0:00:19 > 0:00:20Hello and welcome to Thursday In Parliament,
0:00:20 > 0:00:24our look at the best of the day in the Commons and the Lords.
0:00:24 > 0:00:25On this programme:
0:00:25 > 0:00:28The Commons Speaker thanks the Leader of the House for a moving
0:00:28 > 0:00:32speech following the jailing of the man who murdered Jo Cox.
0:00:32 > 0:00:37The power and beauty of those words
0:00:37 > 0:00:41clearly will resonate with all of us.
0:00:41 > 0:00:43Peers calls for better sex and relationship
0:00:43 > 0:00:47education in schools.
0:00:47 > 0:00:49The ignorance of the menstrual cycle and basic biology
0:00:49 > 0:00:52is very, very striking.
0:00:52 > 0:00:54And why those mass walks through the division lobbies
0:00:54 > 0:00:56in Parliament just have to stay.
0:00:56 > 0:00:59For members of the opposition, it gives an opportunity
0:00:59 > 0:01:01for team-building, which is extremely important.
0:01:01 > 0:01:04LAUGHTER
0:01:04 > 0:01:06But first, the Cabinet Minister, David Lidington, has made
0:01:06 > 0:01:09a moving plea in the Commons for the country to come together
0:01:09 > 0:01:11and turn its back on extremism, following the sentencing this week
0:01:11 > 0:01:16of the man who murdered Jo Cox.
0:01:16 > 0:01:18On Wednesday, Thomas Mair was found guilty at the Old Bailey
0:01:18 > 0:01:22of murdering the West Yorkshire Member of Parliament
0:01:22 > 0:01:23in June this year.
0:01:23 > 0:01:25Evidence gathered by the police had shown Mair to be obsessed
0:01:25 > 0:01:29with the Nazis and with ideas of white supremacy.
0:01:29 > 0:01:37Mair was sent to prison for the rest of his life for the murder.
0:01:37 > 0:01:43I hope we can all agree that perhaps the best tribute that we here,
0:01:43 > 0:01:48whatever our party politics, can pay to Jo and her memory
0:01:48 > 0:01:51is to recommit ourselves, whether as constituency members
0:01:51 > 0:01:55or holders of various offices, to do all that lies within our power
0:01:55 > 0:02:04to ensure that this country remains a place where people of different
0:02:04 > 0:02:12ethnic origins and different faiths can live together in mutual respect,
0:02:12 > 0:02:16goodwill and harmony, and can celebrate together
0:02:16 > 0:02:20our common citizenship and our shared institutions
0:02:20 > 0:02:26and values and traditions.
0:02:26 > 0:02:34And that we will also continue unflinchingly to stand for the truth
0:02:34 > 0:02:39that it is through parliamentary democracy that we can seek to secure
0:02:39 > 0:02:45change and find a better future for those who sent us here,
0:02:45 > 0:02:50rather than through violence or extremism.
0:02:50 > 0:02:54I thank the Leader of the House for what he has just said.
0:02:54 > 0:02:59The power and beauty of those words
0:02:59 > 0:03:04clearly will resonate with all of us.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06And I'd like to thank MP4 for organising and playing
0:03:06 > 0:03:09in memory of Jo Cox.
0:03:09 > 0:03:11The members for Cardiff West, East Yorkshire,
0:03:11 > 0:03:14Perth and North Perthshire and Ian Cawsey, who is a former member,
0:03:14 > 0:03:18spent a lot of time last Thursday organising the song for Jo,
0:03:18 > 0:03:21which I think is coming out in January.
0:03:21 > 0:03:26Her love, values and example lives on in all of us.
0:03:26 > 0:03:30Governments are not just about fixing the roof.
0:03:30 > 0:03:32We are about transforming lives.
0:03:32 > 0:03:39Let us dedicate ourselves to that task in her memory.
0:03:39 > 0:03:41Thomas Mair was heard to shout "Britain First!"
0:03:41 > 0:03:44as he attacked Jo Cox.
