Representing a seat in the West Midlands I know how important the automotive industry is to the UK. Across the country it is an essential part of the glue that binds our economy together. Over the last year the All-Party Parliamentary Motor Group (APMG), which I chair, has brought together parliamentarians, ministers, officials, industry representatives and trade unions to discuss key issues …
The Home Secretary must urgently clarify this situation. It is important that everyone should be aware of what is fact and what is conjecture. Guilt should be on the basis of evidence and conviction, not by innuendo, allegation or association.
I am backing Age UK’s campaign against government plans to accelerate the state pension age which could see 500,000 women across the country waiting for more than year longer for their state pension than promised under the Coalition Agreement. The government’s proposals will hurt thousands of hard-working women who believed their retirement was just around the corner. Almost 10,000 women in …
You may have seen the news last week that the Phoenix Four, the former bosses of MG Rover, have been disqualified as company directors.
The independent inquiry into the collapse of MG Rover, which reported its findings in 2009, was damning for the Phoenix Four. The picture that emerged was of millions being made not from the engineering of cars but from the engineering of company finances.
All of us who want to see a peaceful resolution to the Israel-Palestine conflict should welcome the news that Fatah and Hamas have reached a reconciliation agreement. It is especially positive that young people in Palestine have pushed so strongly for this reconciliation. These non-affiliated youth groups have been inspired by pro-democracy movements across the region to organise demonstrations …
Yesterday former MG Rover employees, MG Rover and Austin enthusiasts, community groups and the new MG car company all came together in Cofton Park to celebrate our pride in Longbridge. Pride of Longbridge was a wonderful day. A celebration of why the name was synonymous with the motor industry throughout the 20th Century. It was great to see Austin, MG and Rover enthusiasts swopping stories with …
I was Labour Member of Parliament for Birmingham Northfield between 1992 and 2019 and a former Shadow Transport Minister. I now chair Healthwatch in Birmingham and Solihull, and the West Midlands Board of Remembering Srebrenica. I also work as a public affairs consultant. I am an effective community advocate and stakeholder alliance builder with a passion for human rights. I am a trustee of the Balfour Project charity and of Citizens Advice Birmingham, and a former Chair of Medical Aid for Palestinians.