Browse content similar to 23/03/2017. Check below for episodes and series from the same categories and more!
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I thank all colleagues for what they have said and the way they have said | :00:00. | :00:07. | |
it. Business statement, the Leader of the House, David Livingstone. Mr | :00:08. | :00:15. | |
Speaker, with permission, before I announced the business, I would just | :00:16. | :00:20. | |
like to update colleagues on one to practical matters following on from | :00:21. | :00:24. | |
the terrorist attack yesterday. First of all, as is apparent to us | :00:25. | :00:27. | |
all, the security checks and the all, the security checks and the | :00:28. | :00:34. | |
rules on access to the palace remain for the time being, more restrictive | :00:35. | :00:39. | |
to those to which we have become accustomed. I hope that honourable | :00:40. | :00:44. | |
members on all sides will accept them with patient compliance, as do | :00:45. | :00:53. | |
their staff. Secondly, an allusion was made in earlier exchanges to the | :00:54. | :00:58. | |
possible health needs of staff and others who may have witnessed what | :00:59. | :01:02. | |
took place yesterday and I would take this opportunity to remind all | :01:03. | :01:06. | |
colleagues of the Parliamentary health and well-being service based | :01:07. | :01:10. | |
at seven Millbank which is available to provide that kind of support to | :01:11. | :01:16. | |
staff as well as members. The books of condolence to PC Keith Palmer are | :01:17. | :01:21. | |
open in the library, the Royal Gallery and Westminster Hall. | :01:22. | :01:28. | |
Finally, the chapel will be open all day for any member or a staff member | :01:29. | :01:33. | |
who wishes to say prayers or reflect and your chaplain will be conducting | :01:34. | :01:41. | |
short services there are 12:30 p.m., 3pm and six p.m., which anybody is | :01:42. | :01:47. | |
welcome to attend. The business for next week will be as follows. Monday | :01:48. | :01:52. | |
the 27th of March, remaining staved -- stages of the bus services bill. | :01:53. | :01:58. | |
Tuesday the 28th, consideration of Lords amendment to the neighbourhood | :01:59. | :02:03. | |
planning Bill followed by a debate on our motion on the conflict in | :02:04. | :02:08. | |
Yemen. That debate having been determined by the backbench business | :02:09. | :02:13. | |
committee. Whether Steve the 29th, remaining stages of the pension | :02:14. | :02:20. | |
schemes Bill, Lords, followed by the expect private business to be named | :02:21. | :02:26. | |
by the Chairman of Ways and Means. Thursday the 30th, debate on a | :02:27. | :02:30. | |
motion on animal welfare followed by a general debate on matters to be | :02:31. | :02:34. | |
raised before the forthcoming adjournment. Friday the 31st, the | :02:35. | :02:45. | |
house will not be sitting. The provisional business for the week | :02:46. | :02:49. | |
commencing the 17th of April will include Monday the 17th of April, | :02:50. | :02:54. | |
the house will not be setting. Tuesday the 18th of April, second | :02:55. | :02:57. | |
reading of the finance number two Bill. Thank you, Mr Speaker. Can I | :02:58. | :03:07. | |
thank the Leader of the House for the forthcoming business and for | :03:08. | :03:10. | |
mentioning where staff and people who work in this House can get some | :03:11. | :03:15. | |
extra support if they needed. Can I also thank him and his deputy for | :03:16. | :03:22. | |
the leadership he showed yesterday. It is a sad day because we have lost | :03:23. | :03:28. | |
her superhero, someone who has kept us safe everyday. His family are | :03:29. | :03:32. | |
suffering and now they are trying to make sense of his death, but their | :03:33. | :03:36. | |
life will be utterly changed. We will always remember Keith Palmer. | :03:37. | :03:42. | |
Can I thank colleagues who were extremely patient yesterday and the | :03:43. | :03:49. | |
year 12 politics students who were up in the gallery and a primary | :03:50. | :03:54. | |
school from Birmingham, but also the police and security service and the | :03:55. | :03:57. | |
emergency services for all they did to protect us and keep us informed | :03:58. | :04:01. | |
in the usual professional manner, and for the dedication that the show | :04:02. | :04:06. | |
was public servants day after day, allowing us to go about life safely. | :04:07. | :04:12. | |
And to the Sergeant at Arms and the magnificent team of doorkeepers, we | :04:13. | :04:16. | |
all know how good you are every day, but in a situation as we had | :04:17. | :04:21. | |
yesterday, on behalf of all of us, our very special thank you for your | :04:22. | :04:27. | |
calm professionalism and kindness. It is a real tribute to the house | :04:28. | :04:32. | |
service. And the clerk of the house and your team, ensuring decisions | :04:33. | :04:39. | |
could be made promptly and sensibly. The Prime Minister has said this is | :04:40. | :04:43. | |
business as usual, so why will proceed to business as usual and ask | :04:44. | :04:48. | |
the Leader of the House, it is a convention when a statutory | :04:49. | :04:50. | |
instrument is prayed against that there is a debate. Can I express my | :04:51. | :04:56. | |
concern that the convention has not been followed into particular EDM | :04:57. | :05:04. | |
is, the PRP regulations and the 9482 awards. Those in psychological | :05:05. | :05:08. | |
distress are denied access to additional support under these | :05:09. | :05:12. | |
registration. Epilepsy action said they were deeply concerned about the | :05:13. | :05:15. | |
regulations and how it affects people with epilepsy. For the | :05:16. | :05:23. | |
students, the inflation linked rise representative body of percent | :05:24. | :05:26. | |
increase. If continued, this could mean the fees rising above ?10,000 | :05:27. | :05:33. | |
in the next few years. The house rose early on Tuesday and the last | :05:34. | :05:38. | |
opposition day was a month ago. The government seems to be thwarting the | :05:39. | :05:42. | |
opposition, preventing an effective opposition by controlling the | :05:43. | :05:44. | |
business in this way, so could we have time for a debate on those two | :05:45. | :05:50. | |
very important statutory instruments? As article 50 is | :05:51. | :05:54. | |
triggered next week, there is a vast amount of legislation to be enacted. | :05:55. | :06:00. | |
Can he ensure there are white papers, draft legislation and an | :06:01. | :06:05. | |
impact assessment before the pills are published? Could he ensure that | :06:06. | :06:09. | |
the government to not use secondary legislation to stifle debate, but | :06:10. | :06:15. | |
allowed parliament to scrutinise the secondary legislation? Could we have | :06:16. | :06:21. | |
a debate to leave the BBC alone? The backbenchers may have time on their | :06:22. | :06:24. | |
hands but the letter sent round the many members in this House, they | :06:25. | :06:29. | |
said that the BBC are focusing on regretful voters. That is absurd. It | :06:30. | :06:35. | |
had e-mails from some who voted to leave who have regretted it, but | :06:36. | :06:39. | |
there was not a single piece of evidence in the latter, it was all | :06:40. | :06:44. | |
opinion. The editor of the today programme used openly support the | :06:45. | :06:47. | |
Tory candidates for mayor and the current editor of the Evening | :06:48. | :06:53. | |
Standard is a former Tory Chancellor. More importantly, there | :06:54. | :06:57. | |
should be no pre-emptive or intimidation strike on a public | :06:58. | :07:02. | |
broadcaster. Another manifesto promise broken while the | :07:03. | :07:07. | |
consultation closed yesterday on the new funding formula, the government | :07:08. | :07:11. | |
promised in their 2050 manifesto a real terms increase in the schools | :07:12. | :07:16. | |
budget in this Parliament and as the number of pupils increases sold the | :07:17. | :07:20. | |
amount of money in schools. Nearly half of all schools in the country | :07:21. | :07:25. | |
would face a in funding. In Walsall South schools face a reduction of | :07:26. | :07:30. | |
