Mr Michael Mates | ProjectParly

Parliamentary History

Conservative

East Hampshire

10 Oct 1974 – 6 May 2010 (35 yrs 6 mo)

Ideology spectrum

100.0

ProgressiveCentreConservative

Conservative — based on 4 coded votes across 1 axes (1% coverage).

Policy axis scores

0 = progressive, 50 = centre, 100 = conservative. Based on coded division votes.

Climate / energy 100

Low confidence 4 votes

Voting trends (most recent 12 months of activity)

Voting record

June 2009 12 votes

Division	Date	Vote
On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. I have listened carefully to the concerns expressed by right hon. and hon. Members. Given that we were given no notice of the motions beyond the fact that they would be on the Order Paper today, is there any way for the Chair to consider manuscript amendments, or will we have no debate and no amendments? I regret to inform the hon. Gentleman that it is no...	25 Jun 2009	NO
I see that time is running out, so I shall draw my remarks to a close. I believe that the proposed Committee will be a valuable addition to the scrutiny of policy affecting London and Londoners. We have the same concerns as others do about the duplication that is taking place. When the London assembly and the Mayor's powers were set up, the expectation was that the Government office for London wou...	25 Jun 2009	NO
Question accordingly negatived. Question put forthwith ( Standing Order No. 31(2) ), That the proposed words be there added.	24 Jun 2009	NO
If the House resolves to give the inquiry the authority to compel witnesses and to put them on oath, that is exercisable against any witness. Why is the House not being asked to provide that safeguard, so that the inquiry commands public confidence? In all the debates that we have had on this matter in recent months, the Franks inquiry has been cited as the model for getting to the heart of these ...	24 Jun 2009	AYE
The Second Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means took the Chair as Deputy Speaker ( Standing Order No. 3 ). I beg to move, That the House sit in private. Question put forthwith ( Standing Order No. 163 ).	19 Jun 2009	NO
The funding formula needs to be reviewed from time to time. As the hon. Gentleman rightly said, the review was overdue, but it has now taken place. Part of the formula was set by the previous Conservative Government and it was enormously unfair to certain areas. We have put that right, which will result in Cornwall getting more money, as he recognised. He put his case fairly, as did the hon. Membe...	17 Jun 2009	NO
Order. The hon. Gentleman is a very experienced Member of the House, so he will know that we do not refer to people who are not in the Chamber in that way. Our debate has become a little lively for this time of the afternoon. Interestingly, in many of our discussion we have discussed the potential for things to have an influence on local communities and for business rate supplement projects to be ...	17 Jun 2009	NO
Against that background, I am sorry to have to say that we have to maintain that the Government have misjudged the mood and misread the evidence, and that if they disagree with the Lords they will make the Bill worse than when it came back to this House from the other place. That will be a missed opportunity and a great let-down, and it will send precisely the wrong signals to businesses in this c...	17 Jun 2009	NO
The hon. Member for Putney asked how the full deferral of 60 per cent. could be delivered if the scheme is introduced halfway through the year. The deferral scheme will come into force at the end of July—that was made clear when it was announced. The scheme will offer the full deferral of 60 per cent. of the increase due to inflation and transitional relief by adjusting the instalments of business...	15 Jun 2009	AYE
I am a new Minister, with less than a week's experience. I can honestly say that it is a steep learning curve, but I cannot think of a better debate to start with, especially as I represent the semi-rural constituency of north-east Somerset, or Wansdyke as it is known. In the best traditions of the House, this debate has been informative. I have heard some genuinely interesting things, some of the...	15 Jun 2009	AYE
On the economy, we know what— [ Interruption. ] I am about to come to the hon. Member for Carmarthen, East and Dinefwr (Adam Price) , so he can keep calm. What were his views, along with all the nationalists? They proclaimed the great arc of prosperity that was to extend across the smaller countries—Ireland, Iceland and Latvia. The hon. Gentleman said that "small country success is everywhere...Ic...	10 Jun 2009	AYE
Question accordingly agreed to. Bill read a Second time. Motion made, and Question put forthwith ( Standing Order No. 83A (7) ),	1 Jun 2009	NO

