Harpreet Uppal MP: speeches

Speeches

• 13 Jul 2026 · High Streets Organised Crime Unit · Hansard source

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  20. What assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the high streets organised crime unit.

• 9 Jul 2026 · Israeli Settlements: Trade Ban · Hansard source

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  I agree. We must hold Israel to account for its actions, and we must end all trade with the illegal settlements. Those settlements do not build themselves; they require money and trade, and they are backed by the Israeli Government. That is the only way we can ensure that we are not financially legitimising violations of international law. I understand that there are complexities in banning that trade, but I share the belief of many of my constituents, and other Members, that the violence has continued at a rate that demands a proportionate response from the international community. Will the Minister update the House on what discussions the Government have had with international partners to better understand their plans to ban trade with illegal settlements? As my hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield Central mentioned, bans are in the process of being introduced in the Netherlands, Belgium, Ireland and Spain. No law is perfect—absolutely not—but that does not mean we should not work on banning trade with the illegal settlements.

• 9 Jul 2026 · Israeli Settlements: Trade Ban · Hansard source

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  I do agree. The statistics that I referred to must remain in our minds as we focus on illegal settlements, which are rapidly eroding the prospects for peaceful co-existence and a viable independent Palestinian state. Finally, I say to the Minister that it is imperative that we avoid the real prospect of doing too little, too late.

• 9 Jul 2026 · Israeli Settlements: Trade Ban · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield Central (Abtisam Mohamed) for her powerful speech, and it is an absolute honour to follow the Father of the House. On the west bank, settlement expansion continues in violation of UN Security Council resolution 2334. That includes the E1 project that aims to cut the west bank in half, and separate East Jerusalem. Last month, Israel approved 2,000 settlement housing units across the west bank, bringing the total approved this year to over 6,000. Those settlements continue to destroy historic Palestinian communities, any chance of long-term peace and a two-state solution. They are also accompanied by staggering levels of violence, and co-ordinated attacks on civilians and religious sites, facilitated by a culture of impunity. According to the UN, there has been an average of six attacks every day against Palestinians in the west bank since the start of 2026. A recent report from the UN Secretary-General highlighted a steep rise in attacks by settlers on Palestinian children, reportedly often supported by Israeli security forces. It is part of a surge of settler aggression across the west bank, driven by the dynamics of Israeli politics. We know that elections in Israel must be held by the end of October at the latest, and as things stand, Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right bloc is facing the prospect of defeat. The radical settler elements in the coalition are scrambling to impose facts on the ground in the west bank before the elections. Throughout 2025 and the first half of this year, the creeping de facto annexation of the west bank has increased greatly, driven primarily by farm outposts, which require none of the planning and construction work of older settlements. According to a report published on Monday by Kerem Navot, and its fellow activist organisation Peace Now, farm outposts now control more than 100,000 hectares, which is 18% of the entire west bank. Nearly one third of that wholesale seizure took place in 2025.

• 9 Jul 2026 · Israeli Settlements: Trade Ban · Hansard source

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  I agree, and I will come on to that point in a moment. Recourse to the law has been cut off almost entirely for Palestinians, particularly since another settler extremist, Ben-Gvir, was made National Security Minister. The violence is horrific, and it must end. The Government have been clear that we oppose the expansion of the settlements, which are a violation of international law, and I welcome the sanctions on individual settlers and settler networks that the Foreign Secretary announced last month. However, my constituents have been clear that we must go further.

• 8 Jul 2026 · National Youth Strategy · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is quite right, and I will come to that point later. Young people who have lost access to youth clubs have been shown to be 14% more likely to engage in criminal activity in the six years following closures. A recent project in Ashbrow in my constituency saw antisocial behaviour fall by an incredible 63%. Alongside policing operations, partnerships were developed with community organisations to support children and young people, alongside regular intervention programmes designed to support those most at risk. The evidence is clear: when youth services are cut, our young people and communities suffer; when they are funded, young people and entire communities thrive. The youth strategy sets out a 10-year vision, but current funding commitments cover only the first few years, so will the Minister outline how the Government will ensure long-term investment so that organisations have the certainty they need? Will she also confirm how her Department will work alongside other Departments to ensure greater alignment between all Government reforms focused on young people? Since being elected, I have had the privilege of visiting many of the youth work organisations in my constituency and have witnessed at first hand the life-changing work they deliver. They include Central Stars youth club, Yorkshire Community Development, Empower, Positive Stepz, Team KickStart, Conscious Youth, Boxpower and Temple Well-Being, as well as the foundations of Huddersfield Town football club and Huddersfield Giants. I will also mention organisations working at the national level, such as the Duke of Edinburgh’s award team, some of whom are here today—thank you for joining us [Hon. Members: “Hear, Hear!”]—the National Youth Agency and all members of UK Youth. All those organisations and many others deliver outstanding community-led services and policy work, often in difficult financial circumstances. Crucially, many of the organisations also offer opportunities to access sustained enrichment programmes, such as volunteering, physical activity and skills development, which can help to close opportunity gaps, particularly for young people who face disadvantage. Enrichment should not be seen as a “nice to have”; activities outside the classroom also give young people direct exposure to environments that many have never previously accessed.

