Shockat Adam
MP for Leicester South · Independent · United Kingdom
“Does the hon. Gentleman share my concern that although the Government already have remediation orders, remediation contribution orders and the responsible actor scheme, the Property Institute says that it has seen absolutely no evidence that they have been used proactively, and that no developer to date has faced any consequences?”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Although only 10% of 394 developer-pledged projects have been completed, I believe that under the Bill resident management companies could face criminal charges while the developers who sign the pledges would not. Can the Secretary of State clarify whether that is the case?”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“In ancient Egypt, where cats were given sacred status, Diodorus Siculus reported that killing one cat, even by accident, would cost someone their life. I want to be clear that that is not what CatsMatter or any other organisation is asking for, because this is not about punishing motorists.”
House of Commons26 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Dogs were included in 1930, even though most were already companions at that stage, because no driver could tell a sheepdog from a family pet. Today, a driver must report hitting a terrier or a puppy no bigger than a kitten but not a cat of exactly the same size.”
House of Commons26 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“A Hungarian study has found that drivers were uncertain in only 2.3% of pet collisions. A duty to stop and report, paired with one clear, well publicised route to help, would give decent drivers the confidence to act. There is no need for that to be expensive. Parliament routinely passes short enabling clauses.”
House of Commons26 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It is an honour to serve under your chairship, Mr Vickers. I thank the Petitions Committee and the 189,192 people who signed the petition, especially on behalf of my two lovely cats, Levi and Lola. They are especially indebted because their mum does not let them out—they want to, but it is not safe enough.”
House of Commons26 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
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“Henry’s heartbroken father has said that Henry’s family do not want his murder to “be used to create further division, hatred or tension.” I pray that we all heed those words in this House. This heinous crime is made worse by the shocking police response, and lessons must be learnt. What will the Home Secretary do differently to crack down on the epidemic of knife crime, such as creating a dedicated knife crime Minister? What steps will she take to ensure that our Sikh community, who are overwhelmingly peaceful and integrated, are not held collectively responsible by those who wish to divide us?”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Israel’s illegal invasion of Lebanon is continuing unabated. Millions have left their homes, and millions of refugees have fled to the north. It is happening all over again: people are suffering and civilians are dying. What is the Secretary of State doing to suspend all military co-operation with Israel so that it stops the Gazafication of Lebanon?”
House of Commons1 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“History gives us cause for concern, especially when it comes to private finance initiative arrangements, which have cost the NHS tens of billions of pounds over decades. Let me end by saying something about the Palantir question. The creation of a single patient record is welcome, but the vessel matters as much as the vision. The £330 million NHS federated data platform contract, awarded by the last Government and inherited by this one, raises serious and unresolved questions, and it must be addressed.”
House of Commons1 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It causes irreversible sight loss, it increases the risk of falls, and it carries serious long-term costs for both the NHS and social care, and we now have the technology to address it more efficiently than ever. The iStent inject device can be inserted during routine cataract surgery in a single procedure, treating both conditions simultaneously. This is exactly the kind of innovation that the 10-year health plan calls for, yet uptake is inconsistent because there is no national commissioning guidance. I urge the Government to ensure that the single patient record supports consistent clinical decision making across the glaucoma pathway, and that integrated care boards are required, not merely permitted, to commission those procedures. The Bill also abolishes NHS England, and we have heard much about that.”
House of Commons1 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I must also declare my interest as a practising optometrist. Clause 14 gives integrated care boards new responsibilities over primary care services, and the Bill transfers commissioning of NHS sight tests from a national framework to individual ICBs. I completely understand the logic of localisation, but I have already seen what happens in practice. In Coventry and Warwickshire, a community urgent eye care service that was diverting more than 13,000 A&E attendances per year was withdrawn at the end of 2025. In Hampshire, community glaucoma schemes have been moved back into hospitals. This is the postcode lottery in action. Glaucoma affects approximately 700,000 people in the UK, with about half of them walking around undiagnosed.”
House of Commons1 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We all cherish the NHS, and all of us in this Chamber have a duty to ensure that anybody who does not believe in the basic principle that care should follow need, not wealth, must be nowhere near the jewel in our crown that is the NHS. I begin with primary care—or, indeed, the glaring inequality in primary care. Practices in the most deprived areas carry, on average, 300 more patients per fully qualified GP than those in the least deprived. That gap has grown by 50% since 2018. In Leicester—my constituency and my home—there are 1,985 patients per GP, which is significantly above the national average. The Bill introduces a statutory duty to reduce health inequalities and, under clause 24, to produce neighbourhood health plans, but a plan without the workforce to deliver it is a plan in name only.”
