Valedictory Debate

Baroness Laing of Elderslie Excerpts

Friday 24th May 2024 Commons Chamber

[Sir James Duddridge]

A revelation—I thank my right hon. Friend. It has been absolutely superb. I will miss this place, and I say thank you to everyone who has served—in the broadest way—this House.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Eleanor Laing)]

Just before I call the next hon. Gentleman, the hon. Member for Rutland and Melton made an impassioned intervention—a correct one, making an excellent point—but she kept referring to the hon. Gentleman as “you”. This upsets me so much. I cannot let it go, because what if, when I am not here—which will be very soon—nobody bothers? What if we descend into just an ordinary place, where people use first names, nicknames, “you”, or sloppy language, and wear white trainers? It just would not be right.

This is a very special place, and the fact that we call each other “the hon. Member” and use the third person and not the second person is part of the way that we do things here, with dignity and precision and by stepping back from the personal. I appreciate that what the hon. Lady has just said is personal, and this is a personal debate. There is nothing wrong with that, but in debates about political topics, it is very important to keep the personal out of it and stick to the facts. That is why it is so important that we respect the rule of speaking through the Chair and refer to people, not as “you”, but as the hon. Gentleman or the hon. Lady. I simply cannot miss my last opportunity to say that, and I so hope it will not be forgotten.

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[Dr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

It is a great honour to be the last speaker on the Back Benches in this debate. We have heard great emotion from many people, and I realise that it is such a wrench for many people to leave Parliament. It has been an honour for all of us to serve, but particularly for me to serve as the Member of Parliament for Hendon. I have been intimately involved in eight parliamentary elections in the past 28 years. In many ways, in some seats, it is no great achievement for someone to be elected. It is in the marginal seats that it is an achievement. We are the ones that have changed Governments.

I thank my constituents in Hendon for electing me on four occasions. At the last election, I received 26,878 votes, the highest number of Conservative votes in the constituency since 1935. It sometimes irked me when I was first elected in 2010 that I had a majority of 106 and over 20,000 people had elected me, while there were others sitting on different Benches who had received fewer votes than me but had huge majorities. That did not feel quite right.

Each and every Member present will claim that their constituency is different from everyone else’s, but Hendon—just like London—is very diverse. As someone who was born and grew up in the south of England and never saw a person of colour until the age of 12, being in Hendon did not come as a great shock to me, but it has taught me a huge amount. I have a large Jewish constituency, a large Muslim constituency, Hindus, the largest Chinese community outside of Soho and Manchester, and the largest Iranian community in the whole country.

There are many issues that connect those different religious groups, which I have always campaigned on, but there has also been a huge amount of diversity in the local economy. We have seen huge development, meaning that the boundary changes that have been applied will make a difference. Under the previous Conservative council, when I was a councillor, we introduced development that created the Stonegrove estate, the Grahame Park estate, Beaufort Park, West Hendon, Upper Fosters and the Peel Centre. All made homes for people in their local area, and we should be very grateful for that.

As I said, I have worked on issues that have brought communities together, but the reason why I have focused on the Jewish community is that they are a small number in this country—about 300,000. The number of Muslims in this country is more like 6 million, and their voices will be heard by the different Members of Parliament in this place. My hon. Friend the Member for Brigg and Goole (Andrew Percy) raised issues of concern to many of my constituents—issues about antisemitism and education—but I am pleased that this week, Lord Pickles published his report of the Alderney expert review, laying to rest the issue of a concentration camp on British soil during the second world war.

My hon. Friend the Member for Brigg and Goole has seen other things as well. A particular issue of concern to my constituents is that of Israel, which is understandable. My hon. Friend and I visited Israel a few weeks after the 7 October attacks. We visited Kfar Aza, and I only wish that each and every Member here in Parliament could experience what we did. I have not said this before, but my hon. Friend said to me that he could not take pictures during that day, and I told him that we must. Just as Bert Hardy and other photographers went into Bergen-Belsen and the other concentration camps, I said, “We have to go there and take pictures, so that the world knows this really did happen.” We have had people saying that it did not happen, but I can assure you, Madam Deputy Speaker, that it did.

I would be one of those hawkish Members who wants to see the issue in Gaza resolved, but I do not believe a ceasefire now would achieve that. I do not want to see any deaths on any side, but when Members said recently in a debate that there had been 30,000 civilian deaths, I tried to challenge that. We do not know how many of those people are civilians and how many are Hamas fighters—the Foreign Office said that it has not made a prediction of that number—but we do know that 80% of people in Gaza support Hamas, and Hamas has got to be removed.

