Speeches by Stafford.

“The Government’s decision to extend the listed places of worship grant scheme for only 12 months, with a reduced budget and a new cap, has caused significant unease in my constituency and across the wider diocese. The rector of Farnham has expressed his concern over a nearby project that faces a massive £750,000 shortf…”

“I will let the other two witnesses answer the question but, in the context of the White Paper and what you have just been talking about—that, for some people, gambling is perfectly fine and you are not seeking to ban gambling—what are the top two priorities that you would like to see roll forward if the new Government …”

“Why is it okay for you to do it but not for others?”

“I am not sure that I entirely agree, but we will move on. Just so that I understand your background and context, do you or have you ever gambled?”

“Before I ask some set questions, I want to follow up quickly on the point about children and young people. Where do you see parental responsibility coming into this?”

“I had another question on the levy, but I will hand over to Joe.”

“I kind of get that, but my parents did not sit with me and say “Don’t smoke” throughout every single moment of the day; they did not give me cigarettes. They did not say “Don’t drink alcohol” when I was 11; they did not give me alcohol. My point is that we have talked about banning smartphones, but why would you not sa…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for giving way and for securing this debate. He is absolutely right that branches are at the heart of the Royal British Legion, but so are the clubs. A number of clubs in my constituency, especially the Hindhead club in Beacon Hill, are under significant financial pressure due to increasing costs…”

“Are you saying that you feel you could cut 100% of the Department and NHS England and the frontline would feel no impact? Alternatively, is it about reallocating what those two organisations do, or a combined organisation does, to make a bigger impact on the frontline service?”

“I will come on to slave labour almost immediately, but to answer the hon. Member directly, I think the security concerns are too great. I welcome safeguards to remove slave labour, but there are still concerns beyond that that we should be looking at.”

“I am fascinated by the argument the hon. Member is developing. Could he point to anything significant that China is doing to reduce its footprint?”

“The hon. Gentleman is right. I met Sebastien Lai myself a few weeks ago and he made similar points to me, which I entirely agree with. To put it at its mildest, it is regrettable that the Prime Minister has not made this a priority. I hope that the Government’s decision not to engage with Sebastien Lai on this changes …”

“The hon. Gentleman is entirely correct. The more the British Government and British agencies allow this to continue, the more China will believe it can get away with. As he says, that will put further fear into Hongkongers and others who are trying to escape the repression of China. As China’s domestic repression inten…”

“My right hon. Friend should be very proud of that and everything that he has done to stand up to Chinese aggression, on trade and on a number of the other issues that we will touch on during the debate. Let me move on to the security and rule of law elements that I have concerns about. Economic interdependence is only …”

“Yes, but then I will make some progress.”

“I fear that the hon. Member is dancing on the head of a pin there. To be frank, I do not agree with him on that. I think the Government should be really clear about what they are actually going to do to—”

“I will in a minute; I just want to make a bit of progress. On Times Radio, the Housing Minister gave his “absolute” guarantee that solar panels for GB Energy projects on hospitals and schools will not include slave labour. But without legal requirements for companies to comply, will the Minister outline how she can be …”

“The hon. Member is entirely right. I would be very surprised if anyone in the Chamber did not agree with him. The key point is how we move from what I think is relatively universal agreement to actual sanctions and enforcement, to make sure that our manufacturers are competing on a level playing field. As an example of…”

“I entirely agree with my right hon. Friend. I will make similar remarks later in my speech, but that is key. Not only is it the use of slave labour, which should be enough to get the Government to start thinking seriously, but it is a complete undercutting of our market.”

“My right hon. Friend, who has considerable and lengthy experience of dealing with China, makes a crucial point. There is no point in having a wish list if there is no sanction or enforcement to back it up. Trade with China is tainted by human rights abuses. I will give an example. Over 1 million Uyghur Muslims are impr…”