Contributions
775 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARD Grenfell Tower InquiryI pay tribute to the hon. Members for Vauxhall and Camberwell Green (Florence Eshalomi) and for Kensington and Bayswater (Joe Powell), who both spoke very movingly on behalf of…02 Dec 2024HANSARDChagos Islands: UK-US Defence RelationshipFirst, may I ask, what is the rush? Why is the Minister in such a hurry to get this done? May I suggest that it would be to the Government’s advantage, if their case is so strong,…02 Dec 2024HANSARD Grenfell Tower InquiryI will certainly give way, because this is a crucial point.02 Dec 2024HANSARD Grenfell Tower InquiryI have got the point. The problem with a public inquiry is that it starts from ground zero. It assembles a group of people who may be expert, but most of the lawyers will not be…02 Dec 2024HANSARD Grenfell Tower InquiryI am not in favour of taking building control away from local authorities, but if we go down the route recommended by the hon. Gentleman, we will not succeed in making buildings…02 Dec 2024HANSARD Grenfell Tower InquiryNo, because a regulator is a part of the system, whereas a safety investigation body stands above the system. It is very simple. If you are a regulator, you are a participant. You…02 Dec 2024HANSARD Grenfell Tower InquiryI will be as quick as I can, Madam Deputy Speaker, but I am extremely grateful for the hon. Gentleman’s question, because that was a failure of regulation. The crucial point is…02 Dec 2024HANSARD Grenfell Tower InquiryI am sure that may be a very good suggestion, but the point I am making is that we need an apex to our safety system. Whatever else the Government do to remediate the safety…02 Dec 2024HANSARD Grenfell Tower InquiryI completely agree. The record keeping of airlines, air engine manufacturers and aircraft maintenance companies has to be absolutely meticulous. It is inspected by the CAA, but…02 Dec 2024HANSARD Grenfell Tower InquiryI am very happy to agree with the hon. Gentleman and to welcome the Secretary of State’s announcements today about accelerating all of this and ensuring that action is taken much…02 Dec 2024HANSARDElectricity Grid UpgradesI beg to move, That this House has considered the delivery of electricity grid upgrades. It is wonderful to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Christopher. I am grateful to have…26 Nov 2024HANSARDElectricity Grid UpgradesMy right hon. Friend is completely right. It affects other colleagues, including some present here today representing, for example, Lincolnshire. We know that there are concerns…26 Nov 2024HANSARDElectricity Grid UpgradesI accept that the present Government have inherited a planning system and a philosophy of upgrading the national grid that is out of date. When we were in Government, we were very…26 Nov 2024HANSARDElectricity Grid UpgradesWhat is interesting about Germany is that its presumption was in favour of undergrounding, so the idea that that is a great big experiment and we do not know what it means is…26 Nov 2024HANSARDElectricity Grid UpgradesI am grateful for the hon. Lady’s intervention. As the new Liberal Democrat MP for Chelmsford, she demonstrates that this is a cross-party campaign, supported by people who are as…26 Nov 2024HANSARDElectricity Grid UpgradesDoes the hon. Lady acknowledge it was the previous Government who commissioned the Banner report on streamlining the system? Let us approach this on a bipartisan basis—we are all…26 Nov 2024HANSARDElectricity Grid UpgradesThe hon. Member for East Thanet (Ms Billington) made the relevant point that there are balancing factors. First, once cables are undergrounded, they are maintenance free, but…26 Nov 2024HANSARDElectricity Grid UpgradesVery briefly, the ESO review of the east of England network demonstrated that there is a higher up-front cost for undergrounding of an extra £1 billion from Norwich to Tilbury,…26 Nov 2024HANSARDElectricity Grid UpgradesHere we go.26 Nov 2024HANSARDElectricity Grid UpgradesI thank the Minister for his engagement and for the meeting he had with MPs. It would be very kind if he could write to me with the further detail that he has not been able to put…26 Nov 2024