The decision of Ireland, Norway and Spain this week to recognise an independent Palestinian state is not only wrong, but allows the conclusion to emerge that terrorism works, and we cannot allow that. It is simply impossible to recognise a state that has never existed in any meaningful form, so what exactly are those countries recognising? I gently say to the premiers of Spain and Ireland that they have never particularly recognised their minority communities.

My right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May) said that you should never ask a question in this place if you do not know the answer. There was an occasion when I asked the former Prime Minister—now Lord Cameron—if he would visit Israel. I have to say that one of the best experiences of being in Parliament was the moment when I visited Lord Cameron in his suite at the King David hotel. We walked past the guys with machine guns guarding him, and we sat and drank whisky with him. I have to say that it was not that different from sitting on the throne in Saddam Hussein’s palace in Baghdad—of course, without Saddam Hussein, and with whisky.

We have lived through an extraordinary period in this Parliament. People often ask me, “What is the best part of being an MP?” I find that easy to answer: it is the people, particularly the constituents. The stories that they tell are sometimes heart-wrenching, often annoying, regularly amusing and always interesting. I have had great people working with me in the constituency—some political, some not. I particularly think of people like Val Duschinsky and Hugh Rayner, who work with me in the Hendon association, as well as Rabbi Ginsbury, Simon Rea and Mushtaq Rehman, the respective leaders of their religious communities. Activists such as Rupa Monerawela, Richard Nash and Manubhai Makwana have been a great support to me. There are also individuals such as Ari Leaman, who has done so much for the teenage community, and Lorraine Bushell for the Grandparents’ Association.

I am asked what is the biggest mistake that I have ever made as a Member of Parliament. That is easy to answer: it was on the military action in Libya, when I walked past my hon. Friend the Member for Basildon and Billericay (Mr Baron) and thought, “How’s he going to explain why he’s voting against this?” But we not only created a failed state, but significantly contributed to the current immigration and asylum crisis. That was my biggest mistake, and I bitterly regret it.

The right hon. Member for Barking (Dame Margaret Hodge) said that being an MP is not what it used to be, and she is correct. Several years ago I was on a boat and the skipper said, “What was it you said that you did for a living?” I said, “I didn’t.” Before long, one of the other crew said, “Well, it can’t be as bad as being a Member of Parliament.” It is still vital to be a Member of Parliament; those who come after us will recognise that.

I leave on one note that I am particularly sad about. For 30 years, I have complained about sewage in our rivers and our seas. Not much has changed over the last 30 years; all that has changed is that the Government have implemented a scheme for monitoring the amount of sewage that goes into our rivers and our seas. The Lib Dems are making this a central plank of their election campaign. They should be advised that their MPs voted against the super-sewer here in London, so they do not have a good record on the issue. In my opinion, the EU directive was never fit for purpose, so while Ministers have repeatedly claimed that water quality is improving, it is simply not; it is the way that water quality is measured. Such claims lead me to conclude that this is the same kind of behaviour by Ministers that was witnessed in the contaminated blood scandal.

Having been elected continuously for the last 22 years —for the last 14 as the Member of Parliament for Hendon—has taken a huge toll on me. That is why I have decided to step down, but I would not change it for a thing. I am looking forward to Ameet Jogia, the Conservative candidate, taking forward what we have achieved. He was not only born in the constituency but is a local candidate.

I have to thank my staff for the work that they have done over the last few years. In this Parliament alone, they have undertaken 60,884 pieces of casework. I have had a good staff who have remained friends, beginning with Laura Pike, Hannah Evans, Ness Hirst and Katherine Toone, and now with Eamonn Walsh, George Bose, Carolynne Fisher and Steve Martin, who volunteered, and Hilary Smith, who has been with me for the last 16 years. They have really been true public servants. As was said, they are the ones who ensure that the work is actually completed. Of course, I cannot forget Maximus Decimus Meridius—my Jack Russell, Max—who still attends Parliament on occasions. He has enabled me to concentrate on animal welfare issues. So, in the spirit of a Roman language, I say: veni, vidi, vici.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Eleanor Laing)]

Just before we come to the wind-up speeches, I hope that the House will indulge me bending the rules for a moment or two to say a few words before I vacate the Chair for the last time—which is a very difficult thing to do. The first time I sat in this Chair, I imagined that it would make me feel like somebody with power and grandeur. I tell you, I felt like Alice in Wonderland—you know that picture of Alice shrinking and the chair getting bigger—because I thought, “This Chair is awfully big and I’m awfully small.” It still feels like that.

