partytracker.uk — a sourced record of what Britain's political parties say and do, party by party, with every entry linked to a primary source

Showing every spoken contribution, including 11,997 under 12 words. Hide short remarks

1. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Patricia Ferguson

   Securing Scotland’s Future: Defence Skills and Jobs

   I thank the hon. Lady for that question. She is right; there is a great deal of misunderstanding around the defence sector. It is very difficult for people to understand its importance not just globally and nationally but locally. If that importance were better recognised and understood, it would be much better for the firms involved, so I very much hope that the Government take our point that they need to engage with the financial services sector to address that.

   Hansard source
2. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Patricia Ferguson

   Securing Scotland’s Future: Defence Skills and Jobs

   I thank my hon. Friend for mentioning that skills academy. It is in my constituency, so he will not be surprised to hear that I agree with him entirely about that. BAE Systems built the facility because it recognised that there was a skills gap coming and it no longer wanted to have to employ welders from the Philippines at extortionate rates and take on board all the financial responsibilities that came with that. The academy is an inspiration, frankly. Its way of teaching changes ideas around skills that traditionally were regarded as being for men only, heavily industrial and, sometimes, dangerous. The myths about those trades have been busted by the academy. It is wonderful to see young people so enthusiastic about the jobs and the future that they know they will have because of the work that is going on.

   Hansard source
3. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Patricia Ferguson

   Securing Scotland’s Future: Defence Skills and Jobs

   I am grateful to the hon. Lady for mentioning our excellent Clerks, who ensure not only that we are kept on our toes but that we get the best possible evidence for our inquiries. She is right about the problem that many SMEs have. It is easy to think of those jobs as being very technical in nature, as she describes, but we sometimes forget about the people who provide logistics and other services to these suppliers. It is important that the opportunities to benefit from the work in the sector spread across the range of roles, particularly in those areas where employment is perhaps more vulnerable or fragile. We want to see the Government do as much as they can to allow those jobs to filter down.

   Hansard source
4. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Patricia Ferguson

   Securing Scotland’s Future: Defence Skills and Jobs

   I thank my hon. Friend for that question. As he knows, the Committee has visited many of the facilities in his constituency and adjacent constituencies —I was going to say “neighbouring” constituencies, but really there are no neighbouring constituencies in his part of the world. Fifty sounds like a small number to some of us, but for a community like his it is a large number. Those are skilled jobs, and they will be there for a long time to come, so he is absolutely right to mention that. I agree entirely that Project Safari is a great opportunity, and it is also great to see—I will try not to use the word “great” too often—that his constituency, slightly remote though it is, can benefit from the defence contracts available now across Scotland.

   Hansard source
5. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Patricia Ferguson

   Securing Scotland’s Future: Defence Skills and Jobs

   If all of Northern Ireland has the ingenuity that the hon. Member has in weaving his constituency into every debate, we will be doing really well. We have not looked at Northern Ireland in particular. I know Thales, because it used to be based in my constituency; it has since moved to another part of the country. However, he is right. It is very important, and it is wonderful to see so many young women working in skills that were traditionally thought to be for men only.

   Hansard source
6. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Patricia Ferguson

   Securing Scotland’s Future: Defence Skills and Jobs

   I thank the Chair of the Liaison Committee for that question. She is right to say that it should be revisited. I suspect that we will revisit a number of aspects of our report. Of course, we look forward to the Government’s response to the report, but as we go forward during the rest of this Parliament I think we will come back to a number of points.

   Hansard source
7. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Patricia Ferguson

   Securing Scotland’s Future: Defence Skills and Jobs

   I thank my hon. Friend for that question. I was pleased to see that the visit went so well. It is encouraging to see such new opportunities. He makes the point, which we tried to make in our report, that there are great opportunities here, but it is up to everyone in Scotland—Governments, local authorities and manufacturers alike—to grasp them and make a success of them for our communities.

   Hansard source
8. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Patricia Ferguson

   Performance of Royal Mail

   I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Redditch (Chris Bloore) for securing this debate. I will refer to a few things related to work done on the Scottish Affairs Committee, as well as briefly talk about the situation in my own constituency. In June last year, our Committee looked at the work of Royal Mail, particularly the importance of the universal postal service to remote rural and island communities. We heard from Consumer Scotland, the Federation of Small Businesses, Ofcom and Royal Mail itself. The Committee heard how delays in the postal service can have particularly serious knock-on consequences for people in those communities. An appointment letter arriving late can leave someone without enough time to <span id="112" class="column-number" data-column-number="112"></span>arrange transport to hospital, and that is often inter-island travel to hospital, and that can cause them to miss their appointment altogether. In an age when public services are increasingly accessed online, the postal service none the less remains essential for many Scots, because often our broadband connectivity and sometimes our digital skills can be limited. We also heard how much people value their local postie, particularly where older residents in remote places have little other daily contact.

