Commons
Oral Questions
Home Department
13 July 2026
Topical Questions
T6. On Friday I met members of Barnham parish council in my constituency and the headteacher of the adjacent primary school, Amy. They raised concerns about the proposed accommodation of large numbers of asylum seekers at RAF Barnham. They worry about community cohesion, particularly if large number…
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
6 July 2026
Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems
In 1914 we were producing 12 Vickers machine guns a week; by 1918, we were producing 1,200. Warfighting depends not only on the bravery of our armed forces, but on the technical innovation of our manufacturers. In Suffolk we now have advanced drone manufacturers. Does the Minister agree that we must…
Commons
Debate
23 June 2026
2 contributions
Forest City: West Suffolk
I am grateful to the hon. Member, my constituency neighbour, for allowing an intervention. I regard this as quite a bold idea, like the NHS; that was a bold idea just after the war. Let us try and use our imaginations: perhaps we will create a shining city—a city not on a hill but in the flatlands o…
I do not wish to declare my support for Forest City, but I wish to declare that there has to be some imagination here. It seems to me that the hon. Gentleman, my constituency neighbour, has not grasped the imagination behind this project. We are not talking about simply expanding a number of existin…
Commons
Oral Questions
Education
22 June 2026
Small Rural Schools
Small rural schools in Suffolk all face an uncertain future. I met with the brilliant Stephany Hunter, head of Barningham school, who explained the difficult problem of per-pupil funding in her very small classes. I would like to see more affordable housing in villages for young families by changing…
Commons
Proceedings
15 June 2026
Defence Investment Plan
We are talking of spending, but modern warfare, like warfare since time immemorial, depends on the bravery of our fighting men and our fighting women. We also need a nimble and effective industrial base, for we used to have arrows, then there were bullets and shells, and now there are drones and tec…
Commons
Westminster Hall
2 June 2026
Preparedness for National Emergencies
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mrs Barker. Across the river, we can all see the covid memorial wall with a quarter of a million red hearts—a quarter of a million of our people lost. Few families were unaffected. My son is an accident and emergency doctor, and he was then working …
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
1 June 2026
2 contributions
UK Coastal Waters: Protection
12. What steps his Department is taking to protect UK coastal waters.
Off the tranquil coast of Suffolk lie critical pieces of infrastructure, communications cables and electrical installations. There are alarming reports of munitions that are capable of creating giant tidal waves, threatening our coastal communities and indeed our nuclear facilities. Will the Ministe…
Commons
Debate
20 May 2026
2 contributions
Defence Readiness
I am very grateful to be making a contribution to the debate on the King’s Speech. It touched on what, in my view, is the core foundation of the nation’s future, which is defensive readiness. My remarks will focus on what is a real part of our national defence: the defence of our democracy and our c…
I welcome my hon. Friend’s intervention and agree that the BBC World Service is almost the best example of our country’s soft power. I welcome the extra investment promised by this Government to support its work, but I would like it to be greater. We will do all we can to support the World Service.
…
Commons
Westminster Hall
22 April 2026
8 contributions
Junior Doctors’ Foundation Programme
I beg to move,
That this House has considered the Foundation Programme and its role in supporting and retaining resident doctors.
Thank you, Mrs Barker, for chairing today’s debate. First, I must thank everyone for coming and say something about my interests. As many know, I am an ear, nose and th…
I heard the same thing; indeed, I met Dr Fletcher from the BMA yesterday myself and heard exactly this story, so the situation is intensely frustrating, but I believe that we can get ourselves back to a position in which an agreement can be reached.
My argument this morning is simple. The foundatio…
+6 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Church Commissioners
16 April 2026
2 contributions
Places of Worship Renewal Fund
6. What discussions the Church has had with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on the planned timetable for the introduction of the places of worship renewal fund.
I thank my hon. Friend for her answer. Church leaders in Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket are rightly concerned about the cancellation of the listed places of worship grant scheme. Will the Church Commissioner outline what conversations she has had with the Government regarding the support and guidanc…
Commons
Debate
15 April 2026
3 contributions
Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill
Let me start by saying that I support the Government’s direction of travel on this Bill. The focus on children’s wellbeing, both in schools and out, is obviously right, but let me address Lords amendment 38, tabled by Lord Nash, about social media access; it was accepted back into the Bill, with a l…
I agree that we must hold the tech companies to account; they are the ones in control of the situation.
