Steve Yemm MP: speeches

Speeches

• 11 Mar 2025 · Israeli-Palestinian Peace: International Fund · Hansard source

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  I very much agree that we need to address the scale of the issue—certainly. That is why it is very important that we build consensus on this issue across the House, and I welcome contributions from Members of all parties who are genuinely interested in finding a resolution. Democracy is one of the strongest tools that we have in the quest for peace, not just in ensuring that our Government do their part, but in giving disenfranchised people a say in their future. We saw that clearly in Ireland, where the promise that people could express their political desires and views with a ballot in their hand instead of a rifle was key to tackling violent extremism. I have personally engaged with Israel’s democratic tradition in my recent meetings with Yair Golan, the leader of the opposition Democrats party. He is an inspiring man who has put his life on the line, and he has been a clear and consistent voice for peace and security. I also welcome Israel’s continued engagement with the UK, but democracy will not be built and maintained unless there is a strong coalition of ordinary people and communities to safeguard it. Peacebuilding is about not just summits and large state initiatives, but the day-to-day work of people on the ground doing their utmost to set the conditions for the ending of hostilities. We know that the Government are ultimately interested in peace in the middle east and are taking a long-term view to achieve that end. We have seen momentum build among G7 countries behind an international fund. I want to be clear that that is the crux of today’s debate. This is not about politicking, theatre or gestures. I secured the debate because I am genuinely interested in finding long-term solutions and achieving the best outcomes in the light of the realities that we face. The UK has the opportunity to take action and provide leadership. I welcome the Prime Minister’s commitment to the fund to date and I am confident that we can build on that in the immediate future. As I draw my speech to a close, I invite Members on both sides of the House to use this opportunity to make suggestions to the Minister about how the Government and the Foreign Office might move this crucial initiative forward.

• 10 Mar 2025 · Crime and Policing Bill · Hansard source

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  This Bill will be very much welcomed back in my constituency, with this Government introducing 50 new laws that will help to cut crime and make my area’s streets safer. They include measures to tackle antisocial behaviour and stop theft, particularly in shops, and to tackle street crime head on, giving the police in our communities new powers to take back town centres from thugs and thieves and tackling knife crime, violence against women and girls, cyber-crime, child sexual abuse and terrorism. That said, I am particularly pleased to see that this Bill deals with one particular issue. Illegal off-road bikes and e-scooters are a significant concern to many people in Mansfield. Antisocial behaviour connected to their inappropriate use was raised with me time and time again on the doorstep during the election campaign, and it is now raised in my casework inbox. I will share one such example, from a constituent who recently contacted me about this issue: “Only yesterday whilst out with my husband doing ‘grandparent school duties’ we were yet again placed in a serious and dangerous situation. Several youths appeared out of nowhere wearing balaclavas weaving around our vehicle before racing off in different directions. The silence of them means you have no awareness of them before they appear in front of your car”. Many constituents report similar concerns, and are exasperated that nothing can be done to deal with the issue. Enough is enough, and I am delighted to announce after discussions I have had with local officers in Mansfield that the police are launching a crackdown over the coming weeks to tackle antisocial behaviour in my constituency related to off-road bikes and e-scooters. As part of this crackdown, officers are appealing to the public to come forward via a new dedicated police email address—set up with my office and by the 101 phone line— to report any illegal bike-related antisocial behaviour. Using that information, officers will take significant enforcement action to target those who are terrorising our communities in Mansfield. I will be working closely with the police during that campaign, and will be holding a public meeting with them on 21 March to explain how it will work. I would be delighted to update the Home Secretary on its progress. More information will be released by my office in the coming days, but this crackdown will rely on my constituents acting as the eyes and ears on the ground. Without their reports, the project will not be a success, so I urge local people in Mansfield to get involved. To conclude, my message to those causing misery in Mansfield is this: “We see you. The police are coming for you, and our communities will not let you get away with it any longer.”

