All 54 Debates between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow

Thu 31st Oct 2019
Mon 28th Jan 2019
Venezuela
Commons Chamber
(Urgent Question)
Wed 23rd May 2018
Points of Order
Commons Chamber

1st reading: House of Commons & 1st reading: House of Commons
Mon 8th Jan 2018
Wed 20th Jan 2016
Wed 20th Jan 2016
Mon 21st Oct 2013
Thu 17th Oct 2013
Thu 11th Jul 2013
Wed 28th Nov 2012
Mon 2nd Jul 2012
Mon 14th Mar 2011

Standards

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Thursday 31st October 2019

(4 years, 4 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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I thank you, Mr Speaker, for the opportunity to speak in this debate. Although I am the originator of the complaint to the Committee on Standards in September 2016, I rise more in sorrow than anger to comment on these matters. I, too, wish to thank the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, Kathryn Stone, for her diligent work on our behalf, protecting the reputation of this House. I also thank her predecessor, Kathryn Hudson, and all elected and lay members of the Committee on Standards.

After 37 months we have the report. It is 69 pages long, and it makes grim reading for those colleagues who have taken the time to wade through it. The recommendations of the Committee include the longest suspension to be handed out since records began—six months—which in normal times would trigger a recall. The Committee also said that the right hon. Member for Leicester East (Keith Vaz) should not be offered a former Member’s pass when his time in this House ceases.

It is clear why this investigation has taken so long, and the delays, deflection and confusion that the Committee believes the right hon. Gentleman to have conducted, have been quite damning on his character. He sought to drag out these proceedings so that if he does not stand at the next election, none of the punishment will be meted out to him, and he will have avoided a suspension. If the House decides to accept the recommendations, they will be in place for only a few days, not for six months, and there will therefore be no recall. Effectively, the only censure that he will face is that of not having the privilege of a former Member’s pass when he ceases to be here.

I am aware that the right hon. Gentleman is not present, but the Chair of the Committee on Standards hinted at a statement that he put on his website immediately after the publication of this report. In fairness to the right hon. Gentleman, and to inform the House, I would like to read the statement that was posted on his website on 28 October, shortly after the release of the report by the Committee on Standards into his conduct:

“The events of 27th August 2016 were purely personal and private, and occurred in circumstances where neither Mr Vaz’s public nor his Parliamentary role were engaged.

Mr Vaz has never bought, possessed, dealt with or used illegal drugs. He has a cardiovascular condition which would mean that were he to consume any non-prescribed drugs he would in all likelihood die. The Commissioner has confirmed that Mr Vaz has not committed any criminal acts. The referrals made (including by Andrew Bridgen MP) were a waste of police resources.

The transcript of the recording which the Committee and Commissioner rely on has been completed discredited by a highly qualified forensic scientist, who has cast considerable doubt on its reliability. She stated: “Overall the transcript supplied to me fell significantly short of what is expected in terms of a transcript intended for use in legal, disciplinary or similar proceedings and it cannot be considered a reliable evidential record of the speech content of the questioned recording.

Mr Vaz has cooperated at all stages of this process. At no stage during the inquiry has either Commissioner stated in writing or otherwise that Mr Vaz has been uncooperative. Commissioner Hudson stated in terms that Mr Vaz has been helpful. Mr Vaz vigorously rejects the allegation that he has failed to cooperate with the inquiry: to the contrary he holds the standards system in the highest regard and with the highest respect.”

There are then some links to reports from the inquiry that are available on the parliamentary website, and it indicates where people should look in the report for various information that the right hon. Gentleman regards as evidential to support his statement. The statement concludes:

“Keith Vaz has been treated for a serious mental health condition for the last three years as a result of the events of 27th August 2016. He has shared all his medical reports in confidence with the Committee. He has today been admitted to hospital and this office will not be making any further comments.”

I have read the report, and there is no apology from the right hon. Member for Leicester East. There is no hint of apology, no hint of regret, and a complete denial of the unanimous conclusions of the Committee on Standards. That may hint at his state of mind—he is in complete denial about the level of dissatisfaction that the public feel with the behaviour of some Members of this House, and he has certainly detracted from our reputation.

Many tributes have been paid to you today, Mr Speaker, and I wish to add my own. If you had acted on the letter that I wrote to you in September 2015—a year before the incident involving the then Chair of the Home Affairs Committee—in which I raised my concerns that if the actions and activities of the right hon. Gentleman came to light, they would risk seriously damaging—

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. The hon. Gentleman will resume his seat. This matter was raised on a previous occasion and I am going to say, in all solemnity and with firmness, to the hon. Gentleman and to the House what the position is.

I could not have known that the hon. Gentleman intended to use this debate in the way that he has thus far—in an orderly fashion, but in a way that I could not have predicted. I certainly could not have anticipated, and the hon. Gentleman did not do me the courtesy of telling me, that he intended to address my reaction to these matters, but I will say to the House that I do recall—I do not have the detail in front of me—the hon. Gentleman writing to me highlighting his concerns about the right hon. Member for Leicester East (Keith Vaz) and imploring me to act. I indicated to the hon. Gentleman, in terms, that both on the basis of my own knowledge, I say to the House, of the role and responsibility of the Chair, and on the strength of the professional advice of the Clerk of the House, that it was not—repeat, not—for me to intervene in any way, shape or form.

The premise upon which the request by the hon. Gentleman for me to intervene was based was entirely—I emphasise the word “entirely”—misplaced. It is not for the Speaker to get involved in the study of, or investigation into, complaints that are made about individual Members of Parliament. It is not for the Speaker to perform a second job as a kind of night-time Columbo looking into matters that one Member wants to raise about another. That is not only not necessary, but not appropriate. It is totally outwith—I say this with complete clarity and for the avoidance of doubt—the role of the Speaker.

If, after nine and a half years in this place, notwithstanding my best efforts to help the hon. Gentleman to do better, he still labours under not merely the misapprehension but the ignorant delusion that it is somehow the responsibility of the Chair to intervene, frankly, I have to say to colleagues, I cannot help him. I cannot help him. I have tried to help the hon. Gentleman and I have tried on many occasions to educate the hon. Gentleman, but if the hon. Gentleman will not be helped or educated, I cannot do anything about that.

What I can do something about—I have sought to do so for 10 years—is securing compliance with the procedures of this House. It is absolutely legitimate for the hon. Gentleman to speak in this debate if he thinks it is proper to do so. If the hon. Gentleman feels that the general approach that he has adopted to these sorts of matters—allegations of misconduct against other Members—enhances his standing in the House, it is entirely for him to make that judgment. If he thinks it makes him a more popular or respected Member to spend quite a lot of time writing to the Standards Commissioner to complain about this one, that one or the other one—if that is the approach to parliamentary service, or a part of the approach to parliamentary service, for which the hon. Gentleman opts—that is his privilege. If he wishes to speak in this debate, including when I have resumed my seat, he is welcome to do so. He might usefully make a judgment about whether the House wants to hear him at great length when there is a clear judgment by the Committee that has been accepted and endorsed by the Opposition Chief Whip, but if he still feels he wants to speak at some considerable length, if it makes him feel better and if he thinks what an excellent contribution he has made, that is his prerogative.

