Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Bill

Debate between Angela Eagle and Thérèse Coffey

Tuesday 3rd September 2013 Commons Chamber

[Ms Eagle]

I certainly agree wholeheartedly that the Bill is being rushed in a very unseemly manner through the House.

[Dr Thérèse Coffey (Suffolk Coastal) (Con)]

Surely, the point of the Bill is to say that we have together in Parliament tried to reduce the cost of politics. This is about recognising and putting on the record third parties that want to spend money on promoting parties or candidates. It is right that that should be controlled in exactly the same way as it is for political parties.

[Ms Eagle]

The hon. Lady is right that we should control the cost of politics, but third parties spent only 10% of what political parties spent at the last election, so I wonder why there have been attempts in the Bill—

Business of the House

Debate between Angela Eagle and Thérèse Coffey

Thursday 7th March 2013 Commons Chamber

[Ms Eagle]

I thank the Leader of the House for announcing next week’s business and the date of the Queen’s Speech.

Tomorrow is international women’s day. To celebrate, the Government propose to remove the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s general equality duty from the statute book, having already slashed 70% of its funding. The Government have undermined the EHRC to such an extent that the United Nations has warned that it may lose its current A-list status as an independent body. It was therefore fitting that on Monday the other place blocked that attack on the commission’s powers to progress fairness. No wonder that the hon. Member for Suffolk Coastal (Dr Coffey) suggested in The Sun on Tuesday that her own Front Bench needed equality training. Will the Leader of the House confirm when we will see the amended Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill back in this place?

I think I have finally managed to discover something reliable about the Government: the regularity of their U-turns. On 14 February, I observed that with this Government we have a U-turn every 29 days. Following the Education Secretary’s embarrassing climbdown on GCSEs, I predicted that the next one was due to arrive on 8 March—a non-sitting Friday.

[Dr Thérèse Coffey (Suffolk Coastal) (Con)]

On a point of order, Mr Speaker.

[Mr Speaker]

Order. The hon. Lady must resume her seat. We cannot have points of order in the middle of business questions. There will be an opportunity for points of order in due course and there are plenty of opportunities to contribute, but not in the middle of business questions.