Hate Crime

Tracy Brabin Excerpts

Monday 12th March 2018 Commons Chamber

[Victoria Atkins]

It is about how resources are spent, which is particularly pertinent to the question of West Yorkshire. I cannot recall the figure off the top of my head, but I seem to recall that West Yorkshire has several million pounds of reserves in savings. Of course, how that money is spent is a matter for the elected police and crime commissioner. I very much hope he will take up the Home Office’s funding settlement suggestion of increasing council tax to ensure more money to deal with the resourcing issue.

[Tracy Brabin (Batley and Spen) (Lab/Co-op)]

I have been approached by many in my constituency who are deeply concerned about these letters. As with last year’s Muslim ban, they feel unfairly targeted and under siege. Although this is an obvious opportunity to target internet companies, social media websites and so on, this was snail mail. May I press the Minister to pick up on the question asked by my hon. Friend the Member for Feltham and Heston (Seema Malhotra)? Will she update us on who sent these letters and what is going on to find out how to stop them? Will she reassure my constituents that once those people are apprehended, they will feel the full weight of the law?

[Victoria Atkins]

I must not and cannot go into more detail on the specifics of the ongoing police investigation, because the hon. Lady will not want me or anyone else to inadvertently endanger any future prosecution. I can reassure her, however, that the case is being investigated very carefully and that the full force of the law is being applied.

Stalking Protection Bill

Tracy Brabin Excerpts

2nd reading: House of Commons
Friday 19th January 2018 Commons Chamber

[Neil O'Brien (Harborough) (Con)]

I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Totnes (Dr Wollaston) on introducing this important Bill and on her passionate championing of this important cause.

One reason I support the Bill is that a family in my constituency were cruelly robbed of their daughter by a stalker. Alice Ruggles was murdered in 2016 by Trimaan Dhillon, who was sentenced to life imprisonment last year. Alice had been in a relationship with him, and the relationship became controlling over time. He tried to distance her from her friends and family. After they broke up, his behaviour towards her became increasingly sinister.

Alice twice told the police that Trimaan was harassing her. He was given a police information notice, but it did not stop his obsessive and escalating behaviour. It later emerged that the police had previously given him a restraining order for harassing another girlfriend—it is not clear the police knew that at the time of Alice’s murder.

Alice’s family established the Alice Ruggles Trust to try to make the case for changes to support victims of stalking, including a register of stalkers, so I am pleased to support the Bill today. The Bill will fill a clear gap in the protective order regime to protect people like Alice in the future. It will enable effective action against stalkers whose actions have not yet provably gone over the criminal threshold.

My concern is that at the moment too many people who pose a real threat are being repeatedly cautioned or given a police information notice, or action is simply not being taken against them. Only 1% of stalking cases are recorded by the police, and victims reported being unsatisfied with the police response. For example, research by the Suzy Lamplugh Trust found that 43% of people who have reported stalking to the police found the police response to be either not very helpful or not helpful at all, and only 12.7% of recorded cases reach a conviction in court.

I hope that by creating this new tool for the police, the new stalking protection order, the Bill will help to solve that problem. The sanctions it will create will help to stop stalkers whose behaviour is escalating, and the prohibitions it creates will help victims to live without fear, particularly where the police are building a case. As well as those direct benefits, I hope the Bill’s introduction might also be a catalyst for the police to change their handling of stalking cases more generally. A number of hon. Members have already referred to the important report by HMIC and the CPS, “Living in fear”, which found that people who have suffered from repeated harassment or stalking are frequently being “let down” by under-recording, inconsistent services and a lack of understanding in the criminal justice system.

I hope that the Bill will trigger police forces to review how they handle stalking. I hope that all chief constables and police commissioners in this country will be listening closely to today’s debate and will be observing the passage of the Bill.

[Tracy Brabin (Batley and Spen) (Lab/Co-op)]

I, too, congratulate the hon. Member for Totnes (Dr Wollaston) on introducing this Bill. In my constituency, amazing work was done by the family of Clare Wood on Clare’s law, which was about the obligation of the police to disclose details of a history of violent behaviour if these were requested. But the right-to-know element to Clare’s law has been underused, and only 43% of requests to the police have been granted, with this seeming to be a postcode lottery. Does the hon. Gentleman agree that what is really to be celebrated about the Bill is that resources will be given to the police, so that they can respond swiftly and completely to requests?

[Neil O'Brien]

Yes, I do; the hon. Lady makes an extremely important point. As I was saying, the crucial thing is not just having this important new tool, which the Bill will create, but using it as a further catalyst to changes in the way the police handle something that, as my hon. Friend the Member for Cheltenham (Alex Chalk) pointed out, was not even a crime until 2012. In particular, I hope that the police will take account of the best practice guidance produced by the charity Paladin, which is extremely important.

