Previous Section Index Home Page

Conservative Members have consistently believed in that philosophy; it is the thinking behind the White Paper and many of the provisions that survive even in relatively modest form in the Bill. The Labour rebels, if they may be called that, are deeply uncomfortable with that philosophy. I disagree with them, but I respect the
24 May 2006 : Column 1592
integrity and consistency with which they have argued their case. They have revealed the real division that now exists in the House on education reform. A majority in the House, represented by the entirety of my party and the Front Bench of the Labour party, believe in those principles, although there may be many Labour Members who are uncomfortable with them. It is partly a disagreement of principle, but I have to say that I am increasingly persuaded by the evidence produced by evaluations around the world that school choice and school freedom work.

Mr. Chaytor rose—

Ian Stewart rose—

Mr. Willetts: I am afraid that I have only four minutes. It would not be right for me to give way.

There is clear evidence from Sweden, from America and even from evaluations of our own grant-maintained schools that that is the best way in which to raise standards of education in our country, which is why we support the Bill and will continue to support it. But of course, in supporting the Bill and developing this agenda, my party has changed its approach as well. I fully recognise that my party’s approach to the issue of selection has changed. In the process of forming a consensus on the best way of reforming education, we have abandoned any idea of a grammar school in every town. We have abandoned any idea of bringing back the 11-plus in grammar schools. We have recognised that our focus should be on how we can best raise standards in all our nation’s schools. If there is to be selection, it is best for it to take place by means of setting within schools rather than allowing children across the country to face an invidious decision, at the age of 11, on which school they should attend.

Ian Stewart: Will the hon. Gentleman give way on that point?

Mr. Willetts: Of course we wish to support the grammar schools that survive—they are institutions with a long history—but my party will not bring back the 11-plus, and will not bring back grammar schools. That was an important statement for us to make, enabling us to show that we were serious about proceeding with the education reform agenda that lies behind the Bill.

In fact, we have now reached a stage at which, unlike some Labour Members, we are not obsessed with the issue of selection. We are not going to try to expunge the last grammar school from the country. We will focus our attention on how to secure more good school places in total, rather than on the endless depressing battle over exactly how children are allocated to a small number of good schools. We all recognise that the problem in our country today is that there are not enough good schools.

Ian Stewart: Will the hon. Gentleman give way on that point?

Mr. Willetts: Perhaps I can look forward to a day when a Conservative Secretary of State is in office, and
24 May 2006 : Column 1593
is able to use the powers in the Bill to deliver real education reform of the sort that the Prime Minister envisaged when he produced his White Paper last autumn.

Ian Stewart: Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

Mr. Speaker: Order. The hon. Member for Havant (Mr. Willetts) has made it clear that he will not give way.

Mr. Willetts: We will use the powers in the Bill to make it easier for schools to expand. We will use the powers in the Bill to give more freedom to schools. We will use the powers in the Bill to deliver on some of the promises that the Prime Minister made, but on which he has not been able to deliver. We look forward to using the powers in the Bill to deliver what the Prime Minister called, in his foreword to the White Paper, the aim of

state schools. That, I think, is the true objective of serious education reform, and as we fight that battle we will be able to say that ours is the party that is united in a commitment to deliver the radicalism behind the White Paper—from which, sadly, the Government have had to retreat because of pressures from their own Back Benchers.

It is on that basis that Conservative Members are pleased to support the Bill’s Third Reading.

Sarah Teather: I am not sure how to follow that extraordinary love-in between the hon. Member for Havant (Mr. Willetts) and the Secretary of State—[Hon. Members: “Inter-twingle!”] Indeed. I cannot help wondering whether such a deep and personal display of affection may be something that we should not be watching in public. Although we are liberals on these Benches, I have always felt that three is a crowd, so we will not be joining in.

