Legacy of Jo Cox

Catherine Fookes Excerpts

Thursday 11th June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Kim Leadbeater]

It was an absolute joy to be pulling a pint with my hon. Friend this morning in the Strangers Bar—just to be clear, we did not drink it. I am grateful to everybody involved in the Great Get Together beer. Through it, we have shown the power of the pubs, clubs and venues that we all have in our constituencies, where people can come together and share a drink, share a conversation, cross lines of division and have a good old time, because the Great Get Together is also about having fun. I remind colleagues that they are all invited to the Great Get Together event in Speaker’s House next Wednesday after Prime Minister’s questions. We will be catered for by Batley’s finest, Fox’s Biscuits, and I hope Members can join me.

Thousands of events take place across the Great Get Together weekend. Friendships are formed, bridges are built and communities are united in a way that is rarely seen, and nowhere more so than in Jo’s beloved West Yorkshire. We have organised rugby matches, bake-offs, iftars, coffee mornings and the annual Run for Jo, when hundreds of people run through the woods at Oakwell Hall in Birstall, and there is live music, food and entertainment. It is not about the running; it is about the coming together of families, friends and strangers alike.

This year’s Run for Jo takes place on Sunday 21 June, and the good news is that all Members are invited—woo-hoo! I believe that you will be down for it, Madam Deputy Speaker. People do not have to run—they can just come and enjoy the day—but I hope that they come up to Yorkshire, even if only to take part in my cheesy ’80s aerobics warm-up, in which I get to revisit my previous career as a fitness instructor. Leg-warmers and leotards are always very welcome.

We also have the beautiful Jo Cox community wood in Spen Valley and the Jo Cox Way bike ride, which sees cyclists travel 280 miles from Yorkshire to London every summer. We have the Jo Cox sixth-form centre at Heckmondwike grammar school, which Jo and I attended and where mum and dad met and fell in love. We have the Place Jo Cox in Brussels and the Rue Jo Cox in Avallon in France—Jo’s legacy spreads far and wide.

So much has been done over the last 10 years to remember Jo and to ensure that her name and her values are never forgotten, but, as Jo herself would say, there is undoubtedly always more to do, and I believe that we can and must all play our part. We must rebuild respectful dialogue. We need to rediscover the ability to disagree without hatred. Democracy depends on argument, but it also depends on mutual respect. Someone who votes differently from us is not automatically ignorant, wrong, evil or beyond redemption. We must resist the temptation to caricature entire groups of people. We must challenge toxic rhetoric wherever it appears.

[Catherine Fookes (Monmouthshire) (Lab)]

I thank my hon. Friend for her amazing speech. I also have sisters, and I cannot imagine standing here and doing what she is doing, so I thank her for her bravery. I never met Jo, but her legacy absolutely lives on through my hon. Friend.

Some of our opponents would have it that Britain is broken, that we are at war and that people do not care for one another any more, but my hon. Friend is showing that there is a huge swathe of people across the United Kingdom—including in Wales, where I am from, and in my seat of Monmouthshire—who care for and constantly look out for one another and support people, and who do not want the worst for our country. Does my hon. Friend agree that the idea of coming together and community is alive and well in our community and that we must all celebrate it?

[Kim Leadbeater]

I thank my hon. Friend and could not agree with her more. No one is pretending that we do not have challenges or that there are not difficult issues to tackle, but that is not the story of our country. The story of our country is all the amazing people we are elected here to serve and who are doing brilliant things in our communities across the whole country. That makes it even more important that we challenge toxic rhetoric wherever it appears. That responsibility belongs to everyone, including politicians, journalists, broadcasters, online influencers and ordinary citizens alike. We cannot stay silent when language becomes dehumanising or inflammatory. Freedom of speech is vital, but it comes with moral responsibility.

We have to invest in our communities. Polarisation grows when people become isolated from one another. Strong communities create empathy, because they bring different people together. Local organisations, youth groups, charities, libraries, sports clubs, faith groups and community centres—all of which we have in our constituencies—play a vital role in strengthening our social bonds. When people know each other personally, hatred becomes much harder to sustain.

We must also teach critical thinking, political education and media literacy, which are really crucial parts of our education. We live in an age of misinformation, manipulated outrage and online echo chambers. Young people especially need the tools to navigate a world in which anger spreads faster than truth.

--- Later in debate ---

[Rushanara Ali]

What my hon. Friend says highlights the fact that when some of us entered politics—I did so in 2010—we were outliers in the hostility and harassment that parliamentarians and candidates experienced. Sadly, that is becoming increasingly mainstream. My hon. Friend has also experienced threats and intimidation. It is staggering that our system is still not fit enough to deal with those threats systematically.

