Commons
Oral Questions
Health and Social Care
14 July 2026
2 contributions
Health of Children and Young People
1. What steps he is taking to help improve the health of children and young people.
Businesses in Amber Valley are doing brilliant work to improve health outcomes for children and young people. Ferrero in Alfreton is encouraging children to be more active through its “Joy of Moving” programme, while SC Johnson, headquartered in Denby, is launching a hand-hygiene pilot in schools to…
Commons
Westminster Hall
6 July 2026
2 contributions
Ceramics Industry
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr Murrison. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Lichfield (Dave Robertson) on presenting this debate, and my constituent Hayley who brought the petition. I draw attention to my declaration in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests th…
My hon. Friend is making an excellent speech about the importance of continuing the skills and heritage of the pottery industry. Will he join me in congratulating Fran, Kate and Daizy? They were employees of Denby Pottery and recently set up the Potter’s Nook in Ripley, where people in my constituen…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
22 June 2026
East Midland Railway Collision
I thank the Secretary of State for her statement and associate myself with her comments on the sad loss of the train driver Shaun Burton and her thanks to the emergency services, staff and volunteers who helped at the scene. Many of my constituents in Amber Valley travel on that line regularly. What…
Commons
Debate
22 June 2026
British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme
I congratulate the hon. Member for Ashfield (Lee Anderson) on securing this debate and thank him for his service down the mines. I say that as a coalminer’s daughter, and I put on record that I am proud of my dad for the work he did. The Minister mentioned the delays caused by previous Governments’ …
Commons
Westminster Hall
3 June 2026
Youth Mental Health Support
Amber Valley has been selected for one of the new youth hubs that will be rolled out soon, and I am delighted about that. The hub will not only help people in my constituency into work, but provide them with access to mental health services. Does my hon. Friend agree that a holistic approach such as…
Commons
Westminster Hall
1 June 2026
Child Sexual Offender Data
Before becoming an MP, I was a prosecutor for 21 years. I prosecuted many perpetrators of violence against women and girls, including sexual offenders. I am aware that the CPS has inputted data on all manner of aspects of offenders, including ethnicity.
Data can be useful in identifying patterns of…
Commons
Debate
20 May 2026
Banking Hubs
I want to bring a bit of good news to the House. Last month, I had the honour of cutting the ribbon on a new banking hub on Oxford Street in Ripley. It is an important facility for my constituents, but it is actually the first of its kind. It did not go through the Link procedure; it was identified …
Commons
Oral Questions
23 April 2026
2 contributions
Public Procurement
3. What steps his Department is taking to modernise public procurement.
Yesterday in this House, when I asked the Minister to include ceramics in the “back British business” procurement strategy, he said that the strategy only covers four sectors that are deemed vital to national security, while acknowledging that he would like to go further. Since then, a further 49 wo…
Commons
Debate
22 April 2026
Government Procurement Strategy
As the Member for Amber Valley, I represent Denby Pottery, which sadly is in administration and I am desperately trying to save it. It is a joy in this House to use crockery made in the UK, and I welcome the Minister’s recent announcement on procurement, but I have written to ask him to go further b…
Commons
Committee Stage
14 April 2026
6 contributions
Courts and Tribunals Bill (Fourth sitting)
On that point, will the hon. Member give way?
On that point, will the hon. Member give way?
+4 more contributions in this session
Commons
Committee Stage
14 April 2026
6 contributions
Courts and Tribunals Bill (Third sitting)
Is the hon. Gentleman saying two different things? At the start, I heard him say that we have fairness across the whole criminal justice system, but he seems now to be suggesting that magistrates court trials are inferior and less fair. Is that the position of the Opposition?
