Contributions
2,107 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDPolicing and CrimeAs would be expected, I completely agree with my hon. Friend. He has identified a trend that I have detected, which is returning to policing after an absence of some six years.…29 Jan 2020HANSARDPolicing and CrimeI definitely agree that, broadly, three ingredients will be required. First, we need significant and assertive enforcement; secondly, we need to intervene with young people as…29 Jan 2020HANSARDPolicing and CrimeAt a time when we all owe a duty to our young people to stand shoulder to shoulder in the fight against the violence that disproportionately affects them, I find it hard to…29 Jan 2020HANSARDPolicing and CrimeI must make some progress. The police uplift is, of course, an important part of our strategy to tackle crime, but it is not our only measure. Those extra officers will be…29 Jan 2020HANSARDPolicing and CrimeI am always happy to speak to police forces about their requirements. As the hon. Lady will know, we have a special fund that can help financially when one-off events occur in…29 Jan 2020HANSARDPolicing and CrimeMy hon. Friend is quite right. I well remember the former Member for Leigh, who is now the Mayor of Manchester, proudly boasting of the further cuts he would make to the police…29 Jan 2020HANSARDPolicing and CrimeThe hon. Member is quite right to raise county lines as an issue, and I will say more about that later in my speech. I, too, suffer from the county lines phenomenon in my…29 Jan 2020HANSARDPolicing and CrimeI beg to move an amendment, to leave out from “House” to the end of the Question and add: “welcomes the Government’s commitment to the people’s priorities to drive down crime in…29 Jan 2020HANSARDPolicing and CrimeThere speaks the voice of experience. It is great to see a former leader of Westminster City Council, and a successor in my council ward, in this place. She is quite right: that…29 Jan 2020HANSARDPolicing and CrimeWell, Mr Deputy Speaker—sorry, Mr Speaker! Forgive me. It was a slip of the tongue, and a memory, happily, of old times. We will recruit 20,000 police officers over the next three…29 Jan 2020HANSARDPolicing and CrimeYes. I think we should all be concerned about that statistic. As the right hon. Lady will know, the Prime Minister has ordered a royal commission to review the criminal justice…29 Jan 2020HANSARD Mental Health Act: Section 136I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Mole Valley (Sir Paul Beresford) on securing the debate. His long-standing interest in these matters is well known. I am grateful to…28 Jan 2020HANSARD Automated Facial Recognition SurveillanceThe Government are supporting the police and empowering them with the tools they need to deliver on the people’s priorities by cutting the crime that is blighting our communities.…27 Jan 2020HANSARD Automated Facial Recognition SurveillanceI can absolutely give that assurance. The police, who are of course operationally independent and have devised the system themselves, have reassured me that there is, first, no…27 Jan 2020HANSARD Automated Facial Recognition SurveillanceMy hon. Friend raises an extremely important and useful point. He is quite right that the acceleration of technology needs to be embraced by the House in a way that perhaps it has…27 Jan 2020HANSARD Automated Facial Recognition SurveillanceI understand that that specific issue has been raised with the Metropolitan police, and they have made it clear that nobody will be required to remove their niqab or other facial…27 Jan 2020HANSARD Automated Facial Recognition SurveillanceIt is definitely the case that in a world where identification technology of all types is accelerating, one of the challenges we face is the preservation of our privacy, and there…27 Jan 2020HANSARD Automated Facial Recognition SurveillanceAs I understand it, the use of this technology in such circumstances would be illegal, and we are the guardians of what is legal in this country.27 Jan 2020HANSARD Automated Facial Recognition SurveillanceOf course we want to maintain public confidence in the use of the technology, and that means that we have to be as transparent as possible about both its deployment and the…27 Jan 2020HANSARD Automated Facial Recognition SurveillanceNo, it is not right. The hon. Gentleman is incorrect to say that there is no legal framework, and in saying that he disagrees with the High Court, which only last year certified…27 Jan 2020