Hazel Blears MP, Communities Secretary

ANDREW MARR: ... and that means lots of work for the Community Secretary Hazel Blears who has admitted that you have to freshen up our approach I think is the phrase you used to multiculturalism and so on.

Does that mean that at some level this military RUSI report was right, that we have become flabby and un self confident as a country?

HAZEL BLEARS: Well I think the report really was, was talking about things as they were actually a few years ago. I think the debate's moved on quite dramatically and certainly in the last eighteen months the government's policy has changed really quite fundamentally Andrew.

The things that we've, we're now talking about, about the need for people to be able to speak English, an absolute top priority in this country. If you want to get on, if you want to get a job, if you want to look after your family the ability to speak the language is fundamental. We're saying to local authorities in particular don't go translating all the documents that you used to in the past.

Think very carefully about how you can bring people together. We've had the Commission on Integration with a whole series of recommendations. We've got more money going in. So I think genuinely ..

ANDREW MARR: So ..

HAZEL BLEARS: .. that report was a little bit outdated and, and ..

ANDREW MARR: New, New, New Labour had it wrong? You were wrong in the past but you're getting it right now?

HAZEL BLEARS: No I don't accept that at all. I think that ..

ANDREW MARR: That's what you've just said with respect.

HAZEL BLEARS: .. well no I think the idea of multiculturalism, cos you know this word means all things to all people. And actually in my view and what the Labour Party's always been about is saying that we do celebrate the diversity of this country. It brings us enormous strength. But that shouldn't mean people leading separate lives. And that's where I think the danger is.

If people are leading separate lives, they don't eat together, they don't talk together, they don't go out together, then I think that is a danger for the country. And that's why much of our policy and certainly my beliefs now about how do we redouble our efforts, freshen if you like our efforts to bring people together in this country, to share the things that we have in common rather than the things that, that are different.

ANDREW MARR: So in concrete terms what does that mean? Because we've got a society in which large numbers of people from migrant communities do lead pretty separate lives. They, you know they, they inter-marry and they speak their own languages in their own parts of our northern and other cities. What is to be done about this?

HAZEL BLEARS: Well I think we do need very practical measures. And, and you know you were asking the Conservative Party what were they going to do.

ANDREW MARR: Yes.

HAZEL BLEARS: Now I'll give you a couple of examples. In Oldham for example where there's been you know some talk about parallel communities ..

ANDREW MARR: Yes.

HAZEL BLEARS: .. they're now about to rebuild all of their secondary schools in Oldham. And what they're thinking very carefully about is where do they put those schools so that they'll draw a catchment both from the largely Asian areas and the largely white communities, so they're bringing children together.

They've got a whole range of projects now where, where people are coming together in social centres. And in the past we used to fund single groups and I think in Sheffield it was, there was something like thirty different separate ethnic groups being funded to do separate activities.

ANDREW MARR: That's all stopping is it?

HAZEL BLEARS: Well I've just issued some guidance saying to again, to local authorities, think really carefully when you're funding people. In the, in the early days it might be necessary to have a single group to support each other, new people coming in. But then think what do you do next?

The next bit should be how do you integrate people into the broader community so that they get a sense of what's it like to be a Sheffielder if you like rather than simply who's Polish or who's from Romania or who's from Pakistan. What is it that brings us together in this city, in our town.

ANDREW MARR: So when you say everybody should be able to speak English, and that's a sort of basic of citizenship, does that mean that all these local authorities and council libraries and so on and indeed parts of the National Health Service with fourteen or fifteen different languages, different leaflets, that that is wrong and that that should stop?

HAZEL BLEARS: No what I've said to them is think really carefully, do you need to translate this document. Some local authorities were translating annual reports. And I don't know about you but probably most English people don't read a local authority's annual report, that would be ridiculous. If you've got ..

ANDREW MARR: So some advice documents�

HAZEL BLEARS: Yeah.

ANDREW MARR: .. should be translated?

HAZEL BLEARS: If you've got emergency instructions for how to get to the Accident and Emergency Department in the hospital if you have a terrible accident then you may well need to translate that. But the advice is think twice. And maybe you can do things in a pictorial way that has the English translation underneath. So actually in, in the process of giving people information you're helping them to learn English as well.

So it's about really being smarter in what we do rather than simply saying well we've got to do this in Hindu, we've got to do it in Polish, we've got to do it in German. You don't necessarily have to do that. And bringing people together through language, through communication is the best way for us to understand I think the fundamental things that people actually have in common.

ANDREW MARR: This is a big change of direction. I mean one of the odd things about sort of political conversations is that no one's supposed to admit that they changed direction. But it does seem to me from everything you've said that New Labour was doing one set of things a few years back and has learned and has changed direction. There's nothing wrong with that but it is true isn't it?

HAZEL BLEARS: Yeah but I don't think it was just New Labour doing this a few years ago. I think our society kind of grew up and adapted to some of the changes and people were leading, sometimes separate existences. And I think now, certainly I feel, the world is changing so fast that we've got to keep up. This process is not going to stop. We're not going to go backwards to the days when you know it was kind of little England.

