"Can the Minister assure me that he and his Department are working closely with the devolved Administrations, especially the Minister for Social Development in Northern Ireland, on his proposed reforms?..." Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown - View Speech
"I hoped to catch your eye, Mr Speaker, and at the commencement of my speech I was going to make it very clear that I qualify for the winter fuel payment. When I have received it, I have always given it to a disabled family who do not get that …..." Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown - View Speech
"This debate has at least established something, because the Minister has acknowledged, as Hansard will clearly show, that we are talking about cuts—that what is being proposed, and what is actually happening, is a cut for pensioners. I appreciate his having forthrightly acknowledged that, for it is often painted in …..." Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown - View Speech
"With the greatest respect, many of the people who are losing the winter fuel payment—for example, those who are over 80—will not know about the scheme that the hon. Gentleman mentions. Let us deal with reality, because these are the people who are going to suffer as a result of …..." Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown - View Speech
"I thank the hon. Lady for her comments, with which I wholeheartedly agree.
When I looked at today’s Daily Mail, I saw that the editor’s comment says—[Hon. Members: “Daily Mail?”] With the greatest respect, let me deal with the issue. It says that at a time …..." Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown - View Speech
"I accept all the hon. Lady’s points, but this is not an either/or situation. Surely the winter fuel payments complement what she has described. As the Minister has acknowledged today, the Government are proposing cuts. Many of our pensioners are asset-rich but income-poor, and they fall into the means-testing trap. …..." Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown - View Speech
"Is it not true that, throughout the United Kingdom, we have given the impression that if a young person has not got a degree, they are not really a young person with great achievement? We have sent a lot of our young people to university to obtain a degree that …..." Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown - View Speech
"It is important to find out if the scheme about which the hon. Gentleman is talking is being rolled out throughout the United Kingdom or if it is just happening here on the mainland...." Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown - View Speech
"But can the hon. Lady and her colleagues wash their hands of the fact that although they opposed a rise in VAT during the election, they will now go through the Lobby to support it? Surely that is hypocrisy...." Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown - View Speech