Valerie responds to first Business Statement of new Parliament

As Shadow Leader of the House of Commons,  I responded to the first business statement of the new Parliament on 19 December 2019, which allowed the House to sit on Friday 20 December 2019 to debate and vote on the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill.

Below is my speech:

Welcome back, Mr Speaker. I agree with you that this is a highly unusual motion, but I am pleased that the business managers ​have agreed that we can sit tomorrow and that the Bill will be published. It will be scrutinised by Her Majesty’s Opposition so that we consider it in the best interests of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. On that basis, we support the motion.