Scott Arthur MP: speeches

Speeches

• 26 Nov 2024 · COP29 · Hansard source

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  I thank the Secretary of State for his statement. I was proud of the constructive role that the UK played in the negotiations, representing our country and also some of the poorest people on the planet, who are at the absolute frontline of climate change, partly due to the emissions from this country. But COP is not without its critics, despite it being the only platform to progress our climate ambitions. How does the Secretary of State think that the process could be improved? In particular, what gentle advice would he give to anyone thinking about taking over the presidency of a major world economy early next year?

• 20 Nov 2024 · Asylum Seekers: Hotel Accommodation · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for her statement, and I am responding to it in the context of my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. I can only agree with her on Rwanda. Not only was that scheme an inhumane shambles, but it has brought shame and ridicule to our country, and I am glad to see the back of it. I welcome her commitment to bringing dignity and respect to the immigration system, and her acceptance that the way in which the hotels have been operated is a big part of that. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s recent “Destitution by Design” report, which was authored by Professor Beth Watts-Cobbe, a researcher at the Institute for Social Policy, Housing, Equalities Research in my constituency, makes absolutely clear the human impact of the so-called hostile immigration policy operated by the previous Government on real people in our country. Is the Minister aware of that report, and if not, will she commit herself or one of her staff to speaking to Professor Watts-Cobbe about its findings?

• 19 Nov 2024 · Food Banks · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under you today, Ms Vaz, and I congratulate the hon. Member for Aberdeenshire North and Moray East (Seamus Logan) on securing this debate, which has been quite interesting so far. I welcome the debate, and make my contribution within the context of my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. Food poverty is a massive issue in the UK generally and in Scotland specifically. Like others, I want to start by thanking everyone in my constituency who is working to address food poverty. In the past few weeks, I have met people from Oxgangs Neighbourhood Centre, Community for Food, Soul Food Oxgangs, Space at the Broomhouse Hub, and the Open Heavens Edinburgh church in Wester Hailes. They are all doing great work to fill empty stomachs. Members have spoken at length about the need to reform the welfare system, and I think we are in broad agreement about that issue. A key conclusion so far is about how groups in our communities, particularly faith groups, have rallied to the cause. We also have to think about the long-term causes that underlie poverty, and key to them is education. If we want to break the cycle of poverty that people inherit from their parents, we have to invest in education. Too many children, particularly in Scotland, are in an intractable situation. Education is key to improving their life chances, but poor nutrition is a barrier to their making the most of it. On top of that, the education system in Scotland is holding people back, because it is just not a priority for the Scottish Government. This is shameful, because we know that education is key to ending the cycle of poverty. And it is not just about schools: our universities are underfunded as well. University places are capped, and although Scottish students do not pay fees, the fees that Scottish universities do receive are £2,000 below what universities receive in England, and we know how stressed the situation is in England. Yes, increasing food bank use is shameful, but we have to be honest about the underlying causes of poverty. We have to accept that neither the UK Government nor the Scottish Government can be proud of their record over the last 10 or 15 years—I am disappointed that there are not more Conservative colleagues here to talk about their record—and we have to be honest about the factors that underpin poverty. We will succeed in creating a prosperous nation without poverty only if we create the conditions for good jobs, genuinely affordable housing, income security and meaningful opportunities that drive justice and give people hope.

• 12 Nov 2024 · Social Security Advisory Committee: Winter Fuel Payment · Hansard source

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  I was reassured by the Minister’s response that we will soon see a reply to that letter. My constituents are not fools—they can see that while Opposition parties oppose the cut, they are not proposing how they would fund the payment. My constituents also see the desperate lack of people claiming pension credit. I put on the record my thanks to Age Scotland for its guidance to my staff on how to ensure that more people in my constituency claim it. The letter refers to winter fuel payment claimants in England, Wales, the EU, Switzerland, Iceland, Lichtenstein and Norway, but not Scotland. Is that because in Scotland, the Scottish Government have the power both to maintain the winter fuel payment and to fully fund it?

• 11 Nov 2024 · Rail Performance · Hansard source

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  I thank the Secretary of State for her statement, and for the leadership that she is showing to get our railways back on track—sorry for the pun. I am pleased that she mentioned LNER and Lumo, which do a fantastic job of connecting Edinburgh and London, and of providing a stress-free alternative to flying. When she first took up her post, she was clear that she wanted HS2 to get a grip of costs. Does she feel vindicated, given the reports over the weekend of more than £100 million being spent on a single structure, despite some of those involved saying that they were not aware of the need for it?

