Engagements — House of Commons, 2018-11-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Questions: No one can question the Prime Minister’s work ethic and determination to reach a deal with the European Union—a deal that many people thought unachievable—but despite her best endeavours, many people still have considerable concerns that this has left us with an uncomfortable choice, and I share those concerns. As the Prime Minister heads to Scotland, what guarantees can she give to those who have concerns about the future of the fishing industry under this deal, and also our precious Union?; Small Business Saturday takes place this Saturday. It is a great campaign that encourages us all to support local shops and businesses across our land. In Scotland, there are more than 340,000 small and medium-sized businesses, supporting 1.2 million jobs. Will the Prime Minister join me in congratulating the Federation of Small Businesses and all the small businesses that take part in the event, but particularly Lindsay Grieve, the butcher in Hawick, Stems, the florist in Jedburgh, and Archie Hume, the gentlemen’s outfitters in Kelso?; It is a fact with any divorce proceedings that if the parties cannot reach a fair and equitable agreement, they go to a judge to ask for a decision. In the case of the divorce between the UK and the EU, this Parliament must be the judge. Does the Prime Minister agree that once this Parliament has rejected the EU’s controlling and dominating proposal, which will not leave us free to decide our future, the UK will be better off spending the money we set aside to prepare for a clean, global Brexit?; My constituent Matthew is one of those very brave people who have waived their anonymity around abuse they suffered at the hands of a member of the Church of England. The Prime Minister will be very aware of the harrowing evidence coming out of the independent inquiry into child sexual abuse, which could have been prevented if a law on mandatory reporting had been in place. International evidence shows that, when introduced, mandatory reporting doubles the number of children placed in safety. Will the Prime Minister commit to protect children and introduce mandatory reporting across all institutions, including the Church of England?
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): May I first say how sorry I am to hear of the case of the hon. Lady’s constituent, Matthew, and the abuse that he suffered? Sadly, what has come out of this independent inquiry is that too much abuse was allowed to carry on for too long, and that too many people suffered as a result. It is not just the case that they suffered at the time when the abuse was taking place; that suffering remains with them to this day, and we should all recognise that. The hon. Lady raised the issue of mandatory reporting, which we looked at very carefully when I was Home Secretary. There is actually mixed evidence on the impact of mandatory reporting. In fact, there is some evidence that it can lead to the genuine cases not being given the resources they require. I want the hon. Lady to be in no doubt about the seriousness with which I and this Government take the issue. We are doing our best to repair—I will not claim that we can fully repair—by giving some sense of justice to the people who suffered at the hands of too many institutions, including institutions of the state, for too long.