:00:14. > :00:16.Hello and welcome to Thursday in Parliament.
:00:17. > :00:22.Tory MPs condemn the government on tax credits.
:00:23. > :00:25.It's punishing people who are going out there and trying to work
:00:26. > :00:28.and do the right thing, and that just does not sit right with me.
:00:29. > :00:30.The Speaker criticises the delay in publishing the report
:00:31. > :00:40.Sir John should be aware that there is a very real sense of anger
:00:41. > :00:45.and frustration across the whole House at what seems a substantial
:00:46. > :00:54.And MPs hear a plea for more humanitarian aid for Syria.
:00:55. > :01:00.The UK has been very influential, has really stepped up to
:01:01. > :01:05.the plate to give more, but more is not enough.
:01:06. > :01:08.MPs have backed a motion calling on the government to reconsider
:01:09. > :01:13.the effects of tax credit cuts on the lowest-paid workers.
:01:14. > :01:16.The proposed changes to tax credits, the top-up welfare paid to working
:01:17. > :01:19.households on low incomes, were knocked back in the House
:01:20. > :01:24.George Osborne is expected to announce next month how he's going
:01:25. > :01:28.to lessen the impact of the cuts on families but this was the first
:01:29. > :01:32.Commons vote to express concern about the Chancellor's cuts and
:01:33. > :01:35.nearly every Conservative who spoke in the debate criticised
:01:36. > :01:38.the affect the cuts would have on working families.
:01:39. > :01:41.In terms of the current mitigation that is being talked about, free
:01:42. > :01:44.child for three and four-year-olds and how that helps, but if you don't
:01:45. > :01:53.have a three and four-year-old, it's completely pointless.
:01:54. > :01:56.There's talk about the personal income tax allowance increasing
:01:57. > :01:59.I would like to see it go up to ?15,000
:02:00. > :02:03.But if you don't earn more than ?11,000,
:02:04. > :02:07.So if you're on that ?11,000, you're still being hit with that ?1200-1400
:02:08. > :02:11.cut, and it's punishing people who are going out there and trying to
:02:12. > :02:14.work and do the right thing and that just does not sit right with me.
:02:15. > :02:16.So that's something that I could not support.
:02:17. > :02:22.I can be returned to the fold, I'm sure.
:02:23. > :02:35.There is huge fear out there in the public
:02:36. > :02:40.and we need to come forward with some proposals as fast as we can.
:02:41. > :02:43.It is therefore, in my view, difficult to understand why we
:02:44. > :02:46.weren't willing to give tax credit recipients the same time in order to
:02:47. > :02:49.adapt and change into the situation that we were proposing.
:02:50. > :02:53.So the decision to cut so quickly and, I'm afraid, so deeply was
:02:54. > :02:57.clearly problematic and the response of both Houses has shown quite
:02:58. > :03:02.clearly that people were concerned about the changes in question.
:03:03. > :03:05.But in terms of how we move forward from this
:03:06. > :03:08.situation, the one thing that we have to be aware of is we need to
:03:09. > :03:12.I think the worst example of a crass comment in relation to
:03:13. > :03:16.all this issue was the Conservative MP who stated, quite clearly, that
:03:17. > :03:21.if somebody loses ?30 per week as a result of these changes, they simply
:03:22. > :03:24.need to go out and work an extra three hours! And
:03:25. > :03:26.as somebody who's taken an interest in this issue, I was actually
:03:27. > :03:34.One can only think that because I don't think anybody in any party
:03:35. > :03:40.in this House would deliberately impoverish the working poor with
:03:41. > :03:51.dependent families and, I'm afraid, I did differentiate in this context.
:03:52. > :03:53.It was compounded by the method taken
:03:54. > :03:55.of having a statutory instrument, therefore it's unamendable, and not
:03:56. > :03:58.having enough information, not having a proper impact statement.
:03:59. > :04:01.The motion for the debate had been put forward by a former Labour
:04:02. > :04:03.minister who chairs the Work and Pensions Committee, Frank Field.
:04:04. > :04:06.He said the House of Lords had done the Chancellor a favour
:04:07. > :04:09.by voting to delay his cuts and he called on the government to help.
