Terry Jermy
MP for South West Norfolk · Labour · United Kingdom
“Three quarters of schools that responded to my survey said they did not feel able to provide adequate support for pupils with SEND using their current resources. Many reported receiving insufficient support from the local authority with SEND and EHCP casework.”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The hon. Member is right that investment in technology can make a significant difference to children and young people. Many of the conversations I have had with children and their families describe lengthy consultation processes to find a suitable school, daily battles to secure even the most basic provision, and periods of extreme distre…”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“That contributes to delays in assessment, inconsistent access to specialist advice and slower delivery of support. When I visit schools across South West Norfolk, the variety in approach is stark. The Government are right to put additional SEND training and capital funding at the forefront of their decision making.”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Earlier this year, I campaigned strongly for a new specialist SEND school in Downham Market, and I was delighted when the Government approved the project and committed £20 million towards the new school at Ryston End.”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Absolutely. I can relate to many of those points, as I know of children and young people travelling significant distances to access suitable provision, affecting their wellbeing, attendance and readiness to learn.”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thank the hon. Member, my county colleague from Norfolk, for raising that point, and I entirely agree. I want to explain and give information to the Minister about the experiences I have documented in my rural constituency. I have produced a SEND report, “Rural Realities”, and I have shared a draft with her.”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
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“May I invite the Minister to join me in a new year’s resolution to work with Treasury colleagues to do more and to do all that we can possibly do to support farming in this country?”
House of Commons5 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“This is very welcome news, and many farmers in my constituency will be delighted. May I acknowledge the Minister’s engagement on this subject and the many conversations he has had with myself and other Labour party representatives from rural communities? I pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Suffolk Coastal (Jenny Riddell-Carpenter) for her role as the chair of the Labour Rural Research Group and her advocacy for hundreds of farmers across the country. It is fair to say that the changes to APR are part of a long list of concerns for farmers in this country—concerns that were increased over 14 years of Conservative Government, when we saw a huge decline in farming.”
House of Commons5 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Merry Christmas, Mr Speaker, and I hope you get to enjoy a turkey from Norfolk. Water availability is increasingly important for my farmers, and Conservative austerity and cuts to the Environment Agency made obtaining water abstraction licences and permits painfully slow and often expensive. Can the Minister provide an update on work to speed up that process so that farmers are not kept waiting for important decisions?”
House of Commons18 December 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thank the Secretary of State for the update and for engaging with the various animal welfare charities. I am particularly interested in the farmed animals section, given that we have millions of farmed animals in this country. Farmers, I find, are so often the best conservationists, and they want to do even more. Can the Secretary of State confirm that British farmers will continue to lead the world with strong animal welfare standards, and will she consider what more support can be provided to help them do so and to get the message out to consumers so that they can make more informed choices?”
House of Commons18 December 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I am very proud to employ a special educational needs and disabilities specialist caseworker, and I am grateful that Parliament funds that role, which is currently supporting more than 150 families across South West Norfolk—families who are desperate and are navigating a SEND system that we know to be in crisis. Does the Leader of the House share my concern that Tory-controlled Norfolk county council has recently written to me to try to close down this support service, continuing its adversarial approach to dealing with SEND in the county rather than focusing on supporting vulnerable families?”
House of Commons18 December 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I welcome the statement and the leadership that the Secretary of State is showing on this issue. Our democracy is important and requires our active protection. Does he agree that as well as actions that the Government can take, there is far more that individual political parties, particularly Reform UK, can do on due diligence and vetting procedures, to stop people being elected in the first? We continue to see too many horror stories relating to people up and down the country once they are in office, when they should have been stopped in advance.”
House of Commons16 December 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I particularly welcome the comments about social and affordable homes in rural communities, and the commitments around swift bricks and chalk streams. In many areas, including in my county of Norfolk, the environment so often is the economy, whether that is through farming or tourism. Does the Minister recognise that one of the barriers to growth in many rural areas is capacity in district council planning authorities and the recruitment crisis? Will there be any specific measures on improvements to planning in rural areas?”
House of Commons16 December 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The United States is a long-standing and important ally. We very much recognise that in my constituency, where there are two large American military bases on the Norfolk-Suffolk border. I invite the Minister to recognise the significant contribution that thousands of American service personnel make to our local communities socially, culturally and economically.”
