Civil Liability Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting)

Jack Brereton Excerpts

Committee Debate: 1st sitting: House of Commons
Tuesday 11th September 2018 Public Bill Committees

[Rory Stewart]

Thank you very much, Mr Stringer. Those two arguments were based on the question of frequency of travel and probability of an accident. Again, the key point in any form of injury claim is the nature of the injury and the liability of the third party that caused it, not the reason someone is in a car. It would be difficult to argue that somebody who travels in the course of their employment is necessarily travelling more frequently than somebody who is not. Somebody in a rural area might, for example, be commuting 5 miles to work in the morning and 5 miles back in the evening. A farmer in my constituency could be travelling between one field and another. There is no necessary reason to feel that they would be travelling more frequently than, for example, a parent taking their child to school in exactly the same area.

Arguments based on frequency or probability of impact should not be relevant. A more fundamental reason is that, in the end, the law is about the injury and the obligation that the third party who caused the injury owes to the injured person, regardless of how frequently that individual is in a car or why they are in a car in the first place. To be blunt, they could simply have gone to the car to get something from it, and could not be driving anywhere, and be struck and suffer whiplash. They would be entitled to exactly the same compensation as an individual driving that car.

[Jack Brereton (Stoke-on-Trent South) (Con)]

Does the Minister agree that the numbers applicable to amendment 9 would be negligible because most of the claims would be against a third party, not the employer?

[Rory Stewart]

Yes, I agree, but the key point is the injury, not why someone is in the car. This is a distinction without a difference.

Civil Liability Bill [Lords]

Jack Brereton Excerpts

2nd reading: House of Commons & Money resolution: House of Commons & Programme motion: House of Commons
Tuesday 4th September 2018 Commons Chamber

[Jack Brereton (Stoke-on-Trent South) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to be able to speak in this debate on the Second Reading of the Civil Liability Bill, which brings forward changes that are of great importance to the insurance industry. I am pleased to hear that there has been significant engagement between industry and Government over this essential legislation. Ageas Insurance, for example, is one of the largest providers in the UK, employing more than 400 people in my constituency, and it has communicated to me its enthusiastic support for these changes, shared by the vast majority of the public.

These measures will help to reduce motor insurance premiums for insurance customers by adjusting how the personal injury discount rate is set. Alongside this, the introduction of a new tariff will specifically target exaggerated and fraudulent whiplash claims that have driven up insurance premiums for hard-working households in places such as Stoke-on-Trent. A new fixed compensation level for whiplash injury will be created, putting provisions in place for the court to uplift the compensation available in exceptional circumstances, compared with a final compensation figure being negotiated by the parties involved, as is currently the case.

The compensation culture that has been created, with huge levels of unjustified claims for things like whiplash, saw premiums rise at the fastest rate ever last year. Increases of about 10% a year are totally unmanageable and unaffordable for motorists. These changes must be brought about to reduce the price all motorists are having to pay to compensate unreasonably high levels of claims. Clearly, it is important that these savings are passed on to consumers. I am pleased to hear that the ABI, which represents 93% of the motor insurance market, has written to the Lord Chancellor emphasising its commitment to this. The Government are now working with the industry on a way that this might be evidenced through reporting of savings passed on to consumers—the people who should benefit most from this legislation.

These changes are not about hampering genuine claims; they are about reaching a balance between the costs on motorists and appropriately compensating those who need to make a claim, ensuring that when someone makes a claim for whiplash injuries, it is backed up by a form of medical evidence and is proportionate to the injury suffered. It will also ensure that those who have suffered life-changing injuries continue to receive 100% compensation—a key principle of the legislation.

In the past decade, personal injury claims have risen by 70% while vehicles have become safer and road accidents have fallen by 31%. The number of road accident claims is, remarkably, on an upward trajectory, despite there being fewer injuries. We have even seen people attempting to circumvent the law and take advantage of loopholes to make unreasonable and fraudulent claims. Clearly, the current balance is not right and is unfairly penalising ordinary motorists who must pay the price of over-inflated premiums. This is especially important for younger drivers, such as me, who currently pay double the average. It is predicted by insurers that, without such reform, motor premiums could continue to rise at a rate of about 10% annually. The Government argue that the whiplash reforms in the Bill will deliver around £1.1 billion of consumer savings per year and could lead to motorists’ insurance premiums falling by an average of £35 a year.

