Neil Hudson MP: speeches

Speeches

• 24 Jun 2026 · Media Green Paper · Hansard source

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  Many of my constituents in Epping Forest are very worried about proposals to stop terrestrial TV broadcasts from 2034. Like local radio, for many people in both urban and rural areas, and for older and more vulnerable people, terrestrial TV is a lifeline in their daily lives. Will the Government have a strong rethink about this?

• 23 Jun 2026 · Fly-tipping: Residential Areas · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for that intervention. We have heard great contributions from across the House today. Let me turn to some of the figures, which speak for themselves. Councils in England dealt with 1.26 million incidents of fly-tipping in 2024-25. That was a 9% increase on the previous year, and both the fifth successive annual increase and among the highest figure on record. The majority of those incidents, 62%, involved household waste. The most common sources were not lorry loads from organised criminals, although that is an issue I will come to, but car boots and small vans—everyday domestic dumps. Across the country, our constituents have sadly become all too familiar with the sight of dumped bin bags, mattresses and white goods including fridges, freezers, washing machines and dishwashers. The effects are serious. As well as the obvious awful environmental consequences and the effects on nature and wildlife, fly-tipping is a public health problem, as dumped waste attracts vermin, creates fire risk and can contaminate soil and local watercourses. The harm is not only physical. Antisocial behaviour such as fly-tipping causes real anxiety and distress to residents who live with it. Sadly, my constituents in Epping Forest are not immune to the blight of fly-tipping and its harmful impacts, with many serious cases across our area caused by shameless criminals who should face the full extent of the law. Fly-tipping threatens the precious wildlife and biodiversity that our forest of Epping Forest is so privileged to enjoy. As a positive counter to that situation, I have been privileged to meet unsung heroes, litter-picking groups right across Epping Forest, including Waltham Abbey community group and Theydon Bois parish council, who selflessly give up their time to clean up our communities, as I have seen at first hand on joining their litter picks. However, the sight of copious numbers of discarded large nitrous oxide canisters, used illegally for drug misuse and then chucked on the side of roads for those who do the right thing to clear up, is incredibly concerning. As I have raised in the House many times—I raised it with the Minister just last week—any activity to clear up waste needs to address that issue as a priority for urban, rural and semi-rural communities alike. Will the Minister outline the steps that the Government are taking to tackle the illegal use of nitrous oxide and the subsequent discarding of dangerous canisters, damaging our environment? The previous Conservative Government understood the fly-tipping problem and the need for further action. We increased the upper limit for fixed penalty notices for fly-tipping from £400 to £1,000 and established the Joint Unit for Waste Crime, a multi-agency taskforce bringing together key stakeholders, including the Environment Agency, the police, the National Crime Agency, the British Transport Police, His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, the National Fire Chiefs Council and the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management. Through intelligence sharing and resource prioritisation, it has supported hundreds of operations contributing to arrests. I am pleased that the current Government are continuing with that measure. We Conservatives also introduced several projects across England that sought to crack down on fly-tipping in residential areas, including portable CCTV cameras to patrol and capture footage across Northumberland, anti-climb fencing to protect neighbourhood areas in Hyndburn and larger recycling bins in better locations in Mansfield to ensure that the public have access to the correct disposal facilities. Those projects had demonstrable positive effects. In Durham, which received funding from the last Government, the county council introduced educational bin stickers and permanent signage and installed CCTV on existing lighting columns. As a result, fly-tipping was cut by more than 60%. In Hyndburn, installing fencing and gates to prevent access to fly-tipping hotspots saw fly-tipping decrease by 100% in those areas in the following three months. The council saved approximately £4,000 in waste removal and clean-up costs over that period. In addition, the Conservative Government passed the landmark Environment Act 2021, which laid the foundation for electronic waste tracking, a measure the current Government are now implementing. I had the opportunity to discuss that with the Minister just last week as we passed a necessary piece of secondary legislation on that subject. The Minister will be aware that His Majesty’s official Opposition tabled amendments during the passage of the Crime and Policing Act 2026 that would have added points to driving licences for fly-tipping. That was a Conservative manifesto commitment and it is most welcome that the Government have finally adopted that policy. On the subject of manifestos, the Labour manifesto included this commitment: “Fly-tippers and vandals will…be forced to clean up the mess they have created.” I am sure that the Minister will have had the same conversations as I have had with farmers and landowners about the issue of fly-tipping on private property: that is not the responsibility of the local authority, whereas on public land it tends to be. We have heard about that from across the House today. When the fly-tipping is on private property, the landowner in many cases is left to pay sometimes thousands of pounds to clean up someone else’s mess. To make the situation worse, the landowner may sometimes face landfill tax liabilities despite being the victim, not the perpetrator. Meanwhile, offenders frequently face little or no meaningful action. Once again, the figures speak for themselves: nine in 10 members of the Country Land and Business Association report being targeted within the past year, with over three quarters suffering a significant financial impact. Although stronger enforcement and prevention measures will help to reduce incidents happening, can the Minister outline what support is available to landowners and farmers who are being particularly targeted? I would like to touch on the fact that although fly-tipping happens all over the country, some areas suffer more than others. The last Government provided targeted investment to the areas most affected by fly-tipping. Furthermore, just as the very act of fly-tipping varies geographically, so too does the rate of enforcement action. Only 31% of fly-tipping incidents are investigated, and over half the investigations result in no further action. Across England in 2024-25, there were just 13 custodial sentences for fly-tipping offences. The Government have issued guidance to local councils, but guidance is one thing and action another. The Minister may be aware that the Countryside Alliance has called on the Government to incentivise local authorities to use the enforcement powers available to them. I would be interested to hear the Minister’s thoughts on that suggestion. We are united across the House in our shared desire to end fly-tipping and to ensure that those who commit this crime are punished appropriately. To do that, local authorities need the right resources and tools, but more importantly they need to use them. We can do more to tackle fly-tipping, and I hope that the Government come forward with ambitious proposals. It has been great today to see so many people from across the House talking not only about this issue, but very much about what it means to their local community. A sense of optimism comes from highlighting the great work that local volunteers do. To conclude, I thank for their great contributions and interventions my hon. Friends the Members for Bromley and Biggin Hill (Peter Fortune) and for Brigg and Immingham (Martin Vickers) and the hon. Members for Gorton and Denton (Hannah Spencer), for Morecambe and Lunesdale (Lizzi Collinge), for Birmingham Perry Barr (Ayoub Khan), for Hexham (Joe Morris), for Strangford (Jim Shannon), for Portsmouth North (Amanda Martin), for Broxtowe (Juliet Campbell), for North West Leicestershire (Amanda Hack), for Kilmarnock and Loudoun (Lillian Jones), for Stevenage (Kevin Bonavia) and for Ilford South (Jas Athwal).

