Adam Jogee
MP for Newcastle-under-Lyme · Labour · United Kingdom
“In business questions earlier, the Leader of the House said that a new Administration may want to look at whether they want to proceed with any current proposals in other areas. I hope the next Administration will hear my call today to look again at that reorganisation.”
“That is one of the few things I do not have to bang on about quite as much as I did when I was first elected to this House. I have worked hard to represent our excellent local farmers, who produce—with their flock and animals —excellent British food, and I will continue to be a strong champion for them.”
“I will not stop banging on about this until we put it right. More generally, I welcome the £120 million support package for the ceramics industry in Staffordshire, and I am grateful to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Secretary of State for Business and Trade and the Minister for Industry, my hon. Friend the hon.”
“The announcement today and the proposals in it are completely unacceptable. I reject them in the strongest terms— [ Interruption. ] Don’t heckle me. I have been saying this all along, so let me finish; I speak for my constituents.”
“It is a pleasure to follow the Chairman of the Backbench Business Committee, the hon. Member for Harrow East (Bob Blackman). I join him in paying tribute to Ann Widdecombe. We must be able to disagree without being disagreeable—or in this case, murderous—in our country.”
“I have a minute and a bit to go, so I will take the opportunity to add a few words. I thank my constituents for their commitment to our country and our community, and for holding me to account in no uncertain terms every single day.”
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“Friend the Member for Southgate and Wood Green (Bambos Charalambous) did, by declaring my interest as a member of the executive of the UK branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and as co-chair of the all-party parliamentary group for the Commonwealth. I congratulate the Minister on his work getting the Bill through the House and pay the same tribute to Baroness Chapman, alongside noble Lords of all parties and none—I think of Baroness D’Souza particularly. That the Bill has worked its way through the House with no substantive amendments speaks to the collective commitment on all sides to our role on the world stage and to being good citizens.”
“It is a pleasure to follow the Liberal Democrat spokesperson, who made it just in time. I say, better late than never. It was an important contribution. I want to assure the Parliamentary Private Secretary, my hon. Friend the Member for Central Ayrshire (Alan Gemmell), who put it to me that it looked like I had rather a lot of pieces of paper in my hand and asked how long I intended to speak, that it is more a case of the font being a bit bigger so I can read it, as opposed to the temptation of speaking for far too long. [ Interruption. ] Never? You should be so lucky. I am grateful for the opportunity to speak briefly on Third Reading of this much needed and very welcome piece of legislation. I want to start, as my hon.”
“You’ll cope just fine. I just want to wish all colleagues here in our United Kingdom Parliament, our Commonwealth kith and kin, and, of course, the good people of Newcastle-under-Lyme, who I shall see tomorrow, a very happy Christmas and a peaceful, calm and tolerant new year.”
“I just want to say to the Minister that the point that the right hon. Gentleman has just made has support across the House. Many Labour Members want to see exactly the urgency and focus that he has just mentioned.”
“I am enjoying listening to the right hon. Member. He is an esteemed former Finance Minister in the Northern Ireland Executive, so I defer to his experience. He is setting out his opposition to the measures in the Bill. Now that he has referenced the black hole, can he tell us what he would do to address the legacy of the previous Government?”
“For accuracy, I want to point out to the right hon. Gentleman that I am far more likely to be seen reading the Antrim Guardian than The Guardian .”
“T9. On Friday, my constituents Andrew Price and Matthew Whitmore came to my surgery to share their anger and distress at their pensions being stolen by a so-called investment company. They are thousands of pounds out of pocket. Will the Pensions Minister say what protections are in place against this, and will she meet me to discuss how my constituents can get their money back?”
“I pay tribute to all the district councillors in the loyal and ancient borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme, including the Tories who tried and failed to defeat me—I will be nice to them. On page 10 of the White Paper, the Minister notes that: “We must end the top-down micromanaging”. I agree. Notwithstanding how much of this announcement was trailed in the press and on social media in recent days, can I press the Minister on the point raised by my neighbour, my hon. Friend the Member for Stoke-on-Trent Central (Gareth Snell)? The Minister has said that there will be trade-offs when it comes to local identities. Who will ultimately decide on those trade-offs, and when will people in the real world be able to have their say on these proposals?”
“In a previous life, I drafted many of the amendments to the Environment Act 2021. I am sorry that the shadow Secretary of State would not let me intervene on her, and I am further sorry that she and most of her colleagues voted against every single one of those amendments. The hon. Gentleman was very kind and wisely voted for them. Although Conservative Members now talk about regulation, all the previous Government did was cut the regulator off at its knees, and we are now dealing with the consequences of their inaction and decisions.”
