Speeches by Starmer.

“The hon. Gentleman talks about Labour turning its back; I think he is the sole remaining Tory MP in the north-east or Teesside. I have already taken an early opportunity to make our commitment clear to the plans that we need for economic growth across the country. We will be working with all the mayors who are in place…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for raising this; it is such a serious issue. We have made a commitment—a mission—to halve violence against women and girls. I know from my experience dealing with these cases, as a prosecutor and subsequently, just how hard that will be to achieve. We will have to deliver in a different way; we …”

“I thank the right hon. Gentleman for that question. We have to get economic growth in this country. We have had failure over the last 14 years to build the infrastructure, the houses and the prisons we need, and the failure on economic growth has been central to that. There has been failure, and I think the whole House…”

“We are committed to nature recovery; it is a really important issue that this Government will tackle. The hon. Member talks about leadership. I would ask him to show some, because it is extraordinary that having been elected to this House as a Green politician, he is opposing vital clean energy infrastructure in his ow…”

“Again, I am grateful for this opportunity to say how united we were on the question of sanctions across this House. The use now made of what has been seized and frozen is an important issue on which I think we can move forward, and I know the Chancellor is already beginning to have some discussions about how we can tak…”

“I wholeheartedly agree. It is for NATO allies to decide who is a member of NATO—formed 75 years ago, a proud alliance, and probably the most successful alliance that has ever been formed. That is why it was so important that at the summit we were able to say that there is now that irreversible path to membership. It is…”

“I had the opportunity in Washington, at the NATO council, to talk to our German counterparts. There was a strong theme there on Ukraine, discussed with all our allies, and part of my message was to urge all our allies to provide further support for the Ukrainian people where they can. That was well received, and there …”

“I thank the Leader of the Opposition for not only raising the question of Ukraine, but doing so in a way that can maintain the unity across the House that has been so important to the Ukrainian people. I can assure him that we are, of course, talking to Ukraine about how it deals with the Russian aggression that it is …”

“I welcome my hon. Friend back to her place. Our guiding principle must be the wellbeing of children. This is a serious Government, and we will approach that question with care, not with inflammatory dividing lines. The Cass review was clear that there is not enough evidence on the long-term impact of puberty blockers t…”

“I welcome the hon. Member to his place and thank him for raising this important issue in relation to water. Customers should not pay the price for mismanagement by water companies. We have already announced immediate steps to put water companies under a tougher regime. The Minister responsible for water, the Under-Secr…”

“I know the whole House will be shocked by the news that a soldier has been attacked in Kent. Our thoughts are with him, his family and our armed forces who serve to keep us safe. We wish him a swift recovery. [Hon. Members: “Hear, hear.”] The whole House will also want to join me in wishing Team GB good luck as they tr…”

“I thank the right hon. Member for his comments. There is an appetite now for a different discussion about our future relations with the EU—whether that is trade, education and research, or security co-operation. Particularly in the light of what has happened in Ukraine, there is a shared sense that there is room for cl…”

“Businesses across the country that deal with Europe feel that the deal that the last Government negotiated is not good enough for them and has made trading much harder. That is why they are encouraging us to reset that relationship and get a better deal—better for our country, our businesses and our economy. Our No. 1 …”

“Let me deal with both points. First, conflict resolution did come up, because we had a full discussion about illegal migration—the law enforcement aspect of it, as I have explained, and the root causes of migration, conflict, poverty and climate change being key among them. The prospect of a ceasefire is there. I am ur…”

“Yes on both points. A number of months ago, in Swindon, I was struck by the incredible contribution of Ukrainian women, who were leading workshops on businesses and success. On the main point about the attitude of British people, it was good to be able to say to President Zelensky that we have just had an election and …”

“The approach to capability taken by the UK remains the same as it was three weeks ago— no different decisions have been taken—and is based on the principle of recognising Ukraine’s right to self-defence and the parameters of international law. I think that is right, and that is why no new decisions have been taken.”

“Let me start by joining in that, and making it clear that this work, done in so many communities, is really important, in terms of the support given and the welcome shown to refugees. The point about “NATO first” is important. As I say, we are proud to have been among the founding members of NATO, and the review that w…”

“Yes, I do, and I am grateful for that question, because there is the prospect of a ceasefire. It is desperately needed, for the reasons that we have already discussed, but it will only happen if there is international agreement and a sober assessment that provides the framework for the release of the remaining hostages…”

“Yes.”

“I am proud of the commitment that we already make to NATO on 2%. As would be expected, we did have a discussion at the NATO council on the need for all NATO members to make that contribution and to increase their contribution, and there was a commitment to do so. Our commitment to 2.5% will be set out, and the path wil…”