Business of the House

Lord Young of Cookham Excerpts

Thursday 19th April 2012 Commons Chamber

[Ms Angela Eagle (Wallasey) (Lab)]

Will the Leader of the House give us the business for next week?

[The Leader of the House of Commons (Sir George Young)]

The business for the week commencing 23 April will include:

Monday 23 April—Remaining stages of the Financial Services Bill (day 1).



Tuesday 24 April— If necessary, consideration of Lords amendments, followed by a motion relating to section 5 of the European Communities (Amendment) Act 1993, followed by a motion on an EU directive on data protection in the areas of police and criminal justice, followed by a general debate on the national planning policy framework.

Wednesday 25 April—Consideration of Lords amendments, followed by Report stage of the Civil Aviation Bill, followed by, if necessary, consideration of Lords amendments.



Thursday 26 April—Consideration of Lords amendments.

The provisional business for the week commencing 30 April will include:



Monday 30 April—Consideration of an allocation of time motion, followed by all stages of the Sunday Trading (London Olympic Games and Paralympic Games) Bill [Lords], followed by, if necessary, consideration of Lords amendments.

I should also like to inform the House that the business in Westminster Hall for 26 April will be:

Thursday 26 April—Presentation of a report on the work of the Backbench Business Committee in session 2010-12, followed by a debate on EU working time regulation and the NHS.

[Ms Eagle]

I not only thank the Leader of the House for his statement and congratulate the new Serjeant at Arms on his appointment, but pay tribute to the former Leader of the House, Tony Newton, who has sadly died.

Four weeks ago, the Chancellor made one of his rare appearances at the Dispatch Box to present his Budget, and it has gone down so brilliantly that the Leader of the House is going to find it even more difficult to coax the Chancellor out of hiding and back to the Dispatch Box any time soon. It takes a unique combination of political skills, which only this Chancellor possesses, to unite pie and pasty makers, Church and charity leaders, philanthropists, university vice-chancellors and caravan owners. The Chancellor’s magic touch has now extended to his own Back Benches, because last night nearly 10% of the Conservative parliamentary party voted against their own Government on the Budget.

It is not just the Budget that this Chancellor has bungled. He has made the wrong choices on the economy and the Government have no strategy for growth. While ordinary families are being hammered by soaring fuel, food and housing costs, this part-time Chancellor has chosen to give a huge tax cut to the richest 1%.

One of the first acts of the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport on coming to office was to give a speech on philanthropy. In it, he announced that the Government would be

“reviewing what it can do to encourage philanthropy across the board”.

You have to say, Mr Speaker, that they have come up with a very novel way of doing it. The Culture Secretary briefed that the Budget process was such a shambles that the Chancellor did not bother speaking to him about the charities tax, and presumably he did not know about the churches tax either. Will the Culture Secretary come to this House and make a statement on that debacle?

Following on from the shambolic Budget, yesterday the Government forced through a tax cut for the richest 1%. Last November, the right hon. Member for Sheffield, Hallam (Mr Clegg), the Liberal Democrat leader, said:

“It would be utterly incomprehensible for millions of people who work hard...if suddenly the priority is to give 300,000 people at the very, very top a tax break”.

If it was utterly incomprehensible then, why have Liberal Democrats voted for it now? Will the Leader of the House coax the Deputy Prime Minister to the Dispatch Box to explain his damascene conversion to the interests of the top 1%?

Do the Liberal Democrats seriously think they can get away with agreeing a policy round the Cabinet table, denouncing it in the media, and then voting for it in the House? It is not just on the Budget that they have tried that trick. As the Prime Minister pointed out while on his most recent world tour, the Liberal Democrat leader secretly signed off the policy on internet surveillance in Government and then, when details appeared in the papers, he publically denounced it. A pattern is emerging. Judging by his track record, the Deputy Prime Minster will now ensure that Liberal Democrats vote for the measure while he blames the Tories for it.

Perhaps the Liberal Democrat leader could explain this leaflet, which the party has just put out in Cornwall. It states “Stop the Tories Taxing Our Pasties!” Just five Liberal Democrat MPs voted for Labour’s amendment, and analysis of last night’s result reveals that it was Liberal Democrat votes what won the pasty tax for the Government. May we have a statement on this desperate effort to hoodwink the public? People are not fooled by the Liberal Democrats’ dubious political posturing. The pasty tax, the caravan tax and the churches tax were all voted through the House last night because of Liberal Democrat support.

The part-time Chancellor’s shambolic handling of the Budget is matched by the Home Secretary’s increasingly chaotic attempts to deport Abu Qatada. On the interpretation of time limits, I have to ask, why did no one in the Home Office think to phone up the European Court to check when it thought that the deadline was at an end?

This parliamentary Session is finally staggering to a close, ending a spectacularly mismanaged legislative programme with a spectacularly mismanaged Budget, and we have already started to have leaks about the content of the next Queen’s Speech. The entire Budget was leaked, but the content of the Queen’s Speech should not be briefed to the media before Her Majesty has delivered it.

In his statement, the Leader of the House referred to all the time he has allowed for consideration of Lords amendments next week, but will he take this opportunity to deny rumours that the House will rise much earlier than he is planning?

In an interview this week, the chair of the Conservative party tried to explain away what she herself described as the Government’s “incoherence” with two words “Liberal Democrats”. Can the Leader of the House tell us what on earth she could have meant?

[Sir George Young]

I begin by thanking the hon. Lady for her kind words about Tony Newton, whose funeral I attended last week, where I listened to some generous tributes from John Major and John MacGregor. It was a very well attended and moving funeral.

Let me move on to the hon. Lady’s questions. Most of them related to the Budget; I gently point out to her that we are debating the Budget for the whole of this week and that this time is for questions about next week’s business. All the issues she raised have been the subject of a debate this week or will be the subject of a debate later today. Let me also gently remind the hon. Lady about Budget rebellions. Three weeks ago, an amendment was tabled to the Budget opposing the cut to the 50p tax rate. In other words, it was an amendment that would have implemented the Labour party’s policy. When there was a vote, only two Labour Members voted for it: the hon. Members for Bolsover (Mr Skinner) and for Newport West (Paul Flynn). They were the only two Members who supported the official Labour party policy. Everyone else, including the hon. Lady, rebelled, so I will take no lectures from her on rebellions on Budget measures.

The hon. Lady raised some points about taxation. She did not mention the 2 million people we are taking out of tax or the 24 million taxpayers who will benefit from the changes we have made. As she knows, the better-off will pay five times more in extra tax than they will get from the reduction in the rate from 50p to 45p.

On the subject of Qatada, we have just had a whole hour of exchanges on Qatada and I hope that the hon. Lady’s colleagues have raised all the questions on that subject that could possibly be raised.

On the legislative Session, I gently remind the hon. Lady that, unlike during the previous Session under the previous Government, we have not rushed through Bills with guillotine after guillotine. We have consistently allowed two days on Report for several Bills, many programme motions have been supported by the Labour party—all credit to Labour for coming to a sensible accommodation—and we have had adequate discussion. I remember the hon. Lady saying that we would not get all the Bills through, but we are getting them all through, with adequate time.

On the hon. Lady’s final question, I have announced that the House will be sitting the week after next and I have announced the business for the Monday. She will understand that at this stage in the parliamentary Session, with four Bills still in play between the two Houses, it is impossible to forecast exactly when the House will prorogue. I anticipate that it will be some time the week after next.

[Mr Peter Bone (Wellingborough) (Con)]

Can the Leader of the House say when the parliamentary business committee will be established so that all the issues with programming motions can go? That would offer the opportunity of taking control of business away from the Executive and back to Parliament.

[Sir George Young]

As my hon. Friend will know, the Backbench Business Committee has been established and elections will take place at the beginning of the next Session. He will know of the commitment in the coalition agreement to introduce a committee to deal with Government business by the third year, which ends in about a year’s time and so, as my hon. Friend will understand, we have 12 months to honour that commitment. I plan to honour it.

[Natascha Engel (North East Derbyshire) (Lab)]

On Tuesday, the Backbench Business Committee met for the last time this Session—[Hon. Members: “Aah!”] I see the grief on the Chief Whip’s face. As the Leader of the House announced, Thursday is the last debate this Session from the Backbench Business Committee in Westminster Hall, where we will be launching our end-of-term report with a mini-statement, in which I hope all Members will participate. Will the Leader of the House ensure that all political parties elect new members to the Backbench Business Committee as a matter of urgency when we return to Parliament on 9 May? Until that Committee is reconstituted no further debates can be scheduled, so I encourage the Leader of the House to encourage all political parties, especially his own, to ensure that members are elected as quickly as possible.

[Sir George Young]

I take this opportunity to compliment the hon. Lady on her chairmanship of the Backbench Business Committee during its first two years. As she has just said, it has met for the last time. I have no idea whether she is going to stand again as Chair and the last thing she would want would be any endorsement from business managers of her candidacy, but I hope that if she stands, the House will take on board her record of leadership over the past two years.

Speaking for the two coalition parties, I can say that we plan to proceed as quickly as possible at the beginning of the next Session with the election of our members of the Backbench Business Committee, and I am sure that the shadow Leader of the House will ensure that her party does the same. The Government want to see the Committee up and running as soon as possible and we will do all we can to facilitate it. I commend the hon. Lady on her public service announcement about the launch of her report in Westminster Hall next week and I very much hope to be in my place for that.

[Roger Williams (Brecon and Radnorshire) (LD)]

The people of Hay-on-Wye in my constituency are twinned with the people of Timbuktu in Mali, where they carry on many good projects involving health, education and agriculture. They are now concerned about the well-being of their friends in that trouble-torn country. Will the Leader of the House either make time available for a debate or ask the Foreign Secretary to come to the House and make an oral statement so that we can ascertain what is happening in that country and to our embassy there?

--- Later in debate ---

[Sir George Young]

I understand my hon. Friend’s concern, particularly because of the links between his constituency and Timbuktu. We had an opportunity on Tuesday in Foreign and Commonwealth Office questions for those concerns to be ventilated, but I will ask the Foreign Secretary to write to my hon. Friend and give him up-to-date information, particularly about any impact on British citizens in that country.

[Dame Joan Ruddock (Lewisham, Deptford) (Lab)]

The whole House will be aware of the courage and commitment to democracy of the Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Is the Leader of the House able to make a statement about her visit to the UK? Perhaps he might agree with me that an invitation to address both Houses of Parliament in Westminster Hall would be a fitting tribute to her and a very great honour to us all.

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful for the right hon. Lady’s comments. As she knows, the Prime Minister extended to Aung San Suu Kyi an invitation to visit this country and I have seen reports, which I welcome if they are true, that she plans to spend some time in Oxford where she used to live. I suspect that the question of an address in Westminster Hall is above my pay grade, but I will ensure that it goes to the relevant authorities for serious consideration in view of her record on human rights.

[Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough) (Con)]

It is more than 20 years since the landmark Medical Research Council study that showed that the fortification of foodstuffs with folic acid taken prior to conception would reduce neural tube defects such as spina bifida and hydrocephalus. Many countries have pursued that policy, but there is an impasse in our country between the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition, the Food Standards Agency and the Department of Health. May we have a debate in Government time to ensure that we properly debate this matter and follow the lead of other countries to reduce the incidence of these dreadful medical conditions?

[Sir George Young]

I applaud my hon. Friend’s concern on this subject and his campaign and zeal for progress. I cannot promise a debate, but it sounds like an appropriate subject for a debate in Westminster Hall or on the Adjournment of the House. In the meantime, however, I will ask my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health to bring my hon. Friend up to date with the progress he is making on resolving the conflict of interest to which my hon. Friend has referred.

[Ann Clwyd (Cynon Valley) (Lab)]

I should like to join in the tribute to Tony Newton. He fought for what he believed, right up to the week of his death, and I would like to give my commiserations to his family.

What is the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s present travel advice to people thinking of going to the Formula 1 race in Bahrain, given that Amnesty International this week published a report saying that nothing much has changed in Bahrain over the past year? This morning, the BBC’s sports reporter made it quite clear that there is a lot of unrest in Bahrain and there is a man on hunger strike at the moment—on the 70th day of that hunger strike. What is the Government’s advice to people thinking of going to the Formula 1 race?

[Sir George Young]

My understanding is that the Foreign Office has given no specific advice that people should not travel to Bahrain. The Formula 1 event is a matter for the Bahraini authorities and the FIA organisers. Although we are concerned by some of the violent exchanges still occurring in Bahrain and we call on all sides to exercise restraint and follow the rule of law, at this stage the Foreign Office is not giving any specific advice to potential visitors that they should cancel their visit.

[Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)]

I had a wonderfully positive Easter recess in which I opened a new dye works—the first to open in the UK for 20 years —presented a cheque for £45,000 of Olympic legacy cash from the national lottery to a local rugby club and also met an engineering works that is expanding so fast that it needs new premises. With all that positivity around, may I suggest that my right hon. Friend should suggest to the Chancellor that we slap a tax on doom-mongers and mitherers?

[Sir George Young]

My right hon. Friend the Chancellor might be looking for new ways of broadening the tax base but whether that one would be easy to implement I very much doubt. My hon. Friend makes a good point. When the House is not sitting, MPs are not on holiday. His hyperactive work during the Easter recess shows just how hard MPs on both sides of the House work during the recesses.

[Yvonne Fovargue (Makerfield) (Lab)]

In light of the Commons vote on Tuesday to remove from scope the majority of social welfare law, which will have a major effect on the viability of many advice agencies, will the Leader of the House tell us when the long-awaited advice review will be published so that we might at least have some attempt at a strategic approach instead of just allowing advice deserts to flourish?

[Sir George Young]

What I will undertake to do, now that the Bill has gone back to another place, is see that when the other place considers the amendments we made an answer is given by the Minister responsible to the hon. Lady’s question about the date of the help she has just mentioned. As she knows, some concessions were made on Tuesday in view of the concern that she and others had expressed and it is now a matter for the other place to see whether they accept our amendments.

[Simon Kirby (Brighton, Kemptown) (Con)]

Should you wish to visit Brighton and park your car on the sea front, Mr Speaker, the Green-run council would charge you £20 to do so. Will the Leader of the House find time for a debate on excessive parking charges?

[Sir George Young]

That would be an interesting debate. The Government believe in local democracy, in devolving decisions about parking charges to local authorities and in local electors holding people to account if they take unpopular decisions on parking. My hon. Friend will have seen the Mary Portas review and some of the proposals in that to make it easier for people to park in towns or cities such as his, and I can only suggest that he pursue his campaign in Brighton, because I think the key to a change in policy is held there rather than here.

[Pete Wishart (Perth and North Perthshire) (SNP)]

May we have a debate on employment rights at the Olympics? The Musicians Union has learned that the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games is expecting musicians to play for nothing at the summer events. Those who put on the events will be paid, as will those who provide the equipment and the security. I am sure that the Olympic bureaucrats will be handsomely paid, but uniquely musicians will be expected to play for nothing. Does the Leader of the House believe this is totally unacceptable and that musicians should always be offered a fee for their services?

[Sir George Young]

I understand the strong feelings and I commend the hon. Gentleman on his own performance as a musician. I will raise the issue with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport. I do not know whether there will be an opportunity to raise the matter in the rather narrow debate on Monday week on the Olympics and Sunday trading. Depending on the ingenuity of the hon. Gentleman and the breadth of tolerance of whoever happens to be in the Chair, there might be an opportunity to raise it then, but I shall certainly forewarn my right hon. Friend of the concern the hon. Gentleman has just expressed.

[Sarah Newton (Truro and Falmouth) (Con)]

Returning power to people and communities is a vital coalition reform. Cornwall council wants to make the most of the new opportunities to be the first rural region to have the same powers as our important cities, so that we can improve the quality of life of people in Cornwall. Will my right hon. Friend seek to have the Ministers responsible make a statement to enable that?

[Sir George Young]

The short answer is yes, of course. We are anxious to devolve power to local communities, including communities in Cornwall, and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government will want to consider very carefully the case that my hon. Friend makes for ensuring that the people of Cornwall can have the best possible deal and achieve the economic growth that the area needs so much.

[Siobhain McDonagh (Mitcham and Morden) (Lab)]

Three months ago a dossier about war crimes committed by the defence attaché at Sri Lanka’s high commission in London, Major General Prasanna De Silva, was sent to the Foreign Office. However, the Foreign Secretary has reportedly refused to strip him of diplomatic immunity so that he can be questioned about these terrible accusations. I hope we can have a debate about the case and about the abuse of diplomatic immunity, because if the attaché is allowed to leave without being questioned, that will undermine Britain’s proud reputation for not tolerating war criminals. If we are soft on Sri Lanka, other shady regimes will surely also begin to regard us as a refuge for people who commit atrocities.

[Sir George Young]

I understand the hon. Lady’s concern. It is important that diplomatic immunity is not abused. There was an opportunity on Tuesday to raise this with the Foreign Secretary. I am not sure that it will be possible to raise it again before Prorogation, but I will ask the Foreign Secretary to drop her a line explaining what action he is taking in response to her concern about the continuing diplomatic immunity of the individual to whom she referred.

[Mark Pritchard (The Wrekin) (Con)]

May we have a debate on the European Commission? Will the Leader of the House take this opportunity to end the rumours that the replacement for Baroness Ashton, whose term of office ends in 2014, will not be a Liberal Democrat, but that the next UK Commissioner to the EU Commission will be a Conservative?

[Sir George Young]

That is way above my pay grade. We have two years in which to come to a decision on this very important matter concerning the UK representative on the Commission. I hope that between now and 2014 my hon. Friend will have an opportunity to ask questions of the Foreign Secretary at Foreign Office questions, where he may get a more authoritative response as to the procedure and consultation process before a replacement for Baroness Ashton is announced.

[Nic Dakin (Scunthorpe) (Lab)]

I understand that the Prime Minister is being uncharacteristically coy about whether he has ever stayed in a static caravan. I hope the Leader of the House will be less coy in answering. Will he ensure that an impact assessment is published on the effect of the caravan tax on sub-regional economies, such as that of Humberside?

[Sir George Young]

We had a fairly extensive debate on the subject yesterday. I am not sure whether the hon. Gentleman was able to catch the eye of the Deputy Speaker. It is open to him to table a parliamentary question in order to get the answer to the question that he asked—what is the impact on a particular region of the imposition of the tax?

[Joseph Johnson (Orpington) (Con)]

The Prime Minister was in Orpington on Tuesday, making him, I believe, the first serving Prime Minister to visit the constituency in more than 40 years, since the days of Edward Heath. May we have a debate on the historic neglect of the outer London boroughs that this mayoralty and this Government inherited and which this mayoralty and this Government are working so tirelessly to reverse?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend has, of course, an interest in the outcome of the elections. It is certainly the case that Boris Johnson has given consideration to the outer London boroughs that was denied to them by the previous incumbent. I very much hope that on election day those who share my hon. Friend’s concern that the outer London boroughs should not be neglected at City Hall will turn out in force and vote for Mayor Johnson.

[Richard Burden (Birmingham, Northfield) (Lab)]

The Leader of the House will be aware that today is the designated international day of remembrance for victims of the holocaust. Some years ago I was asked to be a guardian of the memory of Jacob Billauer, about whom I have been able to find out very little, other than the fact that he was a Polish Member of Parliament—a Member of Parliament like us. Does the Leader of the House agree that it is appropriate that our House should spend a moment to remember the victims of the holocaust and to record the name of Jacob Billauer in Hansard so that it can be remembered in history in this place as well?

[Sir George Young]

I am very grateful to the hon. Gentleman for reminding us about this day of remembrance for victims of the holocaust and for reminding us of Jacob Billauer and all the other victims. He will know that this House had a debate on Holocaust memorial day on 19 January, a very moving debate, part of which I attended, and which was organised by the Backbench Business Committee, and many Members on both sides of the House will have signed the book in the House to commemorate those who lost their lives. The debate that we held this year and in previous years highlighted the importance that the House places on ensuring that the victims of the holocaust are never forgotten.

[Mr John Leech (Manchester, Withington) (LD)]

During Transport questions the Secretary of State confirmed that the Department has no idea of the cost of increasing the motorway speed limit and its impact on road casualties. Given that the Opposition have already come out in favour of a policy that will cost millions and cost lives, may we have a debate in the House on the financial implications and the cost in human life of an increase in the speed limit?

[Sir George Young]

This is a matter which I, as a former Secretary of State for Transport, have looked at and have some interest in. Again, it strikes me that that would be an appropriate subject for a debate in Westminster Hall, where we could give it the consideration that it deserves. If such a debate were to take place, I would do my best to ensure that the statistics that my hon. Friend has asked for—the cost in extra consumption and, if it is indeed the case, the cost in accidents and lives—are available so that that can help to inform the debate before a final decision is taken as to whether the speed limit should be raised on motorways.

[Valerie Vaz (Walsall South) (Lab)]

May we have an urgent debate on staffing levels in Government Departments, particularly Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs and the Department for Communities and Local Government? My constituent, Mrs Dhillon, received a late penalty notice for her husband, who died in 2008, for 2011. That is mainly a result of the fact that many systems are automated. I have also contacted DCLG about business rate rebates and have not had a reply yet. Could the Leader of the House look into this?

[Sir George Young]

My view is clear that all Members of the House are entitled to prompt responses to correspondence with Ministers or from officials at HMRC. The hon. Lady has given me the details of the particular correspondence to which she is awaiting a reply, and of course I will chase that up immediately.

[James Morris (Halesowen and Rowley Regis) (Con)]

Two thirds of people in Halesowen and Rowley Regis have gross earnings of less than £26,000, and most do not believe it to be fair that some families can receive much more than this from benefits. May we have a debate in Government time on what further work the Government need to do to make sure that people are always better off in work?

[Sir George Young]

The motivation behind the introduction of the universal credit, which I hope is supported by Members on both sides of the House, is to ensure that it always pays to work. My hon. Friend will know that the relevant legislation has gone through, along with a benefits cap and a serious approach to benefit fraud. The current system costs the taxpayer £1.5 billion a year. We hope to make progress on that and introduce new measures to tackle fraud, tougher rules and a benefit ban of three years for people who offend repeatedly. The Welfare Reform Act 2012 is an Act of historic importance. We have taken bold action both to make work pay and to protect the vulnerable.

[Mr David Hanson (Delyn) (Lab)]

Before the end of the Session, may we revisit the changes to the feed-in tariff regime, given the astonishing figures produced today by the Government which show that solar panel installation has fallen by more than 90% since the Government’s changes were made, damaging industries such as Kingspan in my constituency, installers and ultimately consumers, and not making this Government the greenest Government in history, as they claim?

[Sir George Young]

I understand the right hon. Gentleman’s concern. I would be misleading him if I said I could find time for a debate, but after Prorogation and when we have a debate on the Queen’s Speech, depending on what is in it, he might be able to draw to the attention of Ministers the concern that he has just expressed.

[Karen Bradley (Staffordshire Moorlands) (Con)]

Over the Easter recess I spent a morning at our local job club, run by Staffordshire Moorlands community voluntary services. They are having enormous success in getting some of the hardest to place people back into work, including on the Work programme. Could the Leader of the House find time for a debate on the role of the voluntary sector in the Government’s Work programme and in finding work for difficult to place people?

[Sir George Young]

I commend my hon. Friend on her activity during the Easter recess, and I commend the work that voluntary organisations are doing in delivering the Work programme, which has been calibrated to encourage them to help find work for people for whom it has historically been difficult to find work. I commend the work that is taking place in her constituency. The Work programme is the biggest back-to-work programme that the country has ever seen. It has already helped 300,000 people. We hope it will help more than 3 million people. I cannot promise a debate in the very near future, but there may be opportunities to develop this dialogue in the new Session.

[Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op)]

May I remind the Leader of the House that one of the consequences—it may be an unintended consequence—of Government changes to benefits for families is that many children from the poorest families will lose their free school meals? That is a very important and terrible challenge for the House. Will he make sure that we have an early opportunity to debate this dramatic change?

[Sir George Young]

I understand the hon. Gentleman’s concern, which has been in the news today. He will know that we are moving from an array of different benefits to a universal credit—a move that I hope hon. Members on both sides of the House will welcome—under which everyone will be better off in work. There is a particular issue, to which he has just referred, as we migrate from where we are to universal credit, about what happens to entitlement to free school meals. He may have heard the Minister of State, Department for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Brent Central (Sarah Teather), speaking about this. We are determined to protect vulnerable children—those children on low incomes. We recognise that free school meals are an important ingredient for them and we are in consultation to ensure that, as we move to the new regime, we continue to protect those in most need.

[Andrew Stephenson (Pendle) (Con)]

In March, Conservative-led Pendle council purchased Brierfield Mills, a landmark grade II listed building, thanks to a £1.5 million grant from the Homes and Communities Agency. Under the previous Government, the building had been bought by Islamic Help, which controversially planned to turn it into a 5,000-place Islamic girls school. Thankfully, now, the site will remain in economic or commercial use. May we have a debate about what the Government are doing to support the economy in the north of England and such economic regeneration?

[Sir George Young]

I was interested to hear of the project referred to by my hon. Friend, and we are anxious to promote regeneration in his constituency. The regional growth fund is on schedule. The first two rounds allocated £1.4 billion, but a new bidding round has opened recently and an additional £1 billion is now available. I hope that projects in his constituency will consider applying for this so that we can regenerate, provide employment and create wealth.

[Kevin Brennan (Cardiff West) (Lab)]

As a former charities Minister, I am disappointed that we have not heard much from the Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office, the hon. Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (Mr Hurd) about the Government’s position on philanthropy, so may we have a statement from him to give him a chance to stop the traducing of the Chancellor’s reputation on philanthropy, because he has been described as anti-philanthropy despite being the man who has brought us the Budget that just keeps on giving?

[Sir George Young]

The coalition Government are in favour of philanthropy and we have taken a number of steps to promote it. We have made changes to the inheritance tax regime, we have proposals for small donations so that tax can be claimed back, and we are streamlining the mechanism by which charities reclaim tax.

On the specific measure to which the hon. Gentleman refers, he will know that we are having discussions with the charitable sector to seek to protect it from any damaging changes in the proposals that have been announced, which come into effect in a year’s time. There is a serious issue as to whether those on high incomes, who have philanthropic objectives, should be able to exempt themselves from income tax by making substantial donations. In America, which has a good culture, there is a cap on relief, so there is nothing inherently anti-philanthropic in ensuring that those who have high incomes make some contribution to the overheads of the country through income tax.

[Mr Edward Timpson (Crewe and Nantwich) (Con)]

In Crewe, a local action group led by Glenn Perris has campaigned successfully, with my support, against the imposition of a council Traveller site, assisted by the new Government policy of working with the private sector to meet any unmet Traveller need. Can we find time for a debate on this important common-sense policy and congratulate Mr Perris and his team on their sterling work?

[Sir George Young]

I endorse what my hon. Friend says about what is happening in his constituency. He will know that on 23 March we introduced a new light-touch policy on sites for Travellers, and I hope that that will be developed in his constituency in consultation with local communities. Resources are available from Government. There is £60 million of Traveller pitch funding through the Homes and Communities Agency, and Traveller pitches attract the new homes bonus. I hope that the new short light-touch and fair policy puts the provision of sites back in the hands of local people, and that they will find the right balance between the needs of Travellers on the one hand and the interests of local communities on the other.

[Mr Tom Harris (Glasgow South) (Lab)]

Despite the dismal weather of the past week, large parts of England face drought conditions. Meanwhile, in Glasgow we know that it is summer only because the rain warms up. Does the Leader of the House see any value in discussing in a debate on the Floor of the House the costs and practicalities of a nationwide water distribution network so that we in Scotland could perhaps share some of our excess water wealth with our more parched southern compatriots?

[Sir George Young]

The Glasgow tourist board may be in touch with the hon. Gentleman about his rather disparaging remarks about the weather in that great city. There is an issue about drought, however. We have had one drought summit and there will be another in May. There is a drought group in the relevant Department, and we are taking steps to conserve water, and, where feasible, to move water from those areas in surplus to those in shortage. I cannot promise a debate between now and Prorogation, but perhaps in the new Session, depending on what happens to the weather in between, we may have an opportunity to revisit this.

[Ian Swales (Redcar) (LD)]

The day after the first tonne of steel was made at Redcar’s reopened steel works, I am sure the Leader of the House will join me in congratulating operators SSI. Will he find time for a debate on the vital issue of energy costs for our energy-intensive industries, such as steel?

--- Later in debate ---

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend raises an important issue. The Chancellor has recognised that our climate change proposals have a particular impact on high-energy users, such as steel, and I share my hon. Friend’s delight at the reopening of the plant in his constituency. I do not know if there will be an opportunity as the Finance Bill goes through the House to raise this, but I will share his concern with the Chancellor and inquire about the progress being made in the discussions between the high-energy users and the Treasury, to make sure that the undesirable consequences are mitigated and the industries remain competitive with our European colleagues.

[Julie Hilling (Bolton West) (Lab)]

May we have a debate on the lessons of our industrial heritage, and will the Leader of the House join me in congratulating the people of Westhoughton, who this weekend will be commemorating the 200th anniversary of the burning of Westhoughton mill by the Luddites, an act committed because of the unemployment and poverty that existed at the time? The commemorations will include the burning of a replica mill.

[Sir George Young]

I hope that the local fire brigade is aware of the rather unique way that the hon. Lady’s constituents have of celebrating these events. I share her commitment to industrial heritage and I hope the ceremony goes well. I will share with the appropriate Minister the concern that she has just expressed.

[Gavin Barwell (Croydon Central) (Con)]

New academies, such as Harris, South Norwood, Oasis Shirley Park and Quest, serving Croydon Central have significantly driven up standards. May we have a debate on the Government’s academies programme, which built on the ideas of Tony Blair and Lord Adonis, which were so shamefully stymied by the shadow Chancellor, but are doing so much to drive up standards for all of our young people, but particularly those from deprived areas?

[Sir George Young]

I would welcome such a debate on the way that we have driven forward at high speed the policy that we inherited from Lord Adonis. We are clear that academies are helping to increase school standards, and this year’s academy GCSE results improved by nearly twice the level seen across all maintained schools. I hope that we can maintain the momentum and that in the new Session there might be an opportunity for a further debate on our education policies.

[Karl Turner (Kingston upon Hull East) (Lab)]

Yesterday evening, as you know, Madam Deputy Speaker, the Government narrowly staved off a defeat on the imposition of VAT on static caravans. Despite the fact that 17 Tory MPs rebelled against their own Government, that was made possible by Liberal Democrats. May we have a debate on the genuine dislike of Liberal Democrats that is shared across the House and the country?