?490 per pupil, so could we have a debate on the impact on the new | :07:31. | :07:37. | |
funding formula and set out the losers, because every school will be | :07:38. | :07:42. | |
a loser. They will be bearing the brunt of unfunded rises in pay, | :07:43. | :07:46. | |
pension and National Insurance contributions. He could amount to | :07:47. | :07:51. | |
between 6% and 11% for their budgets for the years 2019 to 2020. These | :07:52. | :07:59. | |
are the last business questions before the Easter recess so can | :08:00. | :08:03. | |
attack against the clerk of the house, the library, the doorkeepers, | :08:04. | :08:07. | |
Mr Speaker, you enter deputies venture officers, all who may have | :08:08. | :08:13. | |
made life easier as Shadow leader, may you all have a happy Easter. Can | :08:14. | :08:19. | |
I finally say, from every corner of this United Kingdom, from every | :08:20. | :08:26. | |
corner of the world, bless it are the peacemakers. Can I first thank | :08:27. | :08:38. | |
the honourable lady for her kind words and associate myself | :08:39. | :08:43. | |
unreservedly both with her final remarks and with the tributes that | :08:44. | :08:47. | |
you rightly paid not only to the police, but to the staff of the | :08:48. | :08:55. | |
house in their various roles and what they did yesterday? I am | :08:56. | :09:04. | |
intending to be here for a business statement next Thursday. I hope that | :09:05. | :09:11. | |
her hesitation... I am sorry to lose her across the dispatch box. Perhaps | :09:12. | :09:17. | |
this is another opposition front bench change. She asked me about a | :09:18. | :09:26. | |
number of pieces of forthcoming business. I can tell her that the | :09:27. | :09:31. | |
government will make provision for the debate on the two issues she | :09:32. | :09:36. | |
expressed concern about. I can't give her a firm date yet but | :09:37. | :09:40. | |
discussions will continue through the usual channels about the precise | :09:41. | :09:46. | |
date, but the time will be fine. On the items of European legislation | :09:47. | :09:49. | |
that would be needed, of course there is going to be ample | :09:50. | :09:55. | |
opportunity to debate the content and the impact of those pieces of | :09:56. | :10:01. | |
legislation, and while I would certainly expect, it is the secret | :10:02. | :10:03. | |
that I would expect the repeal bill to include some secondary | :10:04. | :10:13. | |
legislative powers, the scope, the definition of those secondary | :10:14. | :10:16. | |
legislative powers will of course themselves be subject to the full | :10:17. | :10:23. | |
Parliamentary process, that those definitions, that's group would have | :10:24. | :10:26. | |
to be agreed by both Houses of Parliament through the normal | :10:27. | :10:33. | |
process of enacting a bill into law. On her points about education, it is | :10:34. | :10:40. | |
a fact that more is being spent on schools than ever before, but the | :10:41. | :10:47. | |
national funding formula to which she made particular objection has | :10:48. | :10:51. | |
been the subject of the consultation which only closed a couple of days | :10:52. | :10:56. | |
ago. My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Education | :10:57. | :11:00. | |
will not be considering the responses to local authorities, | :11:01. | :11:03. | |
schools and others to the consultation and coming forward with | :11:04. | :11:06. | |
the government's proposals in due course. It was for a long time | :11:07. | :11:13. | |
common ground between political parties that the existing funding | :11:14. | :11:20. | |
formula was grotesquely unfair and that it provided in some cases for a | :11:21. | :11:25. | |
child attending school in one authority to receive twice as much, | :11:26. | :11:32. | |
almost twice as much, as an equivalent child in a comparable | :11:33. | :11:35. | |
school in a different local authority despite the basic costs | :11:36. | :11:39. | |
being this same. That is the reason why the government is committed | :11:40. | :11:45. | |
itself to bring forward and national funding formula. Finally she asks me | :11:46. | :11:50. | |
about the BBC. I notice she didn't look to the presence of our former | :11:51. | :11:59. | |
Labour Cabinet minister in a senior role in the BBC at the moment but I | :12:00. | :12:02. | |
think he has probably been airbrushed out that the current | :12:03. | :12:07. | |
Labour Party leadership. As long as I have been in this place there have | :12:08. | :12:11. | |
been robust strongly held and strongly expressed views about the | :12:12. | :12:16. | |
BBC, for and against voiced by members on all sides. My own feeling | :12:17. | :12:25. | |
is that if honourable members have since in this respect they spent too | :12:26. | :12:31. | |
much time watching to the current affairs programmes. And I think of | :12:32. | :12:36. | |
the BBCi think of the Proms on Radio 3 and I think it enables me to | :12:37. | :12:40. | |
approach that subject with a degree of serenity. ER urge for it to be | :12:41. | :12:48. | |
business as usual. It is difficult considering what happened yesterday | :12:49. | :12:52. | |
because simply we are so horrified and saddened at those events and the | :12:53. | :12:58. | |
terrible deaths and injuries and we wish everyone well. I would try to | :12:59. | :13:10. | |
engage in business as usual and ask the Leader of the House this, many | :13:11. | :13:14. | |
of us are surprised to learn that the apprenticeship levy, which is a | :13:15. | :13:18. | |
good idea, which has been rightly passed on to local authorities | :13:19. | :13:26. | |
wrongly has interned being passed on to schools. Schools in my | :13:27. | :13:32. | |
constituency find that they are paying ?400 but receiving the | :13:33. | :13:37. | |
benefit from the levy, but having to pay the burden and it wrong. When | :13:38. | :13:42. | |
will the Leader of the House arrange for us to have a debate on this | :13:43. | :13:50. | |
outrage? Can I first evolves say that I think it is important that we | :13:51. | :13:57. | |
remember that while we rightly returned to business as normal as a | :13:58. | :14:00. | |
demonstration that our democracy and free society will not be disrupted | :14:01. | :14:06. | |
by terrorism, we need always to remember that for the families of | :14:07. | :14:13. | |
those who lost their lives yesterday and the families of those who have | :14:14. | :14:19. | |
been severely injured, the events of yesterday are things that they will | :14:20. | :14:24. | |
have to live with for the rest of their days on this earth, and we | :14:25. | :14:28. | |
should have that in mind as well. In response to her question about the | :14:29. | :14:34. | |
apprenticeship levy, the situation she has described in Nottinghamshire | :14:35. | :14:38. | |
is not as I understand that the case with every local education authority | :14:39. | :14:43. | |
in the country. Some local education authorities have decided to deal | :14:44. | :14:47. | |
with the levy themselves rather than pass it on to schools, but I will | :14:48. | :14:51. | |
draw her concern to the Secretary of State. Can I thank the Leader of the | :14:52. | :15:02. | |
House and join him in his tributes to the members of staff who worked | :15:03. | :15:07. | |
so well yesterday, and the leadership that he should yesterday | :15:08. | :15:08. | |
in this chamber. They are continuing business just as | :15:09. | :15:16. | |
normal as we continue our business and we will not be deterred from our | :15:17. | :15:21. | |
important work on behalf of all the people that we represent. Mr | :15:22. | :15:24. | |
Speaker, this institution lost one of its own yesterday and I want to | :15:25. | :15:28. | |
express my heart-felt condolences to the family of Keith Palmer and | :15:29. | :15:32. | |
others who lost lives. One thing I have noted as a Scottish Member of | :15:33. | :15:37. | |
Parliament is just the resilience of this great city and its people. It | :15:38. | :15:41. | |
has been inspiring and it has been determined. I think this morning and | :15:42. | :15:47. | |
