Business of the House

Debate between Jacob Rees-Mogg and Hannah Bardell

Thursday 3rd February 2022 Commons Chamber

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

I did indeed visit. I got to try some of Margaret’s famous vanilla custards at the Tunstall indoor market and she gave me supplies to eat on the train back to London. Stoke-on-Trent already receives support from the Government’s high streets task force, which announced its first tranche of bespoke expert support last year. It is staggering the delivery of its expert support to a total of 152 selected local authorities over the period 2021-24, but my hon. Friend is a brilliant campaigner for any cakes that are available.

[Hannah Bardell (Livingston) (SNP)]

Can we have a debate on banning rapists from football? This week, Scottish club Raith Rovers signed David Goodwillie, who was found to be a rapist by one of the most senior judges in Scotland in a civil court. The club has just reversed its decision, but it has caused huge trauma, upset and a devastating impact on the football community that supports Raith Rovers, including the women’s team, now renamed the McDermid Ladies, who will play on Sunday at 2 o’clock. Does the Leader of the House agree that rapists have no place in professional football, or any football, or any role in public life?

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

Of course I agree with the hon. Lady. She is right to raise a matter of this importance in the House.

Business of the House

Debate between Jacob Rees-Mogg and Hannah Bardell

Thursday 14th January 2021 Commons Chamber

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

I very much welcome my hon. Friend’s tribute to the three charities in his constituency. During the pandemic we have seen the most amazing national effort to tackle the coronavirus. It has been our nation at its absolute best. As of Friday, 96% of the population in England will live within 10 miles of a vaccination site, and by spring we will have 2,700 vaccination sites across the United Kingdom. On top of the 1,000 vaccination sites that are already on line, this will include, in England: an additional 206 active hospital sites; 50 vaccination centres; and around 1,200 local vaccination sites, including primary care networks, community pharmacy sites and mobile teams. I join my hon. Friend in praising the work of these charities and all that they are doing to support this vital roll-out.

[Hannah Bardell (Livingston) (SNP) [V]]

As we fight to eradicate covid, I am sure that the Leader of the House would wish to congratulate the Valneva team in my Livingston constituency, who, alongside the Oxford-AstraZeneca team, are doing their bit to develop a vaccine. We hope very much that the Livi vaccine will be with us very soon. Does he agree that we need a debate on how to ensure that no one is left behind in the race to get our population vaccinated? I am sure that he would agree that women who are pregnant and other groups who are considered at risk should very much be a focus for us all as the clinical trial frameworks are developed.

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

I am grateful to the hon. Lady, who makes a really important point. I join her in congratulating the Valneva team for the work that they have been doing. The Government are making great efforts to reach the hard-to-reach groups, including by dedicating an extra £10 million to homelessness in order to try to reach people who have no particular home and ensure that they are registered with a GP so that they have access to the vaccine. The point that she makes a really important one. It is well understood by the Government and I am sure that it will be raised in this House on many occasions.

Business of the House

Debate between Jacob Rees-Mogg and Hannah Bardell

Thursday 15th October 2020 Commons Chamber

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

This is clearly an important issue for many Members of Parliament, and the Government are committed to getting spectators back into stadiums as soon as it is safe to do so. We will continue to work with a range of sports to understand how spectators may be allowed back safely. That does include the creation of a new sports technology and innovation group with sporting bodies and health experts to analyse new technologies that might support that. The Government appreciate that more must be done to allow fans back to stadiums safely, and there is good news that the Premier League is spending £50 million to support grassroots football throughout the crisis. I remind my hon. Friend about 5 November when the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport will be at the Dispatch Box.

[Hannah Bardell (Livingston) (SNP) [V]]

This week the Council of Europe and its 47 member states adopted the report “Drug policy and human rights in Europe: a baseline study”. It advocates for a health and human rights-based approach to drug use and addiction and recognises that the criminal justice approach that the likes of the UK Government take is failing people across the world. I was the proud author of that report, and I hope that the UK Government will now adopt all aspects of it to save lives and protect communities. Can we have a debate on drugs policy and human rights and ensure that the relevant powers to deal with drug use and addiction are devolved to Scotland, so we can ensure that we meet our international obligations and implement best practice for Scotland and her people?

Business of the House

Debate between Jacob Rees-Mogg and Hannah Bardell

Thursday 18th June 2020 Commons Chamber

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising this important occasion. The Government fully recognise the importance of VJ-day, 15 August. That is also the feast of the Assumption, so it is a day that many celebrate every year for other reasons too, but we will be celebrating particularly on this 75th anniversary of VJ-day. I do not actually know what anniversary it is of the Assumption; I am not sure what year that happened in.

