this is bbc news. i amjane hill live in downing street. arlene foster of the dup is still here inside number 10 discussing a deal to try to prop up theresa may's minority government. meanwhile, the former conservative prime minister, sirjohn major, has warned of his concern about doing a deal with the dup. he says he is dubious. the danger is that however much any government tries they will not be seen to be impartial if they're locked into a parliamentary deal at westminster with one of the northern ireland parties. our other headlines: the european parliament brexit negotiator has told the bbc that he is impatient as he waits for brexit talks to begin. we are still not negotiating, that cannot continue because the uncertainty for

the citizens and for the businesses has to stop. inflation hits a near four—year high, continuing the squeeze on four—year high, continuing the squeeze on consumers as prices rise faster than wages. could brexit lead to euro clearing houses moved out of london? the european commission will rule later. jihadi jack, rule later. jihadijack, the son of rule later. jihadi jack, the son of an oxfordshire farmer and former islamic state fighter is now in a kurdish prison and wants to return to the uk. hello. good afternoon from downing street. arlene foster and nigel dodds of the dup are still here at downing street. those talks we believe continuing with theresa may

all in an effort to try to allow theresa may to have a working government, a formal working government, a formal working government after she fell short in last week's general election. they could emerge at any time. we think arlene foster is going to say something to the manyjournalist gathered here, we will bring you that statement as soon as it happens. while we wait for them to emerge from number 10 it's worth listening to some comments in the last hour from listening to some comments in the last hourfrom sirjohn major, the former conservative prime minister. he, of course, a key architect of the good friday agreement and he has been speaking on radio 4 this lunchtime expressing considerable disquiet talking about the potential risks of theresa may's government doing a deal with the democratic unionists, particularly in relation to the peace process. let's hear some of that interview with sirjohn major. i am concerned about the deal, i am wary about it. i am dubious about it, both for the peace

process reasons, but also for other reasons, as well. that said, all my life i have been a conservative, i very much want mrsmay to succeed as prime minister and to stay as prime minister. and i understand why she wishes to shore up her parliamentary position, that is entirely understandable and i symphathise. but, but, my main concern certainly is the peace process. a fundamental pa rt is the peace process. a fundamental part of that peace process is that the uk government needs to be impartial between all the competing interests in northern ireland. the good friday agreement says the power of the government shall be exercised... of the government shall be exercised. . . with of the government shall be exercised... with rigorous impartiality. that is entirely right. that was always the intention right. that was always the intention right from the start of the negotiations. the danger is that however much any government tries, they will not be seen to be impartial if they're locked into a parliamentary deal at westminster

with one of the northern ireland parties. you never know in what unpredictable way events will turn out and we can not know if that impartiality is going to be crucial at some stage in the future. we don't yet know in the brexit negotiations whether it will be possible to negotiate a soft or no border, i can't see how they'll be no border between northern ireland and the south, but a soft border. the reintroduction of anything that remotely resembled a hard border would be catastrophic for the northern ireland peace process and for the relationship that has grown up for the relationship that has grown up between northern ireland and the south. i simply think you need to be very wary of what could happen and therefore be very cautious about what you do. that does concern me, quite apart from my other concerns about an agreement with the dup. if the government do form a deal with the government do form a deal with the dup and i can see that they might feel they have to, then it is

doubly important, trebly important to consult on brexit widely, both in and out of parliament. i think if that were a joint announcement with any deal with the dup i think it would be very helpful because people would be very helpful because people would see that there isn't going to be disproportionate pressure from one part of the united kingdom, but that the government really are going to consult with other parliamentary parties, with business, and with others who have a direct interest in it. i think we have to recognise that the election changed, if not everything, a very great deal. the government are going to have to respond to that. the views of the 48% cannot be brushed aside as some of the more rigorous hardline brexiteers wish. sirjohn major there, part of his interview on radio 4 this lunchtime. it was a very lengthy interview and worth going through some of the points that he was making there with

vicky young who has joined me points that he was making there with vicky young who hasjoined me here at downing street because his interviews, particularly in relation to the peace process, of course, worth reiterating carry such weight because of his key involvement in the northern ireland peace process. yeah, absolutely. it's something which is obviously personally close to his heart and he says that is his main concern about a possible deal with the dup. the idea that the british government has to be an honest broker and if they're seen by the other side not to be, that's incredibly damaging, so he is very wa ry incredibly damaging, so he is very wary ofan incredibly damaging, so he is very wary of an idea of this deal. but interestingly, he went on to name many other reasons as well and one of them he talked about was about the idea that the dup will probably demand cash, will demand infrastructure, will demand that kind of thing. he says that can be seen as kind of thing. he says that can be seen as cash for votes and he made the point it will cause grievances elsewhere in the uk, if you are in scotland, if you are in wales, other parts of england where people think andi

parts of england where people think and i spoke to many tory mps last night after that meeting with theresa may, who did feel that the idea of what's called austerity, of cutbacks, problems maybe in the health service, local funding to schools, for example, that people are worried about that and if they're going to say hang on, you are now putting money across the irish sea and giving it to them, what about us? he thinks that could be very, very problematic and will ultimately he says could cost the tories a lot of votes in other parts of the uk and his solution, he raise the possibility saying why doesn't theresa may run a minority government? his analysis is that the dup have nowhere else to go. he says really, do you think they would have ano really, do you think they would have a no confidence vote, vote against theresa may, bring down the conservative government and possibly allowjeremy corbyn who they have been extremely critical of to become prime minister? so his view is actually he doesn't think a deal is necessary possibly at all. and that is interesting, because actually since we all found out the result of the general election, how many