House of Commons1 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Leicester’s textile sector exists, the capability exists, and the security case for buying British has never been stronger. The NHS is the largest employer in the country and one of the largest procurers of textiles, from uniforms to bedding and from surgical gowns to staff clothing. The potential is enormous. Not only would a targeted commitment to NHS procurement from UK manufacturers—and Leicester manufacturers in particular—support local jobs and local supply chains; it would reduce carbon emissions from long-distance shipping, strengthen our supply chain resilience, and build exactly the kind of productive, skilled employment base that the Government say they want to create.”
House of Commons20 May 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I will quickly turn to an example that illustrates precisely what backing businesses ought to look like in practice, and where Government procurement could—if the Government choose—make a transformative difference. I have spoken to local textile business owners in Leicester, the city that used to clothe the world. At one stage, it was the second richest city in Europe because of its industry; unfortunately, it is now on its knees because contracts are being given to foreign companies, such as those in China, instead of to young, hard-working British entrepreneurs. Awarding defence uniform contracts to Chinese manufacturers is not simply an economic error, but a strategic one. It creates supply chain dependency on foreign nations at the precise moment when the Government are asking us to take defence seriously.”
House of Commons20 May 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We must invest in the future rather than pile costs on to our own businesses, and thereby allow corporations to run riot. That is why it has been very pleasing to hear many Members speak about apprenticeships, which are a perfect example of investing in the future. I welcome any ambition to expand opportunities for young people, but warm words must be followed by structural change. University was once the most favoured destination for economic growth, but for many, that is economically out of reach. Still, the journey of an apprenticeship is a renewed ticket to economic growth and the skilled defence workforce this country urgently needs, including engineers, manufacturers and technicians. We cannot build frigates or maintain fighter jets with a generation who have been left behind.”
House of Commons20 May 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Small and medium-sized enterprises are the backbone of British prosperity. In my constituency of Leicester South, as in constituencies across this country, the employers, the innovators, and the anchor institutions of our high streets and industrial estates, are being hammered by the increased cost of living, whether it is energy and business rate rises, increased costs to staffing budgets, or national insurance contributions. The Office for Budget Responsibility found that the changes to national insurance contributions caused a 2% hike in payroll costs for employers last year alone, while the confidence of chief executive officers has fallen more in recent years than during the pandemic. The Government’s spending on defence must come from the bottom up.”
House of Commons20 May 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“These are the things that are going to destroy our nation; these are the things that we really need to worry about. I would also like to highlight the colossal waste of money in previous defence projects, given that many people jump to say that we must spend on defence and sacrifice welfare, which they say is such a waste of money. The Ajax armoured vehicle programme costs £5.5 billion; it is still not ready and is running over a decade late. The Bowman radio cost £2.5 billion; it was 25 years late and still does not work properly. The Type 45 Daring class destroyers are £1.5 billion over budget, and the majority are now being maintained in a dock, despite being less than 15 years old. I turn now to the economy and, more specifically, the businesses that sit at its heart.”
House of Commons20 May 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“An argument has been made today that we must sacrifice welfare for warfare—strip the safety net to fund the military—but my argument is this: the things that make people feel safe at home are exactly what make us worth defending. We talk endlessly about threats abroad, but the things that lead to instability—poverty, inequality, failed public services and communities being left behind—are right here. Just this weekend, on Saturday, at the march to allegedly “Unite the Kingdom”, we saw vile Islamophobic rhetoric and shouts, with organisers and speakers on stage calling for Muslims to be deported from this country and from this place where we sit. Members of parties across the board were openly told to go back home, despite being born and brought up here.”
House of Commons20 May 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Portsmouth North (Amanda Martin), who gave a very powerful speech. I want to use my time to address the issues that matter to the defence of our country and its future from a very domestic perspective. If I have time, I will touch on the historical waste in the defence industry. Following what was said by the former Health Secretary, the right hon. Member for Ilford North (Wes Streeting), sadly around 50% of young people today say that they would not defend our country. The question is, why? Is it because we do not build a strong country by making poor people poorer, and we do not build a strong Army from an unhealthy, under-educated and economically broken population? The two things are not in competition; they are connected.”
