10/07/2017

:00:00. > :00:00.encourage our prime contractors to see where they can use British Steel

:00:00. > :00:11.and I am sure in due course he will be pleased to see progress.

:00:12. > :00:16.Statement, the Prime Minister. With permission, I would like to make a

:00:17. > :00:20.statement on the G20 in Hamburg. At this summit we showed how a global

:00:21. > :00:23.Britain can play a key role in shaping international responses to

:00:24. > :00:28.some of the biggest challenges of our time. On terrorism, trade,

:00:29. > :00:31.climate change, international develop and, migration, modern

:00:32. > :00:34.slavery and women's economic empowerment, we made leading

:00:35. > :00:37.contributions on issues that critically affect our national

:00:38. > :00:41.interest but which can only be addressed by working together with

:00:42. > :00:45.our international partners. First on terrorism, as we have seen with the

:00:46. > :00:49.horrific attacks in Manchester and London, the nature of the threat we

:00:50. > :00:54.face is evolving and our response must evolve to meet it. The UK is

:00:55. > :00:59.leading the way. At the G-7 and subsequently through a detailed

:01:00. > :01:03.action plan with President Macron, I called for industry take

:01:04. > :01:06.responsibility to more rapidly detect and report extremist content

:01:07. > :01:10.online and industry has now announced the launch of a global

:01:11. > :01:18.Forum to do just that. At this summit we set the agenda again. We

:01:19. > :01:22.called on allergy 20 partners to squeeze the life blood of terrorist

:01:23. > :01:27.networks by making the global financial system and entirely

:01:28. > :01:32.hostile system for terrorists. And we secured agreement on all

:01:33. > :01:36.proposals. We agreed to work together to ensure there are no safe

:01:37. > :01:39.spaces for terrorist financing by increasing capacity building and

:01:40. > :01:44.raising standards worldwide especially in terrorist finance

:01:45. > :01:48.hotspots will stop we agree to bring industry and law enforcement

:01:49. > :01:50.together to develop new tools and technologies to better identify

:01:51. > :01:55.suspicious small flows of money being used low-cost terrorist

:01:56. > :02:00.attacks such as those we have seen in the UK. And just as interior

:02:01. > :02:04.ministers are following up on the online agenda, so finance ministers

:02:05. > :02:07.will follow through on these T20 commitments to cut off the funding

:02:08. > :02:13.that throws a terrorist threats we face. I also called for the G 22

:02:14. > :02:17.come together to better management arrest throws for foreign fighters

:02:18. > :02:23.as exposed in France were Syria and Iraq and we agreed we would work to

:02:24. > :02:27.improve international information sharing the movement of individuals

:02:28. > :02:31.known to have travelled to and from Dyche territory. By working together

:02:32. > :02:36.in these ways we can defeat the terrorist threat and ensure our way

:02:37. > :02:40.of life will always prevail. Turning to the global economy, we are seeing

:02:41. > :02:45.encouraging signs of recovery with the IMF forecasting the will rise by

:02:46. > :02:52.3.5% this year. But many both here and the UK and across the UK are not

:02:53. > :02:56.sharing in the benefits. We need to build a global economy that works

:02:57. > :03:00.for everyone be ensuring trade is not just free but also crucially

:03:01. > :03:05.fair for all. That means fair people in the UK, which is why we are

:03:06. > :03:08.forging a modern industrial strategy that will help to bring the benefits

:03:09. > :03:11.of trade to every part of the country. It means fair terms of

:03:12. > :03:15.trade for the poorest countries which is why we will protect their

:03:16. > :03:20.trade preferences as we leave the EU, and in time explore options to

:03:21. > :03:23.improve their trade access. And it means strengthening the

:03:24. > :03:29.international rules that make trade fair between countries. At this

:03:30. > :03:31.summit I argued that we must reform the international trading system

:03:32. > :03:34.especially the World Trade Organisation given its central role

:03:35. > :03:38.so that it keeps pace with developments in key sectors like

:03:39. > :03:43.digital and services and so it is better able to resolve disputes.

:03:44. > :03:47.Some countries are not playing by the rules. They are not behaving

:03:48. > :03:50.responsibly and are creating risks to the global trading system.

:03:51. > :03:54.Nowhere is this more clear than in relation to the dumping of steel on

:03:55. > :03:59.global markets. The urgent need to react to remove excess capacity was

:04:00. > :04:07.recognised last year at the G20's but not enough has been done since.

:04:08. > :04:11.If we are to avoid unilateral action we need immediate collective action.

:04:12. > :04:15.We agreed that the global Forum established last year needs to be

:04:16. > :04:19.more effective and the pace of its work must quicken. In order to

:04:20. > :04:23.ensure its work gets the necessary attention and there is a senior

:04:24. > :04:28.accountability, I have pressed for aggressive ministers to meet around

:04:29. > :04:31.the world. The UK will play a leading role in championing these

:04:32. > :04:37.reforms so that all citizens can share in the benefits of global

:04:38. > :04:39.growth. As we leave the EU, we will negotiate a new comprehensive bold

:04:40. > :04:44.and ambitious free trade agreement with the EU.

:04:45. > :04:51.LAUGHTER Yes. But we will also sees the

:04:52. > :04:56.exciting opportunities to strike deals with old friends and new

:04:57. > :05:00.partners. And that this summit I hold a number of meetings with other

:05:01. > :05:06.world leaders, all of whom made clear their strong desire to form

:05:07. > :05:10.ambitious new bilateral trading relationships after Brexit. This

:05:11. > :05:15.included America, Japan, China and India. This morning I welcomed

:05:16. > :05:18.Australian Prime Minister to handle to Downing Street where he also

:05:19. > :05:24.reiterated his desire for a bold new trading relationship. All these

:05:25. > :05:29.discussions are a clear and powerful vote of confidence in British goods,

:05:30. > :05:34.services, economy and the British people. I look forward to building

:05:35. > :05:37.on them in the months ahead. On climate change, the UK reaffirmed

:05:38. > :05:40.our commitment to the Paris agreement which is vital if we are

:05:41. > :05:45.to take responsibility for the world we pass on to our children and

:05:46. > :05:49.grandchildren. There is not a choice between decarbonisation and economic

:05:50. > :05:53.growth as the UK's own experience shows. We have reduced emissions by

:05:54. > :05:58.around 40% over the last 16 years, but growing GDP by almost two

:05:59. > :06:04.thirds. I am my counterparts at the G20 are dismayed at America's

:06:05. > :06:08.withdrawal from the agreement. I spoke personally to President Trump

:06:09. > :06:16.to encourage him to rejoin the Paris agreement and I continue to hope

:06:17. > :06:19.that is exactly what he will do. On international development, we

:06:20. > :06:23.reaffirmed our commitment to spend 0.7% of gross national income and an

:06:24. > :06:27.element assistance and we set out plans for a new long-term approach

:06:28. > :06:31.to reduce Africa's relies on aid. This includes focusing on supporting

:06:32. > :06:35.asp and aspirations of trade and growth, creating millions of new

:06:36. > :06:38.jobs and harnessing the power of capital markets to generate

:06:39. > :06:41.trillions of new investment. We welcomed Germany's new compact with

:06:42. > :06:47.Africa which reflects those bristles. On migration, I expressed

:06:48. > :06:51.the UK continued support for the scale of the challenge facing Italy

:06:52. > :06:55.and agreed with the Prime Minister that a UK expert Home Office

:06:56. > :06:59.delegation will travel to Italy to see how we can help further. This is

:07:00. > :07:03.yet further evidence that while we are leaving the EU, as a global

:07:04. > :07:10.Britain we will continue to work closely with all our EU partners.

:07:11. > :07:14.Did you 20 also agreed to use the upcoming negotiations on the UN

:07:15. > :07:17.global compact is to seek the conference of approach that the UK

:07:18. > :07:20.has been arguing for. This includes ensuring refugees claim asylum in

:07:21. > :07:26.the first safe country they reach, Inc proving the way we distinguish

:07:27. > :07:29.between refugees and economic migrants, and developing a better

:07:30. > :07:33.overall approach to managing economic migration. It is so

:07:34. > :07:41.includes providing humanitarian and vegetarian assistance. We committed

:07:42. > :07:46.?55 million to support the Government of Tanzania in managing

:07:47. > :07:51.its refugee and migrant policies and to support the further integration

:07:52. > :07:57.of new naturalise refugees. Turning to modern slavery, it is hard to

:07:58. > :08:02.comprehend that in today's modern world, innocent people are being

:08:03. > :08:07.enslaved, forced to do hard labour. Raped, beaten and passed from abuse

:08:08. > :08:11.to abuse for profit. We cannot it and will not ignore this dark and

:08:12. > :08:14.barbaric trade in human beings that is simply horrifying in its

:08:15. > :08:19.inhumanity. That is why I put this in shoe on the G20 agenda at my

:08:20. > :08:23.first summit a year ago, and at this I pushed for a global and

:08:24. > :08:26.coordinated approach to the complex business supply chains which can

:08:27. > :08:31.feed the demand for forced labour and child labour. Our

:08:32. > :08:35.ground-breaking UK modern slavery and it requires companies to examine

:08:36. > :08:40.all aspects of their businesses including their supply chains and to

:08:41. > :08:45.publish their results. I called IgE 20 partners to follow Britain's

:08:46. > :08:48.lead. And I welcomed Germany's proposed vision zero fund to which

:08:49. > :08:52.the UK is contributing as an important part of ensuring the

:08:53. > :08:57.health and safety of workers in global supply chains. Finally, we

:08:58. > :09:02.agreed to create better job of reduced the women, remove the legal

:09:03. > :09:05.barriers and end discrimination and gender-based violence that restrict

:09:06. > :09:10.opportunities at home and abroad, and as part of this the UK is

:09:11. > :09:12.contributing to the women entrepreneurs finance initiative

:09:13. > :09:16.launched by the World Bank which will provide more than $1 billion to

:09:17. > :09:21.support women in developing countries to start agribusinesses.

:09:22. > :09:24.This is not just Molly really right it is economically essential and the

:09:25. > :09:26.UK will continue to play a leading role in driving forward women's

:09:27. > :09:32.economic empowerment across the world. Of course we did not agree on

:09:33. > :09:35.everything at the summit, in particular climate change. But when

:09:36. > :09:39.we have such disagreements it is only more important that we come

:09:40. > :09:43.together in forums such as the G20 to try to resolve them. And as a

:09:44. > :09:47.global Britain we will continue to work at bridging differences between

:09:48. > :09:51.nations and forging global responses to issues that are fundamental to

:09:52. > :09:55.our prosperity and security and that of our allies around the world. That

:09:56. > :09:58.is what we did at this summit, that is what the Government will continue

:09:59. > :10:05.to do and I commend this statement to the house.

:10:06. > :10:11.Jeremy Corbyn. Thank you Mr Speaker and I thank the Prime Minister for

:10:12. > :10:14.the advance copy of the statement. I am surprised she had so much to

:10:15. > :10:18.contribute to the G20 given that there was barely a mention of

:10:19. > :10:22.international policy and her party 's election manifesto. Or any policy

:10:23. > :10:26.so much so that the government is now apparently asking other parties

:10:27. > :10:31.for their policy ideas. So if the Prime Minister would like it am

:10:32. > :10:35.happy to finish with a copy of our election manifesto. Or better still

:10:36. > :10:40.an early election so that the people of this country can decide! Lets

:10:41. > :10:45.face it Mr Speaker the government has run out of steam out of the

:10:46. > :10:49.pivotal moment in our country and the world amid uncertainty of

:10:50. > :10:55.Brexit, conflict in the Gulf states, nuclear sabre rattling over North

:10:56. > :10:59.Korea, refugees continue to flee war and discretion, ongoing pandemics,

:11:00. > :11:03.cross-border terrorism, poverty, inequality and the impact of climate

:11:04. > :11:06.change are the core global challenges of our time. When we need

:11:07. > :11:13.strong government we have weakness from this government. The US

:11:14. > :11:18.president attempts to pull the plug on the climate change deal. And only

:11:19. > :11:22.Mr Speaker a belated informal mention and brief meeting with him.

:11:23. > :11:29.No ability to sign a joint letter from European leaders at the time he

:11:30. > :11:32.made the announcement. The UK's trade deficit, Mr Speaker, is

:11:33. > :11:37.growing at a time when we are negotiating our exit from the

:11:38. > :11:42.European Union. The UK backed Saudi war in Yeaman continues to kill,

:11:43. > :11:49.displays and injure thousands. With 300,000 cases of cholera. And on

:11:50. > :11:54.this, a man-made catastrophe but was, Mr Speaker the government

:11:55. > :11:58.continues to sell arms to Saudi Arabia, one of the most oppressive

:11:59. > :12:01.and butter regimes that finances terrorism and is breaching

:12:02. > :12:04.humanitarian law. The court may have ruled that the government actively

:12:05. > :12:16.gay. It certainly is not acting ethically. -- acted legally. We on

:12:17. > :12:20.the ceasefire agreed, it is good news, did the Prime Minister play

:12:21. > :12:24.any role in those negotiations. But she commit to work with them to

:12:25. > :12:30.expand the ceasefire to the rest of that poor benighted country. The US

:12:31. > :12:32.President's attempt to pull out of the climate change deal is both

:12:33. > :12:36.reckless and very dangerous. The commitments made in Paris are a

:12:37. > :12:44.vital move to stop the world reaching the point of no return on

:12:45. > :12:49.climate change. The T20 leaders have been unequivocal with the US

:12:50. > :12:56.president but not our Prime Minister who raised the is suing formally. I

:12:57. > :13:01.don't know what that means but the Prime Minister can tell us exactly

:13:02. > :13:06.what the nature of meeting was. What a complete neglect of her duty both

:13:07. > :13:11.to our people and perhaps equally importantly to our planet as well.

:13:12. > :13:16.We need a leader prepared to speak out and talk up follies of

:13:17. > :13:19.international co-operation, of human rights, social justice and respect

:13:20. > :13:25.for international law. She needs to listen. So I ask, will she condemn

:13:26. > :13:30.attempts to undermine global co-operation on climate change. Will

:13:31. > :13:35.she take meaningful action against our country's role in global tax

:13:36. > :13:40.avoidance, which starts many developing countries of funding for

:13:41. > :13:45.sustainable growth which is also sucking investment out of our public

:13:46. > :13:49.services. Will she offer European union National is in Britain the

:13:50. > :13:55.same rights as they have now. What proposals does she have, what

:13:56. > :14:01.discussants did she have on Britain's membership of your Tom.

:14:02. > :14:06.Will she hold immoral arms sales to Saudi Arabia as Germany has and will

:14:07. > :14:10.she backed Germany's call to end the bombing in Yemen. We've heard of the

:14:11. > :14:15.Prime Minister talk about safe spaces for terrorist finance. So why

:14:16. > :14:18.are so government sat on the report into foreign funding of extremism

:14:19. > :14:24.and radicalisation in the UK. When will this report be released. And

:14:25. > :14:32.what new regulations is the UK bringing forward for UK companies

:14:33. > :14:37.and banks as part of her new accord on terrorist financing. Mr Speaker,

:14:38. > :14:41.keeping Britain global is one of our country's most urgent tasks. Yet the

:14:42. > :14:46.truth is this country needs a new approach to foreign policy and

:14:47. > :14:51.global co-operation. The Conservative government, simply

:14:52. > :14:56.cannot deliver. Responding to the grotesque levels of inequality

:14:57. > :15:01.within countries and between them is important to the security and

:15:02. > :15:06.sustainability of our world. In a joint report published in April, the

:15:07. > :15:09.World Bank, the IMF, the world trade organisation recognised what they

:15:10. > :15:15.referred to as the long-lasting displacement as well as large

:15:16. > :15:18.winning bosses of workers. And that the negative experience of

:15:19. > :15:21.globalisation has informed the public 's rejection of the

:15:22. > :15:27.established political order. The Prime Minister talks of the dumping

:15:28. > :15:31.of steel in global markets but white as it failed to take the action that

:15:32. > :15:36.the other European nations did of the most acute time an our steel

:15:37. > :15:40.industry is suffering? This government is the architect of the

:15:41. > :15:45.failed austerity policies and now threatens to use Brexit to turn

:15:46. > :15:50.Britain into a low wage deregulated tax haven on the shores of Europe.

:15:51. > :15:55.And narrow, hopeless vision of the potential of this country, which

:15:56. > :15:58.would only serve the few. One that would ruin industry, destroy

:15:59. > :16:04.innovation and hit living standards. And finally Mr Speaker the US

:16:05. > :16:09.president said, a US- UK trade deal will happen quickly. Can the Prime

:16:10. > :16:14.Minister give any detail or timetable or any of the terms of

:16:15. > :16:18.this agreement on environmental protections, workers' rights,

:16:19. > :16:25.consumer rights, product safety, any of those PCs that is so concerned

:16:26. > :16:28.that so many people? Mr Speaker, she lost her mandate at home and know

:16:29. > :16:38.she is losing Britain and her influence abroad. Prime Minister.

:16:39. > :16:40.Thank you Mr Speaker. Can I say to the right honourable gentleman on

:16:41. > :16:45.the issue of terrorist financing it is the UK that has been not only

:16:46. > :16:49.developing approaches within the UK with working with our financial

:16:50. > :16:54.sector but is taking this internationally and as I said raised

:16:55. > :16:57.this at the G20 and has agreement from those countries sitting around

:16:58. > :17:03.the T20 table that we will take this forward together. What was important

:17:04. > :17:05.was that we had a separate communique on counterterrorism which

:17:06. > :17:10.specifically identifies issues like working with the financial sector to

:17:11. > :17:14.identify suspicious small flows of funding. This is what the UK has

:17:15. > :17:19.been leading on, it was the UK's proposal and was in the communique

:17:20. > :17:24.at the due 20. He talks of global tax avoidance. If the UK that has

:17:25. > :17:27.led on the issue of global tax avoidance. Global tax avoidance is

:17:28. > :17:32.only on the agenda at international meetings because right honourable

:17:33. > :17:40.predecessor David Cameron put it there. It is the UK that has leading

:17:41. > :17:45.on that. He talks about trade deals, I am very happy to say that we are

:17:46. > :17:49.already working with the Americans and what a trade deal might look

:17:50. > :17:52.like, we already have a working group with the Australians and one

:17:53. > :17:58.with India as well. We are out there. He says what Britain needs is

:17:59. > :18:01.somebody standing up and speaking about these things, what we need is

:18:02. > :18:06.someone doing these things and this is exactly what we are doing. And on

:18:07. > :18:12.the issue of climate change this country has a proud record on

:18:13. > :18:17.climate change. We secured the first truly globally legal binding

:18:18. > :18:21.agreement on climate change at the Paris agreement, we are third best

:18:22. > :18:27.country in the world on tackling climate change, at the leading edge

:18:28. > :18:30.on putting our own legislation through regarding emissions and we

:18:31. > :18:34.will continue to lead on this issue. He refers to the question of the

:18:35. > :18:37.sale of arms to Saudi Arabia. I welcome the High Court judgment

:18:38. > :18:41.today. This shows that Mike right honourable friend the Defence

:18:42. > :18:46.Secretary will make a statement on this later, but it shows that we do

:18:47. > :18:50.operate one of the most robust export control regimes in the world.

:18:51. > :18:55.And finally he talked of the government 's agenda. This

:18:56. > :19:11.government has an ambitious agenda to change this country. There are

:19:12. > :19:15.many issues... Mr Ashworth you are a cheeky and other excitable

:19:16. > :19:20.whippersnapper. Calm yourself. Take some sort of soothing medicament. It

:19:21. > :19:26.is a refrain of mine, with good reason. Per minister. Mr Speaker

:19:27. > :19:32.that many issues on which I hope we will achieve consensus across this

:19:33. > :19:34.House. Like ensuring that our police and security agencies have the

:19:35. > :19:43.powers they need to deal with the terrorist threat we face. It is like

:19:44. > :19:47.responding to the Matthew Taylor report which I initiated to ensure

:19:48. > :19:53.that in the new gig economy as we see the world of work changing

:19:54. > :19:56.workers have their rights protected. Finally I also hope we talked about

:19:57. > :20:01.women's empowerment at this G20 summit. One of the issues that have

:20:02. > :20:04.been concerned about recently is the fact that many female candidates in

:20:05. > :20:11.the general election found themselves bullied and harassed. And

:20:12. > :20:16.in receipt of bullying and harassment. I would have thought, as

:20:17. > :20:19.has been referred to by the right Honourable Lady, the Member for

:20:20. > :20:24.Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford, I would have hoped that

:20:25. > :20:34.every leader of every party in this House would condemn such action and

:20:35. > :20:37.it's time he did so. John Redwood. I congratulate the Prime Minister on

:20:38. > :20:41.her many successes at a productive summit particularly on the trade

:20:42. > :20:44.front. Would she confirmed that ministers are working not just on

:20:45. > :20:50.trade deals with those countries who don't have once about the moment but

:20:51. > :20:54.will when we are outside the EU but or making sure we transferred the EU

:20:55. > :21:00.ones to the UK as well as to the rest of the EU on Brexit. Am happy

:21:01. > :21:04.to give that confirmation to my right honourable friend. Three areas

:21:05. > :21:07.in trade we are working on. One, looking ahead to trade agreements we

:21:08. > :21:12.can have with countries we don't have them with as a member of the

:21:13. > :21:16.EU, the second, ensuring that where there are trade agreements with the

:21:17. > :21:21.EU, as we Lee Hook enrolled as Ford, the third area is working with

:21:22. > :21:26.countries like India and Australia to say what changes we can make now

:21:27. > :21:34.before we leave the EU to Wood EU to improve our trade relationship.

:21:35. > :21:39.Thank you Mr Speaker. The G20's and was an eye opening event, the UK is

:21:40. > :21:44.now floundering on a global stage desperately trying to win friends. A

:21:45. > :21:48.disastrous, and predictable alliance formed with the American president

:21:49. > :21:53.on trade. Goodness knows what a trade deal with America would mean

:21:54. > :22:00.for public services, food quality and workers' rights. Talk about UK-

:22:01. > :22:03.US trade deal was dubbed a blow by the Prime Minister 's own Justice

:22:04. > :22:07.Secretary who only hours after the summit ended said it wouldn't be

:22:08. > :22:10.enough on its own. The Prime Minister must now come to her

:22:11. > :22:18.senses. The United Kingdom outside the single market would be ruinous.

:22:19. > :22:22.Our EU friends and partners are moving on without us. This year

:22:23. > :22:28.alone finalising trade deals with Japan and Canada while the UK turns

:22:29. > :22:33.in on itself. Today's Scottish chamber of commerce shows 61% of

:22:34. > :22:37.Scottish businesses feel the UK should remain in both the single

:22:38. > :22:44.market and the customs union. It is quite scandalous that the Prime

:22:45. > :22:51.Minister turns a blind eye to the economy in favour of Eurosceptic

:22:52. > :22:56.colleagues. Mr Speaker, I welcome the progress made at the G20 summit.

:22:57. > :22:59.I especially pay tribute to the work of the German Chancellor who hosted

:23:00. > :23:05.and delivered a challenging agenda on global issues. The communique is

:23:06. > :23:10.clear, we must redouble our efforts in the Paris agreement, calling it

:23:11. > :23:14.irreversible. As the Prime Minister to set up the next steps in

:23:15. > :23:19.delivering the Paris agreement. The communique also delivers the T20-

:23:20. > :23:24.Africa partnership to boost growth and jobs across Africa including an

:23:25. > :23:29.initiative on rural employment creating 1.1 million new jobs by

:23:30. > :23:32.2022. Can the Prime Minister explain the UK's role in delivering the

:23:33. > :23:37.initiative and confirm whether the UK role will continue after exiting

:23:38. > :23:42.the EU. Mr Speaker, the agreement to take further action to achieve

:23:43. > :23:46.gender equality is universally welcomed in this House. The

:23:47. > :23:51.conclusions also push the T20 to taking immediate effective measures

:23:52. > :23:55.to eliminate child Labour by 2025, forced Labour, human trafficking and

:23:56. > :23:58.all forms of modern slavery, promising step indeed. However Mr

:23:59. > :24:04.Speaker the Prime Minister went to Hamburg with an open message, she

:24:05. > :24:08.wanted the T20 to tackle terrorism. In particular she wanted the G20 to

:24:09. > :24:15.tackle terrorist financing. What staggering hypocrisy. The Prime

:24:16. > :24:18.Minister, sitting on a board commissioned by her predecessor,

:24:19. > :24:22.denying us the truth about terrorist financing in the UK had the brass

:24:23. > :24:27.neck to call upon the G20 to do more. What an absolute outrage. Will

:24:28. > :24:31.she publish the Home Office report on terror funding in the UK and

:24:32. > :24:40.world she said at a public inquiry into questions around the funding of

:24:41. > :24:45.extremism? I hope that the honourable gentleman was not making

:24:46. > :24:49.a personal accusation against the Prime Minister. Order, order, I know

:24:50. > :24:53.what I'm doing in these matters. I cannot believe that he would

:24:54. > :24:56.knowingly do that, make a personal accusation against the Prime

:24:57. > :25:00.Minister because it is disorderly and if he is not aware of that it is

:25:01. > :25:07.time he was. I think he ought to spring to his feet and clarify the

:25:08. > :25:11.position. I'm happy to clarify. Point of explanation. My sense was

:25:12. > :25:15.that there was an element of an accusation. Withdraw. I will

:25:16. > :25:18.withdraw the allegation against the Prime Minister. Per minister. -- per

:25:19. > :25:30.minister. As I stepped out in my statement

:25:31. > :25:34.earlier. We have set out with a number of countries, the United

:25:35. > :25:39.States, Japan, China, India, and other countries at the G20. He asked

:25:40. > :25:45.about the compact with Africa, this is not a unique EU -ish and

:25:46. > :25:51.initiative, it is something that has been led by Chancellor Merkel under

:25:52. > :25:54.the G20 and the UK is playing its role. The principles that underpin

:25:55. > :25:58.the compact with Africa are principles we have used in our

:25:59. > :26:02.systems we have been giving it development aid to do variety of

:26:03. > :26:06.countries in Africa are already, and we already have a compact with

:26:07. > :26:13.Ethiopian witness the UK has put forward which will create 100,000

:26:14. > :26:17.jobs including jobs for refugees living in Ethiopia. Again, we have

:26:18. > :26:22.shown by what we are doing a commitment to these issues already.

