British Sign Language Week
Chris Vince Excerpts(6 days, 11 hours ago)
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Jen Craft (Thurrock) (Lab)
I beg to move,
That this House has considered British Sign Language Week.
[In British Sign Language: I beg to move, That this House has considered British Sign Language Week.]
It is a great pleasure to serve under your chairship, Sir Desmond. I thank those who have supported today’s debate: the hon. Members who sponsored my application to the Backbench Business Committee; the members of the newly formed all-party parliamentary group on British Sign Language, who had ideas for how to celebrate Sign Language Week; and the British Deaf Association, which campaigns tirelessly to promote the interests of the deaf community. I am delighted that we have live British Sign Language interpretation today, and I am grateful to the House authorities for supporting it. It means that we are able to have members of the deaf-signing community join us in the Public Gallery. [In British Sign Language: Welcome to Parliament, and I hope you enjoy the debate.]
As the theme of this year’s Sign Language Week captures well, BSL is more than a language. For the 87,000 first-language signers in the UK, it represents culture, community and belonging. It is symbolic of a unique way of life—one that empowers deaf people to overcome the barriers they face from birth. It provides connection, not only in the deaf-signing community, but to their loved ones. Sign language creates special moments that other families might take for granted. The first time a parent tells their deaf child, “I love you,” might be using sign.
My daughter has Down’s syndrome and experiences hearing loss, so my husband and I use sign-supported English, which is a form of BSL, as part of our toolkit to communicate at home. To any BSL first-language speakers who are watching, I am going to attempt some BSL throughout this speech, so my apologies. [In British Sign Language: I am trying.]
It is with a real sense of personal pride that I open this debate. It is an opportunity to celebrate Sign Language Week and the rich culture it commemorates, while discussing how we as MPs can go further to improve access and the inclusion of the BSL community. The progress that has been made to date is testament to the determination of deaf campaigners, but British Sign Language is not a new phenomenon; it has existed for hundreds of years. There are printed accounts of a national language of the hand dating back as far as the 17th century, but it was only in 2003 that BSL was officially recognised as a language, and it was not until the British Sign Language Act 2022 that this nominal recognition was translated on to the statute book, with legal recognition of BSL. I pay tribute to the former Member for West Lancashire, Rosie Cooper, for leading that private Member’s Bill through Parliament.
The Act was a watershed moment in galvanising public support, and Rosie Cooper’s exceptional campaigning has left an enduring legacy. The Act legislated for the promotion and inclusion of BSL in Government, and led to the creation of the BSL advisory board, which has done excellent work to put the experiences and voices of deaf signers at the heart of Government. It placed a duty on Departments to prepare and publish reports on the use of BSL in their communications. From May 2023 to April 2024, BSL activity in Government communications doubled, and the overall number of Government Departments that said they had not produced any BSL communications halved, from 11 to five. However, there is still much further to go. Five Government Departments is still five too many.
Chris Vince (Harlow) (Lab/Co-op)
[In British Sign Language: Will my hon. Friend give way?]
Chris Vince
My hon. Friend is giving a passionate and knowledgeable speech. Does she agree that, in terms of Parliament, this is a question of accessibility? We want people with BSL as their first language to be able to not only access politics but be a part of it as well.
Jen Craft
[In British Sign Language: I thank my hon. Friend for his intervention.] As people will see, we have tried to learn some parliamentary signs ahead of this debate. My hon. Friend is absolutely right—it is a question of accessibility. If someone is a British Sign Language first-language speaker, there are barriers to taking part in this House. There absolutely should not be. This is the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. There are 87,000 BSL first-language speakers and they absolutely deserve their place here as much as hearing people do. Too frequently, Government consultations, including on the national health service 10-year plan and the welfare reform Green Paper, have BSL interpretation as an afterthought, if it exists at all.
In wider society, we need to see a renewed focus on the needs and interests of the deaf community. Some 90% of deaf children are born to hearing parents, but support to learn BSL is based on a postcode lottery. Across the country, there is a patchwork of sign language services, with a mix of local authority and third-sector provision. According to research by the National Deaf Children’s Society, almost half of local authorities neither provide, fund nor commission any courses in sign language for families.
