| Speaker | Time | Text |
|---|---|---|
| Democracy is always an unfinished creation. | ||
| Democracy is worth dying for. | ||
| Democracy belongs to us all. | ||
| We are here in the sanctuary of democracy. | ||
| Great responsibilities fall once again to the great democracies. | ||
| American democracy is bigger than any one person. | ||
| Freedom and democracy must be constantly guarded and protected. | ||
|
unidentified
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We are still at our core a democracy. | |
| This is also a massive victory for democracy and for freedom. | ||
|
unidentified
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Up next, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer answers questions from members of the House of Commons. | |
| He addressed national defence, support for Ukraine, the economy, and humanitarian concerns in Gaza. | ||
| This runs just under 40 minutes. | ||
| Before we start Prime Minister's questions, I'd like to welcome in the gallery the Speaker Bahrain and his delegation. | ||
| A big welcome to you. | ||
| We now come to Prime Minister's questions. | ||
| Climb Ethan. | ||
| Prime Minister. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| Today we're investing £15.6 billion in transport infrastructure of the north and of the Midlands. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, we're decisively turning the page on a failed economic model of low investment and we're backing the talent and prospects of the whole country. | ||
|
unidentified
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And over coming weeks, we'll sell out plans for further investment and renewal. | |
| Mr. Speaker, our strategic defence review shows this government will never gamble with our national security. | ||
|
unidentified
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Through the biggest sustained increase since the Cold War, we will transform our defence, strengthen our nation and invest in jobs and industry across the United Kingdom. | |
| Mr. Speaker, this morning I had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. | ||
| In addition to my duties in this House, I shall have further such meetings later today. | ||
| Clybeth. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, we all remember the glorious summer in 2012 when the world's greatest athletes came to London to compete in the Olympics and apparently it showcased Britain at its best, not just in track and field, but also as a country that can host major cultural and sporting events. | ||
| My Right Honourable Friend has been written to by over 200 of our top athletes. | ||
| Some of them are members of Cambridge Harriers that meets in my constituency. | ||
| And they're calling for the government to support the bid for the 2029 World Athletics Championships to take place in London. | ||
| If successful, it will lift the whole nation. | ||
| If successful, it will lift the whole nation. | ||
| It will inspire a generation of new athletes. | ||
| It will showcase Britain on a world stage. | ||
| Put £400 million into our economy. | ||
| What's not to like? | ||
| I think the race has finished, gone pleasantly. | ||
| I thank my honourable friend. | ||
|
unidentified
|
One of the greatest achievements of the last Labour government was that 2012 Olympics in London and we all remember it. | |
| Can I pay tribute, given the response, can I pay tribute to the extraordinary contribution of Tasha Jow to that games? | ||
|
unidentified
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Agree, there have been huge economic benefits of hosting major sporting events as well as an important legacy. | |
| She becomes the Leader of the Opposition. | ||
| Kabi Belo. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, three weeks ago, the winter fuel policy was set in stone. | ||
| Two weeks ago, the Prime Minister U-turned. | ||
| Today, the Chancellor is rushing her plans because she just realised when winter is. | ||
| So on behalf of the pensioners who want to know, can the Prime Minister be clear with us here and now how many of the 10 million people who lost their winter fuel payments will get it back? | ||
|
unidentified
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Well, I'm glad to see she's catching up with what happened two weeks ago. | |
| Mr Speaker, Mr Speaker, at the Budget, we took the right decision to stabilise the economy because of the £22 billion black hole that they left. | ||
| We took the right decisions. | ||
| The growth figures are up. | ||
|
unidentified
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The interest rates have been cut and we've got three trade deals. | |
| So we will look again, as I said two weeks ago, at the eligibility for winter fuel and of course we'll set out how we pay for it. | ||
| But because we've stabilised the economy, Mr. Speaker, we on this side are committed to the triple lock and that increased pensions by over £400 this April. | ||