• 6 Mar 2025 · English Football: Financial Sustainability and Governance · Hansard source

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  In my constituency we are lucky enough to have Mansfield Town, founded in 1897, as our local club. We are currently in English football league one. The Stags, as they are known, have had their ups and downs, but I am pleased to say that the current owners have clearly indicated to me their commitment to our approach to financial sustainability and good governance. The chairman and members of the board have done a great deal of work to secure the future of the club, but I want to take this opportunity, just a few days prior to International Women’s Day, to recognise the work of Carolyn Radford, who has been the chief executive officer since 2011. I am sure that hon. Members will agree that football clubs are often a focal point for communities, and that it is important that we nurture and support grassroots football in our constituencies. I am pleased to say that Mansfield Town does just that through the Radford and Hymas Academy and the Mansfield Town community trust. As the local MP, I wholeheartedly support that work, and I will do whatever I can to support those civic-minded aspirations; I hope they go from strength to strength in the coming years.

• 6 Mar 2025 · North Sea Energy · Hansard source

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  The Minister has already alluded to last week’s CBI report, which set out some of the huge opportunities that net zero offers for job creation, investment and growth. Will she outline to the House what steps her Department is taking to ensure we benefit from all that opportunity through Great British Energy and the National Wealth Fund?

• 4 Mar 2025 · Gaza · Hansard source

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  Of course, many of us in this House want to see progress towards a permanent two-state solution following the current ceasefire and hostage deal. In December, the Prime Minister announced that the Foreign Secretary would be convening a meeting of partners to support civil society in both Israel and Palestine. What update can the Minister provide to the House on how the UK plans to support the international forum for Israeli-Palestinian peace?

• 26 Feb 2025 · High Street Rental Auctions · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Vickers. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth West (Jessica Toale) for securing this important debate. It was the honour of my life last summer to be elected as the local Member of Parliament in Mansfield, partly because some of my earliest memories are of my older cousins taking me into the thriving, beautiful town centre, which at that time hosted a bustling local business scene. My favourite was the Miss Candy sweet shop—it was not the American kind—which my cousins would take me to before we went to the Granada cinema in Mansfield town centre. Sadly, over the years, our high streets have lost a great deal of the sparkle I remember as a child. They have become a shadow of their former selves, with one in seven high street shops closed across the country. Mansfield is no exception, with one in six closed, which is not very different from what we see in other parts of the country. Many of the big-name anchor retailers mentioned today—Beales, Woolworths and Debenhams—have all gone from Mansfield. Unfortunately, many of the small businesses that have been in the town for generations have also disappeared in recent years. Antisocial behaviour remains an issue, with vacant, boarded-up shops becoming an eyesore, often attracting those who want to loiter and sometimes cause trouble. Police cuts under the former Government also meant that local officers were less able to patrol and intervene. It is not inevitable that our towns will continue this degree of decline and deterioration. In Mansfield, we of course want a thriving town centre with a mix of traders, facilities and community assets that attract people to the town. I therefore thank local organisations, such as Mansfield district council, which is working hard with organisations like the Mansfield BID—the business improvement district—to improve our town, including by converting the former Beales department store into a new community and civic hub. This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for renewal will transform the former Beales into a hub hosting a range of organisations —including educational institutions—public services and opportunities for enterprise, health and wellbeing amenities. I very much welcome that, but we need to do more. That is why I stood as an MP, making it one of my missions to revitalise our town centre as part of my deliverable local plan. I am therefore proud to support a Government who have already taken decisive action to support that effort, including by committing to a £20 million investment for Mansfield as part of the long-term plan for towns, permanently lowering business rates and providing more money to tackle retail crime. The Government are also introducing—this is the topic we are discussing today—powers to establish high street rental auctions. As has been mentioned, that new and creative policy will help to regenerate our high streets. Having engaged with the Government, I am delighted that Mansfield has been chosen as one of the first areas to participate in this initiative. These trailblazing new powers will allow Mansfield district council to tackle persistently vacant properties by putting leases up for auction, preventing disengaged landlords from sitting on empty properties, and bringing vacant commercial properties back into use. That will have a transformational impact on our town centre, making units available for all manner of organisations, from local entrepreneurs to community groups. It will help to re-energise our town centre in a way we have not seen for a generation or more. Although the project is in its early days, the Government recently made funding available to Mansfield district council, which is currently engaging to deliver on this new approach. Having spoken to officers involved in delivering the policy in Mansfield, I understand that they have concerns about how the scheme will be implemented—notably around the council’s flexibility in spending the money allocated to deliver the policy. In the council’s opinion, some minor changes could make a significant difference in supporting it to deliver this important policy. As such, I would be grateful if the Minister could meet me and officers from Mansfield district council to discuss those changes further in a constructive manner. To conclude, I thank the Government for supporting Mansfield in this way, and I look forward to us working together so that we can support our town centre. That shows what a Labour Government, a Labour MP and a Labour council, working hand in hand, can deliver for people across the country, including in Mansfield.

