Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Monday 21st October 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

The respected and celebrated president of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, Mrs Madeleine Moon.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

During visits with the NATO PA and, indeed, the Select Committee on Defence to Finland, Norway and Sweden, I have noted their highly selective and competitive attempts to recruit young people to national service schemes, to the armed forces, and Government defence agencies. Those are much sought-after schemes in all those countries, and are highly effective not only in recruiting young people but in retaining them in the reserves. May I ask the Minister to look at Elizabeth Braw’s excellent article on this in The RUSI Journal, and will he look at that as an example for the UK?

US Troop Withdrawal from Northern Syria

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Tuesday 8th October 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

For the benefit of those observing our proceedings, let me explain that I now call the president of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, otherwise known as President Moon.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

I thank the Minister for his statement, which has been very clear. He said that the issue has now moved into diplomatic discussions; this weekend, and over the next few days, it will also be moving into parliamentary discussions, as the NATO Parliament will be meeting here in London. I assure the House that parliamentarians from across NATO—the alliance is not involved in Syria but allies within it are—will be discussing this issue and talking to the Turkish representatives and the American representatives who will be at the conference. Across Parliaments throughout the alliance, discussions such as this one are taking place, and they are so important to the sending of clear, concise messages to the Governments who will be making decisions that will impact on all our countries and on the Turkish and Kurdish communities within them.

Iran

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Wednesday 25th September 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

With such a glittering array of parliamentary celebrities on both sides, it is difficult to know whom to choose, but I think that I must call not just a Member, I say for the benefit of observers, but a president—the president of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, Madeleine Moon.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

Thank you, Mr Speaker. This week, Iran has announced its intention of carrying out exercises in the Gulf, along with China and Russia. How is this a decrease in an escalation of tension and what risks does the Secretary of State see arising from this announcement?

Business of the House

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Thursday 4th July 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Splendid!

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

Mr Speaker, you had vacated the chair last week when I asked my business question, but I had a great deal of help from the Leader of the House in relation to a constituent who had gone missing in Zante. I would like to advise him that, sadly, my constituent still has not been found.

I want to move on to a more positive question; unfortunately, I always seem to ask difficult questions about Bridgend, particularly in relation to the news about Ford. Will the Leader of the House join me in celebrating the fact that Bridgend Further Education College has won the national award for further education college of the year? Bridgend College tops the league table in Wales for qualification completion, with a rate of 90% across all qualifications; it was awarded a double excellent in the education and training inspection carried out by Estyn; and the college’s staff survey shows that 98% of staff are happy to work there. Can we celebrate what a wonderful place Bridgend is to live, work and invest in, for anyone who is seeking to take over the Ford factory, because we have a population committed to the best in education and training?

Libya

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Monday 8th April 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I call the president of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, Mrs Madeleine Moon.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

Is it in fact time to look at events in Libya as a wake-up call in relation to Russia’s increasing involvement in Africa? It is looking for bases for its troops and access to Libyan ports. It already has naval logistics centres in Eritrea and Sudan, military co-operation agreements with Burkina Faso, Burundi, Mali and Madagascar, and contracts for its mercenaries in the Central African Republic, Sudan, Niger, Chad and Mauritania, all of whom, coincidentally, give it support at the United Nations. Is it not time to look at the bigger picture?

Business of the House

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Thursday 21st March 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

Before I ask the Leader of the House a question, Mr Speaker, may I put on the public record how often I am told by the people of 30 nations with whom I often interact how much they admire our opportunity to have a Speaker who stands up for Back Benchers, who defends the standards of Parliament, and who represents the best of British way of doing things with fairness, openness and transparency? Thank you, Mr Speaker.

[Mr Speaker]

Thank you.

[Mrs Moon]

Scotland is currently consulting on non-time-limited guidance for clinicians to assess access to terminal illness benefits. Can we have more sitting Fridays in order to debate my private Member’s Bill that looks at amending the current time-limited access to terminal illness benefits to bring it into line with Scotland’s proposed, more compassionate guidance?

Leaving the EU

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Tuesday 12th February 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Ah yes, the president of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly—President Moon.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

Thank you, Mr Speaker. The Prime Minister has made great statements about honouring the referendum, but the thing I am asked most often by colleagues across Europe and people in my constituency is which selective process the Prime Minister used in honouring which votes. We had an election in 2015, and she did not like the result, so she went back to the people in 2017. We had a vote on her deal, and it was rejected, but now we have to look at it again with small alterations. We voted against no deal, and yet she is not implementing that. How can voters in my constituency and people across Europe who watch what happens in this House have any trust that whatever deal is put on the table will be binding and will not be altered should the UK leave the European Union?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Monday 14th January 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I point out, as much for the benefit of our visitors as for right hon. and hon. Members, that the hon. Member for Bridgend (Mrs Moon) not merely represents Bridgend and is a member of the Defence Committee, but is President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly and we are very proud of that.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

Thank you, Mr Speaker.

