Speeches by Milne.

“4. What discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Defence on the effectiveness of the defence industrial strategy.”

“My disabled constituent Joanne was holding down a good job, but delays in Access to Work resulted in her not receiving the necessary support to stay in it. The Government’s new “right to try” initiative is a positive move, but will the Minister commit to resourcing vital support services like Access to Work, and to eli…”

“On the specific issue of powers, do you think you have enough powers from Government?”

“We have been talking a lot about the challenges of youth employment, but you do not actually have a specific priority around young people. How does increasing youth employment, education and training fit within your priorities?”

“Do you see any potential conflict between an urgent priority to boost economic growth and the longer-term investment that is involved in youth training?”

“That is an interesting point about the need for a collaborative approach, particularly because of the cohort that is coming through from special educational needs. They have to end up somewhere.”

“Good morning. I have a couple of questions. The first is: what do you think your main achievements have been in your first 10 months? It is perhaps a little unkind to ask you that after only 10 months. Going forward, what do you see as your main challenges for the future, and do you think that you are reasonably equipp…”

“T2. There are some brilliant specialist SEND schools in my constituency, such as Muntham House and Aurora Vincent House. In the White Paper, there is currently no clear definition of a specialist school, and concerns remain that provision is being framed as something to be reduced, rather than planned for. What role do…”

“T4. At a time when our rivers and seas are not fit to swim in, the all-party parliamentary group on swimming reports that 1,200 pools have closed since 2010. In my constituency, a consultation by Horsham district council shows strong community support for more investment. Given that two thirds of pools nationally are a…”

“First, may I express my support for the words of the hon. Member for Oldham East and Saddleworth (Debbie Abrahams) with regard to pre-1997 pensions and that long-standing scandal? It is a great injustice and it feels like successive Governments—including this one, sadly—are just waiting for the problem to literally die…”

“Thank you. Alun, do you have anything to add?”

“I have a very quick question, I hope. Should the strategy include explicit targets relating to social mobility? If so, what targets might it set?”

“This question is for Ed McPherson in particular. Getting a definition of child poverty that is accurate and meaningful is a crucial first step, because in the end Government interventions will be designed to answer those issues. The Social Metrics Commission was formed to try to build a common consensus on that definit…”

“Thank you very much for your honesty. Peter is going to carry on.”

“Thank you—that was a very thorough answer. Daniel, is there anything you want to add?”

“I shall speak to Lords amendments 6 and 333, regarding fly-tipping and vape shop closures respectively. On the face of it, those are very different issues, but they share a common thread, which is that communities are being undermined by people who think that rules do not apply to them, and the victims are being left t…”

“There are real concerns that Pride in Place is just another example of this Government’s blind spot on rural areas. Groups such as the Rural Services Network and Plunkett UK warn that villages are being left behind. Key rural assets are disappearing fast, and Plunkett is calling for a targeted £10 million rural communi…”

“Good morning. The Mayfield report emphasises working with vanguard employers to work out best practice in a positive feedback intelligence loop, which could take some years, but of course the other challenge is actually implementing practical measures across all the other companies that are not in that group. Do you th…”

“Another cohort that it may be argued is neglected in the review is smaller businesses. The report concentrates on large companies—those with at least 250 people and so on—but small companies employ many disabled people. Is there an omission there?”

“The next question is for you first, David. You have advocated for a sectoral approach. What might that look like?”