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.
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.
This feed refreshes intermittently. Please log in to X (Twitter) to view my newest tweets in full.
Real elation that every living Israeli hostage is now free. Even one still held would have continued the nightmare. It carries on for many Palestinians Israel has abducted. I wrote about Dr Husam Abu Safiya in February . Why is he still in captivity?
Last week, our chair @richardburden27 published on his own website some personal reflections about what Remembering Srebrenica has meant for him this year.

Israeli forces are said to have dropped more explosives on Gaza than fell on London, Dresden and Hamburg combined in the Second World War. The level of destruction is hard to fathom as is the humanitarian suffering.
Our Foreign Affairs Correspondent @SecKermani looks at the…
Some personal reflections on what Remembering Srebrenica means in 2025 – for Bosnia and Herzegovina, for the wider world and here in the UK..

Today I am leading a ‘food drive’ for the Northfield Lifeline Food Bank after it was burgled last month. We will be raising awareness and stocking food as the news hits home that half a million people had to rely on food banks in the past year.
The Work Capability Assessment is clearly not working. A third of the decisions that the health service provider makes are being overturned in appeals. Charities and the medical profession have issued strong criticisms of the assessment process, calling the government’s system inhumane and often inaccurate. I know that assessments are causing real hardship and humiliation for many people in …
My first ever ‘Ask Me Anything’ session will be held on my Facebook & Twitter pages at 5.30 - 6.30 pm on Tuesday 5th June 2013 . I will be online, waiting to give live answers to questions from anyone who posts on my Facebook or Twitter pages during the hour. The intention is to give all the people of Birmingham Northfield the opportunity to ask a Member of Parliament any question about what I …
Fertility problems affect one in seven couples in the UK. NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups (known previously as Primary Care Trusts) decide who is eligible to receive funding for fertility treatment. In South Birmingham, the present CCG guidelines dictate that couples are not eligible for funding for fertility treatment where one partner has a child from a previous relationship. The Department …
At the State opening of Parliament last week, Her Majesty presented the Government’s priorities for the year ahead. Outlined in just eight minutes, the Coalition’s programme of work included bills on issues from immigration to local audits. But something rather big was missing. The economy. On Wednesday, we saw that there are precisely 200 more young people in our community long term unemployed …
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 …
On Monday and Tuesday next week (20th & 21st May) the House of Commons will debate and vote on the Report Stage and Third Reading of the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill. I have received many letters and emails – both for and against the Bill – urging me to vote one way or another. Marriage is an important means through which couples can publicly make a long term commitment to …
To celebrate the forthcoming launch of Carers Week, 10-16 June 2013, I teamed up with actress Lynda Bellingham to recognise the contribution carers make to Northfield.
Attending an event in Parliament to launch the national awareness campaign, Carers Week, I wanted to show my support to the hundred thousand carers who are provide vital support to people in Birmingham today.
With Jenny Wilkes of #BBC on set of “Doctors”: Birmingham’s Drama Village #CreativeBirmingham birminghamculture.org/news twitter.com/RichardBurdenM…
— Richard Burden MP (@RichardBurdenMP) May 10, 2013
At @covcampus: Students learning on Harrier jets of yesterday, building hydrogen cars today & designing for tomorrow twitter.com/RichardBurdenM…
— Richard Burden MP (@RichardBurdenMP) May 9, 2013
Earlier today (8th May) was the State Opening of Parliament, where the Queen formally opens the new Parliamentary Session with a speech setting out the Government’s agenda and priorities for the next year. Unfortunately as anticipated the Queen’s Speech, which was one of the shortest in years, failed to recognise many of the problems concerning real people. It was a stark reminder that this out …
On Friday 3rd May I opened Northfield’s first ever ‘Time Bank.’ It is a bank that rewards people for sharing skills within the community – with time. Anyone can exchange an hour of their time for credit to withdraw when they require. Activities that are shared range from cooking, budgeting, gardening, childcare and arts training. I am proud to support a project that enables people of all ages …
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.
