Chris Coghlan MP: speeches

Speeches

• 19 May 2025 · Mental Health Bill [Lords] · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend. As he knows, in my maiden speech eight months ago I pledged that Fiona Laskaris would succeed in changing the law that had prevented her from saving her autistic son, Christopher, from murder. Fiona is here today. Despite pleading for years, she was never able to obtain a mental capacity assessment for her son. As we heard from the Secretary of State, the Government are now seriously looking at an amendment that would both honour Christopher’s legacy and save lives. Does my hon. Friend support that amendment?

• 19 May 2025 · Mental Health Bill [Lords] · Hansard source

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  Eight months ago, in my maiden speech to Parliament, I said that Fiona Laskaris would succeed in changing the law that prevented her from saving her autistic son, Christopher, from murder. I am here today to honour that commitment. We are on the cusp of changing the law. We have got this far thanks to the National Autistic Society; MPs from across the Chamber working together to overcome injustice, including the right hon. Member for Godalming and Ash (Sir Jeremy Hunt), the hon. Member for Rother Valley (Jake Richards), the right hon. Member for Leeds South (Hilary Benn) and my right hon. Friend the Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Ed Davey); steadfast support from my party, the Liberal Democrats, and support from the Prime Minister and the Government, in a way that represents Parliament at its best; and Elisa Menendez and Romilly Weeks from ITV, who ran the story. Above all, we got this far because of the courage and determination of Fiona Laskaris to save others from the fate that befell her son, Christopher. Fiona and Cara, Christopher’s sister, are in the Gallery. Christopher was not unlike many autistic children. He was a sensitive, intelligent, loving and compassionate boy, who once asked his mum to stop on the way to school to rescue a lamb that was stuck in a fence. I first met Fiona when I was eight. I stayed in my bedroom and ignored her, perhaps because I was angry that she was buying my home off my dad; my mum had died when I was a few months old, and I was a sensitive boy. Well, they moved in; Christopher grew up in my old bedroom, and he loved the house as much as I did, but as a young man living alone in Leeds, he struggled. Despite Fiona pleading for help for years, she was never able to attain for him the mental capacity assessment that he needed to determine his support requirements. Horrifically, he was exploited and murdered by a man who had just been released from jail. Christopher was 24. We are working with the Government on an amendment to the Bill to ensure that the views of family members are considered when determining an adult’s requirements for a mental capacity assessment. Christopher’s story is not unique. King’s College London found that in 2022 alone, there were 95 preventable deaths of people with autism and learning disabilities in cases in which the Mental Capacity Act 2005 had not been correctly followed. It can be hard to grasp the scale of the special educational needs and disabilities crisis in this country, but tens of thousands of SEND children are out of school, including 1,800 in Surrey alone. We are losing autistic children, including my constituent Jennifer Chalkley, to avoidable suicide, and, at worst, we are abandoning autistic people in their 20s to murderers; we are failing a generation. How we answer their call for justice will serve as a measure of who we are, and I believe the answer is less a matter of money than of leadership. We know from Nobel laureate James Heckman that early intervention is exponentially more effective and economical in today’s brutalised system, which has cost the lives of Christopher, Jennifer and too many others. Although this amendment is only a small part of the answer, it can save lives. If one grieving mother can change the law, perhaps we can change the other things, too. If we succeed, it will be above all because of the voices of broken but unbeaten parents, like Fiona, demanding change. Although Christopher had a difficult life, he had the most precious thing that any man can have: a loving and devoted mum. It is up to us to ensure that Fiona is a witness that in our country, it is possible for the vulnerable to be heard, for injustice to be overcome, and to find, beyond grief, hope.

• 26 Mar 2025 · Spring Statement · Hansard source

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  I declare an interest as an alumnus of London Business School. The Chancellor will recall that in November, when she came to the Treasury Committee, I asked her to look at a London Business School paper on using specific public R&D on defence spending to boost economic growth. I was delighted to hear that the Treasury did evaluate that paper by Professor Paolo Surico as part of the spring statement, and has listened to me and the Liberal Democrats. Does the Chancellor agree that using defence spending focused on public R&D is one way to not only keep us safe, but raise productivity and boost economic growth?

• 24 Mar 2025 · Male Suicide in Rotherham · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for securing this debate. I am working closely with him on the Mental Health Bill. Does he agree that one issue for families who are worried about their loved one is that when they are over the age of 18, there can be barriers in law in terms of the presumption of capacity and the Mental Capacity Act 2005 when it comes to raising the alarm with public authorities?

