Business of the House
Debate between Alan Campbell and Julian Lewis(2 weeks, 3 days ago)
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Sir Alan Campbell
Taxi and private hire vehicles play a vital part in local transport, connecting residents to the local economy and enabling businesses and residents to reach wider transport networks. I certainly join my hon. Friend in encouraging local authorities, taxi and private hire vehicle businesses and passengers to participate in the consultation before it closes. We also have the Minister with responsibility for these matters, my hon. Friend the Member for Nottingham South (Lilian Greenwood), sitting next to me.
Sir Julian Lewis (New Forest East) (Con)
Mr Speaker, may I endorse your tribute to the late David Winnick? I had occasion to observe him in action in this House for the first 20 years of my time here, and I can certainly confirm that he was a strong character with an independent mind. That is the best tribute one can make to a resolute Back Bencher.
May I appeal for a debate in Government time on the importance of the credibility of consultation processes, bearing in mind that we have been through one for local government reform and our contributions seem to have been overwhelmingly ignored? It would be a shame if people felt that there was no point in participating in a consultation process because the outcome had been predetermined on party political grounds.
Sir Alan Campbell
I am grateful for what the right hon. Gentleman says about David Winnick. He was a man of independent mind, and as a former Whip, I can attest to that.
On the wider matter of consultations and reviews, I hope that the public do not get to a situation where they believe that their views, having been given, do not count. The reality is that in some cases people will give their views and they simply do not get the outcome that they want. The right hon. Gentleman will know that the Government are keeping under review the number of consultations and reviews. At the appropriate time, I am sure that Ministers will want to bring forward their views, and perhaps we will have a debate on the matter.
Business of the House
Debate between Alan Campbell and Julian Lewis(1 month ago)
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Sir Julian Lewis (New Forest East) (Con)
May we have an update from a Health Minister on progress in the review of prostate cancer policy and whether it will focus, as it should, on such issues as targeting particularly vulnerable age groups or ethnic groups, such as black males, one quarter of whom will be affected by this disease at some stage in their lives, and speeding up National Institute for Health and Care Excellence approval of relevant drug treatments in England and Wales which are already being prescribed in Northern Ireland and Scotland?
Sir Alan Campbell
The right hon. Gentleman will know that the Government have produced England’s first ever men’s health strategy. We are not just reforming the way things are done; we are putting in the investment as well. On the specific issue he raises, which I agree is an extraordinarily important matter, I will seek an update from a Health Minister for him. Should he seek further detail after that, I will help him to arrange that, too.
Business of the House
Debate between Alan Campbell and Julian Lewis(4 months, 3 weeks ago)
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Sir Alan Campbell
I join my hon. Friend in congratulating Father Henderson, Deacon Robertson and the venerable parishioners of St Philomena’s church. She is right to point out that places of worship provide a variety of services, often above and beyond the religious purpose—in the strictest sense—that they are there for. They are at the very heart of our local communities. I wish the church well for the next 100 years.
Sir Julian Lewis (New Forest East) (Con)
Last Thursday, there was a heavily subscribed Westminster Hall debate about the terrible problem of rogue and conmen builders who fleece people of thousands upon thousands of pounds for work that is never completed and is often not started at all. May we have a statement from an appropriate Minister on the need to consider criminalising the process in which people are robbed of their money and told afterwards that that constitutes only a civil offence?
Sir Alan Campbell
The right hon. Gentleman raises an important matter. He will know, having been in this House for quite some time, that it is a perennial problem. I will draw it to the attention of the Minister and see whether they might make a statement. The right hon. Gentleman might wish also to seek a debate on that matter.
Business of the House
Debate between Alan Campbell and Julian Lewis(5 months, 1 week ago)
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Sir Alan Campbell
We will be investing £5 billion through our new flagship pride in place programme, to support the 244 places that need it most. I am sure that a Backbench Business debate on the subject would be well attended, in which Members could further discuss not just the issue of resources, but the need for communities to be at the heart of decision making.
Sir Julian Lewis (New Forest East) (Con)
May we have a statement from a local government Minister about calculated abuse of the planning system—cases in which people knowingly proceed with projects without planning permission, and then apply for retrospective permission? Cash-strapped councils feel, on the advice of their officers, that they should grant that permission, as otherwise they might have to fight a legal case. Should there not be a presumption against granting retrospective planning permission when the offence has been deliberate?
Sir Alan Campbell
I invite the right hon. Gentleman to raise the matter in an Adjournment debate, or indeed with the Backbench Business Committee—it has been raised by colleagues from across the Chamber—so that Ministers can not only hear what he says but respond.