| On their side they say the triple lock is unsustainable and I think her position is she wants to means test it. | ||
| Mr Speaker, the Prime Minister clearly has selective amnesia. | ||
| I asked him three questions about the winter fuel payment two weeks ago and he was floundering. | ||
| The fact is he hasn't answered the question I asked him. | ||
| He hasn't answered the question I asked him. | ||
| He can't tell us who will get the payments. | ||
| All we see is U-turn after U-turn. | ||
| His head must be spinning. | ||
| Will he apologise now for taking the payments away in the first place, including to his own backbenchers? | ||
| And can he tell us how he's going to pay for this? | ||
| Prime Minister, we took the right decisions at the budget because we needed to stabilise the economy. | ||
| She needs to apologise for the fact that they left the economy in a terrible state with a mini budget which blew up the economy and we were left with a £22 billion black hole. | ||
| When she gets up, perhaps she should apologise for that. | ||
| Mr Speaker, the OBR has said there was no such black hole. | ||
| He's just given away £30 billion for the Chagos Island. | ||
| That's his black hole. | ||
| He hasn't stabilised the economy. | ||
| Borrowing prices are higher now than any time in the last parliament. | ||
| He has not stabilised the economy. | ||
| He has no clear answers on what he's doing. | ||
| It's just chaos, chaos, chaos. | ||
| He keeps making announcements with no detail. | ||
| So let's move to another area of confusion. | ||
| Can we get a simple answer? | ||
| Will the government keep the two-child benefit cap? | ||
|
unidentified
|
Mr. Speaker, I'm absolutely determined that we will drive down child poverty. | |
| That's one of the proudest things of the last Labour government. | ||
| That's why we've got a task force. | ||
| That's why we've got a strategy. | ||
|
unidentified
|
We'll sell that strategy in due course. | |
| But we drive child poverty down. | ||
| Under them, poverty always goes up. | ||
| I didn't ask him about a task force. | ||
| I asked him if he will keep the two-child benefit cap. | ||
| And he doesn't know. | ||
| It's just chaos and uncertainty. | ||
| He has no details. | ||
| He is briefing something and causing a lot of confusion to the people out there. | ||
| But on that two-child benefit cap, I'll tell him this. | ||
| I believe in family, but I also believe in fairness. | ||
| On this side of the House, we believe that people on benefits should have to make the same choices on having children as everyone else. | ||
| What does the Prime Minister believe? | ||
|
unidentified
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I believe profoundly in driving down poverty and child poverty. | |
| That's why we'll put a strategy in place. | ||
|
unidentified
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But she talks about heads spinning. | |
| There's only one leader who's been praised this week by the Russian embassy. | ||
| And if she carries on echoing Kremlin talking points like this, reform are going to be sending her an application form for membership. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, Mr. Speaker, I asked the Prime Minister what he believes in. | ||
| He had to look in his folder to find the answer. | ||
| His MPs, his MPs behind him, know what they believe in. | ||
| He doesn't know. | ||
| Mr. Speaker. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, he has been in government for nearly a year. | ||
| It's only going to get harder. | ||
| He's been in government only a year. | ||
| It's only going to get harder and harder. | ||
| The canned force laughter, the planted questions, all of this is going to disappear because at every single point, things are getting worse. | ||
| He has to ask Morgan McSweeney what it is that he believes in. | ||
| But the fact is that chaos is being felt in the economy. | ||
| The Chancellor said she would not be coming back with new tax rises, but she will have to pay for all of these U-turns which she's announcing out there, isn't she? | ||
|
unidentified
|
Prime Minister. | |
| Mr. Speaker, I'm going to look in my folder because here I've got the quote that she had on Sky News. | ||
| I will read it. | ||
| Thank you. | ||
| It's what the Leader of the Opposition says. | ||
|
unidentified
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It's worth listening to. | |
| What she said was this. | ||
| Sky News, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| Israel is fighting a proxy war on behalf of the United Kingdom, just like Ukraine is on behalf of Western Europe against Russia. | ||
| Well, that was certainly noticed in the Russian embassy because they said, they said, put out a statement saying the Leader of the Opposition has finally called a spade a spade. | ||
| Ukraine is indeed fighting a proxy war against Russia on behalf of Western interests. | ||
| And they went on to say the illegitimate Kyiv regime created, financed and armed by the West has been at it since 2014. | ||
