Each week, I am required to spend the first few days in Parliament. I ask Ministers questions on the floor of the House of Commons and I attend debates on topical issues, representing the good people of Wolverhampton in Westminster.
Since shortly after my election to the House of Commons, I have been serving on the Defence Select Committee. This group was set up to examine the expenditure, administration, and policy of the Ministry of Defence and its associated public bodies. I am also a member of the Defence Sub-Committee which holds inquiries into topics of its own choosing. Building on this, I have become a member of the UK Delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.
In addition, I am currently Vice-Chair of the following All-Party Parliamentary Groups:
- All-Party Parliamentary Group on Veterans
- All-Party Parliamentary Group on the Black Country Economy
- All-Party Parliamentary Group on British Sikhs
- All-Party Parliamentary Group on the Armed Forces' Covenant
I am also an active member of the All-Party Parliamentary Groups for the Armed Forces and the Environment. This utilises the knowledge that I have gained from my career in the defence and security sector, and the passion that I have for ensuring that we are the first generation to leave the environment in a better state than we found it. As part of this ambition, I have signed up to become a member of the Conservative Environment Network's (CEN) Parliamentary Caucus.
Occasionally, I get nominated to serve on Delegated Legislation Committees.
In Parliament, I have also became the NHS Reserves Champion for the Wolverhampton South West constituency. I back the Bill to support the National Health Service beyond the Coronavirus outbreak by creating a new, permanent NHS Reserves system to provide a formal bank of trained and vetted volunteer staff to support NHS hospitals and Trusts during periods of high demand for staff, supplementing (but not replacing) the NHS’s permanent staff.
In December 2020, Stuart won the Twitter poll to find the 'Parliamentary Beard of the Year', with 48% of the vote. 1,701 Twitter users voted in this poll. The organiser has confirmed that this poll is conducted each year as mainly light-hearted, but also to promote a more diverse appearance among public office-holders.
Below, you can read my contributions in Parliament from Hansard, the official record of parliamentary proceedings (feed provided by theyworkforyou):