Speeches by McDonald.

“BCW in my hon. Friend’s constituency is an extremely important engineering firm not only for Jaguar Land Rover, but for our manufacturing supply chains. The concerns he has raised about access to finance for companies lower down in the supply chain are ones that I have raised with both Jaguar Land Rover and banks—I had…”

“My hon. Friend is a fantastic champion for ceramics. This is only my second time at the Dispatch Box, but it is also the second time that he has asked me about this. He and I have already met to discuss it, and I am happy to have further conversations with him and industry about everything we can do, as soon as possibl…”

“We recognise the importance of the steel industry in Wales and of Trostre in particular, which has more than 70 years of tinplate production and is the only tinning line in the UK. I met the chief executive of Tata Steel this week to discuss this very issue. He referred to a softening in market demand, but fundamentall…”

“I am so pleased that, due to a quirk in the timings, we have almost two hours for the discussion of cement. I will endeavour to make the best use of the time available. I very much thank my hon. Friend the Member for Derbyshire Dales (John Whitby) for raising the issue of cement manufacture in the UK. I share his conce…”

“I would like to thank the Minister for reminding the House of the litany of errors that we had to pick up when we came into office. My portfolio is filled with companies that have struggled so much over the past 10 years, but those companies now find that they have a partner in Government who will work with them to att…”

“It is no wonder that there is so much laughter around the Chamber, because the policies of the previous Conservative Government saw industry decline. They were prepared to let industry decline because, fundamentally, they do not believe in industry, and now we find that they do not believe in climate science. We on thi…”

“The hon. Member said that thousands and thousands of jobs are at risk in this country; they are at risk from the climate-denying policies of Reform. The Institution of Chemical Engineers reported last week that there are 800,000 jobs in the green economy in this country—thousands and thousands in the constituencies of …”

“My hon. Friend raises an important point about the scope of the supercharger, which we are going to look at in 2026. He will be aware that some parts of the ceramics supply chain can access the supercharger, but I too am concerned about the impacts of high energy costs on the ceramics sector. I will meet the head of Ce…”

“I am delighted that my first outing at the Dispatch Box is to answer a question from my hon. Friend, and on a topic that we have worked on so much over the past year. We on the Labour side know that net zero is the greatest economic opportunity of our generation. Unlike the previous Conservative Government, which allow…”

“We want to make sure that businesses benefit from our clean energy mission, especially those in vital industries such as brewing. Our forthcoming carbon budget and growth delivery plan and our refreshed industrial decarbonisation strategy will help to provide further clarity for such businesses, including on how we int…”

“I commend Asahi, which I know is an important employer in the hon. Member’s constituency, for its work on decarbonisation and also for being my favourite Japanese beer. In a previous life, I worked as a fitter’s mate in a brewery, and I know how difficult it is to decarbonise the process there. Maybe it is something I …”

“This defence industrial strategy shows that we finally have a Government who take our British defence industry seriously. A foundation of domestic orders enables British businesses to compete effectively for export orders. Can the Minister outline the nature of the support from UK Defence Innovation that our defence an…”

“T8. How will the defence industrial strategy, which is most welcome, ensure that more public money is spent with supply chain businesses in the UK—particularly those in the Teesside defence and innovation cluster in Stockton, Billingham and Norton?”

“My hon. Friend is doing an amazing job of talking about the importance of small hospitality businesses to the local community. Does he agree that that extends beyond economic value to their value more generally? The Golden Smog, a friendly family pub in my constituency, supports an inclusive basketball team and has rai…”

“I thank the right hon. Gentleman for giving way—sorry for treading on his punchline. I was very pleased to hear his new-found enthusiasm for Teesside. That is something we all share, but it seems to stand at odds with the comments he made to my predecessor about the town of Stockton. Does he stand by those terrible com…”

“It would have enhanced the shadow Minister’s response if he had at least acknowledged that this Government are literally picking up the pieces after the chaotic dismemberment of the steel industry on the Conservative party’s watch. I have worked at Stocksbridge and Rotherham, and I pay tribute to the workforce there—bu…”

“The maritime sector offers very rewarding careers, particularly to people like me, who get quite excited by large-scale engineering projects. I think someone in the Department for Transport shares my enthusiasm, because they have awarded funding to set up the Tees maritime cluster, which is training young people in our…”

“A much stronger relationship between the UK and France in this area will require a deepening of our commercial collaborations in our respective industrial bases, particularly in the supply chain. Will the Minister comment on how the Government’s own procurement policies will help to support this collaboration, particul…”

“The Minister may recall that in an earlier armed forces debate, I raised the case of Kate Green, a Royal Military Police veteran who felt compelled to leave the service just before the ban was lifted. Will he join me in highlighting the fact that the impact scheme makes provision for people who felt compelled to leave …”

“In the last 12 months, the Government have invested £5 million in North Tees hospital, £20 million in Billingham town centre and another £20 million in Stockton town centre—with police patrols seven days a week—£1 billion in local transport in Teesside and £4 billion in carbon capture and storage, and have rescued Brit…”