Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
8 July 2026
Engagements
Q2. In three weeks’ time, Greater Manchester residents will have the chance to vote for Labour’s brilliant candidate, Bev Craig, to be their next mayor. I have worked with Bev for many years, so I know her strong record as a leader and what an outstanding mayor she will be. Will the Deputy Prime Min…
Commons
Oral Questions
Cabinet Office
25 June 2026
2 contributions
UK-EU Relations
15. What steps he is taking to improve relations with the EU.
Following the agreement at the May 2025 summit to establish a UK-EU youth experience scheme, can the Minister update the House on the progress of negotiations on the scheme and confirm that it remains a Government priority?
Commons
Oral Questions
Culture, Media and Sport
18 June 2026
2 contributions
UK Artists Touring in Europe
9. What steps her Department is taking to help support UK artists touring in Europe.
I thank the Minister for that answer; there is some good news there. One of the many negatives of Brexit is that it has placed barriers on UK artists being able to tour in Europe. The Culture, Media and Sport Committee has just published its report, featuring a number of practical measures that the …
Commons
Oral Questions
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
16 June 2026
2 contributions
West Bank: Settler Activity
5. What diplomatic steps her Department is taking in response to settler activity in the west bank.
There have been over 760 incidents this year, resulting in casualties, property damage and 57 deaths, so it is clear that diplomacy and the action we have taken so far are not moving the dial. I appreciate that we are only one voice in the international community, but we clearly need to be seen to b…
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
11 June 2026
2 contributions
Passenger Rail Services
3. What steps she is taking to improve passenger rail services.
We in the north have waited a long time for the trans-Pennine route upgrade—it is very important to us in Manchester, and very welcome. What progress can we expect on improving journey times and reliability and reducing cancellations, and what more investment can we expect to improve facilities for …
Commons
Debate
11 June 2026
Legacy of Jo Cox
Jo was a shining star of our 2015 intake; she was loved by us all, and is missed and remembered every day. I am pleased that the Minister mentioned Jo’s work on Syria, which the Minister was herself involved in. We worked together on that. The fact is that Jo is remembered not just by people in this…
Commons
Debate
21 April 2026
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
I think the Minister has slightly brushed over Lords amendment 41 on the agent of change principle. This is an excellent Bill, but I do think it is disappointing that the Government are rejecting Lords amendment 41. If we want to properly protect our beloved music venues, pubs and cultural instituti…
Commons
Oral Questions
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
21 April 2026
2 contributions
West Bank: Illegal Settlements
8. What diplomatic steps her Department is taking to oppose the expansion of illegal settlements in the west bank.
Tariff preferences are one thing, and I know we cannot solve this problem alone, but we must do whatever we can to put pressure on the Israeli Government to stop. The Israeli Government are using the fog of war in Iran to make a Palestinian state unviable by an expansion of these settlements. What m…
Commons
Proceedings
5 March 2026
Business of the House
Sixteen banks have closed in Manchester Withington in the last five years, and the impending closure of the NatWest in Chorlton and the Halifax in Didsbury means there will be just one bank left in my constituency. Most of us bank online nowadays, but individuals and businesses still need to access …
Commons
Oral Questions
5 March 2026
Topical Questions
T4. The Government deal with a huge number of arm’s length public bodies of variable value and success. What progress are Ministers making on tackling the number and effectiveness of arm’s length public bodies?
Commons
Oral Questions
5 March 2026
2 contributions
Digital ID Scheme: Public consultation
10. What steps he plans to take to consult the public on the design of the digital ID scheme.
I congratulate my hon. Friend on his well-deserved elevation to ministerial office.
Even though digital ID will make it easier for people to access public services and engage with public bodies, there is still an awful lot of disinformation, and frankly conspiracy theories, out there trying to unde…
Commons
Oral Questions
Cabinet Office
22 January 2026
2 contributions
Infected Blood Compensation Scheme
11. What recent progress he has made on the delivery of the infected blood compensation scheme.
I have a number of constituents affected by the infected blood scandal. Justice for them and for the other victims is long overdue, so I am pleased that the Government are making progress on this issue. May I ask how many interim £100,000 payments have been made to date to the estates of people who …
Commons
Oral Questions
20 January 2026
Topical Questions
T7. It will be impossible to get the necessary aid into Gaza until the Rafah crossing is fully open. Will the Minister update us on progress in trying to persuade the Netanyahu Government to do the right thing and open the Rafah crossing?
Commons
Oral Questions
20 November 2025
2 contributions
Passenger Rail: Performance Improvements
17. What steps she is taking to improve passenger rail performance.
My constituents in Manchester are left constantly frustrated by delays and cancellations, not just on the west coast main line, which you know all about, Mr Speaker, but on our east-west routes, and on services all around Manchester. What are the Government doing, alongside partners, to drive improv…
Commons
Westminster Hall
18 November 2025
Flood Risk and Flood Defence Infrastructure: North-west England
My hon. Friend is making an excellent speech and I agree with all the things that she has asked for. Perhaps I can add one more ask of both the EA and the Government, which is for more of a focus on the upstream prevention activity, so we can stop the waters coming down on the Mersey—a number of col…
Commons
Oral Questions
18 November 2025
2 contributions
Great British Energy: Public Services and Renewable Energy
1. What steps Great British Energy is taking to help public services to use more renewable energy.
I warmly welcome the announcement of solar panels at Ladybarn primary school in Withington—it is great news for an excellent school in my patch and good news for the planet. I have also seen good investment in solar panels on hospital buildings in my patch, and we clearly need to scale that up. How …
Commons
Proceedings
12 November 2025
Independent Football Regulator
We now have an excellent, highly qualified individual who has been appointed to chair the football regulator, and we have an excellent Secretary of State who made a mistake for which she has apologised. Even the commissioner said that the breach of the code
“was not a knowing breach.”
What footbal…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
12 November 2025
Engagements
Q6. Last week I visited the new diagnostic centre at Withington community hospital, and as well as the 85,000 new appointments it is going to create, I was really pleased to see new solar panels and heat pumps being designed into the building. I thank the Prime Minister for his climate leadership an…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
29 October 2025
Engagements
Q3. As Palestinians try to rebuild their lives amid the rubble of Gaza, last night once again dozens of innocent people were killed by Israeli airstrikes. What will the UK do, along with our international partners, to hold the Israeli—the Netanyahu—Government to account for their actions, and what m…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
13 October 2025
Manchester Terrorism Attack
I thank the Home Secretary for her statement and her visit to Manchester immediately following the attack. In the Jewish community in my constituency in south Manchester, there is a real sense of anxiety and fear, and she is right to identify that. The message that needs to go out today, and that ha…