Mrs Judith Chaplin: Will my hon. Friend confirm that the occupational pensions industry is increasingly equalising the pension age at 65 and that it would be helpful from its point of view if we equalised the state retirement age at 65 as well? I declare an interest in that I fully intend to work until the age of 65 at least.
Mrs Judith Chaplin: The Minister will know from the huge number of responses to the consultation document how much interest there is in this subject. I congratulate my right hon. Friend the Member for Woking (Sir C. Onslow) on introducing this Bill. One reason why the problem gives rise to such interest is that it concerns not just real travellers but new age travellers, not to mention all who fall between the...
Mrs Judith Chaplin: I shall deal with the link later in my speech. My constituency has another large common, and for many years it has not been available for people to walk upon. It is, of course, Greenham common, which is known throughout the country as one of the key sites in the cold war which led to the banning of many nuclear weapons and movement towards peace.
Mrs Judith Chaplin: Most hon. Members, and most people in the country, believe that the presence of those weapons prevented the escalation of nuclear capabilities. Most of us maintain that there is still a need for an independent nuclear deterrent as an aid to agreed negotiation and a reduction in such weapons. Greenham common is no longer used by the United States air force, which has returned to the States....
Mrs Judith Chaplin: That would limit the definition to a very small number of people, who could probably be accommodated on about two sites. I am not sure that it is a realistic definition. There is a huge variety of reasons for travelling. Given the rise in the number of travellers, it is important to increase the number of places to which they can go without upsetting other inhabitants. We need to look more...
Mrs Judith Chaplin: Does the hon. Gentleman agree that one problem is that local authority sites are often much larger than private sites? That is what upsets many of the people who object to them, because they have a large provision with many facilities while private sites can be much smaller and thus do not arouse the same animosity as large sites arouse.
Mrs Judith Chaplin: rose—
Mrs Judith Chaplin: I beg to move, That leave be given to bring in a Bill to apply the National Insurance Fund to provide an allowance for widowed fathers with dependent children equal to that provided for widowed mothers with dependent children. This is a Bill about equality, fairness and the importance of family life. I am sure, therefore, that it will commend itself to all hon. Members on both sides of the...
Mrs Judith Chaplin: There is one matter on which the whole Chamber seems to be agreed, and that is the need for additional investment in the railways. What is not agreed is how that additional investment can be obtained. In my constituency of Newbury, new rolling stock has recently improved the service. There are now also additional stops by InterCity on its way from the south-west to London and back. That has...
Mrs Judith Chaplin: No, not in the 10 minutes available. What is vital for an improvement of the railway system is the direct introduction of private sector money. Of course, that is not possible at present because British Rail's borrowing ability is limited by the external financing limit. Prior to the autumn statement, British Rail had the theoretical ability to obtain certain fixed assets under leasing...
Mrs Judith Chaplin: Leasing will be especially important for the development of a private market in rolling stock. Eventually, I hope that the private operators will buy direct from the manufacturers or on the second-hand market or that they will lease, but it will take time. The private sector needs to do that because in doing so it will bear the risk, seek innovation and compete. It will do all the things that...
Mrs Judith Chaplin: Does my hon. Friend agree that many women wish to work part time because it fits in with their family commitments? Will he ensure that nothing is done to endanger part-time jobs in Britain?
Mrs Judith Chaplin: Like motherhood and apple pie, we are all in favour of as much information as possible being given to as many people as possible in all aspects of life. Having worked in government, I know that many papers that cross one's desk marked "confidential" probably need not have been confidential. I welcome the fact that the Government are committed to much more open government in all its aspects...
Mrs Judith Chaplin: I agree that more detail should be available of studies and tests that have been carried out and what effects have been recorded. However, the difficulties relating to Opren or some medicines for eczema appear to have occurred because of inadequate testing rather than the lack of information available on them. It is absolutely right that there should be wider discussion about such tests, but...
Mrs Judith Chaplin: My hon. Friend the Minister has just said that it is important that there is a correct standard of qualification. Will he reconsider the way in which qualifications are supported by the Government? A constituent of mine gained a place to study physiotherapy for which her fees would have been paid under the mandatory award system. However, she also gained a place at the British School of...
Mrs Judith Chaplin: I congratulate my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on his achievement at Edinburgh, particularly on the emphasis on the importance of subsidiarity. Does he agree that, too often, hostility to petty over-regulation from Brussels has detracted from the genuine benefits to business and consumers of the completion of the single market—benefits which we shall increasingly see from the end of...
Mrs Judith Chaplin: We have just heard a petition for a bypass, and I wish to raise a problem that has arisen after a bypass has been built. I welcome the opportunity to raise the problem in the House. We all want to reduce the congestion on our roads. The Confederation of Business Industry constantly points out the enormous damage that congested roads cause to industry and business. We need to have traffic...
Mrs Judith Chaplin: Does my right hon. Friend share my irritation at the constant denigration of manufacturing industry in this country by Labour Members who ignore the fact that £90 billion of exports from manufacturing industry will go out this year? Will he agree with me that the lower pound means not only that the industry can increase exports, but that it can recapture home markets?
Mrs Judith Chaplin: I am sure that many will welcome the additional numbers coming into the country, but is my hon. Friend concerned that the provision of housing and other benefits for the group with which we are concerned may seem unfair to the refugees who are already here and who are not able to obtain such benefits, such as those in my constituency?
Mrs Judith Chaplin: The Labour party fought the last election on a programme of large tax increases. If, heaven forfend, Labour had won, would that programme have been implemented?
