Transcripts For GBN Sunday 20240703 : comparemela.com

To talking war reporter David Patrikarakos as he prepares to return to the frontline of the conflict in ukraine. Hes reported on the war since it started not last, not last year, but all the way back in 2014. And hell be telling us what he thinks the greatest threat to a ukrainian victory is. Thinks the greatest threat to a ukrainian victory is. Looking ukrainian victory is. Looking forward to that. And the Northern Ireland legacy bill has passed the house of commons despite unanimous opposition from within Northern Ireland itself. The bill would grant conditional immunity for all crimes committed during the troubles. Many former soldiers support it, of course, but well be speaking to victims represent Kenny Donaldson on why its so unpopular for others. And well unpopular for others. And well also have stefan kyrees to reflect on the last of the summers theatre productions, including a little bit of shakespeare and later in the show, well be debating the ongoing cashgate scandal thats roiling spanish football and has seen the coach who led the womens team to world cup victory sacked. Before all victory sacked. But before all of that, here is your latest News Headlines with tatiana sanchez. Emily, thank you very much. 11 01. This is the latest from the newsroom. More than 2000 people have died in whats described as the deadliest earthquake in morocco since 1966. Divers slept in the open for the second night after the 6. 8 magnitude quake struck remote areas of the Atlas Mountains yesterday. Many fear their homes are no longer safe to return to, with the impact being felt right across the country. More than 2000 people country. More than 2000 people have been injured, half are in a critical condition. The prime critical condition. The Prime Minister says hes confronted Chinese Premier Li Keqiang at the 620 Chinese Premier Li Keqiang at the g20 summit in new delhi over beijings alleged spying by two men in westminster. The sunday times reported a man in his 30s and a man in his 20s were arrested in march under the official secrets act. One of the men was a researcher with links to several tory mps, including Foreign Affairs Committee Chairwoman Alicia Kearns and security minister tom tugendhat. Both mps denied any contact with the researcher. The prime with the researcher. The Prime Minister says if this is true, its totally unacceptable. Its totally unacceptable. All right, approach is to engage with people , but to raise engage with people, but to raise the concerns that we have. Thats what our allies do and our strategy is completely augned our strategy is completely aligned with our closest allies, whether thats america, canada , whether thats america, canada, australia, japan, you know, all these countries engage with china, raise is areas of disagreement. As i did today on a different a range of different topics, but in particular to register my very strong concern about any interference with parliamentary democracy, which is obviously unacceptable. Is obviously unacceptable. All the justice secretary says around 40 inmates have been moved out from wandsworth prison amid an investigation into Daniel Khalife escape. The Daniel Khalife escape. The former soldier was on the run former soldier was on the run for four days after strapping himself to the bottom of a food delivery van. He was tackled from a bicycle on a canal towpath in northolt by an officer yesterday , say alex officer yesterday, say alex chalk says the prison is overcrowded, but promises the government is doing all it can to provide resources as out of an abundance of caution. Weve taken 42 move elsewhere. Just as we get to the bottom of what happened. Now, thatis bottom of what happened. Now, that is a sensible interim precaution , free step. And precaution, free step. And i just also want to make the point about about wandsworth. You know , there have been issues with crowding , which which crowding, which i accept, which goes for not just five goes back for not just five years or 25, 30 years, but the difference is we are doing something about it. So very , something about it. So very, very significant investment going prisons. Three well, going into prisons. Three well, two already built, one currently under and these are under construction and these are big, big jails. Russia has launched another air attack on kyiv in the early hours of this morning with blasts ringing out across the capital for almost two hours. A video has captured one of the 32 drones heading for residential buildings with drone debris falling on several of the citys central districts. The attack comes as yesterdays g20 summit declaration stopped short of condemning russia for the war in ukraine, but rather highlighted the human suffering in the conflict. Ukraine says the declaration is nothing to be proud of. One of kievs residents spoke of her fear dunng residents spoke of her fear during the latest attack. During the latest attack. It was a very frightening experience. I cant even put it into words. I heard a sound flying over a rustling sound. Then there was a powerful explosion, followed by a huge flash of light. I live on the first floor and the explosion wave was so strong that glass began falling down my window. Curtain tore off and the glass i had on my windowsill were shattered and some mps are warning defence cuts have left a gap in the uks ability to fight from the air that will last well into the 2030. The Commons Defence Committee says cuts set out in 2021 leaves britain dangerously exposed and warned the militarys combat air fleet is alarmingly low in number. Tory Committee Chair Tobias Ellwood warned of Turbulent Times ahead if ministers dont change course. Mps have noted, though, that the ministry of defence will spend more than £55 million, sending pilots overseas for fast jet training because of a lack of aircraft availability. And aircraft availability. And finally , thunderstorm warnings finally, thunderstorm warnings are in place across the uk after six days of temperatures over 30 c. It comes as yesterday was the hottest day of the year so far with 32. 