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Robin Swann – 2024 Maiden Speech on the Economy, Welfare and Public Services

The maiden speech made by Robin Swann, the Ulster Unionist Party MP for South Antrim, in the House of Commons on 22 July 2024.

It is with honour and humility, and a sense of trepidation, that I rise to make my maiden speech. I think of those who have spoken here before and the gravity and seriousness of the issues that have been debated and discussed. I hope that this Parliament is no different in how it discharges its duties, and that we in this intake of new Members live up to those standards. I congratulate the many new Members on their maiden speeches, which have set a high bar.

Like everyone else in this House, I wish to thank sincerely those who placed their faith and trust in me by electing me. I am indebted to the electorate of South Antrim for the support that I have received from across the entire community—indeed, entire communities—in my election to this place. I also thank the dedicated campaign team who supported me during what was an honourable campaign.

I pay tribute to my predecessor, Mr Paul Girvan, not just for his tenure as a Member of this House, but for his time as a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly and as a local councillor. South Antrim has moved between Paul’s party and my Ulster Unionist party on a number of occasions. With that, I carry the privilege and honour of returning the UUP to this place after a seven-year absence, and the charge and responsibility of bringing a moderate and reasoned Unionist voice from Northern Ireland, in my party’s tradition of working positively and constructively with all to achieve the best outcomes for all our people, and of working across this House to strengthen our Union and to deliver a Union for all.

I turn now to my constituency of South Antrim. I want those here this evening to know what a fantastic part of our country it is. Like so many constituencies, it has a mix of main towns—Ballyclare and Antrim—and a range of what were once small villages but are growing into large villages, such as Toome, Doagh, Crumlin, Randalstown, Templepatrick, Ballynure and many more. Much of the constituency is a large and productive rural area, while part of the expanding urban area of Glengormley is merging with north Belfast in Mossley and Mallusk.

South Antrim is home to industry, research and cutting-edge business in large and small employers. Indeed, I look forward to working with the Chancellor and her Government in further supporting those businesses through the Bills in the King’s Speech, and especially through the national wealth fund. South Antrim is the base of Belfast international airport, which I believe has a real opportunity if it gets its much-needed rail link and the further expansion of Aldergrove and our Royal Air Force base. That is why I believe that we also need a UK air transportation strategy, which I may raise later in the Adjournment debate—if the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) will take an intervention from me!

South Antrim’s agricultural sector is another pillar of our community and contributes significantly to our local economy. Our annual Antrim agricultural show celebrates that agricultural heritage by bringing together farmers, producers and visitors from across the country and showcasing the best of rural life and promoting a strong sense of community. It is on this Saturday at Shane’s castle, and I would encourage and welcome anyone who wants to attend.

Lough Neagh—the largest freshwater lake in the British isles—is another jewel in South Antrim’s crown, but it is currently struggling because of neglect, like many of our waterways. However, the Stormont Executive’s new recovery programme is in place, and I hope that—with national support, given the need for action on our waterways—Lough Neagh will once more be a tourism and recreational attraction for visitors from far and wide.

A number of issues debated over the past few days will have a direct impact on the people of South Antrim, Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom—none more so than the future and support that the Government will offer our national health service and those who rely on and work in it. The Government have the opportunity to reverse the past years of neglect. Health may be devolved, but that does not mean that we in this place can abdicate all responsibility for our national health service. We have the excellent Antrim area hospital in my constituency, but it needs resource and support to develop its potential. As a former Health Minister of Northern Ireland, I know that we have plans to deliver better services, but change needs recurrent resources, which have been lacking in recent years. I look forward to working with this Government to rebuild our national health service.

I know that I am speaking to the converted on how great South Antrim is, because I have been overwhelmed by the number of Members from across the House who have approached me to tell me of a relative or friend who lives in my constituency. Indeed, I look forward to representing them and all my South Antrim constituents in this place.

August 16, 2024
Ruth Cadbury – 2024 Speech on the Economy, Welfare and Public Services

The speech made by Ruth Cadbury, the Labour MP for Brentford and Isleworth, in the House of Commons on 22 July 2024.

It is an honour to be re-elected for the fourth time to the redrawn seat of Brentford and Isleworth, and to follow such impressive maiden speeches, particularly that of my hon. Friend the Member for Cities of London and Westminster (Rachel Blake), in whose constituency we all work.

After nine years sitting in Opposition it is a pleasure to be on the Government side of the Chamber and to support this Government’s legislative programme, which brings hope, opportunity and change for my constituents and for the country at last. I will focus my response to the King’s Speech on the Government’s ambitious proposals around transport policy—not only because it is an area I have long been involved with, having served on the Transport Committee for five years and chaired five all-party parliamentary groups on transport, but because transport was brought up regularly on the doorsteps in this last election.

The theme of today’s debate is economy, welfare and public services. Effective transport policies are essential to the change we need to see in all three areas, as well as in addressing our climate crisis, so I am pleased to see the bold and ambitious plans set out by my right hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield Heeley (Louise Haigh) and her team to do just that. For access to work, education and health services, for supplying our manufacturing and retail sectors and for supporting our wellbeing and family life, decent transport choices are essential, and nowhere are they more needed than in the new communities that will be built, if the traffic on the roads to and around them is not to grind to a halt. Whether in city, town or countryside, we need the full range of transport options—ones that are affordable, accessible, efficient and environmentally sound.

