Martin McCluskey MP: speeches

Speeches

• 21 May 2025 · Draft Scotland Act 1998 (Increase of Borrowing Limits) Order 2025 · Hansard source

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  I thank hon. Members for their contributions, which I will address in turn. For the record, this year’s increase is 2.37%, and that is based on the OBR’s GDP deflator at the time of the Scottish Government Budget. I am slightly surprised by Opposition Members’ comments about the devolution settlement. These are issues for the Scottish Parliament, and it is for the Scottish Parliament to scrutinise the Scottish Government. Opposition Members may not have confidence in Conservative Members of the Scottish Parliament to appropriately scrutinise the Scottish Government, but I have confidence in Labour Members of the Scottish Parliament to appropriately scrutinise the decisions of the Scottish Government. The hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk will be familiar with the 2023 fiscal framework from his time as a Minister. It contains provision for the Scottish Government to notify the Treasury monthly on any planned capital borrowing, outstanding debt and the repayment profile. Obviously, that all has to be set within limits. As I said earlier, resource borrowing can take place only in very specific circumstances. It is not unconstrained, but is specific to two categories, which I laid out in my speech a moment ago. I agree with the hon. Member that the Scottish Government could do a lot more with their powers, and if there were any SNP Members on the Committee, we might hear about some of their plans. Whether or not we were MPs at the time, I think we all remember that extensive powers were devolved to the Scottish Parliament through the 2014 Smith Commission, and many of those are gathering dust on the Scottish Government’s desk. I am thinking specifically about welfare powers, but others could be taken up by the Scottish Government and have not been. I would have liked to have heard from some SNP Members about how they planned to use those powers. In conclusion, the draft order is an expression of joint work between the Scottish and UK Governments. I thank officials on both sides for their work on it. I commend the order to the Committee. Question put and agreed to.

• 19 Mar 2025 · Draft Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020 (Consequential Provisions and Modifications) Order 2025 · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the draft Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020 (Consequential Provisions and Modifications) Order 2025. The draft order was laid on 11 February, and I am grateful for the opportunity to debate it. As with all the Scotland Act 1998 orders we have considered since the start of this Parliament, the draft order is the result of collaborative working between the UK and Scottish Governments. Like many others, it is made under section 104 of the Scotland Act, which, following an Act of the Scottish Parliament, provides the power for consequential provision to be made to the law relating to reserved matters or laws elsewhere in the UK. Scotland Act orders are a demonstration of devolution in action, and I am pleased that this Government have made seven such orders since we came into office in 2024. The draft order makes provision in consequence of the changes that the Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020 made to the disclosure regime in Scotland. The Disclosure (Scotland) Act, with which I know many hon. Members may not be familiar, concerns the regime for disclosures made by Scottish Ministers about a person’s criminal history and other information held about them by police and law enforcement agencies, such as fingerprint records. This crucial piece of legislation, which received support from all parties when it was passed by the Scottish Parliament, simplifies the system for disclosure in Scotland. Most people will come across the disclosure system when they apply for a PVG—protecting vulnerable groups—certificate from Disclosure Scotland, often so they may work or volunteer with children or vulnerable people. The order ensures the continued provision of information from UK law enforcement bodies to Scottish Ministers for the purposes of the disclosure regime. This includes conviction information, cautions, relevant police information and fingerprint records. This cross-border information transfer is necessary to ensure that Scottish Ministers can exercise their vetting and barring functions efficiently and effectively. Importantly, it ensures that the public are protected. I shall speak briefly to some of the individual provisions. Part 2 places duties on the chief officers of UK law enforcement bodies in relation to disclosure information that are equivalent to the duties that the Disclosure (Scotland) Act places on the chief constable of Police Scotland. That will ensure that the chief officer must provide information to Scottish Ministers in the same way that the chief constable is required to do in Scotland. The law enforcement bodies to which this duty applies are outlined in part 1. Part 2 provides provisions for a statutory review process of other relevant information before it is disclosed to a third party. This is a central provision of the Disclosure (Scotland) Act, and is intended to enhance the proportionality of the disclosure regime. Finally, part 3 places further duties on law enforcement agencies to make other information, such as central records, personal data to verify identity, and fingerprint records available to Scottish Ministers. If passed, the order will come into force on 1 April; guidance will be provided to UK law enforcement bodies before that date. The order is about keeping our communities and constituents in Scotland safe. Without it, there would be significant consequences for safeguarding across the UK, because the cross-border disclosure and information-sharing arrangements that are already in place under the Police Act 1997 would no longer operate. That would put our communities at risk and undermine a system that has operated effectively across the UK for many years.

