over the years, there has been a continual drift away from the imposition of direct taxes to indirect taxes. this falls most heavily on those who can least afford them. will the prime minister agree with me that it is becoming time when we went back to the traditional labour policy on the taxes? that is to redistribute wealth in favor of poor people. i would like to see him say in the this is a general election -- in this general election that he would like to see and the billionaire rich pay their real taxation in this country. >> there is one point i would

like to make, and that is the importance of tax credits that have helped -- >> [shouts] >> they have helped lower income and middle income people get out of poverty. the conservatives are not interested in tax credits. 20 million children, mothers and fathers and benefit from tax credits. one of the conservative proposals is to cut child tax credits for a middle income families. that will do more to push those people into poverty than anything else. they should change their policy on the taxation. >> the prime minister once notoriously promised british jobs aboard british workers. can he -- british jobs for british workers. can he confirm that the number of jobs for the british is

several hundred belsen lowering -- several hundred thousand at lower than it was 1997. >> the jobs rate is falling because are more people getting jobs locally. i think the conservative policy on migration should be reconsidered. there are plenty of people in this country willing to do the jobs necessary. the conservative policy on immigration would do great damage to british business. >> in the last 10 years, we have seen anik unprecedented increase in -- we have seen an unprecedented increase in support for science and technology. will you pledge not to cut support for these areas, as they

will assure our future economic success? >> record investment in education, universities, science, a new innovation, that is a record of our labour government. we are the party that supports industry in this country. >> and given the allegations surrounding the council and the demand for an inquiry, and will the prime minister support such an investigation, or does he have something to hide? >> he came down to this parliament and he spent most of his time with the conservative party. he should go back to scotland

and explain why instead of a voting for jobs, he is a voting with the conservative party in parliament. [shouts] ♪ >> hello, and welcome to our look back across the months and years of the 54th parliament. >> world leaders have come and gone. there have been natural disasters and a tragedy. but this building has remained. >> rarely has parliament seemed such turbulence. there are new levels of public hostility towards our politicians. >> we will look back at the highs and lows of this parliament, up from 2005 to 2010. >> parliament come and go, but some things stay the same.

in 2005, there was a traditional opening ceremony. the economy was healthy and strong. you did not have to apologize if you were a banker. prime minister tony blair had just won an historic second term for labor. david cameron was a junior member of the shadow cabinet. >> i can offer the prime minister some advice of my own. it comes from personal experience. you should set a timetable for your departure. [laughter] i hope the prime minister will take that advice in a constructive way. >> he makes fun at my expense, but i say good luck to him for

the future. let me gently remind him of however, of which party was elected. he has 197 members of parliament, we have 356, and i stand here and keep sit there. -- keeps sits there. . he sits there. >> is the prime minister still intending to serve a full term? under any circumstances will he change his mind? >> probably to the delight of my colleagues, when i do leave the leadership, i will not be coming back again. [laughter] >> this is a general election

is the biggest duty in a liberal politics in over 80 years. i believe that will add to the health of the parliament ahead. >> in 2005, three underground trains were blown up by suicide bombers. emergency services were sending ended were greeted with horrific injuries -- were sent and were greeted with horrific injuries. >> as of yet, we do not know who was responsible for these criminal and appalling acts. the metropolitan police are in operational command. they are well established with procedures.

>> this mornings at of unspeakable depravity and is condemned utterly by the whole house. this is an attack on our city, our country, and our way of life as a whole. >> this attack was despicable, yes. but not unpredictable. it was entirely predictable, and i predict, not the last. >> now, much of what parliament debated or spoke about became a matter of balancing the terrorist threat with individual liberties. tony blair could afford a defense, and rebels began to

amass in numbers. >> the ayes are 299 and, the no 's are 300. >> argument outside the chamber raged for weeks. ministers were flown home for the vote. but the prime minister and ultimately new defeat was coming. >> sometimes it is better to lose and do the right thing and then it to win and do the wrong thing. >> can you think of another time in which it would take more than 90 days after arresting a suspect to come to a decision as to whether to try him as a terrorist? >> our country faces a real and serious threat of terrorism.

>> in the end, he was well beaten by 31 votes. >> the day after the election, michael howard announced he would be standing down as conservative leader. several choices were considered to replace him. in the end, david cameron finished the primary well ahead. he is the new tory leader. >> and david cameron. [cheers and applause] >> thank you. thank you, mr. speaker. the first issue that the prime mystics -- the prime minister and i are going to have to work together on is getting his

education reform through the house of commons and into law. the chief whip is shouting like a child. incidently, i should have and welcomed him to his new position and congratulated him on winning the conservative leadership election. but can i tell him where i feel we may have a disagreement? as i understand his position coming -- his position, all schools should be free to set their own admissions procedures. i believe the present system should stay in a paper -- stay in place. >> it is only the first day, and already the prime minister is asking me questions.

i want to talk about the future. he was the future ones. [laughter] education is one of the public services in a desperate need of reform. >> we all knew it david cameron's first pmq. charles kennedy resigned on the seventh of january, 2006. two days later, he admitted he had a drinking problem. >>%qñjus the election was eventy won by campbell, but then the prime minister's questions got off to a bad start. >> perhaps he would like to

explain why it is that one in the private schools do not have a permanent head teacher. [shouts] -- one in five and schools and do not have a permanent head teacher. [shouts] mr. speaker, i just knew it was going to be one of those days. >> campbell's leadership was a huge success. he resigned in 2007.

