Josh Babarinde MP: speeches

Speeches

• 1 Jul 2026 · Coastguard Volunteers: Remuneration and HMRC Guidance · Hansard source

  More

  I thank my right hon. Friend the Member for Orkney and Shetland (Mr Carmichael) for securing this debate. Beachy Head in my constituency is, regrettably, one of the most visited suicide spots in the world. Every year, brave coastguards such as Mark Francis in Eastbourne recover bodies from those cliffs and intervene at the cliff edge. Their presence is often the difference between intervention and inquest. That is why I am outraged at the proposed changes that threaten to decimate our coastguard service and threaten lives. I urge the Minister, on behalf of not only our brave CROs, but the bereaved Beachy Head families, to pause the changes, to object to the MCA’s short-sightedness and to ensure that our CROs get the support that they deserve and that our communities need.

• 17 Jun 2026 · Engagements · Hansard source

  More

  Q12. As an Eastbourne boy born and bred, I can tell the Deputy Prime Minister that Eastbourne pier is an iconic part of our heritage, an iconic part of our local economy, and an iconic part of me; I literally have it tattooed on me, and I can show the Deputy Prime Minister afterwards. On a serious note, the residents of Eastbourne have become concerned for the pier’s future, after a company connected to the pier fell into liquidation, and maintenance costs for piers across the country are sky high. Will the Deputy Prime Minister back my “Protect our Pier” campaign, and meet me to discuss emergency measures to safeguard our pier for the future?

• 2 Jun 2026 · Armed Forces Bill · Hansard source

  More

  I speak in support of amendment 88, tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Epsom and Ewell (Helen Maguire). It would require the Secretary of State to review the way that former service personnel are communicated with about their pension entitlements, and I support that wholeheartedly. I want to use this opportunity to raise again in this Chamber an injustice that goes far deeper than communication; it goes to the heart of what this country owes its veterans. I want to share with the House, for the sixth or seventh time, the story of legendary Eastbournian Pauline Cole. Pauline was a staff sergeant, and served this country with distinction during the conflict in Aden in the ’60s. As a direct result of her service, she suffered solar skin damage, resulting in cancer and post-traumatic stress disorder. After years of tribunals, the Government recognised her sacrifice and awarded her military compensation in the form of a war disablement pension. Before receiving that compensation, Pauline had been in receipt of £76.96 a week in pension credit. After receiving that compensation, her pension credit collapsed to just £9.23 a week. That is because military compensation is considered income for the purposes of calculating pension credit, even though compensation awarded in a civil context is disregarded from such calculations. Indeed, military compensation is disregarded from universal credit calculations, but not from pension credit. In this case, the Government gave with one hand and took with the other. In order to sustain herself on that new income, Pauline was forced to seek lower-cost accommodation, and moved out of her Eastbourne home to somewhere else in the county of Sussex. I raised the case with the Pensions Minister. Pauline came with me to the Department for Work and Pensions. I have raised the matter in this Chamber at Prime Minister’s questions, and Pauline sat in the Gallery. Sadly, she passed away a few months after having to move, in November 2025, never having seen this issue corrected. I have pledged to continue this fight around pension communications and pension entitlement in her honour, together with her sons Simon and Les Haffenden. The Royal British Legion has been clear that the current state of affairs is, in its view, a violation of the armed forces covenant. When I raised this injustice with the Government via the DWP, they said that the Government have no plans to change this policy. When I asked a written parliamentary question on what it would cost to exempt military compensation from pension credit entitlements, the answer was that “no formal assessment has been made.” The Government say that they cannot afford to fix this, but they have not undertaken to find out what fixing it would even cost. They cannot hide behind affordability when they have never looked at the price tag. The Government have shown that they can act differently: after the Etherton review on LGBT veterans, the Minister confirmed that those compensation payments would, as is right, be exempt from tax and would not affect benefits. The Government have accepted the principle; it just has not been applied to Pauline, or the thousands of veterans like her. It must be applied to them, and that must be communicated to all of them. I urge the Minister to begin correcting this injustice by undertaking a financial assessment of this change, and communicating that to veterans in receipt of the war disablement pension. I urge him to meet me and Pauline’s sons, Simon and Les Haffenden, who are continuing the campaign, so that we can discuss provisions to correct this injustice before the Bill’s Report, and can ensure that no veteran is ever again penalised for serving our country.

