Speeches & Articles
Summer Adjournment Debate, 21st July 2009
7.48 pm
Mr. David Amess (Southend, West) (Con): I wish to raise several points before the House adjourns for the summer recess.
Nicky Avery, 27, became the youngest man ever to be diagnosed with breast cancer in 2006. His mother is a constituent of mine, and I very much hope that the Government will raise awareness of this disease among young men.
The Proprietary Association of Great Britain has advised me that the top 10 minor ailments account for 75 per cent. of consultations. I agree with that organisation’s view that we need to have increasing responsibility for taking care of our own health by treating minor ailments in the knowledge that the NHS is really there for more life-threatening and serious conditions.
I have in my constituency the greatest number of centenarians in the country. I hope that this autumn we will again be successful with the “Guinness Book of Records” attempt at the greatest gathering. Many of these elderly people are in care homes, which are dependent on residential fees. Have the Government taken into account the fact that many elderly widows, for instance, are unable to sell their homes because of the recession?
Last week, I was privileged to attend Belfairs high school’s prize giving. There was a young lady there called Jo-Jo Cranfield. She was born with her left lower arm missing and she is a remarkable athlete. She missed out on going to Beijing by 0.06 seconds and she is the second fastest swimmer in her discipline in the country. She has a place at Millfield school, but she desperately needs funding, so I greatly hope that someone, somewhere will come up with assistance for her—not least the Government, who say that they will do everything they can to support gifted and talented athletes.
An organisation called PERA has advised me that numerous companies in south Essex, including Ford in Dagenham, have been preparing to deliver training to 1,700 people—more than 100 are in Southend, West—only for the Learning and Skills Council’s financial collapse to bring a halt to the programme. I hope that the Government will intervene on the matter.
I draw the House’s attention to an article, which appeared in The Times on 6 July, about chief constables’ salaries. Senior police officers apparently receive off-book payments and secret perks, which total hundreds of thousands of pounds. The House has come under great scrutiny, and I welcome the fact that all sorts of other publicly funded bodies are coming under scrutiny. Our local chief constable in Essex was paid slightly more than the Prime Minister. Yet again, we have a chief constable taking early retirement in Essex. We have had several senior officers; it is like a merry-go-round—one minute, one person is in place, the next, someone else is there. If police authorities are to be worth their salt,
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there should be much greater scrutiny. The Independent Police Complaints Commission should also be given more teeth.
It is a shocking state of affairs when police constables come to MPs’ surgeries, complaining about their treatment by the police authorities. That illustrates their powerlessness. Mrs. Katie Greatorex—she said I could name her—has suffered the most appalling harassment, including death threats. She has been arrested and bailed without evidence and she came to my surgery with a long-serving police officer. Her ex-husband is a serving police constable. A proper investigation has not taken place, despite forensic evidence, so I hope that the Deputy Leader of the House will pass that on to the Home Secretary.
Seat belts were once debated at great length in the House, and many hon. Members were against their being compulsory—they were mistaken. The fine for non-compliance used to be £30. I have tabled several questions about that and I shall take credit for the fine’s increase to £60. I also support the fitting of seat belt reminders on all new cars.
A disgraceful incident took place recently, whereby a community nurse parked her vehicle in a development at the end of Hamlet Court road because she was treating a terminally ill patient—incidentally, the patient died—and the nurse was charged £483 by LBS Enforcement Ltd for her car’s release. I am currently achieving nothing with that.
I heard the comments of my hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend, East (James Duddridge) about Southend airport. It is a difficult issue and I am glad that the owners of the new airport are meeting local community representatives. They must convince them that any increase in flights must mean quieter flights than at present and that the road changes will take place without disruption.
I was recently made chairman of the all-party group on the Maldives. The high commissioner said that no funding has been received from the Department for International Development and that she cannot get a meeting with the relevant Minister. I hope that the Deputy Leader of the House can pass on the message.
There has been controversy about slow answers to questions. I received an answer from a Treasury Minister, dated 1 July 2009, responding to a constituent’s inquiry on 30 September 2008. An apology is not sufficient.
The House is in a state of drift, there is confusion about swine flu and we have heard about difficulties in Afghanistan. The sooner we have a general election, the better. Before then, I wish all my colleagues and all those who serve the House a very happy summer.
Whitsun Adjournment Debate, 21st May 2009
2.18 pm
Mr. David Amess (Southend, West) (Con): Before the House adjourns for the Whitsun recess, I wish to raise a number of points. When I spoke in the Easter Adjournment debate, I said then that it would be the last Easter Adjournment debate before we had a general election, and, obviously, this will be our last Whitsun Adjournment debate before a general election. Much has happened since Easter, and we have only to look at the Chamber at the moment to see that all is not well with the House.
Before my party leader called for an election, I felt that the paralysis that we in Parliament are suffering from was simply not tenable. I cannot conceive of how the House can limp along—with little or no business at all and Members, for whatever reason, feeling more and more disillusioned and stressed—until April next year. Without being political, I should say that the country needs to be governed and the House needs to address very serious issues at the moment. For all sorts of reasons, I doubt whether Members can concentrate their minds fully on those issues. That is why we need a fresh mandate. Furthermore, given Mr. Speaker’s decision to stand down, it is right that a new Parliament, with some new Members, should elect a new Speaker.
I want to say something about expenses. When I was first elected to the House in 1983, it sat for five days a week; we were always here on Fridays. The first Bill on which I sat in Committee was the Rates Bill. Members may be appalled or they may laugh, but one of our sittings lasted 48 hours. It is always fine to be wise in hindsight, but the time to change the arrangements on second homes was probably when the House changed the hours that we sit and how we work. In those early days, I represented Basildon, which was even nearer this place than Southend, West, but I could not get home to my constituency at 3, 4 or 5 o’clock in the morning. In hindsight, I wish that I and others had spoken up when
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we decided to change our working hours and that we had dealt with the issue then. It is a sorry state of affairs, and I cannot see how we can continue in this way until April next year.
