總理的提問。2019年10月2日 (Prime Minister's Questions: 2 October 2019)

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>> Julian Sturdy (York Outer) (Con): If he will list his official engagements for
Wednesday 2 October.
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and First Secretary of State (Dominic
Raab) I have been asked to reply. My right hon.
Friend the Prime Minister is in Manchester for the Conservative party conference. He
is making, as we speak, the keynote speech, setting out that we will leave the EU on 31
October, so that we can get on with our dynamic domestic agenda.
>> Julian Sturdy: Askham Bog, a world-renowned nature reserve
in my constituency, has been described as “irreplaceable” by, no less, Sir David
Attenborough; yet it is threatened by proposals to build more than 500 houses on adjoining
land. Will my right hon. Friend put in a good word with the Prime Minister to ask him to
join me in lying down in front of the bulldozers to save that important piece of natural heritage?
>> Dominic Raab: I thank my hon. Friend. I always put in a
good word with the Prime Minister on his behalf, and I share his passion for preserving our
precious natural habitats. Local community views are of course incredibly important to
the local planning process; that is what our revised national planning policy framework
provides. He will understand that I cannot comment on individual planning applications.
>> Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington) (Lab):
Yesterday marked the start of Black History Month, so I will begin by paying tribute to
a young woman already making history this month. Dina Asher-Smith became the first British
woman in 36 years to win a sprint medal when she won silver at the 100 metres in Doha.
Tonight she aims to go one better in the 200 metres—and I am sure the whole House will
wish her well.
>> Mr Speaker: I think that was a preface to a question.
>> Ms Abbott: If I may continue, uninterrupted!
Last week, my hon. Friend the Member for Dewsbury (Paula Sherriff) raised the very specific
issue of how many of the hundreds of abusive and violent messages that she receives use
the Prime Minister's own words. The Prime Minister dismissed those concerns as simply
“humbug”. Since that exchange, my hon. Friend has received four further death threats,
some again quoting the Prime Minister's words. Women across this House experience
death threats and abuse. Will the Foreign Secretary take the opportunity to apologise
on behalf of the Prime Minister for his initial dismissive response?
>> Dominic Raab: I thank the right hon. Lady for her question.
My eagerness to rise to the Dispatch Box was because, in Black History Month, as she becomes
the first black MP to take to the Dispatch Box for PMQs, it is only fitting to say that
she has blazed a trail and made it easier for others to follow in her footsteps. That
is something in which I and every hon. Member in this House can take pride in paying tribute.
The right hon. Lady raises the increasing level of online and wider abuse that politicians
from all parts of the House get, and we should come together to be clear that there must
be zero tolerance of any abuse or any threats. May I also say that I have found the level
of abuse that she herself has received online to be totally disgusting and totally unacceptable.
At the same time, I am sure that, as a passionate champion of free speech, she will defend our
right in this House to defend the issues of substance. The remarks that the Prime Minister,
my right hon. Friend, made were aimed at the suggestion that he could not describe the
surrender Act in such terms. It is absolutely clear, given the substance of the legislation,
that it would achieve that and undermine the ability of the Government to go and get a
deal in the EU, which on all sides we want to achieve.
>> Ms Abbott: So, we can take it that there is no apology
from the Foreign Secretary. I raised the very specific point that my hon. Friend the Member
for Dewsbury made about the abuse she gets that uses the Prime Minister's language.
Deliberately disturbing billboards showing unborn foetuses have been put up in the London
borough of Walthamstow. They are upsetting for women walking past, but particularly upsetting
for my hon. Friend the Member for Walthamstow (Stella Creasy), because these billboards
are targeted at her in response to her work to decriminalise abortion in Northern Ireland.
Abortion in Northern Ireland should be decriminalised on 21 October. What will the Foreign Secretary
do to ensure that, from later on this month, women in Northern Ireland will have the same
human rights to legal and safe abortion as women in England, Wales and Scotland?
>> Dominic Raab: The right hon. Lady has referred to the hon.
Member for Walthamstow (Stella Creasy) and the abuse that she has received, which I and
all Members of this House, I know, believe is totally unacceptable. There is a place
for free speech, but we should never allow that to cross over into abuse, intimidation
or harassment of hon. Members from all parts of the House going about their business. The
most important thing that we can do on the specific issue that the right hon. Lady raises
is get the institutions in Northern Ireland back up and running so that they can exercise
their rights, their prerogatives, on behalf of the people of Northern Ireland.
