Engagements — House of Commons, 2020-03-04
Topic: Health
Questions: My constituents in East Surrey care enormously about climate change. Does my right hon. Friend agree that yesterday’s news that the UK’s carbon emissions have been reduced by a third over the past 10 years is a fantastic and important Conservative achievement, and will he set out his plans to continue this progress?; Tomorrow is St Piran’s day, when Cornish men and women around the world will be celebrating our national saint and all things Cornish. St Piran is also the patron saint of tin mining, but mining is not just something assigned to Cornish history. Is the Prime Minister aware that significant deposits of lithium have been identified in Cornwall, which provides the opportunity of levelling up the Cornish economy and providing the UK with a domestic supply of this critical mineral? Will he commit his Government to enabling Cornwall to make the most of this opportunity, and wish all Cornish men and women a happy St Piran’s day?; Last week’s historic judgment against Heathrow expansion found that the Prime Minister’s Government broke the law by ignoring the Paris climate agreement and by breaching their own sustainable development duty to future generations when they drafted the airports national policy statement. Will the Prime Minister tell the House today precisely how many of the Government’s other national policy statements have been assessed against the Paris climate agreement, and will he commit, right now, to reviewing and, if necessary, revising all those that have not?; Communities like mine in West Bromwich West are grateful for this Government’s commitment to 366 police officers for the west midlands. Will my right hon. Friend reaffirm that, unlike the Labour police and crime commissioner, who is decimating communities like mine in Tipton with the closure of our police station, this Government are committed to keep our communities safe through investment in the police and tougher sentences for the criminals who are ruining the lives of my constituents in Tipton?; I note that, in the interests of public safety, the Government have taken emergency measures to rush through legislation to ensure that those convicted of terrorist offences serve their full sentences. Given the far smaller conviction rate and far more substantial reoffending rate for those convicted of sexual offences, will the Prime Minister commit to a wider sentencing review, so that communities can rest assured that sex offenders who pose a threat to children and women are serving their full sentences, to ensure their rehabilitation?; Will my right hon. Friend commit to ensure that Blyth Valley benefits from the Government’s ambition to unite and level up across this fantastic country?; Karbon Homes, a registered social landlord, has over 30,000 homes in the north and north-east. Detailed research that it has conducted shows that the five-week delay in universal credit payments ensures that many families amass huge rent arrears before receiving anything and are trapped in debt for years. Some 72% of its tenants on universal credit are now in significant rent arrears, with over half of them technically destitute. The Prime Minister’s mantra that work is the route out of poverty is true only if there are jobs that are full time, permanent and decently paid. When will he stop this deliberate policy of inflicting impoverishment and destitution on tenants of Karbon Homes and other registered social landlords in the north-east?; Last Thursday, in the dead of night, the Prime Minister made a secret visit to Kettering General Hospital. There was no media entourage. This was no photo call; he had come to listen. He listened to staff. He listened to patients, and he left at 3.30 am. One patient said, “I thought Boris was a bit of a dopey bloke, who doesn’t really know what’s going on, but he was a lovely bloke and actually caring to all other patients.” Prime Minister, what did you learn from your listening visit?; For the purpose of clarity, if the Cabinet Office inquiry into allegations that the Home Secretary breached the ministerial code establishes that her conduct fell below the standard expected of a Minister in any way and on any occasion, can the Prime Minister confirm that she will be expected to resign or be removed from office?; Having knocked on doors across Stafford in my constituency, it is clear that the A&E at County Hospital is a vital local service, so does the Prime Minister agree with me that A&E units at medium-sized hospitals such as County are essential for the future delivery of care in our NHS?; Resignation of an experienced civil servant, sacking of a Government aide—with this Government it seems that allegations of bullying or just being incompetent gets you promoted, whereas standing up to it, you lose your job. What does this say about this Prime Minister?; We are all becoming increasingly concerned about covid-19—the coronavirus—but every week 650 of us come here from every part of the UK, spend several days operating in close proximity and meeting people from all over the world, and we then return to our constituencies, potentially becoming the very vectors that we are trying to shut down. Parliament must stay open, but what plans does the Prime Minister have to utilise systems such as conference calls and electronic voting to ensure that we do not become part of the problem?
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Member is raising a very important point. The chief medical officer and the chief scientific adviser, together with my right hon. Friend the Health Secretary, will be saying a little bit more in the next couple of days about what we are going to do to delay the advance of coronavirus—in Parliament and in other large gatherings. We are still at the containment stage—she will understand the distinction that the Government are making—and when we come to the delay phase, she will be hearing a lot more detail about what we propose to do with large gatherings and places such as Parliament.