Alex McIntyre

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339 held · 322 searchable for Alex McIntyre. The searchable lines are below in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 1 of 7.

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1. “Mr Speaker, if you or the Leader of the House would like to visit my constituency, first, you would be very welcome, and secondly, you would see a rather rare sight: seagulls seemingly walking on water in Gloucester docks. I am not aware of any divine intervention, but we have had a very dry summer and an unprecedented silt build-up. The Canal & River Trust has started a £4 million dredging programme, but I am concerned that in the long term we will keep seeing this problem build up again and again as the dry summers continue. Will the Leader of the House grant a debate in Government time on how we can make water companies such as Bristol Water, which pump water out of our canal system, pay their fair share to uphold and maintain the historic docks in Gloucester?”

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2. “The prize on offer for Gloucester residents from local government reorganisation is the promise of devolution so that we can share in the powers and investment that the Prime Minister and the Chancellor have announced over the last few months. Will the Minister meet me to discuss how we can ensure that local government reorganisation and the model proposed for Gloucestershire will unlock devolution opportunities, rather than block them? The only credible option for Gloucestershire is a foundation strategic authority in the short term and joining the West of England combined authority in the long term. That is backed by six of our seven local councils and all four constituent councils of the WECA.”

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3. “I thank the hon. Gentleman for giving way. There is an element of agreement, because in our Budget yesterday we agreed to get to spending 3% of GDP on defence by 2030, as did the hon. Gentleman’s mini-budget back in 2022. But does he agree that the difference between our Budget and his budget is that we will actually get to the spending review next year to be able to deliver it, and that it will last longer than 47 days?”

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4. “In the meantime we need a Gloucestershire foundation strategic authority to unlock investment in my city, and I ask the Government to meet me to deliver that. Every decision in the Budget shows that we have shut the door on the reckless, unfunded promises of shadow Chancellors past, and that we reject the dangerous rhetoric of Reform—its Members are again not here—whose pledge to slash public spending in 100 days without any detail would decimate our hospitals, schools, and police. We are choosing a different path. Gloucester has an incredible future ahead of it, provided that we get the devolution and investment we deserve. We can build new council homes, we can rebuild our high streets, and we can finally deliver the fresh hope that our great city deserves.”

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5. “I urge the Government to ensure that that historic investment flows directly to innovative SMEs in Gloucester such as Poeton Industries, Avon Metals, Cherry & White and Permali—the very businesses engineering the technologies that keep our country safe. This Budget fundamentally recognises that the people closest to problems should have the power to solve them. It promises greater control over local economic futures, and it is clear that devolution is the key to unlocking Gloucester’s immense potential. Sadly, due to a lack of consensus from local leaders, Gloucestershire is being left behind. Only one option makes long-term sense for Gloucester, and that is for us to join the west of England combined authority. I am in complete cross-party agreement with Lisa Spivey, the Liberal Democrat leader of Gloucestershire county council, on that.”

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6. “How can we, at a national level, bypass this local vacuum of leadership to ensure that our city centre gets the investment it so desperately needs, and so that our national growth strategy is not blocked by local government failure? On growth, I want to ensure that Gloucester businesses truly benefit from our national economic strategy. Small businesses need a reliable place in the national supply chain. When we invest, we must buy local, build local, and grow local, and nowhere is that supply chain more crucial than in our national security. Gloucestershire has a proud, deep-rooted footprint in the defence, cyber-security, and aerospace sectors. I am proud that this Government are fully funding the defence investment plan, and putting ourselves on a firm path to spend 3% of GDP on defence by 2030.”

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7. “To make matters worse, following a recent vote of no confidence in the leader of the council, the entire Lib Dem cabinet of the council has walked away, and it is now operating without any political leadership whatsoever. My constituents cannot afford for Gloucester’s regeneration to be held hostage by local political chaos and bankruptcy. The city centre desperately needs investment, officers need political certainty, and the businesses of Gloucester need a reliable, functioning partner to unlock the growth that this Budget makes possible. So I ask the Government today: what support can they provide to my constituents to get Gloucester back on track?”