• 3 Mar 2025 · Ukraine · Hansard source

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  US security guarantees for any peace agreement in Ukraine are of course highly desirable, but given that the US Defence Secretary appeared to explicitly rule them out, we must of course consider other scenarios, and those guarantees should not be a show-stopper. With that in mind, European NATO GDP alone is 10 times the size of Russia’s, yet Russia spends $40 billion more annually on the war in Ukraine than Ukraine and her western allies do. Does the Prime Minister agree that if we were to close and exceed that gap today—perhaps by seizing the $300 billion in frozen Russian assets—Ukraine would have a credible path to victory and a just peace?

• 3 Mar 2025 · New Housing: Access to Health Services · Hansard source

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  Westvale Park in my constituency is a new housing development of 1,500 homes. Its residents have been waiting seven years for a GP surgery, and the existing GPs cannot expand their capacity. Will the Secretary of State meet me to discuss how we can ensure that Westvale Park gets the GP surgery it has been promised, as well as the other associated infrastructure and primary healthcare services for new developments across my constituency?

• 3 Mar 2025 · New Housing: Access to Health Services · Hansard source

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  1. What steps she plans to take to ensure that new housing developments have adequate access to primary health services.

• 27 Feb 2025 · War in Ukraine: Third Anniversary · Hansard source

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  I thank the other hon. Members who took part in the visit to Ukraine for their powerful speeches. I share their emotions about the visit. Last Saturday was particularly emotional for me because I visited a recovery centre for wounded soldiers in Ukraine. I met a soldier called Volodymyr, who had lost both his legs in a drone strike on his vehicle. His comrades had tried to rescue him four times, but each time they were turned back by drone attacks. His tourniquets held and, after nine hours, they eventually got him out. His spirit was unbroken. Hearing his story and seeing his courage was inspiring. We in Parliament and the British armed forces have enormous respect for everything that the Ukrainian armed forces have achieved. Ukrainians continue to make an enormous sacrifice, yet every Ukrainian I met told me that they do not want Trump’s proposed ceasefire. They want to fight on, because they are fighting to win. Their choice to fight, and our choice to support their fight, is not warmongering; rather, it is the choice to save lives. Putin breaks ceasefires. He will regroup, attack again and kill even more. The only acceptable terms are those under which Ukraine is victorious. Russia is vulnerable now; in the past six months, it has failed to retake its territory in Kursk, and has suffered over 200,000 casualties to advance just 50 km in eastern Ukraine—4,000 casualties per kilometre —largely because Ukraine is out-producing it in drones. Ukraine has a clear path to victory. European NATO GDP alone is 10 times the size of Russia’s. However, we are not converting that economic strength into military power. Russia is still spending $40 billion more annually on the war than Ukraine and her western allies. If we close that gap and exceed that spend by seizing the $300 billion in frozen Russian assets, Ukraine will win. Trump’s proposed ceasefire would free up 750,000 battle-hardened Russian troops, who could crash into the Baltic states and achieve Putin’s dream of restoring the Soviet Union. It is far better to defeat Russia in Ukraine than end up directly at war. We cannot trust Trump to defend Ukraine, and we cannot trust him to defend us, so we must rearm. With article 5 in doubt, the smaller democracies, including the United Kingdom and Ukraine, must consider a new western alliance that is strong enough for us to defend ourselves together. It was particularly moving to see Volodymyr because his sacrifice is also on our behalf. In fact, many Ukrainians reminded me that they were comparing their sacrifice to our sacrifice in 1940, when it was our country’s responsibility to defend democracy during our darkest hour. We would do well to remember that legacy as we consider the fate of not just Ukraine but the free world.

• 11 Feb 2025 · Bank Resolution (Recapitalisation) Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting) · Hansard source

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  indicated assent .

