§ Mr. Max Madden (Bradford, West)On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. My point of order concerns the hon. Member for Bury St. Edmunds (Sir E. Griffiths) and I have given him notice that I intend to refer to him. Yesterday, the hon. Gentleman referred to leaflets which expressed views that no hon. Member, and few people outside, would either espouse or condone. He said:
Will my right hon. Friend, with the support of the Opposition Front Bench, not beseech local authorities that are financing that sort of literature to stop handing out the ratepayers' money for that purpose?"—[Official Report. 26 January 1987; Vol. 109, c. 24.]As the hon. Gentleman is the parliamentary adviser to the Police Federation, it might be assumed that that information had been passed to him by the Police Federation or that, in turn, his views were endorsed or supported by the Police Federation.
I should like you to confirm two things, Mr. Speaker. The Home Secretary advised the hon. Gentleman that if he had any literature or any other sort of evidence to pass it to the police inquiry. Will you confirm, Mr. Speaker, that you, and through you, the Table Office, will accept questions from Members about evidence submitted to the police inquiry from the hon. Member for Bury St. Edmunds and others? Secondly, if, after reflecting upon what he said, he wished to withdraw his serious allegations against local authorities, would you confirm that the best way for him to do that would be to make an early personal statement?
§ Mr. SpeakerWhat the hon. Member for Bradford, West (Mr. Madden) has said really follows what the hon. Member for Teignbridge (Mr. Nicholls) said earlier. It is impossible for the Speaker to make a judgment in the Chamber during a supplementary question as to whether what has been said is accurate. That cannot be a matter for me; it must be a matter for the hon. Member concerned. With regard to tabling questions, I cannot rule on what is plainly a hypothetical matter. The hon. Gentleman must approach the Table Office on that.