Speeches by Ribeiro-Addy.

“I am always very pleased to speak in this House during Black History Month. I say that not out of ceremony, but out of conviction. I believe that it matters for black Britons watching today to see this Parliament take time to reflect on our history, our struggle and our contributions. It matters that our story is not c…”

“Will the hon. Member give way?”

“Will the hon. Member give way?”

“I want to start by saying clearly and plainly that people who are fleeing war, famine, persecution and life-threatening situations are fully deserving of our compassion and support. I fear sometimes in these debates it sounds as if we have lost our humanity, empathy and compassion. Despite what is commonly stated on so…”

“There are other countries in Europe that have physical ID cards, and some have digital ones, and they still have exactly the same issue, so what is so different and special about ours?”

“When do you plan to publish your first strategic priorities document and your first annual report?”

“But is it on the police to specifically track and prosecute offences, or will it be a different department?”

“How do you see the offence of criminalising via social media posts being policed? Is it going to be on the social media companies to report the posts, or will the police be expected to track the posts and investigate?”

“I want to ask some questions about the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill and how it might affect your day-to-day work. Will what you are able to do day to day and its effectiveness change once the Bill comes into force?”

“Yes, or in terms of people being returned and potentially just coming back again, as my colleagues have said.”

“Since the treaty came into place, 26 asylum seekers have been sent back to France. One left France soon after arriving, and we do not know where that individual is. Are you particularly concerned about such instances? What provisions have been made to ensure that something like that is not a common occurrence?”

“The treaty is under legal challenge in France. Do you think that it should be suspended while legal proceedings are ongoing? Does that affect your work in any way?”

“If you could, that will be very helpful. To go back to the parliamentary scrutiny, you have talked about being accountable to Parliament, and I think that that is important, but the treaty was not subject to parliamentary scrutiny at all. Do you think it was the right decision to bypass Parliament to secure that agreem…”

“At the moment, it sounds as if there are no criteria. One of the major issues has been the lack of parliamentary scrutiny, so we could not ask these questions before the arrangement was put into place. It sounds as if the criteria for the people who are sent back are not clear. It is not clear that there is a safe and …”

“How effective a deterrent do you expect the deal to be overall? What level and scale of returns would have to happen for you to say that it had made a significant enough impact?”

“What criteria would they have to meet? Do you not envisage any problems with them having to go to Paris, given their situation? Presumably, at this stage, they are in Calais.”

“Can you explain how it opens up a safe and legal route?”

“Thank you for coming. I would like to ask more questions about the one in, one out treaty with France, which you started to explain. Could you explain what your role was in that deal and what lessons you are learning from one in, one out?”

“As the chair of the all-party parliamentary group on black maternal health, I extend my gratitude to my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham Erdington (Paulette Hamilton) and all the members on the Health and Social Care Committee for this vital report. Was my hon. Friend disappointed, as I was, not to see any specifi…”

“On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. On 25 September, I sent a letter to the Foreign Secretary that was signed by more than 80 Members of the House. It expressed our pressing concern for the safety of British citizens participating in the global sumud flotilla, a non-violent humanitarian mission trying to deliver…”