James Naish MP: speeches 2025

Speeches

• 24 Nov 2025 · English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill · Hansard source

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  I am a member of a new combined authority in the east midlands and there was no referendum on that. I do not believe that there was a referendum on the North Yorkshire combined authority either. Does my hon. Friend agree that there are different ways of engaging on this issue, and that putting councils with local representatives at the heart of that process is a good thing?

• 19 Nov 2025 · Myalgic Encephalomyelitis · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for her work chairing the two all-party groups. My constituent Janet contacted me about her son Richard, who was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome six months ago. He is still waiting for a proper referral. Does my hon. Friend agree that an early pathway is vital, and would she encourage the Minister to outline what form that might take?

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

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  There were 868 cases of fly-tipping in 2023-24 in my constituency. We saw a particular rise in on-street fly-tipping, and in Nottingham there were over 30,000 incidents of fly-tipping within the urban space. What work will be done to help bolster the power of local authorities to make sure that both urban and rural fly-tipping is addressed?

• 12 Nov 2025 · Changing Places Facilities · Hansard source

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  I wish to present this local petition on behalf of my constituents in Rushcliffe, who have signed it to signal their desire for the centre of West Bridgford to have a dedicated Changing Places facility. As debates in this House have repeatedly noted, Changing Places facilities are a highly valued initiative. They give people with disabilities, their families and their carers more freedom to participate in activities that the rest of us take for granted. I hope that both Rushcliffe borough council and the Government will take note of this issue. The petition states: The petition of residents of the constituency of Rushcliffe in Nottinghamshire, Declares that West Bridgford town centre, alongside many other town centres across the country, is in need of dedicated Changing Places facilities to make the town centre more accessible, particularly for families with children who have special educational needs and disabilities. The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urge the Government to work with Rushcliffe Borough Council to explore reallocating funds to deliver Changing Places facilities in West Bridgford as soon as possible, and to make the delivery of Changing Places facilities a national policy priority. And the petitioners remain, etc. [P003129]

• 12 Nov 2025 · Nolan Principles · Hansard source

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  At the end of August in Nottinghamshire, where I am a Member of Parliament, the leader of the county council banned the Nottingham Post and Nottinghamshire Live from speaking to him and his local authority, representing a dangerous moment where local accountability was not being adequately recognised. Will the Minister speak to his colleagues about how we can bolster local journalism and the role it plays in the accountability part of the Nolan principles?

• 12 Nov 2025 · Energy · Hansard source

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  As someone who has actually worked in this industry, I appreciate a lot of what the Minister is saying. I have also noticed the gap in the narrative coming from the Opposition, because it was in 2017 that Theresa May’s Government took the decision to close the gas storage facilities that would have helped with a lot of the pressures we have been talking about. Does my hon. Friend agree that this requires long-term vision, and that perhaps the Conservatives were not as good at this as they are now claiming to have been?

• 12 Nov 2025 · Energy · Hansard source

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  This January, Centrica said this regarding Rough, the largest gas storage facility in the UK: “If Rough had been operating at full capacity in recent years”— which was a decision that was not taken in 2017— “it would have saved UK households £100 from both their gas and their electricity bills”. So does the hon. Lady agree that the sustainable thing to do would have been—and still is—to invest in gas storage facilities?

• 12 Nov 2025 · Energy · Hansard source

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  Will the hon. Member give way?

• 12 Nov 2025 · Energy · Hansard source

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  Will the hon. Lady give way?

• 12 Nov 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T2. The University of Nottingham announced last week that it is closing 16 courses as part of cost-saving measures due to limited research income making these courses less financially viable. What steps is the Secretary of State taking to ensure that her huge research and development budget gets to frontline institutions and universities that are at the heart of our vision for growing the economy?

• 5 Nov 2025 · Council of Europe and the European Convention on Human Rights · Hansard source

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  My hon. and learned Friend has listed a number of very good examples of what has been achieved as a result of the ECHR. Does he agree that we need to work together to highlight its benefits, as opposed to seeking to tear it down or tear it apart?

• 5 Nov 2025 · Conflict in Sudan · Hansard source

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  It is estimated that 11.7 million civilians have been forcibly displaced. Of those, 840,000 are in Chad, which of course has its own issues. What support is being provided to Chad and neighbouring countries that are housing refugees from Sudan?

• 4 Nov 2025 · Sudan: Government Support · Hansard source

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• 30 Oct 2025 · Infected Blood Compensation Scheme · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for the update, especially on behalf of my constituent Robert, who lost his brother aged 31, and who has been in regular contact with me on this issue. The Government previously announced that they were allocating funding to charities; that was a recommendation of the inquiry. Will the Minister confirm the steps that he has been taking with the Department of Health and Social Care to make sure that money gets to those charities, so they are funded to process applications as quickly as possible?

