Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
8 July 2026
Engagements
Ruth Ellis was the last woman to be executed in this country. Her case serves as a haunting reminder of a time when our justice system ignored the realities of domestic abuse and coercive control. In the decades since, members of Ruth’s family and supporters have campaigned unwaveringly for her to r…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
18 May 2026
Youth Justice
I welcome this statement and the White Paper. What steps is the Secretary of State taking to ensure that programmes such as turnaround are felt in constituencies such as mine in Colchester and beyond?
Commons
Debate
25 March 2026
Victims and Courts Bill
The Victims and Courts Bill is part of the Government’s wider reforms of our justice system that will, in the round, better protect victims and improve their access to justice, as well as that of defendants. I really welcome its measures to improve communications with victims, to reform non-disclosu…
Commons
Committee Stage
24 March 2026
Armed Forces Bill (Second sitting)
I completely agree with everything the hon. Member says about the need for robust mental and physical health support for veterans, and I bow to his personal experience on the matter. Does he agree that, through Operation Courage, we are providing specialist NHS-based mental health support to veteran…
Commons
Committee Stage
24 March 2026
2 contributions
Armed Forces Bill (First sitting)
Would the hon. Gentleman agree that due regard is a long-established legal concept that lots of public bodies already understand? It is already routinely applied in practice, and to change the definition for the purposes of the Bill would be to go down an erroneous path.
I cannot help noting that the poor performance of SEN services in Essex is largely down to Conservative-run Essex county council, whose arrangement the right hon. Member and I share.
Commons
Oral Questions
17 March 2026
2 contributions
National Listing Framework
1. What progress his Department has made on creating a national listing framework.
How will the new listing framework help to fast-track prosecutions for rape and serious sexual offences? What other measures is the Secretary of State introducing or supporting to that end, so that we can honour our manifesto commitments to bring perpetrators to swift justice?
Commons
Debate
10 March 2026
9 contributions
Courts and Tribunals Bill
Would the hon. Member agree that legal judgment by peers or equals can include legal judgment by magistrates, and that indeed there is no ancient right to jury trial? To say so is to misrepresent the case.
rose—
+7 more contributions in this session
Commons
Proceedings
12 February 2026
Business of the House
Colchester community champion Peter Dutch is campaigning to install bleed kits in schools to help tackle the scourge of knife crime. This week’s terrible incident at Kingsbury school underlines the absolute importance of that. Will the Leader of the House support my call for a debate about installin…
Commons
Oral Questions
Home Department
9 February 2026
Domestic Violence: Victim Support
I welcome the Government’s determination to tackle violence against women and girls and to support victims. Does the Minister agree that as well as improvements to our criminal justice system, improvements to our family justice system will play an important part in that?
Commons
Debate
5 February 2026
2 contributions
Road Safety
I welcome today’s debate on road safety, which is a subject of deep concern in Colchester and across Essex. In our county, we have seen a year-on-year increase in deaths on our roads, rising to 58 in 2025—too many of those have been young lives. In Colchester, we are marking a terrible anniversary a…
I thank my hon. Friend for her intervention. I am sure the Minister has heard that point and will respond to it.
Far too many people die on our roads—we really must act to save lives. I will close by asking the Minister what new funding will be available to help us in that key endeavour.
