CSPAN - Prime Minister's Questions Time
Aired: 2026-03-11
Duration: 36:59


=== Remaking the Middle East (14:33) ===

[00:00:00]  And then documentary director James Jacobi will talk about his PBS frontline film Remaking the Middle East, which includes analysis of the recent US-Israel operations in Iran and how it could impact the region.
[00:00:12]  C-SPAN's Washington Journal.
[00:00:14]  Join the conversation live at 7 Eastern Thursday morning on C-SPAN, C-SPAN Now, our free mobile app, or online at C-SPAN.org.
[00:00:24]  And now British Prime Minister Kier Starmer addresses the ongoing situation in Iran and the Middle East while taking questions for members of the House of Commons.
[00:00:32]  He also speaks about rising energy and fuel costs, gun regulations, infrastructure, and continued support for Ukraine.
[00:00:43]  Right, we now come to Prime Minister's questions.
[00:00:46]  We start with Serena Brackenbridge.
[00:00:50]  Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
[00:00:52]  Question one.
[00:00:53]  Prime Minister.
[00:00:55]  Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
[00:00:56]  Our armed forces are working day and night to protect British lives and British interests in the Middle East.
[00:01:04]  The RAF have flown over 230 hours of defensive operations over multiple countries, shooting down multiple drones, protecting British lives and our allies.
[00:01:15]  We thank them for their courage and for their professionalism.
[00:01:19]  Mr. Speaker, this morning I had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others.
[00:01:22]  In addition to my duties in this House, I shall have further such meetings later today.
[00:01:27]  Prime Minister, strengthening Britain's defence capability and rebuilding our industrial base has never been more important.
[00:01:36]  Can the government's billion pound helicopter investment with Leonardo UK support skilled jobs across the UK, including Tartar Steel in Wensfield and my supply chains in Wolverhampton North East, where we are immensely proud of our black country steel and manufacturing heritage?
[00:01:56]  And will the Prime Minister ask relevant ministers to meet me to discuss securing more of those good jobs in Wolverhampton and Willingall?
[00:02:06]  I can't thank my honourable friend.
[00:02:08]  I'm very happy to arrange the meeting that she is asking for.
[00:02:12]  Our £1 billion investment in new helicopters is good news for steelmakers in her constituency and secures thousands of jobs across the United Kingdom.
[00:02:21]  Mr. Speaker, we're making defence an engine for growth.
[00:02:24]  Jobs building helicopters, new typhoons in the northwest, new frigates creating a decade of shipbuilding on the Clyde.
[00:02:31]  A Labour government investing in our armed forces.
[00:02:34]  The Leader of the Opposition, Kemi Bennoff.
[00:02:37]  Thank you, Mr Speaker.
[00:02:42]  Why does the Prime Minister think now is the right time to increase the cost of petrol?
[00:02:48]  Prime Minister.
[00:02:50]  Mr. Speaker, we are not increasing the cost of petrol.
[00:02:54]  We're absolutely clear in taking the measures that are necessary to deal with the impact of the conflict in Iran.
[00:03:01]  We're dealing with that with other allies.
[00:03:03]  We're taking the necessary action.
[00:03:06]  But the best thing that we can do, Mr. Speaker, is to work with others to de-escalate the situation.
[00:03:12]  Mr. Speaker, as I said to the House last week, I took the decision that we should not join the initial US-Israeli offensive against Iran.
[00:03:23]  The Leader of the Opposition attacked me for that decision relentlessly.
[00:03:29]  She said that the UK should have joined the US and Israel in the initial offensive strikes.
[00:03:37]  Mr. Speaker, then yesterday, in the wake of the economic consequences, the Leader of the Opposition totally abandoned her position.
[00:03:52]  She told the BBC, I never said we should join.
[00:04:01]  She told the BBC, I haven't said we should have gone in with the United States.
[00:04:08]  That is the mother of all U-turns on the single most important decision a Prime Minister ever has to take, whether to commit the United Kingdom to war or not.
[00:04:22]  Mr. Speaker, I think the mother of all U-turns is him saying that they're not increasing fuel duty.
[00:04:27]  That is news to us because last week the Chancellor stood up and said the fuel duty was going to increase in September.
