Business of the House

Robert Halfon Excerpts

Thursday 26th April 2012 Commons Chamber

[Sir George Young]

I am sorry to hear that a number of my hon. Friend’s constituents are being confronted with very high phone bills as a result of activity which sounds to me highly immoral. Of course I will raise it with the appropriate regulator, Ofcom, or the Minister at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills who has responsibility for consumer protection, and see whether we need to build in additional safeguards to protect people from exorbitant telephone bills for calls which they are not conscious of having made.

[Robert Halfon (Harlow) (Con)]

May we have a debate on the work of food banks? The Leader of the House may have seen early-day motion 3006 praising the work of the volunteers and staff at Harlow food bank, not least because it has now given food to more than 5,000 people and been nominated as Dods local charity of the year.

[That this House celebrates the nomination of Harlow Foodbank for the 2012 DODS Local Charity of the Year Award, and urges every hon. Member to vote for them; commends Harlow Foodbank for supporting individuals and families in crisis by providing free emergency food; further notes that since 2009 it has provided food to over 5,000 people; welcomes what the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has done to allow jobcentres to give this foodbank vouchers; and recognises the work of Harlow Foodbank in really making a difference to people’s lives in Harlow, as a lifeline to people who are going through a period of difficulty or crisis in their life.]

Will the Leader of the House vote for it and urge all hon. Members to do so as well?

[Sir George Young]

I applaud the work of the Harlow food bank. My hon. Friend asks me to vote for it. There is an Andover food bank in my constituency, and I think the people there would be distressed if I were to vote for another food bank, but I applaud the work that food banks do in constituencies throughout the country, making help available to people who, for whatever reason, have no cash at the end of the week, and I commend the work that is being done in Harlow.