Mark Ferguson MP: speeches

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Speeches

6 Nov 2024 · Strengthening the Union · Hansard source
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The Secretary of State has been very clear about the much-needed reset between the Welsh and UK Governments. Can she also make clear how the recent Budget has contributed to that reset?
6 Nov 2024 · Strengthening the Union · Hansard source
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3. What steps she is taking to strengthen the Union.
30 Oct 2024 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source
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I wish first to refer the House to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. Madam Deputy Speaker, I am one of those terrible trade unionists you have been hearing about from those on the Opposition Benches. It is a shame so few of them are here; clearly, this is a contractual obligation attendance at the debate. I genuinely suggest that they should look at getting a trade union rep. Many Members who have spoken in this debate are trained economists—my hon. Friends the Members for Swansea West (Torsten Bell) and for Hendon (David Pinto-Duschinsky) being two of the most recent. I have been called many things in my life but never an economist, so I want to focus on what the Budget will mean for people where I am from, in Gateshead. I am particularly pleased that we will not be returning to austerity, because austerity ripped through Gateshead and the scars will remain for a long time. Today was about rebuilding the foundations of communities like mine for a better future. Let us recap on what some of that means. As my hon. Friend the Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Andrew Lewin) said, the investment in the NHS is the biggest outside of covid since 2010—£25.6 billion. That will get waiting lists down—promise made, promise delivered. There is investment in high streets, transport and homes that will change my community for the better—promise made, promise delivered. There is a higher minimum wage, up nearly 7%, and closing the gap faced by younger workers. For some that will mean up to £1,400 a year, which is a life-changing amount of money—promise made, promise kept. Injustice is being tackled in a promise made to those who suffered from the Post Office scandal and a promise made to those affected by infected blood—promises that have previously been made by all parties, but a promise made by this party and a promise kept in government. There is £1 billion for the household support fund, targeting those who need help most—a promise made, a promise kept—and promises have been made to those who rely on our schools, too. In particular, I want to mention our colleges: £300 million into further education is a huge and hugely welcome change for colleges such as Gateshead college in my constituency. On SEND, all of us on the Labour Benches promised that if we were elected into government we would act to help those with special educational needs. We have done that today, with a £1 billion investment—promise made, promise kept. There was also a promise made not to raise the taxes of working people in their payslips—a promise made and a promise kept. There were also some underrated changes in the Budget that I would like to refer to in the time remaining. Universal credit changes reducing the gap in deductions will keep more people out of poverty, more people out of food poverty and, yes, more children out of poverty—as will breakfast clubs, because no child should go to school hungry and under Labour none will. The people of Gateshead Central and Whickham who sent me here should take heart from today. The road to changing our country is a long one. We take the first steps together. We should take heart, because real change and positive change is coming.
30 Oct 2024 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source
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I notice that the hon. Member still has numerous pieces of paper in front of him, so I hope that he is coming to this point. The Chancellor stood up today and made choices for the future of the country. We can agree or disagree with the choices that have been made, but I am not hearing from any Conservative Members what alternative choices they would make.
29 Oct 2024 · Ministerial Code: Policy Announcements · Hansard source
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Despite the rumours being spread, including by the Conservative party, can my right hon. Friend confirm that not a single change to taxation has yet been announced, and that they will in fact be announced at the Budget tomorrow?
