Andrew Ranger MP: speeches 2024

Speeches

• 12 Dec 2024 · Armed Forces Commissioner Bill (Fourth sitting) · Hansard source

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  As an MP who represents a constituency with an active barracks and many veterans, I totally agree that this is a serious matter, but what does it have to do with the Bill, and is the wording of the new clause not in danger of affecting the independence of the Armed Forces Commissioner, and their right to set how they work independently, by putting what may be artificial timescales on decisions?

• 11 Dec 2024 · Economic Growth: North Wales · Hansard source

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  Cross-border co-operation and investment by north Wales and the Mersey Dee region of north-west England is essential to maximising growth on both sides of the border. Key to achieving that will be improved railway connectivity. Will the Secretary of State meet me and the cross-party, cross-nation Growth Track 360 group to explore how we can make that happen and help the economies on both sides of the border prosper?

• 11 Dec 2024 · Economic Growth: North Wales · Hansard source

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  7. What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on increasing economic growth in north Wales.

• 10 Dec 2024 · Armed Forces Commissioner Bill (Second sitting) · Hansard source

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  Q Very briefly, how quickly do you expect to have the commissioner up and running in post? Luke Pollard: I would expect the Bill to complete early next year. I would expect the appointment process to take roughly a year, and the office to be stood up as a commissioner’s office at the start of 2026, taking cases and, importantly, ensuring that all SCOAF cases are smoothly transitioned without any detriment to the individuals in that process—from the SCOAF function into the Armed Forces Commissioner function—to make sure there is no loss of any of that provision.

• 10 Dec 2024 · Armed Forces Commissioner Bill (Second sitting) · Hansard source

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  Q Armed Forces Commissioner is an important role, and they need to get to the information and the people that they need. What enforcement mechanism will be available to them if people do not co-operate? Luke Pollard: There is an obligation in the Bill for the Secretary of State to co-operate with the commissioner to provide information. “Secretary of State” means that the whole organisation under the Secretary of State also has that obligation placed on them. I expect that, on appointment, the processes and functions will be established, just as they are with the current SCOAF function, in terms of being able to request information—who that goes to, how that should happen, and what the processes and procedures are to enable that to happen. If there are any obstacles or failure to deliver, which I think is what my hon. Friend is getting at, the Bill allows the commissioner to report that to Parliament in their annual report: effectively to say, “There is a problem here”. That would provide the parliamentary scrutiny, which, for any future Secretary of State, would be a deterrent against failing to provide the necessary information. Equally, we put a power in the Bill for the Secretary of State to have to report to Parliament if they dismiss or remove the Armed Forces Commissioner, to enable that scrutiny function of Parliament as an oversight for the work of the Executive.

• 10 Dec 2024 · Armed Forces Commissioner Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source

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  Q What do you think would be a sensible timeframe in which we could say there had been a direct correlation between the commissioner being in place and seeing an improvement? What would be a timeframe to measure that over? Ted Arnold: Again, I think that will be difficult to measure. Having an annual review that reports to Parliament, and perhaps the community making observations—not just on thematic reviews, but in the annual report as well, in a similar way as we do as a sector to the covenant—would be an appropriate way of measuring progress. Angela Kitching: How you measure the impact of the thematic reports is crucial to that. After that annual report, you would then need to think, “Okay, what did we see that changed as a result?”. At that point, I suspect that you will see an impact on morale, with people feeling the difference because there will be something to point to. It is also about the mechanism for the commissioner to follow up on recommendations from previous reports and look at change over time. There needs to be an adequate capacity in the office for them to have access to data that allows them to track the change over time as a result of it—I note that an amendment has been tabled on this today—particularly for groups whose experience might otherwise be invisible. Those groups are very small percentages of people, such as LGBT personnel, women in particular branches of the armed forces, and the experience of non-UK personnel, but otherwise they would end up being subsumed into the whole. It is important, as in the German reports, that some of those experiences are drawn out in the annual report and we track change over time for particular groups, who otherwise end up being lost in the wider picture.

