Universal Credit Project Assessment Reviews

John Bercow Excerpts

Tuesday 5th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Mr Speaker]

Order. The time limit on Back-Bench speeches will have to be reduced to five minutes, with immediate effect.

--- Later in debate ---

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Mr Speaker]

Order. Five hon. Members are still seeking to catch my eye. I have no difficulty at all with each of them speaking for five minutes, but I warn them that their Front Benchers might, as the winding-up speeches will start late. If they are unbothered by the imperious glances of those who sit in front of them, so am I.

--- Later in debate ---

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Mr Speaker]

Further interventions will eat significantly into the time available for the winding-up speeches. I simply make that point and leave colleagues to their own devices.

--- Later in debate ---

[Frank Field]

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. I have never doubted the motives of people on the other side of the House. As the Government have accepted the motion, will the Select Committee have the papers tomorrow?

[Mr Speaker]

My understanding is that the Minister indicated the papers would be delivered before Christmas.

[Frank Field]

This Christmas, we hope.

[Mr Speaker]

Well, certainly this Christmas. I certainly was not thinking of 2018. There is probably a default presumption that it means this Christmas—[Interruption] —but it is always better to be explicit. I grant that to the right hon. Member for Birkenhead (Frank Field), who is chuntering from a sedentary position in evident dissatisfaction at the inadequate clarification thus far provided, but help may be at hand, because the Secretary of State is perched like a panther—[Laughter]—if you can perch like a panther. He is poised like a panther, ready to pounce.

[Mr Gauke]

You have done my job for me, Mr Speaker. It is correct that, as I said in my opening remarks, we will provide this information before the House rises for Christmas 2017. On the question raised by the right hon. Member for Birkenhead (Frank Field), we will of course want to go through the documentation to take out, for example, the names of junior officials and any commercially sensitive information. As I say, we will provide that information before the House rises this Christmas.

[Mr Speaker]

I am inclined to leave it there for now. If the right hon. Member for Birkenhead has further points that he wishes to raise, he can, but I am not sure it will greatly profit him to do so now.

[Frank Field]

Mr Speaker, I will, if I may, come to talk to you about how soon we can get the documents. We have been promised the papers, not redacted papers.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Speaker]

The right hon. Gentleman is welcome to come to talk to me about that point, and I understand the premium he attaches to it. These are often matters of negotiation between a Committee and a Department, as recent experience has testified. There is merit—let me put it like this—in having clarity on the matter before the fact. My door is always open to him.