Patricia Ferguson MP: speeches

Speeches

• 21 May 2025 · Ukraine: Forcibly Deported Children · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Stuart. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire South (Johanna Baxter) for securing the debate and for all the work she has been doing on such an important issue. In August last year, I was delighted to attend what has become a regular event in Victoria park in my constituency to celebrate Ukrainian independence day. It was hosted by the Friends of Victoria Park, in partnership with the Glasgow branch of the Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain. We celebrated Ukrainian culture, freedom and sovereignty, and created a sense of community by bringing together Ukrainians and Glaswegians who took part in various sporting activities, enjoyed Ukrainian art workshops—best to gloss over my efforts—and listened to beautiful Ukrainian music. People across all generations were brought together in a celebration of Ukraine’s cultural heritage. But many Ukrainian children are denied the opportunity to engage with their heritage. Russia’s forced deportation of children has torn Ukrainian families apart, and the weaponisation of citizenship by the Russian Government is making it increasingly difficult for stolen Ukrainian children to be identified and returned to their families and homes. The naturalisation of these children as Russian citizens has a further devastating consequence, because it robs Ukraine of its future citizens. By denying those children their right to be Ukrainian, Russia is systematically working to remove their identity. As we have heard, this ideological strategy comes directly from the top of the Russian Government, with President Putin repeatedly denying the legitimacy of Ukraine’s sovereignty and describing Ukrainians as Russians. Beyond the horrific removal of children from Ukraine, the Russian Government are using a deliberate tactic of cultural suppression and re-education to further erase the children’s Ukrainian identity. The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has described the Russian Government’s actions as the targeted destruction of Ukraine’s culture, noting that the Russian authorities have removed cultural symbols, dismantled Ukrainian language education and rewritten national history in the occupied territories. Sadly, this is not a new tactic. The Russian Government also used the forced displacement of children and the erasure of their culture during the annexation of Crimea. According to a 2017 review of court records, this meant that less than 10% of children born in occupied Crimea were able to get a Ukrainian birth certificate. This deliberate war strategy will have long-term implications for the future of Ukraine. By targeting the youngest members of society, Russia is purposefully raising a future generation whose ties to their country and heritage have been weakened and, in some cases, completely erased. The Government have taken welcome action to implement targeted sanctions on Russia to disrupt the military supply chain and revenue funding for the war; hopefully, the same urgency can be applied to identifying and sanctioning those involved in the illegal transfer and mass deportation of children. I am very taken with the idea of a day of action to highlight this issue—perhaps we should do that on Ukrainian Independence Day in August. Without imminent action, more Ukrainian children will lose touch with their family, their home and their culture. Russia’s actions will have far-reaching and damaging effects for the families and for Ukraine, but most of all for the children.

• 15 May 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Football Families for Justice is a voluntary organisation that campaigns on behalf of ex-professional footballers who have died or are suffering from neurodegenerative diseases incurred by heading footballs. Footballers suffer such diseases at four to five times the national average. The FFJ has tried to engage the football industry to persuade it to accept some responsibility for the problem, but to no avail. Will the Leader of the House advise on whether the Government would consider amendments to the Football Governance Bill that would encourage the industry to do so?

