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First Move with Julia Chatterley
Positive Powell Replacing patient Powell, but Risks Remain; Britain's queue at Shops and Bars as England Reopens; Prime Minister Boris Johnson Delivers Tribute for Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Aired 9-10a ET
Aired April 12, 2021 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[09:00:09]
JULIA CHATTERLEY, CNN BUSINESS ANCHOR, FIRST MOVE: Live from New York, I'm Julia Chatterley. This is FIRST MOVE and here is your need to know.
Economic acceleration. Positive Powell replacing patient Powell, but risks remain.
Easing excitement. Britain's queue at shops and bars as England reopens.
And blockchain bonanza. We speak to the CEO of NFT marketplace, OpenSea.
It's Monday. Let's make a move.
Welcome once again to FIRST MOVE. Great to be with you. It's a new week that brings hopes of new records for global stock markets. They certainly
came fast and furious on Wall Street last week with volatility in fact, the lowest since the pandemic began.
And then came the Powell-driven pause. Fed Chair Jay Powell said in an interview on "60 Minutes" this weekend that the U.S. economy is quote, "at
an inflection point." He hinted at a strong rebound ahead in both growth and in job gains. Let's be clear, that is great news.
But the Fed Chief suddenly sounding more in tune with investors' expectations, too. Good for his credibility and for the Federal Reserve,
but you have to be careful what you wish for if it means tighter policy sooner rather than later, and that's the conundrum bond market investors
certainly set up. The yield on the 10-year treasuries ticking higher after easing for the last couple of weeks. But Powell did also mention risks to
that outlook. And they of course, remain potent.
Policy and the practicality of tackling the COVID virus have global implications.
Stocks across Asia-Pacific softer this morning. The rally in Alibaba shares overnight doing little to support sentiment across the markets there. The
e-commerce giant confirming a $2.8 billion fine from the Chinese government.
We'll call it a warning shot, I think, for the tech sector, but it was a case of sell on the rumor, buy on the fact. That stock still down 20
percent since November.
A mixed picture, meanwhile, across Europe, too. Some consolidation at record highs, perhaps U.K. investors are too busy shopping and visiting
pubs that reopened at midnight.
Yes, welcome to the England in the U.K. last night. We'll take you there for the latest, too. Lots to discuss. Let's get to the drivers.
As mentioned, the U.S. economy at an inflection point, that according to Fed chair Jay Powell, yesterday,
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEROME POWELL, U.S. FEDERAL RESERVE CHAIRMAN: We feel like we're at a place where the economy is about to start growing much more quickly and job
creation coming in much more quickly.
So the principal risk to our economy right now really is that the disease would spread again. You know, it's going to be smart if people can continue
to socially distance and wear masks.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHATTERLEY: Just last week, the Central Bank released minutes of its last meeting indicating it will be some time until we see substantial increases
in employment and inflation.
Christine Romans joins us now. Christine, great to have you with us. You've got to bear in mind the audience, of course for these types of interviews,
and you saw that with the mask wearing. But there's a tone shift here, and that was Jay Powell acknowledging upside potential in terms of growth and
in job recovery, which is important, too.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Which is what the market has been telling us and what the top economists have been saying
as they've been revising upwardly their growth expectations for this year.
Look, it's likely going to be the strongest year for the U.S. economy since Ronald Reagan was the President here, and that's what's sort of ginned up
all these concerns about inflation and some of those bad old days 30 years ago of inflation in the United States, but I don't hear a Fed Chief that is
still worried about that.
I still see him being patient on how strong the economy is creating inflation, saying we don't really need to do anything until we see the
numbers that show inflation is actually here and not just transitory inflation as that fun word in Fed Speak, but inflation that really lasts.
So you have a Fed Chief here who is saying that the economy is doing well. The inflection point, I think is sort of the new phrase that we're seeing.
But he is also saying they're not going to pull away the punchbowl anytime soon and that the virus is still a risk here.
He is more in line, I think with what a lot of Americans have been feeling. They are looking and seeing that the stock market is doing well and they
are hearing about how great the economy is, but they don't necessarily feel it yet, because they're still living in the world of COVID.
So he is acknowledging that yes, the economy is doing well and will probably continue to ramp up in terms of jobs growth, but you know, we
cannot sit on our laurels here in terms of our personal responsibilities.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, and I think it's important to your point, Christine that credibility thing. It is okay to acknowledge that things are picking up,
that jobs are being recovered, that we could see incredibly strong relative growth this year. I mean, eight to 10 percent growth, according to some
analyst predictions.
ROMANS: Yes.
CHATTERLEY: But at the same time, that doesn't mean, to your point, that they're going to pull away the support anytime soon, because there are
segment of the economy, and we talk about this all the time, that still need to recover.
ROMANS: Exactly.
