Stephen Doughty
MP for Cardiff South and Penarth · Labour (Co-op) · United Kingdom
“The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right to set out the situation, the threats and the impact on our economy. Across this House, we share a desire to get the strait reopened.”
“I thank my hon. Friend for his sustained and continued advocacy on behalf of his constituent, which is deeply powerful. I know it is of concern to many Members across this House. Despite some progress in Mr Johal’s legal proceedings, eight of the cases against him remain outstanding.”
“I share the hon. Gentleman’s horror at some of the things we have seen going on in those illegal settlements, and we have absolutely condemned the settler violence—the settler terrorism—that we have seen.”
“I pay tribute to our Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office consular teams, particularly for their current work on the Nepal-China flooding crisis. It is also important to pay tribute to the work they do to support the thousands of British nationals who are arrested or detained abroad each year.”
“If I may, Mr Speaker, I want to start by acknowledging the devastating floods in Nepal. I know many Members are supporting constituents who have been affected by this tragedy, and our intention remains to support British nationals and the people of Nepal.”
“The right hon. Gentleman raises important cases. I can assure him that we continue to support the clemency applications of Ryan Cornelius and Charles Ridley and to raise their case with the UAE authorities. In fact, I did so recently; the former Foreign Secretary did so as well and has met the families. As the right hon.”
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“I hope the Minister can explain whether he has raised this issue with the Ghanaian authorities, what representation our high commissioner has made and what work he will do across the Commonwealth to strengthen human rights and rights for the LGBTQ+ community and other groups.”
“Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), the former Prime Minister, spoke powerfully in 2018 saying she deeply regrets the role the UK played in criminalising homosexuality abroad and stating, “Those laws were wrong then, and they are wrong now.” We have seen in recent days and weeks unacceptable attacks on LGBTQ+ organisations in Ghana, a media campaign and attempts by lawmakers to bring in laws to further discriminate and restrict the rights of LGBTQ+ citizens in Ghana. Such things are not in line with the principles of the Commonwealth nor, indeed, with other United Nations human rights institutions.”
“Member for Reigate (Crispin Blunt), my hon. Friend the Member for Streatham, and the hon. Member for Gloucester (Richard Graham) on that issue earlier in this debate. It is currently tragic that 35 Commonwealth member states criminalise same-sex activity in some way and persecute LGBTQ+ people across the Commonwealth. That is a toxic legacy of colonial laws and ideas introduced predominantly by this country during the British empire and we have a particular responsibility. The right hon.”
“The political power for change that the Commonwealth represents was highlighted at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 2018 in the UK and it was a stepping stone on crucial issues, such as the future for young people, who make up 30% of the Commonwealth population, the advancement of rights of women and girls, fighting gender-based sexual violence, improving education around sexual and reproductive rights, strengthening democratic institutions, fighting climate change and, of course, increasing trade. It was a successful summit. My personal reflections on that event, however, include a meeting I had with LBGTQ+ activists from the Commonwealth Equality Network and organisations such as the Kaleidoscope Trust at the Speaker’s House here in Westminster. We heard powerful speeches from the hon.”
“Without urgent clarity from Ministers, VSO tragically says that it will have to immediately halt its covid-19 response work, close 14 of its country programmes, including across the Commonwealth, and make 200 of its staff redundant. That would be a genuine tragedy and I hope the Minister can provide some reassurances on that matter. This is an organisation that has had cross-party support for decades.”
“Look at the Windrush scandal. Look at the inequitable treatment of Commonwealth armed forces personnel and veterans, as rightly pointed out by the hon. and gallant Member for Bracknell (James Sunderland) and which I and others raised in the Armed Forces Bill. Look at the proposed cuts in aid to our Commonwealth partners, which were extraordinarily ill-judged when they face such pressures on health and covid-19, education, challenges facing women and girls, climate change and conflict. It was particularly saddening, in that respect, to hear this weekend that one of the UK’s genuine national treasures, the Voluntary Service Overseas, is under threat because of uncertainty about its FCDO grant. Its work among 9 million people, the majority of it in Commonwealth countries, stretches back to the early days of the Commonwealth in 1958.”
