Commons
Oral Questions
Health and Social Care
9 June 2026
Topical Questions
On Thursday I will chair the all-party parliamentary group on endometriosis’s first evidence session of our inquiry into endometriosis in the workplace. We will look at the experiences of women living with the condition and at the lack of timely treatment for chronic symptoms and how this impacts th…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
20 May 2026
2 contributions
Engagements
Q1. If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 20 May.
May I share the condolences expressed by the Prime Minister?
As a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine to the Iran war, people have struggled with the cost of living. In my constituency in the heart of Scotland, road travel and logistics are key to everyday life and local industry, and the Roa…
Commons
Oral Questions
23 April 2026
Business of the House
The British Standards Institution has supported safety, industrial harmony and best practice in the workplace for 125 years this year. I have seen at first hand the extensive work that it has done in creating the new inclusive personal protective equipment standards, with special mention to Anne Hay…
Commons
Debate
22 April 2026
Government Procurement Strategy
I thank the Minister for the changes, which are a welcome vote of confidence in UK business and industry. I welcome the rapid review of existing requirements that we know can slow down the procurement process, leading to frustration and inefficiencies all around. Ahead of International Workers’ Memo…
Commons
Proceedings
20 April 2026
Community-owned Assets: Government Support
My right hon. Friend is painting a beautifully evocative picture of the UPP, and it takes me straight to my favourite film, “Cinema Paradiso”. Does she agree that communities often deliver in a way that the Government cannot? They deliver according to what communities and local people need, but they…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
16 April 2026
Women’s Health Strategy
As chair of the all-party parliamentary group on endometriosis, I thank the ministerial team and my honourable Friend in the other place, Baroness Merron, for the focus that they have placed on that condition in the strategy, and for putting women’s voices front and centre; too often, they have been…
Commons
Oral Questions
16 April 2026
Business of the House
Last month I attended a celebration to mark the 40th anniversary of the reopening of Bathgate railway station in 1986, as part of efforts to regenerate the local economy. More than 80 passenger trains now travel through Bathgate railway station every day between Edinburgh and Glasgow, playing an imp…
Commons
Oral Questions
16 April 2026
Topical Questions
T2. My constituency has always been a hotbed of musical talent and creativity. The newly approved Bathgate Music Hub will be an excellent addition to community-run venues that support local musicians. Co-operative and community-owned models increasingly safeguard and grow live music venues. How does…
Commons
Oral Questions
Scotland
15 April 2026
2 contributions
Pride in Place: Regeneration
5. What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues through the Pride in Place programme to support regeneration in Scotland.
Years of under-investment and the loss of major employers have left Whitburn and Blackburn facing deep economic and health inequalities, weakened high streets and people generally feeling left behind, yet the strength of local organisations and businesses shows great ambition for renewal. With £20 m…
Commons
Westminster Hall
13 April 2026
3 contributions
Statutory Menstrual Leave
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Mundell. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Colne Valley (Paul Davies) for speaking with such compassion and insight, and for sharing Leah’s journey—one I am afraid many will recognise. I am chair of the all-party parliamentary group on endometri…
My hon. Friend is making a very powerful point. Does she agree that the impact on women’s mental health is rarely spoken about? Women feel ignored and dismissed, but they are living in constant pain and the anticipation of it, which just wears them down. The mental health point is rarely acknowledge…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Debate
24 March 2026
Personal Protective Equipment (Inclusive Standards)
I beg to move,
That leave be given to bring in a Bill to require that personal protective equipment procured and provided by public sector and associated bodies must comply with Standard BS 30417:2025, or an equivalent specified standard; and for connected purposes.
I bring the Bill to the House a…
Commons
Oral Questions
19 March 2026
Business of the House
Last Saturday, Nicola’s women’s support group celebrated its first anniversary, marking a year of welcoming women in West Lothian to connect, share experiences and offer a listening ear. Nicola’s was founded in memory of a beautiful young woman, Nicola, who took her own life after repeated delays to…
Commons
Westminster Hall
18 March 2026
Social Enterprises and Community Ownership
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Sir John. Many of our communities have felt left behind, with their concerns about the places where they live often going unheard, so I welcome the steps that this Government have taken since July 2024 to address that imbalance. They are giving power b…
Commons
Oral Questions
5 March 2026
2 contributions
Personal Protective Equipment Contracts
12. What steps his Department is taking to encourage the adoption of the inclusive personal protective equipment standard BS 30417 in Government procurement contracts.