Civilian authorities and agencies are now often on the frontline in dealing with cyber-attacks, chemical weapons attacks and drone incursions. Will the Secretary of State confirm that the Ministry of Defence is stepping up training and resilience capability of our civilian agencies to ensure that the skills transfers are there, so that they too are able to defend our country?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Monday 26th November 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

For those who were not here on Thursday I reiterate, I hope on behalf of the whole House, congratulations to the hon. Member for Bridgend (Mrs Moon) on her election as President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. It is with some joy that I call not only Mrs Madeleine Moon, but President Moon. [Hon. Members: “Hear, hear.”]

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

I wonder whether the Secretary of State agrees with me that the nuclear deterrent—I stress the word “deterrent”—is also a vital part of our NATO alliance security and defence strategy, and that it is vital not just for the UK but the whole of the alliance?

Progress on EU Negotiations

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Thursday 22nd November 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Let me call the hon. Member for Bridgend (Mrs Moon), whom I hope the whole House will unite in congratulating on her election as President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

Thank you for those kind words, Mr Speaker, and let me therefore ask an appropriate question of the Prime Minister. In the section on foreign policy, defence and security, paragraph 107 talks about considering appropriate arrangements for co-operation in space. Many space assets are vital for the defence and security of the country. How will all parties to this agreement ensure that whatever arrangements are made do not weaken the NATO alliance, and that they ensure that any capability is available for the future security and defence of the whole alliance membership?

EU Customs Union and Draft Withdrawal Agreement: Cost

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Monday 22nd October 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I will take the three remaining questioners if it is a short sentence from each—no more than that. I call Mrs Madeleine Moon.

[Mrs Moon]

Ford Automotive in my constituency has made it clear that frictionless trade is essential, but Canada—no matter how many pluses we put on it—is not going to work, so how will the Minister ensure that the 12,000 jobs associated with Ford are not going to be lost?

NATO

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Wednesday 20th June 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mrs Moon]

I hope that people in the Department for Education are listening to my hon. Friend, because it is essential that we reawaken the British public’s understanding of the nature of the threats we face. We have taken our security for granted, and too many of our citizens no longer see the risks and, indeed, no longer trust their Government to accurately portray the risks to them. That has been fertile ground for Russian disinformation campaigns and cyber-attacks. In fact, in some respects, the most horrific thing about the attack in Salisbury is how many people have said to me, “Oh, it was MI6.” They actually believe we carried out an attack on our own soil, on ourselves. We have to wake up to that and we have to deal with it.

The alliance is very good at addressing military weaknesses, but we are not very good at looking at how we ensure we take our populations with us. The disaffection of our public, their lack of recognition of the infiltration of our social media and cyber, and the attacks on our values, our politics and our alliance must be dealt with. We cannot carry on like this. We are like the frog in the water, and there is a risk we are not noticing that the heat is rising.

In relation to Brexit, our priority must be for the UK to reassure our allies not only of our total commitment but of our enhanced commitment to the NATO alliance, and that we will remain a strong, effective and committed partner. Finally—

[Mr Speaker]

Order.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Thursday 3rd May 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I call Mrs Moon.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

I am fine, thank you.

[Mr Speaker]

Remarkable self-denying ordinance on which I congratulate the hon. Lady, but we may hear from her at a later point in our proceedings.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Wednesday 1st March 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I think both Philip and Sally are very reassured by what the Prime Minister has just said.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

Along the M4 corridor in south Wales, over 1,000 families woke up this morning deeply worried about potential job losses at Ford in Bridgend. Families in Ogmore and Bridgend are particularly frightened—frightened that Ford is not going to be able to bring new contracts into the factory, with the uncertainty of Brexit ahead. Can I have an assurance from the Prime Minister that she will arrange for her Ministers to meet Ford and Unite the union to see what can be done to support Ford to ensure continuity of engine production in the Bridgend plant?