• 8 Jul 2026 · National Youth Strategy · Hansard source

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  That sounds like an excellent programme and I absolutely commend it. Youth workers are central to delivering the national youth strategy, but the workforce are under acute pressure: more than 4,500 qualified youth workers have left the profession in the last decade, around 60% of the workforce has no recognised youth work qualification and only six undergraduate youth and community work programmes remain, down from 37 in 2013. The strategy provides a £15 million commitment for youth workers, including new qualifications and educational pathways, which is excellent, but can the Minister confirm how that will align with the Government’s wider skills reforms to rebuild workforce capacity at scale and improve job prospects in the industry? I also want to highlight the importance of Young Futures hubs, which reflect a growing understanding of the importance of youth services and provide accessible pathways into education, employment, volunteering and community participation. However, to be a success, the hubs must effectively support young people to re-engage with education and training, and create collaborative working partnerships. Can the Minister outline the steps the Government will take to deliver that long-term approach to youth engagement? I reiterate my previous requests for Huddersfield to be included in future phases of the programme; the Minister may need to pass those on to someone else, but that would be amazing. Many young people and youth support workers have persistently been excluded from having a voice or influence in the national and local decisions that directly affect them. The national youth strategy will help to change that; it includes a commitment to placing young people’s voices at its heart, and explicitly identifies youth workers as the people holding a fragmented system together. Those are major shifts, and a recognition that the sector has fought hard for. To deliver that ambition, youth participation must be built into implementation, not treated as a one-off consultation. Young people should have meaningful opportunities to shape and monitor delivery of the strategy at national and local level. That should include long-term, properly resourced mechanisms for youth voices and democratic engagement, particularly for those least likely to be heard. I will take this opportunity to give a shout-out to my annual summer school for young people from Huddersfield; it was great to welcome them to Parliament this week. One of the main issues they raised in our sessions was the importance of their voices being central to the decisions that affect them. I heard that message loud and clear. Can the Minister confirm what long-term arrangements will be established to ensure that young people are meaningfully involved in developing and implementing the delivery of the strategy at all levels? I thank the Minister for being here, and you, Ms McVey, for chairing the debate. I look forward to hearing contributions from other Members.

• 8 Jul 2026 · National Youth Strategy · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That this House has considered the National Youth Strategy and youth enrichment. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms McVey. I am grateful for the opportunity to highlight the importance of the national youth strategy and youth enrichment. I know that many colleagues share my commitment to ensuring that every young person is offered the support and opportunities they need to thrive. Youth services are not a luxury, but an essential part of our communities. I commend the Minister and her team for the Government’s national youth strategy and its £500 million commitment to rebuild the places, relationships and power structures that young people need to thrive. It aims to right the wrongs of previous Administrations and confront the challenges faced by more than 10 million young people. We must be honest about the challenges. Having been born and raised in Huddersfield, I have seen at first hand the impact of austerity on young people. Too many have had their futures torn away from them. Youth services have lost around £1.2 billion in local authority funding since 2010, with more than half of council-run youth centres closing in that time. Kirklees council, which covers my Huddersfield constituency, saw a 70% decrease in funding from 2011 to 2025. That leaves just over £47 per young person being spent on youth services in our community.

• 8 Jul 2026 · National Youth Strategy · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is quite right. That is why it is so important that we fund and support these organisations sustainably. As I was saying, enrichment activities help to raise confidence, skills and aspirations, while making future opportunities feel achievable. Last week, when I visited a school in my constituency, pupils asked me what services and activities will be available in their local area once the under-16s social media ban is in place. Importantly, access to opportunities should not depend on family income. Every £1 of public money invested in the youth sector generates between £3.20 and £6.40 in benefits for the taxpayer, while for every £1 saved from youth service closures, nearly £3 is lost in educational outcomes and increased crime costs. The Duke of Edinburgh’s award is a proven national enrichment programme that helps young people to develop skills and gain experiences that can have a lasting impact on their lives. Last year alone, more than 350 students from a range of backgrounds in Huddersfield took part in it. I was pleased to see the launch last month of the “Every Child Can” programme to fund enrichment activities, and the national youth strategy’s commitment to halving the participation gap in enrichment activities between disadvantaged young people and their peers. Youth workers see enrichment as one of the most important commitments in the strategy, so can the Minister confirm how the Government plan to deliver on that pledge, and whether she has considered an enrichment premium or targeted funding to help to do so? Alongside enrichment, many who work in the industry believe that the most significant policy change the Government could make would be to strengthen the statutory duty on local authorities to provide a sufficient local youth offer. I understand that the national youth strategy commits to “explore reviewing” that, but the youth sector is clear that it needs to be urgently prioritised. I ask the Minister: will the Government commit urgently to reviewing and strengthening the statutory duty on local authorities to provide a local offer, and will it be backed by dedicated funding and clear national benchmarks to define what sufficient youth provision means?

• 8 Jul 2026 · National Youth Strategy · Hansard source

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  I thank everyone who took part in the debate—I also join the hon. Member for Twickenham (Munira Wilson) in saying that I am not a camper either. I thank the Minister and her team for everything that they do, and all youth workers as well. Question put and agreed to . Resolved , That this House has considered the National Youth Strategy and youth enrichment.