Patricia Ferguson
MP for Glasgow West · Labour · United Kingdom
“The Scottish Secretary will be aware that no NHS board in Scotland has met its target for starting cancer treatment within 62 days since 2012, that Public Health Scotland data shows that one in seven Scots are on an NHS waiting list, and that the Scottish Government’s own figures show that home completions fell by 10% in the year to March…”
“I absolutely agree with the hon. Member. I know that there have been such examples in Gaza, too. I raised that in a Westminster Hall debate almost two years ago, and I was reassured by the Minister that none of those drones are being produced in this country, which is at least a start.”
“I absolutely share that outrage, and I will mention it later in my contribution. We cannot as a country allow this situation to continue. We are out of step with so many of our European partners.”
“I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield Central (Abtisam Mohamed) for securing the debate and speaking with so much passion about an issue that concerns us all. The ever-increasing number of Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories are illegal—each and every one of them.”
“A ban that simply covered agricultural products, for example, would just encourage the movement of activity into those other areas. We know that existing restrictions on trade have been neutralised, in effect.”
“The level of violence instigated by the settlers has increased; more than 1,700 settler attacks causing causalities or property damage have been recorded across 270 Palestinian communities in the west bank in 2025 alone.”
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Every one of 393 lines we hold for Patricia Ferguson, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 7 of 8.
“I am very much aware that the hon. Member has been a Member of this Chamber for much longer than I and many of my colleagues have, given that many of us were elected for the first time last July, but does he recall that between 1997 and 2010, the Labour Government cut the number of quangos in this country by 39.8%? That shows what Labour does in government. Wait until the end of the five years and see how many we have cut by then—I am sure he will be delighted by the number.”
“In a series of hard-hitting articles in The Herald and the Evening Times recently, the current condition of my home city of Glasgow was reviewed, and issues as diverse as potholes in Partick and poverty in Drumchapel, as well as the state of the public realm, were raised. After 14 years of the Tories in Westminster, 18 of the SNP at Holyrood and eight of an SNP-Green administration in Glasgow, the city is in need of a new vision. Does the Leader of the House agree that joining a five-city pact, as suggested by Andy Burnham, is a sensible suggestion, and how does she think the Government could support that ambition and the ambition of all of us who have the best interests of Glaswegians and Glasgow at heart?”
“Have the Government carried out an assessment of the impact of the withdrawal of USAID from the region? In light of any assessment that may have been carried out, are the Government confident that the decision to cut the international aid budget will not be an increasingly detrimental problem in Gaza? I understand that the Prime Minister has said that funding for Gaza is ringfenced and that our humanitarian aid will continue, but I am concerned that the withdrawal of American aid may leave a vacuum that we cannot fill.”
“As I mentioned in opening, it is regrettable that in 2025 we still have such laws on the statute book, but ironically the relationship between the two Churches is in very good heart. The signing of the St Margaret’s declaration in 2022 by the Moderator and Archbishop Cushley, the representative of the Catholic bishops conference, seeks to build on the common heritage of the two denominations in the Christian tradition. It recognises that divisions are still present, but seeks to mend those divisions and to focus on what the Churches have in common. With the passing of the Bill today and the appointment of Lady Elish to the post of Lord High Commissioner, we take another welcome step on the journey to ecumenicalism.”
“I also served in Government with her when she was appointed by First Minister Jack McConnell as the first female Solicitor General. Elish went on to become the first female Lord Advocate. She held both positions with distinction and was highly regarded during her time in office. Since then, she has served in a number of legal posts, and is currently the principal of St Hugh’s College, Oxford, and Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford. She is also the first woman to hold the position of Lord Clerk of Scotland, another first for a woman. Significantly, she chaired the public inquiry into the abduction, rape and murder of Sarah Everard. We can safely say that Lady Elish is an outstanding candidate for the post of Lord High Commissioner.”