CHATTERLEY: And balancing those two things is important as well for credibility.
[09:05:07]
ROMANS: I think you're absolutely right. I mean, look, they're trying to sell a big huge infrastructure package, maybe you know, trillions dollars
more to support the economy. So he has got to walk a fine line here in saying the economy is recovering, we're going to see job creation. This is
going to be a strong solid recovery. And at the same time explaining exactly why taxpayers have to borrow and spend more, right, to continue to
support the recovery here.
And we know the answer to that. The answer is you have a moment here with a rising tide where you can make important investments to make sure
inequality is not going to be a feature of the post-COVID economy and that's what they're trying to do and that's what they're trying to sell.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, I feel like we have to put inflection point in inverted commas and also, infrastructure in inverted commas, given the broad and
loose definition of that, not that we're necessarily complaining, but we just have to mark that point and keep marking it.
Christine, Happy Monday. Thank you for joining us.
All right, let's move on. Shares of Alibaba higher by six percent premarket. This, after the Chinese government imposed a whopping $2.8
billion fine, following an antitrust investigation into their activities. That's about four percent of the company's annual domestic sales, just to
give your perspective here. Many analysts say the announcement alleviated the uncertainty surrounding Alibaba and that's the critical point.
Will Ripley is live in Hong Kong with more for us. Will, great to have you with us. I think just a bit of clarity on what regulators were planning to
do as far as Alibaba is perhaps the sigh of relief that we're seeing in markets, but just talk us through what this announcement and this fine
involves.
WILL RIPLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This fine, Julia, could have been a heck of a lot bigger. Under China's antitrust law, they can actually
find a company up to 10 percent of its annual revenue, like Qualcomm back in 2015 got an eight percent fine.
So this was letting Alibaba off easily and probably because the company, at least in its public statements has expressed remorse and gratitude to the
Chinese regulators because this investigation, which began on Christmas Eve, and remember, when Jack Ma, the Alibaba founder made that really
controversial speech back in October.
He was criticizing China's regulatory process saying it was outdated. He then vanished from public view. He didn't even appear on the last episode
of his reality show. And this investigation, which was launched on Christmas Eve, and has lasted nearly four months has wiped billions of
dollars, more than $10 billion off of his own personal fortune.
So now that there is certainty that this is the price that Alibaba will pay, a hefty sum, but pales in comparison to the investors that pulled away
from the company because they were worried about what this would mean. And what this does mean, according to analysts is that this is a new era for
China's Big Tech companies.
After years of being allowed to take this really freewheeling approach, China is now saying that you cannot abuse your market position, that's what
Alibaba was accused of doing, basically intimidating vendors and individual sellers to use their platforms and not use others.
Because Alibaba runs Taobao, which is where merchants sell directly to customers and then also Tmall, which is a business to customer setup. So
between those two companies, they were deemed to have essentially a monopoly, and that's why they're now paying this fine and vowing, Julia, to
change their ways.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, it's fascinating, isn't it? I mean, it dwarfs the previous record, which was just shy of a billion dollars given to Qualcomm,
I believe back in in 2015. It feels like a long time ago now, but when I look at the response from Alibaba, there's recognition, I think, a graceful
acknowledgement of what they got here, and perhaps what they didn't get in terms of scale.
RIPLEY: It is striking to see a company that is so valuable and powerful to put out statements like the one that they did, and I'll read you some of
it.
CHATTERLEY: Right.
RIPLEY: It says, "Alibaba accepts the penalty with sincerity and will encourage its compliance with determination to serve its responsibility to
society. Alibaba will operate in accordance with the law with utmost diligence, continue to strengthen its compliance systems and build on
growth through innovation."
And they put out an open letter as well to their staff, to their customers and their shareholders basically saying the same thing, telling there is a
new starting point for the company saying, "Alibaba would not have achieved our growth without sound government regulation and service and the critical
oversight tolerance and support from all of our constituencies have been crucial to our development. For this we are full of gratitude and respect."
This was the Chinese government laying down the law and for others in the marketplace, seeing Alibaba showed this much contrition is a warning shot
for them that they need to change their ways and self-correct before government regulators step in.
And I would imagine, Julia, that the United States and E.U. regulators who themselves are struggling to rein in Big Tech might be looking very closely
at how China did this.
CHATTERLEY: China is a very different marketplace. Will Ripley, thank you so much for that.
All right, England celebrating today as it takes a giant stride out of a strict national lockdown that's been in place since January the 6th. Gyms,
hairdressers, zoos, salons, open air restaurants and pubs with gardens all open today for the first time in months.
Joining us is Anna Stewart. I say today, Anna, great to have you with us, but didn't have pubs open at midnight? Gardens opened at midnight and there
were queues, I believe outside Prime Mark in Birmingham?
