Hello again and welcome back to the week in parliament the week when millions of children went back to school and mps returned to westminster after their summer break. This has been a wasted summer the government shouldve spent it preparing for the autumn and winter. Instead, theyve lurched from crisis to crisis, u turn to u turn but borisjohnson said his government was turning the tide. In spite of the negativity and the constant sniping from the opposition, we are seeing a country that is not only going back to school, but going back to work. Also in this programme, Jacob Rees Mogg reveals his up to the minute mobile ringtone. I wonder. Opera ringtone plays. Laughter. The first Prime Ministers questions since july saw Boris Johnson and sir keir starmer clash over schools, the pandemic and the economy. The labour leaderfocused his early questions on the chaos over grades for students whose a level exams were cancelled due to the pandemic. There was an outcry when many students in england received lower than predicted grades, prompting the government to abandon the system and opt for grades based on teacher predictions. At question time, borisjohnson sidestepped a challenge to reveal when he knew there was a problem with the algorithm used to allocate the grades. He either knew of the problem with the algorithm and did nothing, or he didnt know when he should have. So let me ask again. When did the Prime Minister first know there would be a problem with the algorithm . Mr speaker, as he knows perfectly well, quual made it absolutely clear time and again that, in their view, the system that was in place was robust. Quual, as he knows, is an independent organisation and credit had to be given to their views. He accused keir starmer of undermining confidence in the return to school. I think itd be a fine thing if today, after three months of refusing to do so, as pupils go back to school, if today, finally, he said that school was safe to go back to. Come on the Prime Minister is just tin eared and making it up as he goes along. Im surprised. The education secretary stood at that dispatch box yesterday and said, and acknowledged, that labours First Priority has been getting children back to school. Thats been our top priority ive said it numerous at the despatch box. He knows it very well, and he was just playing games. Keir starmer said his own children had been at school but that didnt deter the Prime Minister. The leader of the opposition said absolutely nothing to oppose the method of examinations that was proposed and, indeed, they opposed the opposed the teacher accreditation system that we eventually came up with. Is he now saying that those grades are not right . Or is he just captain hindsight, leaping on a bandwagon and opposing the policy that he supported two weeks ago . The problem is hes governing in hindsight. Thats why hes making so many mistakes. This has been a wasted summer the government shouldve spent it preparing for the autumn and winter. Instead, they have lurched from crisis to crisis, u turn to u turn. To correct one error, even two might make sense. But when the government has notched up 12 u turns and rising, the only conclusion is serial incompetence. That serial incompetence is Holding Britain back. Will the Prime Minister take responsibility and finally get a grip . I take full responsibility for everything that has happened under this government, throughout my period in office and, actually, what has happened so far is that we have succeeded in turning the tide of this pandemic and, in spite of the in spite of the negativity in the constant sniping from the opposition, we are seeing a country that is not only going back to school, but going back to work. Hours before Boris Johnson highlighted the role of englands exam regulator in the chaos, quuals chair told mps it was a fundamental mistake to think that the public would accept a system of calculated grades to determine a level results. The Education Committee heard that ministers had been aware of the risks. What you are really saying in three words, if i had to describe it in a nutshell, is not me, guv. Is that a fair reflection of the statement, chair . I think, as we made clear in the statement, we fully accept our share of responsibility for what has gone wrong this year. I have personally apologised to students and parents for what has been, we recognise, an extremely anxiety making incident. It has been disruptive to this years candidates, it is been disruptive to higher education, it has been disruptive to next years candidates. Thank you. You say that in your statement but just specifically, is my summary of the statement accurate, in your view . What we would point towards is that the mistakes, that the fundamental mistake was to believe that this would ever be acceptable to the public. The Prime Minister has put the problems down to a mutant algorithm. Quual said thered been a Public Consultation on the principles of that algorithm. We, at the same time, had set up a working group with technical representatives from the exam boards. The decisions taken were ours, but we worked with around 20 different technical experts across the