Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rishi Sunak and Andrew Selous

Wednesday 1st May 2024 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

What the hon. Lady did not acknowledge at all is that Israel suffered an appalling terrorist attack that killed hundreds of its citizens, and it does have the right to defend itself. Of course, as I have been crystal clear, we want to see humanitarian law respected and adhered to by all parties. Too many civilians have been killed, and we want to see Israel take greater care to avoid harming civilians. I have made these points repeatedly to Prime Minister Netanyahu, specifically about the impact of any military incursion into Rafah, and we continue to say to the Israelis at all levels that we want to see more aid going in, and bring about a hostage deal so that we can move towards a sustainable ceasefire.

[Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire) (Con)]

Q6. The 60% increase in funding for special educational needs and disabilities is extremely welcome, but challenges around the recruitment of community paediatricians mean that some children in Leighton Buzzard, Dunstable and Houghton Regis are waiting too long for an assessment. What can the NHS do to attract more of the 39,000 additional doctors recruited under this Government into community paediatrics, as a specialty that is incredibly rewarding and important?

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend is right, and he joins me in welcoming the significant action that we have already taken to improve children’s health, whether that is reducing sugar in children’s food, or the £600 million we have invested to improve the quality of sport and physical activity in schools. The NHS has established a special group to ensure that the recovery of paediatric services keeps pace with that of adult elective care, and he will be pleased that the NHS long-term workforce plan, which we have fully backed, doubles the number of medical school places in England and increases specialty training places. That will increase the size of the pool from which community paediatricians can be drawn in the future.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rishi Sunak and Andrew Selous

Wednesday 28th February 2024 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

That is no way to talk about the Welsh farming community.

[Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire) (Con)]

Q14. My integrated care board tells me that only £2 million of the £120 million of capital that it receives annually is for primary care, which seems an unfairly small amount for our amazing family doctors and practice nurses who are, after all, the front door of the NHS. Can our local general practitioners have a greater share?

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my hon. Friend for his excellent and continued campaigning on health provision for his constituents. On his specific point, integrated care boards have the power to increase their primary care annual capital management budget, so long as they keep within the overall budget. I understand that he met a Health Minister earlier this week to discuss this further, and I will make sure that his proposals are very carefully considered.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rishi Sunak and Andrew Selous

Wednesday 21st February 2024 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

The independent regulator will put fans back at the heart of football and help to deliver a sustainable future for all clubs. That delivers on our manifesto commitment. The Government are engaged in discussions with industry, and that was part of our King’s Speech, as the hon. Gentleman knows. I am glad he brought up Bury football club, because it was my hon. Friend the Member for Bury North (James Daly) who ensured £1 million of funding to safeguard that football club, and that is what we are doing to communities up and down the country.

[Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire) (Con)]

Q12. GP surgeries promised in planning applications take far too long to be built. Can we clear away the obstacles and make it easier for our amazing family doctors to use additional consulting rooms that they are happy with elsewhere in the community, so that GPs, and the many extra prescribing nurses they are now employing, can see more patients now while they wait for bespoke premises to be built?

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my hon. Friend, who speaks from a point of authority. He knows that we have high standards to ensure that GPs provide services from premises that meet all the required criteria, but I understand it is possible for those services to be provided at alternative locations that meet the contract requirements. I will happily ensure that the Health and Social Care Secretary looks into his suggestions about more flexibility. He will also welcome our recent plans to expand the range of services available at pharmacies, saving many people time and hassle to get treatment for seven common ailments at their local pharmacist, easing the pressure on our GPs and speeding up the care that people deserve.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rishi Sunak and Andrew Selous

Wednesday 6th December 2023 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

We have also provided considerable support in the here and now for households with their energy bills: £900 of direct cost of living support this financial year on top of a record increase in benefits, along with winter fuel payments of up to £300 this winter for pensioners, because they are particularly vulnerable. We will continue to look at all the support we have to ensure that those who need it are getting the help they deserve.

[Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire) (Con)]

During COP28, will the Prime Minister salute South West Bedfordshire’s contribution to our nation’s energy security for having had the tallest wind turbine in England, the largest battery in Europe and now the most powerful wind turbine in England, which has local support? Can we also ensure that my constituents now get cheaper energy bills for hosting this vital infrastructure?