:26:23. > :26:26.He talks about the issue of terrorist financing, of course what

:26:27. > :26:29.we looks to cast is that we are looking across the board at all

:26:30. > :26:32.aspects of terrorist financing and that means as we look at the

:26:33. > :26:37.changing nature of terrorism that we do not just look at large-scale

:26:38. > :26:41.financing we also look at the small sums of financing that are harder to

:26:42. > :26:48.trace, harder to identify, but which could potentially underpin attacks

:26:49. > :26:52.that take place. That is where the communique clearly put a focus and

:26:53. > :26:56.that is a new initiative that has been taken. Then he talks about

:26:57. > :27:01.modern slavery, I think it is important to eradicate that. It was

:27:02. > :27:07.in the G20 agenda, because I put it there. Because modern slavery is an

:27:08. > :27:10.issue this Government takes very seriously. We introduced a modern

:27:11. > :27:14.slavery act, the first piece of legislation in its kind in the

:27:15. > :27:18.world, and we are working with others to ensure we eradicate modern

:27:19. > :27:22.slavery. I have to say, his portrayal of the UK's position at

:27:23. > :27:29.the G20 was simply wrong. But then he wasn't there, and I was. If I am

:27:30. > :27:34.to accommodate the extensive interests of colleagues in this

:27:35. > :27:42.matter, there will be an imperative for great brevity, to be I hope

:27:43. > :27:45.spectacularly exemplified now. That is kind of you, but I didn't

:27:46. > :27:50.actually have a question. LAUGHTER

:27:51. > :27:57.Well the answer is, the right honourable lady... All! I didn't

:27:58. > :28:01.imagine it in my sleep, the Right Honourable lay lady was standing. If

:28:02. > :28:05.she sees to do so I did not realise, but she has led to her feet with

:28:06. > :28:09.alacrity, the house is in a state of eager anticipation and baited

:28:10. > :28:14.breath. I would like to take the opportunity to say something. I

:28:15. > :28:18.wondered if my right honourable friend could help is with the modern

:28:19. > :28:23.slavery act because she rightly identifies we have led the world on

:28:24. > :28:28.this sort of legislation and many of us are hugely proud of the work she

:28:29. > :28:33.did when she was Home Secretary. Is she finding that across the world

:28:34. > :28:37.there is now a desire for other countries to follow where she and

:28:38. > :28:41.this country have led? I am pleased to be able to say to her that is

:28:42. > :28:44.indeed the case. We are seeing a much greater awareness of this wish

:28:45. > :28:47.you around the world and we are seeing a much greater willingness

:28:48. > :28:53.for governments to look at this issue. First, I think governments

:28:54. > :28:56.are looking at the human trafficking aspect across borders but as we know

:28:57. > :29:01.in the UK it is also important to look at what happens in country two

:29:02. > :29:06.to citizens of 1's own country, and that is what we are doing. I am

:29:07. > :29:14.certain the member will be as brief as his surname. In the light of the

:29:15. > :29:18.discussions of security, the Prime Minister will no doubt be aware

:29:19. > :29:22.across the house about her proposal to withdraw the UK from the Euratom

:29:23. > :29:29.treaty despite the concerns there are about the implications for

:29:30. > :29:33.scientists, materials and is life-saving therapies. Can she

:29:34. > :29:37.explained what the cake nuclear industry gains from such a policy? I

:29:38. > :29:42.am sure he will be aware from his chairing of the select committee

:29:43. > :29:46.that members see of Euratom is inextricably linked with membership

:29:47. > :29:49.of the EU. What we are doing, as was signalled in the Queen's speech,

:29:50. > :29:53.with reference to a future Bill on this issue, is wanting to ensure we

:29:54. > :29:59.can in maintaining these relationships which enable the

:30:00. > :30:02.exchange of scientists, material, there are countries around the world

:30:03. > :30:13.that have that relationship with Euratom but are not memberships of

:30:14. > :30:17.the EU. I look forward to the Bill. Does my right honourable friend

:30:18. > :30:21.agree that free trade is going to be one of the great Brexit dividends,

:30:22. > :30:24.that it will provide cheaper feud, clothing and footwear to the

:30:25. > :30:33.greatest benefit of the poorest in our society? I agree that it is free

:30:34. > :30:36.trade that enables us to grow economies, increase prosperity,

:30:37. > :30:40.provide jobs. And there will be benefits from the trade agreements

:30:41. > :30:44.that we want to negotiate around the whole of the world. But we also need

:30:45. > :30:52.as a country to defend the concept of free trade because it is under

:30:53. > :31:02.too much attack from protectionists. When journalists and have been

:31:03. > :31:07.murdered in Putin's Russia, does the primaries to share my anger at the

:31:08. > :31:11.chilling sight of Presidents Trump and Putin joking about the

:31:12. > :31:15.inconvenience of a free press? Will she commit to raising the importance

:31:16. > :31:20.of the independence of the media to both leaders when she meets them

:31:21. > :31:24.next? We defend a free press, we think it is an intentional and

:31:25. > :31:29.depending of our democracy here and we want to defend it around the

:31:30. > :31:32.world. I can assure the lady that indeed we do regularly raise this

:31:33. > :31:41.issue with the Russian president and at all levels in Russian

:31:42. > :31:45.authorities. Can I also pay tribute to my right honourable friend for

:31:46. > :31:48.the all that work she has done in the past on the issue of human

:31:49. > :31:53.trafficking and slavery and I commend her for raising this at the

:31:54. > :31:56.G20. With the world on the move unfortunately opportunities for more

:31:57. > :32:01.of this rather than less are now there. So what can we do between the

:32:02. > :32:05.G20's to ensure other countries take this as seriously as we do. We have

:32:06. > :32:12.set the bar in this we need to raise others to it. That is right. We are

:32:13. > :32:17.taking action across a number of areas. The specific area we focused

:32:18. > :32:22.on the G20 was the business supply chains, but one of the key ways of

:32:23. > :32:26.ensuring we can act against human trafficking and modern slavery is

:32:27. > :32:29.through the cooperation of law enforcement agencies here in the UK

:32:30. > :32:32.with others around the world, and that is exactly what we are

:32:33. > :32:39.encouraging and what is happening with some success. A year ago the

:32:40. > :32:42.then financial secretary told the house that the Government supported

:32:43. > :32:45.a multilateral deal on public country by country reporting. He

:32:46. > :32:49.said if we have not made progress by this time next year on reaching a

:32:50. > :32:53.multilateral agreement we will need to look carefully at the issue

:32:54. > :32:57.again. A year on, can I ask for confirmation of what discussant she

:32:58. > :33:06.has had with G20 members to make sure we can cap tackle corporate tax

:33:07. > :33:11.avoidance? This is an issue we regularly raise. It is true to say

:33:12. > :33:15.that we are disappointed at the lack of progress that has been made in

:33:16. > :33:19.this area. We will continue to press on this issue but if we are going to

:33:20. > :33:23.get that multilateral agreement others have to agree to this concept

:33:24. > :33:27.as well. We will continue to press it. It is there because the UK has

:33:28. > :33:35.been putting it on the agenda in the past. We will continue to do so.

:33:36. > :33:43.About this new love fest with the benches opposite, given the record

:33:44. > :33:46.of the Leader of the Opposition on the counterterrorism and security

:33:47. > :33:54.act, does she possessed a very long spoon?

:33:55. > :33:59.LAUGHTER Yes, I can say to my right

:34:00. > :34:03.honourable friend that I have in the past as Home Secretary welcomes the

:34:04. > :34:06.cooperation which I have had from the Labour benches, not from the

:34:07. > :34:09.right honourable gentleman who is currently the Leader of the

:34:10. > :34:13.Opposition, but from others who have seen the need to ensure our agencies

:34:14. > :34:18.have appropriate powers to deal with terrorist threats that we face. I

:34:19. > :34:22.look forward to Labour MPs and indeed others across the benches

:34:23. > :34:24.opposite in this house, coming forward and supporting those

:34:25. > :34:29.counterterrorism measures when they are brought forward. The G20

:34:30. > :34:33.communique includes important reference to investment in global

:34:34. > :34:36.education, including the global partnership for education and

:34:37. > :34:40.education cannot wait. The UK has a proud record in leading in global

:34:41. > :34:45.health. Will she join with Argentina in the forthcoming G20 presidency to

:34:46. > :34:51.give investment in global dedication the premise to it deserves? Indeed I

:34:52. > :34:56.would say it is not about looking at ahead to the agenda for the next

:34:57. > :35:00.meeting, it is also about what the UK has been doing practically

:35:01. > :35:03.through our international development budget as significant

:35:04. > :35:07.number of girls around the world being educated as a result of the

:35:08. > :35:14.input we put in. We think that global education agenda is very

:35:15. > :35:18.important. Thank you. As the Prime Minister said in her statement, as

:35:19. > :35:21.we are leaving the EU we are not leaving Europe. Can I welcome the

:35:22. > :35:26.announcement we will continue to work with our European friends and

:35:27. > :35:32.allies in developing a better overall approach to managing

:35:33. > :35:37.economic migration? He is right. I think this is an issue that the UK

:35:38. > :35:40.again has been leading on. And increasingly we see other countries

:35:41. > :35:44.recognising that what the UK has said about the importance of

:35:45. > :35:47.differentiating refugees and economic migrants, we will continue

:35:48. > :35:52.to work not just in the G20 on that but in the UN work that started last

:35:53. > :35:55.year that will be progressing towards the end of this year in

:35:56. > :36:03.terms of looking at the compact for migration and refugees across the

:36:04. > :36:07.world. We know that US intelligence services leaked sensitive UK

:36:08. > :36:11.intelligence in the hours following the attack on the Ariana Grande

:36:12. > :36:17.concert in Manchester. This weekend we had Presidents Trump and Putin

:36:18. > :36:22.discussing forming and penetrable cyber security unit so that election

:36:23. > :36:28.hacking will be guarded and safe. According to Presidents Trump's

:36:29. > :36:32.tweet. Can she guarantee that UK intelligence assets on cyber warfare

:36:33. > :36:36.will not be compromised or shared in anyway as long as there is a risk of

:36:37. > :36:41.this sort of bizarre and dangerous alliance with the Russians? I can

:36:42. > :36:45.say to the honourable lady that we take the issue of intelligence

:36:46. > :36:50.sharing very seriously. It is important we are able to share

:36:51. > :36:53.intelligence with our allies in the US and with other allies around the

:36:54. > :36:57.world, but what what matters is we are able to do that on the basis of

:36:58. > :37:02.confidence, that that intelligence will be treated appropriately. I can

:37:03. > :37:05.assure her we take the whole issue of cyber security extremely

:37:06. > :37:10.seriously, that is why we set up the new National Cyber Security Centre

:37:11. > :37:17.and we recognise and understand the threat Russia poses in that area.

:37:18. > :37:22.The G20 summit we heard positive words from the president of the US

:37:23. > :37:26.and more this morning from the President of Australia as to the

:37:27. > :37:29.opportunities for rapid and comprehensive trade deals between

:37:30. > :37:33.their companies and the UK. Does my right honourable friend agree that

:37:34. > :37:36.new trade deals with old friends and knew that are only really a risible

:37:37. > :37:44.outside the customs union will add to the prosperity of a new global

:37:45. > :37:48.Britain? He is right. We have been very clear that we want to be able

:37:49. > :37:52.to and take an sign up to and activate those new trade deals with

:37:53. > :37:55.old friends and new allies alike, and that means not being in the part

:37:56. > :37:58.of the customs union that would prevent it. It is important we are

:37:59. > :38:05.able to negotiate trade agreement with the EU and the rest of the

:38:06. > :38:10.world. Can I press the Prime Minister on the issue of migration

:38:11. > :38:15.and displacement that affects 65 million people worldwide? She will

:38:16. > :38:19.know since the 1st of January 82,800 people have risked their lives

:38:20. > :38:26.trying to cross the Mediterranean and 2000 have died. The G20 leaders

:38:27. > :38:30.run 84% of the economy of the world. Apart from the 55 million as you

:38:31. > :38:35.mentioned going to Tanzania, what other resources are being given to

:38:36. > :38:40.deal with this catastrophic problem? The resources being given to this

:38:41. > :38:45.issue are significant and varied. From the UK's own point of view,

:38:46. > :38:48.there is the work we have been doing through our development aid budget,

:38:49. > :38:53.particularly in another of countries in Africa, I referred earlier to the

:38:54. > :38:57.compact we have of Ethiopia, which is providing jobs there for refugees

:38:58. > :39:01.and others, because we see it as important to ensure that there are

:39:02. > :39:04.economic opportunities in the countries of origin for this

:39:05. > :39:12.migration so people do not feel the need to make this journey. We have

:39:13. > :39:16.also, as I announced, we are giving extra funding, 75 million to work

:39:17. > :39:23.with Libya and Italy to ensure that there are humane conditions for

:39:24. > :39:30.people to able to return to countries in Africa that we increase

:39:31. > :39:33.the ability of the Libyan coast guard to ensure they are properly

:39:34. > :39:37.intercepting those boats which could pose a risk to people in terms of

:39:38. > :39:41.their life if they were to make it across the Mediterranean. It is

:39:42. > :39:48.multifaceted, but the UK is involved in every aspect. The Leader of the

:39:49. > :39:53.Opposition has spent his entire life opposing trade deals with countries

:39:54. > :39:58.around the world such as Mexico and India. The Prime Minister success at

:39:59. > :40:02.G20 means we can look both East and West securing trade deals and does

:40:03. > :40:06.my right honourable friend agree that we should recognise and be

:40:07. > :40:14.proud of the global confidence in British services, goods, and the

:40:15. > :40:18.British economy? My honourable friend is absolutely right. I think

:40:19. > :40:22.the fact that a number of leaders, those I have mentioned, but others

:40:23. > :40:26.as well, have expressed their interest in trade deals with the UK,

:40:27. > :40:33.it is a vote of confidence in the British people.

:40:34. > :40:39.Mr Speaker, I would be interested to know when the Prime Minister expects

:40:40. > :40:42.to sign a trade deal with Australia and India how much these deals will

:40:43. > :40:48.be worth and how much extra immigration she will accept as part

:40:49. > :40:52.of these deals. The honourable lady may know that there's a limit to

:40:53. > :40:56.what we can put in place while we are still members of the EU but we

:40:57. > :41:00.can still discuss what a future trade agreement might be and it

:41:01. > :41:03.doesn't mean we can't discuss how to improve trade relations already,

:41:04. > :41:07.there are some areas we can do that which are not covered in terms of EU

:41:08. > :41:14.competences and those discussions are having. Has been found. There

:41:15. > :41:20.does seem to be consensus that when we leave the European Union UK- US

:41:21. > :41:24.free trade deal would be a good and necessary thing. Does the Prime

:41:25. > :41:28.Minister welcomed the clear support of the American administration that

:41:29. > :41:32.this is expressed at the G20 but the other important decision-makers in

:41:33. > :41:37.this are the US Congress. Following her successful visit to Philadelphia

:41:38. > :41:40.with the Republican caucus witchy enable the excellent Congressional

:41:41. > :41:44.relations office of our office in Washington to up MPs make the case

:41:45. > :41:49.to congressional colleagues for this free trade deal? My right honourable

:41:50. > :41:53.friend is right about the role Congress will play, he has raised an

:41:54. > :41:58.interesting idea. I did indeed have discussions with members of Congress

:41:59. > :42:01.in Philadelphia and I know that my right honourable friend was

:42:02. > :42:03.Secretary of State for International Development has been having

:42:04. > :42:07.discussions recently in America with members of Congress as well. We will

:42:08. > :42:12.certainly consider the proposal that my right honourable friend has put

:42:13. > :42:17.forward. He's right, we will work with Congress and the American

:42:18. > :42:20.administration on this. Mr Speaker she says she wants help for building

:42:21. > :42:31.consensus on sensible policies, there a majority in this House to

:42:32. > :42:35.stay in Euratom and also in the European medicines agency so why

:42:36. > :42:39.not. As referred to the membership of ten 2-mac is inextricably linked

:42:40. > :42:44.with membership of the EU and as we leave the EU we will leave Euratom.

:42:45. > :42:47.Yet what we look to put in place is a similar relationship with Euratom

:42:48. > :42:52.like other countries which are not members of the EU having access to

:42:53. > :42:57.the movement of scientists and materials and the standards produced

:42:58. > :43:00.under Euratom. We recognise the importance of this, this is why a

:43:01. > :43:07.bill in relation to this was in the Queen's Speech. Sir Edward Lee. As

:43:08. > :43:11.my right honourable friend is now open to ideas to a man who tried to

:43:12. > :43:18.remove her from office will she take an idea from a friend who stood on a

:43:19. > :43:29.platform of keeping her in office? And once it is day in office. The

:43:30. > :43:33.honourable gentleman from Rhondda should come himself, I want to hear

:43:34. > :43:38.what the honourable member the gains that has to say. We have warm words

:43:39. > :43:41.on helping Italy of migration but as long as Italy is forced to take all

:43:42. > :43:45.the refugees more and more will come. Will my right honourable

:43:46. > :43:49.friend work with our allies to establish safe havens in Libya so

:43:50. > :43:55.that people can be returned safely to Libya. That's a conservative

:43:56. > :43:58.idea, not useless socialist one! I have to say to my right honourable

:43:59. > :44:02.friend not only is that concept of being able to return people to Libya

:44:03. > :44:08.a good one, it is one we already working on. This is one of the

:44:09. > :44:12.issues we will be discussing with the Italians and others in relation

:44:13. > :44:17.to the extra humanitarian aid we are making available. We've also made

:44:18. > :44:20.available, offered to the Italians, support and help to return as to

:44:21. > :44:25.Nigeria because a significant number of those reaching Italy are from

:44:26. > :44:30.Nigeria and we have arrangements already run by the United Kingdom in

:44:31. > :44:36.Nigeria to provide just that sort of area where people are able to stay.

:44:37. > :44:40.Alison McGovern. May I ask the Prime Minister about Syria and the loss of

:44:41. > :44:44.civilian life specifically as it relates to you as operations against

:44:45. > :44:51.Morisi in Raqqa. It appears that the rules of engagement have changed. So

:44:52. > :45:01.has she raised this with the US or have any of her ministers -- US

:45:02. > :45:03.operations against Daesh. We regularly in discussion with the

:45:04. > :45:08.Americans and others in the coalition about the action. The

:45:09. > :45:14.action taken place in Mosul to drive Daesh of muscle is important and the

:45:15. > :45:18.reaction in Raqqa will be important but as United Kingdom we take the

:45:19. > :45:22.position that we want to ensure that these actions deal with those who

:45:23. > :45:30.they are supposed to deal with, ie the terrorists, and don't affect

:45:31. > :45:34.civilians. Mr Costa. Thank you Mr Speaker, may I add my welcome to the

:45:35. > :45:37.statement from the Prime Minister particularly in respect of

:45:38. > :45:43.assistance given to Italy to tackle migration. I am chairman of the APPG

:45:44. > :45:49.research group and as my right honourable friend knows, Greece also

:45:50. > :45:51.has a huge burden with the movement of migrants. Would my right

:45:52. > :45:56.honourable friend agreed to consider whether the delegation that has been

:45:57. > :46:07.sent to Italy might also be sent in due course to Greece? What we are

:46:08. > :46:15.doing is mirroring in Italy something we have offered Greece and

:46:16. > :46:19.which they have taken up. It's difficult because of the deal with

:46:20. > :46:23.Turkey that EU did so we've seen a significant reduction in the number

:46:24. > :46:26.of migrants trying to reach Greece. We've also seen people coming

:46:27. > :46:31.through those roots and trying to go through Libya into Italy. But we

:46:32. > :46:38.will certainly ensure that we are giving as much support as we can to

:46:39. > :46:42.Italy in this matter. Sir Vincent cable. In the Prime Minister's

:46:43. > :46:47.enthusiasm for a bilateral trade union with the USA Wilshere accept

:46:48. > :46:51.American insistence that we don't loot food standards and agree to the

:46:52. > :46:56.establishments of investment protection mechanisms which override

:46:57. > :47:03.British courts -- Wilshere accept? . Nash will she accept that we dilate

:47:04. > :47:07.food standards? This hasn't yet taken place, we will be negotiating

:47:08. > :47:17.trade commissions with the Americans. Thank you, Mr Speaker.

:47:18. > :47:20.Many countries are eager to trade free from punitive tariffs, does my

:47:21. > :47:23.right honourable friend agree that Britain can be a leader in free

:47:24. > :47:31.trade fair trade once we leave the by setting off our own standards and

:47:32. > :47:38.striking our: trade deals. It's important, we will have that ability

:47:39. > :47:41.once outside the EU to strike deals around the world, underpinning what

:47:42. > :47:45.my right honourable friend asks is the need for the UK to stand up and

:47:46. > :47:49.promote free and fair trade around the world. As I said earlier in

:47:50. > :47:55.response to another honourable friend, there is this attempt in

:47:56. > :47:59.some areas to towards protectionism. I think we should stand against

:48:00. > :48:03.that. We should show clearly that it is free trade that brings prosperity

:48:04. > :48:07.and jobs and help is not just economy is like ours but some of the

:48:08. > :48:13.poorest countries in the world to develop. Given the special

:48:14. > :48:16.relationship the Prime Minister enjoys with President Trump can she

:48:17. > :48:23.explain why she failed to influence him from preventing him from pulling

:48:24. > :48:27.out the Paris climate agreement? And will she commend that decision and

:48:28. > :48:37.refrain from rolling out the red carpet in the form of a state visit

:48:38. > :48:42.to him. We made, i-mate, the UK made, our views on the Paris climate

:48:43. > :48:47.agreement is well-known, the US takes its own decisions, this is a

:48:48. > :48:50.commitment President Trump made in his electoral campaign, I said to

:48:51. > :48:53.him more than once that either the USA can be encouraged to come back

:48:54. > :49:01.into the Paris agreement, I think it is important and we will try to work

:49:02. > :49:06.to get them back in. David TC Davies. Mr Speaker given that most

:49:07. > :49:09.of the MPC are stored on a platform backing tracks and including the

:49:10. > :49:12.Leader of the Opposition isn't it time people stopped using these

:49:13. > :49:16.negotiations for political or personal advantage and united behind

:49:17. > :49:25.the Prime Minister and her ministers to get on with the deal that works

:49:26. > :49:30.for the Halliburton? Whole of Britain. My honourable friend is

:49:31. > :49:33.right, 80% of votes in the general election were for parties that

:49:34. > :49:36.wanted to deliver on the Brexit decision taken by the British people

:49:37. > :49:39.in the referendum master. That is what the government will get on and

:49:40. > :49:46.do and I hope others in the House was aborted. The Prime Minister said

:49:47. > :49:49.in a statement that women and children are being enslaved, forced

:49:50. > :49:53.into hard Labour, raped and beaten and passed from abuse and to abuse

:49:54. > :49:58.of profit. Does she agree that this is no more true than the depravity

:49:59. > :50:04.of child prostitution in India and did she raised this with the Prime

:50:05. > :50:08.Minister of India? I have raised this issue previously with the Prime

:50:09. > :50:16.Minister of India, the question of modern slavery, as we have, to

:50:17. > :50:23.address this particular issue. We are very clear that we want to see

:50:24. > :50:26.this issue being dealt with, this is one reason why we have put into

:50:27. > :50:29.legislation requirement for companies in the UK who will be

:50:30. > :50:32.manufacturing and sourcing products from around the world that they need

:50:33. > :50:37.to look at their supply chains and make sure and report on they find in

:50:38. > :50:43.their supply chains and whether or not modern slavery is taking place

:50:44. > :50:46.within those supply chains. Does the Prime Minister agree that while we

:50:47. > :50:50.are still leaving the EU there are many manners in which we still need

:50:51. > :50:55.to cooperate, especially dealing with the migrant problems, how we

:50:56. > :51:00.will manage international trade and work with Europe to tackle the evil

:51:01. > :51:06.of people trafficking, and also cooperate to stop multinationals

:51:07. > :51:10.abusing tax systems across the continent. I agree with my

:51:11. > :51:15.honourable friend, there is much on which we will continue to cooperate.

:51:16. > :51:18.With countries in the European Union, the relations we have with

:51:19. > :51:22.French and Belgium in particular in relation to ports and the traffic of

:51:23. > :51:26.people across the Channel is very important to us. And we have been

:51:27. > :51:29.working increasingly with the French authorities and reversing including

:51:30. > :51:33.the Greek authorities in dealing with this issue of human trafficking

:51:34. > :51:37.and successfully insuring criminal gangs involved in this are not just

:51:38. > :51:51.identified but investigated and prosecuted.

