Jess Brown-Fuller MP: speeches

Speeches

• 24 Jan 2025 · Climate and Nature Bill · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend on behalf of those on the Liberal Democrat Benches for her truly impassioned speech and for her work on the Bill. Chichester harbour has lost 58% of its saltmarsh since 1946—the equivalent of three football pitches every year. Does she agree that that needs to stop today to ensure that that national landscape and site of special scientific interest is protected for generations to come?

• 23 Jan 2025 · County Council elections in West Sussex · Hansard source

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  I hope the Government will pay heed to the strength of feeling across West Sussex and my constituency that elections should never be cancelled opportunistically under the guise of local government reorganisation. It leads to the disenfranchisement of voters and further erodes trust in politics and politicians. Following is the full text of the petition: [The petition of residents of the United Kingdom, Declares that the County Council elections meant to take place in May 2025 should not be postponed indefinitely. The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Government to ensure that the County Council Elections in West Sussex take place in May 2025. And the petitioners remain, etc.] [P003036]

• 23 Jan 2025 · Holocaust Memorial Day · Hansard source

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  I am very grateful to the Government for making time for the House to debate the important topic of Holocaust remembrance ahead of Monday’s Holocaust Memorial Day, a day of solemn remembrance and reflection. On that day, 80 years will have passed since the death camp Auschwitz-Birkenau was liberated, yet the memories remain as poignant as ever, largely due to the day that we mark every year. Six million Jewish men, women and children were brutally murdered by the Nazis, and millions of others suffered under Nazi persecution. The Holocaust was a crime of such magnitude that a new word was coined by the Polish lawyer Raphael Lemkin to describe its horrors: genocide. Today we also remember the victims of more recent genocides, including those in Bosnia, Rwanda, Cambodia and Darfur. Those atrocities are a stark reminder that hatred and intolerance, if left unchecked, can have devastating consequences, inflicting terror and eradicating entire communities. Such tragic events serve as stark reminders that we, as a global community, have not yet fully learned the lessons of the past, and the promise of “Never again” is not one that we are doing a good job of upholding. We cannot stand by while radicalisation and hatred flame up around us, when 245,000 survivors of the Holocaust are still alive today. It has not even been a lifetime since the world promised justice at the Nuremberg trials, and promised “Never again”, yet antisemitism is rising once more here in the UK and around the world. Extremist voices are fuelling division and fear, and exploiting tensions to spread further hatred, disinformation and cultural amnesia. We must remain vigilant, for one lesson of the Holocaust is that silence is never an option. In my constituency of Chichester we are proud to have a community that is committed to remembrance and education. Over the past decade, Chichester Marks Holocaust Memorial Day has organised meaningful events, from ceremonies held in local assembly rooms to educational films and talks for our schoolchildren, ensuring that future generations understand the impact of the Holocaust and the importance of standing up against prejudice and intolerance. This year, Chichester festival theatre will host “The Last Train to Tomorrow”, an opera that tells the story of the Kindertransport, a rescue effort that brought 10,000 Jewish children to safety here in the UK. Such stories remind us of our shared humanity, and the power of compassion in the face of unimaginable darkness. I praise the chair of Chichester Marks Holocaust Memorial Day, Councillor Clare Apel, whose dedication has been instrumental in making these events happen over the past decade. Her personal connection to the Holocaust, having lost 50 members of her family, serves as a poignant reminder of why we should never forget. On Monday, a new blue plaque will be unveiled as part of the Selsey heritage trail, to commemorate the part that Selsey played in helping the Kindertransport children who came to the UK. Plans are under way to establish a permanent memorial site in Chichester to honour the victims and educate generations to come. That initiative stands as a testament to our collective commitment to ensure that “Never again” is not just a phrase but a call to action. The words “Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it” are inscribed at the memorial site at Auschwitz, so today we honour the survivors, the victims and those who continue to bear witness. It is our collective responsibility to carry forward their legacy, challenge hatred wherever we see it, and build a future based on understanding and respect for all.