What the hon. Gentleman will not do is to breach the rules of this House and tell me—I say this not least to members of the public—what the job of the Chair is. I know what the job of the Chair is and I have done it to the best of my ability. To err is human, so I make my mistakes, but I have done it to the best of my ability for over a decade. I do not simply assert or suggest but state with complete confidence that it is not part of my job to make representations to a Member that, because of this rumour or that rumour, or this allegation or that allegation, or this person disliking him or that person disliking him, it would be best if he stood down from the chairmanship of his Select Committee. That is not the responsibility of the Speaker of the House of Commons. If the hon. Gentleman still thinks otherwise, I fear he is beyond redemption in the matter. I would like to help him, but he just does not want to be helped.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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Mr Speaker, I thank you for your advice, as always. For the past 10 years you have advised me on many occasions, but had you waited for my conclusion, you would have seen that I was going to extol your decision not to get involved in this matter. Had you done so, we may well have protected the reputation of this House, but I doubt that we ever would have got to see the full report that is now before us.

Despite this report being public knowledge—it has been available for Members to read for several days—the right hon. Member for Leicester East remains a member of the Labour party. He has the Labour Whip. He is still a serving member of the Labour national executive committee and he is still currently the candidate for Leicester East at the forthcoming election. That, of course, is a matter for the Labour party, and it is also, I believe, a matter for the public we all serve in our constituencies, not least in Leicester East. I believe—I think that many other people do—that Leicester East deserves rather better, Mr Speaker.

We can recall what we have done in the past and the way we have voted. We will all be held to account for that very shortly, on 12 December. Only a month after the right hon. Member for Leicester East rather reluctantly resigned, following the rent boy and cocaine scandal, from the chairmanship of the Home Affairs Committee, he was nominated by the Labour party to serve on the Justice Committee. That was only four weeks after he had considered himself unsuitable to continue as Chair of the Home Affairs Committee.

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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. I am sorry, but I must invite the hon. Gentleman to resume his seat and I will tell him why.

The hon. Gentleman tries to demonstrate how fair he is being by saying that, belatedly, he agrees with me, which he has never previously given any indication of at all. If that is what he now says, I am glad he has come to recognise the error of his past ways and the extreme folly, as well as the sheer nastiness, of making repeated representations to the Chair to intercede in a matter in which the Chair should not, of course, intercede.

What the hon. Gentleman is doing now is what he attempted to do on the occasion of the debate about the nomination of the right hon. Member for Leicester East to the Justice Committee. What the hon. Member for North West Leicestershire (Andrew Bridgen) is seeking to do is to drag into this debate, as he dragged into that debate, material that it is not appropriate to share with the House in the context of the debate. This is a short debate on a report. The reason why the hon. Gentleman’s point is not relevant or appropriate is, first of all, that he is going back on matters to do with the Justice Committee, of which I think the report does not treat. The report does not get involved in that. That is a historical matter. It was a matter of political opinion and parliamentary debate at the time; it is not relevant to the Standards Committee’s report.

Secondly, I am afraid that the hon. Gentleman, who is a party politician and a campaigning party politician—I acknowledge that—just cannot resist getting into the subject of whether it is or is not appropriate for a particular person to be a candidate in a given election. The hon. Gentleman gives his view—he obviously thinks it is enormously important and interesting, although it may not be enormously important or interesting to anyone else—as to whether the health of the people of Leicester East is best served by representation by its current right hon. Member or by someone else. I have to say to the hon. Gentleman that I am not interested in that. Frankly, I do not think that the House is interested in that. If the hon. Gentleman wants to say, “Look, I complained and I was right, and the report has criticised, censured and punished, or proposes to do so, the right hon. Gentleman,” he could have done that and sat down by now.

I give him a final warning, and it is a warning: I am not going to have the House abused by the way in which the hon. Gentleman chooses to behave. If he has a sentence or two that he wants to utter as to why he thinks that this is a decent report and he agrees with it, that is fine. If he wants to launch a further ad hominem attack on the right hon. Member for Leicester East, this is not the time or place to do so.

I say in all sincerity and kindness to the hon. Gentleman: show some antennae, man, for the will of the House, and show some sensitivity. You have made your point in making a complaint, which you had every right to do, and the Committee has determined the matter. It would be, I think, seemly if the hon. Gentleman speedily brought his speech to a conclusion.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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Thank you once again for more help and advice, Mr Speaker.

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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. The hon. Gentleman will resume his seat. It is not help and advice; I am telling him what the position is. Don’t mix it with the Chair. If you have a couple more sentences to utter, you will do so; if you want to dilate at length, you will not.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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Mr Speaker, I will bring my remarks to a conclusion, but it is clear to me, and it will be clear to the public, that to the fag-end of your tenure in that Chair, you are defending the indefensible and your very close relationship with the right hon. Member in question. The House can come to its own conclusions. The Standards Committee has come to its own conclusions. And, Mr Speaker, the public will come to theirs. Thank you very much.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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I am quite sure that the public will come to their own conclusions. Let me say to the hon. Gentleman that he can try to smear me; he will get the square root of nowhere. I am friendly with the right hon. Member for Leicester East, as I am friendly with the hon. Member for Christchurch (Sir Christopher Chope), the right hon. Member for Aylesbury (Sir David Lidington), and the hon. Members for Stroud (Dr Drew) and for Strangford (Jim Shannon). I am friendly with a great many Members, having served in this place for 22 years. I do not get involved in matters appertaining to standards. There is a machinery for deliberation on those matters in the form of a Parliamentary Standards Commissioner and a Committee. They deal with those matters.

The hon. Gentleman, only a few moments ago, was saying, in what he thought was a frightfully clever twist, that he had come to accept that I was right to say that I could not get involved. If he is now saying that, in fact, my close relationship shows that I am trying to defend the right hon. Member for Leicester East, he is contradicting himself not within days, weeks or months; he is contradicting himself within minutes. I am not trying to defend the conduct of the right hon. Gentleman. What I am doing, on behalf of and in support of the House, is—colleagues; members of the public—defending the integrity of an independent process. If the hon. Gentleman cannot or will not grasp that fact, with the very greatest of respect to him—or such respect as I can muster—that says more about him than it does about me.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Thursday 18th July 2019

(4 years, 8 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Contrary to popular myth, most particulates do not come from modern diesel engines, but from wear between the vehicle’s tyres and the road. Given that electric vehicles tend to be heavier than their conventional counterparts owing to the weight of the batteries, which increases tyre wear and road wear, does the Minister have any concerns that the increased use of electric vehicles may lead to increasing levels of particulates?

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Interesting—the hon. Gentleman is giving the impression of knowing something.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Tuesday 11th June 2019

(4 years, 9 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Lateral thinking, I say to the hon. Member for North West Leicestershire (Andrew Bridgen). Solar power and engineering are not altogether unrelated; with a degree of imagination, the hon. Gentleman could shoehorn his inquiry into this matter.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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22. Thank you, Mr Speaker. Does my hon. Friend agree that we should be doing more to enhance technical education and engineering, and that one of the best ways to do that will be with T-levels? What impact does he think they will have?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Tuesday 19th February 2019

(5 years, 1 month ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Young Bridgen was a bit slow to stand but, now that I have seen him, let us hear from the fellow.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Will the Minister join me in welcoming the work of UK researchers to develop a new protocol for managing asthma, such as a pill to reduce the number of attacks by targeting airway muscles, developed in partnership with researchers in Canada?

Venezuela

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 28th January 2019

(5 years, 1 month ago)

Commons Chamber
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Urgent Questions are proposed each morning by backbench MPs, and up to two may be selected each day by the Speaker. Chosen Urgent Questions are announced 30 minutes before Parliament sits each day.

