Contributions
520 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARD Education, Health and Care PlansIt is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship as ever, Dr Huq. I congratulate the hon. Member for Chelmsford (Marie Goldman) on securing this debate and on her excellent…22 Jan 2025HANSARDHigher Education Regulatory ApproachI thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of her statement. The Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 was passed by Parliament prior to the election. By the end of…15 Jan 2025HANSARDChildren’s Wellbeing and Schools BillI beg to move an amendment, to leave out from “That” to the end of the Question and add: “this House, while welcoming measures to improve child protection and safeguarding,…08 Jan 2025HANSARDChildren’s Wellbeing and Schools BillI have a huge amount of respect for the hon. Lady, but she will know that the academy programme was expanded more than 50 times under the last Government, and we went up the…08 Jan 2025HANSARDChildren’s Wellbeing and Schools BillMy right hon. Friend is absolutely right. To be clear, the Bill proposes a pay cut for nearly 20,000 teachers in future years, because it imposes national terms and conditions on…08 Jan 2025HANSARDChildren’s Wellbeing and Schools BillAs ever, my right hon. Friend is absolutely correct. There is no reason that action cannot be taken at the same time as a national inquiry—it is not an either/or. If the…08 Jan 2025HANSARDChildren’s Wellbeing and Schools BillI am glad that the hon. Lady has confirmed that the Labour party is, indeed, anti-academy. The Bill goes on and on—rampant centralisation in search of a cause. Why are the…08 Jan 2025HANSARDChildren’s Wellbeing and Schools BillSadly, I think my right hon. Friend is absolutely correct. I see no other reason for the academy provisions to be in the Bill. It actually says in the explanatory notes that the…08 Jan 2025HANSARDChildren’s Wellbeing and Schools BillThe whole point of academies is to drive up standards by freeing them from state control. The Bill undermines all that, which is why it would abolish academies in all but name. I…08 Jan 2025HANSARDChildren’s Wellbeing and Schools BillI am enormously grateful for the hon. Gentleman’s support, and I agree completely. This is an enormous scandal, and yet we do not fully know the number of victims or perpetrators,…08 Jan 2025HANSARDChildren’s Wellbeing and Schools BillI have been very clear today that the Bill will destroy the education system in this country and reverse the progress that we have made, and that is why we oppose it. On the hon.…08 Jan 2025HANSARDChildren’s Wellbeing and Schools BillNo, I am going to finish. This is an opportunity for MPs across the House to give victims the justice they deserve. Hon. Members have heard our arguments on the inquiry and on…08 Jan 2025HANSARDCreative Education: SchoolsThe Secretary of State has made it clear that she would like more time spent on creative subjects, but she must ensure that does not come at the expense of an academic education.…09 Dec 2024HANSARDTopical QuestionsThe Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 was passed by Parliament prior to the election. By the end of its passage through both Houses, the Labour party had agreed in…09 Dec 2024HANSARDTopical QuestionsSince the Secretary of State decided to pause this legislation, gender-critical women, among others, have racked up enormous legal fees, which have caused some to remortgage their…09 Dec 2024HANSARD Home-to-School Transport: Children with SENDIt is pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Mark. I congratulate the hon. Member for Thurrock (Jen Craft) on securing this important debate and on her very good speech.…03 Dec 2024HANSARD Home-to-School Transport: Children with SENDI want to make sure that there is time for a wrap-up, and we are quite close to the end of the debate, so I will continue, if the hon. Lady does not mind. Is the Secretary of…03 Dec 2024HANSARDChildren’s Social CareI thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of her statement. I welcome the Government’s focus today on children’s social care, and on the profiteering issues that we…18 Nov 2024HANSARD Educational OpportunitiesIt is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Pritchard. I congratulate the hon. Member for Folkestone and Hythe (Tony Vaughan) on securing the debate and on his focus on…13 Nov 2024HANSARDTopical QuestionsThe problem that we have is that while we are learning the lessons of our defeat, the Government are failing to learn from our brilliant record on school standards. Results…04 Nov 2024