people have said just run as a minority government, it's not really, am i right in saying, a possibility that's been talked about to any great extent? no and his point is even with the dup numbers, ten of them, the majority is only a work mag jort of six so it's fragile a nyway work mag jort of six so it's fragile anyway —— majority. and yet you have possibly given away a lot to get that. it's not the situation david cameron was in where he looked across and saw lots and lots of liberal democrats mps he could do a deal with, full coalition, of course, but turned out to be pretty sta ble course, but turned out to be pretty stable when you think about it because it lasted the whole term, the five years. john major is saying this is a different circumstance and remember he is a man who knows what it's like to run a government with a tiny majority when the european union and the eu is ripping your party a pa rt union and the eu is ripping your party apart and it was, frankly, hell for him, for those years, it was a complete nightmare and he knows what potentially is coming and we have seen that, when he talked about brexit, he said there has got

to be more collaboration, talk about brexit with other people, not going as far as william hague suggesting a broader commission and looking at other parties, but he certainly does think it's a moment to think again about what type of brexit we are heading for. that is interesting. some of the cars drawing up, which suggests perhaps the dup delegation is about to emerge. let's wait and see the practicalities of a government of theresa may trying to work as a minority government, just to pick up on that, her sense has been because brexit, the brexit negotiations were due to begin soon, there's so much to negotiate, so much that has to be got right, has — is it just much that has to be got right, has — is itjust a working assumption within the conservative party that they've always needed these numbers from the dup, they've not even considered going out there on their own with the numbers they have on their own? i don't think they have. it's not — i think the problem they

haveis it's not — i think the problem they have is that if you think about it the only thing that does bring down the only thing that does bring down the government under the system we now have, the fixed term parliament, isa no now have, the fixed term parliament, is a no confidence vote, so they could assume that the dup would back their queen's speech maybe, for example, they could assume they would back their budget, because of whatjohn major suggests, which is the alternative, is is the real possibility thatjeremy corbyn becomes prime minister and over the last few years since jeremy corbyn has been leader of the labour party you have to say nigel dodds in there now has been extremely critical, extremely rude about past associations thatjeremy corbyn has had with sinn fein, before that with members of the ira, you know, they are, ican't members of the ira, you know, they are, i can't put into words how much they dislike him. the idea that they will go back to their community in northern ireland, maybe having possibility allowed jeremy corbyn to become prime minister, some people, john major included, thinks that would just never happen. he is almost saying take the risk, don't sheu almost saying take the risk, don't shell out this money, don't water everything down for them. but on the other hand, it probably would be

slightly more stable if they could have on paper this. but then you look at brexit, those numbers go out the window anyway, you have some labour mps who will vote for brexit, that's what happened before in the other parliament. so you have seven, eight nine of them, that bolsters numbers. 0n eight nine of them, that bolsters numbers. on their own side she has a lot of tory mps who are very worried about it. will they start to flex their muscles? which ever way you cut it, it's incredibly unstable. yes. it doesn't really in some ways, it's about how far is she willing to go down the road and give the dup in order to end up in a situation which isn't actually teshably stable either? that's what we will have to wait and see. some suggesting a deal will not be as quick as we thought, because if you are the dup you don't wa nt to because if you are the dup you don't want to look in negotiating terms to have succumbed immediately. there we re have succumbed immediately. there were talks on saturday, how much further they've got today we don't

know. there is always a chance they can come back. theresa may has to go to france later. but there is other moments they can carry on talks. yes. stay with us, we are very much keeping our eyes trained on the door of number 10 because the car engines are running that suggests there may be movement soon. while we keep our eye on the famous black door, we can talk as well to chris page our correspondent in belfast. perhaps a quick thought from you, chris, while we look at these pictures from downing street about those comments from sirjohn major because a lot of what he is saying in terms of the peace process, in terms of the government needing to remain impartial in that, that will resonate with a lot of people where you are. very -- yes, i think those comments are significant, jane. sir john was prime minister at the time when the ira and the loyalist paramilitary groups here declared ceasefi res paramilitary groups here declared ceasefires in 1994 and his comboft laid the foundations in the early

stages of the peace process, when tony blair took over in 1997 some of the groundwork had already been done and then a year after that under mrblair‘s premiership the good friday agreement was signed, the agreement that most people would say ended the troubles and set up the power—sharing settlements here at stormont. if you ask most people in northern ireland which two british prime ministers contributed the most to the peace process, most people would certainly say tony blair and john major. it's interesting that what sirjohn said this lunchtime echos what two senior figures in tony blair's administration have been saying over the last 24 hours, jonathan powell, mrblair‘s former chief of staff who was very involved in day—to—day negotiations here and peter hain, the northern ireland secretary for mrblair at the time whenever the dup and sinn fein finally struck a deal to go into power—sharing. that got devolution running here in 2007. so the fact that now you have a senior conservative coming out, a former

