Speeches by Olney.

“Still! That would cut red tape for businesses across the country, boost growth by more than 2.2% and raise at least £25 billion a year in tax revenue. The Prime Minister’s chief economic adviser has recommended a customs union with the EU as one of the most effective ways of generating growth, the Health Secretary has …”

“I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her intervention. She speaks very passionately about businesses in Scotland and the situation they are facing. I am sure she is correct to say that it is even more challenging in Scotland. I am concerned that the Government’s sole focus on pubs and live music venues ignores the other…”

“My hon. Friend is absolutely right. There are groups of young people who are facing specific barriers to entering employment, and we need to do all we can to provide them with sustained support to get into and stay in the workplace. Much of the UK’s current workforce challenges are due to the mistakes made by the curre…”

“The hon. Gentleman always makes constructive interventions. He is absolutely right that we need to look at what works. We need to focus on this issue not just for the health and benefit of our young people but for the economy as a whole. Although we should continue to invest in technological breakthroughs, I am concern…”

“The hon. Lady is absolutely right about apprenticeships, and I will say more about them in due course. In years past, those who went to university and attained a good degree could reasonably expect an entry-level job in the field in which they wanted to work, but now the experience for so many young people is that they…”

“My hon. Friend is right. Young people face so many barriers to accessing both education and employment, and that is very much a legacy of the last Conservative Government and their mismanagement. Young people are increasingly concerned about the fact that the links between education and employment have become weaker an…”

“One of my big concerns is that, for our economy, we are not getting that pipeline of young people into those entry-level jobs. That threatens our future sustainability and growth, as well as imperilling the prospects of those young people who cannot gain a role. Those students also expressed their concerns about artifi…”

“Youth unemployment has risen since Labour took power. The rate is now above 15%, which means that more than one in seven 18 to 24-year-olds are not in employment. That is a really troubling statistic, but it has its roots in the Conservatives’ dismal economic record. The economic challenges we face did not develop over…”

“Q9. A month ago today, protests erupted across Iran. In response, the Iranian Government launched a deadly crackdown. They fired indiscriminately on protesters, and they shut off internet access to hide what they were doing from the outside world. In April 2024, the then shadow Home Secretary, who is now the Foreign Se…”

“Richmond Park in my constituency is a very popular spot for runners and cyclists, but as my hon. Friend points out, it is so much darker during the winter months. Our dedicated police force, the Royal Parks constabulary, has recently been completely scrapped, leaving the park unpatrolled and even less safe. This means …”

“My constituency has a diverse and varied hospitality sector that supports lots of different communities, including those who do not go to pubs, such as parents of young children, people who do not drink, faith groups and—dare I say—people who do not want to watch the football. They have different needs. They want to go…”

“Are you recruiting for new roles that you have not had within the regulator before?”

“I want to probe a little further into the transition, which you were talking about at the end of the last set of questions. Mr Walters, what are you doing to prepare Ofwat as an organisation to become a new regulator or the merger—whatever you are describing it as?”

“In his speech this week, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster set out his plan for the future of the civil service, in which he envisioned further sackings in a digital transformation. Last week, we saw the untested and potentially dangerous nature of artificial intelligence when the chief constable of West Midland…”

“T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.”

“Was that work planned before the new regulator was announced?”

“But you are satisfied that it will be sufficient and will work well within the new environment.”

“Thank you. I think it would be helpful to update the Committee, because a loss of skills and experience creates a risk for the organisation. I hear what you say about the retention plan, but are there other steps that you are taking to mitigate that risk?”

“Is there a danger that you will exceed your budget for people spend?”

“Can I also ask about your IT systems? On this Committee, we are very used to looking back at the contribution that a failure of IT systems has made to a failure to achieve broader outcomes. Can you tell us what Ofwat is doing to prepare its IT and other operational systems for the new regulator to make sure that it is …”