Commons
Oral Questions
Northern Ireland
3 June 2026
Defence Industrial Strategy
Taking into account the world-class engineering capabilities already proven by industrial icons such as Shorts, Harland & Wolff and Thales in Northern Ireland, will the Minister ensure that the defence growth deal specifically leverages the existing high-tech supply chains and advanced manufactu…
Commons
Westminster Hall
3 June 2026
Rail Freight
I commend the hon. Lady for securing this debate. I envy her region’s constructive approach. We unfortunately do not have any rail freight in Northern Ireland, and it is very disappointing, but there is a need to emphasise and build on the east-west relationship. We are all part of the United Kingdo…
Commons
Westminster Hall
3 June 2026
2 contributions
Seasonal Hospitality Businesses in Coastal Areas
I can testify that, for Northern Ireland, cost increases have forced almost 90% of hospitality businesses, many of which are found on our coastlines, to operate at below 90% of the required capacity. Tax rises have forced 50% of hospitality businesses to cut their workforces, and 68% have had to inc…
I thank the Minister for her replies to all our questions. We need to encourage more people from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to take home holidays. Looking at all the problems across the world, we should encourage our own people to have their holidays at home. Does the M…
Commons
Debate
3 June 2026
General Strike Centenary Commemorations
I commend the hon. Gentleman on bringing this debate forward. I spoke to him beforehand to ascertain his focus, and I will outline my focus and why I wished to be here. I remember when I went for my first job, which was at Henry Denny & Sons in Belfast. The manager brought me in and said, “Jim, …
Commons
Westminster Hall
2 June 2026
Community Pharmacies
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Jardine. I thank the hon. Member for Tiverton and Minehead (Rachel Gilmour) for placing this matter before us. I also welcome the Minister to his place. I very much look forward to his commitment to the pharmacies, and I welcome the Government’s com…
Commons
Westminster Hall
2 June 2026
Glasgow City Region Economy
I commend the hon. Member for bringing this forward. I spoke to him beforehand about city region deals recognising the situation in Glasgow and my constituency, yet this work has only just begun. Does he agree that sustained funding has to be available to local councils to build on those foundationa…
Commons
Oral Questions
Energy Security and Net Zero
2 June 2026
Heat Networks
He’s the one with the hair, Mr Speaker; I don’t have any.
I welcome the Minister’s response to the hon. Member for Edinburgh North and Leith (Tracy Gilbert). The regulation of heat networks is not just an issue for her constituency, as the Minister well understands. My request to him—he is one of t…
Commons
Westminster Hall
2 June 2026
3 contributions
Workplace Exposure to Silica Dust
I commend the hon. Lady for securing the debate. Exposure to RCS dust causes significant occupational health issues, and the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland estimates that silica dust exposure is responsible for some 20 lung cancer deaths per year. A quarry worker in Northern Irelan…
Will the Minister give way?
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Westminster Hall
2 June 2026
Preparedness for National Emergencies
I commend the hon. Gentleman for bringing this issue forward; I spoke to him beforehand. Does he agree that if groups tasked with preparedness training, such as the building resilience in communities project in Northern Ireland, are to be effective, they must be well funded? The work carried out wit…
Commons
Debate
2 June 2026
2 contributions
Relationship between Social Security Scotland and the DWP
I congratulate the hon. Lady on securing this debate—I spoke to her about it beforehand, just as I spoke to you, Madam Deputy Speaker. In Northern Ireland we see the same breakdown in communication, the same bureaucratic black holes, and the same administrative friction when trying to cross-referenc…
I thank the Minister for giving way—he is always constructive and helpful, and we look forward to his contribution and his answers, which I am sure will help the hon. Member for North East Fife (Wendy Chamberlain) and others. I know the debate is about Scotland, but as I have mentioned, we are havin…
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
1 June 2026
Armed Forces: Paternity Leave
I thank the hon. Member for Luton North (Sarah Owen) for her question. On this issue, she is a champion—a word often used in this Chamber, but true today. I thank the Minister for her response. When it comes to how the Government promote this issue, it is important when recruiting people to let them…
Commons
Debate
1 June 2026
Health Bill
I welcome the Secretary of State to his place and I wish him well in the role he now takes on. I am very pleased that he has experienced the NHS at its best, and I am glad to hear that.