>> by 2006, problems were mounting for the home office. they admitted they did not know how many illegal immigrants or in the country or paid employees here. officials had set free 1000 foreign prisoners who should have been deported. in the end, the secretary's successor was under pressure. >> i want to be straight with the committee and honest with you, because i believed that in the wake of the problems of a mass migration that we have been facing, is eyeing our fit -- our system is not fit to help us. it is inadequate in its scope. it is inadequate in terms of

information technology, leadership, management, systems and processes. we have tried to cope with this new age with a system that has been inherited from an age that came before it. >> to ease the pressure on an overstretched, office, the ministry of justice came into being in 2007. there have been other changes in the last five years. we now have a u.k. supreme court. the lord chancellor is now the lord speaker. there has been a generous supply of political scandals in the last five years. there was a yacht-date and e- mail-date and a nanny-gate. in 2006, the police began an

inquiry into allegations that people had made donations to the labour party with an expectation of receiving favors. >> the minister, in response to previous questions, said that the breaches were not done with his authority. >> lord ashcroft made a contribution to her election campaign. the house that. >> downing street officials were interviewed. in december 2006, tony blair became the first serving prime minister to be interviewed by police.

rolling were making the most of it all. >> given all of the prime minister's revelations about men and women in the last few days, you should be compared to richard nixon. >> we are just about to have a scottish election campaign. why don't you get up and put to meet your case for independence and separation from scotland? >> in the end, the case was dropped. but the men who led the inquiry faced questions of their own. >> the prime minister was interviewed as a witness. why was he interviewed as a witness when it technically he

could have been interviewed under caution? do you think that your involvement in this case has advance your career or hindered your career or had absolutely no bearing on your career? it is a personal question. you may not want to answer it pyrrhi,. t. >> we have discovered that no charges were able to be brought. >> i have done my job. i followed the evidence. >> you are denying the notion

that you participated in the political system. >> june 27th, 2007 saw another handover of power. we started the day with one of prime minister and finished with another. >> at 12:00, tony blair finished out his last parliamentary duties. he took his final questions. the house of commons was at its most generous. >> thank you for your it gentle courtesy and kind forbearances towards me over the years. [laughter] i will have no further meetings today or any other day. for all of the battles we have had, for 13 years he has a lead

our party, for 10 years he has led our country, and no one can be in any doubt about the huge effort he has made toward public service. >> he and i have had a number of disagreements, but his relation to us personally has been unfailingly courteous, and i would like to express my gratitude to him for that. >> i wish the primeinister well into the future, but is he aware that the majority of the people of the united kingdom feel betrayed by the fact that they are being drawn down further into the supplicating the quicksand and expensive and bureaucracy -- suffocating quicksand and expensive bureaucracy of the european union? >> [unintelligible] [laughter]

>> mr. speaker, on behalf of the little part of the planet that i represent, thank you for what you have done a poor in the lives of so many people. >> i hope that what happened in northern ireland will be repeated. >> under him, the party has once again become a natural part of a parliament. >> i have never pretended to be a great house of commons man, but i can pay in the house the greatest compliment i can by saying that from the first to the last i never stopped fearing it. i felt it as much as 10 years ago and every bit as acute. it is in that spirit that

respect is contained. the second thing i would like to say is about politics. to all of my colleagues from all political parties, sometimes people who are engaged in politics stand tall bearded although -- stand tall. this is still at the arena that sets the heart beating a little faster. it is still on vacation the place -- on occasion the place where noble causes are pursued. i wish everyone well, and that is where i will end. [applause] [applause]

>> after those jubilant themes it was back here. tony blair said there well before is setting off for buckingham palace to hand in his resignation to the queen. later that day, he ceased to be a prime minister. >> gordon brown went to buckingham palace and was appointed prime minister. >> i will try my utmost. this is my promised to all of the people of britain. now, let the work of change begin. thank you. but no one could have expected what happened next. a car bomb was set off in central london. another at the air force.

