Business of the House

Debate between Chris Grayling and David Mowat

Thursday 17th March 2016 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

The evidence that we are on the side of workers and young people is the massive increase in the number of apprenticeships and the substantial drop in the number of unemployed young people. We are making real progress in creating opportunities for young people. When I took over as Employment Minister in 2010, I regarded with some trepidation those sessions I had with sixth formers and college students talking about their future prospects; I would have no such trepidation today. They have real opportunities, low unemployment and business investment. It is a transformed picture compared with six years ago.

[David Mowat (Warrington South) (Con)]

For the past two decades, transport infrastructure spend per capita in London has dwarfed that in the English regions, with a ratio of 10:1 with the north-west. The Government now propose to build Crossrail 2 for £28 billion, but it has so far not received any scrutiny in this House. Could the Government make time for a debate on Crossrail 2 so that we can consider it vis-à-vis other transport priorities?

[Chris Grayling]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right about the need to provide balance across the country in investment in infrastructure. If we look back at the Labour Government years, we will see that projects sat on the shelf. When in opposition, I would go around the country and spend time as shadow Transport Secretary talking about the need for projects, but when I go around the country now, I see that they are being built. I was in Newcastle last week, where the A1 is being improved, and the link road between the M6 and the M56 is being built in Cheshire. There is real improvement and change happening around the country in a way that simply did not happen when the Labour party was in power.

Business of the House

Debate between Chris Grayling and David Mowat

Thursday 2nd July 2015 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

My hon. Friend makes an important point. It is very important that we in this country do not criminalise people for making honest mistakes. We criminalise when there is wilful negligence, but not when people make errors in the course of busy jobs. Health questions is next week, and I suggest that he raises that matter directly with the Secretary of State when he is in the House.

[David Mowat (Warrington South) (Con)]

This year marks the 120th anniversary of the sport of rugby league. May we have a debate on the contribution made by the sport, particularly in the north of England? Will the Leader of the House join me in the 120-mile walk, or in part of it, that is taking place this summer?

[Chris Grayling]

My hon. Friend represents the great northern town of Warrington. I once stood there as a candidate, and I visited the local rugby league team to watch it play. I want to take this opportunity to wish the English rugby league team the very best when it takes part in this autumn’s world cup. I also wish all those involved in promoting the anniversary—including those going on the walk in a few weeks’ time—the very best in celebrating a sport that has been and continues to be a really important part of our northern communities.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Chris Grayling and David Mowat

Tuesday 6th May 2014 Commons Chamber

[David Mowat (Warrington South) (Con)]

10. What his policy is on ensuring that legal aid is targeted at people with a strong connection to the UK.

[The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice (Chris Grayling)]

The Government believe that individuals should have a strong connection with the UK in order to benefit from the civil legal aid scheme, and we consider the residence test that we propose to be a fair and appropriate way in which to demonstrate that connection.

[Chris Grayling]

I very much agree with my hon. Friend, although I do not think that Labour Members do, judging by the noises that they have been making. I think that the position is very simple. Our taxpayers pay the costs of civil legal aid, and I do not believe that people should be able to come to this country and have immediate access to our civil legal aid system. The test that we propose is designed to change that. I find it interesting that it is being challenged in court, but I am determined that British taxpayers should not be required to pay for legal aid for people who have no right to it because they have not earned it.

[David Mowat]

According to a written answer that I was given recently, two firms of lawyers that specialise in suing active servicemen, Public Interest Lawyers and Leigh Day, have received £10 million in legal aid in the last three years, and the Ministry of Defence has subsequently spent many more millions on defending those cases. No other country in the world would pay lawyers to sue its own army. When we will stop doing so?

[Chris Grayling]

My proposed residence test would mean that such cases were no longer possible. I think it important for there to be restraints on our legal aid system. I personally find some of the things that we have read about the inquiry into the cases brought as a result of action in Iraq extremely disturbing. I have asked my officials to examine in great detail what has happened, and to consider whether there are appropriate actions for us to take.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Chris Grayling and David Mowat

Tuesday 18th March 2014 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

May I first say that we in this House all abhor such horrendous incidents, and our hearts always go out to the families of the victims. The hon. Lady will of course understand that sentencing guidelines are created by the Sentencing Council, and that we as politicians do not have the power, unless we choose to legislate, to instruct courts how to act in particular circumstances. The message I would always give to courts is that it is the will of the democratically elected Parliament that horrendous and brutal crimes should be dealt with firmly and appropriately.

