Prime Minister: Trade Unions

Debate between Lord Hunt of Kings Heath and Lord Callanan

Monday 19th December 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

Of course we want to see the action ended and the dispute brought to an end, but it remains the case that, if above-inflation pay rises are accepted, that will mean less money for the services that everybody wants to see expanded. There is a limited pot of money that can go only so far.

[Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Lab)]

My Lords, at some point the Government are going to have to find a way out. The Minister’s noble friend has suggested a very elegant way—by asking the review body to review the evidence. Would he confirm that the report of the review body for nurses came out in July, based on evidence submitted three months before? Surely there is a unique case here to ask the review body to look again.

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

I understand the point that the noble Lord is making but the problem is that, once you make an exception for one group, I imagine that lots of other deserving groups will also want exceptions made for them. Pretty soon, the exception becomes the rule. We are sticking to the position that we asked the pay review bodies to look at the appropriate level of remuneration; they have done so and we have accepted their recommendation.

Workforce: Trades Union Congress

Debate between Lord Hunt of Kings Heath and Lord Callanan

Wednesday 19th October 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

I followed the previous exchanges with interest and fully endorse the noble Lord’s job application.

[Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Lab)]

My Lords, the Minister made comments about the number of trade unionists. Many members of staff in the health service are members of trade unions. We have a situation where there is no funded workforce plan for the NHS, and we are importing doctors and nurses from many developing countries to make up in the shortfalls in this country. Is that not a priority for the Government to talk to trade unions about?

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

I am sure that my health department colleagues engage regularly with the trade unions. As the noble Lord says, the membership of trade unions is higher in many public services. I am sure that these contacts are ongoing.

Carers: Unpaid Leave

Debate between Lord Hunt of Kings Heath and Lord Callanan

Tuesday 14th June 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

The noble Baroness is asking me questions that are way above my pay grade.

[Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Lab)]

My Lords, there is also a Northern Ireland Bill which the Government might reconsider, but I want to ask a serious question. It is well known and researched that carers, in general, suffer from worse mental health issues than a comparative population. Will the Minister’s department discuss with the Department of Health and Social Care more programmes to support carers on mental health issues? This will have a positive impact on the world of work as well.

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

On the noble Lord’s first comment, I am sure that the Opposition have a long list of Government Bills they would rather drop in favour of this one; let us take it as read that we can agree on that. The noble Lord makes a sensible suggestion, and I will certainly take it back.

Russian Oil and Gas Imports

Debate between Lord Hunt of Kings Heath and Lord Callanan

Monday 7th March 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

A number of companies are indeed under pressure and, unfortunately, we have seen a number exiting the market. I assure the noble Lord that we are in regular contact with all the gas and electricity supply companies; my right honourable friend the Secretary of State meets them regularly. This is indeed an unprecedented crisis but we are closely following events and I can say that, while there is obviously a problem with the price, there is no problem with security of supply.

[Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Lab)]

My Lords, the Minister referred to the German decision to discontinue nuclear energy but is he satisfied with the progress that we are making in developing new nuclear?

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

Yes, I am satisfied with the progress that this Government are making. It is disappointing that previous Governments did not take action on new nuclear urgently; should the noble Lord wish to follow the debate tomorrow, we will be in Grand Committee on the Nuclear Energy (Financing) Bill.

EU Coronavirus Vaccine Programme

Debate between Lord Hunt of Kings Heath and Lord Callanan

Monday 13th July 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan]

I can confirm to my noble friend that we have had discussions with many countries, including those who formed the Inclusive Vaccines Alliance. It is our understanding that the alliance members have now joined the EU procurement initiative, with commercial negotiations being taken forward under that framework. However, as I have said, we will continue to work with the EU and other international partners on development.

[Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Lab) [V]]

My Lords, the Minister has been keen to acknowledge the benefit of international collaboration. If a number of vaccines are successfully produced, one of the great challenges we face is that a significant proportion of people will not take them. Will he at least talk to the EU about collaborating on a European-wide effort to encourage our populations to take up the vaccine?

Self-employment Income Support Scheme

Debate between Lord Hunt of Kings Heath and Lord Callanan

Tuesday 5th May 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan]

The Chancellor has referred to this difficulty a number of times. We are satisfied that the system as it currently operates is the best one at the moment, but as I said in response to an earlier question, we keep all these things constantly under review and will reflect on what the noble Viscount has said.

[Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Lab)]

My Lords, does the Minister at least accept that many self-employed and freelance people are falling through the net because of the criteria that the Government have set? Will he reconsider his answer to the noble Baroness, Lady Coussins? The Money Advice Trust is getting so many self-employed people calling in who are desperate because they do not meet the criteria. It is surely an excellent idea to have a hardship fund administered by local authorities to help them out.

[Lord Callanan]

We already have a number of schemes in place. The SEISS will benefit something like 95% of all claimants, but of course such schemes have been introduced at pace. Officials are still working on it, and I and the department will reflect closely on what the noble Lord has said. We want to ensure that as many people as possible are helped during these difficult times.