• 23 Jan 2025 · ECO4 and Insulation Schemes · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for advance sight of her statement. I can only imagine the frustration that consumers feel when they go through the quite often complicated process of trying to upgrade their home to bring down their bills for good, only to be met with substandard work and a subsequent lack of enforcement. Liberal Democrat Members recognise that the Government have inherited a fragmented and confusing system, and that the focus today is on consumers and on remedial work affecting the shoddy work they have had installed. I am glad that the Government are committed to ensuring that the onus of that remedial work does not land in the pockets of consumers. We agree that the system needs a complete overhaul, especially since the last Conservative Government left the Great British insulation scheme falling woefully short of the targets it set for itself and supporting far too few people far too slowly, while some who did receive installations have found them to be well below the required standard. If faults are found with other energy efficiency measures, will the Minister guarantee that consumers do not have to pay a penny for those, as for the ones she has highlighted? How soon can consumers expect their quality checks to be delivered, and will priority be given to households in fuel poverty as well as to the elderly and the vulnerable?

• 22 Jan 2025 · Listed Places of Worship Scheme · Hansard source

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  The grant scheme we are debating enabled St Paul’s in my constituency to undergo some radical improvements to accessibility and its community spaces. Without the community spaces that operate out of churches and cathedrals, the homes for charities no longer exist. Does the hon. Gentleman agree that, given that every £1 spent in churches gives a £16 return to the community, this scheme is an investment in the future of community groups and charities?

• 15 Jan 2025 · Rivers, Lakes and Seas: Water Quality · Hansard source

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  In 2023, Chichester suffered 990 sewage spills in our rivers and harbour, lasting more than 17,000 hours. Does the hon. Member agree that, after a decade of Tory inaction, the Water (Special Measures) Bill is welcome, but it could go further on regulation, especially by giving Ofwat teeth?

• 14 Jan 2025 · Drones: High-security Prisons · Hansard source

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  LiveLink Aerospace in my constituency is a surveillance company that has created a technology that is being used on Royal Navy ships, in airports and on private yachts. This technology could be crucial to maintaining the no-fly zones above prisons, which were introduced in January last year. Will the Minister explore this technology? Will he come to my constituency to visit LiveLink Aerospace and see what the technology can do?

• 13 Jan 2025 · Hospice and Palliative Care · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Wimbledon (Mr Kohler) for securing today’s important debate, and all hon. Members for approaching the conversation with the compassion and thoughtfulness that this topic deserves. Examples shared across the House show that hospices are a vital part of our healthcare system. They provide outstanding care for patients approaching the end of their lives, offering dignity, comfort and support to families, and they are often driven by hundreds of volunteers, alongside the paid staff. Hospices will play a key role in meeting this Government’s objective to move care from hospitals to the community. This debate is very timely, given that the front pages of the newspapers are reporting today that half a million people were left languishing on trolleys in A&E and in corridors in 2024 because there were not enough beds to admit them. Hospices, such as the extraordinary St Wilfrid’s in my constituency of Chichester, are the cornerstone of community care. I was blown away during my recent visit to St Wilfrid’s, and I am not ashamed to admit that I was brought to tears by the accounts of the family members, patients and staff I met that day. I applaud the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent South (Dr Gardner) for her show of emotion, because it is an emotive topic. St Wilfrid’s provides comfort and compassion to patients and their families during life’s most challenging moments—both directly in the calm and idyllic surroundings of the hospice and out in the community, providing palliative care for 300 people in the comfort of their own homes. It is St Wilfrid’s belief that everybody should be afforded a good death, and it strives to ensure that there is beauty in every day for patients and their loved ones, yet its service is being crippled by rising costs and a lack of sufficient Government support. Hospices are in the process of setting their upcoming budgets, and many are having to make difficult long-term decisions to cut palliative care because they lack a long-term solution to address the growing financial strain. As the hon. Member for North Herefordshire (Ellie Chowns) mentioned, it is all well and good being able to say you have a lovely car park when you do not have any nurses to park in it. Only 17% of the overall cost of St Wilfrid’s hospice is currently covered by NHS grant funding—well below the minimum requirement across the country. One of the biggest components of hospice costs is the salary of their expert clinical and other staff. Hospices are trying to match NHS salary increases to ensure that staff can afford to stay with them, and to remain competitive. In addition, they are now burdened with paying increased national insurance contributions, whereas direct NHS providers are exempt. For St Wilfrid’s, the rise in national insurance contributions will cost an additional £210,000, which is a significant financial burden. Although we Liberal Democrats and hospices alike welcomed the capital investment announcement in December 2024, that funding does not address the challenges of day-to-day spend, so there is still a vast gulf between rising expenses and available income. As the hon. Member for Birmingham Erdington (Paulette Hamilton) said, the funding must be the start, not the end. Hospice UK has warned that around 300 hospice in-patient beds—14% of the total—are currently closed or out of use due to a lack of funding and chronic staff shortages, meaning that fewer patients are able to access the end of life care that they need at one of the most vulnerable times in their lives. My hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Munira Wilson) mentioned the Marie Curie report, as did other Members across the House, which stated that one in four people who need hospice care cannot currently get it. The term “bed blocking” is not one I am particularly comfortable with, but if adequate palliative care is unavailable in the community or in a hospice, those people will remain stuck in hospital, and those hospitals cannot provide the expert care that a hospice can. Our hospices are ready and willing to take on those patients, but they need the support of this Government to do so. As my hon. Friend the Member for Wimbledon (Mr Kohler), who brought forward this debate, said, people do not want to die in hospital. They want to die at home or in a specialised setting such as a hospice. That is why the Liberal Democrats are calling for hospices to be exempted from the rise in national insurance contributions. This targeted measure would provide immediate relief for a sector that is struggling under the weight of rising costs, and prevent further reductions in capacity or even closures. We must think long term. Hospices need a sustainable funding model that guarantees they can continue their vital work of providing care for patients, supporting families and easing the pressure on the NHS. Hospices must also be a part of the conversation in the Government’s upcoming 10-year plan for the NHS, and that must include sustainable hospice funding reform. Examples from across the House today showed a shared recognition of the importance of hospice care. Now we need the Government to match that recognition with action for the patients, for the families and for a health service that depends on hospices.

