Business of the House

Maya Ellis Excerpts

Thursday 16th October 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

First, I welcome the shadow Deputy Leader of the House to his place for his inaugural address. The hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington (Bobby Dean) also makes his debut today, so I find myself in the unusual position of being somewhat of a veteran of business questions on only my second outing.

As ever, due diligence led me to Wikipedia to find out a bit more about the shadow Deputy Leader of the House. I discovered that he was the fastest MP to take part in the 2018 London marathon, with what I am told is a commendable time of three hours, 38 minutes and three seconds. Genuinely, that is not only an impressive achievement, but the fact that then and since then he has raised a great deal of money for charities is to his credit. I also note that in 2014, he became the first UK politician to complete an Ironman triathlon. It seems fitting that in Margaret Thatcher’s centenary year, I find myself up against the Conservative party’s new iron gentleman.

I want to associate myself completely with the hon. Gentleman’s words about the terrible Manchester attack, which has rightly been condemned on both sides of the House, and with his words of tribute to the late Ming Campbell, who was, as he said, hugely respected as a dedicated public servant and a tireless champion for his constituents. As the late Denis Healey would say, he was a politician who had hinterland.

Yesterday was the fourth anniversary of the murder of Sir David Amess. He dedicated almost four decades to this House and to his constituents. We remember him fondly and with respect, as we do our friend Jo Cox, and we recommit ourselves on these occasions to the values that brought them and us to public service. We also need to remind ourselves of the importance of the language and tone of our debates and deliberations.

Let me turn to the questions posed by the hon. Gentleman. As an athlete of some renown and a marathon runner, his description of the Manchester conference reminded me of one of my favourite films, “The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner”. I stand second to none in respect for Parliament. We will be bringing forward digital ID legislation in due course, but we did bring it to the Floor of the House in a statement at the earliest opportunity, on Monday this week.

As for the hon. Gentleman’s comments on the economy, I genuinely believe that anyone on the Conservative Benches who stands up and says anything about the economy should begin with an apology, because theirs was the only Government in recent times where living standards were lower at the end of the Parliament than they were at the beginning. As for the detail of the Budget and whether there is a plan, of course there is a plan for growth. He knows that he will have to wait until 26 November for any details of that.

In terms of the evolving situation regarding the matter of China, I am the fourth Minister this week to stand at the Dispatch Box to potentially face questions about that. The hon. Gentleman rightly pointed to a key meeting that took place yesterday between the DPP and Committee Chairs. I am a firm believer in strong, independent Select Committees, and I am quite sure they will do a fantastic job, should they put their mind to that—it is not for me to tell them how to do it. Of course, I expect that Committees will get the full co-operation for everything they seek from the Government.

[Maya Ellis (Ribble Valley) (Lab)]

On Monday, Members spoke movingly in the Backbench Business debate marking Baby Loss Awareness Week, highlighting the vital, multifaceted role of midwifery in supporting bereaved families, and yet this week, the chief executive of the Royal College of Midwives announced that it has decided not to contribute to NHS England’s professional strategy for nursing and midwifery because it had become clear that midwifery was being treated as an “afterthought”. Will the Leader of the House allocate time to debate the need for a distinct midwifery strategy—one that reflects its unique contribution and creates a positive, proactive plan and funding model for maternity care overall, giving midwifery the priority it deserves, with its pivotal role in all our lives?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I wholeheartedly agree with my hon. Friend that midwives provide vital and diverse services, particularly when they are supporting bereaved families. The independent national investigation into maternity and neonatal care will report in spring next year, and we are committed to recruiting more midwives and making sure we retain those with experience. She raises a really important point. There are avenues for her to raise this matter in debates—either Backbench Business or Adjournment debates, which I am sure would be popular. I will also ensure that the Health Secretary is made aware of her comments.

Business of the House

Maya Ellis Excerpts

Thursday 19th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I am sure that the Deputy Prime Minister has a very full diary; she will be washing her hair and the like, so it might not be possible for her to have dinner with the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage).