“Two weeks ago today, after much anger and the worst stink possible, Walleys Quarry landfill site was closed by the Environment Agency. This is a victory for my constituents and all of us who live in Newcastle-under-Lyme. Notwithstanding any legal action—and the loss of my voice from talking about it so much—will the Leader of the House join me in paying tribute to all those who campaigned so hard to finally get these cowboy operators closed down?”
“I listened to the Minister on the radio this morning and I listened to his statement, and I welcome his comprehensive steps to tackle the housing crisis. While I work with colleagues across the House—Opposition Members know that—I thought the shadow Minister’s speech was beneath him. It is the kind of gutter politics we should not be engaging in. As we seek to tackle the crisis, we must do things with people, not to them. I gently say to the Minister that communication and engagement will be vital to getting this right. I invite him to confirm from the Dispatch Box, for constituents in Newcastle-under-Lyme, that productive agricultural land will not be the default in his brownfield-first approach to development.”
“The safety of women and girls is as important in Newcastle-under-Lyme as it is up and down our United Kingdom. The Welsh Government have had a violence against women and girls strategy since 2022. Sadly, the previous UK Government did not have one for my constituents in England. What lessons can the new Government learn from the Welsh Labour Government on keeping our women and girls safe?”
“The Minister will not be surprised to see me speak in a debate on waste. I put it to the hon. Gentleman that for all his recounting of what the previous Conservative Government did, he may want to look to Wales and to the experience and success of the Welsh Labour Government, who have some of the highest recycling rates in the world.”
“I am enjoying listening to the hon. Gentleman’s expression of support for Labour-led Stockton-on-Tees borough council. Between 2017 and 2019, the UK shipped 263 containers of waste to Sri Lanka. The UK had labelled them “used mattresses, carpets and rugs”, but what Sri Lankan authorities found inside the containers has been described as “far more sinister”. Does the hon. Gentleman agree that whereas the last Government had plenty of warm words, they were very quick to throw the problem as far away as they could?”
“I am grateful to my favourite Minister in His Majesty’s Government for giving way. Notwithstanding any legal action relating to Walleys Quarry, will the former Secretary of State, the right hon. Member for North East Cambridgeshire (Steve Barclay), and the Minister join me in paying tribute to all the hard-working, good and loyal subjects in Newcastle-under-Lyme who campaigned, day in and day out, for clean air, healthier lungs and the kind of change we so desperately want to see?”
“The Minister talks about the importance of working across Government, across this House and across our communities. Notwithstanding her position as my favourite Minister in His Majesty’s Government, I gently put to her the importance of looking at councils that give planning consent to developments in and around landfill sites. In Newcastle-under-Lyme, a number of housing developments have been built right around Walleys Quarry. That has a material impact on the health and wellbeing of the people who move there, and more generally on how our community is viewed. I urge her to have the appropriate conversations with colleagues across Government to ensure that the 1.5 million homes that we all want are built in the right places, with the right communication and consultation when decisions are taken.”
“I thank the Secretary of State for his statement. Earlier this week, the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee, led by my hon. Friend the Member for Gower (Tonia Antoniazzi), visited Northern Ireland, where it was clear from our discussions with many stakeholders that real progress has been made since 1998 but that there is much more to do so. First, how does the Secretary of State think this announcement will bring people in Northern Ireland together? Secondly, will he tell us when he plans to bring forward the primary legislation to which he referred?”
“2. What discussions he has had with the Northern Ireland Executive on levels of representation of people from black and minority ethnic communities in the Northern Ireland Assembly.”
“I wish the Secretary of State a happy birthday for yesterday— [ Interruption. ] And a happy Lancashire Day to you, Mr Speaker. I join the Minister in paying tribute to Anna Lo. Anna was the first non-white Member of the Assembly, but she cannot be the last. I urge the Minister to encourage all parties in the Assembly to redouble their efforts to ensure that all the people of Northern Ireland can look to their Assembly and see someone like them.”
“The Minister will not be surprised to see me in a debate on waste, which I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Chatham and Aylesford (Tristan Osborne) for securing. Will the Minister join me in paying tribute to constituents of mine like Norma in Red Street and Jane in Bradwell for their commitment to safe and clean streets and for their consistent reporting of fly-tips to both me and the council? I assure the Minister of my complete commitment and support for her zero-tolerance approach in tackling fly-tipping and waste crime in our communities.”
