@ScotTories MP for Berwickshire, Roxburgh & Selkirk.
Coldstream, Berwickshire
Joined April 2010
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This afternoon, I joined the Speaker for the opening of the Gardens of Remembrance in Parliament.
We remember all those across the Scottish Borders who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.
We will remember them.
The A1 is a vital route between Scotland and England, but far too much of it remains a single carriageway.
Dualling it would not just improve journey times, reduce congestion and boost our local economy, it would help prevent so many serious injuries and save lives.
We cannot keep putting this off. The number of people killed or seriously injured on this road is unacceptable.
John Lamont MP 🇬🇧🏴 retweeted
Slavery was an evil in which people from every continent and region participated. We should be honest about the whole history, not select the parts that are politically convenient today, especially given Britain's leading role in ending the transatlantic slave trade.
If Caribbean countries are asking Britain for a formal apology for Britain’s role in the transatlantic slave trade, will they also be asking the same of the descendants of African kingdoms, rulers and merchants who captured, sold and profited from the trade?
On demands for reparations, whether through cash or debt relief, we have been down this track before. Twenty-five years ago, Jubilee 2000, Drop the Debt and Make Poverty History argued that cancelling the debts of poorer countries would give them a fresh start. More than $100 billion of debt was eventually written off, but many of those countries have since built up even bigger debts. Labour are already spending too much on Britain's welfare state, now is not the time for Andy Burnham to be providing global welfare.
There is no reason British taxpayers today should be held financially responsible for things that happened generations before any of us were born. And I have even less patience for political elites in commonwealth countries who don’t know how to make their own citizens prosperous now looking for another opportunity to blame Britain.
As Prime Minister, Andy Burnham should be Britain’s greatest defender. Instead, he is writing articles saying we need to confront our history (as if we haven't done enough of that) and considering another formal historical apology. Tony Blair already expressed Britain’s deep sorrow and regret for our role in the slave trade nearly twenty years ago. There is no need to do so again.
This is all another navel-gazing distraction. The Commonwealth should be looking forward, not endlessly backwards. That means economic partnerships to make us all richer and deeper military and security cooperation against common threats. If every Commonwealth summit becomes an exercise in presenting Britain with demands for cash then we need to start asking if it is worth the effort.
⛽The Government have now generously decided to wait until 2027 before making our already expensive fuel another 5p a litre more expensive!
Thank you to everyone who signed our 'Axe the Fuel Tax' petition recently calling on the government to do this. With diesel approaching and frequently exceeding £2 a litre it's clear there's still much to do to bring down bills for people across the Borders.
Lots of tinkering around the edges and throwing confetti.
That was my verdict on the Budget when I spoke to ITV.
Yesterday’s announcements simply don’t go far enough because Labour still doesn’t understand the scale of the problem.
🎈The ballooning welfare bill is putting pressure on families, businesses and our economy.
Today’s Budget was another missed opportunity to get spending under control and ease the pressure on hardworking families and businesses.
With working-age welfare spending forecast to rise by almost £58 billion to £221.5 billion a year by 2031-32, we cannot keep spending more and more on welfare while asking hardworking taxpayers to pay more and more.
Labour needs to get a grip on the rising welfare bill, help more people back into work and bring spending under control so we can cut taxes and get Britain working again.🇬🇧🏴
This Labour Budget was another missed opportunity to get spending under control and ease the pressure on hardworking families and businesses.
We cannot keep spending more and more on welfare while asking hardworking taxpayers to pay more and more.
Labour needs to get its priorities straight.
Borrowing is too high, welfare spending is too high, and families and businesses are paying far too much in tax.
The Government should be focused on fixing the economy, not reopening the Brexit debate.
We need lower taxes, less borrowing and a stronger economy.🇬🇧🏴
Today is Labour's third Budget, and the first under its new Chancellor. But will it be more tax rises?
Labour promised not to raise taxes, but has already increased them by over £60 billion.
Ahead of the Chancellor's statement, here are my key tests:
🚜Scrap the Family Farm Tax.
⛽Freeze fuel duty, approve Rosebank and scrap the Energy Profits Levy.
🏠Scrap VAT on household energy bills and keep the Triple Lock.
💼Halve National Insurance contributions for workers aged 21–24.
And above all, no more tax rises!
This Chancellor needs to recognise the pressures families, farmers and businesses are facing across the Borders. I'll be watching closely to see whether today's Budget actually delivers.🇬🇧🏴
Early detection of prostate cancer will save lives, but we must do more so the men at the greatest risk aren't left behind.
Yesterday, I led the debate on improving prostate cancer screening, following a petition signed by 101,932 people, including 195 here in the Scottish Borders.
Sir Chris Hoy's diagnosis highlighted the importance of detecting prostate cancer early, yet the government's current approach to screening means that men like Sir Chris, who have no symptoms, may not be offered routine testing at all.
🏴I asked the Minister what discussions have taken place with the Scottish Government to ensure that access to screening doesn't depend on which side of the border you live. With advances in testing and new evidence emerging, we should be improving early detection to save lives.
Thank you to @PCR_News for their work campaigning on this important issue.👏
The council is not being properly consulted before properties in the Borders are being acquired to accommodate asylum seekers on behalf of the UK Government. This is simply not good enough.
I raised this in Parliament yesterday, and the Minister has agreed to an urgent meeting with me and Scottish Borders Council to address these concerns.
Our local services are already under pressure, and the Home Office does not seem to understand that or appreciate the added difficulties of providing essential services in rural and remote areas.
The Scottish Greens aren't tree-huggers anymore.
Their co-leader Ross Greer now wants Hamas's political wing taken off the terror list.
Hamas was banned in full for a reason: there's no real line between its "political" and military wings.
A dangerous idea. I'll fight it every step of the way.
Antisemitism is a scourge that we must stamp out.
Thank you to @antisemitism for meeting with me today to discuss their work and how we can better challenge this hatred.
I will always stand with the Jewish community against antisemitism.
John Lamont MP 🇬🇧🏴 retweeted
Hawick High Street is closed due to a weather-related issue while services assess a building. It is expected to remain closed until tomorrow morning, or until the issue is resolved.
For the latest updates see scotborders.gov.uk/severewea…
#Hawick
John Lamont MP 🇬🇧🏴 retweeted
Jackdaw opened. Because the people of Aberdeen voted for it. Because they voted Conservative.
Everybody wrote us off.
This is the story of how @DLumsden_MP became the MP for Aberdeen South 👇
📈Inflation has hit 3.5%, piling more pressure on hardworking families.
🧾Household bills are rising.
⛽️Fuel costs are increasing.
🛒The weekly shop is getting more expensive.
🏠And mortgage costs are putting families under even more pressure.
When will the Prime Minister accept that his failure to control borrowing is contributing to higher inflation?
Labour’s Jobs Tax has made it more expensive for businesses to employ people especially young people, who across the Borders deserve the chance to get their first job and build their future.
Conservatives would halve employers’ National Insurance for 21 to 24-year-olds, making it £1,500 cheaper to employ someone full time on the minimum wage.
The Government should back our plan at the Budget to help young people into work and support local businesses.
How can Britain be a serious player on the world stage if it takes two and a half years to approve a single gas project?
As @KemiBadenoch said at PMQs today, we have the resources, the expertise and the people.
We now need a Government with the confidence to use them.🇬🇧
The Prime Minister must now end the dithering and delay, and lift the ban on all new oil and gas licences.