[00:04:35]  The Prime Minister told us at the start of the year that the cost of living was his number one priority.
[00:04:42]  So can he explain how a rise in fuel duty helps with the cost of living?
[00:04:47]  Mr Speaker, fuel duty is frozen.
[00:04:50]  It's going to remain frozen until September and we will keep the situation under review in light of what's happening in Iran.
[00:05:00]  But Mr Speaker, the most important issue is de-escalating the situation.
[00:05:11]  And I come back to the Leader of the Opposition's position because this is one of the most important decisions a Prime Minister or Leader of the Opposition ever has to take, whether to commit your country to war.
[00:05:24]  The day after the initial US-Israeli strike started, her shadow Foreign Secretary said that the US-Israeli initial attacks were absolutely right and it is a position my party supports.
[00:05:40]  She said, why has the Prime Minister not actually worked with America to be much more proactive?
[00:05:46]  Last Wednesday, Leader of the Opposition.
[00:05:49]  We are in this war whether we like it or not.
[00:05:52]  What is the Prime Minister waiting for?
[00:05:57]  Then yesterday, yesterday, yesterday, she says, I never said, I know they don't want to hear it.
[00:06:05]  I know they don't.
[00:06:11]  I wouldn't want to hear it if I were there.
[00:06:13]  After all that, she said...
[00:06:16]  Order, order.
[00:06:18]  Enough is enough.
[00:06:19]  I can't hear it.
[00:06:24]  Who wants to lead the first ones out?
[00:06:27]  Right, we'll have a little bit more silence.
[00:06:29]  Prime Minister.
[00:06:30]  So after nine days of saying, join the war, join the war, join the war, yesterday she says, I never said we should join.
[00:06:38]  I haven't said we should go in with the US.
[00:06:40]  I'll tell you what's happened, Mr. Speaker.
[00:06:43]  She and the reform leader have been spooked because they realise they've jumped into supporting a war without thinking through the consequences.
[00:06:53]  And now she's furiously trying to backpedal.
[00:07:00]  The Prime Minister seems to be asking last week's questions.
[00:07:03]  This week I'm asking about fuel duty.
[00:07:07]  He has said that he wants to help Mr Speaker.
[00:07:13]  He has said that he wants to help with the cost of living.
[00:07:16]  My constituents live in a rural area.
[00:07:19]  They rely on their cars to get to the shops, take their kids to school, see their elderly parents.
[00:07:25]  And they tell me the rising cost of petrol is the single biggest cost affecting family finances.
[00:07:32]  So does the Prime Minister not understand how important cars are to people in rural areas or does he just not care?
[00:07:41]  Mr Speaker, we're working across all departments and with allies to deal with the impact of the conflict in Iran as the House would expect.
[00:07:51]  But she says about, if I'd asked her last week, her position would have been, we support the initial strikes and we want to join the war.
[00:07:58]  This week, this week, she says, we don't want to join the war.
[00:08:02]  I'm sorry, that is a screeching U-turn.
[00:08:06]  And Mr. Speaker, this is it.
[00:08:10]  In this job, you don't get a second shot at making the right call on taking your country to war.
[00:08:20]  If she were Prime Minister, Mr. Speaker, we would be in the war and she would be coming back to Parliament a week later to say, oh, sorry, I got that one wrong.
[00:08:34]  I'm sorry I'm interrupting you, but unfortunately, we've got to stick to Prime Minister's questions, not opposition questions.
[00:08:45]  Mr Speaker, he said if I were Prime Minister, if I were Prime Minister, HMS Dragon would have left a week ago.
[00:08:53]  The only time, the only time Mr Speaker, the only time he's taken decisive action was stopping Andy Burnham from standing in the by-election.
[00:09:11]  But let's talk about what the people out there are worried about.
[00:09:14]  I heard from a builder, Mr. Speaker, who has 115 employees using 75 vans.
[00:09:20]  With the jobs tax, sky-high energy bills and now a hike in petrol prices, that builder is having sleepless nights.
[00:09:27]  How does the Prime Minister justify a rise in fuel duty to that small business owner and millions more like him up and down the country?
[00:09:36]  There hasn't been a rise.
[00:09:38]  It is frozen.
