Oral Answers to Questions

Ronnie Campbell Excerpts

Wednesday 16th March 2016 Commons Chamber

[Justine Greening]

As my right hon. Friend the Minister set out earlier, we deplore incitement on both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We monitor allegations of incitement very closely and raise instances with both leaderships.

[Mr Ronnie Campbell (Blyth Valley) (Lab)]

T6. Has the Secretary of State given, or does she envisage giving, any aid to any country in the European Union?

[Justine Greening]

The hon. Gentleman will be aware that we have played our role in supporting refugees who have fled the Syrian conflict and are now arriving in the European Union, and it is right that we do so. However, he is also perhaps right to say that we should also look to those countries to provide the support that they can, too.

Oral Answers to Questions

Ronnie Campbell Excerpts

Wednesday 26th October 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr O’Brien]

My hon. Friend makes an important point. In addition to relieving the humanitarian crisis in Somalia, we must also recognise that resilience and the efforts to address food security as a strategic priority in the medium to long term underpin all our efforts, even in the humanitarian response, in Kenya and Uganda, where famine has not been declared. We have just heard from the Secretary of State about the efforts being made in Uganda.

[Mr Ronnie Campbell (Blyth Valley) (Lab)]

T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.

[The Secretary of State for International Development (Mr Andrew Mitchell)]

We are supporting the national transitional council’s stabilisation work in Libya, which we have helped to plan since the beginning of the conflict. We are heavily engaged in helping to save lives in the horn of Africa, and we are boosting development in the Commonwealth ahead of discussions at the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Australia later this week.

[Mr Campbell]

I understand that the Secretary of State will meet the President of Colombia in a few weeks’ time. Will he raise the issue of the assassinations and the killings? This year we have already seen 56 people killed for being human rights defenders. Will the right hon. Gentleman tell the President that the Arab spring might knock on his door one day?

[Mr Mitchell]

The hon. Gentleman is right to underline the importance of promoting human rights wherever we can. When I have discussions with the President of Colombia, I will certainly take on board the hon. Gentleman’s point. [Interruption.]

Oral Answers to Questions

Ronnie Campbell Excerpts

Wednesday 2nd June 2010 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I am happy to look at this case, and I will discuss it with my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary, who is working on the issue of deportations. Legal processes have to be followed, but I will discuss this with my right hon. Friend, and perhaps then contact my hon. Friend.

[Mr Ronnie Campbell (Blyth Valley) (Lab)]

Q5. Now that the banks—some of them, anyway—are coming into profit, and the taxpayers are getting a small return on the enormous amount of money that they put in, when does the Prime Minister envisage selling the shares off to his friends in the City?

[The Prime Minister]

I would much rather sell the shares in the banks to the hon. Gentleman’s constituents. I believe in popular capitalism, and there might be an opportunity to do that. Clearly, important decisions will have to be made to ensure that we get the maximum amount of money back for the taxpayer, who has had to put so much money into the banks, and that we have a fully competitive banking system that serves business in this country so that it does not get ripped off by the banks. At the same time, privatising those banks back into the private sector where they belong can help encourage popular capitalism once again.