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for his response and for reiterating the importance of getting regional air connections right, as that can help to underpin economic growth. I hope he agrees that we should not allow ourselves to be distracted. Does he agree that large parts of our country could be better served by better regional rail connections, which would hopefully reduce some of the congestion at our airports?

• 4 Nov 2024 · Higher Education Reform · Hansard source

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  I draw Members’ attention to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. Any country that is serious about growing its economy should also be serious about supporting its university sector. In that context, I welcome the promise that a review will be published soon. I hope that it will take lessons from Scotland, where while undergraduate education is free, universities are grossly underfunded to deliver it. The announcement will only widen the gap between Scotland and England in that regard. I also welcome the confirmation that we need our universities to be able to attract talent from around the world. Both the Higher Education Policy Institute and my union, the University and College Union, have said that the previous Government put blocks in place to that happening. Will the Secretary of State engage with the sector to ensure that we have the right environment to attract the best students and the best staff to UK universities and that the very best international graduates can work here at the point of graduation?

• 31 Oct 2024 · Income tax (charge) · Hansard source

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  It has been a real privilege to share the debate with so many maiden speeches this afternoon—something I did not expect. My hon. Friend the Member for Ribble Valley (Maya Ellis) is not in her place just now, but I am sure her father would have been proud of her, as will her husband. I have a fantastic charity in my constituency called Dads Rock, which supports dads and gives them confidence. It sounds like her husband is a dad who rocks. It has been remarkable that Margaret Thatcher has been invoked quite a few times. It is quite unusual for her name to be mentioned so many times in my presence. I grew up in Fife during the 1980s, and I am sure my hon. Friend the Member for Glenrothes and Mid Fife (Richard Baker) would agree that the impact that she had there is still felt today. People still feel the impact of the rapid deindustrialisation of proud communities. I am sure that my hon. Friend has casework still about the impact of that. It was emotional yesterday to hear the Chancellor deliver her fantastic speech. I am still a little hoarse today from all the emotion. This is the Budget our country needs, and the IMF agrees, which is incredible. It was great news for Labour MPs to wake up to this morning—I expect colleagues from other parties were less happy. The chances of my being elected were always slim, but I promised those I met on the campaign trail that Labour would get our country back on track. Yesterday’s Budget is proof that we are serious about that. We have spent the weeks since the election clearing up the mess which was left by others, but the Budget sets down the foundation for what we want to do next. It is transformative Budget. I cannot believe we are achieving so much in our first Budget, but it is only the start of a real change for our country. The Budget will work for both the working people who call Edinburgh South West home, but also the young and retired people who deserve well-funded public services. The measures that we set out yesterday are a re-set, establishing the tone for the remainder of this Parliament and for the coming decade, not just five years. Gone are the irresponsible commitments, without plans to follow through, that we have been dealing with since the election. It feels like the grown-ups are now running the country. We have a Budget that provides the stability to encourage growth and investment in our nation’s infrastructure and our public services. After reading through the details of the Budget, it was clear that when my colleague Anas Sarwar said, “Read my lips: no austerity under Labour” he meant it. The Chancellor has delivered. The Budget will deliver for the people of Scotland, with a record-breaking £47.7 billion for the Scottish Government’s budget in 2025-26. That has the potential to be entirely life changing not just for my constituents, but for people right across Scotland. The Chancellor yesterday proved that when Labour wins, Scotland wins, with the measures announced resulting in more investment per head of population in Scotland than in the rest of the UK. The Scotland Office is now equipped with a budget for trade missions around the world, selling brand Scotland and bringing in new investment and custom to countless Scottish businesses. Some 200,000 of the lowest-paid Scots will also feel the benefit in their payslips. We will close the age banding on the living wage, which has always been unacceptable. The Budget has protected working Scots and has laid the foundations for a new era of investment and growth in Scotland, raising money from those with the broadest shoulders. With all that in mind, I find it rather embarrassing that SNP Members talk with a straight face about this being an austerity Budget. It is almost as if they wrote their speech before they heard the Budget. It is quite curious. I can only guess—as others have commented, none of them are here today—that they are busy rewriting their lines and thinking about how they are going to respond. But I think a lot of people in Scotland will find it unacceptable that no SNP Members are here today to engage in this debate. Is it not time, when the UK Labour Government have given the Scottish Government their largest ever funding settlement, that the SNP begins to take responsibility for its own mismanagement of Scotland’s finances? In government, the SNP has wasted millions on pet projects rather than the services on which so many Scots rely. We have had ferries with painted windows. As I speak, a hospital in Edinburgh is being closed as an emergency action because of a lack of maintenance. This is not a small hospital. The Princess Alexandra Eye Pavilion caters for 1,400 out-patients per week and it has been closed almost overnight. It is a planned process, but one that has been forced. It is absolutely incredible and shameful. In parallel with that, local authorities have been starved of cash and our towns and cities have found their public services decimated. On Tuesday, I met third sector groups in my constituency who were preparing to make staff redundant due the pressures of SNP cuts to social care. At 10 past 12 yesterday, just as the Chancellor was getting ready to speak, I received a WhatsApp message from a GP serving one of the most deprived parts of my constituency. She described the cuts to social care services in Edinburgh as catastrophic and devastating. At quarter past 11 last night, I received an email from a GP making exactly the same points. The SNP will blame Westminster or howl austerity, but in reality that is mince—that is a Scottish phrase, Madam Deputy Speaker. The Scottish Government’s own decisions are to blame for “much of the pressure” facing Scotland’s finances. That is not just my view, but the considered view of the official economic forecaster in Scotland. The Budget presents the Scottish Government with a choice. They can use the record funding to own the problems that they created and get our public services back on track, including the social care services I talked about. The only alternative to that is handing over power to Anas Sarwar in Scotland, because more guddle cannot be an option but I fear that that is what we are going to get. If the SNP is not up for that challenge, Scottish Labour is ready to step in. My constituents know more than most the impact of the SNP’s cuts and mismanagement, because Edinburgh—Scotland’s capital—has the worst-funded local authority in Scotland. With this additional funding, it is high time that the Scottish Government do the right thing and stop starving our council of the resources it needs. Councillor Cammy Day, Edinburgh’s council leader, made that demand yesterday. Let us hope that the funding will be a lifeline to social care providers. In 2026, Scottish voters will have the opportunity to elect a Scottish Labour Government that will work hand in hand with this UK Labour Government to continue to deliver for the people of Scotland. However, until then, we Scottish Labour MPs, and our colleagues at Holyrood and in council chambers, will hold the Scottish Government to account for how they choose to spend the additional funding. After all, I think we can all agree that the Scottish Government have not just needed more cash; they have needed to get better at spending it. We saw yesterday what a Labour Chancellor can do to turn around the lives of working people, even in the face of a shocking legacy handed to us by the Conservatives. This Government have given the Scottish Government all the financial tools they need to succeed. Just imagine how truly transformative it would be if we had a Scottish Labour Finance Secretary working in partnership with a Labour Chancellor here in London. That is our goal.

