11/07/2017

:00:10. > :00:14.Hello and welcome to BBC Parliament's live coverage of the

:00:15. > :00:18.House of Commons. In now, deep is the Minister will make a statement

:00:19. > :00:23.on the Taylor review into modern working practices and the economy.

:00:24. > :00:26.After that, MPs will hold an emergency debate on contaminated

:00:27. > :00:30.blood products. Labour's Dina Johnson says new evidence means

:00:31. > :00:33.there should be held Christel public enquiry into the affair.

:00:34. > :00:40.More than 2000 deaths have been linked to these candle in which

:00:41. > :00:45.others were infected with hepatitis C and HIV from imported blood

:00:46. > :00:49.products in the 1970s and 80s. After that, MPs will debate the remaining

:00:50. > :00:53.stages of the air travel organisers like the bill which of these

:00:54. > :00:57.predictions for holiday-makers. Around four o'clock, we cross lies

:00:58. > :01:00.to the committee rooms where the Brexit secretary will give evidence

:01:01. > :01:03.to the Lords European Union committee. At that point, you can

:01:04. > :01:12.continue watching the House of Commons live on our website.

:01:13. > :01:17.Do join me for a round-up of the day in both Houses of Parliament at 11

:01:18. > :01:19.o'clock tonight. But first we have questions to the Foreign Secretary

:01:20. > :01:28.Boris Johnson and his ministerial team.

:01:29. > :01:41.Hors d'oeuvre. City of London open spaces bell, the chairman of ways

:01:42. > :01:51.and means to revival mission. The question is on the order paper. I

:01:52. > :01:54.think the ayes have it. Middle level Bill, the chairman of weather means

:01:55. > :02:05.to move the revival mission. I beg to move. Objection. Objection taken.

:02:06. > :02:15.Motion to be taken what Dave. Tuesday the 18th of July. Thank you.

:02:16. > :02:23.Cemetery Bill, Lords. Move the revival mission. He is keen, very

:02:24. > :02:32.keen today. I beg to move. The question is on the order paper. I

:02:33. > :02:41.think the ayes have it. Chairman of ways and Means, to move, the motion

:02:42. > :02:52.for an returns. Thank you. Not so much a nod as a magnificent bowel.

:02:53. > :03:01.-- bow. Mr Nigel Huddleston. Number one, Mr Speaker. I should like to

:03:02. > :03:06.begin by congratulating a rock's security forces for liberating Mosul

:03:07. > :03:11.from the grass of Daesh, the flag of Iraq flies once more in the

:03:12. > :03:15.country's 's second city and I pay tribute to the pilots who played a

:03:16. > :03:17.vital role in supporting this operation, delivering more air

:03:18. > :03:21.strikes than anyone else apart from the United States, I think the House

:03:22. > :03:26.can take pride in what they have done. An illegal wildlife trade, I

:03:27. > :03:30.think we can be pleased with the agreement be Prime Minister helped

:03:31. > :03:34.to secure IBG 20 summit in Hamburg and I say to all honourable members,

:03:35. > :03:39.this is not about cracking down on the trade in charismatic mega- fauna

:03:40. > :03:46.but of course in cracking down on those who engaged not just in

:03:47. > :03:49.illegal wildlife trafficking but in gun-running and people trafficking

:03:50. > :03:56.and much other human misery. We can be proud of what we are doing. Nigel

:03:57. > :03:59.Huddleston. I applaud the efforts of the Government is making in this

:04:00. > :04:05.area and I am pleased that the UK will be hosting the illegal wildlife

:04:06. > :04:09.trade conference in 2018. Can the Foreign Secretary confirm how much

:04:10. > :04:11.the money the department has committed to tackling illegal

:04:12. > :04:20.wildlife trade and how the money is being spent effectively? I can

:04:21. > :04:26.confirm that we are increasing our contribution to ?26 million, another

:04:27. > :04:30.?30 million to tackle illegal wildlife trade and I have myself

:04:31. > :04:36.seen what UK finance projects are doing in ten year to crack down on

:04:37. > :04:40.this while trade. Mr Speaker, thank you, I say to the

:04:41. > :04:44.Foreign Secretary we have to give there is a much greater priority

:04:45. > :04:48.than we do. Not only our Government but across the world. Every single

:04:49. > :04:53.week it seems all mud it seems we see programmes on television, 55

:04:54. > :04:58.African elephants are poached every single day. It is simply not good

:04:59. > :05:02.enough and the Foreign Secretary has to make this a priority. It is not

:05:03. > :05:05.good enough for us to look at our TV screens until sorry about it, we

:05:06. > :05:13.have to have a far greater commitment to do something about it.

:05:14. > :05:16.I completely share the Passion of the right honourable member. I would

:05:17. > :05:21.point out that the UK has been on the lead on all this for several

:05:22. > :05:27.years now and we will be continuing to push this agenda, not just at the

:05:28. > :05:30.T20 as the Prime Minister did, but of course Attar IW teed summit that

:05:31. > :05:37.we are hosting next October in London. With my right honourable

:05:38. > :05:42.friend tell us a little bit of the strategy he is taken to approach

:05:43. > :05:45.this? The link between illegal what I've trade, smuggling, people

:05:46. > :05:49.traffic like lawlessness and pilots in many countries is extremely real

:05:50. > :05:54.and so addressing wildlife trade may seem hysterical but it is not at

:05:55. > :05:59.all, it's about the stability of many nations that farm partners of

:06:00. > :06:08.the United Kingdom. It is not only touches the heart of millions of

:06:09. > :06:12.people in our country, it helps to cause increased human misery because

:06:13. > :06:17.the same people are involved in trading drugs, in arms, in human

:06:18. > :06:23.trafficking, worth up to ?30 billion a year and we are playing a major

:06:24. > :06:28.part in frustrating that trade. Thank you, Mr Speaker. There is

:06:29. > :06:33.increasing evidence that the UK's legal ivory market has been used as

:06:34. > :06:39.described for an illegal trade. What about them all-out ban on the ivory

:06:40. > :06:44.trade? The honourable gentleman we know we have a commitment in this

:06:45. > :06:47.Government to all-out ban on the sale of ivory in this country and

:06:48. > :06:55.that is what we intend to pursue. Rachel McLean. Question number two,

:06:56. > :07:01.Mr Speaker. With your permission, I will answer questions to answer for

:07:02. > :07:15.together. The Foreign Office continues to support that... 14. The

:07:16. > :07:19.give and -- forgive me. My department, my apologies. My

:07:20. > :07:23.department indeed used to support EU exit negotiations and the Government

:07:24. > :07:28.works to strengthen our relations with partners worldwide. As a

:07:29. > :07:32.champion of free trade, we will continue to seize the opportunities

:07:33. > :07:39.afforded by Brexit I guarantee our long-term global prosperity. Rachel

:07:40. > :07:43.McLean. Thank you, Mr Speaker. I thank my right honourable friend for

:07:44. > :07:47.this answer. Businesses in my constituency are looking to make the

:07:48. > :07:50.most of the opportunities of Brexit provides for them. But can my right

:07:51. > :07:54.honourable friend ensure me that he will work closely with the

:07:55. > :07:58.Department of trade, the Department for exiting the EU to ensure

:07:59. > :08:03.businesses that are already trading with the single market are given

:08:04. > :08:06.support to help build new export markets for their goods and services

:08:07. > :08:12.around the world to ensure their continued prosperity?

:08:13. > :08:16.Absolutely. I congratulate my honourable friend on what I believe

:08:17. > :08:20.is her first question in this chamber and I think it is a very

:08:21. > :08:26.good one and she can reassure her constituents that, of course, not

:08:27. > :08:33.only will the excellent companies in her constituency be able to continue

:08:34. > :08:37.to enjoy free trade with the rest of the European Union, with the EU 27,

:08:38. > :08:40.but of course they will have the additional opportunity afforded by

:08:41. > :08:44.the new free trade deals that we will be able to strike with

:08:45. > :08:47.countries around the world. I am pleased to say that they were

:08:48. > :08:54.queueing up to make that point to the Prime Minister IBG 20 in

:08:55. > :09:02.Hamburg. Today is the feast Day of Saint Benedict, the agency of

:09:03. > :09:06.Europe. He famously warned against against the others. Will my right

:09:07. > :09:11.honourable friend please proclaim that we do not want any murmuring

:09:12. > :09:15.from anybody against our vision of an open, free trade in Europe, the

:09:16. > :09:22.best possible free-trade deal, leading the world towards free trade

:09:23. > :09:26.and on tour prosperity? I think my right honourable friend makes an

:09:27. > :09:32.excellent point. Members on both sides of this House know very well,

:09:33. > :09:36.85% of us were elected on a very clear manifesto to come out of the

:09:37. > :09:39.European Union, to come out of the single market and as the leader of

:09:40. > :09:43.the Labour Party has said to come out of the customs union as well.

:09:44. > :09:47.Nothing could be clearer than that and I think what the people of this

:09:48. > :09:52.country want us to do is to get on and deliver a great Brexit and with

:09:53. > :10:01.the support of members opposite, I have no doubt that we can achieve

:10:02. > :10:04.it. Ben Bradshaw. A transition period of three years during which

:10:05. > :10:15.we will remain under the jury system at the ECJ. Neither the Secretary of

:10:16. > :10:20.State has said any such thing. Cue him being called second, I am not

:10:21. > :10:27.sure he minds. Hilary Benn. In March, the Foreign Secretary said

:10:28. > :10:31.leaving the EU with no deal would be perfectly OK. However, last month

:10:32. > :10:37.the Chancellor of the Exchequer said that would be a very, very bad

:10:38. > :10:40.outcome for Britain. Since the two positions are clearly completely

:10:41. > :10:44.contradictory, who should the British public believe? I think what

:10:45. > :10:48.the British public can take from both the Chancellor and myself and

:10:49. > :10:52.indeed from the vast majority of Labour members opposite, as I

:10:53. > :10:57.understand, their position, that we all want to get on and do the deal

:10:58. > :11:05.and do the best deal possible and to leave the EU. Mr John Barron. The

:11:06. > :11:12.Australian Government which negotiated free-trade deals with

:11:13. > :11:15.China, Japan and South Korea in very short order by focusing on trade

:11:16. > :11:20.itself, rather getting bogged down in disputes rather to standings and

:11:21. > :11:24.legalities and regulations. I agree very much with what my right

:11:25. > :11:29.honourable friend has said and I think with a bit of gumption and a

:11:30. > :11:32.bit of positive energy, there is no limit to what we can achieve and we

:11:33. > :11:37.should get on and do it and of course we cannot ink in the

:11:38. > :11:45.free-trade deals now but we can certainly pencil in the outline.

:11:46. > :11:49.Yesterday, the Prime Minister 's spokesman was reported as saying the

:11:50. > :11:53.transition rules could involve the European Court of Justice for a

:11:54. > :11:57.limited time, that is a matter for negotiation. That was the quake that

:11:58. > :12:00.was reported. Can the Foreign Secretary confirmed this change in

:12:01. > :12:07.Government policy and set out the rationale behind it? We are in the

:12:08. > :12:13.negotiation whose objective is to out from under the penumbra of the

:12:14. > :12:14.European Court of Justice outside the EU legal order and that is what

:12:15. > :12:24.we will achieve. Since we joined the Common Market

:12:25. > :12:34.until the date we leave, we will have given the EU a total of ?209

:12:35. > :12:39.billion. Will the Foreign Secretary make it clear that if they want a

:12:40. > :12:43.penny more, they can go and whistle? I am sure my honourable friend the's

:12:44. > :12:47.words will have broke like a thunderclap over Brussels and they

:12:48. > :12:55.will pay attention to what he has said, and he makes a very valid

:12:56. > :12:58.point. I think these sermons I have seen that they proposed to demand

:12:59. > :13:03.from this country seem to me at extortionate, and I think to go

:13:04. > :13:09.whistle is an appropriate expression. Will the Secretary of

:13:10. > :13:14.State ensure in the spirit of cooperation the final Brexit deal is

:13:15. > :13:17.endorsed by the devolved parliaments before it assigned? About as the

:13:18. > :13:23.honourable gentleman knows very well, we work closely with the

:13:24. > :13:26.ministerial committee to bring in the devolved administrations and to

:13:27. > :13:33.make sure the great deal we are going to get has their endorsement

:13:34. > :13:38.and their approval. Further to the question from the right honourable

:13:39. > :13:41.gentleman for Leeds Central, did my right honourable friend he had a

:13:42. > :13:44.report on the today programme this morning that other European leaders

:13:45. > :13:49.were making it clear that they would not accept a deal on any terms, does

:13:50. > :13:54.he share my view that what is sauce for the goose is sauce for the

:13:55. > :14:03.gander? May I congratulate my honourable friend on his sixth

:14:04. > :14:07.child? Many congratulations on that. He makes a good point about the

:14:08. > :14:12.negotiation stance of our friends and partners across the Channel.

:14:13. > :14:16.They do sound at the moment they are pretty hard over, as we see in the

:14:17. > :14:21.Foreign Office, but I have no doubt in the fullness of time, a

:14:22. > :14:24.suddenness will descend and a willingness to compromise, because a

:14:25. > :14:31.great Brexit deal, a grapefruit trade deal, a deep and special

:14:32. > :14:35.partnership is in our interest -- great deal. Given the given the

:14:36. > :14:39.prime Mr's appeal to these benches to help her out, where does the

:14:40. > :14:45.Foreign Secretary field there are areas for compromise? As I said, I

:14:46. > :14:53.think the striking thing about this debate is how much unanimity there

:14:54. > :14:59.is between the two sides of the chamber on the fundamental

:15:00. > :15:02.questions. I've been very struck by the right honourable gentleman, the

:15:03. > :15:07.leader of the Labour Party, he seems to be very much on all fours with

:15:08. > :15:14.the objectives of the Brexit... I don't wish... He very much agrees

:15:15. > :15:22.with the position we are taken, they hope to see him in the lobbies with

:15:23. > :15:25.us. I hate to disagree with the Foreign Secretary. While he is right

:15:26. > :15:30.to say the Leader of the Opposition is fully behind the government, and

:15:31. > :15:34.these benches are fully behind the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary,

:15:35. > :15:39.it is the opposition that is hopelessly split on this issue. Is

:15:40. > :15:46.that not hindering the government's negotiating position? It is not for

:15:47. > :15:52.me to comments on the ability of the Labour leader to control his party,

:15:53. > :15:56.I take it they are all following Labour policy, which is to come out

:15:57. > :16:01.of the EU, come out of the single market. If they aren't, they can

:16:02. > :16:06.stand up now and buy their questions portray their position. They are

:16:07. > :16:09.supporting the will of the British people as expressed last year. If

:16:10. > :16:17.they wish to dissent from that, now is the time. Can I start by

:16:18. > :16:22.welcoming the new Foreign Office front bench in their positions? Back

:16:23. > :16:28.in July last year, I wrongly accused them of being an all-male team. If

:16:29. > :16:33.only I'd waited a year. I would have been correct. Mr Speaker, talking of

:16:34. > :16:38.female Tory MPs, the member of the Newton Abbot use a disgusting racist

:16:39. > :16:41.phrase in her Commons at the East India club. I hope the Foreign

:16:42. > :16:46.Secretary will join me in condemning them. I hope you will agree

:16:47. > :16:53.offensive language deriving from the era of American slavery has no place

:16:54. > :16:57.in modern society. The member of Dean Abed was trying to ask a valid

:16:58. > :17:02.question. A question about what would happen if Britain fails to

:17:03. > :17:05.reach a deal -- Newton Abbot. Can I asked the Foreign Secretary to

:17:06. > :17:11.answer that question today? Can he explain what that no deal option

:17:12. > :17:15.would mean to the people and businesses of Great Britain? As I've

:17:16. > :17:20.said before, I think the chances of such an outcome of vanishingly

:17:21. > :17:23.unlikely, since it is manifestly in the interests of both sides of the

:17:24. > :17:27.Channel to get a great free trade deal and new special partnership

:17:28. > :17:34.between us and the European Union, and that is what we will achieve.

:17:35. > :17:41.Unfortunately, it leaves us in on the wiser, it is baffling, it is the

:17:42. > :17:45.Prime Minister, at least for now, he decided to put the deal of the no

:17:46. > :17:48.deal option on the table. She couldn't stop using the phrase

:17:49. > :17:51.Junior election campaign, and now are me ask what it means in

:17:52. > :17:57.practice, they refuse to tell us. The Foreign Office, the Foreign

:17:58. > :18:01.Affairs Committee said in December, I quote, the government should

:18:02. > :18:04.produce a new deal plan identifying the likely consequences, and making

:18:05. > :18:09.proposals to mitigate potential risks. Anything else would be a

:18:10. > :18:16.dereliction of duty. We cannot have a repeat... Order. I apologise the

:18:17. > :18:19.interesting here, but he needs to bring herself a single sentence,

:18:20. > :18:25.because there are lots of colleagues who want to take place. Is normally

:18:26. > :18:30.succinct. Return to form. Given a plan to no deal would be worse than

:18:31. > :18:33.that dereliction of duty, can I asked the Foreign Secretary to spell

:18:34. > :18:40.out what no deal would mean, can you reassure as it is not, at a very

:18:41. > :18:47.least he has a private plan to manage the risk? There is no plan

:18:48. > :18:52.because we will get a great deal. Just for the sake of example and

:18:53. > :18:57.alliteration, I would remind the honourable lady that there was a

:18:58. > :19:07.time, I old enough to remember it, when Britain was not in what we call

:19:08. > :19:11.the Common Market. Foreign officials are working closely with colleagues

:19:12. > :19:16.to prepare for the 400th anniversary, nine please Oliver

:19:17. > :19:20.Colville, the former member for Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport, has

:19:21. > :19:22.been appointed chair by the Prime Minister, and they will make the

:19:23. > :19:25.most of the opportunity to commemorate the legacy of the

:19:26. > :19:32.pilgrims and the special relationship. Well, Mrs Biggar, I

:19:33. > :19:38.thought the Prime Minister wanted help from the opposition bench -- Mr

:19:39. > :19:46.Speaker. I'm here available. The re-elected co-chair of the pilgrims

:19:47. > :19:54.group. I was prepared to offer my services to take on this role rather

:19:55. > :20:01.than on parliamentarians. Nevertheless, can the good people

:20:02. > :20:05.expect support from this government as promised by George Osborne to

:20:06. > :20:10.properly celebrate the fact that the pilgrims and their legacy, including

:20:11. > :20:18.the modern United States, originates in battered hall? At least eating

:20:19. > :20:22.claim that it has strong coastal links, but we do welcome already his

:20:23. > :20:27.contribution to the House by the comments he made on the 9th of

:20:28. > :20:31.March, reminding us of the anniversary, it will be an historic

:20:32. > :20:34.opportunity for us to celebrate. Across the sows, we will think of

:20:35. > :20:39.every possible way in which we can do so to best effect. The importance

:20:40. > :20:47.of the anniversary can hardly be overstated. Would it not be a more

:20:48. > :20:51.suitable dates for a state visit from the president of the United

:20:52. > :20:57.States to have it in 2020 to mark this, rather than in the months to

:20:58. > :21:01.come? I note the suggestion, but that matter is already in train, and

:21:02. > :21:13.the visit offered to the president stands. I thank my right honourable

:21:14. > :21:17.friend because the UK is in the lead on this issue helping Ukraine to

:21:18. > :21:21.make the vital reforms that need to do and to continue on a cracking

:21:22. > :21:27.down on corruption, which is so important if we are to encourage a

:21:28. > :21:31.long-term and continued investment in a successful Ukraine. Can I

:21:32. > :21:35.congratulate my right honourable friend on the organisation last week

:21:36. > :21:41.of the Ukraine reform conference in London? It demonstrates that Britain

:21:42. > :21:49.will continue to play a leading role on the world stage. But can he

:21:50. > :21:53.confirm that whilst Ukraine still faces major challenges, progress is

:21:54. > :21:59.being made in areas like tackling corruption, and canny see what more

:22:00. > :22:02.we can do to assist them? May I get the ball back over the net by

:22:03. > :22:08.congratulating my right honourable friend on the coming chair on the

:22:09. > :22:12.Ukraine all-party group? We all in this House have a clear interest in

:22:13. > :22:18.a strong and successful Ukraine, not why we've invested another 33

:22:19. > :22:21.million in helping Ukrainians to tackle the problems of governance.

:22:22. > :22:28.The House should be in no doubt about what is going on in Ukraine.

:22:29. > :22:32.This is an arm wrestle, if you like, between two value systems come our

:22:33. > :22:38.way of looking at the world and the Russian way, and it is vital for our

:22:39. > :22:41.continent and vital for this country that Alloway prevails, and we're

:22:42. > :22:53.British help, I believe it is prevailing and will prevail. So far

:22:54. > :22:57.there has in a single sign of all the efforts Britain has rightly made

:22:58. > :22:59.in relation to Ukraine, paying dividends in terms of Russia

:23:00. > :23:08.stopping its corrupt meddling in that country. He is right the fault

:23:09. > :23:13.lies with Russia, they annexed Crimea, they drive the problem in

:23:14. > :23:19.the Donbas region. What you are seeing from the UK, and by the way,

:23:20. > :23:22.we are contributing the efforts to stave off that Russian military

:23:23. > :23:30.meddling with a non-lethal equipment that we've agreed to send to

:23:31. > :23:34.Ukraine. But more importantly, we are engaging, held the Ukrainians to

:23:35. > :23:38.sort out their domestic, political scene, to crack down on Russia. To

:23:39. > :23:44.be fair to Ukrainians, they aren't only seeing 4% growth, depending on

:23:45. > :23:48.the figures you believe, but they have made more progress in cracking

:23:49. > :23:51.down on corruption in the last three years than in the last 25 years. A

:23:52. > :24:00.very different country is being born. Our bilateral relationship is

:24:01. > :24:03.strong because it is a deep bond of friendship rooted in our shared

:24:04. > :24:07.histories and common values. We look forward to strengthening those ties

:24:08. > :24:11.over the coming years and have agreed to hold regular strategic

:24:12. > :24:17.talks to maximise the full potential of this important bilateral

:24:18. > :24:21.relationship. I thank the Minister that response. Canadian investment

:24:22. > :24:26.is important and my consistency and across the UK. As we move forward in

:24:27. > :24:29.leaving the EU, seeking a free-trade deal with Canada, however

:24:30. > :24:35.relationship will be more important, as is specifically our relationship

:24:36. > :24:38.with the provincial governments. Do we have the network in place across

:24:39. > :24:44.Canada to make sure we are making the best of those relationships? On

:24:45. > :24:48.behalf the House, I express our sympathy to all those in British

:24:49. > :24:54.Columbia who been affected by the damaging wildfires in that province.

:24:55. > :24:57.Our Consulate general in Calgary, Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver do

:24:58. > :25:02.work for a provincial governments to increase bilateral trade,

:25:03. > :25:06.particularly in the infrastructure sector. We are working across all

:25:07. > :25:09.levels of the Canadian government to ensure British companies can take

:25:10. > :25:15.full advantage of the opportunities offered by the Canada EU, rent of

:25:16. > :25:22.economic and trade agreement. Is he not aware, I have strong family

:25:23. > :25:27.relationships and Canada, is he not aware that senior diplomats in

:25:28. > :25:32.Canada are absolutely aghast at the way in which this government is

:25:33. > :25:38.handling our withdrawal from Europe and its impact on world trade? They

:25:39. > :25:44.believe the swashbuckling sector ministers are not the right people.

:25:45. > :25:49.I have to say, positive energy and gumption won't give us a good deal

:25:50. > :25:55.in Europe. We need people who have a eye for detail, this Foreign

:25:56. > :25:57.Secretary has no idea about detail! I simply don't recognise the

:25:58. > :26:02.analysis right honourable gentleman has offered the House on any matter

:26:03. > :26:08.he's just mention. May I say, I think I were opportunities for

:26:09. > :26:15.future trade with Canada will be enormous once we've left the

:26:16. > :26:20.European Union. I thank the Minister, 2017 marks the 150th

:26:21. > :26:24.anniversary of the Canadian Confederation, and our two nations

:26:25. > :26:28.face together some of the most difficult challenges in our history

:26:29. > :26:31.in that period. Will he agree that actually with those relationships,

:26:32. > :26:36.provides a great relationship to build on and reject the nonsense we

:26:37. > :26:42.just heard? Yes, I agree emphatically. We also offer our

:26:43. > :26:45.congratulations to Canada on the anniversary of Canadian

:26:46. > :26:49.Confederation. We are please the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of

:26:50. > :26:53.Cornwall were able to join celebrations in Ottawa to mark the

:26:54. > :26:57.celebration. On a practical basis, the Foreign Secretary met Foreign

:26:58. > :27:02.Minister last week and agreed to hold talks to ensure we can maximise

:27:03. > :27:06.the full potential of this important and close by that relationship way

:27:07. > :27:15.beyond the expectations of the right honourable gentleman opposite.

:27:16. > :27:22.Thank you, Mr Speaker. We have a strong and wide-ranging relationship

:27:23. > :27:24.with the Philippines on prosperity, education and security issue.

