Speeches by Burton-Sampson.

“Today I want to talk about the wonderful, world-renowned cockling industry in Southend West and Leigh. Forgive me if this sounds a bit niche, but I am sure the House will agree that industries such as cockling are important to all of us in coastal communities—to preserve our heritage and cultural identity, boost touris…”

“Do you have anything to add quickly, Angela or Grainne?”

“Thank you. Does the decline in the use of protection orders in recent years reflect a fall in the risk of girls undergoing FGM? If not, why do you think they have declined? I will come to you, Gill, because you are shaking your head.”

“Grainne, do you have anything to add?”

“Gill or Grainne, do you have different views, or would you like to comment?”

“To finish off we are going to look at FGM protection orders. I will come to you first, Angela, if that is okay. How effective do you think FGM protection orders actually are?”

“Thank you all for being here today. I want to start by listening to you guys and hearing what you think the scale of the challenge with FGM is here in the UK. Perhaps we will go to you first, Grainne, down the line, if that is okay.”

“Thank you both for everything you have shared so far. Within communities, does it tend to be the women who are pushing for their children to have FGM done, or is it the men? Or is it just that the community as a whole almost accepts that this is the way things need to be done?”

“From your experience, Gill, who do you think is better placed to tackle FGM? Is it central Government, is it local authorities, or is it a combination of both?”

“Gill, how would you judge the Government’s role and leadership in tackling FGM?”

“What role do you think both should play?”

“That is helpful. Thank you very much. To come back to you briefly, Grainne, you have talked about some significantly high numbers, and we understand why they are not being reported. From what you know, what percentage of those would you say are taking place here in the UK versus taking place abroad? At what age do you …”

“I thank the Prime Minister for his statement and the outstanding global leadership that he is showing on this issue. I, too, returned from Ukraine last week after five days, and the one consistent message the Ukrainian people I met gave me—from residents to soldiers, and from businesses to politicians—was their immense…”

“I, too, like many hon. Friends and Members across the House, returned from Ukraine only last night, after the monstrous 24-hour journey. I am mentally and physically exhausted after the experiences, and I cannot sum up in five minutes what I experienced—I could talk about it for days, really. I thank my hon. Friend the…”

“My hon. Friend the Member for Edinburgh North and Leith (Tracy Gilbert) must have been thinking the same way as me when she wrote her speech, because, for me, LGBT History Month is always a time to reflect on the past and, at 47, I have a fair bit of past on which I can reflect. Growing up in the ’80s and ’90s, I was a…”

“We understand that the Equality and Human Rights Commission is currently operating with only seven commissioners. That is contrary to the Equality Act 2006, which states that there should be no fewer than 10 and no more than 15 commissioners. What led to its only having seven commissioners, and when can we expect the a…”

“I have a brief supplementary question. Thank you both for coming. Bridget, you obviously have a big brief already with education and, Anneliese, likewise with your brief. Is it working with this almost as an add-on to your existing brief, or do you think it should be a whole brief on its own, separate to the work you a…”

“I thank my hon. Friend the Minister, and of course the Home Secretary, for coming to this place for this statement. None of us in the House can imagine the pain, the suffering and the anger that the Amess family are going through after losing their beloved Sir David: their father and husband. I have met the family, and…”

“That is good to hear, because we have heard reports that sometimes the commission is not quorate because it only has seven, and at times, therefore, it is not able to make decisions. If somebody is not present out of the seven then it causes issues, so it is good to hear that there is a plan to get back up to the level…”

“I am going to push you a little on the timeframes for appointing the new chair, for hopefully getting back up to 10 commissioners and for appointing the Wales and Scotland commissioners. When do you expect to be able to lay out timeframes?”