House of Commons11 December 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“While a short stint as Prime Minister did my opponent’s re-election chances no favours, it was her direct role in selling out British farmers that had already broken the support of many, for it was Liz Truss’s signature on many of the Tory Government’s trade deals that did so much damage, on top of a litany of other failures. It is no wonder that in the fields of South West Norfolk, where once there were Tory signs aplenty, at last year’s election they were harder to spot than a Reform party policy. This Government have the chance to reset the relationship with rural Britain, and I yearn for those progressive Labour values translated across our green and pleasant lands.”
House of Commons2 December 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Longer, hotter summers, drought and flooding, delays to schemes such as the sustainable farming incentive, biosecurity threats, frustration with planning, permits and licensing, and the dominance of the supermarkets all erode the sustainability of the sector and weaken our food security immeasurably. While the Conservatives might be desperate to paint themselves as the face of rural Britain, farmers in my constituency remember all too well the failures of the last Tory Government and the lack of progress over many years. Rather than getting better, life got worse under the Tories in rural Britain, and in a change election, rural Britain revolted. Nowhere was that change more extreme than in my constituency, which recorded the largest swing from Conservatives to Labour ever in a general election.”
House of Commons2 December 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The Government’s commitment to freezing fuel duty and rail fares will greatly help those of my constituents who continue to endure cost of living pressures and the additional expense of living in a rural area with limited public transport options. I welcome the progress that the Labour Government are making on those important issues, picking up the pieces after so many years of Conservative austerity left public services at breaking point. The proposals relating to agricultural property relief, however, continue to concern me. Although I welcome the concession, it does not address the fundamental flaws. Farming is in crisis. Just this year, we have seen the second worst harvest on record, and confidence is at an all-time low.”
House of Commons2 December 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“In my maiden speech, I said that one third of all children in my constituency live in poverty. I reflect upon that often, and it causes me great concern. In among the fields, trees and pretty villages, poverty is a real issue. There are many reasons that poverty might exist, but not a single one of them is the fault of the children themselves. That is why I support the removal of the two-child cap. I welcome the above-inflation increase in the state pension because pensioner poverty is of great concern, too, particularly in rural areas like mine, which struggle with low wages and poor-quality housing.”
House of Commons2 December 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“With a few specific changes, this policy can be improved to better target its impact and provide the support for British farming that I know our Government want to provide. While I accept the economic situation and the appalling legacy of the last Conservative Government, the future of farming in this country depends on this Government’s policy being right.”
House of Commons2 December 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Farmers in my constituency rarely make a return on capital of more than 1%, and farming is so often misunderstood and caught out by the view that land ownership equals wealth. If a farmer owns 200 to 400 acres of land, as many of the 500 farmers in my constituency do, they may well be wealthy if they did something with that land other than farm it, but if they continue to farm the land, that value is theoretical and will return very little profit. That should be of huge concern to this country and this Government. Farmers in my constituency regard themselves as custodians of the land, and in many ways, they provide a public service. I accept, as many in the farming community do, that we need to reform APR.”
House of Commons2 December 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“My hon. Friend is right that Government policies do not always fall equally across the country, and I absolutely welcome the idea of a rural strategy. Importantly, if the changes to APR go ahead, they will fail to address one of the key issues, because after 1 April it will still be financially advantageous for the super-rich to purchase agricultural land to avoid inheritance tax. At a rate of 20%, as opposed to 40%, it will remain a tax-efficient form of investment. In Norfolk, as elsewhere, we continue to see large swathes of land purchased by big corporations and the very well-off. This change will therefore not stop that abuse by the celebrities and the billionaires. APR has contributed to over-inflated land prices, despite the profitability of farming continuing to be a major challenge.”
House of Commons2 December 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“At 4,000 acres, it would be one of the largest solar farms in the UK. Anyone can do the maths about the amount of grade 2 agricultural land that would be lost.”
House of Commons18 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dr Murrison. I thank the right hon. Member for Aldridge-Brownhills (Wendy Morton) for securing this debate. My constituency consists of many acres of high-quality farmland. I am proud to be a Labour MP representing such a vibrant rural community with farming at its core. I hope the Minister is aware of some of the specific challenges in my county. It is no surprise that it easy to get solar panels into the ground in Norfolk, which is very flat and sandy; we are likely to be near good grid connections as well. We are seeing more than our fair share of solar farm applications. Solar farms are eyeing up our prime farmland. For example, the High Grove application in my constituency, if approved, would see a third of that site on best and most versatile land and 20% on grade 2 and above.”