Of course, the truth is that it is just a marriage of convenience, not the real thing. The Secretary of State needs the passport that the Conservatives can give his Bill, and the Conservatives are really only interested in breaking up his family. The Secretary of State has been left walking a tightrope between the two, trying to persuade his family that this time he really has changed while still clinging to his affair with the Conservative Front Bench. The truth is that, as the hon. Member for Havant said, the Bill has change very little since Second Reading, despite the Secretary of State’s attempts to reassure his own Back Benchers that it has.

The three key concerns that we had when we embarked on Second Reading remain. First, we do not believe that adequate safeguards on admissions have been given. If we are to give schools more freedom to control their own admissions, we want the extra safeguard of ensuring that someone impartial administers them. I welcomed the concession that the Minister made on Report for the conducting of pilots. However, I would have preferred that a permissive clause or enabling regulation be included in the Bill so that we could be sure that the Government are serious
24 May 2006 : Column 1594
about this issue and are not simply going to kick it into the long grass, as I fear they will. Without such a safeguard, giving schools more freedom to control admissions is not adequate.

Secondly, on accountability, we are totally opposed to giving trust schools the option of reducing the number of elected parent governors. To us, that flies in the face of all the spin about parent power. I assumed that I would never win the argument with the Secretary of State about giving away the power of veto, so that local authorities could have the strategic power that they desire to plan their own services. New Labour’s commitment to new localism has never really been about accountability. Nevertheless, I was astonished by the arguments that were advanced yesterday against parental ballots.

Thirdly and most importantly, I still do not feel that an adequate, clear vision has been set out. Is this a competitive education model or a collaborative one? Still, we have the Prime Minister’s vision of a competitive model, rather than the vision that, I suspect, the Department for Education and Skills would much rather pursue: of a collaborative model that allows real choice in the curriculum. Without that model, we will never see the real reforms that we want—reforms that give schools the freedom to teach what young people want to learn.

In our view, this Bill is a missed opportunity. It is a timid Bill with hidden dangers, and for that reason we will vote against it tonight.

6.47 pm

Mr. Sheerman: It is with reluctance, almost, that I rise to speak. I feel embarrassed at not having participated in the long hours of consideration of this Bill in Committee; however, my Select Committee did carry out a virtual pre-legislative inquiry when we examined the White Paper.

I welcome the Bill and I will support it on Third Reading, as will the vast majority of my Labour colleagues. I will do so because it builds, as the Secretary of State said, on what we know works. The longer that I have chaired the Select Committee, the more that I have come to realise that it is not dogma that will deal with the problems that we encounter in our schools throughout the country. Some of my colleagues like dogma. A small group of them would still like to nationalise the top 100 companies, for example, and will vote for any of those old dogmas if they are given the chance. [Interruption.] Well, they do not like it, do they?

Mr. Speaker: Order. The hon. Gentleman must talk about the contents of the Bill.

Mr. Sheerman: I am supporting this Bill, Mr. Speaker, because it is based on the principle of judging the evidence of what works in our schools. As the Chairman of the Select Committee, I visit at least one school a week, and I know that what works on the ground is not some high-flown dogma from the past or, indeed, the future. We need to sit down with our teachers, governors, parents and students and work out what will improve education on the ground.


24 May 2006 : Column 1595

Paul Farrelly: Will my hon. Friend give way?

Mr. Sheerman: I only want two more minutes.

The fact is that this Bill is not radical or revolutionary; rather, it builds on the steady progress achieved—dare I say it?—under previous Conservative Governments as well as this Labour Government. That is the truth that we sometimes dare not speak in this House. Education is too important an issue for one party to make changes on taking office, and for the other then to reverse them on taking office. However, such a consensual approach is not good enough for some of my colleagues. What I want to do is to make steady progress, which probably sounds a little Oakeshottian to some of my colleagues. We have worked for nine years to improve the education of our children throughout this country, but that is not enough. There is a long way to go, and this Bill will take us further along the path of good, steady progress.