• 23 Jun 2026 · Fly-tipping: Residential Areas · Hansard source

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  It is a great pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Stringer. I thank the hon. Member for Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes (Melanie Onn) for bringing us this important debate. We have heard many contributions about the impact on local pride, sense of belonging and importantly mental health, but it was uplifting that pretty much all Members spoke about the great work that volunteers do to tackle litter and fly-tipping in their area. It seems that everyone has some Wombles in their area—I am not 100% sure of the collective noun for Wombles, but I think it might follow the wombat and be a wisdom of Wombles. I am very pleased to say that in Epping Forest we have the Loughton town council Wombles.

• 16 Jun 2026 · Draft Digital Waste Tracking (England) Regulations 2026 · Hansard source

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  It is a great pleasure to serve under your chairmanship today, Mr Vickers. I thank the Minister for introducing the draft regulations to the Committee. It is good to see the Government building on the progress made by the previous Conservative Government, who laid the foundation for digital waste tracking to be introduced by passing the landmark Environment Act 2021. Additional measures introduced by the Conservatives that sought to tackle waste crime include increasing the upper limit for fixed penalties to ensure proportionate and effective enforcement action. The previous Government also provided 30 local authorities with grants to enhance resources to tackle fly-tipping. The grants supported a range of projects such as CCTV, anti-climb fencing and better waste infrastructure.

• 16 Jun 2026 · Draft Digital Waste Tracking (England) Regulations 2026 · Hansard source

