Scott Arthur MP: speeches 2025

Speeches

• 12 Jun 2025 · Spending Review: Health and Social Care · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for supporting the launch of Sarcoma UK’s report yesterday. The recommendations in that report are really important for tackling that awful rare cancer. I welcome the ambition in what has been presented, but the comparison with what my Edinburgh South West constituents face in Scotland could not be more stark. I have just come from a meeting in which, yet again, I have been trying to defend the mental health provision at Scottish Action for Mental Health’s Redhall walled garden; in contrast, I hear from the Dispatch Box real ambition to support people with mental health problems. People in Scotland are also jealous of the falling waiting lists they see in England, and hope that one day, they will arrive in Scotland. May I ask the Minister to keep on being ambitious, in the hope—because hope is all I have—that some of it will rub off on the Scottish Government? As Madam Deputy Speaker is feeling a little generous, may I also say that Saturday will mark the 200th Oriam parkrun in my constituency? If we are serious about preventative healthcare activities, parkrun is a great example of how we can improve both our mental health and our physical health. The Minister is welcome to attend, of course.

• 12 Jun 2025 · Covid: Fifth Anniversary · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend the Member for West Ham and Beckton (James Asser) for securing the debate and for his tribute to public service workers. We should never forget that in places like Edinburgh, everyone—from bus drivers to bin lorry drivers— took huge risks at the start of the pandemic because the consequences and transmission of the virus were not understood. At this point, I must mention my lovely wife, who worked in end-of-life care as a nurse all the way through, as well as the fantastic Hannah in my office, who worked in a care home. Covid has not disappeared. The fantastic covid memorial wall across the river from this building tells us that. The number of hearts on it is slowly growing. I hope that, when she responds, the Minister will give us an update on any plans to make the memorial permanent and acknowledge the fantastic work of the friends of the wall. Covid has not gone away yet. In one week alone in Scotland last year, 443 people were hospitalised with covid. Long covid is now just as prevalent as strokes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and atrial fibrillation.

• 12 Jun 2025 · Covid: Fifth Anniversary · Hansard source

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  Absolutely. I hope I will be able to expand on that in the time I have remaining, but that organisation sounds fantastic, so I thank my hon. Friend for mentioning it. One of the most powerful things about being an MP is the people we meet, particularly in our constituencies. One of those people is Sophie, who attended my surgery in the fantastic Fountainbridge library. Her story starkly portrays the reality of living with long covid. Sophie enjoyed a full and active life before the pandemic. She used to run to her office in the mornings, where she oversaw a small, dedicated team of designers—I am sure she was not too sweaty after her run to work. She now relies on a wheelchair to get around and is largely housebound. She says, “I am desperate to get back to my career and live again”, but doctors have been unable to help her. Sophie is one of a small but growing number of constituents who write to me with stories that highlight the seemingly irreversible impact that a covid infection has had on their lives. With no proven treatments or a cure in sight, we cannot afford to treat covid as old news. We need to keep talking about it, and particularly about those people who are suffering from long covid. It should not be an economic argument, but the impact of long covid on our economy is significant: it is estimated to cost us £4.2 billion up to 2030. As long as treatment options remain limited and new patients continue to join the thousands already grappling with long covid on a daily basis, we need to do just three things to help them and reduce the burden on our NHS: we need to empathise with those who have this condition and treat it seriously—too often, they are seen as working the system, and I know through the people I have met that that is completely untrue; we need to invest in new trials and research; and we need to recognise that while the threat of covid may have diminished, we have to take it seriously and ensure that vulnerable groups are vaccinated.

• 10 Jun 2025 · Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for his leadership on this issue. One of the most regular attenders at my surgeries is a Palestinian woman who has lost both friends and family in this conflict. Her cousin died recently. Each time she comes, it is harder for me to tell her that the Government are doing all that they can to protect the lives and rights of Palestinians. On Saturday she brought a gift, because it was the day after Eid, but she was also angry and tearful. I was ashamed, because I could not tell her that our Government were doing all that they could in this situation. The Minister has said twice in his responses that delivering aid directly by sea and by air is inefficient, but surely efficiency is not the aim here; saving lives is. Surely inefficient aid is better than no aid. Will the Minister look at this again, with our international partners, to see what aid we can deliver to these people?

