Welfare Cap
Debate between Ian Lavery and Natascha Engel(9 years ago)
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Ian Lavery
The Chancellor stood up and said that he was proud to have these targets set in stone. He tried to set a trap for the Labour party on this issue, but he wanted the benefits cap set in stone. The Minister is now explaining that, for the next two or three years, there is no chance of meeting those targets. Please tell us that you are slightly embarrassed or concerned.
Madam Deputy Speaker (Natascha Engel)
Order. I am not embarrassed or concerned. The Minister might be, but I am not.
Trade Union Bill
Debate between Ian Lavery and Natascha Engel(9 years, 1 month ago)
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Madam Deputy Speaker (Natascha Engel)
Order. No shouting out. If Members want to intervene, they should stand up and do so.
Open-cast Coal Sites (Restoration)
Debate between Ian Lavery and Natascha Engel(9 years, 10 months ago)
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Natascha Engel
I agree that that sounds like a good idea, but would it not allow those people—who I think we both agree are cowboys who have made an awful lot of money from excavating the coal—to get away scot-free?
Ian Lavery
I fully agree with that, but I am looking at this from the perspective of the people who live next to those sites. They have had to endure the conditions created by the open-cast mines for quite some time. If there are legal processes available—as there should be—they often take a long time, but that is not to say that we should not challenge those companies for every single ha’penny we possibly can.
Coal has been a political football for quite some time; it has been kicked from pillar to post for generations. It has much to offer, however. Perhaps the real answer to the question of the cost of obtaining the indigenous coal reserves that we are blessed with would be to abolish the carbon price support in its entirety. I am merely suggesting that. I am not sure whether the Minister would consider it, but I would welcome his views on the matter.