Business of the House

Sarah Jones Excerpts

Thursday 17th November 2022 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

Not only has my hon. Friend asked a textbook question, Madam Deputy Speaker, but you will be pleased to know that she is observing protocol by not bringing props into the Chamber. She has got changed, because earlier today she was wearing a sweatshirt with “angleseyfreeport.co.uk” written across it and could be found walking around the Palace of Westminster campaigning at every opportunity to bring those opportunities to her local community and to help companies such as Rolls-Royce, Bechtel and many others. I congratulate her on her tenacity.

[Sarah Jones (Croydon Central) (Lab)]

I have been working with a bereaved family in Croydon whose father, Andreas Kassianou, died tragically of legionnaires’ disease in hospital in 2020. The NHS triggered an inquest that confirmed that he had died as a result of legionella contracted entirely because of the inadequate flushing of the water in his room by staff. Mr Kassianou’s daughters, who are obviously mourning the loss of their father, now face unaffordable legal fees because they did not meet the requirements for legal aid. That seems deeply unfair considering that the trust accepted liability and the family never asked for an inquest in the first place. Will the Government give parliamentary time to discussing the urgent need for reform for bereaved families who face such extortionate legal fees for inquests that they did not initiate into events for which they were not at fault in any way?

[Penny Mordaunt]

That situation cannot be right, and I am very sorry to hear about the added pain that Mr Kassianou’s family are going through. I think the best course of action would be for me to write, on the hon. Lady’s behalf, to seek advice from the Department of Health. She will know how to apply for a debate in the usual way.

Business of the House

Sarah Jones Excerpts

Thursday 21st January 2021 Commons Chamber

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his support for the Government’s infrastructure programme and the key to build back better. HS2 is a landmark infrastructure project, which will bring much needed extra capacity to our railways, increase connectivity between our great cities, and usher in an even higher speed economy than before. There will be an opportunity to raise this issue at Transport questions next Thursday, so I hope he will be lucky in that particular ballot.

[Sarah Jones (Croydon Central) (Lab) [V]]

The Government quite rightly extended the ban on evictions during this dangerous lockdown period. I have a constituent who has been made redundant after 17 years working for a faith organisation. Tia and her family have lived in a manse for that time, as part of her employment. She has to leave her home when her employment ends on 9 February. There is a loophole in the law: tied accommodation does not fall under the eviction ban. I think this is an oversight rather than intent, so will the Leader of the House confirm that the spirit and intention of the Government are that no one should be forced out of their home during this period, and could we find time in this place to rectify the legislation?

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

The hon. Lady is right to say that the aim of the Government was to prevent evictions during the pandemic, but also to ensure a proper and fair relationship in these difficult times between landlords and tenants. It is very difficult, from the Dispatch Box, to answer individual constituent concerns without notice, but I will undertake to take this matter up with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Participation in Debates

Sarah Jones Excerpts

Monday 16th November 2020 Commons Chamber

[Madam Deputy Speaker]

I now call Sarah Jones.

[Sarah Jones (Croydon Central) (Lab) [V]]

May I recommend that the Leader of the House read the gov.uk guidance? The guidance is different this time from last time: it is just really clear that people need to stay at home and only go to work if they cannot work from home. We can work from home, and to show an example to the rest of the country, we should do that. I have been self-isolating for the last nine days, because the covid app told me to. I really wanted to raise a campaign that I and my constituents were doing to try and honour the 34 people in Croydon who have lost their lives in conflict since the second world war. I had wanted to raise that in the Armistice Day debate and I was not able to do so. Given that the technology is available and that thousands of key workers, including my husband, are working perfectly well from home, why did the Leader of the House think it was right to exclude me from that debate last week?

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

The hon. Lady and I simply disagree on whether the House can operate effectively remotely. We have the experience to go on of May and June when it did not work effectively. The legislative programme was bunged up and we lost all the private Members’ days—all the Fridays were cancelled—Westminster Hall was closed, and we had limited availability for Opposition days and no availability for Backbench business.

The House has to carry on a wide range of activities, not just in the Chamber but in Committee Rooms. No Public Bill Committees or statutory instrument Committees took place. We need to get legislation through, both because of the deadline of 31 December, which is an important one, and because we have to legislate on covid. That is of course in addition to the democratic obligation to deliver on the manifesto commitments that were made in the election last year. With all these things, I think it is unquestionable that we need to be here physically to do it properly.

Business of the House

Sarah Jones Excerpts

Wednesday 25th March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

My hon. Friend is right that the usurious rates charged on credit cards can trap people into high levels of debt, as may the high overdraft fees and interest rates that have recently been introduced. It is a serious matter. I am sure that the banks are aware that the rest of the country is doing its best to help, and they will note that they received a lot of help in 2008. I am reminded of a parable about that, but time does not allow.

[Sarah Jones (Croydon Central) (Lab)]

I appreciate, as we all do, that we should not be meeting physically in this place. It is not the right thing to do, and I accept the decision has been made that we should rise early for recess, but I am uncomfortable that, as a Member of Parliament receiving hundreds of emails all the time from constituents who are worried, as the right hon. Member for Chipping Barnet (Theresa Villiers) said, about a whole raft of different things that are as yet unanswered by the Government, I will not have the opportunity to ask a question and receive an answer over the recess. In this modern age, when all of us are Zooming, left, right and centre, with our constituents—many people all at the same time is perfectly possible—surely it must be possible for us to fulfil our democratic function at this time of great crisis and to put questions to the Government and get answers.

