Oral Answers to Questions
Kemi Badenoch Excerpts(2 days, 7 hours ago)
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Mrs Kemi Badenoch (North West Essex) (Con)
I echo the Prime Minister’s sentiments about the horrific terrorist attack of 7 July. I was pleased to be at the commemoration service on Monday. In particular, our thoughts are with the families of those who lost their lives, those who had to go on without their loved ones.
I would like to pay tribute to Lord Tebbit, who died yesterday at the age of 94. He was a man of iron integrity and conviction, who, by his efforts, helped to save our country from the chaos of the 1970s. We all owe him so much.
In its manifesto last year, Labour promised not to increase income tax, not to increase national insurance and not to increase VAT. Does the Prime Minister still stand by his promises?
Mrs Badenoch
It is rare—[Interruption.] It is rare that the Prime Minister is able to give a clear answer, but I am glad that he has done so now. He also promised—in fact, he boasted—that he had solved the doctors strike. Only a Prime Minister who was so weak would give doctors a 28% pay rise—only for us now to see them vote to strike again. He folds in every negotiation and claims it is a triumph. [Interruption.] Yes, he does. We saw more promises at the Budget: the Chancellor promised that she would lift the freeze on income tax and national insurance thresholds, because, in her words, they “hurt working people”. Is that still Government policy?
The Prime Minister
No Prime Minister or Chancellor is going to write a Budget in advance. We are absolutely fixed on our fiscal rules; we remain committed to them. We remain committed to our manifesto commitments—I realise that sticking to fiscal rules and manifesto commitments is a bit unfamiliar to the Conservatives. It is because of the decisions the Chancellor and this Government have taken that we can update the House: £120 billion of inward investment into this country since we took office; business confidence at a nine-year high—longer than the Leader of the Opposition has been in Parliament; Deloitte this week saying that the UK is now the best place to invest, creating 384,000 jobs. What a contrast to the mess we inherited from the Conservative party.
Mrs Badenoch
There was no clear answer there. The whole House will have heard the Prime Minister fail to rule out freezing tax thresholds. He could say yes to the first question—he could promise—but could not this time. What does this mean? He is talking about record investment and more jobs. We know that people are losing their jobs; unemployment has gone up every single month of Labour’s year in office. What does the issue of tax thresholds mean? It means that under Labour, millions of our poorest pensioners face being dragged into income tax for the first time ever. Does the Prime Minister think it is right that struggling pensioners should face a retirement tax?
The Prime Minister
For a Prime Minister or a Chancellor to say we are not going to write a Budget in advance is not a Labour thing or a Tory thing—every single Prime Minister and Chancellor says that they will not do that. We will stick to our manifesto commitments; we will stick to our fiscal rules. This is a language the Conservatives do not understand, and that is what got us into the problem in the first place. The Leader of the Opposition comes here every week to talk the country down, but that record investment—£120 billion—will mean good, well-paid jobs across the country. This investment is from foreign investors who can choose whether to invest in this country; they are choosing to invest in this country now, because they have confidence in what this Government are doing.
Mrs Badenoch
Investors are fleeing the country. The Prime Minister says he will stick to his manifesto promises, but Labour promised not to put a tax on working people and then we got the jobs tax, and all we have seen are jobs disappearing. Before the election, the Prime Minister promised
“not a penny more on your council tax”.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies says that council tax bills will now rise at their fastest rate in 20 years. Will the Prime Minister admit that under him council tax is set to soar?
The Prime Minister
No, of course it is not. It soared under the last Government. Here she goes again: the Leader of the Opposition is back on familiar territory. She comes here every week complaining about the national insurance rise, and when she is asked whether she would have the courage to reverse it, what is her answer? [Hon. Members: “No!”] No, and I will tell you for why, Mr Speaker. She is too embarrassed to say that she does not want the investment that we have put in. That investment went into the NHS. The Conservatives want that investment, but they cannot say how they would pay for it. That is what got us into the problem in the first place.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister still does not understand, so I am going to make it very simple for him: this is a mess of his own making—he should not be asking how we would clean it up. The fact is this Government raised national insurance through the jobs tax, and that is why they have to put up council tax. The truth is that his catastrophic Budget has created a domino effect that he cannot now control. We on the Conservative Benches know that you cannot tax your way to growth, but now he is flirting—[Interruption.] Labour Members are all muttering, but I remember that Budget. They were laughing and cheering; they had no idea of the mess that they were creating. They should go and explain to their constituents why unemployment is going up.