>> Ms Abbott: I notice that the Foreign Secretary has not
said anything about those horrific posters—they are not posters that anyone would want to
see, particularly someone who is pregnant, as is my hon. Friend the Member for Walthamstow.
Last week, Labour reiterated its call to end the rape clause, which forces women to fill
out a four-page form to prove their child was born of rape in order to get financial
help. Will the Foreign Secretary today back Labour's pledge to remove the abhorrent
rape clause from universal credit?
>> Dominic Raab: I would say that we have looked at this issue
and we continue to look at it. On the subject of using inflammatory language, it is incumbent
on Members in all parts of the House to be very careful about it. I know that my right
hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Department for Work and Pensions is looking
at this matter and will continue to take questions and scrutinise it very carefully, so that
we get the balance right. I gently say to the right hon. Lady that Labour wants to abolish
universal credit and engage in an open spending spree on handouts. That is the wrong thing
to do—trapping people in the welfare trap. On our side, we want to help those people
from the poorest backgrounds get into work, and our record speaks for itself.
>> Ms Abbott: How much more dismissive can the Foreign Secretary
be of people and families dependent on benefits? We are not talking about a spending spree;
we are talking about a system that is fair and just, and which does not subject people
to undue humiliation.
Last week, the 100-year-old travel company Thomas Cook went out of business. We know
that 72% of its workers are women. We also know that, although Governments around the
world stepped in to save Thomas Cook subsidiary companies in their own countries, the UK Business
Secretary thought that this was not her job. Can the Foreign Secretary explain to those
workers, some of whom are with us today, why their Government sat idly by?
>> Dominic Raab: First, we did not sit idly by. The Government's
efforts, co-ordinated by the Transport Secretary, to ensure that the holidaymakers and travellers
who were caught overseas could be returned back to the UK, have been very effective and
required a huge amount of cross-Government work, including in my own Department. On whether
the Government should have stepped in to bail out Thomas Cook, it is very clear from looking
at the financing that such a step would not have rendered the company more sustainable
and would not have saved jobs in the long run. We are, of course, concerned to ensure
that we have a sound economic base in the long term. We have created 3 million new jobs
in this country since 2010, and will continue with that. What we are not going to do is
routinely bail out companies that are unsustainable. That is not the right way to go about this.
>> Ms Abbott: Nobody is asking the Government routinely
to bail out companies. We are asking the Government why they will not even meet the workers.
Whether it is women Members in this House, women claiming benefits, women's reproductive
rights in Northern Ireland or the failure to support women workers at Thomas Cook, is
not this a Government letting women down?
>> Dominic Raab: On this side of the House, we are proud to
be on our second female Prime Minister.
>> Mr Speaker: Order. The Foreign Secretary has embarked
on his answer. I want to hear it, and I think the House and everybody else will want to
hear it as well.
>> Dominic Raab: Thank you, Mr Speaker.
Members on the Labour Front Bench are pointing to my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead
(Mrs May). Well, I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to my right hon.
Friend for her accomplishments in tackling human trafficking, for her accomplishments
and drive to tackle violence against women and for the domestic violence Bill that we
will be introducing in the House today for further debate.
>> Ms Abbott: The Foreign Secretary has not mentioned the
fact that there are over 600,000 more women and girls in poverty now than in 2010. I gently
say to him that I was a Member of this House when Tory MPs defenestrated the first female
Prime Minister, Mrs Thatcher, and I was a Member of this House when the Tory MPs worked
their will against the second female Prime Minister. It seems to me that Tory Members
of Parliament may on occasion make women their leaders, but they need to learn— They need
to learn how to treat them less cruelly.
>> Dominic Raab: The right hon. Lady mentions Margaret Thatcher.
I gently say to her that if she wants to talk about treating women better, she might have
a word with the shadow Chancellor, who talked about going back in time to “assassinate”
Margaret Thatcher. That is not appropriate language from the Opposition.
The right hon. Lady talked about Labour's record. Let me remind her that female unemployment
rose by over a quarter because of Labour's economic mismanagement, and now Labour wants
more debt, more borrowing and higher taxes. On our side, we are proud: female unemployment
at record lows, a higher percentage of women on FTSE 100 boards and a record low gender
pay gap—lower than under the last Labour Government.