:27:25. > :27:28.Ministerial visits to the Philippines and annual high-level

:27:29. > :27:33.talks between officials help a graph that corporation. Most recently, my

:27:34. > :27:37.right honourable friend was there as recently as last December and this

:27:38. > :27:44.enables us to discuss concerns about human rights was pursuing closer

:27:45. > :27:52.diplomatic and trade links. Mr Speaker, my skin constituency has

:27:53. > :27:58.been held in Philippines since 2008. Sentence on to produce foreign

:27:59. > :28:02.employment defence. They have failed to acknowledge a clemency request

:28:03. > :28:05.despite his poor health. Concerns about the safety of the institution

:28:06. > :28:07.and his parents worried they will not see him again. Well my

:28:08. > :28:14.honourable friend set out what is being done to support his family's

:28:15. > :28:20.efforts to bring him home? May I thank for his work over the

:28:21. > :28:24.many years on behalf of Mr Taylor's parents in North Swindon. We have

:28:25. > :28:28.been providing ongoing well for support to Kevin Taylor since his

:28:29. > :28:32.arrest almost ten years ago. Most recently a visit in prison and we

:28:33. > :28:39.have liaised with his parents only yesterday. Our consulates are bought

:28:40. > :28:42.as extended to delivering funds and vitamins, medical points after Mr

:28:43. > :28:46.Taylor brought his health concerns to our attention. A clemency request

:28:47. > :28:49.was made as recently as 2015 that I reassure my honourable friend we

:28:50. > :28:54.will do our level best to continue this work and I will be in touch

:28:55. > :29:03.without apartment to ask to redouble his efforts in the days ahead. Thank

:29:04. > :29:06.you, Mr Speaker. In the year since the president of Philippines took

:29:07. > :29:11.ASBOs, 13,000 people have been killed. He has threatened to extend

:29:12. > :29:16.martial law across the entire country and last week, he said he

:29:17. > :29:21.would eat the livers of terrorists with salt and vinegar. But the

:29:22. > :29:25.Secretary of State for International Development claims that Britain has

:29:26. > :29:28.shared values with the president. Could the Minister tell the House

:29:29. > :29:33.which values we share with the President? The honourable lady will

:29:34. > :29:38.recognise the shared values in relation to international trade and

:29:39. > :29:42.we need to recognise that. Indeed with all dedication, it is not an

:29:43. > :29:45.issue of ditching anything else, I, like the honourable lady, concerned

:29:46. > :29:52.about the high death toll in the war on illegal drugs has come to a head

:29:53. > :29:54.in his role. We have been urging much more thorough independent

:29:55. > :29:59.instigation at all violent deaths that have taken place I would say

:30:00. > :30:03.that from our perspective, we have repeatedly and will continue to

:30:04. > :30:06.raise human rights concerns with the administration and I will be doing

:30:07. > :30:17.so with Manila and I have at some to be visiting to make light of the

:30:18. > :30:23.Kaci made. -- the case she has made. Pay tribute to the campaigns on the

:30:24. > :30:27.subject, our policy in relationship to Zimbabwe kiddies used to be to

:30:28. > :30:35.balance out the best days of the horrifying record of Bieber Gabi

:30:36. > :30:39.regime -- Mugabe and the people have suffered terribly over the last 40

:30:40. > :30:47.years. Can I welcome the honourable member to his position and wish him

:30:48. > :30:51.every success in it? $53 million was spent by Mugabe on private travel

:30:52. > :30:55.overseas last year, the same time the United Kingdom paying

:30:56. > :30:59.proportionally more in UK aid to that country than any other country

:31:00. > :31:04.in Africa. Does he think that perhaps with the election is coming

:31:05. > :31:08.next year and Mugabe refusing to permit the 20 13th Constitution, now

:31:09. > :31:17.is the time to put some of that money into helping voter education

:31:18. > :31:21.in those rural areas can show? Thank you, Mr Speaker. The answer is that

:31:22. > :31:25.I agree. We are trying to balance a very difficult thing which is the

:31:26. > :31:28.terrible performance of the Mugabe regime with a country where people

:31:29. > :31:34.have been dying of cholera, suffering extreme him a humour tarry

:31:35. > :31:40.in need. Focusing on free and fair elections is one of the first things

:31:41. > :31:46.we can do in a country like Zimbabwe. The policy of incremental

:31:47. > :31:50.engagement with Zimbabwe is the be best, sometimes an unpalatable best

:31:51. > :31:54.policy. But with the Minister consider in the near term actually

:31:55. > :31:58.visiting Zimbabwe, which would be a great step forward and prospered the

:31:59. > :32:05.UK in a better position for relationships longer term? The

:32:06. > :32:12.honourable member has huge expertise is African Minister. The decision on

:32:13. > :32:15.whether or not I as a minister were to visit Zimbabwe depends a great

:32:16. > :32:18.deal on the genuine commitment to the Zimbabwe Government towards

:32:19. > :32:21.reform and I will be guided by the ambassador of the country as to when

:32:22. > :32:27.such a visit would be necessary and possible.

:32:28. > :32:30.Number eight. We are in costs contact with our

:32:31. > :32:34.international counterparts, including most recently at the

:32:35. > :32:38.organisation of American States summit last month. I issued a very

:32:39. > :32:42.strong statement on the 6th of July, utterly condemning the 5th of July

:32:43. > :32:46.attack on Venezuela's national assembly and its elected members and

:32:47. > :32:49.calling for the Venezuelan Government to uphold the

:32:50. > :32:52.Constitution and show respect for democratic institutions and the

:32:53. > :32:57.statement was echoed by many political colleagues across the

:32:58. > :33:01.world mark. Thank you, Mr Speaker. The Leader of

:33:02. > :33:05.the Opposition described the regime in Venezuela is offering an

:33:06. > :33:13.alternative agenda from which we could learn. The alternative agenda

:33:14. > :33:17.has seen the economy collapse, poverty increase, dozens of people,

:33:18. > :33:22.scores of people killed in civil unrest and now an attempt to

:33:23. > :33:24.undermine both the elected Congress and the independent Attorney

:33:25. > :33:28.General. Will my right honourable friend confirm that Her Majesty's

:33:29. > :33:34.Government strongly condemns the attempt by the regime to rewrite the

:33:35. > :33:39.constitution and rock out democracy? The Leader of the Opposition does

:33:40. > :33:43.seem to be a great fan of the Venezuelan Government. A passable

:33:44. > :33:47.impression himself as Fidel Castro won sometimes things. What is

:33:48. > :33:51.happening to the Venezuelan economy gives us a very clear indication of

:33:52. > :33:56.what would happen to the UK economy if ever the right honourable

:33:57. > :34:00.gentleman were Prime Minister. Mr Speaker, what practical steps

:34:01. > :34:04.have been taken to deal with famine on the border between Venezuela and

:34:05. > :34:08.Colombia by the British Government? There are no easy such attempts. We

:34:09. > :34:11.do not have a bilateral programme that are in touch with the United

:34:12. > :34:16.Nations. But the very question of the honourable lady does illustrate

:34:17. > :34:20.the extent to which the Venezuelan Government has driven their own

:34:21. > :34:25.people to poverty, running very short of some of the most basic

:34:26. > :34:31.goods on which they have to live. Number nine, Mr Speaker.

:34:32. > :34:37.Mr Speaker. We readily raise these issues with Israel, calling for a

:34:38. > :34:42.reversal of the policy of settlement expansion. I reiterated that in the

:34:43. > :34:44.House of Commons last week but also recently both the Foreign Secretary

:34:45. > :34:48.and myself have made statements strongly condemning proposals the

:34:49. > :34:56.new settlement expansion in both the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

:34:57. > :34:58.Mr Speaker, only last week the right-wing Israeli Government

:34:59. > :35:03.announced a further expansion of the illegal settlement programme so it

:35:04. > :35:07.is clear that whatever action the British Government is taking, it is

:35:08. > :35:14.not working. It is not time Her Majesty's Government to more

:35:15. > :35:18.response to this problem? Ensuring the proper labelling of all

:35:19. > :35:22.importing goods so that they are designated as coming from an

:35:23. > :35:25.illegally occupied Palestinian territory.

:35:26. > :35:30.This is a long and difficult process, as the honourable gentleman

:35:31. > :35:33.rightly dies. We have a policy in relation to labelling and continued

:35:34. > :35:36.conversations will go on with the state of Israel in relation to, as

:35:37. > :35:42.last week, the suggestion that the edge of the new housing units being

:35:43. > :35:45.built and East Jerusalem. But it is a complex process, the United

:35:46. > :35:48.Kingdom does not believe in boycotts of sanctions, but clear labelling

:35:49. > :35:53.has been that the sometimes consumers can take their choice.

:35:54. > :35:57.We have contributed to a number of structures, EU structures that have

:35:58. > :36:04.been demolished. Will he asked the Government of Israel for our money

:36:05. > :36:09.back? Mr Speaker, I think my right honourable friend is referring to

:36:10. > :36:11.some work done by the EU. The EU has not sought compensation from the

:36:12. > :36:17.state of Israel in relation to this and no decision has been taken on

:36:18. > :36:20.any further action. Settlements are a barrier but they

:36:21. > :36:23.are far from the only barrier to peace. The building blocks for the

:36:24. > :36:31.peace process is our trade and economic development in the West

:36:32. > :36:35.Bank and supports the coexistent projects to get them working

:36:36. > :36:38.together. Funding for which, I'm afraid, this Government has stopped.

:36:39. > :36:43.Can I asked the minister whether he will reinstate funding to the

:36:44. > :36:45.coexistent projects to build the priest projects? The honourable

:36:46. > :36:52.gentleman understands this issue extremely well and a extreme

:36:53. > :36:56.bill-mac -- I agree there are building blocks and settlements are

:36:57. > :37:00.by far from the only barrier in relations to that. Trade and

:37:01. > :37:05.investment remains very important. We will be looking further out what

:37:06. > :37:08.prospects are for any new initiatives. I'm aware of the

:37:09. > :37:11.coexistent projects that he mentions and certainly I will be having a

:37:12. > :37:18.look about wearing my joint responsibilities.

:37:19. > :37:22.Mr Speaker, we are glad to see the Mr back working on this issue. But

:37:23. > :37:26.this is the second time in the space of a week when the Foreign Secretary

:37:27. > :37:33.has declined to speak about middle east and evolve the job to him

:37:34. > :37:37.instead. And that follows his failure even to mention Israel or

:37:38. > :37:41.Palestine in the Tory election manifesto. So I simply ask the

:37:42. > :37:43.Minister, when are we going to hear the Foreign Secretary stand up and

:37:44. > :37:51.condemn these new illegal settlements? The other day, this

:37:52. > :37:55.week. I did it this week. Can I find the honourable lady for her warm

:37:56. > :37:59.welcome and enjoy being back in this role, no matter what is broken at me

:38:00. > :38:05.in response to it. Can I say the Foreign Secretary strongly condemned

:38:06. > :38:08.the proposals that were announced at the West Bank quite recently. But I

:38:09. > :38:15.like to feel he has confidence in his Minister for the Middle East. As

:38:16. > :38:18.he has confidence in his soul missed a team to answer appropriate

:38:19. > :38:24.questions but I have never known him to be shy of answering a question

:38:25. > :38:32.when necessary. Question Time, Mr Speaker. Thank you, Mr Speaker.

:38:33. > :38:36.United Kingdom was instrumental, Mr Speaker, in securing the Paris

:38:37. > :38:39.agreement on climate change. We are helping other countries to meet

:38:40. > :38:44.their targets and we are confident that we will be able to meet our own

:38:45. > :38:50.ground-breaking target of reducing emissions by 18% by 2050. I thank

:38:51. > :38:55.the Foreign Secretary for his answer. Last week, Downing Street

:38:56. > :38:59.said the primers are intended to challenge President Trump on climate

:39:00. > :39:02.change at the G20 meeting. With this and how have been better done before

:39:03. > :39:08.he announced he was pulling out of the Paris agreement than after? As I

:39:09. > :39:12.have told the House before, we made our views very clear to the US

:39:13. > :39:17.administration, repeatedly we have expressed dismay that they have

:39:18. > :39:21.withdrawn. But on the other hand, I think all members on both sides of

:39:22. > :39:27.the House should acknowledge in all fairness that the United States has

:39:28. > :39:30.made and continues to make, even under this initiation, continues to

:39:31. > :39:42.make substantial progress in reducing greenhouse gases. This

:39:43. > :39:48.country has reduced CO2 by 42% since 1990, despite a 67% increase in GDP.

:39:49. > :39:56.The United States has achieved, report progress and we intend to

:39:57. > :40:00.encourage them on that path. Following the isolation of Donald

:40:01. > :40:06.Trump at last week G20 Summit, on the issue of the Paris agreement,

:40:07. > :40:14.further postponement of the trip to the UK, can I ask the sexual simple

:40:15. > :40:19.question. Does the Government regard President John is the leader of the

:40:20. > :40:30.free world, is so, how would they rate the job he is doing... As a

:40:31. > :40:35.mark out of ten? -- president Trump. We certainly regard the achievement

:40:36. > :40:40.of the Prime Minister as considerable as getting the US

:40:41. > :40:47.president to sign up actually to the G20 agreement on climate change, as

:40:48. > :40:50.she did. She is instrumental in getting the Americans to endorse.

:40:51. > :40:55.Getting the Americans to sign up to the communique and I think members

:40:56. > :40:57.on all sides of the House will appreciate that whatever

:40:58. > :41:01.disagreements they have with the current incumbent of the White

:41:02. > :41:07.House, the president of the United States is the leader of our most

:41:08. > :41:11.important ally and he deserves that and respect for the consideration of

:41:12. > :41:22.this country. Question 11, Mr Speaker. With the Foreign

:41:23. > :41:25.Secretary's permission, ensuring the promotion of human rights and

:41:26. > :41:29.engaging with this next essential part of the global policy of

:41:30. > :41:35.Britain, ministers meet their cultivars readily and raise issues,

:41:36. > :41:40.gender equality, modern slavery, freedom of belief and religion, the

:41:41. > :41:43.death penalty and torture. It is an essential part is who we are the

:41:44. > :41:52.United Kingdom and the Foreign Commonwealth Office. Back in March,

:41:53. > :42:03.the UN human rights Council to commit atrocities. Women being raped

:42:04. > :42:07.by the security forces. Does the Minister agree that the perpetrators

:42:08. > :42:12.of such crime be brought to justice as a matter of urgency? And can he

:42:13. > :42:23.tell us what I was recently in Burma and was able

:42:24. > :42:27.to reaffirm the United Kingdom's sport for the Independent United

:42:28. > :42:31.Nations commission. This is a difficult issue being wrestled with

:42:32. > :42:38.by those in Burma. And the UK remains very close to the

:42:39. > :42:43.humanitarian needs of the people there. The World Trade Organisation

:42:44. > :42:48.estimates three out only for trade deals include provisions to improve

:42:49. > :42:51.human rights, is what discussions has my honourable friend been having

:42:52. > :42:55.with his colleagues in the Department of trade to make sure our

:42:56. > :43:03.new trade deals include obligations to improve human rights where it is

:43:04. > :43:07.appropriate? My right honourable friend is right, ensuring human

:43:08. > :43:12.rights are an essential part of the future policy of the UK in terms of

:43:13. > :43:15.trade deals. As these issues are raised now, it's an important part

:43:16. > :43:21.of future and will continue to be a key part of our prosperity drive.

:43:22. > :43:30.Following the arrest of amnesty International Turkey director, they

:43:31. > :43:35.are examples of the worrying shift away from respected human rights in

:43:36. > :43:42.Turkey. What steps has the Foreign Secretary himself taken to ensure

:43:43. > :43:48.the immediate and unconditional release of these two people? The

:43:49. > :43:51.right honourable lady knows these issues extremely well. My right

:43:52. > :43:54.honourable friend the Foreign Secretary has raised this with his

:43:55. > :44:02.counterpart on the Prime Minister raise this as the T20 were the

:44:03. > :44:07.president of Turkey -- G20. This remains an important issue. On his

:44:08. > :44:11.recent visit to Burma, did he encourage the Burmese government to

:44:12. > :44:15.allow full access and cooperate fully with the fact-finding machine

:44:16. > :44:22.looking into human rights issues in that country. Yes, indeed. It is a

:44:23. > :44:29.difficult issue but we've made it very clear that the UN independent

:44:30. > :44:34.report need full consideration. We'd urge the government to do all they

:44:35. > :44:37.can to facilitate what the UN needs to complete its work. There is an

:44:38. > :44:39.internal investigation already been carried out by the Burmese

:44:40. > :44:55.government. We have been able to gain access

:44:56. > :44:59.through our console. What efforts are being made to ensure the human

:45:00. > :45:06.rights and the medical needs of the two people in prison are being

:45:07. > :45:11.protected? Mr Speaker, I met with the family last week. I've raised

:45:12. > :45:14.this issue directly with my counterpart, the Deputy Foreign

:45:15. > :45:20.Minister of around, and the Iranian ambassador. We remain concerned

:45:21. > :45:24.about this and other consulate cases involving around. I can assure the

:45:25. > :45:33.lady we will continue to raise these at the highest issue. Briefly from

:45:34. > :45:36.the front bench. As a government celebrated his victory in the High

:45:37. > :45:41.Court over arms sales to Saudi Arabia, number of people affected by

:45:42. > :45:48.the cholera epidemic in Yemen past 300,000. Humanitarian workers face a

:45:49. > :45:52.choice of using it twinkling food supplies to be those children

:45:53. > :45:56.suffering from malnutrition or those infected with cholera. In that

:45:57. > :46:02.context, can the Minister told the House wired the Saudi led Coalition

:46:03. > :46:09.continues to use British bombs to attack farms, food factories and

:46:10. > :46:14.water plants? The judgment by the gorgeous today was unequivocal in

:46:15. > :46:18.saying the United Kingdom had fully fulfilled its obligations under the

:46:19. > :46:22.control of the arms trade. And also the work that was being toured with

:46:23. > :46:25.the kingdom of Saudi Arabia in relation to its response to

:46:26. > :46:29.international humanitarian law was fundamental to that judgment. The

:46:30. > :46:33.situation in Yemen remains a humanitarian disaster, the actor

:46:34. > :46:41.Kingdom is involved in seeking to do all it can, the cholera outbreak has

:46:42. > :46:45.taken some 6500 cases each day. I am pleased we are fully engaged and

:46:46. > :46:57.tried to do all we can to mitigate these actions -- United Kingdom.

:46:58. > :47:04.He is new, I thought I was new, too. I am concerned the democratic

:47:05. > :47:08.freedoms continue to face fundamental restrictions in the

:47:09. > :47:11.Maldives. Pressure, including arrests has grown. Human rights

:47:12. > :47:17.activists, the media art under threat. The government raise these

:47:18. > :47:22.issues frequently with the Maldives government and we led the recent UN

:47:23. > :47:29.statement in the gene human rights Council. My right honourable friend

:47:30. > :47:35.will know that a Coalition of opposition parties in the Maldives,

:47:36. > :47:38.led by the former president, committed to democracy and proving

:47:39. > :47:42.relations with this country, has secured a majority in that country's

:47:43. > :47:48.parliament. Does he share my concern is that the regime may resort to

:47:49. > :47:54.legal means to prevent Parliament from properly functioning in that

:47:55. > :48:00.country? I am very concerned is at that prospect. I have to say, no

:48:01. > :48:03.one's hands in recent years in any part of the political environment in

:48:04. > :48:07.the Maldives have been entirely clean. It has not been a happy

:48:08. > :48:12.situation across the board. The biggest regret we have on this site

:48:13. > :48:16.is the Maldives unilaterally left the Commonwealth in 2016, and I hope

:48:17. > :48:27.a new regime will bring them back into the international regime in

:48:28. > :48:30.this way. Firstly we should pay tribute to what United States has

:48:31. > :48:34.done with its peacekeeping budget. It provides well over a quarter of

:48:35. > :48:40.the global peacekeeping budget. Over $2 billion a year, which has not

:48:41. > :48:45.eligible, so we need to pay tribute and encourage them to play the role,

:48:46. > :48:49.that essential part. And then sticking to the Congressional limit

:48:50. > :48:54.of 25% is vital for the UN peacekeeping operations. Does the

:48:55. > :49:01.Minister agree the loss of financial support from the US will be

:49:02. > :49:12.devastating, such as the world food programme Will they get them to

:49:13. > :49:15.reconsider their planned cuts? It is right, in the current global

:49:16. > :49:21.situation, UN peacekeeping operations are vital. But reforms

:49:22. > :49:26.can be introduced. The move to close on the peacekeeping operation in

:49:27. > :49:30.Ivory Coast, we can reduce costs and peacekeeping. It is vital the States

:49:31. > :49:35.and others continue play a strong role, and support from United States

:49:36. > :49:43.has been vital for the last 50 years and we hope it will continue to be.

:49:44. > :49:49.Topical questions. Can I just remind colleagues in this Parliament,

:49:50. > :49:56.topical questions are sure to be as -- supposed to be shorter. My

:49:57. > :50:00.priority is to help resolve tensions in the Gulf where Britain has all

:50:01. > :50:05.friendships and vital interests, that's why I've just returned from

:50:06. > :50:08.visits to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and cut. I reinforce the need for

:50:09. > :50:15.dialogue. I will the summit in Trieste tomorrow, whether UK is

:50:16. > :50:24.playing a vital role in guaranteeing stability and resisting Russian

:50:25. > :50:28.ambitions. Yesterday in Kashmir, seven Hindu pilgrims were brutally

:50:29. > :50:34.murdered by terrorists, including five women whilst undergoing it.

:50:35. > :50:39.What action has my right honourable friend taken to condemn this

:50:40. > :50:47.outrage? Waterboard will he give to recovering and bringing to justice

:50:48. > :50:52.the terrorists who we believe are in Pakistan -- what will he give? The

:50:53. > :51:00.whole issue is something we are in close contact with. I give the

:51:01. > :51:04.issuer and we will bring this up in the course of the next 24 hours and

:51:05. > :51:08.as for a plan of action in the wake he has asked. Does the Foreign

:51:09. > :51:12.Secretary agree that if there's to be an extension of military action

:51:13. > :51:17.in Syria, there should be a full debate and vote in this House? That

:51:18. > :51:23.is for the Leader of the House to consider, I can tell him that no

:51:24. > :51:28.such request has been made. I must say I think the difference in the

:51:29. > :51:32.current American administration's attitude, many people on the other

:51:33. > :51:44.side of the House, is to be welcomed. As America appears to be

:51:45. > :51:48.volunteering we surrendering power, and from the main platform of our

:51:49. > :51:53.interest in the several decades, it is not vital the Foreign Office

:51:54. > :52:00.address is substantially to beef up our dramatic effort so we may retain

:52:01. > :52:06.our prosperity, security and our influence abroad? I'm delighted to

:52:07. > :52:12.welcome him to a cause I think is gathering strength across both sides

:52:13. > :52:15.of the House of Commons, everybody understands, global Britain must be

:52:16. > :52:22.properly supported. We have a world-class network of embassies,

:52:23. > :52:28.278, the best foreign service in the world, but they do need proper

:52:29. > :52:31.financing and proper support. The Foreign Secretary has spoken in the

:52:32. > :52:36.past about his ardent opposition to female genital meat elation. We'll

:52:37. > :52:41.he therefore have a word with the Home Secretary who is yet to respond

:52:42. > :52:45.to be -- mutilation. She is threatened with deportation. I raise

:52:46. > :52:55.it with the Prime Minister and have yet to receive an answer. I heard

:52:56. > :52:59.her raised this before. I'm sure the case of her constituent is indeed

:53:00. > :53:04.very troubling. I'm sure the Home Secretary will have picked up what

:53:05. > :53:09.she's had to say today. I welcome the part played by purchase forces

:53:10. > :53:13.in stabilising the threat posed by Daesh. What does he and British

:53:14. > :53:21.forces for ensuring that such an insurgency does not recur? I thank

:53:22. > :53:27.him for an excellent question. It is one thing but others to drive Daesh

:53:28. > :53:35.out of Ozil, but we must make sure the reasons they sprouted in those

:53:36. > :53:44.cities do not recur and that this study -- the Sunni minority have the

:53:45. > :53:48.confidence in their country. Not since the Suez crisis has a UK

:53:49. > :53:52.Government been so combines of the defeated at the United Nations, as

:53:53. > :53:57.it was last week. In this week's spirit of bipartisan cooperation,

:53:58. > :54:04.should the Foreign Secretary would not grant the right of return? I

:54:05. > :54:09.must respectfully disagree with the gentleman opposite. We secured

:54:10. > :54:14.rather more positive votes than we had expected. As it happens, the

:54:15. > :54:20.other side of the case got fewer than half the members of the UN in

:54:21. > :54:22.support of their cause. I think that most impartial observers of the

:54:23. > :54:26.matter would agree their case has been substantially weakened as a

:54:27. > :54:35.result, not that it was a strong case to begin with. Last week

:54:36. > :54:38.Palestinian president said he would continue paying prisoner salaries to

:54:39. > :54:42.people who are murdered innocent civilians. Does the Foreign

:54:43. > :54:48.Secretary agree with me that there is nowhere we will have peace in the

:54:49. > :54:55.Middle East unless there are projects and support for coexistence

:54:56. > :54:58.on the Palestinian side? My honourable friend is right, there

:54:59. > :55:03.are a number of barriers on the Palestinian side to be able to make

:55:04. > :55:07.progress. Support for incitement and terror is one of those, we are

:55:08. > :55:11.looking carefully to make sure no payments go in the wrong direction.

:55:12. > :55:15.It is true the Palestinian authority need to look very hard to make sure

:55:16. > :55:16.it is not giving the wrong signals as we try to make progress on the

:55:17. > :55:29.middle East peace process. Will the Minister pick up the phone

:55:30. > :55:35.to the opposite numbers in India, do a deal to get the men deported so we

:55:36. > :55:39.can have a pint in Chester before the summer is out? I do appreciate

:55:40. > :55:44.the persistent with which he campaigns from his constituents, and

:55:45. > :55:49.his raise it with me. I have in turn raises myself personally with my

:55:50. > :55:54.Indian counterparts. What they say to me is they cannot interfere in

:55:55. > :55:58.their own court system anymore than we can interfere in our own

:55:59. > :56:05.quarters. That is where the massacre of your stance, but I want to assure

:56:06. > :56:11.him we continue to raise him on that issue.

