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Quest Means Business
Germanwings Copilot Rehearsed Before Fatal Crash; UK Vote Too Close to Call; Israel's Netanyahu Forms New Coalition Government; EU Plans "Digital Single Market"; European Markets End Volatile Day Higher; US Markets Close Lower
Aired May 06, 2015 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:00] (NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE CLOSING BELL)
RICHARD QUEST, HOST: A down day on Wall Street. The Dow Jones is off the best part of some 100 points as the closing bell is ringing. Time for
the gavel, sir.
(GAVEL HITS)
QUEST: That is a wimpy gavel on Wednesday, the 6th of May.
Tonight, we bring you the disturbing details of the Germanwings crash. The chief investigator tells me airline pilots' mental health, they must be
addressed.
It's all over but the voting. Lord Lamont tells me the future of Britain is at stake this election.
And let's get down and digital. Brussels wants to take on Silicon Valley.
I'm Richard Quest. I mean business.
Good evening. We begin tonight with disturbing and chilling findings on the Germanwings crash that killed 150 people. A report -- the
preliminary report from the French investigative authority shows that the copilot, Andreas Lubitz, practiced manipulating the altitude settings on
the aircraft during his previous flight only a few hours before the flight that he took down into the Alps.
The revelation leaves little room of doubt that Lubitz deliberately crashed the Airbus A320. CNN's Fred Pleitgen has a closer look at the
preliminary report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): About a month and a half after the Germanwings crash, the interim report into the incident seems to shed additional light into the amount of
planning copilot Andreas Lubitz did before steering the jet into the French Alps, killing all 150 on board.
The initial findings indicate that Lubitz practiced the crash during the flight immediately preceding the one in which he crashed the plane.
"Just before the descent, the captain went out of the cockpit," the lead investigator says, "and the copilot, while he was alone, manipulated
the altitude selection button on the autopilot to take it to 100 feet, so he was practicing the same action he made for the crash."
When Lubitz crashed Germanwings 9525, he set the autopilot to 100 feet until it hit the mountains. In the preceding flight, he briefly did
something similar. The interim reports states the selected altitude decreased to 100 feet for three seconds and then increased to the maximum
value of 49,000 feet and stabilized again at 35,000 feet.
Neither air traffic control nor the captain noticed the irregularities in the plane's flight. Investigators believe that's because the plane was
already in the process of descending when Lubitz played with the controls.
"The captain didn't notice anything because the action by the copilot during the outbound flight was made during a normal and programmed descent,
so it didn't have any impact on the plane's trajectory."
Lubitz crashed the jet on the next flight. German police later discovered that he'd researched suicide methods and the locking mechanism
of the cockpit door online. The interim report also shows that air traffic control attempted to contact Flight 9525 11 times on three different
frequencies before it crashed.
Copilot Andreas Lubitz never answered these calls or reacted to the captain banging on the cockpit door in vain as he steered the plane to its
tragic end.
Fred Pleitgen, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: And this is from the report, and it shows you those altitude adjustments and changes that Lubitz did on the flight from Dusseldorf down
to Barcelona. Here you have where the captain left the cockpit. This is where he has the first go at manipulating -- it's only 3 seconds. He takes
the autopilot down to 100 feet, and the up to 49,000 feet.
And then there's a period of sort of stability, and then he does it again for 1 minute 47 seconds. He sets the autopilot altitude for 100
feet, then -- he manipulated this several different things before putting it as the captain renters the cockpit.
So, that is what he did. The passengers would not have noticed anything that was going on, nor would anybody, because the plane was
already descending, and all this would do would be just tell it which altitude to descend to.
I spoke to the director of the BEA, that's the French air accident agency, and I asked the director if he had any insight into what the pilot
was thinking when he did all of this.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[16:05:08] REMI JOUTY, DIRECTOR, BEA: I think it's impossible to know what was in mind at this moment. What we can say is that because the
aircraft was already descending under autopilot, the modification of the target altitude wasn't affecting the trajectory of the aircraft. And also
we can observe that he didn't keep this selection for a long time.
QUEST: On the actual fateful flight itself, do we know whether or not the crew tried to use the emergency override procedure to get into the
cockpit? Because on the cockpit voice recorder, there's no sounds of any buzzers or anything like that. So, do we know what happened?
JOUTY: We cannot know that for sure, because first of all, the status of the logic of the cockpit door locking system is not recorded. And most
probably the copilot denied the entry and put the cockpit door locking system in the locking mode.
And when this is the case, any action on the keypad on the cabin side has no effect. It doesn't regard the buzzer. So we cannot say. We cannot
know for sure.
QUEST: Pretty much from the moment you heard the cockpit voice recorder, you knew the Lubitz involvement and what he'd done. So, what
else have you learned? Where are you looking now in this investigation?
