Latest news with #RebeccaPaul
BBC News
16-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
SEND support services across Surrey are in crisis, MPs say
MPs have described special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) services in Surrey as being in "crisis".Conservatives Greg Stafford and Rebecca Paul and Liberal Democrat Al Pinkerton took part in a debate in Parliament on McKinnell, minister for school standards, said improving the system was a priority for the government, but that it was a "huge challenge".A spokesperson for Surrey County Council (SCC) said: "We welcome reform of the SEND system," adding: "Additional funding is needed urgently." Surrey Heath MP Pinkerton said, since taking office last year, SEND had been "the single biggest issue" that people had emailed him about, including problems with education health and care plans (EHCPs)."Right now, I have over 140 active cases involving children with special educational needs, many because SCC has issued EHCPs in the wrong name, describing the wrong condition and offering the wrong and inappropriate packages of support," he said."Over the past three years, Surrey has had the highest number of tribunal appeals anywhere in the country."The spokesperson for Surrey County Council responded: "We strongly refute any accusations that the council has hidden or misrepresented tribunal or complaints data. Surrey County Council is fully transparent in its reporting around complaints data." Farnham and Bordon MP Stafford, who is vice chairman of the all party parliamentary group on SEND, said the system was "stretched to the point of failure, where vulnerable children are paying the price"."In my first year as an MP, I've taken up 98 SEND cases, but I accept that's just the tip of the iceberg in my constituency," he said."That includes a family whose son's autism assessment is so delayed he'll finish school before he gets the help he needs, and another is spending over £10,000 on tribunal proceedings."This isn't a system, it's a fight, and families are losing." Reigate MP Rebecca Paul, who is also a county councillor, said children were not getting the support they were entitled to and that services were in "crisis"."Parents battling to secure much needed support for their child to thrive, yet facing incompetence and fundamental misunderstandings of the law by the council, carers forced to give up work to stay at home with their child whilst they languish without school provision, families driven to the brink of despair by the adversarial system - these issues must be addressed and fast, for the sake of our children and their loved ones," she said: "I think we have to be really careful to put it into the context of the huge challenge that we are currently facing and dealing with and the absolutely abysmal legacy on this. "It was just put on the 'too difficult' pile for far too long."Jonathan Hulley, SCC cabinet member for children, families and lifelong learning said: "Our investment in building new specialist school places is unprecedented – exceeding £200m – and delivering more than 250 new school places every autumn since 2021, with 4,560 specialist places available from this September. "We're also seeking further investment from our cabinet to increase Surrey SEND case officer numbers from 81 to 111, and we're working hard to improve the quality of EHCPs, relationships and communication with families."
Spectator
19-06-2025
- Health
- Spectator
Poll: public want care home opt out for assisted dying
It's a big day in parliament tomorrow. Both sides of the assisted dying debate are gearing up for a crunch Commons clash when Kim Leadbeater's Bill returns for its Third Reading. One key flashpoint in its recently-completed Report Stage was when Rebecca Paul's amendment to allow hospices to opt out of providing assisted dying was voted down by Leadbeater and 278 other MPs. Now, Mr S has got his hands on some polling which shows that Paul's position is backed by nearly two-thirds of the British public (quelle surprise). According to a Whitestone Insights poll of 2,091 adults commissioned by the Scottish Council on Human Bioethics, 64 per cent of the general public agree that 'if assisted suicide were introduced in the UK, hospices and care homes should have a legal right to opt out of participating in it', with only 14 per cent disagreeing. Polling was conducted between 4 and 5 June. When 'don't knows' are removed, this figure jumps to 82 per cent of the public who think there should be a legal opt-out. The leader of the Catholic Church in England and Wales has already warned that dozens of hospices and care homes could be forced to close if MPs approve the Bill tomorrow. Over to the House of Commons…
Time of India
18-06-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
UK parliament votes to decriminalise abortion, repeal Victorian-era law
London: Britain's parliament voted on Tuesday to decriminalise abortion in England and Wales to stop a growing number of women from being investigated by police for terminating pregnancies under legislation dating back to the mid-19th century. Abortions have been legal in England and Wales for almost 60 years but only up to 24 weeks and with the approval of two doctors. Women can face criminal charges if they decide to end a pregnancy after 24 weeks under a Victorian-era law that carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. In Britain, criminal convictions for breaking this law are rare, but the number of prosecutions has increased following the COVID-19 pandemic when a change in the law allowed abortion pills to be taken at home to end pregnancies within 10 weeks of conception. In a free vote in parliament, when politicians were not ordered to vote along party lines, lawmakers gave an initial approval by 379 votes to 137 for an amendment to stop prosecutions for women who end pregnancies in all circumstances. Medical professionals who assist women in obtaining an abortion outside the 24-week limit could still face prosecution. The proposal could still be altered or even voted down as it is a part of a greater bill that is making its way through the House of Commons and the unelected upper chamber of parliament. Labour Member of Parliament Tonia Antoniazzi, who proposed the amendment, said the current law had been used to investigate 100 women in the last five years, including some who had given birth prematurely or had been forced into abortions by abusive partners. "Each one of these cases is a travesty enabled by our outdated abortion law," she told parliament. "This is not justice, it is cruelty and it has got to end." The vote was part of a broader government criminal justice bill that if passed in its entirety would bring the abortion laws in England and Wales in line with other Western countries including France, Canada and Australia. 'NO CONSEQUENCES' Some politicians warned the proposed amendment was being rushed through parliament and could have unintended consequences. Rebecca Paul, a Conservative member of parliament, warned "if this becomes law, fully developed babies up to term could be aborted by a woman with no consequences." The amendment would revoke parts of a law passed in 1861 by a then all-male parliament that made deliberately ending a pregnancy a crime and stipulated that those who carried it out could be "kept in penal servitude for life". A change to the law in 1967 permitted abortions in certain circumstances, but left the 19th century criminal prohibition in place. Between 1861 and 2022, only three women in Britain were convicted of having illegal abortions, according to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, which works to improve women's healthcare. But since then, six women have been charged by police, the group said. One woman has been jailed. In May, a British woman, Nicola Packer, was acquitted after taking prescribed abortion medicine when she was around 26 weeks pregnant, beyond the legal limit of 10 weeks for taking such medication at home.