• 11 Feb 2025 · Bank Resolution (Recapitalisation) Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting) · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Gentleman for his remarks and for supporting our amendment 3. We tabled that amendment because, when the Bill was first debated, the Minister spoke about it enhancing the resolution regime in response to the failure of small banks. We believe that that is appropriate. I guess it is an assessment of risk between mission creep—whether we allow this mechanism to apply to larger banks, with the risk of unnecessary costs falling on banks—and, as the Minister says, having an additional mechanism available in the event of a bank failure. I have a few things to say on that. First, if the MREL capital of a bank is exhausted, frankly, we are probably looking at a public bailout in any case. I am sceptical whether the additional mechanisms in the Bill would absolve the taxpayer from needing to bail out the bank, so the risk of the Bank of England going beyond the intention of the Bill by imposing additional costs on banks seems to be higher than that. The hon. Member for Wyre Forest is right about the need for speed. I should declare that I was a hedge fund manager during the Lehman collapse in 2008—I did not cause it—and I saw, first, how fast it happened, and secondly, that the consequences of not bailing out Lehman were far worse than they would have been had the US Government bailed them out. For me, that prompts the question why, 16 years later, we are looking at this mechanism being an effective device to prevent banking collapses, when a whole raft of reforms made from 2009 through to 2012—so the evidence would suggest, at least—have been effective, in that we have not had any bank failures in the UK since that date, as far as I am aware. For those reasons we tabled amendment 3, but to the point made by the hon. Gentleman, I think the Government might be better served by doing a full review of banking regulation in the UK overall and assessing whether it is indeed effective in preventing the risk of a banking collapse, rather than tacking on small mechanisms beyond the intention of an existing Bill. We will therefore press our amendment to a vote.

• 11 Feb 2025 · US Global Public Health Policy · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is making a powerful speech. Does he agree that one lesson from the pandemic is that the last thing countries should do is withdraw from organisations such as the World Health Organisation and reduce international co-operation, given the risk of a future pandemic at some point?

• 27 Jan 2025 · Fiscal Policy: Defence Spending · Hansard source

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  I would like to see slightly more humility from all political parties on the subject of defence spending. [ Interruption. ] Thank you. The Minister is right that defence spending was cut under the coalition, but we are in a different world now, with a great power attacking Europe. I would also like to inform him that one of my best friends, Captain David Hicks MC, was killed in Afghanistan in 2007, in part because of the atrocious level of military kit provided to our armed forces there. So I think all political parties need to reflect on their records.

• 27 Jan 2025 · SEND Provision · Hansard source

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  Every headteacher in Dorking has told me that early intervention is vital for our special needs children. The London Business School told me that hiring people with special educational needs can be a source of competitive advantage for companies. Does the Minister agree that those principles could be the basis of a more financially sustainable and compassionate special educational needs system, and could avoid tragedies such as that of my constituent Jennifer Chalkley, who tragically lost her life aged 17 due to inadequate SEND provision?

• 27 Jan 2025 · SEND Provision · Hansard source

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  11. What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to ensure that SEND provision is adequately funded.

• 20 Jan 2025 · Office for Value for Money · Hansard source

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  I congratulate the hon. Member on her excellent chairing of our Committee and on this excellent report. Given that the Office for Value for Money has only 20 staff and only 12 in post, whereas the NAO has 1,000, I share her concerns about whether it will be able to deliver value for money. What additional steps would she like to see taken to reassure the Committee that this body can offer value for money?

• 8 Jan 2025 · Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill · Hansard source

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  I pay tribute to my hon. Friend as Sara’s MP for raising the horror that has taken place. Of course, I agree that data sharing between public authorities is vital to ensure that such a case does not happen again. But it is not enough, and, alone, it will not prevent the catastrophic and systematic negligence of Surrey county council. This is the same department that had the highest number of statutory breaches relating to children reported to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman for over two years. The department covered information up from its own county council and scrutiny committee for more than 14 months, and only disclosed it when my five Liberal Democrat Surrey MP colleagues and I publicly called it out. Surrey county council objectively contributed to the deaths of Jennifer Chalkley, Oskar Nash and Sara Sharif by ignoring existing legislation.