I apologise for having been late to the debate, Madam Deputy Speaker; I had given Mr. Speaker notice of that. I was at Westminster cathedral for the installation of the Most Reverend Vincent Gerard Nichols. I took the right decision in leaving halfway through, because the two-and-a-half-hour service does not end until 2.30. It was a privilege to be in a packed church. Throughout his nine years as cardinal, Cormac Murphy-O’Connor has done a splendid job given all the difficulties faced by any Church at the moment.
Sometimes I am guilty of nodding off during a priest’s sermon, but I listened carefully to the sermon given by the Most Reverend Vincent Gerard Nichols. His message was that we should listen to one another; I do not know whether that always happens in this place, but his message was to a wider audience. He also spoke about faith schools, an issue that the House has considered. Furthermore, he said that just because people have strong views on certain issues, they should not simply be derided as bigots. His message was strong.
Recently, I made a small contribution to The Tablet, in which I said:
“We are seeing a decline in the number of people going to church and he”—
“needs to address that and how the Church can be relevant in people’s lives. The faith of society is also changing and bringing terrible problems which the Church can have a hand in solving. He needs to show the Government that the Catholic Church and Catholic education are resources worth tapping into, and that the Church can help with a lot of the problems that the Government is currently experiencing.”
I am sure that I speak for most fair-minded women and men in the House in wishing the new cardinal well with the challenges ahead.
Chris Bryant: I hate to correct the hon. Gentleman, but the Most Reverend Vincent Gerard Nichols is not the new cardinal; Cormac Murphy-O’Connor remains the cardinal. The hon. Gentleman is wishing the new Archbishop of Westminster well.
Mr. Amess: The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right, but I think that the Most Reverend Vincent Gerard Nichols will become the cardinal. [Interruption.] I am chair of the all-party group on the Holy See, and I had a word with the Pope during my audience with him last year; I have it on good authority that the Most Reverend Vincent Gerard Nichols may become cardinal. Cormac Murphy-O’Connor is looking forward to a happy retirement. The Most Reverend Vincent Gerard Nichols is the 11th Archbishop of Westminster to be installed. The irony is that this is the first time ever that a cardinal has been given the opportunity to retire; all the rest died in office. We wish Cormac Murphy-O’Connor a long and happy retirement.
Apart from expenses, the biggest issue in my constituency is that of the proposed expansion of Southend airport. In all my time here, I have never had as many individual, handwritten letters from constituents as I have on that issue. We all get petitions signed by Benjamin Disraeli and Queen Victoria, and people run off photocopies of petitions for us to sign. However, I am talking about individual, handwritten letters, not just e-mails. It is
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obvious that residents of Southend, West are very exercised by the airport issue. It would be helpful if the Deputy Leader of the House—perhaps not this afternoon, but in time—asked the appropriate Department to reflect on what I am going to say.
The consultation period finished on 15 May, and as the local Member of Parliament, I felt that it would be wrong for me to give my opinion before that date on what should happen to Southend airport. I do not know whether any hon. Members have been to the airport, but when I first went to it, having arrived in Southend, I wondered how on earth an airport could be in the middle of such a heavily built up urban area with such narrow roads leading to it. For many years, the airport used to operate little flights to Jersey and Guernsey and aeroplanes would be repaired there; that was the bread-and-butter work.
Never mind house building programmes, the Government have issued papers about the expansion and importance of regional airports, and that is how the whole process started. I think that I speak for all my constituents in saying that everyone wishes Southend airport well because of the jobs that it provides for local communities. However, when some years ago the then owner suggested that the airport should expand, there was meltdown. The then manager suggested that the beautiful 1,000-year-old church of St. Laurence be put on wheels and moved so many yards to allow the runway to expand and roads to be closed. English Heritage had something to say about that barking mad proposal, which caused huge upset in the constituency.
My hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend, East (James Duddridge) and I work closely together on Southend issues, but there is a huge divide about the airport issue. The reality is that the airport expansion will not affect Rochford and Southend, East. Any expansion of the facilities, particularly the runway, will impact only on Southend, West, and the aircraft will take off entirely over the area that I represent.
The local authority has been under huge pressure. It has done the best that it can to consult and engage with the general public on this issue. However, I represent the highest number of centenarians in the country, and expecting senior citizens to e-mail replies and use that sort of technology is a complete non-starter. Having gone through the consultation document, I think that it raises more questions than it answers. We have not been given anywhere near enough detail about developments such as the new railway station, which will apparently bring people to the airport so that we do not have to worry about road expansions and closures. The proposal that the increased flights should take place from as early as 6.30 am until 11 o’clock at night is absolutely ludicrous. Unless I am missing the point, that means that my constituents will have complete freedom from any noise, pollution and all the rest of it only when they are asleep. That is complete madness.
Of course, there are still many processes to go through, with the public inquiry and other such matters. Without boring the House any further, I would simply say that as the Member of Parliament for Southend, West, I will be representing the views of my constituents, as any Member would. At the moment, the overwhelming volume of responses that I have received in my office—I even have
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extra people dealing with those letters—are against the proposed expansion inasmuch as it was detailed in the consultation document.
I am a trustee of the Industry and Parliament Trust, and I recently had the honour to lead a delegation to India—we went to Mumbai and to Chennai. It was a wonderful visit in every respect. In the previous year, we had been to China—to Shanghai—so Members of both Houses have had the opportunity to see at first hand the two new emerging economies and all the opportunities that can be provided for business women and men to engage with them. This country is very popular in India; the Indians are very keen for us to trade more goods and services with them. I have already had a meeting with the Foreign Secretary, thanks to the good offices of Baroness Coussins and Lord Janvrin, who are leading the detailed lobbying following our trip, and we have had a debate in Westminster Hall. Like my colleagues on the trip, I am determined to build on the many friendships that were formed during that period.
The Indian election, with the unexpectedly solid victory of the Congress party, is a powerful mandate for an agenda of reform. We can expect greater privatisation in infrastructure development and education reforms, which will present new opportunities to British exporters and investors. The Prime Minister, Mr. Singh, has already stressed the importance of India’s secular leadership over parties that had sought to stress divisions of religion, caste and language—an equitable development.