this afternoon, we're all Londoners today. Mr Speaker, perhaps as a | :15:48. | :15:52. | |
tribute maybe we could consider a debate on the value of our emergency | :15:53. | :15:57. | |
services to this nation, the risks that they take and the immense | :15:58. | :16:01. | |
contribution they play in keeping our nation safe. I think that would | :16:02. | :16:06. | |
be a fitting tribute for us as Members of Parliament to make to the | :16:07. | :16:15. | |
memory of Keith Palmer. The Scottish Parliament suspended its business | :16:16. | :16:19. | |
yesterday and a section 30 order so a legal referendum could be held to | :16:20. | :16:23. | |
determine the future of political arrangements for Scotland. This will | :16:24. | :16:30. | |
be carried out next Tuesday. The will of the Scottish Parliament will | :16:31. | :16:35. | |
be expressed and it is upon this House to respond positively to the | :16:36. | :16:39. | |
democratic voice of the Scottish Parliament there can be no good | :16:40. | :16:42. | |
reason for Scotland to be ignored. Will the leader of the House tell us | :16:43. | :16:47. | |
how this place intends to respond and positively to what is agreed in | :16:48. | :16:52. | |
our national Parliament? Mr Speaker it is beyond pernicious that this | :16:53. | :16:57. | |
Government will seek to put through the rate clause by clause 3 | :16:58. | :17:03. | |
straument without any debate. I know my honourable friend from Glasgow | :17:04. | :17:05. | |
attempted to get a debate on this issue. Will the House consider | :17:06. | :17:09. | |
something as important as this should right I will be debated on | :17:10. | :17:14. | |
the floor of this House. Article 50 will be triggered but I could see | :17:15. | :17:19. | |
anything within the statement to say there'll be a statement or some sort | :17:20. | :17:23. | |
of debate in order to pass the fact this is going to be debated in the | :17:24. | :17:28. | |
House of Commons. Will the leader of the House confirm there'll be at | :17:29. | :17:32. | |
least a statement next week to mark this depressing event? As we all go | :17:33. | :17:37. | |
home, we go home to our friends and our families this afternoon, I think | :17:38. | :17:40. | |
it is absolutely right to remember one of a number who works in this | :17:41. | :17:45. | |
House who won't have that same opportunity and that same advantage | :17:46. | :17:46. | |
as we have today. I thank the honourable gentleman for | :17:47. | :17:59. | |
his kind remarks. And associate myself with his condolences to the | :18:00. | :18:05. | |
victims of yesterday's attack and a salute to the emergency services and | :18:06. | :18:11. | |
others. On the political questions that he raised, of course, when it | :18:12. | :18:17. | |
was said that the Government will find time for strattry instrument to | :18:18. | :18:27. | |
the bebaited. It was something which was authorised by the act of | :18:28. | :18:32. | |
Parliament from which this is delegated legislation. So that power | :18:33. | :18:37. | |
is something which was debated and approved by this House at the time | :18:38. | :18:42. | |
that act was taken through. But on the substance of the policy on a | :18:43. | :18:50. | |
third child for a woman who has been subjected to the ordeal of, and the | :18:51. | :18:54. | |
Government does recognise this is a very difficult and sensitive issue. | :18:55. | :18:59. | |
That's why we've adopted a third party model to allow us to make sure | :19:00. | :19:05. | |
that neither DWP or HMRC staff would question the mother about the | :19:06. | :19:08. | |
incident. Instead they would simply take the claim and receive the | :19:09. | :19:13. | |
supporting evidence from a third party professional. That seems to us | :19:14. | :19:17. | |
to be the right balance between making sure mothers get support they | :19:18. | :19:23. | |
need within the need for unnecessary intrusive processes and at the same | :19:24. | :19:28. | |
time providing assurances additional support is going for those whom it | :19:29. | :19:33. | |
is intended. On his question about Article 50, I am sure that there | :19:34. | :19:39. | |
will be opportunity for the House to debate Article 50. We have not been | :19:40. | :19:43. | |
short of opportunities up until now, I have to say. But I am sure there | :19:44. | :19:49. | |
will be an opportunity before long for that decision to be debated or | :19:50. | :19:55. | |
for questions to be posed. On the question of the debate in the | :19:56. | :19:59. | |
Scottish Parliament, I think that my Right Honourable friend, the Prime | :20:00. | :20:03. | |
Minister, has been very clear about this. We believe that now is not the | :20:04. | :20:12. | |
time for a second referendum, particularly when the 2014 | :20:13. | :20:14. | |
referendum was supposed to be something that was a once in a | :20:15. | :20:20. | |
generation opportunity. And that what ought to happen now is for the | :20:21. | :20:28. | |
United Kingdom Government and all three devolved Governments to work | :20:29. | :20:33. | |
very closely together to ensure that we get the best possible deal for | :20:34. | :20:39. | |
all the people of every part of the United Kingdom in the forthcoming | :20:40. | :20:42. | |
European negotiations. Thank you Mr Speaker. Can I first | :20:43. | :20:47. | |
commend the leader of the House for his calm and reassuring presence in | :20:48. | :20:51. | |
the chamber yesterday and Mr Speaker, through you, your deputy, | :20:52. | :20:56. | |
the Deputy Speaker. They both performed magnificently in | :20:57. | :21:01. | |
the chamber yesterday. Could we have a timescale for the statement or | :21:02. | :21:07. | |
debate on the fairer funding formula for schools? Preferably a time when | :21:08. | :21:14. | |
the Government will scrap its current proposals, which are frankly | :21:15. | :21:18. | |
unjustifiable. It is taking money from schools in Bradford district, | :21:19. | :21:22. | |
which is one of the worst performing local authorities in the country to | :21:23. | :21:27. | |
transfer money to some of the highest performing in the country, | :21:28. | :21:31. | |
which is absolute madness. Every school in my constituency will be | :21:32. | :21:35. | |
losing money. It is unjustifiable. Can the leader of the house tell us | :21:36. | :21:39. | |
how quickly it will take for the Government to realise these | :21:40. | :21:43. | |
proposals are unjustifiable and unacceptable. Can I thank my | :21:44. | :21:49. | |
honourable friend for his kind remarks. The Secretary of State will | :21:50. | :21:55. | |
come forward as soon as possible. But since the consultation on the | :21:56. | :22:00. | |
draft nation aling funding proposals concluded only this week, I think it | :22:01. | :22:05. | |
is reasonable that she should have a while in order to consider the very | :22:06. | :22:08. | |
detailed reputations that have been put forward by a number of different | :22:09. | :22:12. | |
parties. She will come forward and I can promise my honourable friend | :22:13. | :22:17. | |
there will be an opportunity for the Government to debate any proposals | :22:18. | :22:20. | |
that are then submitted. I am very grateful, Mr Speaker. Can | :22:21. | :22:25. | |
I begin with an apology to members of the House for my absence over | :22:26. | :22:32. | |
recent weeks. Can I also add my thanks to oh members and staff and | :22:33. | :22:35. | |
security personnel for their activities yesterday. There is one | :22:36. | :22:39. | |
group of people we have forgotten about. Members of the public, | :22:40. | :22:43. | |
hundreds of them who were in this building for dozens of reasons and | :22:44. | :22:47. | |
meetings yesterday and who, through many hours, actually showed great | :22:48. | :22:55. | |
compliance, patience, forebearence and fortitude while the situation | :22:56. | :22:59. | |
was outside the confines of this building. Can I place on record our | :23:00. | :23:05. | |
thanks to them? Can I thank the leader of the House for the notice | :23:06. | :23:08. | |
that next Tuesday's debate on the crisis in Yemen will be protected | :23:09. | :23:12. | |
