- 10:32 am
- Will the Leader of the House give us the forthcoming business?
- I shall. The business for the week commencing 10 March includes:Monday 10 March—Second Reading of the Crime and Policing Bill.Tuesday 11 March—Remaining stages of the Employment Rights Bill, day one.Wednesday 12 March—Remaining stages of the Employment Rights Bill, day two.Thursday 13 March—General debate on the future of farming, followed by a general debate on mental health support in educational settings. The subjects for these debates were determined by the Backbench Business Committee.Friday 14 March—Private Members’ Bills.The provisional business for the week commencing 17 March will include:Monday 17 March—Remaining stages of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, day one.Tuesday 18 March—Remaining stages of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, day two.Wednesday 19 March—Consideration of Lords amendments to the National Insurance Contributions (Secondary Class 1 Contributions) Bill, followed by Opposition day, first allotted day, second part: debate on a motion in the name of the official Opposition, subject to be announced.Thursday 20 March—General debate on knife crime among children and young people, followed by a general debate on coastal communities. The subjects for these debates were determined by the Backbench Business Committee.Friday 21 March—The House will not be sitting.
- Mr Speaker, may I first associate myself very strongly with your kind remarks about Peter Hipkins and his service to this House?We join all colleagues in celebration of International Women’s Day this Saturday. I am sure the whole House will also share my deep concern at the latest news in relation to Ukraine and will wish to send all of our best wishes to the Prime Minister and other European leaders in doing everything they can to support that country.It is now three months or so since I became shadow Leader of the House, and I am sad to say that these joyous Thursday morning sessions seem to have fallen into a little bit of a rut. [Interruption.] “No, no!”, I hear you cry, “Business questions are still as fresh, lively and engaging as they ever were, if not more so,” but sadly I fear that is not true. It is our function on the Opposition Benches to press public concerns and raise questions about the Government—indeed, as His Majesty’s loyal Opposition, it is not only our function, but our constitutional duty to do so. It is the Government’s job to respond to those questions and concerns and, in so doing, to make the case publicly for the policy choices and decisions they have made and to say whether they have an underlying strategy.Unfortunately, as you will have noticed, Mr Speaker, the Government are not doing that in our sessions. In fact, the Leader of the House rarely, if ever, responds to the important public questions and concerns that I raise. Instead, I am sorry to say that we get the same endlessly reheated mishmash of standard party political lines, personal jibes and irrelevant comment.Hon. Members will recall that I first raised this issue at business questions on 5 December, when I highlighted a series of occasions on which the Leader had been unwilling to answer or even address some obvious examples of Government economic incompetence. As I pointed out:
- I join you, Mr Speaker, in passing on our condolences to the family of Peter Hipkins, who gave long service in this House.I also wish peace and blessings to those observing Ramadan and those marking Lent. Today is also World Book Day, a day to celebrate our favourite books and authors—and, I have to say, every working parent’s worst nightmare, because of having to find a last-minute costume. I see that the shadow Leader of the House has come as his favourite author: himself. For those who have not read the thrilling historical novel, “The Winding Stair”, it is still available in all good bookshops. He can give me some royalties later.Saturday marks International Women’s Day. I thank you, Mr Speaker, for allowing us to come together in this Chamber and take a historic photograph to mark the most female MPs ever being elected to this House. It is a reminder that the gender pay gap in this country is still 13.1%, and women work for free on average seven weeks a year—although perhaps the shadow Leader of the House is working for free most of the time.I thank the shadow Leader of the House for his comments on Ukraine. It has been really important to this country’s international role and in supporting the Prime Minister that the House of Commons has once again shown such unity, and such backing for Ukraine and for the Prime Minister’s leadership in recent weeks. As the shadow Leader of the House knows, we are focused on making sure that Ukraine is in the strongest possible position to achieve long-term, lasting peace through strength. As we have done in recent weeks, we will make sure that the House is kept constantly updated on these matters.That was kind of where it ended today, Mr Speaker. The shadow Leader of the House has again used his slot to ask me not a single question. He says that I have not given him any answers in any of the weeks that we have been standing at the Dispatch Box, but if he really wants me to tell him again today where he has gone wrong, I am happy to give him some advice. I am happy to tell him that yes, his Government did get many things wrong, and we are getting many things right. If the shadow Leader of the House wants to play business questions bingo, perhaps we can start by saying “Bingo!” every time he actually asks me a question, because we did not hear much of that today.
- Flooding has caused heartache for families and communities in my constituency. In order to be protected from extreme flooding, they desperately need Sheffield city council’s excellent proposals for the upper Don flood alleviation scheme, including work on the Clough Dike culvert and Whitley Brook improvements. Despite widespread local support and the importance of that scheme, the Conservatives never actually allocated funding to it. Will the Leader of the House allow time to debate flood alleviation schemes, to ensure that the appropriate funding is allocated in the forthcoming spending review?
- My hon. Friend is absolutely right; the flood assets we inherited were in the poorest condition on record after many years of under-investment. That is why we are putting more money into flood assets and have launched the floods resilience taskforce. I will ensure that my hon. Friend is kept updated on how those things will affect her constituency.
- I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.