“Others are also seeking membership or observer status, including Somaliland, on which I declare my interests, which the Minister knows. Throughout its history and its proudest moments, the Commonwealth and its citizens have united to create more prosperity through trade, challenge those who undermine human rights and democracy, share knowledge and inspire young people, share culture and act as a key player on trade and climate change. The work of the Commonwealth is as broad as its membership, from the work of the CPA to the Commonwealth Foundation to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission to the Commonwealth games to the Commonwealth Development Corporation, to name but a few. There is much that is positive about our continued relationship with the Commonwealth, but there are also examples of where we have failed and continue to fail.”
“I fully support its work, supporting and strengthening parliamentary democracy throughout the Commonwealth and particularly its key themes in relation to women in Parliament, modern slavery, financial oversight, security, and trade. I was pleased to take part recently in an event with Sierra Leonian parliamentarians through the CPA. I am proud of our overseas territories family too. The CPA UK Overseas Territories Project, now in its second phase, is a particularly important programme supporting public financial management across our overseas territories. We have heard of the breadth of the Commonwealth, the 2.4 billion people, the voluntary nature of the association and, of course, that countries have joined the Commonwealth that are not formerly part of the British empire, including Rwanda and Mozambique.”
“As a 16 year old, I studied in Canada, my brother lives and works there and my father worked with the Commonwealth Youth Exchange Council for 40 years, helping link young people from Cardiff and Wales to Uganda, Kenya, Malawi and all over the world. My constituency in the proud dock city of Cardiff has been shaped by Commonwealth influences from south Asia to the south Pacific, from Africa to the Caribbean. We are also proud of our historical links to European Commonwealth members such as Malta and Cyprus and, of course, the strong links between Malaysia and Cardiff City football club. The CPA has been rightly praised by many Members.”
“Many of us will have heard Her Majesty the Queen’s powerful words for Commonwealth Day last week reflecting on the impact of the pandemic on the Commonwealth, where she said “as we celebrate the friendship, spirit of unity and achievements of the Commonwealth, we have an opportunity to reflect on a time like no other… stirring examples of courage, commitment and selfless dedication to duty have been demonstrated in every Commonwealth nation and territory”. I wholeheartedly agree with those sentiments. I also begin by expressing my personal and family connections and affection for the Commonwealth, having visited members from Canada to Malawi to Cyprus to New Zealand, and the many meetings and events I have also had the pleasure of doing with the CPA.”
“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairpersonship today, Mr Paisley. I thank the hon. Member for Bridgwater and West Somerset (Mr Liddell-Grainger) for securing this debate and for his work with the CPA, and the excellent contributions from a number of Members, including my hon. Friends the Member for Sunderland Central (Julie Elliott) and the Member for Streatham (Bell Ribeiro-Addy). The Labour party has long been a supporter of the positive agenda of the Commonwealth going back decades and we remain a strong supporter today.”
“It is a shame, as we head into the 2021 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Rwanda, that the Government should be breaking its promises on 0.7%, apparently reducing focus on Africa, which we will see later today in the integrated review, and failing to join up strategies on trade deals. Will the Minister commit to maintaining our ODA commitments to our Commonwealth partners? Will we be able to hold our head high as we attend that CHOGM in Rwanda and hand over the chairpersonship? In a post-Brexit world, the Commonwealth should be at the heart of our global Britain strategy, and it is at the heart of the name of the Minister’s Department, but will it be at the heart of the integrated review announced later today?”
“This is not the time to be cutting our aid and disengaging our support for food, for education, and for healthcare, especially given our particular responsibilities and relationships with our Commonwealth members and partner countries. In conclusion, Mr Paisley, there is much to be proud of in our Commonwealth membership and Commonwealth relationships and the role that Her Majesty the Queen plays in leading the Commonwealth, and it is crucial to our mutual interests in relation to development, trade, security, climate change and human rights and democracy.”
