Makerfield / data
Josh Simons · Labour Party · sitting since 04 Jul 2024 · every division, speech and committee appearance.
Since election
660days
from 04 Jul 2024
Divisions
337
of 504 possible
Attendance
67%
167 absent / paired
Whip alignment
100%
vs party majority
Speeches
134
17 debates
Written Qs
15
15 answered
Committees
0
memberships
Expenses
£259k paid
FY 2024–2025 · 148 claims
Interests
12
4 categories
A · Overview
Issue volume
Top issues by total divisions voted — engagement only, not direction.
| Issue | Volume | Votes |
|---|---|---|
| Economy | 72 | |
| Taxation | 64 | |
| Employment | 46 | |
| Crime & Policing | 43 | |
| Welfare and Benefits | 25 | |
| Constitution and Democracy | 23 | |
| Energy | 20 | |
| Housing | 18 |
Speech topics
Words spoken, by topic. Source: Hansard.
| Topic | Debates | Words |
|---|---|---|
| Utilities | 1 | — |
| Economy Jobs | 10 | 9,217 |
| Immigration | 6 | 7,865 |
| Technology | 8 | 6,928 |
| Other | 1 | 2,053 |
| Mp Performance | 1 | 2,053 |
| Defence | 1 | 1,146 |
| Local Government | 4 | 787 |
B · Notable divisions
Free votes, rebellions and high-salience whipped votes — the moments that distinguish this MP from the party machine. The full division-by-division record will follow once the per-MP archive is wired.
No notable votes recorded for this MP yet.
C · Speeches
| Date | Contribution | Words |
|---|---|---|
| 04 Feb 2026 | Project Gigabit: Rural AreasI am answering today on behalf of my right hon. Friend the Minister for Digital Government, who is away on other duties. As of September 2025, more than 1.3 million premises in rur… TechnologyUtilitiesLocal Government | 88 |
| 04 Feb 2026 | Project Gigabit: Rural AreasMy hon. Friend is absolutely right to press this issue. Project Gigabit delivers gigabit-capable broadband to parts of the UK that are unlikely to be reached by the commercial mark… TechnologyUtilitiesLocal Government | 114 |
| 04 Feb 2026 | Project Gigabit: Rural AreasAs I said to my hon. Friend the Member for Na h-Eileanan an Iar (Torcuil Crichton), we are currently looking at how we can further enable alternatives to fibre access, such as sate… TechnologyUtilitiesLocal Government | 77 |
| 22 Jan 2026 | Digital Identity SchemeWe are building a digital ID system because it is the infrastructure that we need for the foundation of the British state and better public services in years to come. I am proud th… TechnologyImmigrationEconomy Jobs | 102 |
| 22 Jan 2026 | Digital Identity SchemeAbsolutely. By the end of this Parliament, every UK citizen who wants a digital ID will be able to get one free of charge. To deliver that, we will launch a huge digital inclusion … TechnologyImmigrationEconomy Jobs | 94 |
| 22 Jan 2026 | Digital Identity SchemeA new digital identity system is a vital part of the infrastructure that the UK needs to transform public services and accelerate digital government. As my right hon. Friend the Ch… TechnologyImmigrationEconomy Jobs | 93 |
| 22 Jan 2026 | Digital Identity SchemeIt has not been. Digitising right-to-work checks is a vital part of how we will toughen up our illegal labour market enforcement regime. It will mean that this Government are crack… TechnologyImmigrationEconomy Jobs | 55 |
| 22 Jan 2026 | Digital Identity SchemeMy hon. Friend has deep experience of these challenges, and she is absolutely right: the reason why digital ID is so vital to the future of our public services and government is al… TechnologyImmigrationEconomy Jobs | 99 |
| 22 Jan 2026 | Topical QuestionsAs with so many things, the previous Government gave up, accepted fraud as inevitable, and stopped tackling it properly. By contrast, this Government are delivering the most signif… Economy JobsTechnologyLocal Government | 56 |
| 15 Jan 2026 | Digital IDWe absolutely will outline those benefits. I would just underscore that countries all over the world have introduced a digital ID scheme to better join up public services. In India… TechnologyImmigrationEconomy Jobs | 56 |
| 15 Jan 2026 | Digital IDI thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. Trust is vital—digital tools work only when they are trusted. In the consultation that we will publish in the coming weeks, Members wil… TechnologyImmigrationEconomy Jobs | 47 |
| 15 Jan 2026 | Digital IDThere was quite a lot in the hon. Gentleman’s question, but I will do my level best to answer it. Digital right-to-work checks will make it easier for those who have a digital ID t… TechnologyImmigrationEconomy Jobs | 110 |
| 15 Jan 2026 | Digital IDTalking and listening to people is what I believe in. That is why we will be launching a major public consultation and will be out across the country talking to people about their … TechnologyImmigrationEconomy Jobs | 63 |