• 8 Jan 2025 · Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill · Hansard source

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  As a father of three little girls, I find much to welcome in the Bill. Part 1 speaks to improving children’s social care and I particularly support the provisions on accommodation for looked-after children. The whole country was saddened and shocked by the murder of Surrey child Sara Sharif. Sadly, there are other stories in Surrey that also need to be heard. Jennifer Chalkley, from Bookham in my constituency, started college in September 2021. She was 17 and had been diagnosed with autism and ADHD. One month later, she was dead from suicide. Last year, her coroner concluded that her death was avoidable. It had been a multi-agency failure, including a failure by the children, families and lifelong learning department at Surrey county council, according to the coroner’s report, “to ensure that Jennifer’s Education, Health and Care Plan contained sufficient and updated information about…her risk of suicide”. Oskar Nash, another Surrey child with autism, was 14 when he walked on to a railway line near Egham in January 2020. Last year, his coroner concluded that his death was avoidable. Again, it was a multi-agency failure, including a failure by the children, families and lifelong learning department at Surrey county council, again, according to the coroner’s report, “To ensure that Oskar’s Educational, Health and Care Plan contained sufficient…information” about his suicidal thoughts. Then there is Sara Sharif, who was murdered in 2023 by her father and stepmother. The executive director at the children, families and lifelong learning department at Surrey county council dismissed any accountability, saying in a statement that “the perpetrators went to extreme lengths to conceal the truth from everyone.” There were bruises and burn marks, and reports of a child being punched all over her body. There were 15 reports over 10 years to Sara’s school and to social services. How is that going to “extreme lengths” to conceal the truth from anyone?

• 8 Jan 2025 · Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill · Hansard source

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  I fully agree with my hon. Friend. Surrey county council failed to abide by existing legislation, so how on earth are we meant to believe that new legislation alone will be enough? I share his concerns about Claire. I know from my constituents that there are children in Surrey who are at risk right now. That is why I am speaking today. This morning, Jennifer Chalkley’s mother, Sharon, texted me to say: “Even though you didn’t get to meet Jen, her story is a powerful one and needs sharing to save other young lives. I raised Jen to be the change you want to see in the world and she’s still doing this.” I replied, “She will be”. I ask the House to consider this: is this Bill alone enough to save our children’s lives, or does the children, families and lifelong learning department at Surrey county council also need root and branch reform immediately?

• 6 Jan 2025 · Flooding · Hansard source

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  Many of my constituents have been affected by flooding overnight, but it has been particularly bad in Horley, where for the second time in recent months people’s homes have been flooded by raw sewage. Will the Minister meet me to discuss what can be done to hold Thames Water to account in operating its sewage works—particularly in the light of several new housing developments in the area, which will make the problem even worse—and to stop it dumping raw sewage in my residents’ homes?

• 6 Jan 2025 · Frozen Russian Assets: Ukraine · Hansard source

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  I commend my hon. Friend the Member for Tunbridge Wells (Mike Martin) for securing this vital debate. There are many veterans in this Chamber; one in nine Liberal Democrat MPs has served in the armed forces. We know the price of freedom—many of us have seen it written on the grave of a friend. There are tens of thousands of Ukrainians paying that bitter price right now, which will all be in vain if we falter in our support. With the looming Trump Administration, that risk is real. As the hon. Member for Loughborough (Dr Sandher) has said, if Ukraine fails, the consequences for our security would be catastrophic. In the same way that our failure to show resolve on Syria perhaps encouraged Putin to attack Crimea, our failure to show resolve on Ukraine might encourage him to attack the Baltic states, test NATO’s article 5, and shatter the peace in Europe. That does not need to be our future. If the G7 seizes the $300 billion in Russian assets, we have the opportunity not only to keep Ukraine in the fight, but to win. Many are worried that seizing that $300 billion could undermine the global financial system; I am here to argue that that is not the case. As Lawrence Summers—the former US Treasury Secretary—and many others have pointed out, those fears are overblown, because when those assets were frozen in the first place, there were no observed consequences in financial markets. It has been made clear to financial markets that the assets of a sovereign aggressor are at risk when they are on deposit in a G7 country, as they should be. The risk that those assets will be seized should already have been substantially priced in, reducing the possibility of capital flight from a negative surprise. In any case, where would that capital fly to if the G7 countries act together? The pound, dollar, euro and yen amount to almost 90% of the world’s reserve currencies. China is not an option because of capital controls, so there are no other viable reserve currencies for countries to deposit their reserves in. As a former hedge fund manager, I spent years investing professionally in financial markets, and I can assure the House that investors will not be discouraged from investing in safe and attractive G7 currencies for two simple reasons: fear and greed. Today, the west spends $105 billion annually on Ukraine’s defence, including $45 billion from the US. The $300 billion in Russian assets could fund the lot for three years, or the US portion for six years if Trump withdraws his support. Many think that Russia’s resources are inexhaustible, yet according to the Royal United Services Institute, Russia is going to run out of artillery ammunition and armoured vehicles next year. It has already suffered 700,000 casualties, so Russia’s capacity to wage war will fall dramatically in one year’s time, but only if we can keep Ukraine in the fight. If Ukraine can end this war on terms that demonstrate that it is victorious, the consequences for our security will be profound. The threat from Russia will be greatly diminished, China will think twice about challenging a liberal world order, and the narrative of the decline of the free world and the rise of dictatorships will be decisively set back. Imagine what the free world could then achieve in the 21st century. As such, I urge the Government to seize that $300 billion in frozen Russian assets to keep Ukraine in the fight, and I salute the Ukrainian soldiers who are laying down their lives, not only for their country’s freedom but for our freedom too.

