Business of the House

Debate between Lord Jackson of Peterborough and John Bercow

Thursday 9th March 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I gently point out that so far we have got through the three Front Benches and one Back Bencher, so progress is a little slow. If we could try to speed up a little bit, that would be much appreciated.

[Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough) (Con)]

As has been said, yesterday was International Women’s Day, yet my constituents were shocked to learn, via the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children this week, that no fewer than 55 cases of female genital mutilation took place in Peterborough in the final three months of 2016. May we have a debate on prosecutions of the perpetrators of this evil trade, so that we can protect our young girls and women? FGM is not culturally acceptable, and it is time that we tackled it and drove this abominable practice from our country forever.

Points of Order

Debate between Lord Jackson of Peterborough and John Bercow

Monday 27th February 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for putting me in the picture. I understand that there was a written statement on this matter last Thursday. It may be that that does not satisfy his palate or that of other Members, but that is where matters stand at present. I must not lead the witness, but he is an experienced and assiduous Member of the House, and if he is dissatisfied and wishes to use a parliamentary vehicle to shine further light on this matter, he must deploy his wits and sagacity to ensure that he has that opportunity. I get the impression he feels that insufficient attention has been paid to the matter. I am not aware of insulting or disobliging remarks having been made, but I am sorry if they have. I cannot adjudicate because I am not familiar with those points, but I hope that he will pursue the matter further, if he wishes to do so, through the use of the Table Office and such mechanisms as are provided for in the Standing Orders of the House.

[Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough) (Con)]

Further to that point of order, Mr Speaker. Given that my hon. Friend the Member for Mid Norfolk (George Freeman) is not present to elucidate his views and that the right hon. Member for East Ham (Stephen Timms) has potentially inadvertently impugned them, by convention should he not have given my hon. Friend notice before impugning or misquoting him in anyway?

[Mr Speaker]

As I have just been advised, and as I would have been inclined in any case to say, in this case the answer is no, because there has been no imputation of dishonour against a particular individual. The requirement to notify applies where a personal attack is intended to be directed. Where there is a more generalised complaint, no such prior notification is required. That would have been my view, but in any case, thanks to a speedy swivelling around by the Clerk of the House, I am fortified in my conviction by his advice, which is based on his 40 years’ experience in this place. Nevertheless, I thank the hon. Gentleman for raising his legitimate concern.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Jackson of Peterborough and John Bercow

Thursday 10th July 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. As usual, a great many right hon. and hon. Members are seeking to catch my eye, but I remind the House that there are two statements to follow the business question and then a significantly subscribed debate, the contributors to which I am naturally keen to accommodate. Therefore, exceptionally, it may not be possible to accommodate everybody at this session today. To maximise my chances of doing so, I will require extreme brevity from Back Benchers and Front Benchers alike.

[Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough) (Con)]

May we have a debate on expeditious deportations? Last week, Lithuanian career criminal Mantas Pronckus appeared for the third time at Peterborough Crown court having been arrested, charged and sentenced twice before. He had apparently agreed, in an informal arrangement with the Home Office, to leave the UK permanently, but had clearly failed to do so. When are we going to upgrade arrangements at the borders to protect our constituents and permanently exclude the likes of unpleasant criminals such as Pronckus?

Birmingham Schools

Debate between Lord Jackson of Peterborough and John Bercow

Monday 9th June 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. The hon. Gentleman’s chuntering in the background is of no interest or relevance whatsoever.

[Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough) (Con)]

Is not a key issue that might give rise to extremism and the rejection of British values a cultural one: namely, the unwillingness or inability among some communities to speak English? Is not it important, therefore, to give appropriate financial support in those areas where we need to tackle potential exclusion, and even ghettoisation, for the teaching of English at the earliest stage?

Post Office

Debate between Lord Jackson of Peterborough and John Bercow

Wednesday 27th November 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. A great many right hon. and hon. Members are seeking to catch my eye. This is of course an important matter that must be treated thoroughly. I remind the House that there is an Opposition day debate to follow, which is heavily subscribed, and the interest in which I am keen to accommodate. As a consequence, there is a premium on brevity from Back Benchers and Front Benchers alike. The first to exhibit that will be Mr Stewart Jackson.

[Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough) (Con)]

My constituency suffered under Labour’s Orwellian urban reinvention programme. We also remember the unedifying sight of Labour voting against motions condemning post office closures before scurrying to their constituencies to address public meetings about the same thing. Will my hon. Friend carefully make the point that the voluntary sector and local authorities have an important part to play in advice and information services and maintaining the viability of rural and urban post offices?

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Jackson of Peterborough and John Bercow

Thursday 17th January 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. There is heavy pressure on time today, as I have already indicated, making it imperative that contributions from Back Benchers and Front Benchers alike are brief. Moreover, I remind the House that, in accordance with convention, hon. and right hon. Members who came into the Chamber after the Leader of the House had begun his statement or who exited during it, should not stand and expect to be called.

[Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough) (Con)]

My right hon. Friend will know that from January next year 29 million Bulgarians and Romanians will potentially have access to the UK under the free movement directive. This Government are at risk of exhibiting institutionalised torpor on this issue. There has been no proper liaison with local authorities, no proper analysis of the likely numbers coming here and no analysis of whether we can vary the free movement directive to protect our core public services and our employment market. Will my right hon. Friend ask the Prime Minister to look at this matter as a matter of urgency, because we have only 11 months left?

Immigration Queues (UK Airports)

Debate between Lord Jackson of Peterborough and John Bercow

Monday 30th April 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

The hon. Gentleman is in danger of setting a real precedent: that because it has already been said, it does not need to be said again. That really is setting a new precedent in parliamentary practice! I call Mr Stewart Jackson.

[Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough) (Con)]

Given the news that next year Hungary will issue Hungarian passports to ethnic Hungarians who do not live in the European Union, I am somewhat surprised by the Minister’s rather nonchalant response to the hon. Member for Vauxhall (Kate Hoey). Why in this particular situation is it impossible for a sovereign nation to disaggregate in respect of its treatment between its own citizens and European Union citizens, and why are we not doing more, for instance on criminal records checks of EU citizens at our ports of entry?

Individual Voter Registration

Debate between Lord Jackson of Peterborough and John Bercow

Monday 16th January 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Stewart Jackson]

rose—

[Mr Speaker]

Order. Before the hon. Gentleman intervenes, let me make the point that 19 hon. Members are seeking to speak in the debate. If I am to have any chance of accommodating that level of interest, self-restraint—in respect of Front-Bench speeches and the length of interventions—will be essential.

[Mr Jackson]

I am mindful of your admonition, Mr Speaker.

I am puzzled by the right hon. Gentleman’s views on household registration, given that the Electoral Commission has said that

“The ‘household’ registration system means there is no personal ownership by citizens of a fundamental aspect of their participation in our democracy—their right to vote”.

Is he saying that he is in favour of household registration, whose removal is at the centre of these reforms, or not?

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Jackson of Peterborough and John Bercow

Thursday 27th October 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. May I remind the House that Members who have not been present from the start should not expect to be called?

[Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough) (Con)]

May we have a debate on freedom of speech? Mr Peter Tatchell—a gentleman for whom I have some admiration—has today attacked the Trafford Housing Trust for its despicable decision to downgrade the position and cut the salary of Mr Adrian Smith, a Christian, for posting private comments on his own private Facebook account on the subject of gay marriage. Should we be putting public money into an organisation that is, effectively, propagating state-sponsored intolerance?

National Crime Agency

Debate between Lord Jackson of Peterborough and John Bercow

Wednesday 8th June 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I have made this point several times before: statements are about questioning the policy of the Government, not that of the Opposition. I call Mr Stewart Jackson.

[Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough) (Con)]

I welcome the Home Secretary’s statement. I am sure that she, like me, would congratulate Cambridgeshire constabulary on the work it is doing to combat people trafficking through initiatives such as Operation Sodium. On a specific point about people trafficking, how does she see the priority for the NCA in respect of the sharing of criminal records data across the European Union, an area that, regrettably, was ignored by the previous Government?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lord Jackson of Peterborough and John Bercow

Tuesday 14th December 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Last, but not least, Mr Stewart Jackson.

[Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough) (Con)]

On human rights abuses in Iran, does my hon. Friend share my concern over the fate of the Christian pastor, Youcef Nadarkhani, who has reportedly been sentenced to death by the Iranian authorities for apostasy? Will the Foreign Secretary set out what the Government intend to do to relieve pressure on Christians and other minority groups in Iran?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lord Jackson of Peterborough and John Bercow

Wednesday 8th December 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough) (Con)]

Does my right hon. Friend agree—[Interruption.]

[Mr Speaker]

Order. There is simply too much noise. It is very unfair. I want to hear Mr Stewart Jackson.

[Mr Jackson]

Does my right hon. Friend agree that it is a badge of shame, for which the Labour party should apologise to taxpayers, parents and pupils, that having doubled education spending during their term in office, they managed to drive down educational attainment standards to the bottom of the international league, according to the OECD?

Points of Order

Debate between Lord Jackson of Peterborough and John Bercow

Thursday 4th November 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. That is not a point of order; the hon. Gentleman will resume his seat.

[Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough) (Con)]

rose—

[Mr Speaker]

Last go. I call Mr Stewart Jackson.

[Mr Jackson]

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Do you, like me, deprecate the practice, too common among Departments under the previous Government, of referring, in written answers to parliamentary questions, to website addresses rather than giving substantive answers? Will you intercede?

[Mr Speaker]

I am happy to comment on that point of order. The hon. Gentleman draws the attention of the House to what is becoming a common practice. Responses from Ministers to questions should be as helpful and clear as possible. Simply referring an hon. Member to a website is, frankly, not good enough. [Interruption.]

We come now to the main business. To move the motion, I call the Secretary of State, Dr Liam Fox.