Speeches by Pakes.

“I associate myself with the comments that others have made about the disgusting crimes of Jeffrey Epstein. Twenty-four years ago today, on 9/11, I was sat in the TUC Congress as a delegate when we were made aware of what had happened. May I put on the record my tribute to the first responders and public service workers…”

“Thank you both for joining us. You will be unsurprised that in a place like mine in Peterborough and the Fens, regulation—in terms of how the systems do not work together—is one of the big bugbears, whether for farmers, drainage boards or constituents. People have already been contacting me this morning thankful that O…”

“Talking of getting on with the job, one of the real frustrations—particularly in the farming community—has been that the EA, Natural England and water are just not joined up and that does not work, so this could be one of the benefits of it. But we also want to get on with building our new reservoir in the east of Engl…”

“Brilliant. One of the issues Dan Corry talked about in his report was around regulators having more of a supervisory approach within contained discretion areas and being proactive in looking at how they manage their responsibilities. Could you tell us the Department’s view on that? Do you think the new water regulator …”

“I am aware that my right hon. Friend the Leader of the House enjoys a tipple on occasion, so she will be pleased to know that the 46th Peterborough beer festival, which is entirely run by volunteers, was held last month. Over 21,000 visitors came to the festival this year, and over 58,000 pints of cask ale were served.…”

“I am sure Hansard will correct me. The right hon. Gentleman just made some comments about high net worth or high value individuals. In my constituency, I am particularly interested in individuals on low incomes. In Peterborough, I represent a city with one of the highest levels of those employed on zero-hours contracts…”

“Will my hon. Friend give way?”

“I thank my hon. Friend not only for her statement, but for the care and determination she has brought to this role to centre the discussion and action around victims and young girls, and to work in collaboration with others—not just in this House, but those who are directly affected. May I just add to the points that t…”

“Peterborough is a proud and generous place and has welcomed many people through its doors over generations. I pay tribute to the churches, mosques and community groups that are welcoming people and looking after them. But people are getting fed up with a system that is broken, and it was broken before my right hon. Fri…”

“Starting on a positive note, I thank the Foreign Secretary and the Minister for the Middle East for their work to secure an agreement to get students and young people out of Gaza to continue their studies. So many of our debates make us feel powerless, but we have demonstrated, at least in one part of this jigsaw, some…”

“Residents in Peterborough and across Anglian Water’s catchment area will welcome the statement and the bold action taken. They know all too well that the water system is broken. One of the issues we on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee have looked at is the need for water infrastructure. Can my right ho…”

“One of the first visits I undertook after the election was to my local branch of Nationwide, which for generations has been providing good financial advice and advice to first-time buyers in my seat, as have many other mutuals. In one of the previous periods of financial deregulation by the Conservative party, we saw a…”

“In Adrian’s words, part of the justification is that these are staff who are critical to the company. That is his description. Who do your customers think are critical to the work of Thames Water? Would it be the top 21 executives, or would it be the person knocking on the door saying they have turned up to fix a leak?”

“Do you not understand how frustrated your customers and taxpayers feel with the language you use, given that you are one of the most talked about companies in the country for all the wrong reasons? In the documents it says that one of the justifications for the MRP is that there is genuine concern for the welfare of em…”

“Is there a plan to give up to three times salary for staff at other levels if they have welfare or stress concerns?”

“Mine will be quite short because Josh has asked most of that section just now. I am keen to get into the Afghan statement at 12.30 pm, so I am trying to think what questions I would like to ask.”

“Do you think the public might find the responses here quite strange? Whenever we discuss bonuses or discuss decisions that the public may find strange or customers may find strange, you all turn into Sir Humphrey and talk as though you are passengers in this whole decision-making process. I find it extraordinary that y…”

“I want to follow up on Helena’s point about this now infamous telephone call. So you received this call, and you put it down. Your answer seems to be that you felt no emotion or rancour; you simply put the phone down as though someone was telling you they are coming to clean your windows at 10 am as opposed to 9 am. It…”

“Josh has covered most of it, but just to recap; there is a plan around an £18.5 million pot, which is covering up to three times the base salary of the staff included in it.”

“1. What steps she is taking to reform the leasehold system.”