Dan Jarvis MP: speeches

Speeches

• 10 Jun 2026 · Belfast: Violent Disorder · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend, who has a long-standing interest in Northern Ireland, is absolutely right to highlight the bravery of the police. I have spent a lot of time in Northern Ireland over the years and have something of a sense of the importance of the work that they do and the risk that they carry. Looking at the scenes that unfolded last night, it is impossible not to conclude that the police did an incredibly good job under very difficult circumstances. I pay tribute to them, their service and their families, who would have been at home, sick to death with worry at the kind of risk and threat that their loved ones were having to deal with. My hon. Friend is right to raise the importance of responsibility. As political leaders, and as Members of this House and further afield, we should all understand that words have consequences. While I understand the temptation for some to score cheap political points, at moments like this the public expect all of us to rise above that and think about how we can stand together to address the problems that we undoubtedly face.

• 10 Jun 2026 · Belfast: Violent Disorder · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right to say that the scenes that we saw were appalling and unacceptable, and were in no way legitimate protest. I hope that I was crystal clear in my opening remarks about my message to those who may be considering, or who have been involved in, this kind of violent criminality and disorder. I was crystal clear about the fact that they should not do that, and that anybody who considers doing it needs to be prepared to face the full weight of the law. I am confident that the police are working at pace to address the scenes that we have seen in recent times. Arrests have already been made, and I have no doubt that we will see further arrests in the very near future. This kind of criminality and disorder is utterly unacceptable.

• 10 Jun 2026 · Belfast: Violent Disorder · Hansard source

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  The hon. Member makes an important point, and I agree with his characterisation. He is right to reference the attack and the subsequent disorder, but also to reference concerns about those who would seek to initiate violent criminality under these particular circumstances. I give him an absolute assurance that we will take these matters incredibly seriously, as I am sure will the police.

• 10 Jun 2026 · Belfast: Violent Disorder · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend raises a very important point. There will be agreement and recognition that activity online can provide extraordinary opportunities and benefits, but clearly it can also provide a toxic environment that drives the kind of criminality we have seen in recent times. I hope my hon. Friend will understand that we are working at pace across Government through the defending democracy taskforce, and working with colleagues in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and right across law enforcement, as well as with operational partners, to make sure that activity online is monitored in a way that will best enable us to reduce and eliminate the kind of activity she referred to. She will understand that that is not an easy thing to do. We are constantly looking for the social media companies and the tech companies to exercise greater responsibility, but I assure her of the importance we attach to these matters. I have had meetings recently with ministerial colleagues to look at what more we can do, and I assure my hon. Friend that we are looking into that carefully.

• 10 Jun 2026 · Belfast: Violent Disorder · Hansard source

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  The law should, of course, always be applied without fear or favour. While I acknowledge the right hon. Gentleman’s points, I hope he understands the Government’s determination to address the issues he raised. The Government have been crystal clear about our commitment to reduce to zero the number of hotels being used to accommodate asylum seekers, and there is a commitment to carry out that process in a different way through the use of larger sites. The right hon. Gentleman will have heard the remarks I made earlier about the increase in the removal of foreign national offenders. This issue is a priority for the Government and for the Home Secretary, and we are working at pace to address the issues he raised.

• 10 Jun 2026 · Belfast: Violent Disorder · Hansard source

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  The right hon. Lady makes a really important point. I absolutely give her a commitment that, working with colleagues in the Northern Ireland Office, we will do that. Like her, I was struck by the presence of young people taking part in the criminality in Northern Ireland. We have seen it before, in the bad old days of the troubles, and we must never go back to that. We are looking at specific points around the extent to which any of the criminality and disorder has been directed by paramilitary groups in Northern Ireland, but I am not yet in a position to say more about that. The right hon. Lady may be aware that the UK Government provide 50% of the funding for a programme specifically designed to tackle paramilitary activity and organised crime, and £8 million of investment currently goes into that. I absolutely accept and agree with her key point: we have to make sure that young people in Northern Ireland are diverted from paths of criminality. I will take up that matter with colleagues in the Home Office and with the Secretary of State.

• 10 Jun 2026 · Belfast: Violent Disorder · Hansard source

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  I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman, not least because he provides me with the opportunity to make a point that I know he will agree with: Belfast is a truly great city. It is a place with incredible history and extraordinary character, and I believe it is a place of great potential and possibilities with a bright future ahead. That is why it is so tragic to see the kind of criminal disorder that all of us hoped had been consigned to the past. I understand the passion with which he speaks, but I hope he will also understand this Government’s commitment to dealing with what he describes as the fundamental underlying problems. He is right to raise them. Nobody is remotely blind to them, and we completely understand the anger. That is why we are working in the Home Office, and with colleagues right across law enforcement and Government, to ensure that we are making progress on the areas that he references.

