Commons
Debate
28 April 2026
9 contributions
Referral of Prime Minister to Committee of Privileges
Are we really suggesting in this debate, in this Chamber, that anyone who does not pass vetting fully and comprehensively, and who is not granted it without hesitation, should be given the most important of our ambassadorships? The Government seem to be suggesting that someone who is borderline—abou…
The hon. Gentleman is right that there are some precedents for House business being whipped, but the lesson is that it is a fool’s errand—it is normally the start of the end. He is making a fair point and being kind to his Front Benchers, but does he agree that we should learn from precedent and not…
+7 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
28 April 2026
Costs for Commuters
In rural areas like Rutland and Stamford, we are reliant on our cars, so fuel costs are hitting us hard. I have a simple ask that the Chancellor could deliver on now: will she expand the 5p per litre rural fuel duty relief to more areas as soon as possible, particularly Leicestershire, Rutland and L…
Commons
Petition
27 April 2026
Veterans Railcard and HM Forces Railcard
This Government have legislated to protect railcard discounts for young people, the elderly and disabled passengers, yet shamefully in the same breath voted against doing the same for our veterans and armed forces. The Government told us that we should simply trust them not to remove these railcards…
Commons
Debate
27 April 2026
2 contributions
Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill
I am intervening because I am a little bit concerned. One of the Ministers and the Parliamentary Private Secretaries are mouthing across the Chamber that there will be no ban. I would be grateful for clarification that there is unity on the Labour side. It is clear—I have checked with those around m…
Social media is the biggest child protection issue of our time, whether it is sexual exploitation, grooming, bullying, radicalisation or, of course, mental health and the risk of addiction. Raising the social media age limit to 16 is the right thing to do. I welcome the Government making this decisi…
Commons
Debate
27 April 2026
Northern Ireland Troubles Bill (Carry-over)
The Secretary of State suggested in his speech that no comfort letters were ever issued by Tony Blair, but a court case collapsed specifically because of one of them, so could he clarify that? More specifically, the right hon. Member for Belfast East (Gavin Robinson) said that a member of staff hire…
Commons
Debate
23 March 2026
Middle East
Any assessment of this intervention must recognise that the Iranian regime has made the Iranian people pay with blood for every single act of defiance, so any attempt to apportion blame when a mass insurrection does not materialise would be unjust, and I hope that we will soon hear Ministers say so …
Commons
Oral Questions
23 March 2026
Child Exploitation
Online cowards such as Andrew Tate make money by radicalising boys into viewing women as prey, which has been laid bare once again by Louis Theroux’s documentary “Manosphere”. Meanwhile, we have religious preachers encouraging men to beat and rape their wives if they refuse to give them sex at their…
Commons
Debate
18 March 2026
9 contributions
Flooding: Rural Communities
Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, for granting this debate. Water has no respect for property. It has no regard for a family’s memories or for a business’s survival. It rises where it will, and for too many in our communities across Rutland, Harborough and the South Kesteven villages, it rises again …
I will gently say to Members that, as much as I love to have an audience for my Adjournment debate, we must recognise that I need to get through everything. I will give way quickly to my hon. Friend the Member for Bridgwater (Sir Ashley Fox) and then to the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon).
+7 more contributions in this session
Commons
Proceedings
18 March 2026
Student Loans
I was of the Tony Blair generation. We were told that unless we went to university, we were a failure, and that everyone should be able to go to university. That was fundamentally wrong; it led to a two-tier system where those who did not go to university were asking why not. I remember young people…
Commons
Oral Questions
16 March 2026
GP Contract
Local doctors tell me that they were hoping the new contract would be focused on family medicine, with detail about the 10-year plan and neighbourhood health centres that the Minister has just touched on. I ask when the Secretary of State will be releasing the detail of the neighbourhood contract, w…
Commons
Debate
16 March 2026
Lord Mandelson: Response to Humble Address
For four months, I asked the Government what severance payments Mandelson received. According to the permanent secretary of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, I received no reply due to an “error”. Now, we have the failure to release 56 documents. Mandelson should have been dismissed …
Commons
Oral Questions
16 March 2026
Strait of Hormuz
Closing the strait of Hormuz is Iran’s most predictable threat, yet it appears that no plan to reopen it was ready to be enacted. Equally, on Cyprus, it appears that there was either an intelligence or a planning failure, which underestimated Iran’s intent or capability. Will the Government review w…
Commons
Debate
10 March 2026
2 contributions
Courts and Tribunals Bill
Will my right hon. Friend give way?
