Commons
Debate
8 July 2026
2 contributions
Rearmament and Warfighting Readiness
I recently met a number of small and medium-sized enterprises and start-up companies that want to produce drones and autonomous systems and to integrate AI more, but they are concerned about the pace of change in the MOD. Does my hon. and gallant Friend believe that the MOD needs to start pacing up …
The hon. Member is making a good and strong point. Does he agree that, frankly, it boils down to the fact that the Government must be much blunter with the British people about the nature of the threat we face?
Commons
Ministerial Statement
30 June 2026
Defence Investment Plan
I thank the Secretary of State for the opportunity to read the DIP this morning in the reading room. There are some important questions that need to be answered. It is clear that the last Government left the armed forces in a poor state, and this Government have been doing all they can to try to rep…
Commons
Westminster Hall
10 June 2026
Myanmar: Human Rights
I will call Sir Jeremy Hunt to move the motion and then call the Minister to respond. I remind Members that they may make a speech only with prior permission from the Member in charge of the debate and the Minister. There will not be an opportunity for the Member in charge to wind up, as is the conv…
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
1 June 2026
Defence Procurement
I note with interest that the Minister rightly says that the need to focus on drone production is gaining more and more ground, but are we anywhere near understanding in the Ministry of Defence the sheer size and numbers of drones and counter-drones that will need to be produced now and in the futur…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
13 April 2026
North Atlantic Submarine Activity
I was in Latvia at the weekend, where they very much know what the threat is from Putin and the Russians. I thank the Minister for his statement and the helpful way in which this has been described in public. It is clear that we need to do a lot more to explain to the British public what the threat …
Commons
Ministerial Statement
13 April 2026
Middle East
I thank the Prime Minister for all his efforts, not least over the past few days. Although many of us have a difference of opinion with President Trump about the way he talks and the actions he is taking in terms of Iran—those are obviously things that we on the Labour Benches do not agree with—I am…
Commons
Debate
23 March 2026
Middle East
The Secretary of State is right to draw to attention to the fact that when he became Secretary of State, our armed forces were underfunded and very stretched. He and his team and the Government have done much to improve that, including bringing about additional funding for the armed forces. However,…
Commons
Westminster Hall
18 March 2026
Domestic Abuse Survivors: Government Support
I remind hon. Members that they may make a speech only with the prior permission of the Member in charge and the Minister. As is the convention for 30-minute debates, there will not be an opportunity for the Member in charge to wind up.
Commons
Westminster Hall
18 March 2026
6 contributions
Royal Mail: Performance
Order. Members can see that the debate is heavily subscribed, so it will be difficult to get every Member in. I am going to impose a two-minute limit to start. It is not in my gift to stop this, but if Members take interventions, that may further restrict the time that people have to speak. That is …
Order. I reiterate that there is a strict two-minute time limit on speeches.
+4 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
16 March 2026
Defence: UK Allies
Given the present focus on the war in the middle east, there is concern that we should not lose focus on what is going on in Ukraine. On developing and strengthening our relationships with our allies, what are the Minister and his fellow Ministers doing to ensure that Putin does not take advantage o…
Commons
Debate
4 March 2026
Ministry of Defence
I congratulate the Chair of the Public Accounts Committee on his well-thought-out speech. I know the good work that his Committee is doing on defence expenditure. It is a real privilege and pleasure to see so many of my colleagues from the Defence Committee in the Chamber. They all do an excellent j…
Commons
Westminster Hall
25 February 2026
3 contributions
UK-German Relations
I am going to call the Front Benchers no later than 5.10 pm, so could Members keep their speeches to around five minutes?
The two Opposition spokespeople have about five minutes each.
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Westminster Hall
25 February 2026
3 contributions
Minister for Men and Boys
Order. I remind Members that they should bob if they wish to be called. If speeches are kept to around seven minutes, we will get everyone in.
Order. Members should not speak about live court cases.
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Debate
4 February 2026
2 contributions
Lord Mandelson
It is disappointing that neither the Opposition nor the Government have referenced the important role that the ISC could have here. As a member of the Intelligence and Security Committee—I have spoken to its Chair, the Lord Beamish, and we heard earlier from its deputy Chair—we feel that the Committ…
Can I give an assurance that we in the ISC are very confident that we can do an effective job on this? It is worth pointing out that we cannot be told what we can and cannot publish. That will be a matter and a decision for us. May I ask for an assurance, following on from what the Minister has just…
Commons
Debate
20 January 2026
Chinese Embassy
I place on the record that I support completely what the deputy Chair of the ISC, of which I am also a member, just said. The process issue needs looking at urgently, and the deputy Chair was clear about the problems we faced. An important letter today from the GCHQ and MI5 heads to the Foreign and …
Commons
Westminster Hall
14 January 2026
Science and Discovery Centres
I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Montgomeryshire and Glyndŵr (Steve Witherden) on securing the debate and on making such a brilliant case for science and discovery centres. I am not sure many of us could add much more to the core case he made, other than to talk about our own areas.
I a…
Commons
Westminster Hall
17 December 2025
Neurodiversity in the Workplace
I will call Sarah Hall to move the motion and then the Minister to respond. I remind other Members that they may make a speech only with the prior permission of both the Member in charge of the debate and the Minister. There will not be an opportunity for the Member in charge to wind up, as is the c…
Commons
Westminster Hall
17 December 2025
Housing Development: Cumulative Impacts
Before I call the last two Back Benchers, let me say that I will be calling the Lib Dem spokesman no later than 3.30 pm.
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
15 December 2025
NATO Defence Expenditure Target
I record my thanks and appreciation to the Secretary of State and his ministerial team for the work they are doing to improve our defence capabilities and leadership in NATO and Europe, as well as on the defence industrial base. We have heard from Conservative Members, who of course are responsible …
Commons
Proceedings
3 December 2025
Official Secrets Act and Espionage
I think that many of us are still somewhat bemused by the fact that somehow, despite the three witness statements, the Crown Prosecution Service thought that it could not go ahead with a prosecution. I welcome much of what my hon. Friend the Minister has said, but I think it would be useful, followi…
Commons
Debate
17 November 2025
Asylum Policy
The Home Secretary’s statement is most welcome. The proposals that she set out today are a significant step in the right direction. The comments that she made about the damage to the social fabric of this country are important. I have a specific question about asylum seekers who have committed crime…
Commons
Westminster Hall
5 November 2025
2 contributions
Bronze-age Heritage: Cambridgeshire
I remind Members that they may make a speech only with the prior permission of the Member in charge of the debate and the Minister; I have not been notified of any such. There will not be an opportunity for the Member in charge to wind up, as is the convention for 30-minute debates. I am keen that a…
This will be a short intervention, I am sure.
Commons
Westminster Hall
5 November 2025
Financial Transparency: Overseas Territories
Because of the number of Members who have indicated that they wish to speak in the debate, with the authority of the Chairman of Ways and Means, I am imposing a time limit on Back Benchers’ contributions of two and a half minutes.