Speeches by Jermy.

“Does my county colleague agree that there are particular challenges in Norfolk? Under the previous Conservative police and crime commissioner, not only were all 150 of our police and community support officers made redundant, but many police stations lost their public access, and accessibility and visible policing have…”

“It is quite clear that communities that host energy projects should in some way benefit from them. I welcome that principle being incorporated into this plan. I particularly welcome the Government’s support for rooftop solar for Swaffham community hospital in South West Norfolk, not just from an environmental point of …”

“Is the hon. Member aware that the east of England is the only region of the UK that has no dental school, which severely impacts the availability of dentists? Will he join me in pressing the Government and the Minister to do all they can to expedite a proposal by the University of East Anglia to open a new dental schoo…”

“Prior to my role as a Member of Parliament, I was pleased to serve as a Norfolk county councillor for 12 years. In Norfolk, each time somebody is killed or seriously injured within a council division, the relevant councillor is informed. Clearly, nobody ever wanted to receive such an email, but all too often a message …”

“I congratulate the Minister on this excellent piece of work. It is crucial to my residents in west Norfolk, where we have statistically the worst hospital in the country at the Queen Elizabeth in King’s Lynn—not in a big city, but in a rural part of west Norfolk. I ask the Minister to reassure my residents that unlike …”

“Precision breeding is critical to improving productivity. That is why I was so pleased to see so many Norfolk-based research projects, including the fantastic John Innes Centre, receive funding from DEFRA’s farming innovation programme. It is crucial that we protect these advancements, so can the Minister outline what …”

“It is a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair, Mr Dowd. I want to share with hon. Members and the Minister the case of Susi Rogers-Hartley from Wiggenhall St Mary in my South West Norfolk constituency. Susi is an accomplished lady: she is a horse rider, military veteran and GB Paralympic athlete. She was the first ho…”

“Does my hon. Friend agree that in places like Suffolk, and next door in Norfolk, hundreds and hundreds of good, well-paying green jobs are tied up in the renewable energy sector, and that the rhetoric from the Opposition, particularly the Conservatives and Reform, puts those vital jobs in our constituencies at risk?”

“I completely agree with my hon. Friend. That is telling—no wonder the Tories do not want to speak about their record on public services and the NHS. I can point them to the first league table for hospitals, which was published last year. My local hospital, the Queen Elizabeth in King’s Lynn, was at the very bottom as t…”

“I may be biased, but I believe Norfolk is a beautiful place to grow up and grow old in. It is the place where I was born and raised, and it is where I call home. Like so many rural communities, it is a place that values co-operation, community and compassion, but for so many years those values were tested. We saw Conse…”

“What role does DWI play around preventive advice, and how can you advise the industry to prepare for these incidents when they happen?”

“The last point that I wanted to make was about the response aspect to the incident. Prior to having this role, I was a county councillor. I sat on the audit committee and we assessed risk. The probability of risk in this circumstance was incredibly high, which is why I was so surprised about the lack of preparedness fo…”

“Yes, I want to follow up quickly on the point about future preparedness. Anybody watching this, particularly those who live in the area you serve, will be worried about the future. It seems to me that the risk assessment process worked, because the evidence is clear that you, internally as a company, were fully aware o…”

“On both aspects, the advice you gave on preventing the incident from happening completely was ignored. It also sounds as if your advice on what to do if it were to happen was not acted upon either.”

“How likely, and how soon?”

“What role does DWI play around preventive advice, and how can you advise the industry to prepare for these incidents when they happen?”

“The last point that I wanted to make was about the response aspect to the incident. Prior to having this role, I was a county councillor. I sat on the audit committee and we assessed risk. The probability of risk in this circumstance was incredibly high, which is why I was so surprised about the lack of preparedness fo…”

“No, you haven’t—I am very grateful for your candid response. It is incredibly useful, and I am sorry that the warnings were not listened to and acted upon. I am keen to get your view on this: are you concerned about the likelihood of the incident being repeated?”

“You touched on South East and the Tunbridge Wells incident. I read your 2024 risk notice. There clearly were warnings—as I mentioned in my comments earlier—but I was not clear to what extent that was followed through. Presumably the recommendations were not all implemented. I was not sure if you got to the enforcement …”

“How likely, and how soon?”