Speeches by Chadwick.

“There is no greater threat to our Union than the feeling that workers in one nation matter less than those in another. People in and around Port Talbot feel that they have had a rotten deal. Can the Minister explain why, under the deal that her Government did with Tata, workers who had been at the company for longer th…”

“The Minister will have heard the points we have made about the lack of supervisory authorities. Will she write to the Welsh Minister responsible and ask him to look into the case of the Brecon canal?”

“I recognise the frustrations and problems that my hon. Friend is having getting the relevant supervisory authorities to pay heed. In Brecon, we have a similar issue: the canal might run dry following Welsh Water’s decision to start charging the Canal & River Trust for the water it extracts, yet none of the relevant…”

“In your responses to our questionnaire, you identified some development areas for you in the role, which is very admirable. What activity have you undertaken, or do you intend to undertake, to help you upskill to take on the role?”

“Across the range of your responsibilities, for what support will you look to your fellow board members in your role as Chair?”

“Statistics published last week show that Welsh Water—the supposedly not-for-profit Welsh water company—had the highest number of sewage discharges across the entire UK, despite charging some of the highest prices for its water, in a country that has some of the lowest incomes in the UK. Does my hon. Friend agree that t…”

“I fully support Sir John’s comments. First, nearly every farmer I have spoken to has a horror story to share about supermarket buying behaviour, but not that many farmers are aware that there are regulators they can turn to, share their stories with and hopefully see some intervention from. Any debate on this issue rai…”

“If the Government now believe that primary steelmaking capacity is critical for the security of the UK, do they also recognise that the skilled workers needed to produce that steel are equally as important? If so, why were they willing to let 2,800 of them be made unemployed last September in Port Talbot?”

“Last year, the Government said they would introduce a new steel strategy that would create more well-paid jobs in the places where they are most needed. Following last year’s closures of the blast furnaces at Port Talbot, many of my constituents have lost their jobs or seen their incomes fall. That includes the thousan…”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir John. I thank the hon. Member for Colne Valley (Paul Davies) for introducing this debate, as well as everyone who signed the petition. We all know by now that, thanks to the Conservatives and their allies in Reform, the relationship between the UK, Wales and the EU…”

“The national insurance increase is set to hit high streets in Wales hard, with many traders saying that they will lay off staff as a result. Last week, the Government announced £100 million of funding to be spent on reinvigorating Welsh high streets, but no towns in the Swansea, Neath or Amman valleys were on that list…”

“Will the Secretary of State give way?”

“Will the right hon. Lady give way?”

“I thank the hon. Members responsible for securing the debate. Our patron saint, St David, championed the virtues of leadership and perseverance, urging us to “do the little things”. His words, though centuries old, resonate powerfully as we face the ongoing challenges in our constituencies today. His words underscore t…”

“I do of course support my hon. Friend’s campaign, and I hope he will also endorse our campaign for St David’s Day to be considered a public holiday.”

“Will the right hon. Lady give way?”

“I beg to move, That this House has considered the Groceries Code Adjudicator. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Twigg. There is a deep unfairness at the heart of our food system. That unfairness stems from the power imbalance between producers and retailers. At one end, the retailers we buy our food…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for highlighting the achievements of the Liberal Democrats in power, particularly the fact that we have a long record of standing up for rural communities. The physical hills that Welsh farmers have to climb are getting steeper. Energy and fertiliser costs are rising, subsidy schemes are changing…”

“Absolutely. We need greater transparency down the entire supply chain and fair conditions for everyone involved in the food system. The GCA was established in response to multiple scandals where large supermarkets used their market power to take advantage of local producers. It has helped to improve fairness in the foo…”

“I thank the hon. Member for her intervention. She is absolutely right to draw attention to the plight of Welsh farmers. Their livelihoods are under threat. That is why it is so important that we ensure greater fairness in the supply chain for them, to ensure that they get a fair price for what they produce, and that th…”