2022 July

I was delighted to attend the Queen’s Baton Relay in Walsall on Saturday 23 July. The Baton has travelled across the Commonwealth, visiting Europe, Africa, Asia, Oceania, the Caribbean and the Americas. The final part of its journey is a 25-day tour across England, where the relay will officially end at the Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony on 28 July.

At the Queen’s Baton Relay event, I had the opportunity to visit several stalls.

I supported #BePartofResearch, which is run by the National Institute of Health and Care Research. It is an online service that helps educated the public on what research is, and how they can take part. We also spoke about Manor Hospital.

This week the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill returned to Parliament for the third reading. The Bill seeks to undo parts of the Protocol, which was agreed in October 2019 and governs trade agreements between the UK and EU in Northern Ireland.

On Tuesday 19 July, I was a member of the committee scrutinising the Remote Observation and Recording (Courts and Tribunals) Regulations 2022. This is a statutory instrument that seeks to govern who can attend remote proceedings, and how this is regulated.

In October 2019 the Government agreed the terms of the Northern Ireland Protocol, to govern trade arrangements between the UK and EU in Northern Ireland, as part of its deal to leave the EU. The Northern Ireland Protocol Bill now seeks to undo parts of the Protocol. The Bill had the first day of its Committee Stage in the House on Wednesday 13 July 2022.