• 7 Jan 2025 · Northern Gaza · Hansard source

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  Women who can get access to hospital provision in northern Gaza are undergoing C-sections without any anaesthetic, and new mothers—180 every day—are struggling to find clean water to provide formula for their new babies or continue to breastfeed, but Israel continues to restrict aid. The United Nations has made three attempts in the last three days to reach Gaza, and has been refused every time. The Minister has mentioned political solutions but seems to be avoiding consequences so I will ask the question again: what consequences can Israel expect from this Government if it continues to ignore international law and the urgent requirement to get the care that is needed for women and children in Gaza?

• 7 Jan 2025 · Drug and Alcohol Addiction: Treatment · Hansard source

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  Social prescribing is one of the primary care services provided for drug and alcohol addiction, and it also supports the Government’s aim of moving from cure to prevention, which is why I was shocked to hear that a primary care network in my constituency is reviewing its social prescribing offering across the Chichester district and proposing to remove it entirely. Does the Minister agree that social prescribing is a key pillar of our primary care services, and does the money used need to be ringfenced to protect that service across the country?

• 6 Jan 2025 · NHS Backlog · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend the Member for North Shropshire (Helen Morgan) for introducing this important debate on our first day back after Christmas. I also thank all hon. Members from across the House who have contributed to the debate, and specifically the hon. Members for Runnymede and Weybridge (Dr Spencer), for Ashford (Sojan Joseph) and for Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket (Peter Prinsley), who always bring really valuable contributions because of their background and current professions; it is very much appreciated when talking about the NHS. My hon. Friend the Member for North Shropshire highlighted in her opening remarks that backlogs are not just about NHS waiting lists, but that there are also problems with mental health backlogs, handover delays, A&E waits, poor access to dentistry, GP appointments, cancer treatment waiting times and staff that are being driven from the NHS because they cannot provide the care they want to give. Our healthcare system remains the No. 1 issue that I am contacted about. It is not unreasonable for my constituents and people across the country to expect to receive the care they need when and where they need it. I doubt there are many people who have not been affected or know somebody who has been affected by NHS backlogs. Indeed my dad struggled for months to get a face-to-face GP appointment for what he believed was a return of a hiatus hernia. By the time he saw his GP and was referred, the oesophageal cancer that he had was so progressed that palliative care was the only option for him and he passed away shortly after being diagnosed in 2021. When I asked my constituents to get in touch with examples of personal experiences of the NHS backlogs, I was inundated with emails from people across Chichester, and I will share some of those with the House. I have Jane, who was at high risk of bowel cancer due to living with ulcerative colitis. She is meant to see her consultant every six months but has not had an appointment since 2019, despite her GP trying on her behalf on multiple occasions. She has no idea if the polyps discovered in 2017 have turned cancerous and is living in constant fear of her health deteriorating further. Ian got in touch after waiting over a year to receive a scan after he experienced extreme chest pain. The scan revealed heart disease, but the lack of any follow-up appointments has left him anxious and uncertain about his health. I will also mention a good friend of mine, Rylee, who noticed irregular bruising and a physical change on the back of their leg in 2021 and was finding it harder to walk. After visiting the GP, who sent an urgent referral to the hospital, Rylee waited for months only to discover when chasing the hospital that the referral had gone to the wrong place. They then got added to the waiting list and were told the wait would be between 40 and 50 weeks. We are four years on from the initial changes to Rylee’s leg, and