Alan Campbell MP: speeches

Speeches

• 23 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is right to champion the good work of the cadets and the impact on young people. We are committed to the joint Department for Education and Ministry of Defence cadet expansion programme, complementing our national youth strategy. I encourage my hon. Friend to perhaps apply for an Adjournment debate to hear directly from Ministers about not only the work we are undertaking to support the cadets, but what plans there are for the future.

• 23 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I join the hon. Gentleman in welcoming the birth of Lyla, and I wish her and her parents all the very best indeed. I wish everybody a happy St George’s day today. During this week, we have celebrated the centenary of the birth of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, and it has been announced that a trust will be established in honour of the life of the late Queen. The trust will focus on restoring shared spaces in communities, reflecting the late Queen’s commitment to public service, inspired by the belief that everyone is our neighbour—a lesson that we should all seek to live by. Last week, the Government made clear their commitment to tackling antisemitic attacks. Following the incident this week, I restate our position that attacks on British Jews are an attack on all of us. We will do whatever it takes to stop those who seek to intimidate our Jewish communities. We are approaching the end of the Session, which, at its conclusion, will have seen the delivery of more than 50 Government Bills. We will continue to build on that in the next Session. A statement was made to the House to provide an update on Capita and civil service pensions. I know that Members across the House will have welcomed that update. I assure hon. Members that the issues that they raise with me in this forum are heard by the Government and, where we can, the Government act. Before I turn to the remarks made by the hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (John Lamont), may I wish everyone taking part in the London marathon this Sunday, including all the Members of the House who are participating, the very best of luck? I join the hon. Gentleman in saying how saddened we are to learn about the death of Jamie Tweedie, which came far too soon. His friends and family are ensuring that we remember him and that he is not forgotten, and his untimely death leaves a legacy of which they should be proud. The hon. Gentleman mentioned the peace talks. I join him in hoping that they are successful. We want the ceasefire to continue. We want to ensure that the strait of Hormuz is open; otherwise, as he points out, it will prolong the expected economic damage, not just to our economy but to others. I want to put it on the record that what has unfolded in that part of the world demonstrates that the Prime Minister’s judgment on not joining the war in the first place was absolutely correct. He has spent his time making diplomatic efforts, working with others, to ensure that the strait of Hormuz is open at the earliest opportunity. Let me turn to the hon. Gentleman’s remarks on domestic politics. He is perfectly entitled to make his case, but let me remind the House that the Prime Minister came here at the earliest opportunity on Monday and faced questions on Peter Mandelson for two and a half hours. That was followed by an emergency debate for three hours on Tuesday in which Members had an opportunity to make their case and ask their questions. Yesterday, the Prime Minister faced Prime Minister’s questions for about 45 minutes, in which he was questioned extensively on the issue. The Foreign Affairs Committee is doing its job in holding decision makers to account. There have been numerous opportunities—including at Cabinet Office questions, which has just finished—for other questions to be put. I and the Government cannot be held responsible for the fact that the Leader of the Opposition has been so hopeless during these events that she cannot hold the Government to account effectively. [ Interruption. ] Let me just mention the question of Prorogation, because the hon. Gentleman has clearly been reading too many newspapers. I have just read out to the House that the business next week— [ Interruption. ]

• 23 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Thank you, Mr Speaker. I have just read out the business, which includes, if necessary, Wednesday and Thursday, when we will be dealing with Lords amendments. The hon. Gentleman asked about PMQs; if the House is still sitting, PMQs will take place. I would imagine, too, that business questions will take place if we are still sitting on Thursday. Nothing in what I read out suggests anything that is not usual. The hon. Gentleman talked about the record of this Government and went on to talk about what is happening in Scotland. Let me disagree with him about the way in which this Government will be judged. The borrowing figures show that we are borrowing less than at any time in the past four years, unemployment has come down, inflation and interest rates were falling, and waiting lists are coming down, too. I accept that we are facing the turmoil of the fallout from the situation in the middle east, but when such events happen, as a result of the action that we have taken in the last two years, this country is much better placed to see out those challenges than we were under the previous Government. Finally, I agree with the hon. Gentleman in what he said about the situation north of the border, at least as it pertains to the SNP. Voters suggest that they are tiring of the SNP Government; after two decades in government, it is time for change. The SNP Government have had the biggest settlement since devolution, and they are failing across the board on public services. I expect that voters will want to take the opportunity to make their position clear. Let me finally disagree with the hon. Gentleman, because the way to do that is to vote Labour.

