Edward Morello MP: speeches 2026

Speeches

• 22 Jan 2026 · Railways Bill (Fourth sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  Thank you, Sir Alec, for the clarification, and I thank the hon. Member for his question. I understand the premise of the point: whichever number we put in, there is a risk that someone could come up with such an example. I think the point is that, for journeys over 30 minutes, for older passengers, for example, the guarantee of a seat may be an issue of whether they want to travel or not, so we must find a line to draw in the sand; I hope that able-bodied Members would stand up for the elderly, but it is not always the case. I would like us to move to a system where we do not have to stand on trains and where there is an expectation of seating—not least so that the drinks trolley can get through and get a cup of tea to me when I need one. The charter would also set targets for reliability and a clear timetable for improving passenger accommodation, including seat design, reliable wi-fi and mobile signals, power outlets—I honestly cannot believe we are still questioning whether or not we should have power outlets on trains—luggage and bicycle storage, clean and accessible toilets, and onboard catering for journeys of more than two hours. We must focus much of our innovation on the passenger experience and not just the journey time, whether that is wi-fi for commuting workers or accessible toilets for everyone. Crucially, it would also extend delay repay principles to cover failures in onboard amenities and move towards automatic digital compensation that does not place the burden on passengers to fight for refunds—hopefully that speaks to the teeth that the right hon. Member for Melton and Syston mentioned. Those are not luxuries. Almost every rail user has stood despite booking a seat, lost their signal mid-journey, missed a connection because of a delay, struggled to find a clean toilet—or a working one—or found nowhere to store a bag, yet too often there is no meaningful redress for those inconveniences. That undermines confidence in the railway. The data is stark. Only 32% of passengers believe that the rail network meets their needs, and just 59% are satisfied with value for money or onboard internet. Last year, there were more than 62,000 complaints about punctuality, nearly 40,000 about overcrowding, and more than 24,000 about onboard facilities. All those things act as a drag. They are why people do not want to travel on the trains and why they are choosing car journeys instead. If we want people to choose rail for economic, environmental and social reasons, we have to deal with these frustrations as well. New clause 8 puts passengers back at the heart of the system, where they belong.

• 22 Jan 2026 · Railways Bill (Fourth sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  I could not possibly comment, Minister—I was going to say tea. But there are basic human rights that we should be respecting here—and a gin and tonic might be one of them. On rail journeys lasting more than two hours, access to food and drink is a basic expectation. As anyone who has done the trip to Exeter or Dorchester South from London will know, numerous stations on that line do not have a café on the platform, or even one close by. I hope we are also going to achieve a reduction in the number of delays on that line, but once someone is on it they are on it; their options for access to anything are incredibly low. Whether for a parent travelling with children, older passengers on long journeys or commuters trying to work on the move, access to basic amenities—reliable wi-fi and food and drink—should be mandatory. New clause 8 would require the Secretary of State, within six months, to introduce a passenger charter as a core function of GBR. It would set out clear expectations for passengers, and clear accountability for operators. As my hon. Friend the Member for Didcot and Wantage laid out in his ten-minute rule Bill, it would include guarantees on value for money, service quality, adequate seating for journeys over 30 minutes, and improved accessibility across trains.

• 22 Jan 2026 · Railways Bill (Fourth sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  I speak in support of my hon. Friend the Member for Didcot and Wantage’s passenger charter. I recommend that any Member who was otherwise engaged to go and listen to his ten-minute rule Bill, which outlined it in far greater detail than I will today.

• 22 Jan 2026 · Railways Bill (Fourth sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  During my conversations with the sector, one of the challenges that came up about returning, for example, the buffet trolley or other services to trains is that services have already been sold on station platforms. There is direct and inherent competition between any service that someone might receive on the train and something that might be provided, and has already been sold, leased or franchised out, on the platform itself. How can the Government put passengers’ interests at the core of service delivery when they will have an inherent business or profitability conflict with some of the services that are already in existence?

• 21 Jan 2026 · Animal Welfare Strategy for England · Hansard source

  More

  We have seen reports about the US suspending the technology prosperity deal with the UK in an effort to force the Government to accept lower-standard imports in order to secure a trade deal with the US. Does my hon. Friend agree that these bully-boy tactics by the Trump Administration should not be kowtowed to, and we should not accept lower standards in return for a trade deal with the US?

