100th anniversary of reagan's birth. we knew compare that to gerald ford, was always supposedly been into things and falling down stairs, you can see why we are speaking about the age of reagan is dead at the age of ford. , with hisrlstein "the invisible bridge." >> [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2014] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] for free transcripts or to give us your comments about this program, visit us at q-and- a.org. "q&a" programs are also available as c-span podcasts. >> british prime minister david

cameron on deputy prime minister nick clegg and opposition leader ed miliband were on scotland wednesday to bolster support for scotland to stay in the u.k.. the scottish referendum vote takes place on september 18. standing in for the prime minister during question time was former british foreign secretary william hague and deputy labor party leader harriet harman. decision focused entirely on the referendum vote. this is about 35 minutes. >> order. questions to the prime minister. >> mr. speaker, i have been asked to reply on behalf of my right honorable friend, the prime minister. who is with the deputy prime minister and the leader of the opposition in scotland today to listen and talk to voters about

the huge choice they face and their message to the scottish people is simple. from the people of england, wales and ireland, we want you to stay in the united kingdom. mr. speaker, i join the prime minister in the tribute on monday to jim dobbin who died over the weekend. he was a proud scot and a hard-working and principled parliamentarian who was respected on both sides of this house. he will be missed. house arets of our with his family and friends. this morning i had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. in addition to my duties in this house, i have further such meetings later today. >> thank you, mr. speaker. can i join you in paying tribute , a kind andn decent man who will be sorely missed.

our prayers are with his wife and their family. the bedroom tax is discriminatory. it is damaging and it is not even working. , willouse was very clear the government now listen? will it strike this wretched policy? if they won't, we will. >> mr. speaker, this is a basic issue of fairness. if you live in private rented accommodations and receive housing benefits, these rules applied through the whole of the last labor government. neighboring households could be treated unequally. she asked about the private members bill. theproposals would cost country up to a billion pounds. because we have introduced a cap on spending, making those changes would mean finding savings elsewhere. i haven't heard any suggestions from the party opposite. you, mr. speaker.

assuming a no vote in the scottish referendum, who in the government will represent england in the new the evolution settlement? we need a voice. us -- whene many of i represented yorkshire, i claimed to speak for england from time to time. ofkshire man arcane to think a far bigger area than they represent. debatese, all these will be had once the referendum is concluded. >> harriet harman. >> can i thank the right honorable member for the words that he said about our good friend and colleague, jim dobbin. he was as has been said a thoroughly decent man who stuck to his principles. at a time when it is fashionable

to say politicians are in it for themselves, he was the absolute opposite. our deepest sympathies are with pat and their children. we will miss him greatly. esther speaker, historic is a much overused word in politics. ins he agree with me that just eight days time, the people of scotland will make a truly historic decision? this is their vote but i want the message from this side of the house to be heard. we want scotland to stay. >> i do agree with the right honorable lady. that is a very clear message from her side of the house. from this side of the house as well. i hope it is a message the people of scotland will hear. scottish parliamentarians have made an immense contribution for ages. we want to stay together and cannot imagine life without them. .he is a london mp

i am a yorkshire mp who served as secretary of state for wales. we are all proud to be british. there is no doubt we would all be diminished if scotland was separated from the people of the rest of the u.k. >> the risks of our party are deep in scotland. further.o go will he confirm that there will be further devolution and a scotland bill setting out new power published in january? >> as the right honorable lady noted, the three main party leaders have come together to agree to develop a program for change. kirkcaldy and cowdenbeath have set out a process for how that change could be delivered. all three main parties have endorsed that timetable.

it means immediate action the day after the referendum to start the legislative process. a command paper including proposals of the end of october with a full draft scotland bill published by january and the introduction of a bill after the general election regardless of who forms the government. that is a clear timetable and it scots can have change without a reversible separation. >> for the clarity of that answer, as we set about devolving further powers to scotland, does he agree that the time has come to devolve further power to wales and the great cities and regions of england? decision -- of course we all know is a matter of for the people of scotland. it will be felt by all the people of the united kingdom. we are already devolving

increased our subparts of england -- power to parts of england. we are moving towards devolving tax and borrowing powers for the first time. we want to see devolution in northern ireland, in england, the localism, local authorities and city deals giving local areas more of a say over their government. the great strength of the united kingdom is that it is not a rigid union. it is a flexible union. that is one of its greatest strengths of all. of theus on this side house, a fundamental principle of our politics is solidarity. we want the u.k. to stick together in the cause of social justice. does he agree with me that it is set the different

countries of the u.k. against each other, weather on workers rights or corporation tax? honorable lady makes a powerful point about solidarity. we and our predecessors have sat in this house with scottish parliamentarians and their predecessors. the have said together from 18th century to implement a great range of progressive causes, from the abolition of slave trade to our pursuit of human rights. athave often led the way times of world crisis and been an inspiration to democratic people elsewhere. the next 300 years could easily be as turbulent and a dangerous. so proven,rt a union so precious and so valuable, would be a tragic mistake for all our people. >> people in scotland can now be certain that with a no vote, there would be change and more

power for scotland. posede agree with me that against that certainty is the uncertainty that a yes vote would bring on issues like jobs, pensions, mortgages? -- a lessertainty signed last week by job creators across the whole range of scottish business concluded that the business case for independence could not be made. they said uncertainty surrounds a number of vital issues including currency, regulation, tax, pensions, eu membership and support for exports. they said uncertainty is bad for business. the governor of the bank of england said that sovereignty and a currency union are incompatible and he is right. many of us have pointed that out.