Yes, the English know what they're doing. Talk us through it.
ANNA STEWART, CNN REPORTER: We have been waiting for this moment, Julia, for over three months now.
CHATTERLEY: I know.
STEWART: I can promise you I wasn't in the pub at midnight. This one hadn't reopened yet, in fact, it has only been open now for about two
hours. And honestly, Julia, it's a really heartwarming feeling watching the landlords welcome back all their regulars. It has been a really long
lockdown, but it's only outside and it was snowing just a few hours ago.
So it's been a very chilly first pint. You know, it's been an expensive investment for all of these different breweries. Pubs can only reopen if
they have outdoor space. They've had to put all sorts of COVID safety measures in place.
It's a brilliant first step, though, and a real morale boost for people. This was a real, I think almost like a logical step in people's minds.
Getting back to the pub, a real pillar of the community, seeing your friends and having a pint -- Julia.
CHATTERLEY: And a stark contrast, I think with what's going on in Europe, far less or far greater restrictions in the U.K. than other countries when
you look at the likes of France, of Germany, and obviously, now, they're struggling.
But of course, the difference in vaccine distribution as well a critical component of actually being able to do this, Anna.
You touched on something there, though, that I think it's important for all the benefits and the excitement of being open. It's a huge struggle for
some businesses that perhaps even with the restrictions that remain, it's tough to break even.
STEWART: It's a great milestone. It's a turning point for many businesses. So many have been frankly on life support on various government loan
schemes, and a furlough scheme and so on. But yes, today is only for hospitality, for instance, outdoors that goes for restaurants, for cafes,
and for pubs, and that means it's almost like a two-speed recovery, which is something that the CEO of U.K. Hospitality, the trade body representing
it was keen to talk about earlier. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KATE NICHOLLS, CEO, UKHOSPITALITY: This is only outdoor hospitality. So we know two in five of our businesses have some outside space, but not all of
those will be reopening. Because unless they've got good footfall, unless they've got a large customer base, it isn't going to be worth their while.
And for those that are opening, they are going to be losing money by doing so. They're only going to be generating 20 percent of their normal revenue
levels.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEWART: And 12,000 businesses within hospitality, Julia, are never going to open again, the real tragedy of this crisis, but today, nothing could
dampen the spirits I think of those still very keen to take the first sip of a cold beer in a very, very cold outdoor space -- Julia.
CHATTERLEY: Cold beer in the snow in a beer garden. Yes. That is true. Thank you for that.
All right, breaking news this morning, Microsoft is set to buy AI and speech technology company, Nuance Communications. Let's get some more
nuanced on this from Clare Sebastian. Sorry, I couldn't help myself, Clare, probably stolen your joke, too. Talk us through the contours of this deal.
CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so this had been rumored for the past few days, Julia. This, obviously coming as we see telehealth
and virtual health services really boom during the pandemic.
Nuance Communications is a company that provides AI-Cloud based solutions, voice recognition in particular, and in particular to the healthcare
industry. Now, we know that Microsoft has been really gunning to be the number one Cloud provider for that industry since even before the pandemic,
so this very much fits in with that strategy.
As for the deal, $19.7 billion is what it is worth. It's all cash, including debt, a 23 percent premium on Nuance's closing price on Friday,
although the stock is now up about that much premarket today. Microsoft itself about flat premarket.
So that really shows that the investors think, a pretty neutral on the price here. They think this is probably what it is worth. But very
interesting, because Nuance is one of those companies that is sort of out there doing a lot of things that we all use, but we've never heard of them.
They were one of the original partners with Apple on providing voice recognition technology for Siri that might be something that most of us
have heard of, and they've become very successful in the healthcare space there.
Now, according to the press release this morning, they are used by 55 percent of physicians, 75 percent of radiologists in the U.S. and 77
percent of hospitals.
So this is a big prize for Microsoft. It's their second biggest acquisition ever after the $24 billion acquisition of LinkedIn in 2016.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, Microsoft pushing growth by acquisition and then to your point, Clare, $16 billion deal. We've heard of them now.
Clare Sebastian, thank you so much for that.
All right, let me bring you up to speed now with some of the other stories making headlines around the world.
India is reporting a record high number of COVID-19 cases for the sixth straight day with nearly 169,000 new infections. And there are concerns it
could get worse. As many as five million visitors are expected to attend a Hindu Festival that health officials say could turn into a super spreader
event.
[09:15:08]
CHATTERLEY: Iran blaming Israel for an attack on its main nuclear site and vowing to take revenge. A Natanz facility was hit by a power outage Sunday
that Iran's Nuclear Chief called a quote, "terrorist act."
An Iranian news agency says authorities have identified a person involved in an act of sabotage, giving no further details.
Still to come here on FIRST MOVE, we meet the doctor in Brazil who says President Bolsonaro has played on the side of the virus as the COVID crisis
escalates to new levels.
