Iain Duncan Smith MP Chingford & Woodford Green

Conservative MP for Chingford & Woodford Green Promoted by M. Goldie of 105c Station Road, Chingford, E4 7BU.

[Iain Duncan Smith MP Chingford & Woodford Green @MPIainDS]

Today, on Remembrance Day, we pause to honour the courage and sacrifice of all those who gave their lives in the service of our country. We owe them a debt we can never repay. Their sacrifice secured the freedoms we enjoy today, freedoms we must never take for granted. We will remember them.

[Conservatives @Conservatives]

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

[Iain Duncan Smith MP Chingford & Woodford Green @MPIainDS]

Today I secured an Urgent Question in the @HouseofCommons following deeply disturbing reports that China has obtained the personal phone records and financial information of MPs sanctioned by the Chinese Communist Party. This is not simply a matter of national security: the Government seems to be missing the point. This is about individual MPs being targeted by a hostile foreign state for speaking out against its actions.

What does the Government know about the information China already holds on us? How much more are they trying to gather? And why on earth have we not been told? It isn't just us. Our families are sanctioned too. I have a family member living abroad, and I am deeply concerned about their safety.

Since these revelations emerged on Sunday, not one security official has contacted any of us. Why weren't we taken aside and warned? We have a right to speak freely in Parliament without fear of intimidation by Beijing. Frankly, this is not good enough and the Government needs to start answering these questions. @10DowningStreet @ukhomeoffice

[House of Commons Speaker @CommonsSpeaker]

I have granted the following urgent question in the @HouseofCommons today.

From @MPIainDS to ask @ShabanaMahmood, the Secretary of State for the Home Department @ukhomeoffice, if she will make a statement on reports that the phone records and financial information of..

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[Iain Duncan Smith MP Chingford & Woodford Green @MPIainDS]

Antisocial behaviour is one of the most damaging crimes people experience in their everyday lives. It destroys communities, drives businesses off our high streets and leaves law-abiding residents paying the price. Shoplifting is not simply petty theft. Much of it is organised, gang-related crime, and it must be treated far more seriously by the police.

In Chingford & Woodford Green, local @Conservatives councillors and I brought retailers and police together, challenged the failure to report offences, pushed for arrests and helped secure facial recognition cameras. We began to see crime fall. This shows what can be achieved when local communities, businesses and police work together.

We cannot simply stand by while criminals wreck our high streets and destroy people's livelihoods. The police must act, retailers must report crime, and the Government must do more to tackle this scourge.

My contribution in Parliament.

[Iain Duncan Smith MP Chingford & Woodford Green @MPIainDS]

Labour's hypocrisy on welfare is staggering. Throughout Covid, they demanded more spending at every turn. Now they're in government, they blame the Conservatives for the rising welfare bill while refusing to take the difficult decisions needed to bring it under control. Burnham @10DowningStreet talks about tough choices, but his own backbenchers won't tolerate meaningful welfare reform, putting political survival ahead of the national interest.

Instead, we get distraction politics, with debates about slavery and reparations diverting attention from Labour's failures at home. The question is simple: Labour is in government now. What are they actually going to do to bring welfare spending under control?

[Talk @TalkTV]

🚨"Labour kept saying we weren't increasing welfare enough"

Sir Iain Duncan Smith says Labour blaming the Tories for ballooning the benefits bill is nonsense as they were constantly telling them to increase spending when Labour was in opposition.

@MPIainDS | @jkyleofficial

[Iain Duncan Smith MP Chingford & Woodford Green @MPIainDS]

This morning, I joined veterans, local residents and Conservative councillors at the Woodford War Memorial in South Woodford to remember and honour those who gave their lives in service of our country. We owe an enormous debt of gratitude to those who fought and sacrificed so much to defend our country and the freedoms we enjoy today. Their courage, duty and sacrifice must never be forgotten. We will remember them.

[Iain Duncan Smith MP Chingford & Woodford Green @MPIainDS]

I have written to the Prime Minister, supported by 68 fellow MPs and Peers from across Parliament, calling for urgent intervention in the case of British citizen Ryan Cornelius.