• 23 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Our new waste crime action plan sets out a zero-tolerance approach in order to prevent waste crime, pursue the criminals responsible and accelerate clean-up, and I think it has been widely welcomed. Should my hon. Friend seek an Adjournment debate on the scourge of fly-tipping in rural areas, I am sure it would be well attended. If she is not successful, I will certainly see if we can find time in Government time to give her the debate that she asks for.

• 23 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for raising the important work of the Cornwall Air Ambulance charity and wholeheartedly join her in commending the vital work of the volunteers who keep these essential services in the sky. I will certainly take up her concerns with my right hon. Friend the Health Secretary to seek the meeting that she wants, but because it may not simply be a matter for the Department of Health and Social Care, let us give some consideration to how else we can resolve this matter at a ministerial level.

• 23 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is right to raise these matters. They must be of deep concern to his constituents, who had their hopes built up but nothing has happened. I hope the Co-op has heard what he has said today, because the answer lies largely in its hands. He is right to point out that we are taking action to help high streets, not least through Pride in Place. Should he seek a meeting with Ministers to see if there are any other levers to pull, as he puts it, I will arrange that.

• 23 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is a true champion of businesses not just in her constituency and along the river that we share, but across our region. I pay tribute to her for that work, for which she is widely respected. As I have said, we are committed to building a thriving hydrogen sector in the UK, but we have not been able to move as quickly as possible. We want to renew the hydrogen strategy and see it at work, but we must also give industry the clarity it needs. I hope that work will be completed as soon as possible. Should she wish to make her case to a Minister, I will make the case for a meeting with her and the hon. Member for Brigg and Immingham (Martin Vickers).

• 23 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  The previous Government should never have allowed the water sector to get into this state, with record levels of sewage spills and ageing infrastructure, and this Government are determined to put it right both through legislation and by encouraging and resourcing the Environment Agency. I will give consideration to what the hon. Member says about this matter, and she may wish to draw it directly to the attention of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. I understand the concerns about the Environment Agency when such things happen, but a lot of Environment Agency staff are doing a really good and really tough job, day in and day out, and we should send them our support.

• 23 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  We certainly do not. I understand my hon. Friend’s concerns and the concerns of Uber drivers. Of course, we would want to see companies consult with their employees and hopefully give them reassurance going forward, but I will take up his concerns directly with Ministers to ensure that we are doing everything we can to get ahead of this particular game.

• 23 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is absolutely right to champion the work of the brilliant community groups in his constituency, and I join him in congratulating Erewash Voluntary Action on securing its funding and continuing to support community engagement. There has been a theme this morning, and indeed in other sessions, about the importance of community volunteers, so I will certainly give some thought to his suggestion that we should find a way of discussing these matters further.

• 23 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is absolutely right to raise that matter. As I have said many times, these organisations are the golden thread that runs through our communities. Our social cohesion plan sets out our commitment to bring communities together and restore pride in them, and I encourage him to apply for an Adjournment debate so that he can make his case in more detail.

• 23 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for raising that matter. As I said previously, Sir David Attenborough has been instrumental in teaching generations about the importance of the natural world. I am sure that the whole House will join me in celebrating the monumental occasion of Sir David’s 100th birthday, and let us give some thought across the House to how best we can mark that.

• 23 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right to raise this matter on behalf of businesses in his constituency, and I understand their uncertainty. We are absolutely committed to building a thriving hydrogen sector in the UK through our strategy, as he points out, but I will draw his concerns to the attention of Ministers. If we have the strategy and the energy, we need to get on with it.

