16/03/2016 Prime Minister's Questions

This morning I had meetings with ministerial colleagues

and others and in addition to my duties in this House,

I will have further such meetings later today.

With unemployment falling by over 60% and over 5000

new apprenticeships, Redditch is doing well,

and I am holding my third jobs fair in the next few weeks with 25

Will my right honourable friend agree that we have made a good start

but we must not be complacent and through the Midlands Engine

continue to get good quality jobs into our villages?

I very much agree with my honourable friend.

If we look at the West Midlands and take today's unemployment

figures, we can see the claimant count has

come down since 2010 by 91,000 people, and I am sure the House

will welcome an update on unemployment figures out today.

Employment in our country at a new record high

Compared with 2010, there are now 2,370,000 more people

in work than when I became Prime Minister, and the claimant

count today down 18,000 in the last month, figures which I am sure

will be welcomed right across the House.

Could the Prime Minister tell the House how many people will die

from respiratory disease as a result of air pollution before this country

meets its legal obligations on air quality by 2025?

I don't have those figures to hand but what I do know is that we need

to make progress on air quality and that is why

we have the new regulations on diesel engines which is helping,

the steady decarbonisation of our power sector which will help,

and why we do have very strong legislation already in terms

of making sure we have clean air particularly in our cities.

If I could help the Prime Minister, the sad truth is that half a million

people will die because of this country's failure to comply

with international law on air pollution.

Perhaps he could answer another question.

How much does air pollution cost our economy every year?

Of course it costs our economy billions because people

are being injured, and that is why we have the new clean air zones

and why we are seeing emissions from cars coming down,

and I give him one example, if we deliver in terms

of our carbon reduction plan for electricity generation,

we are going to see something like an 85% reduction in carbon

That will give us one of the best green records anywhere in the world.

The Royal College of Physicians estimates that air pollution

costs our economy ?20 billion a year.

The failure to deal with air pollution is killing people.

Only a few days ago, London faced a severe smog warning.

His friend the Mayor of London has presided over a legal breach of

air quality in the capital every day since 2012,

so why can't the Prime Minister hurry up action

to make us comply with international law and above all help the health

It was the Conservative government in the 1950s that passed the Clean

Air Act and I am sure it will be this Conservative government

including the clean air zones, lower car emissions,

Not only because we care about the environment

but because we have an economy strong enough to pay

for these improvements, as we are just about to hear.

We all welcome the Clean Air Act of 1956, but things have moved

The Government are now threatened with being taken to court

for its failure to comply with international law

He is proposing to spend tens if not hundreds of thousands of pounds

of public money defending the indefensible.

Why not instead invest the money in cleaner air and better air

quality for everyone in this country?

We are investing money in clean air in this country.

For instance, we are phasing out the use of coal-fired power

stations, far in advance of what other

blazing a trail in terms of more renewable energy,

the clean nuclear energy we are going to be investing in.

All these things will make a difference.

you can only do this if you have a strong economy

If the government and Prime Minister are so keen on renewable and clean

energy, could he explain why on Monday the House approved

new regulations to allow communities a veto on clean energy projects

I got a question from Angela from Lancaster who asked

Will the Prime Minister offer the same right of veto

to her community and communities like hers across

We have a proper planning system for deciding these things.

If he wants to know what is happening in terms

99% of the solar panels in this country were installed

since I became Prime Minister, that is the green record we have.

The UK now has the second largest ultra-low emission vehicle market

We have seen one of the strongest growths in renewable energy.

Five questions in and no welcome for the fall in unemployment.

No mention of the 31 million people now in work and the fact we have

That more people are bringing home a salary and wage

Not a word from the party that I thought was meant to be

The party of working people, getting people into work,

Mr Speaker, the questions to the Prime Minister are these:

he once boasted that he led the greenest government ever.

So could he explain why the Energy and Climate Change Select

Committee has produced a damning report when it comes to green

energy, saying major investors describe his policies as risky

Why is this government so failing the renewable energy sector,

clean air investors, consumers and those that work

Any proper look at the figures will find this government has

Let me take the Climate Action Network.

They said that Britain is the second best country in the world

for tackling climate change after Denmark.

Since 2010, we have reduced greenhouse gases by 14%.

We are over delivering against all of our carbon budgets.

We secured the first truly global legally binding agreement

And we have got annual support for renewables more than doubling

We are on track with renewable electricity to deliver our target

of at least 30% from renewable sources by 2020.

And almost all of that will have happened under

That is our record, and we are proud of it.

There are some very positive things going on in the West

Midlands economy, and today's figures show employment

in the region up by 140,000 since 2010 and more than 108,000

businesses were created in the region between 2010 and 2014.

Thanks to our long-term economic plan for the Midlands Engine,

we have been able to invest in our public services

in the West Midlands, helping to build a strong NHS,

and give our police the resources they need.

