Speeches by Martin.

“I am going to ask a few questions about relationships with providers, the workforce and students. The OfS has been criticised in recent years for being “an instrument of the Government’s policy agenda”. How, in practice, will you achieve and demonstrate the independence of the OfS from Government Ministers?”

“Thank you. That leads me on to another question about students. How do you suggest that the OfS improves its relationship with students?”

“You have told us of your extensive experience in the sector, which brings a lot of value, but how would you use your expertise to establish effective relationships with a wide range of senior HE stakeholders, including former colleagues that you would have worked with, while preserving the independence of the OfS?”

“Thank you. Finally from me, how will you mitigate the unpopularity of the rise in the OfS registration fee for providers?”

“I have been proudly championing the very neglected skills and trades sector since arriving in this place because, unfortunately, one of the most toxic legacies of the previous Government is a crisis in education and training, with overwhelming barriers to opportunity for far too many young people and a real downplaying…”

“I thank the Minister for her statement. I hear from many constituents who suffer with energy debt as a result of the previous Government’s failure to protect billpayers during the energy crisis. Many of them are petrified, unable to move or change providers. I welcome the proposed acceleration of a debt relief scheme, …”

“As we have heard today and previously in this place from so many hon. Members on both sides of the House, Sir David was a loved and valued colleague, and not just an MP, but a man with family and friends. Sadly, I did not have the privilege of working with him in this place. We know that Sir David’s killer exited the P…”

“Does the Minister agree that developing our economic and trading relationships with other nations is one lever of many that the Government are using to drive growth and investment, alongside planning reforms, public investment and a proper industrial strategy for the people not only of the UK, but my city? At the same …”

“Some of my constituents have raised concerns about how their information will be kept safely in the online register of births and deaths. How will the Secretary of State ensure that the Government keep such information safely?”

“I want to start by agreeing with my hon. Friend the Member for Southampton Itchen that leadership and action are needed. Indeed, leadership and action were needed three years ago in February 2022 when the IICSA report came out. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Derby North for her knowledgeable insights and her for…”

“I thank the right hon. Gentleman for his comments. We have spent a great deal of time in Committee hearing from Opposition Members about autonomy: headteachers’ autonomy, school autonomy, and school leaders knowing exactly what is best for their pupils and communities. Subsection (2)(b) of the new clause states that th…”

“That is a good point. Although we have to resource our schools properly to ensure appropriate iPads and computers that can be used, we would not want the situation the hon. Member described to continue either. We must ensure that schools are resourced. We have talked about disruption in classrooms, and 20% of teachers …”

“Portsmouth is the home of the Royal Navy, but it is also the proud home of many companies in the defence sector: BAE, Airbus and Accuracy International, to name just a few. Those companies provide fantastic job opportunities for my constituents, but they have faced real difficulties in the last decade. What steps is th…”

“It seems to have been implied—[Interruption.]”

“Thank you, Sir Edward. It seems to have been implied that only academies might want to expand, but local authority schools might also want to expand. If it is not right for the pupil numbers within the local authority area, it should not be allowed. We were asked for examples of where it has happened already. In Hackne…”

“We were asked for examples of where schools have been closed. We have not even thought about small rural schools that are affected by expansion. Local authorities that represent rural communities must be able to ensure that there are schools across the county, because that is good for everybody. Specifically on London,…”

“Will the hon. Member take an intervention?”

“I have already mentioned the three expert witnesses who commented on this issue. Although they probably have very different opinions on other elements of the education system, all were in agreement. Does the Minister believe that the clause, unamended, means that local authorities can perform fair place planning for al…”

“Will the Minister confirm that the power to set place numbers includes all schools in local authority areas? It is not just academies but maintained schools. There seems to have been an idea throughout the whole of this debate that maintained schools are somehow a lower echelon of education—”

“I am grateful for the opportunity to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Edward. While we were in Bill Committee on Tuesday, the Education Committee was meeting—there are many people with a lot of interest in the Bill, and rightly so—to hear from three panels of witnesses. I draw the Committee’s attention to the second …”