Former
Welcome to my website and blog.
You can read a bit more about who I am and what makes me tick here. A summary of the work I did when I was Labour MP for Birmingham Northfield between 1992 and 2019 can also be found here.
The older posts on here date from my time as an MP but I have continued to blog since leaving Parliament.
The opening paragraphs of my blog posts appear at the bottom of this page in reverse date order. The “Read on” buttons take you to what I have written in full. My posts below also contain links to articles I have written and which have been published elsewhere, together with posts imported from my own Facebook page.
To view posts on a specific subject, from both during and after my time in Parliament, please click one of the buttons below.
These are the main subjects on which I’ve written. Click here to view the full list of categories.
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Click on ‘Contact’ below to get in touch with me.
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This, from Will Hutton in the Observer today, is well worth reading
Privileged to be at very moving @RemSrebWestMids Memorial Breakfast at @YMCANS in Stoke-on-Trent on Wednesday. Probably my last time speaking as WM Chair. Thanks to all for your support over past three years #YMCANS
“A reset of UK policy towards Israel and Palestine by Andy Burnham will demonstrate his values and help earn him public trust.”
Today I am in Parliament to support two important Private Members Bills – the Refugee Family Reunion Bill and Unpaid Trial Work Period Bill. The Refugee Family Reunion Bill would give unaccompanied refugee children in the UK the right to be reunited with their parents. Current laws mean that many refugees are prevented from being joined by their close family members. These refugees have …
Today, I was among the MPs from different parties across the House of Commons who argued for Government to intervene over the hostile bid by Melrose for GKN. GKN is one of Britain’s oldest and largest engineering companies making automotive and aerospace components. GKN Aerospace’s Kings Norton plant in my Birmingham Northfield constituency specialises in aircraft windscreens. I am extremely …
The monsoon and cyclone season is coming and time is running out to save thousands of Rohingya refugees from imminent landslides and flood disaster. By Richard Burden Originally published by HuffPost, March 10, 2018 Even before visiting the Bangladesh/Burma border area last week, my work as a member of the House of Commons International Development Committee meant I knew a fair amount about the …
Birmingham’s nine Labour MPs have today written to the Chief Executive of the Legal Aid Agency calling on him to reverse the Agency’s decision to refuse Legal Aid to the families of 10 of the victims of the Birmingham Pub Bombings at the Court of Appeal. The families are contesting an appeal by the Coroner, Sir Peter Thornton QC, against a High Court ruling that he should reconsider his decision …
Today is World Book Day, a celebration of authors, illustrators, books and most importantly reading. The aim of World Book Day is to encourage children to explore the pleasures of books and reading by providing them with the opportunity to have a book of their own. The theme of this year’s Day is ‘Share a Story’ and World Book Day is encouraging a daily ten-minute storytelling slot to make …
Today I joined GKN workers at a lobby of Parliament organised by UNITE the Union to call on the Government to intervene in the hostile takeover bid for GKN by the Melrose company. GKN are one of Britain’s oldest and largest engineering companies making automotive and aerospace components. The GKN Aerospace plant at Kings Norton makes specialist aircraft windscreens . Along with the GKN workers I …
Welcome to my latest Parliamentary newsletter. Space prevents the newsletter covering all of what I have been doing over the past month. However, hopefully it provides a flavour of some of the local issues I have taken up as well as my actions in Parliament. You’ll find updates on North Worcestershire Golf Club, local government funding and other issues. As ever, please do not hesitate to get in …
The recent revelations of abuse and sexual exploitation in the aid sector have rightly caused outrage and, as a Member of the House of Commons International Development Committee, I was this week at a special committee hearing to look into what has gone on. The hearing did not only provide the opportunity for the Committee to take evidence from charities and the Government about what they have …
The Labour Party has launched our Animal Welfare Plan which contains 50 policy proposals out for consultation. This is the next stage in Labour’s animal welfare agenda and seeks feedback on some of the measures we would seek to bring in under the next Labour government. Labour has a proud record on animal welfare. From bringing forward the landmark Hunting Act to protecting the treatment of …
Local charities and community groups in the Northfield area have the opportunity to apply for funding between £500 and £20,000 raised by players of the People’s Postcode Lottery. Today the latest funding rounds for the People’s Postcode Trust, Postcode Local Trust and Postcode Community Trust have opened for applications. Between 14 and 28 February 2018, charities are being urged to submit an …
I was proud to speak last week at the launch of’s theme to commemorate the 23rd anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide. The theme, “Acts of Courage” pays tribute to the ordinary Bosnians who took great risks to protect others during the conflict in the 1990s, as well as those who have the courage today to speak out about what happened. These acts of bravery, heroism and determination to resist …
Residents living close to North Worcestershire Golf Course will know that in August 2017 a renewed application by Bloor Homes to build 950 homes on the site of the old golf course was rejected by Birmingham City Council. Bloor Homes have now lodged an appeal with the government, in an attempt to overturn this decision If you submitted comments to Birmingham City Council when the planning …
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.
