Commons
Proceedings
8 July 2026
2 contributions
NHS Corridor Care
I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Tooting (Dr Allin-Khan) for bringing this important matter to the House, and for talking so eloquently about her experiences on the frontline.
Few issues speak to the state of our national health service more than this one. Since being elected, my inbox and adv…
I thank my hon. Friend for raising that very important issue.
Yet while corridor care was rising in our hospitals, the previous Government did not count the numbers. I pay tribute to my right hon. Friend the Member for Ilford North (Wes Streeting), who as Health Secretary chose to publish the offic…
Commons
Westminster Hall
30 June 2026
2 contributions
High Streets
The hon. Member is making a powerful speech. With reference to the change in the nature of our high street, he is absolutely right that online retail has taken over. Does that not mean that we need to look at a mixed-use offer that takes into account things like housing, the impact of health in the …
The Minister is making a powerful point about community partnerships and how we work together. Does she agree that involving the community in decisions about the future of the high street, as we are doing in Gillingham, is really important? It will secure the future of high streets.
Commons
Proceedings
8 June 2026
Digital Safety: Children
Unfortunately, I do not believe that the tech giants will do as they say and act in the right way on this issue. What consideration is the Minister giving to legislation, particularly to ensure that all platforms can meet the same standards, but also so that we can future-proof against new platforms…
Commons
Oral Questions
Home Department
8 June 2026
Unite the Kingdom Rally: Policing
Last week, I met one of my constituents who had faced horrible racist abuse on the train home from people who had been on the Unite the Kingdom rally. As someone of mixed white and middle eastern heritage, she told me that for the first time she felt scared in her own country. Does the Minister agre…
Commons
Oral Questions
18 March 2026
2 contributions
Social Media: Children and Young People
4. What steps her Department is taking to engage with children and young people on social media use.
Parents in Gillingham and Rainham strongly back this Government’s efforts to keep children safe online. Does the Secretary of State agree that repealing the Online Safety Act, as Reform has pledged to do, would recklessly expose our children to online predators and leave them without the protections…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
17 March 2026
Meningitis Outbreak
I thank the Secretary of State for his statement, and I particularly welcome his announcement that he is reviewing the ongoing use of the vaccine and considering expanding it to a wider cohort. Given that the University of Kent also has campuses in Medway, could he inform me what work he is doing wi…
Commons
Westminster Hall
3 February 2026
Town and City Centre Safety
It is a pleasure, Mr Dowd, to speak under your chairship.
Our town centres are the heart of our communities. They give our towns identity and define how we interact with where we live. However, it is that very interaction that means people also need to feel safe, secure and welcome in town centres.…
Commons
Westminster Hall
2 February 2026
Indefinite Leave to Remain
My hon. Friend makes a powerful point. Does he agree that the change to this rule could also have an impact on children? We have to make sure that, whatever the changes are, they take into account those children who are growing up in this country and could be adversely impacted if we do not look at …
Commons
Debate
28 January 2026
4 contributions
Youth Unemployment
This debate lays bare the sheer hypocrisy of the Conservative party. Although I certainly do not welcome the numbers we are seeing on youth unemployment and recognise the challenge, this is not an issue that was created today. It was overseen by 14 years of their Government, as young people were ste…
No, I will continue.
Let us not forget the damage that the Conservatives caused by cutting youth services by 70% in real terms since 2010. A Government who presided over the rise in NEET numbers year after year cannot claim surprise at the consequences of hollowing out the skills system that once g…
+2 more contributions in this session
Commons
Ministerial Statement
17 December 2025
Local Government Finance
After 14 years, the Tories should be ashamed of their legacy in local government. I know that my council, Medway, will welcome the Minister’s announcement about linking deprivation to funding, but we still face other challenges. Will she set out what the changes mean for my local area, and will she …
Commons
Westminster Hall
2 December 2025
Homelessness: Funding
It is an honour to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Vickers. Before coming to this place, I worked on the frontline of homelessness policy at the charity St Mungo’s and also in the housing industry for over 15 years, as well as being cabinet member for housing at Medway council. Those experiences t…
Commons
Proceedings
1 December 2025
Budget Resolutions
I begin by expressing my gratitude to the Chancellor for her clear commitment to transforming the lives of my constituents. Over the past few days, she has set out a plan for investment in major infrastructure and to rebuild our public services. For the people outside the Chamber, the real significa…
Commons
Debate
5 November 2025
2 contributions
Employment Rights Bill
Does my hon. Friend agree that the Bill not only provides vital protections to the workforce, but gives businesses the certainty they need to grow our economy?
