Harriett Baldwin MP: speeches 2024

Speeches

• 30 Oct 2024 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source

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  As the hon. Lady can see, I am not giving way at the moment. As you know, Madam Deputy Speaker, the only way that we get true, genuine, sustainable growth in this country is through productivity and investment by the private sector.

• 30 Oct 2024 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source

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  I congratulate the hon. Lady on her unopposed election as Chair of the wonderful Treasury Committee. Does she share my concern that the individual who has been appointed to the office for value for money was previously on the board of HS2?

• 30 Oct 2024 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source

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  On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. I referred to the Prime Minister’s words on national television, and I was quoting him directly, but if I have inadvertently misled the House, I apologise.

• 30 Oct 2024 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source

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  Does the hon. Gentleman want to stand up for my farmers? My farmers are some of the most productive and hard-working people in this country. They are the ones who put food on our tables, and they are soundly disappointed with today’s Budget. There was no help or certainty for them in the Budget—no help for them through the agricultural property relief that allows them to hand on the family farm to the next generation. Labour Members should know that this Budget will mean that many family farms will be broken up, unable to be handed on to the next generation.

• 30 Oct 2024 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source

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  I will not give way to the hon. Gentleman, who so often gave evidence to the Treasury Committee. I recall that I had to press him on the fact that NHS productivity has not yet returned to its pre-pandemic level. He told us on the record that if it did, that would be worth £20 billion in additional NHS output. The Chancellor promised that she wanted to focus on growth. That is her mission, but I believe that more taxes, more public spending and more borrowing do not lead to growth; if they did, Venezuela would be one of the most prosperous countries on earth. What the Chancellor was planning all along, together with her Cabinet colleagues —who have no experience of working in the wealth-creating, job-creating, tax-paying private sector—is a Budget of the public sector, by the public sector, for the public sector. She cannot blame us, because in her first 25 days as Chancellor she announced £25 billion of additional new spending, whether that was for Great British Energy, a national wealth fund, or inflation-busting backdated union pay rises with no productivity requirements. I also want to speak up for my farmers in West Worcestershire.

• 29 Oct 2024 · Israel: UNRWA Ban · Hansard source

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  We are following developments in the Knesset carefully. We Conservative Members want more aid to reach innocent civilians in Gaza because the situation there is desperate, but we also recognise that UNRWA must rebuild the trust and confidence that it lost, following the deeply troubling allegations that staff were involved in the appalling 7 October attacks and the outcome of the subsequent investigation. Catherine Colonna’s reforms need to be implemented in full, because we recognise that UNRWA has a good, indeed often critical, distribution network. Can the Minister update the House on the progress that UNRWA has made in implementing the Colonna reforms, and what measures have the Government put in place, since restoring funding to UNRWA, to monitor its neutrality? More broadly, during our time in government, Israel made commitments that would increase the amount of aid reaching Gaza—for example, a commitment to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid through Ashdod and Erez, extend the opening hours of Kerem Shalom, increase the total number of aid trucks and allow more types of aid in. I would be grateful if the Minister updated the House on what discussions she has had with her Israeli colleagues about fulfilling those commitments, and indeed on what credible alternative plan Israel has developed. Despite the pause in future funding to UNRWA implemented by the last Government, we remained absolutely committed to getting on with aid delivery. Among other measures that we took, we assisted over 5,800 children with severe malnourishment, and 853,000 children, adolescents and carers with the provision of wider emergency services. We also sent in many airdrops, and funded a field hospital that is treating thousands of patients. Will the Minister confirm that there are other ways to deliver aid without UNRWA, and that the UK stands ready to help in every way possible, with its extensive expertise, so that we reach the most vulnerable?

• 29 Oct 2024 · Ministerial Code: Policy Announcements · Hansard source

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  Can the Paymaster General confirm that the Chancellor receiving £7,500-worth of free clothes and declaring them as office support is a breach of the ministerial code?