:51:52. > :51:59.Bambos Charalambous. As the Prime Minister spoken to the president of

:52:00. > :52:01.Turkey about the Cyprus talks? Headed on by authors put to the

:52:02. > :52:08.Secretary General of the UN who was president at the talks. About the

:52:09. > :52:11.reasons why they broke down. It is a matter not only of disappointment

:52:12. > :52:16.but great sadness that those talks did not come to fruition, they were

:52:17. > :52:23.the closest we have come to finding a solution for the unification of

:52:24. > :52:31.Cyprus. It was a matter of sadness that this could not be achieved. The

:52:32. > :52:39.United Kingdom played a strong role in trying to achieve that but sadly

:52:40. > :52:43.it did not happen. One quarter of G20 members are also members of the

:52:44. > :52:49.Commonwealth, I welcome my honourable friend welcoming

:52:50. > :52:51.preliminary discussions with Australia and India, can she also

:52:52. > :52:55.say what discussions have been had with other Commonwealth countries

:52:56. > :53:01.like New Zealand. And happy to let my honourable friend know that we

:53:02. > :53:06.have also been discussing with New Zealand, this is an issue we can

:53:07. > :53:13.progress with other members of the Commonwealth, not just New Zealand,

:53:14. > :53:16.also Canada. Catherine West. Mr Speaker, what concrete steps will be

:53:17. > :53:22.taken to get climate change back on the discussion with the US

:53:23. > :53:24.administration. We raise the issue regularly with them but crucially

:53:25. > :53:28.there was a clear message from everyone at the G 22 the US

:53:29. > :53:32.administration about the importance we all placed on that climate change

:53:33. > :53:41.agreement, the Paris agreement and the US being a member of it. Mr

:53:42. > :53:44.Philip collarbone. Kettering is located at the economic beating

:53:45. > :53:47.heart of the nation so a strong economy and new international trade

:53:48. > :53:51.deals post Brexit are very important for all of us live there. The Prime

:53:52. > :53:56.Minister has told the house that over the weekend she met the leaders

:53:57. > :54:00.of America, China, Japan and India to talk about new trade deals. May I

:54:01. > :54:10.say it sounds like a very good start and a very good week and's work. I

:54:11. > :54:13.thank my honourable friend and can I also recognise the important role

:54:14. > :54:16.Kettering plays in the economy of this country and the benefits when

:54:17. > :54:25.we see new trade deals coming into place. Mr Speaker can the Prime

:54:26. > :54:34.Minister guarantee that Brexit will not weaken the fight against

:54:35. > :54:45.terrorism? Will we retain full membership of Eurapo and Eurajust? I

:54:46. > :54:49.have defended our membership of that and various other things, we are

:54:50. > :55:02.informal negotiations with the EU and these will be part of the

:55:03. > :55:07.negotiations but I am sure, some of the arrangements with countries are

:55:08. > :55:11.arrangements we have outside EU but we want to retain that co-operation

:55:12. > :55:23.because it is important not only for us but the countries outside euro

:55:24. > :55:26.FIA - EU. What does she see in that crisis and might not part of it be

:55:27. > :55:32.restrictions against British banks, two of which had impositions against

:55:33. > :55:37.them for inadvertently treading with North Korea. And happy to say I've

:55:38. > :55:43.had discussions with other leaders about what is happening on the

:55:44. > :55:46.Korean peninsula, especially with the president of China because I

:55:47. > :55:51.think the role of China is a crucial one, they are the country that has

:55:52. > :55:54.the greatest leveraged in relation to North Korea and I urge the

:55:55. > :55:58.president of China as I believe others have done to exercise that

:55:59. > :56:06.leveraged. We want to see the denuclearisation of North Korea.

:56:07. > :56:09.The Prime Minister talks about boosting trade but could she tell is

:56:10. > :56:13.what discussions he had with other leaders about the open skies

:56:14. > :56:17.agreement with the USA which depends upon our relationship with the EU,

:56:18. > :56:27.is a cause for concern to the aviation industry. Time is very

:56:28. > :56:33.short. The open skies agreement was referenced in the conversation I had

:56:34. > :56:37.with President ramp. Can I congratulate her on her comments

:56:38. > :56:43.condemning President Trump's decision to abandon Paris? Can I

:56:44. > :56:52.encourage her to keep the UK in the global Vanguard on climate change by

:56:53. > :56:55.publishing so that those who are more reluctant can see the value of

:56:56. > :56:58.a green economy? I think the UK has a good record on this. We can

:56:59. > :57:05.PowerPoint are ready to the actions we have taken, but we can be looking

:57:06. > :57:09.to do more on air quality in the future, but we can already show the

:57:10. > :57:14.action we have taken and the benefit it has had. As I said earlier, there

:57:15. > :57:20.is no contradiction between decarbonisation and a growing

:57:21. > :57:22.economy. Is a bad trade deal with the United States better than no

:57:23. > :57:26.deal? LAUGHTER

:57:27. > :57:33.We will be working to negotiate a good trade deal with the US. She

:57:34. > :57:41.will recall that the recently deceased teat it would have included

:57:42. > :57:46.grotesque provisions for private corporations to prosecute legitimate

:57:47. > :57:54.democratic governments. Would she resist any deal that includes such

:57:55. > :57:59.proportions? I can assure him that as we look to negotiate a trade deal

:58:00. > :58:05.with the US we will be looking for one in the best interest of the

:58:06. > :58:07.United Kingdom. For all the progress against Dyche there are mine

:58:08. > :58:14.hundreds of thousands of civilians in Syria who remain under siege from

:58:15. > :58:20.the evil Al Assad Government. Will she look again at the issue of

:58:21. > :58:25.getting aid with multilateral agreement into those besieged towns

:58:26. > :58:30.and cities? He raised a very important issue which we do

:58:31. > :58:33.regularly discuss with our coalition partners about the possibility of

:58:34. > :58:37.getting that aid in. As he will know, there have been some attempts

:58:38. > :58:42.to ensure aid can be getting through to those civilians who are besieged.

:58:43. > :58:48.They have not always... He says try again. We do regularly raise this as

:58:49. > :58:51.an issue. The best answer is to find a solution to the situation in Syria

:58:52. > :58:58.which leads to a stable Syria meaning those civilians are no

:58:59. > :59:04.longer besieged. In a summit of extraordinarily awkward moments,

:59:05. > :59:07.perhaps the most bizarre was when President Trump's seat was taken by

:59:08. > :59:12.his daughter. The Prime Minister did not seem to bat an eyelid, which I

:59:13. > :59:17.assume is because she's exhuming somebody else will take her seat

:59:18. > :59:19.soon. I wonder who she hopes that will be, the Home Secretary, the

:59:20. > :59:26.Foreign Secretary, or the Chancellor? I have to say, in

:59:27. > :59:30.relation to the fact that Iran could Trump took the present's seat at one

:59:31. > :59:35.point, that was after a session we had had in the morning where we had

:59:36. > :59:38.launched the rim and entrepreneurs financing initiative, which is an

:59:39. > :59:43.initiative that has been developed by Yvonne could Trump and the World

:59:44. > :59:53.Bank so I think it was entirely reasonable! It is welcome and that

:59:54. > :59:59.the Prime Minister raised the issue of the jumping of Chinese steel but

:00:00. > :00:03.quite frankly words are cheap. It is actions that matter. Can she please

:00:04. > :00:08.tell the house what specific actions are going to be taken to ensure

:00:09. > :00:11.China starts playing by the rules? The honourable gentleman will be

:00:12. > :00:17.aware of the action we have taken here in the UK to support our steel

:00:18. > :00:20.industry. We have urged at the last T20 took the decision that the

:00:21. > :00:23.global Forum would be the basis on which work could be done

:00:24. > :00:27.internationally to look at the issue of excess capacity in steel. That

:00:28. > :00:31.has not worked as well as hoped. It was set up under the Chinese

:00:32. > :00:34.presidency and it is that that we want to see with the ministerial

:00:35. > :00:43.meeting to look at excess steel capacity this year. Will the Prime

:00:44. > :00:49.Minister confirmed that the NHS will be excluded from any trade deal with

:00:50. > :00:54.the United States? I am conscious that this was an issue that was

:00:55. > :00:58.raised in relation to the T tip deal and concerned people had that

:00:59. > :01:03.somehow that was about changing the NHS. We are not going to change the

:01:04. > :01:11.NHS. The deal was never a deal that was going to impact on the NHS in

:01:12. > :01:15.the way the opposition suggested. Not all G20 countries have made the

:01:16. > :01:20.same sort of progress we have in this country in relation to racist

:01:21. > :01:24.and discrimination are re-language. That was an issue she discussed and

:01:25. > :01:30.does she agree that where it happens organisations should take decisive

:01:31. > :01:34.and swift action? I have to say to him, I think it is beholden on a

:01:35. > :01:44.salt to make sure we use appropriate language at all times. With the

:01:45. > :01:48.President of German industries stating it would be negative from

:01:49. > :01:57.Brexit, has she got any closer to carrying out an economic assessment

:01:58. > :02:02.of the UK leaving the single market? What is very clear is that we want

:02:03. > :02:06.to negotiate a comp Raza agreement with the European Union, which gives

:02:07. > :02:11.us access to the single market. But anybody looking at the impact that

:02:12. > :02:15.take place of leaving the single market should recognise that the

:02:16. > :02:25.single market that is most important two nations within the ice kingdom

:02:26. > :02:29.is the United Kingdom. Given her personal commitment to ending modern

:02:30. > :02:34.slavery and her desire for other countries to follow the UK's please,

:02:35. > :02:39.why did she think it takes her Home Office more than two years to

:02:40. > :02:43.investigate the case of a woman in my constituency who is a victim of

:02:44. > :02:49.rape, slavery and trafficking? What kind of example issue setting for

:02:50. > :02:53.the G20 there? I am not aware of the individual case that you raise. He

:02:54. > :02:56.talks about investigation of a case of rape. That is not a matter for

:02:57. > :03:08.the Home Office, it is for the police. Following the questions by

:03:09. > :03:13.Mike Right Honourable friend the member for Leeds Central and Exeter,

:03:14. > :03:18.the Prime Minister said our membership of your atom is linked

:03:19. > :03:23.with membership of the EU and yet we have been members of your atom for

:03:24. > :03:29.longer than we have of the EU. So how can that be the case and world

:03:30. > :03:39.Government rethink our arrangements and returns of your atom which is so

:03:40. > :03:43.important? The fact is the treaty makes it clear that there is either

:03:44. > :03:47.link between the membership. If you are a membership of the EU and

:03:48. > :03:53.membership of the Euratom. Across the house we are all agreed that we

:03:54. > :03:56.want to maintain the arrangements and relationships that currently

:03:57. > :03:59.exist under Euratom. But they will be on a different basis in the

:04:00. > :04:06.future. But we want to maintain them. There is no argument about

:04:07. > :04:10.that. I thank her for her statement and note her effort to reform the

:04:11. > :04:14.World Trade Organisation rules in order for them to keep up with the

:04:15. > :04:18.services and digital sectors, crucial to the British economy. Does

:04:19. > :04:27.she agree with me that any reform to the WTA rules will take longer than

:04:28. > :04:31.we have left before we leave the EU? One of the point I was making at the

:04:32. > :04:34.G20's we need to speed up the way the world trade organisation looks

:04:35. > :04:37.at these issues. Looking a trade rules around the Digital economy is

:04:38. > :04:41.not something they will be starting from scratch, they have been doing

:04:42. > :04:48.ever some time, we need to ensure we get on with it and get get rules

:04:49. > :04:51.set. I welcome her indication that she wants to coax the United States

:04:52. > :04:55.back into the Paris agreement. Will she consider strengthening her

:04:56. > :04:58.negotiating hand by suggesting to President Trump that there will be

:04:59. > :05:03.no negotiations on a free-trade deal until they come back into the deal,

:05:04. > :05:08.or is securing a free-trade deal with the US is more important than

:05:09. > :05:12.securing the future the planet? What we want is to ensure we get a good

:05:13. > :05:16.trade deal with the US because it will be to the benefit of people in

:05:17. > :05:20.the UK with proper parity and economic growth and jobs across the

:05:21. > :05:26.UK. But we will continue to press on climate change agreement as well.

:05:27. > :05:29.And as I say, I am encouraging President Trump as are others to

:05:30. > :05:32.find a way back into the Paris agreement. I think it is important

:05:33. > :05:35.for us all. Meanwhile we will continue to do our bit in terms of

:05:36. > :05:42.the application of the Paris agreement. Older. I think the right

:05:43. > :05:48.honourable gentleman wanted to raise a point of order. No? OK. I was

:05:49. > :05:51.going to say if he wanted to it would normally be after statements

:05:52. > :05:59.but he could raise it now if he wanted to. But he does not wish to.

:06:00. > :06:05.That is fine. Thank you. We move now to the second statement. The

:06:06. > :06:11.statement the Secretary of State for International Development, Doctor

:06:12. > :06:14.Liam Fox. With permission I would like to make a station on the High

:06:15. > :06:19.Court judgment on export licensing. We welcome the divisional Court

:06:20. > :06:23.judgment today dismissing the claim by the campaign against Arms trade

:06:24. > :06:26.for judicial review of decisions revising exporter Saudi Arabia for

:06:27. > :06:31.possible use of the conflict in Yemen. We are grateful to the court

:06:32. > :06:33.for the careful and meticulous way the evidence from both sides has

:06:34. > :06:39.been considered in reaching the judgment. The judgment recognises

:06:40. > :06:44.the rigorous and robust processes we have in place across Government to

:06:45. > :06:50.ensure UK defence exports are licensed consistence with the

:06:51. > :06:54.Government consisted national arms licensing criteria. These criteria

:06:55. > :06:58.give effect to an EU Common position setting out rules for assessing

:06:59. > :07:02.Mapes Arias sports. They were introduced in October 2000 and last

:07:03. > :07:08.updated in 2014. The Consolidated criteria used to assess each

:07:09. > :07:11.exporter licence application cover our international obligations

:07:12. > :07:17.including sanctions, human rights and international humanitarian law,

:07:18. > :07:22.and confidence, national security and the security of our allies,

:07:23. > :07:27.terrorism, risk of diversion and the technical and economic capacity of

:07:28. > :07:32.the recipient country. The claim that challenge decisions not to

:07:33. > :07:36.suspend extant licences for the sale of transfer of arms or military

:07:37. > :07:41.equipment and to continue to grant is new lances for such transfers.

:07:42. > :07:45.The judgment states these decisions were lawful and rational. It

:07:46. > :07:51.describes the Government discussion about export licences as and I

:07:52. > :07:54.quote, highly sophisticated, structured and multifaceted. We note

:07:55. > :07:58.the application to appeal and will continue to defend the decision is

:07:59. > :08:02.challenged. We remain confident that the UK operates one of the most

:08:03. > :08:08.robust export control regimes in the world. The central issue in relation

:08:09. > :08:12.to the defence exports to Saudi Arabia in the context of the

:08:13. > :08:18.conflict in Yemen is criterion to see of the Consolidated EU and

:08:19. > :08:22.national arms licensing criteria. That is that the Government will not

:08:23. > :08:28.grant a licence if there is a clear risk that the items might be used in

:08:29. > :08:31.the commission of a serious violation of international

:08:32. > :08:36.humanitarian law. We have sufficient information to carry out proper

:08:37. > :08:39.risk-based assessment is against criterion to see, the core situation

:08:40. > :08:45.has been kept under close review, and to date we have not refused

:08:46. > :08:50.licences on to see grounds because we have assessed on all the event

:08:51. > :08:53.nation available including information not publicly available,

:08:54. > :08:57.that the clear risk threshold has not been reached. The judgment says

:08:58. > :09:05.that on the evidence we were rationally entitled to conclude this

:09:06. > :09:09.threat has not been reached. The exercise taken to into form these

:09:10. > :09:15.rest than is has in the words of the Government, all the hallmarks of a

:09:16. > :09:19.rigorous and robust multilayered process of analysis, carried out by

:09:20. > :09:27.numerous expert personnel upon which the secretary of state could rely.

:09:28. > :09:31.In addition by considered analysis of humanitarian law, there has been

:09:32. > :09:36.intensive engagement with the Saudis at the highest level, stressing the

:09:37. > :09:41.need to comply with international humanitarian law, to investigate all

:09:42. > :09:44.instances of concern and ensure lessons are learned. Through this

:09:45. > :09:49.engagement and our long-standing relationship with the Saudis, we

:09:50. > :09:53.have developed a higher degree of insight into Saudi military

:09:54. > :09:57.processes and procedures adopted in Yemen and might be expected for a

:09:58. > :10:01.country not party to the conflict. We have also considered public

:10:02. > :10:04.commitments to comply with international humanitarian law made

:10:05. > :10:10.by the Saudis and monitored and analysed development on the ground.

:10:11. > :10:13.Each of these strands takes into account a wide range of sources and

:10:14. > :10:18.analyses including those of a sensitive nature to which other

:10:19. > :10:23.parties such as NGOs and the UN do not have access. Taken together,

:10:24. > :10:27.these strands of information and analysis which are reviewed

:10:28. > :10:31.regularly by the FCO in comprehensive reports to the Foreign

:10:32. > :10:36.Secretary, have enabled ministers to take informed decisions about the

:10:37. > :10:40.overall criterion to see position and individual export licence

:10:41. > :10:44.applications. They provide a sound basis on which the Foreign Secretary

:10:45. > :10:51.is able to advise me on these points. That the assessment has been

:10:52. > :10:55.that the issue of military exports to Saudi Arabia is finally balanced,

:10:56. > :11:00.is seen by the judgment as instructive and points two and again

:11:01. > :11:03.I quote, anxious scrutiny given to the matter and the essential

:11:04. > :11:07.rationality and rigour of the process in which the secretary of

:11:08. > :11:11.state was engaged. And as the judgment states on the basis of this

:11:12. > :11:16.information and analysis we were rationally entitled to conclude

:11:17. > :11:20.Saudi Arabia has put processes in place to secure respect for

:11:21. > :11:25.compliance with international humanitarian law and that Saudi

:11:26. > :11:28.Arabia has been and remains committed to compliance with

:11:29. > :11:31.international humanitarian law. The Saudis have engaged and continue to

:11:32. > :11:36.engage constructively with the UK on these matters.

:11:37. > :11:44.We do not receive this judgment as a signal to do anything other than to

:11:45. > :11:48.take our exports responsibilities very seriously. Our policy is to

:11:49. > :11:52.assess licence applications on a case-by-case basis against the

:11:53. > :11:56.rigorous tests set out in the Consolidated EU and national arms

:11:57. > :11:59.export licensing criteria. We will not grant a licence if to do so

:12:00. > :12:06.would be inconsistent with these criteria. We will continue to keep

:12:07. > :12:09.the situation in Yemen under close scrutiny and base our export

:12:10. > :12:13.licensing assessments on the most up-to-date information and analysis

:12:14. > :12:22.available. If we assess that the clear risk threshold under criterion

:12:23. > :12:25.to see of the Consolidated EU and national licensing criteria has been

:12:26. > :12:28.reached them you will not hesitate to refuse export licences and

:12:29. > :12:38.suspend licences already in circulation. I commend the statement

:12:39. > :12:42.to the House. Thank you. I thank the Secretary of State for his

:12:43. > :12:46.statement. I know he and the whole House will agree that the war in

:12:47. > :12:54.Yemen as each monetary tragedy. Thousands of people the --

:12:55. > :12:58.humanitarian tragedy. Thousands of people have been at effect through

:12:59. > :13:04.loss of hospitals and water supplies and all of us should do more on

:13:05. > :13:10.that. The question for the High Court was whether we are entitled to

:13:11. > :13:15.conclude that there was no risk British weapons would be used in

:13:16. > :13:20.serious violations of international humanitarian law. Since the bombing

:13:21. > :13:26.of Yemen began, the UK has licensed more than ?3.3 billion worth of arms

:13:27. > :13:29.to the Saudi regime including 2.2 billion pounds worth of licences

:13:30. > :13:38.dealing with aircraft and helicopters. 1.1 billion pounds

:13:39. > :13:43.worth doing with grenades and bombs and countermeasures and ?430,000

:13:44. > :13:46.worth dealing with armoured vehicles and tanks. The Secretary of State

:13:47. > :13:50.knows that instrument use of air strikes, the destruction of the

:13:51. > :13:53.countries means of food production and the targeting of civilians are

:13:54. > :14:00.all classed as war crimes under international humanitarian law. Does

:14:01. > :14:02.she recall that in January 2016 a United Nations panel of experts

:14:03. > :14:07.reported that Saudi Arabian forces had engaged in widespread and

:14:08. > :14:13.systematic targeting of civilians. Does she recall that in July last

:14:14. > :14:16.year the Government corrected its previous declarations that they had

:14:17. > :14:19.no evidence of any violations and that in September the Foreign

:14:20. > :14:23.Secretary stated in the Government's new position was that they had been

:14:24. > :14:29.unable to make an assessment and that the Saudi authorities are best

:14:30. > :14:34.placed to make such an assessment? Does he accept that the Foreign

:14:35. > :14:39.Secretary was wrong to franchise out our obligation in this way and that

:14:40. > :14:42.we, not the Saudis, have the duty to assess whether there is a risk that

:14:43. > :14:47.British arms sold to the Saudis might be used in contravention? Is

:14:48. > :14:52.she recall that evidence revealed in the High Court in February showed

:14:53. > :14:55.that the civil servant at the head of export control had provided

:14:56. > :15:00.advice to the previous Secretary of State recommending that the UK

:15:01. > :15:06.suspend arms sales to Saudi Arabia given in the gaps in knowledge about

:15:07. > :15:09.Saudi operations? Can he explain to the housewife that recommendation

:15:10. > :15:14.was overruled by the then Secretary of State and sits alongside him? But

:15:15. > :15:20.the Secretary of State at the committee should be set up in this

:15:21. > :15:25.Parliament without delay so that export licensing for arms sales and

:15:26. > :15:29.commander of the necessary parliamentary scrutiny? Does he

:15:30. > :15:32.agree that today's judgment did not seek to whether the Government were

:15:33. > :15:35.correct and concluding that there was no clear risk of a serious

:15:36. > :15:41.breach of international managerial role but rather whether Ensor

:15:42. > :15:46.concluding they had reached a decision which could be considered

:15:47. > :15:53.rational given in the procedures they had adopted and the evidence

:15:54. > :15:57.they had considered? Does he further except that if such procedures

:15:58. > :16:02.themselves were defective or the evidence they had considered

:16:03. > :16:06.insufficient or misleading or not comprehensive, then it follows that

:16:07. > :16:11.the decision, however rational within its own parameters, could be

:16:12. > :16:14.deeply flawed and this country might be at grave risk of violating their

:16:15. > :16:19.obligations in international humanitarian law? The Government

:16:20. > :16:24.relied upon material which brought forward only and closed hearing,

:16:25. > :16:27.evidence which was not able to be seen or heard by the campaign

:16:28. > :16:33.against the Arms trade or their lawyers. The court ruling that the

:16:34. > :16:36.Government 's decision was irrational one given in the

:16:37. > :16:39.procedures and evidence at considered was based on secret

:16:40. > :16:44.evidence which it was impossible to challenge. Does the Secretary of

:16:45. > :16:48.State except that the court 's judgment makes specific reference to

:16:49. > :16:52.the substantial body of evidence is presented in open session that in

:16:53. > :16:56.fact suggests a clear risk does exist that British arms might be

:16:57. > :16:59.used in violation of international monetary and more? Will he agree to

:17:00. > :17:05.make evidence that was available on the enclosed session available to

:17:06. > :17:10.members of this House on Privy Council terms or indeed make it

:17:11. > :17:12.available to the intelligence and security select committee? Does he

:17:13. > :17:17.agree that in mattress review would wish this country not only to adopt

:17:18. > :17:21.the highest ethical standards and controls but also to be seen to

:17:22. > :17:27.adopt them, it would be helpful if he could no reassure the House that

:17:28. > :17:31.is his considered view that not only was the Government rational and

:17:32. > :17:36.adopting the view instead given the procedures it followed and the

:17:37. > :17:39.evidence at considered, but that he personally can give his assurance to

:17:40. > :17:45.this House that there is too has a certain knowledge no risk whatsoever

:17:46. > :17:50.that UK arms make use by Saudi Arabia and Yemen or in any way that

:17:51. > :17:58.might constitute a violation of our obligations and international

:17:59. > :18:03.humanitarian law? Can I say first of all that I agree with the honourable

:18:04. > :18:07.gentleman and Yemen is indeed a humanitarian disaster that is

:18:08. > :18:09.begging for a political social ocean to lead to enable us to carry out

:18:10. > :18:13.without a dramatic efforts and Germanic taking efforts. I doubt

:18:14. > :18:19.anyone would disagree with that. In terms of what he said, he wasn't

:18:20. > :18:23.quite accurate in terms for the court case was about. There were

:18:24. > :18:30.three grounds of challenge. Firstly there to ask the correct questions

:18:31. > :18:34.to make enquiries. Failure to apply the suspension mechanism and a

:18:35. > :18:36.rationally concluding there was no clear risk under criterion 2C. All

:18:37. > :18:42.these grounds have been dismissed by the court. He makes the point about

:18:43. > :18:49.targeting. Can I say to him that the efforts by the MOD have gone to the

:18:50. > :18:53.smallest degree to improve the ability of the Saudis to target more

:18:54. > :18:56.effectively including by training. By UK personnel. That is that one of

:18:57. > :18:59.the biggest advantage is that we have helped the Saudis make on this.

