I attended an unusual sitting Friday, where we debated Chris Bryant’s Protect the Protectors legislation at its third reading. This Bill would introduce stronger sanctions and deterrents for assaults on emergency service workers, including police officers, firefighters, paramedics and others.

In my role as Shadow Policing Minister I meet enough police officers who tell me the pressure they’re under from funding cuts, increasing missing persons and mental health cases, and new types of crime – they shouldn’t have to deal with assaults on them too.

At its last reading in November support for the Bill in the House was overwhelming and I’m glad we’ve seen the same level of enthusiasm today, as colleagues appreciate the importance of protecting those on the front line of keeping us safe. You can watch my speech as part of the debate here.