Jim Shannon MP: speeches

Speeches

• 18 Mar 2025 · Shipyards: Economic Growth · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Gentleman for filling in that gap. Hansard will pick up on the constituency and keep it right. The only reason the hon. Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie) is not here is because he is away doing something very practical in his own constituency, so well done to him. We must continue to prioritise shipbuilding for the future, so I look to the Minister for the commitment that I know is already there. Just for the record, it is always good to have the reassurance that we all seek. There are steps that the Government can take to provide direct financial support to the shipbuilding sector, both centrally on the mainland and regionally to the devolved nations. Infrastructure development is massively important for the United Kingdom, from our safety right through to the food in our supermarkets. I am old enough to remember things that we used to say in my history class: we are an island built on coal, surrounded by waters full of fish. I am not sure whether that is true any more, but it tells us that the role of ships in connecting our islands is very important. The history goes back centuries and is something to be proud of. In Northern Ireland it is always great to look back and recollect the successes of our past and still be grateful to this day that shipbuilding is as important as ever, despite being under the control of different companies. It still creates jobs, wage packets and opportunities and helps us grow as a nation. I will conclude with this. I look to the Minister for her commitment to the industry and to the staff that will ensure it continues for the future. I am pleased to see the Minister, who has shown commitment, in her place. In all the things that I have brought to her attention, I have never once found her wanting, and I am sure we will not find her wanting this time, either.

• 18 Mar 2025 · COP29 · Hansard source

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  What assessment has the Minister made of the COP29 commitment to tripling finance for developing countries from the previous goal of $100 billion to $300 billion a year by 2035, and what is the United Kingdom’s contribution to that sum?

• 18 Mar 2025 · Free School Meals · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman is right. I am not here to deliver a bad message to the Minister. I welcome the scheme, because it is a good scheme. Any scheme is a good scheme if it helps. I was about to mention Greggs, Kellogg’s and other companies that do deals with schools. Just in the past week, Asda and Tesco have come up with pilot schemes across the United Kingdom through which food that is about to expire will be given to certain groups. And schoolchildren are a group that it could be given to. There is nothing wrong with the food. I am of a certain generation, and in my house, when I was growing up, nothing was ever thrown out—nothing. I mean that. If the potatoes were old, they were roasted. If the cheese had a bit of blue growth around the edge, it was cut off or wiped off and we ate it. It has not done me any harm. I am shortly coming to a significant age, and perhaps those foods helped me live longer. My point is that we need to take advantage of opportunities, and the pilot schemes set up by Asda and Tesco are opportunities. The hon. Member for Redditch (Chris Bloore) is absolutely right that there are other ways of doing things, but we welcome the Government’s positive initiative—if something is good, it is good; it is never bad just because it was proposed by another party. Let us include it in our agenda. It is no secret that fresh, healthy food is more expensive than the easier alternative, so providing something at school will benefit so many families—parents want that as well. There have previously been calls to provide free school meals for all children. Many MPs, celebrities and organisations backed the No Child Left Behind campaign to provide universal free school meals. Such initiatives and partnerships could be developed to help us deliver for our children. There is proof that nourishing and healthy meals support children in performing academically. They have better concentration, better memory and better energy, which boosts their educational performance and increases the likelihood of a successful future. That is what we all want, and it is what the Government and the Minister are aiming for. The initiative is similar to the free milk scheme, which I am old enough to remember from when I was a boy back in the 1960s. It was launched after world war two and was still going when I was at school, and indeed after that. It was designed to combat malnutrition and ensure that all schoolchildren under the age of 18 had free access to a good source of protein and calcium to aid their diets and growth. I have spoken on this topic many times in this Chamber, but I want to emphasise its importance. Some pupils with special educational needs thrive on routine and perhaps live by a very strict diet. We have heard about children with special diets, and we should think about how they are catered for. If there were a SEND debate in this Chamber, it would be full because everybody would come along with their stories, and I would add my stories and examples too. Schools need to provide meals that cater to those children’s needs. No child should suffer or be left behind. Will the Minister offer some clarity on the current guidelines on this issue? The free school meals system is fantastic. The Government’s initiative is fantastic, and nobody here will ever be churlish about it. I have made some constructive suggestions for how we can move forward in partnership with businesses such as Greggs, Kellogg’s, Tesco, Asda and others. As I said, there is more to do to recognise all the children and parents who could benefit from this scheme. Furthermore, perhaps the Minister and his Department could consider universal free school meals for the betterment of all children’s futures. Again, constructively and positively, I look to the Minister to ensure that he has those conversations with the devolved nations—he makes it his business to do that, which is constructive and very welcome—and to ensure that adequate funding is always there to support suffering children and parents who are on the breadline, which makes it difficult for them to cater for and look after their children.