[Sir George Young]

No. Those of us who have been in government before, particularly under John Major, would regard a majority of, I think, 25 as a healthy one, compared with that of ’92 to ’97. The degree of harmony between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats in the Government is far greater than it was between the Brownites and the Blairites in the last Labour Government.

[Mr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

Given the increasing number of people in this country who have been diagnosed with wet age-related macular degeneration, will a Minister come to the Dispatch Box and advise us why the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence refused to license the use of Avastin when it has been proved to be much cheaper than the use of Lucentis?

[Sir George Young]

The Macular Disease Society is based in my constituency in Andover, and I have very close links with it. The short answer to my hon. Friend’s question is that the manufacturer of Avastin, Roche, has not applied to the relevant authority for a licence to treat wet AMD with this particular product. It is up to it to make the application. In the meantime, a licence has been granted to Lucentis, which is slightly more expensive, but I hope as effective.

[Luciana Berger (Liverpool, Wavertree) (Lab/Co-op)]

On 1 March the Commons spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the right hon. Member for South East Cambridgeshire (Mr Paice), stood at the Dispatch Box and pledged that the Government would bring forward proposals to tackle dangerous dogs and their owners before the Easter recess, yet still none has been published. It is nearly two years since the consultation on changing the law on dangerous dogs closed but, despite numerous promises from Ministers, still nothing has been done. On behalf of my constituents Angela McGlynn and John Massey, who tragically lost their four-year-old son, John-Paul Massey, and have been campaigning on the issue so that no other families have to go through what they are going through, I ask the Leader of the House please to inform us when we should expect a statement from DEFRA.

[Sir George Young]

The spokesman the hon. Lady refers to is my right hon. Friend the Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. I will try to find out from the Department when we plan to publish our conclusions. It is important that we get it right. She might remember that in the 1990s the House legislated in haste on dangerous dogs and got it wrong. We are anxious not to make the same mistake again.

[Nick de Bois (Enfield North) (Con)]

Will the Leader of the House grant a debate on the role of local government in supporting microfinance start-up companies, which might help my constituents understand why the Labour council in Enfield is disposing of the business innovation centre, which is profitable and provides valuable services but might now end up as a housing estate, which of course stands in sharp contrast to the support and funding received from the Conservative Mayor of London?

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his question. I am not sure whether it will be possible for the Mayor of London to intervene in the project in my hon. Friend’s constituency and see whether even at this late stage it might be saved for the purpose he has outlined. I cannot promise an immediate debate on this subject. We are anxious that local government uses its powers to promote wealth and employment and create jobs in appropriate locations. I can only suggest that my hon. Friend applies for an Adjournment debate or a debate in Westminster Hall.

[Thomas Docherty (Dunfermline and West Fife) (Lab)]

A number of Scottish newspapers have revealed a shocking history of domestic violence and child beating by a nationalist MSP, Mr Bill Walker, stretching over 30 years. Mr Walker, like all who commit domestic violence acts, has arrogantly refused to take responsibility for his actions and will not resign his seat. Will the Leader of the House confirm whether the Government will consult the Scottish Parliament on extending any new provisions for the recall of MPs to MSPs so that my constituents can be represented in the Scottish Parliament by a fit and proper person?

[Sir George Young]

I understand the hon. Gentleman’s concern. He will know that we have published a draft recall of MPs Bill. In fact, this morning the Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office, my hon. Friend the Member for Forest of Dean (Mr Harper), gave evidence to the Political and Constitutional Reform Committee, which is doing pre-legislative scrutiny. We have said that we will consider extending recall to the devolved legislatures, including the Scottish Parliament, as part of our overall consideration of responses to the inquiry. In the first instance we want to honour our commitment to the recall of MPs, but we have not ruled out extending it to the devolved legislatures at a later stage.

[Eric Ollerenshaw (Lancaster and Fleetwood) (Con)]

This week saw a report from the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s independent expert giving a green light to the resumption of fracking for shale gas in Lancashire. At the same time, my constituency has a third application before the Infrastructure Planning Commission for the storage of imported gas in excavated salt mines, Claughton moor has a second application for an onshore wind farm and, to cap it all, the National Grid now wants to build bigger and newer pylons to transmit power to newly proposed offshore wind farms. Is there any chance of having a debate on the cumulative impact of this on the people of Lancashire and their environment?

[Sir George Young]

There certainly seems to be a high concentration of energy-related projects in my hon. Friend’s constituency. On fracking, operations remain suspended. We are consulting on the Cuadrilla report and the independent expert’s recent report, but in the meantime no drilling will take place. I understand the other issues that my hon. Friend raises and the cumulative impact they have on his constituency. I cannot promise an early debate, but it sounds like a subject for a potential debate in Westminster Hall or on the Adjournment.

[Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab)]

As further evidence that the Government are in a shambles, we have today seen figures showing shocking increases in waiting times for common operations, so may we have an urgent debate on the NHS and waiting times? As an example, during the past six months I have had more complaints from constituents about the NHS than I have had in six years, and of course the Government have been in place for two years. I think that that is indicative of how they are handling the NHS.

[Sir George Young]

I understand the hon. Gentleman’s concern. The latest figures I have seen show that for in-patients and out-patients average waiting times are around the level they were at two years ago, despite a big increase in throughput and the number of treatments. Waiting times might have gone up for some processes, but for others they have gone down. Fewer patients than ever are waiting a long time for treatment in the NHS, the number of people waiting for over a year has reduced by two thirds and, as I said a moment ago, the average time patients have to wait for treatment is at roughly the same level as it was two years ago. We are determined to maintain the progress we have made and have committed extra resources to the NHS, which the Labour party would not have granted it.

[Mr Marcus Jones (Nuneaton) (Con)]

In the first two years of the Conservative-led coalition, council tax has been virtually frozen across England. That is in stark comparison to the previous Labour Government, under whom council tax doubled for my constituents and for people across the country. May we have a debate on council tax and value for council tax payers’ money?

[Sir George Young]

We would welcome such a debate. We had one in February when the House debated the revenue support grant—it is an annual debate—and those points were forcibly made. As in many parts of the country, when people decide how to vote in local elections I am sure that they will remember the Government’s benevolent treatment of council tax payers and the way we sought to protect them from the pressures on household budgets by enabling many local authorities to freeze council tax for two years running.

[Nick Smith (Blaenau Gwent) (Lab)]

There has recently been wide media coverage by the television programme “Watchdog”, Private Eye and others of rip-off private car park operators. Car parking regulation is not working and motorists need better protection. May we please have a debate on that?

[Sir George Young]

My recollection is that we have banned the clamping of motor vehicles, which I think is now an offence. I hope that that will reduce to some extent the grievances to which the hon. Gentleman refers. If he has in mind any other changes to the legislation, perhaps he will be good enough to let me or my hon. Friends know and we will certainly look at them. We must get the balance right between, on the one hand, those who own property that they do not want to operate as free car parks and, on the other hand, motorists who are legitimately looking for somewhere to park their cars while they go about their business. I hope that we have the right balance, but if he has any proposals we will of course look at them.

[Duncan Hames (Chippenham) (LD)]

May we please have a statement on buses? The Leader of the House might have noticed the great interest in buses during Transport questions this morning, which was far higher than usual, following the publication on 26 March of the Government’s paper, “Green Light for Better Buses”, which I dare say is the most wide-ranging policy on buses we have seen since the Leader of the House was in the Department for Transport. Why did a Minister not make a statement to the House at that time?

[Sir George Young]

There is always pressure on Government time and we have to balance the House’s appetite for statements with the business before the House on a particular day, which is why we sometimes make written ministerial statements rather than oral ones. If my hon. Friend looks at the Government’s record, he will find that we have made more statements than our predecessors. Ultimately, it is a question of balance; a statement, which can last an hour, squeezes the subsequent debate, and if it is an Opposition day there are sometimes protests from Opposition Members. We try to get the balance right, but not every Government announcement scores an oral statement in the House.

[Jim Sheridan (Paisley and Renfrewshire North) (Lab)]

May we have a debate on the concerns set out in early-day motion 2969, which calls for ethical standards to be maintained during the Olympics?

[That this House is concerned about press reports that UK Olympians will be asked to wear sporting equipment produced by exploited child labour; is further concerned that successful Olympians will be presented with medals produced by multi-national company Rio Tinto who have locked out their entire workforce in Alma, Quebec without any serious consultation; and, therefore calls on the Government and the Olympics governing body to ensure that ethical trading standards will be maintained during a hopefully successful Olympics in the UK.]

Recent press reports suggest that exploited child labour is being used to make the sports equipment used by UK athletes, and now we hear that the company producing the gold medals, Rio Tinto, has locked out its entire work force since December last year. If we are to have a successful Olympics—we all hope that we will—ethical standards must be maintained by all involved.

[Sir George Young]

I endorse what the hon. Gentleman has said. Of course we should maintain high ethical standards. Like him, I want the Olympic games to be a great success. I will raise with the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games the two issues that he has raised about the medals and the possible use of child labour, and ask Lord Coe to write to him.

[Robert Halfon (Harlow) (Con)]

May we have a statement on which councils are providing value for money for taxpayers? Harlow’s Conservative council has frozen council tax not just for one or two years, but for the past three years, and has protected discretionary services. Does that not show that Conservative councils cost taxpayers less?

[Sir George Young]

The short answer is yes. Perhaps I should not develop that too much, in view of what I said earlier about my Liberal Democrat friends. Under the last Labour Government, council tax doubled across England. This Government have worked with councils to freeze council tax for two years. I applaud what has happened in Harlow, where the council anticipated that policy by freezing council tax for a third year. Those who have an opportunity to vote next month must cast their votes according to the record to which my hon. Friend has referred.

[Tom Blenkinsop (Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland) (Lab)]

Cleveland has seen a 1.2% rise in crime this week and has lost 224 police officers since May 2010, and yet the Home Secretary has never visited the north-east region to see the effects of her cuts. Can we have a debate on rising crime in the north-east, which is due to the Government’s cuts to front-line police?

[Sir George Young]

I think that the hon. Gentleman makes a mistake in drawing a direct correlation between the volume of crime and the number of police officers; it is a much more subtle equation than he implies. He will know that in many parts of the country, police authorities have coped with the challenging budgets without reducing the front-line effectiveness of the police force. I will see whether Home Office Ministers are able to visit the north-east to see at first hand what is going on. I hope that the police authority will respond to the challenge and maintain front-line effectiveness, as has happened in other parts of the country.

[Richard Fuller (Bedford) (Con)]

May we have a debate on the political situation in Bangladesh, in particular to highlight the disappearance of a series of Opposition politicians, including Mr Elias Ali, the former Member of Parliament for Bishwanath in Sylhet, whom I met in Sylhet two weeks ago and who, along with his driver, disappeared on Tuesday evening?

[Sir George Young]

I understand my hon. Friend’s concern. The British high commission in Dhaka is taking this matter up with the appropriate authorities. Every effort must be made to trace Mr Ali and to ensure his well-being. I will pass my hon. Friend’s concern on to my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary.

[Jonathan Ashworth (Leicester South) (Lab)]

The Leader of the House is very familiar with the review of children’s cardiac services. I understand that a decision on the unit at Leicester’s Glenfield hospital will be made on 4 July. Naturally, Members on both sides of the House have strong views on the review. Will he consider finding time for a debate before July in the next Session? The House last debated the matter last June. I think that many Members would appreciate the chance to make last-minute representations.

[Sir George Young]

I am, indeed, familiar with that issue. It is a matter that concerns Members on both sides of the House. It will be possible in the new Session to bid for time through the Backbench Business Committee, in Westminster Hall or on the Adjournment. I quite agree that this subject would generate considerable interest on both sides of the House. It is an important matter that deserves further consideration.

[Christopher Pincher (Tamworth) (Con)]

Earlier this week, Belgrave high school in Tamworth received the welcome news that its application to become an academy has been given the go-ahead by the Department for Education, affording its students, who suffer some challenging backgrounds, a real opportunity to succeed. I echo warmly the call of my hon. Friend the Member for Croydon Central (Gavin Barwell) for a debate on the opportunities afforded by academies, focusing particularly on the benefit of vertical integration between primary and secondary academies.

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend raises an interesting angle in the academy debate by drawing the House’s attention to the links between primary and secondary education. As I said earlier, GCSE records indicate faster improvement among schools that have become academies than in the rest of the school population. I hope that other schools in his constituency will follow the example of the one to which he has referred and go for academy status, with the benefits and freedoms that go with it.

[Neil Carmichael (Stroud) (Con)]

The Government are rightly promoting the development and marketing of electric cars. In parallel, we need energy supplies that are consistent with our CO₂ objectives. May we have a debate on energy infrastructure and on how we can develop electricity storage systems, because that would lead to technical developments that we could market abroad?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend is right that if we are to hit our targets, we need to develop more effective methods of storing electricity. I understand that storage demonstration projects have been funded through Ofgem and through DECC’s low carbon investment fund. Announcements will be made in the summer about how the Department proposes to support energy storage innovation, which will include the examples to which he has referred.

[Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)]

May we have a debate on truancy at primary schools? The latest figures show that almost 400,000 primary school pupils are absent for 15% of the school year or more, which is equivalent to a month out of school. I hope that all Members agree that addressing poor patterns of school attendance early would have major benefits not only for the pupils and families involved, but for the whole of society.

[Sir George Young]

I agree with my hon. Friend. He may have seen Charlie Taylor’s report, which was published on Monday, and the accompanying written ministerial statement, which supported the report and stated which measures would be taken forward. I agree that attendance at school is a key factor in driving up levels of achievement. We need to change the culture whereby it is acceptable regularly to take family holidays during the school year. We also need better statistics on truancy, which was another of the recommendations. I would welcome such a debate, but my hon. Friend may have to contain himself until the new Session.

[Henry Smith (Crawley) (Con)]

Many of my residential and corporate constituents have raised significant concerns with me about delayed and missing post in the Crawley area. Despite a Freedom of Information Act request by the Crawley Observer, Royal Mail has refused to release performance data for the RH10 and RH11 postcodes that cover my constituency. Will my right hon. Friend raise this matter with the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills? Will he also consider the need for a debate on the transparency of Royal Mail on its performance and customer service?

[Sir George Young]

We take very seriously information about the quality of service. My understanding is that Royal Mail publishes such information every quarter. Of course I will raise with Department for Business, Innovation and Skills Ministers the case of the two postal districts to which my hon. Friend has referred to see whether we can get those specific performance statistics. If they are deficient, I hope that Royal Mail will take the appropriate steps and drive up the quality of service to the level to which my hon. Friend’s constituents are entitled.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dawn Primarolo)]

I thank the Leader of the House, the shadow Leader of the House and the 48 Members who were able to participate in business questions.

Business of the House

Lord Young of Cookham Excerpts

Thursday 22nd March 2012 Commons Chamber

[Ms Angela Eagle (Wallasey) (Lab)]

Will the Leader of the House please give us next week’s business?

[The Leader of the House of Commons (Sir George Young)]

The business for next week will be:

Monday 26 March—Conclusion of the Budget debate.

Tuesday 27 March—Motion relating to assisted suicide. The subject for this debate has been nominated by the Backbench Business Committee. Colleagues should be reminded that the House will meet at 11.30 am on Tuesday.



The business for the week commencing 16 April will be:

Monday 16 April—Second Reading of the Finance (No. 4) Bill.

Tuesday 17 April—Consideration of Lords amendments to the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill.

Wednesday 18 April—Consideration in Committee of the Finance (No. 4) Bill (day 1).



Thursday 19 April— Consideration in Committee of the Finance (No. 4) Bill (day 2).

The provisional business for the week commencing 23 April will include:



Monday 23 April—Remaining stages of the Financial Services Bill (day 1).

[Ms Eagle]

I thank the Leader of the House for his statement.

Last week, I recommended to the Cabinet horses that they could back at the Cheltenham festival. Well, the verdict is in, and I have to announce that I will not be giving up the day job. Palace Jester, the horse that I recommended for the Deputy Prime Minister, was much talked about before the race and entered the field with high expectations, but it failed to live up to its overblown hype—it wilted at the first sign of pressure and ended up nowhere. That just proves that Palace Jester was exactly the right horse for the Deputy Prime Minister.

I have been forced to conclude that I am about as successful at tipping horses as the Chancellor is at managing the economy. Yesterday, the Chancellor made a rare appearance in the House to present his millionaires’ Budget. Although an appearance from him at the Dispatch Box is always a pleasant surprise, the content of the Budget certainly was not.

In future, the Government could dispense with the Budget Red Book altogether and just publish a collection of newspaper clippings; instead of delivering a Budget speech from the Dispatch Box, the Chancellor could just review last week’s papers. Will the Leader of the House undertake to update the House at next business questions on how the leak inquiry is going?

This time last year, the Chancellor said his budget would

“put fuel into the tank of the British economy.”—[Official Report, 23 March 2011; Vol. 525, c. 966.]

Since then, the economy has stalled, unemployment has risen and he is borrowing £150 billion more than he planned. What fuel has the Chancellor been using? After the lamentable record on growth, what was needed yesterday from the Chancellor was a Budget for jobs. Instead, we got a Budget that will be remembered for giving a huge tax cut to the richest 1%.

We were all astonished to learn from the Chancellor this morning that he was not a top rate taxpayer. The hunt is now on for the name of his accountant, who will surely find himself in spectacular demand. Given that the Chancellor has answered the question, surely the rest of the Cabinet should now do so too. Will the Leader of the House arrange for a note to be placed in the House of Commons Library listing which members of the Cabinet have benefited from the cut in the 50p rate?

Yesterday’s ideological Budget gave a £40,000 tax cut to the richest 14,000 people—wrong choice. Yesterday’s Budget introduced a stealth tax on pensioners to pay for that—wrong choice. Cuts to tax credits in April mean that 200,000 households will now be better off on the dole than in work—wrong choice. With VAT increased, fuel duty going up and child benefit cut, this is a Budget that leaves families £253 a year worse off—wrong choice.

It is not just the Government’s choices that are wrong; their entire philosophy is wrong. We now have a Government who believe that the top 1% will work harder if they are given a tax cut while everyone else can be made to work harder only by having their income cut. Will the Leader of the House find time for a debate on that notorious phrase, “We’re all in this together”? I have been trying to understand what the Chancellor could possibly have meant by it, so I looked up the word “all” in the Oxford English Dictionary, which said:

“All (noun): the entire number of; the individual components of, without exception.”

Having scoured the dictionary, I have to report to the House that I could not find a definition that excluded the top 1%, so will the Government be writing to the Oxford English Dictionary to ask it to correct its definition?

Were the Leader of the House to find time for a debate on the phrase, “We’re all in this together”, the Deputy Prime Minister could lead it, because he has claimed that this was a “Robin Hood” Budget. The Deputy Prime Minister had a very expensive education at Westminster school; what did they actually teach him? In my more modest school, we were told that Robin Hood took money from the rich and gave it to the poor, not the other way round. Every time I have asked the Leader of the House to find time for a debate on fairness, he has ignored my request, and now we know why. This was a Budget that was neither fair nor progressive and built unfairness on top of economic policies that have failed. Will the Leader of the House finally find time for a debate on fairness?

This week, Government Members waved their Order Papers for tax cuts for the richest 1% and the Cabinet banged the table when the Health and Social Care Bill was passed. Wrong choices; wrong philosophy; wrong ideology: same old Tories.

[Sir George Young]

It is perhaps unfortunate that the hon. Member for Wallasey (Ms Eagle) began by apologising for her tips on horses and then accused us of making all the wrong choices—not a good start. She apologised for her tips; I think she is going to have to start apologising for some of her jokes.

The hon. Lady asked a whole series of questions about the Budget. We have four days’ debate on the Budget. When we come back after the Easter recess, we will have a debate on the Floor of the House on the Finance Bill, and then two more days’ debate on the Finance Bill, as well as a debate on the Financial Services Bill. She asks me for time to debate these issues, but it seems that we are debating very little else over the next week or so. She and her hon. Friends have criticised us for taking a gamble with the Budget, but they took the gamble when they were in government by spending money they did not have and racking up debts that could not be paid.

On the hon. Lady’s comments about fairness, what was fair about selling off the nation’s gold at a record low price? What was fair about giving pensioners an insulting 75p a week increase in the state pension? What was fair about abolishing the 10p tax rate? What was fair about leaving this country with the biggest budget deficit in our history? Labour set back fairness in this country, not the coalition.

[Jessica Lee (Erewash) (Con)]

Will the Leader of the House kindly consider making time available for a debate on the Olympic legacy, with particular regard to the regions outside London and the south-east? In Erewash, Long Eaton United football club has recently been awarded £50,000 by Sport England—a very exciting investment that demonstrates how we must continue to provide support all round the country.

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend rightly draws attention to the benefits throughout the country of our hosting the Olympics. A firm in my own constituency is making tents for some of the Olympic sites. There is not only the spin-off impact of the purchasing but, as she says, the money that is being distributed by Sport England via the national lottery to promote sporting organisations in all our constituencies. Only last week, I was at two events where cheques for £50,000 were handed out to clubs in North West Hampshire; that is part of the Olympic legacy.

[Mr Tom Clarke (Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill) (Lab)]

Given the number of occasions on which the House has discussed the situation in Sudan, does the right hon. Gentleman agree that it was a great pity that it took George Clooney to remind the international community that the situation there is getting worse and worse, day by day? May we have another debate of the whole House so that the Prime Minister can explain what actions he has taken, including whether he raised the matter with President Obama during his recent visit to America?

[Sir George Young]

The right hon. Gentleman rightly draws attention to the problems in Sudan. I commend the publicity that was generated last week in the United States. I cannot promise a debate in the near future, with the House rising next Tuesday for the Easter recess, but the right hon. Gentleman might like to apply to you, Mr Speaker, for a debate in Westminster Hall or on the Adjournment so that we can address this urgent matter when we return.

[David Mowat (Warrington South) (Con)]

The Leader of the House will recall the “Newsnight” revelations before Christmas that the head of the Student Loans Company was not having tax deducted at source. The Government subsequently initiated an inquiry across all areas of the civil service, but that did not include the BBC. Having submitted a freedom of information request to the BBC, this week I received a reply indicating that 41 non-talent-based members of its staff are being paid over £100,000 a year and are not having tax or national insurance deducted at source. Will the Government find time for a debate on the abuse of tax regulations in the public sector?

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend. The Government have made the position clear in so far as the civil service is concerned. As he will know, the BBC is an independent organisation, but I am sure that his question will have been heard by those at the BBC and that they will want to respond to the points that he made in the light of the FOI request that he has recently had answered.

[Ian Murray (Edinburgh South) (Lab)]

My constituents in Bruntsfield and Morningside are becoming increasingly concerned about the proliferation of mini-supermarkets, which are having a significant impact on local traders. May we have time allocated for a debate on the number of mini-supermarkets in our local communities and the detrimental effect that that is having on local traders?

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for raising a key issue. I think that the Backbench Business Committee held a debate in January on the subject of the future of the high street and the Mary Portas inquiry. The Government have said that they will respond to that inquiry in the spring. I hope that it might be possible, perhaps with the assistance of the Backbench Business Committee, then to revisit this issue to see whether we can get the balance right between the supermarkets and the imperative to have a flourishing high street full of smaller shops.

[David Tredinnick (Bosworth) (Con)]

Will my right hon. Friend tell the House when he expects the remaining demonstrators to leave Parliament square and when he expects the road works outside Derby Gate to be completed, as apparently it has taken three months for two valves to be put on to a defective water main there?

[Sir George Young]

I will make inquiries about the last matter. I commend my hon. Friend’s work over many years in campaigning for Parliament square to be restored to its traditional glory. He will know that all but one of the encampments have been removed. I believe that the last remaining encampment is subject to an injunction that is to be heard quite soon. On the works on Parliament street, he will know that that is a matter for Westminster council, and I will raise it with the council. I am grateful to him for his initiative in ensuring that the road surface opposite the House of Lords is now much flatter, which is of great assistance to those of us who go on two wheels.

[Phil Wilson (Sedgefield) (Lab)]

May we have a debate in Government time to congratulate the previous Labour Government on their ability to attract inward investment? The announcement on GlaxoSmithKline that was made in the Budget yesterday is a result of what we introduced in 2009. Similarly, the Hitachi train-building factory which, as announced last year, is going to be built in my constituency comes as a direct result of Labour’s growth strategy. Does the Leader of the House think that we should have that debate, given that the only aspect of yesterday’s Budget that referred to growth was the result of Labour policy?

[Sir George Young]

I have seen the Glaxo press notice and, like the hon. Gentleman, I welcome the creation of new jobs. The press notice mentioned the confirmation in yesterday’s Budget of a specific regime for patents. I am not sure that the hon. Gentleman is entirely correct in claiming the credit for the company’s decision. I think that Government Members can share in the glory.

[Mark Garnier (Wyre Forest) (Con)]

Next week, I am holding a jobs fair in Kidderminster to provide practical support not just for the unemployed, but for local businesses that are seeking to expand. Will my right hon. Friend find time for a debate on how the Government can support local initiatives, such as my jobs fair, to stimulate the economy at a grass-roots level?

[Sir George Young]

I commend my hon. Friend’s initiative in Kidderminster to bring together employers and those looking for work. He may have an opportunity during the debate on the Budget to develop his point further. With the Work programme, which is helping more than 3 million people, the more than 400,000 apprenticeships this year, the youth contract and the work experience programme, there are a lot of initiatives that the Government are taking. It is up to each Member of Parliament to ensure that the benefits of those programmes filter through to their constituency. I commend him for the initiative that he has taken.

[Ann Coffey (Stockport) (Lab)]

The Chancellor announced yesterday that the Government plan to legislate to suspend the Sunday Trading Act 1994 for eight Sundays to coincide with the Olympics. There is concern that that is less to do with the Olympics than with testing the water for a permanent repeal of the Act. Will the Leader of the House confirm that it will be limited legislation, as announced by the Chancellor yesterday?

[Sir George Young]

I confirm exactly what the hon. Lady has said. Any legislation will have to pass through both Houses and will be subject to discussion through the usual channels. It will apply only to the Sundays during the Olympics and Paralympics, so it will be strictly confined to that period. It is not our intention at this stage to go for the wider reform to which she referred.

[Mr Julian Brazier (Canterbury) (Con)]

May I urge my right hon. Friend to grant a debate on the European arrest warrant? My constituent, Graham Mitchell, was acquitted 18 years ago of attempted murder in Portugal, after being held in prison for more than a year. The prosecutor fell asleep during the course of the trial and the assailant did not identify Mr Mitchell as his attacker. Eighteen years on, a new application has been made to take him to Portugal on a charge of murder, when the victim is alive and well and playing golf, I believe, in Germany.

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[Sir George Young]

I commend my hon. Friend for championing the cause of his constituent. The case has received some publicity recently. He will know that I cannot comment on an individual case. I gather that it has been adjourned until 28 March. My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary is looking at the Scott Baker report and hopes to make her conclusions available shortly. In the meantime, we are asking EU countries to observe the principle of proportionality in considering whether such an arrest warrant is appropriate.

[Andrew Miller (Ellesmere Port and Neston) (Lab)]

I have received a letter from the Department of Health explaining that it is not yet in a position to respond to the report of the Select Committee on Science and Technology on alcohol. Yesterday in the Budget, at column 803 of Hansard, the Chancellor said that the Government would make an announcement on the subject shortly. Will the Leader of the House ensure that the Select Committee receives a proper reply from the Government ahead of that statement, in time for us to have a proper discussion and respond to the Government’s response?

[Sir George Young]

I commend the work done by the Select Committee. I will make inquiries, but I cannot give a categorical undertaking that we will respond in what will probably be a short time scale, given that we want to make progress with our alcohol strategy. However, I will make inquiries and write to the hon. Gentleman.

[Andrew Stephenson (Pendle) (Con)]

The Leader of the House may be aware that last year I tabled early-day motion 1518, following the assassination of the Pakistani Minister for Minorities, Shahbaz Bhatti.

[That this House condemns the assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti, the Pakistani Minister for Minorities, who was the only Christian in the cabinet; notes that this comes only days after the government of Pakistan’s retention of a minorities representative in the new cabinet and the Ministry for Minorities Affairs as an independent ministry; recognises the significant advances made in the interests of minority rights and interfaith dialogue by the Federal Minister Shahbaz Bhatti through this ministry; expresses concern at the ongoing misuse of the provisions of section 295 of the Pakistan Penal Code, known as the blasphemy laws, and the threats posed to all who challenge this legislation; and urges the government of Pakistan to reconsider reviewing the blasphemy laws as a matter of urgency.]

After speaking with the British Pakistani Christian Association earlier this month, I tabled early-day motion 2807 to mark the anniversary of Mr Bhatti’s death and to continue to raise awareness of the plight of minority communities in Pakistan. Will the Leader of the House find time for a debate on that important issue?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend refers to an appalling and cowardly assassination, which struck at the heart of democracy and freedom of expression in Pakistan. Alongside our European partners, we will continue to intervene on human rights issues in Pakistan, where we believe we can make a positive difference. We engage regularly with the Government of Pakistan on this particular matter, along with broader matters that raise the same issues.

[John Robertson (Glasgow North West) (Lab)]

Following the written statement on military afloat reach and sustainability—MARS—ships that was sneaked through Parliament and my debate on the matter on Monday night, may I ask the Leader of the House for a statement or a debate on the Floor of the House so that we can discuss grey ships and warlike ships and the Government’s policy on protecting the jobs of maritime workers?

[Sir George Young]

I know that the hon. Gentleman had an Adjournment debate earlier this week. If we had another debate, I am not sure whether the Government would be able to add to what the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, my hon. Friend the Member for Hertford and Stortford (Mr Prisk) said in response to the hon. Gentleman. I will raise his concerns again with my hon. Friend and see whether there is anything that he can add to what he said earlier this week.

[Andrew Jones (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (Con)]

Work has started on a building project to create a new cancer care centre at Harrogate district hospital. It will be called the Sir Robert Ogden Macmillan centre and is named after a generous benefactor. Further funding has come from Macmillan Cancer Support and the local foundation trust. It will be a welcome addition to patient support in the area. May we have a debate on improving cancer care across our NHS?

[Sir George Young]

I applaud the generosity of Sir Robert Ogden in making those funds available. It is right that the building should be named after him. My hon. Friend will have read “Improving Outcomes: A Strategy for Cancer”, which was published in January last year. It outlines our commitment to improve outcomes for cancer patients and to save 5,000 additional lives every year by 2014-15. I understand that the new centre to which my hon. Friend referred is being funded jointly by Macmillan Cancer Support, the local NHS foundation trust and the donation. That is exactly the sort of progress that we want to see to enable us to hit our cancer targets.