• 16 Apr 2026 · Modernisation Committee Report: Access to the House of Commons · Hansard source

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  I certainly support people having their say and being informed by debates. I will give it some thought; I am not rejecting it out of hand. But there will be a moment and there will be a motion, and then we will have to decide. As I say, I will be on a different side because, going back to what I have said about this remarkable place, this is an iconic building. It is part of a UNESCO world heritage site. Despite how legalistic the terms are, it is not owned by the Government but by the nation. People will look at the numbers, and the numbers are eye-watering—I give them that—and the timescale is eye-watering too, but we will not save any money by delaying the vote to decide to either get on with it or not. Time and again when people were asked, they said that they want to see this place survive. It is the crucible of their politics. They want to be able to access it safely, and currently it is not safe in many ways. We are going to have to address this, but I give the hon. Member for Boston and Skegness and the House my word that we will have a vote at some point in time. Let me turn to the contribution from my hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle-under-Lyme. I do remember the event that he talked about. I am sorry that we were not able to find a way through that situation. He raised the different aspects of why he felt that he was in that situation, and I do think that we need to go away and reflect on that. The proxy system is evolving, but we should take away examples and see whether we need to make some changes. This is not an excuse for what happened, but it was a set of unusual circumstances in the sense that it was not just a private Member’s Bill but a hotly contested private Member’s Bill. People felt personally committed to it, and I remember a huge number of emails about. There was also an expectation that people would be here. Therefore, the thing that we can do—to decide not to be here and not to vote—was not really an option for many people. When it came to trying to get someone to pair or finding some other way, I could not find a way through it at that time. Briefly, I want to say that this is not just about changing a system—for example, proxy voting, which I would be open to looking at, and I think the Modernisation Committee would be too. I am a great advocate of the usual channels. I am a great advocate of the bit that people think is very suspicious and that makes them wonder why on earth we have such a system. Actually, it makes this place work. It is the oil that makes the engine of this place work. There are things that can be done through the usual channels that are never seen but that make life better for people—for MPs. I will not go into the realm of the divisive politics that we have just lived through, but I will say that it is not just about covid. Covid is one part of it, but I have lived through recent times where politics has been more divisive. Therefore, it has been more difficult to get Opposition parties to accept the Government position, and the Government are finding it difficult to accept the perspective of the Opposition parties. I have to say, if this place is going to work better, we have to do it better. That is not to say that we have to resurrect the usual channels as it always was, but we have to find ways of better working, and that includes—I am not ashamed to say this—the personal relationships that make the usual channels work. That is certainly my approach, and it will continue to be so as long as I have the opportunity to contribute. My hon. Friend the Member for West Bromwich (Sarah Coombes) was right to say that there was a huge turnover at the general election. In fact, it was said to me that 80% of Members now have less than seven years’ experience. Even when there was a massive change in 1997 and, indeed, 2010, it was not on that scale. The effect is that we have lost some of the institutional memory of this place, and that, as far as I am concerned, is a deficit. On the other hand, we have a great number of new MPs with varied backgrounds, with all sorts of experiences, and also with varied needs. That is good, because we need to keep moving through that generational change. There is always a bit of a price to pay, but there is always an advantage to getting there as well. It is important that we take that into account. There are solutions to many of the issues that have been raised, but as I say, this report is not the end of the story. We will continue to work on this. I understand the points that have been made about lots of votes, the time it takes and how exhausting it can be—and that is not to trivialise the experience of people who have additional needs. But going back to what I just said about the usual channels, I cannot remember a time when we had as many votes. When it comes to the responsibility of this place and the relationship between us and the other place, yes, they have every right to send lots back, and we have every right to kick it back too, but at some point they have to start giving something and the Government have to start giving something too. It is how Parliament works. It is how democracy works. We do not have to have as many votes in this place as we do. They do not have as many votes down the corridor as we do here on a day-to-day basis. We do not have to have a vote at the end of Second Reading. Even if Members do not agree with a Bill, they do not have to vote against it on Second Reading. They can vote it down on Third Reading. The point of listening and making a speech against a Bill on Second Reading is that it will go to Committee, where changes can be made. If hon. Members do not like it, they can have a go on Report, and if they still do not like it they can vote it down on Third Reading. We spend a great deal of time on Divisions when we pretty well know what the results will be in most of them. [ Interruption. ] I am wandering a bit now, I can see that, but these are all issues where there are different solutions from those that might appear obvious. However, I will take that away and think about it. My hon. Friend the Member for West Bromwich also made an important point about gender. Long may she continue to do so, because that is very important indeed. We clearly have a long way to go on modernisation. We have seen some encouraging progress, and the report is part of that. We will continue to monitor all sorts of issues, including accessibility. I look forward to working in a collegiate way with colleagues to make progress and to make this an even greater place to work and for visitors to visit. I thank the House authorities for their ongoing work and commend the motion to the House. Question put and agreed to. Resolved, That this House has considered the First Report of the Modernisation Committee, Access to the House of Commons and its Procedures, HC 755, and the House Administration response, HC 1726.

