Sarah Olney MP: speeches

Speeches

• 14 Jul 2026 · Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Bill · Hansard source

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  We have a duty to stand by the steel sector, especially as it navigates unprecedented challenges, including President Trump’s unfair steel tariffs, China’s anti-competitive state aid practices, and the transition to environmentally sustainable production methods. If we are going to foster a thriving steel industry, we cannot allow more producers to collapse, more jobs to be lost, or the risk of our last blast furnaces going cold. That is why the Liberal Democrats broadly welcome this legislation as a temporary emergency and targeted step aimed specifically at turning around British Steel before it can be returned to the private sector. I am particularly glad that the Government have accepted Liberal Democrat amendments that will require the Secretary of State to have regard to the costs of nationalisation before they table regulations to nationalise a company, as well as amendments that would ensure the consideration of environmental liabilities. Those Liberal Democrat amendments will strengthen the legislation, ensuring that these measures—and indeed the Government’s broader steel strategy—move us in the right direction to set the industry on a truly sustainable footing for the long term, while providing taxpayers with real value for money. Lords amendments 2 and 3 ensure that if the Secretary of State is to exercise the principal transfer power, the Government must consider the expected cost to the taxpayer. That is important not only for business and industry to have certainty over the nationalisation process, but for taxpayers, who need to know that their money is not being wasted or paid to foreign owners who will leave our industries high and dry. I am glad that the Government have also agreed to Liberal Democrat amendments that will strengthen the treatment of environmental liabilities in relation to the steel undertaking and ensure that they are explicitly identified and accounted for before compensation payments are made. On top of those legislative concessions, we are glad that the Government accepted other Liberal Democrat calls, including holding a debate in each House within 12 months of Royal Assent and requiring any future chair of a nationalised company to appear before the Business and Trade Committee. Those significant improvements to the legislation promote parliamentary scrutiny and accountability. We also welcome the Government’s having listened to Liberal Democrat peers and introduction of written ministerial statements on the day of acquisition, which will be repeated every three months until we reach a year from nationalisation. Again, that change boosts transparency, enabling Parliament to scrutinise the measures’ impact on local communities and jobs. Lastly, we are glad that the Government adopted Liberal Democrat proposals to strengthen the UK Steel Council and its role in facilitating nationalisation within the context of the steel strategy. Steel is a vital sector, bringing far-reaching benefits across the UK. It provides key materials for our national infrastructure from defence to renewable energy, and creates thousands of good jobs across the UK. The Liberal Democrats welcome the action that the Government are taking to protect British steel, backing a key plank of our critical national infrastructure. I am glad that the Government have worked constructively with the Liberal Democrats and that Ministers have adopted many of our proposals to improve transparency and accountability around the financial and environmental costs of any forthcoming measures. We will continue to constructively scrutinise the Government as they put these new measures in force to ensure that steel producers, local jobs and British taxpayers are properly supported and treated fairly.

• 9 Jul 2026 · Teddington Direct River Abstraction Proposal · Hansard source

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  Two months ago, Ham and Kingston riverside became the first site in London to gain bathing water status, but Thames Water’s ill-conceived Teddington direct river abstraction proposal will see treated sewage discharged into the Thames above Teddington lock. Thames Water has submitted a report to the Environment Agency on the testing of a pilot plant, which shows that after just one month, the water quality would fail to maintain PFOS chemicals within regulatory limits. That bathing site is already a popular destination for local residents. It would be a travesty if Thames Water were allowed to dump treated sewage into the stream, so will the Minister meet me to discuss the environmental and social impact of the Teddington direct river abstraction proposal?

• 9 Jul 2026 · Teddington Direct River Abstraction Proposal · Hansard source

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  5. What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Teddington direct river abstraction proposal on the environment.

• 7 Jul 2026 · Summer Jobs · Hansard source

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  I am sure that Members on both sides of the House have heard from businesses on their local high streets and throughout their constituencies about the challenges that they face from unaffordably high energy bills, the Government’s increase in national insurance contributions, and recent business rates increases. This is a challenging economic landscape for businesses, especially those in the hospitality and retail sector, made worse by this Government’s repeated mistakes. The increasing burden on small and medium-sized enterprises means that many do not have the resources to provide employment opportunities where many young people traditionally found their first jobs. However, we cannot lose sight of the fact that many of these problems began under the last Conservative Government. It was they who undermined hospitality, retail, farming, agriculture and so many other sectors providing seasonal work over the summer through their terrible Brexit deal, the disastrous mini-Budget, and their failure to reform business rates as they had promised. Their record is a dispiriting picture of low growth, rising costs and falling living standards, all of which paved the way for where we are now. That is why it is so disappointing that this Government have added to those challenges through their short-sighted tax grabs, and are not acting with more urgency to support local economies and job opportunities around the UK. The state of our economy requires bold action.

• 7 Jul 2026 · Summer Jobs · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is, of course, entirely right. A youth mobility scheme would benefit not just young people who live in this country, but our businesses; it would allow them to recruit from across the EU, and obtain the short-term staff that the hospitality businesses in his constituency so badly need. Businesses across the country, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, are struggling with unprecedentedly high costs, while battling a rising tax burden and an unfavourable economic climate. Struggling businesses mean fewer jobs, lost opportunities and lower living standards, so it is clear that we must look for ways in which to support local businesses and all who rely on them.