21 Oct 2024 · Employment Rights Bill · Hansard source
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I could not agree more. The people who will benefit from the Bill the most are not those who will buy stocks and shares but those who will spend their money on our thriving high streets, which this Government will build. The care workers and teaching assistants I was proud to represent while working for Unison deserve pay and conditions that match the task of looking after us when we grow up and grow old. Stronger rights to collective bargaining through the school support staff and adult social care negotiating bodies are essential for recruitment and retention in those overlooked sectors. Could the legislation go further in those areas and in others? Of course—that is the nature of any Bill. The work of change is never done, but we should be in no doubt that this is the biggest, boldest and most welcome set of employment rights changes that all but the most experienced of us in this Chamber have considered. I know that the Government are committed to consulting widely with unions and businesses alike to ensure that. This is what having a Labour Government means—rights from day one: banning exploitative zero-hours contracts; ending fire and rehire to lift employees from the insecurity felt by those working in the foundations of our economy; taking action on sick pay, and maternity and paternity rights; and holding unscrupulous employers to account through a genuine and comprehensive enforcement body. The Bill is pro-business, pro-worker, and focused on the challenges that millions of us face every day. It is one of the greatest honours in my life to have been involved with it, to speak on its behalf, and to vote for it this evening, mostly because I know the impact that it will have on my community in Gateshead Central and Whickham. The task of rebuilding Britain after 14 years of Tory rule is great, but our ambition for this country is greater still.
21 Oct 2024 · Employment Rights Bill · Hansard source
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I pay tribute to the maiden speech of the hon. Member for Leicester East (Shivani Raja). I enjoyed her reminiscences about her community, and hearing about some of the more lively figures from the recent history of the Labour party. I proudly draw attention to my declarations in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests, which include my former role working for Unison, my membership of Unison, my donation from Unison, and being co-chair of its parliamentary group. Unison is Britain’s largest union, representing public service workers and in particular the low-paid women who will benefit so much from the Bill. I pay tribute to all those who have worked tirelessly for years to build consensus around these changes—the biggest changes to rights at work in a generation. In particular, I thank those within Labour’s affiliated trade unions, on the Front Bench, and in Labour’s policy team for their hard work and dedication. Hon. Friends, including my hon. Friends the Members for Worsley and Eccles (Michael Wheeler), for Halifax (Kate Dearden), for Birmingham Northfield (Laurence Turner), for Tipton and Wednesbury (Antonia Bance) and for Knowsley (Anneliese Midgley), have been engaged in this work throughout. That is not an exhaustive list; many others on the Government Benches have worked tirelessly to help us to reach this day, and deserve immense credit. This is the kind of Bill that is at the heart of why we are here. The Labour party was founded upon the idea that working people deserved representation in this place, that we were fit to govern, and that those who put in the bulk of the graft deserved to reap the rewards of their labours. Today is a landmark day in our party’s history, and in the history of employment rights in this country. The Bill is crammed full of improvements that are each worthy of a lengthy speech; however, I am down to my last minute and twenty seconds, so I will not do that. Let me say this instead: if you work, the Bill will change your working life for the better. We know why these changes are necessary. One in five of us is suffering from the effects of insecure work, with low pay, exploitative zero-hours contracts, and little or no sick pay.
16 Oct 2024 · Research and Development · Hansard source
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Turbo Power Systems in my constituency is a great example of a global company built on research and development but with proud local roots. Would the Secretary of State be happy to visit it, as I have, to see its fantastic work?
16 Oct 2024 · Research and Development · Hansard source
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5. What steps he is taking to help improve domestic research and development capabilities.
15 Oct 2024 · House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill · Hansard source
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Recently, while doing a media interview, I was confronted by comments from a Conservative Member of the other place who argued that hereditary peers were good for Parliament because it meant that there were more northerners in that Chamber. I am a proud northerner myself. Does my more southern Friend agree that although regional proportionality is important, hereditary peers are not the way to achieve it?
15 Oct 2024 · House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill · Hansard source
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I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for giving way to a sapling. The interesting thing about saplings, as I am sure he knows, is that sometimes we become oaks—I guess we shall have to see—and the reason there are so many saplings on the Government Benches is that we chopped down so many oaks from the Conservative party. Although we have not been in the House for long, many of us have been involved in the interests of our constituents and the conversations of politics for a long time. Does he agree that the House does not hold the collective knowledge of the whole country and that sometimes we may have formed views about what is necessary for the other place before reaching this Chamber?
14 Oct 2024 · Reporting Ministerial Gifts and Hospitality · Hansard source
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Will the Minister remind Members of this House which Prime Minister was rewarded with a holiday to Mustique? As hon. Members may remember, there was a lot of mystique about Mustique at the time. I will give the Conservatives a hint: it was not a Member on the Labour side of the House.
