Progression of Bills through Parliament

John Cooper Excerpts

Monday 8th June 2026 Westminster Hall

[John Cooper (Dumfries and Galloway) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to serve under the iron grip of your chairmanship, Sir Edward.

We are here not to relitigate the substance of the assisted dying Bill, but to consider a profound change to the way we in this place carry out our duties as legislators. The petitioners seek, in short, for a failed Bill to be smashed through, as though it had not been subject to proper procedure, and for us to accept that it fell through procedural malfeasance. It is not so: this Bill failed because a gamble was taken to proceed down the private Member’s Bill route. It is well known that such Bills can run out of road due to time constraints.

The emotive nature of the subject of the Bill is obvious, but just as the Commons debate was dominated by deeply moving yet ultimately anecdotal accounts of painful deaths, we cannot decide here on emotion. Bad cases do not make good laws. We must decide on cold, hard facts. It is a fact that this Bill carried a major flaw at its heart, in that it was not part of the Labour manifesto on which this Government were elected.

It is also a fact that the Lords’ scrutiny role is designed to prevent the passage of poor legislation. This was flawed legislation, replete with issues unresolved at Committee, and passed to the Lords in a situation that Cabinet Office guidance warned would “likely kill the Bill”. I have seen all too often the result of a paucity of scrutiny when legislation has passed through the Scottish Parliament. Holyrood lacks a revising Chamber entirely, with its Committees expected to do the hard work of line-by-line consideration.

This petition is couched in terms of fairness and democracy, but it is neither fair nor democratic to usurp our system for reasons of dogma. No matter the subject of a Bill, if it lacks a manifesto heritage, staggers through Committee amidst a welter of chops and changes, and ultimately fails on contact with the Lords, we have no place attempting to resurrect it because we admire its aims or because it is popular.

[Jonathan Davies (Mid Derbyshire) (Lab)]

It continues to be the case that the royal medical colleges and many of the organisations representing disabled people take issue with the Bill as it stands. Does the hon. Gentleman agree that, while many among the general public would like to see assisted dying, or assisted suicide, introduced in principle, the detail of the legislation matters, and therefore the House of Lords was doing its job in providing that scrutiny?

[John Cooper]

I completely agree with the hon. Gentleman that this Bill has huge difficulties, and its popularity does not capture those. The Salisbury-Addison convention that the Lords will not seek to prevent the Government from implementing manifesto pledges simply does not apply. In this case, it has not been breached. The Government made repeated declarations that they were neutral on the Bill—that it was a private Member’s Bill—and so the convention does not arise. We cannot let the emotional baggage of the assisted dying Bill override proper parliamentary procedure.

[Lizzi Collinge]

Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

[John Cooper]

I will finish.

Of course, the legislation approving abortion in this country came through the private Member’s Bill route, but that was backed by the then Labour Government, who appointed a medical advisory committee that also supported its passage. That was a gold standard, against which this Bill is mere base metal. It fell—and fallen it should remain.

Business of the House

John Cooper Excerpts

Thursday 22nd January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

My hon. Friend raises an important issue and rightly points out that dental health is vital. We have provided £11 million of funding for local authorities to support toothbrushing programmes starting in April, along with a five-year partnership with the private sector. She raises the issue of schools’ involvement; it is ultimately a matter for the schools themselves, but I encourage them to make best use of that funding and to take part in the programme. It is so important to children’s health going forward. To add further detail, should my hon. Friend seek an Adjournment debate on these matters, I am sure other Members would join her in expressing their concern.

[John Cooper (Dumfries and Galloway) (Con)]

Has the fish supper had its chips? Fish and chips were so critical to morale during wartime that Churchill insisted they were never rationed, but now my constituent Romano Petrucci, the proprietor of the Central Café in my hometown of Stranraer, warns that this staple is becoming an unaffordable luxury. I appreciate that the Government do not set the price of fish and chips, but this is none the less a cross-cutting issue for Government, whether it be through fish quotas, energy prices or the cost of hiring. Having tried and failed to get either a Westminster Hall or an Adjournment debate on this matter, I ask for guidance on how we might air this issue here.

[Sir Alan Campbell]

As the Member of Parliament whose constituency has the best fish and chips in the country—[Interruption.] That is simply a matter of record, not a matter of dispute. It is obvious that the price of fish and chips has gone up in recent times, and there are many reasons for that, but everyone involved in that food chain deserves to be properly paid for the valuable work that they do. I would gently point out, as a Member of Parliament whose constituency has a fishing fleet, that the price of fish often reflects the very high price for fishermen, who go out and do what is still the most dangerous peacetime job, so let us not undersell the importance of fisheries.

The hon. Member says that the Government have things in their gift that they can do, and I am sure the Government will be looking at that, but should he seek a meeting with the Minister responsible for fisheries, my hon. Friend the Member for Wallasey (Dame Angela Eagle), to discuss these matters, I am sure I could arrange it.

Business of the House

John Cooper Excerpts

Thursday 13th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I can give my hon. Friend that undertaking.

[John Cooper (Dumfries and Galloway) (Con)]

Since coming to this place, I have struggled to find out how much money the UK Government are putting into the A75 road, which runs right through my constituency. I was astonished to find that a Labour candidate had said on social media that the figure was £8.5 million. I asked the Secretary of State for Transport whether that figure was correct—it was not. I was also told on social media that Anas Sarwar, the leader of the Labour party in Scotland, was responsible for that figure. Can the Leader of the House help me get to the bottom of this constitutional crisis, in which someone in another Parliament pulls the strings in this one?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I am not sure that it is a constitutional crisis, but I will help the hon. Gentleman to get to the bottom of how much is being committed. I am pretty sure that it is a lot more than the previous Government committed.

