Speeches by Rhodes.

“Mr O’Hara, to follow up, you mentioned the role of Crown Estate Scotland as a public body in Scotland. How do decisions made by the UK Government impact marine spatial planning within Scotland, despite those devolved responsibilities? Ronan O’Hara: I am going to repeat myself slightly, but just for the purposes of clar…”

“I recognise what the Minister has said about what has been done, but given the desperate situation, what more could be done through diplomatic efforts to ensure that Israel allows in humanitarian aid at speed and at scale, and to support the Arab initiative, so that Gaza is rebuilt as part of a recognised, viable Pales…”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mrs Harris. I draw attention to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests regarding donations to my election campaign and through my local Labour party. Often in debates like this, we look at our political system and there is a preoccupation with the form o…”

“An issue of concern for constituents in Glasgow North and elsewhere is the unregulated use of off-road vehicles. Anyone can easily purchase one without registration, and their subsequent use can lead to antisocial behaviour and in some places, including in my own constituency recently, to very tragic consequences. Will…”

“I very much welcome the amendment. Does the Minister agree that community energy is important not just for jobs and investment but for engaging communities with the transition to a new energy system? Does he recognise the need for the Government to support those initiatives with funding going forward?”

“I want to ask some questions in relation to COP16. Did you expect the COP16 conference to deliver more on biodiversity in the environment than it did?”

“In terms of the UK’s role and the national biodiversity strategy and action plan, rightly it is very much outcomes based, but where does that leave you with your ability to report? Some of these outcomes will take time to materialise even if you are going in the right direction. How do you report and update on how you …”

“In terms of commitments from countries regarding 30 by 30, are you concerned that so few have signed up to that and have plans in place to deliver that?”

“We have already heard so much moving and powerful testimony in this debate, but despite the tragic impact that rare cancers have on people across the UK, they garner too little attention, are under-researched and lack investment in their treatment. Though cancer survival rates rose by nearly 10% between 2005 and 2020, …”

“First, I declare an interest as chair of the all-party group for Fairtrade. The Government have inherited a wide range of trade negotiations with partners including the Gulf Co-operation Council, Israel and India, all of which will have implications for the UK economy, the environment and global trade. What efforts is …”

“I declare an interest as a member of the all-party parliamentary group for space. It is perhaps fitting that a week after the planets aligned in the night sky for the first time in 360 years, this House is considering legislation that could help the UK’s thriving space industry. Almost a fifth of UK jobs in the space s…”

“I want to focus on air quality. It is clear from your report that you see progress as having slowed down, and it identifies a real problem in terms of the assessment. What do you see as the crucial factors that have led to that slowing down?”

“In framing your recommendations, you are trying to strike a balance between focusing on things where you can make a bigger impact and keeping the broader approach that you are talking about. What is the balance there in the Government’s role, in terms of their commitment? Is it about seeing things that are particularly…”

“You make three specific recommendations around air quality. Why have you highlighted those particular three in the report?”

“So as we move from dealing with the easier things to dealing with the more difficult things, what is required from your point of view is greater Government commitments in the area.”

“Yes. Then the other element is to do with Government accountability and transparency, and you mentioned support for local authorities. There are two elements to these factors: the nature of the problem is that some things are easier to deal with than others, while some things are trickier, but it is also about the Gove…”

“Am I right in saying that those factors that you have highlighted fall into two categories? One is that essentially some things were easier anyway at the beginning, which made things go quicker at the beginning, but there were always going to be trickier things—”

“Thank you, Chair. We have covered a lot of ground in terms of the discussion that we have had this afternoon. If the Committee is going to look to make recommendations about what needs to be done to encourage landowners, farmers and developers to do what is needed in terms of effective flood resilience, what would you …”

“Absolutely fine.”

“Thank you.”