• 16 Apr 2026 · Modernisation Committee Report: Access to the House of Commons · Hansard source

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  I thank all Members for their contributions to today’s debate. I hope to take a little bit of time responding to them, because although this has been a relatively short debate, it has been a very useful one. Let me first comment on the shadow Leader of the House’s speech. I thank him for his remarks and the way that he made them. It is abundantly evident from the time that we have worked together that he cares deeply about this place, as do I, as he knows. We are, to some extent, adversaries in a system that is adversarial; but at heart, we share a deep respect and love for this place, not least because, as he knows, we are both passing through. It was here before we got here, and it will be here after we leave. That means that we work well on the Committee. What has struck me, in the relatively short time that I chaired the Committee, is that it works in a cross-party way; in fact, it works in a non-party way. Given the varied experience and the varied party labels of people around the room, it is amazing how often we actually understand the problem, analyse it and get to the right conclusion. That is not as rare in this place as people think; indeed, it is why it works very well indeed. I absolutely agree with the right hon. Gentleman’s concern that dumbing down can be a problem if we are not careful. This is not about dumbing down; it is about making this place more accessible, but also about how we do things. Where I do not agree with him, as he knows, is on restoration and renewal; on that, we are on different sides. However, as has been pointed out, today’s short debate is about now. It is about how we conduct ourselves now and for the foreseeable future, because even if the House takes a particular view on R and R and moves forward, it will still be quite a long time before some of the issues come to fruition. I believe that accessibility must be at the core of what we are doing now, but it must also be at the core of what happens after a decision is made on R and R. Let me turn to the excellent speech by my hon. Friend the Member for Bexleyheath and Crayford (Daniel Francis). I commend him on the excellent work that he does on his all-party groups, which I know comes from his deep personal interest in these matters, his experience and his commitment. The personal experience of these issues that he brings to this debate is important; it is abundantly clear that instead of observing these things from a distance and seeing them in our own way, we should learn from a position of experience. I very much value his contribution to modernisation. He is a strong advocate; if he has a strong view, he will voice it, and I absolutely commend him for that. The issues with booking that my hon. Friend spoke about are not acceptable. I give him a commitment that we will look into that and see what more can be done. The story of what happened at that recent event illustrates the problem, and shows how important this investigation and report are. However—I will return to this point in my closing remarks—this is a work in progress. The report is a step along the way, not the end point. Like other Members, my hon. Friend paid tribute to the work of our hon. Friend the Member for Penistone and Stocksbridge (Dr Tidball). As I know from personal experience, on matters of policy and everything else, she is a very strong advocate. I value her contribution and her knowledge on these matters very much indeed. My hon. Friend the Member for Bexleyheath and Crayford raised the issue of changing places and toilet facilities and, interestingly, pointed to the National Portrait Gallery. I have found out that, as Leader of the House, I am a trustee of the National Portrait Gallery— I have more than found it out; I have actually participated in the trustee role, to some extent. The next time I visit, I will once again remind them that there is a portrait of a former Member for Tynemouth—Dame Irene Ward, who was also the longest-serving woman MP—in the gallery, and I recently surpassed the length of time that she served in that seat. I am just letting them know that there is a certain logical conclusion that follows, but so far, they have not taken the hint—although I will not be wearing the hat that she is wearing in her photograph. [ Interruption. ] Well, it will be very popular. Let me turn to the hon. Member for North East Fife (Wendy Chamberlain), the Lib Dem spokesperson, who drew on her experience of this period of the Session, when there is ping-pong and Lords amendments. It is a difficult course that we have to navigate. I do not want to stress this too much, but I have been around quite a long time, and I can assure hon. Members that every time we get to Lords amendments, I have to go to the Clerks and ask whether I am right in what I think. I am not going to say that every time I navigate this, I get a different answer, but it is notoriously difficult. However, she is right; there are things that we should be able to do to inform Members of where we have got to. I agree with the hon. Lady’s remarks about thinking about how and why we do things, because it is really important—other Members also picked this up—that the way we conduct our affairs in this place evolves, although we should also be careful about how that happens. We need to be—if hon. Members do not mind me saying so on this occasion—conservative with a small c. There should