for 90 minutes. We will have a decent amount of time to discuss the | :23:13. | :23:17. | |
on-going dreadful situation there. And to the notice we have two | :23:18. | :23:21. | |
debates next Thursday on animal welfare and of course the prerecess | :23:22. | :23:27. | |
adjournment debate. Can I ask the leader of the House for early | :23:28. | :23:30. | |
notice, if at all possible, for any time that willal le kated to the | :23:31. | :23:34. | |
Backbench Business Committee on the week beginning 18th April and the | :23:35. | :23:38. | |
week beginning 24th April? Can I point out, I am sure he's aware of | :23:39. | :23:42. | |
this, of an anomaly on standing orders. When we come back on 18th | :23:43. | :23:47. | |
April, this House, this chamber will meet at 2. 30pm. But understanding | :23:48. | :23:53. | |
to be Westminster Hall will commence at 9. 30am, which I think is an | :23:54. | :23:58. | |
inconvenience to members but also to the staff of this House. I think we | :23:59. | :24:03. | |
have a Backbench Business Committee debate scheduled for then, which | :24:04. | :24:08. | |
would be led off by the honourable member for Motherwell who will | :24:09. | :24:10. | |
aingually have to leave her constituency -- who will actually | :24:11. | :24:19. | |
have to leave her quifrnltsy on who will have to leave her constituency | :24:20. | :24:22. | |
on a Monday. Which is a bank holiday. | :24:23. | :24:25. | |
THE SPEAKER: It is a ples slur to both see him here today and hear his | :24:26. | :24:30. | |
voice. The leader of the House... It is | :24:31. | :24:34. | |
good to see the honourable gentleman back in his normal place at these | :24:35. | :24:41. | |
exchanges on Thursdays. I will do my best to make sure he and his | :24:42. | :24:45. | |
committee have any notice of allocated time in the weeks | :24:46. | :24:51. | |
beginning 18thth April. I take his point about the anomaly in standing | :24:52. | :24:57. | |
orders. And I have already spoken to my Right Honourable friend, the | :24:58. | :25:00. | |
Chief Whip, to see if we can look for a way in which to make life | :25:01. | :25:05. | |
easier for him and for the honourable lady. | :25:06. | :25:08. | |
Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. I am sorry I am such a poor substitute | :25:09. | :25:15. | |
for the chairman of the backbench committee. I was unsuccessful in the | :25:16. | :25:21. | |
unshuffle at equality questions. Can I ask the leader of the House for an | :25:22. | :25:27. | |
early statement on the position of the promised consultation document | :25:28. | :25:33. | |
on cast discrimination which will allow the Hindu community to put | :25:34. | :25:37. | |
their perspective on why this unwanted, unnecessary and ill-judged | :25:38. | :25:42. | |
legislation can be removed from the statute book? My honourable friend | :25:43. | :25:48. | |
raises a matter which is very important to his constituents and | :25:49. | :25:55. | |
does so el wantly. I will suggest to the minister concerned that she | :25:56. | :25:58. | |
writes to my honourable friend about the Government's current position on | :25:59. | :26:03. | |
this. As he will be aware this particular decision involves not | :26:04. | :26:08. | |
just a policy commitment, but also the allocation of legislative time, | :26:09. | :26:11. | |
which is under pressure from many departments at the moment. | :26:12. | :26:22. | |
Can I welcome the leaders assurances about support for staff after | :26:23. | :26:28. | |
yesterday's tragic events? And can I thank you, Mr Speaker, for what you | :26:29. | :26:32. | |
said about the commission itself under your chairmanmanship, looking | :26:33. | :26:35. | |
at lessons learnted, and particularly perhaps into the issues | :26:36. | :26:41. | |
of support to staff? Mr Speaker, could we have a debate on the work | :26:42. | :26:49. | |
of the Taylor Review before it actually completed publication? So | :26:50. | :26:56. | |
that we can feed in our views around issues of insecurity at work, | :26:57. | :27:02. | |
particularly the huge growth in zero-hours contracts - the increase | :27:03. | :27:08. | |
in staff from agencies and also self-employment. If the House itself | :27:09. | :27:11. | |
had the debate, it would be useful to feed knit that way. | :27:12. | :27:18. | |
The honourable lady makes a perfectly reasonable point. Although | :27:19. | :27:23. | |
there is of course nothing to stop individual Right Honourable and | :27:24. | :27:27. | |
honourable members from making representations to Matthew Taylor. I | :27:28. | :27:31. | |
think the best advice I could give her would be to seek a backbench | :27:32. | :27:36. | |
business debate on this. It certainly is good to see the | :27:37. | :27:40. | |
honourable member back in his place. I am glad it was a back problem | :27:41. | :27:44. | |
rather than a heart problem. Will my Right Honourable friend find time | :27:45. | :27:49. | |
for a debate on debates along the Thames Estuary. Last week the North | :27:50. | :27:54. | |
Thames fishery action group were awarded ?800,000. That will be spent | :27:55. | :27:59. | |
further on enhancing the culture and the heritage of the Thames Estuary. | :28:00. | :28:06. | |
My honourable friend is in a great historical tradition. Magna Carta | :28:07. | :28:11. | |
itself mentions the importance of maintaining fish wires in the River | :28:12. | :28:17. | |
Thames. -- wiers in the River Thames. The renewal of marine life | :28:18. | :28:26. | |
and river life in the estuaries of the Thames and other rivers are to | :28:27. | :28:30. | |
serve the great industrial cities of our city and I hope that the money | :28:31. | :28:34. | |
that has been announced recently will enable that development to be | :28:35. | :28:39. | |
taken further forward. Thank you, Mr Speaker. Can we have | :28:40. | :28:45. | |
an early debate on rules of origin documentation? And particularly the | :28:46. | :28:51. | |
five or seven-fold increase that will be required when this country | :28:52. | :28:59. | |
leaves the customs union. That is a very important subject. I agree. | :29:00. | :29:04. | |
It's one that I am sure the honourable gentleman will be | :29:05. | :29:07. | |
ingenious enough to raise in the course of the numerous debates that | :29:08. | :29:12. | |
we'll have on European issues in forthcoming months. | :29:13. | :29:17. | |
This is not the day to labour the point. I don't expect the leader to | :29:18. | :29:25. | |
reply in any detail, but when we do finally have the long delayed debate | :29:26. | :29:31. | |
on whether this House should leave this building in the decan't which | :29:32. | :29:36. | |
is proposed until now, I think we should at least n the light of what | :29:37. | :29:42. | |
has happened in the last 24 hours, give great consideration to the | :29:43. | :29:46. | |
symbolism of this place and the security considerations of | :29:47. | :29:50. | |
dispersing MPs and peers around Parliament Square. | :29:51. | :29:56. | |
The security of not just members, but of staff, let us never forget | :29:57. | :30:06. | |
there are something like 14,000 pass holders to the Parliamentary estate, | :30:07. | :30:13. | |
is at the forefront of the consideration by the Parliamentary | :30:14. | :30:15. | |
officials who have been leading on this and I can assure my honourable | :30:16. | :30:25. | |
friend that whatever is finally approved by this House and by the | :30:26. | :30:30. | |
House of Lords, that, as these works are carried through on whatever | :30:31. | :30:35. | |
timescale and fashion, security will continue to be at the forefront of | :30:36. | :30:41. | |
everybody's mind. It was striking this morning to come into this place | :30:42. | :30:48. | |
and see so many police officers on duty protecting us, and at the same | :30:49. | :30:53. | |
time mourning their colleague, the hero, PC Keith Palmer. His death in | :30:54. | :30:59. | |
active service, protecting us here, is a reminder that there are | :31:00. | :31:07. | |
families of murdered police officers and indeed those who have lost loved | :31:08. | :31:13. | |