• 7 Apr 2025 · Road Maintenance · Hansard source

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  Glasgow’s longest and straightest road is Great Western Road, or the A82, as it is also known. It begins in the city centre, and stretches through the west end and beyond the city boundary. It is the route that people are likely to take if they are travelling to the west coast of Scotland, and it has been dubbed Glasgow’s coolest street, an accolade I strongly support, as a sizeable part of it is either within my constituency of Glasgow West or marks the boundary with Glasgow North. In spite of its importance, like every other road in Glasgow, it is plagued by potholes. I defy anyone to drive, walk or cycle more than 200 yards along its length and not see a pothole. Thanks to the Glasgow Times , we now know that in 2023, potholes on Great Western Road were responsible for 1,451 reports to the city council, the highest in Scotland. At night and in winter the situation is worse: people sometimes cannot see the potholes or they find that they are so deep that they retain rainwater, so they look as if they are a clear stretch of road. Cars are damaged and pedestrians, cyclists and drivers are put at risk. However, Great Western Road is not unique. In fact, in the past two years in Glasgow, compensation to drivers has almost doubled, while the amount of additional money spent on repairing potholes has decreased by 20%. As we know, this year the Scottish Government received their largest ever budget settlement in the 26 years of devolution, but unfortunately little of that was passed on to hard pressed councils. Glasgow alone has lost out on over £400 million since 2014, even though it has been SNP controlled since 2017. It is estimated that the city needs to spend £104 million repairing potholes, with the backlog for Scotland standing at a whopping £2.56 billion. As the hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (John Lamont), who is no longer in his place, mentioned earlier, as a former councillor I also know how hard the staff in the Glasgow city council roads department work, but they need to be given the resources to do the job. The hon. Gentleman also mentioned utility companies. I have a particular bugbear about utility companies: there does not seem to be any way of enforcing or even encouraging them to do a job, do it once and do it well. My own road has been dug up three times in the last two years by different utility companies. In this day and age, we could surely make that better for residents and for the utility companies, who must be literally pouring money down the holes that they dig. I want to draw attention to the situation of the Clyde tunnel, which is partly in my constituency. As its name suggests, it is a north-south vehicular tunnel that runs underneath the River Clyde. It is a very important road because it connects most of Glasgow, one way or another, to the Queen Elizabeth university hospital, among other locations. However, the Clyde tunnel is only allocated the same amount for repair as any other standard stretch of road, and that has resulted in an £820,000 maintenance shortfall every single year. As a result, Glasgow city council is now thinking about applying a toll to the road, and I think that would be absolutely crazy. The council is considering imposing it only on those who live outside Glasgow, but I really do not know how people will prove where they live before they go into the tunnel. I am sure that the £500 million that this Labour Government have allocated to alleviate the problem in England and Wales will make a real difference. It is therefore to be hoped that the Scottish Government will pay close attention to this Government’s actions and learn from them for the good of all Scottish road users, and to allow our tourism and our economy generally to grow as it should.

• 26 Mar 2025 · Resettlement of Ukrainians: Coatbridge · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to contribute to this short debate. I will be brief, but I want to thank my hon. Friend the Member for Coatbridge and Bellshill (Frank McNally) for securing this debate, and add my comments to his in praise of the excellent work done by people and communities in his constituency. It is a pleasure to hear such heart-warming stories coming out of such a dark and difficult situation. Like my hon. Friend’s constituency, my home city of Glasgow has a long, proud record of welcoming refugees; the city has eventually become their home in many cases. My constituency of Glasgow West has a particular record of welcoming people fleeing conflict in their native land. In the 1970s, Drumchapel played host to many people fleeing Chile because of the brutal and fascist regime of General Pinochet. Many of those refugees were fortunate enough to be able to return home after Pinochet’s downfall, but others chose to stay and make Scotland their home, and many of those who stayed ended in Lanarkshire, close to where my hon. Friend is from. In the present day, my area has welcomed the Ukrainian refugees fleeing Putin’s murderous onslaught in their country. Many of them, as my hon. Friend said, were originally accommodated in cruise liners—not the best of starts, perhaps, but at least it was a safe refuge for them, and it is there that many of the cultural activities and school classrooms that have been developed began. The fact that people were together in a confined space obviously helped make that happen. The joyous part of the story for both the Ukrainian and Chilean communities is that our local Glaswegian communities have been so enriched by being able to be part of their lives and their celebrations, and they have learned so much about another culture on the way. Over the past three years, I have attended many concerts and church services that have been both moving and enjoyable. On 24 August last year, I was delighted to again join in the Ukrainian independence day family fun event in Victoria Park in my constituency, an annual event that is much anticipated. With workshops, music and dance, as well as sporting events, it is truly a fun day, but I hope nobody will ask me to demonstrate what I learned, as I definitely do not have the skill to replicate Ukrainian art. I tried very hard, but I am afraid that my attempts were pretty pathetic.

