Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Keir Starmer and Desmond Swayne(1 month ago)
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The Prime Minister
I thank my hon. Friend for raising this subject. Baroness Amos’s findings show a deeply disturbing picture of deep fragmentation and an overly complex system, with women and families not being listened to, no proper accountability, and discrimination driving inequalities in treatment and outcomes. We will deliver the change that is needed. We will look at the urgent recommendations of Baroness Amos and Donna Ockenden and deliver them. I thank my hon. Friend for leading from the front as the first maternity adviser, working with families and the NHS to deliver safer and better care for every mother and baby. I know that her son Billy will be very proud of her.
Sir Desmond Swayne (New Forest West) (Con)
The Prime Minister
I thank the right hon. Gentleman for raising this important point—I am enjoying our weekly exchanges! Every veteran who served our country should be looked after and better able to access any compensation that they are entitled to. We have dedicated pathways for veterans in every jobcentre to provide support with benefit claims and complex cases. I can assure and reassure him that anyone coming forward will get tailored support, and we will seek to resolve any issues swiftly and fairly to see where we can improve. If the right hon. Gentleman or other Members have any specific cases, they can pass the details to us, and we will look at them. I noticed that the BBC reported on the right hon. Gentleman’s question last week as being almost certainly his last to me as Prime Minister—a reminder that you shouldn’t always believe everything you read in the news! I look forward to seeing him—same time, same place—next week.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Keir Starmer and Desmond Swayne(1 month, 1 week ago)
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The Prime Minister
May I start by sending my best wishes to Jake and his family? The change we have made to the way that NICE evaluates medicines is already increasing access to innovative new medicines. I will make sure that my hon. Friend gets the chance to meet a Health Minister to discuss Jake’s case and the related issues.
Sir Desmond Swayne (New Forest West) (Con)
The Prime Minister
I thank the right hon. Gentleman—he is always most generous. I will never forget when, just a few years ago, I went on holiday in his constituency with my family. I was in the kitchen of the place we were renting when somebody leant through the open door—it was the right hon. Gentleman with a bottle of champagne saying, “Welcome to the New Forest.” He then took time to speak to my family, including my wife’s elderly father and my children. I thank him for his generosity.
Security Vetting
Debate between Keir Starmer and Desmond Swayne(3 months, 2 weeks ago)
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The Prime Minister
The information was withheld from me and from the Cabinet Secretary, who was conducting a review on my behalf. That became clear yesterday, and I have set out the facts to Parliament.
Sir Desmond Swayne (New Forest West) (Con)
On 4 February, my right hon. Friend the Leader of the Opposition asked the Prime Minister:
“did the official security vetting that he received mention Mandelson’s ongoing relationship with… Jeffrey Epstein?”—[Official Report, 4 February 2026; Vol. 780, c. 259.]
The Prime Minister replied, “Yes, it did.” What on earth was it that the Prime Minister received and was talking about that my right hon. Friend referred to as the official security vetting? He said that he had received it.
G20 and Ukraine
Debate between Keir Starmer and Desmond Swayne(8 months, 1 week ago)
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The Prime Minister
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. The change in the use of drone warfare over the past three to four years has been accelerated and intense, to the point that now, as he reflects, if you are seen, you are dead. That is the effect of drone warfare, and everybody on the frontline understands that. Tens of thousands of lives have been lost defending particular lines, particularly in Donetsk. I will never forget visiting a hospital in Kyiv where I met those who had been burned very badly on the frontline. They were receiving treatment in those hospitals, and it was a poignant reminder of the impact that the war is having on Ukrainians. It is no wonder that they are not going to give that up after so much sacrifice.
Sir Desmond Swayne (New Forest West) (Con)
What indication was there that Putin would accept even the earlier iteration of this agreement?
The Prime Minister
I am not able to say, because I have not been involved in any discussions with Putin, as the right hon. Gentleman would expect. The main thing is to be clear that the draft was not acceptable in a number of respects, but it did have essential elements that will be required. That is why work is being done to ensure that we get to a place that is acceptable to Ukraine and that can then be used as a basis, I hope, for some sort of negotiated outcome.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Keir Starmer and Desmond Swayne(1 year ago)
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The Prime Minister
I send my deepest condolences to Eli’s friends and family. I join my hon. Friend in urging the new Reform council to think again and change its mind on damaging cuts that hit children and young families. My hon. Friend is doing a much better job than his predecessor, the Conservative party chairman under Liz Truss, who has now joined Reform. That proves once again that if people vote Tory they get Reform, and if they vote Reform they get the Tories. While both parties are cutting services at home, we support families with free school meals and free breakfast clubs, and by extending free childcare.
