In the House... Speeches in the House of Commons 1997

Mr. Lawrie Quinn (Scarborough and Whitby): I represent a rural and fishing constituency. The Bill commends itself to many people in my constituency, as it affects their life style and their safety. They will be staggered that the party that they formerly supported has turned its face against the provision in its manifesto to widen the management of radio spectrum. I am fairly firm on this point, because the effectiveness of the police force in North Yorkshire suffered as a consequence of the narrowing and so-called freeing up that the right hon. Member for Wokingham (Mr. Redwood) instigated when he had his time at the Department of Trade and Industry. The Leader of the Opposition represents a constituency in North Yorkshire, so he knows what happened, even if the right hon. Member for Wokingham does not.

I have talked to policemen on the beat in the streets of Scarborough, Whitby and in the vast rural areas. Police constables often carry their own Vodafone mobile phones in their pockets, because as a consequence of the measures that were instigated by the previous Government, the radio system used by the North Yorkshire police force is outdated and ineffective, and about 40 per cent. of my constituency is a radio-free zone. That would probably commend itself to some of my colleagues on the Front Bench, particularly if it involved receiving radio signals through pagers or through radio telephones.

Like other hon. Members, I procured a digital telephone expecting to receive 95 per cent. coverage in my area, but when I am on my patch I have difficulty receiving appropriate communications. I am no different from the vast majority of people who live in those rural areas and work in those fishing communities. My constituents believe that this measure will afford them opportunities to get better access to communications.

I hope that the right hon. Member for Wokingham will explain later why he set his face so firmly against the previous Government's clear manifesto commitment. It was offered to my constituents as a fairly significant plank of their policy that affected people's life styles and safety.

I shall never forget the story told to me by a farmer in one of the dales, who had had an accident. He was in his tractor, on his own, and had he not been able to use a mobile telephone to gain access to the emergency services--which, incidentally, took more than 40 minutes to reach him--he probably would have lost his life. I believe that the Bill offers the possibility of innovation on the part of the industry, and thus offers life-saving measures to many of my constituents.

I ask the Minister to give serious consideration to a point that was made by the hon. Member for South Dorset (Mr. Bruce) about the fishing industry. Unlike some earlier speakers who may have found reasons for hilarity in that industry, I firmly believe that it is important for us to review the licensing charges presented to fishermen. I can confirm that they tend to use mobile phones more often than radios to telephone their homes, for instance, and that they use their radios only in emergencies--in circumstances of life and death. I hope that we will give due consideration to that in Committee.

As for the rural community, I understand from the research that I undertook in preparation for my speech that the National Farmers Union was one of the organisations that were consulted about the Bill. I believe that the NFU speaks for the agricultural community in supporting the Bill--and that is why I think that it was right that the previous Government made a commitment to the rural communities in their manifesto, saying that they would ensure that communications would be opened up for them.

Often, the size of the market is the reason why rural communities do not have access to the telecommunications market in the more restricted areas in which they live. I certainly believe in the idea of community, and I know that my constituents do. I believe that measures that will allow small-scale radio operators to enter the market for the first time, and to afford rural communities life-and-death safety procedures, will be beneficial.

Before I became a Member of Parliament, I was a civil engineer. I am a chartered civil engineer. Unlike some earlier speakers, I am not particularly expert in any electrical or even mechanical procedures, but I am a user: I have had to use the devices that we are discussing when doing my job out in the construction industry. I see tremendous advantages for the public utilities--the gas, electricity and water companies--and, indeed, for their customers. They will have access to services when there is an emergency, and that will have a direct result on life styles.

Let me emphasise a point that has come across in the debate. I believe that I was elected, rather than the last Conservative Member of Parliament for Scarborough, because I presented a programme that tried to solve problems rather than making larger problems. I believe that I was elected because I represented a party that spoke up for the whole British community, not just for sectional interests. I also believe that we now have a Government who try to represent all the British people, and all the people in my constituency of Scarborough and Whitby. The Bill was ready to be debated--thanks, ironically, to the work of the previous Government--but the fact that it has been presented says loud and clear to my constituents that the new Government are serious about benefiting their life styles.

