Terrorist Attacks (Paris)

Debate between Baroness May of Maidenhead and Phillip Lee

Wednesday 14th January 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mrs May]

I agree with the hon. Lady that it is important that we reiterate the message that this is not about Islam; it is about a perversion of Islam. There are Muslims in this country and other countries around the world who condemn these acts of violence and terrorism, and their voices are being heard in increasing numbers. As I said, they are sending a clear message that this is not in their name. I also say to the hon. Lady that freedom of the press means freedom of the press.

[Dr Phillip Lee (Bracknell) (Con)]

Purveyors of extremism find fertile ground in communities that are not properly assimilated into the mainstream of society. Bearing that in mind, will the Home Secretary consider supporting the introduction of parts on compulsory written and spoken English into the British citizenship test? I believe that shared values and a shared language underpin a strong society, and particularly that if women in such communities were emancipated, they would help pacify young men who might be tempted to copy the extremist behaviour seen so graphically in Paris last week.

[Mrs May]

The Government have of course increased the requirements for those coming into the United Kingdom to be able to speak and understand English. My hon. Friend mentions the role of women, and I share his view that it is important that we hear female voices from the Muslim community. I commend Sara Khan, who has once again stood up and spoken about that issue. In the latter part of last year I attended an inspirational event that she held as part of the #MakingAStand campaign that she was running with Muslim women around the country, saying that they wished to take a stand against those who were trying to radicalise young people in the Muslim community.

Child Abuse

Debate between Baroness May of Maidenhead and Phillip Lee

Monday 7th July 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mrs May]

The review that will be taking place under the direction of Peter Wanless, the chief executive of the NSPCC, with the support I indicated earlier, will precisely be looking at the investigator’s review to see whether it was conducted properly and whether the information was properly dealt with, and will look at what the Home Office did in relation to the files and so forth. So it is a matter that will be looked at by the review of the review.

[Dr Phillip Lee (Bracknell) (Con)]

I thank the Home Secretary for her important and measured statement. With the apparent loss of in excess of about 100 Home Office documents that are relevant to this statement, current testimonies from past victims take on a greater importance. In view of that, is the Home Secretary satisfied that the police, and in particular the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre, have the necessary powers to protect victims from ongoing blackmail? In particular, I gather that there are general concerns around the potential use of photographs and films from the 1970s and ’80s which have now been digitised in order to discourage victims from coming forward.

Stop-and-Search

Debate between Baroness May of Maidenhead and Phillip Lee

Wednesday 30th April 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mrs May]

We are exploring how we can best get that message across. As I have mentioned, part of the package that we are introducing in “best use of stop-and-search” is that a significant number of complaints on the use of stop-and-search in an area will trigger a response from the police. We are looking at how we can best use various means of communicating with people, particularly young people, about the extent to which they can complain. As the hon. Lady and others will know from their experience, the sad fact is that because so many people accept that this is just what happens, they do not complain. When the power is used improperly, we want complaints to come through. We are looking at what information we can put out about how stop-and-search should be conducted. The point that the hon. Member for Hackney South and Shoreditch (Meg Hillier) made earlier about the manner in which stop-and-search is undertaken is important and has been raised with me by young people. They say that if it is done with respect, they have less concern about it than if it is done in the usual way.

[Dr Phillip Lee (Bracknell) (Con)]

It is worth repeating that the number of people stopped and searched under the Terrorism Act 2000 was 32,000 in 2002-03 and 210,000 in 2008-09, and that last year the figure fell to zero. Does the Home Secretary agree that that makes the Conservative party, and not Labour, the real party of the reform of stop-and-search?

[Mrs May]

It is, indeed, a Conservative Home Secretary who is bringing these measures forward, but the Deputy Leader of the House, who is sitting next to me, points out that this is a coalition Government.

Syrian Refugees

Debate between Baroness May of Maidenhead and Phillip Lee

Wednesday 29th January 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mrs May]

I am happy to ensure that regular updates are available for Members, working with not only the Foreign Secretary, but my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development, who should be commended not only for her updates to the House, but for the leading role she has played in providing humanitarian aid in the region.

[Dr Phillip Lee (Bracknell) (Con)]

I of course very much welcome the Home Secretary’s statement. There is a good history of orphans from war-torn countries growing up to be much-valued citizens in their adopted countries. Will she consider prioritising Syrian orphans and perhaps increasing the number that Britain will take? Such a policy would be both morally right and of great benefit to this country’s future.

[Mrs May]

I understand my hon. Friend’s point, but I say to him that we will work with the UNHCR, which will identify the cases that are most vulnerable and most appropriate in terms of the support that the UK can provide.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Baroness May of Maidenhead and Phillip Lee

Monday 28th October 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mrs May]

I know that my hon. Friend has a fondness for taking photographs, and I wonder whether he has taken a photograph of himself that could perhaps be circulated to Members of the House for their edification. He makes an important point, however, and I commend the Pathway project in Lichfield. I have noted the hon. Gentleman’s invitation, as has the Minister for Crime Prevention, for one of us to come and visit. May I say what excellent work people in the Pathway project and similar schemes are doing on this important issue?

[Dr Phillip Lee (Bracknell) (Con)]

2. What assessment she has made of the latest crime figures.

[The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Mrs Theresa May)]

Our police reforms are working and crime is falling. Recorded crime has fallen by more than 10% under this Government, and the independent crime survey shows that crime has more than halved since its peak in 1995.

[Dr Lee]

Between 2011-12 and 2012-13 recorded street-level crime in Bracknell fell by 12%, and recorded antisocial behaviour by almost one third. Does the Home Secretary agree that it is possible to save taxpayers’ money and reduce crime at the same time?

[Mrs May]

I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend. Both our constituencies are served by Thames Valley police, and I am pleased that since 2010, crime has fallen by 25% in the Thames Valley police area, including a fall of 30% in my constituency. My hon. Friend is right. Those who said that when police budgets were cut the only thing that would happen would be for crime to go up have been proved wrong. I commend the work of all the police officers and staff who have contributed to those good crime figures.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Baroness May of Maidenhead and Phillip Lee

Monday 10th June 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mrs May]

Nice try, but the answers on the statutory register are the same as the Government have been giving the Opposition for some months now. I have had a number of discussions with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, as has my hon. Friend the Immigration Minister. I am pleased to say that we have proposals that will ensure that we can indeed tighten access to housing for illegal migrants.

[Dr Phillip Lee (Bracknell) (Con)]

23. The good people of Bracknell want their local health services to be used appropriately. Apparently, there is more than £500,000 outstanding on invoices to overseas patients, just from Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Does the Secretary of State agree that migrant access to the NHS needs to be better regulated?

[Mrs May]

I thank my hon. Friend for his question, particularly as, like him, I have constituents who use that trust. We have a national health service, not an international health service. The rules governing migrant access to the NHS are too generous and ineffectively applied, meaning that they are open to abuse. That is why the Government propose reforming the residence test that governs free NHS access, and are proposing options under which temporary migrants would make a contribution before they used our health service— either through an up-front NHS access fee, or through comprehensive health insurance. We also intend to end free unrestricted access to general practitioners by visitors and illegal migrants, and to introduce measures better to identify patients who must be charged.