Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Scott Benton and Dominic Raab

Wednesday 29th March 2023 Commons Chamber

[Scott Benton (Blackpool South) (Con)]

Q11.   Since 2019, this Government have provided well over £300 million in extra funding for projects in Blackpool. However, there is always room for more. The Bond Street and Revoe areas in my constituency are among the most deprived in the country, and have been long forgotten by the Labour-led council. The Government have already provided £600,000 in funding for a feasibility project, with a view to delivering a £30 million regeneration package for those areas. Will they look closely at the business case to see how this transformational project can be delivered to the local communities?

[The Deputy Prime Minister]

rose—

Bill of Rights

Debate between Scott Benton and Dominic Raab

Wednesday 22nd June 2022 Commons Chamber

[The Deputy Prime Minister]

I can give my hon. Friend and his constituents precisely that assurance. The Bill is not anti-human rights. We are strengthening our tradition of freedom, including freedom of speech. It is pro judges; we want our Supreme Court to have the last word on the law of the land, when it is interpreted. It is also pro democracy, and that is the bit missing from the other side’s critique. We believe that, when the goalposts shift, it is elected Members—accountable to his, my and everyone’s constituents—who must have the last word on the law of the land.

[Scott Benton (Blackpool South) (Con)]

The residents of Blackpool were absolutely furious at the European Court’s move to block the first removal flight to Rwanda last week. They desperately want that policy to work and will warmly welcome the measures outlined by the Deputy Prime Minister today. What assurances can he give them that the reforms will allow our relocations policy to be a success?

[The Deputy Prime Minister]

There is no silver bullet that can solve that issue and the small boats issue. Even pulling out of the European convention will not provide a silver bullet. However, I can reassure my hon. Friend—I am happy to talk him through this—that, when it comes to deportation of foreign national offenders or public interest in removals more generally, there will be respect and greater deference to primary legislation passed by this House. In addition, our approach to rule 39 interim orders will mean that we can give him and his constituents the assurances they need.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Scott Benton and Dominic Raab

Tuesday 8th February 2022 Commons Chamber

[Scott Benton (Blackpool South) (Con)]

T5. Reforming our broken asylum system and tackling illegal immigration is in part dependent on reforming the Human Rights Act. The British people expect action on the issue, so how quickly can we expect firm proposals to reform the HRA, following the end of the consultation next month?

[Dominic Raab]

I thank my hon. Friend for his support. He is right that across a whole suite of issues, including illegal migration, the proposals for a Bill of Rights with common-sense, sensible reforms will help us to address the problems. Once the consultation results come back, we will want to listen very carefully and proceed to legislation in the next Session.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Scott Benton and Dominic Raab

Tuesday 14th December 2021 Commons Chamber

[Dominic Raab]

I do not know whether the hon. Gentleman was making the case for the wholesale repeal of the Human Rights Act, but we are not going that far. We need to put in place a legal framework and that will, of course, respect this country’s proud tradition of freedom under the rule of law.

[Scott Benton (Blackpool South) (Con)]

The courts complex in Blackpool is due to be relocated to allow a £400 million regeneration scheme to go ahead. The business case has already been submitted to the MOJ, so will my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State meet me to discuss it, get it approved and allow the ambitious regeneration scheme to proceed?

Human Rights Legislation

Debate between Scott Benton and Dominic Raab

Tuesday 14th December 2021 Commons Chamber

[Dominic Raab]

Of course we are very conscious of any impact on the Good Friday agreement settlement, which is why it is important to stay in the European convention. I hope that gives the hon. Lady the reassurance she needs.

[Scott Benton (Blackpool South) (Con)]

The residents of Blackpool are sick and tired of the way in which the Human Rights Act has been abused by foreign criminals so they can remain in the UK. My constituents will be delighted by my right hon. Friend’s statement, but can he reassure them that the measures he outlined will help to make it easier to deport dangerous foreign criminals and will work alongside our new Nationality and Borders Bill to make it easier to deport failed asylum seekers?

[Dominic Raab]

Let me be clear that, as we have set out at some length, there are some things that we cannot do. We cannot send people back to the arms of a torturing tyrant in violation of article 3. Even if we came out of the European convention, there would be other international treaties and frankly, morally, I do not think that is the right thing to do. The reality is, however, that the majority of the challenges that we have had—70% of those in relation to foreign national offenders—have come under not article 3 but article 8. That is a good example of why this reform will be meaningful and far-reaching, and will have the support of our constituents.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Scott Benton and Dominic Raab

Tuesday 9th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Scott Benton (Blackpool South) (Con)]

17. What plans his Department has to reform the Human Rights Act 1998.

[The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice (Dominic Raab)]

Under this Prime Minister and before the next election, we will overhaul the Human Rights Act to end its abuse by dangerous criminals and to restore some common sense to our justice system.

