Seema Malhotra MP: speeches 2025

Speeches

• 7 May 2025 · Access to Venture Capital: Women · Hansard source

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  The funding will be available to women-led businesses in the hon. Gentleman’s constituency. It is right that we continue to support the work of the Women’s Business Council and others, and look at all we can do to support women in businesses, and those who are coming forward to start their own enterprises.

• 30 Apr 2025 · Draft Criminal Justice Act 1988 (Offensive Weapons) (Amendment, Surrender and Compensation) (England and Wales) Order 2025 · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to wind up this debate, and to respond to some of the comments that have been made. I remind the shadow Minister that under the last Government the police force was largely decimated in terms of neighbourhood policing teams. The subsequent challenges of rising antisocial behaviour and violent crime resulted in this Government having the safer streets mission as a national priority. The shadow Minister will know that the Home Secretary’s first priority has been to ensure that there is sufficient support for our police, and to deliver on our commitment to have over 13,000 more community support officers on our streets. It is not just the work of the police that makes the difference when tackling knife crime, though. A generation of young people have been left behind by successive Conservative Governments; we see that in school absence figures, in their lack of confidence in themselves and about their futures, and in the rise in mental health issues. We recognise that it is important to tackle and to halve knife crime, and to deal with the issue coherently. That is why alongside the measures to support the police—giving them new powers, ensuring they are back in our communities, and building relationships and confidence with communities, schools and young people as part of a prevention strategy—it is important to put in place more facilities and support for young people, particularly those at risk of crime in our communities. Our youth hubs, which involve cross-Government working, including the Home Office, the Department for Education and other Departments, are going to be an important part of that. Until we can better support young people to resist the traction into knife crime, often because they believe it is a form of defence, we will struggle to turn the tide. We absolutely must do that, in the interests not just of the lives of young people but of our society and community safety. I hope that that is of some reassurance to the shadow Minister. It is also important to mention the work of the violence reduction unit, led by the Mayor of London, but these matters do not apply only to London; the strategies need to be nationwide, so that support in communities and for young people at risk of crime reaches into the heart of wherever it is needed. I also want to assure the shadow Minister that we have worked hard on making sure that the definition of ninja sword in the legislation does not include other swords. We recognise the importance of exemptions for swords of historical importance or that are made by hand. I outlined that in my opening remarks. I would like to comment on the surrender scheme and compensation. For those who wish to be compensated for giving in their ninja sword, we have set the standard compensation rate at £5, based on wholesale costs from manufacturers. That is based on research, rather than retail costs, in order to avoid the possibility of retailers profiting from the scheme. The order also specifies that no compensation will be payable unless the individual is the lawful owner or can show that they owned or had a contract to acquire the weapon on or before the cut-off date of 27 March 2025. Individuals will also need to provide acceptable proof, such as a purchase receipt or other evidence, that they owned the weapon before that date. We have also provided a defence for blunt items. That will enable collectors of fantasy swords and users of blunt training or re-enactment swords to possess and purchase items that would otherwise be prohibited. Of course, if a blunt item that falls under the definition is subsequently sharpened, it will become illegal, and a charge of unlawful possession of a prohibited offensive weapon could be laid. A defence already exists for those who want to own prohibited swords for sports, martial arts and re-enactment, and we will be extending that defence to ninja swords. Again, I thank those who have contributed throughout the debate on this subject, and those who have shared their thoughts with me and my colleague the Minister for Policing and Crime Prevention. I also thank my right hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton South East and other Members of Parliament in all parts of the House and across the country who have been involved in supporting Pooja, Nikita and their family in their campaign. We are united in recognising that knife crime is dangerous, abhorrent, and all too often deadly. It leaves families utterly broken and communities devastated. The order represents an important step in the effort to halve knife crime driven by the Home Secretary, for whom that has been a personal commitment. I commend it to the Committee. Question put and agreed to. 2.49 pm Committee rose.

