Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Yvonne Fovargue and Oliver Letwin(8 years, 3 months ago)
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Yvonne Fovargue (Makerfield) (Lab)
T5. Many people in my constituency have filled out one form for the whole household to register to vote, as happened under the old system. Their registrations are being processed, but will they be counted in the figures?
Mr Letwin
The hon. Lady will know that anybody who is not on the register as a result of the individual electoral registration exercise will have been approached on nine separate occasions to try to get them to register individually. Everybody now has the chance to register individually under IER on the rolling register in time for the elections.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Yvonne Fovargue and Oliver Letwin(11 years, 7 months ago)
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Yvonne Fovargue (Makerfield) (Lab)
1. What recent discussions he has had with the Deputy Prime Minister on the lobbying White Paper.
The Minister of State, Cabinet Office (Mr Oliver Letwin)
The Deputy Prime Minister has recused himself from any involvement with the question of lobbying due to a possible conflict of interest with his wife’s activities, and therefore I have not had any discussions with him whatsoever about this subject.
Yvonne Fovargue
Will the Minister explain why the Government have failed to bring forward any proposals for a statutory register of lobbyists? It seems that the public want one, the lobbying industry wants one and the Government promised one.
Mr Letwin
Yes, I will explain why we are where we are. The hon. Lady would, I am sure, share my view that it is important when issuing a consultation to pay some attention to the responses received. When we issued the consultation with a set of proposals for a statutory register, an enormous number of responses were received. We are going through them, considering them extremely carefully. The Select Committee on Public Administration also reported on the matter—it was a weighty and serious report—and had a great number of things to say. We are also considering those, and when we have finished that consideration, we will come forward with new proposals.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Yvonne Fovargue and Oliver Letwin(12 years, 1 month ago)
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Yvonne Fovargue (Makerfield) (Lab)
5. What steps he is taking to ensure that the community and voluntary sector is considered in policy formulation in all Departments.
The Minister of State, Cabinet Office (Mr Oliver Letwin)
Our agenda is to give community groups and other voluntary sector organisations a much wider role in fulfilling the demands and needs of the public than they have had in the past. That is why, in considering each of our public service reforms, we have paid particular attention to the question of how the voluntary and community sector can work through them and help them.
Yvonne Fovargue
Research by the NCVO has shown that Government Departments plan to cut a further £444 million of funding from the voluntary and community sector. Does the Minister agree that that is evidence of the complete disregard of his own Government for that sector?
Mr Letwin
Absolutely not. The hon. Lady should look carefully at what we have done in respect of funding of advice services, to which the Parliamentary Secretary, my hon. Friend the Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (Mr Hurd), referred a moment or two ago. In 2010-11, the funding stood at rather less than £200 million, but in 2011-12 it went up and it has almost maintained the 2011-12 levels—still above those of 2010-11—for 2012-13. The Government are investing in the voluntary and community sector, not disinvesting in it.