Jo White MP: speeches

Speeches

• 26 Jan 2026 · Police Reform White Paper · Hansard source

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  I very much welcome these proposals. The NCA is hugely under-resourced, and bringing these elements together will hopefully give it the funding required to do its job properly. The amount of duplication of effort that occurs and the lack of information sharing result in huge inefficiencies. It is struggling with the pace of change in technology, especially because of end-to-end encryption, and it is struggling to hire and retain staff with the technical skills that it requires—people who have those skills are eagerly snapped up by the private sector. It does not have the funding to make the technical investment needed to keep up with the pace of change. As a result of the structure and separated command and control of the regional organised crime units, the NCA and the Met, they make decisions and prioritise independently and without deconfliction, in the procurement of tools and data, for example. That means that the same technologies can be acquired multiple times to benefit only a single area. Does the Secretary of State agree that this White Paper will tackle those challenges head-on?

• 14 Jan 2026 · West Midlands Police · Hansard source

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  As a member of the Home Affairs Committee, I have been following this matter closely. Last autumn, safety advisory groups from Birmingham and Leicester banned or scaled down Diwali events. Does the Home Secretary agree that councillors should be removed from SAGs, and that there should be greater transparency to ensure that there is no reliance on confirmation bias, which is, in my view, intertwined with the risk of predetermination that local authorities have a duty prevent when carrying out judicial duties?

• 14 Jan 2026 · Northern Powerhouse Rail · Hansard source

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  Reform’s betrayal of the north must never be forgotten. For this to work, we need our council leaders and mayors to play their part. For constituencies such as Bassetlaw, Bolsover, North East Derbyshire and Chesterfield, our East Midlands Mayor must be part of the dialogue on the investment strategy for transport planning and connectivity. We all want to open our doors to businesses on the back of this, so will the Secretary of State ensure that Mayor Claire Ward has a place at the table?

• 14 Jan 2026 · Northern Powerhouse Rail · Hansard source

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  As the Secretary of State said, this is evidence that cross-Government working is in action, with the Treasury, the Department for Transport and the MHCLG setting the case, and establishing confidence that the north is open for business as the place to invest, to build and to live. We have a Government who have the self-assurance to shift away from the well-trodden path of growth traditionally centred on London and the south. The record is clear: the Tories under-invested in the north time and again, and Reform has already opposed everything that Northern Powerhouse Rail stands for—

• 15 Dec 2025 · Jimmy Lai Conviction · Hansard source

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  The Hong Kong national security law and the conviction of Jimmy Lai are a breach of the 1984 Sino-British joint declaration. It is a politically motivated attack on freedom. Can the Foreign Secretary reassure this House that all possible actions are being pursued, first to ensure that Jimmy Lai obtains his legal access to British consular support, and secondly to push for his immediate release?

• 8 Dec 2025 · Maccabi Tel Aviv FC: Away Fans Ban · Hansard source

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  This quagmire needs much greater scrutiny, and to be brought out into the disinfectant of daylight. Let me repeat the question: why have no safety advisory group minutes been produced? How many times did the SAG meet on this issue? Will the Minister ask whether there was a UEFA representative at the safety advisory group meeting, and what their advice was?

• 25 Nov 2025 · Immigration Reforms: Humanitarian Visa Routes · Hansard source

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  rose —

• 25 Nov 2025 · Immigration Reforms: Humanitarian Visa Routes · Hansard source

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  Thank you, Sir Edward; I will be very quick. I received yesterday a petition from 500 people, so I feel obliged to contribute. Many Hongkongers relocated here, trusting the UK Government’s promise. Does my hon. Friend the Member for Rushcliffe (James Naish) agree that altering the rules after relocation contradicts the spirit in which and the legal ethics under which the route was established?

• 25 Nov 2025 · Immigration Reforms: Humanitarian Visa Routes · Hansard source

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  Will my hon. Friend give way?

• 24 Nov 2025 · Funding for Deprived Areas · Hansard source

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  22. What progress he has made on the fair funding review 2.0.

• 24 Nov 2025 · Funding for Deprived Areas · Hansard source

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  Under the last Government, cash-strapped authorities like Bassetlaw district council saw support grants slashed from a 66% funding commitment in 2011 to a 25% commitment in 2024. The compounded damage that this has done to areas like mine can be calculated in multimillions of pounds. Many authorities are on their knees. Can the Minister explain in more detail how they will be able to plan for the year ahead?

