Speeches by Hobhouse.

“Do you think that your own roles should be extended, and what is the scalability of that?”

“We have been sitting here for two hours. Forgive me, but I feel myself to be in two separate panels here. We hear about the outrageous thing that has happened to Amanda and Zak, and they still do not have any redress. We are hearing from you that it is all quite under control, and you can deal with it, and you want to …”

“I thank the Backbench Business Committee again for granting this debate, which has been very lively and engaged, and good-natured, despite some disagreements—but where would we be, if we all agreed? We would not need to debate. I am grateful to everybody for their contributions and for the points that have been raised,…”

“I, too, would like some clarification from the Opposition. Is the hon. Member saying that renewable energy is a solution to lower energy bills and gets us to net zero, but that we do not really want it because it is too expensive? I was not quite clear whether her argument was for or against renewable energy. Could she…”

“Is it not also true that although we need to upgrade an old grid, the challenge of the future is a decentralised energy system, and that that is so often misunderstood? We had big power stations; now we have decentralised and smaller energy providers. That is a big challenge that we all have to recognise rather than cr…”

“The hon. Member predicts my next point: it is important to emphasise the Government’s responsibility to look after the most vulnerable in our society and protect them during any efforts to rebalance gas and electricity prices. However, I cannot comment on the council tax bill to which he refers; that is, of course, a l…”

“I beg to move, That this House has considered the cost of energy. It is a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair, Mr Western. I thank the Backbench Business Committee for granting me this debate. The cost of energy is a problem that impacts all areas of our lives, from the homes we live in to the businesses we work fo…”

“Businesses in Bath are increasingly worried about shoplifting, but online fraud is also a huge worry, and it is surging. Nearly 70,000 cases were reported in 2023-24, with victims losing an average of £800. Can we have a debate in Government time to understand the extent of the problem, what the Government propose to d…”

“I am pleased that this Government are moving away from the ideological fantasies of the Conservative Government and taking a pragmatic approach to EU-UK relations. Passive divergence—doing nothing when regulations move forward in the EU—is increasingly a concern for British businesses. It leads to huge trade barriers i…”

“I am very interested how it all works among yourselves. I have a set of questions in front of me, but I am also trying to integrate that into what I have heard. What direct powers do you have to directly report to the Secretary of State? We are hearing that there are no minutes, so it is more of a conversation. How sha…”

“Organisations such as Voices and the Southside project in Bath provide a wonderful and important service for victims of abuse, but they need the long-term certainty of funding. Does the Minister agree that we need to give them that certainty?”

“Within DESNZ itself, where does the authority lie between you and the directors general for energy, markets and supply, Jonathan Mills, and for net zero, Lee McDonough?”

“Then you need to intersect with Treasury, Cabinet Office and No. 10. How is the co-ordination happening?”

“You set the general guidance and policy, but you do not manage bids directly for planning and spending.”

“I also hear some criticism of the definition of what is needed. That has not been very clear and transparent and should possibly also be defined a little more clearly to those who want to become developers or are developers.”

“I understand that some developers are concerned that you have not really engaged with the industry on what they see as caps. You call them targets. Can you explain why you have done what you have done and why there is a concern from some developers that they have felt that the modelling of NESO is not being done very c…”

“Within DESNZ itself, where does the authority lie between you and the directors general for energy, markets and supply, Jonathan Mills, and for net zero, Lee McDonough?”

“You set the general guidance and policy, but you do not manage bids directly for planning and spending.”

“Then you need to intersect with Treasury, Cabinet Office and No. 10. How is the co-ordination happening?”

“I am very interested how it all works among yourselves. I have a set of questions in front of me, but I am also trying to integrate that into what I have heard. What direct powers do you have to directly report to the Secretary of State? We are hearing that there are no minutes, so it is more of a conversation. How sha…”