Mentions
What was said, and which frame it usedEvery item the dashboard counts, newest first. The marked words are the phrases that made it count; the tags say whether it used an opposing frame, an MMT-consistent idea, or named MMT. These are keyword matches: whether an item endorses or attacks an idea is shown once our classifier's accuracy is published.
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Immigration and Asylum Bill (Tenth sitting)
…t an important principle at the heart of the Government’s approach to immigration. We must have a properly managed system that commands public confidence and treats people fairly, while ensuring that taxpayers’ money is used responsibly. My South Norfolk constituents want a firm but fair immigration system. They want rules to be enforced, decisions to be made promptly and public money to be spent wisely. They also want a system that operates with humanity, upholds the law and does not allow people to exploit weaknesses in its administration. Those expectations are entirely reasonable. Indeed…
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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Equitable Life Policyholders: Compensation
…act. Why does that matter? First, our constituents end up having money taken from them and their lives turned upside down. Secondly, the Government have to step in and provide financial compensation—taxpayers’ money—but it is too often inadequate and, as my hon. Friend the Member for Leeds North East said, some do not get any money at all. It is right that the Government provided compensation for my constituents and others who suffered as a result of this injustice, but we should not have got there in the first place. The Equitable Life scandal is a reminder of what happens when regulators…
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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Public Borrowing for Defence
My Lords, the real reason that we are struggling to fund our defence commitments is that, having loaded £3 trillion of debt on to the nation’s credit card, we are now left with a monthly interest bill running at £11 billion. That is equivalent to double our spending on defence. The Chancellor is telling us that fiscal discipline is his top priority, so does the Minister agree that the bond markets will take a very dim view if we resort to yet more borrowing to fund defence?
- Opposing frame: How will you pay for it?
- Opposing frame: Maxed-out credit card
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Support for Farmers
…t; and the reckless, rushed removal of the basic payment scheme while new schemes were falteringly introduced at a snail’s pace. Those new schemes have mostly placed hundreds of millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money into the hands of huge non-farmer organisations, while family farmers saw their incomes plummet, such that hill farmers in Cumbria now “enjoy” an average income of less than half the minimum wage—and that is if you assume that they work for 40 hours a week, when it is nearer 90. I do not know if the Conservatives’ attack on our countryside, taking money away from family farms an…
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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Sporting Events Bill [HL] (First sitting)
…British sport stands to lose if we undermine the commercial model that supports it. The question for the Liberal Democrats is simple: if their amendments put that income at risk, who will replace it? Where will the money come from to support sports clubs, maintain facilities and give young people the opportunity to participate in sport? I appreciate that their amendments start with major events hosted under the framework for which the Bill provides, but once the precedent is set and the likes of UEFA cannot sell their broadcast rights at market value, the effects will begin to pass from the…
- Opposing frame: How will you pay for it?
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House of Lords Reform
…d go nowhere. The public have every right to expect good value from their institutions because we work for them. I do not think that anyone can say with a clear conscience that that was a good use of taxpayers’ money. We also have to look at the make-up of the Chamber: 26 bishops sit in the House of Lords. I have no problem with religion per se, but nobody elected them. They sit solely because of the position they hold. The only other country in the world that gives clerics seats in its legislature in that way is Iran. In a modern, multi-faith, increasingly secular society, is that fit for p…
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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EU, Euratom and UK Agreement on Gibraltar
…r duties with kit not subject to Spanish export controls? The agreement also establishes a financial mechanism to promote cohesion between Gibraltar and Campo de Gibraltar under Article 299. How much taxpayers’ money—or, rather, Gibraltarian taxpayers’ money—do the Government plan to send to the EU through that mechanism? Will the Minister also confirm what share of the cost of this financial mechanism Spain is shouldering? There is also a longer-term impact of the treaty that we should consider, as my noble friend Lord Jackson indicated. The new residence criteria were announced and, as my…
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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Long Duration Electricity Storage Systems
…. The National Audit Office says that constraint costs reached £1.9 billion over the last year, with an expectation that the figure could be as high as £8 billion by 2030. That is a shocking waste of taxpayers’ money and hopefully pump storage will reduce it. What is the opportunity for Scotland? Pump storage sites are very expensive to build and, historically, it has been difficult for developers to secure private finance, because future electricity market revenues are uncertain. The UK Government have introduced the cap and floor scheme to unlock investment in this type of infrastructure.…
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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Railways Bill
…the noble Baroness, Lady Jones of Moulsecoomb. These amendments would remove the cost-efficiency duties from the Passengers’ Council and London TravelWatch respectively. If these bodies are spending taxpayers’ money, we see no justification for removing an express requirement to consider the efficient use of those funds. Other amendments in this group discuss the relationship between the Passengers’ Council and the ORR. The Government repeatedly tell us that the ORR will remain a strong and robust independent regulator, yet, under Clause 42, when the Passengers’ Council refers a contraventi…
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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Workforce Skills
…the support across the House. As I said, further training is to take place throughout the rest of this year, including major exercises that we have taken part in. I restate, however, that we have to live within our means. That has required some reprioritisation, including of training. We have to focus on the right things and make sure that we are ready to fight the next war, not the last one. It has not been a popular decision, but I absolutely stand by the decisions that I have taken to make sure that the culture in my Department is one that lives within its means and delivers value for th…
- Opposing frame: Household budget
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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Business of the House
My hon. Friend raises a crucial issue for his constituents. The Government are committed to ensuring that the £400 billion of taxpayers’ money spent on public procurement each year actively supports British industry. He raises an interesting point, and I will ensure that he gets an update from the relevant Department.
