Lord Cameron opens first debate in the House of Lords

my lords on behalf of my Noble friend Lord Johnson of lanston I beg to move that this bill be I read a second time it is truly an honor to stand here at this dispatch box and make my maiden speech in this house I have always respected the work that is done here so often a patient diligent and considered compliment to the other place and I hope to play a full part in your lordship's house indeed I was only in the other place for 15 years and 11 of those were as leader of the opposition or prime minister so I hope I can look forward to many more years in this house and when I look at the ornate carved wooden panels that surround us and compare them to not my now Infamous Shepherd's Hut I can tell you this is already a significant upgrade I would like to thank my introducers my Noble friends the Lord privil Lord true and the government Chief whip lady Williams of Trafford I have to admit that I recommended both of them for the peage indeed I am in what Margaret Thatcher described in her maiden speech here as a in a delicate position responsible for proposing to Elevation to this house quite so many of its current members so I hope you'll forgive me for my part in putting how can I put it space here at a premium I knowe that the liberal Democrat benches are particularly full I always said to my Deputy Prime Minister and partner and friend Nick CLE that his party would feel the benefit of participating in the Coalition for many many years to come I just didn't predict exactly how that would manifest itself I'd also like to thank black Rod the doorkeepers the police and other staff for facilitating my introduction yesterday and for warming warmly welcoming welcoming me back to Parliament I first set foot in this place as a teenager in the 1980s when I work briefly as a parliamentary researcher I watched from I think just up there as the late Lord McMillan age 90 leaning elegantly on a stick delivered his Maiden speech it was a thoughtful measured evisceration of the late lady Thatcher's government and its handling of the minor strike I intend no such censor for my successor in 10 dowy Street indeed wanting to serve under Rishi sunak who I believe is a strong and capable prime minister was one of the reasons why I accepted his offer of this role I had two former Party leaders in my cabinet alongside many veterans of Tory leadership campaigns one of which of course was the noble Lord Lord Clark and I valued all their advice and I hope that some of my experience will help the prime minister in meeting the vital challenges that we face as a country that said it was a surprise to be asked I have not been sitting like some latterday deal at col Le do waiting to be asked how should I put it to Take Back Control um nor am I Cincinatti hovering over my plow I leave all classical Illusions and indeed Illusions for that matter to another former prime minister with whom I shared a number of educational experiences there is a strong precedent for members of this house from all parties serving in the cabinet Peter Carrington and Alec Douglas Hume and more recently the noble Lords Lord mandon Lord Adonis Lord Frost the noble baroness lady Morgan of coats like all of them I respect the Primacy of the other place as tradition dictates a secretary of State who sits in the Lords is mirrored by the most senior minister in their Department that minister is the right honorable Andrew Mitchell MP who will deputize for me in the other place and I believe he'll do an excellent job I will look forward to answering Noble Lord's questions monthly and appear before all the relevant committees I recognize my responsibilities to this house and I'm happy to consider other appropriate mechanisms so that Parliament is able to scrutinize all the work of my department the noble Lord Lord mandon sent me a particularly Charming welcome but he pointed out that I am a comeback novice and this is only my first one compared with his three I suppose my response should be to point out that to make three comebacks you need both his prodigious talent and you need to be sacked twice by the Prime Minister which is a fate I'm hoping to avoid I take my seat bearing the title of chipping Norton in fact the first message I received after my appointment was from the Vicar's wife making sure that I would take the town's name but I'm not claiming divine intervention it was an easy choice this beautiful place is one of the West Oxfordshire towns which I represented in Parliament it's the place where I brought out my children and the place our family still considers home the chippy ler food project where I volunteered for over two years after the start of the pandemic who have to manage without me for a while last year three of us loaded up a lorry full of food clothes and supplies and drove it to the Red Cross Center on the Polish Ukrainian border our leader was rvana P who and members will be pleased to hear in a house that values cross party collaboration is one of the town's labor counselors it was a privilege to make my first visit as foreign secretary to Ukraine last week I told the president how much we all admire the bravery and fortitude of the Ukrainian people we will stand with them for as long as it takes and I was proud to hear him describe Britain as their best partner in their struggle my lords his country's plight is a reminder of the great challenges we Face the things we take for granted freedom the rule of law democracy they are under threat across the world these are daunting times invasion in Europe War in the Middle East climate change growing World poverty illegal migration threats of terrorism and new pandemics it has never been more clear that our domestic security depends upon Global Security and we must approach these challenges from a position of strength our foreign office diplomatic service intelligence services our Aid and development capabilities these are some of the finest assets of their kind anywhere in the world and I've seen at firsthand The Professional ISM the passion the patriotism of the people who staff them and I know that they have been expertly and diligently represented in this house for many years now by my Noble friend Lord armed of Wimbledon with whom I'm proud to work as prime minister I learned that the respect we command overseas also depends on success at home we certainly didn't get everything right but over six years we did Smash some of the big political orthodoxies showing that you can can grow the economy and cut carbon emissions you can cut the deficit and create jobs you can achieve the best school results in the poorest areas and you can start to build a society that is multiethnic multi-racial and proud and patriotic and today with a British Indian prime minister at our Helm we have a good opportunity to do all of those things and ensure we stand taller in the world and stronger too my lords let me turn to the subject of