• 19 Mar 2025 · Draft Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020 (Consequential Provisions and Modifications) Order 2025 · Hansard source

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  I will try to pick up on all those questions, but if I miss any, I will make sure that I write to the hon. Lady afterwards. I am not entirely sure I understand her point about criminalisation. The Disclosure (Scotland) Act was put forward by the Scottish Government and passed by the Scottish Parliament to simplify the quite complex landscape of disclosure. It has been well received by stakeholders and others, and as I mentioned, it was passed unanimously on a cross-party basis in the Scottish Parliament by all parties represented in this room. It is an important part of Scottish Ministers being able to carry out those vetting and barring functions. In terms of the consultation, Disclosure Scotland has worked alongside officials in the Ministry of Justice, the Home Office, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland and the Welsh Government on the policy for and drafting of this order. In advance of the Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020 being introduced in the Scottish Parliament in 2019, there was extensive consultation with anyone affected, including businesses, volunteer organisations and others who make extensive use of the system. As I understand it, Disclosure Scotland has been running the information campaign for 18 months. I do not have statistics to hand on how it has operated; that would be a question for the Scottish Government and probably specifically for Disclosure Scotland, rather than for the UK Government. However, I know from discussions I have had that the campaign has been extensive, especially with stakeholders who make use of this system. They are waiting for this measure to come into force, and most people who have an interest in it are well prepared for it to come into force on 1 April. Guidance will be available before 1 April for the public bodies and law enforcement agencies that are affected by the order. The guidance for how the PVG system will work has already been provided to stakeholders, and as I said, they are expecting that to be implemented on 1 April. The guidance I mentioned in my remarks is specifically the guidance that will be offered to law enforcement agencies in the rest of the UK outside Scotland on how they implement the measures and respond to the duties placed upon them. The hon. Lady mentioned secondary legislation consequential to the Disclosure (Scotland) Act. We are discussing this order today, and the House of Lords will consider it next week. Secondary legislation that the Scottish Government might put through the Scottish Parliament is probably a question for them, rather than us. Through this order, we are discharging our responsibilities to deal with the consequential provisions that cannot be dealt with by the Scottish Parliament because of reserved legislation, in order that the system can carry on working effectively and operate after 1 April. I hope that answers all the hon. Lady’s questions. If it does not, I am happy for her to intervene again or to write to her on anything I have not covered. Question put and agreed to.

• 26 Nov 2024 · Draft Scotland Act 1998 (Transfer of Functions to the Scottish Ministers etc.) Order 2025 · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the Draft Scotland Act 1998 (Transfer of Functions to the Scottish Ministers etc.) Order 2025. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Vickers. I am grateful for the opportunity to debate this order today. It is the result of collaborative working between the UK and Scottish Governments. The order follows agreement by the previous Government to transfer to Scottish Ministers the function of making environmental outcomes report regulations—replacing environmental impact assessments—in respect of electricity works consenting in Scotland and the Scottish part of the renewable energy zone, so that the power will be held concurrently with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero. The transfer of functions reinstates powers lost by Scottish Ministers on repeal of the European Communities Act 1972. The order before us will be made under section 63 of the Scotland Act 1998, which provides for any functions, so far as they are exercisable by a Minister of the Crown in or as regards Scotland, to be exercisable by the Scottish Ministers concurrently with the Minister of the Crown. This Scotland Act order is a demonstration of devolution in action. By way of background, the UK operated a system of environmental impact assessment as a result of powers conferred by the European Communities Act 1972. The function of making environmental impact assessment regulations in respect of electricity works consenting in Scotland had been transferred to the Scottish Ministers, concurrently with the Secretary of State, in 1999. Following the designation of the Scottish part of the renewable energy zone, the extent of the Scottish Ministers electricity consent functions was extended to the Scottish part of the renewable energy zone. Subsequently, the Scottish Ministers’ associated EIA regulation-making powers were also extended to the Scottish part of the REZ. The power to make environmental impact assessment regulations was lost on repeal of the European Communities Act 1972. The UK Government then took powers in the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 to make environmental outcomes report regulations, intended to replace environmental impact assessment regulations. This instrument transfers functions to Scottish Ministers to make regulations under part 3, chapter 1 and part 6 of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023, in relation to the assessment of the effects on the environment in connection with applications for consent, approval or variation of consent for electricity generating stations and associated overhead line infrastructure. Those functions will be exercisable concurrently with the Secretary of State. Before the Scottish Ministers seek to exercise functions by virtue of this order, they will be required to consult with the Secretary of State. The order reflects a commitment made to the Scottish Government during the passage of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023. I am pleased that the UK Government are working to address that matter.

