Business of the House

Alison Seabeck Excerpts

Thursday 8th January 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

As my hon. Friend knows, the Chancellor has stressed the importance of this matter. As the Chancellor said on Tuesday, the oil price is now at its lowest in five years, and it is vital that this is passed on to families at the petrol pumps, and though utility bills and air fares. The Government are closely monitoring whether companies are passing on to their customers the benefits of plunging oil and gas prices as quickly as possible. Let me add that Ofgem has referred the gas and electricity markets to the competition authorities to ensure that those markets are working effectively, and it has made it clear that it will be looking at the relationship between wholesale costs and retail prices as part of its investigation.

[Alison Seabeck (Plymouth, Moor View) (Lab)]

The Leader of the House will know that the Cabinet Office has recently published its list of upcoming triennial reviews of non-departmental public bodies, helpfully pointing out that they will take six months from start to finish. Will he therefore ask the Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the hon. Member for Camborne and Redruth (George Eustice) to come to this House to explain why the triennial review for the Marine Management Organisation, which closed in October 2013, with publication due in early 2014—a response to a parliamentary question then said it would be published before the end of 2014—has still not been published? This is the subject of a cross-party request for an investigation into the quality of data, and fishers in my constituency are being affected. Will the Leader of the House please explain what the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Government are hiding?

[Mr Hague]

That is, of course, a question directly for the DEFRA Ministers, and the hon. Lady will have opportunities to ask them directly. I am sure she has done so before, so I encourage her to do that again, but I will make it clear to them the concern that she and other Members have about this matter.

Devolution (Implications for England)

Alison Seabeck Excerpts

Tuesday 16th December 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

Yes, absolutely. As I mentioned, I look forward to discussing this point with the County Councils Network, and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government is very conscious of it. I reiterate that the greater freedoms and opportunities for local authorities are open to counties and rural areas, and we should encourage them to make full use of those freedoms.

[Alison Seabeck (Plymouth, Moor View) (Lab)]

The Infrastructure Bill, currently in Committee, contains clauses relating to England, to England and Wales, to Scotland and to London, and permutations of all four. Voters in the south-west will not be happy if the English solution delivers up a block vote for London and Manchester MPs, who have devolved powers. The Leader of the House did not answer the question put by my hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield South East (Mr Betts) on London, so will he have another go and explain how devolved powers to London will be responded to under his proposal?

[Mr Hague]

We—both of the coalition parties involved—envisage greater devolution of powers to local authorities. I mentioned that the Liberal Democrats have proposed devolution on demand, which could include legislative powers. The Conservative party regards legislative powers as remaining here in this House, so on law relating to any part of England the decision would continue to be one for all the Members of Parliament for English constituencies.

Business of the House

Alison Seabeck Excerpts

Thursday 4th December 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

I am certainly always in favour of hon. Members receiving quick replies from Ministers. My hon. Friend is right to pay tribute to his local firefighters. I remind him that the reformed pension scheme for firefighters remains one of the very best in the public sector. As I said earlier, Lord Hutton found that the firefighters pension scheme is the most expensive in the public sector, and that has to be reformed. It will be important across the House to bear these points in mind.

[Alison Seabeck (Plymouth, Moor View) (Lab)]

The debate on the fishing industry will be welcomed by fishermen and fishing communities, and it is nothing less than they deserve. However, there are wider issues. For the past 18 months, I have questioned the accuracy and transparency of data that the Marine Management Organisation is supplying to the Government, and the hon. and learned Member for Torridge and West Devon (Mr Cox) has called for an independent review. There is a wider issue about the importance of accuracy and transparency of data across Departments, because clearly Government decisions on investment depend on accurate data. May we find time for a debate on the collection of data for Government?

[Mr Hague]

As the hon. Lady acknowledges, a debate on the specifics of the fishing industry will take place a week today. That is a general debate, so if she is able to catch your eye, Mr Speaker, she will be able to make those points in so far as they relate to the fishing industry. I cannot offer a wider debate on data collection. She can make her case to the Backbench Business Committee, but the Government do not currently have any time to allocate to the subject.

