Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 12th July 2012 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

I honestly think that there are better business questions that can be put to the Leader of the House than recycled gossip and tittle-tattle.

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

Jaguar Land Rover has recently announced that it intends to create 4,500 new jobs over the next five years and is investing £500 million in a new engine plant in the Black Country enterprise zone. May we have a debate on the success of that enterprise zone in supporting a successful automotive industry in the west midlands?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend reinforces a request for a debate made a few moments ago, which I would very much welcome, although I cannot promise one before we rise for the recess. We need to give business in the UK all possible support, removing regulatory barriers to growth and promoting the excellent record of the motor industry—we are now a net exporter of cars, rather than a net importer. It is absolutely crucial that we stick to our fiscal consolidation targets, which have provided the right framework for this success.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 14th June 2012 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

It sounds as though it was a matter for the court in the first instance, when it discovered that the bail conditions had been broken, to return the offender to jail. However, I understand the concern of my hon. Friend’s constituents, and I will raise the circumstances that he mentions with my right hon. and learned Friend the Justice Secretary to see whether any action ought to be taken to ensure that bail conditions are properly enforced.

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

The number of new apprenticeship starts has doubled in my constituency in the past two years, and I recently launched an apprenticeship challenge specifically to encourage small local firms to take on an apprentice for the first time. May we have a debate about how we can encourage small firms to take on apprentices, so that we get the skilled and flexible work force that we need?

[Sir George Young]

I welcome what my hon. Friend has done, and more MPs could do the same and remind local employers of the resources that are available if they take on an apprentice. Some £1,500 is available towards the cost of doing so, and we have just made available resources that will support up to 40,000 new apprenticeships. I would welcome such a debate, but I fear that I cannot promise one in Government time in the immediate future.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 17th May 2012 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

The Secretary of State indicated, I think, that the total Army numbers would be about 120,000, of which about 80,000 would be regulars and 40,000 reserves. The exercise of configuring individual units and regiments is under way, and I know that my right hon. Friend will want to keep the House informed. There are regular debates on defence, and a set-piece debate is sometimes provided by the Backbench Business Committee, so there might be an opportunity to discuss the matter on one of those occasions.

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

There are 25,000 more people in work in the west midlands than there were a year ago, but one of the key problems for people getting into employment is affordable and accessible child care. May we have a debate on what the Government are doing to improve accessibility to child care so that people in families can get back into work?

[Sir George Young]

This is an important issue. My hon. Friend will know that we have increased the entitlement to free education and care for three and four-year-olds to 15 hours a week and extended it to disadvantaged two-year-olds. He will also know that under universal credit—I am delighted to see my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions here—there will be greater support for child care when we remove the so-called 16-hour rule and enable those working less than 16 hours a week to access child care.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 26th April 2012 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

The hon. Gentleman will know that we have made a commitment to electrify the line to Cardiff, and he will welcome that decision. I cannot promise an early debate on transport matters, but I hope that there will be an opportunity, perhaps in the debate on the Queen’s Speech, to touch on transport-related issues. I hope that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport can outline the investment that has been made in Wales to promote rail travel and follow up the specific issue that the hon. Gentleman has raised.

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

May I pay tribute to Councillor Angus Adams of Dudley council, who was also chairman of Centro, who has sadly died? He was a much-loved character and a passionate advocate of local rail transport in the west midlands, as well as an advocate of the benefits of high-speed rail. May we have a debate on the economic benefits of HS2 and what it will bring to the west midlands, including jobs and employment in my constituency?

[Sir George Young]

I am sorry to learn of the death of my hon. Friend’s constituent. I would welcome such a debate. As he knows, we are committed to HS2, not least for the reasons that he outlined of jobs and employment in the west midlands. I understand that HS2 could support employment growth of more than 8,000 jobs in the west midlands and would help to regenerate Birmingham’s east side. The Curzon Street station would create 1,400 jobs, and the Washwood Heath rolling-stock depot would create 400 jobs in construction. That is why I believe that HS2 is a project that should be supported by Members from all parts of the House.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 19th April 2012 Commons Chamber

[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.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 15th March 2012 Commons Chamber

[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.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 8th March 2012 Commons Chamber

[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.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 1st March 2012 Commons Chamber

[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.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 23rd February 2012 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

I welcome what my hon. Friend says and I am delighted to hear what is happening in his constituency. We are scrapping new regulations that would have cost businesses more than £350 million a year and doubling the qualification period for unfair dismissal tribunals, and we have streamlined the planning system. I very much hope that we can take that agenda forward, and again a debate might be appropriate in the context of the Budget.

