Jonathan Davies MP: speeches

Speeches

• 15 Sept 2026 · Tourism: Overnight Visitor Levy · Hansard source

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  Many people visit Derbyshire because it has beautiful scenery and a fascinating history, but those visitors do place a strain on our infrastructure, which is why I think it is reasonable that we explore whether we continue to ask local people to foot the bill for that. However, I recently visited Drum Hill scout camp in my constituency, which welcomes many thousands of young people from quite far afield to learn fantastic life skills, and I have also engaged with organisations that provide respite holidays for disabled people. I know that local leaders can decide how to implement the legislation locally, but can we put an exception for those kinds of groups on the face of the Bill?

• 14 Sept 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T8. This summer we found that the number of GCSE and A-level music entrants was down, in line with the general trend that we have seen over the past 16 years. I know that the Government want to address that, which is why they commissioned the National Centre for Arts and Music Education, which was due to start its work at the beginning of this academic year. Can Ministers tell me whether the centre is up and running, and who has won the contract to run it?

• 11 Sept 2026 · Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill · Hansard source

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  Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

• 11 Sept 2026 · Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill · Hansard source

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  Will my hon. Friend give way?

• 10 Sept 2026 · Water Management · Hansard source

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  One thing that will benefit farmers in my constituency is the £50 million through the sustainable farming incentive to allow farms to build more water storage on their land. That is going to be of huge benefit, because their food stocks are down going into winter after the hot summer. We also have an issue with flooding. Schedule 3 to the Flood and Water Management Act has not been enacted, meaning that every development has a right to be connected to the drainage system, which increases the amount of flooding. If the Minister could take that forward with colleagues at MHCLG, I would be very grateful indeed.

• 7 Sept 2026 · Local Government Reorganisation · Hansard source

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  I appreciate that the Secretary of State is new in post, so the issues that she has outlined today are not necessarily of her making, but I must tell her that this is extremely frustrating for people in Derbyshire, and that service delivery and business confidence will be undermined while this pause goes ahead. I am at a loss as to how it has proceeded so far without it being totally legally watertight. I would appreciate any assurances the Secretary of State can give me that it will not be torpedoed in the courts again. Crucially, we are going to be asking people to stand for the existing local authorities in Derbyshire next May—people of all parties; civic-minded, community-spirited people. How long will they serve for? I think we owe it to them to tell them how long their term will be, because they will be making professional and family sacrifices. If she could offer me that information, it would be very helpful.

• 3 Sept 2026 · Global Biodiversity and Ecosystems: National Security · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for taking the intervention. Is he aware that the Government have announced this morning a £400 million loan to the Tropical Forest Forever Facility, and will he join me in welcoming that investment?

• 2 Sept 2026 · Rewiring the State · Hansard source

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  I very much welcome what the First Secretary of State had to say about using No. 10 North to drive a pro-business culture, empower communities and deliver growth in every postcode. In Mid Derbyshire, we have one of the best projects to help her and the Government meet that aspiration in the regeneration of the Belper mills. That will bring 130 new homes to the Derwent valley and a visitor centre, where we have a UNESCO world heritage site. We are so close to securing investment from the East Midlands combined county authority to make this happen. Can she help me by offering a meeting at No. 10 North with its staff to ensure that we get that investment over the line to build the homes we need and deliver growth in Mid Derbyshire?

• 1 Sept 2026 · Science Facilities and Laboratories · Hansard source

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  I draw colleagues’ attention to the fact that I chair the all-party parliamentary group on UNESCO world heritage sites. There is a question over the future funding of Jodrell Bank at the moment. Will my hon. Friend join me in asking the Minister to look at what we can do to ensure that that site, which has inspired many young people, will continue to be funded properly and retain its UNESCO designation?

• 1 Sept 2026 · Face-to-Face Banking: Rural Areas · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Wishart. Mid Derbyshire has no banks left. Not only is that a source of frustration for local people and businesses, it really irks them because the Government stood behind the banks with public money during the financial crisis. Now we need our banks to stand with our communities. That is why I welcome the Government’s commitment to delivering 350 banking hubs by 2029. Belper in my constituency has one of those banking hubs. It has been a huge success, reporting over 1,500 customer interactions a week, and residents tell me that it has been a lifeline. The evidence is clear: there is huge demand for banking services. I experienced that recently when I was sent a cheque that was a peculiar shape, perhaps designed specifically so that I would not deposit it. It would not be scanned by the app, so I had to make a trip to the bank. I appreciate that more of us are using online services, but there is still a need for in-person services. Hubs like the one in Belper also drive footfall into towns. A vibrant high street is one of the things that creates a real sense of place, which I know is a priority for the Government. There are substantial places in Mid Derbyshire, such as Allestree and Spondon, which remain unserved by in-person banking. A recent constituency survey I conducted drew to my attention local people’s demand for such services. That is why I have written to Link on several occasions to ask for a review of access to cash in those areas. However, Link’s remit is not broad enough to consider banking services as a whole; it only considers access to cash. My ask of the Government, which I have written to the Economic Secretary to the Treasury about, is to broaden Link’s remit so that it can look at how people access services as a whole—not just cash, but advice and guidance when they have concerns. That is particularly important to people in rural communities and those who cannot access online services as many people have begun to do, perhaps because of disability or other factors such as internet access.

