Paul Davies MP: speeches

Speeches

• 4 Jun 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Last week, I met Chris Hudson, who has just completed three marathons to raise money for Forget Me Not, a children’s hospice that serves my constituents. It provides high-quality care for children with life-shortening conditions and vital services for families living with loss, including Chris and his family, who received compassionate and individualised support as they coped with the grief of losing their child. Hospices such as Forget Me Not face significant financial pressures, so please can we have a Government statement on further help for the sector?

• 21 May 2026 · Women’s Health and Wellbeing: Online Censorship · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Stringer. I strongly back this Government’s commitment to tackling online gender-based harms. I am pleased by the progress that has been made, which includes making intimate image abuse, cyber-flashing and choking priority offences under the Online Safety Act and fast-tracking legislation to ban the creation of non-consensual intimate deepfakes. Recognising the growing threat of technology-enabled abuse is vital for the Government’s targets to halve violence against women and girls during the next decade, but we must ensure that these efforts do not lead to unintended consequences that could undermine the safety and wellbeing of women and girls in other ways. The shadow-banning of medically accurate, evidence-based women’s health content can seriously restrict women’s ability to speak out and find information about their bodies online. I recently led a Westminster Hall debate considering the e-petition on statutory menstrual leave for people with endometriosis and adenomyosis, which affects 1.5 million women in Britain. In the lead-up to the debate, I spoke to campaigners including Michelle Dewar, who organised the petition. For her and many others, social media is a tool to spread awareness, educate and campaign. Indeed, it was on social media that Michelle was able to encourage signatures for the e-petition, which eventually led to the debate in Parliament. Like many other women’s health conditions, endometriosis and adenomyosis face serious social stigma. Social media can offer the space to help overcome that, establishing support networks where women can connect and feel understood. However, the unrefined and blanket approaches that many social media platforms take to address broader online harms often lead to the suppression of women’s health content. That can include restrictions on certain words associated with women’s health, as my hon. Friend the Member for Milton Keynes Central (Emily Darlington) referred to, and the banning of paid-for ads, including for women’s health and sexual wellbeing products. This has real implications for women. It can seriously impact the reach of content online, reducing access to potentially lifesaving information or vital support networks. It also has economic implications; research by CensHERship indicates that 64% of women’s health businesses have experienced lost revenue as a result of these types of barrier. Once there is a shadow ban, it can be very difficult to resolve and can lead to loss of revenue and other long-term issues. Social media platforms such as Instagram and Facebook have failed to properly engage with the issue. There remains a lack of transparency about how shadow-banning operates. That is particularly concerning because although content around women’s menstrual and sexual health often faces removal, the same cannot be said for men’s health content and the language used to describe male bodies. We must join the calls by Essity and other campaign groups for meaningful action to change this. Cross-Government working groups to examine how platform moderation practices affect women’s access to health information, and alignment between the women’s health strategy and wider digital and online safety frameworks, can ensure that women’s access to health information is treated as a priority. Women must be allowed to own the narrative around their own bodies. It is therefore time to ban the ban.

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

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  Recently, I was contacted by a leading manufacturer based in my constituency, Trojan Plastics, which highlighted the findings of the Made in Group’s industrial strategy survey report 2026. It found that one in four manufacturers described their energy costs over the past 12 months as “survival threatening”. While I congratulate the Government on their excellent work on delivering clean power, may we have a statement on their plans to improve energy costs for businesses?

