Commons
Westminster Hall
14 July 2026
3 contributions
Support for Pig Farmers
I beg to move,
That this House has considered Government support for pig farmers.
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Christopher. I thank Members for coming to the debate. To say that the UK’s pig industry is worried is a gross understatement. The sector has always experienced …
13 August is obviously a very important date, because it is when the fair dealing regulations come in. There have been warnings from the sector that that sort of thing will happen and about why it is so important. I ask the Minister for a proper review of these obligations to assess how they are wor…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Energy Security and Net Zero
7 July 2026
Topical Questions
Just this year, Norway has opened up a licensing round for 70 new oil and gas blocks. It is reopening three old gas fields and has permitted development plans for three new fields. Meanwhile, this Government are still banning licences, taxing the industry out of business and not permitting Rosebank …
Commons
Oral Questions
Business and Trade
2 July 2026
Farming Sector: International Trade
Farm profitability in the UK is incredibly low. As we know, for many farms it is less than 1%. Reports show that a poorly negotiated and poorly implemented sanitary and phytosanitary agreement could see a 10% hit to profitability for our arable farmers. That will have a trickle-down impact across th…
Commons
Oral Questions
Scotland
10 June 2026
Economic Growth
Aberdeen is the only UK city expected to grow by less than 1% between now and 2028, not least because of the UK’s anti-oil and gas policies. The Rosebank production facility has now arrived at the field; it is ready and just waiting for the Government to permit it. Rosebank would bring £25 billion o…
Commons
Oral Questions
Energy Security and Net Zero
2 June 2026
Clean Energy Transition: Supporting People in Work
This Government are not supporting workers in the oil and gas sector in north-east Scotland and Aberdeen; they are supporting workers in the oil and gas sectors of Norway, Qatar, America and even now Russia. The recent energy transition survey from the Aberdeen and Grampian chamber of commerce showe…
Commons
Proceedings
18 May 2026
Backing Business to Create Economic Growth
That was a great list, but what was missing from it was the oil and gas sector, and specifically the £17 billion of investment that was lost as a result of the Government not scrapping the energy profits levy and the £50 billion of investment lost because of their ban on new licences, and other host…
Commons
Proceedings
14 May 2026
Getting Britain Working Again
In that case, can the Secretary of State credibly stand at the Dispatch Box and talk about the impact of the rise in national insurance contributions and of the Employment Rights Act 2025 on employment? The Government are now paying companies to employ young people because of the mess they made.
Commons
Debate
27 April 2026
Lord Mandelson Humble Address: Government Response Update
The shadow Chancellor for the Duchy of Lancaster has asked today and previously, as have other Conservative Members, about the existence or not of a declaration of interests form for Mandelson. Does that form exist?
Commons
Oral Questions
Education
20 April 2026
2 contributions
Higher Education: Freedom of Speech
16. What recent progress her Department has made on implementing the complaints scheme provided for in the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023.
I thank the Minister for that update. The scheme is long overdue, but of course it does not go far enough. Let us take, for example, the case of Brodie Mitchell, who was suspended from Royal Holloway for a spat at a freshers fair. Under the new guidelines, he would not be able to complain directly t…
Commons
Oral Questions
Scotland
15 April 2026
Economic Growth
A strong job and business market is key for economic growth, but Labour’s huge rise in national insurance is a direct jobs tax, and the SNP’s huge increase in business rates is a direct tax on our businesses. Scottish Conservatives have a plan to revitalise our high streets, support jobs and get bus…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
13 April 2026
Middle East
The price of energy is obviously important, but as important is the security of supply. Whether the Government like it or not, over 70% of our energy comes from oil and gas. The events of the past month must be a wake-up call to them: we must secure our supply. Luckily, we have a secure supply under…
Commons
Oral Questions
Northern Ireland
25 March 2026
2 contributions
Northern Ireland Troubles: Legacy and Reconciliation
2. What steps he is taking to replace the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023.
That answer will be of very little comfort to Northern Ireland veterans across the country, including the veteran from Turriff in my constituency who contacted me about this just last week. They are living in fear of vexatious claims, as I am sure the Secretary of State recognises, so why are the Go…
Commons
Proceedings
24 March 2026
11 contributions
Oil and Gas
On the energy profits levy, the Office for Budget Responsibility’s forecast last year downgraded the expected income from oil and gas by 40% between March and November, and by another 20% between November and March this year. By 2030, we are now expecting only £100 million from a sector that used to…
Just to confirm, is the Liberal Democrats’ position that they do not want new licences in the North sea?
+9 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
24 March 2026
Topical Questions
We keep hearing the argument that it will take five to 10 years for new oil and gas to flow, and that therefore there is not point to starting new drilling, but the operators of Jackdaw and Rosebank say that both could be producing by the end of the year—it only needs the Secretary of State to appro…
Commons
Proceedings
19 March 2026
6 contributions
Climate Change
I congratulate the hon. Member for Basingstoke (Luke Murphy) on securing the debate and thank him for doing so. I recognise his concerns and those of others on climate change and its impacts, but I do—this will not be a surprise to anyone in this House—have a difference of opinion, especially when i…
I will not skip forward a few pages of my speech now, but we will touch on that matter in the coming few minutes.
As I said, the things that we have done are notable. Between 2010 and 2019, the UK Government oversaw the planting of 15 million trees, and during our time in office, the UK was home to…
+4 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
19 March 2026
UK Steel Strategy
What assessment, if any, has the Department made of the impact that moving from blast furnaces to arc furnaces will have on our virgin steel capabilities? The Minister for Trade, who did the morning round, seemed to accept that it would mean our virgin steel capabilities being undermined.
Commons
Debate
18 March 2026
6 contributions
Fuel Duty
My right hon. Friend is making a great speech, as we always expect from him. Does he remember that, for the 2024 Budget, the Chancellor stood there and said that increasing fuel duty would be the wrong choice for working people? She said then that that was because of uncertain global events, and tha…
Yesterday, the Chancellor said it was great that Norway and Canada were increasing their production of oil and gas, and congratulated them doing so. And who could disagree with that—other than, seemingly, herself and the Cabinet? Does the Minister agree that, along the same lines, we should be incre…
+4 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
16 March 2026
Heating Oil Support
The Minister’s statement included what I am sure were some very sincere words. He said:
“Whatever the challenges, we will always support working people; we will always fight their corner. That is why we are…doing everything we can to take back control of our energy”.
I did not want to have to brea…
Commons
Debate
16 March 2026
Lord Mandelson: Response to Humble Address
The shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Alex Burghart), and other Conservative Members have asked last week and this week about the declaration of interests. Either it exists and the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister does not want to sa…
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
16 March 2026
Topical Questions
Further to the question from the Chair of the Energy Security and Net Zero Committee, the hon. Member for Sefton Central (Bill Esterson), offshore energy infrastructure needs to be protected. The strategic defence review did not specifically mention moveable assets such as platforms, floating produc…
Commons
Debate
9 March 2026
Middle East: Economic Update
For months now, we have heard the Chancellor and other Government Front Benchers saying that we will be using oil and gas for years to come. Of course we will—no matter how much they want to wish it away, we will be using oil and gas for years to come, so we must secure our supply. In her meeting th…
Commons
Ministerial Statement
5 March 2026
Energy Markets
I thank the Secretary of State for advanced sight of his statement. Events in the middle east this past week have shown why it is so vital that the Government do all they can to ensure that UK businesses and households have a secure, reliable supply of dispatchable energy—a supply we can rely on. Af…