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

I recently visited Sandvik in my constituency, which told me that demand for tools from the automotive industry in the west midlands is the highest it has been for many years. May we have a debate in Government time on what the Government are doing to support advanced manufacturing, in order to promote the jobs and growth that we need in areas such as the west midlands and the black country?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend draws attention to the success of the automotive industry, particularly in exports. It is indeed part of our strategy to rebalance the economy, making it less dependent on financial services and more dependent on manufacturing. We are addressing the barriers to growth and encouraging innovation, exports, business investment and improving skills, and we have the regional growth fund, the enterprise zones and the national loan guarantee scheme. I hope that we can develop that policy in the context of the Budget and outline yet further help for manufacturing industry.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 26th January 2012 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

The right hon. Gentleman will know that there is a process of appeal against the Information Commissioner’s decisions, which is open to those who object to them in the way that he has outlined. I am not sure that it would be appropriate for the Government to get involved.

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

The people of Halesowen and Rowley Regis are rightly anxious to see action against the something-for-nothing society at all levels. May we have a debate in Government time to explore why the previous Government did not get undertakings on executive pay from banks that took taxpayers’ money, and a debate on what this Government are doing to curb bankers’ bonuses?

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 19th January 2012 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

I understand my hon. Friend’s concern about that imbalance in trade. My understanding is that it is due to the fact that more UK pensioners retire to other EU countries than residents of EU countries retire here. Under EU rules, we have to pay for the health treatment of those who retire to EU countries. The imbalance that he refers to is not a result of health tourism or the abuse of the NHS, although we are of course against those things, but due to the fact that more of our citizens retire to the EU than EU citizens retire here.

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

Next month, I will attend the official launch of the Ormiston academy in Cradley Heath in Sandwell, which is the latest school to become an academy in my constituency. Will the Leader of the House grant a debate on giving schools that are currently in LEA control similar powers to academies, so that we can drive up teaching standards and attainment in areas where LEAs are underperforming, such as Sandwell?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend draws attention to the fact that we now have more than 1,300 new academies. The number of academies has risen sevenfold since we came to power. All the evidence is that schools that convert to academies do better than those that do not. On the issue of extending to local authority schools the powers that academies have, which was the thrust of his question, my initial response is to ask why such schools do not go for academy status and get the benefits in that way. I will, of course, pass on to my ministerial colleagues the suggestion that he has made.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 1st December 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

I am in favour of more applications but, as I said to the hon. Member for Huddersfield, it is too soon to draw the conclusion that I think the hon. Gentleman is drawing—[Interruption.] It makes sense to wait until applications close before drawing conclusions on whether they are up or down on last year. As I said, where applications have closed the reduction is 0.9%, so I think that he is being unduly alarmist.

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

May we have a debate on how the Government are working with local authorities to protect some of our most vulnerable children, especially in areas such as Sandwell, where the Labour-run council was recently judged by Ofsted to be failing in its provision to some of the most vulnerable children in the community?

[Sir George Young]

I very much hope that the local authority will respond to the Ofsted report and seek to improve its standards. I will draw my hon. Friend’s concern to the attention of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 10th November 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend is quite right. Under the coalition, the number of academies has increased sixfold from 203 in May 2010 to 1,350 this October. Some 1,526 schools have been able to apply to become academies, and 1,031 have already been converted. As I said in response to my hon. Friend the Member for Harrogate and Knaresborough (Andrew Jones), 116 underperforming schools have been replaced by academies since May 2010, and more than 40% of all secondary schools are now open, or in the process of opening, as academies.

