Speeches by Cross.

“The Budget turned the world, or at least the future of family farms, upside down. Ever since then, we have seen mounting evidence of the impact that the changes to inheritance tax, business property relief and agricultural property relief will have on family farms. That evidence has come from the industry, from industr…”

“A really interesting line in the Minister’s statement shows, in my opinion, the Labour Government’s complete misunderstanding of the role of the North sea. She said that “the reality is that new licences…awarded in the past decade have made only a marginal difference to overall production.” However, that does not take …”

“It is a privilege to speak in today’s International Women’s Day debate. I thank the hon. Member for Brent East (Dawn Butler) for securing it. I want to use the opportunity to pay tribute to the extraordinary contribution of Scottish women, and particularly those from my constituency and the wider north-east Scotland. W…”

“The Labour Government’s decision to hike national insurance is a cost on businesses before they even open their doors. I have spoken to many businesses across my constituency in recent months, and all have said how worried they are about the changes. In response to my recent business survey, one large business said tha…”

“4. What assessment he has made of the potential impact of changes to employer national insurance contributions on levels of employment in Scotland.”

“The provisional local government finance settlement for 2025-26 introduces changes to the previous methodology for the then levelling-up funding for categorising areas of priority need. The Rural Services Network has highlighted concerns and disparities that shift funding away from rural and coastal communities to urba…”

“4. What her plans are for levelling-up projects.”

“The energy profits levy is expected to cause huge amounts of instability for North sea firms, driving away investment, driving down employment and driving businesses away from the North sea to invest abroad. Does that sound like stability, and if so, will it bring employment, economic growth and lower prices to the cou…”

“In Scotland, businesses are also battling with the business rates relief not being passed on in full by the SNP Scottish Government. Will the Member be putting pressure on his party in Scotland to pass on those reliefs in full, to help family businesses and businesses across our high streets in Scotland?”

“Will my hon. Friend give way?”

“I thank my hon. Friend for securing this important and timely debate. I certainly spent a lot of my recess looking at banking hubs, especially in a town called Ellon in my constituency, which has recently lost its last bank. Ellon is a large town of over 7,000 people, and if the surrounding villages are included, it is…”

“Q12. Yesterday, the farming Minister, the hon. Member for Cambridge (Daniel Zeichner), told a conference of farmers that farming is “not high on the pecking order”for this Government. Given the heartless family farm tax, will the Prime Minister say if his Minister is correct—yes or no?”

“The issue is the Labour Government’s rush to decarbonise by 2030, which means that this country does not have the capabilities to fulfil all the requirements to deliver on these projects. Until we do, we will always be reliant on overseas powers and people, such as the Chinese Government and Chinese manufacturers, to d…”

“T6. A month ago, the Prime Minister said that countries will be either AI makers or AI takers. Does the Secretary of State agree that by not attending the AI safety summit, the Prime Minister has given a clear indication that the UK will be an AI taker?”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Jeremy. I thank the Minister for bringing forward the regulations. The Opposition welcome the annual uprating of the measures for both the mesothelioma lump sum payments and the Pneumoconiosis etc. (Workers’ Compensation) Act payments across England, Scotland and W…”

“Will the Minister give way?”

“We have already seen that if Rosebank does not go ahead £6.6 billion-worth of investment and 2,000 jobs will be lost. Those 2,000 jobs are really important to us in the north-east of Scotland. They are there for sentiment and for confidence, and they are also to show that we have a future. At the moment, it feels like …”

“The Secretary of State recently outlined to this House the serious situation with the Yantar—a clear example of the threat posed to our critical undersea infrastructure, and of the work that we need to do to defend ourselves and deter potential attacks. Does that not show that we need to increase our defence spending a…”

“18. What steps he is taking to protect undersea infrastructure.”

“Absolutely. I agree 100% with what the hon. Member says, and it will be repeated across the country in rural Labour constituencies and in our constituencies. It does not matter where they are in the country, our farmers will face hundreds of thousands of pounds in IHT bills because of this Government’s decisions—for no…”