Commons
Westminster Hall
9 December 2025
2 contributions
Water Scarcity
It really is a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair, Mr Stuart. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (John Milne) on securing this timely debate. I am grateful to have the opportunity to raise an issue of huge importance for my Hazel Grove constituents, namely the impact of water …
I am grateful to the hon. Lady. I agree strongly that keeping our canals moving is hugely important when we are thinking about how we manage our waterways, how we manage traffic on them, and how we keep them and preserve them for future generations.
Similarly to what the hon. Lady has described, be…
Commons
Debate
8 December 2025
Self-employed Adoptive Parents: Statutory Support
The Minister mentioned the review and said that it is under way. He did not mention how long it will take, and I note that the hon. Member for South West Devon (Rebecca Smith) asked for some guidance on the timeline. I would be grateful if he could give that and, further, if he could use his good of…
Commons
Proceedings
4 December 2025
Business of the House
I am sure that the Leader of the House shares my alarm at the most recent stats from the Office for National Statistics showing that suicide rates are at their highest since the turn of the century, which bears out what I am hearing from my local mental health trust. Might he have a conversation wit…
Commons
Proceedings
4 December 2025
Local Elections
I am sure the Minister agrees that trust in our politics, and trust in our democracy, is absolutely vital. I am also sure she will regret that postponing elections gives some, including those who do not have our country’s best interests at heart, the opportunity to try to sow seeds of distrust. This…
Commons
Oral Questions
Cabinet Office
4 December 2025
2 contributions
EU Relations
Following threats from Donald Trump, earlier this week the Government announced that between £3 billion and £6 billion each year will be diverted from our NHS services into the pockets of pharmaceutical giants. The American Health Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., said the agreement shows Trump’s
“…
I note the right hon. Gentleman’s response. It may well be good for the pharma industry; my question was whether it is good for the NHS. Just four days ago, the Prime Minister said that the Brexit deal “significantly hurt our economy” and that we have to keep moving towards a closer relationship wit…
Commons
Proceedings
3 December 2025
Official Secrets Act and Espionage
The seriousness of the threat that Beijing poses to our national security cannot be overstated. Any attempt by China to interfere in our democracy must be rooted out, and the Government should implement the recommendations of the Committee’s report as a matter of urgency. The work that the National …
Commons
Oral Questions
1 December 2025
2 contributions
Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund
17. What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the adoption and special guardianship support fund.
I am an adoptive auntie, and I know the power that comes to young children when they are in a stable, loving family and the impact that that can have on their lives. One of my constituents from Romiley tells me that despite a likely diagnosis of foetal alcohol spectrum disorder for two of her three …
Commons
Oral Questions
25 November 2025
Access to GPs
Over the summer, my team and I conducted a health survey across my constituency, and 40% of those living in the most deprived and most urban parts of my patch—Heaviley, Little Moor and Great Moor—were struggling to access GPs. What more can the Secretary of State do to ensure that urban and deprived…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
18 November 2025
China Espionage: Government Security Response
I am grateful to the Minister, as always, for advance sight of the statement. The news that the CCP is waging a campaign to infiltrate our Parliament is deeply offensive to our sovereignty, though perhaps it is not surprising to those who have been paying attention to the recent collapsed espionage …
Commons
Oral Questions
18 November 2025
2 contributions
Community Energy Projects
10. What plans his Department has to increase the proportion of energy produced by community energy projects.
More community energy is obviously good for the planet and for the pockets of bill payers, and it is certainly good for our energy security. The amazing volunteers at Stockport Hydro, Greater Manchester’s first hydroelectric producing plant which is in the River Goyt in my Hazel Grove constituency, …
Commons
Westminster Hall
18 November 2025
UNESCO: 80th Anniversary
It is a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair, Mr Dowd, and to be here celebrating the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation and the fantastic work it does.
We Liberal Democrats are proud internationalists; we believe that our country and our people thrive when we are o…
Commons
Debate
17 November 2025
Budget: Press Briefings
On one level, this is all just a bit embarrassing, is it not? But on another level, this is having a real impact on business confidence and the ability of local businesses to make decisions about investment and their future. Does the Minister agree that this is all just a bit self-defeating?
