Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Bradley Thomas and Shabana Mahmood

Monday 15th September 2025 Commons Chamber

[Bradley Thomas (Bromsgrove) (Con)]

T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.

[The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Shabana Mahmood)]

I would like to use this statement to address the subject of this weekend’s events. On Saturday, well over 100,000 protesters marched in London. Many were exercising the ancient right to peaceful protest,—but not everyone did. Some turned on the brave police officers who were there to keep the peace; 26 officers were injured and 24 protesters were arrested. Those violent thugs will face the full force of the law. Those who turned to violence on Saturday do not represent what this country really is. When a foreign billionaire calls on our citizens to fight against our ancient democracy, I know that is met by the vast majority with a shake of the head. That is because we are in truth a tolerant country, and, yes, a diverse one, too. You can be English and have roots here that stretch back 1,000 years, but you can also be English and look like me. The St George’s cross and the Union Jack belong to us all. They are symbols of unity—a kingdom united—and must never be used to divide us.

[Bradley Thomas]

I welcome the Home Secretary to her position. Does she have plans to introduce a statutory cap on in-bound migration?

[Shabana Mahmood]

I have one job, and it is to secure our borders. I will do whatever it takes, but what I will never do is take the approach of the previous Government, who were led by gimmicks and false promises that were never met.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Bradley Thomas and Shabana Mahmood

Tuesday 28th January 2025 Commons Chamber

[Bradley Thomas]

Constituents across Bromsgrove and the villages are sick and tired of violent criminality and lawlessness creeping over the border from Birmingham into our constituency. In the past year, Romsley Co-op and Wythall post office at Drakes Cross—both of which are on the northern fringe of my constituency—have been raided, and it is hard to believe that proximity to Birmingham is not a factor in that. What steps is the Secretary of State taking to ensure that prosecutions are pursued and custodial sentences are given in the first instance, to crack down on crime and make our area safe again?

[Shabana Mahmood]

Through our landmark review of sentencing, this Government are ensuring that sentencing is fit for purpose. That will ultimately put us in a position where we can crack down on reoffending, thereby cutting crime and the number of victims. I am not sure whether the hon. Gentleman is proposing carving out his part of the world from any other part of the country, but his argument about boundaries can apply to any part of the UK. That is why we need a functioning justice system for the whole of England and Wales, and that is what this Government are going to deliver.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Bradley Thomas and Shabana Mahmood

Tuesday 10th December 2024 Commons Chamber

[Bradley Thomas (Bromsgrove) (Con)]

To boost public confidence in the criminal justice system, can the Minister confirm that the Government will not resort to increased dependency on community sentences, many of which are unserved?

[Shabana Mahmood]

As the hon. Gentleman will have heard me say many times, we have brought forward an independent sentencing review to look at the issues of sentencing in the round to ensure that we are never again in the position where we are about to run out of prison places and cannot lock up those who must be locked up for reasons of public protection. The review will also make recommendations on how prisoner rehabilitation can help people turn their lives around and, more importantly, cut the number of victims that would result from reoffending.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Bradley Thomas and Shabana Mahmood

Tuesday 10th September 2024 Commons Chamber

[Bradley Thomas (Bromsgrove) (Con)]

T2. The Secretary of State has said that she will review her prisoner early release scheme after 18 months, but will she go further and commit to ending it then, and if not, to returning to this House for a fresh vote on it?

[Shabana Mahmood]

I have committed to the review, because that is the appropriate way, and I will not make early promises that might not be kept. I have committed to both transparency and a review. We will publish all the data on a quarterly basis and I will return to the House with the results of the review and the approach that we will take at that point.