19 January 2024
George Freeman backs the Building Societies Act 1986 (Amendment) Bill at Second Reading

George Freeman speaks in favour of the Building Societies Act 1986 (Amendment) Bill; a Private Member’s Bill that will enable building societies to raise more funds from sources other than member savings and increase lending capacity which will help first-time buyers in rural areas such as Mid Norfolk.

George Freeman (Mid Norfolk) (Con)

It is a huge pleasure able to join Friday business as a Back Bencher and to support this important Bill on behalf of my Mid Norfolk constituents. Let me start by congratulating the hon. Member for Sunderland Central (Julie Elliott) on introducing the Bill and on winning that prized first place in the ballot, so that she can make a difference with the Bill. I thank the Government for working with her and all of us who have supported her on the Bill. This is a good example of cross-party work, and of the Government working with Back Benchers in the interests of our constituents and the shared and mutual interests of the citizens of this country. I only wish more people around the country were able to see the quality of the work going on in the House on days like this.

I want, particularly, to highlight the importance of the Bill for rural areas such as mine. The hon. Lady represents the magnificently urban constituency of Sunderland Central, but I represent a magnificently the rural constituency of Mid Norfolk—114 villages and five towns. As I candidate, I rashly promised to cycle the border one Saturday morning, but then discovered it was 94 miles long. It took me rather more than one Saturday morning. Much of this country is rural, up north as well as down south and in the south west. I want to focus on the importance of the Bill and building societies in rural areas and on our town high streets in providing cash facilities, and supporting first time-buyers and pensioners with cash.

In Dereham recently, I saw Nationwide packed, with queues outside of pensioners moving from the bank, which is closing, to support Nationwide, as Nationwide supports them. In my part of the country we have a huge number of retired folk who want cash—they do not all want to be totally digital. They value and need that interaction with a living and breathing human being when they go to save or take out cash. Nationwide Building Society is doing great work to support them. I am really keen to support the Bill, as the hon. Lady knows, largely because of that particular rural need.

Dr Thérèse Coffey (Suffolk Coastal) (Con)

I should declare that I am a member of three building societies, and until recently I had a mortgage with Nationwide. I agree with my hon. Friend about the importance of building societies in rural communities. I think of local examples such as Suffolk Building Society, but elsewhere around the country there is Newbury Building Society and similar. That connection to the community really matters. It is important to get on with this primary legislation, but we also need to get the negative secondary regulations through as quickly as possible so that we can boost mortgage borrowing for families who are keen to get on to the housing ladder.

George Freeman 

I completely agree—my right hon. Friend makes an excellent point, and we will come to that in due course. She is absolutely right.

I want to focus on building societies in rural areas. The flight of the banks, in particular from rural areas but also from a lot of high street banking and the role they have traditionally carried out—this is partly why the Bill is so important—highlights the importance of cash in the rural economy. Many of my local small businesses are really struggling with how to bank cash properly. We also have a problem in our part of the world with ATMs now being subject to JCB theft—ATMs being ripped out of the wall. So, there is a cash problem and building societies have a really important role.

As well as reflecting the very best of old Labour, this is also, if I may say so, the very best of civic conservatism. This is Edward Burke’s little platoons. This is the weft and the warp of local connected responsible civic community-based capitalism; the sort of capitalism that small platoon civic conservatism has long championed. I would argue that all parties in Government over the past 40 years have slightly forgotten that that needs to be championed. We have seen the rise and the domination of big capital, big banks and big disconnected capitalism. I am here today as a card-carrying supporter of the mutuality model and civic capitalism. I think both main parties have that in common in their different traditions and history.

On rural banking and finance, in Mid Norfolk we have five towns and 114 villages. We are not quite halfway between Cambridge and Norwich. Traditionally, it has been something of a rural backwater. It is an agricultural community, with many retirees and pensioners moving to quiet rural Norfolk. It is a real challenge to ensure that our villages remain vibrant and our towns remain thriving. The model of development over the past 40 years has been over-focused on commuter housing. People drive their cars to Norwich and Cambridge during the day, and that sucks the life out of many of our villages.

