Speeches by Moon.

“T3. Meur ras, Mr Speaker. Cultural spaces across our nation that rely on funding through Arts Council England, such as The Ladder in my constituency, have been dismayed to see a second delay to the new cycle of national portfolio investment. As that investment is fundamental to the income stream and stability of cultur…”

“Wednesday last week was Epilepsy Awareness Day. My constituent Sara contacted me about its acknowledgment in Parliament, and today I am wearing a purple tie to mark epilepsy awareness. Will the Leader of the House reassure Sara and me that support for the hundreds of thousands of people who suffer from this challenging…”

“If the shadow Minister is so confident about Conservative party policy, will he come back to the House after 1 May and tell us how the Conservatives have performed in those local elections?”

“The approach set out in the order is a continuation of the Minister’s work to build the clean energy infrastructure that the country needs. I agree that the capacity threshold and the reintroduction of onshore wind generation stations into the definition of nationally significant infrastructure projects will help deliv…”

“Treleigh primary school sits at the heart of my Camborne, Redruth and Hayle constituency. It is surrounded by an area that suffers from profound levels of poverty and deprivation. If ever there was an area that needed some good news on early years, it is mine, following the shameful neglect by the previous Government. …”

“I can say once again that I have no issues with drag hunting; this is about trail hunting. Trail hunts are often deliberately laid in areas inhabited by foxes, increasing the likelihood of hounds disturbing, chasing and killing a fox or other animals when the scent of live quarry is picked up. These are not isolated in…”

“I agree with my hon. Friend. In addition to those changes, we must extend the time available to charge in illegal hunting cases, reverse the burden of proof of compliance with exemptions, and make hunting a notifiable offence. These steps would make it easier to enforce the law and ensure that those who break it face t…”

“I think that I have twice made the point that I have no issue with drag hunting. With drag hunting, the scent that is followed is not that of the carcase of an animal or the urine of an animal. Therefore, the likelihood that there will be wild animals included in drag hunting is much, much smaller. The evidence from th…”

“Meur ras, Mr Speaker. I am delighted to secure my first Adjournment debate, and for it to be on an issue so close to my heart: trail hunting and, more broadly, animal welfare. Put simply, animal cruelty should have no place in modern, progressive 21st-century Britain. Having spent most of my life living in rural areas,…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for that intervention and I entirely agree. Trail hunting, as it is commonly understood, involves a pack of hounds following a scent trail laid by a human, with the intention that hounds will follow the trail, rather than chase and kill a wild animal. The functional difference between that and dr…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for that intervention. Not only that, but in his constituency I have personally cleared land on which local hunts had created an environment for foxes to thrive. It is a complete nonsense to suggest that fox hunting is of any use in terms of pest control. It is not. The 2004 Act was a response to…”

“I think it is absolutely right that all voices are heard, but that science is followed. Legislation should be based on evidence and science, and the evidence and the science suggest that the cruelty to the animal being pursued far outweighs the pleasure the hunt will give human beings. However, I am really happy for al…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for that point. I do agree, and I will be coming on to that later.”

“I agree with the hon. Member, and thank him not just for his intervention but for all his work to raise awareness. The Hunting Act did not go far enough. It left certain loopholes, particularly the allowance for trail hunting, which has meant that the law is often undermined according to the RSPCA and the League Agains…”

“I thank the hon. Member. How could a system be so warped as to make a parent feel that way about their own child—the thing they love most, more than anything else in the world? Measuring the criticality of eating disorders through BMI is a medieval evaluation, hopelessly inadequate to the needs of the sufferer. Proper …”

“Meur ras, Mr Stuart; thank you for your chairship. I thank the hon. Member for Bath (Wera Hobhouse) for securing this important debate. I declare an interest: I am also a member of the eating disorder APPG. As has been mentioned, recent data suggests that one in eight 17 to 19-year-olds in England have an eating disord…”

“My hon. Friend raises a difficult question. Society moves on, and people’s values change. Over the course of the last few decades, society has come to respect animal welfare far more than it ever had done before. Hunting was and is perceived to be a traditional rural activity, but that does not mean it is right. It is …”

“Is the hon. Member surprised to hear that Reform is campaigning locally in Cornwall against second homes, yet nationally it voted against taxes on second homes?”

“[In British Sign Language: Thank you.] That is about as far as my signing goes, Sir Desmond, apart from one or two rude words that are not appropriate for the Chamber—it is an honour to serve under your chairship once again. I also thank my hon. Friend the Member for Thurrock (Jen Craft) for securing this debate and fo…”

“I wonder if the hon. Gentleman could try to talk a little slower, because the interpreters might be struggling a little bit.”