• 25 Feb 2025 · Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [Lords] · Hansard source

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  It is often said that the UK is increasingly a knowledge economy; a place where our growth and jobs come both from trading ideas and information as well as physical goods. This Government’s plan for growth clearly recognises that and plays to our strengths, which is why we are now the second most attractive country to invest in globally, according to a recent PWC report. However, it is vital that the benefits are felt equally across our country. Areas with a proud industrial heritage like my constituency of Mansfield did not get the investment and training programmes they needed under previous Governments, and our young people have suffered the consequences of that. Many of them face an unenviable choice between staying trapped in unstable and low-quality employment or leaving their home towns to seek opportunity elsewhere in the country. My election in July was a resounding vote for change in Mansfield, and my first mission for the constituency was to fight for a growing economy with good-quality jobs for everyone. For that reason, I will be pleased to vote for the Bill, which is a major step of progress in the Government’s reform of the skills and apprenticeships system. Apprenticeships are a critical component for high-quality jobs in Mansfield. On my visits to businesses around my constituency, I have been fortunate enough to see the great work already being done by some of our employers, working in partnership with West Notts college and Nottingham Trent University. That includes: local aerospace and nuclear electronics company Glenair, which recently took on 60 apprentices; Power Saving Solutions in Warsop; and Capita in Mansfield, which is doing particularly good work to support people with disabilities to access and sustain employment through apprenticeships. They are providing opportunities not just for school leavers but for those who are retraining and getting back into the world of work. We must not underestimate the importance of that for those individuals, the local economy or for productivity and growth nationally. We need to be doing more to encourage that type of opportunity in my constituency and across the country. I therefore welcome the changes that we will vote on today. In particular, the transfer of powers from the old Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education to the new Skills England body and the reform of the apprenticeship levy are two measures that will help bring together under one roof the patchwork of schemes and organisations that currently exists and result in a more flexible system that will give our local training pioneers the support they need. Britain needs to begin the process of reskilling workers. I draw attention to the work that Nottingham Trent is doing with West Notts to encourage adult learners, facilitating direct entry into the renewables workforce, which is another great example. I expect the impacts to be transformative for Mansfield in the long term. For that reason, I end by inviting the Minister to visit my constituency, where she will be able to see for herself the start made in upskilling our young people and adults as well as how far these changes will go in delivering secure, fulfilling, well-paid employment. Mansfield is a place with significant latent potential. I believe that a keen-eyed collaboration between local businesses, further and higher education and the Government will support our formerly neglected area to realise the potential that we have.

• 12 Feb 2025 · Fuel Poverty: England · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Efford. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Normanton and Hemsworth (Jon Trickett) for securing this important debate. All of us, from all parties, would agree that this topic matters enormously to our constituents. In my Mansfield constituency, one in six households live in fuel poverty. That is almost 10,000 households, which is higher than the average for the east midlands and considerably higher than the national average. Although energy costs have fallen from the extraordinary highs that we saw in 2022, the price cap remains very high for my constituents. Families with children in my constituency are more than twice as likely to be in fuel stress compared with pensioner households, and lone-parent households are three times as likely to be. The Government must recognise that. I am pleased that the new Government are currently reviewing the fuel poverty strategy for England to help everyone, whether they are pensioners, families or people living alone, to keep warm. I welcome the Government’s decisive action to help to reduce bills in the longer term, including through their warm homes plan, which will provide funding to enable property owners, including social landlords, to transition their housing stock to become decarbonised and more energy efficient. I take this opportunity to congratulate Mansfield district council on all its work to retrofit existing properties. I hear from my constituents that that has made a huge difference to their fuel bills. I also congratulate the Labour-controlled Mansfield district council on building more eco-friendly, affordable family council homes in my constituency, such as those on the Bellamy Road development that I visited last week. In the long term, Great British Energy will invest in clean power projects all across the country. Clean power is the cheapest form of electricity generation and will help our country to become energy independent and not as susceptible to huge swings in international energy prices. I agree with my hon. Friend the Member for Normanton and Hemsworth that in the medium term we should encourage energy suppliers to re-establish social tariffs. I say to the Minister that it is really important to have that in place for next winter. It would help everyone in my constituency who is experiencing fuel stress to access cheaper energy, and it would have a tangible impact for my constituents. In the short term, I want to make the case for a substantial expansion of the cold weather payment scheme as an efficient way to address the current reality of energy cost pressures in Mansfield. It would offer a way for the Government to provide pensioners with further payments in the event of a serious chill, while at the same time offering something to families who are not often part of this conversation. Expanding the eligibility for households in receipt of a means-tested benefit, state pension, child benefit or disability benefits would help the poorest families and non-pensioner households to receive support. This would provide vital economic security for families in my constituency. I know that the Government want to do more—I am sure of that. I look forward to hearing their response to the review in due course and hope that Ministers can implement it ahead of next winter.