The rise of online commerce and digital retail has also taken quite a lot of the life out of many of our towns, and our high streets are struggling to remain vibrant. The Government’s moves to reduce business rates has helped, but the pandemic and the cost of energy crisis, coming off the back of the Ukraine war, has hit rural areas disproportionately hard. That is a theme I will be picking up in the coming months in this House in the run-up to the Budget. Everyone has been hit by the cost of energy increase of course, but in rural areas there is a double triple whammy. Every member of staff in a company has to drive. Most of my relatively low-paid working families have one, two or three cars. They are not a luxury; they need them to be able to get to work. All our public services are hit—our bus services and our county council services—all across rural areas. 

We are paying a double whammy because of an over-dependency on transport and heating. That huge rural impact is hitting remote backwater rural areas very hard, particularly in my part of Norfolk.

In that context, it is urgent that we encourage the revival of the rural economy. I have long believed and campaigned locally that, with a slightly different approach to planning and development in our area, we could trigger something of a rural renaissance, with many small businesses popping up off the back of the Cambridge phenomenon and the Norwich Research Park. Small businesses often start off by working from home or looking for converted farm units; they are not in the city centre, but distributed. If we can get more businesses back into villages and small towns, we will have more people of working age in communities during the day. That will reduce congestion and commuting.

The model of a vibrant rural economy is key to so many of the priorities of successive Governments. We will never get to net zero if we keep shovelling people into cars and making them commute long distances in congested traffic jams. The more we can get people to work from home or nearer to home, travelling when they need to during the day and not in peak hours, the better. That vision of rural renaissance is key, but it will never happen if young people cannot afford to buy a house near to where they work, if thriving businesses on the high street are unable to cash-up, save and deposit cash safely, and if pensioners are unable to save, take out their deposits and interact with banking in the way they have for the past 50 or 60 years. We need to ensure that we build an economy for the people who live there.

That is what my campaign, The Norfolk Way, is all about. It is a project to promote that vision of rural growth. The Bill touches on much of that. One has only to see the flight of the mainstream banks out of such areas—I know that colleagues in other constituencies see that—and the desperation that people feel, whether they are first-time buyers or pensioners.

James Daly (Bury North) (Con)

My hon. Friend is making an excellent speech, but we should not see building societies as a panacea; they are closing branches in my area as well. How do we encourage building societies to keep branches open when they are closing throughout the country?

George Freeman 

My hon. Friend makes an excellent point. I do not want to suggest that they are a total panacea; I am lauding and applauding Nationwide in Dereham because it is doing great work, but we need to make sure that the Bill is part of a broader approach. I hope that Treasury Ministers, thinking about the run-up to the Budget and looking ahead, will think about how we can encourage more choice, more competition and more presence from both building societies and banks. We need choice and competition in rural areas and other areas that are not well served as well as in areas that are.

The opportunity for rural renaissance was hit hard by the pandemic, as well as by the Ukraine war, with its impact on energy prices, Putin turning off the gas taps and the cost of living crisis that we have all experienced. It is in that context that the Bill represents a chink of light and has been hugely supported locally. I am delighted to have helped the hon. Member for Sunderland Central bring it to the House.

I want to say something about the banks, because over the 13 years for which I have been privileged to be the Member of Parliament for Mid Norfolk the closure of banks—a cause on which I remember fondly working with the former Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Norfolk (Elizabeth Truss), in 2009—has gradually hit much of rural Norfolk. Everyone understands that we cannot have a hugely staffed bank branch in every village, but there is a contract at the heart of the state between citizens, Governments and operations such as banks that work under regulations. Banks are there to provide a service, too, and if they are not going to provide that service we need to look at who will.