[Gregg McClymont (Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East) (Lab)]

My constituents in Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch were delighted to learn this week that the Olympic torch will be relayed through Cumbernauld on 13 June. That is particularly appropriate given that the British female handball captain hails from Cumbernauld. May we have a further debate on how we can ensure that everyone in the United Kingdom can get involved in these great Olympics? That is very important for the good of the country.

[Sir George Young]

We have just had questions to my colleagues at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. I am not sure whether the hon. Gentleman was able to intervene in those exchanges. The issue of how we will ensure that the benefits of the Olympics are broadly shared throughout the country has been debated in recent exchanges and debates involving DCMS. I will see whether there is anything that we can say to the hon. Gentleman that impacts directly on his constituency. I hope that the handball captain leads her team to success.

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[Mr Speaker]

The point of order will come after the business question. The hon. Gentleman should hold his horses. I am sure that he will.

[Sir George Young]

I hear what my hon. Friend says. We are, of course, having a debate on the Budget. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor made clear his views on tax evasion and what he called “aggressive tax avoidance”. I am sure that it would be in order to talk about the tax loopholes that are being closed by the Government during the Budget debate, as long as one remains within order.

[Jonathan Reynolds (Stalybridge and Hyde) (Lab/Co-op)]

May we have a Government statement to clear up the confusion about the cut to the top rate of income tax? A study published during the Budget suggests that it will cost the country billions of pounds if the Government’s assumptions are incorrect. If we are going to clear that up, perhaps the Leader of the House will also accept the suggestion of the shadow Leader of the House that he may wish to put in the Library a list of the Cabinet members who will benefit personally from this give-away, so that we can see from where the motivation for it might have come.

[Sir George Young]

This country has never adopted the practice that they have in the United States, whereby all those who stand for public office have to file their tax returns. If that is the hon. Gentleman’s proposition, I am sure that he can make the case during the Budget debate, but it is not our intention to introduce it. On the 50p tax rate, I just make the case that for 13 years, the Labour party did not introduce a 50p rate of tax. It left it to us, along with a letter saying that no money was left in the Treasury.

[Alun Cairns (Vale of Glamorgan) (Con)]

The Chancellor made the excellent announcement yesterday that Cardiff was to be included in the urban broadband fund. May we have a statement by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on the details of the procurement and roll-out of that fund, to see whether neighbouring authorities can benefit from the investment in that area?

[Sir George Young]

There has just been an exchange on the Government’s broadband policy in Culture, Media and Sport questions, but I will follow up my hon. Friend’s question by asking the appropriate Minister to write to him to see to what extent companies and people outside the immediate area can benefit from the roll-out of broadband in Cardiff.

[Kevin Brennan (Cardiff West) (Lab)]

Further to the question asked by my hon. Friend the Member for Stalybridge and Hyde (Jonathan Reynolds), can we have a statement on the Cabinet and the higher rate of tax? The Twitter account of The Sun is reporting that friends of the Prime Minister say he pays the higher rate of taxation. We have not heard anything from friends of the Chancellor—or does he not have any left after mugging the nation’s grannies yesterday?

[Sir George Young]

Why should this outbreak of openness be confined to Members on the Government Benches? I hope that the hon. Gentleman will try to persuade all his friends in his party to be as open and transparent as he apparently wants us to be.

[Neil Carmichael (Stroud) (Con)]

Many constituencies such as mine have a large number of houses that are vulnerable to flooding. Can we find a way of ensuring that flood maps demonstrate and clearly indicate the impact of flood defences and natural defences when flooding risk assessments are made, so that home owners and insurers can make sensible judgments?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend raises an important issue. Those maps can have a devastating effect on people who are trying to sell their houses, and it is important that they are up to date. He will know that the Government and the Association of British Insurers are committed to ensuring that flood insurance is available to everyone who needs it, and there is an ongoing programme of discussions with the insurers to ensure that we can achieve that objective. I will draw the issue of flood maps to the attention of my hon. Friends at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, to ensure that the maps that are used are as accurate as possible and there is no collateral damage to people whose properties are not really at risk of being flooded.

[Ian Lavery (Wansbeck) (Lab)]

I have written to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions, the right hon. Member for Epsom and Ewell (Chris Grayling), with regard to the urgent situation of the alarming unemployment statistics in my constituency. I asked for an urgent meeting, and one refused and the other said I would have to wait in excess of 30 days for a reply. Due to the urgency of the matter, will the Leader of the House make time to discuss unemployment rates in the north-east, and particularly in my constituency?

[Sir George Young]

The hon. Gentleman does a first-class job of championing the cause of those in his constituency who are out of work. Of course he is entitled to a response to the letter or questions that he sent to my colleagues, and I will do what I can to chase that up and ensure that he gets a prompt reply.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

Among the excellent measures announced in the Budget yesterday was £70 million of additional funding for London for the Growing Places fund, which will help Mayor Boris Johnson produce 200,000 new jobs over the next four years. That brings into sharp contrast the choices before Londoners on 3 May. May we have an urgent debate on those choices?

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[Sir George Young]

I would welcome such a debate, but I am not sure I can find time for it out of the Government’s allocation in the remainder of this Session. We will be debating the Budget from now until Monday evening, and it would be perfectly in order for my hon. Friend to raise the matter at greater length in the debate and get a response about the £770 million of funding for the Growing Places fund, some of which has been allocated to London. The Mayor of London will complement that with his own resources, to give new opportunities to those who live in London who are looking for a job.

[Several hon. Members]

rose—

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[Mr Speaker]

I think that sentence contained a lot of commas and semi-colons, but I do not recommend that it be imitated by other colleagues.

[Sir George Young]

I say to the hon. Gentleman, who has pursued this issue with dogged ferocity, that there will be questions to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence on Monday, which might provide him with an opportunity to pursue it with Ministers who have the answers at their fingertips.

[Simon Hart (Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire) (Con)]

May we have a statement or a debate on the Government’s plans for gift aid? A number of charities are finding it difficult to access the gift aid that they are due.

[Sir George Young]

I commend my hon. Friend for the question that he asked, I think, yesterday, and I commend the work of the air ambulances. We are committed to an online filing system for charities to claim gift aid, which will come online in 2012-13. I hope that will make it easier for charities to reclaim the money that they are owed and drive up the resources available for the causes that they promote in his constituency and others.

[Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)]

Can we please have a debate on the Government’s plans to introduce VAT on holiday caravans? Their impact assessment states that that will probably result in a 30% reduction in demand for holiday caravans, which will have a particular impact in Hull, where we manufacture a lot of caravans. It will also have an impact on families who want to go on holiday and spend a week in a rented caravan, because hire prices will go up.

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[Sir George Young]

If such a measure requires legislation, the Finance Bill has its Second Reading when we come back and there may be an opportunity for the hon. Lady to raise the matter.

[Jeremy Lefroy (Stafford) (Con)]

May we have a debate on the importance of the teaching of foreign languages to export performance, so that we can ensure that young people such as those who participate in the excellent Stafford and Stone young enterprise programme can spearhead the UK’s export growth in future?

[Sir George Young]

I very much hope that schools and colleges give priority to foreign languages that will help us win exports in competitive world markets. I commend the work in my hon. Friend’s constituency, where that is clearly seen as a priority.

[Valerie Vaz (Walsall South) (Lab)]

May we have an urgent debate on how we can extend the Freedom of Information Act to commissioning support groups? Under the Health and Social Care Bill they will not be statutory bodies, so no one will be able to get access to the information that they have, and they are set to be privatised by 2016. How will the public find out information that was previously available from primary care trusts but will not be available from commissioning support groups?

[Sir George Young]

The hon. Lady raises a good question. There will be Health questions on Tuesday, when there may be opportunity for her to ask it, but I will in any event raise it with the Secretary of State for Health and ask him to write to her, to ensure that information that should be in the public domain remains so.

[Angie Bray (Ealing Central and Acton) (Con)]

Many of my younger constituents will be delighted with the news about the enterprise loans announced in yesterday’s Budget, which will help them set up their own businesses. May we have a debate on how we can build on such measures to help our young entrepreneurs?

[Sir George Young]

We can indeed have such a debate, and it will commence when business questions finish. I am delighted to hear that the enterprise loans scheme is alive and well in my hon. Friend’s constituency, with which I have some acquaintance. We all have a role to play in making information about it available in our constituencies, so that young people can get access to those loans, build their own businesses and help build a thriving community in west London.

[Matthew Hancock (West Suffolk) (Con)]

We on the Government Benches care deeply about tackling tax avoidance, so when will the legislation come in to tackle the offshore gambling tax loophole? That was announced in the Budget yesterday and is vital for many of my constituents.

[Sir George Young]

I cannot anticipate what may or may not be in the Queen’s Speech on 9 May, but my hon. Friend is right that measures were announced that need legislation. As Leader of the House, I can say that they are on my radar.

[Stephen Hammond (Wimbledon) (Con)]

In the Budget yesterday, £130 million extra for London’s infrastructure was announced. May we have a debate on the coalition’s continuing commitment, combined with that of the Mayor of London, to the continual improvement of London’s infrastructure?

[Sir George Young]

As my hon. Friend knows, Crossrail is under way, and it would be wholly in order for him to develop that point at greater length in the Budget debate—perhaps tomorrow, if he is around. The Minister who replies to that debate will set out the coalition Government’s view on infrastructure. My hon. Friend will also have seen what the Prime Minister said in his speech on Monday about developing new models for financing infrastructure in this country.

[Chris Williamson (Derby North) (Lab)]

Can we have an urgent debate on the implications of the Government’s decision to cut the Environment Agency’s budget for flood defence work, because that is having a significant impact on my constituents in Darley Abbey and Chester Green, who are potentially exposed to devastating flooding and escalating—indeed, rocketing—home insurance bills?

[Sir George Young]

As the hon. Gentleman will know, the Government have had to take difficult decisions in order to get expenditure back under control, but I will pursue the issue he raises through the Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Newbury (Richard Benyon), and see whether the Environment Agency, which might be the funding body, has resources available to tackle it.

[Karen Bradley (Staffordshire Moorlands) (Con)]

The town of Leek—spelled with two Es rather than an E and an A—has been at the forefront of the arts and crafts movement and was a centre for silk printing for more than 100 years. However, sadly, that silk industry died out about 20 years ago. I am therefore delighted to learn that British clothes maker, Bonsoir of London, has started printing silk in Leek again. Will the Leader of the House find time for a debate on how we promote economic growth and prosperity by reviving traditional trades such as silk printing in Leek?

[Sir George Young]

I am delighted to hear of the revival of that industry in my hon. Friend’s constituency. It will be possible to raise that during the Budget debate. The Government have launched a number of programmes to assist manufacturing, including a £75 million programme to help small and medium-sized enterprises to take on apprenticeships. We have also set up the launch of a series of high-value manufacturing technology centres and a programme of manufacturing fellowships, and, of course, we have the regional growth fund and other initiatives. The Government recognise the challenge to which my hon. Friend refers, and a number of funding sources are available to promote progress.

[Glyn Davies (Montgomeryshire) (Con)]

We all depend on the regional media to spread public understanding of serious politics and activities in the House, and we must all be concerned when a reduction in regional media coverage is threatened. In Wales, we are particularly dependent on BBC Wales. Will the Leader of the House arrange an early debate on the plans of our regional media in the nations and regions of the UK to ensure that we have proper, serious coverage of politics?

[Sir George Young]

I agree entirely with what my hon. Friend says on the importance of regional media. We have just had Department for Culture, Media and Sport questions, when there might have been an opportunity to raise that. We have put the BBC’s funding on a more stable basis for the foreseeable future, and I will ensure that the BBC hears what my hon. Friend says and see whether appropriate resources are being allocated to the regional media that cover his constituency.

[Mr Speaker]

Just before we move to the next business, there is one matter with which I should like to deal. In the course of business questions, the hon. Member for Rossendale and Darwen (Jake Berry) prefaced his question by indicating that he had notified the right hon. Member to whom he was about to refer in advance of coming to the Chamber. I simply want to say this to the hon. Gentleman and the House: advance notification to a Member of an intention to refer to that Member is, of itself, not sufficient; much depends on what is then said. I say for the benefit of the hon. Gentleman and the House that where an accusation or implication of possible improper conduct is made, that must be done either by a reference to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards or upon a substantive motion. It should not be done in the course of a question. That was wrong, and a discourtesy—unintentional, I am sure—to the House. Therefore, I invite the hon. Member for Rossendale and Darwen to apologise to the House for that discourtesy. He should now rise from his seat and apologise for that discourtesy, which I accept and am sure was unintentional.

Oral Answers to Questions

Lord Young of Cookham Excerpts

Thursday 22nd March 2012 Commons Chamber

[Harriett Baldwin (West Worcestershire) (Con)]

5. Whether he plans to submit evidence to the commission on the consequences of devolution for the House of Commons.

[The Leader of the House of Commons (Sir George Young)]

I welcome the announcement by the Minister for political and constitutional reform, my hon. Friend the Member for Forest of Dean (Mr Harper), of the terms of membership for the commission, and I will be following its work closely. Although I have no plans to submit evidence to the commission myself, it will no doubt wish to take account of the authoritative works and voices on this issue, and I hope that my hon. Friend will be among them.

[Harriett Baldwin]

When in opposition, the Leader of the House produced a distinguished pamphlet on the topic that the McKay commission will be studying. Does he propose to send that work to the commission? Also, does the commission intend to take written evidence, and to meet in public to take oral evidence?

[Sir George Young]

The commission will be meeting in public and it has asked for evidence. My hon. Friend is too kind about the work of the democracy taskforce to which I contributed when I was on the Back Benches, but I am sure this exchange will have drawn the commission’s attention to the existence of that important work.

[Pete Wishart (Perth and North Perthshire) (SNP)]

Is not the easiest and most elegant solution to the West Lothian question for Scotland to become a normal, independent, self-governing nation?

[Sir George Young]

“Bring it on” is what we on the Government Benches would say. That particular issue is beyond the remit of the commission, but I hope the hon. Gentleman will do what he can to bring forward the date when we can resolve it once and for all.

Business of the House

Lord Young of Cookham Excerpts

Thursday 15th March 2012 Commons Chamber

[Ms Angela Eagle (Wallasey) (Lab)]

Will the Leader of the House give us next week’s business?

[The Leader of the House of Commons (Sir George Young)]

The business for the week commencing 19 March will be:

Monday 19 March—Consideration of Lords amendments to the Protection of Freedoms Bill, followed by a debate on a motion relating to the waste water national policy statement.

Tuesday 20 March—Consideration of Lords amendments to the Health and Social Care Bill.

It may be helpful if I remind colleagues of your statement, Mr Speaker, in which you set out the arrangements for Tuesday 20 March. The House will meet for prayers at 9.45 am and the sitting will then be suspended until 2.30 pm in order to facilitate the attendance of the two Houses on Her Majesty in Westminster Hall for the presentation of Humble Addresses.

Wednesday 21 March—My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer will open his Budget statement.

Thursday 22 March—Continuation of the Budget debate.

Friday 23 March—Continuation of the Budget debate.



The provisional business for the week commencing 26 March will include:

Monday 26 March—Conclusion of the Budget debate.

Tuesday 27 March—Motion relating to assisted suicide. The subject for this debate has been nominated by the Backbench Business Committee.

Colleagues will be aware that the House will meet at 11.30 am on Tuesday 27 March.

The provisional business for the week commencing 16 April will include:

Monday 16 April—Second Reading of the Finance (No. 4) Bill.

I should also like to inform the House that the business in Westminster Hall will be:

Thursday 19 April—Debate on regeneration.

[Ms Angela Eagle]

Last weekend, the Liberal Democrat spring conference voted against the health Bill. This week, Liberal Democrats in Parliament voted for the health Bill. It could not be clearer: the Liberal Democrat leader now takes his instructions only from the Prime Minister. Would the Leader of the House join me in congratulating the five Liberal Democrats who defied their leadership and voted against the health Bill? Does he not agree that when the legislation returns to this House next week, the Government must publish the transition risk register, as they have been ordered to by the Information Commissioner? Much better still, the Government should just drop the Bill.

This week at the Leveson inquiry we learned further details about how the deputy Mayor for Policing in London put pressure on the Metropolitan police to drop their investigation into phone hacking. The Met say that they had to remind him that the police are operationally independent of politicians and that operational decisions are taken by police officers, not the Mayor’s political appointees. It is especially worrying when it is a Conservative deputy Mayor pressurising the police on an investigation that involved one of the Prime Minister’s senior aides, Andy Coulson. Will the Leader of the House therefore arrange for the Home Secretary to make an urgent statement about how such inappropriate interference by the Mayor’s political staff can be stopped?

We now know that the Prime Minister is fond of going horse riding with his old school friends—when they are free. As it is the Cheltenham festival at the moment, may I suggest some horses that Government Members might want to back? As the Prime Minister is conveniently out of the country when unemployment reaches another high, he could back American Spin in the 2.40 today. With the Health Secretary’s career in terminal decline after his disastrous mismanagement of the NHS, his horse is clearly Final Approach. The Education Secretary, who is doing everything he can to undermine the Leveson inquiry, will no doubt want to put his money on Time for Rupert. And the only possible horse for the Deputy Prime Minister is running today in the 2.05: Palace Jester.

The Deputy Prime Minister has been keeping himself busy floating various suggestions for the Budget in the media. Clearly bored with hearing from him, the Chancellor decided to follow Steve Hilton to America. As his economic strategy has unravelled, the Chancellor, rather like the Prime Minister, has been increasingly reluctant to come to the House. Could the Leader of the House confirm that he is actually planning to turn up for the Budget?

I raised last week the Chancellor’s proposals to cut child benefit. The Leader of the House said that the Government’s view was clear. He said the Government’s view was clear three times, but by some strange oversight, he forgot to tell us what the Government’s view actually was. Perhaps the Leader of the House could clear up this issue. Is it fair that a household in which one parent works and earns £43,000 a year will lose child benefit, while a household in which both parents work and take home £84,000 will not? Will the Leader of the House find time for a debate on fairness before the Budget? The debate on the Budget within the Government has been a shambles.

Are the Government in favour of a mansion tax or not? The Business Secretary thinks it is a good idea; the Local Government Secretary thinks it is a terrible idea. Conservative Back Benchers want a tax cut for the top 1%; meanwhile, Liberal Democrat Cabinet Ministers and Back Benchers wander around claiming that while the Tories favour tax cuts only for the rich, they themselves do not. The truth is, however, that every member of the Government has voted for Budgets that take the most money from those who have the least.

Can the Leader of the House find time for a debate on families? It is families who have been hardest hit by the Government’s Budgets, and what families want from this Budget is not Government in-fighting, but real help now to reduce the squeeze on their living standards and get the economy moving again.

Perhaps, while he is in the United States, the Chancellor might ask why the economy there is growing and unemployment is falling, while in Britain the economy is flatlining and unemployment is rising. The Government's economic strategy is failing, and the Cabinet cannot agree on what to do next. No wonder the Business Secretary thinks that the coalition lacks a “compelling” case, and no wonder the Prime Minister decided that he was better off out of the country on the ides of March, as far away as possible from the Mayor of London.

The right hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr Laws) has taken to warning about Government paralysis. His heart may still be in the coalition, but there is only one horse for Liberal Democrat Back Benchers now. It is running in the 2.05 this afternoon, and it is called Get Me Out Of Here.

[Sir George Young]

We welcome the new career that the hon. Member for Wallasey (Ms Eagle) is developing as a tipster. It will be interesting to see how well the horses that she has commended to the House actually perform.

The hon. Lady raised—yet again—the subject of the Health and Social Care Bill. It is interesting: we have had three Opposition day debates on the Bill, and I still have not the faintest idea what the Opposition’s policy is on health. Nor, apparently, does the former Prime Minister, the right hon. Member for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath (Mr Brown). He turned up the other day to support the amendment tabled by a Back-Bench Liberal Democrat, but disappeared when the time came to vote on the Labour party’s own motion. Perhaps he had not realised that the negotiations with the Liberal Democrats had ended, some two years ago, in failure. Perhaps he, and indeed the hon. Lady, should heed the wise words of his former Transport Secretary Lord Adonis, who wrote today:

“Labour will get back into government by having a better plan for the future, not by opposing changes which are working well.”

[Interruption.] Lord Adonis clearly thinks that they are working well.

The hon. Lady asked about the risk register. As she knows, we are awaiting the detailed judgment of the tribunal before deciding what further action the Government might take.

The police are operationally independent of politicians, and rightly so. The Home Secretary will be at the Dispatch Box on Monday, when she will be happy to answer questions.

As the hon. Lady may have noticed, the Chancellor will be making a Budget statement on Wednesday. I think that the best thing to do is to put to one side the speculation in the papers about what he may or may not do, and then come along on Wednesday and listen to the real thing.

The hon. Lady mentioned child benefit. Is it fair for someone earning £20,000 a year to pay, through his or her taxes, for the child benefit of someone earning five times as much? That is the question that she needs to address. As for growth, she will be aware that the International Monetary Fund has pointed out that growth in this country this year is three times that in France and twice that in Germany.

Finally, the hon. Lady always obsesses about the relationship between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats, but when even The Guardian reports, as it does today, that Labour is in “turmoil”, we know something must be going very badly wrong with the Opposition, and when another report uncovers that morale at Labour HQ is

“even worse than the dark days under Brown”,

we have to wonder how bad it has to get before the hon. Lady stops worrying about the coalition and starts to focus more on the chaos in her own party.

[Mr Greg Knight (East Yorkshire) (Con)]

May we have a debate on avoiding false economies? Has the Leader of the House seen the report released this week that states that at the current rate of progress it will take local authorities some 11 years to complete the backlog of road repairs? Is he aware—he ought to be—that potholes are dangerous for cyclists and damage car suspension systems? What more can the Government do to ensure that local authorities complete roadworks diligently and speedily?

[Sir George Young]

As a cyclist, I am all too aware when there is a pothole on my route into the House of Commons. My right hon. Friend may have seen a recent statement by one of the Transport Ministers that said that, following last year’s severe winter, additional resources were made available to local authorities to address the pothole issue, and I think I am right in saying that the resources for local authorities over the next three years are higher than in the preceding three years before we took office. I shall, of course, pass on my right hon. Friend’s concern to the Secretary of State for Transport in order to see what can be done to make my right hon. Friend’s ride around his constituency more comfortable than it clearly is at present.

[Natascha Engel (North East Derbyshire) (Lab)]

On Monday, 186 Members voted against all-House elections to the Backbench Business Committee. Of those, 119 were payroll Members. Without those Front-Bench votes, Back Benchers would have secured all-House elections by 38 votes. We all saw the pain on the face of the Leader of the House on Monday night. Can he explain the tortuous logic by which he squares the coalition’s promise to give more powers to Back Benchers with Monday’s Front-Bench intervention?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend the Deputy Leader of the House set out in his speech on Monday the reasons why he and I believed the House should support the amendment in question. As the hon. Lady knows, all we have done is bring the Backbench Business Committee into line with all the other Select Committees and ensured that, for example, the Conservative party cannot choose which Labour Members serve on her Committee. That would be an abuse, and the House agreed, through a Division in the normal way, with the proposals put forward by my hon. Friend—and supported by the hon. Lady’s Front-Bench party colleagues. We have had that debate, and the time has come to move on.

[Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire) (LD)]

Two years ago, the Speaker’s Conference recommended that we should have a review of sitting hours, and one year ago the Procedure Committee launched an inquiry into that. It has been very thorough, with both written and oral evidence having been taken, and there was then a further consultation exercise, which closed three months ago. When does the Leader of the House think we will have the chance to vote on options for reform?

[Sir George Young]

There is a missing ingredient in the equation, in that we have to wait for the report from the Procedure Committee. I understand from the Chair of that Committee, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Yorkshire (Mr Knight), that good progress is being made. I have given evidence on this topic, and I am sure my hon. Friend has, too. When the report is placed before the House—I do not know whether that will be before the end of the Session—it will be important to find time so that the House can reach a decision on whether to stay with the existing sitting hours or to make changes. In the first instance, however, my hon. Friend’s question should, I think, be addressed more to the Chair of the Procedure Committee than to the Leader of the House.

[Jim Sheridan (Paisley and Renfrewshire North) (Lab)]

Even at this late stage, will the Leader of the House use his good offices, and his significant influence with the Chancellor, to make a special plea to him to reflect again on the proposed 10% increase in air passenger duty? I fully accept that that duty was introduced by the last Labour Government, but it has risen significantly, and is now the highest in the world. If this tax goes ahead, we will be totally uncompetitive in relation to our European partners, and there will be job losses and impacts on tourism, especially in Scotland. I therefore ask the Leader of the House to speak to the Chancellor about this important issue.

[Sir George Young]

The hon. Gentleman makes a last-minute submission to my right hon. Friend the Chancellor as he puts the finishing touches to his Budget, and he will understand that I cannot give any undertaking whatsoever. However, there will be a number of days in which to debate the Budget measures, when the hon. Gentleman may have an opportunity to develop his case at greater length.

[Mark Lancaster (Milton Keynes North) (Con)]

May we have a debate on local government finance? Wolverton and Greenleys town council has applied for grant funding under the Portas pilot project but has been told that if—and, we hope, when—it is successful, it is not deemed to be a suitable authority to handle the money. Given the Government’s commitment to localism and the fact that the local town council is deemed competent to raise the precept, is this situation not slightly odd?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend may know that section 31 of the Local Government Act 2003 says that a Minister can make a grant to a local authority, but the definition of “local authority” excludes the body to which he has referred—the town council. If the bid is successful, I see no reason why the money should not be “laundered”, if I may use that word, through the district council, which would be an intermediary between the Government and the town council. That may offer a way through.

[Kelvin Hopkins (Luton North) (Lab)]

Equity member Michael Sheldon recently provided a reference for a passport application for his daughter’s boyfriend, but the application was turned down because the passport office apparently said that acting was “not a proper job.” Will the Leader of the House make time for a debate on the massive contribution to our economy, and to the world of culture and entertainment, made by the many fine and great actors produced by Britain?

[Sir George Young]

Acting is a proper job, and many Members in the House prove that on a day-to-day basis. I will draw the hon. Gentleman’s concern to the attention of the Home Secretary, who will be at this Dispatch Box on Monday. I pay tribute to the acting profession, which is an important invisible earner of foreign exchange. This country leads the world in providing high-quality actors, and, indeed, some of them have been Members of this House.

[Mr Christopher Chope (Christchurch) (Con)]

May we have an early debate on the Government’s perverse and bizarre definition of equality? Why are they saying that same-sex partners should be able to have access to marriage while denying the opportunity for heterosexuals to have access to civil partnerships?

[Sir George Young]

As my hon. Friend knows, we have just published a consultation document with the proposition that access to marriage should be available to same-sex couples. We have already made some changes to civil partnerships; there is now access to services in church. During the course of the consultation on that document, my hon. Friend will be able to develop his argument for extending the opportunities in the way that he has just outlined, but the debate has just been launched by the consultation document and the written ministerial statement published a few moments ago.

[Mr Ben Bradshaw (Exeter) (Lab)]

May we have a debate or a statement from the Education Secretary on the implementation of the Government’s academy schools policy, following revelations that the first school in Exeter to apply for academy status pays its head £10,000 more than the Prime Minister and employs the head’s wife as the deputy head, as well as allegations about a company car and trips abroad on school expenses? Does that not show that there is real risk and a real accountability problem with the Government’s academy policy?

[Sir George Young]

The right hon. Gentleman says that it is the Government’s academy policy, but it is actually his own party’s academy policy which we are building on and strengthening. The regime for academies was developed by his party and, if I may say so, we are building on one of the successes of the previous Administration.

[Mr David Amess (Southend West) (Con)]

May we have a debate on why Southend-on-Sea, the finest seaside resort in the country, was not granted city status yesterday? The word on the street is that we were robbed, and I agree.

[Sir George Young]

I would hope that my hon. Friend will be broad-minded about this, in that there was success for Essex—

[Sir Bob Russell (Colchester) (LD)]

No there wasn’t!

--- Later in debate ---

[Sir George Young]

I do not want to get drawn into a battle between the various tribes in Essex. I understand the sadness in Southend, but this is not a matter for the Leader of the House. I just join in commending the towns that were successful on their graduation to city status.

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

Will the Leader of the House arrange for a statement or a debate in this House on the control of raptors—birds of prey? In parts of the United Kingdom, the number of birds of prey has increased, to the detriment of songbirds, as the statistics show. Will such a statement address a review of the occasional licences to control raptors, as in parts of the UK the control of raptors is urgently needed?

[Sir George Young]

I understand the concern that the hon. Gentleman raises, and I will share it with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, where responsibility for that rests, to see whether we should review the current legislation in view of the damage—the extinguishing of songbirds—to which the hon. Gentleman has referred.

[Brandon Lewis (Great Yarmouth) (Con)]

The figures published this week show a growth in private sector employment, and the enterprise zones, which promise even further employment and growth in the private sector, will start in April. I am thinking, in particular, of new enterprise zones such as New Anglia’s in Great Yarmouth, which really is the best seaside town, because we have leisure and business in one place. With these zones coming into force in April, may I ask that we have a statement from the relevant Minister to reinforce and reaffirm the excellent opportunities that they offer?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend reminds the House that 24 enterprise zones will be providing real opportunities for inward investment and fresh jobs in those particular areas. The Budget debate will provide an opportunity to develop this further. He also reminds the House that the figures that came out yesterday show that the increase in private sector employment more than outweighed the decrease in public sector employment, and we all hope that trend will continue.

[Keith Vaz (Leicester East) (Lab)]

May we have an urgent debate or statement about the shortage of branded prescription drugs in pharmacies? Early-day motion 2801 states:

[That this House is deeply concerned that prescription drugs intended for UK patients are being sold abroad; notes that a recent survey of pharmacists found that 85% were very concerned that patients were being adversely affected by shortages of such drugs; further notes with alarm research that found 40% of pharmacists had seen patients hospitalised because of the problem; and calls on the Government to hold urgent discussions on what can be done to combat this immoral activity with devastating consequences.]

Given that figure of 40%, could we please have an urgent debate on the subject?

[Sir George Young]

There will be an opportunity to discuss that on Tuesday week, when my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health will be at the Dispatch Box answering questions. In the meantime, I will draw his attention to the shortage of certain branded prescription drugs and the very unfortunate consequences to which the right hon. Gentleman has referred, to see whether there is any action that the Government can take to ensure that supplies are available where they are needed.

[Mr Marcus Jones (Nuneaton) (Con)]

I welcome the introduction of neighbourhood planning, which will allow local communities to help shape a vision for their future. May we have a debate to encourage the take-up of neighbourhood plans, as councils such as Labour-controlled Nuneaton and Bedworth borough council have failed, thus far, to engage in empowering eager constituents of mine who want to embrace neighbourhood planning?

