political unrest in libya, including the author of humanitarian aid and cooperation of a no-fly zone over the country. and they question the prime minister for cutting funding on child education centers and modifying the government's welfare program. >> the questions for the prime minister gavin barwell. >> mr. prime minister? >> thank you, plr. .

>> i am sure the whole house -- to our brave servicemen and the people of new zealand. mr. speaker, despite the urgency -- to reduce the deficit what capacity does that give us to respond to the urgency of our situation on the libyan border? parks i think my hon. friend makes a right point. i think it is right to keep increasing the aid budget and what is happening on the egyptian and a tunisian border with libya shows how important that decision is.

there are serious indications of a great humanitarian crisis. some hundred 62,000 people have crossed the land border so far. we have sent technical teams to both orders. yesterday, we flew win people and blankets for 36,000 people. i can tell the house that, today, the u.k. operation to airlift several thousand people back to egypt with the first flight scheduled to leave the u.k. later today. these people should not be kept in transit. i am glad that britain can play such an important part in doing that. >> may i join the prime minister to intervene to private and dean hutchinson from nine regiment, the lot -- the royal logistical or and private robert wood from 7 to import an entire regiment, the religious discord? they both showed enormous her as an incursion in their service in afghanistan and thoughts are with their family and friends.

i welcome the bilateral action been taken to a pig mask upon the prime minister is also offering to multilateral organizations such as the world food program and the united nations high commissioner for refugees in dealing with what is, as a prime minister says, a growing refugee emergency on the libyan border? >> i think the right hon. gentleman for a question. in addition to the steps i announced about the airlift from the tunisian border back to -- it will be able to help with the humanitarian mission. he asked specifically about the multilateral organizations. obviously we are in very close touch with them, particularly

with ocha-the united nations office for the coordination of human nature -- of humanitarian affairs and valerie miss. we are delighted that it is john ging, many in the house will know from the u.n. and his excellent work in palestinian -- in palestine for unrwa, the united nations relief and works regency, who will be coordinating the effort. we will remain in close contact with them as one of their lead partners and will do everything we can to help the -- to help to coordinate this effort. >> i think the prime minister for that reply. i am sure you will keep the

house updated. we both agree on monday that the international community must take all practical steps for a democratic outcome in libya. >> our first priority as a country should, of course, between back with our fellow countrymen from libya. the process has gone well and there are very few who want to leave who are still in libya. we have just spoken about the humanitarian crisis, the next steps that we must take to ease that. what i was saying on monday and again today is that i do think it is the job of leaders in the western world in particular to prepare for all eventually and all the things that might happen, particularly if colonel gaddafi unleashes more things on his own people. on that ground, we should and we are looking at plans for a no- fly zone in a was particularly heartened by what secretary of state clinton said. she said a no-fly zone is an option we are actively considering. it is being discussed in the north atlantic council this morning. i think it is right that they are. >> i emphasize the prime munster

and i'm sure you'll agree that they sanctions, there was a clear sense of unity in the international committee over sanctions. clearly, that is what we must strive for in any future decisions that we make. he will understand the concern in the country and the armed forces that, after he spoke about the no-fly zone, the government issued redundancy notices to thousands of royal air force personnel. can he reassure the house and the country that any increase in our military commitments that he is talking about, including in north africa, can be met at a time when we are reducing capability? >> i can give him that assurance. let me be clear. of course, it is never easy to reduce the numbers in our armed forces. but this government decided to hold a strategic defense review. we have not had one for 12 years in this country and we inherited a defense budget that was in a state of complete chaos. the background to the defense review is the enormous black

hole in our nation's finances, but the aim of the defense review is to make sure that we have a flexible, well-equipped armed forces that are able to serve our national interests around the world. that is exactly what i think there will be able to do. >> after romford hospital, next on the waiting list for private finance initiative surgery should be a portsmouth's queen alexandra hostile. does my right hon. friend agree that massive annual repayments and restrictive procurement practices are preventing this care from being delivered, and that the contras should go under the knife and the setting is given departments held economy, not treasury coffers? >> my hon. friend this a good point. the public sector is going to be spending about 8 billion pounds on pfi contracts this year, so we must examine all these contracts for savings.

let me give my hon. friend a couple of examples of the nonsense that we inherited under these contracts. opposition members may not want to hear it. 333 pounds to change its hostile light switch. 963 pounds for a new tv aerial in a hospital. some of the terms of the contracts are disgraceful and it is right that we look at them. >> on the 13th of europe, boras johnson's and the deputy mayor with responsibility for policing, kitt motels, boasted that he would ensure that every safer neighborhood team in every ward in london would keep its two police constables and three police community support officers and that he had the power to guarantee it. however, police officers in mitchum have already told my constituents that those teams have been merged and that every safer neighborhood team has been reduced to one police officer. who do we believe, the london mayor or serving police officers?