House of Commons20 May 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“What assessment has the Minister made of the report concerning communication between the former Foreign Secretary, Lord Cameron, and the International Criminal Court prosecutor, Karim Khan, regarding the court investigation into war crimes in Gaza? What steps is he taking to uphold the independence of the international judicial institutions that we set up?”
House of Commons19 May 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“In 2021, the Prime Minister wrote an essay in which he said, “Where the current Tory government has muddied the waters of transparency…I want to make it easier to hold government to account.” He said that a Labour Government must “play its role in restoring honesty, decency and transparency in public life”— and yet here we are. Does the Minister agree that after all the redacting of messages, it is not only the Labour party that is being damaged, but democracy itself?”
House of Commons19 May 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The truth of the matter is that despite spending over £103 billion of taxpayers’ money, my son has laid more rail track from his Lego set than the previous Government did under the HS2 programme. But seriously, whistleblowers have alleged that costs were deliberately hidden from Parliament, documents were shredded and staff who spoke out were sacked. Before another penny is spent by the British taxpayer, how will the Secretary of State ensure that in the future there are accountable binding mechanisms to stop contractors and executives from misleading the House again?”
House of Commons19 May 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Leicester South has a home ownership rate of just over 40%—nearly 23 points below the national average—in a city where the average house costs 8.5 times average local earnings. My young constituents work very hard and save responsibly to get on to the housing ladder, yet the tax system offers them absolutely nothing, while incorporated landlords deduct full mortgage interest through a company structure. Canada and Nordic countries are offering targeted tax relief for first-time buyers. Has the Chancellor considered introducing a similar relief here to ensure that young people are supported by the tax system, not left behind?”
House of Commons28 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Leicester college, a further education college, is facing a funding crisis that is putting apprenticeships at risk. The Government have a noble commitment to building 1.5 million homes and training 60,000 construction workers, but young people wanting construction apprenticeships are being turned away. No bricklayers, no electricians and no plumbers means no homes. In Leicester, the rate of young people who are not in education, employment or training is nearly 6%—five times higher than the national average. We have the employers and we have the demand, but without proper funding, we cannot deliver the skilled workforce that this country desperately needs. What real-terms funding increase will the Secretary of State commit to in order to ensure that young people have the opportunity to access skills via the apprenticeship scheme?”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I appreciate much of the statement that the Minister has made regarding procurement. I will deflect his attention to textile procurement, especially as the Ministry of Defence has contracted £37 million-worth of military gear to foreign factories, including in China. Some £23 million-worth of NHS personal protective equipment is manufactured abroad. All the while, my constituency has factories and a workforce, and we are ready. We are suffering with a cost of living crisis, so can I ask the Minister to consider onshoring textile procurement?”
House of Commons22 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“While atrocities are being committed against Palestinians in the west bank every single day, including the killing of hundreds and hundreds of children, it is disgusting to learn that British citizens are being offered Palestinian land, which they can purchase with virtually the same ease with which they do their everyday online shopping. Declassified UK has found that Israeli charity Shivat Zion is helping British citizens to move to illegal settlements. That breaks international law; and, to rub salt in the wound, British taxpayers are implicated, as the charity claims UK gift aid. Will the Secretary of State assure the House that she will look into the matter urgently and sanction any organisation, charity or otherwise, complicit in Israeli illegal land grabs?”
House of Commons21 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“My concern is that this Prime Minister will run out of buses before he runs out of people to throw under them. The issue is this. The Prime Minister has said: “I never turn on my staff and you should never turn on your staff.” Well, we have Sue Gray scapegoated, Tim Allan canned, Sir Chris Wormald forced out, Morgan McSweeney axed and now Olly Robbins sacked. Will the Prime Minister accept that the buck stops with him? This is his fault. He should do the honourable thing.”
House of Commons20 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Palantir is the second largest AI supplier to the UK public sector by contract value. It has contracts with the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, the Cabinet Office, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, local authorities and local police services, including those in Leicester South. The Palantir contract review comes in early 2027, so the window is still open. I want to share a scan with a specialist and get an answer before my patient leaves the room; every clinician in this country wants that and every patient deserves it. But the seeing stone is only as safe as the hands that hold it. Choose those hands carefully.”