Each Urgent Question requires a Government Minister to give a response on the debate topic.

This information is provided by Parallel Parliament and does not comprise part of the offical record

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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The hon. Member for North West Leicestershire is poised like a panther about to pounce. Let us hear the fellow.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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It is the only way to be noticed, Mr Speaker.

I welcome the urgent question. For too long, the House has stood by and watched Venezuela, which should be a prosperous country, slip into tyranny and destitution. Did my right hon. Friend hear the comments made on the radio by Ken Livingstone, the former Labour Mayor of London? He said that the reason for the problems in Venezuela was that the Marxist regime, when it seized power, did not execute enough people.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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This is all very well, and I look forward to hearing the Minister of State, but it is fair to say that he has no responsibility for the pronouncements of Mr Livingstone, and is probably pleased not to have.

Points of Order

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Wednesday 9th January 2019

(5 years, 2 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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I did hear those words. I did not hear a particular Member, and I did not see a Member mouth those words, but I did hear those words. I think it was most unfortunate that that was said. People sometimes say things instinctively and rashly, but it was most unfortunate. The hon. Lady was perfectly properly paying tribute to an extremely distinguished former Member of this House and someone that many would regard as an international statesperson. What was said should not have been said. If the person who said it wishes to take the opportunity to apologise, it is open to that person to do so.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Further to that point of order, Mr Speaker. I will apologise for my remarks if any offence was caused to any Member of the House.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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The hon. Gentleman’s words stand, and I thank him for what he has said.

Points of Order

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Wednesday 18th July 2018

(5 years, 8 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. The right hon. Gentleman will resume his seat. I indulged him and allowed him to develop his thinking.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Well, maybe I erred on the side of generosity. I will treat of the point in more detail, because it is of importance to the House, but let me say two things to the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington (Tom Brake).

The right hon. Gentleman, the former Foreign Secretary, was absolutely in order to request that he be allowed to make a personal statement, and utterly in order also in its delivery. Secondly—forgive me, colleagues, but it is important for the authority of the House that this point be made—I, too, was absolutely right to allow him to make that personal statement, and it would have been quite wrong for me to seek to stand in his way.

Good order has applied but, in so far as the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington is interested not in point scoring, as I am sure he is not, but in asking a genuine question of the Chair, let me say to him on the point of procedure that it is the long-standing practice of the House that Members may make a personal statement with the leave of the Speaker. It is not especially common in recent times for such requests to be made, but when they are made, it is right that they should be acceded to by the Chair.

Moreover, I note that the former Foreign Secretary, former Leader of the House and former Deputy Prime Minister, the late Sir Geoffrey Howe, resigned on 1 November 1990—I remember it well—and delivered a personal statement on 13 November 1990, so nothing disorderly, nothing irregular and, in procedural terms, nothing objectionable has occurred. I thank the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, and it was perfectly legitimate for him to raise the point of order, but I think it right that I leave it there.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 18th June 2018

(5 years, 9 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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The Secretary of State is quite right to disavow responsibility for the Backbench Business Committee. The hon. Lady could, however, usefully sidle up to and have a word with the hon. Member for Gateshead (Ian Mearns), who chairs that Committee. He is not in his place at the moment, but I dare say that he will be in due course. I am sure that she will find that a most useful conversation.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Will my right hon. Friend join me in welcoming the fact that North West Leicestershire District Council is building the first new council houses in my constituency in the past 30 years?

Points of Order

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
1st reading: House of Commons
Wednesday 23rd May 2018

(5 years, 10 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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I am very grateful to the hon. Gentleman. I hope he will not take it amiss if I begin my response to him by saying that, although it is an attempted point of order, in a very real sense it appeared to me to resemble an intellectual dissertation, which of itself is no surprise to those of us familiar with the cerebral quality of the hon. Gentleman. I think it is important to distinguish between parliamentary proceedings on the one hand, in respect of which I may have some modest powers and capacity to assist Members, and freedom of information requests on the other, in relation to which I am literally powerless, as those are not matters for me. However, the hon. Gentleman has raised a concern, and it may well be shared by others. It is on the record, and I hope, consistent both with the letter of obligation to those who submit such requests and with its spirit, that full account will be taken of the situation the hon. Gentleman has painstakingly highlighted. If I may, I suggest we leave it there for today.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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I will come to the hon. Gentleman, of course, but I call Andrew Bridgen.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Following last Wednesday’s difficult day, will you clarify a point of Chamber etiquette? Is it now acceptable in the Chamber to call a colleague a liar?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Wednesday 21st February 2018

(6 years, 1 month ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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I am afraid that that is not good enough. Forgive me—I have to make instant judgments. If the Prime Minister wishes to issue some sort of response, she is free to do so, but she is under no obligation. No? Then I call Andrew Bridgen.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Twice in the last four weeks, the Equality and Human Rights Commission has had cause to write to the Labour party regarding breaches of equality law. Does the Prime Minister agree that equality law must be applied equally, and that it exists to protect all groups equally?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 5th February 2018

(6 years, 1 month ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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It is always useful to have a little bit of additional information, and we are deeply obliged to the Minister.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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Last year, I attended a disability confident workshop in my constituency, where unemployment now stands at an all-time low of 1%. Also present were representatives of the DWP and the local council, as well as local employers, many of whom signed up to the scheme immediately. Will my hon. Friend give further feedback on the national roll-out of a programme that encourages employers to take advantage of keen, loyal staff who are disabled?

NHS Winter Crisis

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 8th January 2018

(6 years, 2 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Urgent Questions are proposed each morning by backbench MPs, and up to two may be selected each day by the Speaker. Chosen Urgent Questions are announced 30 minutes before Parliament sits each day.

Each Urgent Question requires a Government Minister to give a response on the debate topic.

This information is provided by Parallel Parliament and does not comprise part of the offical record

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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On my behalf and that, I hope, of the hon. Member for Leicester South (Jonathan Ashworth), may I welcome the £4.2 million of additional winter funding for the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust? To remind the Labour party what an NHS crisis really is, will my hon. Friend tell the House who was in charge at the time of the Mid Staffs crisis—

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. I have tried over a period of seven and a half years to educate the hon. Gentleman, and I am afraid that on the whole my efforts have been unavailing. I have tried to explain to him that his responsibility is to ask questions about the policy of the Government, for which it is the responsibility of the Government to answer; it is not the occasion for asking questions about the policy of the Opposition or the opposing party when in government. It is a point that is so blindingly obvious that only an extraordinarily sophisticated person could fail to grasp it.

Universal Credit Roll-out

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Tuesday 24th October 2017

(6 years, 5 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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On a point of order, Mr Speaker.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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We have a lot of pressure on time. If the hon. Gentleman really thinks it is necessary—I know he thinks everything that concerns him is terribly important —we will hear it.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Could you clarify how a Member of this House would raise an issue relating to equality and standards—

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. I do not know whether the hon. Gentleman was in his place or not, but there were points of order raised about equality matters and respect issues earlier, with which I dealt. No clarification is required. My guidance was sought and I proffered it. We are short of time, and there is a debate now in which other people wish to take part. If the hon. Gentleman is interested, he can always seek guidance from my office. He does not need to raise a point of order now and it is desperately insensitive to other colleagues who wish to take part in current debates in the Chamber. This is not complicated.