May 2009 10 votes

Division	Date	Vote
I wish in particular to mention the Royal College of Nursing. It is our understanding that since the publication of the two reviews, the RCN is calling no longer for a full public inquiry but rather for a review of any new issues. Many hon. Members have taken part in the debate, but the issues that the Opposition Front Benchers raised shared the theme of whistleblowing. I intend to address that, b...	18 May 2009	AYE
I was about to deal with the "pugnacious" slur, but then I found myself wanting to respond that if the hon. Gentleman had the slightest understanding of the issue, he could not possibly ask such a daft question. Of course we could not possibly put a figure on the number of people who may have been thinking about applying to have a new college in future. The right hon. Gentleman talked about Craven...	18 May 2009	AYE
The Government are committed to transparency and the hon. Member for Reigate can be assured that any emerging information on the possible side effects will be fully evaluated. We will take appropriate action promptly when any true side effects are detected but, alongside that transparency, we need to maintain public trust and confidence. The facts speak for themselves, and they remind us why we in...	13 May 2009	NO
To me, that illustrates a tendency towards a rules-based system which, in my view, has a number of negative effects on companies' positive approach to organising their affairs. I am in the principles-based camp; I do not think that we should tie things up unnecessarily. The other issue that Sarbanes-Oxley raises has already been touched on in relation to materiality. The Act introduced something r...	13 May 2009	AYE
I hope that I have reassured the hon. Member for Taunton that we have taken steps to secure the objectives that his amendment would deliver, in so far as they are achievable, and that he will feel able to withdraw the amendment. Thank you, Sir Michael, for giving me an opportunity to speak at the conclusion of this helpful debate. Many hon. Members will appreciate the modest but none the less welc...	12 May 2009	NO
The Minister is most generous in giving way again, and I am most grateful. I accept the value of the benefits that the Minister has outlined—it would be churlish not to—but my point is that the customers of the business to which I referred say that, even though they get a lot of grant, they simply do not have the money that they need to put in themselves. They get a 40 per cent. grant, but they ca...	12 May 2009	AYE
I refer the right hon. Gentleman to the authoritative KPMG survey of more than 500 multinational companies that reached that conclusion. The World Bank's "Doing Business 2009" study ranks the UK sixth in the world. The evidence is clear: we are in a strongly competitive position, and it is important that we should retain that. If everything is so wonderful, why have so many companies left for tax ...	12 May 2009	AYE
I need to make a bit of progress, because the Bill— [Interruption.] Order. I am sorry to interrupt the right hon. Gentleman. I must appeal to the House: we must end the debate in an orderly manner. The Financial Secretary's argument should be heard, and then we can bring the matter to a proper conclusion. Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker. The Bill underpins our commitment to the short-term support th...	6 May 2009	NO
Will the Minister give way? One more time. The Minister has been very generous, Madam—sorry, Mr. Deputy Speaker; I am confusing genders. If there has been no grade inflation, why has it been necessary to introduce the A* grade, which I understand many universities are now obliging students to attain? I find it very sad that the hon. Gentleman cannot accept the possibility that the abilities of our...	5 May 2009	AYE
Adding to all the financial woes, the Government are muddying the waters by further complicating an already complex system. The ineffectual LSC is to be abolished, only to be replaced by three new bodies. That has led to further confusion and worry, especially as there is no evidence that the more complicated system will be any more efficient. With your permission, Mr. Deputy Speaker, I propose to...	5 May 2009	AYE

March 2009 8 votes

Division	Date	Vote
Does my hon. Friend find it strange that the Conservatives in opposition now castigate the Government for proposing to double the national debt in the light of the worst world recession since 1946, yet the previous Conservative Government doubled the national debt when there was not such a deep world recession at all? They were the profligate ones, whereas we have had to pick up the pieces and pay...	18 Mar 2009	AYE
We took evidence in Committee, and I asked about what would happen to the kids of drug addicts if the parents' benefits were cut. One charity that supported conditionality could not answer that question. In Committee, the Minister for Employment and Welfare Reform said that the ideas about what would happen were fatuous and vacuous. He has been using such words quite a lot recently, and his resort...	17 Mar 2009	NO
Well, it is not amateur dramatics, as the hon. Gentleman says; this is about trying to assist blind people and it depends on what side of the argument one is on. In my role as Minister for disabled people, I have also been able to voice my support for this measure. Indeed, when I spoke at the lobby that I mentioned, I gave an unequivocal nod towards the Government's commitment to it, and my right ...	17 Mar 2009	NO
My right hon. Friend's interpretation of the views that I and other Labour Members expressed is a travesty. We are saying that the voluntary approach has been shown to be more effective in engaging people in the world of work, and we should pursue that approach. We are saying that any schemes that involve sanctions or people losing their benefit should be subject to a pilot scheme that compares th...	17 Mar 2009	NO
So that the general public can understand what is happening in the debate, will the Minister say whether he agrees with my analysis of the conciliation process—that a stalemate is likely and that the matter will go back to the Commission, where it will remain beyond the life of the Commission? Does the Minister anticipate a result before the European elections? We will know one way or the other wh...	10 Mar 2009	AYE
I accept the point of my hon. Friend the Member for Halton (Derek Twigg) about the £2 billion, because that is essential to keep Jobcentre Plus going and working effectively. I also take his point—not least because we recently announced the Houghton report—about the role of local government of all political persuasions in working with its local communities to do everything possible for local labou...	10 Mar 2009	AYE
I am pleased that the Minister is admitting that we will now be pulling away from the system that exists in this country, which did not seem to come across in his earlier remarks, but who is the DPP going to answer to? The DPP will be answerable to the Assembly for the use of resources and the administration of its office—that is very clear—but not for individual prosecution decisions, which are e...	4 Mar 2009	NO
Question accordingly agreed to. Amendment 140 agreed to. On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. My understanding is that we voted on new clause 23 although it had never been moved. Could we vote on my amendments 84 and 85, which were supported by 216 Members of Parliament? I think we should vote on those amendments.	2 Mar 2009	AYE

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