on c-span. next, prime minister questions with british prime minister david cameron. followed by a debate between representative michelle bachmann and her opponent. then, mitt romney in at pennsylvania. >> the same course we have been on -- in the same path to a $20 trillion debt at the end of the second time that he will have. crippling unemployment, stagnant take-home pay, depressed home values, a devastated military, and by the way, unless we change course we may be looking at another recession. the question of this election comes down to this -- do you want more of the same, or do you

want real change? >> we know what change looks like and what governor romney is telling you. giving more power to the biggest banks is not changed. another five dar trillion tax cut for the wealthy -- that is not changed. refusing to answer questions about the details of your policy until after the " -- an election -- that definitely is not changed. ruling out a compromise while pledging to rubberstamp tea party votes in congress -- that is not changed. changing the facts that are inconvenient to your campaign -- that is not change. >> live election coverage on c- span with president obama from chicago and mid romney in boston. plus, a key house and senate victory and concession speeches from across the country. your reaction -- live coverage starts at 9:00 eastern on c-span

radio and c-span and c-span.org. this week on british prime minister's questions -- the european union budget, a report on the future of the british economy, and the closure of the ford motor plant. david cameron said he would veto the budget if it is not in the best interests of the u.k. and accused the opposition party of having the position of "opportunism." this is about half an hour. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i am sure the whole house will wish to join me in paying tribute to corporal david o'connor. o'connor and corporal channing day, rural army medical corps. we owe them and all others who have lost their lives a deep debt of gratitude. their courage have lost their lives in deep debt of gratitude. their courage and dedication and professionalism will never be forgotten by our nation. our sincere condolences with their colleagues, friends, and families. mr. speaker, this morning i had meetings, and in addition to my

duties in this house, will have meetings later today. >> i am sure the whole house will align itself with the remarks on our personnel and send their deepest condolences to their families. will the prime minister confirm that if he cannot get a good deal for britain in the eu to negotiations, he will use the veto and reject any advice on this matter from those who gave ours away? >> i can absolutely give my honorable friend that assurance. this government is taking the toughest line in these budget negotiations of any government since we joined the european union. at best we would like a cat, at --it cut, at worst frozen. i am prepared to use the veto if we do not get a deal good for britain.

but it is in our interests to try to get a deal. a seven year freeze would keep our bills down compared to annual budgets. the latest position is one of complete opportunism. they gave away half the rebates and sent the budget through the roof and now they want to get a good deal for britain. >> ed miliband. >> mr. speaker, can i start applying the -- joining the prime minister to pay tribute to corporal david o'connor from the royal marines and corporal channing day of the medical regiment, the royal army medical corps. their deaths are a reminder of the unremitting danger that our troops face on a daily basis on our behalf. they both showed to the utmost courage and bravery and our condolences go to the families and friends. mr. speaker, the prime minister has opportunity to get a mandate from this house for a real reduction in the eu budget. [shouting] which he says he once over the

-- wants over the next seven years, which he could take to the negotiations in europe. why is he resisting that opportunity? >> i think the entire country will see through what is rank opportunism. people have not forgotten the fact that they gave away half a rebate in one of negotiation. they agreed a massive increase to the eu budget under the government. today they have not even put down their own resolution on this issue. the nation will absolutely see straight through 8. he is playing politics, not serving the country. >> ed miliband. >> mr. speaker, when it comes to consistency, if you have not forgotten what he said as leader of the opposition just four months before the last general election -- this is what he said. i would have thought they were interested in what the prime minister said when he was leader of the opposition.

this is what he said. "at a time when budgets are being cut in the u.k., does the prime minister agree, in reviewing the eu budget, the main purpose should be to push for a real cut?" that is what he said when he was in the opposition. mr. speaker, when it comes to opportunism this prime minister is a gold medalist. at a time when he is cutting the education budget by 11%, the transport budget by 15%, the police budget by 20%, how can he be giving up on a cut in the eu budget before negotiations have begun? we have to make perhaps in budgets because we are dealing with a record deficit cuts in budget because we are dealing with a record debt and deficit. if he wants to talk about consistency, perhaps he can explain why his own members of the european parliament voted against the budget freeze last year?