Unlike Conservative Members, I believe that there is a possibility of our bringing real advantage and benefit to the whole British community, not just to sectional interests. I believe that the Bill firmly shows that the Labour party speaks for the whole of that community, not just for the narrow, sectional, urban and suburban interests that we heard represented earlier this evening.

Mr. Lawrie Quinn (Scarborough and Whitby): I am grateful that my topic has been selected for debate this afternoon, as it is extremely important to the people of Scarborough and Whitby, the people of North Yorkshire and our near neighbours.

I congratulate the Minister of State for Public Health, my hon. Friend the Member for Dulwich and West Norwood (Ms Jowell), on her recent appointment, and I wish her well in her endeavours on behalf of my constituents. Unfortunately, we do not have a full complement of Members in the House at present--perhaps because the debate has been called early. I wrote to those hon. Members who have an interest in such matters advising them of the debate, and I look forward to seeing them here before I conclude.

On 14 November 1996, Channel 4 screened an edition of the "Dispatches" programme that made a series of allegations about the North Yorkshire ambulance trust's operational effectiveness and management style. The programme initiated much local concern in North Yorkshire, and featured heavily in the national media. Following those allegations, the regional health office set up an independent review panel, chaired by Mrs. Anne Galbraith, on 15 November 1996. The long-awaited report was finally published on 3 June 1997.

Shortly after the publication of the report, the chair of the trust, Mr. Murray Naylor--who is, incidentally, a newly elected Conservative county councillor for the Rillington division--resigned from his post. A fortnight before the report was published, the chief executive, Mr. Michael King, retired on the grounds of ill health, at the relatively young age of 37. I must point out that I began my parliamentary career at the relatively ancient age of 40, and the Leader of the Opposition, the right hon. Member for Richmond, Yorks (Mr. Hague), recently assumed his responsibilities almost at the age at which Mr. King has retired.

I am also led to believe that some questions remain unanswered regarding Mr. King's illness. That is a serious concern for me and for those in the ambulance service who do not know what Mr. King's problem is. Front-line staff drew certain allegations to my attention and to that of the "Dispatches" programme producers. Some of those who blew the whistle about concerns within the trust were disciplined, and several people were dismissed for breaching their contracts of employment. Subsequent industrial tribunals upheld the management's decisions. As a result of the report's findings, I believe that the management's staff dismissal process looks unsafe, and I urge the Minister to consider that matter.

We may contrast the management's treatment of its staff with the tolerance that it showed to the former chief executive, Mr. King, during his long period of ill health. Many people in public service in North Yorkshire are deeply puzzled about that obvious inconsistency in the treatment of staff at different ends of the trust hierarchy. I believe that the matter should be re-examined in light of the review panel's findings.

The Galbraith report raised several key points. The national health service executive, Northern and Yorkshire region, states in a press release of 3 June:

"Performance standards were marginally over-stated but there was no evidence to substantiate the allegation of deliberate manipulation"

"The decision to procure a new command and control system, costing more than £650,000 was not fully tested against alternatives."

The Galbraith report also decided that the trust's ratio of operational ambulance staff to trainers is inadequate. Although the trust fell into significant arrears with its paramedic re-certification programme in 1996, the panel found that the situation has improved. Galbraith also found that the organisation's management style had adversely affected the trust's operational effectiveness, and that was severely criticised in the report.

The trust took some remedial action following the James Dean incident, which was a sad incident in which a teenager died, but the issue remains of the responsiveness of the service to accident calls. The panel believed that there were some lessons to be learned, and I shall deal with them shortly.

The key point, as the panel decided, was a failure to separate income generation calls--those that concerned assistance for the veterinary service and dentistry--from emergency calls, which is why the service exists so as to help us. There seems to have been some confusion in the control room about the priorities to be given to incoming calls, which led to severe operational efficiency defects. The panel found that the problem had been remedied by the trust by early June.

I feel that there are some essential national lessons to be learned from this sorry tale. I know that the community in North Yorkshire expects that locally and nationally our health service should be managed efficiently, and should be there to deliver within the highest standards of public service.

As a former railway manager, I have carefully studied the Galbraith report and its findings. I have mounting concern about the internal management structure and style that was pervasive over the period leading up to the report being delivered. That structure and style failed to deliver an honest team-working spirit. I see a failure to establish what I regard as a no-blame culture within the workplace. I am concerned especially that there seem to be unresolved issues. I hope that my hon. Friend the Minister will consider these, perhaps in a later response.

