To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if she will make it her policy to ensure that pregnant women and nursing mothers in receipt of section 4 support under the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 are recognised as a vulnerable group when contracting and allocating placement...

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if she will make it her policy to ensure that pregnant women and nursing mothers in receipt of section 4 support under the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 are recognised as a vulnerable group when contracting and allocating placement...

(2) if she will place in the Library a copy of all guidance and benchmarking criteria used by her Department, its contractors and agents when assessing the adequacy and suitability of placement accommodation allocated to pregnant women and nursing mothers in receipt of section 4 support under the Immigration and...

(2) if she will place in the Library a copy of all guidance and benchmarking criteria used by her Department, its contractors and agents when assessing the adequacy and suitability of placement accommodation allocated to pregnant women and nursing mothers in receipt of section 4 support under the Immigration and...

It is a pleasure to follow a fellow member of the House of Commons rowing team. Every summer we try to raise some money for charity.

It is a great privilege to be a Member of the House of Commons. I was thinking that as I was standing in the Division...

It is a pleasure to follow a fellow member of the House of Commons rowing team. Every summer we try to raise some money for charity.

It is a great privilege to be a Member of the House of Commons. I was thinking that as I was standing in the Division...

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will take steps to ensure that the tax system does not disadvantage families with stay-at-home mothers.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will take steps to ensure that the tax system does not disadvantage families with stay-at-home mothers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate the Government has made of the number of mothers who give up work after having multiple births.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate the Government has made of the number of mothers who give up work after having multiple births.

My hon. Friend makes an important point. Opposition Front Benchers mention Sure Start. One of the most important things for mothers and young families is to get that start right, but it is not just about the availability of a centre; it is about the availability of a health visitor...

My hon. Friend makes an important point. Opposition Front Benchers mention Sure Start. One of the most important things for mothers and young families is to get that start right, but it is not just about the availability of a centre; it is about the availability of a health visitor...

Many couples in my constituency choose to have children at a younger age for religious and social reasons. Although I support their decision to do so, I would like assurances that there is appropriate support for those younger mothers. May we have a debate on what this Government have implemented...

Many couples in my constituency choose to have children at a younger age for religious and social reasons. Although I support their decision to do so, I would like assurances that there is appropriate support for those younger mothers. May we have a debate on what this Government have implemented...

Sure Start centres!

Sure Start centres!

With the leave of the House, I will repeat a Statement made in the other place today by my honourable friend the Minister of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.

“Across this House, since the great recession of 2008, concern has been repeatedly raised about access to finance, particularly for the...

With the leave of the House, I will repeat a Statement made in the other place today by my honourable friend the Minister of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.

“Across this House, since the great recession of 2008, concern has been repeatedly raised about access to finance, particularly for the...

My Lords, I thank the Minister for repeating the Statement made in the other place. I would also like to place on record the thanks of the House for the work that has been done by James Caan and the Start Up Loans Company to support people in setting up...

My Lords, I thank the Minister for repeating the Statement made in the other place. I would also like to place on record the thanks of the House for the work that has been done by James Caan and the Start Up Loans Company to support people in setting up...

My Lords, the noble Lord asked about lending 37% or 40% to London and not throughout the whole region. A large number of SMEs are based down south and up north, but it is for the whole region. To address this issue, we started a marketing campaign at the beginning...

My Lords, the noble Lord asked about lending 37% or 40% to London and not throughout the whole region. A large number of SMEs are based down south and up north, but it is for the whole region. To address this issue, we started a marketing campaign at the beginning...

My Lords, the shortfall in business investment is the biggest problem facing the economic recovery. I welcome this announcement of increased support for small business loans but recognise that it is one of many channels required to stimulate investment in small business. I have three questions. Are the Government sure...

My Lords, the shortfall in business investment is the biggest problem facing the economic recovery. I welcome this announcement of increased support for small business loans but recognise that it is one of many channels required to stimulate investment in small business. I have three questions. Are the Government sure...

My Lords, on business investment, I am pleased to say that there is a return of consumer and business confidence in the economy. Bank lending to businesses is going up. In fact we had a large increase in gross domestic lending to businesses in the past 12 months, a lot...

My Lords, on business investment, I am pleased to say that there is a return of consumer and business confidence in the economy. Bank lending to businesses is going up. In fact we had a large increase in gross domestic lending to businesses in the past 12 months, a lot...

My Lords, I speak as someone who started a business with exactly the same sum of money as Mr Martin raised so I am aware of the great difficulty in raising money for start-ups. To have a scheme such as this, which facilitates a new business, is really encouraging. I...

My Lords, I speak as someone who started a business with exactly the same sum of money as Mr Martin raised so I am aware of the great difficulty in raising money for start-ups. To have a scheme such as this, which facilitates a new business, is really encouraging. I...

My Lords, it is pleasure to answer my noble friend’s question, who brings with him a wealth of experience both in business and in corporate finance. The business growth fund is a welcome initiative, with five or six clearing banks putting together some £2.5 billion to lend money to new...

My Lords, it is pleasure to answer my noble friend’s question, who brings with him a wealth of experience both in business and in corporate finance. The business growth fund is a welcome initiative, with five or six clearing banks putting together some £2.5 billion to lend money to new...

My Lords, perhaps I may bring the Minister back to the third point made by the noble Lord, Lord Stoneham. Is it not the case that, the way that banks have been operating in recent years, the pendulum has swung from golf course lending to computer program lending and there...

My Lords, perhaps I may bring the Minister back to the third point made by the noble Lord, Lord Stoneham. Is it not the case that, the way that banks have been operating in recent years, the pendulum has swung from golf course lending to computer program lending and there...

The noble Lord makes a very important point. When I ran an SME I had easy access to my branch manager. To borrow money was not that difficult and the turnaround of applications was very quick. I agree with the noble Lord that we need to focus at regional as...

The noble Lord makes a very important point. When I ran an SME I had easy access to my branch manager. To borrow money was not that difficult and the turnaround of applications was very quick. I agree with the noble Lord that we need to focus at regional as...

My Lords, I congratulate the Government on the start-up loans scheme. It is an excellent initiative and I am delighted that the Minister, a fellow entrepreneur himself, is answering these questions from personal knowledge. I started a business from scratch. I know how difficult it was to raise those first...

My Lords, I congratulate the Government on the start-up loans scheme. It is an excellent initiative and I am delighted that the Minister, a fellow entrepreneur himself, is answering these questions from personal knowledge. I started a business from scratch. I know how difficult it was to raise those first...

My Lords, we will remove the age limit. The limit on lending is £25,000 for a period of five years, at a 6% interest rate. We will look at this over a period of time once we have looked at the success of the scheme. The scheme is proving to...

My Lords, we will remove the age limit. The limit on lending is £25,000 for a period of five years, at a 6% interest rate. We will look at this over a period of time once we have looked at the success of the scheme. The scheme is proving to...

My Lords, the noble Lord expressed a hope that banks may be persuaded to return to their former glory, when they operated at local level and were very much available for local businesses. Will he tell us what the Government intend to do to make that a reality? The reality...

My Lords, the noble Lord expressed a hope that banks may be persuaded to return to their former glory, when they operated at local level and were very much available for local businesses. Will he tell us what the Government intend to do to make that a reality? The reality...