Chris Vince MP: speeches

Speeches

• 22 Apr 2025 · Domestic Violence: Bail Conditions · Hansard source

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  Having spoken to Essex police and other professionals, and having worked for a homeless charity myself, I know that often the hardest part for victims of domestic violence is making the decision to leave what is sometimes the family home. What work has the Minister done with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to address this issue?

• 22 Apr 2025 · Draft Fair Dealing Obligations (Pigs) Regulations 2025 · Hansard source

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  This may be a stupid question—there is no such thing; just a stupid answer. I looked through the draft legislation this morning. It struck me that there did not seem to be much mention of the welfare of the animal. I wondered whether that was an omission or it is covered in different legislation. Will the Minister clarify that?

• 12 Apr 2025 · Steel Industry (Special Measures) Bill · Hansard source

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  Does the hon. Lady agree that the Conservatives were also in government in 2015, when the steelworks at Redcar closed and thousands of people lost their jobs?

• 8 Apr 2025 · Pensioners: Cost of Living · Hansard source

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  The 4.1% increase in the new state pension will make a huge difference to pensioners in my constituency. What more are the Government doing to tackle the cost of living crisis left by the last Government?

• 7 Apr 2025 · Road Maintenance · Hansard source

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  My right hon. Friend reminds me of the road on which I live, where drivers trying to avoid a pothole in the road went on to the pavement, which led to the pavement being damaged. Does she agree that fixing potholes quickly wills save pavements as well?

• 7 Apr 2025 · Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate · Hansard source

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  I thank the Secretary of State for her statement. Harlow is a new town, and it has a number of properties that do not have off-street parking. I ask her to drill down on the guidance she has given to local councillors on what they can do to provide more off-street charging facilities.

• 3 Apr 2025 · UK Democracy: Impact of Digital Platforms · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is giving an excellent, emotional speech—its excellence is her trademark—highlighting this problem, and I am sorry to hear about the issues she has faced. Does she agree that when Members of Parliament are targeted in this way, it affects not only them but their families? As the hon. Member for Lagan Valley (Sorcha Eastwood) said, that puts people off getting involved in politics, which cannot be a good thing for democracy.

• 3 Apr 2025 · Access to Sport: PE in Schools · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend mentioned that I was a teacher before I did—oh no, I did mention it.

• 3 Apr 2025 · Access to Sport: PE in Schools · Hansard source

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  Thank you. My hon. Friend makes an important point, and what is interesting from hon. Members’ contributions is that none of us particularly excel at sport—I certainly do not—but we have seen sometimes in later life how important participation in sport is. She is right that it is not just about elitist sport; we could talk about Harlow Parkrun where people come together as a community and take part in sport every Saturday morning. There are so many examples where sport does not need to be elitist. Of course we want people to excel at sport, and of course we want the next Laura Kenny or Glenn Hoddle, but we want people to enjoy sport: the impact it has on their mental health is huge. I thank my hon. Friend for the work she is doing on the Select Committee to champion that point, and I look forward to that being fed into the curriculum review. Increased transport costs are among the biggest challenges that teachers have raised with me. For some Harlow parents struggling financially, and low-income families, transporting their children to away fixtures is just not possible. My hon. Friend the Member for Stafford—and the other bits—mentioned the Lionesses. We have all been inspired by Lucy Bronze and others in that team, and young girls in Harlow have been inspired by them as well. However, many girls and young women in Harlow have to leave Harlow to go to Bishop’s Stortford, of all places, to access sport, so we clearly need to do more to ensure that sports facilities are readily available and close enough for everybody to go to them. As someone who is not the most sporty person in the world but appreciates the value of sport, my plea to the Government is to invest in PE in our schools, because it helps develop skills such as resilience and physical and mental health, as mentioned previously. It should not be just for elite athletes; it should be for everybody to enjoy—even slightly over-the-hill former maths teachers.

