Oral Answers to Questions
Kemi Badenoch Excerpts(4 days, 21 hours ago)
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Mrs Kemi Badenoch (North West Essex) (Con)
May I take this opportunity to solemnly commemorate the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz? We remember the 6 million Jewish men, women and children who were murdered. The Holocaust stands as a unique evil in human history.
Yesterday the Prime Minister set his growth test. He said that if a policy is
“good for growth…the answer is ‘yes’, if it’s not then the answer is ‘no’.”
This morning the Chancellor embraced a series of Conservative policies. Although many are welcomed, they will take years to deliver. When the Conservatives left office, we had the fastest economic growth in the G7, but what are the Government doing for growth now? They are destroying it. Let us look at the employment Bill. The Government’s own figures say it will cost business £5 billion a year. It clearly fails the Prime Minister’s growth test. Will he drop it?
The Prime Minister
I think the proposition that the Conservatives left a golden inheritance was tested on 4 July, which is why they are standing over there.
The Leader of the Opposition asked what we are doing. The Office for National Statistics says that we have the highest investment for 19 years. PwC says that this is the second-best place to invest in the world. The International Monetary Fund has upgraded our growth, predicting that the UK will be the fastest-growing major economy in Europe. Wages are up and inflation is down. However, there is more to do. We are reforming planning and regulation, building the new homes that we need, and supporting a third runway at Heathrow. As the Leader of the Opposition admitted to the CBI in November,
“there is no point in me just complaining about Labour when it was obvious that we Conservatives lost the confidence of business.”
We are not taking lectures from them.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister does not want to talk about the employment Bill because he does not know about it. Last week he misled the House. He was not on top of his own Education Bill—
Mr Speaker
Order. We cannot accuse the Prime Minister of misleading the House. [Interruption.] We cannot do it. I am sure there are words that the Leader of the Opposition would prefer to use.
Mrs Badenoch
Last week, the Prime Minister claimed to have laid down an amendment that he had not made. He does not know what is going on in here or out there. Last week, I spoke to a woman running a business in Exeter. She is terrified of taking on new staff. She is struggling to keep her head above water, dreading what this Government will do next. She is not alone. The Federation of Small Businesses says 92% of small employers are concerned about the employment Bill. Clauses 1 to 6 make it harder for businesses to hire new employees—often young people looking for their first job. This is not an employment Bill; it is an unemployment Bill. Given these clauses, will he drop his Bill and show that he is not anti-growth?
The Prime Minister
We believe in giving people proper dignity and protection at work. That is why we are proud of our record on supporting workers. The Conservatives consistently vote against any protection for working people, and the Leader of the Opposition’s consistent refrain is that there should be less, but we are driving growth on behalf of working people. Good work rights are consistent with growth—every good business knows that. On top of planning reform, the building of houses and supporting aviation, the Chancellor this morning spoke of the Oxford-Cambridge growth corridor, redeveloping Old Trafford, and manufacturing at East Midlands airport. We want to grow the economy; the only policy the Leader of the Opposition has got is to shrink pensions.
Mrs Badenoch
All the Prime Minister’s ideas are the ones that we thought up. He needs to make sure that we deliver growth now, as well as in the future. To grow our economy, we must get more people off sickness and welfare, and into work. Clauses 8 and 9 of the unemployment Bill take us in the opposite direction by increasing entitlements. The Government themselves—his Government—estimate that these changes will increase business costs from £600 million to £1 billion a year in sick pay. That will mean higher prices, fewer jobs and less growth. Will he drop these measures from the Bill?
The Prime Minister
No. I think they are good for workers and good for growth. This is the same argument that the Conservatives made against the minimum wage and every protection for workers. The Leader of the Opposition says that they are their ideas. She says she supports a third runway at Heathrow. Her shadow Transport Secretary says that it would be “calamitous”. The shadow Business Secretary is busy writing letters opposing airport expansion in his own back yard. The shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury says the Oxford-Cambridge idea is “flawed” and he is against it. We are the coalition of builders; they are the coalition of blockers.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister forgets that his own Chancellor blocked an airport in her constituency. They are hypocrites.