• 24 Nov 2025 · Maccabi Tel Aviv FC: Away Fans Ban · Hansard source

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  At high-risk football matches, including several local derbies, away fans have been given tickets only once they are on the coaches. Those buses have been taken in by a police escort, removing any fan clashes. Does the Minister agree that questions should be asked about why that tried and tested method was not used?

• 19 Nov 2025 · Memorial to People who Served in Northern Ireland · Hansard source

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  7. What assessment he has made of the potential merits of funding a permanent memorial to people who served in Northern Ireland.

• 19 Nov 2025 · Memorial to People who Served in Northern Ireland · Hansard source

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  On 5 April 1979, an IRA sniper fired at an armoured vehicle as it entered Andersonstown Royal Ulster Constabulary station, killing Blues and Royals serviceman, Anthony Dykes. My constituent Kathleen, his mother, now aged 94, has never let his memory go. She told me that her son is a forgotten soldier. There are monuments for soldiers killed in Afghanistan and Iraq, but nothing for those who served in Northern Ireland. Kathleen is now very frail, so I am her voice today, asking the Government to commit to national memorial.

• 17 Nov 2025 · Asylum Policy · Hansard source

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  I thank the Home Secretary for her statement. Does she agree that enforcing the immigration rules, including on removals, is in the public interest? Will she provide greater detail about the action that the Government will take to balance the public interest against individual rights?

• 13 Nov 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Bassetlaw’s Member of the Youth Parliament Cameron Holt had one ambition, and that was for financial literacy to be included in the national curriculum. He has been formidable in lobbying the Government and travelling up and down the country to speak in schools and on regional and national TV. The announcement that the national curriculum review will have a new requirement for financial education is welcome. Will the Leader of the House join me in thanking Cameron for his persistence and hard work?

• 21 Oct 2025 · Mandatory Digital ID · Hansard source

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  I would like to hear some of my hon. Friend’s list, please.

• 21 Oct 2025 · Mandatory Digital ID · Hansard source

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  Thank you, Mr Turner. Wow, that is a big announcement! Just over a month ago I visited Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, a country that has been using digital ID for 30 years and a country we can learn from—how it works, how it reaches the digitally excluded and how it protects people’s security. What struck me most was that everyone I spoke to said the same thing: with digital ID, they know exactly what information the Government hold on them, and most importantly, they know who has looked at it and why. That level of transparency and personal control should be the gold standard, but here it often feels the opposite: social media giants and private companies know more about us than we realise—often more, I would say, than our nearest and dearest. We need to have absolute control.

• 21 Oct 2025 · Mandatory Digital ID · Hansard source

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  I totally agree with my hon. Friend. From the moment we are born, the state begins to gather data: our birth is registered; the NHS stores our health records; we are issued with national insurance and NHS numbers; and His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs tracks us. By having a digital ID, we can see the information the state holds on us, who has been accessing it and why. We can even determine that other people cannot see our data. It is about us having control over our own data. It is also about security, because the way it is divided and split up means there is absolute security as nobody can see data from one Department to another. It is about people having personal control, which is what people in my constituency are calling for.

• 14 Oct 2025 · Northern Ireland Troubles · Hansard source

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  Following the last question, I want to say that the Tory’s immunity system would have meant immunity for the perpetrators of terrorist crimes across the UK. Our domestic courts have determined that. Does the Secretary of State agree that this Government have no choice but to rectify the situation?

• 13 Oct 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T6. Another vape shop opened on one of my high streets in Bassetlaw last week, and yet another opened in a vacated bank less than a month ago. People tell me, and I tend to agree with them, that nobody knows how those shops will sustain an income to keep them going. What are the Government doing to take on rogue traders?

• 13 Oct 2025 · Digital ID · Hansard source

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  Just over a month ago, I visited Tallinn, in Estonia, to understand why digital ID is so popular with the old, the young and those who are defined as digitally excluded. They told me that it is because they have control over their data that is held by the state; they can see it, see who has accessed it and who else can see it. What is critical, in a state that borders Russia, is that they have confidence in their absolute control over their data security. I believe there are lessons that we can learn. In the UK, my constituents want to know who is in this country, who is legally entitled to use our public services, and who is entitled to work here. Does the Secretary of State agree that we need to learn from countries such as Estonia and Denmark on those matters?

