Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Ben Gummer and Melanie Onn(7 years, 9 months ago)
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Ben Gummer
We must learn from each other, which is why we are members of the Open Government Partnership, which this country helped to set up. I have been to the OGP conference to learn from others, and we will continue to learn in that way, including from the OECD, the G20 and the International Aid Transparency Initiative.
Melanie Onn (Great Grimsby) (Lab)
Does the Minister believe that transparency should begin at home? If he does, can he please explain where the response is to my letter of 19 December, which is addressed to his Department and to the director-general of his Department’s propriety and ethics team, because I have yet to receive it?
Ben Gummer
I profoundly apologise to the hon. Lady if we have not responded in time. It is very important to me that we respond courteously and quickly to Members, and I shall chase up the matter immediately and make sure that she gets a proper response.
NHS Success Regime
Debate between Ben Gummer and Melanie Onn(9 years, 6 months ago)
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Urgent Questions are proposed each morning by backbench MPs, and up to two may be selected each day by the Speaker. Chosen Urgent Questions are announced 30 minutes before Parliament sits each day.
Each Urgent Question requires a Government Minister to give a response on the debate topic.
This information is provided by Parallel Parliament and does not comprise part of the offical record
Ben Gummer
It gives me particular pleasure to respond to my right hon. and learned Friend. He was an exceptional Secretary of State for Health because he understood the centrality of local decisions by patients and their doctors and commissioners. I confirm that we will continue to allow local commissioners to make the decisions, rather than try to wrest power back from them to Whitehall, which is precisely what the shadow Secretary of State did when he was Secretary of State.
Melanie Onn (Great Grimsby) (Lab)
Is not the fact that these drastic steps have been taken a sign that care problems are becoming more likely under this Government and not less?
Ben Gummer
I welcome the hon. Lady to her place. I only hope that she does not have the same contempt for her constituents that her predecessor seems to have expressed. It is interesting how it all comes out afterwards. I repeat to the hon. Lady that the decisions will be made locally by local people and local commissioners in response to local problems, and where they arise we will seek to address them.