I shall now inform the House of the sad events that occurred on the afternoon of Saturday 7 June. They took place in front of me during a journey that I was making between my constituency and York, within the constituency of the hon. Member for Ryedale (Mr. Greenway), who I see has now joined us in the Chamber. At about 3 p.m., the radio news had just finished, and at that moment I could not really believe what I was seeing in front of me. I saw, about six vehicles ahead of my car, that a roof ladder had become detached from a pick-up truck and was lying almost horizontally across the opposite carriageway. It had the appearance of crop sprayer.

I saw a private car and a coach moving towards the ladder from the direction of York. The coach hit the ladder, and its windscreen was shattered. I pulled over and tried to help.

I discovered that the coach was occupied by a class of 12-year-olds from the Cavendish school, Hemel Hempstead. I am glad to report that no serious injuries resulted. I believe that that was due to the fact that all the children were wearing lap seatbelts, and because the driver was wearing sunglasses, which protected his eyes.

I made a 999 call on my mobile telephone at about six minutes past 3 o'clock. That was about four minutes after the accident had happened. The police attended within several minutes. I must commend them on their prompt action.

The problem, as I see it, was that the first ambulance arrived at about 25 minutes past 3, well beyond the standard response time that is expected. As I had studied the Galbraith report only a few days before the accident took place, and had been assured by subsequent press reports from the trust that major improvements had been made in meeting response times--I am on record locally in commending the work that has been done--I became concerned about response times. I feel that it is still a significant issue in north Yorkshire.

These events led me to call and write to Madam Speaker to ask for an Adjournment debate. I am grateful to her, because she must have thought that the matter deserved some attention.

I have some key questions for my hon. Friend the Minister. First, are the Government happy that the inquiry was wholly independent? As a test, I shall use an extract from a letter that was sent from my close and hon. Friend the Member for City of York (Mr. Bayley) to Mrs. Galbraith on 20 December 1996. I shall quote the paragraph about the independence of the inquiry. It reads:

"You will be aware that I have expressed concern about whether your inquiry will be independent. I understand that the North Yorkshire Ambulance Service was involved in 'head-hunting' members of the inquiry team and in setting your initial terms of reference. I regard this as unsatisfactory but will judge your report on its merits before deciding whether to ask the Public Accounts Committee to investigate the allegations about the service."

In addition to that test, I ask my hon. Friend the Minister what measures the regional health executive officials are taking to ensure proper performance and adherence to corporate governance requirements for the future of the North Yorkshire ambulance trust, and, indeed, for the future of all national health service trusts. Has any performance recovery plan been established? I would like to know also whether that has been requested and whether such a plan will be published. Will the public of North Yorkshire be able to learn of the targets?

I wish to ascertain also whether my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health will be giving detailed and early consideration to the future occupancy of key positions within the trust. I should like to see a serious re-evaluation of the appointments process within a key public service that extends across the country. The findings of the Galbraith report suggest that that should happen.

There are key questions of accountability and accessibility to the community served within such an important public service. These factors should be taken into account if any future design is made for improving guidelines for appointments to health trusts.

Some published mechanism should be established that allows for positive feedback from public servants within a no-blame, no-bully culture. That would allow and encourage a real team-building process. It would allow also an honesty of approach, to ensure that we have the most effective services from health trusts.

I would like the Minister, if it is possible, to deal with the rumours that are now abroad in North Yorkshire and Humberside about the possible merger of the two ambulance trusts. These rumours are sapping staff morale and causing loss of staff confidence. I am talking of people who have been knocked from pillar to post by the events that led to the Galbraith inquiry.

I believe that the North Yorkshire ambulance service has an identity of its own. In spite of the sorry management regime investigated by Mrs. Galbraith and her team, the service has developed a strong relationship with the people of North Yorkshire. Those who work in the service are to be commended for the work they do.

I should like to think that the problems caused by ineffective management that ensued over several years from the birth of the trust, and which have been outlined so clearly by the Galbraith report, will not be taken as a basis for any merger of services, which I believe to be geographically unsustainable.

