At the Science and Technology Committee this morning, Darren tried to hold the outgoing Minister for Science and Boris Johnson supporter, Chris Skidmore, to a straight answer on what leaving the EU without a deal will mean for Britain’s research partnerships and R&D spending.
Staff at the Avlon pharmaceuticals plant, which was recently put into administration by its American owners, were promised that should the facility fail, they would be entitled to a full redundancy package – but are now being forced to leave on statutory pay only. This unjust situation can still be avoided if the plant’s former […]
We should all be deeply troubled by Sir Kim Darroch’s resignation as Ambassador to Washington, and by the shameful leak of his private correspondence which preceded it. Sir Kim’s decision came on the back of characteristic childishness from Donald Trump — and thereby marked the first time in modern history that a British ambassador has […]
It’s simply unacceptable that people living near industry in Avonmouth have to put up with a huge increase in flies whenever it warms up. In spite of attempts to tackle the problem at source, for instance by eliminating open-air waste facilities, it’s manifestly not enough. We have to give regulators like the Environment Agency real […]
For patients, NHS staff and other stakeholders, the arcane procurement process can be completely mystifying. In practice, this means less accountability and not enough certainty about the future of service provision locally and their livelihoods. As Darren argued in a Westminster Hall debate secured by Bristol South MP Karin Smyth this afternoon, the process needs […]
Darren has written to the Environment Secretary, Michael Gove, to ask that the Environment Agency be given the additional powers it needs to relocate or close the waste processing facilities responsible for the out-of-control fly population in Avonmouth and surrounding areas.
Despite progress in recent years, Parliament too often feels like a workplace stuck in the last century. It remains an unforgiving environment for working parents, and – as Darren argued in a debate this afternoon – we should be moving forward now with commonsense reforms like expanding proxy voting.
For tens of thousands of people in Bristol North West, and millions more around the country, affordable housing is simply beyond reach. It’s clear that the market has failed — and it’s equally clear that any real solution must begin with an ambitious programme of new council homes. Watch Darren’s contribution in the House of […]
Darren secured a debate in Westminster Hall to discuss the policy and civil liberties implications of recent developments in facial recognition technology. Particularly in the context of the Government’s disappointing biometrics strategy, it’s vital that more is done to ensure that legislation keeps pace with advances in the technology.
Darren has sought a meeting with Nicola Blackwood, the Health and Social Care Minister, to look at doing more to encourage life-saving clinical research into brain tumour treatment and the causes of ME / chronic fatigue syndrome. This builds on conversations with a brain tumour campaigner and Bristol North West constituent, whose research Darren has […]