• 10 Feb 2025 · Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill · Hansard source

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  Our country has a proud history and record of offering sanctuary to and helping those in need. From the Kindertransport when we offered a home to Jewish children escaping Nazi persecution to hosting Ukrainians fleeing President Putin’s Russia, our country has proudly welcomed people from around the world. In fact, in our very own hour of need, when our cities lay in ruins after world war two, immigrants from the West Indies played a significant role in rebuilding Britain, filling labour shortages in critical sectors such as construction, transport and healthcare. We should never forget either the contribution that immigrants have made to our country or our responsibility as a place of refuge in the world, but today immigration is higher than it is ever been, and this causes legitimate problems and concerns that my constituents in Mansfield are very concerned about. Let me be absolutely clear that my constituents, many of whom voted for me last year, are not racist, right wing or far right for having concerns about immigration and the security of our borders. They are neither racist nor far right for being worried about our NHS, about housing or about why their children cannot get a place in the local school of their choice. We must never label those constituents who raise legitimate and factually sound concerns as racist. What we must do as a Government is address those concerns. I believe that the previous Government failed to do that, instead allowing migration, both legal and illegal, to skyrocket. I am glad, therefore, that the Government are scrapping the completely ineffective Rwanda scheme, which cost an eye-watering £700 million, and that we are instead introducing measures that will deal with the problem at hand. I am particularly pleased that the Bill will target the people smuggling gangs that have facilitated boat crossings of the channel. It will create a new offence of selling or handling small boat parts for use in the channel, it will enable the confiscation of electronic devices and the disruption of communications, and it will support the newly created Border Security Command. These responsible, realistic actions show that this Government are focused on delivering results, unlike the solutions offered by the Opposition. My constituents in Mansfield want to get on with things. This Bill, along with the other legislation that the Government have introduced in their first six months to support house building and invest in our national health service and schools, will go a long way towards doing that.

• 10 Feb 2025 · Rosebank and Jackdaw Oilfields · Hansard source

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  I commend the Minister for the Government’s rapid action, which he alluded to earlier. Does he agree that it is thanks to our record-breaking investment in not one but two first-of-a-kind carbon capture projects that we are getting on with delivering the good jobs that our communities deserve?

• 4 Feb 2025 · National Cancer Plan · Hansard source

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  I welcome today’s statement and I know that my wife, Julia, who is a consultant radiographer in mammography at King’s Mill hospital, will also welcome it. One of my earliest childhood memories is of watching my grandfather, William Yemm, die of lung cancer. William was a lifelong coalminer at Blidworth colliery. I think he drank and smoked rather more than was good for him throughout his life, so does the Minister agree that prevention is every bit as important as diagnosis, treatment and research in the fight against cancer? Can he reassure me that this welcome national cancer plan will consider what action we can take to prevent people from developing cancer?