• 3 Apr 2025 · Access to Sport: PE in Schools · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Stafford (Leigh Ingham) for bringing this important debate to the House. Being picked last was very much my experience of PE at school. It is interesting that the majority of people who have spoken in this debate are not very good at sport. There is a rule in the parliamentary football team that MPs have to start. I have to say that I am the footballer who has pushed that rule to its limits, leading to the question: “How quickly can we sub Chris off and bring on a better player?” Before this debate, on the suggestion of my hon. Friend for Stafford, I reached out to some of my local schools in Harlow to hear about their good practice and to find out about some of the challenges they face. People will know that Harlow has a proud history of sporting excellence. It is the childhood town of Glenn Hoddle, the birthplace of Laura Trott—not the right hon. Member for Sevenoaks (Laura Trott)—who is now Laura Kenny. I have to mention long-distance runner Michael Casey, because he is now a local journalist, and my sporting hero, the Paralympian Anne Strike MBE. Two schools were very quick to get back to me about what they are doing in Harlow. I thank Luke Hammond, the PE lead from Purford Green primary school, for his quick response and what he shared from his school and the wider Passmores Co-operative Learning Community, which is a strong advocate for physical education. He told me that they have done up to 70 events in the past year alone. They purchased and lent out bikes as part of a Bikeability programme and created their own sporting event—I believe it is called tchoukball—and a dedicated festival to support SEND students to do PE, as well as a girls-only tag rugby tournament where over 150 students participated. He particularly wanted to pay tribute not just to the staff in his school, but to the staff in primary schools and schools across Harlow who work collaboratively in coalition to support one another. My hon. Friend the Member for Mid Cheshire (Andrew Cooper) mentioned the decision by the coalition Government in 2010. I have to say that I am old enough to have been teaching at the time of that change, although I am pleased that Jerounds primary school in my constituency continues to excel in ensuring students have at least two PE lessons a week. It also invites sports- people into the school, including representatives of Essex cricket club, which we know is the best cricket team in the country—there are not enough people to boo that.

• 3 Apr 2025 · UK-US Trade and Tariffs · Hansard source

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  I thank the Secretary of State for coming to the House and for his calm head in a difficult situation. My constituency is home to many businesses, including Wright’s Flour, A1 Bacon, Harlow Group and Raytheon, that trade directly and indirectly with the US. What reassurance can the Secretary of State give to those businesses and their consumers? Does he think that Raytheon’s work sourcing UK parts for its defence systems will be increasingly vital in the months and years to come?

• 3 Apr 2025 · Children in Temporary Accommodation: England · Hansard source

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  I thank the Select Committee Chair for bringing this report to the Chamber. It relates to two of my previous roles, as I have worked as a teacher and with homelessness charities, so the subject is close to my heart. What joint working has the Committee done with the Department for Education and teaching professionals on the impact of being in temporary accommodation on learning? I also want to raise an issue that came up in Harlow when I worked for a homelessness charity. The decision by the previous Government—I do not think it was malicious—to raise the housing element of universal credit led to many private sector landlords raising their rent. That had an impact on temporary accommodation, because many people were being housed in temporary accommodation in the private rented sector. Will the Committee consider that?

• 2 Apr 2025 · School-based Nursery Capital Grants · Hansard source

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  I thank the Secretary of State for her statement. I had the opportunity only last week to visit Jerounds primary school in my constituency, and saw the incredible work that it was doing in supporting young people and showing them the value of community pride and the importance of oracy. I have to say that they gave their local MP a very good grilling. I am delighted that Jerounds will be one of the 300 schools to deliver on our pledge of a new school-based surgery. May I ask how this will benefit children and parents in my constituency, and, like others, ask for more provision in Harlow?

• 2 Apr 2025 · UK Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  A core objective of the Government’s modern industrial strategy is to unleash the full potential of our cities and regions, which is as true in Northern as it is in my constituency of Harlow. Does the Secretary of State agree that Northern Ireland’s four city growth deals, which the Government committed to at the Budget, can play a vital role in this?

• 2 Apr 2025 · UK Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  8. What discussions he has had with the Northern Ireland Executive on the development of a new UK industrial strategy.

• 1 Apr 2025 · Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for coming to the House to answer the urgent question. I know from her visit to Harlow last week how much she cares about supporting young people. Having worked in the charity sector before I came to this place, I recognise that short-termism in funding for services to support vulnerable people is not a new problem. Will she confirm that the Government are committed to ensuring that adopted children are given the support they deserve?

• 1 Apr 2025 · Sentencing Council Guidelines · Hansard source

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  I thank the Lord Chancellor for her statement. Does she agree that we should all hold closely the ideal of equality before the law, and that the biggest cause of two-tier justice was the mess that the Conservative party made of our Probation Service?