today's debate the UK will join the comprehensive and Progressive agreement for trans-pacific partnership otherwise known as cptpp and this bill helps to make that happen this is an age of rapid growth in the Indo Pacific region and the political shifts we Face are the first reason to support this bill countries in the Indo Pacific are expected to drive the majority of global growth between now and 2050 I want to continue this government's work to deepen our relationships with this region and support the shared security and prosperity we signed the orcus pact with the US and Australia we've signed the hoshima Accords with Japan we've become a dialogue partner of aian and agreed groundbreaking digital deals with Singapore membership of this vast global trade area is the next vital step on this journey putting the UK at the heart of a group of some of the world's most dynamic economies it will bring us even closer on pressing challenges like climate change it will give us a new impetus to influence geopolitical competition around rules and norms and it will help diversify our supply chains and therefore support our economic resilience my lords the second reason for passing this bill are the economic benefits that this deal brings to the UK Britain will join 11 countries Spanish Asia and the Americas with a combined population of 500 million people we'll have a combined GDP worth nearly 12 trillion 15% of global GDP this deal positions British companies to expand in New Markets giving us for instance our first trade deal with Malaysia an economy worth almost 330 billion pound last year and it means more than 99% of the UK's current exports to other members become eligible for tariff free trade the deal's ambitious service Provisions should also boost the 32 billion pound of services that British firms already sell to these countries last year UK businesses will be operating more On a par with local firms red tape can be cut and data localization requirements removed Traders will have more certainty and it looks set to increase our attractiveness to Global Finance even as competition for Capital grows ever more intense investors like Japanese firm Fujitsu employer of more than 7,000 people here in Britain see great promise from this deal free trade is good for British businesses creating new opportunities and spurring Innovation and I firmly believe it benefits British consumers as well tariff reductions mean cheaper import prices better choice and higher quality on a whole range of things whether it is fruit juice from Peru or vacuum cleaners from Malaysia the final reason for your support my lords is the precise scope of the bill while the deal itself is wide ranging in many areas it does not require comprehensive UK legislation the bill therefore focuses on those few areas where we need primary legislation to meet our new obligations first it covers technical barriers to trade Conformity assessment bodies like the British standards Institute they exist to ensure consumers that a product meets certain standards and the bill will allow for Conformity assessment bodies established in other participating countries to apply for approval here in the UK but I can assure Noble Lords these Provisions will not change British product standards next government procurement the bill will ensure that suppliers from participating countries have access on an equal footing to those UK procurements covered by the agreement and we've responded to the devolved administration's previous concerns about the use of concurrent powers in such bills drafting these Provisions in consultation with them and I believe that shows our commitment to working across all nations of the UK to forge a common approach finally on intellectual property the bill will align our approach to copyright with that of other members for instance it would expand the basis on which foreign performers can qualify for rights here in the UK it will also alow our approach to geographical indications and designations of origin which I'm happy to say is good news for things like lincol sausages cheddar cheese and of course Scotch whiskey in each of these specific areas UK bodies and businesses will benefit from corresponding treatment in other participating countries the bill therefore reduces a whole series of complex obstacles to trade copyright patent standards public procurement these points are often underappreciated ICI but they will benefit UK businesses and consumers alike now Noble Lords May well ask whether these benefits come at the expense of things we should hold dear I believe this is not the case and I want to run through some of the concerns that have been expressed will it lower our own high standards on food and product safety on Animal Welfare or on environment or workers rights no we will change none of these in order to exceed and we will continue to set our own standards here in the UK what about the issue of undercutting farmers there are both quotas and transitional safeguards for agricultural Imports that we negotiated and National Farmers Union president manette BS has spoken of the deal's potential as she put it to get even more fantastic British food on plates overseas there are often concerns expressed about the NHS and so-called privatization by the back door let me be clear the NHS and its services were never on the table in these negotiations and if you want to see the government do more in this Pacific region to end unsustainable palm oil farming or Champion human rights this agreement will increase UK influence in the region which we can bring to bear on all of these vital issues ultimately we retain flexibility with this deal we'll continue to set our standards determine our foreign policy and make the trade Arrangements that best suit us with others in the future my lords I'm looking forward to hearing as much as possible of the forthcoming debate I might have to be excused before it ends should business continue into the evening to welcome the president of South Korea at the state banquet tonight hosted by his majesty the king the opposition front bench has been very generous and understanding on this point and I want to thank them I want to thank also my Noble friend Lord Johnson of lanston who has brought enormous private sector experience into the government he's led the work work on this bill and will respond to all your questions when closing it is a narrow bill but the benefits are considerable with others queuing up to join cptpp prime minister Rishi sunak has ensured the UK got in there first the deal offers possibilities for our whole country from distilleries in Dorset to AI Pioneers in Wales to car par manufacturers in Northern Ireland to digital forensic experts in Scotland it is an investment in a brighter future and I should know because I was the future once

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Id: acHrN0lt7oE

Length: 15min 35sec (935 seconds)

Published: Tue Nov 21 2023