Let us talk about the employment Bill. Part 1 of the Bill means that a new employee could start a job in the morning and take their employer to a tribunal that afternoon. It is no wonder that this Bill has been called an “adventure playground for lawyers”. This Bill is terrible for business, but it is great employment for lawyers. I know the Prime Minister loves the legal profession, but he needs to stop being a lawyer and start being a leader. This is another measure in the Bill that fails his growth test. Will he show some leadership and drop it?
The Prime Minister
I understand that the Leader of the Opposition likes straight talking: she is talking absolute nonsense. She knows, and anybody who understands anything about the Bill or any employment law will know, that you cannot start in the morning and go to a tribunal in the afternoon. We know she is not a lawyer, she is clearly not a leader, and if she keeps on like this, she is going to be the next lettuce.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister does not know what his Bill is doing. He should listen to business, which is terrified of this Bill. The only workers he cares about are lawyers, but it is not just lawyers benefiting from this Bill. Who else benefits? It is not taxpayers; they will be paying for even more welfare. It is not young workers; they will not get their first break. It is definitely not businesses; they are being hammered with yet more burdens. Who benefits? It is the trade unions. Part 4 of the unemployment Bill—[Interruption.] Labour Members have not read it. Part 4 of the unemployment Bill is the biggest expansion of trade union powers for a generation—[Interruption.] Exactly; thank you. The public will have heard them cheer. Rather than deregulating for business, which creates growth, he is deregulating for the unions. Clause 61 alone reduces the notice period for strikes to just one week. Given that strikes are catastrophic for growth, will he drop part 4 of the Bill?
The Prime Minister
It is good for working people, and it is good for the economy. The right hon. Lady should keep up: the CBI has welcomed our positive steps this morning. The Chancellor has given a brilliant speech on the economy, fixing the mess the Conservatives left and growing our economy, and the CBI has said it celebrates this
“positive leadership and a clear vision to kickstart the economy”.
That is the difference. We are growing the economy; the Conservatives left it in a complete mess.
Mrs Badenoch
The arrogance of the Prime Minister is that he thinks that it is his Government who create growth. He is wrong. It is business that creates growth. Our economy is built by entrepreneurs, risk-takers and the hard graft of working people. They know that you cannot tax your way to growth, you cannot borrow your way to growth, you cannot legislate your way to growth. Other countries are serious about freeing business from red tape. President Trump is doing it in America. Argentina is taking a chainsaw to regulations. Even the EU is not going as far as this left-wing Government. This Bill will put us at the bottom of the pack. Added to the jobs tax and the family business tax, it is no wonder that wealth creators are fleeing Britain in droves. The Chancellor is desperately trying to save her reputation. She knows Labour has damaged growth. This Bill manifestly fails the Prime Minister’s own growth test. If he will not drop the unemployment Bill, what is the point of his growth test?
The Prime Minister
The right hon. Lady has got a nerve. The Conservatives broke the economy and completely destroyed it. They broke the health service and completely destroyed it. They ruined the prisons and everything else you can mention. They failed on every front. They are in no position to give us lectures on anything. She says that she accepts they failed and they are changing, but they have learned absolutely nothing.
Oral Answers to Questions
Kemi Badenoch Excerpts(1 month, 3 weeks ago)
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Mrs Kemi Badenoch (North West Essex) (Con)
Last week, the Prime Minister did not seem to want to talk about appointing fraudsters to his Cabinet. In fact, he seemed to want to talk about immigration, so let us talk about immigration. He has relaunched yet again, with many new targets, six milestones and five missions, but why was cutting immigration not a priority?
The Prime Minister
I am glad that the Leader of the Opposition now wants to talk about immigration. Last week, she said that she did not want to—and for good reason, because the previous Government presided over record high levels of immigration. The figures just a few weeks ago showed net migration of nearly 1 million. That is unprecedented—a one nation experiment in open borders under the last Government. She was the champion; she stood up and praised the then Tory Home Secretary for listening to her on removing caps on migration visas. She was applauding it. Now, she is furious about what she was campaigning for. We will drive down lawful migration; we will drive down illegal migration.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister talks about open borders, but he was the one campaigning for free movement. I was, in this House, asking for a lift in skilled migration; he was supporting all the people who should not have been in this country. He wanted us to relax immigration, but as he is so keen to talk about the past, let us look at his record. Four years ago, the Prime Minister signed a letter demanding that foreign criminals be allowed to stay in Britain. Dozens of Labour and Liberal Democrat MPs repeatedly signed these letters, insisting that rapists and murderers be allowed to stay here. One of those criminals, Ernesto Elliott, had 17 convictions, including for knife crime. After his deportation was blocked, Elliott went on to murder someone. He was able to stay here and murder because people like this man campaigned against deporting criminals. Will he apologise for signing these letters?
