Commons
Ministerial Statement
13 November 2025
Police Reform
May I put it on the record, on behalf of my constituents, that both Martyn Underhill, the initial Dorset police and crime commissioner, and the current PCC, David Sidwick, have done sterling work with their teams to protect and look after my constituents over the years that they have served? Followi…
Commons
Debate
11 November 2025
Remembrance Day: Armed Forces
I share the hon. Gentleman’s view on European co-operation. Does he agree that it would be more than helpful—particularly in the face of Russian aggression, and of the American retraction from European defence that he mentions—if the French Government took another look at how the United Kingdom coul…
Commons
Debate
27 October 2025
12 contributions
Regulation and Inspection of Funeral Services
There are many issues that will divide this House and many issues that will divide society, but one thing that probably unites all of us, and indeed society, is that we have a legitimate expectation of decent and respectful treatment for our dead. I do not think that is asking too much. The vast maj…
I do agree. In many respects, the only bit of legislation on which we can rest a serious prosecution is the Burial Act 1857, which deals with the corpse post internment. It is silent on the corpse’s treatment from the point of death through to the point of either internment or cremation. There is an…
+10 more contributions in this session
Commons
Proceedings
27 October 2025
Points of Order
On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. The hon. Member for Brent East (Dawn Butler) is absolutely right to draw the attention of the House to the Nolan principles of public life. Keeping a weather eye on those principles falls within the auspices of my Select Committee, the Public Administration…
Commons
Debate
27 October 2025
Prisoner Release Checks
The Justice Secretary will know that police operational independence, free from political interference, is crucial and is enshrined in the police protocol. Yet, on page three of the statement which the Secretary of State just gave, he told us—I checked against delivery—that over the weekend he
“cha…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
22 October 2025
Engagements
Q8. As last week’s urgent question highlighted, Jhoots—the pharmacy non-provider—is effectively de facto bankrupt and possibly even insolvent too. Last week we discussed at great length the impact that is having on patients securing their prescriptions. It is now becoming increasingly evident that w…
Commons
Debate
15 October 2025
Jhoots Pharmacy
I thank my friend and neighbour, the hon. Member for West Dorset (Edward Morello), for securing this urgent question. I have exactly the same problem as he and the hon. Member for North Somerset (Sadik Al-Hassan), but in Shaftesbury in my constituency. I thank the staff of Boots, who are picking up …
Commons
Ministerial Statement
14 October 2025
Northern Ireland Troubles
In the interests of trying to solve this issue, I wish the Secretary of State well and hope that he will bring forward the Bill and deal with its progress in the spirit of compromise and co-operation between the parties to find the best landing spot possible. He mentioned good faith, which is a prec…
Commons
Oral Questions
13 October 2025
Topical Questions
The Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 was never intended to be used by local authorities as an addendum to planning enforcement. The Secretary of State may well have seen recent media reports about this issue. Will he undertake to look into it and to issue guidance to local authorities, explaining that whi…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
15 September 2025
Official Secrets Act
The Minister is clearly not happy with the CPS’s decision, and therefore the Government are not, and the House is obviously not either. Because the two suspects did not face a trial, double jeopardy does not come into play. Will the Minister undertake to explore with the Attorney General the scope f…
Commons
Westminster Hall
15 September 2025
2 contributions
Children with SEND: Assessments and Support
Will the hon. Gentleman give way?
Does the hon. Lady agree that it is not just a postcode lottery but that it is often about the confidence of the parents or carers in standing up to, questioning and challenging officialdom? Some are very comfortable, others less so. Some people use the phrase, “It is the sharp-elbowed who get ahead…
Commons
Proceedings
10 September 2025
Qatar: Israeli Strike
The events that took place earlier this week in Jerusalem, and yesterday, prove that the two extremes in this conflict have no interest in peace. Hamas benefits from the violence, and the right wing of the Israeli Government also profits as it seeks to expand Israel’s territory and subject the Pales…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
10 September 2025
Engagements
Q3. A few short weeks ago, a constituent of mine died in a tragic fire at the Lady Bailey residential park in Winterborne Whitechurch. The fire was attended by 50 Dorset and Wiltshire firefighters and others. This summer alone, 900 grassland, woodland and crop fires have equalled the busiest year on…
Commons
Debate
9 September 2025
2 contributions
Diego Garcia Military Base and British Indian Ocean Territory Bill
Will the Minister give way?