One of my greatest fears is that, despite the tragedy of what has happened, lessons have not been learnt fast enough. If they had, perhaps we would not have seen further fatalities and the loss of another dear colleague, Sir David Amess. I, and I know others, do not want to see the day when yet another elected representative—a Member serving our public—finds themselves under attack. Too many have been under attack.

We must redouble our efforts to protect our democracy, and that means protecting those who stand for public office. Too many are being put off. Too many—particularly women and particularly those of colour—are being targeted and being driven from the public square and out of frontline politics because the price paid for being in politics has become increasingly difficult and costly. It is costly when it takes the form of losing our colleagues. Frankly, in the 21st century, in this democracy, I never thought that would happen.

I never thought that, and I do not think any others who came into politics at that time could have imagined a situation where our politics could have descended into the spectre of losing a dear colleague from our party and then, again, another colleague from the Conservative party. And we must not forget the far-right extremist, radicalised on the internet, who attacked my right hon. Friend the Member for East Ham (Sir Stephen Timms) in 2010. Thankfully, he survived and is providing a great service to our nation as a Minister, but that should have raised the alarm bells then, because a number of us were on that person’s target list.

As the right hon. Member for Sutton Coldfield (Sir Andrew Mitchell) mentioned, in the past we have seen assassinations in our country. Now, however, the online space is creating an even greater threat. That is why we must ensure that Members of Parliament do not have to live with the fear of threats against their families, those who are close to them and their staff. Too many mistakes have been made, and we must ensure that we really do learn from them if we are to protect our democracy.

[Catherine Fookes]

I thank my hon. Friend for her incredibly moving speech. Does she agree that we must dial down the rhetoric in this place? Only last week, a male colleague of ours was punched in the face out on the street. I believe that is directly as a result of people using inflammatory language and being incredibly toxic.

In this place we do not work in the cross-party way that I think we should. Last week I visited the Swedish Parliament, which has a semi-circular chamber in which the members sit by region rather than by party. They were saying how that makes a big difference, and I was thinking, as I sit here listening to all the incredible speeches about the wonderful Jo Cox, that would it not be an incredible legacy if we did politics in a much more consensual and cross-party way?

[Rushanara Ali]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. She highlights the importance of the way we work together and conduct ourselves in politics, and we have heard that in other speeches today. Sadly, that is not happening and more is required to bring parties together on as much as we can possibly agree on—to reduce the hostilities, the anger and the often-manufactured outrage online and offline, which is creating hate and hostility on our streets.

The level of threat in our politics has to be addressed. No Member should have to step out of their home wondering whether they are watching their last ever sunrise, whether the person staring at them is intent on harming them, whether they will make it home again, and whether it is their last day in this world. Too many colleagues whom I have spoken to, too often, fear for their lives. That cannot be right. That is not healthy for our democracy. That is why I am proud that this Government are working to tackle harassment and intimidation.

As a Minister, I worked on the election strategy and on the Bill that is now going through Parliament, but the situation is moving very fast. We need to redouble our efforts to tackle online hate and hostility. Incitement to violence online has to be tackled. I therefore welcome the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology’s commitment to taking action. We have to take action fast, before there are further fatalities. We see how that is spreading in the form of riots on our streets, and we see how hate and racism are spreading like wildfire, and not only against elected representatives but in wider society. We have to act quickly. We have to act together. We have to be united.

We need stronger action to ensure that we work together, as we have heard, and on civility. We need to make sure that our political discourse is about a unified country, about taking action against hostility and hatred together, and about collective action. We all have a responsibility, as citizens and as representatives, to come together to tackle hatred and the rhetoric of racism and intolerance. We need police and security services with the resources to tackle far-right extremism and terrorism, as well as other forms of extremism.

We need to ensure that we celebrate goodness and the things that bring us together. We have heard so much about the work of the Jo Cox Foundation. The annual Great Get Together reminds us of the wonderful things that we have in our country and the ability for communities from all backgrounds to come together. In my constituency, where Jo and her family have a special place in our hearts, I see the way in which diverse communities come together. We all have a responsibility to do everything we can to bring communities together.

I finish by saying how inspiring it is to see the work of my hon. Friend the Member for Spen Valley, and of course the work of her wonderful family—Jo’s children, her husband, and my hon. Friend and Jo’s parents—and all their friends. We are so inspired by all that they do for our country—for all the diverse communities that make up our great country. Jo will always live in our hearts. She will always inspire us, both in life and in death. Jo means the world to so many of us, and I will think about her in the work that I do, whether here or elsewhere.