| So they endorse that they want the detail. | ||
| I've given the quote. | ||
| That's what Russia said in response. | ||
| She asked me what I believe in. | ||
| I believe in standing by Ukraine and calling out Russia as the aggressor. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, it was our government that stood behind Ukraine and led the way in Europe. | ||
| Everything he has said, everything he has said this afternoon is total nonsense. | ||
| Obfuscation, avoiding the question. | ||
| He doesn't have any answers. | ||
|
unidentified
|
It's disgraceful. | |
| I asked him, Mr. Speaker, about the two-child benefit cap. | ||
| He's talking about the Kremlin. | ||
| He's saying everything he can to distract from the mess he is making of our economy. | ||
| The OECD, the OECD has downgraded growth for the next two years. | ||
| He can't rule out tax rises. | ||
| The police chiefs are saying they don't have the money they need to keep the public safe. | ||
| Just as he's releasing more criminals onto the streets, his cabinet are squabbling with each other. | ||
| They said that they've lost control of the borders. | ||
| But he still managed to find £30 billion to give away the Chagos Islands. | ||
| This is total and utter chaos. | ||
| Two weeks ago, he was querying about his historic trade deal and how he got 0% tariffs on steel. | ||
| Now the steel industry will face 25% tariffs unless he does exactly what President Trump tells him to. | ||
| It is chaos, chaos, chaos. | ||
| And isn't the root of the chaos, Mr Speaker, that it's about this Prime Minister, his decisions and his judgment? | ||
| She gets up on a Wednesday morning, scrolls through social media, never does anything. | ||
| We're the only country in the world that isn't paying the 50% tax on steel. | ||
|
unidentified
|
We are working in the U.S. and that will be coming down. | |
| We are working on it to bring it down to zero. | ||
| That is going to happen. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Please, let's listen to the answer, even if you don't believe you're getting one. | |
| It is only Prime Minister Winchester. | ||
| She opposes the US deal. | ||
| She opposes the India deal. | ||
| She opposes what we're doing with the EU and she opposes Diego Garcia. | ||
| That's a vital intelligence and strategic capability. | ||
| Absolutely clear that legal uncertainty would compromise that capability in a very short time. | ||
| No responsible Prime Minister would ever let that happen. | ||
| We have secured the long-term basis for the base that has been welcomed by Mr. Speaker, welcomed by the US, NATO, Australia, New Zealand, India. | ||
| They're our allies. | ||
| It's been opposed by our adversaries, Russia, China, and Iran. | ||
| And into that column we have reform, presumably following Putin, and the Tories following reform. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Anyone who saw the six-year-old girl fleeing the flaming shelter where her family were killed by an Israeli airstrike will carry those horrific images with them forever. | |
| These are very dark days, and Gaza is a stain on the soul of humanity. | ||
| It is a further shame that there is more moral clarity coming from Ms. Rachel on YouTube than there is for many world leaders who are complicit in silence. | ||
| The Prime Minister said this week that Britain must be ready for war. | ||
| I ask, after tens of thousands of deaths, after a generation of Gazans stunted by hunger and trauma, when will it be ready for peace? | ||
| When will it help to stop this genocide? | ||
| When will it hold the Israeli government to account? | ||
| And when will it recognise the state of Palestine? | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I'm grateful to her for raising this. | ||
| She's absolutely right to describe this as dark days. | ||
| Israel's recent action is appalling and, in my view, counterproductive and intolerable. | ||
| We have strongly opposed the expansion of military operations and settler violence and the blocking of humanitarian aid. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, you will have seen we've suspended the FTA talks and sanctioned extremists supporting violence in the West Bank. | ||
| We will keep looking at further action along with our allies, including sanctions. | ||
| But let me be absolutely clear. | ||
| We need to get back to a ceasefire. | ||
| We need the hostages who've been held for a very long time to be released. | ||
|
unidentified
|
And we desperately need more aid at speed and at volume into Gaza because it's an appalling and intolerable situation. | |
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| Can I start by welcoming reports that the Chancellor will give winter fuel payments to more pensioners this winter? | ||
| Because we still wait the details, we will reserve our full judgment. | ||
