Speeches by Sandher-Jones.

“I wholeheartedly agree with my hon. Friend. I will now turn to a quote—[Interruption.] I hope Opposition Members will settle down. The quote states: “we will look at Winter Fuel Payments, the largest benefit paid to pensioners, in this context. The benefit is paid regardless of need, giving money to wealthier pensioner…”

“GB Energy will turbocharge renewables across the country. Once we have that, we will have more control over our energy systems and, as the hon. Lady knows, we will have control over what happens with bills.”

“What is fair is a 4.1% rise in the state pension and a 5.5% to 6% rise for our soldiers, teachers and nurses, and I will say that as many times as I need to say it. Many people in this country have been grappling with skyrocketing energy bills, which have caused real poverty. Those bills have skyrocketed largely becaus…”

“My hon. Friend is exactly right. The triple lock is a serious commitment that we are utterly committed to, and it will make a difference to every single pensioner in this country—far more than trying to pretend that we do not face the systemic problems that this country faces.”

“One reason why I decided to get into politics—I was quite happy doing something else—was because I was looking around this country and seeing the huge systemic issues that were facing us. None of those issues would go away if the Government just said, “We’re going to keep giving out pots of money to people,” and the ho…”

“I thank the hon. Member for his comment. It is important to stress that this was a policy that the Labour party brought in, and the Conservative party voted against it at the time. The inheritance that this Government got from the previous Government was so dire—we really cannot forget how big a black hole £22 billion …”

“I very much thank the hon. Lady for those comments. I know she vociferously criticised pay rises for public sector workers in her speech, so I am glad to have clarified that. The winter fuel payment was a policy that the Labour Government introduced in 1997, and it stands as one of the great achievements of that Labour…”

“Before I begin, will the shadow Secretary of State, the hon. Member for Faversham and Mid Kent (Helen Whately), clarify her earlier comments? Does she not support pay rises for the armed forces? [Interruption.] She is more than welcome to clarify; I can see that she looks a bit confused.”

“I was going to go back to GB Energy, but why not?”

“Sadly, it is a feature of this debate that it is very easy for Members across the Opposition Benches to say, “You shouldn’t do something,” but very difficult to say what should be done instead.”

“The costings take into account the uplift in the numbers of people claiming pension credit, as they are entitled to do.”

“Will the hon. Member confirm that he opposes pay rises for the armed forces?”

“Child poverty and the two-child benefit cap are unfortunately sad signs of the legacy that we have inherited. We need to fix the foundations of the economy so that we can start to take measures such as that that may have an impact. We have set up the child poverty taskforce so that we can start to look at that and ensu…”

“I will keep going, because I have been speaking for a long time and I know that lots of Members want to get in. I am terribly sorry. To cut to the chase, the Government are determined to fix the foundations of this country, sort out the systemic issues that we face, tackle the cost of living and deliver an NHS fit for …”

“I thank the Secretary of State for the boldness of his statement. It will take courage to bring about the change that my constituents desperately want, and it is great that Labour is showing that courage. My constituents, particularly those in Killamarsh, really struggle with access to GPs. Could the Secretary of State…”

“2. What steps she has taken to help increase economic growth in the east midlands.”

“The town of Staveley in my constituency of North East Derbyshire hosts one of the three sites for the east midlands investment zone, which is a fantastic opportunity for us. The Chesterfield-Staveley regeneration route is, however, vital to making the most of the site and it has been long campaigned for by my hon. Frie…”

“The beautiful weather over the weekend brought with it the promise of spring, and I hope the Prime Minister got at least two minutes outside to enjoy it. However, I am afraid the same weather in Ukraine will be greeted with dread by soldiers on the frontline, who know that the improving weather will bring an intensific…”

“I thank the right hon. Gentleman for his opinion and remind him that this is the largest increase in defence spending for a long while. I am sure he is aware of the considerable damage done to the armed forces over the last 15 years, which I and others who served saw at first hand. We are talking about the Chagos islan…”

“Does the Minister agree that what is important is assuring the security of this base’s future, and that until the Opposition put forward a credible alternative, they should support the Government, who are fixing this issue?”