Business of the House
Andrew Bridgen Excerpts(2 months, 1 week ago)
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Penny Mordaunt
My hon. Friend makes a good case, not necessarily for a debate on that topic but for an entire debate—perhaps an entire afternoon on the Floor of the House—about his council alone. As I do every week, I will make sure that the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has heard what he said.
Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Ind)
The Guernsey cardiologist Dr Dean Patterson has written to the General Medical Council to call for an immediate suspension of the mRNA vaccines after witnessing at first hand in Guernsey the damage that they have done. Guernsey has only 63,000 residents, 93% of whom have had at least two jabs. Dr Patterson stated that he saw only five cases of myocarditis a year until 2021 when the jabs were rolled out. He then saw a 500% increase in cases: there were 25 cases in 2021 and 23 in 2022, but in 2023, when fewer jabs were administered, the number of cases dropped to 11.
Because the Channel Islands are a Crown dependency, they have no representation in this House. Although the residents of the Channel Islands are British passport holders, they have no access to the UK vaccine damage compensation scheme. Will the Leader of the House make a statement on how Dr Patterson and other concerned medical professionals in the Channel Islands can publicise their concerns about these novel treatments and protect their patients, and how the people of the Channel Islands who have been harmed by the vaccines can get the compensation that they deserve?
Penny Mordaunt
The hon. Gentleman has found his own answer. Not only has he given an example of a healthcare professional who is writing to healthcare professional bodies, and many other organisations that scrutinise and have oversight of vaccines policy, but Members of Parliament can raise the issue on the Floor of the House. It is very important that we ensure that the public know there are statutory bodies, third sector organisations and democratic organisations with elected representatives that have scrutiny and oversight of all these matters. That is why we have a very safe vaccines regime, and why any concerns about vaccines or ongoing trials are all put in the public domain.
Business of the House
Andrew Bridgen Excerpts(2 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Penny Mordaunt
I will make sure that my hon. Friend has an update from the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. He will know that we are committed to raising professionalism among property agents. They must already belong to a redress scheme, and both the Government’s Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill and Renters (Reform) Bill will help to drive up overall standards, but I shall make sure that the Department has heard what he said.
Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Ind)
Yesterday, only weeks after admitting to the serious side effects from its product, AstraZeneca withdrew its covid-19 vaccine worldwide. Like millions in the UK and over 700 million people worldwide, I took the AstraZeneca jab, based on the Government’s assurance that it was “safe and effective”, and I suffered side effects. I know there is very little appetite in this Chamber to discuss these matters, but I assure the House that there is huge and growing concern among the public about a medical intervention that this House encouraged, coerced and, in some cases, mandated people to inject into their bodies. So can we have a statement from the Health Minister on the withdrawal of the AstraZeneca vaccine and why the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency failed to act to protect the public interest, or is it that AstraZeneca withdrew its own product because it was far too safe and effective?
Penny Mordaunt
I am sorry to see the hon. Gentleman speak like that in this Chamber, especially as three speakers on the Front Bench have raised the issue of conspiracy theories and our combined efforts to push back on them. The vaccine he refers to saved, according to many independent estimates, over 6.5 million lives in the first year of use alone and over 3 billion doses of it were supplied globally. He will know that, as with many other medical products, we do not keep particular vaccines in use permanently. Disease and therapies change and vaccines need to be updated, and he knows it is very clear that this has been withdrawn for commercial reasons. It is no longer needed and there are two particular vaccines that are used now in our NHS with regard to covid.
The hon. Gentleman has had several debates on this matter and on excess deaths. Of course people suffering ill effects from taking vaccines is a serious issue that needs to be addressed and their needs must be served, but that is quite another thing from promoting false information about the effectiveness and safety of vaccines. That vaccine and the people behind it saved millions of lives. There is a chapter in the publication we have spoken about that covers this precise point. I encourage the hon. Gentleman to get a copy and read it, to think seriously when he comes to the House, as he does every week, and promotes conspiracy theories and to really think about the consequences of what he is doing.
