Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Tobias Ellwood and John Bercow

Tuesday 3rd March 2015 Commons Chamber

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr Tobias Ellwood)]

My hon. Friend raises an important issue. The Pakistani diaspora in this country is a large one and we have a very strong relationship with Pakistan, but we are concerned about the misuse of blasphemy laws there. I have raised the issue with the Prime Minister and through the parliamentary delegation that went to Pakistan only last week.



Royal assent

[Mr Speaker]

I have to notify the House, in accordance with the Royal Assent Act 1967, that Her Majesty has signified her Royal Assent to the following Acts:

Pension Schemes Act 2015

Serious Crime Act 2015.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Tobias Ellwood and John Bercow

Tuesday 22nd July 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Ellwood]

I mentioned earlier the important role that Hamas can play in organising and agreeing to a ceasefire. Unfortunately, it is the case that it has used some of its weapon systems in civilian areas, which has led to too many deaths. As we have said again and again, I hope that all parties can now come to an agreement on a ceasefire, led by the Egyptians.

[Mr Speaker]

Last but not least, I call Mr David Crausby.

Commonwealth Meeting and the Philippines

Debate between Tobias Ellwood and John Bercow

Monday 18th November 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I have tried to be generous. We have heard the point. The Prime Minister has made his point of view very clear. We do not need to rehearse the position of the Leader of the Opposition. The hon. Gentleman needs to be a bit more delphic and perhaps a little less clumsy.

[Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East) (Con)]

May I welcome the statement and the taskings of HMS Daring and HMS Illustrious, which are joining the USS George Washington? This situation underlines why we need both new aircraft carriers and to ensure that one is always available. Does the Prime Minister agree that the new aircraft carriers and the new Type 26s must have the ability to assist in upstream engagement, stabilisation and humanitarian tasks, as well as having the high-end war-fighting capabilities?

Business of the House

Debate between Tobias Ellwood and John Bercow

Thursday 7th February 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East) (Con)]

May I congratulate the Chair on invoking Standing Order No. 40 last night, which I think we all enjoyed, thus expediting a whole series of votes called by only a dozen or so Members? Some of them seemed to take sport in delaying the passage of Bills against the will of the House. This has affected the Bournemouth Borough Council Bill, costing the council hundreds of thousands of pounds and delaying the Bill for about three years. May I therefore ask for an urgent review of the voting process for private Bills?

[Mr Speaker]

I was waiting for the appearance of the word “statement” or “debate”. I am most grateful for the compliments of the hon. Gentleman, but I am sure he wants not just a review but a statement.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Tobias Ellwood and John Bercow

Monday 14th January 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. May I gently say to the House that if we are to get through the list, which I would very much like us to do and as we usually do, we now need short questions and short answers?

[Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East) (Con)]

T3. I congratulate the Secretary of State and his ministerial team on the efforts to balance the books, considering what they inherited from the previous Government. That approach is being adopted by the Prime Minister on EU budgets, so will the Minister update the House on the cost and efficiency of the European Defence Agency?

Defence Equipment and Support

Debate between Tobias Ellwood and John Bercow

Tuesday 17th July 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East) (Con)]

The shadow Minister spoke of the budgetary challenges facing all Governments, but was quick to gloss over her legacy—the budget was taken away from the MOD by Labour and given to the Treasury. Does the Minister share my surprise at Labour Members questioning the new avenues of efficiency when, if they looked at the National Audit Office major projects report 2010, they would see that the majority of major projects overran, including the A400M, the Astute and the Typhoon?

[Mr Speaker]

Order. The question was simply far too long. I do not know why the hon. Gentleman is smirking about it—

[Mr Ellwood]

indicated dissent.

[Mr Speaker]

Order. He has abused his privilege and ought to learn from it.

Daylight Saving Bill

Debate between Tobias Ellwood and John Bercow

Friday 20th January 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East) (Con)]

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. May I say how much we are enjoying the oration from my hon. Friend and constituency neighbour? It does seem, however, to be taking on the feeling of a Second Reading—

[Mr Speaker]

Order. The hon. Gentleman should resume his seat. I say to him for the avoidance of doubt that were the debate taking that shape, I would intervene to prevent it, but it has not yet done so. I am grateful to him for his solicitous concern for the debate but he can happily leave it with me.

