| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Electoral Arrangements
24. Barbara Keeley (Worsley) (Lab): What assessment she has made of the impact of requiring voters to sign for receipt of their ballot paper. [94027]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs (Bridget Prentice): Where it has been tested in election pilots, the impact has generally been positive. The requirement has not resulted in long queues in polling stations.
Barbara Keeley: Salford city council has a good record in electoral administration, but it has some concerns. Members of the council wanted me to ask the Minister about paragraph 75 of Schedule 1 to the Electoral Administration Act 2006. Does she believe that the requirement to sign for ballot papers could lead to queues building up in polling stations, which might deter voters? Secondly, as comprehensive checks cannot be made on individual signatures, is there still merit in having people sign for a ballot paper?
Bridget Prentice: First, I congratulate my hon. Friend and her constituents on having the highest level of registration—92 per cent.—in the Salford local authority area. I hope that other constituencies around the country will attempt to reach that same level of registration. As to signing at polling stations, there was no indication in the pilots that queues were forming and I do not believe that they are likely to result in the future. However, there is a requirement for returning officers to be aware of the problem and to make plans to deal with a heavier turnout, perhaps in a general election.
As for keeping the signatures, while people will sign at the polling station, if there is any question of fraud or impersonation thereafter, the police carrying out the investigation will be able not just to look at the signature used at the polling station but to seek to verify other signatures such as the one on a credit card. They will also be able to use specialist signature checking expertise to support that task. I am therefore
confident that the system now in place will provide greater security to the electoral process and allow people to feel confident about the integrity of the system. At the same time, the system will ensure that registration reaches the level that it should. It will help to ensure that the 3.5 million people who are currently not on the register soon will be, so that their voices can also be heard.
Points of Order
3.34 pm
David Davis (Haltemprice and Howden) (Con): On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. You will have read in the newspapers this morning that two terrorist suspects restrained under the control order legislation have absconded—one of them some months ago. You will remember that the control order legislation was only passed, after the longest ever sitting of the House of Lords, when the Home Secretary gave an undertaking to report back on the operation and effectiveness of the legislation. Accordingly, quarterly statements are made to the House.
On 11 September, the statement from the Minister for Policing, Security and Community Safety said:
“There are 15 control orders currently in force, six of which are in respect of British nationals.”—[ Official Report, 11 September 2006; Vol. 449, c. 122WS.]
It then outlined details of applications to modify those orders. There was no mention of a breach of orders, an escapee or a risk to the public. That statement may be true, but it is not the whole truth. Has the Home Secretary indicated to you, Mr. Speaker, whether he intends to come to the House to explain why such information was withheld?
Mr. Speaker: Order. I am going to stop the right hon. Gentleman, because he put an urgent question before me, and for reasons that I do not have to give to the House, I refused that urgent question. But it appears to me that he is pursuing that urgent question on the Floor of the House. He is drawing the occupant of the Chair into this matter. He can table parliamentary questions and seek answers to these matters. I will say no more on this.
Mr. Douglas Hogg (Sleaford and North Hykeham) (Con): Further to that point of order, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker: Order. I am saying no more on the matter. I have given a ruling.
Mr. Hogg: It is a slightly different point.
Mr. Speaker: It needs to be a bit more than slightly different.
Mr. Hogg: It is entirely different.
Mr. Speaker: It has gone from “slightly” to “entirely”. I will hear it if it is entirely different.
Mr. Hogg: You have just indicated, Mr. Speaker, that an urgent question was requested. You will know that I also requested an urgent question. My understanding was—I would appreciate your clarification on this—that Members who request urgent questions should not disclose that fact in the House. It may be that you have just changed that ruling, in which case I would very much like to know.
Mr. Speaker: I have not changed the rule. If an hon. Member puts an urgent question before me and pursues the same question on a point of order, I am entitled to tell the House that the urgent question was refused. It would defy all logic to say otherwise. I will not allow hon. Members, even Front Benchers, to try to push a point of order when they tried to get an urgent question. By the way, as Speaker, I am always very generous about urgent questions, so when I refuse them, I have good reason to do so.
Mr. Hogg: Further to that point of order, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate that and I am not criticising. I simply want to know whether Members like me who request urgent questions are entitled to say that fact in the House on appropriate occasions.
Mr. Speaker: The right hon. and learned Gentleman is not supposed to say so in the House. But of course, it is more than an open secret when an application for an urgent question goes before me in the Speaker’s Office. Of course, it should not be mentioned on the Floor of the House, except—I give this ruling—where a right hon. or hon. Member tries to pursue something on a point of order that has been refused only a few hours earlier. In my view, that was the case here.
