I've discovered that a driving holiday in rural central France with intermittent internet access is not the best way to hear that Parliament has been imminently recalled, or the best place from which to act on the information. Result? The logistics of getting back in time have beaten me and I'll still be on the road back to the UK when Parliament meets tomorrow. As my name won't be recorded by...
Today the House of Commons Committee on Arms Exports, that I am a member of, publishes a report concluding that the UK’s human rights policy is being fundamentally undermined by the scale and nature of arms exports licences being approved by the Government. It also finds that the situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestine Territories is of severe concern.
There is enough food in the world to feed everyone. But every year 2.3 million children die from malnutrition. If we’re going to put a stop to this global injustice we need radical change. Hosting the G8 in Northern Ireland today and tomorrow (17-18 June), the UK once again has the opportunity to demonstrate its ability to show global leadership. Alongside hundreds of charities and Ivan Lewis...
I am a member of the House of Commons International Development Committee (IDC.) Today, we launched a report on Global Food Security – a huge issue both within the UK and overseas. High and volatile food prices are rarely out of the news at the moment, especially after the two recent shocks in global food prices in 2008 and 2011. Only last week I helped to lead a food drive for Northfield Life...
For the last two years I have been raising concerns about Formula 1's decision to go ahead with the Bahrain Grand Prix at a time when there are such profound issues with the country's human rights record, and when the race has been a focus for discontent. I was therefore surprised to read two articles on the UK Embassy in Bahrain’s website giving a very one sided and – I thought – questionable...
This week is the tenth anniversary of the start of the Iraq war. It may always be remembered as the defining chapter of Tony Blair’s era as Prime Minister. Having been an MP throughout those years I know that the 1997-2010 Labour governments were about so much more. The new hospitals, refurbished schools and National Minimum Wage all bear witness to this. So too does Britain’s leadership in the...
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.