Paid Directorships and Consultancies (MPs)

Kwasi Kwarteng Excerpts

Wednesday 17th July 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lansley]

Well, IPSA is a bit cathedral-like, is it not? A bit papal, really.

IPSA considered the issue and, although it decided it was not within its remit, said that

“the proportion of MPs with significant outside earnings is small.”

At least IPSA agrees with the hon. Member for Hemsworth that there is not a problem, but, like most people, it imagines that when there is no problem it is not necessary to find a solution.

The solution—the key to which is in the Bill published today—is transparency. Members are free to divide their time between their different and varied responsibilities. They represent constituents, scrutinise legislation, hold the Government to account and pursue the interests of their party—all those things take up a lot of Members’ time—but they must judge how to balance and allocate their time. Individual Members will be accountable through the register for where their interests lie and to their constituents for how they undertake their responsibilities.

[Kwasi Kwarteng (Spelthorne) (Con)]

Should this not be an issue for the electorates and constituencies concerned? It seems to me to set a dangerous precedent to try to impose some sort of central authority.

[Mr Lansley]

Yes, I agree with my hon. Friend. Transparency is key. If there is any adverse perception to which the hon. Member for Hemsworth is referring, we should make it clear that the register is absolutely transparent and that people can look to see that Members do not undertake activities that conflict with their responsibilities to their constituents and in this House.

We can dismiss the issue of earnings, because clearly Opposition Members are very happy for people to earn a great deal of money if necessary, as long as they do not earn it in specific ways. We can dismiss the question of time, since no argument is being presented that Members are incapable of undertaking other activities and that they would not have sufficient time to look after their constituents. Clearly, they do and, if anything, all the evidence suggests that Members are devoting more time to their responsibilities in this House and using the advances in communications technology and elsewhere to provide improving services. Opportunities are increasing, added to by IPSA’s proposals for Members to have an annual report, to set out for our constituents how we do that.

It seems to me that no issue arises on the motion. The issue before us is how to achieve the greatest transparency and our Bill, published today, is the only relevant action taking place. It meets the objective of being more transparent about third-party influences—whether that is about lobbying or non-party campaigning at election times or about the scrutiny and accountability of trade unions.

There is an issue, of course, about “who pays the piper calls the tune”, as the hon. Member for Bishop Auckland (Helen Goodman) said. That is an issue in relation to the Labour party and the influence of the trade unions, and the Labour party really has to respond to that. I suggest to Labour Members that they cut the chaff and stop trying to divert from where the real issues lie, and instead respond to the offer we have made for there to be a change to the legislation that begins to tackle the real issue that the public care about, which is that he who pays for the Labour party calls its tune.

The motion is flawed in practice and pointless in its content. Whether or not one has sympathy with some of the arguments presented by the hon. Member for Hemsworth, I urge Members to recognise that the motion should not be supported by the House and to reject it.

Business of the House

Kwasi Kwarteng Excerpts

Thursday 27th October 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

Only a few days ago, we had a debate in which we assisted women by changing the pension age arrangements, and there will be opportunities to discuss domestic violence in the three days next week that we debate the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill. The hon. Lady will also know that on Tuesday of this week the Home Secretary started a consultation on Clare’s law, which will bring real help to those suffering from domestic violence by giving people the right to know, or a right to ask, whether they are with a partner who has a history of violence. We have, therefore, taken a number of steps to protect women liable to domestic violence, and next week there will be an opportunity to pursue the agenda further.

[Kwasi Kwarteng (Spelthorne) (Con)]

My constituency in Middlesex is driven by small business. May we have a debate on tax and tax reforms, and their effect on small business?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend is right that small and medium-sized enterprises are the drivers of economic growth, and he may have an opportunity to raise the topic when my right hon. Friend the Chancellor makes his autumn statement in November. In the meantime, my hon. Friend will know that we have extended the small business rate relief holiday for a year, we are working to abolish 43 tax reliefs in the system to come up with a better regime, and we are cutting corporation tax to the lowest rate in the G7. I hope that will help small businesses in Spelthorne.

Business of the House

Kwasi Kwarteng Excerpts

Thursday 8th September 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

It sounds to me that that was a matter for the House rather than the Government, but the gestation period does seem to have been extremely long.

[Kwasi Kwarteng (Spelthorne) (Con)]

Given the successful roll-out of free schools, would it not be opportune for the House to discuss the free school programme shortly?

[Sir George Young]

I welcome the fact that within a relatively short time some 24 free schools are up and running, given that the legislation only hit the statute book in July last year. That compares favourably with city technology colleges and academies, and many more free schools are in the pipeline. I hope that there will be opportunities to take the debate forward, perhaps in Westminster Hall, so that we can tell more people about the success of free schools. Some of them have been established in the teeth of local resistance.

