Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and David Wright

Thursday 21st June 2012 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

I note what my hon. Friend says about the importance of small shops. So far as standardised packaging is concerned, there is currently a consultation exercise, which I think ends on 10 July, on the case for and against standardised packaging of cigarettes. The Government have not made up their mind—we want to await the outcome of the representations that have been made—and I urge my hon. Friend and her constituents, if they have not already done so, to join members of relevant trade associations in making representations to the Department of Health on this important issue.

[David Wright (Telford) (Lab)]

The chief constable of West Mercia police has indicated that a strategic merger between the force and Warwickshire will result in a reduction in front-line officers and police community support officers. Will a Minister come to the House to explain why the promise that there would be no front-line reductions in police has been broken?

[Sir George Young]

I am not sure that there are active proposals to do what the previous Government proposed—they were persuaded not to do it—and merge some of the police forces in this country. So far as front-line services are concerned, the Home Secretary has repeatedly made it clear that although police authorities have to take difficult decisions, we believe that through having joint services and intelligent commissioning, by getting other people to carry out some of the services currently performed by police officers, the quality and integrity of front-line services can be maintained.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and David Wright

Thursday 15th March 2012 Commons Chamber

[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.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and David Wright

Thursday 8th March 2012 Commons Chamber

[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.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and David Wright

Thursday 19th January 2012 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend and parliamentary neighbour for the point she makes and for her interest in angling. I cannot promise a debate on the White Paper in the very near future, but she might like to apply for a Backbench Business Committee or Westminster Hall debate on what is one of the most popular recreational activities in the country.

[David Wright (Telford) (Lab)]

The Government have made an announcement on High Speed 2. They are also hinting at having a new airport in the Thames estuary, which the Leader of the House has already mentioned. What local people in Telford want is improved rail services connecting to Birmingham so that they can connect to High Speed 2. May we have a debate in the House on local rail services?

[Sir George Young]

I announced a few minutes ago that there would be a debate on Network Rail, which I very much hope will provide an opportunity for the hon. Gentleman to pursue his legitimate constituency interests. We will set out the infrastructure investment that we are putting into the railway system, including new carriages, investment in new lines and increases in capacity, which I hope he will welcome.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and David Wright

Thursday 12th January 2012 Commons Chamber

[David Wright (Telford) (Lab)]

Could we have a statement from a Health Minister about the introduction of the 111 service? There is real concern in Telford that the introduction of the 111 service might severely damage our excellent out-of-hours GP service, specifically consultations and out-of-hours cover.

[Sir George Young]

There was an opportunity to ask Health Ministers questions on Tuesday, but I will draw my right hon. Friend the Health Secretary’s attention to the concern that the hon. Gentleman has expressed about the 111 scheme’s impact on services and ask him to write to the hon. Gentleman.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and David Wright

Thursday 1st December 2011 Commons Chamber

[David Wright (Telford) (Lab)]

May we have a debate specifically on the national infrastructure plan 2011? As a fellow Shropshire MP, I support the hon. Member for Shrewsbury and Atcham (Daniel Kawczynski) in calling for a debate about roads and road investment. Just after the last election, we saw the removal of the M54-M6 toll road link from capital infrastructure projects. I should like to debate that in the House, and I am sure that other Shropshire MPs would, too.

[Sir George Young]

This reminds me of when I was Secretary of State for Transport many years ago, and heard all these pleas for extra investment, which I take seriously. I remind the hon. Gentleman that when his party came to power it imposed a moratorium on many of the schemes with which I was planning to go ahead. None the less, he makes a serious point about that particular road, and I shall draw his concern to the attention of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and David Wright

Thursday 24th November 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend raises a serious issue. Sadly, more and more families are splitting up and there is an issue about whether the child benefit should go to one parent or another. I think I am right to say that at the moment it cannot be split. That is also the case with other child-related benefits. I will raise the question with my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who has responsibility for it, and see whether there is any way of coming to an arrangement whereby those benefits or tax credits are apportioned in a fair way to reflect the responsibilities that underpin them.

[David Wright (Telford) (Lab)]

The Leader of the House has debating time on his hands. May we have a specific debate about the provision of social rented housing in this country? There are 20,000 people in Telford looking for rented housing in the social sector and thousands of them are in urgent need. May we have a debate as soon as possible on rented housing provision? We have heard already from my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Erdington (Jack Dromey) about the collapse in the provision of new social rented homes and we need a debate urgently.

[Sir George Young]

As the hon. Gentleman will know, I have announced that there will be an Opposition day. Perhaps his bid was heard by his friends on the Front Bench. He will also know that waiting lists doubled under the last Labour Government and that is the problem we are now trying to address.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and David Wright

Thursday 13th October 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

In response to the previous question, I think that instead of saying Southern Cross was in difficulty, I said that the Government were in difficulty, which of course they never are.

Like my hon. Friend, I was very concerned by the reports in today’s press. Everyone admitted to hospital deserves to be treated as an individual and with compassion and dignity, which is why we commissioned the report she mentions. It certainly shows the value of unannounced inspections. It found some exemplary care, but it also found that some hospitals were not getting even the basics right. The new Health and Social Care Bill gives new responsibilities to Monitor to integrate health care across health care services. I hope that everyone will learn the lessons: that some things need to be done tomorrow to put things right; that there are problems of culture, such as putting paperwork before patients; and that there is inadequate management training and leadership in hospitals. Some of these problems may have been going on for some time. Important lessons must be learned if we are to improve the quality of care in many of our hospitals.

[David Wright (Telford) (Lab)]

May we have a statement from the Secretary of State for Defence on the future profile of civilian jobs in the Ministry of Defence? Many people in my constituency are concerned that they will lose their jobs while he is flying around the world with his mate.

[Sir George Young]

I understand why Labour Members want to continue on this issue, but the Secretary of State for Defence has a responsible job to do on behalf of this country and the Government. He should be allowed to get on with it and the hon. Gentleman should wait for the Cabinet Secretary’s report into the issues he raises.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and David Wright

Thursday 30th June 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

I am sorry to hear about the inconvenience caused by BT’s failure to restore the service to my hon. Friend’s constituent. I will raise the issue with BT. Speaking as a constituency MP, I can only say that I have found the liaison officer, Clova Fyfe, to have been enormously helpful in addressing such issues when they have arisen in North West Hampshire.

[David Wright (Telford) (Lab)]

May we have a debate on standards in the production of wills and possible regulation? I have been approached by a number of constituents who have had difficulties ensuring that their partner’s will is delivered and executed correctly, where it is clearly against their partner’s wishes, as expressed to them before their death. We need regulation in this important area, so may we have a debate?

[Sir George Young]

I understand the hon. Gentleman’s concern. I do not know whether it would be appropriate to raise the issue either on the Adjournment or, if the Backbench Business Committee so decides, in the series of Adjournment debates that we normally have on the last day before the recess. In the meantime, I will inform the Justice Secretary of his concern and see whether he has any plans to sort out the uncertainty that arises in the situations that the hon. Gentleman has set out.