Speeches by Pinkerton.

“I am grateful to my hon. Friend for giving way, especially during such a powerful and meaningful speech. One of my constituents, whom I shall refer to as Claire in order to protect her identity, is only 16 years old and has attempted to take her own life 12 times. Her desperate mother has had to take Surrey county coun…”

“I commend the hon. Lady on her excellent speech, and her celebration of local campaigners. In my constituency, Thames Water is responsible for numerous sewage leaks and a great stink that lingered over our market town of Camberley last summer. Does she agree that the Bill needs to provide for tougher regulation, and gr…”

“The Government’s target for 1.5 million more houses will have a transformative impact on the UK, particularly in terms of our national strategic infrastructure, such as motorways and motorway junctions. That will have a major impact in constituencies such as mine, which is bisected by the M3 motorway and is expected to…”

“Across Surrey last year, more than 1,800 children with special educational needs were absent from school for more than a third of the time. Special educational needs co-ordinators are incredibly frustrated that EHCPs are coming back from our local council with the wrong names, describing the wrong conditions and offeri…”

“22. What steps her Department is taking to improve support for children with special educational needs and disabilities.”

“I thank my hon. Friend for that reluctant acceptance, and I congratulate him on his speech. Does he agree with me, and with those in Lightwater surgery in my constituency, that in an average general practice such as Lightwater the national insurance rise equates to the salary of a fully qualified nurse, and that, wheth…”

“Will my hon. Friend give way?”

“I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of his statement. It has long been recognised that it is neither wise nor sustainable to simply draw a line under the past in Northern Ireland; there is too much hurt and there are too many demands for truth and justice. The Liberal Democrats believe that Northern Irelan…”

“Many Chagossians from all over the country gathered at a rally yesterday, where they expressed their concerns about the UK-Mauritius agreement. We reiterate our concerns here today. The exclusion of the voice of the Chagossians is wrong. It cannot be right, and surely no Member of this House could think it acceptable t…”

“It is a pleasure, Mr Vickers, to serve under your chairmanship, and I extend my congratulations to the hon. Member for Reading Central (Matt Rodda) on securing this crucial debate. I would like to focus on two pressing issues relating to the current and future state of transport infrastructure in my constituency of Sur…”

“I congratulate all of today’s maiden speakers on their excellent contributions. In her Budget statement last week, the Chancellor announced a £1 billion increase for special educational needs and disabilities. Any additional funding is of course very welcome, especially in Surrey, where the SEND system is in crisis, bu…”

“My constituency has a deep historic connection with the UK armed forces. Today it is home to Army Training Centre Pirbright and a substantial part of the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst. This evening, though, I want to draw attention to two veterans I have had the privilege of meeting and getting to know in Surrey He…”

“The budget sustainability plan highlights that Northern Ireland has been systemically underfunded, with the fiscal council estimating an annual shortfall of between £300 million and £400 million since 2022. Meanwhile, the Northern Ireland Executive reported a £559 million overspend between 2022 and 2024. What measures …”

“For my constituents in Surrey Heath, access to primary care—whether GPs, dentists, pharmacies or optometrists—has increasingly become a postcode lottery. Vast dentistry deserts—maybe not of Saharan scale—have opened up across Surrey Heath, with residents simply unable to find an NHS dentist with an open list for them o…”

“Negotiations on Gibraltar’s post-Brexit status are well advanced but are not without their hurdles. One such hurdle relates to the stationing of armed and uniformed Spanish border officers at Gibraltar’s air and seaports—a proposal that Gibraltarians understandably cannot tolerate. Can the Minister assure the House on …”

“Sorry, Mr Speaker. I will end there, with thanks.”

“The four city and growth deals for Northern Ireland are critical mechanisms in revitalising industries and creating new economic opportunities across key regions in Northern Ireland. The pause in UK Government funding has caused, by the Secretary of State’s own admission, uncertainty, anxiety and lost impetus in key in…”

“I agree entirely with my hon. Friend. I know that residents in my constituency face having to leave the armed forces because of the disruption that the added VAT would cause and the difficulty of procuring educational offerings. I ask the Government to think again about this policy—this education tax—and its timing and…”

“I agree with the hon. Gentleman entirely. My second point relates to military families. As we have close ties to Sandhurst, Pirbright and nearby Aldershot, around 10% of pupils in my constituency come from military families. Those families already report that they are struggling with fees because of the increasing gap …”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dame Caroline. I thank the hon. Member for Bromsgrove (Bradley Thomas) for securing this important debate. In my constituency, there are six small independent schools, two of which are dedicated to special educational needs, serving a total of 820 students. I have hear…”