Thomas Cook Customers

Christine Jardine Excerpts

Tuesday 5th November 2019 Commons Chamber

[Andrea Leadsom]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his recognition of the fact that it felt important to raise this before the House prior to Dissolution. He is absolutely right. In doing so, we seek to provide some sort of reassurance to those who have been profoundly impacted by accidents and illnesses overseas on Thomas Cook holidays. He asked whether there could have been any legitimate expectation that this might have happened. That is not the case. It was never anticipated that a business such as Thomas Cook would not have adequately provided for such claims that were known to them. I am putting on notice today that any future Government––I am sure that the Opposition spokesman has made similar a commitment––will wish to resolve this to ensure that it cannot happen again. BEIS officials will work over the next few weeks to bring forward proposals on how to ensure that this cannot be repeated.

[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

I share the Secretary of State’s surprise and horror that Thomas Cook was operating without the necessary insurance. Many of my constituents and, indeed, I myself travelled with Thomas Cook unknowing. We all assume that the safeguards that we see with travel companies through the Association of British Travel Agents and so on ensure that we are travelling safely and that we are protected. Will the Secretary of State assure us that there will be safeguards to ensure not just that we investigate what went wrong at Thomas Cook, but that all travel companies, or anyone offering travel in this country, is properly insured?

[Andrea Leadsom]

The hon. Lady gives me the opportunity to say this again: I call on all similar travel and tour operators to ensure that they covered this and that they have not got a similar arrangement to the one that Thomas Cook had. I can assure her that BEIS officials during the next few weeks will bring forward proposals for ensuring that this does not happen again

Oral Answers to Questions

Christine Jardine Excerpts

Tuesday 8th January 2019 Commons Chamber

[Greg Clark]

My hon. Friend is right that the fundamental attractions of the UK economy are as strong as ever. We have some of the best skills in the world, some of the most innovative people and some of the best scientists and researchers, but we also have access to a substantial European market that has proved attractive to businesses from around the world. We should continue with that, and we should have both.

[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

T9. Given that the European Union is the biggest regional market for whisky—worth £1.4 billion last year—and that no deal would force significant label change costs on independent producers, which currently do not have to display an EU importer address, what are the Government doing to reassure and compensate producers that are already incurring significant costs due to this Government’s dither, delay and uncertainty?

[Greg Clark]

I might ask the hon. Lady what she is doing to address that. The Scotch Whisky Association has been very clear; it has said that the withdrawal agreement is a compromise but a positive step towards much needed business certainty. If she cares about the industry, she should vote for the deal.

Delivery Charges (Scotland)

Christine Jardine Excerpts

Wednesday 20th December 2017 Westminster Hall

[Margot James]

I am not aware of any contact. My office has not had any, but I will find out whether any other offices in my Department have had any contact and write to my hon. Friend with the answer. Obviously this is not a devolved matter, but since he has asked, I will give him the answer.

Online shopping is an increasingly important part of our economy.

[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

rose—

[Margot James]

I will give way in a minute, but I want to cover a lot of points made in the debate and I have only 10 minutes or so.

Retailers have legal obligations to be up-front about their delivery charges—where they deliver to, what they charge, and any premiums that apply—before an order is placed, so that consumers at least have the information they need under consumer law and can make informed decisions before purchasing online.

[Christine Jardine]

Does the Minister agree that it is frustrating that Sir Robert Smith, the then MP for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine, introduced a private Member’s Bill to address this very issue back in 2013—yet here we are, four years down the line, and no progress has been made?

[Margot James]

I certainly understand the hon. Lady’s frustration, and the frustration felt and expressed by other Members of Parliament this afternoon. I was not aware of that, although I was a Member at the time. I missed that private Member’s Bill, but clearly this issue has a lot of history, and is all the more frustrating for that, as the hon. Lady says.

Consumers must have the information needed under consumer law. At the same time, if retailers are to exploit fully the vast market potential of online business, they will need to listen to and respond to the needs of consumers in all parts of the country, developing effective delivery solutions throughout the United Kingdom.

The Government strongly encourage businesses to provide consumers as far as possible with a range of affordable delivery options. It is really up to businesses to determine the most appropriate delivery options for their products.

Student Loans Company

Christine Jardine Excerpts

Monday 20th November 2017 Commons Chamber

[Joseph Johnson]

Yes, I am afraid the Labour party has got that wrong. As I have just said, the rate at which students from the most disadvantaged backgrounds are going to university has jumped sharply over the past six or seven years. They are now 43% more likely to go into higher education than they were in 2009-10.

[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

As the mother of a daughter with a student loan, I was appalled by a BBC report of evidence that education agents are recruiting bogus students to private colleges to defraud the taxpayer of thousands of pounds in student loans. What are the Department, the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education and the Student Loans Company doing to detect and prevent bogus students? For instance, will the Government legislate to ban essay mills?

[Joseph Johnson]

The Department takes allegations of fraud and malpractice extremely seriously, and we are grateful to “Panorama” for bringing to our attention the fraud allegations it aired in relation to student loans at three private providers. Fraud devalues the work of honest providers and students. Working with stakeholders, including the City of London police, we will take robust action where abuses of the system are evident.

To put this in context, it is vital we remember that the number of ineligible payments to such providers is very low. It is about 0.5% of all payments, and that has come down sharply from 4% in 2012-13. The rate is no higher than the rate of ineligible payments across the rest of the Higher Education Funding Council-funded, or publicly funded, world of higher education.