Energy Rebates: Highlands and Islands

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

Wednesday 6th March 2024 Westminster Hall

[Ian Blackford (Ross, Skye and Lochaber) (SNP)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Paisley. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey (Drew Hendry) for securing this important debate and for his contribution on the absolutely urgent need to get recompense for those who live in the highlands and islands. I also thank the right hon. Member for Orkney and Shetland (Mr Carmichael) for his remarks.

If I may, let me put this is in a slightly broader context. We stand on the cusp of an energy production revolution. David Skilling, in his 2022 report, “The Economic Opportunity for Scotland from Renewable Energy & Green Technology”, talks of a potentially fivefold increase in green energy production from the current 12 GW to 80 GW by 2050, transforming the landscape in Scotland, and of course the economic opportunity there for investment and jobs as well. Scotland is therefore playing its part through green energy production, and we must also play our part to deliver on climate change and net zero. An energy-rich Scotland could be the powerhouse of green energy production, with the highlands and islands a key driver in increased onshore and offshore production, and a green energy bonanza driving investment and financial returns for investors, who will benefit from what are, after all, our natural resources.

However, there has to be fairness, and there has to be equity for those who live in the highlands and islands. There is an expression, spoken originally in Gaelic for many generations of Gaels: you do not own the land; you belong to the land. There is sense of responsibility that comes from that to look after the land, to protect it, and to use opportunities wisely. That the highlands and islands is a source of green energy production is something we can take pride in. But what does that mean for those who live there? As has been outlined, the harsh reality is that so many in the highlands and islands are living in fuel poverty. People who live in the region can see the energy production and the transmission lines exporting energy while too many are facing fuel poverty. That is a disgrace.

Let us examine the facts. Even before the cost of energy spiralled over the last two years, too many households in the highlands and islands were already living in fuel poverty. In 2022, it was estimated that 31% of Scottish households were in fuel poverty, with an extraordinary 18.5% already in extreme fuel poverty. That was before the energy price increases we have seen over the last couple of years. The fuel poverty rate of rural households was 35%, and for remote rural areas it was a staggering 47%—nearly half of all households in the rural parts of the highlands and islands living in fuel poverty. We are supposed to be a civilised society. Compassion is supposed to be at our core. How can that be right? How can we tolerate so many of our citizens living in fuel poverty?

My constituency is largely a remote rural constituency. We have talked about the impact of weather—not just temperature, but the wind and the rain. Think about that. Yes, of course we can enjoy, and we encourage people to come and visit, our beautiful areas in the summer, but think about having to endure a highland winter—that driving wind and rain. Many people simply cannot afford to turn the heating on, given the costs that they face.

Let us not forget that much of this is a political choice. Much has been said about the standing charge, and since 2022 it has increased by 138% in Scotland. How on earth can the Government—how could anyone—justify such an increase at a time when so many people are suffering from the cost of living? How can anyone look my constituents in the eye and tell them it is right that we should be increasing the standing charge by 138%?

Today, we have the Budget, and the Tories are fixating on tax cuts. Tax cuts—my goodness. I’ll tell you what people in the highlands and islands want: they want help with their energy bills. They want the ability to turn the heating on. They want the ability to put food on the table. What a distraction this Tory fixation on tax cuts is. Let us deal with the fundamentals.

Going back to what has happened with the standing charge, let us be clear that consumers are being ripped off in the middle of a cost of living crisis by a policy decision that heaps costs on those who face difficult choices, such as whether they can turn their heating on. Of course, whether people can turn their heating on or not, they still have to pay the standing charge. They still have to pay that daily bill. Where is the fairness? Where is the equity? Not only that, but we get penalised in the highlands and islands by higher transmission and distribution charges. That is, after all, a financial penalty imposed on people who live in the highlands and islands by this Government. That is what it is—no ifs, no buts. It is a charge for living in the area in which many people were brought up. Yet, when those living in houses there are having to consider whether to put the heating on, they can look out their windows and see the wind turbines and transmission lines. What kind of country do we live in that we allow that to happen?

As my hon. Friend the Member for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey mentioned, the vast Highland Council area has 0.36% of the UK’s population, yet we produce 5.5% of the UK’s installed capacity for renewable energy. Where is the direct benefit for communities producing energy that the rest of us, in other parts of the United Kingdom, benefit from? Why is it not mandatory in legislation for compensation to be paid by producers to local communities, from whom they need consent to produce that energy? It comes back to that point: you do not own the land; you belong to the land. There ought to be a commitment written into legislation that the communities affected by that should benefit from it. Why is it not mandatory for the transmission companies to recognise the rights of communities to compensation for transmission rights? I want companies to invest in the highlands and islands and for those companies that come and invest to prosper and be a part of our future. I want the highlands and islands to be at the forefront of green energy production. I want investment in green energy to lead to a green industrial renaissance for the highlands, but I want fairness for our communities.

The Chancellor has talked about those living near transmission lines benefiting from up to £1,000 off their energy bills for a decade. Why has that not yet happened? That much-needed investment in the national grid to meet the increase in energy production is with us now. It is very much a live issue in the constituency that I represent. To a greater extent, Scottish and Southern Energy is at the forefront of much of that investment. I stress that we should all work with companies such as SSE, which I know shares a vision of a just energy transition for the highlands and islands. I want to see that economic renaissance in the highlands, and I recognise the scale of investment that SSE will be making over the coming years in transmission and production, not least in the Coire Glas pump storage scheme. There is, in essence, a £20 billion investment programme for the north of Scotland, and it is important that we ensure the legacy for jobs and wider infrastructural improvements. That is £20 billion just from SSE. We should think about that and about what should be a modest—because that is all we are asking for—community benefit.

To expand on Coire Glas, there will likely be 500 full- time jobs in its construction. That will require housing for the workforce. It is vital that such projects have a lasting legacy and investment in housing, which is critical for the future of the highlands, linking what happens in energy policy to our industrial development and the need for homes. We also need that offer of financial compensation right now for our communities. If we can greenlight that much-needed investment, where is the benefit for those affected and, as my hon. Friend said, the recompense for those who have existing transmission lines?

[Drew Hendry]

My right hon. Friend is making a clear point about the fact that, as generation is happening, the people of the highlands and islands are losing out. As I underlined in my speech, it is a direct slap in the face when we look at what they have to endure. There is also the matter of the electricity generator levy, which is deducted from those generating electricity in the highlands and goes straight to the Treasury. That is another fund that could be used to pay some of that money back to the people generating it.

