Sarah Coombes MP: speeches

Speeches

• 24 Apr 2025 · Public Service Reform · Hansard source

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  Labour was elected to get the NHS back on its feet, and that is exactly what we have been doing. At Sandwell and West Birmingham hospitals NHS trust in my area, the waiting list has fallen by 10% since the election, which means that patients are finally getting the treatment they need. One of the key things we have been doing is to look at things such as ambient AI to automate doctors’ notes and ensure that we have modern technology in the NHS. Will the Minister set out what we are doing to ensure that the NHS adopts all technology and reform to ensure that patients are being seen as quickly as possible?

• 26 Mar 2025 · Spring Statement · Hansard source

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  My West Brom constituents work hard and pay their taxes, and they want to know that the Government treat that money with respect. I am glad that we finally have a Chancellor who is being careful with every pound of taxpayers’ money so that we can invest in the NHS, which has seen a 10% cut to the waiting list in my area. How is she drawing a line under the waste and chaos of the previous Government and finally putting our public finances back on a stable footing?

• 21 Jan 2025 · Knife Crime: West Midlands · Hansard source

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  It has been a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir John. I appreciate the very moving contributions from everyone in the room. The right hon. Member for Aldridge-Brownhills (Wendy Morton), talked about the James Brindley Foundation and the “Knife Angel”, which we also had in Sandwell. My hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham Edgbaston (Preet Kaur Gill) said that this is a public health crisis, which it absolutely is. The hon. Member for Stratford-on-Avon (Manuela Perteghella) talked about Cody’s law, which she has been campaigning for. My hon. Friend the Member for Halesowen (Alex Ballinger) talked very movingly about the terrible case of Ryan, who was also killed in a nightclub. The hon. Member for Birmingham Perry Barr (Ayoub Khan) talked about the importance of youth clubs and his experience growing up in Aston. My hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton West (Warinder Juss) talked about the west midlands being the knife crime capital of England; we need to change that. My hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton North East (Mrs Brackenridge) talked about her experience in school and the impact it can have when there are horrendous incidents nearby, such as those involving Ronan and Shawn. The hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) talked powerfully about the impact on women and girls of knives being used in sexual violence and the case of Natalie, which is extremely tragic. My hon. Friend the Member for Worcester (Tom Collins) talked about the importance to young people in his area of tackling violence. I appreciate everything that the Lib Dem spokesman, the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam (Luke Taylor), said as well. The Opposition spokesperson, the hon. Member for Stockton West (Matt Vickers) talked about welcoming the commitment to reduce knife crime by 50%, which is good—although our views on the figures about police in this country differ. I appreciate the Minister talking about how one of the top missions of this Government is to make our streets safer. That is about putting more resources into policing and about how we get those knives off our streets. I am glad that we are reviewing every bit of the current legislation and looking at the gaps regarding online retailers and how people are still getting these knives. Personal liability for the people who are selling them is absolutely essential. I am also glad about the work of Idris Elba and others around the coalition to tackle knife crime. It was great that the Prime Minister welcomed that coalition to the Cabinet table in September to tackle this issue. If we fulfil our commitment to halving knife crime in a decade, the rewards will not just be lives saved, but higher levels of trust in our communities, streets that feel safer and town centres that are more successful. The prevention of knife crime is not easy. There are no quick fixes for this, but it is our duty to try. Question put and agreed to. Resolved, That this House has considered the prevention of knife crime in the West Midlands.

• 18 Nov 2024 · Children’s Social Care · Hansard source

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  Children in care are some of the most vulnerable in our society, and many people in Sandwell are worried about children in small care homes, which often seem to lack oversight and regulation. I welcome the measures that the Government set out today. Will the Secretary of State ensure that Ofsted has the powers it needs to inspect children’s social care and ensure that all homes are suitable and safe places for children to be?