• 4 Mar 2025 · Church of Scotland (Lord High Commissioner) Bill · Hansard source

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  The fact that in 2025 we can say that no Roman Catholic has ever held the post of Lord High Commissioner seems slightly absurd. There are, of course, other positions in this nation that a Catholic has never occupied and, as matters stand, can never occupy. It is good that we can break down one of those barriers today and reflect the extremely friendly relationship between the Catholic Church in Scotland and the Church of Scotland—and indeed, through the interfaith council, the Church’s relationship with other faiths, too. The change is also a mark of the high regard in which people of good will hold Lady Elish Angiolini, and of the many qualities that make her a fitting representative of His Majesty. As we have heard, by convention, the sovereign is not normally present at the General Assembly, as he or she is technically an ordinary member of the Church, not its supreme governor, as he or she is in England. Traditionally, the Lord High Commissioner represents the sovereign, and is an observer appointed under the royal prerogative, so, as we know, there is no need for parliamentary approval of the appointment, or for legislation. As the Lord High Commissioner is a representative to the General Assembly, rather than part of the assembly, it is not necessary for them to be a member of the Church of Scotland, or indeed of any other church. However, the legislation that we are considering is necessary because the holder of the office cannot currently be a Roman Catholic. The Scottish Claim of Right Act 1689 set out restrictions on Catholics being appointed to public office. Paragraph 19 states: “That by the law of this Kingdome no papist can be King or Queen of this realme nor bear any office whatsomever therin”. Those are harsh words, if I may say so. The Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 was the culmination of a long process, working towards giving Catholics relief from the many restrictions imposed on them in Great Britain and Ireland prior to the Union of 1801. However, although that Act retained some restrictions on Catholics, most of which have since been repealed, some significant ones remain. That is what we wish to amend today. As the Law Society of Scotland has suggested, it is unfortunate that the Bill cannot also be amended to remove the reference to the Lord High Chancellor from the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829, so that the 1829 Act can be brought into conformity with the Lord Chancellor (Tenure of Office and Discharge of Ecclesiastical Functions) Act 1974. There is clearly a long history surrounding the appointment, with the first Lord High Commissioner having been appointed in 1580. In the intervening five centuries, significant people have held the post, including a number of former colleagues of mine, and of the hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (John Lamont), and including Lord James Douglas Hamilton, Lord Wallace, Lord Steel and George Reid. Colleagues might have spotted that they have something in common: they were all men. It was not until 1970 that the late Peggy Herbison, a former MP, was appointed the first female Lord High Commissioner. We then had to wait another 24 years, until the appointment of Lady Fraser, for the second. Since then, the Princess Royal has held the post twice, and it would be good to think that, following Lady Elish’s appointment, we might see woman appointed more regularly. The appointment is expected to be made, we are told, on the basis of the merit and contribution to society of the appointee, and Lady Elish certainly qualifies on both counts. I should declare an interest: I have known Lady Elish since we were both teenagers and members of our respective schools’ debating societies. She was very much better than I was, and even then, it was clear that she was destined for a very significant future. I also served in Government with her when she was appointed by First Minister Jack McConnell as the first female Solicitor General. Elish went on to become the first female Lord Advocate. She held both positions with distinction and was highly regarded during her time in office. Since then, she has served in a number of legal posts, and is currently the principal of St Hugh’s College, Oxford, and Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford. She is also the first woman to hold the position of Lord Clerk of Scotland, another first for a woman. Significantly, she chaired the public inquiry into the abduction, rape and murder of Sarah Everard. We can safely say that Lady Elish is an outstanding candidate for the post of Lord High Commissioner. As I mentioned in opening, it is regrettable that in 2025 we still have such laws on the statute book, but ironically the relationship between the two Churches is in very good heart. The signing of the St Margaret’s declaration in 2022 by the Moderator and Archbishop Cushley, the representative of the Catholic bishops conference, seeks to build on the common heritage of the two denominations in the Christian tradition. It recognises that divisions are still present, but seeks to mend those divisions and to focus on what the Churches have in common. With the passing of the Bill today and the appointment of Lady Elish to the post of Lord High Commissioner, we take another welcome step on the journey to ecumenicalism.

