Jonathan Davies MP: speeches

Speeches

• 13 Apr 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T6. I have previously raised the case of the Ada Belfield care centre in Belper with my hon. Friend the Minister. At the moment, it has an uncertain future, because the Reform-led Derbyshire county council may sell the home. May I ask her to take an interest in this case to make sure that we have adequate adult social care provision in Derbyshire? She might like to raise that with the council’s leadership.

• 13 Apr 2026 · Middle East · Hansard source

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  The brutal Iranian regime is utterly appalling, but that statement is not necessarily true of Iran’s ordinary citizens, so I thank the Prime Minister for calling out President Trump’s words about obliterating a civilisation. The conflict has brought our energy security into sharp focus, which is why today’s announcement of a £600 million deal with Rolls-Royce for small modular reactors is so important. It is good for the country and good for jobs for my constituents in Derby. Will the Prime Minister go further to ensure that the small modular reactor programme is expanded and brought in at pace to support our grid?

• 23 Mar 2026 · Rail Connections to London: Rural Towns · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend makes an important point. I am glad that the Government have begun to address this shortfall. The investment of £2 billion into the East Midlands combined authority under Mayor Claire Ward specifically to be used for transport will go some way towards addressing that, but there is a lot more to do because the east midlands has historically been left behind. The merits of electrification of the east midlands railway will benefit our rural and semi-rural towns. Belper is a town of nearly 25,000 people. It is in the heart of the east midlands and has the region’s only UNESCO world heritage site: the Derwent Valley mills. I very much hope that it will be England’s, or the UK’s, next town of culture —it makes a good case for that. But to help people get to Belper when it is the town of culture, as I am sure it will be, we need to ensure that the rail connections are there. At the moment, there is only one train in each direction on the Midland main line that stops. People have to go to Derby or change, or they drive to Derby and get on the express train from there. I plead with the Minister to please take forward the benefits of Midland main line electrification, because it would benefit rural and semi-rural stations too.

• 23 Mar 2026 · Rail Connections to London: Rural Towns · Hansard source

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  I am pleased that my hon. Friend the Member for Shrewsbury (Julia Buckley) has secured this debate about connections between London and rural towns by rail because many of the issues on which she touched apply to my own constituency in Derbyshire. This morning I was at Broomfield Hall college, an agricultural college with a fantastic equestrian centre, to launch the findings of my survey of young people. Over 500 young people in Derbyshire contributed to the survey. It has given me some rich insights into issues that I must take forward in this place on their behalf. One of the issues that came through in that survey was a lack of good transport links for rural and semi-rural towns in Derbyshire. When I come to London every week, it never ceases to amaze me how extensive, resilient and cheap the transport is and how late it runs. That is not the experience of many people around this country, and we must address that so that opportunity is in the hands of people wherever they live and whatever their background, not concentrated in London and the south-east. I know how serious this Government are about the railways. Great British Railways is a significant intervention, and we are pleased that it will be hosted in Derby, because although there is some contention about this, I contend that Derby is the home of the railways. We have the largest rail manufacturing cluster in Europe, and George Stephenson’s final resting place is in Derbyshire too. Despite its railway pedigree, there is no electrified line through Derbyshire—it stops in Leicestershire, and then that section of the Midland main line, all the way through Derbyshire up to Sheffield, remains unelectrified. The benefits of introducing electrification are significant. We can reduce air pollution and journey times, and improve reliability. Studies indicate that there is potential to add £500 million to the regional economy by pursuing electrification. It is a project that has been kicked into the long grass too many times. I know that money is tight, and we do not have a golden inheritance as a Government, but I urge the Minister to consider the benefits of Midland main line electrification, because we could actually improve the connections to some of our smaller and more rural stations. There are three in my constituency: Belper, Duffield and Spondon.

• 17 Mar 2026 · Middle East · Hansard source

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  I thank the Foreign Secretary for her wide-ranging statement, including the support she outlined to protect British nationals in the region and to ensure that humanitarian aid gets into Lebanon, and the efforts to ensure that British consumers with heating oil are protected from price rises. Over 1,500 properties in my constituency depend on that. May I ask specifically about Iran? Iran has been a threat to the UK, around the world and to many of our partners. It has been a destabilising force directly and through its proxies for many decades. Is it her assessment now that whatever the circumstances of how this war came about, we have an opportunity to permanently de-escalate and neutralise the threat from Iran so that the whole world can benefit from more peaceful circumstances without it?

• 17 Mar 2026 · Productivity and Economic Growth: East Midlands · Hansard source

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  The hon. Member mentions the national insurance hike. I am disappointed about that, but would he be content to see public services—education, healthcare and public transport—continue to fail people? We needed that investment to get the country back on its feet.