• 18 Mar 2025 · Free School Meals · Hansard source

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  As the hon. Lady says, there will always be children who miss out. How do we bring them into the system? The Minister has, no doubt, listened to her question, and hopefully his answer may be of some help. In March 2024, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health revealed that 109,000 children in Northern Ireland were in relative poverty. Given that 97,000 to 98,000 children are receiving free school meals, there could potentially be around 11,400 children eligible for assistance and not claiming, some perhaps for the very reasons that the hon. Member for Eastleigh highlighted. More must be done to recognise that. Some 89,000 children in Northern Ireland are said to be in absolute poverty, which is awful to think about. What a fine line there is between relative and absolute poverty. However, the fine line means that they either get a meal or do not get a meal, and it is important that they get one. I am being constructive in my questions, and I ask the Minister what we can do to address those issues. Free school meals are a fantastic way to support parents, and they take a bit of pressure off them. Parents do not want to send their children to school without a meal; they want to make sure their children have a meal and a full stomach. Children’s inquisitive minds work better when they are not worrying about getting fed. We must remember that our schools promote healthy eating and encourage parents to pack healthy and balanced lunches. While that is a wonderful initiative in principle, the cost of food has risen, as other hon. Members have outlined. The figures are very clear: it is impossible to produce a meal for 69p or 78p, and we need to remember that when it comes to producing helpful and nutritious meals.

• 18 Mar 2025 · Free School Meals · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Dowd. I thank the hon. Member for Eastleigh (Liz Jarvis) for setting the scene and for delivering a debate that is so important to us all. Obviously, I will give a Northern Ireland perspective. Although Northern Ireland is not the Minister’s responsibility, I know—or at least I think—he appreciates my comments and the perspective I give, which in this case replicates what is happening in the rest of the United Kingdom. I always think it is important to bring that interpretation to these debates, because that hopefully adds to how we do things together in this great United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and ensures that we do them in a better way. Listening to hon. Members so far, it is evident that there are similarities, despite education being devolved. It is important that there is provision for all children to have a decent, balanced meal while in school. For that reason, I am pleased to be here. I know that the team of the hon. Member for Liverpool West Derby (Ian Byrne) lost on Sunday, but the premier league is still ahead of him and that is the important one, so he should not worry about the Carabao cup; the premier league means a whole lot more, although the Carabao cup means a lot to Newcastle, because they have not had much success in the past few years. It is a pleasure to see the Minister in his place, and I look forward to his contribution. He comes to these debates, and indeed to Question Time in the Chamber, to genuinely try to answer our requests, and he always does that in a way that helps me have confidence in what he does and in the relationships he has with the Northern Ireland Assembly and particularly with the Minister there. I am also pleased to see the shadow Minister, the right hon. Member for East Hampshire (Damian Hinds), in his place. He always brings his knowledge to these debates, and he brings it in a fair way. That adds to our debates, because they are about how to make things better. That is what I always say about the shadow Minister and what he does. To give some background, free school meals are managed and allocated by the education authority back home, and parents can check their eligibility and apply accordingly. The most recent figures I could get are from 2021, when 98,000 pupils in Northern Ireland were entitled to free school meals. I thank the hon. Members for Liverpool West Derby and for Liverpool Riverside (Kim Johnson) for referring to those in poverty, because a great many are in poverty. There is no doubt that there are children who are eligible but who are not claiming, so more must be done to make parents aware of the criteria. I am keen to see how we can cast the net wider and gather those who should be eligible but who are not applying, whatever their reasons may be.

• 18 Mar 2025 · Welfare Reform · Hansard source

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  I go on the tube twice a week, and the disability seat in the carriage says “Not every disability is visible”. Bearing that in mind, those with severe mental health issues, such as paranoid psychosis, anxiety, depression or post-traumatic stress disorder, already fear phone calls from withheld phone numbers. Will the Secretary of State commit to ensuring that they will not be impacted or hounded in the attempt to root out fraudsters? Does she accept that those with severe mental health issues may not understand their illness, or be able to explain it or grasp it? How will these people—my people; our people—be protected?