Supporting High Streets

Catherine Fookes Excerpts

Tuesday 4th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Andrew Griffith]

So many family businesses will be devastated by the family business death tax introduced by the Labour party. We often hear about the plight of farmers and food producers, but family businesses are even more numerous. If you have survived Labour’s job tax, if you have survived Labour’s more than doubling of business rates, if you have survived the red tape— so much more of it—that Labour is imposing, all that awaits you when you seek to pass your business or your family farm on to the next generation is Labour’s family business death tax. That is why, as part of our plan for the high street, we will repeal those damaging measures.

[Catherine Fookes (Monmouthshire) (Lab)]

rose—

[Andrew Griffith]

I hope that the hon. Lady is rising to commit herself to repealing them too.

[Catherine Fookes]

No; I want to remind the shadow Minister that we on this side of the House talk up our high streets, while all I can hear from the opposite Benches is people talking them down. As for red tape, the family businesses in my constituency were desperate to get rid of the red tape that the Conservatives created during their botched Brexit deals. Does the hon. Gentleman agree that by giving £5 billion to the Pride in Place scheme, this Government are doing a great deal more to support our high streets than his Government ever did?

[Andrew Griffith]

That was a valiant attempt to return to past history, but on this side of the House we are looking forward. Our plan for the high street would remedy the damage that has been done not over past years but over past months, and even again this morning—the collapse in confidence caused by our Chancellor.

--- Later in debate ---

[Miatta Fahnbulleh]

Any economist will tell us that there is always a lag. What we are now seeing are the consequences of the last party’s failures. We are fixing the mess; we are fixing the foundations in order to repair, and I will give examples of that.

Growth is our priority for the nation’s high streets, but we also recognise that, historically, the effects of that have not been equally felt. That is why we are giving communities greater control over their areas, so that they can drive the change that they want to see. In September, the Communities Secretary and I set out the Government’s Pride in Place programme and strategy. We will deliver up to £20 million of funding and support across the 244 places that need it the most—places that were neglected by the Conservatives. It will be up to new neighbourhood boards to decide how that is spent over the next decade, but each area will be encouraged to use the funding to build thriving public places.

[Catherine Fookes]

Does the Minister agree that the £1.5 million that my constituency of Monmouthshire will get for our five high streets will make a huge impact and help deliver the change that we so vitally need in our high streets?

[Miatta Fahnbulleh]

My hon. Friend is completely right. Through our Pride in Place impact fund, we are providing a cash injection to 95 places across the country. That will be spent by local authorities specifically to drive and improve high streets. That is a direct, tangible action that this Labour Government are taking against those 14 years of decline.

Newport Chartist Commemorations: Strengthening Democracy

Catherine Fookes Excerpts

Monday 4th November 2024 Commons Chamber

[Jessica Morden]

I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend in commending Les James; I spent much of Saturday afternoon with Chartist historians, and it is great that she mentions Les.

On the way down through the Gwent valleys and to the town centre, some of the Chartists were arrested and detained at the Westgate hotel in the centre of Newport. This spurred on Chartists from the nearby industrial towns, many of whom were armed, with the intent of freeing their fellow Chartists.

[Catherine Fookes (Monmouthshire) (Lab)]

Not many Members in this House may know that at the time of the Newport rising, Newport was in fact part of Monmouthshire, so my hon. Friend and I have very strong links between our constituencies. Does she agree that this Labour Government are continuing the great work of strengthening our democracy by giving the vote to 16 and 17-year-olds as the Welsh Labour Government have already done in Wales?

[Jessica Morden]

I thank my lovely hon. Friend and constituency next-door neighbour; I am coming to that point, and I absolutely agree with her.

When the Chartists arrived at the Westgate, a firefight ensued between the marchers and soldiers deployed to protect the hotel. No one knows who fired the first shot. More than 20 Chartists were shot and killed with dozens more injured, and 10 of the bodies lie to this day in unmarked graves around the site of Newport cathedral. The three leaders of the Newport rising—John Frost, William Jones and Zephaniah Williams—were arrested, tried for treason, and sentenced to death. They had intended to inspire a domino effect of uprisings across the country, and they were regarded as working-class heroes and martyrs.

Following outcry from the public, and even from the Lord Chief Justice, the three Chartist leaders’ death sentences were later commuted to transportation for life to Australia. Frost would eventually be unconditionally pardoned, receiving a triumphant welcome back to Newport on his return. He continued to campaign for democratic reform until his death in 1877.

Eventually, five of the six demands set out in the “People’s Charter” were delivered. I am sure that parliamentary colleagues and our constituents alike will be pleased, following our experience of facing four general elections in nine years, that the sixth demand—the prospect of annual elections—was not carried forward.