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Childcare Bill

I shall make a brief contribution because Conservative Front Benchers have unwittingly revealed the problem with today’s Conservative party. On the one hand, Conservative Members use rhetoric that makes it sound as though they are caring, sharing, modern and interested in a fairer society, but when it comes to reality, they oppose the concept. Since my earlier intervention, I have done further research and I have a copy of the interview with the new policy chief of the Conservative party, the right hon. Member for West Dorset, in The Daily Telegraph on 23 December 2005. He said:"““Of course, inequality matters. Of course, it should be the aim to narrow the gap between rich and poor.””" I do not know whether the Conservative party’s policy chief scrutinises Front-Bench amendments but, on the basis of the interview, I cannot believe that he would approve of an amendment that would remove the aim of reducing the gap between the rich and the poor.