• 27 Nov 2024 · Finance Bill · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to speak in this debate as a member of the Treasury Committee. After suffering the highest fall in living standards since records began, the United Kingdom desperately needs economic growth, yet the OBR forecasts that the policies in the Government’s Finance Bill and Budget will have no impact on growth over the next five years. The recessionary impact of the tax rises, combined with a focus on current spending that crowds out the private sector, largely offsets the fiscal stimulus of one of the largest fiscal events in recent decades, and of borrowing an extra £32 billion a year. There are potential upsides to the growth forecasts in the Budget, mainly from the impact of planning reform, but this Budget and Finance Bill are a missed opportunity for growth. That matters, because there are chronic structural problems in the British economy that we must address. Indeed, given that public sector net debt is now approaching 100% of GDP, the Government’s ability to borrow to invest in the future, or to cope with an unforeseen shock, is severely constrained. Many Labour Members have spoken about the importance of public investment, which I agree with, so I would like to address the following points. Since the 2008 financial crash, the UK economy has been hampered by productivity growth collapsing to 0.6% per year—the second worst in the G7. Unless and until we solve the productivity crisis, the UK will not escape its downward economic spiral of higher taxes, an ageing population, ever crumbling public services and ever higher debt. A key cause of that is chronically low public and private investment. In 24 of the last 30 years, the UK has had the lowest total investment of any G7 economy, yet as the OBR testified, under the Budget, public investment will remain flat as a share of GDP, so the Budget is unlikely to help solve the productivity crisis. This is why the OBR is forecasting that for every £1 borrowed by the Government, the economy will grow by only 60p next year, and that these effects will reverse in five years.

• 27 Nov 2024 · Finance Bill · Hansard source

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  As the hon. Member will know, the Liberal Democrats have alternative measures for raising those revenues, but my fundamental point is that, yes, I welcome public investment, but it is flat in the Budget; it is not enough, in my view, and furthermore, it is not focused on the right areas. By contrast, economists have found that optimal forms of public investment are able to raise GDP by £1.50 for every £1 invested. The best public investments for raising economic growth are investments in intangible capital such as knowledge, research and development, patents and licenses. That can bring greater gains in productivity because knowledge can build on existing knowledge, and it can crowd in private investment, as it lowers the financial risk of participation for private investors. Indeed, the most effective form of R&D is targeted on a specific goal. For example, the Kennedy Administration in the ’60s had stunning success in increasing US productivity and growth by having the very specific goal of the moon landings. I was excited to see that R&D to solve targeted problems was in the Budget, on page 76, but then I saw that of the £70 billion in spending in the Budget, only £25 million will be spent on the best type of R&D to drive economic growth. That is about double the budget of my local district council. That is not really appropriate for the world’s sixth-largest economy. We stand on the cusp of a new industrial revolution in artificial intelligence, and this country has just one chance to gain the first mover advantage, and to harvest the productivity gains and growth that could result. Indeed, combined with innovations in the life sciences and climate technology, which are mentioned in the Budget, this could be our route out of this downward economic spiral, yet in the 164-page Budget, the words “artificial intelligence” appear once. I call on the Government to redouble their efforts on public investment and R&D, because I would like to live in a country that has the resources that it needs to provide opportunities for our citizens, and this Budget is a missed opportunity to do that.

