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Christmas Adjournment

May I take this opportunity to thank all Members who have made contributions today? I give particular thanks to those Members who have said that they are stepping down at the next general election. Despite the time limit on speeches, I felt that all Members were able to get in all the points that, had there not been a time limit, they would probably have taken longer to say, but probably without making any further points. As usual, we have had local, regional and national issues, as well as touching on some international matters. The hon. Member for Walsall, North (Mr. Winnick) started off by telling us of his struggle with the chief executive of the Highways Agency. It is a matter of concern that the Highways Agency held no public meeting before it started work. Indeed, it was even more concerning that the chief executive was not happy to have a meeting with the hon. Gentleman at the site where the work is taking place. I suspect that that fight between the hon. Gentleman and the chief executive of the Highways Agency will continue, and I wish him well in that regard. The hon. Gentleman also raised an interesting point that was subsequently picked up by my hon. Friend the Member for Tiverton and Honiton (Angela Browning), when she commented on the power that quangos have. Ministers will sometimes keep quangos at arm's length, so that they do not have to get involved in difficult issues. The hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam (Mr. Burstow) raised a number of local issues, among which was the fact that there is concern at the withdrawal of funds for council housing in his area. That is an issue, Mr. Deputy Chairman, on which I suspect many of us in the Chamber can sympathise with the hon. Gentleman, because it is one that we have all felt acutely in our postbags, given the current economic crisis. I speak as a Member representing Cambridgeshire, where there has been a cut in funding for housing. The hon. Member for Sheffield, Heeley (Meg Munn) made a timely and thoughtful speech, particularly given what is happening in Copenhagen at present. I was particularly interested in her visit to the small Pacific nations, which do not regularly have a powerful voice; in fact, often they simply do not have a voice on the international scene at all, let alone regularly. I am sure that the House will have taken on board what she said about the fact that no Pacific nation will be able to avoid the consequences. Even more startling, however, was the fact that climate change is already beginning to affect some of those nations, particularly Tuvalu, where, as she mentioned, salt water is contaminating fresh water and water is already being rationed. In the light of what she said, we can only hope that the conference in Copenhagen, which is now turning into a summit, will prove fruitful, for the benefit of mankind. My hon. Friend the Member for Tiverton and Honiton, who is a veteran of these recess Adjournment debates, will be sorely missed. Let me put it on record that she has been a powerful advocate for her constituents throughout her time as a Member of Parliament, and her successor will have to do a powerful job in trying to match her. I very much hope that one of the first things that her successor will do is to remember that they must come to all the recess Adjournment debates and give a plug to the local tourist industry, because that is something about which my hon. Friend has been diligent. My hon. Friend also covered a number of other subjects, including the need for reform in this place. As the shadow Deputy Leader of the House, I have taken them on board, as I am sure the Deputy Leader of the House has, too. My hon. Friend the Member for Orpington (Mr. Horam), too, mentioned that he was stepping down, and we were sorry to hear that. He, too, has a proud record of service to his constituents—[Hon. Members: "Distinguished!"] I have been corrected. His record is not only proud but distinguished. Again, his successor will have quite a job to do in following him. Mr. Deputy Chairman, my hon. Friend made a powerful point—