JOUTY: The history of the flight, we have a now very good understanding. There might be a few details which we'd want to further
investigate, but we probably will not go very far on that, and this will not change completely the understanding of the flight.
Now, what we want to do is to assess the situation where in aviation there is a sophisticated system to assess the medical fitness of pilots,
including their psychological fitness. And we see that we have several events, not only this one, where a pilot was involved in aircraft with
passengers, and he had the intent to destroy the aircraft and, indeed, himself.
So, we want to understand how can this happen? How did this happen in the case of the Germanwings? Who are the various actors who may have
information about that? So we imagine that in such a situation, prior to the flight, obviously, the family of the pilot may have some knowledge that
something is going wrong.
Professional environment of the pilot might also have some information. Then there might also be the doctor treating the pilot,
possibly.
QUEST: Does this mean that ultimately the final report and the investigation -- since the facts are now relatively well-known, that the
final investigation is going to look at the psychological impact and results for pilot?
JOUTY: Yes. And on how can it be detected? How is it deficient? What are the limitations of this, both in terms of some medical capability
and in terms of restriction of information for reasons such as protection of privacy, medical secrecy, and things like that?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: The director of the BEA talking to me.
In Britain, the countdown is nearly over. The final day of campaigning has taken place. It's the most hotly-contested election in
decades. What you need to know about the UK's decision. And, frankly, nobody has any idea who is going to win. It's QUEST MEANS BUSINESS in
London.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:10:44] QUEST: It's just about over. Tonight, five weeks of intense campaigning is coming to an end in Britain's general election. The
polls open at 7:00 AM on Thursday. That's a bit nine -- ten hours away. And surveys are saying no party has emerged with a clear lead.
When the voters go to the polls, the shape of the next government is unbelievably unpredictable. The party leaders themselves spent the last
day of the campaign courting any undecided voters, and there are believed to be many.
The prime minister, David Cameron, spending 36 hours on the road. He's banging the drum for his Conservative Party. Ed Miliband at the
opposition Labour Party is on a marathon tour of the UK, pushing for every last vote.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ED MILIBAND, UK LABOUR PARTY LEADER: This is the clearest choice that has been put before the British people for a generation, between a Tory
government that works only for the privileged few, or a Labour government that will put working families first.
DAVID CAMERON, PRIME MINISTER OF BRITAIN: People really want to think carefully before they cast their vote, but I believe when the crunch comes,
when they ask themselves the question, do I trust Ed Miliband with the economy or do I want to stick with a plan and a team that's turning the
country around --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Final election polls went to a virtual dead heat between the two parties. Look at that. Conservative and Labour, after five weeks --
after five years -- 34 percent. Well within -- well, not well within -- absolutely at the margin of error.
And of all the smaller parties, the UK Independence is polling ahead of the Liberals. Now, that could be not as drastic or as dramatic as it
sounds, because the UK Independence, their support may be an inch wide -- in inch deep but a mile wide, and you don't get any seats for that sort of
representation. You have to have big bulk numbers of seats in the parliamentary system.
Now, none of these parties can seriously expect to emerge with a majority in parliament. Whatever coalition emerges, whatever alliance,
there's a strong chance it will include a party that wants to put Britain's EU membership to a referendum. If you take a look -- and you'll see how it
-- so, on the referendum question --
(RINGS BELL)
QUEST: The Conservatives are in favor of a vote and have promised a vote by 2017 after a renegotiation of treaties with Europe. Labour is
opposed to any referendum unless there's a future treaty change that fundamentally alters the relationship.
UKIP, it is their single largest policy. They are going to demand a referendum by the end of the year as any price for helping the government
come to power.
The Liberal Democrats are opposed, but may concede the issue for a second coalition. And the Green Party is in favor, with influence of the
regional parties all taking its toll. You're getting the idea. The Conservatives say they want the referendum on the EU membership soon, by
2017.
Lord Norman Lamont was the British chancellor of the exchequer in the Conservative government from 90 to 93. I asked him if he agrees with the
people who say this is the most important election in the UK in a generation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NORMAN LAMONT, BRITISH HOUSE OF LORDS: I think it's crucial for two reasons. One, I think there is a threat to the stability of this country,
given the probability of perhaps 30 to 40 SNP MPs in the House of Commons. Of course, they're legitimate, but I think they will want to cause a lot of
trouble.
And I think also our constitution will have to be revised anyway. There are certain issues that can't be ignored any longer. So, I think
this is going to be a period of huge constitutional change, and the question is, who do you want in charge of that?
Secondly, and more simply, I think it's very important economically because the government, which I think has done a good job -- I'm biased,
but I think it has done a good job -- but it's only done half its job.