“Will the Minister explain how he is working through the Commonwealth to tackle threats to human rights, democracy and the rule of law, especially in relation to what we have seen in Uganda in recent days? I hope he will say something specifically about that. There are shocking reports today from Mozambique—one of the newest members of the Commonwealth—of Islamist militants beheading children, according to Save the Children. Furthermore, nearly 1 million face hunger in that country alone. The Minister revealed to me that across sub-Saharan Africa there are, I think, 95 million people facing food insecurity, with many people already in famine conditions.”
“However, there are many unanswered issues currently across the Commonwealth: the repression of the opposition in Uganda; the activities of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad in Nigeria; the repression of the opposition in Tanzania; the rights of Indian farmers protesting in recent months; Pakistan’s blasphemy laws and forced marriages of girls from religious minorities; and the allegations in Sri Lanka, raised by the hon. Member for Southend West opposite, which I know will be debated later this week. On the borders of the Commonwealth, we see instability and allegations of human rights abuses and humanitarian catastrophes in places such as Ethiopia which could risk destabilising our Commonwealth partners.”
“First, on human rights and democracy, the political influence that the Commonwealth has had over its member states over many decades is showcased by many interventions made towards members who have not held up the core values of the Commonwealth. We think historically of the Commonwealth’s powerful role in relation to South Africa and apartheid and in relation to Zimbabwe, Fiji and other regimes and putting in place systems for ensuring that democracy is respected in member states. There have been observations of over 70 elections since 1990 and programmes promoting judicial and public administration reform and civil society development.”
“That is particularly important when countries such as Bangladesh, Tuvalu and other small island states across the Commonwealth face inundation from rising sea levels and, of course, storms. We know the terrible legacy of the hurricanes Irma and Maria in the Caribbean in 2017 when huge damage was done. In response to that, Commonwealth funds helped, for example, Antigua and Barbuda receive a grant of £20 million from the green climate fund. Will the Minister set out what role the Commonwealth and its members will play at the upcoming Conference of the Parties in Glasgow? The issue is absolutely critical, not least given the unique risks faced by some of the Commonwealth members by nature of their geography. I have two final points.”
“Will the Minister explain how he will work with his colleagues at the Department for International Trade to ensure that development, sustainability and workers’ rights—highlighted to me by many trade union federations from across the Commonwealth in meetings I held a few months ago—will be at the heart of our trade deals going forward? The climate change programme of the Commonwealth secretariat is an important player in helping member states work towards building resilience, adaptation, and mitigation in response to climate change. The Commonwealth Climate Finance Access Hub has aided many countries in accessing finance, especially small island developing states such as Tuvalu. In 2018-19, it helped countries receive $24 million to fight climate change.”
“The value of UK exports to the Commonwealth has increased in the last few years, and so has the value of imports. That shows us the importance of the trading partnership which the Commonwealth provides. However, the partnership must also be based on equity and fairness. The UK Government sadly started the year by letting down Commonwealth citizens and producers in Ghana over the tariffs on fair trade bananas, with the price being paid by the workers and producers. I praise the work of my hon. Friend the Member for Harrow West (Gareth Thomas) in raising this issue. Like him, I am a Co-operative MP and deeply concerned about the issue, as is the Co-operative party. The hon. Member for Southend West (Sir David Amess) made important points about the Maldives and fishing, which have also been recently raised with me.”
“We are all excited about the progress towards in the games in 2022 when, I hope, we will have made enough progress against the pandemic to be able to welcome back athletes from around the world for a time of celebration and inspiration. Will the Minister update us on the latest planning for the Commonwealth games? While speaking about youth, I should mention the role of the Association of Commonwealth Universities which provides 100 million students with the opportunity to study in universities across the Commonwealth. Will the Minister say what role it will play in the Turing scholarship scheme? Trade has been mentioned many times and there are many aspects of important trade in the Commonwealth. The Commonwealth trade in goods and services was approximately $560 billion in 2016, and projected to reach $700 billion by 2020.”
