Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jeremy Hunt and William Bain

Tuesday 27th November 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hunt]

If the hon. Gentleman is shocked at consultancy spend in the NHS today, he will be even more shocked to know that it was nearly double when his party was in power.

[Mr William Bain (Glasgow North East) (Lab)]

5. What estimate he has made of the number of foundation trusts considering plans to opt out of NHS national pay agreements.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jeremy Hunt and William Bain

Thursday 16th June 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr William Bain (Glasgow North East) (Lab)]

T8. The BBC is in discussions with DCMS over changes to the public value test. Will the Secretary of State guarantee that, notwithstanding the freeze in the licence fee and the cuts that the BBC is having to make, no services or TV channels will be allowed to close?

[Mr Jeremy Hunt]

I cannot give that guarantee, because the BBC operates at arm’s length from the Government and, quite rightly, has editorial discretion about what it does or does not do. What I can say, however, is that when we negotiated the licence fee last October, it was on the understanding that the 16% saving in the licence fee in real terms, to be implemented over six years, was an efficiency saving and that we would not expect the BBC to be unable to deliver any of its core services within the agreed budget.