Speeches by Baines.

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Edward. I was not going to speak in this debate, but I have sat here in increasing bafflement—a bit like the debate we had in a previous sitting on branded school uniform items. I think most ordinary families watching or listening to this debate will share my confu…”

“Under the last Government, most schools in my constituency suffered real-terms funding cuts and child poverty increased by more than 50%. Reform of the inspection system is needed and is welcome, but does the Minister agree that the key to children doing well and good outcomes being measured is investment and support f…”

“I speak as a parent of a child at a secondary school with branded PE kit, so I have some interest in this. Maybe my understanding is wrong, but surely any responsible school following this becoming law, as I hope it does, would still have a uniform? Uniform does not have to be branded to be uniform. This would not nece…”

“Q I am sure that we would all agree that we want to see high standards in every school for every child, whether that is for academic attainment and achievement or for safeguarding outcomes. In your view—broadly speaking; we have limited time—does the Bill help or hinder the ambition of high and rising standards in ever…”

“Q What about the overall spend? Anne Longfield: The only way to get around the spend in local authorities on children’s social care is to reduce those costs. I do not think that that is to deny children’s needs; it is about a different way. We know that the spending on early intervention has almost halved over the past…”

“Q So your view is not that it goes too far, but that in some cases it does not go far enough? Anne Longfield: I think it is proportionate for now, but it needs to be strengthened in some areas if we are to tackle some of the deep-rooted issues that we know a lot of children are facing.”

“Q Good afternoon. Can you tell us briefly, in your own words, about the urgency—in your view—or otherwise of the Bill? We all agree that your organisations do outstanding, amazing, essential work with vulnerable children and young people up and down the country. How has the landscape for children changed in the last de…”

“Q In your view, are the measures in the Bill proportionate for improving child safeguarding and protecting children? Local authorities’ spend on looked-after children in the past decade or so has increased from about £3.5 billion to over £8 billion a year. Will the measures in the Bill help to address that and bring it…”

“I am both a former teacher and a former council leader, and I speak on behalf of many of my former colleagues when I say that this Bill is welcome and will make a difference to children across St Helens North. It will also make a positive difference to the ability of those who work in education and other services to pr…”

“Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, and merry Christmas—I won’t get any longer for saying that. I thank the Minister for his statement and welcome the announcements made today. In 2010, the last year of the previous Labour Government, St Helens borough council received £127 million in central Government funding. Under the…”

“May I add St Helens to the list of places that are interested in being a pilot area? I warmly welcome today’s announcement. As the Minister and others have said, there is nothing low-level about antisocial behaviour. It can destroy lives and communities, and it is right that we take it seriously. I am particularly plea…”

“I warmly welcome this statement, like all colleagues on the Government Benches and hopefully like colleagues across the whole House. I particularly welcome the comments on care leavers; it is important that we do not forget about them. When I became council leader of St Helens in 2019, services for care leavers were ra…”

“Garswood and Earlestown stations in my constituency are two of 21 in the Liverpool city region that are not accessible to all passengers. This is something that local residents, councillors and the council have campaigned on for many years, along with previous MPs, and metro mayor Steve Rotheram is supportive of calls …”

“Q6. Child poverty is a national scandal. In St Helens North, it increased by over 50% under the previous Government. Does the Prime Minister agree that we need to address this scandal, ideally cross-party? If so, does he share my concern that the Conservatives have opposed actions that we are taking with the Budget, em…”

“Under the previous Government, life expectancy plateaued, and the number of people living with long-term ill health increased. Was that good for business?”

“I welcome this Budget, not because it solves all the problems in the country—we have heard a lot about them this afternoon, and they would be impossible to solve quickly—but because it begins to do so. In many ways, this Budget is a reset moment for our politics and our economics. It is a deliberate choice to invest in…”

“We are clearly going to hear a lot of the same arguments that we heard years ago, when Labour introduced the minimum wage. Does the Deputy Prime Minister agree that good employers have nothing to fear from the Bill, and working people have a lot to celebrate?”

“I am sad to inform the House that my colleague and friend Councillor Linda Maloney MBE passed away recently. She served the local community in St Helens for 30 years as a councillor, and she was a trailblazer on the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority. She was a formidable woman, a strong Labour woman and an inspirati…”

“I am delighted to take part in this debate, as I am always grateful for the opportunity to praise and defend our public services, particularly our state schools, and the millions of people, including the vast majority of my constituents, who rely on them. The Opposition motion “regrets that the Government has decided t…”

“No, I am pushed for time. Where was the consideration of impacts when the inspection system did not and does not work for parents, schools or pupils? Where was the consideration of impacts when child poverty increased? Where was the consideration of impacts when the lack of investment in school support staff and basic …”