:19:00. > :19:05.He said the United Nations have set out their own reservations about

:19:06. > :19:08.what had happened but as the judgment made very clear, it didn't

:19:09. > :19:11.have all the information, that the judges were able to look at as part

:19:12. > :19:15.of that and 20 said that there were gaps in the Government's knowledge,

:19:16. > :19:18.he's the court made very clear that not only did the Government have the

:19:19. > :19:23.ability to assess what the gaps in the knowledge might have been, they

:19:24. > :19:27.had the appropriate means of addressing that and I remain timid

:19:28. > :19:31.that the criteria that we operate a part of the EU Consolidated

:19:32. > :19:36.criteria, not UK Government unilateral criteria. I take

:19:37. > :19:40.exception with the final point that he made because this idea that

:19:41. > :19:45.somehow if we have closed sessions that makes the judgment less valid,

:19:46. > :19:49.I substitute except because I don't accept this idea that we simply

:19:50. > :19:53.cannot have closed sessions. That particular national security for the

:19:54. > :19:58.personnel involved in a national security, our sources need to be

:19:59. > :20:02.protected. Ellis to the argument he makes but I cannot bring myself to

:20:03. > :20:09.accept it. -- I listened to the argument. At the end of the

:20:10. > :20:14.statement he referred to steps that could be taken if it were found that

:20:15. > :20:20.Saudi Arabia were misusing the arms which we supply. Can I ask you to

:20:21. > :20:26.expand on that, an issue that has come up before any committees for

:20:27. > :20:29.arms export controls? Supposing we supply it consists in Saint of

:20:30. > :20:32.sophisticated weapons for use in one way and it is used in a different

:20:33. > :20:44.way or abused in defiance of the laws of war, what could be rendered

:20:45. > :20:46.to rectify that? As he knows from his experience, there are a number

:20:47. > :20:54.of criteria for refusal is and revocations. If he has not seen the

:20:55. > :21:01.list I will ensure he is sent it and if we believe that we are not able

:21:02. > :21:06.to convince ourselves that we were operating entirely within the

:21:07. > :21:09.Consolidated criteria, we can suspend licences and refuse new ones

:21:10. > :21:20.and as I made clear, if we believe that we are not fully in alignment

:21:21. > :21:33.with those criteria, we would do so. Apologies for my horse voice. --

:21:34. > :21:37.horse voice. Amnesty International believes UK and US weapons have been

:21:38. > :21:43.used against Yemeni civilian is. 10,000 civilians have been killed

:21:44. > :21:47.and 3 million displaced. Today's judgment raises questions and be

:21:48. > :21:49.paid tribute to the campaign against Arms trade love taking the

:21:50. > :21:54.Government to court and force them to explain themselves. We have

:21:55. > :21:59.knowledge they plan to appeal but the UK Government should be coming

:22:00. > :22:02.to this House with all the facts at all times, but having to be dragged

:22:03. > :22:04.through the courts for the public to get a full explanation so does he

:22:05. > :22:08.accept that it cannot be beneficial of the public loses confidence in

:22:09. > :22:15.the Government over its solution ship with the supposed ally? One

:22:16. > :22:19.which is infrequent breach of its international humanitarian law and

:22:20. > :22:23.Yemen? Let's not forget that Saudi Arabia, UK's largest weapons client

:22:24. > :22:27.has bought more than ?3 billion worth of British arms and the last

:22:28. > :22:30.two years. UK and EU arms sales rules that state export licences

:22:31. > :22:35.cannot be granted if there is not a clear risk that the equipment can be

:22:36. > :22:39.used in breach of international humanitarian law. He says that he

:22:40. > :22:43.takes it very seriously and he will know that our former colleague Angus

:22:44. > :22:48.Robertson was strong advocate for the re-establish that of the

:22:49. > :22:53.committee on arms export control. UK Government promised before the

:22:54. > :22:58.election it would be reconvened. Can I ask the Secretary of State when

:22:59. > :23:01.will that committee take place, when will its first meeting happen and

:23:02. > :23:03.can he give us categorical assurances that the election does

:23:04. > :23:16.not mean that such an important committee will be kicked into the

:23:17. > :23:21.long grass? As the judgment itself set out, the case focused on the air

:23:22. > :23:23.strikes conducted by a coalition led by Saudi Arabia and support of the

:23:24. > :23:27.legitimate Government of Yemen against the rebellion so we need to

:23:28. > :23:33.put on record that that is the origin of the conflict. Of course

:23:34. > :23:37.the humanitarian issues and Yemen are deeply troubling to all of us,

:23:38. > :23:39.we have all seen the pictures and the United Kingdom through our

:23:40. > :23:42.various agencies and Government departments have been fulfilling as

:23:43. > :23:47.much of our diplomatic and you manage union actions as we can and

:23:48. > :23:51.the circumstances. It will only be brought to an end by a political

:23:52. > :23:55.settlement, not a military one. She talks about the clear risk test, the

:23:56. > :24:00.judgment could not have been clearer that the Government admitted the

:24:01. > :24:02.clear risk test of criterion 2C in the way the Government has carried

:24:03. > :24:08.this out. On her point about the committee on Arms exports, I have

:24:09. > :24:11.absolutely no objections to such a committee being set up in fact I

:24:12. > :24:16.think it is beneficial to us to ensure at all times the highest

:24:17. > :24:19.reputation of our property in these matters and I would have absolutely

:24:20. > :24:27.no objection to such a committee being in place. Does the Secretary

:24:28. > :24:31.of State agree with me that the detail of this judgment actually

:24:32. > :24:36.makes it clear just what a great job as civil servants and other civil

:24:37. > :24:39.servants and officials in both MOD and the Foreign Office have done any

:24:40. > :24:46.rigorous way they have gone about their responsibilities so that the

:24:47. > :24:48.judgment can then say that they were highly sophisticated structures and

:24:49. > :24:52.multifaceted and it deserves congratulations?

:24:53. > :24:59.I don't think the judgment could have been more unequivocal, and I am

:25:00. > :25:03.very grateful for his comments. We have been utterly rigorous in the

:25:04. > :25:08.process. The work between the FCO and the MoD and the de-IT has been

:25:09. > :25:12.extremely close. Our officials have done a wonderful job. I'm not sure

:25:13. > :25:16.they appreciated the number of letters necessary that went between

:25:17. > :25:19.is to ensure the process works as tightly as it has, but I am sure

:25:20. > :25:23.they will all feel totally vindicated by the judgment and in

:25:24. > :25:28.the way they have carried out their duties on behalf of this country's

:25:29. > :25:31.international duties and law. Can I welcome the judgment and say it

:25:32. > :25:34.demonstrates how robust the Arms export control act of 2002

:25:35. > :25:39.introduced by the Labour Government is. It also supports hard-working

:25:40. > :25:45.defence workers in our defence industry. In the judgment, it says

:25:46. > :25:49.the coalition would not targeting civilians and Saudis have procedures

:25:50. > :25:54.to abide by the principles of international humanitarian law. In

:25:55. > :25:58.light of that can the union should make representations of the Saudis

:25:59. > :26:06.to publish their own enquiries ins to the stars? I thank him for his

:26:07. > :26:11.comments. We do as I said have I think the most robust system in

:26:12. > :26:15.place on defence exports that exists. And we have been very clear

:26:16. > :26:19.with the Saudis that they have to carry out investigations into some

:26:20. > :26:23.of the incidents he mentioned and they had to make that clear to the

:26:24. > :26:28.United Kingdom Government and that we had to be very clear if we were

:26:29. > :26:32.to license further defence exports that those lessons had been learned

:26:33. > :26:38.and that mechanisms have been put in place to ensure they would not

:26:39. > :26:43.happen again. Given the High Court has today found the Government has

:26:44. > :26:45.been meticulous in its export licensing processes, could he

:26:46. > :26:53.perhaps inform the house how much the court case will cost the

:26:54. > :26:57.taxpayer in legal fees? I hesitate a little because there may well be an

:26:58. > :27:02.appeal and we may not yet be at the end of the legal process. But to

:27:03. > :27:12.date the case has cost the UK taxpayers somewhat in excess of

:27:13. > :27:15.?600,000. The secretary of state and the Government may have won the

:27:16. > :27:19.legal skirmish but they have not won the moral case and there are still

:27:20. > :27:23.many unanswered questions about the relationship here and the terrible

:27:24. > :27:26.situation we see in Yemen. The Secretary of State says he was

:27:27. > :27:30.confident but on the other hand the court judgment makes it clear he was

:27:31. > :27:33.anxious. He knows he wrote to the Foreign Secretary saying he was

:27:34. > :27:40.concerned that it continue to be finely balanced and he asked they

:27:41. > :27:44.commissioned a further investigation and seek advice from lawyers. Why

:27:45. > :27:53.was he anxious? Was it the civilian deaths,? The use of cluster bombs,

:27:54. > :27:58.all the attacks on humanitarian supplies including water and

:27:59. > :28:05.medication? I know he takes a close interest in this but I would not

:28:06. > :28:08.describe today's landmark case as a skirmish and I think everyone in the

:28:09. > :28:13.house would be advised to read the full judgment. It is my job to be

:28:14. > :28:17.anxious about these things. It is my job to give the nth degree of

:28:18. > :28:23.scrutiny because lives are potentially being lost if we give

:28:24. > :28:26.the wrong judgments. It is the judgment of myself, the Foreign

:28:27. > :28:31.Secretary and other senior ministers that gives us such anxiety. Were we

:28:32. > :28:34.to be cavalier he would be absolutely right to criticise us.

:28:35. > :28:38.When we take the nth degree of care about the judgments we make, as

:28:39. > :28:45.previous governments have done, he ought to be grateful that we are

:28:46. > :28:49.doing so. I welcome my friend's statement as it comes from an

:28:50. > :28:52.independent judiciary and underscores the robustness of the

:28:53. > :28:58.assessment of the export licence applications. He will be aware that

:28:59. > :29:01.Saudi Arabia is going through self authored and hugely welcome

:29:02. > :29:05.modernisation and change. Can he assure me that these changes within

:29:06. > :29:11.the kingdom will be taken into account when considering future

:29:12. > :29:16.export licence applications to our strong and reliable ally in the

:29:17. > :29:19.Middle East? We take all of this information into account when coming

:29:20. > :29:25.to a judgment. We look across what is happening from the information we

:29:26. > :29:28.have from the FCO, the MOD, my department, we will put all this

:29:29. > :29:32.picture together before we come to judgment. I think we can hardly be

:29:33. > :29:35.accused of spending too much time and looking at too much evidence in

:29:36. > :29:41.order to come to the right conclusion. Of course we accept the

:29:42. > :29:47.guy judgment of the court because we accept the rule of law in this

:29:48. > :29:52.country. However, how does this help the Yemeni people? So far 10,000

:29:53. > :29:57.people have died, 14 million people have been displaced and 200,000

:29:58. > :30:01.people are suffering from cholera. He is a former Foreign Minister,

:30:02. > :30:05.former Defence Secretary, could he after this statement go back to the

:30:06. > :30:16.Foreign Office and get everyone back at the negotiating table? Please?

:30:17. > :30:20.This Government are leaving no stone unturned to try to get the peace

:30:21. > :30:27.process driven forward. We have had so many attempts to try to do so.

:30:28. > :30:32.And it is in all our interests to stop what is a dreadful humanitarian

:30:33. > :30:37.disaster. He is absolutely right, the parties need to understand that

:30:38. > :30:44.it cannot be solved by a purely military solution. It has to be a

:30:45. > :30:50.political solution. Can I also welcome today's landmark ruling on

:30:51. > :30:53.what was a very difficult case. Tens of thousands of defence workers,

:30:54. > :30:57.many in my constituency, whose job depends on the deals that are done.

:30:58. > :31:01.Can he assure me we will do is continue to work with the Saudis to

:31:02. > :31:08.ensure accurate targeting and also robust and sales? Of course we will

:31:09. > :31:12.continue to work with the Saudis to get an improvement in the position

:31:13. > :31:16.to make sure any decisions we take our within the criteria. He is right

:31:17. > :31:22.that a lot of jobs in this country depend on our defence industry. And

:31:23. > :31:25.whether campaigns such as the campaigns against the Arms trade to

:31:26. > :31:29.be successful it would mean there would be a rapid proliferation of

:31:30. > :31:33.new defence companies trying to set up around the world. They would

:31:34. > :31:39.actually be less control over proliferation rather than more.

:31:40. > :31:43.Parliamentary scrutiny of arms exports is necessary. May I welcome

:31:44. > :31:48.what he said in response to challenges on arms export controls,

:31:49. > :31:52.it is vitally important they are established soon. Can I also asked

:31:53. > :31:58.the Government to look again at the question of independent UN led

:31:59. > :32:05.investigation into all alleged humanitarian law of the conflict? We

:32:06. > :32:09.have never had any objection to an independent UN enquiry. Part of the

:32:10. > :32:14.trouble was set out in the judgment itself, which is the availability of

:32:15. > :32:18.evidence. Especially in open session, that I'd be available to

:32:19. > :32:22.such an enquiry. That is why I think when members read the full judgment

:32:23. > :32:26.they will see why there is such significance to this particularly

:32:27. > :32:34.judgment, but I am open-minded about any future UN enquiry. Instances

:32:35. > :32:37.have been refused. There are a number of different criteria and

:32:38. > :32:45.they are assessed on a regular basis. There were 366 refusals or

:32:46. > :32:49.revocations in 2016. They are set out in a number of eight different

:32:50. > :32:54.categories. Of refusals and revocations. Additive is helpful I

:32:55. > :33:01.shall make a copy available in the library if it is not there already.

:33:02. > :33:06.Can the secretary of state confirmed that this judgment does not confirm

:33:07. > :33:09.there was no risk of IHL breaches in the Yemen, that the judge

:33:10. > :33:15.acknowledged significant evidence which submits just there was a risk

:33:16. > :33:17.or is and it remains a risk the UK Government is heavily dependent on

:33:18. > :33:27.Saudi guarantees that they are not targeting civilians? It is

:33:28. > :33:31.impossible to sell anybody to anything, anything to anybody, that

:33:32. > :33:35.has no risk attached. That is why we have a clear risk test in the

:33:36. > :33:40.Consolidated criteria. And we are in close touch to a degree I have never

:33:41. > :33:44.known before with a country that is party to a military dispute in terms

:33:45. > :33:48.of seeing how they do their targeting, understanding their

:33:49. > :33:51.methods, and their information, and we have been very close in helping

:33:52. > :33:57.to instruct them in ways that will minimise visual and counselled

:33:58. > :34:02.season future. I have had the opportunity of travelling to Saudi

:34:03. > :34:06.Arabia and visiting the targeting Centre in Riyadh where targets in

:34:07. > :34:11.Yemen are allocated. Would he agree with me that as well as exporting

:34:12. > :34:15.hardware we also export a doctrine of responsible use that at the end

:34:16. > :34:22.of the day saves lives? I would entirely agree. It is not just the

:34:23. > :34:25.doctrine that we export it is the professional expertise and training

:34:26. > :34:40.which can help turn that doctrine into effect. Medicine some frontier

:34:41. > :34:46.say Yemenis are free to go to the cholera treatment centre. Jeered

:34:47. > :34:53.declared this was an unintentional mistake along with facilities

:34:54. > :34:57.elsewhere. All of these were hit by Saudi bombs. How many hospitals

:34:58. > :35:00.protected by international humanitarian law will the secretary

:35:01. > :35:05.of state allow to be hit by Saudi Arabia before he stopped selling

:35:06. > :35:09.them bombs? The Honourable lady talks as though there is only one

:35:10. > :35:18.party in this particular dispute in this part of the world, and

:35:19. > :35:23.unfortunately it is not. We take the absolute the queer risk criteria

:35:24. > :35:27.very seriously but I'm afraid making the sort of uninformed point she

:35:28. > :35:33.does for propaganda purposes does not help the humanitarian situation.

:35:34. > :35:38.Would he agree with me that amongst our many security objectives and

:35:39. > :35:42.values, keeping faith with important allies and being a reliable security

:35:43. > :35:47.partner should be among the most important and so our allies today

:35:48. > :35:49.can see we take these important decisions rigorously, with due

:35:50. > :35:57.process which they deserve, and under the rule of law? He is right.

:35:58. > :36:02.Protection of our allies and working with them is extremely important.

:36:03. > :36:06.But it is almost important that they had themselves understand we will

:36:07. > :36:10.rigorously apply the criteria that we have set out and been party to

:36:11. > :36:13.international agreement for. I think getting the balance right between

:36:14. > :36:18.those things is exactly what the Government has sought to achieve.

:36:19. > :36:23.Will the secretary of state please enlighten us as to why he does not

:36:24. > :36:25.take more notice of the foreign and Commonwealth offices reports into

:36:26. > :36:34.countries of concern for human and repression? Perhaps we are talking

:36:35. > :36:39.about a different judgment, because the judgment makes very clear that

:36:40. > :36:42.we did take very clear account of the advice given by the Foreign

:36:43. > :36:50.Office and indeed sought further advice from the Foreign Office when

:36:51. > :36:52.it was necessary. Does he agree that closed sessions are absolutely

:36:53. > :36:56.standard in litigation of this nature and it is nature wrong to

:36:57. > :36:59.seek to undermine a clear and impartial ruling of the High Court

:37:00. > :37:06.which confirms the rigorous and detailed scrutiny. I think there is

:37:07. > :37:12.a danger in making that sort of attack on the court system. Not

:37:13. > :37:15.least because secret or classified evidence was open to challenge by

:37:16. > :37:21.the special advocates representing the claimants in this case. The

:37:22. > :37:26.Secretary of State will be aware of reports by the BBC and Danish

:37:27. > :37:30.newspapers in relation to the sale of surveillance and decryption

:37:31. > :37:34.technology to Saudi Arabia by British companies via Danish subsidy

:37:35. > :37:41.Aries. This has been used to crush internal dissent and has a potential

:37:42. > :37:44.impact on UK security. Will they be reviewing legislation and oversight

:37:45. > :37:52.procedures governing sales of this data? If any individual or gaunt

:37:53. > :37:55.organisation has evidence they believe quite clearly illustrates

:37:56. > :38:00.wrongdoing they should bring it to the attention of the Government in

:38:01. > :38:06.detail. Could this judgment we have heard today shows the UK is very

:38:07. > :38:10.robust in its licensing criteria but in light of this decision could he

:38:11. > :38:15.reassures the house that under decision decisions to grant such

:38:16. > :38:24.licences are and occasion and indication humanitarian law? The

:38:25. > :38:29.judgment makes clear it is the case. I think that those who criticise the

:38:30. > :38:33.UK system should look to see how robust we are in comparison to other

:38:34. > :38:38.countries. I think it would do everybody in this country good to

:38:39. > :38:45.recognise how robust and clear we are in the decisions we make and how

:38:46. > :38:52.transparent we are in their contact. The secretary of state rightly draws

:38:53. > :38:58.attention to the robust nature of the wording in the document produced

:38:59. > :39:06.by the courts. Does he agree that because this judgment relates to a

:39:07. > :39:13.decision under the EU consolidation criteria that it will be extremely

:39:14. > :39:18.important that in future we continue to maintain control of arms exports

:39:19. > :39:25.at least as strong as under the existing EU Consolidated criteria?

:39:26. > :39:28.It is slightly worrying to me how often I do agree with the honourable

:39:29. > :39:34.gentleman, and I find myself doing so again today. It is not what the

:39:35. > :39:39.criteria are called, it is what they contain that matters. And the

:39:40. > :39:44.content has clearly stood the rigour of scrutiny by the court today and I

:39:45. > :39:48.completely agree with him that it would be wayward to say the least

:39:49. > :39:51.for any Government to consider criteria that were any less rigorous

:39:52. > :39:56.than the ones we have today. He doesn't look worried at all. He

:39:57. > :40:00.looks in a state of high contentment. Anyone would think that

:40:01. > :40:01.Christmas had come early. But I suppose it is always good when

:40:02. > :40:13.people agree with one. Could she tell you House that the

:40:14. > :40:17.High Court had before it all the information needed in order to reach

:40:18. > :40:26.the judgment? That was very much the view of the court. Could I ask if he

:40:27. > :40:29.continues to promote the sale of arms to Saudi Arabia what regard

:40:30. > :40:32.this Government has today factor for hundred and 57 people were executed

:40:33. > :40:41.there last year including minors and four young men arrested as minus

:40:42. > :40:49.remain at imminent risk of execution by crucifixion? By our engagement

:40:50. > :40:53.with Saudi Arabia be able to raise any reservations that we have about

:40:54. > :41:01.international humanitarian law or human rights which we do. At the

:41:02. > :41:04.last Parliament urged to quit some period of time for the committee on

:41:05. > :41:12.Arms export controls to be set up. Will my friend speak to the Leader

:41:13. > :41:19.of the House speak to the two C of this committee can be set up as

:41:20. > :41:24.quickly as possible? The usual channels will have heard the view, I

:41:25. > :41:28.have no objection to be such a committee being in place, it is a

:41:29. > :41:33.balanced judgment as to whether we have such a committee or not but as

:41:34. > :41:35.I have said any committee looking into the property decision of

:41:36. > :41:41.ministers should be welcomed by ministers as well as the House as a

:41:42. > :41:48.whole. In 2013 in the Government launched its plan on business human

:41:49. > :41:50.rights to great fanfare but subsequent questions revealed that

:41:51. > :41:56.appears to be little more than a piece of paper. Not an action plan.

:41:57. > :41:59.How does that suppose it action plan and former business Roshan ship with

:42:00. > :42:06.Saudi Arabia and how will it going forward? It will not be affected by

:42:07. > :42:12.this judgment because it said that the Government was carrying out a

:42:13. > :42:15.rigorous and responsible and rational view of the decisions on

:42:16. > :42:18.defence exports. I would have thought that the House might have

:42:19. > :42:24.been pleased that our systems are working so clearly and transparently

:42:25. > :42:28.well. I visited Saudi Arabia as part of a cross-party delegation in April

:42:29. > :42:32.and have declared this in the register. It is quite right that

:42:33. > :42:40.arms exports are subject to legal challenge and everyone agrees about

:42:41. > :42:45.the material crisis and Yemen but I was surprised to learn that 65,000

:42:46. > :42:49.shells and rockets have been fired from Yemen and Saudi Arabia, that

:42:50. > :42:54.there have been civilian deaths and injuries and Saudi Arabia, civilians

:42:55. > :42:57.have been evacuated and displaced and hospitals damaged all and Saudi

:42:58. > :43:05.Arabia. Would you welcome more balanced coverage of this

:43:06. > :43:13.distressing conflict? He makes a very important point that this was

:43:14. > :43:16.not a conflict that Saudi Arabia or the coalition sought and they have a

:43:17. > :43:19.legitimate right of self-defence and they have a legitimate right to

:43:20. > :43:26.acquire the means of conducting that self defence. It is quite clear that

:43:27. > :43:33.this is a bloody and brutal conflict and it requires a proper political

:43:34. > :43:36.settlement and to continue with humanitarian and automatic efforts

:43:37. > :43:43.and he is right that we could not do any harm to have a little more

:43:44. > :43:51.objective than simply a one-sided blast that we have seen rather too

:43:52. > :43:54.often in this House and elsewhere. Today's judgment was unequivocal.

:43:55. > :43:56.Really Government has failed as an advancing the peace process and

:43:57. > :44:03.Yemen and that includes Saudi Arabia. When will we see the

:44:04. > :44:09.Government make progress on a peace settlement for that country? This

:44:10. > :44:15.Government is doing all it can to help take that process forward.

:44:16. > :44:18.Where it is so simple that we could simply unilaterally create a

:44:19. > :44:22.solution in that walk on part of the world. We are doing what we can to

:44:23. > :44:27.help our allies reached a settlement and we will continue to do so. It is

:44:28. > :44:33.easy monetary disaster but we sadly don't have it unilaterally in our

:44:34. > :44:41.power to bring it to an end. -- humanitarian disaster. I will take

:44:42. > :44:53.the points of order no because there are many of them. The two honourable

:44:54. > :45:00.gentleman can wait. On a point of order, during the most recent

:45:01. > :45:03.business energy and industrial strategy questions, I raised the

:45:04. > :45:07.case of local employers misleading workers about the rights to holiday

:45:08. > :45:12.pay. I was assured that the Government have increased the power

:45:13. > :45:17.is open to Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs to enforce those rights. I

:45:18. > :45:23.have received a written answer from the same minister stating that HM

:45:24. > :45:27.Revenue and Customs has no powers to sanction companies from uploading

:45:28. > :45:30.holiday pay. The Minister has given me to Asda is stating the complete

:45:31. > :45:35.opposite and the space of a few days. Clearly one or other of those

:45:36. > :45:39.answers must be wrong and double I am not out of the new to this place

:45:40. > :45:44.I was given to understand that ministers were a particular

:45:45. > :45:46.obligation not to mislead the House even if inadvertently. More

:45:47. > :45:50.importantly this leaves us unable to say for certain what the Government

:45:51. > :45:53.is actually going to do about the problem I raised. Can you advise me

:45:54. > :45:56.whether there is any way to bring the minister back to the House to

:45:57. > :46:04.tell us which of her answers as final? And grateful for the point of

:46:05. > :46:10.order and courtesy in giving me advance notice of it. There was also

:46:11. > :46:20.exceptionally helpful to attach to her proposed point of order the text

:46:21. > :46:24.of those two answers. I must say that textual exegesis is of the

:46:25. > :46:27.essence in these matters. I have pored over the two answers and

:46:28. > :46:35.sought to reflect on whether they might in some way be not

:46:36. > :46:41.incompatible with each other. But such a conclusion is beyond my

:46:42. > :46:44.limited intellectual capacities. It certainly appears that the two

:46:45. > :46:50.answers are echoes of reconcilable. One must be correct and therefore

:46:51. > :46:53.one must not be. It is quit difficult to see how one can

:46:54. > :47:01.increase power is open to her HMO see if in fact we have no such

:47:02. > :47:04.powers at all. We mattered as I think require some clarification.

