Contributions
1,086 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDFuel DutyLast autumn, my constituent Lesley O’Brien got in touch with me with serious concerns about the ramifications of any potential fuel duty hikes on the road haulage sector. As well…18 Mar 2026HANSARDFuel DutyMy firm view is that the Government should be supporting all of those individuals to drive economic growth across the country. By removing the two-child cap, the Government are…18 Mar 2026HANSARDRoyal Mail: PerformanceIt is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Twigg. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Exmouth and Exeter East (David Reed) for securing this important debate. The…18 Mar 2026HANSARDFuel DutyIt is good to speak in this debate on a subject that is impacting on all our hard-working businesses, families, hauliers and those involved in the logistics industry—the rise in…18 Mar 2026HANSARD Rural RoadsIt is frustrating, yet sadly not surprising, that roads across Keighley and Ilkley are facing so many challenges. I lay those challenges at the doorstep of Labour-run Bradford…17 Mar 2026HANSARDMember Defections: Automatic By-electionsAll political parties undertake a vast amount of data collection on their voter base. A good proportion of that data illustrates that the vast majority of people will cast their…16 Mar 2026HANSARDMember Defections: Automatic By-electionsBefore the hon. Member gets on to how we should change the whole system, I am keen to understand the Liberal Democrats’ view on the petition specifically. Should a defection…16 Mar 2026HANSARDMember Defections: Automatic By-electionsIt is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Roger. I thank the hon. Member for South Cotswolds (Dr Savage) for introducing the debate on behalf of the Petitions…16 Mar 2026HANSARDMember Defections: Automatic By-electionsThat is my point. While a lot of us, as advocates of constituency areas, do our best day in, day out, advocating on behalf of our constituents and campaigning on the local issues…16 Mar 2026HANSARDMember Defections: Automatic By-electionsI absolutely take the view that a defection at the local constituency level should trigger a by-election, which will ultimately restore the voters’ ability to decide who they want…16 Mar 2026HANSARDMember Defections: Automatic By-electionsI thank the hon. Member for that point, but my point is that when a general election takes place, the individual voter casts their vote for an individual associated with a…16 Mar 2026HANSARDMember Defections: Automatic By-electionsI thank my hon. Friend for his point, which I think aligns with my own point: it is the make-up of the political party that gains the confidence of the House, and therefore its…16 Mar 2026HANSARDMember Defections: Automatic By-electionsI hope that I am not going to lose the Whip by taking a slightly different view from what seems to be my party’s position. Why would an individual not stand as an independent, if…16 Mar 2026HANSARDMember Defections: Automatic By-electionsI am always amazed when a Minister says at the Dispatch Box, “I have listened very carefully to the contributions,” yet they are reading from a speech that was written before they…16 Mar 2026HANSARD Business of the HouseLast week, I met Toby Hammond, the lead volunteer for West Yorkshire scouts. Astonishingly, the scouts have learned that they could be hit by Labour’s new tourist tax, which is…12 Mar 2026HANSARDFinance (No. 2) BillI note that that is the Government’s position, but what level of assessment have they done of the negative implications of having just a six-month period as opposed to extending…11 Mar 2026HANSARDFinance (No. 2) BillI endorse what the hon. Member says. I cannot get my head around the fact that there are so many family businesses, beyond the agricultural sector, that will be impacted by the…11 Mar 2026HANSARDFinance (No. 2) BillThe hon. Member makes an excellent point. Despite the minimal, partial Government U-turn by increasing that threshold from £1 million to £2.5 million, the changes are still…11 Mar 2026HANSARDFinance (No. 2) BillI rise to speak about the changes that have been made in relation to inheritance tax, which is impacting many of our family farming businesses and also those family businesses…11 Mar 2026HANSARDFinance (No. 2) BillWe absolutely do. The hon. Member makes an excellent point, because we all know that the value of farmland in Northern Ireland is proportionately higher than anywhere else in the…11 Mar 2026