:56:12. > :56:18.Does my right arm friend agree we have, as we leave the EU, a great

:56:19. > :56:21.opportunity to boost our mutual trade and security interests by

:56:22. > :56:26.enhancing our diplomatic relations with Ghana and other Commonwealth

:56:27. > :56:31.countries? I want to pay tribute to the right honourable member, Ghana

:56:32. > :56:36.is one of the most impressive recent of ultimate in Africa, three recent

:56:37. > :56:41.transitions of democratic power, a rapidly growing economy and huge

:56:42. > :56:43.example of how we moved to the Commonwealth, the Commonwealth can

:56:44. > :56:51.become one of the great success stories of Britain's next five

:56:52. > :56:55.years. The Paralympic games in Rio were a great success, showing

:56:56. > :56:59.inspirational talent and importance of sports included worldwide. What

:57:00. > :57:02.discussions has a foreign of us had with Japanese counterparts to lend

:57:03. > :57:07.our full support to the Tokyo Paralympic games going forward?

:57:08. > :57:18.I thank you right honourable lady for her question. A huge amount of

:57:19. > :57:21.work is going on. But also very importantly, she rightly says, the

:57:22. > :57:27.Shia organisation and we are working very closely to make sure there is a

:57:28. > :57:30.seamless progress between 2012. I think it is going to be a great

:57:31. > :57:36.success, the Paralympic games in Tokyo. In the next few weeks, the HR

:57:37. > :57:40.Government from Libya are coming over here to visit the UK. I am

:57:41. > :57:43.wondering if my right honourable friend or any of the friend bench

:57:44. > :57:47.would like to meet them when they come over here because they play a

:57:48. > :57:53.pivotal role in keeping peace in Libya. Mr Speaker, an expansion of

:57:54. > :57:57.the Libyan political agreement we believe is necessary to move matters

:57:58. > :58:01.along. There is a lot happening on the political and business side and

:58:02. > :58:04.Libya as it gets back on its feet. Her be happy to meet those whom I

:58:05. > :58:07.honourable friend wants to bring forward. Given the collapse of the

:58:08. > :58:10.talks in Cyprus and that the Government remains a guarantor of

:58:11. > :58:16.the process, what is the Government going to do now? Mr Speaker, very

:58:17. > :58:20.sadly, the cyber stalks on which people have done so much work for

:58:21. > :58:26.over two years collapse in the early hours of Friday morning. -- these I

:58:27. > :58:30.press talks. This was a once in a generation trustee reunify the

:58:31. > :58:36.island. Sadly it has been missed and rejected so we go back to the status

:58:37. > :58:42.quo and it is enormous pity indeed, a tragedy for future generations

:58:43. > :58:47.that agreement was not reached. In view of the continuing concerns

:58:48. > :58:50.about human rights in Hong Kong, does my right honourable friend the

:58:51. > :58:55.Foreign Secretary intend to make any further representation on the joint

:58:56. > :58:58.declaration? I hope my honourable friend will be assured that the UK

:58:59. > :59:03.has been very active in emphasising the significance of this joint

:59:04. > :59:06.British decoration which is a legally binding treated richly with

:59:07. > :59:10.the UN and continues to be reinforced today. Join my own

:59:11. > :59:14.meeting with the Chinese ambassador I stress the UK's strong commitment

:59:15. > :59:18.to the joint declaration. We urge the Chinese and the Hong Kong and

:59:19. > :59:21.mistress and governors and all politicians in Hong Kong to retain

:59:22. > :59:26.from any actions that Bill Clinton or undermine confidence in the one

:59:27. > :59:32.country two systems principle. The Foreign Secretary has rightly

:59:33. > :59:36.underlined the UK US relations in this new role. The relationship is

:59:37. > :59:41.collect the light by cultural programmes which are now in peril by

:59:42. > :59:46.President Trump's proposal to cut 47% from the budget. Will he make

:59:47. > :59:49.representations to underline how we think the programme should be

:59:50. > :59:53.expanded and pushed to the point of extinction? I stand here as a

:59:54. > :59:57.Kennedy scholar which is a very similar sort of structure and we

:59:58. > :00:01.have a fantastic programme of scholars sponsored by the front

:00:02. > :00:05.office. My right honourable friend has confirmed that he will raise the

:00:06. > :00:11.issue of scholarships with secretary to listen when he next season.

:00:12. > :00:18.With a quart of a million people now refugees as a result of the

:00:19. > :00:21.repression in human rights abuses in that country, what is the Foreign

:00:22. > :00:29.Secretary doing to stimulate dialogue to resolve the political

:00:30. > :00:34.impasse that? The situation in Bindi is very disturbing, we call upon all

:00:35. > :00:40.on the brilliant president to -- upon the President and leading the

:00:41. > :00:45.peace talks in Burundi as in so many countries in the war, the only

:00:46. > :00:52.long-term solution is a political salutes you -- solution to a crisis.

:00:53. > :00:56.Friends of Syria to discuss the desperate need to get more aid to

:00:57. > :01:05.the hundreds of thousands being starved to death in Syria. I thank

:01:06. > :01:08.the honourable gentleman for his persistence in pursuing this cause

:01:09. > :01:12.and he is absolutely right, we have spoken across the chamber many times

:01:13. > :01:17.about the humanitarian crisis in Syria. I will have great pleasure in

:01:18. > :01:21.meeting the Syria group to discuss what the UK is doing by the House

:01:22. > :01:24.will know that this country is the single, the second-biggest

:01:25. > :01:31.contributor of humanity relief aid to Syria in the wild. Whilst I

:01:32. > :01:41.welcome the fact that the Prime Minister raise the issue of the at

:01:42. > :01:45.the G20, can he focuses efforts on the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and

:01:46. > :01:49.seek a meeting with her urgently, it is almost four years have our bodies

:01:50. > :01:55.have been languishing in jail there. I visited them myself. It is time

:01:56. > :02:00.they were brought home. My right honourable friend is absolutely

:02:01. > :02:06.right. He suggests an interesting avenue for further work. I will look

:02:07. > :02:08.at the possibility of talking to the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.

:02:09. > :02:12.Whether we will be more successful in her in making our points, I wore

:02:13. > :02:19.ascertained. We will leave no stone unturned. Mr Speaker, last week at

:02:20. > :02:27.the same time as represented ?57 were meeting in the next, they were

:02:28. > :02:30.convicting a human rights activist the charges on which defence

:02:31. > :02:35.witnesses were not allowed to testify. The defendant was taken to

:02:36. > :02:39.hospital during the trial and it was convicted in his absence. What

:02:40. > :02:44.action the Government is taking to make sure the authorities in

:02:45. > :02:48.Belarus... The most important thing we can do is enhance our bilateral

:02:49. > :02:52.relations by visitor. No minister has visited Belarus for many years

:02:53. > :02:58.and I intend to do so at the earliest opportunity.

:02:59. > :03:06.As well as the physical rebuilding of Mosul, the Iraqi constitution

:03:07. > :03:12.allows for them to regain power, looking at devolving power to the

:03:13. > :03:20.people of Mosul. I am grateful to my honourable friend. He is right that

:03:21. > :03:23.Iraq is an ethnically divided country, religiously divided

:03:24. > :03:29.country, we must make sure that everybody feels properly represented

:03:30. > :03:34.in the new constitution and evolution to Mosul is certainly an

:03:35. > :03:41.option that we will be exploring. Thank you, Mr Speaker. Before he

:03:42. > :03:46.meets the friends of Syria group, will he discussed a comrade is a

:03:47. > :03:48.strategy to protect civilians with the Department for International

:03:49. > :03:53.Development and a Ministry of Defence and we can have a proper

:03:54. > :03:58.joint strategy at last? I can tell the honourable lady that is already

:03:59. > :04:04.happening. Extremely grateful to the Foreign Secretary. I recognise there

:04:05. > :04:07.is so unsatisfied demand but not as much as they might have been if I

:04:08. > :04:11.had not overrun which I was pleased to do and I'm sure the Foreign

:04:12. > :04:20.Secretary was equally enthusiastic. We will now proceed to the statement

:04:21. > :04:24.by the parliament under section of state for business, energy and

:04:25. > :04:25.industrial strategy. Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State Margot

:04:26. > :04:48.James. Thank you, Mr Speaker. Wealth

:04:49. > :04:52.permission, I would like to make a statement about the independent

:04:53. > :04:57.review of model working practices which was led by Matthew Taylor and

:04:58. > :05:01.published earlier today. Mr Speaker, the review said that that British

:05:02. > :05:06.business a success for creating jobs, enhancing earning power and

:05:07. > :05:11.improving life chances across the UK. Employment rates are the highest

:05:12. > :05:14.since records began stop unemployment and economic inactivity

:05:15. > :05:20.record lows. More people are in work than ever before and minimum wage

:05:21. > :05:24.rates have never been higher. This is a story of success and one which

:05:25. > :05:30.this Government will seek to sustain. The UK's economy continued

:05:31. > :05:35.success is built on the flexibility of our labour market, which benefits

:05:36. > :05:39.both workers and business. Businesses can create jobs and

:05:40. > :05:42.individuals can find work because our labour market regulation

:05:43. > :05:47.balances the demands both. Minimum standards set a baseline, beyond

:05:48. > :05:51.which is the air is flexibility to set arrangements to suit all

:05:52. > :05:55.parties. Our dynamic approach responds well to fluctuations in the

:05:56. > :05:59.economic cycle, without the structural weakness is present in

:06:00. > :06:02.some other countries. It is important that we preserve the

:06:03. > :06:09.success, but also enhance it further. While the majority of

:06:10. > :06:13.people employed in the UK are in full-time, permanent employment,

:06:14. > :06:17.globalisation, demographics and especially technology are changing

:06:18. > :06:21.the way in which we work. We need to make sure that the British labour

:06:22. > :06:28.market stays strong and everyone in the UK can benefit from it. And that

:06:29. > :06:31.is why last year, the Prime Minister asked Matthew Taylor, chief

:06:32. > :06:34.executive of the Royal Society of arts, to lead an independent review

:06:35. > :06:39.into employment practices in the modern economy. That review has now

:06:40. > :06:43.been published and I am delighted to lay a copy in the House library

:06:44. > :06:49.today. It is a thorough and detailed piece of work for which I am very

:06:50. > :06:53.grateful. Not only to Matthew and his panel members, but also to the

:06:54. > :06:57.numerous businesses, trade unions, organisations and individuals who

:06:58. > :07:06.have provided their views on this very important topic. The review has

:07:07. > :07:09.a strong overarching ambition, but all work in the UK should be fair

:07:10. > :07:13.and decent with realistic scope for fulfilment and progression. Matthew

:07:14. > :07:18.has outlined seven principles to meeting this ambition and I would

:07:19. > :07:23.urge honourable member is to examine these principles and the rest of the

:07:24. > :07:28.report in detail senses is an important contribution to a crucial

:07:29. > :07:31.subject, but to summarise these principles, they are that our

:07:32. > :07:37.national strategy for work should be explicitly directed towards the goal

:07:38. > :07:42.of good works rural. That platform based working welcomes opportunities

:07:43. > :07:48.for genuine flexibility but there should be greater distinction

:07:49. > :07:51.between workers or, as the review suggests renaming them, depending

:07:52. > :07:55.contractors and those who are fully self-employed. That there should be

:07:56. > :08:03.additional protections for this group and stronger incentives for

:08:04. > :08:07.firms to treat them early. The best way to achieve better wickets to

:08:08. > :08:13.good management and strong employment relations. That is vital

:08:14. > :08:17.that individuals have realistically attainable ways to strengthen their

:08:18. > :08:21.future work prospects. That there should be a more proactive approach

:08:22. > :08:27.to workplace health and the National Living Wage is a powerful tool to

:08:28. > :08:29.raise the financial a sign of low-paid workers but it needs to be

:08:30. > :08:45.accompanied by sexual strategies -- sectoral strategies.

:08:46. > :08:49.While we might not accept every recommendation in full, I am

:08:50. > :08:52.determined that we consider the report very carefully and we will

:08:53. > :08:59.respond fairly by the end of the year. Matthew Taylor has been clear.

:09:00. > :09:03.The UK labour market is a success, the British way works. But he has

:09:04. > :09:09.also said that there are instances where it is not working fairly for

:09:10. > :09:12.everyone. For example, he highlights where our legislation needs updating

:09:13. > :09:18.or where flexibility seems only to work one way, to the benefit of the

:09:19. > :09:26.employer. We recognise the points made. We accept that as a country we

:09:27. > :09:29.now need to focus as much on the quality of the working experience,

:09:30. > :09:36.especially for those in lower paid roles as on the number of jobs we

:09:37. > :09:40.create, vital though that is. This Government has made a commitment to

:09:41. > :09:44.upholding workers' rights, the Prime Minister has said repeatedly in this

:09:45. > :09:50.House and elsewhere that as we leave the EU, there will be no rollback of

:09:51. > :09:52.employment protections. The Queen's speech also says that by this

:09:53. > :09:58.Government will go further than that and will seek to enhance rights and

:09:59. > :10:02.protections in the modern workplace. Today's publication of the good work

:10:03. > :10:07.review and the public consideration of Matthew's recommendations that

:10:08. > :10:10.will follow will help to inform the development of our industrial

:10:11. > :10:18.strategy this autumn and I commend the statement to the House. Thank

:10:19. > :10:21.you, Mr Speaker. When the Prime Minister set took office last year,

:10:22. > :10:27.she stood on the steps of Downing Street, stating that she was on the

:10:28. > :10:30.side of working people. Now, despite this rhetoric, the Conservatives

:10:31. > :10:33.have been in Government now for seven years and in that time, they

:10:34. > :10:40.have done very little for working people. They have presided over a

:10:41. > :10:43.lost decade as product and productivity group, they have

:10:44. > :10:48.implemented the pernicious trade union act, an ideological attack on

:10:49. > :10:50.the train union movement, curbing their ability to fight for Anne

:10:51. > :10:56.Robinson workers interests. They have inflicted hardship on public

:10:57. > :11:00.sector workers with pay cap which has been confirmed yesterday by the

:11:01. > :11:06.Department for Education for yet another year. They promise workers

:11:07. > :11:11.on boards that road back scared when powerful interests that they were

:11:12. > :11:14.not keen on the idea. They have introduced employment tribunal fees

:11:15. > :11:20.which has made it much harder for workers to enforce their rights. So,

:11:21. > :11:23.today, with the publication of the Taylor review, there was a real

:11:24. > :11:28.opportunity to overhaul the existing employment system in a way that

:11:29. > :11:32.would protect workers in a rapidly changing world of work. But in the

:11:33. > :11:37.words of the general secretary of Unite, the biggest union in the UK,

:11:38. > :11:41.instead of this serious programme the country urgently needs to ensure

:11:42. > :11:47.that once again work pays in this country, we got a depressing sense

:11:48. > :11:51.that insecurity is the inedible new norm. Indeed the minister confirm

:11:52. > :11:56.that she might not even accept all of the proposals in the Taylor

:11:57. > :12:02.report in any event. Now, the report was positive in sentiment across

:12:03. > :12:05.many hours and Mrs many offshoots to plant an exploitation in the

:12:06. > :12:09.workplace. I do not have time to cover the more today but I do have

:12:10. > :12:12.specific concerns that the report may allow the Government to

:12:13. > :12:18.interpreted references to the so-called depending contract in

:12:19. > :12:23.order to row back on recent court victories for workers such as Uber

:12:24. > :12:27.drivers and polymers. Recent case law suggested that work on a

:12:28. > :12:33.platform with the entitled to the minimum wage as long as the aptly

:12:34. > :12:39.reached which Diana and the willing to accept trips. In may insist on

:12:40. > :12:43.payment by piece rate, that an average driver working averagely

:12:44. > :12:57.hard will earn 1.2 times the minimum wage.

:12:58. > :13:02.Will the Minister confirmed the government will not undermine

:13:03. > :13:11.workers' rights and the minimum wage in this way? Indeed, Pimlico

:13:12. > :13:16.plumbers's founder has said the report uses them as an example of

:13:17. > :13:21.the best practice. Accompanied which our judicial system found to be an

:13:22. > :13:24.example of worst practice. The report also does very little to

:13:25. > :13:28.strengthen the ability of workers to enforce the rights they already

:13:29. > :13:33.have. Whilst agreeing with Labour's position on shifting the burden of

:13:34. > :13:36.proof to employers in determining self-employed sectors, there is

:13:37. > :13:41.little else and this needs much more work. There's no movement at all in

:13:42. > :13:46.relation to employment tribunal fees, which act as a barrier to

:13:47. > :13:49.justice for many workers. If the Prime Minister wanted ideas on

:13:50. > :13:54.strengthening workers' rights, she could have come to us. Just four of

:13:55. > :13:59.our manifesto commitment alone will go long way to end the sky which of

:14:00. > :14:04.exploitation in the Gega economy. Giving all workers equal rights from

:14:05. > :14:09.day one, for example. Strengthening the enforcement of those rights by

:14:10. > :14:13.giving up a better resourcing HMRC, not imposing pernicious cuts.

:14:14. > :14:20.Allowing trade union access to every workplace, abolishing tribunal fees

:14:21. > :14:24.and finally finding employers who breach labour market rights and

:14:25. > :14:29.regulations. So, Mr Speaker, I asked the Minister in the spirit of the

:14:30. > :14:34.so-called collaboration had Prime Minister is so desperately seeking,

:14:35. > :14:38.will she commit to date to implement these forcible measures as a start?

:14:39. > :14:45.Or if not, did she accept the Conservative Party is not and never

:14:46. > :14:52.will be on the side of working people? -- for simple measures. I am

:14:53. > :14:57.glad the honourable lady found some positive aspects to the report. To

:14:58. > :15:01.complement Matthew Taylor run. I do appreciate you won't have had time

:15:02. > :15:06.to read it all yet, but I do urge her to do so because there really

:15:07. > :15:12.are many, many recommendations in that report that will be of benefit

:15:13. > :15:15.to workers. And are worthy of the greater consideration that this

:15:16. > :15:21.government will give the recommendations. I won't comment on

:15:22. > :15:25.each of them, because they are Matthew Taylor's suggestions and

:15:26. > :15:29.they will be given due consideration. She does criticise

:15:30. > :15:33.this government's record, and so I would like to remind it is this

:15:34. > :15:40.government that has introduced national living wage, that has

:15:41. > :15:45.decided over the minimum wage being at its highest rate in real terms

:15:46. > :15:51.since it was introduced. And the facts remain that the wage increases

:15:52. > :15:56.we have seen in the last year have been at their highest among the

:15:57. > :16:01.lowest paid banks of the national living wage. We have nearly doubled

:16:02. > :16:05.the budget for enforcement of a national living wage, we have

:16:06. > :16:09.doubled to find the companies who underpay their employers, we have

:16:10. > :16:14.banned the use of exclusivity clause in zero hours contracts. And

:16:15. > :16:21.employment, all the time, the backdrop is at a situation where we

:16:22. > :16:26.have protected the growth in employment. At almost 75%,

:16:27. > :16:36.unemployment is at its highest record level since records began. It

:16:37. > :16:41.is a record of achievement. She criticises us for passing a trade

:16:42. > :16:44.union act, but most reasonable people would not criticise the fact

:16:45. > :16:50.that workers who are members of trade unions should have a proper

:16:51. > :16:54.say when their union decides to take strike action. And that is the

:16:55. > :17:00.purpose primarily of that legislation. It is not all a garden

:17:01. > :17:05.of roses, otherwise the Prime Minister would not have requested

:17:06. > :17:11.Matty Taylor to undertake the report. Flexibility and innovation

:17:12. > :17:15.are vital. The PM said when she announced Matthew Taylor's

:17:16. > :17:20.investigation, she said that as part of what makes our economy strong,

:17:21. > :17:26.but it is essential these virtues are combined with the right support

:17:27. > :17:31.and protections for the worker. But the Matthew Taylor review came to

:17:32. > :17:36.understand that flexibility does work for many people, and it is

:17:37. > :17:47.clear that an agile labour market is good for protecting employment.

:17:48. > :17:53.Would my honourable friend agree that at the heart of boosting wages

:17:54. > :17:56.for lower paid workers is productivity? There are actually

:17:57. > :17:59.some good examples of employers working with the living wage

:18:00. > :18:03.foundation who've managed to reduce the pay of low skilled workers and

:18:04. > :18:11.focusing on productivity, that should be at the heart of this

:18:12. > :18:13.issue. I heartily agree, indeed productivity is essential to our

:18:14. > :18:20.international strategy. We've established a 23 billion fund to

:18:21. > :18:28.promote quality jobs, better skills and the higher paid that he mentions

:18:29. > :18:36.is so important. Can I refer to mow bid disturbing trust my trade union

:18:37. > :18:48.activity over 20 years prior to my election -- refer to my trade union

:18:49. > :18:53.activity. It was interesting neither the Minister or the Prime Minister

:18:54. > :18:56.mentioned or commended the role of the trade unions in securing their

:18:57. > :19:01.rights at work. Does the Minister agree the right to request is

:19:02. > :19:06.different from a fundamental right enshrined in law? If a right to

:19:07. > :19:10.request is refused, what enforcement action will the government take to

:19:11. > :19:14.force employers to do better? Does she accept is no distinction in the

:19:15. > :19:19.report between a flexible workforce and exploiting that workforce? Does

:19:20. > :19:23.the Minister also agree that whilst the Taylor report tries to reside

:19:24. > :19:28.new rides, some of these rights have been secured by trade unions taken

:19:29. > :19:32.employers to court as the Shadow minister agree? Can she tell us what

:19:33. > :19:37.action will be taken to enforce minimum wage payments with turn a

:19:38. > :19:44.thousand workers not being paid that minimum wage? Will they advertise

:19:45. > :19:48.rights of work services? And does the Minister agree it is time for a

:19:49. > :19:54.fair rights of work act which guarantees fundamental rights at

:19:55. > :20:00.work? I thank the honourable gentleman for his critique. The

:20:01. > :20:04.right to request has been useful and valuable when it comes to requesting

:20:05. > :20:09.flexible employment. In any case, it is a recommendation that Matthew is

:20:10. > :20:14.making, but I do feel it is certainly warrant careful

:20:15. > :20:20.consideration. He talked about enforcement, and we are absolutely

:20:21. > :20:25.committed to making sure that workers who are on zero hours

:20:26. > :20:29.contracts or the minimum wage absolutely get paid what they are

:20:30. > :20:34.legally entitled to, that is why we have doubled the resources available

:20:35. > :20:44.to the HMRC in the last two years, to ensure enforcement with those

:20:45. > :20:49.important laws. I welcome the Matt Taylor report today and commend the

:20:50. > :20:52.Minister for her statement. Particularly with regards to

:20:53. > :20:57.tackling nativity and pregnancy discrimination, wish to report says

:20:58. > :21:02.needs more action and has doubled in the last decade. Will the Minister

:21:03. > :21:04.perhaps outline for the House what provisions within this report,

:21:05. > :21:11.particularly address the issues raised by the select committee about

:21:12. > :21:16.workers lack of rights to accessing antenatal care June the working day,

:21:17. > :21:21.which the Minister, in her response, said would be addressed in this

:21:22. > :21:27.report? I commend the honourable lady for the work her select

:21:28. > :21:33.committee, which he chairs, has done to tackle this outrageous issue of

:21:34. > :21:38.discrimination against women who are pregnant. That has no plays in the

:21:39. > :21:42.modern workplace. There are provisions within the Matthew Taylor

:21:43. > :21:48.report, but there is also ongoing work across government to improve

:21:49. > :21:52.the opportunities for women who are pregnant in the workplace to ensure

:21:53. > :21:59.we make history of that discrimination. As somebody who

:22:00. > :22:04.lobbied the Prime Minister Webb reports on the EU economy, might I

:22:05. > :22:10.thank the Minister for her statement today? Could I please from her a

:22:11. > :22:17.little more, whether government's position will be in the trade-off

:22:18. > :22:23.between strapping minimum standards at the vulnerable end of the labour

:22:24. > :22:28.market and trading that for flexibility, that the news reports

:22:29. > :22:31.are right, Matthew Taylor goes for flexibility, rather than always

:22:32. > :22:35.implementing the national minimum wage? Can we have an undertaking

:22:36. > :22:39.from the government they will always abide by the national minimum wage,

:22:40. > :22:47.even if there is a loss for flexibility? I congratulate the

:22:48. > :22:49.honourable gentleman for all the work he did chairing the work and

:22:50. > :22:57.pensions select committee on these matters in the last Parliament. And

:22:58. > :23:02.I can assure him that minimum wage rates are absolutely sacrosanct,

:23:03. > :23:06.there will be no trade-off with regard to ensuring everybody is

:23:07. > :23:12.played at least the minimum wage. And I think if the honourable

:23:13. > :23:16.gentleman reads the report, he will be more encouraged. And I can't

:23:17. > :23:21.quote many of the people who attended the review is evident

:23:22. > :23:26.session told the Taylor review they like the flexibility of working a

:23:27. > :23:29.typical, atypically, and we shouldn't lose theirs. Flexibility

:23:30. > :23:35.must not be a one-way street with individuals absorbing all the risk,

:23:36. > :23:39.and although we are going to consider the recommendations

:23:40. > :23:45.further, I can assure him very much agree with the sentiments behind

:23:46. > :23:49.that remark. Does the Minister welcome the fact the review

:23:50. > :23:53.established that the majority of employers followed good practice and

:23:54. > :23:59.our focus should be on those who do not, to make sure we level the

:24:00. > :24:06.playing field for all employers, all employees and businesses in this

:24:07. > :24:09.country? I agree strongly with my honourable friend. Employers who

:24:10. > :24:14.choose to break the rules, and they are a small minority but excess,

:24:15. > :24:17.they must exist there to be consequences for their actions.