:47:05. > :47:09.The honourable lady has made her concern clear. The content of

:47:10. > :47:12.answers is not a matter for the chair but our concern has been

:47:13. > :47:16.conveyed to the Minister in the sense that the presenters of the

:47:17. > :47:21.Treasury bench will have heard it at her point will be recorded in the

:47:22. > :47:26.official report. If the Minister considers that she has

:47:27. > :47:32.unintentionally misled the House I'm sure she will take steps to put the

:47:33. > :47:37.record straight. I advise on the honourable lady to watch this space

:47:38. > :47:42.and see whether such an attempt at corrective action is made. If it is,

:47:43. > :47:45.she will be happy. If it isn't, my advice to her would be to become to

:47:46. > :47:50.the matter through further questioning or possibly if necessary

:47:51. > :48:04.in extremists by a recourse to the chair. Given the importance of

:48:05. > :48:10.parliamentary scrutiny on arms export controls, would you believe

:48:11. > :48:15.there is anything preventing the committees on arms export controls

:48:16. > :48:18.or other committees to be able to review and look at classified

:48:19. > :48:20.information that was relevant to these matters provided that the

:48:21. > :48:29.necessary security clearances were obtained? Wouldn't be anything

:48:30. > :48:34.preventing that? I would say that the only thing I can imagine of the

:48:35. > :48:42.top of my head that would prevent that would be a Government refusal

:48:43. > :48:46.to divulge the information on the grounds that it was classified ad

:48:47. > :48:51.that the relative department or agency didn't think such site by the

:48:52. > :48:58.committee was necessary or desirable. Otherwise there is

:48:59. > :49:06.nothing to prevent it. If such a committee were to seek it, it might

:49:07. > :49:10.find that its search was successful. If it had anything to do with the

:49:11. > :49:12.prodigious efforts of the honourable gentleman, I'm sure it would have a

:49:13. > :49:17.very good chance of being successful. I hope that'll do for no

:49:18. > :49:24.because that is the best answer I can offer. During the statements

:49:25. > :49:26.just now, there were strong cross-party support for the

:49:27. > :49:29.re-establishment of the committees on arms export controls. In the

:49:30. > :49:35.previous parliament that committee ceased to meet because one of its

:49:36. > :49:38.component select committees voted to unilaterally leave the committee.

:49:39. > :49:42.Can I ask you to use your good offices to ensure that what both the

:49:43. > :49:44.Secretary of State and Shadow Secretary and SNP spokesperson said

:49:45. > :49:51.during the statement is fulfilled and we re-establish the committees

:49:52. > :49:58.as as soon as possible? It would be desirable for Parliament and for the

:49:59. > :50:02.scrutiny of the executive branch by Parliament for that committee to be

:50:03. > :50:12.re-established sooner rather than later. The word of caution caveat

:50:13. > :50:16.that I insert which you will appreciate is that unless I am much

:50:17. > :50:21.mistaken, that committee can be established only when what might be

:50:22. > :50:27.called the feeder or constituent committees have themselves been

:50:28. > :50:35.established. That requires, I must say to you, not merely the election

:50:36. > :50:40.of the chair is of those committees which is due to take place on

:50:41. > :50:45.Wednesday of this week, but the election by such methods as they has

:50:46. > :50:54.adopted by the respective parties of their member contingent on those

:50:55. > :50:59.committees. I have not been given much encouragement to think that

:51:00. > :51:04.those committees will be fully constituted by the time of the

:51:05. > :51:08.summer recess though I must say to the honourable gentleman that it

:51:09. > :51:13.would be perfectly possible fully to constitute all of the select

:51:14. > :51:19.committees by the time of the summer recess if there were a proper will

:51:20. > :51:23.to do so. If it were the case that none of the constituent political

:51:24. > :51:26.parties was interested in getting its act together, but I think would

:51:27. > :51:33.reflect very badly on them to be frank. The issue is not the interest

:51:34. > :51:37.of the party but the interest of Parliament. Never transpired that

:51:38. > :51:40.some parties were ready to elect their members to those committees

:51:41. > :51:45.and other parties were not, that would look very bad for the parties

:51:46. > :51:50.that were not ready. They have a responsibility in this matter and I

:51:51. > :52:01.don't wish to say this and kindly but it is absolutely natural that

:52:02. > :52:05.the seal and enthusiasm to establish the it site committees scrutinise

:52:06. > :52:11.the executive branch are never as obvious within the executive branch

:52:12. > :52:17.as they are within Parliament. As Speaker, I am concerned about

:52:18. > :52:23.Parliament exercising its rates and Parliament doing its duty. I would

:52:24. > :52:30.rather hope that to put it bluntly, instead of faffing around, we could

:52:31. > :52:35.get on with this matter. Further to that point of order, in defence of

:52:36. > :52:39.the former Foreign Affairs Committee, it must be said that I

:52:40. > :52:42.think the reason for their withdrawal from the committees on

:52:43. > :52:48.arms export controls was the unauthorised leaking of a draft

:52:49. > :52:58.report so it was a more compact situation than was first suggested.

:52:59. > :53:02.Is there anyway reverting to the question, given that they understand

:53:03. > :53:08.the need to 22 committee hasn't held its elections and it would normally

:53:09. > :53:12.handle the election of ordinary members to the select committees, is

:53:13. > :53:16.there anyway that the resources of the House might be involved in some

:53:17. > :53:21.way in assisting this process to get underway more quickly in the absence

:53:22. > :53:28.of the election of members of the executive of the need to 22

:53:29. > :53:35.committee to a minister? I would quibble with your first point, I

:53:36. > :53:39.don't want to enter into the dispute about what caused the ceasing to

:53:40. > :53:45.operate that committee. I simply note what he said. So far as the

:53:46. > :53:54.second point is concerned, I note that he used the word the offices of

:53:55. > :54:00.the 1922 normally handle the election of members. To put it

:54:01. > :54:06.bluntly, but the officers of the 1922 committee usually do in respect

:54:07. > :54:16.of their party is to put it very simply to oversee the count. As to

:54:17. > :54:23.whether the officers of the 1922 committee of our elected, that is a

:54:24. > :54:26.party matter. Overseeing the count does not require the qualities of

:54:27. > :54:31.Einstein. It is a pretty prosaic task. I don't think it would be

:54:32. > :54:36.great to see that the resources of the House can be made available and

:54:37. > :54:41.what is essentially the oversight of the matter undertaken by parties.

:54:42. > :54:47.However it seems to me perfectly feasible of my colleagues were so

:54:48. > :54:50.willing that the Deputy speakers and I could volunteer services to

:54:51. > :54:55.oversee the count of the House thought that that was helpful. My

:54:56. > :55:00.basic point I think stands, do colleagues want these committees to

:55:01. > :55:03.be set up sooner rather than later? If they don't that is a pity but if

:55:04. > :55:07.they do within those of us who are of good will and can be relied upon

:55:08. > :55:11.to conduct the count perfect family would I suspect be very happy to

:55:12. > :55:23.offer our services. I can hardly be more explicit. I think Google leave

:55:24. > :55:28.it there for now. If there are no further points of order, we will

:55:29. > :55:33.note move on and specifically I want to call Diana Johnson to make an

:55:34. > :55:36.application for leave to propose a debate on a specific and important

:55:37. > :55:40.matter that should have urgent consideration under the terms of

:55:41. > :55:43.standing order number 24. The honourable member has to three

:55:44. > :55:47.minutes in which to make such an application.

:55:48. > :55:53.I seek leave to propose that the House should debate a specific and

:55:54. > :55:57.important matter that should have urgent consideration, namely the

:55:58. > :56:01.need for the Government to establish an independent public inquiry into

:56:02. > :56:05.being contaminated blood scandal, the worst treatment disaster in

:56:06. > :56:09.history of the NHS. In his valedictory speech to this House on

:56:10. > :56:15.the 25th of April 2017, B then Honourable member for Lee outlined a

:56:16. > :56:18.dossier of extremely serious allegations amounting to criminal

:56:19. > :56:22.conduct on the part of individuals involved in the contaminated blood

:56:23. > :56:27.scandal. He says that if the Government did not commit to a

:56:28. > :56:31.public inquiry before the summer recess, he was referred as evidence

:56:32. > :56:34.to the police. But then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of

:56:35. > :56:37.State for health asked him to submit his dossier of evidence to the

:56:38. > :56:43.Health Secretary which he did. She assured the House that this would be

:56:44. > :56:47.given the highest priority. However, we have heard nothing since then.

:56:48. > :56:51.And we now have further unanswered questions which underlined the need

:56:52. > :56:56.for an emergency debate. Best of all, last week, the Daily Mail set

:56:57. > :57:00.out evidence that as early as 1980, officials knew that 50 people with

:57:01. > :57:04.haemophilia per year were being infected with hepatitis C. Nothing

:57:05. > :57:09.was done about this for five years. Secondly, as reported in the Sunday

:57:10. > :57:14.Times, on Friday the 7th of July, the Westminster readers of all six

:57:15. > :57:18.non-government parties in the House of Commons, including the Democratic

:57:19. > :57:22.Unionist Party, wrote a joint letter to be Prime Minister urging her to

:57:23. > :57:25.commit to a Hillsborough style inquiry and thirdly yesterday, the

:57:26. > :57:32.Right Honourable Andy Burnham reaffirmed his commitment to take

:57:33. > :57:36.alleged criminality cases to the police confirmed he has an

:57:37. > :57:39.appointment on the 26th of July with the police. We are now fast

:57:40. > :57:41.approaching the summer recess airline, yet what little comments

:57:42. > :57:45.the Government has made is only adding to the confusion and

:57:46. > :57:49.strengthening the case for this emergency debate application. It

:57:50. > :57:52.would appear that the Secretary of State for Health has not considered

:57:53. > :57:57.the dossier as promised on the 25th of April. And last week, but the

:57:58. > :58:02.Prime Minister and a Leader of the House of Commons responded to

:58:03. > :58:04.questions about scandals, one for myself and the other from my right

:58:05. > :58:07.honourable friend the member for Newport East, yet neither address

:58:08. > :58:11.the direct question about the need for a public inquiry. Indeed, both

:58:12. > :58:17.raised further confusion by referring to the financial support

:58:18. > :58:22.for those affecting as compensation, contradicting the position taken by

:58:23. > :58:27.previous ministers. Mr Speaker, please recent developments have been

:58:28. > :58:31.extremely significant. The letter of the 7th of July raises the prospect

:58:32. > :58:35.that if this matter, the matter of a public inquiry, were to be put to a

:58:36. > :58:39.vote in this House, it would command the support of the majority of

:58:40. > :58:43.members of Parliament. For all the reasons I have outlined, I believe

:58:44. > :58:46.that we now need an emergency debate and for the Government to do the

:58:47. > :58:52.right thing and secure justice for those affected in this scandal,

:58:53. > :59:01.including justice by the 2400 people who have already died. Here, here. I

:59:02. > :59:04.have listened carefully to the application from the honourable

:59:05. > :59:08.member and I am satisfied that their matter raised by her is proper to be

:59:09. > :59:12.discussed under the terms of standing order number 24. Has the

:59:13. > :59:24.honourable member the leave of the House? The honourable member has

:59:25. > :59:27.obtained the leave of the House. I can inform the House that the debate

:59:28. > :59:33.will be held... Thank you! Thank you very much. I can inform the House

:59:34. > :59:37.that the debate will be held tomorrow, Tuesday the 11th of July,

:59:38. > :59:44.as the first item of public business. The debate... Excuse me

:59:45. > :59:49.the debate, colleagues, will last for up the hours and will arise on

:59:50. > :59:53.emotion that the House has considered the specified manner set

:59:54. > :59:56.out in the honourable member's application. She may wish to liaise

:59:57. > :00:01.either with my office or at the Clark says that the precise wording,

:00:02. > :00:07.but I think was referenced in her initial application to me and it

:00:08. > :00:10.conveys the gravel and of the issue in terms that are unmistakable. So I

:00:11. > :00:16.hope that is helpful to the honourable member and the House

:00:17. > :00:20.which has a little under 24 hours, or 24 about hours' notice. Perhaps a

:00:21. > :00:29.bit less than that, but anyway, it has notice of the intended debate.

:00:30. > :00:35.Thank you. The clerk will now proceed to read the orders of the

:00:36. > :00:42.day. Telecommunications infrastructure, nondomestic rates

:00:43. > :00:48.bill second reading. Now. Thank you. To move the second reading of the

:00:49. > :00:55.bill, I called the Minister of State, Minister Matt Hancock. Thank

:00:56. > :00:59.you very much, Mr Ziegler. I bid to move that the bill now be ready

:01:00. > :01:03.second time. Mr Speaker, we all know in this House of the importance of

:01:04. > :01:07.being connected whether through traditional means or increasingly

:01:08. > :01:11.through digital connections. Whether the next generation of broadband

:01:12. > :01:16.technology, better mobile phone coverage, or preparing for the next

:01:17. > :01:19.generation of five G. And this bill is all about improved connectivity

:01:20. > :01:26.whether over fixed networks in the ground or using the Next Generation

:01:27. > :01:31.of mobile and wireless connectivity. What people care about is how

:01:32. > :01:34.well-connected they are. Your download speeds, upload speeds,

:01:35. > :01:38.reliability, latency and how quickly you get reconnected when there is a

:01:39. > :01:43.problem. It's a problem, Madam Deputy Speaker, that we can all

:01:44. > :01:47.identify with and if I may say so, it is a great pleasure to see you in

:01:48. > :01:52.the chair for the first time I have been at this dispatch box. Our task

:01:53. > :01:55.is to prepare for a world of considerably greater demand for

:01:56. > :02:01.digital connectivity and just as Moore 's law states that the cost of

:02:02. > :02:07.computing Hafeez year, so Nielsen's law has seen the doubling of data

:02:08. > :02:11.demands every two as world-class collectivity is important for people

:02:12. > :02:16.to function in the modern world, whether that be at work or at play.

:02:17. > :02:18.And it will continue to transform our public services and bring

:02:19. > :02:21.efficiency is important for people to function in the modern world,

:02:22. > :02:23.whether that be at work or at play. And it will continue to transform

:02:24. > :02:26.our public services and bring efficiencies there the challenge is

:02:27. > :02:30.always to stay one step ahead of needs. We need the digital of a

:02:31. > :02:35.structure that can support this, providing ubiquitous coverage so

:02:36. > :02:38.that no one is left out. With sufficient capacity to ensure data

:02:39. > :02:42.can flow at the volume, with the speed and with the reliability to

:02:43. > :02:46.meet the demands of modern life. All these connections rely on Britain

:02:47. > :02:51.laying more fibre-optic cable, whether that is the fibre all the

:02:52. > :02:57.way to the premise or to each home and to ease business or the fibre

:02:58. > :03:01.underpinning the mobile network, all modern collectivity runs off a

:03:02. > :03:05.fiver. Around five years ago, we took a strategic decision as a

:03:06. > :03:09.nation to roll out high-speed broadband based largely on eight

:03:10. > :03:14.part five are part of what copper network and superfast broadband

:03:15. > :03:19.delivered in this way is now available to 93% of UK homes and

:03:20. > :03:24.businesses and we rank amongst the Mac first amongst the big European

:03:25. > :03:28.states for superfast connections on track to reach 95% by the end of

:03:29. > :03:34.this year. In discussing this, may I pay tribute to my right honourable

:03:35. > :03:46.friend the member for Wantage, who did so much and never let me forget!

:03:47. > :03:49.How much he did to deliver first-rate, high-quality, superfast

:03:50. > :03:54.broadband connectivity to homes and businesses around the country that

:03:55. > :03:58.now allows us to say that 93% have access to, but not necessarily all

:03:59. > :04:03.take up, superfast broadband. I will give way. I thank the Right

:04:04. > :04:07.Honourable does never been so quick to give an intervention but may I

:04:08. > :04:11.suggest he is a little paint is glossy and positive in his approach

:04:12. > :04:14.because I think we have received a number of complaints and yet the

:04:15. > :04:18.grin on his face suggests quite the opposite. That was me talking about

:04:19. > :04:23.what we have done so far. Wait until I talk about what we need to do in

:04:24. > :04:27.the future. I agree very strongly with heard that there is much more

:04:28. > :04:30.that we need to do. I will come onto that because that is what the bulk

:04:31. > :04:34.of the speech is all about and indeed, that's what this bill is all

:04:35. > :04:36.about and if she caught the view that she espouses, I look forward to

:04:37. > :04:44.her marching through the division lobbies and support later. Precisely

:04:45. > :04:50.on the point she raises, of course, 7% of people don't yet have access

:04:51. > :04:55.to superfast connections or 7% of premises, I should say. And so we

:04:56. > :04:59.are introducing the new broadband universal service obligation so that

:05:00. > :05:03.by 2020, everyone has the access to a minimum level of service. This

:05:04. > :05:07.will provide a vital safety net and make sure that nobody is left behind

:05:08. > :05:14.as the country takes these strides towards better connectivity. Yet

:05:15. > :05:19.even this isn't enough. Demand marches on. People's needs and

:05:20. > :05:24.expectations have risen further and will continue to keep on rising. So

:05:25. > :05:30.we need to, yes, celebrate what we have done so far but also deliver

:05:31. > :05:32.deeper connectivity now and in the future to support a competitive

:05:33. > :05:38.market and to make sure that we get this infrastructure in the ground.

:05:39. > :05:42.We must work now to deliver the next generation of technologies, 5G and

:05:43. > :05:47.five over the decades ahead. This bill is part of a suite of actions

:05:48. > :05:52.we are taking to boost to Britain's fibre. We will break down barriers

:05:53. > :05:57.to better broadband for visitors and get quicker collectivity for

:05:58. > :06:00.consumers. First, in the Digital economy act, we reformed the

:06:01. > :06:04.electronic communications code which regulates agreements between people

:06:05. > :06:08.who provide the sites and the digital communication operators.

:06:09. > :06:10.This new code will make it easier for electronic communications in the

:06:11. > :06:14.structure to be deployed, maintained and upgraded and we are currently

:06:15. > :06:18.finalising the regulations needed to support the new Golden planned to

:06:19. > :06:22.commence it later this year when the work has been completed. Second,

:06:23. > :06:26.with the separation of open reach from BT, we will see a more

:06:27. > :06:31.competitive market with an Open reach that will serve our customers

:06:32. > :06:35.well, not just focus on BT. This decision has been largely welcomed

:06:36. > :06:39.by BT's competitors and is the result of some intense negotiations

:06:40. > :06:43.between off, and BT and I think it is the right outcome and the one

:06:44. > :06:48.that will ensure Openreach delivers not just for its customers but for

:06:49. > :06:53.the whole country. Third, we support the fibre roll-out through a 400

:06:54. > :06:56.million digital infrastructure investment fund to help competitors

:06:57. > :07:04.in the market to reach scale and to deliver. The fund will improve

:07:05. > :07:07.access to funding for alternative providers for fibre infrastructure

:07:08. > :07:15.to allow them to compete with larger players. Well that assist those

:07:16. > :07:19.areas of which there seemed to be a great number in my old constituency

:07:20. > :07:23.where one part of, say, a market town or small village has actually

:07:24. > :07:29.had the box upgraded by BT but because some of the users are a few

:07:30. > :07:36.yards further away from the box, with longer copper wires, they can't

:07:37. > :07:40.get a decent service? It may well help, but the thing that will really

:07:41. > :07:48.help those people is the universal service obligation. That means that

:07:49. > :07:51.everybody will have a right to a high-speed broadband connection so

:07:52. > :07:54.they can get connected. Some of these will be delivered by the

:07:55. > :08:00.next-generation full fibre collectivity. Some of them by the

:08:01. > :08:04.existing technology, but part of our whole package of measures which

:08:05. > :08:09.delivers better broadband and quicker collectivity will ensure

:08:10. > :08:14.that we reach those people who frustratingly can be just a few

:08:15. > :08:18.yards away, further away, from the box or indeed see the bitter fibre

:08:19. > :08:22.go down the road in front of them but not be connected. I welcome this

:08:23. > :08:25.bill, I think this is essential for moving the country forward in making

:08:26. > :08:31.our businesses are strong as possible, but even in the centre of

:08:32. > :08:33.Thompson, Taunton Deane and the county town Taunton, there are areas

:08:34. > :08:37.they still cannot get fast broadband so I wonder if the Minister might

:08:38. > :08:43.tell us how quickly they might be able to take advantage of this new

:08:44. > :08:47.service? The universal service obligation is in the law to make

:08:48. > :08:52.sure that everybody can have access to that service by 2020, but that is

:08:53. > :08:58.an end state. That is a deadline. As I said earlier, we have now reached

:08:59. > :09:02.93% of premises. Crucially, this is access to broadband for 92% of

:09:03. > :09:06.broadband. You still have to take it up and everybody who takes up the

:09:07. > :09:11.service, if it is in a subsidised area, then puts more money into the

:09:12. > :09:16.box we can get more out and give access to superfast broadband to

:09:17. > :09:21.more people and so we have gone from 42% in 2010 when my right honourable

:09:22. > :09:26.friend for Wantage took up the reins of delivering this. Just 42% of the

:09:27. > :09:31.country had it, now it is 93% have access to it, on track to get to 95%

:09:32. > :09:36.by the end of the year and 100% of premises will have access to

:09:37. > :09:41.high-speed broadband by 2020. As she can see, we are rolling that out.

:09:42. > :09:45.But the crucial thing is that that is delivering today's technology

:09:46. > :09:48.that delivers the needs of the average household today. But we

:09:49. > :09:52.also, at the same time, need to make sure we are ahead of the curve on

:09:53. > :09:59.the next generation of technology and so the digital investment fund

:10:00. > :10:01.will... The idea here is that it supports the commercial finance of

:10:02. > :10:06.alternative developers so we get more players into the market. It's

:10:07. > :10:12.not just BT and Version, but more players into the market and the

:10:13. > :10:15.Government's investment will be matched by private sector investment

:10:16. > :10:21.so we expected to capitalise more private investment and bring over ?1

:10:22. > :10:24.billion of investment over all, we hope, into full fibre broadband,

:10:25. > :10:27.getting very high speeds that some people need and want now but many,

:10:28. > :10:35.many more will in the future as these demands increase.

