Results 41–60 of 600 for (in the 'Commons debates' OR in the 'Westminster Hall debates' OR in the 'Lords debates' OR in the 'Northern Ireland Assembly debates') speaker:Derek Thomas

Brain Tumour Research Funding ( 9 Mar 2023)

Derek Thomas: I will come on to that point later. I am grateful for the contributions that we have already heard. I pay tribute to the late Dame Tessa Jowell, who sadly received her own diagnosis of a brain tumour soon after that debate, when Government funding was being announced. At that time, about five years ago, she said in the other place: “For what would every cancer patient want? First, to know...

Brain Tumour Research Funding ( 9 Mar 2023)

Derek Thomas: Sadly, I have met far too many parents who have lost loved ones. It is heartbreaking to speak to them, and to see how a juggernaut has charged through and destroyed much of their lives. They give me so much hope that we can do this work because of the commitment they have to this subject. Before I address the specific recommendations of the report, may I thank colleagues—many of them are...

Climate Change and Biodiversity ( 8 Feb 2023)

Derek Thomas: I welcome this important debate. It comes at a brilliant time. Only yesterday the Prime Minister set up the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, which builds on the Government’s commitments in recent years to all those who live in the UK and around the world. Such an important development is welcome—and so soon after the publication of the Skidmore review on net zero. As I say,...

Climate Change and Biodiversity ( 8 Feb 2023)

Derek Thomas: I agree completely. Time and investment must be given to ensure that those technologies actually get to market and are commercially viable. I would go beyond that: it is about not just technology, but treating our land differently. A brilliant example of that in Cornwall is our use of herbal leys, which my hon. Friend will be familiar with, to increase the quality of the root structure of the...

Fossil Fuels and Cost of Living Increases — [Sir Robert Syms in the Chair] (11 Jan 2023)

Derek Thomas: Thank you, Sir Robert. I commend the hon. Member for Brighton, Pavilion (Caroline Lucas) for securing this worthwhile and vital debate. It comes after a year in which the Government were exercised about how to address the cost of living and reduce the demand for energy in our homes. I think we have the solution here, in this room. I hope the Minister is listening carefully because I know he...

Fossil Fuels and Cost of Living Increases — [Sir Robert Syms in the Chair] (11 Jan 2023)

Derek Thomas: That is exactly my experience, and it has been my experience for a number of years. It is tragic. Our parish council contacted me in desperation because it fought long and hard many years ago to identify sites to build and set aside such homes, only to find that they are lost, partly for that reason. As a result, villages are being hollowed out, making it difficult to keep open the post...

Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill: New Clause 48 - Condition relating to development progress reports (13 Dec 2022)

Derek Thomas: I rise to speak in support of Government new clause 119. The lack of the housing that people need to live, work and play a full part in our local community is not a new problem for Cornwall and Scilly, but it has certainly become acute during and following the covid pandemic. The demand for staycations, fuelled by stringent rules and tax changes, has caused massive numbers of long-let...

Business Rates and Levelling Up — [David Mundell in the Chair] (13 Dec 2022)

Derek Thomas: It is a privilege to speak under your chairmanship, Mr Mundell. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Waveney (Peter Aldous), for bringing this subject—a pet subject of mine—to the House once more. I am glad that the debate is called “Business Rates and Levelling Up”, because I want to pick up on both of those, and include the VAT threshold within the levelling-up issue, because it...

Sustainable Energy Generation: Burning Trees — [James Gray in the Chair] ( 6 Dec 2022)

Derek Thomas: I commend my hon. Friend the Member for North Devon (Selaine Saxby) for securing this important debate. How we create energy is a hot topic, if you will excuse the pun, Mr Gray. It is vital that Parliament, Government and the broader public hear our concern about burning trees to generate energy. The Government’s own figure put annual bioenergy emissions at 47 million tonnes of CO2, which...

