Commons
Oral Questions
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
28 October 2025
2 contributions
Topical Questions
T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
I thank the Foreign Secretary for that update on Jamaica and the diligence of the FCDO in preparing for events there.
Tomorrow I am hosting Hong Kong Watch in Parliament as it releases its latest report on the erosion of Hong Kong’s autonomy. The report highlights how Beijing has increasingly sough…
Commons
Westminster Hall
27 October 2025
Statutory Maternity and Paternity Pay
I am not quite sure how to contribute to this debate: I am married to a doctor who is an obstetrician and gynaecologist; I am a triplet; and I have an 18-month-old daughter, who was born just three weeks before the general election was called last year. I am never sure which way to pivot. I want to …
Commons
Debate
16 October 2025
Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Bill
In January this year, as Chair of the International Development Committee, my hon. Friend wrote to the Government to push them to ratify the global oceans treaty. As a member of her Committee, I thank her for her efforts on this front. If I recall correctly, our Committee’s work highlighted that the…
Commons
Proceedings
16 October 2025
Business of the House
My constituent Rebecca Dowdeswell has a small business called nkd, which has incurred over £30,000 plus VAT in legal fees fighting L’Oréal in a dispute over a mark she has been using for over 15 years—longer than L’Oréal has been using its Naked brand in the UK. This dispute is an example of David v…
Commons
Debate
15 October 2025
Jhoots Pharmacy
Over the recess I met the Singh family, who run two pharmacies in my constituency. The family were clear that, despite improved funding, they are still struggling with overly complex funding formulas, delayed payments, high energy prices and drug shortages, among other challenges. However, the posit…
Commons
Westminster Hall
16 September 2025
2 contributions
Significant Energy Infrastructure Projects: Suffolk Coast
Having worked in the energy industry, I continue to be a strong proponent of local area energy plans, because they would empower communities to make decisions about their own energy needs and how much energy they want to export. At the moment the process feels very reactive and is based on private a…
The Minister describes something that I am extremely passionate about, as he knows, but it is a very top-down approach. I wonder whether we simultaneously need a bottom-up approach that engages with communities via local authorities in order to look at what land is available and how it could be used…
Commons
Westminster Hall
16 September 2025
2 contributions
International Day of Democracy
I thank my hon. Friend for giving way. I am very aware of her background in local government. Does she agree that the local level is where we see democracy work? We see excellent representation by councillors and an opportunity to have local debate through neighbourhood plans or other mechanisms. Do…
On the point about accountability, the hon. Member may be aware that at the end of August, the leader of Nottinghamshire county council banned the Nottingham Post and Nottinghamshire Live from speaking to him and his organisation with immediate effect. That included a ban on the local democracy repo…
Commons
Westminster Hall
15 September 2025
Children with SEND: Assessments and Support
My hon. Friend has referenced training. One of the biggest single asks from my constituents in Rushcliffe is for autism-specific training for school staff, yet most teachers report that very little specialist training takes place. Does he agree that there ought to be a standardised national professi…
Commons
Debate
11 September 2025
2 contributions
Regional Transport Inequality
My hon. Friend mentions that constituents have written to her, but does she acknowledge that in addition more than 30 MPs have been working together to advocate for electrification, because of the great benefits she has described?
When we talk about regional transport inequality, the east midlands, where I was born and have lived most of my life, comes to mind as one of the clearest examples of such inequality, as my hon. Friend the Member for Derby North (Catherine Atkinson) has said. Over the past five years, per-head trans…
Commons
Proceedings
10 September 2025
Russian Drones: Violation of Polish Airspace
Yes, Madam Deputy Speaker. I apologise for moving around. Poland is one of our closest European allies, with a long, shared history. In my region of the east midlands, that is embodied in our large British Polish community, whose roots go back over 80 years. In the light of last night’s attack, what…
Commons
Westminster Hall
8 September 2025
3 contributions
Indefinite Leave to Remain
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Sir Jeremy, and to speak as the Member of Parliament for Rushcliffe, which is proudly home to more than 2,000 Hongkongers who have arrived under the BNO visa scheme. That is what I would like to focus on today.
I thank my hon. Friend the Member for So…
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. The consensus here is that we need to determine whether we as a country support the uncertainty of moving the goalposts, and I sincerely hope the Minister is listening to the sentiment in the room.
Because many BNOs lack consular protection and cannot safely rene…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Westminster Hall
3 September 2025
Pavement Parking
Does my hon. Friend agree that when constituents are concerned about going out, that increases their social isolation? There is a real risk that anxiety about going out and using pavements has a knock-on effect, and that is one of the things that we can resolve.