>> i believe it is worth listening to both serving a retired police officers. she may want to listen to jan perry, who for years led the police federation. she said, "with unnecessary bureaucracy being added at every tier of policing from the local to national, i estimate one-third of effort is either over in the nude, duplicated or at no additional value. this is an affordable in the current climate and we need to give consideration on how we can realize savings in time and energy." as in so many areas, we inherited a police service completely inefficient and not properly managed by labor. >> there is an independent committee that ensures that once they have left office, former ministers act appropriately in a subsequent employment. it is reported that lord mendelson, baroness simons, and adam and gramm have worked for the gaddafi regime. in short, are these reports

thoroughly investigated? >> my hon. friend makes a good point. i am sure that those ex- ministers will want to refer themselves immediately to that committee so that their lives can be looked into. >> the prime minister and the secretary of state for communications and local government are adamant that there is no need for cuts in local authority for on-line services. can he therefore spine why conservative-run bromley council is shutting 13 of 16 children centers? -- can he explain why conservative-run at bromley council is setting 13 of 16 children's centers? >> yes, we have made reductions in local government grant, because, frankly, we inherited a complete mess in the nation's finances. what we have done is ask every single local authority to make

public every single bit of spending they do so that members of the public can make sure that they're cutting bureaucracy, cutting counselor allowances, and cutting pay, rather than cutting services. when the right hon. gentleman gets to his feet, perhaps you can tell us why only one authority in the entire country, labor-run nottingham, refuses to do so. >> you know he is losing the argument when he starts asking me the questions, mr. speaker. why are the cuts being made in sure start children's centers? we are getting used to the prime minister's question time you turn parent we have seen it on school's board, housing benefit, and, most recently, on forests. he has the capacity to ditch a policy and adopt a colleague in it. so when he returns to the dispatch box, why does he not done this policy, too, and why

does he not reinstate the insured start ring fence? >> in a minute, and he will give me a lesson on family loyalty. [laughter] let me say this to the right hon. gentleman. it comes here every week and says that he opposes the defense cuts, opposes the changes in the home office, opposes any changes to local government, yet, in four weeks' time, his own cuts program, the darling program, comes into place, up $14 billion -- 14 billion pounds of cuts, which is only two billion pounds less than we propose. it is about time he got off his opportunistic bandwagon inserted producing some policies of his own. >> this is the guy who made his career out of opportunism

knocks. remember what he said at the election p.m. he was strongly committed to assure star. he would improve sure start. and, if anyone suggested otherwise, it was an absolute disgrace. as children centers face closure, people know that he has got it in his car to stop that happening by reinforcing that sure start ring fence. he is the prime minister. it might not have looked like it lasted, but why does he not -- it may not have looked like it last week, but what does he not get a grip? >> water redoing for children -- what we are doing for children in this country is funding education for 2-year-olds for the first time, putting money into the people premium, something the hon. gentleman did not do for 13 years, and making sure that money is focused on the most disadvantaged. that is what is actually happening. when the party opposite looks at his performance --

>> order. let us have a bit of order now. i want to get to the bottom of the order paper and the house needs to help in that process. >> the money for sure stud is there so centers do not have to close. -- the money for sure starts is there so centers do not have to close. yes, i think that when the opposition considers the right hon. gentleman's performance, it could be time for a bit of "brother, where art thou?" >> the money foreshore start -- recently, eight members from both houses of parliament met. this morning, we learned that mr. bhatti, on his way to work, was murdered. mr. bhatti was a man committed to peace and multi-faith reconciliation. will let right hon. friend send through the high commission our

condolences to the cast -- the pakistani government and to his family, and will the restate our belief that there's no place for that kind of action anywhere in a democratic world? >> i think my hon. friend speaks for the whole house wheand i am sure the whole country. it was absolutely shocking to hear the news this morning about that minister, who was a christian minister in pakistan, being killed in that way, absolutely brutal and unacceptable. it shows what a huge problem we have in our world with intolerance, and what my hon. friend says is absolutely right. i will send not only our condolences, but are clearest possible message to the government and people of pakistan that that is simply unacceptable. >> two weeks ago, the prime minister gave the house some figures to criticize the flexible new deal. i thought they sounded a bit odd so i asked the library to check. its response dates "this is a

