Direction of Government

Lewis Cocking Excerpts

Tuesday 1st September 2026 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend is exactly right. The first stage of any social care reform should be workforce reform to create the foundation on which to build a new approach and a more preventive, higher quality service that actually keeps people out of hospital. I think it starts with people’s pay, terms and conditions, their prospects for progression and their ability to move towards the NHS. I have always favoured seeing this as a single approach across all care. I am happy to work with him on that, because from my point of view, he has articulated perfectly the first stage of social care reform.

[Lewis Cocking (Broxbourne) (Con)]

The Prime Minister has spent all summer trying to be all things to all people. My constituents in Broxbourne want the Government to cut wasteful spending, lower taxes and get a grip on our immigration system, which all require tough decisions to be made by the Prime Minister. Will the Prime Minister choose his left-wing Back Benchers or will he choose the British people?

[The Prime Minister]

There was nothing easy about reopening early release. I was listening to the British people when I made changes to exclude rapists, groomers and those guilty of the most serious sexual offences against children from the scheme, and then went even further to exclude manslaughter and other historic child sex offences. Regardless of what the hon. Gentleman might read on social media, I do take difficult decisions. I have done that for 25 years as an elected politician and it is what I will carry on doing. The proposals that the Justice Secretary will outline soon show that that is exactly the nettle that I have grasped.

Oral Answers to Questions

Lewis Cocking Excerpts

Wednesday 14th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

This is a question of values and freedom. I am proud of the British workers, including in my hon. Friend’s constituency, supporting our Ukrainian allies. Ukrainian soldiers are defending European values on the frontline every day. In the event of a ceasefire, a multinational force will carry out defence and deterrence operations and conduct training, planning, recovery and regeneration of Ukrainian forces. This week, the leader of Reform said that Russia had a casus belli—that means a justification for war—in invading Ukraine. He is a Putin apologist using Russia’s talking points.

[Lewis Cocking (Broxbourne) (Con)]

Q8. The world is becoming more dangerous every single day. The Ministry of Defence has said that it needs an extra £28 billion to keep us safe. Well, I know where the Prime Minister can find it: stop this nonsense Chagos islands surrender policy, and spend that money on protecting the United Kingdom. Will the Prime Minister commit to that, or will he continue to put the interests of foreign Governments and countries above our own?

Oral Answers to Questions

Lewis Cocking Excerpts

Wednesday 3rd December 2025 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

Yes, I can give my hon. Friend that assurance, and it is important that I do so.

[Lewis Cocking (Broxbourne) (Con)]

Q12. The best form of welfare in this country should be a well-paid job, but with unemployment up and this Labour Government choosing to raise taxes to spend even more on a bloated welfare and benefits system, is the Prime Minister happy with the message that sends to my hard-working constituents in Broxbourne and constituents right across the United Kingdom?

[The Prime Minister]

We have a broken welfare system. Guess who broke it? The Conservatives. We are bringing in reforms to change it and mend it. What did they do? They voted against them. Under their watch, they drove up welfare spending by £33 billion, so we need no lectures from them on welfare.

Oral Answers to Questions

Lewis Cocking Excerpts

Wednesday 10th September 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lewis Cocking (Broxbourne) (Con)]

3. What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help support the adoption of new technologies in the workplace.

[The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology (Liz Kendall)]

New technology in the workplace can help companies become more productive and efficient. In making workplaces more accessible so that people can get work and stay in work, it is also good for people. We are supporting companies in a number of ways, especially through our industrial strategy, and we have seen great examples of UK firms adopting tech—artificial intelligence, in particular—ahead of their international peers. We want to do all we can to support companies in this area, and I am determined to take action on that.

[Lewis Cocking]

I welcome the Secretary of State to her place. Small businesses in my constituency are vital to economic growth. What is her Department doing to ensure that small businesses can benefit from innovation and new technology?

[Liz Kendall]

The hon. Gentleman raises a really important point. My own constituency is dominated by small businesses, and one issue that they always raise is that we are great at start-ups in this country but we need to do more to help those companies to scale up. I am new in the job and open to ideas, so if the hon. Gentleman and the businesses in his constituency would like to say what they think they need to help them go from start-up to scale-up, I would be more than happy to listen to them.

Oral Answers to Questions

Lewis Cocking Excerpts

Wednesday 5th February 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lewis Cocking (Broxbourne) (Con)]

3. What recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Education on SEND provision. [R]

[The Minister for Women and Equalities (Bridget Phillipson)]

This Government’s ambition is that all children with special educational needs receive the right support to succeed, where possible, in mainstream schools. To further support that vision, in December I announced £740 million of high-needs capital for 2025-26. The Department is working closely with experts on reforms and has recently appointed a strategic adviser for SEND, who will play a key role in engaging with practitioners, children and families as we consider the next steps in SEND reform.

[Lewis Cocking]

I draw Members’ attention to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests.

Hertfordshire currently receives the third lowest SEND funding in the country, despite the number of children in the county with education, health and care plans growing by 223% in the last decade. What steps is the Minister taking with her Cabinet colleagues to create a fairer funding system that ensures that all children, wherever they live across the country, can have the funding they need to support their education?

[Bridget Phillipson]

I recognise the hon. Gentleman’s interest in this area, and the interest of Members from right across the House in the urgent need to reform the SEND system. However, I gently observe that we inherited the funding mechanism from the previous Government, and that the last Conservative Education Secretary said that the SEND system they have left behind is “lose, lose, lose”. We are determined to fix it, to build up parents’ confidence, and to make sure that all children get the education and support that they need.