The new Government will implement a range of reforms of great interest to Britain. They have introduced into the upper House an insurance Bill allowing more foreign direct investment in the sector. There is also a banking regulations amendment, which allows for greater private participation in the banking system, and the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority Bill, which seeks to establish a regulator to push through reforms in the pensions sector. We should also be prepared for an easing of foreign ownership restrictions in the telecommunications and retail sectors, and have in place the right regulatory architecture to take advantage of those developments. Our consulates are doing a splendid job, as is the British Council, but we should be even more proactive than we are at the moment.
I want to praise Southend council’s measures against excessive indulgence in alcohol by young people. In Southend, we have a very strong record of preventive work in encouraging young people not to develop bad habits with regard to alcohol. That forms part and parcel of the healthy schools programme, which we deliver in partnership with the primary care trust. A high proportion of our schools have received healthy schools accreditation because of the strength of their work in that area.
I know that other hon. Members have touched on this issue, but there seems to be a problem with the funding of our schools generally. We can talk about the formula ad nauseam, but a number of our schools are struggling with the funding formula at the moment. I was recently lobbied about it by our excellent adult college of further education, which helps people with learning difficulties.
There is certainly a funding problem in education generally, but putting that aside, Southend council has been proactive in the initiative to deal with alcohol abuse and encourage young people not to go down a
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particular path. Ofsted inspections of schools in Southend comment that a very high proportion deliver outstanding work in encouraging children and young people to be healthy. The impact of that work is demonstrated in what young people tell us through the so-called “tell us survey”, which indicates that 5 per cent. fewer young people in Southend misuse alcohol than is the case nationally. That is quite a large percentage.
The full joint area review inspection of children’s services in autumn 2007 said that a major strength was well received initiatives to prevent substance misuse. It stated:
“Initiatives to prevent substance misuse across schools, the voluntary sector and post-16 learning are good.”
The ‘Getting on with the Blues’ project at Southend United football club—the club is starting work on its new stadium, which we hope will be available for various sporting activities during the Olympic games—is an initiative aimed at primary school age children. It being very well received and focuses on reducing alcohol misuse and antisocial behaviour, and more than 1,500 pupils have taken part in it. Evaluations of the project have found that most pupils, and all their teachers, rated it as excellent. The SOS bus and alcohol misuse outreach work have responded effectively to alcohol misuse by young people, and the alcohol misuse outreach worker has been effective in reducing reoffending and alcohol use by young people.
Over the past 18 months, the work of our drugs and alcohol action team has strengthened further, and its work in supporting young people who need support and treatment because of alcohol abuse is now very effective. We also have further programmes to launch, so I hope that the Government are pleased with what Southend is doing in that respect.
Two weeks ago, I had the privilege of being present at the launch of an initiative at Westborough primary school, where we have a wonderful headmistress called Mrs. Jenny Davies. It is the largest primary school in Essex, and there we launched the English schools induction service. The service was designed by Blade Education to educate children aged between four and 11 whose first language is not English about the customs and rules of the British schooling system, in their native language. It is a pioneering multilingual service that promotes social cohesion by welcoming children and their families into primary education in the language that they fully understand.
The service provides 21 informative, accessible and, most importantly, child-friendly films that are available in a wide variety of language settings. The films help to integrate children who do not speak English as their first language into our schooling system, and they provide them with a realistic expectation of school life and help them to understand what will be expected of them as they go through their years in school. It will be used in every one of our 37 primary schools in Southend, and there are plans to launch an online version in September 2009 and to expand the service to secondary schools. A recent survey conducted by Blade Education noted that numerous educators had commented on the need for the English schools induction service to be instigated nationwide, and I wish to make that point to the Government.
I have a few comments to make about the Independent Police Complaints Commission and the police force in general. I get any number of complaints about all sorts
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of issues involving the police. I have the highest regard for the IPCC, which is headed by Nick Hardwick. He is an outstanding civil servant, who does a splendid job. However, I have lost count of the matters with which I have tried to assist constituents. The journey through the IPCC can go on for one, two, three, four and five years. At the end of it, the IPPC’s powers to gain anything, such as apologies, compensation or change in police force practice, are zilch.
In Essex, there is a high turnover of police officers, especially at a senior level. That is not a particularly good thing. They all seem to retire early, for all manner of reasons. I have lost count of the letters that I have received from senior officers, introducing themselves to me and suggesting yet another meeting, and so it goes on. That shows the difficulty in conducting IPCC inquiries.
I have the highest regard for the Minister for Security, Counter-Terrorism, Crime and Policing. He said in a written answer to me that the IPCC is not responsible for imposing disciplinary sanctions on police forces or individuals. As we all know, Members of Parliament are currently in the limelight and we keep saying that no one is above the law. For that reason, we must address what is going on in our police forces.
The evidence, findings and recommendations of IPCC investigations are apparently fed to the police performance and conduct systems as and when appropriate. What is the point of the IPCC if it cannot impose discipline on police officers who are found guilty of abusing their powers? When a police officer has a complaint upheld against him, he is offered “words of advice”—would not Members of Parliament like to be offered “words of advice”?—from a senior officer. What message does that convey? More important, what deterrent is that? Other statements such as “guidelines” and “recommendations” are worthless and meaningless, as is the expression, “Let’s have a review.”
When constituents complain and their representations are upheld, what “words of advice” are given to police officers and police forces? Who monitors the police complaints? How do respective police forces implement IPCC judgments? Commissioners come and go; the personnel change all the time.
I suspect that I was one of the few Members of Parliament who responded to the consultation process to try to give the IPCC more power so that, when people’s complaints were successful, at least small amounts of compensation could be paid and public apologies could be made.