The amendment proposes a higher standard—not simply “reasonable steps”, but highly effective age assurance, and that is meaningfully different. We have heard about movement internationally. Franc…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
15 April 2026
Engagements
Q13. I would like first to thank the nurses, the doctors, the radiographers and the receptionists who were not on strike when I tripped and broke my wrist last week.After years of neglect, Labour is rebuilding our NHS, including the West Suffolk hospital at Bury St Edmunds and the new dental school …
Commons
Westminster Hall
15 April 2026
Cost of Heating Oil
I thank the hon. Member for North Norfolk (Steff Aquarone) for securing this debate.
I want to speak about the impact that the rising cost of heating oil is having on rural communities such as mine in Suffolk. Following events in the middle east, many residents who rely on heating oil contacted me—…
Commons
Oral Questions
14 April 2026
NHS Dental Services
May I congratulate the ministerial team, the University of East Anglia and the Office for Students on finally getting the new dental school at the university over the line? It will admit 25 students from September next year and will go some way to dealing with the dental deserts that we inherited in…
Commons
Debate
26 March 2026
Resident Doctors: Industrial Action
I share the frustrations of Ministers and of the Government. I know that they have worked really hard on this. Dr Fletcher of the BMA has also worked hard, and I am sure that there is a deal to be done somewhere. The Medical Training (Prioritisation) Act 2026, to prioritise UK graduates, was very we…
Commons
Oral Questions
26 March 2026
2 contributions
Rail Renationalisation: East of England
1. What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the renationalisation of the railways on rail users in the east of England.
I am grateful for that answer. Greater Anglia has consistently been at the top of the performance scale for our railway operators, but could the Secretary of State tell me whether the nationalisation of the railway will lead to the increased likelihood of a much better commuter service between Bury …
Commons
Westminster Hall
26 March 2026
Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and Craniocervical Instability
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Furniss. I was not going to talk in this debate until last week, when a lady came to my surgery at Bury St Edmunds. I used to hold surgeries all the time for patients with ear, nose and throat disorders; now I hold surgeries for constituents who com…
Commons
Debate
23 March 2026
Hatzola Ambulance Attack
In our synagogues each week, we pray for the King and for the Almighty to grant wisdom to all his counsellors. Never has such wisdom been more essential, for antisemitism and Iranian-backed terrorism are evil bedfellows. Will the Minister join me in supporting all the work of the CST and our emergen…
Commons
Debate
23 March 2026
Middle East
The long-range missile attacks have raised the spectre in my mind, and surely in those of others, of attacks on the United Kingdom. I have listened to the Secretary of State’s reassurances about the defence of this country, but we have all seen the value of the Iron Dome. What is being done to creat…
Commons
Oral Questions
19 March 2026
Business of the House
I know that some in this Chamber are sceptical about the role of the other place. However, after dinner last night, at about 11 o’clock, I took some visitors into the House of Lords Gallery, and was completely astonished to find a very lively debate taking place in a full Chamber. Will the Leader of…
Commons
Oral Questions
Solicitor General
19 March 2026
Courts and Tribunals Bill
I welcome the Government’s reforms to the criminal justice system, but I would like to ask what measures will be taken to increase cultural, class and age-group diversity in magistrate recruitment, so as to increase confidence in our reforms?
Commons
Proceedings
18 March 2026
Student Loans
Student finance is complicated. With thanks to my hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow South (Gordon McKee), who has been in and out of his seat all afternoon, I was able to produce a biscuit explainer today, which is available on all good social media channels.
Reforming the student finance system i…
Commons
Westminster Hall
18 March 2026
2 contributions
Royal Mail: Performance
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Twigg. I thank the hon. Member for Exmouth and Exeter East (David Reed) for introducing the debate. I also thank the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam (Luke Taylor), who has turned private investigator. I was very impressed by his efforts.
There is …
Give it time.
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
16 March 2026
Topical Questions
Many United States service personnel from RAF Lakenheath and RAF Mildenhall live off base in Bury St Edmunds. Three planes from Lakenheath were shot down in friendly fire over Kuwait last week. Fortunately, the pilots were rescued. Mildenhall is home to a large fleet of aerial refuelling tankers. I …
Commons
Westminster Hall
11 March 2026
Public Body Data Collection: Sikh and Jewish Ethnicity
I wish to make a medical point. Considering the clear evidence for the genetic propensity of Jews to develop certain medical conditions and diseases, is it not right that, in terms of data, the NHS and the Department of Health and Social Care treat Jews as both a religious and an ethnic group?