What is more worrying is that now the Prime Minister is flirting with Neil Kinnock’s demand for a wealth tax. Let us be honest about what that means: it would be a tax on all our constituents’ savings, on their houses and on their pensions. It would be a tax on aspiration. Will the Prime Minister rule this out?
The Prime Minister
The right hon. Lady says that we should not be asking them for advice on the economy. She is absolutely right about that; we will not be asking for their advice. What we did in the Budget was stabilise the economy through the measures taken by the Chancellor. What has that led to? Four interest rate cuts. For mortgage holders, that is hugely important. Compare and contrast that with what happened under the Liz Truss mini-Budget. We had the fastest growth in the G7 in the first quarter of this year; wages were up more in the first 10 months of a Labour Government than in the 10 years under the Tories. So no, we do not need lessons from them.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister says that he has stabilised the economy. Has he spoken to any farmers recently? It is time for him to take responsibility for the mess that he is making. He has been in office for a year, and all we see is him congratulating himself on what a fantastic job he has done. [Interruption.] Nobody out there believes it—not even Labour Members. What a weak cheer! He is congratulating himself, but we can compare records. He talks about the fastest growing economy. We left him the fastest growing economy of the G7. We cut the deficit in every year until the pandemic, and we got inflation down to 2%. On his watch, taxes are up, unemployment is up, inflation is up and this weak Prime Minister has been forced into a series of chaotic U-turns. Yesterday, the Office for Budget Responsibility said that our economy is being eroded under Labour: doctors strikes; tax bombshells; the wealthy leaving in droves. Is it not the truth that, under him, he is dragging us back to the 1970s?
The Prime Minister
We are responsible for 4 million extra appointments in the NHS; we are responsible for a 10-year plan on the future of the NHS after the Conservatives broke it; we are also responsible for free school meals being rolled out in a way that has never been done by anybody—breakfast clubs being rolled out, family hubs being rolled out, transport across the country, and migration coming down. We take responsibility and we are proud of that.
Oral Answers to Questions
Kemi Badenoch Excerpts(1 month, 1 week ago)
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Mrs Kemi Badenoch (North West Essex) (Con)
Three weeks ago, the winter fuel policy was set in stone. Two weeks ago, the Prime Minister U-turned. Today, the Chancellor is rushing her plans because she just realised when winter is. So, on the behalf of the pensioners who want to know, can the Prime Minister be clear with us here and now: how many of the 10 million people who lost their winter fuel payments will get it back?
The Prime Minister
Well, I am glad to see the right hon. Lady is catching up with what happened two weeks ago. At the Budget, we took the right decision to stabilise the economy because of the £22 billion black hole that the Conservatives left. We took the right decisions and the growth figures are up, interest rates have been cut, and we have free trade deals. So we will look again, as I said two weeks ago, at the eligibility for winter fuel and of course we will set out how we pay for it, but because we have stabilised the economy, we on this side are committed to the triple lock, and that increased pensions by over £400 this April. The Conservatives say the triple lock is unsustainable. I think her position is that she wants to means-test it.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister clearly has selective amnesia. I asked him three questions about the winter fuel payment two weeks ago and he was floundering. The fact is he has not answered the question I asked him; he cannot tell us who will get the payments. All we see is U-turn after U-turn—his head must be spinning. Will he apologise now, including to his own Back Benchers, for taking the payments away in the first place? Can he tell us how he will pay for this?
The Prime Minister
We took the right decisions at the Budget because we needed to stabilise the economy. The right hon. Lady needs to apologise for the fact that the Conservatives left the economy in a terrible state, with a mini-Budget that blew up the economy, and we were left with a £22 billion black hole. When she gets up, perhaps she should apologise for that.
