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DERMOT MURNAGHAN: Let’s start by taking a look at the top stories in today’s papers, I’m joined by the Labour MP Margaret Hodge, Nadhim Zahawi is a Conservative MP and Vote Leave supporter and the leading human rights lawyer, Michael Mansfield, who represented the families of course of many of the Hillsborough victims, a very good morning to you all.  You’re going to kick us off Margaret, it’s in many of the papers, the issue of anti-Semitism and Labour, Andrew Rawnsley’s column in the Observer.

MARGARET HODGE: Well it was difficult to select a piece but I’ve been a member of the Labour party for over 50 years, I’m Jewish, I was absolutely horrified last week by the remarks of both Ken Livingstone and the MP Shah, the MP from Bradford as well and the party I joined is a party that is committed to anti-racism and equality, that’s at the heart of the party, those are the values of the party and those are the values that we’ve got to promote so when a problem arises we’ve got to tackle it.  The reason I went for Andrew Rawnsley because I don’t think racism is peculiar to the Labour party, I don’t think the Conservative party has behaved well in London, I don't think Boris Johnson’s remarks on Obama were appropriate, calling his half-Kenyan … but on this he says at the end ‘David Cameron knows he’s not a racist which is presumably how he convinces himself that he can’t be racist when his party plays the race card in London.  Jeremy Corbyn knows he’s not a racist which is presumably why the Labour party has struggled to see that his party contains racist.  Look again gentlemen, at yourselves, at your parties, make it a hard look, this is  how it starts.’

DM: In your party do you agree then with those comments from Andrew Rawnsley that there are racists in Labour?

MARGARET HODGE: I think there is a problem in the Labour party around muddling its attitudes to Jews, to the attitudes to Zionism, to the quite legitimate criticisms of the Israeli government and I think those boundaries have not been properly guarded by a handful of members in the Labour party and it has bought the party into disrepute and that’s why a party that’s values are so based on equality and anti-racism has to tackle that energetically, quickly and thoroughly so that we restore credibility in what we’re about, why I joined the Labour party.  

DM: And it makes you very cross.

MARGARET HODGE: It makes me incredibly cross because like many it’s the reason I’m in the Labour party, it’s the reason I’m there and I know that for most of the people standing in the election next week up and down the country, councillors, I know for Sadiq Khan, they are members of the Labour party because they too are anti-racist and pro-equality, that’s why we have to tackle it energetically.    
First of all Nadhim, it is not in the Labour party, it is a few people in the Labour party which is why we have to root it out quickly.  The second thing to say is…

NADHIM ZAHAWI: So you don’t think there is a problem?  There is no problem so let’s move on?

MARGARET HODGE: Have I said that?  I’ve been passionate about the importance of re-establishing the value base of the Labour party by dealing energetically with a few but I do think you cannot start justifying Boris’s attack on Obama’s racial heritage as an excuse.  

DM: Margaret, you’ve chosen this story on the sad demise of formerly British Home Stores, BHS, and what’s going on in particular with some of those pensions.

MARGARET HODGE: Well I am delighted that two of the select committees in the House of now decided to call Sir Philip Green and his wife and goodness knows who else to come and give evidence. I think what is scandalous here as the stories unravel, and I think actually the Sunday Times has done a really good job in investigating it, is that these guys appear to have plotted with some very, very unsavoury characters to deliberately take all the money, take all the assets out, force the company into liquidation, be very happy in Monaco or wherever it is they …

DM: Those allegations have to be examined of course.

MARGARET HODGE: Those allegations have to be examined, apologies, but actually the current staff, the 11,000 people working for BHS, the 20,000 or so who are dependent on BHS for pensions, are left much, much worse off.  

DM: Do you think people should think about, if there is a way of taking the Sir off Sir Philip Green?

MARGARET HODGE: Absolutely, if he is found to have abused his position.  I’ll tell you what I think is so interesting is why we’ve come so late to this and it does talk to the regulatory authorities here, why were these deals allowed to go ahead, why did nobody intervene at an earlier stage when you saw a) what Sir Philip Green himself was doing in paying out generous dividends and b) when he sold it to a guy who had been bankrupted twice and who had some very unsavoury connections.  

[on Syria] MARGARET HODGE: I just think that we’ve got to get back to the negotiations in Switzerland where we can get a deal between the Russians and the …

DM: But are we backing Assad?

MARGARET HODGE: I don't think we are anymore.  

DM: And on that note we will end it – Michael, Nadhim, Margaret, thank you very much indeed for taking us through some of the papers there.