Why can't the Government answer perfectly straightforward questions?

Business of the House (18 January 2024)

Kevin Brennan Shadow Minister (Victims and Sentencing)
Will the Leader of the House have another go at improving written ministerial answers? I recently asked the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities a very simple question about what meetings Ministers had had with Welsh and Scottish counterparts on the implementation of the new ombudsman scheme. The answer from the Minister for Housing, Planning and Building Safety was:

“Ministers and officials have regular engagement with the devolved administrations on a range of issues.”

That passes the Lloyd George test: it was short, accurate and told me absolutely nothing I did not know already. In this day and age, can we not at least have a culture among Ministers of answering perfectly straightforward and factual questions in a perfectly straightforward and factual way, and will she help to facilitate that, please?

Penny Mordaunt Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons
The hon. Gentleman will know that a great deal of time and effort is taken in the drafting departments in Government Departments. My noble Friend Lord True and I run regular training sessions, as do the officials in my office. We are always on the lookout for good and bad practice so that we can ensure that people know what Members of Parliament need, and we inform those individuals of what is helpful to us in dealing with casework and in which format we might need information. I am always open to example of good and bad practice being passed to my office, and I will certainly raise it with the relevant Department.

Important to minimise any civilian casualties in action on Houthis

Defending the UK and Allies (15 January 2024)

Kevin Brennan Shadow Minister (Victims and Sentencing)
Some in the House may recall that one of my constituents was held captive by the Houthis for five years, simply for being in possession of a British passport. The House will know that we were able to get him safely returned, but we should be under no illusions about the nature of the Houthis. May I re-emphasise the importance of minimising civilian casualties in any action the UK is involved with? Will the Prime Minister impress that not only on our highly professional armed forces, but our partners in any further action taken by the UK?

Rishi Sunak The Prime Minister, Leader of the Conservative Party
I can give the hon. Gentleman that assurance. Again, our initial assessment is that we were successful in minimising civilian casualties in this case.

The UK Government should condemn the extremist language by some Israeli diplomats

Israel and Palestine (8 January 2024)

Shadow Minister (Victims and Sentencing)
"I am struggling to understand what the Government’s response is, apart from surprise at the use of extremist language. What chance can there be for the humanitarian truce that is needed now, and for a sustainable ceasefire and a lasting peace, when extremist views are uttered not just by terrorist organisations but by some Ministers and diplomats representing the Israeli Government?

Andrew Mitchell Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development), Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development and Africa)
Many wild statements have been made, some with which Members will agree and others with which they will not, but the British Government’s purpose is to achieve a sustainable ceasefire and to meet the immense humanitarian need. It is then to lift people’s eyes, when this terrible conflict is over, to the possibilities of peace that a political track can deliver.

Shouldn't the UK Government allow refugees from Gaza to live with their UK families?

Israel and Hamas: Humanitarian Pause (27 November 2023)

Kevin Brennan Shadow Minister (Victims and Sentencing)
My constituent Adam Abu Warda has close family in Gaza and is extremely anxious that they should have the opportunity to get out and come to the UK, as other MPs have said. What is the Government’s policy on our constituents wishing to get their very close family out of Gaza to bring them to the UK?

Andrew Mitchell Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development), Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development and Africa)
We are seeking, within the rules the hon. Gentleman will be aware of, to facilitate, in every way we can, those people leaving Gaza. As I said to one of our colleagues, it would not be sensible for me to look at the granular detail of the specific case he raises on the Floor of the House but, if he has contacted the emergency consular support team in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and has any concerns about the responses he is getting, I am of course very happy, to look at it myself.

Why doesn't the Six Nations have protected free-to-air TV status?

Why is domestic abuse and stalking not considered serious by government?

Prison Capacity
Justice Questions (21 November 2023)

Kevin Brennan Shadow Minister (Victims and Sentencing)
The Secretary of State’s emergency early release scheme is meant to tackle a capacity crisis that is entirely of this Government’s making, and it excludes only serious violence. Surely domestic abuse and stalking are serious offences, yet they are not excluded from early release. What kind of signal does that give to victims, the public, and indeed perpetrators of violence against women and girls?

Alex Chalk The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice
We are proud that under this Government sentences for offences such as rape have gone up by a third. We have a situation in which charges are up, the conviction rate is higher and sentences are longer—and, unlike under the Labour Government, people are spending a higher proportion of those sentences in custody. We think that is the right thing to do. To the hon. Member’s point, the exclusions in place go beyond what he indicated, so he is factually incorrect; they also include sex offences and terrorist offences. Here is a really important point: where the custodial authorities are satisfied that there is a specific risk, there is an opportunity to ensure that release is blocked. That is important, because we will always stand up for victims of crime.

