Oral Answers to Questions Debate

Full Debate: Read Full Debate
Department: Northern Ireland Office

Oral Answers to Questions

Paul Blomfield Excerpts
Wednesday 10th November 2010

(14 years, 1 month ago)

Commons Chamber
Read Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Nick Clegg Portrait The Deputy Prime Minister
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

I strongly agree with my hon. Friend. I think that HMRC’s business payment support service is indeed, as he says, a very valuable and important service, and it remains in place. By the end of September this year, 371,200 arrangements had been granted, worth £6.38 billion. That is extraordinarily valuable to small and medium-sized enterprises, which are indeed struggling and deserve all the support they require to power us out of this difficult economic environment.

Paul Blomfield Portrait Paul Blomfield (Sheffield Central) (Lab)
- Hansard - -

The Minister for Universities and Science has made it clear that all public funding will be withdrawn from non-STEM subjects in universities. Last Wednesday, the Minister for Further Education, Skills and Lifelong Learning told a Westminster Hall debate:

“We will continue to support the arts through the subsidy for teaching in universities.”—[Official Report, 3 November 2010; Vol. 517, c. 315WH.]

Who is right?