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Mr. Hain: If that was support for my proposals, I would like to know what opposition is. As the shadow
 
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Leader of the House indicated, it is important that we move together on a united basis with the Serjeant at Arms and the Speaker in order to maintain security.

If hon. Members—possibly even the hon. Gentleman himself—wish to consult Hansard to look at what was actually said in that debate on 22 April, they will realise that there is a certain amount of humble pie to be eaten by those who voted against the erection of the security screen. If it was possible for a guest sponsored by a Member of the House of Lords to do what was done yesterday, imagine what might have happened if someone had come in, apparently innocently, with anthrax or ricin and lobbed it into the Chamber at the Prime Minister. What is important now is that we should examine the access arrangements for sponsored visitors to ensure that the whole Palace is properly secure. That is being done.

I very much agree with the hon. Member for North Cornwall (Mr. Tyler) that it is a question of protecting not only Members in the Chamber, but our constituents who visit this place and the staff of the House of Commons. We must consider the security arrangements for the whole of the Palace. That is precisely why, a few months ago, the House of Commons Commission, under the leadership of the Speaker and with the support of the shadow Leader of the House and other members of the Commission, embarked on the wider security review. There will be an interim report from that security review next month. The final report will be published later in the summer and thereafter proper consideration can be given to it.

I agree with the hon. Member for North Cornwall that there is no intention to make this place into a fortress and lock ourselves away from our constituents, who are entitled to come here to press us and to make their representations. That will of course continue, but in conditions of greater safety for them as well as us.

Mr. Alan Meale (Mansfield) (Lab): Will the Leader of the House give time in the coming weeks to a debate on press intrusion into ordinary people's lives? I raise that issue because in the past couple of weeks much public and press attention has been given to the case in my constituency of a 14-year-old girl who was pregnant and subsequently had an abortion. Money has changed hands and photographs and the names and addresses of all the children involved have been made public. That is despicable and should not be allowed in British society today.

Mr. Hain: I share my hon. Friend's concern about the most unfortunate circumstances surrounding that story. It is very important that everybody learns serious lessons from it.

Mr. Andrew Mackay (Bracknell) (Con): Just why have we still not had the debate on Zimbabwe that has been promised by the Leader of the House and by Foreign Office Ministers? Given that the business for the week after the recess is incredibly light because of the local elections, surely the Leader of the House is running out of excuses.

Mr. Hain: The right hon. Gentleman and I share a common position on what is happening in Zimbabwe.
 
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Interestingly, I was notified earlier about an Opposition application for a debate on Zimbabwe that was withdrawn at very short notice.

Anne Picking (East Lothian) (Lab): May I draw my right hon. Friend's attention to this week's edition of "All-Party and Associate Parliamentary Group Notices", which said that postal services from this House are to be changed from special delivery to first class? That once again disadvantages MPs who have only constituency-based staff members. London-based MPs will not be affected by that, but those who are as far-flung as I am will be. Will the Leader of the House please look at that urgently?

Mr. Hain: That is primarily a matter for the Administration Committee, but my hon. Friend raises a serious point. I am frankly surprised and concerned to hear what she says, and I hope that the necessary authorities will take action to remedy the problem.

Mr. Humfrey Malins (Woking) (Con): While I appreciate that in March we had a general debate about the Post Office service, can the Leader of the House tell me whether it will be possible in the next few weeks to have a specific debate on village post offices and their importance to the community? I mention that because the village post office of Pyrford in my constituency is threatened with closure, as are many others. Village post offices provide a vital service. Is not that issue of sufficient importance across the country to have a debate on it in Government time?

Mr. Hain: I appreciate the hon. Gentleman's point about the effect on his constituency. As he knows, £400 million has gone into supporting local post offices. He has the opportunity to apply for a debate but, given the number of questions that have been asked on the matter at business questions in recent months, I shall consider his request.

Mr. Peter Kilfoyle (Liverpool, Walton) (Lab): Will the Leader of the House take the opportunity to read a letter, a copy of which I have, to the leader of the Liberal Democrats? It is written by Mr. Sean Doherty, Liberal Democrat membership No. 8056293, an erstwhile candidate in the local elections in Liverpool. He wrote to the right hon. Gentleman to complain about what he described as the "disgusting and unbelievable practices" of the Liberal Democrats in Liverpool. He implies racism among Liberal Democrat councillors. Will my right hon. Friend consider finding time to give the right hon. Member for Ross, Skye and Inverness, West (Mr. Kennedy) a chance to come here to confirm or deny the veracity of the charges of his former candidate? That might also give the right hon. Gentleman an opportunity to clean up the act of his councillors in Liverpool.

Mr. Hain: I am concerned to hear my hon. Friend's remarks and I am sure that the people of Liverpool will be even more concerned.

Mr. Adrian Sanders (Torbay) (LD): Will there be an opportunity to debate an issue that has affected my constituency and will affect many others? It is the
 
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removal of manufacturing jobs from this country to China. My constituency lost 600 jobs yesterday in Bookham Technologies on top of the 4,300 non-seasonal manufacturing jobs that we have lost in the past three years. That is a serious matter, which has hit the south Devon economy especially hard. However, there is a wider issue about the movement of assembly jobs to the far east.

Mr. Hain: The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right that we are affected by global economic pressures and he is right to identify the vulnerability of assembly-level manufacturing jobs. Last month, during the Easter recess, I was in China as Secretary of State for Wales. I discovered that engineering wages there are 60p an hour, but that is only one side of the picture that threatens our competitiveness. The other is that last year China produced 2.1 million new graduates—two thirds of them in science, IT and engineering. I am advised that this year it will produce 2.8 million new graduates. There is therefore a massive increase in China's capability at graduate level. We beat that competition not by seeking to defend ourselves against all global pressures—that is impossible—but by being the best, investing in skills, infrastructure, science and communications so that jobs in Devon and elsewhere can be safeguarded and improved. However, one does not achieve that by cutting spending on education, science and skills but by investing more and more. The Government are doing that.

Mr. Tony McWalter (Hemel Hempstead) (Lab/ Co-op): I hear what my right hon. Friend said about security, but does he accept that many of us were surprised that the Chamber was evacuated yesterday when the event occurred? All the advice that we received from the Select Committee on Science and Technology about substances such as anthrax and ricin was that hon. Members should either have stayed in the Chamber or been contained in immediate outside areas, such as the Lobbies. I should be grateful if my right hon. Friend would give urgent attention to providing hon. Members with instructions about what to do if yesterday's events are repeated.

Mr. Hain: That is, of course, a matter for you, Mr. Speaker, and for the Serjeant. We can all learn some hard lessons from what happened yesterday and it is important that we do that. That is exactly why I announced that the House of Commons Commission and the joint committee on security would meet to receive urgent recommendations from the Security Service. The subjects covered will include the way in which House arrangements are affected in the circumstances to which my hon. Friend referred.

Sir George Young (North-West Hampshire) (Con): The Leader of the House has announced provisional business for 10 June. Does he acknowledge that attendance on that day may be thinner than it is today because the whole country will vote in the European elections and many parts of the country have local elections? Would it not be better if the important debate that has been announced for that day were held on
 
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another day so that all hon. Members were free to be in their constituencies, reawakening interest in democratic institutions?

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