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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MOD Bicester and Illegal Migrants
…nd the Minister to call to mind the name of the Member of this House who created the asylum dispersal system, which placed asylum seekers in accommodation in the cheapest parts of the country to make taxpayers’ money go further. I worked with that Member of Parliament when I was involved in local government. When he introduced it, he was the hon. Member for Leigh. Now he is the right hon. Member for Makerfield. Members who criticise that system might like to reflect that their party, like ours, has been hearing for many years that the British people expect us to do better on this issue. Nobo…
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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MOD Bicester and Illegal Migrants
…They deserve an asylum system that makes decisions promptly, removes people who have no right to remain, tackles criminality and treats people fairly. They deserve effective enforcement and value for taxpayers’ money. That requires practical solutions, competent administration and legislation that works. It requires a Government who will get on with the job rather than pretending that one grand gesture can solve everything. A practical example is the Brook hotel in Bowthorpe just outside my constituency: it opened under the previous Conservative Government and closed under a Labour Governmen…
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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ACAS Code of Practice on Time Off for Trade Union Duties and Activities
…timate of the recurring public sector cost. The private employer faces additional paid absence facilities administration, data protection questions and potential litigation. Public service managers face further pressure on staff time at a point when productivity remains below its pre-pandemic level. The Government’s paymasters really have bought some nice perks; I say to them: enjoy them while they last. For those reasons, I regret this code and ask the Minister to explain why the Government believe that this is a good use of business resources, public sector staff time and taxpayers’ money.
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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Inheritance Tax
…driving down waste and driving up efficiency in the public sector, with a 16% reduction in departmental admin budgets by the end of the spending review period. We are reprioritising spending so that taxpayers’ money is spent on their priorities, cancelling digital ID in order to remove VAT from household electricity bills, reprioritising Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government spending to help tackle homelessness and bringing the national bus cap down to £2 for 2027, funded by savings from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. We are reforming the welfare system thr…
- Opposing frame: How will you pay for it?
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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Infants, Parents and Carers Bill
…to deliver them? The hon. Member for Washington and Gateshead South, who I know has done a lot of work in this area over the years and cares about it very deeply, talks about outcomes. Outcomes are important, but so is value for money, because we must be careful with taxpayers’ money. What interventions are making the most difference, and how do we focus on achieving them? We need to think carefully about what we measure. Overall, however, this is a good Bill that will help infants and children to develop their full potential and have equality of opportunity, and therefore I will support it.
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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ACAS Code of Practice on Time Off for Trade Union Duties and Activities
…s of matters where trained representatives can help employees and employers and stop grievances getting out of hand. I fully share the regret amendment’s concern about value for money. Every pound of taxpayers’ money should be spent responsibly, but I do not accept that the costs related to time off for equality reps will be disproportionate. As always, costs need to be measured against benefits. It is wrong to assume that the time spent by a trained representative is simply a cost with no corresponding benefit. The potential benefits of these measures are workplaces where disputes are dealt…
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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Pensions Triple Lock
…ncertain; the care service could well cost more—demand tends to grow for something that is free—but scrapping the triple lock could save less. At the very least, Labour’s policy creates a £15 billion black hole in the public finances. And what a way to announce it: a couple of lines in a conference speech—no proper explanation or detail, just millions of pensioners left wondering what it means for their retirement. Labour Back Benchers should remember how these things go. Their last Prime Minister came after pensioners’ winter fuel payments. That was not a plan that stood the test of time; i…
- Opposing frame: Fiscal black hole
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UK Coach Industry
…here has been for buses. Before the Minister, off the back of the spending review, heads off to develop such a scheme for coaches—there has been one for buses—I again make the case that when we spend taxpayers’ money to help this sector, and the broader transport sector, we must ensure that operators relying on Government intervention benefit, not bash, our domestic manufacturing industry. Too often, quick decisions and poorly designed schemes have seen money sent to Chinese manufacturers, with a subsequent loss of domestic jobs and undercutting of the UK industrial capacity that could help…
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money
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Health Bill
…ble Lords share the desire to ensure that the modernisation and reform of healthcare leads to better outcomes for patients and a more productive, efficient and accountable NHS, and improves value for taxpayers’ money. In the time available, I will focus on three issues relating to women’s health; I know that, in her role as Women’s Health Minister, the Minister has a clear focus on this. I turn first to the Government’s commitment to introduce an amendment to the Bill to appoint a maternity and neonatal commissioner. As the Minister stated, this was a recommendation from the final report of…
- Opposing frame: Taxpayers' money