On buses, I am delighted that, through the better buses Bill, the Government will end the ideological and control-freakery policy of banning local authorities from running their own municipal bus companies. Such companies were killed off by the Thatcher Government in a bout of ideological rage, with only London retaining a regulated bus service. The rest of England should have what we have in London: regular day, evening and weekend services, simple fare structures, and high standards of safety, accessibility and passenger information. Those are being developed by the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, and I look forward to seeing other local authorities—of all parties, I am sure—following his example.

To be an alternative to driving, and for us to cut road congestion and pollution, rail travel must be reliable. I am therefore delighted to see Bills to create Great British Railways and to bring train operations into public ownership. That is essential for a simplified and unified rail system that focuses on improving passenger services while getting value for the taxpayer. Our constituents, and many Members of this House, have had terrible experiences of cancelled trains, or of sitting on the floor for hours despite booking a seat. We will now see a Government and a Department that do not use transport as a cudgel in our culture wars, or as a crude electoral hammer to override local authorities that want to introduce sensible measures to encourage cycling and walking.

Transport is at the heart of the challenge of national renewal that we have set ourselves: kickstarting economic growth, boosting jobs and living standards, and building sufficient homes in sustainable communities. Of course there are challenges ahead—not least in further growing capacity in our overloaded rail network. I welcome the plan to improve east-west connectivity across the north of England, but funding further increases in rail capacity will unfortunately be financially unsustainable until we see the economic growth that the Chancellor is working on. Aviation expansion is acceptable only if it passes the four tests that we set ourselves in opposition: cutting carbon dioxide emissions, overcoming local environmental impacts, providing regional benefits across the UK, and deliverability. I know that the new Secretary of State and ministerial team will work across our travel and transport sectors to improve transport connections to the benefit of our country as a whole.

August 16, 2024
Mark Francois – 2024 Speech on the Economy, Welfare and Public Services

The speech made by Mark Francois, the Conservative MP for Rayleigh and Wickford, in the House of Commons on 22 July 2024.

Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, for kindly calling me to contribute to this important debate on the King’s Speech, after 11 very good maiden speeches and 11 very promising—even fabulous—starts to parliamentary careers. Those who have been in this House a little longer will know that our great friend the late Sir David Amess, whose plaque now rightfully hangs on the wall, had a great talent for managing to combine a very large number of topics into one speech. I lack Sir David’s skill, so I will seek to confine my remarks this evening to three topics, all development related.

The first topic relates to an expansion in medical capacity for the NHS, and specifically to proposals to expand the Jones family practice in Hockley. I declare an interest: my wife Olivia has worked in the NHS for nearly 20 years. In essence, the plan is to expand the practice, with a first-floor extension to create eight new GP consulting rooms and additional training facilities. Rochford district council recently approved planning permission for the extension, and the senior partner, Professor Dr Mahmud, and his active practice management team are now seeking approval from local NHS bosses to support the scheme.

It is my intention as the recently re-elected local MP—for which I am very grateful to my constituents—to lend weight to these positive proposals. They are designed not just to expand capacity, but hopefully to provide training places for graduates from the new medical school at Anglia Ruskin University in Chelmsford. For the record, I have also been working for some time to try to expand Riverside medical centre in Hullbridge, and I will be pursuing that with the NHS as well.

Secondly, the town of Wickford has suffered a dearth of supermarket capacity in recent years. My constituents endured something of a perfect storm last year when the Aldi supermarket was closed, while at the same time the old Co-op nearby has effectively stood semi-derelict for three years. During that supermarket vacuum, my constituents were forced to fall back on the small Iceland in the high street and Wickford market.

I was very pleased to reopen the enlarged Aldi last autumn, and it is now doing a brisk trade. However, the Co-op still remains undeveloped and, while boarded up, is occupying valuable spaces in the town’s principal car park. It is a long and complicated saga. Suffice it to say that the site was bought several years ago by a development company named Heriot, which originally came up with a plan in conjunction with the supermarket chain Morrisons to redevelop the store, with an underground car park and some flats above. I always had doubts about the commercial viability of those proposals, especially the underground car park, and the scheme collapsed some months ago.

Nevertheless, Heriot is working on what might be called a plan B, and for some months has been in what it describes as “advanced talks” with another major supermarket chain. For commercial reasons Heriot asked me not to name the supermarket in this speech, something I have agreed to respect—although I have to say that the name of the company in question is now effectively an open secret, and was even being reported back to me on doorsteps by my Wickford constituents during the general election.

I spoke to the directors of Heriot in advance of this debate, who assure me they are seeking to bring their commercial negotiations to a conclusion as soon as possible. They are well aware of my frustration at these three years of delay, which I conveyed to them again this morning, and they have asked me to relate that they realise that my Wickford constituents have already waited a long while for a new supermarket. That is an issue I campaigned on heavily at the general election, so I hope Heriot will be able to announce something definitive this summer. My message to Heriot is simple: “You have had more than enough time—get on with it.”

