Contributions
250 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDEngagementsThis is also my last Prime Minister’s questions, and I want to follow the comments that have been made about your strong leadership from that Chair, Mr Speaker, and, indeed, your…30 Oct 2019HANSARDThe Climate EmergencyI am grateful for the opportunity just to say how wholeheartedly I support my right hon. Friend in what she is doing, particularly in the environmental space. Does she agree that…17 Oct 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionI thank the hon. Lady for my inadvertent promotion. She just has to look at the numbers: we have had the cleanest year for electricity generation that we have ever had, and this…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionI have not ruled such an assembly in or out, and I am interested in how one would work. I am also interested in how the Youth Parliament could provide a steer for younger people…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionI hope not to try the patience of the House—I will be making a further statement on this topic later this afternoon—but I want to take this opportunity to join you, Mr Speaker, in…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionIn the right hon. Gentleman’s remarks we hear the passion that he has bought to this portfolio for many years, and I share that passion. Let me correct him: I do not disagree with…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionMy right hon. Friend is right. As a newly appointed fellow of the Royal Geographical Society—I had to get that in there—he will know that we have some of the best climate…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionThat would be me, Mr Speaker.23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionI just want to pick up on a couple of factual points. First, I entirely share the hon. Gentleman’s commitment to the right to protest. It is a wonderful, wonderful freedom that we…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionI very much thank my right hon. Friend for his work as a Minister, particularly on waterways and rivers. This issue is not simply about the air or the biosphere. It is about the…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionThe good news is that all the devolved Administrations and the Westminster Government have worked incredibly hard on the low-carbon transition. It is a joint project; we calculate…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionTo answer in reverse order, there has been progress made on aviation and shipping. That continues to be an international challenge because flights and ships leave and take off…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionI do not want to politicise diaries, because of course invitations were issued, as the hon. Lady is well aware, that could not be accepted. We are not going to go into that sort…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionShe is shaking her head. She cannot even acknowledge that the UK has led the world in this particular area. If we cannot acknowledge our leadership, and celebrate that, how can we…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionMy hon. Friend is absolutely right. I think that this debate is about consumption emissions. I will not take the House through the technicalities, but essentially there is an…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionWith pleasure. I point out to the hon. Lady that we already have a carbon tax. We introduced a unilateral tax on carbon emissions, which is what has driven us off coal. She does…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionI welcome my hon. Friend’s mentioning an independent report which shows that we have decarbonised, as a proportion of our economic growth, faster than any other country in not…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionI thought there might be a bit of Mace-waving coming on with that passionate speech. I will leave the question to my hon. Friends in the Ministry of Justice.23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionThe right hon. Gentleman is right to emphasise homes, although they are responsible for only 15% of our CO 2 emissions. In fact, the biggest nut we have to crack is industrial…23 Apr 2019HANSARD Climate Action and Extinction RebellionI cannot disagree with my hon. Friend that the focus on retrofitting is hugely important. He and I put ourselves on the green deal Bill Committee because we believed there was a…23 Apr 2019