Tag: Speeches

Thangam Debbonaire – 2021 Comments on the Personal Conduct of Owen Paterson

The comments made by Thangam Debbonaire, the Labour MP for Bristol West, in the House of Commons on 3 November 2021.

It gives me no pleasure to be standing here responding to a standards motion, although I now feel that what I am responding to is the Leader of the House moving the amendment, rather than the motion.

I would like to place on record my sincere thanks to the standards commissioner and her team, not only for their diligent work in carrying out this inquiry, but for all the other work that they do to actively promote high standards across the House. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Rhondda (Chris Bryant), who chairs the Standards Committee, and all the other Committee members who contributed to this thorough investigation.

Since 1695, there have been rules on paid advocacy. A motion passed on 2 May 1695 said that

“the offer of money or other advantage to any Member of Parliament for the promoting of any matter whatsoever…in Parliament, is a high crime and misdemeanour”.

If, today, the amendment passes or the motion falls entirely, it sends the message—to paraphrase my right hon. Friend the Member for Ashton-under-Lyne (Angela Rayner), the deputy leader of the Labour party ,who said this better than me earlier today—that when we do not like the rules, we just break the rules; and when someone breaks the rules, we just change the rules. It turns the clock back to before 1695. Such actions were not acceptable then and they are not acceptable now.

Dame Margaret Hodge

Does my hon. Friend agree that the only logical explanation for the action by Government Ministers and Back Benchers today is not necessarily the recommendations of the report that we are considering today, but that there may be many others in line to come forward that will cause even greater embarrassment to those on the Government Benches?

Thangam Debbonaire

I thank my right hon. Friend, who is a distinguished Member of this House, for raising that point. It is hard to work out why this is happening. In fact, I am going to skip ahead to a later point in my speech. As you know, Mr Speaker, the Leader of the House stands up in front of us every week. If he wanted a debate on changing the rules and changing the system, he has had that opportunity every single week, but I have yet to hear him mention it until today, when we are considering a live case.

In this case, the Committee concluded:

“This is an egregious case of paid advocacy”.

It said that the right hon. Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson)

“repeatedly…used his privileged position…to secure benefits for two companies for whom he was a paid consultant”,

and that this

“has brought the House into disrepute.”

A lot has been said in the media about the standards process over the last week, but since 1695 this House has only ever strengthened the system. The Library and the appendix to the code of conduct can provide a timeline and details for any Government Members who are interested. The introduction of a House of Commons Standards Commissioner in 1995 and the Standards Committee in 2013 were key features of strengthening the system. It has worked well and has gone a long way to restoring public trust in the House. It is vital that the integrity of the standards system is maintained. In fact, the Committee on Standards in Public Life recommended just this week that the system needs to be strengthened, not weakened. But no—Government Members seem to want to rip up the entire system. Our Committees, which are cross-party, carry out their inquiries independently of influence from this House and that must continue to be the case.

Under the code of conduct, all of us are expected to adhere to the ethical standards of the seven principles of public life. It seems that some Government Members need a reminder that those principles are: selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership. That expectation is good for us all. If someone in this place falls short, there has to be a system in place to hold MPs and other public officials to account. That is our standards system. It is a standards system that our Parliament voted on and approved. Just changing the system when somebody does not like a result is not acceptable.

If the Government wish to debate the merits of the standards system, the Leader of the House can get up tomorrow and schedule time to do so. Some Government Members who have signed the amendment are Chairs of House Committees and could have initiated reviews or made proposals, but they did not. I hate to remind the Leader of the House, but today there is a motion before us about a report and its recommendations. It is absolutely in order for Back Benchers to table an amendment, but it is quite astonishing that the Government seem to have endorsed and whipped it.

Shamefully, it seems that Tory MPs have been backed by their Government to hijack this debate, which should have been about endorsing a Committee report. The Government are sending the message that paid advocacy—MPs selling their offices and position as an elected representative—is fine. I am afraid that some, including Government Members from the Dispatch Box today, are claiming that this is a process without an appeal, but the commissioner reviews cases, makes recommendations and refers them to the Standards Committee, which is cross-party, with a majority of members from the Government Benches, as well as lay members with expertise; they decide whether to approve the recommendations, and we debate and vote on them.

Correct me if I am wrong, but as I understand it, the right hon. Member for North Shropshire had access to legal representation. His character witness statements are in the report and were duly considered. As some of my colleagues have pointed out to me, if everybody who wanted to give oral evidence to a court of law was just accepted, where would that get us? Is that really what we are saying—that there should be a system whereby if I want to give evidence, I get to say what I like?