Chris Vince (Harlow) (Lab/Co-op)
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Sir Desmond. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Thurrock (Jen Craft), my best friend, for securing this hugely important debate—sorry to everybody else! I pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Lewisham North (Vicky Foxcroft), who in April 2021 was the first Member of Parliament to use British Sign Language during Prime Minister’s Question Time, bringing to the attention of the then Prime Minister the fact that there were no BSL interpreters at the then Prime Minister’s press briefings.
I came to this debate not speaking any BSL other than to say “thank you” and “Will my hon. Friend give way?”, which I learned yesterday. To be honest, having tried learning French in the past, I know that I am not very good at languages, so I appreciate the comments of my hon. Friend the Member for Thurrock about those who have difficulty learning languages—some would say my English is not great, either.
The contributions that I have heard so far from hon. Members from across the House have really moved me and made me think a lot about my own practice. When I go back to Harlow and my constituency team tomorrow, I will have conversations with them about how we ensure that any engagement that I have with members of the public in Harlow—including my MP surgeries—is compatible with BSL, because what I do not want, and I am sure no Member wants, is our constituents feeling that they cannot have access to their MP in their first language.
I want to talk about accessibility. I declare an interest because I am a member of the Modernisation Committee. It is really important that everyone, no matter their situation, has the opportunity to achieve. I have been impressed in many ways by how accessible the House is. Last week, members of Razed Roof—an inclusive theatre company that I am a trustee of—visited Parliament. Simon, who I have mentioned before, who often relies on physical communication and is wheelchair-bound, was able to get a tour of Parliament, which he enjoyed a great deal. The only slight problem came when we went to St Stephen’s Hall. But clearly there is more we can do. We do not just want to make Parliament accessible; we want to make politics accessible, and not just so that people who have BSL as a first language can access politics, but so they can participate in politics and perhaps even be an MP.
As my hon. Friend the Member for Thurrock said, there are 87,000 people who use BSL as a first language, so I ask the Minister how we can better ensure that they can participate in politics and play an active part in it. It would not be a Westminster Hall debate in which I was taking part if I did not mention young carers: I pay tribute to the number of young people who have to learn BSL to communicate with a parent or loved one. The points made about ensuring that BSL is part of the curriculum and that it is not a postcode lottery are really important, particularly to young carers. We have spoken about the difficulties parents have in being able to access BSL to communicate with their children, but it works both ways.
Of course, I recognise that life exists outside this place and I want to briefly touch on education—another of my favourite topics. The Department for Education has not yet made BSL part of the curriculum, but will give schools the option to offer a BSL GCSE. As my hon. Friend the Member for Chelsea and Fulham (Ben Coleman) mentioned, a GCSE for BSL was expected in September 2025. Can the Minister tell us how this is progressing? That would be really useful to know. There is also currently no national programme for early years BSL, as other Members have covered.
Let us as politicians work with organisations like the BDA and the Royal National Institute for Deaf People to make not only this place, but society, an inclusive place for everyone, including those people for whom British Sign Language is their first language. We should not have a postcode lottery.
Welfare Reform
Chris Vince Excerpts(1 week, 1 day ago)
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Madam Deputy Speaker (Judith Cummins)
The final question from the Back Benches will come from Chris Vince.
Chris Vince (Harlow) (Lab/Co-op)
Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I thank the Secretary of State for her statement. I think we all know that the current system is not only broken, but unsustainable. I welcome her focus on supporting the long-term unemployed, and I would point to some good examples of the work we are doing in my constituency. However, would she agree that we need to support those constituents in Harlow, many with severe disabilities, who cannot work, and end this merry-go-round of constant reassessment?
Liz Kendall
Madam Deputy Speaker, you were saving the best till last, as always, with my hon. Friend.
We absolutely will protect those with severe disabilities who can never work. I do not want to see them having to go through deeply worrying reassessments, and we want to put that right. For people in Harlow who can work but have been denied such opportunities, we will fix the broken system, tackle the perverse incentives left us by the Conservatives, and give people the hope and opportunity that there are better days ahead.