Finally, over two decades I have seen examples of both good and bad development in my constituency. Young people cannot live at home with their parents into their 50s and 60s, so it must be possible to build some houses in a sustainable manner to meet the housing need. Crucially, however, the infrastructure required to accompany them has to be built first. To put it another way, from long experience, if development is to be successful—and it can be—as I said earlier, it has to be done with people, rather than to people. The proposals at a place called Dollymans Farm in my constituency, which I was re-elected with a mandate to oppose, are precisely the opposite of that. We all want to find somewhere suitable and appropriate for people to live, but we have to do that in the right way.

August 16, 2024
Rachel Blake – 2024 Maiden Speech on the Economy, Welfare and Public Services

The maiden speech made by Rachel Blake, the Labour MP for the Cities of Westminster, in the House of Commons on 22 July 2024.

Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, and I thank the hon. Member for Farnham and Bordon (Gregory Stafford) for describing his constituency so passionately. While we may strongly disagree on the need for growth and new development in this country, we may agree more on the future of our NHS, and I look forward to working together on that ambition.

I am a proud Londoner, and like many Londoners I was not actually born here; I am delighted to share with you that I was born in Manchester and my family comes from Lancashire. In fact, for most of my childhood I was aware of only one football team—the Bolton Wanderers—but for the last 42 years London has been my home, and the chance to represent my home city is truly a special honour. I put on record my thanks to the residents of the Cities of London and Westminster for placing their trust in me as their representative.

I start by thanking Nickie Aiken for her service. She is a pioneer, as the first woman to represent the Cities of London and Westminster, and is remembered fondly by many residents. She has shown me kindness and offered her advice, for which I am grateful. I know that here and across the constituency she will be remembered for her tireless work campaigning to regulate pedicabs, and her work to end the Vagrancy Act 1824 and deliver the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024. I also pay tribute to my good friend Karen Buck, who represented the St John’s Wood neighbourhood wards of Abbey Road and Regent’s Park, which joined the two Cities constituency in the recent boundary review. When walking through Westminster with Karen, it is hard to find anyone in her constituency who does not know her and has not been helped by her. Through her tireless casework for tens of thousands of constituents, and her Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018, Karen has made an outstanding contribution to lives in Westminster and beyond. She is a fearless representative and campaigner and a kind and wise friend. I am so grateful for her advice, and will do my very best to live up to her high standards.

From 1977 to 2001, the two Cities were represented by Peter Brooke, who is remembered for his work as the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, and later as the Secretary of State for National Heritage. Finally, I also remember J. S. Mill, who represented the City of Westminster from 1865 to 1868, and who in 1866 became the first person in the history of Parliament to call for women to be given the right to vote. I hope that he would be happy to see Nickie, Karen and I delivering on his pioneering work for equality here in the two Cities.

Truly, when a woman is tired of London she is tired of life. The Cities of London and Westminster are home to great cultural institutions: the national gallery, the royal opera house, the commercial centres of Oxford Street and Edgware Road, innovative start-ups alongside major international corporations, the Government here in Westminster and Whitehall, the international financial centre of the City of London, the beautiful Hyde Park, Regent’s Park and St James’s Park alongside the residential squares of Belgravia and Marylebone, and yes, Buckingham Palace.

Many Members will know the neighbourhoods of Soho, Fitzrovia and Covent Garden as places to spend a night out. In fact, tens of thousands of people live here. We have St Bartholomew’s, one of London’s oldest churches, Bevis Marks, the oldest practising synagogue in the UK, and London Central Mosque. Just minutes away from Parliament we have the Peabody estates of Westminster, the pioneering and beautifully designed Churchill Gardens and Lillington and Longmore estates, the architectural delights of the Barbican, Golden Lane and the historic communities of Petticoat Square and the Guinness estate in Portsoken ward.

All those places are home to diverse communities living side by side, but also to inequality and injustice, and the struggle to find a stable, affordable and decent home is holding people in my constituency back from meeting their potential. That struggle is holding our city and our country back from meeting our potential. Tackling the housing crisis has brought me into politics, and this debate on the King’s Speech proposals for economic growth is an important time to highlight the situation that many of my constituents face. Nearly 20 years ago, I worked at the Treasury on the Barker review of planning. It is with sadness that I note that we are still not delivering the homes we need. I am determined that this Government will deliver on our promise to build more affordable homes.

Ending no-fault evictions will bring certainty and security for the approximately 40% of households in the Cities of London and Westminster who are renting privately. Our cross-Government strategy will put Britain back on track to ending homelessness, rough sleeping and temporary accommodation, which have been rising here for years and are harming so many. I am grateful to organisations such as The Passage and The Connection here in the two Cities for doing so much to support vulnerable people. The Cities of London and Westminster has one of the highest proportions of leasehold homes in the country. Residential leasehold is trapping tenants with unaccountable landlords, and I am pleased the Government have pledged a leasehold and commonhold reform Bill.

It is characteristic of such an international place that global patterns affect our local communities. The rise of short-term letting and the risk of dirty money in property are contributing to a loss of homes for Londoners, and as their representative here I am determined to tackle that. I will be standing up for our local hospital and St Mary’s in Paddington, and continuing our campaign to secure funding for the redevelopment of London’s major trauma centre.

