Today’s Business of the House

Matthew Offord Excerpts

Thursday 26th March 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

The Government decided, when it became clear that there would be no further Lords amendments yesterday afternoon, to bring it before the House.

[Dr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

There seems to be an assumption among some Members that Thursday is some kind of day off, but those of us who attend every Thursday see it as a day of work. Will the Leader of the House confirm that the Government are entitled to table whatever business they like in their own time?

[Mr Hague]

The public would expect us to be here today to do our job, and that indeed is what we are here to do.

Business of the House

Matthew Offord Excerpts

Thursday 19th March 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

I am grateful for the nearest thing to a ringing endorsement from the hon. Gentleman. I have fond memories of being Welsh Secretary. The Prime Minister who appointed me to that role, Sir John Major, asked me to take Wales to my heart. When, a year later, I married my private secretary, he said, “I think you are taking this a little bit too literally now.” Of course I have been deeply fond of Wales ever since.

On the measure the hon. Gentleman refers to, we must follow the procedures with all matters before the House, including the large number of orders in the remaining few days of the Parliament, so I cannot offer him an additional debate, but he will be able, as ever, to use every possible procedure of this House—he is very skilled at that—to make his views known. I am sure he will continue to do so on that matter.

[Dr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

My first question in this House resulted in £2 million being awarded to Jewish schools in my area to enforce their security. Yesterday, I was pleased to present the petition signed by more than 2,000 people seeking that sum again to be renewed. Will the Leader of the House take this opportunity to confirm the Prime Minister’s announcement last night that not only has that money been extended and increased, but that it will now also cover independent schools, synagogues and Jewish cultural centres such as the JW3 centre on Finchley road?

[Mr Hague]

The Jewish community is a vital part of British life. Although we meet additional security costs at state-funded Jewish schools, we recognise that a wide range of independent establishments face the same risks, as my hon. Friend has said. We are therefore widening eligibility for the grant to cover those schools and colleges, so that their pupils and students can have the same degree of security as those attending state schools. The new package announced by the Prime Minister is in addition to the existing Department for Education grant, which will also continue in the next financial year. So we remain staunchly committed to tackling anti-Semitism wherever it occurs, and I can confirm the announcement, as my hon. Friend says.

Business of the House

Matthew Offord Excerpts

Thursday 12th March 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

There is little scope for additional debates, as I have been saying in relation to other issues, but I can tell my hon. Friend that NHS England, which manages the cancer drugs fund, has assured the Department of Health that no patient whose treatment is currently being funded through the cancer drugs fund will have their funding withdrawn as long as it is clinically appropriate that they continue to receive that treatment, and that in addition no drug will be removed from the fund when it is the only therapy available for the condition in question. Furthermore, clinicians can still apply for individual patients to receive a particular drug on an exceptional basis. I would recommend that my hon. Friend pursues the matter directly with Ministers at the Department of Health in order to get further details.

[Dr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

In recent weeks, a constituent of mine travelled to Kenya, where immigration control accidentally swapped her passport with someone else’s. When she attempted to travel back, she was refused entry to the plane, but the person who had her passport had already returned to the United Kingdom. Will a Minister come to the Dispatch Box to tell us what measures are in place to ensure that this does not happen?

[Mr Hague]

I understand my hon. Friend’s concern about that. Border Force officers carry out comprehensive checks on all passengers arriving at passport control, and those checks are set out in an operating mandate approved by Home Office Ministers. They are, of course, meant to include a visual examination of the passenger and their passport to ensure that they are the right holder of the document. The best way to pursue this is for my hon. Friend to give me all the details and I will ensure that it is dealt with by my ministerial colleagues as a matter of urgency.

Business of the House

Matthew Offord Excerpts

Thursday 26th February 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

I think that is an excellent idea. That increase in the proportion of people from disadvantaged backgrounds going to university is a significant development, and it is very different from what was forecast when tuition fees and other matters were being debated in the House. It is a very serious success. It will help long-term social mobility. I would very much welcome such a debate, although I cannot offer it, given the constraints on Government time. It is the sort of debate that my hon. Friend could put to the Backbench Business Committee.

[Dr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

Less than 2% of medical research funding in the UK is directed towards the eye and sight-related issues. Given that 40 people a day—about the number of Members in the Chamber today—lose their sight, and up to 2 million people in this country are living with sight loss-related issues, may we have a debate in Government time to see how we can address the issue and increase funding in the next Parliament?

[Mr Hague]

We might not be able to have a debate before Dissolution, but I can tell my hon. Friend that investment in eye-related research by the National Institute for Health Research has risen over the past four years, from £7.1 million a year to £15.6 million. Although that is a small proportion of total research, the amount has doubled under this Government. The institute welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including eye care, so there is every opportunity to expand that research further in the coming months and years.

Christmas Adjournment

Matthew Offord Excerpts

Thursday 18th December 2014 Commons Chamber

[Dr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

I assure you that I will keep to that limit, Mr Deputy Speaker.

