Speeches by Grady.

“Professor Leunig, I have a point of clarification. You mentioned that houses worth over £500,000 would be indexed, so you wouldn’t take account of improvements or anything like that; you would just have a straight indexation. What inflation rate would you pick for that? Would it be a property-based inflation rate, CPI …”

“Thank you; that’s clear.”

“Mr Osborne, did you have academic evidence—robust evidence, as opposed to just general say-so—about whether introducing the two-child cap would seriously influence people’s behaviour and decisions about having children?”

“The question is really twofold. First, did the Government take proper account of the long-term costs? Leaving aside the ethics—for me, this is deeply unethical—did they take account of the long-term costs of these two measures, in terms of lost earnings and lost prospects for the cohort of people affected? Secondly, do…”

“Mr Osborne, I say this gently, because I do not want to appear rude at the end of a long hearing and you have been very patient with us. Was there evidence about the influence of the policy on people’s decisions as to whether to have children? I ask because one of the key points—”

“Sir Vince, the poorest families in Britain faced a double whammy because they lost Sure Start and they got the two-child cap. I am not aware of any academic evidence at the time that showed that the two-child cap would influence the number of children people would have.”

“I am old enough to remember Lord Lawson having some problems with the listing of BP shares on the stock exchange. Has the Treasury thought about the scenario in which two years down the line there is a significant market correction—you may not be able to call it—not so much from a point of view of what you do about tha…”

“It appears that the current approach of the Bank of England and the FCA is to monitor AI developments for now, and then step in if something goes wrong. Do you agree with that characterisation of their approach?”

“You have invited me; I have accepted the invitation. Thank you.”

“Economic Secretary, you will have received a number of letters from MPs about the closure of funeral plans of C Mutual and Maiden Life. I don’t want your response to that, because you have to consider the letters, but there is a more fundamental point here. I have a constituent, for instance, who has paid about £8,700 …”

“And the Treasury?”

“Do you think that the Bank of England and the FCA have the necessary powers and technical understanding of the technology and risks involved in the technology to regulate it effectively?”

“I will focus on chapter 2 of part 2 of the Bill, which provides that public bodies must operate in accordance with the highest ethical conduct. That is very important to my constituents in Glasgow. Shortly after I was elected, I met a mum and dad at one of my surgeries. They want to know how their beloved child died wh…”

“I do apologise, Madam Deputy Speaker. We are talking today about a massacre at a hospital where mums, dads and little babies should be safe and helped. With that in mind, those who commit war crimes should be held to account. Can the Minister please reassure me that the UK is doing everything possible to ensure that in…”

“I have a question for Professor Stewart. Do we have reliable evidence on the quantifiable consequences of child poverty for the individual child’s education, employment and health outcomes?”

“Dr Cribb, have you anything to add to what Professor Stewart and Ms Howes have said?”

“The last question from me is to ask Professor Stewart to give a wee response to that.”

“Am I taking from you that you would say it is more likely than not that low income causes child poverty, or contributes to it, and leads to poorer outcomes, but there is some evidence that points the other way? Is that what you are saying?”

“Just a quick yes or no on this, Ms Howes, if you would be so kind. I take it your position is that there is a strong case for payments to families by the Government to alleviate child poverty.”

“I am very lucky to be the MP for a seat with wonderful children, in Glasgow, but unfortunately it is blighted with some of the highest child poverty in the United Kingdom. On those individual children, Ms Howes, do you have anything to add to what Professor Stewart has said?”