Business of the House

Kirsten Oswald Excerpts

Thursday 18th April 2024 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

First, let me thank my hon. Friend for all the work she is doing to ensure that this new HQ is established quickly. I know that a lot of close working has been undertaken with Derby-based partners, including the city council, to create a shared plan for that HQ, and that she has been diligent and has been tabling written parliamentary questions on this matter. I shall ensure that the Secretary of State has heard her continuing campaigning on it today. She will know that the next Transport questions will take place on 16 May, which will be after that timetable has been confirmed.

[Kirsten Oswald (East Renfrewshire) (SNP)]

I have been dealing with a long-running case involving constituents who lost their investment in the Paradise Golf and Beach Resort in Morocco. Some 800 investors, the majority of them British, lost investments in the resort after construction abruptly halted in 2016. I have contacted the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office numerous times, as well as writing to the relevant ambassadors. The FCDO confirmed the Moroccan ambassador’s willingness to meet investors, but no meeting has been arranged to date. May we have a debate in Government time on how the FCDO can best support those, such as my constituents, who have been left high and dry in this situation?

[Penny Mordaunt]

I am sorry to hear about that situation and will of course make sure that the FCDO knows that the hon. Lady has asked about it again today. The next questions to the ministerial team will be on 30 April, so I shall make sure that they have heard that she might raise the issue then. If my office can facilitate getting either consular assistance or more long- term assistance for those investors, please do call on us.

Business of the House

Kirsten Oswald Excerpts

Thursday 7th March 2024 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

As the hon. Gentleman asked that question and revealed the full extent of his constituent’s incredible achievement, there was an audible gasp, so I am sure the whole House will want to join him in congratulating his constituent on those amazing achievements. I am close to HMS Oardacious, the Royal Navy’s rowing team, which regularly rows the Atlantic, so I am very familiar with the incredible ordeal that that is. Doing it at 70 years old is utterly remarkable, and I congratulate Frank deeply. I also thank the hon. Gentleman for raising his concerns about provision and care for those suffering from Alzheimer’s. I shall make sure that the Health Secretary has heard what he has said.

[Kirsten Oswald (East Renfrewshire) (SNP)]

I welcomed the Chancellor’s announcement that he would be taxing vaping products, but I wonder why on earth this has to be left until 2026. It is disappointing that in the same week that Laura Young, also known as Less Waste Laura, was named as Scottish influencer of the year for her fantastic environmental campaigning, including on banning disposable vapes, this important tax measure has been so resoundingly kicked into the long grass. I am sure that the House would want to join me in congratulating Laura, but may we also have a debate in Government time on the imperative of moving with more speed on taxing vapes? Perhaps we will also be able to make time to discuss the wholly unacceptable practice of vaping companies sponsoring sports strips.

[Penny Mordaunt]

I thank the hon. Lady for getting her concerns on the record. I will raise that matter with both the Treasury and the Health Secretary. The hon. Lady will also know that we are also hoping to bring forward legislation shortly, which I am sure, given what she said, she would be happy to support.

Business of the House

Kirsten Oswald Excerpts

Thursday 14th September 2023 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

The hon. Gentleman will know that SEN provision is a priority for this Government. We have made many improvements to it and increased funding to more than £10 billion in this coming financial year. It is critical that people get provision in a timely way and that children are not waiting, but are able to access education at the start of the school year or when they are due to go into a new school. As I said in a previous answer, given that Education questions are a little time away, I will ensure that the Secretary of State hears what the hon. Gentleman has said today.

[Kirsten Oswald (East Renfrewshire) (SNP)]

I am sure the Leader of the House will join me in welcoming the fact that John Lewis, Tesco and Marks & Spencer are reducing the price of period pants. It is particularly important when we know that 25% of women say the cost is a barrier to them using those products. Obviously it would be better if we could reclassify period pants as a period product, thus ditching the value added tax, as the “Say Pants to the Tax” campaign asks. May we have a debate in Government time on removing VAT on period pants, making them a more sustainable way of dealing with periods, saving women money and giving them more choices, and taking all possible steps to end period poverty?

[Penny Mordaunt]

I think people would view those items as essential products. The hon. Lady will know how to apply for a debate, but I also suggest that she writes to the Chancellor about this in advance of the autumn statement.

Business of the House

Kirsten Oswald Excerpts

Thursday 6th July 2023 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

I congratulate my hon. Friend on getting this investment into her constituency and on not only putting its origins on the record on the Floor of the House, but doing so in front of the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities—she has done herself proud. I always try to find positive ways forward, so perhaps I can suggest that she goes to her local authority and suggests an alternative plaque that says, “Regeneration of Holyhead was made possible because of UK taxpayers.” I think that is something we could all agree on.

