Graham Stringer MP: speeches

95 published records · newest first.

Speeches

20 Jan 2026 · Diego Garcia Military Base and British Indian Ocean Territory Bill · Hansard source
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It has been said that some hon. and right hon. Members have come to the debate on Chagos late in the day. That is right. The right hon. Member for Islington North (Jeremy Corbyn) has been banging on about Chagos for decades, and I admire him for doing so. I first became concerned when I saw how much it would cost the United Kingdom to pay for something that we own. As a litmus test, I asked myself whether I could explain to my constituents why we are going to pay an island nation that has no direct connection with Diego Garcia.
19 Jan 2026 · Proposed Chinese Embassy · Hansard source
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I think I heard my hon. Friend say clearly that the Government would not stand for coercion by the Chinese diplomatic service. Has the Foreign Office not been looking at what has been going on over the last 10 years? At the consulate in Manchester, people who were demonstrating against the Chinese Government were dragged into the grounds and beaten up, and the diplomatic staff were left alone, with nothing happening to them. There are pop-up police stations all over the country that intimidate members of the Chinese community, whether they are British citizens or from Hong Kong or other parts of China. There should be a simple answer to this application. There is no need for an embassy of this size for the Chinese diplomatic community in this country. It is there to intimidate Chinese people and undermine the elected representatives in this Chamber.
19 Jan 2026 · Local Elections: Cancellation · Hansard source
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As a former leader of a major council and a Labour MP, I find this completely embarrassing. A Labour Government should not be taking the vote away from 3.7 million people. It is completely unprecedented for a Labour Government to do that. There is clearly a vested interest for some councillors who may feel, looking at the opinion polls, that they will lose their seat. Some of those councillors will vote for delay. How will the Minister distinguish between that motivation and whether or not there really is a lack of capacity to carry out the elections? I do not believe that any of those councils are unable to hold those elections.
14 Jan 2026 · West Midlands Police · Hansard source
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It is absolutely clear that, by lies and conspiracy, the chief constable of the West Midlands created a no-go area for Jews in one of our major cities. He cannot, by whatever mechanism, continue in office, but will the Home Secretary consider prosecuting him for malfeasance in public office, or in some other way, because we cannot let such an appalling activity by a public servant continue in this way by just sacking him?
14 Jan 2026 · Northern Powerhouse Rail · Hansard source
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I appreciate the Secretary of State’s recognition of the lack of investment that there has been in the north of England, but it is not as though there has not been jam to go around. While there has been almost zero new investment in the north, in the south we have seen Javelin trains, the Jubilee line extension, Thameslink, the Elizabeth line and all the expenditure on HS2. Given that all that money has weighed down the south, and given that a crucial part of this scheme—I pay tribute to the Secretary of State for recognising this—is the underground station at Manchester Piccadilly, does she think it fair for local contributions to be expected for that, when most of the other schemes have been paid for through direct taxation? Why should the north not be treated in the same way as the south? Is it fair for local taxpayers to have to pay for what is part of the national infrastructure?
3 Dec 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source
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Q5. This country can be proud of its history of religious tolerance and religious freedom. The quid pro quo for that is the right to criticise religion. Can the Prime Minister assure the House that there will be no introduction or reintroduction of a blasphemy law, either by statute, judicial overreach or a non-statutory definition of Islamophobia?
27 Nov 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source
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Last Thursday, Baroness Hallett issued the second part of her important report on covid, which deals with the effectiveness, or ineffectiveness, of the Government’s response to covid and the £400 billion spent on it. After the first Hallett report, there was a statement; by now, I would have expected a statement in the House on the second report, and arrangements to have been made for a debate. Can the Leader of the House tell me when the statement will be, and will he arrange for a debate on the subject in Government time?
25 Nov 2025 · Violence against Women and Girls: London · Hansard source
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Order. I remind Members that even if they are on the list, those who are able to should bob at the end of speeches if they want to catch my eye.