My hon. Friend is making a powerful point. Does she agree that exploitative zero-hours contracts are a huge problem for workers and that banning them is a big step, so we should oppose any steps to try to water down the legislation?
Commons
Westminster Hall
4 November 2025
Houses in Multiple Occupation: Planning Consent
It is an honour to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Dowd, and I am grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for Mansfield (Steve Yemm) for securing this debate.
In my constituency, the rise of HMOs has been nothing short of dramatic. In particular, streets in Gillingham that were once lined with fami…
Commons
Proceedings
23 October 2025
Business of the House
This week, Reform-led Kent county council reneged on the £500,000 agreement it made with my local authority, Medway council, to maintain operations at key tourism and investment organisations, demanding a 100% increase in the contribution from Medway. Does the Leader of the House agree that competen…
Commons
Oral Questions
21 October 2025
Topical Questions
T4. A Channel 4 “Dispatches” documentary recently went undercover at an ambulance centre in my constituency of Gillingham and Rainham. It showed exhausted staff working under difficult circumstances—the result of years of Tory neglect and mismanagement of our NHS. Does my right hon. Friend agree tha…
Commons
Debate
15 October 2025
Jhoots Pharmacy
I thank the Minister for the context and the responses he has provided so far. Jhoots in my constituency of Gillingham and Rainham has provided an incredibly poor service, not paying staff, not dispensing vital medicine and often not opening on time. However, any replacement pharmacy or provider can…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
21 July 2025
Independent Water Commission
I thank the Secretary of State for everything he is doing to transform water companies across our country. My residents in Gillingham and Rainham have suffered astronomical hikes in their bills and have been exposed to pollution and sewage dumps in our water, yet the chief executive of Southern Wate…
Commons
Oral Questions
Health and Social Care
17 June 2025
2 contributions
Access to GPs
4. Whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of expanding the additional roles reimbursement scheme to include GPs.
I welcome the Government’s commitment to restoring the family doctor, and the recruitment of 1,700 additional GPs nationwide, but my constituency has yet to benefit from that. Concern has been expressed to me about the expansion of the additional roles reimbursement scheme to include only newly qual…
Commons
Oral Questions
Wales
11 June 2025
2 contributions
Defence Spending: Wales
3. What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Government’s increased defence spending on Wales.
The strategic defence review will make Wales and the rest of the UK safer at home and stronger abroad, just as it will my constituency of Gillingham and Rainham. Does the Minister agree that the SDR is further proof that only Labour can be trusted to protect our Union, while Opposition Members wring…
Commons
Debate
9 June 2025
2 contributions
Planning and Infrastructure Bill
My hon. Friend is making a powerful point, which we have discussed on the Select Committee. Does she agree that to reach the target of 90,000 social homes a year, we must set clear targets now? Otherwise, we will not be able to get a grip on the housing crisis when it comes to delivering socially re…
I rise to speak as a member of the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee, and in support of new clause 50.
For too long, affordable housing has become a catch-all term that means anything but. Shared ownership and discounted market schemes are products that may work for some, but for …
Commons
Debate
5 June 2025
Bank Closures and Banking Hubs
I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Blyth and Ashington (Ian Lavery) for securing this important debate.
Access to cash is important, but it is only one part of the story. The closure of bank branches strips communities across our country not just of access to money, but of access to advice and s…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
4 June 2025
Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories
As if this situation could not get any worse, we now have damning reports that Israeli fire is killing Palestinians trying to access aid at militarised distribution centres that are not sanctioned by the UN. It shows complete disregard for human life. Does the Minister agree that enough is enough, a…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
7 May 2025
India-Pakistan: Escalation
I thank the Minister for his statement on this deeply concerning matter. Given that he has already highlighted the friendship that this country enjoys with both Pakistan and India, will he provide reassurances that it is in that manner that ongoing conversations with both countries will be conducted…