YouSaid · the spoken record

Philip Hammond

lines on the record: 47
first: 2019-07-05
most recent: 2019-07-05
sittings or episodes: 1
sources: podcast

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“It would be a wonderful image. There have been times when, frankly, I wouldn't have minded going around Westminster and Whitehall with a muck spreader, spraying a bit of the brown stuff.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, we've always been able to resolve these things, and there's, what is there, two and a half weeks left, I'm sure we'll be able to resolve any remaining issues amicably”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“That's what some people have suggested, and you'd have to ask the individuals concerned. I've always got on personally very well with the Prime Minister, actually in some ways we're quite surprisingly similar.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“So there's always, I think, a certain tension between prime ministers and chancellors, but finding a way of working together constructively is the key to government being able to operate smoothly. And of course...”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“We'll end up with a deal. When you say that the Europeans won't budge, the Europeans won't budge on the three fundamental elements of the withdrawal agreement, the money, citizenship rights, and the Irish border, but they have indicated a fair degree of flexibility around how we shape the future relationship. And many senior European politicians have lamented to me that if we had been willing to go a bit further in defining what we wanted for the future relationship, we might have found that in that definition we started to be able to resolve some of the problems in the withdrawal agreement, particularly around the Irish border.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“So I've said two things. First of all, I've said that holding a second referendum is a coherent proposition. Some people have suggested ways out of this impasse, which are simply not coherent because they involve for example the European Union doing something that it simply isn't going to do. So it's a coherent proposition. The other thing I've observed is that if we cannot resolve this in parliament, in the proper way for a parliamentary democracy, there are only two options in the end, and they both involve going back to the British people. One is to hold a general election, and the other is to go back to the people and put again the question, knowing what you now do, do you want to do this deal, or would you rather remain in or would you rather leave with no deal?”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“I am quite sure that the economic analysis is right, but I have always accepted that the decision to leave the European Union is a political judgment. It's about more than just the economy. And I can't deny that. If someone comes up to me and says, as somebody did at the very beginning of the referendum campaign, somebody came up to me and said, if we'd looked at this only from an economic point of view, we'd have never fought the Second World War, which is probably true. And I have the greatest respect for people who genuinely say, look, I know it's going to make us a bit poorer. I know it's going to make our economic prospects a bit worse, but I believe we should do it anyway for political, strategic reasons. What I have no time for is people who pretend that it will actually make us better off economically as well as more independent politically.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“About the future. I'm confident about the resilience of the Conservative Party because I'm confident about the resilience of the values that underpin it.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Look, the Conservative Party has been written off more times than most people have had hot dinners. It's of remarkably resilient institution and it's resilient because it's agile. I mean, the Conservative Party today looks nothing like the Conservative Party of the mid-19th century. I was elected in 1997, Nick, when I was one of, I think, 156 Tory MPs in Parliament. And I remember going to meetings then where people like yourself were questioning the very existence of the Tory Party. Was there any future for it? Hadn't the world moved on? Wasn't Tony Blair the future? There aren't very many people now who see the world that way.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“What's happened is that this division in the Conservative Party, which dates back to 1992, and we've kind of papered over and we've kind of managed to rub along with each other and get on with other things for whatever it is, 25 years, has opened up again as a result of the referendum and the decision to leave the European Union. And I very much hope we can find a compromise solution. I've said this from the beginning. Do you worry that there has to be a solution where both sides feel that they've had to compromise?”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“These days bizarre, a little bit the same way it feels finding that the only decent write up I get is in The Guardian and I can't open the telegraph for fear of what it will be saying about me.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, I shall continue to strongly advocate that we find a negotiated deal with the European Union and that it has to be a deal we can persuade Parliament to support.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, look, I've taken the view that the government has a duty to deliver on the referendum result, but we equally have a duty to deliver it in a way that protects jobs and businesses and our security. And as Chancellor, I've felt that it wasn't appropriate for me to be involved, shall we say, perhaps the more extreme end of some of these initiatives. But I very much do want to see us find a way to leave the European Union in good order through a transition period, which is the number one ask of business, to a prosperous and stable future.