Business of the House
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(9 years, 9 months ago)
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Mr Hague
The hon. Gentleman makes a valid point, and there would be all too many terrible situations in the world to refer to in such a debate, as he has described, including the fate of children in so many conflicts, such as those in Syria and Iraq, as well as the victims of terrorist attacks in Nigeria and Pakistan. That would be a welcome debate. Of course, it is primarily for the Backbench Business Committee to consider, but I think it would be welcomed across the House.
Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
In the past week, at a planning inquiry in Huddersfield, the excellent Save Butterley Spillway group has been fighting Yorkshire Water’s plans to rip out the unique Victorian heritage of a listed spillway in Marsden in my constituency and replace it with a concrete monstrosity. Will my right hon. Friend join me in praising the work of Diane Ellis, David Preston, Ian Ladbrooke, Tom Lonsdale and the many members of the group who have been campaigning to save the spillway and hoping that the inquiry will say that it can be made safe and our Victorian heritage preserved?
Mr Hague
As a Minister, I cannot comment on the individual case, but all decisions on such applications need to take into account the national planning policy framework, which is clear that heritage assets are an irreplaceable resource and sets out clear policies for cases where a proposal would harm a heritage asset. I certainly join my hon. Friend in praising local people who have engaged in the planning inquiry to make sure their views are heard, and I know he will be, as ever, a very strong spokesman for them.
Business of the House
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(9 years, 9 months ago)
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Mr Hague
It is perfectly reasonable to request time to debate such matters, but, as the hon. Gentleman knows, the main opportunities for debates of that kind are now provided by the Backbench Business Committee, the Adjournment and Westminster Hall, and I suggest that he use those channels. Government time is not available for such general debates, important and interesting though they might be.
Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
Tesco is pulling out of a planned store in Huddersfield, and Yorkshire-based Morrisons has announced that it is to close a store at Ravensthorpe, near Huddersfield. May we have a debate on the state of the UK’s supermarket industry, and its relationships with both suppliers and customers?
Mr Hague
Steps to promote independent retail were debated in Westminster Hall last year, but my hon. Friend raises the wider issue of supermarkets, and the grocery market is obviously undergoing a great deal of structural change. A further debate would allow the Government to give further details of our support for high streets and market towns—for instance, the £2.3 million that we are providing for the 27 Portas pilots and 330 town teams across England, the £10 million high street innovation fund, and our work on business improvement districts—so it could indeed be very beneficial.
Devolution (Implications for England)
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(9 years, 10 months ago)
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Mr Hague
No, it is because throughout that period, as the hon. Gentleman knows, there was a reduction in the number of MPs from Northern Ireland. The existence of a devolved Assembly in Northern Ireland was treated in a different way in this House, by reducing the number of Westminster MPs from Northern Ireland. I do not think that he would want to advocate that now for Wales, so we have to deal with this in a different way.
Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
My constituents tell me every weekend that English votes for English laws is a basic principle of fairness. Talking of fairness, I have more than 81,000 constituents, but a neighbouring Member has just 67,000. How fair is that?
Mr Hague
It is not fair. We have debated previously in this Parliament equalising the size of constituencies, and indeed reducing the size of the House, and I believe that both proposals remain important priorities for the future. The first is very important for fairness for people casting their votes in future elections.
Business of the House
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(9 years, 10 months ago)
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Mr Hague
The Chancellor had to take action on the vast deficit we were left by the previous Government. Yes, VAT was increased, but since then inflation has come down and even more businesses have been created. The figures released in the past three weeks show that there are 760,000 businesses operating in the country, the largest number we have ever known, and it is very important to bear that in mind. Businesses are succeeding and the deficit has come down.
Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
The UK currently faces a shortage of HGV drivers. One of my constituents, Mark, is an HGV driver. He contacted me to tell me—in fact, he showed me photographs—about the disgusting facilities that he and his colleagues have to endure at motorway service stations during their regulated breaks. May we have a debate on whether the Government should intervene to improve these essential facilities, and on whether to fund driver training for hauliers to attract much-needed new drivers into the industry?
