Oral Answers to Questions

Andy Burnham Excerpts

Wednesday 14th October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Jerome Mayhew (Broadland and Fakenham) (Con)]

Q1. If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 14 October.

[The Prime Minister (Andy Burnham)]

I add my tribute to Sir David on the fifth anniversary of his death. David was someone of whom I was very fond and with whom I worked very closely on the Health Committee when I arrived in this House in 2001. We send our deepest condolences to David’s family. There is more work to be done on the security of Members of this House, and we will do it.

I look forward to welcoming President Zelensky to Downing Street later this afternoon. Our support for Ukraine is unwavering. I have asked for further military and financial support to be drawn up ready for the coming weeks.

Later today, I will also meet Archie Goodburn, an incredible athlete and inspiring campaigner for brain cancer research.

Finally, I also pay tribute to Councillor Pat Karney, who served north Manchester for almost 50 years as a councillor in such a dedicated way. He saw the city through some of its greatest challenges and has fittingly been called “Mr Manchester” on the front page of the Manchester Evening News today. Thank you, Pat, for your contribution to Manchester and to politics in our country.

This morning I had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in this House, I shall have further such meetings later today.

[Jerome Mayhew]

The Prime Minister sees himself as a man of candour, so will he tell the House whether anyone associated with the running of Manchester City football club raised the charges that they were facing, and have now been found guilty of, with either him or any member of his team?

[The Prime Minister]

They did not raise those issues with me. I am very happy for everything to be set out in full, Mr Speaker. That is why I asked the Greater Manchester combined authority, in response to a call from the Leader of the Opposition and others, to set out a full statement of my key dealings with the owners of Manchester City football club. That statement, which was published on Monday, includes the issues in the news today, and that is the position.

[Jack Abbott (Ipswich) (Lab/Co-op)]

Q2. I am sure we were all incredibly moved by the Prime Minister’s tribute to his late father at Labour party conference, and I wish to pass on my personal condolences to him and his family. During the Prime Minister’s speech, I thought about my own grandparents, who were both former teachers with decades of public service, but when they needed looking after, they had to go through their savings and their pension just to receive the care that my granny needed.I am sure that that story will resonate with thousands of people in Ipswich and across the country, because we have a care system that puts profit before people, leaving behind not only the people who depend on this service, but the incredible people who work within it. As a Labour and Co-operative MP, I ask our country’s first Labour and Co-operative Prime Minister whether he will consider the co-operative approach to social care so that we can finally put people before profit.

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my hon. Friend for his kind words and pass on my sympathies in relation to his grandparents. Any family in this country who has lived through the journey of dementia and experienced the social care system will know that we should not accept the status quo. The failure of this House to fix social care through the decades does not reflect well on any party. We will fix it. We will create a national care service. In laying out the path to that national care service, I can give him my word as the Labour and Co-operative MP for Makerfield that co-operative principles will be at the heart of the new national care service.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the Leader of the Opposition.

[Mrs Kemi Badenoch (North West Essex) (Con)]

I thank you, Mr Speaker, and the Prime Minister for the words about Sir David Amess. We on this side of the House miss him dearly, as do his family. He was a fellow Essex MP and a very good friend to me and to so many across this House, and I know that he is still very much loved by his constituents in Southend.

The Prime Minister has had a busy few weeks: tying himself in knots explaining why national security should not come at the expense of social security, and bumbling into a row—still ongoing—about Manchester City. I do not think that his carefully worded answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Broadland and Fakenham (Jerome Mayhew) will suffice—it does not sound like that one is going away. He also spent the last 48 hours trying to unsay that Russia influenced the 2016 referendum when we all heard him say it. Does he ever get tired of putting his foot in his mouth?

[The Prime Minister]

I am glad that the right hon. Lady raised my comments, because it gives me an opportunity to say to the whole House how I intend to lead this country. We have lived through a decade of division, and we know that hostile actors have been seeking to interfere in our democratic process. That is a matter of fact. We need to call that out and look straight at it in a way that the Conservatives did not.

I have a quote here from the right hon. Lady when she stood at this Dispatch Box when she was responsible for steering through the Elections Bill. She said:

“I have not read the Russia report”.––[Official Report, Elections Public Bill Committee, 26 October 2021; c. 384.]

They did not want to see it. They wanted to look in the other direction. I will not do that. I will draw a line. I will defend our democracy, and I will lead this country forward with positivity, unity and hope in the next decade.