The Committee process is, in effect, a process of appeal. The Committee upheld the commissioner’s report and recommendations, and so must this House. For the public to maintain their trust in us, it is crucial that our independent standards procedure is not undermined or, worse still, systematically dismantled all together, as I fear is happening now. Is that what the Leader of the House wants his political legacy to be—undermining Parliament and our MPs even further? Does he fully understand the potential consequences of doing this?

Standards are important; they matter. The commissioner and the Committee took careful consideration of a very large amount of evidence. It took a long time to read, and I strongly suspect that some Members did not read it. The Committee recommended the sanction on the motion before us. It would be extraordinary for this House to overturn that independent, cross-party recommendation.

I hate to remind the Leader of the House, but just last month Government Members said that they could not possibly support retrospective rule change; and yet, here we are. In the middle of a case, Tory MPs—yes, I am going to state that, because it is only Tory MPs who have signed this amendment—are trying to change the rules. It is a serious case of paid advocacy against the rules that are clearly set out. The public rightly expect us to abide by the rules and to be held to account. We must vote to do so today.

We cannot have a return to the Tory sleaze of the 1990s. Members and the public will remember cash for questions and those Tory scandals of the 1990s. This Tory dilution of our standards procedures sends a terrible message to the public and our constituents that it is one rule for certain MPs and another for everyone else. The enduring damage that that would do to Parliament’s reputation is something that none of us should be prepared to consider.

November 3, 2021
Rishi Sunak – 2021 Speech at COP26 Finance Day

The speech made by Rishi Sunak, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, on 3 November 2021.

Good morning – and welcome to Cop26 finance day.

It’s easy to feel daunted by the scale of the challenge that we face.

By sea levels rising; droughts and wildfires spreading; people forced out of their homes.

But I look around this hall and I feel optimism.

Why?

Because this is the first COP to bring together so many of the world’s finance ministers, businesses and investors with such a clear common purpose:

To deliver the promise, made in Paris six years ago, to direct the world’s wealth to protect our planet.

The good news is that the will is there:

At least 80% of the global economy has committed to net zero or carbon neutrality targets.

Our challenge now is to deploy the investment we need to deliver those targets around the world.

To do so, we are accelerating three actions today.

First, we need increased public investment.

And I want to speak directly to the developing countries of the world:

We know you’ve been devastated by the double tragedies of coronavirus and climate change.

That’s why the G20 is stepping up to provide debt treatments more swiftly.

It’s why the IMF are providing a new, $650bn allocation of special drawing rights – and Kristalina will say more on this later.

And its why we are going to meet the target to provide $100bn of climate finance to developing countries.

And while we know we are not yet meeting it soon enough, we will work closely with developing countries to do more and reach the target sooner.

Over the next five years, we will deliver a total of $500bn investment to the countries that need it most.

And we can do more today:

I can announce that the United Kingdom will commit £100m to the Taskforce on Access to Climate Finance, making it quicker and easier for developing countries to finance they need.

And we’re supporting a new Capital Markets Mechanism, which will issue billions of new green bonds here in the UK, to fund renewable energy in developing countries.

Two tangible, practical examples of how we’re delivering our promise of $100bn.

But public investment alone isn’t enough. Our second action is to mobilise private finance.

Let me pay an enormous tribute to Mark Carney for his leadership – leadership that is delivering results.

The Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero has now brought together financial organisations with assets worth over $130 trillion of capital to be deployed.

This is an historic wall of capital for the net zero transition around the world.

What matters now is action: to invest that capital in our low carbon future.

To do that, investors need to have as much clarity and confidence in the climate impact of their investments as they do in the traditional financial metrics of profit and loss.

So our third action is to rewire the entire global financial system for Net Zero.

Better and more consistent climate data.

Sovereign green bonds.

Mandatory sustainability disclosures.

Proper climate risk surveillance.

Stronger global reporting standards.

All things we need to deliver and I’m proud that the UK is playing its part.

We’ve already made it mandatory for businesses to disclose climate-related financial information.

With 35 other countries signing up to do the same.

Today I’m announcing that the UK will go further and become the first ever ‘Net Zero Aligned Financial Centre’.

This means we are going to move towards making it mandatory for firms to publish a clear, deliverable plan…

…setting out how they will decarbonise and transition to Net Zero – with an independent Taskforce to define what’s required.

So: a renewed pledge to $100bn a year of public funding;

Over $130 trillion of private capital waiting to be deployed;

And a greener financial system, under way.

Six years ago, Paris set the ambition.

