PMQs

Question

Happy birthday to you, Mr Speaker. The existence of Israeli settlements and settler violence against Palestinians is a major impediment to peace. I have uncovered 32 British charities funnelling money to Israeli settlements on Palestinian land. Last week, I submitted a formal complaint to the Charity Commission about them. In the last five years, they sent over £28 million to illegal settlements, with a likely taxpayer subsidy through gift aid of more than £5 million. Does the Prime Minister agree that this is extremist activity and not charitable activity, and will he be clear that it is banned?

Question

I wish England and Scotland the very best in the world cup. I wish you a very happy birthday, Mr Speaker—many happy returns. May I take the opportunity to associate myself with the remarks that the Prime Minister made about the helicopter crash? Our condolences go to their families, and to the family of Michael Storey. The scenes in Belfast are deeply disturbing. A man is in hospital after a brutal attack and now families are frightened after a night of violence. Last night, America carried out strikes on Iran in response to the downing of a US helicopter. This comes just days after renewed attacks on Ukraine. The world is getting more dangerous and the British public want to know that this Government are doing everything they can to protect our national security. Can the Prime Minister tell the House, will the full defence investment plan finally be published this week?

Question

We have wasted two years waiting for the defence investment plan. Projects have been put on hold and Britain is getting weaker with every passing day. It has been reported that the Chief of the Defence Staff told the Prime Minister that the Ministry of Defence needs an extra £28 billion. Will that requirement be met in full?

Question

I welcome the pay rise for the armed forces. The Prime Minister says he has increased defence spending, but he has not. This year he is cutting it by £3.5 billion. What he is talking about are hopeful increases, and we do not know if he will make them because there is still no defence investment plan. At a time when we need leadership, we have total paralysis. It is reported that the Chancellor is only willing to find £13 billion for the DIP. How can that be the case when he is giving the armed forces less than half of the minimum that they need?

Question

There is still no defence investment plan. The military is waiting, and bond markets are watching. The Prime Minister has only three options: cutting spending, more borrowing, or higher taxes. Will he rule out raising taxes?

Question

At a time of increased global tension with war in Europe and the Middle East, why does the Prime Minister not have a defence investment plan? Why not just cut welfare benefits?

Question

As the Prime Minister is weak and unable to face down Back Benchers or cut benefits, will he be remembered for a bloated welfare state and weaker armed forces?

Question

Palantir staff have had unlimited access to identifiable NHS patient data. The Government have an opportunity to end this contract through a break clause next year. Will they take that opportunity and kick Palantir out of our NHS next year?

Question

I join the Prime Minister in sending our condolences. As chaos over the defence investment plan continues, I am sure Members were shocked by reports that the Government are contemplating slashing hospital funding for military expenses. Surely in 21st-century Britain people can expect both a decent local hospital and armed forces that keep them safe. Will the Prime Minister rule out any cuts to NHS budgets to fund defence?

Question

I urge the Prime Minister to look at our plans for defence bonds. I turn to the horrific scenes in Belfast: an appalling crime was committed, making us feel immense pain and anger. Extremists exploit grief and anger, aided by social media barons like Elon Musk. Does the PM agree that this is not who we are as a country? Will he crack down on platforms like X fuelling violence and hatred?

Question

Flexible and co-working spaces play a crucial role in regenerating town centres. However, recent Valuation Office Agency assessments now treat many as single, larger businesses. This could result in losing small business rate relief and receiving backdated bills for up to three years. Will the Prime Minister ensure an urgent political solution is found to this problem?

Question

I associate myself with the Prime Minister's remarks about the helicopter crash. The north Belfast attack on Monday was medieval and sadistic, viewed by millions. It requires the strongest condemnation. Will the PM meet me urgently to discuss steps taken to ensure values are enforced, rule of law sustained, and border protection improved?

Question

I associate myself with PM's remarks on Northern Ireland. The Mildmay hospital in my constituency has been a pioneer for HIV and AIDs care since the 1980s. Diana, Princess of Wales made numerous visits to this unique charitable hospital, breaking through stigma surrounding HIV and AIDS. It provides care for patients with complex needs today yet is at risk of closure due to commissioning issues in NHS. Will the Prime Minister lend his support ahead of 30th anniversary of her death so that it can survive and thrive?

Question

I am sure hon. Members will agree that I, as a person of colour in this House, cannot be held accountable for the vile acts of individuals who share my complexion or heritage. However, there are some in this Chamber who seek division to further their political ambitions—individuals who are fuelling hate against citizens of our own nation and causing hard-working, upstanding people to be afraid for their safety because of the colour of their skin. Teachers, doctors and nurses are afraid to go to work. Words have consequences, and with the eyes of the nation on us in this moment, what pure, cold actions will the Prime Minister take against those inciting and perpetrating violence and, more importantly, to support the victims following the brutal attack in Belfast?

Question

The British Standards Institution is 125 years old this year. I am proud to have been working closely with it to produce and publish BS 30480: the world's first free standard on suicide and the workplace. The standard has now been downloaded more than 12,500 times. As we all work towards reducing the number of people who die by suicide, will the Prime Minister support more workplace adoption of the standard and work with the BSI and me to achieve that?

Question

Happy birthday, Mr Speaker. We all condemn, of course, the appalling violence in Belfast last night after the horrific attack on Monday. But this Prime Minister is in denial of the rising despair across the country over his failure to stop the boats and related criminality, his failure to recognise two-tier policing, his failures over Mandelson and his failures over the scourge of antisemitism. He has lost the confidence of the country, his own trade union members and his own, very quiet, Back Benchers. When will he do the right thing? When will this Prime Minister resign?