• 26 Nov 2024 · Draft Scotland Act 1998 (Transfer of Functions to the Scottish Ministers etc.) Order 2025 · Hansard source

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  The speech from the shadow Minister goes to the heart of the issue with the current Conservative party in abandoning some of their previous work purely for political expediency. The shadow Minister mentioned divergence: devolution allows for divergence, but the order clearly demonstrates that Scottish Ministers seeking to exercise functions by virtue of this order will be required to consult with the Secretary of State. Given that the shadow Minister has responsibility for Scotland and energy, I am very disappointed that he seems to be continuing the roadblocks that we saw from the previous Government to getting Britain building, restoring and renewing our energy system, which we need to do if we are to achieve the growth we require in this country. I welcome his lack of opposition, but I am disappointed that he cannot support work that the previous Government started. The instrument demonstrates the continued commitment of the UK Government to work with the Scottish Government to deliver for Scotland. Question put and agreed to.

• 26 Nov 2024 · Coastal Infrastructure: Scotland · Hansard source

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  I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie) on securing this debate. As others have said, this is his second Adjournment debate in a matter of weeks, so the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) might have some competition. I represent a coastal constituency, so I am pleased to respond on behalf of the Government. I am sure the whole House will agree when I say that the UK is blessed with a wonderful coastline, and nowhere more so than in Scotland. As much as it might pain me as the MP for Inverclyde and Renfrewshire West to admit that there are some beautiful stretches of coastline that are not in reach of Wemyss bay, Inverkip, Greenock, Gourock or Port Glasgow, I will grudgingly admit to my hon. Friend that the Fife coastline is indeed beautiful and, as he has highlighted this evening, has the potential to contribute to the growth of our economy, particularly through our world-class ports. We have heard about his proposal for Rosyth, to which I will return later. Ports will play a crucial role in the development and deployment of the offshore energy projects that are essential to meeting our clean energy mission, as well as facilitating the international trade that is vital to meeting our mission of turbocharging economic growth. It is therefore right that we support these communities with the infrastructure they need to thrive. That is why the UK Government have announced the creation of the national wealth fund, backed with £7.3 billion, including £5.8 billion of capital funding for five priority sectors, including port infrastructure. This will drive investment in ports across the country, delivering the change we need to achieve our mission of growing the economy. The national wealth fund will build on the work of the UK Infrastructure Bank, which has a strong track record of investing in port infrastructure across the UK. Indeed, the national wealth fund is providing £50 million, which has been matched by the Scottish National Investment Bank, towards a £100 million joint credit facility for the Ardersier port. This project demonstrates the potential of our national wealth fund investments. The site is currently the largest brownfield port in the UK but, when complete, it will become a nationally significant infrastructure facility, spanning 450 acres. This game-changing investment will redevelop the port, developing its capacity to deploy offshore wind infrastructure at an industrial scale, driving forward our net zero ambitions. I make it clear to my hon. Friend and other Members that this project is just a start, and further details on securing national wealth fund funding will be set out in due course. My hon. Friend set out his vision for the port of Rosyth. I would be delighted to assist him, alongside officials in the Scotland Office, in his engagement with the national wealth fund for projects in his constituency. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor has been crystal clear that if growth is the challenge, investment is the solution. That is why this Government will invest in the jobs, industries and infrastructure of the future through the national wealth fund and GB Energy. Alongside that, our new industrial strategy, currently being developed by the UK Government in consultation with the Scottish Government, sets a credible 10-year plan to deliver the certainty and stability businesses need to invest in the high growth sectors that will drive our growth mission. The strategy will take advantage of the UK’s unique strengths and untapped potential, enabling our already world-leading sectors to adapt and grow, and seizing opportunities to lead in new and emerging areas. Many of the priority sectors identified in the emerging strategy, such as clean energy and defence, will directly benefit and build on the strengths of our coastal communities. The strategy will take a place-based approach, driving growth in towns, cities and regions around Britain. We will work tirelessly to deliver growth through this strategy for communities across the UK. We will also look internationally for opportunities. As my hon. Friend set out, increasing export markets for Scottish businesses are crucial for our success. That is why we are committed to promoting Brand Scotland around the world. Indeed, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland is currently in south-east Asia meeting businesses and Government Ministers to encourage investment here at home. However, we cannot go it alone. As others have said, we must work closely with the Scottish Government, combining our respective powers to deliver on these ambitions, which is why we are resetting the relationship with the Scottish Government. Across a range of areas, we are working together with them to deliver for communities and strengthen our economy. We are backing the Scottish Government to deliver, with a record block grant of £47.7 billion for 2025-26, with a further £3.4 billion via the Barnett formula. That is the largest settlement in real terms since devolution began. As a result of the decisions that this Government have taken, we have been able to confirm the UK Government’s commitment to investing nearly £1.4 billion in important local projects across Scotland over the next 10 years. I am delighted to say that that includes £26 million for the Forth freeport, subject to full business case approval. The Forth green freeport is expected to support thousands of jobs and bring in millions of pounds of investment across its sites in Edinburgh, Fife and Falkirk. Local partners estimate that it could create up to 34,500 jobs and generate £7.9 billion of private and public investment over the next decade. My hon. Friend mentioned that he has written to the Treasury regarding possible upgrades to the port of Rosyth. I am aware that the Chancellor has recently responded to his correspondence and, as I said earlier, I would be delighted to assist him in engaging with the national wealth fund. If he would like a further discussion with the Treasury on that subject, I would be happy to facilitate a meeting with my noble friend the Financial Secretary to the Treasury for him to discuss the issue further. As my hon. Friend said, decisions also need to be made by the Scottish Government. Engagement and support from the Scottish Government and Transport Scotland will be necessary to deliver the project he mentions. I encourage Scottish Government Ministers and officials to engage closely with my hon. Friend to discuss the proposals in more detail. I will do all I can to support him in fighting for opportunities for growth in his constituency, and I know that both the Secretary of State for Scotland and the Minister for Scotland share this desire. May I once again pay tribute to my hon. Friend, and to Members who have intervened in the debate? I am sure they will join me in agreeing that this is a vital issue that we must get right to ensure Scottish coastal communities play their rightful role at the heart of this Government’s ambitious agenda. Question put and agreed to.

