08/02/2017 Wednesday in Parliament

Hello and welcome to Wednesday In Parliament,

our look at the best of the day in the Commons and the Lords.

On this programme, the Bill that triggers the UK's EU departure

process finally clears the Commons and heads for the Lords.

The ayes to the right, 494. The noes to the left, 122.

As a local authority abandons a large council tax rise

to pay for social care, the Labour leader presses Theresa

Is the same sweetheart deal on offer to every council facing

the social care crisis created by her government?

The last thing social care providers need is another one of Labour's

bouncing cheques! A minister in the Lords calms fears

about those absent vegetables The only shortage will be of iceberg

lettuce, which we think will be for about a few months

and there is a wonderful variety But first, the Bill that authorises

ministers to trigger Article 50, the process by which the UK

starts its departure from the European Union,

has cleared the House of Commons. The EU Notification

of Withdrawal Bill will now move on to the House of Lords,

where it will undergo Before the Bill's final day

of debate in the Commons, the Brexit process was brought up

at Prime Minister's Questions Angus Robertson focused

on the decision of the Scottish Parliament to reject the triggering

of Article 50. When the Prime Minister

was in Edinburgh on the 15th of July last year, she pledged

that she would, and I quote," not trigger Article 50 until she had

an agreed UK wide approach." So, given the Scottish Parliament

has voted overwhelmingly against her approach and all bar one

MP representing a Scottish constituency in this House

of Commons has voted against her approach, she does not

have an agreed UK-wide approach. Now, Mr Speaker, as the Prime

Minister knows, a lot of people in Scotland watch primaries this

questions so will she tell the viewers in Scotland

whether she intends to keep her word The Supreme Court was very clear

that the Scottish parliament does not have a veto on the triggering

Article 50. The Bill that is going through

the House obviously is giving the power to the government

to trigger Article 50 and I would also remind him of this

point because he constantly refers to the interests of Scotland

inside the European Union. An independent Scotland would not be

in the European Union. Then came a reference

to Kenneth Clarke's speech The Prime Minister's Right

Honourable friend the member for Rushcliffe last week pointed out

that her aspiration to achieve barrier-free, tariff-free trade

with the single market getting all the benefits but paying none

of the costs was actually akin to disappearing down the rabbit

hole to Wonderland. Mr Speaker, I think she makes a very

interesting choice for Alice but if she doesn't manage to achieve

that high ambition, would she produce an analysis

of what trading on WTO rules would actually mean for our economy,

so we can make a proper choice? We believe it is possible

within the two-year time frame to get the agreement,

not just for our withdrawal from the European Union, but also

the trade arrangements that will ensure we have a strong

strategic partnership with the European Union

in the future. Shortly after PMQs, the Commons

moved onto more discussion on the details of the EU

Notification of Withdrawal Bill, The co-leader of the Greens,

Caroline Lucas, seized on the fact that Theresa May has not expressed

any guarantees so far about the rights of EU nationals

living and working in the UK. What we talking about

here people's lives. People's lives are not

simply commodities to be traded at the convenience

of some wider bargain. The Prime Minister quite simply

could and should guarantee to people who have made their lives

here in good faith that of course The idea that it is appropriate

to do otherwise I think is quite Will the honourable lady

give way on that point? Is she aware as I am of EU nationals

in very senior positions in UK institutions who are already leaving

the country and people who are EU nationals who are being interviewed

for senior positions, who are now asking very searching questions

about what does Brexit mean for them I want to make sure that this issue

is put into perspective. Out of the 3.5 million EU nationals

currently residing in the UK, approximately 64% of them already

have the right to stay here. 8% of them are children of an EU

National parent and therefore they have a right to reside

here and 12% of the 3.5 million people will have accrued

there five years of permanent We can't even deport

convicted criminals. The truth is that not

a single EU national is ever I agree wholeheartedly with that,

and that would be against any ideas of natural justice,

legitimate expectation and the rule of law if we were to be going down

that course of action. The Prime Minister could vote to

guarantee those rights for EU nationals working here. She could

make clear that they will not be used as a bargaining chip and we

could end their uncertainty today. Likewise, we will also want to

safeguard the rights for Brits living in Europe too. But, I

believe, by adopting a positive approach today, we make it more

likely Brits living in the EU will be treated fairly.