• 4 Feb 2025 · UK-US Bilateral Relationship · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir John. I thank the hon. Member for Dumfries and Galloway (John Cooper) for securing this debate, and I look forward to visiting his constituency in a couple of weeks for a short holiday during recess. Like the UK, the USA recently voted for decisive change. I heartily congratulate President Trump on his election. People here in the UK and across the Atlantic have been feeling the impact of low economic growth, with a decline in productivity and GDP per capita for many years. From Mansfield, Massachusetts to my constituency of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, people are feeling the impact in their pockets. They know how tough things are out there for their families. The recent changes in both Governments are clearly a response to the frustration felt by both electorates, and it is therefore in both our countries’ interests to work together to deal with the issue. Despite many attempts to highlight the differences between the two Administrations, we have a great deal in common. Both Governments have made much of their agenda for growth: the US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent said that an increase in GDP should be seen as a key performance indicator of the Trump presidency, while here at home my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer has also made it clear that economic growth is the Government’s No. 1 mission, a message reiterated through announcements in the past week. We all understand that, primarily, a Government must ensure the economic security of the electorate and give them confidence that they will be better off. However, to earn the right even to be heard on the crucial issue of the economy, parties—in opposition or in government—must prove beyond doubt that they can also ensure the safety and security of the nation. Here in the UK we have been steadily increasing our defence spending as a share of GDP over the last 10 years. It is currently at just over 2.3%, higher than the NATO target and higher than most other NATO countries. The new Administration in the United States want NATO allies to do more, and I agree that we must. We live in an increasingly dangerous world, and it is right that we and our European allies are asked to do, and do, more. Only yesterday the Prime Minister was in Brussels urging our European neighbours to spend more on defence and to step up and shoulder more of the burden. We underestimate the threat of Vladimir Putin and Russia at our peril. The Government must go further, with an aspiration to spend 2.5% and beyond on defence as soon as possible. That alignment of priorities should be seen as an opportunity for us here in the UK. It is an opportunity for the UK to be the bridge between US and our European neighbours and, most importantly, NATO. We can take the case to the United States by jointly demonstrating our unshakable commitment to the alliance through our contributions to defence spending. Britain must take the lead on that agenda. As a former chief executive officer in the United States and as someone who spent many years there in Massachusetts and California, I wholeheartedly support the Government’s efforts to work more closely with the new US Administration. The special relationship is paramount to the international diplomatic network. Both Administrations share a renewed confidence from their electorate based upon the common agendas that I have outlined, and it is on those agendas that we must build a much stronger relationship with the United States going forward.

• 28 Jan 2025 · Defence Procurement: Small and Medium-sized Enterprises · Hansard source

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  I thank you, Mr Stringer, for the opportunity to serve under your chairmanship and my hon. Friend the Member for Newton Aycliffe and Spennymoor (Alan Strickland) for tabling this important debate. The UK defence sector is recognised as a global leader: Government defence spending supports more than 400,000 jobs across the UK, and many jobs in my constituency. I therefore welcomed the Defence Secretary’s announcement of plans to develop a new defence industrial strategy with the aim of producing a better—more integrated, more innovative and more resilient—defence sector in the UK. I therefore want to make the point loud and clear to the Minister that, in my constituency of Mansfield, we are well prepared to support the Government in that mission, and indeed are already doing so. I draw particular attention to a local business, Glenair, which I will visit next month. It employs about 1,000 people in my constituency and works to supply products that are critical to our defence, including military aerospace, nuclear and military land systems. Glenair is driving those innovations; in fact, it is on the cutting edge of innovation. I am pleased that the Government want to do all they can to support this industry, and therefore companies such as Glenair, here in the UK. Glenair is a fantastic example of an employer that is investing in its workforce. This year, it took on almost 60 apprentices across a wide range of disciplines, not just in engineering. It established those apprenticeships well before the apprenticeship levy was introduced, because it recognises how important well-supported, well-trained and highly skilled workers are to its business. This is also why it is crucial for us as a Government to invest in further and higher education. Let me summarise my main points: first, we already have some fantastic innovative businesses here in the UK; secondly, investing in education and looking at how we can be more innovative will make a significant difference to delivering on our objectives; and, thirdly, in Mansfield we are unashamedly ready to support the Government in doing so. During the election campaign last summer, I promised to deliver on local missions for the people of Mansfield. One of them was to do everything in my power to help provide a stable and growing economy with good-quality jobs for everyone. With that in mind, I invite the Minister to visit Mansfield so that she can see for herself the fantastic opportunities that are available. Let us work together so that we can play our part in delivering that objective.

• 21 Jan 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T3. My constituency of Mansfield has more members of the British Coal staff superannuation scheme than any other constituency in the country. Will the Chief Secretary outline the process and questions that need to be satisfied to release the investment reserve fund to the surviving beneficiaries of the scheme?