Mrs Badenoch
The Office for Budget Responsibility has said there was no such black hole. The Prime Minister has just given away £30 billion for the Chagos islands—that is his black hole. He has not stabilised the economy. Borrowing prices are higher now than at any time in the last Parliament. He has not stabilised the economy. He has no clear answers on what he is doing. It is just chaos, chaos, chaos. He keeps making announcements with no detail.
Let’s move to another area of confusion. Can we get a simple answer: will the Government keep the two-child benefit cap?
The Prime Minister
I am absolutely determined that we will drive down child poverty. That is one of the proudest things of the last Labour Government. That is why we have a taskforce and that is why we have a strategy, and we will set out that strategy in due course. But we drive child poverty down; under the Conservatives, poverty always goes up.
Mrs Badenoch
I did not ask the Prime Minister about a taskforce. I asked him if he will keep the two-child benefit cap, and he does not know—it is just chaos and uncertainty. He has no details. He is briefing something and causing a lot of confusion to the people out there. On that two-child benefit cap, I tell him this: I believe in family, but I also believe in fairness. On the Conservative side of the House, we believe that people on benefits should have to make the same choices on having children as everyone else. What does the Prime Minister believe?
The Prime Minister
I believe profoundly in driving down poverty and child poverty. That is why we will put a strategy in place. But the right hon. Lady talks about heads spinning. There is only one leader who been praised this week by the Russian embassy. If she carries on echoing Kremlin talking points like this, Reform will be sending her an application form for membership.
Mrs Badenoch
I asked the Prime Minister what he believes in. He had to look in his folder to find the answer. His MPs behind him know what they believe in—he does not know. He has been in government for nearly a year. It will only get harder and harder. The canned, forced laughter, the planted questions—all that will disappear because at every single point things are getting worse. He has to ask Morgan McSweeney what it is that he believes in, but the fact is that chaos is being felt in the economy. The Chancellor said she would not be coming back with new tax rises, but she will have to pay for all these U-turns she is announcing out there, won’t she?
The Prime Minister
I am going to look in my folder because here I have the quote that the right hon. Lady said on Sky News—[Interruption.] I will read it, thank you. [Laughter.] It is what the Leader of the Opposition said—it is worth listening to. She said:
“Israel is fighting a proxy war on behalf of the UK, just like Ukraine is on behalf of Western Europe against Russia.”
Well, that was certainly noticed in the Russian embassy because they put out a statement saying that the Leader of the Opposition has
“finally called a spade a spade”.
It said:
“Ukraine is indeed fighting a proxy war against Russia on behalf of Western interests”.
It went on to say:
“The illegitimate Kyiv regime, created, financed and armed by the West, has been at it since 2014.”
So they endorsed—[Interruption.] They want the detail; I have given the quote. That is what Russia said in response. She asked me what I believe in. I believe in standing by Ukraine and calling out Russia as the aggressor.
Mrs Badenoch
It was our Government that stood behind Ukraine and led the way in Europe. Everything the Prime Minister has said this afternoon is total nonsense, obfuscation, and avoiding the question. He does not have any answers. It is disgraceful.
I asked the Prime Minister about the two-child benefit cap; he is talking about the Kremlin. He is saying everything he can to distract from the mess he is making of our economy. The OECD has downgraded growth for the next two years. He cannot rule out tax rises. Police chiefs are saying that they do not have the money they need to keep the public safe, just as he is releasing more criminals on to the streets. His Cabinet are squabbling with each other, and they said that they have lost control of the borders, but he still managed to find £30 billion to give away the Chagos islands. This is total and utter chaos. Two weeks ago, he was crowing about his historic trade deal and how he got zero per cent tariffs on steel. Now the steel industry will face 25% tariffs unless he does exactly what President Trump tells him to. It is chaos, chaos, chaos—and isn’t the root of the chaos that it is about this Prime Minister, his decisions and his judgment?
The Prime Minister
The only advice—[Interruption.] She gets up on a Wednesday morning, scrolls through social media and never does any of the detail. We are the only country in the world that is not paying the 50% tax on steel, and we are working on the rest. That will be coming down. She—[Interruption.] We are working to bring it down to zero; that is going to happen. [Interruption.]