they are finally being treated by leading specialists as Rylee can no longer walk unaided. Amputation of their leg is now being considered. If Rylee had been seen within the expected window of an urgent referral, they would not be facing the prospect of losing their leg in their mid-20s. These are just a few examples of what is a much larger picture of the NHS, with caring and compassionate staff working within it who are overstretched and overburdened and, as my hon. Friend the Member for North Shropshire said, who cannot provide the care they desperately want to because of a system that cannot meet the demand. The Liberal Democrats recognise that this is an inherited problem; indeed, the key NHS waiting times standards have not been met for some years. The number of patients waiting longer than four hours in A&E rose consistently between 2015 and 2020. The 62-day waiting time for standard cancer treatment has not been met in recent years, and the consultant-led treatment target in England of 18 weeks has not been met in 2016. The last Conservative Government left emergency care in a deep crisis. The Darzi review stated that 800 working days were lost every day to handover delays in 2024. Last winter, ambulances across England collectively spent a total of 112 years waiting outside hospitals to hand patients over. In 2024, more than 1 million patients faced waits of more than 12 hours in A&E. The Liberal Democrats welcome new investment in the NHS, but instead of spending money firefighting crisis after crisis, we would invest to save taxpayers’ money in the long run. We would do that by investing in the front door and the back door: in primary care, with GPs and dentists, and by reforming social care. Some of my constituents would like it noted that they will not be counted on any statistics regarding backlogs, because they cannot get a GP appointment to even get on the backlog list. That is why the Liberal Democrats are calling for everyone to have the right to see their GP within seven days, or 24 hours if it is urgent, with a 24/7 booking system to end the 8 am phone-call lottery to get an appointment. We would also ensure that everybody over the age of 70 and those with a long-term condition have access to a named GP. We would fix the back door and address the social care crisis now, rather than spending another three years commissioning a report that will find out what we already know: social care is in urgent need of reform. The Darzi review showed that inadequate social care accounts for 13% of hospital bed occupancy, meaning that people who desperately want to get home cannot because of the lack of social care packages available and that others deteriorate at home, because they cannot access the social care they need. In the past year, more than half of all requests for social care were unsuccessful. We would strengthen our emergency services to reduce excessive handover delays by increasing the number of staffed hospital beds and calling for a qualified clinician in every A&E waiting room to ensure that any deteriorating conditions are picked up on to prevent tragic avoidable incidents. I once again thank the hon. Friend the Member for North Shropshire for bringing forward this incredibly important debate, and I thank those Members who contributed to a conversation that matters to my constituents in Chichester and to people across the country.

• 6 Jan 2025 · Support for Veterans · Hansard source

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  Maggie Haynes is the founder of Tuppenny Barn, a horticultural therapy charity in my constituency, and she is a veteran herself. She established a female veterans course after observing that the challenges faced by women leaving the armed forces combined with poor communication from the MOD was leaving them unaware of the services available to them. What is the Minister doing to improve support for female veterans?

• 18 Dec 2024 · Winter Preparedness · Hansard source

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  One in four people trying to contact their GPs last month were unable to get a same-day appointment, and one in 20 could not get through to their GPs at all. We know that these people end up in A&Es up and down the country, and that hospitals are already buckling under the strain. What is the Minister doing to improve support for GPs and frontline services during this winter crisis, especially while they navigate the challenges of the employer NICs rises?

