Ivan Lewis
Independent - Former Member for Bury South
First elected: 1st May 1997
Left House: 6th November 2019 (Defeated)
6 Former APPG memberships
African Great Lakes Region, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia and Djibouti, Greater Manchester, Homelessness, Mental HealthDivision Voting information
Ivan Lewis voted No - against a party majority and against the House
One of 2 Labour No votes vs 271 Labour Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 279 Noes - 232
Ivan Lewis voted Aye - against a party majority and against the House
One of 56 Labour Aye votes vs 231 Labour No votes
Tally: Ayes - 233 Noes - 304
Ivan Lewis voted Aye - against a party majority and against the House
One of 126 Labour Aye votes vs 184 Labour No votes
Tally: Ayes - 155 Noes - 418
Ivan Lewis voted Aye - against a party majority and against the House
One of 132 Labour Aye votes vs 177 Labour No votes
Tally: Ayes - 178 Noes - 392
Ivan Lewis voted Aye - against a party majority and in line with the House
One of 156 Labour Aye votes vs 157 Labour No votes
Tally: Ayes - 305 Noes - 267
All Debates
Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
Sparring Partners
(47 debate interactions)
(18 debate interactions)
Department Debates
(66 debate contributions)
(40 debate contributions)
(31 debate contributions)
(27 debate contributions)
Legislation Debates
(2,948 words contributed)
(2,948 words contributed)
(2,001 words contributed)
(600 words contributed)
Latest EDMs signed by Ivan Lewis
Racism in football
Tabled by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Friern Barnet)That this House condemns the appalling racism at the Haringey Borough v. Yeovil Town FA Cup game on 19 October; applauds the Haringey players and management for their brave and principled decision to walk off in the face of such abuse; calls on the Football Association to ensure that those …
(Most recent: 16 Dec 2019)
Signatures by party:
Labour: 33
Conservative: 6
Independent: 6
Liberal Democrat: 5
Scottish National Party: 4
Democratic Unionist Party: 3
Plaid Cymru: 1
Green Party: 1
The Independent Group for Change: 1
Kashmiri people
Tabled by: Debbie Abrahams (Labour - Oldham East and Saddleworth)That this House calls on the Government to use all diplomatic and economic measures at its disposal to influence the Indian and Pakistan Governments to ensure that democracy is respected and that the Kashmiri people are at the heart of any constitutional reform of the region, including respecting both the …
(Most recent: 16 Dec 2019)
Signatures by party:
Labour: 20
Independent: 5
Conservative: 3
Democratic Unionist Party: 1
Plaid Cymru: 1
Scottish National Party: 1
Commons initiatives
These initiatives were driven by Ivan Lewis, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
MPs who are act as Ministers or Shadow Ministers are generally restricted from performing Commons initiatives other than Urgent Questions.
Ivan Lewis has not been granted any Urgent Questions
3 Adjournment Debates led by Ivan Lewis
Ivan Lewis has not introduced any legislation before Parliament
Ivan Lewis has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting
Latest 50 Written Questions
(View all written questions)36 Other Department Questions
The law is very clear that employers must make reasonable adjustments for employees and job applicants who meet the Equality Act 2010’s definition of disability, namely having a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term negative effect on the person’s ability to do normal daily activities. Where a disability is not obvious, it will be necessary for the employee or job applicant to declare their condition, but at that point the onus passes to the employer to meet its legal obligations.
To help employers comply with the law, the Government has issued guidance on the duty to make reasonable adjustments, here: https://www.gov.uk/reasonable-adjustments-for-disabled-workers
In addition, guidance on this subject has been issued by Acas and by the Equality and Human Rights Commission, which has also published a statutory code of practice for employers. Where employers fall short on their obligations, legal remedies exist for employees and job applicants, together with Acas’s early conciliation service, which aims to settle disputes before they reach the employment tribunal.
Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
Discriminatory behaviours and practices in the workplace, including those related to disabled employees and job applicants, are both unacceptable and unlawful. Protections for disabled employees and job applicants exist in the Equality Act 2010 and remedies are available where breaches occur. Acas and the Equality and Human Rights Commission, have published comprehensive guidance to assist employees identify discrimination and other unlawful conduct and then enforce their rights. This guidance can be found at:
http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1859; and https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/advice-and-guidance/disability-discrimination
The Equality and Human Rights Commission is responsible for ensuring that the Equality Act 2010 is enforced and has become involved in cases where a particular principle of law is concerned or where there is evidence of widespread or systematic discrimination.
Acas provides free authoritative and impartial advice to employees, job applicants and employers on their website at http://www.acas.org.uk, and via their telephone helpline 08457 47 47 47.