• 20 Nov 2024 · Draft Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Act 2023 (Consequential Modifications) Order 2024 · Hansard source

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  Yes, just in time. I also pass on the apologies of the Secretary of State for Scotland, who is appearing before a Select Committee. The order is the result of collaborative working between the two Governments, in Scotland and Westminster, and supports the Scottish Government’s decision to implement the Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Act 2023. The order will be made under section 104 of the Scotland Act 1998, in consequence of the 2023 Act. A section 104 order is the most common type of Scotland Act order, and is used to make technical amendments to UK reserved legislation to facilitate the policy aims of an Act of the Scottish Parliament or secondary legislation made by Scottish Ministers. Scotland Act orders demonstrate devolution in action, and I am pleased that this is the fourth Scotland Act order put to the House by this Government. I will explain the effect and provisions of the order. Extradition proceedings take place in summary courts, which are magistrates courts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and sheriff courts in Scotland. Were there changes to the legal framework for bail considerations in those courts, that might impact on extradition cases. That could happen in this instance, and both Scotland’s Governments agree that that would not be appropriate, so we using the order to prevent it. The order does not make changes to extradition law across the UK or affect policy and legal frameworks for extradition in any way. It will ensure that courts in Scotland continue to be able to consider flight risk as a ground for refusal of bail in the context of extradition proceedings, in line with the rest of the UK. The order will ensure that a limitation on the court’s ability to remand persons at risk of failing to appear in court, under the new test for bail in Scottish summary courts, does not extend to extradition cases. That will mitigate the risk of a person wanted for extradition being granted bail under the new regime when it would not have been granted under the previous regime. Without the order, individuals accused of serious crimes who are wanted for extradition could be granted bail under the new regime because the courts would not retain their current discretion to consider flight risk. That would create a risk that the requested person absconds and evades justice. The Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Act was passed by the Scottish Parliament in June 2023. It seeks to ensure that, as much as possible, the use of remand for domestic criminal cases within the Scottish criminal justice system is a last resort, reserved for cases where public safety requires it, or where there is a significant risk of prejudice to the interests of justice. The Act amends sections 23B and 23C of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 to limit the circumstances in which the court, in summary proceedings in Scotland, can refuse an individual’s bail application. In particular, the amendments to section 23C include a new subsection that limits the extent to which a court may take into account any substantial risk of a person absconding or failing to appear when it is determining whether there is a good reason for refusing bail in summary proceedings. That would remove sheriffs’ ability to consider whether an individual may abscond from further proceedings, unless the individual has already failed to appear in a Scottish domestic criminal court case. It should be noted that the restrictions would not apply to judges who are considering whether to refuse bail in solemn proceedings, which are the equivalent of Crown courts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Extradition Act 2003, which applies across the whole UK, prescribes that the cases of individuals arrested, subject to an extradition request from an international partner, are to be overseen by a specialised extradition judge—in Scotland, that is the sheriff of Lothian and Borders. When hearing extradition cases, the sheriff has powers available in relation to bail as if the case were summary proceedings in respect of an offence alleged to have been committed by the person. Cases proceeding by way of summary proceedings in Scotland involve less serious crimes than extradition cases typically do. Under existing Scottish bail legislation, the sheriff considering bail in an extradition case can consider the question of flight risk from the outset of the case. That is important, as the nature of extradition means that the individual may pose a substantial risk of absconding or failing to appear. The order ensures that sheriffs retain their discretion to decide whether those subject to an extradition request are remanded in custody while they wait for hearings.

