Speeches by Butler.

“I thank my hon. Friend for his powerful speech, which shows just how important it is that living memory is passed on and why we should continue to have this debate in Parliament.”

“It is a pleasure to take part in this debate and to listen to the powerful testimony from my hon. Friend the Member for Hendon (David Pinto-Duschinsky). Racism and antisemitism is on the rise—that is without a doubt. It is on the rise behind closed doors. It is on the rise on the dark web. It is also hiding in plain si…”

“My constituents in Brent East work extremely hard, and some are able to purchase a smartphone. Yesterday, we heard from the Met that an estimated 64,000 phones were stolen across London in 2023; I think one mobile phone is stolen every four minutes in Westminster. The Met and the Mayor of London are working together to…”

“International Women’s Day falls on 8 March, which is a weekend, so I would imagine that we would have the debate during the week, on the Wednesday or the Thursday—the 6th maybe.”

“Thank you, Chair, and thank you, Committee. In 2016, I was instrumental in ensuring that we had the first International Women’s Day debate on the Floor of the House, and I worked with the then Government to ensure that it happened. Since then, we have had a well-attended debate every year for International Women’s Day.…”

“No problem. I am sure more people will add their name—those 36 came within 24 hours.”

“A big thank you to everyone who has participated in this debate; it has shown Parliament at its best, and it is great to see that there is no real opposition to championing equal pay. It has taken a long time, but we now have a Labour Government and we can deliver it. That is the beauty of having a Labour Government wh…”

“My hon. Friend is absolutely right. If our ambition is to make the workplace fairer and secure it for everybody, we should take the opportunities laid before us. That is one opportunity to ensure that we not only close the gap but make workplaces fairer. There was one case that was easy to identify as a trade union off…”

“I beg to move, That this House has considered pay gaps in the workplace. Thank you, Sir Roger. I wish everybody a happy new year, too, and it is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship. There are multiple pay gaps in the workplace. I have had emails about the age pay gap, size pay gap and accent pay gaps—as a certi…”

“Will the right hon. Member give way?”

“If the hon. Member came into a new job and discovered a £22 billion black hole, I think he would look a bit miserable as well.”

“Yes; that would be great.”

“Thank you, Chair and Committee. Very simply, I would like to have a debate on the Floor of the House with regard to the multiple pay gaps in the workplace. We have already discussed the gender pay gap, but there is an ethnicity pay gap and a disability pay gap. The gender pay gap this year fell two days earlier than pr…”

“Yes, we could do that. Bambos Charalambous made representations.”

“Maybe we should have it in the main Chamber instead.”

“In the short time available I want to say to the survivors and the next of kin—some of whom are here today; some will be watching from home—that I am sorry they have been so severely let down by the previous Government and by their council. I hope that the words of the Deputy Prime Minister today have given some comfor…”

“I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Spen Valley (Kim Leadbeater) for how this debate has been conducted. Yesterday, we buried Tony Warr, a GMB officer and a really good friend. He was diagnosed with prostate cancer. He beat it once, but it took him in the end. Earlier this week, the cancer community lost Nina Lopes. …”

“I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Poplar and Limehouse (Apsana Begum) on securing this debate. Yesterday, I had the pleasure of launching a new report, “Why Should Our Rage Be Tidy? Minoritised Survivors’ Experiences of Mental Health in the Context of Violence-Abuse.” I hope the Minister has a copy—if she do…”

“May I join other Members of the House in sending my condolences to the Prescott family? I used to sit with John when we did the prep for Prime Minister’s questions, and I now wish that I had taken notes of all the rebuttals and lines that did not make the cut, because they would make one hell of a book. My constituents…”

“I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Bishop Auckland (Sam Rushworth) on securing the debate. Madam Deputy Speaker, where is everybody? Nobody is on the Conservative Benches, besides the Opposition Whip. I am surprised to see empty Benches on the Conservative side of the House. I am sure the shadow Secretary of …”