Commons
Debate
10 December 2025
6 contributions
Seasonal Work
Like many of my Labour colleagues, I was out talking to small high-street businesses at the weekend, specifically in Saltaire, in my constituency. For many of them, the permanent reduction in business rates announced by the Chancellor is very welcome. They are not being hit by property re-evaluation…
When I have talked to small and medium-sized enterprises in my constituency of Shipley, they have welcomed the announcement that there will be free apprenticeship training so that they can help the next generation of young people get into higher-skilled jobs and have careers. Does the hon. Lady agre…
+4 more contributions in this session
Commons
Westminster Hall
10 December 2025
2 contributions
Kashmir: Self-determination
rose—
Thank you, Sir Roger, and please accept my apologies. I thank my hon. Friend, who is a great advocate, for taking an intervention. In the great city of Bradford we share a large British-Kashmiri community, whom I met recently. Will he join me in calling for greater international diplomatic efforts t…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
9 December 2025
Grooming Gangs: Independent Inquiry
I commend the Home Secretary for the tone in which she has approached this very sensitive subject. I met victims and survivors in West Yorkshire, including representatives of the Bradford survivor leadership group, brought together by West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin and the deputy mayor and police…
Commons
Westminster Hall
9 December 2025
6 contributions
Water Scarcity
The Leeds and Liverpool canal runs through my constituency of Shipley, and on it is the very famous Bingley Five Rise locks. Because of water scarcity, that lock, and passage through it, has been shut for some time. Does the hon. Member agree with me that as part of managing our water system, it is …
As the hon. Gentleman may know, the chief exec of Yorkshire Water, while publicly not taking her bonus, took quite a large sum of money from the Kelda Holdings company. Given that lack of transparency at Yorkshire Water, does the hon. Gentleman agree that companies such as Kelda Holdings should not …
+4 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
8 December 2025
Child Poverty Strategy
Children across my Shipley constituency see at first hand the impact of child poverty in their schools and communities. I recently visited the Shipley school uniform hub, run by the Salvation Army, which provides pre-loved uniforms to families who can barely afford the essentials. I congratulate my …
Commons
Proceedings
8 December 2025
Restriction of Jury Trials
On Friday, I met senior detectives in Bradford who investigate and bring prosecutions for historical cases of child sexual exploitation and abuse, including group-based abuse. They do all they can to support victims to get justice—in fact, West Yorkshire police were commended by Baroness Casey for i…
Commons
Oral Questions
Work and Pensions
8 December 2025
2 contributions
Review of Carer’s Allowance Overpayments
7. What steps he is taking to implement the recommendations of the review of carer’s allowance overpayments, published on 25 November 2025.
I thank the Minister for his response. As he well knows, over the last decade, around 185,000 unpaid family carers have been pursued by the Department for Work and Pensions to return overpayments in their carer’s allowance. Through no fault of their own, many working carers have faced bills that hav…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
3 December 2025
Engagements
Q13. This week I met my constituents, Mike and Sue. Their autistic son Jimmy was imprisoned as a young man. The judge recommended a sentence of two and a half years. Jimmy is now in his 40s. He has been in prison for nearly 20 years on an indeterminate sentence for public protection. His doctors say…
Commons
Proceedings
2 December 2025
2 contributions
Budget Resolutions
Last week, I went to Shipley college in my constituency and met some of the students. They asked what the Labour Government were going to do to provide them with training and employment opportunities. Does my hon. Friend agree that giving free training to SMEs to take on apprentices will help to del…
I represent a constituency on the other side of the Pennines. Does my hon. Friend agree that this investment in transport in the north, linking across the Pennines to great cities like Leeds and Bradford and delivering on Northern Powerhouse Rail in full, including a station in Bradford, is necessar…
Commons
Proceedings
1 December 2025
Budget Resolutions
My hon. Friend speaks with passion about child poverty. The fact that we have so many children in poverty is clearly a legacy of Tory economic mismanagement. Does my hon. Friend agree that the removal of the two-child benefit cap is a victory for compassion, justice and evidence-based policymaking?
Commons
Westminster Hall
26 November 2025
6 contributions
Home Insulation
I beg to move,
That this House has considered the impact of home insulation on energy bills.
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Dowd. Across the country, 12 million households are in fuel poverty, with almost 5 million of them spending over 20% of their income on energy. Like many …
It is vital that people in all types of tenure and even low-income households—indeed, everybody—can access modifications that could save them money on their bills.
Poor-quality housing particularly traps households in fuel poverty, because people need to spend a fortune to keep warm. Data from Frie…
+4 more contributions in this session
Commons
Westminster Hall
20 November 2025
3 contributions
Unpaid Carers: Inequalities
I beg to move,
That this House has considered inequalities faced by unpaid carers.