Sir Oliver Heald 

Given the number of people going into banks to do their business these days, it is not unreasonable that there should be some restructuring. I think the idea of banking hubs where all the main banks club together to ensure that there is a proper facility in a town or substantial village is a good idea. Does my hon. Friend think that it is important that they should take in cash and takings from small businesses, because they do not all do that?

George Freeman 

I do. My right hon. and learned Friend amplifies exactly the point I was making. He is right that sparsely populated or rural areas will often require different solutions, in the same way as small rural schools require us to network and support them through multi-academy trusts. Similarly, we need to be imaginative in how we support cash access and banking and saving in rural areas. That touches on a deep problem that I have witnessed over many years: Whitehall tends to see these problems through an urban lens, and we need to think a bit about how rural areas often need a slightly different approach. I hope that the Bill and the cross-party support for it will help to encourage the Treasury to think about how we can do more to make this a moment to encourage greater choice and competition out in the market.

It is particularly sad that the banks have stepped back from the service I described over the two or three decades in which many of them have focused rather more on big, international and complex financial trading—the derivatives that led to quite a lot of problems we had back in the great crash. It is particularly sad in Norfolk given that it is where one of our great banks, Barclays, actually started, with the Gurney and Barclay families. The first bank had its roots in King’s Lynn docks. As people were required to pay duties, they required credit finance. I encourage anyone who has not been to King’s Lynn to go there, as it has a beautifully regenerated and refurbished Georgian dockyard, where they can see the plaque commemorating the first credit facility that became the great Barclays bank. It is particularly sad to see a bank such as Barclays step back from the place in which it started. Everyone has history, roots and heritage, and I am not such a romantic that I expect Barclays to put a bank in every Norfolk village, but I do think there is a responsibility on all these companies to make sure that the people they are there to serve are getting the service they need.

I wish, in particular, to highlight the importance of access to cash on high streets for small businesses, as it is becoming a serious problem. I know that the Minister understands it, and I am grateful for his acknowledgement of it. Across East Anglia, and I am sure this is happening elsewhere, we are seeing an increasing frequency of ATM raids, where JCBs are driven into banks and ATMs are taken out. However, that is the thin end of a bigger wedge, and many businesses in Dereham, Attleborough, Wymondham, Watton and Hingham are beginning to struggle with what to do with cash on a Monday morning, and many local people are struggling to find a bank they can access.

I know that many people wish to speak this morning, so I will not detain you or the House for too long, Madam Deputy Speaker, but I want to touch on mutuality, which my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for North East Hertfordshire (Sir Oliver Heald) addressed earlier. We need to talk about, celebrate, champion and promote it more in this House. Some 300 years ago, we were writing the rule book for modern capitalism, defining the joint stock limited company and setting out the legal framework in English constitutional law, in common law, that drove the industrial revolution. We created limited liability companies, which allowed people to invest, raise money and back projects, and that was a key part of what this country did.

In an age of globalised capitalism and high technology, we have a challenge to make sure that capital does not become disconnected from the people who are providing the money, the savers, and the people who need the money to build businesses. For capitalism to work, we need a connection between money, the people who are saving it and the people who are borrowing it. The last crash in the City was a clear example of what happens when a disconnection is allowed to get to crisis proportions, whereby people do not know where the money that they have deposited is going and people who buy a complex derivative bond do not know what it is built on or what is underpinning it. We then have a serious problem. I am not suggesting that we go back to an agrarian revolution of trading wheat for a lift on a cart into Dereham, but I think there is a real issue in our economy in respect of connected capitalism.

Conservative Members in particular, as card-carrying advocates for the market, need to continue to champion and make clear the fact that markets work when they have values, connection and people at the heart of them. When markets are completely disconnected, they have no sense of the requirements of the people putting the capital in or taking it out, they do not value that connection and regulators do not understand the importance of the bond of responsibility between people who are trading with each other.

Mutuality is a proud tradition at the heart of the old labour movement, but it is also a proud tradition in civic conservativism—it is Burke’s little platoons. In a spirit of cross-party philosophising on this Friday morning, perhaps I can put some wind in the sails of the movement for mutuality. I would love to see more mutuality in different sectors, such as in finance, banking and housing, where, clearly, the building societies have been a great reform—I would argue that the housing associations have also been a great Conservative reform in housing.