House of Commons18 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The president of the NFU also believes the UK is not prepared to feed itself in a crisis, with specific reference to the consequences of the current climate crisis. I am always in danger, when talking about food security, of channelling my predecessor and saying, “That is a disgrace!” but we are importing so much food, I dare say she might have had a point. I hope the Minister appreciates the concerns in places such as Norfolk about too much high-quality farmland being used, and agrees that we cannot trade energy security for worsening food security.”
House of Commons18 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The complete lack of action by the last Conservative Government on energy security has left us dangerously exposed—but food security is also important. The UK already imports a staggering 46% of its food. We grow only 15% of our own fruit and 53% of our own vegetables, making us one of the world’s largest food importers. A recent Government Food Security report found that we are 63% self-sufficient, down from 95% just 50 years ago. I appreciate that there are certain types of food we cannot grow and we need to look abroad for them, but why are we importing 2 million metric tonnes of potatoes annually? A recent report by the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, of which I am a member, found that DEFRA has no effective system of oversight for border checks, with inadequate and sometimes even banned products passing into the UK.”
House of Commons18 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“There is three times more grade 5 agricultural land in the UK than grade 1 land, yet solar installations occupy a staggering 22 times more grade 1 than grade 5. That is of huge concern. We are already seeing longer and hotter summers, particularly in Norfolk, and there are challenges for farmers; irrigation is needed more frequently, adding to costs, and more land is becoming unviable for food production as a result of climate change. Let me be clear: I am not against the use of solar panels, and I back the Government’s ambitious goals to achieve net zero by 2050. Absolutely nobody would thank the Government for not doing everything they can to ensure the power is there to keep the lights on.”
House of Commons18 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I agree. That is the point my hon. Friend the Member for Cambridge (Daniel Zeichner) made earlier. That is a long overdue measure on a long list forgotten under the previous Government, but it is essential. I am sure we will be reminded that, overall, only a very small proportion of solar is to take up agricultural land. I understand that and I fully accept it. What I am particularly concerned about is the use of grade 2 and above agricultural land. The official statistics will inevitably include the lowest quality agricultural land—we have plenty of that in Norfolk as well—but grade 2 and above is precious, and we need to do far more to protect it. We simply cannot improve energy security but accept worsening food security. There cannot be a trade-off: we need both.”
House of Commons18 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“So often, farmers are the best conservationists. Many want to do even more to support the environment and animal welfare, but profitability and sustainability are key. Will the Minister confirm whether the Department will consider financial support for farmers to move towards more sustainable and strong animal welfare standards?”
House of Commons13 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I believe it is time we legislated to put chalk stream protection on a permanent footing, buffered from the vagaries of policies and funding by future Governments, so that we leave a permanent legacy of environmental protection of a globally rare resource. We must do more to protect and restore chalk streams. I urge the Minister, whose opening speech I listened to carefully, and others to take up opportunities now or in future policy considerations to protect precious environments like those in Norfolk. They are irreplaceable, and they are, in their own right, crucial to our local economies and to growth.”
House of Commons13 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I am pleased that water companies will invest £2 billion over the next five years to deliver more than 1,000 targeted actions for chalk stream restoration, as part of our plan for change, and that the Government are investing £1.8 million through the water restoration fund and the water environment improvement fund for chalk stream clean-up projects. As a new member of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, I am keen to see the effect of this Government’s improved funding for environmental land management schemes, including six landscape recovery projects in chalk stream catchments. One of those awaiting a decision on funding from DEFRA is in the headwaters of the Little Ouse. I hope it gets the funding it deserves.”
House of Commons13 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“They gave me a tour of the fen, for which I sincerely thank them and all the other volunteers involved in the Little Ouse Headwaters Project. We as a nation owe so much to volunteers like them, who safeguard our natural heritage for future generations. It is disgraceful that previous Governments have left small charities like this and others struggling to restore these globally rare habitats, 85% of which are in England, many in my constituency. This Government are rightly proud of their efforts to improve our rivers by holding water companies and other polluters to account, delivering an ambitious programme of reforms to fix the water system, and managing and resetting the water sector.”