• 30 Apr 2025 · Draft Criminal Justice Act 1988 (Offensive Weapons) (Amendment, Surrender and Compensation) (England and Wales) Order 2025 · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the draft Criminal Justice Act 1988 (Offensive Weapons) (Amendment, Surrender and Compensation) (England and Wales) Order 2025. I am speaking today on behalf of my right hon. Friend the Minister for Policing and Crime Prevention, who is unable to attend the Committee but who worked very closely with Pooja and other members of Ronan Kanda’s family on this important piece of legislation. The order before us today amends the Criminal Justice Act 1988 (Offensive Weapons) Order 1988, and adds ninja swords to the list of prohibited offensive weapons. I will briefly set out the context. The Government have already taken robust action to address the menace of knife crime, following the implementation of a ban on zombie-style knives and machetes that came into force in September 2024. We are taking every possible step to strengthen enforcement and the prevention of knife crime as part of our wider ranging safer streets mission, and further new measures are contained in the Crime and Policing Bill currently going through Parliament. None the less, as the public would expect, we are keeping our approach under review, and when there is a clear and compelling case, will not hesitate to take further action. The order before us today was drawn up in response to concerns expressed by the family of Ronan Kanda, who was just 16 when he was fatally stabbed with a ninja sword in 2022. I am grateful to his Member of Parliament, my right hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton South East (Pat McFadden), for being here today and for all the work that he and Ronan’s family have done to enable us to bring forward this legislation today. In doing so, we seek to honour Ronan’s memory and to recognise the extraordinary courage and determination shown by his loved ones, led by his mother Pooja Kanda, alongside her daughter Nikita. We pay tribute to them for their work with parliamentarians to keep us informed and to make sure that this legislation stayed on track. Despite suffering the most unbearable loss, they have campaigned for a change that will make our society safer. I am grateful that Pooja, Nikita and other guests are with us in the Public Gallery today. To provide further background information on the order, although there have been relatively few fatal attacks involving ninja swords, even one is too many. There is no doubt that such swords can be lethally dangerous when used violently, or that they are becoming increasingly popular. Under section 141 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988, it is an offence to possess, import, manufacture, sell, hire, offer for sale, or expose or possess for the purpose of sale or hire, a weapon specified in an order made under that section. The order before us today will enhance public protection by restricting access to ninja swords and preventing their use as weapons to commit violent crimes and cause harm. Under the order-making powers in section 141(2) of the 1988 Act, the Government wish to add ninja swords to the list of offensive weapons to which section 141 applies. These weapons are defined as a bladed article, with a blade between 14 inches and 24 inches long, with one straight cutting edge and a tanto-style point. That length was chosen to exclude knives that are designed for legitimate purposes, such as many kitchen knives. To be in scope of the ban, the article should also have the features specified in paragraph 1A, namely a primary cutting edge, a secondary cutting edge and a blunt spine with either a tanto-style point or a reversed tanto-style point. Although it is right that we take the firmest possible action to prevent violence and to stop dangerous weapons getting into the wrong hands, we are not seeking to criminalise law-abiding citizens. We are confident that this description of ninja swords does not include tools traditionally used in agriculture and farming, gardening or other outdoor activities. We have included in the legislation defences to cover a range of circumstances, including where the article in question is of historical importance, is owned for a permitted activity, or is made by hand. Antiques are already exempted from section 141 of the 1988 Act. We are also making a defence for blunt instruments to protect the legitimate fantasy sword market. Parts 3 and 4 of the instrument provide for a surrender and compensation scheme through which owners of weapons in scope of the ban will be able to surrender them. In territorial scope, the instrument will apply only in England and Wales. We hope that the devolved Administrations in Northern Ireland and Scotland will take similar action to ensure that ninja swords are prohibited across the whole United Kingdom. To that end, officials have engaged with the Governments in Northern Ireland and Scotland. To conclude, the Government will not tolerate the risk of these dangerous swords being used to perpetrate violence and cause bloodshed. The tragic loss of so many young lives to knife crime, including that of Ronan Kanda, who is the inspiration for this legislation and for his family’s work, and the resulting trauma that families and communities experience cannot go on. That is why, as part of our safer streets mission, we are aiming to halve knife crime within a decade. It is also why we are bringing forward this order, which I commend to the Committee.

