Speeches by Bool.

“The review also does not directly include recommendations on reducing input costs. Was that also because of time, or were there other factors? Obviously, we have to look at the cost of fertilisers, pesticides and energy. However, the review again did not address that, and the Committee is wondering why that was.”

“That is fascinating. Let me go back to what I should be asking about; I am supposed to be asking about the process. You said earlier that you do not want to talk about diversification to improve viability because you wanted to focus on pure profitability. I can sort of understand that, but that is almost like saying, “…”

“We have just been notified that William Blake House in my constituency—a residential home for people with severe learning disabilities—has been issued with a winding-up notice, and the court hearing is tomorrow. The families were given no notice of any of this, and no consultation was carried out, so naturally they are…”

“The Minister has recognised that China poses significant threats, yet this Government are prepared to welcome this Trojan horse of an embassy into the heart of our city, so close to the Link system. He talks about material planning considerations, but that means balancing developing needs with community impact and ensu…”

“We know that some areas are going to be disproportionately affected by solar farms. I think that 9% of some constituencies will be taken up by solar. In my constituency, there is the Green Hill solar farm, which is mainly going to be built on high-grade agricultural land, with 65% of it on grades 1, 2 and 3a, which dis…”

“The UK food security report highlighted that there are numerous different potential points of failure. We are perhaps too reliant on big retailers and distributors, because apparently the top 10 supermarkets account for 96.7% of grocery sales. At this moment one of the big providers is doing a sale of vegetables for 8p…”

“In my community, this is absolutely devastating. There are tenant farmers who had to end their tenancy. They have been farming this land for hundreds of years. The reality is that we do not have the grid capacity to cope with this. You have a scheme this size; one of my villages, Easton Maudit, is going to be surrounde…”

“I will try you again. The shock of the Budget was a shock to us all. The Government want to design nature-positive pathways for the agrifood supply chain. What are these? Will they include mandatory reporting and targets for resilience?”

“I just hope that with the Government’s policies there are still jobs for them to go into at the end of this. The Government also want to design nature-positive pathways for the agrifood supply chain. What are these? Will they include mandatory reporting and targets for resilience?”

“Moving on to the supply chain and skills, about five out of six farmers surveyed by Arla struggle to fill vacancies due to lack of qualifications. We are seeing increasing automation, robotics and digitisation. What are your plans to tackle these inhibitors to growth?”

“They are suggesting that there is a need for stockpiling. I hope you will be looking at that.”

“The key point is that you have to have diversity of supply, resilience to shocks and access to affordable food. That is why we are coming on to this. Back in January 2025, the National Preparedness Commission said that a new food resilience framework is needed, based on just-in-case logistics rather than relying on jus…”

“Very quickly, Minister, I just want to take you back to one point. You mentioned having healthy food and farming production a moment ago. You said that your aim is basically to steady the ship. To reiterate, the best way that you can steady the ship for our farmers is to reverse the family farm tax. That would immediat…”

“On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. On 12 November, during Prime Minister’s questions, the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage) and leader of Reform announced that the “Reform-led West Northamptonshire Council will be issuing foreclosure notices on three migrant hotels”— including one in my constituency— “with…”

“Absolutely. We need to encourage that next generation through to the workforce, and I cannot see that they are getting any of those opportunities at the moment. The Government are so proudly trying to promote that, but let us look at the impact and the figures. There can be no denying that they are achieving none of wh…”

“As always, my right hon. Friend makes a valid point. Andy Williams is getting a lot more airtime today than any of us imagined.”

“At least the hon. Member has acknowledged that we have to repay debt, unlike the Green party, which suddenly believes that repaying debt interest is not a viable or true alternative in this world. The hon. Gentleman denies talk of welfare, but it is a fundamental element. [Interruption.] I am glad to see that he agrees…”

“My hon. Friend makes a valid and correct point. We have started to see a rise in unemployment in South Northamptonshire among 16 to 25-year-olds exactly because of that. The business owner I spoke to said that the problem is that the business starts paying at a certain level, but that increase pushes up across all wage…”

“I agree entirely, and I am devastated to hear that, because that is exactly not what we need for society and for the young generation. Research from the Taxpayers’ Alliance showed that in 2024 the average pub paid almost £100,000 per year in taxes on the sale of alcoholic drinks alone. When we add to that the coming ch…”

“As the late great Andy Williams sang, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year” but I am afraid that is not true for farmers, business owners or those in retail, hospitality or leisure. Following the Chancellor’s Budget just two weeks ago, there are only two lines in that song that resonate—“scary ghost stories” cause…”