• 10 Dec 2024 · Armed Forces Commissioner Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source

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  Q When people leave the armed forces, they state that morale is one of the biggest reasons for why they intend to leave. Do you think the commissioner’s appointment and the powers they will be given will have a direct impact on improving morale and therefore decrease the number of leavers in the forces? Angela Kitching: At the moment, if you look at evidence from the armed forces continuous attitude survey, they say that the impact of service life on their families, the opportunities that they have outside of service and the amount of pay they have are the things that are currently undermining morale. For family members, it is their experiences of living a service life, so you can see that there is an obvious potential for this role to try to improve that experience. It is helpful to think about not just the individual complaints, but those wider welfare issues that chip away at people’s experiences of their time in service. The No. 1 reason given by service people for leaving is the impact on family and personal life, so anything we can do to improve that has got to help with the broader morale issue. Ted Arnold: To build on that, persistent issues with the current complaints system have deepened that dissatisfaction with service life. If we look at the various reviews—Haythornthwaite, Etherton, Atherton, Lyons and those that the Defence Committee has carried out over the years—attempts have been made to address concerns with morale or certain groups. The commissioner could bring a much more robust approach to addressing some of those problems. We envisage, as does the Bill, trying to involve the commissioner in day-to-day military life so that there is a real granular understanding of what those issues are.

• 5 Dec 2024 · Government’s Five Missions · Hansard source

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  A recent report by the Social Mobility Foundation showed that on average people from working-class backgrounds are paid an incredible £6,000 less than their privileged peers. Does my right hon. Friend agree that Labour’s opportunity mission will be critical to ending that damning statistic and finally smashing the class ceiling that enables it?

• 5 Dec 2024 · Government’s Five Missions · Hansard source

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  16. What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to implement the Government’s five missions.

• 6 Nov 2024 · Economic Growth · Hansard source

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  5. What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on increasing economic growth in Wales.

• 6 Nov 2024 · Economic Growth · Hansard source

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  I thank the Secretary of State for her answer. Universities in Wales, such as Wrexham University in my constituency, are crucial not just for the educational and research outcomes they provide, but for the economic opportunities they give our towns and cities, with a recent report by Universities Wales showing that their contribution to the economy stands at £11 billion. At a time when we are firmly in pursuit of economic growth, can the Secretary of State tell me what conversations she has had to ensure that universities in Wales are partners in this mission? Will she agree to visit Wrexham University with me to see at first hand the brilliant work that it is doing in collaboration with local businesses?

