Speeches by Darling.

“That would be helpful.”

“I will look forward to that follow-up correspondence. The other area that I was nudged to explore with yourselves is that the fishing industry is perhaps one of the most dangerous industries to work in. I am alive to the fact that there are a lot of people who work in the fishing industry who are on transit visas and t…”

“Who does? Who is there to protect these people who have come to serve our fishing industry because they are on British-registered boats?”

“I am delighted with my hon. Friend’s intervention, because the Liberal Democrats represent the full length of the United Kingdom from Shetland to the Isles of Scilly, and it is important that we hear about that impact from a breadth of colleagues. The Liberal Democrats represent some of the best places to go on holiday…”

“The Liberal Democrats welcome the Minister’s suggestion that today’s proposals are yoked to the national insurance increases going through the other place. Since the general election, we have had doom and gloom from the Labour party until very recently. The uncertainty around the Budget and the national insurance incre…”

“My hon. Friend is right to highlight that. My hon. Friend the Member for Eastbourne (Josh Babarinde) and I are awaiting a meeting with the Minister to explore that very issue and the RBL’s campaign. To conclude, I lived through a world of broken children’s services in Torbay, but we rolled our sleeves up, sorted it out…”

“I would like to acknowledge the very sobering and comprehensive speech given by the hon. Member for Oldham East and Saddleworth (Debbie Abrahams). This is disturbing, and one would hope that our DWP, and our Government as a whole, would take a trauma-informed approach to dealing with our communities, as I believe that …”

“The hon. Gentleman was talking about incentivising people into work. In my surgeries in Torbay, I find that an awful lot of people are off sick with hip problems or mental health challenges, and the challenge people have in getting back into work is the broken health system that was left by the previous Conservative Go…”

“Children in poverty in Torbay make up 23% of our population but 100% of our future. Barnardo’s recently highlighted that the most powerful tool in the Government’s toolbox to tackle child poverty is ending the two-child cap. Only last week, the annual poverty report by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation came to the same co…”

“I was pleased to hear that Labour councillors on Hull city council have voted to condemn the Government’s shameful decision not to compensate WASPI women. Has that given the Minister pause for thought?”

“I thank the hon. Member for Oldham East and Saddleworth (Debbie Abrahams) for laying out very concisely some of the challenges in ensuring that the Bill does the right thing without going too far and breaking the things that people want fixed. Clearly, defrauding the benefits system is wrong. One need only reflect on t…”

“My apologies, Madam Deputy Speaker. Those businesspeople felt that the then Chancellor of the Exchequer was filling carrier bags full of £50 notes and placing them around towns, expecting people just to pick them up, so low were the safeguards for a number of the covid support schemes. I will move on to an item that ha…”

“I welcome the hon. Member’s intervention; he has highlighted a serious issue, and he is spot on. One has only to reflect on the significant backlog, with 90,000 people waiting for their pension to be reviewed as part of the winter fuel allowance issues—that is a massive backlog. Access to Work, which is meant to suppor…”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dame Siobhain. I congratulate the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) on securing the debate. He rightly highlighted how inspirational it was to see Chris McCausland winning “Strictly Come Dancing” a few weeks ago. Chris McCausland shared three words at the end of…”

“After years of the Tories failing our rural communities, including with a dodgy and utterly shameful Australian trade deal, it is a great pity that the new Government have picked up the baton. From Orkney to the Isles of Scilly, Liberal Democrat colleagues are extremely concerned about the impact of these proposals. Th…”

“Thank you. Would it be helpful if it was legislated that the Government should accept findings of the ombudsman, full stop?”

“The first one I wanted to explore was levels of poverty among WASPI women—that cohort of ladies. You have already talked to a certain extent about this, but some application around that area would be helpful. The other area that I would welcome some exploration of—some of it we have already touched on—is the cultural i…”

“Thank you very much for making yourselves available today to come before the Committee. It is appreciated. The ombudsman found maladministration when he explored this area. I just wondered if you could unpack for us how this impacted on WASPI women. The other area that I would be grateful for you to unpack for us is wh…”

“I think I have about two and a half minutes for these questions, which are on WASPI women, who are clearly mostly now into retirement. I am going to ask both questions because otherwise I will be guillotined.”

“There is something I do not understand. Can you unpick a bit further why there was not a conversation with the DWP to try to find a deliverable compensation scheme? That would be helpful because I am struggling. Were you surprised that the Secretary of State did not come forward with an alternative scheme in the light …”