Palestine and Israel

Debate between Diane Abbott and Mark Hendrick

Monday 13th October 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mark Hendrick (Preston) (Lab/Co-op)]

It is very easy to call anyone who opposes the views of the Israeli Government an anti-Semite. Does my hon. Friend believe that building a wall and separation barrier on Palestinian land and building settlements that now house some 400,000 settlers is any way forward and gives the international community any confidence that Israel is willing to go through any sort of peace process? Does she also agree that this vote today is going to send a message to the Israeli Government that this Parliament and this country feel very strongly about their attitude towards Palestine?

[Ms Abbott]

I entirely agree about both the walls and the continuing proliferation of settlements.

In this debate we have heard what has almost been a mantra from Members opposed to the motion: “Make Palestine a state, but not just yet.” It is absurd for opponents of this motion to argue that it undermines negotiation. There is so much to negotiate, so much to do, so much for both sides to talk about. It is almost disingenuous to say that recognising Palestinian statehood cuts across any negotiation, and the idea that recognition of Palestinian statehood should be conditional or a bargaining chip must be wrong.

I believe that the time for justice for the Palestinians has come and the time to recognise Palestinian statehood is tonight in this House of Commons, and I believe that our own constituents, and above all Palestinians overseas, are looking to this House tonight to do the right thing.

Mental Health

Debate between Diane Abbott and Mark Hendrick

Thursday 16th May 2013 Commons Chamber

[Ms Abbott]

My hon. Friend’s points are well made.

Let me consider the future for mental health and set out for the House how important the role of local authorities can be in addressing the social determinants of mental ill health. Public health has become the responsibility of local authorities. They have a ring-fenced public health budget, and despite all their pressures and difficulties—which I do not seek to minimise—there is an opportunity for local authorities to do important and interesting work, bringing together education and housing with health care to address mental health problems and intervene in them early.

I was shocked to hear of a social housing project near King’s Cross that, presumably to make its tenants more manageable, did not want to give tenancies either to people who had a history of rent arrears or to people who had a history of mental health problems. Such things need to be highlighted and addressed. Sitting responsibility for public health with local authorities could address mental health, particularly in respect of early intervention and preventive work with children in schools.

I gave a speech this morning on the crisis in masculinity. We need to focus on the mental health challenges that face men. Whether it is because they are unwilling to come forward or because of stress in society, we know that, during a recession or economic downturn, suicide rates among men increase. Suicide is currently the biggest cause of death among under 35s. In planning services nationally and locally, we need to pay particular attention to that issue among others.

The hon. Member for Totnes made an important point. She said that, in our desire to reduce health tourism—a desire supported by the Opposition—there is a notion that people will need their passport when they turn up to see their GP. That runs the risk of making it harder for the socially excluded to access health care—many simply do not have a passport or such documentation.

I will not speak at this point about the merits or otherwise of the welfare reforms, but there is a lot of anecdotal evidence that they are having an effect on the mental health of some who are caught up in the system. There is a lot of anecdotal evidence that Atos, as it is currently configured and as it currently operates, does not meet the needs or seem to understand the problems of people with mental health challenges.

[Mark Hendrick]

I am sure that my hon. Friend, like many other hon. Members, has come across many constituents attending surgeries who are developing serious mental health problems purely and simply because of the pressures caused by the reforms to the benefits system. I am finding that people who are mentally ill and do not know it are getting worse—they are under pressure from the benefit changes that have been made and those that will take place in future.

[Ms Abbott]

I am afraid that there is increasing evidence that worry about the changes and about the threat of the changes is causing a lot of stress for people with mental health issues. Social services and health authorities must be mindful of that.

Jobs and Business

Debate between Diane Abbott and Mark Hendrick

Friday 10th May 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mark Hendrick]

That is right. If we left the European Union, tariff barriers, possibly quotas and all sorts of other obstacles would be placed in front of Britain, which would restrict and inhibit our trade with Europe. That could have a serious or even disastrous effect on many of the industries we rely on to provide jobs and business in this country. When we have on our own doorstep a market as big as the European Union— 500 million people—it would be folly to ignore it and to pretend that the UK can do better by going it alone.

A great deal has been said on immigration—even Labour Front Benchers have said that to some extent we got it wrong with the accession of the 10 central and eastern European countries. I disagree. Many of those people came to the UK looking for work when our economy was doing very well and the work was available; in many cases, they took work that some people in this country were not willing to take. In my constituency, there are schools and even Catholic churches that would have closed but for the arrival of many Polish and other central and eastern European families. They came and turned them into thriving communities and schools, so we now have churches occupied that had been threatened with closure.

Half those people have now returned to their country of origin, partly because they have made money and started up their own business back in those countries and partly because the job situation here is now not so good. Quite naturally, if there is not work here, they will look for work that, in many cases, might be lower paid, but is in their own country. Free movement is a benefit: people move only to where there are jobs, and the idea that everyone is coming here to scrounge off the state is untrue and an absolute disgrace—it is opportunist politicking at the least.

[Ms Abbott]

Is it not a fact that, overall, immigrants put more into the economy than they take out, partly because they are younger and so less likely to claim benefit or to be a charge on the health service?

[Mark Hendrick]

That is right. If we look at the history of immigration in this country, first we have the Irish, then the West Indian immigration—