“Our veterans are on the frontline as they defend our country, and when seeking meaningful support to get on with their lives when they get home. Will the Minister join me in paying tribute to the Tri Services and Veterans Support Centre in Newcastle-under-Lyme, led by chairman Geoff Harriman, for all the work it does? Will he come to visit the centre, meet our veterans, and show them the support that they deserve?”
“For us in Newcastle-under-Lyme, the fight for clean air is personal and it is constant. As I have the opportunity of the Floor, I make it clear again and reiterate to the Environment Agency, if it is listening: we need it to issue a closure notice with immediate effect to Walleys Quarry Ltd. We need to cap the site and restore it safely and swiftly.”
“Member for Strangford highlighted the fact that respiratory conditions are the third biggest killer in the United Kingdom, and one in five of us will be diagnosed with a lung condition in our lifetime. Colleagues will have heard me talk about the disgraceful Walleys Quarry landfill site in my constituency. For far too long, the operators have got away with doing whatever they want and leaving our town smothered by the most horrendous levels of hydrogen sulphide emitting from the site. The levels of hydrogen sulphide have had an undeniable impact on the respiratory health of my constituents. I came down to London on Monday and will be heading back to my constituency shortly. I have had many reports from constituents back home that the levels have been horrendous this week.”
“I should declare an interest: my wife is a deputy sister in an intensive care unit. I remain in full admiration of her and all her colleagues who work in our national health service on a daily basis. My constituency is in the middle of our country, and air quality is one of the most important issues experienced by my constituents and one of the most frequently raised with me. It was with that in mind that I was delighted to host the Asthma and Lung UK reception in Parliament this Tuesday, where it launched its new report, “A Mission for Lung Health”. I encourage all colleagues present, all Members across the House and all those watching at home to read that report. Air quality and respiratory health are some of the most important issues experienced by my constituents. The hon.”
“I start by joining the tributes to His Majesty the King on behalf of my constituents in Newcastle-under-Lyme as he marks his birthday today. It is excellent to see my hon. Friend the Minister in her position. I think it is the first time I have had a chance to speak when she has been on the Front Bench. It is very good to see her. I am also pleased to see that the shadow Minister’s brace has gone—evidence of the wonder of our national health service. I am grateful for the opportunity to speak in this debate. I congratulate the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) on leading it and on his opening remarks. He clearly enjoyed the lack of time limit, and probably the typo in the Order Paper that said that the debate would last for three hours. I thank him for his contribution.”
“Member for Strangford for introducing this debate, and I look forward to working with him, with the Minister and with colleagues across the House on these issues in the months and years ahead.”
“Councillor Bettley-Smith noted that, apart from the waste issue, there appears to be evidence, based on smoke and smell, that tyres or similar materials are being burned, and have been burned in the last week or so. The failures to regulate the waste sector under the previous Government must be put right by this new one, and I look forward to working with Ministers across Government to do exactly that. There is a financial issue here, an environmental one and of course a health one too. I urge the excellent Minister to ensure that respiratory health is prioritised in the forthcoming 10-year plan for our beloved national health service and, importantly, in the upcoming review of the long-term workforce plan. I am grateful to the hon.”
“I know that is a big ask and I understand the financial pressures, but it would result in savings of £80 million for the national health service in reduced exacerbations, as well as a reduction of 85,474 hospital bed days. Lastly, I want to touch on the link between waste crime and respiratory health. This morning, I received an email from Councillor Robert Bettley-Smith, the chair of Betley parish council in Newcastle-under-Lyme. Although he is in a different party from mine, I appreciate the spirit in which he works with me as we seek to serve the people who elected us. Councillor Bettley-Smith noted the continuing activity on the land at Doddlespool Hall farm in my constituency. I will not go into all the detail, but the link between waste crime and the disposal of waste generally has a huge impact on respiratory health.”
“Last year, across the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent integrated care board, 3,765 people were admitted to hospital in an emergency due to a lung condition. Yesterday, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care reiterated this new Labour Government’s ambition to reform our national health service, but it is clear that that will not be achieved without prioritising respiratory health and care. That is entirely in line with the shifting focuses: from treatment to prevention, which has my full support; and from hospital to community care, where most respiratory care happens anyway. The Department should introduce a recovery fund of over £40 million over two years to increase the availability of testing.”