>> Ms Abbott: rose—
>> Mr Speaker: Order. I believe I am right in saying that
the shadow Home Secretary has had her six questions. [Hon. Members: “More!”] There
will be more.
Margot James (Stourbridge) (Ind): Does the right hon. Gentleman agree that legislation
to establish a tough independent regulator of internet companies empowered to challenge
the automatic right to anonymity online should be a priority for the Queen's Speech?
>> Dominic Raab: My hon. Friend is absolutely right. We want
to make the UK the safest place in the world to go online for our children, but also for
all members of our society. Our online harms White Paper set out our plans to make companies
more responsible for their users' safety online, especially children, and also sets
out measures to reinforce powers to issue fines against those who put them at risk.
>> Ian Blackford (Ross, Skye and Lochaber) (SNP):
It is a disgrace that the Prime Minister is not here. Since he was elected in July, he
has been to only one Prime Minister's questions. Quite simply, he is running scared from this
Chamber.
Right now the Prime Minister is setting out his Brexit fantasy at the Tory party conference—a
deal that he knows is unacceptable and doomed to failure. When this deal fails, as Tory
Members know it will, Downing Street sources have insisted that the Government will not
seek an extension. They will not obey their legal obligations. Yet again, this Prime Minister
is prepared to act unlawfully. Has the Prime Minister not learnt his lesson? He is not
above the law. Can the Foreign Secretary confirm whether those sources are correct that the
Prime Minister will not obey the law? Are this Government seriously planning to take
on Parliament in the courts to force through a catastrophic no-deal Brexit, or will the
Foreign Secretary now rule that out?
>> Dominic Raab: Of course this Government will always adhere
to the law. The Prime Minister has written to Jean-Claude Juncker setting out our proposals.
We want to take forward the negotiations. We want to avoid a no-deal scenario, and I
would urge the SNP, rather than undermining the negotiations in Brussels, to try and support
the Government in securing a deal that is good for this country. The right hon. Gentleman
talks about respecting judgments. We will always respect legal judgments. I call on
the SNP to respect the judgment of the people of Scotland when it comes to staying in the
United Kingdom and the judgment of the people of the United Kingdom to give effect to the
referendum on the EU.
>> Ian Blackford: “We will always respect legal judgments.”
The fact is that this Prime Minister cannot be trusted, and his Foreign Secretary cannot
even commit the Prime Minister to the letter of the law. This Government must be stopped.
I am looking now to colleagues on the Opposition Benches, and I urge them: we must unite. We
must stop this Prime Minister by removing him from office. The Scottish National party
stands ready to bring this Government down. Other parties need to step up at this moment
of national crisis—prepare a vote of no confidence, ensure a Brexit extension, prevent
a no deal and call a general election. Doing nothing is not an option. We must act. So
I ask the Foreign Secretary: will he give the Prime Minister a message from the Scottish
National party? It is not a case of if but when: we will bring this dangerous Government
down. The right hon. Gentleman is at risk of sounding like he is all mouth and no trousers,
because he had the chance to vote for a general election and he turned it down; he had the
chance to avoid no deal; and the best chance now is to back this Government in securing
a good deal—good for the United Kingdom and good for all quarters of the United Kingdom,
including the people of Scotland.
>> Mr Peter Bone (Wellingborough) (Con): On Saturday, I was out knocking on doors with
my listening team, listening to the views of local people, as we do every week. The
message to me, whether they were leave or remain voters, was crystal clear: get Brexit
done by 31 October. Deputy Prime Minister, can you reassure my constituents that we will
leave the European Union by the end of this month, come what may, no ifs, no buts?
>> Dominic Raab: My hon. Friend gets straight to the crux of
the matter. We must leave by the end of October, come what may. We are committed to doing that.
The most effective way of doing it that will unite this House and bring the country back
together is to get behind the Prime Minister's efforts to secure a good deal. I think it
is incumbent on all Members on both sides of the House to support the United Kingdom
rather than try to undermine the negotiating position in Brussels.
>> Teresa Pearce (Erith and Thamesmead) (Lab): Housing, I believe, is the first of the social
services; without it, we cannot have education, productivity or health. The NHS has a diagnosis
code for inadequate housing. The Department of Health wrote to me saying that poor housing
costs the NHS £1.4 billion a year, but that figure is now four years old. Will the Secretary
of State ensure that the Department of Health writes to me with the most up-to-date figures
and places that information in the Library?