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Vaz. First, I will note my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests: I am chair of the all-party parliamentary group on carers, which is supported by C…
I thank the Minister for his response. Given what we know about carer burnout and the need for short breaks, and given the data that suggests local authority funding cuts have resulted in less support being available, will there be work between the NHS—with its increased budget—and local authorities…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
18 November 2025
Energy Efficiency Schemes: Consumer Confidence
I thank the Minister for his comments. Last week on the Public Accounts Committee, we heard about the shocking scandal of faulty cavity wall insulation under the energy company obligation 4 scheme, for which the last Government outsourced oversight to TrustMark. I have heard from constituents across…
Commons
Westminster Hall
18 November 2025
2 contributions
UNESCO: 80th Anniversary
It was a delight to welcome my hon. Friend to Saltaire recently as part of the World Heritage UK conference, where he saw the regeneration of Salts Mill at the heart of our world heritage site and the amazing regeneration that it has brought to the whole village. Is that an example that he thinks hi…
Will the Minister give way?
Commons
Oral Questions
11 November 2025
2 contributions
Violence against Women and Girls
13. What steps his Department is taking through the criminal justice system to help tackle violence against women and girls.
As a member of the Public Accounts Committee I have been appalled at the failure of the previous Government to tackle the backlog in the courts, delaying justice for victims of domestic abuse and sexual abuse. I thank the Minister for her unwavering commitment to repairing the justice system that we…
Commons
Westminster Hall
11 November 2025
2 contributions
Autistic Adults: Employment
My niece successfully secured a place on a civil service internship. She was then able to go on and train as a work coach and is helping people who face similar challenges with neurodiversity or health conditions to get back into work. Does the hon. Lady agree that it is important that other employe…
Does the hon. Gentleman agree that closing the disability gap—indeed, the specific employment gap for people with neurodiversity—will mean opening up opportunities in different ways, so that autistic people do not have to go through interviews and other barriers that a normal application process req…
Commons
Debate
5 November 2025
Drug-related Deaths
I thank my hon. Friend for securing the debate. In the Bradford district, there were 70 drug-related deaths in 2023. I agree with her that we need to take a different approach to tackling the problem, and it must be a public health approach. The UK could learn much from countries like Portugal, whic…
Commons
Debate
4 November 2025
2 contributions
Supporting High Streets
I am very fortunate to represent the beautiful villages across the Shipley constituency, including Baildon, Menston, Burley-in-Wharfedale, Wilsden, Harden, Cullingworth and Eldwick. These communities are thriving because they have village halls; churches, like Wesleys in Baildon; post offices, like …
My hon. Friend makes an excellent point about the number of pop-up shops and illegal traders on the high street. I am running a petition about the antisocial use of fireworks; does she agree that more needs to be done to stop their illegal sale in pop-up shops?
Commons
Oral Questions
4 November 2025
2 contributions
Regional Economic Growth: Pension Funds
4. What steps she is taking with pension providers to help increase regional economic growth.
Many of my constituents have assets in the West Yorkshire Pension Fund, which manages more than £19 million. I am concerned, however, that some of the fund’s investments are concentrated in sectors that cause harm, such as the fossil fuel industry. Does the Minister agree that the West Yorkshire Pen…
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
3 November 2025
Drone Procurement
I am very proud that the Government have supported Ukraine through the provision of drones. I recently visited Radio Design, a company in Saltaire in my constituency that is at the cutting edge of radio frequency, which is essential for fighting the rapidly developing threat from drones. Can the Min…
Commons
Proceedings
30 October 2025
2 contributions
Ageing and End-of-life Care
I thank the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) for securing this debate, and I draw the House’s attention to my entry in the Register of Member’s Financial Interests. I am an officer of the all-party groups on carers, and on housing and care for older people, and I was formerly chief executive…
As the hon. Member rightly says, ICBs are under a legal duty to commission palliative care services. Does he not recognise that the problems we are having, not just with hospice care but with the lack of availability of palliative and end-of-life care, often come down to poor commissioning—ICBs fail…
Commons
Debate
30 October 2025
2 contributions
Property Service Charges
I commend my hon. Friend for explaining the problems so clearly, problems that are shared by my elderly residents in Aire Valley Court and Sutton Court in Bingley. They too have seen above-inflation rises in service charges and a lack of transparency about accounts, with no evidence to justify them.…
Will my hon. Friend give way?
Commons
Debate
21 October 2025
6 contributions
Sentencing Bill
My hon. Friend is making a very strong argument, drawing parallels between gambling addiction and drug and alcohol abuse. Earlier this year, as a member of the Public Accounts Committee, I questioned Government officials about the endemic use of drugs in prisons. The Carol Black report looked at thi…
No, I have not just walked in. This is the third speech I have listened to.
+4 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
14 October 2025
2 contributions
Mental Health Bill [Lords]
I am no expert on mental health law, but I do have decades of experience in the health and care sector, and my sister is a psychiatrist. I know that the decision to detain someone with severe mental illness is never taken lightly, and that psychiatrists must weigh up a range of factors and informati…
Will my hon. Friend give way?