Speeches by Downie.

“The Scottish National party celebrated the closure and demolition of Longannet coal power station in my constituency without having a plan for its future. The former First Minister pressed the button on the charges herself. What conversations do Ministers plan to have with the site owner, Scottish Power, about the futu…”

“I understand why the procedure was a bit different for Select Committees and that you weren’t standing on a platform so much. What kind of questions came up at the hustings? Did you get any feedback afterwards that people had found them valuable?”

“Obviously, as you described, you had very different elections at different times. May I ask each of you briefly to describe whether you undertook hustings events, either inside or outside Parliament? What were they like, and did anyone find them useful?”

“May I pick up a small point, Dawn? You mentioned that previously it was the Whips who essentially chose the Deputy Speakers. Did either of you detect any kind of dead hand of Front Benchers or Whips still in your own selections, when they came through, either to stand or during the process? Obviously, you are bit diffe…”

“There could be mock Chamber sessions in future.”

“I understand why the procedure was a bit different for Select Committees and that you weren’t standing on a platform so much. What kind of questions came up at the hustings? Did you get any feedback afterwards that people had found them valuable?”

“To be honest, I think they have answered all of it, so I have nothing else to add to that.”

“Those points have been well made, but I have two questions. First, do you think there could be a hybrid system where you could prevent someone coming in for just their three minutes and then leaving again, so that the Chamber was still active? You could publish an advisory call list but keep the Chair’s right to move t…”

“Obviously, as you described, you had very different elections at different times. May I ask each of you briefly to describe whether you undertook hustings events, either inside or outside Parliament? What were they like, and did anyone find them useful?”

“May I pick up a small point, Dawn? You mentioned that previously it was the Whips who essentially chose the Deputy Speakers. Did either of you detect any kind of dead hand of Front Benchers or Whips still in your own selections, when they came through, either to stand or during the process? Obviously, you are bit diffe…”

“There could be mock Chamber sessions in future.”

“To be honest, I think they have answered all of it, so I have nothing else to add to that.”

“Those points have been well made, but I have two questions. First, do you think there could be a hybrid system where you could prevent someone coming in for just their three minutes and then leaving again, so that the Chamber was still active? You could publish an advisory call list but keep the Chair’s right to move t…”

“I wish briefly to cover three things in this debate. First, the world as we know it has changed drastically in the nine months since the general election. To our constituents, those threats can sometimes feel abstract and distant, but we know that it is our constituents who will feel the pain in their pockets, and it i…”

“I agree with my hon. Friend about the need to do research. The podcast “We Have Ways of Making You Talk” gives a much better introduction to Paddy Mayne. Does my hon. Friend agree that we need to look at the rules of recognition for those serving in the special forces, and ensure that some of the difficulties that will…”

“I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Warrington South (Sarah Hall) on securing this important debate. I had not intended to intervene, but my hon. Friend raised issues similar to those in my constituency in respect of young boys diagnosed with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, who are having difficulty accessing the…”

“I thank my hon. and gallant Friend, and indeed all members of the Defence Committee, for an invaluable report. During his contribution, he mentioned one example of a soldier moving cross-border and that causing problems with NHS appointments. Does the Committee recognise that soldiers and veterans can be disadvantaged …”

“Dunfermline is Scotland’s newest city and as such a large number of homes are being built all the time. However, too often those large-scale housing developments are done without reference to local services, such as GPs, and without proper consultation with local people, partly due to failures in the Scottish SNP Gover…”

“May I thank the Chancellor for her statement and welcome the increase in defence spending, which represents a huge opportunity for Scottish workers? I was delighted to have her visit Rosyth in my constituency recently. Will she work to ensure a continuous shipbuilding programme in this country to maximise the opportuni…”

“Yes. The last week in April would be very suitable.”