25 Nov 2025 · Violence against Women and Girls: London · Hansard source
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There are seven people bobbing and 38 minutes left, so the arithmetic is relatively simple: just over five minutes each. I will not impose a time limit, unless somebody abuses the situation.
25 Nov 2025 · Violence against Women and Girls: London · Hansard source
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Order. I draw the hon. Member’s attention to the time. He is beginning to run into that allotted to other hon. Members. I assume he will draw his remarks to a conclusion.
25 Nov 2025 · Bike Theft: Loughborough · Hansard source
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I will call Dr Jeevun Sandher to move the motion and then the Minister to respond. I remind other Members that they may make a speech only with prior permission from the Member in charge of the debate and the Minister. There will not be an opportunity for the Member in charge to wind up, as is the convention for 30-minute debates.
25 Nov 2025 · Pension Investment in UK Equities · Hansard source
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Order. I remind hon. Members that they should bob if they wish to be called to speak. I intend to call the Lib Dem spokesman at 5.10 pm and three hon. Members wish to speak. They will have roughly six minutes each.
25 Nov 2025 · Pension Investment in UK Equities · Hansard source
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We have caught up a lot of time. I ask the Minister to leave a couple of minutes for the Member in charge to wind up.
24 Nov 2025 · Maccabi Tel Aviv FC: Away Fans Ban · Hansard source
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Our police forces in this country have dealt with violent fans from other countries for a long time. I do not expect my hon. Friend to be familiar with the Bad Blue Boys of Dinamo Zagreb—probably the worst fans in Europe, responsible for deaths and imprisonments—or the ultras of Roma, Inter Milan or Lazio, but they have been dealt with. The only conclusion I can draw from the information before us is that the West Midlands police and the local authorities in Birmingham, following fictions about the fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv, created a no-go zone for Jews in one of our major cities. Is she, like me, ashamed of that?
24 Nov 2025 · Critical Minerals Strategy · Hansard source
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I respect my hon. Friend’s optimism and his detailed technical knowledge of this issue. I suspect it is going to be very tough getting the supply lines as secure as he wants them to be, but does he also recognise that there is an absolute magnitude problem? I am sure he has read the book “Material World”, in which the writer, Ed Conway, points out that in the next 22 years we will need an amount of copper equivalent to what has been mined over the last 5,000 years. Is my hon. Friend aware of that and is it part of the strategy?
24 Nov 2025 · English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill · Hansard source
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Can the hon. Gentleman give an example of when a Conservative Government gave a veto to a local authority?
17 Nov 2025 · Asylum Policy · Hansard source
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I fully support the Home Secretary and her statement. It is a fundamental duty of Government to protect our borders and to know who is coming into this country—something that we have not known for some time. She has set herself a difficult task. Will she agree to publish targets for all the areas that she outlined in her statement, and particularly for a reduction in the number of undocumented and illegal entrants to the country, so that we can check whether the plan is working? If it is not, she may need to alter some of the policies.
11 Nov 2025 · BBC Leadership · Hansard source
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I do not think any reasonable person can think that the programme put out by “Panorama” was a mistake. It was clearly manipulation with a purpose, and unfortunately it follows a long line—I will not list all the examples, as other hon. Members have done that, but they include Gaza, anti-women trans issues and Europe. To give an example from my constituency, a programme was put out a few years ago called “People Like Us”, where contributors—young women—had been paid to fight and other contributors had been sent on holiday in order to get them to say particular things. I do not think that the biggest threat to the BBC is some conspiracy. I hope my right hon. Friend agrees that the biggest threat to the BBC is a failure to uphold objectivity and the standards we expect from the BBC.
29 Oct 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source
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Q12. The hon. Member for West Suffolk (Nick Timothy), when he was an official, produced a devastating report on the Home Office. Reading it, it shows a Department characterised by disarray and defeatism. There have been 12 Home Secretaries over the past 30 years. Some were better than others, but none managed to get the Department to deliver the services that people should be able to expect in this country. Will the Prime Minister give the new Home Secretary the necessary resources and policy interventions to ensure that she can be successful?