• 14 Jan 2025 · Renters’ Rights Bill · Hansard source

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  The reforms outlined in this Bill and the amendments are, of course, long overdue. When I stood for election last year, I promised that I would deliver on five missions for Mansfield, one of which was to fix our broken housing market and ensure that people have affordable homes to rent. Sadly, that mission is necessary because many of my constituents face the constant risk of eviction. They live in fear of massive rent hikes, or endure substandard and even dangerous conditions in their homes. I will discuss two key aspects of the amendments. First, I support Government new clause 13, particularly in respect of rent and deposits in advance. I will read a few lines from a recent casework email that I received from one of my constituents: “I saw a house listed for rent and paid a deposit and rent in advance to secure the property. There were a few things that needed doing, which the agency said they would let the landlord know about and get fixed. I received the keys and was shocked that the damp and mould was still there, the radiator in one of the bedrooms was left on the floor and the bathtub was still out of place. The agent told me that the gas engineers told them that ‘the pipes in the house are all botched’. Winter is around the corner and if the heaters were to stop working, I’d have to stay in the house freezing. I’m a nurse and it would not be ideal for me to be off work sick.” My constituent further wrote: “I tried every day to get an update and find out if the landlord had sorted out the problems. Every time I had to leave in disappointment. Expecting to move into the new house, I vacated my previous occupancy. I was so mentally, emotionally, physically and financially drained that I went to the agency and I gave them the keys back. I did not feel comfortable living in a house where the landlord is neglecting tenants. If I was to move in and something was to go wrong, he would never come out or get it fixed on time.” Those are really powerful words from my constituent. Following that, my constituent was denied any kind of refund for a period of months. They were only able to secure a refund due to a last-minute intervention by my office, after I had suggested that I would name the letting agent in my speech. The letting agent was kind enough to get back to my constituent and has provided them with a full refund today. That outlines the importance of Government new clause 13 and why I am pleased to support it, and it emphasises why the reform set out in the Bill and the amendments is needed. I understand that the decent homes standard outlined in the Bill will force landlords in the private rented sector to make their homes safe and secure, and to give tenants more avenues for financial redress when things go wrong, as in the case of my constituent. My second point is that we have seen rents increase at a dramatic rate year after year, and it is time that people in the private rented sector got a better deal. There are usually many applications from prospective tenants when a new property comes to market in my constituency, which often leads to bidding wars driving up the price that is paid to rent the property, pitting tenant against tenant. This leaves only one winner. I am pleased that the Government have also set the target of building 1.5 million new homes in England over five years, which will make a huge difference. I recognise and welcome those measures.

• 8 Jan 2025 · Social Housing Tenants: Antisocial Behaviour · Hansard source

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  Again, I thank the hon. Member for his intervention. The experience that I have from casework tells me many of those things also; I see many examples of such casework at my surgery. I think councils should and must be better equipped for enforcement action than they are today. They need to make a dedicated response. It needs to be backed by stronger regulation. They need to work more closely alongside the police to gather evidence of reports of antisocial behaviour. I would hope that, in turn, that would free up our police officers to respond to more serious criminal activity, rather than having to focus their resources on these recurring incidents. Secondly, in my outlook, affording up to three strikes under the current system may well perpetuate the crisis, leaving some of those upstanding and decent social housing tenants at the mercy of problem tenants in neighbourhoods in my constituency. I fear that tenants in neighbouring properties would be subject to a process that could take years to conclude or that failed to do so because of loopholes and inconsistencies in their self-collected evidence. We have a new Labour Government. We are looking to renew the social contract between the state and individuals, but part of that contract requires certain commitments of responsibility to earn the rights that it provides. Like all other citizens, social housing tenants should be expected to respect their neighbours and not contribute to antisocial behaviour, or they should forfeit the right to be housed by their council. In my outlook, rather than affording three strikes, this should be a zero-tolerance policy, and I am confident that my constituents who suffer at the hands of those engaged in antisocial behaviour in their neighbourhoods would agree with me. Finally, I want to outline the mechanism that I have collaborated in with Mansfield police and Mansfield district council to tackle this issue. It has in part been made possible by the Government’s neighbourhood policing strategy and the direction of Nottinghamshire police, under the Labour police and crime commissioner, Gary Godden. Often, antisocial behaviour is complex in nature and a multifaceted, multi-agency approach is required to resolve it—something that, in my limited experience, should prevent passing of the buck. However, that collaboration can only be as effective as the legislative support that it has to operate under. We have seen the effect that Government policy is already having on neighbourhood policing, and stronger powers for councils would enable them to provide peace and security for respecting and respectable social housing tenants who abide by their tenancy contracts and reflect our British values of decency towards their neighbours.