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8. “By freezing rates in real terms for retail, hospitality and leisure properties, and providing that 20% cut for our pubs and live music venues, we are taking decisive action. By increasing small business rates relief, almost 60% of businesses on our high streets will be taken out of business rates altogether. I also welcome the Government’s new Hope on the High Street strategy, which aligns with the great work done by Andrew Hearne at Gloucester city council on our city masterplan. It is an ambitious plan for our city, and we must be ambitious. I must draw the House’s attention to the immediate roadblock that we face at home in Gloucester, because Gloucester city council is, to all intents and purposes, entirely broke. Years of mismanagement have forced it to rely on an emergency bail-out from the Government just to keep the lights on.”

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9. “The £100 household energy payment will be paid to 50,000 households in Gloucester this January, providing much needed help in the coldest months. Freezing fuel duty and increasing the minimum wage above inflation will help. The Chancellor acknowledged that those measures alone will not solve the cost of living crisis, but they are a vital first step, with the Prime Minister’s 10-year plan coming later this year, and the spending review next spring. I ask the Government throughout all of that to keep hard-working Gloucester families at the front of their minds when going through those processes. Breathing space is not just for families; it is also needed for the small businesses that are the beating heart of our city. For too long, our local high streets have been punished by an outdated business rates system.”

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10. “Yesterday in the Budget the Chancellor’s priorities, and those of this Government, were clear: delivering breathing space for families and businesses in Gloucester this winter in the middle of global headwinds from wars in Ukraine and the middle east, and starting to tackle the big issues facing our country such as defence, social care, and energy bills, to build fresh hope and optimism for the future—a future that delivers real change for Gloucester residents. The cost of living crisis remains the No.1 concern for families and businesses in my city, so I welcome the down payment made by the Prime Minister this summer, reintroducing the £2 bus fare cap, scrapping VAT on electricity bills, and cutting business rates for our pubs. Yesterday I was pleased that the Chancellor went further.”

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11. “Far too many residents in Gloucester tell me about persistent antisocial behaviour in the city centre, and they are fed up with it. We are seeing a situation where people get off the bus and are immediately confronted by street drinkers, and the local corner shop is selling alcohol to them when they can barely stand up. The police are doing what they can but, given the challenges facing Gloucestershire constabulary, can the Minister outline what more can be done to tackle the antisocial behaviour blighting our city centre?”

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12. “Q4. When Ian and Emma bought their flat a few years ago, they were told there was a 10-year warranty on its conversion from office buildings. The lift broke down in February this year and it is still not fixed. Emma is disabled, so she relies on that lift and has effectively been trapped in her own home for months. It turns out that the warranty does not cover the lift and residents are being asked for £50,000 to fix it. Will the Prime Minister update the House on when Gloucester residents like Ian and Emma can expect to see his commitment to leasehold reform move forward?”

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13. “T5. Yesterday, I met the chief executive of Ofcom with colleagues from this House to discuss our frustration about the lack of effectiveness of its enforcement action in improving Royal Mail services in my constituency. In Gloucester, we are getting post every couple of weeks at best. People are missing hospital appointments and important legal deadlines, and quite frankly, they are wondering whether they should put their Christmas cards in the post this week, so that they might arrive in time for 25 December. How can we ensure that Ofcom has the power to effectively enforce the universal service obligation, so that Royal Mail services actually improve in my constituency?”

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14. “I know the Secretary of State has a long list of constituencies to visit after today’s questions, but he also shares my determination to give every young person the opportunity to fulfil their potential, so will he or one of his team join us for the summit at the end of November?”

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15. “Ahead of Alan Milburn’s report, in Gloucester there are over 2,500 young people not in employment, education or training. I have spoken with many of them across the last two years who want an opportunity but have been let down by the system. Something needs to change. At the end of November, I am hosting the Gloucestershire Futures summit with Gloucestershire county council. We have invited schools and colleges, local employers, healthcare providers, local government and the third sector in an effort to get everyone in the room to discuss how we can solve the problem together.”

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16. “I am pleased that after support from my office, my constituent has secured a lump sum and is due her husband’s pension this month, but even after my involvement, the communication from Capita has been limited and poor. I know that the Government are working around the clock to improve the situation, with the taskforce of civil servants being deployed. Progress is being made, and I know that the Minister is determined to build on that. I would be grateful if she could outline the steps that the Government are taking to improve the situation.”

