Speeches by Jermy.

“I am sure that is a countrywide problem. Finally, Sallie, Natural England has a role across the whole country. One would hope that you have examples of best practice where groups of landowners are working particularly well with local fire and rescue services, and that sort of thing. How do we identify that best practic…”

“Henrietta, what role do you think land managers have in preventing ignition and in early detection? What specific roles should they have? Clearly, they have a vested interest.”

“Henrietta, what role do you think land managers have in preventing ignition and in early detection? What specific roles should they have? Clearly, they have a vested interest.”

“That would be very useful. Thank you very much.”

“The problem is, when you get the late stage, lots of this has already been covered but it is a good opportunity to confirm knowledge. Richard, we heard from Phil in the earlier session what the role of the fire and rescue services is in detecting and responding to wildfires. I wondered if you could outline, or add anyt…”

“In a week when Ukraine has come under intense and deadly attacks from Russia, it is especially disappointing that one of the first acts of the new Reform-led Norfolk county council has been to remove from our county hall Ukraine’s flag, which was proudly flown alongside our Union flag. Will the Leader of the House join…”

“The great work by my hon. Friends to clean up our rivers, lakes and seas risks being undermined, particularly in the eastern region, where a biomass-fuelled power station is at risk of closure due to the end of Government support. More than half a million tonnes of poultry litter risks being spread on to the land, impa…”

“It is clear that the sanctions imposed by this Government and other Governments have denied Russia funds for attacks on both military and civilian targets, but as the war has progressed, Russia has found ever more creative ways to avoid and delay their impact. Are the existing sanctions under constant review, and what …”

“The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee has extensively investigated South East Water; what I found particularly shocking was the fact that so many warnings and concerns were raised but were simply ignored. Despite a high risk of water supply failure, the lack of preparedness was plain to see. Will the regula…”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Desmond. I do not wish to detain hon. Members for any longer than necessary, but I am keen to speak about this issue. I am proud to represent South West Norfolk and its 500-plus farmers—it is a real privilege to visit farms in my constituency, where, since the elec…”

“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…”

“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 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 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…”