[Ian Blackford]

My hon. Friend makes an important and fair point. In my constituency and home island of the Isle of Skye, a number of planning applications are coming forward. Of course, there is always a range of views on these things across all our communities, but if I look back over the past few years and, indeed, at the debate taking place today, on balance, people are generally favourably disposed towards those developments. They understand the importance of getting to net zero. My goodness, the communities that we all represent feel the impact of climate change—we can see it. There has to be that fairness, and the fact is that so many people are living in fuel poverty—the 47% of households that I referred to that live in rural areas. I see it when I am out and about.

If we think about us here in London going about our jobs, many people are dressed, as we are, in their working garb—suits or whatever it might be—but when we see people in remote rural areas, they often work outdoors, in the fishing industry or as crofters or farmers. It is largely an outdoor life, so people wear layers of clothes. They need those layers because of the climate they face outside, but—here is the “but”—in too many cases, they are still wearing those layers when they come back inside because they simply cannot afford the heating. That is the reality. When we give our consent—because it is about our consent—to that increase in energy production, where is the benefit?

I mentioned the increase in energy production that we will see in Scotland between now and 2050. We welcome it, but how can we have our people living in fuel poverty? How can we accept that? Where is the fairness? We are being charged higher transmission costs to transmit that energy into the grid, and being charged again to get the energy back. That energy is produced in our communities. Can somebody explain where the fairness is in that? How does that look for those living in these communities?

Autumn Statement Resolutions

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

Wednesday 22nd November 2023 Commons Chamber

[Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP)]

It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for West Worcestershire (Harriett Baldwin), the Chair of the Treasury Committee, which I have recently joined.

I shall concentrate on the choices the Chancellor and his Government have made. Government is about choices; it is about choosing priorities and who to help, and choosing the future we want to create. Today the Chancellor chose his priorities, and he chose to ignore the millions struggling with the cost of living crisis. The OBR has confirmed this afternoon that the UK is still on course for the largest reduction in living standards since the 1950s. Of all those struggling or who cannot pay their bills or are worried about heating their homes, the decision today was pretty much to ignore them. The Chancellor is either offering no comfort or cold comfort. The BMJ warned last month that the cost of living crisis “will cut lives short”. The Chancellor’s choices mean the Government are saying to millions of people, “We don’t care.”

The Chancellor could have looked at VAT cuts, especially in tourism and hospitality, to boost spending and lower inflation. He could have taken action to reduce the level of the energy price cap or introduced an energy social tariff; he has not done so. The national insurance measures announced today will not make up for the inflationary price increases in mortgages, rents and food and energy bills, which will still be higher than last year. I misspoke earlier when I said that the UK is still paying the highest tax for seven years; it is paying the highest tax for 70 years. No action today on people’s housing costs, no action on food prices, no action on energy costs, but never mind—at least bankers’ bonuses are now unlimited.

Let us start with food costs. Food prices in the UK are still climbing at an alarming rate and the trend of increasing costs remains. The UK’s food price inflation is double that of Ireland and Estonia, for example. The Centre for Inclusive Trade Policy notes Brexit’s role in increasing UK import prices by 11% and analysis by the London School of Economics earlier this year showed that the UK had the highest food price inflation in the industrialised world. It remains sky-high.

The Chancellor’s inaction on food prices is glaring. As people worry at the checkout, companies such as Marks & Spencer are reporting record profits on food sales. Consumer rights organisation Which? has expressed concerns over dodgy pricing and loyalty card practices, yet the Government remain silent on discussing food bills with supermarkets. There is nothing from Labour either; when Labour goes shopping at Sainsbury’s, it is for millions in donations. The SNP is left to fight for families over food costs.

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation paints a grim picture of the impact of those inflated costs, with many struggling to afford basic food items. The foundation’s chief economist emphasises the severity of the situation for lower-income households, with essential goods unaffordable for millions. That unaffordability is creeping upwards, with those who previously saw themselves as relatively comfortable now also feeling the squeeze.

The Chancellor had a choice. The Government could have heeded the Bank of England’s warnings about skyrocketing food inflation and they did not do so. France got companies to commit to freezing or cutting prices on 5,000 everyday products. In Canada, the five largest grocery chains made an initial commitment to help to stabilise food prices and say that that is just the beginning of their work. For six months, the Greek Government covered 10% of food expenses for households, funded by a windfall tax on two oil refineries.

Here in the UK, we have the Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s stark warning that millions cannot afford basic food items. Food bank use has grown a further 10%, according to the Trussell Trust, and donations to food banks, usually collected at supermarkets, are also dramatically down. We have a situation where not only do more people need food, but fewer people have the spare money to donate food. Unlike the Chancellor, people using food banks do not have choices.

The Chancellor could have made some choices on energy costs this winter. Before his speech today, one in four social housing households had already reduced their heating to save costs. He decided not to reinstate the energy bill rebate. It is not enough. Before his speech today, energy bills still remained double what they were in 2021, and Cornwall Insight predicts that energy prices will remain high until the 2030s. Where does the Chancellor think folk are getting the money from? It is not coming from any long-term measures today—there is no social tariff, he has not decoupled gas prices from renewables, and the SNP’s call for the reinstatement of the £400 energy bill rebate, which would have gone a long way to help in the short term, has been ignored.

The Chancellor could have chosen to act on that and he chose not to. He chose not to help the two thirds of people who live in a household where someone is suffering from a pre-existing health condition or is disabled and worried about being cold this winter. He should have committed to increasing working-age benefits in line with inflation next year as well and legislated for an essentials guarantee, giving basic necessities to those who need them most. Instead, as we heard, he intends to punish the sick. People who are sick and unable to work are already regularly being referred to work coaches. I have had constituents of mine, who were listed as having cancer or indeed as being terminally ill, being told to report to a work coach. This is just another step further to the right for the nasty party.

The Chancellor chose not to help the more than one third of households with children under five, the pregnant, or people over 65 with pre-existing health conditions who think they will not or may not be able to afford to put the heating on at all this winter. He chose not to help the millions of people already struggling with mounting energy debts. Citizens Advice expects that the number of people unable to top up their prepayment meters will be nearly half as high again as it was in 2022. Meanwhile, National Energy Action found that more than one third of adults are expected to struggle to afford to pay their heating bills this winter.