• 10 Jun 2025 · Grenfell Tower Fire: Eighth Anniversary · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for securing this debate. I hope we will continue to debate this matter in the years to come, and that we can start to talk about the positives that have come out of it in terms of the recommendations and the lives that will be saved and changed. Eight years on, in Scotland—my hon. Friend might be surprised that that is what I am going to talk about—there are 5,500 properties affected by flammable cladding, with 25,000 people living in them. I sense my hon. Friend’s frustration over the pace of remediation in England, and in particular in his own constituency; in Scotland, after eight years, just one building has been remediated. Hopefully in England, the pace is faster than that.

• 9 Jun 2025 · Winter Fuel Payment · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for his leadership on this issue. If he is looking for examples of how to increase the uptake of pension credit, he is welcome to visit my constituency to see the work that the Community Help and Advice Initiative is doing with Gate55 to maximise benefits. If he comes along to one of those sessions with the Dove Centre, he can also get a warm meal and a game of bingo. But the £35,000 threshold is much more generous than I, as a tight-fisted Scotsman, would have expected, so will he explain how he reached that value?

• 4 Jun 2025 · North Sea Oil and Gas Licences: Economic Growth · Hansard source

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  Labour’s windfall tax on North sea energy profits is designed to make us less reliant on people like Vladimir Putin. When I was campaigning in Hamilton last week, voters asked me why the SNP, the Tories and Reform were so against our windfall tax. I could not explain. Can the Secretary of State?

• 4 Jun 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  Q12. During recess, I visited Scottish Action for Mental Health’s Redhall walled garden, which I am proud to say is in Edinburgh South West. It has operated for decades as a therapeutic horticultural centre, supporting adults with mental health problems. Like similar community mental health services across Scotland, it is now under threat: it faces potential closure due to chronic underfunding of integrated joint boards by the SNP Government. Does the Prime Minister agree that facilities such as Redhall walled garden should have been a priority for the SNP when deciding how to spend the record funding settlement that Scottish Labour MPs won for Scotland?

• 2 Jun 2025 · Strategic Defence Review · Hansard source

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  I thank the Secretary of State for his statement and his leadership. In Edinburgh South West, we have Redford barracks, Dreghorn barracks and RAF Kirknewton, so I want to focus my comments through the lens of our service personnel. Recommendation 17 rightly links retention to accommodation and, in particular, the number of moves that staff often have to make throughout their service. This can be a particular issue where children are involved and both parents are serving, so when developing his policy in this area, can the Secretary of State commit to working with groups such as Forces Children Scotland to make sure that the voices of service children are heard in this debate?

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  I absolutely welcome this deal, which puts us on the map as an outward-looking nation again. Above all, the benefits that it brings young people in Edinburgh South West are absolutely worth noting. We know that the deal will bring lower bills for people shopping for food and buying energy across the UK. Based on that, can the Prime Minister understand why the SNP is uniting with Reform and the Conservatives to take an isolationist approach on international trade?

• 19 May 2025 · Gender Self-identification · Hansard source

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  Does my hon. Friend agree that that threat to the funding for Edinburgh Women’s Aid was an absolute disgrace, and that we should be ashamed that it was even discussed in Edinburgh?