The issue of EU nationals was once again raised this afternoon.

It has been debated also earlier this week.

I want to once again state to the House that the government

fully recognises that the issue of EU nationals resident

in the United Kingdom is an extremely important one

and one which we wish to address as a matter of priority,

just as we wish to address the issue of the rights of UK nationals

This, however, has got to be a matter that is addressed

And after the detailed committee stage of the Bill was finished,

the legislation entered what's known as its Third Reading stage.

And when a final vote of the House took place,

The ayes to the right 494. The noes to the left, 122. CHEERING

The ayes to the right, 494, the noes to the left 122. The ayes have it,

the ayes have it! Claims that the government agreed

a behind-the-scenes deal with a Conservative-controlled

council over the funding of social care have you made

by the Labour leader, Surrey County Council was due

to hold a referendum of its residents to gain approval

for a 15% rise in council tax to pay for the cost of care in Surrey

for elderly and vulnerable people. The vote was called off

and the 15% rise was withdrawn. A much smaller increase

will be made instead. At Prime Minister's Questions,

Jeremy Corbyn said the problems of paying for social care

across the country The crisis is so bad

that until yesterday, Mr Speaker, David Hodge,

the Conservative leader of Surrey County Council planned

to hold a referendum for a 15% And at the last minute

it was called off. Can the Prime Minister tell

the House whether or not a special I recognise the short-term

pressures, that's why we have enabled local authorities to put

more money into social care. Over the next two years

?900 million more will be Mr Speaker, my question was how

is there been a special The leaders said they had had many

conversations with the government. We know they have because I have

been leaked copies of texts sent by the Tory leader David Hodge

intended for somebody called Nick who works for ministers

in the Department for Communities These texts read, "I'm advised that

DCLG officials have been working on a solution and you will be

contacting me to agree Will the government now publish this

memorandum of understanding? What the Labour Party fail

to understand is that this is not just a question of looking at money,

it is a question of looking at spreading best practice

and finding a sustainable solution and I have to say to him that

if we look at social care provision across the entire country,

the last thing social care providers need is another one

of Labour's bouncing cheques. Mr Speaker, I wonder

if it is anything to do with the fact that the Chancellor

and Health Secretary both represent But Mr Speaker, there was a second

text from Surrey County Council leader to Nick and in the second

text it says "the numbers you indicated are numbers that

I understand are acceptable for me Now, I have been reading a bit

of John le Carr and apparently And he goes on to say

it his text to make, "If it is possible for that info

to be sent to myself, So, how much did the government

offer Surrey to kill this off and is the same sweetheart deal

on offer to every council facing the social care crisis

created by her government? Yet again, what we get from Labour

are alternative facts. What they really need

is an alternative leader. What he always fails to recognise,

what he fails to recognise, is you can only spend money

on social care and the National Health Service if you have a strong

economy to deliver the wealth A Labour MP has recently returned

to the Commons after going hospital It has been absolutely

wonderful, the service I got, but there is a flip side

and the flip is what We have dedicated nurses,

you call them corridor nurses, and they are in the corridor

and looking after To be quite honest with you,

Prime Minister, that's not the way we want the health service to run,

we want it to run the way Get your purse open and give them

the money that they want. Well, as the speaker said,

I welcome the honourable gentleman to his place again in this chamber

and I commend all those, the surgeon and all those

who have treated him in the National Health Service that

has enabled him to be here today There are, as we know,

surgeons, doctors, nurses, other staff up and down the NHS day

in and day out saving lives and we should commend them

for all that they do. The north-east actually is a very

good example of some of the really good practice that we see

in the National Health Service. What I want to see is that good

practice being spread across the NHS As we long suspected,

the Prime Minister is a keen During Prime Minister's Questions,

she told MPs how often should choose It all stemmed from a question put

to Theresa May by an SNP MP Does the Prime Minister agree that

in a 21st-century Parliament, the rules should not enable any

member to speak for 58 minutes Does she agree with me

that the rules of the House should be changed to prevent filibustering

and to ensure that members on all sides of the House get a fair

share of the time available? I have to say I find that

a rather curious question Last night as it happens I was out

of the House to wean the two votes. I switched on the BBC

parliamentary channel and I saw I switched back to the

parliamentary channel. I saw the honourable

gentleman still speaking. I switched back and the honourable

gentleman was still speaking. He's the last person to complain

about filibustering in this House. You're watching our round-up

of the day in the Commons As overseas veg

becomes more scarce in the an appeal for

shoppers to buy British. The Government's faced demands

for a limit on the amount that high street banks can charge customers

who have an unarranged overdraft. The calls follow an investigation by

the consumer organisation "Which?" into what it's called

the "punitive" charges. It found the cost to borrowers

of an unauthorised overdraft was even higher than the cost

charged by a payday lender. In a debate in Westminster Hall,

MPs joined "Which?" in urging the Government

and the watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority -

the FCA, to take action. The major banks currently make over

?1 billion per year on charges The majority of whom,

says the head of the Competition and Markets Authority,

from financially Step Change debt charity has

estimated that around 1 million people in the UK are trapped

in an overdraft cycle, and are consistently

using overdrafts to meet essential found consumers needing as little

as ?100 could be charged up to ?156 more by some major high street banks

than The Financial Conduct Authority allows payday loan companies

to charge when borrowing the same So as an example they compare

the cost of borrowing ?100 for 30 days and found that arranged

overdraft charges at some high street banks were as much a 7.5

times higher than the maximum charge of ?24 on a payday loan

on the same period. Sometimes it is in the banks'

