Session 2013-14
House of Commons
13th September 2013
Notices of Motions for which no days have been fixed
('Early Day Motions')
The figure following this symbol is the number of Members who have added their names in support of the Motion, including the Member in charge of the Motion.
After an Early Day Motion (EDM) has been printed for the first time, it is only reprinted when names are added or amendments tabled; only the first six names and any names added since the last printing are included. After the week in which a Motion is first printed and the following week, added names and amendments appear only in a separate paper, Mature EDMs, distributed the next Thursday. In the meantime, they are available for inspection by Members in the Table Office and the Library or on the EDM database at edmi.parliament.uk
463 SEAMUS HEANEY 2:9:13
127That this House mourns the passing of Seamus Heaney, great poet, most gentle man of deep humility, high honour and wide-smiled humour, whose cadent, lyrical, ethereal and earthed verse voiced a special spokesperson for the natured heart of humanity, whose warm, wise way epitomised a soul-uncle for all touched by his charming presence or reached by his stirring, stilling words who had the grace of genius and who showed the genius of grace.
468 FUTURE OF ACCESS TO HIGH-COST DRUGS FOR RARE DISEASES 3:9:13
34That this House welcomes the new report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Muscular Dystrophy, supported by the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign, on raising the issue of access to high-cost drugs for rare diseases; notes that difficulties in authorising new treatments could mean essential drugs do not reach families that need them; recognises the need for a simplified approval process for multi-centre trials; acknowledges that hospital trusts should promote research more effectively amongst rare disease patients; calls on the Government to establish a ring-fenced fund for rare disease drugs; further calls on the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and NHS England to speed up access to life-changing drugs after the final stages of clinical trials to ensure there are no major delays in treatments reaching children; and further calls on NHS England to ensure specialist centres are equipped with an appropriate range of health professionals to deliver treatments.
471 SYRIA, THE UNITED NATIONS AND THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT 4:9:13
33That this House notes the public's strong support for a UN solution to the crisis in Syria; and calls on the Government to take immediate steps to introduce a resolution to the UN Security Council referring President Bashar al-Assad to the International Criminal Court for prosecution for crimes against humanity.
484 IQBAL SINGH 5:9:13
7That this House notes with deep sadness the passing of Iqbal Singh, the long-standing adviser and researcher to the All Party Group on the Punjabi Community in Britain and its predecessor, the All Party Group on Human Rights in the Punjab; pays tribute to the dedication, quiet dignity and wise judgement with which Iqbal supported hon. Members in the pursuit of justice and human rights in the Punjab and in giving Punjabis and Sikhs in the UK a voice in Parliament; and wishes to place on record its admiration and gratitude for Iqbal's hard work on behalf of the Punjabi community in the UK and the Punjabi causes to which he devoted his life.
486 US CONGRESS VOTE AGAINST MILITARY ACTION IN SYRIA 5:9:13
31That this House welcomes the announcement of the Prime Minister ruling out UK participation in military action against Syria following the Parliamentary vote of 29 August 2013; believes the Syrian conflict desperately needs a peaceful resolution since military action on the part of the UK or US would result in further death and destruction of innocent lives, increase mistrust between forces in the region and the wider world, and escalate the violence further; values the UK-US relationship which it believes is built on much more than a military alliance; and therefore urges members of the US Congress to reject military action and support an immediate ceasefire and peace talks involving all sides in the Syrian conflict.
487 LGBT RIGHTS IN RUSSIA 6:9:13
24That this House deplores the recent legislation passed in Russia banning the promotion of non-traditional relationships; notes that this is akin to the former Section 28 legislation in the UK; further notes that the new law appears to be part of a wider crackdown on the freedoms of the LGBT community in Russia; believes that we must listen to those Russian LGBT groups and activists who urge very strongly that boycotts in any form or nature, from sporting, like the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, to drinking vodka, are not supported by them and only increase the likelihood of harm towards LGBT Russians; and calls on the Government to work through international and diplomatic channels, like the G20, the Council of Europe and the International Olympic Committee and commercial and business interests already involved in sponsoring the 2014 Winter Olympics, alongside indigenous LGBT campaign groups based in Russia itself, to stand up for the human rights of the Russian LGBT community.
491 PROPOSED ENGLISH DEFENCE LEAGUE MARCH IN BRADFORD 9:9:13
14That this House notes that there were further arrests at the English Defence League (EDL) march of what were estimated to be between 350 and 500 EDL members in London on 7 September 2013 and that 3,000 police officers were mobilised to enable the EDL to march over Tower Bridge to Aldgate; further notes that there was a peaceful counter-demonstration in Tower Hamlets of some 3,000 to 3,500 people determined to defend the principles of community harmony; further notes that the EDL leader, Tommy Robinson, has now announced that the next national march by the EDL will be in Bradford on 12 October 2013; believes the only purpose of such a march will be to incite racial division, hatred and violence; and therefore calls on the Police and Crime Commissioner, the Chief Constable of West Yorkshire and the Secretary of State for the Home Department to ban the EDL from marching anywhere in the Bradford area.
495 PRISON CLOSURES 9:9:13
14That this House condemns the Government's announcement of further prison closures in the next financial year; notes that the closure of HM Prison Blundeston, HM Prison Dorchester, HM Prison Northallerton and HM Prison Reading comes at a time when almost 20,000 prisoners are being held in an overcrowded prison estate; further notes the worrying increase in serious assaults on prisoners and staff due to overcrowding as well as the increase in prisoners sharing cells designed for one inmate; is concerned that the closure of these four local prisons and the creation of a superprison in North Wales will not assist in lowering reoffending and will result in prisoners being hundreds of miles from friends and family who play a huge role in rehabilitation; further notes that 685 prison officer posts will be at risk due to the closures; and therefore calls on the Government to rethink its prison closure plan and allow time for proper consultation and discussion with unions and employers to ensure a safe and fair programme to reduce overcrowding and reoffending.
513 SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY 11:9:13
11That this House welcomes Small Business Saturday 2013 on 7 December; encourages all hon. Members to take part and shop in a local small business on 7 December; recognises that Small Business Saturday has been a huge success in the United States where it was supported by President Obama and led to 100 million Americans spending $5.5 billion; understands that small businesses are at the heart of local communities; and believes that in the critical Christmas period small businesses will benefit from the support of Small Business Saturday on the busiest shopping day of the year.
517 DEATH OF MR ATAOLLAH REZVANI 11:9:13
6That this House notes the killing in Bandar Abbas, southern Iran of Mr Ataollah Rezvani, an Iranian Bahá'í; believes that he was killed further to being harassed at the hands of the Ministry of Intelligence and having received threatening messages from persons unknown; observes that this is the first clear case of a religiously motivated killing of a Bahá'í in Iran in 15 years and represents a grave escalation of the persecution of Iran's Bahá'ís who have been subjected to incitement to hatred and violence with impunity that has been reported by various actors including United Nations Special Rapporteurs in recent years; and urges the Government to press for the Iranian authorities to bring the responsible persons to justice.