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Business of the House

I am sorry that my hon. Friend, who is usually an outgoing and optimistic Member of this House, takes, if he will forgive me for saying so, such a cynical view of our proceedings. My experience of speaking from the Dispatch Box is that the length of Front-Bench speeches is largely the result of the number of interventions that are taken. Perhaps if my hon. Friends resist the temptation to intervene on the Minister there will be more time available for Back-Bench contributions. To deal with my hon. Friend’s substantive point, it is important that the House has a full opportunity to debate and discuss these issues, and I am confident that sufficient time will be made available.