20 Oct 2025 · Maccabi Tel Aviv FC: Away Fans Ban · Hansard source
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As my right hon. Friend will know from her discussions with the Jewish community—which will have been similar to those that I have had following the dreadful murders at the Heaton Park synagogue just over a fortnight ago—what they want is to be assured by the Government, local authorities and other security authorities that they can live and walk about in this country in complete safety. Whatever the risk assessment in Birmingham was, it would be a disgrace and a shame if this country could not guarantee the security of a group of a group of Jewish fans, coming from Israel, walking down our streets. Can my right hon. Friend give that assurance to this House this afternoon?
13 Oct 2025 · Manchester Terrorism Attack · Hansard source
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I thank the Home Secretary for her statement, and I am sure that the people of Crumpsall, where this atrocity took place, will welcome it. The only point I would add is that while these acts of antisemitism and violence are un-British, they are also inhuman—I think that is a better way to describe them, rather than “un-British.” I thank the Home Secretary and the Prime Minister for coming to Manchester on the day of the attack, which was much appreciated. The Home Secretary had a chance to meet the heroes, because while there was violence and tragedy, there were certainly heroes, not least the members of the congregation—two of whom lost their lives—who protected other members of the congregation from what would undoubtedly have been more deaths. The Home Secretary also met the Community Security Trust, the police and the fire brigade, who all played an excellent role in getting to the site of the violence as quickly as they could. I have lived in this community, within a stone’s throw of the synagogue, for most of my adult life, and I have no doubt that the community will remain resilient. It has always been resilient. The film crews who thronged about the area after the violence were amazed that Muslims, Jews, Sikhs, Christians and people of no religion were all consoling each other. There was no hostility at all on the street. The final points I want to make are not as heartwarming. There is hurt and anger within the local Jewish community. They had known for some time that an attack like this was coming. Obviously they did not know when or where, but it has arrived. They feel that there has developed a hierarchy of racism—that somehow Jew hatred is not as important as other kinds of racism. They feel that not enough has been done to protect them. The extra security that the Prime Minister and the Home Secretary have announced is welcome, but what the community are looking for is extra action to deal with religious extremists who are involved in illegal activity, to get to the heart of the violent activities against the Jewish community. The final point I will make is that, in one sense, taking action against illegal activities is the easier part. But partly because of what has happened in Gaza, many people now think it is okay in casual dinner party conversation—we have probably all heard it and witnessed it—to make antisemitic comments. It is not okay. It is also not okay, although it is not against the law, for artists—if I can use that word—like Bob Vylan to be operating and spreading their hate on campuses like Manchester University. Will the Home Secretary look forward with me to a future not only free of antisemitism but where I do not have to walk or drive past Jewish schools with security guards outside them?
10 Sept 2025 · Stockton and Darlington Railway: 200th Anniversary Festival · Hansard source
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Order. The hon. Member heard what I said to the hon. Member for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland (Luke Myer). If he could stick to the motion before us, I would be grateful; sanctioning current rail operators is not directly relevant to the motion.
10 Sept 2025 · Stockton and Darlington Railway: 200th Anniversary Festival · Hansard source
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I say to the hon. Gentleman that the motion that we are considering is relatively narrowly drawn; it is about the 200th anniversary of the Stockton and Darlington railway. I am following his speech and chain of logic but ask him to come back to the motion.
10 Sept 2025 · Stockton and Darlington Railway: 200th Anniversary Festival · Hansard source
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Order. Has the hon. Gentleman finished?
10 Sept 2025 · Stockton and Darlington Railway: 200th Anniversary Festival · Hansard source
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Minister, I suspect that you will have plenty of time to leave space for the mover of the motion to respond.

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