[Maya Ellis (Ribble Valley) (Lab)]

The battle of Bamber Bridge in my constituency, 82 years ago, was a powerful moment in history when local people stood in solidarity with black American soldiers against segregation. I am hugely grateful to councillors, like the wonderful Chris Lomax, who have worked so hard to keep the memory of this special moment in history alive. I know that the community will have a great time celebrating the anniversary this weekend with a proper American barbecue. Will the Leader of the House join me in wishing the Bamber Bridge community a wonderful celebration at the Ye Olde Hob Inn this weekend, and will she consider holding a debate on the long history of our British values of bravery and inclusion?

[Lucy Powell]

I absolutely join my hon. Friend in wishing the Bamber Bridge community all the best with their barbecue this weekend, and their celebration of the stand that people took against racism all those years ago.

Business of the House

Maya Ellis Excerpts

Thursday 12th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

The Government are committed to introducing the most ambitious programme of animal welfare in a generation. I am not aware of the particular regulation that the right hon. Gentleman mentions, but I will ensure that he gets a full response from the Minister and that it is made available for everybody else.

[Maya Ellis (Ribble Valley) (Lab)]

Government data released last year shows that homeschooling figures have doubled since 2019. Although I wholeheartedly welcome the measures in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill to ensure that all children are safe, many parents in my constituency actively and positively choose to home-educate their children, and it is safe and reasonable for them to do so. On behalf of her Cabinet colleagues, will the Leader of the House reassure home-educating parents in my constituency and across the UK, who are doing a fantastic job of educating their children, that the Bill will safeguard educational freedom and honour the incredibly positive impact that parents can have on their children’s development? Will she consider a debate on the merits of alternative forms of education?

[Lucy Powell]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising the issue of homeschooling. She is right to say that many families provide high-quality and important education for their children where it is not available to them in the mainstream. I am sure that she will agree that we must tackle absenteeism in school, which is particularly rife since covid, and that we need to get more children back into mainstream education. Although children are home- schooled for good reason, some are not safe at home, and we must take steps to deal with that.

Business of the House

Maya Ellis Excerpts

Thursday 15th May 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I will have a look at the Love Your Local Market website later today. I know of the fantastic market in my hon. Friend’s constituency and am sure that many people will be visiting it this weekend.

[Maya Ellis (Ribble Valley) (Lab)]

HARP—Haweswater aqueduct resilience programme—is a 10-year project about to commence for United Utilities to tunnel water through my constituency from the Lake district to Manchester. I recently met residents of the communities that this work will disrupt for a decade. Will the Leader of the House assure my residents that this Labour Government strongly expect big infrastructure stakeholders such as United Utilities to be proactive in providing regular communications and engaging with the communities they have active projects in? Would she consider allowing time for the House to debate how community impacts should be mitigated in areas disproportionately affected by new water infrastructure projects?

[Lucy Powell]

Let me be clear: the Government expect water companies, including United Utilities, to engage with local communities about big projects such as the one my hon. Friend describes in her constituency. We want to see water companies being more accountable. That is why we have already passed legislation on that, and there will be further legislation coming soon.

Business of the House

Maya Ellis Excerpts

Thursday 24th April 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I am sorry to hear that businesses in my hon. Friend’s constituency have been victims of business rates scams. We are committed to reducing the number of these scams, and we will take steps to do that, but I will ensure that he gets an update from Ministers.

[Maya Ellis (Ribble Valley) (Lab)]

Girlguiding and its volunteers provide endless opportunities for girls and young women in my constituency of Ribble Valley. Will the Leader of the House join me in congratulating the Waddow Hall Trust group of Girlguiding members on successfully campaigning to secure Waddow Hall, which provides adventure and outdoor education for future generations of young people? Will she make time for this House to discuss the importance of outdoor education within the Government’s national youth strategy?

[Lucy Powell]

I join my hon. Friend in congratulating her local girl guides on their campaign to secure the future of Waddow Hall. The girl guides do a great job, and they are a vital part of the youth services and youth community activities that we want to see across the country.