• 21 May 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

  More

  Hon. Members will remember the harrowing images of three-year-old Alan Kurdi, who was found lying dead on a beach in Turkey after drowning when the boat that he and his family were on sunk. A Reform candidate at the 7 May elections, in describing that situation, blamed it on his parents’ “greed”. That candidate was very close to winning. Today, East Sussex Conservatives have done a deal that has allowed Reform to take control of East Sussex county council, despite Eastbourne voting against that. Will the Leader of the House grant an urgent debate on how we can ensure that towns like Eastbourne are governed by those they actually voted for?

• 29 Apr 2026 · Autism: Employment · Hansard source

  More

  Conservative-run East Sussex county council has shut down its CLASS+ service, which supported people with autism towards independent futures, including with employment. With elections for East Sussex county council just around the corner, does the Minister agree that we should be expanding services to support autistic people into work and not shutting them down as the Conservatives are doing?

• 23 Apr 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

  More

  Twenty-four-year-old Eastbournian Chanté Lloyd-Buckingham was tragically found dead in her supported accommodation in the town in 2024, amid grave concerns about the quality of the care that she was—or, indeed, was not—receiving. Scandalously, many private supported accommodation providers are not CQC regulated, so many of them take our money but do not take responsibility. Given that Chanté’s parents, Emma and Karl, secured 70,000 signatures on their e-petition to regulate supported accommodation but did not quite make the 100,000 for a debate, will the Leader of the House consider granting a debate on this issue to honour the memory of Chanté?

• 13 Apr 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

  More

  Conservative-run East Sussex county council has a vendetta against local businesses. Most recently, it placed an enormous storage crate outside the Dickens Tea Cottage, which will affect local businesses. Will the Minister urge the council to remove it so that we can protect custom at that local business?

• 19 Mar 2026 · Private Sea Defences: Charges · Hansard source

  More

  Sovereign Harbour in Eastbourne is the only marina of its kind in Europe; thousands of residents, rather than the Government, have to cover the cost of sea defences through an annual charge. The charge this year increased by 16%—way more than inflation—and there is poor transparency as to why. Will the Minister meet me and representatives of the amazing Sovereign Harbour Residents Association, who are in the Gallery, to hear more about the issues with the harbour charge, and to help us secure a fairer arrangement?

• 26 Feb 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

  More

  Given that Sky Sports and TNT Sports subscription rates for commercial premises are tied to their rateable value, not only do pubs like the Crown in Eastbourne, run by Andy and Jo, face a business rates hike, they are also facing an unsustainable increase in the cost of their TV sports packages in the midst of the looming revaluation. Will the Leader of the House support me to secure a meeting with the relevant Minister to discuss how we can better support our hospitality venues, including pubs, to protect the airing of live sport on their premises?

• 25 Feb 2026 · Student Loan Repayment Plans · Hansard source

  More

  I thank the hon. Member for Ilford South (Jas Athwal) for securing the debate. The current student loans regime has transformed halls of residence into a student “Hotel California”, where folks can check out—they can graduate—but can never leave. They can pay exactly what is asked of them month on month, yet end up with a total bill that gets bigger year on year. It was the prospect of a greater bill burden that fired me up, as a student in 2010, to stand in Parliament Square and oppose some of the changes that were coming through, but the effect of those reforms has been compounded by two key changes on the watches of subsequent Governments. The first is the Conservatives’ unilateral removal of maintenance grants, which forced students to borrow even more to live. Indeed, the proportion of students taking out only a tuition fee loan, and no maintenance loan, is the highest in a decade. That means either that the student population is now skewed towards those who are more privileged, which calls into question its inclusion, or that less well-off students are going without the maintenance support that they need and deserve. Either outcome would be a shameful reality. The second key change, which the hon. Member for Ilford South highlighted, is the freezing of the repayment threshold—a student stealth tax that will make it even more difficult for students to live going forward. That is why I call on the Government to revisit the freezing of the threshold and to reinstate maintenance grants for students.