:04:10. > :04:12.The Prime Minister, for example, is very waxed in telling the
:04:13. > :04:15.country that eight out of ten people of families will be better off
:04:16. > :04:22.The truth is that eight out of ten may well be better off
:04:23. > :04:27.but practically all of those of our constituents who draw tax credits
:04:28. > :04:32.are in the two out of ten who will be made substantially worse off.
:04:33. > :04:36.And I think it then again unites backbenches on both sides
:04:37. > :04:40.of the House, is whether these changes to tax credits
:04:41. > :04:50.It's one of the problems we have of our popularity in shovelling around
:04:51. > :04:56.taxpayers' money without realising that sometimes, some day, the music
:04:57. > :05:01.stops and people might think the bill is not actually affordable.
:05:02. > :05:04.There would be very little opposition to the government
:05:05. > :05:07.introducing these reforms so people who are not claiming tax
:05:08. > :05:10.credits now would claim them in the future and who would know
:05:11. > :05:17.It's very, very different when this place has helped shape people's
:05:18. > :05:22.lives and their expectations and their drive to actually say, all
:05:23. > :05:25.of a sudden, to blow the whistle and say, we're changing the rules.
:05:26. > :05:30.I think people, both here and in the country, feel very strongly.
:05:31. > :05:33.Why are we here again, discussing tax credits?
:05:34. > :05:36.Frankly, Mr Speaker, the government has got itself into a mess
:05:37. > :05:43.These proposals which have now been passed through the statutory
:05:44. > :05:45.instrument and been rejected in the Other Place are wrong-headed and
:05:46. > :05:51.Work must pay, we all agree, but you don't make work pay by
:05:52. > :05:56.taking money from those in work who rely on tax credits today to achieve
:05:57. > :06:15.More than 3 million families will be worse off next year. Some working
:06:16. > :06:22.families will lose nearly ?3500 a year. ?2.5 billion has been found
:06:23. > :06:26.for an inheritance tax cut benefiting the wealthiest 4% of
:06:27. > :06:34.people in this country yet at the same time, ?4.5 billion is being
:06:35. > :06:40.taken out of the pockets of low and middle-income families. The case for
:06:41. > :06:48.is clear because they labour market depending on a high level of wealth
:06:49. > :06:52.is not the way to develop stability. But we acknowledge the concerns
:06:53. > :06:57.expressed in recent weeks. The Chancellor said we would listen and
:06:58. > :07:04.that is precisely what we intend to do because we are determined to
:07:05. > :07:08.deliver higher wages and lower welfare that the British people want
:07:09. > :07:09.to see and be working Britain deserves.
:07:10. > :07:12.And MPs voted for Frank Field's motion by 215-0.
:07:13. > :07:14.The report into the Iraq war will not be
:07:15. > :07:18.published until next year, it's been announced, and MPs and the Speaker
:07:19. > :07:23.Sir John Chilcot said the 2 million-word report would be
:07:24. > :07:29.finished in April 2016 and then published in June or July.
:07:30. > :07:36.It's more than five years since the enquiry's last public hearing.
:07:37. > :07:43.It's cross-examined 129 witnesses and cost over ?10 million.
:07:44. > :07:45.David Cameron has told Sir John he's disappointed
:07:46. > :07:49.the findings will not be published until next summer and, in
:07:50. > :07:53.the Commons, MPs raised the matter with the Speaker, John Bercow.
:07:54. > :07:57.Mr Speaker, at the same time as Business Questions, it was announced
:07:58. > :08:01.by Sir John Chilcot by means of a letter to the Prime Minister that
:08:02. > :08:05.it will be a further seven months before the Iraq enquiry is to be
:08:06. > :08:07.published, which will mean it will be seven years
:08:08. > :08:13.since it was established and a full 13 years since the war was started.
:08:14. > :08:17.At this time of year in particular, Mr Speaker, would it not just be in
:08:18. > :08:24.order, a mark of respect to the 179 families of dead British servicemen,
:08:25. > :08:27.if the government had come to the House so that people could explore
:08:28. > :08:31.both the reasons for the delay and publication of the enquiry and,
:08:32. > :08:35.of course, the possible legal consequences that might follow to
:08:36. > :08:38.certain individuals if that enquiry allocates responsibility
:08:39. > :08:47.The Speaker said he was not aware of the timings of the letter
:08:48. > :08:51.but that he was aware of the concern of the House.
