Liz Kimmins: I rise to urgently highlight the recent news of the worrying closure of Newry Early Years Children and Family Centre at Orana House. The news has been a massive blow for many families in my constituency, who have described the services as a lifeline for them and their children. The closure comes as a result of the current lease coming to an end. Unfortunately, to date, despite many months of...
Alison McGovern: ...July, the Secretary of State held the first food poverty roundtable with food poverty experts to understand the priorities in this area. We promised concrete actions in our manifesto to support children and families. Our initial steps to tackle poverty include free breakfast clubs in every primary school so children don’t go hungry, protecting renters from arbitrary eviction, slashing...
Alison McGovern: ...of working age. Our New Deal for Working People, including ensuring that the minimum wage is a genuine living wage, along with reformed employment support will mean that many more people will benefit from the dignity and purpose of employment. We have also announced a number of initial steps to support children and families including free breakfast clubs in every primary school so...
Baroness Smith of Malvern: This government has been clear that absence from school is a key barrier to overcome, because if pupils are not attending school they cannot benefit from good teaching and learning. Thanks to the efforts of the sector, there are more learners in school almost every day this year compared to last. However, with 1.6 million children still persistently absent, missing 10% of lessons or more,...
Baroness Uddin: ..., including Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, to bring about an immediate ceasefire agreement. They described the consequences of the atrocities continuing against civilians, particularly women and children, who are again bearing the brunt. Humanitarian organisations are calling for attention to the urgent plight of 14 million children facing hunger and famine. Sudan is said to have the...
Baroness Uddin: ..., including Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, to bring about an immediate ceasefire agreement. They described the consequences of the atrocities continuing against civilians, particularly women and children, who are again bearing the brunt. Humanitarian organisations are calling for attention to the urgent plight of 14 million children facing hunger and famine. Sudan is said to have the...
Tom Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of people applying for child Disability Living Allowance waited longer than 20 weeks in Bournemouth East constituency in the last 12 months for which data is available; and what proportion of benefit decisions for applicants from residents of Bournemouth East constituency were not made within the target...
Alison Johnstone: ...90, Against 35, Abstentions 0. Motion agreed to, That the Parliament recognises the actions outlined in the Programme for Government 2024-25 to grow the economy, eradicate child poverty, invest in Scotland’s public services, and tackle the climate and nature emergencies; welcomes the publication of the Green Industrial Strategy to ensure that Scotland and its...
Kevin McKenna: ...first speech, and for making time available for so many of us to make our first speech today. I particularly congratulate the hon. Member for Epsom and Ewell (Helen Maguire): the story about her child in intensive care touched me very deeply, as an intensive care practitioner. I can see that she is going to be a fantastic advocate for our armed forces and for the things they need to serve...
Kate Forbes: ...debate this afternoon. Nevertheless, the point still stands: we have unprecedented opportunity in front of us if we choose to take it. The Scottish Government cannot deliver all of the benefits of net zero on its own—it will require hard work. In “Green Industrial Strategy”, we have been clear about where we will focus our efforts and attention, and we hold out the hand of...
Shirley-Anne Somerville: We are providing a range of support that will benefit families in Kilmarnock and Irvine Valley and across Scotland, including the investment in our game-changing Scottish child payment, early learning and childcare, and free bus travel for under-22s. Between February 2021 and this year, our Scottish child payment has been made more than 157,000 times, which has been worth more than...
Catherine McKinnell: Tackling child poverty everywhere is at the heart of breaking down barriers to opportunity and improving the life chances for every child. For too many children, living in poverty robs them of the opportunity to learn and to prosper. Child poverty has gone up by 700,000 since 2010, with over four million children now growing up in a low-income family. This not only harms children’s lives...
Emma Reynolds: Only pensioner households entitled to Pension Credit, or the other qualifying benefits, Universal Credit, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, Income Support, Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit will get a Winter Fuel Payment from winter 2024/25. This approach retains support for pensioners on low incomes.
Baroness Sherlock: ..., with the possible exception of the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Southwark. I would love to have a conversation with him on another day about how we balance means-testing versus universal benefits, because there is an interesting conversation to be had. But when public money is tight as it is right now, it is completely legitimate to decide to prioritise those who need it most. I...
Fiona Hyslop: ...to continue the removal of ScotRail peak fares. The analysis shows that the pilot did not make a significant contribution to the First Minister’s four priorities, particularly tackling child poverty and climate change. Instead, it primarily benefited existing train passengers—I acknowledge that it has been welcomed by them over the past year. On that point, I say to Richard...
Chris Curtis: ..., I promise that I will fight to give them all an even brighter future. I start by paying tribute to my predecessor, Ben Everitt. He worked tirelessly to try to secure a much needed women’s and children’s hospital for Milton Keynes. As we now have some of the longest NHS waiting lists in the country, it is an important campaign, and I will be sure to take up its reins. He also chaired...
Jackie Dunbar: Can the member clarify whether the Conservatives are keen to put food in the bellies of all our bairns or just the first two in a family, because I realise that they are still for the two-child benefit cap.
Jim Shannon: ...for Na h-Eileanan an Iar referred to; more people seem to be moving to rural areas for whatever reason. I can see this happening. Although I still see the people I went to school with and their children in Kircubbin and Greyabbey, the two nearest villages to my home, I also see many, many new faces on my constituency door knocks throughout the year. I do not just knock doors at the...
Matthew Pennycook: ...’s interests. In the case of Gypsy and Traveller developments, the right to respect for private and family life under the European convention on human rights, and in relation to the rights of the child, under the Children Act 1989 and the UN convention on the rights of the child, are often engaged. However, such considerations can be addressed by planning adequately for Traveller pitches...
Ann Davies: It was only two months ago that Labour won a majority in the general election on a message of change. But in those two months the new Labour UK Government have refused to abolish the cruel two-child benefit cap and now seek to take away winter fuel payments of up to £300 from millions of pensioners across the UK, by limiting it to recipients of pension credit. Well, nothing has changed. Some...