• 10 Jun 2026 · Belfast: Violent Disorder · Hansard source

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  I am grateful to the hon. Member, because he makes an important point. I met officials this morning specifically to discuss the points that he raises. We will use all the tools at our disposal, including intelligence-led operations, to address those points. We look closely at these things, and where there is a requirement for us to do more, we will do so.

• 10 Jun 2026 · National Resilience · Hansard source

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  I begin by paying tribute to the hon. and gallant Member for Exmouth and Exeter East (David Reed) for his previous service, including in the special forces support group. I also thank him for bringing this vital matter to the House, as this debate is central to our national security and our duty to the public. He made a number of helpful and important points. I completely understand why he mentioned the importance of the national conversation, and he can expect to hear much more about that shortly. He was also right to draw a comparison with other countries, and I am proud that many of the UK’s resilience structures and capabilities serve as examples of best practice. For example, the National Situation Centre, established under the previous Government, is highly regarded internationally, and the UK Resilience Academy, which I visited just the other day, is an important part of the skills and engagement offer.

• 10 Jun 2026 · National Resilience · Hansard source

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  I am happy to join my hon. Friend in paying tribute to the work done at the Crystal Palace transmitting station. As he knows better than I, it is an iconic feature of south London, so I am happy to take the opportunity to thank all those involved for their work ensuring that the public stay informed, connected and safe. While I am on that subject, let me also thank all those who work at Emley Moor in West Yorkshire who do similar work. I was privileged to meet them just the other day. Let me return to the remarks by the hon. Member for Exmouth and Exeter East about international comparisons. There are many similarities with our international partners, but as he will acknowledge, each nation’s approach is influenced by its history, geography, and societal approach to resilience. Building on the good work of the previous Government, we have set out our strategic vision on resilience. Take for example our work following the covid-19 inquiry: we considered the findings and made deliberate updates to our resilience plans, including strengthening our relationships with the devolved Governments through the four nations ministerial group. As I am sure that the hon. Gentleman will also recognise, successive Governments have for more than 20 years anchored the national security risk assessment as the foundation of their approach to the complex resilience landscape. That landscape continues to evolve and the risks that we face today are volatile, varied and interconnected. They include cyber-attacks, threats to energy security, global supply chain pressures and, of course, armed conflict. I am pleased to be able to talk about the Government’s approach to those areas, but first let me say something in response to the hon. Gentleman about accountability. Under the lead Department model, each risk is owned by a single Department, ensuring those with the relevant expertise are responsible for the work to keep us protected against that particular risk. To support that, the Government will publish a refreshed expectation set for lead Departments. That will clarify how they are expected to deliver their responsibilities, as well as the role of other Departments in supporting them. The Government have also taken steps to clarify accountability and enhance our readiness for the highest impact whole-of-system crises. We have explicitly embedded the leadership role of the Cabinet Office in our central crisis management doctrine, the Amber Book, and we have strengthened governance on risk planning and mapped key cascading impacts of catastrophic risk to ensure a true whole-of-Government response, so if a catastrophe should happen, no Department can be in any doubt about its role. Let us take a national power outage as an example. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero remains the lead Department across the whole risk cycle, from assessment to recovery, and continues to lead on the Government’s relationship with the energy sector. The role of the Cabinet Office is to step in to help lead the response, given the significant cross-cutting impacts that a national power outage would bring. That central co-ordination function allows all responding Departments to respond to their impacted areas, with the Cabinet Office providing situational reporting of the whole-system impacts of the risk. That way, the Government collectively understands and is prepared for the risks that the UK faces. The Cabinet Office also leads on the overall response to severe weather. This is underpinned by the severe weather resilience network, where crucial inputs from the Met Office, which I know the hon. Gentleman will be very familiar with, are shared with individual Departments that lead on the response planning and resilience of the sectors that they represent. That ensures that when the weather turns, our response is unified, rapid and robust. Our work is not just about how we plan for responding to emergencies; we have informed our understanding of their impact as well. We know that emergencies impact people unequally, and to address that we have developed the risk vulnerability tool and provided further guidance to local resilience forums, so that they can better identify and support those who are most vulnerable. The UK Government are proud to be a part of an international community in which we can both learn from others and share our learnings, but I would not want anyone listening to think that planning and response is all down to Departments. Local resilience forums are a critical part of our resilience system. In fact, the stronger LRF trailblazers programme moves beyond legacy structures to build a local network that is agile, accountable and capable of protecting citizens at the neighbourhood level. The resilience action plan envisages a whole-of-society approach, redefining national resilience as a shared mission where citizens, communities, civil society, businesses and the public sector all play a vital and active role. Finally, building a truly resilient society requires a fundamental cultural shift in the way that emergency preparedness is thought about. That includes being clear about the risks that we face and the actions that we can all take to improve our collective resilience.

