Nia Griffith: It is a tremendous pleasure to follow my hon. Friend, who is an ardent supporter of the dairy industry.
Nia Griffith: Indeed. However, I wonder whether that is due to ulterior motives on his part—not that I would suggest such a thing. To return to clause 2, which is what we are talking about—
Nia Griffith: I stand corrected. The issue is the sustainability of local communities. It is extremely difficult to define either “local community” or “sustainable community”. It is also difficult to pinpoint all the levels of decision making that go in to providing jobs and protecting local economies and environments.
Nia Griffith: I beg to differ. The object of involving local communities is not to patronise them or to set out in advance a top-down model, but rather to get involvement from the bottom up. The real issue is the sense of alienation among people who feel that decisions are made by large organisations miles away, and that they have no power over them and cannot have much input. Coupled with that is our...
Nia Griffith: Is the hon. Gentleman aware of the Competition Commission inquiry into supermarkets? There are three strands to the inquiry. It will look into the issue of small shops, and also, in particular, into farm prices. Will he encourage all the farmers whom he knows to submit evidence to that inquiry so that it can come to a fair conclusion? That is the way forward; it is a very positive way of...
Nia Griffith: Is the hon. Gentleman aware that post offices have access to computers, and that that survey was available on the Department of Trade and Industry website? I am sure that they were all more than capable of downloading it.
Nia Griffith: Is the hon. Gentleman aware that only a couple of weeks ago Mill Lane dental surgery in Llanelli had its official opening? That brand new, state-of-the-art dental surgery offers the services of five NHS dentists to a town that encompasses 12,000 residents.
Nia Griffith: Will my hon. Friend join me in congratulating Camford on the announcement that it has secured the future of its Llanelli factory? Owing to hard work by the unions, my friend Catherine Thomas, AM for Llanelli, and the Assembly Government Minister for Enterprise, Innovation and Networks, Camford now has a secure base for the future of its car factory in Llanelli.
Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps (a) his Department and (b) Ofgem have taken to improve the level of protection for small business consumers in the energy market.
Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what research the Government are undertaking on the effect on (a) energy efficiency and (b) carbon emissions of using microgeneration twinned with electric heating.
Nia Griffith: It gives me great pleasure to speak in the debate. I very much welcome the draft Bill and the draft charter for bereaved people who come into contact with the coroner service. Those who lose a family member or close friend are in a state of shock, but in addition to coping with the trauma of that loss, they must often also deal for the first time with procedures of which they have no personal...
Nia Griffith: MOD Llangennech—locally known as the RN—has been an integral part of the community for several generations. What assurance can my right hon. Friend give that if the MOD leaves Llangennech and the site is disposed of, full consideration will be given to making part of it a community facility, as well as providing the maximum possible support for those who may lose their jobs after many...
Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what research the Government are undertaking into the long-term merits of electric heating by comparison with other heating sources.
Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what research the Government plan to carry out on the long-term effect on carbon emissions of electric heating by comparison with other heating sources.
Nia Griffith: It makes tremendous sense for the provision of information to be the responsibility of the seller. We all know of cases where houses remain on the market for ages while prospective buyer after prospective buyer pays for the same information, discovering features that make the property undesirable or unrealistically priced. The onus on the seller to provide a home information pack and an...
Nia Griffith: Does the right hon. Gentleman not agree that a considerable amount of time and effort has been put in on this and the work by the Department shows a tremendous commitment?It would be most inappropriate to suggest that that commitment does not exist. Would he not like to respond to that by giving some sort of trust in return?
Nia Griffith: How is it that in the wording of new clause 7, we have the term “consult all principal councils”, but clearly in new clause 5 we have the idea that the principal councils make the proposals? As I understand it, new clause 5 is much stronger in giving a bottom-up approach than new clause 7. Why does the hon. Gentleman think that new clause 7 removes the fuzz, and the bad reputation that...
Nia Griffith: I will speak about the comparisons between new clauses 7 and 5. Importantly, we are all trying to pull in the same direction and we should focus on what is comparable between the two and how much overlap there is. I am extremely lucky in coming from Wales, where we have a closer relationship with the Assembly Government than is possible for a wider community such as England. I have some...
Nia Griffith: Does the hon. Gentleman agree that only six countries have ratified the convention? I think that the Minister for Women and Equality was referring to the fact that we are one of the 28 countries that have signed up to it.
Nia Griffith: How do I follow my hon. Friend the Member for Hendon (Mr. Dismore), with his inimitable ability to say an enormous amount in a very short space of time, and the hon. Member for Totnes (Mr. Steen), who made a valuable contribution as well? I shall try not to repeat too much of what has been said. This is a wonderful opportunity to debate a very important report, and I welcome the fact that...