Imogen Walker MP: speeches

Speeches

• 7 Jan 2026 · Draft United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020 (Exclusions from Market Access Principles: Glue Traps) Regulations 2025 · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for Epping Forest for his contribution, and acknowledge the work of the previous Government. I know from my experience in the animal welfare sector that compassion for animals crosses party lines, and it is a powerful reminder of what we can do when we work together. The hon. Gentleman asked about plans for a ban in England. He will be aware that that is outside the scope of the regulations, but it is an important point, given the suffering it causes animals. Since 2022, market-leading suppliers have been removing glue traps from sale, and promoting more humane alternative methods of pest control instead, which is positive and to be welcomed. Once a UKIM exclusion is in place, a ban on sale may become a feasible option for reducing their illegal use in England, should there still be a need for it. The hon. Gentleman also asked about Northern Ireland, where, as he said, the regulations do not apply. We respect devolution, and legal matters in Northern Ireland are a matter for the devolved Government. We may have views on that, and I am certainly happy to talk to and make contact with the Department, should that be appropriate. The UK Government are determined to lead the way on protecting animal welfare, and we will continue to work with all the devolved Governments to achieve that. Where there are grounds for divergence— in this case, those are primarily about the best way in which to achieve similar goals—and where that divergence is expected to have minimal economic impact on trade within the UK, as is the case here, we will work together to ensure flexibility where we can. The UKIM Act is rightly there to protect the internal market of the United Kingdom, which is vital to every nation within it and plays an integral role in their economies. The current Act works, and ensures that we can respond to requests, such as that of the Scottish Government, to be flexible and implement exemptions on a case-by-case basis as appropriate. To conclude, I trust that hon. Members understand and accept the need for the instrument. It creates an exclusion to the UKIM Act for legislation on glue traps, ensuring that products made in or imported into other parts of the UK cannot be sold in any country that has banned them, regardless of whether an equivalent ban exists elsewhere. Scotland will therefore be able to bring in an effective ban on using and selling them. I once again thank the hon. Gentleman for his contribution. Question put and agreed to.

• 7 Jan 2026 · Draft United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020 (Exclusions from Market Access Principles: Glue Traps) Regulations 2025 · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the draft United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020 (Exclusions from Market Access Principles: Glue Traps) Regulations 2025. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Stuart. These regulations were laid before the House on 1 December 2025. The instrument makes an exclusion to the market access principles of the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020, also known as the UKIM Act, for legislation prohibiting the sale of glue traps. This will be the second exclusion to the Act, the first of which happened in 2022 and related to the banning of single-use plastic items such as plastic straws, stirrers and cotton buds. I will set out the background of what the UKIM Act does, as well as what a glue trap is, before turning to the reasons why it is necessary to use this statutory instrument. Before I do that, I would like to make you aware, Mr Stuart, that I was previously a vice president and then a trustee of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and I am delighted to be moving this important legislation today, which will support the goal of improved animal welfare, which I hope we all share. The UK Internal Market Act 2020 aims to create a seamless internal market across the UK by removing trade barriers to ensure goods and services can move freely. That is achieved primarily through mutual recognition and non-discrimination principles. The principle of mutual recognition means that goods that meet one nation’s rules can be sold in others and do not need to comply with any additional requirements. The impact of excluding glue traps from the market access principles means that those principles will not apply to any legislation that prohibits the sale of glue traps. For those Members who do not know what a glue trap is, it is a board, often made of cardboard or plastic, on which a non-drying glue is applied. That is placed on to flat surfaces so that small rodents, such as rats or mice, will walk on to them and become unable to escape as their fur or their limbs get stuck to the glue. According to the British Veterinary Association, they may then suffer from torn skin, broken limbs or hair removal, and die a slow and painful death from suffocation, starvation, exhaustion and even self-mutilation. Despite concerns that glue traps are inhumane, until recent changes to legislation in 2022 in England and 2023 in Wales, glue traps were commonly used across Britain to catch rats and mice in households and commercial premises alike. In the UK, we are committed to high standards of animal welfare, but we recognise that devolution means that each Administration may need to achieve shared goals in different ways. In Wales, the use of glue traps is strictly prohibited. In England, the previous Government regulated glue traps so that they may only be legally used by pest controllers to preserve public health or safety when there is no other satisfactory solution, such as in hospital theatres and inside aircraft. Scotland has sought to ban glue traps with the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Act 2024 by prohibiting use, possession and sale. However, unless glue traps are added to schedule 1 of the UKIM Act to exclude them from the application of the Act’s market access principles, the Scottish Government’s ban on the sale of glue traps in Scotland will not be fully enforceable. That is because glue traps produced in or imported into England, Wales and Northern Ireland will continue to benefit from the mutual recognition principle and could still be sold in Scotland. The previous Government decided that banning the sale of glue traps would not be substantially more effective than a ban focused on their use and possession. However, this Government have carefully considered the impact of an exclusion for glue traps, and we have concluded that this will have minimum economic impact on trade within the UK, further to the Scottish Government’s ban on the use and possession of glue traps in Scotland. Ministers from Wales, Scotland and the Department for the Economy in Northern Ireland have consented to the making of these draft regulations. This instrument therefore delivers on this Government’s commitment to implement a UKIM exclusion, as announced in December 2024 by the then Minister of State for Trade Policy and Economic Security, my right hon. Friend the Member for Lothian East (Mr Alexander), in response to the Scottish Government’s request for an exclusion relating to glue traps. This underlines our commitment to taking a more collaborative approach to the management of the UK internal market, as well as developing closer working relationships and increased transparency between the UK Government and the devolved Governments on UK internal market matters that significantly impact on devolved responsibilities.