• 13 Jul 2026 · Domestic Abuse: Police Response · Hansard source

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  One in five people experience domestic violence in their lifetime—around one in four women, and one in six or seven men—but it is thought that only 20% of it is reported. It is also thought that there is significant under-reporting of the domestic violence experienced by men, due to social stigma. What steps is the Department taking to understand the scale of the problem and to drive action?

• 13 Jul 2026 · Domestic Abuse: Police Response · Hansard source

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  2. What progress her Department has made on improving the police response to domestic abuse.

• 13 Jul 2026 · State of Climate and Nature · Hansard source

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  The Minister was right when she said that climate change drives nature loss, and nature loss drives climate change. We are seeing the effects of that on people’s health, the economy and global security, so I welcome the work that the Government are doing to address that. There has been a national security assessment on global biodiversity loss. May I encourage the Minister to put as many as possible of its findings into the public domain, so that people understand the threats to our security? May I also invite her to give us some information about the relationship between the report’s findings and the new climate security taskforce?

• 7 Jul 2026 · Essential Energy Guarantee · Hansard source

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  The warm home discount is a great initiative to help households cut their bills, but one thing we could expand to do more in this space is our heat network programme, and we may be getting a heat network in Derby. However, there is often a lack of awareness, particularly in some public sector organisations and businesses, of the opportunities that heat networks offer. It may be that winding down the public sector decarbonisation scheme is not enabling as many as we would like to sign up. Could I ask the Minister to look at our engagement with business, the public sector and housing providers to make sure that as many people as possible can benefit from heat networks?

• 7 Jul 2026 · Summer Jobs · Hansard source

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  I really hope that it is a success. I know that in Cornwall—my hon. Friend’s part of the world—there will be a great many businesses and visitors benefiting from the scheme. Alan Milburn’s report, which highlighted that a million young people are out of work, is something that I am struggling to comprehend. It is a moral scandal that has been brewing for a very long time, and the Government are taking steps to address it. It is worth noting that while youth unemployment is appallingly high—now at 16.2%—it is lower than it was under the previous Government in 2012. We have a great deal of work to do to give young people a sense of hope and opportunity for the future— [ Interruption. ] Well, 2012 was four years after the financial crisis. We also effectively had a financial crash of our own to deal with after the mini-Budget. We do have a great deal of work to do, but I think the foundations are there to do something for young people and work, particularly the summer savings scheme. I would be grateful if the Minister were to take that forward and see if we can expand it into the future.