• 29 Oct 2024 · Living Standards · Hansard source

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  The living standards of a 90-year-old pensioner on a £13,500 income are falling sharply this winter as a result of the Chancellor’s decision to take away the winter fuel allowance. Tomorrow, she has the chance to increase the threshold. Will she take it?

• 28 Oct 2024 · International Engagement · Hansard source

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  I have had a chance to read the Minister’s statement while I have been in the Chamber, and I declare an interest as an executive committee member of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Assembly UK. This statement really should have been delivered by the Prime Minister. It was he, along with the Foreign Secretary, who travelled to Samoa and can tell us at first hand about the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting and the negotiations for its communiqué. Instead, he has chosen to ignore Parliament today and deliver another of his gloomy speeches talking down our economy. The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting is an opportunity to reinvigorate the Commonwealth —a partnership of 56 independent and equal sovereign states with a combined population of 2.7 billion. With our King as the new head of the Commonwealth, and a new secretary-general-elect, we have fresh energy to create the thriving, resilient Commonwealth of the future. I thank Samoa for hosting. The meeting shows that a Pacific small island state has equity of membership with all Commonwealth nations. I also thank Baroness Scotland for her indefatigable work for the Commonwealth. With reinvigoration comes reflection. As the head of the Commonwealth, His Majesty the King said that the UK must acknowledge the painful aspects of Britain’s past. At the same time, it must also be accepted that the past cannot be changed. There comes a moment to stop looking back, never forgetting history but using the lessons learned to forge a brighter future path. I congratulate the new secretary-general elect Shirley Botchwey on her unanimous election. She recently asserted that the debate “had moved from financial reparations now to justice in terms of what do we get for climate? What do we get in terms of the development cooperation framework?” She is right. Let us look at the international work the UK has been doing through the international development budget, co-chairing the green climate fund, and funding countless Commonwealth programmes focusing on health, education and private sector engagement. British international investment alone has created employment for hundreds of thousands of people in Commonwealth nations. The UK also provides expertise in financial services and pandemic research, as well as Commonwealth and Chevening scholarships. Will the Minister confirm that those will continue on the same scale after Wednesday’s Budget? Turning to the communiqué, the wording in paragraph 22 implies that the UK’s openness to reparatory justice in relation to the abhorrent slave trade is not as off-limits as the Prime Minister has previously stated. What is the Government’s actual red line on reparations, given the Foreign Secretary’s well-known past views on the topic? Or is this another example of saying one thing in opposition but another in government? On paragraph 16, what is the Government’s position on UN Security Council reform? Will the Minister rule out giving away our permanent seat? On paragraph 43, what steps are the UK Government taking as penholder on Myanmar to bring about the measures outlined in the communiqué? Turning to the International Monetary Fund meetings in Washington, will the Minister confirm that she has delayed a £707 million disbursement to the World Bank International Development Association budget that benefits numerous Commonwealth countries? To conclude, the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting focused mainly on the future. In the Commonwealth, that means moving on together. It means being honest with our partners about our intentions, and it means being clear and consistent with our international partners with that message, from the Prime Minister down.

• 17 Oct 2024 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Blue-light escort decisions are rightly taken on an operationally independent basis by the police. Yet after the Home Secretary, the Attorney General and the Mayor of London met the police to discuss the escort for Taylor Swift, she was granted one. A few days later, the Prime Minister and his whole family met Taylor Swift and her manager back stage. Can we have a debate on the new Government’s approach to breaches of the ministerial code?