it was a baptism of fire for the new prime minister. there was flooding into the north and the self of england. a disease threatened to return. the prime minister was riding high in the polls. there was talk that david cameron might be ousted as leader. >> as politicians gathered by the seaside, speculation was under way that gordon brown would call an election. just two days before parliament returned, gordon brown said that there would be no election that year. there was concern that the new

prime minister had lost his nerve. >> the prime minister was asked, and on hard, if the polls showed a 100 seat majority would you still call of the election, and he said yes. does he expect anyone to believe that? >> he was for grammar schools, then against them, then for them again. he was for parking charges, then against them. he was born museum charges, against them. i will take -- for museum charges, then against them. i will take no more elections from this prime minister. >> does he remember writing to

this. it is in his best-selling book about courage. "as far back as i can remember, i have been fascinated by men and women of courage. stories of people who took a great decisions, especially when a far less dangerous a its alternatives or open it to them. " does he realize what a phony he now looks like? >> there is a petition on the downing street website, and not one of them is from the conservative bent. >> we will govern in the interests of the people. >> for 10 years he has seemed to have this job, and for what? no convictions, just calculations. last week he lost his political authority. this week he is losing his moral authority. how long are we going to have to wait before he makes way for the future addax?

[shouts] >> this is the man who wanted to the end to the punch and judy show, the end to name calling. we are the government that has created 10 years of economic stability in this country. >> about economic stability was about to be put to a severe test. they knew america was going through a credit crunch. it could not come here, could it? hsuddenly, there was the site of its lines of people desperate to pull money from the bank. the new chancellor agreed to a loan for it northern ireland. >> to protect the taxpayer, substantial sums have been lent, and this money has to be repaid.

>> the fallout from the first bank run in 40 years get worse each week. today it has been another week of confusion from the chancellor of the checker. >> the government eventually nationalized the bank. >> things were about to get a whole lot worse. millions of claims went missing in the post. when the chancellor made an announcement to comment -- to the commons, there was disbelief. >> it now appears that contrary to all procedures, at two

password protected disks containing a full copy of sensitive data was sent to a national audit office by the internal post system. the package was not recorded or registered. mr. speaker, it appears that the data has failed to reach the addressee. >> then a group of former ministry chiefs piled on the agony with some comments about the chancellor. >> the combination of all of these events inspired a cruel and jibe. it propelled the politician not only to the national stage, but to national stardom. >> the house has noted the prime

minister's remarkable transformation in the last few weeks. [laughter] creating chaos out of order rather than order out of chaos. does he not expect that the most damaging remarks over the last week came from the service chiefs to accused him of a woefully neglecting the welfare of our young men and women serving in in the armed forces? >> at every point in the job in in, i will do everything in my power to defend and protect the security of our armed forces. >> in the opening weeks of this

parliament, the lord of denmark throughout plans for a new constitution. this was replaced by the lisbon treaty. the new post of eu president was created. . . .

never would he -- or at not being in possession of the veto. [laughter] the famous draw hitting the table. and then the awful moment when the motorcade of the president of europe sweeps ended you, but

gritted teeth and bits and nails, lurching from his door with a smile of intolerable anguish. the choking sensation of the words, mr. president. [laughter] and then once in the cabinet room, the melodrama of when would you hand over to me all power? [laughter] >> after that, debate over the lisbon treaty was much less jovial. there was a referendum on the treaty. >> we believe that there should be a referendum because we want to argue it. that will enable us to discuss is the first time in a generation. >> if you want to start this,

threatening them with a stench in is the best way -- with abstention is the best way. >> is the aware that three liberal democrats have already resigned since he started speaking? [laughter] >> in 24 minutes -- >> there has not been in a repeat of the 7/7 attack on london, but there have been worrying number of alerts. as we've seen, tony blair had i support for 90 day detention forced terrorists of state --

for terrorist suspects. when he proposed it, the opposition parties were there. feelings were running high. >> when the mothers come to me and say, they have my son for five weeks and no one can tell me why. what does the minister say -- suggest i should tell them? the british people place their trust in us to take the right decision to protect them. and i cannot and will not wish away the threat from those who whose aim and sole intent is to blow up our citizens of all races and religions on our streets. >> anything she can do to

improve this will be very much welcome by this country. >> one comes from a part of the united kingdom and the numbers of of our party take this very seriously. also, any legislation coming in the actions to stop terror. >> this is been inflammatory an island and has led to the intensification of problems there in the 1970's and 1980's. i am not saying that the 42-day plan equates to determine, but it does come into play. and the government runs the risk with these provisions of giving the terrorists exactly what they want, which is clear evidence of an insensitivity and oppressive state.

