" programs are also available at c-span podcasts. >> next, british prime minister david cameron taking questions from members of the house of commons. then, members of the u.s. house of representatives debate russian sanctions and aid to the ukraine. and then another chance to see "q&a" with author betty medsger. on the next "washington journal", how some of the 2016 candidates are reacting to recent foreign policy, especially the unrest in ukraine. at the deadlines and extensions of the affordable care act. andill be taking your calls you can join the conversation on facebook and twitter. live atton journal",

7:00 a.m. eastern on c-span. transaction is a lot less scary and a lot less large and a lot less complicated than some people would like to make it. in theu think about it video space, it is not a horizontal deal. we do not compete with time warner cable anywhere. air is not a consumer in america who has a choice between buying comcast products or time warner cable products. at the end of the day, we will have under 30% of the market. not particularly scary. one thing that is appropriate to think about and to discuss is the implications on the broadband side. i think there is a good story there as well. lots of procompetitive impact, proconsumer impacts as a result of the increased scale and investment. again, not a very scary story when you look at market share.

40% of the wireline broadband share, but if you factor in indisputableis that wireless is beginning to be an effective competitor and substitute for many uses of broadband, market share is as low as 20%. again, national share and broadband, the issue is local share and in no local market will there be any less choice after the transaction than there was before the transaction. >> the proposed merger between comcast and time warner cable, monday on "the communicators". time", davidestion cameron answered a wide range of questions on energy prices. the u.k. unemployment figure. and defense spending. this is about 30 minutes. >> questions for the prime minister.

>> thank you, mr. speaker. this morning, i had meetings with colleagues and others and i shall have further meetings later today. >> thank you, mr. speaker. what assurances can the prime minister gave to residents that localism will give them a third chance against greed and profit when it comes to their wish to end this wage stopping -- stomping? given that there is no evidence of need, a promise that would end in 1995, no more dumping. does the prime minister really believe in localism? >> i do believe in localism. that is why we got rid of a lot of the regional spatial strategies and return power to local governments. thatd a number of things

local councils have been asking for in terms of empowering them, giving them a general duty of competence so they can act when they think it is necessary to act. on the specific issues, i will look closely and write her. >> i know my right honorable friend will be as concerned as i am about the potential job losses in my constituency. support those who are affected at this difficult time? >> i completely understand my honorable friend's concern. we will be working with local partners to minimize the impacts of these job losses. honda have assured us that they are committed to the long-term success of this plant, which i have been to and is a remarkable plant. i know they remain committed to the u.k. and we will work with a local council and local people to make sure swenson and he used to have a strong and successful economic future.

-- ed iller band miliband. >> mr. speaker, this morning, we learned that the energy company will be freezing energy prices for 20 months. would we be right to assume that the prime minister believes that this price freeze is unworkable, impossible to implement, and probably a communist lot -- fl op? ourt is hugely-welcome in country that energy companies are freezing their bills. with the right honorable gentleman, he has failed to read the small print. this is what scottish and southern energy say about why they have been able to cut bills in this way. yes. this is what they say today. "the decisions taken by the

government to reduce the cost of the eco were a principal factor in us being able to make this price commitment." happening under this government. , a doubling of the gas bill and a 50% increase in electricity bills when labor were in power. >> mr. speaker, over the last six months, we have obviously misunderstood the prime minister. he is the champion of the price freeze. that is what you are supposed to understand. week after week, he can now blame us all for the energy price freeze on businesses. now apparently he supports the price freeze. why a pricein freeze was wrong six months ago but it is the right thing to do

today? >> we have reduce the cost of energy charges so that companies are able to cut their bills. list about him the what has happened. i made the announcement about -- ing back the costs >> order. we must be able to understand the questions and answers. the prime minister. they brief against him outside. since iwhat happened made that announcement. reddish gas have cut 50 pounds off bills. gas cut 50 pounds off bills. edf, 65 pounds off bills. they have all announced that prices will not go up further in 2014. tonk him for the opportunity

demonstrate how this part of our long-term economic plan is as successful as other economic parts. >> once again, he shows how out of touch he is. energy prices are rising by more than double the rate of inflation. i am very interested in his position now on price freezes great the energy -- on price freezes. the energy secretary this morning says they are not standing up to the energy companies in this country and that is what they are doing. who i see secretary over there, the energy secretary said this morning that he was calling on other suppliers to do the same and freeze their bills. is it the prime minister's policy that we should freeze bills?

