Torcuil Crichton MP: speeches 2026

Speeches

• 11 Sept 2026 · Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill · Hansard source

  More

  My hon. Friend is making a very informed speech on how the medical landscape has changed, but while the arguments we make today are the same, the political landscape has changed as well. Would he agree with the Father of the House that we now have a Prime Minister committed to solving the problems with social care and palliative care, and that in Scotland, where the hon. Gentleman comes from, we saw the political landscape change in front of our eyes? MSPs initially voted for similar legislation, but ultimately voted against it. People can change their minds, and I hope that they do.

• 11 Sept 2026 · Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill · Hansard source

  More

  Will the right hon. Gentleman give way?

• 4 Sept 2026 · Infants, Parents and Carers Bill · Hansard source

  More

  My hon. Friend is making a passionate speech on international surrogacy, as she has done previously on adoption. I commend the efforts of the right hon. Member for New Forest West (Sir Desmond Swayne) to bring in this new law. Does my hon. Friend agree with my hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow East (John Grady) that the Scottish Government should closely follow what is happening in this House today and consider similar laws on the rights of babies and on surrogacy?

• 3 Sept 2026 · Jackdaw and Rosebank Oil and Gas Fields · Hansard source

  More

  I can assure the hon. Member for Aberdeen South (Douglas Lumsden) that this issue is about jobs not just in his constituency, but in Na h-Eileanan an Iar and across the whole UK. I have already presented the new Prime Minister with a map of the UK showing the postcode of payslips; almost every constituency is affected. I echo the Prime Minister’s words to the hon. Member for Boston and Skegness (Richard Tice) the other day; he said: “we need to be pragmatic—we will still need to rely on oil and gas for some years to come” —[ Official Report , 1 September 2026; Vol. 790, c. 44.] and that it would be a mistake to say that it has to be one or the other, when we need both. I remind the Minister making this decision that, when it comes to Rosebank and Jackdaw, we do need both.

• 1 Sept 2026 · Face-to-Face Banking: Rural Areas · Hansard source

  More

  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Wishart. I thank the hon. Member for South Devon (Caroline Voaden) for raising this important issue, and I welcome Members back after a long summer. First, I have a holiday confession: I spent a week in Spain without touching a euro or a cent—not that I made my partner pay for everything; I just used a digital app. On my return, there was that quaint item in the post: a cheque, which I banked yesterday using a digital app. The truth is that we are using banks and handling cash less and less, but that does not mean that communities like mine in the Western Isles do not need banking services. This summer, the Bank of Scotland branch in Benbecula in my constituency closed its doors. That followed the closure of branches in Harris and in the port town of Lochmaddy. Those closures have raised concerns about banking services across the islands and in other parts of rural Scotland. My constituents cannot simply drive to the next bank, because it is across the sea on the mainland. In passing, I pay tribute to the mobile banking service, the bank van, which the RBS is still providing in the islands and other parts of Scotland. The closure of banking services has profound effects on islands, because another truth is that communities in my constituency, particularly in Uist, face a stark depopulation crisis. There is an ageing population and economically active families are being pushed away by unaffordable housing, lack of childcare and lack of digital and physical connectivity, with failing ferries and unaffordable air fares. Without correction, we will lose not just people but communities. Banking services, as well as housing and a growing economy, have to be part of the jigsaw to retain populations. In cash-heavy local economies, the loss of any branch is important. That is why I welcome the banking services review, but remind Ministers that they must move quickly and make sure that the approach is not one size fits all. Rural and island areas like mine rely on these vital services. Under the rules, an area should have a population of 10,000 to have a banking hub, but the population of Uist is 4,500. We need flexibility in the banking review because one size does not fit all.

• 1 Sept 2026 · Face-to-Face Banking: Rural Areas · Hansard source

  More

  Island communities like mine simply do not fit the parameters of banking hubs. The population of Uist, for example, is half the size of that required for a banking hub. Will the Minister consider island solutions in the roll-out of new banking hubs?

• 1 Sept 2026 · Direction of Government · Hansard source

  More

  May I welcome the Prime Minister to his place and invite him to my place? There are good flight connections from Manchester to the Western Isles, where he will see that we have the highest concentration of community-owned wind farms in the country. If he really wants to fulfil the potential of the energy transition, these communities should be given priority access to grid connections, and he should use the muscle of GB Energy to give communities and local councils the ability to buy shares in renewable schemes anywhere in their area. It is devolutionary, it is revolutionary, and the template for how to do it is in Na h-Eileanan an Iar.

