Points of Order

Debate between Paul Goggins and John Bercow

Monday 25th November 2013 Commons Chamber

[Paul Goggins (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. You will be aware of the growing concern that exists about the conduct of G4S and Serco, and whether they should be allowed to continue with their bids to run probation services. Last Wednesday, I asked you whether the Justice Secretary intended to make a statement following the admission by G4S that it had been overcharging for electronic tagging services. On Friday, the Justice Secretary announced his decision that he would not award the contract to run three prisons in Yorkshire—again, this was for reasons that appear to be linked to the investigation into overcharging. It appears that the Justice Secretary is making this up as he goes along, and I wonder whether he had, even now, indicated that he intended to make a statement.

[Mr Speaker]

No Minister from the Department has given any indication to me of an intention to make a statement to the House. I may misrecollect, but I thought there were going to be scrutiny opportunities in relation to legislation before very long, which might allow this issue to be aired. Whether that would include the right hon. Member for Wythenshawe and Sale East (Paul Goggins) or, in any case, is an avenue satisfactory to him, I cannot say. I recognise that he is being persistent on this point, but the straight answer to his question is that no such notification has been given to me and he will have to use the resources available to him further and better to flag the issue up with Ministers.

Point of Order

Debate between Paul Goggins and John Bercow

Wednesday 20th November 2013 Commons Chamber

[Paul Goggins (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Have you had any indication from the Justice Secretary on whether he intends to come to the House and make a statement to clear up the confusion regarding the announcement by G4S yesterday that it has been overcharging for services it is contracted to provide to the Ministry of Justice? The confusion is twofold. First, there have been reports in the press that G4S has offered to repay roughly £23 million to the MOJ, but that that has been refused. I think hon. Members would want to know the reason for that. Secondly, on the proposed changes to the probation service, last week on Second Reading the Under-Secretary of State for Justice, the hon. Member for Kenilworth and Southam (Jeremy Wright), who has responsibility for prisons and the probation service, indicated that

“if…G4S do not come out satisfactorily from the audit processes, which this Government instituted, they will not receive any contracts.”—[Official Report, 11 November 2013; Vol. 570, c. 744.]

We need to know whether the MOJ is now excluding G4S from that process.

[Mr Speaker]

I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for his point of order. He speaks both as a concerned constituency Member and a former Prisons Minister. The short answer is that I have received no indication that any Minister intends to come to the House to make a statement on the matter. My recollection from the media coverage is that the issue is one of ongoing investigation, but the words uttered by the right hon. Gentleman in his usual measured terms will have been heard on the Treasury Bench. We shall have to leave it there for today.

Points of Order

Debate between Paul Goggins and John Bercow

Thursday 11th July 2013 Commons Chamber

[Paul Goggins (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. You will recall that during the statement from the Health Secretary, considerable concern was expressed regarding the lack of notice given to Members of Parliament with hospitals and accident and emergency units in their constituencies that would be affected by that statement. Speaking personally, I was informed by my Whips Office just before 9 o’clock this morning that the statement was to be made. I had had no contact at that point from the Secretary of State.

The statement has major implications for Trafford General hospital in the constituency of my hon. Friend the Member for Stretford and Urmston (Kate Green). She found out about the statement when I phoned her. She was on the train to Manchester and had to get off the train and get on to another train going back to London to be here in time. Fortunately, she caught your eye, Mr Speaker, and you allowed her to speak. You ruled earlier that nothing disorderly had happened, but surely something discourteous happens when such important decisions are announced without any notice being given to Members. I wondered whether you could give us any further advice.

[Mr Speaker]

I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for his point of order, which was put to me in the measured and courteous terms that are his hallmark. As he implies, there is a distinction between disorder and discourtesy. The Secretary of State was not guilty of disorderly conduct in any way. Ultimately, it is for Members of the House to judge whether there was a discourtesy. I did indicate in my response to an earlier point of order that there are ways of handling these matters. It is often the case that a Minister will seek to inform Members in advance at least of an intention to make a statement on a matter, even if the Minister is not in a position to guarantee it or indicate the precise date. These courtesies are important. Members must form their own assessment, but I hope that in the future we can operate, in respect of matters of this kind, in a way that commands general assent across the House. That, I think, would be helpful to all concerned. It is probably best if we leave it there for today.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Paul Goggins and John Bercow

Monday 10th September 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I call Mr Gavin Shuker. Not here. I call Paul Goggins.

[Paul Goggins (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

In response to the question from my right hon. Friend the Member for Cynon Valley (Ann Clwyd) about the high tax being paid by sacked Remploy staff on their redundancy payments, the Minister gave an encouraging reply and said that the matter would be dealt with as soon as possible. Will the Secretary of State confirm that that means the money will be returned to those sacked staff in the current tax year?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Paul Goggins and John Bercow

Tuesday 13th December 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. May I ask the Secretary of State to face the House? We all want to be the beneficiaries of his eloquence.

