Speeches by Alexander.

“The UK addresses forced labour in global supply chains under section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015, which requires commercial businesses that operate in the UK and have a turnover of £36 million or more to report annually on the steps they have taken to prevent modern slavery in their operations and supply chains. …”

“Let me first pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Rotherham (Sarah Champion) for the consistency and focus that she has brought to this issue. It is not a new worry for her. I assure her that I shared that concern yesterday morning when I heard the reports and the allegations that were levelled in relation to t…”

“I thank the Opposition spokesperson for her characteristically kind and generous words in welcoming me back to Parliament and, indeed, the Dispatch Box. There is a tension between the first two questions we have heard, with my hon. Friend the Member for Rotherham observing that there is a need for radical transformatio…”

“I am not sure that I am in agreement, notwithstanding the high degree of consensus in the House, with the hon. Lady’s opposition to solar farms. We believe that the essential transition to a net zero economy requires not only onshore wind but, as my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business and Trade has ma…”

“I am in full agreement with my hon. Friend. For businesses to be able to invest and thrive, they need confidence in their supply chains, which is why the Government are establishing a new supply chains taskforce. The taskforce will work to assess where supply chains that are critical to the UK’s economic security and r…”

“I thank the hon. Lady for her observation, and for the characteristically calm wisdom with which she spoke about issues on which I think there is a high degree of consensus across the House. Given that we have been in government for five months, it is appropriate that we review the effectiveness of the Modern Slavery A…”

“The right hon. Gentleman brings many years of experience to the bilateral relationship between the United Kingdom and China, and he will find no disagreement on this side of the House when he calls out the disastrous foreign policy mistakes of the former Member for Witney. We seem to have ended up with the worst of bot…”

“The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right. Since 2022, the US has been operating an import ban targeting goods from Xinjiang under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. The Act sets out a rebuttable presumption that goods made in Xinjiang or produced by certain listed entities use forced labour. It is right to recognise…”

“My hon. Friend makes a powerful point, which is that we want to do this with business, rather than to business. Of course there is varied conduct and there are varied levels of adherence to requirements in the business community, and particularly in the retail sector, but my sense is that overwhelmingly, responsible re…”

“I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for East Renfrewshire (Blair McDougall) not just on his recent election, but on securing this important debate. I feel obliged to declare an interest in paying that compliment, given that I have known, campaigned with and long admired the political judgment and moral seriousness…”

“Frankly, businesses in Scotland have been let down by two failed Governments. We have had a decade of division and decay in Scotland, and I am glad to see that we now have political stability, with Labour having a majority in Scotland, Wales and England. At the same time, we are committed to genuine partnership and wor…”

“First, let me commend my hon. Friend for his work with the local primary school. I know how assiduous he is in advancing the interests of his constituents. I can assure him that we fully understand the importance of fair trade. I have met a representative of the Fair Trade Foundation in recent weeks, and I pay particul…”

“I can assure my hon. Friend that the United Kingdom is committed to advancing both free and fair trade around the world that is inclusive, sustainable and seeks to reduce poverty. The UK’s aid-for-trade programmes, including the new Trade Centre of Expertise announced by the Prime Minister on 24 October, build the capa…”

“Farmers, like any other business people, need the stability that will be delivered as a consequence of our fixing the foundations, as we set out yesterday. I too represent a constituency with a number of farmers, and I am aware of the concerns that have been raised about inheritance tax, but, frankly, difficult choices…”

“I can assure the hon. Gentleman that we work closely with our colleagues in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office who are responsible for the international humanitarian law assessment. My good and right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has updated the House on the changed advice received by the Government, …”

“As I was saying, let me deal with both the failed Governments who have been letting Scotland down in the last decade. Frankly, if the hon. Gentleman wants to advance the case that there has been a decade of prosperity in Scotland, good luck to him. The reality is that it is very hard to think of a single aspect of Scot…”

“The international investment summit, about which we just heard, secured more than £63 billion, including for two significant projects in Scotland. Scottish Power, owned by Iberdrola, committed £24 billion to upgrade the UK’s energy infrastructure over the next five years. Floating offshore wind developer Green Volt has…”

“I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his kind words of welcome both to this House and to the Dispatch Box. I hope that we will be able to exchange in exactly this kind of constructive dialogue in the months and years ahead. Clearly, we inherited a number of open negotiating mandates from the previous Government—not …”

“I assure the hon. Lady that the SPS agreement—the veterinary agreement, as it is called—is one of the priorities we are pursuing. That matter is being led by the Cabinet Office, as is the reset with the European Union. I assure her that dialogue is under way between the Department for Business and Trade, the Cabinet Of…”

“The reset, of which we have spoken today, is fundamentally about turning the page and reinvigorating our alliance with our friends, neighbours and partners in the European Union. As well as securing a broad-based security pact and tackling barriers to trade, we aim to build stronger and wider co-operation in a whole ra…”