HC Deb 06 July 1993 vol 228 cc183-5 3.30 pm
Mr. Derek Enright (Hemsworth)

On a point of order, Madam Speaker. You will recall that a few weeks ago, the new Minister of State for the Armed Forces, to whom I have given notice of my intention to raise this point, proclaimed at the Dispatch Box his concern for the welfare of the serving men and women of this country. As a result, I wrote to the Secretary of State for Defence about my constituent, Brian Marshall, from south Kirby, who is suffering from what is known as desert fever. That gentleman has lost two stone in weight and is having difficulty climbing stairs—

Madam Speaker

Order. Will the hon. Member come to the point of order for me?

Mr. Enright

Having written to the right hon. Gentleman about the matter, I was astonished last evening to hear the Minister of State declare on television that he had received no representations about people suffering from desert fever. I suggest that that is unacceptable behaviour—

Madam Speaker

Order. I am sure that the hon. Member appreciates that I shall not allow a debate on the matter. It is not an issue for me. He must take it up with the Minister concerned. I cannot adjudicate on the accuracy of what is said in the course of television programmes—

The Minister of State for the Armed Forces (Mr. Jeremy Hanley)

rose

Madam Speaker

—and that is the end of that.

Mr. Robert Maclennan (Caithness and Sutherland)

On a point of order, Madam Speaker. The House will know that there has been a serious incursion into the precincts of Buckingham palace and an evident lack of security, with no fewer than 17 people within the curtilage. The Home Secretary is at present the police authority for London, and is responsible for the protection of Her Majesty.

I am wondering, Madam Speaker, whether you have received a request for a statement to be made about the matter to the House and, if not, whether the Home Secretary, having heard this exchange, will lose no opportunity to come forward and explain what steps have been taken.

Madam Speaker

I have not received a communication from a Minister seeking to make a statement. The occupants of the Treasury Bench will have heard what the hon. Gentleman said.

Mr. Hanley

rose

Madam Speaker

Do I understand that the hon. Member for Halifax (Mrs. Mahon) is rising?

Mrs. Alice Mahon (Halifax)

Yes, on a point of order, Madam Speaker. You correctly pointed out to the hon. Member for Castle Point (Dr. Spink) that he was out of order. May I ask you to point out to him also that we in the Labour party refer to one member, one vote, and not one man, one vote?

Madam Speaker

I understand the point that the hon. Lady is putting to me. When I was a Back Bencher, I used to get very annoyed when speakers referred all the time to "hon. Gentlemen".

Mr. Hanley

rose

Madam Speaker

Order. I have dealt with the point of order about which I think the Minister is seeking to rise. I must deal with Ministers and Back Benchers in exactly the same way. Having dealt with the point of order, it is now a question between the hon. Member for Hemsworth (Mr. Enright) and the Minister. They must resolve it between them. It is not a matter for the Chair.

Mr. Patrick Cormack (Staffordshire, South)

Reverting to the point of order raised by the hon. Member for Caithness and Sutherland (Mr. Maclennan), when Princess Anne was apprehended by a madman in Pall Mall, the Home Secretary gave a statement that very day. I am sure that the House would wish to know precisely what has happened at Buckingham Palace today.

Madam Speaker

I am sure that those on the Government Front Bench have noted the wishes of the House.

Mr. Hugh Dykes (Harrow, East)

I hope that you, Madam Speaker, will allow me to make my point, and forgive me if it appears to return to a previous point. As the hon. Member for Hemsworth (Mr. Enright) did not begin with a proper point of order, how can it be fair for the Minister to he prevented from giving an answer?

Madam Speaker

I have to deal with so many bogus points of order in this place—I have hardly heard a genuine point of order in the past six months.

Mr. Harry Barnes (Derbyshire, North-East)

How long should it take for an answer to be given in Hansard after a question is posed? On 3 December, my hon. Friend the Member for Kingston upon Hull, North (Mr. McNamara) asked for information to be provided from the Northern Ireland Office about people who had been killed due to paramilitary violence, and the sites of the killings. I asked a similar but wider question of the Prime Minister on 7 June and requested information about those killed by paramilitary violence in Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The information forthcoming in both instances was, "This material will be supplied in the Library in due course.- The "due course" seems to be a tremendous amount of time. It might be appropriate for us to follow up those questions today, the day on which John Matthews has been released. He had faced a false charge involving the London taxi bombs. The City of Derry is celebrating the fact that today that false accusation has not been carried through. We need information about who has been correctly convicted.

Madam Speaker

It is a matter for the Minister, and I suggest that, if the hon. Gentleman tables a further question, he might be able to obtain the information that he now seeks.

Mr. Graham Riddick (Colne Valley)

I apologise for raising this point, Madam Speaker, but you have always been terribly fair. When someone has raised a bogus point of order or tried to score a point at another hon. Member's expense, you have always been fair and allowed the subject of the point of order to respond, if only briefly. I wonder whether you might consider allowing my hon. Friend the Minister to do that.

Madam Speaker

The hon. Gentleman has not been following my habits in the past year. Once I have dealt with a point of order, even if it is a bogus one, that is the end of it. I will not allow exchanges on bogus points of order to continue across the Chamber.