Business of the House

Sarah Jones Excerpts

Thursday 23rd January 2020 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I think so as well.

[Sarah Jones (Croydon Central) (Lab)]

I recently had occasion to try to navigate the procedures of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority and the House’s Human Resources Department to establish what should be done when a member of staff in a constituency office is unwell. It was very difficult and very complicated. That was not the fault of any one individual, but systems do not talk to each other and this system does not work very well. Apparently, there is no HR function relating to staff who work in constituencies, and there is a huge gap where they are not getting the support that they need.

Will the Leader of the House do all that he can to ensure that a good HR system is set up for members of staff who work in constituencies? There are several thousand of them. Will he also do all that he can, when looking into the cost of IPSA and what we spend our money on, to ensure that we have enough resources to protect people who are unwell and need our support?

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

Let me make two points. First, will any Member who is experiencing such issues please get in touch with the House authorities to see whether we are able to help? Whether the relevant authority is my office, Mr Speaker’s office or the office of the Clerk of the House, everyone will try to help if there are disconnects between the various bodies that serve us as Members. Secondly, I hope that I am not giving too much away by saying that the issue of the HR service is being considered by the Commission, and it is on our schedule of work at the moment.

Business of the House

Sarah Jones Excerpts

Thursday 7th March 2019 Commons Chamber

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Eleanor Laing)]

The prize for perseverance and patience goes to Sarah Jones.

[Sarah Jones (Croydon Central) (Lab)]

Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I want to raise the issue of knife crime, which has been the subject of much debate this week. Yesterday, the officers of the all-party parliamentary group on knife crime, which I chair, wrote to the Prime Minister with a range of suggestions and asking for a meeting. They suggested that, alongside her summit, she should host an event with young people who have been affected by knife crime, so that they could put their point of view across, as that is also important. Will the Leader of the House convey that message to No. 10? Will she also tell us whether she can guarantee that the Offensive Weapons Bill, which has been through the Lords and is due to come back to this place, will come back before the Easter recess?

[Andrea Leadsom]

I commend the hon. Lady for her efforts. There is huge concern across the House about the recent spate of knife crimes and the loss of so many young lives. What a terrible waste. I will certainly draw the Prime Minister’s attention to the letter that the hon. Lady has written asking for a meeting with young people. She will be aware that the Prime Minister will be holding a summit in Downing Street with community leaders, including the police, in the coming days to look at what more can be done. She will also be aware that we have published a serious violence strategy and established the serious violence taskforce. With regard to the Offensive Weapons Bill, we will be bringing it back to the Commons as soon as possible. I cannot absolutely commit to that happening prior to the Easter recess, simply because we do not know what the course of events will be following next week’s votes, but I will certainly take her request back to the business managers with real urgency, and we will see what can be done.

Business of the House

Sarah Jones Excerpts

Thursday 15th November 2018 Commons Chamber

[Andrea Leadsom]

I am sorry to hear about that and hope that my hon. Friend raising it in the Chamber will cause the landlord to think again. He is right to raise the problem of landlords unreasonably raising rents and the Government are looking at what more can be done to prevent that from happening.

[Sarah Jones (Croydon Central) (Lab)]

Last Friday, we marked the two-year anniversary of the worst rail disaster for decades: the Croydon tram crash, which took the lives of seven people and injured many more. The Rail Accident Investigation Branch report was published last year, and its first recommendation was to set up a UK tram safety board to ensure that nothing like this could happen again. The Government have withheld funding for the board, so it has not yet been set up, and that withholding of funds leaves all those across the country who travel on trams potentially less safe than they should be. Last year, when the investigation report was published, I asked for a debate and for a Minister to come to this place, but no Minister has been to the House to talk about this at all. May I ask that a Minister comes to this place to make a statement about the Croydon tram crash and how we can ensure that nothing like it happens again?

[Andrea Leadsom]

We all recall that appalling day and that terrible crash. It was horrendous, and the hon. Lady is absolutely right to raise the matter here. We will have Transport questions next Thursday 22 November, and I encourage her to ask her question then.

Business of the House

Sarah Jones Excerpts

Thursday 7th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[Andrea Leadsom]

Again, I wish all the competitors the best of luck. It is great to see the hon. Gentleman sticking up for his local applicant, and I do wish him every success with it. I am sure that there will be plenty of opportunities for him to raise the issue directly with the Prime Minister, should he be successful.

[Sarah Jones (Croydon Central) (Lab)]

On 9 November last year, seven people lost their lives and many more were injured in the Croydon tram crash, which was the largest crash of its kind in 50 years. Today, the Rail Accident Investigation Branch is publishing its findings on the causes of the accident. I have had early sight of them, and it is clear that they will apply across all the tram networks of the UK. For the sake of those who died, many of whom were from New Addington, just on their way to work and never to return again, will the Secretary of State for Transport come to the Chamber to make a statement about how he will ensure that the recommendations of the investigation will be implemented as swiftly as possible so that this never happens again?

[Andrea Leadsom]

Certainly all Members, and I think the whole country, were horrified by what happened: it was an absolute tragedy. We all send our great condolences to the families and friends of all those who died. It is absolutely right, as the hon. Lady says, that we learn the lessons from the report. I will certainly be very happy to discuss what kind of feedback we can get from the Department as soon as possible.