Speeches by Smith.

“Okay. I have a final question on this case. You have committed to ensuring that there is a full and thorough investigation into the case. Given that you have ruled out a public inquiry, do you intend to refer the case to a reformed ICRIR, even if that is not the wish of the family?”

“Notwithstanding the principle about who gets to decide, the Court of Appeal said that your decision was based on advice from civil servants that was flawed. What would your response be to that?”

“I have nearly finished. For that matter, what will stop relatives anxious to receive their inheritance from subtly pushing the option of assisted death? To conclude, as legislators the responsibility falls on us, in this place, to create outstanding legislation that provides clarity, certainty and benefits to our const…”

“On Second Reading in late November, I wanted to express the concerns that I had with the Bill around coercion, commercialisation and the pressure on people who feel that they are a burden. Unfortunately, there was not enough time in that debate, and there is not much time today either. During that debate, the House was…”

“Can I do a quick follow-up that Siobhán and Zoe could come in on as well, if you want? As you say, Sonya, a strategy is only worth the paper it is written on if it is implemented, has the relevant resources and so on, but the other thing is joining things up, which Governments do not do very well. We silo things a lot:…”

“This is quite a straightforward question to ask, but maybe more difficult to answer. There are a couple of strategies that the Northern Ireland Executive have: the overarching Programme for Government, which focuses on ending violence against women and girls, and the separate joint Department of Health and Department o…”

“That is an encouraging note.”

“I want to touch on education. Speaking of previous lives, I ran a homelessness charity before, but we had a domestic abuse strand within that. We tried to set up domestic abuse training in high schools specifically for young men. We were repeatedly rebuffed by funders. We were told that the money is only for young wome…”

“The application is for a debate titled, “That this House has considered the role of Freedom of Religion or Belief in UK foreign policy”, and I will use FORB for short. FORB is a central issue to UK foreign policy within a broad human rights framework, and it relates to all religions, beliefs and belief systems globally…”

“Essentially, the timing is the more important thing from my perspective. I have put in for a main Chamber debate, but I realise that that is very unlikely to happen. If it is possible to have a Westminster Hall debate for three hours, I would be more than happy to accept that.”

“My hon. Friend is making an important and powerful speech about the significance of local road infrastructure. She mentions the A1, which is in my constituency, and I know Moor Farm roundabout well. Does she agree that as the Government make a massive investment in local transport, we really have to think about investi…”

“I rise to oppose new clauses 1 and 20 and to support new clause 106. All the new clauses concern the issue of abortion. Through the process of decriminalisation, new clauses 1 and 20 will introduce the possibility of de facto abortion up to birth for any reason in this country, for the first time in history. Let me be …”

“I absolutely do agree that the vast majority of women are doing the right thing, but I do not believe that we can cover all eventualities through such a fundamental black-and-white change in the law. The real problem is that the temporary pills-by-post abortion scheme brought in during covid, which does not require in-…”

“I will make progress. The new clauses seek to address a perceived problem of police actions that were over-zealous in a handful of cases by making a fundamental change to abortion law that would put more women at risk while also risking the lives of infant children.”

“I am afraid I am going to make some progress. In 2024, according to Government statistics, there were a quarter of a million abortions. If only 1% of them took place as late-term abortions, that would mean 2,500 late-term abortions a year. We also risk the rise, once more, of backstreet abortions. Imagine a scenario in…”

“I am just coming to my conclusion. The choice for Members is very clear—indeed, stark. It is to approve the biggest change to abortion law in 58 years while, I believe, making things worse for women and their unborn children, or to solve the problem of criminal justice overreach by reinstating in-person appointments fo…”

“I do agree. If something is absolute—in terms of the new clauses, as I understand them—it must cover all eventualities, and what we are trying to say is that we simply do not believe that it can. I have heard it said that no woman would induce an abortion after 24 weeks, but we cannot introduce such a profound change i…”

“I thank my hon. and learned Friend for giving way, given the time constraints. I have a simple but key question: does an advertisement include a leaflet on a GP’s surgery table or on a door going into the GP? It seems unclear to me what is information and what it advertisement.”

“I am delighted to speak to this monumental piece of legislation, which is so necessary and so important. I cannot help but notice that many times in the debate a false dichotomy has been presented of a choice between nature and biodiversity net gain on the one hand and planning, infrastructure, housing and development …”

“Absolutely. There need not be this false dichotomy between what development corporations can do and the protection of our natural environment. Rural Great Britain is crying out for “little and often” development. We can get this right, and the Bill is trying to deliver that by cutting through labyrinthine planning rule…”