| 15 Jan 2026 | Digital IDI am glad the hon. Member is smiling about the potential new colleague she may obtain in the coming days. We on the Labour Benches have a proud history of building public goods tha… TechnologyImmigrationEconomy Jobs | 80 |
| 15 Jan 2026 | Digital IDI think the hon. Gentleman was lost for a moment there as he was contemplating the implosion of his shadow Cabinet once again, which I can wholly understand. Details of how the sch… TechnologyImmigrationEconomy Jobs | 68 |
D · Written questions
Top departments
| Department | Questions | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Social Care | 3 | 20.0% |
| Department for Business and Trade | 3 | 20.0% |
| Department for Work and Pensions | 2 | 13.3% |
| Department for Energy Security and Net Zero | 2 | 13.3% |
| Ministry of Justice | 1 | 6.7% |
| Treasury | 1 | 6.7% |
| Department for Education | 1 | 6.7% |
| Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs | 1 | 6.7% |
Most recent
| Date | Department | Question | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 Dec 2024 | Department for Work and Pensions | To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress she has made on implementing the proposals in the Get Britain Working white paper. | Answered |
| 05 Dec 2024 | Department for Business and Trade | To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to reduce firework misuse in Makerfield constituency. | Answered |
| 18 Nov 2024 | Department of Health and Social Care | To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of support for people who experience migraines; and whether he plans to provide additional support. | Answered |
| 13 Nov 2024 | Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs | To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to ban the (a) sale and (b) manufacture of wet wipes that contain plastic. | Answered |
| 08 Nov 2024 | Department for Education | To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help (a) ensure that academic (i) funding and (ii) other resources are not used to support Chinese state surveillance and (b) protect universities from nati… | Answered |
| 04 Nov 2024 | Department for Business and Trade | To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how much has been spent on the statutory element of Shared Parental Leave since its inception (a) in total and (b) by (i) geographical area and (ii) industry. | Answered |
| 16 Oct 2024 | Department for Transport | To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of the contractual regime for Sunday working for train conductors in the North West; and what steps she plans to take to ensure that Sun… | Answered |
| 10 Oct 2024 | Treasury | To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate she has made of the Exchequer loss from UK citizens working abroad paying Class 2 NICs to build up entitlement to a state pension; and if she will make an assessment of the potential mer… | Answered |
| 12 Sept 2024 | Department of Health and Social Care | To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the report by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Hormone Pregnancy Tests, published in March 202… | Answered |
| 11 Sept 2024 | Department for Business and Trade | To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what (a) his planned timescale is and (b) the terms of reference are for the review of parental leave; and who will conduct the review. | Answered |
| 10 Sept 2024 | Department for Work and Pensions | To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department plans to compensate women wrongly underpaid their state pension. | Answered |
| 10 Sept 2024 | Department for Energy Security and Net Zero | To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he plans to return money the Government (a) has received and (b) will receive from the Mineworkers' Pension Scheme. | Answered |
| 09 Sept 2024 | Department for Energy Security and Net Zero | To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has had discussions with Ofgem on British Gas's billing system migration; and whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of that migration on customer… | Answered |
| 09 Sept 2024 | Department of Health and Social Care | To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of people being removed from dentist registries due to (a) missing appointments and (b) failing to make timely appointments. | Answered |
| 30 Aug 2024 | Ministry of Justice | To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what her planned timetable is for the expansion of HMP Hindley. | Answered |
E · Committees
No committee memberships recorded for this MP.
F · Expenses
Every business-cost claim reimbursed by IPSA in the current financial year, grouped by category. “Aggregated” rows are IPSA’s own year-end totals for cost types like payroll and rent that aren’t itemised claim-by-claim.
