Mr Michael Trend: I agree that the millennium bug is a good example, but surely that would be covered by subsection (2)(f), the hugely controversial disruption of electronic or other systems of communication. That rather makes my point. I think that it is covered.
Mr Michael Trend: The Under-Secretary, being my neighbour in east Berkshire, will know that we experienced a serious flood some 12 or 13 months ago, which mainly affected my constituency, but which might have affected hers to some extent. The people who were flooded, or who were involved in trying to find a way forward with the Environment Agency through flood risk and alleviation groups, feel strongly that...
Mr Michael Trend: We have heard that the Special Standing Committee thought it a good idea to place a statutory duty on category 1 responders to consult with and involve relevant voluntary organisations on civil contingency planning. Why have the Government not done so? We have also heard that the Red Cross offers emotional and practical support in emergencies, and the hon. Member for Ealing, North talked...
Mr Michael Trend: I am encouraged by what the Minister said. If he has any influence in this matter, I ask him to encourage the Environment Agency to examine its cultural preconceptions about this issue.
Mr Michael Trend: There is a further problem. The Government have massive powers under the Bill, and if they were to order a public utility—a private company—to undertake an action that later turned out to have been unnecessary, one would assume that reimbursement of the costs would be automatic. My hon. Friend mentioned foot and mouth. On the two occasions on which I recall that disease occurring in the...
Mr Michael Trend: I thought that I heard the Minister use the word ''guidance'' in an intervention. That may be a conventional phrase, but it is fairly loose. He argued that it would be a waste of resources to be more specific than that. However, if I were a member of one the bodies mentioned in the Bill, I would take comfort from greater clarity about my precise responsibilities. Will the Government issue...
Mr Michael Trend: I want to raise an issue that is of importance to my constituents and I and to the House as a whole. In essence, I want to talk about the Prime Minister's forthcoming visit to China and the opportunity that it presents, within the context of the war against terrorism, to give voice to the non-violent aspirations of the long-suffering people of Tibet. I hope that he will take the opportunity...
Mr Michael Trend: I am grateful to you, Mr. Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to make this early response to the report of the Standards and Privileges Committee, which was published this morning, especially in the light of the imminent parliamentary recess and my wish to make my position clear. I accept unreservedly the Committee's report, which finds me muddled and naive in my negligent understanding...
Mr Michael Trend: The recent flooding of the Thames had severe consequences for many of my constituents, especially for the communities of Datchet, Sunnymeads, Ham island, Wraysbury and Hythe End. I visited those places, as did my hon. Friend the Member for Spelthorne (Mr. Wilshire) and the hon. Member for Reading, West (Mr. Salter), when the river broke its banks, and I saw the disruption and distress...
Mr Michael Trend: I agree entirely with my hon. Friend. I will return to that point in a minute. People who live upstream of the beginning of the scheme feel intuitively—I hope that this is not an urban myth—that there may have been a bottleneck effect. The Environment Agency tells us that the Jubilee river performs the service for which it was designed, which is to protect Maidenhead, Windsor and Eton....
Mr Michael Trend: I welcome what the Secretary of State has said, but given this opportune hiatus he will clearly have to republish a number of documents. Could the Government spell out more clearly their position on such questions as mitigation and guarantees, especially in the context of noise of pollution and air quality? As the hon. Member for Dartford (Dr. Stoate) implied, during the consultation process...
Mr Michael Trend: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations his Department has made to the Government of Mongolia over the case of Ms B. Khanddolgar, Editor-in-Chief of the UG newspaper, recently imprisoned for alleged slander; and if he will make a statement.
Mr Michael Trend: I am grateful for this opportunity to bring the situation in Belarus back to the attention of the House. This is the third time that I have raised the subject in such a debate, but I make no apology for that. The oppressed people of Belarus rely on us to give them the voice that they are denied in their own country. In July last year and July 2000, I outlined the condition of what was, and...
Mr Michael Trend: To ask the Prime Minister what action he takes in ensuring that senior civil servants maintain proper standards of conduct while carrying out their duties.
Mr Michael Trend: The Leader of the House will be familiar with the fourth report of the Science and Technology Committee on developments in human genetics and embryology, which is an important and difficult matter. Can he reassure us that ownership of that important subject still resides with the House? Will he give us an early debate on the important matters raised in the report, especially the question of...
Mr Michael Trend: On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. Can you advise me how to correct a false impression given to the House earlier by the hon. Member for Pendle (Mr. Prentice)? I have tried to contact him, but, regrettably, I have not been able to do so in time. The problem arises from an exchange with the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, and it matters because it...
Mr Michael Trend: I, too, serve on the Public Administration Committee. In his evidence to us, Sir Richard Mottram said—as paragraph 299 of the minutes of evidence makes clear—that he was "very reluctant" to make his personal statement, but that it was "put to" him that he should do so. Did the Secretary of State put that point to him? Did the Secretary of State instruct, ask or encourage Sir Richard to...
Mr Michael Trend: For 70 years, the Queen Mother made a family home at Windsor. Affection, gratitude and respect for her life of service are keenly felt in and around our town—as are sorrow and loss at her death at Royal Lodge. That was clear when I took my two youngest children up to the castle gates on Saturday evening. Already, people from the town and visitors from throughout the country and the world...
Mr Michael Trend: I reiterate my support for the Bill. Its passage through the House has been refreshingly free of party political sniping. Many of my right hon. and hon. Friends and I would have liked to see the measure passed when we were in government. I congratulate the Minister and the Government on introducing it. I agree that there is a need to get the measure into law as expeditiously as possible. I...
Mr Michael Trend: That was a helpful intervention. There is a problem of democratic deficit. The Government have made laws and are writing constitutions for some territories, which have no direct representation here. That problem will not go away. It will be exacerbated if the Government have other ambitions to make laws in those territories. For the sake of everyone's sanity, I therefore recommend a regular...
