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Summer Adjournment

No. I am very sorry. I had always known the hon. Member for Southend, West (Mr. Amess) as a quiet, charming, unassuming member of the Chairman’s Panel, but he proved himself to be rather wilder than that in his assessment of the current state of the country, and he made a number of points with which I totally disagree. My hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow, North-West (John Robertson) talked about his ATM campaign. I think that I must have heard the first speech he made on that two years ago in Westminster Hall. It has been a very successful campaign and many people—in his constituency, in mine and in those of other hon. Members—will have benefited hugely from the work that he has done. The hon. Member for Portsmouth, South (Mr. Hancock) referred to two constituency cases. I will draw those to the attention of the Home Office, and I will raise the question of the rights of the children concerned, as well as the rights of the women. My hon. Friend the Member for Hove (Ms Barlow) raised a connected case, which I shall refer to my hon. Friends in the Home Office and the Foreign Office. I know that the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent (Mr. Davies) has been active in defending the interests of the Remploy factory in his constituency, and he raised the question of the way in which 90-day consultations operate. My hon. Friend the Member for Keighley (Mrs. Cryer) raised important issues relating to the running of local elections, and she is quite right to say that those matters need to be referred to the Ministry of Justice. The hon. Member for Castle Point (Bob Spink) also talked about the Post Office. My hon. Friend the Member for South Derbyshire (Mr. Todd) talked about the need to control utility prices, and I hope that he will be satisfied by the forthcoming energy Bill. The hon. Member for North Essex (Mr. Jenkin) referred to the closure of a GP surgery in his constituency. Closures of local facilities are a matter of concern, but I point out to him that hitherto, NHS resources were not fairly distributed. The north had far lower per capita resources than the south. My hon. Friend the Member for North Durham (Mr. Jones) was unafraid, as usual, to challenge what he perceives as abuses. He has been energetic in covering scams and I shall raise the issues that he mentioned with the Department for Communities and Local Government. The hon. Member for Falmouth and Camborne (Julia Goldsworthy) talked about fire stations and the problems of providing services in rural areas. Again, I will raise the matter with the Department for Communities and Local Government. My hon. Friend the Member for Thurrock (Andrew Mackinlay) spoke about Tilbury town railway station. He also asked about the way in which post office closure consultations will be handled and I will refer his comments to the Minister for Employment Relations and Postal Affairs. He considered the welfare of ex-servicemen and women and called for a comprehensive care package, which should, of course, cover members of the Territorial Army. I will refer that matter to the Minister with responsibility for the armed forces. The hon. Member for Cotswold (Mr. Clifton-Brown) talked about the serious problems that his constituents are facing because of flooding. Obviously, the whole House shares his concerns. He will be aware of the arrangements for keeping in touch with Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Ministers during the recess. The Department for Communities and Local Government will take on board his points about the long-term implications for water companies to provide sufficient investment. He, too, talked about some of the problems—in the context of ambulance cover—of providing services in rural areas. The hon. and learned Member for Harborough (Mr. Garnier) spoke about aircraft noise. I had expected it to be an issue for the Department for Transport or the Department for Communities and Local Government, but I forgot that he was a lawyer. His point about the injunction, if it is applied, is obviously for the Ministry of Justice. I thank all hon. Members who took part in the debate. I thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, and your colleagues. I thank all the staff of the House, for their support not only this afternoon but since the previous recess. I wish everybody a pleasant recess. As well as continuing with all the great work in their constituencies, about which we have heard in the past three hours, I ask hon. Members to find some time to have a happy holiday.