James MacCleary
MP for Lewes · Liberal Democrat · United Kingdom
“Primarily, shipping needs to be protected from attacks in the strait of Hormuz. The first way to do that is to reach a settlement that keeps shipping safe in the strait of Hormuz and, as I said in my previous point, that is why we need to reach a diplomatic solution.”
“The UK Government should be working every diplomatic channel they have to get Washington and Tehran back to the negotiating table as soon as possible. Let me be clear: this was an illegal war started by a reckless and irresponsible President. Trump, together with Benjamin Netanyahu, led the US and Israel into this war without a plan.”
“Roughly a fifth of the world’s traded oil moves through the strait of Hormuz, so anything that threatens shipping there shows up quickly in household budgets here in Britain, not just in the Gulf.”
“The picture in Iran remains volatile. We have seen renewed military strikes, threats against ships in international waters and rhetoric that keeps ratcheting upwards. Put together, that is the kind of mix that tips into a spiral that nobody in this House wants.”
“It is a good challenge. Obviously, what I am talking about is a long-term solution. The military option has been tried. The United States, the pre-eminent military power on Earth, has expended a huge number of missiles and other military assets to try to bring Iran to a position that it wants it to be in.”
“I also recognise and welcome the designation of the Islamic Movement of Companions of the Right, and Russia’s GRU so-called Volunteer Corps. However, designation alone is not enough, so will the Minister tell the House what additional resources are being provided to ensure that the powers are properly enforced?”
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“I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of his statement, and echo his praise for the bravery and professionalism of our armed forces in putting their lives on the line for us all. The Liberal Democrats continue to have grave concerns about the UK being dragged into Trump’s illegal war. However, it is fair to say that the situation has evolved very quickly. Given that it is commonplace for UK personnel to serve aboard US navy ships, including aircraft carriers such as those currently engaged in attacks on Iran, can the Secretary of State provide an assurance to this House that no UK personnel are currently serving aboard US navy ships engaged in offensive operations in the middle east? Furthermore, there have been serious questions raised about the use of UK bases for US airstrikes.”
“At a time when Ukraine has taught us the vital importance of munitions stockpiles and consumable kit, cutting that line is a curious choice, so I would again welcome a clarification from the Minister. We also keep hearing, as we have several times today, about the defence investment plan—the document that was meant to be published last autumn. Autumn came and went. We are now in March 2026, and it is still nowhere to be seen. The Government have made the plan the centrepiece of their defence modernisation narrative, and every time we ask hard questions about procurement, capability gaps or industrial strategy, we are told to wait for the DIP. But the DIP never arrives. I sometimes wonder if the DIP was part of some mass hallucination that we all had last year.”
“That sounds like a lot, but the single largest driver of that increase is a £9 billion jump in depreciation and impairment costs, described only as a “non-routine accounting adjustment.” That £9 billion is the largest single movement in the MOD budget, and the Government have provided no detail whatever on what that really is. I am afraid that is not good enough. When the Minister responds, I hope that he will shed some light on what that adjustment actually represents, because the public, and this House, deserve to know. On capital spending, the increase is a more modest 0.3%, just £63.7 million. Yet within that is a reduction in funding for single-use military equipment.”
“I thank the Backbench Business Committee for selecting this topic and the Chair of the Defence Committee for securing this debate. The UK spent £62.2 billion on defence this year. The Government plan to raise that to £73.5 billion by 2028-29. It is a significant sum. But let us be honest about what that actually shows because some of the detail deserves a great deal more explanation than the Government have so far provided. Take the day-to-day spending figures. Investment spending has increased by £10.8 billion, a rise of nearly 23%.”
“It is a tried and tested mechanism for mobilising public capital behind a national purpose. We keep hearing how urgent it is to invest, but there is no action.”
“I thank my hon. Friend for his intervention; it is important that that question is answered. It is starting to look less like a plan and more like a convenient excuse for delay. The Liberal Democrats call on the Government today to commit to a firm publication date, not a vague promise but an actual date. Parliament and industry cannot plan without it. My party has put forward concrete proposals to accelerate defence investment, in particular through defence bonds. We have called on the Government to issue publicly available defence bonds, raising up to £20 billion for capital investment over two years, giving members of the public the direct opportunity to invest in Britain’s security, fixed- term, legally ringfenced to capital defence spending and capped at £20 billion.”