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Oh look, there are lots of conversations going on and lots of theories. And the one thing that I can tell you about the House of Commons is that it contained 650 experts on House of Commons procedure, all of which come to a different conclusion.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“As the saying goes, I think I meet with ministerial colleagues and others all the time and discuss all sorts of things, Nick.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, let me quote the Speaker of the House of Commons who has said that if the House of Commons is determined to do something, he's quite sure that it will find a way. And I am quite confident that the House of Commons will find a way and indeed should be able to find a way because this is a parliamentary democracy and it would be frankly rather shocking if the House of Commons, the elected representatives of the people, could be simply sidelined by a government that was doing something that was the exact opposite of what the House of Commons clearly wanted done.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, the House of Commons has been clear already that it does not support a no deal exit. That is my position and as a backbencher I will continue to argue against a no-deal exit.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Our most tax generative industry, and that's partly why we know that there will be a big impact on our fiscal revenue. So we will be looking at significantly lower tax take in the event of a disruptive no-deal exit. Now, Britain will survive all of this. Of course it will, and I wouldn't ever want to suggest otherwise, but our economy will suffer a short-term shock, and then in the long term will be permanently smaller than it would otherwise have been.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, I'm sure he's right on all of those things. But what there will be is a customs process at Calais that British exporters who haven't had to deal with any customs processes before will have to deal with those processes. Trucks will have to queue to be inspected. Tariffs will have to be paid, quite significant tariffs on automotive products and on agricultural products. We can expect that in a no-deal exit there would be a reaction in the currency markets. And just as we found in 2016 into 2017, that will have an impact on inflation because we import a huge amount into the UK and those imported goods will become more expensive. We know that loss of trade access will have a big impact on our single largest industry financial services, which is also”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“And you can buy exactly similar parts from Slovakia where the parts will continue to come without crossing any international trade borders, without any paperwork or any delay, I think you know where your preference is going to lie.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“So it's the sense of a complete rupture of a complex, very complex system. So we are proposing in a no-deal exit to introduce into supply chains that are completely seamless. Today it is as simple and easy to ship a crate of manufactured products from Birmingham to Berlin as it is from Birmingham to Bradford. And our businesses have built their businesses around that fact. And we're about to bring down a shutter at Dover Calais, which will make it more complex, more costly and more time consuming to carry on that business in a way that will disrupt supply chains in highly competitive industries. If you're a German car manufacturer who buys parts from Birmingham for your car plant in, let's say, Stuttgart,”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Yeah, but it isn't that simple. And just getting out of the political institutions of the European Union, if we could do that without having any impact on our ability to maintain our access to markets, maintain the supply chains that drive our businesses, then it would be a decision that could be made with little serious consequence. But we can't separate the two. Leaving the political institutions of the Union means that we will have at the very least a significantly reduced level of access to the European marketplace. And I regard the key job of government now, given that the British people have decided to leave the European Union, is to find a way of doing that with the minimum impact on our economy so that we can go on trading with Europe, go on being prosperous, protecting jobs and businesses and our security. In the future.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, first of all, I think that particular poll was probably a very good example of how, depending on how you phrase the question, you can get pretty much the answer that you want. So I wouldn't take too much notice of the particular numbers that came out of that. Let me show you passion, though, didn't I?”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Sense in which I have been on a journey of my own, and that is that, like many people in this country, I had been quite happy to see the EU as something quite alien that was done to us. And it was only when I started attending EU meetings and being involved in EU matters as a government minister, representing the UK, that I've understood how big an influence the UK has had on shaping many things in Europe and how respected the UK has been. Sadly, it's not quite that way anymore, but until the referendum, the UK was a hugely respected voice at the very top table of the European Union. And I think, frankly, we could have done still more to shape the EU in our image. In the way we wanted it to be, rather than just saying, Well, we don't like the direction it's going in, so we're walking away.