7 degrees recorded at heathrow. Forecasters predict at heathrow. Forecasters predict today could be the seventh day in a row that temperatures reach above 30 degrees. But despite that , a yellow thunderstorm that, a yellow thunderstorm warning is in place this afternoon for Northern Ireland, northern parts of england and wales, and as well as southern scotland and this is gb news across the uk on tv, in your car, on Digital Radio and on your Smart Speaker by saying play your Smart Speaker by saying play gb news. Now its back to. Emily thank you. Tatiana. So rishi sunak probably knew better than to expect a slow start to the parliamentary calendar after the summer recess. But if he did think that hes been thoroughly disabused in the last week , the disabused in the last week, the calamity of School Closures caused by defects of concrete, some lively outbursts from his education secretary has given the labour party quite a bit of ammunition to attack the government with the Prime Minister is also facing many questions over when hell sign a trade deal with india. So to discuss those stories and much more, i am joined by madeline grant of the telegraph and policy laurie laban. Policy researcher laurie laban. Thank you very much indeed, both of. So first week, back of you. So first week, back after the recess. The government is supposed to be setting the agenda or theyd like to be setting the agenda instead , its setting the agenda instead, its appears as though theyre fighting fires on many fronts. Yes. And it feels like it has been this way for quite some time. Its been hard for them to wrest control of the agenda and talk about anything other than just the of damage limitation the kind of damage limitation exercises that we seem to see week after week. I mean, this was a very unfortunate timing for this issue to spring up. I mean, government argue mean, the government would argue that whats happened is that the experts who are advising them that whats happened is that the expertthe 10 are advising them that whats happened is that the expertthe concrete vising them that whats happened is that the expertthe concrete suddenlym about the concrete suddenly changed their mind and they pivoted, taking on board that new information. However, new information. However, the fact this comes after when fact that this comes after when so many other things going so many other things are going wrong in the country thats so little to it as it little seems to work as it as it did before that it simply plays into that sense that you know, everything is just more everything is just a bit more rubbish and therefore i think much damaging would much more damaging than it would have its own as an issue i yes, it does feel that way, doesnt quite lot of ammo doesnt it. 7 quite a lot of ammo to opposition, particularly to the opposition, particularly with concrete gate. The idea that crumbling is that britain is crumbling is certainly being used by those who are just to continue on this , the marketing, the adverts using the social media campaigns from the labor party. Theyve got a lot to go on havent they. Theyve suddenly got very good at social media. I havent seen, they have. Have hired. Seen, they have. Labourive hired. Seen, they have. Labour missives1ired. Seen, they have. Labour missives being this this successful until now. But i think when youre working with this successful until now. But i thinikinden youre working with this successful until now. But i thinikind of youre working with this successful until now. But i thinikind of rawe working with this successful until now. But i thinikind of raw material,i with this successful until now. But i thinikind of raw material, its h that kind of raw material, its hard do a good job of it. Hard not to do a good job of it. All right. Well, laurie, i think i can bring you in now. Whats your this . Do you whats your take on this . Do you think starmer is think keir starmer is capitalising from these capitalising enough from these types of incidents . That well, firstly, i i think that well, firstly, i feel sorry for rishi sunak. Oh, im so sorry, laurie. Your mic isnt working. Well go back to madeline for more astute analysis. Think the analysis. Do you think the labour party is making the most of these kind of. Oh, they definitely are. I i in the commons i mean, i was in the commons on wednesday and i overheard keir telling someone on keir starmer telling someone on the on the balcony outside Parliament Like Gillian Keegan is the gift , Parliament Like Gillian Keegan is the gift, you Parliament Like Gillian Keegan is the gift , you know, the gift is the gift, you know, the gift that keeps on giving. Its absolutely you want and absolutely what you want and its quite useful for keir starmer because hes been keeping policy strategic keeping up a policy of strategic ambiguity, you know, not giving up away any information about what he truly believes, and only now are we getting to the some of kind of policy meat. And of the kind of policy meat. And this is quite helpful because it means people not asking means that people are not asking questions he might questions about what he might do as theyre as Prime Minister. Theyre just thinking, terrible. Thinking, god, its so terrible. I anyone but these i mean, any anyone but these guys h i mean, any anyone but these guys it doesnt help very guys also, it doesnt help very much that many tory mps are briefing like briefing papers like the telegraph awful. Telegraph saying how awful. Keegan