• 28 Oct 2024 · Fiscal Rules · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for his statement. Residents and businesses in my constituency absolutely share our ambition to get the country back on track, and acknowledge that the mission-led focus of the Government and the fiscal rules are at the core of that. They contrast that with 14 years of drift under the Conservatives, punctuated only by 49 days of utter chaos. However, residents and businesses in my area want to be reassured that they can be confident about our level of ambition, so will the Minister update us on how investors are responding to our focus and the maturity that we bring to the debate around the economy?

• 28 Oct 2024 · International Engagement · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for her statement; I can only respect the breadth of it. I am pleased to hear about the focus on using international development to reduce violence against women and girls, which we all fully support. At a reception last week, we heard personal testimony from people who have been persecuted because of their religious beliefs. Does the Minister feel that the overseas development budget can also be used to reduce violence against religious minorities?

• 28 Oct 2024 · China: Human Rights and Sanctions · Hansard source

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  I thank the Foreign Secretary for his update, his constructive tone and his defence of human rights in the region. Is the audit Government-wide, and will it only consider the situation now or look into future scenarios as well?

• 24 Oct 2024 · Public Procurement · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for mentioning cronyism in her answer. The biggest procurement scandal I have seen in my lifetime was under the last Conservative Government, when Ministers gave dodgy contracts to their mates and donors. They took our country’s reputation for honesty and integrity and trashed it. Residents in my constituency are not only angry but disgusted and ashamed. Will the Minister update the House on the steps the Government are taking to ensure that there will never be a repeat of this episode?

• 24 Oct 2024 · Public Procurement · Hansard source

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  2. What steps he is taking to reform public procurement.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Public Procurement · Hansard source

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  That was a dramatic pause—apologies. Where the public has been defrauded, will we get our money back for public services?