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“But I've seen how dependent the UK economy is on our access to European markets. It's just something that's happened because for 45 years we've had access to European markets and business investment decisions have been made in such a way that we now have an economy that's incredibly intertwined with the European economy and it will be incredibly painful and costly to unravel that.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“So, let me say two things. First of all, I've always been what I would call a Eurosceptic. I've been a very strong supporter of the single market, the common market, and I think it's now a linchpin of Britain's economy, that access to European markets. But I've never been a fan in any sense of this drive for institutional structures and greater integration in Europe. I think that's frankly a mistake.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Of the key technology areas which will drive the economy in the twenty first century. So all of that is a matter of regret.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, the big sadness for me is that I've been Chancellor throughout a period, all of which has been overshadowed by uncertainty and business reluctance to invest and to commit. And there are so many businesses that see so much in the UK that they like, that they want to invest in, that they want to work with in the future. And it's only the uncertainty about our future relationship with Europe and their future ability to trade with Europe from Britain that has held them back. And that's meant we've had slower growth than we should have had, much slower business investment than we should have had. It means we've made much less progress than we should have done on seeing real wages recovering and thus living standards recovering. And it means we haven't made as much progress as we could have done in cementing Britain's lead.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, no deal means we will have to spend the money, but we'll be spending it not in a discretionary way, should we have more policemen, should we have better social care, we will be forced to spend it on protecting businesses and industry and protecting households, frankly, from what is likely to be a surge in inflation.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“All of those things will cost money, but as I said, we do have some additional spending power available, and provided we have an orderly exit from the EU so that we don't get a massive disruption to our economy, then of course it will be possible to make some of those spending decisions, but what won't be possible is to make all of them.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Of having a spending review, which is planned for later this year, is precisely so that we can look at all these brilliant ideas for spending money in the round, because the one thing I can promise you is that they will add up in total to far, far more than the headroom that's available, and we have to do a collective exercise in prioritising and deciding how to spend the available money on the priorities that the government and the country has.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, my worst fear is that there are people out there who think it's actually a box that I keep in my bottom drawer in the treasury full of money, and it isn't, unfortunately. What it is, we've got a rule that says we won't borrow more than 2% of our GDP each year. And at the moment, last year we borrowed about 1.1% of GDP. So there's a fair bit of capacity there to increase borrowing. But this is more borrowing within the rules. And it could be used either for more spending on public services or for reductions in tax. So some of the promises that are being made by candidates, you mentioned putting 20,000 more police officers on the streets. If that was the priority, then it certainly affordable once we can release the headroom, once we know that we're not going to have a no deal Brexit, then we can decide how we want to spend that money. But the point...”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, the latter isn't affordable as a former Defence Secretary, I'm prepared to say we don't need anything like that to make defence highly effective. But look, what I've said is that because the public finances have performed well, because the people of this country have done an amazing job over the last decade since the financial crisis, the public finances are in a lot better state than probably anyone would have anticipated. They would be three years ago. And we have an element of headroom, discretionary capability to borrow a little bit more within our rules and therefore potentially spend a little bit more. But that headroom can only safely be used if we're sure we're not going to have a no-deal exit. Because in the event of a no-deal exit, we will need this money to soften the blow to the British economy and to protect business.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“So it's not about people or personalities, it's about policies, and I couldn't serve in a government that was willing to make a policy decision to pursue a no-deal exit. That would be wrong, in my view. It would be a betrayal of the British people, a betrayal of the referendum result, very bad for our economy. And of course, if it's bad for our economy, it means that everything we've tried to do around rising real wages, rising living standards will be set back years.