House of Commons16 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Those are the stated beliefs of the men at the top of a company that we have handed £330 million to, and a £1.5 billion strategic partnership with the British state. And Palantir’s ambitions do not stop there. Its chief operating officer has spoken of a future where Palantir software is inside every missile and every drone. In Gaza, Amnesty International has named Palantir as a contributor to the war crimes and genocide being committed there. In fact, when a protester confronted Palantir’s CEO about the killing of Palestinians—100,000 and counting—in Gaza, he replied that the dead were “mostly terrorists, that’s true.” Over 20,000 children have been killed in Gaza and the CEO of the company that holds our NHS data calls them “mostly terrorists.” It is not just the NHS that is affected.”
House of Commons16 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The stones themselves were not good or evil; they were powerful instruments of vision. In the right hands, they brought clarity and wisdom. The problem, as Tolkien understood it, is never the stone itself; it is who is holding it. Let us have a look at who is holding these stones. As has already been mentioned, Alex Karp said this year that Palantir wants “to scare our enemies and on occasion kill them.” The co-founder of Palantir, Peter Thiel, has written that he no longer believes that freedom and democracy are compatible. He has said that the NHS is making people sick and that the British public’s love for the jewel in our crown—the national health service—is a form of Stockholm syndrome.”
House of Commons16 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Let me be clear: as a practising optometrist, there is nothing more wonderful than touching a button and a patient’s data going to the right people, and I am sure that the Minister will agree. The patient can then be treated appropriately and on time. However, the Darzi and Sudlow reviews, which were published last year, confirmed that our health data system is broken and fragmented, which costs patients dearly. The public overwhelmingly supports better data sharing and so do I. In my opinion, the question is not whether we need data sharing, but who is responsible for this modern-day oil? As has already been said, Palantir was named after the seeing stones from the book “The Lord of the Rings”, the palantíri. Those stones possessed enormous power. However, I want to be fair about them.”
House of Commons16 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Will the Secretary of State tell us urgently what she doing to ensure that British fans can travel to America safely, enjoy the games safely and get back home safely?”
House of Commons16 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I am sure that we are all looking forward to the world cup this summer, and that we all want the home nations to do well. When England finally brings it home, I am sure that we will all be delighted, including our friends from north of the border— I know my office staff member will be. On a serious note, I am deeply concerned about the number of British citizens who have already been impacted by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement detentions and the threat of visa restrictions for international teams, amid lots of illegal wars—started by the FIFA peace prize winner, ironically. Furthermore, we have now learned that UK nationals may be required to surrender five years of personal social media data simply to obtain entry into the United States.”
House of Commons16 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Over the weekend, it was my pleasure to attend the Beat the Odds event in my constituency, which amalgamated 36 grassroots mental health organisations that support people from all backgrounds and of all ages and help those who have sadly fallen through the cracks. The message from those organisations was overwhelmingly clear: they need more financial support. What steps is the Minister taking to ensure that grassroots organisations receive funding to deliver frontline services that save lives?”
House of Commons14 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I welcome the Minister’s statement, and I send my deepest sympathy to the families of everyone who has been affected, especially the family of Khaleed Oladipo, a 20-year-old young man who was stabbed in my constituency just a few weeks ago and sadly lost his life. I also pay tribute to grassroots organisations and individuals with street experience, such as Ditch the Knife, for the vital work that they do. I am glad that the Minister is aware of the work being done by De Montfort University on round-bladed knives, because in 2025 alone 95 lives were lost to kitchen knives. Will she commit to ensuring that grassroots organisation and those with real-life street experience are empowered to play a greater role in delivering lifesaving work?”
House of Commons14 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“There is a direct link between youth services and housing in communities. In fact, it has been shown that once we invest in our youth services, there is reduced homelessness and fewer young people in temporary accommodation. However, the cut in real terms—close to £1 billion—means that the whole sector has been decimated. Does the Minister agree with me that when we lose our youth services and our centres, our whole community suffers? How are this Government going to make youth working a viable career going forward?”
House of Commons13 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Oxfam has warned that the Gaza playbook is being repeated. The Israeli military is demolishing villages in the south of Lebanon, displacing more than 1.3 million people, killing more than 2,000 and injuring more than 6,400. Journalists are being killed by the Israelis. NGO workers are being killed by the Israelis. United Nations peacekeepers are being targeted by the IDF. It is all well and good for the Prime Minister to say it is wrong, but what tangible action will he take to stop Israel’s war machine in its tracks this time, and when will he do what he failed to do during the genocide in Gaza and say no to Israel and no to Benjamin Netanyahu?”