:08:52. > :08:54.The whole situation is extremely unsatisfactory and I think
:08:55. > :08:57.if the Leader of the House would like to come to the box,
:08:58. > :09:02.Well, Mr Speaker, let me just simply say, first of all, that I share,
:09:03. > :09:05.and the government shares, the right honourable gentleman's
:09:06. > :09:08.frustration about the amount of time this has taken.
:09:09. > :09:10.None of us have ever sought to hide that.
:09:11. > :09:13.There are clearly lessons that will need to be learned
:09:14. > :09:16.It's in none of our interests that this should
:09:17. > :09:19.have taken so long, particularly as we were in opposition at the
:09:20. > :09:22.time, so we have no vested interest at all in delaying this matter.
:09:23. > :09:24.I absolutely understand the honourable gentleman's concerns
:09:25. > :09:27.but, of course, he will understand that this is a process that is out
:09:28. > :09:33.Sir John's timetable is entirely in his own hands and in terms
:09:34. > :09:39.of the timing of this, I do not know either, Mr Speaker, the time
:09:40. > :09:41.at which the letter was actually released, but it's certainly not my
:09:42. > :09:45.job to preannounce a letter from Sir John Chilcot before actually he
:09:46. > :09:50.The simple fact, however, is that there have been many rumours around
:09:51. > :09:54.that the Chilcot enquiry has been delayed by Whitehall not clearing
:09:55. > :09:57.things quickly enough and by not providing enough information about
:09:58. > :10:01.challenging the ability to release information. I think it would be
:10:02. > :10:07.extremely helpful to the House if there were a statement and I ask, Mr
:10:08. > :10:11.Speaker, for you to encourage that because, frankly, this is an insult
:10:12. > :10:14.and a compounding of the grief of the many families who have lost
:10:15. > :10:21.I assure my honourable friend that I have seen absolutely no evidence
:10:22. > :10:23.of a desire in government to stall this.
:10:24. > :10:25.Indeed, the Prime Minister has been, frankly,
:10:26. > :10:28.as keen as anyone in this House, including the two right honourable
:10:29. > :10:33.So there is absolutely no desire in the government to slow this up.
:10:34. > :10:36.It's been a matter of frustration that it has taken so
:10:37. > :10:40.He's absolutely correct in saying that it's not for him
:10:41. > :10:49.to pre-empt the delivery or the publication of letters, but in light
:10:50. > :10:54.of what I do sense, there's quite a strong feeling across the House.
:10:55. > :10:57.It might indeed be extremely helpful if, when the Leader of the House is
:10:58. > :11:03.in full possession of the facts, he perhaps considers an early short
:11:04. > :11:06.statement on which there would be an opportunity for questioning
:11:07. > :11:17.The Chilcot enquiry was set up by the old Public Administration
:11:18. > :11:22.And at that time, there were misgivings about
:11:23. > :11:26.the form of enquiry and a suggestion made that the enquiry should be run
:11:27. > :11:32.An entirely new form of enquiry would have been better if
:11:33. > :11:39.I think it would perhaps be an uncontroversial observation that had
:11:40. > :11:44.there been a Parliamentary committee looking at this matter, it would not
:11:45. > :11:49.have been possible for it to do its work more slowly, even if it had
:11:50. > :12:04.I think it is important, on the half of the House, whether it concerns or
:12:05. > :12:07.perturbs him or not, that Sir John should be aware that there is a very
:12:08. > :12:12.real sense of anger and frustration across the whole House at what seems
:12:13. > :12:23.a substantial disservice that has been done.
:12:24. > :12:25.Chris Grayling said he would consider the point
:12:26. > :12:27.about his statement and the Speaker finished by thanking MPs for
:12:28. > :12:30.underlying the strength of feeling felt across the House on the issue.
