Speeches by Abrahams.

“I also welcome this fantastic statement. The creative industries as a whole, but the film industry in particular, punch above their weight internationally. The Secretary of State mentioned Steve McQueen, who famously spoke about the challenges that he faced as a young black man to succeed in the industry, and the suppo…”

“I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her response. I absolutely recognise that energy prices over the last few years have escalated, putting particular pressure on households with low incomes and also those with high energy needs, such as disabled people and pensioners. I agree that the warm home discount scheme is valu…”

“6. What recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing energy social tariffs.”

“As a former public health consultant, I would obviously agree with my hon. Friend. I have similar health inequalities across Oldham. I was about to talk about the impact of other issues, such as social security cuts, which meant greater poverty, including in-work poverty and children from working families living in pov…”

“I welcome the work that my right hon. Friend is doing in ensuring that the uptake of pension credit is increased, but there are genuine concerns about people who are just above that threshold who will remain in poverty—just under a quarter of a million in the north-west alone. In addition to the fantastic commitment th…”

“I will be brief. I think there is general consensus on Lord Darzi’s review of the issues facing the NHS, but in spite of what the shadow Minister says, staff morale is low, particularly when compared with 2010. It has never been so low. I express my gratitude to and solidarity with all the staff, clinical and non-clini…”

“I extend my heartfelt sympathies to the families who lost loved ones in the terror attack a year ago, as well as to those who have loved ones that are held in captivity at the moment. I would also like to do the same for ordinary Palestinian civilians who have lost loved ones in the violence of the past year. It is qui…”

“I, too, welcome the Solicitor General to her position. She will be aware of the appalling increase in crimes against women and girls throughout the United Kingdom, including my constituency and Greater Manchester more widely. More than a million such crimes were recorded last year, constituting both 20% of all crimes l…”

“For the sake of openness and transparency, I will just mention that I am a former chair of an NHS trust and a public health academic. I recognise the real issues that are raised in the findings of the Darzi rapid review. I am grateful to Lord Darzi for referring in particular to the inequalities that we have experience…”

“2. What steps she is taking to help increase prosecution rates for cases relating to violence against women and girls.”

“I recognise the serious economic context of the debate today. The Institute for Fiscal Studies, for example, has estimated that 320,000 people are being pushed into poverty because of mortgage interest rate rises triggered by the disastrous autumn 2022 mini-Budget, and of course the then Prime Minister made many unfund…”

“I am not going to give way. I thank the right hon. Member, but I cannot because I am under strict guidance from the Deputy Speaker. One in three pensioners living in poverty are in the private rented sector, so what are we going to do about that? Even if everyone eligible for pension credit were claiming it, according …”

“I commend my right hon. Friend on his excellent, moving speech, which is his first from that Dispatch Box. My condolences about his mum. He will be aware that during the pandemic, the evidence review commissioned by the former Health Secretary exposed widespread inequity and racial bias in the use of oximeters—little g…”

“2. What steps he is taking to help secure a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.”

“I welcome my right hon. Friend and all the team to their place. I thank him for calling for a ceasefire when he visited Israel; that has had a profound impact in my constituency. Does he agree that a permanent ceasefire in Gaza is essential for the future of the people in Gaza, and would help to cool tensions in the mi…”

“I welcome my right hon. Friend’s statement, and particularly what she said about the public sector pay award. Could she share a little more about how, given the appalling economic conditions that we now face, she will incorporate equity in her decisions on how to address the in-year deficit?”

“Will my right hon. Friend explain the relationship between the Modernisation Committee and the ethics and integrity commission that is being set up?”

“I thank my right hon. Friend for his response and welcome all the team to their places. Will he expand a little bit more on exactly what the terms of reference might include? For example, will they also include participative and deliberative democracy methods that might also help to restore trust in politics, which, as…”

“12. What progress the Government has made on establishing an ethics and integrity commission.”

“May I associate myself with the remarks of my constituency neighbour, my hon. Friend the Member for Rochdale (Paul Waugh), about the appalling incident at Manchester international airport yesterday? I congratulate the Leader of the House and her team on their appointments. Could we have a debate in Government time spec…”