Business of the House

Kwasi Kwarteng Excerpts

Thursday 14th July 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

There will be an opportunity on Tuesday to cross-question Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers about our relationship with Pakistan and extradition. In the meantime, I will raise the case with Ministers. I quite understand the distress of the hon. Gentleman’s constituent, Miriam Khan, and her anxiety to see that whoever committed this murder is brought to justice.

[Kwasi Kwarteng (Spelthorne) (Con)]

Given the roll-out of the academies programme, does the Leader of the House agree that it would be timely to have a debate on the Floor of the House on academies and their progress?

[Sir George Young]

I would very much welcome such a debate to draw attention to the huge increase in the number of academies under this Government, from 203 in May 2010 to 801 in July this year, and the many more that are in the pipeline. Perhaps my hon. Friend would go to the Backbench Business Committee and put in a bid for such a debate.

Business of the House

Kwasi Kwarteng Excerpts

Thursday 30th June 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

We have not come to a final decision on business rates, as I said earlier. However, if local authorities decided to keep the business rate, there would still have to be a system of equalisation to ensure that those local authorities with fewer than average businesses did not suffer unduly.

[Kwasi Kwarteng (Spelthorne) (Con)]

May we have a debate in the House on bureaucracy in the NHS, and a statement about the reduction in the number of managers since the general election?

[Sir George Young]

I would welcome such a debate because, since the general election, we have reduced the number of managers in the NHS by 4,000, reversing the record of the previous Administration, under whom the number of managers increased at six times the rate of the number of nurses.

Business of the House

Kwasi Kwarteng Excerpts

Thursday 9th June 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

The answer is yes, because the Scotland Bill will be returning to the Floor of the House within the next two weeks, when the hon. Gentleman will have an opportunity to make a speech. We will reassert our commitment to a United Kingdom and to Scotland remaining an integral part of it.

[Kwasi Kwarteng (Spelthorne) (Con)]

Given the housing need and shortage in constituencies in the south-east such as mine, will the Leader of the House allow us to have a debate on housing?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend will welcome the announcement on Wednesday that 100,000 acres of publicly owned Government land will be made available for housing, providing not only much needed housing, but 25,000 jobs in the building sector. We are very anxious to increase the supply of housing and I hope that the initiative we announced yesterday will do exactly that.

Business of the House

Kwasi Kwarteng Excerpts

Thursday 24th March 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

Of course I understand the hon. Gentleman’s concern—but I do not know whether he has had time to look at the regulatory impact assessment carried out in 2006, when his party was in government, on increased taxation on North sea producers. It said:

“Oil companies are price-takers, facing a globally-determined market price for their output, and so will absorb all costs. They will be unable to pass any costs on to consumers, and the impact will be distributed proportionately across producers with no adverse effects on competition”.

I hope that gives the hon. Gentleman the reassurance he was seeking.

[Kwasi Kwarteng (Spelthorne) (Con)]

Will the House have the opportunity to debate the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority review of MPs’ expenses, which will be published tomorrow?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend reminds the House that at one minute past midnight IPSA is due to publish the outcome of its review of the scheme. I understand that it hopes to inform hon. Members of its contents before then. As my hon. Friend will know, there is now a group that liaises between the House and IPSA and has regular meetings to discuss the scheme. I suggest that my hon. Friend, and indeed others, use that channel to communicate their views on the revised scheme, as they already do now.

Business of the House

Kwasi Kwarteng Excerpts

Thursday 10th March 2011 Commons Chamber

[Kwasi Kwarteng (Spelthorne) (Con)]

In the light of Sir Ronnie Flanagan’s remarks about the massive amount of paperwork heaped on the shoulders of the police, and given that in 2009 the previous Labour Government issued some 4,000 diktats and 6,500 pages of guidelines, may we have a debate on the Floor of the House about savings in the police force?

[Hon. Members]

Yes!

Business of the House

Kwasi Kwarteng Excerpts

Thursday 3rd February 2011 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

No date was given when the relevant Minister made the statement to the House, which I believe was a fortnight ago. The shadow Leader of the House told us that cross-party talks might take place on this issue so, given that background, it might be sensible not to publish a Bill straight away.

[Kwasi Kwarteng (Spelthorne) (Con)]

Given that the number of managers in the national health service increased five times faster than the number of nurses, does my right hon. Friend think it would be a good idea to have a debate on best management practice in government?

[Sir George Young]

My hon. Friend rightly makes a point that was also made in last week’s debate on the Health and Social Care Bill. I hope that it will be re-emphasised in Committee. It is indeed our policy to reduce the overheads of running the NHS and put the resources saved into front-line care.