Today, in Glasgow, we’re providing the investment we need to deliver that ambition.

Now I know that when people hear about global finance it can feel remote and abstract.

But we’re not simply talking about numbers on a page.

We’re talking about making a tangible difference to people’s lives.

About cheap, reliable and clean electricity to power schools and hospitals in rural Africa.

About better coastal defences in the Philippines and the pacific islands to protect people from storm surges.

About everyone, everywhere having fresher water to drink…

…cleaner air to breathe…

…better insulated homes in which to live.

That’s the vision we’re asking you to commit to.

That’s the opportunity we’re asking you to invest in.

And that’s the work we’re asking you to begin, today.

Thank you.

November 3, 2021
James Heappey – 2021 Comments on Daesh Weapons Seized in Mali

The comments made by James Heappey, the Minister for the Armed Forces, on 3 November 2021.

These operations are yet another example of how UK peacekeepers are making a real difference to the UN mission to protect civilians in Mali.

Disrupting armed groups and taking valuable weapons and ammunition out of the hands of terrorists makes communities safer, while our presence in the region helps the UN mission to understand and counter threats to the local population.

November 3, 2021
Nicola Sturgeon – 2021 Comments on COP26

The comments made by Nicola Sturgeon, the Scottish First Minister, on 28 October 2021.

From 31 October to 12 November, Glasgow will host COP26, and welcome leaders, scientists and activists to my home city.

As any Glaswegian can tell you, we are proud of the city’s role as a birthplace of the industrial revolution in the 18th and 19th centuries. I hope that we can see our city now usher in a net-zero revolution around the world.

There’s no doubt that the stakes are high for COP26. It is the world’s best – and quite possibly its last – chance to limit the global temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

Leaders must come to Glasgow committed to the objectives of the Paris Agreement and ready to turn promises into action.

Climate change is the greatest challenge facing the planet. Global temperatures have already risen by more than 1°C on average since 1880. And people around the world are already living with the impact of that.

Limiting global warming to 1.5°C won’t prevent all the potential effects of climate change. But every fraction of a degree above that threshold risks making those impacts more catastrophic. If we allow temperatures to continue to rise, life on this planet will become increasingly unrecognisable.

Everyone who is meeting in Glasgow for the summit knows that. There is simply no excuse for inaction. But despite this, the world isn’t yet meeting the challenge.

It is important to recognise that countries with rich industrial pasts have a special responsibility. We have contributed disproportionately to climate change, so we must now do more to help tackle it.

Understanding that responsibility led Scotland to become one of the first nations to declare a climate emergency.

We have cut our greenhouse gas emissions by more than half since 1990, and since 2008 we have decarbonised faster than any country in the G20. And we now have some of the world’s most ambitious targets for future cuts in emissions.

We recognise that to have credibility we have to act as well as talk. We must meet targets, not just set them.

That’s why, as part of the cooperation agreement between my government and the Scottish Greens, we committed to increase and accelerate our climate action, to go further, faster, and – as we have now set out – to begin work on improving the pace at which a just transition away from fossil fuels is delivered in industries such as oil and gas, so that we are living up to the Paris Agreement.

Small countries such as Scotland can lead the way – and I am determined that we will – but in the coming days it is the countries that emit the most that most need to step up.

They must make ambitious, credible pledges to achieve near-term emissions reductions and ultimately to reach net zero. COP26 must secure commitments that keep alive the chance of limiting global warming to 1.5°C.

Global finance, too, needs to be part of the plan of action to help the communities facing the worst impacts of the climate crisis.

In Copenhagen in 2009, developed countries promised to provide $100bn of climate aid every year from 2020. In Paris in 2015, that commitment was repeated. After Glasgow, it must be delivered.

Action must be taken to support countries already living with the often devastating impact of climate change, particularly in the Global South. We must ensure that the nature-based and technological solutions that can help countries adapt to, mitigate and prevent global warming are available to all.

The loss and damage caused by climate change is being discussed in the second week of the summit, but it can’t be merely discussed – we must see some real progress.

This summit must be the first at which the world takes this issue seriously. Scotland has recently doubled our climate justice fund – an extremely small gesture compared with the scale of the problem, but one that at least acknowledges its significance.

Leaders in Glasgow must also focus on fairness between generations, as well as fairness between nations. I’m acutely aware that young people will spend their lives living with the fallout from a climate crisis that preceding generations created.

All leaders at COP26 need to understand younger generations’ anxiety and anger.