:10:36. > :10:46.Referring back to the universal service obligation which is a

:10:47. > :10:48.revolution in provision by wonder if she could indicate greater

:10:49. > :10:52.constituents are like this noteworthy cost cap is going to be

:10:53. > :10:57.and whether he will burnish his credentials are as a hero of the

:10:58. > :11:08.rule Britain or not? I know it'd take a condiment as a threat. --

:11:09. > :11:11.compliment. It all depends on the technology because for some places

:11:12. > :11:16.and there are a long way away from the existing network it may cost an

:11:17. > :11:23.awful lot to Dick a trench and get a piece of fibre or the rate to them

:11:24. > :11:29.and new technologies are coming on stream to beam a signal from one

:11:30. > :11:33.place to another and as a last resort satellite technologies which

:11:34. > :11:39.are good but just not as reliable. That means that everybody can get

:11:40. > :11:44.connected to the aim is to get decent speed broadband to every

:11:45. > :11:48.premise that wants them but to make sure that as much of that is as

:11:49. > :11:50.feasibly possible is covered by a fixed network but also using

:11:51. > :12:01.technologies to reach the hardest to reach. Thank you for confirming that

:12:02. > :12:04.100% of properties will have access by 2020 but will he confirm what

:12:05. > :12:12.speeds they will have access to? There is a range of 2 megabits per

:12:13. > :12:17.second and 24 megabits per second, what range of speeds as he talking

:12:18. > :12:25.about? 10 megabits per second as a minimum and that is the off,

:12:26. > :12:27.analysis of the needs today of the average household because this is

:12:28. > :12:33.about making sure there is a service that everybody can use. As we ask

:12:34. > :12:39.people to pay their taxes and get the passport online or indeed or

:12:40. > :12:43.indeed do their applications for payment services for example, it is

:12:44. > :12:47.perfectly reasonable request back to us in Government that people should

:12:48. > :12:52.have a decent level broadband. If you want to be related top level,

:12:53. > :12:56.then people may have to pay more for that and I think that is not a

:12:57. > :13:00.reasonable either. We are saying there must be a decent level of

:13:01. > :13:03.high-speed broadband. At the moment we have said 10 megabits per second

:13:04. > :13:11.as a minimum but we have also said it has to be reviewed in an upper

:13:12. > :13:22.selection in due course. I speak as someone whose constituency is one

:13:23. > :13:27.big roadworks and 52 premises is welcomed by people Robert

:13:28. > :13:33.committees. Will you be able to help us concerns you might have about

:13:34. > :13:38.this discussion with the valuations office agency who seem to not

:13:39. > :13:46.understand the way the world is and at the click of a bureaucrat's

:13:47. > :13:54.modes, cancel radically alter the finances of a local authority in

:13:55. > :13:59.terms of how business rate networks. I beef we are committed to

:14:00. > :14:03.e-business reach review to look at the existing fibre that is currently

:14:04. > :14:09.in the ground and I'm sure the Secretary of State and Minister will

:14:10. > :14:13.have hurt him but the heart of this bill is making sure that new fibre

:14:14. > :14:17.that goes into the ground will have no such right at all for the next

:14:18. > :14:20.five years and that is why we're here legislating today to make sure

:14:21. > :14:27.that companies like the one mentioned can get on and this fibre

:14:28. > :14:32.and stick it into the ground has sufficient it and cheaply as

:14:33. > :14:40.possible and reduce the tax on that. The next thing fibre is important

:14:41. > :14:44.for its gentleman thief IG strategy, including a cut and shut up

:14:45. > :14:52.products. You want mobile phone coverage where people live and work

:14:53. > :15:01.and travel. We are working with off, to make sure they are five G ready

:15:02. > :15:05.and working right across Government to make sure we get the rules around

:15:06. > :15:13.putting that infrastructure in place right. We are supporting 5G pilots

:15:14. > :15:20.so we can rule out the first 5G next year which will mean Britain will be

:15:21. > :15:28.a global leader in 5G. All 5G Robert is supported by fibre. You cant have

:15:29. > :15:34.a 5G mask of 35 connecting it to the network. The programme is about

:15:35. > :15:39.supporting local bodies testability market for fibre connectivity. You

:15:40. > :15:43.can't deliver this with some sort of entirely nationalised top-down

:15:44. > :15:50.taxpayer funded system. You have to do it in collaboration with the

:15:51. > :15:52.private sector. The local fibre networks programme is being

:15:53. > :15:57.delivered in support of local bodies to encourage the market to provide

:15:58. > :16:00.more fibre connectivity for instance through the public sector anchor

:16:01. > :16:03.tenancy which will bring public sector broadband demand together in

:16:04. > :16:06.an area to create an anchor customer to make sure that there is investors

:16:07. > :16:10.know there is enough revenue to reduce the risk of building a new

:16:11. > :16:13.network directly connecting into public sector buildings and schools

:16:14. > :16:16.and hospitals and at the same team will improve the connectivity for

:16:17. > :16:21.those working in our vital public services. And bringing fibre closer

:16:22. > :16:26.to more homes and businesses allowing them to be connected as

:16:27. > :16:30.well. The first will begin later in the year. It is a great example of

:16:31. > :16:34.the public and private sector working together to improve

:16:35. > :16:38.connectivity for all. Our business broadband fibre connection of

:16:39. > :16:41.vouchers, this is incredibly exciting afflict me you are

:16:42. > :16:46.frustrated at the poor quality of broadband been delivered to

:16:47. > :16:51.businesses. Any last parliament we had a really effective voucher

:16:52. > :16:55.scheme for superfast broadband for businesses and this will be trialled

:16:56. > :16:58.by the end of the year. It will be for full fibre connections for

:16:59. > :17:02.businesses and we will roll it out more widely in 2018 to help

:17:03. > :17:06.businesses get the best fibre broadband because we notes are many

:17:07. > :17:11.jobs and business growth depends on it. This Bill takes a further step,

:17:12. > :17:15.business rates are an important source of revenue for local services

:17:16. > :17:21.but have long been sated by the Telecom service as a barrier to

:17:22. > :17:25.investment. Has been consternation about how these rates have been

:17:26. > :17:31.acculturated with the perception of a disparity right for fairness and

:17:32. > :17:38.the rates paid by some operators like BT and virgin media and smaller

:17:39. > :17:41.alternative networks. The rating methodology as a matter for the

:17:42. > :17:45.independent VOA that has been working with the sector on this but

:17:46. > :17:49.this is a complex work and we haven't got a moment to waste. We

:17:50. > :17:56.recognise the urgent need to go the urgent mail so in the Autumn

:17:57. > :17:59.Statement last year the Chancellor announced 100% rates relief on all

:18:00. > :18:04.new fibre networks repeat of five years from April 2017 with any

:18:05. > :18:10.relief to that date. We will find a group of fuel a full fibre future

:18:11. > :18:16.and we have brought forward at this Bill Elliott in this Parliament to

:18:17. > :18:21.bring forward the changes to legislation to make it happen. The

:18:22. > :18:24.bill introduces new rules into each provision for business rates to

:18:25. > :18:27.allow us to vary the rates bill for telecommunication infrastructure

:18:28. > :18:35.which will be set so that no rates are paid on new fibre for five years

:18:36. > :18:43.from the April just gone. I'm grateful for giving way. Does he

:18:44. > :18:46.think the five-year period will be sufficient to incentivise the

:18:47. > :18:51.players and the market to get on and roll out this fibre broadband and

:18:52. > :18:54.can he try and ensure that in doing that we get coverage across the

:18:55. > :19:02.country that is just starting any easy to reach areas first? There is

:19:03. > :19:07.no doubt that the five-year business rates according shows that we are

:19:08. > :19:11.reducing the cost of getting this fibre into the ground. It is time

:19:12. > :19:16.limited so my message to alternative providers and the big players is get

:19:17. > :19:19.on with it. Make use of this relief while it is available. It gives us

:19:20. > :19:25.time through the business rates review and the VOA to look at the

:19:26. > :19:37.context is in this of a reasonable period of time and come forward with

:19:38. > :19:45.a long-term sustainable scheme and and I'm sure Hansard from excess but

:19:46. > :19:52.similarly eloquent, I can't remember right was up to and I have lost my

:19:53. > :19:56.train of thought... The other thing is, the final thing I was going to

:19:57. > :19:59.say is that it will give us the opportunity towards the end of that

:20:00. > :20:04.period to decide whether five years has been long enough and whether we

:20:05. > :20:09.want to extend it. The fact it is a five-year period demonstrates that

:20:10. > :20:13.people should get on with it and it will be no shorter than five years,

:20:14. > :20:15.I can reassure you of that Diane Whipple for the intervention because

:20:16. > :20:25.it allowed me to completely get confused with my own points.

:20:26. > :20:29.Entitled is all part of an effort for the ?1.1 billion to support the

:20:30. > :20:34.market lead role of fibre broadband and ensure we are at the front of

:20:35. > :20:38.the queue for five G. There is a lot more work to be done. You will

:20:39. > :20:42.consult shortly on the technical details of implementation. The

:20:43. > :20:47.relief will introduce cost of 2.1, incentivise the market to deliver

:20:48. > :20:51.and I hope that in the spirit of cross-party collaboration, the bill

:20:52. > :20:55.will get support from all sides as it will benefit people right across

:20:56. > :20:59.our United Kingdom. We want to see a country where people are better

:21:00. > :21:02.connected, where everyone can get online and reach their full

:21:03. > :21:06.potential and make sure nobody is left behind. This bill provides a

:21:07. > :21:15.step on that journey and I commend the bill to the House. The question

:21:16. > :21:23.is that the bill be no read a second time. Thank you. Can I welcome you

:21:24. > :21:27.to nature, it is a pleasure to see you and your rightful place. Kerry

:21:28. > :21:31.also take this opportunity to welcome my shadow communities and

:21:32. > :21:40.local Government team, the honourable friend the member member

:21:41. > :21:49.for old west, the member for make a field and the member for Portsmouth

:21:50. > :21:59.South who has agreed to be my McAfee. We cautiously welcome the

:22:00. > :22:03.Government's apparent commitment for five years for all new investment in

:22:04. > :22:10.full fibre internet. I see cautiously and I will set out wide

:22:11. > :22:13.and the course of my speech. Until the last and from dimension the

:22:14. > :22:18.minister waxed lyrically for 20 minutes before he got onto the

:22:19. > :22:24.subject of a very short bill which is a business rate relief. We on the

:22:25. > :22:27.side of the housework and the opportunity to finally discuss a

:22:28. > :22:33.crucial piece of infrastructure policy which will have a huge impact

:22:34. > :22:35.on the potential investment opportunities for all other

:22:36. > :22:43.amenities over the coming decades. I do think it is rather ironic that on

:22:44. > :22:48.the day that pretty much all of the parliamentary internet connection

:22:49. > :22:51.own that we are talking about IT connections but nevertheless I have

:22:52. > :22:56.it on good assurance that the parliamentary offices at busily

:22:57. > :23:01.trying to reconnect MPs to their e-mail accounts and the intranet.

:23:02. > :23:10.All members all know that this policy will have an impact on every

:23:11. > :23:17.part of the country, urban or rule and we have to get this right.

:23:18. > :23:22.Members I'm sure will fuel the circular today as we and others duff

:23:23. > :23:28.struggle with the collapse of the internet across the Westminster

:23:29. > :23:34.estate. We are expecting a larger and more substantial bill here today

:23:35. > :23:37.not least considering the scope of investment and certainty needed both

:23:38. > :23:41.in terms of a full fibre infrastructure as well as on

:23:42. > :23:48.business rates more widely. It would appear that the Government has been

:23:49. > :23:52.an permanent listening mode for quite some known which would explain

:23:53. > :23:55.their decision to acquiesce to the concerns of independent and large

:23:56. > :23:58.internet providers who had the end of last year faced an excess of

:23:59. > :24:06.fourfold increase and there are rateable values. It has been

:24:07. > :24:11.estimated by the UK's main providers and broadband commission that UK 5G

:24:12. > :24:17.infrastructure will outstrip economic benefits of fibre broadband

:24:18. > :24:24.which most of the country and the users by 2026 when it will be

:24:25. > :24:32.outdated. By 2020 six the UK will reach a tipping point where the

:24:33. > :24:35.direct economic benefits will be the conventional fibre broadband.

:24:36. > :24:40.Various estimates point to a boost to the UK economy between five

:24:41. > :24:46.billion and ?7 billion just to six years from roll-out. With 5G

:24:47. > :24:48.broadband delivering economic growth almost twice as quickly as

:24:49. > :24:57.conventional fibre broadband use today. Much like a railways and

:24:58. > :25:01.roads thanks, the quicker the connection, the faster businesses

:25:02. > :25:06.will grow particularly in an age where online sales, social media and

:25:07. > :25:08.direct online contact with the buyers and sellers is becoming ever

:25:09. > :25:29.more the norm. Boasting all the productivity by a

:25:30. > :25:34.total of ?10 billion. As I've already mentioned, Madam Deputy

:25:35. > :25:39.seeker, this makes good sound economic sense. With improved

:25:40. > :25:44.collectivity comes greater economic growth, more jobs and improved links

:25:45. > :25:48.between business hubs and individuals alike. So whilst I'm

:25:49. > :25:54.sure that today's bill will be welcomed by larger providers in the

:25:55. > :25:59.sector to relieve some of the burden that they face from increases in

:26:00. > :26:06.business rates, this ?60 million on offer and it is a big giveaway to

:26:07. > :26:10.them, I worry we'll do not as much as perhaps it ought to for the

:26:11. > :26:17.independent providers and won't come close to mitigating for the fourfold

:26:18. > :26:22.increase all providers have faced or, perhaps, in winding up perhaps

:26:23. > :26:29.the Minister can give some reassurances that respect. Because,

:26:30. > :26:35.not only do need assurances, also consumers need assurances that those

:26:36. > :26:37.costs will not be passed on to them. Additionally, Madam Deputy Speaker,

:26:38. > :26:42.I am slightly disappointed because today we only have the opportunity

:26:43. > :26:47.to debate a partial bill instead of a more details and wide-ranging set

:26:48. > :26:52.of proposals that were outlined in the local Government Finance bill of

:26:53. > :26:57.which these measures originally were parked. And I specifically mentioned

:26:58. > :27:03.the local Government Finance Bill which I note had already

:27:04. > :27:06.successfully passed committee as it did include proposals on local

:27:07. > :27:10.business rate retention for local authorities as well as the

:27:11. > :27:15.legislation for business rate relief for a new full fibre broadband which

:27:16. > :27:20.we are now discussing today. However, the fullest set of measures

:27:21. > :27:24.seems to have disappeared since the general election. Since that

:27:25. > :27:30.election, I have asked the Secretary of State on three separate occasions

:27:31. > :27:34.for clarification on the progress of delivering business rate retention

:27:35. > :27:41.for local authorities. Now, perhaps the Minister can respond either...

:27:42. > :27:50.I'll allow him to intervene on me or he can respond in the closing, but I

:27:51. > :27:55.ask him again, what is happening to retention and why has business rate

:27:56. > :28:01.relief for a new 5G collectivity now been separated into this smaller

:28:02. > :28:06.separate bill? I wrote to the Secretary of State and I await his

:28:07. > :28:09.response, although by this stage I do hope the department can do

:28:10. > :28:17.somewhat less listening and some more acting, so perhaps we can have

:28:18. > :28:23.some answers and some clarity on the issue of business rate retention and

:28:24. > :28:29.in the spirit of the cross-party co-operation that the Prime Minister

:28:30. > :28:34.herself is now asking for, and in respect of ideas and a genuine

:28:35. > :28:38.dialogue between the opposition and the Government, perhaps we can work

:28:39. > :28:45.together on a shared future for local Government finance because the

:28:46. > :28:51.local Government sector deserve more than a policy and a financial black

:28:52. > :28:56.hole that they are currently faced with, with the exclusion of the

:28:57. > :29:02.local Government Finance bill from the Queen's speech, but at the same

:29:03. > :29:06.time, with the Government still announcing their intention to remove

:29:07. > :29:14.the revenue support grant. So perhaps the Minister can clarify

:29:15. > :29:18.that when closing. Now, Madam Deputy Speaker, the Secretary of State and

:29:19. > :29:23.I both visited the LGA conference last week and admittedly we received

:29:24. > :29:28.a slightly different restriction. At the conference, I'm sure he would

:29:29. > :29:34.have been reminded again and again by representatives from councils of

:29:35. > :29:37.all political colours of the financial certainty that a local

:29:38. > :29:43.authority desperately need. Specifically, at a time when they

:29:44. > :29:48.have already absorbed around 40% of cuts to their budgets. Now, instead,

:29:49. > :29:51.like me, they have received no updates and no certainty, so while

:29:52. > :30:00.we are talking about an element of the business rate in this bill,

:30:01. > :30:05.perhaps we can remind the Secretary of State is that local authorities

:30:06. > :30:11.need to have that clarity and that certainty for financial planning

:30:12. > :30:14.going for words that they are going to get some idea from this

:30:15. > :30:21.Government of where there are wider business rates policy is going.

:30:22. > :30:25.Because I will repeat what I said during my speech to the local

:30:26. > :30:30.Government Association, the Secretary of State told local

:30:31. > :30:35.Government that they faced a looming crisis in confidence. He's wrong.

:30:36. > :30:41.It's this Government that are facing a looming crisis in confidence.

:30:42. > :30:46.Because the lack of clarity on business rates, this Government's

:30:47. > :30:52.botched prisons rates and evaluation have left thousands of businesses

:30:53. > :30:57.facing the cliff edge of increases in their rates as well as the

:30:58. > :31:01.Government's support packages and promises to review the re-evaluation

:31:02. > :31:05.progress is going nowhere near far enough. It's clear that business

:31:06. > :31:09.rates are at this department's ticking time bomb and it threatens

:31:10. > :31:16.to destroy high streets and town centres across the country. Now, on

:31:17. > :31:20.the side of the House, Madam Deputy Speaker, we advocate introducing

:31:21. > :31:28.statutory annual re-evaluations to start businesses facing periodic and

:31:29. > :31:33.unmanageable hikes. And guarantee a fair and transparent appeals

:31:34. > :31:36.process. We will reform business rates, we will scrap quarterly

:31:37. > :31:41.reporting and we will end the scourge of late payments because it

:31:42. > :31:44.is this side of the House, Madam Deputy Speaker, the Labour Party,

:31:45. > :31:55.which is the party of business. LAUGHTER

:31:56. > :32:00.They can heckle, but... But the fact is speak clearly. This Government

:32:01. > :32:05.have lets down a business and they have let down local Government. Now,

:32:06. > :32:10.Madam Deputy Speaker, there was a further mission to this bill. I will

:32:11. > :32:17.give way. Could he just remind us of the Labour Party's policy on

:32:18. > :32:24.corporation tax rates? Absolutely! The Labour Party would have

:32:25. > :32:26.increased corporation tax to pay for better public services, but our

:32:27. > :32:34.corporation tax rates would still have been some of the lowest in the

:32:35. > :32:39.G20. It's a question of priorities. You can either have poorly funded

:32:40. > :32:45.public services or you can put that money where people want it, in a

:32:46. > :32:49.better NHS, in better local governments, in better education or

:32:50. > :32:54.you can give tax giveaways to those at the very top. It seems quite

:32:55. > :33:00.clear that the Conservative Party, for all the rhetoric of ending

:33:01. > :33:05.austerity, have not changed one iota. Now, Madam Deputy Speaker,

:33:06. > :33:15.there was a further admission to this bill, specifically... I will

:33:16. > :33:17.give way. I'm very grateful. I wonder, witty acknowledge, does he

:33:18. > :33:20.recognise that the reductions in corporation tax over the last few

:33:21. > :33:26.years have led to a massive increase to be cast collected by the

:33:27. > :33:32.Treasury? As I said before, it's a question of priorities. You can give

:33:33. > :33:37.tax cuts to big business or you can invest in public services. Now, the

:33:38. > :33:43.point is we made a very clear choice. We have differences of

:33:44. > :33:48.opinions on this. The honourable gentleman, I don't dispute, feels

:33:49. > :33:54.that having the lowest corporation tax is a good thing. I think having

:33:55. > :34:01.some of the lowest corporation tax in the world, but having a better

:34:02. > :34:06.funded public... It's not an anti-business rads! It's both

:34:07. > :34:10.pro-business and pro-public services and that is the choice because our

:34:11. > :34:15.public services are on their knees and if this is the cross-party

:34:16. > :34:19.co-operation Minister and Prime Minister wants, then I'm afraid it's

:34:20. > :34:24.going to be a long time waiting. I will give way because we are talking

:34:25. > :34:30.now about infrastructure. -- I will not give way. No, I have given way

:34:31. > :34:35.once. I am not giving again. There is a further admission to this bill,

:34:36. > :34:40.Madam Deputy Speaker, and it is specifically the exclusion of any

:34:41. > :34:46.real and meaningful legislative commitments on growing of broadband

:34:47. > :34:50.within this bill. I am worried that there appears to be absolutely no

:34:51. > :34:55.mention in the Bill's body or the explanatory notes of growing and

:34:56. > :34:59.expanding the UK's superfast broadband in our rural areas. I know

:35:00. > :35:05.the Minister touched on it and I think that there is some consensus

:35:06. > :35:10.of the desirability of getting this hands I will give a short anecdote

:35:11. > :35:15.that last year, I was privileged to be in the delegation to Zambia with

:35:16. > :35:21.the interparliamentary union for their assembly. In the middle of

:35:22. > :35:28.Africa, and we were in the middle of nowhere on literally one of the

:35:29. > :35:37.visits to a health scheme near the Zambezi River, I received almost

:35:38. > :35:42.perfect for Jie collectivity to my mobile phone. Madam Deputy Speaker,

:35:43. > :35:46.there are parts of my own constituency where you don't get is

:35:47. > :35:52.such perfect 4G connection and so I do think that we do have to look at

:35:53. > :35:55.our Internet connections, our broadband connections, our mobile

:35:56. > :36:02.telephone connections in this country so that we have the very

:36:03. > :36:06.best to support business, to support consumers and to support

:36:07. > :36:11.individuals. As I'm sure the Minister is aware, families living

:36:12. > :36:15.in rural areas are, many of them, struggling to get anything close to

:36:16. > :36:18.fast broadband, let alone 5G which is being discussed today. Many

:36:19. > :36:23.others are struggling to get anything above two mega megabytes

:36:24. > :36:30.per second, making most average use of day-to-day Internet functions and

:36:31. > :36:33.can be frustrating. The impact on rural businesses is steeper with the

:36:34. > :36:40.environment, food and real affairs committee warning before the 2015

:36:41. > :36:44.general election that rural communities are being overlooked for

:36:45. > :36:49.investment by businesses looking to either expand and develop due to

:36:50. > :36:53.certain regions having very poor digital collectivity. In fact, the

:36:54. > :36:59.then chair of the committee, the former member for Thirsk and Malton,

:37:00. > :37:02.said that there is a risk in the current approach that improving

:37:03. > :37:09.services for those who already have it will leave even further behind

:37:10. > :37:15.those that have little or none. Now, rather than taking responsibility

:37:16. > :37:19.for this ever growing chasm in our technology and identifying specific

:37:20. > :37:23.areas that desperately need investment, the Government has

:37:24. > :37:28.instead chosen to rely solely on the market to encourage improvements in

:37:29. > :37:32.any given area. I will give way. I just want to let him know that's not

:37:33. > :37:37.in fact the case and the Digital economy act, which is the last Bill

:37:38. > :37:40.packed in the last Parliament, gives us the power to require the

:37:41. > :37:46.universal service obligation to give high-speed broadband to everybody.

:37:47. > :37:50.Exactly, as my honourable friend the member for Alden Western Royton

:37:51. > :37:54.says, that should be shared with the backbenchers because there is

:37:55. > :37:59.growing dissatisfaction across all areas of the House with some of the

:38:00. > :38:03.Google broadband collectivity. The impact that is having not just on

:38:04. > :38:09.consumers but on businesses and the slow pace at getting those

:38:10. > :38:13.improvements in and it's clear that perhaps the Government ought to use

:38:14. > :38:17.those powers that it has to make sure that those improvements do

:38:18. > :38:20.indeed happen because it is a massive frustration and I can see

:38:21. > :38:23.the Minister nodding his head in agreement. It is a massive

:38:24. > :38:27.frustration for those communities and those businesses. I will give

:38:28. > :38:33.way. It is a massive frustration and we will use the powers. If she can

:38:34. > :38:37.let me answer the intervention that the Minister has just said before

:38:38. > :38:41.taking a second intervention. I'm grateful to hear that from the

:38:42. > :38:45.Minister and we will certainly hold the Government to account to make

:38:46. > :38:50.sure that that intervention takes place because, as he knows, we are

:38:51. > :38:54.all here to make sure that those improvements happen and if he has

:38:55. > :38:59.given a commitment from the dispatch box that he is going to use his

:39:00. > :39:03.ministerial position to ensure that the market isn't given a free for

:39:04. > :39:06.all and that the Government will ensure that those improvements

:39:07. > :39:11.happen in those rural areas, to those rural businesses and those

:39:12. > :39:12.rural consumers then that will certainly have support from the side

:39:13. > :39:25.of the House. I will give way. Many of us are campaigning on behalf

:39:26. > :39:31.of constituents for a better broadband but I would also say that

:39:32. > :39:34.I appreciate on behalf of 20% of the properties and many of my

:39:35. > :39:37.constituents, 20% of those properties have been connected with

:39:38. > :39:43.superfast broadband back to the Government's intervention. I'm

:39:44. > :39:51.expecting to see up to 100% as a minister referred to connected

:39:52. > :39:53.thanks to the obligation so I am looking forward to being very

:39:54. > :40:01.grateful to this Government of what they are doing for my constituents.

:40:02. > :40:04.I'm grateful to the intervention because it wasn't just from the

:40:05. > :40:09.Government and I don't know whether she was a remain or a lever but it

:40:10. > :40:17.would be very remiss of this House would ever 1's views on Brexit are

:40:18. > :40:20.to also acknowledge the involvement of the European Commission in

:40:21. > :40:23.ensuring that the roll-out of some of this infrastructure and

:40:24. > :40:28.technology was funded through the European Commission as well. Not

:40:29. > :40:35.just from this Government but actually from others and you can see

:40:36. > :40:39.from the boxes and down country, the country, the European flag is

:40:40. > :40:47.actually on a number of those cabins and infrastructure. I'm afraid I

:40:48. > :40:55.have probably by mentioning the word Europe have upset the honourable

:40:56. > :41:02.gentleman. On that point of the EU, he has to recognise the downside to

:41:03. > :41:07.the involvement. I know he struggled for a long time with EU state aid

:41:08. > :41:10.rules with the roll-out of broadband and had to come up with a slightly

:41:11. > :41:14.Heath Robinson scheme of vouchers to get around these EU rules. If

:41:15. > :41:20.anything they have the right not assisting. You're absolutely right.

