Liaison Committee (Commons)

The Liaison Committee held a wide-ranging session with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer focusing on the Iran crisis, UK defence planning and spending, energy security and consumer protection, and strategic technology policy (AI, quantum) and European collaboration. Key commitments include replacing ambulances after antisemitic attacks, finalising the Defence Investment Plan with funding clarity, keeping energy support measures in place (end-June cap for households; CMA action on profiteering; fuel duty—September), and pursuing renewables and domestic capability (SMRs, drones, AI growth zones). The PM signalled ongoing Cobra briefings and a forthcoming Chancellor statement, plus a push for greater UK sovereign capability and closer European defence collaboration via SAFE, with guardrails on IP and strategic partnerships. The session signals a government prioritising energy affordability, national security, and tech sovereignty while seeking to balance international cooperation with domestic capability and industrial policy.

The session scrutinised the Prime Minister’s adherence to the Nolan principles and the Ministerial Code, with MPs challenging accountability, openness, handling of leaks, and the accountability of No. 10 staff. The PM affirmed ongoing scrutiny by Parliament, pledged to consider forthcoming Written Ministerial Statements with the Speaker, and described steps taken to curb inappropriate briefings and leaks. The Committee pressed for progress on public-appointment governance, reform timelines for leasehold, FE funding anomalies, and speed of delivering promised strategies (e.g., violence against women and girls). Multiple explicit commitments were identified (e.g., private meetings with committee chairs, reviewing statements, and progress on policy strands) alongside clear government positions on not currently moving to statutory oversight for some bodies. The focus remains on strengthening standards in public life, Parliament’s primacy in scrutiny, and how the Government plans to deliver policy changes with speed and accountability over the coming period.

In this evidence session, the Prime Minister presented a three-year vision focused on higher living standards, a stronger health service, and security, while facing cross-cutting scrutiny on poverty, housing, welfare reform, regional growth, international relations, and information governance. He highlighted a cross-department child-poverty taskforce and a multi-year housing package (£39bn) aimed at social and affordable housing, plus £1bn total homelessness funding with £950m for temporary accommodation. He defended welfare changes, outlined jobcentre reform, and discussed European relations, Gaza policy, and the Online Safety Act, the BBC World Service, and civil-society funding as priorities.

This session scrutinised the Prime Minister’s approach to sustaining growth in a disrupted global environment, with a focus on resilience, trade, and sector-specific support. The PM signalled that growth remains the priority and that the plan will be turbocharged through measures like better trade access and targeted sector policies (e.g., life sciences, ZEV mandates). The committee pressed on real-world delivery across steel, energy, transport, social care, and digital governance, seeking commitments, timelines, and legislative references. Key government positions include continuation and acceleration of growth strategies, targeted industrial support (Scunthorpe/steel), grid reform to enable infrastructure upgrades, expanded EV charging, locally-led transport planning, two-stage social care reform with Louise Casey, and a strong push on AI and digital transformation in government. The PM also reaffirmed defence spending trajectories, NATO alignment, and a protective stance on the NHS in trade, and committed to democratic reforms (16-year voting age).

In this Liaison Committee session, MPs questioned Prime Minister Keir Starmer on delivering growth, housing supply and regulatory reform, plus AI policy, immigration, SEND and public spending pressures. The PM signalled government commitments to: delivering a 1.5 million homes target with mandatory local plans and possible central intervention if local authorities fail to meet targets; continuing a Budget framework that funds homelessness measures and affordable housing; progressing Employment Rights legislation to protect workers while pursuing growth through planning and regulation reform; and setting a pathway to 2.5% defence expenditure alongside ongoing strategic reviews. He defended a balance on AI policy via a voluntary consultation (opt-in/opt-out considerations) and rejected blanket safe‑and‑legal routes for migration, emphasising targeted schemes (Afghan, Hong Kong, Ukraine) and renewed Safer Routes work. Across broader topics, he urged urgency in delivering growth through private investment, infrastructure delivery reforms, and skills supply, while acknowledging financial pressures from LHA freezes, SEND deficits, and local authority debt.