• 18 Dec 2024 · Creative Arts Education · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend. I think it is both; it is about making spaces that are accessible to communities so they can explore the creative industries, but the Government can also do something. Government money could be used more wisely in consolidating those funding pots so that they are utilised to best effect by focusing on specialist world-class providers, delivering both in communities and via our education system. I finish by reflecting that since the general election the Government have made all the right noises to suggest that a stronger emphasis may be put on creative education. Will the Minister, when she responds, commit to a reform of the English baccalaureate and set out a timeline for our schools to reintegrate arts education into the core curriculum? Will any further work be done on the integration of in-school and out-of-school provision of arts education, such as additional funding for music hubs to include dance and drama? Finally, I thank the Council for Dance, Drama and Musical Theatre for its work in this area. I encourage the Minister, in her spare time over the Christmas recess —in between enjoying carol concerts and pantomimes—to please read its manifesto for performing arts education.

• 18 Dec 2024 · Creative Arts Education · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member and commend him on his work in trying to get Reading Gaol opened as an arts space. A project in Selsey in my constituency is trying to restore a beautiful old pavilion, which used to hold many events but was then left to go to rack and ruin. The Selsey Pavilion Trust is working tirelessly to try and get that venue up and running so that the Selsey community can once again enjoy arts in their own town. As a country, we have a duty to ensure that the next generation of employees is suitably equipped to join a sector that can drive the growth and innovation that the UK needs now more than ever. We must ensure that a career in the arts continues to be seen by our young people as a viable and valuable choice well into the future. I remember having that debate with my mum, in an Italian restaurant at the age of 18, after I had been accepted to go to university to study business. I confessed that I was following that path so that I could get a proper job, and that I did not believe that she could possibly support me in following my real desire: to study theatre. Luckily, she did, and it paid off—I turned down that place at university, and a year later went to the University of Chichester to study theatre. My degree not only taught me the craft of performing arts, but developed valuable personal and employment skills, such as collaborative working, demonstrating initiative and problem solving. To be clear, the creative arts are a broad field that includes many artistic disciplines. Although my background is performing arts and drama, when I talk about a lack of creative arts in our education system, I refer not just to drama, but to music, dance, visual arts, creative writing, textiles, and the design and technology subjects. In this debate, I want to focus on the structure of the English baccalaureate, and the failure to include arts subjects in it. This is putting arts education in the UK in an urgent state of crisis, and will have a wider impact on the creative sector if not addressed by this Government. The English baccalaureate requires children to take up GCSEs in several subjects, none of which is in the arts. Since its introduction in 2010, arts subjects have seen a drastic decline in the number of students taking them further in their education: a 29% decrease in drama, a 24% decrease in music, and a 65% reduction in the six design and technology subjects. Compare that with geography, which has seen increase of 42%; history, which has seen an increase of 33%; and the single sciences, which are up by 38%. The issue is very apparent in my constituency. Chichester College is investing in a state-of-the-art science, technology, engineering and maths building, which is due to open shortly—I applaud its work in getting that building up and running—while cancelling its drama A-level for new students this coming year, because of a lack of take-up. That has upset many students in the Chichester constituency.

• 18 Dec 2024 · Creative Arts Education · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That this House has considered creative arts education. It is a pleasure to open this debate about the importance of creative arts education. I refer Members to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests, both as chair of the all-party parliamentary group on performing arts education and training and as trustee of Chichester Festival Theatre. Throughout December, my diary, like those of all Members across the House, is jam-packed with wonderful occasions that feature a celebration of the arts—be they carol concerts in local churches, school plays or pantomimes. I have loved the live music on my high street at the Chichester Christmas market. I had a fantastic time as the guest judge at the Priory Park pantomime, and once the House rises I will be off to enjoy the Chichester Festival Youth Theatre’s production of “Cinderella”—a professional production on the main stage—with my family. I had the privilege of performing on that stage as a member of that very same youth theatre: an experience that I still treasure as an adult, and one that encouraged me to continue my education in the creative arts. After studying drama at GCSE and A-level, I went on to the University of Chichester and obtained a degree in performing arts. Before this giddy world of politics ensnared me, I had the privilege of teaching the next generation performing arts at various organisations and in schools. I am living proof that a creative education can lead anywhere, including to this place. The arts and cultural sector contributes well over £8 billion to the UK economy each year. It puts £2.5 billion directly into the Treasury through taxation, and the creative industries as a whole generated £125 billion in 2022. They account for almost 6% of the UK economy, create 2.5 million jobs and have a huge impact on the tourism economy, with one in 10 tourists to the UK visiting a theatre. Theatres sell 34 million tickets a year across the UK.

