Luke Taylor MP: speeches 2024

Speeches

• 24 Oct 2024 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T6. Figures from London councils show that three in 10 Londoners who were turned away from polling stations due to a lack of appropriate voter ID did not return to vote. What assessment has been made of the impact on overall turnout of the voter ID laws implemented by the last Government, particularly when it is understood that those measures disproportionately affect already disenfranchised communities, such as those renting from a social landlord, the unemployed, lower social grades, disabled people and young people?

• 24 Oct 2024 · Special Educational Needs and Disabilities · Hansard source

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  Projections show a cumulative deficit of over £4 billion on educational balance sheets by 2026, and the override mechanism ending, which will allocate those deficits to county balance sheets. This is a pending disaster for local authorities, and the report suggests that it will push 43% into bankruptcy. The report’s conclusion is that the SEND system, if unreformed, is financially unsustainable, yet we have not heard meaningful plans for reform. Will the Minister take this opportunity to commit to the national body for SEND that was included in the Liberal Democrats manifesto, which will end the postcode lottery, ensure funding for higher needs students and address the urgent funding crisis for local government?

• 23 Oct 2024 · Paternity Leave and Pay · Hansard source

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  Does my hon. Friend agree that the omission of the self-employed from eligibility for paternity pay, which rules out a large number of our constituents, is a major issue that needs to be addressed? Hopefully, we can encourage the Government to come forward with schemes to fill that gap.

• 23 Oct 2024 · Infected Blood Compensation Scheme · Hansard source

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  My very first contribution in this place was to raise the issue of the infected blood scandal and its impact on siblings. I raised it in a question, as it had been raised with me directly while canvassing during the general election campaign, and I am glad that we have the opportunity now to raise those issues again in this debate. We on the Liberal Democrat Benches absolutely welcome the opportunity to recognise the victims of this historic failure. The tragedy of history is that we cannot change it, but at least the House now has the opportunity to give victims and their families the recognition and recourse that they have been stripped of for far too long, by learning lessons from this terrible episode and ensuring that history is not repeated. The administration of high-risk blood transfusions to vulnerable children and adults, carried out by the very medical professionals their families trusted, stands out as one of the most shocking miscarriages of justice in healthcare in our lifetimes. The infected blood scandal has left behind a wake of mourning families forever changed by the loss of their loved ones. Today I share the concerns of just one of those thousands of families. A constituent of mine who lost a sibling to the scandal wrote to me recently to say that he is deeply worried that his 87-year-old mother may not live to witness justice being served through the Government’s compensation scheme. I echo the hon. Member for Bournemouth West (Jessica Toale) in strongly urging the Government to go further in the scheme to include the families and siblings of victims who are currently excluded from support because they were over the age of 18 or did not act as carers for the victims. That is a clear exclusion that we need to revisit, and I hope it can be included in further phases of the scheme. No amount of money can ever make up for the grief, but it is our responsibility in this Chamber to ensure that the British state recognises and begins to tackle historical injustices such as this one with a comprehensive scheme. To ensure that the scheme does that properly, the Government must also ensure full transparency over its progress and open ongoing communications with all those affected. Further administrative delays will undermine this vital work, and that cannot be allowed to happen. I am reassured to hear about the work being done to expedite the claims and to hear the dates for the opening and the first phase of the scheme. The scheme is not just a financial obligation but a moral imperative. We owe it to the victims and their families to act decisively and transparently. Justice cannot be delayed. When the story of this scandal is told, let today be the first page of the final chapter in which we right a historic wrong, take stock of what it has taught us about the failures of our system and provide, at long last, some level of closure for victims and their families. I thank the Minister again for his work on this issue, and encourage him to continue to refine and develop the scheme to ensure that no one affected or infected is left out or left waiting for justice.

• 21 Oct 2024 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T5. The recent London stalking review published by the London victims’ commissioner reveals some pretty alarming statistics: in our capital, 45% of stalking victims felt compelled to withdraw from the justice system and 41% said that no action was taken on their complaint by police. What specific measures are being taken to better support victims of stalking? Are there plans to offer specific training to officers to deal with these cases?

