Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Boris Johnson and Afzal Khan

Wednesday 8th June 2022 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my hon. Friend, who, among his many other distinctions, is my Member of Parliament, and I join him in thanking the entire team at the Princes Centre for everything that they do. I will certainly keep his kind invitation in mind.

[Afzal Khan (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab)]

Q9. I would have more sympathy with the words “get on with the job” if it had actually started in the first place. Two weeks ago, the Prime Minister told the House: “To the best of my knowledge, everybody is getting their passport within four to six weeks .”—[Official Report, 25 May 2022; Vol. 715, c. 287-288.]However, the Passport Office is currently quoting a 10-week service time, and many of my constituents are waiting considerably longer than that. Cancelled summer trips could cost families more than £1 billion. Does the Prime Minister accept that the Passport Office’s backlog is placing additional pressure on families who are already struggling with the cost of living crisis?

[The Prime Minister]

Actually, I can tell the hon. Gentleman that 91% of people are getting their passports within six weeks, and we are putting hundreds and hundreds more staff members into the Passport Office. The strength of demand, by the way, is a sign of the robustness of the economy, because everybody is wanting to go on holiday, and quite right too.

When it comes to travel chaos, may I ask whether we have yet heard any condemnation from the Opposition of the RMT and its reckless and wanton strike? What about that?

Sue Gray Report

Debate between Boris Johnson and Afzal Khan

Wednesday 25th May 2022 Commons Chamber

[Afzal Khan (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab)]

My mother, my father-in-law and my mother-in-law are just three of the nearly 180,000 people who have died from covid-19 in Britain. Laws were broken by the Prime Minister, the Chancellor and others, and these were not victimless crimes; these were not silly rules and meaningless red tape—they were designed to protect lives. The doctors and nurses who cared for my relatives at North Manchester General Hospital were not clocking off for “wine time Friday”. So for the first time in his life, will the Prime Minister do the right thing, and resign?

[The Prime Minister]

No, but I want to assure the hon. Gentleman that I understand the reasons why he feels as he does. I also want to say that everybody in No. 10 took the pandemic with the utmost seriousness. I grieve for his loss. We were doing our best to contain a very, very difficult situation.

Easter Recess: Government Update

Debate between Boris Johnson and Afzal Khan

Tuesday 19th April 2022 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my hon. Friend for what he has said. I am heartily sorry, as I have said. I wish it had not happened and I wish that things had been totally different. What I have already done, as the House will know, is take steps to change the way we do things in No. 10. But that, in itself, is not enough. I accept full responsibility myself for my actions.

[Afzal Khan (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab)]

The Prime Minister’s supposed apology to the nation is pathetic. Last year he told bereaved families in Downing Street that he had done everything possible to save their loved ones. Now he has been fined for breaking his own laws, illustrating just how soft the Tories have become on crime. Does he accept that his words ring hollow for those of us who have lost loved ones?

[The Prime Minister]

I repeat what I have said. I know that the hon. Gentleman has experienced bereavement during the pandemic and I am sorry for his loss. I repeat my apologies for what happened in No. 10.

Sue Gray Report

Debate between Boris Johnson and Afzal Khan

Monday 31st January 2022 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my hon. Friend very much; I enjoyed our joint trip to Tilbury this morning. Yes, I do think it is vital, as Sue Gray says, that we learn from this and that we strengthen Cabinet Government and the principle of ministerial responsibility.

[Afzal Khan (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab)]

I have spoken about my own experience of loss during the pandemic many times. I do not claim that my experience is special—indeed, it has been all too common—but as a member of Parliament I have a responsibility to provide a voice for the bereaved families. Make no mistake, this report is utterly damning and suggests that the Prime Minister’s and the Government’s actions were a risk to public health. How on earth can the Prime Minister stand there and justify this? Does he now accept that his actions were a complete and absolute failure of leadership and judgment?

[The Prime Minister]

I repeat what I have said: that I am deeply sorry for all the suffering there has been throughout this pandemic, whether of the hon. Gentleman’s constituents or anyone in the country. As to his points about what is in the report, I do not think his views are substantiated by what the report says. I think he should wait to see where the inquiry goes. That is what I propose to do.