[00:09:41]  It is frozen until September.
[00:09:45]  Mr Speaker, she mentions the HMS Dragon.
[00:09:49]  Can I first start by thanking the Royal Navy who are serving all that?
[00:09:54]  Can I second say that what's been happening is it's been carefully being loaded with the anti-strike ammunition and capability that it needs.
[00:10:03]  And the Navy and civilians have been working 22-hour shifts in relationship.
[00:10:09]  But in relation to those that are taking the action to defend us, what does she say?
[00:10:14]  Just hanging about.
[00:10:19]  Just hanging about.
[00:10:22]  That's how she described our pilots in the region.
[00:10:26]  Let me tell you what they've been doing.
[00:10:27]  Flying sorties in seven of the ten countries in the region day and night, taking out incoming strikes, protecting the lives of others whilst risking their own.
[00:10:37]  If she had any decency, she'd get up and she would apologise.
[00:10:43]  Mr Speaker.
[00:10:47]  Oh hang on.
[00:10:48]  I think they should wait for it.
[00:10:49]  Mr. Speaker, I have never criticised our armed forces.
[00:10:54]  I have criticised, I have criticised him.
[00:10:57]  Hold on.
[00:10:57]  Mr Swallow, you're going out.
[00:10:59]  I've had enough week in, week out.
[00:11:01]  I believe they're all named me.
[00:11:06]  Mr Speaker, I have never criticised our armed forces.
[00:11:10]  I am criticising him and his decision.
[00:11:13]  And let me remind the House about his record on the armed forces.
[00:11:18]  This is the same man who worked with Phil Scheiner, a traitor to this country, who made up evidence to put our soldiers in prison for crimes they didn't commit.
[00:11:27]  That is his record.
[00:11:28]  So I won't take any lectures from him.
[00:11:30]  And by the way, military families are also worried, the ones in this country, about petrol prices.
[00:11:35]  He's got nothing to say on that.
[00:11:36]  And there's another group of people who have been hammered by this government, farmers.
[00:11:42]  I spent all last year telling the Prime Minister that his family farms tax was killing British farming.
[00:11:48]  Now those farmers are being punished with higher fuel prices.
[00:11:52]  Does the Prime Minister think that's fair?
[00:11:57]  No apology to our pilots who are risking their lives.
[00:12:02]  I'm not going to take lectures from someone who says we should join the war and a week later says, can I change my mind?
[00:12:10]  I got that wrong.
[00:12:11]  It is deeply embarrassing.
[00:12:14]  And she's not the only one.
[00:12:16]  Mr. Speaker, last week she's not the only one, the leader of reform.
[00:12:21]  We should be part of this with the US and the Israelis.
[00:12:23]  We have to get rid of the regime.
[00:12:25]  We should do all we can to support the operation.
[00:12:28]  I make that perfectly, perfectly clear.
[00:12:29]  He said, until yesterday, screeching U-turn, we shouldn't get ourselves involved in another foreign war.
[00:12:36]  Two parties packed with failed Tories led by leaders who are not fit to be Prime Minister.
[00:12:44]  Mr Speaker, he doesn't want to talk about fuel duty because he has got absolutely no answers.
[00:12:50]  The Conservatives are on the side of farmers.
[00:12:53]  We are also on the side of drivers.
[00:12:56]  We froze field duty every year from 2011 and in fact we cut it in 2022 because we care about the cost of living.
[00:13:04]  Labour think drivers are a cash cow and now they think that drivers are a cash cow and now they're hiking field duty for the first time in 15 years.
[00:13:17]  Everyone in this house, everyone in this house knows the pattern.
[00:13:22]  First, he'll march his backbenchers up the hill.
[00:13:25]  Then they'll be forced to defend field duty rises in the local elections.
[00:13:30]  Then there'll be another humiliating U-turn.
[00:13:33]  So why doesn't the Prime Minister just stand up, admit he's got it wrong again and scrap the fuel duty hike now?
[00:13:42]  Mr Speaker, in the last two weeks I've made two of the most important decisions a Prime Minister can make.
[00:13:49]  The first is that we should not join the war in Iran.
[00:13:53]  The second is we should protect British lives and the British national interest.