• 31 Mar 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  I am happy to speak to the hon. Member about the case she raises.

• 31 Mar 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  I am staggered by that question, because net migration reached record highs under the Conservatives’ watch. We are the ones with a plan to bring it down. Quite frankly, the hon. Lady should support that.

• 31 Mar 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  The hon. Lady will be aware that we continue to stand by Ukraine, and to support those whom we have been able to welcome to our country. We have provided certainty under the Ukraine permission extension scheme, which we opened on 4 February. Under that scheme, people can prove that they have ongoing status through section 3C leave during their application process.

• 31 Mar 2025 · Asylum Policy: Refugee Convention · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for his question. He will know that we explained when making the changes that each citizenship application will continue to be considered on a case-by-case basis, and that the Secretary of State may choose to apply discretion to grant citizenship on an exceptional basis where there has been particularly exceptional or mitigating circumstances, such as modern slavery.

• 31 Mar 2025 · Asylum Policy: Refugee Convention · Hansard source

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  The hon. Member will know that we take our international obligations very seriously. We are satisfied that the good character policy is compliant with those obligations. We have strengthened our policy to make it clear that anyone who enters the UK illegally, including small boat arrivals, will normally be refused British citizenship. The good character assessment has been a feature of UK immigration law since 1981 and there has never been any suggestion, either now or in the past, that it is inconsistent with our obligations under the refugee convention or any other treaty.

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

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  I will cover that when I come to my points on the UPE scheme. I pay particular regard to the efforts and determination that teams in North Lanarkshire have shown and to their support for Ukrainian families seeking sanctuary. We heard about the rapid refurbishment of properties and how Ukrainian families have been able to find good accommodation and be supported to establish themselves and integrate into the community. We have seen in all our constituencies—indeed, I saw it myself when I came to Scotland last month—the support given to children to settle in schools and nurseries and how they have been welcomed in our communities. I also recognise the support given to help Ukrainian families to seek employment, be more self-sufficient and extend their contribution to our society. There are a number of initiatives in the areas of culture, art, dance and so on, all of which are important in staying connected with Ukraine, but are also important—particularly for children and families—for connecting with the wider community and ensuring that a sense of diversity is truly appreciated. I thank all my hon. Friends and all hon. Members for their support for Ukrainians in their constituencies and for their stability and certainty in the UK. A number of issues have been raised. I will broadly say that we engage regularly with the Ukrainian community and its representatives. As well as meeting members of the Ukrainian community in Scotland last month, when it was very valuable to hear of their experiences in different parts of the country directly, I attended the service at the Ukrainian Catholic church in London to commemorate the third anniversary of the full-scale, horrific and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. I assure the House that the Government stand in solidarity, as I know we all do, with Ukraine and the Ukrainian people against Vladimir Putin’s unprovoked and barbaric war. Along with our allies, we remain unwavering and united in our support for Ukraine’s defence of its freedoms and pursuit of peace and justice. My hon. Friend the Member for Coatbridge and Bellshill also raised the horror of children being abducted. To demonstrate our continued commitment to and support for Ukraine, earlier this year the Government, led by the Prime Minister, signed the UK-Ukraine 100-year partnership agreement, laying the foundations for closer collaboration and co-operation between our two countries. The partnership seeks to ensure an enduring alliance for life beyond this conflict, covering economic and trade co-operation, investment in energy and infrastructure, and cultural ties, including the twinning of British and Ukrainian schools. That builds on the really important work that is going on and the relationship being built between British and Ukrainian children both here and in Ukraine, which will be important for that relationship in future years. Thanks to the immense generosity of the British people, we have offered or extended temporary sanctuary to more than 300,000 Ukrainians and their families here in the UK through the bespoke Ukraine visa schemes. The schemes have provided much-needed sanctuary to our Ukrainian friends for the past few years. We continue to do that, and the Homes for Ukraine sponsorship scheme remains open. The Ukraine schemes provide an initial period of three years’ permission to stay in the UK, recognising the inherent uncertainty of the conflict. Understandably, as time has passed, there has been a need to provide further certainty to those who have come to the UK. That is why in February the Government launched the new Ukraine permission extension scheme, which provides a further 18 months’ permission to stay in the UK and a continuation of rights to work, to study and to access benefits. Section 3C leave is applied from when an application is successfully submitted. We want to make sure that students can complete their studies. I know that there have been questions about how that is implemented, and I can certainly share some information about whether we can make that a bit easier, beyond the support already in place. We are working with universities and others on this, including whether support is sufficient or whether we need to do anything differently. The launch of the scheme demonstrates our continued support of Ukrainians here in the UK, and the offer of further permission to stay, along with the continuation of the same rights and benefits, provides vital certainty and security. Members have raised points about settlement. As I have said, it is a tribute to the British people and the leadership of Governments and Members across the House that we have been able to see so many Ukrainians here in the UK, able to support themselves and their families through incredibly difficult circumstances and living their lives independently. I have heard the matters raised by Members, and the Ukrainian schemes have always sought to provide temporary sanctuary to those displaced by the war in Ukraine. The schemes are not and have never been routes to settlement, but at its heart that reflects the wishes of the Ukrainian Government for the future return of their citizens. The importance of that cannot be overstated. There are millions more displaced Ukrainians in Europe and beyond, particularly women and children, and as events in Ukraine develop, our support remains steadfast. My hon. Friend the Member for Coatbridge and Bellshill can be assured that we continue to keep the Ukraine schemes under review to ensure that they continue to meet the needs of Ukrainians. In closing, I thank him again for securing this Adjournment debate and allowing important contributions from Members to be heard. Question put and agreed to.

