Adam Thompson MP: speeches

Speeches

• 9 Sept 2026 · Education and Skills Reform · Hansard source

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  In my previous career teaching—first, secondary physics, and later, degree-level apprentice engineering—I saw over and over and over how powerful apprenticeships are in enabling both excellence in our brilliant engineering sector and personal social mobility for the apprentices themselves. May I therefore thank the Secretary of State for her statement today and her renewed commitment to technical education generally? Will she elaborate on the role of degree-level apprenticeships specifically in her ongoing vision for our world-class education system?

• 8 Sept 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T10. The Chancellor will no doubt be aware that this month marks the fourth anniversary of the disastrous Liz Truss mini-Budget, which risked my constituents’ pensions and locked thousands out of home ownership. Last week we saw Liz Truss’s Financial Secretary, the hon. Member for Arundel and South Downs (Andrew Griffith), made shadow Chancellor. Does my right hon. Friend have any advice for the shadow Chancellor on how he might learn from his mistakes?

• 7 Sept 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  Empty shops that are rundown because of absentee landlords are a blight on our town centres, but Labour-run Erewash borough council is fixing the problem through clean-up orders, such as the one served to the Burton building in Long Eaton—as soon as it was renovated, new businesses moved right in—but clean-up orders can be very time-consuming, so what more can the Government do to tackle absentee landlords and bring shops back into use?

• 4 Sept 2026 · Northern Ireland Troubles (Criminal Investigations etc) Bill · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. and gallant Member for Spelthorne (Lincoln Jopp) for the wonderful way in which he has introduced the Bill today and given us the opportunity to have this conversation. Like many hon. Members, I approach this debate with some significant degree of hesitation because of the weight of the issues we are discussing—the legacy of the troubles is one of those issues where every right hon. and hon. Member must begin with a significant degree of caution. We are discussing events that scarred communities, took thousands of lives, and left behind serious grief. There are families who still do not know the full circumstances of how their loved ones were killed. There are—

• 3 Sept 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick recently said that its business is now well over 90% digitally distributed. Take-Two has confirmed that the physical box of “Grand Theft Auto VI” will not contain a physical disc, but will instead contain a download code. Killing physical media prevents consumers trading in or sharing their games, and it erodes the concept of true ownership of a product. What is the Secretary of State doing to support the physical ownership of video games, as well as music and film?

• 3 Sept 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.

• 16 Jul 2026 · Sir David Amess Summer Adjournment · Hansard source

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  It is always an honour to speak in the Adjournment debate in memory of Sir David Amess. As is traditional, I will endeavour to cram as many topics as I can into my contribution before we break for the summer recess. I will discuss recent knife crime in Ilkeston. While it would not be appropriate for me to discuss any one individual case in detail, some incidents recently have affected my community deeply. As always, my thoughts are with those affected. I will continue to engage with the families of those involved and the wider community over the summer, as well as our local police, our police and crime commissioner, Nicolle Ndiweni-Roberts, and local councillors from across the political spectrum as we work together to make our community safer. Let me briefly address East Midlands Railway, a service that I use regularly to travel between Erewash and London. This week, EMR has continued to operate a reduced timetable, citing the impact of recent hot weather. While extreme weather can affect rail services, passengers have faced disruption and shortcomings for years, and the hot weather is not going away. The introduction of the new Aurora fleet is very much welcome, but progress has been very slow. In the meantime, passengers are relying on the ageing class 222 Meridian trains, which lack modern amenities such as properly functional wi-fi. Passengers deserve a reliable, modern railway, and I hope the roll-out of the Aurora fleet accelerates to deliver the improvements long promised on the midland main line. Supporting grassroots music has always mattered to me, both as a former gigging musician and as the MP for Erewash. Last summer, I spoke in this debate about the importance of protecting the small venues that give new artists their first opportunities and bring communities together through live music. Since then, I have been out and seen a stack of bands at grassroots gigs, because those venues and acts thrive only when people show up. Grassroots music is about more than entertainment; it creates jobs, strengthens our communities and gives the next generation of artists somewhere to begin their journey—and, often, it is something for young people to do. However, the problems of venue closures, poor pay for artists and high prices for tickets endures, so, to repeat my sentiment from last time: colleagues and friends, please go and see a band this summer. I have some quick-fire points. The Big Paddle Cleanup is Paddle UK’s wonderful initiative designed to clean up our waterways, and I thank all volunteers for their work. I am really excited that Bennerley viaduct visitor centre is formally opening this week, and I very much look forward to my first coffee there. I wish a very happy anniversary to Manor fish bar in Ilkeston, which is currently celebrating 20 years of fantastic chips. Treetops hospice in Risley is an amazing local charity that provides hospice at-home support for thousands of Derbyshire families using its innovative provision model, and I hope to engage with the Health Secretary after recess to discuss that model. Let me give a shout-out to my barber, Ev Swift, who is essentially a core member of my team at this point. He is always there to put a smile on my face, and he is far more famous on Instagram than I am, so do give him a follow—my guy is hilarious. I give an invitation to all Members: they are very welcome to join me for a creamy pint this summer in the Sawley Junction, the Burnt Pig or the Hoptimist over recess. I have one more point: may I beg Reform on Derbyshire county council to sort out the potholes? They are a right state. I am sure that every Member across the House values the contribution of their own teams; we have heard from various colleagues about them and all the work that they do. I put on record my thanks to my incredible team. To Becca, Curtis, Harrison, Hollie, Jude, Robert, Ruby and Vikki, I express my very sincere thanks for everything that you do. Similarly, I thank my colleagues on Erewash borough council; James Dawson and our mayor, Greg Maskalick, are doing wonderful work. I have covered as many topics as I can this afternoon— I have several further discarded pages that I would have raised had I had the time. As we head into this recess, I thank again my team, my colleagues on the council, all the staff in the House—particularly those retiring this summer—and everyone who works so hard behind the scenes to keep this place running. I wish all Members a restful and wonderful summer, and I look forward to returning in September to continue making the case for Erewash. Happy recess, Madam Deputy Speaker.

• 16 Jul 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  In my constituency surgeries and on the doorsteps in Erewash, I keep hearing how my constituents have been experiencing significant delays with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, particularly in processing driving licences—very specifically, medical driving licences. At one recent surgery I spoke to Connie Frisby, who had some excellent ideas about how the DVLA service could be modernised and digitised. Will the Leader of the House make time for a debate on the delays at the DVLA and how we might make it better?

• 16 Jul 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T5. This Government have promised to deliver new homes, and I want Erewash to be at the forefront of that delivery, but our road network is overloaded. My constituents are particularly concerned about growing strain on junction 25 of the M1, as I know National Highways is. Can the Minister explain how National Highways and local authorities can work better together to listen to and respond to concerns, and to ensure that new homes come alongside proper upgrades to infrastructure?

• 7 Jul 2026 · Climate Change: Weather Events · Hansard source

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  7. What steps he plans to take following recent weather events to help tackle climate change.

• 7 Jul 2026 · Climate Change: Weather Events · Hansard source

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  While many of our ongoing discussions in this House rightly focus on decarbonising heating, climate change means that cooling is becoming increasingly important, too, particularly in the context of our recent extreme heatwaves. As these heatwaves become increasingly frequent, homes and businesses in Erewash and across the country increasingly need cooling as well as heating. What steps is the Secretary of State taking to ensure that the growing demand for air conditioning is met through energy-efficient technologies and clean electricity, so that adaptation to climate change does not come at the expense of our net zero goals?