| But Mr. Speaker, can I recognise the efforts of the Prime Minister to pull out all the stops to avoid President Trump's damaging tariffs? | ||
| A letter from the King offering to water down online safety laws, even trying to send the open to one of Trump's golf courses. | ||
| The Prime Minister thought he'd secured 0% tariffs for British steel, but now Trump is threatening us with 50% unless we comply with his new five-week deadline. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, this is classic Trump changing the terms of the deal he had already agreed. | ||
| Does the Prime Minister share my fear that nothing will stop Trump messing the UK around short of bunging a few hundred million pounds into his Trump coin? | ||
| Prime Minister. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, we have a deal, we're implementing it, and within a very short time I'm very confident we will get those tariffs down in accordance with the deal. | ||
| I will come back to him and update the House in due course, and I think the House will be very pleased at the outcome of that. | ||
| This is zero tariffs on steel. | ||
| And he says, no, they wouldn't. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Well, let's come back to this in just a couple of weeks when we've implemented it. | |
| But they obviously don't want this. | ||
| We've backsteeled on this side of the House. | ||
| They laugh at attempts to backsteel on their side of the house, and that's a big part of the problem. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Well, Mr. Speaker, I had hoped the Prime Minister would be now beginning to see the sort of man that Trump is and start getting tough on him. | |
| So we will come back to this issue. | ||
| But moving on, Mr. Speaker, I welcome the remarks of the Prime Minister on Gaza, because I'm sure all of us are appalled by the latest scenes. | ||
| Starving people desperate for food, water, and medicine met with chaos and violence. | ||
| The US-Israeli programme is clearly failing, and nothing short of lifting the full blockade on aid will do. | ||
| But given the Netanyahu government refuses to do that, will the Prime Minister take more decisive action today? | ||
| Will he push at the United Nations Security Council for humanitarian corridors to get the desperately needed aid urgently into Gaza? | ||
| Minister, can I give him my assurance, because this is a very important issue, that we are working at pace with our allies on that very issue to take whatever measures we can to get that humanitarian aid in. | ||
| We've been doing that intensively over recent weeks, and I can give him my assurance we'll continue to do that, because that aid needs to get in at speed and at volume, and he's absolutely right about that. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| You know, we're two decades since the Labour government banned the cruel practice of fur farming, but the job is not done. | ||
| Real fur and fur products are still being imported into the UK. | ||
| This week, I delivered a petition to number 10 with over a million signatures calling for a fur-free Britain. | ||
| My private member's bill would do exactly that. | ||
| So, does my right honourable friend agree it's time to close the loopholes, ban the import and sale of real fur, and finally put the fur trade out of fashion? | ||
| Prime Minister, can I thank her for her campaign? | ||
| I know the Environment Minister will have heard her representations. | ||
| We have commissioned the expert Animal Welfare Committee to produce a full report on the responsible sourcing of fur to inform the next steps that need to be taken. | ||
| We're committed to publishing an animal welfare strategy later this week. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, my constituent, Molly, is a single mother caring for a child with cancer. | ||
| She cannot work because of her caring responsibilities. | ||
| Since January, she has tried to claim disability living allowance and universal credit, but faced constant DWP bureaucracy. | ||
| This bureaucracy is continuing right up to yesterday when she received yet another frustrating letter from the DWP about her DLA. | ||
| Will the Prime Minister assure Molly and others like her that his government is doing all that it can to help and visit Tiberton and Minehead to see these challenges firsthand and work with me to find a solution? | ||
| Prime Minister. | ||
| Well, just I can thank her for raising this case. | ||
| I'm deeply sorry to hear about Molly's situation. | ||
| We are improving the lives of those that need it. | ||
| But what I'll do with her permission, the Secretary of State, the DWP, has just said to me, I'll look into the case. | ||
| So if she can provide the details, I'll make sure that it gets proper attention and that we can deal with the particular problem she's raised. | ||
| I'm grateful to her, and I'm sure Molly is, for raising it. | ||
| I hope now we can take the action that's necessary. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, in Wales, we will never forget how our steel industry was neglected by the Conservative government. | ||