To help ensure the voices of the young are heard, Scotland has funded the Conference of Youth, beginning on 28 October. During the conference, more than 400 young people from over 140 countries will gather to draw up their demands of world leaders.

Scotland will do everything we can to ensure the summit’s success. We are not around the United Nations table as an independent state. But Scotland is the location for this year’s COP, and so it has a special role.

In practical terms, we have offered all the help we can to the UN. And we will support the COP presidency of the UK government in any way we can to deliver the bold, progressive, fair and just outcome that is needed.

After all, this summit could shape the future of the world we all live in. Absolutely nothing – and certainly not party politics – is more important than working together to make meaningful progress.

Ultimately, however, the true test of COP26 will be whether the summit delivers the outcomes the world needs.

Global leaders must agree to actions that will secure 1.5°C as a genuine prospect, not just as a slogan.

November 2, 2021
Boris Johnson – 2021 Speech at COP26 Build Back Better Meeting

The speech made by Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, on 2 November 2021.

Let me thank President Biden and President von der Leyen for hosting this meeting and you’re absolutely right that we began this idea with the Build Back Better partnership in Carbis Bay.

To keep 1.5 degrees in sight, to reach global net zero

and to protect vulnerable countries from the impacts of climate change

requires the development of new clean and green infrastructure.

And this presents a huge opportunity to turn our struggle against climate change into a global mission for jobs and growth.

In the UK, through our net zero strategy, we’re pioneering a green industrial revolution,

with public investment leveraging billions of pounds of private funding into whole new industries

from offshore wind to carbon capture and storage

allowing us in the UK to level up our whole country with thousands of new green jobs.

And by partnering with developing and emerging economies to invest in climate-smart infrastructure,

and meeting our $100 billion climate finance commitment

we can go on to unlock trillions, when it’s tens of trillions or hundreds of trillions as Mark Carney would say, of private finance,

to do something similar worldwide.

So our pursuit of global net zero can drive global levelling up,

helping developing economies fast track their way to a more prosperous, clean and green future.

So the UK wholeheartedly supports the principles that President Biden has set out,

working in partnership to create the highest standards of climate-resilient infrastructure,

rooted in our shared democratic values of transparency, inclusivity and collaboration,

and led by the host countries, responding to their needs.

And I welcome the work of Mark Carney and others on creating what we call “country platforms” to help connect pipelines of green infrastructure projects with the vast private capital looking to invest in net zero.

The UK is proud to contribute to these efforts today with our Clean Green Initiative.

By taking our green industrial revolution global,

we’re investing over £3 billion,

and mobilising a similar amount of private finance

to support technologies like drought-resistant agriculture where investors have been reluctant to take on the risks alone.

We’re investing in green bonds for renewable energy in Vietnam,

and solar power in Burkina Faso, Pakistan, Nepal and Chad.

We’re offering guarantees to the World Bank and the African Development Bank,

to unlock up to £2.2bn billion of new finance for green infrastructure across India and Africa.

And we’re working with President Ramaphosa to deliver his ambitious vision for faster, greener growth,

helping to lead an $8.5 billion partnership to decarbonise what is currently the most carbon intensive energy system in the world,

and by choking off international finance for coal.

I look forward to working with all of you as we take forward these investments in clean, green infrastructure

And this is like one of those moments in the story of humanity when everybody is making the same intellectual breakthrough at the same time in seeing the way forward, in leveraging in private finance – we have the Global Gateway, we have the One Planet Initiative, we have our Clean Green Initiative, we have Build Back Better World, we have GFANZ- everybody is now on the same thing, it’s time to bring it all together so this can also become the moment we get real on levelling up the world,

securing a cleaner, greener and more prosperous future for everyone.

November 2, 2021
Therese Coffey – 2021 Statement on the Cold Weather Payments Scheme

The statement made by Therese Coffey, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, in the House of Commons on 1 November 2021.

We are today announcing the outcome of this year’s Met Office review of the cold weather payments scheme. The Department for Work and Pensions asks the Met Office to provide advice annually on whether the linkages between postcode areas and weather stations remain the best available. The postcode linkages take account of topography, the extent of built-up areas and the distance from available weather stations. Each postcode area is assigned to a station with the most similar climate in terms of mean winter temperature. Therefore, the assigned station is not necessarily the nearest one. Where necessary, we make changes annually to ensure that postcodes are linked to the most appropriate weather station for the purposes of administering cold weather payments.

For the 2021-22 season, the changes to weather station and postcode linkages are as follows:

The PH12 postcode will move from Leuchars to Strathallan weather station.