:12:31. > :12:32.You're watching Thursday in Parliament with me,
:12:33. > :12:47.The worsening demands of the refugee crisis in Syria is outstripping the
:12:48. > :12:52.generosity shown by the countries of Europe. That was the view of the
:12:53. > :12:56.United Nations official when a committee of MPs looked at the
:12:57. > :13:03.humanitarian effects of the conflict. Britain has said it will
:13:04. > :13:08.take 20,000 refugees over the next four years and the Department for
:13:09. > :13:12.International Development has given ?1 billion in humanitarian aid. One
:13:13. > :13:19.committee member believed some local councils in Britain were acting too
:13:20. > :13:23.slowly to take refugees. In my area, the local authorities are not
:13:24. > :13:36.registering quickly. Is this something you are aware of? Our
:13:37. > :13:41.local communities very much want to support the refugees and are keen to
:13:42. > :13:43.encourage it but if there is a procedure here which is causing
:13:44. > :13:58.this, we need to unlock it. I would like to take the opportunity
:13:59. > :14:02.to make sure that the commitment is recognised as an important step for
:14:03. > :14:07.this Government and it is on the back of very important work and
:14:08. > :14:15.giving over ?1 billion to the response in the region. With respect
:14:16. > :14:24.to that number, 20,000 against 4 million is zero point 001% and if we
:14:25. > :14:31.are thinking about how we distribute them amongst constituencies in the
:14:32. > :14:34.UK, that figure would bring six people into each constituency so it
:14:35. > :14:40.is hardly a big strain on the system and our experience as an agency is
:14:41. > :14:44.in the US where we resettle annually 10,000 as part of the US Government
:14:45. > :14:47.federal programme of resettlement and that is a federal programme so
:14:48. > :14:54.it is not local states or counties or whatever offering up numbers, it
:14:55. > :14:59.is a federally distributed system of allocation amongst those states. We
:15:00. > :15:06.had some statistics from Oxfam showing that the UK in terms of its
:15:07. > :15:13.contribution, it is around 220% of its actual contribution we are
:15:14. > :15:18.others are contributing much less. What is happening to the Syrian
:15:19. > :15:27.people is on variable. -- is unbearable. It was a sophisticated
:15:28. > :15:30.civilisation and was the first country where I worked and to see
:15:31. > :15:38.half of its population having to move as displaced or as refugees, to
:15:39. > :15:42.see this country being completely destroyed. The UK has been very
:15:43. > :15:47.influential and has had a very important role and has really stood
:15:48. > :15:53.up to the plate to give more, but this more is not enough. 19 million
:15:54. > :15:58.displaced people. So the abolition of the situation and their needs are
:15:59. > :16:08.outstripping the generosity. What can be done? I think this unbearable
:16:09. > :16:12.situation is starting to lead to a unbearable consequences, including
:16:13. > :16:18.in Europe and there is a need for an awakening. The global architecture
:16:19. > :16:24.is unfit for purpose. For what we are witnessing. $20 billion of
:16:25. > :16:30.global wealth spent on humanitarian response is not sufficient. Are you
:16:31. > :16:37.saying there are four that some of us would agree that in fact
:16:38. > :16:43.humanitarian in the medium-term needs to be hard-wired into budgets
:16:44. > :16:48.rather than just saying, these things come along once in a while
:16:49. > :16:51.and we will deal with them on a case-by-case pieces. I agree that a
:16:52. > :16:56.lasting peaceful situation is what we all want but it seems to be as
:16:57. > :17:01.far away as ever. In the absence of wit, we do need more countries and
:17:02. > :17:03.the UK has been leading in terms of contributions, to do more for this
:17:04. > :17:11.and I feel that the UK Government should do more with other donors to
:17:12. > :17:15.give more to this appeal. It is also about finding sustainable solutions,
:17:16. > :17:20.not just aid. Aid is there or the sake of eight because that is a
:17:21. > :17:24.common human dignified thing to do as a country. It will not solve the
:17:25. > :17:28.displacement crisis that Europe is going to face, because when you were
:17:29. > :17:34.the kind of primal terror and evil that is operating in kind of Syria