• 13 Apr 2026 · Statutory Menstrual Leave · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That this House has considered e-petition 732342 relating to statutory menstrual leave. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Mundell. Please let me thank Michelle, who is sitting in the Public Gallery with her daughter, for creating the petition that has brought us to the debate today. I am honoured to be leading on this issue. Some may ask why a man is leading a debate on women’s health. They may think that endometriosis and adenomyosis are somewhat awkward to speak about in public and that such women’s issues should be reserved for conversations behind closed doors, out of earshot of embarrassed male peers, but that is exactly why we are here today—because women’s health is not just a women’s issue. It is a workplace issue, an economic issue and, importantly, an equality issue. Endometriosis and adenomyosis are conditions that cause chronic pain as a result of the excess growth of tissue similar to the lining of the womb in areas outside the womb. That results in a range of symptoms, from inflammation to severe pain, fatigue and in some cases infertility. These can be cyclical conditions, with some women feeling disabled for one week a month. Conversely, others experience such pain almost constantly. In the UK, 1.5 million women suffer from endometriosis, and 40% of them suffer additionally with adenomyosis. Both conditions have significant impacts on educational engagement and workplace participation, productivity and progression. Combined, they cost the UK economy more than £8 billion a year. That includes health costs and, of course, loss of work. However, it is crucial to understand that the loss of time in the workplace has not just economic ramifications. Not being able to go to work can impact one’s self-esteem and individual identity. Twenty-three per cent of women have taken time off work because of period health issues, and one in six with endometriosis leaves the workplace entirely, because of their condition. Even following surgery, many women feel pressured to return to work before they have fully recovered. Despite all the impacts, only one in 10 women believes that her employer provides support for menstruation and menstrual health. Even receiving a diagnosis of endometriosis in the first place is frustratingly difficult, with the average waiting time being nine years and four months. In half of cases, patients report their symptoms to the GP 10 times or more, and 52% of patients end up visiting A&E at least once. My first awareness of endometriosis was through my wife, Leah, who lived with the condition from the age of 12 to her 30s. For Leah, obtaining a diagnosis was a long, exhausting and frustrating process. She was told numerous times to simply get on with it or to go and take a paracetamol. Like so many others, she found that her pain and struggle were constantly and continuously dismissed as heavy periods. But endometriosis meant that, as a young adult, Leah had to miss out on school. She lived 12 miles away and could not get home in time if she was having a heavy episode. For fear of embarrassment, she simply chose not to go to school, heavily impacting her education at the time. Throughout her teens, later in her 20s and even after having two children, Leah suffered the debilitating impact of endometriosis. She would often be close to fainting with the pain, but suffered in silence. Eventually we found a GP who was prepared to do something about it, and Leah was referred to a specialist. Following several procedures, her issues with endometriosis subsided. However, that is not to say that it was straightforward: unfortunately, following a partial hysterectomy, Leah suffered a significant haemorrhage at home, and it was only due to emergency surgery at our local hospital that she survived. Even after diagnosis, there are risks with treatment. Endometriosis has to be recognised as a significant and complex condition. My wife was failed by a system that lacked, and still lacks, a full understanding of the symptoms of endometriosis, and by a culture that overlooks how menstrual health can dominate and affect daily life. The Department for Work and Pensions “Keep Britain Working” initiative has been crucial in recognising the impact of health on people’s working lives. However, as many colleagues will agree, we have so much more to do. We must include menstrual health, including endometriosis and adenomyosis, in both existing and future agendas, reaffirming the importance of women’s health in the workplace. To do so, we must challenge the related stigma and reflect on policy. To challenge the stigma, we must strive to understand that endometriosis and adenomyosis are systemic, chronic health conditions that can derail somebody’s life. The lack of awareness of that fact, combined with a taboo surrounding menstrual health, accentuates the suffering of patients, making them feel as though they have nowhere to turn and no shoulder to lean on. With other conditions that affect a similar number of women, such as type 2 diabetes, no such taboo or silence exists. There is a positive acceptance and understanding of the difficulties faced by those with type 2 diabetes—and rightly so. We must replicate that acceptance and understanding in our attitude towards menstrual health. Following conversations with Endometriosis UK, I support the expansion of the endometriosis-friendly employer scheme and the national workplace endometriosis and adenomyosis pledge, which allow businesses to commit to employer action plans that promote open dialogue, training and understanding of these health issues. Incorporating seemingly little things—such as toilet access, break rotations or even the size ranges of uniforms —into a national framework of practical workplace adjustments can greatly improve the workplace experience of menstrual health, including endometriosis and adenomyosis. As Dr Jasmine Hearn and her colleagues at Manchester Metropolitan University highlight, improving awareness and tackling stigma in this way are key to ensuring justice for women with menstrual health concerns. However, as stated earlier, only one in 10 women believe that their organisation provides support for menstruation and menstrual health conditions. We must increase that number dramatically, and the promotion of the endometriosis-friendly employer scheme is a powerful means to do so. However, a change in culture alone is not enough; weusb need concrete policy to ensure that workplace accommodation is legally binding. This is where statutory menstrual leave could play a vital role. The Employment Rights Act 2025 ensures that large employers must publish gender equality action plans—a great step in the right direction—but it stops short of directly mentioning reproductive or menstrual health. The Act has made significant progress in supporting menopausal health in the workplace, but we must now expand this to menstrual health more broadly, including endometriosis and adenomyosis. An option would be to give those diagnosed a legal entitlement like that in Portugal, where up to three days of leave per month is permitted. Here, a diagnosis would allow women the flexibility and legal right to have time off work when they are suffering most. It is important, however, to recognise that endometriosis, adenomyosis and menstrual healthcare are vastly nuanced. A single catch-all policy to address the workplace experience could risk overlooking such complexity with menstrual and reproductive health. We must also recognise that getting a diagnosis in the first place is still a major issue with endometriosis and adenomyosis. Again, the average diagnosis takes nine years and four months, meaning that only 15% of those with endometriosis symptoms have the formal diagnosis that would allow them access to such statutory menstrual leave. For statutory menstrual leave to work as the petition intends, we must match it with significant improvements in early intervention, diagnosis and GP training on symptoms. This debate marks an opportunity to help ensure that the impact of these conditions on women’s health is no longer ignored. There is an argument for statutory menstrual leave, and for it to sit alongside wider measures that foster awareness and an understanding mindset. We must also challenge the stigma around women’s health by breaking taboos and championing justice for those who, all too often, suffer in silence. Michelle told me that the petition is not about her; it is about her daughter and all those who will have to battle endometriosis and adenomyosis in the future. By challenging the stigma and reflecting on policy, we can champion the employment rights of those with menstrual and reproductive health complications today and in the future, effecting transformative changes to many people’s lives. I thank everybody for attending this debate, and I look forward to hearing Members’ views.