10 Oct 2024 · Business of the House · Hansard source
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Conservative Members may not want to hear it, but it is true. On that point, will we have plenty of time to discuss the important issue of maternity rights as the Bill progresses?
10 Oct 2024 · Business of the House · Hansard source
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I must declare an interest before asking my question: before serving in this place, I am proud to have served as a national officer for Unison, the biggest trade union and, by membership, the biggest organisation for women in the country. As such, I am particularly pleased to see the measures dealing with maternity rights in the Employment Rights Bill presented today. It is estimated that more than 4,000 women who were dismissed last year will benefit from the provisions in the Bill. The Conservative party has pushed through to the final two of its leadership contest—whether or not it intended to do so—a candidate who believes that maternity pay has gone too far.
10 Oct 2024 · Universities: Freedom of Speech · Hansard source
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Student politics is often maligned in this place, and often rightly so. However, in 2006 I attended the conference of the National Union of Students and voted that Hizb ut-Tahrir should be no-platformed. It was the right thing to do. Clearly, the Conservatives agree, because in January this year they proscribed Hizb ut-Tahrir as a terrorist organisation. Does my hon. Friend agree that the Conservatives’ position is in fact a charter for Hizb ut-Tahrir, Holocaust deniers and vaccine deniers to wander our universities freely?
10 Oct 2024 · Mental Health Support · Hansard source
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Does my hon. Friend agree that charities in her constituency, in mine and in so many others provide the valuable resource that helps us to deal with the crisis in CAMHS?
10 Oct 2024 · Mental Health Support · Hansard source
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It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Dowd, in my first Westminster Hall contribution. I declare an interest: I was a former national officer for Unison, representing mental health workers and others. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Ashford (Sojan Joseph) for securing this important debate, timely as it is on World Mental Health Day. Improving support for mental health is one of the key recommendations of Lord Darzi’s report that the House discussed on Monday—a damning read, yet completely unsurprising to any patient who has engaged with the NHS in recent years. The surge in demand in respect of mental health needs in children and young people is not being met by community-based services, and Lord Darzi’s report found that after years of cuts the number of mental health nurses has only just returned to 2010 levels. Indeed, the Department of Health and Social Care’s own dataset shows that in the year 2023-24 in my community of Gateshead, 1,745 children and young people aged between nought and 17 years of age were left waiting for first contact with child and adolescent mental health services, having waited at least six months since referral—every single one an individual suffering and part of a family in my community being let down. At the same time, only 60 children and young people in Gateshead received that first contact within six months. Those figures reflect the trend across the country, with 109,000 children and young people under 18 waiting a year or more for first contact. That is why we need more support for children in their communities and schools, but without continuing to overstretch teachers. I welcome the Government’s commitment to roll out mental health councillors in every school and mental health hubs in the community, to cut through the backlog and ensure accessible support. Lord Darzi’s report identifies a worrying normalisation of long waiting lists. I am in no doubt about the brilliant NHS staff in Gateshead, and elsewhere across our country, who work tirelessly day in, day out—something I know from personal experience. It is not the fault of mental health workers, nurses or GPs but, unfortunately, that of a decade of austerity and the top-down reorganisation of our NHS. To quote Laura Bunt, chief executive of the charity YoungMinds: “Lord Darzi’s review confirms what we know already–that young people and their mental health have been severely let down by the system there to support them.” It is our opportunity and responsibility to put that right.
11 Sept 2024 · Engagements · Hansard source
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Annabel is five years old and lives in my constituency. She has high-risk neuroblastoma. Annabel has endured 15 months of chemotherapy, high-dose chemotherapy, stem cell harvest, proton therapy, immunotherapy, hair loss and nasal feeding. Now she urgently needs the drug DFMO, which is not yet available in the UK. It must be administered within 90 days of the end of immunotherapy; 91 days is too late. Will the Prime Minister please meet Annabel’s parents to discuss the lifesaving care that she needs?
