Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Thelma Walker and John Bercow

Monday 9th September 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I am sure that if I did not call a retired headteacher, I would be subject to the most condign punishment imaginable. I call Thelma Walker.

[Thelma Walker (Colne Valley) (Lab)]

Thank you, Mr Speaker—10 out of 10.

I recently spoke on BBC Radio Leeds about the number of young people who suffer trauma and bereavement just before sitting exams and who often do not get the appropriate support and bereavement counselling. Will the Secretary of State meet me to discuss adequate counselling provision for those going through such a difficult time?

Relationship Education in Schools

Debate between Thelma Walker and John Bercow

Tuesday 16th July 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Flockton Church of England Voluntary Controlled First School and Overthorpe C of E Academy were alike privileged to benefit from the headteachership of the hon. Member for Colne Valley (Thelma Walker), from whom I think it apposite that we should now hear.

[Thelma Walker (Colne Valley) (Lab)]

Thank you, Mr Speaker. I am so impressed.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Thelma Walker and John Bercow

Monday 11th March 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I feel I must respect the position of a former headteacher, no less—I call Thelma Walker.

[Thelma Walker (Colne Valley) (Lab)]

Thank you, Mr Speaker. When a child is excluded, where the responsibility for their education lies can be ambiguous, meaning that too many pupils fall through the net. What steps is the Secretary of State taking to clarify who has responsibility for excluded or off-rolled children to stop that from happening in future?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Thelma Walker and John Bercow

Monday 28th January 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

The fact that the hon. Member for Colne Valley (Thelma Walker) served with distinction as a headteacher and the fact that she has been waiting so patiently are, in my judgment, not unrelated.

[Thelma Walker (Colne Valley) (Lab)]

Thank you, Mr Speaker. Can the Secretary of State tell me whether any assessment has been made of the number of homeless people who have a history of special educational needs that may not have been appropriately supported in the past?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Thelma Walker and John Bercow

Monday 14th January 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

As befits a former teacher of more than 30 years’ standing, the hon. Member for Colne Valley (Thelma Walker) has been most patiently and courteously waiting for her opportunity.

[Thelma Walker (Colne Valley) (Lab)]

18. What recent assessment he has made of the level of morale in the armed forces.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Thelma Walker and John Bercow

Monday 14th May 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Well, we cannot mention Shakespeare in every question, but I am sure that the Minister will take his opportunity ere long.

[Thelma Walker (Colne Valley) (Lab)]

6. What steps he is taking to improve basic skills.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Thelma Walker and John Bercow

Tuesday 8th May 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Patience rewarded. I call Thelma Walker.

[Thelma Walker (Colne Valley) (Lab)]

Does the Minister agree that eating a nutritionally balanced meal can reduce snacking between meals and therefore help to reduce childhood obesity? If so, will he speak to his colleagues in the Department for Education and ask them to ensure that the 6,400 children in Kirklees who are set to lose out on a well balance nutritious free school meal do not?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Thelma Walker and John Bercow

Tuesday 10th October 2017 Commons Chamber

[Thelma Walker]

Huddersfield Royal Infirmary, which is in my constituency, is currently facing plans for a downgrading that would result in the loss of 500 hard-working professionals. Is it too much to ask for the Minister, or the Secretary of State, to visit the hospital, as I have requested, before those hard-working trained professionals are lost, and can he assure me—and my constituents—that those cuts, and the pressures on nearby hospitals, will not jeopardise the safety of patients?

[Mr Speaker]

Order. There is a growing tendency for colleagues to ask two questions rather than one, which is not fair on other colleagues who are trying to get in. Forgive me, but the questions are too long, and frequently the answers are as well.

Adult Social Care Funding

Debate between Thelma Walker and John Bercow

Thursday 6th July 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

The Minister has just elevated the hon. Member for Christchurch (Mr Chope) to the Privy Council, of which he is not currently a member. Whether that was inadvertent on the part of the Minister or a gentle hint to the powers that be remains to be seen. It would be only a very modest elevation for somebody of the hon. Gentleman’s experience.

[Thelma Walker (Colne Valley) (Lab)]

Does the Minister agree that it is time we considered bringing the social care sector back into public ownership to remove the profit-making aspect of looking after the most vulnerable in our society?