Commons
Westminster Hall
17 November 2025
Parkinson’s Disease
Does my hon. Friend agree that diagnosis is just the beginning, because too many people tell us that after receiving that life-changing news, they just feel abandoned? Nearly one quarter receive no information about Parkinson’s services and no adequate information about their condition, so does my h…
Commons
Debate
11 November 2025
2 contributions
Remembrance Day: Armed Forces
Does my hon. and gallant Friend agree that personnel who are injured on active duty deserve support and recognition?
This morning I joined residents, schoolchildren and veterans in Stratford-upon-Avon for our Armistice Day service. Standing together in silence, we reflected on the lives behind the names, and the sacrifices that shaped our community and our shared history, including those of the Royal Observer Corp…
Commons
Debate
11 November 2025
BBC Leadership
It is essential that the BBC’s independence and impartiality are upheld at all times. I am afraid that serious concerns have been raised about Sir Robbie Gibb’s conduct on the BBC board, including alleged attempts to influence recruitment and editorial decisions. If the Secretary of State cannot rem…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
5 November 2025
Curriculum and Assessment Review
Department for Education data shows that only 22.7% of students retaking GCSE English or maths post-16 achieve a grade 4 or above. This means that many young people are trapped in a loop, and they often miss the grade by one point. What steps will the Secretary of State take to ensure that students …
Commons
Westminster Hall
3 November 2025
2 contributions
Video Games: Consumer Law
In my constituency, as in many other areas, increasingly residents are finding that the video games that they thought they owned simply stop working when the online support ends, or that ownership is limited by the terms and conditions of the licence, which is deeply frustrating for consumers who ha…
One of my constituents has written to me about feeling misled when the industry uses the word “buy” for video games that can later disappear from their digital library. Does the hon. Member agree that we need transparency, so that consumers know exactly what they are paying for at the point of purch…
Commons
Westminster Hall
27 October 2025
2 contributions
Statutory Maternity and Paternity Pay
It is a pleasure to serve under you in the Chair, Mrs Hobhouse. I thank the petitioners for bringing this important issue before Parliament. Having a baby should never be what pushes a family into financial hardship. But for too many new parents, statutory maternity and paternity pay simply do not m…
I was a PhD student when I had my first child, so I understand the challenges that students face.
All forms of parental leave and pay, including for adoptive, foster and self-employed parents, should be available from day one. Statutory maternity and shared parental pay should be doubled and patern…
Commons
Debate
20 October 2025
Post-16 Education and Skills Strategy
The Government say that they want to simplify the post-16 system, but the reality is that funding for further education remains chronically low. Will the Secretary of State look again at further education funding streams—for example, letting colleges reclaim VAT, as schools with sixth forms do, and …
Commons
Oral Questions
Education
20 October 2025
2 contributions
Topical Questions
T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
I declare that I used to work as a university lecturer before being elected. One of my constituents has already paid nearly £500 for their French visa, just to be able to undertake their year abroad as part of their degree. These costs will exclude students from disadvantaged backgrounds from vital …
Commons
Westminster Hall
15 October 2025
Educational Assessment System Reform
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Lewell. I thank the hon. Member for Hertford and Stortford (Josh Dean) for securing this hugely important debate and for the way he highlighted the mental health impact of exams on children and young people.
I have been contacted by further educati…
Commons
Westminster Hall
15 October 2025
Knife Crime
I thank the hon. Gentleman for securing this important debate. My constituent, Cody Fisher, a young footballer, was brutally stabbed to death at the Crane nightclub in Birmingham nearly three years ago. Since that horrific night, his family and especially his mother have been campaigning tirelessly …
Commons
Debate
13 October 2025
Digital ID
EU nationals in the UK were guinea pigs for a digital-only status. Serious concerns are still being raised, including about access issues that resulted in people being wrongly denied work, housing, education and welfare. Extending digital IDs to the British people will result in another layer of man…
Commons
Oral Questions
13 October 2025
Leasehold System
Thousands of my constituents in Stratford-on-Avon now live in so-called fleecehold developments, often with a lack of transparency in how service charges are set and a lack of maintenance of public open spaces, including drainage infrastructure. Will the Minister reassure my constituents that any le…
Commons
Westminster Hall
15 September 2025
2 contributions
Children with SEND: Assessments and Support
Will the hon. Member give way?
