Oral Questions to the Secretary of State for Wales |
*1 |
Dr Michael Clark (Rayleigh): What discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Defence regarding proposed reductions in the Territorial Army in North Wales. |
| (56576) |
*2 |
Mr Damian Green (Ashford): If he will make a statement about the number of recent business start-ups in Wales. |
| (56577) |
*3 |
Mr Lembit Öpik (Montgomeryshire): What assistance he will offer farmers of smallholdings in Wales who are now technically bankrupt. |
| (56578) |
*4 |
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): If he will make a statement about the funding of social services by local authorities in Wales. |
| (56579) |
*5 |
Mrs Teresa Gorman (Billericay): What estimate he has made of the costs of establishing the Assembly for Wales. |
| (56580) |
*6 |
Mr David Amess (Southend West): If he will make a statement on the planned funding levels for the NHS provision in Wales. |
| (56582) |
*7 |
Mr Martyn Jones (Clwyd South): How many companies in (a) Clwyd South and (b) Wales have signed up to the New Deal. |
| (56583) |
*8 |
Sir Sydney Chapman (Chipping Barnet): What initiatives his Department is taking to participate in National Tree Week. |
| (56584) |
*9 |
Mr Rhodri Morgan (Cardiff West): If he will make a statement on progress in securing European structural funds support for Wales. |
| (56585) |
*10 |
Ann Clwyd (Cynon Valley): If he will ensure that the proposals contained in the Coalfields Task Force report will apply to Wales. |
| (56586) |
*11 |
Mr John Smith (Vale of Glamorgan): If he will make a statement on the Public Health Action Plan for Wales. |
| (56587) |
*12 |
Mr Win Griffiths (Bridgend): If he will make a statement on the Public Health Action Plan for Wales. |
| (56588) |
*13 |
Mr Nicholas Winterton (Macclesfield): What assessment he has made of the impact of the future Welsh Assembly on his accountability to honourable Members. |
| (56589) |
*14 |
Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire): If he will make a statement on the state of Welsh agriculture. |
| (56590) |
*15 |
Mr Michael Jack (Fylde): Which requests for assistance from the NFU in Wales he is currently considering for implementation. |
| (56591) |
*16 |
Mr Don Touhig (Islwyn): What assessment he has made of the recent report from the Commission for Local Administration in Wales into a planning matter involving Caerphilly Borough Council; and if he will make a statement. |
| (56592) |
*17 |
Mr Gareth Thomas (Clwyd West): What progress is being made in developing the Rural Partnership in Wales. |
| (56593) |
*18 |
Mr Cynog Dafis (Ceredigion): What assessment he has made of the (a) economic and (b) social effect of the current crisis in Welsh agriculture. |
| (56594) |
*19 |
Mr Peter Viggers (Gosport): What evidence his Department supplied to the Neill Committee in respect of funding for referendums. |
| (56595) |
*20 |
Mr Richard Spring (West Suffolk): If he will make a statement about farming incomes in Wales. |
| (56596) |
*21 |
Mr Nick St. Aubyn (Guildford): If he will make a statement about the number of job losses in the Swansea Valley over the last six months. |
| (56597) |
*22 |
Mr Simon Hughes (North Southwark and Bermondsey): What representations he has received on the pay and conditions of health professionals in Wales. |
| (56599) |
*23 |
Mr Richard Livsey (Brecon and Radnorshire): If he will make a statement on the representations made to him about the reorganisation of NHS trusts in Wales. |
| (56600) |
*24 |
Mr Christopher Chope (Christchurch): When he last met the Chief Executive of the New Millennium Experience Company to discuss investment by that company in Wales. |
| (56601) |
*25 |
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis and Littlehampton): If he will make a statement about the future of the LG Semicon plant at Newport. |
| (56602) |
*26 |
Mr Denzil Davies (Llanelli): What representations he has received concerning the restructuring of health services in west Wales. |
| (56603) |
*27 |
Ms Julie Morgan (Cardiff North): What representations he has received about the provision of childcare facilities in the National Assembly of Wales building. |
| (56604) |
*28 |
Mr Ieuan Wyn Jones (Ynys Môn): If he will make a statement on the number of people on the waiting list for elective surgery for more than six months in health authorities in Wales. |
| (56605) |
*Q1 |
Mr Brian H. Donohoe (Cunninghame South): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56606) |
*Q2 |
Mr Jim Murphy (Eastwood): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56607) |
*Q3 |
Mr Jonathan Sayeed (Mid Bedfordshire): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56608) |
*Q4 |
Sir Paul Beresford (Mole Valley): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56609) |
*Q5 |
Mr Damian Green (Ashford): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56610) |
*Q6 |
Mr David Borrow (South Ribble): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56611) |
