Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Andrew Bridgen

Tuesday 19th December 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I call Jim Shannon—oh, sorry, Andrew Bridgen.

[Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Reclaim)]

Thank you very much for doing the funnies, Mr Speaker.

Freeports can certainly be a catalyst of economic growth and prosperity in north Wales and the east midlands, but they must be in the right place. Putting a freeport in North West Leicestershire, which already enjoys some of the highest economic growth in the country, has low unemployment, and is capable of filling its industrial sites without incentives, makes little sense. Will the Chancellor agree to meet me to discuss better alternatives for the east midlands than the Diseworth freeport site?

Security Update

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Andrew Bridgen

Monday 11th September 2023 Commons Chamber

[Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Reclaim)]

I thank the Deputy Prime Minister for his statement. I am sensitive to the restrictions on both the questions and the answers, but we know—these facts are in the public domain—that two individuals have been arrested on suspicion of working for a hostile power and that they were parliamentary passholders. Their passes will have been sponsored by individuals who are probably in this Chamber, and they passed the security vetting for a parliamentary pass. Does the Deputy Prime Minister agree that in due course—not today—an important question will have to be answered: were they recruited by the hostile power before or after they became passholders?

[Mr Speaker]

Order. We must be careful what detail we go into, and I know the Deputy Prime Minister is aware of that.

Business of the House

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Andrew Bridgen

Thursday 23rd February 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I call Andrew Bridgen.

[Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Ind)]

Thank you, Mr Speaker—[Interruption.] When they have finished.

The World Health Organisation pandemic treaty is deeply concerning. It seeks to give the discredited WHO huge powers over this country and our people—powers to call pandemics, enforce lockdowns and vaccinations, and decide when any pandemic is over. Can we have an urgent debate on that proposed treaty, which, if passed, will take accountability, democracy and sovereignty from our constituents and hand them over to unelected and discredited bureaucrats? That would be the antithesis of Brexit itself.

[Penny Mordaunt]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. That is an excellent topic for a debate, and I will certainly make his views known, both to the Department of Health and Social Care and to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, which looks after many of the international organisations involved. As we know from the pandemic and from other outbreaks such as Ebola, such diseases know no borders. It is only through international co-operation and collaboration that we will arrive at solutions to ensure that we do not have a repeat of the last few years, and that everyone in the world is safe from those terrible diseases.

Points of Order

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Andrew Bridgen

Thursday 12th October 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mr Deputy Speaker (Mr Lindsay Hoyle)]

As the hon. Gentleman is aware, that is not really a matter for the Chair. It is the responsibility of each Member to make things accurate when they make mistakes. Members do inadvertently make mistakes, but that has been corrected and it is certainly now on the record.

[Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)]

On a point of order, Mr Deputy Speaker. I seek clarification on an issue of parliamentary protocol. On Monday, the Speaker felt the need to admonish me as I left the Chamber while the leader of the Scottish National party in this place was on his feet responding to the Prime Minister’s statement. As I understand it, Members are allowed to leave the Chamber as long as they do not break the line of sight between the Speaker’s Chair and the Member who is on their feet. As I left along the line of the Government Benches, it is difficult to see how I could have broken that rule. Therefore, I seek clarification on this, for my benefit and that of other Members who might wish to leave a crowded Chamber.

[Mr Deputy Speaker]

I was not in the Chair at the time and I have no idea what happened, but I am sure Mr Speaker would not get things wrong. If there was a mistake, it would have been a genuine mistake, as all these things are in the Chamber.