“It was not until 1970 that the late Peggy Herbison, a former MP, was appointed the first female Lord High Commissioner. We then had to wait another 24 years, until the appointment of Lady Fraser, for the second. Since then, the Princess Royal has held the post twice, and it would be good to think that, following Lady Elish’s appointment, we might see woman appointed more regularly. The appointment is expected to be made, we are told, on the basis of the merit and contribution to society of the appointee, and Lady Elish certainly qualifies on both counts. I should declare an interest: I have known Lady Elish since we were both teenagers and members of our respective schools’ debating societies. She was very much better than I was, and even then, it was clear that she was destined for a very significant future.”
“As the Law Society of Scotland has suggested, it is unfortunate that the Bill cannot also be amended to remove the reference to the Lord High Chancellor from the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829, so that the 1829 Act can be brought into conformity with the Lord Chancellor (Tenure of Office and Discharge of Ecclesiastical Functions) Act 1974. There is clearly a long history surrounding the appointment, with the first Lord High Commissioner having been appointed in 1580. In the intervening five centuries, significant people have held the post, including a number of former colleagues of mine, and of the hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (John Lamont), and including Lord James Douglas Hamilton, Lord Wallace, Lord Steel and George Reid. Colleagues might have spotted that they have something in common: they were all men.”
“The Scottish Claim of Right Act 1689 set out restrictions on Catholics being appointed to public office. Paragraph 19 states: “That by the law of this Kingdome no papist can be King or Queen of this realme nor bear any office whatsomever therin”. Those are harsh words, if I may say so. The Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 was the culmination of a long process, working towards giving Catholics relief from the many restrictions imposed on them in Great Britain and Ireland prior to the Union of 1801. However, although that Act retained some restrictions on Catholics, most of which have since been repealed, some significant ones remain. That is what we wish to amend today.”
“As we have heard, by convention, the sovereign is not normally present at the General Assembly, as he or she is technically an ordinary member of the Church, not its supreme governor, as he or she is in England. Traditionally, the Lord High Commissioner represents the sovereign, and is an observer appointed under the royal prerogative, so, as we know, there is no need for parliamentary approval of the appointment, or for legislation. As the Lord High Commissioner is a representative to the General Assembly, rather than part of the assembly, it is not necessary for them to be a member of the Church of Scotland, or indeed of any other church. However, the legislation that we are considering is necessary because the holder of the office cannot currently be a Roman Catholic.”
“The fact that in 2025 we can say that no Roman Catholic has ever held the post of Lord High Commissioner seems slightly absurd. There are, of course, other positions in this nation that a Catholic has never occupied and, as matters stand, can never occupy. It is good that we can break down one of those barriers today and reflect the extremely friendly relationship between the Catholic Church in Scotland and the Church of Scotland—and indeed, through the interfaith council, the Church’s relationship with other faiths, too. The change is also a mark of the high regard in which people of good will hold Lady Elish Angiolini, and of the many qualities that make her a fitting representative of His Majesty.”
“St Margaret’s, Church of Scotland, in Knightswood in my constituency is closing, much to the detriment of its congregation and the wider area. The church is home to a significant pipe organ, built by the renowned maker Henry Willis. In some countries in Europe, there are protections in law for historical instruments such as that one, to prevent them from being destroyed or abandoned when a church becomes redundant. Does my hon. Friend agree that such a scheme should be established in the UK?”
“The visit to Scotland by the Prime Minister within 48 hours of the general election was widely welcomed. That priority for Scotland stands in stark contrast with the actions of the Leader of the Opposition, who after 116 days in post has still not ventured north of the border, leaving Scots confused as to whether they should be dismayed or relieved. Will the Leader of the House allocate time for a debate to discuss which party in this House truly stands up for Scotland and for the Union?”
“I thank my hon. Friend for taking my intervention, and for securing today’s debate, which is indeed on a very important subject. I recently attended a talk by Professor Mamode, who demonstrated, with images and with his own testimony, the kinds of injuries that are being sustained by some people in Palestine. Notably, there was a seven-year-old boy whose injuries were so symmetrical that they could not have been done by human hand; they had clearly been done by a drone. Does my hon. Friend agree that we need to also be thinking about the export of items that are not militaristic in and of themselves, but that can be weaponised, as drones have been in Palestine, and that we have to consider export bans on those items, too?”
