September 2025

It might not be quite an Oasis concert, but I am sure that the railway gathering in Derby that my hon. Friend describes was a fantastic event to champion the rail industry in his constituency. I am really pleased that Great British Railways will be based in Derby so that we can continue to provide the jobs of the future.

I know how important chalk streams are to our biodiversity and to many of our rural communities. We will bring forward further plans about how we can secure our waterways in all their forms, and I will ensure that the hon. Member gets an update from the relevant Minister.

I join my hon. Friend in welcoming that extra funding for Buckinghamshire and in her calls for the council to use it wisely to decrease congestion and support commuters in her constituency.

We are determined to tackle all forms of hatred and division and to take action on hate crime. It has been a topic for much discussion in our Crime and Policing Bill, but I will ensure that the hon. Member gets a ministerial response about the timeliness of the new action plan.

I certainly join my hon. Friend in congratulating that collective in her constituency, and I am always happy to get an invitation to a hospitality venue. I am well aware of the challenges for the hospitality sector relating to rising costs, access to staff, still dealing with covid repayments and so on. That is why the Government are supporting hospitality by taking action on business rates and on skills as well as in many other ways. I am sure that would make a good topic for a debate.

I know how busy my hon. Friend has been over the recess, meeting many of her constituents and celebrating the volunteers and the communities that she represents. I join her in doing that this morning.

The hon. Gentleman raises an issue about not only health services and where they are located, but access in constituencies such as his to affordable and reliable buses and transportation. This Government are tackling both of those after years of devastation in our health services and our buses. After 14 years of the Conservatives, I hope that his constituents will start to feel the benefit soon.

The hon. Gentleman is right to highlight the huge opportunity that AI and technology present, especially in terms of diagnostics and healthcare services. He is also right to highlight that the real challenge to that is adoption and diffusion through our health system. The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care is committed to delivering that by working across Government, and I am sure he will continue to keep the House updated.

I join my hon. Friend in paying tribute to Touchstones and all its work for bereaved children and especially those who are bereaved due to domestic violence. Its work is vital in supporting children through probably the most difficult time of their lives and I thank him for raising that.

I know the new guidance from the EHRC is of great interest to many Members across this House; it is something that I get many emails and correspondence about myself. A parliamentary process will sit alongside that, but I will absolutely ensure that there is appropriate time to debate and discuss these issues, which I know are important to the House.

Train station accessibility is an important issue to many Members. I am sure that if he joins together with some of the Opposition Members who have raised that issue with me today, it would attract the interest of the Chair of the Backbench Business Committee, the hon. Member for Harrow East (Bob Blackman).

I welcome back the hon. Gentleman after the recess. He has not missed one of my business questions. I noticed that he has spoken the most in Parliament of any Member—apart from me, actually. I now have a new title, which is that I have spoken more than the hon. Member for Strangford—long may that continue. He raises an important issue around the treatment of women and girls in Afghanistan, and this Government continue to condemn the appalling actions there. We will do all we can to ensure that o

I know how hard it is for people to see churches go in their area and to transition to going to a new church. She raises an important issue, and I will ensure that she gets a response.

I am sorry to hear of the action of her Conservative council in her area in relation to the Sycamore adventure centre. We had the Second Reading of the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill this week, and we will give more local communities like hers the power to take over such provision as she describes.

I join my hon. Friend in congratulating all those who got their GCSE results this summer, in his constituency and around the country, on all their hard work, particularly those at Worden academy. The headteacher and leadership team there have turned that school around and are getting fantastic results this year.

Dé Buddha sounds like a fantastic restaurant. I congratulate its staff on winning the “best dining experience” award. Maybe an invitation will follow.

As ever, my hon. Friend raises the issue of connectivity and transport in his Rossendale and Darwen constituency. As a nearby MP, I know all too well the real need for a rail link between Rossendale, Darwen and Manchester, and I look forward to working with him to ensure that this Labour Government deliver on that.

I join my hon. Friend in that call. When post offices close, especially at short notice, it causes huge consternation in local communities. I call on him and other Members of Parliament to stand up against the Post Office on those decisions and get the best for their constituents.

In the interests of setting the record straight, I must say to the House that I am a complete lightweight these days and much prefer zero-alcohol beer over anything else. I am sure that there were some fantastic zero beers at the festival in my hon. Friend’s constituency. I join him in congratulating Mike Lane and all the others on serving 58,000 pints there.

I join my hon. Friend in that call. We want more neighbourhood police officers patrolling our streets, particularly at the times of day when crime is most likely to be committed and people want to feel safe.