[16:15:00] it's reduced the deficit by roughly a half, and there are a lot of difficult and tough decisions to be made. And I don't think even
now the level of deficit we have is satisfactory.
QUEST: You're now very heavily involved in the financial world and in the city and -- from your soundings of the financial world, are they
worried about a potential British exit from the EU?
LAMONT: I think business in general, I think, overestimates the effect of it, and I think manufacturing in particular overestimates the
impact of a withdrawal. People will continue to trade regardless of the political arrangements.
And if you look at the Swiss economy -- all right, I know Switzerland's a small country compared with the UK -- but actually, it's a
very successful country. It exports more per capita to the EU than we do, and it is much more integrated with the EU economy than the British economy
is.
Now, when it comes to financial services, I think opinion in the financial services industry is divided. I think the banking sector is the
most anxious about being excluded by passporting.
I think the fund management industry is less worried. And actually, they think they've done quite badly with regulation. And I think the
insurance world might be a bit divided. So, I don't think you can generalize about the financial services area.
QUEST: The issue of Europe is in many ways in this election, it's been in the background, but it's not been front and center. It's been the
election, obviously, which has been the key issue. And yet, it could be the defining issue for the United Kingdom in the future.
LAMONT: Well, I think that's an important observation. Rather oddly, Europe has not featured between the two main political parties. I think
that's probably because Ed Miliband didn't want, actually, to highlight the fact that he's not offering a referendum. There are pros and cons of
having a referendum, but it's undoubtedly, it think, popular with a large section of the public.
QUEST: You have been an MP. You have been in high government office. And you know what it's like the day before the election.
(LAUGHTER)
QUEST: What's it like?
LAMONT: Well, you're highly nervous. But also, you can't really concentrate or anything. You get very bored. I think the best thing you
could do would probably be to go off to the cinema and watch a film.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: Go off to the cinema and watch a film is Norman Lamont's advice to politicians on election day. People in the business world are
wondering if Britain is just a couple of years away from a referendum on leaving the European Union.
I'm joined in London by the author of "The Trouble With Europe." "The Trouble With Europe," it's the economist Roger Bootle's book. You're not
the trouble with Europe.
ROGER BOOTLE, AUTHOR, "THE TROUBLE WITH EUROPE": No, I'm not, no, no.
QUEST: But your book is. OK, so, you're also the winner of the Wolfson Economics Prize, and you're a superb person to tell us, this issue
of Europe, which did not feature big in the election, but is an undercurrent throughout, with parties like UKIP and the referendum.
BOOTLE: Yes. The two main parties aren't arguing about Europe, at least not much. But you're right, if it weren't for the Europe issue,
there wouldn't, of course, be UKIP riding high in the polls. And without that, arguably, the Conservatives would be well in front. So, I think the
undercurrent of all this, Europe is extremely important.
QUEST: Which way does it go, though, after tomorrow? Because -- I realize that depends, of course, if it's the Tories, we get a referendum by
2017. But Europe's not going to roll over and just give the Tories what they want, a treaty change.
BOOTLE: No, it's going to be fascinating. If we do get Mr. Cameron in Number 10, then he's going to have, I think, a very difficult
negotiation with European leaders. He said he's going to try to renegotiation Britain's relationship with Europe. Frankly, I don't think
they're going to give him very much.
QUEST: One view I've heard is that even if he does renegotiate, and even if Britain does vote to leave, Europe is unlikely to grant Britain
anything like Switzerland or Norway status, there will be such rancor about it.
BOOTLE: I think that's quite possible. And the key thing, I think, for Mr. Cameron, though of course he isn't saying this -- is that really to
get the sort of changes that are going to make his back pensioners feel happy and go down well in the country, there's going to have to be treaty
change.
And that's something which the other European powers are not prepared to countenance. So, effectively, what they're going to say to him is,
well, we'll give you all sorts of sops, as long as they don't require a change in the treaties.
QUEST: And that's going to blow the whole thing out of the water.
BOOTLE: Yes.
QUEST: When we look at Greece, now, and you see Europe -- excuse me - - you see a Europe that is -- it can't do it, it can't get to grips with Greece. It's got a potential problem of enormous magnitude with Europe,
and growth is only just coming back, but unemployment is still very high. We got the spring forecast yesterday. What do you make of it?
[16:20:03] BOOTLE: Well, I think the major problem with Europe is the euro. It's not the only problem, but it's the major problem.
QUEST: But have they fixed that euro? As a result of Six Pack, Four Pack, treaty change, all the other different measures that they've brought
in as a result of this?
BOOTLE: I'm going to sound awfully boring, because I think that actually solving this problem is quite simple. The euro shouldn't have
been created, and for things that shouldn't have been created, the way out is to uncreate them.
QUEST: You can't uncreate the --
BOOTLE: Well, it needs to split. Oh, yes. Countries like Greece and Italy and Spain and Portugal have no businesses being in the euro.