interest to allow customers to amass massive overdrafts so they can push

them on to even higher personal loans and other products

which they might not need and may not be the right thing

for their circumstances. The Government is committed

to doing two things. Firstly, to making sure

that we support and encourage competition amongst financial

services providers, not only so people have more choice

over who to bank with, but because we know more competition

inevitably means better options on offer to customers who can vote

with their feet. But secondly we want to make sure

that British customers are supported in the important financial

decisions they make. The FCA, he said, was already

investigating high-cost credit, We will, I can reassure honourable

members, the Government will be monitoring closely the work

of the FCA in looking at this area and I am sure,

and I will say it again, that the views expressed

by honourable members this morning will be taken into consideration

as the Committee We will also be continuing our

efforts as a Government, We have taken steps

to encourage competition. We have taken steps

to support credit unions. We've taking steps to improve

financial education. Added to this, approach that this

Government will continue to take steps to ensure British customers

have the quality choices, good information, and strong

protections they need. Voters are to be asked to produce

a form of identification at polling stations under new plans

being trialled by the Government. It follows a review published last

year into tackling electoral fraud. But at question-time in the Commons,

a Labour MP said a requirement for ID could lead to some people

being denied their right to vote. In December 2008 I was an election

observer in Bangladesh, and because of previous voter fraud

they actually photographed 18 million people and it was clearly

identifiable when the people went Because we need in a democracy

as many people to vote as possible but we don't want theft of identity

when people vote. My right honourable friend makes

a very good point around There are many countries

across the world including Canada, Brazil, Austria, that already have

photographic ID when it comes to registering in polling stations,

including in Northern Ireland The Government is taking

forward pilots looking This will take place in local

government elections in 2018 and we will be willing to test these

forms of identification, photographic ID, non-photographic

ID, above all to ensure that no one is disenfranchised

when it comes to voting. The Government's talk of voter

fraud is a smoke screen They are putting obstacles

between people and the polling booth instead of working

to boost our democracy. If it is such a problem then

they must report how many convictions there has been

from voter fraud last year. I am surprised that the honourable

gentleman for somehow claiming It was a Labour Government

introduced photographic ID The Electoral Commission

and all other electoral administrators have called for ID

in polling stations. The case of Ched Evans,

the Wales international footballer eventually found not guilty of rape,

has thrown into the spotlight the issue of how far

cross-examinations in court In the Commons, a Plaid Cymru MP has

said women are being unfairly subjected to "humiliating"

questioning over their sexual history and, even,

their choice of clothing. She was introducing a Bill under

Parliament's 10-minute rule that would limit the ability

of barristers to bring in evidence about an accuser's sexual history

in an assault trial. The provisions in this Bill

are all based on the distressing experiences of victims