• 8 Jan 2025 · Social Housing Tenants: Antisocial Behaviour · Hansard source

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  Indeed, and I thank the hon. Member for his intervention. I agree, and I will address that in my comments. We need named neighbourhood officers taking ownership of their patches in council estates and social housing areas in our town and becoming part of the community again. We are already beginning to see in multi-agency meetings the impact that that can have. In the press over the weekend and again today, the hon. Member has talked about his desire to implement a three-strike rule for social housing tenants that would see them evicted after three instances of antisocial behaviour that meets the evidence threshold to demonstrate it. I would argue that this proposition is somewhat too liberal and lenient and does not go far enough to address the issues.

• 8 Jan 2025 · Social Housing Tenants: Antisocial Behaviour · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for his intervention. My dismay is at what I hear from my constituents, many of whom have suffered for many years trying to prove a single instance of antisocial behaviour. Indeed, they are often then notified that the advised method of evidence collection—often recordings on a mobile phone app—does not satisfy the evidential requirements to take action. After many years of threats to their own security and a great deal of effort, they find that the action is dropped and has to be started again. This is not an isolated incident in my constituency. Many, many women—and it is almost always women—have come to me in tears at my surgeries.

• 8 Jan 2025 · Social Housing Tenants: Antisocial Behaviour · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms McVey. I thank the hon. Member for Ashfield (Lee Anderson) for securing this important debate. The Labour Government have a clear mission to tackle antisocial behaviour and halve violence against women and girls. My constituency is troubled by endemic antisocial behaviour, both domestically and in our town centre. In addition, Mansfield is the worst affected town in Nottinghamshire for violent offences perpetrated by men against women. Hon. Members will know my concern for women’s welfare in both of those regards, having alluded to them in previous debates. My experience from listening to victims of antisocial behaviour in this context is that they are often women who are systematically failed by a response system unfit for purpose. That disadvantages women victims in their journey for justice when facing this abuse. That is not a criticism of the police or necessarily of community safety and housing teams and officers in local authorities. Broadly speaking, my experience is that they are doing their utmost to deal with the situation, within the legal framework that they face and the resources that they have. Before I continue, I would like to pass on my gratitude to Nottinghamshire police, especially Inspector Davies and her neighbourhood team in Mansfield, as well as Mansfield district council, for engaging with my office about casework on issues outlined by the hon. Member for Ashfield. I can already see the impact of the new neighbourhood policing approach and strategy in Mansfield.

• 8 Jan 2025 · Social Housing Tenants: Antisocial Behaviour · Hansard source

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  That is exactly what I am saying. I wish to address the issues that are being endured by social housing tenants at the hands of those who are consistently perpetrating domestic antisocial behaviour in their neighbourhoods, and a “three strikes and you’re out” approach would take many, many years of them suffering this type of abuse. I will outline why I think such an approach would be lacking in its effectiveness of outcome and deterrence. First, my experience is that there are issues with the evidence threshold. Councils in my area and many others are asking victims of antisocial behaviour in social housing to bear the burden of proof by taking their own recordings and notes and submitting them. Many constituents who attend my surgeries have gone through all the stress and anxiety of doing that on numerous occasions, having put their mental wellbeing and often their personal security at risk, only to then be told that the evidence does not meet the threshold required to instigate an intervention.

• 8 Jan 2025 · Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to stand here today and talk about a Bill that delivers on the Government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity. There are two aspects that I particularly welcome. The first is the potential profit cap, which will enable the Secretary of State to cap the profits of non-local authority Ofsted-registered providers of children’s homes, foster agencies and supported accommodation. There are areas throughout the country, including mine, where the cost of placing children in private sector residential social care is eye-wateringly high. I regularly meet officers from my local authority, Nottinghamshire county council, and the costs that they are incurring to meet the needs of children’s welfare have been described by the council’s former Conservative leader, Ben Bradley, as “rinsing” local authority finances. I think it important for us to ensure that private companies are not making excessive profits at the expense of other public sector services, and I therefore welcome the numerous measures in the Bill that aim to rebalance the children’s social care placements market and drive down those excessive profits made by some unscrupulous private providers, together with the demand for full financial transparency from those organisations and the potential for the creation of regional care co-operatives.

