Historical Forced Adoption

Debate between Tom Gordon and Keir Starmer

Thursday 2nd July 2026 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my hon. Friend for the way in which she draws attention to the suffering. We absolutely have to make sure that compassion is there in everything the state does. We can change rules and processes, but it is a culture; it is about recognising that human dignity matters whoever you are and wherever you are. If that was inserted into everything that the Government and the state did, what a difference it would make! Human dignity is one of the most important things to me and my politics, and that is what has been lacking here. We will do everything we can to turn that around.

[Tom Gordon (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (LD)]

I thank the Prime Minister for this long overdue apology and his statement. Nothing can undo the horrific harm and trauma that have been caused. He outlined the national online resource and national virtual peer-led support groups. Can I press him to say what steps will be taken to support those who might struggle to access digital services, and who might be digitally excluded? Will he consider setting up a national hotline, so that everyone can get justice, whether they can use technology or not?

[The Prime Minister]

We are setting up a national advice line. It is important that it is national, available and comes in different forms. Digital will work for most people, but not necessarily everyone. We need to make sure that everybody affected and everybody who has not come forward yet finds a way to get that support in the appropriate way. We will take those steps.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Tom Gordon and Keir Starmer

Wednesday 10th June 2026 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I am pleased that my hon. Friend’s local maternity services are seeing improvements. We now have a record number of midwives working in the NHS, and we are investing over £150 million to address critical safety risks. There is much more that we need to do so that every mother is listened to and receives outstanding care. The recommendations of the Amos inquiry will be published shortly, and we will act to deliver lasting change.

[Tom Gordon (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (LD)]

Q11. Earlier this year, I found myself in hospital as a result of a flare-up from living with ulcerative colitis. I was bowled over by the support of local constituents and people who live with inflammatory bowel disease across the country when they got in touch. For people with IBD, however, care often falls far short of the mark. It can take ages to get a diagnosis—for me, it took the best part of a decade—and then when someone manages to get one, care can become a postcode lottery. Living with a fluctuating and non-visible condition is already hard enough before having to navigate those systems. IBD UK Alliance set out what good care looks like with the IBD standards. Will the Prime Minister meet me and clinicians to discuss IBD standards, and will he consider appointing a national clinical lead to drive improvement when it comes to IBD care?

[The Prime Minister]

I thank the hon. Member for sharing his personal experience and, notwithstanding that, congratulate him on his achievements at the London marathon. I agree with him that patients should receive high-quality, consistent care, wherever they live. Through national improvement programmes such as Getting It Right First Time, we are making sure that best practice is shared to drive up standards, and I am happy for Ministers to give him the details.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Tom Gordon and Keir Starmer

Wednesday 15th October 2025 Commons Chamber

[Tom Gordon (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (LD)]

Q7. Much like the hon. Member for Bishop Auckland (Sam Rushworth), my constituents are served by the Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys mental health trust. They face travelling to York or Middlesbrough for local in-patient beds, with some people being sent as far afield as Glasgow or Southampton. This is completely unacceptable, and we need a provision of local mental health in-patient beds. I welcome the openness to an inquiry into TEWV, but my concern is that while that is going on, we need real action so that the continued failings do not see the loss of any other lives. What steps will the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State take now to reassure our constituents and to rebuild trust in TEWV?

[The Prime Minister]

The hon. Gentleman will have heard my response to my hon. Friend the Member for Bishop Auckland (Sam Rushworth) a moment ago; I say again that what happened to his constituents is unacceptable, and we will give the answer as soon as we can. In the meantime, the hon. Member asks what is happening. We are getting on with recruiting 6,700 additional NHS mental health staff, we are building 85 new dedicated mental health emergency departments, and we have boosted NHS spending on mental health by almost £700 million.

G7 and NATO Summits

Debate between Tom Gordon and Keir Starmer

Thursday 26th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right that the Baltic states are incredibly nervous at the moment. That has been the case for the past three years or so. We engage with them regularly, and I engage with their leaders regularly. They have been brought into the coalition of the willing, and on the occasions when they cannot attend, I have a special session with them, because their concerns are of such importance to us.

[Tom Gordon (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (LD)]

I welcome the increase to defence spending and the revised targets. Earlier this year, at the spring statement, we saw cuts to official development assistance—the overseas aid budget—to fund defence increases. The ODA budget is integral to our international security abroad, so will the Prime Minister rule out any further cuts to this budget for defence spending increases?

[The Prime Minister]

The hon. Member is right to emphasise the importance of overseas aid, and that was a difficult decision. I want to put it back up to 0.7%, rather than taking it down. In the meantime, I am exploring other ways that we can find funding for overseas aid, and working with other countries to that end, because I do not think that we can just wait until we are in a position to increase the funding again.