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  I could not have put it better. That was brilliant; well done. It is my firm belief that much good for the self-esteem of our young people comes from instilling in them national pride and identity, but for the benefit of our local economy I would also highlight the good that can come from establishing saints’ days as national bank holidays. St Patrick’s day is celebrated in England, Scotland and Wales, as the beauty of this collection of nations is the strong bond of our shared history. If we travel to Liverpool or Edinburgh we clearly see that there is an appetite to celebrate St Patrick, as there is all over the world and in other parts of Scotland, Wales and England. Some of my Democratic Unionist party colleagues took the opportunity to head to Washington to meet with the President of the United States recently and enjoyed building that bond that can only be beneficial to our wee nation based on the shared heritage of the US with the UK, and Northern Ireland in particular— we in Northern Ireland use the word “wee” all the time; it is one of those words that we always use. With the US President having Scots roots and Vice-President J.D. Vance having Ulster Scots heritage, what better time for those who care for Northern Ireland and want to see a prosperous relationship built with the Americans, which will be mutually beneficial? I am aware of US companies that enjoy our skilled workforce, along with our low business rates, good connectivity and high quality of life for staff. The fact that the famous Chick-fil-A’s first UK restaurants are in Northern Ireland speaks volumes about what could be accomplished between our nations. I love chicken, I have to say; I think it is okay to eat that as a diabetic—at least, I think it is. I thank our Deputy First Minister and the Economy Minister for their visit to the US to solidify that beneficial relationship. They, more than others, understand the value of relationships, rather than pointless grandstanding or point scoring. While the Americans will have no idea or care for those who believe that they are above the US-Northern Ireland trade links, they will have a clear picture of who came and what they have to offer. To me, that is again reminiscent of the message of St Patrick: the hand of friendship to all. That is the hand of friendship that I hand out to everyone in this Chamber, and who in turn hand it back to me.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  It is always a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Madam Deputy Speaker, and to actually lead the Adjournment debate for a change, rather than just intervene in it. I thank Mr Speaker in particular for granting the debate. I hoped to have it last night, but that was not possible, so tonight was the night. I have kept my shamrock from last Wednesday, when my hon. Friend the Member for Upper Bann (Carla Lockhart) and I were at the Champ event. We were given shamrocks in a sealed package. Mine is still moist and very fresh, and I have kept it especially for tonight so I could wear it for the occasion. It is a pleasure to have this opportunity to speak about the potential merits of making St Patrick’s day a UK bank holiday. I stand as a very proud Unionist who is happy to say that I hope everyone enjoyed St Patrick’s day—they should have. I enjoyed it; I always do. When I started off my life, I was not sure about St Patrick’s day, because it seemed to have been taken over by one section of the community, but when I looked into the issue, I found out that St Patrick clearly was everybody’s. For the last 40 or maybe 50 years of my life, I have been promoting St Patrick for the purpose of why he is here.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  I am going to come on to that now—my hon. Friend is absolutely right. I have long marvelled at the way St Patrick made theology understandable for those who had no education, no access to holy books, and no ability to read them. He came with a message of love and action. This is the St Patrick I believe we should celebrate and honour: a man who loved Jesus and wanted the world to know Him, not hampered by denomination or doctrine. St Patrick’s message is as applicable today as it was 1,600 years ago. Christ has a plan and a purpose for those who place their trust in Him, and those of us who serve Him have a purpose to glorify God and to help our fellow man. The cultural history of St Patrick is clear throughout my constituency, with the touches of his message spanning throughout it. Indeed, as we walk through the hallowed halls of Parliament St Patrick’s prominent position is clear in Central Lobby. I glance up daily with pride at his place within this United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, as symbolised along with St David, St Andrew and St George. It is wonderful to have us all together as one within this great United Kingdom.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  Of course I will. I knew the hon. Gentleman long before he became a Member. He and I have been friends for four or five years. We corresponded on an app regularly, I followed his progress as a councillor and I very much welcomed him to the Chamber. I look forward to his friendship throughout our time here. I wish his dad every happiness on his birthday.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  No, I cannot say that in the Chamber—it would be unfair. But I can say that I wish the hon. Gentleman’s wife many happy returns. I am sure that when the hon. Gentleman is here she is probably more happy than ever— [ Laughter. ] I say that in jest.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman and I have been friends for many years, long before he was elected to this House and before he was a Member of the Legislative Assembly, back when we were representatives on the council many moons ago. His words have added emphasis to what we are trying to achieve. I truly believe the first step in recognising the ties that bind are to make St Patrick’s day a UK holiday. With that in mind, I am pleased to see the Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade, the hon. Member for Ellesmere Port and Bromborough (Justin Madders), in his place. He spoke to me last night and said, “I am looking forward to your debate”, and he has smiled the whole way through. I am quite sure his response will be one that will help us. I attended the Irish Fest in Milwaukee for some six years as an Ulster Scot.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  Yes, Madam Deputy Speaker. The Health Minister was there as well. I am very respectful of others who were there who I have not named, but I thank the hon. Gentleman for his intervention. I can think of two or three names, but I will not mention them. I do not believe that we have fully grasped the potential merits in making St Patrick’s day a totally global phenomenon, not just for cities across the world to enjoy, but for people to come and enjoy in each of our four nations. The saint—the man from Britain—who bonds us all could and should be promoted by us all.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  Yes, Madam Deputy Speaker.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  I thought it was important that I should do so, although I wanted to do so anyway. The diaspora in England, Scotland and Wales is massive. It is not just in the NHS, as the Minister has referred to; it is also in the construction business. Whenever I come over on the plane from Belfast or return, I see workers going over to build in London and then going back on the weekend. The diaspora includes farmers and businessmen. The connections between England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland are enormous, and may I say, Minister, that the diaspora wants to have St Patrick’s day as a UK bank holiday as well.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  We might have different aspirations—one for unity, one for independence—but none the less the hon. Gentleman and I are good friends and have been for a long time, and will continue to be. May I suggest that the next Adjournment debate should be on that very issue?