• 19 May 2025 · Gender Self-identification · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under you today, Ms Furniss. Is it not fitting that we have had a change of gender in the Chair during this debate? It is quite incredible. I thank the hon. Member for South Cotswolds (Dr Savage) for opening the debate. My hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton West (Warinder Juss), who is not in his place just now, summed up so much when he said that being trans is not a choice. The hon. Member for South Cotswolds made an incredibly important point that applies to everyone when she said that everybody has a right to be themselves. In my maiden speech, I made the point that I would be there for everyone in my constituency. In the last Parliament, many people across the UK did not feel that they could approach their MP to discuss this issue. That is something that should shame us all. I consider myself an ally of the LGBT community, not least because I am the proud father of a gay woman. I hope that we will hear today from the Minister about the implementation of our manifesto in this area. This time last year, on so many doorsteps in Edinburgh South West, I was pointing to that section of the manifesto and saying, “This is our commitment,” so hopefully we will see it sooner rather than later. I want to talk about two people I spoke to on the doorstep last year. Without doubt, the person I spoke to longest was the mother of a trans woman. It was incredibly moving. She talked about how, as her daughter moved through puberty, she struggled to come to terms with herself, and about the problem that that caused her. Her daughter believed that if she did not eat, it would delay the onset of puberty. It led to her almost dying. That told me that perhaps there is a case for puberty blockers; in an absolute minority of cases, where they could save a life, they are really important. That girl is now a woman. The last I heard, she was leading a full life, thanks to her quite incredible mother. A few weeks after that, I spoke to the mother and father of two teenage girls. They were concerned about this debate, because they were worried that their daughters would go into a toilet and be confronted by a trans woman or—worse still, as they saw it—by someone masquerading as a trans woman. It is tempting to view those two sets of parents as opposed to each other, but in fact they had so much in common: they both loved their children and just wanted the best for them. Quite naively, I dreamed that the solution was perhaps to get the parents together so that they could see the issue from different perspectives and find common ground. Scottish MPs will know that that was incredibly difficult in Scotland, because the debate in Scotland became incredibly toxic. I do not know how bad it was in England, but it could not have been worse than it was in Scotland. The thing we should be ashamed of is that it became difficult to talk about the issue in social circles, because nobody knew what perspectives people had or how strong their feelings were. It does not support the rights of a minority group when we cannot even talk about their rights in those settings. My hon. Friend the Member for Bathgate and Linlithgow (Kirsteen Sullivan) said that we need a respectful debate. That is right. It is good that the EHRC’s consultation around the Supreme Court’s ruling has been extended to six weeks, and I hope that it is open and inclusive. I also hope that, as well as people suggesting to the EHRC how they think the world should be, we find space to listen to one another, because that is what has been missing from this debate for the past five years or so.

• 19 May 2025 · Gender Self-identification · Hansard source

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  Can the Minister explain the timeline in a bit more detail? When can we expect this to come to Parliament? When will the formal guidance be agreed and issued?

• 16 May 2025 · Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill · Hansard source

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  Will the hon. Member give way?

• 12 May 2025 · Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill · Hansard source

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  The right hon. Gentleman is speaking with great confidence, as ever—and great volume, I have to say. He is very clear about having the cap, but it is less clear what level he believes it should be set at. He says that it should be lower than the current numbers, but from his experience and with his confidence, what level does he feel it should be set at? What would his first proposal be for the cap?

• 12 May 2025 · Immigration System · Hansard source

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  I thank the Home Secretary for her statement and for the steps she is taking to bring order to the chaotic immigration system we inherited. I want to ask a question in the context of my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. Universities in Edinburgh are on their knees because of changes the Tory Government made to immigration and because of SNP cuts to the sector. The staff are keen to contribute to economic growth in the UK, but they are concerned that what is in the White Paper may make that harder. Can she commit to working across Government to ensure that our universities come out of this stronger so that they can contribute to economic growth?

• 24 Apr 2025 · Ukraine War: London Talks · Hansard source

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  I am ashamed to admit that I have not yet been sanctioned by Russia—I am feeling a little bit lonely. Clearly, I have to do more to call out Putin’s barbaric war crimes. This House is always at its most united and its most passionate when we are talking about the need for a just peace in Ukraine, so can I ask the Minister very delicately whether he is convinced that all our international allies understand that for a peace to be lasting, it has to be just?