The world is going to continue to change and therefore making sure that we redouble our efforts to bring people together, I think's really important. If you live in a place like London you know and I live here part of the time, it's hugely diverse. People get along broadly pretty well together. You go to some other places, particularly rural communities that haven't experienced migration. You can see the tensions and strains. That's why it is doubly important today to give people the sense of confidence that actually they share the basic fundamentals.

ANDREW MARR: Let me ask you about a couple of other stories around today, community based, at least some of them. This business of the so called mosquito whine which is supposed to drive away teenagers from particular areas. A lot of controversy about that. The Children's Commissioner coming out and saying this is the wrong sorts of thing to do. Where do you stand on the whine minister?

HAZEL BLEARS: Well some, somebody did tell me that if you played Barry Manilow or if you played Schubert then it would have exactly the same effect ..

ANDREW MARR: Yeah.

HAZEL BLEARS: .. and the teenagers would disperse. But I think that what you really need to do is first of all give them something better to do and that's why our massive expansion of youth facilities is going to help with it. But also you know, take some of this on. If people are hanging around and intimidating people who want to use the shops, want to use the leisure facilities then that actually is wrong. And therefore having a fairly tough approach to that and using the powers that the police have now got and local authorities have got is really important.

So I've always said this that it's enforcement, making sure that you have a pretty strong responses. But also then saying right well if we need to get these kids off the street, can we get them involved in something more constructive, you know midnight football, getting them out of the way, getting them doing something sport, something healthy, hopefully then you won't need the mosquito kind of whine and drone ...

ANDREW MARR: So you're not in favour of it but you're not, it's, it's part of the range of measures that you've got there?

HAZEL BLEARS: Well I think if you're a shopkeeper and you're absolutely desperate and you've had kids hanging around for months on end then maybe that's what you do. But it's not a long term solution. It might give you some temporary respite. But actually what you need to do is make sure that the area in which those young people live is safe for people to use and that means, does mean cracking down on antisocial behaviour, but also that the young people themselves have better things to do.

ANDREW MARR: The News of the World reports today that the government is moving on so called Sarah's Law issue. Basically giving more information about people who've been convicted of paedophile offences when they're perhaps want to have a relationship or work with children and so on. Can you tell us about that?

HAZEL BLEARS: Yeah I think it's a very good approach to do it with these pilots. I think step by step, carefully, let's see the response. As a politician I have always believed if you share information with people then they are likely to take a more mature, more rational approach. Maybe that's over optimistic. I don't know.

But I do believe that if you, if you do this carefully then people do have a right to know what's happening in their community and also a sense that they take some responsibility as well. So I will be fascinated to see the results of the pilot. What will be crucial here is how do you share that information. If it comes out in a kind of tabloid shock horror then you'll see some reaction. If it's carefully managed and people are treated with maturity and respect then I think it's a good thing to do.

ANDREW MARR: And let me ask you about your boss. Story that one Mr Gordon Brown is getting only two to three hours sleep, that he's working far too hard, that he's looking shattered and frankly ratty. You're up against him pretty closely, day after day. Is he shattered and ratty?

HAZEL BLEARS: He's certainly not ratty. I think he's pretty good tempered considering the stresses and strains he's under. I think he does work hard and ..

ANDREW MARR: Too hard?

HAZEL BLEARS: Well at Christmas I was delighted when he took two weeks off, had a holiday with his family. I think it helps all of us as politicians. You know we're not super human and we get tired. And I think it helps all of us if we have a bit of a break. Also gives us a bit of perspective. You know I look at the papers this morning. They don't frighten me quite as much as they did last week cos I had a few days off this week. So I think a bit of a blend is good for us.

ANDREW MARR: So do, and do you think he as it were getting on top of the job in a new way, that he, you know he found it too much to start with, all these huge pressures coming in from different, but he's, but he's now getting on top of it more?

HAZEL BLEARS: Well I don't have to do his job. Thank goodness. But the number of decisions, big decisions you have to take in that role is absolutely enormous. I think certainly the last few months I think our government is on track. I do think there's a sense of self confidence. I think there's better decision making. And I honestly think you know ..

ANDREW MARR: He needs to take more, put his feet up a little bit more often?

HAZEL BLEARS: Well you know we, we could all say that, but he's going to ...

ANDREW MARR: He won't, he won't like you, he won't like you saying it of course but ..

HAZEL BLEARS: He'll want to be in there you know enjoying and really relishing some of the decisions. But I think a balance in a politician's life, a bit of fun as well as a bit of hard work is probably the best place to be.

ANDREW MARR: Hazel Blears, thank you very much indeed for that.

INTERVIEW ENDS

Please note "The Andrew Marr Show" must be credited if any part of this transcript is used.

NB: This transcript was typed from a recording and not copied from an original script.

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