Archive for July 9th, 2013
Tuesday, July 9th, 2013
Yesterday in the House of Commons Tamworth’s MP, Christopher Pincher, praised the Home Secretary, Theresa May MP, on the deportation of Abu Qatada to Jordan.
Mr Pincher said, “May I add to the bouquets under which my right hon. Friend is being buried and congratulate her and her team on succeeding where her predecessors had failed?
“Is she aware of the report that, contrary to what my hon. Friend John Glen said, the plane back to Jordan was not quite empty because it had aboard it three security guards, a psychologist, a medical examiner, and, inevitably, a lawyer?
“Can my right hon. Friend confirm that the costs of those people will not fall on the British taxpayer? If they do, will she change the rules of taxpayer liability as soon as possible?”
The Home Secretary replied, “It is indeed the case that other individuals were on the plane with Abu Qatada. I am sure that my hon. Friend will appreciate that having reached this stage we wanted to ensure that the deportation did in fact go ahead and went ahead successfully.”
Tuesday, July 9th, 2013
Yesterday in Parliament Christopher Pincher, MP for Tamworth, questioned the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on the rights of the community in respect of planning applications for wind farms.
Mr. Pincher asked, “What steps he is taking to promote the take-up of the new community rights in the Localism Act 2011.”
The Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Don Foster MP, said, “Community rights are being promoted through local, national, social and consumer media, ministerial visits, conferences, workshops, and external partners such as Locality, the Campaign for Real Ale and Supporters Direct.”
Christopher Pincher responded, “Will the Minister impress on local authorities the importance of their using their new powers and rights to resist unwanted wind farm developments such as the one at Relay Park and that in Kingsbury in North Warwickshire, which will tower over homes in Tamworth and cause property blight?”
Mr Foster replied, “As my hon. Friend knows, the Government recently announced that they will issue new planning policy guidance stating that the need for renewable energy does not automatically override environmental protections and the planning concerns of local communities. We intend to make pre-application consultations with local communities compulsory for more significant wind applications.”
