Josh Newbury MP: speeches

Speeches

• 19 May 2025 · Gender Self-identification · Hansard source

  More

  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship for the first time, Mr Mundell. According to the Rainbow Map, which ranks European countries based on their legal and policy practices for LGBT people, the United Kingdom is now as low down as 22nd. We should bear in mind that just 10 years ago we were at the top of that list, but since then we have slowly but surely made our way down it. Let us be clear: trans people in this country are facing a wave of hostility, misinformation and marginalisation. Regardless of our position on the topic of the petition, that should concern us all. Some organisations have jumped the gun on restricting access to single-sex spaces in advance of the full guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission, in the misguided belief that they are following an updated law. I am afraid that the interim guidance, as other Members have said, does nothing to help that situation, and actually exacerbates it. In particular, there is the inexplicable assertion that, in some circumstances, the law also allows trans women not to be permitted to use men’s facilities, and trans men not to be permitted to use women’s facilities. In other words, trans people are excluded from all single-sex spaces. For me, it is the vigilante enforcement of the so-called guidance that is perhaps the most toxic and damaging aspect of all. Toilets are becoming ideological battlegrounds, with the casualties including not just trans people but cisgender women who are not stereotypically female. It is clear that there is no adequate test for determining whether a person should now have access to a single-sex space, except for a DNA test perhaps, which is clearly not going to happen in a toilet, refuge or anywhere like that. Out there, and perhaps in this place too, access is being based on whether a person appears to be a certain gender and whether they adhere to gender norms. I thought that we had left outdated notions of what a women should look and sound like where they belong, in the past, but now they are being dredged back up. Worst of all, that is being done by people who call themselves feminists. The toxicity in this debate is not new; in this House, successive Conservative Governments not only failed to defend the trans community and advance their rights, but actively stoked division and rolled back the clock. Today, although there are calls for wider reforms, including on gender recognition and self-identification, we must also be honest about the political and social climate we are in. These are such important conversations and they require the right timing and sensitivity, not culture wars. Over the last decade, both in the UK and globally, a lot has happened. I worry that we have started to channel wider fears into isolating an already marginalised group who just want to live their lives with the same dignity and respect that so many of us take for granted. A survey from Stonewall in March this year found that 17% of LGBT+ people have experienced physical assault because of their gender or sexual identity, and the number for trans and non-binary people is almost two in five. The Labour party has a proud history of advancing LGBT+ rights, from legislating for a statutory right to NHS fertility treatment for lesbian and bisexual women to leading a United Nations campaign for the decriminalisation of homosexuality and, of course, introducing the Gender Recognition Act 2004, which was a groundbreaking change to the law at the time. However, 21 years on, as the hon. Member for South Cotswolds (Dr Savage) so eloquently put it, the Act is in need of reform and modernisation. Today, the Labour party once again has the opportunity to champion dignity and equality for all. Our manifesto commitments include a ban on all forms of conversion practice; improving access to high-quality NHS care, including gender-affirming care; making LGBT+ hate crime an aggravated offence, leading to harsher sentences; and that all-important gender recognition certificate reform. I know the profound impact it has when the law reflects our identity and allows us to live freely as who we are. Labour Governments have always understood that, and we have always known that progress never comes from standing still or failing to show up when the going gets tough. The petition calls for legal recognition based on self-identification, and I completely understand why. As my hon. Friend the Member for Leeds Central and Headingley (Alex Sobel) said, our neighbours in Ireland introduced self-ID without incident or issue way back in 2015. In the words of an Irish lady I spoke to last week, “the sky didn’t fall in and I’m pretty sure it’s still up there.” Meanwhile, trans people here still face long-winded, undignified, medicalised processes just to have their identity legally recognised. The Gender Recognition Act ultimately allows people whose gender identity does not correspond with the sex registered on their birth certificate to obtain recognition and a revised birth certificate. However, as has been said, that process involves two medical certificates, including a diagnosis of gender dysphoria and details of any treatment received. Further, it requires evidence of a person living in their true gender for at least two years and a declaration that they will continue to do so permanently. Clearly, there is much unfinished work ahead on untangling the legal mess that we have been plunged into, restoring dignity for transgender people, modernising the Gender Recognition Act and ensuring that our laws reflect the lives and identities of everybody in Britain. As a cis man, I understand completely that progress must be built on trust, on consensus, which I hope we are able to come to, and on delivering what we have promised. Let us begin by delivering on banning conversion practices in all their vile forms, equalising the punishment of all forms of hate crime, reviewing adult gender identity services and ensuring that all trans people receive appropriate and high-quality care, and, of course, making the Gender Recognition Act fit for the future. I invite the Minister to confirm that the Government are still fully committed to those advancements, as I am. I conclude by reaffirming my allyship for trans people, who now, more than ever, need our respect, acceptance and steadfast support.