Due to the closure of the weather station at South Farnborough, the following postcodes will move to Odiham: GU1-4, GU7-12, GU14-35, GU46-47, GU51-52, RG1-2, RG4-8, RG10, RG12, RG14, RG18-27, RG29-31, RG40-42, RG45, SL1-2, SL4-6 and SO24.

Due to the closure of Bedford weather station, the following postcodes will move to Wittering: NN14-16; and the following postcodes will move to Stowe weather station: NN1-7, NN11-13 and MK18.

November 2, 2021
Rachel Maclean – 2021 Statement on the Istanbul Convention Ratification

The statement made by Rachel Maclean, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, in the House of Commons on 1 November 2021.

The Government have today laid before Parliament and published the fifth annual report on the United Kingdom’s progress toward the ratification of the Council of Europe convention on combating violence against women and domestic violence (the “Istanbul convention”). The UK signed the Istanbul convention in 2012, signalling our strong commitment to tackling violence against women and girls (VAWG), and this Government remain committed to ratifying it. The report sets out the work undertaken by the UK Government and the devolved Administrations to tackle VAWG since the 2020 report on progress, as well as the last remaining barriers to ratification.

Our measures to protect women and girls from violence are already some of the most robust in the world, and in most respects, we comply with, or go further than the convention requires. Since signing the convention in 2012, we have significantly strengthened our legislative framework, introduced a range of new protective tools and issued new guidance for professionals to better protect victims. In July, we published our cross-Government tackling violence against women and girls strategy to help ensure that women and girls are safe everywhere—at home, at work, online and on the streets. This strategy will be followed by a complementary domestic abuse strategy later this year.

On 29 April 2021 we passed the landmark Domestic Abuse Act, which includes a package of measures to transform our response to domestic abuse. The Act includes the necessary legislative measures to ensure all parts of the UK are compliant with article 44 of the convention, which requires that criminal courts in the UK have extraterritorial jurisdiction over certain violent and sexual offences. On 29 June 2021 these provisions automatically came into force in England and Wales, and the corresponding provisions for Scotland were brought into force on the same day. Therefore, we have recorded these parts of the UK as compliant with article 44 for the first time in this year’s report. In addition, on 1 March 2021 the Domestic Abuse and Civil Proceedings Act (Northern Ireland) 2021 became law. The Act creates a new domestic abuse offence which criminalises psychological violence in Northern Ireland, as required by article 33 of the convention, and contains provisions for extraterritorial jurisdiction for the new offence. I have received confirmation from Ministers in the Northern Ireland Executive that they expect to implement this new offence and the extraterritorial jurisdiction provisions in the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 by late February 2022.

The issue of support for migrant victims of domestic abuse was raised by the Joint Committee on the Draft Domestic Abuse Bill in 2019 and we committed to undertake a review into the Government’s overall response to migrant victims of domestic abuse. On 3 July 2020 the findings from this review were published on www.gov.uk and found that a more detailed evidence base was needed to demonstrate which cohorts of migrant victims are likely to be most in need of support, the numbers involved and how well existing arrangements may address their needs. That is why the Government launched a £1.5 million support for migrant victims (SMV) pilot scheme to address these evidence gaps, which will then enable us to take evidence-based decisions on how best to protect these victims in the long term. The scheme launched in April and is intended to run until 31 March 2022. We have therefore continued to record articles 4(3) —to the extent that it relates to non-discrimination on the grounds of migrant or refugee status—and 59 as “under review” this year pending the evaluation and findings from the SMV scheme.

The publication of this report fulfils the requirement of section 2 of the Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence (Ratification of Convention) Act 2017. I will lay before Parliament the report required by section 1 of that Act when our timescale for ratification is clear.

Copies of the report will be published on the Government’s website at: www.gov.uk.

November 2, 2021
Rachel Maclean – 2021 Statement on the Domestic Abuse Commissioner

The statement made by Rachel Maclean, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, in the House of Commons on 1 November 2021.

Tackling domestic abuse remains a key priority for this Government. Our landmark Domestic Abuse Act 2021 received Royal Assent in April of this year, setting the legal framework to provide further protections to the millions of people who experience domestic abuse, and strengthen measures to tackle perpetrators.

A number of provisions of the Act have already come into force, including for the first time in history a wide-ranging legal definition of domestic abuse which incorporates a range of abuses beyond physical violence, including coercive or controlling behaviour, emotional and economic abuse.

Today, further provisions have been implemented as we establish the domestic abuse commissioner as a statutory office holder. As part of this, there is a requirement that the Secretary of State issue a statutory framework document that deals with matters relating to the commissioner such as the functions, powers, governance, funding and staffing linked to the role. The document sets out in detail how the Home Office will work with the commissioner, and outlines the relationship between the independent commissioner and Government.