Rights of EU Nationals

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Wednesday 19th October 2016 Commons Chamber

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

I asked the Home Secretary how an EU citizen demonstrates that they have lived in the UK for five or more years, how citizenship is claimed after six years, which Department will be responsible for confirming the right to remain, what citizenship they will be able to claim, what certification of these rights will be provided and what the estimate is of the costs of going through this process. In reply to that parliamentary question, I was told:

“The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period.”

Is it not time we got our act together as a country and gave people who have given their lives and their taxes to this country the security of knowing that they can remain?

[Mr Speaker]

Order. These are all very serious and worthy interventions, but they suffer from the disadvantage of being too long. This must not continue. We must try to restore some sort of order to this debate. I do not want to embarrass him unduly, but if Members would model themselves in terms of brevity on the right hon. Member for Wokingham (John Redwood)—or on the right hon. Member for Birmingham, Edgbaston (Ms Stuart)—they would serve the House well.

ISIL in Syria

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Wednesday 2nd December 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mrs Moon]

I absolutely agree that what we need are facts and greater clarity about our capability to take on the task that is ahead of us. Yesterday we were told there were between 20,000 and 30,000 Daesh across Syria and Iraq, but I could not be given a number as to how many Taliban we were fighting in Afghanistan, to get a comparator, when we had 10,000 of our troops and 30,000 Americans fighting them. I could not get that, and I could not get an answer as to how often we had used our Brimstone missiles and how many more planes we would be flying. Don’t we need those questions answered?

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I am sorry, but interventions must be brief; they must not be mini-speeches, however well intentioned.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Monday 23rd November 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

Perhaps I can help the Minister with a question that does not involve waiting until half-past 3. A lot of our focus is currently on the middle east and north Africa. Does he agree, however, that with two Russian Tupolev bombers off our coast recently, as well as a Russian submarine, it would be naive for us to take our eye off the strategic risk to the UK from the High North and Arctic region?

[Mr Speaker]

May I gently implore Members to proceed a little more quickly? We have a lot to get through, and questions and answers have been lengthy.

Syria: Refugees and Counter-terrorism

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Monday 7th September 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I keep spotting people who I did not think were here at the start of the statement, but they are all people of the very highest integrity, so I will leave people to self-regulate, if I can put it that way. If they were here at the start, they are welcome to take part, and if they were not, they are not.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

When the Prime Minister started speaking, I felt really proud that Britain was going to take 20,000, but then we were told that it would be over five years and I have to say that my heart sank. The local council in my constituency of Bridgend has said that, despite £50 million in cuts over five years, it will take in 10 families. Many of these families cannot wait five years for us to offer them a home. Their need is now. Why cannot we move the 20,000, start taking people now and have a regular statement from the Prime Minister telling us how many have come so that we can get a sense of movement and take our 20,000, certainly before five years is up?

Points of Order

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Tuesday 3rd February 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. My point of order relates to question 16 on today’s Order Paper and implies no criticism at all of the hon. Member for Colchester (Sir Bob Russell). The question refers to prisoners who have “committed” suicide. Prisoners no longer commit suicide; nor does anyone else since the Suicide Act 1961. The word “commit” suggests a criminal offence and is a pejorative term that offends many of those who have lost family and friends to suicide. The Table Office could be instructed to be vigilant about the use of such terms. Perhaps the appropriate term could have been “died by their own hand” or “took their own life”, but the question certainly should not have used the word “commit”, which relates to a criminal offence.

[Mr Speaker]

I am extremely grateful to the hon. Lady for her point of order and for kindly giving me advance notice of it. She makes a good point on which I confess I had not previously reflected. The phrase used in the question, and I appreciate what she said about the hon. Member for Colchester (Sir Bob Russell), is not disorderly, but I will ask the Table Office to consider whether its practice should be changed for precisely the good reason she has just given to the House. I hope that that is helpful.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Thursday 20th November 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Mr Ronnie Campbell. Not here.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

18. What steps he is taking to prevent employers deducting money from staff salaries for toilet breaks.

Business of the House

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Thursday 6th February 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

May we have an urgent debate on the appeal process for employment and support allowance? It is an expensive process, and it is a nightmare to negotiate for users of the system. A dispute over the work capability assessment must first be reconsidered by the Department for Work and Pensions, which can take a month, during which ESA is suspended. Claimants are left with no support and have to claim jobseeker’s allowance. Some have been refused JSA, however, because they are not fit for work. After the DWP has gone through its assessment process, the claimant can go to a tribunal, and 40% of those claims are successful. Would it not be appropriate—

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I think we have got the gist of the matter, which has been eloquently conveyed to the House. The hon. Lady might want an Adjournment debate on the matter; it would be good material.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Monday 16th December 2013 Commons Chamber

[Anna Soubry]

It is a serious subject, and certainly one that I take seriously. The armed forces continuous attitudes survey for this year indicated that 10% of personnel believe that they have been the subject of discrimination, harassment or bullying in a service environment in the past 12 months, which unfortunately is 2% higher than in 2012. It is a serious matter, and one that I will always be happy to discuss with the hon. Lady.

