John Bercow
Main Page: John Bercow (Speaker - Buckingham)
Andy Burnham (Leigh) (Lab)
On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Further to the points raised during business questions by my hon. Friends the Members for Halton (Derek Twigg) and for Garston and Halewood (Maria Eagle), we have heard this week, 20 years on from the Hillsborough disaster, that there are still misconceptions about the tragedy, even in the Cabinet. That is precisely why I, together with my two hon. Friends, called for the full disclosure of all public documents relating to the disaster and the establishment of the Hillsborough independent panel to give the people of Merseyside the full truth and to end the misconceptions once and for all.
Together with the former Home Secretary, we signed off the terms of reference and the funding for the Hillsborough independent panel before the election. The policy was settled. Today in the Daily Mirror I read that sources in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport say that the Secretary of State is taking a new look at the issue and
“Things are not as simple as before”.
Is it in order that on an issue of this significance and importance a change of policy can be dealt with by off-the-record briefings? Do the people of Merseyside not deserve the courtesy of a Minister of the Crown coming to this House to tell them exactly what they are up to?
Mr Speaker
I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for his point of order and for advance notice of it. I reiterate at the outset that if a Minister intends to make a new commitment in terms of policy or to change a hitherto understood public policy, he or she is expected to make that clear first to the House, as I hope experience earlier this week testifies.
I appreciate the extreme importance of this matter. I am not aware thus far of any intention on the part of a Minister to make a statement. It is open to the right hon. Gentleman and other hon. Members to table questions—[Interruption.] Order. The request that the right hon. Gentleman has made will have been heard on the Treasury Bench, and I repeat that if a new policy is planned we had better hear about it here first.
Finally, and more widely, it might be of interest to the House to know that applications have already been made for an Adjournment debate on this subject. Those applications were not successful in the ballot, but knowing the persistence and indefatigability of colleagues who are interested in this matter, I have a hunch that they might apply again and, who knows, they might be successful.
Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab)
Further to that point of order, Mr Speaker. I seek your guidance and patience on this matter, but I know that you understand because I have raised before the great concern not only on Merseyside but nationally and internationally about what is happening. We have had a disgraceful statement from a Minister this week. We have now had briefings and rumours about the release of documents and arguments about financing. An Adjournment debate is one way of looking at this, but is there anything more you can do to persuade Ministers to come here urgently next week to make a statement? The Deputy Leader of the House must have known about this issue because it has been in the national news all week, yet he could not give us an answer.
Mr Speaker
I appreciate the importance that the hon. Gentleman attaches to the matter. He has raised it before and he feels a commitment to his constituents in relation to it. Therefore, it is understandable that he has flagged it up in passionate and explicit terms with me this afternoon. I do not think that I can add anything, however, to what I have already said. If a new approach or policy is planned on a matter of great importance, which this certainly is, it should be the subject of a statement to the House first. I have now said that twice so I am sure that it has been heard in the relevant quarters.
Mr Kevan Jones (North Durham) (Lab)
On a point of order, Mr Speaker. You have just reiterated that Ministers should come to the House when there has been a change of policy. The Prime Minister came to the House two weeks ago and made a statement on the important subject of our involvement in Afghanistan. He then briefed the press when he went to Canada last weekend about time limits for our withdrawal. Yesterday the Defence Secretary attended the right-wing Heritage Foundation in Washington. Is it not right that they should make announcements here if policy has changed in the past two weeks on Afghanistan?
Mr Speaker
All I can say to the hon. Gentleman is that discussion of public policy is an ongoing process. It takes place all the time and Ministers can discuss policy issues in a variety of ways, including in speeches and exchanges outside the House. The crucial point is this. When a new policy is to be announced, it must be announced here first. All that I can say is that I will keep a beady eye on this matter, not merely on a weekly basis but on a daily basis.
Mr Dave Watts (St Helens North) (Lab)
On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Now that the Deputy Leader of the House has agreed to arrange for a debate on the Government’s policy on fairness, how do I find out when that debate will take place?
Mr Speaker
I think the answer to the hon. Gentleman’s point of order is that that is a matter for the Leader of the House and, in his absence, the Deputy Leader of the House. It is quite possible that a cosy chat will shortly ensue between the hon. Member for St Helens North (Mr Watts) and the Deputy Leader of the House.
Diana R. Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)
On a point of order, Mr Speaker. This follows on from my question during business questions and may be more appropriate for you. When they came through security into the House yesterday, my constituents were asked to remove a campaign T-shirt or turn it inside out. Can you give some guidance to our security staff with regard to that policy?
Mr Speaker
I shall certainly investigate the matter and revert to the hon. Lady. I am not familiar with the circumstances of this case, other than from what she said. An overly restrictive approach in matters of this kind is undesirable. Occasionally, a bit of flamboyance is not such a bad thing. I think I can say that to the hon. Lady from personal experience.