The Prime Minister
First, I remind the Leader of the Opposition that the number of migrants coming to this country under her Government’s watch—nearly 1 million—was over four times the number who did so when we were in the EU. They lost control of the borders, and the particular example she puts to me is an example of failure, under her Government, to take the necessary measures to keep our country safe.
Mrs Badenoch
That is a ludicrous assertion. The Prime Minister is the one who was repeatedly signing those letters. He even asked us to pause all deportations. He does not want to talk about his past, but that letter is just the tip of the iceberg; there is more. The Prime Minister actually complained that the immigration system was working to
“deter migrants rather than provide support.”
He said that he was
“proud to have served as Jeremy’s Shadow Immigration Minister”.
He boasted that he
“took the last Labour Government to court for cutting benefits for asylum seekers”,
and said that he would never take
“a target-based approach to immigration.”
If he wants to talk about immigration, let us talk about his record; we can talk about it all day. The Prime Minister says that he wants to talk about immigration. I have committed to a cap on migration—why won’t he?
The Prime Minister
The Leader of the Opposition talks about my record. For five years, I was the chief prosecutor, prosecuting people who went to prison, many of whom were then deported. While she was talking, I was actually doing the hard yards, convicting those who should be in prison. She presided over record numbers of asylum seekers in this country—a record number of lawful and irregular migrants—in 14 years in which her Government lost control of the borders. They set a cap for each of those 14 years, but it was not hard, it did not stop people coming, and they got a record number. They should apologise for what they have done with their open borders policy.
Mr Speaker
Order. Does the hon. Member interrupting want to leave? If you have not got the guts to stand up to the comments, you should not be in here.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister did not answer a single question. He never answers questions. He wants to talk about the past; the fact is that we have acknowledged where things went wrong, but he will never take responsibility. He has scrapped a deterrent that the National Crime Agency said we need. Since he came into government and scrapped the Rwanda deterrent, small boats arrivals have increased by nearly 20%. His own MPs are complaining about having to house asylum seekers, so can the Prime Minister tell the House how much more his Government will spend on hotel accommodation because he scrapped the deterrent?
The Prime Minister
I am invited to tell the House what went wrong under the last Government—that would take us all afternoon. We are going to smash the gangs that are running this vile trade. We signed a landmark agreement with Germany this week. [Interruption.]
The Prime Minister
This week, we signed a landmark agreement with Germany. The Leader of the Opposition should welcome that, because it will make sure that we have the powers to take enforcement action across the continent, where it is needed. We have set up the Border Security Command; we have committed £75 million on top of the existing £75 million; and we are extending the powers, so that they are like counter-terrorism powers. We have returned 9,400 people who should not be here. A record flight got off. The Opposition talk about getting flights off, and have done for years, but they did not succeed. We got the flights off.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister says that he wants to smash the gangs; the only thing he has smashed is his own reputation. What he has been agreeing is not going to do anything. The cost of the Iraq agreement is half a million pounds. That would not even buy a house in his constituency. Many of the things that he is taking credit for are our agreements. Let us talk about what he put in his manifesto. The Prime Minister promised to end asylum hotels. He promised, and he is Prime Minister now. But in Altrincham and Peterborough, his Government are expanding the use of asylum hotels, because he unilaterally disarmed the deterrent. In fact, a man who arrived by small boat told Sky News he was “happy” Labour was in power. That man said the Conservatives
“wanted to deport us”
but Labour is
“making the procedure easier for us”.
He is right, isn’t he?
The Prime Minister
The Leader of the Opposition should welcome the Iraq deal. Anybody who wants to deal with this vile trade would have welcomed it. She should also welcome the German deal that we did this week. Many of the boats that are finding their way to the channel are coming through Germany. That is well documented. There has been a difficulty in taking enforcement action, which, if she spent more time researching that than her terrible jokes, she would know about. We have signed an agreement to take enforcement action in Germany to stop those boats getting to the coast. That is effective action. She should welcome it; it is really good news. All law enforcement thinks that it is a good thing. Why does she think it is a bad thing?