• 19 Mar 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T6. The recent real-life drama “Dirty Business” highlighted the scale of the issues within the water industry. In my constituency, Yorkshire Water has had serious issues with sewage outflows and poor standards of infrastructure. I welcome the Government’s water reforms, which will protect customers. However, does the Secretary of State agree that we now need to consider public ownership of the water industry in order to resolve the fundamental problems it faces?

• 10 Mar 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T6. In my constituency, Co-operative Care Colne Valley is testament to the value and importance of co-operatives. It delivers ethical, not-for-profit home care services for the disabled and elderly. The group’s community ownership and local empowerment demonstrates the value of co-operatives. Will the Minister advise me what steps her Department is taking to drive the growth of co-operatives across our communities?

• 5 Mar 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Smashed Live, an educational programme delivered by Collingwood Learning, which is based in Holmfirth, teaches young people to think critically about the dangers of under-age drinking. It was recently performed at Honley high school in my constituency. Given that, by the age of 15, 62% of pupils in England will have had an alcoholic drink, will the Leader of the House please consider dedicating time to a debate on the importance of early education about alcohol?

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

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  I am sure that the Leader of the House agrees that Parliament is sovereign when it comes to the legislative framework of this country. With that in mind, I would appreciate his views on the actions of a small number of unelected Members of the Lords who are blocking the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill rather than seeking to improve it. Can we have a debate in Government time on how the reputation of our parliamentary democracy can be protected in the face of such actions?

• 29 Jan 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  We face a serious skills gap in the construction sector. Colleges across the country are doing fantastic work to help solve this issue. In my constituency, Kirklees college is a testament to the value of such institutions. I welcome the Government’s commitment to train 60,000 more skilled workers by 2029, but can we have a statement from the Government on the steps that they are taking to support institutions such as Kirklees college to meet the high demand for places and close the skills gap?

• 22 Jan 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I recently met volunteers from the Yorkshire Air Ambulance charity, which provides a lifesaving emergency service to 5 million people across our region. Last year, it completed an average of five missions a day, which is an outstanding achievement. Will the Leader of the House join me in commending the charity on its valiant work, and can we have a debate in Government time on how we can secure the future of such services?