The Public Accounts Committee, which my hon. Friend the Member for Gainsborough (Mr. Leigh) admirably chairs, has done a splendid job in investigating the IPCC. In its 15th report, which was published only in March, the Committee made some excellent recommendations, including that the Home Office should clarify who is responsible for monitoring the implementation of IPCC recommendations. I have been in constant correspondence with Ministers about it, and the replies are just not satisfactory. I should therefore be grateful to the Deputy Leader of the House if he could, in due course, please find out from the Home Office what progress is being made on introducing an appropriate system.
I repeat that I have the greatest regard for Nick Hardwick and the Minister for Security, Counter-Terrorism, Crime and Policing, who is responsible for the matter.
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I took the consultation seriously and made some suggestions, but when will genuine progress be made? There is no doubt that the whole system governing police complaints needs to be re-examined and reformed. I hope that the Public Accounts Committee report is acted on soon.
The House has been indulgent, so I shall come to my last point, which is about fuel poverty. If we go outside this Chamber, we will see that it is a lovely early summer or late spring day. On days like today we forget about fuel poverty. We wait until November, and if there is a cold snap, we get hon. Members raising the issue. That is too late. Why did I and other hon. Members invest a year of our lives in 2000 to ensure that the then Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Bill became an Act? Why did we charge the Government with a duty to end fuel poverty, which we now know will not happen? Five million people are living in fuel poverty.
I welcome the Government’s recent initiatives to address fuel poverty, which include the community energy saving programme, enhancing funding for the carbon emissions reduction target and raising the maximum grant under the Warm Front scheme. Ofgem is finally to act on failings and unfairness in the competitive energy market, which acts to the detriment of disadvantaged consumers, although it is a serious indictment of the regulator that remedial action has been so long in coming.
However, the result of raising the maximum Warm Front grant without increasing the scheme’s budget is that fewer vulnerable households can be assisted. The Warm Front budget should be increased at least to maintain the number of households that can be assisted. We need a longer-term strategy to address fuel poverty through a national energy efficiency scheme to improve our entire housing stock. We need to introduce a social tariff combining consistent eligibility criteria and a degree of consumer benefit to provide certainty to vulnerable consumers and their advisers.
Mr. Paul Burstow (Sutton and Cheam) (LD): The hon. Gentleman is making an important point about fuel poverty. He is absolutely right that one should not wait until winter before one talks about it. Across the country, Eaga and the campaign to raise awareness of the benefits of the initiatives that he has mentioned work with hon. Members to encourage them to draw their constituents’ attention to those schemes. I have such an initiative on 12 June, at the civic offices of the London borough of Sutton, which I hope my constituents might hear about through this debate.
Mr. Amess: I applaud the hon. Gentleman for that initiative. It is not silly to do such things in summer. Each Member of Parliament needs to look at the situation in their constituency and try to do something now. The winter fuel payment needs to be reformed and extended to the most vulnerable and economically disadvantaged non-pensioner households.
In these very difficult times, I wish you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, and all the Officers of the House a very happy Whitsun.
*
Westminster Hall debate on India, 12th May 2009
9.30 am
Mr. David Amess (Southend, West) (Con): I have been advised, Mr. Sheridan, that this is your debut as Chairman of proceedings in Westminster Hall. As a fellow member of the Chairmen’s Panel, I know that I speak for everyone in wishing you well in the post.
I am honoured to be a trustee of the Industry and Parliament Trust. As such, I was fortunate enough to lead a delegation to India. It was a two-centred visit—to Mumbai and Chennai. I shall go into detail about that presently, but I take this opportunity to thank everyone in the trust for the magnificent work that they do in these increasingly turbulent times for Members of Parliament, bringing them up to speed on a number of crucial issues.
I remind the House that the IPT is a registered charity. It was set up to foster understanding between those who create and maintain the industrial wealth of our country—including legislators, who unfortunately might be seen in many quarters as the sales prevention team. I would robustly resist that charge, but some believe that Members of Parliament do not live in the real world and that they have no understanding of what it is like to run a business.
More than 600 parliamentarians have participated in IPT fellowship programmes since the organisation was founded in 1977. I became an advocate of the organisation in the days when I was MP for Basildon; I was given the chance by the Esso organisation, and it was a wonderful opportunity. I am now doing a post-graduate course with Bank America.
The trip to India was the result of recent research undertaken by the IPT with business leaders in the UK, which found that they wished MPs to be more informed about various key issues. More than 66 per cent. of respondents stated that the emerging economies were a priority. The research also revealed that many parliamentarians were thought to lack sufficient understanding of the challenges and opportunities presented by new and developing economies. It is not for me to say how American legislators should pursue matters, but having recently been to China and India, I would say that more American parliamentarians could and should take the opportunity of visiting those two countries and learning at first hand how they are developing.
It was as a direct consequence of the findings of the report that a successful fellowship programme was run to China last year, in particular to Shanghai. I and a number of hon. Members were on that trip, and it was extremely valuable in every sense.
The objective of the IPT India fellowship was to educate parliamentarians on how United Kingdom businesses operate in emerging economies, and to show that Westminster could do more to help. I am pleased to
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tell the House that the visit provided us with the opportunity to experience India from a strictly business perspective, and to share our experiences and impressions of the challenges and opportunities that are faced by UK companies operating in Chennai and Mumbai. Today’s debate has attracted huge interest in various quarters.
I thank the excellent House of Commons Library. Members of Parliament have every cause to be grateful to the Library for its expertise. It has provided us with a magnificent pack on India, which covers every aspect of life there. I shall certainly shall use it as a bible on the subject.
Lionel Altman, who ran my Westminster office from 1984, died earlier this year. He was a serving member of the City of London council at the time, and I am delighted to have been contacted by the lord mayor of London and the corporation’s chairman of policy and resources, Stuart Fraser, who are interested in this debate. Indeed, the City of London will shortly be sending people to India to see what further business opportunities there may be there. I congratulate them on that.
The group that visited India included 10 parliamentarians. There is criticism that the House of Commons and the House of Lords do not always work in tandem, but that certainly was not the case for us. We were blessed in every sense that Baroness Coussins and Lord Janvrin were there. Those two individuals brought with them a wealth of talent and experience. As a result, our meetings developed in a way that would not have been possible had it been only Members of Parliament; we would then not have been able to engage in the challenging exchanges that we did.