[Mrs Badenoch]

It sounds like the Prime Minister is digging in, but you cannot fight misinformation with misinformation. This is the first time I have ever heard the head of MI5 slap down a Prime Minister for doing Russia’s dirty work for them. Either the Prime Minister knew what he was doing on that podcast—trying to undermine the 2016 referendum—or he opened his mouth on a matter of national security and said the first thing that came into his head. Does the Prime Minister agree with the director general of MI5 that talking up Russian interference was a mistake?

[The Prime Minister]

I could ask the Leader of the Opposition whether she has even read the Russia report yet. I also wonder whether she has read the full comments from Sir Ken McCallum or whether she heard the comments from the former head of MI6. If she had, she would not have made the statements that she just made in this House. I think it is important that we are clear-eyed about what happened in the past. There is incontrovertible evidence that outside actors—enemies of this country—have interfered in our democratic processes, and it is inconceivable that that was not taking place across the whole of the last decade.

[Mrs Badenoch]

Still digging in—it was not me that MI5 was talking about. The fact is, this Prime Minister will say anything instead of dealing with the tough decisions that only he can take—like on Britain’s energy security. In July, he said that he would approve the Rosebank and Jackdaw oil and gas fields in the North sea. What is he waiting for? If he had approved them back then, we would have British gas warming British homes this winter. Will he now—[Interruption.] It is true: all the gas from Jackdaw goes on to the British grid. Will he now stop faffing about and approve Rosebank and Jackdaw?

[The Prime Minister]

The right hon. Lady asked me what I am waiting for. I have had to wait for the Government process, which was struck down by the courts under the Conservative Government, to be fixed. They messed it up, and we inherited that situation. I will take a pragmatic approach on oil and gas. We will set out our decisions shortly.

[Mrs Badenoch]

So much time wasting. This is a Government who approve importing oil from Russia and approve new drilling off the Falkland Islands but will not approve new drilling in the North sea. The truth is that the Prime Minister is delaying a decision on energy to avoid a row with his Back Benchers, just as he is avoiding another row on cutting welfare.

The Times reports that 2 million people are being paid sickness benefits, and they may not even be sick. Billions of pounds are being paid to people who should not be getting that. The last time a Prime Minister tried to cut welfare, Labour MPs stopped him. They are still chuntering now—look at them. Is the Prime Minister afraid to cut benefits because he does not want a fight with his Back Benchers?

[The Prime Minister]

We commissioned the Milburn report because we do not want to see a country where young people in their 20s are stuck on benefits. I want a system where we give the right support to young people up front so that they can be in training, education or employment from 16 onwards. They do need better mental health support, and I have argued for a different education system that gives parity to technical education alongside the university route. We will bring forward the Milburn report soon. We will set out our response to it. We will bring down the welfare bill.

[Mrs Badenoch]

I did not ask the Prime Minister about the Milburn review, but, if he wants to talk about it, I spoke to Alan Milburn and he said that the review was due before the Budget. The Prime Minister has kicked it into the long grass.

The Budget is in two weeks. Let me tell the Prime Minister what should be in it: cutting welfare to fund defence. In a BBC interview on Sunday, the Defence Secretary refused to commit to spending 3% of GDP on defence by 2030. People used to resign over this. I see that he is not here today—he is still not doing his job. That is the money that Britain needs to keep us safe. Now, the Prime Minister will not even tell us what his plan is for another year. Why will he not announce a date for 3% in this month’s Budget?

[The Prime Minister]

As I said, I am meeting President Zelensky this afternoon. We will honour our commitments to him and his country, and we will honour our NATO commitments, as I have said every time that I have appeared at this Dispatch Box. The right hon. Lady will have to wait for the Budget.

The right hon. Lady comes here every week and poses as the world-leading authority on defence. She talked about interviews. I recall a recent interview she gave about the Conservatives’ plans for an iron dome. Then she said, “It isn’t our plan.” Then it emerged that it was briefed by her team, which does not sound like she is in control of her own policy on defence. Then, under questioning from Mr Ferrari on LBC, she said

“you’ve got to speak to a defence expert about exactly how it works.”

Obviously, we worked out in that interview that she was not a defence expert, and I think Mr Ferrari is still waiting for an explanation.

