Business of the House

Jim Cunningham Excerpts

Thursday 14th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[Andrea Leadsom]

I was disgusted, as I am sure all right hon. and hon. Members were, to hear about my hon. Friend’s awful experience. I texted her at the time to say that I hoped she was okay. It must have been absolutely terrifying. It was truly horrible and we should all condemn this kind of behaviour and call it out wherever we see it. Lord Bew’s report on the abuse and intimidation of candidates highlights that this is not a simple matter of holding politicians to account. It goes far beyond that and it will be a deterrent to diversity and the high calibre of candidates we want to see standing for Parliament. We all combine in condemning that action against my hon. Friend.

[Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South) (Lab)]

Will the Leader of the House arrange for a debate in Government time—do not refer me to an Adjournment debate—on the impact of Brexit on the national health service and the threat of privatisation? Many of my constituents are concerned about that.

[Andrea Leadsom]

Since September, the Department for Exiting the European Union has answered departmental questions on three occasions, including this morning; DExEU Ministers have made several oral statements and appeared before the Exiting the European Union Committee on three occasions; and you, Mr Speaker, have facilitated four urgent questions, in addition to the many hours we have already spent discussing legislation. We will, of course, be discussing further legislation in great detail over the next 18 months, so I am sure that the hon. Gentleman will have ample opportunity to raise his specific concerns.