Speeches by McDougall.

“I beg to move, That this House, recalling that United Nations Resolution 2758 of 25 October 1971, which established the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the only legitimate representative of China to the United Nations (UN), does not mention Taiwan, notes that UN Resolution 2758 does not address the political status…”

“Absolutely. Although first and foremost in our minds should be the impact on people in Taiwan of any crisis, it would also be felt by our constituents in their cost of living and everything that happens in this country. It is right that this is a worldwide debate, given the military incursions into Taiwanese territory,…”

“I thank the Minister for restating the Government’s position on the interpretation of UN resolutions, and for celebrating Taiwan’s society, economy and democracy, which I know will be well taken by our visitors. It is encouraging that so many Members spoke in the House with one voice on this issue, regardless of party,…”

“What about the legal right to consular access?”

“A couple of years ago, Foreign Secretary, you made the commitment to make consular assistance a legal right for people. A year later, you committed to a new special envoy for arbitrary detention. Do you want to give us an update on both of those? Is there a timeline for achieving them? I have asked about Jimmy Lai, but…”

“I appreciate absolutely the point that you are four and a half months in. When I have had conversations with Jimmy Lai’s son, he is very grateful for what you have done personally and what the Prime Minister has done. More backward-looking, in the last few years the Canadians have managed to get the two Michaels out of…”

“We will try to do China quickly. Thank you for your offer to come and talk about the China audit when it is complete. When speaking about that, you have used this mantra of “co-operation, competition and challenge”. I wanted to focus on the relationship between two of those. The “co-operation” part of that suggests the…”

“I will take yes for an answer.”

“If we search the record of this place, we see the phrase “no child left behind” mentioned over and over again, but during the pandemic, children were left behind. They have been washing up on the shores of social work, of the police sometimes, and of childhood mental health services, and I know from visiting my jobcent…”

“12. Whether he has made representations to his counterpart in Georgia on reported irregularities in parliamentary elections held in that country on 26 October 2024.”

“I thank the Minister for his actions. I draw the attention of the House to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests and to the work I have done in the past with democratic activists in Georgia. Those activists are terrified that Georgia is now at a turning point. Will the Minister join me in calling for…”

“Your response in terms of disinformation focused on the BBC World Service’s role in informing people. Can I ask about the role of educating people? One of the attractive things about the simple, polarising narratives of disinformation is that they make people feel smart, because they are not complex. Is the World Servi…”

“Professor Scott, I would like to develop an idea Dr Westcott introduced about what the Government seek to do through the World Service, in terms of both foreign policy objectives and soft power objectives. Are the Government clear-minded enough on what they want to achieve, or do they expect the World Service to achiev…”

“The idea of that sentence being put alongside comments from the editorial controllers of Russia Today is an important point, because they would talk about things in a similar way. Is it inevitable that increased Government support for the BBC World Service comes with that risk, or can it be avoided?”

“Leaving aside the independence aspect, I want to look at effectiveness and the idea of what the Government expect the World Service to deliver that it perhaps cannot. I worry sometimes that we are in a 20th-century mindset with tackling disinformation, as you mentioned. We might think it is two news organisations again…”

“Your response in terms of disinformation focused on the BBC World Service’s role in informing people. Can I ask about the role of educating people? One of the attractive things about the simple, polarising narratives of disinformation is that they make people feel smart, because they are not complex. Is the World Servi…”

“I congratulate my hon. Friend on securing the debate, and pay tribute to him for his work, not just on behalf of Ryan Cornelius but on political prisoners and the rule of law more generally. Does he agree that it seems we live in a world where increasingly autocratic countries will take citizens of other nations into a…”

“As chair of the all-party parliamentary group on Hong Kong, I thank Ministers for their efforts and recognise the efforts of the Prime Minister. However, after nearly four years in solitary confinement for Jimmy Lai and with a trial beginning in a court that we know will only ever find him guilty, at what point does th…”

“I think you were here earlier when Professor Scott was talking about the very fine line between us even just writing down that the BBC World Service should be an instrument of foreign policy, and the editorial values of the other broadcasters you have just listed. I am interested in your perspective on how to ensure th…”

““It is just like Russia Today.””