Oral Answers to Questions

Matt Vickers Excerpts

Wednesday 17th June 2026 Commons Chamber

[The Deputy Prime Minister]

I join my hon. Friend in congratulating Sir Kevin Sinfield. He is an inspirational fundraiser and a champion for his sport and, of course, for the MND community. I know that Mark Sommerville runs an excellent foundation that campaigns on MND in my hon. Friend’s constituency. We are committed to improving care for people with motor neurone disease. We are looking at the current system to ensure that care is truly focused on the needs of individuals, and we are investing in cutting-edge research, including a world-first clinical trial to test remotely monitored portable ventilators. I know that the Minister for Care would be happy to meet my hon. Friend to discuss the matter further.

[Matt Vickers (Stockton West) (Con)]

Q4. Since this Government came to office, more than half a million businesses have closed, nearly a million young people are without education, employment or training and graduate recruitment is at an all-time low. These are not just statistics; these are people’s lives, people’s jobs and people’s futures. Can the Deputy Prime Minister tell the House if that is because the Government hiked business rates and slashed reliefs, slammed employers with the jobs tax and buried businesses with the Employment Rights Act, or all of the above?

[The Deputy Prime Minister]

We have the fastest growing economy in the G7, borrowing is down and we have just signed our fifth major trade deal. I must say this to the Tory deputy chairman: yesterday he was on television laughing and joking about the arson attack on the Prime Minister’s home, laughing about a firebomb targeting the Prime Minister and his family. Not only that, he joined with promoting conspiracies about the attack and laughed along to demeaning homophobic remarks. He should be ashamed of himself—absolutely ashamed. My advice to him is to grow up, apologise and do considerably better.