And with the global chip shortage threatening the U.S. auto and tech sector, Google, Samsung, TSMC and others head to the White House with top
level talks.
Stay with us. That's all coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHATTERLEY: Welcome back to FIRST MOVE where U.S. markets are set to open a touch lower here, a pause at pretty lofty levels after Jerome Powell
spoke about the U.S. economic recovery in more optimistic terms than he has done before that.
In his "60 Minutes" interview over the weekend, the rational, but irrational fear is that it could mean reduced support or interest rates
rising earlier than expected. You can see, it is touch lower here by some two tenths of one percent.
We're also forced to focus on fundamentals this week with earnings from banks like JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, and Wells Fargo reporting first quarter
earnings and there's also a much anticipated stock market debut for the crypto exchange Coinbase Global. That's on Wednesday, and we'll be
following that.
In the meantime, let's bring it back to one of our top stories. Hospitals packed, critical supplies running low and record numbers of people dying.
The COVID pandemic in Brazil is being described as out of control by people on the ground there.
The Health Ministry says more than 4,000 COVID deaths are reported in a 24- hour period last week, a tragic new high. Total cases are now well above 13 million people affected. This, as new research estimates 19 million people
in Brazil have gone hungry in recent months.
[09:20:15]
CHATTERLEY: My next guest is a doctor who's been on the front line of the crisis having coordinated Brazil's largest COVID-19 scientific taskforce.
Dr. Miguel Nicolelis joins us from Sao Paulo. Sir, great to have you on the show. You've discussed and described what's going on in Brazil as like
being a World War II battlefield. I mean, that's a graphic image. Just give us a sense of what the healthcare workers there are dealing with.
DR. MIGUEL NICOLELIS, PROFESSOR OF NEUROBIOLOGY, DUKE UNIVERSITY: Oh, hi, Julia. Thank you for the invitation. Yes, the metaphor is pretty
appropriate because, as you said, we have packed hospitals, we are running low on basic medications and supplies of oxygen to the ICUs and we have
record numbers of patients coming to the hospitals every day.
And in fact, we had just last week, the deadliest week of the entire pandemic year here in Brazil.
So we are expected to close the month of April with anything between 80,000 to 100,000 deaths in the month, which is, you know, if you would ask me six
months ago, I wouldn't believe that that amount of people could be dying in Brazil in that 30-day period.
So, it's pretty, pretty desperate now.
CHATTERLEY: It's unimaginable, and I think the point that you've also underscored and that people need to understand and particularly resiliency
to understand, this is not just people who are elderly. This is not just people that have preexisting conditions. Younger people are getting sick.
Women that are pregnant getting ill as well and having their children early.
I mean, we need to understand the scale of the tragedy that's going on here.
NICOLELIS: Yes, that is a very good point. I mean, we had over the weekend, new statistics showing that hospitals are packed with younger
people, much younger than during the first wave and we have record deaths in pregnant women.
And neonatal ICUs are packed in some locations in Brazil because of this epidemic. It is almost like a silent epidemic of premature births because
women -- pregnant women are getting infected and the coronavirus is generating traumatic events, particularly in the placenta and leading to
premature deliveries, and babies are born and going directly to the ICU. So, it is a nightmare from every point of view you look at.
CHATTERLEY: Dr. Nicolelis, you've been advising state governments on how to respond. Is your prescription here immediate lockdown? Because it's
clearly something that President Bolsonaro has resisted, at all cost.
NICOLELIS: Oh, absolutely. I have been proposing these with my colleagues since late December, and on January 4th, I made a national warning that
either Brazil would go into a national lockdown and ramp up their rollout of vaccination, you know, at least two to three times what we are doing now
or we will not be able to deal with, you know, the fatalities, with the bodies literally down here.
And unfortunately, the Federal government has been completely deaf to any warnings coming from scientists or medical personnel down here in Brazil,
who are clearly begging for a national lockdown and other measures that could be implemented immediately.
CHATTERLEY: I mentioned -- and I mentioned it for a purpose that our report suggested that 19 million people are struggling to feed themselves
in Brazil. There is the argument, and we've had this conversation for nations all around the world that the challenge of a lockdown is that
people lose their jobs. They're struggling to feed their families and at times that threat perhaps is bigger than the risk of COVID than what the
country is seeing there.
Do you understand the balance that has to be found? Or are we beyond the point of being able to make those kinds of judgment calls when, as you say,
and it's graphic, but it's true that the bodies are stacking up?
NICOLELIS: Yes. No, I do understand. And we have studied these in our committee. You know, I was there for a year and we did these studies, and
it is clear, the Brazilians should not have to choose between dying of hunger or dying of the virus.
CHATTERLEY: Right.