[Mrs Badenoch]

A month ago, the Prime Minister was boasting that it was time to engage in problem solving rather than point scoring. It seems that is another thing that he said without thinking.

The Prime Minister wants to talk about defence, so let us talk about defence. The Conservatives are the only party that actually has a plan to get to 3% by 2030. I asked him about the Budget, and he said he is meeting President Zelensky. President Zelensky is not writing the Budget; he is. The last two Labour Budgets have been a total disaster.

Yesterday I met a beauty salon owner who is struggling with the impact of Labour’s tax rises. She told me that she is dipping into her pension to pay the young people she employs. That is the brutal reality for tens of thousands of small business owners after just two years of Labour. The Prime Minister entered Downing Street promising the biggest change in 40 years. Now Labour MPs are briefing journalists that they hope this Budget

“does as little harm as possible”.

Is he not too busy appeasing his MPs, excusing his own mistakes and avoiding difficult decisions to give the country the leadership it needs?

[The Prime Minister]

I used my conference speech to face up to difficult decisions. I faced up to a difficult decision on supporting older people in later life, related to adjusting the triple lock so that we can lay the ground for a national care service. I took a difficult decision about developing closer ties with Europe, supported by a majority of people in this country. Why? Because we have the chance to do a deal before the end of the year that can add growth to the British economy and support our farmers and our food industry.

Let me finish today in a spirit of problem solving, not point scoring; in a spirit of unity with the right hon. Lady. I will make one further point about her conference speech. I commend her for drawing a line under a decade of division when she drew a line between her and Reform for suggesting that her children were not British. That is wrong in every single respect. She was brave and she was right to call it out. That is what I want to see more of in the next decade, as we go forward.

[Deirdre Costigan (Ealing Southall) (Lab)]

Q3. Almost 10 years ago, the shutters on Southall police station were pulled down for good because of austerity cuts by the Conservative Government. A shuttered police station in the middle of our town centre makes criminals feel that they can get away with it, and residents feel like no one cares. Does the Prime Minister agree that we must do all that we can to end the blight of empty and shuttered buildings in our town centres? Will he back my campaign to pull up the shutters on Southall police station so that local residents can feel safe again?

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend puts her points very powerfully. High streets across the country, including in Southall, have for too long been a symbol of the decline of our towns, and I am determined to do something about it. Immediately, I cut business rates for pubs, clubs and music venues by 20%, working with the Chancellor when I came into office. We are bringing forward a high streets strategy later this year. We have announced a £210 million package for councils to reopen empty buildings. I will look at the specifics on the police hub. This issue should be one that unites this House and one where we can work together.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the leader of the Liberal Democrats.

[Ed Davey (Kingston and Surbiton) (LD)]

Thank you, Mr Speaker—[Hon. Members: “More!] They will be getting more. Mr Speaker, can I join you, the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition in praising the late Sir David Amess and sending our condolences to his family? He was a man who was respected across this House and who had friends across this House.

When the Prime Minister announced cross-party talks on social care over the summer, I was delighted and immediately accepted because getting this right really matters. He said then that to build a lasting solution on funding care, we were going to have to listen to each other and find common ground. He said that when he tried before, back in 2009, his mistake had been leaving it too close to an election. Does he still think that now? If we are to find the common ground well before the next election, will he tell us when the next round of cross-party talks will be?

[The Prime Minister]

I am happy to admit that again now. I was working then with a colleague of Members now on the Lib Dem Front Bench, Norman Lamb, and it did get too late. It got caught up, inevitably, in the climate of the election. Then it happened to Theresa May in 2017, and Labour Members were perhaps doing the point scoring at that point in time. This is not an issue for point scoring. When is this House going to learn that? How long is it going to turn away from this issue? My hon. Friend the Member for Ipswich (Jack Abbott) mentioned his grandparents. I saw mine go through the care system and I vowed as a Minister in the Blair Government that I would not let it happen to my parents, but it has just happened. It is not good enough, for him or for the many thousands of people like him, but also for the people who work in social care, who give everything to it. I see the right hon. Gentleman’s genuine commitment to this issue. It will be difficult, but let us get on and build this national care service and raise the esteem of politics with people across this country.

[Ed Davey]

The Prime Minister knows that I share his passion to get this right. He knows that I share his passion to work cross-party to find consensus, which is the only way we can put this right, but I hope we can get on with the cross-party talks. We cannot push this to the end of the next decade. We have to act now for the millions of people who need our help.