• 17 Oct 2024 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Can Government time be given for a debate on how to strengthen the Environment Agency’s powers to ensure that operators of energy-from-waste facilities are forced to address exceedances and reduce overall emissions, and to look at the possibility of mandating carbon capture, usage and storage technology to mitigate the emissions produced from burning waste? I point to the Register of Members’ Financial Interests as regards my role as a councillor in Sutton, as this challenge comes around often when we are looking to hold the operators to account.

• 17 Oct 2024 · Hongkongers in the UK: Visas, Security and Services · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for Altrincham and Sale West (Mr Rand) for securing this important debate. I also thank the Minister for Migration and Citizenship for hearing from us all today. This week I had the opportunity to engage with the Hong Kong Democracy Council and Hong Kong Watch, and to attend a meeting with the all-party parliamentary group on Hong Kong. These discussions provided valuable insights into the key topics surrounding the current debate, with headline concerns around transnational repression, access to the £3 billion held hostage in mandatory provident funds in UK banks, eligibility gaps in the BNO scheme, and access to home fees at UK universities for BNO visa holders. Hongkongers are an integral part of the community in my constituency of Sutton and Cheam. I am proud to represent thousands of residents originally from Hong Kong. Our area, known for its proximity to central London, family-friendly atmosphere and outstanding schools, is a welcoming place for those looking to make a new start. My constituency is a mosaic of multicultural communities that enrich modern London. From Hongkongers to Ukrainians and Afghanis to Tamils, I take immense pride in representing an area that stands as a crucial sanctuary for those fleeing persecution abroad. In Sutton and Cheam, we embrace the unique backgrounds of every resident in a community where diversity is valued and celebrated. Tragically, however, because of the actions of an overseas state, many of my constituents are afraid to show their faces at demonstrations here in London advocating for democracy in Hong Kong. How can it be acceptable that they feel it necessary to wear face coverings and masks to conceal their identity, to avoid repercussions for themselves, their families and their friends? Many of the residents I represent live in fear of being photographed on the street by those acting on behalf of the Chinese Communist party, worried that these images could be used to target and persecute their families back in Hong Kong. Such a fear tactic has no place in our democracy. I am deeply appalled that it is happening right here under our noses. With the Chinese Government expanding their embassy operations with the volunteer recruitment scheme designed to surveil dissent against the CCP, the anxiety is likely only to escalate among my and many others’ constituents. This kind of transnational repression is not just happening at major protests in central London. Just last year, former Hong Kong Chief Executive, Leung Chun-ying, took to social media to criticise the promotion of a children’s day camp put on by Hongkongers in Sutton in my constituency; that was mentioned earlier by my hon. Friend the Member for Carshalton and Wallington (Bobby Dean). The day camp celebrated a series of books titled “Sheep Village”, which aim to teach children about justice, civil liberties and human rights, informing a new generation of the context behind Hongkongers’ struggles against CCP influence. The event illustrates the extensive surveillance the Hong Kong special administrative region—HKSAR—can exercise in our capital. A seemingly small community book event at a local church in my constituency could be swiftly reported to CCP officials in Hong Kong, exposing my constituents to potentially life-changing consequences. This reality not only raises serious concerns about personal safety, but also highlights the chilling effect on freedom of expression in my constituency. It should simply go without saying that no one on UK soil should ever feel threatened by another country for standing up for their freedom. If we are to continue to be a beacon of light and hope for those fleeing oppression, we cannot stand for such blatant disregard for the values of openness and freedom that we cherish in Britain. I must also draw attention to a critical oversight in the British national overseas visa scheme. Since its launch in 2021 under the previous Government—I again congratulate and thank them for their action—more than 160,000 Hongkongers have utilised the pathway to seek refuge in the UK, but a troubling loophole exists, as has been mentioned. Individuals aged between 27 and 45 are unable to access this vital lifeline unless they came to Britain as part of a family unit. That has meant that many young Hongkongers who want to take up the offer are unable to do so. The needless exclusion leaves many vulnerable to the increasingly oppressive regime of the Chinese Communist party back in Hong Kong. Why should an uncontrollable variable such as age determine an individual’s ability to escape oppression? We recognise that the scheme has evolved and developed as the situation in Hong Kong has changed, but we encourage the Government to take action. As we have all identified today, this mistake needs to be corrected. Taking action to plug the gap in the BNO visa scheme is plainly the right thing to do, so can we please expand it to ensure that Hongkongers of all ages can live in Britain with their families? The Liberal Democrats stand firmly behind the people of Hong Kong and their democratic freedoms, both abroad and in Britain. The CCP is exerting transnational oppression right here on our doorsteps. Inaction is not the answer—not if we are to meet our obligations and continue to be a moral leader and champion of democracy around the world. Britain and Hong Kong’s stories are intermingled. Our colonial history has made that so. It leaves us today with a profound imperative to not abandon the people of that great city wherever they now reside, and to ensure the flame of freedom that they have never shrunk from carrying with them is not extinguished. We urge the Minister to ensure that the Foreign Secretary raises the concerns highlighted in this debate with the Chinese and Hong Kong Governments at every opportunity. Just metres from this place, a statue of Millicent Fawcett stands in Parliament Square. Inscribed on it are the words: “Courage calls to courage everywhere”. The people of Hong Kong are showing their courage, and it is calling out to us. Let us answer that call.