be a good reason before we change things. I fear that she might be correct, in that some of the changes will not be quick, but that does not mean— I know that she accepts this—that we should not get on with them. We do get on with them; we knock down the barriers and, where we can, quicken things up. The hon. Lady has mentioned on a number of occasions that she is running the London marathon. I commend her for that, and for her hard sell on sponsorship. I would encourage people to run it; most of us, not least me, will not be doing that, but she is, and that is great. She talked about how the Modernisation Committee works. It is right that we share a space with other Committees, but they bring an expertise to what we do. I think that works quite well, because we can and do work effectively with other Committees. The hon. Lady is absolutely right about the impact of covid, which had a massive effect on the way that this place works. We have spent a great deal of time trying to get back some of the things that were lost during covid—and they were lost. It was not just the way that this place conducts its votes that changed; it was, for example, the way that speeches were made. When most people, apart from the Whips, vacated this place and we moved to virtual speeches, I for one expected that nobody would want to speak. In fact, everybody wanted to speak, because they were speaking from their kitchen and making a three-minute speech. As a result, and with all due respect to new Members, there are now far more people trying to get in on debates, and far more time limits. It is now quite unusual to listen to a speech like this, that lasts more than three minutes. There were lasting effects from that time. However, there are lessons here, not just on this issue, but on other things we do. I would say to the hon. Lady that we are not going back to what we regarded as normal. We need to move forward and make things better. I also endorse what the hon. Lady said about the great job that the education team does, particularly with younger children, and the daunting experience of trying to explain to them how this place works. I had that experience when children from Marine Park first school came down recently. Before I spoke to them, they had been in St James’s Park, having their packed lunch. I expected the first question to be, “Have you ever met the King?”, or “How much do you get paid?,” but it was, “Have you ever had your sandwich stolen by a duck?”, which brought politics down to a different level. I had not, actually, but unfortunately the child had, and she clearly remembered it. Turning to my hon. Friend the Member for Harlow (Chris Vince), I agree with his appreciation of the work of the previous Member for Harlow. We did not agree along political lines, but I learned a great deal from him; he was an excellent Member of Parliament. I also agree with my hon. Friend about accessibility for all. It is not just about making this place accessible but making politics accessible. It is also not just about the people who are here now, who often had a greater struggle than some of us to get here, but the people in future who might want to get here but think that there are literally physical barriers in their way. Everybody has the right to get here, or at least to aspire to—it is up to the electorate to decide whether they are coming or not. My hon. Friend also made an interesting point about Portcullis House. To some of us, Portcullis House is very new, yet it was the very place that was identified as being inaccessible. This is a battle that will continue over a long period of time. I echo the point that he and my hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle-under-Lyme (Adam Jogee) made that procedure is important, and the history of this place is important. It is quite interesting what happens when new Members turn up—I know because I was one once. We think that things are going to change rapidly and that the House is going to change, but when we settle in a bit we realise why we do what we do. That is why we need to proceed at speed with some of these changes, but—if it is not the opposite—we also need to proceed with a degree of caution. Turning to the hon. Member for Boston and Skegness (Richard Tice), I look forward to his contribution when the debate on R and R comes around. I think he thought that that is what this debate was going to be about. I cannot tell him when it will be, but there will be a debate. To some extent it has already been postponed, but that has been done for the right reason. He and I are on opposite sides on this, but I want Members to have absorbed the report. It is a big, far-reaching and powerful report, and I want Members to have the time for it to sink in. I am very conscious that the situation is going to be brought into greater focus in the difficult international and economic situation we are living through. Considerations about how we spend taxpayers’ money will come into greater focus, so it is absolutely right that the Public Accounts Committee and the National Audit Office are looking at this. It is right that we get reports from them and are able to see in a more authoritative way—it is their job to do this—whether the proposals on the table are ones that we want to back or change. I can say to the hon. Member for Boston and Skegness and the House two things: first, there will be a debate, and, secondly, Members in this place and in the Lords will make the decision on this. It will not be a decision taken behind closed doors.

