Draft Public Procurement (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019
Debate between Greg Knight and Oliver Dowden(5 years, 9 months ago)
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The Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office (Oliver Dowden)
I beg to move,
That the Committee has considered the draft Public Procurement (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019.
May I say what a pleasure it is to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Henry? The Government are committed to securing an agreement on the UK’s exit from the EU, but clearly we must be prepared for all outcomes. The legal framework for the regulation of public procurement by the Government and public sector bodies is essential to the day-to-day running of the public sector and to the economy. If no deal is reached with the EU, certain aspects of that legal framework will be deficient, leaving the public sector and businesses without legal clarity. The statutory instrument therefore seeks to address those deficiencies in a no-deal scenario.
The amendments in the draft regulations provide a balance between the need to maintain continuity based on the established framework and principles, and the need to correct those deficiencies to the extent permitted by the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. Principally, the statutory instrument amends three sets of regulations that implement EU directives on awarding contracts and concessions in the public and utilities sectors outside the field of defence and security.
One of the key amendments is to replace the requirement to publish contract notices in the Official Journal of the European Union with a requirement to submit notices to the UK e-notification service. That is intended simply to comply with the publication requirements of the World Trade Organisation agreement on Government procurement. The UK e-notification service is being developed and is on track to be in place by exit day.
Sir Greg Knight (East Yorkshire) (Con)
I realise that the explanatory memorandum does not officially form part of the instrument we are debating, but it is there to help us. Paragraph 6.6 of the memorandum states:
“There are some deficiencies in the Regulations that have not been fixed in this instrument.”
Can the Minister tell us what those deficiencies are, when they are likely to be fixed and debated, and why we are doing this in a piecemeal manner?
Oliver Dowden
I am happy to write to my right hon. Friend with fuller details, but the instrument essentially seeks to align the procurement regime we have under the EU and bring it into UK law. There will be further opportunities to fix deficiencies as we continue to reform regulation in a post-EU environment.
Dog Meat (South Korea)
Debate between Greg Knight and Oliver Dowden(8 years, 2 months ago)
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Oliver Dowden (Hertsmere) (Con)
I beg to move,
That this House has considered e-petition 120702 relating to South Korea and the dog meat trade.
May I begin, Mr Nuttall, by thanking you for chairing this important debate, which I am introducing on behalf of the Petitions Committee? It has attracted a huge amount of support. More than 100,000 people have signed the petition, but I know that the interest goes much wider than those who have signed it. Already articles in papers such as the Daily Mirror have attracted a huge amount of interest and public reaction, so I know there is great concern about the topic.
I must admit that before I agreed to introduce the debate I had relatively little knowledge of the dog meat trade. We are all naturally repulsed by the idea, but I have been shocked and deeply concerned by some of the evidence that has been presented to me, and I thank the organisations that provided it, including the Humane Society International, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and World Protection for Dogs and Cats in the Meat Trade, as well as other charitable organisations and groups that have come into contact with me.
Before I talk about some of the specific concerns about the trade, I will make a few general points. I lived in east Asia for some time and am acutely aware that we need to be sensitive to cultural differences. The fact that South Korea has been picked for inclusion in the motion is probably to do with the fact that the winter Olympics are coming to the country in 2018. We should be mindful that the practice in question is not confined to South Korea. It is very prevalent in China, Vietnam, Thailand and other countries.
Sir Greg Knight (East Yorkshire) (Con)
Does my hon. Friend agree that one problem in trying to persuade people not to eat dog meat is the long-held view of many that it contains mythical health qualities, and that eating dog meat is somehow better for them? Does he agree, also, that it is sometimes difficult to persuade people that their long-held beliefs are no more than a load of old codswallop?
Oliver Dowden
It is absolutely right to highlight that long-held view about the properties of dog meat. That point is also relevant to some of the barbaric methods of slaughter.