• 16 Oct 2024 · Access to Primary Healthcare · Hansard source

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  No, I will not. Solving the crisis in access to primary care matters not just to patients facing traumatic situations, but to our GP surgeries, which are striving to do their best under the most difficult of circumstances. Our hard-working GPs dedicate years to training and work hard at what they do because they are passionate about being there for their patients. For too long they have been let down, and it is our job now to give them the means to continue doing their remarkable job. We know the difficulties. Too often, appointments are not available, and patients and staff experience frustration and conflicting priorities when attempting to access services. For patients, that often means resorting to dialling 111, or even 999, and attending A&E when issues escalate. That puts further pressure on our already overstretched NHS emergency facilities, which too often have to deal with issues that could have been fixed by preventive primary care if patients could have accessed it in a timely way. GPs in Sutton and Cheam tell me that requests for appointments are triaged because of the level of demand. Decisions have to be made to prioritise patients with increasingly complex needs, often with very little information available. Unsurprisingly, that is affecting GPs’ mental health and making it increasingly difficult to retain experienced staff, further eroding the ability of practices to keep up with demand. The ask from GPs in my constituency is simple: the Minister must act quickly to increase their budgets, and offer certainty to allow them to plan ahead financially after a sustained period of real terms cuts in funding. That will allow them to hire and retain more staff at competitive wages during this cost of living crisis, lower the collective workload and treat more patients more effectively. It is not enough to simply offer more training places, or incentives to train, if surgeries cannot employ the GPs who are already qualified and available. That is a particular problem in my constituency. If the NHS cannot compete with the private sector on pay, or with overseas Governments, who attract our doctors with improved conditions, a lower workload and possibly even better weather conditions—legend has it that there are places that have even more sunshine than Bournemouth —then it cannot hope to retain GPs. We must make it easier for foreign students who have studied and qualified in the UK to get the right to remain after their course, should they wish to do so. As the new Government search for ways to boost growth, I say that it is here in front of them. There is no better investment in our future growth than good-quality primary healthcare, keeping patients healthy, able to provide for themselves and their families, and living healthy and fulfilling lives.

• 16 Oct 2024 · Access to Primary Healthcare · Hansard source

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  I am in general agreement with others about the state of the NHS. The NHS was a Liberal idea, delivered by the Labour party, then broken by the Conservatives. The attendance among Conservative Members at today’s debate shows just how much interest they have in trying to fix it. The Liberal Democrats will act as a responsible, constructive Opposition and work with the Government to fix the NHS’s many problems.

• 15 Oct 2024 · House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill · Hansard source

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  I heartily agree. This is a step in the right direction, but I am reassured by the nods and assurances given earlier in the debate by the Paymaster General that more reform and further measures will come later in this Parliament. One measure that we should introduce, and which is relevant to the debate, is the capping of donations to political parties. That would end the £3 million price tag that was put on a seat in the House of Lords by the previous Government, and would start to restore trust that those who are here to make our laws are here on merit.

• 15 Oct 2024 · House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill · Hansard source

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  Does the hon. Gentleman agree that there may well be an opportunity for all the Conservative MPs who might need to stand down because of restrictions on second jobs? They feel so strongly about the contributions that hereditary peers make, and some seats may be opening up for them in the near future.