The Government-funded Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS) also provides free bespoke advice and in-depth support to individuals with discrimination concerns and can be contacted via their website at www.equalityadvisoryservice.com, or by telephone on 0808 8000082 or text phone on 0808 8000084. The EASS also supports individuals to resolve issues using alternative informal dispute resolution and can also advise people who wish to take their complaint further on their options.
Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The Government is committed to full gender equality in the workplace. We will be introducing gender pay gap reporting for companies with at least 250 employees and will provide £500,000 in support to help business calculate, understand and address their gender pay gaps. The Government expects employers to start publishing the required information from April 2017.
The Government’s ambition is to unlock the skills, talents and experience of older workers. Working with business, International Women’s Day 2016 saw the Women’s Business Council launching a toolkit to encourage older women to enter and stay on in the workplace. The Women’s Business Council has established a working group on older women workers to address how business can offer practical support to older workers.
This builds on action the Government has already taken to ensure an effective framework to help women return to and progress in work. These measures include introducing shared parental leave, extending the right to request flexible working to all employees and increasing support for childcare costs.
As a constituent part of UK Trade and Investment, Healthcare UK has responsibility for the provision of support and assistance to new and existing healthcare exporters of goods and services across the UK and for promoting the UK and all its constituent parts to foreign investors.
The devolved administrations are responsible for devising and implementing additional programmes to meet the particular needs of companies based in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales and for promoting Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales to foreign investors.
UK Export Finance employs 21 export finance advisers, based across the English regions and devolved administrations. There is one export finance adviser based in Northern Ireland, who is part of a team of seven advisers which covers North of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
UK Export Finance has received approximately 10 enquiries from businesses located in Northern Ireland on its Direct Lending Facility since June 2013.
Abatement opportunities in Northern Ireland (NI) were considered in the Committee on Climate Change's (CCC) November 2011 report ‘The appropriateness of a Northern Ireland Climate Change Act'. In addition, after receiving a request from the Department of Environment NI earlier this year, we have recently carried out a short scoping study to assess the available data, as well as appraise a number of options for estimating and reporting the economic implications of climate change mitigation. We are currently in discussion with the Department of Environment NI on how to take this forward.
On 4th and 5th December 2013, the Committee's chairman Lord Deben and Dr. Ute Collier from the CCC Secretariat visited Belfast to meet with a range of organisations to discuss climate change policy.
In addition, members of the CCC Secretariat are in regular contact with officials from the Department of Environment.
The Big Energy Saving Network provides grant funding to charity, community and other third sector organisations to provide help and advice to electricity and gas consumers in the energy markets of England, Scotland and Wales. The Network is not operational in Northern Ireland as domestic gas and electricity policy and regulation are transferred to the Northern Ireland Executive.
The Northern Ireland Authority for Utility Regulation (the Regulator) is proposing to introduce a new Consumer Protection Strategy which will coordinate the approach to further protection of electricity, gas and water consumers, particularly those deemed vulnerable consumers.
We do not hold any figures by region, only for UK as a whole.
UK defence and security exports in 2013 totalled £13 billion, which represents a 13% increase on the previous year.
The Life Sciences Organisation (LSO) (previously the Life Sciences Investment Organisation, which now includes responsibility for UK trade promotion) works to promote the UK Life Sciences sector as a whole. LSO works closely with Invest Northern Ireland, along with the other devolved bodies and local enterprise partnerships across England, to understand the nation’s internationally competitive commercial offers in life sciences. We then actively market these strengths using our international network of investment advisors and suite of promotional materials. Where potential investors have specifically stated particular requirements, we will match these to the various regional offers and bring these out clearly in the tailored proposition materials produced for the investors.
The recent roadshow in Northern Ireland, hosted by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), was attended by the Northern Ireland Executive, Invest Northern Ireland and a range of finance providers from Northern Ireland, including representatives from leading banks. The roadshow resulted in on-going discussions with the Executive and finance providers to explore how the Business Bank can build upon existing levels of support in Northern Ireland.
Officials from BIS and the Business Bank attended a meeting in Belfast on 9 July 2014 with my Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Invest Northern Ireland and local investors as part of this continuing engagement, aimed at encouraging greater participation by Northern Ireland's private sector in the Business Bank's £300 million Investment Programme.
On 2 July 2014 Government published a one year update on the Economic Pact, which set out how the Government and the Executive have been working with the Business Bank to ensure Northern Ireland businesses and entrepreneurs can benefit from national finance schemes. This close co-operation will continue so that more local businesses gain from the available programmes.
