Engagements (Hansard, 30 January 1992)

§ Q5. Mr. Bellingham
To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 30 January.

§ Mr. MacGregor
I have been asked to reply.
I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

§ Mr. Bellingham
Will the Leader of the House find time today to plan a journey from south Norfolk to north-west Norfolk to look at the local health services? He is welcome to bring with him Sir Roy Griffiths. He will see that a number of general practitioner practices have become fundholders, that a local NHS trust has already reduced waiting lists by 1,200 in the last year, and that a district authority is about to merge with a neighbour to give itself more clout. Are not those the results of Tory policies working for the benefit of patients?

§ Mr. MacGregor
My hon. Friend is right. The same is happening in west Norfolk, as well as throughout the country. As a result of the reforms, already in a very short period we see improved services, shortened waiting lists, and so on. Interestingly, we are also seeing increasing support for the reforms from the medical profession itself and increasing take-up of them.

§ Mr. Redmond
Will the Leader of the House convey to the Prime Minister the request that he restore to Back Benchers—[Interruption.]

§ Mr. Speaker
Order. I do not know what the hilarity is about, but please carry on.

§ Mr. Redmond
—the right to examine Government legislation and that he stop the appalling use of the guillotine which stifles it?

§ Mr. MacGregor
We shall be discussing that matter in a short while. I shall make plain our position on today's business.

§ Q6. Mr. Anthony Coombs
To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 30 January.

§ Mr. MacGregor
I have been asked to reply.
I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

§ Mr. Coombs
Does my right hon. Friend agree that it is evidence of the growing success of the Government's education reforms that this year 28,800 people have enrolled for teacher training courses—20 per cent. more than last year and the best figure for 15 years? Is that not in stark contrast with the cynical disregard for educational standards shown by those Labour Members who filibustered on the parents charter Bill last night?

§ Mr. MacGregor
Later today we shall be able to debate further the great improvement in standards that we are achieving as a result of our reforms. My hon. Friend draws attention to one of them. I am delighted with the considerable increase in the number coming forward for teacher training. It reflects the fact that we have considerably improved the salary prospects and career prospects of teachers as a result of all the steps that we have taken in recent years.

§ Q7. Mr. Andrew F. Bennett
To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 30 January.

§ Mr. MacGregor
I have been asked to reply.
I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

§ Mr. Bennett
Will the Leader of the House confirm that although few people in Britain would expect the Prime Minister to match President Yeltsin bottle for bottle, they will find it odd that the Government insist on increasing or doubling Britain's nuclear fire power when both the Russians and the Americans see good reasons for cutting theirs?

§ Mr. MacGregor
The hon. Gentleman raises an important issue and I want to make the position clear. We welcome the proposals to reduce the super-power arsenals. They are wonderful news for all of us. We must hope that the current plans are implemented. But let us be perfectly clear about the scale of what is involved. The present arsenal of the former Soviet republics is 27,000 warheads, and it will take them many years to implement the current proposals. Even at the end of that process, they will have thousands of nuclear weapons. Our deterrent involves one boat on patrol at all times with no more than 128 warheads. So the scale is very different. I believe that the whole country thinks that with the uncertainties in the world—in the middle east and elsewhere, as well as in the Soviet Union—and looking ahead to the next 10 years, it is essential that we maintain our minimum credible nuclear deterrent.