*Q7 |
Mr Richard Livsey (Brecon and Radnorshire): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56612) |
*Q8 |
Shona McIsaac (Cleethorpes): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56613) |
*Q9 |
Mr Andrew George (St Ives): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56614) |
*Q10 |
Mr Tim Collins (Westmorland and Lonsdale): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56615) |
*Q11 |
Dr Ian Gibson (Norwich North): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56616) |
*Q12 |
Mr Eric Forth (Bromley and Chislehurst): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56617) |
*Q13 |
Rachel Squire (Dunfermline West): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56618) |
*Q14 |
Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56619) |
*Q15 |
Mr Phil Sawford (Kettering): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56620) |
*Q16 |
Rosemary McKenna (Cumbernauld and Kilsyth): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56621) |
*Q17 |
Mrs Ray Michie (Argyll and Bute): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56622) |
*Q18 |
Mr Bernard Jenkin (North Essex): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56623) |
*Q19 |
Mrs Janet Dean (Burton): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56624) |
*Q20 |
Mr David Amess (Southend West): If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 4th November. |
| (56625) |
Main Business |
3 |
OPPOSITION DAY [20th allotted day] [Until 10.00 p.m.] |
|
THE ECONOMY
|
| Mr William Hague
Mr Francis Maude
Mr David Heathcoat-Amory
Mr John Whittingdale
Mr Nick Gibb
Mr James Arbuthnot |
| That this House notes that there is now a black hole in the public finances; that the increased burdens on business since the General Election now account for £1,500 more per employee; that the UK will be the first major European economy to suffer a serious downturn and the worst affected; further notes that the Government is squandering the last Government's golden economic legacy by its four basic blunders of increased taxes, attacks on savings, particularly pensions, excessive regulation of business and irresponsible public spending; and deplores the Government's complacent attitude to the handling of the economy and public finances. |
| As Amendments to Mr William Hague's proposed Motion (The Economy): |
| The Prime Minister
Mr Secretary Prescott
Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer
Mr Secretary Cook
Mr Secretary Smith
Mr Secretary Straw |
| Line 1 , leave out from `House' to end and add `notes that the Government inherited an economy set to repeat the same cycle of boom and bust seen over the past 20 years, that inflation was heading way above target because of the previous Government's failure to accept the Bank of England's advice and the public finances were in large structural deficit; recalls that under the previous Government inflation rose to 10 per cent, interest rates remained in double figures for four years and one million manufacturing jobs were lost, while net borrowing increased to £50 billion and the national debt doubled in just four years; notes that the previous Government's policies increased inequality and failed to tackle the structural weaknesses in the economy; commends this Government for its decisive action to build a stable economy, introducing a new framework for monetary policy under which inflation is now at target and set to remain there and interest rates are less than half their previous peak, reducing government borrowing by £20 billion last year and, because of prudent management of the public finances, remaining on track to meet its tough fiscal rules and invest an additional £40 billion in education and health, with an extra £250 million for the National Health Service this year, addressing structural weaknesses by tackling unemployment and poverty with the New Deals and tax and benefit reform, supporting British business by cutting corporation tax, doubling public investment to improve Britain's infrastructure and addressing Britain's productivity gap; and notes that there are now 400,000 more people in employment than at the General Election and that Britain is better placed to steer a course of stability in an uncertain and unstable world.'. |
| Mr Paddy Ashdown
Mr A. J. Beith
Mr Malcolm Bruce
Dr Vincent Cable
Mr Edward Davey
Mr Paul Tyler |
