Speeches by Robinson.

“The Secretary of State was kind enough to mention Harland & Wolff. Successive Governments have introduced a number of support measures, and have ensured that that company can thrive by itself. However, in taking at face value what the Secretary of State has said, does he recognise that if this Government continue t…”

“The Leader of the Opposition is right to highlight the cross-party nature of this motion, and to question why a Whip has been put in place on the motion that is before the House. Does she not agree, and should Labour MPs not consider, that if there is nothing to hide, there is nothing to fear?”

“rose—”

“I appreciate the opportunity to take part in this debate on the carry-over motion. We are here this evening as a direct consequence of the failure of this Government to honour their commitment to repeal and replace the legacy Act, to deliver on a manifesto commitment through a two-year Session of Parliament, and to bri…”

“I will not. When we talk of amnesty, I think of Martin Quinn, the brother of Glenn Quinn, and of Mrs Quinn, his mother —an 82-year-old woman who lost her son in January 2020. He was beaten to death by a loyalist paramilitary; he was terminally ill, and he was killed in his own home. An 82-year-old mother is sitting at …”

“My hon. Friend is absolutely right. The Secretary of State dismisses the allegation that this is all about Dublin, but what was the clarion call over the last week? There was a British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference this week, and he knows that he is under pressure from Dublin to show progress, but what have we got…”

“Thank you. That is quite stark.”

“William, there was a hiatus last Tuesday, really, but what support do you envisage coming forward, either at Northern Ireland Executive level or in Whitehall?”

“You do not get the benefit of the agricultural relief if you are dual-use.”

“I spoke to a taxi driver last week who just indicated to me that personally, as a self-employed person, he was spending £500 more per month to keep his car on the road. One of my colleagues was speaking to a gentleman who was delivering animal feed as a haulier, and he said their small firm operating in Tyrone was payi…”

“Thank you. That is quite stark.”

“At the moment there is an issue around red diesel, which I raised with the Chancellor six weeks ago. Red diesel can be used agriculturally off road, and I think with the ability to travel on road for about 15 miles. I was told that the reality of that is that, for contractors moving from field to field to assist with s…”

“David, you might not feel it, but from your perspective, unlike the other gentlemen, there has been some Government intervention on home heating oil across the United Kingdom, and Northern Ireland disproportionately benefited, but it is not a huge amount. I think you can acknowledge that, as can I. What are you calling…”

“You said there September, October and November. When we met five weeks ago, when we were talking about resolution within a week or two, you were saying this would stretch well into the autumn. We are now five weeks on and there is still no sign of a resolution. You said autumn five weeks ago; are you now saying autumn …”

“That brings me to a point I think you were trying to open up earlier, which is what Government can do and the outlier impact. You say “outlier”; a number of European countries have brought forward support packages, for example. Hauliers have been the beneficiary. Agriculture has been a beneficiary of that. Consumers ha…”

“At the moment there is an issue around red diesel, which I raised with the Chancellor six weeks ago. Red diesel can be used agriculturally off road, and I think with the ability to travel on road for about 15 miles. I was told that the reality of that is that, for contractors moving from field to field to assist with s…”

“William, there was a hiatus last Tuesday, really, but what support do you envisage coming forward, either at Northern Ireland Executive level or in Whitehall?”

“You do not get the benefit of the agricultural relief if you are dual-use.”

“You said there September, October and November. When we met five weeks ago, when we were talking about resolution within a week or two, you were saying this would stretch well into the autumn. We are now five weeks on and there is still no sign of a resolution. You said autumn five weeks ago; are you now saying autumn …”

“That brings me to a point I think you were trying to open up earlier, which is what Government can do and the outlier impact. You say “outlier”; a number of European countries have brought forward support packages, for example. Hauliers have been the beneficiary. Agriculture has been a beneficiary of that. Consumers ha…”