• 15 Jul 2026 · Independence Referendum · Hansard source

  More

  Regardless of how we divide on the referendum, I wonder if colleagues on the SNP Benches will find it in their hearts to put political division aside at 8 o’clock tonight? I did not come of age in time for the 1966 world cup finals, but the older boys in my primary school were all nicknamed after the England world cup squad, so we had Nobby Stiles and Charlton in our Scottish playground. That is a Hebridean example of respect and rivalry. Does the Secretary of State agree with today’s Daily Record editorial, which says that “there is always room for friendly rivalry with neighbouring nations,” but that “Bringing…politics into football does nobody any”—

• 9 Jul 2026 · Tuna Fishing Licences · Hansard source

  More

  7. What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the geographical distribution of tuna fishing licences.

• 9 Jul 2026 · Tuna Fishing Licences · Hansard source

  More

  My constituent, Angus Campbell, held the only commercial licence for tuna in 2025. He has invested thousands in equipment and a route to market for the bluefin tuna now swimming off the Atlantic coast of the Hebrides. This year, he got no licence. In fact, the two applications that came from Scotland came from the Western Isles, but of the 29 licences allocated, none came to Scotland. Will the Minister review why there is no regional distribution of licences? Why was a fisher with an established track record of commercial landings turned down? Can the Minister look for a speedy resolution through a second round of licensing from the approximately 100 tonnes of quota allocated to tag and release, mortalities, bycatch and scientific research?

• 9 Jul 2026 · Israeli Settlements: Trade Ban · Hansard source

  More

  I thank the hon. Member for giving way, and I assure the Father of the House that the passion he feels finds a strong echo in my part of the world, where the cultural memory of being driven off the land is still very strong. The Father of the House said that he would avoid dry, legalistic points, but I agree with the hon. Member that that is what the UK Government are doing: using dry, legalistic points. Does the hon. Member agree that the UK Government should do as other countries have done, as my hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield Central (Abtisam Mohamed) pointed out, and go all-out by imposing a complete ban and then dealing with the legalities afterwards?

• 8 Jul 2026 · Maritime and Coastguard Agency · Hansard source

  More

  I declare my chairmanship of the all-party parliamentary group for volunteer rescue services. I inform the House that, along with my hon. Friend the Member for Scarborough and Whitby (Alison Hume) who chairs the all-party parliamentary group for coastal communities, we are holding a joint evidence session for CROs next week, so that they can come and tell their stories to parliamentarians. When I spoke to my CROs in Stornoway and across the Western Isles, their message was one that I hope has been received by the Minister: pause the consultation, listen to CROs and hear about the vital role that they play as a fourth blue light service. The role is about not just coastal rescue, but delivering carers and emergency workers to the elderly in time of need. Can I also have an assurance that he will keep CROs fully informed about the process and come back before Parliament goes into recess to ensure that we are fully informed?

• 7 Jul 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

  More

  On heating oil, the Scottish National party Government boasted that they would add £5.4 million to the £4.6 million the UK Government gave to domestic consumers. However, there is scant evidence that that is reaching my constituents in the Western Isles, which have the highest fuel poverty figures in the country. Will the Minister join me in encouraging constituents to apply for support? Will he ask the Scottish Government to broaden the criteria and Advice Direct Scotland to get that money out the door, so that people are not left high and dry?

• 6 Jul 2026 · Civil Service Pensions · Hansard source

  More

  My constituent Carol Campbell is a marine coastguard team leader in Stornoway. Civil servants like her do not just serve the public—they save the public. The June deadline has come and gone, and all she sees is a shambles. I know Carol; she has given a lifetime of service. She tells me, “At 63, I am loath to continue working through another Hebridean winter doing 12-hour dayshifts and nightshifts, but currently I don’t feel I have any alternative.” What steps is the Minister taking to ensure that Capita and its chief executive are held to account for failing these lifesavers?

• 2 Jul 2026 · Distillers · Hansard source

  More

  Distilleries in my constituency—I count nine of them—overwhelmingly rely on kerosene heating oil to make their product. Since President Trump’s folly in Iran, they have seen costs rise by 18%. It is not just the distilleries; seaweed manufacturing, chemical processing at Callanish and the iconic Harris tweed industry all rely on kerosene heating oil to make their products. Domestic consumers in the islands are helped by generous support from the Government, but can the Minister outline what the UK Government can do to help these energy-reliant industries that keep hundreds of jobs in Na h-Eileanan an Iar keep on going?