• 16 Oct 2024 · Access to Primary Healthcare · Hansard source

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  The NHS dental contract is so flawed that it punishes dentists for overperforming, so they cannot meet patient demand even if they are ready and willing to do so. During the election campaign in my constituency, I was struck by how many dentists contacted me to tell me that the system is broken. One dentist took me for a coffee in Dorking, and she told me that she had quit as an NHS dentist because the sums simply did not add up. It was costing her more to treat NHS patients than she was receiving under the NHS contract. That is why so many dentists are leaving the NHS contract. As we have heard from so many hon. Members, the consequences for children in particular are devastating, because they end up at A&E. Just last week, a constituent contacted me to tell me that they had been unable to afford private dental care for broken teeth, so they had accessed a cheaper teledentistry company. The result was a botched job, with them having permanent ligament and bone damage. This crisis will end only when we reverse the previous Government’s cuts to dental care, because everyone should be able to access affordable high-quality dental care. The Liberal Democrats have a plan to fix our dental deserts, and I urge Members to support the motion.

• 11 Sept 2024 · Financial Fraud and Economic Crime · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Vaz, in this brilliant and necessary debate. I commend the hon. Member for York Outer (Mr Charters) for securing this debate on financial fraud and economic crime and for his professional expertise in this area. I should declare an interest: I spent 11 years working in financial services and also worked in the Foreign Office on counter-terrorism, so I know how vital this debate is. The hon. Member for York Outer made really interesting points in his seven proposals, particularly on the link between tackling fraud and economic growth and his call for a national anti-fraud centre based on the Australian model. The Liberal Democrats called for an online crime agency in our manifesto, so it is something we would be interested in supporting. We need a dedicated body to tackle online crimes such as personal fraud; our police forces are overwhelmed. Local forces lack the specialist skills required to combat the complexity of modern online crime. Although the National Crime Agency focuses on the most serious offences, we need an agency specifically equipped to deal with online fraud.

• 11 Sept 2024 · Financial Fraud and Economic Crime · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Gentleman for his intervention and I agree that there should be more emphasis on that area. I also thought that the hon. Member for York Outer made a really interesting point about the lack of FCA regulation of the Post Office, and I agree that that appears to be a gap in our existing regulatory framework. We heard some really moving personal accounts about the cost of these online scams in the speech made by the hon. Member for Southend West and Leigh (David Burton-Sampson). We are also calling for the naming and shaming of the banks that have the worst records on preventing fraud and reimbursing victims. They should be held accountable. Financial institutions have a duty to protect their customers and we need to call them out when they do not. The hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) talked about the power of social media scams, and we are also calling for a public awareness campaign. We need to empower everyone to spot, avoid and report fraud and scams. But let me be clear: the onus should not be on individuals to prevent fraud. Victims should never be blamed for falling prey to sophisticated scams. This issue is about building a society that protects citizens and not one that burdens them with responsibilities that should lie with institutions. As we have heard, the numbers involved are staggering, both in terms of the billions of pounds that have been lost to fraud and the sheer volume of crime that is now online. Despite those facts, however, the previous Government’s response was lacklustre. I was moved by the hon. Member for York Outer’s point that 40% of crime is fraud, including online fraud, yet only 1% of police resources is dedicated to tackling fraud. The previous Government treated fraud with such little seriousness that they did not include it in crime statistics. Will the Minister commit to including fraud in crime statistics to demonstrate the new Government’s seriousness about this issue? The Government must also recognise that economic crime poses a significant threat to our democracy. For too long, the previous Government allowed oligarchs to treat the UK as their personal playground, so that they could funnel dirty money into our economy and undermine our values. The Liberal Democrats are calling on the Government to begin seizing frozen Russian assets and to use the proceeds to support Ukraine; to close loopholes in economic crime legislation, which allow associates of authoritarian regimes, such as Putin’s cronies, to funnel corrupt funds into our country; and to properly resource the NCA to ensure that it has the tools to tackle complex financial crimes. We are also calling for an audit of UK-based assets owned by officials from countries with troubling human rights records, such as China and Iran, to ensure that we are not enabling regimes that abuse their own citizens. As a former counter-terrorism officer, I know how important cross-border co-operation is. The hon. Member for Wolverhampton North East (Mrs Brackenridge) really brought out the importance of such co-operation when she made the point that the people conducting these scams are not necessarily all in the same geographical location. I also know the damage that Brexit caused to our cross-border co-operation on serious and online crime. Will the Minister commit to improving co-operation with our European allies and with other countries more widely on financial fraud and economic crime? I look forward to hearing the Minister’s response to the debate. It was a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair for this debate, Ms Vaz, and I again thank the hon. Member for York Outer for securing it.