Commons
Oral Questions
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
16 June 2026
2 contributions
Ebola Outbreaks
8. What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her Department’s policies of international outbreaks of Ebola.
The Ebola outbreak now spans 29 health zones across three eastern provinces and is a reminder to us all that infectious diseases do not respect borders. With global health funding under significant pressure, does the Minister share my concern that we risk undermining the early warning systems that u…
Commons
Oral Questions
Housing, Communities and Local Government
15 June 2026
2 contributions
National Planning Policy Framework: Proposed Health Inequality Duty
4. What assessment he has made of the potential merits of adding a health inequality duty to the national planning policy framework.
Health inequalities are driven by social determinants such as access to green spaces, which is directly associated with higher life expectancy. In my constituency of Worthing West, we have the lowest amount of green space per person in the country—less than a snooker table. Could the Minister set ou…
Commons
Oral Questions
28 April 2026
2 contributions
Costs for Commuters
15. What fiscal steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help reduce costs for commuters.
I thank my right hon. Friend for freezing rail fares, which will indeed help to ease the cost of living for many commuters, such as my constituents in Worthing West, many of whom have jobs here in London or in Brighton. Southern has been rated the worst value for money rail operator in a national pa…
Commons
Debate
27 April 2026
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
I absolutely agree that brownfield sites should be prioritised for development. On the NPPF, how can we further ensure that the right type of housing goes on brownfield sites? We are talking about social rent housing, and housing for older people who are rightsizing, and for first-time buyers; there…
Commons
Westminster Hall
23 April 2026
10 contributions
Gambling Advertising
I am listening to the hon. Member’s arguments with great interest. I want to be clear about the argument he is making. We all greatly value British sports, but if it is synonymous with issues that are causing harm to our children and our population, should we not move those sports forward without al…
I absolutely hear what the hon. Member is saying and I reiterate that great British sport is incredibly important. In terms of current regulation, does he agree that we are not regulating nearly enough and that we are therefore putting people who watch these sports and see ubiquitous gambling advert…
+8 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
21 April 2026
2 contributions
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
My area of Sussex is on the fast-track devolution programme. Although that brings challenges and inevitably means that we are still building parts of the plane while learning to fly, for my constituents and all Sussex residents, the devolution of power and resources has the potential to transform ou…
I wholeheartedly agree with my hon. Friend. Together with my hon. Friend the Member for Halesowen (Alex Ballinger) and the right hon. Member for Chingford and Woodford Green (Sir Iain Duncan Smith), I am an officer of the APPG on gambling reform, and we have been doing significant work to gather evi…
Commons
Westminster Hall
20 April 2026
Maternity Commissioner
It is a pleasure, Ms Jardine—it is not Sir Alec any more—to serve under your chairship. I want to speak in the debate as a member of the Health and Social Care Committee and as the Member of Parliament for Worthing West.
At a local level, University Hospitals Sussex NHS foundation trust has impleme…
Commons
Oral Questions
14 April 2026
NHS Management
Effective NHS management lives or dies on the ability of our integrated care boards to address population health needs. As the devolution Bill moves forward and at pace in areas such as mine in Sussex, it brings with it more opportunity for working strategically across sectors such as health and loc…
Commons
Westminster Hall
25 March 2026
2 contributions
Public Baths and Lidos
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Efford. I commend my hon. Friend the Member for Peterborough (Andrew Pakes) for his continued advocacy. As someone who lived down the road in Huntingdon for many years, I am delighted to hear that Peterborough lido is up and running again, which is …
Excellent. I thank my hon. Friend, who has nicely paid tribute to them. Well done.
What has been so striking about the work we are doing is the level of local energy in our community. People care deeply about these spaces, and they want to see them thriving again. We have an opportunity to do that …
Commons
Oral Questions
24 February 2026
2 contributions
National Wellbeing Indicators
12. What assessment he has made of the potential implications for his polices of recent trends in national wellbeing indicators.
It is great to hear that wellbeing is being built in through the shift to prevention in our national health strategy. Does the Minister agree that we should now champion health in all policies, starting with the mandatory use of the wellbeing indicators available for the Treasury Green Book, which a…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
22 January 2026
Local Government Reorganisation
I thank the Secretary of State for his statement. As a former leader of Worthing borough council, I pay tribute to my councillor colleagues, who did not come to the decision they have made lightly. They were informed by the officers, and they have had 15 years of underfunding on the south coast. Poc…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
22 January 2026
Business of the House
It is with concern that I raise the issue of FIFA deepening its commercial ties to the betting industry by letting gambling operators livestream world cup games this year. Will the Leader of the House ask the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and Health Ministers to review this matter urgently…
Commons
Oral Questions
Education
19 January 2026
2 contributions
Flu Vaccination: School Absences
8. What assessment she has made of the potential impact of flu vaccination levels on rates of school absence in autumn 2025.
As flu circulation in children normally starts before adults, and protection through the vaccine lasts much longer in children, the children’s programme should be under way across schools as early as possible from September 1. In my constituency of Worthing West, some schools were vaccinating childr…
Commons
Oral Questions
Energy Security and Net Zero
6 January 2026
Topical Questions
My hometown of Worthing is already delivering a major heat network, but it is not yet designated as a heat network zone. Could the Minister please consider making this designation at the earliest possible opportunity, and ensuring that grid capacity supports early designation for advanced schemes?
Commons
Westminster Hall
5 January 2026
Length of the School Week
It is a pleasure to speak in this debate. I have to declare an interest: my children asked me to do so. I think one of them actually signed the petition; I am not sure what the age limit is, but he is certainly very interested in the debate.
I will leave the education questions to my hon. Friend th…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
3 December 2025
Engagements
Q2. Gambling addiction is a serious public health harm, causing ill health and misery for millions of people in this country. The industry now spends £2 billion a year on advertising, often targeting vulnerable people and exposing our children to harm. Like many Members across the House, I very much…
Commons
Oral Questions
2 December 2025
Topical Questions
T9. We know that our official development assistance budget is currently reduced to allow for defence investment, but given the continuing need to improve global health, not least to guarantee our own health and security, will the Minister meet me and other concerned colleagues to discuss how best t…
Commons
Westminster Hall
2 December 2025
3 contributions
Gambling: Regulatory Reform
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Desmond. I thank the hon. Member for Witney (Charlie Maynard) for securing this timely debate. It is interesting to hear different Members from across the House taking a stand on this issue. I listened with interest to my hon. Friend the Member …
I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend. Gambling has become ubiquitous in our society. It is endemic. We watch the television; we have online roulette in our pockets—it is everywhere. We must also be mindful of the black market as well as the legal gambling companies, and go after both with ferocity…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Debate
25 November 2025
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
I very much welcome this devolution Bill, and today I speak in support of Government new clause 45 and amendments 153 and 107 proposed by my hon. Friend the Member for Stroud (Dr Opher).
New clause 45 and amendment 153 relate to the essential role of our local councillors. As a recent councillor an…
Commons
Westminster Hall
17 November 2025
2 contributions
Parkinson’s Disease
It is a privilege to speak for Worthing West, where support for the Parky petition has been strong, particularly in our amazing local Parkinson’s group. Parkinson’s is one of the fastest-growing neurological conditions. Behind the statistics are many people coping with tremor, rigidity and “off” per…
It is incredibly timely that we are talking about this issue in the context of the NHS 10-year strategy, which will provide a shift from treatment to prevention. A lot can be done in the preventive space for those with Parkinson’s, as with so many other neurological disorders. I thank my hon. Friend…
Commons
Westminster Hall
4 November 2025
Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Dowd. I will be brief, as I appreciate there is not much time left.
I wanted to speak in today’s debate because, as a public health consultant who has worked in international development for 20 years, I have watched the Global Fund and have not alw…
Commons
Westminster Hall
28 October 2025
6 contributions
Obesity and Fatty Liver Disease
I beg to move,
That this House has considered obesity and fatty liver disease.
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Efford, alongside my parliamentary colleagues who have kindly come along this morning to debate and highlight the public health emergency that is obesity and fatty live…
I thank the hon. Member for making that excellent point. He is absolutely right. The issues of the NHS waiting lists are pertinent and stark. Reducing them will mean that we have to get the left shift right as well as invest in acute services.
Our policies have failed the population for decades. Th…
+4 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Justice
16 September 2025
Prison Rehabilitation
Rehabilitation is a vital part of prison health programmes, but when prisoners develop infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, they can be isolated from organised programmes such as rehab. Given the risk that interrupted TB treatment can fuel antimicrobial resistance, what steps is the Department …
Commons
Debate
2 September 2025
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
This devolution debate today is a continuation of the conversation that has been doing the rounds in Sussex since the announcement that we will be in the first wave of new regions to begin the devolution process. The Bill will allow us to unlock resources at a regional level and to use them to best …
Commons
Westminster Hall
15 July 2025
2 contributions
SEND Provision: South-east England
I thank the hon. Member for Tunbridge Wells (Mike Martin) for securing this debate. The crisis in SEND provision is inextricable from the crisis in health and social care, and it is a shameful legacy of the neglect of the austerity years, but funding is not the only issue. What we see with SEND in W…
Oh, I am sorry, Sir Edward.