There are many examples of where we could blow on to the embers of mutuality and encourage more of it in different areas, particularly in some of our social care sectors and health provision. It should not be a stark choice between private profit and public state. There is a whole third sector of mutuality— membership organisations that can deliver public goods, with cost reimbursement and important disciplines of financial control that are not necessarily either public sector, with all the efficiency challenges that go with it, or private sector, with all the incentives for high profit. There is a whole raft of organisations out there that we could be deploying better—in health and care, but also in criminal justice and a whole range of areas where the state has struggled in the past few decades to achieve its stated objectives.

James Daly 

My hon. Friend is making an outstanding speech, and we could philosophise all day, which I am tempted to do very badly. Mutuality in the modern day requires a profit element. For all building society branches to remain open, the business has to produce a profit. Mutuality in the sense of Ketley’s Building Society in 1775 is a different concept completely. We therefore should always come back to the point he makes that, for mutuality to succeed, it must be based on a civic, conservative and capitalist model. It cannot work in any other way.

George Freeman 

My hon. Friend makes an excellent point and encourages me to wrap up my philosophising. He is right—I am not at all anti-profit; it is about what is done with the profit. One of the geniuses of mutuality is that the profit is recycled back in to pursue the interests of those who put in the capital in the first place.

Sir Oliver Heald 

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for giving way again—I must not keep trespassing on the House’s time, because I have a Bill coming up later. Does he agree that if we look at pension funds and the possibilities of extending that sort of approach into social care, there would be a lot in the idea of mutuality? Also, on the point about profit, if those funds were invested in national goods, such as important national infrastructure and things of that sort, we could all benefit, but of course it has a financial aspect to it as well.

George Freeman 

Again, my right hon. and learned Friend makes the point even more eloquently than I was trying to do, and he is right. I make this point in all seriousness: in so many areas, such as infrastructure, as he says, I dream of a world in which people can put their own savings into mutual vehicles. I would love people to be able to invest in the Cambridge-Norwich railway development corporation to fund the regeneration of neglected stations, or to create and fund investment vehicles. There is a whole wealth of instruments, vehicles and bodies rooted in that fertile period of 18th and 19th-century English capitalism, and Scottish capitalism, too—the enlightenment in Edinburgh was a big part of it. We could draw on those models better in pursuit of many of our public sector objectives.

As I wrap up, I will return to the more mundane and practical issues. This is an important Bill for updating the law and giving building societies a chance to get back to where they were in the early ’90s. They were responsible for something like 60% of the market; they have dropped down to 20%. We want to help building societies compete and get back to providing their core service to help those who want to save in building societies, not banks, and first-time buyers who, particularly in my part of the world in Norfolk, do not have high salaries and are looking for a safe and reliable local building society that could hopefully help them acquire a local house built for them, rather than for commuters moving into Norfolk. We need to think about the people who are driving public services and the rural economy. For first-time buyers, this is an important measure.

As the hon. Member for Sunderland Central said in introducing the Bill, increasing lending capacity is in itself a huge step forward. I think the figure is £10 billion of extra lending capacity, which will allow the provision of another 20,000 mortgages. That is hugely important, particularly for first-time buyers. I conclude by genuinely congratulating and thanking the hon. Lady for bringing the Bill forward, the Government for working with her and us on it, and all those who have helped. The Bill strikes a small but important blow and sends a key signal that building societies are back. We want to support and help them as part of a broader commitment to civic, small, local-platoon connected capital that can help people in communities up and down this country to save and withdraw money in the way they need, which will support the local economies on which the national economy is built.

Hansard

19 January 2024
A47 Alliance – Update

The A47 is a major transport artery into, and across, our great county – which is why dualling along its entire length remains a key priority of mine.

