Business of the House

Sharon Hodgson Excerpts

Thursday 5th February 2026 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

Despite the hon. Gentleman’s understandable concerns, the Environment Agency does vital work, managing our rivers and protecting our environment. We need to recognise the work of people at the Environment Agency, who are out doing their very best as we speak, but I understand the concern expressed not just by him, but by other hon. Members. As he says, severe weather, including this winter, makes the challenges even harder.

Under this Government, we have increased the Environment Agency budget by £188 million, and our flood budget of £10.5 billion is a record investment—the most that has ever been spent on flooding. I accept that this is a matter of great importance, particularly to rural areas, and it interests and concerns Members across the House. I will ensure that the relevant Minister hears the hon. Gentleman’s concerns and his request that these matters be the subject of debate in this House.

[Mrs Sharon Hodgson (Washington and Gateshead South) (Lab)]

Saturday marks the two-year anniversary of the publication of the Hughes report, which set out how the Government should offer financial compensation to those irreversibly and avoidably harmed by the mesh and valproate scandals. To not have an official Government response after two years is frankly insulting to the thousands of women and children whose lives have been changed forever through no fault of their own. These women have been systematically gaslit and have endured so much, all for trusting healthcare professionals, as we all have done and would do. Does the Leader of the House agree that the time for thinking is now over, and that the Government must provide an urgent response to this House?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I thank my hon. Friend for her tireless campaigning on this important matter. These are complex issues, and the Government’s response needs to be fair, balanced and sensitive to everyone affected, but I appreciate Members’ frustration about the timescale, and the need for clarity for everyone affected. There is a Westminster Hall debate on the Hughes report next week, and I hope that my hon. Friend will be able to speak in it. I will raise her concerns directly with Ministers, because she asks reasonable questions.

Business of the House

Sharon Hodgson Excerpts

Thursday 4th September 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I welcome the hon. Member back from summer recess and look forward to continuing to work with her on the many Committees on which we both sit. I thank her for raising that very important issue. Let us be under no illusions: the situation in Gaza is unimaginably bleak. It is truly horrific, and the horrifying images and accounts we are seeing daily are seared on all our minds as we go about our business. On top of everything else, after so many civilian deaths and so much destruction, we are now seeing a man-made and wholly avoidable famine and widespread starvation.

The Government are leading international efforts for a peace plan. That involves the release of hostages, a ceasefire and the huge humanitarian response needed to prevent further death and destruction. The recognition of Palestine as a state is an important step towards that, which is why the Prime Minister set out those plans as we approach the UNGA later this month.

I have personally long supported the recognition of Palestine, including last time Parliament was asked to give a view on the matter. On Monday, in a two-hour statement to the House, the Foreign Secretary updated Members on the steps we are taking to recognise the state of Palestine and made clear that unless the Israeli Government take urgent steps to end the appalling situation in Gaza and commit to a long-term peace, we will make that assessment before the leaders meet at the UN in New York. We will, as ever, ensure that the House has a full opportunity to continue to discuss and scrutinise these very important decisions.

[Mrs Sharon Hodgson (Washington and Gateshead South) (Lab)]

In February, my constituent’s son, Paul Holborn, won the men’s section of the 777 world marathon challenge. That is seven marathons in seven continents in seven days. He topped that off by then running the north pole marathon in July, and achieving grand slam status. Paul is now preparing for his next challenge. He plans to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in January, and then to pull a sled for 293 miles across the Arctic frozen tundra in February. Throughout his journey, Paul has raised thousands for local charities, including £4,000 for Age UK in Sunderland. Will the Leader of the House join me in congratulating Paul on his bravery and determination, and in wishing him the best of luck for his upcoming endeavours, where he will do not just the north-east proud, but the whole UK?

[Lucy Powell]

I absolutely join my hon. Friend in congratulating Paul on his extraordinary achievements. Quite honestly, I am exhausted just listening to what he is doing, let alone doing it myself.

Business of the House

Sharon Hodgson Excerpts

Thursday 24th April 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I am sorry to hear about the fire in Cirencester. I agree with the hon. Gentleman that we need to get the balance right by ensuring that such facilities are safe and are safely operated while at the same time ensuring that we have the infrastructure that we need, and not just today but in future, for battery storage and other clean energy supplies. We are taking steps to ensure that local communities are consulted on these matters and that they benefit from these facilities when they come to their local area, but we make no apology for saying that we have to sprint towards that clean energy superpower that we need to be.

[Mrs Sharon Hodgson (Washington and Gateshead South) (Lab)]

Next week marks the beginning of Coeliac Awareness Month, a time dedicated to raising awareness about coeliac disease, a serious autoimmune disease for which the only treatment is a strict gluten-free diet for life—it is not a fad. While coeliac disease affects one in 100 people in the UK, just 36% are medically diagnosed, leaving an estimated half a million people potentially facing debilitating symptoms yet being in the dark as to their cause. So will the Leader of the House grant a debate in Government time to mark this important month and to help raise important awareness of this terrible disease?

[Lucy Powell]

Coeliac Awareness Month is an important time and I commend my hon. Friend for raising this issue in the House. She is right that we need to do more to raise awareness of that debilitating disease, especially in relation to treatment and access to affordable gluten-free food, and that would make a good topic for a debate.

Business of the House

Sharon Hodgson Excerpts

Thursday 6th February 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I am sorry the hon. Gentleman does not welcome our real commitment to devolution, ensuring that local communities have more power over the things that affect them, such as their local services, transport, economic development, and joining that up in a way that provides strategic benefit to those areas. I respect the hon. Gentleman, but I gently say that under the Government that he supported, local government was absolutely hollowed out after years and years of austerity, with local council after local council going bankrupt, month after month. We have given a record, long-term settlement to local government and alongside that we are unashamedly pushing power out to communities. We have had several statements to the House already. There will be a Bill forthcoming that enacts many of the measures, and ample time for debate, but I will ensure that the House is kept fully up to date.

[Mrs Sharon Hodgson (Washington and Gateshead South) (Lab)]

Tomorrow is the one-year anniversary of the publication of the Hughes report, which found that the children left disabled by valproate and the women injured by pelvic mesh implants for life should be given urgent financial compensation. One year on, we are yet to see an official Government response to that report. The Leader of the House will know how important it is that women are listened to by healthcare professionals. Surely she agrees that when they are dismissed and left physically damaged by those who were supposed to have protected them, financial redress is deserved. Will she grant a debate in Government time to allow MPs from across this House—we all have constituents who have raised this with us—to discuss the recommendations of the all-important Hughes report to mark this significant occasion?

[Lucy Powell]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising that issue and for her many years of important campaigning and leadership, which I know has been a great comfort to the many women—and not just women—who have been affected by this scandal. As she has said, the Hughes report was a significant watershed and a line in the sand. I will certainly inquire about the whereabouts of the Government response to that report, and will ensure that the House is updated at the earliest opportunity.