Business of the House

Debate between Tobias Ellwood and John Bercow

Thursday 25th November 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East) (Con)]

Mr Speaker, you are the anecdote to verbal diarrhoea—[Laughter.]

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I think the word for which the hon. Gentleman was vainly searching was probably “antidote”.

[Mr Ellwood]

It is always good to get off to a good start, Mr Speaker. I stand corrected. The rules that you impose during the week are not being adhered to on Fridays in the Chamber. Next Friday, we will debate the Daylight Saving Bill, for which the excellent publication “Time to change the clocks” has been produced—I recommend it to all Members—but my worry is that the Bill will not see the light of day because Members will try to talk it out. Is it not time to change the draconian rules that apply on Fridays to ensure that good ideas are able to be debated by the entire House?

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I am sure that the hon. Gentleman is not seeking to prove himself an expert in verbal diarrhoea.

Business of the House

Debate between Tobias Ellwood and John Bercow

Thursday 9th September 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

An admirably pithy reply from the Leader of the House, for which we are grateful.

[Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East) (Con)]

I cycled into Parliament this morning only to be greeted by the sight of yet another protester who had breached security and remains, as we speak, on the scaffolding on the side of the building. I then approached the police who were standing underneath and asked why an arrest had not been made. They gave that ubiquitous British justification for inertia—health and safety. I then offered to go up myself and make a citizen’s arrest, and was told to move on or I would be arrested. It is a strange day indeed in Parliament when an MP is threatened with arrest while a protestor sits on our roof having breached security. May we have a statement on the security priorities for this House?

Academies Bill [Lords]

Debate between Tobias Ellwood and John Bercow

Monday 19th July 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Ellwood]

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. My right hon. Friend has listed a whole series of aspects of the amendment that show it contains many untruths. Would it be in order for the Opposition to be given the opportunity to walk away, rewrite it and come back with an amendment that might be worthy of the House?

[Mr Speaker]

First, that is an utterly specious point of order. Secondly, it is a waste of time.

European External Action Service

Debate between Tobias Ellwood and John Bercow

Wednesday 14th July 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Ellwood]

I do not disagree with my hon. Friend. The point I am stressing, however, is that, as has been said, we could be in a stronger position if we were to move British personnel into the organisation and change it into something actually worth having—and that is what I would like.

I do, however, have some grave concerns about EU spending at present. A great example of that is the Galileo satellite system. It has cost about £4 billion so far, and the Foreign Office budget is, I understand, about £2 billion, so there would be some huge savings straight away if we were to get rid of that system. I also mentioned in an intervention the concerns we have in respect of NATO and the European Defence Agency. They have not been answered today, and I would be grateful for the opportunity to speak to my hon. Friend the Minister about the clear overlap that there is in respect of those two organisations. When I was serving in the armed forces in Bosnia, the EU was trying to create something of a European army, and that is wrong. The cornerstone of our defence in Europe is NATO, and we should not try to duplicate it.

I intervened on my hon. Friend the Member for Croydon South (Richard Ottaway), the Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, about Ambassador Ušackas who has now been sent to Afghanistan to represent the European Union. I have a question: if the EU starts sending diktats or directives on how Afghanistan should be approached, that might overlap with the direction we are receiving as a member of the international security assistance force, and—

[Mr Speaker]

Order. The House is grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his question, which can now be left dangling in the air—although the Minister might seek to respond to it.

Debate on the Address

Debate between Tobias Ellwood and John Bercow

Tuesday 25th May 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East) (Con)]

I have a lot of respect for the right hon. Gentleman but it was made clear earlier that there was no intention of having elected chief constables. In Bournemouth, the people who are asking for accountability are asking for a relationship with the police who are in charge. The police there do not answer to the people of Bournemouth directly, but to the Dorset police headquarters in Winfrith, which then answers to the Home Office. The community that needs to be represented is out of the loop. That is why the Government have proposed elected representatives; to provide that important interface between the public and the police who are supposed to be looking after them.

[Mr Deputy Speaker (Sir Alan Haselhurst)]

Order. I should remind the hon. Gentleman and the House as a whole that interventions should, on the whole, be shorter than that.