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§ Mr. John Wilkinson (Ruislip-Northwood)On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker. May I refer you to early-day motion 340 in the name of the hon. Member for Islington, North (Mr. Corbyn) and other hon. Members about Senator Pinochet? You will recall, Mr. Deputy Speaker, that in October 1998, shortly after the Senator's arrest, the hon. Member for Cynon Valley (Ann Clwyd) put down an early-day motion applauding that arrest, or words to that effect, and I tabled an amendment saying that the appropriate jurisdiction for consideration of the matter was the senator's own country, Chile, to which he should be returned at the earliest possible date. Madam Speaker declared then that such an early-day motion was strictly outside the regulations of the House because the matter was sub judice.
The terms of early-day motion 340 refer to the medical examination of the senator, undertaken at the behest of the Home Office, and the fact that the results of that examination are secret, and also to the Government of Belgium, which is a party to the current action in the High Court. Is it not, prima facie, the case that early-day motion 340 is strictly out of order and should be withdrawn from the Order Paper?
§ Mr. Deputy Speaker (Mr. Michael Lord)I noted the point of order that the hon. Gentleman has raised with regard to the matter being sub judice. All I can say is that I think that this matter should be given more careful consideration.
§ Mr. Nigel Evans (Ribble Valley)On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker. During Business questions the Leader of the House inadvertently misled the House when she asserted that the Conservative group on the Welsh Assembly was prepared to go into some form of coalition with the nationalist party, Plaid Cymru. I have spoken with the leader of the Conservative group, Nick Bourne, who assures me that the Conservatives would not be prepared to form such a coalition.
§ Mr. Deputy SpeakerOrder. Those kinds of arrangements are not a matter for the Chair.