Commons business papers

Contents

Published: Monday 19 October 2020

Early Day Motions tabled on Friday 16 October 2020

Early Day Motions (EDMs) are motions for which no days have been fixed.

The number of signatories includes all members who have added their names in support of the Early Day Motion (EDM), including the Member in charge of the Motion.

EDMs and added names are also published on the EDM database at www.parliament.uk/edm

[R] Indicates that a relevant interest has been declared.

New EDMs

1024Assassination in Malta of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia

Tabled: 16/10/20 Signatories: 2

Sir Peter Bottomley

Caroline Lucas

That this House again condemns the assassination of Maltese investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, who was killed by a car bomb three years ago on 16 October 2017; calls again for full justice for her murder; commends her courageous investigative reporting exposing corruption in Malta and beyond; underscores the importance of protecting the independence and impartiality of the ongoing public inquiry into her assassination; urges Prime Minister Robert Abela to cease efforts to interfere with it; calls on the Maltese government to request a Europol Joint Investigation Team to assist with the case; urges the government of Malta to implement all outstanding recommendations of the 26 June 2019 resolution of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe entitled Daphne Caruana Galizia’s assassination and the rule of law in Malta and beyond: ensuring that the whole truth emerges; notes with concern the fact that Malta has dropped 34 places in Reporters Without Borders' World Press Freedom Index since Caruana Galizia's assassination and is now ranked 81st out of 180 countries; and calls on the government of Malta to take immediate steps to improve the broader press freedom climate in the country.

1025Musselburgh resident receives British Empire Medal for contribution to finance sector

Tabled: 16/10/20 Signatories: 1

Kenny MacAskill

That this House congratulates Christopher Bell on receiving a British Empire Medal for services to the financial sector during covid-19; notes his line of work has supported many who have experienced financial hardship caused by the coronavirus pandemic; understands his role extended beyond providing financial relief and included helping organise and deliver food parcels to those who needed it most and found themselves in difficulty during the coronavirus crisis; thanks Christopher for his dedication to his community and others; and wishes him all the best.

1026East Lothian video game founder awarded CBE

Tabled: 16/10/20 Signatories: 1

Kenny MacAskill

That this House congratulates Chris Van Der Kuhl on being awarded a CBE; notes Mr Van Der Kuhl is the co-founder and chairman of 4J Studios, a video game development studio based in East Linton and Dundee, which produced the hit Minecraft; understands the businesses presence is within East Lothian; commends his dedication, contribution to his local community and beyond; and wishes Chris Van Der Kuhl and his team all the very best in the future.

1027North Berwick RNLI volunteer given British Empire Medal

Tabled: 16/10/20 Signatories: 1

Kenny MacAskill

That this House congratulates North Berwick RNLI volunteer Stewart Auld for over 50 years of service and his recent British Empire Medal award; notes Stewart has been recognised for his many years of commitment and dedication to his local RNLI through the North Berwick Lifeboat Station; recognises his commitment to his community, his fellow team members and volunteers at North Berwick RNLI; and wishes him all the very best for the future.

1028Ceasefire between Armenia and Azerbaijan

Tabled: 16/10/20 Signatories: 1

Sir Peter Bottomley

That this House is deeply concerned at the recent escalation of tensions between the armed forces of Armenia and Azerbaijan; notes with concern the clashes that took place both in the Tavush Province of Armenia and the Tovuz District of Azerbaijan on 12 July 2020, the further skirmishes on 13 July 2020 and, with great concern, the resumption of hostilities along the Nagorno-Karabakh Line of Contact on 27 September 2020 and the resulting military and civilian casualties reported by Armenia and Azerbaijan; and urges the Government to join in the United Nation’s strong condemnation of the conflict and call on both sides to deescalate tensions with the immediate resumption of the May 1994 ceasefire and of meaningful negotiations without delay.

1029G20 Summit in Saudi Arabia and Human Rights

Tabled: 16/10/20 Signatories: 1

Kenny MacAskill

That this House notes that Saudi Arabia currently holds the presidency of the G20 and will be hosting the G20 Summit virtually on 21-22 November 2020; is deeply

concerned about Saudi Arabia’s on-going serious and systematic violations of international human rights and humanitarian law, particularly the crackdown on non-violent activists and critics since Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman came to power in 2017, which includes the arbitrary detention and torture of women human rights defenders and the brutal murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, as well as the apparently indiscriminate and disproportionate airstrikes on civilians and civilian infrastructure by the Saudi-led coalition in the conflict in Yemen which may amount to war crimes; and calls on the Government to publicly and privately urge Saudi Arabia to take concrete steps to improve its human rights record in the lead up to the G20 Summit, including immediately releasing all human rights defenders and prisoners of conscience, providing full accountability for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and ending the war in Yemen, and to reconsider the level of its participation in the Summit if these steps are not taken.