“British forces are currently engaged in defensive combat operations to protect our bases and citizens in the middle east and eastern Mediterranean. We must focus on not just new kit but existing kit, and it is conspicuous that so many of our vessels are not currently available to the Navy. The Liberal Democrats have been clear about what is needed. We have proposed pragmatic, realistic steps to make our nation safer now and in the future.”
“The £3 billion annual pledge and the G7 loan facility are welcome commitments, but we can and should go further. The UK holds an estimated £25 billion in frozen Russian assets. My party has tabled the Russian Frozen Assets (Seizure and Aid to Ukraine) Bill to direct those funds to Ukraine’s military, reconstruction, and humanitarian defence, and we are calling for that today. National security is the first duty of any Government. The spring statement contains real increases in defence spending, and I do not dismiss that, but it also contains a £9 billion accounting adjustment with no explanation, a defence investment plan that remains unpublished, and a 3% target that is still under vague consideration.”
“As the hon. Member says, he has asked me that question before. I have done my homework, and we have published the full background. This sits within the Government’s fiscal rules, and is actually a relatively small cost to the Government. Let me now ask the hon. Member—he may wish to answer during his own speech—how his party would invest quickly in defence spending. This is a credible proposal, and I should like to hear credible proposals from others too. We should like the Minister to announce defence bonds, with no further delay. With conflict in the middle east, it is easy to lose focus on the war much closer to home, in Ukraine. The United Kingdom has so far committed £10.8 billion in military support between February 2022 and March 2026, drawn from the Treasury reserve.”
“Plumpton college in my constituency is celebrating 100 years of land-based education. It has gone from 17 students in 1926 to a nationally recognised centre for agriculture, viticulture and environmental studies, with more than 1,200 full and part-time students today. Farming and land-based producers are vital to our food security, rural economy and environmental stewardship. Will the Secretary of State join me in congratulating Plumpton college on its centenary and set out how the Government will ensure that specialist agricultural colleges have the funding, certainty and support that they need for the next century?”
“We see millions of votes cast that elect no one, yet the Government have proposed no reforms to introduce proportional representation, a system where every vote counts equally and every community gets a representative that reflects them. Democracy may seem more fragile than it has felt in a generation, but it is by no means dead. It is a rare thing and it must be fought for, renewed and expanded with every generation. As a Liberal Democrat, I will not stop fighting for it until we have a system that gives every elector a real voice and kicks dirty money out of our politics.”
“We cannot allow foreign money to buy British democracy, but the Bill does not go far enough in this regard. We need a donations cap—a hard limit on what any individual or company can give to political parties. Right now, billionaires can write cheques that dwarf the modest contributions from ordinary working people. Cryptocurrency has been mentioned a number of times this evening, but the Bill is silent on it. While other countries wake up to the risks of crypto and its opacity, we are leaving the door wide open for cryptocurrency to become the new dark money. We need an explicit ban on cryptocurrency donations. Donations are only part of the picture, however. We still have first past the post—a voting system so distorted that it allows Governments with 36% of the vote to govern alone for up to five years.”
“I would also like to talk about protections not just for candidates, but for hard-working council staff. I have previously led a district council, and I have seen up close not only the dedication and hard work of the staff in our council, but the risks they are exposed to in an increasingly polarised environment. It is fantastic that they have been included in this Bill as well. These provisions are genuinely welcome, but let me be blunt: this Bill does not go far enough. The truth, as every person in this country knows, is that our democracy is experiencing a crisis of public confidence, and we need real transformation. The measures on “know your donor” are steps in the right direction. Closing the loopholes for overseas donors and preventing the influence of people such as Musk and the Russian oligarchs matter.”
“Although I fear that this Bill may be remembered as a Bill of missed opportunities, I want to start with the substantial positives that I see in it. For decades, the Liberal Democrats have fought—sometimes alone, sometimes against the odds—for votes at 16. It is a progressive, pragmatic move whose time has come, and I warmly congratulate the Government on bringing it forward. I hope it will also be accompanied by stronger elements of the curriculum in democratic and civic education to support these measures, and I look forward to the Government’s proposals. Automatic voter registration is also really important. Nearly 8 million people are not correctly registered to vote in this country. No matter how we look at it, that is just wrong and needs to be addressed, so I strongly welcome that measure too.”