   Hansard source
9. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Patricia Ferguson

   Performance of Royal Mail

   The hon. Member is absolutely right about that. As we have heard, if we are to make improvements, we really need to listen to the people who are doing the job on the frontline. For Scotland’s rural and less well connected communities, the universal service promise of one price to every address is especially important, as many other couriers impose varying levels of delivery surcharge, which are often extremely high in these communities. The latest published UK figures for the first quarter of this financial year show that 85% of first-class mail arrived the next working day against a target of 90%, and 91% of second-class mail arrived within three working days against a target of 95%. However, the figures for Scotland show why these UK-wide averages cannot be the only measure. In the same quarter just 54% of stamped and metered first-class mail reached the Outer Hebrides the next working day and the figure for Lerwick in Shetland was only 25%, so we cannot rely on these averages as a measure. There are real challenges in reaching the islands, including weather and transport connections, but the postcode areas covering these islands also remain exempt from the additional local first-class performance targets applied elsewhere. I would welcome an assurance from the Minister that the Government’s work with Royal Mail will include regular reporting on whether Scotland’s rural and remote areas are benefiting. That should cover second-class deliveries as well as first-class post. I would also welcome an update on a practical issue. As we have heard, Royal Mail told the Committee about its NHS barcode, which is intended to help prioritise health letters. Royal Mail subsequently confirmed to us that uptake depended on individual NHS boards. It expects NHS boards to obtain new envelopes with those barcodes on. How widely are those barcodes being used across Scotland? Are they helping patients to receive their letters in time? My experience and that of my colleagues suggests not. Our Committee’s inquiry was based on rural and remote communities, but the issues are remarkably similar in my own very urban constituency. We have heard about those problems today, such as people not receiving birthday cards or important appointment letters from the NHS. I frequently hear from constituents about <span id="113" class="column-number" data-column-number="113"></span>long periods—10 days, 14 days, sometimes a month—where they receive no mail and perhaps only know about a hospital appointment because the hospital called to confirm it or because they subsequently found out that they had missed an appointment. Having visited a nearby sorting office over the summer, I was struck by the physical restrictions of many sorting offices. These offices were often built for a letter service, but they are now struggling to deal with the physical size of parcels. One postie told me that he had been expected to deliver car tyres that had been ordered online. That suggests to me that there are serious questions about the health and safety of our posties in these sorting offices, and the conditions in which they are being expected to work. Royal Mail must consider the situation of its staff and its customers. I support the motion’s call for the Government to work with Royal Mail to improve performance and to ensure a reliable service for all of Scotland’s communities. I hope that the Government will be creative when considering the way forward and will not rule out looking at issues such as those raised by my right hon. Friend the Member for Bristol North West (Darren Jones), because they are at least worth examining.

   Hansard source
10. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Noah Law

    Topical Questions

    I welcome the Home Secretary’s progress in reducing those perilous and often exploitative small boat crossings, but aside from the misplaced idea that asylum seekers have significant recourse to public funds or mainstream benefits, we must still be honest that a lot of human behaviour ultimately boils down to incentives. What consideration have Home Office Ministers given to the Danish model in terms of narrowing any incentive gap for migrants between coming here for work and doing so by other, irregular means?

    Hansard source
11. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Nick Thomas-Symonds

    Prostate Cancer Screening

    Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

    Hansard source
12. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Nick Thomas-Symonds

    Prostate Cancer Screening

    The hon. Gentleman speaks powerfully on behalf of his constituents in Scotland; I have had many emails on this issue from my constituents in Wales. Does he agree that when it comes to testing, all men are at high risk? It should happen not just in England but all around the United Kingdom.

    Hansard source
13. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Nick Thomas-Symonds

    Civil Service Pensions

    Only on Friday, I spoke to a constituent who gave notice of retirement in March and still has not had his pensions quote. I commend the Minister very much on the very hard work she put in over the summer, after the actions I took and the statement that I made to the House in July. Looking to the future of the scheme, can she assure me that she will direct officials to do the preparatory work to make sure that the different insourcing options are viable ones that we can put to the House?

    Hansard source
14. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Ms Julie Minns

    Road Traffic Collision Reporting: Cats

    One of the petitioners is my constituent Hallee, whose cat sadly was killed by a vehicle overnight—probably not an untypical story. The cat was found on the pavement the next morning, apparently moved there by the driver. Does the hon. Gentleman agree that moving to a point where cats are treated in the same way as dogs would at least give some comfort to cat owners who are left grieving and without an explanation about what happened in those final moments?