>> parliament will be asked to approve on order that there is further abstention of the maximum period of detention. how can that be done when the request for the operation is going to come out a particular cases without debating and information about those specific cases? >> the vote was close. >> 315-306. >> all win for the government by nine votes. as for the idea of the 42 day detention, that was crushed by what the parliamentarians called the other place. >> there is no need because there is no increased threat. there is massive opposition. the suggestion are unworkable

and there's a risk of fundamental backlash. >> that threat has increased dramatically. we are monitoring to thousand people. i have to say that this is very daunting. there is an increased threat which we have to manage. >> peers voted overwhelmingly for the amendment that throughout the 42 days. >> 309-118. the contents have it. >> gordon brown had new ideas about how parliament should work. he wanted to use the expertise of people outside politics. he quickly became known by name.

one u.n. diplomat in the operating table, board barkley. no one could ever excuse them of being a good. however, but the news of the banking system on the verge of collapse, he was back. it was a bolt out of the blue, and in his maiden speech he recalled his grandfather. >> over 50 years ago, my grandfather made his own maiden speech in this house on the marshall plan and its importance to rebuilding the shattered economies of the allied countries of europe after the second world war. now and then the world has come

together secure the future of the financial system. >> a few days later, this man said that -- >> a man born for this house. [laughter] entering the unashamedly guacamole. . is above all a man of talent, and courage. for all of us, it is back to the future in so many ways. >> the financial storm clouds were gathering three banks on both sides of the atlantic were about their own liquidity. they move from worried their frantic bird a turnaround was happening. the banking problem was becoming a problem for us all.

september 15, 2008, lehman brothers collapsed. it sent up scores of other banks reeling. in britain, they engaged in quite the dealmaking in which the government agreed to an extraordinary injection of 37 billion pounds of capital. the chancellor tried to explain things. >> that government does not to one banks but rebuild them. the long-term future of u.k. banks will hydride this sector and will sell participating shares as soon as possible rid our objective is to stabilize and rebuild and we will maintain our state for as long as it takes to do that. >> given that the banking system has been on the verge of collapse, rescuing the banks is the only option available for the country. we said recapitalization might be necessary and we continue to work constructively with the

government on solving this financial crisis and on the banking bill. >> the scale of what the taxpayers look for is only starting to dawn on the british people. this is the biggest bailout in the world so far. >> the conservatives said supportive moves but it was different at the budget report weeks later. the tories attack. >> it will rise to 78 billion pounds this year. it will rise to 40% of gdp. from 2010, as i take action to reduce borrowing when the economy recovers, all rowing full followed to levels. by 2015, but we will again be borrowing only to invest. [unintelligible] >> order.

>> no one can doubt now that the prime minister who promised to abolish boom and bust has suffered a great defeat. the chancellor has just announced the largest amount of borrowing ever undertaken by a british government in the entire history of this country. and what he did not admit is that he is going to double the national debt for one trillion pounds, and a national debt accumulated over centuries will double and only five years. >> the prime minister sounds like the someone lecturing the uninitiated. but the patient back here is suffering very badly because the banks are cutting credit and greatly increasing their margin. >> the government promoted this

as the way of rescuing other economies around the globe. gordon brown seemed to get carried away. >> the first point of recapitalization is to save banks that would otherwise have collapsed, and we not only save the world -- save the banks. [unintelligible] when not only save the banks. [unintelligible] >> order. order. >> we not only work with other countries to save the world banking system, but for the depositors who have lost money in britain during the second thing is to get banks into the position where they can resume lending and that is why interest rates have come down by 3.5%, something the offices is said

was not possible but actually happened. >> by the beginning of 2009, the scale of the banking crisis was clear. there was still some details yet to emerge. the former chief executive of the world bank of scotland. at the start of the year, they were on the treasury committee. this led to the disastrous decision of the top agenda. >> you've given me the opportunity to repeat what i said to our shareholders. we are profoundly -- i don't think we would say undeservedly sorry -- at the turn of events. our shareholders have lost a great deal of money. i make a full and unreserved

apology on behalf of the board and i repeat that this morning. i apologize and i am happy to do so. i would echo those comments, a profound and unqualified apology. how would not risk for there to be any doubt for that whatsoever. it has affected everyone. [unintelligible] we deliberately started this with a full and frank apology. it is affected shareholders -- has affected shareholders in the communities in which we live. we are extremely sorry for this turn of events.

>> liberal democrats have elected a new leader, nick clegg, in the final days of 2007. but in 2009, [unintelligible] >> they cannot do that. there is a simple moral principle of state. if someone is prepared to die for this country, certainly they deserve to live in this country. >> later, amidst euphoria, government lost at the combined

hand of the opposition parties. change on the gurkhas quickly followed. >> you probably did not realize you are witnessing the start of the biggest political scandal ever to hit westminster, the newspaper publishing details of a handful of expenses, not just what they claimed but what they tried to complain -- complain. expenses information was due to come out in a limited form. but events quickly moved way beyond the control of the politicians. the daily telegraph had got everything on a secret disk and the information was dynamite. days of coverage followed of claims that were in some cases ludicrous, bazaar, and plan out rages. they struggled for explanation $3 to be a member of parliament, i have to have somewhere to live

