casino banking. and the boring bank iing needs protection. >> thank you. >> there's a political problem there for the government, in what we describe. if as earn is agreeing, people's arrange deceits about the jobs and being squeeze. what they look at in parliament, doesn't appear to relate to that. and in the meantime. in the meantime there is a daily soap opera about the relationship between politicians and the press. the danger for the government is, they can never get any of the messages out at once. they don't seem to address the things that worry them. and that is the dilemma. it seems to me norman smith was scurrying up the steps at westminster, giving us a symbol of how fast the government

legislation. you now have the prime minister effectively saying, i've done what i wanted to do on schools and hospitals and well fare reform, or at least in terms of the laws, i've done what i wanted to do. i just want to implement it now. there's a lot of people in that building who are paid to debate laws and pass them. and there's an old saying, you don't keep them busy, they'll make themselves busy, usually when they make themselves busy bs it's not good for prime ministers. >> given that, what is mr. cameron hoping against, just in terms of the message, this is really the tricky thing. a queen's speech of this kind when you have a bit of a variety of things going on. what is the prime minister hoping people will take away from the queen's speech? >> i hope the coalition is getting on with the business it was formed to do. in a sense, that's why you have the prime minister preempt this. instead of waiting for the moment to say, that's what defined us, no, the image they

wanted was not the pomp and ceremony and great list of bills, what's the highlight. what they wanted is here we are in a tractor factory. we're still together and trying to sort out the economy. to stress, i'm not saying there will be nothing of consequence. there are bills that lots of people care about. they want to mend a little but day to day business of politics, on a day like today, we ought to remember, politics is changing, for example, as a draft bill will be in today, which is called the grocery code adjudicator, it's about how super markets don't rip off suppliers. it's not the main meat of politics there. >> another of our processions underway. this is the lord's speaker procession. baroness to susan. and a very big ceremonial event a short while ago, weeks ago at

westminster hall, when there was the occasion -- and baroness will take her place at the head of the staircase there. ready to be part of the group that is welcoming the queen. having a quick chat there, a man who has great responsibilities when it comes to major state events. including coronations, funerals. it's a hereditary position. very senior member of the house of lords and the know billty in this country. they're joining that group and with the lord -- a quick glimpse there. a little quick background. when he is sent down to summon the commons to the house of lords, that procession has been

done. and if we have another back in the raw gallery, we have another procession on the way. lots of diplomats and distinguished guests watching the processions. one of the great parliamentary veterans. respl resplendent -- that is kenneth clark who is lord chancellor. the lord chancellor's royal has changed so much in the past decade. not nearly as powerful and influential as it once was. a very important part of this pa pageantentry of the ceremony today. lord chancellor is the one who carries the important purse. why is it an important purse? it contains the queen's speech. the purse bearer is louise nichols, who is carrying it. who will give it to lord chancellor, kenneth clark in a few seconds. if he's doing his job properly today. he will check the purse to make

sure it's inside. here we go. oh, not that interested. carrying it in a casual way. >> ken clark's in position as the lord chancellor, a friendly exchange there with lord chamberlain who's having a bit of a look at the bag and wondering if it contains what it should contain. we have the group ready and in place just outside the gallery. we see the busts of former prime ministers who made it to the house of lords. this area is called the norman porch. there's nothing norman about it bs it was meant to have statues of norman kings. that never came about. you have busts of former prime minister s who became the house of lords.

have another look at the royal gallery, and because what's happening there is that we have another part of the ceremony taking place. another procession leading down to the prince's chamber which is right next to the house of lords. a sense of geography here. the door to the far end, that's where the queen and the duke will emerge for the procession instead. and then they'll make their way along down into the prince's chamber to our right. dominated by that statue, you see it there, a great white marble statue of queen victoria, the prince's chamber with glorious portraits. that room leads into the house of lords itself. in the royal gallery, the next

stage of this ceremony is to do with the symbols that i was talking about. the sword of state and the cap of maintenance. these are the two members the house of lords who will now be taking charge of these great symbols. on the left we have a former head of the armed forces, and lord clyde on the right. leader of the house of lords, and leader on the government side for the house of lords. very experienced parliamentarian, and lordster who served for four years as head of the armed forces and retired a few years ago. they'll be moving across to the royal gallery, where they will be ready for the procession in state. they will be carrying the sort when the procession happens.

all eyes outside the palace of westminster on parliament square. we'll have the house of calvary on the way. we can see the glinting -- even though there's not a lot of sunlight today. the armor glinting in the distance. four sections of calvary. two divisions before the queen's carriage and two after. to accompany the queen. and when they pass by the studio, you'll get a great view of them when they come through. and they can see that the police escort is just about getting there. they're going past all the security arrangements. here we are. they look magnificent. it would be nice if there was some sunshine to give us an added glint.

