Speeches by Richards.

“My hon. Friend is absolutely right to raise the shocking situation in our Crown courts and civil courts that the Government inherited from the Conservative party. We must take action. That is why my hon. and learned Friend the Minister for Courts and Legal Services will be setting out a wide-ranging package that will g…”

“I had the great pleasure of hearing the right hon. Member’s contributions on Report and in Committee on the Sentencing Bill. I remind him, as I did then, that we inherited a prison system on the brink of collapse. The worst way to fail victims would be to have no prison places, and to be unable to keep the worst offend…”

“We will not take any lessons about violence against women and girls from the Conservatives. Prosecutions for rape went down under the last Conservative Government, but we are taking action to protect women and girls. I will repeat this point: the scenario we faced last summer was that when those who committed the worst…”

“We are enhancing security measures and easing crowding to curb violence and improve safety in prisons, as well as looking at measures to improve meaningful activity to increase welfare. We are investing around £15 million in protective equipment to help keep frontline staff working in prisons safe, including expanding …”

“The HM Prison and Probation Service prisoner escort and custody services team ensures that Serco meets its contract obligations and takes action when it falls short. Delays at Bournemouth courts are often caused by issues across the wider criminal justice system. The contract management team continue to work closely wi…”

“I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising that important case, which is very much on the radar of the Ministry of Justice. I will raise the issue personally with the Minister of State for Prisons, Probation and Reducing Reoffending in the other place. I am personally committed to this issue, and I will visit Lowdham …”

“The hon. Member raises an important point. The Sentencing Bill will hopefully receive Royal Assent next year, and there are certainly operational challenges to ensure that those reforms and changes to sentencing in our prison system work smoothly. One of the major measures in the Bill, which the Conservative party oppo…”

“That might be a question for Home Office colleagues to respond to, but I will look into it, and if I can respond, I certainly will. Question put and agreed to.”

“I am grateful for the hon. Member’s support for these provisions. I will write to him with an update on the specific measure that he mentioned and whether that work will be completed by the end of the year—I do not have that information today, but I will make sure that I formally respond. I also thank him for his comme…”

“I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the draft Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2025. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Lewell. Before I set out the effect of the statutory instrument, it may be helpful if I first explain the legislatio…”

“I am grateful for my right hon. Friend’s intervention. My point about the passage of time was not me being flippant about this serious issue. The Orgreave events occurred in my constituency, and I am pleased that this Labour Government have launched a public inquiry. I will not comment from the Dispatch Box on individu…”

“I take the suggestion seriously. As I have said on document disclosure, which I think is the first step for the campaign, and in my hon. Friend getting what she is seeking, tomorrow morning I will go to my Department and looking at this issue again. Her speech, this campaign and the Adjournment debate have meant that w…”

“I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Liverpool Riverside (Kim Johnson) on securing this debate, and on her characteristically powerful speech on this important issue. I join her in praising all the campaigners, and in particular the 37 whose names she read out. I also declare an interest as a proud member of th…”

“I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Altrincham and Sale West (Mr Rand) on securing this important debate. I would like to start by sending my sympathies to the family of Paula Leeson and responding to Neville, who spoke in this Chamber through his MP, by telling him that he is not alone; he has a fine champion…”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr Murrison. I pay tribute to the hon. Member for South Leicestershire (Alberto Costa) for securing this important debate and raising this critical issue on behalf of his constituents and us all. I start, where we all should, by recognising the appalling crimes of doub…”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Roger. We are here to debate whether to review the penalties for social media posts, as put forward by the hon. Member for Great Yarmouth (Rupert Lowe). Freedom of expression is a cornerstone of our democracy, but so too is the right of every citizen to live free f…”

“The shadow Minister is completely incorrect. The Conservative party’s current proposals are not what was in place before the Sentencing Council was established. They propose to bring the sentencing of every type of criminal case into the Executive. That is a completely new, innovative and wholly dangerous proposal that…”

“My hon. Friend makes an important point. Technology and social media have become more complex and difficult, but that does not mean we should shy away from attempting to ensure the principles that we hold so dear, including democracy. I will deal with that important point later in my speech. This Government are committ…”

“In line with our Welsh language scheme, His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service offers prisoners, people on probation and members of the public the right to choose whether to use English or Welsh in their dealings with us. We recognise that enabling prisoners to use their preferred language is a matter of good pract…”

“It is right that the Probation Service takes those facilities and premises incredibly seriously. We are investing more in probation than ever before—£750 million, a 45% increase—to fix a service that was utterly dismantled by the last Conservative Government, so I hope that the hon. Gentleman’s constituents are reassur…”