[Sir George Young]

I hope that many parish councils, town councils and, indeed, neighbourhoods will take up the opportunity to which my hon. Friend referred and draw up neighbourhood plans, which will ensure that the views of local people are taken on board as the local authority then produces its district plan. We are committed to publishing our response to the national planning policy framework consultation exercise shortly, and there may be an opportunity subsequently to have a broader debate about the planning regime.

[David Wright (Telford) (Lab)]

Unemployment continues to rise, and it now stands at 7.2% in Telford. May we have a debate entitled “Unemployment: the Government’s strategy and how it is failing”? Perhaps the Prime Minister could lead the debate and he could tell us about what is happening in the United States.

[Sir George Young]

Again, there will be an opportunity in the context of the Budget debate to talk about such issues. However, it is worth putting on the record the fact that employment is also up. Women’s employment was up by 10,000 in the past quarter, long-term unemployment was down by 12,000 and the number of vacancies was up by 15,000. It is important to put things in context, and to remind the hon. Gentleman of the measures the Government are taking to develop sustainable growth and ensure that unemployment comes down.

[Christopher Pincher (Tamworth) (Con)]

The Range leisure outlet, which began life in Plymouth in 1980 on a market stall, is about to open an outlet in Tamworth, creating scores of new private sector jobs. That is the sort of entrepreneurial spirit we need to see more of, so could the Leader of the House grant a debate on how the Government can help entrepreneurs to grow their businesses, create more private sector jobs and rebalance the economy?

[Sir George Young]

I am delighted to hear what is happening in my hon. Friend’s constituency. I can grant such a debate—indeed, I have announced such a debate for four days of next week when we can explain that we are encouraging the enterprise to which my hon. Friend has referred, by cutting corporation tax, extending the small business rate relief holiday to small and medium-sized enterprises and making it harder to make vexatious claims for unfair dismissal. We want to encourage yet more firms to set up shop in my hon. Friend’s constituency.

[Mr Nigel Dodds (Belfast North) (DUP)]

This Saturday, the Royal Irish Regiment and the Irish Guards will be holding a number of St Patrick’s day parades in Northern Ireland. Following on from the excellent news that the city of Armagh will be awarded a lord mayoralty in this diamond jubilee year, can we look forward to the statement that St Patrick’s day will become an official public holiday in the United Kingdom?

[Sir George Young]

Speaking from memory, I believe that I have seen a response from my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if not to the right hon. Gentleman then to one of his colleagues, that explains the issues that surround the declaration of new public holidays. I think it is best if I draw the right hon. Gentleman’s attention to that letter, which is somewhere in the system.

[Robert Halfon (Harlow) (Con)]

May we have a debate on supporting local newspapers? In my area in recent years, we have gone from having three local newspapers to having one, so will my right hon. Friend lobby the Department for Transport to ensure that they continue to push for transport notices to be published in local newspapers, to ensure that people who do not use the internet can see the adverts and to create a level playing field?

[Sir George Young]

I am surprised that there is any space in the Harlow Star for anything other than reports on my hon. Friend’s activities in the House of Commons. We are consulting on proposals that would devolve to local authorities responsibility for deciding how to reach their target audience, and I am sure that my hon. Friend’s local authority will bear in mind the importance of a vibrant local newspaper when it decides how to place advertisements in the future.

[Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op)]

I remind the Leader of the House that at no time in the history of this country have power, influence, employment and wealth been more dominated by London and the south-east. Is it not about time—or is it too late—to influence next week’s Budget so that we can start to redistribute some of the wealth and power to the northern and midland regions that make this country what it is?

[Sir George Young]

I hope that the hon. Gentleman will recognise some of the steps that we have introduced, such as the regional growth fund and the exemption from national insurance employers’ contributions for those outside the key areas to which he has referred and the launch of enterprise zones. I am sure that my right hon. Friend the Chancellor is alert to the importance of bridging the north-south divide to do more to help areas with high unemployment. The hon. Gentleman should await my right hon. Friend’s Budget statement.

[Sir Robert Smith (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD)]

Following the tragic news from Afghanistan about the loss of those brave soldiers’ lives and the murder of many civilians by an American soldier, and the discussions coming out of the United States about the future of Afghanistan, will the Leader of the House look in the forward programme and find time for a full debate in the House on our strategy in Afghanistan, both in the military and in development, and on the long-term future for Afghanistan?

[Sir George Young]

We are committed to making regular quarterly statements on the position in Afghanistan. I think I am right in saying that one of those quarterly statements is due quite soon and there will then be an opportunity to ask my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State about those issues. I agree on the broader question and I hope that, if not in the immediate future then at some point in the new Session, we can have a broader debate about foreign policy in Afghanistan—and in Iraq, Syria and other places.

[Phil Wilson (Sedgefield) (Lab)]

May we have a debate or a statement on the state of public transport in Country Durham, which even the Minister responsible for employment has called poor? Things are now so bad that the Jobcentre Plus in Newton Aycliffe is considering purchasing bicycles so that people can get to work. Is it now the Government’s policy to purchase bicycles so that people can get to work rather than providing public transport?

[Sir George Young]

I think I am right in saying that the previous Government introduced a scheme whereby employers could make bicycles available on preferential terms to their employees, so there is a precedent. I understand the hon. Gentleman’s concern about the poor quality of public transport in his constituency, and I shall raise it with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport to see whether she can take any action to relieve that problem.

[Neil Carmichael (Stroud) (Con)]

With more than 300,000 school governors in this country, may we have a debate to celebrate the work they do for their schools and communities and, secondly, to highlight the need to change and adapt their role to respond to the welcome changes in our school policy, particularly on academies?

[Sir George Young]

That would be an excellent subject for a Westminster Hall debate; I commend my hon. Friend on his work in setting up an all-party parliamentary group on education, governance and leadership. He is right that as the school system develops and we have more academies, it is even more important that there is good local leadership and that we recruit good-quality governors to remove unnecessary burdens and distractions for schools. We need to get the right people in the right position with the appropriate skills, abilities and experience, and I think that a debate in Westminster Hall would do exactly what my hon. Friend has recommended.

[Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)]

May we have a debate about the mixed messages from the Government, who are telling people from the north to move to the south for jobs and people from the south to move to the north for housing? How will that help rebalance the economy?

[Sir George Young]

That is a travesty of the Government’s policy. We want to grow more jobs in the north, where people are, and the news that Nissan is creating 2,000 new jobs in the north-east is something that I hope the hon. Lady would welcome.

[Dan Byles (North Warwickshire) (Con)]

Coal continues to play a key role in our energy mix, accounting for a third of our electricity generation. May we have an early debate on the importance of domestic UK coal production in energy security, particularly in the light of yesterday’s worrying news that the Daw Mill colliery, which borders my constituency and that of my hon. Friend the Member for Nuneaton (Mr Jones), might shortly close, with a devastating impact on the 800 men and women who work there, resulting in an increase in coal imports to the UK?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend is right that we need a balanced energy policy, and there is a role for coal. We have put resources on one side to promote clean coal technology, and if we can overcome the environmental problems associated with the traditional coal-fired power stations, I am sure that coal can play an important role in the future supply of this country’s energy.

[Kevin Brennan (Cardiff West) (Lab)]

To mark the re-establishment of the all-party group on folk arts, following the sad death of Alan Keen MP—I was elected chair, by the way, and the vice-chair is the be-knighted Member for the town of Colchester—may we have a debate on the importance of folk arts to the economy, and in particular on the Government’s position on representing the folk traditions of the nations and regions of these islands in the Olympics opening ceremony?

[Sir George Young]

The hon. Gentleman makes an important point, and I am sorry if I misconstrued the same point when it was made a fortnight ago by my hon. Friend the Member for Colchester (Sir Bob Russell). I congratulate the hon. Member for Cardiff West (Kevin Brennan) on his election to the chair of that important group; I am sure it was done by secret ballot of Members from all parties and I commend the group for its work. It is important that the opening ceremony for the Olympics is taken as an opportunity to portray all that is good about the United Kingdom, and I agree that the elements the hon. Gentleman has identified should be part of that ceremony.

[Sir Bob Russell (Colchester) (LD)]

The population of England is 52 million and the combined population of the other three countries in the UK is 10 million. Over the part 12 years, 11 places have been granted city status but only four have been English towns. May we have a debate on this discrimination against England and the extraordinary criteria used by the committee that came up with the conclusions, bearing in mind that in Wales, with only two applicants, a town with a population of 130,000 was deemed not appropriate to become a city of the 21st century whereas a small community with a population of 3,500 was? Where is the logic and sanity behind that decision?

[Sir George Young]

There are some questions that the Leader of the House is totally unable to begin to answer, and the turf war that has broken out in Essex is something that I do not want to venture into. I understand my hon. Friend’s disappointment that his town was not recognised, but I am sure that his town is proud that he now has a knighthood.

[Mr Iain Wright (Hartlepool) (Lab)]

Let me follow up the question asked by my namesake, my hon. Friend the Member for Telford (David Wright). The Leader of the House might recall that two or three weeks ago I asked for a debate on unemployment in the north-east, but he was somewhat dismissive, in his usual courteous and gracious way, about the impact of Government policies on jobless totals in my region. Given yesterday’s publication of figures showing that 4,678 people in Hartlepool are unemployed—a rise of nearly 10% year on year—and that the north-east is still the worst region in the country for unemployment, will he rethink his position, and may we have an urgent debate on unemployment in Hartlepool and the north-east?

[Sir George Young]

I commend the way in which the hon. Gentleman fights for more jobs in his constituency, and I am sure that no discourtesy was intended when I last replied to his question. However, I think the answer is the same as I gave to his hon. Friend. We are going to have a Budget in a few days’ time, the Government have made it clear that we want growth to be a key part of our agenda, and I can only suggest that the hon. Gentleman should wait for the Budget and take part in the Budget debate. I very much hope there will be something in the Budget that he is able to welcome and that will help his constituency.

[Karen Bradley (Staffordshire Moorlands) (Con)]

One thousand schoolchildren in Biddulph in my constituency have each designed a unique footprint to mark the “Take a Step for Fairtrade” campaign. Will the Leader of the House find time for a debate on the important subject of Fairtrade and other initiatives that help to support those in the greatest poverty in developing countries?

[Sir George Young]

I commend what the schoolchildren in my hon. Friend’s constituency have done to mark Fairtrade fortnight. This issue would be an appropriate subject for a debate in Westminster Hall. Through the Department for International Development, we are a committed Fairtrade partner, and DFID provides support to Fairtrade International—some £12 million over four years—helping to strengthen the Fairtrade certification scheme, broaden its scope and deepen its impact. I commend what is happening in her constituency.

[Paul Flynn (Newport West) (Lab)]

The recent terrible events in Afghanistan have convinced 73% of the public that our troops should be brought home immediately. Similar public opinion in the Netherlands and Canada convinced those countries to bring their troops out of that combat two years ago and one year ago respectively. Should we not reflect public opinion and have a debate and a vote in this House so that we can say what the public are saying—that our brave troops should not be asked to continue a mission impossible and risk their lives for a single day longer than necessary?

[Sir George Young]

The hon. Gentleman has put this view forward consistently over a period of time and I commend him for his persistence. Such a matter would be for the Backbench Business Committee to find time to debate, but he might have seen in reports from my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister’s visit to America about the timetable for withdrawal that we will have withdrawn from the combat role by the end of 2014. Also, there will be regular statements on a quarterly basis updating Members on the position in Afghanistan; he might want to ask a question in response to one of those statements.

[Guto Bebb (Aberconwy) (Con)]

A report in last week’s Sunday Telegraph highlighted the mis-selling of complex interest rate swap products to small businesses, such as a hotel in my constituency owned by Mr Colin Jones. Those businesses clearly did not have the financial expertise to understand the risks to which they were being subjected as a result of signing the forms. The cases that have been highlighted are merely the tip of the iceberg, so may we have a debate about this issue and about the reluctance of the Financial Services Authority and the Financial Ombudsman Service to get involved in this mis-selling and protect the businesses in question?

[Sir George Young]

There might be an opportunity for my hon. Friend to raise this issue when the Financial Services Bill returns to the Floor of the House having completed its Committee stage. In the meantime I shall raise it with my hon. Friends at the Treasury. I would say, however, that anyone who is thinking of investing in such products should take independent professional advice before signing any contract.

[Nick Smith (Blaenau Gwent) (Lab)]

Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency figures show that requests from private car park operators for vehicle registration data have increased dramatically—by more than 300%—in recent years. Those data are used to issue fines to motorists, and more than 1 million motorists have received fines in the past year. Transport Ministers say that new measures coming on stream will tackle this problem, but they will not. Motorists deserve a fair deal, so may I press the Leader of the House again for a debate on car parking management?

[Sir George Young]

I understand the issue that the hon. Gentleman raises, and I shall touch base with my right hon. Friend the Transport Secretary on this, but he will know that we are banning cowboy clampers. I hope that will bring some consolation to the motorists to whom he refers.

[Gavin Barwell (Croydon Central) (Con)]

Given the interest on both sides of the House, may we have a debate on the labour market? As the Leader of the House has acknowledged, the statistics published this week show, beneath the headline figures, a fall in long-term unemployment. They also show that while there has been a 380,000 reduction in public sector employment since the general election, the private sector has created more than 630,000 jobs.

[Sir George Young]

As my hon. Friend says, we are seeking to rebalance the economy so that there is less cost in the public sector, which is being downsized, with that being compensated for by growth in the private sector. The figures he has mentioned outline the progress we are making in that regard. He also underlines a point that was made in earlier exchanges about having a well-educated work force. The investment we are making in apprenticeships is part of the process of giving people the skills they need to find work in the private sector as it grows.

[Nia Griffith (Llanelli) (Lab)]

Given the very belated statement we had last week on Remploy factory closures and the point-blank refusal of the disability Minister, the Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, the hon. Member for Basingstoke (Maria Miller), to take up the offer of the Welsh Government to take over responsibility for Remploy factories in Wales and put in expertise to improve their viability, may we have an urgent debate on the Floor of the House about strategies for making Remploy factories viable?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend the disability Minister made a statement to the House on this last week, and then answered questions. I point out that the party of the hon. Member for Llanelli (Nia Griffith) closed 28 Remploy factories, and that there is a change in the way we are helping disabled people. There is more and more emphasis on finding work in mainstream employment for those with a disability, and less reliance on places of employment such as Remploy, which is sometimes referred to as being segregated. The money saved by the closure of Remploy factories is being diverted into giving more personal help to people with a disability to find work in mainstream employment. We are not saving any money at all; indeed, we are putting £15 million more into the access to employment scheme within that budget. I would welcome a debate on the future of Remploy, but I honestly believe that the policy on which we are embarked is in the best long-term interests of those with a disability, and it has been supported by most disability organisations.

[James Morris (Halesowen and Rowley Regis) (Con)]

Conservative-led Dudley council has launched a £1 million new business loan fund. Given the figures that were published yesterday showing that 60,000 more people were in work in the west midlands than at the time of the election, could we have a debate on how local initiatives can help to drive jobs and business growth?

[Sir George Young]

We can indeed have such a debate: on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and—[Hon. Members: “Saturday?”] No, not Saturday—on Monday. We are doing everything we can to support businesses through this difficult time, and I was interested to hear about what is happening in Dudley. We also have the business growth fund of £2.5 billion—a bank-led investment scheme without any Government money—investing in businesses across the country in return for a 10% equity stake. My hon. Friend might like to promote that scheme in his constituency.

[Ian Paisley (North Antrim) (DUP)]

Can the Leader of the House arrange for a statement or debate about the appointment of an independent oversight team to watch over current live police investigations? Does the Leader of the House not find it peculiar that one of the members of the team is a political appointee and a Member of the other place? Should not the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland make a statement about this matter, especially as it has national security implications because some of the murders involve key witnesses in national security cases?

--- Later in debate ---

[Sir George Young]

I understand the sensitivity of this matter and its importance in Northern Ireland. I will relay to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State the concerns that the hon. Gentleman has expressed and will ask him to write to the hon. Gentleman responding to these serious issues.

[Andrew Stephenson (Pendle) (Con)]

In April last year Conservative councillors on Pendle borough council created a business start-up grant scheme, which over the past year has supported 76 small businesses, created 21 jobs and brought four vacant premises back into use. Given that other Government initiatives have helped to create more than half a million new jobs in the private sector since the general election, may we have a debate on the role that local initiatives can play in supporting the Government’s initiatives on job creation?

[Sir George Young]

I am delighted to hear about what has been happening in my hon. Friend’s constituency. Local enterprise partnerships have a key role to play in delivering this policy and helping to grow jobs in particular areas. This is part of the process, to which other hon. Members have drawn attention, of creating extra jobs in the private sector to compensate for the necessary decisions we have taken to downsize the public sector. I am delighted to hear about the rebalancing taking place in his constituency.

[Mr Wayne David (Caerphilly) (Lab)]

May we have a debate on the fact that the chief constable of Gwent police has embarked on a programme of draconian spending cuts at the behest of the Home Office without any consultation whatsoever with elected representatives, the police authority or, indeed, members of the public?

[Sir George Young]

There will be an opportunity to raise the matter on Monday, when the Home Secretary will be at the Dispatch Box. Many police authorities, certainly in England, have been able to manage with the reduced budget available to them and ensure that front-line services remain unaffected. They have secured the necessary economies through joint purchasing and by pooling resources and moving people from back offices to the front line. My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary is now forewarned that the hon. Gentleman is on the war path.

[Harriett Baldwin (West Worcestershire) (Con)]

In the light of yesterday’s welcome news that there has been a 70% increase in job vacancies in West Worcestershire, and a 22% increase in the west midlands as a whole, may we have a debate on the wonderful role played by our network of jobcentres, which are working so hard with local private businesses to add vacancies to the database?

[Sir George Young]

I agree entirely with my hon. Friend and know that colleagues on both sides of the House regularly visit their jobcentres to see at first hand the heroic work being done to find suitable jobs for those currently out of work. She reminds the House that jobcentres are notified of around 10,000 new vacancies every day, and over the past 12 months Jobcentre Plus has received more than 4 million vacancies. The figures released yesterday show that the number of vacancies is up, so jobcentres have an important role to play in ensuring that those vacancies are taken up by people currently out of work.

[Alun Cairns (Vale of Glamorgan) (Con)]

The UK’s triple A credit rating is essential to our economic recovery. Will the Leader of the House agree to a debate on the logic or otherwise of the argument, presented by some Members, that the way to get out of a debt crisis is simply to borrow more money, and on the implications that would have on employment prospects?

[Sir George Young]

I entirely agree with my hon. Friend, who might like to catch your eye, Mr Speaker, during the Budget debate. It is important that we maintain our triple A status. A 1% increase in interest rates would cost the average family with the average mortgage £1,000 more a year, which is the last thing they want at the moment, and it reminds us of the importance of sticking to the deficit reduction strategy.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

May we have an urgent statement on the operation of London transport during the London Olympics and Paralympics? All tube workers have been offered an £850 bonus because they will be required to work at short notice and possibly for longer hours, but members of the Unite union have rejected this and are calling for a no-strings-attached bonus just for turning up for work. May we have a debate so that we can expose this intransigence?

[Sir George Young]

It is important that the Olympics are a great success, as I am sure they will be, but it is equally important that the presence of the Olympics is not used to make wholly unreasonable demands. I think that I am right in saying that the issue my hon. Friend raises is more a matter for the Mayor of London than for the Government, and I am sure that Boris will have listened to what he has said. I hope that there will be a sensible resolution of the dispute between Unite and Transport for London so that we can get ahead and everyone can enjoy the Olympics and get there and back on public transport.

[Nick de Bois (Enfield North) (Con)]

This morning The Times carried an encouraging report that there might be some movement on the extradition arrangements between the US and the UK. Given this, and the presence of the Scott Baker report, will the Leader of the House require a statement from the Home Secretary on when the House will hear the Government’s conclusions and recommendations?

[Sir George Young]

As I mentioned a few moments ago, the Home Secretary will be at the Dispatch Box on Monday, and I am sure that she will respond to my hon. Friend during topical questions. The Scott Baker report was published in October and my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary is reflecting on it, together with the debates that have taken place. My hon. Friend refers to the statement issued after the US President and the Prime Minister met yesterday, which indicated that their teams will now get together and look at how the extradition arrangements are operating. The Prime Minister has made it clear that he would prefer more cases to be tried in the UK, rather than in America. I hope that the Home Secretary will be able to give a more authoritative reply on Monday than I have done.

[Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)]

May we have an urgent debate on the state of the construction industry? The industry is not only of huge importance to the UK economy, but of particular importance to my constituency, where we have some of the largest brick factories in the country, and many companies involved in the supply of building materials. I am sure that Members on both sides of the House will be heartened to hear that growth in the construction sector is at an 11-month high, and I hope that they would all agree that that is something we need to build on.

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend. He reminds the House that under Labour, house building fell to its lowest peacetime rate since the 1920s. He will have seen the announcement by the Minister for Housing and Local Government on Monday about the NewBuy scheme, which will give new purchasers the opportunity to buy their first home without having to find a huge deposit. I hope that this will help to kick-start the building industry, and that builders will buy lots of bricks manufactured in his constituency.

[Damian Hinds (East Hampshire) (Con)]

A Westminster Hall debate this week debunked a whole string of myths about the Government’s work experience programme. May we have a debate in Government time on how we can move on, grow that programme, get more employers on board and, crucially, give Opposition Members an opportunity to break the Labour party’s eerie silence and express their support for helping young people on the road to work?

[Sir George Young]

I agree with every word my hon. Friend has said. It is worth remembering that some 50% of those who do work experience then find a job. We all have a role to play in our own constituencies by encouraging more employers to offer work experience to constituents who are looking for jobs, and I welcome the fact that more and more employers are offering work experience. I would welcome a debate, which might take place in the context of the Budget and would provide Opposition Members with an opportunity to show their hand and, on reflection, hopefully support the initiatives that the Government have introduced.

[Mr David Nuttall (Bury North) (Con)]

May we please have a statement on how the one-in, one-out policy on regulation applies to private Bills? This week the London Local Authorities and Transport for London (No. 2) Bill received its Third Reading, and there are two further private Bills in the pipeline, all of which will add more to the mountain of regulation.

[Sir George Young]

Repealing regulation might require a Bill to be introduced, so it would be somewhat perverse if a Bill that introduced deregulation counted as more regulation, but I take my hon. Friend’s point, which he has developed—at some length—during debates on private business. We are determined to reduce the burden of regulation. He mentioned the one-in, one-out policy. There has been a review of regulation, and I hope that we can announce more progress on relieving businesses of the burden of red tape in due course.

[Andrew Jones (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (Con)]

We learned this week that the trade deficit for January was better than expected, one of the factors being strong exports of cars to the United States and to Brazil, Russia, India and China—the BRIC countries. We have also learned some further encouraging news from the automotive sector, with increases in production for Land Rover and Nissan, and data published this morning suggest a sector-wide production increase of almost 20% year on year. Of course, the vast majority of cars made in this country are exported. May we please have a debate on the progress we are making on rebalancing our economy towards manufacturing and exports?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend reminds the House of the encouraging news about the motor industry, particularly our success in export markets. We had the good news about Nissan and about Land Rover providing more jobs in Merseyside. I hope that in the Budget debate he will be able at greater length to give examples of success in regenerating the manufacturing sector and getting a more healthy balance, with less reliance on financial services and more reliance on manufacturing, engineering and industries of that nature.

[Mr Speaker]

I am grateful to the Leader of the House and to colleagues, whose succinctness enabled 44 Back Benchers to question the Leader of the House in 43 minutes of exclusively Back-Bench time.

Charging for Access to Parliament

Lord Young of Cookham Excerpts

Thursday 15th March 2012 Commons Chamber

[The Leader of the House of Commons (Sir George Young)]

For the purpose of this speech, Mr Deputy Speaker, I propose to regard myself as a Back Bencher and to stick very strictly to the six-minute limit. That is appropriate, because I speak as a member of the Commission. This is not a Government issue, but very much a matter for the House.

I commend my hon. Friend the Member for Harlow (Robert Halfon) for his energy in pursuing this matter and for finding time for a debate. There is a genuine risk in unpicking a budget that has been put together and taking one item out without knowing what the consequences will be. That is why I am in favour of the amendment, which invites the Commission to have a look at the proposal in the light of the very strong views that have been expressed in the debate and to come up with alternative proposals. That would be a responsible way forward, rather than taking that particular item out and then obliging the Commission to find some other measure, which for all I know might be even less acceptable to the House than the one that is before it.

I agree that the House needs to accept the same discipline to make economies that has been imposed on other public bodies, and I support the commitment to reduce the annual costs by 17% by 2014-15. We are having to make exactly the same difficult decisions as public bodies in our constituencies. There is no easy way out of this.

The proposal to charge for visiting the Clock Tower was included in a package of proposed initial savings back in November 2010. From memory, there was no violent reaction when that was floated some 18 months ago. I should say to my hon. Friend that there is a distinction between the public having free access to lobby their MPs, to see the Chamber, and to view the work of Public Bill Committees and Select Committees, and access to the Palace as a visitors attraction. That principle has been conceded: visitors already pay to visit the Palace of Westminster for tours on a Saturday. That has already been accepted by the House.

[Kevin Brennan]

But at the same time as those paid visits take place, hon. Members can bring along their constituents for free. It is therefore not the same.

[Sir George Young]

One advantage of the amendment is that we could look at whether visits to the Clock Tower should be free if the Member of Parliament accompanies visitors, in the same way that we can take people around the House.

We could look at that option if that would meet the point that the hon. Gentleman makes, but the ability to climb the Clock Tower is not essential to the enhancement of our democracy or an insight into how the political system works. There is a difference between access to the Clock Tower and access to the Chamber.

[Sir Roger Gale]

Will my right hon. Friend give way?

--- Later in debate ---

[Sir George Young]

Very briefly, and for the last time.

[Sir Roger Gale]

I am very grateful to my right hon. Friend. If the Clock Tower is not important to the democratic process, and if it is not the symbol of the United Kingdom democracy, why did Hitler spend so much time trying to bomb it out of existence?

[Sir George Young]

No one is suggesting that we should pay to look at Big Ben. The Clock Tower would remain as a visible icon. My hon. Friend would be free to look at it and we are not debating that—we are looking at the option of charging for going up it.

My hon. Friend the Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (John Thurso) has done something that no one else who has held his position has done. He has come to the Back Bench committee of my party twice and answered questions about economies. I suspect that he has also been to parliamentary Labour party meetings. The process of consultation about the measures necessary has been very wide, and I commend what he has done.

I hope that my hon. Friend the Member for Harlow is minded to accept the amendment, which is the responsible way forward, so that the Commission can revisit the decisions in the light of the strong views that have been expressed. That would allow us to think again and come forward with some alternatives. I hope that on reflection, having listened to the debate, he will feel able to accept the amendment so ably moved by my hon. Friend the Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross.

Code of Conduct

Lord Young of Cookham Excerpts

Monday 12th March 2012 Commons Chamber

[The Leader of the House of Commons (Sir George Young)]

I welcome the chance to intervene briefly in this interesting debate, and I commend the right hon. Member for Rother Valley (Mr Barron) for his speech in moving the motion and for his work on the Committee on Standards and Privileges during his time as Chair, including his work in producing the two reports we are considering today. The House will have noted what he said in response to the amendment tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Broxbourne (Mr Walker).

I also commend the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, John Lyon, for his work as commissioner. His term of office concludes at the end of this year, and it is possible that this will be the last debate on the work of his office, in general terms, during it. He has faced a work load that neither he nor anyone else could have foreseen when he was first appointed, he has discharged his responsibilities conscientiously and effectively and been a source of wisdom and good sense for the Committee on Standards and Privileges and its successive Chairs. I say that with added conviction as the Chair at the time of his appointment.

The review of the code that the commissioner has carried out reflects the experience he has gathered during his term. The overwhelming majority of the changes he has proposed represent sensible changes, improving the clarity and structure of the code without affecting its overall scope and meaning. In particular, the changes help to distinguish the aspirational parts of the code from the adjudicable part.

I want briefly to touch on four areas that have attracted particular interest, namely the application of the code to hon. Members’ private lives, the code in relation to constituency responsibilities, personal responsibility for the use of resources, and the principle of equal application to all hon. Members.

On the first matter, the commissioner, the Committee and the House have wrestled, and are wrestling, with the vexed issue of how far the code applies to hon. Members’ private lives, which is the subject of the amendment tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Broxbourne and others. In my submission to the review, which has already been quoted, I said that the distinction between private and public lives was

“important, even if it is not always clear”.

I noted that an extension to private lives might lead to an infringement of human rights, a point also made in the submission by the chair of Standards for England.

I further pointed out that any such extension

“could also be used to justify intrusive and prurient media interest in Members’ private lives, on the basis that if the House chooses to concern itself with Members’ personal lives—however sparingly—then there should be no limits to the media doing likewise”.

[Sir Menzies Campbell]

As my right hon. Friend will know, the code must be read as a whole. Has he had time to look at paragraph 18, which provides:

“The Commissioner may investigate a specific matter relating to a Member’s adherence to the rules of conduct under the Code”

and the following sentence, which states:

“Members shall cooperate, at all stages, with any such investigation by or under the authority of the House”?

If the investigation is into private life, that necessarily means that if a Member refused to answer a question on his or her private life, he or she could be regarded as breaching that part of the code.

[Sir George Young]

My right hon. and learned Friend is right. Once an inquiry has been started by the commissioner, Members are obliged to co-operate and if they do not, they will face consequences from the Committee on Standards. That paragraph would then kick in.

The commissioner has concluded that being an hon. Member is a way of life. As he put it, an hon. Member

“is never off duty. Once elected, a serving Member is likely always to be seen as a Member of Parliament, with the duties and obligations that go with that position, wherever they are and whatever they are doing.”

I personally paused at the assertion that I am never off duty, and I think my hon. Friend the Member for Broxbourne and other colleagues might have had the same reaction. I think that there are times when I am off duty. The commissioner’s conclusion is that an hon. Member’s conduct in both their private and wider public lives is excluded from the provisions of the code

“unless such conduct significantly damages the reputation and integrity of the House of Commons as a whole or of its Members generally”.

This is a very high hurdle for investigation, and that approach was endorsed by the Committee on Standards and Privileges.