the billspolicy, should be cut and the bills are being cut under the government. that is what is happening. when we come to the corporate, let's have a look at what scottish and southern energy say about the neighbor policy? is having no long-term plan for britain. that is what is weak. this is what say about labor plan -- scottish and southern energy say about labor plans."it does not appear to have a long-term solution to reduce the cost of supplying electricity and gas." a 20-month rice freeze would not reduce the cost of providing energy. that is why i found a labor business supporter. john mills. this is what he said

about labor's policy yesterday. the labour party would do that if it were in power. if they are not convinced there one business supporter, how on earth can they convince the country? convince theirot one business supporter, how on earth can they convince their country? >> he is the pr man for the energy company. his argument against the freeze has been totally demolished today. a price freeze for households and businesses is feasible, workable, and it will happen under a labor government. all of this shows he just does not get the cost of living crisis that is happening around this country. can he confirm that the obr itself shows living standards will be falling and it is the first time that has happened since the war?

, we finally got to the budget. we finally have something to say about the budget. if he is concerned about energy prices, he might want to explain ,hy he voted against the budget 700 billion pound cuts for energy prices around this country. why did they vote against that? if he is concerned about the cost of living, why did they vote against the personal pounds forf 10,500 every worker in our country? why did you vote against giving patrons the right to spend their money as they choose? if you care about the cost of living, why did you vote against abolishing the savings tax paid for by the poorest people in our country? not a clue about how to help working people. not a clue how to run the economy. no clue about the budget.

>> for the first time, calm down, dear, calm down. or should i say for the benefit of the chancellor, eyes down, dear. eyes down. the truth is that living standards are falling over this parliament. he talks about what the chancellor did on energy. give with one hand and take with another. warntroduced a carbon price and now he will credit for giving parts of it back for families and businesses. let's try it again. can he confirm that page 87 of the obr document says living standards are falling over the parliament? yes or no? >> time and again -- >> order! hear the answers.

the prime minister. >> of course we were made for why the great recession -- earing the great recession, which they presided over. we are cutting income tax. they voted against it. we have taken 3.2 million people out of income tax altogether and they voted against it. we voted to freeze the capital tax and they voted against it. spending so we can cut taxes for hard-working people. they have voted against every single change. against the budget last night will go down in the history of this parliament as a massive own goal for labour. history asgo down in the prime minister who cut people living standards over the course of this parliament and he cannot deny it. he cannot solve the cost of

living crisis, but he does not think there is one. he will not freeze energy bills, but it has nothing to do with government. the thing you can always rely on with this rime minister, he will always stand up for the wrong people. happening under this government is inflation is falling, unemployment is coming down, 1.3 million more people in work. or hundred thousand more businesses in our country. moree -- 400,000 businesses in our country. we are helping this economy recover from the ravages at were left by labor. you have a plan for a better future for our country and everyone can see he is a man with no plan and no future. >> thank you, mr. speaker. children with cancer are being denied life-saving drugs because

there are rules governing ethical trials allowing companies to exclude children even when the drugs could treat childhood cancer. would he meet with me and the institute for cancer research to discuss how we could get the rules changed through the european commission to make sure that families have hope and we get these treatments for children? happy to listen to the honorable gentleman. he and i both strongly support the cancer drugs fund that has made a huge difference in getting cancer drugs to people, including children, in our country. very happy to look at his suggestion. >> a little calm please. [laughter] beer and bingo may not exactly be the bread and services of our age, but as the leaders of a coalition rush forward to express their love for it, will

the prime minister dissociate itself from the snobbish and disdainful comments made by his party chairman? the honorable gentleman for advertising the fact that this government is cutting the tax on bingo operations and quite right because their industry was decimated by labor. i also want to thank him for pointing out the chancellor's approach. we want to bring back responsible drinkers and we back the pub trade. i am sure the right honorable gentleman enjoys a game of bingo. [laughter] yesterday, there

was a very powerful and moving account. will my right honorable friend join me in paying tribute to simon and louisa? their organization seeks greater research and is one of the hidden costs of conflict and affects thousands of people who have been the victim of rape, sexual assault. >> i am happy to join my honorable friend paying tribute to those who achieved so much through that run and raising the importance of this issue. organizations like them do an extraordinary job in our country. afghanistan,aq and we will have many more people suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder. we will need help long into the future. i think the chancellor's decision to take the money from the libor fines and use it to