Can I move on to other matters? Scared of the mid-terms, President Trump has done a deal with Vladimir Putin to buy Russian diesel, ripping up international sanctions against Putin. The Prime Minister studiously avoided commenting on Trump’s behaviour on Monday, but this House deserves to know his position, as do President Zelensky and our brave Ukrainian allies. So let me ask the Prime Minister this: does he not agree that this is yet another shameful Trump betrayal of the Ukrainian people and European security?

[The Prime Minister]

Can I first say that I will arrange a new round of cross-party talks on social care, certainly before the end of the year, but hopefully within the next month? The former shadow Health Secretary from the main Opposition came, and I will make sure it is available to all parties in this House.

On the question about what is happening in Ukraine, obviously I am looking very much now at my meeting with President Zelensky in a couple of hours. I called him on Saturday because I recognised that it was another very dark and difficult moment for him as they contemplate a winter that will be severe for his people. I recognise that he is carrying the heaviest of weights right now and it is extremely difficult for him. What I have to do in my role is try and repair bridges so that the support comes back, and therefore I should, at this moment in time, be careful in terms of laying the ground to bring people back together. That is the role I intend to play. It is the right role for me to play in this moment. I will listen to President Zelensky carefully, but he will not be going away from Britain today empty-handed.

[Jen Craft (Thurrock) (Lab)]

Q5. The school of my six-year-old constituent Hollie does not allow siblings to attend school events. Her brother William has profound, multiple, life-limiting disabilities and needs 24/7 specialist care. He is also a delightful little boy. As they cannot bring William or leave him with a babysitter, this effectively means that Hollie’s parents must always stay away from school events, missing everything from parents’ evenings to Christmas plays and phonics workshops. Yet Catalyst Academies Trust, which runs the school, and its CEO, Tony Parfett, have repeatedly refused to make an exception to accommodate William or even to meet myself to discuss ways forward. Will the Prime Minister back my call for the Catalyst Academies Trust to do the right thing, and can he ensure that academy trusts are meeting their reasonable adjustment obligations to disabled children and their families?

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my hon. Friend for giving me advance knowledge of this case, and I will be honest in saying that it worries me. It is crucial, clearly, because of the circumstances that my hon. Friend describes in relation to Hollie’s school, that the family are able to spend as much time together as is possible. That is why I have asked the Department for Education to speak to the trust. It must be possible to resolve this situation. It should not be causing any stress to the family. I would ask that they do it without delay.

[Nigel Farage (Clacton) (Reform)]

MI5 boss Sir Ken McCallum yesterday revealed that there have been 50 arrests in the last year linked to Iran, and I have to say that this Government deserve praise. They deserve praise for proscribing the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps—a very important move. But every single week there are young, unidentified males from Iran coming into this country, some of whom pose a genuine security threat to our nation. Is it not time the Government recognised that what is going on in the English channel is a national security emergency?

[The Prime Minister]

Can I start just by recognising, with the charges that have been laid against the individual responsible for the murder of Ann Widdecombe, and indeed for also making threats against the hon. Member, that it has been a hard time for him and his family? There is a lot we disagree on, but I defend his right to say it, and I will work hard to secure his safety and that of every Member of this House. We will involve all sides in the Lovegrove review that my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary has established.

On the issues related to Iran, obviously we have seen the issues at RAF Fairford recently. They have been dealt with in the right way and with the utmost seriousness by the police and security services. The key point is that, of course, we do need to get boat crossings down. I hope the hon. Member would recognise that they are coming down and removals are up. There is much more to be done, but there is clearly progress in the right direction.

[Mr Speaker]

I do not think we are going to get through the list. We really are going to have to try to speed up some of the answers.

[Natasha Irons (Croydon East) (Lab)]

Q6. It is tough growing up in Britain today. With one in five young people now with a mental health condition, the wellbeing of our young people remains in crisis. In communities such as mine in Croydon East, where young people are waiting up to four years for support, families are desperate for help. Can the Prime Minister outline what his Government are doing to invest in early mental health support in communities across the country and how he will tackle the long wait for support that is robbing young people of their future?

[The Prime Minister]

I am going to go back to the response to the Milburn review. I think we need to give guarantees of mental health support when young people need it—not waiting months, not waiting years, but exactly when they need it—and that will be a part of my response.

