PMQs

Question

Given the strong consensus across this House on the importance of de-escalation of the deeply worrying conflict between Israel and Iran, does the Deputy Prime Minister agree that this House’s actions must match its words? Will she therefore give a commitment that before any further military support is given to the Israeli Government, whether it be the deployment of RAF jets or armed forces, her Government will first give MPs in this House a free vote on the matter?

Question

Too many of my constituents are stuck in unsuitable housing, and after 14 years of inaction from the Conservatives, local families are being split up because there are not enough affordable homes. I welcome this Government’s plans to turbocharge the delivery of social and affordable housing, including through the new national housing bank. I ask the Deputy Prime Minister to confirm that this Government will finally give my constituents the security that they deserve.

Question

Yesterday, the Leader of the Opposition and I met survivors of the rape gang scandal and their family members. Fiona, Teresa, Lucia and Marlon told us how authorities deliberately covered up the systematic rape of young girls, and some boys, by gangs of predominantly Pakistani-heritage men. They covered it up because they cared more about so-called community relations than protecting vulnerable girls. That is disgusting. The survivors told us that they will only have confidence in an inquiry if it is independently led, has full statutory powers, and covers all 50 towns affected, including Bradford. They will also only have confidence in it if those who covered this up are prosecuted, foreign perpetrators are all deported, survivors are closely involved, and it is set up before the summer recess. Can the Deputy Prime Minister give the survivors and their families those assurances?

Question

It is vital that scandals like this are never again covered up because of the racial background of perpetrators. Baroness Casey’s report said, to use her words, that people who downplay the ethnic dimension are letting victims down, so I have to raise the matter of the language that the Prime Minister used in January, when I am afraid to say he smeared campaigners as jumping on a “far-right bandwagon” simply for calling for the very inquiry that he has now been forced to set up. Standing up for rape victims is not far-right. Will the Deputy Prime Minister apologise for what the Prime Minister said?

Question

Smearing campaigners who stand up for rape victims as being “far-right” is completely unacceptable, and the Prime Minister should never have said that. I commend his predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond and Northallerton (Rishi Sunak), for the grooming gangs taskforce that he set up, which led to 550 arrests in its first year. Baroness Casey’s report also said that a significant number of rape gang perpetrators were non-UK nationals or asylum seekers, many of whom entered the country illegally. We also know that most illegal immigrants crossing the channel are young men, contrary to what the Chief Secretary to the Treasury said last week. Does the Deputy Prime Minister now accept that the small boats crisis is one of public safety, as well as a border crisis?

Question

If she wants to find out who has lost control of our borders, I suggest that she looks to her immediate right, because ever since the Home Secretary scrapped the Rwanda deterrent before it even started, illegal immigration across the channel has gone up by 30%. So far, 2025 has been the worst year in history for illegal immigrants crossing the channel. That is on her watch; that is down to her Government. The Prime Minister is planning crisis talks with President Macron, and is finally admitting that the situation is, in his words, “deteriorating”. The Government’s laughable plan to smash the gangs lies in tatters. Will the Deputy Prime Minister at last accept that we need a removals deterrent, so that every single illegal immigrant who arrives on these shores is immediately removed? Will she commit to that—yes or no?

Question

The number of people crossing the channel is at a record high. The Home Office’s suppliers are actively offering above-market deals to landlords for properties used by illegal immigrants. Why do this Government prioritise housing for illegal immigrants above housing for our young people?

Question

A Zimbabwean paedophile due for deportation was recently allowed to stay in the UK because of possible 'hostility' back in Zimbabwe. What about the rights of children here to be protected from this dangerous paedophile? Why do the Government side with foreign criminals and not the British public?

Question

Last Saturday marked eight years since Grenfell—eight years fighting for justice. Can the Deputy Prime Minister confirm whether this Labour Government will bring forward the Hillsborough law without delay? Will they honour promises made to victims and deliver justice?

Question

President Trump is seriously considering joining the war between Israel and Iran. Can the Deputy Prime Minister confirm that if President Trump does take such action, today’s Labour Government will not blindly follow the US into war again?

Question

The Government are set to unveil their plans to cut personal independence payments and carer’s allowance. Can the Deputy Prime Minister honestly say, hand on heart, that this is the change promised to 1 million disabled people and their carers?

Question

I welcome the Government’s announcement on grooming gangs. I am sorry for stumbling; I have been floored by the point scoring going on around them—on all sides. Victims and survivors of grooming gangs are being denied compensation by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority on bizarre technicalities, as are all children who have been victims of online abuse. For me, that is a grave injustice. The authority thinks it is better than a judge and jury. What does the Deputy Prime Minister plan to do?

Question

The Home Secretary says that we should judge her success in smashing the gangs by whether the number of channel crossings falls, but under this Government the numbers are up by more than 30%. By which date should we judge the Home Secretary, and if she fails, will she be fired?

Question

On 1 July, Warwickshire county council will permanently remove one of Nuneaton’s two fire engines. Its decision, based on dubious data that does not account for local factors such as high deprivation, does not accurately represent the current risk to residents. The cuts will put lives in Nuneaton in danger. Will the Deputy Prime Minister please look into this matter to confirm that there has been sufficient scrutiny and a thorough risk analysis to ensure safety for the good residents of Nuneaton?

Question

The Government quite rightly give full and unequivocal support to Israel in its bid to end the scourge of Iran’s nuclear weapons programme forever. Will they also work with our allies to try and convince the Israeli Government that it is not in the long-term security interests of Israel to carry on with this policy of illegal settlements in the west bank, which is simply leading to radicalisation and desperation throughout the region? Have not the overwhelming majority of Palestinian people the right to yearn for peace and security in their own homeland, as the Jews yearned for their homeland for 2,000 years?

Question

In Scotland, over 10,000 children are stuck in temporary accommodation, including many in my constituency. Too many families face soaring rents, long waiting lists and dwindling options. It is just one of so many policy failings—we are all losing count and losing patience—as public confidence in the SNP’s ability to govern collapses. What advice does the Deputy Prime Minister have for the SNP Government as they continue to preside over a chronic failure to invest in the social and affordable housing that Scotland desperately needs?

Question

In the spending review last week, the Government backed Peterborough with support for our new pool and a sports quarter in the city. That commitment has the power to turn years of campaigning into a reality, but that is not all: the Government have also recently approved the business case for our new station and have given us new police. Does the Deputy Prime Minister agree that this is just the start and that places like Peterborough that were forgotten for too long by the Conservatives are now at the top of this Labour Government’s agenda?

Question

A small family business in my constituency was recently burgled by a prolific offender serving an eight-month suspended sentence. The man was caught, arrested, charged and appeared in court, where he was given another eight-month suspended sentence and was released. The business was offered £200 in compensation. Does the Deputy Prime Minister think that that is justice served, or is this Government now soft on crime and soft on the causes of crime?

Question

As a trained physics teacher and a former engineering lecturer, may I ask what this Government are doing to help people improve their maths skills after they have left school? A 61-year-old man believed he had counted up £7 billion of Government spending, when there was really only £27 million. What can we do for people like the leader of Reform UK, the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage), who evidently cannot add up?