Migration and Border Security
Alice Macdonald Excerpts(3 weeks, 5 days ago)
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Yvette Cooper
The previous Conservative Government made a decision in 2021 to launch what was in effect a free market approach to immigration. They made it much easier to recruit from abroad and they incentivised employers to recruit from abroad by introducing a 20% wage discount at the same time that they were cutting training and support. The consequence is that, since 2021, we have indeed seen a massive increase in overseas recruitment. As the same time, we have seen a drop in people getting training and support to work in the UK.
Alice Macdonald (Norwich North) (Lab/Co-op)
I welcome the frankness that the Government have brought to their assessment of the situation and the setting out of clear measures. As we have heard, criminal gangs are causing untold misery to people all around the world. Will the Home Secretary expand on the measures that we are taking with European neighbours in particular to crack down on these criminal gangs once and for all?
Yvette Cooper
We have been working with other European countries. We have a new agreement in place with Italy to go after the illicit finance that underpins many of the criminal gangs. The work that Prime Minister Meloni has done already has helped to significantly reduce Mediterranean crossings. We are working with Italy, and we think that work is important.
We are also working with Germany on supply chains and with Bulgaria on supply chains, including on how boats and engines are being moved across Europe. We are of course working with France on tackling the organised gangs, including some of the Iraqi-Kurdish gangs operating in northern France, so that we can pursue those gang networks to prevent dangerous crossings.
Violence against Women and Girls
Alice Macdonald Excerpts(1 month ago)
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Alice Macdonald (Norwich North) (Lab/Co-op)
This is a very important debate in which we have acknowledged the scale of the issue and the epidemic of violence that women face every single day. Because of time, I will just highlight three crucial points domestically and reflect briefly on the international situation.
First, we have to invest in organisations on the frontline and support them. In Norwich, there are many excellent local organisations that are working on this issue, including Leeway, the Sue Lambert Trust and Dawn’s New Horizon, and I draw attention to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. I pay tribute to them, and it would be good to hear from the Minister how we are supporting those organisations.
Secondly, on the criminal justice system, last week in the House I raised the unacceptable waits that women in Norfolk are facing. We all know the pain and distress that that causes and the impact it can have on the outcome of court cases. I want to welcome the focus that our police and crime commissioner Sarah Taylor has put on the issue. Thirdly, we must have a holistic approach that tackles misogyny at its root—including in schools and by tackling the hosting and promotion of harmful content online. I welcome the steps that the Government have taken in that regard.
I turn finally to the international context, having worked in international development for many years before joining Parliament. Violence is happening everywhere, as the United Nations has highlighted. Reports from Afghanistan have highlighted the scale of gender-based violence under the Taliban. As the Malala Fund has highlighted, Afghan women and girls find themselves being denied the basic freedoms of going to school, walking in the park and getting a haircut. The fund, alongside many experts and activists, is calling for this situation to be recognised by world leaders as gender apartheid. I know this is not specifically the Minister’s area, but I urge us to do everything we can, because the international community is letting women and girls down.
On Sudan, this week the UN humanitarian chief highlighted an epidemic of sexual violence. I am a member of the International Development Committee and we heard that reiterated this week. I welcome the steps that the Government have taken in this regard, with the doubling of our aid package, but we must do more. To conclude, we need a multifaceted approach, and we need to be bold and tackle violence against women and girls wherever it occurs.
Oral Answers to Questions
Alice Macdonald Excerpts(1 month ago)
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Jess Phillips
I thank the hon. Lady and pay tribute to Julie Devey and Carole Gould, two of the parents who are fighting this campaign. A Ministry of Justice sentencing review is currently ongoing, and I know that Carole and Julie and Members here will want to feed into that.
Alice Macdonald (Norwich North) (Lab/Co-op)
The Minister for Policing, Fire and Crime Prevention (Dame Diana Johnson)
The epidemic of knife crime that has grown over the last decade is devastating families and communities right across the country. That is why this Government have set ourselves an unprecedented mission to halve knife crime over the next 10 years. We are already taking action to get lethal blades off Britain’s streets and taking stronger action against illegal online knife sales. We are also determined to stop young people being drawn into violent crime and county lines in the first place, which is why we are delivering a radical new young futures prevention programme, with targeted interventions to help at risk young people and a network of new youth hubs.
Alice Macdonald
I thank the Minister for meeting me recently. As she says, too many young people are being drawn into county lines, suffering exploitation and violence. This is a significant problem across the country, including in Norwich. Many organisations are working hard locally to improve the situation, such as the Joe Dix Foundation, established by his parents after Joe’s tragic murder in 2022. Can the Minister reassure me that the Government are investing all they can in preventive measures and set out what is being done to support organisations on the frontline?
Dame Diana Johnson
It was a great pleasure to meet my hon. Friend just last week to discuss this issue. Organisations like the Joe Dix Foundation do amazing work to help keep people safe and keep young people out of county line gangs in particular, and through the Home Office county lines programme we are going after exploitative gangs and providing specialist support for children and young people. Our young futures programme will establish those prevention partnerships in every local authority to identify children and young people at risk.