• 2 Jul 2026 · Distillers · Hansard source

  More

  3. What steps he plans to take to support distillers.

• 24 Jun 2026 · North Sea Oil and Gas · Hansard source

  More

  It is an honour to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Furniss. I thank the hon. Member for Bromsgrove (Bradley Thomas) for securing this important debate. I also congratulate the hon. Member for Aberdeen South (Douglas Lumsden) on his recent win. Of course, his was not the only big win in Scotland in recent times. In Na h-Eileanan an Iar—the Western Isles—the Labour candidate Donald MacKinnon won a historic victory after 19 years of SNP neglect and complacency. What we did in Na h-Eileanan an Iar we did against the political tide: despite the polling and without the magic of Makerfield, we created a new king of the north. In short, we won because of Donald MacKinnon’s island credentials. Our local identity trumped the SNP’s artifice of a national identity. I know that we will be one Scotland tonight in Miami, but in reality, Scotland has many different communities and many different voices. A large part of our island identity over the last two generations has been the North sea. The issues that anchored the by-election in Aberdeen South were currents that ran through the Western Isles during our May election as well. The fortunes of the North sea have shaped my village in Lewis and many other communities on the west coast and in the north. It has sustained us for two generations now. It is not just the men who have made that contribution; women are effectively running single-parent families because of the two weeks on, two weeks off or three weeks on, three weeks off pattern of the North sea. The North sea has become part of our identity. Its shifts, weather and fortunes ripple through the Hebrides just as much as they do through the communities of our Doric cousins. It is not appreciated by many in this debate on the transition away from the North sea that our identity, a sense of belonging and who we are because of where we work are a big part of this. The UK is undertaking one of the greatest economic and industrial transformations of our time, from fossil fuels to renewables and nuclear power. I wish the SNP Scottish Government, although apparently they now have a new industrial strategy, would show some maturity on nuclear power and recognise that it has a role in our future as oil and gas diminish. We should be clear-eyed about why we are moving out of the North sea. It is a mature and declining basin, and at the same time we face—as we do outside today—the undeniable reality of a warming planet. We have a responsibility to meet these challenges and a duty to those who will inherit the world after us to act. The transition away from the North sea and into renewables is not the same as abandonment. This Labour Government are not, and must not be, in the business of switching off the North sea. We must not allow a justifiable drive to renewables to lead us into decisions that as a nation we may later regret. There remains lots of work to be undertaken, revenues to be generated and energy to be produced in this sector. As long as this country requires oil and particularly gas, and that can be produced and processed domestically, we should carry on working in the North sea. We should make more of tiebacks, and I would like to hear about Ministers doing so. The industry knows what that means—using existing infrastructure to explore and extract extra resources from the basin—but the public do not, and I call on Ministers to make more of tiebacks.

• 24 Jun 2026 · North Sea Oil and Gas · Hansard source

  More

  I thank the right hon. Member for that intervention. I hear him and I hope Ministers hear him as well. In that transition, we on the west coast and he in the Northern Isles have a privileged vantage point. We look eastwards to the North sea and the jobs and fortunes that it has provided to our islands, and we look westwards into the Atlantic and see the wealth of wind, the promise of renewable energy and the next chapter of our country’s story. The Minister knows that we in the Western Isles have the highest concentration of community-owned renewables anywhere in the UK. I believe that communities should have a big share in that new industry and in the renewables fortune. The Select Committee on Energy Security and Net Zero, of which the hon. Member for Bromsgrove is a member, recently recommended that community power schemes should have priority access to the grid. Communities and councils should have the right—indeed, they already have the right; it is just that it has not been enacted—to take a 20% stake in any commercial renewables scheme in their area, onshore or offshore, and commercial wind farm companies ought to be incentivised through the planning system to see communities as partners, not just as peanut beneficiaries of their schemes. In that way, my community and those across Scotland that have earned a fortune for this country and for commercial companies in the North sea will have a share in the future and the fortune of renewable energy. Let me be clear that I support a pragmatic transition in which we utilise domestic gas production rather than importing it, and support Scottish skills and jobs as we move the workforce into renewables and elsewhere. I accept that, as the hon. Member said, there may not be a like-for-like match between existing jobs and emerging jobs. The North sea is one of the most dangerous environments to work in anywhere in the world, and the pay reflects that. But this is not just a question of pay. It is not just a question of economics, climate change or tax regimes, important as all those things are. It is just as much a question of who we are—a question of identity and belonging, and the relationship that we have with place and our place of work, which is a powerful political emotion that we should take note of. And as my hon. Friend the Member for Mansfield (Steve Yemm) said, it is not an either/or. Our task is not to choose between the two, but to manage the transition from one to the other responsibly, pragmatically and in a way that protects the country’s energy security and, crucially, ensures that we enrich the communities that have already powered this nation for two generations.

• 10 Jun 2026 · Promoting Scottish Interests Abroad · Hansard source

  More

  Most Scottish interests abroad this weekend will be centred on Boston, and if the Secretary of State is considering a last-minute bid for the world cup, he can fly there from Glasgow this weekend for just £740. That is just £100 more than it would cost my constituents to fly from Stornoway to Glasgow this weekend without the air discount. The rising cost of Loganair flights and the loss of the Stornoway-Inverness morning service is of great concern in the western isles, and we have already lost the Benbecula connection, with all the consequences that has. Will the Secretary of State work with Cabinet colleagues, the Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Transport—when he returns from his jaunt to America—and others in the industry to review flights across the UK?