>> Dominic Raab: I will certainly pass on the hon. Lady's
specific request to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government.
She is right to raise the quality of housing. When I was Housing Minister, we developed
proposals for a social housing Green Paper. We want social housing tenants to feel they
are treated with respect. I remember meeting an individual who said that he ran his own
business, and when he went to work he was treated with respect but when he came back
home he was treated disrespectfully by his housing association. That is not right.
I would gently say to the hon. Lady that we have delivered over 222,000 additional homes
in the past year—the highest level in all but one of the past 31 years—and we have
built more council housing than in the previous 13 years of the last Labour Government.
>> Mr Kenneth Clarke (Rushcliffe) (Ind): Sir John Major rang me about half an hour
ago simply to give vent to his indignation, which
I already fully shared, that a major policy announcement of historic significance—our
last offer, apparently, to the EU of a withdrawal agreement—was being made not to this House
of Commons, which is not even to have a statement, and not after discussion in the Cabinet, most
of whose members know nothing about it, but in a speech to the Conservative party conference
in which the Prime Minister—who, I remind you, was one of those who voted to stop us
leaving the European Union at the end of March—began with an attack on Parliament. If a deal is
obtained, I will be delighted and I will apologise to the Prime Minister. I will vote for any
deal that is agreed among the 28 member states of the European Union. But can the Foreign
Secretary reassure me—it seems to me obvious, otherwise—that this is not just a party
political campaigning ploy to blame the European Union for the lack of an agreement and to
arouse fury between people and Parliament so as to escape from the responsibility that
seems to me to lie with the Spartans on the far right of the party, with whom he and the
Prime Minister used to be close allies?
>> Dominic Raab: I thank my right hon. and learned Friend.
On the specific point, the proposals we are setting out to Brussels—David Frost, the
Prime Minister's special adviser, is in Brussels doing that—will be set out first
in the House of Commons. They will be published—[Interruption.] No. The shadow Foreign Secretary is chuntering
from a sedentary position, but the proposals have not been set out in Manchester; they
will be set out in written proposals to Jean-Claude Juncker and published in the House later on.
I gently say to my right hon. and learned Friend: I know—[Interruption.] Later today—[Interruption.]
The shadow Foreign Secretary is continuing to talk from a sedentary position. My right
hon. and learned Friend and I have always had slightly nuanced but differing views on
the EU, but I think the one thing we all want to do is to get a deal right now—that is
why the attempts by Parliament to frustrate that have been deeply counterproductive—and
to give effect to the promises that, on all sides of the House, we made to give effect
to the referendum and to keep trust with the electorate of this country.
>> Eleanor Smith (Wolverhampton South West) (Lab):
The Government update of the national planning policy framework published in July 2018 changed
the policy we have had for generations of not building on the green belt. The policy
now allows future development to be considered. Local planning authorities are coming under
great pressure from developers who do not want to spend money to improve brownfield
sites. Unspoilt areas such as the Seven Cornfields on the edge of my constituency are now under
threat from inappropriate development by house builders who put profit above all else. We
should not be building on such sites, especially at a time of concern for the environment.
I ask the Prime Minister to review the green belt policy to protect areas such as the Seven
Cornfields from developers.
>> Dominic Raab: The hon. Lady's concerns are shared right
across the House, so it is something that will be of interest and importance to everyone
here today. The national planning policy framework is very clear: the green belt must be protected
and brownfield sites must be brought forward. In order to provide a greater boost to the
supply of new housing, we have introduced measures to boost the density of and the ability
to raise homes in more urban or suburban areas while protecting the green belt. A huge amount
of money has gone into infrastructure development right across the country to ensure that we
can build the right homes in the right places and to answer the significant concerns of
local communities, who ask where all the schools, housing and roads will come from. We are making
sure that we give councils the support they need to build the right homes in the right
places.
>> Mrs Maria Miller (Basingstoke) (Con): The Government are backing a new hospital
to serve Basingstoke with money to develop our business case. Does my right hon. Friend
agree that a bid that could include new jobs, new state-of-the-art facilities and new homes
is one that everyone in north Hampshire should get behind?
>> Dominic Raab: It sounds like a tantalising proposal. I am
sure that the Health Secretary will look at it very carefully indeed. We have made it
clear that we back the NHS with the biggest cash boost in history, an extra £34 billion
a year by 2023-24. We can do that only with a strong economy, which is precisely what
the Labour party will put at risk.