Monarch Airlines

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 9th October 2017

(6 years, 5 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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I do not think the hon. Gentleman realised how popular he was—and I do not think anyone else did either.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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Thank you, Mr Speaker. Does the Secretary of State agree that, although every lost job is a human tragedy, the British aviation industry remains robust and resilient? I am reminded of 2012, when British Midland International collapsed, with the loss of 1,200 jobs at East Midlands airport in my constituency. These are very highly skilled people who are quickly absorbed back into the economy. Unemployment in North West Leicestershire remains at a record low of 1%.

Declarations of Interest

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 27th March 2017

(7 years ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Following a report made on 14 February by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, I would like to apologise to the House for the failure to disclose a financial interest in a Westminster Hall debate on High Speed 2 on 25 March 2015. I should have declared that, owing to a court order caused by my divorce, I was in the final act of selling my house to HS2 under the extreme hardship scheme. I point out to the House that I did declare an interest in the previous HS2 debates on 28 January 2013, 26 June 2013 and 28 April 2014.

In addition, I should, on reflection, have declared an interest when I submitted a written question to the Transport Secretary on 9 October 2013 and when I spoke in the High Speed Rail (Preparation) Bill debate on 31 October 2013. I also attended meetings with HS2 and responded to the consultation, when, with hindsight, for purposes of clarity, I should have declared an interest.

I have sought to co-operate with the Commissioner for Standards throughout this inquiry. I have never made any secret of how close HS2 was running to my then property in North West Leicestershire. That in no way clouded my view of the HS2 project, which I opposed before the route was announced, during my interest and afterwards. I thank you for the opportunity to put this all on the record, and I apologise to the House profusely for any omissions I may have made.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

I thank the hon. Gentleman for what he has said.

Points of Order

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Tuesday 21st February 2017

(7 years, 1 month ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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On a point of order, Mr Speaker. You quite rightly apologised to the Lord Speaker for unilaterally seeking to ban the President of the United States from speaking in Westminster Hall. When can we expect an apology in this Chamber?

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman. I treated of that matter very fully both on the day in question, when I responded to the hon. Member for Cardiff South and Penarth (Stephen Doughty), and on the following day, when there were points of order. I cannot recall whether the hon. Member for North West Leicestershire (Andrew Bridgen) was in his place at that time, but I responded to points of order and the matter was addressed fully, so we shall leave it there. I am extremely grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his interest.

Justice Committee

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 31st October 2016

(7 years, 4 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Nicholas Brown Portrait Mr Nicholas Brown (Newcastle upon Tyne East) (Lab)
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. I wonder whether you could clarify to the House what the rights of Members of other parties—parties that do not have nominating rights—are in these matters now that we have changed our rules so that each party selects and nominates its preferred candidates.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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It is the House that appoints to the Committee, and it is for the House to decide. It is on that basis that these matters are brought to the House and subject to motions moved by the Committee of Selection. Of course, as the right hon. Gentleman’s long experience will tell him, it is normal and commonplace for these matters to go through without objection, but it is perfectly orderly for someone to object if he or she so wishes.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. I will come to the hon. Gentlemen —he will continue his speech in a moment. He himself anticipated the possibility that the Chair might take an interest if he were to cross the line between what was legitimate and orderly to say and what was not. Thus far, the hon. Gentleman has observed that distinction and, on that basis, I am content for him at this stage to continue.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

I entirely understand what the right hon. Gentleman is saying. I am not insensitive to him or to his point, which he has made with his usual force and eloquence. That said, a convention is one thing and a binding rule is another. I must simply make the point that, at this stage, the hon. Member for North West Leicestershire (Andrew Bridgen) is in order. He may have offended the sensibilities of the right hon. Gentleman, and indeed departed from what is normal convention in this place, but he is at this stage in order.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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Thank you for that clarification, Mr Speaker. I am pleased that so far the speech is so good.

An allegation in the Sunday Mirror, with supporting video footage, implied that the right hon. Member for Leicester East had offered to purchase class A drugs while using the services of escorts.

--- Later in debate ---
Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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I am here to try to address matters pertaining to the reputation of this House. If the right hon. Member for Warley (Mr Spellar) wishes to make light of that, it is for his conscience, not mine. I am here to make my speech and force a vote, in which he will be at liberty to make his opinion known.

In July this year, the Home Affairs Committee published a report calling for the decriminalisation of soliciting by sex workers and of sex workers sharing premises. It also looked at the use of poppers. The Committee, at the time, was chaired by the right hon. Member for Leicester East. Following the much publicised exposé in the Sunday Mirror, he decided—belatedly, in my view—to resign from his position. But here we are, only a relatively few weeks later, and the same Member seeks a position on the prestigious and influential Justice Committee while matters relating to his recent resignation remain unresolved.

I wrote to Scotland Yard on 5 September to establish whether a crime had been committed by the right hon. Gentleman with regards to the allegation of conspiracy to supply a controlled substance. I received a letter, dated 9 September, from Commander Stuart Cundy of the specialist crime investigation unit, stating that an assessment of the information had commenced and that, following that assessment, a decision would be taken on the most appropriate course of action. No course of action has yet been determined by Scotland Yard, so a possible police investigation still hangs over the right hon. Gentleman.

Also on 5 September, I wrote to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards with regard to the right hon. Gentleman. An investigation was instigated and then immediately suspended, as is the procedure, pending the results of the police assessment. Should Scotland Yard decide in due course not to investigate the said Member with regards to potential criminal activity, the parliamentary standards investigation will commence immediately.

It is fair to say that the right hon. Member for Leicester East has quite a history regarding parliamentary standards. He was subject to extensive inquiries by Elizabeth Filkin, the then commissioner, into allegations of misconduct in 2001 and 2002. He was suspended from the House for one month in 2002 for breaches of the MPs’ code of conduct. I do not intend to list all the right hon. Gentleman’s brushes with parliamentary standards as I do not wish to detain colleagues longer than necessary.

Further to my letter to the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis, in which I urged Scotland Yard to liaise with Leicestershire police, it has been stated that four witnesses have confirmed that they were recently interviewed by Leicestershire police and that their inquiries have been going on for at least a year. Those inquiries concern allegations that the right hon. Member for Leicester East abused his position in public office—

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

Order. The hon. Gentleman will resume his seat. He will know that I take advice on these matters. Having treated of matters that are very much within the public domain until now, his speech has strayed from there. I have consulted on the matter and he is now treating of matters that are not in the same category. He must desist.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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Thank you, Mr Speaker. I have raised concerns with you about the conduct of the right hon. Member for Leicester East historically—

--- Later in debate ---
John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

Order. The hon. Gentleman will resume his seat. Let me say clearly to the hon. Gentleman, and in terms that brook no contradiction, that he would be unwise to go into those matters. He has written to me and I have written back to him. I explained to him factually—factually—in a manner that cannot be disputed or gainsaid that it is not for the Speaker of this House to seek to persuade someone to step down as the Chair of a Committee because of suspicions that some people might have about him. That is not the role of the Speaker of the House of Commons. If the hon. Gentleman were a more experienced Member, he would probably be aware of that fact. I urge the hon. Gentleman to focus on those matters which it is proper and legitimate for him to raise, and not upon those which it is not.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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Thank you. Mr Speaker, you have often said that this place must reflect the society for which we make the laws—I agree with you. I respectfully point out to the House that in any other sphere of activity, a candidate with so much hanging unresolved over him would be very unlikely to be considered for such an important office. If the right hon. Gentleman were in the Chamber today, I would ask him to stand down from his nomination, but he is not, so I ask the House to reject his appointment. Otherwise, we cannot blame the great British public for having a low opinion of its politicians and its politics; we can only blame ourselves.

