Commons
Oral Questions
Energy Security and Net Zero
7 July 2026
Topical Questions
T2. The Secretary of State will know that there is no legal duty for energy developers to co-ordinate when they are developing in the same area or place, or at the same time. In Suffolk Coastal, Europe’s largest energy project is being developed right now, alongside four other nationally significant…
Commons
Westminster Hall
30 June 2026
5 contributions
Nationally Significant Energy Infrastructure Projects
I beg to move,
That this House has considered the contribution of nationally significant energy infrastructure projects to communities.
It is a privilege to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Vaz. I am grateful for having secured the debate, and I welcome colleagues across the House who will want t…
I agree with a lot of what the hon. Gentleman says. The projects that we are discussing should deliver that as part of their long-term investment, and many of those things do not need to sit within the community investment programme itself.
The guidance also included an obligation for the transmiss…
+3 more contributions in this session
Commons
Westminster Hall
24 June 2026
Farming: Financial Sustainability
My hon. Friend is making an excellent point. It is not just about identity; we also cannot be reliant on food imports if we are going to be food secure as a nation.
Commons
Oral Questions
Energy Security and Net Zero
2 June 2026
Topical Questions
The Secretary of State just praised the previous Government’s role in rolling out renewables, but what they did not do is seek to co-ordinate energy projects, in particular nationally significant infrastructure projects. In Suffolk Coastal, that is a huge issue, and one that I have raised at length …
Commons
Westminster Hall
2 June 2026
Preparedness for National Emergencies
It is an honour to serve under your chairmanship, Mrs Barker. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie) on securing this debate. I want to put a proposal to the Minister for a national resilience strategy to sit alongside our national industrial strategy, no…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
22 April 2026
Engagements
Q9. Fertiliser prices are spiralling, and it is not just down to the war in the middle east; it is also because of the choices of the previous Conservative Government, who allowed the UK’s last ammonia plant, based in Billingham, to close in 2023. They failed to see it as a nationally critical site …
Commons
Oral Questions
13 April 2026
Topical Questions
T2. One of the biggest housing challenges in many of my villages and market towns—for instance, Orford, Aldeburgh and even larger towns such as Felixstowe— is the selling off of housing stock by social housing providers who do not replace it locally. Considering how to tackle the issue is critical, …
Commons
Ministerial Statement
26 March 2026
5 contributions
Coastal Erosion
I am pleased to present the sixth report of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, “Erosion of trust: the impact of coastal erosion on communities”. I will start by talking about not policy or funding, but people and their stories—stories that our report rightly sought to share.
Ten wee…
The hon. Member is absolutely right that our report highlights the significant strain that coastal erosion places on communities, and the impact that has on their mental health. I will read with interest the report from the last Session and see what its recommendations are, because I have no doubt t…
+3 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
16 March 2026
Heating Oil Support
I thank the Government for acting so swiftly—the previous Government took 200 days to act when we faced a similar crisis after the start of the Ukrainian war. I want to ask a couple of questions. First, can the Minister confirm that LPG is included in the package? Many of my constituents are on LPG,…
Commons
Westminster Hall
25 February 2026
4 contributions
Energy Developers Levy
I beg to move,
That this House has considered the potential merits of a levy on energy developers.
It is an honour to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Twigg. On the Suffolk coast, communities and nature are facing a stack of separate, fast-moving nationally significant infrastructure projects. Th…
I am looking forward to the Minister’s response, but I agree that the whack-a-mole strategy, which I have talked about, needs far better strategic oversight.
A dedicated energy co-ordination fund for affected host areas would be established and delivered through a locally accountable team. That is …
+2 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
5 February 2026
Road Safety
Is my hon. Friend aware that there does not need to be a certain number of incidents outside a school gate, or indeed on any road, in order for local councils to intervene? It is a myth that we need to bust.
Commons
Oral Questions
5 February 2026
Business of the House
Workers in Suffolk Coastal have been let down badly after carrying out their jobs in good faith only to be denied wages that they earned. After multiple failures to be granted the money they earned, employees of the Orwell hotel in Felixstowe were forced to gain employment tribunal judgments confirm…
Commons
Westminster Hall
4 February 2026
2 contributions
Civil Service Pension Scheme: Administration
It is a privilege to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Lewell. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Blackpool North and Fleetwood (Lorraine Beavers) for introducing the debate and speaking so articulately. I will not repeat the many points made by colleagues from across the House; instead, I will u…
Will the hon. Member give way?