conservative coming out, a former conservative prime minister, alongside former senior figures conservative prime minister, alongside former seniorfigures in the labour government during the peace process, i think it shows that there is a degree of consensus perhaps among people who were involved in the peace process at a senior level from the british government side, that there is going to bea government side, that there is going to be a problem caused by the prospective linkup between the dup and the tories at westminster. the current northern ireland secretary, james brokenshire, has been clear, he said as far as he is concerned the efforts to restore the power—sharing and devolved government at stormont which collapsed in january government at stormont which collapsed injanuary is a separate issue from the efforts to stabilise the government at westminster. those talks between the dup and the tories. unionists say they don't see how a deal between the dup and the tories should jeopardise the political process here, should make it less like likely power—sharing should return at stormont. sinn fein and the sdlp have a different view, they've said it underlines the view sinn fein have always held and that is the british government have never been a neutral broker in

negotiations in northern ireland. chris, thank you. stay with us. quite a lot of official activity, if you get my drift here in downing street, it makes us think some sort of departure from number 10 is imminentand we of departure from number 10 is imminent and we are keen to hear from arlene foster and nigel dodds. vicky young, this has been certainly a lengthy meeting around about 12. 30 they arrived, a little after that. no specific timeframe was given, but that still suggests longer than perhaps we might have anticipated given that as you say we know the chief whip was in belfast at the weekend. some groundwork will have been done. yeah, they talked about having made very good progress during those talks. clearly, there are other things to talk about. it depends how much they're going through the programme for government. the conservative

programme for government for the next five years. how much detail are they going into? we know within that there are things that the dup would not agree with, things that may need to getjunked not agree with, things that may need to get junked by not agree with, things that may need to getjunked by the conservatives, when you talk about pensioners, for example, one of the reasons a lot of tory mps felt they didn't get the majority they wanted at the election was because watering down the benefits to pensioners, means testing, winter fuel allowance, something the dup are not in favour of, the so—called triple—lock on pensions which means they're protected, if you like. pensioners are protected, if you like. pensioners a re protected protected, if you like. pensioners are protected and you could argue workers are not. the conservatives wa nted workers are not. the conservatives wanted to change that to a double—lock. again the dup not seen on that. what are they going to do about the centre piece, the social ca re about the centre piece, the social care policy which obviously had to get watered down during the campaign. has that gone completely? 0r campaign. has that gone completely? or is there a version? how much detail is theresa may having to go into now with arlene foster about exactly what goes in that queen's speech? if the dup are going to

support it, they need to be able to say they agree with most of the measures in it. it's notjust about brexit, you can see how they could agree on almost everything possibly when it comes to the brexit plans, but some of the domestic policy is... it's interesting, last night the mps who came out of that meeting with theresa may, there's been a lot of concern from tory mps about the socially conservative views. have you done a deal, prime minister? well, no comment from the prime minister and no sign of arlene foster or nigel dodds. minister and no sign of arlene foster or nigel doddslj minister and no sign of arlene foster or nigel dodds. i think we can assume they‘ re foster or nigel dodds. i think we can assume they're not still inside. we can assume they've gone out the back way otherwise that would be a turn upfor back way otherwise that would be a turn up for the books. yeah, she's

going off. we are working on that assumption. going off to paris and have a meeting tonight. she's off to do that. we are left not knowing quite what the status is of these talks. that in itself is interesting because we had been led to believe from the get—go that arlene foster would be emerging from there, the micro phones were ready and she would have something to say. well, that creates a world of speculation. it certainly does, which is what we do, of course. it suggests maybe things haven't been finalised, we will have to wait and see. talking to colleagues in northern ireland they were saying there is no reason obviously why arlene foster couldn't come back, there is stuff in the diary for her later in the week. 0nce theresa may is back from france there is no reason why the talks couldn't go on. we should explain, that the trip to france this evening was preplanned, planned i think before the election. so the meeting goes ahead. that's very much about security actually, that's going to be possibly, but not so much about

brexit, that will come up, of course, but that's much more about the threat of terrorism and security. but they can always find time in diaries to continue talks if they need to. we will have to see how far they've got. this was why yesterday the rumours about the queen's speech postponed is because you do need time to go through it, to write it and get it sorted. it's due to be next monday. what was interesting is that at the last general election they had factored in the possibility of a coalition and talks needed and they've left a long gap between election day and parliament coming back, about three weeks, i think. parliament coming back, about three weeks, ithink. in parliament coming back, about three weeks, i think. in the event it didn't happen because david cameron gotan didn't happen because david cameron got an unexpected majority. this time no such plans were made, so a short time and of course it's turned out now that they do need that time to try and get some deal. well, i will let you disappear because you can try and assess exactly what has happened here and why we haven't heard from the dup. more from you later, thank you very much for now. 0ur chief political correspondent vicky young. theresa may on her way

now to france for that meeting. she's going to be there for the evening and will have dinner, that was planned before the election. the prime minister has left downing street. we had heard some suggestionsjust a few street. we had heard some suggestions just a few moments before that arlene foster and nigel dodds had left downing street through a different exit. it would appear that is indeed the case. we will try to establish what, if anything, has been agreed. some activity to my right. let me have a look. no comment from the chancellor either. philip hammond. he was asked whether it was going to bea he was asked whether it was going to be a hard or soft brexit, no response from him. no one saying anything at all today. it was the same as we stood here and watched the cabinet ministers leave after cabinet this morning. lots and lots of questions about whether the tory party manifesto was going to have to