“I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Middlesbrough and Thornaby East (Andy McDonald) for securing this important urgent question. Over the last 16 months or so, we have seen Palestinian people displaced from their homes and communities—on many occasions not just once, but perhaps twice or three times—so for the President of the United States to suggest a further forced displacement seems to me to be not just illegal, but incredibly cruel. In diplomacy, we believe that timing is everything, so in order to give the Palestinian people some protection from outside actors who seem to wish to dictate what should happen to them, is it not now time for the international community and our Government to recognise Palestine as a state and give it all the international support and strength that that would provide?”
“Yesterday’s meeting of the Scottish Affairs Committee took some interesting and informative evidence from representatives of the space industry in the UK. The launch of the first commercial space rocket from SaxaVord spaceport in Shetland is likely to take place before the end of the year. The industry has potentially great commercial benefits for the UK and is very important to our integrity as a sovereign nation. One of the key asks of the representative we spoke to was that there should be a Minister for space, who could help them to navigate the various jurisdictions they have to speak to, cut through the number of local authorities and other authorities they have to deal with, and simply be a champion for their industry. Will my right hon. Friend raise those matters in Government?”
“Q11. The announcement of a third runway at Heathrow is obviously a massive boost to growth in the economy. Does my right hon. and learned Friend agree that it is important that the economic boost is spread around the UK, and will he therefore agree to ask the relevant Minister to meet me and other Glasgow MPs with the chamber of commerce to discuss the possibility of a new supply chain hub being created in the city, where the materials for Heathrow’s expansion could be reassembled?”
“May I thank my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for helping to secure £14 million of levelling up funds for the area of Drumchapel in my constituency of Glasgow West? Does he agree that given the record settlement that the Scottish Government have received from the UK Government, it is about time that they went ahead and sorted out the problems of under-provision and overcrowding in Drumchapel health centre?”
“I am pleased to see the Bill in the House today, but am not quite so entranced by the hon. Member’s puns, or by his making me feel completely and utterly ancient. Setting aside that niggle, on a serious point, does he agree that it is important for us to have a secure supply chain for solar panels, and that we eliminate the use of solar panels built by Uyghur people subject to forced labour in China?”
“We have to take those responsibilities seriously—in fact, to grasp them with both hands. Postal and proxy votes are a vital component of our elections, as they make voting possible for voters who are perhaps ill or on holiday, or whose working hours make it difficult to get to a polling station. As we have heard, since October 2023, the online absent voter application service has been available to voters who wish to vote by post and wish to apply online. The option to apply using a paper form is, of course, still available to anyone who wishes to use it.”
“I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Edinburgh North and Leith (Tracy Gilbert) for bringing forward this important piece of Member’s legislation. Having taken a Members’ Bill through the Scottish Parliament a number of years ago, I know how daunting and time-consuming the process is, so I am very grateful to all colleagues who have tabled Bills, allowing us to debate so many important subjects. With turnout at elections dropping across the country, it is important that we as legislators do everything we can to encourage and facilitate voters. We all have a role to play, whether that is speaking to young people in our constituencies about the importance of their vote and their democratic rights being respected, or bringing forward legislation that makes the process easier for all.”
“This Bill seeks to give the power to enact those parts of the system that are devolved to the Scottish and Welsh Governments, but importantly, it also allows enough time for the process to be introduced in time for the next round of Scottish and Welsh parliamentary elections in 2026.”
“In Scotland, we use three different voting systems, which in and of itself can be complicating for voters. We ask them to vote by first past the post for elections to this place; we ask them to vote using the additional member system for elections to the Scottish Parliament; and we ask them to vote by single transferable vote for local authority elections. In spite of the fact that some of those methods have been in place since 1999, I have encountered voters over the piece who still find that confusing, so anything we can do to take away any complexity or complication from the process of voting must be very welcome. The Bill is also respectful of the devolution settlement —something that is very important to me as a former Minister for Parliament in the Scottish Government.”