“Thank you, Mr Paisley. Turning to more positive matters, we cannot debate the Commonwealth without mentioning the Commonwealth games. I was inspired as a child by people such as the two-time Commonwealth champion, and now one of my constituents, Colin Jackson. With the youth of the Commonwealth being so important, sports are an increasingly important part of the life of the Commonwealth. Commonwealth parasport is also inspiring millions of young viewers around the world. It was a particular delight to hear that the medal event programme for the Birmingham games has been revealed with more parasports to take part in than ever before and more events for women than men—an incredibly important signal to send.”
“Will the UK Government fully fund the cost of police graduate training in Wales, as they do in England? I end by raising serious and legitimate concerns raised by my constituents, especially young people, about the experiences of black constituents and other people of colour in relation to the criminal justice system and policing in Wales and across the UK. I have had a number of frank and open conversations about that in recent weeks. Deeply concerning disparities continue. While 16% of the general population in England and Wales are from a black and minority ethnic background, the disparity in the numbers of people arrested, convicted of a crime and in prison from those communities is stark and has to be dealt with. We need to implement the recommendations of the 2017 report by my right hon. Friend the Member for Tottenham (Mr Lammy).”
“I am thinking in particular of the pilot project Drive, an initiative tackling perpetrators of domestic violence. An independent evaluation has shown that that is making a significant impact, and I am pleased to see that it now covers all seven local authority areas covered by South Wales police. Unfortunately, like all forces, South Wales police has had to struggle with substantial cuts and the austerity of years of UK Tory rule, including cuts to policing. It was thanks to the Welsh Government that funding was made available for additional police community support officers. I thank the community policing teams for the work that they do. I might also mention that policing in Wales is disadvantaged this year to the tune of £6 million because of the way the apprenticeship levy system works.”
“That is a staggering feat, given that more than 50% of victims of violent crime in the past three years have been women, that there was a 23% drop in rape convictions last year, and that domestic abuse prosecutions fell by 24% in 2019. We must take serious action, including by making misogyny a hate crime. The Bill does not increase minimum sentences for rapists and stalkers, it does not make street harassment a crime and it does not fast-track rape or serious sexual assault cases. All women and girls deserve better. On domestic violence, may I thank my South Wales PCC colleague, my predecessor in this place, Alun Michael, for his work, and colleagues in South Wales police, whose work on tackling domestic violence I have viewed?”
“The Government could have worked with Members across this House to bring forward measures that adequately tackle serious crime, improve the policing and justice systems, tackle the violence against and abuse of women, and protect our democratic rights to liberties, but they did not. The provisions on protest are deeply concerning and disturbing—I would describe them as draconian. Having organised and taken part in many entirely peaceful protests, sometimes involving millions of people, I fear that this is yet another attempt by this Government to clamp down on legitimate dissent and democratic disagreement. However, the Bill’s greatest deficiency, as my hon. Friend has pointed out, is that despite being 296 pages long, the word “woman” does not appear once.”
“I will not support the Bill tonight. I have been contacted by many constituents over the past few weeks who have serious concerns about both what it does and does not contain, and not least about the lack of measures to protect women from violence and abuse. As my hon. Friend the Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Catherine West) was just explaining, there are aspects of the Bill we would welcome or support, not least those drawing on initiatives by Labour Members, such as measures on protecting emergency workers from assault and on tackling sexual abuse, and others from the Lammy review, but this Bill is sadly deficient in so many other respects.”
“My leaseholders want answers, they want them now, they want justice and they want to work co-operatively across the UK, to find a solution to their terrible circumstances.”