• 27 Jan 2026 · Commonhold and Leasehold Reform · Hansard source

  More

  Eastbourne’s leaseholders are being ripped off. The current leaseholder landscape has bred an industry of property management companies, such as FirstPort and Eagerstates, that prey on powerless leaseholders by charging eye-watering service charges, making opaque calculations of those charges and bullying residents into submission. In failing to cap service charges, and without the 2024 transparency rules in place, today’s reforms still leave thousands of local leaseholders unprotected. When will the Minister finally crack down on exploitative property management companies?

• 22 Jan 2026 · Local Authorities: Business Investment · Hansard source

  More

  East Sussex county council has launched a scheme to fine East Sussex Highways when its roadworks overrun and cause disruption to local businesses. A clear case is that of Victoria Place, where businesses such as Gianni’s, Qualisea, Gr/eat Greek Cuisine and many more were disrupted by overrunning works to pedestrianise the street. Does the Minister agree that the fund should be used to help compensate those businesses for the disruption, and can the Cabinet Office support East Sussex county council to do just that?

• 18 Dec 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

  More

  Merry Christmas to you, the House staff and the Doorkeepers, Madam Deputy Speaker. I want to say a massive thank you to Andy, Helen and other staff, as well as Mr Speaker, for facilitating my asking a very big question in Parliament a matter of weeks ago to my now fiancé. My question today is on behalf of the people of Sovereign Harbour in Eastbourne, where thousands of homeowners are forced to pay hundreds of pounds a year for the maintenance of sea defences. This situation is an anomaly; in no other harbour in the UK—or, we think, in Europe—does such a charge exist. Will the Leader of the House grant a debate in Government time on the fairness and transparency of this arrangement, so that the people of Sovereign Harbour can get the answers and the justice that they deserve?

• 4 Dec 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

  More

  Many people on repeat prescriptions rely on NHS 111’s emergency prescription service to get the meds they need if they have unexpectedly run out. However, I have learned through my own experience that if somebody is in a moving vehicle, NHS 111 will not proceed to have a conversation with them until they are stationary. Many residents on long public transport journeys, for example, are therefore delayed in getting the medication they need. To address this issue, will the Leader of the House help me to arrange a meeting with the relevant Health Minister?

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

  More

  Today is Transgender Day of Remembrance, yet it is also the day when leaked Equalities and Human Rights Commission guidance on single-sex services has indicated, shockingly, that people could be challenged on their sex because of “their appearance, behaviour or concerns by others” and turned away if “there is any doubt that they are telling the truth”. That would unacceptably result in trans and non-binary people—and potentially anyone—being questioned because of how they look, and it would be unworkable for businesses and service providers. Will the Government commit to putting a workable and inclusive proposal before the House so that the Liberal Democrats can protect hard-won rights and dignity?

• 19 Nov 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

  More

  Q6. Eastbourne resident Pam was given a cheque for £125,000 by her terminally ill partner, which she went on to cash in. However, an error by the bank, Barclays, meant that only £125 was deposited. Barclays admitted the error, and then said it would compensate her with £250 for the inconvenience caused. Will the Prime Minister work with me to ensure that Barclays bank pays Pam the compensation she needs and deserves? While we are here, will he commit to imposing a windfall tax on the excess profits of banks like Barclays to bring bills down for struggling residents?

• 16 Sept 2025 · Sentencing Bill · Hansard source

  More

  I completely agree with my hon. Friend, and I refer to the comments I made on recall. As someone who spent their career setting up an organisation that supports young ex-offenders out of crime and into employment, I know that investment in rehabilitation is key. Rehabilitation prevents reoffending, and preventing reoffending prevents victims, reducing misery and improving lives. I hope the Government have heard loud and clear where we stand on this issue. We stand ready to work with them to improve the Bill.

