Mark Pritchard MP: speeches

Speeches

• 7 Jan 2026 · Rural Communities · Hansard source

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  It is humid in here. I am grateful to the Minister for giving way. She is talking about important subjects for all our communities, including infrastructure, SMEs and transport. We can differ on who is to be praised or not. On the Government’s legislative priorities—many of these things require legislation or have already had legislative time spent on them—why are the Government going to spend so much time on banning trail hunting? Is she aware that, if that goes through, in Shropshire alone we will likely see the death of at least 300 hounds? That will impact on many rural SMEs. As the Minister has been in the House a very long time, she will know that I have had at least three animal welfare Bills in the House— [ Interruption. ] That was long before the hon. Member for Camborne and Redruth (Perran Moon) even set foot in the Chamber. My record on animal welfare is long and established. Today, I stand up for all the people in the hunts who do not want to destroy all those dogs as well as jobs.

• 7 Jan 2026 · Rural Communities · Hansard source

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  Is the shadow Secretary of State aware of the great concern in Shropshire among the rural community, in particular farmers, that the Government are conflating lethal firearms with shotguns? Of course, shotguns should be controlled, but they are already strictly controlled, and they are a vital part of rural life, especially for farmers controlling vermin, or those undertaking other rural pursuits. I appeal, through the shadow Secretary of State, to the Minister to look again and disregard the consultation. The changes have not been called for and are unnecessary.

• 7 Jan 2026 · Rural Communities · Hansard source

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  Will the Minister give way?

• 7 Jan 2026 · Rural Communities · Hansard source

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  I will vote against it!

• 7 Jan 2026 · Ukraine and Wider Operational Update · Hansard source

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  I welcome the Defence Secretary’s statement today, but I want to press him a little on a vote in Parliament. In his statement—it is pretty much the same wording as the Prime Minister’s, as I would expect—he states that a decision on deployment will be brought to the House “for a debate beforehand and for a vote on that deployment”. That is not the same as having a vote before the deployment. There are very good strategic and military reasons for not making public an immediate, surprise or secret deployment beforehand, but this is a public, planned deployment, as set out in the Paris agreement. It could not be more public than that. Will he commit to a vote in this House before the deployment, and not a debate in the House only? He will know that in 2013—he was in the House; I think he entered Parliament in 1997—the then Prime Minister, now Lord Cameron of somewhere in Oxfordshire — [ Interruption. ] Under Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton in beautiful Oxfordshire, there was a vote, which was lost by 13 votes. As a result, the UK did not deploy RAF support of the Americans into Syria. It is right that the Government get the balance right, and I support what they are doing, although we have to see the detail, but will he commit to a vote before deployment, and not just a debate?

• 16 Dec 2025 · Electoral Resilience · Hansard source

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  I welcome the Rycroft review. In an earlier reply, the Secretary of State said that the role of the Electoral Commission will be in scope. If that is the case, it needs involvement from Opposition parties across the House—earlier in his statement he said that that probably would not happen, but perhaps it should happen with this taskforce, or more widely with the defending democracy taskforce. Given that the shocking case that he refers to started off in the European Parliament, may I invite the Secretary of State and his ministerial colleagues to look at the role of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and the NATO Parliamentary Assembly—I believe I am the only MP in history to have served on all three, although not on the same time, I hasten to add—as well as the UK-EU Parliamentary Partnership Assembly? From my experience, all those have been subject to at least very low-level Belarusian or Russian influence operations.

• 16 Dec 2025 · Africa: New Approach · Hansard source

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  As you will know, Mr Speaker, I have been calling for the Government to publish an Africa strategy for a very long time. Has it been worth the wait? No. Yesterday, we got a written ministerial statement with a new approach—a partnership. It is not a strategy. As has been said, of the 54 nations, 21 are Commonwealth nations. Many years ago, I visited the Foreign Office and met the Africa Minister. He said, “Mark, I want you to tell me about certain countries in Africa.” I said, “The first thing you need to do, Minister, is change the map behind you.” He looked round at a tiny little map—as the Minister knows, the continent is huge. This is a timid, timid, timid approach to Africa; it is rather embarrassing. The Minister and the Government should be doing better.

• 16 Dec 2025 · Planning Reform · Hansard source

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  This is a dark day for Shropshire’s green belt—places like Albrighton and Shifnal in my constituency—for the remaining green belt in the borough of Telford and Wrekin, in places like Preston upon the Weald Moors, Edgmond, Bratton and Church Aston. Another time in this place, the Minister referenced the number of local authority voids—both Conservative and Labour, to be fair—and voids held by social landlords. What more can be done to release those voids so that we can take the pressure off Shropshire’s green belt?

• 15 Dec 2025 · Online Safety Act 2023: Repeal · Hansard source

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  Before we continue, could I ask that everybody has their phone on silent, please?

• 15 Dec 2025 · Online Safety Act 2023: Repeal · Hansard source

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  I remind colleagues that if they wish to speak, they should bob—quite a few colleagues are bobbing already, so thank you for that.