“Ukraine should not have to face Putin’s aggression alone; Britain must continue to lead in Europe, standing shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine in not just words but deeds, and with enforceable security guarantees rather than empty promises. That means cutting off Putin’s revenue streams completely and seizing frozen assets. It means democratic oversight of troop deployments; it means ensuring that Ukraine’s territorial integrity is non-negotiable in any peace settlement; and it means doing everything we possibly can to get those stolen children back to their families. Four years on, the protection of Ukraine’s sovereignty must remain central to Britain’s priorities, because if we fail Ukraine, we fail the international order, and if we fail the international order, we invite aggression everywhere.”
“Just last month, Russian missiles tore through power stations across the country, and hundreds of thousands of people in Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia woke up to find themselves without electricity or heating as temperatures dropped to minus 20°C. This is the coldest winter Ukraine has seen in a decade, and Putin’s strategy is clear: if his army cannot break Ukraine’s will, he will try to freeze its people into submission. Because of the courage of the Ukrainian people—and, I am very proud to say, the support of allies such as Britain—Russia no longer poses a risk of conquering Kyiv. Ukraine pushed the Russians back in Kharkiv and Kherson, against an adversary with much greater resources, although Russia remains on the frontline.”
“For Russia, it has meant a fundamentally deformed economy, legal system and society. Courts clear soldiers of murder and rape because they have signed military contracts, recruiting has become desperately difficult despite enormous spending, and an entire generation of young Russian men has been wiped out by this war to fulfil Putin’s ambitions. For Ukraine, these four years have meant something else entirely. They have meant extraordinary courage in the face of impossible odds; they have meant soldiers who began fighting in muddy trenches with artillery now finding themselves in a war dominated by drones, a conflict that has evolved faster than anyone imagined; and they have meant watching Russia systematically destroy the very things that keep people alive through the winter.”
“These mass abductions constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity, and any update from Ministers on what we are doing to help recover those children would be very welcome. I really welcome the award given to the hon. Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire South (Johanna Baxter); she has been a dogged campaigner on this issue, and I cannot think of anybody more worthy of that recognition. President Putin must be held accountable, and the outstanding International Criminal Court arrest warrant against him must be implemented. This country and the Government must pick up the mantle of tracking down and rescuing those children, to bring them home to their families where they belong. Reports from Russia paint a sobering picture of what four years of war has meant.”
“Through its illegal invasion, cyber-attacks, energy coercion and interference in democratic processes, the Kremlin has demonstrated consistent disregard for international law. The UK Government must maintain an unequivocal position opposing Russia’s readmission to the G7, and must work with allies to ensure that this stance is upheld across all multilateral bodies. I want to return to the human cost. Over 20,000 Ukrainian children have been abducted since the full-scale invasion began. As a parent with two small children at home, I find it very hard not to put myself in the place of those Ukrainian families, torn apart by concern for their missing children who have been cruelly snatched away as part of Putin’s wider agenda of extinguishing Ukrainian culture and identity.”
“The Ukrainian people are fighting for us; the least we can do is unlock the money to help them win. My hon. Friend the Member for Bicester and Woodstock (Calum Miller) has introduced a Bill to seize those frozen assets and direct the proceeds to Ukraine’s defence and reconstruction. Putin must be punished, not rewarded. A recent Government report showed that UK imports from Russia had reached £1.7 billion by June last year, up 21% on the previous year. Perhaps Ministers can tell us what steps the Government are taking to restrict this profitable trade for the Kremlin. The international community, including this Government and the previous Government, have rightly condemned Russia on the international stage.”
“The Liberal Democrats called urgently for those funds to be delivered. We welcome the fact that the Government are now threatening legal action, but it should not have taken this long. It seems that everyone now agrees that we must urgently unlock frozen Russian assets. The UK has frozen £30 billion-worth under our sanctions regime, but it sits idle in British accounts while Ukraine desperately needs $120 billion next year alone to resist Russia. So what exactly is blocking it? The legal frameworks exist, but the political will—so far, at least—is lacking. The Prime Minister must personally step in to drive that forward, because we are watching Ukraine’s defences being stretched to breaking point while we sit on the very resources that could help it.”