| They made unfunded promises, they refused to make critical decisions, and they left Port Talbot on a cliff edge. | ||
| So can I welcome the news overnight that this Labor government has secured an exemption for our steel industry from the latest US tariffs, a deal secured by this Labor Prime Minister? | ||
| Can I ask the Prime Minister if he will take this opportunity to update the House on what further work he is doing in order to support our steel workers across Wales and across our United Kingdom? | ||
| He's doing great work with the Welsh Labour colleagues to champion working people in Wales. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, the United Kingdom is the only country in the world which won't be subject to the additional tariffs announced today, the only country in the world. | ||
| We are working with the US at this moment to swiftly implement the agreement that we've reached, which will see the 25% tariffs removed. | ||
| We want that. | ||
| They don't want that. | ||
| And that's crucial. | ||
| That is crucial for British jobs. | ||
|
unidentified
|
We fought tooth and nail for our steel industry, saving jobs at British Steel and improving the deal at Port Albert. | |
| We'll continue to do so. | ||
| The Prime Minister has repeatedly told this House that it is not for him or his government to determine what is and what is not a genocide. | ||
| But that position is no longer tenable because at the High Court recently, the Prime Minister instructed his lawyers to argue that in Gaza, and I quote, no genocide has occurred or is occurring. | ||
| So the truth is, his government has made a determination. | ||
| The question is, does he have the courage of his convictions? | ||
| And will he repeat from that dispatch box what he told his lawyers to argue in the High Court that he believes that no genocide has occurred or is occurring in Gaza? | ||
| Prime Minister. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I've said that we are strongly opposed and appalled by Israel's recent actions. | ||
|
unidentified
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We've been absolutely clear in condemning them and calling them out. | |
| Whether that's the expansion of military operations, settler violence or the dreadful blocking of aid, it's completely unacceptable. | ||
| We must see a ceasefire, hostages must be released and there must be aid into Gaza. | ||
| But he talks about peace and security, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| Compare their party, as I understand it, at this moment of global instability, as we go into a new era. | ||
|
unidentified
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What do they want to do? | |
| They want to get rid of the nuclear deterrent, the single most important capability that we have to keep the UK safe, harming the industry and harming the country. | ||
|
unidentified
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Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. | |
| Carnegie UK was established by Dunfermline-born philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and they found that people under 49 are twice as likely to have been negatively impacted by the rising cost of living compared to those over 65. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, it's vital we increase opportunities for younger people and help put more money in their pocket. | ||
| But sadly this week we saw the Scottish Government seek to close off an opportunity for young people by refusing to support new skills investment from Rolls-Royce, while the college sector in Scotland also warns of a funding crisis. | ||
| Can I ask the Prime Minister what more he is doing to make sure young people in Scotland get the opportunities they deserve to buy a failing and stagnant SNP Scottish Government? | ||
| Well I thank him for raising this. | ||
| At a time of global conflict it is staggering that the SNP policy is to block an £11 million investment for a new national welding centre on the climate. | ||
| To block it. | ||
| I was there earlier this week. | ||
| I saw the huge potential for apprenticeships, for job opportunities and for young people. | ||
| I support it. | ||
| They block it. | ||
|
unidentified
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In England we're bucking £120,000 more apprentices and £3 billion of funding as part of our plans for change. | |
| And despite the highest funding settlement in the history of devolution, they're cutting college budgets, they're blocking opportunities, they have no plan for Scotland's future. | ||
|
unidentified
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Given the Prime Minister's desire to strengthen strategic alignment with our European neighbours, will he, in the interests of public safety, follow the lead of France, Denmark, Belgium, and others and ban the burker? | |
| Prime Minister. | ||
