Dr Jeevun Sandher
MP for Loughborough · Labour · United Kingdom
“What does that mean for us at home? It means higher prices and less affordable lives, but more than all that, it means more anger and fury on our streets. As people become unable to afford decent lives, they get angry at the system and angrier at us in this place.”
“It is a day of sad farewells, and I will add to them by saying a very sad farewell from all of us across the House to Margaret and Godfrey in the Tea Room, who are leaving soon. I did not expect to be so emotional, but here we are. I want to say something very clear and simple about what the Iran war means for us.”
“First, I would like to thank the hon. Member for calling me an esteemed economist while the Whips are sitting on the Front Bench. He will appreciate that I am not going to annoy any Chancellor by putting forward any kind of tax rises today, but there is a clear commitment on the Labour Benches to fund the defence investment plan.”
“I have every confidence that we will prevent war by preparing for it, and that we are going to fund that, but beyond the funding, which is important, how do we ensure that we can achieve the scale-up that we need? How do we show that we can defend this country? The hon.”
“For us, there is clearly a path forward, with two sets of policies: first, make life affordable; secondly, defend our nation. In terms of making life affordable, there is an immediate challenge. We are seeing higher fossil fuel prices leading to higher energy costs at home, and food and fertiliser getting more expensive.”
“I think we have to explain it to the public, although they also saw the attack on Jaguar Land Rover and they understand the attack on sea cables. They are seeing it on the news more and more often. They understand that Russia is a threat, and they see the prices at the pump.”
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“And look how much the Conservative party has changed since last July. That is where we are. I will come back, Madam Deputy Speaker, to the issue at hand. We have 4.5 million children in poverty and one in six children living in a household with food insecurity, struggling to make ends meet. Making £23 billion of welfare cuts would mean that families and children could not afford to eat. It would mean the most destitute becoming poorer, and working families—40% of those on universal credit are working families—seeing cuts as well. That is the outcome here: making our nation poorer. That is not what we should want; it is not what Labour wants, and I hope it is not what the Conservatives want either.”
“Under the previous Government, British parents had the highest childcare costs in Europe. Will the Minister please set out how the expansion of early years education is reducing the cost of living for hard-working British parents?”
“Climate change had led to droughts, which had led to failed harvests, to insufficient produce for herds and to dying animals. In the immediate moment, there was not a huge amount we could do, but we could sort out the budget system to enable us to invest in greater food production, wells and irrigation, with a bit of money left on the side to ensure emergency food and income support. I was pleased to see that those measures are still in place. Unfortunately, as I speak here today, Somaliland is going through another drought and even more hunger, because of rising temperatures, a burning planet and failed harvests once again. It is for all of us in this place, and for nations across the globe, to stop emitting carbon so that every single person across our planet can afford to eat.”
“We must also ensure that there is emergency food and income support when our food systems fail and people go hungry, as is happening here and across the globe. When I speak about hunger and drought, I do not speak merely about what I have read; I speak about things that I have seen and experienced. For two years, between 2016 and 2018, I worked in the Somaliland Ministry of Finance. I was, I think, the only economist there, and I did its budgets, its economic policy and its national development plan. I was there during Somaliland’s worst drought in living memory, and a widespread hunger that led to almost a famine. I can tell hon. Members across the Chamber that one does not forget what hunger looks like when it is etched into a child’s face. It was incredibly difficult.”
“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mrs Harris. We live in a world where climate change is leading to rising prices and to more hunger. World food prices are up by 30%. The number of undernourished people is rising across the world. Here in the UK, food prices have increased by almost 40%, and one in eight people are skipping meals. That is because a warming planet is leading to drought and to failed harvests. We can stop that by sorting out and investing in our global food system. That is about investing in sustainable agriculture, irrigation, digging wells, ecosystem management and stopping emissions so that we have a planet where all of us can cohere and work together.”
“All of us across this House have an interest in protecting and preserving our democracy. Clearly, we have threats to our democracy, internally as well as externally. The Minister said a little bit about the elections Bill, but can he set out in more detail what the safeguards and protections will be for our democratic institutions and, indeed, for this place?”
“Unity, decency, determination: that is how we protect our democracy, that is how we save it and that is how we keep it for future generations.”