Full dualling is vital for the long term safety of motorists and absolutely necessary if we are to help Norfolk unlock its full economic potential – delivering thousands of jobs, as well as the growth and prosperity needed, to help us ‘Build Back Better’ and ‘Level Up’. It will also reduce congestion, the associated pollution and rat-running.

That’s why I welcomed the opportunity to be involved in the A47 Alliance’s latest summit today – receiving updates on the Judicial Review process holding up the North Tuddenham-Easton dualling works and Thickthorn Roundabout improvements, as well on the other schemes and priorities of the Alliance.

(As I have highlighted once again this week, each legal challenge simply causes further delay, drives up costs and wastes more valuable taxpayers’ money. To see my full views on Dr Boswell’s legal challenge, please click here)

I reaffirmed my firm commitment to the A47 Alliance campaign and look forward to working with them to ramp up their work throughout 2024. Collectively, we agreed a number of positive further actions, which I will be following up with the Alliance team to help put into action.

This very much remains an ongoing campaign of mine – and I also continue to actively work with National Highways and NCC Highways on a number of more local, Mid Norfolk specific projects such as safety improvement works at Necton (see more here) and the dangerous junction at Guist (see more here)

Rest assured, I will continue to do all I can to ‘Make Our Roads Fit for the 21st Century’.

To learn more about my historic campaign work on A47 dualling and improving Norfolk (and the East)’s roads more generally, please click here.

18 January 2024
Rwanda Vote

Every advanced economy has some immigration and emigration. Before Tony Blair’s open doors policy in 1997, net immigration to the UK was c45,000 per year.

Under New Labour it rose to 250,000 per year as the UK service economy & London boomed.


It fell immediately after the EU Brexit Referendum & agreement, and the pandemic.

Now, with post-Covid economic recovery, low post-Brexit European migration, higher UK wages & catastrophic unrest in Ukraine, the Middle East & Africa, there is now a surging economic demand from UK business for cheap labour & massive surge of desperate people fleeing war, famine & poverty to find a new life in the English speaking world.

That’s why I have long advocated an Australian Points Style system and an annual quota of asylum seekers which we know we can look after properly.

With the EU’s Mediterranean borders out of control we are seeing a surge of human trafficking to get to the UK.

Last year the net migration figure was 𝟲𝟱𝟬,𝟬𝟬𝟬 (of which c50,000 crossed the channel).

We simply cannot properly process, sort & handle the numbers flocking here for work (economic migrants) or for asylum given:

  1. The pressure in UK on housing, infrastructure & public services
     
  2. The legal constraints of the ECHR (which was designed in 1940s post war to ensure that never again would Europe see mass deportations of minorities like the Jews fleeing the Nazis).


We have to grip this and sort it.

Any government owes it to both its own citizens (and to those trying to come here for genuine sanctuary (like those from Ukraine) to get this under control.

But there is no single magic bullet.

We must get illegal immigration under control — and part of that is stopping the boats.

The Rwanda Bill is one of a package of measures to do that — alongside

  • Working with our French counterparts
  • Securing a deportation agreement with Albania
  • Working with international partners to tackle the root causes which drive people here.

We have seen real progress in the last 12 months since the PM made this a priority — but there is more to do.

One part of this is making clear to those considering embarking on the journey - and the traffickers who profit from selling the dream - that if they come here illegally, rather than by one of the safe and legal routes, that they will not be able to stay.

By doing this, we will break the inhumane model of the people traffickers, and stop lives being lost in the channel.

My reservations around the legal & practical speed of implementation of the Rwanda policy are well known — but I backed it last night because we MUST get tough on illegal immigration & to stop the boats.

People expect nothing less — and rightly so.

With the bill now sent to the Lords for further scrutiny, I look forward to continuing to raise my constituents concerns about immigration — illegal or legal, those coming across the channel, those the authorities have lost track of who are already here, and tackling the gangs who exploit them for cheap labour.


The Rwanda Bill must be part of a package of tougher measures — including strengthening existing enforcement.

