PARLIAMENTARY DEBATE
Points of Order - 18 May 2026 (Commons/Commons Chamber)

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. I seek your guidance on a long-established convention of this House that Members notify other Members when they intend to visit another Member’s constituency in an official or political capacity. Over the weekend, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, the right hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Ed Davey), together with two of his parliamentary colleagues and a Member from the Labour party, undertook engagements in the Farnham and Tilford parts of my constituency. No notification of any of these visits was received by my office. Given that the leader of the Liberal Democrats is frequently vocal on questions of standards, rules and propriety in public life, could you advise me on whether it is consistent with the expectations of this House that such a convention appears not to have been observed on this occasion, and in light of the fact that this concern relates directly to Members across the House—

Order. Do not overstretch your point of order. You want a good answer, not a bad one.

I reiterate once again that I do not care whether you are the leader of a party, the Prime Minister, a Back Bencher, or even a possible future Prime Minister; whoever you are, you must observe the due courtesies and let the Member concerned know, unless you are on private business. The courtesies of the House must be upheld. I do not care who you are—do that. We wanted a new beginning; this is a bad start. I am sure that the leader of the Liberal Democrats is already sending a letter to the hon. Member for Farnham and Bordon (Gregory Stafford), or it might be stuck in the computer somewhere. I am not going to make that judgment call.

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Have you received any notice of a statement from the Government following the interception today by Israeli forces of more than 50 boats carrying aid for Gaza in international waters west of Cyprus? There are UK citizens on these vessels, including my constituent Chris Hill from Clwt-y-Bont near Caernarfon. Can you advise me on how UK citizens’ right to provide humanitarian aid and their right to freedom of navigation in international waters can be guaranteed in this case—as well as, of course, their right to immediate and unimpeded access to British consular officials?

I thank the right hon. Lady for giving me notice of her point of order. As she might expect, I have received no notice of a statement on this matter, but Government Front Benchers will have heard her concern. She is an experienced Member and knows there are many opportunities for her to raise this matter on behalf of her constituents. If she requires further advice, she could consult the Clerks in the Table Office, but I certainly know this will not be the end of it. Who knows, an urgent question may be an option—with no guarantees.