House of Commons13 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The hon. Member is making a powerful speech. Does he agree that, during these very difficult times, families want to give their loved ones who are not well all their attention, but these situations are usually so adversarial, involving lengthy legal processes that cost local authorities hundreds of thousands of pounds, only for the decision to be overturned and the family to win in the end?”
House of Commons25 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I welcome the recommendations of the Rycroft report, particularly the cap on donations from overseas voters, but we all know that our domestic politics is still prey to big money influencing all the parties in this House, which warps our politics and moves it away from public discourse in favour of the interests of the wealthy. In fact, the last election saw one of the highest ever levels of spending in a general election, at close to £70 million. That is extremely unfair for the smaller parties and independents, so can I ask the Minister how we can promote fairer representation and a move away from domestic big-money politics?”
House of Commons25 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Secondly, what more will be done to close the skills gap, particularly through vocational training and apprenticeships aligned to local industry? Thirdly, will the Government use public procurement more strategically, particularly in the defence and NHS supply chains, to support British manufacturing in regions such as Leicester? The east midlands does not lack potential. What it lacks is parity and equity. With fair investment and targeted support, it can once again be a driving force for UK growth.”
House of Commons17 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The first is the manufacturing industry. Leicester was once known for clothing the world, and even today it supports 11,000 jobs in garment manufacturing and retains the rare ability to produce garments end to end in a single city. The capability and skills are there, but unfortunately the investment is not. Businesses face growing skills shortages, particularly in the manufacturing and digital sectors, with vacancies rising by over 150% in recent years. I ask the Minister three simple questions. First, when will the Government address the clear imbalance in infrastructure and transport funding in the east midlands? Considerably less is spent on transport there than in the west midlands; in fact, compared with Birmingham, it is less than half.”
House of Commons17 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dr Huq. I thank the hon. Member for Rushcliffe (James Naish) for securing this debate. As my colleagues have mentioned, the east midlands is an absolutely fantastic region with great cities, towns and villages, a fantastic location and the most fundamental thing: wonderful people. I will give a quick anecdote. Ten years ago, my team, Leicester City, stood at the top of the premiership. We were about to be crowned the champions of England. It was a fairytale. Ten years later, we sit at the bottom of the championship, about to go into league one. That is what happens when we take our eye off the ball: lack of investment, lack of strategy, and taking things for granted. Much has already been said about the region, and others will say more, but in my short time today I will focus on two things.”
House of Commons17 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thank the Secretary of State for his statement. I, too, would like to express my condolences to the families and loved ones of the two young people who have passed away, and send my best wishes to those who are in hospital. As the father of a daughter at university, I cannot imagine what they must be going through. Many students have expressed to newspapers such as The Guardian their concerns about returning home where they have vulnerable loved ones, citing a mother coming back from hospital or those who live with their grandparents. Does the Health Secretary have any advice for students returning home to loved ones on not spreading the disease to them?”
House of Commons17 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I think, and hope, that everybody in this Chamber, including the official Opposition, now agrees that Donald Trump had absolutely no plan when he agreed, along with Israel, to this illegal invasion of Iran. Their first action was to bomb a school, killing more than 160 schoolchildren—mainly girls—and over 1,500 people have been killed and more than 20,000 injured. The whole region is in flames, and the obstruction of the strait of Hormuz is affecting the global economy. Does the Foreign Secretary agree that no UK warships should join this illegal war, and that there should be no boots on the ground to deflect from what is essentially Trump’s “Operation Epstein Fury”?”
House of Commons17 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Like the rest of the nation, my constituency of Leicester South struggles with youth unemployment, and many young people are not in education or training. The statement is welcome to a certain degree, but I have a technical question for the Secretary of State. Which age range will bonuses cover? Is it 18 to 21? Also, when will the bonuses be paid? Will it be on hiring, or after a certain period of work?”
House of Commons17 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Will the Home Secretary care to explain a contradiction? She has taken to ban a peaceful march that has been happening for over 40 years, citing serious public disorder, while the Government continue to permit the far right, who call for serious public disorder outside hotels housing asylum seekers, to protest outside those hotels. In September 2025 at the Tommy Robinson “Unite the Kingdom” march—the Home Secretary might like to know that he is a big fan of hers—violence was sighted, in particular against Muslims. Will that march be banned in future as well?”
House of Commons11 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“My constituents are overwhelmingly against digital ID, and that appears to be the national consensus. Does the Chief Secretary agree that asking 100 members of the public to legitimise an already bad idea initially espoused by Tony Blair is a waste of time, resources and money? When will the Government go back to addressing issues that really matter to the public, such as the cost of living crisis?”
