Oral Answers to Questions

Philip Hollobone Excerpts

Wednesday 3rd November 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. There is far too much noise in the Chamber. It is a veritable commotion. I want to hear Mr Philip Hollobone.

[Mr Philip Hollobone (Kettering) (Con)]

12. Whether she plans to amend the administration and staff costs in her Department’s budget for 2010-11.

[The Secretary of State for Wales (Mrs Cheryl Gillan)]

My Department’s budget for 2010-11 was fixed as part of the comprehensive spending review. On costs within my Department, since taking office I have been exploring ways to find efficiency savings and have already achieved significant savings on rail travel and hotel accommodation.

[Mr Hollobone]

Does the Secretary of State have any plans to reduce the number of days taken in sick leave by staff in her Department, so that it is the best in the public sector?

[Mrs Gillan]

I am not aware that there are different rates of sick leave in my Department from any other, but I will undertake to my hon. Friend to have a look at the records in my Department and return to the point in writing to him.

--- Later in debate ---

[The Prime Minister]

This issue is currently under consideration, and I am sure that the hon. Gentleman will be one of the first to find out the result.

[Mr Philip Hollobone (Kettering) (Con)]

Q5. In the year to March, more than 1,000 foreign nationals in Northamptonshire applied for indefinite leave to remain in the United Kingdom, and a massive 80% of those applications were approved. Will my right hon. Friend reassure my constituents that, in this Government’s legitimate efforts to reduce the backlog of asylum claims left by the previous Government, people will not simply be waved through and offered indefinite stays?

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend makes a very good point. There is always a danger when there is a big backlog—we have been left one of 400,000 to 450,000 of asylum records—to just wave them through, but I assure him that there will be no amnesty. All cases will be considered on their individual merits. We are committed to getting immigration and asylum issues under control. We are looking at the last Government’s points system, and even under their tier 1 of highly skilled people, it turns out that around 30% of those given leave to remain are in low-skilled roles. The current system is not working, and we are going to sort it out.