Ryan is now 72 years old. He has already spent more than 18 years in a Dubai prison, and under his current sentence will not be released until 2038, when he will be 84. Seven UN human rights experts have called for his immediate release, warning that his deteriorating health puts him at risk of irreparable harm.

Our letter sets out clear steps the Government must now take, including a public request for his release ahead of UAE National Day on 2 December, and targeted sanctions if that request is refused. The Prime Minister must now respond and make clear what action the Government intends to take.
@10DowningStreet @FCDOGovUK
The full letter is below.

[Kemi Badenoch @KemiBadenoch]

Andy Burnham and John Healey want you to forget about the Budget

I won't. Because your taxes are heading for a record high to pay for ever more welfare

Don't let them forget it.

[Iain Duncan Smith MP Chingford & Woodford Green @MPIainDS]

For more than 18 years, Ryan Cornelius has been held in a Dubai prison, denied justice and separated from his family. His business partner, Charles Ridley, has also been imprisoned, and it is utterly unacceptable that British citizens should face what amounts to a life sentence with trumped up charges following proceedings condemned by the United Nations.
https://t.co/bqAfmpaIVh
The British Government has a duty to protect its citizens, and after 18 years it is abundantly clear that quiet diplomacy has achieved nothing. That is why 69 MPs and Peers have come together to demand action. The UAE has an opportunity to put this right by releasing Ryan on its National Day. If it refuses, there must be consequences, including targeted sanctions against those responsible for prolonging his detention. Britain cannot continue to look the other way. Ryan and Charles must be brought home. @10DowningStreet @FCDOGovUK

[Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) @ipacglobal]

🌍 Over 50 lawmakers across 30 countries and 6 continents have convened in The Hague for IPAC’s Annual Summit. #IPACTheHague26

Opening the plenary, delegates set out the China challenges they face at home ahead of setting IPAC's collective priorities for the year ahead.

來自六大洲、三十個國家、逾五十位議員齊聚海牙，出席 IPAC 年度峰會。

會議開幕時，各國代表先闡述本國面對的中國挑戰，再共同訂定 IPAC 來年的集體優先議程。

Más de 50 legisladores de 30 países y seis continentes han asistido a la Cumbre Anual de IPAC en La Haya

En la apertura de la plenaria, los delegados muestran los diferentes retos que ha representado China en sus países de origen, previo a la definición de las metas colectivas para el próximo año.

世界30か国・6大陸から50名超の国会議員がハーグに集まり、IPAC年次サミットが開幕！

全体会議では、今後の共通目標を設定すべく、各国が直面する中国をめぐる課題を共有しています。

[Iain Duncan Smith MP Chingford & Woodford Green @MPIainDS]

The sentencing of Joshua Wong to 10 years in prison is an absolute disgrace and yet another example of the Chinese Communist Party's brutal suppression of democracy and freedom in Hong Kong. I raised Joshua Wong's case in the House of Commons in September, calling on the Government to confront Beijing over its persecution of peaceful protesters.

China has torn up the Sino-British Joint Declaration and systematically dismantled the freedoms it promised to uphold. Britain has a moral and historic responsibility to the people of Hong Kong. Strong words are no longer enough. The Government must act, impose sanctions on those responsible and demand Joshua Wong's, and Jimmy Lai's, release.

[Reuters @Reuters]

Activist Joshua Wong, 30, who became the international face of Hong Kong's democracy movement, was sentenced to 10 years in jail on a charge of collusion with foreign entities under the city's national security law https://t.co/RDnJGCXyt9

[Iain Duncan Smith MP Chingford & Woodford Green @MPIainDS]

Andy Burnham's intervention on slavery reparations raises a serious question: is this yet another attempt to deflect attention from the failings of his Government? With welfare spending spiralling, immigration remaining a serious challenge and defence funding under pressure, Labour should be confronting the problems facing Britain today, not reopening arguments about historic reparations.

Britain's involvement in the slave trade was abhorrent. But our country's extraordinary role in abolishing that trade must also be remembered. If Burnham is serious about tackling slavery, he should start by demanding action against forced labour in China and the products entering Britain as a result.
https://t.co/u5OU65UmVf

[Kemi Badenoch @KemiBadenoch]

Shabana has made a serious mistake surrendering to Labour MPs. So I’m putting people on notice - when we get into government we will scrap this weak policy.