The story of the two Cities is one that is optimistic, outward-looking, hard-working and driven. I hope to continue to represent this place in that fashion. I am the first Labour and Co-operative Member of Parliament to ever represent this historic constituency, and I join colleagues in closing with a pledge to approach this new Parliament with a renewed commitment to respectful debate and disagreement. Elections are a time to make a choice. Now that a decision has been made, it is time to move forward with a relentless focus on public service and delivery.

August 16, 2024
Gregory Stafford – 2024 Maiden Speech on the Economy, Welfare and Public Services

The maiden speech made by Gregory Stafford, the Conservative MP for Fareham and Bordon, in the House of Commons on 22 July 2024.

Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, for calling me to speak. I congratulate the hon. Member for Newton Aycliffe and Spennymoor (Alan Strickland) on his maiden speech. I do not think that we crossed over at university, but mutual friends tell me that he was an excellent president of the Oxford Student Union. We can tell that his debating skills were honed there, and we saw that in evidence this evening.

I want to express my gratitude to the people of the new Farnham and Bordon constituency for placing their trust in me and for allowing me the honour to represent them here in Parliament. I feel that giving a maiden speech is a bit like giving a best man’s speech at a wedding, as you are surrounded by disapproving elderly relatives who are going to hang on every word, but I can assure you, Mr Deputy Speaker, that none of the jokes that I have made before in any best man’s speeches will be given in this House, especially as I know that my mother-in-law is watching on the Parliament channel.

I also wish to thank my family—especially my wife, Caroline, and my daughters, Susannah and Lucy, who have put up with me a lot over the past year—for their patience and support, as well as my parents, James and Theresa.

Other hon. Members have noted that they are not the first people in their family to be Members of Parliament. I am not even the first sibling to be a Member of Parliament. I pay tribute to my brother, Alexander, who served the people of the Rother Valley constituency so diligently in the previous Parliament.

Apparently, it is also customary to express gratitude to our predecessors in the seat—a small political obituary, as it were. Fortunately, both my immediate predecessors, my right hon. Friends the Members for Godalming and Ash (Jeremy Hunt) and for East Hampshire (Damian Hinds), are still, as Members can see, very much in their political prime. None the less, I want to thank them for their generous support and advice since I was selected. They have both achieved amazing things for the constituents whom I have inherited. Campaigning was a sobering affair. On the doorsteps I was told: “Oh, we do like Jeremy”, or “Damian did such wonderful stuff for us”, or “You have very big shoes to fill”. To rub salt into the wound, the week before the election, the local paper ran a story on how much the people of Haslemere would miss the shadow Chancellor—believe me, I know my place.

Speaking of predecessors, the predecessor of my right hon. Friend the Member for East Hampshire, Lord Arbuthnot, should be praised for his sterling work on the Horizonscandal and for bringing justice to the sub-postmasters so cruelly affected. I still hope that those who were responsible—by act or omission—are brought to justice.

The newly created Farnham and Bordon is a county constituency crossing Surrey and Hampshire, making the life of a new Member of Parliament even more complex than it already is. More than that, the name, while referencing the two largest towns in each county, ignores the other towns of Haslemere and Liphook and the many villages that range between the larger population centres. Many argued for, and I supported, a less specific but more all-encompassing name for the constituency, such as the Wey Valley, taking its name from the beautiful River Wey that runs through it. Clearly they are not romantics in the Boundary Commission, so Farnham and Bordon stuck. The only saving grace is that its initials spell FAB, which sums up the area that I represent.

This “FAB” constituency ranges from Farnham in the north to Haslemere and Liphook in the south, Whitehill and Bordon in the west, and the western villages of Surrey, such as Tilford, in the east. Bookended by the north and south downs, it is an area of outstanding beauty, with thriving market towns, pleasant villages, and a thriving sports and arts scene, including the prestigious University for the Creative Arts. It also has a significant military connection, most obviously in Bordon, which was home to the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers until 2015 and is home to the Longmoor ranges, where Ukrainian troops are being trained. Military history is everywhere, from Amesbury school in Haslemere and Hindhead, where Montgomery lived during the war, to the Canadian war graves and memorial in Liphook, and the site of the first-ever two-minute silence in this country on Castle Street in Farnham. The residents of this new constituency are ever thankful for the role that our armed forces have played in keeping us safe.

From Arthur Conan Doyle to Jonny Wilkinson, King John to Flora Thompson, and Graham Thorpe to the hon. Member for Boston and Skegness (Richard Tice), heroes and villains have been born, lived, worked and played in this fabulous constituency, but it is not the beautiful scenery, the historic gems, or the famous people who make this constituency the best in the country. It is not even the fact that my grandparents ran Stafford’s sweet shop in Haslemere for many years—what little boy would not want grandparents who ran a sweet shop? It is the current residents, businesses and community spirit that make FAB special, and a joy to represent. Every day there are local events, charitable occasions and community festivities to get involved with. Indeed, I doubt that anywhere else in this country can rival the number of duck races in the area.

Following that Cook’s tour of the constituency, one might be forgiven for thinking that there are no issues to solve—a home counties garden of Eden. It of course cannot be denied that there are many areas of significant affluence, but it should not be concealed that there are areas of high deprivation, and I will champion their improvement. The constituency’s location is both a benefit and a curse. Within easy commuting distance of London, it provides a rural haven for those who wish to live outside but work in the city. That also makes it rich pickings for housing developers who look for any open space, green or otherwise, to build on. I am not against housing development—we need homes for our children and grandchildren—but we need the right homes in the right places, with the right tenure mix and with the supporting infrastructure.

