March 2026

Parliamentary appearance by Elaine Stewart

Parliamentary appearance by Rishi Sunak

Parliamentary appearance by David Pinto-Duschinsky

Never a truer word was spoken. To building on the hon. Lady’s comment, it is worth the House knowing that, at the current pace, it will take 283 years for women to achieve equal representation in tech. That is why I am proud that the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology has launched the Women in Tech taskforce to champion diversity in the UK tech sector, with a pipeline strengthened by stronger engagement with tech in the classroom. There are spaces in which our economy is g

I put on record my personal thanks to the Minister for the support that he has given to many Members of this House, including newly elected Members like me, and I welcome a newly elected female Member, the hon. Member for Gorton and Denton (Hannah Spencer), to the House today. Will the Minister elaborate on the work of the defending democracy taskforce, and talk about any time spent looking into the algorithms that reward rage-baiting and extremist opinions? I feel that they are degrading our pu

It is a privilege to speak in this International Women’s Day debate. We reflect on the women who created International Women’s Day, and the women who have left a mark every day since then—women across the worlds of politics, trade unionism, business, science and the arts, who are making strides forward in the face of ignorance and misogyny, and who are taking a sledgehammer to the glass ceiling, smashing through the barriers and making space for those who have followed. I reflect on the women wh

I thank my hon. Friend for her comments. That debate continues, and I will touch on some relevant issues later in my speech. Last week, alongside the Minister for Women and Equalities, I was proud to launch our voluntary action plans. Under the Employment Rights Act 2025, employers with over 250 employees will be asked to submit action plans showing how they will reduce their gender pay gaps and support employees going through the menopause. We are working with business leaders, civil society or

I thank the Minister for speaking to me about the poor postal service in Dargavel Village in Bishopton. I know he is working hard to resolve matters and answer questions and had meetings yesterday, and I thank him for that. However, as he will appreciate, this matter is of particular importance in Scotland due to the elections on 7 May, because postal votes will be issued soon. In Scotland we have an NHS with significant waiting lists, and we cannot have people missing medical appointments, so o

The Minister is making a brilliant speech that lots of us will be feeling very emotional about. Does she agree with me and Members across the House that although increasing the minimum wage is really important, as it disproportionately affects female workers, we also need to restructure how we value women’s work and the workforce predominantly made up of women?

On the hon. Lady’s comment about women making up 40% of the House of Commons today, that is an important milestone, but we are not yet at 50%. I am proud that the Labour party has got close to it, and in fact pretty much reached that level. It is important that we continue to look to the centenary, as she said, with a range of measures to push forward the progress of women’s representation and political parties’ role in that, but also to look forward to the progress of women in every part of soc

The Labour Government have given Conservative-run West Sussex county council £27 million to get our roads in shape, but across my constituency there are dangerous potholes that the council refuses to fill, and roads in desperate need of resurfacing, including Mansfield Road and Thesiger Road in East Worthing, which I saw at the weekend. Will the Leader of the House join me in calling on the county council to properly fix roads across Adur and Worthing, and will he make time for a debate on renew

Parliamentary appearance by Alison Taylor

I thank all the women in this Chamber who really have slayed in their lane in today’s debate. Madam Deputy Speaker: “When they amputated my leg, they amputated a part of me. I see my body and I feel disgust, repulsion. I fear that my amputation took away my femininity, my ability to be yearned for; my womanhood pauperised. Trapped in a body that does not reflect my mind or my self.” “Anorexia, unplanned, like an addiction, crept upon me. I ate less and became thinner. My wish: that nobody would

The Select Committee recently flagged that small businesses in our country now face pandemic-level pressures. In April, standing charges for energy are set to rise by 60%, with no price cap protection. Now, soaring oil and gas prices threaten to be the final straw for thousands of SMEs. Will the Secretary of State make an urgent assessment of the risk of soaring energy prices, and give a clear account of how we will keep the SMEs that keep this country running in business?

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his comments and wish all the women in his family a very happy International Women’s Day. Let the message ring out from this House that every girl is a leader. He is absolutely right that we must look at where women come under threats online or through violence, and do everything to protect women and girls across the UK and around the world. We speak today about the agenda of women’s progress, but we must remind ourselves that although we have made progress, men an

This year’s theme, as we have heard, is “Give to Gain”. That prompted me to think about feminism on a global scale, and how interconnected we truly all are. Our globalised world is far from being made up of isolated countries, bounded by iron borders; we exist in the physical space and online. Our geopolitical landscape is shifting constantly, and feminism must move with it. The experiences of women are shaped by overlapping factors of race, class, disability, migration status, sexuality, faith

Parliamentary appearance by Stephanie Peacock

Quality of service in the Royal Mail has been at shocking levels over recent years. Considering that Royal Mail is legally obliged to deliver a universal service and keep our communities connected, will the Minister join me in calling on Royal Mail’s owners to honour their agreement, end the two-tier workforce, and bring new entrants’ terms and conditions up to the same standard as those of substantive Royal Mail employees? Fifty per cent of new entrants are leaving the service within a year, wh

15. What recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of postal delivery services.

Reform-led North Northamptonshire council has just announced that it is increasing school transport costs from £795 to £965 a year. That £170 increase—an increase of over 20%—is unaffordable for families. It comes from a council that promised lower costs for families, that failed to have its books signed off and that has received a groundbreaking real-terms increase in its settlement from this Government. Does the Leader of the House agree that North Northamptonshire council should reverse this