be ripped up because of that — because of the lack of an overall majority and not one cabinet minister wanted to talk about that either. so, no comments, no observations, we will try to establish what has gone on with the discussions with the dup. in terms of time—scale, the reason we have been talking about time precious is because there is meant to and queen's speech next week. that's before you even start thinking about the brexit negotiations as well. so, plenty to dissect. we will endeavour to find out what has happened here in the last couple of hours and will have more in the next while. for now, back to rebecca and julian. jane, thank you very much. a few months ago the mantra was that ‘brexit means brexit‘ now, though it's increasingly

unclear what that means — and the eu is beginning to show signs of impatience. i don't know responsibility of uk government, will the uk government stick to the position, the hard brexit, described in the letter of 29th march or will they adapt to their position because of the outcome of the election, that's the responsibility of the uk government. what i want, what we want in europe is that we can start this. the whole debate about brexit started three yea rs debate about brexit started three years ago, remember that. debate about brexit started three years ago, rememberthat. 0ne debate about brexit started three years ago, remember that. one year ago there was the outcome of the referendum. three months ago there was the letter of the 29th march starting article 50. the article 50 procedure. we are still not negotiating. that cannot continue because the uncertainty for the citizens and for businesses has to stop. you talk about being impatient, can you... not for myself. my impatience is mainly

driven by the uncertainty that creates a lot of trouble for you citizens, for the uk citizens living on the continent, for businesses working on the continent and in britain, that's the problem. my impatience is only, i should say translation of the impatience of the ordinary citizens and businesses. translation of the impatience of the ordinary citizens and businessesm there still part of you that thinks article 50 could be untrigered and brexit might not happen? no, no, we are object on a course of article 50 t has been triggered and the other reason why we have to start hopefully next week is that we have only a time frame of less than two yea rs. only a time frame of less than two years. everything has to be behind us on 29th march 2019. a lucrative part of the city of london's financial trading

could be forced to move to continental europe — after the uk leaves the eu. the european commission is expected to say that it wants the eu to regulate the clearing of euro denominated transactions. at the moment, hundreds of billions of euros move through the capital every day. joining us now isjim brunsden reporterfor joining us now isjim brunsden reporter for the financial times. can you explain how the system works? the system as it works at the moment is that, this is basically what the eu is worried about, is there is a system within the european union itself of common rules of these clearing houses, these very important parts of the financial system and there is common arrangements on how they should be supervised or at least how people should talk to each other about how they should be supervised, the problem is that doesn't apply beyond eu borders. the issue is what happens once london, wisdom nant in some of these markets, especially euro markets, is no longer inside the mark at the time self. we are

going to hear about potential changes this afternoon. yeah. we know we are getting an announcement from the european commission, actually it's a long waited announcement, especially for the city of london which is very keen to know what's going to happen for obvious reasons. what we know is they're going to propose a new system that would vet these clearing houses, so, for example, like lch, which is a big clearing house owned by the london stock exchange and they will study what risks these pose for financial stability in the eu itself and if they pose big risks for financial stability then new requirements going to be put on them and the extreme option, the nuclear option, is they're pressured to relocate activities within the eu. how likely do you think that is to happen and what would be the consequences? well, so, at this stage i think one thing that's clear in all of this is that we are not going to get certainty in the sense that the european commission can make a proposal but as everything can the eu there is a big sausage—making machine that kicks

into gear afterwards to process that, the european parliament. we are going to... sorry to interrupt. we are going back to downing street. my we are going back to downing street. my pleasure. the reason for that is events in the house of commons, we can show you the pictures there at the moment members of parliament, some of them new, of course, but many of them familiarfaces. new, of course, but many of them familiar faces. they're new, of course, but many of them familiar faces. they‘ re back new, of course, but many of them familiarfaces. they're back in their seats in the house of commons. the reason they are gathering there now is that we are expecting some formalities there in the next few moments specifically when that clock that you have just seen hits half past. the reason for that is that there is going to be a fairly short but formal event involving the election of the speaker of the house of commons. this particular ceremony will involve a combination of the father of the house, that's the longest continuing serving mp, which at the moment is kenneth clarke, the former chancellor, on the

conservative benches, mp, who is backin conservative benches, mp, who is back in the house having won his seat again last week. he will be involved in this ceremony. so too will black rod, who will appear from the house of lords to get involved in his part of the ceremony. then there will be the formalities back in that chamber that you are looking at now where the decision will be taken on the next speaker which may well be the same person, namelyjohn bercow who sat in that famous seat before. but that will emerge in the next few moments once these official formalities get under way. while we are waiting for those formalities to get under way, some news coming in. earlier you will have seen that we did not see the expected departure of the dup from number 10 downing street after the talks that had started there with theresa may at about half past 12 this afternoon. we are now hearing that sources are