there you go. it's a great site. very impressive sight. just going past, and then we have a look at the royal carriage itself. the guards will play the royal salute as the queen approaches. ♪

>> the royal salute, directed by director wolfendale, the queen and the duke of edinboro, arrive at the palace in the australian state coach. a gift from the people of australia back in 1988. and it's a little more comfortable from some of the other coaches. the queen arrives. and there will be a fanfare to signal the queen's arrival. and there will be another signal to the world that she's arrived when the standard is unfurl ed. ♪

>> 11:15 everyone and the queen and duke are welcome d. the union flag is replaced by the royal standard to signal that the queen is at the palace of westminster. the herald's leaving the way, the two great maces, weapons of war in the -- in previous centuries. now symbols of sovereign authority. black route we'll see more of him in a while.

lord chancellor, kenneth clark bearing the purse with a speech. the duke of norfolk and the lord chamberlain. and the queen and the duke of edinboro will turn to the right to make their way into that robing room. we'll get a little glimpse of the robing room, which by the way in the second world war served as the chamber of the house of lords because of all the damage done to the palace of westminster. the state opening took place in that room. it's remarkable to think today. just a few minutes inside the room for the parliamentary robes to be prepared for the imperial state crown to be prepared to. the herald's in place for a procession in state through the

royal gallery. and the lieutenant general david leaky who was appointed relatively recently, his first state opening today, a lot of pressure on him. we chatted last week as he was preparing and he was looking forward to it. the kings of arms leading the herald. and they are the ones who are in charge of all the duty and the design of new coats of arms. that's the scene in the royal gallery. will be stripped back there for when the queen is ready to leave. and before that, we'll have a look inside the central lobby of the houses of parliament. let's have a quick glimpse to see, because all is quiet now.

but the police inspector is waiting to give the instruction, hats off strangers. strangers being the rather strange word in parliament for people who are not part of the parliamentary estate. and that will be the instruction to salute the speaker, in a sense to tell the speaker that all is clear and for people to watch the speaker procession. some of us that work in parliament. it's a great sight, we'll see that in a few minutes time. in the meantime, i think it's just right for us to have a very quick word before we go back in. nic, a thought from you really today when we come to debate after this speech. there will be a long debate on the green speech will what do you think will emerge as the main sharp lines of division? can i just say this without causing trouble? not just between the coalition and labor, but between these two

parties as well? >> well, to start with the coalition. it will be the economy, it won't be what's in the queen's speech, it's a debate whether the government is on track to get the deficit reduced at the same time as the party, the economy is not growing, and the sort of tension, yes, it's got to be the house of lords. the sense that many people in the government's own benches will be sitting there thinking why aren't we doing this now. and what on earth is going to emerge from the process. the parliament has gone through for 100 years. >> how important is it? if there was any kind of suggestion -- not quite at the top of the pile, how will you and your party respond? >> the thing you recognize -- >> is that in your topic? >> reforming our democracy, the people are elected by the people

who are affected by them. i suspect really, it shouldn't be as controversial as people are making it. it should be uncontroversial. forgive me, we saw the leader of the lords a little while ago. he's at the financial times today. in theory, he's the government minister pushing for lords reform. he said it would make for a month expensive house of lords, it would give them more power. and as an example of what that power would mean, privatization would probably have never gotten through. people watching are saying, hooray. it's a very curious thing. the conservative minister saying, the thing that's of most concern, wouldn't have happened if the lords republic -- didn't sound to me like, should we call it an endorsement? >> it's interesting, it's not just him.

there's no difficult finding colleagues of yours to say, excuse me we've got lots of big problems, this isn't one them. we really shouldn't be giving any priority to it. what do you say to them? >> i say two things. the same manifesto, was all about reforming the house of lords. i think tim put it pretty well. it's one of the things we need to do. is it top of the list? no, that's sorting out the economy. ultimately that does matter, i think it's important that the house of lords moves from being what it is right now, which is full of people who are party leaders have put in. we have the scandal. if you have 50 k, you could become a knight. it's completely inappropriate for a modern brit. i think it needs to have some legitimacy with the public and i think once you give it some legitimacy it will have some

power. they talked about the house of lords during the government. it wasn't really quite the number of party appointees it has now. i think the lords haven't been able to hold the government to account well, but i think the point is, it's got to be more defensible to the public i think in a modern britain. what's top, what matters, have you to get on sorting out the economy, and a number of the other measures around, jobs and growth supporting families. >> can we expect to see legislation on this being passed in the next couple years? yes or no. >> i think it would depend how we get on with the debate as it passes through the commons and the lords. it's massively important, we're talking about a fundamental con sti tigsal change bs that's why getting con sensess is appropriate. certainly in the last government, and last parliament there is consensus. i think making sure we get that right matters. it will be a big debate, that's

