Mark Garnier: I thank the hon. Gentleman for giving way. He and I have discussed this at great length in two Committees that we have both sat on. I am hugely sympathetic to every point that he is making, but there is one counter-argument that has not yet been put forward. The position of our negotiators in striking these deals in the first place could be slightly weakened by the fact that they would then...
Mark Garnier: I completely understand the point my right hon. Friend is trying to make, but one of the interesting things about being a member of CPTPP is that countries then have a power of veto. That gives us quite a lot of strength to potentially prevent China from joining.
Mark Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 15 November 2023 to Question 5 on Motorcycles: Training, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the Motorcycle Industry Association’s proposals to reform compulsory basic training on (a) road safety, (b) the quality of rider training and (c) rider skill levels.
Mark Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 27 November 2023 to Question HL240, whether he has made an assessment of the Motorcycle Industry Association’s proposal to merge the motorcycle module 1 and module 2 tests since that date.
Mark Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2024 to Question 11316 on Motorcycles: Carbon Emissions, what engagement his Department plans to undertake with the L-Category industry on the development of EV charging infrastructure in the next six months.
Mark Garnier: While we are waiting to get to infinity and beyond, it is important to highlight other very innovative British companies that are looking at doing extraordinary things in the area of critical minerals. They are seeking to take the lunar regolith—moondust, which is a metal oxide—and use robots to create 3D printing powder, which could be used to print a moon base through additive printing....
Mark Garnier: To reinforce that point, it is a rather peculiar thing about the British that we tend to look at failure as a problem. Exactly this type of thing happened with the launch of the SpaceX Starship. The minute it cleared the pad, the mission had been entirely successful. When that enormous rocket—bigger than a Saturn V rocket—went spiralling out of control and blew up, the SpaceX team let...
Mark Garnier: I rise to speak in support of the Bill in my capacity as chair of the all-party parliamentary group for space. Before I get to the thrust of my speech, I draw the House’s attention to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. My interests are both financial and non-financial, and I have a number of outside roles that are relevant to the UK space industry. I congratulate my...
Mark Garnier: Quad bikes.
Mark Garnier: I am slightly confused. I get all the stuff about not being insured and not needing a driving licence, but surely if a person clobbers somebody with a quad bike and causes them injury, there has to be some recourse?
Mark Garnier: In the spirit of trying to bring the debate back to the fantastic opportunities for Scotland, as the Prime Minister’s trade envoy to Brunei, I was delighted to go to Aberdeen to meet a number of Scottish companies in the incredibly important business of decommissioning and renewal in the oil and gas industry. Brunei has signed a deal worth, I think, £350 million with Scottish business....
Mark Garnier: My hon. Friend makes a good point. Does he agree that when a previous Committee—of which we were both members—looked at free trade deals, it found that the very fact of doing a trade deal creates an interest that is not otherwise there? It means that everybody talks about the trade opportunity that presents itself.
Mark Garnier: rose—
Mark Garnier: I would like to follow on from the point about beef and meat from Australia. We imported it for years and years when we were part of the European Union. This is not brand new; we have been doing it for a long, long time.
Mark Garnier: There is a great deal of argument about where the opportunity for UK exporters is. Does my right hon. Friend agree with the prediction that the 10 nations of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations will create a bigger trading bloc and a bigger economic unit than the European Union by 2050, and does she agree that the CPTPP offers the opportunity for countries such as the Kingdom of...
Mark Garnier: I am very convinced by the arguments that my hon. Friend is putting forward, but he has missed one useful point. Does he not agree that the generation of oil and gas in the North sea will generate tax receipts that can then be used to subsidise green energy production in other parts of the British economy?
Mark Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data her Department holds on the number of individuals convicted of fraud related to contracts with her Department for the provision of personal protective equipment in the last four years.
Mark Garnier: The hon. Lady’s points are well made and important, but, at the end of the day, does she fundamentally agree with the principle behind the measures? Is it just the process that she is worried about?
Mark Garnier: I am very sympathetic to the hon. Member’s point about deepfake intimate images, but I wonder why he does not extend the provision further to what might be embarrassing images. We are in a room full of politicians who are about to go into a general election. Deepfake images of prominent politicians at rallies, for example—such as a leading left-wing politician being seen at a far-right...
Mark Garnier: Thanks to a £10 million investment and a pledge to “get Bewdley done”, the eastern bank of the River Severn in the town of Bewdley in my constituency is receiving demountable and permanent flood defences. The problem is that, during the construction, the Environment Agency is unable to put up temporary defences to protect around 30 or so houses. We are grateful in Wyre Forest to be...