[David Mowat (Warrington South) (Con)]

The recent orchestrated action by self-employed barristers in protection of their commercial interest is prima facie evidence of an anti-competitive cartel. Such a cartel would be illegal under EU and UK competition law. What can we do to uphold the law in this area?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Chris Grayling and David Mowat

Tuesday 17th December 2013 Commons Chamber

[David Mowat (Warrington South) (Con)]

9. What assessment he has made of the potential for further savings to the public purse from the justice system.

[The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice (Chris Grayling)]

Across the spending review period starting in 2010 and running up to March 2015 the Ministry of Justice will have delivered annual savings of well over £2.5 billion. Building on successful delivery of these savings, the Ministry is developing reform plans to transform the way we deal with offenders and make courts, prisons and probation more efficient.

[David Mowat]

A unique feature of the legal aid system in the UK is that we pay a subset of practitioners several multiples of what we pay our Prime Minister. Can the Secretary of State give us some assurance that his changes and amendments to the legal aid system will bear down on those very high salaries, while protecting the majority of barristers who do such good work?

[Chris Grayling]

We have tried very hard in difficult decisions to make sure that we focus as much as possible of the impact of necessary changes to legal aid on the higher end of the income scale. Our changes to very high cost case fees and the approach that we are taking to Crown court fees are designed to ensure that, so far as possible, the impact of our changes is much less on those people at the bottom end of the income scale than it is at the top.

Transforming Legal Aid

Debate between Chris Grayling and David Mowat

Thursday 5th September 2013 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

That is a pretty absurd question, to which the answer is that that is complete nonsense.

[David Mowat (Warrington South) (Con)]

For the avoidance of doubt, will the Secretary of State confirm that the absolute level of savings implied in today’s statement is similar to that in the initial consultation and that we will be moving our costs in this area to a similar level as that in other countries?

[Chris Grayling]

I can give my hon. Friend an absolute assurance on that. In my very first contribution to this debate I said that I have to achieve the financial savings set out in our spending review settlement. I am not wedded to any exact way of doing so; if somebody has a better idea, I am happy to look very closely at it. That is what I have done, and this is the agreement we have reached, and it is just a shame that the Opposition do not understand that.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Chris Grayling and David Mowat

Tuesday 21st May 2013 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

What I want for our probation service is the best of the public, private and voluntary sectors: the public sector has high-quality skills in managing the risk of harm; the private sector can deliver a more efficient system, so that we can release funds to support those offenders who get no support at the moment; and the voluntary sector has the kind of mentoring skills we so desperately need to help people turn their lives around.

[David Mowat (Warrington South) (Con)]

T4. Our criminal justice system may be the most expensive in the world, perhaps by a factor of two or three times, and yet we continue, as a state, to pay many practitioners several hundreds of thousand pounds a year more than we pay surgeons or scientists. This practice is of course enthusiastically supported by the Bar Council, and apparently by Opposition Front Benchers. Can the Secretary of State confirm that his consultation will at last bring to bear competition and market forces?

[Chris Grayling]

It certainly brings competition to bear. We are trying to take tough decisions on legal aid in a way that, where possible, impacts on the top end, not the bottom end, of the income scale. That is what we believe in, and I am surprised that Labour Members appear to disagree with us.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Chris Grayling and David Mowat

Tuesday 19th March 2013 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

I am absolutely clear that it is not acceptable for people who have been the victims of horrible crimes to discover, without their knowing anything about it, that those who committed those crimes, having served an appropriate sentence, are on the streets again. I intend to ask the new victims commissioner to look into this as a matter of urgency. Tragically, she has direct experience of how this can affect families, and I believe there is nobody better qualified to fulfil that role. I absolutely understand the point the hon. Gentleman is making.

[David Mowat (Warrington South) (Con)]

T6. A continuing issue is convicted criminals who hide their wealth or in other ways refuse to abide by financial assessment orders. Is there more we can do in this area?