• 7 Jul 2026 · Summer Jobs · Hansard source

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  I spent most of the hon. Gentleman’s intervention trying to find out what is going on in Clacton, but perhaps the Minister heard what he said and will furnish him with a response in his summing up. The Government are doing a great many good things to support young people. There is more to do, but I will touch on some of the things we are doing. We have an unemployment rate of 4.9%. That is far too high, but we are outperforming many other major economies, including Canada and the EU. I particularly welcome the youth guarantee, the growth and skills levy and the other levers that we are introducing to reduce business costs, including on energy. We are expanding access to finance through the British Business Bank, and we are reducing red tape and licensing costs. On summer jobs, it is particularly important to highlight our support for hospitality, including cutting business rates for pubs and live music venues by 15%, which will be followed by a two-year freeze. We are also increasing the hospitality support fund to £10 million, which will really help those sectors. We have heard a little bit from the Opposition Benches today about wage increases and national insurance. On wage increases, when I go to food banks I often meet young people who are in work but tell me that they are still not making ends meet, and that point comes through from the survey that I did. That really is a tragedy. While I acknowledge the concerns that businesses have raised with me and that the Opposition have raised today, I do welcome the wage increases. We have to deal with this cost of living crisis. Young people should not be working as many hours as they can yet still not able to get by. The point about national insurance is quite interesting. The decision to increase employer national insurance was a difficult one. I would rather we had not had to do make that decision, but we did. Public services were failing so badly that that in itself was a brake on the economy. I note that the previous Government also effectively tried to increase national insurance by 1.25% in 2021. That was called the health and social care levy, but they did row back on it. The reality is that we have a long-term problem with public services, and it is holding back people’s lives and the economy. We have grasped the nettle on that, but I hope that sometime later in this Parliament we can revisit the issue. We stood by businesses in covid, and we are asking them to stand with us now as we rebuild public services. As the economy continues to grow, I hope that that option is on the table for the Government. There are a few things that I would like the Minister to bear in mind going forward. I very much welcome the Great British summer savings scheme, which offers VAT cuts to the visitor economy sector, which is a very important employer of young people, including in Derbyshire. Once that scheme ends, I would be grateful if a review could be undertaken to see how much economic growth and how many jobs it generated. My long-term aspiration is for us to be in a place where we can offer a VAT cut, particularly for the hospitality sector. After the financial crisis in 2008, the previous Labour Government cut VAT to 15%—it was subsequently put up to 20% when the Conservatives came in—and that was a real shot in the arm for the economy. If the Great British summer savings scheme shows evidence of being a real driver for economic growth, particularly in the important visitor economy sector that employs a lot of young people, we should see whether we can harness that and offer a different rate of VAT for the visitor economy and hospitality sectors. I believe that that would be good for the economy. It would also be good for our high streets and people’s sense of place and wellbeing.

• 7 Jul 2026 · Summer Jobs · Hansard source

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  The hon. Lady called out the record of the previous Government, and she was right to do so. However, I remember that in 2012 youth unemployment stood at 22%, 4% higher than it is now. Of course, her party was in government at that time. I am keen to work collaboratively, but it is worth just noting that.

• 7 Jul 2026 · Summer Jobs · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for her intervention. My focus is on the people of Mid Derbyshire, but I am sure that the people of Clacton will hold their representative to account in the appropriate way. Of the young people who responded to my survey, 44% said that the cost of living was the biggest issue they faced, followed by housing and renting costs at 34% and employment and jobs at 33%. I want to read just one contribution from a constituent, which I found to be particularly profound. They said: “Life for young people especially isn’t just unaffordable—it feels completely unattainable. I’ve had a job for nearly 5 years and am on the minimum wage. There is no way, with the state of the housing market and general cost to live that I’d be able to sustain moving out, renting or even learning to drive/buying a car. My independence seems—and I imagine it does for a lot of young people—like it will never fully arrive.” That was mirrored in the fact that a great many of the young people who engaged with my survey were not optimistic about their futures. That is a moral and political tragedy.

• 7 Jul 2026 · Summer Jobs · Hansard source

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  I am grateful to His Majesty’s Opposition for calling this debate today, as it gives me an opportunity to talk about a survey of young people that I did last year. It was a broad survey and statistically significant, with more than 500 young people in Mid Derbyshire engaging on their work and education opportunities and sharing their views on their futures. Before I come to that, I will offer some reflections of my own experience of summer jobs, as that is the title of today’s debate. One such job was pulling out weeds for very low pay, which really taught me the value of hard work. I would go home from that job every day absolutely exhausted. I also spent some time during the university holidays pulling pints, which taught me how to deal with difficult people—a skill that I find myself using quite regularly in my current role. When I receive applications from people who want to work with me, I always think it is welcome if they spent their early career in hospitality, because workers can learn a great many skills in that industry that will serve them well in a great many jobs across the labour market. I also spent some time as a grave-digger, during the holidays when I was in the sixth form and at university—it perhaps serves as a metaphor for one or two things I have done subsequently. I understand that this summer there may be some jobs going with the new occupant of Downing Street. If the Minister could have a word on my behalf, I shall be waiting by the phone.

• 30 Jun 2026 · Defence Investment Plan · Hansard source

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  I welcome this record investment in defence, and I appreciate that it may lead to us making cuts elsewhere in public expenditure. One casualty may be the expansion of the A38 in Derby, which has been on and off under successive Governments for the past 40 years. Some local people would welcome the scheme’s not going ahead, particularly on environmental grounds, but others would see a cancellation as a brake on economic growth, and we need economic growth to fund our defence. Will the Secretary of State work with me to convince the Treasury and the Department for Transport that we need more investment in Derby, so that our economy can thrive, and we can contribute to defence through public expenditure in the future?

