Oral Answers to Questions

Chris Ruane Excerpts

Wednesday 12th June 2013 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. We see today a growth in employment, a fall in the claimant count and a fall in youth unemployment. As I have said, we are losing jobs in the public sector because we had to make cuts to it, but, most importantly of all, while we lost more than 100,000 jobs in the public sector in the past year, we gained five times as many in the private sector—[Interruption.] The shadow Chancellor, as ever, wants to give a running commentary, but let me remind the House what he has said, because this is one of the most important quotations in the past 10 years of British politics. He said:

“Do I think the last Labour government spent too much, was profligate, had too”

much

“national debt? No, I don’t think there’s any evidence for that.”

That phrase will be hung around his neck for ever.

[Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd) (Lab)]

Q9. Five hundred homes in my constituency were flooded in November. Residents in my constituency are terrified that their homes and businesses are now worthless because this Government have failed to replace the flood insurance scheme. They have also cut more than £200 million from flood defence works. Why has the Prime Minister sold my constituency down the river?

[The Prime Minister]

I can give the hon. Gentleman welcome news. We had to extend the period of the scheme so that we could continue negotiations, but I am confident that we will put in place a proper successor to it. An announcement will be made quite soon.

Oral Answers to Questions

Chris Ruane Excerpts

Wednesday 12th December 2012 Commons Chamber

[Ian Murray (Edinburgh South) (Lab)]

3. How her Department plans to reach the Government’s target of spending 0.7% of gross national income on development aid by 2015.

[Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd) (Lab)]

4. How her Department plans to reach the Government’s target of spending 0.7% of gross national income on development aid by 2015.

[The Minister of State, Department for International Development (Mr Alan Duncan)]

The Government are committed to spending 0.7% of gross national income on development assistance from 2013 and thereafter. The Department’s budget after the 2012 autumn statement adjustment is sufficient to meet this commitment, along with planned official development assistance from other Government Departments.

[Mr Duncan]

The Prime Minister has been absolutely clear that the Government will introduce legislation to make this a legal requirement as soon as parliamentary time allows. As evidence of good faith, the hon. Gentleman should notice that we are behaving as if the legislation were already in place, and we will meet the 0.7% commitment.

[Chris Ruane]

What is the Minister’s assessment of the implications of the decrease in absolute spending on development announced in the autumn statement?

[Mr Duncan]

The effect is to reduce the immediate planned budget by £804 million—a reduction of about £2 billion since the original spending review period. We will, of course, make adjustments to make sure that our spending within those reduced figures retains the value for money that we see as such a high priority.

Aid Reviews

Chris Ruane Excerpts

Tuesday 1st March 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. My exhortations to brevity have not been quite as faithfully heeded as I might have hoped, but I feel sure that we will return to the path of virtue with a question from Mr Chris Ruane.

[Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd) (Lab)]

Today is St David’s day, and Wales is twinned with Lesotho. Will the Secretary of State tell us why Lesotho has been victimised in these cuts, and whether he had any discussions with the Welsh Assembly Government about his decision?

[Mr Mitchell]

The Under-Secretary of State for International Development will be visiting Wales shortly. I reciprocate the comments of the hon. Member for Vale of Clwyd (Chris Ruane) about St David’s day. In regard to Lesotho, we think that there are better ways of supporting that country than through a bilateral programme, for the reasons that I set out earlier. When my hon. Friend goes to Wales and meets Members of the Welsh Assembly, I am sure that this is one of the matters that can be discussed.