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

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  I am grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for Coatbridge and Bellshill (Frank McNally) for securing this important Adjournment debate on the issue of displaced Ukrainians here in the UK, and the resettlement of Ukrainians in his constituency. I am also grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow West (Patricia Ferguson) for her impassioned speech highlighting the culture of Ukrainians, the work done and effort made to integrate the community, and the contribution that Ukrainians make in the UK. My hon. Friend the Member for Coatbridge and Bellshill is a dedicated supporter of those Ukrainians who have found sanctuary in his constituency. I thank all hon. Members here who have made significant contributions, showing that this is the story of not just one constituency, but many of our constituencies across the country. I recognise the work of North Lanarkshire council, which responded to the call from the UK and Scottish Governments to extend the hand of support to those Ukrainians who were fleeing and coming here in their time of need. I also recognise the work that my hon. Friend has done as a councillor over a number of years, leading on many programmes and being a leading voice on this issue.

• 19 Mar 2025 · Ethnic Minority People: Discrimination · Hansard source

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  The hon. Lady is absolutely right. There are stark inequalities in maternal health, mental health and a range of other areas, including infant mortality. She is absolutely right that that must be tackled. We are working across Government and with the Department of Health and Social Care on those issues.

• 19 Mar 2025 · Ethnic Minority People: Discrimination · Hansard source

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  Fair and equal treatment at work is a right, not a privilege. Companies like Deloitte, which I visited recently, are reporting voluntarily on their ethnicity pay gaps, and I have attended roundtables chaired by organisations such as Change the Race Ratio and ShareAction, which promote the benefits of ethnicity pay gap reporting. There has been progress; last week, the Parker review showed that there is an increasing number of ethnic minority board members in our FTSE companies. I agree with my hon. Friend that pay gap reporting can help employers to identify and remove barriers to progression for their workforces, and unleash talent from all our communities, thereby supporting economic growth, and I thank her for her work on this.