ones serving in the Armed Forces, who have still not got proper | :31:14. | :31:16. | |
compensation for the rest of their lives. Can we look at this issue | :31:17. | :31:21. | |
again and ensure any person who dies in active service in the police | :31:22. | :31:26. | |
force, in our Armed Forces, their families are properly compensated | :31:27. | :31:31. | |
for the rest of their lives? It would indeed be good to find a way | :31:32. | :31:36. | |
in particular in which one could spare people the need to go through | :31:37. | :31:43. | |
long and complex litigation in order to get the compensation they | :31:44. | :31:49. | |
deserve. This may be something which he is able to raise at Western -- | :31:50. | :31:55. | |
Westminster Hall or three backbench business. Can I support, all thanks | :31:56. | :32:06. | |
to the staff, they were fantastic yesterday. Coming back to business | :32:07. | :32:14. | |
as usual, can I anticipate the motion on the restoration and | :32:15. | :32:18. | |
renewal of the palace. Could I ask it is a full day debate and dead | :32:19. | :32:23. | |
weight when we would anticipate the house to be as full as it ever it | :32:24. | :32:28. | |
is, in other words, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, but not a Thursday and | :32:29. | :32:35. | |
obviously not a Friday? We will make a provision and announce a date for | :32:36. | :32:40. | |
the debate as soon as we can and clearly the point my honourable | :32:41. | :32:44. | |
friend has made is one of the considerations we will take into | :32:45. | :32:50. | |
account. I have represented this House for | :32:51. | :32:54. | |
seven years on the Nato Parliamentary assembly and during | :32:55. | :32:58. | |
the lockdown yesterday there were messages coming from all over the | :32:59. | :33:03. | |
Nato Parliamentary family offering solidarity and support including the | :33:04. | :33:07. | |
headquarters in Brussels, where they had commemorated the attack on | :33:08. | :33:11. | |
Brussels a year to the day, I wanted to pass that on to the Leader of the | :33:12. | :33:16. | |
House and members present. Can we have a debate on issues of tolerance | :33:17. | :33:21. | |
and understanding, that were so stressed during the statement from | :33:22. | :33:25. | |
the Prime Minister, within the church in Wales? We have many | :33:26. | :33:34. | |
opportunities to question, by the Church Commissioners statement in | :33:35. | :33:38. | |
the house, but we have no such opportunity in relation to the | :33:39. | :33:42. | |
church in Wales. Can we have a debate on how we can make that | :33:43. | :33:48. | |
possible? First of all, like her, I have been struck by the spontaneous | :33:49. | :33:57. | |
and stronger expressions of solidarity which honourable members | :33:58. | :34:01. | |
and the government have received from democracies and elected | :34:02. | :34:04. | |
representatives around the world. On her point about the Church in Wales, | :34:05. | :34:09. | |
I can understand her wish for a debate, but I cannot offer one in | :34:10. | :34:14. | |
government time because the Church in Wales is disestablished, but it | :34:15. | :34:19. | |
may be that she is successful in securing a Westminster Hall | :34:20. | :34:26. | |
opportunity. Negative SIs should for | :34:27. | :34:35. | |
noncontroversial matters so returning to normal, in relation to | :34:36. | :34:40. | |
the EU, we will have a lot of bills in the next parliament and we will | :34:41. | :34:44. | |
want to continue with normal business. As the Leader of the House | :34:45. | :34:48. | |
given thought to extending sitting hours, or sitting on Fridays when we | :34:49. | :34:55. | |
don't see it for Private Members' Bill? I cannot miss a statement next | :34:56. | :35:03. | |
week but how we allocate time, given the exceptional pressure that there | :35:04. | :35:08. | |
will be on legislative time because of that legislation needed for the | :35:09. | :35:15. | |
exit from the European Union is something I and other business | :35:16. | :35:18. | |
managers are taking very seriously and we are spending a lot of our | :35:19. | :35:21. | |
time reflecting on how best this might be achieved. I express my | :35:22. | :35:31. | |
condolences to the family of PC Keith Palmer, family and friends. | :35:32. | :35:35. | |
Today more than ever I would like us to think about the innate goodness | :35:36. | :35:40. | |
and solidarity of people in this country and in that vein I wonder if | :35:41. | :35:44. | |
we can have a debate on the honours system. There is a lady in Hull, | :35:45. | :35:52. | |
Jean Bishop, aged 94, who dresses up in a bee costume and has raised | :35:53. | :35:58. | |
?117,000 for age UK and before her 95th birthday she wants to get to | :35:59. | :36:04. | |
?200 for the charity. She has been put forward for others before and | :36:05. | :36:09. | |
has not been in receipt of one. There is a 13-year-old little girl | :36:10. | :36:15. | |
in Hull who has got a petition going and 3500 said she deserves another. | :36:16. | :36:22. | |
The honourable lady has put her case eloquently and I think many of us | :36:23. | :36:30. | |
will know of comparable examples of local heroes and heroines who have | :36:31. | :36:36. | |
voluntarily given of their time, effort and money, often over many | :36:37. | :36:39. | |
years, in the service of their fellow citizens. The best advice I | :36:40. | :36:46. | |
can give is for the honourable lady to present a strongly argued | :36:47. | :36:51. | |
persuasive case with as many other supporters as she can in Hull to the | :36:52. | :36:57. | |
secretariat at the Cabinet Office in charge of making initial | :36:58. | :37:04. | |
recommendations on honours. Can I associate myself and my | :37:05. | :37:08. | |
constituents with the words of the Prime Minister, the leader and all | :37:09. | :37:12. | |
other members about yesterday's events? Could I ask for a debate on | :37:13. | :37:19. | |
the situation in Burundi? More than 1000 refugees a day it is reported | :37:20. | :37:26. | |
of fleeing into Tanzania and while there is rightly a concentration on | :37:27. | :37:30. | |
other countries suffering from food, insecurity and famine in part of | :37:31. | :37:37. | |
Africa, I believe the Randy is being ignored. We need a debate urgently. | :37:38. | :37:42. | |
I can assure my honourable friend the government is not ignoring the | :37:43. | :37:49. | |
situation in Burundi. Considerable amounts of humanitarian assistance | :37:50. | :37:53. | |
are being directed there through the Department for International | :37:54. | :37:57. | |
Development. Clearly we do have to work both through international | :37:58. | :38:03. | |
agencies, but also through the existing authorities in Burundi and | :38:04. | :38:08. | |
that is not always straightforward, but I will highlight to the minister | :38:09. | :38:15. | |
for Africa the comments made. Yesterday the British Government | :38:16. | :38:22. | |
announced the intention to build another prison, this time in Port | :38:23. | :38:27. | |
Talbot. This will lead to surplus places across Wales. Could we have a | :38:28. | :38:36. | |
debate as to whether provision reflects Welsh requirements? This is | :38:37. | :38:42. | |
something he will want to take up directly with Justice ministers but | :38:43. | :38:46. | |
the purpose of the prison building programme is that we should have a | :38:47. | :38:52. | |
new generation of modern prisons that really are fit for purpose, | :38:53. | :38:57. | |
that can deliver a regime that is secure all but also because it is | :38:58. | :39:03. | |
secure, provides greater opportunities for work and education | :39:04. | :39:08. | |
that are so vital if we are to make a success of rehabilitation | :39:09. | :39:13. | |
policies. This programme would free up older prisons, usually in city | :39:14. | :39:18. | |
centres, that we ought to be phasing out now and which could mean a | :39:19. | :39:22. | |
significant capital return for government which we can then invest | :39:23. | :39:27. | |
in modern facilities. I too would like to put on record my | :39:28. | :39:34. | |
