That this House agrees with the United Nations Secretary-General that there is a dire humanitarian situation in Gaza; fears the outbreak of further hostilities unless the situation improves dramatically; notes the considerable amount of British and other international aid required to keep Gaza from deteriorating further and to assist in the reconstruction of infrastructure and homes; regrets that the Israeli authorities continue to refuse access to British elected representatives to visit Gaza via Erez checkpoint; further notes that, given the dangerous security situation in the Sinai, the Israeli-controlled Erez crossing is the only viable entry point; and asks the Government to do everything in its power to persuade the Israeli authorities to permit parliamentary access into Gaza to assess the situation, the needs of the population and how British funds are being spent.

That this House agrees with the United Nations Secretary-General that there is a dire humanitarian situation in Gaza; fears the outbreak of further hostilities unless the situation improves dramatically; notes the considerable amount of British and other international aid required to keep Gaza from deteriorating further and to assist in...

That this House notes the invaluable contribution made by servicemen and servicewomen, past and present, to the security of the UK and the risks they take with their health and lives in defence of freedom; further notes that this unique sacrifice is not fully recognised within the social care system, with veterans who were injured before 6 April 2005 typically finding that all but the first £10 per week of their military compensation is taken to cover the costs of their care; further notes that this is not the case for veterans who were injured after 6 April 2005, or for civilians who have been injured in the workplace, both of whom can retain their compensation awards in full when accessing council support; recognises that the current situation amounts to a clear breach of the Armed Forces Covenant principle of no disadvantage due to Service; and calls on the Government and devolved administrations to harmonise the treatment of injured veterans' compensation payments in social care charging guidance, making additional financial resources available to help local authorities implement this policy change.

That this House notes the invaluable contribution made by servicemen and servicewomen, past and present, to the security of the UK and the risks they take with their health and lives in defence of freedom; further notes that this unique sacrifice is not fully recognised within the social care system,...

That this House notes that care workers play an important role in looking after the elderly, sick and vulnerable; further notes that care workers should be treated with dignity and respect and should have the right to decent terms and conditions; believes that all care workers should be paid the Living Wage of £7.85 as a minimum for all hours worked; further believes that there should be enough care staff present at any one time to provide a premium quality service which meets the emotional and physical needs of residents with compassion and dignity; further believes that carers should be given sufficient, meaningful and constructive face-to-face training, which is provided and completed in normal working hours, acknowledging the professional skillset required of them; and calls on the Government to take steps to implement these measures.

That this House notes that care workers play an important role in looking after the elderly, sick and vulnerable; further notes that care workers should be treated with dignity and respect and should have the right to decent terms and conditions; believes that all care workers should be paid the...

That this House believes that the UK faces a growing and ever more complex range of current and future threats, many of which were unforeseen, such as the Ukrainian crisis; calls on the next Government to adopt effective and properly resourced diplomatic, development and defence policies to meet these threats; and supports the UK devoting at least two per cent of its gross domestic product to defence, including a one per cent per annum increase in the defence equipment budget.

That this House believes that the UK faces a growing and ever more complex range of current and future threats, many of which were unforeseen, such as the Ukrainian crisis; calls on the next Government to adopt effective and properly resourced diplomatic, development and defence policies to meet these threats;...

That this House expresses deep concern about the arrest of Bob Rugurika, Burundian journalist and director of the African Public Radio (Radio Publique Africaine), on several criminal charges, including conspiracy to murder, following his interview of a man claiming to have participated in the recent murder of three Italian nuns and who implicated senior state officials in the crime; calls for his immediate release and for all charges against him to be dropped; further calls for charges pressed in May 2014 against prominent human rights defender Pierre Claver Mbonimpa following comments he made on the radio about allegations that youth groups affiliated with Burundi's ruling party were receiving arms and military training, and which include threatening state security, to be dropped; is alarmed by the enduring deterioration of the political climate, the increasing clampdown on political dissent and fundamental freedoms and the subsequent risk of destabilisation of Burundi, ahead of the elections planned later this year; and further calls on the Government to make firm and direct representations and to press for continued, strong representations by the EU and the UN on the matter of these arrests and on the issue of the persistent intimidation and harassment of political opponents, journalists and human rights activists in Burundi.

That this House expresses deep concern about the arrest of Bob Rugurika, Burundian journalist and director of the African Public Radio (Radio Publique Africaine), on several criminal charges, including conspiracy to murder, following his interview of a man claiming to have participated in the recent murder of three Italian nuns...

That this House recognises that properly qualified supply teachers are an essential resource for schools which wish to deliver the same quality learning experience for pupils when a class's regular teacher is absent; notes that supply teachers are increasingly employed by agencies which siphon off significant amounts of public funding for education into their profits; is concerned that agencies are unable to offer supply teachers membership of the Teachers' Pension Scheme and are driving down their pay, with a recent survey by the National Union of Teachers finding that 40 per cent of supply teachers are getting lower, or significantly lower, pay than three years ago; further notes the uncertainty and disquiet about umbrella companies which increasingly employ supply teachers; and calls on the Government to encourage schools to employ supply teachers directly or through the local authority, rather than using agencies, to ensure supply teachers are paid fairly and have access to pension rights on an equal basis to other teachers.

