Speeches by Stafford.

“It is generous of the Minister to give way, so I shall be brief. Would funding continue to be produced through ICBs, or will the system be funded centrally?”

“I am interested to hear those facts. I know the hon. Lady will not press her new clause to a vote, and given that the Government do not support it, as far as I can tell, it is probably not going to be part of the law, but perhaps we can have a further discussion on Report.”

“Just for clarification, is the hon. Lady doing this simply to make it equitable across the United Kingdom, or is there something specific in the policy that she thinks will strengthen the Bill or add to it parts that are not covered currently?”

“My hon. Friend is making a very interesting point that I personally had not considered before. We need to know more from the Minister, and the point will potentially come up again when we consider smoking in the grounds of a hospital. The Minister has quite rightly pointed out that smoking is a terrible addiction, but …”

“I just want to clarify the intention of my hon. Friend’s amendments, not to resile in any way from her clear point that she supports the Bill, but to clarify her feeling that the current level of fines and punishments within it are disproportionate, especially if they are going to be levied on a part-time junior shop w…”

“Yes, under this clause.”

“In Hale and Badshot Lea, in the northernmost parts of my constituency, many residents can only get into Farnham town centre using the bus service. There is concern, given the increased amount of building, and future building under the new Government’s plans, that bus services will not be adequate. Will the Minister mee…”

“As a point of clarification, what the proposals in the Bill, and indeed the amendment, deal with is the selling of tobacco products, not the consumption. So when we are talking people not being able to smoke, they would be able to, but a retailer would not be able to sell them tobacco products. I say that just so we ar…”

“Wisdom!”

“I do not know the answer to that question, although I suspect that many such shops do not. Although I agree with my hon. Friend about the thrust of the Bill, something that does concern me comes not from the retailer point of view but the consumer point of view. At the moment—please do not disabuse me of this view—when…”

“On that point, will my hon. Friend give way?”

“I thank the shadow Minister for her intervention. She made that point powerfully during her speech. It is vital that we in this Committee, people listening to at home and those who will have to implement or abide by this legislation are really clear what those steps are. I hope the Minister is able to give us some sure…”

“My hon. Friend makes a good point. We in this Committee want to ensure that nobody who does not have to dies of smoking or tobacco-related issues, but we do not want to make the regulations so tight that they make things more complicated than necessary for business.”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Dowd. I thank the shadow Minister for her comprehensive look at the clause, and the amendments and new clauses that go with it. I look forward to similar in-depth discussion on the rest of the Bill over the coming sittings. I will state at the outset that I have nev…”

“I accept what you are saying; it is interesting to hear. I will come to Sir Andrew and Kathryn to add to that point. How robust is some of the data that we are already measuring—things like waiting times or demand for services—either through the NHS or through social care?”

“I want to quickly ask about the timings. You talked about an urgent need in the short term and, Kathryn, you said that this commission will be too late for too many people. What is your feeling on the timescales? What is actually going to happen over the next three years that will be different from what you did and wil…”

“I am going to carry on from that discussion. I accept that there is no single piece of evidence that is going to change the way the Treasury or anyone else sees this, but obviously we do need that evidence base and that data. How robust is the data that is out there? Where are the significant gaps that could be investi…”

“Q12. First, we had a Chancellor who embellished her CV, then we had a Transport Secretary with a fraud conviction, and now we have an anti-corruption Minister who is being investigated for corruption. I know that the Prime Minister likes living in free accommodation, but does he really think that it is appropriate that…”

“Q Do you have any concerns about the impact of the Bill on vapes as a smoking cessation tool? As my hon. Friend the Member for Sleaford and North Hykeham said, vaping in children is abhorrent, and I am glad that the Bill is addressing that, but how can we ensure that, as a cessation tool, vapes remain part of the panop…”

“I thank the Minister for his answer, and for his googling of my background! Early detection is essential in ensuring that brain tumours do not fall further behind other cancers in priority. Will the Minister update us on the Government’s progress to ensure that screening is prioritised?”