• 15 Oct 2024 · Gaza and Lebanon · Hansard source

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  Palestinians face a devastating humanitarian crisis. The UK must continue to play a leading role in alleviating that suffering. There are still hostages in Gaza, including the British citizen Emily Damari. Can the Minister update the House on efforts to secure her release and the release of other hostages who are in such awful jeopardy? The previous Government trebled our Gaza aid commitment and facilitated aid flows by land, sea, and air. Will the Minister confirm that those efforts continue? Can the Minister give us an update on the implementation of the Colonna recommendations on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency? Turning to Lebanon, British nationals are urged to follow the UK travel advice. Clearly, resolution 1701 has not been implemented. Hezbollah has mobilised south of the Litani river and fired thousands of rockets into northern Israel. What steps are the Government taking with the UN to secure implementation of UN Security Council resolution 1701 and get Hezbollah to pull back? Just as aid workers are not a target, UN peacekeepers cannot be a target. Does the Minister agree with Israel’s assessment that Hezbollah has built thousands of tunnel shafts next to the chapter 6 UNIFIL peacekeepers? Has that put their mission in such grave danger that the UN must now review its mandate? This is a grave situation. There is no equivalence between Iran’s terrorist proxies, Hezbollah and Hamas, and the state of Israel. Israel has a right to defend itself against an existential threat. But too many innocent civilians are losing their lives or seeing their lives irreparably changed. The UK must continue to support them with humanitarian aid.

• 10 Oct 2024 · Gaza and Humanitarian Aid · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Vaz. This afternoon has been an opportunity to hear voices from across the United Kingdom. I congratulate the hon. Member for Birmingham Perry Barr (Ayoub Khan) on securing the debate. We have heard voices not only from Birmingham, but from London and across the English home counties. We have heard strong Scottish voices, and we have heard from Durham and York. In the interests of time, I will not list every constituency from which we heard passionately and expressively that the Palestinians face a devastating humanitarian crisis, but the UK should continue to play a leading role in alleviating that suffering. This week of all weeks, however, we must remind ourselves that on 7 October Israel suffered an appalling attack—a modern-day pogrom. It was the worst loss of Jewish life since the second world war, a horrific display of antisemitism and a brutal reminder of the existential threats that Israel must contend with. We must always state that Israel has the right to defend itself in accordance with international humanitarian law. As we have heard, so many innocent civilians are suffering not only in Israel, but in Gaza and now Lebanon. This conflict must come to a sustainable end as quickly as possible, starting with the immediate and unconditional release of the remaining hostages captive in Gaza, including the British citizen Emily Damari. Can I ask the Minister—a former hostage negotiator himself—for an update on the Government’s efforts to secure her release and the release of the other hostages who are in such awful jeopardy? The previous UK Government trebled our aid commitment in the last financial year and facilitated aid flows into Gaza by land, sea and air. In the interests of time, I will not list them all; I will focus on the 11 airdrops delivered directly to Gaza through a temporary marine corridor that was supported by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary and the funding of field hospitals to treat thousands of patients. Can the Minister confirm that these efforts continue under the new Government? During the previous Government, Israel committed to increasing the amount of aid getting into Gaza, including by allowing the delivery of humanitarian aid through Ashdod and Erez, extending the opening hours of Kerem Shalom, increasing the total number of aid trucks to at least 500 a day, and allowing more types of aid, including fuel for bakeries and hospitals. We welcome the recent pause for polio vaccinations and wish to put on record our gratitude to the World Health Organisation, the British Red Cross, the World Food Programme and UNICEF staff, who are doing vital humanitarian work and should be commended. As we have heard today, aid workers are not a target. Protecting humanitarian actors must be a priority, and guaranteed deconfliction for aid convoys and other humanitarian work is essential. We should also take this opportunity to pay tribute to all of the brave aid workers in Gaza and our fellow citizens James Kirby, John Chapman and James Henderson who were killed delivering aid in Gaza earlier this year. Can we have an update from the Minister on the work that the Government are doing to advance on these key areas? What steps have they taken to help to increase the amount of aid getting over the border into Gaza? What additional aid, supplies and humanitarian support has the UK sent? What action have the Government taken to make the case for the protection of the humanitarian personnel on the ground distributing that aid? In the interests of time, I will skip over the situation with UNRWA, but I want to hear an update from the Minister on the implementation of the Colonna recommendations and the UK Government’s scrutiny of it. As we heard earlier this week from the Leader of the Opposition, the situation in the middle east is grave. There is no equivalence between Iran’s terrorist proxies and Israel. Israel has a right to defend itself, and we support it in those goals, but too many innocent civilian lives have been lost and irreparably changed by this conflict. The UK should continue to carefully support them through our humanitarian aid commitments, and I look forward to the Minister reporting to us on the progress made.

