Speeches by Wilson.

“The new Government’s focus on the serious recruitment and retention crisis is welcome. However, as we have heard, the recent pay announcement overlooked teachers who work in colleges, who already face a pay gap of more than £9,000. We have twice the proportion of students from disadvantaged backgrounds in our colleges …”

“Disadvantaged pupils between 16 and 19 are likely to be up to four grades behind their more affluent peers. We know that funding drops by about a third at 16, yet 16-to-19 tuition was axed in July, and the pupil premium has never applied to that age group. If the Secretary of State is serious about smashing the glass c…”

“I thank the hon. Member for her intervention and I agree that, where possible, we need to be as inclusive as possible. Equally, there are children whose needs cannot be met in a mainstream setting and we need to have special provision for them—I will touch on that in a moment. The funding for special needs has fallen s…”

“I am not sure I have the time; I am so sorry. The national body for SEND would also act as a champion for every child with special needs or disabilities and promote widespread inclusive practice. Additionally, Liberal Democrats would like to see councils funded to reduce the amount that schools pay towards the cost of …”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Betts. I congratulate the hon. Member for Leeds East (Richard Burgon) and pay tribute to him for securing this incredibly important debate. The fact that it is such a packed Chamber—standing room only—is testament to both the passion with which he set out his case a…”

“One Air is a small and growing cargo airline based in my constituency, which is having to deal with huge amounts of additional red tape and costs as a result of the Brexit deal and the end of reciprocal arrangements with the EU. Can the Secretary of State give an assurance that, when Ministers negotiate mutual recognit…”

“The death of Ruth Perry was a tragedy and underscored the high-stakes nature of Ofsted inspections. I have witnessed at first hand how headteachers and teachers in my constituency have suffered under the strain and stress of Ofsted inspections, but others have also told me how helpful they have found them and how brill…”

“When the Secretary of State looks at the rules around local authority compulsory purchase orders, and at removing hope value for house building purposes, will she look at having the same rules for playing fields that local authorities want to keep as playing fields and not build on? That would allow sites such as Udney…”

“Next month, the community in Twickenham will once again remember Amelie Delagrange, the French student who, many Members will remember, was brutally murdered on Twickenham Green some 20 years ago. Sadly, so little has changed since then. In a local survey by Richmond and Kingston youth council, 69% of boys said that th…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for his intervention, and I congratulate him on his excellent maiden speech. I completely agree with him. We want doctors to use community pharmacy more to alleviate the pressure on other parts of the health service, but frankly, if the pharmacies are not there, the remaining ones will be overwhe…”

“May I start by congratulating you, Madam Deputy Speaker, on your election? It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair. I also congratulate the Minister on his appointment. We have worked closely together in recent years in the all-party parliamentary group on kinship care, so I have no doubt that he will do an excellent …”

“On the point about the 20-minute walk and the four in five statistic, does the Minister recognise that a 20-minute walk for me or him is actually much longer for an elderly person or somebody with multiple health conditions or mobility issues? We have to work out what measure we are using. Yes, the Twickenham constitue…”

“I am not right honourable just yet, but I give way to my hon. Friend.”

“I thank my hon. Friend for her intervention. I hear repeatedly that there are areas across the country where schools are full and parents are wondering where on earth they will be able to send their children to school. It is simply not true that it is just the ultra-wealthy who send their kids to private school. I am p…”

“May I warmly welcome you to the Chair, Madam Deputy Speaker? It is a pleasure to see you. I also warmly welcome the Education Secretary and all her Ministers to their posts. As the right hon. Member for East Hampshire (Damian Hinds) said, they absolutely have the best jobs in Government. I am very jealous indeed, but I…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for her important intervention. She pre-empts what I was about to say about the issue of VAT on private school fees and the pressures that it will create for some families and schools. I have set out a range of targeted measures that I think would help tackle the disadvantage gap. They were part …”

“I welcome the Foreign Secretary to his place and I welcome the decision to restore UNRWA funding and the overall change of tone from his predecessors on this issue. The Liberal Democrats have long called for arms sales to Israel to be suspended while there are questions over its human rights record. As shadow Foreign S…”

“Members on both sides of the House will recognise that children and young people really felt the impact of the pandemic and the lockdowns on their mental health, their learning and their social and emotional development. We all recognise that executive decisions have to be taken in an emergency to protect children and …”

“It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair, Mr Speaker, and I congratulate the Leader of the House on her appointment. The recent closures of two Boots pharmacies in Hampton in my constituency came amid hundreds of other community pharmacy closures across England, driven largely by the financial pressures on community ph…”