Of the eight Members of Parliament involved, most are not able to be here this morning. They include the right hon. Member for Makerfield (Mr. McCartney), the hon. Member for Bridgend (Mrs. Moon) and my hon. Friend the Member for Romford (Andrew Rosindell). The hon. Member for Sittingbourne and Sheppey (Derek Wyatt) is here, but he has to operate in a Trappist mode this morning, acting as Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Minister. I will certainly touch on the work of the British Council. My eight colleagues, all very different personalities, were a joy to be with, not only for the quality of the questions that they put to our hosts but in the way that the group gelled together. The IPT is an example of both Houses working together at their best, especially in providing all sorts of opportunities for UK plc.
We saw the demise of the British Raj in 1947, a long time ago. India has a population of 1.3 billion, and it is the world’s largest democracy. Poverty is widespread, with 62 per cent. of the population living in slums. Three of the worlds’ 20 mega-cities are in India. India’s is a fast growing economy, with a large, skilled work force and a burgeoning urban middle class. As well as Hindi and English, India has 16 other official languages; sadly, none of them has been mastered by the Member of Parliament for Southend, West. Gross national income per capita is only $950, which highlights the comparatively low-wage economy that makes India so competitive. India is a young country, with 70 per cent. of the population being 27 and under. By 2050, India will be the second largest economy in the world.
Bob Spink (Castle Point) (Ind): I am delighted that the hon. Gentleman mentioned the special relationship between this country and India. Does he agree that the
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best way in which we can help India is to trade with it? Is he aware that the director-general of the World Trade Organisation said that protectionism in the EU—I do not want to be characterised as a serial EU-basher—is a major problem for our trade with countries such as India? World trade could collapse by 9 per cent. this year. What can we do to ensure that we shift the EU’s trade policy away from protectionism?
Mr. Amess: I agree absolutely. In fact, shortly I shall enlarge on how we can create better opportunities for trading our goods and services. I shall talk about the British embassy consuls and the British Council. The delegation saw how Indian business women and men are very keen to do business with us; relations, in every sense, could not be better. I probably shall not be tempted to enlarge too much on the EU, but, given his responsibilities, perhaps the Minister will come up with some solutions on trade barriers when he winds up the debate.
The United Kingdom has a long-established and special relationship with India on which we should build. In our time-honoured British tradition, we introduced to India our own language, the art of bureaucracy, parliamentary democracy and cricket—just one of the sports that we invented and at which others occasionally beat us, although our recent performance against the West Indies was splendid. Parliament can greatly assist UK business in further maximising opportunities through forging strong and mutually beneficial relationships.
The fellowship, which met in March, organised some superb seminars bringing together experts able to give parliamentarians an insight into the journey that India has been on, where it is now and where it is likely to go in the future. It proved useful to have those seminars before the trip. Furthermore, I speak for everyone in thanking most warmly Virgin Airlines, which not only took care of our travel, but looked after us throughout our stay. The visit raised our awareness of what more British businesses can, and should, do in India, and how we parliamentarians can assist them. We were briefed by the deputy high commissioner and UK Trade and Investment in Mumbai and Chennai on their work in encouraging UK business to enter the Indian marketplace. In the lobby afterwards, I had a brief word with the Indian Foreign Secretary, and mentioned to him that we had had a very positive trip, because it coincided with some of the commissioners being over. I wanted to pass on our thanks via the Foreign Secretary.
We also gained a great understanding of how Parliament can better highlight India’s prospects in encouraging investment in Britain. I wish to make a serious point to the Minister that we picked up during our trip about the visa application process with which Indian business executives must contend in order to visit Britain. Various people said that there is a lack of business experience among the Foreign and Commonwealth people working on the UKTI desk at the Mumbai high commission. I hope that he will reflect on that point. UKTI and the UK India Business Council have important roles to play, and all their activities need to be closely co-ordinated.
The hon. Member for Sittingbourne and Sheppey provided us with tremendous assistance, and throughout our trip we were delighted with the work of the British
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Council. It was an education for me. Parliamentarians should be encouraged to take much more advantage of the opportunities that the British Council can provide in business, social activity, leisure and all sorts of other areas. I, for one, was very impressed with the networking skills of the British Council. We do not currently use it to its full potential.
Our visit could not have been better timed, given the recent comment and media coverage in the wake of the film, “Slumdog Millionaire” and its triumph at the Oscars. None of us realised that India was not especially proud of the portrayal of the Mumbai slums. Much more importantly, however, our trip also followed in the wake of the atrocities of the bombing and armed occupation of the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower hotel.
Our comprehensive educational visit involved spending time in a number of locations, attending presentations and visiting industrial sites to gain an insight into various sectors at a grass-roots level. We saw first hand how India has developed its own markets in education, manufacturing, high technology, defence, construction and pharmaceuticals. An additional emphasis was placed on the cultural and creative industries through a visit to Bollywood—this will put colleagues’ noses out of joint, but I was the only hon. Member signed by Bollywood.
Mr. Virendra Sharma (Ealing, Southall) (Lab): I have been tempted to my feet by the hon. Gentleman’s comments that he was the only one to get a response from Bollywood. What role will it offer him? Furthermore, what role will he play in encouraging more exchanges between businesses and educationalists in Britain and India? That is very important for building confidence. Not only are British companies going over to India, but Indian companies, such as Tata and others, are coming over here; mutual business exchanges are already taking place. I hope that that will continue.
Mr. Amess: I agree absolutely with the hon. Gentleman. On a serious note about Bollywood, however, it is a very successful industry that presents all sorts of opportunities.
Our trip was in no sense a junket, and already action has resulted. Not only are we having this debate, but Baroness Coussins and Lord Janvrin have produced a wonderful report identifying a number of things to do to build on and develop business opportunities and cultural and educational links—I shall come to those shortly. Being accompanied by Members of the House of Lords was a blessing. Members of Parliament tend to come back from such trips full of good intentions, but we are busy people who have to respond to the daily news and so on. We felt that Members of the House of Lords would be less distracted, which has already proved to be the case. Thanks to Baroness Coussins and Lord Janvrin, we will make absolutely sure that the India fellowship, organised by the IPT, and our trip, have a positive outcome.