Yes, public sector organisations from the devolved administrations have been invited to participate in Healthcare UK's Business Forum for stakeholders on 24 July 2014.
Information on the regional location of Manufacturing Summit delegates was not requested as part of the registration process. However, from the limited data available we have identified one Northern Ireland-based manufacturing company which was invited to the Manufacturing Summit. This particular company decided not to send a representative.
For future summits we will be looking at ways to create a more diverse mix of CEO-level participants from across manufacturing industry. Proactive suggestions from Hon Members would be welcome as part of this process.
To date there have been 913 applications for Start-Up Loans in Northern Ireland including applications that have been withdrawn, declined or still in progress. Of these applications, 120 loans with a value of £562,110 have been drawn down to date.
The UK Space Agency recognises the strengths and interest of the Northern Ireland space sector. The Agency has recently established a small team to focus on supporting the development of a vibrant regional small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) community across the UK. It is already engaged with the Northern Ireland space office and will work with them to help them to understand the potential value of the space sector to the Northern Ireland economy, both in the traditional upstream and in downstream “space-enabled markets”. Areas of focus for regional engagement include aligning locally provided business support and the potential for further space business incubators. The team are working closely with colleagues in the Satellite Applications Catapult who are also engaging with Local Enterprise Partnerships & the Devolved Administrations and have a significant role to play in supporting SMEs in the space sector. As set out in the Northern Ireland Economic Pact, the Agency is considering the case for a new satellite propulsion test facility near Belfast. The Agency is also in receipt of Northern Ireland's letter of intent to host the UK Space Conference 2017 and due consideration will be given to holding the conference in Belfast in due course.
British Business Bank programmes facilitated £7.5m of new lending and investment to smaller businesses in Northern Ireland in 2013/14.
The Business Bank's Enterprise Finance Guarantee programme supported £5.1 million of additional lending to Northern Irish businesses during 2013/14, bringing the total amount of lending through the programme in Northern Ireland to £36.1 million.
The Bank's Start Up Loans programme was extended to Northern Ireland in June 2013 and since then, it has provided 120 loans to Northern Irish start-ups, lending a total of over £560,000.
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Northern Ireland Executive recently hosted a roadshow in Northern Ireland to promote the delivery of Business Bank programmes through Northern Irish finance providers and the Business Bank is actively discussing with the Executive how it can continue to support Northern Irish businesses in the future.
No formal assessment has been made of the reasons for the variation in average unit retail prices of petrol and diesel in Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.
Retail fuel prices are determined by the demand and supply fundamentals in local areas. Prices will reflect the underlying cost of crude oil, the process to refine it and transport it so that it is available for consumption at the pump.
Variations in prices are determined by changes in supply and demand factors both for crude oil and for individual products.
On 5 September 2012, the OFT launched a call for information (CFI) to investigate claims that the UK petrol and diesel sectors are not working well. In their January 2013 report they concluded that:
“Overall, on the basis of the evidence collected, it appears that competition in the UK road fuels sector is working relatively effectively”.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 1 May 2014, Official Report, column 761W.
I have been to Northern Ireland three times in an official capacity since taking office. I visited Belfast on 8 October 2010; Lough Erne on 18 June 2013; and, Derry-Londonderry on 21 June 2013.
UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) has encouraged participation by UK businesses from throughout the UK at the International Festival for Business (IFB).
UKTI officials briefed representatives from the three devolved administrations, including Invest Northern Ireland, on plans and preparations for the IFB in September 2013. UKTI subsequently facilitated meetings in London and Belfast, between senior IFB managers and Invest Northern Ireland, to discuss the detail of Invest NI's engagement with the Festival.
All events at IFB have been, and are continuing to be, advertised and promoted to companies in Northern Ireland through the IFB and GOV.UK/UKTI websites.
UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) follows the ‘UK First' principle when promoting inward investment. This means that we seek to promote the UK as the country of choice and propose the most suitable locations based on the inward investor's particular needs which are matched to the strengths of individual areas.
Invest Northern Ireland promotes Northern Ireland and UKTI works together with them on potential opportunities and to highlight benefits of areas such as Enterprise Zones.
The Regeneration Investment Organisation (RIO) is actively working on several investment opportunities in Northern Ireland with a gross development value of around £3 billion. The team has held commercial dialogue with overseas investors for some of these schemes.
The RIO team has a dedicated Regional Project Manager who engages with development opportunities in Northern Ireland, works closely with Invest Northern Ireland and helps projects advance to a stage where they would be able to attract overseas investment.
