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.
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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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Yes – West Midlands Police have serious questions to answer about their behaviour. But it is not the whole story. You wouldn’t know it from most of the commentary today, but this @TimesofIsrael piece provides important context around the Maccabi issue
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
War crimes and other fundamental breaches of international law are not simply issues to be tackled in the countries in which they take place. The issues they raise are of such significance to humanity as a whole that every country has an obligation to ensure that justice is done. That is what the principle of universal jurisdiction is about and I am pleased that Gordon Brown has endorsed that …
The importance of investing in our children’s future is more crucial now then ever before. We as adults realise the importance of saving and managing our own finances and the Child Trust Fund now allows us to do this for our children. The benefit of the scheme introduced for all children born on or after 1st September 2002 enables us to give our children a financial start moving into adult life …
This week I joined fellow Labour MPs to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the ban on fox hunting.
It is now five years since the Fox-Hunting Bill received Royal Assent, ending the cruel practice of hunting with dogs. In that time, dozens of prosecutions have been brought under the Act, showing that this ban is making a real difference.
Earlier today I led a House of Commons debate on the results of the independent inquiry into the collapse of MG Rover.
Today’s debate was the first opportunity for the House of Commons to debate the report of the inquiry since it was published on 11 September 2009.
Today I was pleased to welcome the Environment Secretary Hilary Benn to the Northfield constituency. He was here to visit Frankley – one of the local areas severely hit by floods last year. The government has earmarked funds for the area under its flood protection scheme. During the visit we met with community leaders, Frankley Parish Councillors and staff from Birmingham City Council and the …
Richard Burden MP last night confronted Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Barak at the Labour Party Conference. Mr Burden called on him to respond to the findings of the recent UN report that Israel committed war crimes in Gaza during ‘Operation Cast Lead’. Mr Burden, Chair of the Britain-Palestine All Party Parliamentary Group, also presented the Israeli Minister with a copy of the group’s …
Richard Burden MP, Chair of the Britain-Palestine All Party Parliamentary Group (BPAPPG), has welcomed the findings of a United Nations’ investigation into the conduct of Israel and Hamas during Operation Cast Lead. The 22-day long conflict claimed the lives of over 1,300 Palestinians, 352 of them children. The civilians and infrastructure of the Gaza Strip bore the brunt of Israel’s assault …
The long awaited report of the independent inquiry into the collapse of MG Rover has finally been published today. Like most other people, I have found it frustrating that we have had to wait over four years for this inquiry to be completed and astonishing that it has cost around £16m. I have always supported publication of its findings and I am relieved that today we can finally see what is in …
The long awaited report of the independent inquiry into the collapse of MG Rover in 2005 was published at 9AM this morning. The report is now available online: Read Volume I of the report Read Volume II of the report The report is over 800 pages long. There is a 20 page conclusion which provides an overview of some of the matters discussed in far greater depth earlier in the report. Read the …
The MG Rover inqury report will be published at 9AM today. A copy of the report will be made available online here as soon as possible.
Below is an article I wrote for today’s Birmingham Post ahead of the publication of the report – about MG Rover, the report and looking forward to a new and sustainable future for Longbridge.
Local people have waited over four years for the MG Rover Inquiry to be completed. I have always supported publication of its findings. That will finally be happening on Friday. Like most other people, I have found it frustrating that the inquiry has taken so long and astonishing that it has cost around £16m. Lessons should be learnt from this about the conduct of future Companies Act …
The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has today announced that it does not intend to begin a criminal investigation into the collapse of MG Rover. The SFO was asked to review events which led to the collapse of the MG Rover Group following a report by the independent investigators appointed by the government following the collapse of MG Rover in April 2005. I’m pleased the SFO has looked at this matter …
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.