0:03:44 > 0:03:46Can we have a debate about whether Britain First
0:03:46 > 0:03:49should be proscribed as a terrorist organisation
0:03:49 > 0:03:51and banned from standing in democratic elections?
0:03:51 > 0:03:55I can't offer an immediate debate.
0:03:55 > 0:03:59As the honourable lady probably knows,
0:03:59 > 0:04:06the Home Office brings forward orders for the proscription
0:04:06 > 0:04:07of particular organisations,
0:04:07 > 0:04:12but must do so on the basis of evidence.
0:04:12 > 0:04:16There have been cases in the past where organisations that have been
0:04:16 > 0:04:18so proscribed have gone to the courts and successfully
0:04:18 > 0:04:25won a judicial review to say that the evidence on which
0:04:25 > 0:04:28that action had been taken was not sufficient.
0:04:28 > 0:04:32So I will make sure that her proposal is reported
0:04:32 > 0:04:35to my right honourable friend, the Home Secretary,
0:04:35 > 0:04:40but there has to be clear evidence of terrorist involvement
0:04:40 > 0:04:46for the terrorist proscription to be applied.
0:04:46 > 0:04:48David Lidington.
0:04:48 > 0:04:49Former military chiefs say it's time
0:04:49 > 0:04:52to shield British servicemen and women from what they call
0:04:52 > 0:04:56unfounded and spurious claims of abuse.
0:04:56 > 0:04:58They object to the multiple legal claims
0:04:58 > 0:05:01being lodged against the armed forces,
0:05:01 > 0:05:06claims that have arisen from conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.
0:05:06 > 0:05:09In a Lords debate, a former Chief of the Defence Staff, Lord Richard,
0:05:09 > 0:05:11urged the Government to opt out of human rights laws
0:05:11 > 0:05:15in future conflicts.
0:05:15 > 0:05:16While a senior lawyer warned against retreating
0:05:16 > 0:05:21from the UK's moral obligations.
0:05:21 > 0:05:23I am proud to have served the Queen and country.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26It now distresses me, as it plainly distresses
0:05:26 > 0:05:29lots of others to see how today,
0:05:29 > 0:05:34often years after valiant service in conflicts abroad,
0:05:34 > 0:05:39our forces are subject to apparently endless claims
0:05:40 > 0:05:40and allegations of misconduct.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42Not only is this upsetting,
0:05:42 > 0:05:46it affects our nation's combat capabilities -
0:05:46 > 0:05:51it damages morale, recruitment and indeed our fighting strength.
0:05:51 > 0:05:55Every service man and woman, of whatever rank,
0:05:55 > 0:06:01should not be exposed in operations to the fear of, let alone belated
0:06:01 > 0:06:05mental trauma from contemporary legislation, even that which has
0:06:05 > 0:06:09brought strength and validity to human rights protection.
0:06:09 > 0:06:16A leading QC recalled the case in 2002 of Baha Mousa,
0:06:16 > 0:06:18an Iraqi who died while in the custody of British soldiers.
0:06:18 > 0:06:21The killing of Baha Mousa was a terrible, terrible
0:06:21 > 0:06:26blot on our reputation.
0:06:26 > 0:06:28He was a man with a young family,
0:06:28 > 0:06:30found in the wrong place at the wrong time.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32He was a receptionist in a hotel.
0:06:32 > 0:06:39And he was beaten to death, unfortunately, by British forces.
0:06:39 > 0:06:41Without the Human Rights Act, which forced the Government to hold
0:06:41 > 0:06:44an enquiry, there would have been no investigation,
0:06:44 > 0:06:48no accountability and no justice.
0:06:48 > 0:06:52She said the UK should not retreat from its legal obligations.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55As a nation, we seek to uphold our values against
0:06:55 > 0:06:58those intent on destroying them.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01If we compromise, we lose our moral standing and betray the trust
0:07:01 > 0:07:03of those we seek to protect.
0:07:03 > 0:07:08Hypocrisy doesn't win wars, and nor does it win hearts and minds.
0:07:08 > 0:07:13Another former army chief was highly critical of the Government.