• 21 Oct 2024 · St Helena: UK Immigration · Hansard source

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  I really welcome the statement, and the clarity that has come with it. Who will ultimately be responsible for people when they find themselves in St Helena?

• 15 Oct 2024 · Scotland’s Economy · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under you, Mr Dowd. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow East (John Grady) on securing the time for this debate, and thank him for touching on the university sector in his opening remarks. Scotland’s universities, which are among the very best on the planet, are more than just institutions of higher learning; they are vital engines driving our economy. From groundbreaking research fuelling innovation to nurturing the next generation of talent, universities play a pivotal role in shaping Scotland’s future. Anyone who doubts that only has to look at the support that Heriot-Watt University’s National Robotarium, in my constituency, gives businesses. That is just one example of how knowledge and expertise generated within our universities attracts investments, creates jobs and fosters economic growth. I am proud that people living in Scotland have access to free university education, but I am ashamed that our universities are not fully funded to deliver that. Universities receive direct funding for each student via the Scottish Government, but that is currently around £2,000 less than universities in England get. The gap is only widening. If we are serious about growing Scotland’s economy, underfunding Scotland’s universities must end. I am proud that our universities attract the best minds from around the world, both staff and students. This year, however, the number of visas issued to students coming from overseas to the UK overall dropped by 16% due to Conservative immigration policy. That is a failure, and is really concerning given the current state of the sector in both Scotland and England. It also only damages the multicultural vibrancy that should be at the heart of any university experience, such as the one that my son Ben gets at the University of Edinburgh. In conclusion, Scotland’s universities are not just assets but essential catalysts for economic growth. By investing in education and research, we are investing in our nation’s future. That is why our universities must be nurtured and cherished, and their success should never be taken for granted.

• 15 Oct 2024 · Scotland’s Economy · Hansard source

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  It was a mistake for the previous Conservative Government to commit to that project without allocating funding to it. My good colleague, the Secretary of State for Scotland, is working day in, day out to secure that funding. If we are serious about growing Scotland’s economy, we must ensure that our universities have the funding they need, and that the voice of the UK’s universities is heard when it comes to setting immigration policy.

• 8 Oct 2024 · Edinburgh Festivals: Cultural and Economic Contribution · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under you as Chair, Mr Efford. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Edinburgh East and Musselburgh (Chris Murray) on securing time for this important debate. Edinburgh—Scotland’s beloved capital and my home—is renowned worldwide not just for its historic beauty and ancient heritage but for its vibrant cultural scene. This goes beyond grand shows with expensive tickets. It includes things like Big Noise Wester Hailes, Forget Me Notes, Edinburgh Printmakers and the Filmhouse, which I hope will reopen soon. All four of those organisations operate in my constituency. Edinburgh’s festivals are a beacon of cultural expression, showcasing the very best of literature and all varieties of performing and creative arts. But more than that, the festivals serve as a cornerstone of the city’s economy and underpin the wellbeing of its citizens. I welcome the progress made by the Dunard Centre and the redevelopment of the Royal High School. These venues will extend the tourist season in Edinburgh and enable it to compete with the great European cultural centres—places like Hamburg, Vienna and Paris. I have no doubt that the Dunard Centre will be world-class. That will be not just because it is a fantastic building but because of its values. I not only expect people from the most deprived parts of my constituency to be working in the Dunard Centre; I expect them to have places in the audience, and I also expect Big Noise Wester Hailes to be on the stage. This reflects the Edinburgh International Festival’s mission statement, which is “to provide the deepest experience of the highest quality art for the broadest possible audience.” For countless businesses across Edinburgh, the festival season throws a lifeline of increased footfall, which provides income that sustains them right through the year. The associated demand for staff is invaluable in providing local young people and students with the opportunity for summer work. The festivals provide many people in Edinburgh with their first paying job. We in this place have a responsibility to ensure that staff are supported by legislation and that they are well treated at work. That is why I will support the Deputy Prime Minister’s new deal for working people, which will help to enable that. Investing in the breadth and depth of the festival offering in Edinburgh also helps to spread the tourist economy to the quieter parts of the year. It will help Edinburgh to move upmarket, with visitors staying for longer and spending more. This will mean that working in the tourist economy will be a career for more people—rather than just a summer job—with better pay and better conditions. The economic contributions of the festivals do not stop at employment opportunities and turnover for local businesses. They also provide a wholly unique opportunity to show off and sell not just Brand Scotland but Brand Edinburgh to the world. Culture lets us connect with our international partners on an emotional level that no sales pitch can compete with. We should not forget that Rudolf Bing, a Jew who escaped Nazi Germany, established the Edinburgh international festival in 1947 as a way of bringing people together in post-war Europe. I am proud that people come to Edinburgh from all over the world, but too often I am ashamed of what they see. Edinburgh’s position as Scotland’s worst-funded local authority comes with consequences, not least where homelessness is concerned. To address the point about why Airbnb is being regulated, it is a key driver for that in Edinburgh. The indifference that our capital is shown means that hardly a year goes by without a council-owned cultural venue being put at risk. Last year it was the King’s Theatre; this year it is the People’s Story Museum. Edinburgh needs fair funding, and the importance of its ecosystem—