In conclusion, I will leave the House with this question. If the right hon. Member for Leicester East thought himself only last month not fit to be a member of the Home Affairs Committee, and given that the matters relating his resignation are, as I have explained, unresolved, what makes him think that he is a fit and proper person to be a member of the Justice Committee this month?

Jake Berry Portrait Jake Berry (Rossendale and Darwen) (Con)
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Before my hon. Friend draws his remarks to a conclusion, some correspondence has been referred to this evening. I wonder if he will say whether it is possible to publish that correspondence to ensure that hon. Members on both sides of the House have an opportunity to consider all of the facts.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

Order. That is nothing to do with the debate, as I have just been advised by the Clerk of the House. Don’t frown at me, Mr Berry. I know the facts and you’re about to learn them. That is nothing to do with the debate tonight—point one. Secondly, there is no uncertainty or dubiety whatsoever about the correspondence between the hon. Gentleman and me. Indeed, I do not think there is any uncertainty at all about the advice that was proffered not just by me but by the Clerk of the House. Whether he wishes and is astute enough to take that advice is another matter.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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Thank you, Mr Speaker. I thank my hon. Friend’s failed attempt to help in this debate.

It is clear that the right hon. Member for Leicester East felt the need to resign last month from the Home Affairs Committee. I think it would be a huge mistake for this House now to place him on the Justice Committee when he has so many questions to answer. I urge all right hon. and hon. Members to vote against his appointment this evening.

Question put.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 29th February 2016

(8 years ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

Order. Resume your seat, Secretary of State. I appreciate the earnestness and commitment of the hon. Lady, but questions must be about Government policy, for which Ministers are responsible—

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

Order. Be quiet, Mr Bridgen! Ministers are responsible for Government policy, not that of the Opposition. On the Government’s policy, the Secretary of State will comment; on that of the Opposition, he will not.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 8th February 2016

(8 years, 1 month ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

I understand the Minister. It is humbling indeed to be praised by someone of the exalted status of the right hon. Member for Leicester East (Keith Vaz).

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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14. What estimate he has made of the average difference in council tax paid by residents of urban and rural areas.

Petition

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Wednesday 20th January 2016

(8 years, 2 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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This petition is about the BBC licence fee. It declares that the petitioners are dissatisfied with the BBC licence fee of £145.50, and notes that 50 MPs recently demanded an urgent Government review of BBC funding. For almost 20 years, the Magistrates Association has been calling for the decriminalisation of TV licence evasion, and it is concerned that evaders are punished disproportionately.

In 2014, 52.8 million letters were sent out to suspected evaders, which were followed up by 3.8 million visits by TV licensing enforcement officers. That resulted in 204,018 prosecutions or out of court disposals, of which 24,025 were ultimately unsuccessful. Further to that, there were 40 imprisonments for an average of 20 days, for non-payment of associated fines. It should be noted by the House that the licence fee represents a much higher proportion of income for poorer households, and it gives an unfair advantage to one broadcaster and distorts the marketplace.

In conclusion, the petitioners find the BBC’s content outdated and biased, and therefore do not wish to fund it. Further to that, an online petition on this matter was signed by 176,079 individuals as of 9 am today. Interestingly, that is approximately the same number of people who are currently—

Following is the full text of the petition:

[The petition of residents of the UK,

Declares that the petitioners are dissatisfied with the BBC licence fee; further that up to 50 MPs recently demanded an urgent Government review of the BBC funding; further that the Magistrates Association has been calling for the decriminalisation of TV licence evasion for nearly 20 years, concerned that evaders are punished disproportionately; further that 52.8 million letters were sent in 2014 to suspected evaders which were followed up by 3.8 million visits by TV licence officers, 204,018 prosecutions (or out of court disposals), of which 24,025 were unsuccessful, and 40 imprisonments, for an average of 20 days; further that the licence fee represents a much higher proportion of income for poor households; further that it gives an unfair advantage to one broadcaster; further that the UK is now perceived less favourably internationally by countries that have never enforced TV licence fees or have abolished their TV licence due to its public broadcaster funding model; further that the petitioners find the BBC's content outdated and biased and therefore do not wish to fund it; and further that an online petition on the matter was signed by 170,000 individuals.

The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to end the BBC licence fee.

And the petitioners remain, etc.]

[P001669]

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - Excerpts

We are grateful. The hon. Gentleman has given us the thrust of his petition. I have been rather generous. It is, to be blunt, over-long. The hon. Gentleman has had his say. We are deeply obliged to him for what he has said, but his oration is now over. What he needs to do is read the prayer and present the petition.

BBC licence fee

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Wednesday 20th January 2016

(8 years, 2 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
- Hansard - -

This petition is about the BBC licence fee. It declares that the petitioners are dissatisfied with the BBC licence fee of £145.50, and notes that 50 MPs recently demanded an urgent Government review of BBC funding. For almost 20 years, the Magistrates Association has been calling for the decriminalisation of TV licence evasion, and it is concerned that evaders are punished disproportionately.

In 2014, 52.8 million letters were sent out to suspected evaders, which were followed up by 3.8 million visits by TV licensing enforcement officers. That resulted in 204,018 prosecutions or out of court disposals, of which 24,025 were ultimately unsuccessful. Further to that, there were 40 imprisonments for an average of 20 days, for non-payment of associated fines. It should be noted by the House that the licence fee represents a much higher proportion of income for poorer households, and it gives an unfair advantage to one broadcaster and distorts the marketplace.

In conclusion, the petitioners find the BBC’s content outdated and biased, and therefore do not wish to fund it. Further to that, an online petition on this matter was signed by 176,079 individuals as of 9 am today. Interestingly, that is approximately the same number of people who are currently—

Following is the full text of the petition:

[The petition of residents of the UK,

Declares that the petitioners are dissatisfied with the BBC licence fee; further that up to 50 MPs recently demanded an urgent Government review of the BBC funding; further that the Magistrates Association has been calling for the decriminalisation of TV licence evasion for nearly 20 years, concerned that evaders are punished disproportionately; further that 52.8 million letters were sent in 2014 to suspected evaders which were followed up by 3.8 million visits by TV licence officers, 204,018 prosecutions (or out of court disposals), of which 24,025 were unsuccessful, and 40 imprisonments, for an average of 20 days; further that the licence fee represents a much higher proportion of income for poor households; further that it gives an unfair advantage to one broadcaster; further that the UK is now perceived less favourably internationally by countries that have never enforced TV licence fees or have abolished their TV licence due to its public broadcaster funding model; further that the petitioners find the BBC's content outdated and biased and therefore do not wish to fund it; and further that an online petition on the matter was signed by 170,000 individuals.

The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to end the BBC licence fee.

And the petitioners remain, etc.]

[P001669]

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

We are grateful. The hon. Gentleman has given us the thrust of his petition. I have been rather generous. It is, to be blunt, over-long. The hon. Gentleman has had his say. We are deeply obliged to him for what he has said, but his oration is now over. What he needs to do is read the prayer and present the petition.

Business of the House

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Thursday 5th November 2015

(8 years, 4 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. Individual Members can undertake their own exegesis of the words of the Leader of the House. That is a matter for them. It would be unfair, however, to delay the delivery of the question from the hon. Member for North West Leicestershire (Andrew Bridgen).