Indian Express
17-06-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
UK parliament votes to decriminalise abortion, repeal Victorian-era law
Britain's parliament voted on Tuesday to decriminalise abortion in England and Wales to stop a growing number of women from being investigated by police for terminating pregnancies under legislation dating back to the mid-19th century. Abortions have been legal in England and Wales for almost 60 years but only up to 24 weeks and with the approval of two doctors. Women can face criminal charges if they decide to end a pregnancy after 24 weeks under a Victorian-era law that carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. In Britain, criminal convictions for breaking this law are rare, but the number of prosecutions has increased following the Covid-19 pandemic when a change in the law allowed abortion pills to be taken at home to end pregnancies within 10 weeks of conception. In a free vote in parliament, when politicians were not ordered to vote along party lines, lawmakers gave an initial approval by 379 votes to 137 for an amendment to stop prosecutions for women who end pregnancies in all circumstances. Medical professionals who assist women in obtaining an abortion outside the 24-week limit could still face prosecution. The proposal could still be altered or even voted down as it is a part of a greater bill that is making its way through the House of Commons and the unelected upper chamber of parliament. Labour Member of Parliament Tonia Antoniazzi, who proposed the amendment, said the current law had been used to investigate 100 women in the last five years, including some who had given birth prematurely or had been forced into abortions by abusive partners. 'Each one of these cases is a travesty enabled by our outdated abortion law,' she told parliament. 'This is not justice, it is cruelty and it has got to end.' The vote was part of a broader government criminal justice bill that if passed in its entirety would bring the abortion laws in England and Wales in line with other Western countries including France, Canada and Australia. Some politicians warned the proposed amendment was being rushed through parliament and could have unintended consequences. Rebecca Paul, a Conservative member of parliament, warned 'if this becomes law, fully developed babies up to term could be aborted by a woman with no consequences.' The amendment would revoke parts of a law passed in 1861 by a then all-male parliament that made deliberately ending a pregnancy a crime and stipulated that those who carried it out could be 'kept in penal servitude for life'. A change to the law in 1967 permitted abortions in certain circumstances, but left the 19th century criminal prohibition in place. Between 1861 and 2022, only three women in Britain were convicted of having illegal abortions, according to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, which works to improve women's healthcare. But since then, six women have been charged by police, the group said. One woman has been jailed. In May, a British woman, Nicola Packer, was acquitted after taking prescribed abortion medicine when she was around 26 weeks pregnant, beyond the legal limit of 10 weeks for taking such medication at home. The 45-year-old told jurors during her trial, which came after a four-year police investigation, that she did not realise she had been pregnant for so long.
BBC News
21-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Redhill community pub The Garibaldi fundraising to buy its site
A community pub in Redhill is continuing to raise funds to purchase its 150-year-old Garibaldi, run on a non-profit basis by volunteers, currently leases its building but has been raising funds to buy the site since 2024, when its owner opted to sell the MP Rebecca Paul praised the "amazing" pub during a House of Commons debate on Monday but warned it was "now at risk" if it could not complete the purchase."Rather ironically, the pub is so much more than bricks and mortar but it needs to buy the bricks and mortar if it is to survive," she said. The community group that has operated the pub since 2017 held an event in May as part of its fundraising told MPs "every bit of profit The Garibaldi makes gets ploughed back into things that benefit the community" and the pub "gives back to the community in so many ways".The Garibaldi was "doing a sterling job of trying to raise the money", the MP bar hosts regular social events and its outdoor space is now a community garden managed by to Paul's comments, minister Alex Norris said he was "very interested in meeting" the MP to discuss what support the government could give The Garibaldi.
