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Mrs. Beckett: I congratulate the hon. Gentleman on his ingenuity in working the national minimum wage into a
question about bananas. It is nonsense to suggest that there is some discrimination in the way in which the Government have handled the concerns of businesses throughout the country that have been affected by that trade dispute. I am slightly surprised, and perhaps even a little disappointed, that the hon. Gentleman is apparently so unsupportive of the concerns of Caribbean banana producers, on whose behalf this country, under Governments of both political colours, has sought to act for so long--perhaps that is new conservatism. I shall draw the issues he raises in respect of the Post Office to the attention of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry.
Mr. David Winnick (Walsall, North): Further to an earlier answer, will my right hon. Friend reconsider the position on a vote on the military action against Serbia, bearing it in mind that, if such a vote were to take place, there would undoubtedly be an overwhelming majority in favour of dealing with ethnic cleansing, mass murder and rapes in Europe? [Interruption.] Does my right hon. Friend accept that it would be useful--
Mr. Ronnie Campbell (Blyth Valley): Wait until the body bags come back.
Mr. Winnick: Regardless of the interruptions, does my right hon. Friend agree that it would be extremely useful if there were a debate in the Belgrade Parliament, in which critics were able to express their point of view without fearing for their very lives? That is the difference between the dictatorship whose crimes we are currently combating and own free and democratic Parliament.
Mrs. Beckett: I understand my hon. Friend's final point about how unfortunate it is that the sort of free debate and freely expressed differences of view that we, quite rightly, hear in the House are unlikely to be heard in the Serbian Parliament, not least because, in many cases, the information that might fuel such opinions is denied. I also understand the desire he expresses on behalf of those of us who, despite recognising the difficulties and concerns arising from such action, would like an opportunity to register our support for those who carry the burden of responsibility in dealing with that extremely difficult situation. However, I remain of the view that, attractive though such a proposal is for those reasons, it is not appropriate to change the precedent in the House at this time.
Mr. Nicholas Soames (Mid-Sussex): Will the Leader of the House discuss with the House authorities whether it might be possible to arrange for those who work in this place--Members of Parliament and their staff, and all those who work elsewhere in the House of Commons--to have the opportunity to give money to aid the Kosovo refugees, whose plight is simply unbelievable and grows more awful with every passing day? Will she ask the relevant authority whether it would be possible to put collecting tins in the Bars and Cafeterias and other places where people gather, so that the House and all those who work here can make their contributions?
Madam Speaker: Order. That is hardly a matter for the Leader of the House at Business Questions. However,
as I am sympathetic to the point of view expressed by the hon. Member for Mid-Sussex (Mr. Soames), I shall allow the Leader of the House to respond.
Mrs. Beckett: I am very grateful, Madam Speaker. I think many in the House would welcome that suggestion. As the hon. Member for Mid-Sussex (Mr. Soames) will be aware, despite a tendency in the press to notice only Members of Parliament and to divide expenditure on the House only by our number, some 9,000 to 10,000 people work in and around the Palace of Westminster. It may be that many of them would welcome the opportunity to make such a contribution. As you said, Madam Speaker, the hon. Gentleman is not seeking a debate on this matter, but I think the whole House will welcome his suggestion.
Mr. Jeremy Corbyn (Islington, North): I refer the Leader of the House to her reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Cynon Valley (Ann Clwyd) concerning refugee policy and treatment. We all obviously want people to have the right to access this country as asylum seekers. Will the Government clarify, by way of a statement or a debate, their policy regarding asylum seekers coming to this country? As I understand it, present Kosovo refugees will be granted automatic entry to the United Kingdom--I have no complaints about that--but those who arrived earlier did not receive automatic entry. Many of them have been denied both access to any benefits and the right to work in this country and must sustain themselves with food parcels handed out by local government. If a substantial number of asylum seekers arrive in this country--and, as I said, I have no problem with that--it is essential that local authorities from inner-city areas where many asylum seekers are likely to go receive sufficient funding to deal with their social services, health, education and recreational needs so that those asylum seekers may live a decent life in this country for as long as they wish to remain. The Government must clarify their position towards local authorities that will be expected to deal with the problem when those unfortunate people arrive.
Mrs. Beckett: My hon. Friend may have noticed that it is Home Office questions on Monday, and he may have an opportunity to put his questions directly to the Home Secretary, who is responsible for handling some of those asylum applications. Some 120 Kosovar refugees--mainly women and children--are expected to arrive in this country in the next few days. The Government also anticipate a further request from UNHCR to accept 18 medical cases with 121 dependants between them. My hon. Friend will therefore appreciate that they are quite specific cases forwarded by the refugee organisations for specific reasons: those people need care and treatment which can be provided in this country. For that reason, our approach is different from that which we take to refugees generally when we seek to sustain them in a region. My hon. Friend asked several other questions about local authority problems and, as I said, he should seek to raise them with my right hon. Friend at Question Time.
Mr. Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (Cotswold): Has the Leader of the House had a chance to read yesterday's article in the Financial Times about the annual report of the International Institute for Management Development,
which is based in Lausanne? It revealed that, embarrassingly, Britain has fallen three points on the international competitiveness league table and is now 15th, behind countries such as Sweden and Australia. Will the Leader of the House find time to debate that subject so that we may point to the Government's economic management failures in the past year?
Mrs. Beckett: I have not seen the particular story to which the hon. Gentleman referred, but I am aware that international surveys and league tables are of varying reliability and produce varying results. I recall vividly the fact that the United Kingdom ranked below Sweden and Australia in many competitiveness surveys produced under the previous Government.
Mr. Paul Flynn (Newport, West): I refer the Leader of the House to early-day motion 572:
[That this House believes that the artefacts of the previous Welsh Parliament should be returned to Wales; recalls that the Pennal Letter and Seal of Owain Glyndwr sent to France in 1404 are of great historical significance in Wales as rare treasures of Welsh history; and believes that they should be reclaimed from the French National Library and exhibited and honoured in Wales as tangible links between the Parliament of 1404 and of the Assembly of today.]
The Leader of the House will appreciate the difficulty that I have in convincing her that we must debate urgently an event that took place in 1406. In that year, the last Welsh Parliament sent certain artefacts--the Pennal letter and the Great Seal of Owain Glyndwr--to the French king. They are now housed in the national library in Paris and, while they are of no significance--a mere footnote--to French history, they are the only tangible link between the last Welsh Parliament and the new Assembly to be established next month. Would it not be marvellous if we could reclaim those treasures?
Mrs. Beckett:
I hope that my hon. Friend will forgive me if I freely confess that I was not aware that those interesting historical artefacts were held by the French. I am uncertain whether the French Government would readily release those objects, and I am conscious that the British Government are frequently petitioned to release historical documents and artefacts that were brought to this country. However, I shall draw my hon. Friend's request to the attention of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales who, I am sure, despite his pressing concerns with important elections in Wales, will do his utmost to explore the matter.
Mr. Graham Brady (Altrincham and Sale, West):
Does the Leader of the House share my concern about the woeful performance of some of her colleagues in responding to questions tabled for answer on a named day with substantive answers on that named day? I notefrom her reply to my question on that matter that her Department manages to answer a perfectly reasonable 85 per cent. of questions on the named day, but the Treasury manages only 32 per cent. and the Department of Trade and Industry only 31 per cent.
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