Speeches by Foord.

“The Minister has acknowledged that the secessionist moves in Republika Srpska could have ramifications for the western Balkans more broadly. One part of that is the north of Kosovo, where there is a Kosovo Serb minority. While the UK does not contribute to EUFOR and Operation Althea, we do contribute to KFOR in Kosovo.…”

“The Intelligence and Security Committee published a report on China in 2023. The public version said that it is China’s “ambition at a global level—to become a technological and economic superpower, on which other countries are reliant—that poses a national security threat to the UK.” How does the hon. Gentleman see it…”

“Last month we learned that overseas development assistance would be cut from 0.5% to 0.3% of gross national income. Some of us assumed that this saving would be found in the closure of so-called asylum hotels, but now we learn that the Government will continue to hire hotels for many years to come despite the broken co…”

“The increase in the national minimum wage in the next fortnight is very welcome. Nobody in work in this wealthy country of ours should be struggling to make ends meet. While that uplift is a step in the right direction, it does not address the challenges that we face in social care, both nationally and in Devon, the ar…”

“I think a negotiating framework might be helpful, but a lot will depend on the negotiations. It would be far better if the Government looked at the minimum wage, sector by sector, and identified social care as a special case. The turnover rate for social care staff in Devon is 27%. That is not only higher than the nati…”

“My point relates to the cliff edge. Anne Addis from Cullompton is a 76-year-old widow. Her late husband’s Army pension pushed her just £15 over the pension credit threshold. That means that she is one of 130,000 people who are worse off than those on lower incomes who continue to qualify for pension credit. Will the Mi…”

“The hon. Member makes a good point in comparing his constituency with the situation here in London. To continue that point, on top of council tax, there is the settlement funding for councils, of which London boroughs have received roughly twice as much as shire counties. Does the hon. Member agree that that is also a …”

“Shire counties have had their settlement funding cut from more than £300 per person in 2015 to less than £200 per person now. Does the Minister recognise that counties such as Devon have huge road networks to maintain, and that that difference in funding helps to explain why roads in Devon are falling apart?”

“We have a fraying multilateral system. Professor Clarke, given that the west has shaped that multilateral system from the off, does that mean that soft power is becoming less relevant for us?”

“I feel like we covered that when we talked about the changing ways in which people are consuming the media, but I do have one related question. You talked a bit about how hard power and soft power are complementary to each other, but of course, resources are limited, and choices have to be made. If this is something th…”

“I agree with the shadow Minister on the point about special schools. Additionally, in Committee in January, he raised the point about local authority consent for some children to be withdrawn from school, and how that should be extended from children who are subject to a child protection plan to children who are regard…”

“I welcome the Secretary of State’s shift towards prevention. Last May, my constituent Alexander McRandal was riding his motorbike on the lanes of east Devon when he struck a pothole and was thrown from his bike. His collision resulted in permanent nerve damage. He has had to leave a 40-year career, and his wife Louise …”

“Why do you say cuts need to be made?”

“Staying with the changing way in which people relate to the nation state of which they are a part, we have seen post pandemic the different ways that people consume media, and we have talked a bit about that. How can we better engage citizens in foreign and security policy to persuade them that investing in soft power …”

“Last spring, the UK joined the United States in conducting five combined joint naval and airstrikes against the Houthis. This weekend, the US conducted airstrikes without participation from the RAF except routine refuelling support. Why the change? What does that signal about British foreign policy? Does the Foreign Se…”

“Thanks Michela. Richard, did you want to add something?”

“Is there any scope for squeezing that contribution for Rwandan peacekeepers to the region?”

“How much has UK policy prioritised Rwanda as a bulwark against Islamism in Africa over other aspects of Rwandan policy?”

“Michela, you talked earlier about Rwanda’s support to regional peacekeeping in sub-Saharan Africa, and said that Rwanda was even considering new places where it might intervene to support regional conflict resolution. What does Rwanda get from its contributions to peacekeeping missions?”

“When it comes to the exploitation of minerals—you used the word “exploited” a moment ago, Richard—is there no difference in feeling about UK policy, as opposed to policy in the US, Belgium or France?”