I would like first to say a few words about the other occupants of this Chair: the team made up of the Speaker and the Deputy Speakers—my dear friends and colleagues. The First Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means, the right hon. Member for Doncaster Central (Dame Rosie Winterton); the Second Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means, my right hon. Friend the Member for Ribble Valley (Mr Evans); and my right hon. Friend the Member for North Thanet (Sir Roger Gale), together with Mr Speaker, make up the team who keep this place going every day. It is a brilliant team, and I could not have been more fortunate in having such great people to work with. Not only are they good parliamentarians and great politicians, but they are also great fun, and when we have a moment, we have a very good laugh. I say a very sincere thank you to them all. They stood in for me, looked after me and kept me going when I was seriously ill last year. Thanks to what they did, I am better.

I pay particular tribute to Mr Speaker. At the end of the last Parliament, the House of Commons was in danger of going the wrong way. Sir Lindsay Hoyle has restored dignity, decency, kindness and humour to this place, with a light touch and his own extraordinary personality. I know, because I have seen it every day, how much effort he has put into doing that, and long may he continue.

I thank all those who have helped and supported me over 27 years in Parliament. At the moment, the most important people are those in my office on the Deputy Speakers’ corridor: the wonderful Robi and James. I also thank their great predecessors L-J, Abi, Clemmie, Georgie, Joanna, Sarah and the magnificent Jo-Jo.

I also thank, as lots of Members have, our brilliant Clerks, who are so patient and wise; the Doormen; and the magnificently sympathetic ladies and gentlemen in the Tea Room, especially Mary and Godfrey, who always keep me some fish and chips on a Friday, when the Tea Room closes before the House rises. Of course, I also thank the ladies and gentlemen in the Pugin Room —sometimes we are last in there, too, aren’t we, Mr Deputy Speaker? Don’t tell anybody.

I could never have managed without Jackie and Kelly downstairs. They know who they are; they know how much we rely on and care about them. There are quite a few “Ayes” and “Hear hears!” around the Chamber, mostly—but not entirely—from ladies.

May I also thank the people who have maintained my constituency office and my private office? I am lucky to have such loyal colleagues, all of whom have also become great friends of mine and of each other. There have been very few of them over a span of 30 years, because they have all stayed for a very long time. I really do not know how they have the patience to deal with me, day in, day out—I could not do it. I thank in particular Debbie, Jess, Karen, Beverly, Carol, Iona, Gilly, Frankie, Tom, Sophie and Sean.

Epping Forest Conservative Association is a brilliant team. I see that the hon. Member for South West Hertfordshire (Mr Mohindra), who was once its chairman, is sitting on the Front Bench, acknowledging and agreeing with what I say. The association has provided a great many colleagues in this place, notably—as well as my hon. Friend—our late friend James Brokenshire. It will be good to take a moment to remember him, and the other colleagues whom we have lost. James’s wife Cathy—I should perhaps say his widow—has been an absolute stalwart of my office for the last two and a half years, carrying on so much of the good work that James started. The Conservative association team has been led forever, I think, by our wonderful president, the inimitable Valerie Metcalfe, who, having told me what to do over seven general elections, is affectionally known as my fairy god-agent.

Many Members have said this afternoon that the people who make the sacrifices for us Members of Parliament are our families. I am fortunate enough to have a great family and a lot of very close friends, and I am thinking particularly of my lifelong friends. I will not embarrass them by mentioning them, because they are not politicians, but they know who they are. They have stood by me through good times and bad. I will, however, mention my brother Robbie and my wonderful son Matthew, who has spent his entire life with a crazy mother who is a Member of Parliament. It would not be wrong to say that he was brought up in this building. He was born exactly a week after the 2001 general election, and he was very early, something that I have never been. I apologise to all the people whom I have kept waiting over the years, which is most of them.

Finally, let me say a sincere thank you to my constituents in Epping Forest, the people who have given me the chance to be their representative here for 27 years. I have friends in Epping Forest in every political party, in every town and village, in every walk of life. They are brilliant, brilliant people. They are the backbone of this country, and I am sure that they would agree with whoever said, “All that is necessary for evil to prevail is that good men”—and women—“do nothing”. They, we, and all the people who have been talked about this afternoon are the good people who do not do nothing, and that is why evil will not prevail.

[Mr Deputy Speaker (Mr Nigel Evans)]

This has been the most emotional day of my life. You have caused me to cry a dozen times, you people, and I am still crying. We now come to the winding-up speeches, and I call Lucy Powell.