Kevin Brennan Shadow Minister (Victims and Sentencing)
Argument weak? Go long and do not answer the question—the classic response from this Government. The truth is that without any Government announcement of a start date, prisons began releasing offenders over a month ago. These men are already walking our streets, but the Government will not tell us how many, or why they were behind bars in the first place. Why do the Government not believe that the public deserve to know who is being released back into the community when a court decided that they should be in prison?

Alex Chalk The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice
We will make whatever appropriate announcements in due course; we will not demur from that. We will also not apologise for having, under this Government, a higher custodial population than before. We are taking robust steps to ensure that the public are protected, which means unashamedly that those who commit the most serious offences—those such as murder in the context of sexual or sadistic conduct—go to prison for the rest of their lives. Will the hon. Member support that? I wonder. We are also using the evidence so that those capable of rehabilitation are rehabilitated. One thing that we will not ever put at risk is the threat to women and girls. As the Under-Secretary of State for Justice, my hon. Friend Laura Farris, indicated, we have taken steps to ensure that victims of domestic abuse will be properly protected under the Government.

Prime Minister can't even name one David Cameron foreign policy achievement

Prime Minister's Questions
15 November 2023

Kevin Brennan Shadow Minister (Victims and Sentencing)
The Prime Minister has just said that David Cameron had unprecedented experience, so what would he say was his finest foreign policy achievement?

Rishi Sunak The Prime Minister, Leader of the Conservative Party
There are many, many to pick from, but what I would say is that under his leadership this country hosted what was widely considered to be one of the most successful G8 summits of recent times.

What is the government doing to ensure creative industries can flourish?

Creative Industries: Skills and Training
20 July 2023

Kevin Brennan Labour, Cardiff West
Last night was the summer reception of UK Music, and I was there as chair of the all-party parliamentary group on music, along with the shadow Secretary of State and the Chair of the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee. If Ministers had been able to come, they would have heard an appeal for more education in the creative sectors in our schools and for more support for our grassroots venues, which are the research and development of the creative industries, particularly the music industry, and which are suffering from a crisis at the moment. What more are the Government going to do to support education at that level so that skills and training in our creative industries can enable them to keep flourishing into the future?

Lucy Frazer The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
I hope the hon. Gentleman read the sector vision, which included £5 million in additional funding for grassroots music venues—something we discussed at the Select Committee. We, too, think it is important to have those creative subjects in school; that is why art, design and music are already in the national curriculum and remain compulsory in all maintained schools up to the age of 14. But that is not all we are doing. He mentioned music, which is incredibly important. That is why we have our new joint national plan for music education, including £25 million of funding for musical instruments and equipment for schools, and, as I mentioned, we had our first meeting of the cultural education panel, which is looking at how we can ensure we help young people to get more creativity both in and outside school to ensure we have that creative excellence.

Prime Minister seems incapable of operating in a statesman like fashion

NATO Summit
13 July 2023

Kevin Brennan Labour, Cardiff West
In welcoming the Prime Minister’s statement, I gently encourage him to adopt a slightly different tone rather than phrases such as “new-found affection” for NATO. He knows the seminal role of the post-war Labour Government, in particular the Foreign Secretary Ernest Bevin, in the creation of NATO. [Interruption.] I suggest they read some history books. He also knows that Labour’s policy of support for NATO is as strong now as it was 75 years ago. Will he welcome that fact and work in a statesmanlike way with the Leader of the Opposition, in the national interest?

Rishi Sunak The Prime Minister, Leader of the Conservative Party
I was not quibbling at all with the leadership shown by Labour politicians 75 years ago; I was quibbling with that shown just a few years ago.

Secondary ticket sites are selling Taylor Swift tickets for £3k

Business of the House
13 July 2023

Kevin Brennan Labour, Cardiff West
Can we have a debate on secondary ticketing? As the father of a Swiftie— I know that the shadow Deputy Leader of the House, my hon. Friend Jessica Morden, is the mother of a Swiftie—I was appalled to see that, within an hour of tickets going on sale for the Taylor Swift concert at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, a ticket was on sale in the lower tier for £3,352 on Viagogo. Why have the Government not done more to protect our daughters from these sorts of rip-off merchants?

Penny Mordaunt Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons
That is a shocking example. There is one further session of Department for Culture, Media and Sport questions before the summer recess, and I encourage the hon. Gentleman to raise that matter with the Secretary of State.