The UK Government have worked closely with the Welsh Government to consider and develop the arrangements set out in the document. The framework document has been laid before Parliament today and is also available on www.gov.uk.

Background

The designate domestic abuse commissioner, Nicole Jacobs, was appointed on 18 September 2019 to ensure that the crucial work of the commissioner could begin.

The office of the domestic abuse commissioner will provide public leadership on domestic abuse issues and play a key role in overseeing and monitoring the provision of domestic abuse services.

The commissioner will be responsible for encouraging good practice in preventing domestic abuse; in identifying victims and survivors, including children, and perpetrators; and in the protection and provision of support to people affected by domestic abuse.

The commissioner will have the power and the duty to publish reports and must lay them before Parliament. Within the next year she must publish a report on the need and provision for certain domestic abuse services in England. These reports will hold local commissioners, statutory agencies and national Government to account and make recommendations on how they can improve their response.

Specified public authorities will be under a duty to co-operate with the commissioner, and they and Government Ministers will be required to respond to each recommendation made to them within 56 days.

The commissioner will operate in England and Wales but will consider only reserved matters in Wales, such as criminal justice. They will, however, be expected to work closely with the national advisers for violence against women, gender-based violence, domestic abuse and sexual violence in Wales. The statutory framework document also covers the commissioner’s relationship with the UK Parliament and Senedd Cymru in so far as the activities of the commissioner relate to devolved matters in Wales.

The Domestic Abuse Act forms part of the action this Government are taking to transform our response to domestic abuse and violence against women and girls. In July we published a new cross-Government tackling violence against women and girls strategy, which commits to driving a step change in the response to these crimes, with a whole system approach focusing on prioritising prevention, supporting victims and pursuing perpetrators, underpinned by a stronger system. Later this year we will publish a complementary domestic abuse strategy, which will further shift the dial towards preventing domestic abuse from happening in the first place through early intervention, increasing our focus on tackling perpetrators of abuse to reduce reoffending and reaffirming our commitment to supporting victims.

November 2, 2021
James Cleverly – 2021 Statement on the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons

The statement made by James Cleverly, the Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, in the House of Commons on 1 November 2021.

Today the UK published its national report ahead of the 10th review conference of the parties to the treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons (NPT). This report reviews the progress that the UK has made against the NPT’s three pillars: disarmament, non-proliferation and the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. It will be submitted to the UN before the 10th review conference that will take place in New York in January 2022.

The UK’s commitment to the treaty and to fulfilling our NPT obligations remains undiminished. As an original signatory of the NPT, and a nuclear weapon state that takes its responsibilities seriously, the UK remains committed to the long-term goal of a world without nuclear weapons where all states share in the peaceful uses of nuclear technologies.

The NPT has been an unmitigated success for over 50 years. It is the centre of international efforts to stop the spread of nuclear weapons, to create a nuclear weapon-free world, and to enable access to the peaceful use of nuclear technology.

Despite its successes, we should not underestimate the challenges facing the global nuclear order. We have previously identified risks to the UK from major nuclear armed states, emerging nuclear states and state-sponsored nuclear terrorism. Those risks have not gone away; some have increased. We face a deteriorating nuclear security environment. The increase in global competition, challenges to the international order, and the proliferation of nuclear weapons pose a significant challenge to strategic stability. We must work to reverse this trend. The NPT will be central to this and we must continue to work with others to reinforce the parts of the international architecture that are under threat. We must also shape the international order of the future so that it can respond effectively.

We are proud of our contributions to the NPT and the steps we have taken since the last review conference in 2015.

We have played a leading role by pioneering work in nuclear disarmament verification, championing transparency and advancing risk reduction. We continue to work closely with international partners, civil society and academia to enhance mutual trust and confidence and create the environment for further progress on disarmament. We continue to press for significant steps towards multilateral disarmament. This includes the entry into force of the comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty, and successful negotiations on a fissile material cut-off treaty in the conference on disarmament. We possess the smallest stockpile of any of the nuclear weapon states recognised by the NPT and are the only one to maintain a single delivery system. Maintaining the UK’s nuclear deterrent capability at a minimum credible level, taking into account the international environment, is fully consistent with our international legal obligations, including those under article VI of the NPT.

