Speeches by Stephenson.

“May I welcome the focus on reducing deprivation in this statement? How confident is the Minister that deprivation in rural areas will not be missed in the funding formula? I should refer Members to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests, because I am still a councillor on Central Bedfordshire council.…”

“On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. This morning I received a notification via the Facebook page of the hon. Member for Bedford (Mohammad Yasin) that the planning for the Universal UK theme park, which is located wholly within my constituency of Mid Bedfordshire, has been approved. The hon. Member for Bedford sh…”

“But you are still using the manual approach.”

“What assurance can you provide taxpayers that any savings reported will reflect genuine reductions in spend and not simply reclassifications or continuing inconsistencies with the data across Departments?”

“Do you know why the difference is so big each year at the moment, or is it work that you need to do through this taskforce?”

“It was only to ask what work you are doing to ensure that Departments submit better-quality data through OSCAR. If we look at figure 10, on page 27 of the NAO Report, we can see that consistently, each year, the OSCAR data is much higher than the ARA data that you are referring to. You are saying that OSCAR is incorrec…”

“I am pleased you have said that, because I would not want to tell my farmers that they have to start monitoring PFAS.”

“In terms of monitoring, do you think that the agricultural sector has a potential role to play so that we can better understand the scale of the issue across the country?”

“Dr Megson, do you want to add something to that?”

“That is very helpful. I totally understand the points about food security. If you could follow up on your answer to the first question, the Committee would appreciate it. My second question to you, Ms Robinson, and to Dr Megson is what your assessment is of the evidence regarding TFA contamination in UK rivers and how …”

“Ms Robinson, NGOs argue that alternatives exist for the approved PFAS active substances in pesticides. First, do you agree with that? Secondly, would you support a phased approach to removing PFAS from pesticides if alternatives are proven effective? You may have answered that in the previous question. If so, what depe…”

“Q12. Digital ID is intrusive and fundamentally un-British. The Government have no mandate for it, and no sensible person believes that it will tackle illegal immigration or illegal working. It is an attack on our open society and a staggering waste of taxpayers’ money, isn’t it?”

“About 1,200 people in my constituency are not in education, employment or training. With two job-destroying Budgets and the Employment Rights Bill on the horizon, does the Minister really understand the concerns of my constituents, who feel that this Government are simply making it so much harder for young people to fi…”

“3. What steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of young people not in education, employment or training.”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Jeremy. I congratulate the hon. Member for Cambridge (Daniel Zeichner) on securing this important debate. Many today may claim the same, but my constituency sits right at the heart of the Oxford-Cambridge growth corridor. We are home to Cranfield University, world …”

“That was a very helpful intervention. Local councillors in our area are crying out for Government support to deliver the growth that the Government want in our area. It would be very useful if the Minister could respond to that. To take the most advantage from Universal, our county needs to join the majority of others …”

“I think everybody in this House wants to bring children out of poverty. The way to do that is to get more families into jobs, so that they can afford to bring their children up and take responsibility. Conservative Members know that it is business that invests, creates jobs and grows our economy, which enables investme…”

“I have no time. We will back young people to buy their first home. We will not stifle the chances of a good job, punish people with higher taxes when they do find employment, push graduates into higher student loan repayments or make it harder to save for retirement, which is what this Government are doing. The appeal …”

“My hon. Friend is absolutely right—it makes it worse. The benefits of an increased minimum wage are meaningless for those who do not have a wage. We should be investing in a brighter future for young people, one of aspiration, hard work, investment and wealth. Only the Conservatives have a plan to do that, by bearing d…”

“Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, for allowing me to nip out to my Delegated Legislation Committee without missing my spot. I met with businesses this morning, and it is clear that the people who take risks, invest, create jobs and drive tax receipts are busy scratching their heads to find some positive from this Budget…”