10 Sept 2024 · Winter Fuel Payment · Hansard source
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It is fascinating to hear the recent converts to the fight against poverty on the Opposition Benches, particularly the right hon. Member for North West Durham—sorry, Basildon and Billericay (Mr Holden)—yet they seem far quieter about the fact that the average food shop went up by £1,000 in the last Parliament, the average energy bill went up £400— [ Interruption. ] Listen and you might learn something. The average mortgage went up £2,880 because of your lot. [ Interruption. ] Apologies, Madam Deputy Speaker.
10 Sept 2024 · Social Security · Hansard source
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rose —
9 Sept 2024 · Topical Questions · Hansard source
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T10. The last set of PISA results under the Conservative Government showed standards in England’s schools going backwards: backwards in reading— [ Interruption ] —maybe Conservative Members should listen—backwards in maths and backwards in science. Does my right hon. Friend agree that that is far from a record to be proud of?
30 Jul 2024 · Building Homes · Hansard source
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I congratulate the Deputy Prime Minister on her statement. I am slightly disappointed with some of the comments from those on the Conservative Benches, but I hope my right hon. Friend will reject them, just as the British people rejected them on 4 July. Like the Deputy Prime Minister and most people in England who have a mayor, I am fortunate enough to live under a Labour mayor. Will the Deputy Prime Minister work with me, Labour mayors—including hers and mine—councillors and Members of this place to ensure that we get the right kinds of developments in the right places?
29 Jul 2024 · Public Spending: Inheritance · Hansard source
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The shadow Chancellor said the books were open and that the Office for Budget Responsibility had audited the Government’s figures shortly before the election. However, the chair of the OBR has today published a letter confirming he intends to launch a review into the preparation of the March forecasts, stating: “We were made aware of the extent of these pressures at a meeting with the Treasury last week.” I am only new here; perhaps the Chancellor can inform me how to get the shadow Chancellor to correct the record?
25 Jul 2024 · Criminal Law · Hansard source
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I am sure that many of us will have been appalled by the comments of the former Lord Chancellor, who said that the measure that this Government are taking was not taken by the last Government because “you have to win votes.” How does the Secretary of State respond to that?
23 Jul 2024 · Immigration and Home Affairs · Hansard source
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You haven’t heard my voice. We are a place of learning, too, with Gateshead college and Cardinal Hume school—recently judged outstanding by Ofsted—two of the fantastic educational establishments I have been proud to visit already. I look forward to working with others, including Whickham school, Gibside and Kingsmeadow. In our thriving Jewish community, who I am proud to represent, stands Gateshead’s Talmudical college, the oldest yeshiva in the country, founded in 1929. I am told that it is the foundation upon which Gateshead gained its reputation as the Oxbridge of the Jewish world. Sport, too, is important to Gateshead. Sir Brendan Foster has a long and proud relationship with our town, and of course the great north run runs through Gateshead. The image of people running into Gateshead over the Tyne bridge is burned on the collective consciousness of our country. The famous oarsman Harry Clasper was raised in Dunston, as was Paul Gascoigne. And we love our football, including Gateshead FC—the 2024 FA Trophy winners, by the way—even though the Boundary Commission has given the honour of being the football club’s MP to my hon. Friend the Member for Jarrow and Gateshead East (Kate Osborne). The fact that my grandfather played for the club in the 1940s is a source of great pride. While most of my constituents support the black and white of Newcastle, some of us support the red and white of Sunderland and many of us are united in our support for Gateshead too. To those Opposition Members who may be coming to terms with the feeling of being in the minority, let me say what my father said to me as a young man growing up a Sunderland fan in Gateshead, “It will be character building.” Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, for allowing me to speak in this debate. This is a time of great importance for our country, one where trust in this place has fallen on hard times and where we must, on all sides, work to rebuild it. I will do all that I can to be a voice for the people of Gateshead Central and Whickham. I will work my hardest for them, and I will try to represent them to the best of my ability.

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