:41:21. > :41:23.I am not saying that everything was perfect with that scheme with the

:41:24. > :41:31.European Community or the European Union. Merely passing the point to

:41:32. > :41:38.the lady's intervention that it would be remiss of us to suggest it

:41:39. > :41:41.was just all from the central Government, the funding for this, it

:41:42. > :41:45.has come from a variety of sources including from the European

:41:46. > :41:54.Commission as on all the cabins give a testament to four. As I have

:41:55. > :42:00.already said, what are rural areas and you need is that long-term

:42:01. > :42:05.investment strategy and we don't just need a short-term subsidy

:42:06. > :42:10.helpful though that is and so I look forward to making sure and holding

:42:11. > :42:18.this minister to account when he is in this post. To make sure he makes

:42:19. > :42:22.good on his word today at the dispatch box, that the short-term

:42:23. > :42:26.subsidy will help of some of this investment but we do need to make

:42:27. > :42:31.sure that investment continues apace beyond the deadline of the five

:42:32. > :42:36.years of this business rate relief and that we continually update our

:42:37. > :42:45.internet connections with whatever is on the latest technology of the

:42:46. > :42:51.day. On the side of the House, focus is touring college investment in old

:42:52. > :42:54.amenities by excluding new investment in plant and machinery

:42:55. > :43:00.from future business rates valuation which will free up medium and large

:43:01. > :43:05.businesses to invest in any area of the country. The country does need

:43:06. > :43:09.fresh ideas in order to meet the emerging challenges of the new

:43:10. > :43:20.century network we have seen today in a strip Stone Bill as the lack of

:43:21. > :43:23.compliance of an compelling alliterative framework supporting

:43:24. > :43:33.all businesses and local authorities in respect of business rates. On

:43:34. > :43:41.that I do desperately plead that the corporation the Prime Minister has

:43:42. > :43:47.asked for is genuine and heartfelt hope and that she doesn't look for

:43:48. > :43:54.ideas genuinely from the side of the House which we are more than happy

:43:55. > :43:58.to provide to the Government both in terms of how we improve

:43:59. > :44:02.infrastructure and cities and in rural areas, how we update our

:44:03. > :44:11.connectivity not just in the physical but also through the cloud

:44:12. > :44:13.and other technologies as well, how we use emerging technologies to

:44:14. > :44:18.benefit British business which is going to be absolutely crucial if we

:44:19. > :44:25.are going to keep a competitive advantage in the uncertain years

:44:26. > :44:31.ahead as we remove ourselves from the European Union and the strike a

:44:32. > :44:36.new set of trade deals across the world, we've got to keep that

:44:37. > :44:42.competitive edge. I agree with the minister is that and emerging

:44:43. > :44:47.technology and infrastructure as part of that mechanism to be able to

:44:48. > :44:53.drive forward the British economy and these new challenges that lie

:44:54. > :45:00.ahead. I will end on this because we would divide the House tonight, we

:45:01. > :45:04.will look to strengthen the bill and committee, we will continue to

:45:05. > :45:08.challenge the Government on the right policy for local Government

:45:09. > :45:12.finance until we get the answers and the certainty that the local

:45:13. > :45:16.Government sector so desperately needs but not infrastructure and

:45:17. > :45:25.building that capacity for Britain to grow, and develop and a changing

:45:26. > :45:29.world, a world where we are looking to emerging markets and looking into

:45:30. > :45:35.new markets, that technology and infrastructure is vital to our

:45:36. > :45:39.present Government in the future, it is incumbent on the party in power

:45:40. > :45:44.working constructively with others to make sure that Britain's

:45:45. > :45:50.infrastructure is kept as up-to-date and as state of the art as possible

:45:51. > :45:55.and in that respect we give our cautious welcome to this bill. We

:45:56. > :46:02.will seek to strengthen it and committee but let's work committee

:46:03. > :46:05.telly-mac together for some of the measures because as local Government

:46:06. > :46:15.minister knows, local Government does need that sister. -- certainty.

:46:16. > :46:23.Am grateful for the chance to appear for the second time and I have sent

:46:24. > :46:26.you to my entries. It is a great pleasure to take part in this debate

:46:27. > :46:31.which I thought might be narrowly focused but a just from the

:46:32. > :46:42.interventions that clearly this is going to be yet another pork -fest

:46:43. > :46:53.about equality but for client -- talk fest. I know they are

:46:54. > :46:58.unswerving and the support of my right honourable friend but don't

:46:59. > :47:04.have a go at me when I did his job. It was good to hear the speech from

:47:05. > :47:08.the opposition spokesman because she spent very little time actually

:47:09. > :47:17.talking about broadband which thinks shows how will the job has been

:47:18. > :47:22.done. He finished his speech to drop wildly about business rates are not

:47:23. > :47:24.broadband. I respect his reasons because what we have seen under the

:47:25. > :47:31.stewardship of my right honourable friend is the most successful rural

:47:32. > :47:40.broadband programme ever devised another in the world. There was

:47:41. > :47:47.Mitsubishi cheer. -- met to be a cheer. I will give you my cue points

:47:48. > :47:54.as I go through my speech. This incredibly successful programme for

:47:55. > :48:00.a few hundred million pounds has delivered superfast broadband to

:48:01. > :48:06.fourth and a half million premises. All that money welcome back to the

:48:07. > :48:10.Government because of the way the contracts reconstructed means that

:48:11. > :48:24.once take-up passes a certain threshold, money is starting to be

:48:25. > :48:29.paid back. I would echo my honourable friend when she talked

:48:30. > :48:35.about the 20% and misses in her constituency that have superfast

:48:36. > :48:38.broadband, it is important that we see our cup is half full and they

:48:39. > :48:47.know the opposition Chief Whip Nick and his cup is half full at the

:48:48. > :48:54.moment though that that deputy chief work? I digress. The cup is

:48:55. > :49:00.half-full and it is absolutely understandable that we hear from

:49:01. > :49:02.people who don't have broadband and are waiting for it and they are

:49:03. > :49:07.understandably irritated but those of voices obviously grow louder as

:49:08. > :49:12.superfast or bond spreads and more and more people do have access to

:49:13. > :49:19.this fantastic technology. I got involved in the debate about

:49:20. > :49:25.business rates for broadband many years ago, when I was in opposition

:49:26. > :49:31.are used to tease then telecoms Minister and they came up with an

:49:32. > :49:38.opposition policy that we were going to reduce or illuminate business

:49:39. > :49:42.rates on telecoms infrastructure and every provider I came to used to

:49:43. > :49:47.tell me that business rates were a big impediment to investment and I

:49:48. > :49:53.challenged the Minister about what he was going to do about it. The

:49:54. > :49:59.valuation office agency was in charge and it was his job to sort

:50:00. > :50:03.this out and when I got into office I realised there was absolutely

:50:04. > :50:09.nothing I could do about this. The VOA is independent, it says the

:50:10. > :50:14.level of business rates and certainly sees off any Minister that

:50:15. > :50:20.tries to alter its independence or affect its judgment and quite right

:50:21. > :50:25.too. The other role we had is that apparently BT gets a better deal on

:50:26. > :50:28.its business rates compared to some of the smaller providers about

:50:29. > :50:34.understanding is that is because of long-standing court case which BT

:50:35. > :50:39.took and it is one of those unfortunate things because BT has

:50:40. > :50:43.much more infrastructure and the ground, it was able to cut a

:50:44. > :50:46.wholesale deal but it is much more difficult for small providers

:50:47. > :50:53.getting underway. The point I am trying to make in my rambling

:50:54. > :50:58.fashion is that the impact is real, one of the factors people take into

:50:59. > :51:01.account when they are trying to build infrastructures so this bill

:51:02. > :51:09.is a welcome measure to address that problem. I have to say, the bill is

:51:10. > :51:13.the most boring and technical bill I have a read. It is only six clauses

:51:14. > :51:16.and they sought six officials in the box and I wondered of each one had

:51:17. > :51:21.been given a clause because the chance of making it to the end of

:51:22. > :51:25.even one as most impossible and I don't know if under the stress of

:51:26. > :51:28.doing this job any of my honourable friend to suffer from insomnia but I

:51:29. > :51:34.strongly recommend you take this bill home and halfway through clause

:51:35. > :51:37.one you will be sound asleep. But we understand the thrust of what it is

:51:38. > :51:41.trying to do which is to encourage new investment in broadband

:51:42. > :51:46.infrastructure so by suspending the levying of business rates it should

:51:47. > :51:50.encourage investment in infrastructure and I think the

:51:51. > :51:52.Government has cultivated something like ?60 million worth of savings

:51:53. > :51:58.are potentially going to be made available. I echo what was said at

:51:59. > :52:07.the dispatch box and I hope that all new infrastructure providers will

:52:08. > :52:12.take advantage of this because this bill is aimed squarely at them to

:52:13. > :52:20.remove a financial barrier to further investment. Of course what I

:52:21. > :52:23.think the Government is trying to do is understand that we are no moving

:52:24. > :52:29.to the next phase broadband roll-out. The key task of the last

:52:30. > :52:35.Parliament was to get effectively workable broadband, speeds of around

:52:36. > :52:39.24 megabits to as many people as possible and that has pretty much

:52:40. > :52:43.been completed and I understand people and the last 5% might get

:52:44. > :52:46.lower speeds but those are still workable speeds. Starting to build

:52:47. > :52:50.the infrastructure that will be future proof, that will be able to

:52:51. > :52:55.deliver fast and reliable broadband at speeds above 30 megabits and more

:52:56. > :53:00.indicator broadband speeds you will be able to dial up as more and more

:53:01. > :53:06.people make use of this technology. We all know how much of this

:53:07. > :53:15.technology and data be no use in terms of just the average home, with

:53:16. > :53:18.CO2 teenagers at home and parents watching four K content at home,

:53:19. > :53:23.became the bandwidth you need for that kind of content let alone

:53:24. > :53:29.business needs as well. I would mention the biggest impediment apart

:53:30. > :53:35.from business rates is of course planning. This is what a lot of

:53:36. > :53:40.people do forget, that you think it is very easy to build this

:53:41. > :53:49.infrastructure, it is not at all. One comes across far too many cases

:53:50. > :53:53.of cancels not being coordinated, of broadband providers having to go to

:53:54. > :54:01.five different departments and a council to get permission to dig up

:54:02. > :54:05.the highway all the sort of permissions they need to make the

:54:06. > :54:12.skin of infrastructure. That really is something that needs to be

:54:13. > :54:21.gripped in some shape of fashion and in the spirit of cooperation, the

:54:22. > :54:24.Prime Minister has announced this morning, there must be an

:54:25. > :54:29.opportunity for the London mayor to set up a broadband task force to get

:54:30. > :54:34.local London boroughs to coordinate the planet. I have heard of cases of

:54:35. > :54:40.cancels, doesn't really matter for political colour, not granting way

:54:41. > :54:43.leads to broadband provider who wanted to provide broadband for

:54:44. > :54:47.social housing in London. I've heard of other councils the green boxes on

:54:48. > :54:53.the pavements because they didn't like the design. I came across other

:54:54. > :54:55.councils who because the broadband provider hadn't cleared up after

:54:56. > :54:59.themselves on the previous work refused to let them go ahead with

:55:00. > :55:01.future work. I understand the irritation but at the same time

:55:02. > :55:06.there are still holding it back. There must be an opportunity, it is

:55:07. > :55:11.a credible adult point, to coordinate the planning functions of

:55:12. > :55:16.the Dunbar is but also cancels all across the country.

:55:17. > :55:22.I disagree vigorously as it is not a boring point, it is a very important

:55:23. > :55:24.point that these companies got after themselves because it gives

:55:25. > :55:28.reputational damage as well when a company goes in trying to deliver

:55:29. > :55:32.superfast broadband and they leave a mess behind them. That causes

:55:33. > :55:38.concern to residences, has caused concern in my constituency. This is

:55:39. > :55:41.an important point as well, it is important for them to get it right

:55:42. > :55:49.so they can be encouraged to do more in the future as well. Virgin Media,

:55:50. > :55:53.while I welcome their investment in Didcot, has in fact irritated quite

:55:54. > :55:56.a few of my constituents on the Lido Grove estate, is you are quite

:55:57. > :56:01.right. They should clear up after themselves. I did not make light of

:56:02. > :56:07.clear, whilst they should be held accountable for that, their

:56:08. > :56:12.reputation should not be, "You can't do any more work" because then they

:56:13. > :56:16.are punishing other constituents for a past transgression. Clearly what

:56:17. > :56:20.the Government wants to do is to encourage full fibre, fibre to the

:56:21. > :56:24.premises and it is true that we are falling behind to some other

:56:25. > :56:28.countries. Spain, for example, is well advanced but that is a

:56:29. > :56:32.historical advantage that Spain has because it put the infrastructure in

:56:33. > :56:36.some 30 years ago with extraordinary foresight and also, one has to

:56:37. > :56:40.remember, topography. The built environment topography, the more

:56:41. > :56:46.apartment blocks and someone you have, the easier it is to deliver

:56:47. > :56:50.broadband quickly as opposed to spread out domestic homes. It is

:56:51. > :56:52.also the case that one shouldn't necessarily be seduced by

:56:53. > :56:56.statistics. You might see for example that France is ahead of us

:56:57. > :57:01.in terms of fibre to premises but that fibre is in the same place as

:57:02. > :57:05.fibre to the Cabinet and very few people therefore take it up. A lot

:57:06. > :57:08.would say they have wasted investments in the approach that has

:57:09. > :57:15.been taken so far, the incremental approach in the UK, in terms of

:57:16. > :57:21.moving on to fibre are premises is the right approach because it keeps

:57:22. > :57:25.pace with customer demand. Nevertheless, the good news about

:57:26. > :57:30.fibre to premise is that the cost is coming down rapidly. Talk talk has

:57:31. > :57:33.conducted trials in Europe and it is very telling to see what has

:57:34. > :57:42.happened in Europe. They have the cost of connecting each home down to

:57:43. > :57:45.a few hundred. -- in York. In the community, they talk about whether

:57:46. > :57:49.people are in the Green zone which is word the fibre to the premises,

:57:50. > :57:53.people want to be there and also interestingly, in terms of what

:57:54. > :57:58.customers want, they don't actually care whether or not they're able to

:57:59. > :58:05.access per gigabit. What they get, and all of us who have accessed as a

:58:06. > :58:08.bras brought man's, is that they get 100% reliable servers whereas even

:58:09. > :58:16.those who have superfast broadband know that the service can drop out.

:58:17. > :58:21.So this is a very important and very welcome bill. All I would ask the

:58:22. > :58:25.Minister is whether... If he could talk a little bit in summing up, I

:58:26. > :58:28.don't know whether it will be the Secretary of State or my right

:58:29. > :58:33.honourable friend summing up, about whether or not the Government has

:58:34. > :58:37.considered how this release impacts on mobile infrastructure, so the

:58:38. > :58:41.roll out of forgery in this country has been very successful and let's

:58:42. > :58:44.not forget that has all been done by private investment. We really get

:58:45. > :58:47.the mobile operators, but we have to remember that they pay us, as it

:58:48. > :58:52.were, as taxpayers by paying into the Treasury coppers and then build

:58:53. > :58:57.up their networks effectively with their own capital. They come across

:58:58. > :59:01.the most bizarre planning issues all the time. I know the minister talked

:59:02. > :59:04.about the electronic dealing cases code which is going to help make

:59:05. > :59:09.mobile planning easier but whether or not this bill applies potentially

:59:10. > :59:17.to be fibre Google from masts bark to the cabinets or whether it could

:59:18. > :59:20.be amended, perhaps, to include mobile masts being free from

:59:21. > :59:25.whatever business rates they pay. And also how this bill will

:59:26. > :59:28.encourage the roll-out of 5G because 5G is going to potentially transform

:59:29. > :59:35.everything and what we need there is a small cells dotted throughout an

:59:36. > :59:43.urban environment and I know I company like our Kiva is already

:59:44. > :59:46.trialling if 5G network. We knew that a rethink on planning that will

:59:47. > :59:49.make it much much easier for mobile companies to roll out the small

:59:50. > :59:52.cells because if they have to get some form of planning permission

:59:53. > :59:57.regarding small cells they need for the dense coverage for the cells for

:59:58. > :00:03.5G, it will be a real hindrance to the fast roll-out of 5G. I could

:00:04. > :00:07.tell, as they made these remarks, that I had the full attention of the

:00:08. > :00:14.House (!) I noticed one or two yarns, argues that the irritated

:00:15. > :00:23.looks, when is this guy going to finish so I can get my spirits?

:00:24. > :00:30.More! More! The time is now, I have finished. Thank you. Thank you for

:00:31. > :00:35.calling me to speak in this debate is an air also, and perhaps of my

:00:36. > :00:38.Plaid Cymru colleagues congratulate you on your election as Deputy

:00:39. > :00:41.Speaker and is to say how much we're looking forward to working and

:00:42. > :00:46.serving under your guidance for the duration of this Parliament. I will

:00:47. > :00:50.keep my contributions short, as were all in and purposes from lost

:00:51. > :00:53.perspective, this is a neighbouring bill. We broadly welcomed the

:00:54. > :01:01.provisions as outlined in the Bill which provide power was for Welsh

:01:02. > :01:05.ministers to give business relief for properties used to transmit

:01:06. > :01:09.broadband and mobile communications. This is at least one step in the

:01:10. > :01:12.right direction for my constituents who have seen a little digital

:01:13. > :01:15.dividend from the hundreds of millions of pounds spent on

:01:16. > :01:22.broadband and mobile signal to date. I do however have some concerns in

:01:23. > :01:27.relation to the Government strategy into the most advanced technology.

:01:28. > :01:30.As I understand the bill, the plan in England this revival of hundred

:01:31. > :01:34.percent business rate relief for technology that supports 5G and

:01:35. > :01:41.ultrafast broadband. As we heard in an earlier intervention, that is a

:01:42. > :01:44.budget of around 60 million, which equates to budget consequential is

:01:45. > :01:51.around ?3 million for Wales which will go into the general Welsh

:01:52. > :01:56.Government pot and is vital, if I have one message from today's debate

:01:57. > :02:02.that the Labour Boscombe and have ring fenced that cash and that that

:02:03. > :02:07.is not spent on petrol tracks. 40% of my constituents, Madam Deputy

:02:08. > :02:12.Speaker, are unable to access high-speed Internet. An even greater

:02:13. > :02:21.proportion are unable to get a 4G mobile phone signal in their homes.

:02:22. > :02:24.Madam Deputy Speaker, there is quite clear that we have a conductivity

:02:25. > :02:32.problem. There is no doubt of course that is is holding back the Welsh

:02:33. > :02:36.economy. We have no hope of making progress in terms of developing our

:02:37. > :02:38.economy as we are able to get to the bottom of the telecommunication

:02:39. > :02:42.infrastructure problems we face and if we were able to do so, I would be

:02:43. > :02:47.exuding confidence that we have a very, very bright economic future in

:02:48. > :02:52.Carmarthenshire and in Wales due to the incredible natural assets that

:02:53. > :02:55.we have as a county and as a country. I'm very fortunate to have

:02:56. > :02:59.been born and raised in one of the most peaceful parts of the world and

:03:00. > :03:03.I have no hesitation in mentioning that. With a range of incredible

:03:04. > :03:08.leisure activities and I think one of the things we will see in a

:03:09. > :03:12.modern workplace is that work and leisure time will become compressed

:03:13. > :03:16.and people will be looking to set up their businesses where there are

:03:17. > :03:23.leisure activities lie so if you like horse riding, cycling,

:03:24. > :03:26.mountaineering, canoeing, all those leisure activities we have in

:03:27. > :03:31.abundance in Carmarthenshire and I'm very confident that if we were able

:03:32. > :03:33.to deal with those basic telecommunication infrastructure

:03:34. > :03:38.problems that we face that we would be able to put forward a very

:03:39. > :03:41.attractive economic package for investors and people looking to set

:03:42. > :03:51.up their businesses in our beautiful county. While I would urge the last

:03:52. > :03:56.Government to incentivise a conductivity improvements in Wales,

:03:57. > :03:58.I would like to call in my speech, Madam Deputy Speaker, Welsh

:03:59. > :04:03.ministers to take an alternative approach to that put forward by the

:04:04. > :04:07.UK Government. It is absolutely vital that future investment as a

:04:08. > :04:11.bare minimum in ours reels to be too baroque playing field before we

:04:12. > :04:16.start supporting these advanced technologies. He needs to be

:04:17. > :04:22.eradicated are not entrenched and I'm afraid what we have seen over

:04:23. > :04:25.recent years is the Government and providers concentrating investment

:04:26. > :04:33.on easy hits, on the large cities and large towns in my country

:04:34. > :04:38.whereas the more rural areas have been deliberately left behind. The

:04:39. > :04:42.last Government, via this bill now have used these powers and

:04:43. > :04:45.consequential is wisely. Rather than only incentivising the most advanced

:04:46. > :04:48.telecommunications technology, it is time something drastic was done to

:04:49. > :04:53.incentivise the building of telecommunications of the structure

:04:54. > :05:02.in rural areas such as the communities I am fortunate to serve

:05:03. > :05:07.in Carmarthenshire. Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I suppose I should

:05:08. > :05:10.apologise particularly to my honorary friends the Secretary of

:05:11. > :05:14.State from the Department of communities and local governments

:05:15. > :05:19.because the last time I was called to speak in a debate which didn't

:05:20. > :05:24.have a time limit was on the local Government finance settlement in

:05:25. > :05:26.2016. I think my honourable friend putter-mac skies have just about

:05:27. > :05:31.heel from that process. I was starting to date, every time I was

:05:32. > :05:34.on the list and call to speak, suddenly a new time limit was

:05:35. > :05:39.imposed, usually shorter than that which had gone before hand and my

:05:40. > :05:43.neighbour for mid Dorset North Poole suggested that one was putting

:05:44. > :05:47.posture is the applicant had to speak but I hope Madam Deputy

:05:48. > :05:51.Speaker will resist this proves a car. I am not allowed to speak with

:05:52. > :05:56.the authority that is my right honourable friend for Wantage spoke

:05:57. > :06:04.with because he speaks with great authority. But I would likely some

:06:05. > :06:10.points. I very much welcome this bill and the fact that it appears to

:06:11. > :06:17.be the result of a collaboration between three important Government

:06:18. > :06:23.departments. The community of local Government, DC MS and the Treasury.

:06:24. > :06:28.And that sort of joined up working of three departments coming together

:06:29. > :06:34.to identify a problem and to create a solution is, I think, to be

:06:35. > :06:37.welcomed and certainly signposts to a very likely successful

:06:38. > :06:39.governmental modus operandi is for the final five years that we have a

:06:40. > :06:48.Conservative Government at the head of us. Now, I find myself lost in a

:06:49. > :06:53.way that I reached for the smelling salts in some form of remedial

:06:54. > :06:57.medication agreeing with the honourable gentleman who spoke from

:06:58. > :07:06.the Labour Party front bench. I probably approach it in a slightly

:07:07. > :07:10.different way, but certainly as far as local Government is concerned and

:07:11. > :07:15.especially small shire districts who are always trying to seek to be more

:07:16. > :07:20.efficient, as welcome as the proposals are within this bill to

:07:21. > :07:24.help speed and underscore the importance of the delivery of

:07:25. > :07:30.broadband, I hope and indeed to note that my right honourable friend the

:07:31. > :07:36.Minister for DC LG will of course be taking this reduction now in a

:07:37. > :07:42.funding stream of nondomestic rates to a local authority into

:07:43. > :07:45.consideration as he evolves the new settlement, the new funding

:07:46. > :07:49.settlement for our local council to do so much good work to do those

:07:50. > :07:52.services and I felt the honourable gentleman made that point well and

:07:53. > :07:57.I'm sure it will have been heard on both sides of the House because both

:07:58. > :08:03.the delivery of broadband and the delivery of those local council

:08:04. > :08:06.services are important, very often to exactly the same constituents who

:08:07. > :08:14.need to see both. And I hope that this bill and the financial

:08:15. > :08:24.incentive, if that is the correct word, will act as a spur to existing

:08:25. > :08:28.providers to deliver on the lot spots very prevalent, particularly

:08:29. > :08:37.though not exclusively in our rural areas where the economic case for

:08:38. > :08:46.delivery is either nonexistent or is marginal. Or where, as a result of

:08:47. > :08:50.further economic investigation, they have fallen out with the confines

:08:51. > :08:55.and the constraints of the initial contract, usually agreed within

:08:56. > :09:01.county councils as in the case with Dorset and so many and British

:09:02. > :09:06.Telecom. My right honourable friend the member for Wantage spoke with

:09:07. > :09:10.huge authority and experience on this and I don't you are from

:09:11. > :09:15.anything that he is said and my right honourable friend the member

:09:16. > :09:20.for West Suffolk talked about the evolving technologies that it isn't

:09:21. > :09:25.just going to be wire, copper, fibre etc but fixed wireless and satellite

:09:26. > :09:28.are playing a part. I think occasionally, Madam Deputy Speaker,

:09:29. > :09:35.so long has been this debate I would to my right arm friend the member

:09:36. > :09:40.for Boston and Skegness who has... I he doesn't look to me but I would to

:09:41. > :09:43.him, he has done so much to promote the delivery of rural broadband in

:09:44. > :09:47.this area, so much that he has been made a PBS in the department which

:09:48. > :09:52.means he can no longer speak on the subject. This, Madam Deputy Speaker,

:09:53. > :09:58.points the route to promotion. Talk with authority and knowledge on a

:09:59. > :10:01.subject and then gives a up and silenced for many years to come.

:10:02. > :10:07.Maybe that is why I was moved to the Home Office, I don't know.

:10:08. > :10:14.Because this debate has not around with public and political debate and

:10:15. > :10:23.the media for so long, it is worthwhile I would suggest just

:10:24. > :10:28.posing for a few moments and reminding ourselves of the most

:10:29. > :10:37.enormous strides that broadband Oregon and

:10:38. > :10:48.and I'm going to cheesy House because I ordered something online

:10:49. > :10:56.yesterday to be delivered to my House tomorrow. The sketch writers

:10:57. > :10:59.and anybody else may wish to run some sort of book on what it was.

:11:00. > :11:03.Why were levelled tell you that it was not something I would have

:11:04. > :11:10.guessed you could have ordered online even three or four years ago.

