Former
Welcome to my website and blog.
I created it when I was Labour MP for Birmingham Northfield between 1992 and 2019, and most of the posts on here date from that period. A summary of my Parliamentary career can be found here. You can also read a bit more about who I am and what makes me tick here.
I have continued to blog from time to time since leaving Parliament. 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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@Keir_Starmer Superdiverse Birmingham also has a sizeable white disadvantaged community whose education and other needs require attention. Some of what @RichardBurden27 said in 2009 is still relevant: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmhansrd/cm090519/halltext/90519h0011.htm
From international organisations that fight levels of poverty on a scale that we do not have to face in the developing world to local groups that are a lifeline for so many people here in the UK, charities make a world of difference. I am delighted to support Giving Tuesday. It is a great opportunity to shine a light on the great work that charities do, and to encourage both individuals and...
Unsurprisingly, lots of constituents have written to me in the last week about the Brexit deal that Theresa May has brought back. If – as looks likely – Parliament rejects both Theresa May’s deal and leaving the EU without a deal, then a people’s vote may yet be the only way to break the logjam. I have set out my thoughts in an article in the Birmingham Mail’s Birmingham Live website...
We are now in the key period in Brexit negotiations and preparations. Yet the Government have dithered, squabbled with themselves, marched up and down the hill time and time again, everything but making the effective decisions that are sorely needed. It is extraordinary that over 2 years on from the referendum and after over 18 months of negotiation, the Government still have no credible or...
In Birmingham Northfield North Worcestershire Golf Course (NWGC) Inquiry Earlier this month there was a public inquiry to look into Bloor Homes’ appeal against Birmingham City Council’s rejection of their planning application to build 800 houses on the NWGC. Together with Councillor Olly Armstrong and a number of local residents, I argued that the area will not be able to cope with a development...
Today is World Mental Health Day – a day dedicated to raising awareness of mental health issues and mobilising efforts in support of mental health. Around one in four people in the UK will experience a mental health problem each year and it can affect anyone of us. Since the first World Mental Health Day in 1992, great strides have been made in challenging stigma around mental health and...
On Thursday this week, I gave my evidence to the Public Inquiry which is taking place into Bloor Homes’ appeal against Birmingham City Council’s rejection of their planning application to build 800 houses on the North Worcestershire Golf Course site. I am opposing the appeal. My full statement to the Inquiry is here –
Richard Burden statement at NWGC Inquiry
In Birmingham Northfield New Engineering Centre at Bournville College I was privileged to recently open the new Engineering Centre at Bournville College. With state of the art equipment to teach the practical, hands-on skills that employers are always looking for, the centre will initially offer students the opportunity to acquire qualifications from Level 1 to level 3 with potential for...
Richard Burden MP, Chair of the Britain-Palestine All Party Parliamentary Group, has responded to the decision of the US administration to to end funding to UNWRA. Mr Burden said today: “The action taken by the US administration to end funding to UNRWA is appalling and threatens the security of millions of Palestinian refugees. Many of the refugees living in the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan...
I was privileged to open the new Engineering Centre at Bournville College yesterday. With state of the art equipment to teach the practical, hands-on skills that employers are always looking for, the centre will initially offer students the opportunity to acquire qualifications from Level 1 to level 3 with potential for university-partnered courses up to level 5 being available – probably as...
When collective memories collide, we should search for common ground. By Richard Burden Originally published by HuffPost, August 28, 2018 Is it possible both to respect the shared identity which the vast majority of Jews feel with Israel while also recognising the shared experience of dispossession which Palestinians feel just as deeply? What do you do when the rights and collective memories of...
Small and independent shops in and around Northfield are an important part of the character of our local area. They provide employment for many local people and are a vital part of our economy locally. So I am asking Northfield’s small shopkeepers to enter the Best Small Shops Competition 2018 which celebrates the creativity of small shops and the central role they play in their local communities...
The Government yesterday confirmed that rail fares will increase by up to 3.2% in January. Local rail users will understandably be frustrated and angry at the news of yet another increase in the price of fares on our railways. The amount by which train companies can raise regulated fees is the responsibility of the Transport Secretary Chris Grayling. He has the power to cap regulated fare rises...
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.