:24:18. > :24:23.There should be a level playing field so that visitors who do the

:24:24. > :24:30.vast majority of which do behave properly, do not find themselves the

:24:31. > :24:34.wrong end of an uneven playing. I declare an interest having done some

:24:35. > :24:39.work during my time out of this House. I welcome the Prime Minister

:24:40. > :24:42.saying there will be no rollback of workers' rights, though let's just

:24:43. > :24:47.say those words are a departure from what I experience as a consider

:24:48. > :24:53.position when I was Liberal Democrat minister in the Coalition. I know

:24:54. > :24:58.the Minister is genuine, it's an important issue. Can just as, as she

:24:59. > :25:02.prepares a government response to this report, will she commit to

:25:03. > :25:07.consulting widely across this House, through debate, free speaking the

:25:08. > :25:13.select committee, to get the right response when the government comes

:25:14. > :25:18.forward? I thank the honourable lady and commend her for her role in that

:25:19. > :25:23.Coalition government. I'm glad to hear that she acknowledges this

:25:24. > :25:27.government has move forward in its appreciation of the difficulties

:25:28. > :25:32.faced by certain workers in the sort of areas Matthew Taylor has been

:25:33. > :25:36.focused upon. I can give her every assurance we will indeed consult

:25:37. > :25:40.widely, not just across industry and where trade unions and members of

:25:41. > :25:47.the public, but very much so across this House. I welcome this report

:25:48. > :25:51.very much, and I wonder if Earth at this any stage, can she give any

:25:52. > :25:56.indication what enhance opportunities may be created to

:25:57. > :26:04.those people who have disabilities, in the world of work or trying to

:26:05. > :26:07.enter the world of work? I thank the honourable gentleman for this

:26:08. > :26:13.important note. The Department for Work and Pensions are undertaking

:26:14. > :26:16.various measures to improve the chances are people with disabilities

:26:17. > :26:24.accessing the workplace, and my department is giving all the

:26:25. > :26:29.supporter can to that enquiry. Matthew Taylor said today he wants

:26:30. > :26:32.employers to pay national insurance for people they have a controlling

:26:33. > :26:35.and supervisory relationship with. Does the government plan to

:26:36. > :26:40.implement that aspect of the Taylor review, and can minister reassure

:26:41. > :26:43.workers that government doesn't plan to U-turn on its U-turn and increase

:26:44. > :26:52.national insurance for the generally self-employed? I can assure that

:26:53. > :26:57.honourable lady that as the first Secretary of State commented

:26:58. > :27:05.Parliament has spoken on the issue of national insurance in respect,

:27:06. > :27:11.and that matter is settled and will not be revisited. I think I share

:27:12. > :27:16.her concern that we look very closely to make sure that people who

:27:17. > :27:25.are generally contracted to provide an ongoing service are given the

:27:26. > :27:31.protections that workers and not falsely labelled self-employed.

:27:32. > :27:37.On a similar point, which he confirmed that actually there is a

:27:38. > :27:41.real risk that having a depending contractors risk fudging the issue

:27:42. > :27:44.of where someone is really employed and self-employed, we should be

:27:45. > :27:49.focusing on getting that line drawn in the right place and making sure

:27:50. > :27:54.that those who engage in depending contractors are paying national

:27:55. > :27:59.insurance so I'm tax rating is not distorting the market? We are going

:28:00. > :28:06.to consult heavily on those points and we will absolutely make sure

:28:07. > :28:11.that hates NTS satisfied on the tax issues but that we are satisfied

:28:12. > :28:16.that employees are getting their rights, if they are employees or

:28:17. > :28:23.workers. With Matthew Taylor is replacing to rename them, depending

:28:24. > :28:28.contractors. The Minister has welcomed this report. Assume the

:28:29. > :28:30.position to accept any of the recommendations in it today and

:28:31. > :28:34.Kenji tells when they will be legislation to implement a least

:28:35. > :28:42.something from their stories are all going to be put into the long grass?

:28:43. > :28:45.As I said in the responses earlier, we will be consulting, looking at

:28:46. > :28:51.every single recommendation and it is not release me to say I'm

:28:52. > :28:55.personally inclined to recommend, excepting which I am not at this

:28:56. > :29:00.very early stage. So I hope you will bear with us if, over the next six

:29:01. > :29:04.months, we will be consented, by the year and, maybe a little bit longer

:29:05. > :29:07.than six months, consulting widely across this House and he will have

:29:08. > :29:15.every opportunity to make his views known. Thank you, Mr Speaker. I have

:29:16. > :29:19.spent 45 years in the gig economy and what I liked about the gig

:29:20. > :29:24.economy is it was very flexible and in order to build a career, I found

:29:25. > :29:28.myself delivering bacon across north London from Smithfield market. They

:29:29. > :29:35.became a removal man. Does my right honourable friend agree with me that

:29:36. > :29:39.it is very welcome but this report supports a flexible labour market

:29:40. > :29:45.and is not in favour of restricting that flexibility where individuals

:29:46. > :29:48.want it. Well, I think that my honourable friend has made a very

:29:49. > :29:52.careful reading of the summary of Matthew Taylor's report because he

:29:53. > :29:55.does understand that balance. He does not want first to land the kind

:29:56. > :30:00.of tax abilities that have helped him in his career and close for

:30:01. > :30:06.people starting out on their careers now. But as I've said, we do to make

:30:07. > :30:14.sure their predictions are in place. -- protections. It is just not my

:30:15. > :30:18.constituent in the gig economy that have insecurity, they are pleased to

:30:19. > :30:22.be working but when they went full-time employment, they see more

:30:23. > :30:26.people in the same organisations getting part-time hours. When will

:30:27. > :30:29.the Government get to grips with this element of the economy and make

:30:30. > :30:36.sure that all those workers get a fair deal and a chance to work full

:30:37. > :30:41.time hours they so need? The whole basis of this report is good work

:30:42. > :30:44.and the aspiration of good work for all and I would include those

:30:45. > :30:50.constituents to which she is referring. But just to reassure her,

:30:51. > :30:54.the survey of two years ago did find that almost 70% of people on zero

:30:55. > :30:58.hour contracts were content with the hours that they were working. That

:30:59. > :31:02.does mean a third do want more hours and that is what we have got to

:31:03. > :31:07.embrace in terms of some of the changes that Matthew Taylor might be

:31:08. > :31:12.recommending in order to help achieve the good work and the hours

:31:13. > :31:16.her constituents want to work. I welcome the publication of this

:31:17. > :31:20.report. Does my honourable friend agree that flexibility in the legal

:31:21. > :31:27.market does benefit both workers and employers equally? -- labour market.

:31:28. > :31:34.My honourable friend has asked me a difficult question in that I do

:31:35. > :31:38.believe that Matthew Taylor's report does bear this out, flexibility does

:31:39. > :31:45.benefit both employers and employees but I'm afraid that the evidence to

:31:46. > :31:50.his inquiry did point out that in too many cases, that flexibility is

:31:51. > :31:58.a one-way street, as I said earlier, and we do need to address the issue

:31:59. > :32:05.as people who are really at risk and far too insecure in employment

:32:06. > :32:10.situation. Thank you. I welcome the Minister's commitment to the

:32:11. > :32:15.Government upholding workers' rights and I wonder whether as part of the

:32:16. > :32:19.Government's response to this report, you look at enabling workers

:32:20. > :32:22.to uphold their own rights and look again at these for employment

:32:23. > :32:27.tribunals which have meant a reduction of 70% in cases by single

:32:28. > :32:32.claimants, such as those working in the gig economy against their

:32:33. > :32:36.employer? I thank the honourable lady for her question. She makes a

:32:37. > :32:41.very important point. It is a matter for the Ministry of Justice. Matthew

:32:42. > :32:44.Taylor has not recommended that we get rid of these for employment

:32:45. > :32:51.tribunals. I think we have to recognise the positive aspect, which

:32:52. > :32:54.has been an upsurge in the amount of employment disputes that have been

:32:55. > :33:02.settled through mediation. But I will continue to like the she

:33:03. > :33:06.raises. Thank you, Mr Speaker. The report does praise and support

:33:07. > :33:09.flexibility within the labour market, where individuals wanted.

:33:10. > :33:13.But does my honourable friend agree with me that this is perhaps

:33:14. > :33:19.especially, but not exclusively, beneficial to students and young

:33:20. > :33:24.people? I do agree with my honourable friend. I think the

:33:25. > :33:31.figures suggest that almost 20% of people on zero hour contracts

:33:32. > :33:34.students and the flexibility does benefit many people who perhaps have

:33:35. > :33:40.parenting or caring responsibilities and do not want to work full-time.

:33:41. > :33:45.So we certainly do not want enough flexibility, but we do want to

:33:46. > :33:54.improve protection, as I have said before. Thank you, Mr Speaker. The

:33:55. > :33:59.gig economy brings an insecure work. The rights will be worth I think is

:34:00. > :34:05.the Government increases the amount it is prepared to put into

:34:06. > :34:08.regulation, so will the Minister tell us this afternoon will she

:34:09. > :34:12.commit alongside implement in the Taylor of to bidding those

:34:13. > :34:17.additional resources in? I very much agree with the gentlemen.

:34:18. > :34:23.Enforcement is crucial. We have double the resources available,

:34:24. > :34:27.minimum wage enforcement, they will continue to go up through this

:34:28. > :34:32.Parliament. In addition, we have strengthened the powers of the gang

:34:33. > :34:37.masters labour abuse of authority and we have recently appointed a new

:34:38. > :34:43.director of the labour market enforcement who is tasked with

:34:44. > :34:46.bringing the work of the three major enforcement bodies together to

:34:47. > :34:51.understand the extent of the abuse and to recommend ways of those

:34:52. > :34:54.enforcement agencies being properly resourced to ingest it. I hope the

:34:55. > :34:59.honourable gentleman will be pleased with the outcome of that in due

:35:00. > :35:03.course. I would like to welcome the publication of Matthew Taylor's

:35:04. > :35:09.report on my honourable friend's statement today. Does she agree with

:35:10. > :35:14.me that it is not absolutely right to ensure workers are treated fairly

:35:15. > :35:19.but it is good for business too as they have more engaged and more

:35:20. > :35:24.productive workforce? I heartily agree with my honourable friend.

:35:25. > :35:28.That is what it is all about. It is about improving work so that we have

:35:29. > :35:32.good work, so that people have the ability to grow in their careers, so

:35:33. > :35:36.that people who are low-paid to start with do not have to be

:35:37. > :35:40.low-paid forever, that they can aspire to a better future that will

:35:41. > :35:43.benefit British productivity and it will, as my honourable friend

:35:44. > :35:50.suggest, improve the competitiveness of British companies. Vital

:35:51. > :35:54.protection for workers is trade union membership and also trade

:35:55. > :35:58.union recognition. Since my time at the TUC over 40 years ago, the

:35:59. > :36:04.mention of trade unions in Britain has halved and we have seen workers'

:36:05. > :36:09.rights and undermined by Tory legislation. When is the legislation

:36:10. > :36:15.going to be reversed? The Government cannot name the people to join trade

:36:16. > :36:19.unions. Trade unions are still a very important force for protecting

:36:20. > :36:21.workers' rights, among those sectors of the economy where they are still

:36:22. > :36:30.dominant and I commend them for their work. If one talks to drivers

:36:31. > :36:33.on YouTube or cleaners using platforms as hassle, they will

:36:34. > :36:38.acknowledge the benefits of flexibility to them. To coin a

:36:39. > :36:41.phrase, would it not be morally acceptable to misread the

:36:42. > :36:45.21st-century labour market and construct a set of rules that force

:36:46. > :36:51.is out of work, rather than allows them to stay in its? My right

:36:52. > :36:55.honourable friend, my honourable friend will be no doubt pleased that

:36:56. > :37:05.Matthew Taylor very much agrees with his thesis. Thank you very much, Mr

:37:06. > :37:08.Speaker. Over 1 million workers are being exploited by companies and

:37:09. > :37:11.bogus self-employment. Since its changes to tax policy that are

:37:12. > :37:17.needed to tackle both and the Government prohibited making any

:37:18. > :37:20.firm regularly chosen to change in tax policy, houses the can we take

:37:21. > :37:26.the Minister's comments to date and when they are going to address the

:37:27. > :37:29.tax anomalies? I can assure the honourable lady that no bar

:37:30. > :37:37.whispered in front of Matthew Taylor. He able to investigate as

:37:38. > :37:41.free and fair as he saw fit. It is really up to the Treasury to assess

:37:42. > :37:48.the tax situation and any potential loss of revenues which of course

:37:49. > :37:50.comes from bogus self-employment. In contrast to the previous question,

:37:51. > :37:55.with my honourable friend join me in recognising one of the key findings

:37:56. > :37:59.of the review, that, thanks to the Government's tax policies, once you

:38:00. > :38:05.take into account tax levels and tax credits, actually average take-home

:38:06. > :38:09.pay for families where you lose one member is in full-time employment is

:38:10. > :38:17.higher in the UK than in any other G-7 country? -- where at least one

:38:18. > :38:23.member. I commend my honourable friend for bringing that to the

:38:24. > :38:27.attention of the House. I am pleased to hear the Minister so promoting

:38:28. > :38:32.this Marxist revolution that we are now living through as the means of

:38:33. > :38:36.production are increasingly in the hands of the workers. But further to

:38:37. > :38:40.what does she not agree with me that the answer to some of the challenges

:38:41. > :38:44.we are hearing is not just better regulations but also to help people

:38:45. > :38:48.organise and if so, will she meet with myself, Kimi to trade union,

:38:49. > :38:56.the Co-op movement to discuss our work helping the self-employed to

:38:57. > :38:58.organise and unionise? I am aware of the independent union of

:38:59. > :39:05.self-employed workers and they have been a force and may have

:39:06. > :39:09.contributed to this enquiry. -- they have contributed. I would be all too

:39:10. > :39:15.pleased to meet with the honourable lady and her community organisers as

:39:16. > :39:19.part of my consultation. Thank you. There's a marked difference between

:39:20. > :39:23.someone who says that the business, take some risks and wrist

:39:24. > :39:29.self-employment compared to refute as good as employees who force

:39:30. > :39:31.workers to go self-employed. In responding to this excellent report,

:39:32. > :39:35.what will my honourable friend do to make sure that the people who are

:39:36. > :39:42.genuinely self-employed continue to receive those benefits, but the

:39:43. > :39:46.unscrupulous employers do not? My honourable friend makes a very good

:39:47. > :39:51.point. We do not want to stand in the way of the incentives that

:39:52. > :39:55.promote people who are genuinely taking a risk and starting a

:39:56. > :40:00.business, they are the majority and we do not want to do that thing that

:40:01. > :40:04.upsets that balance. But at the same time, as my honourable friend will

:40:05. > :40:12.realise, we do need to end the scourge of fake self-employment. The

:40:13. > :40:18.report disappointed does not go far enough on the issue of zero hour

:40:19. > :40:21.contracts. The Labour Welsh government and devolved areas on

:40:22. > :40:30.seven occasions. Is not the case that workers in are being left out

:40:31. > :40:34.by the Tory and Labour Party? Individual, many individuals, as

:40:35. > :40:39.I've said, want to work in a flexible way that is by the zero

:40:40. > :40:43.hour contracts and almost 70% of them are happy with our allies and,

:40:44. > :40:47.as I said, the third who are not, we must take steps to promote the value

:40:48. > :40:52.of good work as an opportunity for them, whether they are in Wales or

:40:53. > :41:00.in the rest of the United Kingdom. She has told us that 20% of students

:41:01. > :41:04.-- 20% of students, 70% are satisfied, can you complete the

:41:05. > :41:11.hat-trick I telling us what the mean weekly incomes actually is on the

:41:12. > :41:18.zero hour 's contract? I will have to write a number of friends with

:41:19. > :41:23.the answer to that one. -- I will have to write to my honourable

:41:24. > :41:27.friend. Matthew Taylor has written we must equip our children and young

:41:28. > :41:30.people to enter the labour market successfully but Government

:41:31. > :41:34.employees and individuals have to make sure that everyone is in the

:41:35. > :41:37.best place to provide what might be working life spanning 60 years or

:41:38. > :41:42.more. How will the Government square this with the decision made under

:41:43. > :41:45.the previous Prime Minister to stop compulsory work experience in

:41:46. > :41:49.schools, which in the first year led to a drop in 60,000 work express

:41:50. > :41:55.placements in schools across the country and would she look again

:41:56. > :42:00.this? That is a matter for the Department for Education. I think

:42:01. > :42:04.that I do agree that work experience is very important to young people

:42:05. > :42:08.and I'm sure that the Secretary of State will look favourably on that.

:42:09. > :42:10.As far as we are concerned in my department, we are looking to boost

:42:11. > :42:16.the opportunities for lifelong learning, to engender a culture

:42:17. > :42:20.where people can progress in their careers.

:42:21. > :42:29.Before I became a member of Parliament, I was self-employed. I

:42:30. > :42:32.was a self-employed ambassador to the Prime Minister, and I also

:42:33. > :42:37.worked with Matthew Taylor on this report. I found him extremely

:42:38. > :42:41.nonpartisan, a gentleman. What I would like to urge my honourable

:42:42. > :42:45.friend to do, living at the measures for the self-employed, especially

:42:46. > :42:51.with their maternity and paternity benefits in the offering, please

:42:52. > :42:57.accept them. I will certainly take on boards my view based on so many

:42:58. > :43:06.years, and I thank him by his conclusion to this report.

:43:07. > :43:12.Flexibility in the labour market on one side of the coin, but for people

:43:13. > :43:18.in employment on the other side. If we are to see a situation, at the

:43:19. > :43:25.criticism of the Unite union, the insecurities to be the new normal,

:43:26. > :43:31.can the Minister reverse a decision that the Coalition took to extend

:43:32. > :43:38.from one year to two year the threshold? I don't accept the

:43:39. > :43:43.premise in security is the new norm. I think one of the purposes of this

:43:44. > :43:49.report was to look closely at the extent of insecurity and produce

:43:50. > :43:53.some measures, or some recommendations, that might mitigate

:43:54. > :43:58.that where it is not desired by the workers. I will look at the matter

:43:59. > :43:59.he raise, but that is a question that was not actually addressed in

:44:00. > :44:13.this report. Speaking at the launch this morning,

:44:14. > :44:17.Mr Taylor suggested traditional workers like window cleaners can use

:44:18. > :44:29.an application to collect money and apply to HMRC. Why is it that Buber,

:44:30. > :44:40.the most cutting app do not collect the national insurance number of

:44:41. > :44:47.drivers --. I thought the app was one of the most interesting ideas,

:44:48. > :44:52.there are limitations to the current apps available, but in no way was

:44:53. > :44:54.Matthew Taylor advocating they were mandatory, but they should be

:44:55. > :45:02.available in a more sophisticated form than they are now. As a

:45:03. > :45:06.government looks towards the economy, Matthew Taylor's remarks

:45:07. > :45:13.that the welfare system is a mess, and no one outside a government

:45:14. > :45:22.makes it fairer. Kurdish and presenters, we wards for work,

:45:23. > :45:27.increased freedom -- cadets represent rewards for work. It has

:45:28. > :45:31.not been addressed by this report, and I urge him to address his

:45:32. > :45:39.questions to the DWP ministerial team. Matthew Taylor urges the

:45:40. > :45:44.government to look at reducing these, can it urge the Minister to

:45:45. > :45:47.go further, in relation to discrimination, get on with

:45:48. > :45:52.abolishing them and extend the period during which a case can be

:45:53. > :45:59.brought before tribunal is, because a period of pregnancy is a busy

:46:00. > :46:03.time, when you are unlikely to be thinking about a court case. I do

:46:04. > :46:12.agree with her remarks, and I hope she will input her views during the

:46:13. > :46:16.consultation process. Twice the Minister has referred to the fact

:46:17. > :46:20.flexibility seems to work only one way to benefit the employer. Does

:46:21. > :46:23.that flexibility include her government 's failure to prosecute a

:46:24. > :46:31.single employer in Wales last year for flouting the minimum wage rules?

:46:32. > :46:38.I was not saying flexibility was always a one-way street in favour of

:46:39. > :46:44.the employer, I said that was in exceptional cases a real problem

:46:45. > :46:49.that needs addressing. But it is not necessarily the norm. In response to

:46:50. > :46:52.the other matters that she has raised, I urge her to contribute her

:46:53. > :46:59.views as we go over the consultation. When the Minister is

:47:00. > :47:06.considering how to respond to the review, will she talked to her

:47:07. > :47:12.colleagues about the useful time social action review, which is

:47:13. > :47:16.considering the question of long-time volunteering? I realise

:47:17. > :47:20.they are different, but there's quite a considerable overlap, and

:47:21. > :47:25.the question about safeguards and protections is the same in some

:47:26. > :47:29.cases, it seems sensible to wrap the two together. He has some good

:47:30. > :47:32.points to make about volunteering and about the framework that govern

:47:33. > :47:42.said, and I hope he will make these during our consultation. -- that

:47:43. > :47:47.governs it. On workforce protection be extended, or that include

:47:48. > :47:50.secondary contract does, so when one person in a team of three or four as

:47:51. > :47:56.a main contractor, will the depending contractor extended to

:47:57. > :48:00.other people in the team? This might provide a minor blip of people who

:48:01. > :48:03.are self-employed to be independent contractors, but there will be some

:48:04. > :48:08.who see this as an opportunity to downgrade people with employment

:48:09. > :48:12.protection to dependent contractors against their will. The honourable

:48:13. > :48:17.gentleman raises a number of issues, there's no attention to downgrade

:48:18. > :48:22.anybody's rights. We want to be in a position to see copyable's right,

:48:23. > :48:26.certainly not downgrade them. I am sure he will be putting his details,

:48:27. > :48:36.observations in our consultation. This government continues to justify

:48:37. > :48:39.the existence of zero hours contracts on the basis of

:48:40. > :48:46.flexibility, but this could be largely addressed in flexible

:48:47. > :48:52.working can be properly expanded and given a framework for what it means.

:48:53. > :48:54.Will the government use this opportunity to properly expand

:48:55. > :49:01.flexible working and explain what it actually means? I can't accept the

:49:02. > :49:08.premise behind the honourable gentleman's question. We are not

:49:09. > :49:13.seeking to end zero hours contracts because too many people want them.

:49:14. > :49:21.They want the flexibility associated with them, but we are seeking to

:49:22. > :49:24.root out abuse where it exists. The Taylor review recommends the

:49:25. > :49:30.government makes it easier for people in flexible arrangements to

:49:31. > :49:34.take holiday entitlement. Now, the Minister has struggled to explain

:49:35. > :49:39.the government's powers in this area before. Can she tell us what powers

:49:40. > :49:44.to enforce holiday pay currently exist, and with some are fast

:49:45. > :49:51.approaching, will she act on the tenor recommendation swiftly? I

:49:52. > :49:55.reassure her Matthew Taylor has recommended we take the issue of

:49:56. > :50:01.holiday pay seriously and make sure it applies to all workers who are

:50:02. > :50:08.entitled to it. And the Treasury will be taking forward those

:50:09. > :50:15.suggestions. The Minister is writes, the transfer of risk that heart of

:50:16. > :50:17.this problem. Drivers in my constituency are classified as

:50:18. > :50:23.self-employed be treated as employees were about right. Is there

:50:24. > :50:27.anything in the Taylor report which would end the practice of finding

:50:28. > :50:33.the drivers every time there's an accident? If the honourable lady

:50:34. > :50:40.would like to write to me with details of this, it's the first I

:50:41. > :50:48.have heard of this particular, well, practice, yes. It certainly sounds

:50:49. > :50:55.wrong, but I would be delighted to consider it further within the

:50:56. > :51:00.powers that currently exist. On page 11 of the report, Mr Taylor says, we

:51:01. > :51:04.have to examine why with employment levels at record highs, a number of

:51:05. > :51:11.people living in poverty are in work. The government's practice has

:51:12. > :51:14.been that when asked about poverty, the government have responded with

:51:15. > :51:19.statistics about employment and unemployment. Will the government

:51:20. > :51:23.finally accept such a thing as in work poverty only exist, it is a

:51:24. > :51:27.brutal fact of life for millions of people on these islands? We have

:51:28. > :51:31.always been absolutely committed to reducing poverty where ever it is

:51:32. > :51:36.exists, and the national living wage has gone a long way to provide

:51:37. > :51:41.workers with a framework beneath which they need not seek, sink into

:51:42. > :51:49.poverty. I would urge the honourable gentleman to consider that further.

:51:50. > :51:53.As someone who's done a view gigs in his time, can I urge the Minister

:51:54. > :51:58.you to reject this think tank jargon of the phrase depending contractor?

:51:59. > :52:03.Workers were, workers are workers. Depending contractor is the world

:52:04. > :52:07.unite, you have nothing to lose but your change, it's not going to

:52:08. > :52:10.change anything. For those new members not aware of the musical

:52:11. > :52:14.distinction of the honourable gentleman he was pose a question, I

:52:15. > :52:20.can inform him, he's a very member of the Parliamentary rock bands, and

:52:21. > :52:24.colleagues haven't heard of the band, they haven't fully lived, and

:52:25. > :52:27.I hope they will hear the band in due course, preferably in Speaker 's

:52:28. > :52:34.house where it is played before, and will be played again. He mentions

:52:35. > :52:38.that the two independent contractor. This was a recommendation designed

:52:39. > :52:43.to improve clarity and to improve the chances of workers getting the

:52:44. > :52:47.rights to which they are entitled. It is just that, just a

:52:48. > :52:49.recommendation and he is free to lobby against our acceptance of it

:52:50. > :52:56.during the course of our consultation. I welcome the

:52:57. > :52:58.acknowledgements in the report that employment Tribunal fees are a

:52:59. > :53:04.barrier to justice, so whilst it so positive that the report recommends

:53:05. > :53:12.them to establish employment stasis, what is there to make sure quality

:53:13. > :53:16.representation in the tribunal? It'd also the case once that status has

:53:17. > :53:23.been that the will still have to beat paid? One of the recommendation

:53:24. > :53:28.is up before an employee takes a case before a tribunal, there is

:53:29. > :53:34.firm advice as to what the employee's statuses in reality. That

:53:35. > :53:38.word, I think, and a huge amount of uncertainty and unnecessary expense.