• 15 May 2025 · Youth Services · Hansard source

  More

  I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Croydon East (Natasha Irons), a fellow ageing millennial, for securing this debate. I speak not only as a parent who would love to see well-funded youth services, but as somebody who has witnessed the consequences of short-term thinking when it comes to youth services. In 2014, Conservative-led Staffordshire county council took the callous and short-sighted decision to close our youth service completely. The complete emptiness of the Opposition Benches speaks volumes about whether the Conservatives’ attitude to youth services has improved in the past 11 years. For them, this was a line on a budget sheet, but for communities in my county it was the closure of 38 youth clubs and the loss of 400 jobs. However, the real cost of these decisions lies not in numbers but in the experiences of young people in my constituency. The day-to-day impact of cuts often goes unnoticed, but the long-term impact is impossible to ignore. As an antidote to the gloomy picture that I may have painted, I will mention a couple of the incredible organisations that, despite the closure of our youth service, are doing incredible work. The Staffordshire Council of Voluntary Youth Services, fondly known as SCVYS, offers practical support to charities and local groups and ensures that the voices of children and young people are heard. The VYSIONS youth service was created by children and young people in Brereton and Rugeley and provides a range of programmes and activities, from shooting and fishing to arts and crafts, in some of our most deprived white working-class communities. I welcome the investment announced by the Government but, in closing, I urge the Minister to ensure that that funding is front-loaded in areas, such as Staffordshire, that have no council youth services left whatsoever. I sympathise with colleagues who represent inner-city areas and have seen deep cuts, but I ask them to imagine a world in which their youth service no longer exists at all: that is the world that my constituents have lived in for the past eleven years. All of us here have the highest hopes for our young people, and I am incredibly glad that once again we have a Government that do too.

• 29 Apr 2025 · Staffordshire: Cultural Contribution · Hansard source

  More

  It is a pleasure to speak with you in the Chair, Ms Furniss. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Stafford (Leigh Ingham) for securing the debate. It has been a real pleasure to hear colleagues pay tribute to Staffordshire, from our world renowned pottery to our vibrant theatres, diverse festivals and creative talent. Although I might be a little biased, Cannock Chase, my own perfectly formed slice of Staffordshire, stands out as one of our cultural gems. Not only are we fortunate enough to have the chase itself, but we also have countless fantastic businesses, landmarks, museums, theatres and schools. I have had the privilege of visiting many of our fantastic schools, which are nurturing future artists and performers who will go on to contribute to Staffordshire’s cultural landscape. Despite the disadvantage of the national funding formula, we must support a broad, inclusive curriculum that includes the arts, music, drama and design: such a culturally rich education is open to young people in many parts of our country but not as open as it should be to our constituents. Cannock Chase has raised renowned talent such as the hilarious Steve Edge, and our Oscar-winning film-maker Chris Overton, who scooped the Academy award for the beautiful short film “The Silent Child”. In more recent news, Jenii Luperi, the vocal coach of this year’s Eurovision entry, also hails from Cannock. It is clear that Staffordshire has always punched well above its weight culturally, and we must ensure that it has the support and resources to do so for generations to come. Young performers who are just starting out, seasoned performers, and Oscar winners all need venues to support them. The Prince of Wales theatre in Cannock, a cornerstone of our local cultural life, had its final curtain call on Saturday night, though it is hopefully not closing for good. The emotional evening involved eight fantastic local musical theatre and amateur dramatics companies, who all managed to get to the theatre safely despite Staffordshire’s notoriously potholed roads. We have also, with great sadness, seen the Museum of Cannock Chase close its doors. Such venues are not just buildings but homes for local talent, heritage and the collective memory of our communities. Thousands of schoolchildren have come through their doors to experience the rich heritage of our area; they leave with a sense of pride in where they are from, inspired to shape its future. I am supporting two incredible charitable groups who have been working non-stop for the last six months to reopen those venues. We are exploring what support might be available to them from the Arts Everywhere fund. That fund was announced in the inaugural Jennie Lee lecture, named for our first Arts Minister, in whose footsteps as an MP I am privileged to follow. Staffordshire’s cultural contributions are about not just the past but the future that we want to build: a future where our children can grow their creativity in schools, local groups, grassroots museums, and on stages big and small.