Commons
Debate
2 September 2025
2 contributions
Solar Development: Newark
I should note my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests as a landowner, and I should also acknowledge that the right hon. Gentleman is my Member of Parliament. I will make a helpful contribution in a moment, but I wonder what his views are on landowner choice in this. One of the solar…
Having worked in the energy industry, I am a strong proponent of local area energy plans that would empower communities to plan their energy needs. One of the big issues for constituents is that energy planning feels very reactive and is based on what landowners choose to do. It would be far more em…
Commons
Westminster Hall
2 September 2025
Defibrillators
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Stringer. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Bishop Auckland (Sam Rushworth) on securing this important debate.
I pay tribute to Dylan Rich, a Rushcliffe constituent who tragically passed away aged 17 from a cardiac arrest, during a game …
Commons
Ministerial Statement
1 September 2025
Ukraine
People in my constituency know the importance of standing with Ukraine in its fight, and in a recent survey I did, 87% of them said that they support this Government’s continued iron-clad support for Ukraine, which after three-and-a-half years is an impressively high figure. Does the Defence Secreta…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
1 September 2025
Middle East
Attempts to settle the E1 area of the west bank, splitting Palestinian areas in two,
“buries the idea of a Palestinian state”,
in the words of an Israeli Government Minister, by the end of this month. Would the Secretary of State commit to a further co-ordinated response with European partners ove…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
16 July 2025
Financial Services Reform
I thank the Minister for her statement, and I note especially the new concierge service within the Office for Investment that will both court international development and act as a one-stop shop to promote the UK. What regional dimension might be considered within that for places such as the east mi…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
8 July 2025
Road and Rail Projects
I thank the Secretary of State for her statement. I welcome the announcements about the A46 bypass, given that the A46 goes through my constituency, and about the midlands rail hub that will connect Nottingham to Birmingham. As chair of the all-party parliamentary group for the east midlands, howeve…
Commons
Oral Questions
8 July 2025
2 contributions
Legal Aid Agency: Digital Services
16. What steps her Department is taking to restore the Legal Aid Agency's digital services.
Two of my local firms—MJC Law and Nottingham Law Centre—have contacted me about this issue. MJC Law said:
“This has left legal aid law firms, often small businesses, to decide whether to take on the risk of cases and hope they will be approved and paid retrospectively”.
Cash flow could become a ge…
Commons
Debate
25 June 2025
2 contributions
National Armaments Director
It is a privilege to rise on estimates day, during Armed Forces Week, an annual moment of national recognition for the extraordinary contribution of our armed forces, to speak about the importance of our defence industry. Across the country this week, from school assemblies to community events, peop…
I was just about to get on to the fact that under the previous Government only two of 49 major defence projects were delivered on time, and SMEs have been locked out of that procurement process, so my hon. Friend is absolutely right to highlight the importance of changing that.
The new defence indu…
Commons
Westminster Hall
18 June 2025
3 contributions
Political Prisoners
I congratulate my hon. Friend on securing the debate. She has just mentioned Canada; I understand that the Canadians are considering granting honorary citizenship to Jimmy Lai, as a small but significant contribution to demonstrating their commitment to him. Does she agree that that is something tha…
I thank my hon. Friend for making that point. The number of organisations involved was referenced earlier; in the case of Jimmy Lai, different countries and Congress have also lined up in support. What are my hon Friend’s reflections on the fact that even the support of all those organisations is st…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Westminster Hall
18 June 2025
Businesses in Rural Areas
I believe there was a rural White Paper in 1995, followed by a similar one in 2000, but then a 15-year gap until the productivity plan and another eight-year gap until the “Unleashing rural opportunity” paper of 2023, which was 28 pages in total. Does the hon. Gentleman agree that we need a clear, d…
Commons
Committee Stage
17 June 2025
2 contributions
Football Governance Bill [ Lords ] (Tenth sitting)
rose —
It is an honour to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Turner. I want to place it on the record that the Notts County supporters’ trust got in touch with me over the weekend, and it is very much sympathetic to new clause 10. The trust was set up in 2003 to save the club when it was in administration, …
Commons
Committee Stage
17 June 2025
Football Governance Bill [ Lords ] (Ninth sitting)
On parachute payments, what is the shadow Minister’s view on the balance between sustainability and giving clubs a competitive advantage? Does he not think that the regulator could have a role to play in determining the extent to which parachute payments, which have grown considerably, are getting t…
Commons
Debate
16 June 2025
2 contributions
Animal Experiments: Medical Research
My hon. Friend mentions the USA committing to a road map. I believe the EU has also done so, and is looking to phase out animal testing entirely through its road map, which is due to be published in 2026. Does she agree that the UK Government could commit to something similar—a road map that gives a…
Does the Minister know whether there will be timelines for that strategy? Are there likely to be dates and milestones that we are working towards, or just a generic description of the direction of travel?