House of Commons13 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Blo’ Norton is a small village at the southern edge of my constituency, near Garboldisham, which we in Norfolk pronounce “Garbisham”. The story at this location is a familiar one: the Little Ouse has been canalised—straightened, over-deepened and embanked, separating it from its floodplain. It is polluted by phosphates, nitrates, silt and pesticides running off agricultural land, and by sewage treatment works and poultry units adjacent to the river. Local volunteers have been working hard to restore the catchment for the past 23 years. I pay tribute to the chair of trustees, Dr Rob Robinson, trustees Reg and Rowena Langston, and conservation manager Ellie Beach, all of whom I was pleased to meet recently.”
House of Commons13 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I am so pleased that landowners and this Norfolk charity are working hard to restore the river to better health. Thanks to their efforts, the other 50% of the river is in “unfavourable—recovering” condition, or “unhealthy, but getting better”. Sadly, none of the river is classified as in “favourable condition”. Other chalk streams and rivers in my constituency include the Rivers Wissey and Little Ouse and their tributaries, such as the River Thet, which runs through my home town, Thetford. All are important features of our local natural environment, but none is healthy enough to be considered an SSSI. Just two weeks ago, I visited the Little Ouse and met the Little Ouse Headwaters Project—another small, local charity that is trying to restore the river and the fens in its catchment. I also visited Blo’ Norton fen.”
House of Commons13 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The Nar is well known for its populations of brown trout and the globally threatened European eel, but even this river, protected by its designation since 1992, has a history of damage and ongoing degradation through pollution from farmland, sewage treatment works and road drainage, as well as man-made modification of its channel and floodplain, and abstraction both from the river itself and from the chalk aquifer that supplies the calcium-rich, clean water on which these systems rely. Natural England reports that 50% of the River Nar SSSI is “not healthy” and “not getting better”, which it classifies as “unfavourable—no change”. Last year, at South Acre in my constituency, I had the pleasure of visiting part of the Nar that has been restored by landowners, with the help of the brilliant Norfolk Rivers Trust.”
House of Commons13 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The natural environment in my constituency is fantastic. It is of huge value to my constituents and it underpins Norfolk’s greatest economic driver, tourism, which is fundamental to rural areas like mine. I am especially proud that we have so many beautiful chalk streams and rivers, the most impressive of which, the River Nar, forms the northern boundary of my constituency and lends its name to the villages of Narborough and Narford. Because of its national importance, this river is designated a site of special scientific interest—one of only 11 chalk streams in the UK with that status.”
House of Commons13 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“So often the farm is the very core of a rural economy. Could my hon. Friend confirm what assessment has been made about the impact of proposed changes to agricultural property relief on growth opportunities in rural areas and the viability of rural communities?”
House of Commons4 November 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“A report by the Rural Coalition highlights that with the right policy framework, the rural economy could increase productivity, leading to an additional £19 billion a year. Will the Secretary of State outline what steps the Department is taking to help to support businesses in rural areas, such as my constituency, to unlock that growth potential?”
House of Commons30 October 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I welcome the ICB’s wider review of stroke services in Norfolk, which is backed by £3 million of growth funding. That includes projects to find and treat people at increased risk of stroke, such as those with undiagnosed high blood pressure. That shift from reactive care to prevention is a key Government priority, and I hope that it will result in fewer families going through what my family has gone through with my late father’s stroke.”
House of Commons28 October 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The cumulative impact of so many failing health services cannot be overstated. The ICB funds the Stroke Association to provide a “life after stroke” service in west Norfolk. I was very concerned to hear recently that the service may have come to an end in September. I wrote to the ICB to outline my concerns, and I am pleased that the service has been temporarily re-funded until March 2026, but there is no certainty after that point. I very much hope that that important service can be continued, given the clear need in the west of our county. The Government’s 10-year health plan provides a great opportunity to improve our whole national health service. As we do so, I hope that stroke prevention and services for people who have experienced stroke or cardiovascular disease more generally will be given the support they need.”
House of Commons28 October 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Being disabled in a rural community such as mine comes with significant additional challenges. Many disabled people are unable to drive because of their disability. With inadequate public transport options, getting to basic medical appointments—or simply going on shopping trips—becomes either really difficult or really expensive. Loneliness and isolation are particular concerns and often worsen underlying mental health challenges. In Norfolk, my constituents have to contend with a hospital that ranked 134th out of 134 in a recent NHS league table, making it the worst in the country; the worst ambulance service in the country, with the East of England ambulance service placing 10th out 10; and the Norfolk and Suffolk mental health trust, which ranks 57th out of 61, making it almost the worst in the country.”