in london. >> the public mood of plain angry. one spoke about the revelation and the speaker lost his cool. >> it is easy to say to the press this should not happen. it's a bit more difficult when you have to give information to the press and do nothing else. some of us in this house have other responsibilities justin talking to the press. the honorable gentleman. >> we're at a time when any nonsense can be written about anybody. >> cannot has that we keep our heads and not be driven. >> it was a fast-moving week. public anger grew at a staggering rate. the following monday, that time for explanations was over and

the speaker knew that he had been seen as the main obstacles to reform. >> in doing so, please allow me to say to the men and women in the united kingdom that we have let you down very badly indeed. we must all accept blame and to that extent, that i have contributed to the situation, i am profoundly sorry. know each and every member including myself that we must work hard to regain your trust. >> a motion of no-confidence in you, sir, will appear on the order to more. will it be debated tomorrow and voted upon? >> members of both sides have taken the motion.

when can we pick a speaker with the moral authority to clean up westminster? >> pardon? there is a remaining order. if it becomes a substantial motion it will be proceeded with. order. the honorable gentleman. >> there is great public anger route side. we all bear responsibility. i take my share a responsibility life and any other honorable member. but can i propose to you that i am not pleased with the motion. would you bear in mind that it would be very useful for the reputation of this house, and i say this reluctance but i say it all the same, that if you gave some indication of your own intention to retire, if your early retirement, sir, would help the reputation of the

house. >> the honorable member has served under more speakers than i have and he knows that is not a subject for today. >> it would be a subject for tomorrow. 2:30, 2009. >> order, order. since i came to this house 30 years ago, have always felt that the house is at its best when it is united. in order that unity can be maintained, i have decided that i would relinquish the office of speaker on sunday, the 21st of june. this will allow the house to proceed to elect a new speaker on monday, the 22nd of june. that is all i have to say on this matter. order. questions to the secretary of state for the commonwealth affairs.

>> michael martin became the first speaker in 300 years to be forced to resign. the expenses scandal had claimed its highest profile victim three more were to follow. the following month, there was a contest for a new speaker. >> 593 ballots were cast. the number of votes cast for each candidate was as follows. john burke told, 322. 271. [applause] >> the new elected speaker was symbolically drag to the chair to become the 157 to speaker of the house of commons. >> i should like to thank and they -- and pay a heartfelt tributes to all the candidates who stood in this election. [applause] >> mr. speaker-elect, you have

an enormous challenge and opportunity before you. never in living memory as parliament been the subject of so much anger and dismay from the people who send us here. the need for change is quite simply unprecedented. >> you have said that you will not cast aside all your past political views, and so of us thought you had done that some time ago. [laughter] >> i believe that the contributions to day with in some way to reified the proceedings of this house. we have to move forward to reforming the protests of the south. it's quite clear that you have received a mandate toward that end. >> today at the whistle parliament at its best. 10 were the candidate, 10 very good speeches, and one very worthy winner. >> the expenses scandal produced a strong desire to clean up politics.

the commons approved a set of changes, but there was much less control of government. a new set of rules would govern what mp's could claim and what they could not claim. the next parliament should be super clean. >> know it can look back at this parliament without reflecting on our forces involvement in iraq and afghanistan. in 2009, all but a handful of military personnel came home. it'd been grueling and dangerous. gordon brown announced an acquiree into the right mission. but as the number of troops in iraq to minutes, the number of troops in afghanistan were rising. the original nation-building role has changed. military personnel were

constantly at risk from roadside bombs and that told british lives lost rose sharply. gordon brown address the comments after attracted loss from our forces last summer. >> i think is right to pay respects, are full respects, to the members of our armed forces who have given their lives on behalf of our country in afghanistan. this is a solemn moment for this house and our country. it is a day in which we put on record in the house of commons our gratitude and our commemoration of the sacrifice made by 37 of our armed forces serving our country in afghanistan. from the royal marines, a surgeon. from the light dragoons, from the set that will take -- from the second royal regiment -- >> the prime minister's questions haven't always been

successful time for gordon brown. facing barbe gibes is different from presenting budgets, the jobs that he used to have. when 2009 turned into 2010, when brown discovered a more nimble approach. as the election loomed, he got in jibes of his own. >> a conservative party poster showed an air brush picture of the tory leader. >> mr. speaker. i think i should start by saying he looks very different from the poster. [unintelligible] if you cannot get your photograph right, it's hard to get your politics right as well. mr. speaker, we announced last week first of all plans for digital britain. secondly, plans to improve education in our committee.

