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Mr. Newton: The two days' debate on the Broadcasting Bill next week may provide my right hon. Friend and others with an opportunity to make their point. I entirely accept that it is a serious one and his remarks will have struck a chord in various parts of the House. On a lighter note, quite apart from the difficulties of organising further debates for the reasons that I have mentioned, I would hesitate to provide time for a debate when, according to what my right hon. Friend has said, it would not even be reported.
Mr. Malcolm Bruce (Gordon): Will the Leader of the House find time for a debate on nurses' pay in view of the report published by the Royal College of Nursing on 17 June, referred to in early-day motion 1018, tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Southwark and Bermondsey (Mr. Hughes)?
[That this House notes the report, Broken Promises, on the state of local pay in the nursing profession, published on 17th June by the Royal College of Nursing; notes the report's findings that only 111 out of 488 NHS trusts have made pay offers to nurses above the 2 per cent. national pay award; notes that this has demoralised many nurses and done nothing to allay the problems of recruitment which the NHS currently faces; notes that many nurses have lost all confidence in the independence of the Pay Review Body; calls for a single national pay review body for the whole NHS to remove the inequalities in consideration of pay rises between professions and occupations in the health service; and further calls for an annual increase in nurses' pay by at least the level of national inflation.]
Nurses feel aggrieved that the Government's predictions that awards would be topped up have not materialised. Does the Leader of the House agree that that is a matter for real concern and that the Government should explain to the House their response to the position reported by the Royal College of Nursing?
Mr. Newton:
The hon. Gentleman has asked his question courteously and, in the same spirit, I will draw it to the attention of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health. The hon. Gentleman requested a debate, but the House spent all day yesterday debating the health service. If the Liberal Democrats had not been able to make that point in yesterday's debate, I would have been surprised.
Sir Patrick Cormack (South Staffordshire):
Am I right to infer from what my right hon. Friend said that when we come back on 14 October, it will be to complete the unfinished business of this Session? If I am right, when will we have the state opening of the new Session?
Mr. Newton:
I cannot go so far as to give the date that my hon. Friend has requested, but I can certainly confirm that we shall come back on 14 October to complete the business of the present Session.
Mr. David Winnick (Walsall, North):
Given the Prime Minister's record of luck, will we have an opportunity next week to ask him not to declare his preferences publicly when an important event like yesterday's takes place? If he had not, we might have stood a better chance of winning.
Mr. Newton:
I can only imagine what would have happened had the Prime Minister, or any of us, said anything other than England when asked whom we wanted to win.
Mr. Harry Greenway (Ealing, North):
Will my right hon. Friend go further and agree to a debate on Euro 96 so that we can congratulate the England team on a splendid performance in every possible way?
Mr. Newton:
That sounds like a genuinely good idea and, even if I cannot provide a debate, I am happy to join in the good wishes and congratulations expressed to the England team for the way in which it has performed throughout the competition.
Mrs. Gwyneth Dunwoody (Crewe and Nantwich):
Will the Leader of the House reconsider his answer on NHS records? He will be aware that if any member of NHS staff discloses patient details, he or she is subject to immediate disciplinary action and to dismissal. It would be the ultimate horror if it were possible for a clever computer hack to gain access to the intimate details of patients' records. Unless the Government can assure us that that will not happen and unless the Secretary of State will confirm that in the House, doctors and patient record controllers in the health service must give a guarantee to their patients that they will not put details on to the NHS computer.
Mr. Newton:
I see no need to reconsider my earlier answer, not least because it did not say anything. I merely said that I would draw the attention of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health to the observations that have been made and, of course, I will also draw his attention to the hon. Lady's observations.
Mr. Peter Viggers (Gosport):
May I join the hon. Member for Birmingham, Perry Barr (Mr. Rooker) in urging the Leader of the House to allow an early debate on the Government's proposals for Ministry of Defence housing? Is not it clear that many hon. Members suffer from a serious misapprehension about the Government's intentions? Those of us who have studied the subject in detail have been completely convinced about the Government's determination to improve housing for service personnel and that the present proposals will do that. A debate would enable those facts to be made clear.
Mr. Newton:
I am extremely grateful to my hon. Friend, who probably knows as much about these matters as any Member of the House and whose opinion on them is well respected. I hope that what he said will be taken carefully into account by those who have made different points.
Mrs. Margaret Ewing (Moray):
Reference has already been made to the issue of MOD housing in which I have a constituency interest. Is the Leader of the House aware of the great interest in the decisions on defence procurement that must be taken soon, not least of which is the decision on the replacement for the Nimrod, which is based in my constituency at RAF Kinloss, and the replacement of the radar system for the search-and-rescue Sea King helicopters? Can he assure us that the Secretary of State for Defence will make an announcement on the decisions clearly and publicly in the House and not through a planted question?
Mr. Newton:
I shall bring the hon. Lady's request to the attention of my right hon. Friend. I draw her attention to the fact that Defence Questions will take place on Tuesday 9 July. I am well aware of the level of interest in these matters, as my constituency contains a significant number of people who work in defence-related industries.
Mr. Bob Dunn (Dartford):
Will the Leader of the House agree to an urgent early debate on the nature of our constitution and the proposals for constitutional reform? People who seek to destroy our constitution do so at their peril, and they do so for reasons of gimmickry, not principles of genuine reform.
Mr. Newton:
I agree with the thrust of my hon. Friend's remarks, and I shall bear in mind his request for a debate on this matter--even though it may not be possible to arrange one before the summer recess.
Ms Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent, North):
The Leader of the House was in the Chamber when my hon. Friend the Member for Barnsley, West and Penistone (Mr. Clapham) referred to the chronic bronchitis and emphysema regulations for former miners. Will he give us an assurance that there will be an early debate on this issue before the summer recess so that the
Mr. Newton:
I cannot add to what my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister said a few moments ago, except to say that I too--not least in my capacity as a business manager--will be making inquiries about the point that was raised. Obviously, I have a close interest in this matter, as I was the Minister responsible for the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council and related issues for many years.
Mr. John Butcher (Coventry, South-West):
Will my right hon. Friend give us his best estimate of the day on which we will debate the recommendations of the Senior Salaries Review Body in relation to the pay of Members of Parliament? Does he agree with me that he should--as Leader of the House, in his all-party mode--seek to negotiate assurances from the leaders of all the parties in the House that there will be a genuinely free vote and that none of them will seek to take party advantage from the debate?
Mr. Newton:
I note my hon. Friend's points, but I cannot give him the date on which the debate will take place. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister expects to receive the Senior Salaries Review Body's report later today and, of course, the Government wish to consider its recommendations carefully. We are aiming to publish the report on 4 July--the date on which we will also make known the Government's views. Today, I will write to the leaders of the other parties on behalf of my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, who is absent in Lyon. I will send them a copy of the report and offer them the opportunity to comment to my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister before it and our views are published.
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