House of Commons28 October 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It is a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair, Ms Vaz. I thank the hon. Member for Twickenham (Munira Wilson). As it is for a number of speakers today, this debate is deeply personal to me. My dad had a severe stroke with no warning in 2013. He was just 55 years old. He lived with the aftermath of that stroke for 10 further years. In December 2022, he was hit by both pneumonia and covid and was placed in a medically induced coma, during which time he had a further stroke from which he never recovered. He died in January 2023, aged just 65. That experience was one of the main reasons I decided to stand for Parliament. As it happens, stroke is a major issue in my constituency, where there are currently 2,868 stroke survivors. Of the 543 English constituencies, we rank 469th.”
House of Commons28 October 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I am thrilled that my hometown of Thetford in rural South West Norfolk is to receive a share of this funding. Just last week I was at the board meeting where we made our first funding commitments to increase capacity and reopen a derelict medieval church in Thetford town centre as a community space. Does the Minister agree that projects such as those will bring footfall back into our towns, support local businesses and improve our local economy?”
House of Commons15 October 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Only this year, the first ever globally agreed World Health Organisation-led pandemic treaty was signed by the UK alongside the other 193 member states. The treaty recognised that people’s health is interconnected with animal health and the environment. Fundamentally, protecting animal welfare must be a core part of our food system and our transformation, alongside reducing emissions and restoring ecosystems.”
House of Commons14 October 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Not only does industrial animal agriculture drive greenhouse gas emissions through the use of fossil fuels, but the growth of crops to feed industrially farmed animals drives widespread disruption of forests, grasslands and other wild animal habitats. We have a proud farming heritage in my South West Norfolk constituency, and it is important that we recognise in this debate the need for a just transition for farmers. In my experience, farmers are often the best conservationists. They have a deep connection to the land they farm, and they care greatly for their animals. We must do more to support such farmers, with a greater focus on fairness and rewarding those who play by the rules, upholding high environmental and animal welfare standards. The inhumane treatment of animals is playing roulette with public health.”
House of Commons14 October 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mrs Harris. This is an important and timely debate, coming on the back of one of the worst harvests on record in this country. We must discuss how the Government prioritise the transformation of food systems in this country and globally, as well as how they seek to address climate change, enhance food security and protect and safeguard animal welfare. Animal welfare and the climate crisis are intertwined. Food systems account for 33% of global greenhouse gas emissions, with animal agriculture contributing up to 20%. Each and every year, more than 83 billion animals are slaughtered for food across the world. The majority are kept in intensive farming conditions that confine them to overcrowded spaces.”
House of Commons14 October 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I hope the Minister can highlight how rural areas will fit in. I want Narborough in my constituency to have as much focus as Norwich. I want Ickburgh to be on the page when we are talking about Ipswich. I particularly welcome community right to buy, giving local people the strong say they need on community issues. Sadly, for too many community projects, getting good ideas off the drawing board is still far too difficult, and I hope these priorities and others can support projects like the Charles Burrell Centre, which is now under the excellent management of Nicola Welham, supported by a fantastic staff and volunteer team in Thetford.”
House of Commons2 September 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It now creates jobs, supports families and acts as a vital anchor for the community, with an annual turnover of half a million pounds. None of that would have been possible without trust in local people. On strategic authorities, I wonder if the Minister could speak to my concerns about opportunities for rural communities. Strategic authorities draw on metropolitan, large urban areas, but I have three market towns and 72 villages in my constituency. Although individually their economic potential would be small by comparison, collectively our rural communities have so much potential and could significantly support the Government’s growth agenda, but they need support. How those rural communities link up and obtain that support as part of devolution, and how they work with the strategic authorities, is key.”
House of Commons2 September 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It was partly the emotions that come from losing a school of more than 60 years, but it was also that the physical building had been home to so many community groups and other organisations. For many, it was so much more than just a school. As a community, we set about working to save the building. At some 85,000 square feet of former secondary school with 12 acres of land, it was no easy undertaking. Few thought it would work, but on Saturday just gone, myself and hundreds of local residents celebrated the Charles Burrell Centre’s 10th birthday. Over those 10 years, we have witnessed local people take responsibility for the site, turning it into a thriving community hub of more than 60 organisations, charities, statutory bodies and small businesses.”