NICOLELIS: The Federal government would have done much better in terms of providing Brazilians with financial help to stay at home for at least a 30-
day lockdown, that's our proposal down here.
Brazil has, you know, very large international reserves and we could have used some of it to provide a financial help to the people who need it to
stay at home but the Federal government again, refuse to even consider these studies that have been produced by top economists around Brazil,
suggesting that that choice, it didn't need to be the focal point.
We could have had a national lockdown without starving the economy or people.
[09:25:09]
CHATTERLEY: Do you think anything here changes President Bolsonaro's mind?
NICOLELIS: Yes. Pressure. Pressure from the international community. He responds to pressure because he is extremely fearful of what can come from
the international community. And right now, just last week, I don't know if you heard, the Supreme Court has demanded that a Parliamentary Inquiry be
started in the Senate to evaluate the conduct of the Federal government, in particular, the President during the pandemic.
So he is under a tremendous amount of pressure from within, but pressure from outside could help a lot of the Brazilians.
CHATTERLEY: Do you see Brazil as a threat to the rest of the world? We know that when a virus is running out of control, it raises the risk of new
variants developing and obviously, variants that the current vaccines that are being used around the world haven't necessarily been tested against.
And we don't know how they'll perform, because we don't even know what variants are being created.
Brazil needs to be recognized as a threat to the rest of the world. Would you agree with that?
NICOLELIS: Oh, absolutely. Oh, absolutely. You know, as much as that pains me to say that because you know, as a Brazilian, I love this country, and I
know that the Brazilian people don't want to be a threat to the world.
The country is right now, because of the way the government is handling the situation. So when you see India is skyrocketing in terms of cases and
Brazil, both countries having above, you know, or around 100,000 cases a day, what you see is the total opportunity for huge numbers of mutations to
take place and then new variants to emerge.
We are getting a variant a week down here, and some of them are pretty scary because for instance, two weeks ago, we heard about a variant in the
State of Sao Paulo that is very similar to the South African variant, which as you know, does not respond to the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, for
instance.
So, it is a very concerning situation not only to Brazilians, for the entire world, and I keep saying, unless Brazil is under control, the
pandemic around the world is not going to be under control.
CHATTERLEY: Yes. Keep fighting for change. Sir, I know you're trying to protect lives.
Dr. Miguel Nicolelis there from Sao Paulo. Sir, stay safe. Thank you.
Okay, we're back after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:30:34]
CHATTERLEY: Welcome back to FIRST MOVE.
The House of Commons is observing a minute's silence to honor the late Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.
We have images from outside of London where any moment, too, the Prime Minister Boris Johnson will deliver an address before Parliament. He is
also expected to honor the Duke of Edinburgh for his decades of service ahead of Saturday's planned funeral.
Let's get live to Windsor now with CNN's Cyril Vanier.
Cyril, obviously we're expecting lawmakers in the Houses of Parliament to pay tribute to the life of the Duke of Edinburgh today, too. And of course
we've had tributes coming in from his family, his children, his grandchildren, too, over the past couple of days.
CYRIL VANIER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. The members of both Houses of Parliament, House of Common and House of Lords were back in session today,
a day earlier than had been scheduled in order to pay tribute to His Royal Highness, the late Duke of Edinburgh and the British Prime Minister Boris
Johnson will lead them in tributes.
There will be a minute of silence, much like minutes of silence we will see Saturday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. U.K. time that will really kick off the
funeral for the Duke of Edinburgh.
But as you've said, we have over the last few days, since the announcement of the death heard from the family and really we've heard from them in
stages. On Saturday, we heard from Prince Charles, the heir to the throne, Prince of Wales, who referred to his Dear Papa someone who would be greatly
missed.
Then on Saturday, we heard from the other children of the Duke of Edinburgh, Princess Anne, Princess Edward -- Prince Edward, I beg your
pardon, Prince Andrew, who explained and gave us a window into how the Queen is feeling, something we rarely hear about and he said that she had
described the passing of Prince Philip as having left a huge void in her life.
And now that the children have spoken, now that the Queen has indirectly spoken, well, today is the day for the grandchildren to also reveal a
little bit about how they feel and we have just in the last few minutes heard from the Duke of Cambridge, Prince William, second in line to the
throne and I'll read you a part of his statement.
He said: "I feel lucky to have not just had his example to guide me, but his enduring presence well into my own adult life both through good times
and the hardest days. I will always be grateful that my wife had so many years to get to know my grandfather and for the kindness he showed her. I
will never take for granted the special memories my children will always have of their Great Grandpa coming to collect them in his carriage and
seeing for themselves his infectious sense of adventure, as well as his mischievous sense of humor."
And the colorful character that he was always comes up in the tributes that his family, children and grandchildren have been paying to him since the
announcement of his passing.