If the Tories end rail ticket offices, it will be a huge mistake

Rail Ticket Offices
6 July 2023

Kevin Brennan Labour, Cardiff West
Tim Loughton was right: sometimes it is just too complicated to purchase a ticket without using a ticket office. I recently had that experience, and buying my ticket from the ticket office was £50 cheaper than if I had purchased it from the machine. I am afraid that the Beatles analogy he started is right: he’s got a ticket to ride, and he don’t care.

Huw Merriman Minister of State (Department for Transport)
I was not even aware that I had started a Beatles analogy. Actually, this is more important than joking about music; this is about reassuring passengers that we can deliver a better experience but also an experience that they are very familiar with, in terms of the other transactions they make across the retail space. More and more people are doing that online, and they start doing it online by being taught how to do it. The idea is that ticketing staff who are currently behind glass, not seeing those passengers, will help to deliver that and ensure that those passengers have a better experience and do not need to queue up next time, because they can do it in a seamless manner. Where that operation does not exist because of the machine, we are looking to upgrade. I will take any examples he has, to ensure that passengers get the best price but can do it online or via a machine.

Last three Tory Prime Ministers - the liar, the lettuce and weak

Prime Minister's Questions
21 June 2023

Kevin Brennan Labour, Cardiff West
Just to recap, during this Parliament we have had one Tory Prime Minister who turned out to be a proven liar, and a second Tory Prime Minister who was outlasted by a lettuce. After this week’s pathetic no-show by the Prime Minister, what one word would he use to describe himself? Might it be “weak”?

Rishi Sunak The Prime Minister, Leader of the Conservative Party
What is weak is those in the party opposite being unable to stand up to the people who fund them and stand behind hard-working families in this country.

How does cuts to legal aid help the Home Office blacklog?

Business of the House
8 June 2023

Kevin Brennan Labour, Cardiff West
Can we have a debate about legal aid for visa and asylum applications? I know that other hon. Members are finding it impossible for constituents to get a solicitor to assist them when they are entitled to that support. Perhaps Ministers could then explain how cutting off support and aid for people who need that advice reduces the backlog we are all struggling with, both in the Home Office and in our constituency offices.

Penny Mordaunt Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons
The hon. Gentleman raises a very sensible point, and I would be happy to make sure the Home Secretary has heard his remarks.

Can we have a debate on community safety and the regulation of e-bikes?

Business of the House
25 May 2023

Kevin Brennan Labour, Cardiff West
May we have a debate on community safety, including the regulation of e-bikes and e-scooters? In doing so, may I express my condolences to the grieving families of Harvey Evans and Kyrees Sullivan, who died in the tragic incident in Ely in my constituency this week? May I also express solidarity with the residents who suffered the effects of the aftermath and the police officers who were injured in the ensuing disruption? May I also welcome the call from the grieving families for calm in the community to allow the independent investigation into the events that took place, so we can get to the truth of both the tragic fatalities of such young lives and the events that followed?

Penny Mordaunt Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons
I am sure the whole House would want to join the hon. Gentleman in sending our condolences and our thoughts to the Evans and Sullivan families, and praise the families and other voices in the community who have called for calm and explained the role of the police, who are doing a very valuable job for that community. I shall make sure the Department has heard the hon. Gentleman’s concerns today. I am sure that if he were to apply for a debate, it would be well attended.

Why isn't more being done to bring power sharing back to NI?

Northern Ireland: Power Sharing
10 May 2023

Kevin Brennan Labour, Cardiff West
Given the hugely advantageous position Northern Ireland now finds itself in, as was outlined by the Prime Minister when the Windsor accord was announced, is it not time that power sharing was restored and that the Secretary of State perhaps considered a deadline for the restoration of power sharing?

Chris Heaton-Harris The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The hon. Gentleman speaks many a wise word. However, the one thing I have learned in my role as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland is that deadlines are deadly and it is pointless setting timelines on things. The right thing to do is to get the job done properly so that when the Executive come back, they can be there for a very long time, and that is what everyone is working towards.

Can the UK Government give assurances that AI will be regulated?

Artificial Intelligence Technologies: Regulation
3 May 2023

Kevin Brennan Labour, Cardiff West
One area in which our global leadership is a reality, not just rhetoric, is the creative industries. What assurance can the Government give to our music makers, writers and others that AI will be properly regulated to make sure their creative content is protected, and so we can maintain our global leadership?

Chloe Smith Assistant Whip, The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
The hon. Gentleman makes a very good point, which comes from his deep expertise in music and the creative industries more generally. I look forward to my conversations with the industry on this very subject this afternoon. The UK has world-leading copyright and intellectual property protections, and we know how important they are for the continued success of the creative industries. We want to maintain them, and they will therefore be a focus as we take this work forward.

