Business of the House

Christine Jardine Excerpts

Thursday 12th March 2026 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

Banking is changing, with many customers benefiting from the convenience of managing their finances remotely, but the Government understand the importance for many people of face-to-face banking and are committed to supporting sufficient access for customers. That is why the financial services industry, with Government support, is committed to rolling out 350 banking hubs. That 350 is not an upper limit on how many there will be. There will be 350 by the end of this Parliament, but there is no reason why the process cannot continue. The Government are working closely with the industry on this commitment, including through regular ministerial engagement. As we assess the roll-out of banking hubs, I am sure Ministers will want to bear in mind the need to update the House when appropriate.

[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

May I associate myself with the remarks of the Leader of the House and the shadow Leader of the House about the anniversary of Dunblane?

Many of us in this place have pensioner constituents abroad, and the 90% of them who are in the Commonwealth had their pensions frozen from the point at which they left. This is an issue of great concern not just to them, but increasingly to the Governments of Canada and Australia in particular, as it places a heavy burden on them. The annual regulations were recently passed by this House, but that happened without scrutiny because of the way in which they are passed. Is there a way to arrange a meeting with Ministers or a debate in the House so that we can examine this policy and see if there is a way to amend it to make it fairer both for those pensioners and for everyone else affected by it?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I do not know the answer to the hon. Lady’s question, except to say that if she seeks a meeting with a Minister, I will help her to facilitate one.

Business of the House

Christine Jardine Excerpts

Thursday 29th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

If my hon. Friend gives me the details of the case, I will ensure that the relevant Department gets that information and hopefully can act in the way he suggests.

[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

It has been brought to my attention by an employer in my constituency —a vape manufacturer—that there are products on sale in this country by importers that are either circumventing or exploiting loopholes in the legislation. They are selling vapes that are big puffs and break the regulations. They are rechargeable but are being discarded because they are so cheap, creating a fire hazard. Will the Leader of the House enable me to speak to a Minister to see how we can address the issue?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

Yes, I will.

Business of the House

Christine Jardine Excerpts

Thursday 22nd January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

My hon. Friend raises an important case on behalf of his constituent. I understand that he has already written to the Home Office about the matter, but I am happy to follow up with that Department to ensure that he gets a response. Should he want a meeting with Ministers to see what further can be done, I will seek to facilitate that as well.

[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

A number of businesses, particularly care homes, in my constituency have approached me with concerns about the salary limit for migrants. Migrants already in this country, who have trained and qualified here, are finding it difficult to reach those standards to remain. Is it possible to have a meeting with a Minister from the Treasury team to discuss the impact that that is having not just on those sectors but on the economy?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I will ensure that the hon. Lady gets a meeting with the relevant Minister so she can take the issue further.

Business of the House

Christine Jardine Excerpts

Thursday 27th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I am sorry to hear of that case. These are important matters, and work is under way to deliver an updated strategic framework for road safety—the first in over a decade—to reduce road deaths and injuries. I will ensure that my hon. Friend receives an update on that work. He may wish to look for an Adjournment debate, because I am sure that his concerns will be shared by many hon. Members across the House.

[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

A care provider in my constituency recently closed, leaving vulnerable patients without care, and leaving staff who fulfil roles in that vital sector, and who are there on sponsored visas, in limbo. We have people who need care, and we have people who can provide it but are not able to do so. Will a Minister make a statement to the House on what will be done to protect sponsored visas from the changes in the visa system?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

The hon. Lady raises an important question, and I will ensure that she gets an explanation from the appropriate Minister.

Business of the House

Christine Jardine Excerpts

Thursday 13th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I thank my hon. and gallant Friend for raising this matter and for remembering Lance Corporal Turvey and Lance Corporal Cameron and, indeed, all those young men and women who have lost their lives defending our country. Remembrance Day is, of course, an opportunity to remember, but for the families concerned, every day will be a day to remember. On how we can commemorate that going forward, I hope Defence Ministers will listen to what he says about what further measures we can take to remember such sacrifice.

[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

I declare an interest: an employee of mine works for the company that I am about to mention, although they have not been affected by the action taken.

That company is video game publisher Rockstar Games, which has fired at least 30 employees across its UK studios, including Rockstar North in Edinburgh. Several of my constituents have been directly affected, and some came to express their concerns to me last week. They claim that they have been sacked because they were trying to unionise and discuss working conditions in private. Rockstar accused them of distributing confidential information and sacked them for gross misconduct. I have written to Rockstar to ask for information on this matter, but I wonder whether I might have a meeting with the relevant Minister to discuss what steps can be taken to support the workforce, and to ask what action the Government are taking—

[Mr Speaker]

Order. Please. Does the hon. Member want to prevent other Members from getting in, because that is what she is doing? These questions finish at 11.45 am. I think the Leader of the House must have got a grip of the question.

Business of the House

Christine Jardine Excerpts

Thursday 30th October 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I am always willing to meet my colleagues from Cornwall, so the answer is yes.