--- Later in debate ---

[Dominic Raab]

As a trainee lawyer I worked at Liberty, and I have huge respect for the work that it does. In fact, back then I took a test case to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg relating to gender discrimination. However, it is also right that we listen to the wider voices, and we have conducted the independent Human Rights Act review to consider all the issues from all the different angles. We are grateful to Sir Peter Gross for chairing that review and we will carefully consider its recommendations in the round.

[Scott Benton]

The Human Rights Act handed power to unelected judges, both at home and abroad, meaning that Britain remains tied to a foreign court. The creeping power of the courts is directly interfering with the Government’s ability to conduct their business, not least in preventing the Home Secretary from combating the unacceptable numbers of illegal immigrants crossing the channel. In the light of this, does my right hon. Friend agree with many residents of Blackpool in thinking that it is time we scrapped the Act altogether?

[Dominic Raab]

We will look at reforming and overhauling the Human Rights Act, and I think my hon. Friend raises a reasonable point. I support continued membership of the European convention on human rights, but a fair challenge has been raised by lawyers and judges past and present about the elasticity of rights and whether, when they are expanded, that decision ought to be taken by elected Members of this House and not by courts and lawyers. That is a fair challenge, and if hon. Members look fairly at the data from successful challenges on seeking the deportation of foreign national offenders, they will see that there is a good argument that there are too many cases of criminals being able to flout the system because of that elastic interpretation of rights.

Counter-Daesh Update

Debate between Scott Benton and Dominic Raab

Thursday 4th March 2021 Commons Chamber

[Scott Benton (Blackpool South) (Con)]

I welcome this statement on the UK’s continuing commitment to defeat groups such as Daesh and the dangerous ideology upon which they are based. Daesh has sought to exploit power vacuums throughout the region and to build up influence, and the same may be said of Iran. Will my right hon. Friend set out what steps the UK is taking to prevent and deter Iran’s malign activities?

[Dominic Raab]

As I said in the answer I gave a few moments ago, one element of those things is part of the so-called JCPOA-plus considerations. More generally, with all our partners in the region, we are looking at our resilience and the support we provide for those who are threatened by Iran’s activities. My hon. Friend will also know that those will not just be on territory. In relation to freedom of navigation, it is important to provide support for international shipping, and that is particularly salient in the strait of Hormuz.

China

Debate between Scott Benton and Dominic Raab

Monday 20th July 2020 Commons Chamber

[Dominic Raab]

The national security legislation was only introduced on 30 June. We are now towards the mid to end of July. Not only did we move to extend a path to citizenship to BNO passport holders and those with eligibility, but we have now taken these further steps on extradition and the arms embargo. All these things need to be thought through carefully and require legal preparation. I believe we have moved swiftly, reasonably and proportionately.

[Scott Benton (Blackpool South) (Con)]

I strongly welcome today’s announcement and thank my right hon. Friend for his statement. Does he agree that China must adhere to international law if it wishes to be treated as a leading member of the international community?

[Dominic Raab]

My hon. Friend is right. That is the relationship and the way we want to calibrate the relationship—looking for positives, militating against risk and guided by international obligations, multilateral but also directly bilateral, which, in the case of Hong Kong, China freely assumed and is now in clear and serious violation of.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Scott Benton and Dominic Raab

Tuesday 17th March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Dominic Raab]

The hon. Gentleman will of course know about the efforts—in particular with the UN envoy, Martin Griffiths—to bring an end to that conflict, and we have been tireless in supporting, pursuing and supplementing them. Of course a lot of the diplomacy will go on behind the scenes.

The hon. Gentleman mentions arms exports. We have one of the most robust arms export control regimes in the world. We have carefully considered the implications of the Court of Appeal’s judgment, for example, and we will make sure that we are always compliant. However, the reality is that our focus has been on, as the hon. Gentleman mentioned, raising human rights issues when necessary, and also on trying to bring all the parties, including the Houthi rebels, to the table to have a proper political dialogue that can end the conflict in the interests of all the people in Yemen.

[Scott Benton (Blackpool South) (Con)]

Does my right hon. Friend agree that only through constructive dialogue with Saudi Arabia can we hasten progress on issues of human rights and the ongoing conflict in Yemen?

[Dominic Raab]

My hon. Friend is right, and we are listened to more because we engage and try to exert positive influence. Equally, however, we will not be shy or retiring in raising those issues. We raised them in the Human Rights Council statement in March 2019, and in other UN forums. As I said, when I was in Riyadh recently, we raised those issues bilaterally with all senior interlocutors.