Summary

  • Labour's acting leader Harriet Harman says the party will not oppose a bill for a EU referendum

  • Business Secretary Sajid Javid tells the Andrew Marr Show limiting EU migrants' tax credits is key to EU negotiations

  • Lord Hill tells The World This Weekend of "extraordinarily strong case" for UK to stay in EU

  • Rushanara Ali says she will target UKIP as she enters Labour deputy leader race

  • Lord Prescott announces he will back Andy Burnham for Labour leader

  1. 'No stitch-up'published at 09:57

    The Andrew Marr Show

    Now Labour's acting leader is asked about the influence of the unions. "There is absolutely not going to be a stitch-up by the unions in this election," Ms Harman insists firmly. She says the election system for the leader has been completely changed in recent years. The ballots are going to be sent out individually to Labour members and the vote will be secret - both important differences, she adds. 

  2. 'Huge defeat'published at 09:56

    The Andrew Marr Show

    Andrew Marr and Harriet Harman

    Do you agree with Liz Kendall, leadership hopeful, that Labour could be out of power forever if it gets this rebuilding wrong? "I think it would be quite wrong to minimise the scale of our defeat because even though there is no particular love for the Tory party, people still couldn't feel confident in giving us their support," Harriet Harman says.

  3. On a new leaderpublished at 09:51

    The Andrew Marr Show

    "I profoundly hope that we must have either the leader or the deputy being a woman. We must have a balanced leadership," says Harriet Harman.

  4. On backing a referendumpublished at 09:51

    The Andrew Marr Show

    Quote Message

    I think if you carry on arguing too long about the process you end up obscuring the very important discussion about the substance."

    Timing is crucial though - it's really important that it's not held at the time of other elections, such as in Scotland, because it's a key issue on its own and needs to be treated as such, she adds.

  5. 'We want change'published at 09:48

    The Andrew Marr Show

    Harriet Harman

    "We would be on our own," Ms Harman says, on a UK future outside the EU. But the EU is too centralised, too unaccountable. "It is perfectly possible to want to stay in a situation but to also want it to change," she adds. 

  6. Wages undercutpublished at 09:47

    The Andrew Marr Show

    Harriet Harman says Labour wants to see reform in Europe on matters like welfare. But she says the party is sure that the economic benefit of staying in the EU is very real. "We do feel that being involved in the EU has helped this country, and indeed immigration has helped this country, but not everyone has felt the benefits of that," she continues. Pressed on what that means, she refers to the undercutting of wages that some British people have experienced.

  7. Harman on Marrpublished at 09:45

    The Andrew Marr Show

    Harriet Harman

    Right, next up, acting Labour leader Harriet Harman. First up, the party's about-face on the subject of an EU referendum. We wouldn't succeed in opposing an EU bill in parliament and there "doesn't seem to be a public appetite for us manning the barricades" to prevent one anyway, she says.

  8. Ofcom rowpublished at 09:44

    The BBC's political correspondent tweets...

  9. Grexit 'disaster'published at 09:41

    The Andrew Marr Show

    Yanis Varoufakis

    Yanis Varoufakis, Greek finance minister, is the next guest. He says this is the first time Greece has had a government that is "prepared to negotiate all the way to the wire" over the country's EU debts. 

    On the subject of a possible Grexit, he says trying to get out of the euro would be "like announcing a currency devaluation 10 months in advance - it would be a disaster".

  10. Plans for businesspublished at 09:37

    The deputy political editor of the Telegraph tweets...

  11. Fighting ISpublished at 09:36

    The Andrew Marr Show

    "There is a need for boots on the ground, but not British boots," the business secretary says when asked about the suggestion that the West must do more to fight Islamic State.

  12. Cabinet conflict?published at 09:35

    Sky News presenter tweets...

  13. Ofcom 'censorship'published at 09:34

    The Andrew Marr Show

    Sajid Javid has said he's concerned about Ofcom, the broadcast regulator, becoming a censor if it's asked to do more to root out the propagation of extremist messages in the UK - something that's apparently put him at odds with Home Secretary Theresa May. He praises Mrs May and says disagreements within cabinet are "perfectly normal".

  14. More from Javidpublished at 09:32

    The Andrew Marr Show

    Andrew Marr and Sajid Javid

    Onto changes to business regulation, Mr Javid says he won't be considering reintroducing no fault dismissals to make it easier to fire people. 

    Asked about transport, he says he doesn't know whether expansion at Gatwick or Heathrow is now preferred, but he says the recommendations should be out within a few months and the government will take swift action when they are.

  15. 'Adding value'published at 09:30

    The Andrew Marr Show

    Immigration to this country should always be focused on the people who are going to add the most value, Sajid Javid says. Whether or not they come from the Commonwealth versus, say, a former eastern bloc country, makes no difference, he adds.

  16. Tax credit changespublished at 09:27

    Andrew Marr
    Presenter, The Andrew Marr Show

    You're not likely to make headway on free movement are you, Sajid Javid is asked. "I think the changes that we're talking about, the welfare changes, they will make a difference," the business secretary insists. Someone might now get £700 a month in tax credits, two or three times what they'd get in France or Germany, so you can see why that's a big pull factor, he adds. While not going as far as saying tax credits are a red line for the EU negotiation, he says it is a "very key" issue.

  17. 'We'll get there'published at 09:24

    The Andrew Marr Show

    Sajid Javid

    The first big guest is Business Secretary Sajid Javid. He's being asked about some of the government's desires for change in Europe - we want to change things like rules on immigration and access to in-work benefits - tax credits, housing benefit and the like. That would require a big treaty change though, Andrew Marr says, so what if you don't get that? Will you back an EU exit?

    He replies: "I'm confident we're going to get these changes... It's going to require some patience, but I think we'll get there."

  18. EU referendumpublished at 09:22

    The political editor of the Guardian tweets...

  19. Boots on the groundpublished at 09:19

    The Andrew Marr Show

    The reviewers are now discussing a piece by former Chief of the General Staff Lord Dannatt, in the Mail on Sunday, who says the West must put troops on the ground in Iraq and Syria to fight the so-called Islamic State. "We went through an interventionist phase [in terms of foreign policy] and we're now in a backlash against that," says journalist Catherine Mayer, discussing why there's so much resistance to Lord Dannatt's idea. 

    But just because it went wrong before doesn't mean we can't learn those lessons and intervene in this, Steve Hilton adds.

  20. Ministers' pay freezepublished at 09:17

    The Andrew Marr Show

    Catherine Mayer

    Now onto the subject of the pay freeze for ministers that David Cameron has announced. Steve Hilton says the UK should be "more flexible" about how it brings talented people into government - not necessarily via the ballot box.

    Catherine Mayer links that to a rather negative story about Labour leadership hopeful Liz Kendall, and the label she's apparently been given of the Blair Witch, for her support for former PM Tony. She points out that there are many barriers keeping people, and in particular, women, out of politics, including that sort of negativity.

    People want to see "more independent-minded politicians" and not those who just "want to trot out the party line", Steve Hilton adds.