Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
24 June 2026
Engagements
Q8. I thank the Prime Minister for his leadership. One of the concerns I hear most often from my constituents across Erdington, Kingstanding, Castle Vale and south Oscott is about the rapid growth of exempt accommodation. In my constituency and across Birmingham, properties refused house in multiple…
Commons
Westminster Hall
16 June 2026
West Midlands Police: Government Support
I thank the hon. Member for securing this vital debate. I represent the constituency next door to his, and I agree with much of what he has said. People are saying they need to feel safe on the streets. My constituency has had Operation Fearless, which has now expanded to the hon. Member’s area. It …
Commons
Debate
9 June 2026
Road Safety: West Midlands
I rise to speak about Chester Road in Erdington, which has become a real concern for many residents because of the repeated serious collisions and fatalities over recent years, the most recent being on 24 May 2026. Residents tell me that although speed restrictions and traffic calming measures have …
Commons
Proceedings
23 April 2026
Allied Health Professionals
My hon. Friend is making some fantastic points, especially those highlighting the findings of the Health and Social Care Committee. Allied health professionals are absolutely vital to what we do in the health service. As with health visitors, their numbers seem to be going down at the moment, and no…
Commons
Committee Stage
14 April 2026
Courts and Tribunals Bill (Third sitting)
The Minister is making some important points, but I must bring her back to what she said about the fairness of jury trials, and about people feeling that they are fair. At the moment, many minority groups and working people of a lower socioeconomic level feel that if a trial is moved to be heard by …
Commons
Debate
10 March 2026
4 contributions
Courts and Tribunals Bill
I rise to speak on a Bill that is both necessary and difficult. Let me start by saying that I support its intention to tackle a Crown court backlog that has more than doubled since the pandemic, leaving victims waiting years for justice. Let us be clear what the backlog means: as the Victims’ Commis…
I thank my hon. Friend for that contribution.
For ethnic minority communities, that right has been seen as a vital protection against fear of bias, whether conscious or unconscious. A diverse jury of 12 brings the common sense of the community into the room; a single judge, however learned, does no…
+2 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
5 March 2026
2 contributions
Palliative Care
I thank my hon. Friend the Member for York Central (Rachael Maskell), who I love dearly, for leading this important debate. Palliative care is about dignity. I saw the value of this care every day during my 25 years as a nurse in the health service. I still see it now in representing my constituency…
I am sure that every Member in the Chamber has a local hospice that they really appreciate and cannot do without. I thank my hon. Friend for giving his local hospice a shout-out. I am sure it will be appreciated.
Palliative care is a core medical need and it requires core funding. Let us look at th…
Commons
Proceedings
5 March 2026
Business of the House
Councillors are the bedrock of their communities, working tirelessly on behalf of residents. I know this from my own time as a local councillor. Waseem Zaffar was an outstanding and much-loved Birmingham councillor, who served his constituents with passion and distinction, and his recent passing at …
Commons
Westminster Hall
3 February 2026
Town and City Centre Safety
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Dowd. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Derby South (Baggy Shanker) for securing this important debate. In my constituency, our local town centres are the beating heart of community life. Whether that is Erdington High Street, Slade Road, or Kin…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
29 January 2026
4 contributions
First 1,000 Days of Life
On behalf of the Health and Social Care Committee, it is a pleasure to present to the House our fifth report of this Parliament, which is on the subject of the first 1,000 days of life. I thank the Backbench Business Committee for allocating time for this statement. We chose this subject because thi…
I thank my hon. Friend for all the hard work she put into this report. It could not have been achieved without everybody on the team working so diligently. Family hubs are an incredibly valuable resource, and they deal with all the issues that she raises. The problem is that we just have not got eno…
+2 more contributions in this session
Commons
Proceedings
15 January 2026
2 contributions
Digital ID
I thank the Minister for coming here today to talk to us about the revised policy.
Well, okay; I apologise. But the Minister is here today and he has given us the revised policy, with which I am delighted. I am so pleased that the Minister and the Government have decided not to make it a mandatory scheme. I have had an overwhelming number of complaints in my constituency. Going fo…
Commons
Westminster Hall
15 January 2026
Gambling Harms: Children and Young People
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Lewell. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Sittingbourne and Sheppey (Kevin McKenna) for securing this important debate.