“How do we come together as one nation and one people? The answer is by living up to the greatest values of Britishness—unity, decency and determination. That is what has made this nation make the impossible seem only remarkable. It is how we saved democracy in Europe and saw it spread across the globe. It is how we came together during a pandemic. And beyond those great moments are the small, everyday ones that make life worth while—having a pint, queuing politely, a cup of tea. That is what it means to be British, cohering as one nation, together. The radical right will say, “No, no, no—we can fix all our problems by attacking immigrants.” The radical left will say, “It is all about corporations.” It is for us to say that we stand as one British people for decency— not blaming, but cohering together.”
“On average, we spend two and a half hours scrolling a day, hearing and listening to things that others do not, inhabiting completely different worlds. If we want to address that, and want people to once again have faith in our democracy, we need both a policy answer and a political answer. On the policy side, people need to see that democracy can and does deliver for them. There is a cost of living crisis today. What delivering means is good jobs in every single place for people. It means places where people can cohere and come together in their local communities, as well as ending the pervading sense of loneliness that leads people to live their lives online, seeing more extreme content, engaging with it, living within it and being driven by it. More than that, there is a political answer.”
“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir John. The truth is that today democracy is dying and we have to face that if we want to save it as it stands. We are living in a divided nation, where people are losing faith in democracy because they cannot afford a decent life, they do not see a way forward and they see others who can. A nation as divided as ours cannot stand and it will not endure unless we protect and save it. We are divided by economics, by geography and online. We live in a nation where record numbers cannot afford a decent living. We live in different places in our country. Young people go to university and then never come back home. They live in major cities, living entirely different lives to those they have left behind. We occupy completely different spaces online.”
“It is for us to invest in every corner of this country, so that every person can benefit. That is exactly what we are doing in our economic programme and that is exactly the kind of investment we are paying for through our taxes. We build a stronger nation when each of us shares in our prosperity, and we help to achieve that through our tax system when we invest to get wages rising, waiting lists down and energy bills down—a stronger nation where each of us is doing better, raising living standards that for too long have been far too low, helping people to be able to afford a home, helping them to raise a family, helping them to pay their bills without having to worry about their overdraft, and sharing, each of us, in our nation’s prosperity.”
“Those are the three principles that our taxes faced in the autumn: closing a non-dom loophole for those at the top of society; asking the largest businesses to pay more, so we can reduce our waiting lists; and increasing the taxes on second homes, so we can build homes for every single person in this nation. The revenue raised from those who can most afford it makes each one of us better off—that is what this Government are about. The Opposition want to leave us with a nation where we are weaker: where we do not invest in our collective prosperity, as they did not for the last 14 years; and where we see, instead of a nation that is united and sharing in our prosperity, one that is divided. A house that is divided against itself cannot stand and a nation that is as divided as ours will not stand.”
“Some 40% of those under 30 live with mum and dad. Young people living in big cities pay 40% of their income on rent, unable to save for a house because of the amount they are paying in housing costs. That is precisely the kind of thing we are fixing when we invest to build social housing—£40 billion-worth. But of course, all that needs to be paid for and that is exactly what we do with the taxes we raise. That is why we are proud of the country we are building, where every single one of us is better off. Crucially, the taxes we raise follow three principles: that they are progressive, raising more from those on higher incomes than from those on middle and low incomes; that they are growth enhancing, both in the way that they are applied and in the investment they pay for; and that we can implement them easily.”
“I rise to speak against the motion on tax. I welcome the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, my hon. Friend the Member for Ealing North (James Murray), and his well-deserved promotion. We all know that if we share in growth, we make the country more prosperous and we make it stronger. Tax, of course, helps to pay for the investment that makes us all more prosperous. Under the previous Government, we did not invest in our country and we saw a weaker nation as a result: the highest energy bills in the G7; the worst waiting lists ever seen in this nation; and the worst transport infrastructure in western Europe. That is what this Government are fixing and that is what we are doing with the taxes we have raised. The Opposition motion speaks of property taxes—this from the party that dashed the dream of home ownership for my generation.”