• 16 Apr 2026 · Modernisation Committee Report: Access to the House of Commons · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That this House has considered the First Report of the Modernisation Committee, Access to the House of Commons and its Procedures, HC 755, and the House Administration response, HC 1726. It is a pleasure to open this debate today, both in my capacity as Leader of the House of Commons and as Chair of the Modernisation Committee. I begin by extending the Committee’s thanks to all those who provided evidence. The Committee heard directly from Members of this House and the other place, as well as from members of staff, experts and academics. I thank former and current Committee members for their work on this inquiry. In particular, I thank my predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for Manchester Central (Lucy Powell). The Modernisation Committee embarked on this inquiry following a consultation that it held in autumn 2024, when it heard the views of hundreds of members of the parliamentary community about what it should prioritise. The resounding call was to consider the accessibility of the House—both physical accessibility of the parliamentary estate, and the accessibility of procedures and conventions in the Chamber, including the information that the House provides to the public about our work. We all recognise that the Palace of Westminster is an iconic building and part of a UNESCO world heritage site, but that comes with challenges for accessibility. The Committee received sobering evidence about the negative impact that these challenges can have on Members, staff and visitors. They include inaccessible doors, toilets, lifts, lighting and signage, which impact on the daily lives of people trying to use the estate. The Committee has been encouraged by the House Administration’s efforts to address some of these issues, including before the inquiry concluded, but the tasks before it remain substantial. To assist the House Administration, the Committee recommended that an external accessibility advisory group be established, so that the Administration can call upon its expertise when needed. I am pleased that the House of Commons Commission is undertaking work to set up that group. A key issue that the Committee identified was the lack of progress on issues raised in accessibility audits of the estate. The Committee therefore recommended that the House Administration publish a summary of progress against accessibility audit recommendations, and I am pleased that the House Administration’s progress will now be a regular feature of business plans and tracked throughout the year. An overarching challenge for the House Administration is the culture around accessibility. The Committee concluded that although the aspiration of the Administration is to provide accessible services, there is a lack of central responsibility or clear lines of accountability to deliver it. The Committee believes that this must be addressed by introducing better training and practical guidance for staff, specific to their area of responsibility. The Committee also recommended that the House Administration revise its strategic priorities to make it explicit, as part of the value of being inclusive, that accessibility is a priority for the organisation, alongside security and safety. I am pleased that the next three-year strategy for the House Administration includes an explicit commitment to improve accessibility. I turn now to the House of Commons procedures and processes. Many of the procedures and processes that govern our proceedings have been in place for a long time, for very good reason. We are grateful to you, Madam Deputy Speaker, and to Mr Speaker and the other Deputy Speakers, for the care that you take in assisting Members who have access needs. To ensure that this support is clearly advertised to all Members, the Committee recommended that references to the routes available to MPs who require reasonable adjustments be made in the guidance for Members. The report also explored issues relating to seating in the Chamber and to Divisions, and made a series of recommendations. Work is currently under way to consider how deferred Divisions might be made more accessible, and the potential introduction of a reasonable adjustment card scheme for MPs who require certain seats for access reasons. The final section of the report focused on communication. Ensuring that we communicate in an accessible way is key to ensuring that our constituents can stay informed about what happens here. That includes thinking about how we improve accessibility for visitors in the Public Gallery, and leading by example in ensuring that the documents we produce are accessible to the largest possible number of people. I know that the Administration Committee and the House Administration are considering what more can be done in these areas. The Modernisation Committee received the House Administration’s response to our report, published on 19 March, which assured us that it would make progress on our recommendations. Today I look forward to hearing from Members across the House on their experiences. The Committee will draw on these when we hear about further progress from the House’s senior leadership team later this year. Accessibility should never be an afterthought. It is a core part of what we do, and I commend this motion to the House.