:11:11. > :11:16.My honourable friend is looking even more perplexed than usual. But it

:11:17. > :11:19.just struck me of the huge change that this has made and this bill

:11:20. > :11:23.helps to underpin its delivery but from a rural point of view, what

:11:24. > :11:33.could be more rural than North Dorset, it is worthwhile reapplying

:11:34. > :11:36.the benefits derived from fast and superfast broadband and which I

:11:37. > :11:44.believe will be further helped by the contents of this bill. It was a

:11:45. > :11:53.pleasure to follow the gentleman who was a right to point out as I do the

:11:54. > :12:07.huge unlocking of charisma potential -- charisma potential in terms of

:12:08. > :12:13.hotel rooms and visitor attractions. Interactive tourist attractions the

:12:14. > :12:15.local authorities have withdrawn from face-to-face encounters, for

:12:16. > :12:22.the farmer trying to buy or sell stock or make a submission to the

:12:23. > :12:25.rural payments agency. Fast reliable broadband of a speed and regularity

:12:26. > :12:30.which no longer drops off just as you are adding that crucial moment

:12:31. > :12:37.of send or loading up on that last map is going to be absolutely

:12:38. > :12:46.crucial. For small and medium-size businesses and I think of to my

:12:47. > :12:53.constituency both based in a small market town, they provide platforms

:12:54. > :13:01.online and interactive platforms for large international conferences.

:13:02. > :13:15.Offices based in Seattle, Sydney and storm and stimulant. There because

:13:16. > :13:21.town has 4G, Herts, the sort of shop review don't say, do you sell, you

:13:22. > :13:27.merely ask queer can I find bequest is one of those shops that sell

:13:28. > :13:32.absolutely everything from blackout curtains to make a lasting, it is

:13:33. > :13:41.all there. None of those things Madam Deputy Speaker you require. No

:13:42. > :13:46.she knows what I was ordering and he would be wrong on all counts. The

:13:47. > :13:54.largest amount of their sales takes place from the Kokrak department

:13:55. > :13:56.online. And a small market town that had until a few years ago their main

:13:57. > :14:04.centre of industry having the largest calf and livestock market in

:14:05. > :14:09.the whole of the south-west, broadband transforming local rural

:14:10. > :14:18.economies and creating good quality high-tech jobs. It also helps and we

:14:19. > :14:27.forget this at our peril, with the delivery of a whole raft of other

:14:28. > :14:30.things, the rural social life. Small businesses disconnected by geography

:14:31. > :14:37.and not particularly will still buy a rural public transport. Trying to

:14:38. > :14:44.support charitable fundraising events. I can see the frustration we

:14:45. > :14:48.now have a faster broadband provision that we used to have but I

:14:49. > :14:54.can see the frustration on my wife's face tried to download posters for

:14:55. > :14:57.events she's trying to organise. Suddenly transformed by a faster

:14:58. > :15:02.speed being able to do it to know everybody in North Dorset and

:15:03. > :15:08.through the official report will no that this trade it sees the Saint

:15:09. > :15:12.Gregory Sommer says love, everyone is invited, a huge fundraising event

:15:13. > :15:19.for a local school, the promotion of which all better enabled through

:15:20. > :15:24.broadband. I'm more about my honourable member's life now than I

:15:25. > :15:28.did five minutes ago. The entire House still wants to reveal what he

:15:29. > :15:37.ordered last week online that he couldn't have ordered four years ago

:15:38. > :15:40.online. It is a terrible mission from the Torah of my honourable

:15:41. > :15:45.friend 's domestic online and agents.

:15:46. > :15:52.I will tantalise the House still further by telling that what it was

:15:53. > :16:01.is that it is inflatable... LAUGHTER

:16:02. > :16:07.And is made of rubber. It happens to be a small two-man dinghy to allow

:16:08. > :16:12.my elder daughter and I to do a little bit of rowing and Michael

:16:13. > :16:17.fishing during our summer holidays. That is either pleased or

:16:18. > :16:25.disappointed, distressed or despondent my honourable friend on

:16:26. > :16:31.the side of the House. Rural isolation... Or are relieved that it

:16:32. > :16:39.was something so entirely innocent and innocuous. Fast broadband

:16:40. > :16:42.allowing us to watch television and order online will help with rural

:16:43. > :16:52.isolation particularly important in an area such as mine, helping keep

:16:53. > :16:55.families together and keep those intergenerational conversations

:16:56. > :17:09.going over geography and a weekly visit may be not always appropriate.

:17:10. > :17:22.Feasible or affordable. Again, my honourable friend has a Glastonbury

:17:23. > :17:29.in his constituency, I know he has lost all of his banks... He mentions

:17:30. > :17:33.banks and they know in my constituency I have had several

:17:34. > :17:37.branches shut and one of the arguments I am given is that people

:17:38. > :17:40.can use online but this is the very reason why we do need to ensure that

:17:41. > :17:50.we have at excellent broadband facilities. You make my point and a

:17:51. > :17:57.far better rate than I was going to because she is absolutely right, a

:17:58. > :18:04.town such as mine which is lost to banks within the last year and loses

:18:05. > :18:09.the bank at the end of this. Customers are being told both

:18:10. > :18:16.private and business customers are being told there is entered banking.

:18:17. > :18:20.That is fine as long as the speed and service is reliable enough to

:18:21. > :18:24.allow you to remember why you were only on by the time you have

:18:25. > :18:26.actually logged on to try and remember what financial transaction

:18:27. > :18:35.you were going to undertake. That will not be a situation... And

:18:36. > :18:41.grateful for giving way and didn't use the word relieved it was

:18:42. > :18:46.reassured that move onto my point and does he agree with me at in more

:18:47. > :18:50.rural areas which is referring to that having the good speed broadband

:18:51. > :19:00.to enable you to access banking services ready are no longer exist,

:19:01. > :19:05.enable particularly small businesses to operate any business environment

:19:06. > :19:08.so they are not competitively disadvantaged against those parts of

:19:09. > :19:14.the country that do have a good broadband coverage? You're

:19:15. > :19:18.absolutely right and which of us will not have gone to an

:19:19. > :19:20.agricultural show or some small business which can't necessarily

:19:21. > :19:26.always afford the infrastructure of having all of those interconnected

:19:27. > :19:36.pieces which allow you to pay by credit card etc? But as you will

:19:37. > :19:41.know all too well, it it baffles me whereby some device plugged into my

:19:42. > :19:47.phone means my credit card can be charged for whatever services I

:19:48. > :19:50.provided, purchased thereby helping small to medium-size businesses

:19:51. > :19:53.particularly than not exclusively also helping those people who make

:19:54. > :19:56.things and sell things from home. They don't actually have a

:19:57. > :20:03.commercial premises on their own from which to trade. For all of

:20:04. > :20:11.those reasons plus our next generation, because I think we are

:20:12. > :20:14.always inclined to look at television advertisements, they will

:20:15. > :20:22.always focus on getting the film a bit faster or watching the spot, all

:20:23. > :20:28.that is of course welcome and laudable but he's huge learning

:20:29. > :20:32.opportunities and potential for young people in delivering education

:20:33. > :20:38.and a 21st-century setting to hopefully boost and bolster

:20:39. > :20:49.productivity can also be assisted by superfast and rival broadband. --

:20:50. > :20:51.reliable broadband. The Government has made the most enormous strides

:20:52. > :20:57.and we have occasionally beaten up ministers and others about, I have

:20:58. > :21:00.this village that villagers and cetera and we have all had it. I

:21:01. > :21:08.said at the start of this is not just an issue reserved solely to the

:21:09. > :21:16.rural setting, it also happens on the edge of London and elsewhere.

:21:17. > :21:20.But when we actually pause and look at the data, notwithstanding some of

:21:21. > :21:28.those problems which we have had, we are striding ahead of many of our

:21:29. > :21:32.European friends and economic and commercial competitors and providing

:21:33. > :21:38.access to broadband as we shouldn't always beat ourselves up. It is a

:21:39. > :21:43.time when we are all been fed on the negative and the anti-, this is

:21:44. > :21:47.actually something which was referenced earlier, something for

:21:48. > :21:52.which we should be I think as a Government duly proud. This bill is

:21:53. > :21:58.a fundamental and very important next step in that delivery. We hope

:21:59. > :22:03.and believe that it will assist better and faster delivery and are

:22:04. > :22:08.at rural areas in North Dorset and across the county of Dorset. It has

:22:09. > :22:12.my full support. The ministers promoting it have my admiration and

:22:13. > :22:24.encouragement and I look forward to making a speedy progress through

:22:25. > :22:32.this House. The pleasure and honour to follow my comment from not

:22:33. > :22:35.Dorset. -- my comrade. My first day I was told that if I wanted to keep

:22:36. > :22:40.something secret I should make a speech about it in the House of

:22:41. > :22:44.Commons. So it was on the 13th of September last year that I gave a

:22:45. > :22:49.speech on the subject of this bill and called for a 100% rate relief on

:22:50. > :22:55.new fibre networks. They even went so far as to draft an amendment to

:22:56. > :22:59.the Digital economy Bill not to give that rate relief but to require the

:23:00. > :23:05.valuation office to produce an annual report on the impact of the

:23:06. > :23:10.rating system on competition in the telecoms sector because I had been

:23:11. > :23:15.presented by various players in the industry with the ridiculous

:23:16. > :23:20.conundrum that it was cheaper for them to rent fibre from BT and to

:23:21. > :23:26.pay the rates bill on putting in a new fibre themselves. That was in

:23:27. > :23:31.there a few entrenching the monopoly, near monopoly of BT and

:23:32. > :23:37.giving an enormous structural advantage that was basically

:23:38. > :23:40.chopping off competition. I spoke at the second reading of the Digital

:23:41. > :23:43.economy Bill, draft of this amendment and had a very fruitful

:23:44. > :23:48.conversation with the Minister who is not at his place at the moment

:23:49. > :23:53.but he persuaded me that given some of the other amendments that I

:23:54. > :23:58.should leave this to the Government to mull over for some months and

:23:59. > :24:01.that they would give it some serious thought. So imagine my pleasure and

:24:02. > :24:04.surprise when it appeared in the Autumn Statement last year and even

:24:05. > :24:11.more now that it has appeared in this bill. Because it will provide

:24:12. > :24:16.an enormous boost to competition in the sector, no doubt about it that

:24:17. > :24:21.the differential, the asymmetric deal one business rates between BT

:24:22. > :24:26.and new entrants is talking of new investment in large parts of the

:24:27. > :24:32.country and means smaller countries have very little incentive and

:24:33. > :24:34.competing directly with British Telecom the absolute for areas that

:24:35. > :24:40.are currently underserved and commercial to try and make their

:24:41. > :24:45.networks pay. This has resulted in a situation of innovation is had to

:24:46. > :24:48.come by. BT have been helpful to me and my constituents as they have

:24:49. > :24:54.been to a number of other members and I hope that they will take this

:24:55. > :24:57.measure in the spirit at which it is intended which is that those of us

:24:58. > :25:00.who believe any market economy that think that competition is good and

:25:01. > :25:04.that it will not only be better for the consumer by better for BT

:25:05. > :25:07.because it will drive them to greater innovation and efficiency

:25:08. > :25:16.and hopefully greater profit in the future. This bill also represents a

:25:17. > :25:18.welcome move for me towards seeing broadband and civic vacations as

:25:19. > :25:26.what they should be fit as a utility. -- telecommunications. We

:25:27. > :25:30.have seen recently more and more step towards that position so the

:25:31. > :25:34.building regulations have been changed to make the position

:25:35. > :25:38.broadband compulsory in new developments. We are so seeing

:25:39. > :25:41.broadband been provided as a universal service hopefully over the

:25:42. > :25:47.next few years and now we are seeing this listing of nondomestic rates on

:25:48. > :25:51.parts of the network so that broadband is being treated much more

:25:52. > :25:57.now like water or gas lighter city as a fatal utility which is course

:25:58. > :26:00.is what it is becoming so I am pleased about this particular

:26:01. > :26:01.development and hope this movement towards broadband as utility will

:26:02. > :26:13.continue. Four seats like mine, broadband is

:26:14. > :26:15.incredibly important. Very successful, vibrant countryside, if

:26:16. > :26:20.it is going to compete with its urban neighbours, it needs to be

:26:21. > :26:23.connected to the world. And socially, economically, the current

:26:24. > :26:26.form of connection these days, more and more is not the road or the

:26:27. > :26:31.motorway or visual carriageway but the superfast broadband. As my

:26:32. > :26:35.honourable friend the member for North Dorset said, my constituency

:26:36. > :26:39.like him it is peppered with businesses now wish to most of their

:26:40. > :26:43.business online and we are very pleased to know that on Saturday I

:26:44. > :26:49.attended the amp portrait and came across a brand-new business, very

:26:50. > :26:54.pleasing business called Thames Valley gin which is a new brand of

:26:55. > :26:59.June that is taking the market by storm. -- gender. Kate Griffin, the

:27:00. > :27:02.inventor of this gin is having some success. 36 bottles a week,

:27:03. > :27:08.production are selling like hot cakes, much of it online. I think

:27:09. > :27:13.the website is called Jean Ali .co .uk. I'm very grateful to the

:27:14. > :27:18.honourable gentleman. My ears pricked up when he mentioned gin but

:27:19. > :27:22.perhaps in the interest of cross-party co-operation, you could

:27:23. > :27:29.chairs around. Balls I have to confess to you, I was so taken with

:27:30. > :27:32.the small sample because I was driving, the small sample that I did

:27:33. > :27:37.buy a bottle. Media I will bring one in. I wondered whether at the House

:27:38. > :27:42.of Commons authorities might start serving as in the bars. It is very,

:27:43. > :27:46.very good. Our secret recipe of local herbs and spices, and

:27:47. > :27:50.excellent drink I recommend to you. Businesses like that. Mike I had

:27:51. > :27:57.of being in his constituency yesterday and I will back his

:27:58. > :28:01.forgiveness provided not seek his permission... But honourable members

:28:02. > :28:04.will be pleased to know it was purely for a cricket match and

:28:05. > :28:07.therefore I did not feel I was obligated to seek his permission to

:28:08. > :28:11.play cricket in his wonderful constituency. The point he's making

:28:12. > :28:15.is an important one. It is not just his constituency but all our

:28:16. > :28:20.constituents that broadband is more and more important to and I phrase

:28:21. > :28:23.it as important as road and rail. Part of our infrastructure that all

:28:24. > :28:28.of our constituents just can't do without. The honourable gentleman is

:28:29. > :28:31.absolutely right, of course. He is very welcome to visit my

:28:32. > :28:34.constituency at any time. I'm surprised he has only been once

:28:35. > :28:41.recently, he should come more often. The door is always open. But it is

:28:42. > :28:46.true that it's becoming a vital to maintaining rural life that villages

:28:47. > :28:51.are connected to be world and it is ridiculous more and more to our

:28:52. > :28:56.rural residents that they can see broadcast quality footage of Tim

:28:57. > :29:00.Peake in the International Space Station but they can't go online and

:29:01. > :29:06.post-complementary comments on my Facebook page. But many of my

:29:07. > :29:12.constituents seem increasingly sold to do. By all means. Might I suggest

:29:13. > :29:18.that his constituency might want to do the former rather than the latter

:29:19. > :29:24.more often. That's very... Rather shy Leszek smack given how Coppola

:29:25. > :29:27.Medran have been about him. -- rather churlish considering how

:29:28. > :29:35.complement Riyadh have been about him. Perhaps I will reach the same

:29:36. > :29:39.level of appreciation as Tim Peake. Something like 25% of small

:29:40. > :29:44.businesses now are located in rural areas, nearly half a million

:29:45. > :29:48.businesses are providing lots and lots of employment, jobs and

:29:49. > :29:52.creating wealth that is going to be increasingly important. But this

:29:53. > :29:57.bill points to a wider issue with which this House is going to have to

:29:58. > :30:01.grapple over the next few years and the right honourable gentleman on

:30:02. > :30:05.the front bench opposites did mention it and that's the

:30:06. > :30:12.appropriateness of the business rates system. This is a tax that was

:30:13. > :30:15.first devised in 1572 and now we are applying its to a 21st-century

:30:16. > :30:23.economy, much of which takes place somewhere in the clouds, wherever

:30:24. > :30:28.that might be. The bill acknowledges in its very core that business rates

:30:29. > :30:31.have a disproportionate impact on competition in this sector and those

:30:32. > :30:36.of us who have rural constituencies and indeed anyone with a high street

:30:37. > :30:40.understands the disproportionality of business rates for retail

:30:41. > :30:43.businesses. Particularly as more people are buying things online, as

:30:44. > :30:50.my honourable friend from North Dorset said. If we are going to keep

:30:51. > :30:53.our high-street vibrant and keep our businesses working, if we're going

:30:54. > :30:58.to keep the competitiveness of the real economy against those huge

:30:59. > :31:03.businesses that operate from nowhere these days, then whether business

:31:04. > :31:09.rates, property on investment and expansion, taxes on investment and

:31:10. > :31:12.expansion is an appropriate way to gather the revenue weenies, I would

:31:13. > :31:18.question. I think there is going to, point over the next couple of

:31:19. > :31:22.decades where we have to consider shifting taxation on corporations

:31:23. > :31:27.away, perhaps even from profit and property, towards turnover. It is

:31:28. > :31:31.certainly the case that if we were tasking the turnover of these large

:31:32. > :31:35.international is, Google and Amazon etc, we would collect more from them

:31:36. > :31:41.in a fairer way than we currently do and when we have corporations in

:31:42. > :31:45.this country who transact here, perhaps dispatch goods from a second

:31:46. > :31:50.country and yet booked the profit and a third country competing with

:31:51. > :31:53.small shops on my high streets in north-west and a share, then we have

:31:54. > :31:59.to think about the asymmetric taxation system on those two

:32:00. > :32:02.organisations if we want a level playing field from the competition

:32:03. > :32:07.point of view. So I welcome the bill, I welcome the direction of the

:32:08. > :32:11.build towards broadband as a utility and awards in recognition of

:32:12. > :32:16.business rates has a distorted effect on commerce and I hope that

:32:17. > :32:19.over the next five years or so that many companies will take advantage

:32:20. > :32:24.of this window. I suspect by the time we get to the end of the

:32:25. > :32:27.window, it somehow will be extended and I hope that extension becomes

:32:28. > :32:32.permanent that they will take advantage of the window and come to

:32:33. > :32:37.North West Hampshire where they can plaster my entire constituency with

:32:38. > :32:42.broadband, fibre to the Cabinet, fibre to the premises with my

:32:43. > :32:48.pleasure and approval. Thank you. Thank you very much, Madam Deputy

:32:49. > :32:53.Speaker. Like several other members here this afternoon, and this

:32:54. > :32:59.evening, I had the pleasure of representing a beautiful and very

:33:00. > :33:05.rural constituency. In fact, 42% of my constituency is part of an area

:33:06. > :33:11.of outstanding natural beauty, so it makes a lovely constituency to go

:33:12. > :33:19.walking in, to spend time in, to go for picnics N, fabulous for farming,

:33:20. > :33:23.but is less good for connectivity. And I have, over the two and a bit

:33:24. > :33:29.here is that I have been a member of Parliament, received letters and

:33:30. > :33:33.occasionally e-mails if they have managed to get online, from

:33:34. > :33:38.constituents in many villages including Kingswood, Doddington,

:33:39. > :33:47.Eastern Lane, shelves which, all of which are lovely villages but all of

:33:48. > :33:50.which struggle to be well connected and in all of which there are some

:33:51. > :33:57.of my constituents who have had difficulty getting fast broadband

:33:58. > :34:03.and also in several of those villages, it can be very difficult

:34:04. > :34:07.to get a mobile phone signal. A couple of months ago during the

:34:08. > :34:11.general election campaign, I was in Headcorn and I thought I might tweet

:34:12. > :34:16.a picture from Headcorn station and I went to tweet that is not only did

:34:17. > :34:24.I not have 4G on my mobile phone to do it, I did not have any mobile

:34:25. > :34:27.phone signal at all. I couldn't even make an old-fashioned mobile phone

:34:28. > :34:33.telephone call or send a text message. So there are parts of my

:34:34. > :34:39.constituency like that patch of Headcorn where unless you happen to

:34:40. > :34:46.be only one operator that may serve it a little bit, it's impossible to

:34:47. > :34:50.even make a mobile phone call. So my constituency wants to have better

:34:51. > :34:56.broadband and better mobile phone connections and is that is why I

:34:57. > :35:01.welcome the commitment that this Government has been and is making to

:35:02. > :35:08.connectivity across this country. As I mentioned earlier with an

:35:09. > :35:14.intervention, thanks to the Government's programme on rolling

:35:15. > :35:17.out high-speed broadband, 8432 properties have now got a high-speed

:35:18. > :35:25.broadband connection that would not have had it without this programme

:35:26. > :35:29.and by September 2018, I'm expecting around 2000 more properties to be on

:35:30. > :35:36.high-speed broadband thanks to that programme. Which will amount to a

:35:37. > :35:39.coverage of 25% of the properties in my constituency being connected

:35:40. > :35:47.thanks to this Government's work and commitment to high-speed broadband.

:35:48. > :35:50.That'll get Faversham and Mid Kent to around 90% of properties on

:35:51. > :35:58.high-speed broadband, so we are still some way off the 100% that I

:35:59. > :36:02.would like to see and so I very much welcome the universal service

:36:03. > :36:06.obligation that is coming into force and, in fact, the work of my

:36:07. > :36:13.honourable friend for Boston and Skegness who campaigned very hard to

:36:14. > :36:16.put that into law. And I welcome the commitment made by my right

:36:17. > :36:21.honourable friend the Minister earlier on the front bench of the

:36:22. > :36:25.dispatch box when he mentioned that the cap, the financial cap that will

:36:26. > :36:29.be in place for that will be high enough to make sure that 100% of

:36:30. > :36:36.properties in constituencies like mine should receive access to

:36:37. > :36:40.broadband of at least a 10 megabits per second. Now, that's not the

:36:41. > :36:45.high-speed of the future, that is not the speed that we hope will be

:36:46. > :36:49.delivered by legislation such as the legislation we are debating today,

:36:50. > :36:53.but for those who have no or incredibly slow broadband at the

:36:54. > :37:01.moment, 10 megabits per second will make a great difference. And that is

:37:02. > :37:04.because, to all of us who represent a blog as it was is no, the

:37:05. > :37:09.difference between the haves and have-nots that having high-speed

:37:10. > :37:13.broadband esteem the life changing. Whether it allows you to do things

:37:14. > :37:19.that we now consider to be everyday functions of life like sending

:37:20. > :37:24.e-mails, like booking tickets and booking flights online, like

:37:25. > :37:28.choosing Hall tells or B and B is, like comparing the offers on travel

:37:29. > :37:32.insurance or publishers, like shopping for groceries, there is so

:37:33. > :37:37.much which those about to have high-speed broadband take for

:37:38. > :37:43.granted but some people still in my constituency do not even have that

:37:44. > :37:46.access. I will give way. Which is surely not also adds that watching

:37:47. > :37:49.BBC Parliament to watch this excellent speech for all her

:37:50. > :37:56.constituents in Faversham and Mid Kent? I think my honourable friend

:37:57. > :38:00.very much for that intervention. Although whether there is even one

:38:01. > :38:07.of my constituents watching this speech, I won't hold my breath for

:38:08. > :38:11.confirmation. But we know, for instance, that children often get

:38:12. > :38:14.sent home work tasks that require them to look things up on the

:38:15. > :38:18.Internet a child lives in a rural village or at the end of a track and

:38:19. > :38:21.can't get online, they are disadvantaged in doing that work.

:38:22. > :38:24.There is the very basic thing of staying in touch with distant

:38:25. > :38:29.relatives who live all around the world now and actually I remember

:38:30. > :38:33.when I was a Child is the enormous cost of making international call. I

:38:34. > :38:37.think during my gap year when I was an 18-year-old, I need to phone

:38:38. > :38:41.calls home in a period of nine months to my parents because it cost

:38:42. > :38:46.such a huge amount to phone home. Now, you can do a video call

:38:47. > :38:52.basically for nothing, so families can be in touch around the world and

:38:53. > :38:58.also, as older people manage to get online and many people in their 70s,

:38:59. > :39:02.80s and 90s are very active Internet users, it is one way I hope we will

:39:03. > :39:06.be able to tackle the challenge of loneliness. Being able to make a

:39:07. > :39:10.face time call to your grandma or grampa is a great way of keeping in

:39:11. > :39:15.touch and much easier often than actually if it is very difficult to

:39:16. > :39:21.go and see them. Then there is the question about work and that makes a

:39:22. > :39:25.huge difference in rural areas as it does for the economy. Whether it is

:39:26. > :39:28.enabling people to work from home, and I have two caseworkers who do

:39:29. > :39:31.the majority of their work supporting me in my constituents

:39:32. > :39:39.from home which enables them to double that work around their home

:39:40. > :39:43.commitments. There are many people who run businesses from home in my

:39:44. > :39:47.constituency and many quite significant rural businesses. There

:39:48. > :39:50.is a fabulous business round the corner from where I live just

:39:51. > :39:55.outside Faversham which makes amazing products out of maps. If any

:39:56. > :40:01.of you are interested in making some interesting products with maps of

:40:02. > :40:05.your constituencies, I recommend that you contact Bombast to get all

:40:06. > :40:10.sorts of books, paper goods and lampshades made out of maps of your

:40:11. > :40:13.constituency. On the other side of my constituency near Maidstone there

:40:14. > :40:20.is a business which enables you to compare utility prices with around

:40:21. > :40:24.100 employees. There is no way that business would exist without good

:40:25. > :40:32.broadband so this is really, really important for the real economy.

:40:33. > :40:43.It was around 12 years ago I was working at Warner and launching a

:40:44. > :40:47.digital products and one of them was the UK's first video on demand

:40:48. > :40:52.service so that you can download a film and one of the things we had to

:40:53. > :40:57.do was plan ahead because if you wanted to watch that film you would