QUEST: We'll talk about that in the future. It's "The Trouble With Europe." Nothing like a good tease to get the book and the juices going
with Roger Bootle. Good to see you, sir. Thank you very much.
Now, we've just received word that Benjamin Netanyahu has reached a deal to form a new coalition government in Israel. Oren Liebermann is live
in Jerusalem. What's the complexion? What's the color? What's the range of this coalition?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this came right down to the wire for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He had six
weeks. The announcement comes in the final hour to announce that he has a coalition. He's gone to the president, he has said he has his coalition.
It was expected for a long time he'd have a right-wing coalition, a strong coalition of 67 seats. In these last days, one of the right-wing
parties backed out, leaving him at 61 seats. So, he has a right-wing government, but 61 seats is not a strong coalition.
Netanyahu knows that. He spoke on Israel radio just a short time ago. He said 61 is a good number, 61-plus is even better, but 61 is a place to
start, which means Netanyahu is saying that he will work on his coalition, he'll work to improve it. But the big news out of Israel tonight,
Netanyahu announcing he has a coalition at the final hour he was given to form his government.
QUEST: But Oren, within that coalition, what is the touchstone issue that could defeat it or that could split it apart? Is it something as
traditional as economics, or is it settlements, or is it relations with the US? What could be the gunpowder in that coalition?
LIEBERMANN: An excellent question. A right-wing government will face tremendous international pressure. And yet, that may not be Netanyahu's
biggest issue. He has one centrist party in his government, that would be Kulanu, which has ten seats.
Because they're centrist, they may not go with what Netanyahu says, and if even one person defects from that party, from Moshe Kahlon's Kulanu
Party, Netanyahu's weak 61-seat coalition could fall apart. It all depends on when that spark is lit. Netanyahu may start trying almost immediately
to expand his coalition to create a stronger government.
QUEST: Oren, thank you for joining us. Oren Liebermann, who is in Jerusalem for us tonight.
Jean-Claude Juncker says that in Europe, you can drive from Tallinn to Turin without once showing a passport. So far, so good. But you can't
stream your favorite TV shows from home once you get there. Now he's got a plan to fix it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:25:04] QUEST: The EU has a plan that will radically update its digital economy. The European Commission says it wants to create a digital
single market by tearing down barriers that stifle competition, and that will free Europe's tech leaders to compete with the US.
So, first of all, they want to end geo-blocking. You know what geo- blocking is. That's the really annoying bit that sends online shoppers to sites based only where they're located. Ending geo-blocking would allow
consumers more choice. You could buy from the cheapest country, allows access to more goods, lower shipping fees.
The EU thinks the single market could add nearly 500 billion -- 466 billion a year -- to the European economy. And the Commission has launched
inquiries into competition in the tech sector, likely to target firms -- huge US firms, we already know about the investigations into Google.
The Commission president, Jean-Claude Juncker, says he wants a wave of European start-ups, and he wasn't afraid to get hands-on with technology.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEAN-CLAUDE JUNCKER, PRESIDENT, EUROPEAN COMMISSION: Even techies like me know that technology has to be our future.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Well, there we are. He's signing something digitally. Frederic Mazzella is the founder and CEO of BlaBlaCar, a ride-sharing app
that's based in Paris. He joins me now. So, sir, you must welcome -- yours is a long-distance ride-sharing scheme -- you must welcome the
digital proposals by the Commission. But what's wrong with them?
FREDERIC MAZZELLA, FOUNDER AND CEO, BLABLACAR: Well, actually, it's very good news because it's a set of 16 measures that will help
harmonizing, setting the new foundation, and boosting the European economy. So, we're actually super happy that this is happening.
There are two measures which are really good for our expansion, is that the VAT is -- there is a legislative proposal to uniform, to make it
more uniform, the VAT. And then there is also a comprehensive study that would be done for the online platforms which have to run all over Europe.
Because when you grow a business from Europe -- and from the US, it's quite different. It's like comparing a hurdle race --
QUEST: Right, but --
MAZZELLA: -- with a hundred-meter sprint, because -- yes?
QUEST: But, I see the point. And I'm slightly skeptical because I've heard all of this -- I've heard these sort of proposals before, and they
take years to ever get anywhere close, and they get well and truly bogged down in European politics, because it is 27 countries -- 28, 28 countries.
MAZZELLA: Yes, it is a complexity. It is a complexity that Europe has to overcome. We have to start somewhere, and we are really motivated
to do it. And really, we are showing that now in Europe we are able to create the unicorns, like companies which are worth more than $1 billion.
We've created more than 30 in the last decade.