saying there are no outstanding issues and that's in quotes, left between the dup and the conservatives. and i am quoting here from these sources, they are working carefully through the paperwork to com plete carefully through the paperwork to complete the deal. that's a prospective deal between the conservative party and the dup. that would then give theresa may's government a slim majority. we saw the prime minister leave number 10 downing street and has headed to the commons. this evening she's off to a preplanned visit to paris to meet the president. we understand that arlene foster, the leader of the democratic unionist party, may stay overnight in london if needs be, if those discussions are to continue into tomorrow. we are looking at the clock, we are a minute away from half past. 0ne clock, we are a minute away from half past. one thing you will be aware of if you followed parliamentary events and

particularly the ceremonial aspects of parliamentary events over the yea rs of parliamentary events over the years is they are sticklers for time. i think we are fairly confident that at half past, famous last words, the division bells will indicate the start, the formal start of the sitting that you saw a hint of the sitting that you saw a hint ofa of the sitting that you saw a hint of a moment ago when the cameras we re of a moment ago when the cameras were showing you the scene inside the house of commons. at that point, that will be when kenneth clarke, who i mentioned a moment ago, who is currently the father of the house, will take the chair so he will occu py will take the chair so he will occupy the chair that you would normally see the speaker sitting in, and that's just before black rod will come to the house in about ten minutes' time to summon members to the house of lords. they don't have to go. but they are invited to go. certainly the father of the house will go and other formal figures alongside him. that will be then in the lords where a royal commission officially will be read directing members to choose a speaker and they

will return then to the house of commons to go through that process. the actual scene there is what is known as central lobby, the area within the palace of westminster which is halfway between the house of commons and the house of lords. at some point, black rod will be seen at some point, black rod will be seen making his way from one end of that famous building to the other, passed those various police officers and others looking on. some of them there for a formal reasons, others are simply interest in what is going on. these kinds of events draw some interest from those who happen to be in the building or maybe have come in specifically to see the events. i will update you on what we are hearing about the progress of those talks between theresa may and the dup. we understand there were constructive. they have moved from

downing street to the palace of westminster, according to a source at number10. westminster, according to a source at number 10. arlene foster, the leader of the democratic unionist party, has said on twitter that talks with the uk prime minister are going well, hope to successfully conclude soon. there had been no time limit put on how long the talks would last. they started at about 12:30pm. we had been expecting arlene foster and her team to emerge from the front door of number 10 downing street and update us on the progress of the talks. in the end we understand they left by a different exit and we saw theresa may leave from the front door of number 10 and come to the house of commons, which is where you are looking now. as julian has been telling you, the re—election of the speaker is happening. —— speaker. the mood

music that seems to be emerging from number 10 music that seems to be emerging from number10 and music that seems to be emerging from number 10 and from these talks is that perhaps we shouldn't read too much into the fact we haven't had a formal statement. those talks are clearly carrying on today. the leader of the dup has said she hopes they will conclude successfully soon. they will conclude successfully soon. now, a moment ago i expressed confidence... ! soon. now, a moment ago i expressed confidence...! i expressed confidence...! i expressed confidence that the level of timekeeping in the palace of westminster. it may be that i was misled in terms of what time is division bells would ring. i am sure it will happen soon. i think we can hear some sound coming in. a moment ago as you are watching you may have seen ago as you are watching you may have seen these people gathering but you didn't get the sense that any of them was speaking to one another. which i'm sure they were. as we await those formalities, it is

perhaps worth talking about the actual process. john bercow has been actual process. john bercow has been afamiliar actual process. john bercow has been a familiarfigure actual process. john bercow has been afamiliarfigure in actual process. john bercow has been a familiar figure in that seat during the last parliament. the indications are it may be him who continues in the role. 0nce indications are it may be him who continues in the role. once we get into the formal process, if he indicates that he is willing to be chosen as speaker, and obviously we await confirmation of that happening, i have not heard indications to suggest that he won't, the father of the house of commons kenneth clarke, would at that point call a member from commons kenneth clarke, would at that point call a memberfrom either of the backbenches to move a motion that he'd take the chair as speaker. it may be that that is agreed at that point. at which pointjohn bercow would take the chair if nobody suggests another candidate. the process would resume pretty much as it had prior to the general election. however, there is always a possibility. and again, we await confirmation of this. somebody else

may decide that he or she once that job. that is the scene inside the house of commons. at which point they would be a lengthy process. there would be an adjournment until the following day. then there would have to be an election of the speaker by secret ballot. i think we can begin to hear some noises, which may indicate that black rod is on his way. and indeed, here is the start of the formalities. black rod making his way through the central lobby, passed various onlookers. from the house of lords to the house of commons. in a moment, one assumes, as we look at the house of commons, you will get a sense of his arrival. lots of faces turned. it is quite a

long corridor. which is why it takes a few moments for thatjourney to be made. here we are. members of the house of commons, the lords, who are authorised by virtue of her majesty's commission to declare the opening of parliament, desire the presence of this

honourable house in the house of peers to hear the commission read. rather frustratingly, we have lost the sound for a moment. there is kenneth clarke. the father of the is. he responds positively to the invitation to head to the house of lords. there is the prime minister with jeremy corbyn, lords. there is the prime minister withjeremy corbyn, tom watson, deputy leader, damian green near the front, and various other members of parliament filing out of the house of commons towards the house of lords. there is no obligation on them to go. this should take about ten minutes, we are told. there was reference to the commission, the royal commission, that will be read directing members to choose the speaker. when that is done in about ten minutes, they will head back to

