Early Day Motions

Retirement of the Countess of Mar as Chair of Forward-ME

That this House marks the retirement of the Countess of Mar as the Founding Chair of Forward-ME; congratulates her on the success of Forward-ME which was established in 2008 to promote effective joint working between charities and organisations in order to maximise impact on behalf of people with My

Solar industry's reliance on Uyghur forced labour

That this House notes the new academic report detailing the widespread use of Uyghur forced labour within the solar industry; expresses serious concern that the Government has not addressed this humanitarian crisis as demand for renewable energy continues to grow worldwide; further notes reports fro

40th anniversary of the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes

That this House recognises that 2021 marks the 40th anniversary of the 1981 International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes; believes that the Code exists to protect all babies, regardless of how they are fed; notes the Code regulates the marketing of breastmilk substitutes which includes

Maggie’s Centres operations during the covid-19 pandemic

That this House congratulates the work of Maggie's Glasgow in providing support to thousands of people with cancer and their loved ones from across the West of Scotland; notes that 2020 was a challenging year for all, but particularly for those suffering from or recently diagnosed with serious illne

Cancer fundraising by Sharyn McInally-Johnston, Helensburgh

That this House acknowledges the extraordinarily selfless action of Helensburgh resident, Sharyn McInally-Johnston, in raising awareness of and helping to raise more than £200,000 to help Nathaniel Nabena, a nine-year-old Nigerian boy who required a life-saving stem cell transplant following the rem

University redundancies

That this House is alarmed at the proposed compulsory redundancies across England’s universities including Leicester, Liverpool, Aston and Chester; is equally concerned by the dozens of additional staff at those institutions who resigned or felt compelled to accept voluntary severance or redundancy;

Torture and enforced disappearance of Bahraini political prisoners

That this House views with serious concern the attack by Bahraini police on political prisoners in Jau Prison on 17 April 2021; condemns the enforced disappearance of over 60 inmates for a period of 19 days after the attack; notes that the attack was in response to a sit-in by inmates protesting det

Welcoming refugees during and post covid-19

That this House recognises that, as the 72th anniversary of the Geneva Convention approaches, there are more refugees, approximately 80 million, than at any other time in history; that they are victims of wars, environmental disasters and climate change, human rights abuses, pandemic and poverty; re

Eurovision song contest

That this House believes that, as the UK has left the European Union, the UK should now leave the Eurovision Song Contest; calls on the BBC to no longer spend licence fee money on an event designed to humiliate the UK; and notes that, if the winning song is to be broadcast on the public airwaves, it

7th International Yoga Day

That this House celebrates the 7th International Day of Yoga, on 21 June 2021, first adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2015 with the unprecedented support of 177 countries; and acknowledges, at a time when the world has been focussed on a global health crisis affecting every nation, the great si

Undisputed world champion Josh Taylor

That this House congratulates East Lothian boxer Josh Taylor on his latest outstanding success in defeating US fighter Jose Ramirez to become undisputed super-lightweight champion of the world; notes that Josh has become only the fifth man, and the first UK fighter, to claim the WBO, WBA, IBF and WB

St Johnstone FC winning the 2021 Scottish Cup Final

That this House wholeheartedly congratulates St Johnstone Football Club on winning the Scottish Cup adding it to the Scottish League Cup already won earlier in the season, making it a historic cup double for the Perth side; congratulates manager Callum Davidson, all the players, Chairman Steve Brown

80th anniversary of the sinking of HMS Hood

That this House notes the 80th anniversary of the sinking of HMS Hood which occurred on 24 May 1941; recognises that only three of her 1,418-strong crew survived the battle in the Denmark Strait; acknowledges that HMS Hood was constructed at John Brown and Company shipyards in Clydebank and launched

Pregnancy and maternity discrimination at work

That this House notes that Government-commissioned research in 2016 by the Equality and Human Rights Commission found disturbingly high levels of pregnancy and maternity discrimination in UK workplaces; further notes the February 2021 conclusion of the Women and Equalities Committee that the Governm

MOT tests and roadside air quality

That this House recognises the challenge to public health caused by roadside air pollution, in particular, fine and ultra-fine combustion generated particles; urges the Government to look to how other countries mitigate harmful levels of air pollution that are prevalent on roads and highways for exa

Welsh red meat exports

That this House notes with concern that the UK Government is currently negotiating tariff-free access for lamb imports from Australia which could undercut Welsh farmers and lamb exporters; welcomes the Prime Minister’s stated support for the Welsh red meat industry, and his comments in Prime Ministe

Fire and rehire

That this House notes with alarm the growing number of employers who are dismissing and re-engaging staff on worse pay and terms and conditions, a practice commonly known as fire and rehire; agrees with the Government that such tactics represent an unacceptable abuse of power by rogue bosses, many o

North Lanarkshire Provost’s Citizenship Award

That this House warmly congratulates Nichola Brown on winning the North Lanarkshire Provost’s Citizenship Award for her outstanding devotion to her community and her years of dedication and commitment to children and young people with additional needs, and their families; notes that this is a well-d

Fire and rehire tactics (No. 2)

That this House notes the continued use of fire and rehire tactics by employers in this country; condemns the actions of the growing number of employers who have forced their staff to choose between accepting a new contract with worse terms and conditions or losing their jobs; calls on the companies

Recognition of Dunbar Lifeboat Crew and their May Day Appeal

That this House pays tribute to the bravery, courage and dedication of Dunbar's Lifeboat Crew; recognises the incredible work of the team of volunteers who throughout the covid pandemic launched the lifeboats 28 times spending 186 hours at sea including during the hours of darkness; commends the cre

East Lothian company wins Scottish Food and Drink Award

That this House congratulates Haddington business, Spice Pots, on winning the spice mixes category at the Scottish Retail Food and Drink Awards; notes, having lived for a time in India, business owner, Melanie Auld, brought the secrets of creating an authentic curry back home to East Lothian; and fu

Hometown Heroes

That this House congratulates the 14 Hometown Heroes who were nominated by the public and selected by the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games as inspiring local champions of community sport; commends Haseebah Abdullah, Naseem Akhtar BEM, Salma Bi BEM, Jeevan Chagger, Ricardo D’Alva, Kirsty Davie, Kev

Rise in child poverty

That this House notes the shameful rise in child poverty across Scotland in new research findings from Loughborough University; calls on the Government to abandon proposals to end the uplift to universal credit, calls on the Scottish Government to increase the proposed amount of the Scottish child p

Fly tipping and community payback

That this House calls on the Secretary of State for Justice to introduce regulations to simplify the court process for the prosecution of fly-tippers; and to introduce community payback sentencing alongside other penalties for fly-tippers to help address the increase in illegal fly tipping.

Proposal for a proportional property tax to replace council tax

That this House supports the Government's proposals to rebalance the economy and promote the levelling up agenda; recognises the urgent need to reform the outdated system of council tax which is almost 30 years old and bears no resemblance to the current disparities of house prices; believes that co