“We must also proscribe Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in full. The IRGC is not only destabilising the middle east; it is directly supporting Putin’s war machine, including through the provision and production of drones used to terrorise Ukrainian cities. It was also revealed to the Defence Committee that “Russia can only maintain this war because China is…bankrolling it”, and that some sources suggest that up to 60% of the funding comes from China. The Government must increase pressure on Beijing to stop funding Putin’s deadly war. Then there is the £2.5 billion pounds from Roman Abramovich’s sale of Chelsea football club. That money should have helped suffering Ukrainian civilians over a year ago, and could have supported efforts to rescue at least some of the 20,000 children abducted by Russian forces.”
“No British money should be supporting Russia’s war. The Government must move at pace to enforce the ban, and it must go further—I welcome any updates on that from Ministers. We have also called for the oil price cap to be lowered to $30 per barrel, with stricter enforcement. We must confront the reality that Russia is actively circumventing sanctions through third countries. Georgia has increasingly been used as a back-door route for sanctioned goods and financial flows into Russia’s economy, undermining the pressure we and our allies are trying to apply. The UK should be prepared to sanction those facilitating that evasion, starting with Bidzina Ivanishvili, Georgia’s oligarchic de facto leader, whose influence has steered the country away from its Euro-Atlantic path and towards Moscow’s orbit.”
“To speak of major territorial concessions by Ukraine is to ask it to give into a bullying neighbour that has spent not 12 but hundreds of years repeatedly attempting to control it and deny its right to exist as a nation. Any agreement requires a deep understanding of those countries that has been entirely absent from the rhetoric in the United States and is too often absent from commentary in this country. We are keen to support the practical steps taken by our Government. The decision to ban UK maritime services for Russian liquefied natural gas was particularly welcome. The Liberal Democrats had been calling for that for some months, so it was great to finally see it come to fruition, but the implementation has been slow. Since 2022, UK-owned or insured LNG carriers have transported £45 billion-worth of Russian products.”
“Any peace settlement must focus on defending Ukraine, strengthening deterrence and creating sustainable conditions for a lasting peace. It must not be a deal that effectively rewards Russian aggression. The UK must ensure that Ukraine’s interests—not Putin’s territorial ambitions nor Donald Trump’s desire for a grubby carve-up—remain at the heart of negotiations. We must remain absolutely focused on cutting off the resources that fuel Putin’s war machine. Too many of those who comment on this conflict fail fully to understand its historical and cultural context. To speak of it as a conflict that Putin will just stop on fair terms is a failure to grasp the fact that his war in Ukraine is now central to sustaining his mafia state and his role as its kingpin.”
“The Liberal Democrats support that commitment in principle, but Parliament must have a vote on any deployment of UK personnel—I welcomed the Prime Minister’s very clear statement on that—because democratic oversight is essential. The Government must also be transparent about timescales and ensure that our armed forces have the resources to support such a mission. It is great to hear from the Secretary of State today about the £200 million of funding that he has accelerated for that purpose. Crucially, we must have clarity at the right time about the terms of engagement for those forces, if and when that deployment takes place. Supporting Ukraine long term is not just about political will; it is about practical capability.”
“We will not accept that might is right. We will not allow Ukraine to be sacrificed on the altar of appeasement. We all want peace and a just and lasting settlement, but we must be clear that Vladimir Putin has no interest in peace; he remains hellbent on the subjugation of Ukraine. Although we welcome diplomatic efforts, we remain deeply concerned about the specifics of any American security guarantees. The unfortunate truth is that President Trump is unreliable, unpredictable and, to be frank, disdainful of the rule of law. That means that Europe must step up. The UK and France have committed to a potential military deployment to Ukraine, should a peace deal be agreed.”
“Four years ago yesterday, Vladimir Putin launched his deadly full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Four years on, we face a solemn reminder of the death and destruction that has ensued. An estimated 1.8 million soldiers have been killed or wounded, or have gone missing, on both sides. Up to 325,000 Russian troops and as many as 140,000 Ukrainians have been killed. The United Nations has recorded at least 15,000 civilian deaths and more than 40,000 people injured, including at least 763 children, but it says that the toll is likely much higher. That is why the Liberal Democrats are absolutely clear in their support for Ukraine. In the face of Putin’s aggression and Donald Trump’s unreliability, Europe must send an unambiguous signal: national sovereignty is not negotiable, and we will not stand idly by at this time.”
