Business of the House

Rachel Hopkins Excerpts

Thursday 24th April 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I join the hon. Lady in supporting Lesbian Visibility Week, and she raises a really important matter. We should be supporting all couples of whatever kind who want to start a family, with all the joy that that brings and all the support that those families can bring to the babies and so on. I will ensure that the hon. Lady gets a full ministerial reply, but I am sorry to hear about the postcode lottery she has described.

[Rachel Hopkins (Luton South and South Bedfordshire) (Lab)]

Last week, I co-hosted a youth engagement workshop at the brilliant Tokko youth hub in my constituency to help inform our Government’s national youth strategy. Young people from a range of organisations, including Luton’s children in care council, CHUMS, the Centre for Youth and Community Development, Luton Roma Trust and Luton Youth Council—to name but a few—all gave excellent feedback. Does the Leader of the House agree that it is vital to recognise a wide range of young people’s voices in developing strategies that affect their futures, in order to break down barriers to opportunity for all?

[Lucy Powell]

I thank my hon. Friend for facilitating that workshop. She is absolutely right; we want to co-produce the national youth strategy, and conversations and workshops like the one she has described—which are part of what I think is the biggest conversation ever with young people—are critical to ensuring that we design the services and support that young people want.