Points of Order (Hansard, 27 January 1992)

§ Mr. David Martin (Portsmouth, South)
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. This concerns your responsibility for the accuracy of the parliamentary record. In the important debate on poverty last Thursday, the hon. Member for Oldham, West (Mr. Meacher), at col. 514 of Hansard, suggested that extra national insurance payments would be payable under Labour by some people earning less than £21,000 a year. However, over the weekend, the deputy Leader of the Opposition contradicted that. Would it be possible for Hansard to be corrected—

§ Mr. Speaker
Order. With the best will in the world, I am not responsible for what was said over the weekend or for what may to be a contradiction. That is not a matter of order in the Chamber.

Several hon. Members
rose—

§ Mr. Speaker
Order. Today is a rare opportunity for Ulster Members to have parliamentary time. They would be very unhappy if that time was taken from them by points of order of this kind.

§ Mr. Martin
Perhaps the Hansard report can be corrected or the Opposition spokesman can come to the House and correct his party's blunders.

§ Mr. Norman Hogg (Cumbernauld and Kilsyth)
On a point of order arising from questions today and statements in the press yesterday, Mr. Speaker. It is clear that Ministers are intent on a campaign of vilification and attack on Mr. Bruce Millan, the European Commissioner responsible for regional development. Leading that charge has been the right hon. Member for Henley (Mr. Heseltine)—that elegant nonentity whose only claim to fame was that he helped rid the nation of the right hon. Member for Finchley (Mrs. Thatcher). So he has some track record.

§ Mr. Speaker
I know, but what is the point of order for me?

§ Mr. Hogg
My point of order is that, if the Government are having a difference with someone as important as a European Commissioner over such a substantial sum of European and public money, and with the charges that the British Treasury is laundering that money, surely a Minister should have been at the Dispatch Box today to make a statement. Why was there no statement?

§ Mr. Speaker
I do not know, but the issue arose several times at Question Time. The right hon. Bruce Millan is no longer a Member of this House and therefore is not protected by privilege here.

§ Mr. Peter Thurnham (Bolton, North-East)
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. I seek your advice on a very serious matter. I should like your guidance on what steps can be taken to curb a continuing abuse of the facilities of this House at serious unauthorised cost to taxpayers.
Last week, my attention was drawn to a document headed "Oldham, Central and Royton Labour Party" about the "Royal Oldham Hospital Opt-out", and bearing the name of Mr Bryan Davies, a former Member of this House who still works in the precincts of the House and who is the prospective parliamentary condidate for 706 Oldham, Central and Royton. There are to be 4,000 copies of that document, and it is purported to be printed and published by Cath Ball at 110 Union street, Oldham.
The document is actually being printed at the taxpayers' expense on the two photocopiers next to my desk in the House of Commons. Both photocopiers have been set for multiple copies, and both have run out of paper. That is clearly an unauthorised and flagrant abuse of the facilities of this House and an unauthorised use of taxpayers' money. Should you not summon Mr. Davies to the Bar of the House—[Interruption.] Should not his candidature be declared invalid?

§ Mr. Speaker
What the hon. Member should do—[Interruption.] Order, please. What the hon. Member should do is to draw the matter to the attention of the Serjeant at Arms, and it will be investigated further.

§ Mr. Robert G. Hughes (Harrow, West)
Further to that point of order, Mr. Speaker.

§ Mr. Speaker
There is no "further" to it at all: I have dealt with it.

§ Mr. Geoffrey Dickens (Littleborough and Saddleworth)
With respect—

§ Mr. Speaker
With respect—no.

Several Hon. Members
rose—

§ Mr. Speaker
Mr. Skinner.

§ Mr. Denis Skinner (Bolsover)
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. [Interruption.] Now hold on a bit.

§ Mr. Speaker
I do not know whether I can do that, but I must hear it first.

§ Mr. Skinner
If we are going to start looking into where money has gone, let us examine how it was that the right hon. Member for Worcester (Mr. Walker) had a job for two months and a £100,000 pay-off and a Mercedes for a penny. There is summat wrong in that.

§ Mr. Speaker
This is the trouble with points of order of this kind. [Interruption.] They tend to be contagious. I repeat that this is a rare opportunity for Ulster Members, and I ask hon. Members to raise points of order with which I can deal—that is to say, within my responsibilities.

§ Mr. Bob Dunn (Dartford)
Further to the point of order raised by my hon. Friend the Member for Bolton, North-East (Mr. Thurnham). It does seem—

§ Mr. Speaker
Order. I have already given my ruling on that and said exactly what the hon. Member should do about it.

§ Mr. Tim Janman (Thurrock)
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. I seek your guidance on a matter that may arise in future. You will know that the—[Interruption.]

§ Mr. Speaker
Order. Something that may arise in future is not a matter for me now.

§ Mr. Don Dixon (Jarrow)
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. Could I be of some assistance? Incidents like this happen almost every day, usually—[Interruption.]—raised by Tory hon. Members, and they are usually dealt with through the usual channels, the Government deputy Chief Whip, myself and the Serjeant at Arms. If the Government want to fetch every one of those issues to the 707 Floor of the House, I am quite prepared to do exactly the same, and every day we shall have points of order that go on for half an hour—[Interruption.]

§ Mr. Speaker
Order. If there is not some self-discipline, that is exactly what happens. [Interruption.] Points of order can come from both sides of the House. I must say to Conservative Members who are raising points of order of this kind that it is a dangerous game.

§ Mr. Robert G. Hughes
I have raised with you, Mr. Speaker, on several occasions matters similar to that which was brought to your attention by my hon. Friend the Member for Bolton, North-East (Mr. Thurnham).

§ Mr. Speaker
Order. I have dealt with that.

§ Mr. Hughes
I am raising it—

§ Mr. Speaker
Order.

§ Mr. Dickens
On a different matter, Mr. Speaker. Oldham has been mentioned, and as five wards of my constituency fall within the borough of Oldham, this matter very much concerns me. We are talking not about election expenses, but about theft from the House of Commons—[Interruption.]—because there is no doubt that it is a theft of material—

§ Mr. Speaker
Order. I told the hon. Member for Bolton, North-East (Mr. Thurnham), who first raised this matter, that he should draw it to the attention of the Serjeant at Arms, when appropriate action would be taken.

Several Hon. Members
rose

§ Mr. Speaker
Finally—Mr. Janman.

§ Mr. Janman
As you are aware, Mr. Speaker, Opposition Members continually tell the House that their industrial and tax policies have the support of British industry. Is it in order for them to continue clearly to deceive the House, when the chairman of Ford of Britain has said that their policies amount to economic suicide?

§ Mr. Speaker
That is way outside any point of order for me and is an absolute abuse of the system. Let us get on with the Irish debate. I call Mr. Needham.