• 9 Jan 2025 · Impact of Conflict on Women and Girls · Hansard source

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  I apologise in advance, Sir Jeremy; I am slightly under the weather today and have got a bit of a sore throat, so this might not come out quite as I intended. I am grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for Norwich North (Alice Macdonald) for securing this important debate. Although we often focus on issues around conflict and violence, and what can be done to resolve them, we can sometimes miss the fact that conflict disproportionately affects women and girls. During times of conflict, existing inequalities are magnified and exaggerated, leading to further insecurity, homelessness and particularly violence and sexual violence against women and girls. We have already heard from my hon. Friend about the current situation in Gaza, which, as we know, is unconscionable. It is estimated that almost 50 mothers and their children are killed every day. According to World Health Organisation estimates, 183 women give birth every day and, as we have heard, many are enduring C-sections without anaesthesia or other medicines. Ironically, many of the supplies that could resolve that problem are probably sitting at the borders, in the convoys that we know have been sent by international agencies and Governments, including our own, and could be put to use. So desperate is the need that it is just outrageous that those supplies are not being allowed to reach the people who need them so badly. In Myanmar, women have borne the brunt of the military oppression in that country and have been subjected to a rise in intimate partner violence and sexual violence, too. Some 3 million people have been displaced, which in turn puts women at further risk of violence and abuse, because they are separated from those who would normally, one would hope, help to defend them—their fathers and brothers, and their husbands and partners. At the same time in Myanmar, women are shut out of any discussion or high-level debate about making peace—I will return to that point a little later. I was pleased to read about the Minister’s and the Government’s ongoing commitment and work, through the preventing sexual violence and conflict initiative, which I understand remains a real priority for our Government. I hope the Minister will say a little about that at the end of the debate. When it comes to peacebuilding—hopefully we will move to peacebuilding efforts eventually in some of these conflicts—women are often excluded from the efforts and discussions, which leads to further entrenched disenfranchisement. Women are often the people who hold together communities, and often have a deeper understanding of the whole-community needs in humanitarian emergencies in particular. As we know, in many traditions they still hold the major caring responsibilities and are very much integrated into their communities, but they are not well resourced or respected as international humanitarian actors. Our Government’s commitment to take forward resolutions to these conflicts is very welcome, and it is what we would expect, but I hope the Minister can give us some sense of how women will be involved in that work as we go forward. Women being affected by conflict is not a new phenomenon—it has probably been with us for the whole history of humankind—but now we know how wrong and unacceptable it is. Because of social media, television and all the other media channels that we have, we know for ourselves exactly what is going on. We cannot turn a blind eye to it. If we do not involve women in resolving conflict and in peacebuilding initiatives, we are destined to repeat the mistakes of the past—something I suspect none of us would wish to do.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Scotland’s Architectural Heritage · Hansard source

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  Having gone to school next door to the Mack, it holds a great place in my heart. I also worked next door to it for a time, so it was rooted in my life when I was growing up. It is incredibly sad to see what has happened to it, not only because of its architecture but because of what it has meant to generations of Glaswegians and of art students who have gone through its doors. It is also disappointing to see, as my hon. Friend mentioned, the other examples of where we in Glasgow are not looking after our heritage in the way we should. The ABC cinema was also affected by the fire at the Mack, and just today, it was reported that some elements of it, which were meant to be retained, have been skipped, to use the vernacular. It is disappointing that we are in this situation and that Glasgow, which once respected its heritage, now seems to be ignoring it.