    Hansard source
15. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Ms Julie Minns

    Illegal Use of Electric Bikes and Scooters: Policing

    Cumbria police do really good work tackling the use of illegal e-bikes, but with ever-growing numbers of them hitting our streets every single week, Cumbria’s police, fire and crime commissioner and I believe that the single biggest help that we could give the police would be to ban the sale of illegal e-bikes, as my ten-minute rule Bill proposes. What discussions has the Minister had with colleagues in the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade about regulation to achieve that?

    Hansard source
16. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Ms Julie Minns

    Performance of Royal Mail

    Will my hon. Friend give way?

    Hansard source
17. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Ms Abena Oppong-Asare

    Rough Sleeping and Good Growth Funds

    I warmly welcome the Minister’s statement. I had the opportunity to attend the summit, and I agree that prevention is the key to ending rough sleeping. I ask the Minister to implement all the Committee recommendations from the rough sleeping inquiry—I know the Government have implemented some of them. I have a specific further question: what assessment have the Government made on identifying people likely to become at risk of homelessness if the local housing allowance remains frozen at this Wednesday’s Budget?

    Hansard source
18. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Mr Clive Betts

    Civil Service Pensions

    As the Public Accounts Committee Chair said, we have had Capita before the Committee on many occasions. In all my time in the House, I do not think I have seen a worse example of incompetence, failure to deliver to deadlines, and a company seemingly just not caring about its effects on people and the distress it is causing. Every time Capita’s representatives come along, I simply do not believe a word they say. Does the Minister really have any confidence, even with all the guardrails that she is putting in place and all the connections to the Cabinet Office, that Capita is capable of delivering a scheme that actually works and delivers pensions on time? Secondly, I congratulate the Minister on what she said about looking into bringing the scheme in house; it is a pity the previous Government did not think about that before they let the contract. Will she commit to updating the House regularly on how far she is progressing with those possibilities? In the end, bringing the contract back in house may be the only option for giving pensioners a proper scheme, given Capita’s failures.

    Hansard source
19. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Melanie Onn

    Small Boat Crossings: Removal of Arrivals

    Up to June this year, the returns rate was 35% higher than it had been in the 12 months previously. Does the Home Secretary agree that this is in part due to the improved co-operative relationships that this Government have managed to forge with other countries around the world? Should that not give our constituents greater confidence that this Government take the issue of small boat crossings seriously?

    Hansard source
20. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Melanie Onn

    Performance of Royal Mail

    My hon. Friend is making an excellent contribution to this important debate. Does he agree that this seems to be a deep cultural issue within Royal Mail? Not only is it in denial, as far as I can tell, that there is a problem with the service, but when Members of Parliament visit their local delivery offices, it cleans house from top to bottom to present as if there is no problem, only for us to then subsequently discover that there continue to be serious issues with the service to our constituents.

    Hansard source
21. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Maureen Burke

    Performance of Royal Mail

    Royal Mail was once widely respected and trusted, but it is now too often a cause of frustration and anger for our constituents. Year after year, Royal Mail is falling short <span id="101" class="column-number" data-column-number="101"></span>of the targets it must meet by law, and the public’s patience is wearing thin. The danger is that at some point the business can no longer survive. While I have no desire to see that happen, we cannot keep making excuses or dismissing what my constituents are going through. They are missing appointments, receiving important news late, and being let down by a system that cannot be relied on to get the basics right. Just over a year ago, the Scottish Affairs Committee, of which I am a member, held a session with Royal Mail, Ofcom and consumer groups. We were told then that work was under way to improve the service, but it is hard to see any sign of that on the ground. This year again, in most of Royal Mail’s Scottish postcode areas, it has missed its targets, and constituents continue to write to me about the problems they face. A late birthday card can be forgiven, but too often delivery delays affect more important mail. Royal Mail assured our Committee that a new NHS barcode would allow NHS letters to be picked out and given priority, yet NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has told me that it cannot use the barcode because it does not work with the Royal Mail system that is used for most of its letters. Royal Mail presented the barcode system as an answer, but it is not working in practice. That has real consequences for my constituents. A disabled constituent recently told me that they no longer have the strength to complain. They have already been on to the sorting office and have seen no improvement. Right now, they are waiting on a letter about a home flu jab. Their post is so unreliable that they believe the letter will arrive late. Another constituent told me how they only realised that they had missed an NHS appointment when they spoke with the hospital directly. When they visited the sorting office, their letters were waiting there, still to be delivered, including one telling them about that appointment.