• 22 Apr 2025 · Coalfields Regeneration Trust · Hansard source

  More

  I thank my hon. Friend for giving way, particularly given that he is another Staffordshire MP. As he has heard me say before, the Museum of Cannock Chase in my constituency, which is primarily focused on mining heritage, is due to close by the end of the month. I am working hard alongside the Chase heritage group to rescue it. The Coalfields Regeneration Trust is taking an active interest in the effort. Does my hon. Friend agree that the CRT does fantastic work in preserving and celebrating our mining heritage?

• 8 Apr 2025 · Easter Adjournment · Hansard source

  More

  It is a pleasure to speak in this Easter Adjournment debate, and I wish everyone a happy Easter and a restful break. I rise to speak about the British Coal staff superannuation scheme and the need for the scheme’s investment reserve to be returned to its investors as soon as possible. In Cannock Chase, we are rightly proud of our rich mining heritage. That legacy has shaped our communities with generations of hard-working men and women who dedicated their lives to the industry that defined our area for seven centuries. Following privatisation, many British Coal employees were part of either the mineworkers’ pension scheme or the British Coal staff superannuation scheme. I commend the Government for delivering the long-overdue justice for MPS members in the first Labour Budget for 15 years, transferring the £1.5 billion investment reserve. I have spoken to some of the 1,400 MPS members in my constituency since the Government kept their manifesto promise, and they are very grateful for the 32% boost to their pension. However, that has led to members of the BCSSS calling for similar action to be taken on their pension scheme. There are 530 members and dependents of the BCSSS in my constituency, who, like their MPS counterparts, do not receive substantial pensions. Also like the MPS, the BCSSS has returned billions to the Treasury—more than enough to guarantee the scheme for its life. Surplus sharing was ended after an agreement between the trustees and the Government of the day and since then all surpluses are due to go to the Treasury. However, the fundamentals are the same with a substantial investment reserve, which could boost members’ pensions and dependents’ incomes. Very sadly, this is an urgent matter. Last year, more than 2,400 members of the BCSSS passed away, so it is not hard to see why so many members fear that they will not be able to see this money in their lifetimes. These pensioners dedicated their working lives to powering our country, and it is vital that they receive the thanks that such a demanding and important role requires. This is a particular passion of those of us representing coalfield constituents, where the vast majority of the 45,000 BCSSS members live. I wish to pay tribute to many hon. Members for their steadfast campaigning on this matter. We know that, just as it has for the MPS, a return of the BCSSS investment reserve would provide a welcome boost for businesses in our communities, which have been hammered harder than most in recent years. I hope that, in the very near future, we can secure an agreement with the BCSSS trustees, who also deserve credit for their work on this and for fostering a transparent and positive relationship with the members that they serve. Transferring the final £2.3 billion payment from the reserve will ensure fairer pensions for everyone who contributed to the coal industry, whether that be underground, in the offices or in the canteens. It is also worth flagging the gender inequality angle because, unlike the MPS, a large proportion of BCSSS members are women as it was the default pension scheme for clerical and catering staff, who do not always get the recognition that they deserve for the huge contribution they made to such a critical industry. Reflecting the shameful reality faced by women for decades, many were paid significantly less than their male colleagues and now they are campaigning hard for some restitution for that historic injustice with the return of their scheme’s investment reserve. I fully understand that the issue is not as simple as duplicating what has been done for the MPS, given that the schemes were set up differently, and I pay tribute to the work of the Minister of State for Industry, who has confirmed that BCSSS proposals will be considered. Having raised this matter today, I hope that an agreement can be reached in a timely manner. Given that we are losing an average of six BCSSS members every day, the sooner we can get this done, the more members of our community can see and feel justice.

