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Mr. Clapham: Tell us about Basildon.
Mr. Amess: I am happy to speak about Basildon, about Southend, West or about any other constituency that needs a bit of profile, but I was about to deal with the economy.
The Labour Government pretend that there is no slump. I do not know to whom they speak but, regardless of what the hon. Member for Wolverhampton, North-East (Mr. Purchase) said, wherever one goes throughout the country, business women and business men all say that their order books are falling. The difference is that, instead of boom and bust, there has been no boom at all during the past 18 months of Labour economic management, while the economy is rapidly going bust.
The leader of the Labour party challenged Conservatives to say where they stand on the position of the Governor of the Bank of England. I am proud to say, although I may speak only for myself, that I am totally opposed to the Governor of the Bank of England being given the power to set interest rates. I have no doubt that that has damaged the economic situation and deepened the recession. We all know why Labour did that--so that the Governor of the Bank of England could be blamed when the economy goes wrong.
People have no faith in the Labour Government because of their mismanagement of the economy. In Southend, we have high unemployment. There is nothing in the new deal to deliver jobs for people there.
Over the years, the wicked Labour party has pretended that the Conservatives do not care about the national health service. I wish that Labour Members of Parliament
could have been in my constituency headquarters, Iveagh hall, last Tuesday when we had an open meeting of health professionals, including consultants, doctors and nurses. They were overwhelmingly not members of the Conservative party, but it was interesting to listen to them.
The Government managed to increase hospital waiting lists to 1.3 million, but, miraculously, within two months that number fell. We now know that that was because of six fiddles by the Secretary of State for Health--subsidiary waiting lists; the waiting list for the waiting list; withdrawal of routine operations; reprioritisation; administrative clean-up and reduced referral rates from general practitioners.
Time after time in my constituency last week, we listened to anguished health professionals, outraged that the Government are wasting money on ridiculous initiatives to reduce waiting lists when the result is that out-patients suffer and waiting lists grow longer. The general public in my constituency has no faith whatever in what this rotten Government are doing to the health service today.
The Leader of the Labour party made his name on crime. He promised to be tough on crime and tough on the causes of crime. Go to any high street and ask the general public whether they think that the Labour party is doing a good job on crime. They certainly do not believe that it is. My chief of police is 26 under establishment and he is prepared to go public on that. It is a waste of time to question Home Office Ministers in the House. The Minister at the Dispatch Box simply says, "Hands up, it ain't me, guv. It isn't my fault at all. It is all the fault of the local authority."
In many constituencies, graffiti is a great annoyance to the general public. When Southend put in a bid for closed circuit television, as ever it was turned down. I hope that the Government will take seriously the problem of graffiti, and rather than resting on the local government settlement, earmark money dedicated to doing something about graffiti in Britain. It is a serious matter. We want those who deface our signs and streets caught and we want to see them punished.
The Labour party knows about everything, but in fact it knows the value of nothing. This rotten Government have broken up the United Kingdom. I cannot think of a more stupid thing to have done at this moment in our history. Everyone knows that from strength comes power and, with strength, one is listened to.
As to closed lists for European elections, it is completely undemocratic for political parties to sit around in closed rooms and list their people from one to nine. I entirely agree with the bishops and others who say that, for moral reasons, we should know all about the individual candidates and be entitled to vote accordingly.
When we were summoned to the other place to listen to the Gracious Speech today, when the abolition of hereditary peers' right to sit and vote in the other place was announced, for the first time ever hon. Members said, "Hear, hear." That devalued hon. Members in everyone's eyes. It made them look pathetic and small minded. Those hon. Members who bother to toddle down to the other place to listen to debates will know that half the time the Members there speak much more sense than hon. Members here, particularly those on the Government Benches.
I never heard any Labour Members protest whenever, during the past 18 years, the other place voted against the Conservative Government. However, the Conservative Government would listen to what was said in the other place and, if a Bill were returned two or three times, would amend the legislation accordingly. The difference between that Conservative Government and this Government is that, because the Government are led by someone who Harry Enfield says is like a vicar, they cannot do anything wrong.
Mr. Robathan:
Does my hon. Friend recall the occasion on which the Prime Minister, as shadow spokesman on the Home Office, specifically said that a Government defeat in the other place was a victory for common sense? There was no call then for its abolition.
Mr. Amess:
My hon. Friend is entirely right, but, as we all know, the Labour party is not interested in history. The fact that it said that then does not count at all now.
On Europe, who is kidding whom? We all know that the Chancellor, who wants the Prime Minister's job, is softening us up to join the single currency. Thank goodness the Conservative party is the only one united in its opposition to the single currency, a united states of Europe and one Government. The British people will support us overwhelmingly on that.
The leader of the Labour party was a paid-up member of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. That must not be mentioned now because the Labour party is not interested in history--it is interested only in modernisation and new Labour. Just look at what the Government have done to the Territorial Army. The TA consists of decent men and women who defend Britain and it is taken seriously. With no knowledge, the Government have practically destroyed the very foundations of the TA, and they should be ashamed.
What is ethical about the Foreign Secretary's foreign policy? Wherever he goes, there are rows and arguments. For the first time ever, we have not signed up to the United Nations condemnation of China's human rights record. We heard today why not. The Chinese leader has been invited here next year.
The President of the United States telephoned his poodle, and we agreed to bomb Afghanistan and Sudan. We know only too well that the bombs turned out not to have hit their target. With one or two honourable exceptions, Labour Members said nothing about that.
Local government is to be modernised. Every week, the newspapers carry stories about some corrupt Labour- controlled local authority. It was laughable to hear the intervention from the hon. Member for Slough (Fiona Mactaggart) today. Her local authority is being investigated. Wherever one looks on the Labour Benches, there are Members whose local authority is being investigated. However, local government is to be modernised, so that problem will be sorted out.
Finally, the Queen's Speech referred to other measures being laid before us. I, like my right hon. Friend the Leader of the Opposition, am overwhelmed by the power of the Deputy Prime Minister. He has managed to secure for himself a huge chunk of legislation. It was noticeable that he became very excited and sought to intervene. Southend, West badly needs some help for transport.
Two weeks ago, we had a debate on quarantine. Yesterday, the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food had the cheek to claim credit for the ending of the BSE crisis. There was no mention of the German Government, whose Chancellor will be visiting us next year. Whenever someone reaches high office, the Prime Minister becomes his great pal. For the Minister of Agriculture to claim credit for the ending of the BSE crisis is laughable. Why have not the Government introduced legislation on quarantine? I listened carefully to what the Minister said in the recent quarantine debate and all hon. Members said that we could not possibly wait three years for legislation. If I am lucky in the ballot for private Members' Bills, I hope that I will have Government support in bringing forward such a Bill.
The reality of life is represented by a telephone call that I received yesterday, telling me that one of my constituents had died of hypothermia. My constituent--a Polish gentleman aged 73--came to my surgery on about four occasions. I, as a Conservative Member of Parliament, tried to help him; the Lib-Lab council tried to help him; and the Labour Government, through the Department of Social Security, also tried to help him. We all failed--the man is dead. I am not blaming anyone, but it seems that, for my constituent, we did not manage to fix this new world that we have entered.
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