Commons
Oral Questions
12 November 2025
Topical Questions
T5. Starting Point in Woodley is a social enterprise that works to tackle digital exclusion. It tells me that the lack of access to a device is a barrier for too many of my constituents. What plans do the Government have to enable the refurbishment of Government and civil service devices to make it …
Commons
Westminster Hall
11 November 2025
4 contributions
Autistic Adults: Employment
I beg to move,
That this House has considered employment opportunities for autistic adults.
It is a real pleasure to serve with you in the Chair, Mr Turner. This is an important issue, and one which has risen in prominence with the increased awareness and diagnosis of autism. We have also seen ext…
I very much agree with my hon. Friend about the importance of getting the right education suited to each young person to enable them to flourish in their lives and contribute meaningfully to our community.
Clearly, the issues that my constituents have faced are not the same as every autistic person…
+2 more contributions in this session
Commons
Westminster Hall
11 November 2025
Rural Railway Stations: Step Free Access
I completely agree with my hon. Friend about the challenges that train users face when they have mobility issues. In my own constituency, for example, someone can come back from town into Bredbury but not get into town from Bredbury. Does my hon. Friend agree that there is a broader point about staf…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
5 November 2025
Curriculum and Assessment Review
There is a lot to support in the announcement, and I particularly welcome the Secretary of State’s words about the importance of financial education from primary onwards. If that is done well, it could have a positive impact on our communities for decades to come.
We all know that the key to great …
Commons
Oral Questions
4 November 2025
Topical Questions
I recently joined Sarah Laker and the wonderful team at Stationery Supplies in Marple to celebrate an impressive 20 years in business, but recent research by the British Retail Consortium and UKHospitality has shown that 120,000 high street jobs are potentially at risk as a result of proposed change…
Commons
Westminster Hall
27 October 2025
Statutory Maternity and Paternity Pay
Does the hon. Member agree that the Government’s ongoing review into parental leave is a cracking opportunity for them to fill a gap that currently exists for those who are self-employed and seeking to grow their family by adoption? Currently they are not entitled to maternity allowance or maternity…
Commons
Proceedings
23 October 2025
Alleged Spying Case: Role of Attorney General’s Office
Given the important national security implications of this whole sorry case, what assessment has the Attorney General’s Office made of the impact that the decision may have on confidence in our ability to prosecute alleged foreign interference?
Commons
Oral Questions
Cabinet Office
23 October 2025
Delivery of Government Priorities
I think the Government are right to identify economic growth as a key priority. I also agree with the Chancellor, who this week identified Brexit as one of the reasons that they are finding growth tough to find. Brexit red tape is a millstone around the neck of our economy; it has added 2 billion pi…
Commons
Oral Questions
Cabinet Office
23 October 2025
Strengthening National Resilience
The recent cyber-attack on Jaguar Land Rover is reported to have cost the UK £1.9 billion, making it the most expensive in British history. It follows similar crippling incidents for companies such as M&S and the Co-op. Individual companies are taking their own security decisions, but in our inc…
Commons
Westminster Hall
21 October 2025
Local Government Funding: North-west England
As a fellow Stockport MP, I am delighted that my hon. Friend has secured this debate. I strongly agree with the points he is making about the underfunding of local government over a period of years, particularly in our part of the world. I wonder if he agrees that the root of some of the problems is…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
15 October 2025
Pride in Place
More money and power going into communities is of course a good thing, and it would be only right and proper for me to welcome some money going into my neighbouring area, represented by the hon. Member for Stockport (Navendu Mishra). I want to return to a point raised by my hon. Friend the Member fo…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
15 October 2025
Ukraine
I welcome many of the measures that the Foreign Secretary has outlined today. Like her, I have visited Ukraine and seen the impact of the attacks from Putin and his flunkies and, like her, I have seen the resilience of the Ukrainian people. I believe, as we all do in the Chamber, that Putin and his …
Commons
Oral Questions
Justice
16 September 2025
Support for Victims of Rape and Sexual Violence
My constituent Louise reported her sexual assault to the police back in 2021. She has had court dates pushed back twice and the trial is now expected in December 2026, nearly six years after reporting it to the police. What assessment has the Minister made of the impact of such delays on victim-surv…