“I have repeatedly asked the Minister for details on the new levy, the new tax and what new money will be made available for Wales, and I have had one-line answers from him. I hope he will get around the table with his officials and the Welsh Government Housing Minister, Julie James, who wants to work in a constructive way on the Building Safety Bill, as we have done on the Fire Safety Bill, so that we can get a solution that works for the whole UK, including my leaseholders and residents in Wales, and get them the answers they need. At the moment they are left in the dark, with additional worries because they see the Secretary of State making big announcements and then brushing away anything to do with Wales. That is not the way to handle the situation.”
“The Welsh Government are going to make an additional £32 million available to deal with fire and building safety defects, on top of the £10.6 million that they have already promised. They are very clear about their position and have been putting pressure on developers. I am pleased to say that in recent weeks we have seen some movement from Persimmon and Taylor Wimpey, which have both announced different funds. I am due to meet Taylor Wimpey in order to understand the full details in the days to come. I want to come to the Minister. There has been a lack of co-operation with the Welsh Government, where there is need for co-operation across the UK because this is a UK-wide scandal.”
“I have met the Association of British Insurers and the wider industry to raise concerns about that. The Government must work with insurers to ensure that we do not get to a situation where insurers pull out and residents, such as those in one of my blocks, are suddenly hit with thousands of pounds in additional insurance premiums that they simply cannot afford, not least in the current pandemic. Many of these residents are key workers and are struggling. Some have retired and do not have the money to pay these bills. I welcome the investment that the Welsh Government have promised to deal with these issues. In their Budget, in contrast to the Chancellor’s, there was a specific section on support for leaseholders.”
“It had not even been connected in one leaseholder’s flat, and as a result, sewage flooded into her flat. It was found later that it had been propped up on a Starbucks cup. That is what we are talking about; those are the defects in buildings that people are having to put up with. It is completely unacceptable, and residents simply should not have to put up with the cost of remediation. It is not their responsibility; it is the responsibility of the original developers who built the buildings, as I have maintained throughout. The Government must step in to act because the time it will take is clear, as many colleagues have said. My residents have also been hit with many interim costs, such as waking watches, investigations into materials and the state of walls, or insurance costs, which have been mentioned.”
“It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair, Mr Hollobone. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Vauxhall (Florence Eshalomi) for her powerful opening to the debate, and all colleagues from across the House, whose speeches reflect the frustrations, anger, mental health worries and financial worries experienced by my constituents in Cardiff South and Penarth. I have many of these buildings with a huge series of defects—not just fire safety, but the wider building defects that have been referred to. My constituents’ experiences reflect those shared by other hon. Members. I will give some examples away from the fire safety issues: compartmentation, cladding, foam inside the walls of the buildings, and balconies have been touched on already, but there are other issues. I discovered in one of my blocks issues with the foul water system.”
“I thank the Chancellor for his answer. The Welsh Labour Government this week announced a further £30 million to support hospitality and tourism, and freelancers working in our creative sectors are going to get a further round of support worth £8.9 million—this is targeting support to fill gaps left by the Chancellor. I accept that many people have had welcome support, but huge numbers of people are coming up to a year of little or no support because they have been excluded from UK Government support over the past year. What will the Chancellor do for all those excluded, left out and left behind the curve over the past year?”
“It also states that there is a need for “pastoral care during this process and after a person renounces same-sex sexual relations.” That could be used as a cover for some very dangerous practices. I stand by all those who have stood by the trans and non-binary community. They must absolutely be included in this, and we must also protect the legitimate services that are there to support them through transition and the challenges that they face. We have to ban this, and I hope that the Minister will be able to explain what the definition is of “seeking spiritual support”, how trans and non-binary people will be protected, and when we will get on with this.”
“Over 50% were advised to go through it by a religious leader. The hon. Member for Rutland and Melton (Alicia Kearns) raised a point about consent. I do not think that someone can give consent to this, and I was alarmed to see, I am sorry to say, in the Secretary of State’s letter attached to the debate, what I fear could be a get-out clause. It talked about “seeking spiritual support”, but we need to be aware of what that can be used to cover up. I point to article 10 of the Evangelical Alliance’s biblical and pastoral responses to homosexuality, which says: “We encourage evangelical congregations to welcome…lesbians and gay men. However, they should do so in the expectation that they, like all of us who are living outside God’s purposes, will…see the need to be transformed”.”
