Speeches by Smith.

“The hon. Gentleman has had a go; he may come back later. Kate Nicholls, the chief executive of UKHospitality, said that staff in restaurants, bars, pubs and hotels work in a “social environment” where “there are jokes and people are boisterous”. She said that while everyone wants to ensure that their staff are protecte…”

“My hon. Friend makes an exceptional point. The Bill categorically will be playing a part in that, along with the Budget of broken promises, the increase in employer NI and so on. I shudder to think what will happen when the Bill becomes law. We understand the parliamentary arithmetic—we understand that the Government w…”

“I will make some progress. I have been on my feet for a long time, and I know that a lot of people wish to speak in this debate. In other words, this clause could well function as a banter ban at best, and as a restriction on academic debate and inquiry. Due to our concern about how this clause will operate, especially…”

“I am not sure that the hon. Lady has firmly grasped what the Bill says in this respect. Of course we want to protect everybody in our society—that is the first duty of Government—but I do not think she has fully considered the unintended consequences in the real world, particularly in the hospitality sector. I will spe…”

“If the hon. Lady will allow me to continue, it will become clear why we take such a position; I will give some concrete examples in a few moments of where the law of unintended consequences will kick in on this provision. A 2022 study by the Higher Education Policy Institute found that quiet no-platforming, where stude…”

“The hon. Gentleman says it is “the vast majority”. I do not know whether it is the vast majority, but some people, of course, will want the guarantee of the hours he talks about. The point I am making is about allowing flexibility for those for whom it does work. I gave the example of students, and my hon. Friend the M…”

“I am mindful of time, and I do not wish to incur Madam Deputy Speaker’s wrath, so I will make progress. We have also tabled amendment 287, which would remove clause 21 from the Bill entirely, so concerned are we about how damaging it will be to both employers and employees, particularly those who will not get work as a…”

“I have explained that I do not wish to incur Madam Deputy Speaker’s wrath, which I fear is close at this point, so I will make some progress. The current arrangements have also allowed for innovation that is beneficial for pupils. We believe that school employers must retain a degree of freedom and flexibility to recru…”

“How can I resist the hon. Gentleman?”

“Once more.”

“8. Whether she is taking steps to support landlords in upgrading housing stock to reach an EPC rating of C.”

“I understand the answer that the Minister just gave, but when individual private landlords with just one or two properties are coming to my surgeries to say they will simply sell up and remove those properties from the private rented sector because they cannot afford to bring properties up to EPC C, when the National T…”

“10. Whether her Department plans to commemorate the 75th anniversary of Formula 1.”

“The hon. Gentleman may be aware that a private Member’s Bill I brought forward in the last Parliament—it is now the Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act 2023—would enable us to place that requirement on power tool manufacturers to fit forensic marking; it just requires secondary legislation. The Bill was discussed at all s…”

“Will the hon. Gentleman give way on that point?”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms McVey. I congratulate the hon. Member for North Cornwall (Ben Maguire) on securing this debate. While I will talk about the Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act 2023 in more detail later in my remarks, I assure him, because of the comments that he made, that GPS units w…”

“Formula 1 is a world championship, but it is a predominantly British success story. Would the best way for the Government to join its 75th anniversary celebrations not be to get behind the efforts of Susie Wolff and others to get more women into the sport, and to back the Hamilton Commission in getting more people from…”

“I listened carefully to what the Secretary of State said and welcome her clear criticism of this documentary, but may I return to some of the—at best—mistranslation that happened during the documentary that my right hon. Friend the shadow Secretary of State referenced? Instances of the Arabic words for “Jews” were chan…”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Desmond. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Stockton West (Matt Vickers) on securing this important debate. He is right: high streets are the beating heart of communities and local economies across the whole of the United Kingdom. I see that in my own con…”

“T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.”