Oral Answers to Questions

Gordon Henderson Excerpts

Wednesday 19th March 2014 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

The right hon. Gentleman raises an important point not just about parity of esteem for mental health in law, but about what we see on the ground. We have put £400 million into talking therapies, which are a very important part of mental health provision. Mental health provision is referenced very clearly in the mandate that is given to NHS England, which in many ways is the absolutely key document for the health service. He is absolutely right that a culture change in favour of mental health and helping with mental health problems is still needed in the way the health service works. On that, there can be all-party support.

[Gordon Henderson (Sittingbourne and Sheppey) (Con)]

Q15. Many small business entrepreneurs in Sittingbourne and Sheppey have personal incomes below the current welfare cap. With that in mind, will my right hon. Friend consider doing more for small businesses by reducing the burden of regulation, lowering tax and increasing thresholds, as well as by offering them extra assistance in taking on more apprentices?

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend makes an important point, which is that a key part of our long-term economic plan is to help small businesses take more people on. Absolutely key to that is the employment allowance—the cut in national insurance contributions of £2,000—that will come in this April. It is very important that we all encourage all small businesses to take up that money and therefore to take on more people. At the same time, we are abolishing employer’s national insurance contributions for the under-21s from April 2015. Companies, including those in his constituency, can therefore start planning to take on more people.

Oral Answers to Questions

Gordon Henderson Excerpts

Wednesday 26th June 2013 Commons Chamber

The Prime Minister was asked—

[Gordon Henderson (Sittingbourne and Sheppey) (Con)]

Q1. If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 26 June.

[The Prime Minister (Mr David Cameron)]

This morning, I had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others, and, in addition to my duties in this House, I shall have further such meetings later today.

[Gordon Henderson]

Many people in Sittingbourne and Sheppey who have mortgages are benefiting from historically low interest rates. What reassurance can my right hon. Friend give my constituents that their mortgages will continue to be affordable under his Government?

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend makes an important point. We do enjoy record low interest rates, and that is good news for home owners. What we need to do is stick to the plans that we have set out and have a sensible fiscal policy, so that the Bank of England can keep interest rates low. Here is one piece of advice I will not be taking: on Saturday the leader of the Labour party said that he wanted to control borrowing but on Sunday the shadow Chancellor said borrowing would go up. Perhaps the leader of the Labour party will admit it when he gets to his feet: Labour would borrow more.

Oral Answers to Questions

Gordon Henderson Excerpts

Wednesday 21st November 2012 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

Last Thursday the people of Humberside spoke for the whole nation. [Hon. Members: “More!”] Happily, there is more, because the former Deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott, said that this

“is not just about the police. This is a referendum on everything this…government has done…On the health, on the education, on the local authorities”,

and people took the first opportunity to kick him out.

I think that it is the leader of the Labour party who made history this week, because he told his conference that he wanted to be Disraeli; he told Radio 4 that he wanted to be Margaret Thatcher; he came to this House and said that he was more Eurosceptic than Bill Cash; and then he went to the CBI and said that he loved Europe even more than Tony Blair. He has impersonated more politicians than Rory Bremner, but this time the joke is on him.

[Gordon Henderson (Sittingbourne and Sheppey) (Con)]

Q5. Does my right hon. Friend agree that a free press is one of the cornerstones of a true democracy, and that any attempt to muzzle newspapers, such as those of the excellent Kent Messenger Group in my constituency, should be strenuously resisted?

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend makes an important point. I join him in expressing my admiration for the Kent Messenger Group and all that it does. The problems there have been in our newspaper industry have not concerned regional and local titles, which perform an incredibly important function in our democratic system. However, we all have to wait for the Leveson report, study it carefully and respond to what it says.

Oral Answers to Questions

Gordon Henderson Excerpts

Wednesday 11th January 2012 Commons Chamber

[Michael Moore]

The hon. Lady makes an important point about the contrast between the level of spending to support some of the most vulnerable in our society in Scotland and, indeed, the rest of the country and the volatility of oil revenues. I believe that we can have a more secure and generous welfare system by sharing the risks and resources across the whole of the United Kingdom, which has helped Scotland through difficult times in the past and at present.

[Gordon Henderson (Sittingbourne and Sheppey) (Con)]

Does my right hon. Friend agree that all Scots should be entitled to vote in any referendum on independence, whether or not they live in Scotland, including my dad, who is a proud Scotsman who happens to live in England and thinks of himself first and foremost as British?

[Michael Moore]

I pay tribute to my hon. Friend’s dad’s sense of patriotism and I am sure that he, like many other Scots around the country and around the world, will wish to contribute to our consultation. Like me, they will want to see this referendum on the most historic decision we will ever take in Scotland carried out legally and fairly, on a straightforward and decisive basis. Let us get that sorted and let us get on with the debate.