Susan Murray MP: speeches

Speeches

• 17 Jun 2026 · Job Creation · Hansard source

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  I have repeatedly asked the Government to publish their assessment of Scotland’s nuclear potential, without success. Perhaps the Minister can help me in the meantime. What does she regard as the greatest benefit of the Wylfa site in Wales: the long-term, skilled jobs, the local investment that it draws in, or the contribution to our energy security? Does she believe that Scotland would be able to share in the same benefits?

• 10 Jun 2026 · Draft Scotland Act 1998 (Increase of Borrowing Limits) Order 2026 · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Vaz. It is good to hear that cross-Government working under the Scotland Act is creating this statutory instrument to increase the amount that the Scottish Government can borrow in line with the fiscal framework. We therefore support the statutory instrument to maintain the real value of borrowing, to the benefit of the Scottish people living in Scotland.

• 5 Mar 2026 · Civil Service Pensions Recovery Plan · Hansard source

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  On 23 February, the Cabinet Office confirmed that hardship loans would not be available to dependants or surviving spouses of civil service pension scheme members. That left one of my constituents alone, with two children and just one income after sadly losing their partner. Can the Minister explain how much it would have cost to provide support to dependants? Can he tell me how many people have been left without support as a result of this decision?

• 4 Mar 2026 · Energy Security and Net Zero: Scotland · Hansard source

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  I absolutely agree. We have a real opportunity with Great British Energy, in the current environment, to take advantage of what the commercial companies are offering with regard to reducing costs for individual homeowners and to use digital technology to ensure that community energy generated into the grid benefits the communities that host the infrastructure that generates that energy. Communities see the turbines, substations and pylons; as the grid expands, they see that infrastructure expand, too. They live with disruption during construction and operation, and too often they do not see fair value for the disruption that they face. That means that there is an opportunity here. The Government have already been developing the policy infrastructure. DESNZ published a working paper seeking views on the design of a potential mandatory community benefit scheme and the facilitation of shared ownership for low-carbon energy infrastructure. That is not a small thing; it is a recognition that we cannot build at the pace required without public consent, and public consent is strengthened when communities are well-informed and share in the long-term value.

• 4 Mar 2026 · Energy Security and Net Zero: Scotland · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That this House has considered Scotland’s contribution to energy security and net zero. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dr Huq, and a privilege to lead this debate on a matter that will have such an impact on Scotland’s economy, our cost of living and our national security. Let me be clear at the outset that Scotland plays a disproportionate role in keeping the lights on across Great Britain, and it is leading the way in the shift to clean power. The evidence is clear: the House of Commons Library noted that in 2024, clean power made up 90% of the generation in Scotland. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has published figures showing that Scotland produces significantly more energy than it consumes, and that it transferred 17 TWh of excess energy to England in 2024. In terms that we can all understand, that is enough energy to power every home in London for two years. That production benefits us all—it supports energy security, making us resilient to international events, and helps to decarbonise the grid for everyone—but there is a problem that we cannot ignore: despite that enormous contribution, too often Scots do not see a fair share of the benefits in good jobs, local investment or lower bills. The case that I want to make today is simple: Scotland is delivering, so the UK’s policy and delivery machine must now match that pace with fairness, infrastructure and security. The North sea is the place to start. The Scottish Affairs Committee set out the stark reality: in 2024, oil and gas production reached a 21st-century low—about 75% below the 1999 peak. Decline is not an abstract theory; it is measurable across Scotland. The workforce impact is already significant. The Library notes that there were 121,000 direct and indirect jobs supported by the oil and gas industry in 2023—a 51% fall compared with 2014. If workers leave before the clean energy pipeline reaches its potential, we will lose the skilled labour that is vital to a successful transition.

• 12 Feb 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Retired civil servants in my constituency and across the UK are being offered interest-free loans after serious delays to pension payments following the transfer of their pension scheme administration to Capita in December 2025. Will the Leader of the House grant time for a debate on the administration of the civil service pension scheme, including the impact of the McCloud judgment and the current backlog?

• 3 Feb 2026 · Universal Credit (Removal of Two Child Limit) Bill · Hansard source

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  I apologise. Removing the two-child cap is a vital step, and I hope that the Government choose to listen to more Liberal Democrat proposals.