[Daisy Cooper (St Albans) (LD)]

Q4. Exactly five weeks ago, I asked the Prime Minister if he would back my three-year campaign to get a new mental health in-patient hub in Hertfordshire, which would begin to pay for itself as soon as it is built. I know that the Prime Minister understands the principle of invest to save, because he himself has used this argument to explain why building social homes will reduce the housing benefit bill. So will he stick to his principles and, having reviewed the proposal that I sent him, now commit to provide the up-front resources to build this self-funding mental health hub in Hertfordshire?

[The Prime Minister]

I will be writing to the hon. Lady soon. This might sound disappointing, as we will not be taking forward her specific suggestion, but we will be bringing forward four new community mental health centres across Hertfordshire, as part of 159 across the country. I will be happy to ensure that the Health and Social Care Secretary works with her to involve her in the design of those new hubs, so that we can deliver the mental health support that she is rightly calling for.

[James Asser (West Ham and Beckton) (Lab)]

Q9. This summer I visited a holiday activities scheme, whose organisers told me they had to increase the size of the lunch portions because children were hungry, and with schools closed, it was the only meal some of them were getting. The Prime Minister has rightly talked about the need to tackle the cost of living crisis and bring people hope again, which is essential in my constituency. Will he join me, our trade unions and community organisations in prioritising the elimination of food poverty? No child in our country should go to bed at night feeling hungry.

[The Prime Minister]

I praise my hon. Friend, my hon. Friend the Member for Liverpool West Derby (Ian Byrne) who has run the Right to Food campaign, and our trade unions—I am a proud supporter of them, and they have supported me, and I declare that interest in that matter as discussed with my hon. Friend the Member for Crewe and Nantwich (Connor Naismith) recently. We do need to expand access to free school meals, which the Government are doing, to half a million more children, and we have tripled investment in breakfast clubs. We need to keep working so that no child goes hungry on any single day in this country.

[Sarah Dyke (Glastonbury and Somerton) (LD)]

Q7. In rural Somerset distance has a price. Every school bus, bin round and pothole fix costs more, yet the Government are diverting hundreds of millions from rural to urban councils, leaving Somerset £21 million a year worse off. Roberta from Martock told me yesterday that people need more affordable homes, but slashing funding will not build a single one. Will the Prime Minister use December’s settlement to restore remoteness funding to Somerset—yes or no?

[The Prime Minister]

As Prime Minister I am determined to ensure that we support all communities in this country, including our rural communities. I will listen carefully to what the hon. Member has to say as we bring forward our plans to show that we are on the side of her constituents.

[Maureen Burke (Glasgow North East) (Lab)]

Q11. A recent BBC “Disclosure” documentary exposed violence, open drug dealing, child exploitation, and a staggering 1,200 sexual offences recorded in Glasgow city centre in the year to March 2026. We must have an honest discussion about the city’s pressures, including addiction, deprivation, immigration and community cohesion. While SNP underfunding has crippled local public services, and Glasgow city council’s response has fallen short, Reform is exploiting public safety fears to stoke racial division in our welcoming city. Will the Prime Minister hear this call for help and support a co-ordinated response to make Glasgow safer?

[The Prime Minister]

Policing is obviously a devolved matter, but I am very open to working with the SNP Government, Police Scotland, and Glasgow city council to deal with the issues that my hon. Friend is referencing. As Mayor of Greater Manchester, I brought forward Operation Vulcan, which was a multi-agency approach to changing Cheetham Hill, and it did rip out entrenched criminality in that area. I am more than happy to talk to my hon. Friend about how we pioneer that in Glasgow too, and that offer is open to her.

[Dame Harriett Baldwin (West Worcestershire) (Con)]

Q8. The Leader of the Opposition has made her position on doing deals with other parties crystal-clear. Will the Prime Minister make it equally clear, following the Green party’s descent into the most abhorrent antisemitism, that he will rule out co-operating with it?

[The Prime Minister]

May I condemn the motion that was passed, unequivocally? It is wrong, it is antisemitic, and Labour Members will have nothing to do with it. We will always take the right response when it comes to any partnerships that we have with other parties, and we cannot support a partnership with a party that holds the position that has recently been adopted.