I welcome the hon. Gentleman to his promoted position. If he is asking the House to thank him for negotiating what we already have, I think our thanks will be a long time in coming, because the outcome of the negotiations is pretty poor as far as this country is concerned. Surely we have given away …
Commons
Debate
4 September 2025
House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill
The hon. Member for Harlow (Chris Vince) mentioned the very long period of time that his party has been anxious for and agitating about reform of the House of Lords. Is the creation of a future Select Committee really the sum of all that anger and agitation? As my hon. Friend the Member for Bridgwat…
Commons
Debate
4 September 2025
Privilege
I beg to move,
That—
(1) There be laid before this House the reports of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration proposed to be laid under section 10(3) of the Parliamentary Commissioner Act 1967 concerning the steps taken by the Charity Commission to implement recommendations contained i…
Commons
Oral Questions
4 September 2025
Dorset Coast: Pollution
We in North Dorset would love to be talking about ministerial visits from the DEFRA team, but, despite an invitation to the Farming Minister, none have crossed the border to visit.
North Dorset farmers and landowners wish to play their active and fullest part to ensure that, through nitrate neutral…
Commons
Debate
14 July 2025
2 contributions
Deprivation of Citizenship Orders (Effect during Appeal) Bill
As my right hon. Friend knows, I have a huge amount of respect and affection for him, and he is right to refer to the inalienable rights that a British citizen has in terms of access to justice and so forth, but surely he must accept that individuals facing deprivation of citizenship will have cross…
Surely the fact that a remedy is not available to all does not mean that it is not a remedy. If we wish to argue for the two-tier approach, we can think of instances in which mental capacity has come into play, particularly in respect of capital offences, when those existed here. In abstract theory,…
Commons
Debate
14 July 2025
3 contributions
Privilege
I beg to move,
That
(1) the transcript of unreported oral evidence taken from Mr Baxter by the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee in private session on 11 November 2009 be referred to the Committee of Privileges;
(2) the Committee consider the petition from the Secretary to the Omagh Bombing inqu…
I agree wholeheartedly with the hon. Gentleman. If this place is not a champion of justice and its pursuit as a high court of Parliament, what is it?
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Ministerial Statement
14 July 2025
State of Climate and Nature
As a sponsor of the Climate and Nature Bill, I welcome the Secretary of State’s statement this afternoon. He is right to highlight that this is a national crisis, and many of us across the House are right to point out that it cannot be ignored and that inaction has too great a cost, but he will be a…
Commons
Oral Questions
Housing, Communities and Local Government
14 July 2025
Deprived Areas: Funding
It is often harder to see because it is more sparsely spread across larger rural areas, but I remind the Minister of what I know he knows: deprivation exists in our rural areas. Can I urge him to ensure that this does not become an issue of north versus south or urban versus rural, but that the Gove…
Commons
Debate
9 July 2025
2 contributions
Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill
The hon. Member makes an incredibly powerful and telling point about the disincentive of trying to get into work for people who have a varying and fluctuating condition, such as MS. That is an unanswerable point and I will listen with interest to what the Minister has to say in response. Does he agr…
With the greatest respect, the hon. Lady is putting the cart before the horse, as are the Government. You do your review first, you find out what it says, and you tailor your policies and your response to it. Is that not the best way of making policy? This half-baked idea satisfies no one.
Commons
Debate
1 July 2025
3 contributions
Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill
Given the rather botched way in which the Government have dealt with this issue and the U-turn that is proving to be unsatisfactory, and given the scale of the changes that need to be made, does my hon. Friend agree that the Government will just move away from any meaningful reform, deeming it to be…
The hon. Gentleman is making a most correct and powerful point, which is that this is not the best way of making law and it is hugely disrespectful to Members on all sides of the House, irrespective of position. Does he agree that that is compounded by the woefully inadequate time that is being set …
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Debate
23 June 2025
UK Military Base Protection
Given that a female officer commands Blandford Camp, I totally echo the comments made by the hon. Member for North East Derbyshire (Louise Jones).
There will be a lot of concern among personnel in the camp and those who live in the communities around it that they are now targets for either home-gro…
Commons
Debate
20 June 2025
2 contributions
Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for giving way. What level of concern does it give her that, between Second Reading and today, a growing canon of professionals and their independent professional bodies have urged great caution about this Bill, not on the principle, but because they are opposed to the…
Does the right hon. Lady find it rather peculiar that the previous Parliament spent 746 hours discussing the death of a fox and about 98 hours discussing the death of fellow humans?