>> Lucy Powell (Manchester Central) (Lab/Co-op): On Monday, my constituent Richard should have
been paid. It was the first time in his life that he was not. Richard, like many others
whom I met with his union, Unite, was a dedicated employee of Thomas Cook. Given that the warning
signs were there for months, if not years, will the Government use the extra parliamentary
time that we now have to bring forward emergency legislation to stop a further airline collapse?
Will the Government pledge now to expedite Richard's redundancy pay and to recoup the
millions taken by the directors in the past few months?
>> Dominic Raab: I feel for anyone in the Thomas Cook scenario—people
stranded abroad or people who lost their jobs. I have set out why the Government do not systematically
bail out or step in to prop up firms that are unsustainable. I am afraid that if the
hon. Lady looks at the figures, she will see that that was not a sustainable route to follow.
Of course, if she wants to write to me, we will look at any details she raises, but the
bottom line is that the way we create a healthy economy and jobs is by making sure that we
have the tax measures in place—by not raising taxes on businesses and by supporting the
workers of this country. That is what we are doing.
>> Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield) (Ind): I congratulate my right hon. Friend on being
at the Dispatch Box as deputy Prime Minister.
How is it that the Government are allowing special advisers at No. 10 Downing Street,
speaking on behalf of the Government, to tell outright lies? My right hon. Friend should
be familiar with the fact that on Saturday such a special adviser—whom I believe to
be Mr Dominic Cummings—told The Mail on Sunday that a number of hon. Members were
in receipt of foreign funding to draft what is known as the Benn Act, something which
in itself is totally untrue. Moreover, he went on to say that that was going to be the
subject of a Government investigation, which is also completely untrue because, mercifully,
this country is not yet run as a police state by Mr Cummings.
>> Dominic Raab: I thank my right hon. and learned Friend.
I was not quite sure what the question there was, but the position of the Government is
that advisers advise and Ministers decide. It is right that the legislation that we have
rightly dubbed the surrender Act gets the kind of scrutiny that a Government would get—whether
it is from the Executive, parliamentary Select Committees in this House or, indeed, the declarations
of interest that should come forward in the normal way.
>> Patricia Gibson (North Ayrshire and Arran) (SNP):
Can the First Secretary of State set out clearly and unambiguously for this House in what circumstances
the Prime Minister will write to the EU Council President, as set out in the terms of the
Benn Act?
>> Dominic Raab: The Government have been very clear: we will
respect the law—[Interruption.] We will respect the law, but we are not going to extend
beyond 31 October. I would ask all hon. Members who signed up to that shoddy legislation to
reflect on whether—with the fact of the multiple conditions, the £1 billion a month
that it would cost the UK taxpayer and undermining the position of the UK Government to get a
deal in Brussels—they are actually courting the no-deal scenario they pretend they want
to avoid.
>> Mr Shailesh Vara (North West Cambridgeshire) (Con):
May I join in the tributes paid earlier to the right hon. Member for Hackney North and
Stoke Newington (Ms Abbott) for her historic achievement today?
Today marks the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Does my right hon. Friend
agree with me that Gandhi's message of non-violence, religious tolerance and greater rights for
women is as applicable today as it was in his lifetime?
>> Dominic Raab: My hon. Friend is absolutely right. I would
go one further and tout the words of Martin Luther King, who said that we—I think on
all sides of the House—should believe in a society where you are judged on the content
of your character, not the colour of your skin, let alone your gender. That is why we
on this side of the House are proud of our record of record levels of BAME communities
in employment and children from BAME communities taking more rigorous GCSEs. We have the first
Asian Chancellor, the first female Asian Home Secretary and I am proud to be in the most
diverse Cabinet in history.
>> Anna McMorrin (Cardiff North) (Lab): My constituent Anne has an auto-immune condition
and needs 20 tablets a day to control pain. This medicine is her lifeline, and without
it she could die, but she has been warned that a no-deal Brexit will mean a severe risk
to its supply. Can the Secretary of State say why his Government are willing to risk
her life and many others by refusing to rule out no deal, choosing a policy of ruin over
delay?
>> Dominic Raab: Of course we share the concerns of anyone
in the position of the hon. Lady's constituent. That is why the head of the NHS, Sir Simon
Stevens, and the Health Secretary have said that they have put in place all the necessary
arrangements to make sure that, in a no-deal scenario, medicines will continue to flow
across the border, as is required. But if she really wants to avoid a no-deal scenario,
she should get behind this Government getting a good deal in Brussels, and that is the best
thing for all concerned.
