority in the house of commons, ready, according to the minister, to deliver a packed and Ambitious Programme of legislation in the yea rs programme of legislation in the years ahead. Voters expectations have been raised so lets see if borisjohnson have been raised so lets see if Boris Johnson and his have been raised so lets see if borisjohnson and his team can deliver. Coverage continues on bbc news throughout the day but from all of us, goodbye and happy christmas. Youre watching bbc news with simon mccoy live from westminster, where the queen has set out a packed agenda for the year ahead in the official state opening of parliament. She said her governments First Priority was to deliver brexit on the 31st of january and negotiate a trade agreement with the eu. The speech set out reforms to invest in Public Services including introducing an nhs visa system and a legally binding pledge on spending. Promises of safer streets with the recuitment of more Police Officers with more powers and action on knife crime. And tougher action on the most dangerous criminals keeping them in prison for longer. Stay with us for full coverage of all the measures set out in the state opening of parliament and anaylsis of the governments agenda