Every 15 minutes, someone in the UK is told that they are losing or have permanently lost their sight. That leaves them with a sense of bewilderment, and they often ask themselves what will happen next. In January 2011, I underwent an emergency operation to repair a torn retina in my right eye. If the operation had not taken place, I would have lost the sight in that eye. Back in September, I again experienced the same trauma in my other eye, which also required surgery. A possible side effect of the retina vitrectomy operations that I received is a cataract. In my case, the operations caused a partial one in the right eye and, more recently, a full one in my left eye.

As a result of my first experience, I became actively involved with several sight-related issues in Parliament. I spoke in an Adjournment debate on the use of Avastin in age-related macular degradation. I campaigned for oral warnings on silent hybrid vehicles, and I sought to change the law so that an attack on a guide dog is considered as an attack on its owner. I welcomed the opportunity to open the Optegra eye hospital in Colindale in my constituency. I have urged constituents to have regular eye and sight tests, and I have lobbied Barnet clinical commissioning group to ensure there are enough funds to cover the demand for cataract operations.

I want to raise the issue of eye clinic liaison officers. Across England, ECLOs help patients and their families to understand their diagnosis when someone loses their sight. They provide information and support, including referrals to other services. However, only 30% of eye clinics in the UK currently have some kind of qualified support.

My constituents in Hendon are covered by the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust. Three hospitals in the area have an ophthalmology department—Barnet hospital, Edgware community hospital and the Royal Free hospital. First, Edgware community hospital does not have an ECLO, but it is a very small clinic. Although I would not necessarily call for an ECLO to be based there, it should certainly have access to one. Secondly, there is no qualified sight loss adviser service at Barnet hospital, although early intervention support is provided by the Hertfordshire Society for the Blind, to which we are grateful. Finally, as far as I am aware, the Royal Free hospital does not have a sight loss adviser service.

During my regular visits to Moorfields eye hospital, I have witnessed the pressure that ophthalmology departments are under. During 2011-12 in England alone, the number of out-patient appointments for ophthalmology totalled 6.8 million, making it the third largest hospital service in terms of attendances. The demand for ophthalmology services will continue because the number of people with sight loss is set to increase.

Recent research conducted with health care professionals in Wales has shown that sight loss advisers reduce the number of follow-up appointments through the immediate and ongoing support that they offer, which saves the NHS money in the longer term. On three occasions, I have sat in hospitals on my own facing the reality that I could lose my sight—a prospect that is frightening for anyone. Sight loss has a huge impact on the lives of those who suffer it and on their families. I believe that the expansion of ECLOs across the country would be a comparatively small financial price to pay for a service whose benefit cannot be measured in monetary terms.

According to the Royal National Institute of Blind People, 66% of registered blind or partially sighted people of working age are not in employment. Two-thirds of working-age or employed people with sight loss experience restrictions in accessing and fully participating in employment. That is a great loss on many levels. Unsurprisingly, almost half public in another recent poll expected that emotional counselling would be available if they discovered that they were going to become blind. Sadly, that is not the case.

I find it ironic that I stand here today, knowing that tomorrow I and several hundred other people will again face the prospect of losing our eyesight without any clinical support. Some people will have corneal replacements, some will have vitreo-retinal procedures and some will have glaucoma operations or canaloplasty. I expect to have cataract operations on both eyes. As I said, cataracts are a side effect of retina vitrectomy operations. There is now a clinical need to operate on both my eyes.

In conclusion, it is clear that sight loss can have a devastating and profound impact on a person’s life, and it is shocking that people are left to face it on their own. The general public expect practical and emotional support to be available to people who are losing their sight. No one should have to return home on their own not understanding their sight condition, not knowing what support is out there and left isolated. Sight loss advisers provide a bridge between health and social care, and ensure that patients receive the support and information that they need to be independent and to learn the skills that they need in order to adapt to losing their sight. The service is cost-effective and benefits the clinic by ensuring that patients receive the necessary support, which results in clinicians being able to focus on treating and diagnosing patients. Today, I want to join the call of the RNIB for every eye department in the UK to have access to a sight loss adviser and for those vital posts to be funded permanently. We need to ensure that no one is left to face sight loss on their own.

Business of the House

Matthew Offord Excerpts

Thursday 18th December 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

I do not think there will be any contradiction in regard to the need for those matters to be dealt with both expeditiously and with alacrity, and I hope that they will be, although it will, of course, be important for them to be debated in the House so that it can be fully consulted. Everyone who works for the House has coped very well with the last few months—all services have been successfully provided and important developments have continued—but now that the report has been published, we shall need to discuss it as quickly as possible.

[Dr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

Because there had been no ministerial statements during the week, I attended this morning’s session of oral questions to the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change to try to establish the Government’s position on the United Nations climate change conference in Lima and the agreement that was reached on Sunday, as it has huge implications for the discussions that will be held in Paris next year. It worries me that the House has not discussed the United Kingdom’s position on the legal structure of the agreement. There has been no discussion about the deferred decisions on ensuring a flow of finance to developing countries, about where the burden for cutting greenhouse gas emissions should lie, or about the dropping of the requirement for countries to provide information about their “prospect reduction targets”. May we please have a debate in Government time, so that we can discuss those important issues?