>> Amber Rudd (Hastings and Rye) (Ind): I congratulate my right hon. Friend on his
role today. I remember when my right hon. Friend resigned from the Cabinet because of
his disagreements with Brexit policy—a route I subsequently became familiar with—but
does his experience not remind him that there are honourable, different opinions across
this House about how we leave the European Union and about how we interpret the will
of the people, and the essential thing is that every Member here representing their
constituency has a role to play in that? May I urge him, when working with my right hon.
Friend the Prime Minister, to make sure that any decisions—any progress—are taken through
this House?
>> Dominic Raab: I can give my right hon. Friend that reassurance.
I do understand, and we have always managed to stay on civil, cordial, even amiable terms
throughout all the challenges of Brexit, which we on both sides of the House should seek
to do. Parliament of course has a crucial role to play. I do not think anyone can legitimately
say that Parliament, with the stalwart support of the Speaker, has not scrutinised Brexit
at every stage. But we also have to remember on all sides, and particularly on this side,
the promises we made to the voters to give effect to Brexit—to get Brexit done—and
that is the way we can move on, unite the country and take Britain forward.
>> Mr Clive Betts (Sheffield South East) (Lab): On 27 July in Manchester, the Prime Minister
said he wanted to bring northern cities' bus services up to the same level as London's.
Bus services are really important to my constituents. The problem is that, currently, Government
funding for bus services is £75 a head in London but £5 a head in Sheffield. Although
the Chancellor has announced a further £200 million for bus services, it would take half
that money to bring Sheffield's funding level alone up to London's. Are the Government
really going to fund the better bus services the Prime Minister promised for northern cities
such as Sheffield, or have we again had a grand announcement from the Prime Minister
that, on detailed examination, simply is not worth the paper it is written on?
>> Dominic Raab: I say to the hon. Gentleman, the Chairman
of the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee, that we are absolutely committed
to boosting bus services in his constituency and indeed infrastructure right across the
country. That includes transport, that includes broadband, and that means making sure that
we have a more balanced economy that can boost jobs, reduce deprivation and ensure we can
fund the precious public services we need. On the specific point he raised, I will ask
the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government to write to him personally.
>> Sir Hugo Swire (East Devon) (Con): Within the last 24 hours, the Democratic People's
Republic of Korea has launched a ballistic missile, possibly from a submarine; if so,
that would be the first submarine-based missile it has launched in three years. It is its
ninth launch, I believe, since June. Has my right hon. Friend had an opportunity to talk
to other leaders in the region? Given that this comes a few days before the resumption
of talks with the United States, what assessment has he made of the continuing threat of the
DPRK to the region and the wider world?
>> Dominic Raab: I pay tribute to my right hon. Friend for
his time at the Foreign Office; he was a very effective Minister, and he continues to make
the case from the Back Benches. We are concerned about the situation in North Korea and we
regularly raise it with our international partners. There has been a series of missile
tests by Pyongyang, which are deeply troubling. We continue to make it clear that it must
show restraint and adhere to its legal commitments. Of course, there is some bluff and bluster
in the lead-up to the talks with the US. We would like to see a de-escalation of tensions
and a route to denuclearising North Korea.
>> Gill Furniss (Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough) (Lab):
This week I heard from my constituents Phil and Rachel Turner, whose five-year-old daughter
Eliza has cystic fibrosis. They are planning to move to Scotland so she can receive the
life-changing drug Orkambi on the NHS. Does the First Secretary of State agree that it
is a tragedy that families should have to uproot their lives in that way? Can he confirm
that funding will be found for children affected by this terrible disease so they can take
up the treatment without delay? Furthermore, may I suggest that the Government should support
Labour's plan to set up a publicly owned generic drugs manufacturer that would supply
medicines to the NHS at affordable rates?
>> Dominic Raab: I feel for any family and any children in
the situation that the hon. Lady highlights. We are frustrated, as is everyone, that agreement
has not yet been reached that would provide access to Orkambi. We have a system, with
the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and NHS England, where it is for
clinicians, not politicians, to determine the fair price for medicines. I say gently
that I think the proposals put forward by the Labour party would put that at risk, because
they would repel investment and innovation. That is not the right way to get medicines
to the people who need them.