0:07:13 > 0:07:15At the heart of the issue here is the willingness
0:07:15 > 0:07:17of government ministers and officials to believe
0:07:17 > 0:07:20the fallacious allegations of Iraqis and Afghanis,
0:07:20 > 0:07:23themselves manipulated by unscrupulous and commercially
0:07:23 > 0:07:27driven lawyers, rather than to have confidence in the Armed Forces'
0:07:27 > 0:07:30chain of command and the tried and tested process of investigation
0:07:30 > 0:07:33and judicial disposal.
0:07:33 > 0:07:35We must be prepared to derogate
0:07:35 > 0:07:37from the European Convention on Human Rights.
0:07:37 > 0:07:39I applaud the Government's stated intention to do this,
0:07:39 > 0:07:45but I'm keen to see the details of their strategy.
0:07:45 > 0:07:49Like other noble Lords, I wish to know when and what
0:07:49 > 0:07:53circumstances will it apply?
0:07:53 > 0:07:58Is it automatic, or dependent on a parliamentary consensus that
0:07:58 > 0:07:59may not be forthcoming on the day?
0:07:59 > 0:08:02I think clarity on this issue now is vital.
0:08:02 > 0:08:08Secondly, as the noble and learned Lord Brown proposes,
0:08:08 > 0:08:11the Government should reassert the primacy of the Geneva Convention
0:08:11 > 0:08:15in regulating and guiding the actions
0:08:15 > 0:08:17of our Armed Forces in conflict.
0:08:17 > 0:08:20What we are not suggesting is that the Armed Forces
0:08:20 > 0:08:21should somehow be freed from the constraints
0:08:21 > 0:08:24of the rule of law.
0:08:24 > 0:08:27The degree of necessity and level of acceptable risk
0:08:27 > 0:08:29are often difficult judgments.
0:08:29 > 0:08:36And, sometimes, those judgments will turn out, in hindsight,
0:08:36 > 0:08:37to have been wrong.
0:08:37 > 0:08:39If the decisions were made negligently, then those
0:08:39 > 0:08:41responsible for them should be called to account.
0:08:41 > 0:08:43And legal routes for doing so have long existed.
0:08:43 > 0:08:47But if every judgment is to be second-guessed at the courts,
0:08:47 > 0:08:51then the result will be caution and even risk aversion.
0:08:51 > 0:08:56History has amply demonstrated both of these tendencies are themselves
0:08:56 > 0:08:59damaging and dangerous in the long run.
0:08:59 > 0:09:01The Defence Minister explained the Government's plan to derogate
0:09:01 > 0:09:04from the European Convention on Human Rights.
0:09:04 > 0:09:06Let me be clear here.
0:09:06 > 0:09:11There is no question of a blanket opt out from the ECHR.
0:09:11 > 0:09:16If and when a derogation is made, it could only be made from certain
0:09:16 > 0:09:19articles of the convention, and it would have to be fully
0:09:19 > 0:09:25justified by the circumstances pertaining at the time.
0:09:25 > 0:09:28Where justified, in the light of circumstances, it could serve
0:09:28 > 0:09:34to limit some of the types of opportunistic ECHR-based claims
0:09:34 > 0:09:37that we have seen and would reflect what we consider to be the right
0:09:37 > 0:09:42balance between these rights and the law of armed conflict.
0:09:42 > 0:09:45And he said the armed forces were at all times subject to
0:09:45 > 0:09:51the UK law and the Geneva Convention would still apply.
0:09:51 > 0:09:54Back in the Commons, there was a call for the Government
0:09:54 > 0:09:57to reverse cutbacks in public health provision.
0:09:57 > 0:10:00The demand was made in a general debate by the chair
0:10:00 > 0:10:03of the Health committee, the Conservative Dr Sarah Wollaston.
0:10:03 > 0:10:06She reminded MPs of Theresa May's pledge to reduce the gap
0:10:06 > 0:10:10in life expectancy between the richest and the poorest.
0:10:10 > 0:10:16She said it was disappointing to see reductions in public health budgets.
