Speeches by Foord.

“The UK is spending a fifth of its official development assistance budget on hotel bills. Some of that money was previously used to prevent conflict and to help refugees find refuge in their own regions. I served with an Army training regiment at Crowborough, one of the two sites, and I consider that if it was good enou…”

“The Israel Defence Forces said this morning that they had “renewed enforcement of the ceasefire”. The strikes are reported to have killed 20 women and 46 children following the death of one IDF soldier. President Trump’s peace plan makes provision for Arab states to commit stabilisation forces. I appreciate the Ministe…”

“It is an honour to serve with you in the Chair, Mrs Harris. As the clocks go back and evenings grow darker, drivers in Devon are finding that dazzling headlights are no longer just a nuisance, but a real danger on our roads. This week, for the first time since summer, many of the people I represent are trying to get ar…”

“I honestly do not think that we can make this the responsibility of every individual driver; it is our job to come here and legislate on collective problems such as this one. The problem is especially serious in rural areas such as the one I represent, where the population tends to be older than across the country as a…”

“Given that Russia’s aggression is partly about extinguishing Ukrainian culture and seeking to prevent Ukraine from assimilating western culture, do your people on the ground in Ukraine feel that they were targeted deliberately by Russia?”

“To stay with the attack itself, in the wake of the attack the Russian ambassador was summoned here in London and met with FCDO officials. From the perspective of the British Council, was that the correct response, and a sufficient response, from the UK?”

“Mr McDonald, you mentioned earlier that the British Council is present in Ukraine. On 27 August this year, Russia launched 629 missiles at Kyiv, one of which caused severe damage to the British Council offices there. How has your work in Ukraine been affected by that?”

“The US President was willing to meet the Russian President in Budapest, in spite of the fact that we gave assurances in Budapest in that 1994 memorandum that have since been ignored. Although that meeting will not now go ahead, can the Foreign Secretary share the Government’s latest thinking about future security guara…”

“The United Kingdom’s electricity price is set by gas 98% of the time. By contrast, the electricity price in the European Union is set by gas less than 40% of the time. If the electricity price in the UK were set by the price of clean energy more often, would the UK not be a more attractive destination for investment in…”

“The breakout from prison of Hadush Kebatu sounds less like “The Great Escape” and more like “Fawlty Towers”. It has helped bring to light that 262 prisoners were released by mistake last year and 115 the year before. On mistaken releases, what assurance can the Justice Secretary offer that the responsible contractors o…”

“We absolutely must pay tribute to journalists who continue to report in some of the most dangerous circumstances. Even this year, hundreds of journalists have lost their lives in conflict. Private Hamson was among those who did not return from the famous battle of Imjin river. His courage and sacrifice embody the spiri…”

“It is an honour to serve with you in the Chair, Mr Twigg. I am grateful to the right hon. Member for Chingford and Woodford Green (Sir Iain Duncan Smith). I am reminded that it was only last month that we heard him pay tribute to the courage of his father in the battle of Britain. It is in the same spirit that we refle…”

“I have serious concerns about digital ID, based on civil liberties, data security and practical delivery. First, on civil liberties, we should remember that although we may live in a benign social democracy today, that cannot be guaranteed in the future. When bestowing new powers on Government, MPs have a responsibilit…”

“My hon. Friend is entirely right. The Government have to speed up decisions, cut backlogs and return those asylum seekers who are unsuccessful in their applications and have no right to stay, and they must that so swiftly.”

“I am grateful to my hon. Friend for talking about Europe, because our European neighbours are contending with exactly the same problems as us in this respect. The longer asylum seekers are drawn to the UK, the longer they are drawn into the European Union, so it is in our common interest to address this issue. I will t…”

“It is an honour to serve with you in the Chair, Dr Murrison. I can entirely understand where the petitioners are coming from. After all, hotels are holiday accommodation, and for most people, the idea of spending a few days a year in a hotel is desirable—if probably unaffordable as things are at the moment—so I can com…”

“Thank you, Dr Murrison; I will conclude. Legal migration builds our economy, and it staffs our hospitals and care homes. Crossings by people who do not have a visa are damaging trust in Government. A builder put it quite simply to me in recent months when he said that the last Government promised to stop the boats, but…”

“I am of the view that asylum hotels should not be paid for by the foreign aid budget. This country has an international development budget that has fallen from 0.7%—when my party was in government with the hon. Gentleman’s—to 0.3% today, which is honestly a great pity. That is not helping us to prevent conflict and dea…”

“I think the Minister is either misunderstanding or mischaracterising my contribution, but will he please comment on the potential return hubs for failed asylum seekers?”

“Under the existing criteria for free school meals, university maths schools have an excellent record for widening participation. We know that 7% of A-level maths students across the country are eligible for free school meals, compared with 13% of students at university maths schools. Will the Government consider expand…”