the house of commons, at which point you will see the confirmation of the existing speaker or the sense there may be a contest for that particular role. we leave that scene for a moment and head back to jane hill in downing street. that illustrates exactly why theresa may left number 10 when she did. not, as we thought, to head to france, but because these formalities have to be gone through. this is the beginning of a new parliament. crucially, as you have been reflecting, the election of a speaker. we are just discussing here whether it is indeed going to be john bercow again. we are not aware of anyone who is challenging him for the position. that is as much as i can say to you. it may well bejohn bercow. we will find out this afternoon. then after those

formalities, there may well be more talks with the dup before theresa may willie bain does have to go, because she has a pre—arranged meeting with emmanuel macron in paris tonight. a meeting, a dinner, that was all arranged before the election. she will be heading off to paris at some point this evening, which means those talks with the democratic unionist party cannot continue indefinitely into the night, because those talks in france ta ke night, because those talks in france take precedence. just to bring you write up to date if you are not entirely clear what has been going on in number10 entirely clear what has been going on in number 10 downing street, there was quite a flurry because we we re there was quite a flurry because we were briefed that arlene foster would update us at the end of those discussions. some concern therefore that she did not appear. but we realise now that is because theresa may had to get over to the house of commons. worth telling you, no

outstanding issues left, is what we are hearing. that is between the dup and the conservatives. they are working carefully through the paperwork to complete the deal. we thought we might hear something but we got —— we have got a little bit longer to wait. it is worth saying that the dup have said arlene foster is willing to stay in london overnight if need be. we may or may not have an agreement, some form of words, in the next few hours. yes, it sounds like the broad agreement is there and it is the detail they are looking at. theresa may has gone over to the house of commons. she has an office in the house of commons. nigel dodds, the dup leader in westminster, is over there as well. it sounds like he will be involved. they could have the opportunity for more talks before theresa may has to go off to paris. they don't need to involve, necessarily, theresa may and arlene

foster. that is a possibility. they wa nt to foster. that is a possibility. they want to get this sorted as clearly as possible —— quickly as possible. the intent is there. the fact she is willing to stay. no sign of the talks having broken down. it looks like we're heading into the position where there is an agreement. we have been told it will not be a full coalition like when david cameron did a deal with the liberal democrats. there will not be dup ministers. they will not be sitting at the cabinet table. it is a looser arrangement, known as supply and confidence. supply being the money. that is where it gets tricky. if you are the conservatives, your budget has to be agreed by the dup. it is a big deal. and confidence, which is maybe even more important, because it confidence vote, if it ever came to it, is the thing that can bring down a government. it could bring down a government. it could bring down theresa may if it went against her. the dup would be saying we

would always back you. that looks like where we are. it is interesting reflecting on sirjohn major's comments earlier, where his view was, actually you may not need this deal at all. all it gives theresa may is a working majority of six, which is not great. it is still unstable. it only needs a couple of rebels to make that a problem further. and he thinks actually you could be shelling out quite a lot of political capital by doing this deal. it is so interesting, that interview. he expressed enormous concerns about the practicalities, with particular reference to the northern ireland peace process ..-ll;_ ‘élzfi‘f “zygduz—n 2“ we — 7 7 well, ..-ll;_ 1277-4 7753727775777 £7 —777 — 7—777 7 well, of ..-ll;_ 1277-4 7753727775777 ,77 —77—7 — 7 7 well, of which h-ll7717i777-j 77777777777 77 —77—7 — 7 7 well, of which he h-ll7717i777-j 77777777777 77 —77—7 — 77 7 well, of which he - a h-ll7717i777-j 77777777777 77 —77—7 — 7777 7 well, of whic feels i a h-ll7717i777-j 77777777777 77 —77—7 — 7777 7 well, of whic feels this very keenly. and also because of the weg keenly. and also because of the weéin keenly. and also because of the weg in in keenly. and also because of the we g in in northern >>~flslss>ss sis; £2 us “75 tsxll~;r >>~flslss>ss sss s-s --s us tsxumsr peace >>~flslss>ss sss sis us us tsxumsi peace has been >>~flslss>ss sss sis us us tsxumsi solid. peace - has been >>~flslss>ss sss sis us us tsxumsi solid. there - has been >>~flslss>ss sss sis us us tsxumsi solid. there have i has been >>~flslss>ss sss sis us us tsxumsi solid. there have i he some| 7 there 177; —

a i!!! ell m i!!! n-m i!!! _ m h ifthere is an his to be happening. if there is any suggestion the british government is not that honest broker, an independent figure, that is a problem. if you get to the point where the nationalists think they cannot trust the british comment in these negotiations to get power—sharing up and running again, thatis power—sharing up and running again, that is a problem. that is where sir john major is concerned. he is a politician as well. he has looked at the general election result, as have other tory mps, and the conclusion they have john from other tory mps, and the conclusion they havejohn from bad is that actually austerity has been a problem. the cuts to various things is partly why people turned to labour in some areas where people thought they wouldn't. his view is if it comes to the point where the dup say they want new hospitals, new