[Mr Speaker]

Roger Williams—not here.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.

Points of Order

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Monday 17th September 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Prior to the House going into recess in July, I pressed the Leader of the House on keeping local Members informed of the sale of their Remploy factories into the third sector. I was promised that that would be done. I have since written to the Department for Work and Pensions on 6, 7 and 13 September asking for information relating to the sale of my Bridgend Remploy factory. I have received no reply to any of those letters.

My understanding is that a final decision on the sale will take place either today or tomorrow. As a matter of courtesy, should not the Department for Work and Pensions respond to local Members’ letters and keep them informed of job losses—for me, it potentially means the loss of the jobs of 45 disabled people—so that we can work closely with bidders to ensure that our factories are kept open and that workers have the opportunity to continue the work they so enjoy?

[Mr Speaker]

I am grateful to the hon. Lady for her point of order, to which I make two points in response. First, Ministers should always reply in a timely fashion to letters from hon. and right hon. Members, as they should to questions from them. Secondly, I would say to the hon. Lady that if she has been assured that she will be kept informed in advance of announced decisions, that commitment should obviously be upheld, whether it was made on the Floor of the House or elsewhere. The Leader of the House is not present, but I would imagine that he is within the precincts of the Palace, and would very much hope—[Hon. Members: “The Deputy Leader of the House is present.”] The Deputy Leader of the House is here and we are extremely grateful to him. He has heard the message and will have digested it already by now, I feel sure.

Points of Order

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Monday 9th July 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I am extremely grateful to the hon. Gentleman for notice of his point of order. As he will know, and as, I think, he has just indicated that he knows, a hybrid Bill is a public Bill that affects a particular private interest in a manner different from the private interest of other persons or bodies of the same category or class. The key phrase here is “private interest”. The only interest of bishops affected by the Bill is that of being part of the legislature. That is a public interest, not a private one. Accordingly, no question of hybridity arises. I hope that that is helpful both to the hon. Gentleman and to the House, not to mention the bishops.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. In answer to my question during Home Office questions on the withdrawal of guidance to door supervisory staff at licensed premises, the Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, the hon. Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Lynne Featherstone), said that she would look into the issue and get back to me. I put parliamentary questions on the issue to the same Minister on 11 and 25 June, and received an answer from another Home Office Minister on 15 May. Can the House be assured that the issue will be seriously looked into and appropriate guidance issued in future, before guidance is withdrawn?

[Mr Speaker]

I am grateful to the hon. Lady for her point of order. It sounds to me as though she has had, thus far, an interesting but inconclusive exchange, but I know her and she has a terrier-like quality that is unsurpassed in any part of the House. I can advise her only to redouble her efforts—not to settle for what she regards as an unsatisfactory answer, but to pursue the matter vigorously—although for the time being not through a point of order, but perhaps outside the Chamber.

Business of the House (Thursday)

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Wednesday 8th December 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mrs Moon]

One of the problems with a five-hour limit is that the legislation is complex and many young people may arrive here tomorrow wishing to clarify the terms and conditions under which their future education will depend. They will need to spend time talking to their Members of Parliament, but they will not have time to do so in that five hours. In particular, I know that young people have been unable to access their Liberal Democrat MPs because of notices on their office doors that say the office is closed.

[Mr Speaker]

Order. First, that intervention was too long and, secondly, the issue is not how much time visitors to the House have to raise matters with Members who might or might not be taking part in a debate; the issue is the allocation of time for Members of Parliament to debate the issues.

Business of the House

Debate between Madeleine Moon and John Bercow

Thursday 28th October 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. That question was extremely amusing, but it suffered from the disadvantage of having made no request whatever for a statement or a debate. There will therefore be no reply to it.

[Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab)]

As we are approaching Halloween, may I please ask the Leader of the House to send out a plea on behalf of women such as Sally Joseph, one of my constituents and a member of the Women’s Food and Farming Union, about the use of Chinese lanterns? These lanterns are marketed as being eco-friendly and biodegradable, but they contain wire frames and bamboo, which can be dangerous to livestock if they land on farmland. Can we please urgently ask our constituents not to use them?