Results 1-20 of 706 for (in the 'Commons debates' OR in the 'Westminster Hall debates' OR in the 'Lords debates' OR in the 'Northern Ireland Assembly debates') speaker:Lorely Burt

Oral Answers to Questions — Treasury: Higher Education (3 Nov 2009) has video

Lorely Burt: I, too, thank the Minister for prior sight of the statement. It looks to me as though the educational cat has escaped the bag. In almost the last paragraph of the statement, the groundwork for raising university tuition fees seems to have been laid. I was shocked this morning when the Secretary of State attempted to defend this Government's introduction of tuition fees as a "bold and...

Business of the House: Fireworks Safety (29 Oct 2009) has video

Lorely Burt: The hon. Gentleman has already given us evidence of his mastery of the various statistics. He has told us that 50 per cent. of injuries are sustained at private parties. Can he tell us what percentage of people attend private parties as opposed to public events?

Business of the House: Fireworks Safety (29 Oct 2009) has video

Lorely Burt: I am sure that the fact that burglars and car thieves may not be wild about bonfire night does not contribute to the statistics. However, I am concerned about the hon. Gentleman's suggestion that the police should spend their time investigating whether people are holding their own little covert bonfire parties. Would that not be an equally inappropriate use of police time?

Business of the House: Fireworks Safety (29 Oct 2009) has video

Lorely Burt: I am not personally a huge fan of fireworks, but I know that they bring great pleasure to millions of people in this country, especially children. It is a shame that the actions of a few can spoil the pleasure and, indeed, the quality of life of many, but I do not believe that banning fireworks would be justified. As well as depriving retailers of a valuable source of income, a ban might...

Business of the House: Fireworks Safety (29 Oct 2009) has video

Lorely Burt: I am grateful for the hon. Gentleman's intervention. I had my researcher on the internet yesterday to find out just how easy it was to buy fireworks. It is extremely easy, so the Minister might like to look at that and deal with the issue in his response. Non-specialist retailers are able to sell fireworks only for a prescribed period. The Government's Firework Regulations 2004, built on the...

Business of the House: Fireworks Safety (29 Oct 2009) has video

Lorely Burt: I am questioning the Minister, asking him whether he would be prepared to look at the issue, which I hope answers the hon. Gentleman's question. Surely nobody wants a fun firework night at the expense of the suffering of dumb animals. As for the little boy mentioned by the hon. Member for Windsor, is not the real fun of fireworks the spectacular display rather than the loud clashing and...

Sri Lanka (IDP Camps) — [Dr. William McCrea in the Chair] (28 Oct 2009)

Lorely Burt: I apologise for arriving late; I had another engagement that I could not get out of. I met with Tamils from my constituency and the west midlands with my hon. Friend the Member for North Southwark and Bermondsey (Simon Hughes) a week or so ago. The state of the camps—flooded now, let alone when the monsoon comes—was absolutely shocking. Does my hon. Friend agree that it is...

Oral Answers to Questions — Communities and Local Government: Topical Questions (27 Oct 2009) has video

Lorely Burt: The panel appointed by the Secretary of State to examine the west midlands regional spatial strategy has now reported. In my constituency of Solihull, we had an agreed new homes target of 7,600, but now we find that that target is 10,500. That will almost certainly mean that we will have to lose great swathes of our green belt. Will the right hon. Gentleman describe how it is desirable, or...

Opposition Day — [19th allotted day]: Equitable Life (21 Oct 2009) has video

Lorely Burt: I shall be very brief, as I know that other Members wish to speak. I fervently hope that we are now reaching the end of this decade-long saga, in which 30,000 people have died waiting for justice. One million investors have lost up to half their pensions, amounting to an estimated £5 billion, and they were people who did the right thing: they saved for their retirement, but they have...

Opposition Day — [19th allotted day]: Equitable Life (21 Oct 2009) has video

Lorely Burt: I understand what the Minister says about the amount of time and effort that needs to be put into the compensation scheme, but echoing the hon. Member for Guildford (Anne Milton), may I ask him to confirm that the compensation scheme will be in place in the lifetime of his Government—before the general election?

Opposition Day — [18th Allotted Day]: Economic Recovery and Welfare (19 Oct 2009)

Lorely Burt: My hon. Friend speaks clearly about the disproportionate burden of regulation on small and medium-sized businesses. Does he agree that we might wish to balance the amount of risk with the size of a business? By definition, a small business will not be able to generate the same sort of volume as a large one.

Business, Innovation and Skills: Automotive Assistance Scheme (16 Jul 2009) has video

Lorely Burt: I have listened carefully to what the Minister is saying about long-term investment, but that does not mean long-term lead-in. If we look across the channel to France and Germany, and then further afield to the US and Japan, we can see that they have already delivered substantial amounts of assistance, so I do not understand why it is taking so long in the United Kingdom. For the past six...

Local and Regional Newspapers (15 Jul 2009)

Lorely Burt: I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Ceredigion (Mark Williams) on securing this debate. The news has been defined as something that people do not want us to see. All who have spoken in the debate have been at the difficult end of that. The Birmingham Post required all local MPs to pre-publish their expenses. One or two MPs were rather reticent to do so, but we nevertheless complied....

Local and Regional Newspapers (15 Jul 2009)

Lorely Burt: Is my hon. Friend aware that Birmingham city council is not only issuing its own newspaper, but that that paper is carrying advertising, therefore robbing local newspapers, such as TheBirmingham Post, the Birmingham Evening Mail and the Express & Star, of important advertising revenue?

[Sir Nicholas Winterton in the Chair] — Steel Industry (7 Jul 2009)

Lorely Burt: I add my congratulations to those that other right hon. and hon. Members have expressed to the right hon. Member for Rotherham (Mr. MacShane) on securing this important debate. The picture that several hon. Members have painted of what the steel industry faces is grim. There is an approximately 50 per cent. fall in demand. It is a worldwide phenomenon, and in Europe recovery has been...

[Sir Nicholas Winterton in the Chair] — Steel Industry (7 Jul 2009)

Lorely Burt: The hon. Lady makes a good point, but there are other ways to protect skills. The Government have announced £5 million to be spent on enabling skills to be retained. In the context of the thousands of jobs that we are talking about, it is something of a drop in the ocean, and I shall be grateful if the Minister will discuss how that sum will be utilised. How thinly will it need to be...

Oral Answers to Questions — Cabinet Office: Business Disruption Plans (1 Jul 2009) has video

Lorely Burt: What steps her Department is taking as part of its civil contingencies responsibilities to increase the proportion of small businesses which have a business disruption plan.

Oral Answers to Questions — Cabinet Office: Business Disruption Plans (1 Jul 2009) has video

Lorely Burt: In March, a Cabinet Office survey found that the proportion of small businesses that had a business continuity plan fell from 25 per cent. to only 14 per cent. The possibility of allowing a premium discount with insurers was being considered to see whether that would reverse the trend in respect of companies that had a business disruption plan. Will the Minister say whether she agrees with...