Speeches by Darling.

“It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Oldham East and Saddleworth (Debbie Abrahams), who always has something of value to bring to the Chamber. There are 1 million youngsters not in employment, education or training; this has been brewing for many years, but sadly has been exacerbated by the new Labour Governm…”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mrs Barker. I congratulate the hon. Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie) on securing this debate. It has been extremely fruitful and I hope that the Minister will be able to answer all the questions that have been asked. In preparing for the debate, I refl…”

“It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Oldham East and Saddleworth (Debbie Abrahams), who always has something of value to bring to the Chamber. There are 1 million youngsters not in employment, education or training; this has been brewing for many years, but sadly has been exacerbated by the new Labour Governm…”

“As I am sure is the case in many other constituencies, the NHS is perhaps the most valued service in Torbay, where it is the largest employer. Ironically, while the Government talk about investing in the NHS, Torbay is looking at 300 voluntary redundancies. Rather than the investment that the Government talk about, the…”

“I was interested to hear you talk about mission-based government. Part of that is about driving a culture change. How do we get—I am sure that this will be a short answer—the whole of the orchestra of government and society to work together to drive that culture change, so that we see the change we need to achieve that…”

“I think home education is a massive issue, because it has virtually doubled. Do you see part of that as a failing in the SEND system? Were you alluding to that, or was I misreading that? There seems to be a bit of a cultural thing in society that, if your kids are having a hard time at school, sometimes the easiest thi…”

“Thank you for coming today; it really is appreciated. First, I want to unpick sickness and disability, and how that plays out in the life of a NEET young person. Secondly, we touched earlier on how other countries are able to get in there. Do you have any reflections on that? Thirdly, you have already touched on the do…”

“Do you have any reflections from other countries that you care to share?”

“I would like to raise with the Minister the fact that we are looking at around 1,000 redundancies across the NHS in Devon, which is a significant employer. That is cutting the legs off employment in communities such as mine in Torbay.”

“It is a pleasure to follow the right hon. Member for Walsall and Bloxwich (Valerie Vaz). One would normally imagine that the King’s Speech was an opportunity to press the reset button, but I fear that Labour Members are searching for another reset button at this time. We Liberal Democrats fear that the King’s Speech is…”

“The hon. Gentleman makes a powerful point; I am sure that the Minister will reflect on it when winding up. The Liberal Democrats continue to oppose mandation, and we plan to vote against the motion tonight.”

“The Liberal Democrats have opposed mandation from day one, and we have continued to oppose it throughout the passage of this Bill. The challenge is that once we cross the Rubicon, we change the dynamics of pensions significantly. Crucially, people need to have confidence that contributing to pensions is a good way of s…”

“The hon. Gentleman makes a powerful point; I am sure that the Minister will reflect on it when winding up. The Liberal Democrats continue to oppose mandation, and we plan to vote against the motion tonight.”

“The Liberal Democrats have opposed mandation from day one, and we have continued to oppose it throughout the passage of this Bill. The challenge is that once we cross the Rubicon, we change the dynamics of pensions significantly. Crucially, people need to have confidence that contributing to pensions is a good way of s…”

“As the shadow Secretary of State has said, there is a lot to be welcomed in the Bill. In considering the Bill, we have looked to Australia and Canada, and at best practice throughout the world, and there is much we have drawn from. For the Liberal Democrats, the pensions world that we are looking to enter with this Bil…”

“The Department for Work and Pensions is currently reviewing over 200,000 cases of overpayments for carers, some of whom have accrued up to £20,000 through a situation not of their own making. In the light of this, will the Secretary of State stop applying carers penalties until the Department has completed this review?”

“We need a Government who act as a facilitator of investment, but do not dictate investment. That way, we can ensure that we have a pipeline of opportunities that feed the Mansion House accord. The Government should be making the right weather for investment in the United Kingdom and creating opportunities for investmen…”

“Last week, I described mandation as a Trojan horse that had been sneaked into this Bill. Ministers have been sawing three legs off that Trojan horse, but it is still attempting to hop over the finish line at this late stage, and it still has something within it that is not welcomed by our pension industry. The pension …”

“A recent Guardian report highlighted how young people from more deprived communities are facing discrimination through the apprenticeship system. As my hon. Friend the Member for South Devon (Caroline Voaden) alluded to, there is a penalty if someone’s family also receives child benefit. How can the Minister intervene …”

“You have said warm words about it. How do you evidence that? Is it set within people’s targets in your organisation and their personal priorities? Is it set in the priorities of your personal performance management? What is in your personal performance management plan over the next 12 months to do with young people?”