| Can I welcome her to our place? | ||
|
unidentified
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I'm not going to follow her down that line. | |
| But now she is here and safely in her place. | ||
|
unidentified
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Perhaps she could tell her new party leader that his latest plan to bet £80 billion of unfunded tax cuts, he's no idea how he's going to pay for it, is Liz Truss all over again. | |
| Although, considering I think she was a Conservative member when Liz Truss was leader, she probably won't. | ||
|
unidentified
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Don't Scott Arthur. | |
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| During recess, I visited Scottish Action for Mental Health's Red Hole Wall Garden, which I'm proud to say is in Edinburgh South West. | ||
| It has operated for decades as a therapeutic horror cultural centre supporting adults with mental health problems. | ||
| Like similar community mental health services across Scotland, it is now under threat. | ||
| It faces potential closure due to chronic underfunding of IGBs by the SNP government. | ||
| Does the Prime Minister agree that facilities like Red Hall Wall Garden should have been a priority for the SNP when deciding how to spend a record funding settlement? | ||
| Scottish Labour MPs won for Scotland. | ||
| Prime Minister, what my honourable friend describes is how health services in Scotland are utterly broken under the SNP. | ||
| From people waiting too long for mental health support in his constituency to the Wishall Neonatal unit in Hamilton, which the SNP are threatening to downgrade. | ||
| In 2021, the SNP said they'd recruit 1,000 more community mental health workers. | ||
| They utterly failed to do so. | ||
|
unidentified
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If the SNP had a plan to fix Scotland's NHS, they'd have done it by now. | |
| Scotland needs a change of direction. | ||
|
unidentified
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John Cunliffe's interim report published yesterday laid out the fundamental changes that are needed for our water sector. | |
| This is felt no more acutely than in my constituency of Chichester. | ||
| We have a harbour that's in an unfavourable declining condition and sewage is blighting our tourism industry. | ||
| But with water bills from Southern Water rising by 47% for my constituents, can the Prime Minister tell them when they can expect to see the real change that this government promised and our waterways cleaned up for good? | ||
| Can I share her anger and frustration at the broken water system that we inherited, with frankly appalling sewage, higher bills and executives paying themselves huge bonuses? | ||
| And the era of being rewarded for failure is over. | ||
|
unidentified
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We've launched a record 81 criminal investigations into law-breaking water companies in England, introduced the Water Act with prison sentences for polluting bosses and banning unfair bonuses, and will respond to the Independent Water Commission in full following the publication of the final report. | |
| David Chen. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| The proposed Hemong Health Campus, a partnership between the NHS and the Council, presents a perfect opportunity to deliver on Labour's commitment to neighbourhood-based care, bringing services closer to where people live in facilities designed around their needs. | ||
| It can also help to regenerate our town centre. | ||
| Does the Prime Minister agree with me that it's essential that all stakeholders involved in the project are as ambitious as possible and work to deliver a community hospital that builds on the services currently available and reflects the evolving needs of our town? | ||
| Prime Minister. | ||
| Can I pay tribute to how he's bringing people together to deliver better care in the community that meets the needs of his constituents? | ||
| The proposals for the health campus will be open to public consultation. | ||
| I'd urge the whole community to input into that to ensure the strongest investment case is put forward. | ||
| I'm pleased that waiting lists in his local trust have fallen by a fifth since March 24 because of the investment that we've put into the NHS, which of course was opposed by the parties opposite. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| Over the past few months, I've been meeting with care providers in my constituency of Stratford and Evon who deliver essential and expert care to some of my most vulnerable constituents. | ||
| But like so many small businesses, they are under huge financial pressures, and the hike in national insurance is yet another burden many can't afford. | ||
| I welcome the government party turn on winter fuel payment cuts following pressure from these Liberal Democrat benches. | ||
