00:00 The annual state opening of Parliament. Centuries of political and royal tradition, but taking place in 2023 with a new monarch and a new prime minister.
00:11 Charles III left Buckingham Palace this morning for his first address in the House of Lords as Sovereign.
00:18 After decades of the Queen's Speech, today was the first King's Speech since George VI in 1950.
00:25 Then from Buckingham Palace, attended by a Sovereign's Escort, the King and Queen, wearing full state robes, drove in the Irish coach to open the new Parliament.
00:35 Spectacle and pageantry provide much of the attraction of the state opening of Parliament.
00:40 But politics were not in people's minds at this moment. They were there to see and to cheer.
00:45 But this year's King's Speech is widely expected to be the last before the next general election.
00:51 An early glimpse then at the Conservative Party's manifesto.
00:55 Does the King's Speech address the real issues, Prime Minister?
00:58 21 new laws would be announced in Rishi Sunak's first state opening of Parliament.
01:03 My Lords, pray be seated.
01:06 Here are the five key takeaways from an historic King's Speech.
01:11 Number one. Energy.
01:13 The government is looking to the North Sea for its oil and gas supply in a bid to reduce the UK's dependency on foreign regimes for energy.
01:22 After the war between Russia and Ukraine drove up the cost of oil and gas.
01:27 For the King, a long-standing environmentalist, this was perhaps the most difficult announcement to make.
01:34 This bill will support the future licensing of new oil and gas fields,
01:41 helping the country to transition to net zero by 2050 without adding undue burdens on households.
01:49 Number two. Law and order.
01:52 A bill will be brought forward to ensure tougher sentences for the most serious offenders and increase the confidence of victims.
02:01 The sentencing bill will see whole life orders handed down in the worst cases of murder,
02:07 and ensure serious sexual offenders are not released early on licence.
02:11 A new criminal justice bill will include measures to make serious offenders appear in the dark to face their victims for sentencing.
02:20 Number three. Rail.
02:22 My government will invest in Network North to deliver faster and more reliable journeys between and within the cities and towns of the North and Midlands.
02:35 After controversially scrapping the Birmingham to Manchester leg of HS2,
02:40 the government says it wants £36 billion, originally ring-fenced for the high-speed rail line, to be spent on journeys that people make most often.
02:50 Number four. Education.
02:53 Steps will be taken to ensure young people have the knowledge and skills to succeed,
02:59 through the introduction of the advanced British standard that will bring technical and academic routes into a single qualification.
03:08 The advanced British standard is intended to replace A-levels, requiring 16 to 18-year-olds to study five subjects, one of which must be maths.
03:19 The government says it wants to reduce the number of young people studying poor-quality degrees,
03:24 and increase the number taking high-quality apprenticeships.
03:28 Number five. Smoking.
03:30 My government will introduce legislation to create a smoke-free generation by restricting the sale of tobacco,
03:39 so that children currently aged 14 or younger can never be sold cigarettes,
03:46 and restricting the sale and marketing of e-cigarettes to children.
03:51 This legislation means anyone born on or after January 1st, 2009 will never be able to buy cigarettes in England in their lifetime,
04:01 as the legal smoking age will be raised by one year every year.
04:05 The government says the move could see smoking phased out completely among young people by 2040.
04:11 I pray that the blessing of Almighty God may rest upon your counsels.
04:18 For many of the MPs gathered in the Upper House today, this will be their last King's Speech.
04:24 Rishi Sunak will be hoping that it will not be his last as Prime Minister.
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