David Howarth (Cambridge) (LD): On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. At this point in the day, is it in order to move a motion that the House do sit in private? It has been almost customary for an hon. Member to do so. Today, however, a large number of petitions are before the House. Will you rule on whether it is in order to move a motion that the House do sit in private when the next business is the presentation of petitions? It seems to me that the whole purpose of presenting a petition is that it is done in public, so the two Standing Orders are in conflict
Madam Deputy Speaker (Sylvia Heal): Order. I remind the hon. Gentleman that he is raising a point of order rather than making a speech. I will now rule on that point of order. Of course, a motion that the House do sit in private can be moved at any stage during todays debate.
Mr. Andrew Dismore (Hendon) (Lab): I beg to move, That the House do sit in private.
Question put forthwith, pursuant to Standing Order No. 163 (Motions to sit in private):
The House proceeded to a Division.
Madam Deputy Speaker: I ask the Serjeant at Arms to investigate the delay in the No Lobby.
Mr. David Winnick (Walsall, North) (Lab): On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. On Wednesday, in response to a point of order from me regarding todays debate, Mr. Speaker said that everyone will get a voice in this Chamber, which is of course to be expected. Will there be a proper opportunity to debate fully the important issues addressed by the private Members Bill that we are about to discuss, and which is of crucial importance to the standing of Parliament? You will have noticed, Madam Deputy Speaker, that a number of Ministers and Whips are present. That places us ordinary Back Benchers at a disadvantage
Madam Deputy Speaker: Order. I am afraid that the hon. Gentleman is beginning to debate the Bill rather than make his point of order, which I shall respond to. As always, the occupant of the Chair will ensure that there is fair debate and will judge that on the conduct of the debate during this mornings proceedings.
Mr. Dismore: Further to an earlier point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker, as the Liberal Democrats are so keen on presenting their petitions, would it not be appropriate for them to inform the House why they were so tardy in the Lobby that we had to wait for the Serjeant at Arms to chase them out?
Madam Deputy Speaker: That is not a point of order for the Chair.
David Maclean (Penrith and The Border) (Con): On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. I was going to raise the same point as the hon. Member for Hendon (Mr. Dismore). Although it has been ruled as a non-point of order, it is still a valid debating point.
Madam Deputy Speaker: Order. I shall now proceed to take petitions, to enable Members who wish to present them to do so.
Norman Baker (Lewes) (LD): I have six petitions, Madam Deputy Speaker, and I seek your guidance as to whether they should be presented in the order in which they were submitted. Is that important?
Madam Deputy Speaker: All the petitions are down to be presented at the commencement of proceedings, as provided for in the Standing Orders.
Norman Baker (Lewes) (LD): The first petition is from Councillor James MacCleary and others of like disposition and concerns noise from the Lewes bypass, which is a matter that affects many of my constituents and which would be eminently curable if the Department for Transport were to take action by supplying a better road surface.
Wherefore your Petitioners pray that your honourable House shall urge the Department for Transport to ensure that sufficient funding is made available in 2008/9 to ensure that the Lewes Bypass can be resurfaced in line with the designs resulting from technical surveys due to be carried out this financial year.
And your Petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray.
Norman Baker: The second petition is also from Councillor James MacCleary and others of like disposition. [Interruption.] The petition expresses concern about the increasingly common practice of fingerprinting children in schools. [Interruption.] I hope that you can hear me above the background noise, Madam Deputy Speaker.
Madam Deputy Speaker (Sylvia Heal): Order. We are trying to proceed with the petitions.
Norman Baker: Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker.
The petition notes that an average of 20 educational establishments in each local education authority are now fingerprinting pupils and it regards that as an intrusion on basic civil liberties.
Wherefore your Petitioners pray that your honourable House shall urge the Department for Education and Skills to legislate in order that parental consent is required in advance of any fingerprinting of children in schools.
And your Petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray.
Norman Baker: The next petition[Hon. Members: Which one is this?] It is the third petition, to answer the question from the Labour Benches. [Interruption.]
Madam Deputy Speaker: Order. Too many conversations are breaking out across the Chamber.