And that first line that I read you about the gratitude of Prince William that he has been able to enjoy his grandfather for so many years is
something also that the Royal Family has stressed since Friday, that you know, I think they understand, they realize that this has been a pandemic
year where many people have lost relatives prematurely and they know that the Duke of Edinburgh was 99 years old, two months shy of his 100th
birthday and they were lucky to have him for as long as they did.
And to see him essentially dying of old age, in fact, the Queen herself according to her son, Prince Andrew said it was a miracle, the manner of
his passing, passing gently and peacefully in his sleep. So that is something that also has been acknowledged by the Royals since Friday, and I
think now that Prince William has spoken, we can expect probably statements from the Sussexes, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, shortly -- Julia.
CHATTERLEY: And Cyril, and on that exact point, reports suggests that Harry has now arrived in the U.K. He has arrived alone without his wife. We
believe that doctors in California said they prefer her not to travel.
But I think this now is the moment where we all wonder whether perhaps the break that's been seen in the family can perhaps be in some way mended over
the loss of someone so important to them.
Actually, we're going to break in now, I believe, because the House of Commons is holding a minute of silence.
[09:35:00]
SIR LINDSAY HOYLE, SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM: We meet today to pay tribute to the Duke of Edinburgh, who has been at the
side of Her Majesty, the Queen for more than seven decades giving his unwavering support both as a husband, and as a consort.
Described by Her Majesty as "My strength, and my stay," for most of us, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, has always been there, providing this
nation with a reassuring presence.
Whether it's with such dignity attending the formal occasions when the Queen attended Parliament for the state opening or visiting different
places within the U.K., or an overseas country, his support and loyalty was always clearly displayed.
He was the longest serving consort in history and the oldest partner of a serving monarch. He never let the Queen die.
His passing also marks the end of an era as one of the last surviving heroes of the Second World War, serving as an officer in the Royal Navy
with distinction and heavily decorated for his bravery and long service.
A qualified pilots, he gained his helicopter wings, became Admiral of the Fleet for over 50 years. He helped to design the Royal yacht, Britannia. He
visited troops in Iraq and traveled with the Queen throughout the Commonwealth and overseas territories, and only stepped down from official
role duties at the age of 96.
Outspoken with a great sense of humor, he wasn't afraid of talking goldenly about issues that were close to him.
He will be remembered for his loyal devotion to service and his leadership of the hundreds of causes close to his heart. Perhaps, his finest
achievement was the Duke of Edinburgh's Award, which helped millions of young people around the world to achieve their full potential as team
members and future leaders in their chosen field.
As a modernizer and public reformer, he always promoted the latest in engineering and design; as a pioneer in World Wildlife Fund, he traveled
widely to secure the public interest in the nature and its protection. His sporting interest was wide ranging.
As a sailor, he regularly attended Cowes week for the Regatta. He was a cricket enthusiast and the player. He also took part in horse riding and
performed as a top polo player.
He was a winner for Britain, too, at the carriage driving, which he took up later in life.
In March 2011, the Duke accompanied the Queen to Parliament for the Diamond Jubilee celebrations. I had the pleasure of introducing him to groups of
members waiting to greet him.
I remember his interest about ties members were wearing particularly if it showed the connection with the Armed Forces. He also had a special ability
to put people at ease.
As we reflect on a life well-lived, we should not forget the wide ranging achievements of Prince Philip. The ambassador, the serviceman, the
scientist, artist, naturalist, committee Chairman, traveler, loyal supporter of the United Kingdom, the overseas territories and the
Commonwealth.
But we should always remember him as a family man, a devoted husband, a father, a grandfather, a great grandfather. He was without doubt, the
father of the nation.
He will surely be missed and impossible to replace.
GROUP: Hear, hear.
HOYLE: I now call the Prime Minister: Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
[09:40:07]
BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: Mr. Speaker, I beg to move that a humble address be presented to Her Majesty, expressing the deepest
sympathies of this House on the death of His Royal Highness, the Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh and the heartfelt thanks of this House and this
nation for his unfailing dedication to this country, and the Commonwealth, exemplified in his distinguished service in the Royal Navy in the Second
World War, his commitments to young people in setting up the Duke of Edinburgh's Award, a scheme, which has touched the lives of millions across
the globe. His early passionate commitment to the environment, and his unstinting support to Your Majesty throughout his life.
Mr. Speaker, it is fitting that on Saturday, His Royal Highness, The Duke of Edinburgh will be conveyed to his final resting place in a Land Rover
which Prince Philip designed himself with a long wheelbase and capacious rear cabin, because that vehicle's unique and idiosyncratic silhouette
reminds the world that he was, above all, a practical man who could take something very traditional, whether a machine or indeed a great national
institution and find a way by his own ingenuity to improve it, to adapt it for the 20th and the 21st Century.