Commons
Ministerial Statement
5 February 2026
National Cancer Plan
I really welcome the national cancer plan and the Minister’s clear personal determination to bring it to fruition. Does she agree that local innovations are going to play a key part? Such an innovation is the prehabilitation service in Colchester, which gets patients ready for treatment before their…
Commons
Westminster Hall
2 February 2026
Indefinite Leave to Remain
Like many colleagues, I believe we need a migration system that is robust and fair. It must be robust because, like any sovereign state, the UK needs to be able to exert control over its borders. However, it also needs to be fair, because we are a state that defends and cherishes a rights-based orde…
Commons
Debate
26 January 2026
Armed Forces Bill
Like so many Members who have spoken in this debate—and I have heard every contribution—I wish to pay tribute to those who serve, to veterans, and to their family members. Those who serve do an extraordinary job, and they do so at our direction and on our behalf. It is therefore our moral duty, whic…
Commons
Debate
20 January 2026
Sentencing Bill
I welcome the amendments that deal with IPP sentences. This is a matter of concern to many Members on both sides of the House. Can the Minister assure us that following the changes to IPP licence termination, these sentences will continue to provide for community rehabilitation, while protecting com…
Commons
Debate
12 January 2026
2 contributions
Higher Education: Government Support
I thank my hon. Friend for securing this debate. I share his concern about the impact of the closure in Southend, which is a community that I know very well. Does he agree that the community in Colchester will also be hard hit by the situation, with a number of redundancies in and around that campus…
Would my hon. Friend agree that it is a desperate situation when so many of our universities are heading into deficit? According to the Office for Students, we are talking about a very large number—about 40% to 50%. Does he agree that we really need action to put our universities back on a secure fi…
Commons
Debate
7 January 2026
3 contributions
Jury Trials
Trial by jury is a cornerstone of our justice system. Being held to account in court by our fellow citizens is one of the embodiments of the principle of justice by the people, for the people. Like all aspects of our justice system, jury trial has a history, and has changed over time in response to …
Will the hon. Member give way?
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
7 January 2026
Engagements
The Government are tackling patient waiting lists through NHS modernisation and reform. Does the Prime Minister agree that we need to tackle victim waiting lists by reforming our courts and criminal justice system?
Commons
Ministerial Statement
17 December 2025
Local Government Finance
I am always proud to be in this Chamber, but I am particularly proud to be here today as the Government bang a final nail in the coffin of Conservative austerity. I really welcome what I hope will be significant additional investment in my constituency of Colchester, because that investment will do …
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
15 December 2025
Topical Questions
T7. Colchester is home to many serving personnel, veterans and their families. Will the Minister set out how our new veterans strategy and Valour will better support those who have served in our armed forces in my area and beyond? Also, would a member of the ministerial team love to visit Colchester…
Commons
Proceedings
11 December 2025
Business of the House
The UK’s universities play a vital role in our communities and our economy, but many of them, including the one where I worked for many years, face severe financial challenges, resulting in course closures and redundancies. Would the Leader of the House allow a debate on the subject in Government ti…
Commons
Proceedings
11 December 2025
US National Security Strategy
On European security, I give my strong support to the position taken by the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary in relation to the recent Ukraine peace proposals. Does the Minister agree that there can be no deal affecting Ukraine without Ukraine, and that any deal that rewards Putin’s aggression c…
Commons
Proceedings
4 December 2025
Local Elections
I am glad to hear that local council elections will go ahead in 2026, and I welcome the significant investment into the six priority new mayoral areas. I also welcome the fact that Greater Essex—my part of the world—will have the opportunity to complete much-needed local government reform before we …
Commons
Ministerial Statement
2 December 2025
Angiolini Inquiry
I welcome the work of the Angiolini inquiry into the appalling murder of Sarah Everard. I also welcome the Minister’s update on the Government’s strategy to halve violence against women and girls over the next decade. She knows that representatives from four Select Committees met recently to help to…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
2 December 2025
Criminal Court Reform
The governance of jury trials has changed considerably over time—dramatically so in the 19th century, and again in the 1970s. In both cases, that was to improve public access to justice. Does the Lord Chancellor agree that if our traditions are to endure, including our legal traditions, they need to…
Commons
Proceedings
1 December 2025
Budget Resolutions
In the east of England, we welcome the Government and private sector investment in Sizewell C, and a clean energy supply chain that will stretch from Suffolk through to Essex. Does my right hon. Friend agree that the Budget offers tax incentives to start-ups and scale-ups in that sector, which will …