Town and City Centre Safety

Sadik Al-Hassan Excerpts

Tuesday 3rd February 2026 Westminster Hall

[Sadik Al-Hassan (North Somerset) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Dowd. In my constituency of North Somerset and our amazing town centres, safety is an issue raised consistently by residents, and their concerns reflect a wider truth about communities across our country. Homicide rates in England and Wales have fallen to their lowest levels since records began, which is welcome news, yet that is not how people in my community and across the UK feel. We have less violent crime, but the small crimes that tear the fabric of our community spirit are on the rise.

Having spent nearly two decades working in pharmacy, I know at first hand that I can be in a local shop watching somebody sweep a shelf of products into their bag and walk away almost undeterred, driving a feeling of lawlessness, making us feel that antisocial behaviour and crime rates are increasing, because low-level everyday issues are more prevalent and more visible. Shop floor staff are often told not to put themselves at risk—rightfully so, as I still have a scar on the back of my hand from a shoplifter. The public are afraid to get involved, as they will likely be on the wrong side of the law. It is the antisocial behaviour, the petty shoplifting, the lack of police presence and even the proliferation of e-bikes tearing through our streets that is driving the feeling of unsafe towns and villages. Add in the absence of CCTV coverage and police presence in key areas, and residents feel they have nowhere to turn.

The Portishead post office, which is in one of the largest towns in my constituency and a vital hub that Portishead residents and I campaigned tirelessly for, suffered two break-ins, one only a month after opening its doors in May 2025. Even next door in the village of Pill, where I live, I have seen a rise in antisocial behaviour, including bikes tearing up football pitches and even affecting a match. That is why I welcome the Government’s Bill and the safer streets mission that sets out clear priorities on neighbourhood policing and town centre crime. Part of the conversation should be about the fundamental changes we have seen on our high streets. We should look not with nostalgia, but at what we need our high streets to look like in future.

Draft Public Order Act 2023 (Interference With Use or Operation of Key National Infrastructure) Regulations 2025

Sadik Al-Hassan Excerpts

Wednesday 17th December 2025 General Committees

[Sadik Al-Hassan (North Somerset) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Sir Alec—even today, on my birthday. There is obviously nowhere else I would rather be.

The right to peaceful protest is fundamental to our democracy and must be protected even as we balance legitimate security concerns. As an officer of the all-party parliamentary group for life sciences and a pharmacist, I understand that this statutory instrument is designed to prevent disruptive protest activities and protect key national infrastructure, but the classification of life sciences infrastructure such as animal testing facilities as key national infrastructure could set what some would consider a concerning precedent for protest rights.

What specific safeguards will the Minister implement to prevent overreach with this designation? Will there be any regular parliamentary review of which sciences qualify? What provisions will there be to ensure that peaceful protest remains possible at appropriate distances?

Draft Data Protection Act 2018 (Qualifying Competent Authorities) Regulations 2025

Sadik Al-Hassan Excerpts

Tuesday 9th September 2025 General Committees

[Sadik Al-Hassan (North Somerset) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Jeremy, and I congratulate the Minister on her appointment. The regulations are pivotal to ensuring that our data protection framework continues to meet the needs of public authorities and citizens alike. By designating certain bodies as qualifying competent authorities, we strengthen the capacity to manage and share data responsibly and securely in line with the principles of the 2018 Act.

In today’s digital age, Government bodies need absolute clarity about their roles, especially when processing personal data for law enforcement purposes. The regulations provide precise definitions that maintain our high data protection standards while ensuring compliance with UK GDPR. The regulations strike the right balance between enabling our public authorities to perform effectively, safeguarding citizens’ fundamental rights and protecting our wider national security against threats such as terrorism.

Controlled Drugs (Procedure for Specification) Bill

Sadik Al-Hassan Excerpts

Committee stage
Wednesday 25th June 2025 Public Bill Committees

[Cameron Thomas (Tewkesbury) (LD)]

I support the Bill in the context of my liberalism. For years, the Liberal Democrats have campaigned for better access to medicinal cannabis for those who rely on it to manage their symptoms. The current system is too restrictive and necessitates a more compassionate, patient-centred approach to ensure that nobody is left to suffer unnecessarily. The Government should investigate the merits of permitting general practice to prescribe cannabis-based products.

That said, this retired military police officer does not find his liberal values to be at odds with the Bill. In fact, the Bill increases protections for citizens from dangerous substances and simplifies and shortens the control systems set out in the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.

[Sadik Al-Hassan (North Somerset) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dr Murrison. I welcome this Bill, which, in the wisdom of my hon. Friend the Member for Gloucester, sheds light on a system that is not working well and proposes an appropriate fix. As a pharmacist, I am well aware of the problems we have with controlled drugs, and novel and designer drugs that are produced at speed pose a risk to patients. I believe this Bill will do exactly what it says on the tin and help us to control a growing problem. I thank my hon. Friend for bringing us here today.