Speeches by Thomas.

“Ahead of the election in Tewkesbury, considering my defence background, I recognised that I did not fully understand the experiences nor the lifestyles that come with rurality, so I began reaching out. I made visits; I spoke with people, listened to them and heard them. If someone wants to represent people or is likely…”

“One thing I learned recently on the Culture, Media and Sport Committee is that one way the BBC provides value for money is by being one of the only sources—if not the only source—of income for children’s content creators. Without that income, we would not get quality content for our children. There is a way of looking …”

“The hon. Lady is making a really important point about Elon Musk’s Starlink system, but will she go a little further and recognise that not only has Elon Musk switched off Starlink in Ukraine at will, but he has done so on occasions that might have turned the tide of the war?”

“The hon. Member speaks of the cyber-attacks on Jaguar Land Rover and the Co-op. Those who pay council tax to Gloucester city council have concerns that following a Russian cyber-attack in 2021, that council recently discovered a £17.5 million deficit. Will the hon. Member recognise that too?”

“Farmers are among the most robust members of society, yet since autumn 2024 several have spoken candidly with me about the mental health impact of the family farm tax, in an industry that suffers a rate of suicide four times the national average. The changes to the Government’s family farm tax are welcome, but will the…”

“President Maduro was illegitimate, but Donald Trump’s illegal incursion into Venezuela puts him in the company of Vladimir Putin and will embolden President Xi in his ambitions for Taiwan. More pressing for the UK is the fact that an occupation of Greenland, which has been repeatedly threatened, would see Putin’s ambit…”

“How many was that?”

“Does the hon. Member agree that, in the workplace, the way that neurodiverse traits are observed and received can vary between men and women? Women can suffer the consequences of unconscious bias. As my constituent Zaphira recently explained, decisiveness and spontaneity in men can be viewed as emotional or impulsive i…”

“I have spoken before about how neurodiversity is still an opportunity to be fully exploited by the workplace and that it is significantly inhibited by the education system. Does the hon. Lady agree that the Disabled Children’s Partnership “Fight for Ordinary” campaign presents an opportunity to create educational and w…”

“This deal will not give back the futures that were stolen from so many young people by Boris Johnson’s Government, but it does offer such futures to people going forward. It is good work. That said, small, medium-sized and large businesses in Tewkesbury and the economy at large need the Government to stop fumbling arou…”

“I thank the Minister very much for giving way, and I wish him a merry Christmas. Nothing would empower my local authority more than the Government implementing recommendation 89 of the EAC’s report into flood resilience in England. Will his Department do that?”

“The cumulative impact of development in Tewkesbury is nothing less than a threat to the continuing viability of Tewkesbury as a permanent settlement. The Environmental Audit Committee recently produced a report on flood resilience in England. Would my hon. Friend join me in asking the Government if they will implement …”

“If we lose the BBC, what happens to children’s content?”

“How are your members responding to audiences moving to YouTube?”

“John, do you have anything to add to wind up?”

“What needs to happen to bridge that financial gap?”

“John, in your evidence you talked about producers’ self-financing children’s content to go on YouTube, but you said that the income generated is nowhere near those levels. What proportion of your membership would you describe as struggling?”

“Adam, did you want to add anything?”

“In your experience, is the UK tax credit regime competitive enough internationally?”

“That leads nicely on to the next question. Do you have any ideas for where the tax credit system could be improved for children’s TV or children’s content?”