The Rt Hon Malcolm Bruce MP

May Column

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Lib Dems historic victory for the Gurkhas

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The Liberal Democrats won an historic victory last week when the House passed our motion calling on the Government to grant to the Gurkhas the right to settle in the UK.

It was the first time in my 26 years in Parliament that the Liberal Democrats have won a vote on a motion we tabled. Indeed, I am told it is the first time in living memory that an opposition motion has been carried.

It goes to show how out of touch the Government has become from MPs and public opinion. There is no doubt that there is strong public support for the Gurkhas who for 200 years have been a crucial part of the British army,

The Government claimed that they have done more for the Gurkhas than any previous Government and claimed the Conservatives had done nothing in Government.

The issue really didn't become live until the regiment's headquarters were transferred form Hong Kong to the UK after the colony was handed back to China in 1997.

However, the Government fundamentally missed the point of principle, namely, that service men who are prepared to die for this country should have a right to live here with their families.

Instead the Government, having reluctantly conceded over pension rights, played a numbers game, claiming that giving retired Gurkhas the right to settle here would open the floodgates.

If numbers come into it, 45,000 Gurkhas died for this country in two world wars. The numbers are unclear but the Government seems to suggest that if the right to settle was granted tens of thousands of Gurkhas and their families would come here. Common sense and the evidence of applications refute this.

In any case those who have come here have proved themselves exemplary citizens, capable of working and contributing to the communities in which they live.

As one commentator put it, the Government could stand up to Joanna Lumley or the Red Socks. To stand up to two national treasures was doomed to failure. Congratulations Nick Clegg.

The Government must now deliver on the will of Parliament, clearly expressed.

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All party mission to Sri Lanka

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On the same day as the Gurkha debate, the Liberal Democrats chose to debate the humanitarian crisis arising from the conflict in Sri Lanka. This is of particular importance to me as this week I joined a cross party delegation of MPs led by former Defence Secretary Des Brown, the Government's special envoy on Sri Lanka, to visit the island,

The other members of the delegation are John Bercow, Conservative, Buckingham, Eddie McGrady, SDLP, South Down and Mohammed Sarwar, Labour, Glasgow Central.

As chairman of the International Development Committee I and my colleagues spend more time than we wish was necessary visiting camps for displaced people - in the DRC, Uganda, Kenya, Darfur, Thailand, Pakistan and now Sri Lanka.

On this occasion the people we are seeing are Tamils who have escaped the fighting in the north but are put into camps by their own Government. I will want to ensure their rights and needs are met and that the Sri Lankan Government's commitment to resettle them by the end of the year is honoured - as has not been the case with those displaced from the east of the country.

There is no doubt that the Tamil Tigers have been guilty of atrocities (including against their fellow Tamils) who have been kept as hostages in the conflict zone and shot when attempting to escape.

Yet Sri Lanka will need help from the international community to cope with the aftermath of conflict and to rebuild the country. If war crimes have been committed prosecutions will follow.

If the Government has nothing to hide as it claims then it must admit international observers, humanitarian relief agencies and the international media.

In order to enable our 5 strong delegation to deliver the strongest possible message form the British Parliament, Liberal Democrats did not divide the House on our motion. We will report back to Parliament on the findings during our visit when we will meet President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Foreign Minister, Rohitha Bogollagama. international representatives, members of the opposition and visit camps for displaced people.

Sri Lanka will face major challenges when the present hostilities end and for that they will need the engagement of the international community. Our visit is a part of that process.

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MPs salaries and expenses must be independent and transparent

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From the pinnacle of Parliament at its best we moved to the totally negative debate on MPs expenses.

The Prime Minister having tried to bounce parliament and the standards commissioner on the second homes allowance was forced to back down and wait for the commissioner's report.

The House did vote to end the second home allowance for outer London MPs, to require receipts for every claim however small and to transfer staff to the House of Commons although there are legitimate staff concerns that need to be addressed.

It is not for MPs to determine what their pay and allowances should be. That is best left to an independent body. The only principle is that they (we) should be adequately paid and provided with the staff and legitimate expenses to do the job properly.

Certainly when I was elected I had only enough office costs to cover one member of staff and basic running costs. My local party provided the office and part time secretary at their expense. Things have improved and so I believe has our ability to do the job.

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Presentation of School Bus Safety Bill

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Over the last few months I have been preparing to introduce a School Bus Safety Bill. This has involved consulting with a range of interest groups and securing advice on conforming to the necessary parliamentary language.

I am now in a position to introduce it and have secured cross party support. Some of the measure are I know controversial - e.g. a ban on overtaking school buses when stopping to pick up or drop off passengers, equipping them with flashing signs and three point safety belts.

Nevertheless I did not want to introduce a bill that was so bland as to be meaningless.

I also accept that greater road safety awareness by drivers and school pupils would help save lives and my bill reflects that. I certainly hope that the bill will make a constructive contribution to the debate as to how to reduce the number of deaths and injuries suffered by school pupils boarding and leaving school buses.

We have suffered tragic accidents in our area and the Department of Transport has, I believe, a responsibility to address strongly expressed concerns more sensitively than it has so far.

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Two elected politicians in the Bruce household

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We now have two elected politicians in our household following the election of my wife, Rosemary, to Aberdeenshire Council in the by-election for the ward of Aboyne, Upper Deeside and Donside.

Of course, we met through politics and Rosemary has been a candidate in both local and parliamentary elections in the past.

I am therefore delighted that she has been elected in her own right in a closely contested election for a seat previously held by the Conservatives.

Under the voting system introduced at the last local elections the by-election was held under the alternative vote. This mean voters expressed their preferences by numbering candidates 1,2 3.. As nobody had more than 50 per cent on the first round the bottom candidate was eliminated and their votes transferred according to voter preferences. This continued until the fifth and final round of transfers which put Rosemary 98 votes ahead of the Conservative and therefore elected.

I wish her success on the council. I know she will work hard and conscientiously and I hope she finds it enjoyable and worthwhile.

This marked a particularly good week for the Liberal Democrats who notched up a decisive by-election victory in Inverness on the same day. In both by-elections the Conservative and SNP vote was down suggesting that politics is more fluid and open than commentators like to admit.

In fact the Liberal Democrats are consistently understated in opinion polls. Nevertheless, the average of polls and net gains this year in council by-elections shows we are above our standing before the last election which was our best result for 80 years.

Far from being squeezed, the Liberal Democrats are showing a resilience that bodes well for the future.