[Mr Speaker]

I think we have already had it.

Business of the House

Matthew Offord Excerpts

Thursday 4th December 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

These are very important issues. The scale of the refugee crisis, particularly as it affects Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey, is extremely serious; I saw that for myself while serving as Foreign Secretary. I saw the importance of the support in the form of food being given to many of those refugees. This is, therefore, a legitimate concern for hon. Members and I will encourage the Department for International Development to make it clear to the House how we shall now proceed.

[Dr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

On Monday, thousands of my constituents were put to great inconvenience and uncertainty as the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers called yet another strike on the Northern line. The case was about one individual failing a breath test. While I would not speak about that specific case, may we have a debate on the Floor of the House to look forward to legislating to prevent huge parts of this country from being held to ransom by unions over specific issues?

[Mr Hague]

My hon. Friend speaks up very well for his constituents, who should not be held to ransom in that way; they should be able to go about their business without such unnecessary and mindless disruption. There is a good case for such a debate, and I would encourage my hon. Friend to seek that by all the usual methods.

Business of the House

Matthew Offord Excerpts

Thursday 19th June 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lansley]

Yes, well—it is my job to answer questions. The hon. Lady did not even see it as an occasion to poke fun at the deputy leader of the Labour party, who seems to have contrived a position in which it was right both to have been in the picture in the first place and to have apologised for that. That seems to me to be a very curious position to have arrived at.

[Dr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

May I draw the attention of the House to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests as I visited the west bank last year? The security of the Jordan valley is controlled by Israel, as the Israeli Government insist that they have significant security concerns about the misuse of the area should they relinquish control. That view is now justified following the kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers last week, possibly to be used in a swap such as that which occurred with Gilad Shalit. Given that only a return to direct peace talks can achieve a peace deal, may we have a Minister come to the Dispatch Box to say what the British Government are doing as part of the Quartet in seeking such a deal?

[Mr Lansley]

I know that my hon. Friend reflects the sense of distress that will have been felt by many in Israel and more widely about the kidnapping of teenagers in that way. That calls for condemnation and the House and the Government condemn the abduction in the strongest terms and call for the release of the teenagers to their families as soon as possible. Obviously, this is not strictly a matter for this Government but it is something about which we feel strongly and on which we have called for action.

Business of the House

Matthew Offord Excerpts

Thursday 8th May 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lansley]

I am afraid that I do not recall the precise number of schools that have already benefited from the programme, but I am pretty sure that the last figure that I heard was higher than the one given by the hon. Gentleman. I will check with the Department for Education, and ensure that we are both informed of the latest figure.

I am sure that, along with other Members on both sides of the House, the hon. Gentleman welcomed the announcement a fortnight ago of a further £2 billion for the priority schools building programme. That money will enable us not only to rebuild schools and build new ones where necessary—which was made possible by the first tranche of funding—but to help schools with rebuilding or refurbishment. Over the next few years, it will make a big difference to our school estate.

[Dr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

May I, as a free marketeer, request a debate on the universal service obligation in the postal industry? In my constituency, TNT has been able to come in and cherry-pick some of the more lucrative parts of the postal service, thus posing a threat to the universal service obligation. Recently, when cleaning out a river in Colindale, I found a bundle of letters that someone from TNT had dumped without delivering them. Will a Minister come to the House and make a statement, so that we can ensure that competition in the postal market is fair competition?

[Mr Lansley]

Of course there should be fair competition, and it is the responsibility of Ofcom, as the regulator, to ensure that that is the case. Let me add, however, as one who is equally a believer in free markets, that I think my hon. Friend should welcome—and I am sure he does—the fact that, in its private sector capacity which enables it to generate private investment to support its business, Royal Mail will be increasingly able not only to meet its universal service obligations, which are unchanged, but to compete in the marketplace.

Business of the House

Matthew Offord Excerpts

Thursday 1st May 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lansley]

The right hon. Gentleman will, I am sure, understand that I am not in a position to comment on any ongoing police investigation. His point about victims is important and, as my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland made clear at the Dispatch Box recently in relation to the wider circumstances and questions about the on-the-run terrorists review, we should always make sure that the needs of justice are served and that victims can see that we are continuing to pursue the issues that relate to that.

[Dr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

On Monday, I sought to ask the Home Secretary about the cost of the MPs’ asylum and immigration hotline, but was unable to do so. Will a Minister come to the Dispatch Box and give us that figure, and can we also talk about the proposal for a dedicated asylum hotline so that MPs and their staff are not tied up with comments and questions from people seeking explanations about their asylum applications and can focus on our constituents’ needs?

[Mr Lansley]

My hon. Friend will know, not least from the many occasions on which I have quite properly received representations from hon. Members, that it is important to Members of this House that they can advise and support their constituents on many issues arising from asylum and immigration and that they can do so effectively through their contact with the Home Office and its associated agencies. I will, if I may, ask my hon. Friend the Minister for Security and Immigration to respond directly to my hon. Friend on the subject of the cost of the asylum immigration hotline. If he is happy to do so, he might like to have a direct conversation about how we can best represent our constituents in a way that serves their interests.