[Chris Kane (Stirling and Strathallan) (Lab)]

Q12. On a recent visit to Stirling high school, senior pupils studying politics and modern studies asked me about everything from climate change to war in the middle east. One young woman asked how young people can know they are being heard by politicians, so I have brought her question here so that she and her classmates can see that a question asked in their assembly hall can get an answer from the Prime Minister. Whether we are discussing mental health, housing, jobs, our relationship with Europe or the upcoming report on NEETs—those not in education, employment, or training—we are discussing their future. How will the Prime Minister ensure that we talk with young people, rather than just about them, and show them that their ideas and opinions shape the decisions that we take in this place?

[The Prime Minister]

I could not agree with my hon. Friend more strongly. I will be in Scotland on Friday making a speech on these issues, looking at how we can do more to support young people and help the Government in Scotland develop their approach to getting more young people into work. We also have the Your First Home scheme that we have brought forward. We need to do much more to help young people get themselves established in life, and we will do that in all parts of the UK, including Scotland.

[Munira Wilson (Twickenham) (LD)]

Q10. Despite the desperate need for pitch space in my constituency, Udney Park playing fields in Teddington have lain derelict for over a decade. The most recent owner, a Chinese business man, has now been sanctioned by the British Government and has had his assets frozen. Given that the Prime Minister has made it clear that he wants communities to take back control of precious sites like Udney Park, will he work with me to ensure those playing fields are put back in the hands of the community, right where they belong?

[The Prime Minister]

I am a complete champion for green space and physical activity, so I am concerned to hear about the situation that the hon. Lady’s constituents are in. I have just had a commitment from the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Wigan (Lisa Nandy), to meet her to get this situation unlocked, and I hope that is helpful to her.

[Joe Powell (Kensington and Bayswater) (Lab)]

Q13. It is now nearly 10 years since the Grenfell Tower fire. I welcome the recent progress on criminal accountability, but from Hillsborough to infected blood to the Countess of Chester hospital, too often inquiries and inquests make recommendations that sit on a shelf, leaving victims chasing answers and avoidable harms continuing. Will the Prime Minister give his support to an independent national oversight mechanism to sit alongside the Hillsborough law, and ensure that when tragedies like Grenfell do occur, the state is held properly accountable for change?

[The Prime Minister]

May I agree strongly with my hon. Friend? I remember bringing the Hillsborough families to meet the Grenfell families shortly after the disaster. It is painful that it has taken so long for charges to be laid, but at least they have been laid now. I know the First Secretary has met with the Chair of the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee this week to look at the oversight mechanism that he describes. I am confident that we can develop a model that gives exactly the commitment that he is looking for. I want to leave him and his constituents in no doubt whatsoever: as Prime Minister, I will work to support him every day to get justice for Grenfell.

[Sir James Cleverly (Braintree) (Con)]

The national planning policy framework is 130 pages long. The London plan is over 500 pages long. The mayor’s guidance to the London plan is over 2,000 pages long. Will the Prime Minister concede that because of that, added to the increase in taxes that his Government are putting on businesses and employers, Labour has been a disaster for home building in London, pricing young people out of the market and putting pressure on home counties constituencies, like mine?

[The Prime Minister]

The right hon. Gentleman just gave me a moment of déjà vu—I remember standing up in this Chamber auditioning for a mayor’s job many years ago. [Interruption.] He did not do a bad audition, but maybe it needs a little bit of work because the Administration that he worked in left some of that bureaucracy behind in London City Hall. I hope he will show more candour and directness than the Leader of the Opposition if he is ever asked the question, “Has Brexit been good or bad for London?” What is his answer?

[Gerald Jones (Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare) (Lab)]

The 60th anniversary of the Aberfan disaster, which claimed the lives of 116 children and 28 adults, will be marked on 21 October. In the coming days, the community will mark the occasion with a range of events. As a precursor, this evening in Portcullis House the Lewis Merthyr band will perform a piece of music dedicated to the lost children of Aberfan. It was the most unimaginable horror that befell the village, and just how the community came together in the days and months ahead was, and is, testament to the spirit of the people of that community, who responded with such dignity and fortitude. It is fitting that the chair of the Aberfan memorial charity and a survivor of the disaster, Mr David Davies, is with us in the Gallery. Will the Prime Minister join me in paying tribute to those who were lost and to what Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II described as the most “indomitable spirit” of the people and community of Aberfan?