• 17 Mar 2026 · Productivity and Economic Growth: East Midlands · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr Huq. The east midlands has been a driver of Britain’s economic growth since at least the earliest days of the industrial revolution. Belper in my constituency was the world’s first factory town; it spun cotton for textiles at a previously unimaginable rate, and that model was exported around the world. Now, our region hosts advanced manufacturing, cutting-edge technology and world-class research. Colleagues have touched on that and, as time is short, I will not go into it any further. However, our region faces significant challenges. Housing costs and low wages mean that many young people are stuck renting or living with their parents well beyond the time when they would have liked to move out. That is why I am very pleased to lend my support to the regeneration of the Belper mills, a significant series of historical buildings integral to the Derwent valley UNESCO world heritage site. Bringing heritage buildings like that back online—with 130 homes, in this case—and making them work for the community is essential. When such assets are also used to grow the visitor economy, as we are seeking to do in Belper, the economic returns are multiplied. To deliver that, we must ensure that we have the craftspeople to bring the buildings back into use. The technical excellence colleges for construction that are being established, including in Derby, must ensure that there is training in heritage building techniques and planning so that we have the skills to revive these valuable assets. Doing so not only benefits the economy and the people that it serves, but helps people understand our shared national story. It brings people together in engaging with the past and celebrating beautiful architecture that truly builds pride in place at a time when society feels increasingly fractured. A second challenge for the region is the under-investment it has suffered in its public transport. The east midlands has consistently been the least funded region, but helping people to get around, whether for work or leisure or to access public services or education, is key to economic growth. The Labour Government have made a good start on that through initiatives such as the £2 billion for public transport that they have allocated to Mayor Claire Ward. I want to see a good chunk of that money spent in rural and semi-rural communities, of which there are many in Derbyshire, where bus services are insufficient. The issue of public transport in rural and semi-rural areas is highlighted in the Labour rural research group’s latest report, “Rural Poverty in Britain”, and I strongly recommend that Ministers take the time to look at that publication. I am also keen to see the Government bring forward plans to electrify the remaining section of the midland main line, which was first mooted in the 1970s but has been kicked into the long grass numerous times. That would reduce carbon emissions and costs over the long term while delivering improved reliability and shorter travel times. It might also enable more services to stop in Belper, Duffield and Spondon. Given that Derby is the home of the railways, it is not acceptable that no electric trains run through the city. The east midlands is not just about Britain’s past; it is integral to its future, and when it succeeds, Britain succeeds. I hope the Minister has gathered plenty of insights to take forward with colleagues so that our region can truly achieve all that it has the potential to do.

• 10 Mar 2026 · Courts and Tribunals Bill · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is generous in giving way. He is making important points about potential overreach of the state. Might I suggest that this is not the end for the Bill and that if there are concerns—people are rightly raising issues—we can progress them in Committee and at subsequent stages to ensure that the Bill is where it needs to be to retain public trust.

• 10 Mar 2026 · Courts and Tribunals Bill · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is making a very good speech and putting victims at the heart of what she is saying. I share some of her concerns about the legislation as it stands, but does she agree that we should vote for it today, so that we have the opportunity to influence it and improve it in the interests of public trust as it passes through the House?

• 9 Mar 2026 · Middle East: Economic Update · Hansard source

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  I thank the Chancellor for her statement, because this is a worrying time for not just our national security, but our economy. I am pleased to hear about the work going on with the Competition and Markets Authority in respect of consumers of heating oil, but may I suggest that she has a conversation with her colleagues in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero to expedite the £1 billion-worth of community energy investment coming through the local power fund and focus it as quickly as possible into rural areas such as mine in Derbyshire? If this is going to be a protracted conflict, that could make a difference.

• 4 Mar 2026 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  Q6. Like the Prime Minister, I had the transformative benefit of a music education as a young person, although he had his some while before I had mine. [Hon. Members: “Ooh!”] After more than a decade of decline in music in schools, the Government’s new national centre for arts and music education and measures coming through the curriculum review will ensure that more young people benefit from the opportunities that my right hon. and learned Friend and I both had. Can he tell us how the new national centre will make a difference for our young people, and what are the Government doing to address the funding shortfalls currently facing England’s music education hubs, including mine in Derbyshire?

• 25 Feb 2026 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  Q10. The regeneration of Belper mills—a large site with buildings, including grade I listed ones dating from the start of the industrial revolution, at the heart of the east midlands’ only UNESCO world heritage site—took a significant step forward last week, when planning permission for its redevelopment and conservation was finally granted. The Government want to provide more housing—rightly so—and sites like this, though very challenging, provide a very important opportunity to support that aspiration and share our national story. Can the Prime Minister tell me what support the Government are giving to regenerate at-risk listed buildings, and whether we are delivering support to train construction workers in heritage building techniques? May I ask him to take a personal interest in Belper mills, because it is an internationally significant site?

