Commons
Westminster Hall
14 July 2026
Support for Pig Farmers
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Sir Christopher. I thank the hon. Member for Gordon and Buchan (Harriet Cross) for securing this important debate.
Since becoming the Member of Parliament for Melksham and Devizes, I have been extremely fortunate to visit a number of farms, including …
Commons
Proceedings
25 June 2026
Sudan
Trade with the UAE appears to have been the reason for the lack of robust action in the past to hold back the RSF, which murdered 60,000 in El Fasher last November. A softly, softly approach has clearly not worked, and now it is time for the UK, as UN penholder for Sudan, to find its moral compass a…
Commons
Oral Questions
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
16 June 2026
Ebola Outbreaks
This morning, we held an informal International Development Committee meeting with Professor Wim de Villiers and Richard Gordon of the University of Stellenbosch on the Ebola outbreak in the DRC. The University of Stellenbosch’s disease identification unit has been involved in working on strategies …
Commons
Ministerial Statement
15 June 2026
Russian Shadow Fleet
I welcome the Secretary of State to his position and thank him for his statement. I also thank our brave Royal Marines for undertaking this action. It has been reported in the press that our entire hunter-killer fleet is out of the water, being repaired and maintained. Is that true? When will these …
Commons
Proceedings
3 June 2026
Lebanon: Israel Defence Forces Operations
With the world on fire, with war and climate change and with diseases such as Ebola stalking Africa again, will the Government reconfirm their commitment to returning aid spending to 0.7% of GNI and to not cutting it below 0.3% of GNI?
Commons
Debate
20 May 2026
Defence Readiness
Today, we have been talking about defence readiness, and I commend the members of the armed forces and, indeed, the veterans who live or are based in my constituency. However, our defence comes in various forms. Farming and food security were not mentioned in the King’s Speech, and this was surely a…
Commons
Westminster Hall
28 April 2026
Fire and Rescue Services: Funding
People in our area of Dorset and Wiltshire have been told that we face the potential closure of eight fire stations. At a time when, quite apart from anything else, we do not know what is happening on the international scene and people are talking of dark days ahead, does the hon. Member agree that …
Commons
Debate
23 April 2026
Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency
I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Mid Dorset and North Poole (Vikki Slade) for securing such an important debate.
I was recently contacted by a young person in my constituency who has been trying and failing to get a provisional licence for three years after a series of medical issues. Despite …
Commons
Oral Questions
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
21 April 2026
Topical Questions
The Foreign Secretary has made it clear that a ceasefire in Sudan is a key priority. In the light of the Berlin conference’s shortcomings, can she detail the diplomatic, economic and political levers she is using to bring an end to the violence, particularly with the UK’s allies, including the UAE, …
Commons
Debate
15 April 2026
Strategic Defence Review: Funding
Have the Government considered issuing defence bonds, as proposed by the Liberal Democrats, to ringfence capital for defence spending? If not, why not?
Commons
Ministerial Statement
13 April 2026
Middle East
I thank the Prime Minister for his comments on Lebanon. We are seeing an Israeli military playbook from Gaza—collective punishment, forced displacement and attacks on health—being used in Lebanon without meaningful action from the UK Government. Will the Prime Minister please outline the specific st…
Commons
Oral Questions
26 March 2026
2 contributions
Driving Test Waiting Times
3. What steps she is taking to help reduce waiting times for driving tests.
Young constituents in Melksham and Devizes who are waiting months for driving tests are resorting to paying premium prices for cancellation apps, often getting slots halfway across the country, just to get on the road. One 20-year-old told me that the costs of the wait killed his motivation entirely…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
19 March 2026
International Development
Yesterday, I and my colleagues on the International Development Committee met staff from Action Against Hunger, who had just returned from Lebanon, to hear about the horrors they have seen on the ground there. I am grateful for the added support that has been talked about, but when we and the people…
Commons
Oral Questions
19 March 2026
2 contributions
Snare Traps
2. What progress she has made on banning snare traps.
I and many others in my constituency of Melksham and Devizes, and no doubt across England, welcome the new animal welfare strategy for England, particularly the banning of snares, which are indiscriminate and cruel. What progress is being made on protecting hares during the breeding season, and on d…
Commons
Westminster Hall
17 March 2026
Rural Roads
I thank the hon. Member for South Shropshire (Stuart Anderson) for this debate.
One particularly frustrating problem is the way in which roadworks are planned and co-ordinated, especially in rural areas. I am sure that many Members will recognise the situation where multiple sets of roadworks are s…
Commons
Debate
12 March 2026
3 contributions
Fire Station Closures
I am grateful for the opportunity to open this debate on fire station closures. I would like to begin by paying tribute to the bravery of firefighters across the country.
I thank the hon. Member for those points; he made them well, and I take them on. We should all think of what happened in Glasgow at the weekend.
Family members of firefighters from Wiltshire are in the Gallery, and I thank them for coming. I know of firefighters from Dorset and Wiltshire who would …
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Treasury
10 March 2026
2 contributions
Youth Unemployment: Autumn Budget 2025
18. What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the autumn Budget 2025 on levels of youth unemployment.
The Government’s changes to employer national insurance contributions have made it more expensive for employers to take on staff, particularly in the hospitality sector, which employs a high proportion of young people and part-time workers. Does the Minister agree that these changes have made it mor…
Commons
Debate
4 March 2026
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
I have to declare an interest. before coming to this place, I had a 30-year career as an aid worker, working in WASH: bringing water, sanitation and hygiene to some of the poorest people on the planet—so, yes, I am passionate about this issue, and I make no apologies for that.
A number of sectors h…
Commons
Debate
25 February 2026
Ukraine
Today we pause to reflect on the last four years since the full invasion of Ukraine, on the lives lost and forever changed. We not only mark the immense suffering caused, but reaffirm our solidarity with the Ukrainian people.
In my constituency—and no doubt in many others across the country—solidar…
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
12 February 2026
2 contributions
Passenger Railway Services
13. What steps she is taking to improve railway services for passengers.
I thank the Minister for his answer. Network Rail’s Wiltshire strategic study identifies a clear strategic and economic case for upgrading the railway through Melksham, with a new passing loop unlocking capacity for an hourly passenger service, increased freight movements and improved network resili…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
21 January 2026
Engagements
My constituency of Melksham and Devizes does not have a minor injuries unit, leaving many to travel far afield, to Bath or Swindon, to access A&E services. Will the Prime Minister meet me to discuss the need for an expanded hospital provision in my constituency?
Commons
Westminster Hall
14 January 2026
Horse and Rider Road Safety
Does my hon. Friend agree that clear rules on the speed and distance required when passing walkers, cyclists and horses on the road are needed, and that this should be included in driver theory tests and must be at the heart of driver education? Too many walkers, cyclists and horse riders have been …
Commons
Debate
5 January 2026
Middle East and North Africa
I welcome the Minister’s statement and the good news about the establishment of the Palestinian embassy in London today. However, my question concerns Sudan. As a member of the International Development Committee, I know that the latest assessment we have of the number of killings in El Fasher is no…
Commons
Debate
5 January 2026
Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief
On behalf of the family farmers of Melksham and Devizes, can I point out that farm prices differ across the UK and that raising the level of APR to a flat £6 million, say, whether a farm belongs to a couple or to an individual farmer, would be a great help in assuring the farmers about the future, f…
Commons
Debate
15 December 2025
Sudan: Humanitarian Situation
Clearly, the No.1 priority is to achieve a ceasefire in Sudan, but peace needs to be secured. Will the UK Government, as the UN penholder, organise and host a Lancaster House-style peace conference for all the parties to the conflict, with civilians represented by the head of the previous civilian G…