Engagements — House of Commons, 2019-03-20
Topic: Macroeconomics
Questions: Will the Prime Minister welcome Oil & Gas UK’s report today predicting £200 billion of new investment in the sector, supported by this Government’s fiscal policy in direct contrast to the SNP’s failure to stimulate the Scottish economy?;   The announcement this week of the closure of Coes of Lowestoft, following on from those of Beales, Argos and Body Shop, highlights the challenges facing the high street in Lowestoft. To address these, Waveney District Council is submitting an expression of interest to the future high streets fund, which I anticipate will be heavily over-subscribed. I acknowledge the various initiatives the Government have put forward, but can the Prime Minister assure me that a co-ordinated, sustained and properly resourced approach, working with councils, will be pursued to revitalise our town centres, which are vital to local communities and economies?; In June 2016 the country voted to leave the European Union. In February 2017 this House voted by a majority of 384 to trigger article 50. The Prime Minister in this House has said 108 times that we will be leaving the European Union on 29 March. Last week two thirds of her MPs voted against any extension to article 50. Prime Minister, if you continue to apply for an extension to article 50 you will be betraying the British people. [Interruption.] If you don’t, you will be honouring their instruction. Prime Minister, it is entirely down to you; history will judge you at this moment. [Interruption.];   On Friday I visited a school in my constituency where distressing poverty means that teachers are not only providing food for the children at breakfast and lunch, but are sourcing clothes and buying shoes for them, in addition to raising money for books and equipment. Now that school, the only one in the area, is threatened with closure, so rather than spending money trying to get people to back her Brexit deal, will the Prime Minister please use it to address the acute social need in this country that is bringing families and communities to their knees?; To overcome homelessness we need more homes, and in Chelmsford we are building 1,000 new homes every year, but we also need the infrastructure, so this week Essex County Council is putting in bids for housing infrastructure funding, including for the second train station in Chelmsford. Does my right hon. Friend agree that world-class infrastructure is vital for our future, and will she support our 25-year campaign for Chelmsford’s second train station?; I know that the Prime Minister campaigned to keep section 28, which banned LGBT from being talked about positively in schools and led to millions of young people such as myself growing up in fear of being LGBT. I thought she had seen the error of her ways, but this morning the Leader of the House said on the radio that parents should decide when their children should be exposed to LGBT education. This is Conservative party dog whistle politics. Will the Prime Minister condemn the Leader of the House, and will she condemn bigots who do not want LGBT people to be heard in schools? Will she support Ofsted with good LGBT education in our schools?; In Cornwall, we want to be as environmentally friendly as possible. In fact, we want to be carbon free by 2030. For me, this means improving the quality of our homes, making use of all forms of renewable energy and ensuring sustainable food production. Will my right hon. Friend welcome the aspirations of communities such as Cornwall, and will her Government ensure that robust policies are in place to meet our net zero emission commitments more quickly?; There were 4,621 words in the Chancellor’s spring statement, but not a single mention of WASPI women. The Prime Minister came into office vowing to tackle burning injustices. Those women worked all their lives for their pension but had it taken from them without their knowledge. Does the Prime Minister really not think that that is a burning injustice?; The United Kingdom’s average unemployment rate is a remarkable 4%, which is a very welcome low. In Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock, however, it stands at 6.5%. Will my right hon. Friend give an assurance to my constituents that she will continue to work on building employment nationally, and with a particular focus on areas where unemployment is significantly higher than the UK average?
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend has raised a particularly important issue, but if I may, I will pull him up on just one point. The unemployment rate across the UK is actually 3.9%. Employment in Scotland has risen by 239,000 since the 2010 election, and we saw in the spring statement that the economy is growing every year, borrowing is lower than expected and debt is falling, but I absolutely recognise my hon. Friend’s concerns. That is why we will continue to work as a UK Government to deliver more jobs, healthier finances and an economy that is fit for the future across the whole of the United Kingdom.