• 15 Dec 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T3. The Defence Secretary says that this country should get on a war footing, but the UK currently has no comprehensive anti-hypersonic, anti-ballistic missile defence system. Given the threats from Russia and elsewhere and their capabilities, that means that all our constituents, whether they vote Labour or Conservative, are defenceless, and that this country, frankly, is a sitting duck.

• 10 Dec 2025 · Conduct of the Chancellor of the Exchequer · Hansard source

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  We heard from Labour Back Benchers about the previous Government’s borrowing, but that was for the country as a whole—for example, covid recovery loans. We have seen with this Budget what I would call career recovery loans, which are for the benefit of two people: the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Prime Minister.

• 9 Dec 2025 · Railways Bill · Hansard source

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  I am grateful to the Secretary of State for giving way—she knows I am a huge fan. In that spirit of solidarity, will she join me in supporting the Wrexham, Shropshire & Midlands Railway company’s bid to the Office of Rail and Road for a new service into Shropshire, stopping at important market towns such as Wellington in my constituency? Does she accept that it is not just the big cities and urban centres but rural market towns that need to be included on timetables?

• 9 Dec 2025 · Railways Bill · Hansard source

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  Whether it is in the private sector or the public sector, and whether it was under the last Government or this Government—by the way, the current Government have been in power for 18 months, so all that is wearing a bit thin—passengers, and particularly disabled passengers, just want a railway that works. On that I agree with the Secretary of State. Does my right hon. Friend agree that more needs to be done on step-free access? There is currently very little in the Bill that suggests that more will be done, particularly for rural stations such as Cosford, Shifnal or Albrighton in Shropshire. If it cannot be done at every station, and there is no money for that, there at least needs to be step-free access and improved disability access somewhere along inter-county railway lines.

• 9 Dec 2025 · Grooming Gangs: Independent Inquiry · Hansard source

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  I welcome the Home Secretary’s statement, and associate myself with her reply to the Father of the House. No community, whether ethnic or religious, should be stigmatised as a whole. She mentioned “British Asian” in her statement. May I say that some members of my British Asian Hindu and British Asian Sikh communities are rather fed up with remarks and statements made about generic “British Asians”, both in the media and in this place? I hope that the inquiry will be more definitive and descriptive; she mentioned religion in her statement. As the Home Secretary will know, Telford and Wrekin had its own local inquiry, led by Tom Crowther. Her predecessor, to paraphrase, said that there were still gaps to be filled, after that inquiry. Will she support me in calling for the national inquiry to come back to Telford and Wrekin, to ensure that everything that needs to be done is done? Finally, the Home Secretary mentioned a three-year timetable, taking us to March 2029. Will she give victims, the House and all our constituents a commitment that if there is an election in May 2029 and Prorogation in March 2029—she may be the Labour leader by then—the inquiry will still report?

• 4 Dec 2025 · Dawn Sturgess Inquiry · Hansard source

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  The number of Russian spies operating in the UK is the highest it has been since the cold war—not my words but those of the head of Counter Terrorism Policing. I welcome the sanctions today on the GRU, but the Security Minister will know that the United Kingdom is probably regarded as Russia’s No. 1 enemy—not the United States but the United Kingdom. He will also know that there are other agencies that are operating internationally and have an international footprint, such as the FSB and SVR. While noting and recognising the importance of, shall we say, diplomatic reciprocity, what more can be done, to quote him, to have a “hard operating environment” for both those agencies? Are other Russian political dissidents safe here in the United Kingdom? Finally, on the proliferation of chemical weapons, we know that a chemical agent and a nuclear agent were used in some of the cases outlined today, so given the breakdown in many countries and the security around chemical weapons in those countries—whether in Africa or other parts of the world—how confident is the Minister that the security services are aware of where those chemical weapons might be and where they might be tempted to be deployed?

• 4 Dec 2025 · Camden Nursery Sexual Abuse Case · Hansard source

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  The thoughts of the whole House are with the victims and their families, but will the Secretary of State join me in praising the Metropolitan police team that brought this case to charge—in particular, Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford and his team—and the Crown Prosecution Service? It must have been harrowing for them to investigate the case and bring it to charge. More generally, an estimated half a million children are sexually abused in this country every year. According to the National Crime Agency, 840,000 individuals currently pose a sexual risk to children. Shockingly, there are 400,000 searches a month in this country for child sexual abuse images. This country, while still safer than many, clearly has a problem, and it often starts online. What more can the Government do to ensure that the owners of tech companies, not just the managers, are held to account when they are not taking action against the downloading and viewing of such images? The Secretary of State mentions the child protection authority that might be coming forward. May I encourage her not to move away from the great work that the National Crime Agency is doing? It has done a lot more in this area over recent years and has had a lot of success. It has the resources, the manpower and the technology. I would not want its excellent work to be overshadowed by any new authority. Given that local police forces do not have the resources and are overstretched already, what more can be done at a national level to co-ordinate across police forces in England and Wales, including West Mercia in my area, and with the National Crime Agency so that we can see a reduction in the viewing of these images?