Conservative-run East Hampshire district council has done everything that it can to persuade the new Government to modify their housing targets to make them more appropriate for our area, including writing to the Deputy Prime Minister. I hope that she will respond positively. Indeed, if there is one issue that unites the whole of the new Farnham and Bordon constituency, it is that infrastructure has not kept pace with development. That is particularly acute in Bordon, where thousands of houses are going up without the supporting infrastructure. The GP surgeries, the NHS dentists, the schools, the roads and the leisure centres all need upgrading and expanding rapidly to meet that housing growth. We must not build more houses until infrastructure catches up. Otherwise we will be left with housing estates devoid of services, security and society. I am deeply concerned about the new Government’s plans on house building. Labour’s changes to planning, imposing top-down targets and removing the rights of local people to have their say on developments, is a retrograde step that has been met with anger from my constituents and resolute opposition from me.

I mentioned the need for health services in our area. Having spent most of my career in healthcare, latterly working for seven years in the NHS, improving clinical services and patient outcomes, I know that both locally and nationally things need to change in the NHS. We need to have a grown-up and honest discussion with the public about how we are going to deliver, provide and fund the NHS and social care going forwards. For an ageing population with increasing healthcare needs and diminishing birth rates—that is, the people who are going to pay for the NHS—we need a cross-party discussion that brings all parties together to make long-term decisions on how we proceed with health and social care in this country. If I achieve nothing else in my time here, starting that conversation, and hopefully progressing it fruitfully, will be something to hope for.

As a traditional, common-sense Conservative, I believe that we cannot pay for health and social care unless we have a strong economy. Despite a global pandemic, a war in the east of Europe and instability in the middle east, and regardless of the picture that the Government are trying to paint in their press releases, the most recent statistics show that the economy is turning around and is on an upward trajectory. I will oppose any measures by this Government, including the misguided nationalisation of industry and the socialist labour rules, that I believe will hamper or reverse that trend.

Equally important is to safeguard ourselves from external threats. The rise of a resurgent Russia, China and North Korea is something that we should all be concerned about. I do not believe that it is hyperbole to say that we are in a pre-war era, and we need to ensure that our borders, skies and infrastructure, both physical and digital, are safe from threats. That is why I absolutely believe that we should move to 2.5% of GDP spent on defence immediately, and increase that to 3% when practical.

In short, we must protect our economy, healthcare and national security to ensure the prosperity and safety of our country, but mindful that maiden speeches are not meant to be controversial, I shall leave it there and return briefly to the subject of my FAB constituency. In 1668, Samuel Pepys recorded that the people of Liphook were “good, honest people”. Given his own morals and motivations, I am not sure whether he meant that as a compliment, but I assure the House that it is as true now as it was then for the residents of Farnham, Bordon, Haslemere, Liphook and our surrounding villages, and I pledge to be a good, honest servant of them in this place.

August 16, 2024
David Lammy – 2024 Statement Following the Release of Vladimir Kara-Murza and Paul Whelan

The statement made by David Lammy, the Foreign Secretary, on 1 August 2024.

I strongly welcome the news that Russia has released a number of prisoners today, and am particularly relieved that British nationals Vladimir Kara-Murza and Paul Whelan will soon be reunited with their families.

Mr Kara-Murza is a dedicated opponent of Putin’s regime. He should never have been in prison in the first place: the Russian authorities imprisoned him in life-threatening conditions because he courageously told the truth about the war in Ukraine. I pay tribute to his family’s courage in the face of such hardship and hope to speak to him soon.

Paul Whelan and his family have also experienced an unimaginable ordeal. I look forward to speaking to him as he returns home to his family in the United States after over 5 years in detention.

August 16, 2024
PRESS RELEASE : New Victims Minister hears from frontline staff at coalface of supporting survivors of crime during first visit [August 2024]
The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 1 August 2024.

Frontline staff laid bare the challenges they face in helping victims navigate the criminal justice system during a visit from the new Minister for Victims, Alex Davies-Jones.
- at Victim Support HQ, Minister pledges to give victims back their voice and restore their fundamental rights
- government pledges fresh approach to halve violence against women and girls in next decade
- first steps outlined in new Victims Bill with Minister promising public “the hard work starts now”
Visiting Victim Support’s new London headquarters, the Minister heard first-hand the realities of delivering vital support services for brave survivors in a system in crisis.

The visit follows plans set out in the King’s Speech to bring forward a Victims, Courts and Public Protection Bill to give victims the justice and support they deserve as part of the government’s blueprint to halve violence against women and girls in the next decade.

Determined that the justice system will provide a safe space for victims to report and recover from crime, Minister Davies-Jones told staff the government will serve the public by ensuring the voices of brave survivors are returned to the heart of the system and their rights are upheld at every stage of the process.

Minister for Victims and Violence Against Women and Girls Alex Davies-Jones said:

Victims and survivors are being failed by a system they feel does not support them. Rape victims are waiting years for justice and an appalling 60 percent of victims choose to withdraw entirely from the process rather than prolong their pain.