    Hansard source
22. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Maureen Burke

    Performance of Royal Mail

    I agree with my hon. Friend and thank him for his contribution. Those are just two dreadful examples that show the heart of the problem. People are losing faith in the Royal Mail because it is letting them down when they need the service most. I know the postal world has changed. We keep in touch differently now, sending fewer letters and more emails around the world. Postal services are changing, but I do not believe that we want to end up in a situation like Denmark, where PostNord has stopped delivering letters altogether. I believe that the public want Royal Mail to have a future, but for that to be possible, management must take responsibility rather than just blame changes in how people use the service, or put the blame on posties. People are being priced out, and Royal Mail is adding to their anger by putting up stamp prices. How can we expect people to use a service when research from Citizens Advice suggests that one in three adults would struggle to afford a book of first-class stamps? Equally, <span id="102" class="column-number" data-column-number="102"></span>it will not be possible for the Royal Mail to meet standards with fewer staff, who feel undervalued, as the Communication Workers Union has said. When the previous board brought in lower wages, longer hours and poorer conditions for new staff, it made Royal Mail a less attractive place to work, with up to half of new staff leaving within the first year. Its owners must show that they understand what went wrong, or risk bringing the service closer to collapse. I would like to sum up by saying this. I wish Royal Mail well and I pay tribute to Britain’s hard-working posties. Royal Mail is an institution and for many of my constituents it is a lifeline. That is why I hope that the promise from management to meet targets by early next year is signed for and delivered on time.

    Hansard source
23. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Matt Western

    Prostate Cancer Screening

    I thank all my constituents who signed the petition. I start by paying tribute to my constituent, Graham Fulford, for the phenomenal work that his charitable trust has done to promote awareness and improve testing across the United Kingdom. Since 2004, it has been running tests, delivering more than 470,000 and finding around 4,000 cancers. The trust estimates that that has collectively added more than 32,000 years of life. Prostate cancer is the most common kind of cancer among men, with around 12,000 dying from it every year. As we have heard, black men are more than twice as likely to die from cancer as white men. My request to the Minister for wider and more expansive targeted screening will come as no surprise. Last week, having had a conversation with Graham Fulford and his trust to see if they would be willing to provide support, I wrote to Mr Speaker, encouraging him to consider an <span id="12WH" class="column-number" data-column-number="12WH"></span>annual screening programme here in Parliament to raise awareness of that need. Minister, the trust would be delighted to run it, if that is of interest. Finally, I wish to mention my constituent, Nigel Higgins, who lost his life to prostate cancer last year. Nigel was a friend of mine and was known to many in Warwick and Leamington. I promised him I would continue his campaign in his memory.

    Hansard source
24. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Matt Rodda

    Civil Service Pensions

    I declare an interest, as I hold a civil service pension. I thank the Minister for her statement. Like other Members of the House, I have a number of constituents who provided years of service in the civil service. They have retired yet have had to wait months to be paid. Could the Minister say more about the pressure she is putting on Capita and the options for taking the whole matter in-house?

    Hansard source
25. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Mary Creagh

    Antisocial Behaviour

    I thank my hon. Friend the Policing Minister for her visit to Coventry last month to see the brilliant work done by the Labour council’s trading standards officers, in partnership with Coventry police, to tackle crime and antisocial behaviour <span id="13" class="column-number" data-column-number="13"></span>on Foleshill Road, and the public spaces protection order for Edgwick Park, which has cleared that park, which is next to a school, of the drug dealers who used to blight it. Will she say what more respect orders can do to tackle this level of low but persistent antisocial behaviour that blights our streets?

    Hansard source
26. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Mark Sewards

    Performance of Royal Mail

    The hon. Member has laid out a couple of options on the table. What does she make of the assessment that no regulator will solve the problem and the service has to be brought back into public control? Is that something she would consider?

    Hansard source
27. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Luke Myer

    Performance of Royal Mail

    I thank my hon. Friend for the passionate speech he is making. I have heard similar issues from my constituents about delays from Royal Mail. One elderly lady, who is 96 years old, has been waiting for three weeks to get a replacement PIN from her bank. These are stories of real people across the country who are being let down by Royal Mail. Does he agree that its representatives need to come to Parliament and answer questions from MPs?

    Hansard source
28. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Luke Murphy

    Prostate Cancer Screening

    I have met many men and their families in Basingstoke who have been affected by prostate cancer. Although many of them welcome the targeted screening programme, we need reassurance from the Government. As more evidence comes to light from the fantastic Transform programme, does my hon. Friend agree that the Government should commit to expanding it as the evidence allows?