exam boards and chose then the algorithm that seemed to produce the most accurate results. And at what point did the algorithm mutate . I dont believe the algorithm ever mutated. Quuals chief executive has resigned and the department for educations top Civil Servant has been sacked, but the education secretary is still in a job. Gavin williamson came to the commons to explain and apologise. Mr deputy speaker, this situation has, i know, caused a great deal of stress and uncertainty and i am deeply sorry that those who have borne the brunt of it have been students themselves. I can only apologise to them again for this. We took immediate action to provide certainty as soon as it was clear that, if we didnt, too many students wouldve received grades that did not reflect their hard work and their ability. He must now take responsibility for ensuring that a summer of incompetence does not descend further into an autumn of disaster and dismay. And any normal cabinet whose repeated failure to take responsibility would lead to his sacking, but this bullying government talks of mutant algorithms. His situation is not even on a shoogly peg. A shoogly peg is a wobbly one. Carol monaghan clearly surprised to find Gavin Williamson still in a job. Back at Prime Ministers questions, borisjohnson came under pressure from sir keir starmer and others to extend the furlough orjob retention scheme, under which the government pays some of the wages of those laid off during the crisis. The scheme is due to close at the end of next month. We all know thatjobs are under threat if the furlough scheme ends in october. The power to end this threat lies with the Prime Minister. Will he do his duty and extend the furlough scheme, or are we going to return to levels of unemployment last seen under thatcher, with the resultant human misery . What we are doing is not only continuing with the furlough scheme, as he knows, until the end of this month which is by far by far more generous, by the way, than anything provided in france or germany, or ireland were continuing with it. But we will also, after that scheme elapses, we will get on with other measures to support people in work and, starting today, there is the kickstarter scheme to help young people get the jobs that they need. That is in addition to a £160 billion package that we have spent to support the economy throughout this crisis. This government has put its arms around all the people of this country to support them throughout the crisis. That is what were doing and we will now help them to get back into work he will aware that as much as we want to see people back in work there are certain sectors, such as tourism, travel, hospitality and aerospace, where that will not be possible in the short to medium term. Therefore, can i encourage the Prime Minister to look at a targeted extension for those sectors . And also to look at a specific uk wide scheme to help those so far who have been excluded from the current schemes, including the newly self employed. The Prime Minister said there were a number of schemes helping people. But it is also very important that we get people back into the workplace in a covid secure way and, unlike the leader of the opposition, we do absolutely everything we can to give them confidence that it is a good idea to go back and an ounce of confidence, mr speaker, is worth a tonne of taxpayers money. Borisjohnson. Time now for a brief look at some of the other goings on in the wider world of politics. The chancellor, rishi sunak, reassured recently elected tory mps there wont be a horror show of tax rises with no end in sight to pay for the costs of coronavirus. But if he is looking for cash raising ideas, the treasury Committee Heard from experts who think he should widen the range of goods being taxed. I think it would be beneficial to try and think about broadening the tax base. Because if we do not and simply rely on increases in rates, then that will increase the distortions that already exist in the system. But doing that in the past has proved quite difficult. If you look back at the attempt in 2012 to charge vat on a slightly broader range of products, including pasties, that created serious difficulties. But. You are not suggesting that a pastie tax will get us out of this hole were in due to coronavirus . Thats a hell of a lot of pasties precisely. I think that example shows the difficulty of doing something small. You cannot tell a narrative of why it is important to tax pasties but not something else. A minister has defended a trial scheme to pay workers on low incomes in parts of north west england where there are high rates of coronavirus £13 a day if they have to self isolate. Those who claim universal credit or working tax credit and cannot work from home can claim the money in addition to their benefits. Could the minister tell us what was the Evidence Base for the decision that £13 a day would be sufficient to persuade low paid workers to forgo their earnings and therefore self isolate . He did not answer it the first time around, perhaps he could answer it now. What was the criteria . My lords, the Evidence Base and the criteria were our discussion