• 10 Jun 2026 · National Resilience · Hansard source

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  I absolutely share the hon. Gentleman’s concerns. Let me give an undertaking to come back with the technical detail about the report that he has raised, but I hope he can be assured of the seriousness that the Government attach to such matters. All of us in this place, I hope, understand the nature of the climate crisis and the impact it is having now and will have in the future, and we in Government have an absolute responsibility to ensure that we are properly prepared for that. The Government’s Prepare website provides guidance on the actions recommended for individuals, households and communities to increase their own preparedness and resilience. This debate highlights something fundamental: resilience is not an abstract policy objective, but, I hope, a shared national endeavour. The hon. Member for Exmouth and Exeter East has spoken powerfully about the importance of strengthening national resilience in the face of evolving risks. We share his determination, and I would be very happy to continue the conversation with him about these matters. Let me give the hon. Member some further assurance. Next month, the Government will make their annual statement to Parliament on resilience, which will provide a detailed update on the progress we have been making to deliver against the commitments over the last 12 months or so. I hope that will go some way further to address the points that he has made, but, regardless, I give him and the House an assurance that we will continue to learn, adapt and build a robust future for the United Kingdom. Question put and agreed to .

• 8 Jun 2026 · Extremism · Hansard source

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  The shadow Minister will know that the defending democracy taskforce, which I chair, is looking carefully at the issues that he has raised, which are indeed abhorrent. He has made a powerful point. The Government are considering whether further action is required, and I should be happy to work with him on it.

• 8 Jun 2026 · Extremism · Hansard source

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  The right hon. Gentleman has raised an important point. I have seen the footage. Like, I am sure, all other Members, I was shocked but not surprised by it. The police have an important job to do in cracking down on this kind of activity, but I can give the right hon. Gentleman an absolute assurance of the priority that this Government attach to antisemitism. We have seen a range of abhorrent antisemitic attacks in recent times, and we will do everything we can to stand against them.

• 8 Jun 2026 · Extremism · Hansard source

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  I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his attention to these important matters. As we set out in “Protecting What Matters”, the Government recognise countering extremism and enhancing social cohesion as a priority area, and we set out a range of commitments to achieve that. Although there is no explicit offence of extremism, the police have a range of tools and powers to counter the activities of extremists. We are fast-tracking the creation of a new state threats designation power, which will further clamp down on individuals and groups carrying out hostile activity for foreign states.

• 8 Jun 2026 · Extremism · Hansard source

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  The Government are delivering a fundamental reset of how we counter extremism. That includes publishing an annual state of extremism report, which will arm frontline public sector workers with the information they need to tackle extremism in the UK.

• 8 Jun 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  I listened carefully to what the right hon. and learned Lady said and will give it due consideration as chair of the defending democracy taskforce.

• 8 Jun 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend may be aware that I recently met the hon. Member for Mid Buckinghamshire (Greg Smith) and the rabbi for south Buckinghamshire. She will know that the Jewish community protective security grant scheme, administered by the Community Security Trust, funds security measures such as CCTV, alarms and fencing, which require fixed sites to install and maintain. However, I fully recognise the fear and concerns raised by mobile Jewish congregations, and we are working closely with CST to understand what more support we can give.

• 8 Jun 2026 · Identity Fraud · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend speaks with real authority on these matters. He will know that the theft of personal information is already criminalised in legislation, including the Fraud Act 2006, the Computer Misuse Act 1990 and the Data Protection Act 2018. To ensure that those laws remain effective, we commissioned an independent review of disclosures and fraud offences. The review has submitted its final report to the Government and will be published shortly. We will consider its findings carefully and what further action may be needed to strengthen our response to identity fraud. I am sure that the noble Lord Hanson will happily meet my hon. Friend.