[The Prime Minister]

We are looking exactly at how local communities can benefit when new infrastructure is in their vicinity, as part of our new plan for increased energy security. May I commend my hon. Friend’s local area for the contribution it is making to our clean energy transition? It is a great example of this country’s fantastic track record in delivering net zero and decarbonising faster than any other major economy, not something we will hear from the Labour party, but something that those of us on the Government Benches are very proud of.

Israel and Gaza

Debate between Rishi Sunak and Andrew Selous

Monday 16th October 2023 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

It is Hamas alone who are responsible for this conflict, and we support Israel in taking action against terrorism and to defend itself. Hamas have also enmeshed themselves in the civilian population in Gaza and are using them as a human shield. We will continue, as a friend, to call on Israel to do everything it can to reduce the impact on human life, and we will continue to support the area with humanitarian support.

[Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire) (Con)]

Is it not the case that Israel’s best hope for its future security in its justified response to Hamas’s atrocity is to treat the civilian populations in Gaza and the west bank with the full respect that the laws of war and civilised nations demand, or else this tragic cycle of violence will simply repeat itself in the years to come?

[The Prime Minister]

As I said, we must support Israel’s right to defend itself—to go after Hamas—and recognise that it faces a vicious enemy who are embedding themselves behind civilians, but it will do so in accordance with international law. As a friend, we will continue to call on Israel to take every precaution to avoid harming civilians.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rishi Sunak and Andrew Selous

Wednesday 19th July 2023 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

The hon. Lady just makes a completely bizarre point. Because we moved quicker and faster than everyone else, she thinks that somehow that is something we should now not be proud of. It is right that other countries are catching up; it is inevitable that they will have to decarbonise faster now to make up for the fact that over the past two decades they have not followed our example. I am not going to take any lectures from her on this topic, because our track record is a good one. We have decarbonised faster than everyone else and right now we are making the right long-term decisions to make sure that we not only transition to net zero, but do so in a way that brings people along with us and creates jobs in the process.

[Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire) (Con)]

Q14. Bedfordshire businesses now have apprentices on the factory floor, earning £48,000 a year on qualification, easily beating cost of living pressures. What more can we do to get schools to promote apprenticeships to pupils and parents, as our colleges and institutes of technology are great poverty-busting institutions?

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend makes an excellent point. One of the practical steps we are taking is to put all apprenticeships on to the UCAS system this autumn, which will make sure that they have parity of esteem in the classroom and increased information for parents and teachers. At the same time, as I announced earlier this week, we are clamping down on university courses that fail to deliver good outcomes. What we should be doing is providing young people with the best opportunities for them to get on in life, and he is absolutely right that that should include apprenticeships.

NATO Summit

Debate between Rishi Sunak and Andrew Selous

Thursday 13th July 2023 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

The hon. Member talks about what other allies are doing but, again, that is not the conversation that I have been having for the past couple of days: other allies look up to the UK and to the example that we have set. We are the ones increasing defence spending, particularly to rebuild stockpiles. As I mentioned, there was £5 billion of investment at the Budget coming on top of half a billion pounds at the autumn statement. A new contract was announced just this week, which is creating jobs across the country, but particularly in the north. That is the right thing to do, and that is what we will continue to deliver.

[Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire) (Con)]

What conclusions has the Prime Minister drawn about the increased vulnerability of Ukraine since it gave up its nuclear weapons and the contribution that our nuclear weapons make to our own security?

[The Prime Minister]

Our nuclear deterrent is the ultimate guarantee of our security. That is why it is so important for the UK and an important part of the contribution that we bring to NATO. We are one of the few countries that offers NATO not just nuclear capabilities but carrier strike, fifth-generation combat air and leading maritime across the board, as well as cyber-offensive. That is why we are respected in NATO and why we are a valuable member of the alliance.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rishi Sunak and Andrew Selous

Wednesday 24th May 2023 Commons Chamber

[Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire) (Con)]

Q5. The primary care access plan, published this month, is a welcome and substantive one, and my constituents want to see rapid delivery of it. So how quickly will the Government start providing the £645 million to pharmacists and how quickly will the SAS—specialty and specialist—doctors come to GP surgeries to make prompt access to primary care a reality for my constituents?