thoughts are with the family and friends of PC Palmer and all those | :39:35. | :39:38. | |
who suffered as a result of yesterday's events. New Wolf Parish | :39:39. | :39:46. | |
Council in my constituency has written to the Transport Secretary | :39:47. | :39:50. | |
expressing what they regard as a complete waste of money, a proposal | :39:51. | :39:53. | |
by North East Lincolnshire Council to install traffic signals at toll | :39:54. | :40:02. | |
bar roundabout in their parish of New Waltham. This is being carried | :40:03. | :40:09. | |
out with government money. Could we have a debate on how local | :40:10. | :40:12. | |
authorities spend the many aliens the government had to them? | :40:13. | :40:22. | |
One of the important roles both of lower tier authorities like Parish | :40:23. | :40:26. | |
councils and also of members of Parliament is to hold local | :40:27. | :40:33. | |
authorities to account for their stewardship of scarce and finite | :40:34. | :40:38. | |
resources of taxpayers' money. I am in no position to comment in detail | :40:39. | :40:43. | |
about traffic lights at roundabouts in his constituency, but Caley he | :40:44. | :40:53. | |
will not let this issue go. The cuts to personal independence | :40:54. | :40:58. | |
payment explicitly exclude people applying for mobility support if the | :40:59. | :41:02. | |
problem arises from psychological distress and that is despite the | :41:03. | :41:07. | |
Prime Minister's commitment to treat mental-health problems on a par with | :41:08. | :41:11. | |
physical health. I'm grateful we are going to have a debate but could I | :41:12. | :41:16. | |
pressed him for a date? These cuts have already taken effect and it | :41:17. | :41:20. | |
sounds as if the debate will be after the Easter recess. | :41:21. | :41:27. | |
Can he give a firm date? I wanted to reassure him on the design of | :41:28. | :41:31. | |
personal independence payments. It is at the core of the payments | :41:32. | :41:36. | |
system that nonphysical conditions should be given the same recognition | :41:37. | :41:41. | |
as physical and we can already see the working of that in the fact is a | :41:42. | :41:46. | |
significantly higher proportion of people who have mental health issues | :41:47. | :41:51. | |
receive the top rates of Pip, which was the case with DLA. | :41:52. | :41:57. | |
May I also associate myself with all of the tributes that have been made. | :41:58. | :42:02. | |
I think we have seen the house at its best in the proceedings. | :42:03. | :42:05. | |
Ultimately our democracy will not be silenced. The Corby urgent care | :42:06. | :42:11. | |
centre is a vital NHS service and I'm pre-is the local commissioning | :42:12. | :42:14. | |
group has confirmed the doors will not close. -- I am pleased. Will he | :42:15. | :42:22. | |
urged the clinical commissioning group to resolve some contractual | :42:23. | :42:30. | |
issues to give constituents greater reassurance and to ensure we | :42:31. | :42:34. | |
continue to have the quality of service we expect and of course, can | :42:35. | :42:38. | |
we have a debate next week? I think he will have to to take his | :42:39. | :42:43. | |
chance with adjournment debates on this but while decisions about the | :42:44. | :42:48. | |
configuration of health services are taken possibly in the light of local | :42:49. | :42:53. | |
circumstance, that commissioning groups do manage their relationships | :42:54. | :42:59. | |
with contractors effectively so that local people can be assured of the | :43:00. | :43:03. | |
decent service to which they are entitled. | :43:04. | :43:11. | |
I want to associate myself with all the remarks and condolences that | :43:12. | :43:14. | |
have been given so eloquently this morning and I particularly wanted to | :43:15. | :43:19. | |
mention my colleague from Perth and North Perthshire, who mentioned | :43:20. | :43:24. | |
going home. I am going home tonight and I am grateful to be doing so. | :43:25. | :43:30. | |
Unfortunately I will miss a rally that has been raised quickly to | :43:31. | :43:35. | |
support refugees we are welcoming very soon and against a proposed | :43:36. | :43:40. | |
Scottish Defence League march in Wishaw against refugees. Could I | :43:41. | :43:48. | |
also thank the honourable member, the backbench committee convener and | :43:49. | :43:51. | |
Leader of the House for consideration of the changes to time | :43:52. | :43:56. | |
in Westminster Hall debates on Tuesday the 18th? My debate is on | :43:57. | :44:00. | |
the child maintenance service and I have received support from members | :44:01. | :44:03. | |
across the house and it is important will stop I don't mind travelling on | :44:04. | :44:10. | |
bank holiday Monday to get here, but I understand the difficulties many | :44:11. | :44:15. | |
members across this chamber will have to get to this debate at | :44:16. | :44:21. | |
9:30am, so I appreciate all efforts the Leader of the House has said he | :44:22. | :44:23. | |
will look to do. We will do our best to accommodate | :44:24. | :44:30. | |
the problem she has identified. Item three on today's order paper on | :44:31. | :44:37. | |
the business for the house, there is reference to a motion being tabled | :44:38. | :44:44. | |
in the name of the Prime Minister relating to exiting the EU and the | :44:45. | :44:49. | |
environment, and this is not mentioned in the business statement. | :44:50. | :44:53. | |
I wonder if the Leader of the House could clarify that, and in light of | :44:54. | :44:57. | |
yesterday's events, could we have a debate on community cohesion and the | :44:58. | :45:02. | |
prevent strategy? The answer is that yesterday's | :45:03. | :45:10. | |
business was interrupted for the reasons we all know. That business | :45:11. | :45:17. | |
on the pensions schemes spill has had to be rescheduled and | :45:18. | :45:19. | |
conversations through the usual channels agree the slot on the 29th | :45:20. | :45:21. | |
is the best way to manage this. I was surprised to receive a letter | :45:22. | :45:32. | |
from the Minister of State for transport this week. My surprise was | :45:33. | :45:37. | |
because it referred to work improvement on the M25 motorway, | :45:38. | :45:42. | |
which is some distance from my constituency. I was even more | :45:43. | :45:46. | |
surprised because I'd just written to the Secretary of State about a | :45:47. | :45:50. | |
number of serious accidents at Switch Island. With the Leader of | :45:51. | :45:56. | |
the House please remind the Secretary of State of the need to | :45:57. | :46:01. | |
respond to my letter? There are serious accidents happening far too | :46:02. | :46:07. | |
often. My constituents care about Switch Island, not the M25. All | :46:08. | :46:11. | |
that's happened is a repeat of the idea that investment happens in the | :46:12. | :46:15. | |
south-east of England at the expense of the North West. My right | :46:16. | :46:21. | |
honourable friend the Secretary of State for Transport takes very | :46:22. | :46:23. | |
seriously his responsibility to ensure that honourable members | :46:24. | :46:28. | |
receive accurate and comprehensive replies to points they make about | :46:29. | :46:35. | |
their constituencies. I will draw to the attention of the Secretary of | :46:36. | :46:39. | |
State 's office the need for this reply to be sent. May I take this | :46:40. | :46:47. | |
opportunity of thanking you, your staff and the way he conducted | :46:48. | :46:51. | |
himself yesterday, and indeed to the Leader of the House and to the | :46:52. | :46:54. | |
Sergeant of arms. As the chairman of the all-party peer group I would | :46:55. | :46:59. | |
like to invite you all and your staff perhaps to share a great | :47:00. | :47:04. | |
British pint and then to carry on at a later date. Place to be confirmed. | :47:05. | :47:09. | |
Can we have a debate on the contribution of the brewing industry | :47:10. | :47:12. | |
to the United Kingdom and its culture? I thank my honourable | :47:13. | :47:18. | |
friend to his kind remarks. I think one of the remarkable things we've | :47:19. | :47:22. | |
seen in the brewing industry in the last couple of decades has been the | :47:23. | :47:27. | |