Category breakdown
| Category | Claims | Paid (£) | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Office Costs | 124 | 28,945 | 11.2% |
| Accommodation | 9 | 27,955 | 10.8% |
| MP Travel | 0 | 11,244 | 4.3% |
| Staff Travel | 0 | 4,733 | 1.8% |
| Staffing | 0 | 185,345 | 71.5% |
| Dependant Travel | 0 | 1,149 | 0.4% |
Top itemised cost types
| Cost type | Category | Claims | Paid (£) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent | Accommodation | 7 | 27,325 |
| Rent | Office Costs | 8 | 11,030 |
| Stationery & printing | Office Costs | 53 | 7,351 |
| Equipment - purchase | Office Costs | 17 | 4,488 |
| Software & applications | Office Costs | 13 | 2,747 |
| Landline phone & internet - rental & usage | Office Costs | 12 | 1,559 |
| Advertising and contact cards | Office Costs | 12 | 1,007 |
| Hotel - London | Accommodation | 2 | 630 |
| Maintenance, Redecorations & Repairs | Office Costs | 1 | 429 |
| TV licence | Office Costs | 1 | 170 |
| Hospitality | Office Costs | 5 | 93 |
| Venue hire, meetings & surgeries | Office Costs | 2 | 73 |
Most recent
| Date | Category | Description | Paid (£) | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 Apr 2025 | Office Costs Landline phone & internet - rental & usage | Landline & internet package | 165 | Paid |
| 01 Apr 2025 | Office Costs Rent | Rent | 1,244 | Paid |
| 31 Mar 2025 | Office Costs Rent | 2024-25 [***] rent pro-rata | -1,244 | Paid |
| 28 Mar 2025 | Office Costs Venue hire, meetings & surgeries | [200011782-278] | 50 | Paid |
| 28 Mar 2025 | Office Costs Software & applications | CANVA [***] [200011725-9693] | 27 | Paid |
| 28 Mar 2025 | Office Costs Hospitality | Provisions for a constituency coffee morning event the MP hosted [200011781-353] | 9 | Paid |
| 25 Mar 2025 | Office Costs Landline phone & internet - rental & usage | Internet | 46 | Paid |
| 24 Mar 2025 | Office Costs Landline phone & internet - rental & usage | Landline & internet package | 155 | Paid |
| 24 Mar 2025 | Office Costs Landline phone & internet - rental & usage | Landline & internet package | 148 | Paid |
| 24 Mar 2025 | Office Costs Landline phone & internet - rental & usage | Landline | 133 | Paid |
| 24 Mar 2025 | Office Costs Equipment - purchase | Computer, laptop, PC, tablet & accessories | 42 | Paid |
| 24 Mar 2025 | Office Costs Equipment - purchase | Computer, laptop, PC, tablet & accessories | 32 | Paid |
| 24 Mar 2025 | Office Costs Equipment - purchase | Computer, laptop, PC, tablet & accessories | 14 | Paid |
| 20 Mar 2025 | Office Costs Stationery & printing | Banner March 2025 | 186 | Paid |
| 04 Mar 2025 | Office Costs Rent | Rent | 1,244 | Paid |
| 28 Feb 2025 | Office Costs Stationery & printing | Banner March 2025 | 186 | Paid |
| 25 Feb 2025 | Office Costs Landline phone & internet - rental & usage | Internet | 46 | Paid |
| 21 Feb 2025 | Accommodation Rent | Reimbursement for IPSA funded London accomodation | 3,554 | Paid |
| 20 Feb 2025 | Office Costs Stationery & printing | Banner March 2025 | 229 | Paid |
| 20 Feb 2025 | Office Costs Stationery & printing | Banner March 2025 | 229 | Paid |
G · Register of interests
Every financial interest declared by the MP, grouped under the Register’s official categories. Retracted entries are hidden but counted above.
