Justice
(1 day, 16 hours ago)
Written CorrectionsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Carla Lockhart (Upper Bann) (DUP)
Recently, I attended a service marking 40 years since William Heenan was murdered by the IRA for being a Protestant. While we honoured his memory, the self-proclaimed “First Minister for all” in Northern Ireland was visiting the newly erected statue of IRA terrorist Bobby Sands, glorifying the movement responsible for the cold-blooded murder of men such as William. Will the Minister agree to meet me and innocent victims from Northern Ireland regarding the review and improvement of the glorification of terrorism legislation that applies to Northern Ireland?
Shabana Mahmood
As I think the hon. Lady will be aware, that is primarily a policy area for our colleagues in the Northern Ireland Office, but I will make sure that we raise those issues with them.
[Official Report, 3 June 2025; Vol. 768, c. 167.]
Written correction submitted by the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, the right hon. Member for Birmingham Ladywood (Shabana Mahmood):
Shabana Mahmood
As I think the hon. Lady will be aware, that is primarily a policy area for our colleagues in the Home Office, but I will make sure that we raise those issues with them.
Trial by Jury: Proposed Restrictions
The following extract is from the debate on Trial by Jury: Proposed Restrictions on 9 July 2025.
Andy Slaughter (Hammersmith and Chiswick) (Lab)
What Sir Brian’s comprehensive report demonstrates is the terrible state that our once envied criminal justice system was left in by the shadow Lord Chancellor and his colleagues. Does my hon. and learned Friend agree with Sir Brian that digging ourselves out of the hole in which they left us will require more investment, greater efficiency and structural change? Is that the debt that we owe to victims of crime in particular, to ensure that they get justice? It is up to this Government to put right the wrongs that have been done over the past 14 years.
Sarah Sackman
As ever, my hon. Friend the Chair of the Justice Committee, gives a considered response and he is absolutely right. There needs to be a recognition of the scale of the problem and two things are required: investment and reform. When hon. Members read the report, they will see that Sir Brian is very clear that we need investment. This Government are already beginning to make that investment, through the additional Crown court sitting days that we have laid on this year; running the system at system max; additional funding for legal aid lawyers and criminal legal aid; and £92 million to keep the sector going, on both the defence and the prosecutorial sides. We are making that investment but, critically, as Sir Brian makes absolutely clear, that alone will not be enough…
[Official Report, 9 July 2025; Vol. 770, c. 951.]
Written correction submitted by the Minister of State, Ministry of Justice, the hon. and learned Member for Finchley and Golders Green (Sarah Sackman):
Sarah Sackman
As ever, my hon. Friend the Chair of the Justice Committee, gives a considered response and he is absolutely right. There needs to be a recognition of the scale of the problem and two things are required: investment and reform. When hon. Members read the report, they will see that Sir Brian is very clear that we need investment. This Government are already beginning to make that investment, through the additional Crown court sitting days that we have laid on this year; running the system at system max; additional funding for legal aid lawyers and criminal legal aid; and £92 million to keep the sector going. We are making that investment but, critically, as Sir Brian makes absolutely clear, that alone will not be enough…
Cabinet Office
(1 day, 16 hours ago)
Written CorrectionsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Rebecca Smith (South West Devon) (Con)
The Government are clearly very happy to claim that all is rosy after their first year in power, yet on the ground in my constituency and around the country, the opposite story is being told. The Government’s policies are hitting my constituents hard—whether it is the impact of increased national insurance contributions on local charities, the prospect of more red tape for landlords, or moving the goalposts for the most vulnerable. Given the Government’s amazing claims, why are they so reticent to share the plan for change metrics in one place, so that the good people up and down the United Kingdom can see the reality of this Labour Government in hard facts?
Pat McFadden
The hon. Lady seems to want more delivery stats, so let me help her out. As my right hon. Friend, the Minister without Portfolio, said, we have had the highest growth of any G7 economy in the first quarter of this year, cuts in interest rates and an expansion of the warm home discount, which will mean that 6 million households will benefit from better insulated houses. I do not claim, in reading out these statistics, that everything is perfect—far from it—but I do believe that we have had change in the past year: change in the investment pattern of the country; change in real wages; and change in our trading position. That is change well worth having.
[Official Report, 10 July 2025; Vol. 770, c. 1104.]
Written correction submitted by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, the right hon. Member for Wolverhampton South East (Pat McFadden):
Pat McFadden
The hon. Lady seems to want more delivery stats, so let me help her out. As my right hon. Friend, the Minister without Portfolio, said, we have had the highest growth of any G7 economy in the first quarter of this year, cuts in interest rates and an expansion of the warm home discount, which will mean that 6 million households will benefit from lower energy bills this winter. I do not claim, in reading out these statistics, that everything is perfect—far from it—but I do believe that we have had change in the past year: change in the investment pattern of the country; change in real wages; and change in our trading position. That is change well worth having.
Work and Pensions
(1 day, 16 hours ago)
Written CorrectionsRead Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Torsten Bell
An important consideration in the Government making this decision was that evidence showed that sending people unsolicited letters is unlikely to affect what they know. That is why letters are sent only as part of wider communication campaigns. This evidence was not properly considered by the ombudsman. Another consideration was that the great majority of 1950s-born women were aware of the state pension age changing, if not of a change in their specific state pension age, as several hon. Members have pointed out. My hon. Friend the Member for Salford mentioned the statistic of 43%, referring to the 2024 rather than 2023 survey. However, as she will know, that refers to all women, including some women as young as 16; if we look at the cohort of women born in the 1950s, the figure is far, far higher. On those and other grounds, we rejected the ombudsman’s approach to injustice and remedy.
[Official Report, 3 July 2025; Vol. 770, c. 513.]
Written correction submitted by the Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, the hon. Member for Swansea West (Torsten Bell):
Torsten Bell
My hon. Friend the Member for Salford mentioned the statistic of 43%, referring to the 2004 rather than 2003 survey. However, as she will know, that refers to all women, including some women as young as 16; if we look at the cohort of women closest to those born in the 1950s, the figure is far higher. On those and other grounds, we rejected the ombudsman’s approach to injustice and remedy.
Other Corrections
Antonia Bance
Black Country Day
The following extract is from the Westminster Hall debate on Black Country Day on 22 July 2025.
Antonia Bance
…The other investment that I want to talk about relates to a wonderful, timely announcement being made today by colleagues at the Department for Transport. They have announced the third round of the advanced fuels fund; I am delighted to say that Sumo Engineering in my constituency will get £4.5 million for its CLEARSKIES initiative, a demonstration project that will help to produce sustainable aviation fuel.
[Official Report, 22 July 2025; Vol. 771, c. 252WH.]
Written correction submitted by the hon. Member for Tipton and Wednesbury (Antonia Bance):
Antonia Bance
…The other investment that I want to talk about relates to a wonderful, timely announcement being made today by colleagues at the Department for Transport. They have announced the third round of the advanced fuels fund; I am delighted to say that Sumo Engineering in my constituency will get £4.2 million for its CLEARSKIES initiative, a demonstration project that will help to produce sustainable aviation fuel.