Yvette Cooper MP: speeches

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Speeches

14 Jul 2025 · UK-France Migration: Co-operation · Hansard source
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I am not fully sure about the logic of the hon. Member’s argument. She seems to be arguing that if the scheme works, it will not work.
7 Jul 2025 · Small Boat Crossings · Hansard source
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My hon. Friend is right to refer both to returns—we have increased returns of failed asylum seekers by more than 20% since the election—and to the action against the criminal gangs. We know that there are Iraqi Kurdish gangs in particular operating in northern France, so we have a new agreement in place with the French Government, the Iraqi Government and the Kurdistan Regional Government, to pursue those gangs.
7 Jul 2025 · Small Boat Crossings · Hansard source
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I agree with the right hon. Member that we need stronger action to prevent the boat crossings in the first place, which is why we are working closely with France both on strengthening law enforcement, with a new law enforcement and investigations unit in Dunkirk, and on the issues of maritime tactics, because we need those interventions in French waters.
7 Jul 2025 · Small Boat Crossings · Hansard source
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Small boat crossings undermine border security and put lives at risk. The criminal gangs have adapted their tactics to exploit French rules that prevent the authorities from intervening in French waters. The French Minister of the Interior and I agree that this needs to change. He has instigated a major maritime review to change tactics and operations, and we want to see these changes in place as soon as possible.
7 Jul 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source
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My hon. Friend is right that we need the additional neighbourhood policing in West Yorkshire. I welcome the 12 additional officers in her constituency, the 100 additional neighbourhood police officers across West Yorkshire and, of course, the additional police officers in Pontefract and Castleford town centres. We have made it clear to police forces across the country that the focus this summer needs to be on tackling town centre crime.
7 Jul 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source
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As the hon. Member will know, decisions about where police stations are located are for the local force, the chief constable and the police and crime commissioner. She will welcome the news that Hampshire is getting 65 additional neighbourhood police officers, who will be out on the beat this year as a result of the Government’s neighbourhood policing guarantee.
7 Jul 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source
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As the shadow Home Secretary knows, the police’s oath makes it clear that they have to police without fear or favour, and that is what they do right across the country. It is a shame that he will not support the police in the difficult job that they do, just as the Conservatives voted against cracking down on off-road bikes, against new spiking and stalking laws, and against respect orders. They are against supporting our police.
7 Jul 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source
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The shadow Home Secretary seems to have forgotten that in the short period for which he was immigration Minister, net migration near-trebled and the number of small boats went up tenfold. Not only that, but the funding for France that he has referred to was agreed by his Government when he was at the Home Office. If he really wanted to see serious action against small boats, why did he vote against counter-terror powers for smuggler gangs, against clamping down on illegal working in the gig economy, and against stronger action to stop those dangerous crossings?
7 Jul 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source
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My hon. Friend is a passionate advocate for policing in her constituency. I hope she will welcome the increase for the west midlands of over 300 neighbourhood police officers and PCSOs. It comes at a time when we are putting 3,000 more neighbourhood police on the beat. We are also bringing in: new laws on off-road bikes and town centre crime; a ban on machetes, zombie knives and ninja swords; domestic abuse experts in 999 control rooms; and new protections against terrorism for venues. That is action across the board to keep our communities safe.
7 Jul 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source
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On 7 July 2005, terrorists attacked London’s transport network at King’s Cross, Russell Square, Edgware Road, Aldgate and Tavistock Square. Fifty-two people, who were travelling by tube and bus across the capital, never came home. We remember them and the loved ones they left behind, and all those who faced terrible injuries and endured the trauma of that day, and we remember the incredible bravery and courage of those who responded—the emergency service workers and the fellow passengers who saved lives that day. In the words of the King, this was an act of senseless evil, but he also reminds us that we must “remember the countless stories of extraordinary courage and compassion” as “the very best of humanity in the face of the very worst.” I want to thank not just those who responded that day but those who have continued to work tirelessly in the two decades since against Islamist extremist terrorism, against other increasingly complex terror and national security threats, in counter-terror policing, in the security and intelligence agencies, and on prevention. Most importantly of all, this is about all of us, as we remember how our capital and our country came together across communities and across faiths to ensure that we never let hatred win.
