Commons
Westminster Hall
17 March 2026
4 contributions
Productivity and Economic Growth: East Midlands
I congratulate the hon. Member for Rushcliffe (James Naish) on securing the debate, and welcome the opportunity to speak on behalf of His Majesty’s Opposition about what is not only an important region but a great one, as he put it.
As we have heard, the east midlands is home to world-leading manuf…
We can trade statistics, but the context for that was the 2009 financial crash, which led to a deficit of 12% to 15%. [Interruption.] The Government who came in were the coalition Government, including our Liberal Democrat colleagues, and it was Danny Alexander, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, who …
+2 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
11 March 2026
3 contributions
Finance (No. 2) Bill
We are grateful to the Minister for running through the plethora of Government amendments that are being added to this already stonkingly large Finance Bill. The sheer number of amendments is an admission that Ministers did not get this right the first time—or even the second time, in Committee, whi…
My hon. Friend is absolutely right, despite the chuntering that we hear from the Minister. The welfare bill is predicted to rise to £406 billion over the forecast period. The Chancellor keeps saying that she is fixing welfare. Where? What is she doing? She had to back away from very modest savings. …
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Treasury
10 March 2026
Cost of Living: Families
The Chancellor promised in her first Budget that she would not extend the freeze on income tax thresholds, because it
“would hurt working people. It would take more money out of their payslips.” —[ Official Report , 30 October 2024; Vol. 755, c. 821.]
In her second Budget, the Chancellor broke her…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
5 March 2026
2 contributions
Energy Markets
How much?
How much will that cost?
Commons
Oral Questions
24 February 2026
Cancer Diagnosis
When I met Big C in King’s Lynn recently, I heard about the anxiety caused; only 52% of local patients are treated within two months, whereas the national average is 71.9%. What action is the Department taking to support the Queen Elizabeth hospital trust in improving its performance for patients?
Commons
Oral Questions
12 February 2026
Lord Mandelson: Government Response to Humble Address Motion
The motion passed by the House requires the Government to provide details of any payments made to Lord Mandelson. There are no national security or international relations issue in doing so. Will the Minister tell the House now how much money Mandelson got and what the Government are doing to get it…
Commons
Debate
11 February 2026
5 contributions
Local Government Finance
This settlement is supposed to deliver fair funding; that is what the formula says on the tin, but it fails the Ronseal test. Norfolk’s core spending power in the first year of the settlement is lower than the national average, and the largest increases in core spending power are going to urban auth…
Indeed. I am sure that if the hon. Lady catches your eye, Madam Deputy Speaker, she will elaborate on that.
Here is my point. Perhaps the kernel of the unfairness is the lack of recognition of remoteness and its impact beyond the adjustment for adult social care. It has been removed from most of th…
+3 more contributions in this session
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
11 February 2026
Engagements
My constituent’s mum, sister and stepfather were killed in a horrific dangerous driving crime for which a foreign national offender was sentenced to 10 and a half years. However, the family have just been told that he may be released imminently in order to be deported, having served just three years…
Commons
Westminster Hall
11 February 2026
Hughes Report: Second Anniversary
I thank the hon. Member for Chesham and Amersham (Sarah Green) for introducing the debate. Like other Members, I was here last year on the first anniversary of the Hughes report. It is a stark reminder of how issues can drift. For those who have suffered, the passing year has not just slipped by qui…
Commons
Debate
5 February 2026
3 contributions
Road Safety
It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Shipley (Anna Dixon), who made a powerful speech, particularly in relation to the impact of dangerous driving on her family.
As the hon. Member said, more than 1,600 people tragically lost their lives on our roads in 2024, and 60% of those fatalities h…
I agree. In the context of the debate, and following contact from constituents, I have been refreshing myself on the highway code, which I admit I had not done before even though I should have done. Awareness is important.
Speeding continues to be a major cause of accidents. However, many residents…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
5 February 2026
Business of the House
The Leader of the House referred earlier to mental health and Time to Talk Day; I will be running the London marathon in April for the 8:56 Foundation in North West Norfolk, which does important work on men’s mental health. Will he join me in paying tribute to charities across the country that are d…
Commons
Oral Questions
Solicitor General
5 February 2026
3 contributions
Jury Trials
8. What advice she has given the Government on the potential impact of removing jury trials on the rule of law.
Yesterday, a jury failed to reach a verdict on charges against Palestine Action activists involved in a violent incident in which a police sergeant’s spine was broken when she was struck by a sledge hammer. Does the Solicitor General agree with me and law abiding people across the country—
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Debate
4 February 2026
Lord Mandelson
In his interrogation of the permanent under-secretary of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and the Cabinet Secretary, was my right hon. Friend able to shed any light on another part of our motion as to whether severance payments were paid to Lord Mandelson and, if so, how much they we…
Commons
Committee Stage
3 February 2026
20 contributions
Finance (No. 2) Bill (Sixth sitting)
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for taking us through these detailed and complex clauses. On the point about lack of consultation, does he agree that there would be merit in holding public hearings ahead of a Finance Bill’s consideration in Committee, rather than just receiving written briefings? If…
One of the points that the Chartered Institute of Taxation also raised is the difficulty of dealing with promoters who are based outside the UK. It says that 20 to 30 of the active promoters who sell mass-marketed tax avoidance schemes have some offshore presence. How will the measures address the o…
+18 more contributions in this session
Commons
Committee Stage
3 February 2026
10 contributions
Finance (No. 2) Bill (Fifth sitting)
Good morning, Sir Roger and members of the Committee. As the Minister says, clauses 112 to 116 will introduce the UK’s excise duty on vaping products and set out the legal and administrative framework for its operation.
