In this speech Lord Bilimoria discusses the UK Defence spending and the state of the combined UK armed forces. He notes the strain the Defence Forces are currently under and the issues that they are currently facing in areas such as funding, equipment and numbers of personnel.
In this speech Lord Bilimoria discusses the report by the European Union Committee on UK-EU movement of people. He stresses the need to reintroduce exit checks at UK borders and highlights the issue of international students being included on UK immigration statistics. He also discusses immigration from the EU to the UK and its effect on the country and its economy, especially how a lower level of immigration will affect both skilled and unskilled employment in areas ranging from farming to the NHS. He concludes by stating that according to a recent survey the UK public now favour a deal that resembles Norway’s relationship with the EU which involves the free movement of people. He states that the public opinion has moved against a hard Brexit and that there will be no Brexit. The question posed by Lord Green and Lord Bilimoria’s response is also included below.
In this speech to the House on the day after the State Opening of Parliament Lord Bilimoria discusses the position of the UK and its economy one year on from the European referendum. He notes that Europe is currently growing faster than the UK and argues that the Prime Minister has not listened. He highlights that International Students are still included on immigration figures and discusses the issues involved in organising trade deals outside of the European Union and the nature of being in such a situation. He criticises past governments over the issue of security and also stresses that public opinion towards Brexit is changing. He expresses his belief that this perhaps shows that Brexit will never happen and suggests that when presented with the realities of leaving the EU and life outside it many may decide that the country should remain a part of the Union instead.
In this contribution to the debate Lord Bilimoria first responds to criticism of the House of Lords by the Prime Minister by stressing its importance and its ability to gather such a high degree of expertise through its members. He praises Jo Johnson, the Minister of State for Universities and notes the national consensus that international students should not be included in the net migration figures. Furthermore he asks why the UK does not class international students as temporary migrants when other countries such as Canada and Germany do. He concludes by stressing that not removing international students from the net migration figures is harming the reputation of the UK, its universities and harming its economy.
In this speech to the House Lord Bilimoria notes the Steel Industry’s past and its modern connections. He notes the importance of steel in relation to the current UK economy as well as the future the industry and the wider manufacturing sector face with regard to Brexit and the negotiations with the EU. He stresses the importance of innovation and R&D to the future of manufacturing and the Steel Industry and notes the impact steel has throughout the UK economy and the need for UK steel to be able to competitive.
In this speech Lord Bilimoria discusses the UK’s exit from the European Union touching upon issues such as the rights of the three million citizens, their contribution to UK public services such as the NHS, the deadline of March 29th and the complexity of negotiations. He stresses that much of this issue is a human issue and concludes by arguing against the concept that no deal is better than a bad deal noting that the Government had not assessed what no deal means.
In this second contribution of the day Lord Bilimoria spoke in the debate over amendment 194. He stresses the importance of research to academics and to universities and concludes that anything that supports research is good for the future of research and universities.
In this first contribution of the day Lord Bilimoria speaks in the debate for amendment 166 stresses the importance of having individuals from a business background, especially a science based business background as it aids in understanding the importance of innovation.
In this question Lord Bilimoria notes the reversal made by the Government to increasing National Insurance contributions for the self-employed is to avoid breaking a manifesto pledge. He states his belief as to why there was opposition to the increase and asks the minister if he agrees that that the main role of the Government is to promote growth of jobs and entrepreneurship. The response from Lord Young is also provided.