0:10:16 > 0:10:20When we look at what is happening, in public health, we have seen
0:10:20 > 0:10:22from a survey by the Association of Directors of Public Health,
0:10:22 > 0:10:27who surveyed their members in February this year,
0:10:27 > 0:10:30that what this is affecting, those cuts to public health budgets,
0:10:30 > 0:10:33is around areas like weight management, drugs,
0:10:33 > 0:10:37smoking cessation and alcohol.
0:10:37 > 0:10:41These are all key determinants that we need to tackle.
0:10:41 > 0:10:45In my own area, part of which covers Torbay,
0:10:45 > 0:10:50cuts to council budgets for public health of around ?345,000
0:10:50 > 0:10:56are resulting in the decommissioning of healthy lifestyle services.
0:10:56 > 0:10:58The future of substance misuse services is in jeopardy,
0:10:58 > 0:11:02when some local authorities are facing huge cuts
0:11:02 > 0:11:05to public health budgets.
0:11:05 > 0:11:10With no actual statutory obligation to provide these services,
0:11:10 > 0:11:20and it is really something that we need to be addressing
0:11:20 > 0:11:21when we're talking about health inequalities.
0:11:21 > 0:11:23Premature mortality rates are 20% higher in Scotland
0:11:23 > 0:11:25than in England and Wales.
0:11:25 > 0:11:27Even after deprivation is accounted for, and the premature mortality
0:11:27 > 0:11:30rate in Glasgow is 30% higher than in equally deprived areas
0:11:30 > 0:11:36like Liverpool and Manchester.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38The former has been dubbed the Scottish effect,
0:11:38 > 0:11:40the latter the Glasgow fact.
0:11:40 > 0:11:42Both account for approximately 5,000 extra unexplained deaths
0:11:42 > 0:11:44per year in Scotland.
0:11:44 > 0:11:47That's 5,000 people dying prematurely, dying needlessly
0:11:47 > 0:11:57over and above normal inequalities and health.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00In the UK, between 1.3 million and 2.5 million years of lives
0:12:00 > 0:12:02are lost as a result of health inequality in England.
0:12:02 > 0:12:04Many children never reach their potential
0:12:04 > 0:12:06throughout their lives, and one of the reasons
0:12:06 > 0:12:09is because of a lack of healthy relationships in their early years.
0:12:09 > 0:12:13Relationship breakdown is a significant driver of poverty
0:12:13 > 0:12:15and health inequality.
0:12:15 > 0:12:22A comprehensive cross Department or strategy to combat health
0:12:22 > 0:12:28inequality must include measures to strengthen healthy
0:12:28 > 0:12:30relationships and to combat relationship break down,
0:12:30 > 0:12:33which is at epidemic levels in our country.
0:12:33 > 0:12:36Our dental and oral health has and continues to be
0:12:36 > 0:12:39the Cinderella of Health Service provision in this country.
0:12:39 > 0:12:41It's seen as nice to have, something to be tackled
0:12:41 > 0:12:45after the good ship NHS returns to calmer waters.
0:12:45 > 0:12:48Only due to much-needed extra funding once the financial black
0:12:48 > 0:12:51holes elsewhere in the NHS have been plucked.
0:12:51 > 0:12:55Such inequality in dental and oral health is plain wrong.
0:12:55 > 0:12:59An unspoken injustice in today's society.
0:12:59 > 0:13:01Tackling it cannot and should not be, year after year,
0:13:01 > 0:13:06kicked down the road like the proverbial can.
0:13:06 > 0:13:08We must focus on key determinants
0:13:08 > 0:13:12such as obesity, smoking, suicide and alcohol.
0:13:12 > 0:13:14This is the core business of the challenge we face.
0:13:14 > 0:13:19That is why we are working closely with our partners in the NHS,
0:13:19 > 0:13:20PHE, local government and schools to deliver
0:13:20 > 0:13:21the childhood obesity plan.
0:13:21 > 0:13:24It has been raised by many today.
0:13:24 > 0:13:26I would like to assure the House that delivery of this
0:13:27 > 0:13:27plan has started.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30We have consulted on the soft drink industry levy
0:13:30 > 0:13:33and launched a broader sugar reduction programme.