The Government have called for a duty of candour, so they must ensure that that is still possible, but the decisi…
Commons
Debate
1 June 2026
Coastal Communities: Government Support
First, I commend the hon. Gentleman for bringing this issue forward. He is a very assiduous MP on behalf of his constituents and he should be congratulated on his contribution. I am also an MP for a rural coastal area, and there are other issues as well as social housing, including isolation, which …
Commons
Debate
20 May 2026
Banking Hubs
On that point— [ Laughter. ] First, may I commend the hon. Member for Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey (Graham Leadbitter) for bringing this matter forward? I spoke to him beforehand, and I thought it was important to put this point on the record. I have had 11 banks close in my constituency, and se…
Commons
Debate
20 May 2026
6 contributions
Defence Readiness
I commend the shadow Minister for bringing this matter forward. He is right to put it on record; it is very much part of this debate. However, this goes further than the veterans who cannot sleep at night, and the families who are worried about what will happen to their father, brother or sister. Do…
I welcome everything that the Government are putting forward with the spend in Northern Ireland. The Minister has committed himself to that and there have been lots of visits to Northern Ireland to make it better, but the UK spend per head on the mainland is £400 and the UK spend per head in Norther…
+4 more contributions in this session
Commons
Proceedings
20 May 2026
Processed Russian Oil Products: Sanctions
I would hate to be deprived of a question. I thank the Minister very much for his sincere and helpful answers. May I say this gently to him? Many of us believe that there is a very clear solution to this problem. If this Government want true energy security, then instead of forcing British businesse…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
19 May 2026
High Speed 2 Reset
I thank the Secretary of State for her statement, for her positivity and for trying to make matters better. She talked about maximising international standards and reshaping governance to find efficiencies, yet my constituents in Northern Ireland are facing critical infrastructure deficits of their …
Commons
Debate
19 May 2026
High Speed 2: Impact on Communities
I commend the hon. Lady for securing this debate. Does she not agree that the United Kingdom has become so entangled in planning delays, legal challenges, environmental regulation and bureaucratic red tape that we are now struggling to build even the most basic strategic infrastructure in a reasonab…
Commons
Proceedings
18 May 2026
Backing Business to Create Economic Growth
I commend the Secretary of State for what he is saying. I know he is a regular visitor to Northern Ireland because he loves the country, and we appreciate that.
According to the Federation of Small Businesses in Northern Ireland, more than half the enterprises trading between Great Britain and Nort…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
18 May 2026
Youth Justice
I very much welcome the Secretary of State’s statement—it would be churlish of anyone in this Chamber not to welcome the White Paper’s proposals, which have been put forward in a positive fashion. Can I perhaps help the Secretary of State in a gentle way? The Youth Justice Agency in Newtownards in m…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
14 May 2026
Supreme Court Dillon Judgment
I thank the Secretary of State for his statement and for his and his Government’s clarity, which is helpful. This Parliament is the supreme lawmaking body of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and courts must interpret laws, not rewrite them or strike them down based on politi…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
14 May 2026
National Security
I thank the Minister very much for his determination and the determination of his Government to protect all the citizens of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and I endorse his comments about the police, MI5 and MI6. We have individuals collectively doing the hard work to try …
Commons
Proceedings
14 May 2026
Getting Britain Working Again
I thank the Secretary of State for enabling me to ask a question, and for the positivity in his comments so far. Like him, I am incredibly worried about whether young people are getting job opportunities, and many in my constituency unfortunately have not been. May I ask a question about apprentices…
Commons
Debate
13 May 2026
2 contributions
New Developments: Unadopted Roads and Public Amenities
I commend the hon. Member on bringing this debate forward. What he is explaining happens round my way regularly. It is a scandal when hard-working people put all their life savings into a new-build home and then find that the estate’s roads are not even completed. The Department for Infrastructure b…
The Minister probably know what my question is going to be before I have even asked it: will he share his ideas and his conclusions on the way forward with the relevant Minister back home? If the Minister has a way of doing it better, we need to know it as well.
Commons
Debate
28 April 2026
Referral of Prime Minister to Committee of Privileges
I thank the Leader of the Opposition for securing and introducing this motion. Does she agree that there is a very dangerous pattern emerging in the Government’s judgment after they bypassed vetting to appoint Lord Mandelson, a man with well-documented security concerns? Is she also concerned about …