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  I am very proud of the previous Conservative Government passing the landmark Environment Act. We consulted and brought forward measures to tackle waste crime, and I am very pleased that the Labour Government have taken the baton forward and are enacting some of the measures that we started. Sadly, my constituents have also been faced with the blight of fly-tipping in our communities, with many serious cases caused by shameless criminals who should face the full extent of the law. It not only harms communities and the environment, but threatens the precious wildlife and biodiversity that the forest of Epping Forest is so privileged to enjoy. I must pay tribute to the litter-picking groups across Epping Forest, including the Waltham Abbey community group and Theydon Bois parish council, who regularly roll up their sleeves to fight the scourge of waste carelessly dumped. I have had the pleasure of joining that fantastic community in action on many occasions. When I have joined community groups on litter picks, it has been particularly concerning to see an abundance of discarded large nitrous oxide canisters. They are used illegally for drug misuse and then discarded on the side of roads to be cleared up by those who do the right thing. Any activity to clear up waste, such as the measure we are discussing, needs to address this issue as a priority for urban, rural and semi-rural communities alike. Can the Minister outline what steps the Government are taking to tackle the illegal use of nitrous oxide and the damaging discarding of those dangerous canisters in our environment? I welcome the cross-party support for tackling waste crime. Not only does it cost the English economy about £1 billion a year, but it has become interlinked with criminal gangs who profit from breaking the law. We should all be deeply concerned that an estimated 20% of all waste is illegally managed. Importantly, the regulations have the full co-operation of the devolved Administrations, which is vital to ensure that we have an effective regime that works for waste operators. As the Minister will be aware, the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee noted that the Government need to clarify exactly how the digital waste tracking regime will interact with the new extended producer responsibility —she made some comments on that point. Under the packaging scheme, producers will have to pay the costs of dealing with household packaging waste and provide information about its disposal. I hope she can provide further clear and practical information on that, particularly as many businesses have expressed strong concerns about the timing of the implementation of the EPR regime, which will add costs to businesses when the Chancellor is already taxing them hugely and making their lives very difficult. The Minister might be aware that His Majesty’s most loyal Opposition hosted a food and farming emergency summit last year to which key stakeholders, including food producers, were invited. A key demand from that summit was a call for the Government to conduct a rapid review of EPR for the food, drink and hospitality sectors. The shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Louth and Horncastle (Victoria Atkins), wrote to the Government to ask them to act on that. It was disappointing that the Government did not consider the merit of such a request from the businesses directly affected by the policy. Ministers are always keen to emphasise their desire to transition to a circular economy in which we keep resources in use for as long as possible, extract maximum value from them, minimise waste and promote resource efficiency. That goal is shared by all. However, aside from introducing individual measures here and there, the Government have yet to publish their clear circular economy strategy. As I understand it, the circular economy taskforce was established for the very purpose of creating a strategy. Will the Minister clarify when she anticipates further details will be published?

• 15 Jun 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  Outrageously, today the Government have stripped Epping Forest district council of the sole local right to determine major planning applications. That means that my constituents will have major planning decisions taken by central Government and not by our local council. Epping Forest district is largely green belt, and we are already under threat from speculative housing applications, farmland being sacrificed for solar plants and the Labour Government arbitrarily reclassifying green belt as so-called grey belt. Will the Secretary of State step in and reverse this awful planning policy decision, which is a complete affront to local democracy?

• 11 Jun 2026 · Transport Services: Epping Forest · Hansard source

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  14. What steps her Department is taking to improve transport services in Epping Forest constituency.

• 11 Jun 2026 · Transport Services: Epping Forest · Hansard source

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  My constituents face many transport issues. We Central line users endure delays, overcrowding and graffiti. Meanwhile, residents in Waltham Abbey have no access to the tube at all and have been left with a limited bus network since Transport for London withdrew services. Young people are unable to get to the next stage in their education, and residents are struggling to get into London. I pay tribute to the campaign to bring back red buses to Waltham Abbey. Please can the Government press the Mayor of London, TfL and Essex county council to work together to give the people of Waltham Abbey and beyond the transport services they desperately need?

