Today I was pleased to welcome the Environment Secretary Hilary Benn to the Northfield constituency. He was here to visit Frankley – one of the local areas severely hit by floods last year. The government has earmarked funds for the area under its flood protection scheme. During the visit we met with community leaders, Frankley Parish Councillors and staff from Birmingham City Council and the …
Richard Burden MP last night confronted Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Barak at the Labour Party Conference. Mr Burden called on him to respond to the findings of the recent UN report that Israel committed war crimes in Gaza during ‘Operation Cast Lead’. Mr Burden, Chair of the Britain-Palestine All Party Parliamentary Group, also presented the Israeli Minister with a copy of the group’s …
Richard Burden MP, Chair of the Britain-Palestine All Party Parliamentary Group (BPAPPG), has welcomed the findings of a United Nations’ investigation into the conduct of Israel and Hamas during Operation Cast Lead. The 22-day long conflict claimed the lives of over 1,300 Palestinians, 352 of them children. The civilians and infrastructure of the Gaza Strip bore the brunt of Israel’s assault …
The long awaited report of the independent inquiry into the collapse of MG Rover has finally been published today. Like most other people, I have found it frustrating that we have had to wait over four years for this inquiry to be completed and astonishing that it has cost around £16m. I have always supported publication of its findings and I am relieved that today we can finally see what is in …
The long awaited report of the independent inquiry into the collapse of MG Rover in 2005 was published at 9AM this morning. The report is now available online: Read Volume I of the report Read Volume II of the report The report is over 800 pages long. There is a 20 page conclusion which provides an overview of some of the matters discussed in far greater depth earlier in the report. Read the …
The MG Rover inqury report will be published at 9AM today. A copy of the report will be made available online here as soon as possible.
Below is an article I wrote for today’s Birmingham Post ahead of the publication of the report – about MG Rover, the report and looking forward to a new and sustainable future for Longbridge.
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.