Oral Answers to Questions
Gavin Robinson Excerpts(2 weeks, 4 days ago)
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The Prime Minister
Energy security is critical to food security, and the sprint to clean energy is the only way to get off the volatile international fossil fuel markets, cut bills and deliver energy security. Since we came into office, over £90 billion of investment into clean energy industry has come in, powering millions of homes. The Tories and Reform would throw all that away and cling to the failed policy that put everyone’s bills up throughout their reign.
Gavin Robinson (Belfast East) (DUP)
I associate myself and my colleagues with the Prime Minister’s remarks about Sarah Everard and about Iran.
My colleagues and I support our armed forces, but we lament how diminished the UK has appears over the past week among our allies and within the middle east. The Prime Minister is not responsible for our armed forces being able to squeeze into Wembley Park and Ibrox, but he is responsible for our posture. He is responsible for ignoring the request to deploy a Type 45 destroyer to the region two weeks ago, and we now learn that HMS Dragon will not leave, has not left and will not be in place to defend Cyprus for over a week.
Will the Prime Minister understand that I welcome the commitment for increased defence spending, but if we are planning only to get to 2.5% by 2027, it is not enough? It needs to be reconsidered. He needs to go faster where others before him did not, and he needs to take these steps not just for the protection of our values across the world, but for the protection of our consumers who are impacted by this conflict today.
The Prime Minister
The right hon. Member will have heard me set out what we did by way of pre-deployment, working in conjunction with and liaising with the US. So he understands the context in which those pre-deployments were put in place, and I think they speak for themselves as to why they were put in those places.
In relation to defence spend, obviously we are increasing it to 2.6% of GDP—that is £270 billion over the Parliament—but as I said in the speech I gave in Munich just a couple of weeks ago, we are going to have to spend more and faster after the years of under-investment and troop cuts that—[Interruption.] The Conservatives were the ones who hollowed this out. They were the ones who reduced the size of the Army. They were the ones who did not spend what was necessary on defence. Like everything else they left in such a mess, we are clearing it up, and through our strategic defence review we will make Britain safer.
Oral Answers to Questions
Gavin Robinson Excerpts(1 year, 1 month ago)
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The Prime Minister
I thank my hon. Friend for raising this. I know she is deeply concerned about this issue and campaigns on it. The rise in poverty caused by the mismanagement of the economy by the Conservative party is unacceptable. Our approach to social security will ensure that work is accessible to as many people as possible, as a route out of poverty. That includes the new Connect to Work programme, which is expected to help 100,000 disabled people find and stay in work.
Gavin Robinson (Belfast East) (DUP)
I thank the Prime Minister and the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster for their sterling support for Northern Ireland over the past few days in the aftermath of Storm Éowyn, which is greatly appreciated and demonstrates how well the Union works.
On 15 August 1998, the fragile peace in Northern Ireland was shattered when the Real IRA detonated a bomb in Omagh town. Twenty-nine people died, and two unborn twins never saw this world. Through the dignity and the stoic campaigning of Michael Gallagher, whose son Aiden died, a public inquiry was secured through the courts, which recommended in 2021 that the Irish Government should similarly hold an inquiry to understand what could have been prevented, given the cross-border nature of the atrocity—the bomb was prepared in and transported from the Irish Republic. Will the Prime Minister use his good offices to ensure that truth is delivered and justice arrives for the families of those who so needlessly lost their lives to Irish republican terrorism?
The Prime Minister
First, I assure the right hon. Gentleman that we will continue to work with the leaders in Northern Ireland to ensure that we deal with the storm, which has been devastating for very many people who are still without power and who have all the associated problems.
I thank the right hon. Gentleman for raising the Omagh bombing inquiry. It was a heinous and cowardly terrorist attack, and it shocked the world. Our thoughts are with the family members who are taking part in commemorative hearings this week. I welcome the Irish Government’s commitment to co-operating with the inquiry. The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has raised with the Irish Government the importance of working together on addressing these and all legacy issues, and I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for raising this very serious and important issue.