• 19 Mar 2025 · Ethnic Minority People: Discrimination · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for his question and I completely agree with him. Indeed, I also attended a wonderful interfaith iftar in Hounslow on Friday. Islamophobia is completely abhorrent and has no place in our society. No one should ever be the victim of hatred because of their religion or belief. The Government have established a new working group to provide the Government with a definition of anti-Muslim hatred and Islamophobia, and advise the Government and other bodies on how best to understand, quantify and define prejudice, discrimination and hate crime targeted against Muslims.

• 19 Mar 2025 · Ethnic Minority People: Discrimination · Hansard source

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  This Government are clear that someone’s race or ethnicity should never be a barrier to success. As set out in the King’s Speech last July, we are committed to introducing mandatory ethnicity and disability pay gap reporting for large employers; those measures will be part of the draft equality in race and disability Bill. Yesterday we published a consultation on those proposals, and announced that we have established a new race equality engagement group, which will partner with ethnic minority communities, stakeholders and delivery partners to help shape the Government’s work on race equality. I am delighted that Baroness Lawrence of Clarendon has agreed to chair that group.

• 19 Mar 2025 · Ethnic Minority People: Discrimination · Hansard source

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  The shadow Minister knows that Hamas is a proscribed organisation, and we will not tolerate antisemitism at any point, or in any way.

• 19 Mar 2025 · Ethnic Minority People: Discrimination · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend references the race equality engagement group, which we announced yesterday. The group will strengthen the Government’s links with ethnic minority communities, enabling effective two-way dialogue on the Government’s work to tackle race equalities, and engaging on all issues. We are considering our position on caste discrimination under the Equality Act 2010, and we will update the House in due course.

• 19 Mar 2025 · Ethnic Minority People: Discrimination · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman will agree that antisemitism has no place in our society or in our workplaces. This is an extremely important issue, and he will know that the Home Secretary and the whole Government take it very seriously.

• 19 Mar 2025 · Ethnic Minority People: Discrimination · Hansard source

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  The hon. Lady is absolutely right. It is important that we tackle religious and racial hatred in all its forms.

• 18 Mar 2025 · Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill (Twelfth sitting) · Hansard source

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  I will—I expect the hon. Lady to make the point she made earlier.

• 18 Mar 2025 · Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill (Twelfth sitting) · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman is right, and the Prime Minister laid out the view that it was the wrong decision. We do need to find a way to tighten up how Parliament understands the rules and how they are interpreted, but as I say, that scheme is not a matter for this Bill. We are at the very end of debating the Bill and now I am being asked what it is for. I am sure that the shadow Ministers do not want to go all the way through the line-by-line debate again. Suffice it to say that the matters they are seeking to extend the legislation to cover stray into broader aspects of immigration that in our view are not appropriate for inclusion in this Bill. There are other mechanisms for us to seek to debate and change immigration rules.

• 18 Mar 2025 · Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill (Twelfth sitting) · Hansard source

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  The hon. Lady is right. I have raised a number of times during the debate we have had the ways in which we see routes abused; indeed, the way that routes have been designed has left them open to more abuse. We are now reaping the results of that, in terms of some of the measures and the tightening up that we are doing. She will be aware that we have raised this as a matter that it is important for us to bring under greater control as part of an immigration system that is fit for the future and more controlled, more managed and fairer, and the aspects that we believe can and should be considered for a future immigration system will be the subject of the immigration White Paper. I look forward to debating that with her. Question put, That the clause be read a Second time.