The UK continues to be a strong supporter of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which underpins non-proliferation under the NPT. We have sought to strengthen the international nuclear safeguards system, through our diplomatic efforts and through direct assistance from our nuclear safeguards programme. The review conference offers opportunities to encourage all states that have not yet done so to sign, ratify and implement safeguards agreements. We seek new opportunities to enhance the security of nuclear materials, ensuring these arrangements remain robust and evolve to meet new threats. We will promote the ratification of security conventions at the review conference and continue to provide direct assistance to other states through our global nuclear security programme.

Finally yet importantly, we want to highlight the sometimes overlooked part of the NPT: the peaceful uses of nuclear technologies. The UK has encouraged and will continue to encourage the development and exchange of peaceful nuclear technologies enabled by the NPT. This has a positive impact on people’s lives through nuclear medicine, food safety and pest control. Nuclear technologies have a critical part to play in tackling climate change—not only in helping to achieve net zero, but also through nuclear applications that can help countries to adapt and become more resilient to climate change.

Looking towards the 10th review conference, the UK seeks an outcome that strengthens the NPT as the irreplaceable foundation and framework for our common efforts on nuclear disarmament, non-proliferation and the peaceful uses of nuclear technology. The UK is ready to work with all countries to strengthen the regime and to promote international stability, peace and security.

A copy of the report has been placed in the Libraries of both Houses and on the www.gov.uk website.

November 2, 2021
Chris Heaton-Harris – 2021 Speech on Weardale Railways

The speech made by Chris Heaton-Harris, the Minister of State at the Department for Transport, in the House of Commons on 1 November 2021.

Last evening, there was a terrible train accident near Salisbury. Earlier today, two people were still in hospital, one of whom is a member of the railway family. I thought it would be appropriate for the House to send our best wishes to those who are injured and affected by what happened. I am sure that plenty of lessons will be learnt, but we are at the very early stages of the investigation. I am sure I will get the opportunity to inform the House about that later, but it would have been remiss of me not to say something at this point.

I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for North West Durham (Mr Holden) on securing the debate on an issue that I know is of great importance to him and his constituents. When I visited him a few months ago to see the line for myself, I could detect the huge community pride in the railway and what it could be, and just the sense of community itself. I know that his constituents would be proud of him for what he has managed to achieve so far. I also thank for their kind words my hon. Friends the Members for Darlington (Peter Gibson) and for Sedgefield (Paul Howell). I often jest with my hon. Friend the Member for Sedgefield about his wisdom—I call it age, but he calls it wisdom—but it is not a joke to say that he has done more for Sedgefield in less than two years than many previous incumbents of that seat did in a generation. He is to be commended for that. I also congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Bishop Auckland (Dehenna Davison) who cannot be here tonight. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for West Bromwich East (Nicola Richards) for her interest in these matters and the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Slough (Mr Dhesi), who is omnipresent in these debates when he does not have to be. That shows in a very good light the seriousness with which he takes these matters and I appreciate his scrutiny.

I was pleased that last week the Budget confirmed the importance of this amazing local commitment, which has secured initial funding from the restoring your railway fund to develop the proposal and see if it stacks up for potential future delivery. I have heard the phrase “shy bairns get nowt”—I spent some time in the European Parliament and my then flatmate was Lord Callanan of Low Fell, as he is now, who used the phrase quite a lot. He indoctrinated me into terms that, as a midlander or someone from further south than him, I might not have known. I know that a number of not-so-shy bairns have been doing a huge amount of work to try to get more than nowt out of the Government, and I think it is paying off for them. I look forward to working with all the hon. Members concerned, Durham County Council and the Auckland Project, which my hon. Friend the Member for North West Durham mentioned, as this proposal develops.

The Government are committed to levelling up the country, and reconnecting communities to the railway is central to that ambition. As part of our levelling up agenda, in January 2020, the Government pledged £500 million for the restoring your railway programme to deliver on our manifesto commitment to start reopening lines and stations. That investment is reconnecting communities across the country, regenerating local economies and improving access to jobs, homes and education—all things that my hon. Friend knows and campaigns on.

More than five decades ago, the Beeching report led to the closure of one third of our railway network, with 2,363 stations and 5,000 miles of track identified for closure. Many places lost their railway connection and really have not recovered since. It is sometimes easy to forget, however, that some communities, rather than being cut off as a result of the Beeching axe, were the victims of decisions taken even earlier. Those communities, which include those that are the subject of today’s debate, feel the difficulties of being cut off from the rail network just as keenly as those that lost their lines and stations in Dr Beeching’s infamous “reshaping” of Britain’s railways.