infrastructure, people look across the irish sea... 0ne infrastructure, people look across the irish sea... one person infrastructure, people look across the irish sea... 0ne personjoked that northern ireland would start to look like new york with all these new buildings and investment. that could be a problem if you are in other parts of the uk. you think, why can't we be like that? why is my other parts of the uk. you think, why can't we be lwhy|at? why is my other parts of the uk. you think, why can't we be lwhy|at ozirs stark|y= %sssfi.777777i77 7 :i=_;'i‘ ii,“ iiii iiji’; i‘ % .. f f s 7. 7. 7.77i is 7 couidiookiike ~ terms it could look like casper votes. he is that in terms it could look like casper votes. he is - that in the votes. he is worried that in the long term, when there is another general election, the tories will get punished for that. he is very wa ry wary of the dup would never bring down a conservative government to allow the labour party, led by jeremy corbyn, who is completely unacceptable jeremy corbyn, who is completely u na cce pta ble to jeremy corbyn, who is completely unacceptable to them as prime minister. would they go back to their community in northern ireland and say, we have brought down the tory government for the possibility

ofjeremy corbyn to become prime minister? it is interesting that such a seniorfigure in minister? it is interesting that such a senior figure in the tory party is very wary of the arrangement. the swearing—in in the house of lords is what we're looking at at the moment. that phrase, casper votes, that is a very strong one. —— cash for mac votes. what he is saying really is used to tough it out and work as a minority government. i don't know how much analysis there has been a fire that would work. could it work? i'm thinking particularly in relation to the brexit negotiations. these are meant to begin next week. we have heard the noises out of strasberg. a huge amount of frustration from michel barnier and others saying, just get on with it, britain. the clock is ticking. 0ne

just get on with it, britain. the clock is ticking. one wonders whether the minority position would work going into the brexit talk. whether the minority position would work going into the brexit talkm terms of brexit it could work because the dup were very much on the brexit side of the argument. again, when it came to votes in the house of commons, they would, you presume, vote on the brexit side. labour mps would vote with the tories, those who are big brexiteer ‘s. the fact all of this is happening with those talks due to begin next week is not the backdrop the government wanted. that was the reason why theresa may said she called the election, because she wa nted called the election, because she wanted a big mandate to go into those talks sounding and looking very strong. the opposite seems to have happened. it is interesting. people who have been surprised by this election result a role trying to analyse what happened, they are seeing different things. they are seeing different things. they are seeing the things they want to see. you have those on the remain side of

the argument, some labour, liberal democrats, the snp, and also some democrats, the snp, and also some democrats who genuinely feel that theresa may has to change your strategy. that even the idea we're leaving the single market may be up for grabs. there are others who disagree with that. even michael gove today, the new environment secretary very much on the brexit side things, says there needs to be more consultation. it has to be that this brexit and the terms of this brexit must be agreed across a broader spectrum. across the country it needs to be agreed. that will be incredibly difficult. you cannot negotiate by select committee. the ida there is a select committee in the house of commons with everybody involved is pretty tricky. you have ken clarke, the father of the house of commons which means he is the longest serving mp in the house of commons. it is interesting because he was going to stand down at the next election. of course, theresa

may unexpectedly called this one early. he couldn't quite bring himself to give it up. he has come back again. finally, i think he was elected in 19... it was very interesting. he is an ardent europhile. completely on the conservative side. he was the one tory who voted against article 50. we wondered if that would be the last thing he did as an mp but he is back. how much of that is because of what is going on? he made the point when he first of he is back, end of his career. now he is back, possibly thinking this could all be revisited. there he is. he has been there a very, very long time. kenneth clarke, father of the is. order!

under the provisions of standing order one a, under the provisions of standing orderone a, and under the provisions of standing order one a, and are required to ascertain whetherjohn bercow is willing to be chosen as speaker. i'd call mr john willing to be chosen as speaker. i'd call mrjohn bercow. -- i call. thank you, mr clarke. what a pleasure it is to welcome you back to this place. as you add the accolade of father of the to the many achievements of your long and distinguished career. —— father of the house. next sunday, you will mark 47 years continuous service to your constituency of rushcliffe, to this chamber, and to our country as a whole. you are held in great affection and esteem. 0n

a whole. you are held in great affection and esteem. on both sides of the house. and i am sure that i speakfor all colleagues of the house. and i am sure that i speak for all colleagues in wishing you well in your new role. if the house so permits, i shall be honoured to serve as speaker in this parliament. which, thankfully, across the parties is more richly diverse and representative of modern britain than in any of its predecessors. i will strive to ensure that all parts of the house i heard fully and fairly, and as always, i will champion the right of backbenchers to question, to probe, to scrutinise and to hold to account

the government of the day. laughter. finally, mr clarke, i referred admiringly to your 47 year tenure. it may come as a relief to collea g u es it may come as a relief to colleagues to know that i have no pretensions to seek to serve for anything like so long. either... either as a parliamentarian or indeedin either as a parliamentarian or indeed in the chair as speaker. that

