Chris Evans

Freedom of Religion or Belief in China

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Jardine. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for St Helens South and Whiston (Ms Rimmer) for securing the debate. This is not the first time that either of us have spoken on this topic in this place. I also pay tribute to the Father of the House for his speech. I hope that Pope Leo heeds his call and follows the example of his predecessor, John Paul II, in standing up to communism around the world. I am delighted to see present the right hon. M

UK-based Tech Companies

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Betts—and I genuinely hope you have some good news about Sheffield Wednesday in the next few days.

UK-based Tech Companies

I stand corrected, Mr Betts—I was in meetings all morning, so I have not seen the sports news yet. For constituencies like mine, which were dependent on heavy industry, the development of high technology offers new growth opportunities that we can harness in our valley communities once again. I want to focus my comments on a company called Academii. Academii helps organisations improve their workplace training by replacing one-size-fits-all learning with streamlined content, smart delivery and m

UK-based Tech Companies

I am always happy to take interventions, but my hon. Friend seems to have written my speech for me, because I will develop that argument as I go along. I note he is from Leeds—Leeds pinch all of Sheffield Wednesday’s best managers, do they not, Mr Betts? Spin-outs offer postgraduate students the sought-after opportunity to work in a start-up, allowing them to develop skills and experience outside of academia. At a time when many graduates are struggling to navigate the job market, spin-out compa

Armed Conflict: Children

The hon. Gentleman speaks from experience, himself knowing conflict, and he knows that Belfast is now a vibrant European city, with education on the rise. Can he give some advice on what can be done to address the matter of children who grew up in that conflict and how they have adapted to modern life?

Armed Conflict: Children

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Stringer. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Hyndburn (Sarah Smith) on securing such an important debate. The effects of war on children are devastating, as often seen in the media, but we must look beyond what we see. We see humanitarian disasters; we do not see the recruitment of child soldiers beforehand, the mental trauma and the loss of education. What we do see we must take seriously, as it reflects a sad reality that many chi

Ajax Programme

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Stuart. It would be easy to blame the last Conservative Government for the operational difficulties burdening the Ministry of Defence, General Dynamics and the British Army from the outset of the Ajax programme, but I could not do that with the right hon. Member for Rayleigh and Wickford (Mr Francois) sitting in front of me. He was often a critic when he sat on the Government Benches, and I have lost count of the number of times he said that

Advanced Brain Cancer: Tissue Freezing

The hon. Lady is absolutely right. We have to remember that a cancer diagnosis affects not just the person, but their family and loved ones. A lot of people have to leave work to care for those people, and they have to deal with the emotional impact too. Her economic point is absolutely right. The wider point is that we lead the world in life sciences. If we did what I am suggesting, we could be a world leader in brain cancer care and we could save lives too, so it is a win-win for everybody. As

Advanced Brain Cancer: Tissue Freezing

In a debate where tears were shed, it was good to hear the Minister’s positive reply. I look forward to meeting with her and Ellie to discuss Owain’s case further. I pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Mitcham and Morden (Dame Siobhain McDonagh) for her work on this issue. From a position of great grief, she has tried to bring about something good. I think that we can all endorse what she has been trying to do in her campaigns. I am pleased that the Minister has committed to meeting wit

Advanced Brain Cancer: Tissue Freezing

I beg to move, That this House has considered patient access to tissue freezing for advanced brain cancer treatment, diagnostics and research. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Western—you look remarkably like the man I had breakfast with 45 minutes ago. I am pleased that this topic is getting the attention it deserves, and I am grateful to open this important debate, especially ahead of Less Survivable Cancers Awareness Week, which begins on 13 January. I must confess I knew