• 1 Apr 2025 · Eating Disorder Awareness · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Stuart. I thank the hon. Member for Bath (Wera Hobhouse) for securing this extremely important debate and for the work that she and others have done with the eating disorders all-party parliamentary group. I have come to this debate to speak up on behalf of the many people who have suffered from eating disorders, both past and present. I confess to having a personal interest, as one of those people is my mum. Like many people who suffer from anorexia, my mum developed the disorder as a teenager; as with many people, it came from being bullied by her peers at school. I do not want to give away my mum’s age—that is something that she would never forgive me for—but hon. Members will appreciate that that was a little while ago, although I believe that it has a huge impact on her even today. I can only begin to imagine the additional pressure that young people suffer now that abuse and bullying does not end at the school gate, but extends online, with negative comments, memes and unrealistic, sometimes AI-generated body images. It has worsened a great deal since the pandemic. Approximately 1.25 million people have some sort of eating disorder. One in eight 17 to 19-year-olds in England were reported to have had an eating disorder in 2023. Having spoken to a resident in Harlow who wishes to remain anonymous, I know that this is as much an issue in my constituency as it is anywhere else. I urge anyone who is struggling with an eating disorder in Harlow to reach out. The service lead for eating disorders at the Essex partnership university NHS foundation trust has described eating disorders as typically developing in adolescence and early adulthood, leading to changes in a person’s brain, body and behaviour. He also says that early intervention is essential in reversing these changes and improves the likelihood of a full recovery. More recently, the Royal College of Psychiatrists said that services are struggling with demand. In February this year, the Government said that NHS England were processing an update to the commissioning guidance on eating disorders. Can the Minister tell us what the recent announcements on changes to NHS England will mean for the publication of that guidance? Once again, I thank the APPG for its work on this important issue. I particularly thank Beat for publishing its report and for publishing some really important data on eating disorders. The hon. Member for Bath spoke about the lack of data and the lack of understanding about eating disorders; I have to say that when I was researching this debate, I found that the data for my constituency of Harlow was sorely lacking. I rarely speak in a Westminster Hall debate without mentioning young carers. This issue has an impact on them as well. I echo the valid point from the hon. Member for Horsham (John Milne) that support for people with eating disorders is a postcode lottery. For families who have to travel long distances, such as to Glasgow, to care for a loved one with an eating disorder, there is a huge cost. There is a disproportionate impact on those who are living in poverty and on low-income families. I will finish by saying a massive thank you to the hon. Member for Bath for bringing forward the issue. I look forward to hearing the Minister’s response.

• 1 Apr 2025 · NHS Pensions · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for coming to the House and giving her response. We all know the issues she is talking about when she mentions the state of the NHS that we inherited, and I echo that with the issues I hear about from patients and staff at Princess Alexandra hospital in Harlow. On pensions, can she outline what the Government have done to mitigate the delays in the process?

• 1 Apr 2025 · Product Regulation and Metrology Bill [Lords] · Hansard source

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  It feels impertinent to intervene, because my hon. Friend is giving a hugely passionate speech about a subject he clearly knows so much about, but how can he can help the next generation of metrologists to be as inspired about this topic as he clearly is?

• 31 Mar 2025 · Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [Lords] · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for visiting the best town in England, Harlow, last week. Does she agree that this Bill will help benefit young people in my constituency and give them the skills that they need ?

• 31 Mar 2025 · Live Facial Recognition · Hansard source

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  Harlow police department’s recent successful trial of facial recognition has led to some arrests. Does the Minister agree that technology can play a vital part in tackling crime but cannot be a substitute for neighbourhood policing?

• 31 Mar 2025 · Draft Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Regulations 2025 · Hansard source

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  The right hon. Member for South West Wiltshire made the point about the danger of doing research in this country and it being used by other countries. I take his point, but is there not an opportunity to use this technology in developing countries and provide support in relation to famine?

• 27 Mar 2025 · PIP Changes: Impact on Carer’s Allowance · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for his statement. I declare an interest as the chair of the all-party parliamentary group for young carers and young adult carers. Does the Minister agree that the role of young carers is critical not only to those who are cared for, but to the economy? Although young carers under 16 do not receive carer’s allowance, will he consider the impact of any plans on young carers and how we might better support them?

• 27 Mar 2025 · Scunthorpe Steelworks · Hansard source

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  Last week, I visited British Offsite, whose chief executive officer hails from my constituency of Harlow, about the innovative house building that it is doing using techniques that require a lot of steel, although I have to say that it uses it efficiently. What meetings has the Minister had with house builders, as well as with the defence sector, as she rightly said, as part of the Government’s steel strategy?