“God created me, God loves me, and I love God, but I have had some pretty unpleasant experiences in repressive environments when I was not able to be clear about my sexuality. I was very lucky that I saw a therapist once, and when I said, “I don’t want to have a sham heterosexual marriage,” she just said, “You don’t have to, Stephen. You don’t have to.” What if there were more therapists like that, instead of some of the horrors that we have been hearing about today? Anybody who has watched such films as “Boy Erased”, or heard the powerful testimony from such groups as the Ozanne Foundation will know the reality that many people can go through in religious experiences. The 2018 faith and sexuality survey showed that, of the 468 people who had been through conversion therapy, 91 admitted attempting suicide and 193 had suicidal thoughts.”
“I pay tribute to the group of organisations, the memorandum of understanding group and all the other individuals and organisations, some of whom I have met with this week, for all the work that they have been doing. I also pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Swansea West (Geraint Davies), who has been raising this issue for many years. In fact, he introduced Bills in this place to ban conversion therapy in 2013 and 2018. It is a shame that they were not taken up by the Government before now. This is not a party political issue; it is a human rights issue, as we have seen from the breadth and strength of feeling across the House. I will speak predominantly about the religious context, because that is where I come from. I am gay. I am a Christian.”
“It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair, Mr Gray. I thank the hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington (Elliot Colburn) for introducing the debate, and all Members who have spoken so far for their powerful contributions. The first thing to say is that conversion therapy is happening. It is happening in this country, and that should be a shame to us. We must act on it. It has no scientific basis. It is torture. It is a denial of basic human rights. It leads to violence. It can, in some cases, as we have heard, lead horrifically to corrective rape. It is abuse and, in tragic circumstances, it can lead to death. I thank the many constituents in Cardiff South and Penarth for writing to me and reaching out, and the friends who over many years have spoken to me of their own harrowing direct experiences.”
“My hon. Friend makes a powerful point about leaseholders, as did the Father of the House, and she knows that many are affected in my constituency. Does she agree that it is absolutely crucial that we get clarity from the Chancellor as soon as possible about the consequentials for Wales—he talked about funding across the Union—of those announcements? There needs to be work with the Welsh Housing Minister to sort out the issues around the levy and the tax that have been proposed that are supposed to fund dealing with these fire and building safety issues. It is absolutely urgent that that is done as soon as possible.”
“I welcome the news that the Foreign Secretary has just outlined about the COVAX deliveries in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire; that is excellent. Tragically, we have seen 50,000 deaths in South Africa alone from covid-19, but we have also seen 409,000 deaths from malaria and 700,000 deaths from AIDS-related causes. An estimated 1.8 million could die from tuberculosis in 2020, and there are Ebola outbreaks in Africa at the moment. Vaccines, whether for covid or other diseases, only work when there are the strong public health systems to deliver them, with the nurses, doctors and cold chain and diagnostic capacity. We have a moral duty to do our fair share, and it is in our global common interest. Will the Foreign Secretary be maintaining our overall bilateral and multilateral health spending, or will it be cut?”
“An investigation is ongoing. This is obviously a matter of significant concern to my constituents, but first and foremost to his family, who are also my constituents. Does the Leader of the House agree that it is crucial in cases such as this that there is a full and independent investigation that is seen to be so and that follows the evidence and the full facts without fear or favour; and that this is done comprehensively and swiftly to secure full answers for both the family and all the parties involved?”
“[That this House mourns the death of Mohamud Mohammed Hassan following his release without charge from police custody in Cardiff on 9 January 2020; offers its deepest condolences to Mr Hassan’s family and friends; notes that South Wales Police has, as is standard practice following a death after police contact, self-referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct; calls for a full and transparent investigation into the circumstances of Mr Hassan’s death; recognises legitimate concerns arising from evidence that people of Black and Ethnic Minority ethnicity die at a disproportionately higher rate as a result of the use of force or restraint by police; and calls for systematic and institutional change to end racial discrimination within the criminal justice system.] The early-day motion notes that this was self-referred by South Wales police to the Independent Office for Police Conduct.”
