Speeches by Thomas.

“Bromsgrove golf course is in open countryside. It is a beautiful, green open space and one of the most popular golf courses anywhere in the country, and it contains more than 20,000 trees. Does the Minister really think that it is suitable for development, particularly at scale? Will he rule out development on such gol…”

“Heritage buildings are much loved by many members of the community. They underpin our identity. Indeed, many of them are places of worship, including the fantastic St John’s church in Bromsgrove, the spire of which has just had a £500,000 renovation. Will the Leader of the House join me in congratulating the Friends of…”

“Last year, 9.7% of vehicles sold in the UK were Chinese-manufactured electric vehicles—a near doubling of the market share that they had the year before, which stood at 4.9%. What assessment has the Secretary of State’s Department made of the threat that this may pose to national security and to our industrial resilien…”

“For the avoidance of doubt, I do not have to do that, but I know many people who do.”

“My hon. Friend is spot on. Constituents, particularly older residents, have contacted me because they have missed out on crucial calls from GPs and other supporting services that they require. It is about the safety and wellbeing of our constituents as much as it is about connectivity and the economy. In the limited ti…”

“I congratulate the hon. Member for North Shropshire (Helen Morgan) on being persistent and finally securing this very important debate. Few phrases in modern Britain ring as hollow as “world-class connectivity”. Speaking plainly, rural mobile phone connectivity in this country is not merely patchy or inconsistent; in s…”

“Will the Secretary of State give way?”

“I am asking about this Government. This Government have published—”

“I will not give way, because the Secretary of State would not give way to me. I will not give way and be lectured to by Labour MPs who are not upholding their promises. The Government stood on a manifesto to freeze council tax, knowing full well that they would not be able to deliver that. Worse still, last May, prior …”

“I do not have any further questions.”

“That is what I am doing. This is the question I would like to ask. Why is China being treated differently?”

“Residents across the country knew ahead of the general election that the Prime Minister had made various very public pledges that the Labour party would freeze council tax should it come to office. If there is a mistake on my part and those words were not in the manifesto, I apologise for that, but—here I return to my …”

“I will keep my comments brief, and they will be focused on council tax. The reason they will be brief is that I was hoping to intervene earlier on the Secretary of State. He said that he did not want to dodge difficult topics and wanted to talk about promises, but he did not take an intervention from me, probably becau…”

“I do not believe he has. He has made reference to the previous Government but—”

“This Government have a very inconsistent approach. They have released the text of deals with other countries, but not with China. There is quite evidently a two-tier approach. If the Government are going to apply a uniform approach, why does the Secretary of State not release the text of this deal?”

“That is what I have been doing, but you have not answered them, Secretary of State.”

“I thank my hon. Friend and neighbour; he is far too generous. I was leader of Wychavon district council in south Worcestershire for five years, and we proudly froze council tax for five years consistently without cutting a single service. Local government is lean. It can be run efficiently and effectively without dupin…”

“Substantively, I would like to see the Government release the text of this deal, as Parliament deserves to see it. The Secretary of State can chuckle and laugh and be evasive around the topic, but it is a serious issue.”

“That is what I am doing. This Government have published the text of deals with other countries. Why not release the text of the deal for China?”

“I am talking about this Government, Secretary of State. You have released the texts for other countries. Release the Chinese text.”