• 6 Jan 2026 · Less Survivable Cancers · Hansard source

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  Forty-seven per cent of cancers diagnosed in the UK are rare and less common cancers, and 55% of deaths are from rare and less common cancers. That means that, every year, around 180,000 people will be diagnosed with a rare and less common cancer, and more than 92,000 people will die from such cancers. Blood cancer is one such cancer, and I recently met the Blood Cancer Alliance to discuss improving access to lifesaving blood cancer treatments across the UK. Over 280,000 people in the UK are living with blood cancer, and every year 40,000 more receive a diagnosis, including 5,000 children. It is the fifth most common cancer, the most prevalent childhood cancer and the third biggest cancer killer in our country. However, despite amazing advances in tech and treatment, our outcomes are falling behind in the nations. The reason is clear: systemic barriers within the NHS and National Institute for Health and Care Excellence appraisal processes are preventing patients from accessing innovative therapies. Between 2019 and 2025, over a third of NICE appraisals for new blood cancer treatments were terminated—more than double the rate for other cancers. Those are not ineffective drugs; many are available overseas, and even privately in the UK. That creates a two-tier system in which those who can pay receive better care than those who cannot. It is unacceptable. I have been told that treatments such as chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy can transform lives, extending survival and improving quality of life. The current system, with rigid cost-effectiveness thresholds and inflexible commercial frameworks, is failing patients. That is why I warmly welcome the UK Government’s cancer plan, which represents a vital opportunity to reset our approach to cancer care and to ensure that innovation is embraced, not obstructed. By prioritising timely access to effective treatments and addressing systemic barriers, the cancer plan can help deliver world-class outcomes for patients. I stand with the Blood Cancer Alliance and Cancer52 in calling for urgent, joined-up action from Government, NICE, the NHS and industry. Together we can ensure that every person with blood cancer has timely access to the best possible care, because survival should never depend on postcode or income.

• 11 Dec 2025 · Economic Growth: Colne Valley · Hansard source

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  10. What steps his Department is taking to help create economic growth in Colne Valley constituency.

• 11 Dec 2025 · Economic Growth: Colne Valley · Hansard source

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  I represent 3,455 small and medium-sized enterprises in my constituency. Those businesses provide essential jobs in the local economy. Last weekend, we celebrated Small Business Saturday, and I had the privilege of joining world-renowned author Lee Child as we visited fantastic local businesses, including Read bookshop, Nellie’s Keepsake, the Huntsman Inn and many more. The previous Government turned their back on small businesses. Will the Minister outline what targeted programmes are available to boost local businesses in Colne Valley?

• 1 Dec 2025 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source

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  It feels like a lifetime since 2022, when a Prime Minister and a Chancellor gambled with our economy. They put Britain in hock to the bond markets, sent mortgage rates soaring and plunged millions of families into hardship. That reckless approach left deep scars that our communities still bear today. Contrast that chaos with what my right hon. Friend the Chancellor has delivered in her Budget. Instead of instability, we have security; instead of ideology, we have investment. She has put money into the NHS, backed innovation, supported start-ups, and stood shoulder to shoulder with the British public during a cost of living crisis created by the Conservative party. Under the last Government, the country spiralled downwards towards despair. Today, we are reversing that and creating hope for the future. The cost of living remains the single biggest concern for my constituents. It was the first issue they raised with me ahead of the Budget, which is why I welcome the practical steps in the Budget that will make a tangible difference to everyday life: £150 off energy bills, a freeze on NHS prescription charges, a freeze on rail fares for the first time in three decades, alongside a cap on bus fares, the national living wage moving up to £12.71 an hour, the state pension increased by 4.8% from April 2026, the two-child benefit cap scrapped, and expanded free school meals and breakfast clubs. These changes will ease the pressure on families and commuters alike. I very much welcome the rise in the national minimum wage and national living wage, giving full-time workers an annual boost of around £900. One of my biggest asks of this Budget was action on the two-child limit. I came into politics to eradicate child poverty, and the measures announced in the Budget to lift children out of hardship are hugely welcome. The decisions of the last Tory Government pushed more than 900,000 children into poverty. That was an absolute disgrace. I am proud that this Labour Government are reversing that damage. I reject the notion that those who need state support are somehow irresponsible or on the take. The real scandal is the number of parents who are in work yet still in poverty. Let us be very clear: we cannot simply stand to one side and allow those children to suffer the ravages of poverty. That was the reality of the two-child cap and its abhorrent rape clause. Ending that injustice is the right thing to do. In my constituency of Colne Valley, ending the cap will benefit around 1,520 children. That, alongside the expansion of breakfast clubs, such as the one at Scapegoat Hill primary school, will transform life chances for young people in my area. As I said earlier, this Budget is about not ideology but investment. It is about investment in all our people, in particular our young people, who all deserve the best start in life, fair access to good jobs and career opportunities. This is not the blinkered ideology that we have seen from the Tories and Reform, but Labour values embedded in fairness and equality of opportunity, so that it does not matter where people are born and who to. Everyone deserves a real and tangible share in the successes of this country, so I am proud to support this Budget, particularly the lifting of the two-child cap, which will make a huge difference to so many of my constituents and many more across the country. This is a Budget that is anti-poverty and pro-children, and that is surely something we can all get behind.