The Chancellor did not even listen to the pleas of charities. Ofgem has reported that energy debt has reached £2.6 billion—its highest level ever. A quarter of people are now behind on at least one bill, and we are not even in the heart of winter. Does anybody think that that figure is going to be lower come January? Energy bills and council tax arrears are the most commonly encountered debts for households.

What does that mean for the Scottish people? According to Ofgem, northern and southern Scotland, which are colder, rural areas, pay two of the four highest standing rates of all the regions of the UK.

[Ian Blackford]

One of the inequities we suffer from is the regional distribution market, which means that people in the highlands—the coldest, wettest and windiest part of the United Kingdom—pay the highest prices. The real scandal is the fact that the highlands is a net exporter of energy, and we get charged to export the energy from the highlands. That is the reality of Westminster control over Scotland’s energy. We have the energy, they have the power and we pay the price.

[Drew Hendry]

I could not agree more with my right hon. Friend. According to the House of Commons Library, in energy-rich, energy-exporting Scotland, energy costs make up 5.3% of total spending, while in England they make up only 4.4%. We have an energy-rich country, a centre of excellence for renewables where many people can literally look out of their windows and see the energy being generated, yet some of them cannot even afford to put on the heating. It is unacceptable. Reinstating the energy bill rebate was a necessary short-term policy that the Chancellor chose to ignore. He should go back and reconsider that decision. In independent Ireland, the Government will introduce €450 in energy bills support to all households to help them through the winter.

Now let us look at housing. More than 300,000 Scottish homeowners have seen their mortgage payments skyrocket, soaring by an average of £2,500 per year. That is a direct result of the choices of this Chancellor’s predecessor—choices that drove interest rates to punishing heights. Nor does the pain stop with homeowners; despite what has been announced today to help renters, they are equally trapped, as rents will continue to surge despite those measures. Today’s measures are a drop in the ocean compared with the pressure they face.

The majority of buy-to-let landlords, grappling with those interest hikes, have no choice but to pass the costs on. The result is rent increases that outpace inflation, squeezing every last penny from tenants. Of course, the Chancellor is no stranger to hiking rents for his own tenants well above inflation rates, as has been reported this week. If he had delivered the extra funding across the UK to fund public services and fair public sector pay awards, we could all do a bit more to help—but, of course, he chose not to. That will not change the fact that UK households now spend a fifth of their disposable income on housing, surpassing the EU average of 17.4%. For renters, the figure is even more alarming: it is almost a quarter of their income. Yet while other European countries similar in size or smaller than Scotland implement welfare policies to reduce poverty, the UK Government’s response, as we have heard today, is to punish the most vulnerable.

The statement should have been about helping people to survive and helping our economy towards proper growth. Instead, growth is barely above zero and is not expected to climb by more than fractions—if indeed it does not decline. The Chancellor could have increased the Scottish Government’s capital budget in line with inflation, which would have helped us to build even more social housing and vital infrastructure. He chose not to.

Costs for insurance, mobile phone bills and other household basic requirements are also ballooning at the moment. A House of Commons Library report found that since January 2022, UK car insurance inflation grew exponentially, peaking at 43.1% in May this year. Before the Conservatives tell us that that is not down to their Brexit fixation, let me add that our European neighbours saw either no rise, or limited rises of only up to 6%, while car insurance inflation in both Belgium and Ireland has actually reduced. Here, households face cost rise after cost rise after cost rise, and people are begging for it to stop.

The Chancellor still wants us to believe that we are on the path to sound fiscal management. How many times will the Conservatives tell us that there is no money to support people with the cost of living—that there is no money tree—while they find room for what they want to do? Let us have a look at some of the priorities they have managed to fund while they have been in office. The infamous mini-Budget managed to overshadow some staggering stories of fiscal mismanagement. It is a showcase for how not to spend taxpayer money.

First, there was High Speed 2, which started as a £32 billion rail project, exploded into an eye-watering £100 billion project, and then, in a twist, was cancelled—from a dream to a debt nightmare for taxpayers. Despite cutting the project, the Government somehow lost £2.3 billion on a Manchester to Birmingham line that leads nowhere. There was the £5.6 billion on tanks that are 12 years late and not in service; the £2 billion supposedly for aircraft carriers, but which turned out to be £6 billion when one of them had to be stripped for parts for the others; and let us not overlook the £105.6 million splurged on now redundant architectural plans for Euston station—those plans are now as useful as a chocolate teapot. The Elizabeth line is a classic case of too little, too late—five years delayed and £4 billion over budget. And who can forget the covid supplies fiasco? A staggering £15 billion was spent on unusable personal protective equipment, tests and the rest—a fast-track to profits for a few, including an infamous inhabitant of the House of Lords, and a financial burden for our people to share.

The Ministry of Justice was not far behind with its £98 million electronic tagging misadventure. There was the £900,000 paint job for the Prime Minister’s aeroplane, because fiscal responsibility means flying in style, obviously; the £5 million spent to confirm what we already knew, that MPs must vacate the Palace of Westminster for renovations—paying double for the privilege of checking; and the £120 million spent on the Brexit festival. I have no words to add to that. Finally, let us not forget the £100,000 spent on a fake bell-bonging mechanism for Big Ben—try saying that, let alone paying £100,000 for it. Those are choices that those in Westminster make time and again—choices that speak volumes about their priorities—while our constituents struggle with the cost of living. They are disconnected from the harsh realities faced by the public. They do not just misspend money; they throw it out of the plane they have just repainted.

What of choices for a better future? Where is the ambition on net zero? The Conservatives have chucked it. It is utterly bizarre that, as other advanced economies invest in net zero and jobs, the UK goes backwards. Instead of grasping the gold rush of renewables, they dither and delay, just as they did for carbon capture at Peterhead. UK business investment has grown by just under 1% a year since 2016, and 6% overall; by comparison, it has grown 25% in the US. Right now in the US, the Inflation Reduction Act is helping businesses and communities to grow through radical plans to invest in renewables and hydrogen. Are the UK Government looking to maximise the supply chain benefits for Scotland and elsewhere? No. They are focused on their climate change culture war, costing Scotland millions, if not billions, in potential investment.