• 3 Apr 2025 · Access to Sport: PE in Schools · Hansard source

  More

  I thank my hon. Friend and almost constituency neighbour the Member for Stafford (Leigh Ingham) for securing this debate on such an important topic. When we talk about access to sport and physical education in schools, it is about not just fitness and physical activity, but opportunity. It is about making sure that every student, no matter what their background, has the chance to find something in which they can excel, or at the very least that they are given the chance to try. I wish to share a personal story. When I was in school, the sports we were offered were restrictive, to put it politely—or archaic, to be a bit less generous. In autumn and winter it was football for the boys and netball for the girls. In summer it was football and cricket for the boys and rounders for the girls. Sadly, although I enjoy watching both, football and cricket were never my strong suit—and yes, I was always the last one picked for any team, as the bottom of the barrel was scraped. Because of this, I never felt that sport was something that I could excel in, or even enjoy. However, around the time I reached year 10, I had the opportunity to try sports such as badminton and volleyball—sports that suited me, that I was reasonably good at and, most importantly, that I actually enjoyed and wanted to carry on after I left school. The lesson I took away from that is that sport and PE are not one-size-fits-all. There are so many different sports, each with their own appeal, and it is crucial that children and young people have the chance to explore as wide a range as possible. According to a Youth Sport Trust report last year, 58% of girls in the UK said that they would like to have more options to choose from. Many girls are not engaged in historically male-dominated sports such as football and rugby. To address this we need two things. First, we need improved access to the alternative sports that girls are missing out on, to give them the chance to discover something they enjoy and excel in, as I did. Secondly, we need to break down the outdated gender taboos around sports. The Lionesses, the Red Roses and campaigns such as This Girl Can are smashing those taboos; I hope that will radiate through our schools so we do not leave such a huge proportion of students behind. In my constituency last month, Norton Canes primary academy and Jerome primary school in Norton Canes and the John Bamford primary school and Chancel primary school in Rugeley all took part in the biggest ever football session organised by the FA to empower girls to feel like they belong in football. As my hon. Friend the Member for Stafford said, it is great to hear about such initiatives to make sure that girls around the country have the opportunity to participate. According to another Youth Sport Trust report, children from poorer backgrounds are the least confident in being active. Only 51% of 11 to 16-year-olds in the D and E socioeconomic groups rate themselves as confident about taking part in physical activity, compared with 75% for higher socioeconomic groups. The statistics show how important fairness and equality of access are. The Government are absolutely taking the right steps, particularly with last month’s announcement of £100 million to revamp local sports facilities across the UK, breaking down barriers to opportunity and giving young people the opportunity to build vital skills and connections. My final point is about the importance of sport and PE for young people’s mental health. Because of my uselessness at football and cricket, I often found PE lessons an isolating experience, which contributed to the poor mental health that I experienced at times growing up. The macho culture around football in particular is really hard for a young gay person in school, but I believe that culture is starting to shift. Happily, I have since found hugely positive mental health benefits in sports. To make sure that children and young people in schools can reap the benefits, I hope that the recruitment and retention of teachers will be made more stable and that, through partnerships with schools, local authorities, academy trusts and the Government, we can make sure that as many PE teachers as possible are mental health first aiders and champions. They have such a pivotal role to play, which perhaps we should value more than we currently do. I am so grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for Stafford for securing this debate, because investment in sport is investment in something that will give children the confidence and mental resilience that they need to succeed both on and off the playing field.

• 27 Feb 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

  More

  T6. Alongside our theatre and museum, which I mentioned earlier, Cannock also has brilliant small music venues, such as The Station, all of which give our budding actors, museum curators and musicians a foot on the ladder. However, we still long for the opportunities that are open to children in other parts of the country. Will the Minister set out what discussions he has had with colleagues on routes into creative sectors for our young people?

• 27 Feb 2025 · Small Theatres and Performing Arts Venues · Hansard source

  More

  I thank the Minister for that response. In my constituency, formerly represented by the great Jennie Lee, the council-owned theatre and museum are due to close in just two months’ time. Passionate members of our community have come together to form the Cannock Chase Theatre Trust and the Chase Heritage CIC to save these precious venues. Will the Minister join me in thanking those groups for all their efforts, and will he set out how the Government are supporting such community groups to take on culture and heritage venues at risk?