“The woman in Deanland Wood Park deserves to use her phone in her own home, the couple in Berwick deserve to do their jobs and stay in touch with their elderly parents without constant stress, the farmer in East Dean deserves to know that he can call for help if there is an emergency, and the gentleman in Upper Dicker deserves to log into his bank account without driving across my constituency. My constituents deserve better and rural constituencies across the country deserve better, too.”
“I recently met Vodafone, which is responsible for the roll-out in our part of Sussex, to press that point. The Government must also prioritise major investment in broadband for underserved communities, and here there is an economic argument. Investment in these areas will help unlock the vast potential of our rural communities. Research has demonstrated that ubiquitous 5G could add £159 billion to the UK economy by 2035. That means not just money for telecoms companies, but businesses in our rural communities operating more effectively. I am asking on behalf of my constituents for the Government to live up to their promises to invest properly in rural connectivity and ensure that companies such as Openreach and Vodafone communicate clearly with residents and meet their commitments.”
“Businesses cannot operate effectively, and elderly residents cannot stay in touch with family or access online health services. Farmers cannot use modern agricultural technology, and students cannot do their homework. The digital divide is no longer just about cities versus countryside; it is about whether rural communities can survive and thrive in the 21st century. The inequality of provision as the 5G network is rolled out is deeply concerning. It is simply wrong that people should be disadvantaged because of where they live. Someone’s postcode should not determine whether they can fully participate in a modern society. We must ensure that improving broadband and mobile connectivity starts with the hardest-to-reach areas first—not as an afterthought and not eventually, but first.”
“When one looks at rural coverage specifically, the picture is even more concerning. Only 69% of rural areas in the UK are said to receive 4G coverage through the four major mobile network providers—not 5G but 4G, which is technology that is already years old, and we are at just 69%. So much of what we are told is 3G, 4G or 5G is actually mislabelled. The signal bars on phones can be deeply misleading. There might be full bars and the assumption is that everything is fine, but when trying to make a call or load a webpage, suddenly you realise that those bars do not mean what you thought they meant. In rural areas, poor connectivity is fundamentally undermining the viability of our communities. It is not just annoying; it is existential. Young families cannot move to rural areas or stay there, because they cannot work from home.”
“Try doing online banking or running a business without mobile connectivity. Try doing any of the things that we are all expected to do online these days, and which those of us in towns and cities can largely take for granted. A gentleman in the village of Upper Dicker regularly has to drive to his son’s house just to use his phone, because the signal at home is so poor. Every time a website needs to text him a verification code—something that happens more and more these days—he is stuck. He cannot access his bank account or log into Government services. He cannot do any of the things that we are increasingly required to do online. According to research published last year, the UK has the worst average 5G download speeds of all G7 countries. We are not slightly behind; we are dead last.”
“Their phones work perfectly well when they leave Berwick; there is purely a problem of coverage in the village itself. I recently heard from a couple who have moved to my constituency from rural Staffordshire. They were genuinely shocked to discover that they have no signal whatsoever in their new home in East Dean. They have moved from one rural area to another, and somehow our connectivity is even worse than what they left behind. At one of my advice surgeries, I spoke to a farmer from the same village who is dealing with the same problem, and this is where it becomes really serious. What happens if someone on his farm needs to call the emergency services? What if there is an accident, a medical emergency or a fire? Every second counts in those situations, and it is not just about emergencies.”
“Let me be clear about what that means: in her own home—the place where she should feel most comfortable, secure and connected—her phone is essentially useless to her. There are a couple living in the village of Berwick. One is with Tesco Mobile, and the other is with Vodafone. Neither of them can receive calls when they are at home. This is not merely an inconvenience; it has a huge impact on their work. He has had to completely change how he communicates with clients, and relies entirely on email and WhatsApp because he simply cannot depend on phone calls. What truly concerns me is that her father is in a care home, and he does not always get through when he calls. Hon. Members can imagine the stress it causes when an elderly man tries to reach his daughter and the technology simply fails both of them.”
