"I look to the reputation of my predecessor in this role, who took her job very seriously but would still make a point. It would be very difficult for me to stand up and, from the Government Back Benches, not react to those in the Conservative party who crashed …..." Meg Hillier - View Speech
"The right hon. Member for North West Essex (Mrs Badenoch) needs to have a tough look at the reputation of her Government. She talks about welfare and she talks about defence, but it was her Government who crashed the economy. Under her Government, welfare spending rose by 0.7% of GDP …..." Meg Hillier - View Speech
"I count the hon. Gentleman as a friend, because he serves on the Treasury Committee and is indefatigable in his attempts to ensure that the Government are listening about research and development in defence and across wider sectors. It sounds as though, between us, the Government have heard that message.
"The hon. Gentleman anticipates a further area of my speech. I believe very firmly in devolution, but there are some caveats. That is something that we may consider. Of course, I chair the Treasury Committee, but I do not make all the decisions for the Committee—it is not an autocracy, …..." Meg Hillier - View Speech
"The hon. Gentleman is a good campaigner for his constituency and raises these issues repeatedly, but there has been some support from the Government on that issue. The Treasury Committee will be poring through the detail of what the Chancellor has announced today, so he may take my plaudits today, …..." Meg Hillier - View Speech
"I have given way several times, and a lot of Members are waiting to speak.
Whitehall is often just too distant—not just physically and geographically, but in attitude—from communities and towns up and down the country. I always say that we should not make decisions about people without people. However …..." Meg Hillier - View Speech
"The hon. Gentleman raises quite a detailed point, but we know that AI can add about 0.2% to productivity in the economy overall. I do not have direct figures for the NHS, but my sister Committee—the Health and Social Care Committee, ably led by the hon. Member for Oxford West …..." Meg Hillier - View Speech
"As the hon. Gentleman rightly highlights, I have not had time in the moments since the Chancellor sat down to go through every graph in the Red Book or, indeed, the OBR’s forecast. Obviously, the Chancellor laid out the figures very clearly at the Dispatch Box, and we will be …..." Meg Hillier - View Speech
"I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Harlow (Chris Vince)—I say that just to up his constituency’s mention count. Around 48,000 households in my constituency households will benefit from the council tax rebate for those in bands A to D. I am assuming the Government took this approach because …..." Meg Hillier - View Speech
"I declare that I am a leaseholder whose home did have cladding, though happily that has now been resolved. I represent one of the largest concentrations of new builds with cladding, and there are serious issues, as the Secretary of State has begun to highlight. Back in 2020, the Public …..." Meg Hillier - View Speech