The SNP Scottish Government choose differently. We value investing in our future—in green energy, in a fairer society. That is another reason why the UK Government should have focused on funding net zero, at the very least matched the Scottish Government’s £500 million fund for a just transition in the north-east of Scotland, and included funding for offshore wind projects in Scotland. Our values lead us to want to alleviate poverty. We seek measures now and in the future to help people with that: a council tax freeze, investment in childcare, no tuition fees, and using our limited powers to mitigate the cruel policies from this place, such as the rape clause and the bedroom tax. We choose to put people first; those are our values—values that build a fairer, more prosperous Scotland.

The Scottish Government have taken the steps that they can to help alleviate the worst impacts of poverty, offering people a degree of stability through the council tax freeze and a cap on rent increases. We would do more, but the fiscal powers needed are here. If we had the power to help people today, we would. The Chancellor has the power to help people, but he refused to lift a finger to right some of the wrongs that his Government have inflicted on people. People are not this Government’s priority—we see who goes through their priority lanes.

The UK Government have little to offer Scotland. Our route out of the chaos that Westminster has created—perma-austerity and the cost of living nightmare that people are having to endure—is through independence and re-joining the European Union.

Scottish Independence and the Scottish Economy

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

Wednesday 2nd November 2022 Commons Chamber

[Ian Blackford]

No, you don’t. If the Liberal Democrats wanted to stay in Europe, as the hon. Lady suggests, they would have that in their manifesto. The Labour party and the Liberal Democrats have run away from Europe, just as they have run away from their responsibilities to the people of Scotland.

[Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP)]

Is it not the case—just to educate the hon. Member for Chesterfield (Mr Perkins)—that not only did we carry the argument in Scotland, winning 62% of the vote for remain, but we carried that argument successfully in all 32 council areas in Scotland?

[Ian Blackford]

My hon. Friend is quite correct that every local authority area in Scotland voted to remain. Not only did people across Scotland vote to remain, but that demand to stay in Europe has increased over the past few years. In fact, recent polling shows as many as 72% of Scots wish to remain in Europe. I say to those watching in our own country that there is a clear way to achieve this. If Scotland has its right to determine its own future, and if our Parliament, which has an independence majority, can enact the referendum that our people voted for, then Scotland’s journey to independence and back into the European union will be complete.

Referral of Prime Minister to Committee of Privileges

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

Thursday 21st April 2022 Commons Chamber

[Ian Blackford (Ross, Skye and Lochaber) (SNP)]

On a day like this, we think of all those who made so many sacrifices over the covid pandemic and those who lost so many loved ones. Our thoughts and our prayers today are with each and every one of them. There is one reason why it is so important that this motion be debated and passed today. At the very heart of the scandal, there is one thing that needs to be said and heard, and it is the very reason why we all need to act. The reason is this: the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is a liar. I genuinely do not say that lightly, and I do not say it loosely. I honestly believe that it is right that we are slow to use that word, but equally, I consider it right that we should never be slow to say it, and to call it out, when it is so obviously true. Members across this House know it to be true, and the public have long known it to be true. That is why it needs to be said today, and why we all need to act.

Every single day, motions come before this House that are complex and nuanced. There are usually two sides to the argument, and valid reasons for any position that is proposed, but I think we can safely say that this definitively is not one of those debates. The evidence in the motion speaks for itself. It is as clear as day. If there ever was an open-and-shut case, this is it.

Last December, the Prime Minister came to this House and denied that there were any parties in 10 Downing Street during the long covid lockdowns. Typically, and tellingly, he hid behind his staff in saying that. He told us that he was given firm reassurances that no parties had happened, and that no rules had been broken. Every Member of this Parliament witnessed that; the public saw it with their own eyes; and, shamefully, to this very day, it is still on the record of this House. But we know the truth, and the truth contains no ifs, buts or maybes. The House was misled, and so were the public. We were all misled deliberately, because the Prime Minister knew the truth. Not only were parties happening, and not only was the law broken, but the Prime Minister was at the very parties that he denied had even happened. The truth is simple: he lied to avoid getting caught, and once he got caught, he lied again. There is no other way to describe it. There is no other word for it.

I can understand that this may be a terrible truth for those on the Government Benches to hear, but it is a truth that they need to hear, and that they need to live with. I say to the Father of the House, for whom I have the utmost respect, that this has nothing to do with any elections. This is about the behaviour of a Prime Minister in office. Much more importantly, the uncomfortable truth that the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is a liar is exactly why those on the Government Benches finally need to act and remove him from office. Other Prime Ministers, including all his predecessor Conservative Prime Ministers, would have been long gone by now. Members on the Government Benches put the Prime Minster in power; they have the power to remove him, and the public expect them to act. We have reached this point. A motion of contempt for a sitting Prime Minister is shocking, but unfortunately it is no surprise.

[Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP)]

My right hon. Friend makes an important point about Conservative Members being here to listen and watch. Regardless of the number of flushed or drained faces on the Conservative Benches, what does he say to those who previously called for the Prime Minister to resign, but who, as things got worse, changed their position, and are not here today?

Conduct of the Right Hon. Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

Tuesday 30th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Ian Blackford]

I agree with the hon. Member. [Interruption.] Perhaps we should just calm down; there will be opportunities for people to participate in the debate. This issue of leadership and conduct is important. This saddens me, but when we are facing a new variant, and we do not know what the scale of that challenge will be, the obvious thing for everyone to do is to seek to protect themselves, but more importantly to protect others and to lead by example and show leadership. I commend colleagues across the House who are sitting here wearing masks today, but my goodness, there are far too many who still do not get it and do not accept the responsibility they have for each other, and they are even laughing about it as I say that. It comes from the Prime Minister.

[Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP)]

Will my right hon. Friend give way?

[Ian Blackford]

Let me just carry on for a second, because this is important. The way we conduct ourselves and interact with others is important. I commend the previous Prime Minister, the right hon. Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), for the courtesies she always showed to Opposition parties, for how the protocols were followed and for the way we had a relationship with No. 10. It grieves me that I can tell the House that we as the third party and, I believe, the Leader of the Opposition have no relationship with No. 10. We are disrespected and disregarded by a Prime Minister who does not understand his obligations to public life, and that is yet another example.

[Drew Hendry]

Is it not telling about how complicit those on the Government Benches are that, when my right hon. Friend was reading out the list of untruths peddled by the Prime Minister, there was deathly silence? The only time they were animated was when my right hon. Friend called it for what it was.