[00:13:58]  The Leader of the Opposition decided that we should join the war against Iran.
[00:14:02]  A week later that we should not join the war against Iran and to insult our armed forces.
[00:14:09]  She has utterly disqualified herself from ever becoming Prime Minister.
[00:14:13]  Thankfully, she never will.
[00:14:21]  Thank you, Mr Speaker.
[00:14:25]  As the Prime Minister knows, my mum proudly worked in the pot banks of Bursley and Tunstall and is working at home right now.

=== Rising Costs and Energy Support (07:59) ===

[00:14:34]  Tomorrow is International Day of Ceramics and that matters deeply to Stoke-on-Trent, the historic art of Britain's ceramic industry.
[00:14:43]  Yes, and Newcastle underlined.
[00:14:46]  With energy prices rising again due to global instability, will the Prime Minister please tell my mum and our fellow Stokies what additional support the government will give energy intensive industries like ceramics so the kilns of Stoke-on-Trent cast fire for generations to come.
[00:15:03]  Prime Minister raises a really important issue and I know that not only will his mum be watching for this constituency who serves very very well.
[00:15:10]  Our supercharger will significantly reduce costs for thousands of major industries.
[00:15:15]  Eligibility for the scheme is being reviewed this year.
[00:15:18]  I can tell my honourable friend we're working with the ceramics industry on whether the scheme can be extended to more firms.
[00:15:25]  Under the last government, industrial energy prices doubled and over a thousand jobs were lost in the sector.
[00:15:32]  We will not tolerate that.
[00:15:34]  Sen David, leader of the Liberal Democrats.
[00:15:37]  Thank you Mr Speaker.
[00:15:39]  May I pay tribute to the Honourable Member for Warrington North for her powerful and courageous speech in the debate on jury trials yesterday.
[00:15:48]  I really hope the Prime Minister was listening.
[00:15:52]  Mr. Speaker, 30 years ago this week, a man carried four handguns into Dunblane Primary School and murdered a teacher and 16 children.
[00:16:06]  I was deeply moved by the BBC documentary about it last night and the courage of the parents who campaigned for a ban on handguns to keep other children safe, including Mick North, who lost his five-year-old daughter Sophie on that dark day.
[00:16:26]  He's rightly called on the Honourable Member for Clacton to renounce his description of the handgun ban as, and I quote, ludicrous.
[00:16:36]  Something the member still refuses to do.
[00:16:40]  And Mr. North has also called for a review of firearms legislation to close any loopholes.
[00:16:47]  Does the Prime Minister agree?
[00:16:49]  Prime Minister.
[00:16:50]  Well, I certainly do, and we must never forget the horror of Dunblane and never forget the young children and their teacher who did not come home from school.
[00:17:02]  The campaign that families fought to make this country a safer place is a lasting legacy, and we should be enormously grateful for their courage.
[00:17:13]  The Prime Minister for his reply, and I hope the government will please close any loopholes.
[00:17:18]  Mr. Speaker, this week families across the country have seen petrol prices rise at the pump, mortgage rates go up, and fixed energy deals get more expensive, all because of a war they did not start and do not support.
[00:17:36]  The leader of the Conservatives has been competing with the Honourable Member for Clacton to be Donald Trump's biggest cheerleader.
[00:17:44]  And the Prime Minister was right to reject their costly warmongering.
[00:17:52]  But last week, I asked him to guarantee that energy bills won't rise by hundreds of pounds in July.
[00:18:00]  He didn't answer.
[00:18:02]  So let me try again.
[00:18:04]  Will he give people that energy bill guarantee now?
[00:18:09]  Prime Minister.
[00:18:10]  Can I thank him for raising this?
[00:18:11]  Because people will be really worried about the impact on them.
[00:18:14]  And just to reassure households that the cap is in place until the end of June, until July, and therefore that deals with the situation for households there.
[00:18:25]  We are working with the sector and with others and with allies to do everything we can to make sure those energy bills don't rise.
[00:18:33]  So we're working around the clock on that.
[00:18:35]  The most important thing, the most effective thing we can do is to work with our allies to find a way to de-escalate the situation.
[00:18:43]  He's right about the Leader of the Opposition Leader of Reform.