:53:39. > :53:42.We will consider that as well as all the other recommendations in this

:53:43. > :53:46.excellent report, which I do commend to the House, I did find much of it

:53:47. > :53:50.inspiring and I do hope we can all work together to improve the quality

:53:51. > :54:00.of work in this country, as well as the number of jobs. A point of

:54:01. > :54:04.order. Mr Speaker, would it be in order for a minister to attend the

:54:05. > :54:09.House and give a statement as to why it is there is no one authority with

:54:10. > :54:16.responsibility for the safety of rivers and canals? Last night, my

:54:17. > :54:21.12-year-old constituent, Elwyn Jenkins, died come he drowns at

:54:22. > :54:25.Beeston Weir. It appears he went into the River Trent to assist

:54:26. > :54:30.another youngster who got into difficulty in the water. Mr Speaker,

:54:31. > :54:34.it looks like this was an act of great courage and great bravery from

:54:35. > :54:38.a remarkable young man, and I'm sure the whole house will join me in

:54:39. > :54:42.sending our heartfelt condolences to his family, his friends and all the

:54:43. > :54:50.other pupils at Chilwell school. Summer is here, the schools are now

:54:51. > :54:55.breaking of the summer holidays. And yet rivers, canals, quarries, ponds,

:54:56. > :55:00.lakes all dangerous places potentially, especially for children

:55:01. > :55:03.and youngsters. But there's no one authority that has responsibility

:55:04. > :55:07.for safety. I think the Minister should come along and explain how we

:55:08. > :55:12.can make sure that all those places are safe for all of us, especially

:55:13. > :55:17.young people. I'm grateful to the right honourable lady for her point

:55:18. > :55:23.of order and for her courtesy in giving me advance notice of

:55:24. > :55:28.intention to rated. She has paid warm and eloquent tribute to young

:55:29. > :55:34.Elwyn Jenkins, to whom she rightly says, and I'm sure she speaks for

:55:35. > :55:38.all of us, we wish to send to all his friends and family our deepest

:55:39. > :55:44.condolences, and we want to remember the very remarkable courage that he

:55:45. > :55:47.showed. I am not aware of any intention on the part of the

:55:48. > :55:50.Minister to come to the House to make a statement on the matter, but

:55:51. > :55:53.the right honourable lady asked whether it would be in order for a

:55:54. > :55:59.minister to do so. It certainly would. We still have several sitting

:56:00. > :56:04.days. And I think of a minister were to come to the House to make a

:56:05. > :56:07.statement on that matter, to explain the delineation of functions or

:56:08. > :56:12.allocation of responsibility and to answer questions on the matter, that

:56:13. > :56:17.would be well received by the House. And, if they say, it would be well

:56:18. > :56:26.received by the family of young Owen Jenkins. I understand the Prime

:56:27. > :56:31.Minister has announced that is to be a judge led public enquiry into the

:56:32. > :56:35.contaminated blood scandal. Wouldn't it have been better if that

:56:36. > :56:42.announcement had been made just once in this House to honourable members?

:56:43. > :56:49.The short answer is, it is better if the key announcements of policy all

:56:50. > :56:53.other government intends are communicated first of the House,

:56:54. > :56:57.when the houses in session. I am not aware because I been attending to my

:56:58. > :57:04.duties in the chair of that announcement. If that is so, it may

:57:05. > :57:06.very well be it will be warmly welcomed, but the honourable

:57:07. > :57:11.gentleman and asked me a specific question to which I have given him a

:57:12. > :57:20.specific answer. Yesterday, when the honourable lady, the member of the

:57:21. > :57:28.Kingston upon Hull North, sought leave to secure an emergency debate

:57:29. > :57:34.on a specific and important matter, namely her sense of the need for a

:57:35. > :57:39.full public enquiry into the contaminated blood scandal, there

:57:40. > :57:44.have been no such announcement. I judge that it was indeed a proper

:57:45. > :57:48.matter, to be debated under the terms of standing order 24, and

:57:49. > :57:55.notwithstanding any announcement outside of the House, an indication

:57:56. > :57:58.of Parliamentary opinion on the subject remains in feel extremely

:57:59. > :58:10.germane and arguably just as urgent. I agreed yesterday but the health

:58:11. > :58:13.gave its approval to the honourable lady to pursue this matter and I

:58:14. > :58:17.felt and I still feel that it warranted and it warrants up to

:58:18. > :58:23.three hours of debate today. So I'm grateful to the honourable gentleman

:58:24. > :58:28.but it certainly does not persuade us from a proper and conferences

:58:29. > :58:37.focus on this matter now. We proceed to the emergency debate and I call

:58:38. > :58:42.first Diana Johnson. Thank you, Mr Speaker. I beg to move that this

:58:43. > :58:46.House is considered the need for an independent public enquiry into the

:58:47. > :58:49.contaminated blood scandal. Can I first start by thanking you, Mr

:58:50. > :58:53.Speaker, to allow this emergency debate? This is the first time that

:58:54. > :58:59.has been emergency debate on economic contaminated blood scandal

:59:00. > :59:03.and it arises after criminal actions produced by the Right Honourable

:59:04. > :59:10.Andy Burnham and a joint letter calling for a Hillsborough style

:59:11. > :59:14.inquiry? After the announcement from Downing Street this lunchtime, it

:59:15. > :59:20.may become an even more popular route to get the Government to

:59:21. > :59:25.listen and act in the future. Like the Government announcement that

:59:26. > :59:28.there is to be a full enquiry into this scandal, I want to start by

:59:29. > :59:31.acknowledging all of those people who've been involved in getting us

:59:32. > :59:38.to this point. I want to start with my own constituent Glenn Wilkinson.

:59:39. > :59:44.For his persistence and determination, when he came to see

:59:45. > :59:49.me in 2010 to tell me his story, I think he has really been the person

:59:50. > :59:55.who I have always kept at the centre of whatever I have attempted to do

:59:56. > :59:58.on this issue. I also want to thank the many, many individuals and

:59:59. > :00:06.campaign groups who have fought for years to get to this point. Manor

:00:07. > :00:10.house, tainted blood, contaminated blood campaign. I want to thank the

:00:11. > :00:16.chief executive Liz Carroll and Jefferson Courtney the public

:00:17. > :00:21.affairs officer. There are over 2400 individuals who tragically lost

:00:22. > :00:24.their lives. They are not here to see this announcement but their

:00:25. > :00:28.voices than through their family members who have never given up

:00:29. > :00:32.fighting for them. They also want to say something about journalists

:00:33. > :00:40.because I think this campaign that has run so many years has, at times,

:00:41. > :00:41.without the great benefit of brilliant investigative journalist

:00:42. > :00:46.including Caroline Wheeler of the Sunday Times he was formally a

:00:47. > :00:54.correspondent on the holed Daily Mail. We have been many researchers

:00:55. > :00:59.and journalists who did into disaster a few months ago. And the

:01:00. > :01:02.Daily Mail, not a favourite of yours, Mr Speaker, they ran a very

:01:03. > :01:07.good story on the front of their paper last week. I will give way in

:01:08. > :01:13.one moment. I want to continue with this point around thanking people. I

:01:14. > :01:17.want to particularly thank the average 11 parliamentarians who are

:01:18. > :01:24.members of the eight BGG tried haemophiliac contaminated blood. I

:01:25. > :01:29.want to thank my co-chair, the previous chair Jason McCartney who

:01:30. > :01:32.is no longer a member of this House, Margaret Ritchie and Mark Durkan who

:01:33. > :01:37.are no longer members of this House that were very vocal in the campaign

:01:38. > :01:41.said theirs. And, of course, I have to say a really big thank you to the

:01:42. > :01:48.Right Honourable Andy Burnham who in the battery speech made up clearly

:01:49. > :01:53.why this is unfinished business and we need to have a public enquiry. I

:01:54. > :01:57.want to thank the late Right Honourable Paul Goggins who was a

:01:58. > :02:04.huge inspiration in this cause. Thank you. My honourable friend is

:02:05. > :02:07.completely right to thank all of these people but there is one person

:02:08. > :02:12.missing from that list and that is herself. I think the whole house

:02:13. > :02:15.should thank the honourable lady for the tireless work she has done over

:02:16. > :02:19.the last seven years on this. An utterly brilliant campaign. This

:02:20. > :02:23.shows how Parliament really should work. Her constituent has raised an

:02:24. > :02:26.issue with her, she has campaigned on it nonstop, she has not been

:02:27. > :02:31.fobbed off, she has proceeded and she has brought as, I think she has

:02:32. > :02:35.played a huge role in bringing us to this point today. Last night, I had

:02:36. > :02:39.a load of e-mails from constituents who have been affected by this

:02:40. > :02:44.scandal and I want to tell her how grateful they are to her for the

:02:45. > :02:48.work she has done. I am very grateful to my honourable friend for

:02:49. > :02:51.those comments, but I think it was a combined effort of so many people

:02:52. > :02:56.over so many years. I will give way to my honourable friend. I would

:02:57. > :02:59.like to pay my own tribute to my honourable friend, she has been

:03:00. > :03:04.absolutely hugged in her determination of not giving up and I

:03:05. > :03:10.have two in my own mind who came to see me in a similar circumstance, if

:03:11. > :03:14.he had not come to see me as I know many other constituents have on both

:03:15. > :03:16.sides of the House, I would not been aware of this scandal, let alone

:03:17. > :03:22.strained the need to deal with it. Will she drove me in paying tribute

:03:23. > :03:25.to national and regional groups have done so much to stand for those

:03:26. > :03:30.affected in particular locations like Wales and is up some of the

:03:31. > :03:34.difficulties in that this was a legacy issue from UK Department of

:03:35. > :03:36.Health and the competition is now a devolved health services across the

:03:37. > :03:42.catering at some of its questions that we will need to address in

:03:43. > :03:45.terms of this enquiry. I think my honourable friend make that point

:03:46. > :03:51.very well. I want to use the shoe today to make a few comments about

:03:52. > :03:55.the way we handle disasters and to say something about how I think the

:03:56. > :03:59.best way forward in terms of a Hillsborough style inquiry should be

:04:00. > :04:04.established by the Government. Yes, I will give way. I am very grateful

:04:05. > :04:09.and I add my congratulations to the honourable lady for her brilliant

:04:10. > :04:13.leadership on this. Does she agree with me that was this incredibly

:04:14. > :04:18.welcome these, there is an urgency because those people who continue to

:04:19. > :04:21.suffer need help now and there's a danger that this process could go on

:04:22. > :04:28.for years and leave them still waiting for support? I think the

:04:29. > :04:32.writer aboard gentleman makes it an important point and I think the

:04:33. > :04:36.timetabling of any inquiry Berenice Abbott needs to be set up clearly

:04:37. > :04:40.and I hope the e-mail server will be able to help us Visser contribution.

:04:41. > :04:46.I thank my honourable friend forgiving way on that point. I want

:04:47. > :04:51.to add my congratulations to her and Andy Burnham. This has been going on

:04:52. > :04:55.for a long time. Has she had any indication from number ten Downing

:04:56. > :04:58.St what form this enquiry is going to take? Because some of my

:04:59. > :05:02.constituents have got similar problems to her constituents. Can

:05:03. > :05:06.she give us any clarification on that? I have only seen, like every

:05:07. > :05:11.other member of the House, what is out in the media which is there's

:05:12. > :05:14.going to be a consultation, I understand, what form the inquiry

:05:15. > :05:19.will take. But I'm sure the Minister will be able to help us in his

:05:20. > :05:25.contribution later on. I will give way and then I will move on. I am

:05:26. > :05:28.grateful to the honourable lady then moving on and I would like to join

:05:29. > :05:31.into triggers to hand the all-party group of which I've been a member. I

:05:32. > :05:36.think it is an example of how Parliament can work well. There is a

:05:37. > :05:40.family who've said as a family we have suffered years of misery

:05:41. > :05:44.because of this scandal and does she not agree with me that is right to

:05:45. > :05:49.consult the victims and their families about the form the inquiry?

:05:50. > :05:53.Absolutely. The honourable gentlemen makes a good point there as well and

:05:54. > :05:57.I will come onto that is or what I want to say. I want to make some

:05:58. > :06:01.general comments. I do not need to remind the House of the damage that

:06:02. > :06:07.public disasters close all those affected. We know from the health

:06:08. > :06:11.but tragedy in 1989 and more recently the appalling fire Grenfell

:06:12. > :06:14.Tower. Every public disasters this kind is different. The courses are

:06:15. > :06:21.different, the victim suffer in different ways and the measures

:06:22. > :06:25.necessary to support them differs also. Then there is one thing that I

:06:26. > :06:29.think every victim has an every right to and that is the right to

:06:30. > :06:33.answers. They deserve to be told what went wrong, why it went wrong

:06:34. > :06:37.and who is responsible for what happened. The story of the injustice

:06:38. > :06:43.they have suffered also needs to be set up and told to the wider public.

:06:44. > :06:47.Their voices need to be heard. Apologies, compensation and other

:06:48. > :06:52.forms of support are essential. But if their right to answers is not

:06:53. > :06:59.also satisfied, I feel they will be denied true and meaningful justice.

:07:00. > :07:03.I will give way. A powerful case thank her for all the work she has

:07:04. > :07:08.done. She said at the beginning, many victims have died. It is now

:07:09. > :07:13.their families that are still here but they are still grieving and they

:07:14. > :07:18.need answers as much as the victims. My honourable friend is absolutely

:07:19. > :07:22.right on that. I just want to go back to the fact that this tragedy,

:07:23. > :07:26.as my honourable friend has said, has taken the lives of over 2400

:07:27. > :07:30.people with haemophiliac. Infected mainly from blood factor

:07:31. > :07:35.concentrates. Many others, without bleeding disorders, who've been

:07:36. > :07:39.affected through bludgeon and Susan is another means have also lost

:07:40. > :07:46.their lives. -- blood transfusions and other means. They are left to

:07:47. > :07:52.live a combination of HIV, hepatitis B and a range of other viruses. Mike

:07:53. > :07:59.constituent, Glenn Wilkinson, is one such individual. He has haemophiliac

:08:00. > :08:02.and he was infected with hepatitis C during a routine tooth operation.

:08:03. > :08:06.Glenn is one of thousands of people who have fallen victim to the worst

:08:07. > :08:10.treatment disaster in the history of our NHS on one of the worst

:08:11. > :08:16.peacetime disasters that has ever taken place in this country. Indeed

:08:17. > :08:22.when I was looking through the 15 also non-terrorist related public

:08:23. > :08:29.disasters ranging from the brat from split the stadium fire to the

:08:30. > :08:32.Clapham junction crash, and of course Hillsborough, each of these

:08:33. > :08:35.were tragic events and they do not wish to detract from the magnitude

:08:36. > :08:41.of those events, but the House should note that an orderly once I

:08:42. > :08:46.looking at, all of those devices led to a public enquiry. An Arab members

:08:47. > :08:50.and their effective constituents are entitled to ask why has the same not

:08:51. > :08:56.happened with contaminated blood. Had more than 2400 people died over

:08:57. > :08:59.the course of one day, or one year, it would have been inconceivable for

:09:00. > :09:04.any Government to refuse calls for a public enquiry. Yet the devastation

:09:05. > :09:09.caused by the contaminated blood scandal has been spread not over

:09:10. > :09:13.days or years but over several decades. We must also bear in mind

:09:14. > :09:18.the provided a fact that the scandal has had on one community, those with

:09:19. > :09:24.bleeding disorders. Many of whom who were provided with contaminated mud

:09:25. > :09:27.factor concentrates sourced from profit-making American firms.

:09:28. > :09:32.Virtually everyone who has haemophiliac the time he has been

:09:33. > :09:35.infected. Honourable member 's will appreciate that when friends and

:09:36. > :09:41.close the communities I hit by collective tragedy, its impact can

:09:42. > :09:44.be devastating. Consider, for example, the school for disabled

:09:45. > :09:49.children, special school with a large number of pupils with

:09:50. > :09:55.haemophiliac, 72 of its peoples have died because of this scandal. Many

:09:56. > :09:58.were forced to be silent to suffering, I prefer the of the

:09:59. > :10:02.stigma of having HIV or hepatitis C or other viruses or because they

:10:03. > :10:09.were not even aware that they had these conditions. It is important as

:10:10. > :10:12.this distinction is, it does not excuse the fact that successive

:10:13. > :10:18.governments of all colours have sidestepped this issue for too long.

:10:19. > :10:22.Internationally, we know in France, investigations will be imprisonment

:10:23. > :10:25.as the former head of their blood transfusion service and his deputy

:10:26. > :10:30.and a former health minister was found guilty of manslaughter. In

:10:31. > :10:34.Japan, three executives at companies were imprisoned and official was

:10:35. > :10:38.convicted on negligence charges and in the United States, the private

:10:39. > :10:43.companies involved in this tragedy paid out millions in out-of-court

:10:44. > :10:47.settlements across the world. But nothing of this kind of happened in

:10:48. > :10:53.the UK. I will finish this point. In 1991, in response to the threat of

:10:54. > :10:59.court cases, the Government set up an excretion payments scheme, no

:11:00. > :11:04.implication of liability, the word compensation and waivers had to be

:11:05. > :11:10.signed before they could obtain small sums of money. I thank the

:11:11. > :11:15.honourable lady for giving way. Mike constituent who does not wish to be

:11:16. > :11:18.name was to include the remit of the Skipton fund because she feels and

:11:19. > :11:22.many others do the remit was wrongly drawn up and she and others have

:11:23. > :11:26.been denied the dust as they should have had. Yes, the honourable lady

:11:27. > :11:32.makes an important point and I'm going to mention that. I will give

:11:33. > :11:35.way. Congratulate her on the work she has done on this issue, and I

:11:36. > :11:39.welcome the factors there is good to be a public inquiry eventually and

:11:40. > :11:42.at last. Does my honourable friend agree with me that this public

:11:43. > :11:47.inquiry should address the issues of why the UK was the last country in

:11:48. > :11:52.the Western world to introduce a test for hepatitis C? Wife vital

:11:53. > :11:55.documents were destroyed by the Department of Health and why the UK

:11:56. > :11:58.took 13 years to get self-sufficiency in blood products

:11:59. > :12:03.when it took Ireland over five years? Again, very important

:12:04. > :12:09.questions for the inquiry to deal with. I want turnout today's

:12:10. > :12:13.announcement and the joint Westminster leader's letter of the

:12:14. > :12:20.7th of July. Which I think provided a blueprint for how such an enquiry

:12:21. > :12:23.should be conducted. First of all, as with Hillsborough, commitment,

:12:24. > :12:26.there should be a commitment to secure full public disclosure of

:12:27. > :12:30.details relating to this tragedy through a process managed by the

:12:31. > :12:34.effective community. There should be a mechanism to ensure all public

:12:35. > :12:38.bodies involved in the scandal are compelled to give oral and written

:12:39. > :12:43.evidence to it, you should see to be given that it will cover the role of

:12:44. > :12:47.American firms in providing blood factor concentrated people with

:12:48. > :12:52.haemophiliac, an investigation or so, not just about the run-up to the

:12:53. > :12:56.scandal, but its actual aftermath. And finally, it has to like these

:12:57. > :13:01.allegations of criminal conduct and I hope, as I said a little early on,

:13:02. > :13:03.the Minister will be able to help us with the timetable for this inquiry

:13:04. > :13:18.as those affected have I do pay tribute to the

:13:19. > :13:26.Parliamentary group, and NMI concert to rent is grateful to her and other

:13:27. > :13:32.MPs -- and I know my constituent is grateful. On health records, my

:13:33. > :13:37.constituent, who has access to a husband's health records. Does she

:13:38. > :13:44.agree with me that those affected through the scandal showed get their

:13:45. > :13:52.family health records? The honourable gentleman makes an

:13:53. > :13:59.important point, they with it. I pay tribute to the Member for the

:14:00. > :14:03.outstanding leadership here shown on this important issue. My constituent

:14:04. > :14:09.has been affected by this. There's a great deal been said about the

:14:10. > :14:17.responsible government, the cover-up, but also the moral way the

:14:18. > :14:20.victim has been treated. We get many living in destitution and poverty as

:14:21. > :14:26.a result of the government penny-pinching, when actually that

:14:27. > :14:30.should be part of the review. He is correct, we need to look carefully

:14:31. > :14:37.at the support being provided in the past and what should be provided in

:14:38. > :14:47.the future. I will give way, two more times. I'd like to add my

:14:48. > :14:52.thanks, Hayden who died, and other members of the family. Would she

:14:53. > :14:56.agree that we should learn from the lessons of the thalidomide enquiry

:14:57. > :15:02.and compensation fund in this enquiry to make sure we don't repeat

:15:03. > :15:05.the mistakes made with thalidomide? That is an excellent point that

:15:06. > :15:12.needs to be considered. I will give away one last time. I'd like to pay

:15:13. > :15:21.tribute on behalf of my constituents, James Jones. In the

:15:22. > :15:28.Welsh Assembly, there was confirmation that the payments

:15:29. > :15:36.continue to be made, that no liability is accepted. And again, it

:15:37. > :15:43.confirms the payment of 10,000 to a partner, that continues again. That

:15:44. > :15:47.goes to the heart of it, there's never been any finding of liability.

:15:48. > :15:52.That has resulted in very low payments being made and it kind of

:15:53. > :16:00.support bases, rather than a compensatory basis. I just want to

:16:01. > :16:06.Ritter eight -- reiterates, that I strongly believe, and I think the

:16:07. > :16:11.majority believe, that a Hillsborough style enquiry is the

:16:12. > :16:17.best way forward in this case. Putting those affected at the heart

:16:18. > :16:21.of whatever is created and set up. So, for instance, giving people the

:16:22. > :16:24.opportunity to have an input into the terms of reference, being able

:16:25. > :16:31.to look at people who might be considered to be a chairperson of

:16:32. > :16:36.the inquiry, or any panel members. This has to have the support and

:16:37. > :16:41.confidence of all those affected, that's why looking at what happened

:16:42. > :16:45.with a Hillsborough style enquiry, the Hillsborough enquiry, that

:16:46. > :16:50.worked effectively. In Hillsborough, it was known as families first. And

:16:51. > :16:56.I hope that might be able to carry on with this enquiry as to set up.

:16:57. > :17:01.So, I also think all those affected need to be treated with the utmost

:17:02. > :17:05.respect and reverence and fully consulted. And any information that

:17:06. > :17:13.becomes available should first of all go to those people affected. I

:17:14. > :17:18.want to just talk about the Fall questions I have around, but I think

:17:19. > :17:23.the enquiring need to look at -- Fall. In Andy Burnham's speech, when

:17:24. > :17:27.he set out the case for why they needed to be an inquiry, and he was

:17:28. > :17:34.one of two former Health Secretary 's comedy of being Lord Irwin, who

:17:35. > :17:38.had raised serious concerns, and we know there was the panorama

:17:39. > :17:44.programme and the Daily Mail article. From what Andy Burnham said

:17:45. > :17:50.and from all the developments in the last few months, there are serious

:17:51. > :17:55.questions which I still believe need to be addressed by public enquiry.

:17:56. > :17:59.First of all, why did the government not act soon to protect the blood

:18:00. > :18:04.supplies once the risks became known? Why were we so reliant on

:18:05. > :18:09.American commercial products the haemophilia patient? Because UK was

:18:10. > :18:13.not self-sufficient in blood supplies, profit-making American

:18:14. > :18:17.companies played a considerable role in supplying factor concentrates the

:18:18. > :18:21.haemophilia patients. This blood was sourced from much riskier patients,

:18:22. > :18:25.including prison inmates, who were much more likely to have infections

:18:26. > :18:28.and had a financial incentive to be less than honest about their risks

:18:29. > :18:37.of infection. The dangers American products were being discussed, not

:18:38. > :18:41.from the 1990s, nor the 1980s, but from 1970. As the Daily Mail

:18:42. > :18:46.reported last week, files now suggested at least as early as 1980,

:18:47. > :18:49.officials had even put an estimate on about haemophilia patients being

:18:50. > :18:54.infected from these products, with what we now know to be hepatitis C.

:18:55. > :18:59.They put the figure at 50 a year, yet it was not until night they took

:19:00. > :19:03.any action to address it. If the whole of the UK had been

:19:04. > :19:08.self-sufficient in blood supplies, fewer haemophilia patients would

:19:09. > :19:12.have been affected. We know this because Scotland had higher levels

:19:13. > :19:19.of self-sufficiency than England. As the Panorama programme outline,

:19:20. > :19:24.haemophilia patients were twice as likely to be infected in HIV than in

:19:25. > :19:28.Scotland. Even in the mid-1980s, when the danger of hepatitis C and a

:19:29. > :19:33.Chevy became known, it appears we could have acted sooner to remove

:19:34. > :19:39.products, and when United States started screening their products

:19:40. > :19:45.from March 1983, we carried on using non-screened American supplies that

:19:46. > :19:50.we had purchased before March. How can that possibly be justified? So

:19:51. > :19:54.my second question for the inquiry, why were patients kept in the dark

:19:55. > :19:58.and not told of the risks once they became known? There are many aspects

:19:59. > :20:02.of this controversy which I know other honourable members may wish to

:20:03. > :20:06.touch on. But I want to draw the attention to the development 1983 at

:20:07. > :20:09.the midst of the AIDS epidemic where there were still uncertainty about

:20:10. > :20:14.whether it was a blood-borne disease. In November 1983, the

:20:15. > :20:18.health minister and still the right honourable member Rushcliffe told

:20:19. > :20:22.Parliament that there was no conclusive evidence AIDS is

:20:23. > :20:25.transmitted by blood products. Yet earlier that same year his

:20:26. > :20:32.department was repairing internal documents which said the opposite.

