In the House - Chris Matheson MP

Below is a feed of all my contributions in Parliament. Please do not hesitate to get in touch with any questions.

Local Government: Constituencies

Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission

Chris Matheson received a response to a question they put to the government

The Local Government Boundary Commission for England published its final recommendations for future electoral arrangements in the London Borough of Sutton on 30 June. It expects to lay a draft...

Covid-19: International Language Schools

Commons debates

I endorse the congratulations to the hon. Lady on standing up for this important sector. She is talking about the financial value, which is considerable. Is there not also a cultural value of...

Allocation of constituencies

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I had not noticed that. You learn something new every day in this Committee. I think the Minister was unfair to characterise this idea as we think we know better. It is not that; it is simply...

Allocation of constituencies

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I do not want to take too long, but both interventions were correct. The point is that some powers will go straight to the devolved Assemblies and Parliaments, but others will remain here. We are...

Allocation of constituencies

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I am intimately aware of that. I will take the Minister’s advice, because I do not think all of the responsibilities are coming back. Some will go back to the various different Parliaments;...

Allocation of constituencies

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I am grateful to the Minister and all hon. Members for taking part in an illuminating and positive debate. I was particularly taken by the intervention the hon. Member for Glasgow East made on...

Allocation of constituencies

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman—or in a sense I am not, because I should have liked an answer that put my mind at rest, which his did not. It shows the severity of the problems. I shall...

Allocation of constituencies

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

To be clear, I was not proposing different sized quotas in different areas. I was just suggesting that that would be the logic of following devolution to the letter, and to the max, in terms of...

Allocation of constituencies

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

Of course I will. I mentioned the hon. Gentleman, so I could hardly not give way to him.

Allocation of constituencies

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

The hon. Gentleman makes a salient point. I would suggest that we have English devolution, and if we were logical in these arguments, we would reduce the number of constituencies available in...

Allocation of constituencies

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I absolutely agree, which is why, to develop my argument and to answer the right hon. Lady directly, the new clause in my name and that of my hon. Friend the Member for Lancaster and Fleetwood...

Allocation of constituencies

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I briefly seek the opinion of the Committee in discussion of the new clause. I hope that its aim is self-evident. Most of us in Committee—my friends, the hon. Members for Glasgow East and...

Allocation of constituencies

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time.

Electorate per constituency

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I speak in support of new clause 2, which I tabled with my hon. Friend the Member for Lancaster and Fleetwood. I have really enjoyed listening to the contributions to the debate, but I am...

Electorate per constituency

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

Sorry about that.

Electorate per constituency

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

My hon. Friend will recall that two academics in the evidence sessions suggested that the problems in drawing up the constituencies—linking the constituency to reflect its...

New Clause 1

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

My understanding, however, is that the overall number of electors always swells to a high-water mark during a general election, albeit there will be some constituencies in which that is not the...

New Clause 1

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

My hon. Friend has covered most of the points, so I will be very brief. In a sense, I will be asking the Minister only a couple of questions. My hon. Friend is absolutely right to say that we hit...

Extent, Commencement and Short Title

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

My right hon. Friend is also a member of the Defence Committee, and the Secretary of State is giving evidence there this afternoon, so his not being here is certainly no discourtesy.

Minor and consequential amendments

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Chris Matheson made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I am most grateful. I am sure that Albert will be following this debate and will be most grateful as well. We support the amendment and welcome the conversion of Government Members. We will work...