    Hansard source
29. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Luke Murphy

    Performance of Royal Mail

    I congratulate my hon. Friends the Members for Redditch (Chris Bloore) and for Lichfield (Dave Robertson) on securing the debate and on their valiant campaigning in this area. Since my election, constituents across Basingstoke and the villages I represent have contacted me with stories similar to those we have heard from many hon. Members—stories in which residents, businesses and public services have been affected. One constituent reported no letter deliveries to their road for over two weeks and items not delivered, including, as many others have said, a hospital appointment letter and a credit card. Another constituent reported that some Basingstoke postcodes were experiencing gaps of between 11 days and some weeks between deliveries. Another constituent informed us that they had only received two deliveries in a month, with first-class items taking up to two weeks to arrive. They also raised concerns about Royal Mail’s complaints handling, which we have now raised with Ofcom’s as the regulatory oversight body, alongside those concerns about local delivery delays. As many other Members have said, this is not a trivial issue. Earlier today, I received an email from a constituent in Oakley, a village that I represent. In his words, “Residents in the village are not receiving their post in a timely manner—not receiving doctor’s appointments, HMRC tax details, documents from the DVLA about road tax, bank and credit card statements. This is a total disgrace.” I know that Members across the House agree. Indeed, he highlighted the fact that he recently purchased a new car but had to wait over 10 days because the document he needed was sat in the sorting office. As many other Members have said, this situation is not the fault of our posties locally or across the country, who work exceptionally hard to get mail out to residents. They see themselves, rightly, as an important public service, and they—more than anyone—want Royal Mail to succeed. It is clear that what constituents in Basingstoke are experiencing is not a mere local blip, but part of a consistent national pattern that includes missed targets on first-class and second-class deliveries, and an estimated 220 million letters delivered late every year, according to Ofcom, which has fined Royal Mail £5.6 million for its performance in 2022-23, £10.5 million for 2023-24 and £21 million for 2024-25—successive years of failure. In June, Ofcom opened a fourth consecutive investigation, this time into performance during 2025-26.

    Hansard source
30. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Luke Murphy

    Performance of Royal Mail

    Indeed, I was going to say that I would like to see the Government press Ofcom and Royal Mail to deliver much more granular data on delivery targets. That is really important, because the national performance —woeful as it is—does not represent the even worse performance that we are seeing locally. Indeed, Royal Mail has been set lower targets nationally, but it is not even meeting them. And behind these figures and statistics are the streets and lanes, like those in my constituency, where the post simply does not come. Members across this House recognise this; it is a cross-party concern about a service that the whole country depends on. The Communication Workers Union has highlighted this over and again: persistent delivery failures; a growing recruitment and retention crisis; and an unevenly regulated postal market which threatens the future of the universal service that we have heard so many Members speak about so passionately tonight. Royal Mail has told all of us, I think, that it recognises the problem and is committed and is making promises for change but, frankly, all of us in this House and my constituents have heard these promises before. The test of any plan will not be what it says on paper; it will be whether hospital letters start to arrive before appointments. I welcome the Government’s clear stance in response. Ministers have told Royal Mail’s leadership that its service has been unacceptable for too long and the pace of improvement must increase. The public deserve a reliable postal service and are right to expect better, and I welcome the Government’s commitment to keep holding Royal Mail to account. I hope the Minister will continue applying that pressure. In particular, I hope she will consider whether Ofcom is currently really up to the job of regulating Royal Mail and look closely at how Royal Mail handles complaints. As many Members have said this evening, our constituents find the way in which it deals with those complaints totally inadequate. The Government must also press for greater transparency on local performance, as we have just discussed, and look seriously at the recommendations of the Business and Trade Committee’s May 2026 report on the regulation of postal services and the proposals, as other Members have mentioned, from the CWU, including on a level playing field for the sector, a new regulatory framework and building on the Government’s golden share. Royal Mail remains a vital national institution providing an essential universal service. We all have a stake in ensuring it succeeds, not least my constituents in Basingstoke, who have every right to expect better.<span id="122" class="column-number" data-column-number="122"></span>

    Hansard source
31. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Luke Murphy

    Performance of Royal Mail

    The shadow Minister points to the figures since 2024-25 and refers specifically to the last 18 months, but Royal Mail was fined £5.6 million in 2023 and nearly double that amount in 2024. Does he not recognise that the Conservative Government failed to grip this issue?

    Hansard source
32. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Lizzi Collinge

    Topical Questions

    <Question HRSContentId="{84E47A3B-1C29-43C1-9631-C8FB3C75C084}">T7. <QuestionText HRSContentId="{F0215713-8561-4789-9D1D-2CC7E03A6848}"></QuestionText>Between 2023 and 2025, we saw an 82% drop in net migration. This week, the Chancellor will lay out his Budget and there will be lots of chatter about headroom, tax take and fiscal rules. Given that Government estimates show that the entire 2022-23 skilled worker visa cohort will make a net positive lifetime contribution of approximately £47 billion, what assessment has the Home Secretary made of the economic impact on tax take and other measures of the reduction in net migration and the proposed changes to legal migration policy?</Question>

    Hansard source
33. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Lizzi Collinge

    Civil Service Pensions

    I have taken up 11 constituency cases about the civil service pension this year alone, and only three have been resolved. I was pleased to hear the Minister’s strong statement, because my constituents are fed up of being told by Capita that things are improving when they are simply not. The most heartbreaking case is that of a gentleman I started helping at the beginning of the year, who has since died. His widow is now having to fight Capita, and I am doing everything I can to fight alongside her—I am sure she will be glad to know that the Minister is with her too. What can the Minister say to give my constituents confidence that the situation will finally improve?