| So, when will the Prime Minister offer relief to care providers and other small businesses a new turn on the punitive hike to national insurance? | ||
| Mr. Speaker, we announced £502 million to support local authorities to manage the changes in NICS. | ||
| We put £3.7 billion in additional funding for social care, doubled the Disabilities Facilities Grant, and introducing the first ever Fair Pay Agreement for professional carers, including minimum standards for pay. | ||
| But I would just gently say to her, her party opposed the budget which provides the money for the funding. | ||
| You can't keep asking for more spending and oppose a budget which raises the money. | ||
| Natalie Fleet. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| The first constituent to reach out to me was a brave Ballsover mummy who had waited four years, five months, from rape to prosecution with three postponements and multiple suicide attempts. | ||
| I will do everything I can to use this chamber to speak out for women that are being so badly let down. | ||
| How will the Prime Minister support me to make sure that when these survivors, these formidable women across the country, come forward, they will get justice and there will be space in our prisons for their perpetrators? | ||
| Can I thank her for raising this case so powerfully and everything that she's doing on it? | ||
| The case she's outlined is utterly shameful and for far too many victims are waiting too long for justice. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, we're delivering a record number of sitting days, reviewing criminal courts to speed up the hearing of these cases and have as a mission to halve violence against women and girls. | ||
| She talks about the prison system. | ||
| The party opposite left the prison system on the brink of collapse, routinely operating at 99% capacity because in 14 long years they only added just 500 extra paces. | ||
| We will deliver 14,000 new prison places so the public are protected from these vile offenders. | ||
|
unidentified
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The Prime Minister told us during the general election that he is a socialist. | |
| What's been more surprising is to find out in the last couple of weeks that the leader of the Reform Party might be one too. | ||
| As the Chancellor puts the spending review and locks it down, will the Prime Minister please remind her of Mrs Thatcher's all-too-pertinent observation that the trouble is with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people's money! | ||
| Was it quasi-quartec that he replaced? | ||
| And now he stands there to give lectures on economic prudence. | ||
|
unidentified
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You couldn't script it. | |
| But Mr Speaker, the difference between the Labour government and the parties opposite reform is we believe in properly costing our plans. | ||
| They've got £80 billion worth of unfunded commitments. | ||
| Liz Trust £2.0. | ||
|
unidentified
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Chris Watts. | |
| Thank you Mr. Speaker. | ||
| Whackpool's own boxing champion Brian Rose uses his gym to tackle knife crime, anti-social behaviour and give young people a safe space, demonstrating the significant impact of amateur gyms. | ||
| Thousands of these amateur gyms up and down the country operate on a shoestring and can't afford to keep the lights on, reliant on brilliant charities like Maverick All-Stars, Empire's Fighting Chance and Match Room in the Community. | ||
| Would the Prime Minister join me in thanking these charities, praising the volunteers in these gyms and will he throw a haymaker behind these gyms, giving them the knockout support they need to continue their vital work? | ||
| Well, can I thank him? | ||
|
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He's a great champion for how amateur boxing gyms can transform both physical and mental health and confidence in young people. | |
| And the time I have to say given by selfless volunteers is inspiring and we should thank them for it. | ||
| England boxing are investing £9 million in the sport and GB boxing will also receive more than £12 million during the next Olympic Games cycle. | ||
| And I know my honourable friend will be looking forward to Liverpool hosting the inaugural World Boxing Championship in September. | ||
| Thank you Mr Speaker. | ||
| Since July, health services in my constituency have got worse. | ||
| The Chase Hospital may close. | ||
| In Borden the promised health hub has not arrived and in Hazelmere this week we've learnt that inpatient wards are being closed because of a lack of GP cover. | ||
| The Prime Minister promised hundreds of more GPs. | ||
| Could he possibly send one or two of them to Farnham and Borden? | ||
| Mr Speaker, I remind myself they left the NHS on its knees. | ||
| The last Labor government brought the waiting list down to record lows. | ||
| They drove them up to record highs. | ||
| The last Labor government had the highest possible confidence in the NHS. | ||