• 27 Feb 2025 · Small Theatres and Performing Arts Venues · Hansard source

  More

  9. What steps her Department is taking to support small theatres and performing arts venues.

• 6 Feb 2025 · Coalfield Communities · Hansard source

  More

  It is an honour to speak in this debate as the Member of Parliament for Cannock Chase, an area deeply proud of its mining heritage. Collieries were our dominant industry from the mid- 19th century right up until the early 1990s. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle-under-Lyme (Adam Jogee) on securing this debate and enabling us to speak on behalf of our coalfield communities. As a fellow Staffordshire MP, I know that he is a dedicated advocate for the town and villages that he represents. He referred to the Diglake mining disaster; in Cannock Chase on 1 October we will mark the 95th anniversary of the Grove colliery disaster in the North Lanes area of Norton Canes, which claimed the lives of 14 men. My constituents are rightly proud of where they live. Often, generations remain in the area for their whole lives, which shows the real sense of community and local identity. However, my constituents often tell me that we desperately need investment in the bread-and-butter infrastructure that supports thriving communities, such as capacity at GPs, dentists and primary schools, good quality roads and regeneration of our town centres. Regeneration is vital because in all too many coalfield communities there is still a feeling that, decades on, we have not all recovered from the rapid destruction of the coalmining industry in the 1980s and 1990s. At the 2019 general election, many of my constituents were tempted by the siren song of levelling up from the then Prime Minister. My constituents have been crying out for the promise of big-bang regeneration across communities such as mine for a very long time. Our main town of Cannock was successful in securing £20 million from the levelling-up fund in 2021, but the reality of the fund has been far more complex than even my local council envisaged four years ago. First of all, its rigidity in awarding funding to one town pits communities against one another and does not reflect the more balanced approach to regeneration that councils such as mine would take if given the freedom. Secondly, the focus on large, complex and therefore risky projects with fixed budgets, coupled with high inflation, has forced councils with LUF projects to repeatedly re-evaluate what they can deliver. On several occasions, Members will have heard me raise the plight of the Prince of Wales theatre in Cannock and the Museum of Cannock Chase in Hednesford, which are threatened with closure. The museum, based in the buildings of the former Valley colliery, is a much- loved hub for our proud mining heritage. Our theatre is playing its part in keeping our heritage alive, too, such as in the new play “The Tunnellers”, which tells the story of the heroic men of the tunnelling companies in the first world war, many of whom worked on the Cannock Chase coalfield. A redevelopment of our theatre was to be at the heart of our LUF project, but the effects of inflation to have forced the council to scale back the project, and the theatre is now set to close. Fortunately, a fantastic group of residents have formed a community interest company with a view to taking on the Prince of Wales. I pay tribute to them and, as I stated at a public meeting that I organised last Friday, I will continue to work shoulder to shoulder with them to secure a bright, sustainable future for the theatre, and our museum, too. I very much hope that our council will use the levelling-up funds to help secure the long-term future of the theatre. The difficulties faced by Cannock’s LUF project underline the flaws of the funding model. I am encouraged to see this Government’s commitment to replacing the dog-eat-dog bidding wars with a system based on need and what our communities want. Alongside my colleagues, I hope to see coalfield communities benefit from local growth funding, maintained at the current level at least, long-term funding that does not lead to a rapid dash to spend by arbitrary deadlines, and the genuine empowerment of local councils, which will always know their communities better than Whitehall. Finally, the Coalfields Regeneration Trust, which has done fantastic work in our communities for 25 years, was forced by the previous Government to become a self-financing charity. Despite the inevitable scaling back of its capacity to invest, its brilliant model of generating income from building new industrial units for small and medium-sized businesses in coalfield communities is enabling it to carry on its fantastic work. The CRT’s objectives and investments perfectly align with this Government’s ambition for economic growth that is spread right across the country while bearing down on the barriers that all too often affect coalfield communities more than most. Our communities, which once powered the nation, are bursting with potential and passionate, hard-working people with a diverse range of skills and a pride in our past, strengthened by hope for the future. I am proud to be part of a Labour Government who are once again unleashing that potential for the good of the people we all represent.

