May 2026

My hon. Friend raises the important issue of hauliers and the road haulage sector. What we are discussing today is so critical to the costs that hauliers are paying, including vehicle excise duty, which of course is on top of the changes we are making to fuel duty to save hauliers money. This is one of the ways in which we are recognising the critical role that hauliers play in setting costs, including of consumer goods. All these things fit together, and I recognise how important the sector is

I think that these suggestions are being made with the best of intentions, but with the deepest respect to the hon. Member, this is all motherhood and apple pie. If we want to do these nice things, we have to be able to say where the money will come from.

As I said in response to my right hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham Hodge Hill and Solihull North (Liam Byrne), I appreciate that this is a really important issue, and I know what an important issue it is to my hon. Friend and his constituency too. As I said, I am more than happy to take up the matter, and I will discuss it with the Exchequer Secretary.

I am afraid that the hon. Member has entirely missed the fact that the plans that his Government left in place would have seen fuel duty go up. It is only because of the action that this Government are taking that millions of motorists across the country will save money.

My hon. Friend raises a really important issue, and I thank him for all the work that he has done in this space to try to bring down the cost for people across the country. In my old role as Economic Secretary to the Treasury, I was closer to the work of the insurance sector and the work that the current Economic Secretary is now taking forward to try to ensure that prices are brought down, but I am more than happy to convene with the new Economic Secretary and take forward the work that my hon.

Thank you, Mr Speaker. The point is that we have to manage the public finances responsibly. We cannot put in place measures that are not fully funded, and I wish that some of the proposals being put forward were adequately backed up and fully funded.

The hon. Member makes a really important point about the cost that farmers are facing, but that is exactly why we are taking steps to cut the duty on red diesel by more than a third to its lowest rate in over 20 years. As I said, that will help not just farmers, but other sectors, too, including in relation to freight. I am afraid that, as so often, we hear suggestions from the Liberal Democrats, “Cut this”, “Cut that”, “Try to bring things down”—[Interruption.]—but they are never funded. We man

My right hon. Friend makes an important point. I know how passionate he is about these issues. He refers to changes made at the Budget, which were made with the best of intentions and from the point of view of encouraging the use of electric vehicles. I believe that the Chancellor may say something on that later on.

My apologies, Mr Speaker. I had intended to say just then that the Chancellor will come to the House and give a full statement on everything, including the matters that we are discussing. I am sorry that the shadow Chancellor is so upset and appalled by the recent growth figures. I am in the business of talking this country up rather than down. Indeed, I am grateful to him for highlighting that growth has been revised up, interest rates are coming down, inflation is coming down and real wages ar

Mr Speaker, the Chancellor will come to the House later on today, and she—

Put simply, as I said, the shadow Chancellor’s party would have had motorists hurtling full speed towards higher fuel costs. It is only because of the action that this Government have taken that we have applied the brake to the hikes that his party would have introduced. The Conservatives would have introduced higher costs; we are keeping the freeze on fuel duty and protecting millions of motorists right across the country. Exactly as I said, we are taking further measures on red diesel and for

Alongside this key step, the Government’s priority will continue to be helping families with the cost of living, including through protecting the public finances. The Government are taking action to bear down on prices at the pump, and in November we extended the 5p per litre cut in fuel duty for a further five months. Right now, petrol and diesel are 11p per litre cheaper than they would have been under the plans we inherited from the previous Government. Some fuels have been more impacted than

Mr Speaker, your comments have been fully noted, and I will ensure that they are fed back to the entire ministerial team. The Government are taking steps to support households and businesses with fuel costs in response to the conflict in the middle east. A rapid de-escalation in the middle east remains the best way to bring down fuel prices. The most impactful step, of course, would be to reopen the strait of Hormuz. That is exactly why the UK Government are playing a leading role in the interna

There is absolutely nothing humiliating about the action being taken by the Chancellor and the Prime Minister to protect millions of motorists across this country. Again, I have to remind the hon. Member that the plans we inherited from the previous Government would have seen motorists paying more.

Parliamentary appearance by Chris Hinchliff

I am slightly worried that someone will make a point of order about the age at which people are allowed to enjoy the Northwich piña colada festival. Yes, we will be consulting on chemicals and ceramics to ensure that we give businesses the right support, but we do not want a long consultation to get in the way of actually getting the support to those businesses. My hon. Friend made an important point about our trading relationship with our nearest neighbours and trading partners. We are proud to

I would encourage bus companies to use this as an opportunity to increase the services they offer this summer as they cater for more young people on their buses. I am sure that many hon. and right hon. Members will have enjoyed days out at the aquarium in Scarborough and dinner at the Magpie in Whitby, which serves very good fish and chips.

As my hon. Friend knows, I am absolutely committed to the critical minerals sector. We have already introduced the Kernow growth fund for Cornwall, and we have instructed the National Wealth Fund to invest more in critical minerals, including the huge opportunities in tin and lithium in Cornwall. We need more diversified supply chains for critical minerals and rare earths, and Cornwall gives us a great opportunity to achieve exactly that. I look forward to continuing to work with my hon. Friend

I am sure that my hon. Friend’s constituents in Edinburgh North and Leith will benefit from being able to enjoy attractions in the Scottish school holidays. People from the other nations and regions of the UK, or from further afield, will also be able to enjoy the attractions of Edinburgh this summer. On the specific issue of delinking gas and electricity prices, this is both a short-term and long-term measure. In the short term, we have increased the electricity generator levy by 10 percentage

A whole range of products are included in the tariff reductions, including imports of tropical fruits, bananas, olive oil and much more, but I expect that hon. and right hon. Members would be forgiven for wanting to have a chocolate biscuit after a day of work in this place.