Contributions
377 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDIndependent Schools: VAT and Business Rates ExemptionsI wholeheartedly agree with my hon. Friend. The comments made by the Education Secretary on Twitter over the weekend epitomise the way in which the mask of this Government is…08 Oct 2024HANSARDIndependent Schools: VAT and Business Rates ExemptionsI agree wholeheartedly with the hon. Member. We have yet to talk about military and diplomatic families, who need boarding schools to provide a stable education while parents are…08 Oct 2024HANSARDIndependent Schools: VAT and Business Rates ExemptionsI beg to move, That this House has considered the removal of VAT and business rates exemptions for independent schools. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dame…08 Oct 2024HANSARDIndependent Schools: VAT and Business Rates ExemptionsThank you, Dame Caroline. Education is an investment in our future. It is in everyone’s best interests that children are well educated so that they can make an engaged and…08 Oct 2024HANSARDIndependent Schools: VAT and Business Rates ExemptionsMy right hon. Friend echoes the point that I made earlier that this is about not just a service that is provided but a key segment of the UK economy that bolsters the value of UK…08 Oct 2024HANSARDIndependent Schools: VAT and Business Rates ExemptionsI will not give way. Independent schools should be seen as a British success story, both culturally and economically, instead of being discouraged and punished with the imposition…08 Oct 2024HANSARDIndependent Schools: VAT and Business Rates ExemptionsI thank every single Member who has spoken today in this debate, and I particularly thank the families in attendance who are affected by this policy. We have heard Members talk…08 Oct 2024HANSARDIndependent Schools: VAT and Business Rates ExemptionsI agree wholeheartedly with my hon. Friend. The Government have shown the true intent of the policy over the weekend with the divisive, “us and them” mentality that was revealed…08 Oct 2024HANSARDIndependent Schools: VAT and Business Rates ExemptionsI will not; I will make progress. Labour committed in the House of Commons in 2023 that armed forces families need not be concerned about proposals to charge VAT. With the current…08 Oct 2024HANSARDIndependent Schools: VAT and Business Rates ExemptionsMy right hon. Friend makes a valid point, which I will touch on later, and I hope the Minister will address it. Independent schools provide additional value-adding capacity to…08 Oct 2024HANSARDIndependent Schools: VAT and Business Rates ExemptionsI agree with the hon. Member. The examples she cites highlight the situation perfectly. The Government have failed to consider that the capacity is not there. We have already…08 Oct 2024HANSARDWinter Fuel Payment: Medical Conditions4. If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of means-testing for winter fuel payment on people with medical conditions that are exacerbated by cold weather.07 Oct 2024HANSARDWinter Fuel Payment: Medical ConditionsThe Government’s impersonal approach is cold comfort to thousands of disabled pensioners, including Ann in my constituency. She has to boil water to prevent infection and uses an…07 Oct 2024HANSARDPlanning Policy: Traveller SitesIt is a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair, Dame Siobhain. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Thirsk and Malton (Kevin Hollinrake) for securing this important debate. We…11 Sept 2024HANSARDTopical QuestionsT2. The Secretary of State has said that she will review her prisoner early release scheme after 18 months, but will she go further and commit to ending it then, and if not, to…10 Sept 2024HANSARDWinter Fuel PaymentIn the spirit of what my hon. Friend describes, I will cite the example of Betty Webb, a constituent of mine who received an MBE for her work as a codebreaker at Bletchley Park.…10 Sept 2024HANSARDEconomy, Welfare and Public ServicesThank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, for allowing me to make my maiden speech here in the mother of Parliaments, a global beacon of representative democracy. I congratulate the hon.…22 Jul 2024