Easter Adjournment

Julie Minns Excerpts

Tuesday 8th April 2025 Commons Chamber

[Ms Julie Minns (Carlisle) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to speak in this Easter recess debate, to pay tribute to Sir David and to bring to the attention of the House a movement that has been spreading across cities and communities all over the world. I speak, of course, of yarn bombing.

Yarn bombing is an urban art form that involves decorating objects in public places with knitted or crocheted yarn. [Interruption.] The vandalism! It is a way of transforming everyday places into something colourful, creative and alive, and it has taken my constituency of Carlisle by storm in the last 18 months. The term “bombing” comes from traditional graffiti culture, where street artists would leave their mark in public places. However, unlike spray paint, yarn bombing is softer, as it is about creating a sense of warmth and whimsy in an often difficult and challenging world. At a time when we are all too often disconnected from one another by screens and technology, yarn bombing brings a sense of connection. It is an invitation to stop, notice and engage, and it can be playful, light-hearted and fun.

In Carlisle, that light-hearted fun started with three ladies who began meeting in their local community centre. The following weeks and months saw the group grow in number. Their first project, in May last year, was the yarn bombing of Mayor’s Drive in Bitts Park, in the centre of Carlisle, for an attraction as part of Carlisle Matters’s Show and Tell event, which was attended by more than 4,500 members of the public.

Next, The Lanes shopping centre, in the city centre, asked the yarn bombers whether they would crochet a large-scale poppy display to celebrate Remembrance Sunday. The resulting publicity, including that generated by our brilliant community radio station CRFM, prompted an outpouring of support, leaving Carlisle Matters with far more poppies than the shopping centre could possibly display—and so it was that the steps of the old town hall and the ancient market cross came to be yarn bombed. The yarn bombers are currently working their fingers to the bone creating yarn bunting and flowers in bright colours to decorate the pedestrianised area of our city centre when it reopens after a multi-million pound transformation in a few months’ time.

However, yarn bombing is about more than beautiful crocheted creations; it is a genuinely inclusive community activity. One elderly lady told Carlisle Matters that her husband had recently passed away, but that yarn bombing had given her a purpose again. Even I, who cannot successfully sew on a button, have dabbled—and, may I say, have successfully produced a pom-pom. Next time you pass a tree wrapped in brightly coloured yarn or a lamp post draped in knitted flowers, Madam Deputy Speaker, take a moment to appreciate the creativity, the effort and the message behind it.

Finally, on the subject of meaning and message, I will take a moment to celebrate and thank our church leaders during this busy period of Lent and as they approach the celebration and hope of Easter. I give special thanks to the Bishop of Penrith, Robert Saner-Haigh, who, for more than 18 months now, has also been acting diocesan bishop of the diocese of Carlisle, and for whom Easter will therefore be doubly busy. I conclude by conveying my good wishes to you, Madam Deputy Speaker, and to Mr Speaker, the other Deputy Speakers and all parliamentary staff for a joyful Easter.