and how Gillian Keegan is and how they dont support the direction of in government. Of travel in the government. Lots infighting as usual lots of infighting as usual within the conservative party. Laurie whats your take . Is keir starmer , is he gaining ground . Starmer, is he gaining ground . Yeah, inevitably. I think if you threaten by your Primary School falling in on your kids heads that theres no guarantee of enough funding in the air force, such as if you have to fight a war again, we can probably defend ourselves. Its a £10 billion unspent maintenance bill in the nhs. Youre going to end up inevitably gaining ground. I think there are two things that are significant for me. One is i feel sorry for rishi sunak. Rishi sunak came in as an mp partway through our current penod partway through our current period tory rule. He is period of tory rule. He is essentially having to deal with the to invest. That the failures to invest. That happened between 2010 and 2015. A of these problems can be a lot of these problems can be traced back to the unnecessary cuts certain budgets that cuts in certain budgets at that time. On the keir starmer side. Time. On the keir starmer side. And that what that does and i think that what that does is partly provide an opportunity to take advantage of those tory failures that are now coming back sunak. But to get back to haunt sunak. But to get the site a scale of votes that labour could get in the next election, it cant just be well, were just not them. It has got to be some kind of vision for why different to them. Why we are different to them. What could be brought . What more could be brought . I think they will be i think maybe they will be able rely on. Were not the able to rely on. Were not the conservatives there is conservatives because there is a large of voters Large Coalition of voters growing. Interesting that Large Coalition of voters grov say. Interesting that Large Coalition of voters grov say certain eresting that Large Coalition of voters grov say certain budgets that cut you say certain budgets were cut and with dealing and theyre dealing with dealing with the impact of that now because thats true because spending continued to rise spending has continued to rise overall. But perhaps the overall. But perhaps the government has got it wrong in terms of where they were spending. So the when you want to cut something as a politician, the easy thing to do is to cut whats called the capital budget. The budget that goes. This is the budget that goes into like buildings into things like buildings or equipment, right . Think hospitals schools long hospitals or schools boring long term stuff, the boring long term hospitals or schools boring long term so ff, the boring long term hospitals or schools boring long term so yowe boring long term hospitals or schools boring long term so you dont ng long term hospitals or schools boring long term so you dont notice. ] term stuff. So you dont notice. Treasury also to cut treasury also loves to cut this stuff. Treasury loves this treasury loves to cut this stuff. You dont notice initially dont initially because people dont nofice initially because people dont notice didnt invest in initially because people dont n of an unfair criticism. But the fact you know what, fact is that, you know what, regardless of Global Conditions or bad luck, if youre in charge, you get the blame for it. You know, thems the breaks as Boris Johnson said, and you dont really hear much fight back conservatives at back from the conservatives at the moment. It does as though it does feel as though theyve run out of a bit of steam, but who knows . Rishi sunak quoted in the sunak has been quoted in the press he hes, you press saying he thinks hes, you know, could win next know, still could win the next general we shall general election. So we shall see. But its, of course, rishi sunak been the g20 sunak has been at the g20 wmmw sunak has been at the g20 summit. Laurie indian trade deal may be on the cards, may not be. Were not sure exactly what the resolution will be. Hes going to have to make big compromises in whatever trade deal we end up having with india because india is an absolutely massive market, 1. 3 1. 4 is an absolutely massive market, 1. 31. 4 billion people do you think more visas would should be on the table . I think it shows a tension between brexit as a project of about immigration and brexit as a project about trade deals and britain in the world. And were seeing that tension, i think, playing out here. And in some ways the india trade deal is the greatest expression that. One way to expression of that. One way to partly around that, or partly get around that, or at least to ensure that the focus doesnt remain exclusively on that around that is to make deals around whats described as industrial policy, that countries policy, that that countries Work Together progress together to progress technologies of the future. Technologies of the future. Weve seen that with america and france, both at the g20, saying we should around we should make deals around certain technologies. Weve done it australia and us. It with australia and the us. When nuclear when it comes to nuclear submarines. Were starting to flirt with that. With india, weve got this new gigafactory that batteries down in that makes ev batteries down in somerset thats developed somerset thats being developed with tata , the company that with with tata, the company that owns land rover, i think. Owns jaguar land rover, i think. But are ways to do but there are other ways to do that. Some those deals that. So some of those deals around technologies could slightly issue, but slightly duck that issue, but that going to have to that tension is going to have to be the tory party. Be resolved in the tory party. Because sunak well, because rishi su