Commons
Westminster Hall
3 December 2025
Oxford to Cambridge Growth Corridor
I have drawn the short straw here. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Cambridge (Daniel Zeichner) on securing this debate. I felt compelled to join the debate this afternoon because I wanted to underscore the point, which has been made by others, that if we want to make the Oxford-Cambridg…
Commons
Proceedings
1 December 2025
Budget Resolutions
It is a pleasure to contribute to this third day of the Budget debate, and a pleasure to follow the right hon. Member for Stone, Great Wyrley and Penkridge (Sir Gavin Williamson), and I associate myself with the speeches of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
1 December 2025
Office for Budget Responsibility Forecasts
I thank the Chief Secretary to the Treasury for his statement. The integrity of fiscal forecasting depends not only on technical expertise, but on the public’s confidence in the people who deliver it. Clearly, that confidence has been shaken in the past few days. Can he outline what governance chang…
Commons
Oral Questions
1 December 2025
Topical Questions
I was pleased to see that the forthcoming curriculum reforms acknowledge the importance of financial capability for young people, but there is the immediate challenge of the scant financial education that exists now, which must be addressed. Can the Minister update the House on how the Department is…
Commons
Oral Questions
27 November 2025
2 contributions
Youth Services: Buckingham and Bletchley
2. What discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on funding for youth services in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.
Bletchley youth centre has been a trusted hub for our town for over 60 years, supporting 400 young people in the town every week by providing affordable activities and outreach to prevent antisocial behaviour, but that service has been stretched due to years of underfunding by the previous Governmen…
Commons
Westminster Hall
25 November 2025
Pension Investment in UK Equities
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Stringer, and to keep the Minister company on the Government side. I congratulate the right hon. Member for Salisbury (John Glen) on securing this debate and on a highly compelling speech and argument.
The question of whether we can create the righ…
Commons
Oral Questions
24 November 2025
Buckinghamshire Council: Funding
Multi-year funding settlements can help councils such as Buckinghamshire to prepare for the future and ensure the continuity of local services, but that approach was not necessarily applied by the last Conservative Government. In the north Buckinghamshire towns and villages that I represent, there i…
Commons
Oral Questions
20 November 2025
Topical Questions
East West Rail promises to be hugely transformative for Bletchley, positioning the town as a key economic hub, not only between London and Birmingham but between Oxford and Cambridge. With a new eastern entrance at Bletchley station, we can unlock the jobs and investment that will not only revitalis…
Commons
Oral Questions
Home Department
17 November 2025
Topical Questions
Returning to rural crime, I pay tribute to the work that the Thames Valley police rural crime taskforce is doing for rural communities and farmers in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency. Can the Minister set out more detail of how the national rural crime strategy will complement the work alre…
Commons
Oral Questions
13 November 2025
2 contributions
Flood Resilience: Buckingham and Bletchley
1. What steps she is taking to improve flood resilience in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.
I thank the Minister for her response. Last winter’s floods exposed how years of under-investment by the previous Conservative Government had left Buckingham’s flood defences inadequate, which impacted many businesses and residents in our town. I have had the pleasure of working with the Flood Actio…
Commons
Oral Questions
4 November 2025
Regional Economic Growth: Pension Funds
The establishment of the Sterling 20 sends a strong signal that this country is serious about mobilising more of its own domestic capital into productive domestic assets. As the Oxford-Cambridge growth corridor’s anchor, my Buckingham and Bletchley constituency is primed to offer high-quality invest…
Commons
Oral Questions
13 October 2025
2 contributions
New Social Housing: Buckingham and Bletchley
12. What steps his Department is taking to support local authorities to build social housing in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.