“Can I draw the attention of the Leader of the House to early-day motion 1342, regarding the tragic and unexplained death of a young man, Mohamud Hassan, following his release without charge from police custody in Cardiff on 9 January?”
“We do not support their cutting universal credit; we do not support their leaving kids going hungry in the holidays, and we do not support their spending billions on contracts for Serco, delivering dividends to their supporters. There is a big difference—”
“That is the Wales that I believe in—Wales advancing, not the Wales recently depicted by one nationalist group, shamefully, as an abused partner, or, indeed, the one described by the leader of Plaid Cymru using comparisons with slavery, which he rightly apologised for. Nor is it the Wales described as “little status” by the Secretary of State, or the one described as “poor, sick and tired” by the hon. Member for Brecon and Radnorshire (Fay Jones). That is not the Wales I know. The Wales I am proud of is a Wales that is advancing and a Wales that can do so much. That is the Wales that we celebrate on St David’s Day. We in Welsh Labour support the Union, despite what the Chair of the Welsh Affairs Committee said; it is just that we do not support the policies of this Tory Government.”
“Diolch, Mr Deputy Speaker. One motto on one of the Welsh coats of arms is: “Y ddraig goch ddyry cychwyn”. That broadly translates as “The red dragon advances”, and the Welsh dragon is advancing—leading the way in vaccine delivery; investing in remarkable bioscience and high-tech innovation; driving a green revolution; producing TV, film and music that is shaping the world; through our Welsh regiments as part of our UK armed forces, keeping us safe at home and abroad and working on the covid vaccine delivery; and of course inspiring us on the rugby and football fields. We all salute Louis Rees-Zammit; what a remarkable set of tries.”
“I draw attention to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests about my membership of the GMB, which drove this historic victory, along with others. I work closely with drivers in my constituency, many of whom are GMB and Unite members, and I want to praise the Welsh Labour Government for the support that they have given drivers in grants, support and free personal protective equipment during the covid crisis. However, many of the drivers tell me that although most taxi and private hire drivers charge on average £2.20 to £2.40 a mile, Uber pays only £1.10 to £1.25 a mile. Many drivers are getting into serious debt or even bankruptcy. What will the Minister do to ensure that drivers of Uber and beyond get a fair day’s pay from a fair day’s work?”
“Unfortunately, leaseholders in my constituency have been left in the dark after the announcement the other day because, despite the co-operation between the Welsh Government and the UK Government on the details of this Bill, they have been unable to get answers on the crucial issues of the building development levy and the new tax and on whether there will be any new money for Wales in the proposals laid out by the Secretary of State. Will the Minister urgently respond to the letter from the Welsh Housing Minister, Julie James, which asks reasonable questions and sets out constructive solutions, and will he and his MHCLG colleagues meet me to discuss these issues and find a solution for leaseholders across the United Kingdom?”
“I wholeheartedly agree with the points that my hon. Friend is making. I want to emphasise the importance of paragraph (a) of Lords amendment 2, on sharing information about the materials that a building is constructed of, because my constituents in Cardiff South and Penarth have real difficulties getting hold of, for example, architectural drawings and original “as built” drawings. There is simply no consistency in this across the UK, which means that fire and rescue services, let alone anybody trying to undertake works, have a much harder job.”
“I know for a fact that some of those affected are traditional Conservative voters. I have spoken to people from all walks of life, and they are in absolute anguish about this. They are being left in the dark. We had the announcement the other day—it was typical to announce a big sum of money and then not be clear about how much would come to Wales, how the system would work or when the money would come through. These people have been living in the dark and in anguish for months and for years, and it is completely unacceptable.”