“We see the brutality and bloodshed in Gaza every single night on our screens. It is disproportionate and horrific, and it has gone on for far too long—bombs, bullets and now the blockades. There can never be any justification for shooting people while they wait and queue for aid. I know that the Secretary of State shares my desire for peace, a two-state solution, an immediate ceasefire and the flowing of aid into Gaza. Will he share what he is doing to help achieve that?”
“We have seen what the Conservatives’ values mean in practice. They believed that if a few did well, and there were a few tax cuts for those at the top, our country would be wealthier. That started in 2013, and continued with Truss. In reality, at the end of that 14 years, no one did well. We had the longest squeeze on wages since Napoleon threatened our shores. We were the only high-income nation to see sickness rise after the pandemic, had the highest energy bills in Europe, and were the worst-connected country in western Europe. That is the Conservatives’ record. I believe the right hon. Gentleman wanted to make an intervention.”
“The motion before us shows the difference in values between the two sides of this House. The Conservatives’ motion speaks of wealth creators, but specifically says that only a few of us create wealth. On the Labour Benches, we believe that every single worker creates wealth in this country. We have seen the consequences of 14 years of their values in action: falling living standards, higher waiting lists, higher energy bills and a weaker nation. Our values, as we saw under the previous Labour Government, left us with a stronger, wealthier and prosperous nation, in which we taxed the wealthiest to invest in the services that we all rely on. We left a more prosperous and stronger nation last time, and that is what we are building this time. We have seen the damage of the past 14 years, as expressed in the motion.”
“The global financial crisis affected every single nation across the world. I do not deny, by the way, how difficult things were in 2010, but we also left the Conservatives an economy that was growing, record low waiting lists, and investment in our nation and a plan to insulate our homes. Because they did not follow through on our plans, we had the worst insulated homes in western Europe, and some of the highest energy bills to go with that. Yes, we left in a difficult moment, but we left the Conservatives with a strong foundation for going forward. The Conservatives left us poorer, sicker and slower, thanks to their their record on tax. In the worst cost of living crisis in a century, they attempted to cut taxes for the wealthiest.”
“Those are the building blocks of our nation’s wealth. To build that wealth takes investment, which must be funded, and those who benefit most from our nation’s productivity should be asked to contribute more. That is exactly what this Government are ensuring.”
“We saw it in the insulation build-out; David Cameron, as he put it, cut the green crap. Insulation rates were rising when we left office, but they were cut throughout the 2010s; as a nation, we have not had that insulation. That is why we brought in the warm homes plan and are funding it with £13 billion. Millions more homes will be insulated under this Government, bringing down energy bills by hundreds of pounds. Those plans for insulation are funded by the tax rises that the Conservatives oppose. Time and again, we ask them what they would like less investment in, and time and again, no answer is given. We on the Government Benches are trying to build a country according to our values—a country where each of us is doing well, is doing better, is better educated, is healthier and finds it easier to get around.”
“We know the Conservatives will complain constantly about the things we are raising money for, but they will never say what they would cut. We saw what happened over the past 14 years; we saw the weaker nation they left in their wake. The Government are investing to change that for good. After the past 14 years, we were left a weaker and more divided nation—a nation in which each of us produces less, and looks inward as we have found it harder to pay the bills. That is exactly what the Government are fixing, and what we are investing in. I am proud of this Government. I am proud of this country. Most of all, I am proud of the country we will build, in which each of us does well, and we recognise that our common strength is found in our common prosperity.”
“Employment is rising, and has risen since the general election. [ Interruption. ] The reason why unemployment is rising is that more people are seeking to enter the labour force; people are less inactive than before, because we are getting waiting lists down. I would rather people were looking for a job than stayed out of the labour force entirely, as the Opposition would have it. We want to build the kind of country where people are able to work. We increased employers’ national insurance contributions in the Budget while protecting the smallest businesses. We ended the non-dom tax break, to make sure that the ultra-rich could not escape taxes by using a loophole, and increased taxes on private jets. We are getting more of the energy giants’ unearned profits into the public purse to invest in the things that we all need.”
