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Mr. Andrew Stunell (Hazel Grove): Will the Leader of the House take very seriously the point made by the hon. Member for South Staffordshire (Sir P. Cormack) on the Government of Wales Bill, to which the Secretary of State for Wales has tabled 117 amendments? I take the right hon. Lady's point that we will have to work constructively, and it would be very helpful if there could be further discussions on that matter.
Will the Leader of the House speak to the Chancellor of the Exchequer and to the Deputy Prime Minister and ask them jointly to publish a Green Book, which was originally promised to accompany the Red Book and would outline the Budget's environmental impact? Some pages in the Red Book cover some of the Budget's impacts, but they give a very partial and incomplete picture of the environmental impact of the overall Budget strategy.
Will the Leader of the House also ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions to make a statement to the House on radioactive discharges from Sellafield that have entered the North sea? They are now the cause of international complaint and are affecting fisheries in Scandinavia.
May I also reinforce the point made by the hon. Member for Crewe and Nantwich (Mrs. Dunwoody) on the Modernisation Committee? It would be a sad thing indeed if all the Modernisation Committee's proposals were greeted with utter unanimity. I would welcome--as I know that the House would welcome--an opportunity to debate the proposals, with the agenda moving forward even more strongly.
Mrs. Taylor:
The hon. Gentleman asked me aboutthe environmental impact of the Budget. As he acknowledged, some pages of the Red Book deal with that. If he has further points to make, I repeat what I said earlier--there are two days left of the Budget debate and he may be fortunate enough to catch your eye, Madam Speaker.
I understand that the hon. Gentleman has a particular interest in radioactive waste in the North sea. He will be aware that a change in the authorisation in 1994 resulted in increased radioactive discharge limits. The Environment Agency has just completed public consultation on draft new authorisations which will reduce discharge limits. I hope that that will reassure him that the Government share his concern and are keen to take action in an attempt to minimise the problems.
The hon. Gentleman is right in his comments about the Modernisation Committee. We cannot expect unanimity, but, so far, the responses that we have received to our proposals have, by and large, been positive. However, it remains to be seen whether there will be such a level of agreement when we discuss such issues as electronic voting or even the timing of sittings of the House.
Mr. David Winnick (Walsall, North):
In view of the way in which Tory Members have done their very best to
Mrs. Taylor:
I am glad that my hon. Friend makes it clear that if the Bill fails, it will be due to the actions of Conservative Members and not the Government. The Government have always made it clear that there is no question of making Government time available for any private Member's Bill during this Session, and it would be wrong to treat the Bill to which he refers differently from any other. We have said on a number of occasions that we intend to keep the issue under review; that remains our position.
Mr. John Wilkinson (Ruislip-Northwood):
May I remind the right hon. Lady of the Government's clear commitment to produce a White Paper on the future of London's government in the week beginning 23 March? Therefore, may we expect next week the White Paper and a statement from the Deputy Prime Minister, together with another statement on the future of London Transport underground finance? Is it not the case that the modernisation of Britain is going ahead only in rhetorical terms, and that, in practical terms, commuters using London Transport underground have had no improvement in service and only an escalation in fares?
Mrs. Taylor:
I believe that my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister will be in a position to make a statement about the government of London next week, as promised. I am pleased that the hon. Gentleman gives me the opportunity to mention that. As for London underground--unusually, but because of the importance of the issue--my right hon. Friend will be in a position to make a statement tomorrow.
Mr. Harry Barnes (North-East Derbyshire):
On 24 February, my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister made a statement on Iraq during which I asked what the Government intended to do to advance democracy, peace and economic and social progress there. My right hon. Friend said twice that we will do what we can. May we have a debate on how the Iraqi people can be assisted in their plight, as the problem has not gone away?
Mrs. Taylor:
Both the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary have mentioned the need for follow-up action along those lines. My hon. Friend will not be surprised that I cannot promise another debate on Iraq in the near future. However, he will be aware, as he has participated in such debates on previous occasions, that we always have an open three-hour debate on the Adjournment before each recess; he may be able to raise that topic then.
Mrs. Margaret Ewing (Moray):
I am sure that the Leader of the House is aware that the Highlands and
Mrs. Taylor:
I am aware of that meeting. We have tried to arrange business in the House to accommodate it. My right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade has made our position on EU structural funds very clear. Although there have been some concessions, there is still a good deal of negotiation ahead of us. We are willing to contribute to the costs of enlargement, but that must be done on a fair basis, taking account of all the factors. There may be more information available by the time of the meeting to which the hon. Lady refers.
Judy Mallaber (Amber Valley):
Will my right hon. Friend find time for an early debate on the consultation processes on applications for opencast mining, in view of events in my constituency earlier this week, when a parish council met to consider the threefold extension of the Trinity opencast site? I am concerned that there may be similar problems elsewhere. The parish council chairman, who owns part of the site, allowed in only 16 members of the public, was not heard to declare his interest, allowed a vote to be taken in secret, and vacated the chair only just before the vote was taken. We should consider whether there are similar problems throughout the country.
Mrs. Taylor:
My hon. Friend raises a series of unusual circumstances relating to one application. I shall pass her concerns on to the relevant Ministers. She will know that the consultation period has now been completed and that Ministers are entering further discussions on the issue. I shall make sure that my hon. Friends make further inquiries about the procedures followed in the case that she has raised.
Mr. William Thompson (West Tyrone):
I note what the Leader of the House has said about the scandalous situation in the Maze. She said that the matter was dealt with in the private notice question at the beginning of the week, and she mentioned that an inquiry is going on. I understand that it has been completed and the report is now with Ministers in the Northern Ireland Office. Will she review her decision? When that report becomes public, can we have a debate? The situation is serious--indeed, it is a laughing stock in the press and other media, as well as among the ordinary people in the street in the United Kingdom. We should have time to discuss such a scandalous state of affairs in a part of the United Kingdom.
Mrs. Taylor:
It would be wrong to anticipate the conclusions of any report by promising a debate or saying that one was needed. I shall bear in mind the hon. Gentleman's request.
Mr. Steve McCabe (Birmingham, Hall Green):
Is my right hon. Friend aware of the welcome news today that the Korean car giant Daewoo has invested £160 million in Britain? I understand that the joint investment with Birmingham-based LDV will secure 1,500 jobs and create
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