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
- Hansard - -

The UK is facing a critical shortage of heavy goods vehicle drivers. The average age of a lorry driver in this country is now 53 years old, with only 2% of qualified drivers under the age of 25 and 60% over 45. The overall shortage is already estimated at more than 50,000 job vacancies, which could have an immense impact on our economic growth. May we have a debate on how we can get more people into the logistics industry, perhaps through an HGV apprenticeship scheme?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 13th July 2015

(8 years, 8 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Does my hon. Friend agree that under the Scottish National party’s deeply flawed defence plans, this country would have far less ability to detect, intercept and deter potentially hostile vessels in the Irish sea and elsewhere? [Interruption.]

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

Order. Let me just remind the hon. Gentleman, in the most genial spirit but in terms that are unmistakable, that questions must relate to the responsibilities of Ministers, not of other parties. Let us leave it there.

Britain in the World

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 1st June 2015

(8 years, 10 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
- Hansard - -

Does the right hon. Gentleman agree that, at the last election, political parties that did not trust the British people with a referendum on their relationship with the EU were ultimately not trusted in the ballot box—except in Scotland, whose population have, I believe, had enough of referendums for a generation, if not a lifetime? His party is now suggesting that 16 and 17-year-olds should vote, but four weeks ago he did not want anyone to have a vote. He has no credibility in relation to the EU referendum, and neither does his party.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

Order. May I encourage Members, in the kindliest spirit, to be economical with their interventions? Given that 56 Members wish to speak, some consideration of each other would be appreciated.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 9th March 2015

(9 years ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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No, no. I was calling the hon. Member for North West Leicestershire (Andrew Bridgen) to ask about Question 4. Several hon. Members were on their feet in respect of this question.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
- Hansard - -

Does the Minister agree that it is important for us to acknowledge the role that sanctions play as the ultimate backstop in support of our welfare system, particularly as 70% of claimants say that they are more likely to abide by the rules when they know that their benefits are at risk if they do not?

Points of Order

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Tuesday 6th January 2015

(9 years, 2 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
- Hansard - -

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. My hon. Friend the Member for The Wrekin (Mark Pritchard) was today released from police bail. No further action was taken, and, indeed, he was never charged with anything. Given that, unfortunately, he had to be named on the Order Paper in connection with his arrest, do you think, Mr Speaker, that today’s news should also be noted on the Order Paper?

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his point of order, of which I did not have notice, but which is highly topical. What I can say to him, which I hope will be of interest to him and to the House, is that I am today writing—the letter has been drafted, and awaits signature—to the Chairman of the Procedure Committee, the hon. Member for Broxbourne (Mr Walker), requesting that the Committee look into the ancient practice whereby, in such situations, a Member’s arrest is reported to the House, to establish whether, in modern circumstances, such a practice is no longer required, or at any rate, at the very least, requires amendment. I hope that that is helpful to the hon. Gentleman and to others.

Road Investment Strategy

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 1st December 2014

(9 years, 3 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

What a stunning choice. I call Andrew Bridgen.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
- Hansard - -

I feel as if I have been at the back of a long traffic jam to comment on this issue. After decades of promises and work authorised by this Government, the dualling of the A453 will soon be completed, linking my constituency with Nottingham and the east. Since a third of jobs in my constituency are distribution related, my constituents will welcome all today’s announcements about road infrastructure investment. Is my right hon. Friend as incredulous as I am that the shadow Transport Secretary should claim that the motorist has been let down, when Labour represents the party of the fuel duty escalator and the self-confessed failed transport policies of Lord Prescott?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Wednesday 19th November 2014

(9 years, 4 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

Order. Mr Bridgen must be heard.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
- Hansard - -

Thank you, Mr Speaker.

In 2007 the Conservatives gained control of North West Leicestershire district council following 30 years of Labour maladministration and inherited the worst quality council housing in the country. I am pleased to announce that by the middle of next year all the homes in North West Leicestershire will be up to the decent homes standard. Will the Prime Minister join me in congratulating the Conservative group, and does he agree that it is another demonstration of the fact that Labour does not fix the roof when the sun is shining?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 28th April 2014

(9 years, 11 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

I would have called the hon. Member for Norwich South (Simon Wright) if he had been standing, but he is not so I will not.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
- Hansard - -

Will the Minister update the House on how early morning alcohol restriction orders and the levy for late night licence holders are working to contribute to the costs of policing antisocial behaviour?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 31st March 2014

(9 years, 12 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

Order. Mr McCann, I say to you in all courtesy and in all charity that the role of the Parliamentary Private Secretary—you are sitting in the PPS slot—is to nod and shake the head in the appropriate places, and to fetch and carry notes, not to shriek from a sedentary position or gesticulate in an unseemly manner.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Will my right hon. Friend confirm, and remind the House, that universal credit is set to deliver £35 billion of benefit to our economy?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Wednesday 19th March 2014

(10 years ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
- Hansard - -

Following the First Minister’s admission at the weekend that his own fiscal commission working group is looking at not only a plan B but a plan C, D, E and F, is it not the truth that the Scottish National party can offer no certainty for the people of Scotland about currency provision for an independent Scotland? They cannot keep the pound, because—

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

Order. The hon. Gentleman has had his say, but it did not remotely resemble a question.

Transport Infrastructure

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Tuesday 17th December 2013

(10 years, 3 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

Order. The Chair must be very careful when it comes to these matters, but I must say that I found the age-related facet of the hon. Lady’s question utterly implausible.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
- Hansard - -

A suppressed Cabinet Office report on HS2 raises major concerns about its risky construction timetable, its poor management and the insufficient work done on costs, and also questions the capability of those involved in the delivery of the project. Will my right hon. Friend tell us whether the Government are prepared to publish the report by the Major Projects Authority?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Wednesday 27th November 2013

(10 years, 4 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

Order. There is still rather a lot of noise. Let us have a courteous hearing for Mr Andrew Bridgen.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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7. What assessment she has made of the effect of the investment conference held in Belfast in October 2013.

Points of Order

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 21st October 2013

(10 years, 5 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

I am grateful to the right hon. Lady for her point of order. I understand that at this stage these are, in her words, only rumours. Such a decision is a matter for the Government, and if people receive it ill, that should of course reflect on those who are responsible for it rather than on the House as a whole. I can only say to the right hon. Lady that—as I think is evidenced by my approach to proceedings in the House—I am always in favour of a greater opportunity and a longer period for people to make their views known, rather than what might be considered to be an artificial and rather arbitrary truncation of people’s chances to contribute.

I hope very much that the right hon. Lady’s fears can be allayed. The Secretary of State is a very experienced and wily man. There is always a danger that if a consultation is too short for the amount of material on which to consult, or else takes place over the festive season—or another holiday period—a decision by the Government to run it in that way will be regarded as cynical and ill-judged. I know the right hon. Member for Derbyshire Dales (Mr McLoughlin) very well, and I know that he would not be regarded as either cynical or a maker of ill-judged decisions: perish the thought! We will leave it there for today.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
- Hansard - -

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. Last Thursday, during questions following the response to the urgent question, I gave you cause to call my question out of order. I apologise for that. However, you went on to state that it was the 21st occasion on which you had had to do so since 2010. The House of Commons Library informs me that it was, in fact, the second occasion since 2010 on which I had officially had a question called out of order. I know, Mr. Speaker, that on five other occasions you have had to give me the benefit of your advice and experience with regard to my questioning in the Chamber, and I thank you for that, but even if those five occasions are included, the total comes to only seven rather than 21, and represents about one in every 200 of my contributions in the Chamber. Mr. Speaker, may I please put the record straight?