It would not be in the best interests of the people of Scarborough and Whitby, or of those of North Yorkshire or the national community, for us to be thinking about such a merger on the basis of the problems that I have outlined. I shall be interested to hear my hon. Friend's response.

Mr. Lawrie Quinn (Scarborough and Whitby): I congratulate the hon. Member for Meriden (Mrs. Spelman) on a nice speech. I also take the opportunity to congratulate my near neighbour, the right hon. Member for Richmond, Yorks (Mr. Hague), who has something to be congratulated on this evening. I am sure that he would have been here this evening to hear what I have to say about the rural constituency of Scarborough and Whitby had circumstances been different. As the new Member of Parliament for Scarborough and Whitby, I am grateful for the opportunity to make this maiden speech on a subject which I know is of key importance to the fine people who live and work on the land in the glorious and popular part of North Yorkshire which I am proud to represent.

Scarborough and Whitby constituency is blessed by a dramatic coast of magnificent cliffs, with miles and miles of beautiful beaches stretching from just north of Filey, in the constituency of the hon. Member for Ryedale (Mr. Greenway), for 45 miles to Staithes, which is also known as the Yorkshire Polperro. The classic British family seaside holiday was invented in my constituency. I am glad to say that most hon. Members and their families have experienced and valued the hospitality and welcome of the people whom I come to the House to serve. I am not making an early application for the job of director of tourism by making that statement.

As well as the temptations of the shoreline, I commend the spectacular countryside of North Yorkshire national park, which is maintained in trust for an appreciative nation by some of the most hard-working farm workers that one will find anywhere in the country. It will be far from a surprise to hon. Members if I urge those who have not had the pleasure of visiting my constituency to go for a stroll along Baxtergate in Whitby, or Aberdeen walk in Scarborough, or to take a touring holiday in the beautiful Esk valley, or to go to Robin Hood's bay. The choices are countless, and the attractions are something to be seen. They are real British gems. So I ask all hon. Members to appreciate the qualities of my constituency, if not of this speech.

Hon. Members who visit my constituents will be assured of a welcome every time, and their friends and families will be welcome time and time again--the more times the merrier. After the hospitality industry and the growing light industrial sectors in Eastfield, Scarborough and Whitby, agriculture and fisheries are by far the main basis for economic activity in my beautiful part of the world.

My constituency is the 50th largest in England by area, but it is sparsely populated and we do not have the effective communications of which the hon. Member for Meriden spoke. We have about one third of the density of population of the rest of England. That is important to remember.

I have the honour to be the first Labour Member of Parliament to represent my part of the world. The constituency was previously known simply as Scarborough. This part of Yorkshire has time and time again returned Conservative Members. I have looked back in the history books and found that there was a great political landslide in the early part of this century which saw the return of a Liberal Member for the borough of Scarborough.

As my hon. Friends probably know, I am a civil engineer. It was my job before I came here to prevent landslides. This is the first time that my professional colleagues have congratulated me on causing one. The famous Holbeck Hall hotel ended up in the sea. The local press suggested--

Mr. Pickthall: My hon. Friend failed to prevent that landslide.

Mr. Quinn: It was not my job. I was a railway civil engineer. I had to stand in front of the site of the Holbeck Hall disaster on the day after my election and point at the landslide. It was an awful pun, but I thank Scarborough Evening News for its contribution to this maiden speech.

The boundary changes of 1983 saw the restoration of Whitby and the Moors to the former parliamentary seat of the same name. Until 1974, Whitby was included in Cleveland, a seat which was later abolished as a result of the creation of the county of Cleveland. Yorkshire ceded a little bit of Yorkshire to the county of Cleveland. I regret that the previous Government redefined the boundaries of Cleveland and, as a consequence of the 1995 boundary review, recommendations were made to change the name again to Scarborough and Whitby. I commend not only the local people from Whitby who insisted on the change of name but the many members of my constituency party who felt that it was important that Whitby was recognised in the name of the seat, and who made representations to that effect.

One speaks to many people on arriving in Parliament, and many people have spoken to me about the previous Member for the seat that I have the pleasure to serve. John Sykes is fondly remembered as a kind and caring Member of Parliament who was held in high regard for his abilities as a pianist, and for his sociability. He is also well known and respected in the constituency for his great work with charities. Although John and I could rarely find a common point in terms of political analysis, and rarely did we agree in any debate, John was always courteous to me, my family and friends.