:20:33. > :20:36.In August 1983 the same departments was telling practising homosexuals

:20:37. > :20:41.and drug users not to give blood because of the risk of transmitting

:20:42. > :20:45.AIDS. In the summer of 83, the department was preparing a blood

:20:46. > :20:49.donor leaflet which said AIDS was almost certainly transmitted by

:20:50. > :20:55.blood and blood products. In July in Italy to free the UK haemophilia

:20:56. > :20:58.centre doctors organisation said young children with haemophilia

:20:59. > :21:03.should receive a less risky form blood products because of the

:21:04. > :21:07.dangers of AIDS. And between March and May 1983, the Scottish National

:21:08. > :21:11.Party transfusion service prepared a leaflet for blood donors. It

:21:12. > :21:16.included haemophiliacs and recipients are blood transfusions on

:21:17. > :21:22.this are people who get AIDS and asked the same individuals not to

:21:23. > :21:26.give blood. The Penrose enquiry, the Scottish Penrose enquiry,

:21:27. > :21:30.acknowledged in adopting its position in November 1983, the then

:21:31. > :21:36.government relied heavily on a highly nuanced use of language. My

:21:37. > :21:39.third point is, why were some people tested for viruses without their

:21:40. > :21:43.knowledge, and only told of the results of many years later? There

:21:44. > :21:49.are many cases of this happening and I will make reference to one,

:21:50. > :21:53.Jonathan Evans, he was first tested positive HIV in 1984, yet he wasn't

:21:54. > :21:57.all that this until seven months later in the mid-1985 period. This

:21:58. > :22:01.poses a huge health risk to his wide family and the history of this

:22:02. > :22:07.scandal is full of cases of spouses infecting each other. Tragically,

:22:08. > :22:12.the virus took his life and his son Jason was just Fall years old when

:22:13. > :22:16.his father died, he is still campaigning for justice -- four

:22:17. > :22:21.years old. He's been instrumental in generating coverage in the Daily

:22:22. > :22:24.Mail article. Fourthly, there are allegations of a criminal cover-up

:22:25. > :22:28.on an industrial scale from the highest ranks of government

:22:29. > :22:31.downwards. At every stage of the scandal, there are concerns

:22:32. > :22:35.officials knew more than they were letting on, almost everyone affected

:22:36. > :22:39.by the scandal has encountered issues with most medical records.

:22:40. > :22:43.Others have recovered files only to find any mention of a connection

:22:44. > :22:48.with contaminated blood being removed. Some individuals today are

:22:49. > :22:59.unable to access financial support via the Skipton fund because of what

:23:00. > :23:01.has happened to their medical records. These cases of lost records

:23:02. > :23:03.also extend to the highest level of government. Jeremy Archer enquiry,

:23:04. > :23:06.Lord Owen requested his departmental papers from the time he was health

:23:07. > :23:09.minister 1970s. He told they'd been destroyed under the ten-year rule.

:23:10. > :23:15.Even though there is no evidence of such a rule existing. Finally, when

:23:16. > :23:19.people were forced to sign waivers in 1991, as I mentioned earlier,

:23:20. > :23:24.they were asked to commit to no further legal action for hepatitis C

:23:25. > :23:28.litigation as well as HIV. These individuals did not yet know they

:23:29. > :23:34.had hepatitis C, as the disease had a long incubation period. The

:23:35. > :23:37.inescapable conclusion seems to be departmental officials knew more

:23:38. > :23:42.than they were willing to disclose. In conclusion, earlier this week,

:23:43. > :23:45.the Prime Minister indicated her intention to work more with other

:23:46. > :23:51.party leaders, to act in the best interests of the country. And she

:23:52. > :23:56.has shown a laudable commitment to this with respect for other public

:23:57. > :23:59.disasters, including the child abuse enquiry and the Hillsborough

:24:00. > :24:04.disaster. Alongside the many thousands of people who have for

:24:05. > :24:08.justice for so long, I want to personally thank the showing the

:24:09. > :24:11.same commitment with respect to the contaminated blood tragedy. There

:24:12. > :24:17.are still questions to answered on the detail of that enquiry, in

:24:18. > :24:21.Rockingham this announcement we must be mindful of those who will never

:24:22. > :24:25.see its result -- in a welcoming. The people who are tragically lost

:24:26. > :24:31.their lives, many never knew the true scale of the scandal happening

:24:32. > :24:35.to them. Those affected and their families will be waiting anxiously

:24:36. > :24:37.to go the Prime Minister's announcement will give them the

:24:38. > :24:44.justice they have so long be denied. But today, the Prime Minister has

:24:45. > :24:48.earned a place in history as someone who has listened to an issue which

:24:49. > :24:54.predecessors had ignored and put party politics aside in the name of

:24:55. > :25:00.giving the people the basic right to answers, and for that she has my

:25:01. > :25:05.gratitude. The question is, this House has considered the need for an

:25:06. > :25:09.independent public enquiry into the contaminated blood scandal. Just

:25:10. > :25:12.before I call the first speaker from the backbench, I should say that at

:25:13. > :25:18.this stage, I've not impose any formal time-limit, but a number of

:25:19. > :25:22.people wish to contribute and therefore I know the honourable

:25:23. > :25:26.gentleman the Stratford-upon-Avon will exercise a magnificent

:25:27. > :25:33.self-denying Ordinance in the length of his oration. Do we really have to

:25:34. > :25:38.have it? I know what I'm doing, I'm capable of handling it. If it is

:25:39. > :25:42.about the order of speeches. No, no, I did see to be advised by the right

:25:43. > :25:47.honourable gentleman. Let me just say, insofar as this was unclear, it

:25:48. > :25:50.was as a result of a failure of communication between the two

:25:51. > :25:55.frontbenchers. These matters should be sorted out between the government

:25:56. > :25:59.on the opposition, not for people yapping at each other across the

:26:00. > :26:03.floor of the House, or very close to the Speaker's chair. The Speaker is

:26:04. > :26:09.happy to give effect to what the two sides of the House and want within

:26:10. > :26:13.reason, that was not made easy on this occasion. I'm to address the

:26:14. > :26:18.matter by consensus, I know the right honourable member means well

:26:19. > :26:27.and is offer is appreciated, but I don't need to take him up on it. Go

:26:28. > :26:31.girl can I join colleagues to pay tribute to the member of Kingston

:26:32. > :26:37.upon Hull North and the work she has done reading the all-party group, as

:26:38. > :26:44.well as the Member for Worthing West, who has been a joint chairman

:26:45. > :26:52.of the all-party group? I have been working with the victims in my

:26:53. > :26:59.constituency since 2011. Super the last six years. I consider myself a

:27:00. > :27:06.new Boye when it comes to this particular tragedy and scandal. The

:27:07. > :27:12.Member for North East Bedfordshire has spent many, many hours

:27:13. > :27:17.tirelessly working on behalf of his consistency, and may I pay tribute

:27:18. > :27:18.to him? I know he'd want to be in this debate but he couldn't because

:27:19. > :27:30.of government business. I really want to just thank the

:27:31. > :27:37.Prime Minister for listening to the victims of this extraordinary

:27:38. > :27:46.tragedy. And colleagues in this house, and actually really calling

:27:47. > :27:53.this enquiry. I want to acknowledge the Minister's response to

:27:54. > :27:57.colleagues that the government is in listening mode in terms of the terms

:27:58. > :28:04.of reference for this enquiry and that they will put the victims at

:28:05. > :28:08.the heart of this enquiry. I think that that is what the victims will

:28:09. > :28:16.expect, and will be grateful for. Many victims, certainly my

:28:17. > :28:23.constituents, initially did not want an enquiry, they wanted a settlement

:28:24. > :28:29.actually take place rather than an enquiry but as new evidence was

:28:30. > :28:34.uncovered and again I pay tribute to Andy Burnham in some of the work

:28:35. > :28:42.that he has done on this. And the journalist for the

:28:43. > :28:44.Kingston-upon-Hull cited. My constituent certainly changed her

:28:45. > :28:54.view and is very much supporting and looking forward to engaging with

:28:55. > :29:00.this enquiry. I just want to raise an important issue that the enquiry

:29:01. > :29:04.looks at. Subsequent treatment of victims, and holds the bodies to

:29:05. > :29:10.account. Now, I have on behalf of Claire Walton been attempting to,

:29:11. > :29:17.attempting to communicate with the McFarlane trust, one of the five

:29:18. > :29:21.charities set up to help, and I say help the victims because in my

:29:22. > :29:24.experience I have to say to the Minister the McFarlane trust has

:29:25. > :29:31.been anything but help my constituent. They have behaved in an

:29:32. > :29:36.utterly despicable way. They refused to take meetings with my

:29:37. > :29:39.constituent, or with me, I have requested meetings for the past six

:29:40. > :29:42.years, and they always come back with a reason why they cannot have a

:29:43. > :29:50.meeting. They have bullied by constituent, the trustees of the

:29:51. > :29:56.McFarlane trust have bullied her, and they have fed her scraps, those

:29:57. > :29:59.are her words. Whilst at the same time having had charged over her

:30:00. > :30:05.property for all of this time and making a profit on that charge they

:30:06. > :30:09.refused to discuss the future of the charge on her property. She wants to

:30:10. > :30:13.know because the scheme administrator will soon be changed

:30:14. > :30:16.to the NHS business advisory service, by constituent wants to

:30:17. > :30:19.know what will happen when that change takes place and I hope the

:30:20. > :30:28.government can take some of this away and respond to it more fully at

:30:29. > :30:32.the appropriate time. The MacFarlane trust say they cannot give any more

:30:33. > :30:35.information until they have clarity from the Department of Health about

:30:36. > :30:42.transition arrangements, and she really does want that clarity. But I

:30:43. > :30:47.hope that the Minister will as his predecessor had intimated, that the

:30:48. > :30:53.McFarlane trust is not for this world for much longer. And I have as

:30:54. > :31:06.I said struggled to even be able to speak to them on the phone. My other

:31:07. > :31:10.constituent, Adrian Milton feels particularly concerned about the

:31:11. > :31:16.discretionary papers. Many victims actually rely on the discretionary

:31:17. > :31:25.payments, and I again hope that as the minister begins to look at the

:31:26. > :31:29.evidence, before him, he will look very closely at making sure that

:31:30. > :31:33.where discretionary payments have actually become something much more

:31:34. > :31:38.permanent, that they are recognised as that and not treated as

:31:39. > :31:42.discretionary because the promise we made to our constituents under the

:31:43. > :31:48.previous Prime Minister, and I had to commend him in wanting to resolve

:31:49. > :31:54.this is that no victim will financially suffer under any

:31:55. > :31:59.compensation. Any structure we put in place. I will take Mr Speaker's

:32:00. > :32:05.very eloquent words on board and end there. Only just to say that this is

:32:06. > :32:09.not a party political issue, many successive governments have failed

:32:10. > :32:14.the victims and I hope now we can actually come together and have this

:32:15. > :32:19.with a deadline, a clear timeline... I will give way. I congratulate my

:32:20. > :32:23.honourable friend for the leadership she has given on this issue. On the

:32:24. > :32:29.coming together I think this is important it is a UK level, previous

:32:30. > :32:34.to devolution. I think it was important that the Minister works

:32:35. > :32:40.with the devolved administration so that any compensation is at a UK

:32:41. > :32:45.level, so there are no second-class citizens in the UK. And I think that

:32:46. > :32:50.point is taken on board by the victim certainly who looked at the

:32:51. > :32:53.Scottish settlement certainly in my case, with Adrian Melson. I am sure

:32:54. > :32:58.the government is listening to the honourable friend's view on this.

:32:59. > :33:05.But let us come together, and put a very clear timeline on when the

:33:06. > :33:09.victims can adversely get justice but also compensation. I am grateful

:33:10. > :33:14.to him. For more opposition members are minded to grumble about without

:33:15. > :33:17.the Minister hasn't come in and that he is necessarily next I will just

:33:18. > :33:20.point out that I was in receipt of her presentations from the

:33:21. > :33:27.opposition front bench on this matter. Some communication between

:33:28. > :33:29.the front and back bench would be advantageous to the conduct of

:33:30. > :33:36.proceedings. Before I call the Shadow Minister for the public

:33:37. > :33:42.health, can I did the -- gently implore her to speak for no more

:33:43. > :33:45.than ten minutes and preferably for fewer. There are plenty who wish to

:33:46. > :33:51.contribute after the honourable lady will stop the honourable gentleman

:33:52. > :33:54.for Ludlow will helpfully set at the government position and we will then

:33:55. > :33:57.open up to a wider debate and I would promise complete distraction

:33:58. > :34:01.because I think that is without precedent in the house, but I will

:34:02. > :34:09.try and ensure that there are as many happy members as possible. As

:34:10. > :34:15.Sharon Hodgson. Thank you for your guidance, Mr Speaker, on this

:34:16. > :34:18.matter. First and foremost first thanks go to the outstanding member

:34:19. > :34:23.of my friend for a whole north who has soaked valiantly campaigned on

:34:24. > :34:27.this issue for years now and without her and be delegated resolved by her

:34:28. > :34:31.and all those that she cited to have been involved in this campaign, we

:34:32. > :34:36.would not be where we are now. Thanks must also go to the former

:34:37. > :34:43.member for league Andy Burnham and, at the end of last parliament I had

:34:44. > :34:51.the honour of being present at going to the police with the evidence he

:34:52. > :34:55.has if the government cannot seek justice for those neglected. For too

:34:56. > :34:59.long the contaminated blood community has been simply failed by

:35:00. > :35:03.the government. Ignored by those who have led the demands of the affected

:35:04. > :35:09.fall under four years which has lacked this community without

:35:10. > :35:16.justice. It is very welcome with the news in the last hour and a half or

:35:17. > :35:22.so that this may have finally some resolution soon, I am very grateful

:35:23. > :35:30.for him to allow me to speak first so that answer questions and what

:35:31. > :35:33.this is an unusual format and that I have no prior knowledge that that

:35:34. > :35:38.format was going to be changed and I hope other honourable members who

:35:39. > :35:42.are also going to questions in the debates to label also get a chance

:35:43. > :35:46.for some response from the ministers over and I don't know where fear he

:35:47. > :35:52.will get to bite at the cherry or whether it will have the BB convened

:35:53. > :35:57.to get other answers. I would also add that this emergency debate is

:35:58. > :36:00.very timely and allows us the house to have its voice heard bully which

:36:01. > :36:06.is white, after the decades of neglect this community has space. At

:36:07. > :36:09.any point prior to 1230 when it was announced in the News the Minister

:36:10. > :36:13.could have come forward and made a statement which would have saved my

:36:14. > :36:19.honourable friend calling for the emergency debate yesterday. It does

:36:20. > :36:23.tend to feel that the order of thing has been forced, and it is sad that

:36:24. > :36:28.it has to be forced in this way. We are where we are. They on our

:36:29. > :36:37.benches, Labour are resolutely in favour of a Hillsborough style

:36:38. > :36:41.enquiry. It was in our manifesto and we pushed for it, and it is this

:36:42. > :36:47.style of enquiry which will get to the heart of the problems that began

:36:48. > :36:52.in the 1980s and hold those blamed for the scandal to account before

:36:53. > :36:56.too late. It is not just our backbenchers but all those of the

:36:57. > :36:59.other parties represented in this, especially on this side of the

:37:00. > :37:03.house, who have made a commitment to stand up for those people seeking

:37:04. > :37:07.justice. As was so clearly documented in the joint letter from

:37:08. > :37:11.the leaders of every single opposition party here in this house,

:37:12. > :37:16.and also the DUP, I am pleased to say, published on Sunday. In the

:37:17. > :37:19.debate on this issue last November secured by my honourable friend Bob

:37:20. > :37:27.Ivanov, we debated a whole host of issues, including compensation for

:37:28. > :37:30.the terrible events that have occurred but today we are here to

:37:31. > :37:36.debate the fights for justice, we should have happened a lot sooner.

:37:37. > :37:39.In my contribution I want to impress two key points, firstly that

:37:40. > :37:44.categorically the previous two enquiries have been insufficient in

:37:45. > :37:47.seeking justice. And this is the reason why a Hillsborough style

:37:48. > :37:54.enquiry Busby actioned. Secondly, the evidence presented so far is

:37:55. > :38:00.clear that if we are to have true reconciliation of the murky covering

:38:01. > :38:05.up on this scandal then the strongest of daylight must be shown

:38:06. > :38:10.on all of this, leaving no stone unturned. The two previous enquiry

:38:11. > :38:14.the archer enquiry and the Penrose enquiry 2015 in Scotland did not go

:38:15. > :38:18.far enough in the eyes of the affected community in getting the

:38:19. > :38:23.truth and justice they deserve. Firstly the arch enquiry was not a

:38:24. > :38:28.government backed one, and failed to seek Department of Health witnesses

:38:29. > :38:32.give evidence. The Penrose enquiry dude again but go far enough in

:38:33. > :38:35.seeking truth, and was unable to compel witnesses from outside of

:38:36. > :38:40.Scotland when at the time of the scandal most if not all of the

:38:41. > :38:44.positions were made in Whitehall. So this failure to compel witnesses

:38:45. > :38:47.from outside of Scotland failed to seek the justice and answers that

:38:48. > :38:53.people from right across the UK deserved. On my second point, there

:38:54. > :38:57.are many allegations around this scandal. Ranging from Department of

:38:58. > :39:02.Health officials destroying evidence as part of a cover-up to victims

:39:03. > :39:07.medical details being tamper with to hide the cause of their infections.

:39:08. > :39:10.I will give way. There are two particular issues that the

:39:11. > :39:15.constituents of mine have said that the enquiry but consider. One told

:39:16. > :39:21.me that he was infected with Hepatitis C and exposed to the HIV

:39:22. > :39:24.virus and was not informed until years afterwards by the NHS, and

:39:25. > :39:29.wants to be ensure that the enquiry will reveal why the truth was

:39:30. > :39:32.hidden. The second wants to know about this issue of doctors and

:39:33. > :39:35.scientists being paid by the drug companies and the precise nature of

:39:36. > :39:39.those deals and he thinks that those had to be really properly and

:39:40. > :39:45.rigorously exposed by this enquiry. So that we can get to the bottom of

:39:46. > :39:48.whatever vested interest existed during the scandal. I thank my noble

:39:49. > :39:54.friend for the intervention and the evidence is happy well documented

:39:55. > :40:00.about which he speaks, especially by the former member for lead, and the

:40:01. > :40:03.honourable member for whole north. Those brave enough to come forward

:40:04. > :40:07.who have lived with these conditions at the sharp end of this heinous

:40:08. > :40:19.negligence reported in the Daily Mail last week drove just important

:40:20. > :40:25.how it is to set up the Hillsborough style enquiry. Would she agree that

:40:26. > :40:28.the self-sufficiency and blood products is an unauthorised report

:40:29. > :40:35.perpetuating inaccuracies and outright lies as per my constituent

:40:36. > :40:39.letter to me? This is all what will have to be looked into, all of this

:40:40. > :40:43.evidence needs to be looked into, and recent days my office has

:40:44. > :40:46.received contact from individuals from my constituency affected by

:40:47. > :40:50.this scandal with intricate details that must be addressed, and it is

:40:51. > :40:56.important that those questions no matter how small they may seem are

:40:57. > :40:59.entered, as these are issues which have inextricably affected that

:41:00. > :41:04.person's whole life. It is issues like these that must be addressed,

:41:05. > :41:07.most importantly so that those who have lived with the ramifications of

:41:08. > :41:13.this serious negligence can finally have the justice they deserve. Now,

:41:14. > :41:16.these are two of the reasons do get to the bottom of the allegations of

:41:17. > :41:21.evidence presented. And having a full and frank enquiry, that brings

:41:22. > :41:26.justice to the many people affected. This is why we must have this

:41:27. > :41:30.enquiry. It is a joint letter by the opposition leader said over the

:41:31. > :41:34.weekend, if the panel was to be convened then it must disclose any

:41:35. > :41:40.and all documents related to the scandal which involve the victims at

:41:41. > :41:44.every stage. It must compel all parties involved to participate with

:41:45. > :41:48.the disclose a process, and not hinder justice and a further. Along

:41:49. > :41:53.with investigating the events leading up to the individual's

:41:54. > :41:56.infections, but also the aftermath, including allegations of medical

:41:57. > :42:01.details being tampered with, whether people were unknowingly tested for

:42:02. > :42:04.viruses without their knowledge, and if enough was done to identify those

:42:05. > :42:11.at risk of the infections. There must also be an investigation part

:42:12. > :42:12.of this enquiry into the role of profit-making American firms

:42:13. > :42:19.supplying the blood factor concentrates that people -- to

:42:20. > :42:23.people with haemophilia. Whilst none of this will bring back loved ones

:42:24. > :42:27.who have died who have been part of this Campbell Gunn or change the

:42:28. > :42:30.circumstances of those living with the conditions inflicted upon them

:42:31. > :42:34.today, there is still something we can do, and that is to hold the

:42:35. > :42:39.enquiry, it is the very least we can do. The thousands of people affected

:42:40. > :42:44.must be supported, and we must stand beside them in seeking justice as is

:42:45. > :42:48.our duty as an elected representatives of the public. I

:42:49. > :42:51.want to conclude with this final remarks, Mr Speaker. None here have

:42:52. > :42:56.a magic wand. I know our constituents all think we do, and we

:42:57. > :43:00.can't turn back time and stop this scandal from happening. Sadly, this

:43:01. > :43:05.power does not exist. But the power that does exist and at the behest of

:43:06. > :43:09.the minister before us to day is that a facilitating the justice for

:43:10. > :43:14.those who live with the aftermath of this scandal. Here today we can send

:43:15. > :43:19.a message, allowed an strong message to those who campaign on this issue

:43:20. > :43:24.day and day out. That Parliament has listened to and is on their side. We

:43:25. > :43:28.in this house have heard them, we in this house are there with them and

:43:29. > :43:33.we in this house will do all we can for them in their quest for justice.

:43:34. > :43:37.We cannot let them down. We can help facilitate the truth once and for

:43:38. > :43:40.all. Parliament is this thing to these individuals who have spent

:43:41. > :43:44.decades fighting, is against the system, to get the truth they seek

:43:45. > :43:48.and the government must listen to Parliament. Parliament is saying

:43:49. > :43:52.fixed this, provide those thousands of people who never asked for this

:43:53. > :43:53.to happen to them with the justice they use so rightly deserve. We

:43:54. > :44:09.cannot fail them any longer. Thank you, Mr Speaker. And thank you

:44:10. > :44:14.for making it clear in the sequence in which we are speaking today in

:44:15. > :44:17.this very important debate. I would like to start my contribution by

:44:18. > :44:24.offering my personal apology to all those affected by the tragedy of

:44:25. > :44:30.infected NHS blood products. This has had the terrible impact on so

:44:31. > :44:35.many individuals and families. It has, quite rightly, been the subject

:44:36. > :44:40.of many debates in this chamber. It has been prompted by the proper

:44:41. > :44:44.concern of members on both sides of the house over many years. There

:44:45. > :44:49.have been two previous enquiries on this issue. The Archer report in

:44:50. > :44:59.2009 and the Scottish Government funded Penrose enquiry in 2015.

