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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.
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These are the main subjects on which I’ve written. Click here to view the full list of categories.
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While the eyes of the world are on Iran, Israel is using the opportunity to deepen its illegal occupation of the West Bank…
BREAKING: Overnight, under cover of the Israel–Iran war, Israel allocates another 574 million ILS (≈$155m) to settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank, and 9 million ILS (≈$2.4m) to the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, spearheading attacks on humanitarian organisations.
In
People in #Gaza are still living in dire conditions while humanitarian aid is being blocked.
On 28 February, the Israeli authorities closed all crossings into the Gaza Strip, raising concerns about food security and fuel supplies needed to sustain humanitarian operations.
Well over half a million people forced from their homes in Lebanon by Israel’s invasion and bombing. Why isn’t there more of an international outcry at the enormity of what Israel is doing there?
NEW: The Israeli military unlawfully used white phosphorus over homes on March 3, 2026, in the Lebanese town of Yohmor.
The use of white phosphorus over residential areas is extremely alarming and will have dire consequences for civilians.
Read more: https://bit.ly/4bdqxDt
Like all MPs, I have had hundreds of letters and emails from constituents in recent weeks about authorising the triggering of Article 50, thereby formally giving notice of the UK’s intention to leave the European Union. Understandably, the emails I have received from constituents have come from different sides of the argument. Many of those emails are from people who, like me, both campaigned and …
This week’s Supreme Court decision confirms what many people who voted to leave the European Union wanted, for our sovereign Parliament to have the final say on matters of such significance to the future of our country – not Government Ministers on their own with no accountability or scrutiny. It is no secret that I voted to stay in the EU and have not changed my view, but I accept the result of …
Birmingham is proudly among the UK’s largest student cities. Before Christmas, I hosted a summit meeting between local MPs and student leaders from across the city. They have now published a ‘Birmingham Universities Manifesto’ which sets out their prioirities and calls for the debate around Britain’s exit from the EU to be refocused to better take into account the concerns of young people and all …
Welcome to my latest Parliamentary newsletter. In my first newsletter since Christmas and the New Year, let me wish you all a Happy New Year. In Birmingham Northfield Birmingham Council Budget In recent weeks, Birmingham City Council published their budget proposals. Faced with over £800m being cut from the grant they receive from Government, the Council are in an impossible position with rising …
Welcome to my latest Animal Welfare Round Up and the first one of 2017. I continue to receive emails from constituents about a number of issues around animal welfare. Here is what I’ve been doing on the issues you’ve asked me to raise. Kitten and Puppy Breeding This has been the most popular campaign issue among constituents in the last two months. Sadly, kittens and puppies are often …
Welcome to my latest Parliamentary newsletter, which gives me the opportunity to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Christmas is a time for us to not only look back on the past year, but also to look forward to the New Year, the challenges we face and the changes we might want to make in our own lives. For me personally, 2016 will always be remembered as the year my …
In recent weeks, I have received petitions, postcards and hundreds of other correspondence relating to funding, services and reorganisational threats facing our National Health Service. This is the response I have written to constituents. Many of you will recognise that for the last six years Labour have warned about threats of a funding crisis and an increase in unnecessary private investment …
Brexit continues to be one of the most prominent political issues, and that is reflected in the number of emails and letters I have had from constituents in recent weeks. At the end of last month I wrote an update on Brexit, five months on from the referendum result. You can read my article for more detail here. In light of the High Court ruling on whether Parliament should have a say over how …
I have received a huge number of emails and letters about Brexit in recent weeks and months. I wanted to share with you all the response I have sent out to constituents on Brexit and the way forward. As you may be aware in the weeks after the referendum, I wrote an initial response to the defining and far reaching challenges Brexit brings for our country. If you have not a chance to read it, much …
Below you can see my contribution to the Boundary Commission public consultation in Birmingham last week. You can have your say too here. I am grateful for the opportunity to provide some observations on the Boundary Commission’s provisional recommendations for the West Midlands and specifically for Birmingham. Introduction – Legislative Framework By way of introduction, I know that …
Let’s get one thing straight at the start. Thursday’s High Court decision did not change or overrule the result of June’s Referendum which voted for Britain to leave the European Union. I know that claiming something else makes for more lurid tabloid headlines but it is a fact. The High Court decision is about who should have a say in how Britain should go about leaving the European Union, not …
Welcome to my latest Parliamentary newsletter. This covers local issues and developments as well as my actions in Parliament. As ever, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me on these or any other issues. Best wishes, Richard In Birmingham Northfield Boundary Review The Boundary Commission published their proposals for changes to Parliamentary constituency boundaries in England …
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.