Question

Happy birthday, Mr Speaker. Last summer, my constituent Ryan Long went to Ibiza on his first lads' holiday. On his first night, he made what turned out to be a fatal decision when he took an ecstasy pill, and after falling into a coma, he sadly passed away at the age of 18. Since his death, his mum Angie, working with local charity Open Road, has ploughed her grief into campaigning, fundraising and raising awareness of the dangers of drug use, so that no other family has to go through the pain hers has suffered. She joins us in the Public Gallery today. Will the Prime Minister join me in thanking Angie for her dedicated work, and will he meet her to discuss ways in which we can, in Ryan's name, further raise awareness of the danger of drugs?

Question

If any member of the public wishes to visit a major sporting or music event, they can expect to be searched on the way in. If they bring a bottle of water, the lid will be taken. If they order a drink from the bar, it will be served in a plastic cup. That is done for security reasons, yet because of exemptions in the Offensive Weapons Act 2019, those same events permit the carrying of blades up to 5 inches long. Does the Prime Minister recognise the dangers and risks associated with that, and that what a solicitor might call “an exception”, our voters would call “two-tier justice”?

Question

Maternity care in north Oxfordshire declined under the previous Government, with the loss of consultant-led services at the Horton hospital—where I was born—and serious failings by the trust, which is now part of Baroness Amos's inquiry. However, last week, the Care Quality Commission upgraded the Horton maternity unit to good. Will the Prime Minister visit the Horton hospital in Banbury to see the change that this Government's £3.3 million investment has delivered since July 2024?

Question

Earlier this year, I found myself in hospital as a result of a flare-up from living with ulcerative colitis. I was bowled over by the support of local constituents and people who live with inflammatory bowel disease across the country when they got in touch. For people with IBD, however, care often falls far short of the mark. It can take ages to get a diagnosis—for me, it took the best part of a decade—and then when someone manages to get one, care can become a postcode lottery. Living with a fluctuating and non-visible condition is already hard enough before having to navigate those systems. IBD UK Alliance set out what good care looks like with the IBD standards. Will the Prime Minister meet me and clinicians to discuss IBD standards, and will he consider appointing a national clinical lead to drive improvement when it comes to IBD care?

Question

Many happy returns to you, Mr Speaker. It is Carers Week, so I take this opportunity to thank all the young carers and young adult carers in my constituency of Harlow for all that they do, all year round. As a former teacher, I spend a lot of time talking to students, parents and teachers in Harlow about the dangers of social media. They are very concerned that the big tech companies are not taking their responsibilities seriously, so can I ask the Prime Minister what he is doing to hold big tech firms to account, to ensure that our young people are safe online?

Question

A suppressed Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs report has concluded that without transformational change, our food and water systems are at risk of catastrophic failure from 2030. Another suppressed Joint Intelligence Committee report concluded that there is a “high likelihood” of ecosystem collapse, putting food production at risk. Does the Prime Minister recognise that many of us across this House are ready to work collaboratively to address these urgent challenges, and will he commit to publishing those two reports in full?

Question

Peter Murrell pleaded guilty to embezzling over £400,000 of Scottish National party members' funds. Thousands of pounds were spent on luxury items ranging from a salt and pepper grinder to a new Jaguar and a luxury motorhome. When party figures raised concerns, and even resigned, they were silenced and ostracised by those at the very top of the SNP. Does my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister agree that a full investigation into this national scandal needs to be held as a matter of urgency?

Question

Running a business as a plumber, I was well used to dealing with dirty grubbiness, and there is still plenty of that dirty grubbiness behind me. Running a business is tough, so will the Prime Minister join me in backing the “VAT's the Problem” campaign to cut VAT rates in hospitality? He did not answer the question last week, so will he tell us today: yes or no?

Question

Mr Speaker, integrated care boards have a statutory obligation to fully fund all essential medicines and pharmacy provision for the delivery of specialist end-of-life and palliative care at our wonderful hospices, such as St Catherine's and Derian House, serving our respective constituencies of South Ribble and Chorley. However, this is not happening, with ICBs claiming that the costs are covered by the hospices' core grant. Will the Prime Minister support my private Member's Bill—St Catherine's law—which seeks to place an explicit obligation on every ICB to fund all essential medicine and pharmacy provision for all our hospices, separately from any core grant they receive from the NHS?

Question

Every time there is heavy rain, Judy Washington's driveway and garden are flooded with raw sewage. The same happens to her neighbour, and it happened again last week. Thames Water told my office that it will not even look at the situation until the end of winter 2027. It is unacceptable that a lady in her retirement is shovelling sewage from her drive and waiting for human waste to decompose in her garden. Will the Prime Minister write to Thames Water on behalf of Judy and her neighbour to compel it to sort this out?

Question

Last week, the Prime Minister warned that NATO needs to be ready for an attack from Russia by 2030. Indeed, we have an increasingly belligerent, expansionist and imperialist Russian leadership to our east and a Donald Trump US leadership to our west, for whom Ukraine and European security are not a priority, so we need to meet the moment. To his credit, the Prime Minister has increased defence spending since taking power, but the House of Commons Defence Committee is adamant that we need to spend 3% of GDP on defence. When the Prime Minister signs off on decisions in the defence investment plan, which I hope—touch wood—will be published imminently, will he agree to that 3% GDP spend on defence?

Question

Lindsay Foreman and her husband Craig have not eaten in 32 and 23 days respectively. They are being held hostage by the terrorist Government of Iran, but this Government's weak words have abandoned them, so will the Prime Minister stop raising their case and start fighting for them? He can do that by declaring today in this House that they are being arbitrarily detained—something he has refused to do—and by referring their case to the International Court of Justice, so we get them home.