Business of the House

Alison Seabeck Excerpts

Thursday 17th July 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

I cannot promise such a debate, given all the pressing matters that the House has to deal with, but my hon. Friend is quite right to raise the issue. Indeed, Harrogate college is one of the very long list of things that we are proud of in North Yorkshire. He raises the importance of local growth to our long-term economic recovery, which will be supported not least by last week’s announcement of £6 billion for local growth deals. He highlights the importance of colleges in the education system. I know that he will join me in welcoming the £1 billion that has been put into the Youth Contract for more apprenticeships, work experience places and wage incentives.

[Alison Seabeck (Plymouth, Moor View) (Lab)]

Lawyers in Plymouth are very angry. The right hon. Gentleman’s constituents and mine are getting pretty desperate in their attempts to find ways to access the law, particularly those who are on low pay. The latest issue is the summer contract changes. Lawyers are becoming very worried that they will not be able to meet the timetable and that law firms will close. Will he please encourage the Justice Secretary to come to the House in September to update Members on the effect of that change?

Business of the House

Alison Seabeck Excerpts

Thursday 26th June 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lansley]

I understand the point that my hon. Friend makes, but that business for the week after next is not only provisional but highly provisional. I will reflect on what he said and make an announcement about the future business next week.

[Alison Seabeck (Plymouth, Moor View) (Lab)]

In September 2013 the Treasury wrote that Equitable Life policyholders would receive some repayments. My constituents are dying, sadly, and are very elderly, and they have not received a penny. Will the Leader of the House ask a Treasury Minister to come to the House and explain this wholly unacceptable delay?

[Mr Lansley]

I will ask my right hon. Friends at the Treasury to respond to the hon. Lady on that. I will take an interest and ensure that I see the response. If they need to correspond with Members more generally on the subject, I will ask them to consider that, too.

Business of the House

Alison Seabeck Excerpts

Thursday 8th May 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lansley]

My hon. Friend makes a good point. I know from my former interest in the health service that it is a matter of considerable concern to health workers that they are kept safe. Assaults on any of our public sector or emergency service workers, on whom we depend, should be treated very seriously. I cannot promise an immediate debate, but it strikes me as a subject that would merit one. Perhaps it would be helpful if my hon. Friend secured an Adjournment debate to discuss those issues.

[Alison Seabeck (Plymouth, Moor View) (Lab)]

We have already heard from my hon. Friend the Member for Stoke-on-Trent South (Robert Flello) concerns about the way in which Government consultations are being carried out. Does the Leader of the House accept that the public place a great deal of value on the quality of Government consultations, irrespective of the nature and type of Government, and on their open-mindedness, and so on? Does he therefore share my concerns that the consultation on the future of the Land Registry and 600 jobs in Plymouth appears, from board minutes, to have been a total sham? Will he ask the Business Secretary to come to this House and make a statement?

[Mr Lansley]

I will ask the Business Secretary to respond to the hon. Lady. I do not share her concerns about that matter. It is important to recognise that the Land Registry continues to make greater efficiencies and progress. She will have seen the written ministerial statement made today about the targets that are being set for the Land Registry’s future activities. That is important because of the service that it provides to people in this country.

Business of the House

Alison Seabeck Excerpts

Thursday 23rd January 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lansley]

My hon. Friend raises an important point, and I wish him well with the plans that his constituents are putting together. As he will know, our view is that there is a valuable long-standing tradition of faith schools in this country, and we support the contribution that they make. They are often high-performing schools that are popular with parents, and many of them are therefore over-subscribed. Two Hindu free schools have thus far been established—the Krishna Avanti primary school in Leicester and the Avanti House school in London, which opened in 2012. I hope that this continuing trend of support for faith schools will be sustained.

[Alison Seabeck (Plymouth, Moor View) (Lab)]

The Leader of the House has rightly commended the work of the emergency services in tackling flooding, and I particularly draw attention to the fire service. My local firefighters are somewhat bemused that they do not have a statutory duty to attend flooding incidents. May we therefore have a debate on the implications of there being no statutory duty, so that we can ask the fire Minister, the Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, the hon. Member for Great Yarmouth (Brandon Lewis), to explain why that is still the position?

