Lords
Oral Questions
13 April 2026
Rail Freight
There is no use upgrading Haughley junction without upgrading Ely. Previous Governments have not found the money to do that and, regrettably, in the financial circumstances that this Government find themselves, we have not so far found it either. But I have had some useful discussions with local Mem…
Lords
Debate
26 March 2026
2 contributions
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
My Lords, I will speak in particular to Amendment 100 in this group but congratulate the noble Baroness, Lady Bennett, on opening this group of interesting amendments. I thank the Minister for meeting us prior to Report and bringing forward a first stab at a definition of micromobility vehicles. It …
I would like to clarify something on the Highway Code. The Minister was absolutely right that the Highway Code is available in hard copy. It is when it is updated more than once in quick succession that the changes are available only on the internet.
Lords
Debate
24 March 2026
3 contributions
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Baroness, Lady Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville, for moving the first amendment in this group so eloquently. I will speak in particular to Amendments 52, 61 and 326 in my name, but all the amendments in this group look to put rural areas front and centre.
For f…
My Lords, I am grateful for the opportunity to speak to a number of amendments I have in this group. I will limit myself to those in my name and in the names of others who have been kind enough to support them.
The Minister will be quite familiar with Amendment 120 at this stage. I read very carefu…
+1 more contribution in this session
Lords
Oral Questions
23 March 2026
Onshore Wind Farms
I had thought that I was talking this afternoon about the repowering of wind turbines—that is, turbines that have completed their life in terms of their original blades and mountings, and which are out of the renewable obligation certificate period. The question for those sites is whether they repow…
Lords
Committee Stage
23 March 2026
4 contributions
Warm Home Discount (England and Wales) Regulations 2026
My Lords, it is always instructive to follow the noble Baroness. I thank the Minister for his shrewd analytical introduction and his insight. Tangentially, for me, it conjured up memories of chilblains, hot-water bottles and ice on the inside of the windowpanes—the considerable discomforts of a post…
I am delighted to tell the noble Baroness that I cannot speak for the Cabinet Office’s website, but I take her point that these things need to be clarified as much as possible.
The noble Baroness also asked about standing charges, both generally and in relation to this particular measure. She will …
+2 more contributions in this session
Lords
Oral Questions
19 March 2026
Flood Detection and Prevention: Technological Assistance
The noble Baroness is right to point to the potential for natural flood management to improve the environment in a holistic way while providing sustainable flood defences. That can be through a variety of approaches, including restoring riverbeds, changing the way in which land is managed, as the no…
Lords
Oral Questions
5 March 2026
PFAS
The water White Paper and the Bill that will follow it are a central part of the Government’s programme and a priority for Defra. We are looking at the Cunliffe report extremely carefully; it is an important piece of work.
Lords
Debate
4 March 2026
3 contributions
Crime and Policing Bill
My Lords, I will speak in particular to Amendments 341 and 342 in my name but I support all the amendments in this group, which are on the same theme. Earlier today I met with the Motor Insurers’ Bureau, which takes this issue very seriously indeed and has made the point that privately owned e-scoot…
I am very grateful to the Minister for his reply. I find it a little concerning that he does not agree to a review but the Government have now extended their own review for another four years. We had a very useful meeting with him and the noble Lord, Lord Hendy. We are approaching Report on the Engl…
+1 more contribution in this session
Lords
Oral Questions
2 March 2026
Forest-Risk Commodities
I am sure the noble Baroness is aware that the Government are working alongside farmers and environmental organisations on our farming road map, “Farming 2050, Growing England’s Future”, in order to set the course of farming over 25 years. We need a long-term vision for farming and food security, an…
Lords
Oral Questions
26 February 2026
New Housing: Flood Risk
That High Court judgment has been raised in recent debates on the English devolution Bill. I cannot comment on specific cases, but the case does not disapply the strong protections in the National Planning Policy Framework relating to development in areas of potential flood risk. The sequential test…
Lords
Oral Questions
26 February 2026
2 contributions
Fire and Rescue Services: Clean Energy Projects
The Government work closely with the National Fire Chiefs Council on battery fire safety. In October 2025, Minister Shanks held a round table on battery safety with industry, regulators and academics, including NFCC representatives. In the last five years, there have been four grid-scale battery fir…
The Government already have moved to make sure that the fire services and developers are closely involved in applications as far as large batteries are concerned. The planning practice guidance has been updated to ensure that developers consult fire services in the pursuit of their applications. The…
Lords
Debate
23 February 2026
Medical Training (Prioritisation) Bill