I had a great surprise last Christmas when I received both a birthday card and a Christmas card from John and his family. They were different in tone and content from all the previous letters that I had received from him, and it was good to receive such a thoughtful card just before Christmas day, my birthday. I had to check with John that the card was from him. They were, and that is the sort of chap he is.

Following my success on 1 May, I was delighted to receive many letters of congratulation and support from many local people in my constituency. I should like to acknowledge now and put on record the high regard in which John Sykes's predecessor, Sir Michael Shaw, was held in the constituency. He was a remarkable Member of Parliament, who served our community for more than 26 years. People involved in politics in Scarborough and Whitby regarded him as a hard-working and commendable Member of Parliament. It would have been remiss of me not to place on record the high regard in which he is held in my part of north Yorkshire.

Sir Michael established a welcome tradition for me to take up on my entry into Parliament. I believe that it was he who set up the tradition of entertaining the Scarborough civic party in the House before its visit to Buckingham Palace garden party. I am pleased to say that John Sykes maintained the tradition and that I shall have great pleasure in entertaining the civic party in the House when it comes down to London in July.

The past few weeks have been a tremendous historical chapter in the glorious history of the constituency that I serve. We had the Synod of Whitby in 665 at the famous abbey of Whitby. Caedmon, the first English poet, lived in Whitby until 680. The ancient rivalries between the Saxons and the Vikings, who set up the fishing community in Scarborough in the 10th century are remembered in stories told time and time again in local pubs and clubs in Scarborough and Whitby. It is a great tradition of history. Scarborough spa was established in the 17th century, which made Scarborough the first English seaside resort. That is something that we regard with great pride in my part of the world.

Scarborough and Whitby have contributed greatly to our nation's history and without a doubt are regarded highly internationally. Possibly the most notable episode in our history is that of Captain Cook. His connection with the people of Whitby is regarded with great fondness. Only recently the replica of the Endeavour returned to Whitby. We had 10 wonderful days in Whitby when more than 1.2 million people visited the small Yorkshire town. They came in their droves and felt the welcome and warmth of the people of Whitby and of my constituency.

It was remarkable that that happened in May 1997. It was pure magic for all those days in the streets of Whitby.

The constituency and the community are now focused entirely on the project of rebuilding Captain Cook's Resolution, the largest ship to sail to Australia in the 18th century. That Resolution project will mark the start of the third millennium for my constituency. I hope that it will give jobs and skills to my constituents, as well as providing the best fish and chips in Britain, the legend of Dracula and the famous Whitby welcome. I know that most of my constituents are keen to see the Endeavour return from her trip around Britain. I hope that she will return this autumn to be refitted in the port. The crew will then receive the hospitality of the port, before Endeavour commences her dangerous voyage over the Atlantic to Boston.

Hon. Members may think that that is more than enough to happen to a small place such as Whitby and a constituency such as Scarborough and Whitby, but there was more. In May, the Whitby Town footballers from the Northern league, who have become local legends, won the Football Association vase at Wembley; they have also become the champions of the Northern league. It was quite a month for Whitby and for the "Seasiders"--and, of course, I make no reference to the general election result in any of this.

The House will doubtless appreciate why I believe that there is a great sense of hope and optimism among my constituents. When I walk down streets such as Flowergate in Whitby and Huntriss Row in Scarborough, which happen to be where the Conservative association clubs are located, I see people walking round with what local journalists call "coat-hanger smiles". They are happier than they have been in a long time--doubtless owing to the return of the Endeavour and Whitby's great victory in football.

My right hon. Friend the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food's announcement yesterday on quota hoppers has been regarded with true Whitby and Yorkshire grit as a good start. In reality, that is the best we are going to get at the moment. But I commend to my right hon. Friend the idea of consultation on the fishing industry and its future, particularly in the ports that I represent--that would be very welcome. The fishing industry wants my right hon. Friend and his Front-Bench colleagues to listen to their problems. They feel that they have been forgotten, which is why it is important that we make a new start under this new Government.

