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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.
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.
Here is the link to my Bluesky account, and here is the link to my Twitter/X account. You can also view my Facebook page and LinkedIn profile.
Click on ‘Contact’ below to get in touch with me.
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Chair @SarahChampionMP has written with concern to Foreign Secretary @YvetteCooperMP over the Israeli Government’s treatment of @UNRWA and other INGOs, which run a range of services for Palestinians in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
Read more: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/98/international-development-committee/news/211214/international-development-committee-chair-urges-foreign-secretary-to-act-over-unrwa-restrictions/
Trump’s coup in Venezuela didn’t just break the rules – it showed there aren’t any. We’ll all regret that | Nesrine Malik
An illegal military strike on Saturday followed by claims that the USA will “run” Venezuela.
Now a renewed threat to seize Greenland over the heads of its people.
When will our leaders here in the UK stop prevaricating and stand up for international law?
When the West Midland comes together, we can get results. That is the message from recent changes to the way the Government allocates funding for Policing across different parts of the country. West Midland Police has already been hit hard by government cuts of over 20% in the last five years. On top of that, however, there were real fears that our region could be hit even harder in comparison to …
Following the recent VW scandal, EU Member State representatives agreed on 28th October at Technical Committee to tighten EU emissions testing rules – and then appeared to give open-ended permission for cars to breach the EU’s own limits by 50% in real live driving conditions.
Welcome to my Animal Welfare Round-Up, where I regularly update you on some of the animal causes I have recently been campaigning on.
UK Drivers are being left in the dark due to mixed messages from ministers. By Richard Burden Originally published by HuffPost, October 21, 2015 The UK Government must come clean on what they knew and move quicker to end uncertainty for drivers. Almost a month after Volkswagen’s use of “defeat devices” to evade regulatory emissions limits in the USA became known, it is clear …
All murders and other attacks on civilians are unacceptable, whoever commits them and whoever are the victims. As of 19 October, the recent alarming escalation of violence in Israel and Palestine has claimed the lives of 9 Israelis who have died in knife and other attacks by Palestinians. Over 40 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and settler attacks. Estimates suggest around half …
Responding to the decision of Sir Albert Bore to stand down as Leader of Birmingham City Council, Richard Burden MP said: “Albert has been at the centre of that throughout, holding economic development portfolios on the Council and chairing Europe’s Committee of the regions as well as leading Birmingham City Council twice in the last sixteen years. Under his stewardship Birmingham City …
West Midlands Police have announced a plan to close 28 police stations across the region. In and around the Northfield area, Kings Norton, Longbridge, Warstock and Bartley Green are scheduled to close. Although nearby Bournville Lane will continue to be the Police headquarters for the area, these proposals mean that there will be no police stations in Northfield constituency itself by the end of …
Richard is looking for an addition to his busy team in the Westminster office. This is a part-time, paid and fixed position lasting until the Christmas recess.
You will learn first-hand about the work that MPs do representing their constituents in Parliament, as well as gaining insight into the role of a Shadow Transport Minister.
Last Friday (18 September) I hosted a ‘Superfast Summit’ in Kings Norton, where I met with senior officials from Virgin Media, BT, Digital Birmingham and alternative providers, to discuss the problem of superfast broadband not-spots in the constituency. Many of you will be aware - or have even got in touch with me – about my campaign on poor broadband coverage. I have estimated around 1500 homes …
A few weeks ago I wrote a piece about the Labour leadership election and about the future direction of our Party. It set out the reasons why I believe the qualities that Yvette Cooper would have brought to the position of Leader made her the candidate for me to support. The scale of Jeremy Corbyn’s victory was, however, overwhelming and it must be respected. I don’t say that …
Hundreds of you have got in touch with me about the Assisted Dying Bill. The Bill comes up for debate in the House of Commons this Friday (11th September). Over the past weeks and months I have sent individual replies to as many people as possible. However, the sheer quantity of e-mails I have received – both for and against the Bill – means that I have not been able to get back to everybody …
This week Parliament returns from its summer break. One of the first things I will be doing in Westminster is leading a debate on funding cuts to West Midlands Police. In the last five years West Midlands Police has received funding cuts twice that of other forces according to the independent National Audit Office. Whereas the West Midlands has been cut by nearly a quarter (23%), Surrey Police …
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.