• 10 Oct 2024 · Midland Main Line: Electrification · Hansard source

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  It is not electrified, Mr Speaker, but the west midlands railway line from Birmingham to Hereford has seen a dramatic deterioration in its performance since the Secretary of State agreed the no-conditions, inflation-busting pay rise with the strikers. Will the Minister agree to meet the management of West Midlands Railway to see what steps could be taken to improve the performance on that important line?

• 8 Oct 2024 · VAT: Independent Schools · Hansard source

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  I thank my right hon. Friend, who is giving an excellent introduction to the debate. Is it his understanding that our military personnel, and those serving in our diplomatic service, will also be hit by this tax?

• 8 Oct 2024 · Independent Schools: VAT and Business Rates Exemptions · Hansard source

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  I congratulate my hon. Friend on securing this important debate. The Government say that they are pursuing economic growth. In his excellent speech I hope that my hon. Friend will highlight the value of export earnings to the United Kingdom from the fantastic independent school sector, which is a key part of growth. No other western economy taxes education.

• 12 Sept 2024 · Support for Farmers · Hansard source

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  It is the time of year when we thank farmers and nature for the harvest, and it has been a particularly difficult year. Farmers are planning ahead for next year, so will the Minister kindly give me a one-word answer to my question? I understand that she cannot announce what is in the spending review, but in the request that her Department has made to the Chancellor, is the amount she has asked for more or less than £2.4 billion?

• 12 Sept 2024 · Support for Farmers · Hansard source

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  6. What steps he is taking to support farmers.

• 12 Sept 2024 · NHS: Independent Investigation · Hansard source

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  Famously, the House has not seen an impact assessment of the withdrawal of the winter fuel allowance from frail 85 and 90-year-olds on low incomes. Has Lord Darzi or the Secretary of State seen an assessment of the impact of that decision on NHS bed capacity over the coming winter?

• 11 Sept 2024 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  Q12. I thought that socialism was about taxing those with the broadest shoulders in order to help the most vulnerable, but it appears that Starmer socialism involves scaring those with the broadest shoulders out of the country while taking away the winter fuel allowance for frail 90-year-olds living in draughty homes. Will the Prime Minister apologise to my shivering constituents for his personal choice, and will he reverse this chilling decision?

• 10 Sept 2024 · Winter Fuel Payment · Hansard source

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  On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. This is the second Government Minister we have heard from the Dispatch Box today, yet only moments ago we saw the Chancellor sitting on the Front Bench. It was the Chancellor who chose to spend billions on setting up Great British Energy. It was the Chancellor who chose to spend billions giving pay rises to their union paymasters. It was the Chancellor—

• 10 Sept 2024 · Social Security · Hansard source

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  I thank the Secretary of State. Will she confirm from the Dispatch Box that if every pensioner who is eligible for pension credit takes it up, the cost to the Exchequer will actually be substantially more than the savings from axing the winter fuel payment?

• 10 Sept 2024 · Social Security · Hansard source

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• 9 Sept 2024 · Private School Closures · Hansard source

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  Malvern college, Malvern St James girls’ school, Bredon school and other schools in West Worcestershire that offer places to children with special educational needs not only play an important role in our education system, but support the local economy. Will the Minister state that he does not want to see the closure of any of those important independent schools in West Worcestershire?

