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1,082 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARD South East Water: Disruption of SupplyMr Speaker, as an Essex MP, may I endorse your lovely tribute at PMQs to Sir Alan Haselhurst? He will be much missed, even though he did achieve a respectable innings of 88 years…03 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillOn new clause 5, we do not yet have the date for the second day on this Bill for Report and Third Reading, but it seems likely that it will be before the summer recess on 16 July.…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillWill the Minister give way?02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillAs a matter of fact, that is not how I interpret what the NAO said—not at all.02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillThey told us as a Committee—I am looking round the House for nods of assent from others who were on the visit, and I am getting them—that it was a problem, and it was cramping the…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillAgain, my right hon. Friend makes a very important point: allowing tri-service boards increases the potential pool, even of senior officers, who can serve. When we made that…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillThe difference is that, while people in civilian life sometimes have to move jobs at the behest of their employer, service personnel are ordered to go. They really have no choice:…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillI fully acknowledge the hon. Gentleman’s point about education being a devolved matter, which makes the SEN issue more complicated. He is quite correct about that, but does he…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillI entirely agree with my right hon. Friend. We would all like to know when we are going to have it, but the reason we do not have it is simple. It is not that the staff work has…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillHaving addressed our amendments towards the opening of the debate, I will now speak to the new clauses. New clause 3 would create a veterans’ commissioner for England. My hon.…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillI will move it, Ma’am! New Clause 5 Waived fees for indefinite leave to remain for spouses or dependants of serving or discharged member of the armed forces “(1) The Immigration…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillI apologise for interrupting so early, but before the Minister gets into his stride, I would like to place firmly on the record that we are debating legislation of material…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillNo, the hon. Gentleman has had his go. The Committee may remember that we were promised that the DIP would be published in the autumn; then, we were faithfully promised it by…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillI thank the hon. Member for that intervention. I think she may have been here just a few months ago when we had a debate about the history of the Gurkhas in British service. I…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillI do not want to pre-empt what will no doubt be an erudite speech, but the key point is that there is a mechanism for doing this—we are halfway there. If service parents get a…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillI rise to speak to amendments 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, and new clauses 1, 2, 3 and 6, which appear in my name and those of my hon. Friends. I will say a little about each amendment…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillThere has been a leak: the hon. Gentleman has clearly had access to my speech. He has put a lot of work into this issue, so perhaps I can meet him halfway with what I am about to…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillMy hon. Friend is bearing out the point that there are real-world examples of this issue coming into play, and he has done the Committee a service by reiterating that. The…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillThank you, Ms Nokes. I will not cut across your ruling, but I do nevertheless say that I wholly agree with the hon. Member for North Warwickshire and Bedworth (Rachel Taylor).…02 Jun 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillMy right hon. Friend is of course a former MOD Minister himself and represents a large number of service personnel. It is obvious from his intervention that he understands the…02 Jun 2026