Summary

  • Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab has taken questions from MPs in place of Rishi Sunak at Prime Minister's Questions

  • Raab was up against Labour's Angela Rayner, who was standing in for Keir Starmer

  • Earlier this morning, he asked the PM to launch an investigation into two formal complaints about his behaviour in previous cabinet jobs

  • It follows claims in the Guardian that Raab bullied officials and created a "culture of fear" - he denies these allegations

  • Raab told MPs he is confident he has behaved professionally, and it is right that he be investigated

  • Sunak - who has been in Bali for the G20 summit of world leaders - has repeatedly declined to say whether he had informal warnings about Raab's behaviour before appointing him

  1. Raab: No silver bullet pressed on illegal migrantspublished at 12:26 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Sir Edward Leigh, Tory MP for Gainsborough, asks Dominic Raab, the deputy PM and justice secretary, what he can do on the issue of illegal migrants.

    Raab replies that he agrees we need to "train every sinew to stop this appalling train of misery" but there's "no silver bullet".

    He also says the Bill of Rights can help.

  2. Raab asked about energy payments for Northern Irelandpublished at 12:24 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Jeffrey Donaldson

    The DUP's Jeffrey Donaldson asks about the Northern Ireland protocol and whether the £400 energy support payment due to be made to households in Northern Ireland will be announced as soon as possible.

    Raab says securing Northern Ireland within the constitutional and economic integrity in the UK is absolutely vital.

    The chancellor will be saying more on the measures he refers to tomorrow, he adds.

  3. PM and chancellor have an economic plan, says Raabpublished at 12:21 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Raab responds that the UK is "facing challenges that are faced all around the world, because of Covid, because of the war in Ukraine".

    He says the prime minister and the chancellor "have a plan" and the UK government will "continue to work" with the Scottish government.

  4. Government preparing austerity 2.0 - SNPpublished at 12:21 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Kirsten Oswald from the SNP follows up with her second question. She says if the government can't even say sorry for the mess they've made, what hope is there that they will fix it?

    She says tomorrow's budget - the Autumn statement to be announced by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt - will impose austerity 2.0. Will the government at least join the fight against child poverty tomorrow, and match the Scottish government’s child payment scheme, she asks.

  5. Lots of vocal support for Raab from Tory benchespublished at 12:19 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Ione Wells
    Political correspondent, in the Commons

    Dominic Raab is getting a lot of support from his Tory MP colleagues. Each time Angela Rayner attacked him over bullying allegations, Tory MPs jeered and at times drowned her out.

  6. Inflation is number one challenge, says Raabpublished at 12:18 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Raab responds to the SNP's Kirsty Oswald by saying inflation is clearly a problem and the prime minister has been making clear for months that it's the "number one economic challenge".

    "We have a plan," he says, adding that tomorrow's Autumn Statement will set out how the government will "take people through these challenges".

  7. SNP asks for mini-budget apologypublished at 12:18 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Kirsten Oswald

    The Rayner-Raab clash is over.

    Now we turn to other MPs.

    First, the SNP's Kirsten Oswald says Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was asked six times yesterday to apologise for his predecessor's mini-budget and the crisis it caused, but refused.

    "Will the deputy prime minister say sorry?", she asks.

  8. Labour not up to the challenge of government - Raabpublished at 12:17 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Raab replies that "the recruitment of the new ethics adviser is already under way and taking place at pace," to laughter from the Labour benches.

    He says the Labour Party doesn't have a plan, the British people "want a government that can deal with the real challenges, and they're not up to it".

  9. Rayner: Government needs to drain the swamppublished at 12:17 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Rayner says the PM has agreed to an inquiry into bullying allegations against Raab - but adds there are no details about when it will begin or how it will be carried out.

    Rayner says the government has "no ethics, no integrity, no mandate".

    "When will they appoint an independent ethics adviser and drain the swamp?", she asks.

  10. I'm happy to address specific points, Raab tells Raynerpublished at 12:12 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Raab says he's here and happy to address any specific point Rayner wants to make.

    "I will thoroughly rebut and refute any claims made," he states, reiterating that Rayner "hasn't put a specific point to me".

    "If she wants to I'll be very happy to address it," he says.

  11. Rayner says PM needs to 'get a grip'published at 12:12 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Rayner says Raab has had to demand an investigation into himself because the prime minister is "too weak to get a grip".

    "The deputy prime minister knows his behaviour was unacceptable, so what's he still doing here?" she asks.

  12. I'm confident I behaved professionally, Raab tells MPspublished at 12:11 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Raab says economic challenges faced by the UK are "global" and are caused by rising fuel prices, the after effects of Covid and the war in Ukraine.

    Dominic Raab reiterates that he is "confident that I behaved professionally throughout" his time as a minister and first heard of the formal complaint against him this morning.

  13. Rayner asks Raab about complaints against himpublished at 12:10 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Rayner turns to the formal complaints against Raab.

    In anti-bullying week, will he apologise?, she asks.

  14. Rabb says unemployment at 50-year lowpublished at 12:10 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Raab responds that Rayner knows unemployment remains at the 50-year low in the UK and stands at "half the level left by the last Labour government".

    When it comes to GDP, she knows the IMF says the UK will have the strongest growth in the G7 this year, he adds.

  15. Government putting corporate profits over household incomes - Raynerpublished at 12:09 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Rayner says working people are paying the price for the government's choices, and says they're choosing to protect corporate profits and not household incomes.

    She says there are 38 countries in the OECD two-year growth league table - and asks where the UK ranks in that table.

  16. We must encourage business to come to the UK - Raabpublished at 12:08 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Raab responds that the government wants "people to come to this country" and to create jobs for British people.

    He says the government's approach to non-dom status and incentives for big tech companies are enabling business people to come to the UK.

  17. Rayner asks about tax havenspublished at 12:07 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Rayner asks Raab whether he accepts that every pound hidden in tax havens is a pound lost from the pockets of working families.

  18. PM is rallying for Ukraine at the G20 - Raabpublished at 12:06 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Raab responds to Angela Rayner's first question, saying he "100%" agrees that Russia launching missile attacks on Ukrainian civilians shows Putin's "utter contempt".

    The deputy prime minister says Putin started this war and the prime minister is rallying support at the G20 and ensuring energy supplies from other parts of the world.

  19. Russia shows contempt for international order - Raynerpublished at 12:06 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Angela Rayner

    Rayner begins on Ukraine, asking whether Raab agrees that the fact that Russia is launching missile attacks on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure shows the "utter contempt" President Putin has for the international order.

  20. Raab asked about complaints against himpublished at 12:05 Greenwich Mean Time 16 November 2022

    Clive Betts, the Labour MP for Sheffield South East, asks about integrity and whether Raab agrees that all ministers should follow certain principles.

    He asks if Raab agrees the prime minister should ensure that no minister who has a complaint of bullying upheld against them should continue to serve in government.

    Raab says he is confident he has behaved professionally throughout and as soon as he was notified about formal complaints against him he asked the PM to set up an independent investigation.

    Raab has faced a series of newspaper allegations he bullied officials in previous roles, which he has denied.

    More details here.