• 7 Oct 2024 · British Indian Ocean Territory: Negotiations · Hansard source

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  I thank the Secretary of State for his statement, and particularly for the reassurances given to our brothers and sisters in Gibraltar and the Falkland Islands. The scaremongering in respect of those two areas has been absolutely shameful. However, in the spirit of trying to achieve cross-party consensus, it is really important to acknowledge the work of the previous Government on this subject and how that has provided the foundation for what we have today. Before then, progress was all too slow, and it shamed our country. None the less, I want to give the Secretary the opportunity again to reassure us that this deal is in our strategic interest and also the interest of our partners.

• 10 Sept 2024 · Ukraine · Hansard source

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  I am proud of the role that service personnel in my constituency have played in training our Ukrainian brothers and sisters. I thank the Secretary of State for outlining the death toll of Putin’s brutal war; it is absolutely horrendous, and I hope that in time we will see Putin held to account for that and for the wider damage caused by the conflict. Despite the scale of the devastation, for many in the UK this war seems like quite a distant event. However, that could change almost overnight if one of the many nuclear reactors in the region is damaged. What discussions has the Secretary of State had with partners about that particular issue?

• 9 Sept 2024 · Bus Franchising · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for his statement—we should speak about buses much more often in this place. Edinburgh has an award-winning bus service, which carries 2 million passengers per week. Its highly unionised workforce—I think over 90%—works in collaboration with the directors of the company. We already get around for £2 inside Edinburgh because that is the price people pay no matter how far they travel inside Edinburgh. That is a fantastic example of what public ownership in public transport can do. Does the Minister agree that more ownership and control of bus services are key to driving down costs for passengers, increasing patronage and hitting our net zero goals?