As we have heard, the changes proposed are not limited to the motor insurance industry. The adjustment of the personal injury discount rate will, importantly, also impact on compensation of clinical negligence. As we know, our NHS continues to battle with increasing costs, and a significant growing cost is compensation, increasing at around 13.5% each year. In some cases, that is putting undue pressure on NHS budgets, with money designated for health services not being able to be spent on treating patients. Many within the health service have been calling for the creation of a sustainable platform where the level of compensation is more effectively balanced against the ability of the public purse and taxpayers to pay. We have seen increasing expenditure on clinical negligence compensation, and I hope that this legislation will help to limit those costs to a much more manageable level.

The Bill will mean reduced costs for motorists, ending the mounting and unaffordable increases in inflated insurance premiums, limiting the claimant culture that has seen unreasonable and exaggerated claims grow significantly in recent years, ensuring that there is a fair balance between claimants and consumers and allowing my constituents to keep more of their hard-earned money.

European Union (Withdrawal) Bill

Jack Brereton Excerpts

2nd reading: House of Commons
Monday 11th September 2017 Commons Chamber

[Jack Brereton (Stoke-on-Trent South) (Con)]

Stoke-on-Trent voted overwhelmingly to leave the European Union: the proportion was higher than in any other city, with 70% of people voting to leave. That is why I will vote to support the Bill tonight.

The people of Stoke-on-Trent South voted for me and the Conservatives for the first time in 82 years because we demonstrated our trust in the public’s judgment in voting to leave and are the only ones with a strong, credible plan to deliver Brexit successfully. In electing me to this place, my constituents were clear in their rejection of the previous Labour MP and his attempts to disrupt and delay the Brexit process. My constituents who voted to leave in the referendum did so for a number of reasons, including economic, social and political ones, but the clear shared message from the general election was that constituents in Stoke-on-Trent South do not want to be worse off as a result of our leaving the EU. There is a feeling in Stoke-on-Trent of being left behind, with the EU remote and distant. People struggle to see the economic benefits. I am determined to be a strong representative of what my constituents voted for.

In leaving the EU, we must maximise new opportunities in Stoke-on-Trent and support our businesses to improve skills and jobs and boost prosperity. Critical to that is ensuring that we make a success of leaving. We must create some certainty and get on with putting forward the necessary legislation. What I hear from businesses in Stoke-on-Trent South is a need for certainty. The Bill will create an orderly processes to move the existing EU legislation that makes up part of the UK legal system so that it is under Parliament’s authority. As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union said on Thursday, it will ensure that on the day we leave, businesses will know where they stand, workers’ rights will be upheld and consumers will remain protected.

To delay or disrupt the process unnecessarily would be hugely damaging for our economy, businesses and jobs in all communities throughout the country. To those in the House who wish to disrupt the Bill today, or even to stop altogether the process of our leaving the EU, I repeat what several of my right hon. and hon. Friends have said: there will be further opportunities to improve the Bill in Committee. Suggestions about the need for amendments should not stop the Bill at this stage. I ask them to think of the impact on their constituents and on our country, because if the Bill is not allowed to progress to Third Reading, we will put at risk jobs and our future economic prosperity.

Businesses and my constituents want the Government to get on with the job and to ensure that we have certainty and can deliver a successful Brexit deal. Whether someone supported leave or remain is insignificant: the British public voted overwhelmingly to leave, especially in constituencies such as mine, Stoke-on-Trent South. We must respect the democratic result and work in the national interest. What matters now is that we in this House are seen to be doing everything possible to make a success of Brexit, and that we reduce the chance of disruption to our economy and seize on the opportunities that come from our leaving the EU. We must ensure that we give Ministers the ability to do that in the most efficient and effective way possible.

It is right that we scrutinise the legislation effectively, but we must also recognise the need for secondary powers to adjust EU legislation to fit into the UK legal system and to make sure it remains relevant from the moment we leave. There has already been much debate about the use of such powers, but they are necessary to make the process workable. As colleagues have said, they are well-established practices and will remain within Parliament’s oversight, and there will be appropriate safeguards to limit their use.

I am optimistic about our future after we leave the EU, which the Bill will help to facilitate. As with any change, there is always some initial uncertainty, but through the Bill we can help to provide confidence about our economic future. From that point, the Government can get on and deliver the more global-trading Britain that we want to see. Businesses in my constituency share those thoughts, although some may have initial trepidation. By and large, firms in Stoke-on-Trent—especially those across our manufacturing sector—see the significant opportunities that can be realised both in striking the right path outside the EU, regaining control of our own destiny and growing our trading opportunities around the world. Only by voting in favour of the Bill tonight can we ensure that the Brexit process will move forward successfully, without delay, and guarantee a stable future outside the EU.