Oral Answers to Questions Debate

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Department: Leader of the House

Oral Answers to Questions

Peter Bone Excerpts
Thursday 14th June 2012

(12 years, 5 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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David Heath Portrait Mr Heath
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I am happy to act as a conduit for that invitation, and I hope it will be accepted.

Peter Bone Portrait Mr Peter Bone (Wellingborough) (Con)
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6. What progress he has made on introducing a House business committee.

Lord Young of Cookham Portrait The Leader of the House of Commons (Sir George Young)
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As I said in my answer to my hon. Friend on 19 April, we plan to honour our commitment in the programme for Government to establish a House business committee by the third year of this Parliament.

Peter Bone Portrait Mr Bone
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By decentralising power and reforming Parliament, we can redistribute power away from an over-mighty Executive. The House of Commons should have power “over its own timetable.” Those are not my words; they are the words of the Prime Minister. Why is the Leader of the House dragging his feet? Surely he should be supporting our wonderful Prime Minister.

Lord Young of Cookham Portrait Sir George Young
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We have not dragged our feet. As my ministerial colleague, my hon. Friend the Member for Somerton and Frome (Mr Heath), has just explained, at the first possible opportunity in this Parliament we introduced a Backbench Business Committee, which had been obstructed by the previous Administration, and we also made a commitment, which Labour never made, to introduce a House business committee by the third year. As I said in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Wellingborough (Mr Bone) in April, we propose to honour that commitment, and I reject his suggestion that we have dragged our feet.