• 4 Nov 2024 · Income Tax (Charge) · Hansard source

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  Diolch yn fawr, Madam Deputy Speaker. I am grateful for the opportunity to make my maiden speech during this important debate. It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Mid Buckinghamshire (Greg Smith), and also to follow the great maiden speeches from my hon. Friends the Members for Huddersfield (Harpreet Uppal) and for North Somerset (Sadik Al-Hassan). I stand here humbled and privileged to be the Member for Wrexham, and to serve every single one of my constituents to the best of my ability—they deserve nothing less. The first Labour Budget for nearly 15 years is a major part of how this Government will put the interests of the people of Wrexham, Wales and the UK first. It is fixing the foundations of the economy and the public services that we all rely on; increasing pay for thousands of workers in Wrexham; making long-awaited improvements to workers’ rights; providing more support for carers and struggling families; addressing historical injustices such as the mineworkers’ pension scheme and the infected blood scandal; and ensuring the safety of coal tips in Wales. During the election, I promised my constituents that I would fight for fairer funding for Wales. This Budget will deliver the largest settlement for Wales since the start of devolution, all alongside a programme of investment in our infrastructure and our workforce and to support businesses. As someone who has both run my own business and helped others to start up and run theirs, I know that most of all they want stability and the ability to plan ahead. As much as anyone else they rely on good infrastructure and public services alongside a skilled and productive workforce. This Budget is the start of ensuring that we deliver that. Indeed, on the same day as the Budget was announced, new investments were made in my local football club, which Members may have heard of, and in Wrexham Lager—dare I say the world’s best lager, and the UK’s oldest lager brewery. Many will have seen and heard a lot about Wrexham in recent years, but I am sure there are those who want to know more. Wrexham is situated in the north-east of Wales, on the border with north-west England. Following the recent boundary changes, my constituency is much changed after it inherited most of the old Clwyd South constituency. Proud of our Welsh identity, which is core to the people of Wrexham, we also have strong links to the north-west of England, both socially and economically. Wrexham has a long history of coalmining, iron and steelmaking; those are the rocks on which the community was built, and which in many ways still influence it to this day. The communities that built up around those industries form a circle of villages around the city, with the rolling hills of the lower Dee valley to the east—dominated by farming and rural communities—and the wilder and more dramatic landscape of the foothills of the Clwydian mountain range to the west. The coal and steel industries are long gone, but their importance to Wrexham is not forgotten. Great community organisations such as the Wrexham Miners Project ensure that the story of Wrexham’s past is kept alive and passed on to younger and future generations. Ninety years ago this year, one of the UK’s worst ever coalmining disasters happened in Wrexham, at Gresford in 1934, when 266 men lost their lives and only 11 of the bodies were recovered. This was a time when profits were put before people and workers’ rights and safety were a secondary consideration. Every year, the community comes together to remember those tragic events that shaped the lives of so many others. Community is at the heart of Wrexham—it is its strength. So many people and organisations help others every day and take pride in the place where they live. There are so many to mention, from Wrexham Litter Pickers—a wonderful volunteer group who work hard to keep our streets tidy—to places such as Lle Hapus that bring people together, and so many others. Wrexham has welcomed people from around the world who have chosen to come and live there. We have a strong Polish community, which has been in Wrexham since the second world war, a thriving Portuguese community, and many others who make a significant contribution. Wrexham is now a major manufacturing centre, with many well-known international brands based in the city, such as Kellogg’s, JCB and others. Our local brewing industry has seen a resurgence in recent years, with Wrexham Lager once again active and exporting across the world, alongside the likes of the Magic Dragon Brewery and others, plus hundreds of small businesses, which are the backbone of our economy. Wrexham is also home to many festivals, such as Focus Wales, and we look forward to welcoming the National Eisteddfod back to Wrexham next year. We also celebrate strong military links, with an Army barracks still located in the city and a proud history of service. Of course, I could not talk about Wrexham and not mention football. Wrexham association football club is the third oldest professional association football club in the world, and our home ground, the Racecourse, is the world’s oldest international football stadium that still hosts international matches. Much in the spotlight recently, the club has an illustrious history. I know that certain Members of the House are Arsenal supporters, and in Wrexham we still take great pride in knocking out the then first division champions from the FA cup in 1992 and earning a reputation as giant killers. Of course, today Wrexham is a team transformed, since Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney bought the club a few years ago. The difference they have made to the club and to Wrexham in just a short time is remarkable—back in the Football League after a 15-year absence, our first league title in 45 years, and back-to-back promotions. Before I end, I would like to pay tribute to my predecessors. Sarah Atherton was the Conservative Member for Wrexham until the election this year. She was the only Conservative ever to represent Wrexham and the first woman to do so. I also pay tribute to her for the work she does for veterans. Simon Baynes gave great service to his constituents in Clwyd South. Finally, I pay tribute to Ian Lucas, my Labour predecessor, who served in this House for 18 years, often sitting on the Benches wearing a Wrexham AFC tie, serving as a Minister and shadow Minister, and on Select Committees, most latterly on an inquiry into disinformation and social media. Diolch yn fawr, Madam Deputy Speaker.

• 10 Sept 2024 · Prison Capacity · Hansard source

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  I thank the Secretary of State for her answer. My constituency of Wrexham is home to one of the UK’s largest prisons. It is well known that if an offender has fixed and secure accommodation to go to, they are less likely to reoffend. What steps is she taking to ensure that those released today under SDS40 will have accommodation on release, including in Wrexham?

• 10 Sept 2024 · Prison Capacity · Hansard source

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  16. What steps her Department is taking to increase prison capacity.