I am proud of Britain’s long history of offering refuge — and proud that we have Afghan nationals in Mid Norfolk who came here legally through the ARAP/ACRS scheme.

But let me make clear — we can only be compassionate if we have control, and protect our borders.

People voted in 2016 to “Take Back Control” of many things - but especially immigration.

We need to deliver.

That’s why I’m pushing for the right balance, and proper enforcement — so that we can help those who need it most.

18 January 2024
Mid Norfolk Headteachers Call

Throughout my time as the local MP, I have been one of our local education sectors biggest advocates, supporting them locally, while also lobbying in Westminster for greater funding, support and resources to ensure areas like Mid Norfolk are not left behind, but rather get the assistance they need to ensure local youngsters, whatever their background, get the education they need and deserve.  

That’s why I welcomed the opportunity to hold my latest Mid Norfolk Headteachers Virtual Forum this afternoon – as part of my ongoing efforts to ensure their voices are heard at the highest levels.

Today, I reported back to them on the meeting I had with the Department for Education’s Regional Commissioner for the East of England last week (see more here) before receiving their feedback on the biggest issues on their agendas:

  • Rural Schools Funding
  • SEND support and provision
  • Ofsted
  • Pupil and parent behaviour
  • Pupil attendances

Rest assured, I will continue to speak up on behalf of our Mid Norfolk Schools – locally and in the House in Westminster – and look forward to visiting a number of them in the weeks and months ahead, as well as to holding the next forum in the spring.

To see more about my ‘Fairer Rural Schools Funding and Support’ campaign work, please visit my campaign page here.

17 January 2024
Attleborough Flooding – Update

Storm Babet flooded over 100 homes in Attleborough back in October and local residents (for some of which the recent flooding was the fourth time they had been affected) are rightly furious.

That’s why, as part of my ongoing Mid Norfolk Flood Partnership and Flooding Campaign work, I continue to take an active role in supporting those affected and holding the key stakeholders to account – both here in Mid Norfolk, but also in Westminster.

While a number of short and medium term measures have already been carried out or are underway (see here), the incredibly high water levels at the Mill Lane culvert and watercourse at the start of the new year, and the serious risk residents are having to take in order to protect their homes, shows more must be done.

Last week, I convened a multi-agency meeting with representatives from Norfolk County Council, the Norfolk Strategic Flooding Alliance, Breckland Council, the local Internal Drainage Board, Anglian Water, Natural England, the Environment Agency – as well as local Town, Parish, District and County Councillors and representatives of local landowners upstream of the Mill Lane culvert and watercourse – to emphasise again the importance of tackling these serious issues and explore in greater depth the short, medium and long term work required to significantly reduce future flood risk.

I drew particular attention to those homeowners most at risk of flooding on Mill Lane – many of whom feel helpless and desperate, believing they have no choice but to seriously risk their own safety to try and keep the trash screen across the Mill Lane culvert clear each time it rains.

The key discussion points from the meeting were:

  • A shared acknowledgement that residents are seriously risking their own safety to keep the Mill Lane culvert trash screen clear of debris – and of the fact that conditions and circumstances at the culvert can change rapidly during periods of heavy rain.
  • Agreement that the existing Mill Lane culvert trash screen should not be removed until the new replacement has been installed (work currently underway – see here) – as the culvert has a 90 degree bend that, were it to become blocked, would be extremely difficult and costly to clear – and significantly worsen the current flood risk to the area.
  • NCC Flood and Water Management officials met with Anglian Water contractors on-site (the day prior the meeting) to verify the new trash screen designs ahead of pricing the work – with a multi-agency agreement already in place to fund it.
  • The installation of the new trash screen will likely not be possible prior to the summer. This is because the watercourse will need to be de-watered so that a new concrete base can be constructed and the trash screen fitted.
  • Further measures are therefore required in the short term to try and reduce flood risk along the watercourse and at the Mill Lane culvert.
  • NCC are going to work with local landowners and other stakeholders to explore installing an additional, temporary screen somewhere upstream that can catch debris and prevent it becoming a problem in Attleborough itself.
  • The Mill Lane culvert, and others along the watercourse, cannot be expanded – nor the watercourse itself deepened or widened – due to the amount of development and road access around and across it. The enormous cost and disruption, and lack of space, make it impossible.
  • Given concerns over residents and local councillors risking their safety by entering the watercourse to keep the Mill Lane culvert trash screen clear, a suggestion was made to appoint a jointly funded contractor to be on 24/7 call out to clear debris and blockages at the culvert trash screen when required. This suggestion was dismissed on the basis that no organisation would allow their staff to entering the water in storm flow conditions (when they would be most needed) – especially if Norfolk Fire and Rescue themselves have said the risk would be too great for even their own teams.
  • A suggestion was made to explore how the watercourse may, long term, be diverted to another course away from the town. Flooding Officers explained this would probably not be possible given local topography.
  • It is therefore not possible to immediately remove all flood risk. Instead, agencies must work with the properties most at risk to do as much as possible to improve their flood resilience.
  • NCC have also submitted a bid to the Natural Flood Management Fund, supported by myself and others, and I am working with them and local landowners upstream to explore how we might deliver a Flood Mitigation and Water Storage Scheme that could drastically reduce the long term flood risk to homeowners and businesses in Attleborough (see more here)
  • Everyone affected in the area by flooding in October must formally report their cases via the Norfolk County Council website to enable the Flood Investigations underway to be as accurate as possible – which in turn will strengthen the hand of local stakeholders to lobby for additional funding and support.
  • NCC are to look at monitoring water volumes and storm flows on the watercourse – again to strengthen their hand when lobbying for resources.
  • Local councillors asked what more could be done to improve safety for those homeowners currently taking risks to keep the Mill Lane culvert trash screen clear. It was asked if lighting and cameras could be installed.
  • I reiterated my ongoing support for all the efforts to tackle these flooding issues – and highlighted my efforts in Westminster to bring about the national reform needed also (see more here)

As is clear, this isn’t an easy fix – with multiple challenges faced. However, I am determined to all I can to support the community.

The key focusses/timescales moving forward are:

Short Term (Now-next few weeks)

  • Doing as much as possible to improve the flood resilience of the most at risk properties
  • Explore what more can be done to improve safety for those putting themselves at risk to keep the Mill Lane culvert trash screen clear
  • Find a suitable location for an additional, temporary screen upstream to collect debris – and explore additional short term measures upstream that can reduce flood risk

Medium Term (Summer)

  • Replacement of the existing trash screen with a new one that is designed specifically for the challenges being faced.
  • Continue to explore what measures can be introduced to reduce flood risk.

Longer Term

  • Deliver a Flood Mitigation and Water Storage Scheme upstream that can significantly reduce flood risk
  • Deliver legislative changes and reform in the House to better empower local communities so that they can protect themselves from flooding, while also holding developers to account when new housing exacerbates local problems.

Rest assured, I will keep working tirelessly on this issue.

To stay up to date, please visit my flooding campaign page here.

UPDATE 4 December 2023

Over 100 homes in Attleborough were flooded in Storm Babet at the end of October.

We cannot allow this to happen again. Local residents (for some of which the recent flooding was the fourth time they had been impacted) are rightly furious.

That’s why earlier today, as part of my ongoing campaign (and having recently reconvened the Mid Norfolk Flood Partnership that I established back in early 2021 – see here), I met with Norfolk County Council’s Flood and Water Management team, the Norfolk Strategic Flooding Alliance and representatives for some of the landowners upstream of the Mill Lane culvert and watercourse.

It’s clear that that we need a proper long term strategic plan that addresses problem watercourse pinch points AND looks to better control the flow of water downstream during heavy rainfall events. While some positive progress is already being made at the Mill Lane culvert itself (as explained in my previous Attleborough Flooding campaign update here), today’s call focused on what can be done further upstream – and I am committed to actively supporting NCC/the NSFA and partners as they work with landowners and other agencies to explore what flood mitigation and water storage scheme measures might work best for Attleborough.