surge in the growth of small-scale Varese. I think it's a real tribute | :47:28. | :47:33. | |
to the enterprise of the sector that we've seen microbreweries and craft | :47:34. | :47:38. | |
breweries take-off in this way, and continuing to win new, discerning | :47:39. | :47:45. | |
drinkers to customers. Can I put on record my thanks to the staff and | :47:46. | :47:50. | |
all those outside of this House, members of the public, who sent | :47:51. | :47:54. | |
their kind thoughts and wishes in the past 24 hours. It's been very | :47:55. | :47:58. | |
touching and I would like to thank them. I'd also like to thank my | :47:59. | :48:04. | |
voice to the chorus of members who are calling for more time to debate | :48:05. | :48:08. | |
the government's new funding formula, or as we call it funding | :48:09. | :48:13. | |
education cuts. I've had head teachers across Norwich and Norfolk | :48:14. | :48:17. | |
make the unprecedented step of sending letters to the parents of | :48:18. | :48:24. | |
children, talking to them about the impending budget crisis. At a time | :48:25. | :48:28. | |
when financial resources, precious financial resources, are being spent | :48:29. | :48:33. | |
on more free schools and grammar schools, rather than on those | :48:34. | :48:39. | |
schools that we already have. 25 out of 31 schools will be receiving | :48:40. | :48:43. | |
funding cuts in my constituency and I would like to see if we could have | :48:44. | :48:49. | |
more time to debate this. As I've already said today, Mr Speaker, the | :48:50. | :48:52. | |
Secretary of State will be considering the recently concluded | :48:53. | :48:57. | |
consultation into the new funding formula. She will be announcing her | :48:58. | :49:02. | |
proposals in due course, that would be the appropriate time for her to | :49:03. | :49:05. | |
be questioned offer any debate to take place. Mr Speaker, earlier this | :49:06. | :49:12. | |
month I was honoured to open two new business premises in my constituency | :49:13. | :49:18. | |
further data centres and inspiration health care. Also earlier this month | :49:19. | :49:23. | |
I was pleased to visit two new facilities at Crawley Hospital, a | :49:24. | :49:27. | |
new clinical assessment unit and a new 26 bed ward. Can we have | :49:28. | :49:32. | |
consideration of the importance of further engendering economic growth | :49:33. | :49:36. | |
as this government is doing, so we can afford better public services? | :49:37. | :49:40. | |
My honourable friend makes a very important point. You cannot | :49:41. | :49:44. | |
distribute wealth and less business has created it in the first place. | :49:45. | :49:50. | |
The job of government, and this government's commitment, is to | :49:51. | :49:54. | |
foster the economic climate in which businessmen in every part of the UK, | :49:55. | :50:01. | |
men and women in every part of the UK, can help to generate economic | :50:02. | :50:07. | |
growth and drive the numbers of those in employment up even higher | :50:08. | :50:11. | |
than the record levels they have now reached. I would like to take this | :50:12. | :50:20. | |
opportunity to express my happiness to share in the sentiments that have | :50:21. | :50:24. | |
been expressed today, the condolences we've sent from this | :50:25. | :50:27. | |
House and my thanks to all the staff yesterday. I've been recently quite | :50:28. | :50:35. | |
concerned, Mr Speaker, by comments I've seen on social media regarding | :50:36. | :50:41. | |
a UK Parliamentary petition. Where we have people on social media | :50:42. | :50:45. | |
boasting they've signed this petition 2000 times. I wondered if | :50:46. | :50:49. | |
the Leader of the House today can set out for the reassurance of this | :50:50. | :50:53. | |
House what measures are in place to ensure that signatories of any | :50:54. | :50:56. | |
Parliamentary petitions are valid, so we can all have confidence that | :50:57. | :51:01. | |
these petitions have integrity and are signed only once, and only by | :51:02. | :51:06. | |
those entitled to do so, given that they often influence what MPs debate | :51:07. | :51:12. | |
in this place. Mr Speaker, there is a system in place to try to check | :51:13. | :51:21. | |
the risk that there bogus signatories to petitions. Clearly, | :51:22. | :51:25. | |
given the pace at which information technology moves, both systems need | :51:26. | :51:32. | |
to be updated from time to time. I know that the petitions committee | :51:33. | :51:36. | |
and the House authorities are very keen to act on the basis of any | :51:37. | :51:40. | |
evidence of malpractice such as the honourable lady has described. | :51:41. | :51:46. | |
Following the horrific events of yesterday, the Prime Minister said | :51:47. | :51:51. | |
in this House today that she wanted all MPs to learn life-saving first | :51:52. | :51:55. | |
aid skills. With that in mind, can we revisit the debate on compulsory | :51:56. | :52:00. | |
first aid education in schools, which was the subject of a private | :52:01. | :52:04. | |
members Bill and was sadly talked out by members on the government | :52:05. | :52:10. | |
benches. I think my right honourable friend the Prime Minister in courage | :52:11. | :52:16. | |
to people to acquire those skills. Whether the best way to do that is | :52:17. | :52:22. | |
through making it a compulsory part of the school curriculum is a | :52:23. | :52:28. | |
slightly different question. It's a perfectly reasonable element of the | :52:29. | :52:34. | |
debate but allocating time to such skills lessons would inevitably mean | :52:35. | :52:38. | |
either prolonging the school day or taking time away from other | :52:39. | :52:41. | |
activities. I think the government's general approach is that we would | :52:42. | :52:49. | |
allow for local schools and head teachers for these things. I'd like | :52:50. | :52:56. | |
to associate myself and my constituents with everything that's | :52:57. | :52:59. | |
been said this morning on the horrific attack yesterday. It goes | :53:00. | :53:02. | |
to show that evil will never prevail. I recently met with a | :53:03. | :53:10. | |
German national who has lived in Scotland for nine years. She's about | :53:11. | :53:18. | |
applying for residency due to 2011 changes to the rules on | :53:19. | :53:21. | |
comprehensive sickness insurance. Can we clarify the situation for EU | :53:22. | :53:25. | |
nationals like her who are concerned about their future? This is a matter | :53:26. | :53:31. | |
which the honourable gentleman could raise on behalf of his constituents | :53:32. | :53:35. | |
in any of the frequent opportunities we have to debate European matters. | :53:36. | :53:41. | |
But he, I hope, will understand that the government's objective is that | :53:42. | :53:45. | |
at a very early stage in the forthcoming negotiations we should | :53:46. | :53:49. | |
seek to ensure agreement with the 27 other members of the EU that each | :53:50. | :53:56. | |
other's nationals should continue to have rights of residents and other | :53:57. | :54:00. | |
connected rights, if they have been lawfully established. Could he and | :54:01. | :54:06. | |
the Environment Secretary consider the need for a debate on the zoo | :54:07. | :54:15. | |
licensing act of 1981? The alarming inadequacy of which has been exposed | :54:16. | :54:22. | |
by the South Lakes safari zoo in my constituency, which you may have | :54:23. | :54:26. | |
seen in the news. There is a catalogue of reasons why this act, | :54:27. | :54:31. | |
these licensing regulations need to be modernised. It hasn't been | :54:32. | :54:34. | |
debated for many years. I think the last time was four years ago in the | :54:35. | :54:41. | |
Other Place. Please can he consider the need for an urgent debate on | :54:42. | :54:46. | |
this. I did read the newspaper reports about what seems to have | :54:47. | :54:52. | |
been a pretty appalling case of mismanagement and of the | :54:53. | :54:55. | |
ill-treatment of a large number of animals at that zoo. There will be | :54:56. | :55:00. | |