[Paul Goggins (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

What action does the Justice Secretary intend to take against offenders who receive a community sentence instead of a prison sentence and then use social media to boast that they have “got away with it”? I am thinking in particular of comments posted on Facebook yesterday by Ryan Girdlestone, who mocked the court within minutes of receiving a restraining order for his part in a vicious attack on my constituent, Bernard O’Donnell, a man in his 80th year. Is that not sheer contempt for the court, and should he not be held to account?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Paul Goggins and John Bercow

Wednesday 30th November 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. The difficulty with that question, notwithstanding its notable ingenuity, is that it does not relate to the work of the Historical Enquiries Team, so we had better leave it there.

[Paul Goggins (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

Historical inquiries into police officers are conducted by the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland. Given that that is a Crown appointment, what recent discussions has the Secretary of State held with the Minister of Justice, David Ford, on the appointment of a successor to the current ombudsman, Al Hutchinson, who has made it clear that he intends to leave his post at the end of January?

Points of Order

Debate between Paul Goggins and John Bercow

Tuesday 1st November 2011 Commons Chamber

[Paul Goggins (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. I seek your advice about the reduction in the time that will now be available for debate on the first group of amendments to the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill. When we voted on the programme motion yesterday, we did not know that there was to be an important statement from the Home Secretary about gangs and youth violence. The consequence of the statement is that a wholly inadequate two and a quarter hours for debate will now be little more than one hour, barely time for the Front-Bench spokespeople to exchange views. Could you give us advice, Mr Speaker? These are controversial amendments, which deal with the sentencing of the most dangerous people in our community, yet they have been introduced not at 5 minutes to midnight but at 1 minute to midnight, with no debate on Second Reading or in Committee. Is there any way that we can reclaim that time, Mr Speaker, and will you make it clear to Ministers that you will not put up with this abuse of the parliamentary process?

[Mr Speaker]

I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for giving me advance notice of his point of order. I fully understand the frustration expressed about the short time now available for discussing the first group of new clauses on longer sentences. The right hon. Gentleman will know that on the one hand it is in effect up to Ministers when to make statements to the House and that on the other hand I am bound by the terms of the programme motion agreed yesterday by the House. I can only advise him to make his point to the Procedure Committee whose Chairman is lurking, doubtless with intent, at the back of the Chamber, and has now progressed into the main body of the Kirk, for which we are grateful. Others will no doubt also have heard the right hon. Gentleman’s point.

Because this is an immensely serious matter, I would in addition appeal for extreme brevity from the Front Benches—a brevity that we did not witness yesterday—in the debates today, and from Back-Bench colleagues, so that matters of great importance to those outside the House can be properly considered.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Paul Goggins and John Bercow

Wednesday 19th October 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. The House must come to order. The next questioner is a former Northern Ireland Minister and I trust that the House will want to hear him.

[Paul Goggins (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

9. What recent discussions he has had with the Northern Ireland Executive on the contribution of aviation to economic development.

Justice and Security Green Paper

Debate between Paul Goggins and John Bercow

Wednesday 19th October 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I am still seeking brevity, an object lesson in which I know will be provided by the right hon. Member for Wythenshawe and Sale East (Paul Goggins).

[Paul Goggins (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

I am very grateful, Mr Speaker, and I, too, welcome the Green Paper. It is perfectly clear that the balance on disclosure has tipped too far in sensitive cases, and that results in Ministers being constrained in their ability to fulfil their ultimate obligation, which is to protect the public. Given the complexity of the situation, may I ask specifically what plans the Secretary of State has to consult the judiciary?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Paul Goggins and John Bercow

Wednesday 30th June 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

We need to make somewhat faster progress.

[Paul Goggins (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

I welcome the Minister to his post and wish him genuinely warm good wishes in his responsibilities. I also welcome the very good news that he and the Secretary of State have secured this additional £12 million from the reserve. That is vital funding and I congratulate them on obtaining it. I am sure that he will agree that the Independent Monitoring Commission has played a vital role in the political process and in the peace process in Northern Ireland. Now that devolution is complete, what role does he envisage for the IMC in the future?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Paul Goggins and John Bercow

Wednesday 9th June 2010 Commons Chamber

[Paul Goggins (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

I welcome the hon. Gentleman to his new and important role. Given statements made in recent days by the Prime Minister and others about deep and early cuts in public spending at the same time as statements about an extended role for voluntary organisations in the delivery of public services, I am sure that, as the Minister for the voluntary sector, he will want to move swiftly to reassure anyone who thinks that there is any suggestion that this means that the Government want to get public services on the cheap. He will want to rebut that suggestion very swiftly. Therefore, will he confirm to Members on both sides of the House who value greatly the work of voluntary organisations that he and other Ministers will uphold the compact with voluntary organisations and, in particular, the commitment to three-year funding as a minimum and to full recovery of costs for volunteering?

[Mr Speaker]

Again, I am afraid that that question was a little on the long side. I know that the answer will not be.