“I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend. That is something I am particularly aware of in my constituency, which—as I will talk more about later on—has an ageing demographic. The online service is vital. The option to apply by post is available for UK parliamentary elections and for police and fire commissioner elections in England and Wales. Voters in England can also use the service to apply for postal or proxy votes in local elections, but voters in Scotland and Wales currently have more limited options, as a paper form is still required for absent voting applications for a devolved Parliament or local election. The Bill will remove that restriction for voters in Scotland and Wales, and will also make the conduct of elections possibly cheaper and certainly more manageable for electoral administrators.”
“I thank my hon. Friend for that intervention—I was rather spoilt for choice. I absolutely agree: young people will think that. Young people are particularly used to signing up online and think that once they have done something online, it is probably there in perpetuity. In most cases, they are correct; in this, they are not. The Bill will help to resolve that issue. I mentioned that we are going to have Scottish Parliament and Welsh parliamentary elections in 2026, but in Scotland, those elections will be quickly followed by local authority elections in 2027, so it is very important that the Bill is enacted in time for those elections to use this new system. This is a crucial step towards ensuring a consistent and straightforward voting process for people in Scotland and Wales.”
“I thank all the returning officers I have worked with over the years and their staff for everything they do to make the process as efficient as possible. Hopefully, today, with the help of my hon. Friend the Member for Edinburgh North and Leith and her Bill, we will help them to make that process even better.”
“As I said earlier, that perhaps reflects the ageing demographic in parts of my constituency. Voters should never be hindered in casting their vote by an overly complicated system, and this Bill is a major step forward in reducing that complexity. It is vital that every eligible voter has easy access to the democratic process, and this Bill will help to achieve that. I was first elected in 1999 to another Parliament, and over the years I have worked with many returning officers and seen for myself the work that they and their staff do, year in, year out. Even when there are not elections on, they are preparing, and ensuring that electoral registers are up to date and the processes for postal and proxy votes are in place.”
“I agree that this will make it simpler. I think back to a number of conversations I heard or had on the doorstep on the issue. I thought I had begun to get my head around the situation, but I then heard colleagues who were knocking doors with me trying to explain it to citizens on the doorstep, and it became clear to me that perhaps I had not explained it properly to them. We all have a role to play, and anything we can do to make this process more obvious, more accessible and simpler will be very helpful. I know from last year’s general election, Deputy Presiding Officer—sorry, Madam Deputy Speaker; old habits die hard—how important postal and proxy votes are to voters in my communities of Glasgow West, which had the largest number of registered postal voters in the city of Glasgow.”
“On that point, is my hon. Friend as saddened and surprised as I am to see not a single SNP Member here? It strikes me that if they claim to be Scotland’s party, they need to be here to talk about legislation that affects Scotland.”
“It was said earlier that the fact that last year’s general election occurred during the Scottish school holidays meant that, in the chaos and confusion that happens in most households preparing to go on holiday, voting fell off the agenda for a lot of people who had perhaps thought about applying for a postal vote but not got around to doing it. Does my hon. Friend agree that, were another election like that to be called, the opportunity to do that chore by post might make a difference to a lot of people?”
“The Church’s work to recognise the importance of diversity and on proactive anti-racism is very welcome, but what steps is it taking to address its historical links to the slave trade?”
“This year marks the 850th anniversary of my home city of Glasgow. One of the key aims of the celebration is to speed up ambitions around the city council’s grand challenge of tackling poverty and inequality and increasing prosperity and opportunity—themes that chime clearly with this Government’s agenda. Will the Prime Minister join me in congratulating Glasgow on this milestone, and does he agree that people make Glasgow?”
“Women being affected by conflict is not a new phenomenon—it has probably been with us for the whole history of humankind—but now we know how wrong and unacceptable it is. Because of social media, television and all the other media channels that we have, we know for ourselves exactly what is going on. We cannot turn a blind eye to it. If we do not involve women in resolving conflict and in peacebuilding initiatives, we are destined to repeat the mistakes of the past—something I suspect none of us would wish to do.”