• 10 Jun 2026 · Water Supply in Kent · Hansard source

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  It is a great privilege to serve under your chairmanship today, Mr Twigg. I thank the hon. Member for Ashford (Sojan Joseph) for securing and opening this debate. We have heard powerful contributions from across Kent, including from my right hon. Friend the Member for Herne Bay and Sandwich (Sir Roger Gale). I congratulate him on his urgent question last week about important planning issues. The hon. Member for Sittingbourne and Sheppey (Kevin McKenna) talked about water use and resilience. My hon. Friend the Member for Weald of Kent (Katie Lam) spoke about the impacts on people and, indeed, on animals—I will touch on that. I congratulate her on her water survey and communication with her constituents on these issues. The hon. Member for Chatham and Aylesford (Tristan Osborne) highlighted the failures of the water company. My right hon. Friend the Member for Tonbridge (Tom Tugendhat) set out the detail of the outages and highlighted the importance of local knowledge in the response to such situations. Over recent weeks, the House has heard a series of testimonies during debates in which many colleagues will have taken part, including on various urgent questions. Taken together, they show that the South East Water issues affecting our constituents are unacceptable, and they make clear—I know that the Minister has been all over this, as we have heard in powerful testimony—our persistent frustration about that company’s failures. As we have heard, Kent is served primarily by two main water suppliers: South East Water and Southern Water. The county relies heavily on chalk aquifers and bulk-treated water supplies from Southern Water, which, in turn, provides bulk transfers to South East Water. That has caused issues, as the dependency creates its own vulnerabilities. The Government must consider that moving forward. Kent experiences unusually dry conditions. The Environment Agency’s April 2026 report noted that Kent and south London faced exceptionally low rainfall, with the area receiving just 4 mm of rain in April—equivalent to just 10% of the long-term average—and decreases in soil moisture, average river flows and groundwater levels. I welcome the fact that the Government are moving forward and talking about reservoirs—a reservoir will be built in Broad Oak near Canterbury, although we are concerned about the time it will take to build it—but I hope that they are considering short-term resilience, too. South East Water supplies drinking water to 2.3 million people across the south-east, but the recent outages have caused deep and widespread frustration and distress. Many customers have experienced low-pressure water or no water at all during the outages, followed by a boil water notice when supplies were finally restored. The consequences—Members will be all over this—have been severe: thousands of homes left without water, schools and libraries forced to close, hospitality businesses shutting their doors, farmers and horse owners worried about their livestock and even hospital appointments moved online. Water companies have repeatedly claimed that they have no duty to provide water for animals, but a 500 kg horse needs around 25 litres a day, while a lactating dairy cow needs upwards of 100 litres—and more in hot weather. The outages have created human and animal welfare issues. During South East Water’s most recent supply failures, residents were queuing in hot conditions at bottled water stations. I would be grateful if the Minister set out what measures are in place to protect elderly and vulnerable people during such events. What assessment has been made of the mental health impacts of recurring outages, which are becoming distressingly frequent? The Minister will be aware that the Drinking Water Inspectorate launched an investigation and found that the failure was the result of “long-standing weaknesses and failures in process control, monitoring, maintenance and operational management.” The chair and chief executive of South East Water have resigned, but what customers really want is change and improvements now and in future. How will the Minister ensure that the new leadership of South East Water works at pace to deliver the upgrades required to prevent outages? Does the Minister agree that this must be a turning point for the company? A report from the Consumer Council for Water found that fewer than one in 10 South East Water customers were satisfied with how the company handled the supply issues in late 2025, and I am sure that the figure is probably worse now. Over half of customers in vulnerable circumstances who registered for priority services did not receive the support that they expected. Given the focus of the Cunliffe review on long-term water security, will the Government confirm which recommendations they will take forward to address those structural issues and restore public confidence? As we have heard, unlike for broadband or other utilities, customers cannot switch water supplier. They have no choice over who provides their water, so there must not be a postcode lottery when it comes to reliable supply. Companies that fail their customers must be held to account, so can the Minister confirm when the clean water Bill will be coming down the track with new checks and inspections, and whether the new regulator will have the powers it needs to hold water companies to account? My right hon. Friend the Member for Herne Bay and Sandwich talked about the importance of planning issues. Are the Government considering whether water companies should become statutory consultees, given that we have thousands of homes planned in counties around the country, including in Kent and my own county of Essex? We need to know that both water supply and wastage are adequate moving forward. Reliable and safe water supply and disposal is an issue that unites Members from across the House. We all want our constituents to have not only a reliable water supply but a safe, predictable and dependable one that meets the basic standards necessary for them to live their lives and for businesses to go about their business. Public institutions such as hospitals and schools depend on it, private businesses depend on it and people very much depend on it. Will the Government hold the water companies to account so that we get that right?

• 9 Jun 2026 · Draft Marine Licensing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (Amendment etc.) Order 2026 · Hansard source

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  It is good that you are carrying on with the good work.

• 9 Jun 2026 · Draft Marine Licensing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (Amendment etc.) Order 2026 · Hansard source

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  I know that the Minister is winding up, and that she has spoken about Ministers going to summits and collaboration, but she spoke about the importance of implementation. I asked specifically about what the Government will do to liaise with key stakeholders in the area, such as the cable sector, marine scientists, merchant navies and so on. The UK has a global footprint, so it is important that this Government take the baton that the Conservatives passed to them and work closely with stakeholders. Can she reassure the Committee that the Government will work closely with stakeholders on the frontline?

• 9 Jun 2026 · Draft Marine Licensing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (Amendment etc.) Order 2026 · Hansard source