with local authorities, with community leaders, on what would be an effective amount that would tip the balance on a personal decision to isolate. Those personal decisions are, as i said earlier, extremely tough, and it was agreed with local infection teams and authorities that this was the kind of sum that would make a difference. Ministers are under growing pressure to appoint a Patient Safety commissioner in england. The call was led by the chair of a review that found many lives have been ruined because officials failed to listen to women given drugs and procedures that caused them or their babies considerable harm. I stand before you as a person who is shaken by the experience of personally listening to over 700 women and theirfamilies families who have been damaged by the health care system. Their testimonies actually haunt me. Their bravery impels me. And it impels me to right their wrongs. She said there was widespread support for her review. The only cloud on the horizon is the department of health and social care, which simply does not get it. Simply asking everyone, as they are now, to Work Together better in the future just simply will not work. The department for International Development has formally merged with the foreign office. The newly anointed secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth Development affairs came to the commons to answer an urgent question from labour. The new foreign, Commonwealth Development office will deliver on this governments mission to forge a truly Global Britain to defend all aspects of the British National interests and to project this country as an Even Stronger force for good in the world. Lisa nandy. Can i thank him for that . But the truth is this is a complete mess. It has made a nonsense of his own review. The integrated department has come before the integrated strategy, thousands of staff with world renowned expertise have been treated disgracefully, Holding Meetings in recent weeks with senior Civil Servants who cant even answer basic questions about how this department is going to operate. And why . Because the government was shamed by a footballer into supporting some of the poorest children in this world. It does not bode very well for a commitment to the poorest people across the planet. The snp raised reports the government might ditch its commitment to spend 0. 7 of National Economic output on overseas development. On the 0. 7 , im gratefulfor his assurances and the Prime Minister has been very clear, but can i give him an opportunity to strengthen his own hand in these discussions that presumably that a trail of the manifesto commitment, were that come to pass, would be a resignation matter from the foreign secretary, because i dont see how anyone would possibly be able to pull that given that situation. An offer dominic raab felt able to decline, although he has rejected reports that the government might drop its target. The former australian Prime Minister tony abbott confirmed that hes been in discussions with the uk government about a possible trade talks role. It would be a controversial appointment, as hes been criticised for his views on Climate Change, coronavirus and women. Mps on the Foreign Affairs committee tried to find out more. You said that you applied for, or been in discussions about, a job with government ministers here. I think id call it a role rather than a job. Whats the distinction you are drawing . What is the role then . Give it a title or pay grade. Again, i really think that is better addressed to ministers in the government. Its something which is not yet official. And i really dont think theres any more i can say until things have been decided. Did they first approach you about this role or did you see an advert in the guardian or something . Im just not going to go into this any further. Can i get back to what you were invited to speak about, which was multinational diplomacy . Is it possible to come in there, tom . Very briefly. If it really is specific to the role of the Foreign Affairs committee and not something on a wider issue that mr abbott is not here to answer. It is an important question i want to ask. And welcome, mr abbott. In 2012, you said that men are, by physiology or temperament, more adapted than women to exercise authority or to issue command. Can you tell us whether you stand by that view and will you have any difficulty accepting the authority of liz truss if you are working under her command at the board of trade . Im not sure that i ever did say that, if you would like to privately provide the Committee Secretariat with your source, i would happily have a look at it, but it doesnt sound like anything i have said. International trade questions on thursday offered another opportunity. The appointment of the sexist and homophobic tony abbott is also the appointment of a Climate Change denier, so does this indicate that the government is moving away from any commitment in trade deals to maintain Environment Protection . If not, why have you put him in thejob . The reality is that those on the left of politics always are intolerant of anybody who doesnt agree with them but are prepared to