Contributions
444 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARD Northern IrelandOn a point of order, Mr Speaker—05 Sept 2019HANSARDDraft Historical Abuse Bill (Northern Ireland)I place it on record that I am not a prophet—the Prime Minister has not given me any indication of what the Northern Ireland team will look like—but I thank the Secretary of State…24 Jul 2019HANSARD Points of OrderOn a point of order, Mr Speaker. I think convention says that a Bill that has got this far in both Houses is rightfully the property of Parliament rather than the Executive. Both…18 Jul 2019HANSARD Northern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillI will begin by making a central point about the Northern Ireland nature of the Bill. The UK Parliament, in the absence of a devolved Assembly, cannot ignore its constitutional…18 Jul 2019HANSARD Northern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillMr Speaker, I will check the record, and where appropriate I will apologise to the hon. Member for North Antrim. However, he certainly cast aspersions about cheap politics in his…18 Jul 2019HANSARD Northern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillI did not necessarily automatically assume that the right hon. Gentleman was looking for retrospective legislation. That is an interesting point. The reality, however, is that for…09 Jul 2019HANSARD Northern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillLet me begin by addressing the issues raised by the right hon. Members for New Forest East (Dr Lewis) and for Sevenoaks (Sir Michael Fallon). We will return to this theme, so they…09 Jul 2019HANSARD Northern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillFor clarification, Madam Deputy Speaker, the amendment is moved formally. [ Interruption. ]09 Jul 2019HANSARD Northern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillI have no difficulty in agreeing with the hon. Lady. The Victims’ Commissioner has sought not to change the definition of victim, which was fixed in 2006, because she also wants…09 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillThe hon. Gentleman—my hon. Friend—has raised a very interesting point, and it is exactly the point that I was about to make myself. The two candidates for the leadership of the…08 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillI am also bound to remind the Secretary of State that it is 909 days today since Northern Ireland had proper governance. When the Secretary of State brought the original Bill…08 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillI am afraid not. Inevitably, it takes different parties to come together to form an agreement. While I understand the political imperative of the finger-pointing that takes place…08 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillI do not accept that. In the end, Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom. In the absence of governance for Northern Ireland, it is inevitable that there will be…08 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillI shall come on to exactly that point, but let me continue with this question of a hard border across the island of Ireland and the question of crashing out. The reality is that…08 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillThat is not a difficult question to answer. The European Union would insist on a border across the island of Ireland. There is no doubt about that. There can be no question of…08 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillThe construction industry would itself suffer from a hard Brexit. The border would be constructed, and there is absolutely no doubt that there would have to be controls to prevent…08 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillI am always very generous to the right hon. Gentleman, because his questions are always interesting, if erroneous. The integration of the economies of the UK—particularly Northern…08 Jul 2019HANSARDNorthern Ireland (Executive Formation) BillI am bound to have sympathy with the hon. Lady’s comments. We know that the Secretary of State took those powers, but we are still waiting for them to be seen, and, as in other…08 Jul 2019HANSARDLeaving the EU: Talks on Restoring DevolutionWith your indulgence, Mr Speaker, may I make the point to this House, which has known the murder of its own Members, that it must condemn threats to Arlene Foster? Democratic…03 Jul 2019HANSARD Political Process in Northern IrelandI thank the Secretary of State for prior notice of her statement. Like her, I think it is right and proper to mention, these weeks on, the murder of Lyra McKee. I say that partly…04 Jun 2019