• 30 Oct 2024 · Draft Scotland Act 1998 (Specification of Devolved Tax) (Building Safety) Order 2024 · Hansard source

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  I thank the shadow Secretary of State for his contribution, and I echo his comments both on the work of officials and on his own work before the election on progressing the order. It is important to remember that this debate is purely on a constitutional order and the devolution of power to the Scottish Parliament to make a building levy; these decisions will be made by the Scottish Government. Many of the hon. Gentleman’s questions would be better answered by a representative of the Scottish Government. He will be aware that there was a joint UK Government-Scottish Government consultation that addressed many of these questions, and it gave us the assurance that there would not be the sort of impact to which he alluded. On the risk of divergence, there are already proposals for a building levy and a consultation in England. The risk of divergence would be greater were there not to be a building levy in Scotland too. As with a number of these areas, I expect the Scottish Government to keep the effects of this tax under review, but that is a decision for them. This instrument comes in the year of the 20th anniversary of the Scottish Parliament, which the last Labour Government delivered. It is in this spirit of devolution that this Government set out to reset relationships with the Scottish Government to deliver for the Scottish people. This instrument demonstrates the continued commitment of the UK Government to working with the Scottish Government to deliver for Scotland. Question put and agreed to.

• 30 Oct 2024 · Draft Scotland Act 1998 (Specification of Devolved Tax) (Building Safety) Order 2024 · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the draft Scotland Act 1998 (Specification of Devolved Tax) (Building Safety) Order 2024. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr Huq. I am grateful for the opportunity to debate this order, which is the result of collaborative working between the two Governments and supports the Scottish Government’s request last year to devolve powers for the Scottish Parliament to establish a Scottish building safety levy. It also builds on work done by the previous Government before the election. The order will be made under section 80B of the Scotland Act 1998, which provides for devolving additional tax-raising powers to the Scottish Parliament by way of statutory instrument. Scotland Act orders are a demonstration of devolution in action, and I am pleased to say that the Scotland Office has taken through more than 250 orders since devolution began. The Grenfell Tower fire was a heartbreaking tragedy that sent shock waves across the UK and overseas. As the Prime Minister said, it was entirely avoidable. It uncovered the fact that many homeowners across the UK lived in buildings with serious fire and building safety defects. Our thoughts today remain with the victims and their families. The remediation challenge is significant. The Scottish Government estimate that around 49% of high-rise buildings above 18 metres and 10% of those between 11 metres and 18 metres require some level of remediation. That suggests that around 382 buildings above 18 metres and around 500 buildings between 11 metres and 18 metres require remediation; that is close to 900 buildings in total. The UK and devolved Governments have stepped up and committed public funds to help to remediate life-critical building safety problems. Industry has also assumed its responsibilities and taken ownership of the remediation challenge, but buildings remain for which a responsible party cannot be identified. It would be unfair on the taxpayer for the costs of remediating those buildings to fall on the Government, but it would be unfair on the homeowners for the costs to fall on them. The order will devolve power to the Scottish Parliament to enable it to legislate for a Scottish building safety levy to fund building safety expenditure in Scotland. The devolved power will be similar to the power of the Secretary of State under section 105 of the Building Act 1984, as amended by the Building Safety Act 2022, to introduce a building safety levy in England. This follows a request from the Scottish Government last year to devolve such a power. The UK Government will continue to work closely with the Scottish Government, and I am pleased that in this case the Governments have worked together to make sure that this issue can be addressed in Scotland.