    Hansard source
34. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Lisa Nandy

    The Enterprise Act 2002 (Specification of Additional Section 58 Consideration) Order 2026

    I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the Enterprise Act 2002 (Specification of Additional Section 58 Consideration) Order 2026 (S.I., 2026, No. 1075). The order was laid before the House on 12 October. Colleagues will know that on Monday 5 October 2026, BT Group plc announced that it had acquired TalkTalk Telecom Group out of administration. As has been widely reported, TalkTalk had been seeking a buyer for its consumer and wholesale businesses for some time, but no deal was reached. TalkTalk has been responsible for, among other things, running telecare services to vulnerable customers. This created potential risk to life, in addition to potentially serious disruption to the continuity and stability of our telecommunications supply, with impacts on livelihoods, the wider economy and national security. That is why, following the announcement that BT and TalkTalk were to merge, I intervened to ensure that the Government act proactively to prevent any sudden disruption to these vital broadband and phone services, affecting millions of people. On 5 October, I issued a public interest intervention notice under the Enterprise Act 2002. This begins a process in which the Competition and Markets Authority investigates the sale and reports back to me on the effects of that sale on competition. I can then weigh up those considerations against other considerations, specified in the public interest intervention notice, before deciding whether the merger must be considered further or can proceed. The considerations that I specified in the public interest intervention notice of 5 October were, first, the need to maintain in the United Kingdom the capability to combat and to mitigate the effects of public health emergencies and, secondly, the need to maintain in the United Kingdom continuity of the supply of telecommunications services, for the purposes of preventing disruption to the economy and society of the United Kingdom, including, in particular, disruption to public services, critical national infrastructure and supply to customers who are or may be vulnerable. The first of those, relating to public health emergencies, is already specified in section 58 of the 2002 Act, whereas the second, relating to the need to maintain continuity of the supply of telecommunications services, is a new consideration, which I believe ought to be specified in the Act. If Parliament agrees, this will allow me to consider, alongside the effect on competition, the impact on society and the economy of widespread or significant <span id="4" class="column-number" data-column-number="4"></span>prolonged disruption to connectivity. I believe it is right to consider the potential for disruption that would affect businesses, work and Government services and result in significant difficulties across the country. I also believe that Government must be able to fully consider the impact on vulnerable people, such as those who rely on telecare services, people with disabilities and health conditions, older people and people dependent on communication services to access emergency assistance. I believe that our legislative framework should reflect the importance of telecommunications in society and allow us to guard against the serious consequences that widespread disruption of this kind could have. In this age above all, the resilience of the public services that we all rely on, on which lives, livelihoods and critical national infrastructure depend, must be taken seriously by Governments across the world, and we intend to live up to that responsibility. The Competition and Markets Authority has now reported to me with an assessment of competition considerations and a summary of representations received on public interest considerations. In the coming days, I will consider its report alongside wider evidence on the public interest considerations, and on the basis of that evidence I will then decide whether to refer the case for a more detailed investigation on competition or public interest grounds, or both, or to clear the transaction without further investigation. The Government are committed to promoting competition in the broadband market as a route to protecting customers and driving investment. However, we also believe it is right to ensure that we have the ability to protect the public by stepping in in circumstances in which we believe it is necessary to prevent disruption to vital public services. By taking seriously our responsibility to safeguard the infrastructure that we depend on to keep us connected, we are enabling people to live their lives and keep working, and protecting our families, our communities and our country. I commend the order to the Committee.

