Speeches by McDonald.

“Special steels business Paralloy in Billingham, in my constituency, has told me that uncertainty on international trade has recently left its customers running for the hills. Does the Chancellor of the Exchequer agree that now we have trade deals coming along like buses—with India, the US and the EU—we can offer reliab…”

“I am sorry to interrupt the hon. Member’s flow. The Garibaldi sounds like an amazing pub. When she described how it reinvests its funds, it reminded me of the clubs in my constituency—perhaps clubs rather than pubs are more popular in the north-east. Does she agree that many of the things she has said about the communi…”

“I had the privilege last week of spending time on board HMS Sutherland, alongside the Armed Forces Minister. Will he join me in commending her captain and crew for their vital service safeguarding our subsea infrastructure? What steps are the Government taking to protect our critical undersea communications?”

“I echo the remarks of previous speakers; it has been a privilege to listen to the depth of personal and professional expertise expressed in this debate. I do not share that expertise, as I think will become abundantly obvious in a short moment. What do you get if you put a group of men in a room and ask them to talk ab…”

“I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend. It will not be very long before voters in Scotland have the opportunity to contrast the Scottish Government with what a Labour Government deliver, and hopefully they will chose the latter. I mentioned psychotherapy. For a profession that has been around since the time of Freud, i…”

“I was very exercised by my hon. Friend’s point about “feeding people” from small towns into cities—a very patronising view espoused by ill-informed lobby groups such as the Centre for Cities. Does he agree that that view denies the reality: that people who live in towns want their towns to be successful and have real p…”

“rose—”

“My hon. Friend is giving an excellent speech. I want to take this opportunity to thank the Minister for her recent visit to our Teesside defence and innovation cluster, where many small businesses, such as those my hon. Friend described, experience challenges in accessing procurement contracts. Does he agree that it is…”

“I welcome this trade deal, and particularly the beneficial impact it will have on the steel and automotive sectors. I was pleased to hear the Secretary of State mention his discussions on ethanol, where I know some concerns have been raised. I have spoken to industry representatives, and they are confident that they ha…”

“Farmers in Northern Ireland who fear foot and mouth, and even dog owners like me, rely on good veterinary support, but this is no longer the world of James Herriot; a number of large companies dominate the market. The Competition and Markets Authority says that remedies are needed. Does the Minister agree, and will he …”

“My hon. Friend mentioned small and medium-sized businesses. Would he agree that, for small businesses in defence-adjacent industries that want to grow into the defence market—such as those in the Teesside defence and innovation cluster in my constituency—a defence development bank, as he proposes, would give them that …”

“I support everything that my hon. Friend says. I commissioned a piece of neon artwork from a local artist, Stuart Langley, in Teesside a number of years ago. Does she agree that neon is as valid a medium of expression as any other artistic endeavour?”

“Victory in Europe Day in 1945 was a moment of national rejoicing. It was also the moment when Britain and the world started to count the cost of war—the human catastrophe of totalitarianism. Yet it would be hard to find anyone in the country who would say that the price was too high. I think we heard that today in the …”

“In his statement, the Secretary of State was right to link the record level of spending on Ukraine with the opportunities for UK industry, but I am sure he would agree that that opportunity is also a challenge for the scale-up of the industry and the development cycle for new technologies. In addition to the support fo…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for her statement and for her action on British Steel. I extend my thanks to the officials in her Department, who I know have worked tirelessly in support of our Ministers to secure a future for the business. The Government’s plan for change has changed the lives of steelworkers in Scunthorpe and…”

“I am sorry, but I am not going to give way, simply because of the lack of time. It is important to correct the record on a number of earlier comments. The hon. Member for Boston and Skegness (Richard Tice) and others referred to the coal from the west Cumbria mine, but I must inform the House that the management of Bri…”

“I would be quite happy to talk to the hon. Gentleman about steel desulphurisation in the Tea Room later, if he would care to join me. I also completely refute his comment about bringing in global expertise—we have the expertise in the UK to run steel companies effectively. Again, I would be happy to introduce him to pe…”

“In 1976, a group of steelworkers emerged from the Templeborough steelworks following a night shift. At the time, Temple-borough was the largest electric arc steelmaking plant in the world. Those steelworkers had just done something rather spectacular: they had broken a shift record. They were surprised to find a letter…”

“I am sorry; given the shortage of time, I will not. I also believe that we can be at least as good as the steel industry in Belgium, which is now larger than the steel industry in the UK. Clearly, there was a lack of ambition on the part of the previous Government. They did not believe that our steel industry could be …”

“We have heard about the dental desert in Somerset. Stockton in my constituency has also been branded a dental desert. I welcome the 4,000 new appointments that the Government have granted for Stockton North and the surrounding area. However, given the urgency that he has described, particularly for children’s health, I…”