“I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for North Shropshire (Helen Morgan) on securing this really important debate. One of the issues that appears most often in my constituency mailbag is digital connectivity, as it affects thousands of my constituents. It has become as essential to modern life as electricity or roads. The issue is absolutely fundamental to the future viability of rural communities, not just in my constituency but across the whole country. I will share some examples from constituents who have been in touch with me recently—real people facing real problems in their daily lives. There is a woman living in Deanland Wood Park, a park home site in my constituency, who can only use her mobile phone when she is out and about.”
“That impinges on businesses and other road users, particularly cyclists and pedestrians. Scotland and Northern Ireland have acted on this issue and Wales is moving, but England is stuck in limbo. I would welcome engagement from the Department for Transport on a deliverable plan for Polegate that includes clear signage and ticketing, sensible resident permits and proper local enforcement powers, because pavements are for people, not vehicles. Key to reducing traffic and congestion is getting people out of their cars and on to public transport. However, so often public transport is too expensive. That brings me on to buses.”
“The Seaford to Victoria direct service must be reinstated immediately. Over time, this kind of friction drives people and businesses elsewhere. I ask the Minister to engage with Govia Thameslink Railway and Great British Railways as it develops, to make the case for a direct service. I turn now to one of the most persistent issues during my time as an MP so far—parking in Polegate. The deeper problem is enforcement: Wealden district council has never decriminalised parking, so responsibility falls to Sussex police, who, understandably, have other priorities. The result is that pavement parking goes unchecked. That means that wheelchair users and parents with pushchairs are forced into the roads, pavements are damaged and the town centre feels less acceptable and less welcoming.”
“There is currently no direct train from Seaford, the largest town in my constituency, to London. Every commuter, student or business traveller must change, typically at Lewes or Brighton. For a town of Seaford’s size, that is a significant barrier. I recently heard from a woman who lives in Seaford and works in London, like many of my constituents. She used to be able to get a direct train to Victoria station. However, that service was removed during covid and has still not been reinstated six years on. It can easily take three hours to get to London, due to delays and tight connections at Lewes. She told me that her colleagues in Manchester find it quicker and easier to get to their office than she does. That is unacceptable, and lets my constituents down on a daily basis.”
“These are not isolated incidents; the A27 through this corridor sees frequent serious accidents, and the pattern is well established. I have spoken to Sussex police requesting a full breakdown of accident data on that stretch. I ask the Minister, does National Highways have a current safety review there, and if so, what is its timeline? Does the Minister plan to review the current up-to-two-year wait time for reports to be provided to National Highways following an incident by the police, which is causing a major lag in safety improvements, particularly where traffic conditions change—not least as they are affected by things such as housing developments? This delay creates a significant gap in the crucial data needed for road user safety. That brings me to the issue of rail services, or lack thereof.”
“Between 2022 and 2024, East Sussex county council paid out nearly £600,000 for vehicle damage caused by potholes. That cannot be a good use of taxpayers’ money. I also note that the county council elections in East Sussex, originally due in May 2025, have now been postponed for a second year. The effect is that voters have not had the chance to hold their county councillors to account at the ballot box for over two years. Councillors serving seven-year terms is not democratic. On road maintenance—squarely a county council responsibility on almost all our roads—that matters. I now turn to the A27, and I will be direct because lives are at stake. Just last week, on 28 January, a man was killed in a collision on the A27 near Falmer. Last September, an 18-year-old man died in a fatal crash near Wilmington.”
“We need a credible mitigation plan alongside a credible timetable, not one or the other. Beyond the A259, the condition of East Sussex county council’s roads is a genuine concern. I do not want to get all peak Lib Dem here, but I hear constantly about potholes across my constituency, whether on some of our bigger roads or the C7 small road that stretches between Lewes and Newhaven, which is in a shocking condition, to the extent where it lost some of its surface during recent flooding. Potholes, poor surfaces and patches that wash out within weeks of being laid all cost drivers money in vehicle damage and slow journeys, and on narrower roads create real safety risks, particularly when verges start to collapse, narrowing already narrow country lanes.”