defend anything from their own friends. Liz truss. This week saw a Record Number of migrants cross the English Channel in small boats on a single day. On wednesday, more than 400 people took advantage of flat seas and reached the uk. The next day, the man whos been given the job of stopping the illegal crossings told mps on the home Affairs Committee it was an incredibly complex problem and praised the work of the french authorities. We have made a number of offers to the french for additional capability in terms of people and kit and we have provided significant uplifting french resources, and we paid for drones, we paid for night vision equipment and weve offered use of aerial Surveillance Aircraft to the french. So there is a lot ofjoint working and it is delivering results. It is nowhere near the level we wanted to be and that is frustrating. It is frustrating for us and frustrating for the french. But it means in the region of 3,000 interceptions prevented, 3,000 interceptions this year it prevented. They prevented 3,000 people from crossing the channel this year. Including yesterday, close to 200 just yesterday alone were prevented from leaving the beaches of france. So it is delivering the results. One of the french mps has spoken about it on television. Ive debated with him. He said his conversation with some of the people trying to get over, they say it is easier to work illegally in the uk and to live undercover, which clearly isnt the case, but that seems to be a perception. Under operation focal, a joint operation with the french, again, financed a lot by the british taxpayer, this sort of misinformation should be dealt with, but it would appear that french members of parliament are party to putting around these misconceptions about how theyre actually going to be looked after if they do make it to the uk. Thats part of the problem, isnt it, that people are coming here on a false premise . I think thats absolutely correct and that way i see this operation i am delivering is that it is both an operation in the traditional sense, but its also a Behavioural Change campaign which will be enabled as time goes on with a Strategic Communication effort. It is exactly the phenomenon you just described, these ruthless criminals are taking advantage of these migrants, some of whom who dont even want to come to the uk. We hear through debriefing a lot of stories of migrants who are literally forced onto boats, have no idea where they are when they get to the uk because the facilitators dont get paid until they do that last leg of the journey, so there is a huge Misinformation Campaign going on with the facilitators who told him that the streets are paved with gold in the uk and anybody knows whos travel to france knows it is a perfectly civilized country that has a fully functioning asylum system and what we find is when we deliver the migrants to the reception centres, they do in fact claim asylum in france. To holyrood now, where the first minister has set out her governments plans for the next year. Besides a guarantee of a job, education or formal training for young people, Nicola Sturgeon also announced that there would be a draft bill on a second independence referendum. This will include the governments preferred question that would be asked and the timescale in which it believes the vote should be held. But at first ministers questions, she found herself like the uks other leaders, under pressure over education. I know that the first minister doesnt like to be asked questions on the record but the fact is that she deserves to be challenged of this. It was her that said education would be her number one priority. It wasnt us. It was her who said that flagship Education Bill was needed to fix scottish education, not us. It was her that said closing the attainment gap was what she wanted to be judged by and her record simply doesnt stand the test. Not only am i perfectly willing and happy to have questions asked of me about my record, my policies and my plans, im happy to allow the scottish people tojudge that in an election. Applause. Instead, we have ruth davidson, who wants to continue to be a politician but without the consent of a Single Person across this country. And yet, shes heading to an unelected parliament but has the brass neck to lecture the rest of us on scrutiny and accountability. There is no ermine cloak in the world that will cover up that hypocrisy. Ruth davidson will join the house of lords next year. The scottish labour leader hopes to stay at holyrood but is facing internal calls to quit. He asked about a newly announced independent review of adult social care. So, first minister, will you give a commitment today to appoint trade Union Representatives and representatives of care users to the review Panel Announced yesterday so that the voices of those who deliver care and those who receive it are at the centre of that review . We want to move on this quickly, which is why we have asked the independent review to give us a report by january. Im not sure whether Richard Leonard will still be standing in his place by then, we will wait and see. Nicola sturgeon. Now, Margaret Thatcher famously