6.50 pm

Clive Efford: There is much in the Bill that deserves to be supported and I accept the efforts that have been made by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and his team, and their predecessors. However, the Bill provides the opportunity for schools to break away from the school community in a locality. The danger of that is that the local authorities will lose direct control of and influence over those schools. That would mean that the local community would lose influence over those schools.

I hope that my right hon. Friend, in further proceedings on the Bill, will take on board that it should not diminish the role of local authorities. The overarching strategic responsibility for developing education in an area should remain with the local authority. We need a dynamic relationship with local communities, in which the local authority has a responsibility to consult with the whole school community—parents, head teachers, governors and everybody else involved in education—to develop an education plan that it can then publish and against which the performance of schools can be measured. Local parents will then have a clear framework for education in their area, against which they can measure the performance of schools and the delivery of education. The issue is providing information that parents can understand about education in their area that will allow them to make informed decisions about education.

Even more importantly, local authorities have to be given the opportunity to identify areas of deprivation and of special educational need so that they can direct resources to those areas to raise standards. I said on Second Reading that as we came to power in 1997 the league tables for schools were being published. Although we have improved standards enormously across all schools, the schools are in the same positions in the league tables. That is true for my area and for areas across the country. I would have liked to have seen it stated in the Bill that we intended to identify areas of deprivation and need by setting the necessary criteria, so that we could direct the resources to them and finally, once and for all, give those kids who have not had the opportunity of having a decent education
24 May 2006 : Column 1596
the resources needed to give them that. The Bill has been more about structures than about providing support for the very people at the sharp end of doing that very job.

Ms Angela C. Smith: Does my hon. Friend acknowledge that the Government have already done a great deal to direct resources to deprived areas? Excellence in cities is a good example of the Government directing resources to where they are needed.

Clive Efford: I fully accept that and I made that point in my opening remarks. Indeed, the education action zone in my area worked because it provided extra resources and the freedom for staff and governors to direct those resources to improve standards.

The White Paper said that the Government would make an announcement about that subject in the autumn, but why is it not part of the Bill? That is what I am arguing for. If a future Government did not want to invest resources in that way, they would have to explain to parents why it is no longer part of the local education plan that resources would be directed to schools in that way. That is what I wanted from the Bill. I accept that some hon. Members will say that that is what we want to achieve, but that is light years away from the rhetoric surrounding the Bill when it was published and from some of the statements made later.

I have outlined my concerns about these proposals. Unfortunately, I cannot support the Bill this evening.

6.55 pm

Dr. Blackman-Woods: There have been some very interesting discussions and deliberations over the past two days. However, I suggest to the hon. Member for Brent, East (Sarah Teather) that consensus in the best interests of our children is something to be applauded rather than denigrated.

It is perhaps unfortunate that we could not spend more time on some of the excellent proposals in the Bill. I shall highlight a few of them briefly, beginning with the duty that the Bill places on local authorities in the provision of services and facilities for young people. That is a huge step forward and it will help a lot of young people, in my constituency and others, to access a range of services that are not available at present.

The Bill also moves forward the education of 14 to 19-year-olds. The availability of new diplomas and the right to study for specialised diplomas are essential for many of our young people and will contribute to the promotion of vocational education. In addition, local authorities will have new opportunities to provide free school meals to all children in their areas. That will transform the quality of food available to students, who will be able to eat good food at lunch time. I hope that the Government will encourage local authorities to take the option up.

We have not had an opportunity to explore what personalised learning will mean for young people. However, I have seen it at work in some schools in Sweden, and I hope that the Bill will help its delivery in this country. That is one reason why I urge all colleagues to support the Bill’s Third Reading.

Other good provisions in the Bill include the new procedures to help improve discipline in schools, but
24 May 2006 : Column 1597
before I conclude I want to mention the greater ability that this measure gives to local authorities to intervene in failing and coasting schools. That will raise standards for all our young people.