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  It is a great pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir John. I thank the Minister for explaining this statutory instrument. It is very appropriate that we are considering it on the day after World Oceans Day. On our precious planet, we are blessed to have oceans and seas rich in biodiversity. It is an asset that we share in common with the rest of the world—a good in itself that sustains a diverse range of life. From whales to coral reefs, we have a vast array of fish, animals, plants and microorganisms living in our oceans. Our oceans and seas contain more than 80% of the world’s biodiversity. Biodiversity is vital not only for protecting species and preventing extinction, but for safeguarding human health. Oceans and seas are a key source of the world’s food and oxygen, but they also greatly contribute to our understanding of the natural and life sciences. The UK has long been a global leader in marine research, supported by world-renowned institutions such as the Natural History Museum, the national museums in Wales and Scotland, the National Oceanography Centre and our outstanding universities, many of which hold internationally important repositories of marine biological data. Marine genetic resources in particular demonstrate the direct link between ocean biodiversity and human wellbeing. Compounds derived from marine organisms have been instrumental in developing new medicines. Treatments for coronavirus, cancer, inflammatory conditions and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s all draw in part from genetic material found in our oceans and seas. Protecting marine diversity is therefore not only an environmental imperative but a foundation for future medical breakthroughs. The previous Conservative Government understood the need to conserve the biodiversity of our oceans and seas. That led Conservative Ministers to commit in the convention on biological diversity to protect a minimum of 30% of global ocean by 2030. In government, we Conservatives took real, practical steps to protect our marine environment. We strengthened England’s marine protected areas regime, establishing 181 MPAs, which now cover around 40% of English waters. Recognising that the UK’s overseas territories encompass 4.4 million square km of marine environment across every major ocean basin, we worked to conserve those precious ecosystems by halting biodiversity loss, supporting sustainable growth and connecting people with these precious natural environments. We Conservatives also understood that the challenge does not end at our own shores. Around two thirds of the world’s oceans—roughly 61%—lie in areas beyond national jurisdiction: the waters outside any coastal state’s exclusive economic zone. Those vast areas are home to extraordinary biodiversity, yet no single nation can protect them alone. That is why Conservative Ministers championed general international co-operation to safeguard those waters and to support research into marine genetic resources in areas beyond national jurisdiction. As we look ahead, it is vital that we strengthen that co-operation. Safeguarding life in areas beyond national jurisdiction is a shared global responsibility, and only by working with our international partners can we preserve these ecosystems for the benefit of humanity. The previous Conservative Government played a central role in negotiating the UN’s biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction agreement. Signed on 20 September 2023, that landmark agreement represented a major victory for ocean protection and multilateral diplomacy. As the UK follows a dualist approach to international treaties, Parliament must pass domestic legislation before such agreements can take effect. I am therefore pleased that the current Government have continued the work that the Conservatives began by bringing the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Act 2026 into force. That ensures that the UK now has the legal framework required to implement the agreement fully, responsibly and in line with the commitments that we helped to shape on the global stage. The Minister will recall that during the passage of the 2026 Act, His Majesty’s official Opposition repeatedly raised concerns that while the Government were seeking to champion biodiversity and conservation on the global stage, they were simultaneously threatening to surrender the Chagos Islands, which may have risked the Chagos marine protected area, particularly should Mauritius not be able to enforce the protection. We therefore welcome the fact that the Prime Minister appears to have listened to His Majesty’s loyal Opposition, the Chagossian community and wider public concern, as it appears that they have stepped back from proposals that could have jeopardised both the future of the islands and the integrity of the marine protected area. Can the Minister confirm that that remains the case? I am pleased to say that His Majesty’s loyal Opposition support the draft order, albeit it is a shame that it has taken so long to be introduced, which has been noted by the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee. Once the agreement is ratified, the onus will shift to implementation. Can the Minister provide some reassurance that the Government will continue to work closely with key stakeholders such as the cable sector and marine scientists? We look forward to further progress from the Government in this vital area.

• 8 Jun 2026 · Water Companies · Hansard source

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  Labour came into government promising major reform of England’s water sector, but progress so far has been slow. The Water (Special Measures) Act 2025 was largely a rebadging of many Conservative reforms. During its passage, we tabled many sensible amendments, including ones to ringfence funding from enforcement fines to a bespoke water restoration fund; to guarantee that companies fixed the environmental damage they caused locally; to require Ofwat to create rules on financial reporting in its remuneration and governance rules; to reduce consumer bills if companies were hit with enforcement fines; and to ensure that companies did not leverage too much debt. Sadly, the Government failed to support those amendments and missed the opportunity to increase accountability. We on the Conservative Benches have been clear: no one wants to see water companies such as Thames Water collapse. Although water supply would continue, failure would expose taxpayers to billions of pounds of liabilities and drive customer water bills sharply upwards, without addressing the underlying issues. Yet we have seen the third party in this place lead legal action that could have pushed Thames Water to the brink, and both they and Reform appear relaxed about the consequences for consumers and the public purse. Government have to be prepared to step in if a company fails, but that should be a last resort, so can the Minister update the House on the current situation at Thames Water? Last week, this House again debated further unacceptable water outages from South East Water. With further hot weather expected, what action are the Government taking to ensure that water supplies are not disrupted again and that people, businesses, schools, hospitals and livestock owners will have sufficient water? Turning to the wider systemic issues in the water sector, can the Minister update the House on progress towards delivering new reservoirs and other strategic water infrastructure? Finally, can the Minister explain how the Government are tracking investment commitments across the sector?

• 4 Jun 2026 · UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement · Hansard source

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  As more and more fishermen and fisherwomen in Scotland and across the UK are struggling to keep their businesses afloat due to soaring fuel costs, they are marking the one-year anniversary of the Government selling our fishing industry down the river in their negotiations with the EU. Twelve years of access for EU boats to UK waters was signed away as part of that deal, and in return there is still no access to the EU defence fund. Fishermen and fisherwomen are yet to see a penny from the fishing and coastal growth fund, and we remain in the dark about whether we will get a gene-editing carve-out and practical transition period in the SPS agreement. A year ago, we Conservatives warned that Labour was trading away our precious UK fishing waters for little or nothing in return. Twelve months on, the evidence speaks for itself. We were right, weren’t we?