be certain of this. pollis not an opinion where you can change your mind the next day. it is not an election. decision thatent will affect generations, and therefore the vote cast next thursday will probably be the most important vote that can be cast in any country at any time. the voters must way that vote heavily. jobs, pensions, taxes are important. next week's decision is about much, much more than that. for sure, there must be change. but not by tearing this country apart. we must stay as families, not become foreigners to each other. absolutely -- the right honorable lady puts it extremely well. we all want the best for scotland just as we all want the

best for our own constituents in this house. the people of england, wales and northern ireland leave scotland is better off in the u.k. and the u.k. is better off with scotland in it. this is the most important choice the people of scotland betweenr make, a choice the opportunity and security of staying in the u.k. or leaving forever without the pound, without influence in the world . with scotland in the u.k., we have a great future together in the united kingdom. 2012,her speaker, since my right honorable friend and i have been supporting the policy of the government not to offer devo max as a consolation prize in the event of a no vote. if this is no longer the policy of the government, when and why did it change? what opportunity has there been for this house to express its

view? >> it has been the policy of the government to be open to further devolution. i gave examples of what we have done in wales during the lifetime of this government. the statement by the party leader made in the last few days our statements by party leaders in a campaign, not a statement of government policy today, but a statement of commitment from the three main political parties , i can do a statement made by party leaders in a general election campaign. it is on that basis they have made those statements. >> in 2012, the chancellor said he saw the target to double exports to one trillion by 2020. i wonder whether he would confirm that his government is bycourse to miss this target 330 billion?

>> nobody can claim to know what the figure will be in 2020. we are only in 2014 at the moment. a great deal of work has to be done, but we have greatly incentivized the promotion of british exports. that is why i in my time as foreign secretary opened nearly 20 new embassies and consulates including many that the party -- when they were in power. we have huge increases in exports that come through china and india and brazil. making a must join in success of that by 2020. >> mr. speaker, my right honorable friend, the deputy prime minister and the leader of the opposition are rightly campaigning today for the future of our union. , with gatwickis

in my constituency, i see the strong family and business links between my local airport and scottish airports. does my right honorable friend believe -- the leader of the house agree, that our kingdom is better together as the united britain? i say that as somebody with proud scottish ancestry. >> i absolutely agree with my right honorable friend. what he can see at gatwick airport and what we all experience around other parts of england and wales is a very good example of his point. two thirds of scottish exports are exported to the rest of the united kingdom. why would anyone choose to place whereernational border those exports are going and do so unnecessarily?

my honorable friend makes a very powerful point. , next thursday the scots will make what is undoubtedly the most historic, important and momentous decision we have ever had the privilege to consider. it is a process that has galvanized and energized every community in scotland. different things from this, but would he join me in congratulating the scottish people from the way they are conducting this? >> well, i am happy -- it was a gentle understatement that we want different things from this. of course, we applaud the people andcotland for taking such immense interest. it is very important that there

is a high turnout in any such referendum. i absolutely congratulate the people of scotland but i don't congratulate those of his own party who have failed to be , whoght with the people have never explained what money scotland will use, who have never explained how long it would take to rejoin the have neverion, who explained how they would fund when there hospitals would be a 6 billion pound black hole in their finances. they are passionate about scotland and separation, but they are not passionate about telling the truth to the people of scotland. >> embracing three centuries,

the garrison town of colchester has welcomed thousands of scottish soldiers, many with their families. we wish that to continue. does the leader of the house agree with the defense select committee that if scotland --sed to be part of the u.k. and we have the best armed forces in europe -- this would propose serious security and defense risks for separate scotland without the capacity to defend itself? he sees the participation, work and sacrifices of members of the armed forces of scotland deployed in colchester. i see that in catterick garrison in my own constituency. he makes an important point about security. this is important for scotland as well. that theo bear in mind

magister's naval base is the largest employment site in the whole of scotland and is going to get bigger with the deployment of all of our submarines there. these things are put at risk by a campaign for separation as well as putting at risk the security of all of us. i attended aday, public meeting in my constituency, where the doctors were consulting their patients about how they were going to 22% with a budgetary cut of to 24% by 2018. this cut has officially been notified to them by nhs. would he confirm that these other cuts my constituents can expect? >> this government has raised the nhs budget in line with inflation, which his party was

not committed to do. i know the secretary of state for health will want to discuss with him the details of the local situation. i hope he did explain that overall, the number of nurses is up 3700. the number of people who say they are treated with dignity and respect is up 10%. we have now been ranked as the top health system in the world according to the commonwealth son, moving from seventh in the world for years ago. >> would my right honorable friend outlaw the initiative of prince harry in creating the invictus games? >> absolutely. this is an extremely important continuation of the developing, advance and proud sporting