• 23 Feb 2026 · Local Government Reorganisation · Hansard source

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  Local government reorganisation in Derbyshire might see Amber Valley borough council split in half, along with the cost and difficulty of working out how to disaggregate the authority and the services and private finance initiative contracts it still manages, but an outcome is needed that will work for the next 100 years and that is based on the time it takes people to travel to work and the services they access. May I ask the Secretary of State to take a special interest in the circumstances of Amber Valley borough council and ensure that it gets the support that it needs so that it can be part of a new authority that can serve people’s needs effectively in the county?

• 10 Feb 2026 · Local Power Plan · Hansard source

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  I thank the Secretary of State for his statement, the publication of the local power plan and the £1 billion investment that will support community groups to provide green, sustainable energy and help their financial sustainability. We have considerable expertise in Derbyshire when it comes to using water to create power. In fact, the mills that were built on the Derwent valley over 200 years ago were among the first to harness that opportunity, and now we have a number of hydro projects on that stretch of water. Can I encourage the Secretary of State to come to Derbyshire to see some of those projects and look at where we could add more? If he wants help from local people who have expertise in this space, I am more than happy to put him in touch with them.

• 2 Feb 2026 · China and Japan · Hansard source

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  With respect to the statement following the Prime Minister’s visit to China and Japan, I thank him for being in the room and challenging China on its appalling human rights record and for fighting for British jobs. With respect to his visit to Japan, did the issue of Toyota come up? Toyota is a significant employer in Derbyshire and worth more than £5.5 billion to the local economy. Can we do more with Toyota, because it is really good for jobs here?

• 27 Jan 2026 · Business Rates · Hansard source

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  When we had an urgent question on business rates last week, I raised the issue of grassroots music venues, so I am pleased that the Minister confirmed today that there will be 15% off business rates for pubs and grassroots music venues. As he seeks to build on the permanently lower multipliers and the excess of £4 billion of support in the Budget with his high street strategy, can I encourage him to keep music and cultural venues front and centre of his thinking? The UK music industry generates more than £8 billion for the UK economy, and these venues are a platform for future talent.

• 21 Jan 2026 · Warm Homes Plan · Hansard source

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  I very much welcome the publication of this £15 billion warm homes plan, which will get people’s bills down and reduce our impact on the environment. I was particularly interested to hear of the £90 million that has been set aside for the development of heat pumps, because Vaillant—one of the world’s leading manufacturers of heat pumps—is based in Belper in my constituency. What steps is the Secretary of State taking to ensure that the £90 million will be spent well? Will he engage with Vaillant to make sure that we can draw on its experience, and can we use that money to create more good jobs in this very important sector in Derbyshire?

• 19 Jan 2026 · Business Rates: Retail, Hospitality and Leisure · Hansard source

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  I welcome the assurance that half of businesses will see their business rates flat or falling, and that is even after the end of the covid-era support and the post-pandemic review initiated by the previous Government. Research by the Music Venue Trust estimates that 600 grassroots music venues may see quite significant rises, probably because of the revaluation. Significant areas backstage are dedicated to production and performance and cannot be used for revenue raising. Will the Minister meet me and sector representatives so that we can understand the issue better together?

• 19 Jan 2026 · Iran: Protests · Hansard source

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  The scenes from Iran are barbaric, and those executions that we are aware of are an affront to human dignity. Wherever we look around the world, we can see the malign influence of Iran, including here. Our national security strategy, published in June last year, highlighted that. Can the Minister assure me that our law enforcement is taking every step possible to manage the risk? Following on from the question asked by my hon. Friend the Member for Rugby (John Slinger), will the Minister make a contribution to the BBC charter review consultation in respect of the positive work that the BBC is doing in that troubled part of the world?

• 14 Jan 2026 · Northern Powerhouse Rail · Hansard source

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  I very much welcome this generational investment, which will benefit not just rail in the north of England but the whole country through economic growth and regeneration. I particularly welcome the investment going to Sheffield, which is a city used by my constituents not just as a destination but as a connection to elsewhere. Bearing Sheffield in mind, I invite the Minister not to lose sight of the benefits of electrifying the midland main line south of Sheffield—it remains unelectrified down to South Wigston—which would drive significant growth for people in Mid Derbyshire and benefit the country as a whole.

