Nuclear waste export
10. Mr. John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he next plans to review the effectiveness of the law on the export of nuclear waste; and if he will make a statement. [277928] Mr. Mike O’Brien: Current legislation, some put in place as recently as December, effectively controls […]
Agricultural Labour
1. Mr. John Whittingdale (Maldon and East Chelmsford) (Con): What recent discussions he has had on the availability of agricultural labour; and if he will make a statement. [276574] The Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Jane Kennedy): May I say on behalf of those who come to Prayers that it […]
Electronic Communications
Mr. John Whittingdale (Maldon and East Chelmsford) (Con): I warmly congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for South-West Surrey (Mr. Hunt) on initiating this debate on the licence fee. If ever there was a time when it was right to ask again whether the licence fee should continue to increase, it is now. My hon. […]
Dissident republican groups
1. Mr. John Whittingdale (Maldon and East Chelmsford) (Con): What steps the Government are taking to prevent the recruitment of young people to dissident republican groups. [269403] The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Mr. Shaun Woodward): Dissident republican groups have nothing to offer but violence and suffering and are funded by criminal activity. Resources […]
Newspaper redundancies
Mr. John Whittingdale (Maldon and East Chelmsford) (Con): Does the Secretary of State accept that in many communities the local newspaper is as important as the local post office, the local shop or the local pub? Given the number of closures, which he has already referred to, and the fact that journalists are being laid […]
Budget
In the week since the Budget, there has been plenty of time to look at the small print. As in all Gordon Brown’s budgets, his speech only tells half the story. The good news was largely leaked in advance. The bad news was not even contained in the speech at all. As ever, it is […]
Budget – March 2006
Last week’s Budget was more notable for what it did not say that what it did. While it contained a number of worthy measures to promote micro-generation, to help our athletes prepare for the Olympics and to support those in further education, it did nothing to address the serious economic problems facing the country. The […]
Government spending in Essex
With Council Tax bills landing on doorsteps soon, John sets out the background to local government spending in Essex. I am often asked why, when inflation is only around 2.5 per cent, the average Council Tax for a band D property in Maldon and Chelmsford has gone up from around £640 in 1997 to around […]
Third Reading of the Gambling Bill
John Whittingdale responds to the Third Reading of the Gambling Bill in the House of Commons. We have always made it clear right from the start that there is much in the Bill that we agree with. It contains a number of important measures that will help to introduce controls over remote gambling, for instance, […]