Oral Answers to Questions
Kemi Badenoch Excerpts(2 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Mrs Kemi Badenoch (North West Essex) (Con)
I, too, wish everyone a happy St George’s day. Can I also associate myself with the remarks about the passing of His Holiness Pope Francis on Easter Monday? Being married to a Catholic, I know the profound loss for millions in Britain and across the world.
Does the Prime Minister now accept that when he said that it was the law that trans women were women, he was wrong?
The Prime Minister
Let me be clear: I welcome the Supreme Court ruling on this issue. It brings clarity, and it will give confidence to women, and of course to service providers. The Equality and Human Rights Commission will now issue updated guidance. It is important that that happens, and that all service providers then act accordingly. This Government’s approach, and my approach, has been as follows: to support and implement the Supreme Court ruling, and we will; to continue to protect single-sex spaces based on biological sex, and we will; to ensure that trans people are treated with respect, and we will; and to ensure that everybody is given dignity in their everyday lives. I do think this is the time to lower the temperature, move forward and conduct this debate with the care and compassion that it deserves, and I think that should unite the whole House.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister cannot bring himself to admit that he was wrong; that was the question. He spoke about respect and dignity, compassion and lowering the temperature, so will he now apologise to the very brave hon. Member for Canterbury (Rosie Duffield) for hounding her out of the Labour party simply for telling the truth?
The Prime Minister
I have always approached this on the basis that we should treat everyone with dignity and respect, whatever their different views, and I will continue to do so. I will tell you, Mr Speaker, why: because when we lose sight of that approach and make this a political football, as happened in the past, we end up with the spectacle of a decent man—and he was a decent man, the previous Prime Minister—diminishing himself at this Dispatch Box by making trans jokes while the mother of a murdered trans teenager watched from the Public Gallery just up there. That will never be my approach. My approach will be to support the ruling, protect single-sex spaces and treat everybody with dignity and respect, and I believe there is a consensus in this House and the country on that approach.
Mrs Badenoch
There was no apology to the hon. Member for Canterbury. There is no taking of responsibility. The Prime Minister talks about political football; he practically kicked her out of his party—constructive dismissal. He talks about my predecessor. What about the abuse I faced from his MPs, who called me a transphobe for supporting what the Supreme Court has now clarified, to use his words? And where was he? He hid for six days without commenting on the Supreme Court judgment. Why did it take him so long to respond? Is it not because he was scared?
The Prime Minister
The only fiction here is the idea that the right hon. Member delivered anything in office. She held the post of Minister for Women and Equalities for two years, and she did precisely nothing. She provided no clarity on the law, and did nothing to improve women’s lives, which got materially worse under her watch. For example, the Opposition talk about hospitals and mixed-sex wards, up hill and down dale. What happened in the last decade? The use of mixed-sex wards in our NHS rose by 2,000%. There is a pattern of behaviour here: the Women and Equalities Minister who failed to do anything for women; the Trade Minister who failed to get a trade deal with the US; the Business Minister who failed to get a deal with British Steel. She is a spectator, not a leader.
Mrs Badenoch
I will tell the Prime Minister what I did. I stopped the gender—[Interruption.] I will, I will. When his Labour leader in Scotland was whipping his MSPs to get male rapists into women’s prisons, I stopped that gender recognition Bill. I helped commission the Cass review. I replaced the guidance on single-sex toilets. I made sure that the puberty blockers issue was resolved, while he was sitting there cheering on the ideology that was taking away safe spaces. And when the Prime Minister stayed silent last week, presumably waiting to hear what Morgan McSweeney thinks, on his WhatsApp groups some of his closest Ministers were plotting to overturn the Supreme Court decision. Labour MP after Labour MP stood up yesterday and challenged the ruling. How can we take his Government seriously on this?