And then, we've created roughly three Europe unicorns per year now from Europe, when in the US it's about four. So, it's comparable. And we
have great companies which have emerged from Europe. We are now able to build companies, tech leaders in their field, which can actually compete on
the international level.
QUEST: They can compete, but frequently they don't. And that's as a result -- there's all sorts of reasons, everything from structural to
cyclical, the same investment opportunities don't exist. And you're right, sir, there isn't a harmonized rule book. So, do you think the Commission's
proposals go far enough?
MAZZELLA: Yes, I think it's a very good start. I think it will help not only for the proposals and the study and the legislative proposals that
have been done, but it's also in the spirit. And we have to all overcome this complexity.
This complexity is also diversity, it's also richness. Because from Europe, when you have to develop with all those cultures, it also makes you
more reliable and more ready to make a real international expansion into many, many cultures.
Because as you say, when from the start you have to deal with 27 cultures, then you can draw in any other culture on the planet, because you
are used to the change, you are used to adapting your labor laws, VAT rules, and you are used to adapting to everything.
QUEST: Thank you very much, sir, for joining us. Appreciate you talking to us tonight from Paris. Stock markets in Europe --
(RINGS BELL)
[16:29:59] QUEST: -- had one of those sort of weird sessions. Have a look at the numbers and you'll see exactly -- there were four that were
all up. Modest gains over the course, except in Athens, where, of course, you saw the market rising 2.8 percent. There was also factory data across
Europe which showed the manufacturing was still expanding.
To the US markets and, well, as you see there, they were off the lows of the day, but those lows had occurred quite late into the afternoon. So,
a nice sort of early bit of green, but didn't last more than the long -- the length of an April shower. And there was a sell-off as the markets
closed down.
It momentarily went negative for the year. Overall, the Dow and the S&P were down around half of a percent at the close.
Janet Yellen got investors nervous. She said stock values were quite high. And when you heard that, and of course, you see the result.
Elections on knife-edge. If there's no conclusive result in the UK, what does it mean for the stability in BRIC? We'll talk about that after
the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:30:00] RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR AND REPORTER HOST OF "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" SHOW: -- had one of those sort of weird sessions.
Come and look at the numbers and you'll see exactly.
There were main - there were four that were all up. Modest gains over the course except in Athens where of course you saw the market rising 2.8
percent. There was also factory data across Europe which showed the manufacturing was still expanding.
To the U.S. markets and - well as you see there they were off the lows of the day but those lows had occurred quite late into the afternoon. So a
nice sort of early bit of green but didn't last more than the longer-the length of an April shower and there's a selloff as the markets close down.
It momentarily went negative for the year. Overall the Dow, the S&P were down around half of a percent at the close.
Janet Yellen got investors nervous. She said stock values were quite high, and when you heard that - and of course you see the results.
Elections on knife edge. If there's no conclusive results in the U.K., what does it mean for the stability in Britain? Before the - we'll
talk about that after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Hello, I'm Richard Quest. There's more "Quest Means Business" in just a moment when I'm going to show you why the Queen's speech could
decide who governs Britain.
And by air and by sea, the United States opens up more routes to Cuba. We'll talk about that before any of it. Before any of it, this is CNN and
on this network the news always comes first.
In the past few moments, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced a deal to form a new coalition government. Negotiations with
coalition partners went right down to the last moment. The announcement came less than an hour before the time ran out to muster a majority in
Parliament.
The first interim report into the Germanwings plane crash says the co- pilot had rehearsed putting the plane into a controlled descent on the day of the disaster. Andreas Lubitz then deliberately crashed on his next
flight while passing over the Alps killing everyone onboard.
Speaking to me on "Quest Means Business," the head of France's investigating agency said the rules on airline pilots' mental health must
be reassessed.
Campaigning in the U.K., elections drawing to a close with all parties pushing hard to the final hour - the final moment - for eager votes. Polls
indicate the outcome is too close to call and no party is likely to win an outright majority.
Bill Clinton has denied that donations to his Clinton Foundation improperly influenced U.S. government policy. The new book (ph) claims
that Hillary Clinton's decisions as secretary of state were influenced by overseas money given to her husband's Foundation. Speaking to CNN's
Christiane Amanpour, the former president said the Foundation had safeguards in place.
(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)
[16:35:09] BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: We had a policy when she was secretary of state that we would only continue accepting money from
people that were already giving us money and I've tried to recreate that policy as nearly as I can now during the campaign.
(END VIDEOCLIP)
QUEST: All professional football matches in Spain are to be suspended indefinitely from May 16th. The Spanish Football Federation's called the
matches up after failing to reach a deal with the government on how to share money from TV rights. The last two games on a leaguer (ph) season
will be affected if the blackout is not averted.
This time tomorrow the conversation I'm about to have I will not be able to have because the polls will still be open in the United Kingdom.