Support for British Farming — [Sir Gary Streeter in the Chair] (23 Nov 2022)

Derek Thomas: I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Simon Jupp) on securing this debate. We cannot speak enough about the need to support our farmers, who produce the food we need in a way that is good for the country and our health. We talk regularly about the need to support our farmers and landowners in producing more food. We also talk a lot about the need to protect and enhance our...

Support for British Farming — [Sir Gary Streeter in the Chair] (23 Nov 2022)

Derek Thomas: I do agree, and that was the subject of one of the first debates I ever secured in this place, back in 2015. Given how farmers’ plans have shifted in the last 18 months, I suspect that less than 60% of the food we consume is grown in the UK. Urgent action is needed. I am glad to see the Minister in his place; I met him first thing this morning to discuss a similar issue. One thing that was...

Nature and Climate Declaration — [JAMES GRAY in the Chair] ( 9 Nov 2022)

Derek Thomas: I thank the Minister for her response, and I am glad she mentioned species. For example, the Cornish chough and the Manx shearwater are birds precious to Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. They have made a remarkable recovery, and it is good to mention that along with all the other achievements. In 2019, I was one of many Conservative MPs who supported the then Prime Minister, my right hon....

Nature and Climate Declaration — [JAMES GRAY in the Chair] ( 9 Nov 2022)

Derek Thomas: I beg to move, That this House has considered Government support for a nature and climate declaration. Sir James, I am not sure—

Nature and Climate Declaration — [JAMES GRAY in the Chair] ( 9 Nov 2022)

Derek Thomas: Sorry, Mr Gray; I exceeded my area of responsibility. I am not sure that I have brought any subject to the House without having been petitioned by a constituent. In this instance, I have been petitioned by many of my constituents and by many town and parish councils. They have urged me to raise the issue of nature and climate, and they have been particularly keen to secure my backing for the...

Nature and Climate Declaration — [JAMES GRAY in the Chair] ( 9 Nov 2022)

Derek Thomas: There is a Committee in No. 10 that does that job, but I accept the hon. Lady’s point. On Radio 4 last week, as I was driving back to Cornwall, Lord Deben said that we have some of the best, world-leading targets but are lagging behind in delivering on them. As I hinted at in relation to offshore winds, which affect the Celtic sea off Cornwall, Devon and Wales in particular, and in respect...

Prime Minister: Engagements ( 7 Sep 2022)

Derek Thomas: First, may I congratulate my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on her successful campaign to become our party leader and the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom? It is right and proper that the Government focus their attention on rising energy costs for households across the country, but, as we have heard, businesses big and small are exposed to horrific energy price increases with no...

Sewage Pollution ( 6 Sep 2022)

Derek Thomas: My local beach, Longrock, saw the highest number of combined sewer overflow notifications in this last bathing season, so I could not agree more that South West Water needs to do more. However, the Secretary of State will know that it is not just an issue for the water companies. For example, in a combined sewerage system, water from our roads, our farmland, our roofs and our own homes will...

Unavoidably Small Hospitals — [Mr Philip Hollobone in the Chair] ( 6 Sep 2022)

Derek Thomas: I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Isle of Wight (Bob Seely) for securing this important and timely debate. As I represent a set of small islands myself, it is good to have him banging the drum with me on so many shared issues. We understand the urgency of the subject. We have pretty much all just come back from beautiful parts of the United Kingdom—fantastic parts of the world—but...

Assisted Dying — [Sir Roger Gale in the Chair] ( 4 Jul 2022)

Derek Thomas: I thank the hon. Member for Gower (Tonia Antoniazzi) for opening the debate in the way that she did. I understand how difficult this issue is, and I ought to say that I am a member of the APPG for dying well and that I chair the APPG on brain tumours, although I speak for myself this afternoon. I have sat at the bedside of people as they have neared the end of their lives, and I have met...

NHS Dentistry in England — [Graham Stringer in the Chair] (22 Jun 2022)

Derek Thomas: First, I thank and commend the Minister for her response and for the way in which she has engaged with this subject since taking up her role. I have found her determination to get this matter right really refreshing, because this has been a long battle. I thank all colleagues, from all parties, for their contributions and for going into things—not just the problem but the solution—in...


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