Question put, That the Bill be now read the Third time:—


The House divided: Ayes 422, Noes 98.
Division No. 255]
[6.57 pm



AYES


Afriyie, Adam
Ainger, Nick
Ainsworth, Mr. Peter
Alexander, rh Mr. Douglas
Allen, Mr. Graham
Anderson, Mr. David
Arbuthnot, rh Mr. James
Armstrong, rh Hilary
Austin, Mr. Ian
Bacon, Mr. Richard
Bailey, Mr. Adrian
Baird, Vera
Baldry, Tony
Balls, Ed
Banks, Gordon
Barlow, Ms Celia
Baron, Mr. John
Battle, rh John
Bayley, Hugh
Beckett, rh Margaret
Begg, Miss Anne
Bell, Sir Stuart
Bellingham, Mr. Henry
Benn, rh Hilary
Benton, Mr. Joe
Benyon, Mr. Richard
Bercow, John
Berry, Roger
Binley, Mr. Brian
Blackman-Woods, Dr. Roberta
Blair, rh Mr. Tony
Blears, rh Hazel
Blunkett, rh Mr. David
Blunt, Mr. Crispin
Bone, Mr. Peter
Borrow, Mr. David S.
Boswell, Mr. Tim
Bottomley, Peter
Bradshaw, Mr. Ben
Brady, Mr. Graham
Brazier, Mr. Julian
Brennan, Kevin
Brown, rh Mr. Gordon
Brown, Lyn
Brown, Mr. Russell
Browne, rh Des
Browning, Angela
Bryant, Chris
Buck, Ms Karen
Burden, Richard
Burnham, Andy
Burns, Mr. Simon
Burrowes, Mr. David
Burt, Alistair
Butler, Ms Dawn
Butterfill, Sir John
Byers, rh Mr. Stephen
Byrne, Mr. Liam
Caborn, rh Mr. Richard
Cairns, David
Campbell, Mr. Alan
Carswell, Mr. Douglas
Cash, Mr. William
Cawsey, Mr. Ian
Challen, Colin
Chaytor, Mr. David
Clappison, Mr. James
Clark, Greg
Clark, Paul
Clarke, rh Mr. Charles
Clarke, rh Mr. Kenneth
Clarke, rh Mr. Tom
Clifton-Brown, Mr. Geoffrey
Clwyd, rh Ann
Coaker, Mr. Vernon
Coffey, Ann
Conway, Derek
Cooper, Rosie
Cooper, Yvette
Cormack, Sir Patrick
Cousins, Jim
Cox, Mr. Geoffrey
Crabb, Mr. Stephen
Creagh, Mary
Cunningham, Mr. Jim
Cunningham, Tony
Curry, rh Mr. David
Curtis-Thomas, Mrs. Claire
Darling, rh Mr. Alistair
David, Mr. Wayne
Davies, David T.C. (Monmouth)
Davies, Mr. Quentin
Dean, Mrs. Janet
Denham, rh Mr. John
Dhanda, Mr. Parmjit
Dismore, Mr. Andrew
Djanogly, Mr. Jonathan
Dodds, Mr. Nigel
Donaldson, Mr. Jeffrey M.
Donohoe, Mr. Brian H.
Doran, Mr. Frank
Dorrell, rh Mr. Stephen
Dorries, Mrs. Nadine
Duncan, Mr. Alan
Dunne, Mr. Philip
Eagle, Angela
Eagle, Maria
Ellman, Mrs. Louise
Ellwood, Mr. Tobias
Engel, Natascha
Ennis, Jeff
Evans, Mr. Nigel
Evennett, Mr. David
Fabricant, Michael
Fallon, Mr. Michael