>> Sir Henry Bellingham (North West Norfolk) (Con):
May I ask the First Secretary of State to turn his attention to Hong Kong? Yesterday's
events were truly awful. Obviously, the people suffering most are the victims of violence
on both sides, but now a number of UK companies with interests in Hong Kong are being adversely
affected. As one of the guarantors of the Sino-British joint declaration supporting
one country, two systems, is there now an argument for him to discuss Hong Kong with
China in the UN Security Council? Perhaps the next six-monthly report on the declaration
would be an opportunity to do that.
>> Dominic Raab: We are concerned about what we are seeing
on the streets of Hong Kong. We of course condemn any violence by protesters, but the
vast majority are seeking to exercise their right to peaceful protest. Any response by
the Hong Kong authorities needs to be proportionate, but what we need above all is a political
process and a dialogue between the Administration and the people of Hong Kong that can lead
to the kind of political reform that is envisaged in the Basic Law and reflected in the joint
declaration my hon. Friend cites.
>> Sir Mark Hendrick (Preston) (Lab/Co-op): The last Prime Minister, the right hon. Member
for Maidenhead (Mrs May), created a hostile environment for migrants that made them feel
alienated and unwelcome in this country, examples being the descendants of Windrush, and now
EU migrants. The current Prime Minister is creating an even more hostile environment
for anyone who does not agree with the UK leaving the EU on 31 October without a deal,
by invoking the language of war, and through talk of surrender, betrayal and capitulation.
Why do this Government feel the need to whip up such hatred, animosity and division, when
so many people are already suffering from the Government's austerity?
>> Dominic Raab: We are absolutely determined to correct the
wrongs experienced by the Windrush generation. We have apologised for the mistakes that were
made and, to date, over 7,200 individuals have been given documentation confirming their
status. The hon. Gentleman talks about Brexit, which has been a divisive issue for all parties
and people right across this country. The best way of resolving that and bringing the
country together is to get a deal, get Brexit done, and move on. It is incumbent on those
in all parts of the Labour party to think about the promises that they have made, and
to get behind this Government as we strive for a good deal that works for the country.
>> Maria Caulfield (Lewes) (Con): Will the Secretary of State join me in welcoming
the £13.8 million of funding for East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust that has been earmarked
for upgrading Eastbourne District General Hospital, which many of my constituents use?
A few years ago, the hospital was earmarked for closure; under the Conservatives, it is
earmarked for investment.
>> Dominic Raab: I am delighted about the new investment going
into my hon. Friend's constituency. We have backed the NHS, which will have almost £34
billion a year by 2023-24. There is an extra £1.8 billion going into 20 hospital upgrades,
and we are providing £250 million to boost artificial intelligence, so that we can have
earlier cancer detection, new dementia treatments and more personalised care. All that would
be put at risk by a Labour Government, who would tank the economy.
>> Toby Perkins (Chesterfield) (Lab): I recently met a victim of domestic violence
who continues to live in isolation and terror, even now that the abusive relationship is
over. This Parliament has a duty to her, and to every victim of domestic violence, to pass
the Domestic Abuse Bill, which is finally having its Second Reading today. Will the
Foreign Secretary promise her that this life-saving legislation will not fall due to Prorogation?
>> Dominic Raab: I pay tribute to the hon. Gentleman. Members
on all sides of the House want to stand up to, and have absolutely zero tolerance for,
any domestic abuse. The best way forward is for us to work together in a collaborative
way, which, frankly, we have not seen in recent months and years because of Brexit. That opportunity
will come today, when we debate the Domestic Abuse Bill on Second Reading.
>> Huw Merriman (Bexhill and Battle) (Con): Last year, I attempted to introduce legislation
requiring banks to maintain or deliver a cashpoint, on a free-to-use, 24-hour basis, to every
high street that supports 5,000 residents or more. I was inspired to do that when the
tourist town of Battle lost its last cashpoint of that type. I am grateful that LINK has
now seen the case for Battle's cashpoint, but I am conscious that other high streets
across the UK are not so fortunate. Will the deputy Prime Minister help to set up a meeting
with me and Ministers to help to deliver a boost to all our high streets?