Mrs Badenoch
Because the numbers are going up, under his watch. The Prime Minister has consistently backed criminals over law-abiding British people. He defended terrorists like Hizb ut-Tahrir in the European Court. He argued that “all immigration law” had a “racist undercurrent”. He voted against life sentences for people smugglers. He voted against more than 100 measures to control migration. He even said it was wrong when the Conservatives took away Shamima Begum’s citizenship. Now he has appointed her defence lawyer as his Attorney General. Events in Syria mean that we may see more small boat arrivals. For once, will he take the side of the British people, and strip citizenship from jihadi terrorists and supporters of Assad who want to come back and destroy this country?
The Prime Minister
I was Director of Public Prosecutions for five years. Unlike anyone on the Conservatives’ Benches, for five years, I was prosecuting hundreds of thousands of criminals. That includes huge terrorist gangs and rapists. For three of those five years, I was working with the then Home Secretary, Theresa May, who commended the work that I did at the end of those five years. The Leader of the Opposition stands there and says that I have not done anything in law enforcement; I dedicated five years of my life to law enforcement, and locking up criminals, which is more than she can say.
It would be easier to take the Opposition seriously if they actually got serious—not a sliver of remorse, not a hint of contrition. It is like the arsonist complaining about the people who are trying to put the fire out. All they do is come every week with more and more complaints. Just wait till they get their hands on the people who created the mess that we are clearing up. We are fixing the economy; we are ending their open borders policy; and we are taking down the waiting lists. That is what people voted for; we are delivering it.
Oral Answers to Questions
Kemi Badenoch Excerpts(2 months, 3 weeks ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Watch Debate Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Mrs Kemi Badenoch (North West Essex) (Con)
I thank the Prime Minister for his almost warm welcome. I echo the comments he has made. It is an immense privilege and the honour of my life to lead the Conservative party. I look forward to joining him at the Cenotaph this Remembrance Sunday.
As Leader of His Majesty’s Opposition, I will be taking a different approach to the last Opposition, by being a constructive Opposition, so I would like to start by congratulating President-elect Trump on his impressive victory this morning. The Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary met him in September. Did the Foreign Secretary take that opportunity to apologise for making derogatory and scatological references, including
“Trump is not only a woman-hating, neo-Nazi-sympathising sociopath. He is also a profound threat to the international order”?
If he did not apologise, will the Prime Minister do so now, on his behalf?
The Prime Minister
There will be many issues on which the Leader of the Opposition and I disagree, but there will be issues that unite this House, on national security and Ukraine. I look forward to working closely with her on that. I will provide her with the information that she needs to discharge her duties. That is the right thing for the country and it is far more important than party politics. The Foreign Secretary and I did meet President-elect Trump, just a few weeks ago, for dinner, for about a couple of hours. We discussed a number of issues of global significance. It was a very constructive exercise.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister did not distance himself from the remarks made by the Foreign Secretary, and I am very sure that President Trump will soon be calling to thank him for sending all of those north London Labour activists to campaign for his opponent. Given that most of his Cabinet signed a motion to ban President Trump from addressing Parliament, will the Prime Minister show that he and his Government can be more than student politicians by asking the Speaker to extend—[Interruption.]
Mr Speaker
Order. Mr Perkins, I do not need any more. Your voice carries; it is like mine—too loud.
Mrs Badenoch
Will the Prime Minister show that he and his Government can be more than student politicians by asking you, Mr Speaker, to extend an invitation to President Trump to address Parliament on his next visit?
The Prime Minister
The Leader of the Opposition is giving a masterclass on student politics! But seriously, we live in probably a more volatile world than we have lived in for many decades. It is absolutely crucial that we have a strong relationship—that strong, special relationship, forged in difficult circumstances—between the US and the UK. We will continue to work, as we have done in our four months in government, on issues of security, our economy and global conflict.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister does not answer the questions; he just reads the lines the officials have prepared for him. It does not sound like he wants to invite President-elect Trump to Parliament. He needs to look after the special relationship. The US is our single biggest trade partner. Given the risk of increased tariffs on UK exports, which threatens our manufacturing sector, will the Prime Minister commit now to continuing the negotiations on our free trade agreement with the US, which the Biden Administration cancelled when they came into office?
