David Lepper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many full-time equivalent teachers were working in maintained schools in Brighton and Hove in each year since 1996–97.
David Lepper: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has made an assessment of the impact on members of minority faith groups in Egypt of the requirement under the Egyptian government's identity card system to register only as Muslim, Christian or Jewish.
David Lepper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much capital funding was allocated to schools in Brighton and Hove in each year since 1996–97.
David Lepper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children were in classes of 31 or more in (a) infant schools and (b) infant classes in primary schools in Brighton and Hove in each year since 1996–97.
David Lepper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the budget was for the Brighton and Hove local education authority in each year since 1996–97.
David Lepper: Can the Secretary of State tell us what assessment and representations his Department has made in respect of members of minority religious groups in Iran since its current Government came to power and in particular since the death, on 15 December 2005, of a Baha'i, Mr. Mahrami in Yazd prison?
David Lepper: I congratulate the Minister on the finely honed observation with which he finished. Before he finally sits down, will he deal with the following point? He has drawn attention to the fact that the Minister for Housing and Planning is also on the Front Bench today. Will he join me in urging her to ask her Department to review its guidance to local authorities on regulations in conservation...
David Lepper: Will my hon. Friend give way?
David Lepper: The petition is from the Brighton and Hove Chinese Society and has 92 signatures. The petition Declares that the Petitioners object to the new 'Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Bill' and the five year strategy for 'asylum and immigration, Controlling our borders: Making migration work for Britain'. The petitioners strongly believe that eliminating the applicant's right to appeal is against...
David Lepper: Will the Minister give way?
David Lepper: rose—
David Lepper: It is interesting to hear what is in the contract; of course, this is the first that most of us have heard of it. How was the Minister's point about the limited life of the Post Office card account made at the time to those customers who went through the tortuous process of being directed towards and taking out one of those accounts?
David Lepper: rose—
David Lepper: On the question about whether the measure was temporary, does the hon. Gentleman remember that back in 2001, there was a grand vision for the future of post offices as general practitioners for Government services, which would boost their business? I think that it was called the "Your Guide" scheme, and the Post Office card account seemed to be an essential part of it. Does he agree that we...
David Lepper: Does my right hon. Friend agree that there is a point at which economics and health are linked? The landlord of a pub in my constituency, Chris Beaumont of The Greys, which is the only Egon Ronay-listed pub in Brighton, points out to me that he wants to carry on serving food, but there are 17 other pubs and two clubs within a square mile of his premises. If the measures suggested in new...
David Lepper: On the point made by the hon. Member for Epping Forest (Mrs. Laing), in 2001 I went with two of my constituents to meet the Minister's predecessor in the Home Office, who then dealt with these matters and who gave us an assurance that the Government would introduce a gender Act. From that day forward, we saw the Government take action, irrespective of who the Minister might be. With that...
David Lepper: I present a petition initiated by the Animal Protection Agency, based in my constituency. The petition contains more than 15,000 signatures. The petition states: The Petition of residents of Brighton and others, Declares that many have questioned the legality of pet markets and they were almost stamped out, but now the Government, through the Animal Welfare Bill, plans to lift the ban. The...
David Lepper: I believe that the Minister is wrong in that, and in my contribution I made it clear that I wanted to make a distinction between pet fairs and markets where birds and other animals are sold, and gatherings of enthusiasts who want to exhibit, and exchange information about, the birds or other creatures that they rear. I think that he will find that most of the animal welfare organisations...
David Lepper: May I join hon. Members who have congratulated the Secretary of State and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on introducing this long-overdue legislation? I, too, support the measures that it includes. There has been some discussion about what is not in the Bill, and matters that will be the subject of secondary legislation and the regulatory impact assessment. I would...
David Lepper: I welcome the assurance given to the Select Committee in November 2005 on that issue. The Minister went a little further—I hope that it will be confirmed today—when he said that it would be necessary to consider new means of consultation within Parliament and that he hoped that the Select Committee would want to consider that and other issues covered by the regulatory impact assessment...