2. (b) Any other support not included in Category 2(a)5 entries
24 Mar 2026
Name of donor: Sir Trevor Edward Chinn
Address of donor: private
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: £1,250 to support my work as an MP
Date received: 4 March 2026
Date accepted: 4 March 2026
Donor status: individual
(Registered 16 March 2026)
24 Feb 2026
Name of donor: Sir Trevor Edwin Chinn
Address of donor: private
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: £1,250
Date received: 21 October 2025
Date accepted: 21 October 2025
Donor status: individual
(Registered 2 February 2026)
24 Feb 2026
Name of donor: Sir Trevor Edwin Chinn
Address of donor: private
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: £1,250
Date received: 4 December 2025
Date accepted: 4 December 2025
Donor status: individual
(Registered 2 February 2026)
04 Nov 2025
Name of donor: Francesca Perrin
Address of donor: private
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: £30,000 to support my work as an MP
Date received: 6 October 2025
Date accepted: 6 October 2025
Donor status: individual
(Registered 22 October 2025)
01 Jul 2025
Name of donor: Michael Craven
Address of donor: private
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: £5,000 to support my work as a Member of Parliament
Date received: 4 June 2025
Date accepted: 4 June 2025
Donor status: individual
(Registered 27 June 2025)
3. Gifts, benefits and hospitality from UK sources5 entries
17 Sept 2025
Name of donor: Wigan Warriors
Address of donor: Loire Drive, Wigan, WN5 0UH
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: Two tickets and hospitality at a celebration match for me and a guest, value £610
Date received: 11 July 2025
Date accepted: 11 July 2025
Donor status: company, registration 06842878
(Registered 7 September 2025)
03 Jun 2025
Name of donor: Wigan Warriors
Address of donor: Loire Drive, Wigan WN5 0UH
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: This was for two tickets only for me and a guest, value £170
Date received: 13 February 2025
Date accepted: 13 February 2025
Donor status: company, registration 06842878
(Registered 23 May 2025)
03 Jun 2025
Name of donor: Wigan Warriors
Address of donor: Loire Drive, Wigan WN50UH
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: two game tickets and hospitality for me and a guest, value £610
Date received: 18 April 2025
Date accepted: 18 April 2025
Donor status: company, registration 06842878
(Registered 23 May 2025)
18 Nov 2025
Name of donor: Wigan Warriors
Address of donor: Loire Drive, Wigan WN5 0UH
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: I originally purchased two regular tickets (£40 each) for myself and a guest. The club upgraded these tickets, giving access to the VIP box (notional value for two tickets £700 less £80), value £620
Date received: 11 October 2025
Date accepted: 11 October 2025
Donor status: company, registration 06842878
(Registered 7 November 2025)
03 Jun 2025
Name of donor: Wigan Warriors
Address of donor: Loire Drive, Wigan WN5 0UH
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: two tickets and hospitality for me and a guest, value £610
Date received: 16 May 2025
Date accepted: 16 May 2025
Donor status: company, registration 06842878
(Registered 23 May 2025)
7. (i) Shareholdings: over 15% of issued share capital1 entry
16 Aug 2024
Name of company or organisation: Labour Together Limited
Interest held: until 11 December 2024
(Registered 17 July 2024; updated 17 October 2025)
8. Miscellaneous1 entry
29 Apr 2025
I have received pro bono support from the law firm Levy Firestone, valued at £22,537.37 to date, who are providing legal counsel for me as a fact witness in a class action lawsuit brought against my former employer Meta, which predates my time as an MP
Date interest arose: 1 April 2025
(Registered 27 April 2025)
H · Ward results
Most recent winning councillor in each ward — 9 wards, 9 councillor seats.
| Ward | Councillor | Party | Votes | Election |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abram | Nazia Tabussam Rehman | Labour Party | 1,353 | 02 May 2024 |
| Ashton In Makerfield South | Andrew John Bullen | Labour Party | 1,259 | 02 May 2024 |
| Bryn With Ashton In Makerfield North | Scarlett Myler | Independent Berwick Hills Resident | 1,512 | 02 May 2024 |
| Golborne Lowton West | Susan Gambles | Labour Party | 1,572 | 02 May 2024 |
| Hindley Green | James Palmer | Labour Party | 1,260 | 02 May 2024 |
| Leigh West | Sue Greensmith | Labour Party | 1,592 | 02 May 2024 |
| Orrell | Anne Collins | Labour Party | 1,601 | 02 May 2024 |
| Winstanley | Clive William Morgan | Labour Party | 1,412 | 02 May 2024 |
| Worsley Mesnes | Paul David James Molyneux | Labour Party | 1,217 | 02 May 2024 |
I · Demographics
| Indicator | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Population (2021 Census) | 114,929 | Electorate 76,641 (2024) |
| Median age | 42 | years |
| Degree-educated | 24.6% | level 4 or above |
| Ethnicity (White) | 96.3% | 2021 Census ethnic group |
| Owner-occupied | 70.7% | households |
| Private-rented | 14.5% | households |
| Social-rented | 14.7% | households |
| Employment rate | 57.2% | 16-64 in work |
J · Public spending
HMT publishes headline spending identifiable by region in PESA. Constituency-level capital allocations (Levelling-Up Fund, Towns Fund, UKSPF, transport capital, BEIS R&D) are published as separate departmental datasets. We are evaluating the cleanest reconciliation for a per-constituency view.