There is also official representation from Northern Ireland on the Regeneration Investment Advisory Board (RIAB), a group consisting of Industry and Government specialists set up to provide strategic advice and oversight of RIO activity.
There are many meetings involving the UK Government and the Northern Ireland Executive which I attend, including meetings of the Joint Ministerial Committee and the British-Irish Council.
The UK Space Agency and the Ministry of Defence are jointly leading work to co-ordinate an implementation plan for the National Space Security Policy that should be agreed between Ministers in the four lead Government Departments by the end of the calendar year. This plan will include the governance arrangements to oversee its successful implementation. Although Defence and National Security are not devolved matters, Devolved Administrations will be consulted where it is necessary or appropriate to do so.
As part of the Northern Ireland pact published last year, the UK Space Agency is currently setting the business case for an investment in a satellite propulsion test facility near Belfast. This capability could be used for satellites employed in commercial and security uses.
Northern Ireland public sector organisations will be not eligible for the Postcode Address File (PAF) Public Sector Licence agreed between the Department for Business, Innovation, and Skills (BIS) and Royal Mail. The PAF Public Sector Licence covers public sector bodies in England and Wales and will come into full force on 1 April 2015. Bodies whose remit is mainly or wholly within Northern Ireland, Scotland, and other Crown dependencies or foreign territories are excluded from the agreement between BIS and Royal Mail.
Royal Mail discussed the creation of an equivalent to the PAF Public Sector Licence with the Northern Ireland Land & Property Services. The view was that most of Northern Ireland's Government Departments were only interested in addresses within Northern Ireland and that there was no need for a central agreement.
Prior to the publication of the National Space Security Policy, committee clearance was requested via the National Security Committee by me which was confirmed on 12 December 2014. Although Defence and National Security are not devolved matters, Devolved Administrations will be consulted where it is necessary or appropriate to do so.
A list of attendees at all British-Irish Council Summits is available on the British-Irish Council website. I have placed a list of UK Government delegates since May 2010 in the library of the House.
I regularly meet the First Minister and Deputy First Minister to discuss a range of issues and will continue to do so.
I visit all parts of the United Kingdom regularly, including Northern Ireland. I last visited Northern Ireland on Thursday 10 – Friday 11 October 2013.
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation
To remain the best in the world, the Civil Service needs to respond to both the challenges and opportunities of our times.The Civil Service continues to require new and different skills to respond to the fiscal environment, global competition and changes in technology, whilst at the same time delivering better services more efficiently: in short, doing more for less.
The size of the Civil Service has already reduced by 20% since March 2010 and has helped save taxpayers £2.8bn over the last Parliament. Despite this reduction in numbers, employee engagement rates were higher in 2015 than in 2010 and departments have successfully maintained delivery of our public services.
As was the case under previous administrations details of internal discussions are not normally disclosed.
Cabinet Office provides security guidance to all departments
As was the case under successive administrations, we do not comment on the specifics of that advice.
The pilot cohort of 100 Fast Track Apprentices began their apprenticeships in September 2013. Eight Government Departments across England participated in the pilot cohort:
· Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
· Cabinet Office
· Crown Prosecution Service
· Department for Education
· Department for Work and Pensions
· HM Revenue & Customs
· Ministry of Defence
· Ministry of Justice
Cohort 2 will begin in September 2014 and will place 200 apprentices across Departments and Agencies across England, including:
· Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
· Cabinet Office
· Crown Prosecution Service
· Department for Education
· Department for Work and Pensions
· HM Revenue & Customs
· Ministry of Defence
· Ministry of Justice
· Civil Service Employee Policy
· Civil Service Resourcing
· Civil Service Learning
· Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
· Department for Transport
· Department for Culture, Media and Sport
· Department for Communities and Local Government
· UK Trade & Investment, part of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
· Treasury Solicitor's Department
· Insolvency Service
· Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary
· Crown Commercial Service
The government plans to continue to grow this programme and expand it to other departments.
Annual Reports published by the Cabinet Office indicating the number of candidates recommended for appointment to the Graduate (now Generalist) Fast Stream are available at www.gov.uk.
A table showing the numbers recommended for appointment to the scheme for the period 2010-2012, distributed by department, has been placed in the library of the House. Data for 2013 is not yet available.