Business of the House
Andrew Bridgen Excerpts(2 months, 3 weeks ago)
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Penny Mordaunt
The hon. Lady will know that the Home Office will always talk to Members of this House about constituency cases of whatever nature, but it is clear that, given our finite resource, we can honour our obligations to those seeking asylum here only if our asylum system can deal with the volume of people coming in. We should use those finite resources in a way that helps people, but we can also choose which individuals we want to help and ensure that people who do not have leave to remain in this country do not remain here. That is what this democratic Parliament has decided to do, because the British people wish us to do it. She ought to reflect on that.
Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Ind)
There are a number of bodies that the public rely on to be impartial and to protect the public interest, including the General Medical Council, the Solicitors Regulation Authority and the Civil Aviation Authority, to name but three. When independent regulators take moneys from the World Economic Forum or other vested interests, they lose their independence, so can we have a statement from the relevant Minister on how we are going to end regulatory capture, something we have seen at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency with disastrous consequences? Can that Minister also explain why the guidance to so-called independent regulators says that it regards their regulation as a tool of government?
Penny Mordaunt
Regulators have very clear responsibilities —that is well understood. Members of this House will work with them on a whole raft of issues to raise concerns about the sector they cover and how they are operating in their local area. If the hon. Gentleman has any specific charges of a regulator not doing its job, as he knows, the Department for Business and Trade will shortly be bringing forward a White Paper about how we improve regulators in the UK. We are always interested in what can be improved, but he has made quite a serious allegation today, which he should follow up with the Secretary of State.
Business of the House
Andrew Bridgen Excerpts(2 months, 4 weeks ago)
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Penny Mordaunt
I am sorry to hear that the hon. Gentleman’s constituents have been suffering due to poor practice by those firms. He will know that under the coalition Government, new measures were introduced to crack down on things such as clamping on private land and other practices that came from such firms, and this Government take those issues very seriously. If the situations are not resolved, I think that the hon. Gentleman, when he gets the next opportunity on 16 May at Transport questions, or at other opportunities or other business questions, should name the companies. He can do that, which I find gets people in such companies to focus on resolving these issues more sensibly.
Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Ind)
In last week’s Backbench Business debate on the covid-19 pandemic response and trends in excess deaths, I asked whether it is now accepted that it was a mistake to give the respiratory suppressant drug midazolam, as part of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guideline NG163, as treatment for those suspected of having covid-19. I also asked, should there be legal cases proving unlawful killing linked to overdoses and toxicity from midazolam, who would be held criminally responsible. Would it be the then Secretary of State for Health, NICE, NHS England or the individual doctors and nurses who administered the drug? Those questions were not answered. Can we have a statement from a Health Minister? The evasion and gaslighting on this issue has got to end.
Business of the House
Andrew Bridgen Excerpts(3 months ago)
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Penny Mordaunt
My hon. Friend has provided her own answer. I thank her for raising awareness of this important issue, and sending a clear message to anyone who might be targeted with such appalling fraud. These kinds of crimes are terrible in any circumstance, but trying to exploit people undertaking this particular pilgrimage is really unpleasant. I thank her for raising the matter. She will know that the Government take it very seriously, and had a recent campaign to combat this type of fraud. I will certainly ensure that all relevant Departments are aware of her campaign, and assist her in any way they can.
Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Ind)
Following the publication of the Cass review and its damning conclusion that children were given unscientific medical advice, does the Leader of the House stand by her statement that
“trans men are men and trans women are women”?—[Official Report, 1 March 2021; Vol. 690, c. 60.]
Does she still believe that this is the starting point and ending point of the Gender Recognition Act 2004, and will she make a statement on how we are going to protect our children and young people from dangerous indoctrination by gender ideology?
Penny Mordaunt
When I was Minister for Women and Equalities, I set up the first inquiry looking at why so many children were being referred into trans services. There was a 4,000% increase in the number of girls, for example, who were being referred into trans services. The Government have consistently raised such matters. The Cass review is an important review. The gender recognition consultation that looked at whether we needed to reform the 2004 Act was also an important piece of work for Whitehall. It had a record number of responses—more than 100,000—and although I did not read them all, I read the ones from healthcare professionals. They raised concerns that the rules about referring people into such services were too restrictive and looked only at one particular type of condition as opposed to the raft of conditions that they were dealing with. I hope that work informed Whitehall. It certainly led to other reviews, including the Cass review. I think that was important.
