ANY QUOTES USED MUST BE ATTRIBUTED TO MURNAGHAN, SKY NEWS

DERMOT MURNAGHAN: The Prime Minister gave his Culture Secretary, Maria Miller, his full support last week but the papers are gunning for her this morning and seem determined to see her go so can she hang on.  I’m joined now from Hatfield in Hertfordshire by the Conservative Party Chairman, Grant Shapps, a very good morning to you, Mr Shapps.  Now if you were standing up before the Speaker and the assembled House of Commons to apologise for some misdemeanour involving your expenses, and I’m sure that would never happen, do you think a thirty second apology would show adequate contrition?

GRANT SHAPPS: Just be clear, this has been a very long-running process that has been going on for well over a year I think, fifteen months, and at the end of it all the committee asked her to do two specific things one of which was to come to the House of Commons and apologise, which she did and the language that she used, despite the length of it, said it all.  She said she unreservedly apologised, unreservedly and I think that was the key phrase that they were looking for, it was the phrase she entirely accepted.  Of course we can talk about the length of her speech, politicians usually go on for quite a long time and she didn’t but she was very clear about what she said and in a way that could be seen as being more powerful.

DM: But you say the investigation went on for years and the apology went on for under a minute, doesn’t the House deserve to hear more and that phrase, unreserved apology, just seems to sweep it all away.

GRANT SHAPPS: I think she says I entirely accept it, I give my unreserved apology.  Look the form of words used or rather the length of words used is not as much of an issue as saying actually the right words and she said she unreservedly apologises and I think that’s right.  It’s probably worth understanding that what was at stake here was a Labour MPs accusation that she had done something that another Labour MP who had been guilty of expenses abuse had done with their homes and actually it transpired that she had not that and what she was really apologising for was the manner in which information had been supplied to that committee over a period of time.  I understand via her solicitor, and as often happens with solicitors, it was all a bit too legalistic, too difficult, cautious, time consuming and she apologised for that so it was a sort of technical matter rather than what had been reported but thrown out by in fact the Labour chairman of this committee and the rest of the committee who said actually this is not the case.  She had not actually done anything wrong as far as that’s concerned and she was, if you like, apologising for the process.

DM: So Chairman, what’s your response to those that say you and the Prime Minister and others are only backing her because the Conservative party doesn’t have enough women in senior positions? 

GRANT SHAPPS:   Well look, that’s just not the case at all.  The Conservative party has a very proud track record as far as women being involved in the party, the party that gave women the vote in the first place, the first party to have a sitting female MP, the first party to have a leader who was a woman and of course the first and only ever British Prime Minister to be a woman.  We are selecting lots of women in key seats right now for the next election so I don’t accept that at all.  People have to answer for their own situation in life as in politics, she’s come to the House, she’s apologised, she’s identified herself an over claim of £5800 which she has paid back and by the way, this is all based on a system which thank goodness, because the old expenses system quite frankly, the way that it was abused by some other people was horrendous and brings politics into disrepute but this was all based on this old system, not what happens today.

DM: So the old expenses system but what do you think of the oversight system with MPs still marking their own homework it seems, is that adequate?

DAVID MELLOR: Look, the question is this?  Are people saying that just because they don’t like the outcome or actually because there should be some other system in place?  I think these things can always be looked at but it is worth nothing though that there are three lay members on that committee who are people who are completely independent, they are not politicians, they are not MPs and had they had something different to say, they don’t vote it is true but had they had something different to say they were completely at liberty to produce a minority report and say that they disagreed with the findings of the committee.  These guys are the ones who have taken many, many months to investigate the accusations, to throw them out, to dismiss them and to recommend that Maria apologises for the manner in which information was provided.  So I don't think that just because we didn’t get the result that others might have wanted to see for perhaps all sorts of different reasons, that the system is necessarily wrong but I do think it’s right the system should be looked at.  No MP wants to … go on.

DM: I just wanted to hear in black and white, the so-called, the dreaded sound bite, she has your 100% support. 