perhaps he can explain why the socialist group in the european parliament that he is such a proud member of our calling not for an increase in the budget but for a freeze in the budget, but for a 200 billion euro increase in the budget. while they are added, they want to get rid of the british rebate. is that his policy? >> ed miliband. >> it is good to see the crimson tide back. >> order, order -- government backbenchers, including ministers, apparently are preaching maturity -- they have got to tackle their behavioral problems before it is too late. ed miliband. >> well, he is certainly getting very angry, mr. speaker. perhaps he is worried about losing the vote this afternoon. the reality is, our mp's voted the same as his on negotiating before the european parliament 10 days ago. the reality is this -- he

cannot convince anyone on europe. last year, he went out of the negotiations with a veto and the agreement went ahead anyway. he threw in the towel even before these negotiations had begun. he cannot convince european leaders. he cannot even convince his own back benches. if he is weak abroad. he is weak at home. it is john major all over again. [shouting] >> his position is completely incredible. he says he was a cut in the eu budget, but he does not sanction a veto. we have made clear we will use the veto as we have used it before. i will ask him -- will he use the veto? >> order. order. i will not use the veto. i would ask the prime minister, this is about the 10th time i have asked him, to respect parliamentary procedure in these matters. >> thank you, mr. speaker.

the southeast region is often regarded as the engine driver of the british economy, but they face many challenges, particularly with the announcement of job losses at ford last week. will my right honorable friend agree that the case for a deal for southampton and portsmouth is particularly compelling? >> i do think it is particularly compelling that we make sure southampton has a city deal. i understand there on the list. the news from of ford was very disappointing. it was a black spot in otherwise a very strong performance by the british automotive industry. i know the british secretarial working closely with the city council to do everything the british automotive industry -- and of the british business sector should be working closely with the southampton council to do everything we can to find people jobs. >> mr. miller. >> i would ask a very straightforward question that should have an honest answer -- in the forthcoming police and crime commission elections it is predicted that the turnout is going to be as low as 20%.

does the prime minister think that has democratic legitimacy? >> i want the turn out to be as high as possible but i recognize in new elections for a new post it is always a challenge. it is even a challenge when you have dedicated labor mp's resigning from this house to stand as police and crime commissioners. the point you'll be able to make in his constituency will be to celebrate the fact that crime is down 60%. -- 20%. >> thank you, mr. speaker. in recent months northern lincolnshire has benefited from positive announcements from government and the private sector that will boost the local economy. however, my friend would be aware that kimberly-clark announced the closure of their factory in my constituency last week with a loss of up to 500 jobs. can my friend assure me that everything possible will be done by the government to attract new business to the area? >> i can certainly give my friend that assurance.

i know it is sad news for workers. as i understand, the local council is working closely with the job center to establish a local task force. the government will give our support to support employees and help them find employment. >> thank you, mr. speaker. following the report of the hillsborough disaster and the phone hacking scandal, self- regulation of the press by the press is simply no longer acceptable to the public. more than three-quarters of respondents to two recent polls -- your ministers had a briefing. whose side are you on? the public or the press? >> i am not on anybody's side in this -- members must adhere to the proper procedures, which they ought to know by now. prime minister? >> mr. speaker, i think we should wait for the report to come out. a lot of work has been downed. what i want to see is a robust regulatory system.

what matters most of all, as i said last week, is to make sure that if newspapers get things wrong they can be fined and journalists can be properly investigated and there are proper apologies. we know what a proper system should look like. we do not have one now. we want one for the future. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i would like to echo my prime minister is to be to our armed forces and fallen comrades. the country owes them a huge debt of honor and gratitude. last week we saw the staff of the hospital prosecuted for neglect. i would hope that the prosecutions would help to bring some closure or at least a sense of justice search to the victims and their families. this week we have the patients coming into view -- many have been subject to further abuse. does the prime minister agree that care providers such as these should be subject to

prosecution for willful corporate negligence? >> on the issue -- i think anybody who saw the television pictures about how very vulnerable people were being treated would be absolutely shocked and would, just like me and i am sure like him, one to make sure that the law will go exactly where the evidence leads. if there need to be further prosecutions there should be. there are shocking things that happened. we should judge a society by how we deal with the most honorable people and what happened is completely unacceptable. >> ed miliband. >> mr. speaker, it is welcome that the british economy is out of the longest double-dip recession since the war, but what is said today, "the message i keep hearing is that the u.k. does not have a strategy for growth and wealth creation." who does the prime minister blame for that?