The pilot cohort of 100 Fast Track Apprentices began their apprenticeships in September 2013. Eight Government Departments across England participated in the pilot cohort:
· Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
· Cabinet Office
· Crown Prosecution Service
· Department for Education
· Department for Work and Pensions
· HM Revenue & Customs
· Ministry of Defence
· Ministry of Justice
Cohort 2 will begin in September 2014 and will place 200 apprentices across Departments and Agencies across England, including:
· Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
· Cabinet Office
· Crown Prosecution Service
· Department for Education
· Department for Work and Pensions
· HM Revenue & Customs
· Ministry of Defence
· Ministry of Justice
· Civil Service Employee Policy
· Civil Service Resourcing
· Civil Service Learning
· Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
· Department for Transport
· Department for Culture, Media and Sport
· Department for Communities and Local Government
· UK Trade & Investment, part of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
· Treasury Solicitor's Department
· Insolvency Service
· Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary
· Crown Commercial Service
The government plans to continue to grow this programme and expand it to other departments.
Annual Reports published by the Cabinet Office indicating the number of candidates recommended for appointment to the Graduate (now Generalist) Fast Stream are available at www.gov.uk.
A table showing the numbers recommended for appointment to the scheme for the period 2010-2012, distributed by department, has been placed in the library of the House. Data for 2013 is not yet available.
The Civil Service Fast Stream marketing team use the careers site, advertising campaigns, on-campus promotions and events and social media to promote the Civil Service's graduate development programme across the UK. The Northern Ireland Civil Service is a separate organisation from the Home Civil Service and therefore employs graduates separately through the Northern Ireland Fast Stream.
In 2013 the Fast Stream marketing team used the free vacancy advertising service offered by the University of Ulster and Queen's University Belfast to promote Fast Stream Opportunities.. The Fast Stream programmes are also advertised on graduate recruitment websites with databases of over 700,000 students across the UK. Last October, Fast Stream representatives attended the Business and Finance Fair at Queen's University Belfast to generate awareness and attract talented students to the Civil Service.
The Emergency Planning College (EPC) has had no requests for direct support of the planning and preparation for the Giro D'Italia Big Start in Northern Ireland in May 2014. The EPC has however delivered a variety of civil protection and resilience planning courses in Northern Ireland for various organisations, including Sports NI.
The Emergency Planning College (EPC) has provided 79 courses on emergency planning and crises management courses to 1170 attendees delivered in Northern Ireland since 2006. In addition to the training provided for customer organisations in NI, the EPC has trained 358 practitioners from NI attending residential training courses at the EPC since 2006
The Emergency Planning College (EPC) has had no requests for direct support of the planning and preparation for the Giro D'Italia Big Start in Northern Ireland in May 2014. The EPC has however delivered a variety of civil protection and resilience planning courses in Northern Ireland for various organisations, including Sports NI.
The Emergency Planning College (EPC) has provided 79 courses on emergency planning and crises management courses to 1170 attendees delivered in Northern Ireland since 2006. In addition to the training provided for customer organisations in NI, the EPC has trained 358 practitioners from NI attending residential training courses at the EPC since 2006
The Secretary of State, in his previous role as Minister for Digital, wrote to Mayor Andy Burnham on 22nd December 2017, responding to the Mayor’s request for more information on the government’s investment of £21m in Tech Nation. This funding involves setting up 10 new regional hubs, including in Manchester (which will serve as the base for the North West) to support and promote the needs of the local tech communities. The Secretary of State clarified that Tech nation will work with local partners to connect with and build on the networks and ecosystems that already exist. The Mayor has been introduced to senior Tech Nation staff who are assessing the unique needs of each region.
This letter also offered further discussion with DCMS on how government policy can help to deliver the Greater Manchester Digital Strategy. I also committed to meeting Mr Burnham following our appearance on Question Time on 18th January 2018.
With its successful hosting of the start of this year's Giro d'Italia, Northern Ireland has demonstrated its ability to stage major sporting events. UK Sport recently met with the Northern Ireland Tourism Board (NITB) to explain its support to Major Events and has committed to meet with the NITB every 6 months. UK Sport is finalising dates for an additional meeting with Sport NI and the NITB to discuss this area further. UK Sport has established a Major Events Agency Co-ordination Group, including Northern Ireland, which met for the first time this month. UK Sport works with National Governing Bodies to identify the UK's major event hosting targets and this is regularly shared with Northern Ireland colleagues.
DCMS officials and our delivery partner Arqiva are continually reviewing potential locations for masts with the intention of providing coverage to as many premises as possible. Various challenges will have an impact on the number of premises we can reach and completion dates for individual masts, such as finding a suitable and sensitive location for a mast, obtaining planning permission, and ensuring masts can connect back into the existing network.
We are investing up to £150m to provide coverage across the UK through the Mobile Infrastructure Project. Funding is not allocated by country or area. Funding is provided for potential sites on a case by case basis, with sites selected according to the number of homes and businesses for which signal could be provided balanced against the cost to build and run each individual site.