:17:35. > :17:38.today, all defences and guards and aid is not in itself going to stop
:17:39. > :17:43.people looking for solutions and safety for their families in Europe,
:17:44. > :17:47.and is driving people to claim refugee status in Europe so I think
:17:48. > :17:54.we do need to separate out those two things. The latest on the Syrian
:17:55. > :18:03.crisis. Transport Secretary Patrick McLauchlan has said that the car
:18:04. > :18:07.manufacturer Volkswagen behaved disgracefully throughout the mission
:18:08. > :18:11.scandal that affected cars in the UK. EU officials have decided that
:18:12. > :18:20.UK cars will undergo real tests as well as laboratory examinations from
:18:21. > :18:23.2016. The current difference between laboratory testing and emissions
:18:24. > :18:27.tests are unacceptable. The UK has been pressing Europe to address this
:18:28. > :18:32.problem and the agreement was met in Brussels yesterday to introduce
:18:33. > :18:36.real-world testing in 2017 as an important milestone. -- said that
:18:37. > :18:41.all of the affected vehicles will be fixed by 2016, however the UK's
:18:42. > :18:48.managing director has said that this may not be deliverable. What
:18:49. > :18:54.assurance can we have that the affected vehicles will be fixed by
:18:55. > :18:56.the end of 2016? I will be looking to Volkswagen, who acted
:18:57. > :19:01.disgracefully in this whole episode, to ensure that they live up to the
:19:02. > :19:07.expectations which they promised originally. The still unfolding
:19:08. > :19:11.scandal at Volkswagen has lifted the lid from the much more widespread
:19:12. > :19:14.problem about emissions testing which was known about for a very
:19:15. > :19:19.long time. Why did the Department not act sooner? The Transport
:19:20. > :19:22.Secretary said the problem could've been dealt with before this
:19:23. > :19:27.Government came to power. The questions continued. Some 1.2
:19:28. > :19:30.million cars have been affected across the UK. It is important to be
:19:31. > :19:35.mindful of the innocent drivers, which of course they all are. They
:19:36. > :19:42.now face a higher road tax bill and the decreased sale value. Does the
:19:43. > :19:48.Minister agree with me that consideration should be given to the
:19:49. > :19:52.fate of Volkswagen due to this? I think we have made that fairly clear
:19:53. > :19:59.but I think Ali was one of those issues that Volkswagen will have to
:20:00. > :20:06.address in due course. Isn't the reality that Minister's statements
:20:07. > :20:11.are leading motorists and the public into being none the wiser, so can we
:20:12. > :20:14.clear the air on one point and what happened at the EU technical
:20:15. > :20:20.committee yesterday. It was not just setting a new timetable for cars to
:20:21. > :20:24.conform to existing regulations, did it not also involve permission to
:20:25. > :20:27.breach those limits by 50% and that permission being open-ended and is
:20:28. > :20:33.that not what the UK representatives voted for? What was important was
:20:34. > :20:35.that we got agreement for a real-world emissions testing right
:20:36. > :20:43.across the whole of Europe and this was something that was objected to
:20:44. > :20:47.in the past. We pressed forward in May and I am very pleased that we
:20:48. > :20:50.achieved it yesterday. The honourable member said it was not as
:20:51. > :20:54.much as he would like or as fast as you would like, but I would say we
:20:55. > :20:57.have made more progress in the six months of this new Conservative
:20:58. > :21:01.Government than was ever made by the last Government. The Transport
:21:02. > :21:08.Secretary there. Now, exasperating and sometimes frightening for
:21:09. > :21:13.vulnerable victims. Cold calling and nuisance messages triggered 175,000
:21:14. > :21:16.complaints to the Information Commissioner's office last year. The
:21:17. > :21:21.problem is particularly acute for the elderly and housebound as they
:21:22. > :21:26.can cause distress and anxiety. In the Lords, the Lib Dem Lord Sharkey
:21:27. > :21:31.wanted to know what action is being taken to reduce the number of these
:21:32. > :21:34.calls. We have already increased the number of monetary penalties the
:21:35. > :21:37.regulators can issue and have made it easier for the Information
:21:38. > :21:44.Commissioner's office to take enforcement action. We are currently
:21:45. > :21:48.running at ?1.5 million competition fund to develop more innovative,