House of Commons10 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Over 330,000 people have signed a petition urging the Government to scrap the plan to increase the ILR period from five years to 10 years, especially the retrospective nature of it. This will have a detrimental effect on the core of our society, especially the NHS, and will exploit workers, who will be vulnerable to exploitative bosses. Does the Minister agree with many of his Back Benchers that the Government must stop this cruel proposal taking effect?”
House of Commons9 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“T7. There should be no issue about our civil service being paid their pensions, but 56,000 people are not receiving their pension from Capita. My constituent, Erral McDonald, is due to retire at the end of the month, and despite countless messages to the Department, he has not yet even received his pension quote. My team has no way to escalate this matter. What reassurance can the Minister provide that the backlog will be cleared, and that my constituent, and all our constituents, will receive their pensions in full and on time in the coming weeks?”
House of Commons5 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Will the Leader of the House please address this matter with the relevant Department and say what further assurance he can give to all those who go to pray in the Holy Land, so that they can keep safe and pray safely?”
House of Commons5 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Masjid al-Aqsa in Jerusalem is the third holiest site for over 2 billion Muslims worldwide. Thousands of Brits make a pilgrimage to Masjid al-Aqsa every year, but unfortunately countless are not allowed into the country and many who do make it are not allowed into the compound. A recent survey that I conducted found that 330 out of 390 respondents encountered issues accessing the compound, and some were not allowed in at all, while facing racial abuse at the same time. Despite writing to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office several months ago to discuss these findings, I have had absolutely no response from Ministers.”
House of Commons5 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“For lest we forget—by forgetting, we dishonour not only what those troops endured, but the legacy that they pass to us: a nation strengthened, not diminished, by the diversity of those who defended it.”
House of Commons5 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Sikh soldiers made up more than 20% of the British Indian Army during the war. In my city of Leicester, a statue unveiled in 2022 now commemorates their service—long-overdue recognition of their extraordinary loyalty and courage. We recognise their bravery, we honour their sacrifice and we commit to remembering them. What does their service teach us today? It teaches us that courage knows no nationality, religion or race. If we allow polarisation to divide us along lines of colour or creed, we dishonour those who stood shoulder to shoulder in the mud of Flanders. If we forget the global nature of their sacrifice, we shrink our own national story. Let us tell that story fully, teach it honestly and commemorate it properly.”
House of Commons5 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Think of Lionel Turpin, a 19-year-old from Guyana who travelled to the mother country, as he called it, to serve on the western front. He survived the Somme, but not the effects of gas attacks. Think, too, of the 60,000 black South Africans and 120,000 other Africans who served in the labour units, and of the men of the British West Indies Regiment who, in 1915, sailed all the way from Jamaica to train on the Sussex coast before being deployed to Egypt and beyond. These people are not and should never be footnotes in history. They were part of the very fabric of our armed forces. They should not be footnotes, but headlines. That is why, when Laurence Fox questioned the inclusion of a Sikh soldier in the fantastic first world war film “1917”, it exposed not diversity gone too far, but history not yet understood deeply enough.”
House of Commons5 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Knowing he was the only one alive, he pretended to be dead and slid away in the darkness of the night; he later came back and, as the hon. Member for Ilford South said, changed the destiny of that battle. Now, his descendants live in Leeds. This is not somebody else’s history; it is our history. Consider Walter Tull, one of the most celebrated black British soldiers of the first world war. He enlisted in 1914, endured shellshock, returned to fight at the Somme and was commissioned as an officer in 1917, despite regulations that should have barred him because of his race. He continued to fight and was mentioned in dispatches for “gallantry and coolness” in Italy in 1918. Sadly, two months later, he died in no man’s land.”
House of Commons5 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Yet it is painful to acknowledge that the story told through our memorials has been incomplete. Animal sacrifices in the war effort were honoured with a national memorial in Hyde Park in 2004, and rightly so. However, that was way before the black and Asian soldiers who fought, bled and died for Britain were recognised. It is only recently that they have begun to receive that recognition. This is a truth we cannot shy away from. Why did it happen? We have already heard the story of Khudadad Khan, who was born in 1888 in Punjab and served with the 129th Baluchis, becoming the first Indian soldier to receive the Victoria Cross. We have heard of his bravery in Belgium in 1914, when his regiment was completely outnumbered.”
House of Commons5 March 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