| They dragged it down to the lowest ever levels. | ||
| Because of the money that we're putting in, we've done three million extra appointments in the first year of our Labour government. | ||
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That's the difference Labour makes in power. | |
| Mr. Speaker, the Environment Agency predicts that 8 million homes, that's one in four in England, could be at risk of flooding by 2050. | ||
| But despite this, the party opposite presided over a tripling of the proportion of our flood defences deemed not adequate. | ||
| By contrast, this Labor government is investing over $2.6 billion in new flood defences, including in the Greenway in my Hendon constituency. | ||
| Does the Prime Minister agree with me that it's a shame that not all parties share this government's determination to keep homes safe from flooding? | ||
| Prime Minister, I thank you for highlighting this because the party opposite left our flood defences in the worst state on record. | ||
| It's prisons, it's NHS, it's the economy, it's flooding. | ||
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Every single thing they touched, they broke. | |
| We're investing £2.65 million to build and maintain flood defences, and that means 52,000 more properties will be protected by March of next year. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, Glastonbury is experiencing a notable increase in antisocial behaviour. | ||
| St John's Church was recently forced to close its doors after gravestones were reportedly used as counters for drug transactions. | ||
| Constituents Peter and Melanie told me that people have been targeted when collecting their pensions with demands for money, leaving them feeling scared and overwhelmed. | ||
| The lawlessness is deterring tourists, and business owners have told me trade is suffering. | ||
| As visitors start to arrive ahead of the Glastonbury Festival, could the Prime Minister reassure my constituents that he will give the police the additional resource that they need to tackle this threatening and menacing behaviour to reduce the devastating crime wave sweeping through the town? | ||
| Well, she's absolutely right to raise this, and anti-social behaviour massively impacts on individuals and their communities. | ||
| And that's why we're introducing 13,000 new neighbourhood police and giving them better powers, respect orders, so they can actually deal with what they see on the streets effectively. | ||
| It's very important we take this seriously. | ||
| David Burton-Saxon. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| This time last year, Southend United Football Club almost went bankrupt thanks to the mismanagement by the former owner. | ||
| But on Sunday, they made it to Wembley for the National League play-off finals. | ||
| And despite being beaten by Oldham Athletic in the 11th hour, it was like the Phoenix rising from the flames to see them on the pitch. | ||
| So will the Prime Minister join me in congratulating Southend United on their outstanding recovery and give me an assurance that the government's doing all they can to make sure that no club ever has to go through what our club went through, Easter? | ||
| Let me congratulate Southend on what was an incredible achievement. | ||
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Commiserations for the final result. | |
| One of the police officers on my team, Mr. Speaker, is an ardent Southend supporter, so I know all about the team and the plans and the stadium and what it means. | ||
| But I should also congratulate Oldham, of course, for that victory as well. | ||
| Thank you. | ||
| Right, final question. | ||
| Sir David Davis. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| In 1999, the Prime Minister produced a book on miscarriage of justice recommending ways of preventing them. | ||
| I'll quickly put them right. | ||
| But in 2014, people who had been wrongly imprisoned and then exonerated were only allowed compensation if they could prove their innocence beyond reasonable doubt. | ||
| This ignored the decision of the court exonerating them and actually meant that 93% of people who had been wrongfully imprisoned, often had their lives destroyed, got no compensation whatsoever. | ||
| This is an institutional miscarriage of justice. | ||
| Will he instruct the Department of Justice to review this matter and pay personal attention to actually getting this travesty of justice resolved? | ||
| Yeah, yeah, Prime Minister. | ||
| Well, he raises a really important issue that I'm obviously aware of. | ||
| It is right that victims of miscarriage can apply for compensation and appropriately do so. | ||
| And I'll take away what he says and have it looked at. | ||
| All right, with that complete prime minister's question, let the front fence change over. | ||
| And a count of two balls and one strike. | ||
| And a swing and a face hit left field. | ||
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