Oral Answers to Questions
Chris Vince Excerpts(1 week, 2 days ago)
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Alison McGovern
The hon. Gentleman will know that the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Bill is going through the House at the moment. The issue that he has raised is at the forefront of the attention of the Minister for Transformation, my hon. Friend the Member for Stretford and Urmston (Andrew Western), who will take every step he can to deal with issues in that area.
Chris Vince (Harlow) (Lab/Co-op)
On Friday I visited Stansted airport, a huge employer for my constituency, and found out about the important work it is doing with the DWP and the jobcentre to get long-term unemployed people back into work. What work is the Department doing with organisations such as Stansted airport to promote good practice, such as that at Stansted and Working Minds in my constituency?
Alison McGovern
Through my hon. Friend, I give my thanks to everybody at Harlow jobcentre, because it sounds like they have their shoulders to the wheel in getting job opportunities for people who need them. When we arrived in the Department, we uncovered that there was not nearly a good enough relationship between the Department and employers. That is why we put a new strategy in place to do the basics well: there is a single point of contact and we are making sure that there is on-the-job training that is tailored to specific employers. We will be doing more to promote change in that area, but I thank everyone in Harlow for the efforts they are making.
Women’s State Pension Age Communication: PHSO Report
Chris Vince Excerpts(3 months, 1 week ago)
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Liz Kendall
I am sure the right hon. Gentleman could have encouraged his party to do a compensation scheme when he was in government. The reason the ombudsman actually referred the report to Parliament was because he did not believe the last Government when they were running the Department for Work and Pensions would deal with it properly. This Government take our responsibility seriously, and that is why we have come to Parliament today to make this difficult decision.
Chris Vince (Harlow) (Lab/Co-op)
A Conservative Member said to me this morning that being the Secretary of State for the DWP is probably the hardest job in Government, and I think today we can really see that. I pay tribute to the WASPI women in my constituency, and in particular Gina, who emails me regularly about this issue. What reassurances can the Secretary of State give WASPI women such as Gina that we will do everything we can to support them and to ensure that issues like this do not happen again?
Liz Kendall
As I said in my statement, I understand that many women born in the 1950s face a real struggle and, on this specific decision, they may well be disappointed, but our commitment to pensioners and to the pensions triple lock will deliver an extra £30 billion into the basic state pension over this Parliament. Our investment in the NHS, about which many 1950s-born women are desperately worried, of £22 billion this year and next, shows our commitment to the issues that matter to those women. As I say, they may be disappointed and, indeed, angry about the decision, but we believe that it is the fair and right decision. However, I would be more than happy to talk to my hon. Friend in further detail so that he can pass on comments from WASPI women in his constituency.
Oral Answers to Questions
Chris Vince Excerpts(3 months, 1 week ago)
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Sir Stephen Timms
The hon. Gentleman makes an interesting suggestion. That is not something I am considering at the moment, but as he will have heard me say earlier, we will be reviewing universal credit over the course of the next year or so. We certainly want to support young care leavers—he will know of the recent announcement that we made about changes to carer’s allowance—and we are keeping all those matters under review.
Chris Vince (Harlow) (Lab/Co-op)
Catherine Atkinson (Derby North) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Liz Kendall)
Our new youth guarantee will ensure that every young person is earning or learning, tackling the scandal that we inherited of almost 1 million young people not in education, employment or training. Young people in Harlow, Derby North and across the country deserve the opportunity to work, get skills and build a better life, and that is what this Labour Government will deliver.
Chris Vince
In my constituency of Harlow, lots of fantastic organisations provide transferable skills for young people, and I thank the right hon. Member for Basildon and Billericay (Mr Holden) for reminding me of the name Jason Shaves, who is an incredible champion for that kind of work. Does the Secretary of State agree that giving local areas such as Harlow the flexibility, power and funding to engage with young people in the way that best works for them will get them back into employment quicker?
Liz Kendall
I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend. That is why we are going to give new powers, responsibilities and funding to local areas to deliver our youth guarantee. They know their communities best. They know the voluntary organisations, schools, training providers and businesses, and the mental health and other support that many young people need. In Harlow, I know that that approach will be key to giving young people the opportunities that my hon. Friend wants and that they deserve.
