Business of the House

Angela Eagle Excerpts

Wednesday 3rd December 2014 Commons Chamber

[The First Secretary of State and Leader of the House of Commons (Mr William Hague)]

With permission, Mr Speaker, following the announcement regarding the reform of residential rates of stamp duty land tax, made by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer, I should like to make a short business statement regarding tomorrow’s business.

The business for tomorrow will now be:

Thursday 4 December—Motion to approve a financial resolution for the purposes of the Provisional Collection of Taxes Act 1968, followed by the business as previously announced: a debate on a motion relating to the Financial Conduct Authority redress scheme, and a general debate on availability and pricing of branded medicines on the NHS. The subjects for both debates were recommended by the Backbench Business Committee.

I will make my usual business statement tomorrow.

[Ms Angela Eagle (Wallasey) (Lab)]

I thank the Leader of the House for finally deigning to inform us about the content of the unidentified Government business, which he was so coy about last Thursday. We have been waiting all week with bated breath, wondering what on earth it might be about. We dreamed that it might be about action to tackle low pay or under-employment, which is now rife in the country, hitting living standards and tax receipts. We thought that he might announce an intention to reverse the millionaires’ tax cut, or promise that the Government will not raise VAT. However, with the sudden legislation on stamp duty, are not the Government trying to hide the fact that the Chancellor’s promise to eliminate the deficit in five years is running four years late, borrowing is up by £12.5 billion compared with the March Budget, and he has had to borrow £219 billion more than he forecast he would in 2010? Is not he attempting to disguise the fact that the Government’s incompetence has wasted over £100 billion, which is £4,000 for every taxpayer in the country? The Chancellor may think he has a cunning plan, but every day he is looking less like the Machiavelli he models himself on, and more like Baldrick.

[Mr Hague]

I will take that as a welcome for the resolution tomorrow. I think that the hon. Lady made a better presentation of the Labour party’s case than the shadow Chancellor did a couple of hours ago. We look forward to her elevation to that position. She would be a dramatic improvement on the Opposition Front Bench.

It is apparent why I was coy about the business last week. It would have caused considerable mayhem had I announced the business for tomorrow last week, both to the Chancellor’s autumn statement and to the housing market. Therefore, I am sure that the House understands the reason why that business has been nominated today, just as I hope that it will understand the tremendous progress announced by the Chancellor in bringing down unemployment and addressing all the other issues that she mentioned.