• 18 Dec 2024 · Creative Arts Education · Hansard source

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  I thank hon. Members, the shadow Minister and the Minister for talking about the importance of creative arts education and how it will foster the next generation of well-rounded and emotionally intelligent young people, who can thrive. Motion lapsed, and sitting adjourned without Question put (Standing Order No. 10(14)).

• 18 Dec 2024 · Creative Arts Education · Hansard source

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  I am glad that the hon. Member is the first person in the room to raise STEAM. Adding arts to the STEM subjects is such an important and viable way of opening up the curriculum. When I visit private schools in my constituency, their arts departments are flourishing. An article in The Times in November found that nearly half of all film and television directors nominated for British Academy of Film and Television Arts awards were educated at independent schools, and one in six was educated at Oxford or Cambridge. That highlights the stark class inequalities in access to the creative industries, which will worsen if the trend of de-prioritising arts education in state schools and colleges continues. I will not ask hon. Members to take my word for it. Earlier this week, I spoke to Hugh Bonneville—yes, I am willing to name-drop my friend—who wrote in his book “Playing Under the Piano” about a school he visited in 2019: a newly built academy that taught around 2,000 students. It was an impressive school, but it had no music provision, no choir, no band, and no studio space for drama or dance. The students who were working on scenes from “Romeo and Juliet” had pushed the bookshelves to one side in a corner of the library to create a rehearsal space. As Hugh wrote: “How on earth is the next generation of those who drive the multi-billion pound entertainment and creative industries to be discovered, or even to take part?” The current structure of the English baccalaureate is opposed by teachers, education experts, trade unions, artists and the creative sector. Perhaps more importantly, a survey by the Cultural Learning Alliance concluded that one of the advantages of arts-based studies is stronger educational attainment generally, and there are well-acknowledged connections between participation in the performing arts and stronger self-motivation, as well as improved physical and mental wellbeing and the development of inner resilience. Any organisation or charity currently working to support young people can describe the acute mental health crisis that our young people face. One example is the Young People’s Shop, a charity operating in Chichester that, alongside its counselling service, runs arts-based group sessions, recognising the link between mental health and creative expression. The Liberal Democrats have long called for a mental health professional in every school and I applaud that. Given the connection I have laid out, I strongly advocate working closely with creative arts provision in schools as an outlet for expression and stress relief. I take this opportunity to acknowledge the role that outside organisations play in giving our young people a creative education. Some of my happiest memories are of evenings spent at my local amateur dramatic society rehearsing for the upcoming panto, and Thursday evenings throughout the year with my friends at Chichester Festival Youth Theatre. I pay tribute to organisations such as Chichester Festival Theatre, which has one of the most ambitious youth theatres in the country. It acknowledged that its youth theatre was not reaching as well as it could the communities that would benefit from access, so it created seven satellite youth theatres across West Sussex to ensure that each of those communities has access to top-quality education, classes for students with additional needs, and theatre-based courses for school refusers and those out of mainstream education. CFT even launched a technical youth theatre for young people more interested in the workings of the backstage than the front stage. I recognise how lucky we in Chichester are to have a theatre, such as CFT, that puts learning and participation at the core of everything it does, but I want every child in this country to have the opportunity afforded to my constituents.

• 18 Dec 2024 · Future Earnings: Impact of Socioeconomic Disadvantage · Hansard source

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  Women carers are far more likely to reduce their working hours or give up work entirely to look after their loved ones, putting them at a significant financial disadvantage. Does the Secretary of State agree that the Lib Dem policy to reform social care and introduce free personal care would keep more women in work for longer?

