Childcare Bill
10:30 am
Beverley Hughes (Minister of State (Children, Young People and Families), Department for Education and Skills; Stretford and Urmston, Labour)
I beg to move,
That—
(1)during proceedings on the Childcare Bill the Standing Committee shall (in addition to its first meeting at 10.30 a.m. on Tuesday 6th December) meet—
(a)at 4.00 p.m. on Tuesday 6th December;
(b)at 9.00 a.m. and 1.30 p.m. on Thursday 8th December;
(c)at 10.30 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. on Tuesday 13th December;
(d)at 9.00 a.m. and 1.30 p.m. on Thursday 15th December;
(e)at 9.00 a.m. and 2.30 p.m. on Tuesday 20th December;
(f)at 10.30 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. on Tuesday 10th January;
(2)the proceedings shall be taken in the following order: Clauses 1 to 21; new Clauses and new Schedules relating to Part 1; Clauses 22 to 30; new Clauses and new Schedules relating to Part 2; Clauses 31 to 47; Schedule 1; Clauses 48 to 95; new Clauses and new Schedules relating to Part 3; Clause 96; Schedules 2 and 3; Clauses 97 to 104; remaining new Clauses; remaining new Schedules; remaining proceedings on the Bill;
(3)the proceedings shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a conclusion at 7.00 p.m. on Tuesday 10th January.
We are pleased to serve under your chairmanship, Mr. Amess. In your authoritative, but friendly, start to the sitting, you have given us a flavour of how you will help us to take forward our business efficiently. I look forward to that and I have no doubt that Mr. Benton will chair the proceedings equally well.
I open the sitting with a strong sense of quiet satisfaction and achievement, and some pride. As I mentioned on Second Reading, this is the first ever Bill that is devoted specifically to early years and child care. The Committee has a genuine opportunity permanently to transform the shape, quality and availability of early years services to our youngest children and their parents. I welcome the support and consensus that were reflected on Second Reading. I am particularly glad of the opportunity to subject the Bill to line-by-line scrutiny, which is what it deserves and demands. The programme motion gives us sufficient time to do that. It has no knives, but I hope that we can make reasonable progress to enable us to do justice to the debate that we need to have on all measures.
I am pleased that I am sharing my role in Committee with the Under-Secretary of State for Education and Skills, my hon. Friend the Member for Liverpool, Garston (Maria Eagle). I also have a superlative collection of Labour Back Benchers behind me, all of whom have demonstrated their long-standing commitment to this agenda for our youngest children. I see on the Opposition Benches Members and colleagues of equal standing, including the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton), who is developing a deserved reputation for expertise on these issues, having served on the Committee on the Children Act 2004. I welcome the chance to hear from him and I look forward to our deliberations.
The programme motion is a sensible attempt to ensure that all the major provisions are debated and I hope that the Committee accepts it.