said, we appearto indeed in the chair as speaker. that said, we appear to be destined for testing times. i offer myself to the house as a tested speaker. may i thank you, mr bercow, for those kind and flattering remarks, particularly referring, as you repeatedly did, to my longevity, which is about the only noncontroversial fact you can assert about my parliamentary career. i call upon mrs cheryl gillan to move the motion. i beg to move that the right honourable john move the motion. i beg to move that the right honourablejohn simon bergo do take the chair of the house as speaker. and can i start by adding my belated congratulations to the father of the house of commons right honourable member for the father of the house of commons right honourable memberfor ross

laird. he took over earlier this year when we sadly lost another member of the 1970 intake, the very well—respected sir gerald kaufman. of well—respected sir gerald kaufman. of whom the leader of the opposition said, he loved life and politics. and i can honestly say that that can be said of you, too. and as mr merk —— mr bercow said, having served in all of the departments of state, virtually, and all of the great offices throughout your long and distinguished career, it is attributed to your record of public service and your resilience that you preside over the opening proceedings of our parliament is today in the election of a new speaker. whilst welcoming all my colleagues returning to the house who are naturally familiar with the speaker's role, naturally familiar with the spea ker‘s role, we naturally familiar with the speaker's role, we are all pleased to welcome new members across all sides of the house. however, they may not realise that the speaker's office under this name goes back

only a mere 640 years. the speaker was then the agent of the king and was then the agent of the king and was afforded little protection. if the agent of the king offered bad news, he suffered the monarch‘s rav. and no less than seven speakers were beheaded between 1394 and 1530. laughter. let that be a warning to you. fortu nately, let that be a warning to you. fortunately, the job description let that be a warning to you. fortunately, thejob description has changed since then and our myron speaker protects our rights as backbenchers without fear of losing his head. except, and i have to say, when members misbehave in this chamber. compared to the father of the house of commons yes, with 47

yea rs of the house of commons yes, with 47 years of experience i am just a youngster, but over the 25 years i have served in parliament, i have seen many changes. have served in parliament, i have seen many changes. the whigs have gone, except today for a state occasion. —— the whigs. the powers chains. —— the hours have changed. laughter. sorry, the whigs have gone except one or two! the hours have changed, the committees have increased, the technology has advanced, the media never sleeps and the challenges of thejob of the never sleeps and the challenges of the job of the speaker continue to multiply. and having been harassed speaker since june 2009, i multiply. and having been harassed speaker sincejune 2009, i have seen the right honourable memberfor

bucking rise to those challenges and grow in thisjob. —— buckingham. he has shown himself to be utterly impartial and fearless in defending the house of commons from allcomers, whether it be over mighty ministers area whether it be over mighty ministers are a raucous media. he is a determined champion of opening up our... he makes parliament accessible to more than 100,000 children each year. he is an effective speaker who reaches out to people across the country. he is an energetic ambassador for parliament throughout the uk and around the world. he is also a devoted and hard—working champion for his constituents in buckinghamshire. these are not my words. but the endorsements from the right honourable members from sutton coldfield, pontefract and castleford, the leader of the is it are and the prime minister. —— the

leader of the opposition. my favourite endorsement is from the member of camberwell standing by the chair. he said that he may be small in stature but make no mistake, in the office of speaker, he is a giant. perhaps it is true that good things do come in small packages. laughter. for my own part in proposing him as speaker, i have always found him to be scrupulously fair, never allowing his views to compromise his impartiality. although i think on all sides of the house we can agree, he is no stranger to controversy. i think he annoys members of all the frontbenchers from time to time, which is probably a testament to his evenhandedness. he fosters a sense of community among those who work in the precincts and applies himself

with vigour to all of the many and varied tasks. but he also has qualities which many of us wonder at. his ability to recall obscure information on members. by warning new members of this. his loquacious nurse and command of the english—language. and in particular, please note father of the house of commons his ability to remain in the chair for commons his ability to remain in the chairfor inordinate commons his ability to remain in the chair for inordinate lengths of time, the record of being an 11 hour, 24 minutes uninterrupted stint during the syria debate, causing much admiring comment about the strength of his bladder. his performance in the chamber is also matched by his record outside. he has hosted over a thousand events for charities and presides over the administration of this place with great patients and good humour, to which i can attest. —— patience.

this parliament, like all that have gone before, will have its own character and present its own challenges. 0ver character and present its own challenges. over the next few years our country will go through the great changes that people's democratic votes have presented to us in this house. at the same time we face the very real threats to that freedom and democracy, and our precious way of life, which has been thrown so starkly into focus with the cyber attack on our nhs, the two unspeakable acts of violence during the election campaign, the death of pc keith palmer and, of course, the loss of our colleague, jo cox, who was taken from horse all a year ago this week. —— us. as speaker, he has

a lwa ys this week. —— us. as speaker, he has always acted swiftly to join others with words and acts of reassurance. i was proud to see him in manchester standing shoulder to shoulder with a community that had come under such lethal attack. in times like this, and in all our deliberations in this house, we need the experience, maturity and commitment to our parliament that i believe is shown by the right honourable memberfor buckingham. his devotion to this house and this country cannot be disputed. he has served this house and us as members with strength and fortitude. i have great pleasure in commending him to the house to serve as our next speaker. the question is that mrjohn bercow do take the chair of this house as speaker. as many of us are of that opinion, say i. the ayes have it.

laughter colleagues, before i take the chair as