• 15 Oct 2024 · Scotland’s Economy · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon Member for his intervention, and for the points he made about the importance of working together—not just between the UK and Scottish Governments, but across these islands. I will ensure that officials write to him on that point. Our industrial strategy calls time on short-term economic policy making, and establishes a UK industrial council on a statutory footing, to provide expert advice and long-term thinking.

• 15 Oct 2024 · Scotland’s Economy · Hansard source

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  I welcome that comment from my hon. Friend, and also congratulate him on his election to the Treasury Committee, where I am sure he will make a great contribution. He has set out exactly what the plans the Government have set out will do for Scotland, and the aspirations and ambition of those plans for our country. Returning to the UK industrial strategy council, this body will work with specialist sectoral taskforces, and bring together the expertise of businesses, academics, and trade unions to help drive economic growth in all parts of our country. That will allow us to build on Scotland’s strengths and huge potential in key sectors, including advanced manufacturing, life sciences, financial services, clean energy, defence, and creative industries—all areas where Scotland is already beginning to thrive. Together with the establishment of GB Energy in Aberdeen, which the hon. Member for Aberdeen North (Kirsty Blackman) highlighted in her speech, and the creation of a national wealth fund, we will bring investment, jobs, and growth to Scotland.

• 18 Jul 2024 · Foreign Affairs and Defence · Hansard source

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  Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, for the opportunity speak in this debate and to follow the hon. Member for North Herefordshire (Ellie Chowns), who spoke with such passion, and the many other hon. Members who have spoken this afternoon. Like many in this Chamber, I am a Member for a new constituency. Inverclyde and Renfrewshire West stretches along the Clyde coast and takes in the coastal communities of Inverkip, Wemyss Bay, Gourock, Greenock and Port Glasgow, before moving inland to the villages of Kilmacolm, Quarrier’s, Bridge of Weir, and Houston, as well as Crosslee and Craigends. My constituency has a proud history of looking outward around the world, from producing the ships that contributed to our maritime defence to providing the base for the free French navy during world war two. More recently, it has continued with the idea of giving people refuge by contributing to the Ukrainian refugee and resettlement programme. It is also—people will not be surprised to hear me say this—a beautiful part of the world. I know it is a bit of a tradition for Members to say that their constituency is the most beautiful in the country, and I do not intend to disappoint this afternoon, so Inverclyde and Renfrewshire West is the most beautiful constituency in the country. But it is not the beauty of our surroundings that I am most proud of; it is the resilience, the kindness and the determination of our people. I have the privilege of representing the place where I was born and raised, and where I continue to live. I see every day what people achieve together for the benefit of the community. In Gourock, which I also have the pleasure of representing on Inverclyde council, the “Bowl and a Blether” group at St John’s church grew out of the cost of living crisis, but is now a regular event where people from all walks of life can come together for a chat and a warm meal. In Port Glasgow, Parklea Branching Out provides opportunities for people to develop their skills and talents through horticulture. It has gone from strength to strength since it opened in 1997, and earlier this year I had the pleasure of seeing how it was investing to expand its work. In Greenock, the Inverclyde Shed has redeveloped an old industrial building to create a space for people, in its words, to meet, make, grow and share. In Bridge of Weir just last weekend, I visited the Bridge community centre. It was set up with the simple purpose of providing a post office for the village, but now provides a shop and a community space right on the high street. Our people bring our communities to life. They look out for each other, and they rarely ask for anything in return. The Prime Minister has spoken about a Government of service, and it is the people of my constituency who I look to as the best example of what service really means. In the last Parliament, these wonderful people and places were represented by two Members: Ronnie Cowan for Inverclyde and Gavin Newlands for Paisley and Renfrewshire North, which covered the villages of Bridge of Weir and Houston. Both of them served their constituents with distinction. I want to pay particular tribute to Ronnie Cowan, who was my opponent in three elections. He will be remembered fondly in Inverclyde for his important campaigning in the last Parliament to improve treatment and support for people affected by drug addiction—a problem that emerges from the hopelessness that so many people feel today. That hopelessness has its roots in decisions made