:45:00. > :45:07.There have been several calls for a fool, independent enquiry over the

:45:08. > :45:10.years. In addition to these reports, we have attempted to bring greater

:45:11. > :45:19.transparency to the events of the team. Many documents regarding to

:45:20. > :45:24.like 60 from 19721995 have been published and are available on the

:45:25. > :45:27.National Archives website. These documents provide a comprehensive

:45:28. > :45:36.look at the events in the decisions made. Many of these were covered in

:45:37. > :45:40.the Penrose enquiry. But I recognise that for those affected, these steps

:45:41. > :45:44.do not go far enough to provide the answers they want to get to the

:45:45. > :45:52.truth of what happened. In light of these concerns, and of reports of

:45:53. > :45:56.new evidence and allegations of potential criminality, we think it

:45:57. > :46:00.is important to understand the extent of what is cleaned and the

:46:01. > :46:09.wider issues which arise. I will make some prick progress to get it

:46:10. > :46:21.to the nub of this statement. -- quick. The government will look to

:46:22. > :46:30.hold an enquiry into how many people will affected by infected blood

:46:31. > :46:38.products. I am very grateful for the news he has just confirmed. Will he

:46:39. > :46:47.ensure the process is followed and that it facilitates the ability to

:46:48. > :46:55.bring charges so that the full effect of the law could be brought

:46:56. > :47:00.against anyone who could face charges? I will carry on and detail

:47:01. > :47:09.the full extent of how the enquiry would proceed. There have been calls

:47:10. > :47:15.for an enquiry similar to the enquiry looked at into the

:47:16. > :47:22.Hillsborough disaster. This will work with families and close

:47:23. > :47:25.personal engagement with an independent advisers. There have

:47:26. > :47:31.also been told that only statutory enquiry led by a senior judge by the

:47:32. > :47:35.enquiries act 2005 will provide the answers that people want. It would

:47:36. > :47:43.have the power to compel witnesses and written evidence, one of the

:47:44. > :47:47.apparent shortcomings of the previous reports. The government can

:47:48. > :47:50.see minutes in both approaches to ensure that whatever is established

:47:51. > :47:57.in the interests of those affected, we will engage with the affected

:47:58. > :48:00.groups aren't affected parties, including the all Parliamentary

:48:01. > :48:09.group before taking a final decision on the tape of enquiry. I am

:48:10. > :48:13.grateful to my honourable friend. Could he tell the house whether the

:48:14. > :48:17.terms of the enquiry will allow recommendations to be made with

:48:18. > :48:22.regard to compensation for those affected? I will make a little bit

:48:23. > :48:29.of progress and endeavour to cancel that during my remarks. They right

:48:30. > :48:31.honourable friend the Secretary of State and ministers at the

:48:32. > :48:36.Department of Health will be meeting with those affected than the

:48:37. > :48:41.families to discuss the issues and for us to understand their

:48:42. > :48:48.preferences directly with regard to the stale, scope and duration of the

:48:49. > :48:53.enquiry. I just wonder what can he give some time estimate for all

:48:54. > :48:58.these meetings taking place? My experience of the Department of

:48:59. > :49:02.Health on this issue is that deadlines are not met and things

:49:03. > :49:06.have to be dragged onto the floor of the house to get ministers to

:49:07. > :49:12.respond. As they face a timetable as to when you decision will be made? I

:49:13. > :49:17.am sure the honourable ladle who has taken such an active lead and

:49:18. > :49:22.encouraging enquiries will want to make sure we get this rate. We will

:49:23. > :49:26.take the time necessary to consult with colleagues with interested

:49:27. > :49:31.groups and our intent would be to be able to come back to this house as

:49:32. > :49:43.soon as practicable and I would anticipate in the autumn. He has

:49:44. > :49:48.mentioned the Department of Health. In Wales, under the devolved

:49:49. > :49:58.administration, for consultation as he undertaken with regard to

:49:59. > :50:00.contacting the Welsh Assembly? There is a legitimate interest from all

:50:01. > :50:05.constituent nations within the United Kingdom and as many of these

:50:06. > :50:13.incidents happened prior to devil tuition, we do intend to consult

:50:14. > :50:19.with devolved governments. Would he agree the enquiry would have to

:50:20. > :50:27.yield answers to the victims of the scandal and their families? There

:50:28. > :50:31.will be a great interest to the conclusion of this to ensure that

:50:32. > :50:38.the circumstances which led to the scandal can never be repeated again.

:50:39. > :50:49.I completely agree. I will make a little more progress. Regardless of

:50:50. > :50:52.the stale of the enquiry, it is our intention that it will cover the

:50:53. > :50:59.whole of the United Kingdom and we will therefore be in direct contact

:51:00. > :51:03.with counterparts in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to seek the

:51:04. > :51:15.views before determining those aspects of the enquiry. I apologise

:51:16. > :51:22.to the hose. The Minister has indicated that the consultation will

:51:23. > :51:31.be around the United Kingdom. There is no corresponding Minister of

:51:32. > :51:36.health in Northern Ireland. That is disgraceful. How will the Minister

:51:37. > :51:43.is with Northern Ireland in the absence of the Assembly? We will be

:51:44. > :51:46.looking to the Northern Ireland Office to facilitate discussions

:51:47. > :51:55.with officials and representatives in Northern Ireland. On this point

:51:56. > :51:58.may Honourable friend made, is this a United Kingdom weight enquiry and

:51:59. > :52:09.that the consultation will be across the United Kingdom but that the

:52:10. > :52:15.enquiry itself will be niche in May, so the constituents like my own will

:52:16. > :52:19.have the quality to this? The scope of the enquiry will be determined as

:52:20. > :52:25.part of the discussions which as I indicated we will have in the coming

:52:26. > :52:32.weeks and months. Our intent is that the devolved administrations and

:52:33. > :52:37.residence within that will have free access to participate in the enquiry

:52:38. > :52:41.regardless of where they live or really one affected. The government

:52:42. > :52:44.intends to update the house once these discussions are completed. I

:52:45. > :52:50.would encourage colleagues with the specific interest to engage

:52:51. > :52:58.themselves in discussions through the all-party group that may exist.

:52:59. > :53:03.In the meantime, if anyone in this house side has any evidence of

:53:04. > :53:09.criminality they should take their evidence to the police as soon as

:53:10. > :53:14.possible. If anyone has any other evidence that they want the enquiry

:53:15. > :53:17.to consider, I would ask that the submitted to the enquiry once it has

:53:18. > :53:21.been established. The government will be writing to all those in

:53:22. > :53:27.receipt of payments from the current schemes to make sure that the all

:53:28. > :53:35.know about today's announcement. And to inform them of the next step. I

:53:36. > :53:41.thank the Minister for giving way. I welcome the comments so far. Woody

:53:42. > :53:47.confirmed that it would not do anything to endanger clinical trials

:53:48. > :53:53.and see that Inman with information must make sure it is made available

:53:54. > :53:58.to the police? I honourable friend will reckon it from the recent

:53:59. > :54:03.Hillsborough enquiry that it gave RISE to a certain information made

:54:04. > :54:11.available to the police which led to certain charges being made. We would

:54:12. > :54:16.envisage that any enquiry is established with have the ability to

:54:17. > :54:22.do the same thing if that is appropriate. I must make a little

:54:23. > :54:26.bit of progress. Mr Speaker has encouraged me to make ten minutes so

:54:27. > :54:29.that others can make their contribution and I have already

:54:30. > :54:37.exceeded that. I would inform the house that implementing the forms to

:54:38. > :54:43.be affected blood support schemes remains a priority for the

:54:44. > :54:49.government. That is why within the spending review period until 2021,

:54:50. > :54:54.up to ?125 million of additional funding has been added to the budget

:54:55. > :55:02.for the support scheme. It is more than doubles the annual spend. The

:55:03. > :55:07.second consultation on the scheme for which closed on April 17

:55:08. > :55:11.received 250 responses. The consultation contained the portals

:55:12. > :55:16.for a special category make mechanism which would allow those

:55:17. > :55:22.with stage one hepatitis C for the larger annual payment and that with

:55:23. > :55:28.greatly increased the number of people eligible for that payment.

:55:29. > :55:45.The results and consultation of that will be published in June course. --

:55:46. > :55:51.due. . I want to press this point about the liability of financial

:55:52. > :56:01.liabilities arising from the enquiry and the impact of revolution. Can he

:56:02. > :56:10.sure is that people, regardless of whether you'll have no will will

:56:11. > :56:13.receive equal treatment, with regard to financial liability? I have just

:56:14. > :56:19.talked about the financial scheme with in England. It will be work for

:56:20. > :56:23.the enquiry to decide whether they want to make recommendations with

:56:24. > :56:27.regard to financial recommendations. I could not give a confirmation for

:56:28. > :56:36.that at the moment. That would have to come from the enquiry. I

:56:37. > :56:43.constituent was infected with hepatitis C in 1970. This was

:56:44. > :56:48.discovered only about three years ago. Will any consideration be given

:56:49. > :56:59.to those many years of suffering when the compensation scheme is put

:57:00. > :57:05.into effect? I can offer my sympathy to your constituent for the

:57:06. > :57:10.challenges she finds herself with. We have dizzy at this point that it

:57:11. > :57:16.will be going to individuals to make their applications. We will be

:57:17. > :57:23.responding to the consultation and I would strongly encourage my

:57:24. > :57:24.honourable friend to make representations on her behalf to the

:57:25. > :57:35.enquiry when it is established. I thank the Minister for giving way.

:57:36. > :57:38.He has been extremely generous. Could I just press him on the

:57:39. > :57:45.listing of health records. Any families also strength to salvage

:57:46. > :57:53.what happened last the scope of discussion is the enquiry. Can we

:57:54. > :58:00.write to the Minister on the representation records? I think it

:58:01. > :58:04.would be appropriate to write when that city was established. The point

:58:05. > :58:09.was made earlier about medical records, if there is evidence of

:58:10. > :58:12.tampering that I should be made available to the enquiry. I'm afraid

:58:13. > :58:19.we're going to have to bring my remarks to a conclusion. I thank

:58:20. > :58:24.those on both sides of the house who worked tirelessly on this issue over

:58:25. > :58:28.the years and particularly my voice to others who have already spoken to

:58:29. > :58:36.commend the honourable member for Kingston upon Hull North, who I know

:58:37. > :58:39.has spread not only powerfully today but on many occasions in the house

:58:40. > :58:47.and for many years on the subject. I would also like to commend her

:58:48. > :58:52.colleague, my colleague, the Right Honourable member for Worthing West

:58:53. > :58:56.who chairs the all parliamentary group, and thanks as she did members

:58:57. > :59:02.past and present of that group, notably the former chair Jason

:59:03. > :59:07.McCartney, late of this parish. And finally I would like to add thanks

:59:08. > :59:14.to ministerial colleagues handling this delicate issue for previous

:59:15. > :59:18.administrations. In particular my friend the member for North East

:59:19. > :59:21.Bedfordshire who has worked so hard not just for his constituents but

:59:22. > :59:29.for all of those affected by this tragedy. If I could appeal to the

:59:30. > :59:34.SNP spokesperson not to leak speeds ten minutes, ever be less, the

:59:35. > :59:38.Minister took longer a little, but took interventions. There is no

:59:39. > :59:42.requirement or need for the honourable lady to take quite as

:59:43. > :59:46.long. Thank you very much Mr Speaker. As the honourable laid for

:59:47. > :59:55.Kingston-upon-Hull said, 2400 people have died from this the worst

:59:56. > :00:02.disaster in HS history. This was due to of blood that led to the NHS

:00:03. > :00:09.sourcing products from America. The problem is that people with

:00:10. > :00:11.haemophilia, in men, or in women, who get factor nine, these

:00:12. > :00:16.concentrates are made from thousands of samples, and the moment you have

:00:17. > :00:20.one or two people within that collection you are starting to have

:00:21. > :00:24.the virus. And that is why they are affected at a much higher rate than

:00:25. > :00:28.those people who had a single blood transfusion, and the problem is we

:00:29. > :00:32.are talking about decades that this goes back, and has not been properly

:00:33. > :00:37.dealt with. As has been mentioned in the chamber already. In the two

:00:38. > :00:39.years I have been in the house we have had multiple debates,

:00:40. > :00:43.statements and urgent questions on this issue and I to pay tribute to

:00:44. > :00:49.the honourable lady or keeping at it with the all-party group. But most

:00:50. > :00:52.of that has been a round support, and it was only last July that

:00:53. > :00:59.finally the government came forward a strength and support 's package

:01:00. > :01:03.for this group of people. It is important to realise this is not

:01:04. > :01:10.compensation but X Gracia support payments, that do not recognise the

:01:11. > :01:18.loss and suffering of the victims of rated blood. -- contaminated blood.

:01:19. > :01:23.That was only seemed to come about as the Scottish Government came up

:01:24. > :01:29.with a larger lump sum and ongoing pavement, a 75% penchant to the

:01:30. > :01:33.spells of the brew two at the moment still don't get sufficient support

:01:34. > :01:36.here in England and that is not right, the idea that someone who

:01:37. > :01:43.loses a partner to this scandal is not compensated. Now, what we heard

:01:44. > :01:48.in March of this year, a mere seven months after that was that the

:01:49. > :01:52.government was consulting on perhaps restricting who would qualify for

:01:53. > :01:59.the highest payments and that these payments would not be subject to

:02:00. > :02:03.index linking. The youngest victim remaining is approximately 35. They

:02:04. > :02:07.have a whole lifetime to go through. Maybe a shortened lifetime in

:02:08. > :02:17.comparison to us but we cannot have that people are suddenly left and

:02:18. > :02:26.bottom feed -- in poverty further down the line. I welcome the

:02:27. > :02:32.suggestion CPI thinking goes ahead. I am grateful for her remarks,

:02:33. > :02:36.support extends to Wales as well, not just to England because it is a

:02:37. > :02:41.?10,000 payment as far understand for people in Wales as well. Is it

:02:42. > :02:45.her understanding that in terms of the reference of the enquiry will

:02:46. > :02:47.include the actions of governments in Wales and Scotland and possibly

:02:48. > :02:54.Northern Ireland as well as in England? I had intended to ask but

:02:55. > :02:59.couldn't get it in. Obviously the Scottish Government had an enquiry,

:03:00. > :03:02.the Penrose enquiry, but as the Minister has committed to this I

:03:03. > :03:06.would assume any enquiry going forward will look at the whole of

:03:07. > :03:11.the UK. They must be remembered the decisions that led to this were

:03:12. > :03:13.taken here in Whitehall, before devolution, and governments like the

:03:14. > :03:17.Scottish Government have tried to step up and support their

:03:18. > :03:21.constituents who have been affected by this but actually getting the

:03:22. > :03:27.answers to what caused this is in this place. I thank her for giving

:03:28. > :03:32.way and would she agree that the sense of a lack of trust has been

:03:33. > :03:35.enhanced by documents such as the self-sufficiency and blood product

:03:36. > :03:42.which was a DoH document but which many people felt was inaccurate and

:03:43. > :03:46.indeed outright lies. I think obviously all of these things will

:03:47. > :03:50.have to be looked at by the enquiry itself and I think documents,

:03:51. > :03:54.patients records, things that were altered things that were hidden, and

:03:55. > :03:57.things that were hiding behind public interest barriers now all

:03:58. > :04:02.need to as in the case of Hillsborough be opened up so that

:04:03. > :04:07.light is shone onto that. Now, the Penrose enquiry was Scotland only.

:04:08. > :04:13.The Department of Health was devoted to take bright at the time --

:04:14. > :04:19.invited to take part and make it a UK enquiry, but declined. Penrose

:04:20. > :04:23.did not have the ability to summon documents or people and that was one

:04:24. > :04:28.of its key weaknesses. I remember at the time, in the 80s, when this

:04:29. > :04:32.scandal started to unfold, and as a surgeon who of course uses blood on

:04:33. > :04:36.their patients, I remember how shocked I was at the mere thought

:04:37. > :04:41.that an action I might have taken could have harmed a patient that I

:04:42. > :04:46.was looking after. And I certainly set about in my elective surgery to

:04:47. > :04:52.chase every single blood cell to avoid spilling blood, using

:04:53. > :04:55.electrocautery, all sorts of modern techniques, and if you will out my

:04:56. > :04:59.staff from I feared the they will moan about how long I spent in

:05:00. > :05:06.theatre doing that. In doing that was an has been hit by a bus you

:05:07. > :05:09.have no choice. A criticism responding to Penrose in 2015 was

:05:10. > :05:17.surprised clinicians so showed much trust. -- showed so much trust in

:05:18. > :05:21.the quality of blood, but when a coalition League clinician is using

:05:22. > :05:29.so many increments we must be able to trust them, we know we have no

:05:30. > :05:32.personal mechanism to check everything. That is why there is

:05:33. > :05:37.licensing and inspections and government's role, and why there is

:05:38. > :05:42.a suspicion of harm, then action must be taken. That failure to act,

:05:43. > :05:45.that hiding, that is not dealing with out at the time happened

:05:46. > :05:51.pre-devolution, and this enquiry must take account of that. In

:05:52. > :05:55.particular we know that a conference in 1980 in Glasgow, clinicians were

:05:56. > :05:59.already raising concerns about seeing change in liver function in

:06:00. > :06:06.patients who were receiving but concentrate for haemophilia. It has

:06:07. > :06:11.appeared in a meeting we have already met recently in the 1981 UK

:06:12. > :06:17.blood transfusion research service which recognises about 50 patients a

:06:18. > :06:20.year developed some form of liver damage and yet the decision of that

:06:21. > :06:26.meeting appears to have been to let that continue and simply study it

:06:27. > :06:34.and use these patients as a way of developing a test for what was known

:06:35. > :06:38.at a time as non-a non-be hepatitis. It is important in this enquiry that

:06:39. > :06:40.we ensure we are looking at all of this. The official from the

:06:41. > :06:45.Department of Health and Social Security at that meeting would not

:06:46. > :06:53.attend Penrose. These people need to be called by the enquiry. So going

:06:54. > :06:58.forward, of course, it must include the families, the victims, so that

:06:59. > :07:02.we are sensitive to what it is they want to know. It isn't just

:07:03. > :07:06.government but producers, and not just producers in America, I think

:07:07. > :07:11.we tried to make ourselves feel better because we blame it on the

:07:12. > :07:15.States, where people bought blood. Where people with addictions and

:07:16. > :07:20.poverty and prisoners were used will stop in the mid-70s, prisoners in

:07:21. > :07:24.this country are also used. And it is claimed that that was encouraged

:07:25. > :07:29.by the Home Office as part of prisoner rehabilitation. We need

:07:30. > :07:34.those documents, we need to understand if that decision was

:07:35. > :07:38.made. UK producers have often been found wanting in the quality of

:07:39. > :07:42.product that they come up with. We mustn't pat ourselves on the back

:07:43. > :07:48.and imagine that the UK product was somehow safe and this was all due to

:07:49. > :07:54.the UA -- US. We need to follow the salmon get answers. I think people

:07:55. > :08:02.have been failed so many times over and over, it is crucial that this

:08:03. > :08:05.does not happen again. We need to keep the government on their toes,

:08:06. > :08:12.have reports back from the enquiry at is it set up so we know what it

:08:13. > :08:15.is investigating cos if we fail to get answers this time and in

:08:16. > :08:22.particular failed to actually deliver compensation for lives lost,

:08:23. > :08:26.for suffering, failure to get a mortgage or insurance, the costs of

:08:27. > :08:33.care, then we will have failed them all over again. Thank you Mr

:08:34. > :08:39.Speaker, thank you. Firstly, I would like to congratulate the honourable

:08:40. > :08:44.member for Kingston upon will for securing this important debate

:08:45. > :08:49.today. I was also in this chamber when the former member for Lee

:08:50. > :08:54.raised a very concerning issue, that needed to be looked at in this new

:08:55. > :08:57.enquiry. And that struck a chord with me will stop I'm delighted to

:08:58. > :09:03.be back in the chamber to see this happening. Like many members of the

:09:04. > :09:08.house on both sides I have been contacted by constituents who have

:09:09. > :09:12.told me about their experiences and how contaminated blood has affected

:09:13. > :09:20.them, their family life and their friends. Every so often, in the

:09:21. > :09:26.experience that you have as a constituency MP, you meet the

:09:27. > :09:32.saddest constituents, that tell you the most heartbreaking stories, and

:09:33. > :09:38.you sit there week in week out and these resonate with you, but it is

:09:39. > :09:43.not a story for these victims. It is daily life, it is wrecked lives,

:09:44. > :09:51.where nothing has been done, pure injustice. So, it is clear that

:09:52. > :09:56.destructive effects of contaminated blood products used decades ago have

:09:57. > :10:03.continued to daily effect people's lives, in a devastating way, that

:10:04. > :10:07.frankly, when I have heard the stories, of how it has affected

:10:08. > :10:13.people, it has indeed lived with me, and I can understand the campaigning

:10:14. > :10:16.nature that has been brought to this house on all sides, and I am

:10:17. > :10:23.delighted to bring my experience on behalf of my constituents. Today, we

:10:24. > :10:26.finally recognise that this government has done this and it is

:10:27. > :10:31.ready to tackle this injustice and I am delighted to see that that is

:10:32. > :10:34.being done in the name of the victims and the families who have

:10:35. > :10:42.done nothing to bring this upon themselves. After I became the MP in

:10:43. > :10:47.May 2015I met one of my constituents in Bishop Stoke, Gary Webster, who

:10:48. > :10:53.has been left coping with HIV, Hepatitis C, and possibly variant

:10:54. > :11:00.CJD following NHS blood products used in the 1980s as routine

:11:01. > :11:03.procedures to treat his haemophilia. I'm very grateful to the Honourable

:11:04. > :11:08.Lady giving way. One of the important things in this world that

:11:09. > :11:14.it beat both fire back, the decision made to treat for hepatitis B is in

:11:15. > :11:18.the 1960s and yet we did not can treat -- treat concentrate, so we

:11:19. > :11:26.need to make sure all decisions are included. I thank her for that input

:11:27. > :11:30.and I feel it is very important to bring everything to play in this

:11:31. > :11:36.investigation, it is absolutely right. Last year, Gary attended a

:11:37. > :11:41.debate we had here once again to discuss this really heartbreaking

:11:42. > :11:45.issue. Now, Gary went on to attend a specialist school in Orton, where he

:11:46. > :11:51.was one of many haemophiliacs who were at school there. He told me

:11:52. > :11:58.that he kept in contact with around 100 students who had all been

:11:59. > :12:03.affected by contaminated blood. Now, he along with those other students

:12:04. > :12:10.continued to stay friends with those students, but only now I believe

:12:11. > :12:14.around 20 are still alive. These were all fellow students who

:12:15. > :12:19.contracted illnesses through blood products that they have received

:12:20. > :12:22.because of haemophilia. And I know that tragically lose the story is

:12:23. > :12:27.similar to the thousands across this country. I know from other

:12:28. > :12:31.constituents some who wished not to be named who have had great

:12:32. > :12:36.financial burdens placed upon them and their families as a result of

:12:37. > :12:40.the diseases that they have contracted which have affected their

:12:41. > :12:47.lives to this contaminated bud. -- blood.

:12:48. > :12:54.It is only right that we support those whose lives have been altered

:12:55. > :13:01.by this contaminated blood and I hope that this enquiry will be

:13:02. > :13:13.effective and that the annual payments for hepatitis are being

:13:14. > :13:17.increased, going up to 18,020 19. And the payments for those with

:13:18. > :13:27.hepatitis stage to have seen the payments going up ?56,000 500. And

:13:28. > :13:31.these payments will be linked. This will help all constituents we know

:13:32. > :13:35.who have been affected. I have also been speaking to Gary and others

:13:36. > :13:39.about the hardship of these conditions have brought and the

:13:40. > :13:45.challenges they have brought to the slaves. Being able to bring up and

:13:46. > :13:50.support their families in the week they would've liked to and chosen to

:13:51. > :13:57.have they not been affected. There has been almost ?400 million paid

:13:58. > :14:01.out to those affected by five different organisations. I am

:14:02. > :14:07.delighted that the additional ?125 million offered by the government

:14:08. > :14:13.which will double the department 's annual spend to the scheme over the

:14:14. > :14:19.past -- next five years. This has to go to the people who need it. I know

:14:20. > :14:23.that people have made daily life decisions which have been really

:14:24. > :14:31.difficult as they did not have the financial restraints they have had.

:14:32. > :14:37.She refers to the scheme and the stump constituents and with these

:14:38. > :14:47.existing schemes. A constituent of mine had the transfusion of

:14:48. > :14:50.contaminated blood. Which he encourage the government to locate

:14:51. > :14:56.cases again under the current scheme so that there are not people missing

:14:57. > :15:06.out I know SNMP there is nothing more frustrating when people have

:15:07. > :15:11.just fallen outside the bracket. I hope this enquiry will give us a

:15:12. > :15:14.chance to look at that. The government has done significantly

:15:15. > :15:20.more than other governments to protect those affected. I know that

:15:21. > :15:26.is a commitment to ensure that we are currently working to bring the

:15:27. > :15:31.five schemes together. It is a rather complex nature. And these

:15:32. > :15:34.people have complicated and difficult waves and I think it is

:15:35. > :15:41.only right that we make it easier for them to get the support that

:15:42. > :15:45.they need. I am so pleased that the Prime Minister has announced that

:15:46. > :15:49.this morning that there will be a wide-ranging enquiry into this

:15:50. > :15:56.tragedy and I will be pleased it is the type of enquiry drawn together

:15:57. > :16:02.by victims to suit the victims. They will finally have a voice, the

:16:03. > :16:06.strongest voice possible, to get the cancers which the absolutely

:16:07. > :16:12.deserve. It is only right that the consultation will be healed by those

:16:13. > :16:17.affected by this injustice solea families have a voice. It is my hope

:16:18. > :16:23.this enquiry will provide the answers to those looking for them.

