My first petition tonight comes from home educators who are concerned about the Badman report. The signatures from my constituency reflect the general concern of home educators up and down the country. The petition states:

The Petition of persons resident in the Mid Dorset and North Poole parliamentary constituency,

Declares that they are concerned about the recommendations of the Badman Report, which suggests closer monitoring of home educators, including a compulsory annual registration scheme and right of access to people’s homes for local authority officials; further declares that the Petitioners believe the recommendations are based on a review that was extremely rushed, failed to give due consideration to the evidence, failed to ensure that the data it collected were sufficiently robust, and failed to take proper account of the existing legislative framework.

The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families either not to bring forward, or to withdraw, proposed legislative measures providing for tighter registration and monitoring of children educated at home in the absence of a thorough independent inquiry into the condition and future of elective home education in England; but instead to take the steps necessary to ensure that the existing Elective Home Education Guidelines for Local Authorities are properly implemented, learning from current best practice, in all local authorities in England.

And the Petitioners remain, etc.

[P000452]

My second petition tonight has been organised by one of my constituents, Sonia McColl. It is about a problem involving park home owners, who are on the whole very vulnerable people, and unscrupulous park owners. The petition does not in any way suggest that park owners are all unscrupulous, but there are instances that many of us know about when we need to strike a better balance between the two groups of people.

The petition states:

The Petition of persons resident in the constituency of Mid Dorset and North Poole and others,

Declares that the Petitioners believe that unscrupulous park owners are able to force home owners to accept lower than market value prices for their property, by demanding interviews with prospective buyers and raising unreasonable objections to purchases.

The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Government to bring forward proposals to amend the Mobile Homes Act 1983, in order to create the following requirements: that a park owner should not have the right to demand an interview with a person buying a home; that where a park owner believes an interview is necessary, that interview should be held in the office and in the presence of a lawyer with a registered legal practice; that in such a case the lawyer must be satisfied that the reasons for the interview are reasonable, that statements made by the park owner are not fraudulent, and that the buyer’s references are satisfactory; that the lawyer concerned must be acceptable to both parties and shall before the interview make himself aware of the contents of the Mobile Homes Act 1983 and other associated legislation; and that the park owner must meet the cost of the lawyer’s services.

And the Petitioners remain, etc.

[P000453]

I beg leave to present a petition from persons resident in my constituency in the county of Leicestershire.

The petition states:

The Petition of persons resident in the Harborough parliamentary constituency,

Declares that they are concerned about the recommendations of the Badman Report, which suggests closer monitoring of home educators, including a compulsory annual registration scheme and right of access to people’s homes for local authority officials; further declares that the Petitioners believe the recommendations are based on a review that was extremely rushed, failed to give due consideration to the evidence, failed to ensure that the data it collected were sufficiently robust, and failed to take proper account of the existing legislative framework.

The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families either not to bring forward, or to withdraw, proposed legislative measures providing for tighter registration and monitoring of children educated at home in the absence of a thorough independent inquiry into the condition and future of elective home education in England; but instead to take the steps necessary to ensure that the existing Elective Home Education Guidelines for Local Authorities are properly implemented, learning from current best practice, in all local authorities in England.

And the Petitioners remain, etc.

[P000470]

Some time ago, I submitted a petition on behalf of thousands of constituents in support of the “Mahoro Must Stay” campaign. Unfortunately Adela Mahoro Mugabo is still under threat of deportation—

Order. I understood that the hon. Gentleman’s petition was on the Badman report.

That was last night, Madam Deputy Speaker.

I am afraid that my information is that his petition is on the Badman report. I accept what the hon. Gentleman says, but would he be kind enough to see the Clerk at the Table to confirm that his petition has been endorsed by the Journal Office? I can then call him to present his petition.

I present a petition that has been organised by Crediton Climate Action and has signatures from people in the town of Crediton, surrounding villages and many local organisations. Playing an especial part in this have been my constituents Gerald and Laura Conyngham, who are cycling to Copenhagen from Crediton to take part and make their views known.

The petition states:

The Petition of residents of the constituency of Tiverton and Honiton in Devon and others, regarding the Climate Change Talks in Copenhagen in December 2009,

Declares that the following should result from the Copenhagen Talks: all countries should agree to take urgent action to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) levels in the atmosphere to 350 parts per million; developed countries should take the lead, given our major responsibility for past emissions; and developed countries should give financial help to the developing world to help them adapt to climate change and invest in renewable energies.

The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Government to do all it can at Copenhagen to achieve these goals.

And the Petitioners remain, etc.

[P000530]

The New England post office in Peterborough was closed in 2008. I wish to present the petition of 721 residents of Millfield, New England and other areas in the city of Peterborough.

The petition states:

The Petition of residents of Millfield and New England and others,

Declares that New England Post Office ought to be re-opened

The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Government to take all possible steps to ensure that New England Post Office can be re-opened.

And the Petitioners remain, etc.

[P000529]

I wish to present two petitions this evening. The first is on behalf of my constituent, Mr. Gary Hobbs, who collected a petition of 200 signatures requesting an inquiry into the deaths at Deepcut barracks.

The petition states:

The Petition of residents of Sutton, Cheam, Worcester Park and others,

Declares that the findings of the Army Board of Inquiry into the deaths of Privates Geoff Gray and James Collinson at Deepcut Army Barracks have not closed the matter and leave questions unanswered and no one accountable for what happened.

