Contributions
1,012 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARD Fatalities in Childbirth: Statutory Leave and PayI am delighted to participate in this debate on statutory parental bereavement leave and pay for those whose partners have died in childbirth, given that I almost died in…06 Dec 2023HANSARDTopical QuestionsT7. Last week, the former Health Secretary admitted at the covid inquiry that sick pay across the UK is “far too low”. It is far lower than the European average and encourages…05 Dec 2023HANSARD Business of the HouseThere has been a 26% reduction in the number of free-to-use ATMs in my constituency since July 2018, alongside a 30% reduction in the number of free-to-use ATMs across the UK over…30 Nov 2023HANSARD Business of the HouseA few days ago, the Care Quality Commission found that more than two thirds of hospitals in London and more than half of hospitals in England offer substandard levels of care.…23 Nov 2023HANSARDEngagementsQ4. The Scottish surcharge on energy means, according to Ofgem, that people in Scotland pay 50% more in standing charges than Londoners do, despite exporting 3.2 million hours of…22 Nov 2023HANSARD Veterans Welfare ServicesI thank the Minister for the statement, but he cannot escape from the fact that this is quite thin gruel. It amounts to a rebranding exercise, and I cannot think of many veterans…21 Nov 2023HANSARDInternational Men's DayIndeed it does, and men are particularly prone to isolation. Women are much more likely to make friendships and chat to people—men not so much. The value of men’s sheds and…21 Nov 2023HANSARDInternational Men's DayI am delighted to participate in this debate to mark International Men’s Day 2023. I thank the hon. Member for Don Valley (Nick Fletcher) not just for securing the debate, but for…21 Nov 2023HANSARDInternational Men's DayI thank the hon. Gentleman for his intervention. I am delighted with the men’s sheds in my constituency, because the three towns in the Garnock valley are post-industrial areas…21 Nov 2023HANSARDSupport for Veterans5. What steps he is taking to support veterans.20 Nov 2023HANSARDSupport for VeteransWhen veterans and their families are compensated for the detrimental impact their service has had on their lives, that is unjustly classed as income when applying for means-tested…20 Nov 2023HANSARD Business of the HouseFollowing on from my hon. Friend the Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire North (Gavin Newlands), in this place I have repeatedly raised the scandal and injustice of standing…16 Nov 2023HANSARD Business of the HouseIt has recently been announced that the two islands in my constituency, the Isle of Arran and the Isle of Cumbrae, are each to lose their Bank of Scotland branch. Following hard…09 Nov 2023HANSARDTopical QuestionsWhen a memorandum of understanding on HS2 to Scotland was agreed by the then Transport Secretary, Philip Hammond, HS2 planners claimed that reducing journey times between Scotland…26 Oct 2023HANSARD Rural Postal Services: SustainabilityDoes the Minister think there is a case for giving greater UK Government support to rural post offices, which, by definition, cannot compete on footfall because they serve smaller…25 Oct 2023HANSARD Rural Postal Services: SustainabilityThe hon. Gentleman will be aware that the previous Labour Government stripped post offices of many of their unique services and the current Government have not supported post…25 Oct 2023HANSARDTopical QuestionsT2. In less than a decade, the proportion of female pensioners in the UK living in poverty has risen by 6%, which means that one in every five female pensioners are below the…25 Oct 2023HANSARD Baby Loss Awareness WeekI thank the hon. Member for North Shropshire (Helen Morgan) for bringing forward this debate, which has become something of an annual event in the calendar. It is very important…19 Oct 2023HANSARD Baby Loss Awareness WeekI thank my hon. Friend for his intervention. I can see that the Minister was listening carefully, and I am sure she will want to take that back to her colleagues in Cabinet who…19 Oct 2023HANSARD Baby Loss Awareness WeekThe hon. Gentleman is correct in what he is saying. Does he agree that one of the problems across the UK is that, on the whole, most of the stillbirths we have are preventable?…19 Oct 2023