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  I am not technically minded, but the hon. Gentleman is absolutely right.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  Shortly before he was 16, Patrick was captured from the villa of his father, Calpurnius, by a group of Irish raiders who took him to Ireland and forced him into slavery. Six years later, he escaped home to Britain, his religious faith strengthened during his time in slavery. The story of St Patrick is a wonderful one. It is a great story of love, of a missionary and of Christianity.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  I do, and I will probably mention that in my speech. The reason I am here has absolutely nothing to do with politics. This is all to do with the message of St Patrick and the gospel message. I want to be very clear about that. I love to see the joy on people’s faces and the fun that comes from parades and events throughout the year. It is my desire that we ensure that, rather than turning rivers green for St Patrick, as they do in Chicago and other parts of the world, which is all great fun, we focus on the message of St Patrick and why it is important.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member, who spoke to me beforehand and told me what he was going to say. As a Christian, like others in the Chamber, my thoughts and prayers are with the family. He has outlined clearly what we should be focusing upon. Maybe this St Patrick’s day debate gives us a chance to reassure the family of the promise that St Patrick’s message brings for us all in this Chamber and further afield. I thank him for that. He is a very assiduous MP, and I understand that he has some family in my constituency, in Portaferry to be precise. I thank them for their votes every election, as he tells me—I hope he does not mind me saying that.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  Will the Minister give way?

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman always brings wise words to any debate. I talked to him on Monday in Westminster Hall, when he got up and said that he had a few comments. I was greatly impressed by his contribution—I went over to him afterwards and said that his words were very wise—and his words now were also wise. The point I will make about the Milwaukee Irish Fest that I attended for some six years, as an Ulster Scot, is that I did not have any difficulty going there, and they had no difficulty with me going there. What I see in St Patrick is the gospel that he brought for everybody, wherever they are within these Celtic nations, be it Wales, Scotland or England. Those are the things that we very much enjoy. I will end with these words; I am very conscious that the Minister wants to give me a fulsome response and to reinforce our request. The words of St Patrick are what I leave with everyone now. I want to make the most of the advantages of our heritage of St Patrick, but, more than that, I want the truth of his words to make changes in us all today, and that comes from the love of Christ, which is his message the whole way through. I believe we as Christians should impress and deliver that message to those who we meet in this House. I have a very simple philosophy: be nice to everybody. It is not hard to be kind and to do that in the best way that we can. St Patrick’s words are these: “Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ where I lie down, Christ where I sit down, Christ where I arise, Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me, Christ in the mouth of every one who speaks of me, Christ in every eye that sees me, Christ in every ear that hears me.” If we had those thoughts in our minds every day, I believe that we would be better as a nation, better to ourselves as individuals and show the love that St Patrick showed through the gospel that he brought from Wales, to Ireland, back to England and back to us again. He is our patron saint; he always will be. Others may claim him, but they are not getting him—I say that in all kindness and love to the hon. Member for West Dunbartonshire (Douglas McAllister). Tonight we are asking for something, and I hope that the Minister can give us a good, positive response. I thank all right hon. and hon. Members for making the time to come to the Adjournment debate that I did not intervene in—my goodness.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  I believe that when we look past the myths to the message of the man, few in this House would disagree that the holiday should be UK-wide, as indeed should all the national saints’ days for each nation. St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, was born to a Christian family in Wales, in Roman Britain, in the late fourth century AD.

• 18 Mar 2025 · St Patrick’s Day: UK Bank Holiday · Hansard source

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  Controversial already, Madam Deputy Speaker; my goodness. I thank the hon. Lady for that intervention and I will put forward the case that we should all be looking to be as one under St Patrick —Scotland, Wales, England and Northern Ireland. Believing he had been called by God to Christianise Ireland, St Patrick later returned to Ireland as a missionary. How wonderful it is to see the beauty of the Union at work in St Patrick’s life: a British man who fell in love with the people but, more importantly, whose love for God made him return to the bosom of those who had mistreated him, having been kept in slavery for six years. We all love the story of the little man coming good; we all fight in this House for the wee man and wee woman all the time, and that is the story of St Patrick, a former slave who absolutely changed the nation for God and for good.

• 17 Mar 2025 · Women’s Changed State Pension Age: Compensation · Hansard source

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  The judicial review is pending. It is like the sword of Damocles hanging over the head of the Government. Does the Minister fear the judicial review that will, perhaps, force the Government to give WASPI women the compensation and justice they deserve?