Speeches by Reid.

“Just to follow up on Robbie’s point about the local inquiries, are you able to commit to them? Oldham, in particular, has been asking for this. Will they be involved in those national inquiries which were committed to back in November?”

“Do you think they should?”

“Just to follow up on what Paul was saying, the diagnosis is not really new, is it? That lack of accountability and transparency is something we have heard quite a lot of over the last two decades. What I am trying to get a sense of is what is different this time so that we and the public do not feel that it is just som…”

“The recommendations have not been implemented by Government. How do we know that that will not happen again with the additional inquiry that we have before us?”

“We are clear that a strategy has not been published for the violence against women and girls or the knife crime targets. We are 16 or 17 months into this Parliament. Do you think it is reasonable that we have not yet seen a published strategy for how we are going to get there on these targets? If not, why is it taking …”

“I am going to turn to violence against women and girls. We have already addressed much of what I was going to ask, but just to clarify that I have this clear, you have given us two bits of information in relation to that. First, there is an agreed definition which is going to align with agencies across Government on vi…”

“Finally, do you feel that sufficient funding has been allocated, not just for this inquiry but for the other inquiries that have been committed to by the Government? Southport is one but I cannot remember the third one.”

“The aim of halving violence against women and girls has not changed with the incoming Home Secretary. That remains our target for the Home Office, right?”

“Does that work successfully?”

“Do you have any thoughts on whether that would work for the UK?”

“Thank you for coming today, we really appreciate your time. I want to begin by focusing on the headline net migration numbers. Is it important to make distinctions between different migration routes—skilled work or students—rather than treating them as an overall net migration figure?”

“Are the Scottish Government involved in the group that you mentioned, as skills is devolved?”

“Turning now to the regional elements of it, how well do you think that we can align the different needs of different parts of the UK on migration policy? I am thinking particularly from a Scottish perspective, where the demographic pressures are more acute—we have a more acute skills shortage. Do you think a one-size-f…”

“You mentioned that the policies of the previous Government, continued by this Government, are what have driven the declining numbers. Do you think that you can predict quite well the impact of particular Government policies on the overall numbers, or do you think that is quite a tricky exercise?”

“If the public debate focuses on the headline net migration, do you think there is a risk in terms of misinformation and how the debate is handled in the press and the media?”

“Recent reports show that Babcock is having to recruit hundreds of overseas welders because of a skills shortage in Scotland. This is the direct result of decades of under-investment in further education and skills in Scotland. Can the Minister outline what the UK Government can do to ensure that my constituents can acc…”

“The Minister has made it clear that women and girls were failed by every institution, and it is a positive step that the failure has now been acknowledged by Government and that the acknowledgment is leading to action after years of inaction. But in Scotland we have had absolutely no acknowledgment or action. What advi…”

“The Minister will know that the rise of platforms such as OnlyFans has led to the mainstream commercialisation of women’s bodies. Does she agree that if we are to tackle violence against women and girls, we must look at pornography prostitution? Will she commit to working with colleagues in the Department for Science, …”

“I beg to move, That this House has considered the impact of pornography prostitution on violence against women and girls. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Desmond. I begin by thanking two organisations that have been hugely helpful in preparing for today’s debate: UK Feminista, which provides the …”

“I agree. I think that age verification is hugely important in tackling children’s exposure to pornography. It is not just on those websites; it is found on mainstream websites as well, and I think that is something that we need to look at in the next regulations under the Online Safety Act 2023. As I said, OnlyFans is …”