[00:18:46]  Last week they were urging us to join.
[00:18:48]  This is serious.
[00:18:50]  If they had been leading the country, if they had been leading the country, we'd been a war and they'd now come to Parliament to say, oh, order, order, order.
[00:18:59]  Prime Minister.
[00:19:00]  Who said lying again?
[00:19:02]  I want that withdrawal.
[00:19:03]  I did.
[00:19:04]  It's not withdrawal.
[00:19:08]  I'll deal with it, thank you.
[00:19:09]  I don't want any more off the front bench.
[00:19:12]  We take it very seriously, and calling another member of Light is not acceptable.
[00:19:16]  Prime Minister.
[00:19:19]  Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and so that's our position.
[00:19:22]  Josh Steen.
[00:19:25]  Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
[00:19:26]  Too often, I hear from send families in Hartford and Stortford whose children have been left out of education for months or even years because they can't get a school place that meets their needs within a reasonable distance.
[00:19:37]  I'm campaigning for more investment in the bricks and mortar SEN provision that semi-rural communities like ours need so families can access support early and easily and their children can thrive in education.
[00:19:48]  So will the Prime Minister back my campaign to expand SEN provision in Hartford and Stortford and will he arrange a meeting with the relevant minister so we can discuss it in more detail?
[00:19:58]  Mr. Speaker, he's right.
[00:19:59]  Families are crying out for change and that's why it's really critical we get this right.
[00:20:03]  Our reforms will fix the broken SEN system where parents have to fight for support, replacing it with tailored support personal to a child's need.
[00:20:12]  A best start family hub in every local authority with a dedicated SEN practitioner will help families with face-to-face support they need.
[00:20:19]  My honourable friend is a great advocate on this issue and I'm happy to make sure he gets the meeting that he's asking for.
[00:20:24]  Stephen Flynn.
[00:20:25]  Mr. Speaker, let's be clear.
[00:20:27]  Donald Trump's war in Iran is illegal and the situation that has unfolded since is verging on insane.
[00:20:35]  Oil is falling from the skies, sewers are exploding, the IRGC is indiscriminately attacking civilians across the region, cargo ships and potentially even mining the Strait of Hormuz, the economic consequences of which will be stark for the global economy but for every single person living on these isles too.
[00:20:56]  Whether the Prime Minister accepts it or not, he did indeed take us into that war when he allowed the Americans to use UK bases just last week.
[00:21:06]  But I have a specific question.
[00:21:08]  He'll have seen the same footage I have of an American tomahawk missile landing on a primary school, killing 110 children.
[00:21:19]  Does he believe that to be a war crime?
[00:21:24]  Mr. Speaker, we're all concerned by that footage, but let me be absolutely clear with him.
[00:21:29]  We have 300,000 UK nationals, including Scottish citizens, in the region.
[00:21:38]  Strikes, missiles, and drones are being fired into the region, putting them at great danger.
[00:21:44]  We are taking action to protect them.
[00:21:47]  I'm astonished that the SNP says don't take action to support Scottish citizens in the region.
[00:21:54]  It's outrageous.
[00:21:55]  It's a dog.
[00:22:00]  Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
[00:22:03]  National Highways...
[00:22:06]  National Highways, a government-owned company, has reneaded on a promise to replace a demolished footbridge at Park Lane West in Netherton.
[00:22:15]  It crossed one of the busiest roads and junctions in Merseyside, used by countless residents, particularly children and parents going to and from infant and primary school.
[00:22:27]  My constituents have requested that that bridge be replaced with no ifs or buts.

=== Broken Promises on Railways (04:47) ===

[00:22:33]  Will the Prime Minister support my constituents' very reasonable request to honour that promise made by National Highways?
[00:22:42]  Can I thank him for campaigning for his constituency residents who are obviously concerned about this?
[00:22:48]  As I understand it, National Highways has concluded the best option for all users, pedestrians and cyclists, is a new crossing.
[00:22:55]  But I thank him for raising the points and I'll be happy for ministers to continue discussing him with him the options.
[00:23:03]  Thank you Mr. Speaker.
[00:23:04]  This afternoon the Mandelson papers or the first tranche will be released bringing into the light for the first time UK institutional knowledge of Geoffrey Epstein and those associated with him.