• 7 Jan 2026 · Ukraine and Wider Operational Update · Hansard source

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  I welcome the Secretary of State’s statement and the generosity of his answers at this late hour. I express my sincere gratitude to the British forces men and women who have helped seize this tanker—part of the Russian shadow fleet being used to fuel Putin’s illegal war in Ukraine. I also thank this Labour Government for their record investment in our defence. Concerning the Russian shadow fleet specifically, can my right hon. Friend assure me that no stone will be left unturned in protecting our critical undersea infrastructure, which is at regular threat from the Russian shadow fleet? If it were terminally interrupted, that would cause absolute chaos here in the UK.

• 6 Jan 2026 · BBC Charter Renewal · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mrs Harris. The BBC is one of Britain’s finest institutions. Although it has undoubtedly had its problems, as many institutions have—including this place—it makes a significant contribution to our national life. However, the BBC must change to ensure that it is fit for the future in a rapidly changing world; that is why I welcome the opportunity that the Green Paper consultation provides. It is an opportunity to ensure that issues relating to the BBC’s funding, governance and editorial standards are strengthened, and that its political impartiality is reinforced. It is also an opportunity to consider what the public value about the BBC and what they do not. Some key themes and values should help shape this process. The BBC must retain its strong regional dimension. Its local radio and TV are important levers for holding decision makers to account. Weakening those functions would lead to poorer decisions in our democratic processes, and individuals and organisations that do not act in a public-spirited way would be given an easier ride. That said, we must be mindful of how coverage of local news on the BBC News website has contributed to the decline of local newspapers. We cannot have a situation where the local media landscape is monolithic because the size and scale of the BBC has drowned out all its competitors. The BBC-funded local democracy reporting service, which employs some reporters at local papers, has gone some way to mitigate that issue, and consideration should be given to whether that service should be expanded. Given the rise of AI, fake news and disinformation online and via social media, the BBC must grow its trustworthiness and retain its accuracy and impartiality. It is a linchpin of the UK’s creative economy, and it commissions and creates world-leading content. To retain and grow that, it needs to be able to invest in programme making at a level that allows it to compete with streaming services and major US production companies. The BBC must also be able to maintain its globally recognised choirs and orchestras. The professionals delivering that music making must enjoy good terms and conditions, which they ought to have a right to expect. It must build on its educational offer—not just for children and young people, but for adults seeking to retrain and gain new skills in a rapidly changing world of work. However, to do all that, the BBC must be properly resourced. Its funding has been cut in real terms by almost a third since 2010, following freezes or below-inflation rises of the licence fee and top-slicing to fund the World Service and licences for older people. That has led to losses of highly skilled staff, and it is undermining the Reithian principles of the BBC: to inform, entertain and educate. It is important that we consider different funding models that may be available to us as part of this process. Finally, I encourage colleagues, the public and the organisations that care about what the BBC does to engage with the consultation about the BBC’s future, which is open now. The BBC belongs to us all. Together, we can ensure that it continues to play an important part in our national life for generations to come.

• 5 Jan 2026 · Northern Ireland Troubles Bill: Armed Forces Recruitment and Retention · Hansard source

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  This Government have a very strong story to tell when it comes to recruitment and retention in defence, whether that is about investing in homes for our forces people, providing free travel over Christmas, or delivering a 6% pay rise last year and a 4.5% pay rise this year. I know that those efforts are working, because one of my staff, Archie Butler-Gallie, will be leaving shortly to go to Sandhurst—I am sure that colleagues from across the House will want to congratulate him on that. What further steps can the Minister take to ensure that our armed forces are an attractive career for young people, as well as those changing jobs? I also welcome what the Minister has said about the Northern Ireland element of this issue. I urge him—as I know he is doing—to leave no stone unturned in ensuring that inequitable or vexatious prosecutions are not brought against our forces personnel.

• 5 Jan 2026 · Rural Crime · Hansard source

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  In my constituency, we have both rural and urban areas. I have had numerous people from rural areas contact me about theft from commercial vehicles, including in Quarndon. As we move forward with our police recruitment plans to get 13,000 more police officers by the end of this Parliament, may I ask that we ensure there are enough officers in rural areas to address this issue? It is particularly pertinent in those places.

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

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  It was very welcome news that the Government had revisited the issues of business property relief, which will help family businesses in my constituency, and agricultural property relief, which means that up to £5 million can be passed on by a qualifying couple. It was also right that the Government considered this area as a whole, because too many people, including famous folk off the telly, had bought such properties with a view to insulating themselves against tax. Can the Minister assure me that we will take steps to support our farming community by not selling them down the river with dodgy trade deals, as we saw with Australia and New Zealand under the previous Government, and that we will work closely with our European export partners? Will he also ensure that the SFI and other subsidies get to where they need and are spent in a timely way, because they went unspent under the previous Government?