Speeches by Mathew.

“I commend the hon. Member for Southgate and Wood Green (Bambos Charalambous) for organising this debate on a vital and extremely timely topic. As all hon. Members present are likely aware, we face the most acute debt crisis in history. According to CAFOD, more than 3.3 billion people are living in countries where they …”

“No, but it is in Wiltshire.”

“What progress has been made in tracking food security outcomes across UK Government programming?”

“Minister, how will you measure the contribution your Department’s climate and conflict stabilisation programme makes to improve food security and nutrition outcomes?”

“Leading on from that, you mentioned the impact of the value for money framework. Do you currently have an impact or value for money framework for SDG2 or is that something that is coming?”

“I thank the hon. Lady.”

“There would be added expense. Social workers are trained in understanding family dynamics, and need desperately to be involved in these situations.”

“I was making a point about the added expense.”

“Let me start by saying that I am in in favour of the motion, so I will vote for it, if it comes to that. However, would the hon. Member for Spen Valley (Kim Leadbeater) and the Minister consider the inclusion of two social workers on the group, made up of two GPs and a High Court judge, that assesses requests for assis…”

“Does the hon. Member agree that if the Government feel that some minimum income requirement is necessary or appropriate, it should never be greater than that necessary to render an immigrant unable to claim benefits, as Theresa May’s original sum was intended to do?”

“I thank my right hon. Friend the Member for Orkney and Shetland (Mr Carmichael) and everyone who has spoken so far in the debate. Back in 2009 I was involved in an as yet conceptual tidal project known as the reef. It was projected to stretch from Aberthaw in south Wales to Minehead in Somerset, a distance of some 17 k…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for his points, which of course are true. This technology could be employed right across the United Kingdom and its amazing coastline. A third advantage would be that ships could pass up and down the Bristol channel via large floating lock gates. Fourthly, the project could be upgraded over its l…”

“I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Wimbledon (Mr Kohler) for bringing forward this important debate, and all hon. Members for speaking with such compassion. Although the £100 million for hospice capital projects is to be welcomed, it is cash that is most needed. Julia’s House, a children’s hospice in my constituency…”

“Leading on from that, and this may be something that is of interest, are there any planned milestones or targets in place to reduce the costs of refugees? I want to chuck in on top of this some of my own thoughts, especially on allowing asylum seekers to work while their applications are underway, perhaps with the use …”

“Minister, in order for us to understand the extent to which the eradication of extreme poverty is a priority for Government, what do you see as the appropriate balance between using ODA in middle-income countries, in support of diplomatic objectives, and in low-income countries, to combat extreme poverty?”

“To keep hammering on this particular topic, a greater proportion of ODA currently goes to middle-income countries, compared to low-income countries. Are there any plans to reverse this trend?”

“Is this not perhaps a good reason for thinking about how we re-establish DFID as a separate organisation from the diplomatic side, if you like, in terms of the “Foreign and Commonwealth” bit of the FCDO?”

“Is this not perhaps a good reason for thinking about how we re-establish DFID as a separate organisation from the diplomatic side, if you like, in terms of the “Foreign and Commonwealth” bit of the FCDO?”

“Nick, I will keep you on the spot, if that is all right. The Budget commits to bringing down asylum costs, though it includes no tangible commitment to how this will be achieved. Are the FCDO and Home Office in regular communication about the management of ODA in-donor refugee costs?”

“Could I come back to this issue of dialogue? You had said, “We have handed that over to the Home Office”. I threw a kind of bone at you—an idea. I am a former aid worker, so I tend to look at things as an engineer and in those ways. Surely there could be some use in some ideas going the other way, especially from a dev…”