Gambling Act 2005 (Amendment)
3.38 pm
Mr. Jim Cunningham (Coventry, South) (Lab): I beg to move,
That leave be given to bring in a Bill to amend the Gambling Act 2005 to allow for increased provision of casinos; and for connected purposes.
The Bill’s objectives are to amend the Gambling Act 2005 to allow a minimum of eight regional casinos, with the onus on the regeneration of key cities, as initially proposed by the Government. After the Act’s consideration in Committee, the Government introduced new clauses to set limits on the number of casinos. At that point, the number of regional casinos was set at eight, but as the Government faced opposition, that number was reduced to one. As a result, the national potential for jobs and investment will not be fully achieved.
The failure to recognise that loss of potential investment could result in the loss of about 22,000 possible jobs and an additional 17,000 support jobs. In total, the opportunity for 40,000 new jobs could have been lost, not to mention reductions in investment. The failure to support all the main regeneration schemes will have a negative effect and may put back regeneration programmes by about a decade. In total, the UK could lose the potential for more than £5 billion in investment, particularly in deprived areas.
In terms of protective legislation, the Secretary of State has addressed concerns regarding habitual gambling, stating that she does not think that casinos would increase problem gambling, and that she would prefer to close them if they did. In advance of the implementation of the relevant provisions of the Gambling Act 2005, and every two or three years thereafter, the Government intend to fund a national study that will measure the impact that any new casinos have on the surrounding areas and the issue of problem gambling. In addition, provision has been made in the Act to establish the Responsibility in Gambling Trust. The trust has been established on a voluntary basis to provide funding to support problem gamblers and their dependants.
The casino advisory panel’s criteria, as laid down by the Secretary of State, were to ensure that location satisfies need, for there to be the best possible test of social impact to include areas of need and regeneration, for consideration to be given to areas that are likely to benefit in those terms from a new casino, and to ensure that the areas selected were willing to license a new casino. The panel condensed the applications down to a shortlist of eight. On the shortlist were Blackpool, Wembley, Cardiff, Glasgow, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield. I believe that the Government should increase the numbers of casinos, as the decision that has been taken is not based on the best interests of areas that are in dire need.
Local authorities should not be fighting each other over restricted resources. Rather, the Government should allow a fair system of opportunity, and allow more than one area of need to benefit from regeneration, investment and jobs. The Government have hinted that legislation could be revisited, and that the permissible number of regional casino licences
could be increased, given sufficient support from local authorities, MPs and the public. It should be remembered that the Government expect that a regional casino will be a major development, offering clear potential for regeneration, and providing not only a range of gambling activities, but also perhaps including hotel accommodation, conference facilities, restaurants, areas for live entertainment and other leisure attractions.
There is already a casino in Coventry that would meet the criteria, should the Government be willing to increase the numbers. In contrast to many other proposals, Coventry’s submission was based on an extensive independent assessment. Therefore, I propose that an amendment be made to the Act, increasing the number of regional casinos from one to a minimum of eight.
3.42 pm
Miss Julie Kirkbride (Bromsgrove) (Con): I rise to speak against the desire of the hon. Member for Coventry, South (Mr. Cunningham) for there to be an amendment to this gambling legislation. I do so despite the fact that I have a great deal of respect for the hon. Gentleman, who is a neighbour and colleague in the west midlands, as I believe that he is profoundly wrong to think that his constituency would benefit from such a development. If I may say so to the hon. Gentleman, I also think that he is being used somewhat as a stalking horse by his Government, to test opinion in the House on whether there is an appetite to change what was set out by the Gambling Act 2005. The simple fact is that it is not necessary to have this proposed legislation, because the relevant provisions in the Act can be changed by statutory instrument, subject to a vote by all Members.
It might be helpful if I remind the House about how we got the Gambling Act 2005. When the Government introduced the original Bill, they intended to have a free-for-all on the development of casinos across the country, subject to demand as the operators saw that. As time passed, and as Members spoke out, along with other sections of society—including the Daily Mail, the Minister for Sport might be fond of remembering—it became clear that it would not be acceptable to have a major extension of such Las Vegas-style casinos across the United Kingdom. Given that a general election was imminent, the Government agreed to the idea that there should be only one regional casino, eight large casinos and eight small casinos, and that that would be the way that the measures would be proceeded with, unless the House decided otherwise through a statutory instrument such as that which I mentioned.