Drawing on my hon. Friend’s point, we have also heard much argument that somehow reducing down to one judge would be a fairer and less biased system. As a woman, I do not feel that one person—we have to be honest with ourselves, they will likely be a man—who does not share my life experiences is mor…
Commons
Statutory Instrument
10 March 2026
5 contributions
Draft Higher Education (Fee Limits and Fee Limit Condition) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir John. I think you were very magnanimous about the inaccuracies in the documents before us.
The real and growing burden on young people already struggling in a difficult labour market will only be added to by the draft regulations. The right hon…
Forgive me, but I did not hear a question in that intervention. It is basic courtesy in the House to ask a question in an intervention, but I congratulate the hon. Member on getting some points with the Whips there. If he had listened to my wording, I said that we should reflect and learn from how w…
+3 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
9 March 2026
3 contributions
Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill
I thank the Minister for recognising that we need to legislate to protect children with allergies in schools. Can she reassure us that the Benedict Blythe Foundation, Helen and the MPs who have campaigned for this will see the amendment at the very earliest opportunity before it goes to the Lords, s…
This is not about the ability of parents; it is about recognising that social media platforms are being weaponised by algorithms—let alone by hostile states—to make children addicted to them. It is impossible for parents to protect their children who do not have the critical thinking skills before 1…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
25 February 2026
Electronic Travel Authorisation: Dual Nationals
I thank the Minister for his response.
The ETA scheme was introduced by the Conservative Government to secure and modernise Britain’s borders. Under the previous system, someone holding a passport from a non-visa nation could enter the UK for six months with minimal formality. That left the Home Of…
Commons
Oral Questions
25 February 2026
Diego Garcia and British Indian Ocean Territory
It is slightly bizarre to hear the hon. Member for Clacton appear to make the argument that the Maldives should own Diego Garcia.
On the question from my right hon. Friend the Father of the House, putting aside the wider Bill, as the Minister does not wish to discuss it, does article 298 of UNCLOS …
Commons
Proceedings
24 February 2026
Points of Order
On a point of order, Mr Speaker. I apologise for not giving you prior notice, Mr Speaker, but during Health questions this morning the Minister said that for the first time ever there will be a children’s cancer strategy as part of the cancer strategy. However, the Government scrapped the children’s…
Commons
Oral Questions
Housing, Communities and Local Government
23 February 2026
2 contributions
Topical Questions
I am afraid that this question may feel like groundhog day. This time last month, I asked for a meeting about local government reform, because my residents are so concerned. I was promised a meeting, yet despite having chased at least twice a week every single week for the past month, we have had ze…
It is not funny.
Commons
Oral Questions
Solicitor General
5 February 2026
Female Genital Mutilation
Many of the practitioners who sell the heinous crime of female genital mutilation also sell exorcisms of children. Thousands of children have died from these so-called exorcisms over the past 10 years, including from the black African community here in the UK. Does the Solicitor General have any con…
Commons
Debate
4 February 2026
22 contributions
Lord Mandelson
The hon. Lady’s point about the wider establishment is important. Individuals like Sir Richard Branson clearly offered to help Epstein launder his identity and reputation by suggesting public relations advice on how he might recover from his prosecution. We have gentlemen like Bill Gates, whose wife…
Will the hon. Lady give way one more time?
+20 more contributions in this session
Commons
Proceedings
4 February 2026
Points of Order
On a point of order, Mr Speaker. The Prime Minister, who has now left the Chamber, said that each Humble Address that his party laid in opposition mentioned national security. However, I have checked the two most recent Humble Addresses laid by the Labour party when it was in opposition, and all Lab…
Commons
Westminster Hall
3 February 2026
Animals in Science Regulation Unit: Annual Report 2024
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir John. I thank the hon. Member for Aberdeenshire North and Moray East (Seamus Logan) for securing this debate and all Members who have spoken in it. There are few issues that reflect our values as a society more than how we treat creatures in our…
Commons
Debate
2 February 2026
US Department of Justice Release of Files
I am afraid that it is untenable to suggest that what was already known of Mandelson’s simpering after the conviction of Epstein was not enough to make it inappropriate for him to be ambassador, and I did object to that from day one, on that exact basis, as Hansard shows. I am afraid that a number o…