Contributions
1,620 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementI am grateful to my hon. Friend because he raises an important point. We have a defending democracy taskforce precisely to ensure that our response is rooted across government—not…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementI always appreciate the Leader of the House’s questions—[Hon. Members: “Father of the House!”] Forgive me. I always appreciate the Father of the House’s questions because he…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementI am grateful to the hon. Member because she asks an entirely reasonable and constructive question. She acknowledges, I am sure, that the previous Foreign Secretary made a…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementI am genuinely grateful to the hon. Member for the points he has raised. Let me take them in turn. I lead on behalf of the Government on vetting, and a lot of work has taken place…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementMy hon. Friend is absolutely right to raise her concerns in the way that she does. I hope that she understands, as the House does, that this Government have been absolutely clear…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementI am grateful to my hon. Friend, not only for his question but for his previous service and for the work of his constituents with regard to underpinning our national security. He…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementThe right hon. Gentleman refers to what he described as a “highly political” appointment. With great respect to him, and he knows that I hold him in the highest regard, I disagree…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementI am grateful to my hon. Friend for his question and for the role he has played in these proceedings. Yes, I give him the absolute assurance he seeks. There is an important role…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementLet me make this point crystal clear: no member of this Government, nor any special adviser, was in any way involved in the evidence submitted to the CPS or the decision by the…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementWe do not recognise those claims. Of course, given the quasi-judicial nature of the process, it would have been entirely improper for anybody to have made any comment that…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementWith great respect, a lot of what has just been said does not actually relate to the urgent question that was initially asked by the shadow Home Secretary. I have to say, the…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementI am grateful for your guidance, Mr Speaker. I am simply pointing out to the shadow Home Secretary that Conservative Members have previously criticised Ministers and the…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementI do wonder whether at any point the shadow Home Secretary and certain Conservative Members—not all, but certain Members—have considered the need to have some humility and…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementThank you, Mr Speaker. The Opposition’s position is confusing. They initially criticised the Government for intervening. Then, when it became absolutely clear that we had not done…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementI thank the shadow Home Secretary for the question, and I thank you, Mr Speaker, for the opportunity to respond to it today. As I have repeatedly set out to the House, the Prime…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementAs I have repeatedly made clear in this House, Ministers and special advisers were not involved in any aspect of the production of the evidence, and I stand by that statement…20 Oct 2025HANSARDAlleged Spying Case: Home Office InvolvementThe shadow Home Secretary would be well advised to listen to the points being made. I am seeking to respond to the questions that he and other right hon. and hon. Members have…20 Oct 2025HANSARD Security Update: Official Secrets Act CaseOn the hon. Gentleman’s final question, I have taken every opportunity to try to provide the Government’s response. I was not entirely clear about his critique of taking a…13 Oct 2025HANSARD Security Update: Official Secrets Act Case“Extremely disappointed” was the way that I described our reaction, both on 15 September and again today. I gently say to the hon. Member that he should not believe everything…13 Oct 2025HANSARD Security Update: Official Secrets Act CaseNo, I do not agree. There will be those, including in this House, who will seek to simplify the nature of the relationship to a single word. More sensible and fair-minded…13 Oct 2025