Speeches by Thomas.

“I thank my hon. Friend the Member for South Devon (Caroline Voaden) for bringing this debate to the House. I would also like to give credit to the hon. Member for Hartlepool (Mr Brash), whose touching tribute to their father reminded me of the grandfather who I knew and loved, before dementia slowly stripped me of that…”

“In the last decade, China has expanded its military to a degree only matched since 1945 by the USSR in the cold war era. In the past decade, the previous Government did not read the signs coming from Russia; this Government must read the signs coming from China. Ukraine does not have five years, and neither does Taiwan…”

“A constituent of mine was diagnosed with Parkinson’s at the age of 61. Individual sufferers can experience the symptoms to varying degrees day by day, which brings into question the effectiveness of PIP assessments, the results of which can vary depending on when they are carried out. With medical assistance hard to co…”

“The right hon. Gentleman speaks of the liberal elite but he is being generous there to me, a guy who was state-educated; I am very much just a bloke, but I thank him. One thing the Liberals were elite at was pointing out the fact that Brexit was not going to work. The promise of Brexit was of course to take back contro…”

“I am making this intervention from the Reform Bench, in the absence, apparently, of their own interest in immigration. Another thing that I think the Conservative party might answer for is the fact that Vladimir Putin weaponised immigration in 2015 through his terrorist tactics in Syria. I wonder whether the Conservati…”

“My hon. Friend is making an interesting point about those who help us. Following a complicated pregnancy, my wonderful daughter was birthed at the John Radcliffe hospital in Oxford by a team comprising English, Spanish, Indian, Italian and South African experts. Will he join me in thanking those immigrants who bring so…”

“I am glad that the hon. Member has brought this point up. Hon. Members have mentioned that there are 153,000 sufferers in the UK, 10% of whom rely on PIP. It is vital for them to live and work independently. I share the hon. Member’s concern that any reduction in sufferers’ access to PIP will not only have serious fina…”

“I thank the hon. Lady for securing this debate. Following the announcements in April, a constituent got in touch. She has two adopted granddaughters who, given their traumatic start in life, rely on specialist support. Does the hon. Lady share my concern that diminishing the support fund will have long-term financial i…”

“We are back to the communication piece again, by the sound of it. What actions is the Environment Agency taking to get that working?”

“I am sorry to have kept you waiting, Mr Moodie. What are the potential benefits and challenges of implementing schedule 3 to the Flood and Water Management Act? How might it improve the delivery and long-term maintenance of SuDS?”

“This is ticking the flexibility box that was mentioned earlier. There was an inflexibility that made things more difficult.”

“You mentioned earlier that flooding is becoming more consistent, but your resources are increasingly stretched. How can the funding for property flood resilience be structured better to support resistance and recovery measures?”

“We are back to the communication piece again, by the sound of it. What actions is the Environment Agency taking to get that working?”

“Ms Foley, you might have been ready to speak there anyway, but what can your organisation do to square that circle?”

“Ms Garrett, we have probably established some of the things that are not working so well, which are along the lines of communication and a lack of transparency. What else is not working so well, and what is working well in the current approach to promoting and supporting property flood resilience?”

“It is effective if it is done in a hybrid manner.”

“I am sorry to have kept you waiting, Mr Moodie. What are the potential benefits and challenges of implementing schedule 3 to the Flood and Water Management Act? How might it improve the delivery and long-term maintenance of SuDS?”

“You mentioned earlier that flooding is becoming more consistent, but your resources are increasingly stretched. How can the funding for property flood resilience be structured better to support resistance and recovery measures?”

“It is effective if it is done in a hybrid manner.”

“Ms Foley, you might have been ready to speak there anyway, but what can your organisation do to square that circle?”