Covid-19 Update

Debate between Boris Johnson and Afzal Khan

Wednesday 5th January 2022 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I can give my right hon. Friend a categorical assurance that masks in schools will last not a day longer than we need them.

[Afzal Khan (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab)]

Winter is always a difficult time for the NHS, but we are now in an unsustainable situation. Last night, 17 hospitals across Greater Manchester announced that they were suspending non-urgent surgeries because of the impact of covid-19, and at least 10 trusts throughout England have been forced to declare critical incidents since Christmas. Last week, the Prime Minister said that he hoped we could “ride out” this wave, but I do not think our hard-working NHS staff or the Government’s scientific advisers would agree. What additional steps will he now take to ensure that Greater Manchester’s hospitals do not become critically overwhelmed?

[The Prime Minister]

What we are doing is supporting hospitals in Greater Manchester and up and down the country with record investment and, as I said in an earlier answer, by making sure that we supplement the staff by calling doctors back to the colours and with volunteers, new therapeutic treatments and all the extra things that we are doing. But fundamentally, there is also a job for this country: to follow plan B and the guidance that we put in place and get boosted. That is the most important thing we can do.

Covid-19 Update

Debate between Boris Johnson and Afzal Khan

Wednesday 12th May 2021 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

There is plainly a difference, as my right hon. Friend understands very well, between a disease such as flu, which, every year, sadly causes a number—perhaps thousands—of hospitalisations and deaths, and a disease that has the potential to spread exponentially and to overwhelm the NHS. We need to be absolutely certain that we are right in thinking that we have broken the connection between covid transmission and hospitalisation, or serious illness and death, and that is still the question that we need to establish in the weeks and months ahead. I am optimistic about it, but that is the key issue.

I just want to make one point that I should have said earlier to my hon. Friend the Member for Bury South (Christian Wakeford) about weddings. It is very important that, for the purposes of the banns, we will be making an announcement within 28 days of 21 June.

[Afzal Khan (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab) [V]]

The Israeli Government made the decision not to vaccinate more than 4.5 million Palestinian citizens in Gaza and the west bank, leaving this responsibility to the occupied territories’ under-resourced healthcare system. Only several thousand Palestinians have been vaccinated, in contrast to the 4.2 million Israelis. In the light of the shocking and appalling scenes in Jerusalem, where Israeli forces attacked worshippers, the holy al-Aqsa mosque and the healthcare units, will the Prime Minister outline what steps the Government are taking to provide assistance to the Palestinians at this difficult time, and will he condemn the actions of the Israeli forces and accept that the only way forward is a two-state solution to ensure peace, health equality and protection of human rights?

[Mr Speaker]

That is not in the statement that the Prime Minister made, but I am sure that he would like to answer the question.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Boris Johnson and Afzal Khan

Wednesday 24th March 2021 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my hon. Friend very much for raising this important question and for championing research into motor neurone disease, and I thank him also for raising the excellent work of the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation. We have spent £54 million in the last five years towards this cause, and we are looking at ways significantly to boost the research that we are supporting.

[Afzal Khan (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab) [V]]

A year into this crisis and more than 126,000 lives have been lost. Behind that staggering figure are millions grieving for their loved ones. In my family, we have lost an entire generation. I could not hold my mum’s hand as she lay dying, and I recently lost both my father and mother-in-law within just days of one another. Grieving families like mine want and deserve to understand what happened and whether anything could have been done to prevent this tragedy. Will the Prime Minister today commit to launching a full public inquiry into the handling of the pandemic as soon as current restrictions are lifted?

[The Prime Minister]

I want to say to the hon. Gentleman that I know that the whole House shares my sympathies and my sorrow for his loss, and we sympathise also with his entire family. I know that his experience is one, as he rightly said, that has been shared by far too many families up and down the country. That is why, as soon as it is right to do so, as soon as it would not be an irresponsible diversion of the energies of the key officials involved, we are of course committed to an inquiry, to learn the lessons, to make sure that something like this can never happen again.