“I thank the right hon. Member for giving way. We sit on the Treasury Committee together and I find him to be an incredibly kind and brilliant Member of Parliament. He has been very kind to me personally as well. On the experience of coming out of covid, our contention is not just about Liz Truss, but about the fact that we had the highest inflation and the highest energy bills. Natural gas, which we depend on, sets the price 98% of the time. It is also 50% to 75% more expensive than wind and solar, so the lack of investment in clean energy left us with higher inflation and made us poorer.”
“Strength is found in each of us doing well—each of us doing so with a common purpose and connection. It is for us in this place, on this side, to build that nation.”
“Secondly, investing in high-quality early years education is probably the highest returning investment that any Government can make. Thirdly, we have to create good jobs for graduates and non-graduates to move into, for both men and women. Mass production manufacturing is not coming back, but we in government can create good non-graduate jobs in construction, healthcare and education. We must invest in our physical and social infrastructure to create the good jobs we need, where we need them. Every person should be able to live a decent life, but as things stand, too many people cannot. There are many young men whose fathers left school and got decent jobs at the local factory, but those young men cannot do the same today. That disappointment turns to depression, anger and division. Rather than coming together, we are falling apart.”
“By the age of five, the least-skilled boys have lower academic and non-academic skills than the least-skilled girls. That makes it hard for them to attain in school and to develop the perseverance and social skills that they need. The physical skills that were rewarded in the post-industrial economy lost out in the move to the service economy. How do we fix this and ensure that young boys can get the jobs that they need in our economy? As my hon. Friend the Member for Bishop Auckland (Sam Rushworth) has pointed to, it is about the earliest years and even before birth. It is first about making their parents’ lives affordable. Less time for parents worrying about bills means more quality time with their kids, and more money in the pockets of parents means more psychological and material resources to invest in their children.”
“Today I will speak about how boys from more deprived backgrounds have fewer academic and non-academic skills, and how it is harming their ability to get decent jobs in the post-industrial era. This topic was the subject of my second PhD paper, and although I cannot force Members to read it, I can certainly force them all to listen today. The puzzle that my paper addressed was why non-graduate men are finding it so hard to get jobs in the post-industrial economy. The employment rate for non-graduate men has fallen from about 90% in the 1970s to about 75% in 2020. The manufacturing jobs that they used to do have disappeared, but if employment rates have risen as they have, why can they not get jobs in the service sector? The answer—or at least part of the answer—is in the earliest years of young boys’ lives.”
“I am amazed that the Conservative party has brought an urgent question on fiscal rules. The Conservatives had seven sets of fiscal rules in 14 years; I mean, guys—and it is all guys—come on. The reason why they kept missing debt and deficit targets is because they kept cutting investment, meaning less growth and less tax revenue. Does the Chief Secretary agree that by investing to grow, we get our debt burden down?”
“Public investment makes us all more prosperous, but clearly that public investment, in our roads, rail and energy infrastructure, needs to be paid for. Will the Minister set out how we are funding that public investment by taxing the very richest people in this country?”
“We came to this place to create a better life for all, but that is not possible for almost half of all workers because there are not enough good jobs. We can create hundreds of thousands of good jobs through construction, but we need to create millions more if we want everyone in this country to live a good life.”
“Around 300,000 of those jobs will be created when we build 1.5 million homes, and another 300,000 more jobs will be created in decarbonising buildings. That is welcome, but we need to create a lot more good jobs if we want everyone to live a decent life. We need millions more—a lot more than the 600,000 jobs that will be created in the construction of homes and insulation. This is a job far bigger than housing and local government alone. Good jobs in healthcare, childcare and social care are all needed. That is the path we should follow—the Government should create good jobs. We should not simply wish that enough good jobs will be created—that is the path we should not follow. In our technological era, growth alone does not automatically create enough good jobs where we need them, either for the people or places that require them.”
“For two earners to raise two kids, they need to earn £35,000 each, but around 40% of full-time jobs pay less than that. That is 10 million workers who cannot afford a decent life, and those who cannot earn enough are turning away from Labour Members, as they have turned away from Conservative Members. If we want everyone to have a decent job, the Government must help to create them. We are making a good start with house building. I welcome the £500 million that is going into affordable house building this year, and the £40 billion for the 10 years to come, because construction jobs are good non-graduate jobs. Building those 1.5 million homes means creating good jobs. A skilled construction worker earns £35,000.”
“Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, for allowing me to speak. I thank, too, my hon. Friend the Member for Vauxhall and Camberwell Green (Florence Eshalomi) for bringing forward this debate, and for her excellent chairmanship of the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee, which is evident from the contributions from across the House. I am here to speak not only about how construction and building homes will help to create hundreds of thousands of good jobs, but about how we need to create millions more if we want everyone here to live a decent life. I am an economist, and I came to this place to ensure that everybody could earn a decent living and have enough money to pay the bills, but we are so far from that today. The average salary for a non-graduate is around £30,000.”
“Friend the Member for Vauxhall and Camberwell Green (Florence Eshalomi) has spoken powerfully in this debate, and my right hon. Friend the Member for Walsall and Bloxwich (Valerie Vaz) has tabled new clause 6. I know I stand on their shoulders too, and I do not doubt their good intentions, but this Bill has nothing to do with the colour of my skin. New clause 6 proposes a special representative for ethnic minorities. I disagree with the new clause, because the colour of my skin has no bearing here and no special place in this debate. Equalities data will be reported through the Equality and Human Rights Commission, as set out in clause 51, and the Secretary of State can already consult community representatives. For every person of every skin colour, this Bill gives those already dying a choice to end their suffering—”
“Thank you, Mr Speaker, for allowing me to rise to speak to new clause 6, which proposes a special representative for ethnic minorities. I am not white, as some Members may have noticed. The fact that my presence in this House is unremarkable is in and of itself remarkable. That did not happen by chance; it happened because of those who came before me. The Mother of the House, my right hon. Friend the Member for Hackney North and Stoke Newington (Ms Abbott), has spoked powerfully in this debate, and I know that my unremarkable presence here is due to her remarkable achievements. We may not always hold the same opinions, but we have always shared the same Labour values. She will never know how grateful we all are to her. I may be part of the last generation of MPs who can say this to her while she is in the House: thank you. My hon.”
“I do apologise, Mr Speaker. What I meant to say is that new clause 6 would introduce a special representative for ethnic minorities, and I am trying to explore why we do not need one. A duty to consult is already included in clause 51.”
“My hon. Friend makes a powerful point, and other hon. Members have also spoken powerfully about the impact that the Bill could have on ethnic minorities. Does any hon. Member know how many ethnic minorities access assisted dying in other nations? I will give way on this point; the hon. Member for Richmond Park (Sarah Olney) raised it earlier.”
“We do know. Ethnic minorities are less likely to access assisted dying in jurisdictions where it is in place. In Oregon, 10% of those accessing assisted dying are ethnic minorities, but they make up 40% of the population. In California, ethnic minorities make up 15% of people accessing the option, but 30% of the population. However, that is not the point. The point of the Bill is to give people the choice to end their life regardless of the colour of their skin. There is no special quality about the colour of my skin that affects my access or the need for a special representative in this case, which is covered by the ECHR and by the Secretary of State.”
“I will make a bit more progress. This has been a heated debate, and hon. Members on both sides of the House feel strongly about it. I am grateful to Members who came before me, who made my place here possible and who have spoken so powerfully and movingly in this debate, but I believe—and the evidence shows—that the colour of my skin does not belong in discussion of the Bill.”
“The hon. Member raises a powerful and excellent point about the people from ethnic minorities who died during covid and their access to healthcare. As she will understand, that is of deep importance to me too. She is right about the need for greater palliative care and I am glad, as she says, that we are having that discussion. If we look at assisted dying around the world and concern around ethnic minorities being more likely to access it, the stats show that it is the other way around and they are less likely to access it. However, that point is neither here nor there; rather, given that the safeguards are in place, the question is: is the process working well? Those are where the stats are going forward. I believe that the hon. Member raises the matter in good faith, and I thank her for doing so.”
“First, as co-chair of the India all-party parliamentary group, may I express my condolences to the families affected both in this country and in India? I cannot imagine what they are going through, and I thank the Leader of the House for offering her support and the support of this Government. Every single year, the horse fair comes to Mountsorrel and my constituency. I have no doubt that the vast majority come to enjoy it, but there are always reports of antisocial behaviour, harassment and businesses and homes being damaged. It is unacceptable, and that antisocial behaviour is incredibly damaging. I call on everyone who comes this year to do so in a way that is enjoyable but peaceful. Will the Leader of the House set out what this Government are doing to address crime and antisocial behaviour in my community?”