In conclusion, this Bill is a really important piece of legislation. The flexibilities it contains will allow stalking protection orders to be useful in a wide variety of circumstances. I believe that it will both improve lives and save lives, and I support it in the strongest possible way.

Oral Answers to Questions

Tracy Brabin Excerpts

Monday 16th October 2017 Commons Chamber

[Helen Hayes (Dulwich and West Norwood) (Lab)]

17. What recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of police funding.

[Tracy Brabin (Batley and Spen) (Lab/Co-op)]

23. What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the 2015 funding settlement for police authorities.

[The Minister for Policing and the Fire Service (Mr Nick Hurd)]

Mr Speaker, I may be testing your legendary benevolence to the limit by seeking to group Question 7 with Questions 9, 14, 17 and 23.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Hurd]

We have not, and I do not necessarily think there is any link between a reduction in police numbers and the outcome in terms of the complex drivers of the crime that the hon. Lady mentioned. The Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, the hon. Member for Truro and Falmouth (Sarah Newton) is totally on top of this in terms of new legislation to ban the sale of zombie knives, for example. What I say, as a London MP, is that the budget for the Met is under review, as is that of every other force in the country, ahead of the 2018-19 funding settlement.

[Tracy Brabin]

“With officer numbers at 1985 levels, crime up 10% in the last year and police work becoming ever more complex, this additional pressure is not sustainable.

The current flat cash settlement for forces announced in 2015 is no longer enough.”

Those were the words of Britain’s most senior police chief. Which part of that does the Minister disagree with?

[Mr Hurd]

The hon. Lady will know, because her shadow Minister put it on the record last time, that police budgets have been protected in the round—that is the reality—but we recognise that demand on the police is changing. I echo the Home Secretary’s words: we are absolutely determined to make sure that the police have the resources they need to do the job properly, while continuing to support and challenge them to be more efficient and effective.

Health, Social Care and Security

Tracy Brabin Excerpts

Wednesday 28th June 2017 Commons Chamber

[Stella Creasy]

The hon. Gentleman and I are on the same side in agreeing that it is for English and Welsh MPs to decide what happens in English and Welsh hospitals. The Secretary of State needs to listen to the opinions of Members on both sides of the House and act accordingly.

[Tracy Brabin (Batley and Spen) (Lab/Co-op)]

Does my hon. Friend agree that the cost of an abortion for women from Northern Ireland, at around £900, is dividing the women who have money from those who do not, as well as adding greater stress for women having to make that difficult decision?

[Stella Creasy]

I completely agree with my hon. Friend. The fact is that those women are UK taxpayers contributing towards the cost of the NHS, yet they are unable to use NHS services at all when they are in England. That is the issue we have to resolve. I put the Secretary of State on notice: if he does not change his mind, there are plenty across this House who will support legislation to change it for him. I ask him to do the right thing and ensure that we have equal access to abortion for every UK taxpayer.

The same principle about what is missing from the Queen’s Speech applies to Brexit. I support calls to ensure that membership of the single market is on the table when we negotiate with our European counterparts. With 750,000 jobs in London alone dependent on it, and one in 10 of my neighbours being European nationals, the idea that we would take those issues off the table before we even start talking to our European counterparts seems crazy. The Secretary of State for Brexit says that Brexit will be as complicated as a moon landing. Certainly, many of us thought that he was on another planet, but the Government have to think again about crashing back down to Earth and damaging the economy and the lives of the people of this country through their approach to Brexit.

This country is clearly at a crossroads. There are divisions on many different issues, and there is no doubt that Britain is facing some real horrors. We have seen the horrific events at Grenfell Tower, and the terrorist attacks at Finsbury Park, London Bridge and Manchester. We have a choice: we can either offer this country hope and certainty about what happens next, or we can continue to be divided. We on the Opposition Benches are clear that those who argue that we cannot settle our differences through democracy at the ballot box are wrong. I believe that there is a responsibility on all of us to show every community that their concerns will be heard, and that their causes will be equally valued and listened to. It is certainly my intention to do my bit during this Parliament to make that happen. That is why I have tabled my amendment, and I am so pleased that Members throughout the House have supported it. I hope that Members will continue to listen to the arguments, put personalities aside and start looking at good policies, because the people not only of Walthamstow and Northern Ireland but of Great Britain need and deserve nothing less.

--- Later in debate ---

[Tracy Brabin (Batley and Spen) (Lab/Co-op)]

It is an honour to contribute to the debate on the Queen’s Speech. I am so delighted to be back in this place, and I thank the people of Batley and Spen for returning me with the best majority, apparently, since 1966. Having experienced two elections in the last year, I would like to put it on record that I am itching for a third so that Labour can finally be the party of government.

As I learn more about my role as an MP, I am very excited to hear my first Queen’s Speech. Sadly, it was not a grand, sweeping statement about the destination of our country, but more a postcard from the edge—a flimsy echo of the Tory manifesto, short on vision and lacking ambition.

