Rights of Women and Girls: Afghanistan

Debate between Jim Shannon and Alice Macdonald

Monday 5th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Alice Macdonald (Norwich North) (Lab/Co-op)]

I am pleased to bring forward this debate on Government support for the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan because, put simply, the situation for women and girls there is catastrophic. As Human Rights Watch has said, it is

“the most serious women’s rights crisis in the world.”

Since coming to power in 2021, the Taliban have launched an all-out attack on women, systematically stripping away the economic, political and social rights of millions of women and girls. Today, I will speak about what this means in practice, and how the UK Government can support women and girls in Afghanistan.

To start, I pay tribute to Afghan women, who, despite everything they endure, continue to fight for their rights, both in Afghanistan and from overseas. Their hope rings true in a young woman—let us call her Naila—whose right to finish her degree was stolen by the Taliban. She said,

“In the deep silence, something inside me refuses to break. In the darkness I have held on to my dreams, like small candles in my hands, protecting the fragile flames from the wind. I write in my secret notebook, whisper my dreams to the night sky and promise myself that one day, the world will hear Afghan girls again.”

However, I have heard from many Afghan women that they feel that the world has simply forgotten them. We must be clear that we stand with them, so let us ask today what more we can do—both the Government and we parliamentarians—to support women and girls in Afghanistan.

Some people might ask why I have chosen to speak about this topic. Why, with so much live conflict across the world, should we care about this issue today? Because not only is the erasure of women’s and girls’ rights in Afghanistan wrong, but if we do not stand with Afghan women and girls—if the world tolerates this erasure of their rights—we are sending a message that the rights of women and girls everywhere are up for negotiation. We are sending a message that the world does not care enough, and that we will turn a blind eye when half our population are under threat. That is a message that I refuse to send, and I hope it is one that this whole House refuses to send. If we care about women’s rights anywhere, we must care about women’s rights in Afghanistan. As Fawzia Koofi, an Afghan politician and former Deputy Speaker of the Afghan Parliament, said recently before the International Development Committee,

“Today, millions of girls in Afghanistan’s hopes are stripped away from them. It is not only us. We are the frontline defenders of this…It can reach anywhere, any country.”

Let me turn to the situation on the ground. The dystopian fantasy played out in many films and much fiction is a real-world nightmare in Afghanistan. The rights of women and girls are being systematically erased, alongside their presence in public life; they have no right to education post primary school, no right to employment, and no right to travel by themselves. Of course, before the Taliban took power, there were huge challenges, with Afghanistan ranked among the lowest countries in the world for gender equality. However, there had also been hard-won gains, which are being systematically undone, one by one, under the cruel hand of the Taliban.

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

I commend the hon. Lady for bringing this debate to the House. I spoke to her beforehand, just to give her an idea of what I was thinking about. As of late 2025, over 37,200 people from Afghanistan have been resettled in the UK through Government-sponsored schemes—specialised, safe and legal routes—including the Afghan citizens resettlement scheme and the Afghan relocations and assistance policy. Targeting demographics is crucial, and we must do more to ensure that such schemes focus specifically on vulnerable groups, especially women. Does the hon. Lady agree with me and others that there is more we can do, through resettlement, to protect women and girls, by creating safe and legal pathways to ensure their safety from the Taliban?

[Alice Macdonald]

I thank the hon. Member for that important point. He is right. The Government have set out new proposals on immigration that have a focus on safe routes, and it is important that we stand with female human rights defenders from Afghanistan. Many of them came over here before there were those routes. It was not easy for them, and many people worked incredibly hard to make that happen. I hope that we can have safer passages, and that it can be much clearer how they can be accessed.

Anti-social Behaviour: East of England

Debate between Jim Shannon and Alice Macdonald

Tuesday 11th March 2025 Westminster Hall

[Alice Macdonald (Norwich North) (Lab/Co-op)]

I beg to move,

That this House has considered anti-social behaviour in the East of England.

It is an honour to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Twigg. As we go about our daily lives—shopping, working, socialising or simply enjoying a quiet evening in our own home—nothing has the power to disturb our experiences like antisocial behaviour. It can make people’s lives a living hell. I am sure that my colleagues from across the east will have inboxes full of concerns raised by constituents over antisocial behaviour. It differs in its form depending on whether it is in rural or urban areas, but examples include: fly tipping; littering; loud music played at all hours; nuisance neighbours; uncontrolled animals; and the menace of off-road bikes.

Last year, the police recorded 1 million incidents of antisocial behaviour nationally. Estimates from the crime survey for England and Wales showed that 36% of people experienced or witnessed some type of antisocial behaviour in their local area. In Norfolk, my county, 8,800 incidents of ASB were recorded by the police between 2023 and 2024. The Library reports that from March 2023 to March 2024, 948 incidents of ASB were recorded in my constituency. I want to bring to life what that means for my constituents, because, as I have said, it takes many different forms.

Last year, our local paper, the Eastern Daily Press, reported that antisocial behaviour in Norfolk’s libraries had increased by almost 40%, with staff offered extra support to help deal with rising abuse from visitors. Last week, I held a meeting for residents on Britannia Road, who have been plagued by antisocial behaviour and speeding in their area for years. The imposition of a public space protection order has had little effect. I am determined to work with local councillors, the council and the police to finally get some resolution. One of my constituents has told me that antisocial behaviour in carparks has meant that public toilets are being permanently closed. Just a few days ago, the city council had to lock the gates of parks and cemeteries again overnight after antisocial behaviour and vandalism.

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

I commend the hon. Lady for securing the debate. I spoke to her beforehand, and the point that she is referring to concerns me as well. It is always saddening to hear about incidents of antisocial behaviour across the UK. Examples include alarming incidents of graffiti, destroying public spaces such as children’s parks and inappropriate drawings on children’s slides. Does the hon. Lady agree that there must be a better community police presence to take substantive action to ensure that parents do not have to worry about potential damage to park equipment and inappropriate graffiti that young ones may witness at a very early age?

[Alice Macdonald]

I thank the hon. Member for his intervention and I totally agree. I will come on to the importance of a visible police presence later in my speech. As I said, the city councils have had to lock the gates of parks. Just today, the Feed cafe, a brilliant social enterprise in Waterloo Park in Norwich North, spoke out because it had suffered vandalism again. The manager said that they felt targeted and intimidated. They called for CCTV, which is something that the local council and I will back.

Derelict sites have also become hotspots for antisocial behaviour. Very sadly, a huge blaze broke out a few weeks ago at an empty shoe factory in Dibden Road. Seventeen fire crews had to attend from across the county. Thankfully, nobody was hurt, but derelict sites such as this one are too often not properly secured.