• 17 Nov 2025 · Parkinson’s Disease · Hansard source

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  I agree. I will refer later to ICBs, which clearly have to ensure the full, necessary support, particularly for this community. I understand the pressures they are under—we all do—but taking away support from people is a much bigger issue than people not getting support in the first place. I am sure that all of us across the House would like to work on that issue. This plan is rooted in lived experience and offers a practical road map for change, including renewed investment—I say that to give some context; otherwise we will lose track of where we are. In April, during World Parkinson’s Day, I attended the Big Sing for Parkinson’s. That uplifting event was quite amazing and inspiring; it was full of energy, music and community spirit. It was organised by the same “Movers and Shakers” group I referred to earlier, and brought together people living with Parkinson’s, and very importantly their families, in both London and Huddersfield. I had the pleasure of speaking to Mark Mardell, the former BBC political journalist and the lead petitioner—he is sitting at the back of the Public Gallery, and I thank him very much for the petition and for the work he is doing. [Hon. Members: “Hear, hear.”] He shared his personal journey with me and emphasised the urgent need for reform. Like the charter, the Big Sing is a celebration of resilience and a call for action. Since July 2024, the Government have taken the following steps. The autumn Budget last year included a £600 million increase in social care funding and an £86 million boost to the disabled facilities grant. In April 2025, the Government reaffirmed their commitment to improving outcomes for neurological conditions, through initiatives such as the RightCare toolkit, the Getting It Right First Time programme and the neurology transformation programme. Spending review 2025 also pledged £29 billion in additional NHS funding by 2029, including £10 billion for technology and GP training. This is just the start in addressing the needs of those living with Parkinson’s. An estimated 253 people with Parkinson’s live in my constituency of Colne Valley. That is as per the previous constituency boundaries, but there will be revised figures in line with the new constituency boundaries, although they are hopefully not revised upwards. West Yorkshire NHS ICB plans and delivers care for people with Parkinson’s in the ICB area. In 2023-24, the spend on admissions to hospital in that area increased by 4.9%, and the cost of each admission was just over £6,000. However, we face extremely serious challenges. The UK ranks near the bottom in Europe for the number of neurologists per capita. Neurology services meet the 18-week referral target only about half the time. Only 44% of patients in England have access to an occupational therapist, only 62% have access to a physiotherapist and just 40% have access to a speech and language therapist. Those professionals are essential; they are not optional. The Government are addressing that issue through the broader NHS workforce strategy, which includes expanding the number of training places and reforming medical education pathways to address shortages in specialist areas such as neurology. However, the Parky charter also highlights the importance of timely medication. For people with Parkinson’s, receiving medication within 30 minutes of the prescribed time is not a convenience; it is an absolute necessity. Yet more than half of hospitalised patients report delays. The NHS’s medicines safety improvement programme, which runs from 2024 to 2027, is a step forward, but implementation must be consistent across all trusts.

• 3 Nov 2025 · Huntingdon Train Attack · Hansard source

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  I fully support the remarks made by Stuart Cundy, deputy chief constable of the British Transport police, that the “heroic” actions of the LNER staff member undoubtedly saved lives. At a recent meeting with representatives of the Transport Salaried Staffs Association, they raised concerns about policing budgets and the unique pressures facing the British Transport police. What discussions has the Minister had with the Treasury to ensure a fair funding settlement, one that safeguards the BTP’s operational capacity and ensures the continued safety of passengers across our network?

• 16 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I recently attended the Pennine Domestic Abuse Partnership’s 50th anniversary event “Magnificent Menopause”. The event celebrated the resilience of menopausal women. While marking World Menopause Month, will the Leader of the House congratulate PDAP’s outstanding work, and can we have a Government statement on what steps are being taken to advance menopause research?

• 15 Oct 2025 · Work for Serving Prisoners · Hansard source

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  I compliment my hon. Friend on her excellent speech. Does she agree that improving literacy in prisons is a powerful tool for rehabilitation and reintegration? Literacy equips prisoners with essential communication and comprehension skills, laying the foundation for further education and vocational training. By fostering reading, writing and critical thinking abilities, inmates become much better prepared for employment opportunities within prison and upon release. That not only enhances their self-worth and confidence, but reduces reoffending by opening pathways to stable work. Does she agree that investing in prison literacy is an investment in safer communities and more productive lives?