Throughout the trip, we were indebted to Sally Muggeridge and Sarah Hutchison for their support in, among other things, organising with businesses a wonderful programme of events. They would be the first to say, however, that the trip would not have been such a success without the wonderful team of other IPT employees. I am also indebted to the support of the chairman of the IPT, the hon. Member for Nuneaton (Mr. Olner) and the deputy of the IPT board of trustees. Highlights
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of our trip to Mumbai included a visit to the Bombay stock exchange, where we were given an excellent insight into Indian capital markets. We get star-struck by Wall street, so we were allowed to sound the gong to open trading, even though no one was actually listening.
That was complemented by a visit to HSBC and KPMG in which we discussed business opportunities in India and those companies’ impressive approaches to corporate responsibility and social enterprise. Cadbury showed us its activities in India and told us that chocolate is a great luxury in India. On average, a child consumes just one bar of chocolate a year. Hindustan Unilever outlined its distribution to rural areas and told us how its products encourage economic activity among the very poorest. Tata provided us with the opportunity to learn about the launch of the world’s cheapest car, the environmentally efficient Nano car, which is initially aimed at the Indian market.
The Indian economy is enjoying growth of 7 per cent.—albeit from a low base—with unit labour costs much lower than those in most other countries. Through its factory in southern India, the manufacturer Supreme is responsible for producing many of the recycled bags that we see in Boots and a number of other supermarkets and shops on the high street. It provides vital skills and employment opportunities for young women and men, who are often the only wage earner in a family.
A visit was made to a recently established business park to see the new and very high-tech engineering plant of the United Kingdom manufacturer, GKN. We were delighted when our hosts asked us to unveil plaques on trees, and I am told that those trees are still thriving. No visit to Mumbai by parliamentarians would be complete without visiting the high sheriff, who will shortly visit us in Parliament, which shows the hon. Member for Ealing, Southall (Mr. Sharma) that things are happening and that they are being followed up. The high sheriff of Mumbai chairs a leading engineering institution in which one third of the graduates are women. Finally, we explored the burgeoning film industry at Yash Raj Bollywood studios, which was, in every sense, wonderful.
Chennai—or Madras as it was known to the British—on the east coast of India provided us with a contrast and yet another opportunity to see many successful business ventures. While I was out there I visited a school, which, I am delighted to tell the Chamber, will be twinned with Belfairs school in Southend, West. I have to say though that, thanks to the British Council, I was already pushing at an open door.
The highly respected Indian Institute of Technology showed us its leading edge research projects in biotechnology and told us that a high volume of its graduates are employed in blue chip companies every year. BAE Systems has enjoyed successful business activities in India for many years, and, at a reception jointly hosted by the deputy high commissioner, Mike Connor, it provided us with a presentation of its current initiatives.
Sally Muggeridge and the hon. Member for Sittingbourne and Sheppey visited the Madras cricket club. They stood on the pitch at 8.30 am in 30 degrees of heat. I am informed that, sadly, no one saw a live elephant. Returning to Mumbai, we enjoyed a dinner and presentation given by Shell, which took place at the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower hotel in the very room in which guests had sheltered from terrorists during the siege of the hotel a
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few months earlier. Shell was an early entrant to the Indian market, starting with oil lubricants and building up a sizable joint venture that now provides leading research into emissions management and climate change controls, which is vital in a country the size and scale of India.
We finished our visit at the Colonial Bombay yacht club with a briefing by Bombay First, which is modelled on our own London First. Standing by the gateway to India, it left us with a fitting memory of how India used to be in colonial times.
In conclusion, I had three aims when I applied for this debate. I wanted my colleagues to give their opinions of the value of the trip and say how, in the months and years head, we intend to follow on the relationships that we formed during the visit. Secondly, in a humble and inarticulate fashion, I wanted to raise the awareness of what more British business can do in India and, thirdly, I wanted to set out how the House can help to build on the expertise. Even in such difficult times, with the state of the British and the world economy, more can be done. Does the Minister think that sufficient assistance is being given to encourage India to invest more in British business?
It was, in every sense, an honour and privilege to have been part of the delegation. We had some fun. Some of us occasionally wandered into the markets in different streets in India, and it is true to say that one or two of us bumped into tailors, and visited silk factories and the like. None the less, throughout the visit, we engaged in hard and constructive relationship-building work. We even managed to cope with the wonderful travails of our bus driver. The members of the delegation owe a huge debt of gratitude to all the businesses that supported us and made the trip possible and, above all, to the staff of the IPT who enabled us to follow such a magnificent educational programme.
9.57 am
Ian Stewart (Eccles) (Lab): I apologise to the Chamber because I am still suffering from what my wife describes as man flu. [Interruption.] My wife has assured me that it is not swine flu. However, she also said that I was a swine with flu.
It is a real pleasure to be involved in this debate and to welcome you, Mr. Sheridan, on your first outing as Chair of a Westminster Hall debate. It is important that life experience and qualifications are taken into account in the chairing of such debates, so my welcome to you is sincerely meant.
First, let me apologise on behalf of my right hon. Friend the Member for Makerfield (Mr. McCartney), who hoped to be here this morning but has been detained on other business. Later on, I will say something about him and his activities in relation to India, but now I shall try to follow the detailed contribution from the hon. Member for Southend, West (Mr. Amess), who was leader of the delegation.
*
Easter Adjournment Debate, 2nd April 2009
2.19 pm
Mr. David Amess (Southend, West) (Con): I congratulate the hon. Member for Nottingham, North (Mr. Allen) on his speech, and I certainly agree with many of the points that he made. I shall say more about that in a moment, and I am delighted to have an opportunity to
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speak for a little longer than was originally allotted, but I shall not speak for too long as I do not want to be penalised in future.