questions on Thursday the 20th of April but I think probably the | :55:01. | :55:04. | |
honourable gentleman might also want to seek an adjournment debate either | :55:05. | :55:11. | |
in the chamber or Westminster Hall. The Leader of the House keep saying | :55:12. | :55:14. | |
people can apply the debates in Westminster Hall, but what's the | :55:15. | :55:17. | |
point when the minister responses are so woefully short? There seems | :55:18. | :55:23. | |
to be a problem where the 11am on a Wednesday slot. The average | :55:24. | :55:26. | |
ministerial response lasts for ten minutes and the debates are | :55:27. | :55:29. | |
finishing early. I understand ministers need to rush up here for | :55:30. | :55:33. | |
Prime Minister's Questions but surely these debates, which are | :55:34. | :55:38. | |
important to our constituents, should a decent response from the | :55:39. | :55:43. | |
ministers. I think a courteous and decent response can also be pithy | :55:44. | :55:50. | |
and succinct. I have to say the days when I had to reply to numerous | :55:51. | :55:58. | |
Westminster Hall debate, we always seemed to need additional time to | :55:59. | :56:02. | |
accommodate the many speeches. I often found my remaining time at the | :56:03. | :56:07. | |
end of the debate was squeezed hard including by a spokesman for his | :56:08. | :56:12. | |
party. Speaker, can I associate myself with the tributes paid | :56:13. | :56:18. | |
regarding yesterday's tragic events. It should send a strong message to | :56:19. | :56:22. | |
the Secretary of State for Education when members on this side like | :56:23. | :56:27. | |
myself are entirely united with the honourable member for Shipley on the | :56:28. | :56:30. | |
issue of formula funding for education. Can I say to him that | :56:31. | :56:36. | |
many schools are facing severe deficits and need to be able to plan | :56:37. | :56:41. | |
ahead urgently. I hear what he says about the consultation only ending | :56:42. | :56:45. | |
yesterday, can I urge to say to the Secretary of State we need an early | :56:46. | :56:48. | |
statement so that schools can plan ahead. I know that my right | :56:49. | :56:55. | |
honourable friend is aware of the need for headteachers and governing | :56:56. | :56:58. | |
bodies to be able to plan with the honourable gentleman. I will make | :56:59. | :57:05. | |
sure that she is aware of the opinions that have been expressed | :57:06. | :57:11. | |
this morning. In light of the Prime Minister's speech last night, | :57:12. | :57:15. | |
stating the UK sets an example for advancing freedoms including freedom | :57:16. | :57:23. | |
of religious belief, and further the FCO October conference the freedom | :57:24. | :57:29. | |
to pursue religious belief, with the Leader of the House agreed to a | :57:30. | :57:31. | |
statement by the minister responsible to confirm how | :57:32. | :57:46. | |
FCO and DFID are promoting religious freedoms. I would encourage him to | :57:47. | :57:53. | |
put those questions to those departments. I can ensure him from | :57:54. | :57:59. | |
my own fairly recent experience of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office | :58:00. | :58:03. | |
that human rights including religious freedom is something that | :58:04. | :58:06. | |
is taken very seriously throughout our network of posts abroad and in | :58:07. | :58:12. | |
London. It is also sometimes the case that persecuted religious | :58:13. | :58:17. | |
minorities themselves prefer that their plight to be addressed in the | :58:18. | :58:22. | |
context of the expression of broader concerns about human rights, | :58:23. | :58:26. | |
precisely because they don't want to be further singled out for | :58:27. | :58:31. | |
additional persecution. So there is an element of judgment in how we go | :58:32. | :58:35. | |
about this task but the centrality of that to the FCO and DfID is | :58:36. | :58:44. | |
something about which I hope I can give him some firm assurance. Last | :58:45. | :58:47. | |
week the National Institute for clinical excellence issued | :58:48. | :58:54. | |
guidelines which introduced a financial cup on access to | :58:55. | :58:58. | |
medicines. Major research charities warn that lives will be lost because | :58:59. | :59:03. | |
of this new rationing system -- financial cap. Should there not have | :59:04. | :59:06. | |
been a statement about such an important change of policy? And | :59:07. | :59:10. | |
could we have a debate in the absence of such a statement? It's | :59:11. | :59:16. | |
important that decisions about individual medicines are taken by a | :59:17. | :59:26. | |
body like nice where it is clinical judgment rather than political | :59:27. | :59:32. | |
pressure or a question of who has the most effective group of | :59:33. | :59:37. | |
supporters to lobby on their behalf. I've lost the Department of Health | :59:38. | :59:39. | |
to write to the honourable gentleman. | :59:40. | :59:46. | |
Can I associate myself with expressions of sympathy today and | :59:47. | :59:53. | |
appreciation expressed for those who keep us safe, including brain police | :59:54. | :59:59. | |
officers. I wonder if we can have an urgent debate on the Chennai six, | :00:00. | :00:10. | |
one of the men forced in incarceration in an Indian mental | :00:11. | :00:17. | |
hospital and the fact the list are concerned is not able to meet | :00:18. | :00:24. | |
terrified family members to reassure them? I met the question of the | :00:25. | :00:29. | |
Chennai six is something that has been raised with the Indian | :00:30. | :00:33. | |
authorities at the highest political level as well is repeatedly at | :00:34. | :00:40. | |
official level is. I will ask my honourable friend the member for | :00:41. | :00:44. | |
Reading West as the minister responsible for policy towards India | :00:45. | :00:49. | |
to write to the honourable lady. I have a constituent who worked for | :00:50. | :00:55. | |
the Royal Mail for 28 years and loved his job at 15 years ago he | :00:56. | :01:02. | |
overcame the adversity of losing his daughter who was diagnosed with | :01:03. | :01:07. | |
terminal cancer. The Royal Mail manager at that time wanted to sack | :01:08. | :01:12. | |
him, which is unbelievable. He has since recovered and won postman of | :01:13. | :01:17. | |
the year a few years later but 15 years later, he was off work due to | :01:18. | :01:23. | |
muscle injuries and the Royal Mail has forced an ill-health retirement | :01:24. | :01:27. | |
settlement on him after being off just four months. His appeal process | :01:28. | :01:33. | |
is ongoing. The Royal Mail has refused to engage with my office but | :01:34. | :01:40. | |
I am aware the government still has a minister with responsibility is | :01:41. | :01:45. | |
listed as Royal Mail. Will he make a statement outlining what role that | :01:46. | :01:48. | |
minister can play and what assistance can be given for a | :01:49. | :01:55. | |
fantastic employee? I am sure the honourable gentleman | :01:56. | :01:59. | |
would not expect me to comment on the particular case particularly as | :02:00. | :02:04. | |
he has said it is subject to an appeal, presumably through an | :02:05. | :02:10. | |
employment tribunal. I will draw his concerns to the attention of the | :02:11. | :02:14. | |
minister responsible for Royal Mail, but I think it would not be a tall | :02:15. | :02:22. | |
usual for government ministers to choose to intervene in individual | :02:23. | :02:28. | |
employment cases. Royal Mail exists as a corporate entity and they do | :02:29. | :02:31. | |
have to take management decisions about their personnel without being | :02:32. | :02:41. | |
second-guessed by ministers. The Leader of the House repeated | :02:42. | :02:44. | |
claim ministers have made that more people with mental-health problems | :02:45. | :02:50. | |
are supported by Pip than DLA. The mental health charity Mind made it | :02:51. | :02:56. | |
clear 55% of people with mental health had awards on DLA. How can I | :02:57. | :03:02. | |
get the record corrected and push him for a debate on the new | :03:03. | :03:08. | |
regulations? The pursuit of a debate has | :03:09. | :03:09. |