[Ian Blackford]

I ask Government Members to reflect. Most people in this House are decent people. People come here to provide a public service, and I say to hon. and right hon. Members on the Government Benches that they are being let down, we are being let down and these islands are being let down by a Prime Minister who simply does not know how to behave. On that note, it will be interesting to see how the Scottish Tories vote tonight, and we will be watching. They are a group who never fail to see conspiracy at Holyrood, but somehow always fall deathly silent when it comes to sleaze and corruption overseen by their own Prime Minister.

In truth, this debate is not about the Scottish Tories—I will leave them to explain their own hypocrisy—but what the public expect when standards and rules are so clearly broken by their political representatives. They expect consequences, and they expect censure. Let us also be clear about this: if we fail to censure this Prime Minister today, we will have failed that public duty for accountability. Not only that, but it will reveal something very telling; it will show a Westminster system that is broken beyond repair and a Prime Minister who believes himself to be above the law of the land.

The only comfort I take is that fewer and fewer people in Scotland can possibly look at the broken, corrupt, self-serving Westminster system and conclude that it produces a secure basis for the future of Scotland. We all know that Scotland can do much better than this; we can do better than this broken Westminster system and we can do better than this Prime Minister. We will do so much better when our country chooses independence. I commend the motion in the name of myself and my hon. and right hon. colleagues.

Debate on the Address

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

Thursday 19th December 2019 Commons Chamber

[Ian Blackford]

Thank you, Mr Speaker.

There was absolutely nothing for the people of Scotland in that address from the Prime Minister, and I hope that, for those who were watching and listening back home, it was preceded by an announcement that it was not for viewers and listeners in Scotland.

I congratulate the hon. Members for Chatham and Aylesford (Tracey Crouch) and for Walsall North (Eddie Hughes) on their addresses. I listened to all the stories about “A Christmas Carol”, but we did not hear which Conservative Front Bencher would be playing Scrooge. The hon. Member for Walsall North is a great football fan, and I thought that he would perhaps mention Aston Villa. They are not having the best of times, but I hope that he is enjoying watching John McGinn, whom we gifted to him from Hibernian last year.

This morning, Scotland’s First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, wrote to the Prime Minister demanding the transfer to the Scottish Government of legal powers to hold a second independence referendum under section 30 of the Scotland Act 1998. As the First Minister outlined, there has been a material change in the circumstances since the independence referendum of 2014, based on the prospect of Scotland‘s leaving the European Union against its will.

It is for the Prime Minister to explain to the people of Scotland why he is denying Scotland the right to choose our own future. Why did democracy stop, in the Prime Minister’s world, with the independence referendum in 2014? And may I say to the Prime Minister that it is not a good look to be playing with his phone rather than listening to the legitimate demands of the Scottish National party? [Interruption.] The Prime Minister says, “Say something more interesting.” Well, Prime Minister, this is about democracy. This is about the Scottish National party, which stood in the election on a manifesto about Scotland’s right to choose, and it is about the Conservatives, who said no to indyref2—and what happened? Well, the Conservatives lost more than half their Members of Parliament.

Prime Minister, you got your answer from the people of Scotland. The SNP got 45% of the vote, a 20 percentage point difference from the Government. We got 80% of the Members of Parliament who sit on these Benches. Some time, some day, the Prime Minister is going to have to respect democracy. The Prime Minister cannot and will not continue to say no.

[Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP)]

The Prime Minister says that looking at his phone is more interesting than hearing what Scotland needs. Does that not tell us everything about this Prime Minister and his view of Scotland?

[Ian Blackford]

Indeed it does. There is not much that can be added to that, because the image of the Prime Minister playing with his phone and not listening to the Scottish National party says it all.

The people of Scotland did not vote for this Prime Minister. Scotland did not vote for this Conservative Government, and we certainly did not vote for the con of a Tory plan that has been set out today.

In December 1967, my old friend Winnie Ewing proclaimed that

“the march of time can bring anomalies between elections, so that sometimes a Government may have a majority in this House but be in a minority in the country.”—[Official Report, 6 December 1967; Vol. 755, c. 1551.]

In Scotland, that is certainly the case. Here in this place, we face a Tory Government we have rejected, implementing a manifesto that Scotland rejected. For too many years, Scotland has been held back by successive Tory Governments we did not vote for.

Scottish National party MPs have today set out an alternative Queen’s Speech to deliver for the people of Scotland. With a renewed and strengthened mandate, our expanded SNP team will focus on our priorities—on Scotland’s priorities: stopping Brexit and protecting Scotland’s NHS from any grubby Trump trade deal; dealing with the climate emergency; and, once and for all, putting an end to Tory austerity. Instead, the Government’s Queen’s Speech sets out another Tory programme that the people of Scotland rejected. Despite the fact that Scotland voted to remain a member of the European Union, we now face being dragged out against our will.

We often hear about losers’ consent, but the fact is that Scotland voted to stay in the EU to maintain our rights as EU citizens. This Conservative Government do not have the consent of the people of Scotland, the Scottish Parliament or our Government to take Scotland out of the EU. We ask that the solemn right, claimed by the people of Scotland, to determine the form of government best suited to our needs be exercised. This House accepted that claim of right as a principle, on a motion that I moved in July 2018. It is the Scottish people who are sovereign.

In that context, it is right for the House to respect our Scottish Parliament and last week’s election result. But of course, in the last Parliament, the Tories ignored our interests and sidelined the will of the Scottish Government, intent on bringing forward a deal that will destroy our economy and risk jobs and livelihoods. As the former EU permanent representative to the EU, Sir Ivan Rogers, said, that pledge will create

“the biggest crisis of Brexit to date”

in late 2020. He said that “get Brexit done” was

“diplomatic amateurism, dressed up domestically as boldness and decisiveness.”

From selling off our NHS to selling out Scotland’s fishing communities, the Prime Minister will inflict hardship on our communities as the cost of delivering his damaging Brexit.

The voices of the people of Scotland are being silenced—80% of their representatives in this House are not listened to by a Tory Government showing contempt. That is why we stand up for Scotland and against cruel, punishing policies and narrow, backward-gazing politics. Instead, we are determined that Scotland’s right to choose our own future will be delivered, not simply because we in the SNP want that, but because the people of Scotland demand it. We stood on a mandate to give Scotland the right to choose its own future. I put the Prime Minister on notice that SNP Members will never stop fighting this Government for that case and for our mandate—for a fresh independence referendum—to be respected.