• 24 Jan 2025 · Climate and Nature Bill · Hansard source

  More

  It is an honour to speak on the Bill, given the twin challenges of tackling climate change and ensuring that our natural world not only survives but becomes a far greater part of our lives. Those priorities are shared by the vast majority of my constituents in Cannock Chase, many of whom have written to me over the last few weeks. As others have done, I pay tribute to the hon. Member for South Cotswolds (Dr Savage), who deserves great credit for using her private Member’s Bill to push for strong ambitions and action on both climate and biodiversity. That decision has enabled a huge amount of discussion to take place on those issues not just today, but over the last few months and, no doubt, in the months and years to come. In particular, she has worked incredibly hard to ensure that those discussions radiate out of this place by engaging with passionate campaigners from up and down the country. I have no doubt that that will make the public debate both wider and deeper, which I am confident all hon. Members in the Chamber welcome. As I noted in my maiden speech, my constituency is best known for its forest. While there is far more to Cannock Chase and the fantastic people who call it home than that, I am happy to have the welcome excuse of this debate to focus on the natural beauty and serenity that it has to offer. The truth is that Cannock Chase has a far more complex and diverse range of habitats than simply a 2,700-hectare forest. About a third of the wider Cannock Chase national landscape is agricultural land, which I will come to later, and a large proportion is heathland, which is a vital but endangered habitat. In many ways, the decline and continuing plight of Britain’s heathland is symbolic of the decline of our natural world, which we are discussing today and which the Bill rightly seeks to address and reverse. It is often said that Britain is one of the most nature deprived countries in the world, but for us in Cannock Chase that can be hard to believe because of all the natural beauty right on our doorstep. Indeed, no one living in my constituency is more than a 15-minute drive from our stunning forest and heathland. Having said that, inequality and poor bus services mean that the most deprived parts of my constituency are also the most nature deprived. I hope we will bear that intersection in mind as we continue the debate. When I knock on doors on new build estates in Cannock Chase such as those in Hednesford, which is often described as the gateway to the Chase, people who have recently moved to the area often tell me that having nature a stone’s throw away is what drew them to our communities, particularly those who grew up in urban areas. The Chase attracts a huge number of visitors—about 2.5 million a year—which, if hon. Members can believe it, means that the density of visitors we receive is four to five times greater than that of the Lake District national park. That intensity of tourism shows how passionate we are about nature and our instinctive need to get lost in it, but also that we can sometimes pose the greatest risk to the natural world. In my area, it is sometimes said that we are at risk of loving the Chase to death, so the agenda of this Bill and this Government to prevent outcomes like that is very important. As I mentioned, no habitat in my constituency illustrates this better than lowland heathland. Rarer than tropical rainforests, lowland heath is found on Brindley heath and Moors Gorse, just north of Hednesford, and at the iron age hill fort of Castle Ring in Cannock Wood. As well as being a scheduled ancient monument, Castle Ring is home to a variety of rare habitats such as sphagnum bog and acidic grassland. The UK is fortunate to have a fifth of all the heathland in Europe, yet sadly we have lost 80% of it over the last two centuries. It is particularly concerning that much of that loss has occurred over the last 70 years, echoing the picture of ever increasing species and habitat loss that Members have drawn attention to today, including my hon. Friend the Member for Norwich North (Alice Macdonald). I know, from taking my daughter to see the stunning carpets of purple heather over the Chase every August, that the cutbacks to conservation work due to austerity are allowing scrub and ferns to creep in more and more year after year. That is why I was delighted that just before Christmas, to mark the 75th anniversary of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949, the Environment Secretary announced that national landscapes such as Cannock Chase will be granted new powers to boost nature’s recovery and improve sustainable access to these beautiful landscapes. Refining the role and authority of national parks and national landscapes will benefit our rural economy and mean that more people can enjoy spending time reconnecting with nature. It is also fantastic to see stronger regulations to ensure that public bodies, including water companies, do more to respect and support these precious landscapes. I am confident that that ambition will be extended to the protection of sites of special scientific interest, of which we have many in Cannock Chase. Often SSSIs are under greater ecological threat than national parks or landscapes because they are more dispersed or designated for a particular species. For example, the Cannock extension canal in my home village of Norton Canes plays host to one of the country’s largest populations of floating water plantain, which I have to admit is not particularly special to look at but is none the less an ecologically important endangered plant that thrives in gently undulating waters such as canals. As I mentioned, farming is absolutely present in the Cannock Chase national landscape, and in my view, there is nowhere better than national parks and national landscapes to see that farmers are stewards of the land and keen to work in harmony with nature. Support must be in place to enable farmers to realise this ambition, which is why I very much welcome the Government’s announcement of £5 billion over the next two years through the new deal for farmers, which will help to ensure that natural recovery is taking place on every English farm, alongside sustainable food production. To the credit of the previous Government, they introduced the farming in protected landscapes programme. Four Oaks farm, near Slitting Mill in my constituency, was one of the recipients of the funding, but it was a very time-limited programme, so I hope it will be renewed beyond the next financial year. Alongside many Members of the House, particularly my fellow members of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, I look forward to continuing the work of finding a way forward to a financially and environmentally sustainable future for British farming. For protected landscapes like Cannock Chase, funding streams such as the higher tier of the countryside stewardship scheme will be vital. These bespoke, delicately balanced projects need the expertise of Government agencies such as Natural England, and while significant progress has been made in recent months on expanding capacity and speeding up decisions, we still have a long way to go to ensure that all farmers can access environmental land management schemes and improve sustainability and biodiversity in the best way for their farm.