That gift for innovation was apparent from his earliest career in the Navy. When he served in the Second World War, he was mentioned in dispatches for
his alertness and appreciation of the situation during the Battle of Cape Matapan, and he played a crucial role in helping to sink two enemy
cruisers.
But it was later during the invasion of Sicily that he was especially remembered by his crewmates for what he did to save their own ship in a
moment of high danger at night, when HMS Wallace was vulnerable to being blown up by enemy planes. He improvised a floating decoy, complete with
fires to make it look like a stricken British vessel so that the Wallace was able to slip away, and the enemy took out the decoy.
He was there at Tokyo Bay in 1945, barely 200 yards away from the Japanese surrender on the deck of USS Missouri. But he wasn't content just to watch
history through his binoculars.
It seems that he used the lull to get on with repainting the hull of HMS Wilk. And throughout his life, a life that was of necessity, wrapped from
such a young age, in symbol and ceremony, one can see that same instinct to look for what was most useful for what was most practical and what would
take things forward.
He was one of the first people in this country to use a mobile phone. In the 1970s, he was driving an electric taxi on the streets of London, the
forerunner of the modern low carbon fleet, and again, a vehicle of his own specifications.
He wasn't content just to be a carriage driver, he played a large part in pioneering and codifying the sport of competitive carriage driving and if
it is true, Mr. Speaker, that carriage driving is not a mass participation sport, not yet.
He had other novel ideas that touched the lives of millions develop their character and confidence, their teamwork and self-reliance. It was amazing
and instructive to listen on Friday to the Cabinet's tributes to the Duke and to hear how many of them were proud to say that they or their children
had benefited from taking part in his Duke of Edinburgh's Award schemes.
I will leave it to the House to speculate as to who claimed to have got a Gold Award and who got a Bronze. But I believe those Ministers spoke for
millions around the world across this country, who felt that the Duke had in some way touched their lives, people whose work he supported in the
course of an astonishing 22,219 public engagements, people he encouraged and people, yes that he amused.
[09:45:02]
JOHNSON: It is true that he occasionally drove a coach and horses through the finer points of diplomatic protocol and he coined a new word,
"Dontopedalogy" for the experience of putting your foot in your mouth.
And it is also true, Mr. Speaker that amongst his more parliamentary expressions, he commented adversely on the French concept of breakfast. He
told a British student in Papua New Guinea that he was lucky not to be eaten, and the people of the Cayman Islands that they were descended from
pirates, and that he would like to go to Russia, except that, as he put it, "the bastards murdered half my family."
Mr. Speaker, the world did not hold it against him. On the contrary, they overwhelmingly understood that he was trying to break the ice, to get
things moving, to get people laughing, and to forget their nerves.
And to this day, there is a community in the Pacific Islands that venerates Prince Philip as a god or a volcano spirit, a conviction that was actually
strengthened when the group came to London to have tea with him in person.
When he spoke so feelingly about the problems of overpopulation and humanity's relentless incursion on the natural world and the consequent
destruction of habitat and species, he contrived to be at once politically incorrect, and also ahead of his time.
In a quite unparalleled career of advice and encouragement, and support. He provided one particular service, that I believe we, in the House know in
our hearts, was the very greatest of all.
In the constant love, he gave to Her Majesty, the Queen, as her liegeman of life and limb, in the words he spoke at the coronation, he sustained her
throughout this extraordinary second Elizabethan age, now, the longest reign of any monarch in our history.
It was typical of him that in wooing Her Majesty, famously, not short of a duel or two, he offered jewelry of his own design. He dispensed with a
footman in powdered wigs, he introduced television cameras, and at family picnics in Balmoral, he would barbecue the sausages on a large metal
contraption that all Prime Ministers must have gobbled at for decades, complete with rotisserie and compartments for the sauces that was once
again, Mr. Speaker, a product of his own invention and creation.
Indeed, as an advocate of skills, and craft, and science, and technology, this country has had no Royal champion to match him since Prince Albert,
and I know that in due course, the House and the country will want to consider a suitable memorial to Prince Philip.
It is with that same spirit of innovation that is coherent of the Royal Family he shaped and protected the monarchy through all the vicissitudes of
the last seven decades, and helped to modernize and continually to adapt an institution that is above politics that incarnates our history, and it is
indisputably vital to the balance and happiness of our national life.
By his tireless unstinting service to the queen, the Commonwealth, the Armed Forces, the environment, to millions of young people and not so young
people around the world, and to countless other causes, he gave us and he gives us all a model of selflessness and putting others before ourselves.
And, though I suspect, Mr. Speaker, that he might be embarrassed or even fatally exasperated to receive these tributes, he made this country a
better place and for that, he will be remembered with gratitude and with fondness for generations to come.
GROUP: Hear, hear.