Government won't help my NHS working constituent get home from Sudan

Sudan Update
27 April 2023

Kevin Brennan Labour, Cardiff West
May I have some real clarity from the Foreign Secretary about people who are not British nationals but who are nevertheless in the position of one of my constituents? My constituent has been working for Public Health Wales for the last two years and living in my constituency, and they went to Sudan to celebrate Eid with their family. They are now trapped there and, I understand, are being told that they will not get help from the British Government enabling them to return to their home and workplace in my constituency. Is that the Foreign Secretary’s policy, and if it is, can he change it forthwith?

James Cleverly Foreign Secretary, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
The eligibility criteria have been part of our travel advice throughout this situation. I completely understand the point that the hon. Gentleman is making, but, as I said earlier, we cannot expand the criteria just for those mentioned by Members. To do so could substantially and unsustainably increase the number of people to whom we have given the implication that we could evacuate them. As I have said, the window is limited, the ability to evacuate beyond that is completely unpredictable, and we have a duty to ensure that we do everything we can to evacuate British nationals and dependants as per the criteria already published.

Electoral Commission should condemn these misleading Tory leaflets

Postal Votes
27 April 2023

Kevin Brennan Labour, Cardiff West
I think the Speaker’s Committee should have discussions about this issue. Has my hon. Friend seen some recent examples of Conservative party leaflets, where people are being encouraged to return postal vote applications to Tory headquarters rather than back to the local authority, and where millions of people are being disenfranchised through lack of voter ID? Leaflets have also gone out—in Norwich, for example—saying that people do not need ID to vote. Should not the Electoral Commission take the view that although such practices may technically be legal, they are in fact harmful to our democracy?

Cat Smith Labour, Lancaster and Fleetwood
The code of conduct is of course voluntary, but the code of conduct for campaigners states that parties can provide applications for postal votes but the forms must include the address for the electoral registration officer as the preferred address, even if an alternative address is provided. Campaigners should send on any application forms they receive to the relevant address within two working days, and the commission recommends that any concerns that the code has been breached should be raised first with the candidate, political party or campaigner in question, and any further concerns should be drawn to the attention of the commission. The commission is aware of the Conservative party leaflet in Norwich and has had conversations with the party.

Government's treatment of Afghan refugees hasn't been good enough

Business of the House
20 April 2023

Kevin Brennan Labour, Cardiff West
May we have a debate about the treatment of refugees from Afghanistan? I recently visited a group who are housed near Cardiff, including consultants, doctors, people who had translated for us in Afghanistan and people who fought alongside our armed forces there. Even after all this time since they were evacuated, they have still not been housed and face great difficulty getting into employment. They also told me that they were beginning to suffer from abuse because of the dog-whistle politics on refugee status that is sadly going on at the moment. Without pivoting to such dog-whistle politics, will the Leader of the House take the opportunity to explain to the public that those refugees helped us in our foreign policy aims in Afghanistan, and tell us what the Government would do in such a debate to explain what will be done to help them?

Penny Mordaunt Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons
I thank the hon. Gentleman for raising this important matter, which I know many Members will be concerned about. It is a key example of where we want to help not just those in greatest need, but people to whom we have a particular moral responsibility. Afghan refugees, especially those who served alongside us, supported our armed forces, helped us with translation and other services, or worked with some of our aid agencies, are exactly such people. I shall make sure that the relevant Minister has heard what the hon. Gentleman has said. If he wishes to pass me details about the particular site in Cardiff, I would be happy to pass those on too.

What's the government doing to stop the price rise of US visas for UK musicians?

Film and Television Production Industry
9 March 2023

Kevin Brennan Labour, Cardiff West
I was delighted earlier this week to host a group of female film and television composers in the House of Commons to celebrate their achievements, but our pipeline of writers of music for film and television is under threat if our musicians cannot travel easily to tour in the United States. I am glad the Minister of State, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Julia Lopez, expressed concern about this when she answered my recent question, but she said:

“The UK Government cannot interfere in another country’s processes and must respect their systems, just as we expect them to respect the UK’s processes.”

Can the Secretary of State not do a bit better and at least tell the House that the Government are making representations to the US authorities, on behalf of our wonderful musicians and composers, to try to make sure they do not implement these punitive increases in visa costs?

Lucy Frazer The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
Yes, we are making representations, across Government. Ultimately it is not our decision, but we will be and are making those representations. The hon. Gentleman makes an important point about skills and the pipeline, which I am looking carefully at.