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17. “I have heard from far too many residents in Gloucester who have devoted their lives to public service only to be unable to access their pensions in retirement. In the short time I have, I want to highlight a specific example of one constituent who sadly lost her husband and was trying to get access to his pension. She had to relentlessly battle Capita during one of the most difficult times in her life. In her first email to me, she said that she felt that Capita were waiting for her to die. Her husband served our country, first in the Navy and then for 12 years at GCHQ. In cases like these, widows are being failed by Capita. While suffering immense grief, they face the administrative burden of trying to secure what is rightfully theirs.”

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18. “To break the cycle of offending and reoffending in young people, we need to do more to give young people opportunity and something productive to do. What discussions has the Minister had with Alan Milburn about his review, and how can we ensure that young offenders are put on a more productive pathway?”

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19. “Last week I signed a letter to the Foreign Secretary, along with 140 colleagues, asking the Government to take further action in response to settler violence and the rhetoric used by two far-right Israeli Government Ministers. Over the last two years, I have heard from hundreds of my constituents expressing their deep concern about the Israeli Government’s actions in the west bank. Will the Secretary of State commit today to banning all trade with illegal settlements, and if not, why not?”

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20. “The River Severn holds incredible potential for tidal energy, with the Severn Estuary Commission finding that it has the potential to generate up to 7% of the UK’s electricity. Will my right hon. Friend meet me to discuss how the Government plan to take that forward, and how we can ensure that some of the resulting good-quality green jobs come to Gloucester?”

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21. “I welcome the report and my hon. Friend’s commitment to cross-departmental working, but I want to raise one area that his Department could put its weight behind. The Health and Social Care Committee has suggested an amendment to the Health Bill that would put the mental health investment standard into statute, so that we could increase investment in our mental health services, bring down the backlog of people waiting for mental health treatment and get more young people in Gloucester into work.”

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22. “May I associate myself with the remarks of the Secretary of State about Romania? Last week I visited Romania through the armed forces parliamentary scheme, and met armed forces personnel who are part of the NATO air policing mission. The Russian drone incident showed how important that mission is, and demonstrated the good work that our armed forces personnel are doing in Romania as we speak. I recently visited Permali and Cherry & White in my constituency, two local SMEs that are working in the defence industry and doing an excellent job. Both are important local employers, and are keen to expand their businesses. Does my hon. Friend agree that we should be doing everything we can to support such British SMEs through defence procurement, and will he agree to visit Gloucester and meet representatives of those brilliant businesses?”

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23. “Will the Minister confirm at the Dispatch Box that the Department of Health will not bow to pressure from the supermarkets and large food manufacturers to scrap our important work on obesity? We spend billions of pounds every year on tackling obesity-related illnesses, while food manufacturers and supermarkets lobby to avoid scrutiny. Of course we need to do more to tackle the cost of living, but the food lobby’s argument that we must choose between the cost of the weekly shop and tackling the fact that one in three children are overweight or obese is disingenuous at best. This Bill is great, but there is more we can do to tackle mental health waiting lists, to tackle obesity and to tackle health inequalities in places like Gloucester.”

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24. “He sets out in damning detail the impact of the failure of the Conservative Governments to properly invest in mental health services. Today, mental health conditions account for 20% of all ill health in UK, but only 9% of NHS spending. Our Heath Committee has recommended making the mental health investment standard a statutory requirement, and the Government should make such a change. I also ask the Government to consider amendments that confirm our commitment to tackling the obesity epidemic. I and several other Committee Members were concerned to read press reports that the Government are considering scrapping measures included in the 10-year plan to tackle the obesity crisis.”

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25. “That is just not acceptable, and it highlights the entrenched health inequalities found in constituencies like mine up and down the country. Deprivation, poverty and a lack of adequate healthcare are harming life chances in every part of our United Kingdom. I therefore urge Ministers to meet the charity Health Equals, and to consider its proposal to strengthen the requirement for the Secretary of State to tackle health inequalities. The Bill should also introduce a duty requiring all Ministers across Government to consider the impact of major policy decisions on health inequalities. Speaking of cross-governmental missions, I read with interest the report by Alan Milburn last week about young people not in education, employment or training.”

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26. “I hear time and again from constituents who are fed up with having to explain their story several times to different medical practitioners. Keeping records that do not speak to each other just does not make sense in the digital world in which we now live. It is inconvenient, frustrating and, most of all, it threatens patient safety. I am also grateful to the Government for taking the bold decision to abolish NHS England. It is clear that the model has not worked and does not provide the value for money that Gloucester residents deserve. We are facing a health crisis in the UK, with significant gaps in life expectancy across the country. Someone from Gloucester who, like me, lives in Abbeymead is likely to live a whole decade longer than someone who lives just 3 miles down the road in Kingsholm.”