Gambling is increasingly accessible to children and young people, whether through online platforms, advertising or other …
Commons
Debate
14 January 2026
West Midlands Police
I welcome this statement and this clarity. The findings are damning. I was born and bred in Birmingham and I am a local MP, and I know that in my community there is very little trust in the police. Does the Secretary of State agree that, in an increasingly political world, it is important that in fu…
Commons
Westminster Hall
6 January 2026
Less Survivable Cancers
I begin by thanking the hon. Member for Wokingham (Clive Jones) for securing this debate and for his tireless work campaigning for better outcomes for all affected by the least survivable cancers. For too long, these cancers have been neglected and left behind. Patients and their loved ones have had…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
10 December 2025
Resident Doctors: Industrial Action
I have always been a massive advocate for all medical and nursing staff, and I absolutely understand what a difficult job our healthcare workers do, but given that flu is running rampant across the country and most NHS staff—including resident doctors, but also nurses and other staff—are suffering a…
Commons
Proceedings
8 December 2025
Maccabi Tel Aviv FC: Away Fans Ban
As someone who has had the pleasure of working with the chief constable, I can say that he is a very considered man. Having said that, as an MP who represents the adjoining constituency, I was given absolutely no information about what was going on. Can the Minister assure the House that lessons wil…
Commons
Proceedings
8 December 2025
Restriction of Jury Trials
Jury trials allow ordinary citizens to participate in the justice system—which many groups simply do not trust—ensuring community representation and transparency. Can the Minister explain how citizen involvement can be continued, so that we do not see additional miscarriages of justice as a result o…
Commons
Oral Questions
Work and Pensions
8 December 2025
2 contributions
Support into Work: Health Conditions
12. What steps he is taking to support people with health conditions into work.
A constituent of mine with severe health needs recently told me that she gained employment only after she was able to learn to drive and then secure a car through the Motability scheme. Can the Minister set out what further steps the Department is taking to ensure that disabled people with health ne…
Commons
Proceedings
2 December 2025
Budget Resolutions
I welcome last week’s Budget, which finally, after 14 years of Tory neglect, puts the people of Birmingham Erdington first.
On our NHS, I was delighted to hear that the Chancellor announced further efforts to shorten NHS waiting lists, including an upgrade to Stockland Green primary care centre in …
Commons
Debate
17 November 2025
Asylum Policy
I agree with the Government that we desperately need to tackle illegal migration. I hear that on the doorsteps, and I see it in my mail each week in Birmingham Erdington. How quickly after the changes come into force will the Government ensure that safe and legal routes are in place? That will be ke…
Commons
Debate
23 October 2025
2 contributions
Black History Month
Madam Deputy Speaker, will the Minister give way?
Will the Minister outline what steps she is taking to ensure that equality and opportunity are at the heart of this Government’s five missions?
Commons
Debate
22 October 2025
5 contributions
Mental Health and Hoarding
I am grateful for the opportunity to lead this debate on a subject that, to the best of my knowledge, has never been discussed on the Floor of the House before.
I often speak of my 25 years as an NHS nurse because that experience has fundamentally shaped my understanding of the hidden struggles wit…
My hon. Friend raises a valuable point. I will come on to that later in my speech, but I absolutely agree that hoarding disrupts people’s lives.
+3 more contributions in this session
Commons
Westminster Hall
16 October 2025
10 contributions
Health and Social Care Committee
Thank you, Mr Betts. It is an honour to serve under your chairmanship.
I wish to make a statement on the recent publication of the Health and Social Care Committee’s report on black maternal health. I speak on behalf of the Committee, which I formally thank for all its hard work and dedication to t…
I thank my hon. Friend, who is a brilliant member of the Committee, including during the inquiry. She is absolutely right. The issue of cultural change applies to everybody. We need to look at cultural change within maternity services, not just for black women but for all women. If we are to get the…
+8 more contributions in this session
Commons
Ministerial Statement
15 October 2025
Pride in Place
I welcome the Labour Government’s £20 million investment in Kingstanding in Birmingham. For 14 years, my constituency was repeatedly overlooked; it was even denied levelling-up funding on two occasions. Can the Minister assure me that after 14 years of Conservative neglect, local residents will come…
Commons
Debate
15 October 2025
Jhoots Pharmacy
I thank the Minister for his response. Community pharmacies, such as Lodge pharmacy in Perry Common in my area, play a vital role and offer an excellent service, and that is why I am concerned when places such as Jhoots pharmacy close or, maybe, fold. The winter months are coming, and I am passionat…