Mr Hague
The Government accept that there is an issue with the recruitment of HGV drivers, which is a significant concern to the industry. We welcome the steps that the industry has taken to recruit a new generation of hauliers. The Government are working with the industry to identify ways to improve the situation. On facilities, there is a Department for Transport circular requiring all motorway service areas and truck stops that are signed on, or from, a strategic road network to offer free toilets with hand-washing facilities and free parking for two hours, so I hope there will be an improvement. My hon. Friend is right to draw attention to this matter.
Business of the House
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(9 years, 11 months ago)
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Mr Hague
There is good case for that. This morning’s announcements will be of great benefit to my hon. Friend’s constituents, and indeed to mine. We saw an extraordinary display from Labour earlier. Despite an announcement bringing the prospect of a better return for the taxpayer, an improved service, more seats and more trains going to more stations across the north of England, Labour Members were against it because they take the trade union line and are still wedded to ideas of nationalisation, so I think a debate on this subject would be very welcome.
Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
Speaking as chairman of the all-party group for fair fuel for motorists and hauliers, we very much welcome the Government’s freezing of fuel duty. However, despite a 30% reduction in the price of crude oil since June, pump prices in the UK have fallen by only 6%. Does my right hon. Friend agree that a full Competition and Markets Authority inquiry into the pricing of petrol and diesel is now long overdue, and may we have a statement?
Mr Hague
It is important for these price reductions to be passed on. The Office of Fair Trading has investigated these concerns. In January 2013, it published its analysis, and Government analysis suggests that crude price changes are passed on to pump prices within about six or seven weeks. National average pump prices are now at their lowest levels since December 2010, but it is, of course, quite right to keep up the pressure to ensure such reductions are passed on. My hon. Friend will also be aware that, thanks to the policies of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pump prices are nearly 20p a litre lower than they would have been under the last Government’s fuel duty plans.
Business of the House
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(10 years ago)
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Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
With our armed forces now serving in the skies over Iraq, does my right hon. Friend agree that it would be a good time to look again at the introduction of a national defence medal to give proper recognition to our nation’s military veterans?
Mr Hague
It is a good time to remember what the Royal Air Force and others do on our behalf, and we debated that in this House at the end of September. The full merits of the specific proposal to introduce a national defence medal was considered at length by the Committee on the Grant of Honours, Declarations and Medals, which concluded that a strong enough case had not been made at this time for a national defence medal, but I have no doubt that my hon. Friend will continue to advocate it.
Business of the House
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(10 years, 1 month ago)
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Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
May we have a debate on the scourge of unsolicited automated nuisance phone calls, which have been plaguing my constituents throughout the summer? At best, they are an annoyance; at worst, they are extremely distressing for the elderly, the vulnerable and the isolated. I know that the Government have been taking action on this, but does my right hon. Friend agree that it is now time for an outright ban on these automated nuisance phone calls?
Mr Hague
My hon. Friend speaks for many people, including hon. Members, on this issue. The Government are taking measures to address the problem. The “Nuisance Calls Action Plan” was published on 30 March. Over the past two years, regulators have issued penalties totalling nearly £2 million to companies for breaching their rules, and further work is under way to see what more can be done to tackle the issue, as set out in the action plan, so I encourage my hon. Friend to make further representations to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
Iraq and Ending Sexual Violence in Conflict
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(10 years, 4 months ago)
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Mr Hague
I regularly discuss the situation in Iraq with the Turkish Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, most recently on Saturday, when I expressed our concern about the Turkish nationals who have now been taken hostage by ISIL. We of course hope for their safe return and are consulting closely with Turkey about the whole situation we have been discussing in the House today.
Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
My right hon. Friend says that he is keeping open the possibility of offering counter-terrorism expertise. Another area in which we have particular expertise is aerial reconnaissance, surveillance and intelligence gathering. Is he therefore keeping open the option of offering Royal Air Force ISTAR—intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance—assets?
Mr Hague
What my hon. Friend mentions would count as a military intervention, and we are not planning military intervention in Iraq in this situation, as I have made clear; while I have taken care not to rule out the things that could happen in a whole variety of situations in future, I think that I have made that very clear today.
Ukraine
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(10 years, 7 months ago)
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Mr Hague
My hon. Friend makes an important point. I think Russia has underestimated the longer-term consequences of the action it has taken, because there is an important read-across to upholding international law on other issues. The reaction of the world over the long term will tend to diminish the influence of Russia in the world. This will also, of course, shed new light on Russia’s insistence on sovereignty in other international disputes. It will have very far-reaching consequences, and I do not think they have yet been fully appreciated in Moscow.
Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
Huddersfield has a vibrant Ukrainian community, which I know is very concerned about family and loved ones across the whole of Ukraine. The attention in the past few days has been on Crimea, but what assessment does my right hon. Friend make of the civil unrest across the rest of the country in cities such as Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk?
Mr Hague
The situation in those cities and areas is an important consideration, too. New governors have been appointed in some of those areas, and they have been drawn from those areas. The acting President of Ukraine has told me of the care he has taken to do that, so that there is an inclusive approach to regional and local government. There have been disturbances in some of those cities, although, as other hon. Members have said, there is some evidence that those have been planned externally—we do not have any proof of that, but there is some evidence of it. I hope that calm will return to those parts of Ukraine.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(10 years, 9 months ago)
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Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
T4. Holocaust memorial day takes place next Monday. Will the Secretary of State join me in commending the role that British veterans played in defeating the Nazis in the second world war, and in liberating the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp almost 70 years ago?
Mr Hague
Yes, absolutely—my hon. Friend is right to highlight the vital role of British forces. Later this year, we will have the 70th anniversary of D-day, when it will be important to remember that it made possible the liberation of Europe and the role of British forces in doing exactly what he has described.
GCHQ
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(11 years, 4 months ago)
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Mr Hague
Having earlier set myself the rule of not attacking the conduct of other nations, I am not going to break that rule now, but other people will be able to comment on this particular individual and his role. It is, of course, important for everyone who works for the agencies to remember that part of their responsibility is to uphold the laws of their country, and that in the case of the United States and the United Kingdom, those laws are designed to protect the lives and liberty of the citizens of those countries. That seems to have been too easily forgotten over the last few days.
Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
NATO suffered a suspected 2,500 cyber-attacks on its network last year. Can my right hon. Friend tell us whether there is a similar level of suspected cyber-attacks on GCHQ ?
Syria
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(11 years, 5 months ago)
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Mr Hague
Many of those factions have come together in the National Coalition. We have been working on that and we have a special representative to the opposition at ambassador level who works with them daily on all the issues and encourages them to come together. Further meetings are taking place about broadening support, particularly with more Kurdish involvement, and that work is going on.
Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
I served as part of a very effective no-fly zone over northern Iraq in the 1990s in Operation Warden. Did my right hon. Friend notice the television pictures last week of the alleged use of chemical gas weapons, which were delivered by helicopter, rather than by artillery shells?
Mr Hague
Yes. I was not implying, in my answer to an earlier question, that there is no regime air activity, but a huge amount of its activity is through shelling and mortars, and if chemical weapons are used, they can be fired from artillery. Air activity is one factor, and that is the complication when it comes to advocating a no-fly zone.
Syria
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(11 years, 9 months ago)
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Mr Hague
Yes, they are. We have done specific work on this on the borders of Jordan. I have now assembled a team of 70 experts to work globally on an initiative to prevent sexual violence, including doctors, lawyers, people skilled in documenting such abuses, psychologists and so on. Last month we deployed part of the team to the Syrian borders; I did not announce their location for their own safety. There will be further such deployments of British experts. Following that first trial deployment, I expect to be able to deploy them further in the region in the coming months.
Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
Will the Foreign Secretary tell me whether the United Kingdom is able to supply body armour, not necessarily to the armed groups but to the innocent Syrian civilians who are being caught in the crossfire?
Mr Hague
This is another very relevant point in our discussions about the arms embargo. We are not able to supply body armour at the moment. We supply the equipment that I set out in the statement, but body armour is another item that is caught by most definitions of the arms embargo as it stands. When we talk about flexibility in future, we have to bear it in mind that an arms embargo on the opposition covers equipment of this nature as well as lethal equipment.
Middle East
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(11 years, 11 months ago)
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Mr Hague
That is a constant part of discussions with Israeli leaders. Of course we have put the case for that, and indeed more than that, by saying not only that humanitarian relief is required, but that a different and more open approach is required. In fact, tight restrictions often serve the purposes of Hamas, rather than directly the purposes of Israel, and sometimes help to fund Hamas through its operation of smuggling and the use of tunnels into Gaza, for example. We will continue to have those conversations, I hope more successfully, in future.
Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
The civilian populations of southern Israel and Gaza desperately need an immediate and effective ceasefire: that means no rockets, no air strikes and no land invasion. What hopes does my right hon. Friend have of the US Secretary of State being able to broker that immediate and lasting ceasefire?
Mr Hague
There are some hopes. I do not want to overstate them, because of course these things can go wrong. Anything at any moment can go wrong, endangering the process through some event on the ground or breakdown in what either side seeks from a ceasefire, but the UN Secretary-General has put energy behind this; Egypt is playing a strong role, which the visit of Secretary Clinton will bolster; and all of us in the EU countries are determined—a lot of effort is being put behind the ceasefire proposal.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(13 years, 3 months ago)
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Mr Hague
The answer is that discussions continue within the Quartet. There was a difference of view between the United States on the one side and the European Union, the United Nations and Russia on the other about the details of a Quartet statement. I hope that those differences can be resolved. We welcome the fact that the United States has said, as we urged them, that a settlement should be based on 1967 borders. That has been a big step forward, but there are continuing disagreements over the definition of a Jewish state and over the precise way in which to phrase a commitment to 1967 borders, so we are working to overcome those differences. That is the current situation.
Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
T7. Does my right hon. Friend think there should be a UN-led inquiry into human rights abuses in Bahrain, bearing in mind reports of the arrest and mistreatment of doctors from the Salmaniya medical centre in Manama?
Mr Hague
We take very seriously the human rights situation in Bahrain, but welcome the fact that the King of Bahrain has announced an independent investigation into human rights concerns and abuses. It is an investigation that carries some credibility; in fact, it is headed up by one of the members of my own human rights advisory group. I expect it will give a robust report up to international standards. We should welcome that, but we continue to urge the Government of Bahrain in the meantime, as I have done, to ensure that due process is followed and that human rights are satisfactorily looked after in Bahrain, because it has done the country no favours to give the opposite impression.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Jason McCartney and Lord Hague of Richmond(13 years, 5 months ago)
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Jack Lopresti (Filton and Bradley Stoke) (Con)
11. What recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Government’s actions with respect to Libya; and if he will make a statement.
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr William Hague)
The UK continues to take a leading role in international efforts to protect civilians in Libya. The case for action remains compelling. Gaddafi’s regime persists in attacking its own people and wilfully killing its own civilian population. We have taken diplomatic action, including co-chairing the Libya contact group, and have played a key role in military action by NATO and provided more than £13 million of humanitarian aid to the Libyan people.
Jason McCartney
With the no-fly zone over Libya having been in place for more than a month now, will the Secretary of State join me in praising Royal Air Force air and ground crews for their role? What level of sorties is now taking place compared with when the action started?