“When it comes to peacebuilding—hopefully we will move to peacebuilding efforts eventually in some of these conflicts—women are often excluded from the efforts and discussions, which leads to further entrenched disenfranchisement. Women are often the people who hold together communities, and often have a deeper understanding of the whole-community needs in humanitarian emergencies in particular. As we know, in many traditions they still hold the major caring responsibilities and are very much integrated into their communities, but they are not well resourced or respected as international humanitarian actors. Our Government’s commitment to take forward resolutions to these conflicts is very welcome, and it is what we would expect, but I hope the Minister can give us some sense of how women will be involved in that work as we go forward.”
“Some 3 million people have been displaced, which in turn puts women at further risk of violence and abuse, because they are separated from those who would normally, one would hope, help to defend them—their fathers and brothers, and their husbands and partners. At the same time in Myanmar, women are shut out of any discussion or high-level debate about making peace—I will return to that point a little later. I was pleased to read about the Minister’s and the Government’s ongoing commitment and work, through the preventing sexual violence and conflict initiative, which I understand remains a real priority for our Government. I hope the Minister will say a little about that at the end of the debate.”
“It is estimated that almost 50 mothers and their children are killed every day. According to World Health Organisation estimates, 183 women give birth every day and, as we have heard, many are enduring C-sections without anaesthesia or other medicines. Ironically, many of the supplies that could resolve that problem are probably sitting at the borders, in the convoys that we know have been sent by international agencies and Governments, including our own, and could be put to use. So desperate is the need that it is just outrageous that those supplies are not being allowed to reach the people who need them so badly. In Myanmar, women have borne the brunt of the military oppression in that country and have been subjected to a rise in intimate partner violence and sexual violence, too.”
“I apologise in advance, Sir Jeremy; I am slightly under the weather today and have got a bit of a sore throat, so this might not come out quite as I intended. I am grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for Norwich North (Alice Macdonald) for securing this important debate. Although we often focus on issues around conflict and violence, and what can be done to resolve them, we can sometimes miss the fact that conflict disproportionately affects women and girls. During times of conflict, existing inequalities are magnified and exaggerated, leading to further insecurity, homelessness and particularly violence and sexual violence against women and girls. We have already heard from my hon. Friend about the current situation in Gaza, which, as we know, is unconscionable.”
“Will my right hon. Friend join me in congratulating the young women across the country who took part in the CyberFirst girls competition, and especially the winners in the Scotland section, Charlotte, Jess, Sania and Aoife of Hyndland secondary school in my constituency? Does she agree that it is increasingly important that girls are encouraged to pursue an interest and, perhaps, a career in cyber security?”
“I thank the hon. Member for Oxford West and Abingdon (Layla Moran) for securing this urgent question; it is indeed urgent. At the UN, the UK called for Israel to abide by UNSC resolution 2286 on the protection of civilians and healthcare. It is clear that Israel is not abiding by that resolution, so with the words having been uttered and ignored, what will the Government now do to ensure that Israel is held to account for its actions?”
“I thank the hon. Member for taking an intervention. Does he share my fear that the statements of Israeli officials suggest that they intend to have a long-term presence in Gaza? Will he join me in condemning the de facto annexation of parts of Gaza that is going on at the moment?”
“Professor Mamode is a vascular surgeon of great experience who has worked in numerous war zones and has recently been in Palestine. I thought I had seen and heard it all: the death, disease and sheer brutality reported on our TV screens night after night. But then I went to Professor Mamode’s presentation. He spoke calmly and slowly about his experiences in Palestine, using slides and a video diary, and demonstrated the symmetrical puncture wounds on a dead child’s body—wounds in the region of the body’s major arteries that were too precise to have been the work of a human sniper. They were the work of drones targeted at innocent civilians, and in this case a child.”