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27. “Since the general election, there are 10,000 fewer people stuck on NHS waiting lists in my constituency of Gloucester, we have the green light for two new NHS dental practices, and a new GP surgery is being built in Hucclecote. But now is not the time to pat ourselves on the back and say, “Job well done.” It is not even job half done. We must go further and start to deliver change at the pace that my constituents expect. Too many people in my city still struggle to see their GP or dentist when they need to, are placed on excruciatingly long waiting lists—particularly for mental health—and have to battle just to get a diagnosis. We have to go further. I am pleased to see the creation of the single patient record.”

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28. “T2. Last Friday I met a constituent whose child was fatally stabbed five years ago. As a parent myself, I cannot begin to imagine what the family have gone through and the trauma they have faced since. Concerningly, the killer of that child has repeatedly accessed social media while in prison to cruelly taunt the victim’s family. I have spoken with other constituents and their families who have unfortunately had similar experiences. Does my right hon. Friend agree that this is completely unacceptable, and will he look at my constituent’s case so that we can ensure that violent offenders cannot continue to taunt victims from behind bars?”

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29. “The fantastic Flowers Band from my Gloucester constituency recently won the prestigious European brass band championships. It was their first time at the tournament, and they are the first English band to win it since 2015. I will not name all the members of the band this morning, but I got to go to their open rehearsal, where I saw their fantastic hard work, dedication and unbelievable talent. Will the Leader of the House join me in congratulating them on their success, and the success of all young musicians in Gloucester?”

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30. “I welcome the Government’s commitment to making sure that every child with SEND in Gloucester gets the support they need at the earliest stage of their education. I also welcome the £4.6 million investment in the Experts at Hand service in Gloucestershire coming for the next academic year. Can the Minister update the House on the discussions she is having with the Department of Health on its workforce plan to make sure we have the workers needed to deliver that support in Gloucester?”

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31. “Friend the Member for Birmingham Erdington is a tireless campaigner on these issues, and she made an outstanding speech. I will not add anything further to it, other than to thank her for tabling the new clause and introducing the debate.”

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32. “I will keep my contribution brief. I want to speak in support of new clause 29, tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham Erdington. It is clear that Government Members accept the need for reform but, as we go through those reforms, it is also important to keep one eye on ensuring justice for everyone in our society. We know that historically the criminal justice system has not ensured equal opportunity for everyone in our society—there are inequalities within it. I was pleased to hear the Secretary of State and the Minister confirm that the Government are committed to reviewing the reforms in the future to ensure that they do not exacerbate inequalities in the system. I look forward to hearing the Minister continue to reassure the Committee that that is the Government’s commitment. My hon.”

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33. “I too am pleased that the Government have decided to uncap sitting days, but does my hon. Friend recognise that although the physical capacity might be there, there are capacity issues with all the teams around that? Even if we open the courts and uncap sitting days, it will not bring down the backlog in the short term, because we will still need to find more prosecutors, solicitors, barristers, court clerks and, of course, judges. All those need to be in place, which would take longer than just uncapping the funding.”

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34. “I do not recognise my hon. Friend’s assertion that the workforce is there and ready and raring to go. Even the Bar Council’s own evidence suggests that the number of silks doing publicly funded criminal cases dropped by about a quarter and the number of senior juniors has gone down significantly as well. Silks are the most senior barristers. I am happy to be corrected if that is not the case. Will it not take time to fill those gaps so that we can have appropriately senior barristers in the courts?”

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35. “I remember the discussion the shadow Minister spoke about; we discussed MPs swapping political constituencies at the same time. The Institute for Government was very clear that the biggest constraint is the workforce, so is my hon. Friend saying that the Institute for Government has got it wrong?”

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36. “Another good thing we can do in Committee is try to clarify the Conservative party’s position. Is the hon. Member’s position now that the almost 40% cuts to legal aid during the last Conservative Government were wrong? If so, would he like to apologise for them?”

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37. “As the shadow Minister has the backlog data to hand—I do not—would he mind sharing with the Committee the data for all the other regions and the overall backlog picture for the whole country?”