• 17 Dec 2024 · Women’s State Pension Age Communication: PHSO Report · Hansard source

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  I and my colleagues on the Liberal Democrat Benches thought that today’s statement might be an early Christmas present for the WASPI women in my constituency and across the country. All those women will now be understandably devastated, and will be asking the same question: if the ombudsman has ruled that they were to have financial redress because of the maladministration and the Government are willing to ignore that finding, what else are this Government willing to ignore?

• 16 Dec 2024 · Water (Special Measures) Bill [Lords] · Hansard source

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  In 2023, Chichester experienced 990 spills lasting over 17,000 hours. It is an environmental scandal and a public health crisis. As the Secretary of State said in his opening comments, it is time to clean up our water once and for all, and I welcome the Bill. Does the hon. Member agree that nature-based solutions, such as wetlands, will play a vital role in reducing spills and can be brought in quickly, but only if the regulation allows?

• 16 Dec 2024 · “Get Britain Working” White Paper · Hansard source

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  Fedcap, a national organisation, is running a scheme to get economically inactive people to become the next generation of solar panel engineers. More such schemes will be necessary to plug the skills gap that developers report, especially if the Government are to meet their ambitious housing target. Will the Secretary of State commit to continued funding for schemes that are delivered by such organisations via jobcentres?

• 11 Dec 2024 · Responsibilities of Housing Developers · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Pritchard. I thank the hon. Member for Keighley and Ilkley (Robbie Moore) for securing today’s debate. Housing developers have a duty to create communities, not just buildings, yet the current planning system prioritises developers over the very people who live, work and raise their families in the areas. Chichester district council, where most of my constituency lies, sits within the South Downs national park to the north and Chichester harbour to the south, which is a national landscape with protected status. That leaves a belt of only 20% of the land available for housing. The limited space has led to high-density developments that stretch infrastructure to breaking point. I commend Chichester district council’s focus and determination to get its local plan to inspection stage, but I am worried that Labour’s new ambitious target will take it back to the drawing board, with developers proposing unsuitable land outside the plan. Over in Bersted and Pagham, covered by Arun district council, the housing target is the highest of any planning authority outside Greater London. The area is currently experiencing repeated catastrophic flooding as a low-lying coastal plain. People feel as if decisions are being made for them, not with them, and trust in the planning process over many years has been completely eroded. Our planning authorities feel as if they are fighting with their hands tied behind their backs, because if they refuse applications for very reasonable reasons, such as the site being a designated floodplain or key agricultural land, there being next to no local infrastructure, or the water companies saying that they have no more capacity at their local water treatment sites, developers then take the authorities to appeal and the inspector finds in favour of the developers. If a local authority refuses 10% of large-scale developments, it risks being designated, which gives developers the right to totally skip the local planning process and go straight to appeal. To add insult to injury, developers in my constituency regularly deliver sites with far fewer than the mandated 30% social and affordable homes. The homes that are being built are not for local people, and developers are regularly not delivering the infrastructure promised in the lovely glossy brochure. That is why the Liberal Democrats are calling for meaningful reforms. We propose a “use it or lose it” system for planning permissions to end the practice of land banking. There are currently over 1 million homes across the country with planning permission that have yet to be built, which suggests that the responsibility to deliver homes lies with those developers, not the planning authorities. We demand stricter accountability for developers who build their homes poorly to ensure that the burden of remediation does not fall on those already struggling residents. Critically, we call for a planning system that truly engages with communities, placing their needs and voices at the heart of the process.

• 10 Dec 2024 · Lobular Breast Cancer · Hansard source

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  The risk of all breast cancers in women is reduced by 4.3% for every 12 months of breastfeeding, but the UK has one of the lowest breastfeeding rates in the western world: only 1% of children are still exclusively breastfed at six months. Does the Minister agree that community initiatives to encourage women to breastfeed for longer support the Government’s mission to reduce the risk of breast cancers and improve health outcomes overall?

• 10 Dec 2024 · Storm Darragh · Hansard source

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  My residents in Bersted, in Pagham and across my constituency of Chichester live in constant fear of storms such as Darragh. They cause severe localised flooding, which often isolates communities and closes businesses, often for months on end. Funding is available for local communities to improve their flood resilience, but West Sussex county council cut that funding by a third this year, even though the problem in my patch is only getting worse. How does the Minister expect communities to be resilient to flooding if local councils are eroding the funding?