Mark Spencer: I am grateful to my hon. Friend for giving way; I am conscious that I have had more than my say. Does he recognise that although the market will flow when there is enough product, the product may cease? For example, on the wheat market, Russia basically said a year ago, “That’s it, we’re not going to export another grain of wheat.” It does not matter how much money we have; we cannot...
Mark Spencer: Fundamentally it comes down to believing passionately in localism. We believe in those decisions being taken locally. There is enormous frustration. My constituents tell me, “These are our opinions. This is what we want to see. We want houses developed in our area that suit our community, that match our community.” For whatever reason, whether it is a National Assembly, county council or...
Mark Spencer: I share the Minister’s experience, certainly with regards to Nottinghamshire. The regional spatial strategy, which was the flagship for development under the previous Government, put enormous pressure on the Nottinghamshire green belt. All the heartache I am experiencing now is caused by some of the sites that were brought forward under that strategy. Only the localism agenda and freeing up...
Mark Spencer: Will the Minister commit to liaising with her colleagues in the Department for Education to encourage young girls to take subjects such as business studies and economics?
Mark Spencer: If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.
Mark Spencer: What assistance can the Secretary of State give to the newly appointed chairman of the Sherwood Forest Hospitals Trust as he begins to wrestle with the private finance initiative signed under the previous Government and attempts to find repayments in excess of £40 million a year?
Mark Spencer: Thank you, Mr Speaker, for assisting me in trying to lose weight. Farmers in Nottinghamshire find themselves in a fortunate position. The county is TB-free, so badgers are TB-free, but the disease is spreading towards us from Derbyshire. My farmers will be glad that the Secretary of State will use the whole toolbox to prevent their cattle becoming infected, but farmers in two-year and...
Mark Spencer: There is a conspiracy to make me bob up and down. Farmers in Nottinghamshire find themselves in a TB-free zone and currently undergo testing on a four-year or two-year cycle. They will be concerned that there will be an attempt to reduce the interval between tests in clean areas. Does the Secretary of State have any plans to do so?
Mark Spencer: What message would the Minister give to my local authorities, which are taking land out of food production to develop on the green belt when there are perfectly adequate brownfield sites available in the borough?
Mark Spencer: I am delighted to be called to speak, but of course disappointed that we are under such time restriction. I suppose it is a symptom of how engaged Members are with the subject that they want to get on their feet and speak about it. I draw Members’ attention to my declaration of interest. As a Nottinghamshire farmer I am very much interested in the subject, because we have a healthy badger...
Mark Spencer: Will the Minister assure the House that his officials are working with importers and nurseries to ensure that no affected stock remains that may be planted in the future, so that forests such as Sherwood stay not only clean and green, but great places to visit?
Mark Spencer: I congratulate the hon. Gentleman on securing this important debate. One issue on high streets in my constituency is that landlords are having to pay business rates on empty properties and therefore do not have the cash to invest in those properties in order to attract new tenants. The previous Government introduced that system. Does he acknowledge that it might have been a mistake?
Mark Spencer: Will my hon. Friend mention the tax on empty properties? That causes me great concern. People who want to start a business need access to a small property. Landlords who find themselves having to pay enormous rates on empty properties are literally flattening them, so that they no longer have to pay. That removes the amount of start-up properties for those businesses.
Mark Spencer: Does the hon. Lady acknowledge that words are cheap and deeds are what count? That is a simple philosophy. Her Government put up the tax and our Government have frozen it. It seems simple to me.
Mark Spencer: I wonder whether the Secretary of State might update the House on discussions he has had with the Home Office about deporting foreign national prisoners straight away when they complete their sentence in the UK.
Mark Spencer: Will the Minister give way on that point?
Mark Spencer: The Minister refers to blacklisting, when suppliers will be disadvantaged by coming forward. Can she reassure the House about how she will achieve that when, for example, the number of suppliers in the east midlands for a specific vegetable will be limited, and it will be quite easy to identify which one is supplying that product to a particular supermarket?
Mark Spencer: Will the Minister give way?
Mark Spencer: Does the hon. Gentleman agree that those charged with the responsibility for spreading the message of the naming and shaming will be the same publications taking the advertising revenue? I wonder how much enthusiasm to naming and shaming there will be from those publications, when that might put their own advertising revenue in jeopardy.
Mark Spencer: Does the hon. Gentleman recognise that the opposite might be true, in that a supermarket whose brand is built around price point might gain kudos from squeezing its supply base so tight that it can deliver the lowest prices to the consumer?