Norman Baker: I am grateful for your support, Madam Deputy Speaker.
The third petition is from Councillor Ann De Vecchi and others of like disposition and concerns a local matter that has had considerable cross-party support
over a long period: the campaign to re-open the Lewes-Uckfield railway line which East Sussex county council closed in 1969.
Wherefore your Petitioners pray that your honourable House shall urge the Department for Transport to consider the immediate reinstatement of the double track railway line between Lewes and Uckfield.
And your Petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray.
Norman Baker: The fourth petition is also from Councillor Ann De Vecchi and others of like disposition and represents the concerns of the farming community in my constituency, in particular about the drop in milk prices paid to farmers.
Wherefore your Petitioners pray that your honourable House shall urge the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to introduce a tough, legally binding supermarket code effective for the whole food chain from farm to fork to ensure all supermarkets do not exploit suppliers, farmers or consumers and establish a Food Trade inspector with powers to investigate proactively any abuse of market power.
And your Petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray.
Mr. Andrew Dismore (Hendon) (Lab): On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. Although my eyesight might be failing slightly, as I look across from my seat at the documents that the hon. Gentleman is reading out, it appears that there are only about half a dozen names on each petition, and I suspect that the handwriting is the same on each, as are the signatures. When the hon. Gentleman reads out his petitions will he tell us how many different people have signed each of them?
Madam Deputy Speaker: Order. If the petitions are being presented today in this Chamber that means that those petitions are in order.
Norman Baker: The fifth petition is from Councillor Jon Freeman and others of like disposition. It is concerned with the future of the Drill hall on Broad street in Seaford. The building is owned by the Ministry of Defence and it has been sitting empty for some considerable time in a dilapidated state in what is an important town centre location.
Wherefore your Petitioners pray that your honourable House shall urge the Ministry of Defence to clarify its position with regard to the future of the Seaford Drill Hall and to consider selling the building for local community use.
And your Petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray.
Norman Baker: The final petition is from Councillor James MacCleary and others of like disposition and concerns the practice of the Japanese Government of influencing other countriesinappropriately, the petitioners believeto support Japans position in negotiations at the International Whaling Commission to end the moratorium on whaling.
Wherefore your Petitioners pray that your honourable House shall urge the Foreign Office and the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to make representations to the Japanese Government, and all of her client states on the International Whaling Commission, to refrain from removing the international moratorium on commercial whaling.
And your Petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray.
David Maclean (Penrith and The Border) (Con): On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. The hon. Member for Lewes (Norman Baker) has a reputation for taking a high-minded view on freedom of information. Doubt has been cast on the number of signatures on the petitions and their validity. Will he publish them or
Madam Deputy Speaker: Order. I have already ruled on that point of order. Let me repeat the ruling: if petitions are being presented in this House, they meet all the necessary requirements.
Mr. Roger Williams (Brecon and Radnorshire) (LD): It gives me great pleasure to introduce two petitions representing local concerns in the Brecon and Radnorshire constituency. The first of them is from Councillor William Powell and others of like disposition and expresses concern about the possible closure of community hospitals in the area.
That there is unanimous support among local residents to keep open the community hospitals in Knighton, Builth Wells and Bronllys. That these hospitals provide excellent local healthcare for the very young to the very old and provide facilities for visiting specialists to deliver outpatient treatments and consultations. That the hospitals work well with the local general practitioners to provide an integrated healthcare service. That excellent care is provided for people suffering such illnesses as strokes at these locations which are accessible to the general public, and that local people look towards developing and expanding these centres or excellence, rather than their closure.
And your Petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray.
Mr. Roger Williams: Councillor William Powell and others of like disposition are concerned about the lack of funding for local cultural events because lottery funding has been diverted to the 2012 Olympics.
That, because of the awarding of the 2012 Olympics to London, national lottery funding has been largely redirected to related projects, which will starve important local organisations and community groups of much-needed core funding.
That that threatens the very survival of much-loved grass-root community events such as the Talgarth festival of the Black mountains, and similar cultural events in Wales and throughout the United Kingdom.
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