back military charities is very farsighted. >> the 25th anniversary of the disaster is three weeks away. does the prime minister agree that some police officers on are the day of the disaster refusing to cooperate with the investigation? can we event this situation from happening again question mark >> it is important. pcc is investigating all of these complaints. the homeland secretary has written to all police forces to make sure that they make available all of the information they hold and that should include police officers cooperating with this inker -- with this inquiry. >> though the prime minister agree that we should assist investment in energy efficiency

to support a sustainable future and keep jobs in britain? >> we should certainly do that. we have seen a huge recovery in our automotive industry. the decision is disappointing, but if we look at component supplies in the automotive industry, we have some huge intoss that is programmed the budget of helping energy-sensitive industries. it would help some of the companies involved, but the broader help will help all businesses, including those in automotive supply. ago, i asked the prime minister about ambulance response times and he read out an answer and did not answer the question at all. an elderly darlington woman with less than four hours before an ambulance arrived. this time, can i please have some action question mark >>

very happy to look at the case that the honorable lady mentions. she says she does not want that, but i think it is the right thing to do, to look at this individual case. what we have is waiting time targets and response times. i am happy to look at what happened in this case and whether lessons can be learned in the future. >> with consensus breaking out in support of budget measures, will my honorable friend join me in seeking a new consensus? imposing taxes on houses who have risen in value but on those who might have retired? a fair we want to see is tax system. under this government, the rich have paid more in tax, more in income tax, then in any year under labor. we have to make sure that we

raise taxes fairly. we do not support a tax on the family home. we do not think that is the right step forward. we will fight it very vigorously. 70% of stay-at-home moms say that going back to work would not add up the cousin of rising childcare costs leaving them worse off. with maternal employment rates going down on his watch, why is he doing nothing to help with the issue of rising childcare costs before general election? >> we are helping families with child care, not least by giving 15 hours -- that is happening before the election, in this parliament. 15 hours of free childcare, free nursery care for three-year-olds and four-year-olds. they say it is not enough. it is more than labor ever provided. it is good to see the shadows .hancellor gesticulating

in a minute, he will be briefing against him. world has watched with great concern, events and crimea and the amassing of russian troops on the eastern border of ukraine. given the instability in the world in syria, north africa, venezuela, elsewhere, will the prime minister re-examine the national security strategy and think about revising the defense will review the strategy on the basis that we established it. i think it is the right thing to do. in terms of what we have done in terms of defense spending, we still have a top five defense budget for any country in the world. we removed the 38 billion pound lack old that we inherited -- inherited.that we we will spend on defense equipment. we would not be able to do that in terms of modern defense equipment if we had not taken

difficult decisions at the start of this parliament. spending onof transport infrastructure will be in london to the southeast. poundsd with under 250 per person in the northeast. this gross disparity does nothing to help constituencies like middlebrook. should such investment be more equitably distributed? thisen i look at what government has done in terms of transport infrastructure, if we look at what has happened in the north of england, we spent 8 billion on transport in the first few years of this moment. -- of this parliament. the new time crossing, 380 billion -- free hundred 80 million to upgrade. million ton't -- 380 upgrade. all proposals brought forward under this government.

we are rebalancing our economy. we are investing in infrastructure. we are making sure that northern england gets its fair share. >> unemployment in my constituency has fallen by over 20% in the last five months. with inflation recently falling upwardat is providing pressure on living standards. would my friend agree with me that we should take no lessons for the persistent negativity of the party opposite and that we should stick to our long-term economic plan? key part of our long-term economic plan is helping business to create jobs that our country needs. we have 1.3 million more people in work. 1.7 million more private sector jobs compared to 2010. rebalancing of our economy. what that means for people is the safety and security of having a pay package at the end of the week so they can support

their families. that is what is changing in our country and that is why we will stick to our economic plan. >> despite what the government has said about cutting energy costs, 71% of people surveyed are worried about their business and want their full energy bills now. would the prime minister me that demand? thing west important can do is help the energy companies reduce bills by rolling back costs of these rain levies and charges. levies and charges. we have seen energy after energy company reduce bills. we want to see more players in this market. all things that we have to correct from the disaster stewardship of the department of energy when the right honorable gentleman was in charge. >> each year, thousands of lives are needlessly lost in this country because we diagnose

