Speeches by Thomas.

“15. What steps her Department is taking to support police forces in Gloucestershire.”

“I am delighted to hear that the Government will give 16 and 17-year-olds the right to vote. Do the Government intend to appropriately educate 16 and 17-year-olds about the right to vote?”

“13. What assessment she has made of the adequacy of eastward transport links from Gloucestershire.”

“The Government recently announced a UK-silicon valley project linking Oxfordshire, Milton Keynes and Cambridge. There was no mention of Gloucestershire, with its burgeoning cyber-tech and engineering sectors. From Gloucestershire, our primary arterial road eastward to Oxfordshire is the A40 and it is woefully inadequat…”

“General practitioners in my constituency have consistently restructured over 10 years of constant systemic and economic pressures. How will the Minister convince the Treasury to exempt GPs from the increase to national insurance contributions, and show my GPs that he has their back?”

“It has already been mentioned, but the EAC recently visited the Netherlands, where the benefits of long-term and joined-up planning were highlighted, and where sustainability and future-proofing are central to the usage of the land. In Rotterdam we went up a three-storey structure and you have orchards, allotments and …”

“Yes, it is that joined-upness that works so well in the Netherlands.”

“Is there a plan for DEFRA to get around the table with those Departments and have that discussion about a relationship?”

“A lot of industry professionals have concerns that planning reforms are going to have an impact on jobs across the sector and across regulations. What would you say to them?”

“You mentioned streamlining for developers. My constituents in Tewkesbury might be concerned at that language and that we might end up with what we have had for the last 10 to 20 years—piecemeal developments all about the constituency with very little oversight and ability to plan for that from the local authority. What…”

“Minister, the Government seem to be betting the economy on growth. To what extent are your Department’s environmental protection policies seen by the Government to be blocking the path to growth?”

“The hon. Member makes a valid and important point about schools having a young carers lead, and I am proud to say that every school in Gloucestershire has one. My constituent Christian, who I met yesterday, has been caring for his grandmother from the age of six, but it was not until he was 11 that he was identified by…”

“It is an honour to serve under your chairship, Dr Murrison. I thank my hon. Friend the hon. Member for South Devon (Caroline Voaden) for securing this debate. Tewkesbury is home to the fastest-growing borough outside London, but almost half of my constituents have the worst 30% of broadband connectivity in the UK. Mobi…”

“I hope the hon. Member for Portsmouth North (Amanda Martin) will pass on my thanks to her son for his service. I do wonder how Lord Nelson would feel about the increasing necessity for us to align with our English channel neighbours. Labour’s national insurance hike will hit small businesses, social care providers and …”

“Mike, did you want to follow up with anything?”

“You touched earlier on the need for joined-up strategic thinking. Shipwrecks make for some of the world’s most impressive dive sites, particularly because in the years following the sinking marine life moves in, using it as an artificial reef. To what extent can we join up marine renewables with marine restoration init…”

“Do you have any points on that, Andrew?”

“Gentlemen, how are nature recovery timelines factored into planning for port operations or marine aggregate activities?”

“Benj, what barriers does Ørsted face within the consenting process for offshore wind farms and have changes to consenting processes led to any change in Ørsted’s investment plans to 2030?”

“In January, the Government announced strategic compensation measures for offshore wind activities. What impact do you foresee the marine recovery fund having on marine conservation efforts?”