Added Names

Below are EDMs tabled in the last two weeks to which names have been added. Only the first 6 names and any new names are included.

960Support for Learning Service

Tabled: 5/10/20 Signatories: 10

Apsana Begum

Bell Ribeiro-Addy

Mick Whitley

Kate Osborne

Zarah Sultana

John McDonnell

That this House notes that Support for Learning Services provide early intervention, assessment and support for children with SEND from birth to 25, working with families, nurseries and schools to enable all children to be fully included in their local settings and communities and to achieve positive outcomes; further notes that evidence shows that the covid-19 outbreak has hit disabled children and their families disproportionately and deepened inequalities; is therefore concerned at the proposal to reduce Tower Hamlets Support for Learning Service by about 50 percent which will force schools to take on more responsibilities and work; is alarmed that at a time when there is a spike in need, the capacity of schools, central services and local authorities are being undermined by underfunding and cuts; and calls on the Government to immediately increase funding levels for SEND to ensure provision is maintained and expanded where necessary.

972Tackling child food insecurity

Tabled: 6/10/20 Signatories: 14

Robert Halfon

John McDonnell

Mohammad Yasin

Tracey Crouch

Andrew Selous

Holly Mumby-Croft

That this House believes no child should go hungry; welcomes Government action to provide Free School Meals over the school summer holidays; recognises that families are still struggling to afford food, that 11 per cent of parents and 6 per cent of children have directly experienced food insecurity in the last month and that food bank usage is expected to be 61 per cent higher in winter 2020-21 than last year; believes that further action to protect vulnerable children is needed; calls on the Government to implement the recommendations in the National Food Strategy Part 1 to increase the value of and expand eligibility for Healthy Start vouchers, expand eligibility for Free School Meals, and extend the Holiday Activities and Food programme; and notes that alongside minimising child food insecurity these recommendations will also address inequalities, improve the long-term health and resilience of the population, reduce childhood obesity, improve children’s academic performance, support parents to stay in work during the holidays, and ease the strain on the welfare system.

973Justice for Osime Brown

Tabled: 6/10/20 Signatories: 36

Jamie Stone

Wera Hobhouse

Anne McLaughlin

Layla Moran

Clive Lewis

John McDonnell

That this House acknowledges 21-year-old Osime Brown's autism and the behavioural challenges that come with it; further acknowledges the Home Office's plans to deport Osime to Jamaica where he has not lived since he was four years old and has never returned to; notes Osime's mother's words that if they deport him, he'll die; further notes that, although a friend testified that Osime was not directly involved with the crime, Osime is currently in prison where he is self-harming to the point that he has hundreds of scars on his body; recognises the Citizen's Advice Bureau's advice which states that if one is detained despite being vulnerable, one should apply for bail; calls on the Government to acknowledge Osime's autism, dyslexia, learning disabilities, and PTSD; further calls on the Government to release Osime on bail rather than being moved to a holding facility that is not properly equipped to meet his needs, remove the call for Osime's deportation, and see that Osime finally receives the support he needs for his disabilities.

995All In One Education

Tabled: 12/10/20 Signatories: 16

Amy Callaghan

Chris Law

Patrick Grady

John Nicolson

Martyn Day

Brendan O'Hara

That this House congratulates newly formed charity All In One Education on gaining membership of the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations and achieving charitable status; notes the charity is formed of teachers, campaigners, university and cultural professionals who have come together from across Scotland to address the lack of intersectional teaching in schools across the UK; understands intersectionality refers to the nature of social categorisations such as race, class, gender and ability which create overlapping systems of discrimination in societies; commends All In One Education’s aim to develop free lesson plans for educators and pupils to bring perspectives from BAME, women’s history, LGBTQIA+, differently abled, colonial and other groups to light; recognises the importance of learning social studies from these perspectives in enabling young people to analyse complex issues and engage meaningfully with both their studies and the world they live in; thanks All In One Education for highlighting systemic inequalities and promoting diversity in education; and urges Governments across the UK to do more to support the development of teaching resources with intersectionality at the core.

