Lizzi Collinge MP: speeches

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Speeches

27 Nov 2025 · Public Office (Accountability) Bill (Second sitting) · Hansard source
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Q Do you think that the Bill will help to improve that situation? Judge Durran: It is disappointing that the duty of candour has to be written into law. I hope that the Bill is a considerable step in the right direction, as a vehicle to enable a coroner, through conduct reports and compliance directions, to better get people to engage with the true intentions, which is to find out answers to the four questions and primarily how someone died. However, I cannot over-emphasise that the compliance directions and conduct reports add a burden to a strain that is already under strain and under-resourced.
27 Nov 2025 · Public Office (Accountability) Bill (Second sitting) · Hansard source
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Q My understanding is that some NHS organisations currently view being transparent as the legal risk. Do you think the Bill will change attitudes, in that it flips the legal risk on to being non-transparent? I have struggled, in representing my constituents, with the fact that this is about not just processes, or even law, but culture. It is about changing the culture of a care organisation that responds to harm not by trying to find out what happened and stop it happening, but by trying to cover its own back. Will both NHS England and NHS Resolution speak to that? Helen Vernon: Just briefly, we hope that it will bolster transparency and the existing duty of candour, but perhaps Professor Fowler wants to come in. Professor Fowler: I certainly agree with that. We have had the opportunity to talk about the sad case of Ida Lock. Thinking about where organisations have not been sufficiently transparent, we see occasions on which it is a failure to understand. I was involved with some training for staff who had worked in an organisation—it is not appropriate to name the organisation—where they had seen considerable failings. They were in tears during this training about reporting incidents because they realised they had been getting it completely wrong. It is incumbent upon us to work with organisations to change culture, but also to educate, train and support people, and to professionalise the approach to reporting and openness that we want to see, but that has to be done in a way in which people feel psychologically safe to do so. I recognise anxieties about people suffering harm as a result of exercising the freedom to speak up, but it has been very successful when we look at the number of people we have seen coming forward with issues, most of whom I would argue do not suffer detriment as a result. This is about psychological safety, training, encouragement, support, standardising and professionalising around safety. A lot of the work we have done around safety has been about the governance and organisational principles of how it is done, and underlying all of it is a clear statement about systems and culture.
27 Nov 2025 · Public Office (Accountability) Bill (Second sitting) · Hansard source
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Q Do you think it is accurate that some organisations in the NHS still see being transparent, and admitting harm and problems, as the legal risk? Helen Vernon: They should not, but as we mentioned, there is inconsistency. Part of our collective role is to make sure that people understand its importance, how to do it well and how to deliver candour in practice. Professor Fowler: You mentioned closed cultures. I spent six months recently working as an interim in the CQC in the gap between chief inspectors. One of the things we recognised is that where we saw organisations with challenges, there was often also a closed culture. To be clear, that is a minority of organisations, but I think the two go together. Dr Chopra: I recognise your questions, and I agree with what Aidan said. I have seen instances where what you have described is the case—as Helen said, it is inconsistent—and I have seen brave clinicians who have said, “Right, if it is not going to trigger the organisational statutory duty of candour, I do have a professional duty of candour, and I am going to raise it that way.” I hope the Bill will bolster that, as we have said.
27 Nov 2025 · Public Office (Accountability) Bill (Second sitting) · Hansard source
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Q First, it is a matter of public record that my husband works for NHS England—for now. I ask these questions as a representative of constituents who have been harmed, including my constituent Vicki, who died, and baby Ida Lock, who died a preventable death. Her death was graded as “Moderate harm”, which was one of the many, many failings that came afterwards. NHS Resolution focuses on resolving issues and harm caused without resorting to legal processes. How will the Bill contribute to that aim? Helen Vernon: Those are incredibly sad circumstances and sensitive issues. I think it will be a big help and support that aim because, as I mentioned earlier, an open and transparent response right at the start has the best chance of not only avoiding somebody consulting lawyers or initiating a claim just to get answers, but avoiding that claim subsequently escalating into unnecessary and adversarial legal proceedings. We have driven down the number of cases that go into formal litigation by using alternative dispute resolution, which generally involves bringing clinicians and the organisation together with the family. But you can do that only if there is an atmosphere of trust and clear transparency as to the information that is being shared.
27 Nov 2025 · Public Office (Accountability) Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source
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Q I would just like a little more detail—thank you for your briefing—on the difficulty of proving intent and recklessness in a corporate body. For those of us who are not legally trained, could you explain a bit more about why that is difficult to prove? Pete Weatherby: We have set the standard very high indeed, because we are not interested in criminalising people and we are certainly not interested in scaring people. One example thrown at us during the discussions with the Government was that we might be criminalising junior civil servants who turn up late for work—absolutely not. Intent and subjective recklessness are high hurdles, but they are individual hurdles. A corporate body cannot easily act recklessly. It is not a legal impossibility; you do have health and safety or companies law offences, where there are corporate offences and you prove the mens rea—mental state—through the directing minds, but that is an incredibly difficult complication, and it does not really work with the offences that we are looking at here.
