(1 week ago)
Commons ChamberWe are investing £100 million in adult and children’s hospices to improve facilities, equipment and accommodation, as well as £26 million in funding through the children’s hospice grant. [Interruption.] Conservative Members’ cries and moaning would have a lot more value if they started their questions with an apology for crashing the economy in the first place.
My hon. Friend is right. Potholes are a real nuisance; if somebody is using their car or van for work and they hit a pothole, they are looking at a bill of several hundred pounds, which for many working families is unbudgeted for. That is why we are handing the West Midlands combined authority an additional £8.6 million to help repair its roads, as part of a record £1.6 billion invested across the country. On top of that, every council must now publish how many potholes it has filled so that we can show that we are making progress and delivering—something that did not happen under the last Government.
(4 weeks, 2 days ago)
Commons ChamberAs soon as we have any details around plans, I will bring them to the House so that they can be fully discussed, because this needs to be not just a short-term response but a much longer-term assessment of how we ensure that Europe is kept safe and secure.
I thank the Prime Minister for his continued leadership on the world stage. These past few days, I have felt particularly proud to be British, so I thank him for that. The Government are rightly already using frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine’s defence and reconstruction, but what further actions are being considered to ensure that Russia pays the full financial cost of its illegal invasion?
Russia is already paying the cost through the interest. We need to look at whether we can go further on that, but it is complicated and we have to act with others. I will see what progress we can make, and let the House know if there is progress.
(1 month, 1 week ago)
Commons ChamberI thank the hon. Gentleman for his service. Our position on the UN resolution was clear from the way we voted yesterday. I think that sends a very powerful signal of where we stand, and that is with Ukraine.
I welcome the Prime Minister’s statement today, his commitment to 2.5% defence spending and his continued engagement with our international partners. As we are a proud maritime nation that is facing threats from Russian interference with undersea cables and from incursion into our waters by the shadow fleet, does he agree that now is the time to bolster our Royal Navy?
Yes, I think it is important that we bolster across our forces. There are threats on land, threats in the air, threats at sea and, indeed, threats under the sea. It is important that we can meet all those threats.
(4 months, 1 week ago)
Commons ChamberI thank the Prime Minister for his statement, and for his display of unity with the French President Emmanuel Macron on Armistice Day. We have gone from Tory Prime Ministers who question whether France is even an ally, and who leave Normandy early, to a Labour Prime Minister who stands shoulder to shoulder with our French and European allies. Does the Prime Minister agree that strong alliances with our European neighbours are crucial to our peace and security?
Yes, I do. To attend the Armistice Day in France was a special and important—[Interruption.] I am sorry? I was saying that it was a very special and moving occasion, on which we remembered all those who lost their lives for our freedoms. I am not sure why the right hon. Member for Basildon and Billericay (Mr Holden) wanted to chunter through that. We were able to collectively reflect on all those who lost their lives, not only in the first world war, but in every conflict since. We should never lose sight of the fact that many of those whom we lost are buried in France, and it was a very special moment to be there.
(4 months, 2 weeks ago)
Commons ChamberI thank the right hon. Member for raising this case, and for all he is doing on behalf of Catherine and David—I hope they get some comfort from knowing that they have an MP working so hard on their behalf. It is a complex and difficult situation, but of course I will make sure that the relevant meetings are set up with the relevant Ministers to ensure the right hon. Member gets the answers he needs on behalf of his constituents.
The last time I went to my hon. Friend’s constituency I got to see the fantastic South Derbyshire college. I look forward to testing his proposition that he has the best pubs in his constituency on some future occasion. Pubs and breweries are such an important part of our culture and our communities. That is why the Budget delivered an £85 million per year tax cut for pubs, reducing the duty on a pint. We also delivered a 40% relief on business rates for next year, permanently lowering them the year after. We are protecting small businesses by more than doubling the employer allowance to £10,500.
(4 months, 3 weeks ago)
Commons ChamberWe introduced a Budget to fix the foundations of this country and to rebuild our country. One of the issues we had to confront was the £22 billion black hole left by the last Government. We have taken the tough decisions that will stabilise our economy. This means we can commit to the triple lock, which means that pensioners will be better off, seeing an increase in their pension, than they would have been under the Conservative party.
I thank my hon. Friend for his question. He is a champion for families in his constituency. My answer is simple: yes. I do not agree with the Leader of the Opposition when she says that maternity pay is excessive and has gone too far.