Unemployment is down again in my beautiful Lichfield.

And yesterday was an absolute first for the West Midlands,

when the whole region co-operated to present 33 investment schemes

at an international conference in Cannes, which will create

What more can the Prime Minister do to support the Midlands Engine,

apart from ensuring, of course, that we never get

I am glad my honourable friend chose to be here rather than in Cannes.

Just last week, we had ?300 million deal signed between Chinese

investors and Cad Cam Automotive to create 1000 jobs in Coventry.

My right honourable friend the Business Secretary

was in Staffordshire as Nestle are opening a new coffee factory

And we have that historic deal with the West Midlands

which will see significant new powers

devolved to the combined authority

We are changing the way our country is run, devolving power,

building the strength of our great cities,

and Birmingham is the second city of our country.

There is widespread reporting that the UK Government

is about to commit to sending ground troops to Libya to train

Is this true, and why has Parliament not been informed about it?

If we had any plans to send conventional

forces for training in Libya, then of course we would come to this

is the formation of a unity government.

There is progress with the prime minister,

who can now lead that government.

We want to hear from him what assistance we think should be

Countries like Britain, France, America and Italy will definitely

Right now, Libya is a people smuggling route.

That which is bad for Europe and bad for us,

of Daesh in Libya, which is bad for us and bad for Europe.

If we had any plans for troop training or troop deployment,

we would come to the House and discuss it.

The UK spent 13 times more bombing Libya than securing the peace

after the overthrow of the hated Gaddafi regime.

The critics of UK policy even include President Obama

So will the Prime Minister give a commitment to bring the issue

of any potential Libyan deployment of any British forces to Parliament

for approval before giving the green light for that to happen?

I am happy to give that commitment, as we always do.

I am very clear that it was right to take action to prevent

the slaughter that Colonel Gaddafi would have carried out

Of course, Libya is in a state that is very concerning and everyone

After the conflict, the British government did support the training

We did bring the Libyan Prime Minister to the G8

we have not been able to bring

we have not been able to bring about

that government of National accord that can bring stability

But is it in our interests to help that government do that?

Yes, and we should work with others to deliver it.

My constituency, which was won for the first time ever

by the Conservatives, could be transformed along

with the rest of the region by the Swansea Bay tidal lagoon.

Having signed a deal yesterday for Cardiff,

could the Prime Minister give an assurance that the government

review on tidal lagoons will do everything to ensure that the wider

Swansea Bay tidal lagoon project fits the UK energy strategy,

and does he recognise the economic potential this will bring

I remember visiting his constituency after his victory last year.

We went to a brewery for a mild celebration.

He is right that tidal lagoons do have potential.

We launched a review to better understand the technology.

We will work closely with developers to make a decision on Swansea.

Wrexham in north Wales is a strong manufacturing and exporting region.

But its growth is constrained by lack of access to airports

The office for rail regulation is currently

considering applications for rail pass from north Wales.

Will the Prime Minister support a cross-party campaign for fairness

for north Wales and for access to airports in north-west England?

The former Secretary of State for Wales, the honourable member

for Clwyd West, came to see me recently about this.

There is a strong argument for how we can better connects north Wales

with the north-west of England and make sure we build

I will look carefully at what he and my right Number Ten

say for the potential for rail capacity.

-- what my right honourable friend says.

Last week, a High Court judge ruled in favour of ACPO of the great two

star listed former north Wales Hospital in Denbigh.

Years of neglect by its offshore company owner resulted

in the building being brought to the point of collapse.

Thanks to the ground-breaking work carried out by Denbighshire County

Council and the princes regeneration trust, that future should

But what can the Prime Minister do to prevent buildings such as these,

which are deemed national assets, from falling into the hands of those

who are not fit and proper guardians, particularly those

outside of the control of our judicial system?

While heritage is a devolved matter, it is great news that these

I understand that they were bought in 1996 by a company

As he says, that is no way to treat a grade two star

That is why we have powers in place for compulsory purchase orders.

In this case, Denbighshire council were right to use them.

Councils should have the confidence that they have these measures

Two weeks ago, in front of the education select committee,

the head of Ofsted, Sir Michael Wilshaw,

said that 16 to 19 education should be done in a school based

environment and not in an FE institution.

He then said that some pupils head towards the FE institution,

I think we need a range of settings for A-levels and post-16 study.

There are a lot of secondary schools in our country

who would like to have a Sixth Form, and I think there are

great benefits, particularly for the 11-year-olds

going to secondary school who can look to the top of the school

and see what girls and boys are achieving, what A-level choices

they are making, what futures they are thinking of.

it is inspiring to go to a school with a sixth form.