• 4 Nov 2025 · Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Dowd. I am grateful to the hon. Member for Winchester (Dr Chambers) for securing this debate. I pay tribute to his work on global health as secretary to the all-party parliamentary group on antimicrobial resistance and as a member of the APPG on maternity. I am also grateful for the efforts of so many here who have dedicated themselves to the fight against HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria for years. I am thankful for the contribution of every hon. Member, including the thoughtful and passionate speech from my hon. Friend the Member for Worthing West (Dr Cooper). I will do my best to address the points that have been raised in the time I have. I know that hon. Members will be aware of this Government’s commitment to the mission of the Global Fund. Indeed, we can all be proud that the United Kingdom helped to establish the Global Fund back in 2002. The UK is the fund’s third largest investor, contributing £5.5 billion so far. Members should be in no doubt that this Government value our ongoing partnership with the Global Fund; it is essential to maintaining and accelerating progress in global health. It is hard to overstate the importance of the Global Fund in transforming the fight against these diseases. Since 2002, with support from the UK and many others, the Global Fund partnership has helped to save 70 million lives and reduce deaths from AIDS, TB and malaria by 63%—that is remarkable. Importantly, the Global Fund has helped to build more resilient and sustainable health systems that help us to fight AIDS, TB and malaria, and it helps countries to support and improve the health of their populations more broadly, from addressing the threat of antimicrobial resistance to making progress on preventing new diseases from becoming epidemics, or even pandemics. Yet our work is far from done. Tragically, every passing minute, a child under the age of five dies of malaria. Notwithstanding all the progress that we have made, tuberculosis remains the world’s deadliest infectious disease. Nearly 14 million children are growing up without one or both of their parents—lost to AIDS-related causes, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa. Sibu Sibaca from South Africa spent her childhood caring for her parents, until AIDS took them from her when she was just 16. Her adult life is devoted to making the case for action to ensure that others do not have to go through this, and she spoke so powerfully alongside my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, and at a reception co-hosted with South Africa’s Foreign Minister in London a few weeks ago. My hon. Friend the Member for Exeter (Steve Race) has spoken about the importance of co-operation, and of course he is right. Wherever we can, we are making the case for how the Global Fund can continue to be a powerful solution multiplier—pooling investments, making economies of scale and maximising our collective impact. Let me take this opportunity to shine a light on how cutting-edge advancements are changing what is possible now. Take Lenacapavir, a twice-yearly injectable that could be a game changer in the fight against HIV. Thanks to partners, including Unitaid, a recent landmark deal will bring it to market at $40 per person. That is a staggering drop from the original price of over $28,000. Thanks to the Global Fund, 2 million doses will be distributed to people in low and middle-income countries over the next two years, saving lives and giving people a chance at a better future. The final replenishment summit in Johannesburg on 21 November matters immensely, and we are proud to be working in partnership with the Government of South Africa to make it happen. We celebrate all that we have achieved through the Global Fund in its 23 years so far, and we focus on what comes next: raising billions for the fight against AIDS, TB and malaria, with public and private investors working together; backing countries’ ambitions to invest more in health; harnessing private sector expertise, including world-class UK science to make the most of the latest innovations and improve access to medicines; and committing to work together in new ways to support countries on their path to self-reliance, and to reshape the global health architecture for the future. That is how we make sure our efforts add up to more than the sum of their parts so that the Global Fund can continue its lifesaving, life-changing work around the world. I want to build on what other hon. Members have said by underlining what we stand to gain if we continue to make progress in the months and years ahead. As the hon. Members for Strangford (Jim Shannon) and for Winchester said, there will be more children growing up with their parents, more parents spared the heartbreak of burying a child, more families spared from devastating loss, more communities able to thrive and more economies able to prosper. That is what people everywhere want to see. I am not foolish enough to attempt to match the poetry of Bruce Springsteen, but we will keep working until people everywhere feel the benefits of better health in our lives. Question put and agreed to.

• 2 Sept 2025 · Violence against Women and Girls: Pornography Prostitution · Hansard source

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  I congratulate my hon. Friend on securing this important debate. Pornography is nothing new, but access to the kind of content she has described is something that previous generations did not have to deal with. The most responsible and vigilant parents are struggling to prevent access to it. Does she agree that we need action from the companies that promote and disseminate this type of material, in addition to the work of parents, and the important work that the Government are doing?

• 9 Jul 2025 · For Women Scotland: Supreme Court Judgment · Hansard source

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  The Supreme Court judgment provided very welcome legal clarity on the matter of biological sex, but the Scottish Government have met clarity with chaos. Does the Secretary of State agree with me that the SNP Government have made an absolute mess of this, in much the same way they have made a mess of passing on the biggest settlement in the history of devolution to Scottish NHS, education and housing services? Is it not time they got a grip?