Sir Desmond Swayne (New Forest West) (Con)
The Prime Minister
The failed legacy Act was struck down by the courts in Northern Ireland, and that leaves veterans exposed. We are creating a secure, transparent system that protects veterans from unjustified persecution, but that also gives victims, families and survivors the confidence that they need in the process.
G7 and NATO Summits
Debate between Keir Starmer and Desmond Swayne(1 year, 1 month ago)
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The Prime Minister
No, it does not. It was frankly embarrassing to suggest that I should not have been at NATO or the G7, and I think the Leader of the Opposition’s Back Benchers recognise that. That is not the traditional position of the Conservative party, and the sooner the Conservatives get back to their former position, the better.
Sir Desmond Swayne (New Forest West) (Con)
Was there any discussion about the killing zones that currently constitute the provision of humanitarian aid in Gaza?
The Prime Minister
Yes, there was. There is real concern about the intolerable position in Gaza and what we can do to alleviate it. We have repeatedly said that it is intolerable, and that the current arrangements for aid are never going to work and cannot be maintained. Urgent diplomacy is under way to alleviate that situation, and we will continue with those efforts.
NATO and European Political Community Meetings
Debate between Keir Starmer and Desmond Swayne(2 years ago)
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The Prime Minister
Let me start by joining in that, and making it clear that this work, done in so many communities, is really important, in terms of the support given and the welcome shown to refugees.
The point about “NATO first” is important. As I say, we are proud to have been among the founding members of NATO, and the review that we have put in place has framework principles, one of which is “NATO first”. That will inform the way in which we conduct the strategic review.
Sir Desmond Swayne (New Forest West) (Con)
Why do we continue to limit Ukraine’s ability to take the fight to Russia?
The Prime Minister
The approach to capability taken by the UK remains the same as it was three weeks ago— no different decisions have been taken—and is based on the principle of recognising Ukraine’s right to self-defence and the parameters of international law. I think that is right, and that is why no new decisions have been taken.
Afghanistan
Debate between Keir Starmer and Desmond Swayne(4 years, 11 months ago)
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Keir Starmer
There is huge concern, as all hon. Members will know, about our line of sight beyond Kabul at the moment. Again, that calls into question where the 5,000 number comes from, because at the moment we are not even in a position to assess the position outside Kabul. We cannot betray our friends. We must lead.
Sir Desmond Swayne (New Forest West) (Con)
Were the Government of this kingdom to be overthrown by a wicked and brutal regime, I venture that the right hon. and learned Gentleman would want a leading role in the resistance. He would not be queuing at the airport, would he?
Keir Starmer
When I was Director of Public Prosecutions, some of my prosecutors in Afghanistan were at huge risk, working on counter-terrorism with other brave souls there, so I will not take that from the right hon. Gentleman or from anybody else.
Once the immediate challenges are addressed, we face an uncertain and difficult future. The Taliban are back in control and we cannot be naive about the consequences. We have lost our primary source of leverage in political discussions, and everything that we have achieved in the past 20 years is now under threat.
EU Withdrawal Agreement: Legal Advice
Debate between Keir Starmer and Desmond Swayne(7 years, 8 months ago)
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Keir Starmer
I understand the point made by the right hon. and learned Gentleman—I had the privilege of working with him when I was Director of Public Prosecutions—and I shall address that directly, because I do understand the distinction between legal advice that is being given in real time and legal advice that may come to be given when a backstop is agreed and presented. [Interruption.] I will address that directly to make it absolutely clear what we are asking for, but I recognise the distinction that is being made and shall address it in due course—
Sir Desmond Swayne (New Forest West) (Con)
But even on the basis of that distinction—
Keir Starmer
Perhaps it is better if I actually get to the distinction between real-life legal advice given in real time and the sort of advice that may be presented when the deal is being put to Parliament. I will deal with it, I am well aware of it and I know the distinction between the two. If I duck it, I am sure to be challenged later. Let me make some progress.
The chronology is this: as I said, on 17 October the Attorney General was asked by the Cabinet to provide a full assessment of the legal ramifications of the backstop. A few weeks later, on 6 November, it was reported that the Cabinet had been provided with a summary of the Attorney General’s advice on the options for the backstop. It was also reported that the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs wanted to see the advice in full. There is no doubt that there will be final legal advice if the Government are able to reach an agreement with the EU. It is that final advice that we want to see, and I shall develop precisely what I mean by that in just a moment.