The Minister for Sport, who is in the Chamber, might remember that my hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr. Swire) asked him about the matter during Question Time just a week or so ago. The Minister said:
“The Conservatives decided to come back with the proposal of one regional casino, which we accepted because we wanted to get the Bill on to the statute book in order to protect the vulnerable in our society. That is where it now stops—at one regional casino—unless the hon. Gentleman says to the Government that the Conservatives want to change the proposal.”—[ Official Report, 9 October 2006; Vol. 450, c. 11.]
I applaud the Minister’s remark to my hon. Friend, but although that represents the public face of the Government, their private face appears to be somewhat different. I suspect that the Secretary of State is much keener on a bigger free-for-all in casino development than the Minister is, at least in public. Following a meeting that took place between the Secretary of State and Coventry Members to petition her about a casino in Coventry, the hon. Member for Coventry, North-West (Mr. Robinson) wrote on his website:
“It was a very positive meeting. She invited us to submit early day motions and a ten-minute bill asking for Coventry to be included on the shortlist, and also to get the Government to increase the number of super casino licences from one to eight.”
I, and other Conservative Members, reject wholesale the private view that the Government have expressed to Labour Members.
Of course, the Government would like the number of such casinos to be increased from one to eight, because they face the political problem of who the one licence should be given to. Technically, that should be a matter for the casino advisory panel, but we all know that Ministers have views on the issue.
Mr. Cunningham: Will the hon. Lady give way?
Mr. Speaker: Order. There are no interventions during speeches on a ten-minute Bill.
Miss Kirkbride: I am grateful for your guidance, Mr. Speaker.
We found out that the Government had views on who they would like the licence to be awarded to when we heard about the Deputy Prime Minister’s visit to a ranch in Colorado owned by Mr. Philip Anschutz, who also happens to own the dome. Mr. Anschutz is determined to get a regional casino licence for the dome, but were such a licence to be granted, the Government would face the huge embarrassment of having to tell everyone else in the country that the development attached to that licence—such as it is—had gone to the most prosperous part of the United Kingdom, rather than another area.
I hope that the casino advisory panel—and the Government, for that matter—will give the one licence available to Blackpool. That would allow Blackpool to revive its tourism and enjoy the regeneration attached to the proposals that was described by the hon. Member for Coventry, South. The best case that has been put forward is for such a development to be in the Blackpool area.
I should warn the people of the Blackpool area that such a casino would involve significant moral hazards. One of the arguments that is often cited about the development of casinos is that we have insufficient exciting opportunities for betting and gaming in the United Kingdom today. I profoundly refute such a suggestion because there are ample opportunities for betting. We can bet at the races, in betting shops and on the internet. We can bet on national savings bonds, if we want to buy some. We can bet on the lottery. We can win more money than we ever thought that we would have, and lose more money than we would hope to do,
by participating in activities that are available in the United Kingdom today. We do not need Las Vegas-style betting casinos, which offer a profoundly different form of gambling and are almost certainly bound to lead to a big increase in addictive gambling in the United Kingdom.
Hon. Members who have not seen such casinos should visit one for themselves. They are made up of huge complexes in which sheds upon sheds are filled with gaming machines. People put their coins in those machines and pull the levers in the hope that they will win the jackpot prize.
The machines are deliberately designed to encourage the player to believe that one more pull of the lever will win them the jackpot, but the owners of the machines have programmed them to pay out exactly the amount that the operator is prepared to lose. No gaming is involved; the machines are simply for money-making.
Gaming machines pose a significant moral hazard for our fellow countrymen, as was shown in the recent PricewaterhouseCoopers report, commissioned by Greenwich council to assess the implications of such developments in the Greenwich area. The report was leaked to the Evening Standard but it has not yet been published, because of its explosive contents. We are led to believe, however, that the report notes that groups such as young people, the poorly educated, pensioners and people who play on slot machines are at high risk and more likely to become addicts. I cannot believe that Labour Members are keen to see that happen in their constituencies.
The social costs of such developments include bankruptcy, suicide, illness and crime, which can involve money acquired from family, friends and employers under false pretences. Those are the moral hazards of the casino industry and the Government were right to proceed on the basis of a pilot project, by offering only one regional licence. It is right and proper that we assess the impact of that project before we proceed with a roll-out across the United Kingdom, whether it involves one, eight or 100 new casinos. We want to know about the implications before we go ahead with such a worrying social development, so I oppose the Bill.
Question put, pursuant to Standing Order No. 23 (Motions for leave to bring in Bills and nomination of Select Committees at commencement of public business):—
The House divided: Ayes 55, Noes 240.