:16:24. > :16:30.In particular, the concern regarding the criminality. This is extremely

:16:31. > :16:34.concerning. This is a vehicle to get their voices here. If there is

:16:35. > :16:40.anything which should be going to the court, we should be able to do

:16:41. > :16:47.something about it. We have the opportunity in this enquiry that no

:16:48. > :16:50.voice will be lost. The victims and the families will get the fullest

:16:51. > :16:58.compensation and the answer is that they deserve. Can I just advise the

:16:59. > :17:07.house, colleagues should be thinking in terms of speeches of five

:17:08. > :17:18.minutes. If the cheer is able to accommodate everybody. Longer

:17:19. > :17:29.speeches will have to wait for the long winter evenings. I hope we can

:17:30. > :17:37.give a warm and enthusiastic welcome to were made in Speaker. Thank you

:17:38. > :17:43.very much. I am grateful to my honourable friend for securing this

:17:44. > :17:49.debate. As the new MP for Oxford, it is assumed that the Oxford

:17:50. > :17:55.haemophiliac centre of which supplied blood which so many people

:17:56. > :18:07.contracting contaminated blood. It advocated the use of humans to test

:18:08. > :18:11.infectivity. However, I have very proud of the people of Oxford who

:18:12. > :18:16.have campaigned for many years for justice on this issue. As we have

:18:17. > :18:22.here, they are fighting for truth and accountability. That is all

:18:23. > :18:30.events such as this cannot happen again. As I start my maiden speech,

:18:31. > :18:40.a dedicated to them. The people who fought against the odds. I am

:18:41. > :18:46.enormously grateful for the people of Oxford for elected me as their

:18:47. > :18:52.representative. I take over from Andrew Smith. Many people both sides

:18:53. > :18:55.of the house will know him very well. Andrew came initially to

:18:56. > :19:03.Oxford unsure whether it would become his home soon recognised its

:19:04. > :19:08.potential as a great city. As a student, he met his wonderful wife

:19:09. > :19:12.Valerie, who was also known by many people in the house. She was a

:19:13. > :19:16.powerful advocate for the community which she served as a county

:19:17. > :19:26.councillor for many years. Her wisdom came this is still very sadly

:19:27. > :19:30.missed by many others. Andrew was a diligent constituent MP and care

:19:31. > :19:36.passionately about this city and its people, including those living in

:19:37. > :19:40.his home community. He also had a very distinguished career in

:19:41. > :19:44.Parliament, including serving in the Cabinet as Chief Secretary to the

:19:45. > :19:55.Treasury and then Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 2002 -

:19:56. > :20:03.2004. His work affected listed as a million pensioners out of poverty,

:20:04. > :20:07.and gotten some of the biggest increases in health and overseas aid

:20:08. > :20:11.spending our country has ever seen. He also presided over

:20:12. > :20:16.ground-breaking legislation setting up the pension protection fund,

:20:17. > :20:24.setting up the pension credit and many other initiatives. He was a

:20:25. > :20:29.very humble man. He will stress that his achievements came about through

:20:30. > :20:35.working with others either in this house or in Oxford. When he was in

:20:36. > :20:40.the Cabinet, his own television was so dilapidated it had to be hit many

:20:41. > :20:45.times before it would actually work! He was very humble but fairly

:20:46. > :20:50.straightforward. I am sure that members on all sides of the house

:20:51. > :21:03.will wish me very long and happy retirement. Oxford East could be

:21:04. > :21:12.imagined as a constituency populated only by mysterious dawns. But it

:21:13. > :21:19.also has an industrial heritage and a great industrial potential. What

:21:20. > :21:25.was the steel plant, know a BMW plant produces nearly 250,000 cars

:21:26. > :21:31.every year. The engineers and technicians are amongst the best in

:21:32. > :21:38.the world. Oxford was a city which voted to remain in the European

:21:39. > :21:42.Union. But no one voted to deny the city its potential. It is essential

:21:43. > :21:49.that European markets remain open to the likes of BMW and that Oxford

:21:50. > :21:57.maintains its many links with global science. It is a city which has

:21:58. > :22:05.always worked out words is the first-ever Oxfam shop remains

:22:06. > :22:11.others. People from all over the world coal Oxford East its home. We

:22:12. > :22:20.have many different religion religions within the constituency

:22:21. > :22:26.and a fuel the potential of all our people has been held back. Yes the

:22:27. > :22:37.funeral of Bill Buckingham, a Labour councillor for 70 years. He died at

:22:38. > :22:44.the age of 96. He has many that after he kickbacks from serving in

:22:45. > :22:52.the Second World War, he wanted social equality. As Bevan put it at

:22:53. > :22:57.the time, we need high-quality housing so that the grocer, picture

:22:58. > :23:03.and farm labourer could be neighbours without social

:23:04. > :23:08.distinction. What of that survives no? House prices rent in Oxford are

:23:09. > :23:15.the least affordable and Britain out of London. People renting have less

:23:16. > :23:23.rates and if they were buying a refrigerator. People are being

:23:24. > :23:30.forced out of this city of having the claim of not coming more than

:23:31. > :23:35.the minimum wage. People are doing their best to bring up their

:23:36. > :23:39.children in low-income in Oxford are the heroes and heroines of today.

:23:40. > :23:49.They are often running between more than one job to make ends meet. They

:23:50. > :23:55.did like to hear politicians see that there's no such thing as in

:23:56. > :24:04.work poverty. Oxford needs more genuinely affordable houses, the

:24:05. > :24:11.affordability is not ?400,000. That is currently the case. It has to

:24:12. > :24:15.recognise houses as homes and places to live, not merely investment

:24:16. > :24:20.opportunities. We need to unlock the potential of our communities and not

:24:21. > :24:29.allow them to be asset stripped. I love of my family in the

:24:30. > :24:33.constituency which is a very wonderful and friendly place, but

:24:34. > :24:39.nearly half the children on the estate are being brought up in

:24:40. > :24:45.poverty. Many people kept the local community centre going through good

:24:46. > :24:50.times and bad, even after it was burnt down. I loved meeting other

:24:51. > :24:59.appearance at the children's centre of the my first child four years

:25:00. > :25:06.ago. By the time my daughter arrived 18 months ago, there were no more

:25:07. > :25:12.baby sessions available. It was only available for supervised contact

:25:13. > :25:15.session for two hours a week. Community spaces like children

:25:16. > :25:20.centre may not grab headlines, but for many people, the mean the

:25:21. > :25:25.difference between loneliness and friendship, ill health and

:25:26. > :25:30.well-being and seclusion and neighbourliness. Oxford East and its

:25:31. > :25:36.incredible people have incredible potential but they feel they are too

:25:37. > :25:41.often held back. I will devote the time they have given me in this

:25:42. > :25:44.place to ensure a better, brighter and theatre future for them and

:25:45. > :25:58.people like them across the country. Thank you. Can I start by paying

:25:59. > :26:06.tribute to the member for Kingston-Upon-Hull for her

:26:07. > :26:11.persistence on this issue. To also welcome the ministers statement that

:26:12. > :26:17.a public enquiry will happen on these important issues and the Prime

:26:18. > :26:26.Minister has clearly listen to the views across the house on this

:26:27. > :26:36.matter. Richard and his wife came to tell me about his story. He was the

:26:37. > :26:43.haemophiliac and went to a physically disabled school in

:26:44. > :26:48.Hampshire when he was 11. For six years, he was given hundreds of

:26:49. > :26:56.thousands of units of factor eight. Prior to that, he had been given an

:26:57. > :27:10.alternative which was perfectly fine in moderating the condition. This

:27:11. > :27:20.meant for Richard change throughout his lifetime. There were 75 people

:27:21. > :27:23.in the school alongside him. Sadly, 64 of them are no longer with us and

:27:24. > :27:31.many of those young people died in the teenage years.

:27:32. > :27:39.It was an added tragedy when Richard and his wife told me that having got

:27:40. > :27:48.the very good news that they got married and decided to have

:27:49. > :27:55.children, they were, due to the risk of the hepatitis affecting his

:27:56. > :27:59.child, they had a late term termination of that baby. These

:28:00. > :28:05.diseases affect many things throughout our lifetime. Of course I

:28:06. > :28:10.neglected to congratulate the Honourable member for Oxford East

:28:11. > :28:20.for her very fine maiden speech, and she certainly made a better job than

:28:21. > :28:25.I did two years ago. Highly relevant to the topic. Am sure she will make

:28:26. > :28:35.many fine contributions in the many years ahead. We have congratulated

:28:36. > :28:42.her on her maiden speech was not talking about the challenges

:28:43. > :28:45.affected by contaminated blood sufferers having children. Does the

:28:46. > :28:51.enquiry needs to consider the situation is of those people who

:28:52. > :28:59.like my constituent had one round of IVF treatment from the NHS, but not

:29:00. > :29:02.entitled to the second round, he had to pay for it himself, that kind of

:29:03. > :29:12.conversation should be considered in the round when looking at the effect

:29:13. > :29:15.of this people in -- on people. There are so many tragic obligations

:29:16. > :29:19.with these diseases and the treatment they receive are clearly

:29:20. > :29:23.of my photos of the afternoon and had they had knowledge of these

:29:24. > :29:33.treatment with have any adverse impact. My constituents, Helen, who

:29:34. > :29:45.moved into thousand six, she was infected in the 80s, when moving to

:29:46. > :29:54.my area within the knee -- with a new GP she was as having these

:29:55. > :29:58.obligations. There are so many issues, diabetes, rheumatoid

:29:59. > :30:04.arthritis, it has had a huge impact on her life. She calls herself a

:30:05. > :30:11.ticking time bomb, having to look at setting up a new life with her

:30:12. > :30:15.husband and two children. I spoke to both my constituents today who

:30:16. > :30:19.talked quite incredibly how they seemed to carry these burdens so

:30:20. > :30:22.lightly, and certainly in terms of when they speak to me about these

:30:23. > :30:27.issues they have moved on from the principal issues which were

:30:28. > :30:32.compensation and now what they want is a public enquiry to get to the

:30:33. > :30:35.bottom of this issue. It is about answers, and I'm not saying that

:30:36. > :30:38.compensation is and involvement, it is hugely important for them and

:30:39. > :30:44.their spouses and their children but today what they wanted answers with

:30:45. > :30:50.what was known. I happy for him to give way and he is making a very

:30:51. > :30:54.good case. Would it not be the case that now is the chancel transparency

:30:55. > :31:00.to be at the core of the enquiry, welcoming as we do the funding and

:31:01. > :31:05.enquiry, but isn't transparently what it is all about? I welcome as

:31:06. > :31:11.the minister may confirm if he gets the chance at the end of the debate,

:31:12. > :31:16.the government has I believe released all documents in its

:31:17. > :31:19.possession. We should have absolute and Rosie, the ability to interview

:31:20. > :31:26.key witnesses involved in the tragedy. -- absolute transparency.

:31:27. > :31:31.What is known, won the biggest issues we have had. Helen me about

:31:32. > :31:36.despite the fact she didn't find out until 20 minutes afterwards -- 20

:31:37. > :31:42.years afterwards she was infected, the hospital had known for years.

:31:43. > :31:54.Richard sent me a passage that he had found, done some research and

:31:55. > :32:02.apparently in 1975 the Professor of California blood medicine rose to

:32:03. > :32:06.someone in 1975 to warn him of dangerous plasma sourced from high

:32:07. > :32:10.risk paid skid Row donors and business saying that it was

:32:11. > :32:15.extraordinary hazardous. These are the questions that my constituents

:32:16. > :32:20.want answers, what was known about the risks? Should people have been

:32:21. > :32:32.informed about the change in approach? Why when things were found

:32:33. > :32:42.out about these issues, why those products were withdrawn. Was it a

:32:43. > :32:44.case of negligence? Was it a paternalistic approach by

:32:45. > :32:50.clinicians? Was it incompetence? These are the questions that we need

:32:51. > :32:53.answers to. I welcome the fact that the government has done more than

:32:54. > :32:59.any other in terms of compensation and it has now done more than any in

:33:00. > :33:03.transparency, and bringing forward a public enquiry which I very much

:33:04. > :33:07.welcome. I hope I can play my part in making sure my constituents get

:33:08. > :33:12.these answers, and all other people affected by this terrible tragedy,

:33:13. > :33:15.for my constituents, their loved ones, that we get clear answers and

:33:16. > :33:24.resolution to many of these questions. Can I just remind

:33:25. > :33:27.Honourable members that the speaker did ask if speeches could be kept to

:33:28. > :33:33.around five minutes. Alison Thewliss. Thank you very much. I

:33:34. > :33:40.would first like to pay tribute for the Honourable member of Kingston

:33:41. > :33:44.upon Hull North, and to Andy Burnham and others who have pursued this

:33:45. > :33:46.relentlessly. It is testament to their commitment that they have kept

:33:47. > :33:50.going with this when all hope seems to be lost. I would also like to pay

:33:51. > :33:54.tribute to the member for Oxford East on her excellent maiden speech.

:33:55. > :33:59.There's lots of common ground there, and hope to work together over the

:34:00. > :34:03.coming months and years. Adams that it is bigger than before Parliament

:34:04. > :34:06.broke up in April Andy Burnham laid a challenge to all parties in now

:34:07. > :34:11.has a commitment in their manifestos to the victim of contaminated blood

:34:12. > :34:15.and I'm pleased my party saw fit to do so, saying within the manifesto

:34:16. > :34:21.that the victims of the man -- contaminated blood products deserve

:34:22. > :34:25.answers. In 2008, the Penrose enquiry was established by the

:34:26. > :34:27.Scottish Government the mail reporting in 2015. We have

:34:28. > :34:32.substantially improved the compensation scheme, best in the UK.

:34:33. > :34:36.SNP MPs will support a full public enquiry on the issue, in the rest of

:34:37. > :34:40.the UK, and they are proud to stand by those words here today. I am

:34:41. > :34:44.incredibly pleased and surprised here that the government has changed

:34:45. > :34:50.their stance on this issue. When we met last April, it didn't feel as

:34:51. > :34:54.though anything much more was going to happen. On this. And the change

:34:55. > :34:58.in attitude from the government is very, very welcome. I wouldn't want

:34:59. > :35:01.to appear churlish in this at all but it certainly is a change to

:35:02. > :35:04.Parliament, and the change numbers in this Parliament do make something

:35:05. > :35:09.that seemed impossible before now open for debate, and I am very glad

:35:10. > :35:13.to see that. There has been recognition of the limitations

:35:14. > :35:16.Penrose, and what this, to -- Scottish Government could do. We had

:35:17. > :35:21.a limited remit to consider negligence, so it is good to have

:35:22. > :35:25.now this opportunity to really look at all these issues and I'm glad the

:35:26. > :35:27.government has committed to work with the devolved administrations

:35:28. > :35:30.because we now have the experience of having done so, having gone

:35:31. > :35:38.through the enquiry limited as it was. I hope to hear more about the

:35:39. > :35:41.ways in which Scottish Government can help, with victims in Scotland

:35:42. > :35:46.brought in as part of the purposeless. As the debate in April

:35:47. > :35:55.2016, Mike constituents, Maria, I haven't been able to reach her on

:35:56. > :36:00.her views, it is a bit late in the day but I would like to put on the

:36:01. > :36:05.record a gamer reared receive the buttons whose enduring a

:36:06. > :36:12.miscarriage. -- Maria received a transfusion during a miscarriage.

:36:13. > :36:15.She would want this house to know that in the 36 years that she has

:36:16. > :36:19.lived with hepatitis C she doesn't want charity, she doesn't want

:36:20. > :36:23.vouchers, just one hand-outs, she wants to be treated fairly and with

:36:24. > :36:30.dignity and that is the very least she was deserve in this process. I

:36:31. > :36:32.thank her for giving way. The Oxford haemophilia centre serves my

:36:33. > :36:38.constituents and so I thank the Honourable member for bringing this

:36:39. > :36:41.to our attention. Do you agree that is not just transparency but also

:36:42. > :36:45.justice that those victims want, and which she also agree with me that if

:36:46. > :36:50.we do find evidence of a cover-up that those individuals should also

:36:51. > :36:54.face the full force of the law? I absolutely agree and I am glad she

:36:55. > :36:58.raised the point because it is what I was moving on to next. Without

:36:59. > :37:01.that justice, these victims will never feel as though they have been

:37:02. > :37:04.well served, they will feel as though they have lost out as part of

:37:05. > :37:09.the process and there has been no justice. This is why we need to look

:37:10. > :37:13.at the issues in medical records being changed because there must

:37:14. > :37:16.have been some clear instruction from somebody to do so. These kinds

:37:17. > :37:21.of cover-ups do not happen on their own and we must find those lines of

:37:22. > :37:24.results ability that said two people delete those records, don't tell

:37:25. > :37:32.people about this, test people that don't let them know. All of these

:37:33. > :37:36.questions must be answered, what was known, when and by whom. In the

:37:37. > :37:39.search for answers as well, we must recognise that some of these answers

:37:40. > :37:43.can't be given because they are held in the United States, and we must

:37:44. > :37:47.find ways if ministers can reach out and speak to their counterparts, in

:37:48. > :37:51.other parts of the world, to try and find answers to these questions, if

:37:52. > :37:53.there are means of doing so, in cooperation with the American

:37:54. > :37:59.government these must be found as well. We must have confidence in the

:38:00. > :38:04.processes that we have today as well and I understand the US that it

:38:05. > :38:09.screening but donations in 1983. We didn't start to do that until 1991,

:38:10. > :38:13.and I'm conscious that if I go to give but the integrity of the system

:38:14. > :38:17.is based on my honesty at every stage. We must make sure that

:38:18. > :38:25.systems that they are as robust as an integral and as good as possible.

:38:26. > :38:28.The enquiry today, reaching out to those receiving funds through

:38:29. > :38:31.covering schemes, I would hope that is done with cooperation with the

:38:32. > :38:33.devolved administrations where they are responsible for that and I would

:38:34. > :38:37.encourage the government to carry out advertising to seek ways in as

:38:38. > :38:40.wide a means as possible of contacting people to let them know

:38:41. > :38:44.because it is maybe a tummy has died and family members aren't aware of

:38:45. > :38:48.this and we must try to reach out as widely as we can cover to social

:38:49. > :38:51.media law advertising whatever means, to get as many people

:38:52. > :38:57.involved in this enquiry as well. We need to make people's supported to

:38:58. > :39:01.give evidence because this could be a very traumatic and spares for

:39:02. > :39:04.some, may need counselling or emotional support to attend and

:39:05. > :39:11.produce documents and make sure the documents reach the enquiry, and on

:39:12. > :39:14.those documents, in their response this, documents must be treated with

:39:15. > :39:19.the utmost care and protection. People are quite rightly hugely

:39:20. > :39:23.sceptical about their documents. We must make sure that the integrity of

:39:24. > :39:26.these documents is right, that people can trust that if they set

:39:27. > :39:30.met evidence that evidence will not be lost. I go for government

:39:31. > :39:33.evidence as well as private Evans belonged to the members of the

:39:34. > :39:37.public as well. We have waited too long, far too long on this for

:39:38. > :39:41.justice. We encourage the government to carry out this enquiry, that this

:39:42. > :39:46.justice is maintained, that this is not dragged out with many many years

:39:47. > :39:51.without answer, people have waited far too long for justice and they

:39:52. > :39:58.should not have to wait much longer. Anna Soubry. It is a pleasure to see

:39:59. > :40:01.you in your place, at Madam Deputy Speaker, it is the first time I have

:40:02. > :40:07.seen you in that chair. I would like to make a few comments because my

:40:08. > :40:10.involvement in this was as I think perhaps the 2nd Minister for the

:40:11. > :40:16.Public health at the Honourable member for Kingston Apollo whole had

:40:17. > :40:20.the great misfortune I would have said to come and see them as she

:40:21. > :40:23.did, with all the vim and vigour that she has brought to this

:40:24. > :40:32.campaign, over seven long delays. -- seven long years. It is to long that

:40:33. > :40:36.justice is finally to come about. When the Honourable Lady came to

:40:37. > :40:40.talk to me was the biggest concern them burning injustice, and frankly

:40:41. > :40:43.it just come from my point of view, it just felt that there was

:40:44. > :40:49.something not right. Couldn't put my finger on it, there was something

:40:50. > :40:54.inherently that led you something along the view that something was

:40:55. > :40:59.not right. That was supported by the attitude of some I came across who

:41:00. > :41:04.wanted not just to sweep it under the carpet but just not want to do

:41:05. > :41:09.with it any longer, try somehow to move onto other areas about how we

:41:10. > :41:15.could help is unfortunate victims. At that time that second part of the

:41:16. > :41:22.great injustice, I want to talk much more about, the money. There are two

:41:23. > :41:27.points to all of this. The great injustice of the fact that this

:41:28. > :41:30.terrible scandal happened, and it happens decades ago, when

:41:31. > :41:35.governments of both political colours, and in fact the third

:41:36. > :41:39.colour of the coalition failed to grasp it in the way that I, and I

:41:40. > :41:44.have to say, others in government wanted to, and I am going to pay

:41:45. > :41:47.fulsome tribute to my right honourable friend the member for

:41:48. > :41:53.North East Bedfordshire who if I put it this way absolutely got it, right

:41:54. > :41:59.honourable friend the member for Guildford who after the Honourable

:42:00. > :42:03.Lady for Kingston-upon-Hull ask the question last week of the Prime

:42:04. > :42:05.Minister, we were sitting here, next to each other, I won't repeat

:42:06. > :42:11.everything that we said, but we basically said to each other for

:42:12. > :42:16.goodness sakes, words to that effect, let's just get on and get

:42:17. > :42:20.this done properly. Not just a public enquiry, but most importantly

:42:21. > :42:23.I would say the money. As I say I will come onto that and I also want

:42:24. > :42:27.to pay tribute to Jane Anderson who is also the previous Minister for

:42:28. > :42:35.Public health and I know that Jane got this as well.

:42:36. > :42:41.It took the extra material forthcoming in recent times to be

:42:42. > :42:50.able to inform the government is to further evidence that there should

:42:51. > :42:58.be an enquiry. Members on both sides of the house care about this and see

:42:59. > :43:02.that something needs to be done. It needs political will, so I pay

:43:03. > :43:13.handsome tribute to the Prime Minister for not messing about on

:43:14. > :43:17.this. I know my honourable friend the Secretary of State will have

:43:18. > :43:22.made the case to the Prime Minister. She has not missed the boat. She has

:43:23. > :43:29.taken the rate decision and we will know have a public enquiry. But

:43:30. > :43:35.there is this second grave injustice. I was reminded of this by

:43:36. > :43:47.correspondence I had from parents and my constituency. The sun went

:43:48. > :44:01.blind from haemophilia. He was diagnosed with HIV and hepatitis C.

:44:02. > :44:05.He has been the victim of terrible prejudice. Horrible story is a

:44:06. > :44:16.bullying. No he is married and the father of a child,

:44:17. > :44:26.the complaint is that they can only see the good in people and their

:44:27. > :44:36.only concern is to see the suffering of their child. They just want a

:44:37. > :44:49.proper financial package. We have heard from many members talking

:44:50. > :44:55.about this payment scheme. Could a bigger government, that these

:44:56. > :45:03.schemes have yet to be sorted out. Scrap. Get rid of them. Give these

:45:04. > :45:12.people the money they deserve and need. Do not give it as an extra

:45:13. > :45:18.payment. Do not have them scrabbling about on countless bits of paper

:45:19. > :45:26.going cap in hand for money. As if they have not suffered enough? So

:45:27. > :45:34.they do not have to go, as the seer, bidding for bits of money. These

:45:35. > :45:43.things are possible. It can be done. Get the money that is required and

:45:44. > :45:55.then you have to do is not look at liability, but a quantum. How much

:45:56. > :45:59.does each individual with the be entitled to if liability was not an

:46:00. > :46:04.issue and it was just about how much. And then do the right thing. I

:46:05. > :46:10.do believe government can find the money. I know many members,

:46:11. > :46:20.including the former Prime Minister David Cameron, said it was not the

:46:21. > :46:24.right time to do that, but he got the ball moving and it is no time to

:46:25. > :46:30.sort out the second grave injustice, the money. Get the money together

:46:31. > :46:36.and give these people everything that they absolutely deserve and the

:46:37. > :46:49.need and then finally, the great injustice, the national scandal will

:46:50. > :46:59.be sorted out and solved. Thank you. I first became engaged in this issue

:47:00. > :47:07.after 2010 when constituents contacted me. One constituent, in a

:47:08. > :47:13.remarkable man called Andrew, I feel slightly ashamed I did not totally

:47:14. > :47:22.understand the utter tragedy of contaminated blood. It has not been

:47:23. > :47:35.with us for just seven years, it has been with as for 30 years. We feel

:47:36. > :47:41.to with it. In the same way as we have feel to deal with the likes of

:47:42. > :47:48.Hillsborough quickly. I would like to talk about the remit of the

:47:49. > :47:53.enquiry. This is not just about the feeling which led to the infections

:47:54. > :48:06.in the first place. Until recently, the government would not even

:48:07. > :48:10.mention the word negligence. Thanks to the work and reborn gnome has

:48:11. > :48:20.done, we are talking about criminality. -- Andy Burnham. We can

:48:21. > :48:28.make comparisons with Hillsborough over many years. The victims were

:48:29. > :48:38.ignored and badly treated. We have to look at the Beacon and financing.

:48:39. > :48:46.The schemes, the administration of it, has been appalling. What we

:48:47. > :48:51.needed is a bespoke solution. We are talking about a finite and

:48:52. > :48:58.decreasing number of people. Everybody is in a different

:48:59. > :49:01.position. There are circumstances, health and personal needs. Finally,

:49:02. > :49:10.in relation to the way they have had to fight, they do again pay tribute

:49:11. > :49:18.to my honourable friend from Kingston-Upon-Hull, I just wish the

:49:19. > :49:27.all-party group had a loving people like her. The victims have had to

:49:28. > :49:34.fight and fight to get compensation. I have taken part in the seven

:49:35. > :49:41.defeats during recent years and I am pleased to see the Minister is open

:49:42. > :49:48.to an enquiry of which has complete power. We need to be able to call

:49:49. > :49:53.witnesses and interrogate experience. We do need forensic

:49:54. > :49:58.skills, but the enquiry has to have credibility and trust. We do not

:49:59. > :50:06.want to make the same stakes we have made with the sexual abuse

:50:07. > :50:12.enquiries. I was listening to the radio the other day to Doctor

:50:13. > :50:19.Richard Stone because he was someone trusted by the local community and I

:50:20. > :50:24.think what we need here is a combination of those skills and

:50:25. > :50:33.people who know the issues and the skills involved and trusted. We need

:50:34. > :50:36.full access to documentation. We have to give proper representation

:50:37. > :50:41.to the victims and their families and I hope the government is now

:50:42. > :50:53.discovering that it's neglect of social housing over many years I

:50:54. > :51:04.also force economies. In the last debate, Andy Burnham held it in this

:51:05. > :51:12.house a few months ago, we were told a public enquiry was not

:51:13. > :51:19.appropriate. Nonconsensual testing, victims not been informed of results

:51:20. > :51:24.of testing, nonconsensual research involving previously untested

:51:25. > :51:33.patients. When people we are informed, they were informed in

:51:34. > :51:39.hospital corridors. Lies were told. All within the relatively recent

:51:40. > :51:44.past. The allegations in relation to documents been destroyed and people