• 16 Sept 2025 · Sentencing Bill · Hansard source

  More

  I thank the right hon. Gentleman for his intervention. Speaking as a survivor of domestic and child abuse myself, and as someone who has been hurt in those very contexts, I have significant sympathy and alignment with a lot of what he describes. When I come to the domestic abuse identifier later, I will talk about how I think that should play out when it comes to the presumption against short sentences. We will be closely monitoring the force of the new identifier through its implementation, and we will continue to make the case for a full aggravated offence of domestic abuse to strengthen the identifier. Can the Government confirm that they will work with organisations such as Fair Hearing to provide domestic abuse training for judges and magistrates, so that the domestic abuse determinations that they make under clause 6 of the Bill can be informed by domestic abuse survivors’ experiences? We also welcome measures to introduce a presumption against short sentences, which we know are failing to reduce reoffending. According to Ministry of Justice figures, 62% of people receiving a sentence of 12 months or less go on to reoffend. This compares with a 24% reoffending rate for equivalent suspended sentences. However, there must be an exclusion for domestic abuse offences. For domestic abuse victims and survivors, the respite period—as it is often referred to—represented by a custodial sentence for their abuser is critical. Will the Government commit to excluding any offender convicted of a crime where the new domestic abuse identifier is applied from the presumption against short sentences? We welcome the reasonable and proportionate use of robust community sentences and licence conditions in the context of the earned progression model, but the Probation Service must have the tools it needs to manage this. I am sure we will hear again that the Government have pledged £700 million to the Probation Service to help enhance its capacity, but how will they resolve the 2,315 full-time equivalent shortfall in probation officers by next spring when those measures are set to be enacted? On some of the new conditions, the income reduction orders and the additional driving prohibition powers may disincentivise or even inhibit employment, which is a key factor when it comes to rehabilitation and reducing reoffending. How will the Government militate against that unintended consequence of potentially driving up reoffending through those measures? The recall provisions need to change. It cannot be the case that offenders can benefit from an automatic “get out of jail free” card after 56 days, with no assessment by the Parole Board before re-release. The Bill also threatens the independence of the judiciary from the Government by granting the Lord Chancellor a veto over judge-made sentencing guidelines. That looks like textbook Executive overreach, and it must be reviewed. On foreign national offenders, the Bill offers placeholders for secondary legislation, which will evade scrutiny by the whole House. Our constituents instead deserve clarity and full parliamentary scrutiny of that matter, and I hope the Minister will commit to providing that. Beyond that, there is lots missing from this legislation. As the hon. Member for Hammersmith and Chiswick (Andy Slaughter) said, where is the reform on IPP sentences? Where is David Gauke’s recommendation of an independent advisory body on prison capacity? Where are the measures to prevent offending in the first instance and not just to increase the supply of prison places? Where is the statutory footing for the publication of sentencing remarks for those victims of sex offences in perpetuity? I will ask many more questions throughout the process, but I hope the Government will work with us and with the victims and survivors whose concerns we have all been platforming this evening to make significant improvements in the Bill which fix the criminal justice system that the Conservatives broke, while affording victims the freedom, dignity and welfare they need.

• 22 Jul 2025 · Sir David Amess Summer Adjournment · Hansard source

  More

  I certainly owe the hon. Member one, but that is not quite as bad as when I was mistaken for another mixed race Member when I once forgot my pass and was granted a pass of somebody else—who may or may not be the hon. Member for Huntingdon (Ben Obese-Jecty). I did not settle the bill left with the hon. Member for Newcastle-under-Lyme (Adam Jogee), but I look forward to continuing to exchange stories about mistaken identity in the WhatsApp group—the DEI crew—that we have created. Currently, I think it is 11-5 to me in being mistaken more times than the hon. Member for Huntingdon, but I am sure that there will be many more adventures and shenanigans on that front as time goes on. I will if I may return to my point in my last 30 seconds. I say to hon. Members that Eastbourne is open for business. It is open for their custom and it is open for their leisure. Our 94 individual beaches await.

• 8 Jul 2025 · Violence against Women: Criminal Justice System · Hansard source

  More

  I have a constituent who is a survivor of violent economic abuse, which has involved her abuser occupying one of her properties without consent and vandalising it with mounds of human excrement, rendering it unrentable at huge financial costs. The photographs are disgusting. Delays in civil court proceedings have forced my constituent to live with this for nearly three years. What steps can the Government take both to support survivors who are living in this kind of hell and to speed up the legal proceedings that are currently preventing my constituent from being free once again?