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“So, my immediate reaction to that would be, I think we're probably going to get plenty of optimism and enthusiasm and bounce. What you need is a balance. Of course, you need people who are sunlit uplands, full of optimism, but you also need people in the team who are prepared to say, well, hang on just a minute. Or shouldn't we earn it before we spend it? Now, you may say that's dull, small-minded, but actually there's a role for everybody in the team.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“I would regard that as actually the right characteristic for a Chancellor of the Exchequer. I mean, this is a person charged with looking after hundreds of billions of pounds of taxpayers' money. And just like your friendly bank manager, you also want him to be ever so slightly dull. You don't want to find out he's got some secret double life he's leading at night.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Yeah, exactly. But the tag, spreadsheet fill, was meant to imply gets the numbers but really doesn't get the big important picture, the people, the kit, the strategic purpose, which I reject absolutely. But if you haven't got the basics right, all the rest falls apart. And as for being ever so slightly dull, as you put it, Nick.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, a bit of both, really. It wasn't intended as a compliment. And it first was applied to me when I was in the Ministry of Defence, where we had a huge, huge budget problem to sort out. And I spent a lot of my time in the Ministry of Defence actually doing stuff that was really very dull and worthy working through massive budgets that were hugely overprogrammed.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, the most damning one I remember seeing in one of the sketchwriters was by the abysmal standards of political humour. These were not bad.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, look, the budget speech is an hour long, and frankly, apart from the one or two big announcements that people are waiting for, for most people will be Dollars Ditchwater, a load of statistics about fiscal and economic performance, all right for the Cogy Shenti, but for the average listener, probably a bit dull. So I tried to liven it up with a few jokes. They got a mixed press. I think it has to be said.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“I think it's fair to say our politics could not be more different. I've known John MacDonald for 22 years. He and I actually clashed very early on in the chamber when I was a mere backbencher. And we clashed over the question of his support for Sinn F ⁇ in IRA in those days. But I think we have a sensible working relationship. It's quite important for the functioning of the House of Commons that ministers and their shadows are able to at least work functionally together.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, I'll certainly have a look. But as always with John MacDonald, be at your most cautious when he is at his most avuncular and generously offering me a gift. I might have known the gift would turn out to have a sting in the tail.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“which I have now nine years, to have to start picking up and dealing with the consequences of some of those decisions as well. I remember an unnamed Labour minister telling me when I was an opposition spokesman and I asked him, are you sure about doing this? He said to me, doesn't really matter, I won't be here for the time the effects are visible.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, look, you get into a rhythm where at first it's very frustrating. I remember railing against it at the Department for Transport when I first got there, having someone else running your diary. And several times a day, a new version of the diary will be presented to you where everything's changed. But eventually you succumb. And I got used to that. For the next eight and a half years, I haven't looked at my diary every morning to find out what I am doing. I've read my briefing notes to find out how I am going to do it. And actually, in a sense, having to think for yourself again is quite a shock, having to plan your own life is quite a shock. And the drum beat of constant decision making, excellent advice, detailed advice, but then the requirement constantly to be making decisions many, many times a day. And if you stay long enough,”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, I'm not as slick on social media as I might be, but I've got lots of willing spads who are going to induct me over the next few days into the joys of running your own social media.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Bit of both, it's quite an unsettling time. I've been in the cabinet for nine years now, done four jobs, and yes, you're right, there's quite a bit of a sense of things that we wanted to do, things that I had hoped we would be able to take further. I hope we've started them, but it would have been nice to have seen some of them finished. And so, yeah, a bit of sadness about that. But also a sense of perhaps now regaining touch with reality, you know, the whole nine years really has been a slightly unreal artificial experience. And to get your feedback on the ground, I remember Peter Lilly always used to tell that story that you know you are no longer a government minister when you get in the back of your car and it fails to move away from the curb. And just regrounding yourself in reality probably. Is not a bad thing.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“There have been times when, frankly, I wouldn't have minded going around Westminster and Whitehall with a muck spreader, spraying a bit of the brown stuff.”
2019-07-05 · Political Thinking with Nick Robinson · The Philip Hammond One · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source