For the towns and villages left isolated, no matter when they were cut off, restoring a railway line or station has the potential to revitalise the community. It breathes new life into high streets, drives investment in businesses and housing, and opens up new opportunities for work and education. That is why we set up the restoring your railway fund, and that is why the Government are investing across the country right now to progress work on restoring those connections. The Dartmoor line will be the first to reopen, later this month.

Part of the restoring your railway programme is the ideas fund, which provides development funding for early-stage proposals to help communities to develop strategic outline business cases. In three rounds of bidding, the fund has received 199 applications, including a successful application in the most recent round for the Weardale railway. Every bid has been sponsored by at least one Member of Parliament, and often several. In fact, 320 Members of Parliament have supported one or more bids to the fund.

I pay tribute to all hon. and right hon. Members from across the House who have sponsored bids to restore rail lines and stations in their constituencies. They have given us an amazing choice. It is a rich mix of choices; a rich tagine, if you will—a proper dish from which I can sample and choose wisely how to spend taxpayers’ money in the best and most appropriate way. I really do appreciate the amount of work that goes into formulating a bid, and I am aware of just how much these proposals mean for local communities. Those Members who have taken the time to work with their local communities and put forward a proposal are great advocates for their constituencies, as demonstrated here this evening.

I was pleased that as part of the Budget last week, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor was able to announce 13 more schemes from the third round of the ideas fund that have been successful in their bids for funding. Of course, one of those schemes was the proposal to reopen the Weardale line to passenger services. That scheme and 12 others from the third round join the 25 projects already being supported to develop their own proposals in order to get a step closer to reopening lines and stations.

During the assessment process, I had the pleasure of reviewing all the proposals and of seeing what a difference reopening those stations and lines could make to those communities. Obviously, as we have heard from my hon. Friend the Member for North West Durham, the Weardale line is no different. Seeking to join the existing 18-mile heritage railway in the Weardale area of outstanding natural beauty, which closed to passenger services in 1953, to the Bishop line and create one continuous travel corridor connecting to the east coast main line, the proposal has the potential to transform the region. An individual in Eastgate would be able to get a direct train into Darlington, accessing all the opportunities available there, and go further to all the places up and down the east coast main line. It would allow isolated communities to access employment and educational opportunities and encourage inward investment and economic regeneration across the area.

I am well aware that, for the past nine years, the Auckland Project, a local regeneration charity, has sought to create opportunities and investment in Bishop Auckland and the surrounding area, and this project has the potential to bring tourists into the area to appreciate the many attractions on offer. If someone wants to know what a difference restoring a lost rail connection will make, and what it will look like, they really do not have to go much further than speaking to my hon. Friend the Member for North West Durham.

The restoring your railway programme is already connecting communities, and not all that far from Weardale, £34 million for detailed development and early construction activity has already been funded to rapidly progress plans to reopen the Northumberland line between Ashington and Blyth, which closed to passengers in 1964 as part of the Beeching cuts.

Slightly further afield—as I have mentioned—but displaying our commitment to level up communities across the country, the Dartmoor line, between Okehampton and Exeter in the south-west, will officially reopen for year-round services on 20 November this year, thanks to £40 million of investment. This will mark the first reopening under the restoring your railway manifesto commitment. We are getting our manifesto delivered. The route will connect Exeter St Davids, Crediton and Okehampton, providing a hub for visitors to explore Dartmoor and regional links for local commuters. It has been very well received by local people.

Based on what my hon. Friend said, I should take a moment to recognise this country’s heritage railways. The UK is a true pioneer in the history of railway development, nurturing and benefiting from the talents of Brunel and Stephenson, among others. Heritage railways are major contributors to the UK’s visitor economy, attracting about 13 million visitors pre-pandemic and bringing in an estimated £400 million to the economy annually.

There are over 150 operational heritage railways, running trains over 600 miles of track between 460 stations. They perform a variety of important functions across the country, from transportation to leisure and entertainment, tourism, education and community projects, and as symbols of our country’s rich industrial heritage. This Government, led by my colleagues in the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, are working to ensure the continued success and growth of this important component of the heritage sector.

I can assure the House that a tremendous amount of work is being done in this area—in restoring your railway—to reconnect smaller communities, larger communities, towns with cities and villages with towns, and to regenerate local economies and improve access to jobs, homes and education. I really look forward to seeing the proposal to reinstate passenger services on the Weardale railway develop through the ideas fund.

Finally, I thank all right hon. and hon. Members who took part in the first three rounds. I say to those who were not successful: please keep the faith, because this is a very popular policy, and I expect to see it rear its head again.

November 2, 2021