This important anniversary is an occasion for us to acknowledge once again the sacrifices made on our behalf by the veterans of the campaign, and to remember all those who lost their lives and the many military prisoners of war and civilian internees who suffered in captivity. The Government and our partners will take into careful consideration the changing national situation as we continue to tackle the coronavirus outbreak. We will always put the health and wellbeing of our veterans at the forefront of our plans. We are committed to creating a programme that will allow members of the public to remember and give thanks to the second world war generation in appropriate and fitting ways, but my hon. Friend is right that we must not allow those troops who were in the far east to be forgotten.

[Hannah Bardell (Livingston) (SNP) [V]]

May we have a debate on the vital importance of the theatre and arts sector to the economic and social recovery of our societies? Local theatres such as the Howden Park Centre in my constituency bring so much to our community and economy, but in an interview with The Observer, Rufus Norris, the artistic director of the National Theatre, revealed that without additional Government support, 70% of theatres will be boarded up by Christmas. Festivals such as the Edinburgh fringe recently received a £1 million support package from the Scottish Government. Will the Leader of the House press for a debate in Government time and put all possible pressure on his colleagues in the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and the Treasury to step up and support these vital sectors?

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

The hon. Lady is right to raise the concerns of the theatre and the arts. The general context is of a Government that have taken enormous steps to help a wide range of businesses. It is worth bearing in mind that 8.9 million people are currently using the job retention or furlough scheme, which cost taxpayers £19.6 billion. That is in addition to the £7.5 billion that has gone to the 2.6 million self-employed, which is perhaps particularly relevant as so many people in the theatre and the arts are self-employed. In addition to that, there are business bounce-back loans. There are many schemes in place to help businesses survive, but the hon. Lady is none the less right to highlight the particular problems of theatre and the arts.

Business of the House

Debate between Jacob Rees-Mogg and Hannah Bardell

Thursday 9th January 2020 Commons Chamber

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

I welcome my hon. Friend to the House. It is a great pleasure to see him in his place after all that he has done for the Conservative party in his distinguished career. The Government naturally sympathise with those people who have been affected by the recent flooding and the terrible impact that has on their lives. As we were hearing earlier, we have put in place a wide range of recovery schemes for affected homes, businesses, farmers and communities, and £2.6 billion is being spent in over 1,000 flood schemes across the country, which will protect a further 300,000 homes by 2021. I think that in this case prevention is better than cure. There will be relevant questions to the Local Government Secretary on Monday.

[Hannah Bardell (Livingston) (SNP)]

May we have a debate about standards in public life and the consequences when Members of either this place or the other place abuse staff or each other? Following the incident that I raised on the Floor of the House this week, I have had a number of members of staff raise concerns with me about the way they are treated. Further to that, I am sorry to say that the Member from the other place who I have complained about has now launched a homophobic attack on me in the press. This will be reported to the police, and I know that I and others consider this to be a hate crime.

I know that the Leader of the House and the Speaker take this matter very seriously. I have a position of great privilege and I am able to raise this, but we must set the best possible standards from this place for other LGBT people and, indeed, our staff, to ensure that we send a message to say that this kind of behaviour is not acceptable here or anywhere else.

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

I hope that I will not breach the normal order of this House if I say that the attack on the hon. Lady was utterly disgraceful and that she is clearly owed an apology by the noble Lord for what he said about her. I think that everybody who heard about that was shocked by the comments that he is reported to have made and has not denied. I think they are really appalling. I know that we are not allowed to criticise Members of the other place except on a specific motion, but I think that under these circumstances we are allowed to stretch the rules.

As regards the initial complaint, everybody should treat our members of staff politely and with normal good manners. The staff have a duty to look after us and protect us, and we must respond to them in kind. The purpose of this place is to facilitate legislation. We are here as legislators, and it is incumbent upon us to lead by example. That is why the behavioural code has been set up as it has. Everyone should be respected and valued. We should recognise that, by virtue of our office and by virtue of the 70,000 people who have sent us here, we have a status that we must not abuse through ill manners. Indeed, the greater one’s status—you are a model of this, Mr Speaker—the more important it is to show good manners to those who are working on one’s behalf. There is a helpline that people can call, and for any members of staff listening to this—I hope hon. Members will pass this on to their staff—it is 0800 028 2439. I hope that the security staff who were abused will ring the helpline so that the House of Lords authorities can look into the matter.

While I am paying tribute to the staff, I want to add one thing on a happier note. Two members of our security staff—this shows us how lucky we are—Ron Dowson and Habibi Syaaf rescued a man who had fallen into the Thames earlier this week. That is a reminder of how well we are served and, therefore, of our even greater duty of good manners.