“I would be grateful if the Minister took some time today—I am happy to talk at another time, too—to discuss strengthening the powers and scope of the UK Health Security Agency, because although it has an important role to play, most of that role is currently advisory. As colleagues have highlighted—the hon. Member for Strangford certainly did—lung conditions are more strongly associated with deprivation than any other major health condition. Sadly, the result of these combined factors is clear and, as the hon. Member noted, respiratory conditions are the largest driver of A&E admissions each winter. Thousands of people living with undiagnosed and poorly managed respiratory conditions end up in A&E, adding even more strain to a national health service that is already under strain.”
“When patients are diagnosed with a respiratory condition, the quality of care they receive often does not meet the standards set by NICE. Asthma and Lung UK, to which I pay tribute for all its work, has found that 70% of those living with asthma are not receiving all three aspects of basic care, and that the care received by more than 90% of those with COPD does not meet the five fundamentals required by NICE. People living with undiagnosed and poorly managed lung conditions are more susceptible to environmental factors such as air pollution, wintry weather and poor-quality housing, all of which, sadly, are applicable to the communities and people who live in the areas surrounding Walleys Quarry in Newcastle-under-Lyme.”
“Access to spirometry testing for lung conditions, in particular since the covid-19 pandemic, has been a slow and painful process for too many people across the country. It is estimated that in our United Kingdom, more than 600,000 people live with undiagnosed COPD; the hon. Member for Strangford touched on that. Even when restrictive respiratory conditions are suspected or diagnosed, people are waiting far too long for care. The latest NHS data shows that in August almost 5,000 people in Staffordshire—4,963, to be exact—were waiting beyond the national target of 18 weeks to be seen by a respiratory doctor. That is a little more than 50% of all patients referred for treatment. Although that is higher than the national average, it is sadly not an uncommon figure. It needs to change.”
“The only theme among all three of those institutions is that they are led by politicians of the same party. My message to my constituents is that change has come, and I am determined to ensure that that change delivers. I hope that, after the profit-over-people approach of the operators at Walleys Quarry, we do not see that politics over people has prevented the site being closed and the respiratory health of my constituents being protected and enhanced. I will be grateful for an update from the Minister on what cross-departmental work has taken place in Government on such issues. Access to diagnostic testing for respiratory conditions is in dire need of reform, and the example and experiences of my constituents prove that well.”
“We are on the way to getting my constituents the justice they deserve. I thank my hon. Friend for his support for our efforts, which have been led by many of my brilliant constituents, Dr Mick Salt, Lee Bernadette Walford, Simmo Burgess, Sheelagh Casey-Hulme and many others, who have been fighting hard. I could list many people. They did not all necessarily vote for me, but they have played an important role in helping to clean our air and save lives. In recent weeks, there has been a pretty furious rush on behalf of the borough council and an increase in demands placed on the new Government. That is all well and good, but as far as I can see, little representation seems to have been made by the borough council to the previous Government, or indeed to Staffordshire county council.”
“I omitted to put on the record earlier what a pleasure it is to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Rosindell. Before my election to this House, I spent five years working with my hon. Friend the Member for Newport West and Islwyn (Ruth Jones), who shadowed the Minister responsible for air quality, so I spent a lot of time working on these issues, particularly in respect of the World Health Organisation guidelines. Will the hon. Gentleman find the time for a cup of tea with me, so that we can see what we can do together to make the progress we all want to see?”
“I gently push back on the narrative that the previous Government made the sort of progress in tackling the issues at Walleys Quarry that the shadow Minister just implied. My constituents continue, on a daily basis, to deal with the worst effects of the hydrogen sulphide levels that the site emits. Hydrogen sulphide is a heavy gas and there are schools around the area. The impact on our children and the respiratory health of young lungs is massively underrated and fails to be part of the conversation. I invite the shadow Minister to come to Walleys Quarry and to Newcastle-under-Lyme to smell the situation for himself.”
“There has been a lot of sobriety in this debate so, rather than having a cup of tea, I will take the shadow Minister to the Waggon and Horses pub in Newcastle-under-Lyme for a slightly colder refreshment.”
“I am pleased to see the Solicitor General, a good friend of mine, in her place. A key part of rural crime, particularly in Newcastle-under-Lyme, is waste—waste crime has blighted the lives of my constituents for far too long. May I urge the Solicitor General to do all she can, working with colleagues across Government, to hold the rogue operators of landfill sites to account and make sure that they face the full force of the law?”