0:13:33 > 0:13:36These measures will have a positive impact on low income
0:13:36 > 0:13:42groups in particular, who are disproportionately affected.
0:13:42 > 0:13:44The debate on health inequalities.
0:13:44 > 0:13:46You're watching our round-up of the day
0:13:46 > 0:13:47in the Commons and the Lords.
0:13:47 > 0:13:48Still to come.
0:13:48 > 0:13:58Should sex education be made compulsory in schools?
0:13:58 > 0:14:01Labour's demanding to know what the Government's doing
0:14:01 > 0:14:03to mitigate rising food prices in the wake of the UK's
0:14:03 > 0:14:05decision to leave the EU.
0:14:05 > 0:14:10The fall in the value of the pound has made imports more expensive.
0:14:10 > 0:14:13At Environment Questions Labour said that was already having an impact
0:14:13 > 0:14:18on the food industry and on shoppers.
0:14:18 > 0:14:21The pound has fallen, the cost of imports has risen.
0:14:21 > 0:14:25Brexit is costing the wine industry 430 million more in imports alone.
0:14:25 > 0:14:28From Marmitegate to the Toblerone Gap we've had rising prices
0:14:28 > 0:14:33across the food industry as customers are paying more
0:14:33 > 0:14:36for food, while those working in farming and food production have
0:14:36 > 0:14:38been hit even harder and it's getting worse.
0:14:38 > 0:14:45What is the Secretary of State is doing to mitigate against this?
0:14:45 > 0:14:48The honourable lady will be aware that we have an incredibly thriving
0:14:48 > 0:14:53food and farming sector that employs one in eight of us.
0:14:53 > 0:14:56It is worth over ?100 billion each year to our economy.
0:14:56 > 0:15:00Our food innovation is second to none.
0:15:00 > 0:15:02We produce more new food products every year than France
0:15:02 > 0:15:03and Germany combined.
0:15:03 > 0:15:04Food inflation is low.
0:15:04 > 0:15:08It continues to be low.
0:15:08 > 0:15:15And we are seeing a very thriving sector improving with exports up
0:15:15 > 0:15:18this year and we are doing everything we can to create
0:15:18 > 0:15:20a sustainable environment for the future.
0:15:20 > 0:15:22The reality is food is inflating at 5%.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25This is on her watch, her responsibility, her crisis,
0:15:26 > 0:15:35and people are struggling now.
0:15:36 > 0:15:40The call from the sector is that they need security.
0:15:40 > 0:15:42Security of labour, security in the market, security in trade,
0:15:42 > 0:15:45security in knowing the plans for leaving the EU for the sector.
0:15:45 > 0:15:47Labour can give confidence today to the sector.
0:15:47 > 0:15:50We have a clear plan so why will the Secretary of State
0:15:50 > 0:15:51not share her plan?
0:15:51 > 0:15:53Is it because there isn't one?
0:15:53 > 0:15:55Mr Speaker, that was rather nonsense, if I may say so.
0:15:55 > 0:15:59In fact food inflation, food prices have been dropping.
0:15:59 > 0:16:02They peaked in 2008.
0:16:02 > 0:16:07Food prices do move up and down but the point that she is making
0:16:07 > 0:16:09about the resilience of the food and drinks
0:16:09 > 0:16:10sector, is extraordinary.
0:16:10 > 0:16:13Our exports this year are well up on last year.
0:16:13 > 0:16:17We are seeing booming growth in our food production sector.
0:16:17 > 0:16:21We are doing everything we can on food innovation,
0:16:21 > 0:16:24and getting young people into apprenticeships in increasingly
0:16:24 > 0:16:25high technology jobs.
0:16:25 > 0:16:30This is a very well organised sector with great potential.
0:16:30 > 0:16:37Many of the agricultural workforce are a seasonal workforce from other
0:16:37 > 0:16:39EU states who take advantage of the single market's
0:16:39 > 0:16:42free movement policy.