• 19 Jul 2024 · Planning, the Green Belt and Rural Affairs · Hansard source

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  I am obliged to you, Mr Deputy Speaker, for giving me the opportunity to make my maiden speech. I would like to start by thanking the hon. Member for Brigg and Immingham (Martin Vickers) for a fantastic speech, but I fear that he has made my job only a little more difficult. I have to say that it is a delight to give my maiden speech in a debate led by our fantastic Deputy Prime Minister. It is an honour and a privilege to stand before this House as the representative for Edinburgh South West. I am deeply grateful to my constituents for placing their trust in me and also to my church for praying for me, although I know that they prayed more after I won the election than before it. I am committed to serving them all with dedication and integrity. Before I address the subject matter of the King’s Speech, I would like to pay tribute to my immediate predecessor, Joanna Cherry KC, who represented the constituency for nine years. I had many dealings with her office in my role as a councillor, and I aways found her team to be utterly professional. I wish them all well. Joanna Cherry herself was a formidable parliamentarian. Members will recall that, during the Brexit crisis, she worked hard to ensure that Government decision making remained transparent and subject to parliamentary scrutiny. We all owe her a huge debt for that. I must also say that, although I disagree with her on many issues, I am happy to stand in complete solidarity with her in the face of the threats that she has faced. It pains me that, since coming here, so many others have spoken about threats and intimidation as well. This is an issue that we must take seriously. I must, however, tell the House that the campaign for Edinburgh South West between Joanna Cherry and myself was conducted entirely on the issues that matter to local people there, which is perhaps why I am so proud to be here to address the House today. I must also pay tribute to my predecessor’s predecessor. Alistair Darling was one of the greatest public servants of my lifetime. He sat here from 1987 to 2015. Like me, he was a councillor in Edinburgh, and convener of the city’s transport committee before he went on to serve as MP for Edinburgh South West. The similarities may end there. Indeed, we must all hope that I am never called on, as he was, to save the Bank of England. I know that Alistair is still much missed and I am proud to follow in his footsteps—indeed, without his help I doubt that I would have been elected as a councillor in 2017. Before I address myself to the debate, I would like to take the opportunity to pay tribute to my constituency, its institutions and its people. At this point, Members may need a map. Edinburgh South West is the best part of the greatest city in the world. It stretches from the west end of Princes Street to the East Cairn hill, some 18 km to the south-west. Along its length, the constituency moves from dense urban communities—places such as Gorgie, the home of Hearts football club, Dalry, Parkhead, Wester Hailes, Sighthill and Oxgangs—to suburban settlements such as Colinton, Craiglockhart, Swanston and Baberton Mains, and to the semi-rural Water of Leith villages of Currie, Juniper Green and Balerno. Of all those, Oxgangs is perhaps the place I know and love most. Many people there struggle in temporary and overcrowded accommodation; that is why it has been so important today to hear about the Deputy Prime Minister’s ambition to build affordable homes. In Edinburgh, we have worked with the whole city and set aside land for 37,000 new homes. The land is there and the planning is there, but the barrier to building those new homes is the lack of funding from the Scottish Government. I hope that they can now follow what we are doing here, and show more ambition on affordable housing in Scotland. When it comes to natural beauty, the Pentland hills and the Water of Leith dominate my constituency, and the habitats along the Union canal should not be forgotten. But of course it is the people who make my constituency so special, such as those who volunteer at the Water of Leith Conservation Trust or who converted a disused railway tunnel into Scotland’s largest historical mural—the Colinton tunnel; please google it later. I must also mention Tiphereth, a unique charity that delivers residential and day services for people with learning difficulties. It really is unique. The Edinburgh campus of Heriot-Watt University is perhaps the biggest employer in my constituency. It supported and developed me every day from when I started working there in 1996 until I was elected to this place. I shall miss my civil engineering colleagues and the many students it welcomes to Scotland from around the world. I hope to use some of my time here to support higher education, particularly the wellbeing of students. Mental health support in Scotland is failing its young people and acting as a barrier to many of them reaching their full potential. I will work with anyone and everyone to address that and the many other challenges facing students across the UK. Other large employers in my constituency include Lothian Buses, a bus company owned by the people of Edinburgh that defines the city just as much as the castle. I should stress that the castle is not in my constituency. If some Members question municipal ownership of public transport, or the importance of collaborative working between trade unions and management, they should speak to some of the 2 million passengers that Lothian Buses carries every week without any subsidy. Big businesses are also important in my constituency, but it is the small ones that define it. They are at the heart of many of the neighbourhoods. Many have high hopes that the UK and Scottish Governments will now work together to support them more. I am also proud to say that there are two infantry barracks in my constituency: Dreghorn and Redford. Both are valued by local residents as real assets, and they never caused me a problem as a councillor. The proposal in the King’s Speech for an armed forces commissioner will be supported by many in my constituency, particularly if it helps improve the living quarters for our service personnel and supports spouses at the point of relationship breakdown, particularly when domestic abuse has been an issue. Elections are a reminder that we are all equal in this country, but it pained me that many constituents felt that they were less equal than others during the election campaign. That is why local groups in my constituency such as Soul Food Oxgangs, Best Bib n Tucker and Whale Arts must be mentioned in my speech, as they all work hard to ensure that people feel included and valued. That is our job too, of course—indeed, all of us here have a duty to keep on listening to voters now that the election is over. The first-past-the-post system means that I was elected on just 40.9% of the vote—I still cannot believe it, to be honest—and I know that some of those voters still want to be reassured that they did the right thing. I am here only because I promised to work with other parties where possible, and to listen to everybody in my constituency, no matter their sex, gender, background, faith, age or birthplace. I will keep listening to people, even if they voted for my opponents or did not vote at all. We know, of course, that the people who need our help most did not vote for us. Among them are the 3,000 children in my constituency who are living in poverty. That number has grown across the whole UK since Labour last sat on the Government Benches, and that should shame us all. I know the costed measures in the King’s Speech are our best chance of changing those lives. Measures such as GB Energy, building more homes, a new deal for working people and our plans for sustainable economic growth will not just get our country back on track and help us to meet our climate targets, but give parents hope again of a better future for their children. The child poverty taskforce is an opportunity to maximise the benefits of those policies by integrating their delivery. That is the change our country needs and voted for, and we must now work together across this Chamber to deliver it.