• 3 Jun 2026 · Draft Control of Trade in Endangered Species (Amendment and Revocation) Regulations 2026 · Hansard source

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  The Minister is talking about low risk and high risk, and I welcome her comments. Can she give categoric reassurances that the Department and all the enforcement agencies can actually flip to make sure that we can clamp down and change and classify something as high risk if it was classified as low risk initially but subsequent evidence then shows that it has become a higher risk? It needs to be dynamic. Can the Minister assure us of that?

• 3 Jun 2026 · Draft Control of Trade in Endangered Species (Amendment and Revocation) Regulations 2026 · Hansard source

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  It is a great pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Jardine. I thank the Minister for bringing forward this important statutory instrument. At a time when the Government have imposed significant new costs and burdens on businesses via their damaging economic policies, His Majesty’s loyal Opposition are pleasantly surprised to see the Minister introducing measures to seek to reduce administrative tasks for both traders and regulators. We will, however, seek reassurance from her on a few key points, especially in relation to safety. Under the regulations, the Secretary of State will be given powers to determine which additional specimens require an import notification rather than an import permit. Can the Minister confirm that the Secretary of State will be guided only by scientific evidence, and will the criteria used for making such a decision be published? Is she confident that the Secretary of State’s determinations will be regularly reviewed? What safeguards will be put in place to ensure that any specimens deemed to be low risk initially but later flagged as high risk are identified to ensure swift action? When consulting on the changes, it was found that businesses and trade groups viewed article 10 certificates as burdensome and unnecessary under CITES, favouring self-certification and use of export or re-export permits to reduce costs and duplication. In contrast, conservation NGOs and enforcement agencies supported retaining the current system to ensure traceability, prevent illegal trade and uphold environmental commitments. There was, however, broad support for proportionate regulation, so there is a balance to be struck. Will the Minister assure the Committee that this SI will in no way water down our strong commitments under CITES to protect endangered species? It would be good to get a clear commitment on that. The Minister in the other place was asked to provide reassurance that the Government’s ongoing sanitary and phytosanitary negotiations with the EU will not undermine the changes. Can this Minister confirm whether that is the case, or whether the Government’s negotiations might render any of the changes redundant? What is the Government’s current position on protecting endangered species? Last year, we marked 10 years since the tragic killing of Cecil the lion, a moment that caught the world’s attention, ignited global outrage and inspired the campaign to ban the import of hunting trophies into the UK, but despite the outcry, the global trophy hunting industry has continued unabated. Sadly, Cecil’s story was not unique, and every year trophy hunters kill tens of thousands precious and majestic animals around the world. Trophy hunting is a barbaric and outdated practice that should be consigned to the history books. Those majestic animals should be shot only with cameras, not lethal weapons. The King’s Speech made no reference to animal welfare and no reference to action to protect endangered species. When will the Government act to end the importation of hunting trophies? Here in the UK we have some of the highest animal welfare standards in the world. I am proud that our country has shown global leadership in that regard. I am also proud of the work the Conservatives did on animal welfare in government, such as banning the export of live animals, including cattle, sheep, pigs and horses, for fattening or slaughter in the Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Act 2024; banning the keeping of primates as pets; passing the Pet Abduction Act 2024; increasing the maximum prison sentence for animal cruelty from six months to five years in the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021; enshrining animal sentience in UK law with the Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act 2022, and establishing the Animal Sentience Committee so that any new legislation must pay due regard to animal welfare. I was delighted to co-sponsor the Conservative-initiated and drafted Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Act 2025 and to support again the passage of the Conservative-initiated and drafted Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) Act 2025, led by my hon. Friend the Member for Chester South and Eddisbury. We are talking about the importation of products and things that can compromise the biosecurity of the United Kingdom, so it is key that the Government keep a watching brief on this. In that spirit, I put on the record my thanks to all those involved in supporting the UK’s biosecurity standards. The UK’s CITES regime is administered by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs through the Animal and Plant Health Agency, which the Minister cited, with advice from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, and is delivered by Border Force and the police. Those bodies are all fighting on the frontlines to keep our nation safe and our biosecurity firing on all cylinders. The UK sees ever-rising risk from biosecurity threats, amid the advance of foot and mouth disease and African swine fever across Europe, on top of avian influenza, bluetongue virus and tuberculosis, which are already in the United Kingdom. We are all deeply indebted to the staff who keep our country safe. I again stress the importance of the Animal and Plant Health Agency, and thank its staff for all that they do. Although we should always look to introduce efficiencies, which is what this SI is about, we must do so safely. Ensuring that we have safe, robust systems that are kept under review must be a priority for the Government. The case for that has never been more urgent.