• 12 Dec 2024 · Business of the House · Hansard source

  More

  The recently proposed closure of a council-owned museum and theatre in Cannock Chase has shone a bright light on how much culture and heritage venues such as those mean to communities like mine and on the challenges facing the arts and museums more broadly. Would the Leader of the House join me in commending the campaigners fighting to save our museum and theatre, and would she make time for a debate on how we can safeguard and develop culture and heritage, particularly outside our big cities?

• 11 Dec 2024 · Engagements · Hansard source

  More

  Q9. Fourteen years of the Conservative party gutting local government has left councils having to make impossible choices. My constituents were recently shocked when Cannock Chase district council proposed the closure of the Museum of Cannock Chase and the Prince of Wales theatre. Will the Prime Minister ask the Culture Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Rhondda and Ogmore (Chris Bryant), and his officials to please meet me to see what can be done to save our museum and theatre?

• 11 Nov 2024 · Rural Affairs · Hansard source

  More

  Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. It is an honour to make my maiden speech as the Member of Parliament for Cannock Chase, my home. Having listened to many maiden speeches from all parts of the House, I have to say that I am honoured to be part of an incredibly talented intake—not that I am at all biased. I also have the privilege of following some outstanding predecessors who are fondly remembered by my constituents. The best known is the late, great Jennie Lee, who represented the former Cannock constituency for 25 years and also served as Minister for the Arts, playing a key role in the foundation of the Open University. Jennie was recently cited by the Chancellor as one of her political heroes and a contender to replace Nigel Lawson’s portrait in her office. Alongside her husband, the equally incomparable Aneurin Bevan, Jennie is commemorated across the constituency, including Jennie Lee Way in Rugeley and the Bevan Lee estate in Cannock. I could not speak about past Members for Cannock Chase without paying tribute to my Labour predecessor, Dr Tony Wright, who served as MP for Cannock and Burntwood and later Cannock Chase from 1992 until 2010. Tony was the epitome of a dedicated constituency MP. Constituents regularly speak warmly of Tony and he won votes from across the political spectrum. If I can be half the MP Tony was, I will be able to look back on my time in this House with pride. I would also like to pay tribute to my immediate predecessor, Dame Amanda Milling, who served our constituency for nine years. Amanda is praised by both supporters and detractors alike for her efficient approach to casework, which I know would be the envy of many MPs’ offices. Amanda served as a Government Whip for many years—not an easy job—and as Minister for Asia and the Middle East. I understand that Amanda also chaired the group of female Conservative MPs and was a passionate advocate of programmes that encourage women to stand for election. I may not have often agreed with Amanda politically, but I have always found her to be fair-minded, kind and decent, so I genuinely wish her all the best for the future. When people hear the words “Cannock Chase”, they naturally think of the stunning forest that is the constituency’s namesake. While making their first speeches, many new Members have claimed their constituency as the most beautiful in the land. However, I have to point out that my constituency is the only one in England that shares its name with an area of outstanding natural beauty—facts are facts! But the Chase is not just a place with serene walks and herds of fallow deer, although we have plenty of both. It is also a place of industry, sport and recreation. The Chase is still a working forest, managed by Forestry England, which produces around 19,000 tonnes of sustainable timber every year. The Chase is arguably most famous as a national destination for mountain bikers. As someone who could barely stay upright on fresh tarmac, the conversations I have had about mountain biking have probably been the steepest learning curve I have been on since the general election. But I look forward to working with bikers and Forestry England to build on the legacy of the 2022 Commonwealth games and make sure that unauthorised trails do not spoil the natural beauty of the forest. The Chase is a vibrant place with a huge range of activities, including the high ropes and free falls of Go Ape at Birches valley. I place on record an open invitation to the right hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Ed Davey), who, four months on from the general election campaign, must be suffering from zipline withdrawal. The iron-age hill fort of Castle Ring and the Chase’s former status as a royal hunting forest attest to its rich 12,000-year history. More recently, soldiers were trained on the Chase, including J.R.R. Tolkien, who was stationed there in 1916, and who may have drawn