• 8 Oct 2024 · Edinburgh Festivals: Cultural and Economic Contribution · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Edinburgh East and Musselburgh (Chris Murray)—I hope he does not mind this interloper from Glasgow West coming into the debate. The importance of the book festival is well worth recognising, particularly as Edinburgh is the first UNESCO city of literature, something that we sometimes forget. As we have heard, the Edinburgh festivals make an important contribution to the economy of Edinburgh and Scotland and provide a showcase for Scotland and a venue for art and artists from around the world. Every year, hundreds of thousands of tourists and art lovers fill up the city as they make their way from one venue to another, to enjoy one of the 40,000 performances on offer. Many artists come to Scotland to showcase their work, but I want to focus briefly today on a homegrown artist who is synonymous with the Edinburgh festival, my old friend Richard Demarco. Richard was born in Edinburgh in 1930 to parents who had come to Scotland from Italy. Now aged 94, Richard Demarco has attended every Edinburgh festival, which is really quite something, and he has organised arts programmes at most of them. Since its inception, he has also been heavily involved with the Fringe festival. Over the years, Ricky Demarco has hosted hundreds of artists and staged more than 1,000 art exhibitions, featuring artists from over 60 countries. He has challenged the boundaries of the Fringe by staging performances outside Edinburgh, including a production of “Macbeth” on Inchcolm island. He has also been a critical friend of the Fringe, speaking publicly about what he saw as the over-emphasis on commercial considerations and also the increase in the prominence of the comedy festival, which was something he did not quite approve of. Ricky has won many awards over the years from Governments and arts organisations around the world, because of his own artistic excellence and his devotion to internationalism. He has a CBE and in 2013 was the European Citizen of the Year. During the cold war, Demarco crossed the iron curtain 100 times. He often went to eastern Europe to bring back artists and groups to perform at the Edinburgh festival. That emphasis on internationalism is, of course, no accident; it is underpinned by the founding principles of the Edinburgh festival, which have already been remarked upon today. When it was founded in 1947, the idea was that the festival would be about healing the wounds of war through the language of the arts, which is something that Ricky Demarco did not just talk about but actively participated in, as he does to this day and encourages others to do the same. That alone is quite a legacy, but it also emphasises the so-called “soft power” of the arts, and I offer that “soft power” as a third reason for supporting the Edinburgh festivals and the arts more generally.