With the Government on a mission to build 1.5 million new homes and invest billions in upgrading critical infrastructure, fit-to-form PPE is more important than ever for the expanding workforce. The Government have an opportunity to embrace BS 30417 and use the state’s substantial purchasing power t…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
4 March 2026
Engagements
Q12. Nine years and four months ago, Britain was basking in its success after the Rio Olympics, but each day, month and year since, women have lived with the chronic pain of undiagnosed endometriosis. According to Endometriosis UK’s new report, the UK’s average wait time for diagnosis has worsened s…
Commons
Debate
2 March 2026
3 contributions
Representation of the People Bill
rose —
Does the right hon. Gentleman recognise the valuable contribution that young people in Scotland have made to the democratic process, first in 2014, when they were able to vote in the independence referendum, and subsequently in Scottish local and parliamentary elections? Does he value their contribu…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Proceedings
12 February 2026
Business of the House
Last week, my constituents Gillian Greenwell and Craig Turpie from Bathgate’s Turpie & Co visited Parliament and watched business questions from the Gallery. They were visiting London for the Guild of Property Professionals awards, where they won silver in the overall UK award and gold in the Sc…
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
12 February 2026
2 contributions
Topical Questions
T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
The airspace modernisation strategy will rationalise flightpaths last redrawn in the 1950s to cut emissions and noise. However, the community in the historical village of Blackness, in my constituency, are concerned that the opposite will happen with the plans for Edinburgh airport airspace, and tha…
Commons
Oral Questions
10 February 2026
Topical Questions
As a Labour and Co-operative MP, I am absolutely delighted by the publication of the local power plan. I have seen that work in action through local energy projects such as Bo’ness scout group, which is reducing its bills with 40 solar panels and delivering funding support for young people. What ste…
Commons
Oral Questions
5 February 2026
Business of the House
The yearly Linlithgow marches organised by the Deacons Court is a 16th-century tradition marking the boundaries of the ancient and royal burgh. The marches celebrate civic pride. There are floats, parades, and much merriment from early in the morning. Last year, the court celebrated its 50th anniver…
Commons
Westminster Hall
5 February 2026
Scottish Affairs Committee in 2024-25 and Industrial Transition
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mrs Barker. As a Committee member, I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock (Elaine Stewart) for this statement. My constituency of Bathgate and Linlithgow has a proud industrial tradition, from mining and manufacturing to electro…
Commons
Westminster Hall
4 February 2026
2 contributions
Armed Conflict: Children
Does the hon. Gentleman share my concern that kidnap is increasingly being used as a tool of war in areas of conflict, whether Ukraine, where thousands of children have been abducted and torn from their homes, or in Nigeria and Sudan? This is becoming more prevalent, and it is causing immense worry.
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Stringer. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Hyndburn (Sarah Smith) on securing this debate. I also pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire South (Johanna Baxter) for her campaigning to return the stolen Ukrai…
Commons
Westminster Hall
2 February 2026
2 contributions
Indefinite Leave to Remain
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Lewell.
Although 116 people in my constituency have signed the petitions, the story of one constituent—I will call her Jill—stuck with me. It is a story of anxiety and uncertainty for Jill, who works in social care on a health and social care visa.…
In the interests of time, I will not.
Those people budgeted for visa fees, planned family life and made long-term decisions on the understanding that after five years they could apply for settlement. Extending that to 10 years means five more years of uncertainty and thousands of pounds in addition…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
29 January 2026
Women’s State Pension Age Communication: PHSO Report
I thank my right hon. Friend for his statement, and the repeated apology on behalf of the Government, but like many Labour Members and other Members across the House, I have long supported WASPI women. I commend the WASPI women in west Lothian and Falkirk for their perseverance over many years. I ha…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
21 January 2026
Engagements
Q5. Some 1.5 million women in the UK live with endometriosis, which is a painful and life-changing condition. As chair of the all-party parliamentary group on endometriosis, I met Jessica Smith and Endo Warriors West Lothian to discuss their campaign for a national endometriosis registry to capture …