The Prime Minister
I think the WhatsApp group the right hon. Lady should be worried about is the one with her shadow Justice Secretary, the right hon. Member for Newark (Robert Jenrick). The mask has slipped, just one week before the elections. The shadow Justice Secretary is not here. A man who is doing everything he can to replace her, the man that most Conservative Members want as leader of their party, has admitted that Reform and the Tories are working together. He said:
“I want the fight to be united.”
He said he is determined
“to bring this coalition”,
as he calls it,
“together…one way or another”.
Well, I think we know what that means. Every Tory voter is appalled at the thought of paying for the NHS; every Reform voter hates what the Tories did for the last 14 years. They are not Conservatives; they are a con.
Mrs Badenoch
Who is playing political football now? The Prime Minister has no answers. Yesterday, Labour MP after Labour MP challenged the ruling. He should be more worried about his Back Benchers than my Front Benchers. His Labour Ministers called the chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission “appalling”. Baroness Falkner’s role is critical to enforcing the Court’s judgment. She has had to put up with relentless abuse, not just from his Front Bench but from activists and ideologues. Reappointing her would be a clear sign that he is taking this issue seriously, so will he commit to reappointing Baroness Falkner when her term expires this year?
The Prime Minister
I have always said that the debate should be conducted properly, on the principle. I have said it many, many times. I would remind the Leader of the Opposition that when they were in government, violence against women and girls reached record highs, rape prosecutions fell to record lows, and millions of women were left stuck on NHS waiting lists, unable to get the healthcare they needed. Under this Labour Government, NHS waiting lists are down by more than 200,000, and there are domestic abuse specialists in 999 control rooms. We strengthened access to maternity pay, something she called excessive. She talks about political footballs, but a coalition of Reform and the Tories is being formed behind her back. We know what it means when the shadow Justice Secretary and the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage) cook up a joint manifesto: NHS charging, pro-Russia foreign policy, and an end to workers’ rights. Just as the previous Government lost control of the economy, borders and health, in six short months she has lost control of her party.
Mrs Badenoch
The Prime Minister is clearly so uncomfortable talking about this subject. This is a choice between a Conservative party that stood up for common sense and a Labour party that bends the knee to every passing fad. This is a question about moral courage, and doing the right thing even when it is difficult. The truth is he doesn’t have the balls. The Prime Minister only tells people what they want to hear. He is a weathervane; he twists in the wind. He cheered an ideology that denied safe spaces to women and girls, because he thought it was cool to do so. He hounded a brave female MP out of his party for telling the truth he accepts now. And now, he is hiding behind the Supreme Court judgment. Is that not because he does not know what he actually believes?
The Prime Minister
I can only assume that that sounded better when the right hon. Lady said it in the mirror earlier. The truth is, it does not really matter what she says, because nobody—none of them behind her—believes that she is going to lead them into the next election anyway. It will be the shadow Justice Secretary, who is away plotting—that is why he is not here today—and the hon. Member for Clacton fighting over the bones of the Tory party. The Conservatives think Reform will give them its votes without changing their policy—absolutely no way. The hon. Member for Clacton will do what he always does: eat the Tory party for breakfast.
Oral Answers to Questions
Kemi Badenoch Excerpts(7 months, 1 week ago)
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Mrs Kemi Badenoch (North West Essex) (Con)
I pay tribute to Mandy Damari and her family for the strength they have shown. We on this side of the House, and I am sure the whole House, continue to seek the speedy release of Emily Damari and the other hostages.
The Prime Minister talks about immigration, so it is probably a good time to remind him that he was the one writing letters asking us not to deport foreign criminals. He and his party voted against every single measure we put in place to try to limit immigration. The question today is what has been on the lips of all Labour MPs, including, I believe, the Health Secretary yesterday. The Prime Minister knowingly appointed a convicted fraudster to be his Transport Secretary. What was he thinking?
The Prime Minister
The previous Transport Secretary was right to resign when further information came forward. What a marked contrast to the behaviour of the last 14 years. The Leader of the Opposition talks about immigration. There were record levels of immigration under the previous Government, with net migration of nearly 1 million, and she was the cheerleader. She was the one urging the removal of the caps on work visas. She thanked the previous Home Secretary for the work that was done. She championed it, she advocated it—record levels of immigration.