Field, rh Mr. Frank
Field, Mr. Mark
Fitzpatrick, Jim
Flello, Mr. Robert
Flint, Caroline
Follett, Barbara
Foster, Mr. Michael (Worcester)
Foster, Michael Jabez (Hastings and Rye)
Fox, Dr. Liam
Francis, Dr. Hywel
Francois, Mr. Mark
Fraser, Mr. Christopher
Gapes, Mike
Gardiner, Barry
Garnier, Mr. Edward
Gauke, Mr. David
George, rh Mr. Bruce
Gibb, Mr. Nick
Gilroy, Linda
Goggins, Paul
Goodman, Helen
Goodman, Mr. Paul
Goodwill, Mr. Robert
Gove, Michael
Gray, Mr. James
Grayling, Chris
Green, Damian
Greening, Justine
Greenway, Mr. John
Grieve, Mr. Dominic
Griffith, Nia
Griffiths, Nigel
Gummer, rh Mr. John
Gwynne, Andrew
Hague, rh Mr. William
Hain, rh Mr. Peter
Hall, Patrick
Hamilton, Mr. Fabian
Hammond, Mr. Philip
Hands, Mr. Greg
Hanson, Mr. David
Harman, rh Ms Harriet
Harper, Mr. Mark
Harris, Mr. Tom
Hayes, Mr. John
Heald, Mr. Oliver
Healey, John
Heathcoat-Amory, rh Mr. David
Hendrick, Mr. Mark
Hendry, Charles
Hepburn, Mr. Stephen
Heppell, Mr. John
Herbert, Nick
Hesford, Stephen
Hewitt, rh Ms Patricia
Hill, rh Keith
Hillier, Meg
Hoban, Mr. Mark
Hodge, rh Margaret
Hodgson, Mrs. Sharon
Hoey, Kate
Holloway, Mr. Adam
Hood, Mr. Jimmy
Hoon, rh Mr. Geoffrey
Hope, Phil
Horam, Mr. John
Howard, rh Mr. Michael
Howells, Dr. Kim
Hughes, rh Beverley
Hunt, Mr. Jeremy
Hurd, Mr. Nick
Hutton, rh Mr. John
Iddon, Dr. Brian
Ingram, rh Mr. Adam
Irranca-Davies, Huw
Jack, rh Mr. Michael
James, Mrs. Siân C.
Jenkin, Mr. Bernard
Jenkins, Mr. Brian
Johnson, rh Alan
Johnson, Mr. Boris
Johnson, Ms Diana R.
Jones, Mr. David
Jones, Mr. Kevan
Jones, Mr. Martyn
Jowell, rh Tessa
Joyce, Mr. Eric
Kaufman, rh Sir Gerald
Kawczynski, Daniel
Keeble, Ms Sally
Keeley, Barbara
Keen, Ann
Kelly, rh Ruth
Kemp, Mr. Fraser
Kennedy, rh Jane
Khabra, Mr. Piara S.
Khan, Mr. Sadiq
Kidney, Mr. David
Kirkbride, Miss Julie
Knight, Jim
Kumar, Dr. Ashok
Ladyman, Dr. Stephen
Laing, Mrs. Eleanor
Lait, Mrs. Jacqui
Lammy, Mr. David
Lancaster, Mr. Mark
Lansley, Mr. Andrew
Laxton, Mr. Bob
Lazarowicz, Mark
Lepper, David
Letwin, rh Mr. Oliver
Levitt, Tom
Lewis, Mr. Ivan
Lewis, Dr. Julian
Liddell-Grainger, Mr. Ian
Lidington, Mr. David
Lilley, rh Mr. Peter
Linton, Martin
Loughton, Tim
Love, Mr. Andrew
Lucas, Ian
Luff, Peter
MacDougall, Mr. John
Mackay, rh Mr. Andrew
Mackinlay, Andrew
Maclean, rh David
MacShane, rh Mr. Denis
Mactaggart, Fiona
Mahmood, Mr. Khalid
Malik, Mr. Shahid
Malins, Mr. Humfrey
Mallaber, Judy
Mann, John
Maples, Mr. John
Marris, Rob
Marsden, Mr. Gordon
Marshall, Mr. David
Martlew, Mr. Eric
Maude, rh Mr. Francis
May, rh Mrs. Theresa
McAvoy, rh Mr. Thomas

