Liberal Democrat Spokesperson (Care and Carers)
Liberal DemocratMP for Mid Sussex
“thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to put on record my appreciation for the hard work of the Prime Minister's ministerial team in Defra in tackling the absolute failings of south east water. But last Friday, 1200 pupils at Downlands Community…”
“The honourable member for Tooting for setting out so brilliantly with her professional expertise and her human touch, actually, what it means to have corridor care as a normal habit right across the NHS in all parts of the country, not just…”
“Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. The apology today is so welcome, and my heart goes out to all those people who have campaigned and been hurt by the failings of the state. In his statement, the Prime Minister said, and I quote, these harms …”
“6. Whether his Department has provided guidance on the potential impact of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (Alternative Dispute Resolution) (Fees) Regulations 2026 on small businesses providing arbitration services.…”
“The Secretary of State’s announcement of 1,000 extra midwives is welcome, even if the funding is temporary. However, this is a review of maternity and neonatal services. In Baroness Amos’s review of Sussex, she noted that in the 12 months e…”
“One of the people in the Gallery is my constituent, Heather Farrant, who came to Parliament today with two of her three daughters. She has lived with the lifelong consequences of her mother’s exposure to DES. Will the honourable Lady commen…”
“I thank Donna Ockenden, the honourable Member for Sherwood Forest (Michelle Welsh), and the Nottingham families for all the work they have done to bring us today’s report about what went on across Nottinghamshire. It is truly shocking. At t…”
“This debate is on a subject that, it goes without saying, is emotive and complex. We must therefore as always endeavour to have this conversation with compassion and empathy. The Liberal Democrats’ position is clear and simple, as reflected…”
“I welcome the Secretary of State’s realism in accepting that the bans announced today will not be 100% perfect. Can she tell me what proportion of under-16s the Government expect will be prevented from accessing social media?…”
“I absolutely despair of South East Water. As we have heard from Members who represent Kent constituencies, South East Water cannot cope with large water outages; but nor can it cope with small water outages. In my constituency, the village …”
“I declare an interest as the vice-chair of the all-party parliamentary group for young carers and young adult carers. The APPG published an inquiry earlier this year which found that 40,000 young adult carers are providing more than 50 hour…”
“Yesterday, the Climate Change Committee laid out in stark terms the risks that we face as a country if we do not tackle the impact of climate change; one of those was drought. That is especially pertinent in Mid Sussex and across the south-…”
“What is the Department’s internal deadline for concluding the release of the Mandelson files? If there is an internal deadline, who will be held accountable if the Department fails to meet it?…”
“I am grateful to the honourable Member for Thurrock (Jen Craft) for opening the debate, and to the honourable Member for Dudley (Sonia Kumar) for her work on the APPG and as a physiotherapist. Medical staff in my constituency and across the…”
“PVL is a SME in Burgess Hill that fabricates high-visibility livery, supplying 80% of police vehicles and 40% of ambulances. It is being hammered by the rules enacted in the Procurement Act 2023. Converters are the middlemen who take a regu…”
“15. What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the governance of multi-academy trusts.…”
“I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of the statement. Like other honourable Members who have spoken, first and foremost my thoughts are with the family and friends of the two young people who have lost their lives, and everyone…”
“I thank all honourable Members for their thoughtful and moving contributions this afternoon. The honourable Members for Worcester (Tom Collins) and for St Helens South and Whiston (Ms Rimmer) spoke so movingly about their own very personal …”
“I also wanted to raise potholes, because potholes are plaguing many roads in Haywards Heath in my constituency, including Perrymount Road, which feels a bit like driving over the surface of the moon. Conservative-run West Sussex county coun…”
“Building on the point made by the honourable Member for Crawley (Peter Lamb), the £63 million of new capacity funding is a drop in the ocean compared with the real cost of LGR across the country. We are talking about councils having to merg…”
“I am pleased that the White Paper makes one mention of young carers. It rightly notes that young carers pay a huge price for caring for their siblings and family members. I am sure the Secretary of State agrees that it is vital that we iden…”
“9. What steps he is taking to support high streets.…”
“Palantir has links to Peter Mandelson, to Peter Thiel and to the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, and it is extending its web of influence across multiple parts of our public sector. It is extraordinary that the Government are so reluctant to ha…”
“This is not about process; it is about the judgment of the Prime Minister, and we cannot legislate out the poor judgment that has been in evidence today. Perhaps the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister has considered our calls for an offi…”
“In her response, the Home Secretary noted the speeding-up of processing times, but I wonder whether enough is being done on that. Surely, making sure that asylum seekers are processed as fast as possible is the route to closing the hotels.…”
“Madam Deputy Speaker, I am sure that your constituents, like mine, were absolutely shocked this morning to discover that their water bills from South East Water will go up by 7%, while the company is being investigated by Ofwat. The water i…”
“rose—…”
“The Minister talks about the definition of a pub. In the village of Hurstpierpoint in my constituency, Morley’s Bistro has a very similar product offering to food-led pubs on the same high street. They are competing for the same customers, …”
“I am pleased to hear the Secretary of State’s comments about social care, but an awful lot of care in this country is provided by family carers, who can often be serving personnel or the children of serving personnel. Does he consider that …”
“I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of the statement. I refer the House to my declaration in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. Today’s announcement raises three questions about waste, incompetence and trust in democ…”
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