PMQs

Question

While our focus is rightly on Ukraine, the Prime Minister will be aware of the great concern of many people across the Baltic states. Will he outline the role that the joint expeditionary force can play in countering Russian aggression and improving the defensive posture for our allies in the Baltics?

Question

Does the Prime Minister still think that he and the Chancellor are tax-cutting Conservatives?

Question

Cut the nonsense and treat the British people with a bit of respect. Let me take the Prime Minister through this slowly: 15 tax rises and the highest tax burden for 70 years. For every £6 the Government are taking in tax rises, they are handing only £1 back. Prime Minister, is that cutting taxes or is that raising taxes?

Question

I can only hope that the Prime Minister's police questionnaire was a bit more convincing than that. This year, the British people face the worst fall in living standards on record. While they are counting every penny, the Prime Minister is hitting them with higher taxes, but in 2024, when there just so happens to be a general election, the Government will introduce a small tax cut. That is not taking difficult decisions; that is putting the Tory re-election campaign over and above helping people pay their bills.

Question

The tough decisions—give me a break! We know who those two always ask to pay: income stealth tax—a tax on working people; the tuition fee raid—a tax on working people; the national insurance hike—a tax on working people. All of this while oil and gas companies see unexpected bumper profits. A windfall tax would raise billions and ease the burden on working people. The former chief executive office of BP, Lord John Browne, says a windfall tax is “justifiable”.

Question

There we have it: the Conservatives are the party of excess oil and gas profits; we are the party of working people. Talking of parties, the Prime Minister told the House that no rules were broken in Downing Street during lockdown. The police have now concluded that there was widespread criminality. The “Ministerial Code” says that Ministers who “knowingly” mislead the House should resign.

Question

There are only two possible explanations. Either the Prime Minister is trashing the ministerial code, or he is claiming he was repeatedly lied to by his own advisers and did not know what was going on in his own house and his own office. Come off it! He really does think it is one rule for him and another rule for everyone else—that he can pass off criminality in his office and ask others to follow the law, that he can keep raising taxes and call himself a tax cutter, and that he can hike tax during a cost of living crisis and get credit for giving a bit back just before an election. When is he going to stop taking the British public for fools?

Question

Welsh Labour's decision means that my constituents will lose out, as local authorities in England continue to fund the scheme. Does my right hon. Friend agree that broadband is critical to the growth of the rural economy, and will he double his Government's efforts to connect my constituents, despite Welsh Labour's letting us down yet again?

Question

Last night, millions of families will have been desperately trying to figure out how they will possibly afford the £700 energy price hike that will hit them this Friday. At the very same time, Tory MPs were gathering across the street for a champagne bash in the Park Plaza. We all know that the Tories partied during lockdown, and now they are—

Question

Families are having to choose what rooms to heat or whether they can turn on the heating at all. Some in the Tory Cabinet clearly believe that better weather means that they can happily sit on their hands and do nothing until next winter. The Chancellor thinks his £200 loan, which is forcing people into energy debt, is somehow a solution, but it clearly is not. So before the Prime Minister and his Chancellor go off on their Easter holidays, will they, at the very least, turn this loan into a grant and finally put some cash into people's pockets when they need it, right now?

Question

One of my most important campaigns is to secure provision of quality post-16 education within the Bolsover constituency, where there is currently none. Young people in my constituency have to travel long distances at considerable cost to access their education. Will my right hon. Friend meet me to discuss how we can right this wrong for the young people of the Bolsover constituency and give them the education that they deserve?

Question

My grandmother opened her home to German Jewish boys during WWII, showing Britain's historic generosity towards refugees. I spoke to Ukrainian refugee families on the Polish-Ukrainian border who were denied entry due to complex visa requirements. Despite this, the PM's figures suggest no upper limit exists for taking in Ukrainians. If wealthy businessmen from over 50 countries can enter the UK without a visa, why must Ukrainian mothers and children fill out forms?

Question

During my recent visit to Ukraine, I witnessed firsthand the courage of Ukrainians in defending their nation. Given the lethal aid provided by this Government, do you agree we should double down on our military assistance to Ukraine? Could this lead to breaking Russia's poorly equipped army and securing peace?

Question

Households are facing soaring energy bills amid a climate emergency. Norway can feed electricity into our grid at £1.36 per megawatt-hour, while France pays 17p. Germany, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg pay nothing. Why does Scotland face charges of £7.36 per megawatt-hour?

Question

Following a large community campaign, my parish council and residents successfully opposed a mega-prison project near HS2 and East West Rail. Given its proximity to existing state infrastructure, is it fair to expect these communities to bear more burden? Will you instruct the Ministry of Justice not to appeal this decision?

Question

With an estimated £4 billion in furlough fraud, shouldn't we have tackled it more aggressively? In North Tyneside, even our own party's member was on furlough but continued to work. How could this happen?

Question

I am delighted to report that 37 out of 39 state schools in Bracknell are now rated good or outstanding. Can we thank our teachers, staff, governors, and pupils for this achievement? Does the Prime Minister agree that the new White Paper sets a proud blueprint for our schools?