• 2 Sept 2024 · Technology in Public Services · Hansard source

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  Madam Deputy Speaker, may I thank you, your team and all parliamentary staff for your cheerfulness and support over the last few weeks? I promise that I will eventually stop asking how to get to places, but it might not be for a while yet. I am very pleased to follow the hon. Member for Oxford West and Abingdon (Layla Moran). I listened carefully to her very interesting speech, from which I learned quite a lot. Then again, those who know me will know that giving my maiden speech in a technology debate is probably not the best idea there ever was. As I rise to make my first contribution, I am acutely aware of the great honour afforded to me by the constituents of Glasgow West, who elected me to represent their interests in this place. I will never allow the allure of politics or the mystique of this place to obscure that bigger picture. Although I am the first Member for the new constituency of Glasgow West, I am conscious, too, of the contributions made by my predecessors in Glasgow North West and Glasgow Anniesland who served our communities so well. Carol Monaghan, my immediate predecessor, championed the condition ME and worked to give the issue wider prominence, and John Robertson succeeded in amending the Welfare Reform Bill 2009 to ensure that people who are registered blind or partially sighted could claim the higher level of disability living allowance. But perhaps my most illustrious predecessor is the late Donald Dewar, who served in this House for many years and was both a shadow Minister and a Cabinet Minister. Donald was my MP when I joined the Labour party and, over the years, he became a good friend. He was, of course, the father of Scottish devolution and Scotland’s first First Minister, which is really quite an accolade—it is also quite difficult to say, to be honest. He was also the man who persuaded this working-class woman, brought up in a room and kitchen in Maryhill and on the 21st floor of the Red Road flats, that she could, and indeed should, be Deputy Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament—an encouragement for which I will always be grateful. My thanks must also go to another Scottish First Minister, Jack McConnell—Lord McConnell, as I suppose we must now call him, as he serves in the other place—who trusted me to be the Cabinet Secretary for Parliamentary Business and, subsequently, Cabinet Secretary for Tourism, Culture and Sport. I loved both jobs and had the most amazing experiences, not least launching the National Theatre of Scotland and submitting Glasgow’s successful bid for the 2014 Commonwealth games. The experience of working in that Cabinet helped me to understand the importance of working across Government and, in our case, working across parties, because we were in coalition with the Liberal Democrats, many of whom are still friends to this day. That was the important thing I learned, and I am delighted that this Labour Government understand that principle and are using the benefit of joined-up government to make progress. It is also good to see this Government’s commitment to the open and transparent use of public money. For those who do not know, the Red Road flats were a large development of multi-storey flats in the north of Glasgow. At its peak, the estate housed more people than the town of St Andrews, but for many years it had no shops or facilities. When we build the houses that we so badly need across the country, I sincerely hope we will recognise that people need facilities as well as homes That is responsible planning and responsible use of public money, and I was delighted to hear the Deputy Prime Minister recognise that necessity in her statement earlier today. I also want to talk a little about my constituency. I have listened to many maiden speeches in this Chamber and heard Members extol the virtues of their constituencies, so I now have a bucket list of places I want to visit. I have to say that my constituency is very beautiful, but that is not what intrigues me most about it and it is not the thing of which I am most proud. I am most proud of the many wonderful organisations that support the people and communities in my area. The G15 project works so hard with young people in the Drumchapel area to host Drumchapel TV; many a “Newsnight” presenter could learn something from the station’s young interviewers. For years, Drumchapel food bank has supported some of the most vulnerable people in our community. Kingsway Community Connections supports a diverse range of people to achieve the best possible in their communities. And, of course, the Yoker resource centre, led by the indefatigable Sandy Busby, has supported the people of Yoker for decades. Drumchapel may now be a working-class Glasgow overspill estate, but it still has traces of the Antonine wall, built to delineate the northernmost limits of the Roman empire. Scotstoun, another of our local communities, is home to the mighty Glasgow Warriors rugby team, who recently won the united rugby championships title, and Victoria Park, the site of a grove of fossilised trees that have stood in that spot for 330 million years. One issue that has long concerned me is the disparity in life expectancy between people in parts of my constituency and their more affluent neighbours in other parts of Scotland. That difference can be anything up to 12 years. Perhaps even more stark is the fact that people in our most deprived areas have a healthy life expectancy gap of 23 years for men and 23.9 years for women. Many of the reasons are obvious: poor housing, low pay, lack of opportunity and poor living conditions—all reasons why I support the new deal for workers being spearheaded by the Deputy Prime Minister, and the pursuit of economic growth being pursued by our first female Chancellor of the Exchequer. That people should have comprehensive rights at work and the dignity that comes with it is vitally important. Glasgow West is home to some notable companies employing large numbers of people, including Edrington, the makers of the Macallan, Highland Park and the Famous Grouse—other whiskies are available—and Mortons Rolls, who make the perfect accompaniment to the Lorne sausage, a delicacy that is a sad omission from Parliament’s restaurants. It is appropriate in this debate to mention BAE Systems, one of the last Clyde shipbuilders, which recently invested some £14 million in a new training academy. I met some of its 140 new apprentices just a few weeks ago, and their enthusiasm was infectious. It was also great to see the way in which technology was being incorporated into their training. No longer was it necessary for young welders in training to be exposed to great heat and noxious gases. The young people were working on welding but doing it virtually. It was amazing to watch—so realistic and so clever. Indeed, some of the more experienced welders are using that technology to practise and rehearse how they approach the more difficult tasks that they will encounter. That virtual programme is very impressive. If the Minister or any of his team ever want to visit, they just need to tell me and we can make arrangements. Another large employer is, of course, the NHS. Glasgow West is home to Gartnavel hospital and to the Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre, famed for its groundbreaking research and treatment since 1886. The Secretary of State referred to how much better diagnosis can be with the use of AI and other technologies. As a cancer survivor myself, I understand just how important the facility is to people across the west of Scotland and beyond. I am also aware that early detection and treatment are vital, and that it is often within our most deprived communities that the take-up of screening is at its lowest—that situation has to change. I very much hope the current Scottish Government are sincere in wishing to work with the UK Government to ensure that that problem, and others that beset our NHS, can be eradicated on both sides of the border. Up until today, when I submitted my resignation, I was also a councillor in my constituency. I thank all the community groups and organisations that do such great work in ward 14. Glasgow West is well served by its councillors, but I have to single out my ward colleague, Councillor Paul Carey BEM, who has represented the Drumchapel/Anniesland ward for more than 20 years with tenacity and dedication. Donald Dewar often spoke about the imbalance in the social arithmetic, and the need to rebalance the equation by reducing poverty and by giving all our children the best possible start in life and the opportunity to fulfil their potential. That will only be achieved by working across Government, which is why I welcome the establishment of the poverty taskforce and why its mission is so important to all our constituents and to the work of this Government. People across this country have put their belief and trust in us. It is up to us now to make sure we deliver for them.