decades ago that still scar many of our communities. Today, we live with the consequences of the loss of much of our shipbuilding industry and the failure to find a sustainable replacement for those jobs. In his maiden speech in 1983, one of my predecessors, Norman Godman, described shipbuilding and engineering as “the economic backbone of Greenock and Port Glasgow.” —[ Official Report , 24 June 1983; Vol. 44, c. 283.] But today, only about 7% of those at work in my constituency are employed in a manufacturing business. That issue was raised by another of my predecessors, Iain McKenzie, who led a debate on manufacturing in this place almost a decade ago. It is therefore disappointing that under the last Government we did not see the progress that was called for. The measures announced yesterday will begin the work of changing that. GB Energy and the Government’s plans for a national wealth fund are as important for reducing our dependence on foreign energy reserves as they are for providing opportunities here at home. I welcome the ambition of the Government’s plans. They are putting the brakes on the approach that says that decline is inevitable. For my constituency, Government working in partnership with energy companies, with shipyards and with advanced manufacturers, including in the defence sector, can bring prosperity back to the Clyde. I was encouraged to hear the Secretary of State laying out how defence and the defence industries will be central to the Government’s agenda for growth. Industries such as shipbuilding did not just provide people with a source of employment and income. They gave them strong relationships, dignity, pride and a sense that the future offered promise and opportunity rather than decline and despair. As a boy, I learned this from my grandfather, who was the union treasurer at Scotts shipyard in Greenock. Work and the trade union movement provided him with a route out of poverty, the ability to provide for his family and the chance to ensure that his children and grandchildren could see their living standards increase, generation after generation. That is what good work does for people and for communities, and that is why investing in the jobs of the future must go hand in hand with ensuring people’s rights at work. The new deal for working people will provide the certainty of well-paid work, underpinned by strong rights and protections. Across Inverclyde and Renfrewshire West, there are already examples of manufacturing businesses, trading internationally, that are offering high-quality, unionised jobs. Bridge of Weir Leather, which produces the leather for these Benches, is a family-run business that trades around the world from my constituency. James Walker Devol, an engineering firm with a decades-long history in Inverclyde, produces advanced plastics for the oil and gas industry and the renewables sector from its factory in Gourock. The Chancellor has set out her ambition for sustainable growth that includes every part of the country. She knows what every Labour Chancellor and every Labour Government have understood, which is that economic growth in every part of Britain and a strong economy allow us to pay for the services that our communities so desperately need. I spoke earlier about my family, and about my grandparents’ ambition that their children should do better than they did. I close by saying something about the people who taught me the values that led me here, and about those who encouraged me to put those values in the service of my community through politics. My grandmother was born in 1914, and in the early 1930s she made her first trip to London to enter domestic service for the man who then owned Tottenham Hotspur football club. She sent the money she made back home to help her mother raise 12 children in a two-room flat on Rue End Street in Greenock. Within two generations, her grandson has found his own way to London to sit in the House of Commons. Like all new Members, I did not achieve this alone. My family and community taught me the values that led me into public service. Unfortunately, neither of my parents lived long enough to see this, but they gave me the start in life that I want to see for every child. And I was lucky to know two Members of this House who demonstrated to me the best of what public service has to offer. The first was the former Member for Glasgow East, Margaret Curran, who has had a lifelong commitment to public service and taught me the cut and thrust of Scottish politics—for anyone who has not realised, there is a lot of cut and thrust in Scottish politics. The second was the former Member for Inverclyde, David Cairns, who I know was loved by many in this House. David was a model MP who worked hard for all his constituents and who built his reputation on delivering for people in our community. As a gay man in politics 20 years ago, he showed me that who you love should not be a barrier to holding elected office. It is often said that, “You can’t be what you can’t see.” If not for David Cairns and the model he set, I know I would not be standing here today with my soon-to-be husband watching from the Gallery above. In everything I do in this place, I will work to live up to their example and to the values of the people and community that raised me.