Question

Over 2 million tonnes of edible food is wasted on farms and in factories every year. Funding was introduced in 2019 to cover the costs of getting food to charities to reach those in need. The Prime Minister will know, however, that the Government have now cut that critical funding to zero. Funding for food waste diversion helps to support community projects such as the Threehills community supermarket in Glasgow, so can he explain why he is ignoring calls from Feeding Britain, Good Food Scotland and FareShare to continue that worthwhile initiative and is instead cutting off a lifeline to those struggling with the cost of living crisis?

Question

I thank the Prime Minister for his earlier remarks concerning the Donna Ockenden report into avoidable maternity deaths and injuries at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust. The report makes for devastating reading, the more so because women's voices were ignored. My constituent Hayley Matthews begged staff for a C-section throughout her 36-hour labour, but was forced into a natural birth. Her son Jack arrived blue and floppy and, within hours of his birth, he tragically died. Will the Prime Minister join me in offering heartfelt sympathies to all the families affected and grateful thanks to the 1,862 women who shared their experiences with the Ockenden review to ensure that maternity care is safer, kinder and more compassionate for the women who come after them?

Question

Prime Minister, every day I hear from more and more of my Rotherham constituents who are struggling to put food on the table, to keep their lights on and to fuel their cars. The Office for Budget Responsibility estimates that the Government's measures will only offset falling living standards by a third. This is the biggest financial squeeze since the 1950s. Prime Minister, do not blame Ukraine and do not blame covid. This is down to your Government's policies and your political choices. How do you sleep at night?

Question

One of my earliest campaigns was to reopen Stafford's Shire Hall, so I am delighted that this iconic building is finally set to reopen this summer. Can I thank the Government for providing £1.6 million in funding to create a hub for small businesses in Shire Hall, but can I also ask my right hon. Friend to help regenerate the rest of Stafford town centre and our high streets to help level up the west midlands and support our local businesses?

Question

My constituency has one of the highest rates of child poverty in the entire country, with too many already struggling between heating and eating. The Government's recent real-terms social security cut will now push even more families, children and pensioners into desperation. Does the Prime Minister agree that the biggest squeeze in household finances since records began does not come out of the blue, but is due to Conservative economics and the notion that, while some have the pleasure of partying, the rest of us should suffer?

Question

Today's announcement by our serving United Kingdom judges of their withdrawal from the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal is now the right decision, and I support it, as does my right hon. Friend. Does he agree with me that, on this sad day for the people of Hong Kong and at a time when the international rule of law is under unprecedented challenge, it is for us here in Britain to stand up for what is right, to be resolute in the face of tyranny and to make sure that the international rules-based order is defended at every opportunity?

Question

Gas and electric prices and bills are through the roof. The 'just about managing' are no longer managing; they are coming to surgeries and queuing at food banks. Last week, the Government had a golden opportunity to tackle this. Why the devil did they not take that opportunity to do something to relieve the pressure on our constituents?

Question

Today's updated Government figures show that of 28,300 applications submitted under the sponsorship scheme by people displaced in Putin's war, just 2,700 have been processed. Can my right hon. Friend tell the House how many to date of those people have actually arrived in the United Kingdom? Will he give his support to my noble Friend Lord Harrington to cut through the Home Office red tape, simplify the application process and get people into the country?

Question

A cornerstone of the last Conservative manifesto was a guarantee that the basic state pension would rise by 2.5%, the rate of inflation, or earnings growth, whichever was the highest. Instead, from April the state pension will rise by less than half of the current inflation rate. How does the Prime Minister explain this abject betrayal of some of the most vulnerable people in our communities, who are squeezed by rocketing energy and food prices on the one hand and the miserliness of this Government on the other?

Question

On Monday, the Foreign Secretary agreed that in these uncertain times we need to expand our soft power capabilities, yet the Government are imminently to make a funding decision that may result in the closure of British Council country operations and a reduction in its international footprint. Will the Prime Minister intervene to ensure that that does not happen, given how much I know he understands and appreciates the important work the British Council does?

Question

You will forgive me, Mr Speaker, if I start by saying that, given the Prime Minister's preferences for fantasy castles and Peppa Pig, he is welcome to come and visit Zog Playland at Warwick castle. In Warwick and Leamington, as across the country, the cost of living crunch is really serious. As we have heard, energy bills are set to double by the end of this year and food prices to rise by 10% to 15% by year end, and fuel is already 22% up year on year.

Question

I welcome what the Government are doing to help, where they can, with the cost of living crisis, but in North Devon and across the south-west we have a housing crisis that needs urgent action. Will my right hon. Friend meet me to better understand the severity and complexity of our housing shortage and steps that the Government may take?

Question

Last Friday, it emerged that there had been an oil spill in Beverley Brook, a river that flows through Richmond Park to the Thames. Black waste oil and iridescence can now be seen along 13 km of the watercourse, posing a serious threat to fish and local wildlife. The Environment Agency is investigating, but it is understaffed and underfunded while also battling water companies over sewage discharge.