The comments made by Helen Liddell, Baroness Liddell of Coatdyke, on 15 January 2023.
I do not think there has been sufficient scrutiny of Trade Bills and that is not helped by the non availability of a trade strategy. This is the prevailing view of the International Agreements Committee of which I am a member. And a number of Peers from around the House shared that view.
The jury is out on whether we will get sufficient information in future, India discussions are likely to be a test of that.
The comments made by Diana Johnson, the Chair of the Home Affairs Committee and the Labour MP for Kingston upon Hull North, in the House of Commons on 10 January 2023.
Dame Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)
The Home Affairs Committee has spent a great deal of time looking at the Windrush scandal and the work of Wendy Williams, including a visit to the compensation scheme unit in Sheffield, because we remain very concerned about that scheme and we reiterate our call for it to be given to an arm’s length body outside the Home Office. Very worrying are reports that the Government are planning not to take forward the recommendations on the migrants commissioner or the recommendations on the extension of the powers of the independent chief inspector of borders and immigration, who is currently the only inspector in Government who cannot publish his reports without the permission of the Home Office, and only one out of 23 of his reports has been published on time. That comes alongside the delays in the appointment of a new modern slavery commissioner. Can the Minister confirm today that the particular recommendations around the independent chief inspector of borders and immigration will be taken forward quickly by the Government?
Miss Dines
I do not accept that there is any delay or difficulty in rising to the challenge but, as the right hon. Lady knows, the Government cannot comment in relation to leaks. The Government must be judged on what they actually do, not on worries about what journalists say might be happening. Let us wait a modest amount of time to see what the Government actually do. We must judge the Government’s record on delivery, not on speculation in The Guardian.
The comments made by Simon Hart, the Conservative Party chief whip, on 11 January 2023.
Andrew Bridgen has crossed a line, causing great offence in the process. As a nation we should be very proud of what has been achieved through the vaccine programme. The vaccine is the best defence against Covid that we have. Misinformation about the vaccine causes harm and costs lives. I am therefore removing the whip from Andrew Bridgen with immediate effect, pending a formal investigation.
The comments made by Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, on 11 January 2023.
In the past 12 months, we have written the next chapter of the relationship between the UK and Japan – accelerating, building and deepening our ties. We have so much in common: a shared outlook on the world, a shared understanding of the threats and challenges we face, and a shared ambition to use our place in the world for global good, ensuring our countries prosper for generations to come.
This Reciprocal Access Agreement is hugely significant for both our nations – it cements our commitment to the Indo-Pacific and underlines our joint efforts to bolster economic security, accelerate our defence cooperation and drive innovation that creates highly skilled jobs.
In this increasingly competitive world, it is more important than ever that democratic societies continue to stand shoulder to shoulder as we navigate the unprecedented global challenges of our time.
The comments made by Jeremy Hunt, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, on 9 January 2023.
My top priority is tackling the rising cost of living – something that both families and businesses are struggling with. That means taking difficult decisions to bring down inflation while giving as much support to families and business as we are able.
Wholesale energy prices are falling and have now gone back to levels just before Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. But to provide reassurance against the risk of prices rising again we are launching the new Energy Bills Discount Scheme, giving businesses the certainty they need to plan ahead.
Even though prices are falling, I am concerned this is not being passed on to businesses, so I’ve written to Ofgem asking for an update on whether further action is action is needed to make sure the market is working for businesses.
The comments made by Alan Johnson, the former Labour Home Secretary, on the Sweeney Talks podcast published on 9 January 2023.
[On the 2019 General Election loss for Labour]
It was Corbyn. You could feel it in Hull, I wasn’t a candidate then, this was 2019, but you can feel it. Working class people are not going to be talked to as if they’ve one of the masses, as if they have no agency themselves, as if they need someone middle class from Islington to lead them out. This type of philosophy that Corbyn is steeped in has always been there, it’s in the trade union movement.
![HISTORIC PRESS RELEASE : Prime Minister Gordon Brown confirms G8 financial summit [October 2008]](https://www.ukpol.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/downingstreet-150x122.png)
The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 15 October 2008.
The G8 will convene a special summit to discuss global financial reform in the wake of the credit crisis, the PM confirmed on Wednesday evening.
Speaking at the EU Council in Brussels, Mr Brown said the meeting would take place “in the next few weeks” to help the world “come through these financial difficulties”. In a joint statement, G8 leaders noted the need for change in “regulatory and institutional regimes for the world’s financial sectors to remedy deficiencies exposed by the current crisis”.
The comments made by Gordon Brown, the then Prime Minister, on 5 November 2008.
I would like to offer my sincere congratulations to Barack Obama on winning the Presidency of the United States. I would also like to pay tribute to Senator McCain who fought a good campaign and has shown the characteristic dignity that has marked a lifetime of service to his country.
The relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom is vital to our prosperity and security. Barack Obama ran an inspirational campaign, energising politics with his progressive values and his vision for the future. I know Barack Obama and we share many values. We both have determination to show that government can act to help people fairly through these difficult times facing the global economy. And I look forward to working extremely closely with him in the coming months and years.
The message issued by Gordon Brown, the then Prime Minister, on 11 December 2009.
As Britain’s Jewish community joins Jews all over the world in celebrating Hanukah I wanted to pass on my own warm wishes for this festival of lights. As you gather round the menorah, may you draw strength from the Hanukah story of how light and faith can endure the toughest of times.
The story of Hanukah has been passed from generation to generation for thousands of years – may it be retold to bring hope for thousands of years to come.
The comments made by Gordon Brown, the then Prime Minister, on 11 February 2010.
Meeting Nelson Mandela for the first time was one of the proudest moments of my life. It felt a long way from my first engagement in his cause when I was Editor of my student newspaper and breaking a story about the University’s investments in apartheid South Africa. I didn’t know then that there would be a wave of campus occupations, and our University like so many others would be forced to disinvest, or that for the next 20 years as a student, a trade unionist, an MP and then a shadow minister I would remain involved in the campaign against this despicable racist regime.
I don’t think any of us will ever forget where we were on the day Nelson Mandela was freed. The first President of a rainbow South Africa, Madiba spent his life after prison not to recrimination and revenge, but to healing a divided nation in the service of his people.
His story reminds us that that there is no corner of the earth so far away, no injustice so entrenched, no enemy so powerful that people of good conscience cannot campaign for change and win. Five years ago, Nelson Mandela addressed a crowd in Trafalgar Square and thanked the people of Britain for their solidarity during his imprisonment. On your behalves, I would like to thank him in turn. Because today – on the twentieth anniversary of his release – it is his example that gives us the hope to struggle anew for the justice and freedom for all people to which he has dedicated his life.