Speeches by Dearden.

“My hon. Friend knows how vital consumer safety is for e-bike users and advocates passionately for their regulation, and I would be happy to work with her further on this. The Office for Product Safety and Standards has powers to remove unsafe products from the UK market and has taken action to prevent those dangerous m…”

“I know that my hon. Friend is aware of the dangers posed by unsafe e-bike batteries; 170 e-bike fires were recorded in 2024, mostly in London. Product safety laws require that businesses supply only safe consumer products, including e-bike batteries. Last year, my Department introduced new statutory guidelines to stren…”

“I thank my hon. Friend and those she mentions for their unwavering commitment to supporting parents—I was delighted to meet the Dad Shift recently. We are committed to improving the lives of working families. Alongside expanding access to paternity leave and unpaid parental leave, benefiting over 1 million more parents…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for her continued hard work in this area. From April 2026, subject to parliamentary approval, statutory paternity pay will increase from £187.18 to £194.32 per week. The Employment Rights Bill will make paternity leave a day one right, extending eligibility to 32,000 more fathers and partners and…”

“Our product safety laws do require products supplied in the UK to be safe, whether they are sold online or on the high street. As I have mentioned, our Product Regulation and Metrology Act, which received Royal Assent earlier this year, gives us powers to update product safety laws where necessary to adapt to those new…”

“The hon. Member will have heard my reference to a review. It will consider all forms of parental leave and pay, alongside current and future parental leave entitlements. I urge him to get involved in that process, and look forward to hearing from him as part of it.”

“I completely agree with my hon. Friend that it is important that her constituents see that increase in the hourly rate of the minimum wage and national living wage. That is in stark contrast to the Leader of the Opposition, who has said that the minimum wage should not go any higher. Our commitment further demonstrates…”

“I thank the hon. Gentleman for highlighting Halifax and the brilliant pubs in my constituency that I have been delighted to work with since I was elected last year. I will continue to work with and listen to them. He highlights the difference in the agenda and priorities of our parties: we can provide businesses in our…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for his engagement with me and the Department. I pay tribute to Ceri and Frances for their incredible campaigns and work raising awareness in memory of their son, Hugh. I am happy to plan for Hugh’s law to have a separate chapter in the consultation and to work with my hon. Friend its development…”

“I thank the hon. Gentleman for raising those issues. I am more than happy to meet representatives from the hospitality sector and industries across the country to understand their questions and the challenges they face. We are committed to supporting them as a vital sector for our economy, our local communities, and th…”

“As I said, we do recognise the ongoing pressures and are acting through targeted support for the sector. Without our support, pubs would face a 45% increase in the total bills they pay next year. We have got that down to just 4%. The majority will have their bills capped at £800, 5% or 15% next year. In addition, we ha…”

“I thank the hon. Member for raising her concerns on behalf of her constituents and businesses. We do recognise the ongoing pressures and are acting. Last night I met lots of colleagues from across the industry, and I want to make sure that we continue to talk with the sector and with pubs to understand the questions th…”

“We recognise that pubs are the beating heart of our communities, especially in seaside towns like Bognor Regis and Littlehampton. They bring people together and support local jobs. That is why we have delivered on our promise to permanently cut business rates for hospitality, retail and leisure businesses, which includ…”

“It is a pleasure to close this debate on behalf of the Government. Let me start by saying that I will take absolutely no lessons on running the economy after what the Conservatives did during 14 years in government. Given that there have been so many references to songs and music today, I want to suggest a song that Co…”

“The Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade, my hon. Friend the Member for East Renfrewshire (Blair McDougall), mentioned in his opening remarks all the steps that we are taking to reduce those burdens, and all the policies that we are introducing to back our small businesses across the country. On the point th…”

“I have lots to make progress on, but I will give way very briefly.”

“I will carry on and make some progress. Let me respond to the points made by the Liberal Democrat spokesperson, the hon. Member for Richmond Park (Sarah Olney). As many hon. Members reflected on this point, I will clarify that we are not seeking to return to or rejoin the customs union; we are focusing on trade deals w…”

“I have heard lots of Conservative Members reflect on unemployment. What they fail to mention is that the average unemployment rate over their 14 years in government was 5.4%, which is substantially higher than the current unemployment rate. As the right hon. Gentleman knows from Monday’s debate, we have committed to co…”

“I have two minutes left, so I need to proceed. I have talked in detail about our intentions behind this legislation. I know that my hon. Friends’ suggestions are well intentioned, but I stress that, as a package, our amendments reflect the agreement reached between business representatives and trade unions in a collabo…”

“I only have a few minutes, so I will try to respond as quickly as I can to comments from colleagues across the House. I thank everybody for their reflections today. To respond to the shadow Minister, I do not recognise the figures he mentions, and I urge hon. Members to reflect carefully on the figures that he mentione…”