McCabe, Steve
McCafferty, Chris
McCarthy, Kerry
McCarthy-Fry, Sarah
McCartney, rh Mr. Ian
McCrea, Dr. William
McDonagh, Siobhain
McDonnell, Dr. Alasdair
McFadden, Mr. Pat
McFall, rh Mr. John
McGuire, Mrs. Anne
McIntosh, Miss Anne
McIsaac, Shona
McKechin, Ann
McKenna, Rosemary
McLoughlin, rh Mr. Patrick
McNulty, Mr. Tony
Meale, Mr. Alan
Mercer, Patrick
Merron, Gillian
Michael, rh Alun
Milburn, rh Mr. Alan
Miliband, rh David
Miliband, Edward
Miller, Mrs. Maria
Milton, Anne
Mitchell, Mr. Andrew
Moffat, Anne
Moffatt, Laura
Mole, Chris
Moon, Mrs. Madeleine
Moran, Margaret
Morden, Jessica
Morley, Mr. Elliot
Moss, Mr. Malcolm
Mountford, Kali
Mullin, Mr. Chris
Munn, Meg
Murphy, Mr. Denis
Murphy, Mr. Jim
Murrison, Dr. Andrew
Newmark, Mr. Brooks
Norris, Dan
O'Brien, Mr. Mike
O'Brien, Mr. Stephen
O'Hara, Mr. Edward
Olner, Mr. Bill
Osborne, Mr. George
Osborne, Sandra
Paice, Mr. James
Paisley, rh Rev. Ian
Palmer, Dr. Nick
Paterson, Mr. Owen
Pearson, Ian
Pelling, Mr. Andrew
Penrose, John
Pickles, Mr. Eric
Plaskitt, Mr. James
Pope, Mr. Greg
Pound, Stephen
Prentice, Bridget
Prescott, rh Mr. John
Primarolo, rh Dawn
Prisk, Mr. Mark
Pritchard, Mark
Purnell, James
Rammell, Bill
Randall, Mr. John
Raynsford, rh Mr. Nick
Redwood, rh Mr. John
Reed, Mr. Andy
Reed, Mr. Jamie
Reid, rh John
Rifkind, rh Sir Malcolm
Robathan, Mr. Andrew
Robertson, Hugh
Robertson, John
Robertson, Mr. Laurence
Robinson, Mr. Geoffrey
Rooney, Mr. Terry
Roy, Mr. Frank
Ruane, Chris
Ruddock, Joan
Ruffley, Mr. David
Russell, Christine
Ryan, Joan
Salter, Martin
Sarwar, Mr. Mohammad
Scott, Mr. Lee
Seabeck, Alison
Selous, Andrew
Shapps, Grant
Sheerman, Mr. Barry
Shepherd, Mr. Richard
Sheridan, Jim
Simmonds, Mark
Simon, Mr. Siôn
Simpson, David
Simpson, Mr. Keith
Singh, Mr. Marsha
Slaughter, Mr. Andrew
Smith, rh Mr. Andrew
Smith, Ms Angela C. (Sheffield, Hillsborough)
Smith, Angela E. (Basildon)
Smith, rh Jacqui
Snelgrove, Anne
Soames, Mr. Nicholas
Spellar, rh Mr. John
Spelman, Mrs. Caroline
Spicer, Sir Michael
Spink, Bob
Spring, Mr. Richard
Stanley, rh Sir John
Starkey, Dr. Phyllis
Steen, Mr. Anthony
Straw, rh Mr. Jack
Streeter, Mr. Gary
Stuart, Ms Gisela
Stuart, Mr. Graham
Sutcliffe, Mr. Gerry
Swayne, Mr. Desmond
Swire, Mr. Hugo
Tami, Mark
Tapsell, Sir Peter
Taylor, Mr. Ian
Thomas, Mr. Gareth
Thornberry, Emily
Tipping, Paddy
Todd, Mr. Mark
Touhig, Mr. Don
Tredinnick, David
Twigg, Derek
Tyrie, Mr. Andrew
Ussher, Kitty
Vaizey, Mr. Edward
Vara, Mr. Shailesh
Vaz, Keith
Viggers, Peter
Villiers, Mrs. Theresa
Walker, Mr. Charles
Wallace, Mr. Ben
Waltho, Lynda
Ward, Claire