1001Gift Aid Emergency Relief Campaign

Tabled: 12/10/20 Signatories: 20

Patrick Grady

Chris Law

Sir Mike Penning

Martyn Day

Owen Thompson

Stuart C McDonald

That this House marks the annual Gift Aid Awareness Day which fell on 8 October 2020; appreciates that Gift Aid Relief is the practical application of the long-established principle that donations to charities should not be taxed; recognises that the charitable sector is in the middle of the biggest financial crisis it has ever faced, with huge falls in income at the same time as increased demand for services; considers that a Gift Aid Emergency Relief Package would go a long way to keeping vital charitable services running; calls on the UK Government to increase Gift Aid from 20% to 25% for two years from the start of the 2020-21 tax year; further calls on the UK Government to introduce changes to the Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme to remove barriers for entry to ensure wider access across the voluntary sector and increase the amount that can be claimed from £8,000 to £10,000; and believes that the cost of such measures need not be prohibitive given that the National Audit Office estimates that £560m of eligible Gift Aid is unclaimed each year and that charities are likely to see an overall fall in donations in the current challenging economic circumstances.

1005Hair Discrimination

Tabled: 12/10/20 Signatories: 10

Wera Hobhouse

Bell Ribeiro-Addy

Jamie Stone

Sarah Olney

Ed Davey

Layla Moran

That this House believes that hair policies enforced by schools and employers either officially or unofficially are an all-too-prevalent form of racial discrimination; notes with alarm cases of black children being sent home from school because of their afros, black boys being told to cut off their dreadlocks, black women being turned down for jobs because they wear their hair in braids or cornrows, and black employees being told to chemically straighten their natural hair; calls on the Government to develop new guidance for schools and employers to prevent hair discrimination in policies and practices; further calls on the Government to launch an awareness campaign to help schools and employers understand their obligations not to discriminate in relation to hair, and to help individuals understand how to uphold their rights not to be discriminated against; and urges the Government to conduct a review to determine whether any further changes, including legal changes, are necessary to prevent hair discrimination.

1013Child poverty

Tabled: 14/10/20 Signatories: 20

Apsana Begum

Claudia Webbe

John McDonnell

Jim Shannon

Stephen Farry

Ian Byrne

That this House expresses concern that new child poverty data, published by the End Child Poverty Coalition on 14th October 2020, reveals that more than half of children in some constituencies are living in poverty after housing costs are factored in; notes that the highest rates of child poverty are in London and Birmingham and that there were high levels of children in poverty in working households before the pandemic; and calls for an urgent Government plan to end child poverty including an uprating of housing assistance in line with inflation, retaining the £20 uplift in universal credit introduced at the start of the pandemic, ending the benefit cap and the two-child limit on benefits, investing in all children with an increase to child benefit, and extending free school meals to all families in receipt of universal credit and people with No Recourse to Public Funds.

1016Effect of sodium valproate and foetal valproate syndrome

Tabled: 15/10/20 Signatories: 2

Jon Trickett

Ian Lavery

That this House is concerned that 300 children every year are born with foetal valproate syndrome as a result of the drug sodium valproate being prescribed to women during pregnancy; expresses shock that between 1973 and 2016 no explanation of side effects linked to the drug, such as kidney and heart malformations in children, were provided to these pregnant women before they were prescribed sodium valproate; notes that despite the introduction of a Valproate Toolkit in 2016 to provide information about the drug to patients and healthcare professionals, the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review of July 2020 found that women are still becoming pregnant while on Sodium Valproate without any knowledge of the risks; pays tribute to the work of the Independent Foetal Anti-Convulsant Trust for its work raising awareness of this issue; and calls on the Government to apologise to the thousands of families affected and to immediately establish a task force in order to implement the recommendations of the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review 2020 in full.

1022Drug deaths

Tabled: 15/10/20 Signatories: 3

Grahame Morris

Ian Lavery

Jeremy Corbyn

That this House is concerned that deaths related to drug poisoning registered in England and Wales rose to a record 4,393 in 2019; notes that two-thirds of drug poisonings are due to drug misuse; further notes that half of the deaths involved an opiate, although cocaine deaths are also rising at an alarming rate; recognises that the highest death rates are in areas suffering greatest deprivation; and calls on the Government to tackle the problem through immediate increased investment in treatment services, encouragement of harm reduction initiatives and expansion of opiate-overdose antidote Naloxone provision.