[00:23:14]  But here in the UK we have our own Epstein Mohammed Fayed and the institutions that supported his crimes.
[00:23:21]  As a co-chair of the APPG for the survivors of Al-Fayed and Harids, along with the Honourable Member for Litchfield, we welcome the actions of the Metropolitan Police in recent days, but we continue to call on them to describe those crimes as what they were trafficking.
[00:23:36]  Does the Prime Minister recognise that characterisation and will he meet with the EPPG and survivors to hear their asks?
[00:23:44]  Prime Minister.
[00:23:45]  Can I thank her for raising this really important issue?
[00:23:47]  I discussed it with the Honourable Member for Litchfield last night, particularly the approach of the APPG, and thank her for her important work on this issue.
[00:23:57]  I'm very happy to meet the APPG and the victims.
[00:24:01]  I think it's very important to do so.
[00:24:03]  She'll know there's an ongoing police investigation, but that doesn't mean that we can't have the meeting and listen to those that need to be listened to.
[00:24:11]  Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
[00:24:13]  Team Derby is our partnership making sure that the billions of pounds in investment that this Labour government is bringing into Derby benefits the people of Derby in regeneration, skills, and good jobs.
[00:24:27]  The government's record investment in Rolls-Royce submarines means hundreds of new jobs and apprenticeships in Derby.
[00:24:33]  So, will the Prime Minister firmly reject the Green Party's defence policies, which would decimate jobs in Derby and leave the United Kingdom unprotected?
[00:24:45]  Can I thank her?
[00:24:46]  Derby is part of our industrial heritage and has a bright future.
[00:24:50]  Initiatives, as she says, like Team Derby are so important to strengthen key sectors like defence, creating jobs and growth.
[00:24:57]  Our £9 billion deal with Rolls-Royce to boost our fleet of nuclear submarines is testament to that, creating more than 1,000 jobs and safeguarding 4,000 more.
[00:25:07]  Those that oppose all that must answer to the working people that they claim to represent.
[00:25:16]  Prime Minister will be happy that I'm not going to ask about fuel duty.
[00:25:20]  Businesses across South West Harford are telling me they're now reluctant to take on young workers due to this government's rise in employer national insurance contributions and the crippling employment white school.
[00:25:32]  With almost a million young people now not in employment, education or training, how exactly does the Prime Minister plan to get Great Britain working again?
[00:25:43]  Mr. Speaker, we're putting in place the Youth Guarantee, which helps young people into work.
[00:25:49]  It is a serious issue.
[00:25:50]  I would remind him that on their watch, one in eight young people were neither in education, training or work.
[00:26:00]  Mr Speaker, the National Audit Office report on Northern Powerhouse Rail, which came out on Monday of this week, surprised none of us in its conclusions that lack of engagement by the Department of Transport with mayoral authorities...
[00:26:18]  local authorities, and other involved parties in the north of England was leading to poor programming and lack of investment in the rail system in the north of England.
[00:26:31]  We deserve in the north of England a rail system fit for the 21st century, not the 19th century, which is what it is fit for.
[00:26:42]  Investing in the rail system will enable growth in the north of England, which will benefit the whole of the country.
[00:26:50]  Will the Prime Minister take a personal interest in the slowness of investment in the rail system so that we can have that growth?
[00:26:59]  Prime Minister, thank you for raising this important point.
[00:27:02]  The party opposite gave nothing but false promises for a decade.
[00:27:05]  We will deliver the biggest transformation of transport in the north for a generation, providing up to £45 billion of funding to deliver.
[00:27:14]  We're taking forward all recommendations from the NAO report.
[00:27:18]  That doesn't change the planning or the trajectory of the project.

=== Glasgow Security Incident Response (08:53) ===

[00:27:21]  Dr. Andrew Murray.
[00:27:24]  Mr. Speaker, grant cuts and over-optimistic Treasury assumptions on council tax-based growth mean that eight fire stations and 96 retain firefighters across Wiltshire and Dorset face the acts.
[00:27:39]  Would the Prime Minister please facilitate an urgent ministerial meeting for Wiltshire and Dorset MPs to discuss extending the precept flexibility permitted elsewhere at no cost to the Treasury to our fire and rescue service so its fire stations and its dedicated firefighters can continue to serve our community?