These issues need to be gripped, but while we do so, we need to send a clear message to people who are trans that their rights and their ability to lead a good quality of life are also protected. That is the aim of the current Minister for Equalities. I refer the House to her many statements, including on the provision of same-sex spaces. She has always taken care to mention certainty and support for trans people.
Business of the House
Andrew Bridgen Excerpts(4 months ago)
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Penny Mordaunt
My right hon. and learned Friend raises an important point. He should be reassured that those figures from the Ministry of Health in Gaza, which is run by Hamas, are only one data point that we use to assess the scale of the conflict and its implications for civilians. We need to ensure that we have the most accurate data, and we are collecting that from satellite imagery of building damage, information from our humanitarian partners on the ground and robust data on living conditions. Those are all fed into our assessment. It is a tragedy that is unfolding, and that is why we want to see a pause in fighting to get that aid in and to get hostages out.
Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Ind)
China is increasing its carbon dioxide emissions by more than the UK’s total emissions every year of this decade. China, Russia, India and others are opening new coal-fired power stations on an almost daily basis. Do they know something we do not? Independent scientists have stated that higher carbon dioxide levels would be beneficial for life on the planet through increased plant growth, so can we have a debate in Government time on the cost-benefit of net zero before trillions of pounds of taxpayers’ money are wasted, which will make the HS2 fiasco look like a warm-up act?
Penny Mordaunt
The hon. Gentleman will know how to secure a debate. He has just secured a debate on excess deaths, and if he follows the same procedure, I am sure he will have good luck in securing another debate.
Business of the House
Andrew Bridgen Excerpts(4 months, 1 week ago)
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Penny Mordaunt
I commend my hon. Friend and the farmers he represents for all the work they are doing to fight against those plans. He is right that they will cost jobs, and they are an appalling use of good agricultural land. That is why just 3% of the farming community trusts the Welsh Government, and 87% of farmers believe that that misguided farming policy would not benefit their work or business or, very importantly, deliver a positive outcome for the environment. I think Labour in Wales needs to start listening to farmers.
Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Ind)
Despite consistently delivering some of the highest economic growth in the country, North West Leicestershire remains without access to the rail network, leaving my constituents completely reliant on their own vehicles, taxis or local bus services. Will the Leader of the House join me in commending the 1,000 North West Leicestershire residents who signed a petition calling for the reinstatement of the original routes for the Nos. 16, 29 and 29A bus services, administered by Arriva Midlands East? These bus services are essential for my constituents, so can we have a statement from a Minister on why bus services in the area continue to be curtailed, when North West Leicestershire continues to make such a massive contribution to the UK economy?
Penny Mordaunt
I thank all the hon. Gentleman’s constituents and the businesses in his constituency for what they are doing to grow our economy and strengthen their community. The next questions to the Transport Secretary will be on 21 March, and I encourage the hon. Gentleman to raise this directly with the Secretary of State.
Business of the House
Andrew Bridgen Excerpts(4 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Penny Mordaunt
I know that my right hon. Friend the Member for South Northamptonshire (Dame Andrea Leadsom), who is the Minister with responsibility for dentistry, has brought forward a new dental plan, which includes an uplift but also new things for the NHS in England, such as mobile dentistry vans. She is particularly focused on people who are disproportionately affected because of other issues, including cancer patients, looked-after children, and women who were pregnant during the pandemic and could not access free dental care at the time. We have new opportunities with the new dental plan to ensure that everyone in our nation is dentally fit, including through changes to how payments are made. I think that a debate on this matter would be very welcome, and I know that the hon. Gentleman knows how to apply for one.
Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Ind)
Public petition 648609 called for a debate on ending the UK’s membership of the World Health Organisation, but a debate was refused by the Petitions Committee despite the petition well exceeding the 100,000 signature threshold. Can we please have a statement on why this House is determined to give away sovereign powers to an unelected, unaccountable, non-tax paying, diplomatically immune organisation whose current director general was appointed only through an unholy alliance of Bill Gates and the Chinese Communist party? Can the Leader of the House say why the WHO has joined excess deaths and vaccine harms on the list of things that we just cannot talk about in this House?