>> what he actually said is that the coalition is fundamentally on the right track. he said "i praise his work for the industrial strategy plans, a pioneering city devolution and the revolutions in education and tackling unemployment." that is what he said. frankly, we can sit here all afternoon trading quotes. i think he is making a much bigger point. this is an excellent report. what he is saying is that over decades in our economy it became too centralized. regions and nations of our country spell behind. -- fell behind. manufacturing have as a share of national income during the last government. during the boom years, for instance, in the west midlands there were no net new private- sector jobs. he is dealing with the big issue. what a pity all he can do is stand up and read a quote. >> ed miliband. >> the report says they are on the right track -- goodness

knows what the report would have said it said it was on the wrong track. he says there is no strategy for jobs and growth, business has no confidence, and deregulation, his chosen approach, is not the answer. let me turn to a particular area of the report -- recommendation 61, which i am sure he is familiar with. he says, "the government needs to set out a definitive and unambiguous energy policy." this is obviously an appropriate day to be considering this recommendation on energy after the last 20 -- it is good to see the business sector down the bench. i am sorry that growth to media at -- is on a soap on memorable --he is on is so unmemorable that he cannot remember it. [laughter] this is an appropriate day to consider the recommendation. his energy -- [shouting] i am rather enjoying this, mr. speaker. his energy secretary says enough is enough --

>> order. let me say to government backbenchers -- it is very straightforward. they either, down or the session -- calm down or the session will be extended, at whoever's inconvenience that may involve. it is incredibly straightforward. >> his energy minister said he is against wind farms and enough is enough. his energy secretary says he is gung-ho for them. who speaks for the government? the energy secretary or the energy minister? >> today the jokes have been bad and substance have been bad, too. not a good day. i tell you why it is a good day to talk about energy policy -- today hitachi are investing 20 billion pounds in our nuclear industry. today is a good day to talk about energy because there is more investment in renewable energy under three years of this government than under 13 years of their government. it is a good day to talk about

energy policy because we have got a green investment bank up and running. that is what is happening. there is no change to renewable energy. let me explain -- we have a big pipeline of onshore and offshore wind projects coming through. we are committed to those. frankly, all parties are going to have to have a debate in this house. and outside this house, about what happens once those targets are met. he ought to understand that if he bothered to look at the substance. >> that was a completely useless answer, mr. speaker. that there are investors all- around this country to one certainty about energy policy -- you have got one minister -- it is very simple, one minister who says he is totally against wind energy. that is the energy minister he appointed having sacked the previous guy. the energy secretary says he is gung-ho for windfarms. he has to make his choice on where he stands. here is the reality -- he says

in his report that there are people who are resistant to his ideas. we know who they are -- the chancellor and the prime minister. the evidence of the last two and a half years is that deregulation, sink or swim, their answer, is not the answer. he is right and they are wrong. >> i have one thing to say -- not you, mr. speaker, if he is no michael heseltine. >> order, order. i want to hear him, and i am sure the people do. >> thank you, mr. speaker. the russians want to award the prestigious medal to arctic convoy veterans. the governments of australia,

new zealand, canada, and the usa have agreed -- the u.k. government have refused. will the prime minister get this decision reversed quickly saw my constituent john ramsey and the rest of his dwindling band of veterans get the recognition they so richly deserve? >> i have every sympathy with my honorable friend and his constituents. that is why we have asked sir john holmes to conduct this review. not just into medals in general, but to look at some of the most important cases, of which the arctic convoy is the most pressing. as you ask, he is getting on with it. >> the foreign secretary said yesterday that the rules of this house require that minister's answer questions. so, there is a stash of embarrassing e-mails, isn't

there? adam smith had to publish every single one of his e-mails and ended up resigning. why will his -- why will the prime minister not publish his e-mails? can he really be a fit and proper person to judge on the future of press regulation if he will not come clean with the british public? >> there is another rule of this house -- if you insult someone, you do an apology. i have to say, i am still waiting. the fact is that this government set up the inquiry, and i gave all the intimation that they ask to that inquiry. -- information that they asked to the inquiry. >> the owl and the pussycat, mr. speaker, is a coffeeshop in my constituency. they had their business rates hiked up by 7%, and they're coming after the money even -- 700%, and they are coming after the money even though

though they have not heard the appeal. that means they might have to close and jobs will be lost. this is not unique to wales. can the prime minister come to the rescue? >> i have every sympathy with the business that he mentions in his constituency. of course, business rates are an issue -- this is something that needs to be taken up with the welsh government. in terms of england, we have doubled small business rate relief to of half a million -- help half a a million small firms. we have made it easier for small firms to claim a small business rate relief and have given the new powers to local discounts. in order to support the sorts of shops and pubs he is referring to. that is the right approach. >> thank you, mr. speaker. in 2007, the prime minister identified the hospital as one of 29 hospitals to be prepared to get into a bare knuckle fight over. on monday, it emerged that their a&e and -- maternity services could end up paying the price for financial failures elsewhere in nhs.