[00:28:03]  Thank you for raising this.
[00:28:05]  I don't know the details in the particular case but I will make sure that the relevant meeting is set up so the details can be explored.
[00:28:13]  Thank you Mr. Speaker.
[00:28:15]  Russia's continued assault on Ukraine has devocated its healthcare system, hospitals under extreme pressure and the critical shortage of specialist staff to treat the injured.
[00:28:27]  That is why I, along with other British physiotherapists, travelled to Ukraine to train clinicians who are working under unnatural stress.
[00:28:37]  Will the Prime Minister join me in thanking Tanisha Sandu, Daniel Sim, Kay Jo and Jujagi for the remarkable work and will he commit to expanding UK-Ukraine clinical training partnerships?
[00:28:53]  Yes I will and can I pay tribute to her and the rest of the delegation for their commendable work in Kyiv.
[00:28:59]  We recently announced a new package of support for Ukraine enabling highly skilled British surgeons, nurses and physiotherapists to mentor Ukrainian clinicians treating complex battlefield injuries.
[00:29:11]  Mr. Speaker, on one of my recent trips to Kyiv I went to one of the hospitals where they were treating the burns of those returning from the front line and it was humbling to see the work that was being done and I was extremely proud to know that the UK was helping in treating those who had such awful burns.
[00:29:30]  Westminster's tax on Scotland's energy is holding back investment and it's costing thousands of families their livelihoods.
[00:29:38]  After months of refusing to do so, the Chancellor has finally now said she is committed to change.
[00:29:45]  So will the Prime Minister confirm to the House today when the OGPM will be introduced to provide certainty for jobs, certainty for investment and crucially certainty for energy security?
[00:29:59]  Mr. Speaker, we all want certainty for energy security and oil and gas will be part of the mix for many years to come.
[00:30:07]  I'd remind her that 70,000 jobs were lost under the SNP and Conservatives in the last decade.
[00:30:13]  We want energy security.
[00:30:15]  We see new nuclear as part of that energy security and what the SNP do?
[00:30:20]  They block it.
[00:30:23]  Thank you Mr. Speaker.
[00:30:25]  Silently and in semi-secrecy, London and the south east of England are experiencing the largest mass eviction by a private landlord in decades.
[00:30:36]  Criterion Capital have issued at least 130 no-fault evictions across their portfolio, including in Britannia Point in Colliers Wood in my constituency.
[00:30:51]  Those affected have done nothing wrong.
[00:30:55]  They have paid their rent, looked after their homes and worked hard.
[00:31:01]  They are simply victims of a voracious landlord who always wants more.
[00:31:07]  Will the Prime Minister ensure that in the final weeks before the abolition of no-fault evictions, his government do all they can to hold Criterion Capital to account?
[00:31:22]  Can I thank her for raising this case?
[00:31:24]  Renters should have security and I condemn any unfair evictions.
[00:31:29]  I'm proud, Mr. Speaker, to be abolishing Section 21, a practice that's pushed thousands of renters into homelessness.
[00:31:37]  I'll make sure the Housing Minister looks at the case that she's raised.
[00:31:42]  Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
[00:31:45]  Rural residents in Beverly and Holdness are reeling under the impact of higher fuel prices.
[00:31:50]  Yet two days ago, the Chancellor said that in September, fuel duty would go up.
[00:31:58]  So my constituents want to know, as the Leader of the Opposition repeatedly asked, is that fuel duty going to go up in September and add to the misery of my constituents or not?
[00:32:08]  Prime Minister, for once in this place, give the House and the people of this country an answer.
[00:32:14]  Yes or no.
[00:32:17]  Fuel duty is frozen.
[00:32:18]  It'll be frozen until September.
[00:32:22]  In light of what's happening in Iran, of course we'll look carefully at the situation.
[00:32:27]  But his constituents need to know, and it's right that they know, that it's frozen until September, not fear marketing.
[00:32:36]  Mr. Speaker, the devastating fire on Union Street in Glasgow has destroyed small businesses and an iconic part of the city's heritage.