[Kirsten Oswald (East Renfrewshire) (SNP)]

The motherhood pay penalty means that mothers with two children take home 26% less income than women without children. A report by the Fawcett Society shows that the pay penalty hits black and minoritised women the hardest, with the intersection of sexism and racism compounding disadvantage. There is more than enough evidence of the need to take serious action to deal with these inequalities—for instance, by making flexible work the default, specifically by means of an advertising duty, and by making ethnicity pay gap reporting mandatory for employers with more than 100 employees. Can we have a debate in Government time on the implications for women of the UK Government’s refusal to do those things?

[Penny Mordaunt]

I thank the hon. Lady for her question, but I do have to correct her, because the Government Equalities Office and other areas of Government are doing those things. We have had pioneering work on highlighting the gender pay gap, and huge amounts of work went on in the race disparity audit, so those things are looked at. However, if the hon. Lady is really concerned about cost of living issues for particular households, the Scottish Government might like to consider their tax policies.

Privilege: Conduct of Right Hon. Boris Johnson

Kirsten Oswald Excerpts

Monday 19th June 2023 Commons Chamber

[Lia Nici]

No, I will not give way at the moment. Those people advised the then Prime Minister again and again that no rules were broken and that guidance was followed at all times. Everybody in this place knows that no Minister stands at the Dispatch Box and knowingly misleads. They have to take counsel from people who advise them, many of whom are giving legal advice that they know to be the truth, but the public do not necessarily know that that is the case. If you are a Prime Minister and you are advised in that way again and again, no matter how you question that advice, you have to stand at the Dispatch Box and give those statements, because that is what you have been legally advised to do. People may not like that, but that is the truth, and that is why I am standing here and saying this.

The sad thing is, many people who gave that advice are still working in and around No. 10 and Whitehall, but we do not know who they are because they are not a high-profile politician.

[Kirsten Oswald (East Renfrewshire) (SNP)]

I wonder whether the hon. Lady might reflect that it sounds like she is trying to deflect blame from Boris Johnson and put it on to unelected members of staff, and that people here and people at home may find that, to put it mildly, rather unedifying.

[Lia Nici]

I thank the hon. Lady. What I would say, actually, is that I have had the privilege to work with many unelected officials—special advisers and civil servants —who have been professional, worked hard and been good at giving accurate advice, but, from the evidence in the report, we all know that there were those who did not. We cannot shy away from that; we know that is the case.

Business of the House

Kirsten Oswald Excerpts

Thursday 25th May 2023 Commons Chamber

[Kirsten Oswald (East Renfrewshire) (SNP)]

Can we have a debate in Government time about how MPs, in dealing with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and the Home Office, are expected to support constituents in the face of obfuscation, confusion, delay and worse, including the wrong person’s passport being sent out, when all those constituents are trying to do is to get their wee baby home from Pakistan to Scotland? I am really scunnered about this. Can the right hon. Lady tell me how support can be better provided in such cases, where there is clearly additional vulnerability and real pressure on those involved? Can she suggest any additional avenues that I can pursue to help my constituents, as I have already gone down all the roads that one would expect?

[Penny Mordaunt]

I am sorry to hear that the hon. Lady’s constituents are having difficulty in getting the relevant support. She says that she has accessed all available opportunities to assist. Has she made use of the surgeries that the Home Office provides and the consular service that the Foreign Office provides? Perhaps if she gives my office a little more detail, I shall see what the best route will be, but having dealt with officials in those Departments who are standing up those services, I know they are doing an amazing job and that they would want to help her constituents.

Business of the House

Kirsten Oswald Excerpts

Thursday 11th May 2023 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

I thank the hon. Lady for affording us all the opportunity to say thank you to those many people involved in such amazing music, not only for the celebration, but at other events associated with it—of course, I should not forget the music that would be being enjoyed in every church in the land on the following day. Our choral traditions are unique in this country and are enshrined in the background and pipeline of people who come forward to organisations such as the BBC Singers. I am sure that this is a topic of concern to many and if she were to apply for a debate, it would be well attended.

[Kirsten Oswald (East Renfrewshire) (SNP)]

Next week is Christian Aid Week. This year, the focus of the week is on women farmers in Malawi and the challenges they are facing because of climate change and the consequent impact on the cost of living. Since 1957, Christian Aid has worked with thousands of churches and individuals including in East Renfrewshire, my constituency, which was in the top 10% of areas supporting Christian Aid Week last year. Can we have a debate in Government time on the value of the work that Christian Aid and all its volunteers do in countries across the world where there is such need and on how Government can support that need by acting to make sure that the most vulnerable in the world are properly supported?

