Speeches by Badenoch.

“It was extraordinary listening to that last answer from the Prime Minister. Inflation was 2% when the Conservatives left office; it is now nearly double that. When will he recognise that it is Labour’s Budget that is driving up inflation?”

“The Prime Minister needs to stop whining about what the last Government did and look at what he is doing. He is the Prime Minister. Look at the numbers this morning. As if inflation figures were not bad enough, we have also learned that the Deputy Prime Minister is on manoeuvres. The Prime Minister has lost control of …”

“That is desperate stuff. The whole House will have heard the Prime Minister refuse to rule out new tax rises. The whole House heard it: he did not rule them out. There is open warfare in his Cabinet. The Deputy Prime Minister is clearly calling the shots. What have we learned? We are heading for new tax rises. We know …”

“I made it really easy for the Prime Minister. It was a simple question—yes or no—and he could not answer it. I wonder how the public feel about a man who cannot give a straight answer to a simple question. Look at the MPs behind him—they are all cheering. When this inevitable U-turn on winter fuel comes, and it will, f…”

“This is a Prime Minister who says he is taking measures, but the jobs tax is killing jobs, inflation is up, and business confidence is down. Everyone is worried. He promised to cut bills, but today we see that they are rising because of his policies. He promised not to raise taxes on working people, but his jobs tax me…”

“Mr Speaker—[Interruption.]”

“His MPs are laughing, just as they laughed at the Budget. Hands up who here wanted winter fuel cuts? Not a single one of them. The fact is, this Prime Minister is destroying them. They need to look at what they are doing to the country. The truth is, and we all know it, that it is this Prime Minister, this Labour Gover…”

“When Labour negotiates, Britain loses. The Prime Minister talks about a hat trick of deals—they are own goals. In 2020, the Conservatives concluded the trade and co-operation agreement, the largest and most comprehensive free trade agreement in the world. We agreed to come back in five years with improved terms. This r…”

“I am very happy to welcome the Prime Minister’s tiny tariff deal, but the fact is that it has put us in a worse position than we were in in March. He should not over-egg the pudding. Let us talk about how things are getting worse now. In every month of this year, household names like Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Asda and Santan…”

“I am not sure that the Prime Minister even knew that employment was up, but there is no point in him blaming everyone else. The fact is that the Conservatives reduced the deficit every year until the pandemic, more than doubled the personal allowance, left 4 million extra jobs, tackled the post-pandemic inflation spike…”

“I cannot believe the Prime Minister is still using that figure. We have had this very conversation at the Dispatch Box—he knows it is just capital spending. Either he is not paying attention or he is saying things to disguise what is going on. That money will not pay for the jobs tax. He knows that, and the hospices kn…”

“If I may, Mr Speaker: Sir Roy Stone served 13 Chief Whips, and Prime Ministers from Margaret Thatcher to Boris Johnson. I would like to pay tribute to his extraordinary service and send my best wishes to his family. Before we start, I would also like to say to the Prime Minister how horrified I was to hear about the at…”

“The Prime Minister needs to listen to business. We cannot have employment rights without employment. Labour always forgets that it is not Government that creates growth; it is business that creates growth. Businesses are closing, and they are blaming him and his Chancellor. There are 100,000 fewer jobs. Hospices, chari…”

“I did not hear a promise to get unemployment down, and that is because the Prime Minister knows things are going to get worse. This goes wider than businesses. Last week I met staff and patients at Farleigh hospice. They do fantastic work, but they need to find an additional £250,000 to pay the jobs tax. How does the P…”

“Can I echo the Prime Minister’s comments? It was an honour to meet veterans at the VE Day parade on Monday and to commemorate the sacrifice of that generation. I look forward to marking VE Day at Westminster Abbey tomorrow. Does the Prime Minister now admit that he was wrong to remove the winter fuel payment from milli…”

“The Prime Minister has got no answer. He could not even bring himself to say something to the 250 people who found out this morning that they have lost their job. The fact is that pensioners are poorer and people are being laid off. From winter fuel to net zero, his energy policy is a disaster, and everyone knows it. W…”

“This approach to net zero is “irrational”; it is “doomed to fail”. Those aren’t my words; they are Tony Blair’s. If the Prime Minister wants to throw words about, he should speak to him. The truth is that the Prime Minister is on another planet. His net zero plans mean ever more expensive energy. Across this country, j…”

“The Prime Minister talks about clean energy. We have the second highest amount of renewables on the grid in Europe, and yet we still have the highest energy bills. This is not about clean energy. The Prime Minister has broken another promise. He will not admit it, but is the truth not that he cannot cut energy bills be…”

“We would not balance it on the backs of pensioners. Pensioners are poorer and colder because of his decisions. All the while, energy has got more expensive for everyone. Why has the Prime Minister broken his promise to cut energy bills by £300?”

“The only black hole is the one the Prime Minister is digging. This issue affects some of the poorest and most vulnerable pensioners. His Mayor in Doncaster says it is wrong; his First Minister in Wales says it is wrong; even his own MPs are saying it is wrong. He has refused to listen to me on this, so will he at least…”