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

There is quite an old piece of advice which is usually regarded as sagacious: when in a hole, stop digging.

I am genuinely grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his point of order, and for his courtesy in giving me notice of what I know he judges to be its import. Although I am not sure that it was strictly a point of order, I am very happy to help the hon. Gentleman in his effort to protect his reputation. I acknowledge that in my anxiety to help him last Thursday, I lured myself into multiplying by three the number of times when I had had occasion to adjust his line of questioning. As he rightly says, the number was not 21; it just felt like it. [Laughter.]

I am happy not only to allow the correction to lie upon the record, but to assure the hon. Gentleman of my hope, and confidence, that his score will never reach double figures. I thank him for the good humour that he has shown in this matter.

We will now proceed to the debate on the future of the BBC, which is very heavily subscribed.

Al-Madinah Free School

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Thursday 17th October 2013

(10 years, 5 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Urgent Questions are proposed each morning by backbench MPs, and up to two may be selected each day by the Speaker. Chosen Urgent Questions are announced 30 minutes before Parliament sits each day.

Each Urgent Question requires a Government Minister to give a response on the debate topic.

This information is provided by Parallel Parliament and does not comprise part of the offical record

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Does my right hon. Friend agree that this urgent question demonstrates the Opposition’s political dogma on education? They are using one failing free school to criticise all free schools. Given that the comprehensive school that I attended is now sadly in special measures, does he not think it is telling that the Labour party is not asking questions—

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. I must have told the hon. Gentleman over three and a half years a score of times—I now tell him for the 21st time—that questions must be about the policy of the Government, not the Opposition; nor is this an occasion for general dilation by Members on their own educational experiences. The urgent question is narrowly focused on a particular school; it is with that, and that alone, that we are concerned. I hope my point has now finally registered with the hon. Gentleman.

Business of the House

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Thursday 17th October 2013

(10 years, 5 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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On a point of order, Mr Speaker.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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There will be no points of order now because we have a statement.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Tuesday 8th October 2013

(10 years, 5 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Last but not least, because I fear otherwise his bubble will burst, I call Mr Andrew Bridgen.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Thank you, Mr Speaker. Does my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State agree that transparency must be at the heart of any procurement reform in his Department— transparency for the taxpayer, and transparency for companies competing for Government contracts?

Arms to Syria

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Thursday 11th July 2013

(10 years, 8 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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I also congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Basildon and Billericay (Mr Baron) on securing this important debate on parliamentary consent for arming the Syrian rebels.

Last month, I wrote to the Prime Minister to highlight what I believed were the very real concerns among colleagues and the public about the possibility of British involvement in Syria escalating, and I asked for assurances that prior to any decisions being taken to supply arms to the Syrian National Coalition, or any other groups in Syria, a full debate and vote would be held in Parliament, and that if Parliament were in recess, it would be recalled to facilitate this important debate. In addition, I wrote that I believed that the division and sensitivity the issue evoked, among colleagues across the House and the general public, dictated that the matter be subjected to full parliamentary scrutiny and debate before we potentially became further involved in another middle eastern conflict.

More than 80 colleagues on the Government Benches co-signed the letter, as they were concerned that this action could be taken without the consent of this House. The only precedent during this Parliament for the use of military intervention abroad is Libya, where a Government motion was carried after the intervention had started. I accept that events dictated that swift action was necessary in that case and that in some matters of defence time does not always allow for a parliamentary debate, but I do not believe that this constraint applies to the proposal to arm rebels in Syria. I point out that I still await a response from the Prime Minister to the letter.

On my specific concerns about arming Syrian rebel groups, I return to Libya and what has happened since the collapse of the Gaddafi regime during the Arab spring. Professor Michael Clarke, when giving evidence to the Foreign Affairs Select Committee a couple of weeks ago, stated:

“There is a lot of evidence that Libyan weapons are now circulating pretty freely in the Levant”—

the Levant comprising several countries in the eastern Mediterranean with unstable regimes or internal issues. He also made the following shrewd observation:

“Weapons never go out of Commission; they just go somewhere else. Almost all weapons find a new home once a war is over”.

That sums up two principal concerns of many Members: about the groups it is proposed be armed and about what control we and other NATO members would have over those arms once supplied. The evidence in Libya suggests that the new Government have little control over weapons stocks and that they have seeped out of their control, no doubt finding their way on to the weapons open market and into the hands of the highest bidder.

These concerns need to be addressed in a parliamentary debate, especially given that they are held by many groups and individuals outside the House. For instance, Amnesty International has stated:

“Unless the UK government can first ensure and demonstrate that such requirements are met and there does not remain a substantial risk of misuse for serious violations of human rights or International humanitarian law they should not supply any weapons or munitions to any Syrian armed opposition groups.”

It also points out that although it is clear that the Syrian Government are committing the majority of war crimes, armed opposition groups are increasingly resorting to hostage taking and to the torture and summary killing of soldiers, members of pro-Government militias and civilians.

As my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Kensington (Sir Malcolm Rifkind) said, on 14 June the United States announced that it would supply direct military aid to the Syrian opposition. I would ask the question—

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman, but I must now call Mr Walter.

High Speed Rail (Preparation) Bill

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Wednesday 26th June 2013

(10 years, 9 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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On a point of order, Mr Speaker. I seek your advice on where the £10 billion of extra funding, which was announced for HS2, has come from. The House has divided on important matters without being aware of whether the extra £10 billion will come out of existing budgets—meaning the curtailment of existing projects—the deficit or the comprehensive spending review. I was keen to ask the Minister about that while he was at the Dispatch Box, but as you saw, Mr Speaker, he was keen not to answer my question.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his point of order. I will deal with his second point first and his first point second. On his second point, I am sure he will appreciate that this is not a matter for the Chair. Some Ministers, when delivering winding-up speeches, are comfortable with taking interventions, depending on time considerations and other matters. Other Ministers decline to do so and are absolutely within their rights, so this is not a matter for the Chair. He may wish to pursue this matter in conversations with Ministers, and it is proper for him to do so. On the other point, that will come out in the course of debate over a sustained period. The hon. Gentleman will doubtless represent his constituents assiduously on the matter. We will leave it there, and we are grateful to the hon. Gentleman.

high speed rail (preparation) bill (programme)

Motion made, and Question put forthwith (Standing Order No. 83A(7)),

That the following provisions shall apply to the High Speed Rail (Preparation) Bill:

Committal

(1) The Bill shall be committed to a Public Bill Committee.

Proceedings in Public Bill Committee

(2) Proceedings in the Public Bill Committee shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a conclusion on Thursday 18 July 2013.

(3) The Public Bill Committee shall have leave to sit twice on the first day on which it meets.

Consideration and Third Reading

(4) Proceedings on Consideration shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a conclusion one hour before the moment of interruption on the day on which those proceedings are commenced.

(5) Proceedings on Third Reading shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a conclusion at the moment of interruption on that day.

(6) Standing Order No. 83B (Programming committees) shall not apply to proceedings on Consideration and Third Reading.

Other proceedings

(7) Any other proceedings on the Bill (including any proceedings on consideration of Lords Amendments or on any further messages from the Lords) may be programmed.—(Mr Syms.)

Question agreed to.

high speed rail (preparation) bill (money)

Queen’s recommendation signified.