House of Commons2 September 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I refer Members to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. I am in my 18th year as a member of Thetford town council and I serve as a director on the Charles Burrell Centre committee, a community benefit society in my hometown. I have served on the town council, the district council and the county council—all three tiers of local government—so Members will understand why I have a keen interest in the Bill, but it was my background in community that led me to get involved in politics in the first place. The clauses in the Bill specifically around community empowerment are exciting and long overdue. In my constituency of South West Norfolk, where I was born and raised, I have seen the impact of community power at first hand. When my former school, Charles Burrell high school, closed in 2013, we were devastated.”
House of Commons2 September 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I have not done the work yet, but I think there is a significant policy difference in Norfolk, where it is incredibly difficult for a whole range of reasons to be eligible for a blue badge. Clearly, people who would benefit from and need a blue badge are not receiving one. Can the Minister comment on what oversight and assessment there is of local councils amending their own criteria, making things difficult and ultimately denying people eligibility for blue badges?”
House of Commons16 July 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I am fortunate that at our local hospital, which is about an hour away, people can still get free car parking if they have a blue badge. Those in a rural community often do not have any public transport enabling them to get to hospital. They have to drive or rely on other people to drive them there. If they are having routine treatment for cancer, for example, the cost of car parking alone soon stacks up, as it does for any other regular hospital or medical appointments. There is a real cost aspect to this. What arrangements are in place for monitoring councils on the time taken to process blue badge applications? Norfolk county council seems to spend an incredible amount of time processing applications, and there is an element of local criteria.”
House of Commons16 July 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“For example, I have a constituent who had been diagnosed with and undergone treatment for breast cancer. She is in her 70s. She is profoundly deaf and has a hearing dog. She has been rejected three times for a blue badge. As a result, she is reluctant to leave her village, and there is a real issue with isolation from that. Another constituent was at the end stage of kidney failure. He is in the early part of having had a transplant, but there are post-surgery complications, anxiety and a whole number of other health issues. His application was turned down because it was considered that his mobility was only bad during flare-ups, rather than “more often than not”, his anxiety was not regarded as being bad enough, and toileting issues do not form part of the national guidance. There is a real issue about cost, too.”
House of Commons16 July 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair, Sir Christopher. I thank the hon. Member for Maidstone and Malling (Helen Grant) for bringing forward this debate today. It is lovely to see cross-party working on such a serious issue. I am not from Kent—I am from Norfolk—but from listening to the debate, there are some clear similarities. We are a rural county in Norfolk, similar to Kent. We have a significant coastline, an older population and similar issues with accessing blue badges. I am halfway through my summer tour of the 72 villages in South West Norfolk, and I do not think I have been to a single village yet where somebody has not come forward to say, “I’ve got a real issue trying to get hold of a blue badge.” It is coming up time and again, and there are dozens of cases locally.”
House of Commons16 July 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Disabled people in this country have suffered disproportionately for years. Austerity and the last Conservative Government ruined lives, and people longed for a changed narrative under Labour. They voted for that change last July. If we are to move forward as a country, we must move forward together, and that includes disabled people.”
House of Commons9 July 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“What hope do they have?” Navigating the system was bad enough for our family. What must it be like for others? In our roles as MPs, we all have a responsibility to advocate for people who do not have a voice. If we want to reduce the welfare bill—I am sure we all want to do so—we must do so by fixing our broken systems. Millions of people are on NHS waiting lists, and many who want to work are not receiving the treatment that would enable them to do so. This Government are making tremendous progress on improving our NHS and healthcare systems, and we need to give that time to bring about the change that we seek. The welfare system is slow, expensive and inefficient, and it is riddled with private profit taking advantage. We must reform that, tackle that and reduce those costs.”
House of Commons9 July 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Obvious barriers exist, particularly in more rural areas, such as my constituency, where transport options are limited and suitable work opportunities are more difficult to find. Of course we should support disabled people into work, but not by changing the rules and making eligibility for benefits more difficult. Our public services are broken, and many of my hon. Friends have articulated well how bad things are. Following 14 years of Conservative failure, it should be no surprise that welfare claims are rising. It is the statistical inevitability of the state of our country. In all the time I spent advocating for my dad at DWP appointments, medical assessments and work capability assessments, I would sit there and think, “What about the people who do not have someone fighting on their behalf?”
House of Commons9 July 2025Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