Oral Answers to Questions

Kirsty Blackman Excerpts

Wednesday 4th December 2024 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

We are delivering on our commitment to bring railways back under public ownership, putting passengers first. Today, we have announced that South Western Railway services will be the first to transfer into public ownership next year, so that we can turn the page on decades of delay, fragmentation and failure.

[Kirsty Blackman (Aberdeen North) (SNP)]

Q15. Veteran Anne Puckridge is in the Gallery, and I urge the Prime Minister to meet her to talk about her frozen pension. Yesterday, the Daily Record reported that Scottish Labour MPs are very “upset”. Apparently, that upset is caused by their Scottish leader’s diktat that they now have to support the very winter fuel payment that they voted against in this place. As the Prime Minister comforts his upset MPs, will he remind them that the only people with the right to be upset are the 900,000 Scottish pensioners who were left in the cold by Labour’s cuts?

[The Prime Minister]

I work very closely with Scottish Labour in a harmonious way. We ran a fantastic campaign earlier this year, which is why the hon. Lady is sitting on the Benches at the back, not the Benches at the front.

Oral Answers to Questions

Kirsty Blackman Excerpts

Wednesday 4th September 2024 Commons Chamber

[Brendan O'Hara (Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber) (SNP)]

8. If he will make an assessment with Cabinet colleagues of the potential merits of devolving the power to introduce a Scottish work visa scheme to the Scottish Government.

[Kirsty Blackman (Aberdeen North) (SNP)]

13. If he will make an assessment with Cabinet colleagues of the potential merits of devolving the power to introduce a Scottish work visa scheme to the Scottish Government.

--- Later in debate ---

[Kirsty McNeill]

We are committed to ensuring that there is effective Scottish representation on the Migration Advisory Committee, and I look forward to working with the Home Office and engaging with sectors on ensuring that immigration works for all parts of the UK.

[Kirsty Blackman]

The skilled worker salary threshold and the skills list are simply not working. Will the Minister ensure that the skilled occupation list is fit for purpose in Scotland, and that it works for our energy transition?

[Kirsty McNeill]

Fixing the foundations of our economy is the key to long-term prosperity. That includes future-proofing the economy for all, whether that is long-established families or new arrivals. The Chancellor will set out plans to fix the foundations in the Budget on 30 October.