• 3 Feb 2026 · Universal Credit (Removal of Two Child Limit) Bill · Hansard source

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  It seems that with increasing frequency I stand in this place welcoming Labour U-turns, and today I welcome yet another. The decision to lift the two-child cap is clearly the right moral choice, and it will lift hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty. For those in Scotland, this is a particularly welcome change. There will no longer be any need for the Scottish Government to divert funds from social care and council services to the Scottish child payment. With that in mind, I urge the hon. Member for Aberdeen North (Kirsty Blackman), who is on the Bench behind me, to discuss with her colleagues in Holyrood the merits of using some of the projected £155 million savings to help fund a new health and care hub for the people of Bearsden and Milngavie in my constituency. I am aware that some people do not support lifting the cap. The change is set to cost UK taxpayers over £3 billion annually by 2030—clearly an enormous sum. Over the past year, we have seen that this Labour Government are set on making working people pay for their changes through tax band freezing, national insurance rises and pension changes. With that in mind, I urge the Government to look seriously at the Liberal Democrat proposals that aim to raise tax revenue. First, banks have made record profits—an estimated £50 billion in a single year—off the backs of hard-working people. We Liberal Democrats believe that it is only fair that the banks pay back some of that money. A windfall tax on these enormous profits could raise £7 billion per year, without placing any more strain on people who are already struggling. On top of that—I know that Conservative Members will not be happy to hear this again—we need a customs union with Europe. Trade deals with China and India are not unwelcome, but the biggest opportunity is right on our doorstep: an extra £90 billion a year in tax revenue that does not require going cap in hand to those who stand against our values or who facilitate our enemies. Lifting children out of poverty does not have to put a further strain on working people. We can create a fair tax system in which companies pay their fair share to help those from whom they profit.

• 20 Jan 2026 · Draft Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018 (Carer’s Assistance) (Consequential Modifications) Order 2026 · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Sir Christopher. The SI updates UK social security law to reflect changes made by the Scottish Government to carer benefits, and accounts for updates to the carer support payment, which replaces the carer’s allowance in Scotland, and two new Scottish carer payments: the carer additional person payment and the Scottish carer supplement. The extension of support for carers from eight to 12 weeks after the death of the person they care for is welcome, and the changes ensure that the Scottish benefits interact correctly with the UK-wide reserved benefits. On that basis, the Liberal Democrats are supportive.

• 3 Dec 2025 · Pension Schemes Bill · Hansard source

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  I appreciate the hon. Gentleman’s point, but the important thing is that there is clear guidance for pension funds to make sure we do not assist breaches of international law. I think that would make things very clear, and quite easy for pension funds to understand and implement. My constituency of Mid Dunbartonshire has many pensioners who are reliant on schemes that do not provide annual indexation. That is why I was pleased to add my name to Liberal Democrat new clause 7, which takes a nuanced and responsible approach. It calls for an assessment of the position faced by pre-1997 pensioners, and of options to address the reality that their pensions have effectively been frozen for many years. As the hon. Member for Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock (Elaine Stewart) mentioned, when schemes that are in surplus are able to ensure that pension holders have a better quality of life, we should fully support as many of them as possible. Ultimately, this is about fairness and openness in our system. Pension schemes hold an almost unimaginable amount of money and are among the most powerful financial actors in our economy, which could help to reduce the inequity in our communities. They are too large and too complex for any individual saver or campaign group to challenge alone, and it therefore falls to us in this House to ensure that schemes operate fairly, ethically and transparently, and that the people who contribute to them and rely on them can retire with dignity and confidence.

• 3 Dec 2025 · Pension Schemes Bill · Hansard source

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  I start by thanking my hon. Friends the Members for Torbay (Steve Darling) and for Mid Dorset and North Poole (Vikki Slade), who have clearly devoted a lot of time and care to scrutinising the Bill—along with others, of course—and tabling constructive amendments. As we have heard, the UK pensions market is currently worth around £3 trillion—a staggering sum. The right hon. Member for Birmingham Hodge Hill and Solihull North (Liam Byrne) has already highlighted the opportunity for national investing, as well as to improve the quality of life for pension holders. For too many people, though, the rules and regulations that determine what they will receive in retirement are opaque—as anyone who has worked through the Bill will know—and often deeply confusing. That is why I welcome the Liberal Democrat proposals to introduce a simple traffic light system, which will help people to understand their scheme and how well their pension is performing. However, understanding is only one part of the picture; people must also be confident that their pension is being managed legally and ethically. I therefore welcome the amendment tabled by the hon. Member for Poole (Neil Duncan-Jordan), which would ensure that British pension funds are compliant with the UK’s duty not to aid or assist serious breaches of international law. After the horror we have witnessed in Gaza over the past two years, and judging by the strength of feeling expressed both by my constituents and by Members across this House, I believe that safeguard would be warmly welcomed. Like other Members, I cannot speak in this debate without raising the topic of pre-1997 pensions.

