Speeches by Denyer.

“This is a question for Mr Henderson to start with, although if others want to come in afterwards, they are welcome. You have made it very clear that you support the “polluter pays” principle. Do you have further thoughts on how that could practically be implemented, working out who precisely is responsible and how much…”

“I am moving on to enforcement and money. I will start with what is happening in France. Other countries are introducing PFAS discharge levies to reduce pollution. In France, it is €100 per 100 grams discharged into waterways. Dr Megson, do you think a measure like France’s will genuinely drive reductions, or does it ri…”

“This is a follow-up question to you, Professor Kirk. You listed immune response, cholesterol and birth rates as three examples of where the evidence is fairly strong. With the caveat that I do not have a medical background, those seem three fairly unrelated things. Do you have any insight about why it seems to be affec…”

“Secretary of State, let us stick to the fact that the COP30 final text made no explicit reference to fossil fuels. I hear the frustration from you on that, which I share. I think it is beyond debate that a factor in why that happened is the enormous number of fossil fuel lobbyists taking part. One in every 25 participa…”

“We talked earlier about the importance of being honest about the role that fossil fuels have to play. Sticking with the domestic side, it is really welcome that the UK is now committed to no new oil and gas licensing, but given that burning the reserves in Rosebank would produce over 200 million tonnes of CO2—more than…”

“It is not people seeking sanctuary who are tearing our country apart; it is toxic, racist narratives and the scapegoating of migrants and asylum seekers for what is nothing to do with them. The chronic housing crisis and the running down of public services are not caused by migrants; they are caused by political decisi…”

“On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. The Secretary of State accused one of my Green colleagues of hypocrisy when in fact she had been objecting to the warehousing of asylum seekers in military barracks, which is a position in line with Greens in the Chamber and, in fact, all major refugee rights organisations. I …”

“I am grateful to the Minister for giving way as she speaks about the importance of the UK taking global leadership. I welcome the Bill, but will the Minister complement it and show global leadership by announcing a new international taskforce dedicated specifically to protecting at least 30% of the Atlantic ocean by 20…”

“I am also a vice-chair of the Climate and Nature Crisis Caucus.”

“The second part of my question is a similar one about a different proposed solution. Some are proposing differential energy tariffs—social tariffs, or an essential energy guarantee, as the New Economics Foundation calls it—to target energy cost support towards lower-income households. It seems to me that there are quit…”

“We have talked about electricity prices a lot. I would love to get the panel’s opinion on a few specific proposals, if you have seen them and had a chance to look at them. The first question is probably especially for Professor Grubb, given your experience in electricity market reform. Given gas’s role in setting the e…”

“I am worried about potential unintended consequences on large families, for example. Is that overcomeable?”

“That is really helpful. I agree. Mr Spiers, in your opinion, are the timelines for the development and deployment of those emerging technologies realistic? Personally, I fear they may not be. How can Government policy support them either to be more realistic or to make more realistic assumptions?”

“Thank you, Professor Rogelj, for your timely reminder of the ICJ advisory opinion that fossil fuel subsidies, which the Government are currently providing, and new oil and gas extraction, which I understand they are considering, could put them at risk of climate litigation. That is very timely. I am interested in the u…”

“The Refugee Council has a clear proposal that would allow the Minister to close asylum hotels within a year without resorting to barracks: a one-off scheme to give a time-limited permission to stay, subject to rigorous security checks, to people from countries that mean they are almost certain to be recognised as refug…”

“I do not know if you deliberately basically paraphrased my Private Member’s Bill but, yes, I agree. Q34            Chris Hinchliff: Mr Topping, to return to adaptation, last year your committee said that our national adaptation to climate change “falls far short of…”

“You will be aware that at COP the Just Transition Work Programme is deciding whether to establish the Belém action mechanism, which would embed fairness and a focus on better lives into the plans. As I understand it, at the moment the UK Government has not committed to backing that formally. Is that kind of thing impor…”

“That was interesting. I will take us back to thinking about COP for a moment. The Brazilian presidency has set out its desire for this COP to be more implementation focused, as opposed to just negotiation, and that mirrors your own comments to the then BEIS Committee four years ago, saying that we really need this firs…”

“I have a little follow-up question on the theme of what the UK could and should be doing. With decisions expected soon on licences for the Rosebank and Jackdaw oilfields, and COP rapidly approaching, how important is it for the UK Government to lead by example on fossil fuels by making sure that no new oil and gas well…”

“Will the hon. Member give way?”