This government is committed to restoring trust in our justice system, halving violence against women and ensuring victims’ rights are upheld.  In light of recent events, this has never been more important. The Victims, Courts and Public Protection Bill is just the first step of many in achieving this – and I want to reassure victims that the hard work starts now.

Celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, Victim Support is an invaluable service for victims and survivors across the country – delivering specialist and tailored support to people affected by crime and anti-social behaviour. It also runs the Government’s Homicide Service which helps bereaved families or eyewitnesses affected by murder or manslaughter.

Katie Kempen, Chief Executive at the charity Victim Support said:

We were delighted to welcome the Victims and VAWG Minister to our London offices earlier this week to meet with frontline staff and discuss the many challenges facing victims. Minister Davies-Jones took the time to hear about the vital role of independent support services in helping people to cope and move on after crime.

We look forward to working with the government to improve the lives of victims and repair the criminal justice system.

The visit follows recent research from the National Police Chief’s Council on violence against women and girls. This showed these appalling crimes increased by 37 per cent between 2018 and 2023, with at least 1 in every 12 women falling victim each year.

During this month’s King’s Speech, the government announced plans for a new Victims, Courts and Public Protection Bill which will deliver a justice system that gives victims of crimes get the support they deserve.

The Bill will include measures that:
- strengthen powers for the Victims’ Commissioner to ensure that they are empowered to hold the system to account for the needs of victims not being met
- require offenders to attend their sentencing hearings so that victims and bereaved family members of deceased victims see criminals face the consequences of their actions
- protect the public from sex offenders, restricting parental responsibility for child sex offenders and implementing restrictions on sex offenders changing their names
August 16, 2024
Steve Reed – 2024 Speech at the Summer Stakeholder Reception

The speech made by Steve Reed, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, at the Garden Museum in Lambeth on 31 July 2024.

First of all, I’d like to thank everyone for joining us today – and in particular to our hosts at the Garden Museum. I used to be the council leader in Lambeth, and it’s exciting to be in a familiar space.

It’s great to see lots of familiar faces, many who I met during my time on the opposition benches. Those years are happily behind us now.

We’re united in our ambition to restore nature and support our rural economies and our rural communities. In the past, to me, it’s too often felt like the government wasn’t listening to our partners across the sector.

I want to change that.

I’ve been honoured to be appointed as Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in what is one of the most exciting and important briefs anywhere in government.

But I know I can do more in this job if I work in close collaboration with all of you.

So, your voices will now be heard.

Because that is the way that together we can deliver the change our country wants to see and that our country voted for a little over three weeks ago.

Things need to be different – and will be – different.

We are at a critical moment for nature.

We all want a future where our children can splash about carefree in our rivers, where our fields are full of healthy crops, where our shelves are full of good nutritious, affordable food, healthy animals graze, and our marine life flourishes.

But without change we face a future where torrents of sewage swill through rivers, rolling hills transform into mountains of waste, the dawn chorus is increasingly silenced, and homes and businesses are underwater.

For the past fourteen years, nature has been on a trajectory of decline – here at home and also internationally.

It’s shocking – and profoundly upsetting – that Britain has become one of the most nature depleted countries on the planet.

The voices of environmental organisations, farmers, businesses, rural businesses and so many others were ignored by the previous government.

But I want to thank all of you for your efforts, whether that was fighting to protect vulnerable habitats and species, supporting farmers and fishing communities, or keeping rural communities alive.

We want to reset the approach, raise ambition, and renew momentum

so that our children – and their children – can have the future we want them to enjoy

with clean rivers, fresh air, and limitless opportunities wherever they grow up.

I want to restore that sense of national pride in our beautiful countryside.

We need to show leadership on climate and nature at home, so we have the credibility to lead internationally.

And that work of change has now begun.

Britain is back on the international stage for nature and for the climate.

I’ve set Defra five key priorities.

We will clean up Britain’s rivers, lakes and seas.

In the last few weeks, we’ve reset that relationship with the water industry with tough first measures introduced already, to start to stop illegal pollution of our waterways and a strong new partnership that is intended to bring in a massive investment in jobs that will upgrade our broken sewage infrastructure.

We will end the throwaway society and work towards a zero-waste economy where resources are reused and recycled, creating new jobs and investment, but also protecting nature.

We will support farmers to strengthen Britain’s food security and boost rural growth with a new deal for farmers, cutting energy bills, ending trade deals that undermine environmental and welfare standards, and buying more British produce with the public purse.

We will speed up nature’s recovery, working with civil society, communities and businesses to restore and protect our natural world on land and in our oceans – at home as well as internationally.

And we will speed up the building of our flood defences and drainage systems to keep people and businesses safe, generating jobs in all regions of our country.

The Prime Minister has been clear that this Government’s top priority is to grow the economy.

And whether it’s creating jobs and attracting investment in our water and waste sectors, building economic resilience through better flood defences and nature-based solutions or supporting our food and drink sector, from fishers and growers to retailers and hospitality, Defra’s work is fundamental to all of the government’s missions.

Nature will get back its voice at the very heart of this government because, as everyone in this room already knows, without nature there is no economy, no food, no health and no society.