My Lords, I will speak in support of the amendment in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Patel; I thank him for the background research he has done on the amendment. The Minister will be aware that I work for the Dispensing Doctors’ Association. My father and brother were GPs and my uncle was a surgeo…
Lords
Oral Questions
23 February 2026
Global Biodiversity Loss and National Security
The proposals on farmed animals in the animal welfare strategy are designed not to harm farmers but to bring long-term improvements to animal welfare in relation to how our food is produced. Our intention is to work very closely with farmers and other relevant stakeholders so that the policies we in…
Lords
Oral Questions
12 February 2026
Changing Weather Patterns and Floods
The noble Baroness raises some important issues. I am sure that, in referring to Hull, she is aware that the Minister for Water is a Hull MP and so is very aware of these issues. We are currently looking at our reservoir policy, because we need to consider how best to make use of the water that we h…
Lords
Oral Questions
12 February 2026
Environment Agency: Waste Crime
My Lords, I speak as a member of the Environment and Climate Change Committee of your Lordships’ House. I have to say that, until we started our inquiry, I had been unaware of the scale or the seriousness of waste crime. Now, thanks largely to the tenacity of the noble Baroness, Lady Sheehan, and th…
Lords
Oral Questions
12 February 2026
Animal Welfare Strategy: Rural Communities
I am aware of the concerns around foxhounds. To reiterate, the consultation will look at all views and concerns. I urge people who have concerns around the future of foxhounds to take part in the consultation, so that point can be properly considered and discussed as we move forward on the manifesto…
Lords
Oral Questions
11 February 2026
Electric Vehicles: Transition
The Government take very seriously the issue of rural communities and recognise that car transport is essential to people’s mobility. It is essential that we move forward with coming up with a fair system. That will be the basis for all our conversations and decisions in order to make this equitable…
Lords
Committee Stage
11 February 2026
2 contributions
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
My Lords, I shall speak to Amendment 218. I look forward to hearing the noble Lord, Lord Pack, and others speaking to Amendments 219 and 220.
In responding on an earlier group, the Minister referred to the number of civil parishes in Cumbria. I would like to place on the record that, in North Yorks…
My Lords, I am grateful to everyone who has spoken in this short debate. I do not know which slippery slope my noble friend Lord Jamieson was referring to, but he did not address the issue raised by me and the noble Lord, Lord Pack. If it is good enough for committees in both Houses that we meet in …
Lords
Oral Questions
9 February 2026
Life Sciences: Beagles
That is a long way from animal testing but I will give the noble Baroness a straight answer on it anyway. I personally voted to ban fox hunting on every occasion in the House of Commons when I was a Member of Parliament. I personally support the Government’s intention to stop trail hunting. Those ar…
Lords
Committee Stage
9 February 2026
5 contributions
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
My Lords, I hope I am not causing any confusion by having moved to these Benches. It was simply because the other Benches are very congested; I continue to support the same party that I supported when I came into this House as a Conservative Peer.
I would like to use Amendment 170—I congratulate th…
It was thee and me, yes—that was the sum total who voted against. I think that we were right and history has proven that to be the case. I am still trying to get my head around where the fire and rescue service sits in the combined authority of North Yorkshire. I am concerned that now it is going to…
+3 more contributions in this session
Lords
Oral Questions
5 February 2026
Construction Industry: Timber
I am very happy to congratulate Fera. It does excellent work. When I went to Forest Research, I saw some of the wood that had, shall we say, unpleasant visitors in it, so I know that both Fera and Forest Research do important work and help biosecurity in this country. I know the noble Baroness is ke…
Lords
Oral Questions
4 February 2026
Land Covenants: Supermarket Chains
In my relative newness to government, I thank the noble Baroness for her questions. Overall, it is correct that the CMA’s regulatory framework should have independence. I would love to pick up that discussion outside the Chamber; I do not know the detail of that, but it sounds like an important thin…
Lords
Committee Stage
4 February 2026
4 contributions
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
My Lords, I warmly welcome back the noble Baroness, Lady Pinnock. Having broken my ankle before, I feel her pain. I will speak to Amendments 132 and 222B in this group and, if time permits, Amendment 241E in the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Freeman of Steventon.
The Minister will be aware of my…
The Minister said that the judgment was on 15 January. If she and her department consider that their policy is being set aside by very clever planning barristers, would she perhaps bring forward an amendment from the department that would be much better worded than my humble effort in this regard? I…
+2 more contributions in this session
Lords
Committee Stage
3 February 2026
Pension Schemes Bill
My Lords, I am grateful to the Minister for summing up, albeit that there has been a delay of some two working days. I thank everyone who has spoken. I offer a particular thank you to the noble Baronesses, Lady Altmann and Lady Bowles, for lending their support to Amendments 140 and 141.
I note tha…