Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Keir Starmer and Stephen Gethins

Wednesday 11th March 2026 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising that devastating incident for Glasgow. My thoughts, and I am sure everybody’s thoughts, are with those who have seen their businesses and their livelihoods destroyed. I thank the emergency services, which responded so quickly to the situation. The people of Glasgow have seen far too many historic buildings suffer terrible fires over the last few years. We are investing to protect heritage buildings in England, but we will keep a careful eye on the situation that he raises.

[Stephen Gethins (Arbroath and Broughty Ferry) (SNP)]

Q10. Yesterday in the Welsh Senedd, its Members called out a secret Whitehall memo that showed this Government’s attitude to devolution: a muscular Unionism that Boris Johnson would have been proud of. When Scottish and Welsh voters go to the polls, will the Prime Minister respect their decision? What is it about those elections that so seems to terrify him at the moment?

[The Prime Minister]

I will not make any apologies for spending more money in Scotland or in Wales to improve people’s lives. There has been record investment under this Government into Scotland. The question is: where’s the money gone, John?

Middle East

Debate between Keir Starmer and Stephen Gethins

Monday 2nd March 2026 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

We have been very clear: the future of Iran must be for the Iranian people, and in the end the question of nuclear weapons will have to be negotiated. We will always ultimately have to get to that point.

[Stephen Gethins (Arbroath and Broughty Ferry) (SNP)]

The Prime Minister will understand why the ghosts of Iraq hang heavy over the Chamber at times like this. On that basis, does he agree that the best rebuke to the murderers in Tehran and the Iranian regime is the maintenance of the international rules-based system? More than that, we owe it to the people across the region to learn from the instability in the aftermath of Iraq, so what is the long-term viable plan?

[The Prime Minister]

We do need to learn the lessons of history. That is why the rules-based system is important. It is also what allows us to make arrangements to get our citizens home and to deal with other matters in conjunction with other countries. On the basis of the decision that I took last night, the plan is to take the necessary measures to protect British nationals. We are clear that, in the end, there has to be de-escalation and a return to negotiation.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Keir Starmer and Stephen Gethins

Wednesday 25th February 2026 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

We inherited the highest industrial energy costs in Europe because of the failed policy of the Conservative party. Our British industry supercharger is cutting bills for major industries, but my hon. Friend is right to champion SMEs as well. I can confirm that we will appoint Ofgem to regulate and stamp out exploitation by third-party intermediaries, helping to reduce bills, and I will make sure that she gets a meeting with Ministers to discuss the issues that she has raised with me.

[Stephen Gethins (Arbroath and Broughty Ferry) (SNP)]

Even the embarrassingly loyal Scottish Labour party seems to have lost confidence in the Prime Minister. I say to the Prime Minister, “Please don’t let that put you off coming and campaigning in Scotland on your Government’s record,” but can he tell us why it is that those who were so close to him have abandoned him, given the Government’s record?

[The Prime Minister]

I remember when SNP Members used to sit down here on the Front Bench, did they not, before the election, and now they sit up there, because we won the general election in 2024 with a landslide majority.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Keir Starmer and Stephen Gethins

Wednesday 3rd September 2025 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I think the whole House is sorry to hear about the awful fires that my hon. Friend’s constituents have faced, including the destruction of St Mungo’s. I know just how important that church was to the local community. The Scottish Government have received the largest settlement in the history of devolution—£50 billion a year. That should be focused on the issues that matter to her constituency. I will take this up, and make sure that we raise it with the Scottish Government.

[Stephen Gethins (Arbroath and Broughty Ferry) (SNP)]

Q7. First of all, I refer to my comments earlier in the week, since the Prime Minister’s research is not up to scratch. George Reid, a former Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament and MP, passed away over the summer. He was a humanitarian to his very fingertips. He abhorred the demonisation of asylum seekers, including those desperate enough to cross the channel in small boats. Figures published by the House of Commons Library show that the number of asylum seekers who are forced to cross increased dramatically after Brexit, as a result of our leaving the Dublin regulation. Instead of punching down and joining in with the victim blaming of Reform and the Conservatives, will the Prime Minister reject their isolationism and look to rejoin the Dublin convention, which every other country in western Europe has joined?

[The Prime Minister]

There is nothing progressive about people crossing the channel in small boats—nothing at all. We need to ensure that that stops.

I agree with the hon. Gentleman on the question of the Dublin agreement. We had a returns agreement with the whole of Europe, but it was ripped up when we left the EU by people who made promises that that would not be the case. We are rebuilding that relationship—we have reset it—and we now have a returns agreement with France. We would not need a single returns scheme with France if we had not ripped up the Dublin agreement.

NATO and European Political Community Meetings

Debate between Keir Starmer and Stephen Gethins

Monday 22nd July 2024 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I am very pleased to hear that, and to be able to make that clear commitment. But I want to emphasise that this is the continuation of the work of the previous Government, which we fully supported before and fully support now. What is also important for our communities, and certainly important for the international community, is to see the unity that we have been able to maintain here in this Chamber. The world watches in relation to our unity and it is important therefore that we maintain it as we go forward.

[Stephen Gethins (Arbroath and Broughty Ferry) (SNP)]

May I also add my personal congratulations to the Prime Minister on his election win?

The international rules-based system is the cornerstone of peace and security. The Prime Minister talks of a ceasefire in Gaza and the application of the rule of law. What measures is he willing to take to make sure that is implemented? Furthermore, being outside the EU makes us less safe. The populists who want us to turn away from the EU and towards Trump-style isolationism are playing straight into Putin’s hands, so what are we doing to get closer to the EU?

[The Prime Minister]

In relation to a ceasefire, obviously talks are under way at quite an advanced stage and we have already urged all sides in the international discussions that I have had to move forward on a ceasefire, because without a ceasefire it is very difficult to envisage the circumstances in which further hostages can come out safely and aid can go in at the scale that is desperately needed. Also, a ceasefire can be a foot in the door for the beginning of a process, however remote it may seem at the moment, to a two-state solution. In relation to the EU, we have a shared interest in safety and security with our EU allies and that was very much the topic of discussion we had at the EPC summit last week.