Speeches by Ballinger.

“Maybe this is a question for Nick, because Mark has answered all the others straightaway. You said that the transfer of service was a positive. Could you explain what that means in the Bill? Will it make the zig-zag between Regular and Reserve more likely for career paths? Will that have an impact on the size of the Re…”

“I thank the Prime Minister for his restraint so far in this operation, and for not heeding the calls of the Leader of the Opposition to get us embroiled in the reckless US and Israeli strikes on Iran. I still remember interventions in the region: colleagues not returning from Afghanistan, friends who were shot down ove…”

“I know that the hon. Member for Clacton has a number of additional jobs in combination with his responsibilities as an MP, but I had not realised, until his recent adventure, that small boat captain was among them. Maybe, as a former Royal Marine, I could help him with his navigation. Could my hon. Friend the Minister …”

“There was a recent change whereby families leaving the service would not be disadvantaged when moving into council houses and would not be subject to the same residency tests as anyone else. Is that the sort of thing that should be rolled out for all services across the board? Is that something that would be helpful, o…”

“Some of the evidence we have received has highlighted the difficulties families have when they are posted between nations—from England to Scotland or Northern Ireland—and people are put to the back of the queue in SEND waiting lists. You gave an example in your evidence of childcare costs going up by £12,000 for a fami…”

“I have a question, following on from Juliet’s, about employers. We have talked a lot about Government Departments and local authorities, but service leavers, spouses and others have a lot of interactions with employers, so I am pleased to see that employment is a new area included in the Armed Forces Bill this time aro…”

“T3. I welcome the changes set out in the gambling White Paper about the responsibilities of the Department in relation to the treatment and prevention of gambling harms. As part of the new responsibilities, will the Secretary of State commit to undertake a review of the impact of gambling advertising, marketing and spo…”

“It is always a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Madam Chair. I welcome the Bill and, more broadly, the Labour Government’s focus on our modern industrial strategy. In the Black Country, where manufacturing is our tradition, businesses are following this agenda very closely. I am pleased to see that the Bill will…”

“Thank you.”

“Mayor Klitschko, you have described some of the destruction that had been happening in Kyiv and the rest of the country as a result of the Russian invasion. We now know that many people require humanitarian assistance to get through the day. Could you tell us a little more about the type of humanitarian assistance you …”

“If you could ask the international community for one thing in terms of humanitarian aid, what would you ask for?”

“How have regional countries such as Brazil, Colombia and Cuba responded to the intervention?”

“How have the Governments responded to the intervention?”

“We very much held our powder. Now that Trump has stepped back from Greenland, what lessons can we take away about the influence we might have on American policy?”

“The fact that European countries were very condemnatory on Greenland, in a way that regional countries in South America were less full-throated in the run-up to Venezuela—”

“We have talked about the Donroe doctrine and the success of the operation from an American perspective. Is Greenland and the threats that were made just a natural, logical next step for the Americans? Is Iran a further logical next step? Where do you see this going?”

“I join the Minister in condemning Iran’s brutal crackdown on peaceful protesters in recent weeks. However, it is also important that those who do Iran’s bidding on the streets of the UK—particularly in targeting peaceful protesters—are held to account. I welcomed, last year, the UK’s decision to put Iran on the foreign…”

“We very much held our powder. Now that Trump has stepped back from Greenland, what lessons can we take away about the influence we might have on American policy?”

“The fact that European countries were very condemnatory on Greenland, in a way that regional countries in South America were less full-throated in the run-up to Venezuela—”

“We have talked about the Donroe doctrine and the success of the operation from an American perspective. Is Greenland and the threats that were made just a natural, logical next step for the Americans? Is Iran a further logical next step? Where do you see this going?”