0:16:42 > 0:16:44Given this can the Minister provide a guarantee to rural
0:16:44 > 0:16:47businesses in my constituency and beyond that these seasonal
0:16:47 > 0:16:49workers who come to Scotland for produce picking and food
0:16:49 > 0:16:51and fish processing will still be able to work
0:16:51 > 0:16:53here after the UK has left the EU?
0:16:53 > 0:16:55My right honourable friends are aware of the issues.
0:16:55 > 0:16:58It is not an issue unique to her constituency and she will
0:16:58 > 0:17:01recognise that this will be part of the ongoing discussions
0:17:01 > 0:17:05within our Government and of course with the EU.
0:17:05 > 0:17:09The great British breakfast cereal Weetabix is made in the Kettering
0:17:09 > 0:17:11constituency and the wheat in Weetabix is grown on farms
0:17:12 > 0:17:13within a 15 mile radius.
0:17:13 > 0:17:16What proportion of the nation's food do we grow ourselves
0:17:16 > 0:17:18and what proportion would the Minister like to
0:17:18 > 0:17:24see us grow ourselves?
0:17:24 > 0:17:28The honourable gentleman will be aware that of the food that we can
0:17:28 > 0:17:31produce in this country we produce around 74% of the food
0:17:31 > 0:17:34that we consume.
0:17:34 > 0:17:37If you include foods that we are unable to grow
0:17:37 > 0:17:41here clearly the percentage is slightly lower.
0:17:41 > 0:17:44But we have got a commitment to have a vibrant profitable
0:17:44 > 0:17:45farming industry.
0:17:45 > 0:17:48We want to grow more, we want to sell more,
0:17:48 > 0:17:50and we want to import less.
0:17:50 > 0:17:53And if we achieve all of that we will see our
0:17:53 > 0:17:54self-sufficiency improve over time.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57Food and drink production has flourished under my right honourable
0:17:57 > 0:17:58friend's leadership.
0:17:58 > 0:18:01As we have just heard record levels of hard cheese and sour grapes
0:18:01 > 0:18:05are emanating from that side of the chamber and in my own
0:18:05 > 0:18:07constituency the Hogs Back Brewery, a successful microbrewery,
0:18:07 > 0:18:10is doing a roaring trade.
0:18:10 > 0:18:14Can I invite my right honourable friend to join me for a knees up
0:18:14 > 0:18:16in my brewery, something the other side of the House
0:18:16 > 0:18:20could never organise?
0:18:20 > 0:18:24Yes, absolutely I'd be delighted to do that.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27Some of the amazing products, taking gin out to the Chinese
0:18:28 > 0:18:32for example was a great experience.
0:18:32 > 0:18:34Looking at the beers that the Vietnamese are drinking
0:18:34 > 0:18:43from the United Kingdom already, looking at market access,
0:18:43 > 0:18:45greater exports, seeing just yesterday a taste
0:18:45 > 0:18:47of Cheltenham beers.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50And my right honourable friend is right to raise his own
0:18:50 > 0:18:52constituents' produce and I would be delighted to share a knees
0:18:52 > 0:18:53up with him any time.
0:18:53 > 0:18:56Andrea Leadsom - with the promise of a good night out.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59The issue of whether sex and relationship education should be
0:18:59 > 0:19:01taught as a compulsory subject in secondary schools in England
0:19:01 > 0:19:02continues to cause controversy.
0:19:02 > 0:19:05Last year the then Education Secretary Nicky Morgan turned down
0:19:05 > 0:19:08the call of four Commons committees for the subject to be
0:19:08 > 0:19:11given statutory status.
0:19:11 > 0:19:15A Labour peer put down a question asking if a Minister planned to make
0:19:15 > 0:19:20it part of the national curriculum.
0:19:20 > 0:19:23She said in the three years up to 2015 5,500 sexual
0:19:23 > 0:19:25offences were reported to the police by UK schools,
0:19:25 > 0:19:29and that was probably just the tip of the iceberg.