| Line 1 , leave out from `House' to end and add `regrets the failure of Her Majesty's Government to announce measures to mitigate the uncompetitive and unstable pound, high real short-term interest rates and an unbalanced economy in the debate on 26th October 1998; notes that as a consequence of these problems, and the recent global economic slow-down, economic growth forecasts for the United Kingdom for 1999 are being revised downwards and unemployment forecasts are being revised upwards, and that jobs in manufacturing industry are already being lost at a rate of over 300 per day; and calls upon the Chancellor of the Exchequer to resist pressures to compromise the operational independence of the Bank of England, recognise the role of fiscal policy in stabilising economic growth in order to avoid excessive reliance on interest rates for such a purpose, make an early Declaration of Intent of the Government's commitment to join the European Single Currency, agree and establish a joint Six Monthly Report on Convergence by the Treasury and the Bank of England to the Treasury Committee, take further actions to tackle skills shortages, and maintain the recent plans for additional investment in key public services such as the National Health Service and schools.'. |
|
AGRICULTURE |
| Mr William Hague
Mr Peter Lilley
Mr Tim Yeo
Mr Patrick Nicholls
Mr James Paice
Mr James Arbuthnot |
| That this House deplores the failure of the Government to respond to the deepening crisis in agriculture and to secure an end to the beef export ban; applauds the achievements of British farmers in raising animal welfare and environmental standards; recognises that a thriving rural economy depends on a viable agricultural industry and that this can be achieved by giving farmers a chance to compete on equal terms as summarised in the Opposition's call for a Fair Deal for Farmers; calls on the Government to renew or replace the Calf Processing Scheme, restore HLCAs to 1993 levels and take up agri-monetary compensation for the livestock sector financed by the underspends on the agriculture budget; urges action to establish honesty in labelling to help consumers make better informed choices, to encourage the purchase of home grown food by all public sector bodies and cut the burden of excessive regulation; calls for an immediate ban on the sale of food not produced to standards required in Britain; and condemns the hostility consistently displayed by Ministers to the country people in local government finance, transport and planning policy. |
| As Amendments to Mr William Hague's proposed Motion (Agriculture): |
| The Prime Minister
Mr Secretary Prescott
Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer
Mr Secretary Cook
Mr Secretary Smith
Mr Nicholas Brown |
| Line 1 , leave out from `House' to end and add `welcomes the Government's strong commitment to the United Kingdom farming industry and to the wider rural economy; recognises that the lifting of the beef export ban in Northern Ireland represents the first crucial step towards lifting the ban from all parts of the United Kingdom; welcomes the steps which the Government has taken since May 1997 to support the beef and sheep industry via EU agri-monetary compensation and relief from charges; acknowledges the steps taken specifically to help the sheep, pig and cereal sectors with targeted EU measures; and endorses the Government's intention to bring about a secure and viable future for United Kingdom farming by seeking a reformed Common Agricultural Policy, which is more economically rational, which reduces the bureaucratic burden on farmers, which enhances targeted support for the rural economy, which serves the consumer well and which contains fair and common rules to ensure that the United Kingdom's farming and food industries can exploit their competitive advantages in European and world markets.'. |
| Mr Paddy Ashdown
Mr A. J. Beith
Mr Charles Kennedy
Mr Andrew George
Mr Richard Livsey
Mr Paul Tyler |
| Line 1 , leave out from `House' to end and add `welcomes the announcement by Her Majesty's Government that it proposes to address some of the problems facing the British agricultural industry; and believes these problems would be best addressed by measures such as accessing agri-monetary compensation funds, ensuring that animal welfare standards are enforced uniformly across the EU and that United Kingdom standards are applied to imports, encouraging supermarkets to support British farming in their buying policies and addressing the imbalance in the bargaining power between producers and the supermarkets, implementing a `Buy British' policy in central government and its agencies and encouraging local government to do likewise wherever possible, retaining the Calf Processing Scheme, reducing inspection charges on farmers, ensuring that payments to farmers are made promptly, stabilising exchange rates by making an early declaration of intent of the Government's commitment to join the European Single Currency, implementing longer term measures that are also needed to secure the future of British farming, including the clear labelling of products including imports, ensuring the CAP reform does not discriminate against British farmers and any uptake of an early retirement scheme does not lead to compulsory amalgamation of holdings; and further believes that confidence in the safety and quality of British food will only be restored when a fully independent and authoritive Foods Standards Agency is established, and regrets any delay in its creation.'.