Immigration is too high. Labour are making a bad situation much, much worse.

The Conservative Party is under new management. I accept this problem started under a previous Conservative govt. Many of those in that Cabinet have gone to Reform where they belong.

And I’ve got a proper plan to fix it👇

[Sky News @SkyNews]

Kemi Badenoch says the UK is 'under threat' and 'we need to get serious'

The Tory leader adds: 'We need to start waking up to those threats and stop being afraid and stop being complacent'

Read more: https://t.co/wIxprLD1Pj

📺 Sky 501, Virgin 602, Freeview 233

[Steven Swinford @Steven_Swinford]

The Conservatives have recorded their highest level of support since the general election to come within two points of Labour, YouGov polling for The Times suggests

Almost one in four voters (24%) now say they would back Kemi Badenoch’s party if an election were held tomorrow — up two points in a week

The figure is broadly similar to the 23.7% of voters that supported the party at the last general election, under Rishi Sunak. However, it is a marked improvement over the averages of between 17% and 19% at which the party has been polling for much of this year

67% of Conservative voters from 2024 would now choose the party again, while 13% of the Tories’ support comes from voters who backed the Liberal Democrats at the last election

Significantly, the Tories also appear to be attracting younger voters, potentially drawn by the party’s pledges to cut taxes. Some 17% of voters aged between 18 and 24 now intend to back the party, a higher figure than for the Lib Dems and Reform UK combined

https://t.co/aB9EDV1nAg

[Luke de Pulford @lukedepulford]

Wow. @KemiBadenoch says she will NOT visit China while Jimmy Lai (the British citizen she is referring to) remains in prison.

[Iain Duncan Smith MP Chingford & Woodford Green @MPIainDS]

I am tired of those who seem determined to apologise for everything in Britain's past, while ignoring the extraordinary contribution this country has made to freedom around the world. In 1807, Britain abolished the slave trade and subsequently deployed the Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron to enforce that decision. British sailors risked, and lost, their lives fighting the slave trade, freeing thousands of people from slavery.

We should never forget their courage and sacrifice. Our history is not without its faults, but neither should we forget the enormous contribution Britain has made to freedom, justice and the rule of law. We have much to be proud of, and I make no apology for saying so.

[Talk @TalkTV]

🚨"By today's money we spent tens of billions of pounds to end slavery, we owe NO ONE an apology"

Sir Iain Duncan Smith picks apart Andy Burnham giving the Caribbean £40 million in reparations for the slave trade.

@MPIainDS | @jkyleofficial

[Iain Duncan Smith MP Chingford & Woodford Green @MPIainDS]

This Government has lost control, and it seems Downing Street doesn't like being told so. We are a country with a proud history of standing up for freedom, defending the rights of others and believing in what Britain stands for. We have a Government that seems increasingly unwilling to defend those principles. Downing Street should spend less time complaining about criticism and more time addressing the concerns of the British people.

[Talk @TalkTV]

🚨"It's a total shambles"

Sir Iain Duncan Smith slams Labour's Conversion Practices Bill for criminalising children who question transgenderism and warns Jeremy Kyle that Downing Street listens to Talk.

@MPIainDS | @jkyleofficial

[Iain Duncan Smith MP Chingford & Woodford Green @MPIainDS]

Labour's Budget was a missed opportunity. Working people (and yes, that includes employers) middle-income earners and those who have worked hard to save are being punished by higher taxes, weaker growth and falling living standards. Meanwhile, welfare spending continues to spiral, borrowing is rising and Labour has failed to take the difficult decisions needed to restore control of the public finances.

At a time when Britain faces growing threats from Russia, China, Iran and North Korea, Labour has still failed to set out a credible commitment to the defence spending our national security demands. Instead of confronting these challenges, Labour has chosen short-term fixes not long-term solutions, leaving working people across the UK to pay the price.

Future generations will look back and ask why, when the warning signs were so clear, this Labour Government failed to act.

My contribution in the House of Commons Budget Debate.