Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Priti Patel and Bill Esterson

Monday 8th February 2021 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

I thank my hon. Friend, and I look forward to coming back to Wolverhampton, obviously when circumstances permit. I also thank him for the great work he is doing with local groups, organisations and police to protect the victims of crime, but also to do much more on preventing crime. The police uplift, more police officers, the record sums of cash that we are putting into policing—all of this will go towards preventing crime, but also ensuring that victims are safeguarded.

[Bill Esterson (Sefton Central) (Lab) [V]]

Today’s reports of hundreds of travellers coming from the United Arab Emirates via Dublin show loopholes in the existing quarantine arrangements. Why are next week’s new quarantine arrangements not plugging all those loopholes and making sure that everyone who comes here, from whichever country, is covered, in order to prevent further incoming variants such as the South African one, which is already in my borough of Sefton, stamp out excess variants coming into this country and protect people here while we roll out the vaccine?

[Priti Patel]

As I have said several times already, all measures are under review. Colleagues across Government are working to implement the hotel quarantine policy and the logistics involved in that, but this is not just about hotels. This is absolutely about compliance and enforcement, and we have measures in place at our ports and airports to ensure that people are being checked and to ensure compliance.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Priti Patel and Bill Esterson

Monday 23rd March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

My hon. Friend makes a very important point. We have never said that people at lower skill levels are unimportant. As we know, throughout this crisis everybody is making a tremendous contribution and effort to keep all services functioning and running, while at the same time ensuring care and compassion for workers in service provision that is essential right now. I have already committed to keeping all aspects of the points-based immigration system under review. The important thing about that system is that we will ensure that points are tradeable based on skills and labour market need across particular sectors.

[Bill Esterson (Sefton Central) (Lab)]

I am afraid that the lack of sense displayed by some parts of the British public is putting retail workers under enormous pressure and threat. Retail workers often cannot be 2 metres apart from other people, especially at checkouts. This point was brought home to me by a constituent who witnessed somebody being spat on for refusing to allow bulk buying. Will the Minister please revisit what he and the Home Secretary have already said about the need to protect retail workers? We are going to need them to continue at work; we cannot afford for them to become sick.