It underpins everything.

We’ve all enjoyed the mental and physical benefits of spending time outdoors.

Access to nature has a key part to play in Labour’s mission to rebuild our NHS and improve the health of our nation.

We are indebted to so many of you in this room whose work enables people to get outside, in our stunning National Parks, local nature reserves

or right here in Lambeth, with community sessions in the museum’s garden.

And we’ve committed to open up even more opportunities for adults and children alike to get out and enjoy nature

with nine new national river walks, three new national forests, and increasing responsible access to the countryside so more people can enjoy the best of rural Britain and create memories that will last a lifetime.

I recognise that we face a crisis – nature is dying, our rivers are polluted, and urgent action is paramount.

But this decline is reversible

and with the right approach I am confident we will change course.

This approach involves collaboration and working in partnership –

listening to your expertise and experience so we can shape policy and create the regulatory environment that will allow us to succeed.

I’m delighted to sow those first seeds of change at the Garden Museum here today.

Just as seeds take time to grow, we can’t fix our environment or clean up our rivers overnight – but, together, over the next weeks, months and years, we can nurture our countryside, restore nature, and build our rural economies so they bloom once more.

Now let’s get those conversations going again tonight.

Please come and say hello to me and my ministerial team dotted around the room [Daniel Zeichner, Emma Hardy, Mary Creagh].

We’re all really keen to speak with you, to listen with you, not just tonight but also to work with you in the months and years ahead.

Because as I’ve said, if we can tap into your insight, your expertise, and the networks and communities that you all represent, then nature and the future of nature is in the very best possible hands.

Please enjoy the rest of the evening

Thank you very much.

August 16, 2024
PRESS RELEASE : First Mission Board focuses on immediate action to make Britain a clean energy superpower [July 2024]
The press release issued by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero on 31 July 2024.

Energy Secretary chairs first energy Mission Board to accelerate the UK’s efforts towards clean power by 2030 and energy independence.
- Energy Secretary chairs first energy Mission Board, as government continues immediate action to deliver clean power by 2030 and accelerate to net zero
- new forum key to securing British energy independence, with ministers tasked with accelerating plan to invest in clean, homegrown energy across Britain
- meeting takes place as the biggest ever budget is confirmed for this year’s renewables auction – as part of government efforts to rapidly increase clean, cheap energy
- follows on from early action to end onshore wind ban, unblock solar projects, launch major partnership with Great British Energy, and set up 2030 clean power Mission Control
The Energy Secretary continued his drive to make Britain a clean energy superpower with a push for British-based clean, homegrown energy, as he chaired the first Energy Mission Board today (Wednesday 31 July).

Ed Miliband convened Ministers from across government to ensure a relentless focus on delivering the Clean Energy Superpower mission, based on the twin objectives of delivering clean power by 2030 and accelerating towards net zero, to boost energy independence, protect consumers, and support jobs across the country.

The Energy Secretary will emphasise to colleagues the importance of the new forum as playing a vital role in driving forward ambitious, long-term plans to tackle the challenges the country faces and secure its energy independence.

He will work closely with colleagues to rapidly increase the rollout of homegrown, clean energy and reduce dependence on volatile fossil fuels, which is central to protecting billpayers, creating good, well-paid jobs and combatting the climate and nature crisis.

The first meeting follows the immediate steps the Energy Secretary has taken to kickstart this work – including scrapping the onshore wind ban, unlocking solar production, and launching Great British Energy’s major partnership with The Crown Estate. To further support the rollout of new clean energy projects, he has also today confirmed the biggest ever budget for this year’s renewables auction – at over £1.5 billion.

Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband said:

In an unstable world, the best way to boost our energy security and protect billpayers permanently is to speed up the transition away from fossil fuels and towards homegrown energy – making Britain a clean energy superpower.

As we move forward, our Mission Board will keep a laser focus across government on delivering clean, cheap energy to homes and businesses – but also on driving economic growth and creating skilled jobs right across the country.

Also meeting for the first time today is the new Onshore Wind Taskforce. Chaired by the Energy Secretary and CEO of EDF Renewables, Matthieu Hue, the Taskforce will drive action across industry and Government to unblock barriers to rapidly increase onshore wind capacity. This comes as this year’s renewables auction will see £185 million made available for established technologies, including onshore wind and solar, an uplift of £65 million.

CEO of EDF Renewables UK Matthieu Hue said :

Onshore wind is already playing a vital role in the UK and is one of the most cost effective forms of new electricity generation but more must be done to unlock its full potential. By bringing industry and government together, the taskforce is focused on creating practical solutions to overcome barriers to accelerate our journey to achieving net zero. So let’s get to work.

This also follows the launch of the department’s Mission Control – headed up by climate expert Chris Stark – to turbocharge the government’s mission to decarbonise Britain’s power system by 2030. Complementing the Mission Board, this will be focused on accelerating the transition away from volatile fossil fuel markets to clean, homegrown power by 2030 – boosting Britain’s energy independence.
August 16, 2024
Lisa Nandy – 2024 Speech at the Science and Industry Museum

The speech made by Lisa Nandy, the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, at the Science and Industry Museum in Manchester on 31 August 2024.

