Speeches by Jermy.

“My second point was actually about the quality of ground-mounted solar. I have an application in my own constituency. It is 4,000 acres; a third of it will be on the best and most versatile, 20% on grade two agricultural land. The driver is profit. The rest of Europe has high quality ground-mounted solar—agriphotovolta…”

“I can entirely understand why having the data is useful and can inform decision making on how best to use land. My worry is that the biggest driver on what land will be used for is what will be most profitable. We are already seeing that, particularly with farming where, frankly, farmers can make more money from ground…”

“My hon. Friend, who is making a fine speech, is a passionate champion for her constituency. Does she agree that there are many new opportunities for rural communities in a post-covid world because they are really attractive places to live and work, and that the Government have a huge opportunity to harness their potent…”

“The final point I wanted to ask about quickly is to do with retention. We have heard about the importance of retention in widening access. Are there any other benefits that you have experienced thus far that are coming from widening that access? Obviously, people are staying longer, which is beneficial all round. What …”

“The benefit of being a Select Committee is that we are not the Government so we are not the decision maker, but we can make recommendations. I hear the point about funding, which is an obvious one. What else would you be asking the Government? We are hearing “knife edge”, which is no position for any industry to be in.…”

“I want to ask a few questions about sustainability, which has been covered a bit so far. My constituency is South West Norfolk so much of my boundary is Cambridgeshire. We have been following Cambridge vet school, which has been in the local news and is a concern. It is very well regarded in my part of the world. Matt,…”

“More than 22,000 households in my constituency rely on heating oil. Dozens of constituents have contacted me over the last week, and they are worried sick, so I very much welcome this announcement and the speed with which the Government have made it. This situation has exposed the fact that rural communities are unique…”

“A lot of the peatlands will be in the unfavourable category.”

“Yes, I get that and have huge sympathy with your position, but that would have been the case when the target was set. We have always known that there would have been factors on some sites that were out of Natural England’s control and outside of Government control. As someone who is passionate about the environment, I …”

“In particular, there has been a lot of controversy about peat burning and a concern that your restrictions on peat burning will lead to an increase in wildfires. Is that a concern that you recognise?”

“You get a bonus point for mentioning Norfolk. I saw that you shared that on social media. I agree: that is a very good example at Cley. Could you maybe talk to some reforms internally as an organisation—that might be best for you, Marian—around how you are making sure Natural England is fit to support economic growth? …”

“You speak about risk; presumably there is data that underpins your assessment. Will you commit to publishing that, because there will be a significant impact on people’s livelihoods?”

“I want to touch on peatlands in particular because they are in difficult circumstances. I was struck by Henry’s point; Tony, you described the management of SSSIs as challenging, and said that we have not seen any major improvement in the condition of SSSIs for years. We have not just missed the 95% target; we are sign…”

“It is clear there is obviously a focus on economic growth, and we know that the Government have tasked all arm’s length bodies such as yourself with considering economic growth. What is really interesting from a Natural England point of view is that has very much prompted this national debate about the environment and …”

“You mentioned Sizewell C and obviously the Government announced yesterday—I think—that there will be announcements on the Fingleton review within weeks, maybe this week. It is fair to say that there are a number of contentious recommendations in there, such as weakening the legal duty around protected landscapes and ha…”

“In rural areas, including Norfolk, shooting is quite a key part of the economy. There were some announcements this week around the general licence 45. For the first time ever, the Breckland SPA is going to be included and you will not be issuing licences for game bird release near SPAs. Could you explain the reasoning …”

“I am pleased to hear that it is a priority. Given the number of different changes you have described, I assume you will be monitoring their impact. Will you commit to publishing that assessment? This has been controversial but we want to make sure—”

“I am thinking specifically around the changes to burning licences; are those working? That is what we really want to know.”

“I completely understand that a lot of variables are involved. That said, in some cases it might be necessary to support burning. Do you support land managers to apply for permits when burning is necessary?”

“We have heard that Natural England is keen to reduce grazing animals in some upland areas, and you touched upon that in one of your earlier answers. This goes back to Charlie’s point around farming and that balance with food security. Does Natural England favour de-stocking, and if so, what evidence is it using to just…”