• 13 Oct 2025 · Baby Loss · Hansard source

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  Tonight I will talk about Laura Corcoran, an inspirational woman who lives in my Bassetlaw constituency. When a scan showed no heartbeat, she was sent home to wait two weeks until the delivery of her baby. She remembers asking, “How do I collect my baby?” She said that the thought of flushing it down the toilet was something that she did not want to countenance. With no information, Laura was left feeling isolated and alone, and she had to rely on what she had to hand. She resorted to using a sieve and a plastic takeaway food box. Laura said: “People are given a test tube to collect urine samples, but when I was told to collect my baby, I was given nothing. I was angry.” During her recovery, she channelled her anger and used her engineering skills to design a device that she has named the “miscarriage cradle”. It hooks on to a toilet seat and collects and seals the remains so that they can be taken safely to hospital. Her mission is for every woman to have better control, giving them a choice of managing the miscarriage at home. Laura has begun actively promoting the miscarriage cradle in the NHS, and the Royal Liverpool university hospital was the first to adopt it. In a statement, the hospital said that one recommendation of the 2023 pregnancy loss review was for NHS trusts to provide women experiencing pregnancy loss with a compassionate clinical care kit, and the miscarriage cradle ticked all the boxes. The statement also noted that, in the tough world of hospital finances, the trust will save money, because when women have the option of managing a miscarriage at home, savings are made on staffing and bed space costs. So far, 13 trusts have adopted the miscarriage cradle, and the 14th has just got approval. The Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust says: “Going through a miscarriage is one of the hardest experiences that anyone can face. It’s raw, painful and often feels isolating. This miscarriage collection kit is more than just a product—it’s a small but powerful way to help women hold on to their dignity in a moment that can feel so overwhelming.” Those words define Laura’s mission. Her focus is for every NHS hospital trust to have miscarriage cradles in stock. She has asked me to raise awareness of her cradle, and she also asks whether she can meet the Secretary of State to discuss this with him. She also asks Members to sign my early-day motion on baby loss kits. Finally, I take this opportunity to thank JOEL The Complete Package, a Bassetlaw charity, for its support for families experiencing such crises, and for its fundraising initiative, which has ensured that there is a room at Bassetlaw hospital for parents facing such a difficult time in their lives.

• 15 Sept 2025 · Employment Rights Bill · Hansard source

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  I refer the House to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests, and my proud membership of the GMB and Community unions. In Bassetlaw, where the average hourly rate is £14.16 per hour for women and £14.69 for men—over £5 per hour less than the national average and not much higher than the national living wage—levels of pay and working conditions are issues that really matter to my constituents. My constituents are not afraid of hard work, but they want to go out each day in the knowledge that they have rights under the law that will protect them from unfair dismissal and guarantee that they can bring home a good wage and put a meal on the table. The Employment Rights Bill has now ping-ponged its way back to this place, and my constituents cannot wait for the fairness and rights that it will bring. This is their chance to level the playing field. The Bill is not a handout; it is a foundation for fair treatment at work. It ensures that when people go to work they are treated with dignity and respect. It is about strengthening rights, about no more hire and refire, about no more exploitative zero-hours contracts, and about job security from day one. It gives workers the power to have guaranteed hours of work, and to receive compensation for cancelled shifts. It gives them the power to demand safer workplaces where no one has to choose between their pay cheque and their health. It gives them the power to stand up against unfair firing and discrimination. This is not just about the law; it is about restoring a sense of justice in the workplace. The other House has attempted to water down those rights, and Reform has opposed the Bill all the way through Parliament. While the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage) keeps telling us that he “doesn’t know” when he is pushed on the difficult questions, I have no doubt that he and his colleagues will be making their way through the “vote against workers’ rights” Lobbies later this evening. Reform has aligned itself with the powerful interests—the corporate lobbyists and the chief executives—who are fighting the Bill, telling us that it is bad for business and that it will hurt the economy. It is no friend of working people. As local people often tell me, good business is based on strong partnership, whereby employers and the workforce strive to meet the daily challenges in the workplace and the ups and downs of the economy. This legislation will work to strengthen those alliances. The Bill is aligned with this Government’s ambitious industrial strategy and commitment to rebuild our economy, and I am focused on getting new jobs, and skills and training, into Bassetlaw.

• 14 Jul 2025 · UK-France Migration: Co-operation · Hansard source

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  I welcome the fact that we have a Home Secretary who is willing to do what it takes to stop the small boats. The French claim that the ability to work illegally in the UK is what motivates those who are willing to take the dangerous journey across the channel. Does the Home Secretary agree, and will she outline the actions she is taking to crack down on illegal working and destroy those incentives?