PMQs

Question

As a proud maritime nation, the United Kingdom has long relied on its coastal communities for national prosperity, but today too many of them face shared challenges and disproportionately high levels of deprivation. Does my right hon. Friend agree that to ensure beautiful constituencies such as Hastings and Rye can unleash their full potential, a specific and targeted Government strategy focusing on coastal communities is needed; and will he meet me to discuss this?

Question

I know the Prime Minister has whipped his Back Benchers to scream and shout, but I hope he has also sent a clear message that there is no place for sexism and misogyny or looking down on people because of where they come from in his party, this House, or modern Britain. Next year, the UK is set for the slowest growth and the highest inflation in the G7. Why is the Prime Minister failing to manage the economy?

Question

The Prime Minister sounds like the Comical Ali of the cost of living crisis. He pretends the economy is booming and where there are problems they are global, but in the real world our growth is set to be slower than every G20 country except one—Russia—and our inflation is going to be double that in the rest of the G7. Does he think that denying the facts staring him in the face makes things better or worse for working people?

Question

These must be the Oxford Union debating skills we have been hearing so much about: failing to answer the question, rambling incoherently, throwing in garbled metaphors. Powerful stuff, Prime Minister. Here is the problem: it is not just his words that are complacent; it is his actions as well. The cost of living crisis was blindingly obvious months ago, but he said that worries about inflation were unfounded and he backed a tax-hiking Budget. Does he think that his choice to be the only leader in the G7 to raise taxes during a cost of living crisis has made things better or worse for working people?

Question

The Prime Minister is an ostrich, perfectly happy keeping his head in the sand. Working people are worried about paying their bills. They are spending less and cutting back. That is bad for business and bad for growth. Working people are looking for help, but this week millions will look at their payslip and see a tax rise with his fingerprints all over it. Does he think that his 15th tax rise has made things better or worse for working people?

Question

Does he think that protecting oil and gas company profits instead of using those funds to lower household energy bills or provide tax relief for working people makes things better or worse? Labour proposes asking oil and gas companies to pay a fair share, reduce energy costs, insulate homes, and close tax avoidance schemes.

Question

A vote for Labour next week would result in a plan to ask oil and gas companies to pay their fair share, reduce energy costs, insulate homes, close tax avoidance schemes. Why does the Prime Minister not get on with making choices that make things better rather than worse?

Question

Will the Prime Minister join me in welcoming the huge step forward this week in the regeneration of Heanor town centre, and does he agree that it is exactly the sort of local delivery people should be voting on next week?

Question

May I associate myself with remarks about misogyny and sexism witnessed by the deputy leader of Labour? The Prime Minister should act to help families through the cost of living emergency. Will he match Scotland's game-changing child payment?

Question

We have children facing poverty, and the Scottish Government are responding with the child payment, but we get nothing but empty words from the Prime Minister. We heard plenty of desperate pre-election waffle, but I will take it as a no: there is no support for hard-pressed families. Here are three other ideas for the Prime Minister that would help families with their soaring costs right now: scrapping his national insurance tax hike, reversing the Tory cuts to universal credit and matching Scotland's 6% benefits rise instead of imposing a real-terms cut. Has the Prime Minister come to terms with the reality that if he fails to act now, the voters will send him and his sleaze-ridden party a message by voting SNP next Thursday?

Question

Last April, the West Berkshire child and adolescent mental health services received an additional £120 million to tackle waiting times for autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder diagnoses. Twelve months on, it has outlined a general ambition to reduce delays but has set no targets or timescales for improvement, and some parents are still waiting two years for their children to be seen. Does my right hon. Friend agree that when a significant amount of public money is invested, people have a right to know how and when services will be improved, and will he support my campaign for a 12-month maximum wait for any family in West Berkshire seeking a diagnosis of this kind?

Question

The Road Haulage Association has confirmed that the cost of moving goods from this part of the United Kingdom to Northern Ireland has risen by 27% in the first year of the operation of the protocol. The Irish sea border is harming our economy and undermining political stability in Northern Ireland. Next week, the people of Northern Ireland will go to the polls to elect an Assembly. What hope can the Prime Minister give them that the protocol will be removed and Northern Ireland's place in the UK internal market will be restored?