0:19:29 > 0:19:33With many boys learning about sex from online pornography and some
0:19:33 > 0:19:43schools failing in their legal obligation to keep girls safe does
0:19:47 > 0:19:50the noble lord the Minister agree with me there has to be a whole
0:19:50 > 0:19:53school approach on a statutory basis
0:19:53 > 0:19:55with Ofsted including this subject in its inspections?
0:19:55 > 0:19:59I agree entirely with the noble lady that it is unacceptable for pupils
0:19:59 > 0:20:04to learn about sex from pornography rather than from an age appropriate
0:20:05 > 0:20:07programme in schools.
0:20:07 > 0:20:10And the whole school approach is appropriate and of course Ofsted
0:20:10 > 0:20:11do have a vital role to play.
0:20:11 > 0:20:21They take an interest in all school provision particularly how schools
0:20:23 > 0:20:25are providing spiritual, moral and cultural development
0:20:25 > 0:20:26for their pupils.
0:20:26 > 0:20:29He may be aware that in Scotland sex and relationship education is part
0:20:29 > 0:20:31of the curriculum and every young person receives that entitlement.
0:20:31 > 0:20:34Indeed there is a syllabus from key stage two right through.
0:20:34 > 0:20:37Perhaps in his active review he might look at lessons that can be
0:20:37 > 0:20:38learned from Scotland.
0:20:38 > 0:20:41What is absolutely shocking is the very few number of girls who,
0:20:41 > 0:20:43even though when ovulation occurs, the ignorance of the menstrual
0:20:43 > 0:20:45cycle and basic biology is very, very striking.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48Is this not another example of the narrowness of the curriculum
0:20:48 > 0:20:51in schools which actually prevents a wider education generally
0:20:51 > 0:20:56and which is very important in these matters?
0:20:56 > 0:21:00I am fully aware of the programme that the noble Lord refers
0:21:00 > 0:21:04to at Imperial College and I know it is a very valued one by schools
0:21:04 > 0:21:05who participate in it.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08I am a bit shocked to hear what he said.
0:21:08 > 0:21:11Of course these matters should be taught in science.
0:21:11 > 0:21:14But clearly this is something that is unacceptable
0:21:14 > 0:21:19and we need to look at further.
0:21:19 > 0:21:23Does he agree it is important that education is not just to be
0:21:23 > 0:21:26about sex and sexuality but sex and relationships,
0:21:26 > 0:21:31and should such education therefore include wholesome friendships
0:21:31 > 0:21:34and relationships between the sexes, the importance, as we have already
0:21:34 > 0:21:37discussed, of guarding against abuse and the vital need for young people
0:21:38 > 0:21:42to have a healthy self identity?
0:21:42 > 0:21:45On the last point I commend the work of the Bishop
0:21:45 > 0:21:46of Gloucester on her work on body
0:21:46 > 0:21:48image amongst children.
0:21:48 > 0:21:52The last time noble Lords had an opportunity to consider this
0:21:52 > 0:21:55question was in February this year, a question from my noble
0:21:55 > 0:21:58friend Baroness Massey, and on that occasion the Minister
0:21:58 > 0:22:08replied, and I quote, We have asked leading headteachers
0:22:11 > 0:22:13and practitioners to produce an action plan for improving PSHE.
0:22:13 > 0:22:17We will continue to keep the status of the subject under review and work
0:22:17 > 0:22:19with those experts to identify further steps that we can take
0:22:19 > 0:22:22to ensure, my emphasis, that all pupils receive high-quality
0:22:22 > 0:22:23age-appropriate PSHE and sex and relationships education.
0:22:23 > 0:22:26My Lords, the Minister who gave that reply has since moved on.
0:22:26 > 0:22:28Indeed she is now leader of your Lordships' House.
0:22:28 > 0:22:31But the question of PSHE has not moved on.
0:22:31 > 0:22:33Can the noble Lord say firstly what happened to the action plan
0:22:33 > 0:22:37and secondly can he say how he plans to ensure that all schools
0:22:37 > 0:22:40inform their pupils of the crucial issues involved in the subject
0:22:40 > 0:22:42so that they are adequately prepared for adult life?