The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons calls upon Her Majesty’s Government to sanction a full, independent, public inquiry into the deaths of Deepcut Army Barracks between 1995 and 2002.

And the Petitioners remain, etc.

[P000626]

The second of the two petitions is presented on behalf of many thousands of my constituents who contacted my office over the past few weeks, when they learned about the threat now posed to the London freedom pass as a result of an announcement by the Department for Transport of a redistribution of funds from London to other parts of the country to underwrite the costs of their concessionary fare schemes.

The petition reads:

The Petition of residents of Sutton, Cheam, Worcester Park and others,

Declares that the decision of the Secretary of State for Transport to cut the financial support for concessionary travel for older and disabled people in London is unfair to the 1.2 million people who use the Freedom Pass. Further declares that London Councils currently contribute a third of the cost compared to the parts of the country where concessionary travel is fully funded by the Government and that the cut in the grant would result in London Councils covering half of the cost of the scheme.

The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons calls upon Her Majesty's Government to drop the plans to cut the funding for the Freedom Pass for elderly and disabled people.

And the Petitioners remain, etc.

[P000625]

I shall try again. Some time ago, I submitted a petition on behalf of thousands of constituents in support of the “Mahoro Must Stay” campaign. Unfortunately, Adela Mahoro Mugabo remains under threat of deportation and I am now submitting a petition signed by a further 1,300 people who support the campaign.

The petition is as follows:

The Petition of the Mahoro Must Stay Campaign,

Declares that Adela Mahoro Mugabo, who is to be removed to Rwanda, is the widow of a man murdered in 2002 by the Interharamwe Hutus, and as a Hutu herself was accused by the Rwandan Military Intelligence of covering up for her husband’s murderers. The Petitioners further declare that Mahoro was tortured and raped, and is now HIV-positive, and that if she is returned to Rwanda she will still be in danger and will be unable to get the anti-retroviral drugs she needs to survive.

The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Home Secretary to instruct a reconsideration of the Home Office decision and allow Adela Mahoro Mugabo to stay in the UK, a safe environment in which she will be able to lead a healthy life.

And the Petitioners remain, etc.

[P000493]

I have a petition to present on behalf of 33 constituents in Bristol, West on the same subject as petitions presented by several other hon. Members: the report by Graham Badman into home educators. To avoid detaining colleagues further, I shall not read out the full text of the motion.

Following is the full text of the petition:

[The Petition of persons resident in the Bristol West parliamentary constituency,

Declares that they are concerned about the recommendations of the Badman Report, which suggests closer monitoring of home educators, including a compulsory annual registration scheme and right of access to people's homes for local authority officials; further declares that the Petitioners believe the recommendations are based on a review that was extremely rushed, failed to give due consideration to the evidence, failed to ensure that the data it collected were sufficiently robust, and failed to take proper account of the existing legislative framework.

The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families either not to bring forward, or to withdraw, proposed legislative measures providing for tighter registration and monitoring of children educated at home in the absence of a thorough independent inquiry into the condition and future of elective home education in England; but instead to take the steps necessary to ensure that the existing Elective Home Education Guidelines for Local Authorities are properly implemented, learning from current best practice, in all local authorities in England.

And the Petitioners remain, etc.]

[P000476]

I, too, beg the leave of the House to introduce on behalf of persons resident in the Cheadle constituency a petition expressing their grave concerns about the recommendations of the Badman report. The wording is exactly the same as the petition read out earlier by my hon. Friend the Member for Mid-Dorset and North Poole (Annette Brooke).

Following is the full text of the petition:

[The Petition of persons resident in Cheadle,

Declares that they are concerned about the recommendations of the Badman Report, which suggests closer monitoring of home educators, including a compulsory annual registration scheme and right of access to people's homes for local authority officials; further declares that the Petitioners believe the recommendations are based on a review that was extremely rushed, failed to give due consideration to the evidence, failed to ensure that the data it collected were sufficiently robust, and failed to take proper account of the existing legislative framework.

The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families either not to bring forward, or to withdraw, proposed legislative measures providing for tighter registration and monitoring of children educated at home in the absence of a thorough independent inquiry into the condition and future of elective home education in England; but instead to take the steps necessary to ensure that the existing Elective Home Education Guidelines for Local Authorities are properly implemented, learning from current best practice, in all local authorities in England.

And the Petitioners remain, etc.]

[P000612]

By leave of the House, I beg to lay a petition regarding the Badman report that has been signed by seven residents of Brecon and Radnorshire. The wording is very similar, or identical, to the petition presented by my hon. Friend the Member for Mid-Dorset and North Poole (Annette Brooke), therefore I shall not detain the House.

Following is the full text of the petition:

[The Petition of persons resident in the Brecon and Radnorshire parliamentary constituency,

Declares that they are concerned about the recommendations of the Badman Report, which suggests closer monitoring of home educators, including a compulsory annual registration scheme and right of access to people's homes for local authority officials; further declares that the Petitioners believe the recommendations are based on a review that was extremely rushed, failed to give due consideration to the evidence, failed to ensure that the data it collected were sufficiently robust, and failed to take proper account of the existing legislative framework.

The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families either not to bring forward, or to withdraw, proposed legislative measures providing for tighter registration and monitoring of children educated at home in the absence of a thorough independent inquiry into the condition and future of elective home education in England; but instead to take the steps necessary to ensure that the existing Elective Home Education Guidelines for Local Authorities are properly implemented, learning from current best practice, in all local authorities in England.

And the Petitioners remain, etc.]

[P000623]