Commons
Debate
17 November 2025
2 contributions
Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Bill
Thank you Madam Chair. It is a privilege, as always, to serve under your chairmanship. I am pleased to speak to the amendments tabled in my name and to those of His Majesty’s Government. I thank the Minister for her detailed explanation of the Bill, which we will all agree has been extremely helpful…
I thank the Minister for guiding the Bill through Parliament and echo her thanks to all those involved in its passage. I am pleased about the cross-party agreement on the Bill—that is as it should be.
On behalf of His Majesty’s official Opposition, I state my support for the core purpose of the Bil…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
13 November 2025
Business of the House
My constituents continue to suffer from the dither, delay and ineptitude of Transport for London and the Mayor, as the rebuilding of the Gallows Corner junction, which was originally meant to be completed in September, is now delayed to the spring. This is causing chaos in Essex and on the eastern s…
Commons
Westminster Hall
13 November 2025
Modern Day Slavery: Pakistan
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Roger, and especially today—thank you for saving the day by turning up to chair this important debate. I commend the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) for bringing another vital debate before the House in the characteristically noble fash…
Commons
Westminster Hall
5 November 2025
2 contributions
Council of Europe and the European Convention on Human Rights
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Mundell. I thank the hon. Member for Stourbridge (Cat Eccles) for securing this important debate, which is extremely topical, because this matter is being debated across the United Kingdom at the moment.
There is no doubt that the intentions beh…
I will not, because time is very limited.
Yet Churchill had the foresight to say, on Europe:
“We help, we dedicate, we play a part, but we are not merged with and do not forfeit our insular or Commonwealth character…we are a separate—and specially-related ally and friend.”
I agree with Churchill.…
Commons
Proceedings
30 October 2025
Business of the House
As chairman of the parliamentary support group for the victims of Libyan-sponsored IRA terrorism, I welcome the publication of the long overdue Shawcross report. Will the Leader of the House accept that the Government must now make a serious attempt to heal the wounds and deliver justice for the vic…
Commons
Oral Questions
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
28 October 2025
UK-Mauritius Agreement on the Chagos Archipelago: Funding
Last week, Labour voted against our amendment, which would have given the House of Commons a say on the Government’s reckless decision to surrender £35 billion of taxpayers’ hard-earned money to Mauritius for the privilege of giving away our own sovereign territory, but we still have no certainty fr…
Commons
Debate
16 October 2025
8 contributions
Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Bill
I thank the Minister for her explanation of the Bill. It is an important piece of legislation, and I thank her for acknowledging that it started under the previous Government. I hope there will be a consensus, but there are many questions to be answered, and we need to go into this legislation in a …
The chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee is, I am afraid, incorrect. We have raised those issues on many occasions, and I have personally raised them on countless occasions over the years. Before too long, the right hon. Member will hear a bit more about the Chagos Islands and the importance of…
+6 more contributions in this session
Commons
Proceedings
16 October 2025
Business of the House
The Leader of the House will be aware that 2027 will mark the 1,100th anniversary of the unification of England under King Athelstan, and the Royal Society of St George is proposing that we have a bank holiday on 12 July 2027. Will he make time for a debate on such a great, momentous occasion for ou…
Commons
Oral Questions
Northern Ireland
15 October 2025
2 contributions
UK Internal Market
6. What steps he is taking to maintain Northern Ireland’s place in the UK internal market.
It is a disgrace that the “Safeguarding the Union” provisions severely restrict trade between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, binding the Province to 300 areas of EU law over which the people have no say. Will the Secretary of State take steps to remove what is left of this damaging internationa…
Commons
Westminster Hall
15 October 2025
Knife Crime
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms McVey. I thank the hon. Member for Ashfield (Lee Anderson) for securing this crucial debate. He always says it as it is and speaks common sense. He is speaking for millions of people in this country who are sick of the knife-crime epidemic that we s…
Commons
Westminster Hall
16 September 2025
2 contributions
International Day of Democracy
As always, it is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir John. I congratulate the hon. Member for Cities of London and Westminster (Rachel Blake) on securing this timely debate to mark the International Day of Democracy. On behalf of His Majesty’s Opposition I absolutely endorse her words a…
I am afraid not, because we are very limited for time.
