Jess Phillips: Thank you, Mr Speaker. “She’s so cute. So sweet. I can’t wait to beat her.” “Can she take a beating?” Those are not my words, but the words of the hon. Member for Burton (Andrew Griffiths) while barraging two of his female constituents with thousands of sexual text messages. Last night, the Leader of the House’s party gave him and the hon. Member for Dover (Charlie Elphicke)...
Jess Phillips: indicated assent.
Jess Phillips: Does the Prime Minister think that going back and changing minutiae about the backstop will actually make any difference to the kind of people on the Government Benches who like to go around calling themselves Aslan and circle around her head caring nothing for this country, only their own position? This backstop rejig can-kicking will make absolutely no difference to those people and they...
Jess Phillips: What steps his Department is taking to support people sleeping rough at Christmas 2018.
Jess Phillips: I thank the Minister for his answer. I wonder whether he could answer me a simple question. I would appreciate a one-word answer, as I am sure Mr Speaker will. The rough sleeping headcount in Birmingham took place last week. The figures are yet to be revealed. Does the Minister think that they will have gone up or down?
Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has been made of the relationship between women’s mental health and experience of violence and abuse.
Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many women are held in immigration detention in the UK.
Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of women in immigration detention.
Jess Phillips: Does the hon. Lady agree that one way we could stop some of these problems with the gap between men and women would be to pay men more to stay off work? If we gave men 90% of their pay for the first six weeks of their baby’s life, as we do with women, it might encourage a different atmosphere. Does she agree?
Jess Phillips: My husband has kids.
Jess Phillips: The Minister is explaining who will get to decide whether we are flexible on this in the future, bit what I do not hear—what I do not hear in any of this Bill—is how we make sure that these changes mean improvements for the people who use these courts. While the judiciary and the people carrying out these functions certainly seem to have a voice in the changes being proposed, in terms of...
Jess Phillips: The hon. Gentleman may well be coming on to this, but I thank him for giving way. I wonder what evidence he wants if evidence from one of the most senior counter-terrorist police officers in our country is not good enough for him. I wonder why he feels that he maybe knows more about these weapons than they do.
Jess Phillips: Does my hon. Friend share my concern about always listening to eminent legal practitioners in the Lords? I am certain that, quite recently, they have made some mistakes.
Jess Phillips: Those of us who have campaigned were expecting to see in the Bill some of the things that have been promised, such as the banning of cross-examination. Senior members of the judiciary have themselves called for that measure, but find that current legislation ties their hands. Given that it is not in this Bill, I am certain that Ministers will tell us that it will be in the domestic abuse Bill...
Jess Phillips: rose—
Jess Phillips: I’m really cross.
Jess Phillips: Will the hon. Gentleman give way?