Speeches by Smart.

“4. What progress she has made on updating the Green Book.”

“Bear with me on this, Mr Speaker. The previous Conservative Government did not get absolutely everything wrong. They rightly identified that Treasury spending was a powerful tool to rebalance our economy in favour of areas like ours in the north of England. They then failed to deliver, and voters delivered their verdic…”

“The Foreign Secretary rightly talks about a two-state solution being the only framework through which we can find a just and lasting peace, and this has long been the case. He also talks about bilateral and multilateral talks at the upcoming conference. If that conference does not achieve the hoped-for success, will th…”

“I am grateful to the Home Secretary for advance sight of her statement. The Liberal Democrats remain extremely grateful to all the extraordinary people from our police, intelligence and security services who continue to put themselves at risk to keep our country safe. We support the action taken by the Government so fa…”

“I am grateful to my constituency neighbour for giving way in this really important debate. I started my journey to the Chamber today at Stockport station. I completely agree with his comments, but I wonder whether he would go further. Our ambition for accessibility on our railway network needs to expand beyond the main…”

“The Minister is talking about the assessment of various options. We know that the Treasury is looking at reviewing the contents of the Green Book that measures the benefits and disbenefits of any capital spending. Can he say a few words on how we can ensure that the north, particularly the Stockport area, gets its fair…”

“I am grateful to my hon. Friend for what he is laying out, and I absolutely agree with him that the support for these measures across this House is really powerful. I was most recently in Kyiv two weeks ago, and the look on the faces of the people subjected to war crimes by the Russian army will stay with me for a very…”

“We have had debates on the Green Book in Westminster Hall before, and I am sure the hon. Gentleman agrees with me that there is a real opportunity, in the Treasury’s review of its methodology, to drive growth in our regions and in constituencies such as mine. We should be valuing things such as investing in the tram-tr…”

“This is an important debate. I am lucky to have Robinsons Brewery in my constituency, as well as a number of pubs and the excellent bottling and packaging plant in the Bredbury industrial estate. They have been in touch with me about this issue, because they already pay for commercial waste collection and packaging rec…”

“Before I was elected to this place, I was a trustee of one of the large public pension funds, and a lot of the correspondence I received was from retired social workers who were quite grumpy about their funds being invested in extractive industry companies listed in London. We know that more young people will opt in to…”

“I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising that point. That is one of a number of utterly hideous stories that any of us could hear through any of the wonderful bodies and non-governmental organisations working with asylum seekers and refugees who are coming to this country. I put on record my thanks to my hon. Friend…”

“And Afghans; the hon. Gentleman makes a valid point. But there are countries in the world—Eritrea, Sudan and others—from which there are no safe and legal routes, and that is what new clause 21 is about. The Home Secretary said in the White Paper published this morning that we need an immigration system that is “fair a…”

“Immigration is personal to all of us, whether we are immigrants ourselves, the descendants of immigrants, or benefit from the skills, talents and cultural richness that immigrants bring. I am immensely proud that our country took in my nan, aged 18, when she was fleeing the Nazis in 1939. I am also hugely grateful that…”

“I rise to speak to new clause 21 and other new clauses in my name and those of other hon. Members. I put on record my particular thanks to my hon. Friends the Members for Woking (Mr Forster), and for Mid Dunbartonshire (Susan Murray), for the sterling shifts they put in on the Bill Committee. We can all agree on the ne…”

“I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for intervening on me in debates on immigration; this is not the first time we have had a conversation of this nature. Ukrainians and Hongkongers came here under the previous Government, and that is to be welcomed—”

“The hon. Gentleman is laying out well the challenges that all our young people face in accessing educational opportunities. My constituency, which is on the urban fringe of Greater Manchester, is the bridge between the centre of Stockport and High Peak. Many of my young constituents in the rural bits of Mellor, Marple …”

“I thank the Minister for updating the House and for advance sight of his statement. I also add my thanks to the security services and the police for all their work to keep us safe. Over recent years Members have been called to this Chamber to discuss plots to commit acts of terror on Britain’s streets at the hands of t…”

“The remarks by members of the band are completely unacceptable, and it is right that they have apologised to the families of Sir David Amess and Jo Cox, but clearly those comments should never have been made in the first place. Incitement to violence against Members of Parliament cuts to the very heart of our democracy…”

“No one should have to live in fear of such horrific violence. The appalling events in Headingley on Saturday have left a community shocked and two women with really serious injuries. My thoughts and those of all the Liberal Democrats are, of course, with the victims, their families and all those affected by a crime of …”

“No child should ever endure sexual exploitation or abuse. Such horrific and unacceptable crimes must have no place in our society. Victims and survivors of these crimes must be at the centre of our thoughts whenever we discuss these matters. We owe it to them not just to offer words of support, but to deliver justice a…”