Accident and Emergency

Debate between Mike Gapes and Baroness Primarolo

Wednesday 18th December 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mike Gapes]

On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. This information was embargoed until two o’clock today, but following an investigation the Care Quality Commission has put King George hospital Ilford and Queen’s hospital Romford into special measures. I tried several times to intervene on the Secretary of State in order to raise the matter, but he refused to take an intervention from me. I therefore seek your advice: how can I draw attention to the matter and the fact that the previous Secretary of State said that King George’s A and E department would close within two years? That is clearly not happening. There is chaos in my local A and Es, yet the Secretary of State did not let me intervene.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dawn Primarolo)]

Mr Gapes, in terms of getting your argument on the record, you have just done so, although it was not a point of order, as I think you know. As you are fully aware, it is up to the Secretary of State, or any Member of this House, whether they give way to another Member or not. I am sure you will find ways to pursue this matter over the minutes, hours, days and months ahead.

I inform Members that there is a five-minute time limit on all Back-Bench contributions in order to ensure that as many Members as possible can participate in the debate.

European Union (Referendum) Bill

Debate between Mike Gapes and Baroness Primarolo

Friday 8th November 2013 Commons Chamber

[Madam Deputy Speaker]

Order. There cannot be anything further to that point of order. I have said that Ministers may approach the Box and nobody else should. I am sure that from now on nobody else will, apart from Ministers or their Parliamentary Private Secretaries. Where were we?

[Mike Gapes]

I was halfway through giving way, Madam Deputy Speaker. Has my hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow North East (Mr Bain) concluded his intervention?

Nuclear Deterrent

Debate between Mike Gapes and Baroness Primarolo

Thursday 17th January 2013 Commons Chamber

[Madam Deputy Speaker]

Mr Corbyn, I think you know that that is not a point of order either, particularly seeing as the Backbench Business Committee’s determination of business in the House is not a matter for the Chair. I am sure that when the Committee reads Hansard, it will take his remarks as an early bid, particularly if he has greater support for such a debate.

[Mike Gapes]

Further to that point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. Given that the Government will publish—at least internally—and consider their review on the alternatives to Trident, perhaps the Under-Secretary of State for Defence, the hon. Member for Ludlow (Mr Dunne), who is in his place, will give the House a commitment that we will have the chance to debate the review in this House very soon.

[Madam Deputy Speaker]

Well, Mr Gapes, perhaps the Minister could do that, but I do not think he will. That is not a point of order. I would like to make progress with business, because I am sure there are not any other relevant or pertinent points of order to take this afternoon.

Business without Debate

Debate between Mike Gapes and Baroness Primarolo

Wednesday 26th October 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mike Gapes (Ilford South) (Lab/Co-op)]

On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. I seek your advice. BBC television news this evening reported that at 12 o’clock tomorrow the Secretary of State for Health will announce the closure of accident and emergency and maternity services at King George hospital in my constituency. We have campaigned against that for years, and the Secretary of State should at least have had the courtesy to inform the local Members of Parliament, including the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, and should come before the House to make such a profound statement. Have you had any advice from the Department that the Secretary of State intends to come before the House to make such an announcement?

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dawn Primarolo)]

The Chair has received no notification of any such statement. Strictly speaking, the matter is not one for the Chair, or for today’s business, but the hon. Gentleman has put his point on the record, and I am sure he will pursue it vigorously. Ministers on the Treasury Bench will have heard his comments.

European Union Bill

Debate between Mike Gapes and Baroness Primarolo

Tuesday 25th January 2011 Commons Chamber

[The Second Deputy Chairman]

Order. Before we proceed, I want to say to Members that given the breadth of the debate on this group of amendments, I am not minded, under the Standing Orders, to take a clause stand part debate. I hope that hon. Members will bear that in mind when they make their contributions—although those who have already spoken do not appear to have done so.

[Mike Gapes]

Thank you, Ms Primarolo. I take it, then, that if I widen my remarks, I will remain in order—subject, of course, to the occupant of the Chair.

I begin by following up a comment of the hon. Member for Stroud (Neil Carmichael) when he said that the former Prime Minister had said, “They are our fish”. One thing about fish is that they do not stay in one place; they can move. If they do not move, they may be over-fished, and there may be a need to have some kind of collective policy to protect “our fish”. It is very easy to say that these are “our fish”, but the fish might swim away and not come back another day.

National Insurance Contributions Bill

Debate between Mike Gapes and Baroness Primarolo

Tuesday 23rd November 2010 Commons Chamber

[Richard Harrington (Watford) (Con)]

The point needs to be made that the Minister has explained that a significant extra cost would be involved in making this a national programme. As the Member of Parliament for Watford, an area that faces significant unemployment problems, I would say that it would be very nice to have this programme, but the Minister has explained that the cost involved would be more £660 million. I am pleased to see this principle being used, because I believe that selective regional policy can be used in the future. I hope that the Government’s localisation agenda will mean that holidays and similar tax benefits for rates will be extended to specific areas. But for the moment, because of the mess that the Labour Government left us with—

[Madam Deputy Speaker]

Order. The hon. Gentleman will resume his seat. Interventions are supposed to be brief.

[Mike Gapes]

I suggest that the hon. Gentleman should perhaps make his own speech, rather than intervene on mine.

The FSB makes clear its concern about not only the regional variation, but the fact that the proposals do not deal with existing firms. My right hon. Friend the Member for Delyn (Mr Hanson) also made that point from the Front Bench. The FSB says that

“surveys have found that 57% of small businesses without employees would like to employ in the future, which could create…800,000 new jobs”.

It also points out that many small businesses do not survive for more than two or three years, so by discriminating against existing small businesses that have just been established the proposals are another difficulty for that sector. The FSB claims that, on average, its 213,000 members each employ seven members of staff and that most employ five or fewer. It points out that if they were able to get the support that is being made available only to certain businesses in certain regions, there would be the potential for much greater assistance. Therefore, the essence of the proposals is that if the Government are going down this route, they are doing so in a way that discriminates against certain regions and certain communities in the country, and that discriminates between different businesses.

The essence of the proposal, we are told, is that we are all in this together but, sadly, it is yet another example of where we are not. We are all in it together, but we are not all getting the assistance to deal with the problems that the Government will create when they slash the public sector.