7 Jul 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source
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We have provided an additional £200 million for neighbourhood policing as part of more than £1 billion of additional funding for police forces across the country. That is how we are putting an additional 3,000 neighbourhood police officers and police community support officers on our streets this year, after the decimation of neighbourhood policing under the Conservatives.
7 Jul 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source
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I agree with the right hon. Member that we need to take action on a whole range of things. That includes action in France, further action on the network of criminal gangs, action on the water, and action to tackle illegal working and reform the asylum system in the UK. We inherited a system in which there was not enough action on illegal working; that is why we have ensured a 50% increase in raids and arrests. We will also bring forward more reforms on asylum.
7 Jul 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source
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My hon. Friend is right. That sort of graffiti and serious hate crime divides communities and needs to be taken seriously by police across the country. It is one of the reasons we are strengthening the law to give the police stronger powers to prevent intimidating protests around not just synagogues but mosques.
7 Jul 2025 · Neighbourhood Policing · Hansard source
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The Committee Chair is right that live facial recognition can play a role in keeping communities safe. As a result, the Minister for Policing has been meeting not just police forces but other organisations to ensure that we can draw up a new framework to give all police forces the confidence to use facial recognition in the best way in order to keep communities safe.
7 Jul 2025 · Neighbourhood Policing · Hansard source
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My hon. Friend is right, and he and I have talked to shop managers in his constituency about the importance of tackling town centre crime. It is why Lancashire police are getting an additional 83 police officers and PCSOs into neighbourhood teams this year. I strongly welcome the work they are doing as part of the Government’s safer streets summer initiative to tackle shop theft and street assaults; doing so can make so much difference to keeping people safe.
7 Jul 2025 · Neighbourhood Policing · Hansard source
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I join you, Mr Speaker, in remembering the 52 people who never came home on that terrible day, as we remember the 20th anniversary of the 7/7 London terrorist attacks, and remember too all those whose lives were changed that day. I will say more on this matter during topicals. The Government are rebuilding neighbourhood policing after it was decimated under the previous Government. This year we are putting 3,000 more neighbourhood police and police community support officers back on the beat, backed by £200 million of additional funding and detailed plans drawn up by police forces for increased patrols in town centres this summer.
7 Jul 2025 · Neighbourhood Policing · Hansard source
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My hon. Friend makes an important point. We want to see standards raised across policing and across all police forces. That is why the police reform White Paper will set out new measures to improve performance management across all police forces. Warwickshire is getting an additional 22 police officers, PCSOs and specials on to the streets.
7 Jul 2025 · Neighbourhood Policing · Hansard source
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The hon. Member is right to highlight the appalling increase in antisemitism, antisemitic hate crime and assaults that took place after the events in the middle east. She will know that, in order to tackle antisemitism, we and the police work very closely with the Community Security Trust and we are introducing new measures to deal with intimidating protests outside synagogues.
7 Jul 2025 · Neighbourhood Policing · Hansard source
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Unfortunately, the trouble is that actually the Conservatives did not put police on the streets. They may have tried to reverse the massive cuts that they had made to policing after 2010, but they did not put police on the streets. Neighbourhood policing was slashed under the Conservatives and some areas saw neighbourhood policing halve as a result. I am glad to say that this year the Metropolitan police will put 470 additional neighbourhood police on the streets, as a result of the support that they have been given.