• 18 Mar 2025 · Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill (Twelfth sitting) · Hansard source

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  I find this a very interesting debate and an important one in a number of respects. New clause 38 would require a consultation on the Government’s approach to the exercise of discretion to grant leave outside the rules in what any reasonable person would consider to be the most exceptional circumstances to warrant such a grant, with a requirement for a change to the rules to follow, to regulate on the basis of what discretion may have been exercised. The rules set out the main purposes for which a person may enter or stay in the UK, and the requirements to be met for them to be granted permission to do so. Exceptional circumstances are already considered. The rules are intended to apply, and be applied, in most circumstances to ensure transparency and fairness between individuals, but the existing policy approach recognises that there are some circumstances that they simply cannot cater for, and it is in the most exceptional circumstances that consideration is given to leave outside the rules under the Immigration Act 1971. A period of leave outside the rules would usually be granted for a short, one-off period of permission to stay, suitable to accommodate or overcome the exceptional circumstance, if compassionate or compelling grounds are raised in the individual case. A person may request an exercise of discretion. Factors considered may be related to, for example, emergencies, unexpected events, a crisis, a disaster, an accident that could not have been anticipated, or a personal tragedy. The Government will continue to consider where and when there is need to exercise discretion outside the rules. By its very nature, that is considered only in the most exceptional of circumstances. It is probably not appropriate for me to go into the case that the hon. Member for Stockton West raised, beyond what has been said in the House. He asked some very specific questions, and I am happy to come back to him with what I can in writing. It is important to say that this is not the correct legislation for a debate about the requirements for discretion to grant leave outside the immigration rules, nor is it the correct place to define the parts of immigration policy on which the Government should consult.

• 18 Mar 2025 · Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill (Twelfth sitting) · Hansard source

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  I thank the shadow Minister for asking what the Bill is about, but we are just at the end of scrutiny of it, so I am sure she is aware that it is about increasing powers, in particular, to be able to better tackle the criminal gangs that are undermining our border security and putting lives at risk. We are making sure that we have bodies such as the Border Security Command on a statutory footing. We have had many other debates in the House about this.

• 18 Mar 2025 · Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill (Twelfth sitting) · Hansard source

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  The hon. Member for Mid Dunbartonshire proposes an amendment that seeks to significantly change the current refugee family reunion policy, and to expand the current eligibility to include siblings, children under the age of 25 and any undefined family member. The Government fully support the principle of family unity and the need to have provisions under the immigration rules that enable immediate family members to be reunited in the UK when their family life has been disrupted because of conflict or persecution. Accordingly, in recognition of the fact that families can become separated because of the nature of conflict or persecution, and because of the speed or manner in which people may be forced to flee their homes, communities and country, our refugee family reunion policy is extremely important and generous. The route enables those granted a form of protection in the UK to sponsor their partner or child to come to the UK, provided that they formed part of that family unit before they sought protection. Increasing numbers of visas have been granted through this route under the current policy, and indeed under the previous Administration. In 2024, 19,710 people were granted family reunion visas—twice the number in 2023, when around 9,300 visas were granted. On the specific proposals in the new clause, it should be noted that any expansion of the existing approach without careful thought, including where such an expansion would allow an undefined family member to be brought to the UK, could significantly increase the number of people who qualify to come here, and runs the risk of abuse of those routes. That would have an impact on the taxpayer and could result in further pressures on public services and local authorities, which may have to accommodate and support the new arrivals. We believe that introducing a rule that allows children to sponsor their relatives would risk creating incentives for more children to be encouraged or even forced, as we know can happen, to leave their families and risk hazardous journeys to the UK across the channel in small boats. That is a serious and legitimate concern regarding the best interests of those children.

• 18 Mar 2025 · Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill (Twelfth sitting) · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend highlights a crucial point about the importance of evidence-based policy and of good data, which was sorely lacking across the whole immigration system when we came into office. The utter chaos, with backlogs in every part of the system, put huge pressure on it and made it much harder to get information about where the backlogs were and who was in them in order to try to exert some control over the system and get that important data to inform future policy. My hon. Friend is right to point to the Migration Advisory Committee, which continues to do important work to engage with stakeholders and to work across Government. That is an important part of the work that we are doing to use evidence in a much better way to inform how we link skills policy and visa policy. The work to restore order to our immigration system has been under way since we came into office. We will set out our approach, as he has intimated, in our upcoming immigration White Paper. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to explain why we will not support the amendment, and I respectfully suggest that the hon. Member for Stockton West may wish to withdraw it.