• 16 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is right to point to our record investment in local highways maintenance over the next four years and the £7.3 billion to tackle the scourge of potholes. I am astonished to hear that his Lib Dem council is not prepared to use that money. I encourage residents to take part in his survey to see the extent of the issue. When they get the opportunity, I am sure that his residents will make their voices heard at the ballot box.

• 16 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  As has been said on a number of occasions in Business questions and beyond, the Government are absolutely of the view that such delays are unacceptable. This is not the service that people deserve, and resolving it is a matter of the utmost urgency. An urgent recovery plan is under way, and loans are available in the meantime to provide immediate financial support where it is needed. As the right hon. Gentleman reasonably requests, I will write to the Cabinet Secretary and make her aware of the situation, and get an update for him.

• 16 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  That really is a catalogue of errors. I understand how concerned my hon. Friend’s constituent will be. If my hon. Friend provides me with the details, I will raise the matter with the appropriate Minister.

• 16 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  It is important that military personnel have access to driving tests, and the hon. Lady is right: the action the Government have taken means that resources are spread slightly thinner than they might otherwise be. We need to make sure that there are no delays due to administrative issues. If my memory serves me correctly, there is a Backbench Business debate next week about the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency. The hon. Lady might want to raise her concerns and bring in the defence side that she has talked about.