The amendment, if the subject of a complaint related only to the conduct of a Member in his or her private and personal life, would have the effect of providing that it could not be investigated. I am confident that the Members who have proposed the amendment have no wish to argue that Members should be subject to special treatment that is not available to others. The issue at stake is simply whether there would ever be circumstances in which it would be appropriate for the commissioner to undertake an investigation into a matter that did not intersect at all with an hon. Member’s conduct in his or her public capacity. That is a matter for the House and each hon. Member to consider and it is not an issue on which it is appropriate for the Government to take a collective view, although I am personally sympathetic to the case made by my hon. Friend the Member for Broxbourne.

The House will also want to reflect on the offer made by the Chair of the Standards and Privileges Committee to take the House’s concern and address it in the revised guide, which, as I understand it, would leave the code unamended and insert an additional step in the process, in that the Committee would have to agree to the commissioner conducting an inquiry in this particular domain. I am sure that the House will welcome those offers and will want to reflect on them.

Another potential matter of contention is the application of the code to constituency matters. In his memorandum, the commissioner makes it clear that the way an hon. Member handles constituency business should not be adjudicable by the commissioner, and I agree. He suggests that the House would only wish to consider an instance that was

“so serious and blatant as to cause significant damage to the reputation of the House”.

I agree that it is very hard indeed to envisage these criteria being met.

On the third issue, in my submission to the review I supported proposals for redrafting the code in line with recommendations by the Committee on Standards in Public Life

“so that the House has a clear basis to take action against any Member who has abused the IPSA scheme”.

The commissioner proposed to do that by means of a provision that stated that the use of public resources may not confer a political benefit. The Committee on Standards and Privileges has suggested a change, arising from its observation that it is unrealistic to expect that parliamentary activities legitimately funded from the political purse might never confer an indirect political benefit. The new code rightly makes it clear that Members should be clear that the use of public resources must always be in support of their parliamentary duties and should not confer any undue personal or financial benefit on themselves or anyone else or confer undue advantage on a political organisation. I agree that that formulation is in line with the original proposals of the Committee on Standards in Public Life, which used the phrase “undue advantage”.

Finally, the commissioner considered and rejected a number of proposals that would involve separate rules for hon. Members who were former Ministers or who were Opposition Front Benchers. He did so on the basis of the principle that

“the Code should apply equally to all Members”.

That is a principle that I wholeheartedly support.

The second motion, as the right hon. Member for Rother Valley said, is more straightforward. It seeks the approval of the twenty-first report from the Committee on Standards and Privileges, which recommends extending the scope of registration to individual staff of all-party groups who hold passes and to transfer the onus of registration from the registered contact of the group to the staff member him or herself. As my hon. Friend the Deputy Leader of the House stated in the debate on all-party groups on 7 February last year, all-party groups can play a valuable role provided they are transparent. That measure seems sensible and does not represent an abdication of responsibility by hon. Members who are officers of all-party groups. Instead, it reflects the proper situation whereby individuals who have the benefits of being a pass holder in this place should personally accept the responsibilities that flow from that.

I look forward to the rest of the debate and to the House coming to a decision on these vexed matters.

[Mr Deputy Speaker (Mr Nigel Evans)]

Mr Walker, do you intend to press your amendment to a Division?

Committee on Standards and Committee of Privileges

Lord Young of Cookham Excerpts

Monday 12th March 2012 Commons Chamber

[The Leader of the House of Commons (Sir George Young)]

I beg to move, motion 2

That—

(1) The following new Standing Order be made, to have effect from the date specified in paragraph (6) of this order—

‘Committee on Standards

(1) There shall be a select committee, called the Committee on Standards—

(a) to oversee the work of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards; to examine the arrangements proposed by the Commissioner for the compilation, maintenance and accessibility of the Register of Members’ Financial Interests and any other registers of interest established by the House; to review from time to time the form and content of those registers; and to consider any specific complaints made in relation to the registering or declaring of interests referred to it by the Commissioner; and

(b) to consider any matter relating to the conduct of Members, including specific complaints in relation to alleged breaches in any code of conduct to which the House has agreed and which have been drawn to the committee’s attention by the Commissioner; and to recommend any modifications to such code of conduct as may from time to time appear to be necessary.

(2) The committee shall consist of ten Members, and at least two and no more than three lay members.

(3) Unless the House otherwise orders, each Member nominated to the committee shall continue to be a member of it for the remainder of the Parliament.

(4) The committee shall have power to appoint sub-committees consisting of no more than seven Members, and at least two lay members, and to refer to such sub-committees any of the matters referred to the committee.

(5) Lay members may take part in proceedings of the committee and of any sub-committee to which they are appointed and may ask questions of witnesses, but lay members may not move any motion or any amendment to any motion or draft report, and may not vote.

(6) The quorum of the committee shall be five members who are Members of this House, and the quorum of any sub-committee shall be three members who are Members of this House.

(7) The committee and any sub-committee may not proceed to business unless at least one lay member is present.

(8) The committee and any sub-committee shall have power—

(a) to send for persons, papers and records, to sit notwithstanding any adjournment of the House and to adjourn from place to place;

(b) subject to the provisions of paragraph (9) of this order, to report from time to time;

(c) to appoint legal advisers, and to appoint specialist advisers either to supply information which is not readily available or to elucidate matters of complexity within the committee’s order of reference.

(9) Any lay member present at a meeting at which a report has been agreed shall have the right to submit a paper setting out that lay member’s opinion on the report. The Committee shall not consider a motion that the Chair make a report to the House until it has ascertained whether any lay member present wishes to submit such a paper; and any such paper shall be appended to the report in question before it is made to the House.

(10) The committee shall have power to order the attendance of any Member before the committee or any sub-committee and to require that specific documents or records in the possession of a Member relating to its inquiries, or to the inquiries of a sub-committee or of the Commissioner, be laid before the committee or any sub-committee.

(11) The committee, or any sub-committee, shall have power to refer to unreported evidence of the former Committees on Standards and Privileges and to any documents circulated to any such committee.

(12) The committee shall have power to refuse to allow proceedings to which the public are admitted to be broadcast.

(13) The Attorney General, the Advocate General and the Solicitor General, being Members of the House, may attend the committee or any subcommittee, may take part in deliberations, may receive committee or subcommittee papers and may give such other assistance to the committee or sub-committee as may be appropriate, but shall not vote or make any motion or move any amendment or be counted in the quorum.’

(2) The following new Standing Order be made—

‘Lay members of the Committee on Standards: appointment, etc.

(1) Lay members shall be appointed to the Committee on Standards by a resolution of the House on a motion made under the provisions of this order and shall remain as lay members in accordance with the provisions of this order.

(2) No person may be first appointed as a lay member if that person is or has been a Member of this House or a Member of the House of Lords; and any person so appointed shall cease to be a lay member upon becoming a Member of this House or of the House of Lords.

(3) No person may be appointed as a lay member unless that person has been selected on the basis of a fair and open competition.

(4) A person appointed as a lay member may resign as a lay member by giving notice to the House of Commons Commission.

(5) A person appointed as a lay member shall be dismissed from that position only following a resolution of the House, after the House of Commons Commission has reported that it is satisfied that the person should cease to be a lay member; and any such report shall include a statement of the Commission’s reasons for its conclusion.

(6) Subject to the provisions of paragraphs (2), (4) and (5) of this order, a person appointed as a lay member shall continue as a lay member for the remainder of the Parliament in which that person was first appointed.

(7) A person first appointed as a lay member who has been a lay member for the remainder of one Parliament may be re-appointed by a resolution of the House in the subsequent Parliament, and the provisions of paragraph (3) of this order shall not apply to any such re-appointment. The period of re-appointment shall be specified in the resolution of the House for reappointment and shall not exceed two years from the dissolution of the Parliament in which the person was first appointed as a lay member, and a resolution under this paragraph shall cease to have effect on the dissolution of the Parliament in which the resolution of the House for reappointment was made.

(8) No person may be re-appointed as a lay member other than in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (7) of this order.

(9) No motion may be made under the provisions of this order unless—

(a) notice of the motion has been given at least two sitting days previously, and

(b) the motion is made on behalf of the House of Commons Commission by a Member of the Commission.

(10) The Speaker shall put the questions necessary to dispose of proceedings on motions made under the provisions of this order not later than one hour after the commencement of those proceedings.

(11) Business to which this order applies may be proceeded with at any hour, though opposed.’

(3) The following new Standing Order be made, to have effect from the date specified in paragraph (6) of this order—

‘Committee of Privileges

(1) There shall be a select committee, called the Committee of Privileges, to consider specific matters relating to privileges referred to it by the House.

(2) The committee shall consist of ten Members, of whom five shall be a quorum.

(3) Unless the House otherwise orders, each Member nominated to the committee shall continue to be a member of it for the remainder of the Parliament.

(4) The committee shall have power to appoint sub-committees consisting of no more than seven Members, of whom three shall be a quorum, and to refer to such sub-committees any of the matters referred to the committee.

(5) The committee and any sub-committee shall have power—

(a) to send for persons, papers and records, to sit notwithstanding any adjournment of the House, to adjourn from place to place and to report from time to time;

(b) to appoint legal advisers, and to appoint specialist advisers either to supply information which is not readily available or to elucidate matters of complexity within the committee’s order of reference.

(6) The committee shall have power to order the attendance of any Member before the committee and to require that specific documents or records in the possession of a Member relating to its inquiries be laid before the committee or any sub-committee.

(7) The committee shall have power to refer to unreported evidence of the former Committees on Standards and Privileges and to any documents circulated to any such committee.

(8) The committee shall have power to refuse to allow proceedings to which the public are admitted to be broadcast.

(9) The Attorney General, the Advocate General and the Solicitor General, being Members of the House, may attend the committee, may take part in deliberations, may receive committee papers and may give such other assistance to the committee as may be appropriate, but shall not vote or make any motion or move any amendment or be counted in the quorum.’

(4) From the date specified in paragraph (6) of this order—

(a) Standing Order No. 121 (Nomination of select committees) shall be amended, in line 12, by leaving out ‘the Committee on Standards and Privileges’ and inserting ‘the Committee of Privileges, the Committee on Standards’;

(b) Standing Order No. 149 (Committee on Standards and Privileges) shall be repealed;

(c) in Standing Order No. 150 (Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards), in each place where the words ‘Committee on Standards and Privileges’ occur, there shall be substituted the words ‘Committee on Standards’.

(5) From the date specified in paragraph (6) of this order, the Order of the House of 19 July 2010 (Liaison Committee (Membership)) shall be amended by leaving out ‘Standards and Privileges’ and inserting, at the appropriate place in alphabetical order, ‘Privileges’ and ‘Standards’.

(6) The date specified for the purposes of paragraphs (1) and (3) to (5) of this order is the first sitting day of the first month after the month in which the House agrees a resolution under Standing Order (Lay members of the Committee on Standards: appointment, etc.) appointing two or three lay members of the Committee on Standards.

[Madam Deputy Speaker]

With this, we shall discuss amendments (b), (c) and (a) to motion 2, and motions 3 and 4 on pay for Chairs of Select Committees.

[Sir George Young]

On 2 December 2010, the House agreed, without Division, to a motion agreeing with the principle set out in the twelfth report of the Committee on Standards in Public Life that lay members should sit on the Select Committee on Standards and Privileges. The House invited the Select Committee on Procedure to bring forward proposals to implement that.

The Procedure Committee published its proposals in its sixth report of the current Session, which was published on 7 November last year. The Government, and I am sure the whole House, are very grateful to that Committee for its work. The motion draws extensively on the work of the Procedure Committee, and follows consultation with that Committee, the Standards and Privileges Committee and others. I am pleased to say that the Procedure Committee has written to confirm that it broadly accepts the approach that we propose to take, and the support of the Standards and Privileges Committee is apparent from the welcome decision of the right hon. Member for Rother Valley (Mr Barron) to add his name to the motion.

Before turning to the provisions of the motions, I will remind the House briefly of the background to the proposals. I need hardly remind Members that the expenses scandal rocked public faith in the House to its foundations. One part of that crisis lay in the House’s approach to disciplining Members, which, as the Committee on Standards in Public Life observed, did not command full public confidence. As Chair of the Standards and Privileges Committee at the time when the Committee on Standards in Public Life inquired into these matters, I said that the then Standards and Privileges Committee:

“would be very happy to consider having outside members sitting on the Standards and Privileges Committee…particularly to assist us in coming to judgments where people may feel at the moment we are possibly too lenient.”

The Committee on Standards in Public Life recommended in November 2009 that

“there should be at least two lay Members who have never been Parliamentarians on the Standards and Privileges Committee”,

who

“should be chosen through the official public appointments process and formally approved by the House”.

The House endorsed that recommendation after its debate on 2 December 2010. I will not attempt to summarise all that was said on that day, but the most powerful case was made by the right hon. Member for Rother Valley. He said:

“Lay members provide the public with reassurance that the Committees are not cosy gentlemen’s clubs, where deals are stitched up and scandals are hushed up. They can also bring valuable outside experience and expertise with them.”—[Official Report, 2 December 2010; Vol. 519, c. 999.]

He referred to the lay members of the Speaker’s Committee for the Independent Parliament Standards Authority. As a member of that committee, I can assure the House that the contribution of lay members is invaluable.

I have already referred to the specific recommendation of the Committee on Standards in Public Life that lay members should never have been parliamentarians. That is reflected in the motion, which also mirrors the statutory definition of lay members used for the Speaker’s Committee on IPSA.

Amendment (b), tabled by the hon. Member for Mansfield (Sir Alan Meale), runs contrary to the letter and, more importantly, the spirit of the Kelly recommendations. I invite him to consider whether it would really enhance the credibility of the House’s disciplinary procedures to appoint as a lay member a former hon. Member who left the House in 2005. I fear that that might be portrayed not as a fresh start but as a return to the bad old days, and of course public perception is part of the issue that we are seeking to address. I urge him not to move his amendment and invite the House to reject it if it comes to a vote.

Of course, there is a difference between agreement in principle that a change should take place and agreement on how it will operate in practice. A number of significant issues have been raised about lay membership of a Select Committee, and I will explain briefly how those issues have been tackled in the motions.

The first issue, identified by the Procedure Committee, was that although there had been no suggestion that lay members were appropriate for the consideration of privilege matters, there was no straightforward way to exclude them from such business within the structure of a single Committee. The solution proposed by that Committee, which the main motion today incorporates, was to create two separate Committees, one on standards and one on privileges. That is actually a reversion to the position that existed until 1995.

As the Procedure Committee recommended, provision has been made in motions 3 and 4 for the Chair of the Committee on Standards to inherit the pay now received by the Chair of the Committee on Standards and Privileges. The Government have also made it clear in their response that the Chair of the Committee on Standards, like that of the current Committee, should be drawn from the Opposition Benches. In accordance with the current arrangements, that does not need to be set out in Standing Orders.

Our intention today is not to change the composition of the Committees. The two Committees may have a common membership, and they may choose to elect the same Chair. Even if that is not the case, the Committee of Privileges is likely to meet less often and will be able to consider only matters referred to it. In those circumstances, and following the precedent of the Committee on Members’ Expenses, pay for the Chair of the Committee of Privileges is unlikely to be appropriate.

[Chris Bryant (Rhondda) (Lab)]

I wholeheartedly support what the Leader of the House is doing in separating the two Committees, which is long overdue. Will the process remain that a matter of privilege is raised through the Speaker and then in a three-minute speech, before going to the Privileges Committee? Will that Committee also be able to consider any draft legislation on privilege that the Leader of the House publishes? I believe he told me earlier this year that he would publish draft legislation before Easter.

[Sir George Young]

If the hon. Gentleman looks at the explanatory memorandum, he will see that the terms of reference of the new Committee of Privileges will be the same as those of the relevant part of the Committee on Standards and Privileges. There will be no change to the process by which a matter is referred to the Committee, or to its remit. The position will remain that it can consider only things that the House refers to it and that are within its terms of reference.

[Chris Bryant]

I am grateful. The other bit of the process that has always worked well thus far is that whenever the Committee on Standards and Privileges has produced a report, Government time has been provided to debate it. Will that be true of both Committees in future?

[Sir George Young]

Again, the hon. Gentleman anticipates something that I may say a little later, but if he looks at paragraph 176 of the Wright Committee’s report, he will see what is deemed Back-Bench business and what is deemed business that the Government should schedule. It states:

“Backbenchers should schedule backbench business. Ministers should give up their role in the scheduling of any business except that which is exclusively Ministerial business, comprising Ministerial-sponsored legislation and associated motions, substantive non-legislative motions required in support of their policies and Ministerial statements”.

It may help the hon. Gentleman if I say that the Government will ensure that there is adequate time to debate on the Floor of the House any matter referred to the House by the Committee on Standards or the Committee of Privileges. I suspect that there will be a dialogue with the Backbench Business Committee to ensure that time is available at the appropriate moment.

Amendment (c), tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Mole Valley (Sir Paul Beresford), would set down in Standing Orders a requirement that the membership of the two new Committees should always be the same. The Procedure Committee examined the case for a requirement of identical membership in paragraph 63 of its report, and concluded that the case had not been made. I recognise that there is a case for an element of shared membership, and possibly even for identical membership, but the Government, like the Procedure Committee, do not support the notion that there should be an inflexible provision to that effect in Standing Orders. With that assurance, I hope he will not move his amendment. In splitting the Standards and Privileges Committee, the Government do not intend to revisit the decisions taken at the beginning of this Session on appropriate Committee membership.

The second issue that has been raised about lay members is their status. The Committee on Standards and Privileges has stated that

“if the proposed external members of the Standards and Privileges Committee are to carry credibility, they need to have full voting rights.”

The Procedure Committee considered the matter carefully and in great detail, and it invited the House to study with care the arguments for and against full voting rights. As the Government made clear in our response, we have carefully considered the arguments about whether lay members should have full voting rights. We have concluded that it would not be appropriate to grant such rights in the first instance, in view of the authoritative evidence given to the Procedure Committee that it would create a risk that lay members’ participation would not have the protection of parliamentary privilege.

Lay members will be able to participate fully in evidence taking and informal consideration of draft reports. In addition, there will be two specific protections for their position. The first is the requirement that any written opinion of a lay member present at the relevant meeting on a report agreed by the Committee must be published as part of its report. The second is that the Committee cannot conduct any business unless at least one lay member is present.

A decision to proceed on that basis will provide a guarantee of the effective participation of lay members in the decision-making processes of the Committee, and can be taken without prejudice to subsequent consideration of full voting rights. The Government will consider the case for legislation that would place beyond doubt the position of a Committee on Standards including lay members with full voting rights, as part of our work on preparing the forthcoming draft parliamentary privilege Bill and the accompanying Green Paper.

The third and final issue that has been raised about lay members was voiced in the debate in December 2010 and echoed in the Procedure Committee’s report. It relates to the selection of lay members and control over how they subsequently carry out their work. The motion proposes to entrust that matter to the House of Commons Commission, which would also take responsibility for a motion for dismissal in the unlikely eventuality that it should prove necessary. I believe that the Commission, chaired by the Speaker, is the best way to ensure that there is a fair and open process that leads to the House being asked to appoint only excellent candidates.

I know that some concern has been expressed about the term of office of lay members. The Procedure Committee recommended single five-year terms. However, it also acknowledged uncertainty about appointments straddling two Parliaments. The motion therefore provides for appointments for the remainder of one Parliament and reappointments for a period of up to two years in a new Parliament. Although I understand the advantages of a single term, the Government remain to be convinced that it is appropriate for lay members to be appointed for a period that, by definition, lasts longer than the appointment of hon. Members. There will be a very strong presumption indeed that lay members will be reappointed for a further term at the start of the subsequent Parliament. If they were not, the Committee on Standards would find it difficult to operate. I offer my commitment that the Government will assist in such a process.

[Mark Field (Cities of London and Westminster) (Con)]

I accept that there is a general demand for lay members, but I am sceptical as to how independent-minded they will be—I have in mind the less-than-independent IPSA as a guideline. I will not detain the Leader of the House on that.

There is a more detailed issue: cost. If lay members are involved in the Committee on Standards, especially lay members with a legal background, surely any Member of the House before it will demand expensive legal representation. Will the cost of that representation be met by the Committee, or will an individual Member be expected to meet it through his own resources?

[Sir George Young]

There are no changes to the resources available to hon. Members who appear before the Standards Committee. We are suggesting a per diem remuneration for independent members—£300, I believe, which is parallel to what independent members of SCIPSA are paid. In putting lay members on the Standards Committee, we are not making any other changes to how the Committee operates. As I said earlier in answer to the hon. Member for Rhondda (Chris Bryant), the memorandum says that all the basic rules for the two separate Committees remain unchanged apart from the addition of lay members.

[Mark Field]

There might be no desire to change the Committee’s procedure, but I suspect that there will be a different approach outside, particularly among the media. There will be much more scrutiny of a Committee that has lay members, particularly if they are high-profile legal figures. What protection will there be for MPs who find themselves subject to an investigation under the new regime, so that they have what they consider to be essential legal advice, which might come extremely expensively?

[Sir George Young]

My answer now is the same one I gave to my hon. Friend a moment ago: there is no change in the resources available to hon. Members. Currently, some decide to take legal advice and pay for it out of their own pocket; others simply represent themselves. We are not proposing changes to the way in which Members interface with the Committee, but seeking to ensure that the Committee’s decisions have greater credibility in the outside world by adding lay members to it. That is the only change that we propose to make.

[Jacob Rees-Mogg (North East Somerset) (Con)]

Following on from the point made by my hon. Friend the Member for Cities of London and Westminster (Mark Field), who said that high-powered legal figures might be appointed, I would be very concerned if judges were appointed to the panel as lay members, because that would be against the separation of powers. Will the Leader of the House give an indication as to whether judges would be appropriate?

[Sir George Young]

We are trying to get lay members. Whether a judge is a “lay member” is an interesting question. Speaking off the cuff, I do not think we propose to exclude any particular profession. Whether a high-powered judge would want to put his name forward to the House of Commons Commission for this interesting post I am not sure, but it will be a matter for the Commission to consider the candidates that come forward. Some might have a legal background. I am not quite sure that it would be appropriate to appoint a serving judge as a lay member, but somebody with a legal background might not be wholly disqualified.

May I move on to safer territory, namely amendment (a), which was tabled by the Chair of the Backbench Business Committee? The amendment would exclude business arising on a report from the Committee on Standards from the definition of Back-Bench business. It would thus prevent the Backbench Business Committee ever scheduling business arising from the work of one Select Committee and return exclusive control over that business to the Government, which is contrary to the spirit of the Wright recommendations—I read paragraph 176 a few moments ago.

The hon. Member for North East Derbyshire (Natascha Engel) envisages that the establishment of a Committee on Standards to accommodate lay members should be an occasion to reopen the settlement reached in 2010 on the scope and calculation of Back-Bench business. Although there may be a dialogue on that matter in due course, I do not think this is the right forum in which to consider it. It could certainly be considered in the review currently being conducted by the Procedure Committee. I would invite the hon. Lady not to move her amendment. If she does, I urge the House to oppose it if it is pressed to a Division.

[Natascha Engel (North East Derbyshire) (Lab)]

I put my name down to speak in the debate, but my point is such a small one that I can make it in an intervention. The issue is not whether reports from the Committee on Standards are defined as Back-Bench business, but time. Thirty-five days a Session are allocated to Back-Benchers, but that is limited, and time for debates on such reports will be scooped out of Back-Bench time in an unpredictable way. If the Leader of the House confirms that any time taken by debates on those reports is in addition to the 35 days, I will be more than happy not to move the amendment.

[Sir George Young]

The overall settlement of 35 days included an allowance for standards and privileges matters. As I have said, what the Government are left with does not include such business. The amendment is an ingenious shop-steward bid—if I may say to the hon. Lady—for extra time. If a matter comes before the House from the Standards Committee, or indeed from the Privileges Committee, there will be a debate in the House on that matter at the right time, whoever provides the allocation. That is the assurance that the House wants, and we can have a dialogue offline, as it were, on how that is accounted for in the annual tally between the Backbench Business Committee and the Government.

[Chris Bryant]

But actually, that is not quite how the process works now, is it? First, privilege issues, as opposed to standards issues, must go through the Speaker, who then forcibly makes time available, normally on the next day, and therefore always in Government time. The Leader of the House obviously thinks that he has made some improvements on Wright today, but perhaps another improvement he could make is to guarantee that time to debate privilege matters will come out of Government time.

[Sir George Young]

There is a distinction between a debate when a matter is referred to the Privileges Committee, which is normally relatively short, and a debate on a report from the Privileges Committee or the Standards Committee when they have concluded their consideration, but I accept what the hon. Gentleman says: if the Speaker decrees that a matter should be debated, it is debated. In response to the hon. Member for North East Derbyshire, I said that it is important that the House debates such reports once we have them. The business managers and the Backbench Business Committee can have a dialogue on whether the time comes out of the Committee’s quota, which, I should say in passing, we have generously exceeded in the current Session—we have gone way over 35 days to somewhere near 50 days.

[Thomas Docherty (Dunfermline and West Fife) (Lab)]

The Leader of the House will be aware that we have had only a single “defence of the realm” debate this Session. The time for that debate was eaten into because the Backbench Business Committee had to find time for a European debate ahead of it. Does he not see that there is a real danger that such important debates will be curtailed if he does not guarantee the time?

--- Later in debate ---

[Sir George Young]

This risks becoming a general debate on the role of the Backbench Business Committee and whether the time allocated to it is generous enough. I have sought to address the proposition put by the hon. Member for North East Derbyshire. My case is that the putting of lay members on the Standards Committee is not an opportunity to revisit the balance of time between the Government and the Backbench Business Committee. My assertion is that that is best done in the context of the review of the Committee currently being undertaken by the Procedure Committee. When we have that review, we will be in a better position to take that dialogue forward. In the meantime, I give an assurance that any report that comes from the Standards Committee will be debated promptly.

To conclude, I believe the motion provides an effective and appropriate means of giving effect to the principle agreed by the House on 2 December 2010. It represents one more step to ensure that public confidence in the conduct of hon. Members is maintained and strengthened, and I commend it to the House.

--- Later in debate ---

[Sir George Young]

Briefly, the hon. Member for Wallasey (Ms Eagle), the shadow Leader of the House, asked why we had not put back to the House the original proposition about lay members. We dealt with that in our response to the Procedure Committee’s report. Basically, what we said was that on 2 December, the House of Commons agreed without Division to a motion that endorsed the principle that lay members should sit on the Standards and Privileges Committee. The Government do not believe it necessary for the House to be asked to restate its acceptance of a principle that it has already agreed without Division. Indeed, there has been broad acceptance of that principle in the debate this evening.

I am obviously grateful that those who have tabled amendments have said that they do not propose to press them to a Division—a tribute to the eloquence that I must have used at the beginning of this debate.

The final question that I was asked was about the so-called golden share. I am convinced that the Chair of the Standards and Privileges Committee will continue to do what has been done in the past: namely to secure unanimous reports on the matters that come before him—or, indeed, her. While I chaired the Committee, I do not think we ever had a vote. I therefore very much hope that it will not be necessary for anybody to table a minority report. However, the fact that the lay members have that option will reassure people outside that the Committee has a broader base than it has had so far, and will avoid the accusation that this is some sort of gentlemen’s club that deals leniently with its members. On that basis, I hope that we can agree the motion.

Question put and agreed to.

Pay for chairs of Select Committees

Resolved,

That—

(1) this House expresses the opinion that, from the date specified in paragraph (2) of this resolution, the Resolution of the House of 30 October 2003 (Pay for Chairmen of Select Committees (No. 2)), as amended by the Resolution of the House of 13 July 2005 (Pay for Chairmen of Select Committees (No. 2)), should be further amended in paragraph (1) by leaving out ‘Committee on Standards and Privileges’ and inserting Committee on Standards’.

(2) The date specified for the purposes of paragraph (1) is the first sitting day of the first month after the month in which the House agrees a resolution under Standing Order (Lay members of the Committee on Standards: appointment, etc.) appointing two or three lay members of the Committee on Standards.— (Sir George Young.)

PAY FOR CHAIRS OF SELECT COMMITTEES (No. 2)

Queen’s Recommendation signified.

Ordered,

That—

(1) From the date specified in paragraph (2) of this resolution, the Resolution of the House of 30 October 2003 (Pay for Chairmen of Select Committees (No. 2)), as amended by the Resolution of the House of 13 July 2005 (Pay for Chairmen of Select Committees (No. 2)), be further amended in paragraph (1) by leaving out ‘Committee on Standards and Privileges’ and inserting ‘Committee on Standards’.

(2) The date specified for the purposes of paragraph (1) is the first sitting day of the first month after the month in which the House agrees a resolution under Standing Order (Lay members of the Committee on Standards: appointment, etc.) appointing two or three lay members of the Committee on Standards.— (Sir George Young.)

Business of the House

Lord Young of Cookham Excerpts

Thursday 8th March 2012 Commons Chamber

[Ms Angela Eagle (Wallasey) (Lab)]

Will the Leader of the House please give us the business for next week?

[The Leader of the House of Commons (Sir George Young)]

The business for the week commencing 12 March will be:

Monday 12 March—Motions relating to the Backbench Business Committee, a Committee on Standards and a Committee of Privileges, the code of conduct, all-party groups and scrutiny of certain draft orders.

Tuesday 13 March—Opposition day (un-allotted day) (half day). There will be a debate on a motion relating to the Health and Social Care Bill. This debate will arise on an Opposition motion. Followed by consideration of opposed private business nominated by the Chairman of Ways and Means.

Wednesday 14 March—Consideration in Committee and remaining stages of the Water Industry (Financial Assistance) Bill.

Thursday 15 March—Motion relating to the introduction of charging for Big Ben Clock Tower tours followed by a motion relating to reform of the common fisheries policy. The subject for these debates has been nominated by the Backbench Business Committee.

The provisional business for the week commencing 19 March will include:

Monday 19 March—Consideration of Lords amendments followed by a debate on a motion relating to the waste water national policy statement.

Tuesday 20 March—Consideration of Lords amendments.

Wednesday 21 March—My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer will open his Budget statement.

Thursday 22 March—Continuation of the Budget debate.

Friday 23 March—Continuation of the Budget debate.

The provisional business for the week commencing 26 March will include:

Monday 26 March—Conclusion of the Budget debate.

Tuesday 27 March—Motion relating to assisting dying. The subject for this debate has been nominated by the Backbench Business Committee.

I should also like to inform the House that the business in Westminster Hall for 22 March 2012 will be:

Thursday 22 March—Debate on services for young people.

