January 2026

It is a pleasure to speak in this debate on such an important subject. When I think of youth unemployment, what immediately comes to mind is the young woman I met on the doorstep during the election campaign who told me how she had been looking for work for a long time and just did not know how she was going to get a job. The hopelessness she felt was clear. Like her, far too many young people were left stuck at home and let down under the previous Government. As we have heard, it was during the

I support Valerie Amos’s report on maternity services. I am very keen to hear how the Government are ensuring that black voices, particularly black women’s voices, are key during this investigation, so that their voices are heard and their experiences taken into consideration.

Parliamentary appearance by Dame Diana Johnson

Every young person I speak to in Leicester wants the same basic things: to work, to earn, to learn and to build a future for themselves. They want the dignity that comes from that first pay packet, the confidence that comes from responsibility, and the chance to prove themselves in the workplace. They do not want to sit on the sidelines of our economy and—let us be honest—we do not want that for them, either. I hear constantly about the Government’s ambition—their ambition for more people to be

Parliamentary appearance by Neil Coyle

I thoroughly agree. Women are often filmed while running, and girls are put off exercise by the way that men create this material, which can go viral. We have seen recently that men have been using smart glasses to film women in public spaces going about their everyday lives. Those women have then been harassed, with everything that goes with that, simply for being in a public space.

I absolutely agree. I firmly support the idea of a social media ban for under-16s, partly because of the huge impact it has on girls and their body image, which obviously affects the way they think about taking part in sporting activities, often in public. We also know that many of those girls are catcalled and whistled at as they come home from school, not just by boys their own age, but often by grown men. That has a chilling effect on their decision to engage in sport and other activities. La

I absolutely agree, and it is one of the reasons why I took those University of Manchester researchers to meet the Safeguarding Minister. I hope that, given the VAWG strategy is a living, breathing document across a 10-year period, we can make sure this is in future versions of the strategy. It is incredibly important. The long-term programme of awareness, training and behaviour change at the heart of the strategy aims to drive a societal response that empowers victims and deters perpetrators. I

As a fellow East Anglia MP, I praise Norwich Cycling Campaign for its women’s safety audit. I am sure it is a model that many local areas should follow. In the medium and long term, of course, we want to see real change. A poll conducted by the Cycle to Work Alliance in 2024 found that safety concerns deter 45% of potential cyclists from commuting by bike. Although this is obviously broader than harassment, there is certainly a gendered element to it given that women are three times more likely

I would obviously love to congratulate Newbury Road Club and the other organisations that are highlighting Cycling UK’s “My ride. Our right” campaign, and that have been very active in this discussion about women’s cycling safety. I will come on to segregated cycle lanes. In these dark winter months, safety concerns can often be at their greatest. Research by Sport England’s “This Girl Can” campaign found that 72% of women worry about their personal safety when it is dark and change their behavi

I thank all Members who contributed and the Minister for her remarks and ongoing work on this issue, which forms a key part of the Government’s ambition to halve violence against women and girls. We all very much look forward to working with her to improve women’s safety in this area. I finish with this quote from the Belonging Forum: “When women feel unable to move freely in public spaces, this limits opportunities for connection, reinforces isolation and undermines a sense of belonging.” We mu

Thank you, Ms Jardine. I thank the Minister and all my colleagues for an excellent debate. I think we had a brilliant response from the Minister. I am sure she is determined to ensure that the digital space can be as safe as possible for women and children, and for everybody else as well. Question put and agreed to. Resolved, That this House has considered the matter of tackling the digital exploitation of women and girls.

I thank the Minister for his statement; the measures will radically improve the system. He will be aware that over 170 houses in my constituency have had their freeholds purchased by Andrew Milne, who is now demanding that residents pay sums sometimes exceeding £25,000 to buy out the freeholds, and is threatening forfeiture and High Court action if they do not pay up. I welcome the Minister’s commitment to ending forfeiture, but will he set out what additional steps that Government are taking to

I totally concur; my hon. Friend makes some very strong points. The examples that I just mentioned highlight the need for consistent and mandatory guidance for all police forces to recognise digital abuse and online stalking, and not just take it for granted that there is nothing they can do about it. I call for national mandatory education for all police forces to recognise and deal with victims of digital abuse and exploitation; exploration of a legal definition of technology-facilitated abuse

I welcome the engagement from the Minister and today’s fantastic announcement, and invite him to come and have a pint at the Dolphin in my constituency, where I used to pull pints. Just down the road is William Cowley, a business that has been in my constituency since 1870. It produces the vellum on which much of the history of this nation has been written, including royal weddings, births and deaths; royal patents; freedoms of the city; and many Acts of Parliament. It is worried about its viabi

I totally agree. Without getting too much into the politics of this, there is a very right-wing argument about what free speech means. When I first came to Parliament in the early 2000s, the then Prime Minister used to talk about rights and responsibilities. We all believe in rights, but they need to be balanced against responsibilities. The idea that somebody can print or send a person’s image and not take responsibility for the consequences is ridiculous. A lot of the current free speech argum

I totally agree. In fact, I have just been discussing with some of our visitors from Lancashire what needs to happen in schools so that young people are aware of digital exploitation and the damage and distress that it can cause. I hope the Minister, who is in her place, will look at ways in which the Government could facilitate legislation so that, in future, many of these digital crimes could be included in the statute books and not be regarded as things that the police can do nothing about.

I beg to move, That this House has considered the matter of tackling the digital exploitation of women and girls. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Jardine. Online abuse and digital exploitation are extremely prevalent in the modern-day world. The targeting of women and girls in online spaces is growing into a market where legislation is not keeping up with the speed of the digital world, so much so that the world’s richest man considered it acceptable and a matter of free speec

I thank my hon. Friend for her excellent speech on this important subject. As well as reporting, I am sure she agrees that it is important to gather intel from women about where they do and do not feel safe. Will she, as a fellow East Anglia MP, welcome Norwich Cycling Campaign’s women’s safety audit? It has just been launched to hear from local women about their experiences, whether it be of harassment or of safe cycling routes. I encourage my constituents to take part. Does my hon. Friend reco

22. What steps she is taking to providing funding for rail infrastructure.