The on-time, on-budget delivery of 183 new council homes for local families on the Lakes estate in Bletchley is a good demonstration of what Labour can achieve in local government. Is my right hon. Friend willing to visit Bletchley over the coming weeks and months to discuss how further investment f…
Commons
Oral Questions
Treasury
9 September 2025
Government Debt Interest Payments
The trust of financial markets depends not just on the policy of the Government today, but on whether we keep that trust tomorrow. The Opposition squandered that trust when they were in government by trying to push through tax cuts that they could not afford—that the UK could not afford. Does the Ch…
Commons
Debate
8 September 2025
Defence Industrial Strategy
I thank the Minister for his statement. I welcome this industrial strategy, which—as my hon. Friend the Member for Slough (Mr Dhesi) said—demonstrates how closely aligned a strong domestic defence sector is with our economic security and sovereignty. Can the Minister add a bit more detail about what…
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
8 September 2025
NATO Defence Spending Target
Britain’s commitment to the 5% NATO target clearly sends a strong signal of our resolve, but that pledge must command public confidence that the money will be spent wisely. Can the Secretary of State provide more detail on how he is working with the Treasury, the Cabinet Office and others to ensure …
Commons
Oral Questions
Business and Trade
17 July 2025
Topical Questions
T2. The Government’s £500 million investment to support under-represented entrepreneurs was hugely welcomed by business leaders in my constituency, but access to capital is only part of the challenge. Many still face entrenched barriers around networks, mentoring and market access. Will the Minister…
Commons
Oral Questions
Business and Trade
17 July 2025
2 contributions
Capital and Export Finance: SMEs
9. What steps his Department is taking to ensure that SMEs in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency can access capital and export finance as part of the UK’s recent trade agreements.
Innovative high-growth companies, such as Envisics in Bletchley, are developing and exporting world-leading technology-driven products but face difficulties securing the domestic capital needed to scale up. Too often, overseas investors and, sometimes, Governments, offer both finance and other incen…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
16 July 2025
Financial Services Reform
I thank the Minister for her statement and commend the work that she and the Chancellor have done on the wider Leeds reforms. I want to pick up on the forthcoming campaign to promote retail investment, which has the potential to reshape public understanding of risk, reward and financial planning. Th…
Commons
Debate
7 July 2025
4 contributions
Pension Schemes Bill
I am probably a parliamentary oddity, given that I have been looking forward hugely to rising to support the Bill—and what luck to follow such a colourful and interesting speech from the right hon. Member for North West Hampshire (Kit Malthouse).
I believe that this landmark piece of legislation, w…
As I have said, I think that larger funds can manage risk better and deliver better outcomes for savers, which means that they can take greater ownership of how they spend their retirement years. I also think that the £25 billion threshold for megafunds in the defined-contribution market is the righ…
+2 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Treasury
1 July 2025
Topical Questions
As people are living longer, they face more complex financial choices. The new, simplified advice regime announced by the Government and the Financial Conduct Authority yesterday is hugely welcome and will help more people make better informed investment decisions. Will the Minister provide more det…
Commons
Oral Questions
Work and Pensions
23 June 2025
2 contributions
Topical Questions
T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
Closing the disability employment gap is a matter of opportunity for disabled people in my constituency. I recently visited M&M Supplies, a stand-out company in Bletchley, not only for its many exporting successes but because a quarter of its workforce are adults with learning disabilities and d…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
18 June 2025
HS2 Reset
I thank the Secretary of State for her statement and the candidness with which she has delivered it. The villages I represent in north Buckinghamshire, be they Turweston, Westbury, Quainton or North Marston—I know the hon. Member for Mid Buckinghamshire (Greg Smith) will be familiar with those commu…
Commons
Oral Questions
Education
16 June 2025
Topical Questions
Just two in five young people recall receiving any financial education at school, and those who did so often received less than an hour per month. While I welcome the Government’s Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which will require all schools to teach financial literacy, does the Minister agr…
Commons
Proceedings
13 May 2025
Mansion House Accord
The Mansion House accord is clearly a welcome step in aligning the UK’s pool of domestic pension capital with long-term growth, greater economic sovereignty and financial security in retirement. For this to succeed, we need greater clarity in who is stepping up, so can the Minister update the House …