AYES
Austin, Mr. Ian
Barrett, John
Barron, rh Mr. Kevin
Begg, Miss Anne
Borrow, Mr. David S.
Brown, rh Mr. Nicholas
Bryant, Chris
Burden, Richard
Clark, Ms Katy
Clark, Paul
Clarke, rh Mr. Kenneth
Creagh, Mary
Cunningham, Mr. Jim
Donohoe, Mr. Brian H.
Dowd, Jim
Ennis, Jeff
Flello, Mr. Robert
Francis, Dr. Hywel
Gapes, Mike
Gerrard, Mr. Neil
Gibson, Dr. Ian
Hall, Mr. Mike
Henderson, Mr. Doug
Heyes, David
Jenkins, Mr. Brian
Jones, Mr. Kevan
Jones, Mr. Martyn
Kemp, Mr. Fraser
Kennedy, rh Jane
Khabra, Mr. Piara S.
Laws, Mr. David
Lloyd, Tony
Love, Mr. Andrew
Martlew, Mr. Eric
McCarthy-Fry, Sarah
McGovern, Mr. Jim
Michael, rh Alun
Miller, Andrew
Morden, Jessica
Olner, Mr. Bill
Öpik, Lembit
Owen, Albert
Pope, Mr. Greg
Riordan, Mrs. Linda
Robertson, John
Sheridan, Jim
Simon, Mr. Siôn
Smith, Ms Angela C. (Sheffield, Hillsborough)
Stewart, Ian
Stringer, Graham
Whitehead, Dr. Alan
Willott, Jenny
Wills, Mr. Michael
Wright, Mr. Anthony
Wright, David
Tellers for the Ayes:
Mr. Tom Clarke and
Mr. Jim Devine
NOES
Abbott, Ms Diane
Afriyie, Adam
Ainsworth, Mr. Peter
Alexander, Danny
Ancram, rh Mr. Michael
Arbuthnot, rh Mr. James
Atkinson, Mr. Peter
Bailey, Mr. Adrian
Baker, Norman
Baldry, Tony
Barker, Gregory
Baron, Mr. John
Beith, rh Mr. Alan
Bellingham, Mr. Henry
Benyon, Mr. Richard
Bercow, John
Binley, Mr. Brian
Blackman-Woods, Dr. Roberta
Blunt, Mr. Crispin
Bone, Mr. Peter
Boswell, Mr. Tim
Bottomley, Peter
Brady, Mr. Graham
Brake, Tom
Brazier, Mr. Julian
Breed, Mr. Colin
Brokenshire, James
Brooke, Annette
Browne, Mr. Jeremy
Browning, Angela
Bruce, rh Malcolm
Burns, Mr. Simon
Burrowes, Mr. David
Burstow, Mr. Paul
Burt, Alistair
Butler, Ms Dawn
Butterfill, Sir John
Cable, Dr. Vincent
Carswell, Mr. Douglas
Clark, Greg
Clegg, Mr. Nick
Clifton-Brown, Mr. Geoffrey
Cohen, Harry
Corbyn, Jeremy
Cousins, Jim
Crabb, Mr. Stephen
Crausby, Mr. David
Curry, rh Mr. David
Davey, Mr. Edward
Davidson, Mr. Ian
Davies, Mr. Quentin
Davis, rh David (Haltemprice and Howden)
Dismore, Mr. Andrew
Djanogly, Mr. Jonathan
Doran, Mr. Frank
Dorries, Mrs. Nadine
Drew, Mr. David
Duncan, Mr. Alan
Duncan Smith, rh Mr. Iain
Dunne, Mr. Philip
Ellman, Mrs. Louise
Ellwood, Mr. Tobias
Evans, Mr. Nigel
Evennett, Mr. David
Fabricant, Michael
Fallon, Mr. Michael
Farron, Tim
Featherstone, Lynne
Field, rh Mr. Frank
Field, Mr. Mark
Foster, Mr. Don
Francois, Mr. Mark
Garnier, Mr. Edward
Gauke, Mr. David
George, Andrew
Gibb, Mr. Nick
Gidley, Sandra
Goodman, Helen
Goodman, Mr. Paul
Goodwill, Mr. Robert
Grayling, Chris
Green, Damian
Greening, Justine
Grieve, Mr. Dominic
Hague, rh Mr. William
Hall, Patrick
Hamilton, Mr. David
Hammond, Mr. Philip
Hammond, Stephen
Hancock, Mr. Mike
Hands, Mr. Greg
Harper, Mr. Mark
Harris, Dr. Evan
Harvey, Nick
Hayes, Mr. John
Heald, Mr. Oliver
Heath, Mr. David
Heathcoat-Amory, rh Mr. David
Hemming, John
Hendry, Charles
Herbert, Nick
Hillier, Meg
Hoban, Mr. Mark
Hoey, Kate
Hogg, rh Mr. Douglas
Hollobone, Mr. Philip
Holloway, Mr. Adam
Holmes, Paul
Hopkins, Kelvin
Horam, Mr. John
Hosie, Stewart
Howard, rh Mr. Michael
Howarth, Mr. Gerald
Hoyle, Mr. Lindsay
Huhne, Chris
Hunt, Mr. Jeremy
Hunter, Mark
Iddon, Dr. Brian
Jackson, Mr. Stewart
James, Mrs. Siân C.