• 4 Sept 2024 · Security in the Democratic Republic of the Congo · Hansard source

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  I congratulate the right hon. Member for Islington North (Jeremy Corbyn) on securing this debate. It is so important that this Parliament shines a light on situations like this one and the situation in Sudan that we debated yesterday. It was an honour to listen to the speeches of the hon. Members for Edmonton and Winchmore Hill (Kate Osamor), for Strangford (Jim Shannon), who spoke with such passion, and for Honiton and Sidmouth (Richard Foord), who certainly articulated why this is such an important issue. As Minister for Africa in Theresa May’s Government, I had the privilege of going to the Democratic Republic of the Congo several times. My first visit was to Kalemie on Lake Tanganyika to see how UK aid was helping children who had fled terrible situations to stay in education. I saw how important it is to keep the focus on making sure that children are educated. In Kananga, I saw that UK aid had helped build a health clinic for newborns. On a later visit, I went through Goma and to Butembo during the Ebola outbreak to see how UK aid was helping with the vaccination of so many people. The city of Goma has had its freshwater system provided by UK aid over the years. Over many, many decades, we have recognised how important it is that we try to help those fleeing the terrible conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. I do not need to repeat that it is very worrying, because we can see how much of the population is facing food shortages as a result and how many millions of people are being displaced by the conflict. It is very disheartening to hear that in recent months the conflict and the displacement have intensified, and it is particularly distressing to hear the further reports of sexual violence. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has had a troubled history, as we heard from the right hon. Member for Islington North. It has suffered terribly. Nevertheless, it is an incredibly important place, not just for the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo but for the whole planet. With its virgin forests, it is one of the great carbon sinks of our planet. We all want to see the important natural resources getting into the supply chains legally, and to see the people who mine them being fairly rewarded for their work. It is concerning that the withdrawal of MONUSCO at the request of the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo appears to be throwing up unexpected challenges, including potentially exacerbating the terrible humanitarian situation. The work of peacekeeping troops remains very important. Attacks against them and against international non-governmental organisations operating in the region have reached almost triple figures since the start of the year. They are despicable, and I am sure that all colleagues here roundly condemn them. I hope that the new Government will continue to support British NGOs in their important work. I want to single out the work of Tearfund, which lost two members of its team in July in an attack on a convoy arriving in Butembo from Lubero. Can we take a moment to remember those individuals, who are so brave, and their families and all those who risk their lives delivering all-important aid? As the withdrawal of MONUSCO continues, I urge the new UK Government to continue encouraging the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to step up their protection responsibilities for civilians against armed rebels and their engagement with the all-important political process in Luanda and elsewhere. The humanitarian truce and ceasefire earlier this summer appear to have somewhat lowered tensions, and any progress is to be applauded, but we are concerned to hear the suggestion that supply routes, including for food, continue to be disrupted. The UN Security Council resolution in August is warmly welcomed: it unanimously agreed to increase co-operation between MONUSCO and the Southern African Development Community mission, which will be tasked with much of the work of security and stabilisation of the country. I want to touch briefly on the recent mpox outbreak, which is intimately linked to the conflict across the country. I put it on the record that the shadow Foreign Secretary, my right hon. Friend the Member for Sutton Coldfield (Mr Mitchell), recently spoke to Dr Tedros, the director general of the World Health Organisation. He emphasised the importance of an international response to the virus so that we can contain it. During the time my party was in Government, we pledged $126 million of funding for a three-year humanitarian project; I would be interested to hear what the new Government are planning to do in that area. I will end by asking about British International Investment, which is one of the organisations that has been able to make really good investments and create jobs in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. I appreciate that things may have changed since 2018, so I would be interested in an update. Again, I urge the new Government in the UK to support the political solutions in Luanda and Nairobi that are really the only long-term solutions to advancing peace in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

• 3 Sept 2024 · Sudan · Hansard source

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  (Urgent Question): To ask the Foreign Secretary if he will make a statement on the humanitarian and political situation in Sudan.