Salisbury Incident

Mr John Whittingdale (Maldon) (Con) Share this contribution Is it not increasingly clear that we are engaged in hybrid warfare with Russia that includes disinformation, political interference, cyber-attacks and now very possibly this act of attempted murder? In considering how to respond, will my right hon. Friend also look at what additional help we […]
Government Policy on Russia

Mr John Whittingdale (Maldon) (Con) Share this contribution It is almost exactly four years since the annexation of the sovereign territory of Ukraine in Crimea by Russia. It is two years since the public inquiry concluded that President Putin almost certainly approved the murder of Alexander Litvinenko. Is it not clear therefore that existing […]
Article for the Telegraph on Leveson and the Data Protection Bill

Tomorrow, the House of Commons will debate the Data Protection Bill. This is a vital piece of legislation which is essential to ensuring that our laws are up to date and that we will be able to continue to exchange data with Europe once we leave the European Union. During its passage through the House […]
Leveson

Mr John Whittingdale (Maldon) (Con) Share this contribution I strongly welcome my right hon. Friend’s statement. Does he agree that, now more than ever, newspapers play a vital role in holding both the Government and the Opposition to account? He is absolutely right that, rather than looking backwards at the events of 10 years […]
Norther Ireland Border

Mr John Whittingdale (Maldon) (Con) Share this contribution Has my right hon. Friend seen the report prepared by the European Parliament’s policy department for citizens’ rights and constitutional affairs, which concludes that a technical solution allowing free movement of persons under a common travel arrangement and a low-friction border for the movement of goods […]
Family Reunion

I strongly support the principle of family unity, but it is important to note that there are already legal routes for families to be reunited safely that are not dependent on our EU membership. The UK’s family reunion policy is generous, granting over 23,000 family reunion visas over the last five years, and I can […]
Digital Economy Bill

John Whittingdale, Conservative, Maldon It is a pleasure to welcome the Digital Economy Bill, not least because it still has my name on the front of it. Indeed, my right hon. Friend the Member for Wantage (Mr Vaizey) and I can claim a degree of joint paternity on this particular measure. The Bill is something […]
FGM

Mr Whittingdale Share this contribution I welcome this week’s announcement of extra funding to tackle FGM in Africa and beyond. With over 5,000 cases reported in a year in this country, does my hon. and learned Friend share my concern that we are still to bring a successful prosecution? The […]
Overseas voters

A number of constituents have got in touch with me about British citizens voting overseas. British citizens who move abroad remain a vital part of our democracy, and it is important that they have the ability to participate. Indeed, expats retain strong links with the UK. They may have family here, or plan to return […]
Superfast broadband

Mr John Whittingdale (Maldon) (Con) Share this contribution T3. I, too, congratulate the Government on the progress made in passing the 95% target for coverage of superfast broadband, but what message can my right hon. Friend give to the over 2,000 households in my constituency that are unable to receive 10 megabits per second, […]