history that we have in this country. we are established as one of the great sporting nations of the world. we are also a country that thinks deeply about the welfare of service veterans. harryyal highness prince has been one of the great champions of this and we wish him and everybody involved in the games very much well. in 2012, the prime minister said he wanted to see economic growth that meant rising living standards for all. and the leader of the house tell us why britain has seen one of the largest falls in real wages of any eu country? remember that there was a debt fueled recession that came about under the previous government. be paid for. after four years of discipline

policies of the chancellor of have thequer, we now fastest growth of the g7 economies. we have employment nearing a record high. we have nearly 2 million new apprenticeships. this is a remarkable economic turnaround from a catastrophic situation. >> does the leader of the house agree that scottish independence is not about getting one over westminster, not about embarrassing the prime minister or the leader of the opposition, not about defeating the old enemy, but it is about scotland turning its back on 300 years of successful union and rejecting so much that this country has done to make us all so proud of being part of great britain? my honorable friend is right. it is not about any individual

or party or election. it is a far longer-term decision than that. in my experience, other nations regard the u.k. with admiration and sometimes even envy. if scotland voted yes, all over the world, people who share our values and count on our contribution to peace, stability and human rights would be disappointed. those who don't share those priorities and beliefs will be quietly satisfied. that is another thing we have to bear in mind. end of last month, my constituent was disappeared in the car. qatar, . he was investigating the human rights abuses of workers building the 2022 world cup. i thank the foreign office for

their help in securing his release. what will it take to speak to the ambassador of qatar about the treatment of those who are preparing those facilities? >> the honorable member raises an important case. has pursuedoffice it and achieved some success in doing so, as we will do in any parallel cases in the future. i know that the embassy and the foreign office will want to follow-up. that is for my successor to determine. i will draw his attention to the question. >> with mounting evidence of an innovative, vibrant and growing real economy and especially in manufacturing and engineering, does the secretary of state agree with me that scotland should remain with us to share

in that success and give us a better footprint in the global trade? >> yes, i do. this is another good point. the economic turnaround that has been brought about in the u.k. means that employment in scotland is at a record high. there have been seven consecutive quarters of economic growth and there are a quarter of a million more private sector jobs in scotland than four years ago. that is a reminder of the potential, if we continue to work together. that is the message that i repeat to the people of scotland today. >> i welcome suggestions that the prime minister would attend the crucial climate summit this month. will he confirm that the prime minister will go and tell us what new initiatives the prime minister will be taking with him? that is what my constituents in brighton say they want. they want to protect what they love. a one urgent action on climate

change. reference,r future it is disorderly to display images in that way. i say with all courtesy to the honorable lady that if everybody did that on every cause, it would make a mockery of this place. i asked the honorable lady to take a mood view -- to take a view much wider than her immediate preoccupation. >> thank you, mr. speaker. the prime minister will attend the u.n. general assembly. we haven't yet issued or decided his precise schedule but we are looking at attendance of a meeting that the honorable lady refers to. written will continue to play -- will continue to play a leading role in the world about bringing about legally binding

agreements on climate change. we are one of the most active countries in the world in climate change diplomacy and the prime minister and other ministers in new york will be conveying that to whoever attends the meeting. >> will my honorable friend explained to the house why it is that with the possibility of a yes vote, finance is leaving areland, many businesses thinking of leaving scotland? surely if the economic arguments were so good for the yes campaign, the reverse would be happening. >> my honorable friend makes a powerful point. the anxieties of businesses are very clear to see. peoplee can understand doubting the word of politicians about economic evidence, it is very important to listen to what businesses say they will do with

their jobs, headquarters, investments, because a country that has separated itself from the fastest-growing economy of the g7 and put itself outside the european union without thinking about the implications of doing that, and that ended up with no central bank and unsure which currency it was going to use him a would of course find it difficult to attract new business to its shores. >> thank you, mr. speaker. the transatlantic trade and investment partnership leaves the health service vulnerable to some of the worst possible outcomes of this government's rabbit is a shim program. rabbit investors will be able to haul the government and devolved administrations through the dispute tribunal. how can the leader of the house guarantee that the health service including the health services in the default administrations will be xm from

ttip?exempt from friend has honorable been dealing with these matters and has a briefing about them, so i have no doubt we can furnish details on the issue. it is very important to maintain a commitment to free trade that has been a characteristic of the united kingdom over many centuries and which has brought greater prosperity to the people of the u.k. as well as people all over the rest of the world. the transatlantic trade and investment partnership is another major opportunity to boost free trade across the world. >> mr. speaker, a vote next week an independent scotland will have major implications for wales. my fellow wales citizens who

care about the future of our welsh nation should be hope and praying for the breakoff. >> yes, absolutely. are.nk they i regularly consult with at least one welsh citizen and they the evidence of that they are very much hoping and praying brokene u.k. will not be up and my honorable friend i con ateaks well for his this timconstituents in mid wal. all of those in the united diminished bye da pin the breakup. wales would be unmistakable. >> thank you exploration speaker. patience association has found that six in 10 people appointment a g.p. within two days of them needing one. state secretary of explain to the