That is why the academisation of schools was important,

because it gives schools the ability to make choices for our children.

In Apprenticeship Week, I'm sure the Prime Minister

will join my thanks to the employers who have created

6500 apprenticeships in 2010 and all the apprentices themselves,

including my first apprentice, Laura Pearson, now Gloucester's

Looking forward, would my right honourable friend do all he can

to hasten the introduction of associate nurses,

who will make a huge difference to the NHS and our health

The south-west has delivered over 280,000 apprenticeship

and well done to his constituents for doing that.

He's also right about the introduction of associate nurses.

We are working with health England to offer another route into nursing

which could see an expansion of our NHS.

According to statistics provided by the House library,

there are an estimated 200,000 problem gamblers in the UK.

Can the Prime Minister say when he will bring forward a 2010

report and does he agree that the money from dormant betting

accounts should be used to support those whose lives have been

We did take action in the last parliament to deal with problem

gambling in terms of the planning system and the way fixed odds

I'm happy to keep examining this issue and act on the evidence,

and I will discuss it with the Secretary of State

The systematic killing of Christians and other minority groups

by the so-called Islamic State across the Middle East

has reached unprecedented proportions.

So the action being taken by Her Majesty's government is just.

But what more will my right honourable friend do,

working with the international community,

to halt this genocide being committed against Christians

by what I would rather call the Satanic State?

My honourable friend is right to draw attention to what Daesh

is doing in terms of persecuting Christians and others,

not least those of other faiths and indeed Muslims

that we have shrunk the amount of territory Daesh have

We are also seeing progress in this area, but this will take time.

We must show the patients to make sure we rid the world of this

The Prime Minister's energy policy is a shambles.

It is wholly dependent upon the troubled and eye-wateringly

expensive new nuclear plant at Hinckley.

There is barely a plan A, let alone a plan B.

Is the Prime Minister seeking to build the world's most expensive

power station, or the world's biggest white elephant?

We are planning to continue with a successful energy policy

which is seeing cheaper energy and lower carbon at the same time.

The whole strength of the Hinckley deal is that there is no payment

unless this power station goes ahead and is built efficiently by EDF.

I think that will be good for our energy supplies,

because if you want to have energy at low cost and low carbon,

you need strong nuclear energy at the heart of your system.

Antibiotic research UK, situated in my constituency,

is the world's first charity to tackle antimicrobial resistance,

a looming global danger of disaster movie star proportions.

-- Antibiotic Research UK, situated in my constituency,

is the world's first charity to tackle antimicrobial resistance,

a looming global danger of disaster movie-style proportions.

With the Prime Minister agreed to meet with me to see how we can

fund their vital research so that this time, it is not

the Americans that save the world, but the British?

I am happy to meet with my honourable friend.

Because of the growing resistance to antibiotics and the fact that

in so many cases now, antibiotics are not working,

we do face a genuine medical emergency around the world.

That is why Britain must put this issue on the agenda of the G20,

why it was part of our discussions with the Chinese when they made

the state visit last year, and why we are investing ?50 million

in an innovation fund, working with the Chinese government

I hope the organisation in his constituency can benefit

The Prime Minister will know that his Home Secretary is once

again trying to deport Afghan interpreter is seeking sanctuary

These brave people risk their lives serving our Armed Forces,

yet they now face being sent back to the mercy of the Taliban

or to join thousands rotting in refugee camps.

Is this how Britain should repay those who put their lives

Instead, will he do whatever is possible to ensure

What we did in the last government, in which his party played a role,

was that we agreed a set of conditions

to be able to come to the UK and be given sanctuary.

But we also provided for a scheme so that those who wanted to stay

and help rebuild their country were able to do so.

I would still defend that scheme, even if his party has

My constituent, Debra Reid and her sister, watched her mother

waste away in hospital due to inadequate where after a fall,

which has been admitted by the consultant in charge.

Last week, my right honourable friend the Health Secretary hosted

a global summit on patient safety and announced the creation

of a new health care safety investigation branch.

What more can the government do to ensure patient safety

is at the heart of the NHS and prevent such instances occurring

My honourable friend is right to raise cases like this.

They are horrendous when they take place and should

The proportion of patients being harmed in the NHS has dropped

by a third in the last two years and MRSA bloodstream infections have

fallen by over half in the last five years.

But my right honourable friend the Health Secretary is right

to hold this conference and to examine what other practices

have done in order to have a zero accident safety culture.

We have seen this in other walks of life, and it is time we applied

The community are shocked and saddened by this murder

They have asked for more community local policing

Will the Prime Minister meet with me to discuss how we can

In London, we have actually seen a reduction in gun crime.

Our hearts go out to the family of Oliver Tetlow,

We have seen better policing in our communities.

We must keep that up and I will arrange whatever meeting

is best to make sure the voices she mentioned are listened to.