[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

I have previously raised the case of a young constituent with an inoperable brain tumour. He has since been granted named patient access to a drug that is being trialled, and he is responding well. Unfortunately, however, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recently decided not to allow the drug to be used in the NHS in England yet, and the decision will be considered by a second committee in November. My constituent and his family are concerned about the wider issue of access to these drugs, and particularly the relationship between NICE and the Scottish Medicines Consortium. Would it be possible to have a meeting with Ministers to clarify the situation and see what next steps could be taken?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I will draw the hon. Lady’s comments to Ministers’ attention and ask that they arrange a meeting as soon as possible.

Business of the House

Christine Jardine Excerpts

Thursday 4th September 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising this important issue, which is raised with me all the time in business questions. I know that there is nothing more concerning to a local community than the closure of a bank or post office on the high street or in the town centre, knowing what that will mean for accessing cash. I will ensure that my she gets a full response about the roll-out of banking hubs.

[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

Over the summer, a constituent who is a mortgage adviser came to me with concerns about so-called conditional selling by estate agents, where prospective home buyers feel pressurised to take the estate agent’s in-house mortgage rather than risk losing out on a house. This practice breaches the Estate Agents Act 1979. It has been raised in investigations by the Financial Times and “Panorama”, which suggested that the practice is common. Could the Leader of the House point me to the Minister responsible so that we can have a discussion? Perhaps we could have a debate on this matter in Government time.

[Lucy Powell]

I will certainly ensure that the hon. Lady gets a discussion with the relevant Minister on the issue of conditional selling, which sounds like something that should concern us all.

Business of the House

Christine Jardine Excerpts

Thursday 15th May 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I am sorry to hear about the closure of the post office in my hon. Friend’s constituency. This matter gets raised with me a lot in business questions, and, as I have said many times before, it is critical that Members of Parliament stand up for these services and make it clear to the Post Office that these closures are not acceptable to our constituents. I will ensure that she gets an update, and that the House is continually updated on these matters.

[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

I am sure that we would all agree that the wellbeing of our universities is vital to the economic wellbeing of this country. As the Member for Edinburgh West, I know that the wellbeing of our four universities in Edinburgh is vital not just to the economy, but to the livelihoods of many of my constituents. International students, in turn, are vital to the wellbeing of those universities. Universities Scotland says that, under the immigration measures proposed this week by the Government, the levy could cost universities in Scotland £85 million a year. There is a great deal of concern about this, so will the Leader of the House arrange for me to have a meeting with the relevant Minister to see how we can address this issue and perhaps reassure our university sector?

Business of the House

Christine Jardine Excerpts

Thursday 1st May 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

My hon. Friend is right to raise that. It is important that constituency MPs continue to stand up for local post office services in their constituencies, as many have done in recent weeks. I do not think that Post Office Ltd has really been listening to those concerns, whether in the case of permanent branch closures or the closure of services of the kind that my hon. Friend describes. Our constituents want access to those vital services, and it is really important that the Post Office remains accountable, transparent and responsive to the needs of local communities when making such decisions.

[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

A constituent wrote to me recently about problems with the financial ombudsman. He waited months for it even to begin the investigation, and despite receiving an apology for the delay, when he then had a subsequent related complaint, it again took weeks before he got any reply, and that was to say, “Sorry, we can’t begin to investigate the complaint.” He is not the only constituent who has written to me about delays in the operation of the financial ombudsman, which is leaving people facing severe financial hardship. Could the Leader of the House arrange a meeting between me and the Minister to discuss how we can support the financial ombudsman and improve this situation?

[Lucy Powell]

I absolutely will arrange a meeting for the hon. Member with the relevant Minister about the poor performance of the financial ombudsman, which I am sorry to hear about. I will also raise those issues directly with the ombudsman and the relevant Minister.

Business of the House

Christine Jardine Excerpts

Thursday 6th March 2025 Commons Chamber

[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

It has been drawn to my attention this week that there is a continuing problem in this country with a reserved matter: the supply of drugs. A 22-year-old constituent of mine, who is an elite athlete and unfortunately has inoperable brain tumours, came to me to say that drug inhibitors that would help him are currently on open access trial in this country. Unfortunately, the health board in my constituency is not taking part, so drugs that could save his life and allow him to continue with his ambitions are available, but he cannot access them. Would the Leader of the House either consider having a debate on how we make access to drugs on trial universal across the UK, or set up a meeting for me with the relevant Minister to discuss this issue?

[Lucy Powell]

I am really sorry to hear about the hon. Lady�s constituent, and I am very familiar with these issues. Unfortunately, my gorgeous cousin recently died of a brain tumour, and it is a terrible illness. It is something that I have personally spoken to the Health Secretary about. There are drugs that could be made more available, and there are trials. The Health Secretary is committed to doing that, and my hon. Friend the Member for Mitcham and Morden (Dame Siobhain McDonagh) has been campaigning on these issues for a number of years. I will absolutely ensure that the hon. Lady gets a meeting with the relevant Minister.