Calum Miller MP: speeches

Speeches

• 29 Jun 2026 · Asylum Accommodation · Hansard source

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  Site A at MOD Bicester sits adjacent to a village with only 370 residents. It is more than two miles from the nearest shop, and there is no pavement next to the B road by the site. It is simply not a suitable place in which to locate 1,250 men seeking asylum. That is why a planning inspector rejected a proposal to host half the number there in 2003. The Minister says that no final decision has been taken, but that is not how it feels in Bicester. While I appreciate that he has taken the time to speak to me twice on the phone, I am yet to receive any written information from the Home Office. However, the Ministry of Defence has already written to service personnel families and told them that the site will take 300 people by the end of this year, rising to more than 1,200 overall. To my constituents, this feels like a decision taken in secret in Whitehall and imposed on Bicester, with local people treated as an afterthought. In less than 72 hours, 7,156 local residents have signed my petition opposing the move. Opposition stretches across the political spectrum, across parties and across the community, because this isolated site is wrong for those seeking asylum and for the small villages around it, with no credible plan for local services, support or social cohesion. This morning the right hon. Member for Makerfield (Andy Burnham) promised to end the centralised, top-down Whitehall model, so why are the Government racing to do exactly the opposite in my constituency? Will the Minister pause, commit to preparing a detailed impact assessment in partnership with the local community, and come to Bicester to face residents and describe his proposal to them?

• 22 Jun 2026 · Armed Forces Bill · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. and gallant Friend for his remarks. As I was underscoring, he is quite right to say that so many in the defence industry are holding on for the announcement of the DIP. There are many companies in the supply chains whose very survival depends on it, and I urge the Government to recommit to publishing the DIP before 7 July. Turning to the wider Bill, there are several important areas for improvement, and I will start with how we recruit and retain service personnel across our military, how we treat those who have left, and how we strengthen our understanding of the reasons why they have left. This priority requires a long-term plan. That is why our new clause 13 would mandate the publication of a retention strategy, alongside the Bill, outlining the Government’s plan to ensure we can attract and keep talent in the military for longer. Our new clause 14 would also require an independent review to identify and examine factors such as diversity, inclusion, the medical discharge process and the state of defence housing. On housing, I am pleased that Ministers have heeded Liberal Democrat calls to bring service family accommodation under the decent homes standard. We were troubled, however, to hear that delaying the implementation of this commitment was one of the Treasury’s ruses to help fund the DIP. I am sure the Minister agrees that that would be short-sighted, so I invite her to recommit to achieving the decent homes standard for SFA properties before the standard comes into force. We also want the Government to take the next step by applying the same standard to single living accommodation, too. That is what amendment 13 would do, helping to deliver for about 80,000 single and unaccompanied service personnel.

• 22 Jun 2026 · Armed Forces Bill · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. and gallant Gentleman for his intervention. I quite agree with him that the work of our brave service personnel in the bomb disposal units and those who train them—as I say, at the Bicester garrison in my constituency—deserve to be celebrated. I would resist the temptation to say that I hope everybody’s Armed Forces Day go off with a bang. The skill and commitment of our armed forces reflect the best of us, and it is a privilege to speak today on this Bill. I believe there is much in the Bill that should be welcomed and that deserves our support. Crucially, it renews the statutory basis for our armed forces, extends the armed forces covenant duty across Government, introduces a Defence Housing Service to oversee and implement improvements in the quality of accommodation for our troops, and reforms certain aspects of the service justice system. The right hon. and gallant Member for Rayleigh and Wickford (Mr Francois) has energetically taken the Government to task for their spending pledges, yet I regret that the Conservatives did not apply the same energy to supporting and protecting our armed forces during their time in office. The scandalously poor quality of service personnel housing serves as the clearest evidence that they allowed a dogmatic commitment to outsourcing to blind them to how they were failing our armed forces.

• 22 Jun 2026 · Armed Forces Bill · Hansard source

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  I strongly agree with my hon. and gallant Friend, and I see nodding their heads those around the Chamber who, having served in our armed forces, know this accommodation better than me. It is critical that our service personnel, whether they are single, living away from their families or living in family accommodation, have a right to decent housing, and I hope the Government will stand by that commitment.

• 22 Jun 2026 · Armed Forces Bill · Hansard source

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  It is important that we sustain progress in that direction. The Defence Housing Service, to which I have referred, must do that, and I will come on later in my remarks to comment, in common with others on the Liberal Democrat Benches, on some of the challenges that might be faced if the right capital is not provided. If we are serious about reversing the calamitous decline in recruitment and retention under the Conservatives, we must renew and reinforce the covenant with service personnel and their families.

• 10 Feb 2026 · Large-scale Solar Projects: Community Engagement · Hansard source

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  Just across the border of my constituency lies Southill Solar, a scheme that works with the local community, pays a direct return to residents, funds local projects, and has even won awards for its landscape and environmental design. By contrast, Botley West, one of the largest solar farms ever brought forward in Europe, would have a profound and long-lasting impact on a rural area, but local people feel that the level of developer engagement and transparency, as well as the community benefit on offer, falls far short of the scale of that impact, and the Planning Inspectorate recently described the absence of key information as “very disappointing”. Does the Minister agree that community benefit should be proportionate to the scale and impact of solar development, and will he agree to meet me to discuss how those operating large-scale solar schemes can listen better to rural communities so that clean energy is delivered with, not against, local consent?

• 12 Jan 2026 · Social and Affordable Homes: Banbury · Hansard source

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  Mine is the neighbouring constituency, and many of my residents are placed in social housing in Banbury town.