[Ms Eagle]

This week, the chair of the Committee on Standards in Public Life criticised the Prime Minister’s failure to ask the independent adviser on ministers’ interests to investigate allegations made against the right hon. Member for North Somerset (Dr Fox), the then Defence Secretary—a course of action that the Opposition urged him to take at the time. Does the Leader of the House agree that since the office was established it has become clear that it would be far simpler and more transparent if the independent adviser could initiate an investigation? Will the Leader of the House find time for an urgent debate on the ministerial code so that we can determine what Parliament should do when the Prime Minister himself breaks the ministerial code?

The Institute for Fiscal Studies states that the Government’s proposals to cut child benefit are “fundamentally unfair”. For some families a pay rise will actually result in a significant cut in household income. Is this the Prime Minister’s definition of fairness? This is a mess entirely of the Government’s own making. They rushed out a press release for cheap headlines ahead of the Tory party conference without bothering to look at the detail, and it is hard-working families who will pay the price. This week, the Opposition forced a parliamentary debate, but we did not get an answer from Treasury Ministers, so will the Government now find time for a debate on what on earth they mean by “fairness”?

That would give them the opportunity to explain why, from April, they are penalising almost 500,000 children with draconian cuts to child tax credits. At the moment, because of tax credits, a couple where one parent works and the other looks after the children are £59 a week better off. It pays to work. From April, they will be £14 a week better off on the dole—this despite the Government’s claims that they want to make work pay. Will the Leader of the House explain how that is fair?

May I wish everyone a happy international women’s day and welcome the debate later today, for which I thank my hon. Friend the Member for North East Derbyshire (Natascha Engel)? Does the Leader of the House agree that the Justice Secretary should clear his diary to attend it? The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill will halve the number of women entitled to legal aid in domestic violence cases. The Opposition have set out proposals to reduce the legal aid bill without penalising the most vulnerable. Will the Leader of the House explain how the Government’s proposals are fair?

One person who does not think it fair is the junior Education Minister, the hon. Member for Brent Central (Sarah Teather), who spends her day voting for Government cuts and then goes delivering leaflets in the evening asking, “Who can you trust to stop the cuts?” The answer is clearly not the Liberal Democrats. Will the Leader of the House arrange for an urgent debate on Government communications to the electorate to enable her to explain herself?

A letter from the Business Secretary to the Prime Minister this week mysteriously found its way into the public domain. The Business Secretary thinks that the Government lack a “compelling vision”. Middle-income families are being hit by cuts to child benefit. Hard-working families are being penalised by child tax cuts. Women are being shut out of the legal system. The Business Secretary is right. That is not a compelling vision for Britain. Is it any wonder that the Prime Minister’s guru, Steve Hilton, the man who authored the statement,

“Let sunshine win the day”,

has fled to California in search of it?

This week the Prime Minister’s top aide leaves the country; last week the Deputy Prime Minister’s chief economic adviser resigned to go travelling the world. Can the Leader of the House therefore find time for a debate on why so many senior Government advisers are fleeing the country?

The Business Secretary said he thought his letter was “helpful”, and I suppose it was—in the sense that it was helpful for the Business Secretary’s party profile ahead of the Liberal Democrat spring conference. May I also be helpful to the Leader of the House? He knows I always try to be. Every time I have raised the Health and Social Care Bill, he has cited parts of it that he thinks have merit. Is he not concerned that doctors, nurses, royal colleges, public health organisations, patients, GP groups and now even the Cabinet Secretary think the Bill should be dropped? Instead of proceeding with this disastrous Bill, here is a helpful suggestion: just drop it and start again.

[Sir George Young]

Let me start with the ministerial code, which sets out that if there is an alleged breach, the Cabinet Secretary can make some initial investigations. That is exactly what happened in this case. As a result of those initial investigations, the facts were put into the public domain, my right hon. Friend the Member for North Somerset (Dr Fox) resigned and there was therefore no need to refer the matter to the independent adviser—something that, I note in passing, the previous Prime Minister did only once. The shadow Leader of the House will also know that the Public Administration Committee is currently holding an inquiry into the ministerial code. We await the outcome of that inquiry with interest.

On the issue of child benefit, we debated it on Monday —we had a half-day Opposition day—and it featured regularly in the exchanges at Treasury questions on Tuesday. Our view is quite clear: it is not fair that somebody on £20,000 a year should pay, through their tax, for the child benefit of someone who might be earning five times as much. That is the view that we put forward in that debate, and we are very clear that those who are better off should make a contribution to paying down the financial deficit. The same issue was also raised in relation to child tax credit in the debate on Monday, and again at Treasury questions, and we made our position quite clear. To put it in the broader context of universal credit, even couples working 16 hours a week will be some £36 a week better off when universal credit is introduced next year.

On international women’s day, the hon. Lady may have seen that we have announced a new offence of stalking—an amendment has been tabled to the Protection of Freedoms Bill. On Monday we had a written ministerial statement about domestic violence disclosure—the so-called Clare’s law. We will take no lectures from Labour Members about women. They did nothing about the glass ceiling or the differential. I welcome the debate that is about to take place on international women’s day.

On legal aid, the hon. Lady will know that the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill is in another place. Legal aid in this country, at some £39 a head, is way above what is spent in France or Spain, at some £5 a head. The Labour party consulted on reducing legal aid, but never got round to doing it. However, we are protecting the most vulnerable members of society in the legal aid scheme.

On the letter from my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, I am not sure whether the BBC has changed its definition of “breaking news”, but this was, in fact, originally reported several weeks ago in a newspaper. However, I think the whole country was much more interested in the news on Tuesday that Nissan was bringing an additional 2,000 jobs to the north-east—a clear vindication of the Government’s decision to put support for manufacturing at the heart of our economic strategy.

I am responsible for many things; I am not responsible for leaflets that get distributed in the London borough of Brent. However, it is certainly the case that had the Labour party been re-elected at the last election, it would have had to make some cuts. Labour would not have been able to maintain the investment in, for example, the numbers of police on the front line.

So far as Steve Hilton is concerned, yes, he is going; but the good news is that he is coming back. Also, he is not leaving next week, and I pay tribute to the number of creative new ideas that he has injected into the first two years of the coalition Government.

Finally, on a serious note, the whole House will want to honour the memory of two previous Leaders of the House, Robert Carr and Norman St John-Stevas, who died recently. They were not only effective politicians of their day, but fine parliamentarians who left an enduring mark on this place, and the resurgence that the House is currently enjoying, both in the Chamber and on the Committee corridor, would not have been possible without the changes that they put in place all those years before.

[Several hon. Members]

rose—

[Karen Bradley (Staffordshire Moorlands) (Con)]

Last week I was honoured to join Falco UK, a manufacturing business based in Staffordshire Moorlands, in celebrating 20 years of existence and in looking forward to a further 20 years-plus. It is a great proponent of apprenticeships and training, so will the Leader of the House find time for a debate about small manufacturing businesses and their contribution to apprenticeships?

[Sir George Young]

I understand that in my constituency the firm makes bicycle racks, in which I have a professional interest, and I applaud not only what it does in making bicycle racks but, as importantly, what it is doing for apprenticeships. There are more than 400,000 apprenticeships this year, and as I have said before we all have a role to play in encouraging employers in our constituencies to do exactly what my hon. Friend is doing in hers, and in encouraging young people who are currently unemployed to take up the apprenticeships that become available, financed in part by the Government.

[Natascha Engel (North East Derbyshire) (Lab)]

The Leader of the House has announced a debate on Monday about the operation of the Backbench Business Committee, motions for which were placed on the Order Paper on Tuesday night. He will be aware that today is the closing date in a call for evidence by the Procedure Committee, which is also reviewing the Backbench Business Committee’s operation. The Backbench Committee itself is producing a report imminently on its operations over the past year and a half, so why have the Government chosen to hold a debate now about its operation, rather than waiting so that the House might be much better informed and come to its conclusions just a little later?

[Sir George Young]

I very much welcome the review of the Backbench Business Committee, which is being undertaken by the Procedure Committee, and of course we will want to respond to its report in due course. The answer to the question that the hon. Lady poses, “Why are we debating the matter on Monday rather than waiting for the report?”, is set out in the Procedure Committee’s Ninth report of Session 2010/12. It made several recommendations for changes to the Backbench Business Committee, and the Government in their response said:

“The Government propose to allow time for consideration of proposals to this effect towards the end of the current Session.”

In other words, if Members want to make changes to take effect at the beginning of the next Session, they cannot wait for the report of the Procedure Committee, because that will come too late. That is why we are putting the motions before the House on Monday. It will be for the House to decide what to do with them, but if we want to make changes, we are going to have to do so quite soon; we cannot wait for the Procedure Committee’s report.

[Mr Edward Timpson (Crewe and Nantwich) (Con)]

Will my right hon. Friend find time for a debate about this week’s announcement of £330 million in efficiency savings, which the Government are now able to spend in the NHS on new units and equipment, including at Crewe’s Leighton hospital, whose bid, which I was pleased to support, successfully secured £25.2 million for new operating theatres, an intensive care unit, a labour suite and a CT scanner, much to the delight of clinical staff?

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend, who I understand spent four days working in the hospital and gives the bid his personal support. That is a good example of how one can reinvest savings in front-line services, and by reinvesting the money that we have saved we are able to put more than £330 million into projects that will help more than 2.5 million patients per year. My hon. Friend has given a very good example of how that assistance is feeding through.

[Sir Alan Meale (Mansfield) (Lab)]

I am sure that the Leader of the House will join me in paying tribute to our brave fallen, who have died over the past couple of days in Afghanistan, but at the same time I am sure that he is appalled by the actions in Benghazi, with the wanton destruction of many of the war graves in our cemeteries. Will he have a word with his colleagues at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to ensure that the strongest representations are made to the Libyan Government, and will he in the near future find time for a debate about that most important work?

[Sir George Young]

The hon. Gentleman has drawn attention to a very serious matter. It is important that the damage is repaired immediately, and I pay tribute to the work of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Representations have been made to the Libyan Government expressing our dismay at what has happened and urging them to take every step to prevent any recurrence. I cannot promise an early debate, but it might be an appropriate subject for a debate on the Adjournment commending the work that is done by the commission.

[James Morris (Halesowen and Rowley Regis) (Con)]

Many small manufacturers in my constituency are in the good position of running at full capacity to fulfil their order books. May we have a debate in Government time on what the Government are doing to provide such businesses with credit in order for them to continue to expand, export and grow?

[Sir George Young]

I commend the work that is going on in my hon. Friend’s constituency and the full order books that he mentioned. There will be an opportunity after the Budget statement to debate the assistance that we are giving to manufacturing that flows from the advanced manufacturing growth review that was published a year ago. There will also be an opportunity to debate the issue of credit available through the banks, perhaps against the background of the national loans guarantee scheme that is shortly to come into effect, making £20 billion available to the banks for onward lending at preferential rates of interest to businesses such as those in my hon. Friend’s constituency.

[Sir Gerald Kaufman (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab)]

Has the right hon. Gentleman seen early-day motion 2826, which stands in my name?

[That this House condemns New Look Windows of Manchester for taking money from clients to carry out work on their property, for botching the job in a way that makes matters worse than they were before, including creating a fire hazard and for keeping their hands on the money they were paid in advance for their work; and warns potential customers to have nothing to do with this dodgy firm.]

The EDM exposes the swindling activities of New Look Windows, a company in Manchester which, when engaged by a constituent to repair his windows, not only made a mess of it but created a fire hazard where none existed before and has kept the money that it demanded be paid in advance. Will the Leader of the House condemn this disgraceful behaviour and refer it to the appropriate Minister for action?

[Sir George Young]

I have now seen early-day motion 2826 on New Look Windows. I understand the concern that the right hon. Gentleman has expressed, as has a fellow Manchester Member. I will draw the issue to the attention of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Skills. The trading standards officer at the local authority might also take an interest in the matter to see whether any appropriate action could be taken at that level.

[Andrew Jones (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (Con)]

May we have a debate about the impact of the Schmallenberg virus and the way that it is hitting farming incomes? The virus is affecting sheep, and in the current lambing season a proportion of lambs are being stillborn or born deformed. This is very relevant in my constituency and right across north Yorkshire, as we have many hill farms, and while the virus is currently only in the south of England, it is spreading very rapidly.

[Sir George Young]

I understand the concern expressed by my hon. Friend, which may be shared by other Members with farming constituencies. The matter was raised during the exchanges with Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Ministers a week ago. All the evidence suggests that the disease was brought into the UK from infected midges blown across the Channel; we have seen no evidence that it came from imported livestock. We are closely tracking the disease and will continue to work with partners across Europe and the UK to develop our knowledge of it.

[Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op)]

Yesterday the whole House was shocked and stunned to hear of the death of six soldiers—young men—in Afghanistan. We are particularly hard hit in Yorkshire, where five of those young men came from; three were from my own constituency of Huddersfield. Is it time for us to have a serious, thoughtful debate about what is going on in Afghanistan? The House will know that I am not one to say that we should cut and run, because those young men gave their lives for a great cause, but it is time for mature reflection at this stage.

[Sir George Young]

I understand the sentiments expressed by the hon. Gentleman, which I know are shared in all parts of the House. Today the Foreign Secretary is giving evidence before a Select Committee, and I have no doubt that he will be cross-questioned on these issues. There will also be an opportunity to raise them during the regular quarterly statements on Afghanistan by the Foreign Secretary or the Secretary of State for Defence. There may be an opportunity for a more general debate on foreign affairs if the Backbench Business Committee can find time for one.

[Mr Marcus Jones (Nuneaton) (Con)]

This week we have seen the fantastic news that Nissan is creating 2,000 jobs in the north-east and that Jaguar will be building the new XF Sportbrake in the west midlands. Both those companies have had support from the Government’s regional growth fund. May we have a debate on the effectiveness of the regional growth fund?

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend, because Labour Members have made some derogatory remarks about the effectiveness of the regional growth fund, but we have just heard at first hand from him about its benefits, with the extra jobs that it is creating in his constituency and the assistance that it is giving to the motor manufacturing industry, which is now a major manufacturing export industry and part of our strategy of rebalancing the economy so that we are less dependent on financial services.

[Mr Nigel Dodds (Belfast North) (DUP)]

The tragic news from Afghanistan that we heard yesterday highlights the need for continuing support to the families of servicemen and servicewomen, who do such a tremendous job on behalf of our country. May we soon have a debate about the military covenant and what support is being given to servicemen and women and their families throughout all parts of the United Kingdom, because, as the Leader of the House will know, in some devolved regions the level of support differs from what happens in England?

[Sir George Young]

I understand the right hon. Gentleman’s concern. He will know that we have now enshrined in statute an obligation to report annually on the military covenant, and it would be appropriate to include the issues that he raises in that review. I will see whether it is possible to have a debate on the military covenant, given that we have to review it every year, and see whether we can reflect on the regional disparities.

[Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (The Cotswolds) (Con)]

While I would defend to the hilt anybody’s right to peaceful protest, a permanent encampment is a different matter altogether. The City authorities have now cleared the Occupy London site around St Paul’s, and the sites around Parliament square have largely been cleared. Today it looks fantastic as it is being prepared with flagpoles, but one or two eyesores remain on the pavements, which are the responsibility of Westminster City council. Will my right hon. Friend join me in urging the council to make sure that they are cleared as soon as possible?

[Geoffrey Clifton-Brown]

Of course.

[Sir George Young]

Following the passage of the legislation that we introduced last year, Westminster City council took action to remove the encampments. I think that there is an injunction that protects one residual encampment and that the case is being heard later this month. If the council is successful, as it hopes to be, that remaining encampment will be removed, and then we can begin to restore Parliament square to the glory that many of us remember—a place that can be enjoyed by tourists and visitors—and remove some of the problems that Members and staff have encountered with the noise that used to emanate from the site, which I hope that we have now dealt with.

[Luciana Berger (Liverpool, Wavertree) (Lab/Co-op)]

My 10-year-old constituent Joseph Duffy has cerebral palsy, epilepsy and learning difficulties. He was recently reassessed for disability living allowance, which he has received from the age of two. On Tuesday, his parents were informed that as a result of that reassessment he will lose his higher-rate mobility and higher-rate care components and instead receive nothing. The Motability car that the family depend on will be taken away at the end of the month. May we please have an urgent debate on the way in which benefit reassessments are being carried out when they lead to shockingly bad decisions such as this one?

[Sir George Young]

Of course I understand the distress of Joseph Duffy’s family. We have not changed the rules concerning DLA, and there is an opportunity for the hon. Lady’s constituents to appeal against the assessment if they believe that it is unfair. We have asked for an independent assessment of the work capability assessments, and we are implementing the recommendations of that independent review as they come forward. The answer to the hon. Lady is that if she believes that an injustice has been done, there is an opportunity to appeal against it.

[Julian Smith (Skipton and Ripon) (Con)]

May we have a debate about the defiance of the Highways Agency in opposing a decision by the excellent roads Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Hemel Hempstead (Mike Penning), to reinstate two brown signs on the A1 upgrade at Masham? The agency is quoting a cost of tens of thousands of pounds for those brown signs, which clearly the community and businesses in the local area cannot afford.

[Sir George Young]

I will make some inquiries of the Secretary of State for Transport. We all know that many sites in our constituencies depend on brown signs to generate traffic, and that when those signs are removed or damaged, that has an impact on the destinations concerned. I will pursue the matter with my right hon. Friend to see whether it is indeed the case that the Highways Agency is defying something that it should not be defying and to see whether we can get these brown signs restored.

[Jim Sheridan (Paisley and Renfrewshire North) (Lab)]

Can we have a debate on the merits of bonus payments to public sector workers? The Mayor of London has agreed bonus payments for London tube drivers working during the Olympics, but he has failed to agree similar terms for other public sector and, indeed, emergency workers. Given that the Government have overall control of taxpayers’ money, how does that unfairness fit into their fairness agenda?

[Sir George Young]

That sounds to me like a matter for the Mayor of London. We believe in devolving decision making, and it is a matter for the Lord Mayor to decide how he distributes bonuses to the staff for whom he is responsible—

[Chris Bryant (Rhondda) (Lab)]

The Lord Mayor?

[Sir George Young]

The Mayor. The Mayor of London; I am sorry. The Government believe that there is a role for bonuses in the public sector in order to reward performance, but that they should be on an acceptable scale. I am sure that the Mayor of London—Boris, who I hope will be re-elected—will be tuned into this exchange and that he will respond to the hon. Gentleman’s concern in due course.

[Iain Stewart (Milton Keynes South) (Con)]

May I make an early request for a debate to mark the centenary of the birth of Alan Turing, the celebrated Bletchley Park code-breaker and pioneer of modern computing, in order to celebrate his achievements and to consider whether it would be appropriate to grant him a pardon for the so-called crime of which he was convicted?

[Sir George Young]

We all applaud the work that Alan Turing did at Bletchley Park in my hon. Friend’s constituency during the war. I think I am right in saying that my hon. Friend also paid tribute to Alan Turing in his maiden speech and referred to an apology that had been made by the previous Government for what had happened to him. I understand that an application for a royal prerogative of mercy was made on the basis that the offence should not have existed but, sadly, one cannot give a royal prerogative on those grounds. I will have another look at this, but I am not sure that there is a case for intervention by my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Justice. That could happen only if fresh evidence came to light to show that the conviction should not have taken place. The argument that the offence should not have existed in the first place is not normally a ground for prerogative.

[Bill Esterson (Sefton Central) (Lab)]

Developers in my constituency are queuing up to build on green-belt land and on urban green spaces, encouraged by the Government’s new planning framework and supported by Tory and Lib Dem councillors as recently as in yesterday’s planning committee meeting. My constituents want to know whether they have any chance of defending themselves against such developments. Please may we have a debate on the Government’s planning reforms, to discuss the changes that they have made following the consultation?

[Sir George Young]

There is a specific protection in the national planning policy framework for the green belt, so I am not quite sure where the hon. Gentleman is coming from. We will be making a statement on this matter in due course, and announcing our conclusions after the consultation exercise on the NPPF.

[Brandon Lewis (Great Yarmouth) (Con)]

The New Anglia enterprise zone is set to open in the next few weeks, and it aims to create 2,000 new jobs by 2015, growing to almost 15,000 in its lifetime. This is a clear example of a Government policy that is creating real new jobs in the private sector. May we have a debate to highlight the opportunities that will be created by the enterprise zones across the country?

[Sir George Young]

I hope that my hon. Friend will have an opportunity in the debate on the Budget to draw attention to the benefits of enterprise zones. We announced some 24 enterprise zones with the specific objective of generating employment in the areas that needed it, and I am delighted to hear of the impact of the EZ in his constituency, and of the extra jobs being created. I hope that many more will be created on the back of the ones already in existence.

[John Healey (Wentworth and Dearne) (Lab)]

The Leader of the House will be aware that the Information Tribunal meets today to consider its decision on the Government’s appeal against releasing the risk register for their huge NHS upheaval, which I requested back in November 2010. Will he confirm that, if the Government lose, they will respect the law and release the register? Will he also confirm that the House will not be asked to consider Lords amendments to the Health and Social Care Bill without the benefit of that important information?

[Sir George Young]

I cannot give the right hon. Gentleman an undertaking on that last point, because I do not know when the tribunal will deliver its ruling. The Bill is scheduled to have its Third Reading in another place on, I think, 19 March, and we would then hope to deal with it here, so I cannot give him that particular undertaking. I hope that he will understand, however, that it is important for Ministers to be able to consider policy options, and to get frank advice from civil servants on their impact, without those options going into the public domain. We need sufficient space to develop our thinking and our policy options, which is why the Government opposed the right hon. Gentleman’s application. We will have to wait and see what the tribunal ruling comes up with.

[Mr Peter Bone (Wellingborough) (Con)]

Further to what the excellent Chair of the Backbench Business Committee, the hon. Member for North East Derbyshire (Natascha Engel) said earlier, all Members of the House have received an e-mail from the Procedure Committee asking them to submit their comments on the reform of the Backbench Business Committee by today. However, the very issues that we have been asked to comment on are those in the motion that the Government have tabled for debate on Monday. This is going back to the bad old days of the Executive overruling Select Committees. Whatever wishy-washy answer I get, this is not acceptable. Will the Leader of the House agree not to bring forward that motion on Monday?

[Sir George Young]

I am not sure that there is any point in my rising and coming to the Dispatch Box, as my hon. Friend has already discounted my reply. I must point out to him that, on 8 February, I made it absolutely clear that

“the Government believe that it would be appropriate for the House to address the anomaly whereby members of the Backbench Business Committee other than the Chair…are elected by the House as a whole rather than by Members of the political party to which they belong before the next elections of members. The Government propose to allow time for consideration of proposals to this effect towards the end of the current Session.”

That is exactly what we are doing. It will then be a matter for the House to decide, in the light of the debate on Monday, whether it wishes to adopt the proposal on the Order Paper. I note that my hon. Friend has tabled an amendment to the motion indicating a contrary view.

[Chris Bryant]

I do not know what the Leader of the House knows about the contents of the Budget that lead him to believe that we shall need a debate on assisted dying the next day. May I ask him about the Backbench Business Committee debates that we have had in which the Government have let motions go through, because they knew that they would lose a vote on them, but have then gone on to do absolutely nothing about them? So far, we have had five, including one on prisoners’ voting rights, one on circus animals and, last night, one on the death of Sergei Magnitsky. Is there a means whereby the House can ensure that, when it has agreed a motion, the Government must follow up on it?

[Sir George Young]

The Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for South East Cambridgeshire (Mr Paice) released a statement on circus animals last week, making it clear how we were responding to the vote in the House last year. The hon. Gentleman will have seen what the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for North East Bedfordshire (Alistair Burt) said on behalf of the Government at the Dispatch Box in response to the motion on Sergei Magnitsky last night. It is of course always open to the Backbench Business Committee, if it feels that the action has not been substantive enough, to re-table a motion with another vote. In response to what the hon. Gentleman said at the beginning of his question, I must point out that it was not the Government’s decision to debate assisted dying on the last day, but it is a serious subject on which many Members will welcome a debate.

[Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Con)]

May we have a debate on business investment in the UK? Last week, I visited Megger, a high-tech manufacturing and export powerhouse in Dover that makes diagnostic testing instruments. I saw at first hand the massive investment that it has put into its manufacturing process, and it struck me that we could create more jobs, more productivity and more economic success by further boosting business investment in the UK.

[Sir George Young]

I am delighted to hear of the success of the firm in my hon. Friend’s constituency. Medical technology is an area in which we have a competitive advantage and in which we are making progress in the export market. I hope that it will be possible to have further debates, on the back of the Budget statement, on exports and on the steps that the Government are taking to enable such firms to flourish and create more jobs.

[Ian Murray (Edinburgh South) (Lab)]

My constituent Mrs Abdulgader’s three children were abducted in Libya by their estranged father during the uprising there. She has all the legal documentation necessary to have them returned, but the Foreign Office says that there are no consular personnel on the ground and that the legal institutions in Libya have yet to be re-established. May we have a statement in the House on what the UK Government are doing to support those Libyan institutions, so that Mrs Abdulgader’s children can be returned to Edinburgh?

[Sir George Young]

I am very sorry to hear that the hon. Gentleman’s constituent’s children have been abducted; I know what a serious issue that is. I will make inquiries in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to see what representations we are able to make to the Libyan Administration, and what powers are available to them to track down the children and bring them back to this country. I will ask the appropriate Minister in the FCO to contact the hon. Gentleman.

[Henry Smith (Crawley) (Con)]

Earlier this week, I met US Treasury officials in Washington who share my concern that the SWIFT—Society for the Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication—financial transaction system is still being used by Iranian banks, despite sanctions. May we have a debate on the effective use of the SWIFT system so that we can ensure that countries such as Iran which promote terror are not able to operate under it?

[Sir George Young]

It is important that the financial sanctions agreed against Iran are not undermined or subverted in any way. I will ask my right hon. Friends at the Treasury to take up my hon. Friend’s point and see whether there is any action we can take to ensure that the appropriate UN resolutions are enforced.

[Mr Gerry Sutcliffe (Bradford South) (Lab)]

May we have a debate on the definition of Britishness? The Leader of the House may be aware of a Channel 4 documentary with the inflammatory title “Make Bradford British”. It did not succeed in the way the programme makers wanted the programme to move forward. It would be interesting to have a debate on this topic, perhaps accompanied by a survey of Members beforehand, to find out whether any of us would pass the current citizenship test.

[Sir George Young]

A test brought in by Labour Members, I might add. I would welcome such a debate on Britishness. I cannot promise Government time for it, but given that a writ was moved in Bradford yesterday for a by-election, I am sure that there will be adequate opportunities during the campaign to debate those sorts of issues. Indeed, that campaign might have started a few minutes ago.

[Chris Skidmore (Kingswood) (Con)]

The South Gloucestershire Labour group claimed to be in favour of a council tax freeze, but when it came to the vote, it behaved in exactly the opposite way and voted it down. It claimed to be in favour of protecting the Kingswood green belt, but when it came to the vote, it failed to back it, potentially causing uncertainty and havoc within the local core strategy. This is not only irresponsible; it is misleading to the public. At a time when we want to empower local communities, may we have a debate on the accountability and responsibility of local councillors to the public?

[Sir George Young]

The local councillors in my hon. Friend’s constituency are accountable to the electorate, which I am sure will have taken note of the points he has made. Let me say in passing that local councillors are subject to the Nolan principles of high standards in public life, and if they do not live up to those high standards, they should expect appropriate sanctions through the ballot box.

[Kevin Brennan (Cardiff West) (Lab)]

Now that the Information Commissioner has reported, may we have a statement from the Education Secretary on the private e-mails he sent, using his alter ego of “Mrs Blurt”, to two advisers in his Department, discussing Government business and trying to avoid the Freedom of Information Act? The Prime Minister said that sunshine is the best disinfectant; when are the Government going to start acting that way?

[Sir George Young]

The hon. Gentleman might have seen the statement put out by the Department for Education at the weekend, cleared by the permanent secretary, which said that special advisers were not required to maintain records of deleted e-mails. All civil servants routinely delete or archive e-mails, taking account of their nature and content. I am not surprised that that is what happened in this particular case. On the broader issue, the Cabinet Office will issue advice shortly in the light of what the Information Commissioner announced in December.

[Alun Cairns (Vale of Glamorgan) (Con)]

The European Parliament has called for lower mobile data roaming charges—shortly to be discussed at the European Council. Will the Leader of the House arrange for a statement in the Chamber by the relevant Minister so that we can understand the Government’s latest position on this issue?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend has made such a statement redundant, as he has been successful in securing a debate on Wednesday 14 March in Westminster Hall, to which the Government will respond. He will know that we have the interests of consumers and competition uppermost in our mind in the negotiations. We have two basic principles: that wholesale price caps should not be set below cost, and that there should be a sufficient margin between wholesale and retail price caps to enable competition. I look forward to my hon. Friend’s debate.

[Jonathan Reynolds (Stalybridge and Hyde) (Lab/Co-op)]

May we have a debate on the Government’s e-petitions system—an excellent initiative aimed at keeping the Government in touch with the British public? The Leader of the House will know that the e-petition “Drop the Health Bill”, which was organised by my constituent Dr Kailash Chand OBE, has not resulted in the debate that he wanted, despite its now reaching 171,000 signatures. I know that the right hon. Gentleman will refer me to the Backbench Business Committee, but the Prime Minister promised debates on these things, and this is another promise broken. What people want to know is this: what is the point of having this system if the Government will not listen to the British public?

[Sir George Young]

I do not think anyone could say that we have not had adequate debate on the Health and Social Care Bill in recent weeks, and there will of course be a further opportunity when we consider Lords amendments to it. As the hon. Gentleman implied, this is for the Backbench Business Committee, and I quite understand why it took the view that the matter had already been debated adequately, and therefore chose other subjects. On this particular occasion, I am happy to endorse the decision of the Backbench Business Committee.

[Priti Patel (Witham) (Con)]

From early April, owners of pleasure boats using red diesel, including those along the beautiful Essex coastline, will no longer be able to take their vessels outside UK waters owing to a new diktat from Europe. May we have a debate about the considerable practical and economic difficulties that these boat owners will face, so that we can listen to their concerns rather than simply comply with more regulation from Europe?

[Sir George Young]

This is a complex issue. My understanding is that the use of red diesel with full duty paid to propel pleasure craft is a UK procedure permitted within UK waters, and that it is not illegal to use red diesel outside UK waters. However, if a pleasure craft with red diesel is used outside UK waters, its owners need to be aware that it will be subject to national legislation, including any restrictions or prohibitions of the member state in whose territorial waters it is being used. That is perhaps an incentive to stay within UK territorial waters.

[David Wright (Telford) (Lab)]

Thousands of jobs in Telford are linked to Government IT contracts, notably that of Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs. May we have a statement—oral or written—on the future structure of contracts for IT support services for HMRC and other Departments?