The selection of the matters to be debated this day has been made by the Leader of the Opposition (Standing Order No. 14 (2)). |
Debate may continue until 10.00 p.m. |
COMMITTEE MEETINGS |
STANDING COMMITTEES |
1 |
European Standing Committee B |
10.30 a.m. |
Room 10 (public) |
| To consider European Community Document No. 8328/98 relating to the Social Action Programme (1998-2000). |
2 |
Second Standing Committee on Delegated Legislation |
4.30 p.m. |
Room 9 (public) |
| To consider the draft Local Government (Amendment) (Northern Ireland) Order 1998. |
SELECT COMMITTEES |
3 |
Education and Employment: Education Sub-Committee |
9.15 a.m.
9.45 a.m. |
Room 21 (private)
(public) |
| Subject: Highly Able Children. |
| Witnesses: Professor Joan Freeman; Professor Diane Montgomery; and Dr Sally Power and Professor Tony Edwards. |
4 |
Catering |
9.30 a.m. |
Room 7 (private) |
5 |
Modernisation of the House of Commons |
9.30 a.m. |
Room 20 (private) |
6 |
Culture, Media and Sport |
10.00 a.m. |
Room 15 (public) |
| Subject: Heritage Lottery Fund. |
| Witnesses: English Heritage; Local Government Association (at 11.00 a.m.); Institute of Leisure and Amenity Management (at 11.45 a.m.) |
7 |
Scottish Affairs |
10.00 a.m.
10.30 a.m. |
Room 8 (private)
(public) |
| Subject: Tourism in Scotland. |
| Witnesses: Lord Gordon, Chairman and Mr Tom Buncle, Chief Executive, Scottish Tourist Board. |
8 |
Trade and Industry |
9.45 a.m.
10.00 a.m. |
Room 6 (private)
(public) |
| Subject: The work of the Department of Trade and Industry. |
| Witness: Mr Peter Mandelson, MP, Secretary of State for Trade and Industry. |
9 |
Environment, Transport and Regional Affairs: Transport Sub-Committee |
3.45 p.m.
4.00 p.m. |
Room 15 (private)
(public) |
| Subject: The Millennium Compliance of the Transport Industry. |
| Witnesses: Officials of the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions. |
10 |
Northern Ireland Affairs |
3.45 p.m.
4.15 p.m. |
Room 6 (private)
(public) |
| Subject: Public Expenditure: Special Educational Needs. |
| Witnesses: Belfast, North Eastern, Western, South Eastern and Southern Education and Library Boards. |
11 |
Science and Technology |
3.45 p.m. |
Room 20 (private) |
12 |
European Legislation |
4.00 p.m. |
Room 19 (private) |
13 |
Selection |
4.15 p.m. |
Room 13 (private) |
[The decision of a Committee to sit in public may be rescinded without notice.] |
|
Written Questions tabled on Tuesday 3rd November for answer today++ |
1 | Rachel Squire (Dunfermline West): To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, when he proposes to publish a White Paper on Defence Diversification. |
| (58476) |
2 | Mr James Plaskitt (Warwick and Leamington): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will publish the recruitment statistics for GCHQ for 1997 in line with the requirements of the Civil Service Commissioners; and how they compare with the figures for 1996. |
| (58477) |
3 | Mr Stephen Twigg (Enfield, Southgate): To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment, when he expects to publish the Government's response to consultation on the Green Paper, Excellence for all Children: Meeting Special Educational Needs. |
| (58535) |
4 | Angela Smith (Basildon): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make a statement on the operation of the Youth Justice Board for England and Wales. |
| (58562) |
5 | Angela Smith (Basildon): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what action he proposes to take on the report of the interim review of the Boundary Commission for England. |
| (58563) |
6 | Ms Margaret Moran (Luton South): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, when she proposes to consult with the new Northern Ireland Assembly on the outcome of the Northern Ireland Comprehensive Spending Review. |
| (58564) |
7 | Ms Margaret Moran (Luton South): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what arrangements she has made for this year's review of the operation of the Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Act 1996. |
| (58565) |
8 | Mr Tony McWalter (Hemel Hempstead): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, when she will respond to the Third Report of the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee of session 1997-98 (HC 337) on the composition, recruitment and training of the Royal Ulster Constabulary; and what will be the basis of her response. |
| (58566) |
9 | Angela Smith (Basildon): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what arrangements he has made for this year's review of the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1989. |
| (58567) |
|