Results 1-20 of 3,798 for speaker:Chris Mullin

Outlawries Bill: Debate on the Address — [1st Day] (18 Nov 2009)

Chris Mullin: Was not the real problem the fact that both the main parties bought in to the myth of light-touch regulation? Indeed, the hon. Member for Tatton (Mr. Osborne) was still making speeches about the need for more light-touch regulation long after it ceased to be fashionable.

Farm Animal Welfare (3 Nov 2009)

Chris Mullin: My hon. Friend makes a powerful case for the direction of travel that the Government have taken over the years. May I ask him to address the question of compulsion versus voluntary codes? That was one of the main points that I was trying to make.

Farm Animal Welfare (3 Nov 2009)

Chris Mullin: Is not the evidence so far that voluntary measures do not really work? I mentioned the fact that, so far, only 40 of 468 local authorities have gone cage-free. Good though that is, it is very slow progress. I come back to the evaluation to which, I think, my hon. Friend speedily referred. That evaluation by Deloitte—if that is what he was referring to—said that "Take up of the...

Farm Animal Welfare (3 Nov 2009)

Chris Mullin: The hon. Gentleman is making a perfectly reasonable point, but I urge him not to be too hard on the measure that his Government introduced many years ago. It is just possible that it was one of the things that forced the generally somnambulant EU into trying to ban tethers across the region, although I appreciate that it is taking a frustratingly long time to introduce the ban.

Farm Animal Welfare (3 Nov 2009)

Chris Mullin: I intend to highlight the importance of public sector food procurement and the role it has to play in improving animal welfare standards for meat and poultry in the United Kingdom and abroad. I will concentrate on one key area of public procurement—eggs—although the argument could equally apply to pork or any one of a number of factory farmed products. I call on the Government to...

Farm Animal Welfare (3 Nov 2009)

Chris Mullin: Yes, I agree. I will touch on some of those points later.

Farm Animal Welfare (3 Nov 2009)

Chris Mullin: Yes, I am in general agreement with the hon. Gentleman on that. However, price is not the only consideration. I have always believed that we have to take into account the consequences of our actions. As all those hon. Members who have taken an interest in factory farming know, it involves some disgusting practices that many farmers deeply regret; in fact, many farmers feel forced into...

Farm Animal Welfare (3 Nov 2009)

Chris Mullin: It certainly is because, as we know, McDonald's is ruthlessly moved by the power of the market, and where it goes the public sector should surely be able to follow. Last year, concern about the link between intensive farming and the emergence of virulent forms of flu, including swine flu from pigs, has increased pressure on meat and poultry producers to examine the conditions in which their...

Farm Animal Welfare (3 Nov 2009)

Chris Mullin: I absolutely accept that, and I touched on it in my response to the hon. Member for Westbury (Dr. Murrison). Perhaps I should also have said that consumers are entitled to much better information about where their meat comes from, which requires proper labelling. It has not been possible to calculate the exact percentage of caged eggs purchased in the public sector, but it is a matter of...

Farm Animal Welfare (3 Nov 2009)

Chris Mullin: Yes. That is a reasonable, desirable and achievable goal, given the necessary political will. More than £2 billion of taxpayers' money is spent on public sector food each year. The average British taxpayer forks out approximately £70 a year on food purchased, prepared and served in the public sector. Numerous benefits can be achieved by introducing mandatory health and...

Written Answers — Business, Innovation and Skills: Israel: Natural Gas (3 Nov 2009)

Chris Mullin: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent representations he has received regarding a proposed agreement between the Israel Electric Corporation and British Gas to purchase gas from the Gaza Marine Field; and if he will make a statement.

Written Answers — Transport: Official Cars: Working Hours (26 Oct 2009)

Chris Mullin: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what assessment he has made of the effect of the operation of the European Working Time Directive on the Government Car Service; and if he will make a statement.

Business of the House (22 Oct 2009) has video

Chris Mullin: Does my right hon. and learned Friend agree that if we care about the low esteem in which our profession is held, one easy win would be to put an end to the 82-day annual recess and sit in September, as we once agreed to do? Will she arrange an early debate on the subject so that we can get the excuses out of the way as early as possible?

Written Answers — Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs: Middle East: Gas (22 Oct 2009)

Chris Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has received on the proposed agreement between British Gas and the Israel Electric Corporation to purchase gas from the Gaza Marine Field; and if he will make a statement.

Nato: Royal Mail (20 Oct 2009)

Chris Mullin: Further to that point, I am glad to note what the Minister says about the Government's intentions, but is he aware that there is an underlying fear among postal workers that the long-term objective of management is to privatise and casualise the industry? Can he say anything to allay the fears of the work force on that point?

Written Answers — Home Department: UK Border Agency: Correspondence (20 Jul 2009)

Chris Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will require the Chief Executive of the UK Border Agency (UKBA) to report on when a response will be sent to the hon. Member for Sunderland South's letter of 24 April 2009, regarding his constituent, Mrs Louise Chambers, Home Office reference U1062508; and for what reasons no response to the correspondence has been provided to the...

Written Answers — Environment Food and Rural Affairs: Agriculture (16 Jul 2009)

Chris Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to (a) assess and (b) tackle the environmental and social effects of intensive meat and dairy industries; and if he will make a statement.

Written Answers — Justice: Remand in Custody: Ethnic Groups (15 Jul 2009)

Chris Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to reduce the proportion of those receiving a custodial remand who are black boys; and if he will make a statement.

Written Answers — Justice: Remand in Custody: Young People (15 Jul 2009)

Chris Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of people under the age of 18 years who are remanded in custody; and if he will make a statement; (2) if he will commission research into the reasons for the increase in the number of people under the age of 18 years of age remanded in custody since 2000; and if he will make a statement.

Written Answers — Justice: Remand in Custody: Young People (15 Jul 2009)

Chris Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will commission research into the reasons for the reduction in the use of non-secure remand to local authority accommodation for those under the age of 18 years of age since 2000; and if he will make a statement.