Carer’s Allowance
Chris Vince Excerpts(5 months, 1 week ago)
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Ed Davey (Kingston and Surbiton) (LD)
I beg to move,
That this House recognises the remarkable contributions that the UK’s 5.7 million unpaid carers make to society and the huge financial challenges many face; notes with deep concern that tens of thousands of carers are unfairly punished for overpayments of Carer’s Allowance due to the £151-a-week earnings limit; believes that carers should not be forced to face the stress, humiliation and fear caused by demands for repayments of Carer’s Allowance; condemns the previous Government for failing to address this scandal; calls on the Government to write-off existing overpayments immediately, raise the Carer’s Allowance earnings limit and introduce a taper to end the unfair cliff edge; and further calls on the Government to conduct a comprehensive review of support for carers to help people juggle care and work.
It is a great honour to open the first full Liberal Democrat Opposition day in 15 years. I assure the House that we will not waste our precious debates on the sort of political game playing to which Opposition days often fall victim. Instead, we will use them to focus on the things that really matter to ordinary people, and to tell Ministers directly about the real problems that our constituents face.
That brings me to our first motion on unpaid carers, or family carers as I prefer to say. They are people looking after relatives, friends or neighbours, and they do a remarkable and important job. Looking after someone they love can be rewarding and full of love—whether they are a parent of a disabled child, a teenager looking after a terminally ill parent or a close relative of an elderly family member—but it is far from glamorous. Caring for a family member can be relentless and exhausting.
As the House knows, I have been a carer for much of my life but, more importantly, I have also had the great privilege of meeting and hearing from thousands of carers in my constituency and across the United Kingdom. I have some understanding of the challenges that carers face every single day: the worries, the exhaustion, the lack of breaks and the financial difficulties, too. Britain’s carers deserve our support.
Chris Vince (Harlow) (Lab/Co-op)
I hope that the right hon. Gentleman will take this as a friendly intervention, as he knows what I am going to say. He talks about family carers and mentioned teenagers who support loved ones, which is important, but does he agree that we should recognise the role of young carers? Having worked with them, I know that they can be as young as five years old and supporting a loved one or family member.
Ed Davey
The hon. Member is absolutely right. I include young carers; indeed, I am a member of the all-party parliamentary group on young carers and young adult carers, and I invite him to join us. It is chaired by a well-established Labour Member. Young carers are very much part of our thinking, but for some, who will not be young—
Chris Vince (Harlow) (Lab/Co-op)
As I have already mentioned a few times in this place, carers played a significant role in my journey to this Chamber. I worked at first hand with young carers for two and a half years until I was elected. I really welcome the use of the term “family carers” in this debate, because the charity I worked for was called Action for Family Carers. I always welcome an opportunity to speak on this issue. I recognise that young carers are not eligible for the allowances that we are talking about, but I beg this Chamber’s permission to mention the subject in this debate and at every opportunity.
In my job supporting specifically young carers, I saw every day the toll that caring takes in day-to-day life. I recognise that all carers have been given a raw deal, pushed to their limits—their breaking point—in looking after people they care about and love. Since I was elected to this place, I have heard from carers who have suffered a massive amount of anxiety due to the pressure put on them because of the overpayments scandal—people whose lives have changed, who have given up careers to become carers for their loved ones, and of course young people who do not even consider going on to higher education because of the anxiety leaving their cared ones behind would cause. This cannot go on. The situation is not only untenable but unworkable, and above all it is damaging to those who we rely on in our most vulnerable moments.
That is why I welcome wholeheartedly the Government’s announcement today that they will launch an independent review of the carer’s allowance overpayments, led by an expert in the matter. This review will cut through the mistakes made under the last Government, lay bare what we can learn and help us to avoid these mistakes in the future. There is no simple solution to improving the situation for unpaid carers, but this announcement shows a clear commitment to finding the best way to improve it for as many as possible for as long as possible. I will say it again: carers are unsung heroes, and we owe it to these unsung heroes, whose contribution is often understated and unappreciated, to do this. Carers are the backbone of our society, and this review is an important step in repaying our debt to them.