Clause 112 will establish the new vaping products duty, setting a flat rate of …
Clauses 117 to 120 will introduce the new vaping duty stamp scheme. The Opposition welcome the Government’s decision to move forward with a duty stamps regime for vaping products: it is, after all, a measure that can help our enforcement agencies and responsible businesses alike to distinguish legit…
+8 more contributions in this session
Commons
Committee Stage
29 January 2026
27 contributions
Finance (No. 2) Bill (Fourth sitting)
I beg to move amendment 42, in clause 79, page 95, line 37, at end insert—
“(3B) Section (3A) does not apply to journeys by private hire vehicle or taxi in rural areas.”
This amendment would exempt journeys by taxi and private hire vehicle in rural areas from the provisions of subsection (3A) of s…
It is a pleasure to see you back in the Chair presiding over our proceedings this afternoon, Mrs Harris. I will speak to amendment 42, which stands in my name and that of my hon. Friends, along with clause 79 and new clause 14.
Clause 79, which many are already calling the taxi tax —that is certain…
+25 more contributions in this session
Commons
Committee Stage
29 January 2026
13 contributions
Finance (No. 2) Bill (Third sitting)
It is a pleasure to see the Exchequer Secretary in his place. Some Committee members may have felt that his ministerial colleague the Economic Secretary dealt with some clauses rather briefly in our earlier sittings, so we look forward to the loquaciousness that the Exchequer Secretary displayed on …
My hon. Friend makes a valuable point. We want more certainty within the system, as far as possible. On earlier clauses, we debated the uncertainty that can come from having administrative rules that HMRC can interpret. Our amendment would give people confidence that their income and the benefit the…
+11 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
20 January 2026
Topical Questions
The Iranian regime is killing protesters in their thousands, and the communication blackout is enabling abuses to happen away from public view. The Minister said yesterday:
“They must restore internet access.” —[ Official Report , 19 January 2026; Vol. 779, c. 48.]
What are the Government doing wi…
Commons
Debate
15 January 2026
Covid-19: Financial Support
I, too, congratulate the hon. Member for Stratford-on-Avon (Manuela Perteghella) on securing this important debate. I thank all hon. Members who have spoken—I think more than 10 did—about what their constituents suffered and continue to suffer. They set out some very powerful examples.
It is almost…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
15 January 2026
Business of the House
Last year, 1,600 people were killed on our roads. May we have a debate on the Government’s road safety strategy and toughening driving offence sentences, including steps to protect horses and riders such as my constituent Emma and many others in North West Norfolk and across the country who feel inc…
Commons
Debate
13 January 2026
10 contributions
Finance (No. 2) Bill
On behalf of His Majesty’s Opposition, I wish to speak to new clauses 22 to 24, tabled in my name and those of my hon. Friends. As the Minister set out, clauses 63 to 68 introduce measures to apply inheritance tax to unspent pension assets and other death benefits for deaths occurring after 6 April …
These changes were presented as some sort of simplification and modernisation, but clauses 83 and 84 nearly double remote gaming duty from 21% to 40% and increase general betting duty to 25%. We will have some of the highest rates of tax on gambling in the world. As we have heard from some Members, …
+8 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
13 January 2026
Topical Questions
The Health Secretary has said he is “shocked” at the inability to acknowledge and then remedy state failures. It is now two years since the Hughes report was published, but no timeframe has been set for compensation for the valproate scandal. When will my constituents Colleen and Andy get the redres…
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
8 January 2026
E-scooters
There are 1 million privately owned scooters, which are illegal to use on public roads. I declare an interest, having bought one a few years ago in the expectation that I would be able to ride it legally by now, but that is permitted only under state-licensed schemes. Why have the Government extende…
Commons
Debate
7 January 2026
Jury Trials
The Government’s amendment, which the Minister has signed, refers to the Government’s impact assessment. Have the Government done an impact assessment but are refusing to publish it, or did they announce plans to end jury trials for certain cases without that evidence?
Commons
Westminster Hall
7 January 2026
Rural Fuel Duty Relief
I congratulate the hon. Member for North Devon (Ian Roome) on securing this debate, and I thank all hon. Members for the contributions that we have heard. It was a Conservative Government that introduced the rural fuel duty relief scheme in 2011, and that was in recognition of the fact that remote c…