Results 1-20 of 272 for speaker:John Howell

Written Answers — Communities and Local Government: Planning Permission: Appeals (23 Nov 2009)

John Howell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the written ministerial statement on 30 June 2008, Official Report, columns 43-44WS on planning appeals, what guidance he has issued to (a) Government offices and (b) local authorities on the reasons for which a residential development of over 150 units might be considered to have an impact sufficiently...

Written Answers — Communities and Local Government: Planning Permission: Appeals (23 Nov 2009)

John Howell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many times he has exercised his powers to recover a planning appeal under section 79 and paragraph 3 of Schedule 6 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 in each year since 2005.

Written Answers — Health: Townlands Hospital (23 Nov 2009)

John Howell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the timetable for re-development of Townlands Hospital in Henley-on-Thames is; what funding will be allocated to ensure its completion; and what risk assessment has been undertaken in relation to future revenue funding for the hospital.

Business, Innovation and Skills: Small and Medium-sized Businesses (12 Nov 2009)

John Howell: What progress he has made on ensuring increased access to finance for small and medium-sized businesses.

Business, Innovation and Skills: Small and Medium-sized Businesses (12 Nov 2009)

John Howell: Picking up the point that my hon. Friend the Member for Havant (Mr. Willetts) made, I wonder whether the Minister agrees with her new noble Friend Lord Sugar, the Prime Minister's enterprise tsar, who said that those small businesses that are trying to seek credit are merely moaners and living in Disneyland.

Oral Answers to Questions — Wales: Economy (11 Nov 2009) has video

John Howell: What recent discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues and Welsh Assembly Government Ministers on the state of the Welsh economy.

Oral Answers to Questions — Wales: Economy (11 Nov 2009) has video

John Howell: The three contenders for Rhodri Morgan's job appear to have only one idea between them for the economic recovery of Wales, which is tapping into Welsh universities. Although that is important, does the Secretary of State think it is a sufficiently comprehensive approach to the Welsh economy, or an example of Labour's inadequate response to Wales in a recession?

Written Answers — Transport: Motorways: Noise (9 Nov 2009)

John Howell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of treatment by specific surface preservation treatments in reducing surface noise levels on motorways.

Public Bill Committee: Child Poverty Bill: Clause 24 (3 Nov 2009)

John Howell: We have heard the most relevant question of the day: why have part 2 at all? From the answer that we have received, we know that there is no point to part 2 in its current form. There is clearly a lack of understanding of how things work out on the ground. The lack of levers and data on the ground will make things particularly difficult for local government. However, I beg to ask leave to...

Public Bill Committee: Child Poverty Bill: Clause 24 (3 Nov 2009)

John Howell: I beg to move amendment 63, in clause 24, page 14, line 7, leave out from ‘of’ to ‘section’ in line 8. I will not detain the Committee for long. The amendment is and always was intended to probe an issue that was covered in some detail this morning. I wish to illustrate the difficulties that were raised particularly by the local government representatives at their evidence...

Public Bill Committee: Child Poverty Bill: Clause 20 (3 Nov 2009)

John Howell: That was rather a surprise, Mr. Caton. I was not quite ready. I will, however, make good. The clause imposes a duty on local government. I want to question why the Government have pursued the idea of a duty, rather than other means of achieving their objectives for local government. The duty relates to “reducing, and mitigating the effects of, child poverty”. The use of the word...

Public Bill Committee: Child Poverty Bill: Clause 20 (3 Nov 2009)

John Howell: I am sure the Minister is aware that good practice is already being spread among local authorities. They talk to each other, and they also have the Local Government Association, which occasionally manages to spread good practice in a positive way.

Public Bill Committee: Child Poverty Bill: Clause 20 (3 Nov 2009)

John Howell: It is difficult to see what guidance central Government can provide when, as we heard in the evidence sessions, local government is already actively participating in this area and is doing so in a diverse way. One of the impressive things we heard, which is  mirrored, I hope, by our own experiences in our constituencies, is that local councils are tackling child poverty in a very diverse...

Public Bill Committee: Child Poverty Bill: Clause 19 (3 Nov 2009)

John Howell: I am a bit frustrated with clause 19, and with part 2 of the Bill as a whole, because they do not seem to relate in any sensible way to what happens on the ground. I wish to probe Ministers more on what they think local strategic partnerships do. If the list of commissioning organisations that we have discussed is supposed to represent the bodies that sit on a local strategic partnership, I...

Public Bill Committee: Child Poverty Bill: Clause 18 (3 Nov 2009)

John Howell: I agree with the points that have just been made. I, too, see the importance of including housing as it is a central part of understanding and combating child poverty. However, in my experience, trying to put in another principal authority would lead to chaos. We need a clear line of responsibility for somebody to take the initiative. Local government does everything these days on a...

Opposition Day — [20th Allotted Day]: Local Spending Reports (28 Oct 2009) has video

John Howell: I thank the Minister for that remark, although I am not sure that praise from someone on the Government Front Bench has done my career any good. May we look forward to the abolition of as many of the ring-fenced grants to local government as she can achieve?

Opposition Day — [20th Allotted Day]: Local Spending Reports (28 Oct 2009) has video

John Howell: I think that I am the only hon. Member to speak who was not here when the Sustainable Communities Act 2007 was introduced. At that time, I was doing pioneering work as a county councillor in Oxfordshire to try to work out how spending could be allocated and understood in terms of my own division and the major settlements within it. Although that information was not readily available in the...

Opposition Day — [20th Allotted Day]: Local Spending Reports (28 Oct 2009) has video

John Howell: The hon. Lady is right. My point, to reinforce the comments that have been made, is that it is necessary to decide and to be open about the criteria that are used. The need for such information is even more crucial in an age of partnership. Many of us who were in local government when the partnership regime came in were quite cynical about it and about the democratic deficit, but having lived...

Opposition Day — [20th Allotted Day]: Local Spending Reports (28 Oct 2009) has video

John Howell: Does the Secretary of State not understand that councils, particularly during this recession, are trying to develop policies to help local people get back into jobs? The absence of figures for regional development agencies and Jobcentre Plus is not only a disincentive in itself, but fundamentally works against the notion of partnership that is needed for such activities.

Written Answers — Work and Pensions: Employment Services: Disabled (28 Oct 2009)

John Howell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what impact assessment she plans to carry out in respect of the effects on disabled people of the implementation of recent changes to arrangements for specialist disability employment services.