Engagements

Q1. If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 10 September.

I start, Mr Speaker, by expressing our sincere condolences to His Majesty the King and the royal family on the death of Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Kent. Her life was filled with compassion and dignity. She dutifully supported our late Queen Elizabeth II, comforted the runner-up at Wimbledon, and worked anonymously as a music teacher in Hull—typical of her unassuming nature and human touch. I am sure the thoughts of the whole House are with His Royal Highness the Duke of Kent, his family, and all those whose lives she touched.

Turning to other events, I condemn the strikes that Israel carried out in Doha yesterday. They violate Qatar’s sovereignty and do nothing to secure the peace that the UK and so many of our allies are committed to. I spoke to the Emir of Qatar last night, soon after the attack, to convey our support and solidarity. He was crystal clear that notwithstanding the attacks, he will continue to work on a diplomatic solution to achieve a ceasefire and a two-state outcome, on which he and I are of the same mind. That is why I met President Abbas on Monday and will meet President Herzog later today. I will be absolutely clear that we condemn Israel’s action. I will also be clear that restrictions on aid must be lifted, the offensive in Gaza must stop, and settlement building must cease. But however difficult, the UK will not walk away from a diplomatic solution. We will negotiate, and we will strain every sinew, because that is the only way to get the hostages out, to get aid in, and to stop the killing.

Last night, Russia launched drones into Poland in an unprecedented attack. I have been in touch with the Polish Prime Minister this morning to make clear our support for Poland. We will stand firm in our support for Ukraine. With our partners and through our leadership of the coalition of the willing, we will continue to ramp up the pressure on Putin until there is a just and lasting peace.

This morning, I had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in this House, I shall have further such meetings later today.

I have sent a letter of condolence to the royal family on behalf of the Commons, following the sad news about the Duchess of Kent. Let us now come back to Dr Luke Evans.

One year on from the election, the country has seen a Transport Secretary resign over fraud, an anti-corruption Minister investigated for corruption, a homelessness Minister making tenants homeless, and a Housing Secretary not paying tax on her second house. We also have a Prime Minister who accepted more freebies than any other MP in the previous Parliament. Is this what the Prime Minister meant by “integrity” when he came to government?

Here is the difference: I strengthened the ministerial code and the independent adviser. The previous Deputy Prime Minister referred herself to the adviser, and there was a clear finding; she did the right thing. Contrast that with the shadow Foreign Secretary, the right hon. Member for Witham (Priti Patel), who was found to have breached the code under the previous Government. What did the then Prime Minister do? He ignored it. There was a resignation, but it was of the adviser, not the person who was found to have breached the code; the right hon. Lady still sits on the Opposition Front Bench. That is the difference.

Q2. After almost two decades of the SNP—

Hear, hear! Ten more to come!

Order. If the right hon. Gentleman carries on, there won’t be 10 more decades of the SNP in this Chamber.

Thank you, Mr Speaker. After almost two decades of the SNP and 14 years of the Tories, Kirkcaldy High Street has been in a state of decline. That is why the Chancellor was right to prioritise Kirkcaldy for multimillion-pound regeneration funding from the new growth mission fund, to build on the enormous potential of our town and its beautiful sea front. Does the Prime Minister agree that investment over decline is key for this Labour Government, and will he ask the new Business Secretary to meet me to discuss the funding?

My hon. Friend has been a tireless campaigner for investment in her high street. I can give her good news: thanks to funding committed by the Chancellor and this Labour Government, I can confirm today that subject to business case approval, we will approve millions to transform Kirkaldy’s high street and sea front. I will make sure that my hon. Friend gets the meeting she wants with the Business Secretary. The SNP has squandered the potential of high streets for two decades. Next year, people can vote for positive change with a Scottish Labour Government.

I call the Leader of the Opposition.

I associate myself with the Prime Minister’s comments about the Duchess of Kent; she lived an exemplary life of public service, and will be very much missed. I agree with the Prime Minister, as all of us in this House should: we stand shoulder to shoulder with Poland and all our NATO allies against Putin’s aggression. A NATO country has just had to defend itself against Russian drones. Now more than ever, we need our ambassador to Washington fully focused on this issue, and liaising closely with America. Does the Prime Minister have full confidence in Peter Mandelson?

Let me start by saying that the victims of Epstein are at the forefront of our minds. He was a despicable criminal who committed the most heinous crimes and destroyed the lives of so many women and girls. The ambassador has repeatedly expressed his deep regret for his association with Epstein, and he is right to do so. I have confidence in him, and he is playing an important role in the UK-US relationship.

This is interesting. The Prime Minister says that the ambassador has expressed full regret, but the victims of the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein have called for Lord Mandelson to be sacked. Just so the House is aware, in 2019, Jeffrey Epstein was convicted of child prostitution and sex trafficking, which took place between 2002 and 2005. That is the precise period when Lord Mandelson called Jeffrey Epstein his “best pal”. Was the Prime Minister aware of this intimate relationship when he appointed Lord Mandelson to be our ambassador in Washington?

As the right hon. Lady and the House would expect, full due process was followed during this appointment, as it is with all ambassadors. The ambassador has repeatedly expressed his deep regret, and he is right to do so. He is now playing an important part in the US-UK relationship.

I asked the Prime Minister if he knew about the relationship. The fact that he did not answer indicates that he probably did know. I was not asking a question about process; I was asking a question about his judgment. The Daily Telegraph reported today that while Lord Mandelson was Business Secretary, he brokered a deal with Jeffrey Epstein, and that this occurred after Epstein had been convicted of child sex offences. Given this new information, does the Prime Minister really think that it is tenable for our ambassador to remain in post?

The relationship between the US and the UK is one of our foremost relationships, and I have confidence in the ambassador in the role he is doing.

I think it is embarrassing that the Prime Minister is still saying that he has confidence in a man who was brokering deals with convicted child sex offenders while sitting in Government. That is a disgrace. This Government have repeatedly refused to declare Lord Mandelson’s full interests. As part of the appointment, there will have been extensive Government vetting, covering details and timings of Peter Mandelson’s dealings with Jeffrey Epstein. Will the Prime Minister publish all the documents, including those about Lord Mandelson’s interests?

As I say, full due process was gone through in relation to this appointment, as would be expected. As the right hon. Lady well knows, the publication of documents is subject to a procedure that includes an independent element. This would have been subject to the usual procedure.