27 Nov 2025 · Public Office (Accountability) Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source
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Q Professor Lewis, you spoke about the burden of proof lying with the prosecution. Have I understood correctly that if someone puts forward the defence of reasonable excuse—I think this is the phrasing—it would then be for the prosecution to prove that it was false rather than for the defendant to prove that it was true? Professor Lewis: Yes. I would phrase it slightly differently: I would say that the prosecution will have to prove beyond reasonable doubt that there was no reasonable excuse, rather than thinking about truth or falsity. But, yes, once the defendant introduces evidence that raises the defence of reasonable excuse, they will have met their evidential burden, and the persuasive or legal burden will then rest on the prosecution.
27 Nov 2025 · Public Office (Accountability) Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source
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Q Thank you. That is very helpful. Mr Guest, you talked about some of the guardrails against unmeritorious or vexatious prosecutions. One of the things that we have seen in previous cover-ups is that junior members of staff have felt the burden, either when they try to tell the truth or because they are punished when the truth has not been there. I have been told—although I disagree—that the Bill could create a fear of unreasonable prosecution, or could cause junior members of staff to take responsibility, rather than senior members of staff. Do you consider that a risk? Does the way the law is set out mean that it will work as intended? Tom Guest: When I mention that risk, it is to guard against the risk of unmeritorious prosecutions. Before there is a prosecution, there has to be an investigation. Again, you can have private investigations or police investigations. We at the CPS do not see a prospect of unmeritorious police investigations, and we do not see a present risk, although we see some risk, of unmeritorious private investigations. The DPP’s consent comes in at the point of asking, “Is this going to go into the court system or not?” At that point, we as the CPS are assessing whichever investigation has happened against the standard tests of, “Is there sufficient evidence to prosecute the suspect?” and, “Is a prosecution required in the public interest?” Whoever the suspect is, we will assess that against those standards.
27 Nov 2025 · Public Office (Accountability) Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source
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Q So there is no easy way to show corporate collective actions, which are obviously the sum of a number of individual actions. Pete Weatherby: The Bill creates some individual duties, so you can prove them against the individual, but on the corporate duty, the simple way of dealing with it is the one that we put forward. It is really simple: it is a couple of lines, as you can see from the amendments we have put forward. You make the head of the organisation responsible for the discharge of the corporate duty. There is no problem with that.
26 Nov 2025 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source
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On that point, will my hon. Friend give way?
26 Nov 2025 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source
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Will the right hon. Member give way?
26 Nov 2025 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source
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On energy security and ensuring a diverse range of clean energy sources, does my hon. Friend welcome, as I do, the Government’s commitment to responding to the nuclear regulatory review within three months, so that we can change the way that nuclear is regulated and ensure that it is kept safe and up to date, and can get building new nuclear?
26 Nov 2025 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source
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I know that my hon. Friend is aware of the report from North Lancashire Citizens Advice about child poverty in our area. Its top recommendation to combat child poverty was to scrap the two-child limit. Will she join me in thanking North Lancashire Citizens Advice for its fantastic work to help local people? Will she continue to work with me, as she often so generously does, to tackle child poverty in our area?
26 Nov 2025 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source
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Could the right hon. Gentleman remind us which Government led to that 11% inflation and which Government crashed the economy? Could he also speak to the estimated 1,970 children in Morecambe and Lunesdale who will benefit from the lifting of the two-child benefit cap and tell them why they should continue to live in poverty?
25 Nov 2025 · COP30 · Hansard source
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The objections to global and national action on climate change frankly baffle me, not least because of the climate emergency, but also because of the opportunity it brings to our country. My constituency has had good clean energy jobs for decades through Heysham 1 and 2 nuclear power stations—I keep pushing for Heysham 3. Does the Secretary of State agree that the agreements at COP30 and the Government’s actions on climate change are an opportunity to not only fight climate change and create good jobs, but improve living standards in our country and across the globe?
24 Nov 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Obligations · Hansard source
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I absolutely agree. The Palestinians must be in the driving seat. A solution should not be imposed on them. Palestinians know best what is right for them and their country, and that has to be central. Any moneys that go in have to be properly accounted for, and any reconstruction done properly. As I have said, civic infrastructure is key. It is right that Hamas play no role in the governing of Palestine going forward. It is an horrific organisation, and its extreme ideology and violent actions have caused immense harm, both within and without Palestinian borders. It cannot be allowed to control Gaza’s future. However, history offers crucial lessons on how to shape post-war civic society. For example, in the wake of the Iraq war, the restoration of essential services was strained by the absence of administrative and management personnel. The de-Ba’athification of the Iraq Government decimated the state bureaucracy and hollowed out civic infrastructure. Any holder of a Ba’ath party card was dismissed. That included teachers and low-level functionaries, who needed the card to work.