• 15 Oct 2024 · House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill · Hansard source

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  I thank the Paymaster General for introducing the Bill, which I will heartily support later tonight. The point is worth making that this is not a personal attack on the hereditary peers, nor is it political, and the make-up of the hereditary peers is irrelevant. This is about the principle of having accountability in our decision makers. The Liberal Democrat constitution begins by stating that “no-one shall be enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity.” It is a humanitarian position to unencumber the hereditary peers from being disqualified from voting or standing in our elections. We have heard some incredibly powerful maiden speeches today, and I am honoured to follow the hon. Members for Glasgow North East (Maureen Burke), for Knowsley (Anneliese Midgley), for Filton and Bradley Stoke (Claire Hazelgrove) and for Mid and South Pembrokeshire (Henry Tufnell), as well as my hon. Friend the Member for North Norfolk (Steff Aquarone), who will, I am sure, be an incredible champion for his constituents. I feel it is a humanitarian position to give the hereditary peers the ability to engage in the electioneering, the door-knocking and the campaigning that builds us as parliamentarians, understanding the views of people on the doorstep and giving us a more representative view of the people we represent, something that is currently denied to them. I feel that it is my responsibility to provide that pleasure to them. It is refreshing to have heard the ambitions for reform from Conservative Members. I agree with the general principle that it is important that reform is broadly cross-party, and I look forward to working with them in the future to provide more transformative reform.

• 15 Oct 2024 · House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill · Hansard source

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  I agree 100%. I expect to be able to champion this measure on the doorstep, and to boast about speaking in this debate on making this incremental gain and removing the egregious historical anomalies still in our system. I give special thanks to the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent Central (Gareth Snell), who made the key, almost blockbuster, point about the gender imbalance among those who are eligible to become hereditary Members in the other place, and about the sheer insanity of the hereditary peer cohort being entirely male. Protecting that astonishingly unequal status quo is utterly indefensible. I thank him for making that point, which should surely have ended the debate on its own. I look forward to voting for the Bill’s Second Reading tonight, but I implore the Paymaster General to bring forward as soon as possible further measures to reform the House of Lords. The Liberal Democrats will continue to act as a constructive Opposition, as I hope we have done today, and to push for more radical proposals for reform of the House of Lords, some of which have been teased by the right hon. Member for Stone, Great Wyrley and Penkridge (Sir Gavin Williamson)—I hope that I have pronounced his constituency right. I look forward to working with him to develop those plans. I hope that the measures before us will restore voters’ trust, which the previous Government trashed. I implore the House to support the Bill.

• 15 Oct 2024 · House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill · Hansard source

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  Does my hon. Friend agree that it is surprising to hear the confusion from Conservative Members regarding our position on this Bill? We have figured out how to win under first past the post, costing so many of their colleagues their seats, but we come here with the ambition to change the voting system to a much more progressive, fair and proportionate one. In the same sense, the way to deliver a fully reformed House of Lords is to engage in the process and change it from within.

• 15 Oct 2024 · House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill · Hansard source

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  I apologise for going back to a point the right hon. Gentleman made earlier, but he made the argument that ministerial appointments and appointments to the House of Lords are decisions that we take on behalf of our constituents as part of our representative democracy. Does he agree that we politicians are then held to account by the electorate in the elections that follow? Former prime Minister Liz Truss was held to account for her decisions on appointments to the House of Lords, and her decision to appoint to the Cabinet people like Kwasi Kwarteng, who immediately crashed our economy. Does that not show that there is democratic accountability for the appointments we make, either to the Cabinet or to the House of Lords? The unusual nature of the hereditary peers marks them out as the odd appointments out in the House of Lords; they face no accountability, and they cannot be taken into account in the democratic process.

• 15 Oct 2024 · House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill · Hansard source

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  While I heartily endorse the desire for a big package, I share the hon. Gentleman’s cynicism about the appetite for reform among Conservative Members. I also note the desire from the Conservatives not to lose the skills of those hereditary peers who contribute to our lawmaking. I made the point almost three hours ago that I see the opportunity for those peers to take some of the places soon to be vacated by Conservative Members who need to step down because they cannot maintain their lifestyles. That may be one avenue for hereditary peers to continue to contribute. The primary aim of my speech is to urge the Government to go further, and I echo the points made by my hon. Friend the Member for Richmond Park (Sarah Olney) at the beginning of the debate on the need to improve Parliament. Again, some claim that they do not hear this on the doorstep, but perhaps they need to listen to their voters more closely. When I knock on doors, the disenfranchisement, the disappointment and fury with the behaviour of the previous Government and politics in general, echoes. The Bill is a step in the right direction to improve accountability and restore some of the respect that was trashed by the previous Conservative Government.