>> Dominic Raab: I will certainly pass on my hon. Friend's
point directly to the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and
other Ministers, and will see what more can be done in the neighbourhood that he talks
about. The reality is that some businesses and high streets are suffering, partly because
of online competition, and partly because of consumer trends. We need to make sure that
we boost high streets and businesses, and in particular the small businesses in this
country that have created over 80% of new jobs. All that will be put at risk, frankly,
by the damaging and counter-productive policies that the shadow Chancellor has come up with
this week.
>> Julie Elliott (Sunderland Central) (Lab): Many of my constituents in Sunderland who
voted leave are contacting me, as they are petrified of a crash-out, no-deal Brexit coming
on top of years of hardship caused by Tory austerity. Will the Secretary of State confirm
that the Government will obey the law and request an extension to article 50, so that
people in Sunderland can avoid the double whammy of a no-deal Brexit on top of Tory
austerity?
>> Dominic Raab: I have to say to the hon. Lady that of course
we will adhere to the law, but the Prime Minister has been clear that we must leave by the end
of October in order to maintain public trust in our democracy and avoid the public feeling
that parliamentarians and politicians do not listen to what they have said. If she wants
to avoid a no-deal Brexit, get behind the Government in securing a deal that all sides
can support.
>> Henry Smith (Crawley) (Con): Yesterday, I was honoured to speak at the
official opening of CAE's new flight simulator and aviation training centre at Gatwick airport.
Will my right hon. Friend join me in welcoming this significant aviation inward investment
into global Britain?
>> Dominic Raab: It is absolutely crucial that we make this
country the best place to invest for technology and innovation, and that is part of the vision
of global Britain. So I pay tribute to the project in my hon. Friend's constituency.
That is what we can deliver if we can get Brexit done and dusted and move on, and allow
the people of this country to move on.
>> Anna Soubry (Broxtowe) (IGC): The right hon. Gentleman and the Government
talk about the will of the people and the need to restore trust in democracy when it
comes to Brexit, while completely forgetting that over 16 million people voted for us to
remain in the EU, 13 million people chose to abstain in the referendum, and 1.5 million
youngsters were not eligible to vote and now want a say about their future. On that basis,
surely the way to protect democracy is to put any Brexit deal to a confirmatory referendum
because, if we do not have that people's vote, we will leave the EU without the consent
of the majority of people of this country.
>> Dominic Raab: I know that the right hon. Lady and I have
different views on Brexit, but we have always got on professionally and civilly in the past,
and I understand the passion with which she holds her views. But I think a second referendum
will be the last thing this country wants. It would solve nothing and put the Union at
risk, because it would be a political gift to the SNP. If she wants to avoid no deal,
she should back the Government, not undermine them, as they strive for a good deal in Brussels.
>> Michael Tomlinson (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (Con):
With the shape of a potential deal becoming clearer, will the First Secretary of State
repeat and confirm his absolute commitment to leaving on 31 October, which is in contrast
to the Lib Dems—I do not think we have a single Lib Dem in the Chamber this afternoon—[Interruption.]
Oh, we do—we have one. Forgive me, Mr Speaker, I got that wrong. We have one Lib Dem in the
Chamber. That commitment is in contrast to the Lib Dems, who want to overturn the democratic
result, and to the Labour party, which does not quite yet know what it wants.
>> Dominic Raab: My hon. Friend is absolutely right that we
need to get Brexit done. The country wants us to move on and to keep faith with the voters.
As for the position of the Liberal Democrats, of all the different views in the House of
Commons, I find this the most difficult to understand. How could we have 16 Liberal Democrat
MEPs actually writing to Jean-Claude Juncker telling him not to negotiate or do a deal
with the UK? That is deeply irresponsible and is courting the very outcome of a no-deal
Brexit they say they wish to avoid.
>> Mr Ben Bradshaw (Exeter) (Lab): Did the Prime Minister, as The Times reports
today, receive a request from President Trump for help in trying to discredit the Mueller
report and the role of British and American intelligence in uncovering the Russian interference
in the 2016 presidential elections? Will he assure the House that no British Prime Minister
would ever collude with any foreign leader to undermine or smear our security and intelligence
services or damage their vital co-operation with their American colleagues?
>> Dominic Raab: I should first be clear that the Prime Minister
is not going to comment on the discussions with President Trump that were held in private,
but I can assure the right hon. Gentleman that of course neither the Prime Minister,
then the Foreign Secretary, nor any other member of the Government would collude in
the way he describes. That is of course entirely unacceptable, would never have happened and
did not happen.