from it inspiration for the great forests in his legendary books. However, as my constituents would be keen to remind us all, there is much more to Cannock Chase than our forest. Our tight-knit communities are home to organisations that we are immensely proud of. Charities such as Cherishers, Help a Squaddie, Catherine Care and Newlife are the best of Cannock Chase, bursting with dedicated staff and volunteers who selflessly give their time. The construction, retail and education sectors are the biggest employers locally—unsurprisingly, given that our three main towns of Cannock, Hednesford and Rugeley enjoy a strategic position on A roads and on a busy railway line. Cannock has the headquarters of Finning, the world’s largest dealer of Caterpillar construction equipment, as well as the west midlands designer outlet village. Nevertheless, my constituency is not just urban and industrial; it is also semi-rural, with around a third of our land being agricultural. Clustered around the villages of Slitting Mill, Prospect Village, Cannock Wood, Wimblebury, Norton Canes and Heath Hayes is a tapestry of farms. Many of these communities feel left behind—last in the queue for infrastructure and services that other areas take for granted. A lack of access to GPs and bus services is frequently raised by my constituents in rural areas. We are also home to many businesses in the food supply chain, from processors to distributors. Because of those constituency interests, as well as my passion for the sector, I am delighted to be getting stuck into my role on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee. Interspersed between houses, factories and nature reserves are small remnants of the once dominant coalmining industry, some of which are conscientiously preserved as much loved reminders of our proud mining heritage. While we do not want to see a return to coalmining, our towns and villages long for the secure jobs, social fabric and sense of common identity that characterised coalfield communities for centuries. The sudden closure of Rugeley power station in 2016 signalled a final move away from coal. The now cleared site is soon to be renewed, with a new community of hundreds of homes, a school and a new park, which will alleviate flooding from the River Trent. Following the very welcome and long overdue return of the mineworkers’ pension scheme investment reserve to hundreds of families in my constituency, I look forward to working with the Government and others to bring investment and renewal to communities across Cannock Chase. Deciding what to say in a maiden speech leads us to reflect on what brought us to this extraordinary place, and what we hope to achieve for the people who sent us here. For me personally, it is momentous to be standing here, because 20 years ago I was a painfully shy young boy in the corner of the playground with my head buried in a book, trying as hard as I could to be invisible to the bullies who tormented me for a sexuality that, at that age, I did not yet understand. Today, I stand here proudly as a Member of this House. If I achieve just one thing in my new job, I hope it is to show young people who are in the position that I was in that your bullies do not define you, nor do they limit what you go on to achieve. I also hope to make my mark in other ways. Alongside my incredible husband, I am an adoptive parent to a beautiful four-year-old daughter, and foster carer to an equally beautiful nine-week-old baby boy, so adoption, permanence and our care leavers are all passions of mine. Having been a councillor in my constituency for over five years, I am and will always be a fierce advocate for local councils and the tangible difference that they make to our communities. Given that my constituency has the highest proportion of people who commute by car in the whole of England, I know that a priority must be to fix the potholes. I am delighted that the Government are committed to both devolution and decent roads. As a proud member of the Co-operative party, I am always keen to promote democratic ownership. Communities in rural and coalfield areas know more than most the value of clubbing together and giving everyone a stake in the places and services that they rely on. It is safe to say that I have lots on my to-do list, which is hardly groundbreaking for an MP, but I must finish by thanking the people who have enabled me to serve my home of Cannock Chase in this House. If it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a whole town to win an election campaign. I thank the Cannock Chase Labour party and all the volunteers who contributed to our record-breaking result. I thank my incredible family, many of whom are in the Gallery. They have helped me to overcome so much in my life, and they have put up with a lot; I am sure that many Members’ families can relate to that. The final thanks go, of course, to the people of Cannock Chase for giving me the opportunity to fight for our towns and villages. I will go on as I have started, repaying that trust with action and hard work for as long as they keep me here.