• 10 Oct 2024 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  Residents in my constituency have been in contact about services at Worcester Park, which have been cut dramatically over the past few years, as has already been alluded to by my hon. Friend the Member for Wimbledon (Mr Kohler). One resident complains that prices have gone up by 20% in the past five years, and that the last train has been brought back from almost 1 am to before midnight. This is not only throttling London’s night-time economy, but causing issues for local residents who choose more sustainable transport. Will the Minister explain when we can expect to see improvements in services following renationalisation, which may begin as early as next year?

• 10 Oct 2024 · Cost of Rail Fares · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Woking (Mr Forster) for bringing us this debate and giving us an opportunity to raise constituents’ concerns and wider Liberal Democrat priorities. I thank the Minister for attending and giving responses to our points. I begin by raising the case, as I did this morning, of the poor rail services to Worcester Park station, which are affecting my constituents’ quality of life. They are unable to collect their children from school, and they are missing family meals. They are unable to rely on the train service and fear for their safety if they have to wait for a taxi late at night when the train does not come. I want to broaden the discussion to investment in our rail infrastructure. In early 2023, the previous Government announced much-vaunted funding for upgrades to the Belmont rail line. Some £14.1 million was awarded from the levelling-up fund to dual-track part of the line to allow train frequency to be increased to four an hour in each direction by the addition of a passing loop at Belmont station. Such an increase in accessibility would massively benefit my constituents, but it is also key to getting the best out of the cancer hub site that Sutton council has been so ambitious in investing in. That incredibly advanced, world-leading cancer research centre in south-west London will benefit not just Sutton and Cheam but the whole of London. Does the Minister agree that investing in these infrastructure upgrades, as well as concentrating on getting value for money from existing services, is critical to allowing residents to make sustainable transport choices? Does he also agree that it is critical to unleashing the economic benefits of investment, such as in the Institute of Cancer Research in Sutton and Cheam, to allowing us to achieve our net zero climate goals and to boosting the economy, which the Government seem keen to support?