• 10 Jun 2026 · Promoting Scottish Interests Abroad · Hansard source

  More

  2. What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to promote Scottish interests abroad.

• 8 Jun 2026 · Cuba: Humanitarian Situation · Hansard source

  More

  I thank the Minister for his statement and the right hon. Member for Islington North (Jeremy Corbyn) for bringing this urgent question to the House. Cuba is on its last breath after a brutal four-month siege that is as commercial as it is ideological in nature. We have seen Spanish hotel operators pull out of the country. We have seen Canadian companies such as Blue Diamond and Sherritt, the Canadian nickel company, thinking again because of the threat of secondary sanctions. It seems that the US President is attempting to sweep aside Canadian and Spanish interests to bring in US crony companies and reintroduce the spirit of colonialism that led to Castro’s revolution in the first place. What discussions have UK Ministers had with their Spanish and Canadian counterparts to make it clear to the US Government that this is not acceptable?

• 2 Jun 2026 · Household Energy Bills · Hansard source

  More

  I welcome the Government’s measures to support domestic consumers of kerosene heating oil. I am told that if those who are eligible filled their tanks today, they would pay the equivalent of what they will be paying in February 2027. In my constituency we have big commercial users of kerosene oil, such as distilleries, seaweed manufacturing, tourist amenities and chemical plants. What measures is the Department taking to support commercial users of kerosene oil?

• 19 May 2026 · Energy Security · Hansard source

  More

  Much of the debate we have heard today I heard in the village of Eoropie on the Isle of Lewis last Saturday morning, when I visited there with Donald MacKinnon, our new Labour MSP for Na h-Eileanan an Iar. Donald fought a tremendous campaign and will be a brilliant MSP. He raced against the tide for the Western Isles and kept the Atlantic beacon alight for Labour during our summer squalls. I also pay tribute to Dr Alasdair Allan for his public service to the islands as MSP over many years. Just as the islands were at a political tipping point the other week, so too are they at the fulcrum of this debate on energy security. To the east, the Ness district looks to the mainland and over the horizon to the North sea, where much of its wealth has come from over the past decade; out to the west is the wild Atlantic, from where the wealth of wind will provide and power the transition away from carbon and renewables. At Ness football ground, where the under-eights were in fierce competition, one parent gave me his simple political priority: to keep the North sea open. It has provided him and his family with the means to stay on the island, as it has for many other families around that pitch, although it means that many mothers are effectively single-parent families for half their children’s lives. Further up the road, walking her neighbour’s dog, another constituent stopped us to state her concerns and objections about plans for a multinational 900 MW offshore wind turbine array—being less than four miles away, it is actually near-shore rather than offshore. Both those conversations reflect the concerns of many who find the scale of this transition overwhelming, or who feel that they are not being carried along on the journey to renewable energy and that the workers and the communities affected by this revolution are in danger of being left behind. Previous Governments have not backed community energy at scale. I look forward to GB Energy and the new energy Bill enabling a big leap forward in community energy. The North sea workers are skilled engineers, mariners and experts in their field. They know the North sea is a declining field, but they also know that the technicalities of tiebacks, which this Government have not made enough of, are the quickest way to bring more oil and gas on stream. Indeed, some 2.5 billion barrels could be developed using subsea tiebacks. Those North sea guys want what the guy at Ness football pitch wanted: certainty, and an orderly transition that has their jobs at its centre. As the Minister knows from visiting the islands and talking to community energy companies, we are at the centre of transition and produce more community-owned energy than any other place in the UK. The problem is that there is no space to get that energy out, with commercial companies dominating the 1.8 GW interconnector. I urge the Minister, as I have urged him before, not to talk to NESO, but to sit on it, and on Ofgem and on the grid operators, to find a route through and expand community-owned energy on the islands, and indeed elsewhere.

• 21 Apr 2026 · Middle East: Economic Update · Hansard source

  More

  I thank the Chancellor for her statement and her nimble response to the energy shock, including support for heating oil consumers, who make up half the households in Na h-Eileanan an Iar. The future of energy security is not an either/or. We must pursue renewables with a community share in the wealth of wind, and we must use the tiebacks that she detailed to exploit existing licences in the North sea fully. Will the Chancellor encourage other Ministers to match her commitment by hastening the review of Jackdaw and Rosebank? That would not just ensure energy security, but send a message to workers that we are with them in the North sea and the wild Atlantic for years to come.

• 15 Apr 2026 · Cost of Heating Oil · Hansard source

  More

  If officials from Advice Direct Scotland can tell me, as a constituency MP, the number of applicants they have, and the estimated number they will have—16,000, with 5,000 applications already last week—surely they can provide that information to the UK Government as well.