• 3 Jun 2026 · South East Water: Disruption of Supply · Hansard source

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  Thank you, Mr Speaker, for granting this urgent question from my right hon. Friend the Member for Herne Bay and Sandwich (Sir Roger Gale). I thank the Minister for her approach and engagement on this vital issue. It is deeply regrettable that we are here yet again with unacceptable outages from South East Water following the events back in December and January. The shortage of water supply in Kent in these hot conditions has had a terrible impact on local communities: homes have been without water supply; schools and businesses have been impacted; farmers and horse owners, again, feared not having enough water for their livestock; and local residents have lost confidence in their water supply and are switching to bottled water. That is simply outrageous. These repeated failures from South East Water are simply not good enough. We have heard repeated accounts about poor communication and logistics from South East Water, including difficulties in accessibility to collect bottled water, compromising vulnerable residents. Can the Minister please provide guidance on what is being done to ensure that, moving forward, people can reliably access adequate supply, particularly vulnerable households? What is being done to ensure that vital healthcare delivery can continue uninterrupted? In these hot conditions, what measures can be put in place so that farmers and horse owners have enough water for their livestock? What meetings has the Minister had with South East Water, Ofwat, the Drinking Water Inspectorate, local resilience fora and affected councils since this latest disruption? We have seen resignations at the top of South East Water, but we are yet to see any change in performance. What enforcement action is being considered against South East Water if it is found again to have failed its statutory duties? What investment has South East Water committed to improve resilience in Kent, Sussex and other areas, and how will Ministers ensure that it is delivered? Do the Government accept that repeated water outages are unacceptable, and what steps will Ministers take to support people in South East Water’s area so that they do not face yet another period of interrupted supply?

• 23 Apr 2026 · Synthetic Chemicals · Hansard source

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  As shadow DEFRA Minister, I congratulate and thank the Chair of the Committee and his cross-party Environmental Audit Committee for this excellent and timely report. As he has said, PFAS—these forever chemicals—are hugely damaging to the environment and pose significant risks to human health, animals and wildlife. The previous Government started work with the Environment Agency and the Health and Safety Executive to look at monitoring and risk, and as the Chair said, the current Government have taken that work forward through the PFAS report in February this year. However, as his report rightly says, more needs to be done, so does he agree that the Government now need to take this work further and move more into the areas of prevention and solutions, such as placing pressure on water companies to enforce Drinking Water Inspectorate guidelines on PFAS limits?

• 21 Apr 2026 · Peter Mandelson: Government Appointment · Hansard source

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  We have heard a lot from Labour Members today about process, but will the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister please tell my constituents, the House and the country why on earth the Prime Minister appointed Peter Mandelson to be ambassador to the United States?

• 26 Mar 2026 · Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and Craniocervical Instability · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for Cannock Chase (Josh Newbury) for securing this important debate. I apologise, Ms Furniss, that I was not in the Chamber for the beginning of it; my shadow ministerial role in relation to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs meant that I had to be in the main Chamber at the start of this debate. Will the Minister join me in paying tribute to patients with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and craniocervical instability—including my constituent in Epping Forest, Natasha Little—for their bravery and their advocacy in calling for the Government and the NHS to recognise the needs of people with these conditions, in terms of diagnosis, treatment and long-term support? Hopefully, this debate can be a catalyst for change.

• 26 Mar 2026 · Coastal Erosion · Hansard source

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  I congratulate the hon. Member on her powerful contribution, and also congratulate the cross-party EFRA Committee on its thoughtful and thought-provoking report. Coastal communities are at the frontline of adverse weather events and the negative effects of climate change, and the report highlighted the human impact on those communities, and specifically their mental health. It echoed a lot of the findings of the previous EFRA Committee in the last Parliament—we produced a report on rural mental health that highlighted some of the impacts, including anxiety and trauma. Will the Select Committee put pressure on the Government to look at both this report and the previous report on rural mental health, so that the mental health of rural communities can be supported in the long term?

• 19 Mar 2026 · EU-UK Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement: Negotiations · Hansard source

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  Stakeholders have expressed alarm about the fact that the Government’s guidance for businesses on the UK-EU SPS agreement, published last week, has legislation in scope on the use of hormones, including bovine somatotrophin, in livestock. The use of growth-promoting hormones for livestock and of bovine somatotrophin are rightly banned in the UK and EU because of serious animal welfare issues and public health concerns, and bovine somatotrophin is linked to a 25% increase in mastitis in cows. For the sake of animal welfare, will the Minister give a clear assurance that the UK will maintain our bans on hormone-treated beef, ractopamine-treated pork and bovine somatotrophin-treated dairy, and that none of those standards will be weakened or traded away in the EU SPS negotiations, or in trade deals with other countries? Will she also confirm whether the Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Act 2024, which ended the export of live animals for slaughter or fattening, will be retained in the reset?