“We can reshape our nation so that everyone can earn enough, but we will do it only if the Government act. For the low paid, we must invest to create good jobs and to get bills down. For the young, we must build far more homes. For the rest of the nation, we must invest outside London. We are at this moment a nation deeply divided, and the pandemic widened those divisions.”
“That is why the young cannot afford homes. During the pandemic, quantitative easing, low interest rates and pensioners not spending cash meant that baby boomers started to buy homes again, and house prices are up 25% since covid began, while some 40% of 18 to 30-year-olds are living at home with mum and dad. Thirdly, London continues to pull ahead. Zooming to work enlarges London’s effective size, while places outside the capital lose out. More and more people and economic activity are sucked into the capital. The people who already could not make ends meet are pulling away not only from mainstream parties but from this House itself. The economically insecure are 50% more likely to have stopped supporting the Labour party, but they are also leaving almost every party in this House.”
“I thank my hon. Friend the Member for West Ham and Beckton (James Asser) for securing this debate. We have rightly spoken about those who died during the pandemic, but covid also did something else: it made it much harder for people to earn a decent living. Those who were already struggling—the low paid, the young and people in places outside London—suffered the most. First, covid hit low-paid people in jobs such as bartending, which could be done only in person because they required complex manual movements, while those in high-paid jobs could use Zoom to reach the office. The low paid were hit and far more likely to be laid off or placed on furlough. Secondly, the young fell behind while the wealthy baby boomers continued to pull ahead. In the two decades leading up to covid, house prices went up by 100% while wages grew by only 20%.”
“Indeed, huge numbers of people were hit so hard during the pandemic. We agree that although support was broad, it certainly was not perfect. On top of the suffering, the pandemic widened existing inequalities and divisions in our nation. Those who could not earn enough—the low paid, the young and people outside London—were hit the hardest. They were already turning away from us in this House; they are now turning away more quickly. We can bring them back only if we act to ensure that every single person can earn enough for a decent life, if we create a nation in which we recognise that our strength is founded in each of us doing well—a nation of unity, common purpose and connection. It is for us to build that nation, as my hon. Friend the Member for West Ham and Beckton rightly noted.”
“My constituency of Loughborough, Shepshed and the villages is in the east midlands, a region that has been overlooked for too long. That ends today, first with the changes to the Green Book, which we all welcome. There will be more money outside London; I hope my colleagues do not mind too much. Secondly, we have more than £100 billion of investment. Can the Chancellor please set out how today’s investment will get bills down and wages rising in my constituency of Loughborough, Shepshed and the villages?”
“T4. Businesses in my constituency often complain about the shocking Brexit deal that the Conservative party gave us, with more costs, more red tape and more paperwork. That is why Labour Members welcome the new EU deal negotiated by this Government. Can the Minister set out how businesses in my constituency—in Loughborough, Shepshed and the villages—will benefit from our new grown-up relationship with the European Union?”
“Their hero Margaret Thatcher destroyed manufacturing in this country—the fastest deindustrialisation in western Europe. Non-graduates cannot get good jobs and are now turning away from democracy itself.”
“We know that a nation in which every single one of us can earn a decent life is a stronger nation. That is exactly the kind of country that the Government are creating. In this country today, too many people cannot earn a decent life. Our nation is weaker as a result. The task before us is to create a stronger nation, not the weaker and more divided one that some Members would like to see and speak about time and again. I take the Opposition’s motion in good faith, but each of its points, which I will come to in due course, is mistaken. We live in dangerous times. A third of us cannot earn a decent living, because the Conservatives left us with some of the highest energy, housing and childcare costs in the world. They left us a no-growth economy: wages did not grow for 14 years—the longest squeeze since Napoleon.”
“I was a very young man then as it happens; it was rather a long time ago. I believe that the hon. Member for Harborough, Oadby and Wigston (Neil O’Brien) wanted to intervene too. [ Interruption. ] Or perhaps not any more—he is busy tweeting away. That is okay.”