• 21 Jan 2026 · Warm Homes Plan · Hansard source

  More

  As co-chair of the net zero all-party parliamentary group, I welcome the expansion of the funding for solar and heat pumps. Prior to coming to this place, I spent the better part of a decade riding the solarcoaster, so I know for a fact that the biggest drag on solar expansion is the skills shortage. Would the Secretary of State fill us in on what the Government and other Departments plan to do to ensure that the skills are there for installations to go ahead?

• 21 Jan 2026 · Water White Paper · Hansard source

  More

  The White Paper says that, along with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, DEFRA will implement a new “plan-making system”—a term I have frankly never heard before. I do not know what it means, but it says that water companies will be designated a consultation body for this new plan-making system. Separately, it says that the Government will only consider making water companies statutory consultees in planning applications. Meanwhile, the White Paper says that the Government will ensure that the “right to connect” supports their house building targets. Does the Secretary of State understand that if water companies are not statutory consultees, and we keep building more housing and connecting it to the system, we will simply get more sewage?

• 20 Jan 2026 · Railways Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  Q On accountability, both this panel and the previous one have talked about the benefits of having a single business unit or chief executive responsible for both track and train. I accept the logic of that and the point that there are mechanisms for local communities and passenger groups to interact with that business unit and for it to have to take local plans into consideration. The step that I am missing is that I can convince the chief executive responsible for my area that we need a new passing loop at Tisbury—he is 100% convinced of that—but ultimately he is still delivering based on the broader business plan. For all of the mechanisms of interaction with my local business unit, how does that translate into delivering within a business plan, if the business plan continues to deprioritise the south-west, for example? Keith Williams: I encourage you to work with your MD to put forward the best plan, which will then go into GBR’s overall plan and there will be a set of priorities. There are always going to be priorities. In a sense, in the past one of the failures was that that then went to the Secretary of State, who was making most of the decisions, because everyone else was avoiding making a decision, or absolving themselves of doing so, and sometimes the best decisions were not being made. I think there is a much greater likelihood that the priority list will be set by somebody who knows how to run track and train.

• 20 Jan 2026 · Railways Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  Q The Secretary of State will still have to sign off that loop, though. Keith Williams: They will still have to sign it off, but hopefully they will leave it to the people who know what needs doing to do it.

• 19 Jan 2026 · Arctic Security · Hansard source

  More

  The post-war world order was based on the premise that like-minded western liberal democracies would stand up for each other, expand democracy wherever we saw it and lower the barriers to free trade, and that through NATO we would engage in collective responsibility—an attack against one was an attack against all. It is clear that the President of the United States does not share those values. Does the Foreign Secretary agree that the UK should be closening our military and economic bonds with the European allies that do share those values?

• 15 Jan 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

  More

  Over the last 24 years, 174 grassroots rugby clubs have disappeared. Such clubs are vital and feed our professional teams with talent and fans. While attendance and broadcast figures are improving at the top level, Premiership clubs still owe the Government massive amounts of money in covid loans and carry £340 million in debt. What assessment has the Department made of the long-term financial stability of both grassroots and premiership rugby?

• 14 Jan 2026 · Offshore Wind · Hansard source

  More

  I welcome the results of the AR7 allocation. This is about protecting working families from volatile fossil fuel prices set by foreign powers that have repeatedly used oil and gas as geopolitical weapons. Relying on Trump’s America or Putin’s Russia to keep the lights on puts us all at risk. Renewable energy is the cheapest form of energy, and it is only through renewable energy that we can deliver permanently low and secure energy prices and help with the cost of living crisis, and not just today but in the long term. While procuring 8.4 GW of offshore wind puts the country on track for the Government’s 2030 clean power target, research from RenewableUK shows that is the minimum needed, leaving very little room for delays—

• 14 Jan 2026 · Offshore Wind · Hansard source

  More

  It is a source none the less. That places even greater importance on AR8. I hope that the Government will commit to their timetable to open AR8 by the summer and to announce the results by the end of the year. Meanwhile, there is still work to be done to bring down bills for working families and businesses, which is why I urge the Secretary of State to look at Liberal Democrat proposals to phase out the outdated renewable energy certificate scheme and replace it fully with a contracts for difference scheme. We must also be honest about the impact of Brexit on energy bills. [ Interruption. ] We cannot get through this without mentioning it. Will the Government commit to accelerating negotiations to re-engage with the EU’s internal energy market to ensure access to cheap electricity when we need a guaranteed energy source and an export market for when we over-produce? [ Interruption. ] Despite the noise from the science-denying, fossil fuel lobbyists on my right and the Putin apologists behind me, this is good for Great Britain and the right decision for consumers, and it promises a better and cleaner future.