Question

I am grateful to the Prime Minister for the additional funds and support that Mansfield has received in recent years for education and skills, for tackling crime, and for our town centre, which will be bidding for the levelling-up fund this spring, but Mansfield residents now want to see the tangible outcomes of those capital funds for the town centre. Will my right hon. Friend look seriously at how we might help to accelerate the often lengthy process of moving from successful funding announcement to spades in the ground, so that our residents can benefit from those investments?

Question

Fifty-six Members of this House are under investigation for sexual misconduct, and that includes three members of the Prime Minister's Cabinet. He has just rightly said that there can be no place for sexism and misogyny in the House. Can he now confirm that he considers sexual harassment—unlike, apparently, bullying and lying—to be grounds for dismissal under the ministerial code?

Question

Financial scams have increased dramatically in recent years and are now the most common form of crime, harming millions of families every year. Most of them are made possible by online platforms such as Facebook and Google, which make vast profits from advertising fraudsters. Does my right hon. Friend agree that companies that profit from promoting fraud should help to pay the costs of fraud, and online platforms should compensate the victims whom they have helped to create, and will he work with me to achieve that end?

Question

Hundreds and thousands of people are still shielding. They live in fear of covid as the vaccine has not mounted an antibody response for them, leaving them at increased risk. However, there is hope with Evusheld offering 83% protection for six months. Yet, despite approval by MHRA on March 17, the Government have not ordered any. Will the Prime Minister meet me to discuss this life-saving drug?

Question

My Conservative council in Kensington and Chelsea charges £500 less council tax than neighbouring Labour-controlled Camden. It also has four times as many bin collections. Does my right hon. Friend agree that everyone who wants low council tax and good services needs to vote Conservative?

Question

A headline stated that Northern Ireland could be forced to follow EU rules on Covid tests due to the protocol. The Chancellor has said Northern Ireland cannot benefit from VAT scrap on energy efficiency measures because of the protocol, posing a threat to COVID test availability in NI. What are the financial and non-financial costs of the protocol?

Question

By 2025, Liberal Democrat Eastleigh Borough Council will be in £650 million debt, or £6,300 for each resident. Does the Prime Minister think it acceptable for this council to become a speculative property developer? What advice would he give to constituents wanting to stop the 'casino council'?

Question

The cost of household food bills will rise by £271 as prices soar. The Resolution Foundation reported that 1.3 million low-income Britons could be pushed into absolute poverty by the cost of living crisis. With supermarkets helping customers, what will the Prime Minister do?

Question

I was contacted by Ukrainian Treasury Committee Chair with ideas for tightening the screw on Russia's economy through international tax regime. My right hon. Friend has promoted sanctions internationally. Will he meet me to consider these new proposals?

Question

The Home Secretary appointed Imran Ahmad Khan, who was under police investigation and later found guilty of assaulting a minor, to an expert panel offering advice on sexual exploitation after receiving a complaint from his victim. Is the Prime Minister ashamed that his party did not take the victim seriously? Does he wish to apologise?

Question

Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council has secured millions of pounds of Government investment for our high street, but we have a problem with persistent antisocial behaviour on the high street. Will my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister therefore welcome the recent appointment of a new chief constable for Staffordshire and a new borough commander for Newcastle, and the fact that Newcastle will get its own dedicated response unit? Will he also set out what further measures the Government are taking to combat crime and antisocial behaviour?

Question

Some 4.5 million people pay for their gas and electricity through a prepayment meter. They are already paying more for their energy than direct debit customers, and the number of people who are disconnecting themselves because they have run out of money for the meter is increasing. What is the Prime Minister going to do to ensure that all our constituents have a right to light and warmth?

Question

Within the past hour or so, it has been reported that some 287 Members of this House have been sanctioned by the Russian state. I am sure nobody here is rushing to change their summer holiday plans, but perhaps the Prime Minister will assure us that he will continue his excellent relationship with President Zelensky and continue to provide the Ukrainian people and military with the support they need.

Question

Today, a court has found that the Government acted unlawfully when their policies led to the discharge of untested patients from hospitals to care homes at the start of the pandemic. The court also found no evidence that the former Health Secretary addressed the issue of the risk to care home residents of such transmission despite insisting on a protective ring around care homes. Will the Prime Minister apologise to families and care workers for these issues?