Speeches by Ryan.

“The election last year was momentous: it was a landslide election for the new Government. I note the hon. Gentleman’s glowing impression of the inheritance from the previous Government; where did it go wrong?”

“I sincerely thank the Minister for her great work on this. In the six months she has been in post, she has made more progress than the last lot did in 14 years. This has been a serious problem for victims in Burnley, so I thank her. I am glad she is looking at earlier schemes, too, because many homes have fallen victim…”

“I know that I speak for everyone in my constituency when I say that after so much death and unthinkable horror, this ceasefire—this peace—offers hope for a long-term political solution, security for the people of Gaza and of Israel, a two-state solution and a sustainable peace. Does the Foreign Secretary agree that wha…”

“I am deeply concerned about a local decision by our hospital trust to cut the bus route between Burnley general teaching hospital urgent care centre and Royal Blackburn teaching hospital, which is a huge loss to staff and patients. Will the Leader of the House join me in calling on transport operators, the county counc…”

“I have just one more question; the Committee will touch on different issues in further questions. There is something to be said for the industrial action, as you say, and the effects of legal aid cuts over the last few years. I think something like 48% of Government cash was pulled out of legal aid. That has obviously …”

“It is probably just a quick calculation. If you had not had the Nightingale courts, how many more cases would you have had to deal with through the current system? That would be helpful to know.”

“I understand that. A note would be great.”

“Yes, you can send us a note afterwards. That is fine.”

“And Burnley. I just want to ask this quickly: do you know how many cases were dealt with through the Nightingale courts programme? Do you have a number for that?”

“If I can touch on a slightly broader point, you mentioned that there is no silver bullet for some of these problems. I understand that you are dealing with a capacity problem. Despite running at full pelt and doing a good job, you are just not managing to get through the backlog. There has been a lot of mention of Leve…”

“That is the answer I am looking for. That is good. Do you mind if I spread out slightly on that question?”

“The contribution that Mr Flury has just made touches on my point. My question, Dame Antonia—perhaps with specific reference to London, the midlands and the south-east—is whether you have enough judges. My worry is that we have heard that there are not enough solicitors or barristers and that there is no capacity in the…”

“So the rate is improving.”

“That is down from the 27% that we have in the Report.”

“I do not want to take too much time on this, because I am cautious that I have probably overstepped the first question—but, Dan, can I just check that you said the figure is currently 23%?”

“Right, okay—it will be higher again. It is a worry. People will get into this as we go through, but it is the wait for victims and the wait for justice that concerns us most. It is almost not about the procedure of the legal process. It is about the really harrowing stories that we have had in written evidence to the C…”

“Do you know, as we sit here today, the current backlog figure? We have the 73,000 figure for, I think, September last year. What is it as of now?”

“Dame Antonia, you have sort of answered this question in your opening statement. In 2021, you assured us, as you said, that you would get the backlog down to 53,000 by March this year. You have mentioned the pandemic, industrial action, demand and additional complexity. As a kind of second layer, to build on the questi…”

“I thank the Home Secretary for her statement. Under this Government, no matter an abuser’s race and where they are, they will have nowhere to hide. The job in hand is action, implementation and change. I am glad to hear that she will set up a new victims panel, because the victims of sexual abuse—women and children—are…”

“As a great supporter of the British-American alliance, I am disappointed to have to ask this question, but, given some of the recent tweets from people associated with the incoming US Administration, what assessment has the Secretary of State made of the UK’s exposure of our defence capabilities, given that there may b…”