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

May I join other hon. Members who have advocated a debate on the success of academies, especially in areas such as Sandwell, part of which I represent, where a recent Ofsted report gave four out of five academies in the borough good or outstanding ratings, compared with less than half the local education authority-run secondary schools?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend draws attention to a valuable part of the academy programme, namely the freedoms that academies have, which have been put to good use. The standard of education in the schools that have become academies normally exceeds the standard in those that have not, so there is evidence that we are driving up standards in our schools by taking forward the academy programme.

Cabinet Secretary Report (Government Response)

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Wednesday 19th October 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

I think it is clear from the report that things did go wrong in the Ministry of Defence. That was accepted in the permanent secretary’s initial report. Procedures were not followed and we are learning from that and ensuring that there is no recurrence.

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

Is it not the case that my right hon. Friend the Member for North Somerset (Dr Fox) has resigned and that the Cabinet Secretary’s report could not be clearer that there was no breach of national security and that my right hon. Friend did not gain financially from any of these arrangements? Is not the most important thing now for the debate to move on? We have important operations in Libya and Afghanistan that we must focus on in the national interest.

[Sir George Young]

I agree with my hon. Friend. We have commissioned a report, we have found out what went wrong, we have made recommendations to put it right and we have learned the lessons. I agree that we should now move on.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 13th October 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

I shall certainly raise that matter with the appropriate Minister—perhaps the Attorney-General, the Justice Secretary or the Home Secretary. The hon. Lady raises an important issue and I shall ensure that she gets an answer.

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

May we have a debate about immigration? Many of my constituents are keen to see the Government make progress on their promise to reduce migration from the hundreds of thousands that came in under the previous Government to a more reasonable level.

[Sir George Young]

I would welcome such a debate and I am sure that the Opposition would too, as they now recognise that this is an issue that they did not take seriously. We could set out the measures we are taking on students, family visas and work permits to bring the numbers down to a sustainable level.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 14th July 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

I do not know whether the hon. Gentleman applied for a debate on the pre-recess Adjournment, which would have provided an opportunity for such a debate. Otherwise, there will be an opportunity at Home Office questions in September to highlight the excellent work being done to reduce antisocial behaviour in his constituency.

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

May we have a debate on transparency in Government? If we are serious about reforming public services, my constituents require data at a deep level, for example on GPs’ clinical performance, if they are truly to be able to make choices about local public services.

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend will know that the Prime Minister wrote to all Ministers earlier this month committing us to publish key data on the NHS, schools, criminal courts and transport. This represents the most ambitious open data agenda of any Government anywhere in the world and will help to drive up standards in exactly the way my hon. Friend describes.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 7th July 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

Many Members would like to amend the legislation on mobile homes, as I am sure that many with mobile home parks in their constituencies have similar cases to the one that the hon. Gentleman has just mentioned, which I will raise with Ministers at DCLG. There is no legislation imminent, but I think I am right in saying that they have the existing legislation under review.

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

The Leader of the House will be aware that we are currently in co-operatives fortnight. May we have an urgent debate about the importance of developing co-operative and mutual models, particularly for the delivery of public sector services?

[Sir George Young]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend, and I would like to be as co-operative as I can. The coalition agreement sets out commitments to public service mutuals that are being taken forward by the Cabinet Office, and I hope that there might be an initiative in that direction before the House rises.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 16th June 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

The hon. Lady will know that in a week’s time that Minister will be at this Dispatch Box, ready, willing and able to answer questions about the Humber bridge toll.

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

May we have a debate about unemployment and jobs growth? Yesterday’s jobs figures showed a substantial increase in private sector jobs growth in the last quarter, which is of vital importance to my constituency, as it needs to get more, sustainable private sector jobs.

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend reminds the House of the very encouraging set of figures we saw yesterday, which showed that there were an extra 500,000 jobs in the private sector, more than counterbalancing any decline in the number of public sector jobs. Particularly good news was the decline in youth unemployment—that is now at a lower level than we inherited from the outgoing Government.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 28th April 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

In one sense we can have an urgent debate, because we will shortly have the Second Reading of the Public Bodies Bill, currently in another place, in which the “bonfire of the quangos” to which the hon. Gentleman refers is taking place. There will be an opportunity to debate our proposals for public bodies and to ensure that adequate safeguards are in place.