European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

Tuesday 29th January 2019 Commons Chamber

[Ian Blackford]

This is a complete fantasy. All of us play with the Good Friday agreement at our peril. The peace in Ireland has been hard won. The European Union has reached agreement with the UK on the Prime Minister’s draft deal on the basis of making sure that we enshrine the Good Friday agreement. None of us should be playing with fire and seeking to unwind the Good Friday agreement. That is the effect of what would happen. It is the height of irresponsibility to go down that road. [Interruption.] I am going to come on to the backstop in more detail later.

The Prime Minister could make it clear today that she will bring measures before Parliament to rule out no deal. Prime Minister, it is in all our national interests to remove the threat of supply shortages that is a threat to food safety—remove it today.

[Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP)]

Is it not also a fact that in addition to the companies who issued those warnings, the Road Haulage Association has been saying for over a year that it is madness to consider a no-deal situation? What will happen is that those people at the furthest reaches of the supply chain—my constituents and my right hon. Friend’s constituents—will be those worst affected by the no-deal scenario that the Government are hanging over the heads of this Parliament and the people of all the nations of the UK.

[Ian Blackford]

My hon. Friend is quite correct. We have integrated supply chains on the basis of the single market, which has been in place since the 1990s. There are very real threats to food supply on the basis of no deal. It is the height of irresponsibility for the Government not to rule it out.

European Union (Withdrawal) Act

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

Tuesday 15th January 2019 Commons Chamber

[Ian Blackford]

It is, as my hon. Friend says, disgusting. This is about people who are a part of us: our friends, our neighbours and our relatives. We are now saying to them that they are going to have a different status as a consequence of what we have done. But it is not just about EU citizens who have chosen to come to live and work in this country; it is about our rights as EU citizens as well. If the Government get their way and Brexit takes place on 29 March, whereas today each and every one of us has the right to work in 28 member states, we will be automatically restricted to the right to live and work only in the UK. I was lucky enough to work in the Netherlands. My son worked in the Netherlands. Why should my grandchildren not have the same rights that my generation had? It is abhorrent that we are treating the people of these islands like that.

[Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP)]

My right hon. Friend is making a powerful point about people who have come to live and work and be our friends and neighbours in our communities. Does he agree that it is an absolute disgrace that these people, who are so vital to us, are being told they must make an application to pay to stay in their own homes, even though many of them have been here for decades? It is an absolute outrage.

[Ian Blackford]

I absolutely agree, but of course it fits with the hostile environment that many on the Government Benches have prosecuted over the last few years. We have an expression in Scotland: “We’re all Jock Tamson’s Bairns”. If we look back at Scottish history over the last 100 years, we see that our population has barely grown—we have gone from 4.8 million to 5.5 million people. We face a ticking time bomb: an ageing population. The last thing we need is to be cut off from the supply of labour and people who want to come and contribute to sustainable economic growth in Scotland. How will we afford to invest in our public services if we cannot generate economic growth? That is what leaving Europe will do to us. It will restrain our ability to deliver growth and look after the vulnerable in our society.

This is the defining moment in the Brexit process and in the future of relationships. Members of Parliament must recognise their responsibilities, and for many I know that demands they make difficult decisions. I would say to each and every Member of Parliament that their primary responsibility is not to party but to their constituents. They ought to think about the risks consequent on this deal. It is the height of irresponsibility for the Government to suggest that this is a binary choice. The SNP’s amendment gives the House the opportunity to support extending article 50 and to give the people of the United Kingdom the choice to make that determination themselves on the basis of the facts and in the knowledge of what Brexit will do. It is only right and proper, according to the democratic principle, that we allow the people of the United Kingdom to make that choice.

I appeal to Members across the House. We in the SNP have many friends across this place, including on the Labour Benches. I appeal to the Labour party for goodness’ sake to get off the fence. The young people who voted for Labour in England in 2017 will never forgive the Leader of the Opposition and his colleagues unless they recognise that this is the opportunity to unite the House, vote down the Government’s deal, support a people’s vote and allow the people to have their say. Will you do it? [Interruption.] I can see the shadow International Trade Secretary chuntering. If he wishes to intervene and accept his responsibilities—[Interruption.] Well, he can blow a kiss, but what he is doing is blowing a raspberry at the people of the United Kingdom. That is the reality. If hon. Members are serious about politics and responsibility, it is about time some of them grew up. Grow up and accept responsibility; do not dodge this.

The people of Scotland have a choice. The SNP has been in government in Scotland since 2007. [Interruption.] I can hear Government Members say, “Too long”, but the fact is we have won three elections on the trot to the Scottish Parliament and the last two elections to Westminster. The party sitting in third place in Scotland is the Labour party, and that is because it is out of touch and out of step with the people of Scotland.

Military Action Overseas: Parliamentary Approval

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

Tuesday 17th April 2018 Commons Chamber

[Ian Blackford]

I have to say that that is wrong on so many levels. I remind the hon. Gentleman that we met, we discussed and we voted in 2015 to take action against Daesh. Nobody is saying that intelligence matters have to be declared to Members of Parliament— of course not. We are talking about the principles of taking action. Do not hide behind the smokescreen of saying that intelligence information has to be shared. It does not, and nobody would expect that.

[Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP)]

The Prime Minister has said that this so-called targeted action would not increase tensions in the region, yet she could not give any guarantees about retaliation from different parties. Does my right hon. Friend not agree that that is exactly the kind of thing we would have debated had this come to Parliament?

[Ian Blackford]

Absolutely. I wish to see all of us—the United Kingdom—taking a leadership role in making sure that we can get rid of the scourge of chemical weapons, but, as I mentioned in my introductory remarks, we need to work together in the interests of the Syrian people to break the logjam of the Geneva talks. That should be our biggest priority in order to do—

RBS Rural Branch Closures

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

Monday 18th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[Ian Blackford (Ross, Skye and Lochaber) (SNP)]

I begin by declaring an interest as a customer of the Royal Bank of Scotland. I hold an account in one of the branches that has been slated for closure.

The Proclaimers might put it this way: Bannockburn no more. Beauly no more. Biggar no more. Carnwath no more. Castlebay no more. Comrie no more. Douglas no more. Gretna no more. Inveraray no more. Kilwinning no more. Melrose no more. Stepps no more. Tongue no more. Those are 13 locations that RBS is clearing out of in Scotland—abandoning its customers and leaving those places with no local bank. We do not accept that those and the other branches of which the closure has been announced should be shutting their doors, and we demand that RBS reverse its plans.