SEND families in Stratford-on-Avon want to work in partnership with schools and councils, but too often they are left without the support they need. They are battling an adversarial system. Does my hon. Friend agree that any reforms should strengthen, not weaken, co-operation between families, schoo…
Commons
Proceedings
10 September 2025
Russian Drones: Violation of Polish Airspace
My constituency also has a large Polish community, who have been alarmed to see Russian drones violating Polish airspace. We all know that if Ukraine were to fall to Putin’s aggression, Poland would be next in his sights. How are the Government intending to support Poland in defending its sovereignt…
Commons
Westminster Hall
9 September 2025
Neurodivergent People: Employment
It is deeply concerning for my Stratford-on-Avon constituency that young adults over the age of 25 can no longer access NHS-funded ADHD assessments. Does my hon. Friend agree that, at a time when we should be removing barriers to employment, taking away access to such a vital first step is doing exa…
Commons
Proceedings
8 September 2025
Palestine Action: Proscription and Protests
Can the Minister tell me what safeguards, if any, are in place to ensure that terrorism powers are not misused against people exercising their democratic right to protest peacefully against proscription, including elderly vicars holding placards?
Commons
Debate
3 September 2025
2 contributions
Hospitality Sector
rose—
Does the Minister agree that in Stratford-upon-Avon, hospitality is not just an industry, but the lifeblood of our visitor economy? Every pub, café or restaurant closure is a blow not only to jobs, but to our high street and our community’s sense of place.
Commons
Debate
2 September 2025
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
Devolution should mean giving power back to people and communities. Decisions ought to be taken as close as possible to those they affect, but this Bill imposes a top-down model from Whitehall with sweeping new powers for the Secretary of State, mayors and their unelected commissioners, rather than …
Commons
Debate
21 July 2025
Extending the Ukraine Permission Extension Scheme
First, I am proud to say that the residents of my constituency have opened their homes and their hearts to many Ukrainian families fleeing this horrific conflict. They are now our neighbours and friends, they work or study, and they are part of our community. Does my hon. Friend agree that we a need…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
21 July 2025
Middle East
Does the Foreign Secretary agree that the Israeli Government should bear heavy consequences should they decide to proceed with the approval of the illegal E1 settlement plan in occupied East Jerusalem, which will threaten the two-state solution?
Commons
Ministerial Statement
21 July 2025
Independent Water Commission
My constituents have faced an increase in their water bills without any improvement in the dumping of sewage in their rivers and brooks or upgrade in their infrastructure. What assurances can the Government provide that those increases will not end up in the pockets of water company bosses?
Commons
Oral Questions
21 July 2025
Sixth-form Colleges: Funding
A report presented to the APPG for care-experienced children and young people revealed that more than 4,000 young people in care either moved placements or left care during their A-level exam period. What steps is the Minister taking to ensure that schools and colleges are properly equipped to suppo…
Commons
Debate
7 July 2025
Pension Schemes Bill
Although this Bill aims to strengthen pension investment, improve resilience and boost pension pots, many of my constituents are among the large number of individuals who face serious pension injustices right now. I welcome some of the reforms that the Government are introducing through the Bill, in…
Commons
Oral Questions
Women and Equalities
18 June 2025
2 contributions
Welfare Reforms: Impact on Disabled People
5. What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Government’s proposed welfare reforms on financial inequalities experienced by disabled people.
I have spoken to several disabled constituents who are deeply fearful about the proposed cut to the limited capability for work and work-related activity element of universal credit. Research by Sense shows that one in four disabled people with complex needs could be pushed into debt if the changes …
Commons
Debate
10 June 2025
3 contributions
Planning and Infrastructure Bill
In my constituency, we have seen the consequences of house building without the infrastructure to match. This Bill is such a missed opportunity: the Government are repeating the same top-down, developer-led approach that has already failed, sidelining communities, undermining local plans and cutting…
Yes, absolutely. We need to ensure that our new generation of young people are fit and healthy and able to cycle. That would also reduce carbon emissions in our towns. We need high-quality cycling infrastructure to ensure that all this happens.
+1 more contribution in this session