Business of the House

Maya Ellis Excerpts

Thursday 6th February 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

May I start with a couple of business questions updates? After my hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Laura Kyrke-Smith) asked me to join her in congratulating “Bake Off” star Dylan Bachelet, they both joined me this week to taste some delicious cakes in my Leader of the House’s office bake-off. Dylan is not only an inspiration to young people from Aylesbury; I can report that he has extremely good taste, because he chose my lemon drizzle as the winner.

I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton West (Warinder Juss) for coming to see me this week with a copy of a Stone Roses record after we had exchanged nice words about Revolver Records in his constituency. I hope that hon. Members across the House can see that I am open to nice invitations celebrating constituencies and communities.

This week marks LGBT+ History Month, which is a chance for us to reflect and remember the contribution of the LGBT community and the discrimination that they still too often face. The Labour party is proud to be the party of equality, having abolished section 28 and introduced civil partnerships, the Gender Recognition Act 2004 and the Equality Act 2010 among other things.

Turning to the remarks of the shadow Leader of the House. First, let me take head on some of his misleading allegations about the process for the assisted dying Bill. As he is well aware, the House agreed by a clear majority that the Bill should proceed from Second Reading to Committee. That was the will of the House. That Committee is now convening, and in an unprecedented procedure for a private Member’s Bill it has been taking written and oral evidence to begin with. It will begin many weeks of line-by-line scrutiny of the Bill, which is again unprecedented; it will be a lengthy Committee stage.

The make-up of the Committee, as set out in the Standing Orders, reflects the vote on Second Reading and the party make-up of the House. Many would argue that its make-up has been overly conscious of that. As I have said at the Dispatch Box on a number of occasions, while the Government have a neutral position on the principles of the Bill, we have a responsibility to ensure that any Bill passed by the House is workable and operable. That is the role that we will play through the Ministers representing the Government on that Committee.

It is extremely regrettable and ill-advised of the shadow Leader of the House to use his privileged position at the Dispatch Box to give such a political, one-sided and misleading account of what is a difficult, technical, important issue of conscience to the country and to the House. On the day of the Bill’s Second Reading and since, I think every colleague across the House—perhaps apart from him—has recognised that we and our procedures showed themselves at their very best in debating that important matter.

The right hon. Gentleman could have used his moment at the Dispatch Box to mark another important anniversary. It may have escaped people’s notice, but next Monday will mark 100 days since the Leader of the Opposition took office. I wondered how the right hon. Gentleman thought that was going. I am not sure why he did not celebrate all her brilliant achievements—perhaps it is because, like the rest of her leadership, they have gone completely unnoticed.

Oh no, sorry, we have learned a few things about the Leader of the Opposition: we now know what she is against. She is against maternity leave; the triple lock; abolishing hereditary peers; our Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which will protect young people from abusers; rights and security for workers; investment in the NHS; and—oh!—sandwiches for lunch. She has got a couple of things right: she admitted that her party made mistakes in government—indeed it did—and accepted that it had no plan for growth. This morning, despite saying that there would be no new policy until 2027, she has finally come up with one.

I gently advise the shadow Leader of the House that until the Conservatives accept that they got it badly wrong on immigration and that all their rhetoric and targets in the last Parliament were just hot air, I do not think that anyone will take the Leader of the Opposition’s ideas seriously. One hundred days is normally a moment for reflection and consideration, so he might want to reflect on that and agree that his party picked a bit of a dud.

[Maya Ellis (Ribble Valley) (Lab)]

As the chair of the all-party parliamentary group on babies (pregnancy to age 2), I have had the privilege over the past few months to meet leaders from across society who have incredible passion and energy for Government policy that relates to babies from pregnancy to age two. Will the Leader of the House consider a debate on the impact of all angles of Government policy on babies from pregnancy to age two, given the significant impact of that time on long-term health and wellbeing outcomes?

[Lucy Powell]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising this important issue and for all her campaigning on these matters, which she takes incredibly seriously. This Government consider the early years to be really important, as well as maternity and paternity leave and ensuring that parents can do their jobs and be parents. The early years are the most important in a child’s life. I look forward to working with her on that.