In those 13 communities in which RBS has announced closures, it is the last bank in town. RBS made a commitment that it would not close the last branch in any location, but here it is, isolating 13 communities that will be left with no branch banking facilities. RBS now says that the commitment not to close the last bank in town no longer applies. The pronouncement that RBS would not close the last bank in town was right when it was made in 2010, and it remains the right thing to do in 2017.

[Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP)]

In addition to the towns and villages that my right hon. Friend has just mentioned, branches in Grantown, Aviemore and Nairn in my constituency—they are vital to the tourism industry—are also scheduled for closure. One fifth of the highlands economy is made up of tourism, and it is mostly cash-based. Does he agree that it is not good enough for the UK Government to stand by while what the Federation of Small Businesses calls a “hammer blow” is delivered to small businesses in the highlands?

[Ian Blackford]

I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend. Of course, it is not just about those 13 branches. There is justified anger in many communities surrounding the 62 branches signalled for closure in Scotland and the 259 in the United Kingdom. RBS is turning its back on communities throughout the United Kingdom, and it will find that those communities call on it to think again.

RBS is a bank that we all have a stake in. We collectively own just short of 73% of the company. We rightly bailed the bank out in 2008, at a cost of £45 billion. We own RBS. We saved RBS in order that it could continue to offer banking services to our communities, to individuals and to businesses.

Debate on the Address

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

Wednesday 21st June 2017 Commons Chamber

[Ian Blackford]

The hon. Gentleman has to speak to his Labour colleagues. If they want to stand up for the people of this country, they have to join the SNP in demanding that we remain members of the single market. That is the salient point.

The Queen’s Speech fails not only on minimising the impact of Brexit. It fails even harder on reversing the damage caused by almost a decade of austerity. For this Tory Government, austerity cuts are not simply a policy response to a particular economic situation. They are an ideology and a political choice. [Interruption.] I hear somebody shouting “nonsense”. Let me say politely to the Government that, in 2009, we embarked on a policy of quantitative easing. I suspect that all hon. Members supported the need to take monetary policy action in 2009. The situation now is that there has been £430 billion-worth of intervention in the markets. The point is that we have not taken the fiscal measures to deliver sustainable economic growth that had to sit hand in hand with the monetary policy action. We have underpinned the financial markets as a direct consequence of quantitative easing. Those with assets have done well. The financial markets have increased by more than 70% over those years. The tragedy is that real wages have declined. The responsibility for economic management rests with the Government. We have not looked after the working people of this country but have ensured that those with financial assets have done very well. That is the specific charge, and why the Government can and must change course.

That political choice has put certain groups of people in the crosshairs, including working families, those on low incomes just managing to get by, and the disabled and vulnerable who rely on support from social security. I use that phrase for a clear purpose. In Scotland, we talk about social security, but the Government in London talk about welfare. That is why they have a problem. They do not realise that it is about the importance of that safety net. Our society is simply as strong as its weakest link.

[Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP)]

Does my hon. Friend agree that those who are most under pressure will find it even worse if the Government continue their shambolic roll-out of the universal credit full service, which is ahead of schedule in the highlands and is hurting people deeply every day—those seeking work, the disabled and those who are working?

[Ian Blackford]

I commend my hon. Friend for his work in this area. I know that many constituents have come to him who are enormously affected by the changes. It is important that the Government reflect on the impact of the changes and that they change course.

State Pension Age: Women

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

Wednesday 30th November 2016 Commons Chamber

[Ian Blackford]

I will make some progress, and then I will give way.

The DWP wrote to women to inform them about changes in legislation that go back to the Pensions Act 1995, but it did not start the formal period of notification for 14 years. To take 14 years to begin informing people that the pension that they had paid in for was being deferred—that is quite something. Can we imagine the outcry if a private pension provider behaved in such a way? There would be an outcry in this House and, no doubt, legal action. This is quite stunning when we consider that entitlement to a state pension is earned through national insurance contributions, which many women have made for more than 40 years.

[Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP)]

Does my hon. Friend agree that these pension entitlements are not a benefit or a privilege but a contract, and they should be honoured?

[Ian Blackford]

My hon. Friend makes an important point. We are talking about women who have paid national insurance contributions on the basis that they would get a pension. This is not a benefit. It should be a contractual arrangement between the Government and the women involved, and that is what the Government have wilfully removed.

Parliamentary Constituencies (Amendment) Bill

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

2nd reading: House of Commons
Friday 18th November 2016 Commons Chamber

[Ian Blackford]

rose—

[Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP)]

rose—

Energy Network Charges

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

Tuesday 5th July 2016 Westminster Hall

[Ian Blackford (Ross, Skye and Lochaber) (SNP)]

I beg to move,

That this House has considered regional differences in energy network charges.

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mrs Main, in this debate about the sharp regional differences in energy network charges that penalise consumers and businesses in certain parts of the United Kingdom. This Government like to talk about being a one nation Government. If the Minister believes that to be the case, I ask her to reflect on why consumers in the highlands and islands have to pay a premium for their electricity. I acknowledge that the previous Labour Government introduced a hydro benefit replacement scheme in 2005 to partially take account of higher distribution costs and that that support is being continued. The Minister, who I look forward to hearing from later, said late last year:

“It is not right that people face higher electricity costs just because of where they live”.

I agree with the hon. Lady, and it was a pretty fundamental statement that she made.

This debate is not just about the highlands and islands; there are 14 regional markets throughout the United Kingdom, with different levels of network charges. Nor is it about price competition. It is about a regulated charge varying from region to region through a price control framework. The reality is that a person living in the highlands and islands will pay for the privilege of doing so, courtesy of the UK Government. Electricity distribution charges for the north of Scotland are an eye-watering 84% higher than the distribution charges for London. One nation? Whose nation? It is not mine, or that of my hon. Friends here today. Westminster calls the tune; highlanders and islanders pay the price.

We pay a high price for transmission charges, and we also have a high rate of energy consumption. The highlands and islands are noted for windy and wet conditions. It is not unusual for folk in the highlands to have their heating on all year round.

[Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP)]

My hon. Friend is making a good point about the travails of people living in the highlands and islands and the fact that they face additional charges and costs. Does he agree that many of those consumers are off the grid and rely on Calor gas or oil for their heating? Ofgem should regulate such things, as well as the normal transmissions.

[Ian Blackford]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for making that very valid point, which was raised in a recent Ofgem report. Perhaps the Minister will reflect on what we can do to give support to those on off-grid connections.

A recent study by Ofgem noted that households in the north of Scotland that use electricity for heating would benefit from a cost reduction of about £60 a year if there was a universal network charge. That would have a significant impact on the budget of someone on a low income or a pensioner.

Not only are we faced with high transmission charges, but many consumers in the highlands and islands suffer from a lack of choice in energy provision. As my hon. Friend just mentioned, many households cannot access grid connections for gas, among other things, and have to rely on other sources of fuel. It is often a choice between electricity and domestic heating oil. With such limitations, the last thing we need is price discrimination—that is what it is—being foisted on us by a Westminster Government. Where people live should not result in them being penalised through paying higher network charges. Where is the one nation that the Government speak of? It should be about equity and fairness, but that does not exist today.

We have heard a lot since the European referendum about those who are left behind. We often hear that it is a priority for this Government to tackle fuel poverty, but fuel poverty is exacerbated by having higher network charges in the highlands and islands. I will focus on fuel poverty because there is a clear link between higher prices resulting from network charges and fuel poverty.

I am grateful to Changeworks, which has estimated the percentage of households in fuel poverty in the highlands region. It bands each locality in the highlands into groups. On its calculations, no district in my constituency has less than 47.9% of households in fuel poverty; indeed, in a number of districts fuel poverty is evident in at least 73.5% of households. I look across from my constituency to Na h-Eileanan an Iar, where fuel poverty affects 71% of households. That should shame every single Member of this House and every Government Member. Why should we accept that such a percentage of households in a wealthy country such as this should be in fuel poverty? It should be a priority for the Government to tackle the issue and eradicate such high levels of fuel poverty.

--- Later in debate ---

[Ian Blackford]

France has a universal market for transmission charges. I would prefer a national transmission market, as there is in France, to the unequal system that we have in the UK. Why do we not do as France does and treat consumers equitably? We can learn from Europe, and at the same time we should remain part of it and not be dragged out. If the UK Government will not do that, perhaps we need—to paraphrase others—to take back control ourselves.

Research by the national charity Turn2us graphically shows the kind of challenges that those in fuel poverty are facing. One in two low-income households is struggling to afford energy costs, despite being in work. Among the hardest hit are people with disabilities, with more than two in three reporting their struggles, and families, with almost two in three working parents unable to meet these costs. Worryingly, of those households that are struggling with energy costs, nearly half have done so for more than a year. The knock-on effect is severe, with a third forced to skip meals and more than a fifth experiencing stress and other mental health problems. Here are some of the comments made to Turn2us:

“The bills are killing me, sometimes I have to contemplate paying all the rent or heating my home.”

“There are many pensioners like myself who don’t qualify for any help but still have to decide whether to eat or heat.”

“We have stress, debt, arguments and a low mood at home.”

“Starve or freeze? Either way you get ill and can’t work, eat or pay any bills.”

“No lights, only candles, only hoover once a week, only use washing machine once a week, no heating, meals that cook”

slowly.

In Scotland I am proud that our Scottish Government have used their powers to intervene to mitigate some of the effects of rising energy costs. It has been the failure of Westminster and the regulator to properly protect consumers that has led to a marked deterioration in the level of fuel poverty. Transmission charges are an important factor in the high levels of fuel poverty. The Scottish Government are committed to tackling fuel poverty head-on and ensuring that everyone in Scotland lives in a warm home that is affordable to heat, but the measures we are taking in Scotland are undermined by the austerity measures of the Westminster Government. That is why the responsibility for fuel poverty lies wholly, solely and squarely at the feet of Westminster and not at the Scottish Government’s, as the Minister implied earlier.

[Drew Hendry]

It is important that the root causes of fuel poverty are taken into account. Some 4.5 million people across the UK suffer from fuel poverty, and the cost of transmission grid charges in Scotland add to the cost for highlands and islands consumers. Does my hon. Friend agree that it is about time the issue of ducking responsibility for fuel poverty was taken squarely on the chin by the Minister?

[Ian Blackford]

Again, I am grateful to my hon. Friend for intervening to make a very important point. Today, in this debate, the Minister could bring this matter to a conclusion. She could follow through on the warm words that she used at Christmastime, when she said that no one should be penalised. If she believes that, I implore her to do the right thing. Let us have a universal market—a transmission market that treats everybody fairly in Northern Ireland, in Scotland and in England. Why do we still charge people based on the location they live in? It is wrong and needs to be dealt with.

When we talk about fuel poverty, there is not just a moral and ethical impact but a cost to society in increased health costs as a consequence of the mental health issues that arise; or in children being sent to school in less than ideal circumstances as a consequence of family pressures, adding to the difficulties of our young people flourishing to the extent that they should and making closing the attainment gap increasingly burdensome. That is the social cost of fuel poverty and it is an issue for which the Government in Westminster have to accept responsibility. Ending the discrimination of higher distribution charges would be a good start. I hope the Minister will respond in an appropriate manner this afternoon.

EU Membership: Economic Benefits

Debate between Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford

Wednesday 15th June 2016 Commons Chamber

[Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP)]

I wanted to use my short time to focus on the importance of the European Union to communities in my constituency of Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey, in the highlands and of course in Scotland. There are 175,000 EU citizens living and working in Scotland out of a population of 5.4 million people. We have a problem not of immigration, but of emigration in the highlands. Those people from the EU who work for us are vital to the health industry. They fill skills gaps and help our tourism economy, but they are more than that. These people are not just numbers and EU citizens, but our neighbours, our friends and part of our communities. It is a two-way process. At the moment, both of my sons are working abroad in Europe: one in Germany and one in Spain. Earlier, we heard it said that this is about not immigrants or migrants, but expats when it suits.

[Ian Blackford]

I am delighted that my hon. Friend has given way. He is making some very important points. Does he also agree that those of us representing seats in the highlands and islands have benefited enormously from the European Union with the investment that is taking place in our roads and our infrastructure? The European Union has been a voice for good, and that is true for our crofters and farmers. All highlanders, along with everyone else, should vote to stay in.