• 8 Oct 2024 · Farming and Food Security · Hansard source

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  Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity. It is a pleasure to follow the fine speeches from my hon. Friend the Member for Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe (David Chadwick), whose recollection of the three newspapers in his constituency is incredibly impressive—I encourage him to tell us all about his achievements in those pages over the next few years; from the hon. Member for Derbyshire Dales (John Whitby), who described Dovedale and Chatsworth House, which I remember fondly from holidays in my youth and from playing rugby in Matlock and Ashbourne; and from my hon. Friend the Member for South Cotswolds (Dr Savage), whose description of farming as standing in the fields in all sorts of weathers made me recall my experiences of playing rugby in the Derbyshire dales all those years ago. I do not exaggerate when I say that it is the honour of my life to serve as the Member of Parliament for Sutton and Cheam. I am so grateful to the thousands of residents who put their trust in me just a few months ago. I promise them: I will always do my very best for you and our communities, from Sutton to Worcester Park, Cheam to Belmont and everywhere in between. I hope I am already going some way to repaying the trust they have put in me by voting to end the two-child benefit cap, voting to save the winter fuel payment, and already helping hundreds of them with issues and concerns through my office. To the people who did not vote for me, or did not vote at all, who have lost all faith in politics and its servants, please allow me the opportunity to restore some of that trust. To my predecessor, Paul Scully, I say thank you for his nine years of service to Sutton and Cheam. Politically, we agreed on very little, but I know he did what he thought was best for our residents. I also take the opportunity to pay tribute to my Liberal Democrat predecessor Paul Burstow, who served for 18 years and whose name is still fondly remembered by so many residents on the doorstep. And to my loved ones—my wife and children, my mum and dad—I say that I would not be here without your support. As the Father of the House may remember, my dad stood against him in Gainsborough in 1992 and ’97. Therefore I must thank him, too, for helping to ensure that I am the first member of my family to find themselves in this place, rather than my old man. Sutton and Cheam is small, but it is perfectly formed. It is the smallest of all 72 Liberal Democrat constituencies. Our boundaries have remained largely unchanged for 80 years, which alone must prove that Sutton and Cheam is the greatest constituency in the country. They got it right in 1945 and they have not felt the need to change it ever since. I could give Members a guided tour of our beautiful constituency but, for me, it is the people who make up our community and make Sutton and Cheam what it is. We have recyclers, repairers and reusers improving sustainability and protecting our planet. We have litter pickers, bulb planters and neighbourhood watchers making our area safer, cleaner and better to live in. We have Sutton fans, Dons fans, Palace fans, Chelsea fans and even the odd long-suffering Spurs supporter. We have had recent arrivals of Hongkongers, Ukrainians and Afghanis who have come to Sutton to find a new home. We have long-established communities of Tamils, Ahmadiyyas, Jews, Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims. We have Anglicans and atheists, Catholics and Methodists—all building the unique mosaic of our communities. Our local football team, Sutton United FC, play at Gander Green Lane, in my council ward, where their fight to rejoin the football league continues. A recent point apiece from Eastleigh and Yeovil—other Lib Dem constituencies—will help us get there, but the generous people of Woking gave us three points only two weeks ago, so I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Woking (Mr Forster) for that. With its fantastic community outreach work, the club proves every year the value of our local football clubs. In politics and football, the people of Sutton know that their colour truly is amber. That is why they have had a Liberal Democrat-run council for almost 40 years—our longest-running local administration in the country. As many of my colleagues will know, however, there is only so much that councils and councillors can do to tackle the biggest problems that Governments have failed to solve for years. That is why I decided to run for election to this House: to tackle the national issues that people in my constituency face. For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to fix things. I went from building Lego as a child to rebuilding gearboxes as a teenager. I attended my local comprehensive school in rural Lincolnshire, and many of my friends and classmates growing up were involved in the critical work that farmers do to keep food on our tables and act as stewards for our environment—vital tasks that this debate correctly highlights. At school, I served as a prefect, alongside the hon. Member for Keighley and Ilkley (Robbie Moore). Our political paths have diverged since we last worked together—more than 20 years ago, arranging the De Aston school sixth-form leavers’ ball—but I am proud that we are part of the largest cohort of state-educated MPs in history. My passion for fixing things led me to London and to Imperial College, where I studied engineering, which led to many years working in the transport industry around the world, but there is so much more that needs fixing in our country than planes, trains and automobiles. Raising my family in Sutton and Cheam with my wonderful wife, I have seen at first hand the broken cogs and blown fuses across our public services, from the NHS and social care to education and policing. In today’s Britain, the social contract has been broken. In our politics, cynicism and self-interest have replaced service and duty, and many feel that it is simply no longer true that if they work hard and play by the rules, they will enjoy the security and opportunity that everyone deserves. A fair deal no longer exists between the British state and the people, and that is evident across every policy area. As an engineer, I feel confident in saying that the very foundations of our country are broken. It is time that we picked up our tools to fix them. As the Liberal Democrat Front-Bench spokesperson for our capital, I will hold the Government to account for all Londoners—fixing London’s creaking infrastructure and never-ending housing crisis, and pushing for reform of and proper funding for the Met. If people have been listening to the Lib Dems for the last few years, they will know exactly what the River Thames is full of. There is much to be said on all those topics, but I will finish by highlighting one that is dear to me and my constituents: hospices. One of the first emails I received after being elected was from our local hospice, St Raph’s, which is searching for help to stop £1 million-worth of funding cuts that would see staff made redundant and clinical services slashed. The cuts would put Sutton’s GPs, hospitals and district nurses under huge and unmanageable pressure, and leave families abandoned, unsupported and in genuine distress at a time when they need kindness and support the most. For patients, the cuts could tragically hasten their passing and deny them their dignity. In this Parliament, we have an opportunity to build a better plan, so that people have somewhere to spend their final days in the comfort and care that we all deserve as human beings. I look forward to working with Members from across the House. If they will pick up their tools with this engineer, who knows a thing or two about fixing things, together we can fix our country, restore trust and deliver hope.

• 5 Sept 2024 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  One of my constituents is the sibling of a victim of the infected blood scandal, and he has asked me to raise the issue of access to the compensation scheme for the siblings of victims, as well as the lack of punitive damages in the proposed scheme and the concern about the schedule for implementation of the proposals. Might time be made available for us to debate these issues?