misleading interpretation of the statistics." can he get someone to check his figures before he gives them to the house? >> i can assure the hon. gentleman that the figures were properly checked. i will write him a letter outlining not only the figures for the festival new deal, which so many people know was just a revolving door for young people needed employment, but also add in the figures for the future jobs fond which cost five times as much as any other program. >> with the police using two thousand different i.t. systems and employ 5000 staff, is it not time for this government to start reforming police practices so that more resources can be devoted to fighting crime on the front line? >> i think my hon. friend makes an extremely important point. the british police are incredibly brave, incredibly professional, and all of us see how hard they work in

communities. frankly, they are let down by a system that has far too many officers in a back-office rules, in a jar, in '90, and not on the streets. -- in h r, in i.t., and not on the streets. that is what needs to change. >> the armed forces have our total support and admiration. traditionally, they would have looked to conservative government, whether in good economic times are bad to defend them as they defend us. given the deplorable treatment that they are currently receiving, whether they -- or hard copy, what plans does he have to restore it in government? >> i think everybody appreciates that our armed forces are among the most grave of professional in the world and we can be incredibly proud of what they

do. in making sure that we do look out for them, this government has introduced a doubling of the operational allowance for all those serving in afghanistan. we are the first government in history to introduce a people premiums so that the children of service personnel get extra money when they go to school. we are making sure that rest and recuperation leave is properly formed. and we are writing out the military covenant and properly referencing it in law. of allt important thing is to have a defense review and to make sure that our forces are fit for the future. to all those who expressed concern, i make this point. at the end of that from defense review, we will have the fourth largest military budget in the world. some of the most capable weapons than any airforce in the world could have, the new type 45 destroyers, our nuclear

deterrent, and a superbly professional army. that is what we want in this country, and that is what this government will support. >> will the prime minister join me in encouraging schools in my constituency and right across the country to get involved in the tenor tycoon school business competition, which encourages enterprise and is running this month? >> yes, it sounds like an excellent scheme. that is a very important part of a rounded education. >> on sunday, a woman asked me what politicians are going to do for people like her. she had been waiting for a disability living allowance appeal for 11 months. given the rollout of the employment support allowance and the proposals for more reviews and for more assessments in the , what plans does the prime minister have for expanding the tribunal's service, and has this been fully costed in his welfare reforms? >> this house will obviously

have a lot of opportunity to debate welfare reform bill. what we're looking for coming in terms of the gateway, is to make sure that people have a proper assessment for dla. >> while we must clearly do everything that we can to help the non libyans who are seeking to get out of that country, may we hope that the libyans will be allowed to determine the fate of colonel gaddafi? >> i very much hope that they do. i think we should support and say how much we admire those brave people who are standing up in their own country asking for greater freedoms, greater democracy, for things that we take for granted in our own country. what i think has been striking is that, for many who said that

any sort of rebellion like this would either be extremist or islamist or trouble, it is none of those things. it is a revolt by the people who want to have greater democracy in their country. >> leslie, save the children published research showing 1.6 million children are living in severe poverty in the united kingdom. yet, this week, the government have failed to include low- income families in the warm home discount scheme for rebates on their energy bills. will the prime minister meet with save the children on this critical issue and ask the chancellor to publish an emergency plan to tackle severe child poverty in the budget and the child poverty strategy later this month? >> i do see save the children regularly. i think they are an excellent organization in terms of the work they do a receive and the pressure that they keep to bear here in this country. what we have done in to help with child poverty is to make sure that we massively increase

the child tax credit. that is what we have done in the budget and in the spending around to make sure that, while we're making difficult decisions, child poverty has not increase. >> the prime minister will know that for years the welfare state has been too easily abused. can the prime minister assure this house that come in future, the welfare state will act as a safety net and not as a way of life for the work shy? >> what this government is doing is making sure that the welfare state always means that it is worthwhile someone being in work and worthwhile someone working more. that is what universal credit is all about and it will make a huge difference to welfare in this country. >> many of the poorest and most disadvantaged children in my constituency will not be

