Priorities for Government

Debate between Mary Robinson and Boris Johnson

Thursday 25th July 2019 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary has made me aware of the issue to which the right hon. Gentleman refers. I will make sure that we write to him about what we are doing to address it. As he knows, I have a long-standing commitment to supporting the freedom of people of talent to come to this country. If he looks at my political record, I do not think, genuinely, that he will find anybody who has done more to champion the rights of immigrants to this city or to this country.

[Mary Robinson (Cheadle) (Con)]

I welcome the Prime Minister’s commitment to infrastructure. In addition to his support for Northern Powerhouse Rail, will he consider looking at ways that HS3 can be constructed from the north, thus maximising the jobs in our region?

[The Prime Minister]

I have asked Doug Oakervee, the former chairman of Crossrail, to conduct a brief six-week study of profiling of the spend on HS2, to discover whether such a proposal might have merit, and I will ensure that I revert to my hon. Friend as fast as possible on its conclusion.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Mary Robinson and Boris Johnson

Tuesday 26th June 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mary Robinson (Cheadle) (Con)]

18. Thank you, Mr Speaker; it most certainly is.My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary will be aware that the Australia-United States free trade agreement was negotiated within 13 months. Can he outline what preparations his Department is making, so that when we leave the EU we can begin to negotiate speedy free trade arrangements with our Commonwealth counterparts? In the spirit of Commonwealth friendship, while he is on his feet, would he mind wishing the Socceroos every success in their game tonight?

[Boris Johnson]

I have just been warned by the Minister for Asia and the Pacific that the Socceroos are playing Peru tonight. I have just been to Peru and I would not want to forfeit any friendship I may have acquired on that mission. We wish both sides well in that encounter. Not just the FCO, but the Department for International Trade is waiting, straining in the slips—unlike the Labour party—to do the free trade deals that my hon. Friend rightly refers to.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Mary Robinson and Boris Johnson

Tuesday 15th May 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mary Robinson (Cheadle) (Con)]

T9. Last year I visited St Lucia as part of a Commonwealth Parliamentary Association delegation, meeting representatives from St Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago. Britain’s vision post Brexit and its implications for the Commonwealth family of nations was a topic of discussion. Can my right hon. Friend give us an assurance that following the successful Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting, we will make every effort to strengthen our economic and diplomatic ties with those island nations?

[Boris Johnson]

I certainly can, and I can tell my hon. Friend that at the Commonwealth summit I was able, as she may recall, to announce the opening of 10 new UK delegations, many of them in the Caribbean or the Pacific.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Mary Robinson and Boris Johnson

Tuesday 21st November 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mary Robinson (Cheadle) (Con)]

17. Thank you, Mr Speaker. Since the outbreak of the recent shocking violence in Rakhine more than 600,000 Rohingya refugees have crossed the border into neighbouring Bangladesh, where there is an urgent need for additional land for shelters to provide life-saving services and aid. In the light of the desperate situation, what support are the Government offering to the Bangladeshi Government so that refugees can have access to the basic essentials of existence, such as clean water, medicine and shelter?

[Boris Johnson]

My hon. Friend is entirely right. The UK is one of the biggest participants, having been either the biggest or second biggest donor to the humanitarian crisis in Bangladesh. We should all congratulate the Government of Bangladesh on the forbearance and energy they have put into coping with this appalling crisis. The UK is contributing £47 million, which has helped to provide for 174,000 people. We have provided safe water and sanitation for more than 138,000, and emergency shelter for 130,000; we have provided aid, counselling and psychological support that will reach more than 10,000 women suffering from trauma and 2,000 survivors of sexual violence; and we have provided medical help for more than 50,000 pregnant women to give birth safely. That is a record of help and support for the crisis of which the whole House can be proud.