• 14 Jan 2026 · Horse and Rider Road Safety · Hansard source

  More

  I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Newbury (Mr Dillon) on securing this debate. Per mile travelled, rural roads account for over 60% of all UK road deaths. Last year, I met a group of constituents who keep their horses in stables in the Forston area. They are experienced riders, and they described repeated near-misses caused by drivers going too fast or passing too close. In fact, there have been 15 motor vehicle incidents recorded in that small area alone. My hon. Friend has already outlined the changes to the highway code in 2022, but I wonder how many of us here today could say that we have read the highway code since we passed our test. The reality is that on tight, winding rural roads, the guidance is widely ignored. Dorset police and Dorset Road Safe Partnership do excellent work through schemes such as Horse Safe and Operation Close Pass. Such operations can change attitudes, but they need to happen more often in the places where the risks are highest. My constituents are asking for increased signage, more enforcement and clearer information on how police work with the British Horse Society to track and respond to incidents. In 2024, the British Horse Society recorded more than 3,000 road incidents involving horses: 58 horses were killed and 80 riders injured. Four in five of those incidents were caused by drivers passing too fast or too close. We cannot continue to accept that as an inevitable toll. That is why I strongly support the Road Traffic (Horse and Rider Safety) Bill introduced by my hon. Friend the Member for Newbury. I hope the Minister will also take this opportunity to support it.

• 13 Jan 2026 · Airport Drop-off Charges · Hansard source

  More

  I thank the hon. Member for the opportunity to clarify my point. It is not about whether the consumer pays; it is about whether the airports are using the revenue they claim they are generating to support climate policies for that purpose, or whether it is simply another revenue stream for them. Airports and providers must use the money correctly, rather than just levying another tax on passengers. Regulation could take several forms. There could be a cap on drop-off charges linked to inflation. There could be a requirement for a free short-stay grace period. There could be mandatory exemptions for disabled passengers and carers. There could be greater transparency on how revenues are used and whether they genuinely fund sustainable transport. What we cannot do is to continue to allow airports to exploit their control over access to extract ever higher fees from consumers who have no meaningful choice. It is time we recognised that airport drop-off charges have become unfair, unregulated and disconnected from their original purpose. I hope the Government will act.

• 13 Jan 2026 · Airport Drop-off Charges · Hansard source

  More

  It is an honour to serve under your chairship, Ms Vaz. I congratulate the hon. Member for Bolton South and Walkden (Yasmin Qureshi) on securing this important debate. What should be a simple act of kindness—giving someone a lift to an airport, as we have all done—is increasingly being met with extortionate airport charges. This is neither fair nor reasonable, and it is why we believe the Government must now look seriously at regulating the fees. For constituents like mine in West Dorset, who live in a hugely rural area with limited public transport, where many villages do not even have a reliable local bus service, let alone a direct rail link to a major airport, it is increasingly painful. For my constituents to get to Exeter, Bristol or Bournemouth airports, let alone Heathrow or Gatwick, means driving, booking a costly taxi or, more often than not, asking a family member or neighbour to help. If we want to drop someone off, we have to use the airport system and pay its charges. At Bristol, that now means £8.50 for 10 minutes, or £30 for an hour. Bournemouth airport promotes what it calls a passenger pick-up offer of up to 90 minutes to meet and greet friends, for the small fee of £6. For many people, that £6 will be spent on merely five minutes’ activity. For families who are already paying inflated air fares, baggage fees and taxes, it is just another hidden cost added to the journey. The charges have risen rapidly across the country, far beyond inflation. Gatwick now charges £10 for just 10 minutes—double what it charged in 2021. What began in 2007 as a £1 security-driven charge at Birmingham airport has become a nationwide revenue stream. Airports often justify the increases by citing environmental goals or the need to encourage public transport use, but unless the charges are accompanied by serious, accessible and affordable public transport investment, they do not change behaviour; they simply extract more money from those who have no alternative. The charges hit some groups particularly hard, including disabled passengers, people with reduced mobility, parents travelling with young children, and those from rural areas who are least able to use public transport and most dependent on car access. Although airports have duties under the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments, statutory provisions for blue badge holders do not apply in private car parks, and many people fall through the cracks. The Competition and Markets Authority and the Civil Aviation Authority previously concluded that there was insufficient evidence of harm in surface access charging. That assessment is now out of date. Since 2016, charges have risen sharply. Free drop-off zones have all but been removed, and on-site payment options have been closed in favour of online or phone systems that are confusing for most. As people try to avoid the charges, police have reported increased dangerous behaviour, with cars stopping on motorway hard shoulders to pick up passengers. That is unsafe for drivers, passengers and emergency services and is a direct result of an unfair pricing system. It is also worth remembering, as has been highlighted, that these charges are not normal across Europe. Passengers at Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Amsterdam Schiphol, Frankfurt and Madrid do not pay to drop off loved ones. If it can be done there, it can be done here. Airports argue that they face financial pressures, particularly from business rates, which were recalculated after the pandemic. We Liberal Democrats sympathise, and passing the bill directly to passengers through drop-off fees may be the easiest lever to pull, but it is not the fairest or most effective one. The Department for Transport has previously said that it has no plans to monitor or limit parking fees at airports, and I believe that position is no longer acceptable. The Liberal Democrats have been clear that we want to reduce the environmental impact of flying, but it has to be done in a way that is fair and effective. We support investment in zero-carbon flights, reforming aviation taxation so that frequent flyers pay more, taxing private jets, improving rail alternatives and banning short domestic flights where fast rail options exist. What we do not support is offloading the cost of climate policies on to families, friends, disabled people and rural transport.