• 12 Jan 2026 · Social and Affordable Homes: Banbury · Hansard source

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  Thank you very much, Mr Speaker, and I am grateful to my constituency neighbour for raising this important matter. I wonder whether the Minister can reassure my constituents, many of whom are struggling to find social housing and many of whom end up in Banbury, having come from my constituency. Will the social and affordable homes programme pay due attention to the challenges of providing social housing in rural settings, so that those who wish to remain within their communities are able to do so and do not put extra demands on towns such as Banbury?

• 16 Dec 2025 · Planning Reform · Hansard source

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  I welcome the ambition to build much-needed homes, especially social and affordable housing. However, in places such as Cherwell district in my constituency, the problem is not planning permissions. Under Liberal Democrat control, the council has already consented more than 10,000 homes; though consented, those homes have not yet been built, because the real blockage is delivery. Homes are not built because of a failure of grid capacity, supply chain costs and land banking by developers. These problems, which are outside the council’s control, now undermine its five-year housing land supply. The build-out consultation, which the Minister referred to, closed in the summer. Will he now commit to holding developers to account, once permission is granted, with real “use it or lose it” powers and to developing core infrastructure first, so that approved homes actually get built?

• 15 Dec 2025 · Jimmy Lai Conviction · Hansard source

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  I thank the Foreign Secretary for advance sight of her strong statement. I associate my party with her remarks about the appalling attack at Bondi Beach. We stand united against all anti-Jewish hatred. I share the Foreign Secretary’s utter condemnation of Jimmy Lai’s politically motivated conviction. The trumped-up charges and sham trial show how desperate the Beijing regime is to silence its critics. I agree with Jimmy’s son, Sebastien, that it is now up to the UK Government to ensure Jimmy’s welfare and secure his release. I welcome the summoning of the Chinese ambassador today. What was the outcome? Has Jimmy Lai’s access to medical treatment been assured? What further steps are the Government taking to secure his immediate release? The Foreign Secretary is right to say that China poses national security threats to the UK, so can she explain why it is not on the enhanced tier of FIRS? Jimmy Lai is not alone in the fight for civil liberties and the rule of law in Hong Kong. Countless brave Hongkongers continue to advocate for democracy and freedom, even as the CCP works relentlessly to erode the city’s independence. For speaking out, many Hongkongers living in the UK face daily intimidation and threats from Beijing. Just last week, pro-democracy campaigner Carmen Lau was subjected to a renewed campaign of intrusive and distressing intimidation and misinformation. What reassurances can the Foreign Secretary provide today to Carmen and other Hongkongers living in the UK that they will be better protected in the future against Beijing’s predations? Has she updated her submission to the Housing Secretary about the risks posed by the new super-embassy? Will the Government look to sanction all those CCP officials who are responsible for extraterritorial intimidation of pro-democracy activists? Finally, the Government like to say that they will challenge China when they must. Can the Foreign Secretary indicate one thing that the Government will not do for China, in order to signal that the treatment of Jimmy Lai is unacceptable?

• 17 Nov 2025 · Illegal Waste: Organised Crime · Hansard source

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  I am grateful to you, Madam Deputy Speaker, and to Mr. Speaker for granting the urgent question. I recently knocked on the door of Billy Burnell, the chair of the Kidlington Angling Society in my constituency. Billy showed me photographs and videos that took my breath away. They revealed the obscene scale of the illegal waste dump in my constituency. The site is approximately 150 metres long, 10 metres wide and up to 12 metres high. It has to be seen to be believed. Over the weekend, the situation has become much more urgent. Heavy rain has caused the River Cherwell to rise by 4 feet or so. Water now laps against the waste that can be seen floating towards the Cherwell. This incident highlights the fact that organised criminal gangs are carefully planning operations to dump industrial waste in the countryside. They gain millions of pounds in illegal earnings without a thought for the health of people or animals, or the damage to soil, water or air. It concerns me deeply that the Environment Agency is not equipped to deal with this unfolding environmental disaster. For example, the agency recently informed those in the other place that six other sites had experienced waste dumping on the same scale as the disaster at Hoad’s Wood in Kent, but the site in my constituency was not on that list. I have three questions for the Minister. First, and most urgently for my constituents, will Ministers follow the example of the previous Secretary of State—the right hon. Member for North East Cambridgeshire (Steve Barclay), who, on 22 May 2024, issued a directive to the Environment Agency to clear up the illegal dump at Hoad’s Wood—and issue a similar urgent directive for the clearance of the dump in my constituency before it is too late for the River Cherwell? Secondly, will Ministers undertake a root-and-branch review, independent of the Department, of the Government’s response to waste crime? Finally, in the meantime, does the Minister support calls from Liberal Democrats for the National Crime Agency, in the most serious cases, to take over the investigation?

• 15 Jul 2025 · Electricity Grid Capacity · Hansard source

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  In my constituency of Bicester and Woodstock, the local plan anticipates significant new employment sites to create jobs and growth. Tritax Big Box tells me that it wants to put solar panels on 100% of usable roof areas on the buildings that it intends to create. Local planning policies would support that, yet I was shocked to learn that Tritax expects to install solar panels on only 25% of usable roof space. It cannot get a permit to generate electricity or consent to export to the grid. Will the Minister or his officials meet me to discuss how we can turn this into a win-win opportunity for rooftop green solar?

• 14 Jul 2025 · Homelessness Prevention · Hansard source

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  Homelessness is a huge issue in my constituency, where housing costs are among the highest in the country and people cannot find social and affordable housing. The business rates reset proposed under the fair funding review would potentially lead to a 42% decrease in the net resources available to the council. Can the Minister assure those living in the Cherwell district council area that the fair funding review will include protected support for tackling homelessness?