While there is a lot to say about what was not in the speech, I will choose two topics to discuss: extra support for the NHS, and carers. Yesterday, we heard the Secretary of State admit that a privatised service was not up to scratch, leaving hundreds of people in harm’s way. We have heard about nurses visiting food banks, and now there is news that the Government might be about to renege on their promise to fund 10,000 extra nursing places.

The A&E in my constituency is still set to be downgraded later this year, and concerns remain about the future of Huddersfield A&E, with the entire Kirklees area potentially being left without a 24/7, fully functioning, fully funded and dedicated A&E. I am extremely grateful to the voting public for the fact that there are now four Labour MPs in Kirklees, and we are united in our mission for a better NHS that listens to the needs of the people it serves.

[Thelma Walker (Colne Valley) (Lab)]

Does my hon. Friend agree that we need to stop the STPs in their tracks right now so that we can prevent the dangerous downgrading of hospitals and the loss of our accident and emergency centres?

[Tracy Brabin]

I thank my hon. Friend for that intervention. One of the highlights of the general election campaign was when the shadow Health Minister came to Batley and Spen, where he launched the Labour manifesto on health and said that, on the first day of a Labour Government, we would pause the STPs and seek consultation.

Of course, the decisions made by CCGs and trusts across the country are born out of the fact that they need to deliver more on tighter and tighter budgets. Recently, I was informed that surgery for my constituents will soon be delayed by up to six months if they smoke, or for a whole year if they are overweight, with a high body mass index. Now, of course, we do need to improve public health, and 14% of adults in north Kirklees smoke, while 24% have a BMI of over 30, but we must be able to do better than denying care at the point of need. As a local paper pointed out, some of our incredibly talented local rugby stars have a high BMI. Surely we are not going to deny professional sportspeople surgery on health grounds.

While I am opposed to these changes, I hope Ministers understand that these decisions are having to be made because of their austerity. They are the ones asking our CCG to make £15 million in savings this year, after it already made £11 million in savings last year. The people of this country, and the people of Batley and Spen, have had enough, and it has to stop.

The omission of any mention of carers in the Queen’s Speech is enormously disappointing. Our country has an army of unpaid carers—some 6.5 million—and I would like to take this moment to praise these selfless people, who often do more and go further, without recognition or seeking a reward.

Recently, one of the 10,843 carers in my constituency—a woman about to retire, who is looking after her 35-year-old disabled daughter—asked me to help her with a problem. Her carer’s allowance—a sum of £62.70—had been stopped because she is now eligible for a state pension. When I asked whether she had phoned the relevant authorities to check whether it was correct, she said she had, but she was told it is not something that often comes up, because most people her age with disabled children had given up and stuck them in a home. I find this brutal and unfeeling, not to mention lacking in common sense, especially when we consider how much the state would have to pay if this lady’s daughter was cared for in a home. In Kirklees, the average residential care cost is £520 per person, per week.

That raises the question of why the Queen’s Speech said nothing about protecting our NHS or looking after our amazing carers. The only answer is that it was not a Queen’s Speech for us, the people, where our leaders have a vision to improve lives and to build a better country that includes kindness, tolerance, generosity and humanity; it was a political manoeuvre to protect those in power, and I cannot commit to supporting it. While for me this might mean three elections in 18 months, I say bring it on, because to me it could not be more obvious: this country needs a Labour Government.

Terror Attacks

Tracy Brabin Excerpts

Thursday 22nd June 2017 Commons Chamber

[Amber Rudd]

That is a very good point to make. I hope that our commission will do exactly that; it will make it clear that extremism in any form is, as my hon. Friend says, two sides of the same coin and is unwelcome in this country. We need to find out what else we can do to make sure that we reduce it.

[Tracy Brabin (Batley and Spen) (Lab/Co-op)]

I thank the Minister for her statement. If reports are correct, the recent attack on Finsbury Park mosque was a premeditated attack by a self-radicalised extremist. My constituency knows more than most about the devastation that one extremist can bring. I welcome the Home Secretary’s statement that 25% of the referrals to Prevent have been for far-right extremists, but how many of those referrals have been acted upon?

[Amber Rudd]

Let me take the opportunity to commend the work that the Jo Cox Foundation did on the Great Get Together last weekend. Like many Members—many Labour Members as well—I took the opportunity to show that something good had come out of Jo’s horrible, terrible death. I am so sorry, but I have forgotten the hon. Lady’s question.

[Tracy Brabin]

I was asking how many Prevent referrals are acted on.

[Amber Rudd]

The Prevent activity comes from referrals, usually from schools, universities or community groups. They are mostly acted on. Only a smaller portion of them go through to the Channel programme. A disproportionately larger number of far right-wing referrals go through to the Channel programme—about 25%. I can come back to the hon. Lady with more numbers if she would like.