Speeches and Articles - Hilary Benn - Member of Parliament for Leeds Central

Hilary’s Article for South Leeds Life- April 2019

A couple of weeks ago, I attended the climate emergency rally on the steps of Leeds Town Hall. There were hundreds of school students there from across our city. They had decided to come together to speak as the next generation about the huge risks of dangerous climate change. Ever…

Hilary’s Article for South Leeds Life – March 2019

First of all, some good news. Royal Mail has dropped its proposal to close the Holbeck delivery office. I was delighted, if to tell the truth a little surprised, when I heard news, but this has been a wonderful victory for local residents and Royal Mail staff. They ran such…

Hilary’s Article for South Leeds Life – February 2019

A journalist asked me the other day how my constituents are feeling about Brexit. I replied that judging by my inbox they are pretty much split down the middle. On the one hand, people say ‘I just want out’ while on the other people plead ‘Can’t you stop Brexit?’ And…

Hilary’s Article for South Leeds Life – December 2018

Between April and September this year, the Trussell Trust – the UK’s largest emergency food provider – gave 658,048 food parcels to people in crisis. If someone had suggested, say, 40 years ago that so many of our fellow citizens would need to go up to a complete stranger and…

Hilary’s Article for the Yorkshire Evening Post

Nowadays, barely an advice surgery of mine goes by without someone asking for help with their personal independence payment (PIP). PIP has replaced the old disability living allowance and as a result many people are going through new assessments. Mainly, people come about decisions to refuse them PIP or to…

Britain and the World after Brexit

It is a great honour to have been invited to give this the third Harold Wilson Memorial lecture here at the University of Bradford with which he had such a long and close association. Little did I know when, as an 11 year-old, I attended a Labour Party rally in…

Hilary’s Article for South Leeds Life – November 2018

It is sadly all too common in our big cities these days, Leeds included, to see people sitting on the ground asking for money or huddled up against the cold sleeping in doorways. Homelessness is on the increase, but the vast majority of people affected contact their local council to…

Hilary’s Article for South Leeds Life – September 2018

Last Saturday, I went to Leeds station to talk to the guards who are in dispute with Northern Rail over their future role. They are opposing driver-only operation and campaigning in support of keeping guards on the trains. I think they are right to be doing so for many reasons,…

Hilary’s Article for the Yorkshire Evening Post

When Parliament returns next week, Brexit will continue to dominate British politics and all our futures. It’s not hard to see why. The stakes are high, much is still to be decided and time is running out. And that’s why there is now more talk about the possibility of leaving…

Hilary’s Article for South Leeds Life – August 2018

We are told that unemployment is at a 40 year low and yet demand for food banks in South Leeds has never been higher. How can this be? There are lots of reasons, so let’s look at each of them in turn. First, it’s the result of benefit cuts, sanctions…

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