Speeches by Smith.

“That is an important area for further exploration, but I will leave it there.”

“I warmly welcome the Minister’s statement. For many years it has seemed to me that while our European partners have been able to have significant sovereign procurement programmes, we have so often tied ourselves up in knots and been unable to do the same. My hon. Friend the Member for South Norfolk (Ben Goldsborough) s…”

“Just to finish, in that sense—and you have partly answered some of this—what role do you see the board having, or do you envisage, such that another breach could not happen again? What is your role, in relation to PSNI itself, in ensuring that this could never happen again?”

“Sorry to interrupt, Sinead. As you await those recommendations—and bear in mind that the breach itself was late 2023—do you feel you have the confidence, or not, that it is still technically possible for such a breach to happen again? I understand that clearly this is an operational issue and, at the Policing Board, yo…”

“Yes or no is fine.”

“Why?”

“Good morning, gents. It is good to have you back with us. I want to turn our attention to something that you mentioned in your answers: normalisation. I lived in Belfast between 2001 and 2008, first off the Donegall Road and then just off the Cregagh Road. Every time I would go back to see friends or family in the west…”

“If I may, I have one final question, which is a bit of a proposition. It is about normalisation. I am really interested in your view on it. This is slightly wider, taking one step back from the job that you do and what you are responsible for. We have talked about legacy and the costs of legacy cases. My proposition is…”

“To acknowledge the point on legacy that Brendan was making, that other police forces are not required to pay for historical legacy issues, this may be a slightly unfair question, but the conversation seems to go round in circles. The national Government give increasing devolution settlements overall to Northern Ireland…”

“Good morning to everyone. It seems like 2023 was a particularly difficult year for the PSNI and the Policing Board. One key issue that made national headlines across the UK was the data breach published at the end of 2023. I suppose the simple question is whether you are confident that PSNI has now implemented the nece…”

“Again, there is a distinction between the operation and the oversight. Clearly, from an oversight and strategic perspective, you must take an interest, as the board, in the overarching systems and processes.”

“Presumably you are cross-checking the systems that it has. Sorry, I was about to finish, but you have made me interested again.”

“You do not know how long after the publication—”

“Will the hon. Gentleman give way?”

“There are many things in the hon. Gentleman’s speech that I agree with, but as someone who grew up on the Clyde, does he welcomes the naval shipbuilding on the Clyde and the sales to Norway. Those who live in Scotland—I grew up 15 miles as the crow flies from Faslane—are also protected by the nuclear deterrent.”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Mundell. Any debate in which we are talking about the health and wellbeing of children and young people requires us all to be measured in our remarks, not least in the context of a debate that has been so toxic at times. Our focus in clinical studies and in any treatme…”

“7. What steps she is taking to help protect communities vulnerable to flooding.”

“I warmly welcome the funding just announced, including for areas in my constituency—Budle bay, Belford and areas along the Coquet river. The national assessment of flood and coastal erosion risk assessment says that one in four homes are projected to be at risk of flooding by 2050. Will the Minister give us further ass…”

“The children of Belford primary school in my constituency recently wrote to me on a range of subjects. One of them said: “There are too many people using fossil fuels in Northumberland. It is hurting the earth’s surface and increasing global warming. Please can you encourage people to stop using fossil fuels and walk o…”

“I am referring to the whole package. We initially put in £250 million to deliver the new legacy framework. But at present we know that when it comes to the inquiries and the process of dealing with legacy—the new legacy commission—that often comes out of existing budgets. Should dealing with legacy ultimately come out …”