Budget Resolutions

Debate between Baroness Laing of Elderslie and Lord Jackson of Peterborough

Monday 13th March 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough) (Con)]

The right hon. Lady is making a reasonably cogent case—[Hon. Members: “Ooh!”] She is most welcome—

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Mrs Eleanor Laing)]

Order. Hon. Members must not object when a Member is polite to someone on the other side of the House. That is being honourable.

[Mr Jackson]

That is a rare phenomenon in respect of the right hon. Lady, sometimes, Madam Deputy Speaker. On a serious point, is it not only fair to record that those of us who occasionally travelled to central and south America witnessed a shrinking of our footprint and our soft power as the previous Labour Government closed many of the embassies there? We also downgraded the Chevening scholarships. This is something that we now need to review urgently as we go forward post-Brexit.