Motion made, and Question put forthwith (Standing Order No. 52(1)(a)),

That, for the purposes of any Act resulting from the High Speed Rail (Preparation) Bill, it is expedient to authorise the payment out of money provided by Parliament of expenditure incurred by the Secretary of State under or by virtue of the Act.—(Mr Syms.)

Question agreed to.

Business of the House

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Thursday 13th June 2013

(10 years, 9 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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May we have a debate on the current and future prospects for private sector employment? As we know, since 2010, 1.3 million new private sector jobs have been created and total employment stands at just a shade under 30 million. In my constituency unemployment fell by 79 last month and has fallen by 248 in the past 12 months. In addition, two private sector projects are set to create more than 8,000 new jobs over the next three years. All this in a constituency that is already in the top 20 for economic growth in the country.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Too long. I ask the hon. Gentleman to exercise a degree of self-restraint. He heard me earlier exhorting colleagues on both sides to be briefer. He should not then indulge himself in a long-winded question. He might have to wait a little longer for his next question than he otherwise would have done.

Income Tax

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Wednesday 28th November 2012

(11 years, 4 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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Will not the hon. Lady be honest with this House and this country? This was a Trojan horse of a tax brought in at the very fag end of the Labour Government as part of a scorched-earth policy that has been shown to have cost the Exchequer almost £7 billion already—something else that the previous Government messed up and that this Government have to put right.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. In using the word “honest”, it should be taken as read that Members are always honest in the Chamber.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 19th November 2012

(11 years, 4 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Does my right hon. Friend agree that participation in future PCC elections will improve, as excellent candidates such as Sir Clive Loader in Leicestershire will be able to point to a record of achievement? Does he agree, too, that one method of increasing voter participation that should not be encouraged, and should be resisted at all costs, is giving prisoners the vote in these or any other elections?

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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I remind the Minister that we are discussing reducing bureaucracy in policing.

EU Council

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 2nd July 2012

(11 years, 9 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Given that the UK is running a large trade deficit with the rest—[Interruption.]

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. We must hear Mr Bridgen.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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Given that the UK is running a large trade deficit with the rest of the EU, does my right hon. Friend agree that our European partners would have much to lose from erecting trade barriers with this country, if the British people decided to leave the EU?

E-Tabling of Written Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 26th March 2012

(12 years ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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On a point of order, Mr Speaker.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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The hon. Gentleman was a bit slow on the uptake. I told him that he should do his point of order before the Adjournment, but anyway we will give him a go.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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What powers do you have, Mr Speaker, to censure Her Majesty’s Opposition, who spent five days opposing the cut in the top rate of tax from 50p and then abstained from voting in the Lobby?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Thursday 15th December 2011

(12 years, 3 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Will the Minister join me in congratulating the UK Border Agency in processing 95% of all non-settlement applications within three weeks, while acknowledging that many applications are dealt with far faster than that?

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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With particular reference to professional musicians, of course.

Green Investment Bank

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Tuesday 24th May 2011

(12 years, 10 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. The hon. Gentleman will resume his seat. [Interruption.] Order. We are pressed for time, and questions are about the policy of the Government, not of the Opposition. I have made the point several times; I would have thought that the hon. Gentleman had heard it by now.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Historically, whatever services the Government decide to offer, the private sector tends to withdraw from them, so what steps is the Secretary of State taking to ensure that the green investment bank complements private sector investment in green technologies and does not merely replace it?

Vocational Education

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Thursday 12th May 2011

(12 years, 10 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Does the Secretary of State agree that it is a sign of the last Government’s failure to improve education that more than 250,000 children left school last year without a C grade in GCSE maths and English?

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. The short answer is no, and let me repeat to the hon. Gentleman what I have already had reason to say to him several times: questions must be about the policy of the current Government. I have made that point to him before, and he has breached the requirement several times. He will not do so again.

Business of the House

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Thursday 17th March 2011

(13 years ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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It has been a bad week for the shadow Chancellor. First, he was wrong about being able to obtain an EU derogation for VAT on fuel. Then he did not seem to know whether we were planning to cut—

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. The hon. Gentleman will resume his seat. Business questions are an occasion for requests for statements and debates in the following week, and not for prefacing questions with lengthy descriptions of things that have happened to another party. That is not an orderly way to proceed. I hope I do not have to say that again. We will move on to someone else.

Points of Order

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 14th March 2011

(13 years ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his point of order. My sense is that he will want to table further—I use that word advisedly, as I dare say he has already tabled them—parliamentary questions precisely to identify the point on which he wants a specific answer. I think that is probably about as much helpful advice as I can give today, but I see the Secretary of State for Defence in his place and he will have heard the concern expressed.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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On a point of order, Mr Speaker. With regard to the comments of the hon. Member for Dunfermline and West Fife (Thomas Docherty), who is no longer in his place, I urge all right hon. and hon. Members to consult the Hansard record for Prime Minister’s Question Time two weeks ago, which shows that there has been a considerable shift in the position of Labour Members on no-fly zones.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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No. That is not a point of order. I yield to none in admiration for the attendance record and level of commitment that the hon. Member has shown over the past 10 months, but he must not abuse the point of order procedure to score what some people might well think is a purely partisan point. That is very untoward. I am sure he will not do that again.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 28th February 2011

(13 years ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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I call Pat Glass. She is not here. I call Andrew Bridgen.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Does my right hon. Friend agree that it is now more important than ever that local councils maintain and strengthen their links to community and voluntary groups, because these very groups can lead to innovative ways of delivering very high quality public services?

Libya and the Middle East

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 28th February 2011

(13 years ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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Does the Prime Minister agree that much of what we have heard from the Opposition over the past week, at the height of the Libyan crisis, has been nothing short of naked political opportunism, and that the deputy leader of the Labour party should apologise for comments that she posted on Twitter, when she said:

“Rapid deployment force not rapid”—

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. I am always interested to hear the hon. Gentleman, who is an extremely keen and assiduous new parliamentarian, but I am afraid he is asking the Prime Minister about something for which even the Prime Minister does not actually have responsibility, so we will leave it there.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. We will leave it there.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Thursday 4th November 2010

(13 years, 4 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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The right hon. Lady, whom I have known for 15 years, is unfailingly courteous, and I think that will be very much appreciated by the House.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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The heart of the new national forest lies in my beautiful constituency of North West Leicestershire. Will the Minister assure the House that any sale of Forestry Commission assets will not reduce public access or enjoyment of our woods and forests?

Points of Order

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Thursday 4th November 2010

(13 years, 4 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. It is absolutely legitimate for Members of the House, including members of the Government, to take a view about a particular Bill. That is the short answer to the attempted point of order from the hon. Gentleman.

Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)
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On a point of order, Mr Speaker. I would like to bring to your attention the huge difference in the time that it takes to get letters from various Ministers. Should we introduce a maximum time for responses to legitimate questions from Back-Bench MPs?

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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A number of Departments have target response times. The hon. Gentleman says that he is raising a point of order with me, but it is not a matter specifically and directly for the Chair. He has, however, raised his concerns in front of the Leader of the House, who will have heard them. I feel sure that the right hon. Gentleman will attach importance to ensuring that those concerns are heeded.

Aviation Security Incident

Debate between Andrew Bridgen and John Bercow
Monday 1st November 2010

(13 years, 4 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Bridgen Portrait Andrew Bridgen
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In other words, what we need to do is avoid UK-only measures.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. I think that we have got the drift of the hon. Gentleman’s inquiry.