I was delighted that Pat Halpin, who works hard for his community, was awarded with a Merit Award on Sunday 4 March 2018.

I raised with the Leader of the House, the important work that police support staff do after the Member for Parliament for Walsall North, who voted to cut police budgets — the west midlands has had to face a cut of £145 million since 2010 — said that £10 million was being spent on “back-office staff”. I asked the Leader of the House to ensure that an appropriate apology will be made and perhaps schedule a debate on what police support staff actually do.

On Wednesday 28 February 2018, I responded to the Leader of the House’s statement on the Independent Complaints and Grievance Policy. You can read my speech below:

I attended the Service of Thanksgiving for the life of Mary Turner at St Paul’s Cathedral on 27 February.

I raised Brexit with the Leader of the House at Business Questions. It is almost a year since article 50 was triggered and we still don’t know the Government’s position. A letter was sent to the Prime Minister signed by 63 Conservative MPs which reads like a ransom note and makes no mention of what is in the best interests of the citizens of this country or the interests of Northern Ireland.