0:22:42 > 0:22:46What I have said and what I can say to the noble Lord
0:22:46 > 0:22:50is I think our thinking has moved on somewhat further,
0:22:50 > 0:22:57which I think may please him and many peers present today
0:22:57 > 0:23:00and I hope to make a statement about this shortly.
0:23:00 > 0:23:03Lord Nash.
0:23:03 > 0:23:04The Ayes have it.
0:23:04 > 0:23:05The Ayes have it!
0:23:05 > 0:23:08The famous phrase used by the Commons Speaker whenever
0:23:08 > 0:23:10a vote in the chamber is decided.
0:23:10 > 0:23:12But do we need quite so much tradition when MPs
0:23:12 > 0:23:16take part in votes?
0:23:16 > 0:23:19At Westminster the politicians use the time-honoured method of walking
0:23:19 > 0:23:21through what are called the division lobbies.
0:23:21 > 0:23:24It means a Commons vote can take a full 15 minutes.
0:23:24 > 0:23:27Other parliaments use quicker, more modern systems,
0:23:27 > 0:23:31such as electronic voting, definitely a shorter process.
0:23:31 > 0:23:39An SNP MP said continuing to troop through division lobbies
0:23:39 > 0:23:41wasn't terribly sensible.
0:23:41 > 0:23:43During the Higher Education Bill
0:23:43 > 0:23:45Report Stage on Monday we spent nearly an hour trooping
0:23:45 > 0:23:46through the division lobbies.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49Has the commission ever made a calculation of the cost
0:23:49 > 0:23:51to the taxpayer of that dead time in terms of staff,
0:23:51 > 0:23:52security and utilities?
0:23:52 > 0:23:56And if we are to be decanted as part of a restoration process surely that
0:23:56 > 0:23:58presents an opportunity to at the very least
0:23:58 > 0:24:00pilot electronic voting, as we're not going to replicate
0:24:00 > 0:24:03every last detail of where we are now.
0:24:03 > 0:24:05I thank him for those two questions, I think.
0:24:05 > 0:24:08Just in terms of the time that it takes for members to vote,
0:24:08 > 0:24:11he may not be aware that, I think back in 1997,
0:24:11 > 0:24:17this House did consider substantial changes to the way we voted and I'm
0:24:17 > 0:24:22afraid the House voted to keep things exactly as they were.
0:24:22 > 0:24:29In relation to the restoration and renewal issue, I do hope that
0:24:29 > 0:24:33by perhaps early next year in this place we will have a substantive
0:24:33 > 0:24:36debate on it and I think that would be the opportunity for him
0:24:36 > 0:24:40to raise that particular point.
0:24:40 > 0:24:42Does he agree the current system affords members an opportunity
0:24:42 > 0:24:45to nobble ministers when they are bereft
0:24:45 > 0:24:51of their heavies and spin doctors?
0:24:51 > 0:24:54Indeed it is true that when trooping through the division lobbies
0:24:54 > 0:25:01there are opportunities to lobby ministers but clearly those
0:25:01 > 0:25:03opportunities are more frequent for members of Government
0:25:03 > 0:25:07than they are for members of the Opposition.
0:25:07 > 0:25:10Does he not agree though that for members of the Opposition that
0:25:10 > 0:25:15is an opportunity for team building which is extremely important.
0:25:15 > 0:25:22Will he do everything he can to keep this at the bottom of this in tray?
0:25:22 > 0:25:25I thank the honourable lady for her intervention and of course
0:25:25 > 0:25:27it gives me the opportunity to underline how important,
0:25:27 > 0:25:29particularly for her party, the opportunities for team building
0:25:29 > 0:25:33in the lobby must be.
0:25:33 > 0:25:34Tom Brake.
0:25:34 > 0:25:35And that's it.
0:25:35 > 0:25:39But do join me for the Week in Parliament, when we take a look
0:25:39 > 0:25:43a move to try to stop election fraud and we take a reflective look at how
0:25:43 > 0:25:45the Chancellor Philip Hammond performed in the Commons this week.
0:25:45 > 0:25:55But for now, from me, Keith Macdougall, goodbye.