[Mr Lansley]

I will gladly raise that point with the Minister with responsibility for fire services, and he may like to reply to the hon. Lady. I have to say that I do not think that fire services would generally regard themselves as in any way constrained by their statutory responsibilities in attending whenever they felt there was a public need for them to do so.

Business of the House

Alison Seabeck Excerpts

Thursday 9th January 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lansley]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising an important point on behalf of her businesses. I am sure that she, like me, welcomed what the Chancellor had to say in his autumn statement in support of small businesses, specifically in relation to rates, including the announcement of £1 billion of support for business rate payers and the £1,000 discount, which will benefit approximately 300,000 shops, pubs and restaurants. That is very important. My hon. Friend raises the issue of rateable values, which are assessed by estimating rental value in the open market at a standard valuation date, currently 1 April 2008. Of course, any ratepayer can appeal their valuation if they feel it is inaccurate. The Department for Communities and Local Government recently published proposals to help speed up that appeals process.

[Alison Seabeck (Plymouth, Moor View) (Lab)]

The Prime Minister promised—very vocally—action on minimum alcohol pricing, but that seems to have waned as influence from lobbyists has grown. Could we please have a statement in the House on the Government’s precise position on this policy area?

[Mr Lansley]

We have been very clear that we are not at this stage proceeding with proposals on minimum alcohol unit pricing. We are going to learn more, for example, about what the consequences of the introduction of such a policy might be in Scotland. I have two things to say to the hon. Lady. First, it was only ever part of an alcohol strategy that my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary announced to the House, and a wide range of measures can have a substantial impact, including local alcohol partnerships, on reducing alcohol content. Secondly, when I had meetings with the drinks industry, they were not about lobbying against minimum unit pricing, but about getting a commitment from the industry to take 1 billion units a year out of the content of alcohol sold in this country, which would be extremely valuable.

Business of the House

Alison Seabeck Excerpts

Thursday 19th December 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lansley]

I will, if I may, ask my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport to respond to my hon. Friend in relation to that.

[Alison Seabeck (Plymouth, Moor View) (Lab)]

Police in Devon and Cornwall get less per head than those in leafy Surrey. Our transport infrastructure investment is less than that in any other part of the country, despite the problems we have with flooding on the main line. Plymouth’s public health statistics are worse than those in almost any other part of the country on a whole range of levels, yet we get only £47 per head in Plymouth compared with £77 in Portsmouth and £66 in Bristol, and Windsor and Maidenhead do infinitely better. May we have an urgent debate on the funding distribution and formula basis of all these decisions, because regionally and in Plymouth we lose out?

[Mr Lansley]

I will not go through all those things, but the hon. Lady will know of the focus being given by the Department for Transport to improving routes, including the A30 across Bodmin. My hon. Friend the Member for Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport (Oliver Colvile) has asked questions about that and I and other Ministers have responded to them.

I held discussions with Plymouth city council two or more years ago about how actively it was considering bringing people together to promote public health in the city. As such, all local authorities have seen an increase in their allocation of public health resources.

Business of the House

Alison Seabeck Excerpts

Thursday 12th December 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lansley]

Like other Members, I am aware of the issue my hon. Friend raises. It is often quite complex: there is not necessarily no help at all, but that help may be limited to those in low-income households. I will ask my right hon. and hon. Friends at the Department for Education to reply to him about those issues and how they see us being able to help promote parental choice in relation to schools.

[Alison Seabeck (Plymouth, Moor View) (Lab)]

In the light of a constituency case, may I ask the Leader of the House to persuade the Secretary of State for Health to come to this House to make a statement on the lack of places available to sectioned juveniles? There appears to be a dearth of units around the country appropriate for that type of care, and commissioners have told me that they find it difficult, in the current health structure, to work out how best to place these young people.

[Mr Lansley]

I will raise that issue with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State. If, as the hon. Lady says, it relates to a constituency case, I am sure she will write to him—if she has not done so already—and I shall encourage him to respond on the particular case and the general point.