said, u turn if you want to, the ladys not for turning. But u turns are increasingly popular at the moment. Newspapers have counted a dozen by borisjohnsons government in his first year. And now, for us at the bbc, theres a u turn closer to home. Will my right honourable friend join me in noting that the bbc are now going to broadcast land of hope and glory as it should be heard . They have, as they put it, reversed their decision. A description that, in the context of anything to do with this government, they would characterize as a u turn. Can my right honourable friend give any reason for this curious inconsistency . Leader of the house. Mr speaker, i wonder. Song plays. Laughter. How dare you mr speaker, i of course apologise for any offence i may have given to the house, but when britain first at heavens command arose from the azure main, this was the anthem of the land and Guardian Angels saying this strain, britannia, rule the waves, britons shall Never Never Never be slaves, and lets hope the bbc will recognise the virtues of britannia in this land of hope and glory. The word perfect Jacob Rees Mogg. Now, although the government wants people to go back to work, if they can, social distancing rules make it hard for mps to appear in the chamber. And there are other good reasons for working from home. Conservative Jonathan Gullis was left holding the baby when the Education Committee continued its investigation into the exams chaos, challenging him to a little multi tasking. Baby amelia isnt the first to have fallen asleep during parliamentary proceedings. Well, that was the week in parliament. Thank you for watching and staying awake. I hope you canjoin me on Bbc Parliament on monday evening at 11 oclock for the latest from the commons and the lords. Until then, from me, david cornock, bye for now. Nothing too extreme with our weather. On the supply picture how extensive the satellite pictures. We have got from shower cloud across england and wales and there are more showers here than yesterday, notably across wales, the midlands, western and northern england. Some of those for the rest of the afternoon could get lively, the odd rumble of thunder before they fade away into this evening, but with lighter winds for most of us and with sunshine in between it feels a little warmer out and about temperatures getting towards 20 degrees in the south and the high teens in the north. They will be prevented from falling at the north overnight with the onset of windier, cloudier and eventually wet weather rolling in of the atlantic. In contrast further south in the clear skies we will see single figures and possibly some morning fog commuters now that the nights are getting longer, that could be something to content with first thing tomorrow. Weather brightness lives in the south. But for most of us tomorrow a dollar a day with a damp weather around and a brisk wind. Heavy bursts of rain predicted as you can see for scotla nd predicted as you can see for scotland and Northern Ireland and eventually that figure cloud will ease its way eastwards through the day, so weather fronts are starting to dominate, but further south and east after the morning fog cleared the way dry and warm, the weather cloud breaks to the east of the grampians and 21 22 c. An awful lot of cloud with warm air. Moisture is well means that there is little rain left on the weather front across southern areas tomorrow night and its very mild compared to late it will damp and drizzly, mr low cloud will damp and drizzly, mr low cloud will shout the hilton headlands and four, the High Pressure for the south, not much rain on this weather front but instead we have atlantica making its way more from the tropics, making your marquee. And also grey. But this time of year the holes in the cloud will be punctuated by the relatively strong sunshine, the temperatures will leap towards the mid 20s and even eastern scotla nd towards the mid 20s and even eastern scotland seeing higher temperatures but further west and east we have that next pulse of rain on that weather front, the same weather front with us to tomorrow, tuesday and wednesday before it finally slips away and even by then it could give appreciable rain in the south but the many wednesday as a fresher and brighter day, we lose all that misty low cloud for the majority of the uk bar some parts of england. Then a dry day at least on thursday, but only one. This is bbc news with the latest headlines. A man has been killed and seven people are injured in stabbings in birmingham overnight. Police declare a Major Incident but rule out terrorism. Theres absolutely no suggestion at all that this is terror related. This is being treated as a homicide being investigated by West Midlands police. The stabbings occured at several different locations over a period of two hours last night. Police are still looking for a male suspect. An eyewitness describes what he saw. The police were reacting straightaway. They came here within seconds. Obviously, nobody chased him because, by the time the police were there, the guy was already at the bottom of hurst street. Tougher coronavirus restrictions have come into force in bolton,