Ian Paisley Jnr: I appreciate that intervention. I got at least three forest trees of letters through my door from people passionately asking me to oppose or support the plan, depending on where the correspondence came from, even though it does not directly affect Northern Ireland. I exercised some caution. I recognised that although it did not directly affect Northern Ireland, I could attend the debate and...
Ian Paisley Jnr: The beauty of an unwritten constitution is flexibility. As Burke said, we are here to give to the people who elect us not just of our industry, but of our judgment. We are elected to make judgment calls, and we should have the sense to make those calls without that having to be written down, as the hon. Member for North East Somerset said, in a motherhood and apple pie way. That is what we...
Ian Paisley Jnr: The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right to say that choosing four years as the threshold is far too generous. I wonder whether Members have reflected on what that really means. It means 4,370 drug dealers getting the vote; it means almost 10,000 people involved in theft, burglary or robbery getting the vote; it means 1,753 rapists or people involved in serious sexual crimes achieving the vote;...
Ian Paisley Jnr: I appreciate the Minister's helpful guidance. Will he address the point made by the right hon. Member for Blackburn (Mr Straw) when he quoted Lord Hoffmann, the former Law Lord, saying in a lecture that it cannot be right for a European supranational court "to intervene in matters on which Member States of the Council of Europe have not surrendered their sovereign powers"? Will the right...
Ian Paisley Jnr: Is it not the case that in the European Community, six other member states have an outright ban on prisoners voting, and 13 impose varying limits on the right to vote?
Ian Paisley Jnr: The Secretary of State will be aware that to travel from Aldergrove airport in Northern Ireland on a transatlantic flight, a passenger has to spend an additional £150 in tax. If he travelled from the south of Ireland, 90 miles away, as of 1 March he would pay €3 in tax. What is the Secretary of State going to do about that to encourage people to travel on transatlantic flights from...
Ian Paisley Jnr: Will the Minister give way?
Ian Paisley Jnr: rose-
Ian Paisley Jnr: What an opportune time to get an intervention. In 1989, I was involved in an attempt to rescue two drowning children off the coast of Northern Ireland. They had been holidaying there, but, unfortunately, one of them died. However, if it had not been for the co-ordination that the hon. Lady has mentioned, there would have been a double tragedy. It is essential that people recognise and get to...
Ian Paisley Jnr: The hon. Lady talks about the local knowledge of the Falmouth coastguards, but that is something that can be lost across the entirety of our coastline. My constituency includes Rathlin island, the only inhabited island off the coast of Northern Ireland. If the skills of the coastguards there are lost, it will mean the loss of many more lives around our coast. I agree wholeheartedly with the...
Ian Paisley Jnr: While, in cosy comfort and at times with chuckles, we in the House deal with the theory of terrorism, Belfast this morning unfortunately experienced the practice of terrorism when a massive explosive device was found there. As a result, the whole of north Belfast was sealed off from commerce, schooling and everything else, which is the equivalent of sealing off the whole of the east end of...
Ian Paisley Jnr: rose -
Ian Paisley Jnr: On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Can you confirm that you have received a letter from the hon. Member for Belfast West (Mr Adams) indicating his resignation from the House? Can you indicate that he will not be allowed to breach any of the constitutional requirements that he, like any other Member, must receive office under the Crown before he can leave the House? If that is the case, can you...
Ian Paisley Jnr: I congratulate the hon. Gentleman on securing the debate at a most opportune time. Next week, the House will mark Holocaust memorial day. Does he agree that that puts down a very firm marker, which affirms many of the points that he has made? Holocaust memorial day is a very good way for Parliament to put on the record its support for many of the issues that he has addressed.
Ian Paisley Jnr: Is not the reason why people do not get excited about this sort of stuff-the hon. Gentleman has put his finger on it-the way in which laws are changed in this country? He is right: it is not a bang theory. As someone who has worked in Europe and been a Member of the European Parliament, he will know that Europe changes laws in a very nuanced way. A European directive informs our officials...
Ian Paisley Jnr: I appreciate the right hon. Gentleman's courtesy in giving way. He is right that putting something into a Bill and stating that we reaffirm sovereignty may not in itself affect or change the law, but it sends a signal to the very people who effect our law, for example the UKRep or the Council of Ministers, and all those people who just go with the flow in Europe, instead of standing up for...
Ian Paisley Jnr: I thank the right hon. Gentleman for almost inviting me back. Having worked in Brussels and in France for two years on issues to do with European law and how it affects our kingdom, I found that people went with the flow unless backbone was put into the UKRep's office or into the Council of Ministers. We see it directly in fisheries policy, as fishermen in Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland...
Ian Paisley Jnr: Does the hon. Gentleman accept that no prejudice should be drawn to the person who is accused because of that information and that it should be used purely for analytical reasons? It should not be used later in a judgment and nobody should be punished more because of their service background.
Ian Paisley Jnr: The Secretary of State will be aware that tragically there have been 14 flu-related deaths in Northern Ireland during this winter. Given that that figure is proportionately higher than in other parts of the United Kingdom, what discussions has he had or does he intend to have with his counterpart in Northern Ireland to assess why the proportion is so much higher and whether there is a black...
Ian Paisley Jnr: The Minister will be aware that the employment and support allowance has largely superseded incapacity benefit. In week 11, the claimant is assessed by a medical board. What plans does the Minister have to involve a claimant's GP in future assessments, so that we can ensure that they are more accurate, as opposed to being a snapshot at week 11?