There will be just 24 minutes left of voting and it'll be the start of what could be periods of uncertainty.
(RINGS BELL). The 8th of May - negotiations will be being potentially for a coalition or some form of formal agreement between the parties.
(RINGS BELL) The 18th of May - the parliament reconvenes and David Cameron must probably resign if he hasn't been able to form a government by
then.
Twenty-seventh of May (RINGS BELL) - the Queen's speech. The government must win enough votes to get its plan passed and stay in power.
And if things are looking dodgy, there's always the potential that the opposition could try and use that for a moment of no confidence.
The journalist in Europe, expert Quentin Peel, is looking at the potential for instability. Sir, how unstable could things be after
tomorrow?
QUENTIN PEEL, MERCATOR SENIOR FELLOW FOR EUROPE, CHATHAM HOUSE: Well uncertain for weeks I should think. I mean, we could have a situation
where the present prime minister, David Cameron, tries to put together a minority government, goes as far as presenting his Queen's speech and
doesn't make it.
And so then -
QUEST: But he only doesn't make it if there's a vote of no confidence.
PEEL: He's got to get support for his program and if he hasn't got majority support for his program, he I think has to throw in the towel.
QUEST: On that point, if you take a look at what you consider to be his legitimacy to try and form a government - if he's merely the largest
part but without a majority, -- but Labour with the SNP could get more seats - what happens then?
PEEL: Well, I think he'll go to the line and see if he can't get enough supports from Liberals, from the Democratic Unionists in Northern
Ireland, maybe even the tacit of UKIP, the Eurosceptics - although the Liberals would be appalled to be anywhere near them in the lobbies - and
see if that adds up. I think the magic figure he's got to get is for his own party -- 290 seats.
QUEST: In his own - in his own right?
PEEL: Absolutely, and then he might get near it. If he's under 290, I think that Ed Miliband has a much better chance of putting together a
government.
QUEST: Even though Ed Miliband's government would be beholden to a Scottish - a Scottish party and at the same time him himself would not have
the most number of seats.
PEEL: If you put it in straits of a left-right term, --
QUEST: Yes.
PEEL: -- then the left would have more seats than the right on the whole. Because the Scottish National Party and the (inaudible)
Commonwealth, they're all left wing.
QUEST: But would the British people stomach a prime minister who had cobbled together a coalition when that P.M. didn't have the largest number
in his own right?
PEEL: I think the British people are getting used (ph) to a world that is weird to them. They have never known a world where the two big
parties in the middle ground were so weak and have got to do a coalition. It's getting used to having coalition government.
But funny thing about Britain today is it's becoming more and more continental European.
QUEST: Is this the most exciting - I mean it was a dull election campaign - but the result is simply the most different we've ever seen in
our lives.
PEEL: I think exactly that. The most unpredictable and the most important.
QUEST: Quentin, thank you very much indeed.
PEEL: (Inaudible).
QUEST: Now look at this - here we go - all aboard! All aboard! It is the CNN #bigredbus. Now I will be --tomorrow night I will be on the
bus, we'll be driving it around London. We'll be having guests who will be joining us onboard. We'll be taking it - we won't be taking any fares -
there'll be nobody who will be - (RINGS BELL) - oops, we already got a bell for the bus.
[16:40:06] Anyway, hashtag #bigredbus - what do you want to know about the bus tomorrow night? We will be going to parties, we will be talking to
pundits, we will have voters and we will even show your large amounts of London. Hold very tight, hold very tight (RINGS BELL).
Facebook has taken over one of London's best known landmarks to tell us which U.K. leaders are dominating the election conversation online. The
London Eye has been turned into a massive pie charts. Its colors change to reflect the millions of comments that people are making about the election.
Joining me now is Elizabeth Linder, Facebook's political and government specialist for Europe and for EMEA. Elizabeth, good to talk to
you. Thank you for joining us. So what's the number one subject besides my Big Red Bus?
ELIZABETH LINDER, FACEBOOK'S POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT SPECIALIST: : Oh wow. Well I'm sure excited to see that on the streets of London
tomorrow. The biggest topic of conversation right now is the economy and that has shifted just in the last few days.
For the longest time amongst the 52 million interactions we've seen leading up to the election, health was dominating the conversation. Just a
few days ago that shifted over, it's now the economy.
QUEST: All right, so it's the economy, but within that, which of the parties is gaining? I'm looking at that chart at the latest one which
obviously interactive and moves accordingly. Which party is garnering the most comments?
LINDER: Well, UKIP has certainly taken the cake there. We've seen a huge volume of commentary around UKIP people right across the country
discussing this. After that, the Conservatives, as you can see from all of these colors changing, and we've been watching that over time and I think
it's important to remember that Facebook at this point, with 35 million people using Facebook in the U.K., is reflective of the conversation that's
happening in the real world. This is an exact mirror, -
QUEST: But that -
LINDER: -- it's the first conversational election the U.K. has seen.
