Commons
Oral Questions
Scotland
15 July 2026
2 contributions
City Region Deals
12. What assessment he has made of the effectiveness of city region deals in Scotland.
West Dunbartonshire is one of eight local authorities that make up the Glasgow city region deal. The local authority is delivering an ambitious project to create a major industrial and commercial development on the former ExxonMobil terminal site on the Clyde. The enabling works are funded jointly b…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
8 July 2026
Engagements
Q6. This week marks the second anniversary of our Labour Government. Two years on, my constituents enjoy greater rights at work, and thousands of workers are now better off, thanks to increases in the national minimum wage. Thousands of children have been lifted out of poverty, and tens of millions …
Commons
Oral Questions
24 June 2026
2 contributions
Child Poverty
10. What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help reduce inequalities experienced by children in poverty.
We know that the attainment gap holds back children who grow up in poverty. The gap reached its highest levels under the Tories, and in Scotland the SNP has failed to close it. Does the Minister agree that it is shameful that the Tories’ only policies for children are bringing back the two-child lim…
Commons
Oral Questions
24 June 2026
2 contributions
Discrimination against Trans People
10. What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help reduce inequalities experienced by children in poverty.
We know that the attainment gap holds back children who grow up in poverty. The gap reached its highest levels under the Tories, and in Scotland the SNP has failed to close it. Does the Minister agree that it is shameful that the Tories’ only policies for children are bringing back the two-child lim…
Commons
Oral Questions
Church Commissioners
18 June 2026
2 contributions
Places of Worship Renewal Fund
5. How parishes can apply for the places of worship renewal fund.
While the UK Labour Government introduced a £92 million fund for places of worship in England, the scheme does not apply to Scottish parishes now that it has gone from being a VAT rebate to a capital grant. The Scottish Government received the Barnett consequentials. However, no similar scheme was s…
Commons
Westminster Hall
11 June 2026
Clean Power by 2030
I was interested to hear the hon. Member say that the Scottish Government have proposed increasing the recommended voluntary community benefit for onshore wind projects to £6,000 per megawatt. That seems a derisory uplift given that, as he pointed out, it was £5,000 per megawatt in 2015—an uplift of…
Commons
Oral Questions
Home Department
8 June 2026
2 contributions
Unite the Kingdom Rally: Policing
2. What discussions she has had with the Metropolitan police on the policing of the Unite the Kingdom rally on 16 May 2026.
What happens in our capital city has a knock-on effect across our entire country. My West Dunbartonshire constituent, Lindsey, contacted me to express her deep concern and shock at the abhorrent displays at the Unite the Kingdom rally. Participants openly incited racial hatred in inflammatory speech…
Commons
Westminster Hall
2 June 2026
Glasgow City Region Economy
One in eight local authorities in the Glasgow city region is in my constituency. The Clyde is more than just Glasgow; it is the towns and areas up and down both sides of the Clyde. Does my hon. Friend agree that UK Government funding, not least the £60 million local growth fund, has the potential to…
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
1 June 2026
Topical Questions
This Government’s plan for defence technical excellence colleges in the east and west of Scotland will give the young people of my constituency training opportunities. Have the Scottish Government responded or agreed to match our ambition with their share of funding for our colleges?
