Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: Order.
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: Order. In the 20 minutes available for the remainder of the debate, four hon. Members hope to catch my eye. I hope that they will all be successful.
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: Order. Do I understand that the hon. Member for City of Durham (Mr. Steinberg) is accusing the Secretary of State of misleading the House? If so, I think that he may want to withdraw that remark.
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: Do I understand that the hon. Gentleman has withdrawn the remark?
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: Order. I hesitate to intervene on the Minister, but he should well know that he should not be referring to people in the Gallery.
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: That is not a point of order for the Chair; it is the hon. Gentleman's point of view. He has been here a long time and he knows the procedures of the House.
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: Is it the same point of order?
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: Order. The hon. Gentleman is simply trying to pre-empt my discretion. I have already ruled on that matter. I am sure that the hon. Gentleman knows the rules of the House.
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: Order. That was not an intervention but a speech. I should also prefer to see the face of the hon. Member for Dover (Mr. Shaw) rather than his back.
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: I remind the House that with this we are discussing new clause 13—Court to be aware of provision in custody for certain dependent offenders— 'It shall be the duty of the Secretary of State to make available to any court passing a custodial sentence upon any offender whom the court believes to be dependent on drugs or alcohol an assessment of the provision available in any prison or other...
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: With permission, I shall put together the motions relating to delegated legislation, Motion made, and Question put forthwith, pursuant to Standing Order No. 101(6) (Standing Committees on Delegated Legislation),
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: That is not a matter for the Chair.
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: I had hoped that my intervention would enable all hon. Members to speak if they so wished. I have no control over the length of hon. Members' speeches; they are responsible for that.
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: Order. I must inform the House that I was in the Chair on that occasion yesterday, and I ruled on the points of order then. Nothing has changed between then and now.
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: The hon. Gentleman may think it is trivia, but so far the hon. Member for Basildon (Mr. Amess) has been in order.
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: Order. Hon. Members will recall that, a few moments ago, I drew the attention of the House to the fact that many hon. Members wished to take part in the debate, and I asked them to consider that. So far, in some cases, my request has been ignored. I hope for some co-operation from now on.
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: Order. There are 45 minutes to go before the start of the winding-up speeches and, in that time, five hon. Members hope to catch my eye. I hope that they will all be successful.
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: Order. In the time available for the remainder of the debate, no fewer than 11 hon. Members are hoping to catch my eye. With a little co-operation, all of them might be successful.
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: Order. Will hon. Members who are leaving the Chamber please do so quietly?
Mr Geoffrey Lofthouse: It is a convention that hon. Members can oppose but are not obliged to vote.
