Speeches by Chope.

“Can the Solicitor General confirm that it is imperative that prosecution rates for all cases of violence are increased, and that she is not suggesting to the prosecuting authorities that they should discriminate on the grounds of gender?”

“I congratulate my hon. Friend on bringing to the House this horrific catalogue of embarrassing incidents—embarrassing to Members of this House and previous Administrations, because we have been asleep on the job. The legal authorities were able to stamp down on last summer’s riots in Southport so effectively by taking …”

“I sympathise with you, Minister, because you are trying to champion consumer confidence and you have some real problems. One of the first that you have to overcome is the fact that consumers were promised that their bills would go down by £300 and you have not got anywhere towards achieving that yet. Similarly, you hav…”

“My next question will be much shorter, but perhaps the Minister would like to comment on that one first.”

“I am sorry, Chairman, but that is what happens if you have been waiting for two hours to ask a question.”

“I sympathise with you, Minister, because you are trying to champion consumer confidence and you have some real problems. One of the first that you have to overcome is the fact that consumers were promised that their bills would go down by £300 and you have not got anywhere towards achieving that yet. Similarly, you hav…”

“May I express my appreciation to the Minister for her constructive and full response? My last question is slightly off-piste, but the figures we have been given by the Clerks to the Committee show that almost all the people who are working in the industry that we have been discussing this afternoon are men. What is the…”

“I am sorry, Chairman, but that is what happens if you have been waiting for two hours to ask a question.”

“My next question will be much shorter, but perhaps the Minister would like to comment on that one first.”

“I sympathise with you, Minister, because you are trying to champion consumer confidence and you have some real problems. One of the first that you have to overcome is the fact that consumers were promised that their bills would go down by £300 and you have not got anywhere towards achieving that yet. Similarly, you hav…”

“May I express my appreciation to the Minister for her constructive and full response? My last question is slightly off-piste, but the figures we have been given by the Clerks to the Committee show that almost all the people who are working in the industry that we have been discussing this afternoon are men. What is the…”

“May I express my appreciation to the Minister for her constructive and full response? My last question is slightly off-piste, but the figures we have been given by the Clerks to the Committee show that almost all the people who are working in the industry that we have been discussing this afternoon are men. What is the…”

“My next question will be much shorter, but perhaps the Minister would like to comment on that one first.”

“I am sorry, Chairman, but that is what happens if you have been waiting for two hours to ask a question.”

“I beg to move, That the Bill be now read a Second time. As you will know, Madam Deputy Speaker, timing is important in politics. When, last autumn, I chose today for the Second Reading of the Bill, how could I have predicted that arm’s length bodies, which I will abbreviate to ALBs, would have been mentioned four times…”

“Although I was educated at university in Scotland, I will not get drawn into Scottish politics, but there is a lot to be said for having a United Kingdom approach to all these issues. In some respects, we have probably devolved too much power to the Scottish Government for things that should more properly be dealt with…”

“I am not going to give way any more, but I will just make this comment: the hon. Gentleman seems to be intent on finding a reason for not taking action in this area and to block progress. May I suggest that he pursue an alternative career in the civil service, because that is exactly the sort of role that he would be w…”

“Quangos are not directly responsible to Parliament, which is why I have brought forward the Bill.”

“My hon. Friend takes me back to the content of my Bill, which seeks to achieve exactly what she requests. Clause 1 states: “House of Commons approval of relevant documents (1) Within a period of forty days starting on the day on which a relevant document is laid before the House of Commons by, or on behalf of, a qualif…”

“That is the difference between the words and the reality. Strictly speaking—I was coming on to this—they have to produce annual reports and accounts, which go to what are described as their sponsoring Departments. In most cases, the sponsoring Department lays those accounts before the House. With Natural England, for e…”