Bicentenary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade

I pay tribute to the excellent and powerful speeches made by my hon. Friends the Members for Hackney, North and Stoke Newington (Ms Abbott) and for Brent, South (Ms Butler). The House has three Hull Members. Each of us is very proud that William Wilberforce is probably the most famous son of the city, and that he played such an important role in the abolition of the slave trade. I was heartened when the hon. Member for South Staffordshire (Sir Patrick Cormack) said that Wilberforce was an independent rather than a Tory, because we do not really have Tories in Hull. I also pay tribute to the right hon. Member for Kingston upon Hull, East (Mr. Prescott), who has played a pivotal role in ensuring that the bicentenary is properly marked and that a range of events throughout the year will record its importance. Late in 2005, soon after I became a Member of Parliament, I initiated a Westminster Hall debate on the abolition of the slave trade, because I wanted to know how the Government planned to mark this important anniversary. It was an interesting debate, to which my hon. Friend the Member for Tottenham (Mr. Lammy) responded. He described the plans for the celebration, and also agreed to visit Hull to see what we planned to do there. He did so in 2006, and I think he was impressed by the range of events that we had planned for 2007. The right hon. Member for Richmond, Yorks (Mr. Hague) gave a very full historical account of William Wilberforce and the history of the abolition movement. I shall say a few words about the role of women in the abolition campaign.