- As the Leader of the House has already noted, today is World Book Day, and I would like to say a big thank you to Barnes Farm primary school in my constituency for inviting me in yesterday to open its brand new library. One in seven state primary schools in the UK do not have a dedicated library or reading space, and almost 1 million children in the UK do not have a book of their own. As such, it was wonderful to meet year 5 students and representatives of Barnes Farm student council, who were very enthusiastic about their new library. It is fantastic to know that those students will have access to such a facility for a long time to come.At Prime Minister’s questions on 8 January, I raised the plight of community pharmacies. They are struggling to stay afloat due to the unfair terms of their NHS contracts, which often mean that they have to buy drugs that they dispense for more than the NHS reimburses them. The Prime Minister asked me to follow up with more details, which I did that afternoon. Despite chasing, I am yet to receive a reply from the Department of Health and Social Care, to which my inquiry was passed.Community pharmacies cannot wait. The National Pharmacy Association projects that nearly 1,000 pharmacies will close by the end of 2027. There is no guaranteed funding for Pharmacy First beyond the end of this month. This is a critical issue that the Government need to address urgently. I know that the Leader of the House takes seriously the timeliness of replies from Ministers and Departments, so will she let the House know what further steps she is taking to ensure that issues such as protecting our vital community pharmacies are given the swift and full attention they deserve?
- I thank the hon. Member for raising these matters with me. First, I concur with what she says on World Book Day and school libraries. I am sure that, as Members of Parliament, we have opened a library in a school. I recently opened a library at a school in one of the poorest parts of my constituency, and the young children, many of whom were not even wearing proper footwear, were queuing outside to get their hands on their first book—it was such a fantastic achievement. I am sorry to hear that she has not had the responses and replies she has asked for from Ministers, and I do take these matters incredibly seriously. I will ensure that she does get a reply.The hon. Member has raised the issue of community pharmacies with me on a number of occasions, and rightly so. They are a vital part of our national health service, and they have been left on their knees, with many closing in recent years. We are turning that around, because getting services back into communities via pharmacies and other means is critical to delivering our health mission. I will ensure she gets a reply.
- This is on flooding again, I am afraid. My constituency has suffered greatly from flooding in recent years. Our steep valleys and wide moorland catchments make us particularly vulnerable. I massively welcome the Government’s commitment to a record £2.65 billion of funding for flood defences. We have a number of key schemes in Rossendale and Darwen that urgently need that funding, and I am in communication with the Department about that. Will the Leader of the House agree to a debate in Government time on flood resilience and support for communities affected so badly by flooding?
- My hon. Friend is a great advocate for his constituency on this and other matters. Flooding affects his area, as it does many others. As I have said, this Government are finally turning the oil tanker around when it comes to our flood resilience. I will ensure that the relevant Minister hears his call today. We have had regular statements and debates on flooding, but I will ensure that we continue to have them.
- I call the Chair of the Backbench Business Committee.
- Mr Speaker, I thank you and your Deputies for facilitating the estimates day debates yesterday and allowing the maximum number of people to contribute. When we come to the full estimates—in May, we believe—if we can be advised of the dates so that we can do the processing of the applications, that would be appreciated.In addition to the business that the Leader of the House has announced, if we are given Thursday 27 March, there will be a debate on St Patrick’s day and Northern Irish affairs, followed by a debate on the 10th anniversary of the Modern Slavery Act 2015. We now have a queue of debates for the Chamber that will last until the summer recess. We will be grateful for every Thursday and any time that can be given, particularly if the House is going to rise early on Government business.In addition, the business in Westminster Hall on Tuesday 11 March will include a debate on the governance of English rugby union. On Thursday 13 March, there will be a debate on educational opportunities for young carers. On Tuesday 18 March—with your agreement, Mr Speaker—there will be a debate on free school meals. On Thursday 20 March, there will be a debate on British Sign Language Week and Government support for the tourism industry. On Tuesday 25 March, there will be a debate on the retrospective accountability of the construction industry. On Thursday 27 March, there will be a debate on the prevention of drugs deaths, followed by a debate on the first anniversary of the Hughes report on valproate and pelvic mesh.Yesterday, the External Affairs Minister from India, Shri Jaishankar, was attacked when he was leaving a public venue where he had been addressing an audience of Indian people in this country. He was attacked by Khalistani thugs. That is against the Geneva convention, and it appears that the police and the security forces failed to ensure that he was made safe. That is an affront to democracy, and an affront to our friends and allies in India. We need to make sure that does not happen again. Will the Leader of the House ensure that the Home Secretary or an appropriate Minister makes a statement to the House about what protection we will have to ensure that visitors to this country are safe?
- I thank the hon. Gentleman for organising the estimates days this week, and all the other debates. I am sure he will appreciate that I have been generous, much more than my predecessors on some occasions, in giving him notice both of estimates debates and of slots for Backbench Business. I have heard his plea today for as many of those as possible, and I will look kindly on it, as I have done previously.I am very sorry to hear about what sounded like a serious attack on a visitor to this country from the Indian Parliament. That is unacceptable and not the way in which we want our visitors to be treated, and I will ensure that the hon. Gentleman receives a full response from the Home Secretary.
- May I first wish the Leader of the House a happy International Women’s Day for Saturday?My constituent Chris is among many people affected by the loan charge, which applies to “disguised remuneration” schemes. While everyone should pay their fair share of tax, many, like Chris, used these schemes in good faith when they were legal and now face retrospective penalties. The Government’s long-awaited review is a welcome step, but Chris and many others who have been affected feel that its scope is too limited. They believe that it fails to examine how we got here, its implementation, or those who promoted and mis-sold these schemes. Will the Leader of the House allocate time for a full debate on the loan charge and its consequences?
- I thank my hon. Friend for raising this serious matter. I recognise the concern about the loan charge scheme, as do the Government, and we are committed to ensuring that there is a fair resolution for those affected. We do not believe it is right for them to face years of uncertainty, which is why, as my hon. Friend said, we have established an independent review. It is tightly focused so that we can get the report out before the summer, with a Government response, and I will ensure that the House is kept fully up to date on that.
- Several hon. Members rose—