• 16 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  First, my thoughts are with our servicemen and women currently serving in the middle east. As the as the situation unfolds, our highest priority is to ensure the safety of our people in the region. My thoughts are also with those affected by the terrible attempted attack on the Finchley Reform synagogue. I am sure that the House will join me in thanking the police and emergency services for their swift action. This week has seen the 37th anniversary of the disaster at Hillsborough. My thoughts are with the family and friends of those who died. As the Prime Minister reaffirmed yesterday, the Government are committed to delivering legislation and introducing a duty of candour across all public services. I also want to pay tribute to Lord Jeremy Beecham. Lord Beecham was an incredibly influential and dedicated politician who was respected across the political divide. His dedication to the city of Newcastle changed the city into what it is today. I know that the whole House will join me in sending condolences to his family and friends. During recess, we published our plan to halve knife crime. At the core of that plan is prevention, providing safe spaces in communities and supporting schools and families to address root causes. That means giving an alternative path to young people, which will literally save lives. We have also announced our intention to invest £237 million to expand community diagnostic centres across England. Four CDCs will open, 17 will be expanded and 15 will receive enhancements to boost diagnostic capacity and get patients seen quicker. That means patients will be able to get swifter results, which is really important, and get them closer to home, which again is important. This week, over 500 new free breakfast clubs also began to open their doors, helping parents with the cost of living and giving children a healthy start to the day. I turn now to the remarks of the shadow Leader of the House. If I may, I will deal broadly with his first two questions together. He referred first to the way in which the Prime Minister addressed the questions put to him yesterday, and secondly announcements made outside the House and whether the House should be the first to hear. The right hon. Gentleman has been here a very, very long time— [ Interruption. ] Well, a long time—let me put it that way. Not as long as me, but a long time. Frankly, we have both been here long enough to know better than to ask the questions he did. I know why he did so, and I understand exactly what the point is at the heart of it, but all Prime Ministers deal with Prime Minister’s questions in their own way. It is not unusual for any Prime Minister or any Minister not to give the answer that the Opposition want on a particular day, so let us not kid ourselves that we are entering a new chapter on that. The shadow Leader of the House talked about announcements to the House. He actually said that the previous Government “on occasion” made announcements outside the House. On occasion? I think it was on occasion that they actually made the announcements in the House. But there is a serious point, which I will address. I am absolutely clear, and I have said from the Dispatch Box before, that serious announcements should be made at the earliest convenience in the House. But we understand that politics is done in a different environment from how it was done a decade or two decades before: to some extent, it is a moving environment, and Government is working in that environment, too. However, I do take the shadow Leader of the House’s point, and I have said that announcements should be made in the House at the earliest opportunity. Let me turn to the comments of Lord Robertson. The Prime Minister made his and the Government’s view clear on that. The shadow Leader of the House asked about the defence plan. It will be delivered, and the House will have an opportunity to debate the plan. I do accept that perhaps it has taken longer than any of us would have wished; let me give the House three reasons why that is so. The first is that we inherited a defence budget that was totally out of control and which had been mismanaged for the past 14 years. It had been, in the words of a previous Defence Secretary, hollowed out—and that was not a previous Labour Defence Secretary but a previous Conservative Defence Secretary. That is the first reason why it takes time to put this right and turn it around. The second reason, and I think the shadow Leader of the House knows this because he is a distinguished member of the Defence Committee, is that we inherited an economic mess. If we are going to put defence right, we have to have the money to do that. Again, the right hon. Gentleman understands that, because he has all but admitted in this place that he is a secret Keynesian at heart. [ Interruption. ] He has admitted to it. Don’t worry; he has owned up to it. The point is that he understands, as do most people, that our economic inheritance was absolutely appalling, and we have to get that right too before we can press ahead with our commitments to properly fund defence. The third point that is relevant here is that the botched Brexit deal left us diplomatically isolated, and the Prime Minister has personally invested a great deal of his time and energy to build alliances with our allies, not least in Europe. Those alliances are important as we look at the question of defence in a moving international situation and of where defence will be as we move forward. I cannot accept the analysis or the suggestion by the Leader of the Opposition that somehow, at the election, it was day zero and nothing that happened before that has any impact on the way in which this Government are forced to face up to those difficult decisions. We will publish the plan and there will be an opportunity to debate it. Let me finish on this: I understand the shadow Leader of the House’s point about companies, and obviously there needs to be some certainty. However, let me just rid him of the suggestion that everyone is waiting for announcements and nothing is happening. Contracts are being issued all the time, and more than 80% of contracts in the last two years have gone to British companies, which is in stark contrast to the performance of the previous Government.

• 16 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is a tireless advocate for his constituents on a range of issues, and I join him in commending the work of those who have campaigned on this important issue. I understand that his local Labour councillors have been at the forefront of that. As I have said on many occasions, we have delivered Scotland’s biggest devolution settlement since devolution. I hope that the SNP has heard my hon. Friend’s contribution today and will take note, because his constituents deserve better than the serious failures that he has raised.

• 16 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  As my hon. Friend will have heard, her remarks were well received by Members on the Labour Benches, because there is an acceptance that youth services are vital for the future of young people. The reality is that there was no youth strategy when we came into office, but we now have one that has been drawn up by young people. We are doing everything we can to tackle what has effectively been the closure of more than 1,000 youth centres under the previous Government. I will raise the matter with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport and ensure that my hon. Friend gets a response. May I also put on the record my thanks to my hon. Friend for her brilliant work as my Parliamentary Private Secretary? I understand her motivation and her reason for not wanting to continue—I hope it was nothing I said—but I put on the record my sincere thanks. She was absolutely fantastic.

• 16 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is absolutely right to recognise the vital contribution of British Sikhs in our communities, which has been raised regularly in these sessions. They are such an important part of the diversity and strength of our communities. I think this would be a great topic for a Backbench Business or Adjournment debate; there are Sikh communities across our country, and I am sure that other Members would also like to praise the work being done in communities in their patch.

• 16 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  The hon. Lady will know that the Government are keen to ensure that schools have the resources they need to tackle the issues their children face. I do understand the difficulty of young people who are carers in ensuring they can fully commit to school life. She is right, and there is a Bill going through Parliament currently, but I will raise the issue she mentions with the relevant Minister, because I think she has an important point.