This is likely to be the last Easter Adjournment debate before a general election, when the British people will have an opportunity to give their verdict on the Government’s performance since the 2005 election, and on Labour’s performance as a whole since 1997. I feel that that verdict will be pretty damning in every respect.
Whatever Government explanations are given, it is extraordinary to find the economy in its present state. The Prime Minister used to be the Chancellor of the Exchequer, so it is very difficult for him to distance himself from his first, disastrous Budget, which he delivered in 1997. Pension funds were raided to the tune of £5 billion, and he made many mistakes throughout the 10 years that he was Chancellor, especially in respect of regulation.
Following on from what the hon. Member for Nottingham, North said, I shall regret voting for the Iraq war until the day that I die. In my experience of the House, many hon. Members claim to be experts on all sorts of things. I have never pretended to be an expert, although the Conservative Benches contain many colleagues with military expertise.
I listened to what the then Prime Minister, Mr. Blair, said at the Dispatch Box about how weapons of mass destruction could reach this country within 45 minutes. He made other claims too, but my party leader at the time, together with the then leader of the Liberal party, had been to No. 10 Downing street for a briefing. I believed that they had more expertise than I had, and that we could not let our troops down. For that reason, I thought that the right thing to do was to support the Government.
I bitterly regret that now. I will never be so naive again. In economic terms, we would of course be in a better position now if we did not have the war debt, but the hon. Member for Nottingham, North told us how many people had died, and the number is just appalling. As for Afghanistan, any hon. Members who reckon that they have the necessary expertise should tell us how we can defeat terrorism when the people responsible for it are willing to take their own lives. I should be very interested to hear from them. I repeat that when the British public are given the opportunity to judge this Government, their verdict will be very damning.
However, I want to discuss a number of matters before we adjourn for the Easter recess. I see that the hon. Member for Nottingham, North is still in his place. He and I went to Shanghai on our visit to China last year, and I have just had the privilege of leading a delegation to Mumbai and Chennai. The visits to China and India were very educational, as they allowed us to learn about the performance of those countries’ economies. The British Government need to watch their development very carefully, and I hope that we will be at the forefront in taking the opportunities that present themselves. We must also make much more use of the wonderful work of the British Council.
I happen to be the chairman of FRAME, the fund for the replacement of animals in medical experiments, a parliamentary group that tries to stop experimentation on animals. We adopt the sensible approach of trying to find alternative sources. The National Centre for the
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Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research does wonderful work in reducing unnecessary animal experimentation. It provides research funding for reducing cruelty in animal testing in areas such as veterinary immunisation testing and reproductive toxicology, and it supports data sharing in industry to ensure that animal testing is kept to the statutory minimum.
The organisation has had great success in reducing dramatically the fatal use of testing on rodents, for instance. Some might say that its budget of £4.5 million is large, but that money has to go an awfully long way. Most of it goes on research grants, and it would be wonderful if the organisation were to get more money under the next spending review.
When I was a member of the Health Committee, I suggested that we had an inquiry into obesity. All sorts of people got interested in the subject as a result, but I said to my colleagues at the time that I did not think we would make much progress if we did not concentrate on the salt, fat and sugar contents of the food that various producers were putting on the market. I accepted that spending more time on physical activities was a wonderful idea, but I believed that we needed to focus on what was achievable in the overall goal of reducing obesity.
Sadly, 10 years later, unhealthy food advertising to children is still widespread, even though new Ofcom regulations for TV and radio were introduced a year ago. There has not been as much progress as there should have been in introducing the traffic light system, as the Health Committee recommended, because—as ever—Tesco has gone its own way.
Tesco almost seems to be running the country. Many years ago, when I was Member of Parliament for Basildon, we started off with one superstore in the middle of town, but we had three by the end of my time there. Then the company wanted to have a post office in its supermarkets, and we lost shopping parades as a result. Nowadays, as all hon. Members know, Tesco is acquiring bits of land everywhere for its outlets, and it even runs them in garages. Tesco is putting people out of business morning, noon and night. It wanted to do its own thing, as ever, with the traffic light system of labelling. Quite simply, the system has not worked. I believe that it would be prudent to consider introducing a robust regulatory code of practice to address childhood obesity. The gesture politics that I so often see in relation to obesity is achieving absolutely nothing.
Cooking oil is a common waste product that is damaging to the environment and difficult to dispose of. We have an excellent opportunity to use it to produce carbon-neutral electricity. That would make a wonderful contribution to the Government’s carbon emission reduction targets, yet the lack of classification of cooking oil as a fuel or waste product is a major disincentive to companies looking to invest in the technology. Swift action to rectify that situation would make a great contribution to reducing carbon emissions.
This time last week, I was chairing the annual general meeting of the all-party group on the Holy See. Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor was present, as were the media because they thought he would announce his successor as cardinal, which he did not. The Papal Nuncio was present and so, too, was our wonderful ambassador to the Holy See, Francis Campbell. Some
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long-serving Members will remember my exchange about the Holy See with Tony Blair at Prime Minister’s questions, after it had been brought to my attention and that of other Members that we were to lose our delegation at the Vatican. Mr. Blair looked very surprised at that, even though he was running the country and, as we learned, was very close to the Catholic Church. After Members were alerted to the situation, a number of us got together to form the all-party group.
Francis Campbell is doing a wonderful job as ambassador and I am delighted to tell the House that Peter Ricketts has informed me that as a result of sensible and constructive lobbying by colleagues, our embassy will be reinforced with a new deputy ambassador and more staff. The staff have done wonderful work operating on a tiny budget.
I agree with the hon. Member for Nottingham, North that this place has changed out of all recognition. Colleagues do not know what we are talking about when we tell them how much power we had. We worked long hours and we could really make a difference. Now we have lost all our power to quangos, but the issue I have just described is an example of how we can make a difference without rowing and arguing with colleagues. I am delighted with what has been achieved.