[The Prime Minister]

I will be meeting David shortly. I look forward to paying tribute to him as the chair of the Aberfan Memorial Charity for all the support he has provided over the years to the relatives of the 144 people who died, many of them children, and the families who have lived with that grief for generations. I intend to visit Aberfan next week on the occasion of the 60th anniversary. I pay tribute to the whole community for the strength that they have shown over the years and to the wonderful representation that my hon. Friend has given.

[Peter Fortune (Bromley and Biggin Hill) (Con)]

It has been 43 days since the Prime Minister received a letter signed by all Opposition parties expressing support for the Lobular Moon Shot Project, which seeks funding to fight the insidious disease that is lobular breast cancer. Sadly, no response has been received. When the Prime Minister was the Mayor of Greater Manchester, he committed to supporting the Lobular Moon Shot Project. Will he reaffirm that commitment from the Dispatch Box?

[The Prime Minister]

I will indeed, and I remember the meeting very well. I speak as someone whose family has been affected by breast cancer. I look forward to meeting the group again, perhaps with the hon. Gentleman and with other colleagues on all sides of the House.

[Mr Speaker]

Final question.

[Peter Dowd (Bootle) (Lab)]

In recent weeks, the Argentine Government have increased their economic aggression towards the Falkland Islands. Given that, will the Prime Minister update the House on the actions that the Government are taking in response to that belligerence?

[The Prime Minister]

Our position is unwavering: the Falkland Islands are British and will remain so, because that is the overwhelming will of the Falkland Islanders. We have made that clear to Argentina directly. We will not allow the islanders to be used as a prop in Argentinian domestic politics. I raised this issue directly with President Trump just a few weeks ago. We will not allow Britain or the Falkland Islands to be bullied in this way. We will seek to resolve the situation, but we will not hesitate to use more robust measures if necessary.

Bills Presented

Building Safety (Remediation of Unsafe Cladding etc)

Presentation and First Reading (Standing Order No. 57)

Secretary Angela Rayner, supported by the Prime Minister, Secretary Alex Norris, Secretary Stephen Kinnock, Emma Reynolds, Uma Kumaran, Vicky Foxcroft, Matthew Pennycook, Florence Eshalomi and Jim McMahon, presented a Bill to make provision about fire safety in buildings containing multiple dwellings, including provision for the assessment and remediation of external walls that give rise to risks from fire, and the mitigation of such risks, in taller buildings; to make provision for the obtaining and recording of information about buildings containing residential accommodation; to make provision about liabilities in connection with unsafe construction products; and to make other provision in connection with the safety and management of residential buildings.

Bill read the First time; to be read a Second time tomorrow, and to be printed (Bill 155) with explanatory notes (Bill 155-EN).

Flooding

Presentation and First Reading (Standing Order No. 57)

George Freeman, supported by Helen Morgan, Dr Ben Spencer, Steff Aquarone, Terry Jermy, James Wild, Jerome Mayhew, Adrian Ramsey, Blake Stephenson and Dr Roz Savage, presented a Bill to make provision about the responsibilities and duties of certain authorities and agencies in respect of inland flood prevention; to make provision about the powers of local flood authorities and Internal Drainage Boards; to require the Secretary of State to report to Parliament on the funding of local flood authorities and Internal Drainage Boards; to provide for the designation of Internal Drainage Board pumps as critical national infrastructure; to require the Secretary of State to prepare and publish a report on the potential merits of establishing a Flood Compensation Fund to support homeowners whose primary residence has become unsaleable as a direct result of flooding; to make provision about flood reinsurance schemes; to make provision about the responsibilities of developers and water companies in respect of the provision of drainage for new housing developments; to make water companies statutory consultees for certain planning applications; to place a duty on fire and rescue services to respond to flood events; to make provision about national and local digital mapping of flood incidence and risk; and for connected purposes.

Bill read the First time; to be read a Second time on Friday 4 December, and to be printed (Bill 157).

Armed Forces Compensation Scheme and War Pension Scheme (Report) Bill

Presentation and First Reading (Standing Order No. 57)

Josh Babarinde presented a Bill to require the Secretary of State to report to Parliament on the potential merits of disregarding compensation received under the War Pension Scheme and Armed Forces Compensation Scheme for the purpose of calculating entitlement to Pension Credit and to other means-tested benefits for which such payments are not disregarded in full; and for connected purposes.

Bill read the First time; to be read a Second time on Friday 13 November, and to be printed (Bill 158).