§ Mr. David Lidington (Aylesbury)On a point of order, Madam Speaker. Is it in order for the House to summon to the Bar a British citizen who is also a European Commissioner, so that we can hold Commissioner Kinnock to account for the way in which he is seeking to undermine our efforts to lift the export ban on British beef?
§ Madam SpeakerThere is no way in which the action that the hon. Gentleman suggests can take place.
§ Mr. Keith Mans (Wyre)On a point of order, Madam Speaker. I seek your guidance on an event that took place during Question Time this afternoon. When the hon. Member for Oldham, West (Mr. Meacher) asked a question, I clearly saw the hon. Member for Hartlepool (Mr. Mandelson) standing next to your Chair to check on what the hon. Gentleman said. When, for once, the hon. Member for Oldham, West seemed to be in tune with new Labour, the hon. Member for Hartlepool slipped out without having the courtesy to listen to the Minister's reply. Is that in order?
§ Madam SpeakerI can see that it is time that the House went into recess and we all went home.
§ Mr. Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield)On a point of order, Madam Speaker. Has any advance been made on the balance of education and employment questions? I know that the matter has been raised on previous occasions, but the imbalance between education and employment—and even within education—is apparent. For example, we had no opportunity today to talk about higher education, a vital part of the future of this country, which has suffered massive cuts in its budget which are affecting universities.
§ Madam SpeakerThe hon. Gentleman and the House know that Question Time is operated on a ballot system. I noticed today that only two questions were related to employment matters—Questions 1 and 17. I hoped to reach the latter, but we were very slow today in getting through the Order Paper. I hope that hon. Members do better in future, and we may then be able to have a wide variety of questions that suit all hon. Members and all interests in the House.