thirdly, plans for 70,000 jobs for offshore power. and we had drowsed -- announce our new growth strategy. he can have his posters, we will have the policies. >> he has stood there week after week and denied what everybody knows to be true, that there will be spending cuts. the chancellor now says these cuts will be the deepest for 20 years. will the prime minister repeat those words? >> mr. speaker, he's getting much rather than he is on this photograph. >> it was not long before the general election was called. both houses of parliament were soon involved in a frantic two days. 16 bills, getting them passed into law before the parliament close. they sat late into the night to get things done, not to everyone's satisfaction. >> there is a change in the

constitution. >> it produced rapid agreements and the government lost large sections of key bills including its finance bills. also dropped was a plan for gradual removal of hereditary peerage is from the lords. and so the parliament came to the end with a ceremony of coronation. an exceptionally large group of mp's looked on. it brought to a formal in their parliamentary careers. >> the digital economy act. [unintelligible] >> constitutional and governance aact. >> with that, they dismiss the parliamentarians' group >> by lords and members, by virtue of her majesty's commission, we'd do in her majesty's name and

under begins to her majesty's command, remove this parliament to the 20th day of april, and this parliament is parole. >> their return to the commons and shook hands with the speaker. to sum it was an emotional moment. -- to some, it was an emotional moment. so there it was, 5 b -- busy years of parliament's three well-known faces going from triumph to disaster and others in the opposite direction. >> that can turn to their constituencies, those hoping to be reelected. some 150 are standing down. some tainted by the expenses scandal. >> we will see key voter reaction to the political scow lugsails at the ballot box. >> whoever is prime minister, there will be a radically different house of commons. some very familiar faces will of god. >> we will report on the debate

of the 55th parliament and look for to see in them. for now, could buy. >> it has been a great honor to serve my constituents in this place. >> i am grateful to all those who elected me and given me the chance to serve them in this house. >> i simply following my mentor. >> the policies are still the most important thing for any thing to do. it is about everything. the list i find my utmost sentiment is one of profound relief. >> i think this is a fantastic chamber, a fantastic place for debate to be joined, a fantastic atmosphere, second only to the scalise to parliament as a chamber. >> it is the place that ought to matter most of all at the end of the day. >> remember our politics may not

be perfect, but when politics fails, chance will inevitably take over. >> the great thing about democracy is that though harsh things are sometimes said, we are not trying to kill each other. differences are resolved at the ballot box. one side wins and one side loses. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] >> a discussion on hiring a returning war veterans. and then dick gregory brothers talk about the videos they make in the news. after that, prime minister's questions with british prime minister gordon brown and the

labor party's achievements in the economic recovery. and later, another chance to see the "record review." host: our guest brian stann, executive director of hire heros. talk about your organization, veterans are coming back from afghanistan are looking for jobs. the market is tough. guest: we are a career placement and assistance organization for our veterans. we look to help make the transition out of the military into the civilian workforce and find them a job. it's our strong belief that our nation's employers owe it to these veterans to be first in line for the american dream. to be first in line for the jobs of our countries, due to their

defense of our nation. especially because the military has a global impact, and the nation's military provides the security. superpower in this world. host: you are a veteran, and what was your experience coming back to the states and reentering the civilian workforce. guest: it's not easy and i was fortunate that i met a person that shared these beliefs of honor and commitment and duty. but i was one of the few. it's a difficult transition when you come out of the military, there are skill sets you don't have. having never interviewed for a job or having written a resume. you can be a skilled person but

if you don't know how to market yourself, the job market is difficult. host: we have a story of veterans including matthew eronset that was in active duty and planned transition to civilian life. and since returning to a six month job and having a master's degree in marketing and has gone from florida to milwaukee with no luck. guest: this is similar, we work with veterans and try to get in their life as early as possible. we would like to get involved six months to a year prior to departure. but we work with many that are unemployed for over a year that are homeless or living on someone's couch because they can't find a job.

it's two sides and the veterans need to educate for a job. but our government, the department of defense has not done a good enough job of putting together a transition program to educate the veterans. we have the programs in place, but in many or most cases they are in suspension. host: we have a number for the veterans to call. and all other lines are open for republicans, democrats and independents. let me give the phone number for veterans, 202-628-0104. you can call about your experience or if you have served and having made the transition. when people come out of the service who were full-time fully

signed up versus national guard duty, is there a difference in expectations of finding employment and what they see? guest: absolutely, when i leave the military, i obviously will get a better salary, because of the housing allowances and difference revenues as active service man or woman, that's not the case. a big reason for unemployment rate for our veterans, is that employers and companies are not educated on the skill sets of our veterans. they are not educated on the amount of training they go through. they are not educated on all the different skills based on their job and not educated on the amount of leadership skills6r? these young men and women have.