It is right that we should talk about language. I refer the hon. Member to guidance on the CPS website in relation to the use of the term “victim”. In its guidance, the CPS says that it often uses the word “victim” when talking about general crime. When someone is making a speech in Parliament to sa…
+4 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
23 March 2026
Rail Connections to London: Rural Towns
Shrewsbury certainly does sound like a wonderful place to visit. I am working hard on the visitor economy for Amber Valley, and an integrated transport system and good transport links are a vital part of that. There was a daily railway service running from London to Alfreton in my constituency until…
Commons
Oral Questions
19 March 2026
Business of the House
Denby Pottery has been the heart of Amber Valley since 1809. It provides over 500 jobs and brings in 250,000 visitors a year, but it has sadly had to apply for administration support. While the Prime Minister has already committed to a review of the supercharger scheme, which helps with energy costs…
Commons
Oral Questions
Solicitor General
19 March 2026
Courts and Tribunals Bill
Our plan for court reform implements time savings across the system, not just in the courtroom but in a number of other aspects of the justice system that contribute to delays with the administration of jury trials, such as the summoning of jurors, the compiling of jury bundles, juror expenses and b…
Commons
Statutory Instrument
18 March 2026
Draft Warm Home Discount (England and Wales) Regulations 2026
At a recent coffee morning that I held in the village of Holbrook, constituents raised their worries about energy bills. In 2024-25, 6,219 people, or 14.5% of all households in Amber Valley, received the warm home discount. Particularly in the light of ongoing uncertainty on household energy costs d…
Commons
Westminster Hall
17 March 2026
Productivity and Economic Growth: East Midlands
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dr Huq. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Rushcliffe (James Naish) for securing the debate.
Many in Amber Valley—including me—are proud descendants of coalminers, textile makers and engineers. That heritage still shapes our economy: 20% of the wor…
Commons
Debate
10 March 2026
6 contributions
Courts and Tribunals Bill
On appeals against magistrates’ rulings, is the shadow Minister aware—as I am, through my experience—that appeals are essentially a retrial in the magistrates court, and that many appeals are successful simply because the victim cannot face giving evidence for a second time and being retraumatised? …
Will the hon. Gentleman give way?
+4 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Work and Pensions
9 March 2026
Topical Questions
T8. I was pleased to see that the schools White Paper outlines significant reforms to support children with special educational needs and disabilities. Will the Minister outline how the Department is working with colleagues in the Department for Education to ensure that efforts to tackle the NEETS c…
Commons
Oral Questions
Work and Pensions
9 March 2026
2 contributions
Support for NEET Young People
12. What steps he is taking to support young people into employment, education or training.
I am delighted that the Secretary of State is planning to visit the David Nieper Academy in Alfreton later this year. The school recently achieved zero NEETs at age 18 for the second year running by working closely with local industry and teaching employability skills. Local initiatives such as that…
Commons
Proceedings
5 February 2026
NHS Dentists
I commend the hon. Member for securing this important debate. In Amber Valley, recruitment and retention continue to be the main barriers to NHS dental access, despite £240,000 of additional funding that I have managed to secure from Derbyshire locally. Does the hon. Member agree that the Minister s…
Commons
Debate
5 February 2026
Occupied Palestinian Territories: Genocide Risk Assessment
On 2 October, as part of the UK delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, I voted in favour of a resolution on the “devastating humanitarian catastrophe” in Gaza. Paragraph 8 of the resolution referred to the UN Human Rights Council’s finding that genocide was taking place, …
Commons
Debate
5 February 2026
2 contributions
Road Safety
Driving instructors and cyclists in my constituency have contacted me because they are concerned that experienced drivers are not aware of the 2022 changes to the highway code. Does the hon. Member agree that a campaign for greater awareness among experienced drivers would be welcome?
Dave, a driving instructor in Amber Valley, contacts me regularly about road safety—he is a passionate advocate. However, he is concerned about the consultation in the road safety strategy on a three-month or six-month minimum learning period. Does my hon. Friend agree with Dave that structured trai…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
5 February 2026
National Cancer Plan
I thank the Minister for this excellent plan. In 1989, my wonderful mother Margaret passed away from bowel cancer. She died about six weeks after she was diagnosed. She had not wanted to go to her GP because she did not want to be a burden on the already overstretched NHS. Will the Minister join me …
Commons
Oral Questions
5 February 2026
Business of the House
I am glad to end business questions on a joyful note. Just before Christmas, I launched Amber Valley’s business awards, and encouraged people to nominate their favourite local businesses and to shop locally. After hundreds of nominations, the winners are now in: Basilia and 47 Degrees Coffee in Lang…
Commons
Oral Questions
5 February 2026
2 contributions
Domestic Animals: Welfare
8. What steps she is taking to help improve the welfare of domestic animals.
Sticking with the theme of cats, my office was recently alerted to a rather troubling incident involving a cat whose owner had been taken into hospital unexpectedly, and no one was able to access the flat. It took many days for the police to obtain a warrant, and meanwhile all the RSPCA was able to …