QUEST: Right, but (LAUGHTER) - and one of the things I always find fascinating about these new things is I'm left asking myself, Elizabeth,
what's it telling me? How does it help me to understand what's going to happen next?
LINDER: Well I think if you're a politician, it's telling you a great deal. If you're a candidate who has actually thrown your name in the hat
for this race, what you're learning from citizens is what's on their minds. Not necessarily what they're reading in the press - what's on their minds
when they're talking to their friends and family back home, in the pub around the corner. The conversations these people happening in their real
lives are exactly the ones playing out on Facebook. And if you're a good politician in 2015 -
QUEST: Right.
LINDER: -- and you understand that you're going to connect to people.
QUEST: Fascinating, this, for Facebook. I have to be honest - because most companies do not want to touch political hot potatoes with a
ten-foot pole with the wind in the opposite direction. I mean, and for a company like Facebook to basically say we're not taking a position, but we
are going to put our big-sized tens right into the heart of the election. It was a dangerous strategy.
LINDER: Well you know, I've been doing this for a long time. I've trained about 42 different parliaments across all kind of countries in the
Europe, Middle East and Africa region. But this particular election in the U.K. is one of the most exciting I've seen and it's incredible to see that
finally authenticity is entering the political debates, the political dialogue at an unprecedented rate.
QUEST: Elizabeth, you're more enthusiastic about this election than I am. Thank you very much for joining us. We'll hopefully talk to you in
the next few days as the results come in.
It's a big day for Elon Musk. Tesla's first quarter results have just come in. The company took a smaller loss than expected. Sales beat
expectations. The shares are up 4 percent in after hours.
SpaceX has made a leap towards becoming the first private company to carry NASA astronauts to the space station. An unmanned two-minute test
flight of its Crew Dragon Spacecraft was a success. It caused - used - a dummy called Buster to show how crew members might escape in the event of
an emergency.
Imagine that. In the first place (ph) it's fascinating in what Elon Musk is doing - incredible.
Flying or sailing down to Cuba. There are new routes opening up for travelers from the United States. We'll talk about how you can get from
the U.S. to Cuba. And there's always as good chance to enjoy some of our nice Cuban music. (RINGS BELL).
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
16:45: QUEST: Travelers to Cuba are going to have more choices for getting to the island. There are four ferry companies say that they have
won federal approval to operate between Florida and Cuba. That will be the first ferry services between the two countries since the U.S. eased
restrictions.
They'll go from Tampa to Key West, Miami - obviously Tampa's a much longer journey - Key West is just barely - barely a handful of miles across
-- 70, 80 miles or so.
One company says it hopes to start running between Havana and Key West within weeks. And for those who want to fly, JetBlue is the first major
U.S. carrier offering flights to Cuba.
In July it's beginning weekly flights from New York's JFK to Havana. Patrick Oppmann our man in Havana, joins me now from the Cuban capital.
Glorious day there in the harbor. So, why - I mean - the sanctions or the embargo is still there, but these different categories means more
people are traveling, Patrick.
PATRICK OPPMANN, CORRESPONDENT: That's absolutely right. By the Cuban government's estimates, they expect to get an additional 500,000
American visitors. Of course, they're not tourists - right Richard? Because they won't be going to the beach - they're not supposed to at
least, but they now with 12 categories and more Cuban-Americans visiting, a flood a people, and a lot of those people will be coming on these ferry
services.
The idea is you'll get on the ferry at night in South Florida - could be Miami, could be Fort Lauderdale and you'll wake up in Cuba. And some of
these ferry providers are saying they'll have several ferries a week. And this has caused a lot of excitement here in Cuba - not because of who'll be
coming, but what they'll be bringing.
Some of these ferries will allow you to bring two or three times as much as the airlines do, so that means more goods, Richard. It means more
duffel bags, it means more paint, it means more iPhones. It means more of the things that Cuba desperately needs and that's going to be a slow change
but it's going to - very slowly -
QUEST: All right.
OPPMANN: -- but persistently bring in more goods to this country, goods that Cuba desperately needs.
QUEST: Patrick, can Cuba - I can understand an extra few flights where you're only bringing in a few hundred extra people. But the moment
you start bringing ferries in, you're talking about potentially a few thousand people over the course of the week. So can Cuba handle those sort
of numbers?
OPPMANN: No. No, when you were here recently I think we saw that. I think the Cuban government is scrambling to upgrade facilities like the
port behind me which today has absolutely no tourist activity. There's no cruise boats, there's no ferries of any kind in Cuba because these will be
not just the first ferries from the United States, Richard, these will be the first international ferry service that Cuba has had in years, so they
don't have the infrastructure.