[Sir George Young]

I believe that this matter falls to my right hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, who is in charge of IT procurement contracts, for which we are seeking to get better value for money. Cabinet Office Ministers will be at the Dispatch Box on Wednesday 21 March, when there will be an opportunity for the hon. Gentleman to pursue this matter in greater detail.

[Mr David Amess (Southend West) (Con)]

May we have a debate on why there is no Easter Adjournment debate? I had thought that these debates were set in stone, and I really think that the Easter break of three weeks, during which time we will be unable to raise important constituency matters on the Floor of the House, is unacceptable.

[Sir George Young]

The concept of having a debate on why there is no debate is a novel one. I know that my hon. Friend is a regular participant in the pre-recess Adjournment debates, but the Government have made the last day before the Easter recess available to the Backbench Business Committee, which weighed the option of using it in the traditional way that my hon. Friend prefers against the alternative of providing time for a debate on assisted dying. The Backbench Business Committee has done what it is perfectly entitled to do, and decided to have a debate not on pre-recess issues, but on assisted dying. That is a matter for the Backbench Business Committee—a consequence of the Government’s giving away powers to it, enfranchising the Back Benchers.

[Paul Flynn (Newport West) (Lab)]

The main justification given yesterday by Ministers for our continuing presence in Afghanistan was that it protected the United Kingdom against Taliban terrorist attacks. May we have a debate in which the Government can present to the House and the nation their evidence of Taliban plans for terrorist attacks on the United Kingdom, so that we can ensure that the country knows that there is some good reason for our continuing presence in Afghanistan rather than its being for the convenience of politicians? Our brave troops should not remain in Afghanistan for a day longer than necessary.

[Sir George Young]

Afghanistan was a failed state in which al-Qaeda was allowed to flourish and launch deadly attacks against citizens of other countries, including this one. We have an interest in ensuring that Afghanistan is no longer a failed state, but one that can police and look after itself. That is why we are there. There are many opportunities to cross-examine Ministers on this subject. As I said a few moments ago, my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary is before the Foreign Affairs Select Committee as we speak.

[Mr Andrew Turner (Isle of Wight) (Con)]

Will the Leader of the House make time for a debate on the wholly inadequate way in which the Boundary Commission has published responses to the public consultation this week? More than 5,000 responses for the south-east region are included, but there is no way for people to be able to identify which of them are about, for instance, the Isle of Wight rather than somewhere else. Can we do something about that?

[Sir George Young]

As an MP in the same region, I understand the issue my hon. Friend raises, but the Boundary Commission for England is independent of the Government, so we cannot order it to do anything. My understanding is that there would have been some difficulties in doing what my hon. Friend wants, as linking proposals in the way suggested might have prejudiced the second round of consultation. That is why the information was presented in the way that it was.

[Anas Sarwar (Glasgow Central) (Lab)]

I am sure the entire House will wish to join me in sending our deepest sympathies to the families of the fallen heroes in Afghanistan of the past few days. I am sure everyone will also wish to join me in utterly condemning the comments of a Scottish political activist who said yesterday that our fallen heroes deserved no sympathy as they are a “bunch of child killers” and that the majority of our servicemen and women are “racist, arrogant, undereducated thugs” who joined the armed forces for the “thrill” of killing human beings. That demonstrates the ugly side of nationalist politics in Scotland. Please may we have an urgent debate on online abuse and hatred? No matter what views we may have about individual interventions overseas, what should never be questioned is the bravery, compassion and heroic service of our young men and women, many of whom, sadly, give the ultimate sacrifice for love of our country.

[Sir George Young]

The whole House will join the hon. Gentleman in unequivocally condemning those insensitive remarks. They are wholly inappropriate. I do not think we need a debate in the House, as I think the whole House agrees that those comments should never have been made.

[Mark Pawsey (Rugby) (Con)]

I know that the Leader of the House pays close attention to the regional breweries represented in Strangers Bar—as, indeed, do you, Mr Speaker. I am therefore sure that it will not have escaped his attention that, in the middle of an exciting six nations rugby union tournament, the current offer is Webb Ellis bitter, produced by the Wood Farm brewery in my constituency, all of whose beers bear a connection to the game which has its birthplace in my constituency. May we have a debate on the role of breweries in establishing regional identities?

[Sir George Young]

I approach this matter with some caution, as the last time beers were raised at business questions, that got more coverage than any subject I have discussed in two years and resulted in the removal of a beer from the Strangers Bar. I understand that subsequently sales of that particular brew took off, and that the coverage it received was about the best thing that ever happened to that beer, whose name I dare not mention.

We look forward to hosting both the rugby league world cup in 2013 and the rugby union world cup in 2015. I pay tribute to the Webb Ellis ale brewed in Rugby, and also to the good work of rugby clubs in towns and cities across the country both from a sporting and a tourism perspective.

[Barry Gardiner (Brent North) (Lab)]

Over the past decade, some 300,000 children have been kidnapped and turned into child soldiers by the Lord’s Resistance Army in Africa, led by Joseph Kony, who is the International Criminal Court’s No. 1 target for capture. As the Leader of the House will know, young people around the world have dedicated 20 April to publicise that fact, calling it Kony 2012, in order to put pressure on Governments to take action to bring that criminal to justice. Will the Leader of the House ensure that a statement is made at about 20 April on what the Government are doing to assist in these efforts?

[Sir George Young]

I hope that at Foreign and Commonwealth Office questions three days before, on 17 April, there may be an opportunity for my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary to address this matter, perhaps in topical questions, if the hon. Gentleman is present then. I will forewarn my fellow Ministers in that Department both of the date and the likelihood of this subject being raised.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

Today is the Jewish festival of Purim and the Hindu festival of Holi. Purim commemorates the deliverance of the Jews from an evil King of Persia—there is, of course, a contemporary parallel with the President of Iran, who wishes to wipe Israel off the map. Holi commemorates the deliverance of Prahlad, whom Holika took into a funeral pyre in an attempt to kill him. However, Holika was consumed by the fire and Vishnu delivered Prahlad to safety. Will my right hon. Friend deliver a message to Hindus and Jews everywhere that this demonstrates the victory of good over evil?

[Mr Speaker]

Some people might think that the hon. Gentleman has already done that, but I am sure the Leader of the House will be happy to reply.

[Sir George Young]

Both the Hindu and the Jewish communities are good examples of well-integrated communities that have made a great contribution in business and in commercial and professional life. The House joins them in commemorating and celebrating the two festivals of Purim and Holi.

[Mr Denis MacShane (Rotherham) (Lab)]

May we have a debate on the resolution of the House that is to be found in column 928 of yesterday’s Hansard? It calls on the Government to bring forward legislative proposals to freeze the assets of Russian officials connected to the death of Sergei Magnitsky and to impose a travel ban, but in yesterday’s debate the Minister made it quite clear that the Government did not have the faintest intention of accepting the resolution. This marks a turning point for the Backbench Business Committee. This was not a Westminster Hall debate or to do with an early-day motion. You, Mr Speaker, were bullied by the Russian ambassador and saw him off with great firmity. I want our Foreign Secretary not to be the Kremlin’s stooge, and instead to stand up to it by implementing this resolution of this House of Commons in this matter.

[Sir George Young]

Well, we have just had a debate on the matter. I am not quite sure whether the right hon. Gentleman wants yet another one. The House had a debate: there was a motion on the Order Paper, it was carried unanimously and the Government made their position absolutely clear. I do not agree with what the right hon. Gentleman said about the Government proposing to disregard totally that which the House resolved unanimously.

[Chris White (Warwick and Leamington) (Con)]

The video games industry is a major employer in my constituency—several hundred people in Warwick and Leamington are employed in the sector—but it needs support if it is to continue to thrive. The industry body, TIGA, and a number of Members have been calling for video games tax relief in order to encourage growth and establish a level playing field in respect of international competitors. As the Budget will be delivered soon, will the Leader of the House provide Government time for a debate on video games tax relief, so that we can boost exports and create new jobs?

[Sir George Young]

I commend my hon. Friend on his ingenious pre-Budget representation to my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and I will certainly ensure that he is aware of the bid my hon. Friend has just made. I pay tribute to the work of the video games industry, which is another successful industry that is doing well under the coalition Government.

[Ian Lucas (Wrexham) (Lab)]

Tomorrow morning, I will meet Remploy workers in my constituency who heard yesterday that this Government are taking away their jobs. Will the Leader of the House, whom I believe to be a reasonable man, assist me by enabling me to say to them that the Government will permit a debate in Government time on Remploy, so as to enable the employees and their representatives across the UK to make representations to the Government?

[Sir George Young]

We had a statement yesterday, as the hon. Gentleman knows as he asked a question. The Government do not plan to have a debate on Remploy, although it is perfectly open to the Opposition to choose Remploy as the subject for debate on an Opposition day—they have one next week. The hon. Gentleman will have heard in yesterday’s exchanges that the last Labour Government closed 28 Remploy offices. He will also know that the policy of switching resources away from financial institutions that lose a lot of money and towards people is supported by the disability organisations. He will know, too, that we have ring-fenced the budget for assisted employment for those with a disability and found an extra £15 million for access to work. The tailored support we are giving to those affected by the current closures far exceeds the support given to those affected by the closures under the last Administration.

[Robert Halfon (Harlow) (Con)]

Following yesterday’s successful fair fuel lobby day when hundreds of motorists lobbied their MPs, may we have a statement on fuel prices? Although we acknowledge that, thanks to the Chancellor’s tax cuts, fuel prices are 10p lower than they would otherwise have been, lower earners are still paying a tenth of their income to fill up their family car and small businesses are spending a third of their income on such costs.

[Sir George Young]

Matters of taxation are matters for the Chancellor, who will shortly be making his Budget statement. I applaud the work that my hon. Friend has done through his e-petition at the end of last year. No doubt because of his eloquence, the increase that was scheduled to be introduced in January has been postponed and the one for August has been cancelled. I am sure that motorists up and down the country are grateful to him for his campaigning zeal, and that the Chancellor of the Exchequer will have heard the representations that he has just made.

[Glyn Davies (Montgomeryshire) (Con)]

There is growing concern in my constituency about the impact of high energy prices on the fuel poor and on business competitiveness. Will the Leader of the House arrange for an early debate on the impact of onshore wind subsidies for developers on the poorest people in our society and on the competitiveness of British industry?

[Sir George Young]

We have just had questions to Department of Energy and Climate Change Ministers, where I understand these issues may have been raised. My hon. Friend will know that the subsidy to the wind farms is being reduced. I will pass on to my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer the points that he has raised, which may be relevant to his Budget statement.

[Nigel Mills (Amber Valley) (Con)]

Could the Leader of the House find time for a debate on reforming our rotten system for European elections? On three occasions, it has left my constituents, who voted on a closed party list, with an MEP who switched parties halfway through a Parliament and was still allowed to retain the seat—that is a disgraceful situation.

[Sir George Young]

I hate to disappoint my hon. Friend, but I cannot promise an early debate on the electoral system for the European Parliament. Speaking from memory, I believe that once we had opted out of the old system, whereby we had MEPs for seven or eight constituencies, into the new one, there was no going back. The issue that he has raised is one more for party management than for the House of Commons.

State Opening of Parliament

Lord Young of Cookham Excerpts

Thursday 1st March 2012 Written Statements

[The Leader of the House of Commons (Sir George Young)]

Her Majesty the Queen will open a new Session of this Parliament on Wednesday 9 May 2012.

Business of the House

Lord Young of Cookham Excerpts

Thursday 1st March 2012 Commons Chamber

[Ms Angela Eagle (Wallasey) (Lab)]

Will the Leader of the House please tell us the business for next week?

[The Leader of the House of Commons (Sir George Young)]

The business for the week commencing 5 March will be:

Monday 5 March—Opposition day [un-allotted day]. There will be a debate on jobs and growth in a low-carbon economy, followed by a debate on living standards. These debates will arise on Opposition motions. In addition, my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister plans to make a statement following the EU Council.

Tuesday 6 March—Conclusion of Second Reading of the Water Industry (Financial Assistance) Bill, followed by a motion relating to a reasoned opinion on procurements by public entities. That will be followed by the remaining stages of the Consumer Insurance (Disclosure and Representations) Bill [Lords]. In addition, the Chairman of Ways and Means has named opposed private business for consideration.

Wednesday 7 March—My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister will propose an Humble Address to celebrate the diamond jubilee of Her Majesty the Queen. That will be followed by Opposition day [un-allotted day] [half-day]. There will be a debate on a Democratic Unionist party motion, subject to be announced, followed by a motion relating to human rights abuses and the death of Sergei Magnitsky. The subject for this debate has been nominated by the Backbench Business Committee.

Thursday 8 March—Topical debate on international women’s day, followed by a debate on the future of social care. The subjects for these debates have been nominated by the Backbench Business Committee.

The provisional business for the week commencing 12 March will include:

Monday 12 March—Motions relating to Standing Orders and to outstanding reports of the Committee on Standards and Privileges.

Right hon. and hon. Members will know that this morning I made a written statement to the House announcing that Her Majesty the Queen will open a new Session of this Parliament on Wednesday 9 May.

[Ms Eagle]

I thank the right hon. Gentleman for his statement and, ahead of this afternoon’s general debate, wish everyone a happy St David’s day. We spend our time surrounded by his amazing designs in this place, so it is also right to mark today the 200th anniversary of Pugin’s birth.

The Foreign Secretary updated the House this week on the situation in Syria. Today, the whole House will be appalled that the Syrian Government appear to be escalating repression. They are responsible for widespread human rights crimes, including the deliberate targeting of civilians and journalists. We fully support the call by the United Nations Secretary-General for an immediate end to the violence. Across the region, tens of thousands have been killed demanding the freedom that we in this country take for granted. Will the Leader of the House find time for a debate on the middle east so that the House can consider the support we give to those battling against brutal dictatorship? Such a debate would give us the opportunity to praise the outstanding journalism that has meant the crimes of the Syrian Government have not gone unrecorded.

If in Syria we have seen journalism at its very best, we have heard this week at the Leveson inquiry about the worst excesses of some sections of the press. The Conservative Mayor of London, who is in charge of the Metropolitan police, said last year that stories of illegal phone hacking were “codswallop”, but this week he argued that “the caravan should move on”. Joining in, the Conservative Education Secretary said that the Leveson inquiry was having a chilling effect on press freedom. This is beginning to look like a systematic attempt to undermine the inquiry and pre-empt the outcome. Some sections of the press might be trying to browbeat Lord Justice Leveson, but does the Leader of the House agree with me that Conservative Cabinet Ministers and the Conservative Mayor of London should not join in?

I was disappointed this time last week when, in response to my questions about the Health and Social Care Bill, the Leader of the House said that he was not one of the heroic three Cabinet Ministers who briefed ConservativeHome off the record that the Bill was a disaster, but it is not too late to change his mind. After all, the Deputy Prime Minister briefed Liberal Democrat peers this week on the record that the Bill needed amending to stop Conservative Ministers privatising the NHS. I wonder whether the Leader of the House could explain what the Deputy Prime Minister has been doing all this time, because he wrote the foreword to the health White Paper and championed the original Bill. He then voted for the Bill but championed the pause and the rethink. He then championed the revised Bill, and now he is championing a revision of the revision of the Bill. This cynical choreography will not be taken seriously by the public. If he really wanted to, he could stop the Bill now. Why on earth has he not done so? Meanwhile, a Conservative Health Secretary is proving that we can never trust the Tories on the NHS.

The most signed e-petition on the No. 10 website is a campaign to drop the Health and Social Care Bill. The Prime Minister said on launching the site:

“One of the points of the new e-petitions website is to make sure that if a certain level of signatures is reached, the matter will be debated in the House, whether we like it or not. That is an important way of empowering people.”—[Official Report, 11 August 2011; Vol. 531, c. 1092.]

Will the Leader of the House explain why Government Members of the Backbench Business Committee voted en bloc to stop a debate on the NHS petition? Last week the Prime Minister locked his health critics out of No. 10, and this week’s shenanigans in the Backbench Business Committee revealed that the Government are running scared of debate. Does the Leader of the House think that that will win over the public?

As a result of another e-petition, the House decided to ban the keeping of wild animals in circuses, but today the Government sneaked out a consultation that completely ignores the will of the House. It looks as though e-petitions are another public relations gimmick from a Prime Minister who thinks that that is what his job is about, so may we have an early debate on the Government’s response to the Procedure Committee’s report on e-petitions, which after all said that the Prime Minister’s claims on the No. 10 website needed to be rewritten to ensure that they “more accurately reflect reality”?

I thank the Leader of the House for finally confirming what Paul Waugh of PoliticsHome announced at the beginning of January: that the Queen’s Speech would be on 9 May. I have a suggestion for how he could successfully bring this legislative Session to a proper close: drop the Health and Social Care Bill.

[Sir George Young]

I endorse what the hon. Lady said at the beginning of her questions about St David’s day and the 200th anniversary of Pugin’s birth.

On the serious issue of Syria, we had Foreign Office questions on Tuesday. She will know that my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has issued a written ministerial statement today. She may also know that the matter is likely to be raised at the European Council meeting later today, and I have announced that my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister will make a statement on that on Monday, so there might be an opportunity to report progress then. I join her in paying tribute to those journalists who have risked their lives, and in one case lost her life, to bring the truth to the rest of the world, going to the most dangerous places in the world, showing the hardships that people endure there and broadcasting the realities to a wider audience.

On Leveson, my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister dealt with this yesterday, and I gently remind the hon. Lady that it was the coalition Government who set up the inquiry to get to the bottom of exactly what has been going on.

We had an urgent question on the Health and Social Care Bill on Tuesday, which my right hon. Friend the Health Secretary answered. The Bill continues to be improved by amendments tabled from both sides of the House, and from both Houses, as it goes through Parliament. It was a Labour Secretary of State for Health who had a motion of no confidence passed in her by one of the royal colleges.

We have no intention of dropping the Bill. I asked the hon. Lady last week which particular clauses she wanted to see dropped. Does she want to drop clauses 22 and 25, which make it explicit that patients should have more choice and be much more involved in decisions about their care? Does she want to drop the clauses placing a duty on key organisations to integrate health and social care services? Does she want to drop the clauses that remove the arbitrary private patient cap, which stifles groundbreaking new treatment by organisations such as The Royal Marsden?

The Government have passed to the Backbench Business Committee responsibility for the subjects that it chooses. It has chosen Magnitsky, social care and a wide range of important issues which have been brought before it by Members from both sides of the House. The Committee may have taken the view that the health Bill has been adequately debated in this House since it was introduced more than a year ago. It has probably had more debate than any other Bill in recent history, and that may be why the Committee took that decision.

We have just had DEFRA questions, and I watched the Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for South East Cambridgeshire (Mr Paice), answer questions about circus animals. As the hon. Lady knows, we have put out a written ministerial statement—

[Thomas Docherty (Dunfermline and West Fife) (Lab)]

Sneaking it out.

[Sir George Young]

Putting out a written ministerial statement is not “sneaking it out”.

[The Parliamentary Secretary, Office of the Leader of the House of Commons (Mr David Heath)]

Nor is answering questions in the House.

[Sir George Young]

Nor, as my hon. Friend says, is answering questions about it on the same day. There could hardly be a more open process of bringing a matter before the House.

Finally, under the Labour Administration there was an e-petitions system that ended up in Downing street and got nowhere. We have introduced a much better system, whereby if a certain threshold is reached the petitions are eligible for debate. Some of the best debates that we have had have been as a result of the e-petitions system, introduced by this Government, and we are proud of it.

[Several hon. Members]

rose—

[Tony Baldry (Banbury) (Con)]

Ever since I have been a Member, there has been a full day’s debate on Wales to coincide with St David’s day. Today that debate is being seriously curtailed by the Backbench Business Committee. I understand that not a single Conservative MP petitioned for today’s Back-Bench business debate, so is one right in assuming that the Labour party wishes to curtail debate on Wales because it wishes to curtail debate on Labour’s stewardship in Wales and, in particular, Labour’s stewardship of the health service in Wales?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend poses some interesting questions about the mentality of Welsh Labour MPs, but however short the time available for that debate is, I know that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales will criticise the stewardship of the NHS in Wales and at the same time outline the steps that the coalition Government have taken to support growth in the Principality.

[Mr Tom Harris (Glasgow South) (Lab)]

As we celebrate St David’s day, we should also celebrate the fact that citizens of Wales are able to choose which language they fill out their application forms for driving licences and passports in because Welsh is recognised throughout the UK as an official language. The same cannot be said of Gaelic, which is recognised in Scotland as an official language but not in the UK, so Scottish citizens cannot fill out their applications for driving licences or passports in any language other than English. May we have an early ministerial statement so that the Government can set out their plans to give Gaelic equal status with Welsh and English, so that in turn Scots native Gaelic speakers can start to fill out such applications in the language of their choice?

[Sir George Young]

I very gently say to the hon. Gentleman that I believe he was a Minister in the Department for Transport, and I wonder why that progressive measure was not introduced on his watch.

[Mr John Leech (Manchester, Withington) (LD)]

The Leader of the House will be well aware of The Times cycling campaign after joining us in the Westminster Hall debate last week. Given the level of interest in and support for the campaign in all parts of the House, will he find some parliamentary time for my Road Safety (No. 3) Bill, which addresses much of The Times’ campaign?

[Sir George Young]

I agree with the hon. Gentleman about the quality of the debate in Westminster Hall last week, at the end of which the Under-Secretary of State for Transport, my hon. Friend the Member for Lewes (Norman Baker), set out the steps that the Government are taking to promote cycling and cycling safety. I would be raising the hon. Gentleman’s hopes if I implied that his road safety Bill was likely to reach the statute book in the remaining days of this Session, but there will be an opportunity in the new Session to put forward private Members’ Bills, and I very much hope that he pursues his campaign in that context.

[Mr John Spellar (Warley) (Lab)]

Today the Prime Minister is hosting the Czech Prime Minister. On 20 February, the Prime Minister posted on the No. 10 website a letter to the European Commission, signed by them and 10 other European leaders, on a plan for growth in Europe. It said, among other things :

“We should foster labour mobility to create a more integrated and open European labour market”.

May we have a debate so that Ministers can explain to the public and, indeed, to their own Back Benchers, why they think that giving away more British jobs is such a good idea?

[Sir George Young]

As I announced a few moments ago, the Prime Minister will be at the Dispatch Box on Monday after the European Council. Is the right hon. Gentleman seriously wishing to detract from the commitments made by all Governments for mobility of labour within the European Union?

[Harriett Baldwin (West Worcestershire) (Con)]

Following yesterday’s excellent news on the increasing number of companies joining the coalition’s voluntary work experience programme for young people, may we have a debate on this topic so that certain sections of the media, which seem to be confused about voluntary work experience for young people, workfare and the Work programme can be enlightened?

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for drawing to the attention of a wider audience the benefits of the work experience programme. I was delighted to hear that another 200 businesses want to sign up against the background of the debate that we have had in recent weeks. I found very compelling an article in The Times on Tuesday by John Bird, founder of The Big Issue, setting out exactly why the work experience initiative was in everyone’s interests. I hope that companies and young people will consider joining the work experience programme. As local MPs, we all have a job of work to do to encourage employers to participate and young people to take up vacancies.

[John McDonnell (Hayes and Harlington) (Lab)]

Has the Leader of the House been given notice by the Secretary of State for Defence of the appointment of the commercial management company Serco to run Defence Business Services within the Ministry of Defence? The House and the staff believe that this is still subject to a consultation, yet over the past week Serco has been advertising appointments on its website. Could a Minister come to the House to clarify the exact situation?

[Sir George Young]

The answer to the first half of the hon. Gentleman’s question is no. However, I will make some inquiries of the Secretary of State for Defence seeking confirmation that the contract has not been let if, as the hon. Gentleman says, it is still subject to consultation, and I will ask my right hon. Friend to write to him.

[Guy Opperman (Hexham) (Con)]

Police Constable David Rathband passed away last night. He was an outstanding Northumbria police constable, and I know that I speak for all local north-east colleagues when I say that this brave man will be sorely missed. Will my right hon. Friend join me in passing on our condolences to his family and to the police colleagues he worked with and who continue to serve our region so well?

[Sir George Young]

The whole House will endorse what my hon. Friend has said following the tragic death of David Rathband, who lost his sight bravely risking life and limb to arrest a suspect. I applaud what he did subsequently, having lost his sight, in setting up the Blue Lamp Foundation, and also becoming internationally renowned for the way he responded to the challenges that he had to face. I endorse what my hon. Friend said about his tragic loss and extend our sympathies to his friends and family.

[Mr Nigel Dodds (Belfast North) (DUP)]

The recent acquittal of a dozen or so defendants in a paramilitary-related supergrass trial in Belfast costing upwards of £20 million has raised serious questions about the use of “assisting offenders” evidence under the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005, which is a Westminster Act not an Assembly Act. May we have a statement from the Attorney-General on the use of that Act specifically in relation to paramilitary supergrass trials in Northern Ireland, which were last seen in the 1980s?

[Sir George Young]

I will certainly draw the attention of my right hon. and learned Friend the Attorney-General to the point that the right hon. Gentleman has made. Of course, I have announced that a debate has been allocated to the right hon. Gentleman’s party on Wednesday, so it is open to him to choose this matter as a subject for that debate next week.

[Chris White (Warwick and Leamington) (Con)]

Last week, Hatton & Harding in my constituency came second in the best small shop in Britain awards 2011, highlighting the quality of retail in our community. On the back of that, Warwick TweetUp, a group of local businesses, is campaigning for Warwick to put in a bid to be one of the Portas pilots, which I fully support. Will my right hon. Friend join me in congratulating Hatton & Harding on its success, and will he schedule a debate in Government time on small retailers and how we can best support them?

[Sir George Young]

I commend Hatton & Harding for coming second in the competition to which my hon. Friend referred. He will know that we had a debate on the Mary Portas review in January in Back-Bench business time. The Government are grateful to Mary Portas for her review and are reflecting on its recommendations. We will announce in the spring our conclusions on that review. There may be an opportunity thereafter to have a further debate on the future of the high street.

[Mark Lazarowicz (Edinburgh North and Leith) (Lab/Co-op)]

The Government had let it be known that an announcement on the location of the headquarters of the green investment bank would be made in February. Even though February had 29 days this year, no announcement had been made by yesterday. What we did get was an e-mail indicating that the decision had been further delayed. There has been no written statement and nothing on the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills website. Will the Government ensure that a written statement is forthcoming so that we know what is going on with the green investment bank, at least as a courtesy to the 32 Members across the House who have supported its being located in their constituency?

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman. He is right that a large number of Members have bid for the green investment bank to be located in their constituency. I was not aware that a firm commitment had been given to make an announcement in February, but I will make inquiries at BIS to establish when a decision on the location of the green investment bank will be made.

[Robert Halfon (Harlow) (Con)]

Has my right hon. Friend seen early-day motion 2,781, which opposes the fee for tours of the Big Ben Clock Tower?

[That this House regrets the plans of the House of Commons Commission to create an admission charge of 15.00 for Big Ben tours; notes that if fees increase in July 2012 as planned, it will cost a family of four 60 to visit the Big Ben Clock Tower; believes that this undermines the basic principle of British democracy, that this is a people’s parliament, open freely to its citizens; further believes there must surely be other ways of saving money, such as publishing Hansard and business papers online; and therefore urges the House of Commons Commission to think again, to scrap the fees and to make sure that this remains a parliament for the many, not the few.]

May we have an urgent debate on these unaffordable, undemocratic and unprecedented plans, so that MPs from all sides of the House can vote against the proposals once and for all?

--- Later in debate ---

[Sir George Young]

I understand my hon. Friend’s concern. He raised this matter on a point of order on Monday. I have in front of me your response, Mr Speaker, which I will not read out because it would take longer than you like me to take at the Dispatch Box, but I will—[Laughter.]

[Mr Speaker]

I am prepared to make an exception.

[Sir George Young]

It is quite a long statement. I reiterate your advice, Mr Speaker, that if my hon. Friend wants to take the matter further, he should pursue it with the Finance and Services Committee.

[Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South) (Lab)]

First, I thank the Leader of the House for getting me a reply from the Secretary of State for Education. When will we have the promised statement, which we have been waiting on for about six months, on the capital programme for schools? There are schools in Coventry that are dilapidated, falling down and badly in need of repair. The Government are letting down teachers and kids in Coventry.

[Sir George Young]

There were questions to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State on Monday this week. I do not know whether there was an opportunity to raise the issue then. I will raise it with my right hon. Friend and seek to establish when an announcement will be made about the capital programme, particularly as it impacts on Coventry.

[Mr Rob Wilson (Reading East) (Con)]

As well as being a terrible tragedy, as my hon. Friend the Member for Hexham (Guy Opperman) said, the death of PC David Rathband poses difficult questions about how we support police constables who have been wounded in the line of duty. Will the Leader of the House schedule a debate in Government time on this important and urgent issue?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend raises an important issue, particularly given the background that he has touched on. I cannot promise a debate in the near future in Government time, but it strikes me as an appropriate subject for a debate on the Adjournment or in Westminster Hall. I am sure that a large number of Members on both sides of the House would like to take part in such a debate.

[Clive Efford (Eltham) (Lab)]

Having said that they would not do so, the Government adopted the previous Labour Government’s 18-week waiting time target for treatment in hospital once somebody has been referred by a GP. The number of people breaching that 18-week period has gone up by 43%. We are now told that people are being bounced off lists and left waiting once they have breached the 18-week point to hide the huge spike in the number of people who have breached it. May we have a debate to expose the Government’s appalling record on that target?

[Sir George Young]

I must gently disagree with the hon. Gentleman. The backlog of over-18-week waiters is going down and the figures for December were the best on record. In the broader context, the average waiting times for in-patients and out-patients before they start treatment are lower than at the time of the last election, and the number of patients waiting for more than a year is half what it was in May 2010.

[Mr David Nuttall (Bury North) (Con)]

May we please have a debate on deregulation? This week saw the publication of the third progress report on the Government’s one-in, one-out policy. A debate would allow the House to examine the extent to which the progress made by the Government is being completely outweighed by new regulations from the European Union, which are not covered by the one-in, one-out policy.

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend. There may be an opportunity in the context of the Budget debate to discuss that matter further. He is right to point out that from January 2011 to April this year, the one-in, one-out system will result in the net change in domestic regulation remaining at or close to zero. Eleven of the 14 Departments report a net reduction or no change in the regulatory costs to business. The red tape challenge has so far considered more than 1,200 regulations, and has agreed to scrap or improve well over half of them.

