Speeches by Owen.

“I start by saying a massive thank you to the new ministerial team and the new Secretary of State, who I welcome to his role, for keeping in clauses 14 to 18 of the Bill, as well as for their warm words at the Dispatch Box. It is a pleasure to follow the right hon. Member for East Hampshire (Damian Hinds), but we heard …”

“Trauma during childbirth can have lifelong and debilitating impacts. Failing maternity services are felt by all, but especially by families from low-income and ethnic minority backgrounds. In my constituency, where too many already experience health inequalities, Luton and Dunstable hospital’s maternity unit has recent…”

“19. What steps he is taking to help improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza.”

“In famine conditions, new mothers often eat last and eat the least. This time next year, around 55,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women in Gaza could be at risk of death by starvation that is man-made. Following Belgium’s announcement today of new sanctions and a review of contracts with Israeli companies, can the Mini…”

“I join colleagues from across the House in paying tribute to Sir David Amess. Luton is my home and I love it. I want to put on record the work that people in my constituency do to make it such a thriving community. Whether it is people motivated through their faith, such as the amazing Luton Council of Faiths—the churc…”

“My constituents Marie Brewis and Denise Coates are bravely using their own experience of breast cancer treatment to campaign for a dedicated cancer support centre in Luton. Does the Minister agree that Luton could benefit from the wraparound care of a cancer support centre locally, and will she meet me to discuss this?”

“On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. Over the weekend a member of staff in the Commons, Muhbeen Hussain MBE, was publicly defamed online by several Conservative MPs, including Members of the shadow Front Bench. Following threats of legal action, the defamatory posts were deleted by some, but the damage was alread…”

“I thank the Secretary of State not just for his statement today, but for his continued commitment to tackling the climate and nature crisis facing us. He said that this is something we must all tackle together, and there are huge parts of our communities, the faith communities, that want to do exactly that. While we we…”

“T7. Many people, from the Women and Equalities Committee to the Miscarriage Association and Myleene Klass, have fought for miscarriage bereavement leave. Similarly, Can’t Buy My Silence and my right hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield Heeley (Louise Haigh) called for a ban on non-disclosure agreements. Thanks to the D…”

“Is that for both trans women and trans men?”

“You talked in an earlier answer about how the Supreme Court ruling helps us on how we understand the law, but I am intrigued as to how you understand the law and how that works alongside human rights. Baroness Falkner came to the Women and Equalities Committee not so long ago, and during that exchange of questions and …”

“Okay. That would be a change of approach, but thank you. On this, as the Chair mentioned, there have been staffing and resource issues at the EHRC. That is not something new; they will not come as a surprise to you when you get in—if you get in—because they are something that the outgoing chair has raised with me direc…”

“Yes. Before I do that, I want to have another go at the question from my colleague, Alex, specifically around enforcement. One area of our lives that we all use is completely void of any kind of enforcement at all at the moment: social media and the internet, where we see much of the spread of racism, hatred and bullyi…”

“That was my question: how do you plan to do it? I understand that you say that you want to go out and engage but, at the moment, some organisations in the communities that I have just spoken about will not engage with the EHRC in its current position, because trust has broken down to that extent. What are you proactive…”

“Thank you very much, Chair. Thank you for being here; I cannot imagine that this kind of job interview happens very often, so you have my sympathies, particularly in this heat. It is to follow the questions from my colleagues Baroness Lawrence and Afzal Khan. Last summer we saw horrific riots, racism and Islamophobia l…”

“It is great to see so many hon. Members, with almost every party represented but one: there are four empty seats where the Reform UK MPs sit. They like to bang on about family values, but when it comes to actually standing up for dads and for parents, they are nowhere to be seen. I thank the Minister for acting on the …”

“We all agree that the welfare system needs reform but many of us in this place believe that changes to disability support should not take place without listening to disabled people’s voices and experiences. Over the last few days, I have been hopeful that the Government have shown strength in listening and moving on wh…”

“Thank you, Jabeer. That is very much what I would say happened in Luton, where I represent. We have had our problems with the far right, and we have a diverse community, but it is that speed and that trust, when the local authority, the police and the community leaders work together to ensure that that does not happen.…”

“Sarah Owen, the MP for Luton North, but I am guesting here in my capacity as Chair of the Women and Equalities Committee. Thank you, Chair, for allowing me to guest.”

“Thank you. My last question is to you, Imam. My Committee—the Women and Equalities Committee—is looking forward to coming to Southport to visit and to see some of the work there. You talked about the work with the Rabbi. Unfortunately, none of us will be here forever. How do we ensure that that relationship you had is …”