Article 50

Debate between Baroness Morgan of Cotes and Baroness May of Maidenhead

Wednesday 29th March 2017 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I say to the hon. Gentleman that we will be publishing a White Paper on the great repeal Bill tomorrow, which will make it clearer how we are going to transpose not just the acquis, but relevant judgments of the European Court of Justice. I am very well aware of this and this Government have taken the very clear position that we do not think the European charter of fundamental human rights is applicable.

[Nicky Morgan (Loughborough) (Con)]

In her letter to President Tusk, the Prime Minister, as she did in January, said:

“We are leaving the European Union, but we are not leaving Europe”.

She will know that 16.1 million people voted to do neither last June, but the result is as it is and needs to be honoured. Will my right hon. Friend say how she will keep this Parliament fully engaged throughout the process, and will she do her utmost to secure a trade deal that we can all support rather than listening to the siren voices that seem to think no deal is a good option?

[The Prime Minister]

I am very happy to give my right hon. Friend that assurance. I want to secure a really good trade deal with the European Union for the United Kingdom. I also want us to be able to secure trade deals with countries around the rest of the world, but we want to ensure—we start off from a good position, because we are of course operating under the same rules and regulations as the European Union—that we get a really good trade deal with the EU.

There will be significant opportunities for this House and this Parliament to consider the issues as we go through the next two years. Of course, the great repeal Bill itself will be a matter for debate and consideration in this House. There will also be some subsequent pieces of legislation that are required as a result of the decision to leave the European Union which will come before this House. We will make every effort to keep this House informed as we go through that. I have always said that we will be clear and will provide clarity where we are able to do so.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Baroness Morgan of Cotes and Baroness May of Maidenhead

Wednesday 22nd March 2017 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

The issue of housing in the London Borough of Merton is one that the hon. Lady and I worked on many years ago when we were on the borough’s housing committee together. I recognise that she has raised a concern about a particular constituent. Obviously I will not comment on that individual case, but I will say is that it is important that, overall, the Government are dealing with the issue of homelessness. We are ensuring that we are building more homes and giving more support to people to get into their own homes, but this will take time as we make sure that those properties are available and that we maintain our record of providing housing support across all types of housing in this country.

[Nicky Morgan (Loughborough) (Con)]

As the Prime Minister has already said, it must be right that the same pupils with the same characteristics should attract the same amount of money. The unfairness in the system was not challenged for 13 years under Labour. Yes, there might need to be changes to the current draft formula, but I hope that she will commit to fulfilling our manifesto promise to make school funding fairer. I think she would agree that if the Labour Government had carried on in office, their spending plans would have led to what has happened in Greece and Spain, where not just hundreds but tens of thousands of teachers have had to be fired.

[The Prime Minister]

My right hon. Friend is right. As I said earlier, the issue of the funding formula for schools was ducked for too long—it was certainly ducked by the last Labour Government. We have started to address it: we have been looking at the formula, and we have brought forward a proposal. We will look at the consultation responses and respond in due course. She is also absolutely right about the Labour party. Its education policies would mean fewer opportunities in schools, and its economic policy would mean less funding for schools.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Baroness Morgan of Cotes and Baroness May of Maidenhead

Wednesday 11th January 2017 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

The progress that has been made in Northern Ireland has been hard won, and we must all recognise that we do not want to put that progress in jeopardy. That is why it is so important for the Government, and for all parties, to work as hard as we can to see a resolution to this issue, so that we can see a return to the power-sharing institutions and ensure that the hard-won progress can be continued.

[Nicky Morgan (Loughborough) (Con)]

I warmly welcome what my right hon. Friend said about children’s mental health earlier this week, but may I draw her attention to another burning injustice? My constituent, Paula Edwards, has been battling cancer for four years. She is recovering from an operation and has taken 28 weeks off work. She is still employed and is on half pay, yet her working tax credits have been stopped, which means that she is worrying about how to make ends meet rather than focusing on her recovery. Will my right hon. Friend ask the Treasury to look at this, perhaps in the course of Budget preparations?

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my right hon. Friend for her comments about the mental health announcements that I have made. I am sorry to hear of the particular difficulties that her constituent is experiencing and the distress that they have caused her. Of course, working tax credits provide support for low-income families in work and are designed to incentivise people to increase their working hours. With the new universal credit system, we will obviously have a system of benefits with single, streamlined payments that encourages work, but I am sure the Financial Secretary to the Treasury would be happy to look at the individual case that my right hon. Friend has raised and the issue that she has set out.