Oral Answers to Questions

Jeremy Lefroy Excerpts

Wednesday 18th October 2017 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right about the value and importance of girls’ education around the world. DFID and the UK Government lead in this area. We have encouraged, through the UN and other international bodies, other countries to step up, and of course we will continue to do that.

[Jeremy Lefroy (Stafford) (Con)]

T2. What action does my right hon. Friend believe is necessary to counter the rise in resistance to antimalarial drugs in south-east Asia? In the past 17 years, we have seen much progress on reducing incidences of malaria around the world.

[The Minister of State, Department for International Development (Alistair Burt)]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right that tackling malaria saves lives. It has a positive impact on improving health services for the poor and increases economic growth and productivity in affected countries. In April 2017, the UK announced that we would protect more than 200 million people from the pain and disfigurement caused by diseases such as malaria. I was at a conference addressing this subject in Berlin last week. Dealing with antimicrobial resistance will play an integral part in ensuring that drugs remain effective and that the UK remains a world leader in tackling malaria.

Oral Answers to Questions

Jeremy Lefroy Excerpts

Wednesday 19th July 2017 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I am a little surprised, given the hon. Gentleman’s background, that he said what he did about Hinkley Point. Hinkley Point is actually privately funded—this is not money that is coming from the Government to develop Hinkley Point—so I find that a little strange. We have put £1 billion extra into the question of the change in the state pension age to ensure that nobody sees their state pension age increase by more than 18 months from that which was previously expected. I must also say to the hon. Gentleman that the Scottish Government of course now have extra powers in the area of welfare. Perhaps it is about time that the Scottish Government got on with the day job and stopped talking endlessly about independence.

[Jeremy Lefroy (Stafford) (Con)]

Q8. Businesses in Stafford and other constituencies need as much certainty as possible now about what will happen after we leave the EU in March 2019 for investment decisions they are making in the coming weeks and months. As the Government work on the comprehensive future relationship with our European neighbours, will they also negotiate time-bound transitional arrangements that prioritise the jobs of our constituents and the health of our economy?

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. As I have said in this Chamber and elsewhere, we want to avoid a cliff edge for businesses, because people want to know where they stand, and to be able to carry on investing in the UK and creating the jobs that we have seen being created. As I have also said before, once we know—once we have negotiated through this two-year period—what the end-state relationship for the UK and the European Union will be in the future, it will then be necessary to have an implementation period when people can adjust to that new end state that is coming in. There will be some very practical things that need to be done during that period. As part of the negotiations, it will be important for us to agree what that implementation period, or periods, is, and what the arrangements will be during that.

Grenfell Tower

Jeremy Lefroy Excerpts

Thursday 22nd June 2017 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

There will be different circumstances in different local authorities. We will ensure that the work can be undertaken.

[Jeremy Lefroy (Stafford) (Con)]

May I commend the Prime Minister for her statement and for talking about the public inquiry? From my experience of the public inquiry in my constituency that lasted for two and a half years, I know that it is vital that the inquiry is thorough but also as swift as possible. I urge whomsoever is appointed to talk to people such as Sir Robert Francis, who chaired the public inquiry in my constituency, to find out from his experience how that can best be achieved.

[The Prime Minister]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for that point, and I will certainly pass that on. I absolutely agree that it is important that this is done as quickly as possible.

Article 50

Jeremy Lefroy Excerpts

Wednesday 29th March 2017 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

Whether or not international students are included in the net migration target is not a message about our country and how we welcome people. We welcome students coming to this country—we are very clear about that—but in the statistics we abide by the international definition used by countries around the world. We want to ensure that the brightest and the best are indeed able to come to the United Kingdom and get the value of a UK education.

[Jeremy Lefroy (Stafford) (Con)]

I welcome the seven principles in the Prime Minister’s letter, particularly the first, on constructive and respectful engagement, and the fifth, about the importance of the

“UK’s unique relationship with the Republic of Ireland”,

the Belfast agreement and the peace process. Does she agree that to achieve the best possible outcome for all our constituents, there should on both sides be the minimum of red lines and the maximum flexibility?

[The Prime Minister]

I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend. It is important that we are able to be flexible in the negotiations. The key thing is that in everything we do we put the British national interest first.

Oral Answers to Questions

Jeremy Lefroy Excerpts

Wednesday 18th January 2017 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I made the very simple point yesterday that this negotiation is not just about the United Kingdom; there will be others in the European Union who will be looking to ensure that the deal we get is good for the UK and good for the EU. But I have to say to the hon. Lady that if she in any sense thinks that continued membership of the common fisheries policy is what we should be looking for, that is certainly not the case, and it is certainly one of the things people voted against.

[Jeremy Lefroy (Stafford) (Con)]

The people of Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent are again being confronted with the possible loss of emergency services in Stafford or Burton, when our acute hospitals are constantly under intense pressure. Does the Prime Minister agree with me, our hon. Friend the Member for Burton (Andrew Griffiths) and other local MPs that closing A&Es is no way to deal with increased real—not imagined—need?

