Early Day Motions

BRITISH TROOPS AND THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT

That this House disagrees with the Secretary of State for Defence that the International Criminal Court should have no role in cases where British soldiers are alleged to have committed war crimes; and considers that such immunity if granted to British troops would be damaging to the operation and l

TRANSFORMATION FUND FOR CHILDCARE

That this House commends the Transformation Fund for childcare; notes the Fund's importance in building on the good quality services already achieved across the private, voluntary and maintained childcare sectors; supports initiatives to extend qualifications and develop skills in caring and in lear

SCOTTISH NATIONAL PARTY VICTORY IN MILTON BY-ELECTION

That this House congratulates Councillor Billy McAllister on his election as the Scottish National Party's latest elected representative following his significant victory in the local authority by-election in Milton for the City of Glasgow Council; notes that this victory was gained by a swing from

JAMIL EL-BANNA AND BRITISH RESIDENTS IN GUANTANAMO BAY

That this House applauds the Times Series Newspapers on their `Justice for Dad' campaign with its call to the British Government and US Administration to bring justice to Jamil el-Banna, a British resident held in Guantanamo Bay for over three years without charge or trial; regrets the Prime Ministe

VAT ON DOMESTIC BUILDING WORK

That this House notes that the Government has the right until 31st March to propose a reduced rate of VAT for domestic building work; supports the Government in its drive to improve the quality of domestic building work through the TrustMark initiative; and urges the Government to support the TrustM

ACTION MESOTHELIOMA DAY

That this House welcomes the first Action Mesothelioma Day on 27th February and the campaign, led by the British Lung Foundation, which aims to raise awareness of mesothelioma, the asbestos cancer; regrets that one person in the UK dies from mesothelioma every five hours, in most cases 20 to 40 year

USE OF THE DNA DATABASE

That this House expresses its concern about the retention of DNA data taken from children aged 10 to 18 years who have never been charged or cautioned with any offence; notes large regional differences in retention policy between various police forces; and believes that this imbalance is being furth

COMMENTS OF FORMER UN HEAD OF HUMAN RIGHTS MISSION ON IRAQ (No. 1)

That this House expresses concern at the comments of Mr John Pace, until recently the head of the United Nations' human rights office of the UN Assistance Mission to Iraq, that much of the killing is attributed to the agents of the Ministry of the Interior and that this Ministry acts as a rogue elem

COMMENTS OF FORMER UN HEAD OF HUMAN RIGHTS MISSION ON IRAQ (No. 2)

That this House expresses concern at the comments of Mr John Pace, until recently Head of the United Nations Human Rights Office of the UN Assistance Mission to Iraq, that the violence in Iraq is being made worse by the seizing of young Iraqi men, the vast majority of whom he says are innocent, by U

ARCHIVES FOR AFRICA INITIATIVE

That this House congratulates the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) on the launch in the House on Tuesday 28th February of its excellent Archives for Africa initiative; applauds the free access that the Society is proposing to give in African countries to the RSC's extensive collection of historical

ADJUDICATION PANEL FOR ENGLAND

That this House believes that the decision of the Adjudication Panel for England to suspend the Mayor of London for four weeks, if upheld, would enshrine an unacceptable constitutional principle that someone can be removed from elective office, not by the electorate or for breaches of the law, but b

CUTS IN LOCAL RAIL FUNDING FOR THE SEVERN BEACH LINE

That this House condemns the decision by Liberal Democrat councillors on Bristol City Council to recommend ending financial support for local rail services on the Severn Beach railway line in Bristol by cutting the entire £138,000 rail support grant from the local authority transport budget; believe

TREATMENT OF CHILDREN IN CUSTODY

That this House welcomes the report by Lord Carlile of Berriew QC on the use of restraint, isolation and strip searching of children in young offender institutions; notes the high level of concern expressed by the Howard League for Penal Reform and other children's and prison reform organisations ab

SEVERN BEACH RAILWAY LINE

That this House notes that 6th March marks 141 years since the opening of the Severn Beach railway line in Bristol; further notes that this line served a vital purpose during the First World War in carrying munitions and today carries thousands of commuters per week; acknowledges that Thomas Cook ha

SHORTAGE OF DIAMORPHINE

That this House notes that because of the world shortage of diamorphine anyone dying in a developing country has only a one in 20 chance of pain relief from this most effective pain killer because seven rich countries consume 70 per cent. of the world's supply; urges the licensing of Afghan farmers

PRICE FOR MILK PAID BY BRITISH SUPERMARKETS

That this House notes with concern and disdain the way in which British supermarkets treat British dairy farmers; and urges the setting up of an all-parliamentary group of hon. Members who feel passionately about British agriculture and who will collectively seek to lobby supermarket bosses to ensur

SEPARATE TAMIL NATION

That this House acknowledges the equality of both Tamil-speaking and Sinhalese Sri Lankans; and recognises the sovereignty of a separate Tamil-speaking nation, independent from the Sinhalese majority that continues to govern since independence in 1948.

HON. MEMBER FOR EALING NORTH AND SMOKING

That this House congratulates the hon. Member for Ealing North on giving up smoking as a positive response to the historic decision of this House on 14th February to ban smoking in public places in England; notes that his chances of dying from a smoking-related disease will decline with each day upo

PRESERVATION OF RAYNERS PUBLIC HOUSE MUSIC VENUE

That this House notes the diminishing number of live music venues in the North West London area; further notes the threat of demolition by new owners of the Rayners public house and the reputation of the Rayners for hosting excellent big band jazz, salsa and ska musical events; welcomes Harrow Counc

WELSH CHEESE WEEK AT WESTMINSTER

That this House congratulates the House of Commons Refreshment Department on its decision to hold a Welsh cheese week at Westminster in the week of 27th February; notes that cheeses from across Wales will be represented, including Celtic Promise and Gorwydd Caerphilly, award winning cheeses from Cer

EARBY YOUTH HOSTEL AND THE INDEPENDENT LABOUR PARTY

That this House deeply regrets the threatened sale of the youth hostel in Birch Hall Lane, Earby, which has been singled out for closure as part of the Youth Hostels Association's (YHA) new strategy to re-focus its work; notes that the hostel has huge significance for those interested in the history

POLICE REORGANISATION

That this House notes that the highest levels of drugs crime, terrorist attacks and people trafficking are all in areas with police forces with more than 4,000 staff; rejects the claim that larger police forces reduce crime levels; applauds the splendid success in crime reduction achieved by smaller

GREATER MANCHESTER RADIO'S COMMUNITY PROGRAMMING CUTS

That this House notes BBC Greater Manchester Radio's (GMR) decision to cut several long-running and successful community programmes including The Parlour, Gaytalk and It's Kosher; further notes that at 21 years old The Parlour is the UK's longest-running Irish show; recognises that such specialist c

SHETLAND BOX

That this House welcomes the resolution of the European Parliament of 14th February relating to the Shetland Box which received the overwhelming backing of all political groups; notes that the resolution recognises the socio-economic importance of the Shetland Box area to communities in the north of

ENVIRONMENTAL CASE FOR RAIL

That this House notes that transport accounts for more than a third of total UK carbon dioxide emissions; is concerned that carbon dioxide emissions from transport are predicted to rise by almost 10 per cent. between 2000 and 2010; supports an integrated transport system in which different transport