Education

Debate between Michael Ellis and Robert Halfon

Monday 25th March 2024 Ministerial Corrections

[Robert Halfon]

I was pleased to visit Loughborough not so long ago with my hon. Friend. She is passionate about FE and skills. I know Homefield College well; it is a brilliant college and I am glad it was recently allocated £95,000 for capital spend. We have the £80 million supported internship scheme for those with special educational needs; an FE bursary scheme for special needs teachers; National Careers Service advice for young people; and the SEND code of practice to prepare young people for adulthood.

[Sir Michael Ellis (Northampton North) (Con)]

At Cambridge University, a barbaric vandal wearing a £1,000 Mulberry backpack was so full of hate for Jews that she felt Lord Balfour’s letter of 1917 gave her the moral superiority to destroy a valuable and historic painting of him. This shines a light on the pernicious atmosphere faced by Jewish students at universities across the country, with calls for “Zionists off our campus” now shamefully normalised, and “Zionists” really meaning Jews. What steps does my right hon. Friend propose to take to convey to university heads that they have a legal and a moral obligation to stamp out antisemitism?

[Robert Halfon]

…We have announced a £7 million package to give to Jewish student groups, including the University Jewish Chaplaincy, to try to stop antisemitism on campus.

[Official Report, 11 March 2024, Vol. 747, c. 22.]

Letter of correction from the Minister for Skills, Apprenticeships and Higher Education, the right hon. Member for Harlow (Robert Halfon):

An error has been identified in the response given to my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Northampton North (Sir Michael Ellis).

The correct response is:

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Michael Ellis and Robert Halfon

Monday 11th March 2024 Commons Chamber

[Sir Michael Ellis (Northampton North) (Con)]

At Cambridge University, a barbaric vandal wearing a £1,000 Mulberry backpack was so full of hate for Jews that she felt Lord Balfour’s letter of 1917 gave her the moral superiority to destroy a valuable and historic painting of him. This shines a light on the pernicious atmosphere faced by Jewish students at universities across the country, with calls for “Zionists off our campus” now shamefully normalised, and “Zionists” really meaning Jews. What steps does my right hon. Friend propose to take to convey to university heads that they have a legal and a moral obligation to stamp out antisemitism?

[Robert Halfon]

I thank my right hon. and learned Friend for his question. Arthur Balfour was a great man and identified the need for a homeland for British Jews. That is why antisemites do not like him and are slashing his picture. I and the Secretary of State are spending a lot of time with Jewish student groups. I have been to Leeds University to spend time with Jewish students, because the chaplain there was attacked, and we are working with Universities UK. We have announced a £7 million package to give to Jewish student groups, including the University Jewish Chaplaincy, to try to stop antisemitism on campus. We are also developing a quality seal that we will ask universities to adopt, so that they deal properly with antisemitic incidents. Last week, I and the Secretary of State had a meeting with the Office for Students, to make clear to the regulator that antisemitism across our universities is not acceptable.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Michael Ellis and Robert Halfon

Monday 27th February 2023 Commons Chamber

[Michael Ellis (Northampton North) (Con)]

My staff member Callum Dineen has been campaigning to improve mental health policies at universities following the tragic suicide of his close friend Theo Brennan-Hulme. I thank the Universities Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Harlow (Robert Halfon), for meeting Callum on this sensitive matter. Callum has been particularly focused on information sharing in a mental health crisis, which is a policy that Universities UK has recently endorsed and one that we feel would have helped Theo. Can the Minister inform the House of the steps that the Government are taking to ensure that those policies are being adopted in universities?

[Robert Halfon]

I had a very moving meeting with Callum. The story of the loss of his friend is absolutely tragic. There are serious mental health problems among some students across higher education and universities, and there have been some tragic episodes. We are investing £15 million to support students’ mental health and are strongly supporting the students’ mental health charter. I have asked Edward Peck, the vice-chancellor of Nottingham Trent, to work on these issues.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Michael Ellis and Robert Halfon

Thursday 11th April 2019 Commons Chamber

[Michael Ellis]

I do not accept the hon. Gentleman’s claim. The fact is that this Government are supporting local government in its work. Local government has a responsibility under the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 to maintain libraries and provide a comprehensive and efficient library service. The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport’s Taking Part survey found that libraries are used by all parts of our society. They are supported by this Government and this Department.

[Robert Halfon (Harlow) (Con)]

12. Will my hon. Friend support the campaign by the Daily Express to save our libraries? Will he also protect Harlow? Essex County Council is threatening to close libraries across my constituency despite having nearly £250 million in reserves.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Michael Ellis and Robert Halfon

Monday 10th January 2011 Commons Chamber

[Robert Halfon (Harlow) (Con)]

9. When he plans to bring forward proposals to prevent unfair dismissal on grounds of age.

[Michael Ellis (Northampton North) (Con)]

17. When he plans to bring forward proposals to prevent unfair dismissal of staff on grounds of age.

The Internet and Privacy

Debate between Michael Ellis and Robert Halfon

Thursday 28th October 2010 Westminster Hall

[Robert Halfon]

I was pleased to serve with my hon. Friend on the Public Bill Committee that considered the abolition of identity cards. He is also a huge defender of civil liberties, and has been so for many years. He is right, and raises an important subject, but one for another debate. Today, I am focusing specifically on the activities of internet companies and their role in curtailing our civil liberties.

[Michael Ellis (Northampton North) (Con)]

I, too, join those congratulating my hon. Friend on orchestrating the debate today.

On regulation, specifically, does my hon. Friend think that there is any merit, or viability, in establishing an industry-wide data security mark of some sort? Is there not a clear commercial incentive for companies such as Google to ensure that they get this right, and to satisfy the general public that they are getting it right? What about a kitemark or some such security apparatus, which would allow the public to see the quality or otherwise of companies such as Google and their security infrastructure? Would my hon. Friend support something such as that?

[Robert Halfon]

My hon. Friend is exactly right. It is that sort of thing that I hope the independent commission of inquiry would consider.

Although internet companies are global, nothing would stop the Government from fining their operations in the UK.

I stand before the Chamber known as Robert Halfon. However, if I took the advice of the Google chief executive, Eric Schmidt, I might have changed my name by now. In August, Mr Schmidt suggested that people might have to change their names in order to wipe their personal histories as captured on the internet. His vision for Google is not just to monitor people, but to predict their behaviour. He has said that

“most people don’t want Google to answer their questions. They want Google to tell them what they should be doing next”.

In the future, Google will

“know…who you are…what you care about…who your friends are”.

Mr Schmidt also said:

“If you have something that you don’t want anyone to know, maybe you shouldn’t be doing it in the first place.”

Therein lies the problem we have been discussing today. It is the nub of the whole subject. For Mr Schmidt and his company, Google, the burden of taking defensive action because of activity by internet companies lies on the individual. In fact, in my view and that of many others, it should be the opposite.