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I recently met with my constituents Ally and Jemma, who founded We Are Repairs, an online community of 3,000 business members bringing repairers together to combat throwaway culture. Will the Leader of the House join me in commending them for that work and commit to ensuring that the House receives an update on the progress of the circular economy taskforce?

• 28 Oct 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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

• 28 Oct 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  I thank the Foreign Secretary for that update on Jamaica and the diligence of the FCDO in preparing for events there. Tomorrow I am hosting Hong Kong Watch in Parliament as it releases its latest report on the erosion of Hong Kong’s autonomy. The report highlights how Beijing has increasingly sought to dismantle Hong Kong’s autonomy while exploiting the privileges of Hong Kong’s special status. This is increasingly having an impact on business operations in Hong Kong, and is something that is well understood by the Government, but has yet to be fully recognised, including in last week’s FCDO six-monthly report. Will the UK consider additional steps to push back against these violations of China’s international treaty obligations—

• 27 Oct 2025 · Statutory Maternity and Paternity Pay · Hansard source

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  I am not quite sure how to contribute to this debate: I am married to a doctor who is an obstetrician and gynaecologist; I am a triplet; and I have an 18-month-old daughter, who was born just three weeks before the general election was called last year. I am never sure which way to pivot. I want to make the macro argument, which is that our birth rate as a country is between 1.41 and 1.56, depending on what is being looked at. Does my hon. Friend agree that there is a pure and very simple economic argument to making sure that our country is growing its population from the grass roots? If we fail to do that, the cost in the long run will be considerable.

• 16 Oct 2025 · Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Bill · Hansard source

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  In January this year, as Chair of the International Development Committee, my hon. Friend wrote to the Government to push them to ratify the global oceans treaty. As a member of her Committee, I thank her for her efforts on this front. If I recall correctly, our Committee’s work highlighted that the UK had to work globally because there are 3 billion people who depend on the oceans for work, especially in poorer, smaller developing nations. Does she agree that this is a vital step forward for the future, especially of small island developing states, and that the Government must push others who have signed up to this treaty to ratify it?

• 16 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  My constituent Rebecca Dowdeswell has a small business called nkd, which has incurred over £30,000 plus VAT in legal fees fighting L’Oréal in a dispute over a mark she has been using for over 15 years—longer than L’Oréal has been using its Naked brand in the UK. This dispute is an example of David versus Goliath situations, where small businesses absorb huge time, cost and stresses to protect their intellectual property. Does the Leader of the House agree that it is important that small businesses are supported to protect their intellectual property, and will he ensure time for Members to influence the Government’s small business plan, which was announced over the summer?

• 15 Oct 2025 · Jhoots Pharmacy · Hansard source

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  Over the recess I met the Singh family, who run two pharmacies in my constituency. The family were clear that, despite improved funding, they are still struggling with overly complex funding formulas, delayed payments, high energy prices and drug shortages, among other challenges. However, the positive initiatives of Pharmacy First and the independent prescribing pathfinder programme offer a ray of hope. Will the Minister commit to continuing to invest time and energy in expanding those programmes and meet my pharmacies from Rushcliffe to discuss them further?

• 16 Sept 2025 · International Day of Democracy · Hansard source

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  On the point about accountability, the hon. Member may be aware that at the end of August, the leader of Nottinghamshire county council banned the Nottingham Post and Nottinghamshire Live from speaking to him and his organisation with immediate effect. That included a ban on the local democracy reporting service. Does the hon. Gentleman agree with me and the Society of Editors that picking and choosing media scrutiny is avoiding accountability, it is profoundly wrong and it is dangerous to our democracy?

• 16 Sept 2025 · International Day of Democracy · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for giving way. I am very aware of her background in local government. Does she agree that the local level is where we see democracy work? We see excellent representation by councillors and an opportunity to have local debate through neighbourhood plans or other mechanisms. Does she agree that we must prioritise those local voices and that local representation to protect our democracy?

• 16 Sept 2025 · Significant Energy Infrastructure Projects: Suffolk Coast · Hansard source

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  Having worked in the energy industry, I continue to be a strong proponent of local area energy plans, because they would empower communities to make decisions about their own energy needs and how much energy they want to export. At the moment the process feels very reactive and is based on private and landowner interests, as opposed to empowering communities across a local authority area to make decisions. Does my hon. Friend agree that it would be helpful to have energy planning on a statutory footing across every local authority in the country?

• 16 Sept 2025 · Significant Energy Infrastructure Projects: Suffolk Coast · Hansard source

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  The Minister describes something that I am extremely passionate about, as he knows, but it is a very top-down approach. I wonder whether we simultaneously need a bottom-up approach that engages with communities via local authorities in order to look at what land is available and how it could be used. Is that not something that we could do side by side with the vital strategic approach that he describes?