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my hon. Friend for his contributions to our primary care plan. He and I know that pharmacies already work to help many people with their health needs, and to help deliver on our priority to cut NHS waiting lists they will be put at the front and centre of our primary care recovery, with £645 million of additional funding. That will be released later this year, as pharmacies start to provide more oral contraception and more blood pressure checks. Crucially, for seven common ailments, such as ear infections and throat infections, pharmacists will now be able to provide people with the medicines they need.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rishi Sunak and Andrew Selous

Wednesday 22nd February 2023 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

Just this week we announced new measures to tackle violence against women and girls. This is the Government that introduced the landmark Domestic Abuse Act 2021, which is rolling out specialist advisers for those who suffer and putting in more funding to support victims. We will continue to do everything we can to make sure that women and girls are safe everywhere in our country.

[Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire) (Con)]

Q2. The warm welcome given to Ukrainian refugees by so many is extremely heartwarming. Does the Prime Minister understand, though, how upset my constituents are to have had bookings for weddings and other special family events cancelled when the Home Office took over a much-loved hotel, and will he redouble his efforts to put an end to that practice?

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend’s constituents and indeed the whole country can be proud of the welcome they have given to people from Ukraine over the last year. I can assure him we are committed to reducing the number of asylum seekers living in hotels at vast cost to taxpayers and considerable disruption to communities. I am grateful to the leadership of the Home Secretary and the Immigration Minister in finding a sustainable solution; the Home Secretary will make a formal update in the coming weeks on progress in standing up alternative sites for accommodation.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rishi Sunak and Andrew Selous

Tuesday 2nd November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Rishi Sunak]

As has been pointed out about three times today, alongside the cut in domestic air passenger duty, we introduced a new ultra-long-haul band with a higher rate. The net effect on carbon emissions of those two things is at least a wash, and one independent forecaster said that it would actually reduce carbon emissions. That comes alongside significant investment of £180 million to incentivise sustainable aviation fuel, and billions more for electric transportation for consumers.

[Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire) (Con)]

T6. With many thousands of new homes going up to the west of Leighton Buzzard and the north of Houghton Regis, will the Government ensure that there is a direct link between thousands of new homes and increased general practice capacity?

Economic Update

Debate between Rishi Sunak and Andrew Selous

Monday 11th January 2021 Commons Chamber

[Rishi Sunak]

I am happy for the hon. Lady to refer to the answer I gave earlier, but if she would prefer that, rather than give up-front funding guarantees and certainty to the devolved Administrations in a pandemic, we returned to piecemeal funding by announcement, she should please write to me and let me know. The Welsh Government have received over £5 billion in up-front funding guarantees, and as we make announcements it is right that we highlight the amount of additional Barnett funding that flows from those announcements, so that that can be netted off against the guarantee.

[Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire) (Con) [V]]

I am delighted to learn that local authorities will be receiving additional cash at the end of this week. Could I please ask the Chancellor to do everything possible to help local authorities to get that money out of the door as quickly as possible, to help businesses’ cash flow?

[Rishi Sunak]

I agree with my hon. Friend about the importance of speed. We try to keep the guidance the same, and that helps local authorities. Indeed, the guidance for the £500 million discretionary funding will be the same as for the £1.1 billion, and that will help local authorities. They should have the cash by the end of this week at the latest, and I too urge them to get it out as quickly as possible.

The Economy

Debate between Rishi Sunak and Andrew Selous

Monday 27th April 2020 Commons Chamber

[Rishi Sunak]

The most important economic policy at the moment is to maintain the productive capacity of the UK economy during a period of shutdown. Our interventions are designed to preserve as many businesses, jobs and connections as possible. That is the best way to ensure that the recovery can be as strong as we would all like it to be. For the moment, that is where we will focus our attention.

[Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire) (Con) [V]]

I am grateful to the Treasury for the work it has done to keep the economy going. However, I have a tourism business and a leisure business that have been turned down by their banks, even though they are both viable, and they will need more than the £50,000 from the bounce-back scheme announced by the Chancellor today. These are excellent businesses that we must not lose. Will he continue to look further at such cases and consider grants for where there are very difficult situations?

[Rishi Sunak]

Without knowing the particular details of those businesses, I can say that many businesses in the retail, leisure and hospitality trade will be eligible for cash grants of £25,000. Also, all businesses can use the furlough scheme, which is significant, and there will be business rates holidays for those businesses. Furthermore, the statutory sick pay rebate scheme I announced earlier will be up and running next month, which will allow businesses to apply for a rebate on their statutory sick pay bill for up to 14 days per employee. That could benefit businesses by up to £48,000 as well. I hope that all those packages put together provide some relief to my hon. Friend’s business and many others.