[Mr Dave Watts (St Helens North) (Lab)]

More than six weeks ago, the Department of Health’s propaganda machine put out an announcement that private finance initiative hospitals, including my own, will get an additional allocation of £1.5 billion. No prior warning was given to the trusts or to MPs who are interested in this issue. Six weeks on, the allocation has not been made. May we have a statement from the Department of Health about when the allocation will be made to those hospitals, so that they can get on with planning for the future?

[Sir George Young]

I would have hoped that the hon. Gentleman would preface his remarks with a tribute to the Government who are seeking to put right the disastrous PFI contracts that the previous Government entered into. None the less, in a conciliatory mood I say to him that I will pursue the issue of any resources that might be made available to his authority to give it the assistance it needs to cope with the ongoing debts incurred by the previous Administration.

[Brandon Lewis (Great Yarmouth) (Con)]

With about 600 young people being supported by more than 250 companies in the work experience scheme in Norfolk alone, may I join my hon. Friend the Member for West Worcestershire (Harriett Baldwin) in asking my right hon. Friend for a statement or a debate in Government time to highlight the excellent things that are being done in the work experience scheme, to clarify the erroneous statements that are out there, and to promote the good work that is being done by these companies and the well-motivated young people who are taking advantage of the scheme?

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend. Some 34,000 young people have taken advantage of the scheme since it was launched in January, and more than half of them have come off benefits. At a fraction of the cost of the previous scheme, it is finding work for young people. I reiterate my response to an earlier question: we all have a responsibility to promote the scheme widely in our constituencies over the coming weekend.

[Nic Dakin (Scunthorpe) (Lab)]

Sadly, the death rates for mesothelioma in north Lincolnshire are above the national average. Will the Government make a statement on their progress in delivering the commitment to set up a fund of last resort to act as a safety net for workers who can no longer trace the employers who exposed them to asbestos?

[Sir George Young]

I understand the problems of those who suffer from mesothelioma. I will raise the matter with my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Justice and ask what progress is being made on establishing the fund to which the hon. Gentleman referred.

[Mr Mark Williams (Ceredigion) (LD)]

The all-party parliamentary group on global education for all recently concluded a visit to Nigeria, where we saw some harrowing scenes and heard that 8 million children there are denied basic education. There are some excellent Department for International Development projects working on sanitation and on access to education for young girls in particular. May we have a debate on the successful work of DFID and on how we can enhance that good work?

[Sir George Young]

I am delighted to hear of the good work being done by DFID in Nigeria to tackle the problem to which my hon. Friend refers. There will be an opportunity on, I believe, 14 March, the next time my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development answers questions, to press him further on what additional assistance can be extended to Nigeria to make further progress in the direction that my hon. Friend outlines.

[Luciana Berger (Liverpool, Wavertree) (Lab/Co-op)]

Yesterday, HMS Liverpool arrived at Liverpool for the final time before it is decommissioned at the end of the month. For three decades the ship and her crew have served our country with bravery and distinction in conflicts around the world, most recently in Libya. Will the Leader of the House ask the Defence Secretary if he will make a statement recognising the courageous service of all those who have sailed on HMS Liverpool over the past 30 years?

[Sir George Young]

I am sure my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence would like to join the hon. Lady in paying tribute to all those who have served on HMS Liverpool. She will know that we had to take some difficult decisions to balance the Ministry of Defence budget on coming into office. The outcome was announced in the strategic defence and security review some 18 months ago. I hope that we now have a more balanced MOD budget and can go ahead on a more sustainable basis.

[Dr Andrew Murrison (South West Wiltshire) (Con)]

In 2006, I raised the unintended consequences of the Extradition Act 2003. Six years on, many individuals still find themselves at the wrong end of that legislation and denied bail, meaning that they are kept from their families and livelihoods for long periods. May we now have a debate to see how we can improve our relations with other countries so that people, some of whom will ultimately be found not guilty, are not disadvantaged?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend raises a serious issue, particularly against the background of the case of Mr Tappin. He will know that the Home Secretary received the Scott Baker review in October. Since then we have had two good debates on the matter, and my right hon. Friend is reflecting on the review, which examined how we might improve extradition arrangements with the EU and the wider world. She will announce her conclusion on the review and the debates in due course, at which time she will also publish the documents referred to in a question asked last week by my hon. Friend the Member for Esher and Walton (Mr Raab). The Government understand the concerns of my hon. Friend the Member for South West Wiltshire (Dr Murrison) and want to make progress.

[Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op)]

May I invite the Leader of the House to come to Huddersfield to explain to my constituents how laws are passed in this House? They know that the Health and Social Care Bill has not become law, but they also know, having listened to the Prime Minister on Wednesday, that 95% of GPs are already putting it into effect. They also know that a vast amount of taxpayers’ money has already been spent on letting contracts and hiring people under a law and structure that has not passed the House of Commons.

[Sir George Young]

It has actually passed the House of Commons. I will not come to Huddersfield to explain how laws are passed in the House, because the hon. Gentleman can perfectly well do that himself. He knows full well that there are certain things that a Government can do once a Bill has received its Second Reading, and what we have done on the Health and Social Care Bill is absolutely consistent with actions taken by his party’s Government once Bills had received a Second Reading in the House of Commons.

[Sir Bob Russell (Colchester) (LD)]

In view of a parliamentary answer that I received yesterday, may we have a debate on the independence of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority? I have discovered that over a three-month period, there were nine meetings of Ministers with IPSA, notably on 16 January when its chairman and chief executive met the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, the Leader of the House and the Minister for the Cabinet Office. The written answer states:

“We do not intend to provide further details of these meetings as to do so may inhibit free and frank discussions in the future.”—[Official Report, 28 February 2012; Vol. 541, c. 287W.]

In the interests of openness and transparency, and bearing in mind that one of the subjects discussed was MPs’ pensions, may we have a debate on the subject?

[Sir George Young]

I have regular meetings with the chairman and chief executive of IPSA, but on the subject of MPs’ pensions, the Government made their views perfectly clear last July when I tabled a motion, which was passed unanimously without Division in November. IPSA referred specifically to that resolution when it announced its proposals in the document that was published a few weeks ago.

[Helen Jones (Warrington North) (Lab)]

Will the Leader of the House find time for a debate on the quality of decision making in the NHS, since MPs in my area, including my hon. Friend the Member for Halton (Derek Twigg), recently discovered that a decision to make Chester rather than Warrington a hub for vascular services was taken without any criteria being set down and therefore without any scoring against set criteria? We are now left in a position in which our hospital and its future services are at risk, based on a decision that appears to have been taken arbitrarily. Do people not deserve a better quality of decision making than that?

[Sir George Young]

I challenge the hon. Lady’s assertion that hospitals and health services are at risk because of the decision about the hub to which she refers. However, I am happy to refer to the Secretary of State for Health the issue of why that particular configuration was chosen in her part of the country.

[Mr Speaker]

I call Jason McCartney.

[Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)]

Oh, thank you, Mr Speaker. I thought you were looking at somebody else.

A lot of doom and gloom is being peddled at the moment, so in this Olympic and diamond jubilee year, may we have a debate so that Members can mention all the many positive and uplifting things happening in their constituencies? For example, in the past week in my patch I have met many young apprentices—there are 130 new ones. There is a new dye works opening, David Brown Engineering has had another investment from the Government, the National Citizen Service is being launched on Monday in my constituency and young people are engaging with the Olympics. Let us have more positivity.

[Sir George Young]

I hope that my hon. Friend continues to be called in business questions. He is right to say that there is a lot of good news around. In January, retail sale volume was up by 0.9% on December and up on a year ago. The services purchasing managers index, the manufacturing purchasing managers index and construction output are up, and in January we had a budget surplus of £11.8 billion, £2.5 billion higher than last year. I hope that he will put his name in for the debate on the Budget, when we can listen to him tell us at greater length about all the good news in his constituency and the rest of the country.

[Ms Margaret Ritchie (South Down) (SDLP)]

Will the Leader of the House have a discussion with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland about holding a Westminster Hall debate on making St Patrick’s day a public holiday? The decision on that is a reserved matter that lies with the Northern Ireland Office.

[Sir George Young]

I will raise the matter with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. Depending on the subject that is chosen for debate next Wednesday, which will presumably relate to Northern Ireland, the hon. Lady may have an opportunity to raise the matter then and get a response from him.

[Mark Reckless (Rochester and Strood) (Con)]

I had understood that the January surplus was £7.8 billion, so I congratulate the Leader of the House on finding another £4 billion down the back of the sofa.

The Backbench Business Committee has been unable to allocate time for pre-European Council meetings, because it has limited time that is often changed at the last moment. Will the Leader of the House now reinstate those debates in Government time, or does he believe that the Standing Order No. 24 process is more appropriate?

[Sir George Young]

That would be to reverse the commitment that we made to implement in full the Wright recommendations, which involved putting in a pot a number of days, including those for the pre-EU Council debates, and transferring the pot over to the Backbench Business Committee. I would be most reluctant to take power away from the Committee in the way that my hon. Friend suggests by reducing its number of days.

On a more encouraging note, my hon. Friend may have heard the point made by my hon. Friend the Member for Wellingborough (Mr Bone) yesterday, with which I have a lot of sympathy. He suggested that at the beginning of each Session, we earmark a number of days that would be made available to the Committee at the appropriate time when an EU Council was imminent. If we go down that road, we may avoid the problems to which my hon. Friend the Member for Rochester and Strood (Mark Reckless) refers.

[Jonathan Ashworth (Leicester South) (Lab)]

The Leader of the House might recall that a few weeks ago, I raised with him the situation facing Leicester businesses that were damaged at the height of the summer disturbances. They are not getting any compensation, because the police authority does not designate the disturbances as a riot and they have missed all the other compensation schemes. I was grateful for the opportunity to meet the Minister for Policing and Criminal Justice on Monday evening to discuss the problem, but may we have a debate on it in Government time to see how widespread it is and how many businesses are not getting compensation, so that Members on both sides of the House can make representations on the Floor of the House?

[Sir George Young]

I do remember the exchange, and my right hon. Friend the Minister for Policing and Criminal Justice met representatives of the insurance industry to urge them to speed up their compensation payments to victims. On the outstanding cases with the Government bureau, which covers uninsured individuals, there are 75 out of the 1,261 cases that were originally received. The Home Office has reimbursed all authorised claims for expenditure. Rather than waiting for a debate, I would like to pursue with my right hon. Friend the Minister for Policing and Criminal Justice the specific cases that the hon. Gentleman raises to see whether we can get compensation out of the door to those who are entitled to it.

[Mr Peter Bone (Wellingborough) (Con)]

The Government are right to seek through the Council of Europe to change the rules so that the Supreme Court in this country would be the ultimate determinant of human rights. I would like to be helpful to the Government. I have introduced the European Convention on Human Rights (Temporary Withdrawal) Bill, which would speed up that process and allow us to deport extremists. Unfortunately, there must be a problem with the telephone line between the Chief Whip’s office and mine because he has not contacted me yet to make arrangements. May we have a statement on that?

[Sir George Young]

My right hon. Friend the Chief Whip was 6 feet away from my hon. Friend a few moments ago, when there would have been an opportunity for a direct dialogue. I would be misleading my hon. Friend if I said that, in the remaining days of the Session, his Bill was likely to reach the statute book, but he knows that we have the chairmanship of the Council of Europe, and my right hon. and learned Friend the Lord Chancellor is seeking to reform the ECHR in a way that my hon. Friend would approve of to tackle the backlog and to ensure that cases reach the European Court only when there is no alternative, thus returning more to subsidiarity of the national courts. Although I cannot promise my hon. Friend any progress on his Bill, I hope that he will endorse the direction in which the Government are now travelling.

[Mr Andrew Love (Edmonton) (Lab/Co-op)]

May we have an early debate in Government time on the national policy statement for waste water? Yesterday, during a debate on the Water Industry (Financial Assistance) Bill, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said that

“there were 21 working days for the national waste water policy to be debated from the moment it was laid before Parliament…There is still time and I am sure that hon. Members will take advantage of that.”—[Official Report, 29 February 2012; Vol. 541, c. 354.]

In conversations with the Journal Office today, it was made clear to me that until the Localism Bill becomes law, the decision on whether there is a debate on the national policy statement is entirely in the Government’s hands. Will time be made available for that important issue?

[Sir George Young]

I read the exchange in Hansard to which the hon. Gentleman refers. As he knows, Second Reading of the Bill was adjourned. I will seek to ensure that, in the winding-up speeches on Tuesday, the Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Newbury (Richard Benyon) has the response to the hon. Gentleman’s question.

[Mr Aidan Burley (Cannock Chase) (Con)]

The GMB union has claimed that, without the support of trade unions, Labour would have lost another 40 to 50 seats at the general election. With several marginal constituencies receiving thousands of pounds, such as the £5,600 given by the GMB to Dudley North, which was won by just 649 votes, may we have a debate in Government time on capping political donations to end any undue influence by only one political donor?

--- Later in debate ---

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend, who may know that there was a debate on the reform of trade union funding in Westminster Hall yesterday. He may like to read the response by the Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office, my hon. Friend the Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (Mr Hurd). On the broader issue, we want to reform funding. My hon. Friend will know that we are trying to achieve a consensus between the main parties on the way forward and that Government Members—certainly the Conservative part of the coalition—believe that any restriction on funding should embrace the trade unions rather than their having the privileged position that they currently enjoy.

[Tom Blenkinsop (Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland) (Lab)]

May we have a debate on the retention of the 2nd Battalion the Yorkshire Regiment, the Green Howards? All four of the regiment’s battalions are on active service in Afghanistan and the future of the second battalion was raised in the most recent edition of The Sunday Times? May we have an urgent debate and statement on that so that the welfare of those troops and their families is properly discussed?

[Sir George Young]

I understand the hon. Gentleman’s concern for the regiments that are based in his constituency. I cannot promise an early debate on the matter, but I will draw his concern to the attention of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence and ask him to write to the hon. Gentleman, giving such assurances as he can about the future of those regiments.

[Mark Pawsey (Rugby) (Con)]

For many years, the British Thomson-Houston Co. was the biggest employer in my constituency. In 1921, it erected a memorial to employees who gave their lives in the great war, and, with additions after the second world war, it bears 418 names. This week, in an appalling act of vandalism, Nazi graffiti has been scrawled all over it. May we have a debate to consider what should be done to keep alive the memory of those who made the ultimate sacrifice?

[Sir George Young]

I was appalled, as I am sure that the whole House was, to hear that Nazi graffiti has been scrawled on a memorial to those who gave their lives in the service of this country. I very much hope that the police in my hon. Friend’s constituency are trying to find the perpetrators and bring them to justice and that the appropriate authorities are removing the graffiti immediately so that no more offence is given. Of course, I understand the concern that that has generated in my hon. Friend’s constituency.

[Mr Iain Wright (Hartlepool) (Lab)]

In November 1981, Katrice Lee went missing from a German supermarket on her second birthday. She has never been found. Her father, who is my constituent and was serving in the armed forces in Germany at the time, has never been satisfied about the investigation to find his daughter. He has requested access for the family to the case files. The hon. Member for Gosport (Caroline Dinenage), where Katrice’s mother now lives, has worked hard on the matter, and I have written to the Prime Minister and asked a parliamentary question to the Secretary of State for Defence. May we have a debate on that harrowing and tragic issue, and more generally, about consistency in providing case files on missing children to families, so that the hon. Lady and I can discuss the matter in the House?

[Sir George Young]

I am very sorry to hear of Katrice Lee’s disappearance in 1981 and of course I understand the relevant local MPs’ concern to find out what happened, and about access to the case files. I would like to contact the appropriate Minister, probably in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, to ascertain what representations they can make, presumably to the authorities in Germany, who have the case files and see whether they can be made available. I understand the wish of members of the family to find out what happened, and I will raise the matter with the Foreign Secretary to see whether we can make progress.

[Mr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

Following the fire under the M1 in my constituency in April 2011, Network Rail and the Environment Agency were going to look at possible sites of future risk. I understand that the Highways Agency audit was developed into an action plan, which, a parliamentary written answer to me stated, would be completed by the end of spring 2012. Will my right hon. Friend advise whether that action plan will be published?

[Sir George Young]

I understand my hon. Friend’s concern about sites at risk following the fire that he mentioned. I will contact the Secretary of State for Transport and find out what progress has been made and when information will be put in the public domain about the action that she plans to take.

[Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab)]

May we go back to the schools capital programme? I urge the Leader of the House to provide an urgent debate on that. He will recall that the Building Schools for the Future programme was cut in the early months of his Government and a promise was made to introduce a new capital programme scheme. We were expecting an announcement before now, but I understand from reports yesterday that it is some six months away. That is a long time, given that we are now in March 2012. The matter is important to my constituents, who are concerned about their schools getting investment.

[Sir George Young]

Again, there was an opportunity on Monday to raise the matter during education questions. However, I give the hon. Gentleman the same reply that I gave to the hon. Member for Coventry South (Mr Cunningham): I will make inquiries about the progress of the capital programme for schools and find out when a decision will be made, referring to schools in his constituency.

[Nadhim Zahawi (Stratford-on-Avon) (Con)]

Today the Government sold £2.75 billion of 10-year Government debt at just over 2% and that is good news for borrowers and business, but it is a complex issue. The Government have a strategy for credit easing so may we have a debate in this Chamber on why it is so important for Government policy to continue to bear down on the interest that we pay? Opposition Members have been making very different statements to the media and there is real confusion in the country.

--- Later in debate ---

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend brings to the House’s attention the benefits of low interest rates to business and households. Those low interest rates would be put at risk if we listened to some of the siren voices in the Opposition, who want to push up the budget deficit. When we have the Budget later this month, there will be an opportunity to debate the issues that my hon. Friend mentioned. Speaking from memory, every 1% increase in interest has an impact of about £1,000 a year on the average mortgage. That puts the matter in context.

[Kevin Brennan (Cardiff West) (Lab)]

On this St David’s day, it is appropriate for us to remember the Welsh troops who were killed tragically and injured terribly during the Falklands war. Was the Leader of the House as surprised as I was that the Prime Minister’s spokesman this week said that the Government took no position on the news that the Argentine Olympic team will include a Malvinas logo on their Olympic kit? May we have a statement to clarify the Government’s position?

[Sir George Young]

Of course I would understand the concern were that to happen. That may be a matter for the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games, which is in charge of the Olympic games. I will draw the hon. Gentleman’s concern to the attention of Lord Coe and see whether any steps need to be taken to ensure that no inappropriate logos are on display during the Olympics.

[Mr Philip Hollobone (Kettering) (Con)]

The Backbench Business Committee has given more than a month’s notice of the very important debate on assisted dying, which will take place on Tuesday 27 March. It would be helpful to the House and the nation if the Leader of the House confirmed the timings for that day. His normal practice, if he follows it, will have a knock-on effect on tours around the House. In addition, members of the public who want to attend the debate want to know what time it will start.

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend is right that, normally, when the last sitting day is on a Tuesday, we move the sitting forward from 2.30 pm to 11.30 am, which is the Wednesday timetable. No announcement has been made, but I take my hon. Friend’s point. I will see whether at the next business questions we can give some certainty about the sittings of the House on that last day, 27 March.

[Mr Denis MacShane (Rotherham) (Lab)]

Mr Speaker has announced that marvellous ceremonial occasion state opening of Parliament for 9 May. That is followed by the trooping of the colour, the Derby, the royal garden parties, the Eton-Harrow match, the Durham miners gala, the Government reshuffle and the opening of the grouse shooting season. Are not too many ceremonial occasions crammed into the summer? May we have a debate on moving the state opening back to an autumn date, both to take a bit of pressure off Her Majesty and to allow us to debate the Queen’s speech in the more austere, chilly autumn winds rather than in the heat of the summer?

[Sir George Young]

The right hon. Gentleman has a very busy social calendar and will be attending a number of events that I will not be at.

To return to his question, he might remember that I made a statement in 2010 explaining why the state opening of Parliament would always be in the spring/summer because we now have fixed-term Parliaments. The general election will always be in May, so the first state opening will be in May. We want full, one-year Sessions rather than the six-month truncated Session that he has just advocated. If we have a state opening in November and a fixed-term Parliament ending in May, we would not have a full Session, which I know he would miss.

[Graham Evans (Weaver Vale) (Con)]

Like Sir Stuart Rose, I started my working career stacking shelves in my local Co-op in Poynton, which gave me a great work ethic. I fully agree with the former chairman of Marks & Spencer that it is baffling that anyone would oppose unemployed young people being given the opportunity to gain good-quality work experience. May we have a debate on workfare so that we can take on the misguided opponents of that vital scheme?

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for reinforcing a point that some of our hon. Friends have made. I would welcome such a debate. I should point out to him that we have the same success rate as the future jobs fund at a 20th of the cost, so we are getting much better value for money than the scheme we were left with.

[Valerie Vaz (Walsall South) (Lab)]

The Paediatric Continence Forum found in a survey that 50% of children do not want to use the toilets because they are poor facilities, and that affects their health and education. The regulations for staff toilets are more robust than those for children’s toilets. May we have an urgent debate or a statement on how we can eradicate that anomaly? Perhaps that aspect could be included as part of the Ofsted inspection report, because it affects children’s health and education.

[Sir George Young]

I will raise that issue with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education and see whether there is an anomaly that needs addressing, and I will ask him to drop the hon. Lady a line.

[James Morris (Halesowen and Rowley Regis) (Con)]

Plans have recently been submitted for a new retail development in Blackheath in my constituency, which will bring much-needed construction and retail jobs to the area. May we have a debate on the Government’s success in generating private sector jobs and on what more needs to be done over the coming years?

[Sir George Young]

Again, the Budget may provide an appropriate forum for such a debate, but my hon. Friend reminds the House that private sector employment is up 580,000 since the election, and that the overall number of people claiming out-of-work benefits has fallen by 30,000. I hope we can maintain that impetus, and that my hon. Friend will take part in the Budget debate, when he can make the point at greater length.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

May we have a debate on the Kafkaesque policies of Lloyds banks? When my constituent Mark Williams was unemployed three years ago, he set up a new business, Pins ’n Cool Things. He was suddenly notified by Lloyds that it was closing his bank account. It will not tell him why and he can have no explanation. His business has ground to a halt. There is no way he can find out what he is allegedly guilty of, which is surely against the nature of British justice. May we have a debate on why banks have the power to destroy companies by refusing to tell them why they close bank accounts?

[Sir George Young]

The constituent has done the right thing in contacting his Member of Parliament. I am sure she is in contact with the Lloyds chief executive to see whether she can get a satisfactory explanation of how her constituent has been treated. I hope she is pursuing that, but I will draw the matter to the attention of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills to see whether there is a role for him in view of the Government’s stake in that bank.

[Several hon. Members]

rose—

[Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Con)]

Tomorrow, I will visit Megger, a very successful business in my constituency. May we have a debate on how we can accelerate economic growth in the UK, particularly in the light of the excellent news in the International Monetary Fund report that Britain is likely to grow more quickly than Germany and France this year?

[Sir George Young]

Indeed. The best news for Megger would be a continuation of the Government’s economic policies, which allow low interest rates to endure. My hon. Friend rightly draws attention to the fact that, this year, we are growing three times as fast as France and twice as fast as Germany. That is a tribute to the economic policies that the Chancellor of the Exchequer has championed.

[Jeremy Lefroy (Stafford) (Con)]

Will the Leader of the House find time for a debate on the importance of local initiatives to stimulate business growth, such as the successful loan fund set up by Staffordshire county council and administered by the mutual Black Country Reinvestment Society, of which I am proud to be a member?

[Sir George Young]

I am delighted to hear that despite all the pressure on Staffordshire county council, it has been able to find the resources to make the loan available to that mutual company. It is important that loans continue to be made to promote growth and employment and I commend the priorities of my hon. Friend’s county council.

[Christopher Pincher (Tamworth) (Con)]

A consistent theme raised by businesses in Tamworth is their access to bank lending. May we have a debate on that and on what opportunities there are for banks to borrow money, particularly in respect of Project Merlin, which has exceeded its target this year, and which means that more money was lent to small businesses in 2011 than in 2010?

--- Later in debate ---

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend reminds the House that bank lending is crucial. The latest figures are quite encouraging. The amount of lending has far exceeded what was expected—the £204.9 billion total lending overreaches the £190 billion target by nearly £25 billion. As a result of Project Merlin, we saw more lending to small businesses in 2011 than in 2010.

[Mr David Burrowes (Enfield, Southgate) (Con)]

Many of my young constituents have today dressed up as fairytale characters to celebrate world book day. I am not sure what my right hon. Friend’s favourite fairytale character is, but will he support the Evening Standard “Get London Reading” campaign and a debate to focus on the value of parents reading with their children?

[Sir George Young]

I am sorry that my hon. Friend has not joined in the fun by coming to the Chamber dressed up as his favourite character, but I commend the initiative of the Evening Standard and the work of those who voluntarily go into schools to sit down and listen, one to one, to children learning to read. That is an important skill. I hope the reforms we are promoting in the Department for Education will drive up the standards of reading of our young people.

[Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)]

Can we have a debate about the relationship between economic growth and fiscal policy, especially in the light of recent figures from America, which show that its recent economic growth was delivered during a time of fiscal tightening? Also, given that our national debt exceeded £1 trillion at the end of last year, such a debate would provide an excellent opportunity to explode the myths perpetrated by Opposition Members, who cling to the misguided mantra that we are going too fast and too far in cutting the deficit that we inherited from the last Government.

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend draws attention to the fact that the debt is now around £1 trillion. When my party left office in 1997, it was around £300 billion; when we came back, in coalition, it was somewhere around £900 billion. That was the escalation that took place in the intervening 13 years, and that is why we need to take steps to get the debt back under control.

[Neil Carmichael (Stroud) (Con)]

On the threshold of the launch of the much-needed national careers service by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, may we have an opportunity in this House to highlight the need for good, independent careers advice, and also to underline the fact that schools and colleges must engage with businesses to find out what they really need?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend reminds the House that next month, in April, we are launching the national careers service—the source, which he has just commended, of professional careers advice and information on learning and work. Young people and adults will be able to access the service online, and I hope that it makes genuine progress in providing the right advice and opportunities to young people as they enter the workplace.

[Angie Bray (Ealing Central and Acton) (Con)]

There is a pile of rubble in the centre of Ealing on the site where the Ealing cinema used to stand. Empire, which owns the site, has consistently disappointed and frustrated many of my constituents by failing to deliver on its promises to build a new cinema and by evading all opportunities to explain the continued delay.

[Sir George Young]

As the former Member for Ealing Acton, I spent many evenings in that cinema, and I am sorry to hear that it has been demolished. My hon. Friend will know that under planning legislation, the planning authority can impose a condition that rebuilding shall start by a given date, and it has powers to commence that work if the applicant does not do so. I very much hope that the London borough of Ealing will look again at the planning powers available to it—under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, I think—and take whatever action it can to ensure that my hon. Friend can go to a decent cinema in her constituency.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

Under the excellent Localism Act 2011, passed by this Parliament, every local authority in the country is required to produce a pay policy statement. It therefore came as something of a surprise at the Harrow council budget setting meeting when a hastily cobbled together document was presented under a guillotine, so that no debate could take place. When Conservative councillors raised the issue, they were denied legal advice and the opportunity to defer the item so that they could consider it properly. The key point is that every local authority in the country will be considering such documents. May we therefore have a debate on the implementation of this excellent strategy to ensure transparency in public life?

[Sir George Young]

I am sorry to hear what happened in the London borough of Harrow. As my hon. Friend knows, there are statutory duties imposed on local authorities that relate to the documents that are made available, and these will be complemented by the standing orders of the London borough of Harrow. My hon. Friend should take up the matter with the monitoring officer in the borough in the first instance, and if that fails, he should perhaps draw it to the attention of one of the Local Government Ministers.

[Karen Bradley (Staffordshire Moorlands) (Con)]

The only source of money for Government to pay for nurses, teachers and police officers is, of course, tax revenue. That is why it is vital that unacceptable loopholes are closed and that taxes are raised to pay for those vital public services. Can the Leader of the House find time for a debate on closing unacceptable tax loopholes, and perhaps also unacceptable planning that may be used by candidates for future mayoral elections?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend reminds the House of the action that was taken earlier this week by Treasury Ministers to close a tax loophole. She will also know that Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs has set up a special unit to ensure that those evading their taxes pay them—speaking from memory, I think some £13 billion was brought in by that unit. I very much hope that we can debate the issue at greater length in the Budget debate, and I hope that my right hon. Friend the Chancellor will take on board what my hon. Friend has just said about the need to close up further loopholes.

[Guto Bebb (Aberconwy) (Con)]

The Leader of the House and hon. Members will no doubt be aware of the prejudiced and inflammatory comments of Baroness Tonge about Israel and the Israeli people. Although her views in no way represent the position of the coalition Government, it remains the case that many of our friends abroad who are not aware of our constitutional arrangements might see the comments of this Liberal Democrat Peer as indicative of the Government’s position on the issue. May we have an urgent statement from the Foreign Office condemning her comments fully and unreservedly and restating the Government’s commitment to Israel and the Quartet proposals for re-establishing the peace process?

[Sir George Young]

I agree with what my hon. Friend says: those remarks were unacceptable. They do not represent the policy of the Liberal Democrat party, or indeed of the coalition Government. I understand that the noble Baroness has now lost the Whip and therefore no longer speaks for anyone except herself.

[Gavin Williamson (South Staffordshire) (Con)]

I am sure that my right hon. Friend has seen the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy report on council tax that was published today. I wonder whether he would consider having a debate on council tax, so that we can expose councils that are increasing their council tax bills, but praise those such as South Staffordshire district council and Staffordshire county council, which are ensuring that my constituents will not see an increase in their council tax bills.

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend, and I commend what Staffordshire county council and South Staffordshire district council have done. We had a debate on the revenue support grant a few weeks ago, which was an opportunity to make the points that he has just made. I commend all local authorities that have accepted the resources available from the Government and frozen their council tax, which I know will be gratefully received by the relevant ratepayers.

[Andrew Stephenson (Pendle) (Con)]

News that Rolls-Royce has reported record profits and an order book of nearly £52 billion in its civil aerospace division will be welcomed by the many workers at the company’s plants at Barnoldswick in my constituency. Given the good news being reported by numerous manufacturing firms over the past month, may we have a debate on supporting manufacturing and reversing the huge decline that we saw under the previous Administration?

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for ending questions with some more good news about manufacturing. It is a national success story that generates over half our exports, and it is responsible for much of our research and development. My hon. Friend will have seen “The Plan for Growth”, which included the outcome of an advanced manufacturing growth review. We are making good progress in implementing those actions, and further progress will be reported around the time of the Budget.