I was advised that, when I made my maiden speech, I should try not to be controversial, and I hope that what I am about to say will not be regarded as such. I had an opportunity to reflect on my predecessor's maiden speech, in which he unfortunately described the fishing community in Scarborough and Whitby as

"my floating voters, but not in the democratic sense."--[Official Report, 8 June 1992; Vol. 209, c. 89.]

I am receiving puzzled looks from Opposition Members, who seem to be wondering when I will address the substantive point of the debate. I am here to contribute to the debate on the common agricultural policy, which is an important issue for my constituents and for farming interests in my constituency. They know that I do not come from a background of working the land. However, members of the local branch of the National Farmers Union know me, and know that I have a long and fruitful record of helping some of them, particularly when in my previous occupation. I was previously a railway civil engineer, an occupation which found me occasionally working with farmers.

I was regularly in contact with many landowners whose crops or stock had been damaged or killed owing to the alleged failure of railway fencing to keep out "railway rabbits" and badgers from the best crops of wheat, beet or other vegetables due for market. [Interruption.] I am receiving some acknowledgement from Opposition Members, who presumably recognise the truth of what I am saying.

The fences are there to keep the stock off the operational railway, not to keep the pests off the land. It has always amazed me that "railway rabbits", so called by the victims of the trespass, cannot be persuaded to wear the appropriate safety clothing. If they were railway rabbits, they would be wearing high-visibility orange vests.

Throughout my political career, I have attempted to use my perspective as an engineer. At Question Time, there was an exchange between my hon. Friends. Civil engineers rarely become Members of Parliament; the record shows that there are more lawyers than engineers in Parliament. But I bring with me my professional and personal code, which has always demanded that I solve problems, not cause them. I hope that my colleagues in the Whips Office agree that that sentiment merits consideration from all hon. Members.

In my constituency, as in the constituency of my right hon. Friend the Member for Copeland (Dr. Cunningham), many hill farmers struggle in dangerous and hostile environments to earn what, in many urban areas, would not be regarded as a fair living wage. There is strong evidence that the solitude of farmers and the continuing BSE crisis, which is affecting North Yorkshire's beef and dairy herds, is bringing many other pressures to rural communities and families.

Those increased pressures have led to greater levels of personal stress and greater social problems within individual families. I am sorry to say that there is evidence of more mental health problems among the farming community, which have, sadly, led to an increased suicide rate in that community. In my role as a Member of Parliament, I shall do as much as I can to mitigate the pressures on the rural and farming communities.

I accept that I am a beginner in terms of agriculture, which is not really my subject, but I am here to learn and to participate in the debate. My preparations for this maiden speech will serve me in good stead in my role as representative of the rural community in my constituency. I am confident that, with the help of farmers, farmers' families and other agricultural workers in my constituency, I shall form a deeper appreciation of the key problems affecting such an important economic activity in my constituency.

My right hon. Friend should give serious consideration to opening up the debate on the CAP as he did with fishing quotas. There is demand in the rural communities that I represent for my right hon. Friend to think carefully before accelerating towards enlargement of the Community or the CAP. There are doubtless significant agricultural problems in countries such as Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Romania. Before we start to expand the CAP in that direction, we must set about some benchmarking--an engineering term--for British agriculture.

Engineers have traditionally been concerned about not throwing out the baby with the bath water. My constituents--in their roles as arable, dairy, beef, pig, poultry and hill farmers--and I are hopeful that, before the debate moves too far towards the east, we should look carefully at an open and fair audit of our national production. We must consider such an audit before we can achieve the much-needed reform of the CAP.

The CAP needs to be more efficient, to save money and to tackle the fraud that is so obvious in many of our partner countries. We need to bring about a real improvement to support our rural economy, and to protect and enhance our environment. For the benefit of my constituents, we must deal with those matters so that we can get on with making important social, educational and transport infrastructure improvements. We need to focus resources on key areas to help pensioners and others in my constituency, who are queuing up with high expectations of our Government.

I commend the proposals for a food standards agency, which will go a long way towards protecting elderly pensioners in particular from the risk of terrible illnesses such as E. coli. The proposals are in the best interests of my constituents, and of both producers and consumers throughout the country.

I support the motion on which we shall be voting, and I thank hon. Members for listening to my speech.

Reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO