Alan Campbell MP: speeches 2025

Speeches

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I congratulate Morley running club and the local firefighters on raising money for such a good cause, and I congratulate my hon. Friend on finishing the run himself—for me, I think more than my knees would be giving way. It is a great contribution of community groups and volunteers coming together, and it brings out the best in our local communities.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Victims will be at the centre of it, and we will deliver the recommendations of that inquiry and improve the situation that the hon. Gentleman’s party is at risk of playing politics with.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  The Prime Minister is very clear about the importance of Ministers operating to the highest standards. The hon. Gentleman may wish to secure a debate on the subject himself, because I am sure we will be able to give a response. If he is alluding to recent events and issues, I gently point out that the people concerned reported themselves and have been investigated in an independent way. We need faith when it comes to these matters. It is right that people be independently investigated, and that we abide by whatever decision comes at the end of it all.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend will recognise that this is an operational matter for the Met police, but in this case, I hope that local councils and the police will work together to ensure that people can come together to remember in safety.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman rightly raises local concerns. The Government share his concern about the absolute chaos that inherited regarding asylum hotels. I do not have time to go into the details of what we will do about them, but I will ensure that Home Office Ministers are made aware of this case. He may wish to meet them and make those points himself.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is right to raise road safety. I will ensure that the Minister hears his remarks, and we will see if we can get a meeting for him.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I am not sure it will do the right hon. Gentleman much good, but I find myself agreeing with him on most Thursdays. I thank him for his question. Of course, it is a matter for the local authority, but he has highlighted in his assiduous way the concerns of his constituents. The SNP Government have received a record funding settlement, and I agree it is such a shame to see vital assets underfunded and, therefore, under threat.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman raises an important point. Many of our constituents will agree with his concerns. He may wish to seek a Backbench Business or Adjournment debate to raise those matters.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  As ever, the hon. Gentleman raises pertinent issues on behalf of many of our constituents. A Backbench Business or Adjournment debate would allow Members to air those concerns, which I will also draw to the attention of the relevant Department.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I will first respond hon. Member’s point about Opposition days, as I have announced not just one but two of them. This might be a matter that he wishes to draw to the attention of the Modernisation Committee. I am going to defend the official Opposition here and say gently to the hon. Member that the official Opposition do have a particular role in the constitution, and we need to be very careful before we start changing that simply because an election can produce particular numbers of seats for other parties. I thank the hon. Member for raising the fraud strategy. Fraud is a hugely important matter for many of our constituents, and it remains a huge challenge and one of the most commonly experienced crimes in our country. As he points out, we will bring forward a new strategy later this year to protect consumers and businesses. We need everyone to play their part in that, and we continue to urge tech and social media companies to take stronger action to stop consumers being defrauded when using their sites. Writing to and asking them to do that does not necessarily equate with ditching any pledge we have made.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  It would not be business questions without a question about the mismanagement of Reform-led Lancashire county council. I congratulate my hon. Friend on raising these matters, and he is of course right to continue the fight for the services that his constituents rely on. As I have said previously, raising these matters in Adjournment debates or in Backbench Business debates shines a light on the record of Reform councils not just in Lancashire, but across the country.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I invite my hon. Friend to apply for either a Backbench Business debate or an Adjournment debate on the subject. He is right that everyone has a role to play. Local authorities have a key role to play in using their power to ensure that spaces are kept clean. As part of our pride in place strategy, we plan to bring forward statutory enforcement guidance on things like littering and fly-tipping.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I join my hon. Friend in congratulating his constituents on their important work. The work of the circular economy taskforce is a vital component of our sustainability ambitions. We will ensure that Britain is a world leader in circular innovation and will make us a clean energy superpower, and I will ensure that Ministers keep the House updated.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Social cohesion is so important, particularly at this time, and I agree with my hon. Friend that this matter should be taken seriously. I hope the shadow Leader of the House, who is a decent man, will have heard my hon. Friend’s questions and will see what can be done in response. I want to make it clear once again from this Dispatch Box that all of us in public life have a responsibility to conduct debate without recourse to division or offensive language.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  From a personal perspective, the short answer to my hon. Friend’s question is no, I do not believe that the issue is being addressed swiftly enough. However, we are taking action to deliver an additional 10,000 driving tests every month and we are accelerating a consultation into abuse of the driving test booking system, which I understand is a big part of the problem. I will ensure that the Transport Secretary has heard her concerns, but my hon. Friend may wish to raise the issue in a Backbench Business debate.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I am sorry to hear of the concern of my hon. Friend’s constituent. The Government recognise the need to offer patients the most suitable treatment, but my hon. Friend will know that radiotherapy treatment for cancer is highly individualised, and decisions are made, quite rightly, by clinicians. I am sure that Ministers will have heard his concerns. Some of the concerns that he has raised will be shared by Members across the House, and he may wish therefore to raise them in a debate.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  The Government are acutely aware of the concerns, particularly at this time of the year, not least around animal welfare. I encourage my hon. Friend to seek either an Adjournment debate or a Backbench Business debate, so that she can raise those concerns and we can ensure that legislation on fireworks is kept up to date.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I will draw the hon. Lady’s comments to Ministers’ attention and ask that they arrange a meeting as soon as possible.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I hope that decision makers in bus companies in my hon. Friend’s constituency have heard her passionate support for the right of her constituents to have decent public transport. Local public transport should be designed with the interests of the local people it serves in mind, and I hope that should this issue arise in future, such campaigns will be successful. Our landmark Bus Services Act 2025, which became law earlier this week, puts power over local bus services back into the hands of local leaders.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Yes, I will.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  My right hon. Friend is a great champion for her local community, and she is right that local people need to be involved in decisions that affect their local community. She has put on record her concerns, but I would encourage her to go even further on this matter, perhaps by applying for an Adjournment debate.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I am always willing to meet my colleagues from Cornwall, so the answer is yes.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I am sincerely sorry to hear about Phoebe’s situation; it must be very painful and worrying for her and her family. I will follow up with the Health Secretary, but I know that Ministers have received his letter, and he will get a response shortly. He may also wish to apply for a debate, but I will ensure that the House is updated when the comprehensive national cancer plan is published in the new year.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I join my hon. Friend in congratulating the Long Eaton Men Walking and Talking group on its work. May I also say what a fantastic campaigner he is for men’s mental health? Our forthcoming men’s health strategy will set out how we can find the right ways to promote healthy behaviour and improve outcomes for the conditions that hit men harder.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  The hon. Lady raises issues about DVLA, some of which I am sure are shared across the House. She may wish to seek a Backbench Business debate or, indeed, an Adjournment debate, so that Ministers not only hear her concerns but see what improvements can be made.