Johnson, Mr. Boris
Jones, Mr. David
Kawczynski, Daniel
Keetch, Mr. Paul
Khan, Mr. Sadiq
Kirkbride, Miss Julie
Knight, rh Mr. Greg
Kramer, Susan
Laing, Mrs. Eleanor
Lamb, Norman
Lancaster, Mr. Mark
Lazarowicz, Mark
Leech, Mr. John
Leigh, Mr. Edward
Lidington, Mr. David
Llwyd, Mr. Elfyn
Luff, Peter
Mackay, rh Mr. Andrew
Mackinlay, Andrew
MacNeil, Mr. Angus
Main, Anne
Malins, Mr. Humfrey
Mann, John
Maples, Mr. John
Mates, rh Mr. Michael
May, rh Mrs. Theresa
McCafferty, Chris
McDonnell, John
McKechin, Ann
McLoughlin, rh Mr. Patrick
Mercer, Patrick
Miller, Mrs. Maria
Milton, Anne
Mitchell, Mr. Austin
Moon, Mrs. Madeleine
Moss, Mr. Malcolm
Mulholland, Greg
Murrison, Dr. Andrew
Neill, Robert
Newmark, Mr. Brooks
O'Hara, Mr. Edward
Oaten, Mr. Mark
Ottaway, Richard
Paterson, Mr. Owen
Pelling, Mr. Andrew
Penrose, John
Pickles, Mr. Eric
Price, Adam
Prisk, Mr. Mark
Purchase, Mr. Ken
Randall, Mr. John
Reed, Mr. Jamie
Reid, Mr. Alan
Rennie, Willie
Rifkind, rh Sir Malcolm
Robathan, Mr. Andrew
Robertson, Angus
Robertson, Hugh
Rogerson, Mr. Dan
Rosindell, Andrew
Rowen, Paul
Ruffley, Mr. David
Russell, Bob
Salter, Martin
Sanders, Mr. Adrian
Scott, Mr. Lee
Selous, Andrew
Shapps, Grant
Shepherd, Mr. Richard
Simmonds, Mark
Simpson, Alan
Skinner, Mr. Dennis
Smith, Sir Robert
Soames, Mr. Nicholas
Soulsby, Sir Peter
Spellar, rh Mr. John
Spelman, Mrs. Caroline
Spicer, Sir Michael
Spink, Bob
Steen, Mr. Anthony
Stunell, Andrew
Swinson, Jo
Swire, Mr. Hugo
Syms, Mr. Robert
Tapsell, Sir Peter
Taylor, David
Taylor, Matthew
Taylor, Dr. Richard
Teather, Sarah
Thurso, John
Turner, Mr. Andrew
Tyrie, Mr. Andrew
Vara, Mr. Shailesh
Viggers, Peter
Villiers, Mrs. Theresa
Vis, Dr. Rudi
Walker, Mr. Charles
Wallace, Mr. Ben
Walley, Joan
Wareing, Mr. Robert N.
Waterson, Mr. Nigel
Watkinson, Angela
Webb, Steve
Weir, Mr. Mike
Whittingdale, Mr. John
Wiggin, Bill
Willetts, Mr. David
Williams, rh Mr. Alan
Williams, Mrs. Betty
Williams, Hywel
Williams, Mark
Williams, Mr. Roger
Williams, Stephen
Willis, Mr. Phil
Wilson, Mr. Rob
Wishart, Pete
Wright, Jeremy
Yeo, Mr. Tim
Young, rh Sir George
Younger-Ross, Richard
Tellers for the Noes:
Mike Penning and
Mr. Christopher Chope
Question accordingly negatived.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |