Speech in Commons Chamber - Wed 11 Nov 2026 Welfare
"I beg to move,
That this House calls on the Government to commit to bringing working-age welfare spending down in this Parliament.
The day after the Budget, we heard the Chancellor on the radio telling the country some good news: the welfare bill would come down in this Parliament. But …..." Helen Whately - View Speech
"I will set out how we will achieve our £36 billion in savings, if the hon. Gentleman will just sit back and listen. All we have heard from him and his party are plans to spend more money, and he simply reiterated that just now. We do not bring the …..." Helen Whately - View Speech
"My right hon. Friend is absolutely right. The first duty of Government is national security. We will not even have social security if we do not have national security. We have to find a way to fund defence. There is no time to waste. As I will set out in …..." Helen Whately - View Speech
"That is an important point. Most people want to see a welfare system that supports those who really need help. They want to see a welfare system that is a safety net, not a lifestyle choice...." Helen Whately - View Speech
"It sounds to me as if the hon. Member has wilfully misunderstood and misrepresented what my right hon. Friend the Member for The Wrekin (Mark Pritchard) said a moment ago...." Helen Whately - View Speech
"I will not give way again. They will have their opportunity to speak in due course.
Let me remind the House of the things that the Labour Government have done—of which, no doubt, they are proud—to make benefits easier to claim and more generous. As soon as they entered office …..." Helen Whately - View Speech
"What would the hon. Lady say to people who are not on benefits, who ask, “Can we afford to have another child?”, and decide that they cannot? The fact is that someone who is in work and decides to have another child will not be given a pay rise.
"The right hon. Gentleman’s intervention is extremely timely, as that is literally the next bit of my speech. I thank him for taking me on.
The Government like to say that all this happened on our watch. Let me remind them what actually happened. Last time Labour left power—no surprises—we …..." Helen Whately - View Speech
"My apologies, Madam Deputy Speaker. I am sure that that was not the intention of the hon. Member for Bexleyheath and Crayford (Daniel Francis).
Reforming welfare is not cruel to people on benefits—quite the opposite. What is cruel is failing to reform welfare, parking young people on benefits while taxing …..." Helen Whately - View Speech
"The hon. Member—for Harlow—has indeed found an opportunity for consensus across the House. We do want to see face-to-face assessments brought back. In fact, we want to see the Government get on with it—the sooner, the better.
If the Government are asking people to fund our welfare system, that system …..." Helen Whately - View Speech