• 8 Jun 2026 · Identity Fraud · Hansard source

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  We have launched a new £250 million fraud strategy focused on preventing fraud, protecting victims and strengthening enforcement. We are working closely with the City of London police to establish referral routes so that identity fraud victims can access identity repair services, and we will continue to develop guidance, tools and partnerships to help victims to recover quickly and to reduce repeat harm.

• 8 Jun 2026 · Identity Fraud · Hansard source

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  I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for raising that important point, and I assure him that I will raise it with the noble Lord Hanson, who leads on matters relating to fraud. I hope the hon. Gentleman acknowledges that the Government have invested £250 million in working with a range of different organisations to bear down on the levels of fraud that we are seeing. That includes law enforcement, GCHQ, banks, telecommunications and tech partners, and civil society. We have also invested £31 million in a new online crime centre. I will look carefully at the points that he makes and refer them to Lord Hanson.

• 14 May 2026 · National Security · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend raises a very important point, and I can give him the assurances that he seeks. He will have heard in my introductory remarks that the Chinese ambassador has been summonsed, and he will have heard the determination of the Foreign Secretary to illustrate the completely unacceptable nature of the kind of activities that we have seen in recent times. I have personally been in touch with members of the Hongkonger community just this week to provide reassurances, but I want to work closely with my hon. Friend to ensure that those assurances are not only heard, but felt. If he thinks that we can and should be doing more, I would be very grateful to be able to discuss that with him.

• 14 May 2026 · National Security · Hansard source

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  I am grateful to the hon. Lady, as I always am, for the points that she has made. She mentioned the Chinese embassy, so I hope she will forgive me if I seek to provide her with a word of reassurance on that matter, because I know it has been somewhat controversial in this House and elsewhere. Our intelligence agencies have been involved throughout the process, and an extensive range of measures has been developed to manage any risks. Following extensive negotiations, the Chinese Government have agreed to consolidate their current seven sites in London into one site. I hope she will acknowledge that that brings very clear national security advantages. As for the timeframe, we are seeking to fast-track the legislation through Parliament, and it is a priority. I intend to bring it forward very soon and to do it in a way that I hope will be collegiate, with Members right across the House. We made a commitment that we would introduce this legislation; we need to get on and do it, and that is what I intend to do.

• 14 May 2026 · National Security · Hansard source

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  I am grateful to the hon. Member and he is right: I believe that this is a shared endeavour across the House and across our country. I was pleased to discuss these matters recently with the First Minister, and I have received positive correspondence from him. I hope the hon. Member will forgive me if I do not respond to him now on the precise point about Barnett consequentials, but I will write to him.

• 14 May 2026 · National Security · Hansard source

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  My hon. and gallant Friend has asked an astute question. He obviously heard my reference to the initiation of an internal piece of work, and a review of the national terrorism threat level. In truth, that has long been on my mind, and I want to satisfy myself that current arrangements are fit for purpose. Those current arrangements have served our country fairly well for a number of years, but I feel as if they have now been overtaken by events. It is therefore appropriate to look carefully at the way the threat level is not only calibrated, but communicated, and I want a system that makes some sense to the public. We will look carefully at that. I will consider the recommendations over the coming months, and I am obviously happy to discuss the matter further with my hon. Friend and other Members. He made a further important point about the strategic defence review and the need to have an ongoing conversation with the public, and he is right to remind us of that. I discuss such matters not only with colleagues across Government, but also with our European partners who, it is not unreasonable to say, have taken a somewhat more forward-leaning approach than UK Governments going back a number of years. We must ensure that the public understand the nature of the threats we face, and do so in a way that ensures they are alert but not alarmed.

• 14 May 2026 · National Security · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend has been a diligent representative of his constituency, and I know that he takes these matters incredibly seriously. I hope that he understands this Government’s commitment to tackling antisemitism. He mentioned that in his constituency he has members of the UK Hong Kong community, so let me briefly say a word about them. Any foreign state-directed crime against an individual in the UK will never be tolerated, and the attempt to intimidate and harass members of the Hong Kong community is absolutely unacceptable. Hongkongers play an incredibly important role in our public life. I give him and them an absolute assurance that we will do everything we can to protect them. My hon. Friend asked specifically about forthcoming legislation. He will understand that we take a range of measures to guard against the threat we face from malign actors and hostile states. It is a priority to introduce this legislation as soon as we are able. I will take it through Parliament, and we intend to fast-track it. I intend to bring it forward in the near future.