• 13 Jan 2026 · NHS Dental Services: West Dorset · Hansard source

  More

  4. What steps his Department is taking to ensure the accessibility of regular NHS dental check-up appointments in West Dorset constituency.

• 13 Jan 2026 · NHS Dental Services: West Dorset · Hansard source

  More

  NHS dentistry in West Dorset is in crisis. We have just 15 practices offering any kind of NHS care, and only half of young people have seen a dentist in the last two years. Residents are writing to me about elderly people removing their own teeth and children in A&E with preventable tooth decay. What consideration has the Minister given to requiring supervised trainee dentists on placement at dental training schools to work exclusively on NHS waiting lists rather than taking private appointments, which would help reduce the backlog?

• 13 Jan 2026 · Arctic and High North · Hansard source

  More

  I thank the hon. Gentleman for securing this important debate, and I commend him on his speech. He has listed a large number of instances across Europe of hybrid warfare and, in many cases, physical attacks by Russia. In the UK, we have also seen Russian-sponsored attacks on Ukrainian drone suppliers. On his broader point, the British public need to be aware that that war is already on our borders.

• 12 Jan 2026 · New Medium Helicopter Contract · Hansard source

  More

  I congratulate my constituency neighbour, my hon. Friend the Member for Yeovil (Adam Dance), on securing this important urgent question. Leonardo may be based in Yeovil, but many of its 3,000 employees live in my West Dorset constituency, which is why, when I was elected, one of the first meetings I had was with Leonardo and it was about the new medium helicopter. The Minister has said today that the decision will be made “as soon as possible”, but on 10 February, in response to my question in the Chamber, his predecessor told me that the decision would be made “swiftly”. Given that every single defence manufacturer, SME and even the military personnel I meet say that we need to speed up defence procurement decisions—even the SDR itself urges the speeding up of defence procurement decisions—how much confidence can British industry have that the Government are listening to that need, when a decision about something as simple as a single contractor bid is taking so long to decide?

• 5 Jan 2026 · Venezuela · Hansard source

  More

  I will not mourn the passing of the Maduro regime, but I will mourn the passing of the rules-based international order. If we accept the premise that a big-power country can do what it wants without any ramifications, anywhere in the world, then we accept the behaviour of Putin over the past two decades, and the behaviour of Xi Jinping in the future. We cannot allow that to stand. It is clear that our future security lies in closer co-operation with our European allies, so what is the Foreign Secretary doing to ensure that the UK is in lockstep with those who do share our values?

• 5 Jan 2026 · Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief · Hansard source

  More

  Happy new year, Madam Deputy Speaker. I pay tribute to the farmers of West Dorset who have never stopped campaigning against the family farm tax, and especially those hardy ones who have repeatedly driven their tractors up to London to let their views be known. This is just the latest in numerous assaults by the Government against our farming communities. So will the Minister take this opportunity to put on the record that the Government will not agree to President Trump’s demands that we accept more food imports at lower food standards as part of a US trade deal?