Business of the House

John Cooper Excerpts

Thursday 27th March 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I thank my hon. Friend for giving us a moment to remember Keith Palmer. Many of us were there that day, and we will never forget that he gave his life protecting those of us inside this place. My hon. Friend is absolutely right—it sounds like a really good idea to have an injury retirement medal for those who would otherwise have got a long service medal. I will ensure that the Home Secretary hears his call for that and that he gets a good reply.

[John Cooper (Dumfries and Galloway) (Con)]

The A77 and A75 roads are critical to the people of south-west Scotland, but they are also critical to the UK, because they service the exceptionally busy ferry port of Cairnryan, which links us with our friends in Northern Ireland. The difficulty with these roads is obvious if we ever travel them. There is another difficulty, however, which is that the Department for Transport here does not seem to think this has anything to do with it, and the Secretary of State for Scotland is too busy to meet me to discuss the issue. When the hon. Member for Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock (Elaine Stewart), who is in her place on the Government Benches, and I wrote to the Transport Secretary in Scotland, we received a high-handed letter saying that it would be inappropriate to meet us. What is inappropriate is the way devolution does not appear to be working. Can we pluck from the logjam of Backbench Business Committee debate ideas one on devolution and how it is failing?

[Lucy Powell]

I certainly agree with the hon. Gentleman that I do not think government in Scotland is working effectively in the interests of his constituents and others. I am sorry to hear about the difficulties he has had in raising the issue of the A77 road in his constituency. I will certainly ask the Scottish Minister to meet him to discuss that, so that we can get to the bottom of who is responsible and he can speak to those who are.

Business of the House

John Cooper Excerpts

Thursday 12th December 2024 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising this important matter. He is right to highlight the importance of grassroots sport, culture and others to our local communities and high streets. He will be aware that we have a curriculum review at the moment. We are also ensuring there is funding for grassroots sport in England, and he might want to note that the Government’s plans for devolution and supporting our high streets will be announced imminently to this House.

[John Cooper (Dumfries and Galloway) (Con)]

Both the Scotland Office and the Northern Ireland Office tell me that the Northern Ireland enhanced investment zone is still alive and still in play, and has not fallen into the fictitious £22 billion black hole. However, there is no indication of when it will actually be delivered. Given the multiple agencies involved, could we have some clarity on this? And can we address the policy of “devolve and forget” operated by this Government, which is so damaging to both Scotland and Northern Ireland?

[Lucy Powell]

The hon. Gentleman might want to raise this matter at Northern Ireland questions when we return. In the meantime, I will ensure that Ministers have heard his question.

Business of the House

John Cooper Excerpts

Thursday 14th November 2024 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. The Government inherited a Post Office that was simply not fit for purpose, following a lot of disinterest from the previous Government. The Post Office does need serious culture change. I assure her that, as I understand it, no decision has been taken on the future of Crown post offices, but I know from my own constituency, where recently the Spring Gardens Crown post office in Manchester was closed, what a big issue this is for local communities. I encourage every constituency MP, like her, to raise these matters here and directly with Ministers.

[John Cooper (Dumfries and Galloway) (Con)]

The previous Government identified the A75 road as of crucial importance to the UK as a whole, so despite the fact that transport is a devolved matter, money was earmarked for improvements. I have been trying, without success, to find out what is happening to that money. I was astonished to find that a Labour MSP was able to tweet details about the road—he apparently knows more about it than anyone in this House. May we have a statement from the Government explaining what is happening with the A75 and the money that was clearly earmarked for it?

[Lucy Powell]

As the hon. Gentleman says, these issues are devolved and we allocate the money as part of other consequentials to the Scottish Government to consider those matters, but I will ensure that the issue he raises is noticed by the Minister. I will ask for a full reply about that road to be given to him.

Business of the House

John Cooper Excerpts

Thursday 31st October 2024 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I join my hon. Friend in congratulating the Cotgrave community garden in his constituency. As has been mentioned in business questions many times, including today, the role that community volunteers play in making our communities great places in which to live, work and raise a family is absolutely vital. The Chair of the Backbench Business Committee is still in his place; as I said earlier, this type of issue would make for a very good Backbench Business debate.

[John Cooper (Dumfries and Galloway) (Con)]

I am aghast to hear that it is scaremongering to talk about the damage being done to agriculture. I can tell the House that the howls of concern in Dumfries and Galloway are real. We really need to discuss this issue, because Britain cannot live by air-freighted mangetout alone. The Budget imperils food security in this country, and we must have action on that. It is incredible that the Environment Secretary seems so uncaring. As my hon. Friend the Member for Mid Buckinghamshire (Greg Smith) asked, can we please have the Secretary of State in the House for the Budget debate?

[Lucy Powell]

The Environment Secretary will be here for questions in a couple of weeks’ time, and he comes to the House regularly. I have to say, I find that some of the questions this morning are scaremongering. We have made it clear that three quarters of the farming businesses that are entitled to the full relief will still get it after this Budget. We are talking about the top 25%, and there is not a cliff edge in any case. We are fully committed to farmers, the farming community and food security in this country—I certainly do not buy imported mangetout, as the hon. Gentleman may occasionally—and that is why the settlement announced yesterday provides £5 billion over two years for farming and land management, and why we have prioritised the farming recovery fund.