Speeches by Lamont.

“I am sure the hon. Member is wondering why a Scottish MP is speaking in a debate about Thames Water. I absolutely agree with his concerns about Thames Water, but the model he seems to be proposing is very close to what we have with Scottish Water, which I am sure he has done a lot of research on. He will know that sewa…”

“I pay tribute to all the work that my hon. Friend did as a Minister. He has highlighted the percentage of overflows that are now being monitored in England. I am sure he is aware of research by Surfers Against Sewage confirming that 100% of storm overflows in England are now being monitored. In Scotland, the figure is …”

“I want to pick up on my point about Scotland. Some Members have been advocating for nationalisation. Does the Minister have any thoughts on that, and have the current Government looked at what is happening in Scotland? Scottish Water, by many standards, is performing even less well than Thames Water. But Scottish Water…”

“6. What steps the client board is taking to ensure that contractors from all parts of the UK are used in the restoration of the Palace of Westminster.”

“I am grateful for that answer. It is absolutely right that local contractors across the United Kingdom should be able to take part in this historic project. In my constituency we have businesses such as Hutton Stone, which provides a full stone masonry service and has some of the country’s finest stone carvers. Can we …”

“My right hon. Friend is making an excellent speech, and I congratulate him on raising this issue. During the recent storm that affected my constituency in the borders, many constituents who rely on the digital phone service could not contact the 999 service because not only do they not have a mobile phone signal, but t…”

“How many hotels in Scotland are used to house asylum seekers?”

“Could we have a debate to recognise the important role that GPs and local medical practices play in our communities? Today we are joined in the Public Gallery by the practice manager of Coldstream medical practice, Yvonne Archibald, and the practice’s therapy dog, Hattie. She is a huge part of the practice team and act…”

“The hon. Member is being generous with his time. I am fortunate to represent the fishing fleet off the Berwickshire coast, which is relatively small but very active, together with the fish processing industry. The Scottish Fishermen’s Federation produced a very helpful briefing note ahead of today’s debate. One of the …”

“My hon. Friend is making a first-class speech, standing up for her constituents in Cheshire. Is she aware that the Confederation of British Industry forecast has said that Labour’s rural and farming policies are set to cut turnover, jobs and investment across Britain. Further, according to the CBI forecast, family farm…”

“My hon. Friend makes an important point. When the House considered the 2020 Act, we were expecting that different Governments in the UK might give extra subsidy to different businesses, but the converse can also happen: taking subsidies away can affect the competitiveness of different industries. I am a Scottish MP and…”

“An additional point is that the change will affect not only farm businesses but the wider rural economy. All the other businesses within communities that depend on the farm businesses spending money in the local economy will also be impacted, not just by this measure but by the inheritance tax change and all the other …”

“My hon. Friend is making an excellent speech. I just want to highlight the briefing from the National Farmers Union, which I think all Members received, expressing real concerns about what the Government are proposing. The NFU is strongly opposed to the way the Government are approaching this. It has highlighted that t…”

“According to Knight Frank data, the average English less favoured area livestock farm will, as a consequence of these changes and assuming no other income streams change, see its profit fall by almost half. I am slightly concerned that, according to the explanatory notes, no financial impact assessment has been done. W…”

“My hon. Friend is making an excellent speech and he is right to highlight the important role that local authorities have. However, speaking as a former commercial property lawyer, I think part of the problem is that, when buying a new home, the purchaser is forced to take a contract package that is geared in favour of …”

“The hon. Lady is making an excellent speech, and I agree with many of her points. Does she agree that when someone buys a new home, not only do they expect to have the mains water running, electric and gas, but in this day and age they expect to have a good broadband connection? Although the last Government made signif…”

“The hon. Member is doing an excellent job of highlighting the problems with new house developments in his constituency. The National House Building Council will in many cases provide a guarantee backing up the developer to fix the repairs that are required, but I have certainly had difficulties with the NHBC in the pas…”

“The hon. Member is making an excellent point—it is a rare moment of unity between him and me. I agree that the compensation is not enough. Does he agree that part of the problem is that the developer—in our case, Scottish Power Energy Networks, which is building the pylons across my constituency—assumes that it will ge…”

“My hon. Friend is making an excellent speech. Many aspects of the Bill will affect Scotland and make things much more difficult for local residents to oppose certain types of application, including those in my constituency who are fighting hard against a 94 km pylon route and battery storage plants. For me, democratic …”

“T3. Last week, it was announced that the SNP Government are sending more shipbuilding contracts abroad. Seven CalMac ferries that could be constructed on the Clyde will instead be built in Poland. Will the Minister share how many warships the United Kingdom Government are currently building in Scotland?”