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38. “For the sake of clarity for the whole Committee, is it not also true that quarter-on-quarter data generally shows a decrease in backlog between Q3 and Q4 in most years for which we have data, because there is a drop in receipts around that time of year? Does the hon. Member recognise that if we look at the data for the overall year, the backlog has been reduced only in the north-west, and by only 2%? If we reduced the backlog by 2% a year, it would take 50 years to clear.”

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39. “I am sure that we are all looking forward to a rather long afternoon listening to the hon. Member’s speech. Does he agree that this is also about the victims, some of whom the Committee heard evidence from, who did not have a right not to have their freedoms taken away, did not have a right not to be attacked, do not have a right to elect, do not have a right to speed up the process, and do not have a right to an earlier trial, before it collapses when other people pull out of the process? While he is making a very important point about ensuring that we have a just system for defendants, does he agree that we must also ensure that victims are centred in this?”

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40. “It is refreshing to hear a Conservative Member defending the European convention on human rights. Can he confirm whether it is now the Conservative party’s position to support the ECHR, or is it for withdrawing from it, as it was last year?”

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41. “I thank the hon. Member for giving possibly the longest wind-up in the history of wind-ups. I have two questions for him. First, does he recognise that both examples of retrospective legislation that he mentions were made by a Conservative Government? Secondly, what number does the backlog need to hit before he deems it urgent that the Government tackle it?”

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42. “The Minister has been really clear in her response. This morning, the shadow Minister was extolling some intellectually coherent arguments that the Conservative party has now discovered. I wonder whether he might return to them for this afternoon’s session.”

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43. “The shadow Minister is making an articulate argument about how the criminal justice system might deal differently with different types of offenders, but would he not agree that someone’s background should not determine their guilt? They have either done it or they have not. Actually, someone’s good character and previous clean record is taken into account at sentencing. Will the shadow Minister remind the Committee how sentencing is dealt with in the Crown court—is it by jury or by a judge sitting alone?”

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44. “While we are on the subject of British values, is the Green party in Westminster’s position that criminals should go to jail? A Green party candidate in Scotland has said that they should close all the prisons in Scotland. Can she clarify the Green party’s position on that for the Committee?”

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45. “This morning, we heard a passionate and important contribution from my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham Erdington about monitoring the proposals’ impact on minority communities. She has tabled an amendment so that we can discuss that question, and I look forward to debating it. Although I understand what the Minister is saying about jury equity, can she assure the Committee that the Government are committed to reviewing it in the light of my hon. Friend’s argument?”

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46. “I want to correct the record. This morning, I understood the Conservative party position to be that we are not allowed to call them victims at that point.”

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47. “As a former solicitor, I appreciate the hon. Member’s commitment to being paid at an hourly rate, given the speed of his contribution his afternoon. One of the points the Secretary of State made in support of this measure at the Dispatch Box was that the changing nature of our criminal justice system and the added demand that will flow through the system in the future, added to the increasing complexity of cases, mean that jury trials are taking longer through the very nature of the additional evidence that is being gathered. That means that even if the immediate backlog is brought under control, there will still be a need for system reform in the long term, because otherwise we will not be able to keep it under control in perpetuity. Why does the hon. Member disagree with that?”

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48. “The hon. Member is giving a rather elongated speech this afternoon, which we are all enjoying. On the subject of the Criminal Bar Association, I seem to recall it rallying against the removal of the ancient right of double jeopardy, which it said would deny people a fair trial and ruin our criminal justice system. I am pretty sure his party was in favour of that removal back in the noughties. Those predictions have not transpired; it actually led to justice, for example, for Stephen Lawrence. Does he agree that the CBA may be wrong in some of its views?”

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49. “I have some experience in this, having changed my practice when I was a solicitor from being a banking lawyer to being an employment lawyer. It takes time to build up a level of expertise, and if I were to return from this place to being a solicitor, it would take me some time to re-educate myself and get up to speed with developments in the law to be able to practise again. I accept the shadow Minister’s point that there are some barristers who change their specialty as often as MPs change their parliamentary constituencies—”

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50. “And parties, which seems to be happening at an increasing rate on the Opposition Benches. Does the shadow Minister not agree that, at the very least, it will take time for those barristers to reskill, retrain and update their knowledge to be able to take on those cases, and that therefore the premise that the Minister is putting forward is the right one?”

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