Speeches by Darling.

“We have already unpicked this to a certain extent but the cost of the mortgage or—increasingly now—rent is not taken up in the account of when you are considering retirees’ living standards. We have already unpicked it. Where else would you go around that housing challenge? Some of the panel have talked about co-habiti…”

“Today and last week the Chancellor rushed through severe cuts to the benefits system that will hit some of the most vulnerable in our society. Although we should have considered benefit reform, this is ill conceived. Can the Chancellor explain to the Chamber why she is choosing to balance the books of the nation on the…”

“I will encompass a series of questions all in one to try to keep us on track with time. In recent months, we have seen changes around eligibility for winter fuel payment and that has had a significant impact on claims for pension credit. We have seen some thoughts around that rush and what happened there, and how that …”

“My hon. Friend is spot on. Whether we are in North Norfolk, North Devon or Torbay, we face challenges with our NHS, and we also face a lack of affordable housing. We have seen that challenge put on steroids by the pandemic, during which we saw house prices and rents rise, with people fleeing from metropolitan areas to …”

“Does the hon. Member agree that we desperately need a proper, fully thought out fishing strategy to support this vital industry in our local communities?”

“I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for North Norfolk (Steff Aquarone) on securing this important debate. We desperately need a Minister for coastal communities, as has been highlighted in some outstanding speeches this afternoon. The fact that my constituency of Torbay is the premier resort for the United Kingdom…”

“Rowcroft hospice in my constituency is impacted greatly by the Bill, as is Bay Care, an excellent social care provider. Both those organisations are having to make challenging and difficult decisions about how many people they can employ and how they can support people in their communities. Does my hon. Friend share my…”

“I am sure the Minister almost opposite me felt that it was a brave decision by the Conservatives on my right—in fact, from the noises off during the speech of their spokeslady, the hon. Member for Faversham and Mid Kent (Helen Whately), it may even have been a bit quackers—to choose this topic for a debate. As the Mini…”

“My hon. Friend is spot on. In fact, we Liberal Democrats feel that the winter fuel allowance must be reintroduced across the board. The Liberal Democrats want the introduction of a social tariff that supports pensioners in poverty and pensioners on benefits. We also want to ensure that the whole United Kingdom has a ho…”

“I would like to press the new clause to a vote. Question put, That the clause be read a Second time.”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Western. I support the new clause tabled by the hon. Member for Brighton Pavilion. On several occasions over recent weeks, Ministers have gone on the record to describe the DWP and the benefits system as a “broken” system. It is extremely helpful that the hon. Membe…”

“I thank the Secretary of State for sharing her statement in advance—that was extremely welcome. The Liberal Democrats want to see more people in work, including those with disabilities. Sadly, the significant blocker to those people getting into work is the appalling state of the health and social care system left behi…”

“I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time. I start by acknowledging the hard work of Surviving Economic Abuse in this policy area. I thank that charity for its briefing, which I am sure it has shared with all Committee members. The charity and the Liberal Democrats are keen to make sure that domestic abuse, …”

“I beg to ask leave to withdraw the motion. Clause, by leave, withdrawn. New Clause 13 Liability orders “(1) Where— (a) a person has been found guilty of an offence under section 1 or section 11 of the Fraud Act 2006, or the offence at common law of conspiracy to defraud, (b) that offence relates to fraud committed agai…”

“I encourage colleagues to support these proposals about the carer’s allowance. Carers are the backbone of many households across the United Kingdom, and I hope the Minister will support the amendment.”

“New clause 12 is about financial exclusion, as the hon. Member for South West Devon said. The Liberal Democrats’ concern is that, as this morning goes on, a number of safeguards are looking to be—for want of a better phrase—baked into the system by legislation, yet according to the Minister the only thing baked into th…”

“There continue to be unacceptable delays in processing Access to Work applications, both for my constituents in Torbay and across the country. This leads to fears among disabled people that job offers will be withdrawn by their would-be employers. What reassurance can the Minister give the Chamber that the Government h…”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Stringer. I pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for South Cotswolds (Dr Savage) and her stellar speech to launch the debate. This is the first debate I have spoken in that has been triggered by a petition. The fact is that the petition has been driven forward s…”

“Has the Minister had a conversation with the ombudsman on what a just compensation system would look like?”

“Will the Secretary of State confirm that those people in receipt of disability benefits who profoundly cannot work will not face a cut in their benefits?”