7 Jul 2025 · Neighbourhood Policing · Hansard source
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I should point out to the hon. Gentleman that police forces are following the guidance that the shadow Home Secretary, the right hon. Member for Croydon South (Chris Philp), drew up on this issue. We have a review that is happening under the College of Policing at the moment, but the shadow Minister refers to the Crime and Policing Bill, which is introducing new measures on stalking, spiking, respect orders, e-bikes, off-road bikes and a whole serious of different issues, and which sadly the Conservatives voted against—so much for caring about tackling crime.
7 Jul 2025 · Neighbourhood Policing · Hansard source
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I welcome the hon. Member’s point about specials. They play an extremely important role and the drop in the number of specials across the country in the years before the ones to which she refers was even steeper. I am pleased that Sussex police are getting not just 43 additional neighbourhood police officers, but a further 21 specials into neighbourhood teams this year. We will continue to look at what more we can do to increase support for specials and get more on the beat.
7 Jul 2025 · Neighbourhood Policing: Leigh and Atherton · Hansard source
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The Government are introducing a neighbourhood policing guarantee, which means that all communities will have named and contactable officers from the end of this month, and we are expanding neighbourhood policing, including by delivering 176 new neighbourhood officers this year for the Greater Manchester police force, which covers the Leigh and Atherton constituency.
7 Jul 2025 · Neighbourhood Policing: Leigh and Atherton · Hansard source
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I will certainly join my hon. Friend in thanking shop workers in her constituency and right across the country, who were often on the frontline during the covid pandemic. Sadly, during that period and since then, they have seen a disgraceful increase in assaults and abuse. We cannot stand for that, which is why we are not only introducing stronger neighbourhood policing—particularly in town centres—but bringing in the new law on assaults against shop workers as part of the Crime and Policing Bill. What a shame the Conservative party voted against it.
16 Jun 2025 · Child Sexual Exploitation: Casey Report · Hansard source
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May I welcome my hon. Friend’s points that she makes about the anger in her community and the anger across British Muslim communities towards the grooming gangs, towards the rape of children and towards these appalling crimes? She has long called for work, including stronger action from the police to be able to go after perpetrators and bring them to justice. She is right that the horror at crimes committed against children and in particular against young girls is shared across communities. It is in the interests of those children and victim-survivors that we have reforms now.
16 Jun 2025 · Child Sexual Exploitation: Casey Report · Hansard source
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I do not think the Leader of the Opposition can have read the report and seen the seriousness of its conclusions, because it sets out a timeline of failure from 2009 to 2025. Repeated reports and recommendations were not acted on: on child protection, on police investigations, on ethnicity data, on data sharing and on support for victims. For 14 of those 16 years, her party was in government, including years in which she was the Minister for children and families, then the Minister for equalities, covering race and ethnicity issues and violence against women and girls. I did not hear her raise any of these issues until January this year. She will know that the Prime Minister did not just raise them but acted on them: he brought the first prosecutions against grooming gangs and called for action to address ethnicity issues in 2012. She will also know that the safeguarding Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham Yardley (Jess Phillips), and I have raised these issues repeatedly. The Leader of the Opposition referred to Professor Alexis Jay’s independent inquiry into child sexual abuse. I called for that inquiry and strongly supported it, and we wanted it to work on a cross-party basis. We supported its conclusions, but the Leader of the Opposition’s party did absolutely nothing to implement them. Time and again, recommendations just sat on the shelf, and it has taken this Government to bring forward the mandatory duty to report. She says that we should ensure that people who have engaged in cover-ups are prosecuted. I agree, which is why the Labour party is changing the law to make that possible, so that cover-ups cannot happen and people are held to account. The Leader of the Opposition also knows that in the vote she referred to, what she wanted to do—the amendment she tabled—would have wrecked the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. That Bill includes two of Baroness Casey’s recommendations to strengthen child protection, recommendations that the Leader of the Opposition and her party refused to introduce over 14 years. I am sorry that she chose not to join in the apology to victims and survivors for decades of failure in 2022. That apology was a cross-party one, which, if she really had victims’ interests and the national interest at heart, it should be again.

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