Speeches by Jardine.

“That is concerning. Social media platforms and apps are in the news at the moment, and you are seeing that young people are becoming increasingly isolated because of them. We are talking about specific problems with social media, but are we doing enough to address the wider problems and the impact on younger people?”

“I am Christine Jardine, an MP for Edinburgh. Thank you very much for coming to give evidence to this inquiry about youth services and their role in making young people feel part of their communities. Starting with Isabella—if you don’t mind me calling you Isabella—what would you say are the key challenges today that yo…”

“Are you saying that you think legislators need to grasp the nettle and accept that it will be an unpopular decision, but that they have to take drastic action to support young people and help them get over this digital divide and the isolation?”

“I have been listening to what you have said, and I wanted to ask about safe spaces. Rachel talked about young people going to supermarkets, and Tanya said something about that. We talk about antisocial behaviour in lots of instances; in towns, we see groups of kids gathering in places, and we label it antisocial behavi…”

“A lot has been made of transport links to airports. At Edinburgh airport, we have excellent links—it is the end of the tramline and there are special buses—but if people are being picked up or dropped off, they have to pay £6 for the first 10 minutes and £1 for every minute after that. That is difficult for people on a…”

“The Minister is very artfully avoiding answering the question that my constituents and Hongkongers, Chinese, Muslims and Tibetans all over this country want to know the answer to, and it is not about the planning process. They are concerned about their safety and security, and they are concerned that the redacted photo…”

“The interministerial group on homelessness and rough sleeping has said that the strategy is a whole Government effort. There are various Ministers in the group, including MHCLG, Home Office, DFE, DWP, DHSC, MOJ, Treasury, and Cabinet Office. Minister, you mentioned the impact of domestic abuse and the role that it unfo…”

“Actually, you just touched on the very first thing I was going to ask. We have talked about data and the importance of it and where there might be gaps; are there specific gaps, perhaps in public services or local government, where the data with regard to race and homelessness is not being gathered already that you wou…”

“13. What steps he is taking to support job creation in the renewable energy sector.”

“I appreciate the Minister’s answer. Those 40,000 jobs are vital, but they are still outnumbered by the many thousands of jobs in the oil and gas sector. The rate of job losses there is accelerating, and people are increasingly going abroad, creating a concern that the skills necessary for the green transition will be l…”

“I welcome the Minister’s comments, as I welcome the Government’s violence against women and girls strategy, including the confirmation that the Protection from Sex-based Harassment in Public Act 2023 will commence in April. We know, however, that misogyny runs deeper, and attitudes and actions throughout society and on…”

“I have to say that this is one of the most depressing days I have spent in this Chamber in the past few years, because while I welcome the Foreign Secretary’s commitment to democracy in Venezuela and her repeated commitment to the rules-based international system and our alliances, I cannot bring that together with thi…”

“14. What steps she is taking to tackle hate crime.”

“How confident are you that the actions will be taken up and that these issues will be addressed? Nobody? That is worrying. Are you confident at all?”

“I want to go back to hysteroscopies. Kate and Charlotte, your organisations have guidelines, but despite that we are still hearing about women’s experiences of pain during hysteroscopies and coil fittings. What steps have you taken to monitor that, and are they helping?”

“Ruth, I will ask you this first: NHS England held a stakeholder event on women’s chronic and procedural pain last month; did your organisation take part in that?”

“Are there specific actions that came out of the event, that you are aware of, to try to bring that under control or address it in some way?”

“Given what you have said, is there more that the NHS or the Government can be doing to ensure that your guidelines are followed?”

“I also welcome the tone and sensitivity that the right hon. Gentleman has taken on this issue—not just today, but throughout. We all recognise that we should be led by evidence, which is absolutely vital. The trans community is a reality. They feel very vulnerable and very attacked. People who have been on the medicati…”

“The picture the hon. Gentleman paints is very familiar to me. There was recently an application on the edge of a village in my constituency. The heavy lorries would cause vibrations on the narrow roads. However, as well as the environmental impact, there is the economic impact on rural areas, where agriculture is tryin…”