when you look at the6&gñ confli in afghanistan, they are not being fought by generals or captains, primarily they are fought by corporals, 18 to 22 year old men and women, we are putting a great responsibility on these young people and greater than a c.e.o. and you can be leading 15-20 men and women. employers owe it to their warriors and get educated on what they bring in their skills. host: we have veterans look at age groups and how they stack up. it shows that nearly across the

board veterans have a higher rate of unemployment. when we look at 18-24 year olds there is a dramatic difference and goes down. can you reflect on that? guest: absolutely, if you are in an interview and look at someone's resume, you understand what you are looking at. but when looking at military employment, they don't understand what a crew leader is or someone working in aviation. even if you spell it out and translate your skills well on that resume. it's still difficult for very educated people to understand. if they don't understand it, then your chances of getting hired have gone down. and there are several stigmas or stereotypes about veterans. i don't want headaches of a war

veteran and i don't want any problems and employers are quick to stamp problems on veterans from afghanistan. and that helps to compile that statistic, unfortunately. host: let's go to indiana. caller: hi, i have a question about codifying putting veterans first in line for job considerations. i certainly understand that veterans have lots of skill sets that may not be reflected on their resume without further understanding on the employer's part. but that applies to lots of job applications. for instance work-at-home moms, that's a consideration for a long time. and i would like to get brian's input. guest: thank you, that's a great

question. i was raised by a work-at-home mom and married to one. and i understand the skill sets it takes to raise a family. and however i believe that veterans should get priority. if we talk about who gets priority out of employment from stay-at-home working mothers and the people that defend our great nation. host: comment on twitter from donna, to get called back from duty, a reason why some employers would not hire them? guest: that's specifically designed for those in reserveses or national guard. men and women off of duty, that's the irr, and they are not getting called back. that's not

the case with the folks getting off of active duty, or those wounded in combat and being medically discharged. host: employers have a duty to keep their job open, and how often does that happen? guest:wu in many cases, compan that have hired veterans or reservists, they have bought into it. in most we find that companies do a good job. not all the time, but they believe in that skill set of the veteran and their duty to defend the nation. host: we have nick calling from scotland. caller: hi, good morning, i wanted to say to brian, i

applaud his sincere efforts for the veterans returning from iraq. my own experience was that when i joined i enlisted in 1971 in the air force. and it was because i didn't have a clear goal in my mind. or a skill set that lent itself to getting employment in an area i probably would have found successful. i think that the key is education, subsidizing the veterans that would allow them to get the education, to fill in the gaps that they perhaps entered the force with. and once they are in the education system it gives them a chance to understand where they might want to go with their lives. and also meanwhile make them more attractive to the employers. i found that a lot of people

that enlisted with me didn't have any clear goals. the military was the way to take a step that had a lot of credibility. but when i came out, i still didn't have the education. i did take advantage of education opportunities in the air force. and that was another great benefit to me as a stepping stone to get into further education when i left. that's my comment. thanks very much. guest: well, sir, first and foremost, thank you for your service. you served in a time where it was difficult to transition out of the military and blend back into society with just the climate of our nation and the attitude towards that war, vietnam. and i agree that education is vital for the veterans to make themselves more marketable and compete in the job market. many times these veterans are

getting out and have children and going to school full time is not a question. and the post g.i.bill that pays education because of their service to their country. that doesn't work unless they go to school full time. they have to take a certain course load to get that education paid for. if they go to school at night and that school is not paid for. so some are not afforded?u opportunity. but i agree, and we at hire heros we look at vocational rehab and all the programs out there for veterans. and if their financial situation or personal situation allows for it, go back to school. because nothing will look better

on the resume for these young men and women of all the skills and the leadership coupled with a degree. they will be hard to compete against. i agree with the comments, education is key. it's key for anyone in our country to get to the next job market level. host: we have all our lines open. tampa, florida is our next caller, jerry on the independent line. caller: good morning, one of the things i hate to hear the most, thank you for your service, we just don't have a position for you at this time. you get tired of hearing that, i put in seven years back in the 60's and 70's. i heard interesting statistics, about 33% of americans have

served in the military and 31% of the homeless are veterans. maybe you can respond to that. guest: sir, thank you for your comments. and i agree, that's a comment we can't stand to hear as well. and it goes back to the education of our employers and the commitment of our nation's employers and the current administration to the veterans. it's ridiculous that these people return from fighting a war and get turned away from jobs and end up homeless. one of my director of our organization has walked those footsteps. i have an army sergeant that broke her back saving her soldiers and came back and couldn't find a job. she is getting a degree, but she was living in her car. and she's fantastic, and it happens

to veterans all over. with we talk about interviewers looking at resumes and not understanding, stereotypes come to mind and they hire someone from their background. companies that we work with that are preferential to veterans, guess who is in charge of those companies. veterans. host: you mentioned educating vets themselves and how to sell themselves. selling one's self is not something that you learn but maybe in business school than the military. it doesn't come across your resume of what you accomplished. guest: absolutely, writing a