• 20 Nov 2025 · International Men’s Day · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for Cannock Chase (Josh Newbury) for bringing forward this debate, but also for sharing his experience. I am the mother of two young men, and I am very proud of the way they tackle the challenges that life has put in their way with kindness and resilience. Before the debate, I took the time to sit down with some more young men, and we talked about their experience of living as young men in the UK today. They are successful individuals, university graduates with good jobs and what, from the outside, look like steady lives, yet their outlook was shockingly bleak. They talked about their belief that, without support or systemic change, they would never own a house. They are resentful about their opportunity to build up a good pension. They talked about how the cost of living is reaching a point where even basic leisure activities, such as sport after work, are becoming unaffordable. Most worryingly of all, they talked about how younger men are being radicalised by this. They said they are increasingly seeing boys and young men being pushed into far-right and hateful echo chambers while searching for an alternative path. It is clear that we are failing young people as a whole, and young men in particular. Buying a house is a distant dream for most young people, and even renting is, by the Government’s own assessment, unaffordable. Mental ill health services are inaccessible, and male suicide is now the biggest killer of men under 50. Young men are falling behind young women in education and earnings, which at a time when traditional expectations are shifting, is challenging their sense of identity and place in society. This is not about dismissing the struggles faced by women, many of which are the same; it is about recognising the nuance in the ways these pressures affect men differently and how many men cope with them differently. Too often this debate swings between two extremes: those who wish to dismiss men’s concerns altogether; and those who wish to capitalise on male disillusionment to sow division and hatred. That is why we welcome the Government’s new men’s health strategy, and applaud the campaigners and organisations that fought so hard to bring it to us at this moment. It is right that the Government finally recognise the specific ways in which men are suffering—from suicide to substance abuse and prostate cancer—but we need to go further. Many of the steps are still modest, especially on suicide. I have been directly affected by the suicide of a young man, who had his full future ahead of him. As we have heard, this is the greatest killer of men under 50, but the Government have scrapped the suicide prevention grant—a £10 million lifeline—and the new measures barely replace it. With thousands of people dying by suicide every year, we have to be more ambitious. That means restoring the suicide prevention grant in full, introducing regular mental health checks at key points in life and tackling the wider determinants of health, including ending rough sleeping, which disproportionately affects men. Beyond mental health, we must also address the deep sense of hopelessness felt by so many young men. We must acknowledge that men are now 14% less likely to attend university than women, and we need to provide respected alternative routes into good work through apprenticeships and skills programmes. We must also confront the housing crisis more quickly. Investment in housing will not only ease pressure on the market, but create long-term jobs in construction and engineering. This is deeply important because, ultimately, we can invest in mental health support, but without job prospects, a home to build a life in and a future to believe in, young men will continue to feel hopeless, and when young men feel hopeless, they will continue to look for answers from those on the extremes. So while I welcome the men’s health strategy, this is just the first step of many.

• 18 Nov 2025 · ExxonMobil: Mossmorran · Hansard source

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  I agree that this announcement is devastating for Mossmorran and for the communities around Fife. Hundreds of highly skilled workers now face an uncertain future and it is clear that the closure of this cornerstone facility reflects a deeper failure to provide the stable, long-term industrial environment that businesses need if they are to invest and grow in Scotland. For many years, the Liberal Democrats have warned that the absence of a coherent industrial strategy, first abandoned by the previous Conservative Government and then left to drift further by this Labour Government, has created damaging uncertainty for our manufacturing and energy sectors. Will the Minister assure this House that the energy sector is at the heart of the Government’s industrial strategy? Exxon’s statement made clear that the current economic and policy environment has made continued operations uncompetitive. What steps will the Government take to ensure that the UK remains a viable place for energy production and to prevent further closures of major industrial sites? We also cannot ignore the human impact. Many of the workers are among the most experienced and specialised in the sector, yet only 50 roles are being offered elsewhere and that is nearly 500 miles away. Can the Minister tell the House how many have been offered and accepted relocation, and what support has been put in place locally for those who simply cannot uproot their lives, families and communities? Further, the Exxon closure will see many highly qualified and specialised workers laid off at a time of severe cost of living pressures. What immediate and long-term measures are the Government putting in place to ensure that those individuals can transition to appropriate, well-paid employment? Communities in Fife deserve clarity, certainty and a real plan for the future. I urge the Minister to act quickly, decisively and collaboratively to protect the workers and to ensure that Scotland’s industrial base has a sustainable future.

• 15 Oct 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  Q9. Calithea Studios in Mid Dunbartonshire is a prime example of a business doing everything the Government ask. The owner of this beauty salon and her three employees each earn less than £30,000 a year, yet the business will pay the Government over £36,000 for the year in VAT, employer’s national insurance and pension contributions. Does the Prime Minister think it is fair that the hard-working owner, who is providing jobs and training on the high street, contributes more to the Exchequer than she earns in a year? Does he believe this encourages entrepreneurship, which is important for economic growth and local jobs?

• 15 Sept 2025 · Employment Rights Bill · Hansard source

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  I think we have a difference in how we look at Lords amendment 1. It does not water down the Bill; it adds more flexibility so that people get the opportunity to have the kind of employment that works for them. That is particularly important in an environment where we are trying to get people off disability benefits and back into work.

• 10 Sept 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  I, too, welcome the right hon. Member to her place. Her predecessor, the right hon. Member for Hove and Portslade (Peter Kyle), warned that losing control of artificial general intelligence would be catastrophic, yet he failed to deliver legislation to protect the public. Will the new Secretary of State deliver on an artificial intelligence Bill, and ensure that the British people benefit from the advantages of AI, without becoming its victims?