Speeches by Baker.

“It was a privilege to serve with Jim Wallace in Holyrood, and I associate myself with the tributes to him. We have had trade deals with Europe, China and India worth hundreds of millions of pounds to Scottish businesses, and defence contracts that secure thousands of jobs. Can the Prime Minister tell us how he will bui…”

“The brilliant, transformative Labour Government of 1945 accepted and endorsed the idea of investing in the construction of new towns as a way of providing much improved living conditions for people throughout our nation. I am delighted that this Labour Government are doing that again today, and I am proud to be the MP …”

“I thank my hon. Friend for that update. Does she agree that there should be no further delay in the Church adopting a fully independent model for safeguarding and that it is vital that Church authorities and our new Archbishop of Canterbury act to restore confidence in safeguarding in the Church?”

“11. What steps the Church of England is taking to establish an independent safeguarding system.”

“I could not agree more. In Scotland’s new towns, railway stations are either not there at all or are a great distance away from the town centre. We have to learn those lessons for the future. On issues in town centres, the Kingdom shopping centre in Glenrothes is the centre and the high street of the town, but it is ag…”

“I had the privilege of joining a parliamentary delegation to the Yalta European Strategy conference in Kyiv in September. That conference came at the very moment of the incursion of Russian drones into Polish airspace, reminding us that it is far from only the future of Ukraine that is at stake: their fight is our figh…”

“Will the Leader of the House allocate time for a debate on tackling child poverty, and not only in the light of the Government’s decision to lift the two-child cap, but to recognise the vital work of the Multibank charity? That charity supports hundreds of children in my constituency, where the first Multibank was esta…”

“Finally, attention typically focuses on arm’s length bodies, rather than the wider public bodies landscape. We would like more attention to be given to public bodies. If it was, what should that focus be?”

“It is interesting to hear that the experience has been broadly positive, although more work perhaps needs to be done in establishing some of the definite outcomes of those experiences. However, arm’s length bodies often have relatively narrow and specialist functions, so they can have considerable expertise, and I thin…”

“I shall try to get through my questions before hypothermia finally sets in for all Committee members and yourself, Joe—and good morning to you. As we have discussed, there have been periods when Government have been successful in closing a large number of public bodies. That progress has stalled, and the Government wan…”

“Does the right hon. Member appreciate the importance of the BBC’s investment in the devolved nations and regions, which is all the more important given the fact that private and independent media are withdrawing from some of that coverage and production? This year, the BBC will double spending to £100 million on progra…”

“Does my right hon. Friend expect the new agency with responsibility for Erasmus+ to work with the excellent Erasmus Student Network UK to promote these brilliant new opportunities for our young people, including in higher and further education institutions in Scotland?”

“After the Tories and the SNP did nothing for so many years to address the long-term future of Grangemouth, it is hugely welcome that Labour Ministers have made this announcement, which offers opportunities to workers in Fife affected by the closure of the ExxonMobil plant at Mossmorran. What further opportunities will …”

“One important aspect of intergovernmental relations and interparliamentary relations is the operation of the Sewel convention and legislative consent motions. There was a manifesto commitment made to strengthen the Sewel convention through a new memorandum of understanding. Can I ask what progress has been made on that…”

“For non-intergovernmental relations review body meetings, the dashboard provides a record that meetings have taken place, which is very positive, but there is no record provided of what is actually being discussed. Is that sufficiently transparent? Does it allow for adequate scrutiny of intergovernmental relations? Is …”

“Oh that they would, but unfortunately that is a political decision by them. Through those informal relationships, there is a parity of esteem between Scottish Ministers, Welsh Ministers and UK Ministers. That is really important to develop that culture, and it certainly helps joint working. There is also a new set of i…”

“In the longer term, what role should intergovernmental relationships play? What should that look like? Are you happy with the structures that you have—the furniture that is in place now—for those relationships, or should they evolve?”

“Yes, as a former Member of the Scottish Parliament, I am very interested in intergovernmental relations. Chancellor, having taken over as Minister for Intergovernmental Relations, what is your assessment of the current state of intergovernmental relations in the UK? Have you come across any early conclusions around whe…”

“These will be published in spring, but from what you are saying, Darren, there will be far more real-time, ongoing dialogue between Treasury and Departments to ensure that there is delivery and that Departments have the right kind of flexibility to achieve their goals.”

“Why was it thought right to move away from outcome delivery plans to more strategic documents?”