Britain should do more to strengthen international democracy, and the Commonwealth is a perfect vehicle for that. We have seen a queue of nations, particularly on the African continent, that want to join the Commonwealth. A good example of that…
Commons
Oral Questions
Home Department
15 September 2025
Topical Questions
Is the Home Secretary aware that 20% of officers in the Metropolitan police are currently either suspended or on restricted duties, with senior officers warning that the situation is unsustainable? Does she agree that we need urgently to review both welfare and disciplinary processes in our police s…
Commons
Debate
11 September 2025
Regional Transport Inequality
My hon. Friend said the magic word: “Essex”. Does he support the Transport for London (Extension of Concessions) Bill that I have tabled? TfL runs to Shenfield, Reading, Epping, Watford, Cheshunt and Amersham, way beyond the boundaries of Greater London. The Bill would require TfL to enable any loca…
Commons
Proceedings
11 September 2025
Points of Order
On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. Following the decision in February 2010, our national flag—the Union flag or Union Jack—must fly from the Victoria Tower every day of the year, but in summer a much larger flag is flown; in winter only a small flag is flown. Can you please ask Mr Speaker to…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
11 September 2025
Business of the House
This is a truly sad and tragic day for our friends in the United States of America as they remember the events of 9/11 in 2001, and given the tragic assassination last night of Charlie Kirk. I was privileged to welcome him to the Houses of Parliament in 2018 and take him to Speaker’s House for a Chr…
Commons
Oral Questions
11 September 2025
2 contributions
Topical Questions
I wonder whether the Secretary of State might have a word with her friend the Mayor of London about the appalling mismanagement of the Gallows Corner junction, where a flyover is being constructed. The gridlock, chaos and delays are affecting the whole Romford side of Essex, and east London. It real…
indicated assent.
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
10 September 2025
Engagements
Q11. My local borough commander in Romford tells me how much valuable police time is being wasted investigating trivial social media posts and non-crime hate incidents. Should the police not be patrolling our streets rather than moderating the internet? Will the Prime Minister commit to urgently upd…
Commons
Westminster Hall
10 September 2025
3 contributions
Equality Act 2010: Impact on British Society
I beg to move,
That this House has considered the impact of the Equality Act 2010 on British society.
As always, it is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr Allin-Khan. I welcome the opportunity to bring to the Floor of the House the issue of the impact on British society of the Equality…
The hon. and learned Member is absolutely right that in this country, sadly, we have divided our own nation by treating Northern Ireland differently from the rest of the kingdom. That was a huge error by, I am afraid to say, the last Conservative Government, which agreed to the Northern Ireland prot…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Debate
8 September 2025
Renters’ Rights Bill
I rise to speak to Lords amendment 11 and on the wider issue of pet ownership, which many other Members have spoken about. Pet ownership in rented accommodation is an issue on which I have campaigned for many years in this House. Some Members will remember the Dogs and Domestic Animals (Accommodatio…
Commons
Debate
4 September 2025
5 contributions
House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill
I commend the Father of the House for everything he is saying; he sums everything up perfectly. This is constitutional vandalism, and it is destroying the continuity that has made this place so effective and so special for so many centuries. This is clearly being done with a political motivation, wh…
If the hon. Gentleman agrees that the hereditary principle is wrong and that no one should be in this Parliament by dint of DNA, surely he is saying that we should abolish the monarchy. The Crown is part of this Parliament and Royal Assent is part of the legislative process. If we go by his principl…
+3 more contributions in this session
Commons
Proceedings
4 September 2025
Business of the House
The Leader of the House will be aware of the outrage across the country regarding illegal immigration, asylum hotels and now the huge increase in the number of houses in multiple occupation. This is happening on a large scale in Romford, with a massive boom in HMOs. My constituents want to see an en…
Commons
Debate
2 September 2025
5 contributions
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
I am delighted to hear the hon. Lady’s speech. She and I are both Essex MPs, and I agree that we should not create these huge unitary authorities, because local councils are truly in touch with local communities and local needs. However, does she agree that as Havering is also part of Essex, we shou…
Will the hon. Lady clarify if she would support the people of Havering if they chose to be part of an Essex unitary authority—if that was their democratically chosen wish?
+3 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
2 September 2025
Chagos Islands
The Government have now been forced to admit the real cost of the catastrophic Chagos surrender deal: it is not £3.4 billion—oh no, Mr Speaker—it is a mind blowing £34.7 billion, which is 10 times more that we were told. No wonder Mauritius is planning tax cuts of its own, and it is British business…
Commons
Debate
22 July 2025
Sir David Amess Summer Adjournment
Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, for calling me to speak in this summer Adjournment debate, fittingly named after my dear friend and colleague, the late Sir David Amess. However, it is with regret and sadness that I feel the need to draw to the attention of the House the way in which Sir David’s family…
Commons
Westminster Hall
22 July 2025
Humanitarian Situation in Sudan
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship once again, Dr Huq. It is appropriate that, as someone who has always stood up for humanitarian causes, self-determination and the rights of peoples around the world, you are chairing this important debate. I thank the hon. Member for Huddersfield (H…