Commons
Oral Questions
Science, Innovation and Technology
20 May 2026
2 contributions
Child Protection Online
1. If she will take urgent steps to protect children online.
Many of my constituents are rightly worried about the harms that children face online, including exposure to self-harm content, online bullying and addictive platform design. Can the Secretary of State reassure the House that the Government’s consultation on banning social media for under-16s will r…
Commons
Oral Questions
23 April 2026
Business of the House
On Monday of this week the former MP for Clydebank and Milngavie, Tony Worthington, sadly passed away. He was the MP for my home town of Clydebank from 1987 until 2005. Over 18 years in this House, he championed many causes, not least the campaign to secure compensation for victims of asbestos-relat…
Commons
Oral Questions
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
21 April 2026
Topical Questions
I have always been assured by both the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary that the case of my constituent, Jagtar Singh Johal, who has been arbitrarily detained in India for eight and a half years, would continue to be raised at all levels, but I understand that the Foreign Secretary met her c…
Commons
Oral Questions
Education
20 April 2026
Topical Questions
Our ambitious child poverty strategy puts more money into the pockets of families and working parents. Removing the two-child cap benefits 2,260 children in my constituency, and the Secretary of State is doing much more on top of that, which we are missing out on in Scotland. Does she agree with me …
Commons
Oral Questions
16 April 2026
Business of the House
The whole House will have cheered on Rory McIlroy’s historic back-to-back Masters victory at the weekend. However, when 60 courses have closed across the country over the last five years, and when courses such as Dalmuir in my West Dunbartonshire constituency remain open only because of a community-…
Commons
Westminster Hall
16 April 2026
Housing Needs: Young People
In December 2023, the Scottish SNP Government slashed their affordable housing budget by £200 million—a 26% reduction. We have record levels of children in temporary accommodation in Scotland—10,000—and under the SNP’s watch, rough sleeping has increased by 66%. Scottish Labour is promising 125,000 …
Commons
Westminster Hall
15 April 2026
Access to Work Scheme
I wish to bring to the Minister’s attention the experience of one of my constituents, who has given me permission to provide this information. She is profoundly deaf—that is how she describes herself—and has relied on Access to Work for 25 years. Despite this, she was recently told, via a no-reply e…
Commons
Debate
26 March 2026
Business of the House
Yesterday’s announcement by the Government of an increase in the number of youth hubs, and the confirmation of the new locations, which include one in my constituency, is such incredible news. Will the Leader of the House join me in welcoming this wonderful news for West Dunbartonshire? It will go a…
Commons
Oral Questions
26 March 2026
Topical Questions
T5. The sorry state of Scotland’s roads proves that the SNP cannot get the basics right. The UK Labour Government funding to repair potholes adds to the significant Barnett consequentials falling to Scotland. Does the Minister agree that Scottish Labour’s pledge to establish a new roads repair fund,…
Commons
Westminster Hall
26 March 2026
2 contributions
Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and Craniocervical Instability
rose—
I congratulate my hon. Friend on securing this debate. In Scotland, one third of those living with EDS or hypermobility spectrum disorder are living with at least one long-term, serious condition. A number of my constituents contacted me in the lead-up to this debate to share their stories. They all…
Commons
Oral Questions
Northern Ireland
25 March 2026
2 contributions
Spring Forecast
5. What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the spring forecast 2026 on Northern Ireland.
The £379 million in Barnett consequentials announced by our Chancellor earlier this month is on top of the £370 million of extra funding announced in the Budget, and that is all in addition to the £19 billion funding settlement announced at the spending review. Does the Secretary of State agree that…
Commons
Westminster Hall
25 March 2026
Proposed Visitor Levy
The visitor levy became law in Scotland in September 2024, allowing Scottish local authorities to apply a 5% charge on overnight stays. It is due to be implemented next year in my constituency and is estimated to bring in £1.7 million annually. Last month, I met Loch Lomond and The Trossachs Nationa…
Commons
Oral Questions
19 March 2026
Business of the House
West Dunbartonshire is one of eight local authorities in Scotland fortunate enough to receive the UK Labour Government’s Pride in Place immediate impact funding, with £1.5 million to be spent this year, making a huge difference to local facilities, community groups and organisations right across Wes…
Commons
Oral Questions
19 March 2026
Topical Questions
The organisation Surfers Against Sewage has just published its investigation of illegal dry spills by water companies in 2025. There were over 204,000 hours of illegal sewage spills in England last year. The situation in Scotland is no better: Scottish Water faces little accountability, with just 30…
Commons
Debate
16 March 2026
3 contributions
Asbestos-related Lung Cancer: Compensation Act 2006
I have called this Adjournment debate on the subject of the Compensation Act 2006 and asbestos-related lung cancer because I wish to bring to the attention of this House an injustice in the way the law treats victims of asbestos-related disease, and to urge the Government to review the operation of …
My hon. Friend is correct, and I recognise his obvious expertise in this matter. I believe that he practised law, and in particular personal injury law, prior to being elected to this House. I thank him for his intervention and for all he does for his constituents in Wolverhampton West.
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
16 March 2026
2 contributions
Defence Jobs: Scotland
2. What steps he is taking to increase the number of defence jobs in Scotland.
I very much welcome last week’s announcement of a £50 million defence growth deal for Scotland. It will make Scotland an engine for defence growth. Be it through building ships on the Clyde or new engineering and innovation facilities, it will create good, well-paid jobs for my West Dunbartonshire c…