As my right honourable friend will be aware,

highways England are consulting on a new lower Thames crossing,

with their preferred option being so-called option C,

which will dived 14% of traffic from the Dartford crossing.

Does my Right Honourable friend agree that before spending billions

on the new crossing, we should sort out the problem

Not only helping a greater number of motorists

Will he meet with me to discuss matters further?

We were discussing earlier that we need to tackle congestion

and air quality and stationary traffic is more polluting

than moving traffic so sorting out the existing problems is important

but I believe we have to look at the options for a new crossing.

These are the best available options.

Highways England have looked at both options.

We look forward to seeing what they recommend

and I hope when they do we can then make progress.

This is a vital set of arteries for the economy of our country

and we need the traffic to be flowing smoothly.

was it wise of the Chancellor to bank on the theory

of the ?27 billion windfall when it has only gone and vanished

in the space of the last three months?

I think we will be hearing a lot from the Chancellor in a couple

of minutes but I would say we have got an economy that is strong,

facing a very difficult set of world circumstances.

unemployment at 5%, inflation at virtually 0%,

the unemployment figures today show unemployment falling again and wages

A better record than most countries in the developed world can boast

which is down to the clear plan followed these last six years.

last week was induced tourism week, I was delighted to welcome an

international delegation to the Eden Project, to promote Cornwall as a

destination for international tourist, visitor numbers are up in

Cornwall but there is more that we can do to attract overseas visitors

out of London and into the regions of the country. Can I ask the Prime

Minister what more can be done to support the tourism industry and to

get more overseas visitors to come to Cornwall? My honourable friend

knows that there is as far as I'm concerned nothing finer than getting

out of London and getting down to Cornwall, no better a place to go

than the beach, when the waves are big and the sun is setting. And my

phone is working! He is absolutely right... And the Daily Mail

photographer has gone home, as well! LAUGHTER

We need to get people who come to the country to visit the wonders of

London, to spend some time outside of London, that is what some of the

news schemes that we have announced like for instance the ?48 million

discovering the fund are all about. -- new scheme. I would ask everybody

to make use of it. -- Discover England. In 2014, we exported ?4.8

billion worth of food products, 73% of the total going to other European

states. No wonder 71% of food and drink Federation members want us to

avoid leaving the EU. Does the priming is to think the prospect of

improving further the export profile of food manufacturing will be

strengthened by staying in the European Union? The view from food

manufacturers and farmers and the wider business team unity, 81% of

whom said that they would like to stay in a refund Europe, is clear.

The arguments on food are particularly clear, our farmers

reduce some of the best food anywhere in the world, they have an

access to 500 million consumers, without quotas or tariffs or any

problems. We should not put that at risk, when we look at some of the

alternatives to being part of the single market, for instance, a

Canadian style free trade deal, we can see there are restrictions,

quotas on beef, and I do not want to see that applied to British farmers

who have so much to be proud of. Does my right honourable friend

agree that having an inspirational mental can provide young people with

the opportunities they would never have benefited for from before. --

mentor. Can he tell me how the ?14 million that the government would

put into a new national men touring scheme is going to be able to

benefit some of the most disadvantaged children in our

society. -- new national mentoring scheme. One of the most important

things we can do is encourage mentors into schools to give extra

one on one health that some forehand young people so benefit from. Every

child who studies GCSE 's who wants a mentor can have one, that makes a

massive difference in the school that I studied. The ?40 million we

are putting in should allow 25,000 of the most disadvantaged people in

this country having a mentor and I would urge all schools to look at

this, there is only people in schools and public sector and

charities who would like to courage this and help young people make

their potential. The prime as the likes to suggest he is the champion

of localism, today, his government is seeking to gag local communities

with a crass forced academies policy, which stamps out dissent,

can he explain to the vast majority of parents, in Brighton and, who

recently roundly rejected academy status in local schools, why it is

their views will count for nothing in the future?

I would argue that academy schools are true

If you look at primary sponsored academies,

they have better records and are improving faster.

88% of the academy schools are rated rude or outstanding.

This is true devolution, making sure every headteacher

is in charge of their school and riding a great education we want

My constituent has been diagnosed with terminal breast cancer and has

shown outstanding courage in her fight against the disease

but she did not get the support of compassion of the employer

who wanted to dismiss certain capability procedures.

Now her former partner is trying to get the House they own together

repossessed, leaving her homeless while dying.

Would the Prime Minister agree with me that we need better

protection for people who are diagnosed with terminal

illnesses and would you join with me and Jackie in supporting the changes

The points you make are right and I will look very carefully

In all of these things, as well as having clear rules,

you also need organisations, whether it is employers or housing

associations or landlords or trade unions to act with genuine

compassion and think of the person, the human being at the other end