[Penny Mordaunt]

I thank the hon. Lady for reminding us all about Christian Aid Week and for highlighting the many good works that the charity does with those donations. She will know that there are initiatives at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office that allow tax breaks for donations, and also initiatives such as Aid Match and others that maximise and incentivise people to donate on these occasions. I thank her for reminding the House of this important week coming up.

Business of the House

Kirsten Oswald Excerpts

Thursday 9th March 2023 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

I congratulate the hon. Lady on the incredible campaign that she has mounted to ensure that Leigh-on-Sea and Chalkwell are prioritised. I cannot disclose when that will be announced, but I hope that it will be soon. If she is successful in that hope, I think it will be in great part thanks to her making an excellent case.

[Kirsten Oswald (East Renfrewshire) (SNP)]

The Financial Times has identified that 90% of vape and vape juice producers in the UK seem to be failing to comply with environmental regulations. That is in the context of all of the disposable single-use vapes sold in the UK containing enough lithium in their batteries for more than 2,500 electric vehicles, and enough copper for more than 370,000 home electric vehicle charging stations, according to its research. But what happens? They are thrown away. They are littered. Even those that are put in the bin cannot be recycled properly. That is before we even get to the question of how they are marketed, which ASH Scotland—Action on Smoking and Health—has rightly raised.

The Scottish Government have commissioned an urgent review into reusable vapes. Can we have a statement or debate, in Government time, on whether this Government will deal with the issue with equal urgency?

[Penny Mordaunt]

I thank the hon. Lady for raising this important point. Given that Question Time sessions for the two Departments primarily concerned with this issue are a little way off, I shall write on her behalf and ask a Secretary of State to respond.

Business of the House

Kirsten Oswald Excerpts

Thursday 23rd February 2023 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for giving all of us in this House the opportunity to thank all those organisations and the individuals behind them who are doing so much. We sometimes forget that those organisations have to adapt services. We all wish that the Ukraine war will be brought to an end swiftly. The needs of people who have been here for coming up to a year are quite different from when they first arrived; those organisations are constantly listening and adapting their service and offer. I am incredibly proud of them and everything our communities are doing to support not just Ukraine but many other places around the world where people are fleeing terror and war.

[Kirsten Oswald (East Renfrewshire) (SNP)]

Today, 23 February, marks 54 days since the beginning of the year. It is the day on which women, on average, will find that they start being paid, because the gender pay gap between women and men currently sits at nearly 15%. A TUC study shows that the gender pay gap widens dramatically after women have children. It identifies that flexible working, including making family and caring leave work more effectively, is key to changing that. Presumably an employment Bill would be really helpful in changing the situation, but the Government are singularly unwilling to go down that road and put the focus on fairer work, as the Scottish Government have done. Can we have a debate in Government time on why fairer work matters, why the gender pay gap matters, and what can be done to ensure that this is changed once and for all?

[Penny Mordaunt]

The hon. Lady raises a very important point. I penned the gender equality road map for this Government, which looks at the impact, at every stage of a woman’s life, of the inequalities women face. We have introduced many measures off the back of that road map. The hon. Lady will know that we have recently been focusing on carers, and ensuring that they have more flexibility in their work. We are also focussed on ensuring people have the right to flexible working. If the hon. Lady wants to improve the situation in Scotland, then Scotland has all the powers it needs to do that.

Business of the House

Kirsten Oswald Excerpts

Thursday 12th January 2023 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

My hon. Friend raises an important matter. He will know that we introduced fixed penalty notices in 2016, which gave councils the means to take swift action, and we have introduced fixed penalties for householders who give their waste to people who then go on to fly-tip. We had DEFRA questions earlier, so I will write to the Department on his behalf to raise this issue and encourage it to get in touch with his office.

[Kirsten Oswald (East Renfrewshire) (SNP)]

May we have a debate on the proposal by McGill’s Buses to withdraw the No. 52 Barrhead circular service? It is a lifeline service for so many people in the town, connecting communities to shops, community organisations, the library, doctors’ surgeries and so on. The timing of the withdrawal announcement was deeply disappointing and it lacked any details about why this important and well used service would be withdrawn. In addition, I have presented a parliamentary petition. Does the Leader of the House agree with me that the significant work done by Rena McGuire, a community activist, in securing about 600 signatures to date on that public petition is testament to the way people in Barrhead value this service, and McGill’s should listen and change its plans?

[Penny Mordaunt]

I join the hon. Lady in paying tribute to her constituent, Rena, who has worked so hard to raise awareness of this important service. I think the answer she is seeking will be with her local authority, and I assume she has already got in contact with it. However, I will take some advice, and see if there are other things the hon. Lady can do to try to ensure that this service is maintained.