HOYLE: The question is, the humble address be presented to Her Majesty as will be ordered.
CHATTERLEY: We will leave the House of Commons there, a warm heartfelt tribute, I think from Prime Minister Boris Johnson, saying that the Duke of
Edinburgh was a conservationist, an innovator, an inventor, a leader, a war hero, but most of all in his greatest life achievement, I think sustaining
the Queen through the second Elizabethan era.
[09:50:07]
CHATTERLEY: I want to bring Cyril Vanier back in. That was what we were expecting Cyril and those tributes will continue to come in.
We've also had, as we were expecting and discussing earlier, a tribute from his grandson, too, Harry. Just talk us through what he had to say, a
heartfelt tribute there, too.
VANIER: Yes, you know, the whole week, Julia, is really going to be dedicated to celebrating his life. There is -- there is grief, of course,
but I think all parts whether it's the Houses of Parliament or the family want to celebrate his life, and that's what you heard in the speech by
Boris Johnson. That's also what is obvious, I think, in the statement that we have just received by Prince Harry, which follows the statement I read
you a short while ago, this one by Prince William.
So here's what Prince Harry had to say. Here's a quote. "He will be remembered as the longest reigning consort to the monarch, a decorated
serviceman, a Prince and a Duke. But to me, like many of you who have lost a loved one or grandparent over the pain of this past year, he was my
Grandpa, Master of the barbecue, legend of banter, and cheeky right till the end."
That I think Julia encapsulates how his family will remember the Duke of Edinburgh, especially his colorful character, the British Prime Minister,
Boris Johnson referred to it, and his service. His personality and his service, I think that in a nutshell is the Duke of Edinburgh -- Julia.
CHATTERLEY: Yes. And while I could go on, I know that right now, he would say to all of us, beer in hand. Oh, do get on with it. Kind of magical.
Cyril, thank you for that. Cyril Vanier, live from Windsor. Many thanks for that. We're back after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHATTERLEY: The Japanese Prime Minister congratulating Hideki Matsuyama on his historic victory at the Masters. The golfer is the first Japanese
player to win any of the major championships in men's golf. Selina Wang has all the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Matsuyama is Japan's first Masters Champion.
SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Golfing history is made, the first Japanese and Asian man wins the world's most important golf
tournament, 29-year-old Hideki Matsuyama entered the week as the 25th ranked golfer in the world, he has now shot right to the top.
For golf obsessed Japan, being awarded the famous Masters green jacket is a dream come true.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Congratulations, Hideki.
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA, FIRST JAPANESE MASTERS CHAMPION: Thank you.
MATSUYAMA (through translator): What a thrill and an honor it's going to be to take the green jacket back to Japan.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In the Land of the Rising Sun.
WANG (voice over): With this win, Matsuyama becomes the first Japanese golfer to win any of the four major championships in men's golf.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I also cry.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I just couldn't stop crying. The teardrops wouldn't stop coming down
[09:55:05]
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I was crying and I didn't even notice I was crying. He gave big hope and dream to children, future
golfers.
WANG (voice over): But being thrust into the limelight is not comfortable for Matsuyama. The humble spirit of his team on display when his caddy made
a respectful bow after the final winning shot on Sunday.
ANDY YAMANAKA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, JAPAN GOLF ASSOCIATION: Well, he doesn't speak much, and he doesn't carry a lot of smiles. He always
concentrates or focus on his game.
He's always the last player to remain on the driving range during his tournament times.
WANG (voice over): Matsuyama has been a celebrity in Japan for years, even playing a round with former President Trump during a visit to Tokyo, but he
has remained a mystery on the international stage.
WANG (on camera): Here in Japan, Matsuyama's father introduced him to golf when he was just four years old. In 2011, he became the first Japanese
amateur to compete at the Masters, turning pro two years later.
But in the past few years, he has been struggling, unable to win. Matsuyama says hiring a swing coach recently has made a big difference to his game.
WANG (voice over): His surprise victory prompted messages of congratulations from around the world, including from one of his idols,
Tiger Woods.
MATSUYAMA (through translator): I have a lot of great memories watching the Masters as a young boy. First time I watched, Tiger Woods was the
winner. I was always dreaming someday I could play here.
WANG (voice over): It's a big week for golf in Japan after 17-year-old, Tsubasa Kajitani won the Augusta National Women's Amateur tournament a week
ago. These two results will give a boost for Japan's sporting prowess in a vital year.
Matsuyama is expected to become a key figurehead at the Olympics and he is also predicted to make up to $8 million in future income following this
historic win.
Selina Wang, CNN, Tokyo.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHATTERLEY: Wow. That's a lot of money. Congratulations to Matsuyama there and congratulations to Japan.
That's it for the show. Stay safe. "Connect the World" is up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:00:00]
END
