PMQs

Question

Leaseholders in my constituency and across the country are being fleeced by freeholders and managing agents. They need relief from both, and we need to end the feudal leasehold system, so can the Prime Minister confirm when the leasehold and commonhold reform Bill will come to Parliament?

Question

May I welcome the Prime Minister’s efforts to advance peace in Ukraine, and his joint statement on Greenland? It is therefore frankly astonishing that the Prime Minister is not making a full statement to Parliament today. No Prime Minister—Labour or Conservative—has failed to make a statement to the House in person after committing to the deployment of British troops. His comments about making a statement in due course are frankly not good enough. Can he tell us what influence he is bringing to bear on the United States Administration to ensure that Greenland’s sovereignty is respected?

Question

It is clear that the Prime Minister either does not have the detail or does not want to give us the detail, but this is important. He should be calling an urgent meeting of NATO leaders. He should have spoken to President Trump by now. This is important because if any such peace deal is breached, we would be in direct conflict with Russia. If the Prime Minister is committing troops, he must give more detail on how he intends to ensure that our armed forces are fully resourced. Before the Budget, the Prime Minister said it was his “ambition” to spend 3% of GDP on defence in the next Parliament. That could be as late as 2034. It is time to move from ambition to commitment. We have had the Budget, so can the Prime Minister now tell us in what year the UK will spend 3% of GDP on defence?

Question

The Prime Minister has rightly made house building and economic growth key priorities for the Government. By giving the go-ahead today to the Chesterfield Staveley regeneration route, he will help us to deliver 1,500 houses and 7,200 jobs on land that was previously coalmining and brownfield industrial land. It is not just a road; it is a growth project. Will the Prime Minister keep the good news coming and tell us that he will support the Chesterfield Staveley regeneration route?

Question

Even its strongest advocates acknowledge that Northern Ireland is trapped in dysfunction—not because reform is not possible, but because the DUP and Sinn Féin have not allowed it. We have become a political “Hotel California”, where the past is always around but the future never arrives. There is growing public consensus that some of Stormont’s procedures simply are not working. The SDLP has found slivers of common ground across the political parties, too. Does the Prime Minister agree that now is the time for a structured conversation that both protects power sharing and addresses the culture of veto and decline so that Stormont might finally take responsibility and start to deliver for the people?

Question

Many independent business owners I have met fear the cumulative impact of the rateable value revision and relief reductions, particularly in York where hospitality businesses will see an average rise of 41%, music venues a rise of 44.4% and shops around 27%. This means doors are closing and trade ceasing—businesses simply cannot do it. Will the Prime Minister urgently review the business rates proposals, and will he ensure that a Minister or official attends my business rates summit at the end of January? I want to avert a crisis on York’s high streets.

Question

The period after Christmas can be a challenging time for many people, and consequently the month of January consistently sees higher rates of suicide than other times of the year, but suicide is preventable and lives can be saved. Education, raising awareness and targeting vulnerable groups are all effective suicide prevention strategies, and I was pleased to see them in the recent men’s health strategy, but I call on the Government to go a step further and launch a public health campaign to encourage discussions about suicidal thoughts and ideation. Will the Prime Minister agree to continue this conversation with me, and will he state his support for a public health campaign to tackle the worryingly high number of deaths from suicide in this country?

Question

Adrian Howe was a successful and dedicated Vodafone store manager for over 20 years. In 2017 he was offered the opportunity to take on a franchise for one of their thriving stores, but the goalposts changed and he was forced to take on a struggling store. Just days before he was due to open that store, Adrian stepped into a lake and did not ever return home. Adrian’s wife and widow, my constituent Tracey, wonders if the Prime Minister will review franchising legislation to ensure that there is a balance of power between companies and their franchises, so that nobody else feels undue pressure when they take on a franchise.

Question

Last year, the cargo vessel Baltic Clipper lost 16 containers off the beautiful West Sussex coastline. Beaches and seas in my constituency have been polluted with toxic debris. The clean-up was initiated and led almost exclusively by resolute local volunteers. Will the Prime Minister join me in paying tribute to all those involved for their extraordinary efforts? Will he, or the relevant Minister, meet me to ensure that the coastline is restored and that local taxpayers will not pick up any costs?

Question

I recently met bereaved constituents who lost their babies at Leeds teaching hospitals NHS trust. Understandably, their confidence in the system is at an all-time low. They want answers about the circumstances in which at least 56 babies and two mothers have died in recent years. Will the Prime Minister update the House on what steps he is taking to ensure that an inquiry uncovers the factors that led to these deaths, confirm Donna Ockenden as chair of that inquiry, and join me in paying tribute to the courageous families campaigning to ensure that nobody has to suffer the same tragedy again?

Question

According to the Office for National Statistics, 174,000 people under the age of 35 moved abroad in the year ending June 2025. In the highlands, the problem is especially acute: demographic statistics show that young people are not staying in rural communities and pupil numbers in schools are down by 40% to 50% in the past 20 years. Rural depopulation and youth emigration are two sides of the same story: lack of opportunity. We have a demographic crisis. What is the Prime Minister doing to ensure that the UK offers strong apprenticeship and skills pathways for young people? Does he agree that the SNP’s failure in Scotland, diverting away £170 million intended for apprenticeships and skills development, shows exactly what happens when opportunity is not delivered?