which side of this bareknuckle fight is he now on? >> the fight we are on the side of his increasing the resources going into the nhs. that is a decision we have taken, including extra money into lewisham, and she is on the side of cutting money into the nhs. what we have done, which the previous government did not, is set out there will be no change is due nhs configurations unless they have the support of local gp's, on public and patient engagement, unless they are backed by scientific evidence and provide support for patient choice. those sorts of protections were never there under the last government. they are now. >> thank you, mr. speaker. in light of last week's positive growth figures, does the prime minister agree with me that policies requiring yet more spending, more borrowing, more debt on the precise opposite of what our country needs? >> my honorable friend is entirely right. the news last week was welcome that the economy is growing,

unemployment is coming down, inflation is coming down, the rate of small business creation is going up. there are a million more people employed in the private sector than were employed two years ago. the one absolute certainty is that the worst approach, and he confirms this in his report, would be to have more spending, borrowing, and that, because that is what has gotten us into this mess in the first place. the party opposite not only once -- has only one growth plan, and that is to grow the deficit. >> i thank the prime minister or his condolences to the death of corporal channing day. see always wanted to join the -- she always wanted to join the army. her job was to save lives. they were in the line of fire when all hell was bursting around and -- you are not alone. she will soon return to her family who loved her dearly. the community are massively proud.

the great nation of great britain and northern ireland salute her bravery, courage, and heroism. prime minister, what would you agree with me the army medics are often the unsung heroes of conflict, and would you agree with me to discuss the implementation of a military covenant in northern ireland? >> first of all, i would be happy to meet him and his colleagues to talk about the implementation of the covenant in northern ireland. it is something i've spoken to the deputy of the first minister in northern ireland -- i know there are issues about implementing the covenant, but i know it can be done and would be happy to have that meeting. they spoke very strongly about the corporal and i think he's absolutely right that those in the medical corps do a fantastic job. it has been a huge honor and privilege to meet them. when you see the service they provide, you can put your hand and your heart to know that british military personnel in theater are getting as good

medical care as i think anyone ever in history has gotten. it is truly remarkable what they do. >> number 8, sir. healthier together has promised that kettering hospital remain an emergency and maternity services. any suggestion otherwise, including by the opposition, is scaremongering of the worst kind. >> kathrin has the sixth highest household growth rate in the whole country and admissions are up 10% year-on-year. given that the general hospital is at the heart of the local community for over 100 years, those local people deserve a clear assurance that our badly needed local hospital has a bright feature a head of a. >> i gave my honorable friend the strongest assurance. the point i made, as a maid to

the honorable lady opposite, is that there cannot be any changes unless there is full public consultation, full support of gp's and patient engagement. in the case of kettering, is not on the agenda. any suggestion by the opposition is simply scaremongering of the worst kind. >> thank you, mr. speaker. the importance of skills to promote economic growth -- why, prime minister, has the number and lasttice chiships year? >> the number under this government is a record number and is due to increase. >> mr. speaker, the government recently announced plans to extend the tax for a third year. the city of york council increase council tax 2.9% this

year. they have moved with remarkable speed to confirm an increase next year. can my honorable friend agree with me that this is out of order? >> i will join my honorable friend in doing that. the government has made money available so councils can freeze that tax-free third year. i think this is an important way to demonstrate we are on the side of people who want to work hard and get on, who struggled to pay the bills. all councils should look at the money available and recognize that a council tax freeze is in the interest of all our citizens. >> allen white had? >> when did the prime minister become aware of plans to close ford at southampton? was he aware of those plans when he was taking money from the regional growth fund to that company a few days earlier? >> those issues were discussed and we work closely with all

the automotive industry companies in the united kingdom. as i said, the news from nissan, toyota, jaguar land rover, been positive. what happened at ford is clearly regrettable but we must do everything to help the people find work. >> mr. speaker, i am delighted the economy is growing, and green growth is a key part of it. is the prime minister still committed to this being the greenest government ever, particularly with policies on renewable energy? y? >>r this gove under this government, we have seen more green energy and three years and under 13 years of the party opposite. the carbon price we spoke about is in place. this is a green government that is sticking to its promises. >> the number of people waiting more than four hours has more than doubled in the last two years.

the prime minister wanted to close -- stop the closure of units in hospitals. i suspect that despite his words, with kettering hospital. [shouting] >> i have to say to the honorable gentleman, i could not have been any clearer about the future of kettering hospital. for him to say that is scaremongering of the worst kind. let me tell you what is happening at the hospital that serves his constituents. in may 2010 there were 52 patients waiting longer than 12 months. how many now? and not under this government. that is what is actually happening. we are putting money into the nhs and they are taking it out. >> we go further to the result of the vote on the 18 october regarding the decisions for the royal regimen