Mrs Badenoch
He is obfuscating, but I am going to keep him on the topic. He owes the House an explanation. He says that the former Transport Secretary was asked to resign only after further information came to light. What was that further information?
The Prime Minister
I am not going to disclose private conversations. Further information came to light, and the Transport Secretary resigned. What a marked contrast. While the right hon. Lady is obsessing with Westminster issues, we are getting on with fixing the mess and fixing the foundations, with that £22 billion black hole, our prisons bursting and, as we found out last week, net migration of nearly 1 million because of the Tory open borders policy.
Mrs Badenoch
I am not asking about migration; I am asking about the former Transport Secretary. He never answers any questions, and it looks like he did not ask his Transport Secretary any questions either. The truth is that he appointed a person convicted of fraud to the Cabinet, and the first thing she did was bung hundreds of millions of pounds in pay rises to her trade union friends. Was this not a fraud on the British people?
The Prime Minister
No. She says she is not talking about immigration, and I am not surprised. I advise her not to talk about the economy or immigration for another five years.
Mrs Badenoch
He can try to change the topic as much as he likes, but the public are watching. He owes them an explanation. The country needs conviction politicians, not politicians with convictions.
Now, on to an even bigger fraud: the Budget. Last week, the Prime Minister failed to repeat the Chancellor’s pledge of no more borrowing and no more taxes. It is obvious that they are coming back for more. In his manifesto, he committed to making Britain the fastest-growing economy in the G7. Does he stand by his own pledge?
The Prime Minister
I gently remind the right hon. Lady that two of her predecessors had convictions for breaking the covid rules. I also invite her to look at this morning’s OECD report, which has upgraded growth for next year and the year after, putting us on target to be the fastest-growing major economy in Europe in the next two years. She should welcome that.
Mrs Badenoch
I have seen the OECD report, and what it says is that they will be coming back for more taxes. The whole House will have heard him fail to repeat his own pledge. He cannot even repeat the pledges he made just a few weeks ago. We are here to stop him damaging the economy, and that is why—[Interruption.]
Mrs Badenoch
They are laughing the same way they all laughed during the Budget, when they talked about raising national insurance. They have no idea what people out there are dealing with. That is why, yesterday, we voted against his damaging jobs tax.
Even former supporters such as the chef Tom Kerridge, who endorsed Labour at the election, say that the Budget was “catastrophic.” He built a real business employing young people, unlike this Cabinet of trade union stooges, CV embellishers and an actual fraudster. None of them has ever run a business. Why will the Prime Minister not listen to businesses who are saying his Budget is catastrophic?
The Prime Minister
I thought the scripted jokes were over, but we had another one and then lectures about the economy from the Conservative party that broke the economy, sent mortgages through the roof and left a £22 billion black hole. The right hon. Lady talks about national insurance. She complains about the rise in national insurance week after week, but then two weeks ago she said that she would not reverse it. She signed trade deals that had farmers protesting in Whitehall, but now she pretends that she is their champion. She campaigned to remove the cap on migrant worker visas, but now she pretends she is furious about the open borders policy of the last Government.
Mrs Badenoch
The fact is that the Prime Minister has discarded his own Labour leadership promises: he has dropped the five missions he said would define his Government; he has ditched his pledge to make Britain the fastest-growing economy in the G7—we left office with the UK as the fastest-growing economy in the G7—and business is saying he has damaged the economy with his Budget. Tomorrow he is going to have an emergency reset, just five months into his premiership, but why should anyone believe a word he says?
The Prime Minister
The only relaunch on the Conservative Benches is the leadership bids of the right hon. Lady’s rivals. She obviously has not read the OECD report published this morning: the fastest growth in the next two years of any major economy in Europe—we are proud of that. Opposition Members should never be allowed to forget the damage they did to our country. They used Britain like some sort of mad scientist’s experiment: open borders, unfunded tax cuts, a neglected health service. And now all the madness is still coming out, but they say they should be back in office. They have not listened, they have not learned, and they certainly have not changed. There is only one party that is driving this country forward, and that is this Labour Government.