included in the people premium because their parents are still waiting for their immigration status to be settled and therefore have no access to funds and are not eligible for free school meals. will the prime minister as his ministers to meet me and other members in constituency like mine to discuss it with to capture these children to ensure that our schools are not underfunded? >> we had a number of discussions to work out the best basis to put it on. in the short term, i think the free school meals and kidder was the best basis. i am happy to arrange a meeting between her and my right hon. friend the education secretary to see what we can do to make sure that we're really targeting those most in need. there may be opportunities, perhaps not this year, but in the future, to make sure that people premium is helping those who most need it. >> yesterday, the secretary of state for transport made a most welcome announcement on the electrification of the great western mainline to bristol, cardiff, and the south wales

valleys. does not this show that the coalition government not only have a strategy for growth but that that vision for growth is both high-tech and green? >> 13 years and then never elected by the west coast main line out to cardiff. we managed to announce it in nine months. he is absolutely right. the good news is that it is not just the electrification of the line to cardiff, but also the newton a cliff that will build the trains and that we are pressing ahead with high-speed 2. >> does the prime minister think he was right to tell journalists on a plan that united kingdom is paying bribes to libya and does he agree with the foreign offices assessment that he was "list tongued and reckless?" >> i am very grateful for that

question. the point would make is that in getting people out of libya, we did have to pay some facilitation payments for the services in the airport. as the hon. gentleman says, i am sure that those were entirely proper. but the royal british legion has welcomed the prime minister's personal commitment to a new military covenant being enshrined in the law of the land. but it has made it clear that it does not accept that the government's proposals for an annual armed forces covenant report honors that promise. will he work constructively with the royal british legion to agree a definition of the military command that can be enshrined in legislation? >> i am very happy to work with the royal british legion. i think they're one of the most important and hard-working organizations anywhere in our country. they do not just do a great job in lobbying for the enforces. they do a brilliant job in looking after former service personnel in all our constituencies. i am happy to have that

conversation. i want to make sure not only that reference properly the cabinet in law, but that we regularly debate is, improve it, and enhance it, partly through debates in this house. >> i thank the prime minister and his right hon. friend for the work they did in securing the extra two hundred million pounds for the police service in northern ireland to combat the dissident terrorist threat. that will undoubtedly save lives and prevent the creation of for the victims. on victims, given our campaign for compensation for the ira victims of libyan state- sponsored terrorism, can the prime minister give us some assurance that, before normalization of relations with libya under any new regime, that is outstanding matter of compensation will be addressed by the government, not least perhaps by the use of gaddafi assets seized in britain? >> thank you to the right hon. gentleman for what he says about the additional funding for the police in northern ireland. it is absolutely vital that we

work hard with the administration to make sure that the security situation there is as good as it can be. on what he said about compensation from the libyans to victims of ira terror, an fco-led unit is still working on that issue and it is vital that it continues to go on doing that. it is an ingenious idea to use the frozen assets in that way. having sought advice, those assets really belong to the libyan people. the whole problem with libya is that it is a rich country with poor people. we can see that in the extensive assets that have been frozen. those assets belong to the libyan people first and foremost. >> milton keynes council has been praised for its commitment to publish all expenditure of more than 500 pounds, ensuring that local residents can see exactly how the council tax money is being spent. what message will the prime minister give to other local authorities that seem determined

to keep their residence firmly in the dark? >> by hon. friend makes extremely good point. i know that the labor party is embarrassed about this. we now have transparency from a regional council in the country apart from one that is controlled by the labor party, nottingham, which will not tell us where it is spending its money. i want every single member of parliament to be able to make sure that the money is going on services and not on salaries, bureaucracy, and allowances. that is the pressure at a time of austerity and a difficult national decisions. how typical is of labour just to try to cover it all of. >> in response to a question from me in december, the secretary of state for communities and local government expenses himself as delighted with the level of cuts faced by birmingham. yesterday, birmingham city council cut two hundred 12 million pounds from its budget, hitting care for the elderly and

the disabled, youth services. does the prime minister share his communities secretaries delight or does he think that birmingham is going too far, too fast? >> every council in the country is having to make difficult decisions about reducing their spending. when we look at what is actually happening to government grants, we see that in most cases, they are going back to the levels that we had in 2007, 2006 or, in some cases, even 2009. everyone has to take part in this and i would just remind the hon. gentleman that the reason this is being done is because this party made a complete mess of the country. >> at a time when prices at the petrol pumps are going up and up, will the government do all they can to ease the pressure on hard-pressed motorists? >> i know how difficult it is for motorists. we will look at the fact that extra revenue comes to the