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

Can we have a debate about the performance of the retail sector? The high streets in places such as Halesowen, Blackheath, Cradley Heath and Old Hill in my constituency are vital to the local economy, and I am not aware that we have been able to hold a specific debate about the retail sector.

[Sir George Young]

I welcome the information yesterday that retail sales in volume have increased by 1.3% over the past 12 months and in value by 4.5%. That is some evidence of the recovery to which the Prime Minister referred yesterday, and I should welcome such a debate. There will be a debate on the Finance Bill next week, and there may be an opportunity to debate some of the Government’s measures to promote economic recovery.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 31st March 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

I repeat what I said last week: I am sure that my noble Friend will have heard what the right hon. Gentleman has just said. I will make renewed attempts to ensure that he gets a reply to the issues he has raised.

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

May we have a debate about the continued problem of antisocial behaviour in many of our communities? In particular, may we have a debate about the interesting proposals put forward by Baroness Newlove, which outline how communities in places like my constituency can take more control over the problem of combating antisocial behaviour?

[Sir George Young]

I welcome the Newlove report, which was published yesterday. My hon. Friend might have an opportunity later today in proceedings on the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Bill—perhaps on Third Reading—to develop his points, but we look to act upon Baroness Newlove’s imaginative recommendations to encourage local agencies and central Government to change and make a real difference to local communities.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 3rd February 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

I understand the hon. Gentleman’s concern, and this subject was raised last week. Following that, my hon. Friend the Financial Secretary to the Treasury wrote to the hon. Member for Stretford and Urmston (Kate Green) and a copy of the letter was put in the Library. I suggest that the hon. Gentleman has a look at it, because it sets out our proposals to establish a money advice service, delivering the UK’s first nationally available free financial advice service.

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

My constituents can enjoy good local tourist attractions such as Halesowen abbey and Dudley zoo. May we have a debate about the importance of promoting areas of the country that are not commonly thought of as being tourist destinations, in order to drive economic growth and job creation?

[Sir George Young]

The Minister with responsibility for tourism, the Under-Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport, my hon. Friend the Member for Weston-super-Mare (John Penrose), will develop a tourism strategy. I might suggest to him that he should visit Halesowen abbey and Dudley zoo as part of the strategy of promoting tourism within the country without damaging outbound tourism.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 27th January 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

I will raise the hon. Lady’s concerns with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport and ask him to write to her, but I commend the work of Colin Firth, Tom Hooper and the others who made “The King’s Speech”, and I wish them all the best in their bid for Oscars in the near future.

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

Given the urgent need to rebalance the economy, especially in areas such as the west midlands, may we have an urgent debate to discuss what the Government are doing to support and develop manufacturing businesses in the black country?

[Sir George Young]

I understand my hon. Friend’s concern. We have acted to improve the environment for manufacturers both nationally and in the midlands through lower and simpler business taxes, investment in apprenticeships, creating wider access to finance, a Government-wide commitment to boosting exports, the £1.4 billion regional growth fund and other improvements. I hope he will intervene in the debate next Wednesday to develop his arguments further.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Young of Cookham and James Morris

Thursday 21st October 2010 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

We have just had Communities and Local Government questions, when the Housing Minister said that during the 13 years of Labour Government there was a net gain of 14,000 affordable homes over 13 years. If one sets that against the 150,000 affordable homes which, following the CSR, we hope to provide over the next five years, that puts a slightly different gloss on the hon. Gentleman’s point.

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

The Leader of the House has announced a full day’s debate on the comprehensive spending review. I am not sure whether he will be in a position to do this, but can he clarify who will speak on behalf of the Government, as that might be helpful for Members preparing for the debate? Who else, in an ideal world, would he like to see speaking in that debate?

[Sir George Young]

My right hon. Friend the Chief Secretary will open the debate and my hon. Friend the Economic Secretary will respond. Who else takes part is a matter for Mr Speaker. However, I think it would be helpful if the former Prime Minister were able to come along and explain what steps he would have taken to address the deficit that he has left us with.