Oral Answers to Questions

Karen Lumley Excerpts

Wednesday 3rd July 2013 Commons Chamber

[Laura Sandys (South Thanet) (Con)]

2. What recent assessment he has made of the role and importance of the aviation sector in Wales.

[Karen Lumley (Redditch) (Con)]

8. What recent assessment he has made of the role and importance of the aviation sector in Wales.

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

10. What recent assessment he has made of the role and importance of the aviation sector in Wales.

--- Later in debate ---

[Karen Lumley]

Does my right hon. Friend think it is a good use of taxpayers’ money to buy Cardiff International airport?

[Mr Jones]

That is entirely a matter for the Welsh Assembly Government, who have purchased it at a cost of £52 million. Clearly Cardiff does need an international airport, and I very much hope it will develop under the Welsh Government’s tutelage.

--- Later in debate ---

[The Prime Minister]

The right hon. Gentleman goes up and down the country speaking for Len McCluskey. No wonder the former Home Secretary calls them “the party of the graveyard”. I have the press release here: “How Unite plans to change the Labour Party”. [Interruption.] I know you are paid to shout by Unite, but calm down a bit. This is what it says: “We give millions of pounds to the party—the relationship has to change” and

“We want a firmly class-based and left-wing general election campaign”.

That is what this week shows: too weak to sack his Health Secretary, too weak to stand up for free schools, too weak to stand up to the Unite union, too weak to run Labour, and certainly too weak to run the country.

[Karen Lumley (Redditch) (Con)]

Q2. New rules mean that my constituents in Redditch have to register individually if they want to vote to stop electoral fraud. Does my right hon. Friend think the same rules should apply to joining a political party?

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. Individual voter registration is a major step forward, but, frankly, we have a situation with one of this country’s political parties whereby it has become apparent that votes are being bought and people signed up without consent—all done by the man, Len McCluskey, who gave the right hon. Member for Doncaster North (Edward Miliband) his job.