“It is an economic artery and it is under serious pressure. The most serious bottleneck is the Exceat bridge. This is a single-lane bridge originally built in 1870, and it has been a known problem for years. I welcome the fact that the Secretary of State confirmed the compulsory purchase order in October 2025, and that construction of a new two-lane replacement is planned to begin in the spring of 2026. I will, however, be frank—the disruption that the work will cause will be very significant. The advisory diversions run through villages such as Litlington or Friston—with narrow lanes not designed for through traffic—and will be enormous. The official diversion is via the A27, but that is not credible. Particularly when traffic congestion reaches peak levels on the A27, traffic will divert through our small country lanes.”
“It is a pleasure to serve under you, Sir John. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Chichester (Jess Brown-Fuller) for bringing forward this important debate. As a fellow A27-suffering MP, I can attest to the constant traffic problems around Chichester, and I will touch on the impact they have on my constituency. Over in East Sussex, transport is not a peripheral concern but the backbone of how communities earn a living, how people get to work, and how rural and coastal towns stay connected to the rest of the country. Right now, in a number of places in my constituency, that backbone is cracking. The A259 is the principal coastal route through East Sussex; it links Seaford to Eastbourne, serves Newhaven port, home of the excellent and valued daily ferry service to Dieppe, and connects two of the country’s key growth areas.”
“It is a very typical example of the transport challenges in the whole of the south-east—a primarily rural constituency with small and medium-sized towns and a collection of villages. There are lanes, railways and an international ferry service, and we are within striking distance of Gatwick airport; yet we remain poorly connected and served, and it is holding back growth in our area. If the Minister comes by train, she will experience at first hand the joys of a journey that is too often overcrowded and sets back Lewes commuters nearly £6,000 a year for a season ticket. However, if she prefers to come in the ministerial car, she will meet the potholes soon enough.”
“The A259 is, unfortunately, a perfect example for the south-east as an overcrowded region with insufficient infrastructure. There is a clear plan to improve it, but the Government have so far declined to release the funding, so it remains a disaster. The Minister kindly met with me on the issue of the A259 after I met with the Prime Minister, and maybe she will have some good news for me today. Who knows? Poor roads isolate people, unreliable rail makes it harder to keep and get a job, and unsafe roads cost lives. These are matters of public safety and economic fairness. I want to finish by extending an invitation to the Minister and her colleagues to come and visit my constituency.”
“That is why I have been campaigning for a direct bus from Eastbourne to Lewes along the A27. None of this is a luxury. Rural and coastal communities cannot be treated as an afterthought in transport planning. Too often, the south-east has been neglected and forgotten when planning or improving transport infrastructure. In the Chancellor’s first Budget, every single major transport project in Sussex was cancelled. After London, the south-east is the most densely populated area of the country and its biggest economic driver. However, as we frequently get grouped together with London—who are rightly allotted a comparatively large amount of funding—our figure is augmented, and the south-east rarely gets the funding that we so desperately need.”
“Pricing is one of the biggest barriers to people using the railways. If we want people to use the railways and move out of their vehicles then we have to make it affordable for them. Speaking specifically about buses, for many families in my constituency they are not a lifestyle choice—they are the only way that a child can get to school or college. Yet, from Monday 16 February, East Sussex county council will increase the under-19 freedom weekly ticket from £15 to £20—a one-third hike in one go. For parents already juggling the cost of living, that is not a marginal change: it is the difference between a young person getting the bus and being priced off of it. Affordability is only half the problem. Too often, the network is unreliable and poorly designed.”
“Those steps must include sanctioning the senior leadership, on which the Government have already taken welcome steps in the right direction; using British satellites to collect evidence; pursuing action through the United Nations; opening a case at the International Criminal Court; and proscribing the IRGC. Will the Minister tell me how the Government will hold Iran’s leaders to account, and will he commit today to those concrete measures? What is being done, working multilaterally with our partners, to apply sustained pressure to make Iran drop its nuclear ambitions and ensure that it never acquires a nuclear weapon?”
“We have been watching developments in Iran with anger and disgust. By some accounts, as many as 30,000 Iranians may now have been killed during the regime’s brutal crackdown on peaceful protest, leaving relatives to sift through piles of body bags. There can be no doubt that Iran’s leaders have perpetrated crimes against humanity on a catastrophic scale—it is utterly intolerable. The UK has a responsibility to hold Iran’s leaders to account. The Government must take concrete steps to ensure that those responsible will one day face justice.”