Business of the House Debate

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Department: Leader of the House

Business of the House

Charlie Elphicke Excerpts
Thursday 27th October 2011

(12 years, 6 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Lord Young of Cookham Portrait Sir George Young
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Yes, I bicycled past the turbine and contrasted the horsepower that it represented with the horsepower on the bicycle. My hon. Friend might just have been in the House for BIS questions in which we had a very good exchange on apprenticeships. I pay tribute to what my hon. Friend the Minister for Further Education, Skills and Lifelong Learning has done. We promised 50,000 extra apprenticeships in 2010-11, but we have actually delivered more than 100,000.

Charlie Elphicke Portrait Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Con)
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May we have a debate on what the Government are doing to be more family-friendly? Child care, child tax credits, Sure Start and the role of health visitors all matter greatly to people in Dover and Deal.

Lord Young of Cookham Portrait Sir George Young
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I welcome my hon. Friend’s question, which contained within it the answer, as he outlined a number of measures—child tax credit for struggling families, early years support for vulnerable two-year-olds, more support for child care within universal credit and increasing the number of health visitors. The Government would welcome such a debate; perhaps he would like to initiate one in Westminster Hall.