• 5 Nov 2024 · Income Tax (Charge) · Hansard source

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  For too long, our economy has not worked for West Bromwich—low wages, low growth, broken public services, families unable to make ends meet and our huge potential going unfulfilled. That was the legacy of the Conservative Government, and that is why the country voted for change. Last week, finally, we saw a Budget that turns the page. I would like to thank the Chancellor for this historic Budget and talk about three things: how it looks after the finances of families in West Brom, how it gets our public services back on their feet, and how it will turbocharge growth in the west midlands. Last week, Labour’s Budget looked after ordinary families in West Brom. During the election, we promised that we would not put up taxes on working people—a promise that we have kept. Carers were being trapped in poverty by the weekly earnings limit, so we have raised it. Young people were doing the same work for less pay, so we are changing that. Perhaps most significantly of all, 12,000 workers on the minimum wage in Sandwell will receive a £1,400 pay rise next year. That is the difference that the Labour Budget makes. The Budget was also for public services and, critically, our NHS. In West Brom, our GP satisfaction rate is 15% below the national average. We have 80,000 people waiting for a hospital appointment and, absolutely scandalously, life expectancy in my area has been falling over the last 10 years. The Conservatives spent a decade destroying the NHS and now it falls to us to rebuild it. Last week, our Labour Chancellor gave the NHS a cash injection that will deliver 40,000 extra appointments a week, state-of-the-art new equipment, and support for our NHS staff, who have been pushed to breaking point. All that is futile without reform, and earlier the Secretary of State set out how we will achieve that. But the people of West Bromwich know that if we want a well functioning and modern NHS, we have to pay for it. We have made difficult decisions to do that. I finish by highlighting that the Budget was fantastic for the west midlands. It will support manufacturing jobs in the automotive industry, which is so important to the region. It secured the future of HS2 to Euston because people do not want to get on at Birmingham and off at Old Oak Common. It funded the extension of the metro to Brierley Hill and gives our Mayor, Richard Parker, a funding settlement for good bus services and local projects that will make a difference. Under a Labour Government, West Bromwich is going to see the change that my constituents voted for. I am proud that my party has delivered a Budget that fixes the foundations, protects ordinary people and rebuilds our NHS.

• 24 Oct 2024 · Black History Month · Hansard source

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  It is a privilege to speak in the debate and to follow such inspiring and educational speeches. The hon. Member for Brent East (Dawn Butler) has just left the Chamber, but she has been educating me for a long time; I did my year 10 work experience with her a long time ago. When October comes around each year, it gives us a chance to reflect on the incredible achievements and contribution of the black community. Of course, celebrating the black community should not be limited to only one month per year. As the chief executive officer of the West Bromwich African-Caribbean resource centre said to me earlier this week, they celebrate all year—from Jamaican independence and Windrush Day to music nights and fiercely competitive domino events. I want to recognise the contribution of the black community in my area of West Bromwich, Oldbury, Great Barr, Tividale and Rowley. After the war, Britain needed workers from across the empire to fill our factories, our foundries and our fledgling NHS. People from all over the world answered that call, including many from the Caribbean. They made their homes here; the roots that they put down are now deep, and their contribution over many decades is broad. The theme of this year’s Black History Month is reclaiming narratives, so I will share just a couple of stories from my area that speak to that theme. The first is about sport, and the story of West Bromwich Albion’s “Three Degrees”. The 1960s and 1970s were a hard time for many in the black British community; racism was rife and the National Front was on the rise. Football was no exception, with games marred by racism and prejudice against black players and fans. Around that time, three players at West Bromwich Albion were doing something exciting. The Baggies, under manager “Big Ron”, were the first English club to field three black players consistently in their lineup. In the 1978-79 season, the talented trio of Cyrille Regis, Laurie Cunningham and Brendon Batson were an essential fixture of every Baggies side. The sons of Caribbean immigrants who came to Britain in the 1960s, they were among the first black players to play top-flight football in this country, writing their own story of struggle, success and stardom. Although that might not seem like a huge achievement today, three black players on one team was unheard of at the time. They were brilliant players in the face of the racism they endured—even sometimes from their own stands. At a time when racism in Britain was all too common, they broke down barriers for not only black players but black fans. This week I watched a great video by Richie Anderson, a Smethwick boy, an Albion season ticket holder and one of my favourite voices on Radio 2. Richie interviewed black fans about how much watching those players meant to them, and their testimonies were as poignant as they were powerful. I will also tell the story of a lesser known, but no less important, local hero. I am lucky to know her; she is one of West Bromwich’s strong, trailblazing women: Hyacinth Jarrett. Hyacinth had trained as a nurse in Jamaica but did not much enjoy it, so when she came to England she applied for a college course in hairdressing. She was the only black applicant to the course, and she had to persuade them to let her take the entrance test. She passed the test, completed the course and opened her business, Jarrett’s Hairdressers in Bull Street in West Bromwich, in 1970. Hyacinth ran that business for 40 years, during which time she was a pioneer in training people in the art of caring for black hair. Over the years, her talents and expertise were widely recognised. She was invited to work with Birmingham College and the University of London, eventually developing a module on black hair that was added to the national foundation syllabus for hairdressing. Hyacinth was one of the earliest members of the West Bromwich African Caribbean Resource Centre, which is where I first met her a few years ago. The resource centre and other local organisations such as the Kuumba Centre have contributed so much to the local community, and continue to campaign against the discrimination and disadvantage that black Britons sadly still face today. I am proud to have them, and so many other black-led organisations in my constituency. I look forward not only to working with them in the years ahead, but to sharing their stories, championing their achievements and helping to reclaim narratives. They have earned—and deserve—their place in British history.