    Hansard source
35. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Lisa Nandy

    The Enterprise Act 2002 (Specification of Additional Section 58 Consideration) Order 2026

    I will try in the short time available to give comprehensive answers to those questions, but I will of course make myself available to all Members of the House to discuss this matter in further detail should they wish to do so. First, the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for North West Norfolk, asked whether the order gives me grounds to overrule the Competition and Markets Authority. It gives me additional considerations that I can take into account when I weigh up the competition issues that may be raised by the Competition and Markets <span id="7" class="column-number" data-column-number="7"></span>Authority against other public interest considerations. I already have grounds, should I require them, to overrule competition concerns in the public interest, but it is my belief that the considerations that I am allowed to look at are too narrow for this case and potentially for many others in the future. The shadow Minister asked whether this outcome has been predetermined. I want to say to the Committee that it absolutely has not. Not only does the law preclude me from doing that, but, as was set out very well by the Chair of the Select Committee—I know the view will be shared by those on the Opposition Front Bench—there are of course risks of this deal unravelling, but there are also risks of harming the competitiveness of the sector where that competition has helped to drive down bills, protect consumers and drive investment into the industry, and helped protect the resilience of the industry. This is a genuine attempt to make sure that the Government can consider all these considerations in the round and come to a conclusion that is in the interests of the public as a whole. The shadow Minister asked whether we have interrogated to the fullest extent whether existing powers could be used. We absolutely have. The relevant Minister and I, and a specialist team in the Department, have looked at every different power available to us. What we found, having—a bit like the Chair of the Select Committee—had responsibility for this area for only a matter of weeks, was a great big gaping hole in the legislation. The order will not fill it in its entirety, but it will enable us at least to come to a good judgment, whatever that judgment may be, about what is in the public interest when it comes to this particular deal and deals like it. The shadow Minister asked whether we have considered introducing a supplier of last resort, and the hon. Member for Gosport asked a very similar question about whether we would consider new legislation where a provider fails and a new buyer cannot be found. There is nothing that we can find in existing legislation that allows the Government to intervene or to facilitate an intervention in that instance. I believe that is a problem. It is something that I am sure the Select Committee will want to look at, but I would be very happy to discuss it with the shadow Minister and the shadow Secretary of State as well. Telecoms is increasingly important to the way that we live, our national security, our energy infrastructure, and people’s lives and livelihoods. I think we do need a new approach to regulation in this area, not to be overburdensome and certainly not to harm competitiveness, but to make sure that we have the resilience that we need in a critical industry. The shadow Minister asked about the speed of the process, and whether the CMA had sufficient opportunity to consider the matter. I recognise that the speed with which we are doing this is not the way that we would normally seek to legislate. Those across the House who know me will know that I like to give Parliament time to fully consider what we are proposing, and there have been a number of instances when we have changed our approach as a consequence of the views of Members of both Houses, who have pointed out both technical deficiencies and policy issues with some of our original proposals.<span id="8" class="column-number" data-column-number="8"></span> However, we did discuss this with the CMA. Obviously, it was acutely aware that the timing was very tight, but it felt that the time we gave it was manageable in order to give us a preliminary view that would enable me to proceed to the next stage and make a decision about whether further investigation was warranted. I intend to respond as quickly as possible; I would not have brought the order to the House with the urgency that I have done if I did not believe that we also need to act with urgency. I have to make the right decision, I have to balance all those considerations, and I have to fully consider the impact on the competitiveness of a market that is underpinned by decent competition. I cannot act with haste, but I can act with as much speed as is possible. The Chair of the Select Committee, the hon. Member for Gosport, asked why the existing legislation is deficient. Put simply, it is because in this case there was only one ground on which we could intervene: the public health emergency provisions. That may cover the existing telecare customers, but we do not believe that it would cover customers who are vulnerable and rely on being connected in order to access emergency services outside of that system. In any case, it would not cover the 1.5 million customers, many of whose livelihoods depend on this, or the critical national infrastructure that I talked about. The hon. Lady asked about the overall financial resilience of the sector. I am concerned about the fragility of the sector. Although we have a telecoms industry in this country to be proud of, and we have, over successive Governments, managed to drive investment into it, to retain competitiveness and to keep bills for consumers lower than in many comparable countries, I do think it warrants a fresh look from us all, collectively, as a House, at whether we have the resilience in the sector that we need. On whether we will consider setting out a framework for how this measure is used, I think that framework already exists. I would be happy to discuss that further with the hon. Lady, but I think the framework is already quite tightly defined by the process in the Enterprise Act under which I am required to operate. What are too tightly defined, in my view, are the considerations that a Government can take into account, which would have precluded me from taking into account a number of key areas of public interest and public benefit in this case. The hon. Lady asked what evidence I would need to see in order to intervene further. There are certainly circumstances in which the dominance of one player in a market could have major implications for the viability of that market. In those circumstances, I would need to be satisfied that, if a deal was detrimental to competition, that would not in itself lead to the outcomes that have driven me to bring these additional public interest considerations before the House. I want to be clear— I gave this commitment to the shadow Minister—that this is not in any sense a done deal or a predetermined outcome, but I do think we owe it to the public to ensure that, in coming to that decision, we take into account things that are of great interest and importance to them. On how I will assess competition issues, I will take account of the report handed to me just last week by the Competition and Markets Authority. I should say to the Committee that I have not yet had an opportunity to digest it, because officials are reading through it in <span id="9" class="column-number" data-column-number="9"></span>technical detail and providing me with advice on it, but I will look at the report in full later this week, along with the advice I have been given, and do my best to come to a decision quickly. The hon. Lady asked about other current cases. I cannot comment on those currently, but I would be very happy to discuss with her the framework as a whole and how we ensure that it is as robust as possible. Finally, I reiterate that the pace with which we have acted is unusual. I do not believe that is an ideal way to legislate in ideal circumstances, but these are not ideal circumstances. We do not have the resilience in the legislation that we need to enable us to live up to our responsibilities, as a Government and as Parliament, to <span id="10" class="column-number" data-column-number="10"></span>protect people and act in the public interest. The expanded scope will give me the opportunity to look at all these issues in the round and come to the right determination. I sincerely thank the House for its willingness to engage with us over the past couple of weeks since we laid the order to ensure that we have the powers we need to act in the public interest, and I welcome the opportunity to have a much more thorough debate and discussion about how we collectively shape the legislation surrounding this critical industry in the future. <em>Question put and agreed to.</em>