That this House recognises that properly qualified supply teachers are an essential resource for schools which wish to deliver the same quality learning experience for pupils when a class's regular teacher is absent; notes that supply teachers are increasingly employed by agencies which siphon off significant amounts of public funding...

That this House welcomes the Government commitment to allow animal experiment licences to be obtained under Freedom of Information Act rules and to end the use of animal experiments to test household product ingredients; notes that the former Home Office Minister, the hon. Member for Lewes, stated that these commitments were to take effect before the General Election; and urges the Home Secretary to proceed in this direction at the earliest opportunity.

That this House welcomes the Government commitment to allow animal experiment licences to be obtained under Freedom of Information Act rules and to end the use of animal experiments to test household product ingredients; notes that the former Home Office Minister, the hon. Member for Lewes, stated that these commitments...

That this House welcomes the ending of the beer duty escalator and the positive impact of two successive beer duty cuts in the 2013 and 2014 Budgets in supporting the growth of Britain's breweries and underpinning confidence in the UK's pubs; notes that beer duty is now 13 per cent lower than under the tax rises previously planned, a tax reduction that has been popular with pubgoers, leading to an additional 16,000 jobs and in the first six months following the Budget an extra £44 million in investment; and urges the Government to consider a further cut in beer duty in the 2015 Budget which would secure pub jobs, help keep pub pints affordable and support Britain's much-loved pubs.

That this House welcomes the ending of the beer duty escalator and the positive impact of two successive beer duty cuts in the 2013 and 2014 Budgets in supporting the growth of Britain's breweries and underpinning confidence in the UK's pubs; notes that beer duty is now 13 per cent...

That this House supports humanists and their right to a legal marriage ceremony which reflects their beliefs and is performed by someone who shares them; urges the Government to lay down regulations for legislation of humanist marriage in a timely manner; notes that this would be a modest reform in line with existing marriage laws for Jews and Quakers and not a fundamental change; recalls the Government's pledge to support strong and stable families and its support for the institution of marriage; believes humanist marriage would greatly strengthen families in England and Wales by allowing couples to start their lives together in a deeply meaningful and personal ceremony; further notes the experience of humanist marriage in Scotland where its introduction led to a net increase in marriage in the context of a general decline; and encourages the Government to support humanists' rights to have independent legal wedding ceremonies outside registry offices like those allowed for persons of religious belief.

That this House supports humanists and their right to a legal marriage ceremony which reflects their beliefs and is performed by someone who shares them; urges the Government to lay down regulations for legislation of humanist marriage in a timely manner; notes that this would be a modest reform in...

That this House believes that all young people across the UK should have access to a statutory funded, wide-ranging and universal youth service with ring-fenced funding from central government which is delivered by local authorities working closely with schools and youth voluntary organisations; notes the importance of youth services being delivered by professionally qualified youth workers, who offer young people the benefit of wide-ranging information, advice, guidance and support; recognises that a statutory funded, wide-ranging and universal youth service will deliver not only a safe and secure environment for young people to thrive, but in addition, embed critical life skills that enable young people to positively contribute to society both socially and economically; additionally recognises that for many young people, especially the most vulnerable and those from disadvantaged communities, the provision of a statutory funded, universal and wide-ranging youth service will support their journey into further and higher education, employment or training; further believes that a statutory funded, wide-ranging and universal youth service will constitute value for money in that such a service will lead to many young people not having to access higher tiered and more costly interventions later in their lives; and further believes that responsibility for youth services within central government should rest with the Department for Education.

That this House believes that all young people across the UK should have access to a statutory funded, wide-ranging and universal youth service with ring-fenced funding from central government which is delivered by local authorities working closely with schools and youth voluntary organisations; notes the importance of youth services being...

That this House notes that access to seed resources is central to small-scale farmers' ability to maintain resilient and productive livelihoods; further notes that, in facing the effects of climate change and changing global market forces, it is essential that poor farmers in Africa and elsewhere are supported to access and develop sustainable, productive and affordable seed resources through community-controlled initiatives; further notes that just three corporations now control 53 per cent of the global seed market, whilst farmers are experiencing dangerous levels of the debt and vulnerability as such corporations come to control their seed supply; further notes that UK aid is currently supporting initiatives such as the New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition that promote plant variety protection laws such as in Ghana that fail to protect poor and indigenous farmers and are likely to increase the market dominance of transnational seed corporations; further notes that the Department for International Development committed in 2005 to end policy conditionality for UK aid recipients, yet seed policy reforms required from some recipient states as part of aid commitments under the New Alliance appear in practice to undermine this commitment; and calls on the Government to support community-controlled initiatives to assist farmers to access sustainable, affordable and productive seed varieties instead of initiatives that increase corporate control of seed markets.

That this House notes that access to seed resources is central to small-scale farmers' ability to maintain resilient and productive livelihoods; further notes that, in facing the effects of climate change and changing global market forces, it is essential that poor farmers in Africa and elsewhere are supported to access...