They know they have to build more hotels, they know that they have to have more cars on the road, more taxis. And they're struggling to meet the
current demand of frankly and increase of demand is probably just going to overwhelm them.
But this a problem they are happy to have rather than the problem they had not too long ago which was that nobody was coming to Cuba. Now that's
not a problem here, Richard, they're coming in droves.
[16:50:09] QUEST: Patrick, I might see you there sooner rather than later once that - those ferries and those flights -- start. Patrick
Oppmann joining us from Havana Harbor.
If you're flying to Cuba or anywhere else in the world. We want to see your pictures from your trip. The hashtag is #cnnintheair,
#cnnintheair. Now I want your best plane shots. You can tweet them, you can Instagram. And I'll tell you what - ooh - now what plane is that? Now
come on, come on. (RINGS BELL). Quick question there. Which airport is that? Anybody recognize those I think we've got a load of fun that we can
have with this over the next few weeks and few months.
We'll put the best ones online. This is some of the examples that we've already seen. #cnnintheair.
Now, he was an Internet pioneer. The president of the United States spoke warmly of David Goldberg. And when we come back, we're going to talk
to somebody who worked closely with Mr. Goldberg in the early days of the Silicon Valley.
He'll give us insight into the visionary man (inaudible).
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Facebook's chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg has made her first public comments since her husband David Goldberg died last week.
Ms. Sandberg wrote a remembrance of Goldberg in a Facebook post and she thanked U.S. President Barack Obama for his tributes which praised Goldberg
in his words as, "A real leader."
Joining me to talk more about Mr. Goldberg is his former colleague Dave DiMartino, the executive editor of Yahoo! Music. And we're very
grateful, sir, that you've come to talk and to - to basically help us understand why - to those people who didn't know, who aren't aware what was
the achievement? What was the genius of Mr. - of David Goldberg?
DAVE DiMARTINO, EXECUTIVE EDITOR, YAHOO! MUSIC: Well I think what David did first and foremost was he was an innovator that knew what could
happen in the future and kind of did his best to make it happen. Perhaps a little earlier than it really, you know, became a true, established fact.
But what he did was this - he wanted to bring musicians and music to people in a way that they hadn't actually experienced it before. To do
that, he decided that the interactive experience was the way to go. What he did was, he decided well why don't we let consumers hear the music
instead of trusting other people's judgments - whether it be publicity, whether it be radio stations, etc.
So he created an interactive experience - a CD-ROM. And he did it in such a way that there'd be artists featured, there would be content that
would go out to people -
QUEST: Right.
DiMARTINO: -- and the ascent - the essence - would be music could be promoted in a way that had never been done before. He did that and he did
it in a way that basically established a tradition that is now being carried out by the entire industry like 20 years after the fact and he was
there first and foremost.
QUEST: All right. Now, give us a feeling for when working with him because from what I've read - what I've read - working with him - and you
did - was one of those fizzing moments where ideas would come and the collective - the collective intelligence of the room would be announced.
DiMARTINO: Absolutely true. First of all he was fantastic in getting great people. The meetings in the room - whether it was internal or
external - ideas were sparking left and right. He saw things in a different manner - `why don't we do this? Why don't we do that? You know,
if you were to do that, this might really help.' And It was interesting.
[16:55:15] He said it in a way that nobody felt he was preaching, nobody felt that he was smarter than them although they thought he was, but
he didn't make anyone feel that way. There was an inspirational sense about him that was kind of literally one of a kind.
And what he was able to do was exude a certain sort of warmth and believability and sophistication that's extremely rare. People wanted to
be with him because he was funny - he had a great sense of humor - and he was sharp.
QUEST: Dave, thank you for joining us this evening. Thank you for giving us a little bit of insight. It's always so important that we take
moments to remember those who have gone and particularly those who made such considerable contributions. Dave DiMartino joining us from
California.
We will have as "Profitable Moment" after the break. (Inaudible).
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Tonight's "Profitable Moment." I love elections. It doesn't matter whether it's the overpriced, overhyped presidential elections in the
U.S., the rough raucous and nasty elections that might take place in Israel, or the more restrained but still brutal elections in the U.K.
It could be the European Parliamentary, it could be - doesn't matter. There is a moment when the people speak that is magical. And that is
what's going to happen in Britain tomorrow - in the closest election any of us can ever remember. No one knows the results.
And I will be out on a big red bus once the polls close where you will be able to join me as we talk and listen and meet people and find out what
the people say when the nation finally spoke. Hashtag #bigredbus. You can't beat an election.
And that's "Quest Means Business" for tonight. I'm Richard Quest in London. Whatever you're up to in the hours ahead, -- #bigredbus - (RINGS
BELL) hold very tight - I hope it's profitable.
END