• 4 Dec 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  This House is at its strongest when we work across parties and in the interests of others, be they here in the United Kingdom or overseas. Does the Leader of the House share my concern—one shared across the House—about the democratic backsliding in Georgia? This country wants a close relationship with the Government in Tbilisi, and to re-engage on the Wardrop strategic dialogue, but we cannot do so while peaceful protests are being put down by water cannon infused with chemical weapons such as camite. If that is true, as I believe it to be, it could constitute a breach of international law. Will the Leader of the House encourage the Foreign Secretary to come to the House to give a statement on Georgia, and will he put on record his concerns about democratic backsliding there?

• 3 Dec 2025 · Official Secrets Act and Espionage · Hansard source

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  Although I have huge respect for the Security Minister and, indeed, for the hon. Member for Warwick and Leamington (Matt Western) and the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy Committee—I sat on that Committee for five years—is it not the case that this statement actually raises more questions? It is not case closed, as there are questions that are still outstanding. That is because the weakness here is that the Joint Committee does not have access to classified material; only the Intelligence and Security Committee does. Having sat on both Committees, I know there is a stark contrast between the types of witnesses who can be called and what the witnesses can actually say. Given the earlier question, will the Minister now commit to review the memorandum of understanding with the Intelligence and Security Committee to ensure that the right questions can be asked of the right Committee at the right time, so that we can have some definitive conclusions on this whole saga?

• 3 Dec 2025 · Venezuela: US Military · Hansard source

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  I will continue with what has been a bit of a history lesson today. President Reagan had his famous wobble over the Falkland Islands but eventually he came to the right decision, supporting the UK at that time. This issue is about how we liaise with the United States as its closest ally—certainly, in our eyes we are its closest ally; whether it is the same the other way around, let us wait and see. It could be Venezuela today but Cuba tomorrow, and then Haiti and so on and so forth. We need to be candid with the United States, to uphold international law and to encourage our cousins across the water to show restraint, while recognising the need for them to counter the very bad drugs trade going into the United States, which affects crime on the streets in many cities there. Among the potential impacts of this action are the growing malign influence of both China and Russia in the region and how that might affect proximate Commonwealth countries such as Trinidad and Tobago or Guyana. There are unintended consequences from something that the United States might feel is completely legitimate. Finally, there is the issue of whether this legitimises Putin’s actions in Ukraine.

• 27 Nov 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  The A41 in Shropshire has seen many deaths and injuries over many years. It is a very dangerous road. Three years ago, I secured funding, with the help of the Conservative police and crime commissioner, to get average speed cameras put on the road, to reduce injuries and deaths. Unfortunately, Liberal Democrat-led Shropshire council and Labour-led Telford and Wrekin council have effectively vetoed that plan, saying that there is no case. Putting party politics aside, will the Leader of the House allow time for a debate on the issue, so that we can get people working together to reduce injuries and deaths on the A41?

• 27 Nov 2025 · Right to Trial by Jury · Hansard source

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  The Minister is a very distinguished lawyer, so I am surprised to hear her selective interpretation of Magna Carta. She references clause 40 of Magna Carta and the timeliness of access to justice. I accept that, but I encourage her to reread clause 39, which underpins the fundamental rights of all of our constituents. Is this not just the continuation of Labour’s constitutional vandalism?

• 26 Nov 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  Q7. Consequential to President Trump’s misunderstanding of Putin’s assessment going forward into— [ Interruption. ] Apologies, I have completely lost the thread of my question. What a day to do it! I am going to carry on—I am afraid the Prime Minister is not going to get away that easily.Consequential to President Trump’s misunderstanding of Putin’s strategic intent for both Ukraine and Europe is the Prime Minister’s solemn responsibility to keep this country safe. Given the known hypersonic and ballistic missile threat from Russia, and the fact that the United Kingdom has no current counter to that, what is the Prime Minister going to do to keep this country safe from those that have already threatened us?

• 25 Nov 2025 · G20 and Ukraine · Hansard source

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  And will you come back?

• 25 Nov 2025 · G20 and Ukraine · Hansard source

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  I thank the Prime Minister for his statement, but if I may, I will caution him. I understand that the reports referred to by the hon. Member for Leeds Central and Headingley (Alex Sobel) are from a single source—an unnamed US official. I think we might be falling into a trap here, which others want us to fall into, of bouncing the Ukrainians ahead of an arbitrary deadline of Thanksgiving day. We need to ensure that officials and all of us are able to verify sources and corroborate them, even if they are reported in the mainstream media and repeated in the United Kingdom. I believe I am still allowed to ask a question. What reassurance can the Prime Minister give to the people of this country and of Ukraine that President Trump’s very bad 28-point plan will not now be replaced by a bad 19-point plan? We all know from history that Ukraine, Europe, the United Kingdom and even our allies, the United States, will rue the day that we roll over for Putin. If we reward the aggressor, history tells us and we know that they come back for more.