of serious sexual claims. Ivy, a rape victim, was told

at a ground rules hearing that her sexual history

would not be used. But in court she faced

questions and allegations Emma was followed by a stranger

who attacked and tried to rape her. Her screams were met with a threat

of stop or be killed. Fortunately two off-duty police

officers heard her screams. The trial fixated on why Emma

chose to wear a red dress The humiliation of victims of sexual

assault by reference to matters irrelevant to the case cannot be

allowed to continue. The Bill won the initial support

of MPs, but is not likely to become law without the support

of the Government. Now, it's probably not at the top

of the Prime Minister's in-tray. But the shortage of items

on the fruit and veg shelves of our supermarkets -

following recent bad weather in Southern Europe--

has certainly led to The absence of courgettes

in particular prompted a flurry Some reports have declared that

Britain is 'in the grip of a courgette shortage that

could last for months'. In the House of Lords,

a Minister was keen to calm our You will have seen the news reports

of empty shelves in supermarkets, with the crisis expected to last

until the spring, and meanwhile prices have trebled,

in part because it costs more to fly vegetables from the USA

and from Egypt than that does Can I ask, given the public

health implications, has the department ensured

that there are sufficient alternative sources of vegetables,

particularly in schools Can I also ask is the department

monitoring the prices to make sure My Lords, my officials have been

discussing this matter In point of fact the

situation is improving. The climate conditions in Spain

and the Mediterranean are enabling the situation to improve,

but not only that, there are other sources of supply from the Americas

which are coming in. But I would say that this is a time

when we should be reflecting about using our own wonderful

nutritious British vegetables, and at the moment, all I can say

is in the last few years food prices And I think that may

deal with what some of the Labour Baroness

may have been implying. Would not any rational man or woman

think that to describe a shortage of lettuces in the supermarket

as a crisis shows a lack of understanding of the meaning of

the words in the English language? My Lords, I was seeking to be

courteous to the noble Baroness The only shortage will be of iceberg

lettuce which we think will be for about a few months,

and there is a wonderful variety My Lords, my Lords, my Lords,

half of vegetables we eat in this country are imported,

including native crops Isn't it time for the Government's

forthcoming green paper on food and farming to tackle this decline

in home grown veg? My Lords, I thoroughly endorse

the wish that we all have It's precisely going

to be at the heart of But very much so, in fact

I was pleased only this morning to hear that cauliflowers

from Cornwall are coming So we have a great opportunity again

to buy some British vegetables. I think it is only fair

we go with the Greens My huge thanks to the

Leader of the House. Back in 2008 at the request

of the then mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, I produced a report

on how to make London more sustainable in its food supplies,

and part of that was actually Would the noble Lord the Minister

like me to forward a copy of my report for the Government's

use to contribute I am sure the paper,

and I would like to see a copy, endorses the importance of having

lower food miles, which means But do join me for our

next daily round-up. Until then, from me,

Keith McDougall, goodbye.