From the England Football Team to our grassroots coaches, so many of you have told a different story and you have been a light on the hill in times of darkness.

And you’ve reminded us that there is a better country out there.

A few years ago I sat down with Danny Boyle, who hails from just down the road in Radcliffe. He says he’s from Bury, but he’s actually from Radcliffe.

And I asked him how a country that could unite so decisively around the inspiring and inclusive story of the 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony could descend so quickly into anger and polarisation and division.

I asked him where has that country had gone.

And he said simply, that it is still there. But it is waiting for someone to give voice to it again.

And that is my firm belief that this country, as George Orwell said, lies beneath the surface.

And it will be heard. Not out of some technocratic notion of fulfilling quotas, getting out of London, but because that voice has a spirit and energy our country desperately needs to hear.

We are meeting here for a reason.

Because this museum celebrates the industry, innovation, and enterprise of our people. The growing economy our country needs again. The contribution that regions like ours have made to our economy, our country and to the world.

But most of all it tells the story of all the parts of our nation.

It’s the story of the ordinary extraordinary people who contribute to the growth of our country, past and present. Who quietly in every community go out and build things that last and constantly, through their hard work, rewrite our national story.

I spent many, many happy times here in this museum as a kid.

And in turn have spent many happy times here with my little boy in recent years. Although he does want to know when the train section’s reopening.

He has grown up knowing, as my generation did, that this is his museum, his

inheritance – he belongs here, and this inheritance belongs to him.

This museum, like so many of your institutions, help to shape and define us as we shape and define them. We pass them down from one generation to the next. And we neglect them at our cost.

This museum is testament to the spirit of the city that has always believed in itself. And empowered the next generation to believe in itself anew; often despite the odds.

It was just down the road in Salford that Engels wrote ‘The Condition of the Working Class’ in a city that was the driving force of the industrial revolution.

That spirit lives on in my favourite museum – the People’s History Museum. It’s funded by the councils of Greater Manchester, and there’s a reason that we do. These are the councils who have always understood that the history of ordinary people and the ideas that drove them can not just help us not just to interpret the past, but can help us navigate the future.

That museum reminds us that change doesn’t come easily. It took the battle of

Peterloo to enfranchise the men who were building our country – and far too long before our women won that right too. But today I see that spirit at work right here amongst the amazing Mancunian women like Erinma Bell who leads the battle against the violence that scars a generation and shames our country and is a priority for our Government.

This was the city that gave the world the first free library – the Central Reference Library – which stands as a shining testament to how much the mothers and fathers of this city not only believed in our people, but cherished our culture.

And I grew up here in the aftermath of the Moss Side Riots and so it is in my DNA that never again can we be allowed to write off a generation of young people. It was that belief that led me into my first job at the youth homelessness charity Centrepoint – where I learnt everything I know about politics from those brave young people – and I feel them walking alongside me as we create a new generation of OnSide Youth Zones – from Wigan to Bolton – and show this generation that they matter to us again.

From Granada TV and its pioneering journalism, whether the campaign to free the Birmingham Six to the persistent approach to telling the story of Hillsborough and achieving justice for the 96 – to today’s Manchester Evening News that has defied the odds to become one of the most groundbreaking papers in the country and reminds us all why local and regional papers matter so much.

As the late great Tony Wilson said, “this is Manchester – we do things differently here”.

That drive, that creativity, that inclusion, that willingness to do things differently. That is the spirit of our new Government.

I hope you can see and feel it already through the curriculum review we’ve initiated to put creative and sports opportunities back at the heart of a richer, larger life for every single child.

I hope you can see it through our investment in grassroots sport and our determination that the legacy of the Paris Olympics and Euro 2024 is measured not just in trophies and medals but in choices and chances for every child wherever they live and whatever their background.

Through our partnerships with our mayors, councils, businesses and charities, we’re putting rocket boosters under our growing industries – film and theatre, TV, fashion, video games, heritage and tourism – to take the brakes off the economy, create opportunity for every child and to export our incredible talent across the world.

And through my drive to ensure the public appointments that we make truly reflect our country in all its glorious diversity. Not to fulfil a quota, but to ensure that our government draws on the creative might of all of our people.

This is the spirit this city has always embodied.

And this is the country that we can be.

When we turn to face the nation again in five years’ time, it is our ambition that we will face a self-confident country, at ease with itself, where all of our people see themselves in the story we tell ourselves about ourselves as a nation – their contribution seen and valued.

And that work will be the privilege of my life.

But it’s work that belongs neither to me nor to this Government but to each of us. Equal citizens, ordinary people, but each one of us with an extraordinary contribution to make.

I will not pretend it is easy.

But growing up here, with my background taught me that whatever people say – we can move mountains.

And when I said I wanted to do this – our first national event in Manchester – they said you wouldn’t come.

But you did.

And my message to each and every one of you is that if you share that belief in our country. If you have that zest to make change. If you want to challenge us and are willing to be challenged in turn.

Then I promise you. That we will walk alongside you. We will have your back. And we will give voice to the country many of us have believed in all our lifetime but never quite yet seen.

As the great Mancunian band Take That once said:

“We’ve come so far. And we hope for more.”

The next chapter in our country’s story is about to be written. What it looks like – is up to us.

August 16, 2024