“An official death toll of some 43,391 people, of which 16,500 are children, with 10,000 people missing and presumed dead, are shocking statistics, and 72% of those killed are women and children. The Lancet has recently published a report that suggests that the death toll may be closer to 186,000. It has almost got to the point where the numbers are so overwhelming that we are in danger of becoming inured to what they represent. A few weeks ago, with other colleagues, I attended a presentation that brought home exactly what those numbers and statistics mean. The presentation was given by Professor Nizam Mamode, a volunteer surgeon working with Medical Aid for Palestinians. The event was organised by my hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow South West (Dr Ahmed).”
“I beg to move, That this House has considered the humanitarian situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Roger. I do not intend to take up too much time in today’s debate as I hope that as many colleagues as possible will have time to speak. The issue concerns us all, so it is right that we all have the opportunity to make a contribution. As we know, it is just over 400 days since the horrific events of 7 October when over 1,200 people were killed in Hamas attacks in Israel. Over 30 of the hostages taken that day are believed to be still in Gaza. It is beyond time that they were released and returned to their lives and families. It was of course the events of 7 October that triggered Israel’s attacks on Gaza and the humanitarian crisis we are debating here today.”
“My hon. Friend is absolutely correct. The situation is of course getting worse rather than better as we watch the actions in northern Gaza unfold. The presentation that some of us observed from Professor Mamode was heart-rending in many ways. He also spoke about not having medicines or anaesthetics for people, including children having major surgery. The children were being operated on in hospital beds, the adults on the floor. He also spoke about the young intensive care doctor he knew who contracted hepatitis A and died because of the lack of a relatively straightforward medication. As a colleague said that night, the silence of the room at the end of Professor Mamode’s presentation was powerful.”
“For me, it was the cold calculation of using machines to kill children, as though it was some kind of warped video game, that was the most disturbing aspect of Professor Mamode’s presentation, and which made those statistics that I spoke about earlier mean a great deal.”
“My hon. Friend is absolutely right to talk about the heroism, frankly, of people like Dr Mamode. I recall that, when showing us a short video from his video diary, he pointed out that the noise in the background was the noise of drones. Medical staff are not exempt from these attacks, nor are civilian people who are there helping with the humanitarian effort. So, we do have to speak about that bravery. To have someone like Dr Mamode, who has experienced that horror at first hand, who has given up his own time to try to help and who clearly despairs, was something that I do not think any of us who were present will ever forget.”
“My hon. Friend makes a very valid point that I was just about to come to, so it is very timely. I think our Government have to work very hard with the international community to try to find a way—and hard it will be—to bypass the Israeli Government and ensure that we manage to get humanitarian assistance into Gaza. We already know that some of the aid convoys have been disrupted in recent times since the Knesset decision, and we have to find ways of getting that aid in. The aid is there, but it is being stopped, it is being looted and it is being prevented from getting to those who need it.”
“I agree with my hon. Friend that we have to redouble our efforts, and we have to do more than just talk about what is happening in Gaza; we have to act to ensure that this comes to a conclusion as quickly as possible.”
“So, it is incumbent upon us as a country to do everything we can to end this carnage and to help those most in need. I hope that today the Minister here in Westminster Hall might be able to tell us that the UK will vote to support a ceasefire when the resolution comes before the UN Security Council later today.”
“I thank my hon. Friend for her intervention. With the news that the Israeli Government have banned UNRWA from working in Israel and occupied east Jerusalem, and that even conversations between UNRWA staff and Israeli officials will be banned, the 2 million people who are currently dependant on UNRWA aid are made even more vulnerable as winter approaches, especially because, as she said, most Palestinians have been displaced at least once, if not more often, and many are now living in makeshift tents. And when I say “tents”, I emphasise that they are not “tents” as we understand tents to be; they are collections of fabric, cardboard and anything that can be scrounged or scavenged, assembled to try to give some shelter to very vulnerable families.”
“So, I think we have to look at every opportunity and I hope that the Government keep under review the situation regarding the sale of arms to Israel, and that they will, when the time is right, make that decision.”