GRANT SHAPPS: Yes, she does.  I mean Maria is a very, very hard working minister, she has accepted fully the recommendations of the committee without reservation and she should be able to get on with her job and the Prime Minister has said that’s what he wants her to do. 

DM: Okay, I know you also wanted to talk about the important changes that are taking place as the tax year changes and we’ve got now the introduction of the £10,000 threshold before we start paying any income tax at all.  That of course is Lib Dem policy.

GRANT SHAPPS: Well look, it’s a Conservative led government with a Conservative Chancellor, it couldn’t have happened without that being the case and every Conservative instinct is to reduce taxes.  I’m very, very proud that this has happened under a Conservative government, it means that almost everybody in work in this country won’t pay any tax, income tax at all, until they reach that £10,000 income threshold. That’s a huge difference from the last election when it was just £6470 so now £10,000 no tax at all.  The Conservatives have it in our DNA to try to cut tax for people who go out and work hard and want to bring home money to their family and have the security and don’t think the state, the Treasury, should be taking all that money from them so yes, we’re very proud of that and one other thing as well, today marks the moment at which £2000 is given back to every business in this country, virtually every business and charity, for employing their first member of staff. If you’re watching this, if you have a business, you won’t need to pay the first £2000 of employer National Insurance contributions, that’s a massive boost for businesses in this country to take on more people and provide even more people with job security.

DM: And if you play bingo and drink a pint of beer, since the budget you have been playing a little less duty.  Do you regret that, I’m referring to the notorious Tweet, to help hard working people do more of the things they enjoy.  It turns out that was the work of the Treasury and they hung that round your neck, is that true?

GRANT SHAPPS: Look, I take ultimate responsibility for anything that happens with stuff coming out, particularly from my own Twitter account  and I’ve no doubt at all that the words that were …

DM: But it was George Osborne’s idea? 

GRANT SHAPPS: The point of it is this, both bingo halls and pubs are at the heart of our communities, three quarters of all bingo halls have closed down including one in my constituency just down the road.  The tax was banged up nearly 50% by Gordon Brown in 2009, that didn’t help and every pub, every pub is under threat, there are many closed down in my constituency and beyond and we’ve actually done something about it.  We’ve put thousands of pounds back into those pubs each year by cutting another penny off the tax for beer and I’m proud of that.  I’m pleased that we’re doing things that keep communities together at the heart of community and I can’t see how that can possibly be a bad thing.

DM: You said afterwards to Radio Cumbria, wasn’t it, that you love a game of bingo, you mentioned one bingo hall closing in your constituency so where do you play?

GRANT SHAPPS: Unfortunately as the bingo club in the same street at my Hatfield office in my constituency, as is so common for all these clubs, has closed down and pubs as well, I’ve had two or three pubs close down very recently in my own constituency and they are really suffering.  It’s not, Ed Miliband came out and did a very good gag and said drink 300 pints and get one free because of the penny off but it’s not about that.  The pubs will be thousands of pounds better off a year and it is probably the difference in many cases between them staying open and closing and actually that’s the serious point isn’t, you want those community facilities to exist in your neighbourhood so that you can actually go and have a drink, that’s what I want to see.  I’m sure this could have been worded differently or better, no doubt at all, but the central point is we’re on the side of reducing taxes whether that’s on bingo halls or pubs or actually for individuals who go out to work and want to keep more of the money that they earn.

DM: What was the name of the bingo hall that closed?  How much did it cost to get in?  Is that where you played?

GRANT SHAPPS: Sadly it closed a little while ago and has now been turned into some very nice student accommodation but this is just in common with so many other bingo halls but I do like the occasional game of bingo and I like a quite regular pint of beer …

DM: Where?  

GRANT SHAPPS: I go to my local for a beer.

DM: Where do you play bingo?

GRANT SHAPPS: There are very few places left but you won’t be surprised to hear I have been inundated by invitations over the last couple of weeks since the budget so I’m sure I’ll be playing again soon.

DM: I hope to come along and play with you, wherever it is you go.  Mr Shapps, thank you very much indeed, Chairman of the Conservative party there.