Speeches by Benn.

“I do understand, and I hear the strength of feeling. I have tried to explain why we are in this situation. It is our departure from the European Union that has created every single one of the issues that the hon. Gentleman has just identified. We have to find a practical way forward in honouring the decision that the B…”

“I am about to conclude, but I will give way one last time.”

“I did listen very carefully. The record will show exactly what the hon. and learned Gentleman said, but I take his point. When it comes to access to materials and goods moving from GB to Northern Ireland, that does happen under the Windsor framework. There are certain things that businesses have to do, but the goods do…”

“Northern Ireland is very much part of the United Kingdom. I was merely pointing out that the protocol and the Windsor framework were democratic decisions of this Parliament, of which Northern Ireland is a part. After much debate, consideration, argument and disputation, that is how this Parliament decided to move thing…”

“I have great respect for the right hon. Gentleman, and he and I have had many discussions about progress on implementing the commitments made in “Safeguarding the Union”. He can see the progress that has been made, and he and I have discussed issues where there is work in progress. By the way, the original protocol, wh…”

“I hope it will not come as a surprise to the hon. Gentleman if I say that I agree with him. Complaining and ignoring does not get us very far. He anticipates what I am about to come on to: the progress we have seen as a result of the Windsor framework.”

“For my many and varied sins, I spent a number of years chairing the Brexit Select Committee. We looked at all of these things at great length, and I have to say to the hon. and learned Gentleman on the basis of that experience that nothing hoved into view that would address the central question: how to maintain an open…”

“What a pleasure it is to serve under your chairship, Ms Vaz. I congratulate the hon. and learned Member for North Antrim (Jim Allister) on securing the debate. It is good to see so many colleagues from Northern Ireland in the Chamber. All of us will agree on one thing: the importance of Northern Ireland to our Union. T…”

“There was a deal reached. It was a deal. The previous Government made that part of the condition. They also said that the Executive had to raise some funding themselves, £113 million. Originally, that had to be over one year. The Executive made the argument, I think quite reasonably, “That is a bit tight. Can we do it …”

“There is a clear process to be followed. I initiated the consent vote by writing to the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly. It then falls in the first instance to the First and Deputy First Ministers, if they wish, to table the vote. It remains to be seen whether they will. If they do not, it falls to any other m…”

“Many things have crossed my desk since I took up this post, but the question that you have raised is not one of them. The lead would be taken by my colleague Peter Kyle, because he has responsibility for AI. All I can undertake to do, if it is helpful, is to drop you a line with some response to the perfectly fair poin…”

“You anticipate my answer.”

“We are absolutely committed to that. There were practical difficulties with bringing the parcels arrangements into effect by 1 October. Then we had an election and various other things. The consequence, as you all know very well, of not proceeding with the parcels bit was that the EU said, “If that is the case, the cus…”

“I know it is, but I would draw your attention to the references I made to “Safeguarding the Union” only a few hours ago, because it is an important part of the restoration package. We are working very hard on a number of fronts. Although there are difficulties from time to time, as I also mentioned this morning—I menti…”

“I am indeed. I mentioned it at least twice, and maybe three times, in the debate that you and I were in earlier today.”

“It is a practical problem. If we come to the conclusion, and can persuade the EU, that there is no other way for these medicines to be available, we both have a problem, and farmers and vets have a problem in Northern Ireland, so what are we going to do about it? In the end, the EU moved on human medicines when we were…”

“As it so happens, the Veterinary Medicines Working Group is meeting again on Thursday, I think, this week. What is the process that we are engaged in? It is to understand what are, when all other steps have been taken, the medicines that otherwise will not be available, because there has—well, there has not been an arg…”

“We do, yes.”

“Yes. As you will know, the Minister for the Cabinet Office, Nick Thomas-Symonds, is the co-chair of the Withdrawal Agreement Joint Committee. His opposite number is Maroš Šefčovič, but I work extremely closely with him on a pretty regular basis. Indeed, the two of us have met you to talk about the Windsor framework. We…”

“The European Union has to decide a mandate for any such negotiations. The difference between this Government and the last is that the last Government said, “The deal we have is perfect. It does not need to be improved upon”. We have arrived and said, “We can do better than this”. Given the challenges in respect of the …”