Penny Mordaunt
I think there are enough health-related issues, and all sorts of other issues, to worry about, focus on and debate without inventing crisis and drama where there is none. The hon. Gentleman acknowledges that petitions are a matter for the Petitions Committee, which is a Committee of this House. I am not responsible for its decisions. I will facilitate and help him to secure debates and raise questions, and to do anything else he wants to do, on any topic on which he wishes to campaign.
The hon. Gentleman will know, because he has secured well-attended debates in the past, that this House is very open to discussing all sorts of issues, including the World Health Organisation and the treaty about which I know he is concerned. Let us focus on the real issues, the substance and the matters at hand, rather than pretending that this House, anyone in it or any of its Committees has a hidden agenda, because he knows that is not true.
Business of the House
Andrew Bridgen Excerpts(4 months, 3 weeks ago)
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Penny Mordaunt
I repeat my commitment to bringing the matter to the Floor of the House. I tabled it and I wanted it to be debated. I would just challenge what the hon. Gentleman said. Last week was not about the security of Members of this House. The hon. Gentleman is under a complete illusion if he thinks that that is the case. What happened last week was that the things we trust in our rule book in this place were upended for political advantage. I do not want to bring forward a debate that requires hon. Members to trust in systems we are putting in place when that trust is fractured. Let us work together to rebuild that trust. Let us address the legitimate concerns that our colleagues have raised and let us bring it back to be debated. I do not think that is a controversial view.
Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Ind)
I have always opposed capital punishment on the principle that it is wrong to take a life, so it cannot be right for the state to take a life in revenge. Events have caused me to reconsider my position. May we have a debate on crimes against humanity and the appropriate punishment for those who perpetrate, collude in and cover up atrocities and crimes so severe that the ultimate punishment may be required?
Penny Mordaunt
I think the hon. Gentleman’s incredibly subtle question, and where he might be taking it, is not lost on anyone in this House. It is appropriate that the finale of this session, which has featured so heavily conspiracy theories, should fall to the hon. Gentleman. I would just caution him to reflect on his own behaviour and what he does on social media, and on the security measures that have had to be stepped up for hon. Members in the wake of some of his social media tweets and questions in this House. Whatever my disagreements with the hon. Gentleman, I will always stand ready to get answers from Departments and assist him in his work, but I am going to call out, on every occasion, when he does things that I think are a danger to our democracy, and to the safety and security of Members of this House.
Business of the House
Andrew Bridgen Excerpts(5 months ago)
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Penny Mordaunt
I thank my hon. Friend for raising this. I do not think there is any Member of this House who has not received threats, intimidation and, increasingly, death threats to them and members of their family. I have had many such threats and other hon. Members have spoken about their experiences on the Floor of the House. We can do many things with regard to physical security, and I again thank the House authorities for what they did yesterday. The matter he raises of the projections on to this building last night is being looked at by the Speaker’s Office, parliamentary security, the Metropolitan police and Westminster City Council, which will be responsible for pursuing prosecutions.
I say again to all Members of the House: we are elected to carry out our duty and take our responsibilities seriously. It is often a frightening task, but we cannot let those threats change this place or what we think is the right course of action. If we do that, they will have won. They will never win. We have to show courage and our constituents need us to show courage on these matters. We must vote and do what we think is right.
Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Ind)
Despite huge and growing public interest and concern over excess deaths, there remains a reluctance to engage with the issue, or in some cases even to acknowledge it, by Front Benchers across this Chamber. How convenient that this week the Office for National Statistics announced it has suddenly found a large increase in the UK population —not newborns, but older people. Where have these seniors been hiding for all these years? The effect of that increase will be to supress and mask the number of excess deaths. Can we have a debate on rebuilding trust in public health policy? We will not do that by fudging the figures at the ONS, which are now in complete conflict with those issued by other Government Departments, such as the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities.
Penny Mordaunt
I am amazed that the hon. Gentleman is asking the Government Front Benchers for a debate while at the same time asserting that we will do everything we can not to have one. He knows how to apply for a debate. He has had many debates—Westminster Hall debates and Adjournment debates—and he is able to ask questions in the House. Many Members from all parts of the House take these issues extremely seriously. I hope that the hon. Gentleman will reflect on what has been said on the Floor of the House today about our conduct and what we say about other Members, and the security consequences.