Speeches by Malhotra.

“I give way to the hon. Member for Hinckley and Bosworth (Dr Evans).”

“The hon. Member will know that these matters have been shared before with the House. Perhaps I may remind him what US Secretary Hegseth said: “The UK’s (very important) deal with Mauritius secures the operational capabilities of the base and key”—[Interruption.]”

“Thank you, Mr Speaker. I remind the hon. Member of what US Secretary Hegseth said: “The UK’s (very important) deal with Mauritius secures the operational capabilities of the base and key US national security interests in the region. We are confident the base is protected for many years ahead.””

“Thank you, Mr Speaker. Given the security risk, this Government, like the Government before us, made the decision to negotiate with Mauritius to secure a deal to protect the base and the UK. Our agreement ensures full operational control of Diego Garcia; a 24 nautical mile buffer zone where nothing can be built or plac…”

“No, I have been very generous in giving way. I will continue with my remarks. [Interruption.] Sorry, what was that comment?”

“I will continue my remarks. It is as if the Conservatives cannot decide who is speaking from the Front Bench today. As Lord Coaker told the other place in November, the UK-Mauritius agreement “enables the continued operation of the base to its full capability.” He said that we will continue to be able to “deploy the fu…”

“Let me make a few remarks before I give way. The motion proposes a wildly exaggerated cost, in contrast to the actual costings published by this Government at the time of the treaty’s introduction, which has been verified by the independent Government Actuary’s Department. The motion invokes an exchange of notes, which…”

“No. Furthermore, I will have no truck with Reform, which has no record on supporting the security of our country, especially given what has happened in Wales. The Opposition may not want to hear this, but they backed negotiations over Chagos every step of the way. Some 85% of the Chagos negotiations took place under th…”

“It is a pleasure to respond to this debate. Let me start by saying that the Government oppose the motion. The treaty guarantees full UK operational control of Diego Garcia for generations to come.”

“My hon. Friend is right to raise this issue. The race equality engagement group is engaging with minority communities across the country to tackle inequality. We are committed to our manifesto commitment and to making the right to equal pay effective for ethnic minority people. We are also introducing mandatory ethnici…”

“The race equality engagement group, chaired by the wonderful Baroness Lawrence, is determined to tackle race inequalities and barriers to opportunity. Strengthening the Government’s links with ethnic minority communities is crucial. The group has already convened roundtables of experts and those with lived experience o…”

“The Secretary of State for Business and Trade has stated that the delivery of the non-disclosure agreement measure is his personal priority. The Government will be consulting on the secondary legislation to ensure that we deliver on protecting workers from the misuse of NDAs in cases of harassment and discrimination. I…”

“I thank my right hon. Friend for her work both in this area and with Zelda Perkins, who has rightly been recognised in the new year honours list. I am proud that our Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces a new measure that will void any provision in an agreement between a worker and their employer that prevents a worke…”

“indicated dissent.”

“I thank the hon. Member for his question. It is important to emphasise again that national security is the first duty of Government, and we will always act to protect it.”

“The hon. Member will not be surprised to hear me say that the decision on the embassy is an independent process, but I will just emphasise to him that the UK has a broad range of powers to counter foreign interference, including acts that amount to transnational repression, and it is important that we take that extreme…”

“I thank the hon. Member for his lesson in Greek mythology, most of which I am familiar with. It is important to have a serious debate about our relationship with China, and to continue to have a consistent and pragmatic approach to our engagement. I have already said that China is our third largest trading partner, but…”

“Is the hon. Lady referring to Russia, or to another country? In relation to the China, I will say again what I said earlier: China is the world’s second largest economy and the UK’s third largest trading partner, and not engaging with China is no choice at all. Through engagement, we can be strong on security and on th…”

“Let me reiterate: the decision on the embassy must be taken in the proper way. It is a matter for Ministers at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and it is an independent process. We have been clear on that throughout the process.”

“We continue to raise all human rights concerns at the highest levels of the Chinese Government. It is important to say that any new diplomatic positions at the Chinese embassy must be approved, on a case-by-case basis, by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office’s protocol department. The UK has control over th…”