All articles written by Andy McDonald MP on PoliticsHome.com

05 Sep Health

The Health Bill must protect patients who depend on specialised services

The Health Bill returning to Parliament this week is far more than an organisational restructuring.

01 Sep Communities

Middlesbrough deserves greater police resources – but it also needs opportunities

Middlesbrough is the second most deprived local authority in England – effective policing is only part of making communities safer

06 Dec 2025 Economy

On unfair dismissal, the government has undoubtedly broken a manifesto promise

The government must decide whether it stands with working people — or with those ready to weaken their rights at the first sign of resistance.

25 Mar 2025 Economy

Labour MPs want to see an end to Conservative austerity

Austerity is synonymous with the decline in public services, stagnation of incomes and fall in living standards we saw over 14 years of Conservative government.

13 Dec 2024 Economy

How the Employment Rights Bill should be improved

"I think this will be the biggest upgrade to workers’ and trade union rights in a generation," TUC general secretary Paul Nowak told a meeting of bill committee members scrutinising the Employment Rights Bill in Parliament.

25 Sep 2024 Political parties

The Budget is a chance to change tack – the government must take it

The first Labour Conference in government since 2009 has been a real opportunity to set out the huge changes Labour must make for the better of our country now we’re in power.

08 Aug 2024 Communities

Middlesbrough MP Says "Rampant Inequality" Opened The Way For Violent Riots

The Labour MP for Middlesbrough has said that a legacy of “rampant inequality” opened the way for “terrible behaviours and abuse” to take hold in Teesside.

09 Jun 2023 Political parties

Labour MP Says Ben Houchen Peerage Would be "Two Fingers Up" To Teeside

A Labour MP from the Northeast has accused the Conservatives of "putting two fingers up to the people of Teeside" over reports that Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen could be in line for a peerage in Boris Johnson's honours list, despite allegations of cronyism and wasting public money.

28 Sep 2021 Political parties

John McDonnell Can See Keir Starmer In No.10 But Tells Him To Stop Trying To “Re-Hash New Labour”

John McDonnell has said he believes Keir Starmer could be the next Prime Minister, but says attempting to “re-hash New Labour” will stand in his way.

27 Sep 2021 Political parties

Labour's Andy McDonald Has Resigned From The Shadow Cabinet

Shadow Secretary of State for Employment Rights and Protections, Andy McDonald, has resigned from the shadow cabinet.

14 May 2021 Economy

Ditching the Employment Bill exposes the chasm between Tory rhetoric and action

Government inaction means that millions of low paid and precarious workers who are entitled to protections have been abandoned to fight for their rights through the courts.

11 May 2020 Coronavirus

Coronavirus: Boris Johnson to set out lockdown guidance as Labour and unions blast ‘irresponsible and wrong’ back-to-work push

Boris Johnson will give a fresh update on the Government’s coronavirus response later as Labour joined unions in criticising its new advice for workers.

27 Feb 2020 Transport

Heathrow expansion ruling is good news for the planet

Heathrow and the wider aviation industry should take today's decision as a wake up call, writes Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, Andy McDonald MP.

09 Jan 2020 Transport

Rail has suffered a ‘colossal failure of political leadership’ after a decade of incompetence and mismanagement

Our rail system is unnecessarily complex, unaccountable and expensive, the Tories must be honest about failing rail contracts and turn off the life support, bringing rail operations and infrastructure back under public control, writes Andy McDonald MP.

22 Sep 2019 Transport

We will draw up a new social contract for transport that benefits the public, the economy and the environment

Transport is the UK’s single largest source of greenhouse gas emissions and the worst-performing sector when it comes to reducing carbon emissions, writes Andy McDonald MP

23 Sep 2018 Transport

Chris Grayling has presided over the most disastrous year for the railway industry in decades

The UK transport industry needs stability, reliability and clear answers on life after Brexit, writes shadow transport secretary Andy McDonald

30 Mar 2018 Transport

Is the cost of Grayling too high?

Shadow transport secretary Andy McDonald writes for PoliticsHome, saying Chris Grayling uses "a web of untruths and falsehoods" to explain away decisions he has made that are "damaging to capital, business and industry."

30 Nov 2017 Transport

Rail announcement masks the reality of another private sector bailout on East Coast mainline

Labour's Shadow Transport Secretary says the Government’s ‘strategic vision’ on transport is 'window dressing which will solve none of rail’s urgent problems'.