[00:32:45]  But the exceptional skill and courage of our emergency services prevented an even greater tragedy.
[00:32:51]  We need a rapid, thorough investigation with urgent implementation of recommendations.
[00:32:56]  Local businesses, commuters and residents are already feeling the impact, and recovery must be a shared priority.
[00:33:02]  Will the Prime Minister join me in thanking our emergency services and supporting efforts to rebuild this vital part of Glasgow?
[00:33:10]  Can I thank him for raising this devastating incident for Glasgow?
[00:33:15]  My thoughts, and I'm sure everybody's thoughts, are with those who've seen their businesses and their livelihoods destroyed.
[00:33:21]  Can I thank the emergency services who responded so quickly to the situation?
[00:33:26]  The people of Glasgow have seen far too many historic buildings suffer terrible fires over the last few years.
[00:33:32]  And that's why we're investing to protect heritage buildings in England.
[00:33:36]  But we'll keep a careful eye on the situation that he arises.
[00:33:41]  Mr. Speaker, yesterday in the Welsh Senate, a secret Whitehall memo was called out by its members that showed this government's attitude to devolution, a muscular unionism that Boris Johnson would have been proud of.
[00:33:54]  So can I ask the Prime Minister when Scottish and Welsh voters go to the polls, will he respect that decision?
[00:34:02]  And furthermore, what is it about those elections that so seems to terrify him at the moment?
[00:34:08]  Prime Minister.
[00:34:10]  Mr. Speaker, I'm not going to make any apologies for spending more money in Scotland or in Wales to improve people's lives.
[00:34:18]  There have been record investment under this government into Scotland.
[00:34:22]  The question is, where's the money gone, John?
[00:34:25]  King Craft.
[00:34:27]  Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
[00:34:28]  Last week, members from across this House and the other place felt compelled to write to Joe Boydell, the chief executive of Travel Lodge, following reports that in 2022, a man was given a key card and the room number of a woman staying alone in one of their hotels by staff, entered her room and sexually assaulted her.
[00:34:47]  Most alarmingly, statements made by Travel Lodge implied that staff had acted fully in line with their security and safety protocols and within industry standards.
[00:34:56]  Will the Prime Minister join me in urging Ms. Boydell to take us up on our invitation to meet with all interested members of this House and the other place to outline what action Travel Lodge are urgently taking to meet their duty to safeguard women staying in their hotels?
[00:35:13]  Can I thank her for raising this absolutely shocking case and for talking to me last night about the details of it?
[00:35:21]  My thoughts are with the victim who had a right to be safe and who has failed in the most appalling way.
[00:35:26]  Travelodge must take serious action to ensure such an appalling incident can never happen again.
[00:35:32]  I'm concerned at reports that they haven't met members of parliament.
[00:35:35]  They should do so.
[00:35:36]  And I should add that the safeguarding minister wants to meet them as well, and they should do that as well.
[00:35:43]  Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
[00:35:44]  Two weeks ago, it was confirmed that no extra time will be provided in the other place to allow the assisted dyeing bill to complete its course.
[00:35:51]  If this blocks the will of this democratically elected House, it will be a travesty for democracy and, more importantly, a tragedy for all those who are relying on it and have waited so long, not least my own dad.
[00:36:03]  Will he act now to prevent the dismissal of the views of 76% of the public, especially as other parts of our country approve it, and so secure a real legacy for social policy in this parliament?

=== Strong Views on Safeguarding (00:44) ===

[00:36:15]  Prime Minister.
[00:36:16]  Can I thank her for raising this?
[00:36:18]  And I know there are strong views, and I acknowledge her personal connection in relation to this, which shows how serious the issues are.
[00:36:25]  It is a matter of conscience.
[00:36:27]  It's for Parliament to decide the passage of the legislation and any changes.
[00:36:32]  Scrutiny is a matter for the other place.
[00:36:34]  We have a responsibility to make sure any legislation is workable, effective, and enforceable.
[00:36:39]  That completes Prime Minister's question.
[00:36:47]  And now members of the British House of Commons question Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister Darren Jones on why Prime Minister Keir Starmer appointed Peter Mandelson as U.S. Ambassador.
[00:36:57]  He was named to that post despite allegations of a question.