Speeches by Law.

“I welcome the Minister’s commitment to ensuring that 50% of public procurement is of British produce. Given the significant £5 billion of bargaining power that this represents, what steps is he taking to ensure that this leads to fairer prices for farmers and supports the fundamental operating profitability of the sect…”

“9. What steps he is taking to encourage public bodies to prioritise the purchase of British produce.”

“I welcome the hon. Member’s bold efforts to bring Bedfordshire’s tourism economy to the fore. In Cornwall, our tourism economy is already very much at the fore. Does he agree that it has been a mistake to see the industry as a sort of be-all and end-all in places such as Cornwall? Given the seasonality of the employmen…”

“My constituent Sarah has been unable to afford a British Sign Language course for her son, which costs up to £400. I welcome the prospect of a GCSE in BSL, but that support is often unavailable where skills funding is not devolved. Can the Minister outline what steps he is taking to ensure that families in areas not ye…”

“T10. My constituent Heidi recently moved off benefits and back into work, only to find she is earning less than when she was on benefits. Meanwhile, my constituent Tyrone is blind, autistic and has cerebral palsy, and, although he is an aspiring DJ, may struggle to find permanent work. What steps is the Minister taking…”

“What does the hon. Member think that the largest farming budget in recent years will do if not make farming more profitable?”

“The economic fundamentals of farming must be a priority, and I call on the Government to focus on the key determinants of farm operating profitability. There are many drivers of what makes a British farm successful, but structural pressures—buyer oligopolies, price input volatility, international trade challenges, diff…”

“It sounds as if it is discouraging people from coming in to work in your world, but do you find that it is discouraging your close colleagues locally from doing the work?”

“I understand. Lastly, you have described some of the support mechanisms in place but do you feel that they are well-resourced enough? Do you feel that you are getting the support you need from partners and your donors, for example?”

“Going back to a point that Mr Novakovic touched on, there have, at least prior to the situation we are in now, been improvements with donors, particularly the FCDO, and the way that safety is handled. Are you able to speak from your experience to some of those improvements and also why there is further space for improv…”

“Thank you, that is very clear. Perhaps, Mr Novakovich, you could very briefly speak to some of those allocative decisions around how the cost of insurance, for example, influences your members’ deployment.”

“Thank you, Steve, for sharing very powerful and difficult experiences and for those really concerning reflections on the broader context. Turning to Anna now, could you describe a bit more the work that your organisation does and some of the threats and challenges that you face?”

“Thank you, Anna. Could you describe a bit more the kind of impacts that can have on you as individuals and your own lives, your physical and emotional wellbeing and a bit more about what you have talked about there, the stresses?”

“Do you feel that you are getting enough support? How does your team put mechanisms in place to deal with that stress and the challenges that you are facing?”

“It sounds as if it is discouraging people from coming in to work in your world, but do you find that it is discouraging your close colleagues locally from doing the work?”

“I understand. Lastly, you have described some of the support mechanisms in place but do you feel that they are well-resourced enough? Do you feel that you are getting the support you need from partners and your donors, for example?”

“Going back to a point that Mr Novakovic touched on, there have, at least prior to the situation we are in now, been improvements with donors, particularly the FCDO, and the way that safety is handled. Are you able to speak from your experience to some of those improvements and also why there is further space for improv…”

“Thank you, that is very clear. Perhaps, Mr Novakovich, you could very briefly speak to some of those allocative decisions around how the cost of insurance, for example, influences your members’ deployment.”

“Thank you, Steve, for sharing very powerful and difficult experiences and for those really concerning reflections on the broader context. Turning to Anna now, could you describe a bit more the work that your organisation does and some of the threats and challenges that you face?”

“Thank you, Anna. Could you describe a bit more the kind of impacts that can have on you as individuals and your own lives, your physical and emotional wellbeing and a bit more about what you have talked about there, the stresses?”