May 2026

I am coming on to say, in fact, that of course the increase has its limits and should not be a shock to business. I have heard, if not similar stories, then certainly experiences in the same vein. We had the debate on the national insurance increase in this place, but a good chunk of that increase, if not all of it, was allocated to NHS spend, which had a historic record increase under this Government, with £28 billion or £29 billion committed in the last financial year. A good chunk of that cam

I absolutely agree. My hon. Friend is an ardent campaigner for community spaces like the one he mentions, and I am sure he is taking that fight to his local council on behalf of his residents and the users of that facility. I am completely onside with him. I am not sure how much work my endorsement does, but I wish him all the best in his campaign. Getting Britain working has to mean something real in places such as Burnley, Padiham and Brierfield; it has to mean decent work, proper wages, real

It is a great pleasure to welcome this King’s Speech after the bumper legislative year we have just had. Acts such as the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 and the Employment Rights Act 2025 are already making a difference to my constituents, and there are more than 5,000 children in my area with better supported parents because of the lifting of the two-child benefit cap. When I talk to my constituents in Burnley, Padiham and Brierfield about their priorities, they talk to me about jobs and wages; about

I fully agree with my hon. Friend. It would be remiss of me if I did not mention my absolute delight at the education for all Bill included in the King’s Speech. I intend to speak in the debate on that Bill when the time comes. I also thank the Minister for School Standards and the Secretary of State for what I thought was a model of how to engage with charities and parents, as well as with Back-Bench MPs, on that difficult but important piece of legislation. I think everybody across the House w

I am coming on to talk about the importance of FE funding, while understanding the challenges the Government face. There is enormous demand to spend money everywhere, but I want to make the case for why we really need to resource FE. FE colleges endured years of under-investment. Funding per student fell by 11% over 14 years of Conservative government. Vocational education was too often treated as second class, and apprenticeship opportunities declined precisely at the moment we needed them most

I draw attention to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests in that I am the chair of the all-party parliamentary group for T-levels. I thank Harrison Willmott, a sixth-form student and work experience student, who helped research some of the figures for my speech today. He is sitting in the Gallery. I also welcome today’s positive growth figures—the highest quarterly growth in the G7 and the highest real-terms growth in over four years, as well as falling unemployment. However,

I hear what the hon. Lady is saying—we have exactly the same challenges in my rural community, where people cannot get to job interviews or to jobs—but we passed the Bus Services Act 2025 in the last Session.

I certainly do. It is this Labour Government and it is getting people off NHS waiting lists and back into work. However, it is not for me to answer the questions; my intervention was simply to give the hon. Lady another opportunity to answer the question that was put to her by my hon. Friend the Member for Bracknell (Peter Swallow) and which she did not really answer. This broken system that she described as “Benefits Street” is a system that the Conservatives created. Why, in 14 years, did they

rose—

Is my hon. Friend aware of the good research which shows that £1 invested in early years education is worth £16 invested later in a child’s life? Does she agree that that wise investment by our Government is both taking the economy forward and supporting families in a meaningful way?

My hon. Friend is making an excellent speech. Would he agree that the European partnership Bill is particularly important to many small businesses in vital supply chains in the automotive sector and other key areas of our economy, which will benefit directly from that well thought-through measure?

Two of my constituents have received letters addressed to multiple individuals unknown to them who appear to have used their address to obtain Disclosure and Barring Service checks. If false addresses are being used to obtain DBS certificates, that raises serious concerns about the robustness of the system. The DBS has confirmed to me that it does not routinely monitor the volume of basic DBS applications linked to individual addresses. Can we have a statement from the relevant Minister on the s

The hon. Member mentioned small businesses and delays at the border. Is it not true that the problem of double tariffs for small businesses when importing from third countries and then into the European Union will only be solved by us rejoining the customs union?

It is an honour and a pleasure to take part in this King’s Speech debate. I am a member of the Energy Security and Net Zero Committee, and I look to grow our economy and get Britain working, with a special focus on the green economy and its many opportunities and challenges. The regulating for growth Bill promises a framework that supports innovation, yet current proposals from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero risk doing the opposite. Under the plans for the new home energy model,

Along with the hon. Member and other colleagues, I have been campaigning on bringing in a trans-inclusive conversion therapy Bill to ban that awful practice. Will she support me in asking for a proper timeline for when the legislation will be introduced?

I thank the Minister for his statement on national security threats and the swift response to this heightened threat. The horrific recent increase we have seen in antisemitic attacks and acts of anti-Muslim hatred is causing understandable anxiety in diverse communities such as mine in Luton South and South Bedfordshire, despite great partnership working between Luton council, Bedfordshire police and our voluntary and community sector. Will the Minister reassure my constituents that the Governme

This week marked the 22nd anniversary of the devastating Stockline ICL Plastics factory explosion in Woodside in my constituency, in which nine people tragically lost their lives. Given continuing concerns about corporate accountability, may we have a debate in Government time to assess how effective the offences of corporate manslaughter and corporate homicide have been since they were introduced, and whether the legislation is delivering justice for families affected by workplace deaths?

Parliamentary appearance by Phil Brickell

Parliamentary appearance by Seamus Logan

Last week, the BBC revealed a terrifying lack of regulation in the growing infant sleep industry, where literally anyone can call themselves a maternity nurse or a sleep consultant and give vulnerable parents advice that puts babies at risk. Locally, that led to the tragic death of a four-month-old baby who was put into an unsafe sleeping position on the guidance of a so-called maternity nurse who had no medical qualifications. Can we have a debate in Government time on what we can do to regulat