• 16 Sept 2025 · Sentencing Bill · Hansard source

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  I want to speak today about justice; not just about punishment but about rehabilitation, dignity and the transformative power of second chances. For too long, our criminal justice system has been shaped by short-term thinking and political posturing—we have seen a fair amount of that in this debate—but we are changing that. This Government are committed to a smarter, fairer approach to sentencing that protects the public, supports victims and gives offenders a real chance to rebuild their lives. That is why this Bill matters. It enacts key recommendations from the independent sentencing review and marks a turning point in how to deliver justice. This landmark legislation will ensure that our prison system never again reaches the brink of collapse. It introduces a presumption against short custodial sentences under 12 months, except in cases of serious risk or a breach of court orders. Instead, we are expanding the use of robust community sentences and giving judges greater flexibility to tailor punishments to the individual. Also, as has been mentioned, we are investing in technology to monitor offenders outside prison. This has very much been shown to reduce reoffending. Overall reoffending rates in 2023 were 26.3%. This was far too high, and short custodial sentences were a significant problem. Over 56% of offenders serving less than 12 months go on to reoffend. Young people are especially vulnerable. Those aged 18 to 20 have the highest reoffending rate at 36.2%, followed closely by 15 to 17-year-olds at 32.6%. Theft offences top the list with 48.4% of individuals reoffending. That highlights the deep link between socioeconomic hardship and repeat crime. These figures underscore the urgent need for targeted rehabilitation, education and employment support to break the cycle, and one of the most pressing challenges is literacy. Over half of the UK’s prison population struggle with basic reading. According to the Ministry of Justice, 57% of adult prisoners read below the level of an average 11-year-old. That is incredible. In 2022-23, 65% of those assessed were at entry levels 1 to 3 in English, which is below the lowest GCSE level. Poor literacy is closely linked to higher reoffending rates and diminished chances of rehabilitation. However, we can look to other countries for inspiration in this area. In Brazil, the Remission for Reading programme offers a powerful example of how education can transform lives. Introduced in 2012, it allows prisoners to reduce their sentences by reading books and writing reviews. Each approved review earns four days of sentence remission, up to 48 days per year. This is not just about reading; it is about rehabilitation. As one teacher involved in the programme said, “This is about acquiring knowledge and culture and being able to join another universe.” The programme fosters literacy, empathy and self-reflection. It gives prisoners a new perspective and a pathway to reintegration. The Philippines has also followed suit, with the “Read your way out” initiative launched in 2023. This time, prisoners can reduce their sentences by 15 days for every 60 hours of reading, study, teaching or mentoring. Thirteen new prison libraries have been created to support the scheme. The programmes show what is possible when we treat prisoners not just as offenders, but as people capable of change and growth. I ask the Minister if the Government would adopt a similar scheme to the “Remission for Reading” programme in Brazil across our entire prison estate. The initiative would make our justice system smarter, safer and more humane. It would provide an opportunity for change while still being tough on the causes of crime. Of course, this approach aligns with the principles set out in the independent sentencing review, chaired by former Lord Chancellor David Gauke. Let me be clear: dangerous criminals will continue to be locked up for a very long time. For those who can be rehabilitated, we must offer hope. Helping them improve their literacy is one way to do that. The Conservatives left us with a broken system. We are building a better one that is smarter, safer and more humane.

• 11 Sept 2025 · Major Transport Schemes: Local Authority Support · Hansard source

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  I welcome the Department’s recognition of the positive impact that the Penistone line rail upgrade will have, boosting economic growth, improving connectivity and supporting ambitions for half-hourly services between Huddersfield and Sheffield. This is a clear example of what can be achieved when Labour leads at every level—council, mayor and MP. What further support can the Secretary of State’s Department offer when it comes to securing the next phase of this vital project to ensure a frequent and reliable service across the entirety of the Penistone line?

• 4 Sept 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T2. In my constituency, producers such as Longley farm exemplify British quality. Its dairy products are globally renowned. What specific steps is the Department taking to prioritise the purchase and promotion of British produce, ensuring support for domestic farmers, reducing food miles and strengthening the UK’s food security and rural economy?

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

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  Libraries are vital spaces for learning, inclusion and communities. As Lindley library in my constituency marks 150 years, we celebrate its role in enriching lives and preserving local heritage. I hope the Leader of the House will join me in wishing the library a happy birthday and every success for its open day next week. Can we have a debate in Government time on how we can better support libraries, like the one in Lindley, to grow and adapt for future generations?