because it's important. >> do you think there should be a referendum? other constitutional reforms, like voting reform would put the people -- >> one second, richard. back to the central lobby for a second. i think we're about to get the order, and the speaker's procession will be underway. here they come. >> hats off, strangers. >> the speakers procession, the sergeant at arms, lawrence ward who's just taken the position followed by the door keeper, and

then mr. speaker himself. and then the speaker's train ji. the speaker's secretary in the speaker's chaplain too. they will go into the house of commons. the mace will be put in its place on display near the dispatch boxes. mr. speaker acknowledging the greetings of people in the members lobby of the house of commons and the two great statues there of churchill and lord george at the main entrance to the chamber of the commons. a packed chamber, all of them waiting to be invited to attend in the house of lords. so mr. speaker takes his place in the chair.

prime nick clegg, chancellor all in place. and here is attorney general david leaky. a great view, isn't it? all the way down the throne in the far distance there in the house of lords, because he is waiting for the signal, having a relaxed chat there with one of the police officers. a bit of a crowd in the central lobby. but there will be a signal given once the queen is happy and settled when she arrives in the house of lords, the lord great chamberlin will nod and the signal will be passed on the blackrod and we'll be on that famous walk down from the central lobby into the commons and then the door will be slammed in blackrod's face, a symbol of the independence and the autonomy of the house of commons. and he is allowed in. and he'll invite them to attend in the house of lords.

have a look inside the royal gallery. just waiting for the signal now that the queen is ready to begin the procession in state, because that will happen very shortly when her majesty emerges from the robing room, there will be a fanfare. the lord great chamberlin, marquis of chembley with his white wand, symbol of authority, is coming into the royal chamber now. joined the marshall. everyone stands. and the signal will be given to begin the fanfare. ♪

>> so the state opening of parliament and the diamond jubilee year of 2012 is under way. the procession and state through the royal gallery. the queen celebrated her 86th birthday last month and the duke of edinburgh who will be celebrating his 98th birthday in just a few weeks' time. lord chancellor making his way into the prince's chamber.

the duke of norfolk, lord strathclyde, and lord stirrup, the cap of maintenance and sword of state. and the pages of honor, lord stanley. followed by the ladies in waiting. and gold stick in waiting, that's the office held at the moment by the princess royal. and we have for the first time in the state opening representatives of all the main branchs of the armed forces. so we have the chief of defense staff. we have their chief marshall, sir steward peach, and the chief of the general staff. the queen will signal that

everyone should be seated. and then she will give the signal for blackrod to be sat. >> my lords, pray be seated. the signal is given by lord shame lynn and received by blackrod in the central lobby. so for the first time in his term of office attorney general david leakey makes his way towards the chamber of the house of commons. very important symbolism attached to this part of the day's ceremony. because this is all about the autonomy of the house of commons, the fact that they are

independent of the sovereign. the show of that independence is about to happen. >> open the door. >> blackrod. >> into the chamber, into the lion's den in some senses because there could be some shouts and noises off. we'll see. >> mr. speaker, the queen commands this honorable house to

attend her majesty immediately in the house of peers. >> jubilee year, double dip recession, what a start. >> no doubt about who is responsible for the comment. dennis skinner, the veteran labor mp who specializes in quips on state opening day. but his comment today about diamond jubilee year and double-dip recession did provoke i think some irritation there on the bench's opposite. procession is under way. final adjustments to mr. speaker's gown, walking with black rod. parliamently clerks, and we have

david cameron and ed miliband, the labor leader. first we've seen of him today. george osborne, teresa ray, and other senior parliamentary figures, ian duncan smith just leaving, harriet harmon, the deputy leader there. always interesting to watch body language. >> it's awkward having to do it on camera. of course they do have meetings, briefing each other on matters of security. it's always quite fun to see whether they can keep a smile. in recent weeks they have not looked a lot like they like each other. >> no. sometimes it's more convincing than at other times. so we've seen lots of members of the cabinet and the opposition front bench on their way in. a bit of a scrum. and rachel, you're watching this with me as well. from the labor point of view,

it's a bit of a scramble, isn't it? people want to get in and get a good view. but there is very little room in the lords for people to see what is going on. >> i have only been there once before because i was elected in 2010. there is not much space in there. so some people wait in members lobby rather than being in the house of commons. >> don foster making his way in, one of tim's colleague there's. coming now into the -- what we call the bar of the house of lords. that's just at the entrance there and beyond the great brass doors. as they come in, we will see the lord chancellor approaching the throne and presenting the speech to the queen. prime minister and ed miliband just standing behind the speaker there at the center with black rod. and once they're satisfied and the marshall is satisfied that everyone is in place,