[The Prime Minister]

The important issue is the level of service that is available to people in any particular local area. That is why the sustainability and transformation plans that are being considered and have been published are being taken into account and being considered at a local level, so that local clinicians and local people will be able to agree what is best in their particular area.

European Council

Jeremy Lefroy Excerpts

Monday 24th October 2016 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

There is an assumption behind the hon. Gentleman’s question that the only way to access such research networks is through being a member of the European Union. Of course, there are those here in the United Kingdom who are members of a number of research networks that operate as effectively but are nothing to do with the European Union. I can assure him that that is another aspect of the future implications that we are aware of and will be taking into consideration.

[Jeremy Lefroy (Stafford) (Con)]

There is a dangerous political crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which has seen 6 million people die in the past 20 years. There is a crisis, too, in Burundi with extra-judicial killings happening every week, and there is in effect a bloodbath in South Sudan. All these are of great interest and concern to the European Union and the United Kingdom. Were any of these subjects discussed at the summit?

[The Prime Minister]

No. The subjects on the summit’s agenda were Russian action in relation to Syria, migration and trade, so the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan were not discussed, but I am well aware of the concerns of my hon. Friend and others about what has been happening, particularly in South Sudan recently. This is a matter that my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary is looking at closely.

Outcome of the EU Referendum

Jeremy Lefroy Excerpts

Monday 27th June 2016 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

What we do now is make sure that we get the very best outcome from this negotiation, so that it is good for the United Kingdom and good for Scotland. It is all very well the hon. Gentleman waving his finger, but that is actually what matters most to the people of Scotland.

[Jeremy Lefroy (Stafford) (Con)]

I pay tribute to my right hon. Friend for his leadership over many years, and thank him for it. I also pay tribute to the German Chancellor for her measured and wise words over the weekend, which I believe set a good tone for the negotiations. May I ask my right hon. Friend what measures are being taken to ensure that we strengthen bilateral relations, right now, between us and all the 27 other members of the European Union, given that we will not be dealing with them through the filter of the European Union in future?

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my hon. Friend for his kind remarks. Obviously, one of the great roles of the Foreign Office will be to concentrate on those bilateral relations, even as we conduct this very complicated and difficult negotiation. We do have embassies in every single European country, and we do have strong bilateral relations. With my negotiation, I was the first British Prime Minister to visit some of the further-flung parts of the European Union, and I will certainly—in whatever capacity—do everything I can to keep those bilateral relations strong, because that will help our negotiation for our future in Europe.

Oral Answers to Questions

Jeremy Lefroy Excerpts

Wednesday 27th April 2016 Commons Chamber

[John Penrose]

I absolutely agree. As I said in response to an earlier set of questions, there is a great deal that Governments can do, but there is also a great deal that political parties and others need to do, to engage the interest of the voters.

[Jeremy Lefroy (Stafford) (Con)]

7. What discussions he has had with industry leaders on increasing social mobility in the public and private sectors.

[The Minister without Portfolio (Robert Halfon)]

I thank my hon. Friend for his question and for his work in the House on social mobility. In our mission to increase social mobility, we are working with a number of leading businesses and organisations on our plans to improve life chances across the nations. That includes the civil service pushing ahead with the delivery of more than 30,000 of the overall 3 million apprenticeship starts by 2020, introducing name-blind recruitment and leading the development of new national common measures of socioeconomic diversity for employers.

[Jeremy Lefroy]

As it is vital that the civil service reflects the society that it serves, will my right hon. Friend explain how the Government are acting on the recommendations made in the report of the Bridge group?

[Robert Halfon]

My hon. Friend will be pleased to know that we are accepting every part of the recommendations of the Bridge report. He will know that we are the party of the ladder, the party of social mobility, the party of the living wage, the party of lower taxes for low earners and the party of millions of apprenticeships and millions of jobs.

European Council

Jeremy Lefroy Excerpts

Monday 22nd February 2016 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I will look carefully at what the hon. Gentleman says. My memory of the CAP deal—the finance deal and its consequences—is that we actually gave the devolved Administrations a huge amount of leeway to determine the right way to spend their money. I think farmers actually benefit from the way in which this is done, but I will look carefully at the point he makes.

[Jeremy Lefroy (Stafford) (Con)]

May I thank the Prime Minister for all his work on behalf of our country over the past weeks, months and, indeed, years?

Exports to China from Germany, France and the UK have all shown significant increases. Does that not that show that the opportunities for trade outside the EU are not, as some would have it, constrained by membership of the EU?

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. You do not expand your trade with China by doing less trade with the EU. We want to do both.

Charities (Protection and Social Investment) Bill [ Lords ] (Fifth sitting)

Jeremy Lefroy Excerpts

Thursday 7th January 2016 Public Bill Committees

[Jeremy Lefroy (Stafford) (Con)]

I sat through the debates on the 2014 Act in the last Parliament and think that I know it fairly well. I will make two points. First, I have taken part in three general election campaigns, and I would say that the last one was no different from any other with regard to the representations put forward, particularly on the health service, which was of particular interest to my constituents. Secondly, since the general election I have not received one single representation from any charity about a so-called “chilling effect” on their work during the election campaign.