• 18 Mar 2026 · Student Loans · Hansard source

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  I have been contacted by many students in Epping Forest who are deeply concerned about their future debt and by many graduates who are worried about ballooning debt on these plan 2 loans. Does my right hon. Friend agree that the Labour Government have an opportunity to step in and relieve the pressure on young people and adopt the Conservative plans to scrap real interest rates on these plan 2 loans?

• 3 Mar 2026 · Environmental Protection and Biodiversity · Hansard source

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  It is a great pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Roger. I congratulate the hon. Member for North East Hertfordshire (Chris Hinchliff) on securing this important debate. We have heard many powerful contributions from across the Chamber. As the Member of Parliament for Epping Forest, I recognise the importance of biodiversity and protecting our environment. Epping Forest, the heart and lungs of north-east London and our part of Essex, hosts 55,000 ancient and veteran trees, and has a wonderful mix of ancient woodland, open grassland plains, heathland and wetland habitats. It hosts 10 bat species, nine native reptile and amphibian species, over 1,500 fungal species and 28 butterfly species. However, it is sadly affected by actions, including fly-tipping and antisocial behaviour, that can significantly impact wildlife and nature. I urge the Minister to work closely with the Home Office to help to tackle, deter and prevent such rural and semi-rural crimes. Epping Forest is not immune to the Government’s intrusion into the green belt with centralised housing planning and excessive solar development, which harm our biodiversity, food security, and the communities that depend on it for leisure, sports and access to local environments. This is not the answer. The Government must work to build on brownfield first and protect nature and biodiversity. The previous Conservative Government’s Environment Act 2021 established legally binding targets, including on increasing species abundance so that by 2042 it is far greater than in 2022, and at least 10% greater than in 2032, and on restoring or creating more than 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitats outside protected sites by 2050. It also set the framework for local nature recovery strategies, seeking to agree priorities for nature’s recovery, map the most valuable existing natural areas, and create or improve habitats and meet wider environmental goals. All local authorities should have published their strategy before the end of last year, but some have not. Will the Minister update us on when all the strategies will be published? Our Conservative environmental improvement plan built on that Act. It committed to protect 30% of our land and sea by 2030, supporting the COP15 global target to protect 30% of global land and ocean that we agreed. We also announced the species survival fund—£25 million of funding specifically to protect our rarest species, from red squirrels to water voles. In farming, we provided the innovative farming in protected landscapes funding, which helps biodiversity and nature restoration. The previous Conservative Government laid the foundations. The current Government must continue that work in earnest. The recent Government report “Global biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse and national security” highlights the danger of inaction and raises serious questions about the UK’s preparedness if action is not taken or is not successful. I hope that Ministers will take the report very seriously and consider how some of the Government’s actions, such as the family farm tax, have pressured food production and supply. Habitat loss and ecosystem collapse are also threatening countries and their resilience across the world. It is extreme folly for the UK Labour Government to surrender the Chagos islands to Mauritius and charge UK taxpayers £35 billion in the process, for the British Indian Ocean Territory is home to one of the most pristine marine ecosystems on Earth. Mauritius does not have the record to maintain these high conservation standards. In the 2024 environmental performance index, Mauritius ranked 109th for marine key biodiversity area protection, 83rd for marine habitat protection and 131st for marine protection stringency. Quite apart from the adverse defence implications, I am deeply concerned by the Labour Government’s wilful blindness to the fact that Mauritius does not have the record to steward one of the world’s most delicate ecosystems. The Government report highlights how ecosystem degradation can threaten UK national security, and we know that biodiversity and food security depend crucially on strong biosecurity. Just last week, foot and mouth disease was confirmed in Cyprus. The Government must be vigilant and not hesitate to take action. We need to act at many levels, in the UK and internationally, to protect our ecosystems for the sake of national and international security.

• 5 Feb 2026 · Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966 · Hansard source

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  I declare a professional and personal interest as a veterinary surgeon and a fellow of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. I welcome the fact that the Government have launched a consultation to reform the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966. This necessary and long-overdue reform can deliver significant benefits for animal health and welfare, biosecurity and public health. However, I have serious concerns about DEFRA’s communications, which conflated reform of the Veterinary Surgeons Act with the Competition and Markets Authority inquiry, resulting in a media narrative focused entirely on veterinary pricing. That has caused real distress across the sector among frontline vets, nurses and reception staff, impacting on morale and mental health. I have been contacted by voices from across the profession expressing their extreme alarm at this approach. Will the Government reassure us that they will work closely with key stakeholders to get this vital, much-needed legislation right? Can they guarantee that they will prioritise the parliamentary time it requires?