• 24 Jun 2026 · Nottingham Maternity and Neonatal Services · Hansard source

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  Nottingham University hospitals NHS trust is one of the trusts that serves my constituents. For those who have been patients there, or who have had babies who have come to harm—I have met some of them—Donna Ockenden’s report is difficult reading indeed. In respect of the staff at that trust, many of them, often junior and low-paid, are on the frontline providing kind, compassionate, person-centred care, and they will be feeling raw today. We value what they do. We have heard a great deal about the appalling practices in the mortuary. They are subject to a criminal investigation, but I want to reflect on the experience of one of the several constituents I have met who have been affected by what we are discussing today. She came to see me as part of Donna Ockenden’s inquiry, and sadly she had engaged with the trust on a number of occasions because she felt that she was experiencing complications with her pregnancy. She was told to lie down and have a fizzy drink and then have an early night, and, despite repeated calls, she was repeatedly fobbed off. Sadly, her baby died. Behind that is a culture of a failure to engage. There was a very poor culture at the trust—so poor that “FOH” was written in patients’ medical notes and on whiteboards, standing for “F*** Off Home”. How could leaders not be more curious about the practices that were taking place on their watch, and where were the regulators? It is absolutely staggering. We are making some very positive changes in the NHS, but I want to push the Secretary of State briefly on changes we are making to the mechanisms that allow people to feed back on their care. We are winding down the National Guardian’s Office and Healthwatch; we are also removing NHS England, which has a regulatory function—and we know that regulators have failed in the case of this trust. What steps can my right hon. Friend take to ensure that those feedback mechanisms will enable people to be heard and action to be taken, so that we can prevent this kind of scandal from happening again?

• 24 Jun 2026 · Climate Change · Hansard source

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  Does the right hon. Lady not accept that the investment her Government made in offshore wind power has insulated British consumers against the fossil fuel price hikes we have seen as a consequence of the Iran war? That is evidence that investment in renewable energy is good for consumers and businesses.

• 24 Jun 2026 · Climate Change · Hansard source

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  Will the right hon. Lady give way?

• 24 Jun 2026 · Climate Change · Hansard source

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  Owing to the three-minute speaking limit, I will do my best to summarise my speech. I also apologise to the constituents whom I told that I would raise specific issues on their behalf, because I may not be able to cover all the points that I had hoped to make. The last Labour Government made huge strides in respect of climate change, introducing the first legislation in the form of the Climate Change Act 2008 and the first carbon budget. That was taken up by other countries across the world. I also pay tribute to past Conservative Governments—David Cameron and Theresa May took that work forward—and I hope we can find a consensus across the House on the way ahead. Climate change affects so many aspects of our lives in the United Kingdom. We have made good progress, cutting greenhouse gas emissions by about 50% since 1990, but the scale of the challenge is great, and it is having a massive impact on the economy. We are on a fossil fuel rollercoaster as we pay more to support people with health problems. We may see such problems today—and perhaps I should declare an interest, as someone who would get sunburnt under a 40-watt lightbulb. We are also seeing threats to our national security as access to natural resources is challenged, and that will be a driver of conflict. While we have a moral obligation to adapt, we are also presented with a huge opportunity for our economy. The green industries of the future are already creating growth here, and creating some fantastic jobs. It is important to bear in mind that the suggestions made by the independent Climate Change Committee are just suggestions, and that it is up to the Government of the day to pursue them. For example, we have heard some talk of banning meat and dairy products. I happen to know that the Secretary of State for Energy is very fond of a bacon sandwich, as is the chairman of the Environmental Audit Committee, so I do not think we will find ourselves in circumstances in which meat is banned. Let me refer to some of the opportunities that we have. The Government’s progress with the Rolls-Royce small modular reactors is fantastic news. I understand that they will be able to power nearly a million homes, and this is good news for jobs in the sector as well. The warm homes plan will help to deal with the cost of living crisis, but it also means that people who heat their homes using gas, for example, will use less of that product. I want to impress on the Minister the importance of nature-based solutions, especially in relation to flooding, which imposes a huge economic burden on businesses and homes. I should also like her to bear in mind green hydrogen, which presents a huge opportunity for the economy. Some great work is being done in Sweden. However, a huge amount of electricity is required for the electrolysis that is needed to produce green hydrogen. If we can do more with the SMRs, I believe that we have a viable opportunity to deliver with green hydrogen. It is a shame that time is so tight in such an important debate, but I shall have to leave it there for today.

• 22 Jun 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  The St Ralph Sherwin Catholic Multi Academy Trust, which runs a number of schools in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, is facing extreme financial difficulties despite the considerable extra support that it has received from the Department for Education. We east midlands MPs have written to the Department, but perhaps Ministers could find out whether there is anything else that we can do, and also look at the academy funding model more generally, because the built-in financial risk undermines the education of our children at times.