The Prime Minister
Of course we will discuss issues of our economy with the President-elect, as we already have done. Economy, security and global conflict are issues of real significance that ought to unite this House. When it comes to the economy, what we have done with our Budget is to fix the foundations after 14 years, and return economic stability after the £22 billion black hole. We have protected the payslips of working people. We have made the single biggest investment in our country for a generation in the NHS, schools and homes. We have given a pay rise to the 3 million lowest paid. If the Leader of the Opposition is opposed to that investment or the pay rise for working people—she is a straight talker, as I understand it—perhaps she should say so.
Mrs Badenoch
Discuss, discuss, discuss; chat, chat, chat—the Prime Minister has no plans whatsoever for building on the special relationship. He needs to realise that we in this country rely on our single biggest trade partner. President Trump is also right to argue that Europe needs to increase its defence spending. The last Conservative Government committed to raising defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2030. Will the Prime Minister finally match that commitment?
The Prime Minister
There is no more important duty than keeping the people of this country safe. It was the Labour Government who signed the NATO treaty in the first place, and we are strong supporters. We have a strategic defence review, and we are committed to 2.5%. [Interruption.] I remind Conservative Members that the last time 2.5% was met was under the last Labour Government. Fourteen years, and they never did it once. Last year, the National Audit Office identified a £17 billion black hole in the Ministry of Defence finances. The former Defence Secretary said that the previous Government “hollowed out” the armed forces. The plan that the Conservatives put forward at the election was pure fantasy.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister will not make that commitment; that is very clear. All that he is doing —[Interruption.]
Mr Speaker
Order. I am going to hear the questions. If there are people who do not want to hear them, they can leave now.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister will not make that commitment, yet the world is getting more dangerous. His Chancellor’s Budget did not even mention defence. The Chancellor’s Budget last week was a copy and paste of Bidenomics. It turns out that a high-spending, high-borrowing and high-inflation approach is less popular than she may have thought. May I suggest that he now urges her to change course, or is he determined to be a one-term leader?
The Prime Minister
The one thing that I learned as Leader of the Opposition is that it is a good idea to listen to what the Government are actually saying. I think the right hon. Lady just said that defence was not mentioned in the Budget. It was seven days ago that it was absolutely clear and central to the Budget, as was economic growth. We are fixing the foundations. We are giving a pay rise to millions of people. We are picking up the mess that the Conservatives left, including the £22 billion black hole, and giving a pay rise to working people. I have not yet heard her welcome that pay rise for the 3 million lowest paid workers. Does she now welcome it, or does she stick to her previous policy that it is excessive?
Mrs Badenoch
I was the one who, as Business Secretary, raised the minimum wage last year; I have a strong record on this. We need to make sure that we balance the books. The Prime Minister’s scripted lines show that he has not even listened to the Budget himself, so I will try a different question. Perhaps he can give something that is unscripted to the people who are watching.
Farmers across the United Kingdom—[Laughter.] Mr Speaker—[Interruption.]
Mr Speaker
Order. I do not need any help. If anybody wants to leave, I will help them do that. I am going to hear the question, and I certainly want to hear the answer as well, so, please, let us have some courtesy.
Mrs Badenoch
We have heard the Prime Minister on television repeat the lines “fixing the foundations” and so on, over and over again, but what does he say to farmers who are facing uncertainty about their futures as a result of the increased taxes announced by the Chancellor? I am very clear that we would reverse Labour’s cruel family farms tax. [Hon. Members: “Reading!”] What can he say now to reassure the farming community —[Hon. Members: “Reading!”]—who provide security for the whole nation?
The Prime Minister
I am happy to help the Leader of the Opposition. If she is going to complain about scripted answers, it is probably best not to read that from a script! [Hon. Members: “More!”] I am glad that she raised the issue of farmers, because the Budget last week put £5 billion over the next two years into farming. That is the single biggest increase, unlike the £300 million underspend under the last Government. When it comes to inheritance, the vast, vast majority of farmers will be unaffected, as she and her party well know.
The Budget was about fixing the foundations, fixing the £22 billion hole that the Conservatives left and investing in the future of our country—investing in our NHS, our schools, our hospitals and our homes. I am proud that we are making that investment. If the Opposition oppose it, they should go out there and tell their constituents that they are against that investment in the future of our country. That is the difference: a Labour Government taking us forward; the Conservatives are stuck in the past.