Anti-Semitism is unacceptable wherever it happens. The Metropolitan police report that there were four times as many anti-Jewish incidents in recent weeks as there were Islamophobic incidents. The Community Security Trust, which monitors anti-Jewish racism, reports that there were as many attacks on Jews in the first weeks of 2009 as in the first six months of 2008. That is staggering, although we know why about 270 cases of anti-Semitism were reported in the first few weeks of 2009—it was to do with the Israelis and Hamas in Gaza and southern Israel.
Incidents recorded by the CST include violent assaults in the street, hate e-mails and graffiti threatening jihad against British Jews. One disturbing aspect is the targeting of Jewish children. The Jewish Chronicle reported that a 12-year-old schoolgirl on her way home from school was terrorised by a mob of youths chanting “Kill all Jews” and “Death to Jews.” I became so concerned that I tabled a series of parliamentary questions, and I am pleased to hear that the Government have taken the matter seriously and will act on it.
I welcome the fact that the first international conference on combating anti-Semitism was held in London. It was attended by more than 100 parliamentarians from 40 countries. The conference called for the establishment of an international taskforce of internet specialists to monitor anti-Semitism online and propose international responses. I very much welcome that.
Over the years, I have found that many of the issues raised in Parliament are seasonal. Here we are on 2 April, so I am raising the issue of fireworks. Despite the passage of the Fireworks Regulations 2004, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals still receives hundreds of complaints every year, particularly on bonfire night and new year’s eve. Domestic animals are severely stressed and given to madness by loud fireworks. A Labour Member who is no longer in the House—
Shona McIsaac (Cleethorpes) (Lab): Bill Tynan.
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Mr. Amess: Yes. Bill Tynan introduced a Bill on fireworks.
Despite prohibition of the supply of excessively loud category 3 fireworks, it is clear that fireworks are still readily available that create noise levels in excess of 100 dB at 15 m, well beyond the loudest noises in normal domestic settings. We need to look at what can be done to promote desensitisation programmes for domestic pets and to ensure that the current law on night-time firework use is enforced thoroughly. In addition, we need to look at ways to reduce statutory maximum noise levels further, perhaps to 75 dB, as recommended by the RSPCA.
Shona McIsaac: I am a former executive officer of an all-party parliamentary group that campaigned against fireworks, so I welcome the fact that the hon. Gentleman is raising the issue today. Is not the situation particularly serious for guide dogs? I am often told by vets who say that fireworks are not a nuisance, “You can simply sedate an animal for the duration of the firework season.” One cannot do that to a guide dog.
Mr. Amess: I agree with the hon. Lady. I have heard her speak on these matters before, and her support is welcome.
Sir Robert Smith: One can have a spectacular firework display that gives great visual enjoyment without loud noise levels. The noise is not essential to the quality of the firework; it is an extra that is added on, and it could be reduced without damaging the visual quality.
Mr. Amess: I agree with the hon. Gentleman. We are blessed to be by the River Thames, where we can see beautiful firework displays reflecting off the river without its being noisy. The new year celebrations were a wonderful opportunity to see such displays. Last November, all the bangs, which seemed to be fired in the direction of my house—I do not know whether I was being targeted by local residents—were slightly over the top, so I certainly agree with the hon. Gentleman.
The Deputy Leader of the House of Commons (Chris Bryant): Did you take it personally?
Mr. Amess: No, I certainly did not.
All hon. Members, whether or not they use their allowance for a second home, must be absolutely fed up with all the junk mail that is put through the letterboxes. I know that these are tough times, but whether the junk mail is from restaurants, suppliers or others, it is completely out of control. Some of that junk mail can cause nuisance, distress and inconvenience to many people in all sorts of ways. It leads to a high level of waste and identity fraud. Levels of direct mail mistakenly sent to people who have moved are still far too high. I am advised that even under the best practice guidelines of the Direct Marketing Association, data management software still leads to an average of 25 per cent. of deceased persons continuing to be sent direct marketing. That can cause great distress to family members. More rights are needed to allow people to take control of their personal data and to prevent bothersome and unnecessary junk mailings.
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I have been contacted by the Swimming Teachers Association, which feels a little bit peeved that it was not involved in the excellent decision to extend free swimming to the over-60s and under-16s. The programme involves a lot of money being spent—£140 million—including on 49 development officers. It would seem prudent to involve all relevant parties, so that we can strengthen decision making on how that money is to be spent. I hope that in future, the Swimming Teachers Association will be included.
When I was on the Select Committee on Health, I suggested an inquiry into allergies. I am raising this issue on 2 April, not in the summer. There are so many allergies that people have today; I am thinking particularly of hay fever. The availability of allergy therapy through the national health service is patchy and varies enormously between primary care trusts. Availability of anti-allergy medication, vaccines and immunotherapy is limited, and greater urgency is needed in giving devolved primary care trusts money that is ring-fenced for allergy therapy.
I wish to mention the Kennel Club and dogs. The ability of dog owners to comply with their obligations under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to provide their dogs with off-lead exercise has been compromised by the introduction of dog control orders under the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005, particularly where no alternative provision has been made. The Kennel Club believes that to date, at least 120 councils have implemented dog control orders, sometimes issuing as many as 100 orders in an area, although there could well be more. Research shows that the biggest factor for owners when choosing where to exercise their dogs is whether they can exercise them off the lead. If that is not possible locally, more than 40 per cent. would drive elsewhere, despite the detrimental impact on the environment. Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs guidance accompanying the 2005 Act states that local authorities should show that dog control orders are a “necessary and proportionate response”. In practice, that has been largely ignored as many local authorities have taken the most restrictive approach. Furthermore, although local authorities are required to notify Natural England of any proposed dog control orders on access land, very few appear to have done so.
I end with some good news about Southend council. I am delighted to say that the Audit Commission has given it a three-star rating; that means that it is a local authority that is continuing to improve, under the excellent leadership of councillors Nigel Holdcroft and John Lamb and the chief executive Rob Tinlin. All in all, and given the challenging economic backdrop, Southend council is doing extremely well. I join others in wishing everyone a happy, healthy Easter.