“The 93 leaseholders at No. 1 London Road in Newcastle-under-Lyme have been pushed to breaking point by the most disgraceful rise in buildings insurance costs in the wake of the Grenfell disaster. May I please ask the Leader of the House for a debate on how we can protect my constituents from the vulture-like behaviour of those insurance companies?”
“I am enjoying immensely my right hon. Friend’s very detailed explanation of how we got here. May I ask him what conversations he has had with the Church about the steps that it can take to increase the diversity of potential bishops and to ensure that, ultimately, there is a wider pool of people to appoint to the House of Lords.”
“On that point, I acknowledge the history-making nature of my hon. Friend’s appointment as the Second Church Estates Commissioner, which I hope demonstrates our commitment to diversity and representation.”
“I acknowledge the temperate and sensible approach that the hon. Lady takes to these matters. Does she share my query about where all those who have shown an interest this week in the presence of bishops in the House of Lords happen to be this afternoon?”
“I, too, would like to declare an interest as a member of the UK branch of the CPA. I also echo the welcome to the shadow Foreign Secretary; she had the wisdom to attend Keele University in Newcastle-under-Lyme, so her and I are best friends on that basis. I also place on record my thanks to Stephen Twigg and all those who work at the CPA; they do wonderful work, and I am pleased to be here to support the Bill.”
“Newcastle-under-Lyme is home to many people who left Scotland to build a life, such as my constituent Lee-Bernadette Walford. Can the Secretary of State outline how resetting the relationship between the UK and Scottish Governments is important for economic growth up and down our United Kingdom?”
“This is a Budget that delivers for working people, young people, local communities, public services and the good people of Newcastle-under-Lyme. I look forward to working with the Chancellor and my colleagues on the Government Benches to deliver the real change that my constituents voted for on 4 July.”
“We have ended the Tory fiscal drag, and we have scrapped the non-dom status that some people not too far from this House enjoyed. Delivering on our promises to the country, this Labour Government will always be on the side of working people. I am proud to back my right hon. Friend the Chancellor in delivering on our pledge not to increase national insurance, income tax or VAT. All those who came to campaign with me in the election, will recall that our roads in north Staffordshire are shocking, not least thanks to the Conservative-led Staffordshire county council—my hon. Friend the Member for Warwick and Leamington (Matt Western) was there. I very much welcome the £500 million allocated to fix our potholes.”
“They deserve a Government who have their best interests at heart, who will invest in our children and their futures and who will create wealth and equal opportunities for all. This Budget is the start of a new chapter for my constituents: an ambitious economic plan that invests in our people and communities, and turns the page on the failed Conservative policies of the past. I echo the comments made by my hon. Friend the Member for Gower (Tonia Antoniazzi) about the importance of supporting our farmers. On support with the cost of living crisis, we have seen an increase in the carer’s allowance, an above-inflation rise in the state pension, frozen fuel duty, an increase in local transport funding and the cutting of draught beer duty.”
“There is more to do, but that is the difference that Labour in government makes. I welcome the minimum wage increase. The minimum wage was introduced by the last Labour Government—opposed by the Conservatives at the time—and the new Labour Government have increased it for everyone of working age. That will help support people with the cost of living legacy left by the previous Government. It will help lift children out of poverty and put more money into our local communities. The people of Newcastle-under-Lyme deserve a Government who take the tough economic decisions, not duck them, and who do not pull funding from our public services or destroy the hopes of future generations.”
“For former coalmining communities such as mine in Newcastle-under-Lyme, the Chancellor’s fulfilment of our manifesto promise on the mineworkers’ pension scheme is so important. It gives the mineworkers the justice they deserve, and I know that the 838 former miners in Newcastle-under-Lyme will be grateful for it. In recent years, I have made it a priority to visit local schools, and since the election I have comforted desperate carers and parents and made regular pleas to the Education Secretary, the Department for Education and Tory-led Staffordshire county council for action on the special educational needs and disability crisis in my constituency. I am very grateful to the Chancellor for listening to many of us across the House, acknowledging the crisis and committing a £1 billion uplift in funding for SEND provision. It is progress.”
“It is a pleasure to speak in this debate on the first Labour Budget in 15 years. It has been a long and painful 14 years for my constituents. Families in my constituency have been struggling to make ends meet, and our services bore the brunt of a Government who did not value their work, slashed their funding, and created life-destroying waiting lists and response times. We heard a lot from the Conservative party today, but the one word we did not hear was “sorry”. I remain proud to have stood on a manifesto that committed to deliver the change working people need, and that is what we are doing today. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the mineworkers who powered our nation.”