This week, I was proud that this Labour Government have formally launched an investigation into Orgreave.
I know that there are families across Barnsley South who are still waiting for justice for what happened on that day.
Though this wait has been far too long, I am proud that it is Labour that is taking the steps that coalfield communities like Barnsley need, and I know that this long-awaited investigation will be welcome news for miners across the country.
Earlier this month I attended the NUM David Jones and Joe Green Memorial at the National Union of Mineworkers Headquarters in Barnsley. This annual event pays tribute to those who lost their lives on the picket line, and those who fought for the mining industry during the 1984/85 strike.
Last year, I was honoured to address the David Jones and Joe Green Memorial lecture in the beautiful Miner’s Hall, home of the National Union of Mineworkers. I spoke about how we will restore pride in work, place and country, and I was proud to lay a wreath in memory of those who sadly lost their lives.
During my time as a Barnsley MP, I have been proud to campaign with, and alongside former miners, continuing the campaign on justice for the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme, first raised by Mick Clapham in the House of Commons long before I was elected.
I have given a number of speeches, held meetings and questions on this topic, and in 2021, I secured the cross-party BEIS Select Committee Report into the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme. This report concluded in no uncertain terms that the Government “should not be in the business of profiting from miners’ pensions”.
In the November 2024 Budget, four months after being elected to Government, Labour announced that the Investment Reserve Fund would be returned to MPS members, meaning that their weekly pension payments would increase by £30 per week.
In the November 2025 Budget, I was delighted to hear the Chancellor announce that the Investment Reserve Fund would also be returned to BCSSS members, with recipients receiving their first uplifted pension payments in December 2025, which increased by £100 per week.
42 years on from the beginning of the miners’ strike, coalfield communities like Barnsley are still feeling the effects of the decimation of this industry, but the Labour Government has delivered justice for miners’ pensions, and we have been pleased to make important steps for miners’ health too. As part of our landmark Men’s Mental Health Strategy, the Department for Health announced £1 million in support of miners’ health. This funding aims to support men who have suffered health inequalities after a life down the pit.
Mining was a dirty and dangerous job, where men risked their lives and health. It is right that we pay tribute to the sacrifices they made. It is important that we remember the past, as we did this week, and we look to the future.
I attended the official opening of the spectacular Yorkshire Roses sculptures in Barnsley Town Centre this month. The roses sit between 12 and 15 metres, and change colour, marking The Seam Digital Campus. The roses are named Mater (‘mother’), Pruna (‘coal’) and Vitrum (‘glass’); and represent Barnsley’s industrial past, our community’s present, and looking forward towards our town’s bright future as the UK’s first Tech Town. Our community was built on coal, and that coal powered our nation. Miners like those in Barnsley kept the lights on and the country moving in difficult and dangerous conditions.