17/10/2026
Highlights from my week in Parliament 👔
🇫🇰 I began the week by asking the Prime Minister for his assurance that we will continue to stand up for the Falkland Islands. The Argentinian Government continues to undermine their right to self-determination through various means, and our neighbours there must be protected and supported at all costs.
🇸🇩 I then caught up with the Coalition for Global Prosperity to discuss the war in Sudan. It’s caused one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises and the UK has a huge part to play in helping mitigate the consequences, not just in Sudan, but also here in the UK.
🤝 On Tuesday, I attended a debate on Youth Su***de Prevention. I spoke about the need for the NHS to take advantage of the expertise some of our mental health charities have to offer. The Education Select Committee, of which I’m part of, contributed to a report on this, and I strongly encourage the Government to consider its recommendations.
🩷 On Wednesday, I had a chat with Breast Cancer Now to hear more about their Wear It Pink campaign. As many of you will know, they do vital work for women all over the country suffering with breast cancer, and of course their families. I’m so proud to support them.
🎖️ Late Wednesday evening, I attended a debate on financial entitlements for our Armed Forces. You don’t need me to tell you how vital it is to support both our serving personnel and our veterans. At present, compensation they receive for injury can be counted towards income when their benefits are calculated. I don't think this should be the case.
♿️ On Thursday, I raised the case of a 15-year-old constituent in Parliament. This child suffers with a very serious heart condition, which limits his physical capabilities. Despite that, his family have made no progress with their application for a blue badge. Rigid rules are failing children with serious and immediate medical needs, which is why I asked the Minister to revisit them.
👥 I also took the opportunity to raise an issue on behalf of the 8,000 unpaid carers in Leeds South West and Morley. Certain individuals criticise the offer of extra help as a cost to the taxpayer, but I’d argue that the greater cost is the fact that over a million unpaid carers have left work. I made this point during a Westminster Hall debate, and will continue to stand up for our carers in any capacity I can.
This week, I also attended a belated memorial commemorating the third anniversary of the October 7th attacks. I will always stand with our British Jewish community who have endured unprecedented levels of antisemitism as a result of those attacks. My thoughts are with the families of all those affected.
While all that has been going on, my team back up in the constituency have been working hard to keep delivering for residents. They’ve had casework requests on everything from housing to antisocial behaviour and have secured some big wins for constituents. More to come on those soon.
They also had Teaghan in, our latest work experience student, who I caught up with on Friday. Teaghan was fantastic; she approached every task with enthusiasm and displayed the grit and determination required to get things done. I wish her all the very best for the future.
I began the weekend as I always do, with my regular surgery. This week I was in Lofthouse and I'm very grateful to everyone who attended. We'll be actioning the casework as soon as possible.
As always, if you think I can assist you in any way at all, please contact me.