• 8 Jan 2025 · Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill · Hansard source

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  Indeed; I see the positive benefit of both those developments. We will be able to rebalance spending across local authority budgets and provide a significantly better and measurable standard of care at the same time. The second aspect of the Bill that I particularly welcome is the introduction of free breakfast clubs in every primary school, which will have a significant and positive impact on families in Mansfield, in particular by helping with the cost of living and supporting parents who are having to juggle work commitments. However, I am especially motivated to support the Bill because of some of the harrowing stories that I have heard from constituents. Numerous teachers in Mansfield, some of them visibly distressed and upset, have told me that they have used their own money to buy food for children who have turned up to school with empty stomachs—young children who are so hungry that they cannot concentrate on their studies. It is not that those children are unloved or wilfully neglected; many come from loving families with both parents working all hours to provide for them, which leaves precious little time for the preparation of a meal before school. This Bill clearly drives home Labour’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity, and I will be voting for it proudly on behalf of all the children and families in my area who will benefit from it.

• 3 Dec 2024 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T9. What measures are the Government taking to support small independent retail businesses in town centres such as mine in Mansfield, and will the Chancellor join me in congratulating Mansfield business improvement district on its successful renewal ballot, which was announced last Friday?

• 27 Nov 2024 · Violence against Women and Girls · Hansard source

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  My constituency is classed as the most dangerous major town in Nottinghamshire, and by far the most common crimes are violence and sexual offences. Like much of the rest of the UK, Mansfield is victim to deeply rooted misogynistic beliefs and social norms that allow violence against women and girls to proliferate. In the time I have, I would like to welcome some of the valuable work and initiatives already ongoing in my community, particularly the work by Mansfield district council and Nottinghamshire police in relation to their Safer Streets initiative, and the police and crime commissioner’s strategy for tackling violence against women and girls. As a proud father to three women, I recognise the privilege I have had throughout my life. Simply being a man has protected me from having to navigate the gender-based challenges that are ever present in the lives of girls and women. For example, I do not know the feeling of silently suffering sexual harassment in school and the effects that it could have on my education, or of being scared to walk alone at night, with the constant need to check over my shoulder. Does my hon. Friend the Minister agree with me not only that there is great value in putting the voices and experiences of women and girls at the centre of our work, but that equally every one of us has to acknowledge the responsibility that we have for tackling this issue?

• 25 Nov 2024 · Speaker’s Statement · Hansard source

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  Further to that point of order, Mr Speaker. I was deeply saddened to hear about the death of John Prescott. I send my condolences to Pauline, his sons and all those who were close to him. I considered him to be a good friend of mine and of Mansfield. He was a giant of a man and a champion of the coalfields, devolution, local government and climate action. I first met John in the 1980s, as an activist in the Labour party, and enjoyed supporting him in his first campaign to be deputy leader in 1988, and in his campaign to be leader and deputy leader in 1994. His legacy includes setting up the Coalfields Regeneration Trust, which was established to help support former coalfield areas in communities such as Mansfield that had been impacted by the pit closure programmes of the 1980s and 1990s. That helped ensure that my area received millions of pounds of funding. John had a particularly strong link to my constituency of Mansfield, especially through my Labour predecessor, Sir Alan Meale, who was his parliamentary private secretary for some years. Anecdotally, I can recall many endearing memories of John, including a time when we were playing table tennis in Sir Alan’s front yard in Mansfield. It was a lovely sunny day and we were enjoying our game in the garden, on a day when the Prime Minister was out of the country on business. An important call came through that John had to take, and we paused our game. To this day, I have no idea who it was or what was said, but the conversation clearly distracted John so much that when he arrived back, he hit the ball with such force that it bounced right off the table and hit the ministerial car. From that experience, I can assure the House that the left hook still packed a mighty punch. In the years after John left office, I would often drive him back to the station at Newark or Doncaster after his many visits to Mansfield, so he could get the train to London or back home to Hull. The insights from his frank and honest recollections of history from the Blair and Brown years will stay with me for a very long time. May he rest in peace.