24 Nov 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Obligations · Hansard source
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I absolutely agree that Israel must release prisoners, particularly those who are there for their non-violent actions against the occupation. The Palestinians will need all talents, and the Israeli Government must take action on that. I was speaking about the aftermath of the war in Iraq. Obviously, the situation in Gaza is not a carbon copy of what happened there; that was simply an example of where thoughtless implementation of a reasonable headline policy had an impact that went far beyond the stated intent.
24 Nov 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Obligations · Hansard source
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It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms McVey. Gaza is in ruins. Almost everything needed to sustain life—homes, businesses, farmland—has been reduced to rubble. The international responsibility is clear: provide aid, restore essential services and help Palestinians reclaim control over their future. For peace to last, we cannot just focus on the absence of violence; we also need to rebuild the foundations of long-term stability. Gaza’s people need long-term support and the opportunity to rebuild their lives, even when global attention has shifted. That means enabling Palestinians to play a central role in rebuilding their lives and institutions, because reconstruction must include both physical infrastructure but also civic systems that ensure that Palestinians can govern themselves freely. The Israeli Government must abandon the stranglehold they have on Palestinian aid. Despite their pledge to allow in humanitarian relief, they are still blocking desperately needed supplies. Aid must reach Gaza, alongside the restoration of critical infrastructure, such as electricity and water treatment, and public services. Only then can the larger task of reconstruction move forward.
24 Nov 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Obligations · Hansard source
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The right hon. Gentleman is absolutely right. Although the international focus has been on Gaza, horrific acts still continue in the west bank and the people there are living in fear of settler violence. That is why I very much welcomed sanctions on some settler organisations, although I think we could have gone further. The right hon. Gentleman makes a very good point. For Palestine to live freely, we have to talk about the whole of Palestine. It cannot be divided; it cannot be carved up piecemeal, and the illegal occupations absolutely must stop now. Too many Palestinians fear that the destruction, displacement and suffering that they have endured will become permanent. We cannot let that happen. So much has been lost and so many lives have been destroyed, but those who survive need urgent aid and the chance to rebuild. Our responsibility is to ensure that the people of Gaza emerge from this horror with the tools, support and autonomy to shape their own future.
24 Nov 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Obligations · Hansard source
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I absolutely agree that we need to use the people on the ground, who know the area best, in rebuilding. The international community would be foolish not to look at previous post-war measures in other conflicts and learn the right lessons, because the people of Gaza cannot afford for preventable mistakes to be repeated. With an economy in ruins and a population traumatised by years of conflict, Palestinians need international help to rebuild.
24 Nov 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Obligations · Hansard source
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I absolutely agree that our recognition of a Palestinian state earlier this year is crucial to ensuring that Palestinians can rebuild fully. As my hon. Friend said, it is not simply the stopping of violence that counts; it is all the next steps. Efforts must be led by Palestinians across the whole of society. In particular, women need to be actively included throughout reconstruction. They need to be guiding it throughout and not simply be an afterthought. This window of time could not be more important. Recent history should remind us that what is meant to be temporary can often become entrenched. Israel’s occupation of the west bank has lasted 50 years.
18 Nov 2025 · Vale View Day Centre, Lancaster · Hansard source
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I present a petition in the same terms as my hon. Friend the Member for Lancaster and Wyre (Cat Smith), who has worked so hard to protect care facilities in our area. My constituents really value the services provided by Vale View day centre, which provides a safe and caring space for adults who live at home but have care and support needs. Constituents have told me about their spouses, siblings and elderly parents who find joy and friendship at Vale View. The petition states: “The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urge the Government to make representations to Lancashire County Council to protect users of adult social care in Lancashire, and encourage the Council not to close Vale View Day Centre.” Following is the full text of the petition: [The petition of residents of the United Kingdom Declares that Vale View Day Centre provides care and activities for older adults and supports their carers and families by giving carers time for themselves; further notes Lancashire County Council is running a consultation on the future of this service; further declares that this service is deeply valued by local residents across North Lancashire as reflected by comments in local media. The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urge the Government to make representations to Lancashire County Council to protect users of adult social care in Lancashire, and encourage the Council not to close Vale View Day Centre. And the petitioners remain, etc.] [P003132]
17 Nov 2025 · Small Modular Nuclear Reactor Power Station: Wylfa · Hansard source
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My constituency hosts Heysham 1 and 2 nuclear power stations, and provides the cleanest energy of any UK constituency, so obviously I am keen that Heysham continues to be part of our golden nuclear future. Is the Minister, like me, eagerly awaiting the report of the regulatory review—particularly on the outdated semi-urban population density criteria—and will he work with me to ensure that the benefits of the Heysham site are known across the industry?
17 Nov 2025 · Illegal Waste: Organised Crime · Hansard source
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My constituents are quite rightly appalled by fly-tipping. It is a particular problem in the west end of Morecambe, but it also affects the beautiful countryside in my area. What action are the Government taking to tackle this appalling crime?
4 Nov 2025 · Supporting High Streets · Hansard source
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Will the right hon. Gentleman give way?
4 Nov 2025 · Supporting High Streets · Hansard source
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Will the right hon. Gentleman give way?

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