Waterson, Mr. Nigel
Watkinson, Angela
Watson, Mr. Tom
Watts, Mr. Dave
Whitehead, Dr. Alan
Wicks, Malcolm
Wiggin, Bill
Willetts, Mr. David
Williams, rh Mr. Alan
Wills, Mr. Michael
Wilson, Mr. Rob
Wilson, Sammy
Winterton, Ms Rosie
Woodward, Mr. Shaun
Woolas, Mr. Phil
Wright, Mr. Anthony
Wright, David
Wright, Mr. Iain
Wright, Jeremy
Wright, Dr. Tony
Wyatt, Derek
Yeo, Mr. Tim
Young, rh Sir George
Tellers for the Ayes:

Jonathan Shaw and
Liz Blackman
NOES


Abbott, Ms Diane
Alexander, Danny
Austin, John
Baker, Norman
Barrett, John
Brake, Tom
Breed, Mr. Colin
Brooke, Annette
Browne, Mr. Jeremy
Burgon, Colin
Burstow, Mr. Paul
Cable, Dr. Vincent
Campbell, rh Sir Menzies
Carmichael, Mr. Alistair
Caton, Mr. Martin
Clapham, Mr. Michael
Clark, Ms Katy
Clegg, Mr. Nick
Clelland, Mr. David
Corbyn, Jeremy
Cruddas, Jon
Davey, Mr. Edward
Davidson, Mr. Ian
Devine, Mr. Jim
Dobbin, Jim
Dobson, rh Frank
Dunwoody, Mrs. Gwyneth
Efford, Clive
Farron, Tim
Featherstone, Lynne
Flynn, Paul
Foster, Mr. Don
George, Andrew
Gibson, Dr. Ian
Godsiff, Mr. Roger
Goldsworthy, Julia
Grogan, Mr. John
Hancock, Mr. Mike
Harris, Dr. Evan
Harvey, Nick
Havard, Mr. Dai
Heath, Mr. David
Hemming, John
Heyes, David
Holmes, Paul
Hopkins, Kelvin
Horwood, Martin
Hughes, Simon
Huhne, Chris
Humble, Mrs. Joan
Hunter, Mark
Jackson, Glenda
Jones, Helen
Keetch, Mr. Paul
Kennedy, rh Mr. Charles
Kilfoyle, Mr. Peter
Kramer, Susan
Lamb, Norman
Laws, Mr. David
Leech, Mr. John
McDonnell, John
McGovern, Mr. Jim
Meacher, rh Mr. Michael
Moore, Mr. Michael
Mudie, Mr. George
Mulholland, Greg
Öpik, Lembit
Prentice, Mr. Gordon
Prosser, Gwyn
Pugh, Dr. John
Purchase, Mr. Ken
Reid, Mr. Alan
Rennie, Willie
Riordan, Mrs. Linda
Rogerson, Mr. Dan
Russell, Bob
Simpson, Alan
Skinner, Mr. Dennis
Smith, Geraldine
Smith, John
Smith, Sir Robert
Soulsby, Sir Peter
Stewart, Ian
Stunell, Andrew
Swinson, Jo
Taylor, David
Teather, Sarah
Thurso, John
Trickett, Jon
Truswell, Mr. Paul
Turner, Dr. Desmond
Wareing, Mr. Robert N.
Webb, Steve
Williams, Mark
Williams, Stephen
Willis, Mr. Phil
Willott, Jenny
Wood, Mike
Younger-Ross, Richard
Tellers for the Noes:

Mr. Roger Williams and
Paul Rowen
Question accordingly agreed to.
Next Section Index Home Page