Commons
Ministerial Statement
22 January 2026
Business of the House
Earlier this week, students in year 11 at Felixstowe school were told that they would not be able to continue their studies at the school beyond year 11 because it is not continuing with sixth-form provision. As Members can imagine, this has caused huge worry for parents and students at Felixstowe s…
Commons
Oral Questions
Cabinet Office
22 January 2026
Topical Questions
As chair of the Labour rural research group, I continually hear about the challenges facing rural communities, including access to education and transport infrastructure. Will the Minister set out the specific steps that the Cabinet Office is taking to ensure that rural voices and rural communities …
Commons
Proceedings
13 January 2026
Storm Goretti
Suffolk Coastal is in the east of England, but we did not escape the storms by any stretch of the imagination. The coastal erosion at Thorpeness has really sped up and we now have homes facing the worst-case scenario. Indeed, last night a home was demolished, marking four homes that have succumbed t…
Commons
Debate
7 January 2026
3 contributions
Rural Communities
I am delighted to be the first ever Labour MP for Suffolk Coastal, an incredibly rural constituency. Many of our previous MPs were helicoptered in from cities to represent the constituency, so I am even more delighted to be able to stand in this House and say that I am the first ever MP for Suffolk …
I could not agree more. Some of the things we hear from the Conservatives are really dangerous.
If we are to have sensible conversations about our renewable energy infrastructure, they need to focus on co-ordination. In my constituency, there are seven nationally significant infrastructure projects…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Debate
5 January 2026
Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief
Happy new year to you and the team, Mr Speaker.
I start by thanking the Minister and his Department for working actively with rural colleagues and myself for the last 14 months. In the many conversations that we have had, both face to face and in wider correspondence, we have set out the huge numbe…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
10 December 2025
Engagements
Q13. The Prime Minister will know that special educational needs and disabilities provision is in crisis across the country, but it is in particular crisis in Suffolk, where the county council is in special measures for its failings. I am delighted that the Government have listened to one of my asks…
Commons
Proceedings
2 December 2025
2 contributions
Budget Resolutions
Does my hon. Friend agree that one of the things this Labour Government could do is to bring forward a dedicated rural strategy, which would address many of the issues he is referring to and build a stronger, better rural Britain?
This autumn Budget will make a real and material difference to families across the country, including thousands in my constituency. Cutting energy bills by £150, capping rail fares and freezing NHS prescription charges are exactly the measures that my constituents have been asking for. We are giving…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
26 November 2025
Engagements
Q11. Last week, Roman Osborne—a 10-year-old from my constituency—hand-delivered a letter to 10 Downing Street to tell the Prime Minister about an accident he had in February outside his primary school at Trimley St Martin, which left him spending three days in hospital and many more months recoverin…
Commons
Westminster Hall
17 November 2025
Parkinson’s Disease
Does my hon. Friend agree that, while tackling Parkinson’s and highlighting the issue today is critical, we also have to make sure that we look at Parkinson’s with dementia and all the other challenges that come with such a complex set of health issues.
Commons
Debate
12 November 2025
Road Safety (Schools)
I beg to move,
That leave be given to bring in a Bill to make provision about road safety measures near schools; and for connected purposes.
Every parent knows that heart-stopping moment when they watch their child cross the road and just pray that drivers are paying attention. For too many famili…
Commons
Oral Questions
12 November 2025
2 contributions
Mobile Phone Signal: Rural Communities
12. What steps she is taking to improve mobile coverage in rural areas.
In Suffolk Coastal, about three quarters of households have indoor service for voice calls, compared with the national average of over 90%. Across Woodbridge, Bawdsey and the peninsula, so many households rely on network coverage, but they have zero service. Will the Minister meet me to discuss this…
Commons
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister
5 November 2025
Engagements
In the past 15 years, there have been 170 cases of matricide. In 2022, more women were killed by their sons than by strangers. Child-to-parent abuse is often linked to complex mental health issues, and earlier this year I met Laura and Ian who are doing all they can to support their son in his rehab…