resume is a skill set. i had never written a resume before. i was infantry officer and how do i talk about defeating the enemy and put it on the resume so the company can see my worth and how i can bring value to their team. it's something that we found in the last three years of being in this business that is mandatory. and we try to insert ourselves in the lives of the veterans earlier, like i said six months to a year. even two years if we have to. we would rather have them seek our help then, than to say i am out of work and help me. teaching them and putting them through mock interviews and prepare them for that skill set so that it applies to the job

they are interviewing for. there are experts that people go to, and our veterans can come to hire heros usa andևget it for free. but it's a skill set that we have to teach, we have people on place to teach that. however most courses last 72 hours. it's not long enough, the instructor to student ratio is 1:300. and hire heros fights for in the pentagon and on the hill to improve on that. host: talk about the policy, where the policy angle comes in. guest: well, the policy looks

great, which is the case in many things. so i have looked at the policy and i have met with the deputy in charge of me. and it's the execution of the policies, when you go through a transition course and look around and see the instructor teaching the class. and you see 50 to 300 servicemen and women going through the same course and see how engaged they are. they are not engaged. they are not learning anything. it needs to be very hands' on. and hire heros%qwill go to the places and teach them. we go and help and help them write resumes and point them in

the right direction to verbally and written skill set themselves to countries. host: patrick is a veteran. good morning. caller: good morning, and thank you sir for your service. i took advantage of the g.i. bill less than 10 years after i came back from vietnam. and i found that i can't use an remaining time i had on my g.i. bill. and that is one thing to consider. you are doing exactly what is needed. i found when i had my own business and worked for other people, they found it a plus that i had been in the military partially because they knew i was familiar with the chain of command. i would shut up and follow orders. which is something that a lot of

people don't know how to do. and your resume help and your high teacher to student ratio is part of what needed. and a lot needed is odéqydecomp. in world war ii, they talked about coming back from hours and let loose in society without resocialization. guest: agreed. and thank you sir for your service and for your comments. and i agree, there does need to be a decompression time. and we work with the veterans and work with a lot of organizations and v.a. organizations, if we get veterans that we believe are not

ready for employment, and need decompression time. we have partners we can refer them to. and i agree, it's ridiculous that you can't use the remaining time on the bill. and there are people fighting that on the hill and hope to get movement on that in the coming years. host: our phone lines to call are on your screen. brian stann is the executive director of hire heros u.s.a. where does your funding come from? guest: from priority donors and companies and corporations we work with. we get no money for placing a veteran. we get zero money when we go to a base and conduct a transition seminar. so we get all of our money, and we work on a shoe string budget

from american people who care. and say i want this organization to grow, i wan >> up riede deal of next week's nuclear summit. after that, a discussion on preventing medical errors and patients' safety but actor dennis quaid. "washington journal" why it s 7:00 a.m. eastern here on c- span. president obama held a series of meetings with foreign leaders who are in washington for his nuclear security conference that gets underway tomorrow. the president walked across pennsylvania avenue with secretary of state clinton for his first meeting at blair house with the indian prime minister. he has meetings scheduled with

other world leaders three representatives of 47 countries are here to work on an agreement on how to keep nuclear weapons out of terrorist hands. the president made some remarks while meeting with the leader of south africa. this is about five minutes. >> are we all set? good afternoon, everybody. i want to officially welcome you and the south african delegation, and thank the president for his extraordinary leadership for it so far today, i met with prime minister saying of indian -- singh of india, as well as the prime minister of kazakhstan, and i will be meeting with the prime minister of pakistan after this meeting

through the central focus of this nuclear summit is the fact that the single biggest threat to to u.s. security for short- term, medium-term, and long- term with the beat the possibility of a terrorist organization getting a nuclear weapon. this is something that would chase the security landscape of this country and around the world for years to come. a detonation in new york city or london or johannesburg, the ramifications economically and politically on that security perspective would be devastating, and we know that organizations like al qaeda are in the process of trying to secure nuclear weapons and other acts of mass destruction and would have no compunction in doing so. fortunately we have a situation where there is a lot of loose --

unfortunately we have a situation where there is a lot of loose nuclear material allow the world. we're getting the international community on a path in which we are locking down that nuclear material in a specific time frame with a specific work plan. i am very pleased that countries have embraced this goal and they're coming to the summit not talking about general statements of support, but very specific focus on how we can solve this international problem. i want the specifically singled out south africa, because south africa is singular in having a nuclear weapons program, moving board, and deciding it was not the right path forward and dismantling it.

in seoul this summit has special standing in being a leader on this issue. i want to publicly comment president is among -- i want to publicly thank president zuma and we've wanted to thank them for helping move the other countries down the path to not for operation. we thank them for the commitment in this sense of urgency that i've seen in world leaders so far on this issue. we think we can make enormous progress on this. this is the broader focus that we have had over the last several weeks in the start treaty between the day and not a states and russia, with the nuclear posture review