cancer far too late. and the way the cancer community has successfully lobbied the government to make sure that the local and national nhs are measured by one year survival rates to introduce initiatives to promote early diagnosis. the government deserves great criticism -- great credit for this. late notice, the publication of the one-year figures has been disposed. will the prime minister ensure we meet the next deadline? >> on the specific point, yes, we will be publishing those years. they will be published in june. what we are doing in terms of withr is backing the nhs extra money. that is important. we have the cancer drugs fund, which i spoke about earlier. it has helped 400,000 people. of course, there is no cancer drugs fund in wales, but it is

here in england. we are spending 750 million on cancer services. he is right about early diagnosis. it is important to make sure we do everything we can to diagnose and recognize cancer earlier. house will be well aware of the contribution to the immense suffering of thousands of innocent victims across the gaddafiingdom and the regime's supply of terrorism. agree that the compensation from libya remains a priority for this government? would he agree to meet with me to review the keys and discuss what further progress might be needed? >> very happy to repeat what i have said earlier. authorities are in no doubt engaging properly with u.k. victims and seeking redress. i raised it most recently with

the libyan prime minister last september. of course, the country faces huge challenges which makes it difficult to make progress on this issue. i am open to doing that and meeting with the right honorable gentleman. >> does the prime minister welcomed the change from the last labour government which talked about british jobs for british workers? 90% of new jobs went to foreign government, this -- last year, nearly 90% of new jobs going to british workers. ismy right honorable friend absolutely right. last year, employment in our country went up by 425,000 people. breadwinners with a earning money for that family's security. 87% of those jobs went to british nationals.

there is much more we need to do. you are aiming for 2 million apprenticeships in this parliament. we will have an announcement this week by marston's, siemens, ett's creating jobs. we want to make sure young people are available and train for those jobs. that means improving our schools, improving our skills, and investing in apprenticeship. is a walk with rumors -- is awash with rumors. will the prime minister take this opportunity to squash the rumor by confirming his commitment to the coalition agreement which only allows legislation on the repeal of legislation? >> there are all sorts of rumors going around westminster. we will not talk about them. i have said before, ripples were

made on a cross party basis to roposalsr postals -- p were made on a cross party basis that would help farmers deal with their land. that has been considered but i regret to say i don't think there will be government agreement to go forward. >> thank you, mr. speaker. the members are in a state of high excitement. >> can i thank the prime minister for visiting my constituency during the recent floods? the actual place where we met was a village called long ford. there are plans to build 3.5 thousand houses in that area. will the prime minister look at strengthening the plumbing guidance he gives with regards to flooding?

will he give stronger guidance to the environment agency. there is a big difference between the rhetoric and what is happening in reality. >> i know that my friend's constituency has suffered repeatedly with flooding. i have visited twice in recent years to discuss this. let me make two points. any future developments have to comply with the national planning policy which makes clear that inappropriate development should be avoided. more importantly, in 95% of cases where the environment agency objects to planning on flood risk grounds, the final decision is in line with agency advice. when bankers' salaries have gone up five times the rate of ordinary workers and the top 100 chief executive officers are earning 133 times the average worker employed in their companies, isn't it right that those with the highest incomes are contributing the most

attacks? rule out any consideration of a further cut in the highest one percent? >> i agree with the honorable gentleman that the richest should be paying more in income tax and making a bigger contribution. under this government, that is exactly what is happening. that is what is interesting about the labor argument. they can't talk about jobs because there are more of them. inflation has come down. we are cutting the deficit. they have one argument left, fairness. if you look at the figures, any quality is at its lowest level since 1986. there are one million fewer people in relative poverty. inf a million fewer children poverty since they were sitting in the cabinet. this is not only a government that is delivering recovery, it is delivering it in a fairway too.

>> thank you, mr. speaker. the prime minister is aware that it is now coming up to 30 years anniversary of the appalling carnage of the golden temple. i wonder what more can be done to bring someone to justice for the appalling events that followed. >> my honorable friend is right. what happened 30 years ago led to a traffic -- tragic loss of life. it remains a deep source of pain. we cannot interfere in the indian justice system and nor should we. the most important thing we can do in this country is celebrate the ms contribution that british sikhs make to our country, our armed forces, our culture, and celebrate what they do for this country. >> since he is so keen on boasting, is he proud of the