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  All of us made sacrifices when Parliament was recalled to save the steel industry, and mine was missing a slice of a cake that was baked to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Balerno farmers market. I met the baker, Emma Galloway, at St Mungo’s Easter service last week, and she explained to me that my slice was gone. The House can imagine how I felt. My low-calorie alternative is early-day motion 1091, on the 20th anniversary of the Balerno farmers market. [That this House congratulates Balerno Farmers Market on celebrating its 20th anniversary on 12 April 2025, marking two decades of consistent service to the local community and surrounding areas; recognises the market’s vital contribution to promoting local food, sustainable farming and small independent producers, while strengthening the sense of community and supporting the local economy in Edinburgh South West constituency; commends the dedication of the organisers, stallholders, volunteers and community partners whose continued efforts have made the market a well-loved and successful monthly event since its founding in 2005, which helps define Balerno; acknowledges that the market has grown into a community hub, supporting not only local commerce but also arts, culture, fairtrade and environmental awareness, reflecting the values of resilience, sustainability and civic pride; and congratulates all those involved in the Balerno Farmers Market on this significant milestone, wishing it continued success in the years ahead.] The early-day motion highlights that the market is vibrant and defines Balerno. It supports the local economy and, through the Fairtrade group, also supports sustainable farming right across the world. Will the Leader of the House join me in wishing Balerno farmers market a happy 20th birthday, and suggest that Emma bakes a slightly bigger cake next time?

• 23 Apr 2025 · Sewage · Hansard source

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  Will the right hon. Lady give way?

• 23 Apr 2025 · Sewage · Hansard source

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  Will the right hon. Lady give way?

• 23 Apr 2025 · Higher Education · Hansard source

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  I thank the Secretary for State for his answer and for his comments about the Pope. I make my response within the context of my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests and I note my membership of the University and College Union. The university sector in Scotland has never been in a worse state. It is in a state of crisis, with job losses, both compulsory and voluntary, being contemplated across the whole sector in Scotland. It is young Scots who are paying the price. To balance the books, the Scottish Government are limiting the number of young Scots who can go to university, forcing universities to rely more and more on the recruitment of students from overseas. To be clear, that means that Scots are often sitting at home unable to access a place because students from overseas with lower qualifications are getting those places. Does the Secretary of State agree that Scotland’s young people must be supported and the university sector must be fully funded in Scotland?

• 23 Apr 2025 · Higher Education · Hansard source

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  1. What assessment he has made with Cabinet colleagues of the higher education challenges in Scotland.

• 22 Apr 2025 · Road Safety and Active Travel to School · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for giving way with almost perfect timing. Bikeability is not the only non-infrastructure approach. Every school in my constituency benefits from a 20 mph scheme that covers most of Edinburgh and—I think he is about to touch on this—a pavement parking ban. Those non-infrastructure approaches can be delivered cheaply and quickly. Does he agree that we need more of those in the UK?

• 8 Apr 2025 · Horizon Redress and Post Office Update · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for his statement. I know that none of these issues are of his making, so I am grateful to him. Edinburgh South West and Edinburgh South share 18 victims of the Horizon scandal, and I am sure that they very much welcome what the Minister has said. I want to talk about the directly managed branch in my constituency, in Wester Hailes. That is one of the most deprived parts of Scotland, so any loss in service there will be acutely felt. I know from campaign work I have done, along with Councillor Stephen Jenkinson, that the post office is used by people well beyond Wester Hailes, so it is important that we take any threat to it really seriously. The situation is made all the worse by the fact that the Bank of Scotland branch right across from it is closing next month. I am slightly concerned that what is described as a “new deal” for the Post Office might be a bad deal for Wester Hailes. For it to be a good deal, the consultation has to be right. It has to be meaningful and tailored to the people of Wester Hailes. Can the Minister reassure us that this will be a meaningful consultation that will reach into Wester Hailes and understand the needs of the community?

• 8 Apr 2025 · Blair Mayne: Posthumous Victoria Cross · Hansard source

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  I will try to listen to that podcast on the train home this evening. The issue about those in the special forces often comes up, but I have absolute trust in them to follow the rules of engagement and the rules of war at all times, and I respect them and all our armed forces for the work they do. To conclude, we are not here to demand that Paddy gets a VC, or to demand that he gets it on behalf of all others who have perhaps been overlooked—particularly not this year, the 80th anniversary of the second world war. We are saying that it is time to look at the issue with fresh eyes. That should be done through a formal process—not here in this House, but by people who understand the matter much better than us—to ensure that a fair decision is reached. The hon. Member for Strangford has been clear about what that fair decision should be.