    Hansard source
36. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Liam Byrne

    Performance of Royal Mail

    What has gone remarkably unremarked on in this debate is the role of Ofcom, to which we give £222 million a year. It is systematically failing to put in place a plan to improve the service at Royal Mail. The Select Committee has given Ofcom six months, expiring in a month’s time, to show that it is improving performance at Royal Mail. We insisted that at that point Ofcom tells us what new powers it needs to get Royal Mail to deliver, because fining Royal Mail into improvement has failed, and is likely to fail again. Can the Minister tell us what conversations she has had with Ofcom? What powers will she seek to give it if the situation persists?

    Hansard source
37. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Liam Byrne

    Ward End Fire Station

    I rise to present this petition on behalf of residents of Birmingham Hodge Hill and Solihull North. It insists that Ward End fire station must stay open. The Fire Brigades Union has been warning for the last couple of months that un-thought-through cuts by West Midlands fire service imperil this fire station, yet the wildfires that we had across the constituency over the course of the summer underline how every single second counts and why these plans are wrong, wrong, wrong. They have not been discussed with the mayor; they are precipitate, and they need to be dropped now. The petitioners therefore request “that the House of Commons urge the Government to work with the West Midlands Fire Service and other relevant bodies to keep Ward End Fire Station open. And the petitioners remain, etc.” <em>Following is the full text of the petition:</em> <em>[The petition of residents of Birmingham Hodge Hill &amp; Solihull North.</em> <em>This petition declares that the West Midlands Fire Service must keep Ward End Fire Station open; further that firefighters have warned that the Service is considering <span id="139" class="column-number" data-column-number="139"></span>the closure and sale of the station; further that such a closure would leave a gap in local fire cover for residents of Birmingham Hodge Hill and Solihull North, with crews having to travel further to reach emergencies; further that fire engines would be moved to the Fire Service headquarters near the city centre and that one vehicle's cover would be reduced from 24 hours a day to daytime-only operation, increasing danger at night; and further that residents fear that closing Ward End Fire Station would place both local people and firefighters at greater risk.</em> <em>The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urge the Government to work with the West Midlands Fire Service and other relevant bodies to keep Ward End Fire Station open.</em> <em>And the petitioners remain, etc.]</em> [P003248]

    Hansard source
38. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Leigh Ingham

    Jobs and Employment: Staffordshire

    Will my hon. Friend give way?

    Hansard source
39. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Leigh Ingham

    Jobs and Employment: Staffordshire

    On the point about Staffordshire county council, I recently held a roundtable to talk about youth services in Stafford—by the way, Staffordshire was the third worst hit part of the country for youth service cuts—and youth service providers told me that Staffordshire county council categorically is not engaging with the Department for Work and Pensions on youth hubs. We are fortunate enough to have one in Stafford, and I am pleased that we also have them in Newcastle-under-Lyme and in Tamworth. Does my hon. Friend agree that if Staffordshire county council does not get its act together and start participating in conversations with services that can wrap around our young people, we will fall behind?

    Hansard source
40. 26 Oct 2026·Parliament·Labour·Leigh Ingham

    Jobs and Employment: Staffordshire

    I held a roundtable—a different one—in Penkside, in Stafford town centre, to talk about the issues people face in getting to and from work, and buses came up as the major issue. The first bus is after 9 o’clock, and the last bus gets home before 3 pm. For someone trying to do a course at college, those times just do not work. Does my hon. Friend agree that it is important that Staffordshire county council uses the money it has been given by this Government to support young people in our areas in getting into work?

    Hansard source