:21:49. > :21:51.safe, and cost-effective technologies to block unwanted calls
:21:52. > :21:58.and we will consult shortly on calling line identification, a
:21:59. > :22:02.subject close to my heart. Last November, I wrote to the ministers
:22:03. > :22:04.saying that the rules on cold calling and consumer credit needed
:22:05. > :22:09.review. One year on and there has been no review. Everyday is a delay
:22:10. > :22:16.and that means more and more people being exposed to debt management
:22:17. > :22:22.advice. Cold calling for mortgages is banned. Why is it not banned for
:22:23. > :22:31.debt management? The noble Lord makes a good point and the FCA has
:22:32. > :22:37.committed to undertake a review of its rules for cold calling and for
:22:38. > :22:45.text messages from these firms. The Baroness will be aware of the work
:22:46. > :22:50.done by the MTS scams team that looks at repeat victims, usually
:22:51. > :22:58.elderly people who are on soccer 's lists which are circulated between
:22:59. > :23:06.different companies. -- suckers lists. Could the lady tell me what
:23:07. > :23:09.can be done about people calling pretending to be from the Telephone
:23:10. > :23:12.preference service and that there is now a charge for that service and
:23:13. > :23:17.trying to extract money from the victims. Given that those vulnerable
:23:18. > :23:20.people I then often referred to other departments for support and
:23:21. > :23:25.care, whether that support and care will continue to be available given
:23:26. > :23:27.the level of cuts that there now are in local authority budgets.
:23:28. > :23:33.Fraudulent scam activities are a crime and could be -- should be
:23:34. > :23:36.reported. I have a feeling that the consumer representatives and the
:23:37. > :23:40.Government are very much on the same site here and I look forward to
:23:41. > :23:44.taking these issues forward. We know that there are one in ten people who
:23:45. > :23:48.get up to 20 calls per month and they certainly know about it. Did
:23:49. > :23:54.the lady explain why the amendment that we got through from the
:23:55. > :23:57.consumer rights act about collar line identification has not yet been
:23:58. > :24:02.brought forward, and doesn't she agreed that those other proposals
:24:03. > :24:10.that we put their such as automated reporting of nuisance calls or call
:24:11. > :24:14.blocking a comment, we should have added and maybe should do now. We
:24:15. > :24:19.are going to consult on the caller identification. I think mine noble
:24:20. > :24:27.lady and myself both thought this was very important and we are on the
:24:28. > :24:31.case. Lady Neville Roth. Now, bonfire night is approaching and
:24:32. > :24:36.alongside the usual warnings about sparklers and fireworks, one Tory MP
:24:37. > :24:41.is concerned about the hedgehog. He is running a campaign to preserve
:24:42. > :24:44.the woodland creature. He used business questions to: People do
:24:45. > :24:49.check that the hedgehog was not nestling in a bonfire. The
:24:50. > :24:53.Government took up the call. We have seen a really distressing for
:24:54. > :24:57.learner hedgehog population over the last few decades. The hedgehog was
:24:58. > :25:00.always, when I was a child, you would find one in every garden.
:25:01. > :25:04.People would feed them at the back door. It does not now happened to
:25:05. > :25:08.anything like the degree that it used to, and I would say to members
:25:09. > :25:13.on all sides of the house and anyone who is listening to this debate,
:25:14. > :25:16.bonfire night is a period of real danger for hedgehogs. If you drive
:25:17. > :25:20.around the country, you will see large piles of wood set up for
:25:21. > :25:24.bonfires next week. It is all too easy an altar, natty hedgehog finds
:25:25. > :25:29.refuge in those bonfires in the next few days and I would ask anyone who
:25:30. > :25:33.has a bonfire set up in the next few days please double-check before you
:25:34. > :25:37.like them and make sure there is not a hedgehog nesting inside because we
:25:38. > :25:41.can't afford to lose any more. So check your bonfires everyone. That
:25:42. > :25:44.is it for Thursday In Parliament but to join me for the week in
:25:45. > :25:48.Parliament Will we will be looking back at all the highs and lows of
:25:49. > :25:53.the last few days in Westminster. Until then, goodbye.