Covid-19: Road Map

Debate between Boris Johnson and Afzal Khan

Monday 22nd February 2021 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my hon. Friend. Wild horses would not keep me away from North West Durham.

[Afzal Khan (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab) [V]]

Earlier this month, nearly half the constituents I surveyed reported severe financial insecurity. Shockingly, almost a third also said that they struggled to afford daily living costs. That is the financial reality of millions around the country. One respondent told me that they feel utterly hopeless about their financial situation. The Prime Minister could now deliver some peace of mind for my constituents by agreeing to extend the support schemes that have kept many families afloat during this crisis, including payments for people self-isolating. Will he do so?

[The Prime Minister]

We will continue to look after people throughout the pandemic.

Covid-19 Update

Debate between Boris Johnson and Afzal Khan

Monday 2nd November 2020 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

Yes, indeed. My hon. Friend will have seen that there are specific exemptions for volunteers and people who are helping—for therapists and others. We continue to put many millions of support into mental health charities, in addition to supporting NHS mental health.

[Afzal Khan (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab) [V]]

When local leaders asked the Government to maintain the furlough scheme at 80% when tier 3 restrictions were imposed across much of the north-west, north-east and west midlands, they refused. Instead, the lowest-paid northerners were told that a 67% wage subsidy was sufficient for them. When similar restrictions were extended to the rest of England over the weekend, the Chancellor appears to have changed his mind, shaken the magic money tree and returned to 80%. Does the Prime Minister understand why the north believes it is being treated with utter contempt? Can he now confirm that the Government will maintain an 80% wage subsidy for any ongoing tier 3 restrictions after the national lockdown is lifted?

[The Prime Minister]

The crucial point here is that the measures we are enacting today—or that I hope the House will vote through on Wednesday—are very different from the tier 3 measures, and therefore the package of support is, appropriately, different as well.

Covid-19

Debate between Boris Johnson and Afzal Khan

Tuesday 22nd September 2020 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

It will not surprise my hon. Friend that I fervently agree with the way he characterises the achievements of NHS Test and Trace. His optimism and encouragement of NHS Test and Trace could reasonably be echoed by those on the Opposition Benches.

[Afzal Khan (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab) [V]]

Manchester is home to two of the largest universities in the country, with a combined student body of nearly 80,000, many of whom choose to live in my constituency. With so many students returning to the area, this is an incredibly difficult time for the community, and for students and their families, who are concerned for their safety. With the surge in infections and the second wave now in evidence, what advice do the Government intend to give to universities on keeping their students, staff and the wider community safe?

[The Prime Minister]

The most important thing is that the students who are now back at university in large numbers should, like everybody else, follow the guidelines. It is also important that, where there are outbreaks in universities, students should not be going home to infect their older relatives.

Oman, UAE and Iran

Debate between Boris Johnson and Afzal Khan

Monday 11th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[Boris Johnson]

We have repeatedly stated the importance of getting humanitarian aid into the country, and of allowing humanitarian aid workers to get on with their jobs. As for the observance of international humanitarian law, I said in an earlier answer that we already have the most scrupulous procedures in place of any country in the world.

[Afzal Khan (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab)]

I also thank the Foreign Secretary for his statement to the House. We have seen protests in this country and throughout the Muslim world against the statement that President Donald Trump made. What discussions has the Foreign Secretary had with these countries on taking forward the process between Israel and Palestine?

[Boris Johnson]

Both the Prime Minister and I have made it clear that we do not agree with what President Trump said about Jerusalem. We do not agree with his decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and we do not agree with his decision to move the US embassy to Jerusalem. What the Prime Minister said was welcomed in the region. I found a wide measure of knowledge and appreciation of the UK’s position. We want to encourage our American friends to come forward with the long-awaited plans, which have been gestating, for the middle east peace process. That is the symmetry that the world wants to see from the Trump Administration. In the context of this recognition of Jerusalem, now is the time to bring forth those plans and to do something symmetrical to advance the middle east peace process.