To see all of my recent work supporting Attleborough residents, please click here or see below.

For full details on all of my flooding campaign work, please visit my website here.

UDPATE 29 November 2023

Attleborough was one of several Mid Norfolk communities badly impacted by recent flooding.

That’s why, as part of my ongoing campaign, I visited Mill Lane with Cllrs Samantha and Taila Taylor this past Friday to see the problem culvert/watercourse first hand and meet with some of the worst affected residents.

Please see my video above.

Local residents (for some of which the recent flooding was the fourth time they had been impacted) are rightly furious – and I continue to hold the key stakeholders to account to ensure everything that can be done is indeed being done to provide affected residents with the support they need, as well as to put in place a short, medium and long term plan that looks to try and prevent future such flooding again in future.

Some positive progress is already being made (as explained in my previous Attleborough Flooding campaign update here), but there still remains much more to do.

That’s why, as highlighted in my recent update here, I recently reconvened the Mid Norfolk Flood Partnership to give our communities the strongest possible voice on these issues. Attleborough had strong representation on that call and I am determined to do everything I can, alongside local councillors, to ensure residents like those on Mill Lane and surrounding streets are heard.

I will be involved in more meetings in the coming days and am also writing to ministers and officials in Westminster to re-emphasise again the need to put greater emphasis on flooding and drainage matters in the planning process – including putting increased responsibility on developers who’s developments subsequently flood and/or impact the existing community.

To stay up to date with all my work on these issues, please visit my Flooding campaign page here.

UPDATE 3 November 2023

Further to my webstory update last week (see here), I can now provide more information on the work being done by multiple parties to address the terrible flooding that has recently affected many households and businesses in Attleborough. 

On Monday, the Town Council and local district and county councillors held a public meeting in the town for local residents to speak with key stakeholders. The event was well attended and I am pleased to report that stakeholders have been following up on a number of the points and concerns raised – with additional site visits undertaken to the culvert and watercourse on Mill Lane (as well as the culvert in Briar Gardens). Meetings with developers to assess drainage on their building sites have also taken place and I am aware that a series of additional measures, along with further clearing of drains and ditches, are already being implemented – with anecdotal reports of additional blockages being addressed. I will continue to monitor progress closely.

Further to the emergency meeting I held last week (see here), an urgent meeting took place on Tuesday between Norfolk County Council, the Norfolk Strategic Flooding Alliance, Breckland Council and Anglian Water to discuss in greater depth the specific issues that caused flooding at the Mill Lane culvert and connected watercourse. 

As many are aware, the culvert and watercourse were divested to riparian ownership many years ago. While that question of who will take on the long term ownership remains (and rest assured that I continue to push very hard on that and have challenged all stakeholders to work collaboratively to develop a proper strategic plan and solution for the issue), I welcome the collective recognition that something needs to be done as soon as possible, with agreement that the inadequate and unsafe trash screen that caused many of the recent problemsneeds to be replaced.

On a without prejudice basis (of who will assume long term responsibility for the culvert and watercourse) and as a gesture of goodwill, Anglian Water have agreed to have their contractors assess the trash screen and culvert and work up the design for a much safer, more effective replacement. All stakeholders will then jointly fund the improved screen and Anglian Water will install it.

In the meantime (and again on a without prejudice basis and as a gesture of goodwill), Anglian Water will endeavour to send staff every couple of weeks to keep the existing trash screen clear. (Breckland, NCC and Anglian Water are also discussing a longer term plan for removing any debris collected from the culvert and watercourse)

I would like to reiterate however that I will keep on the critical question of who will assume the long term responsibility and ownership of the culvert and watercourse – and am already liaising with the key stakeholders on the date for a follow-up meeting to discuss that matter further.

NCC have also confirmed that the gulleys around Mill Lane have been cleared (with additional review taking place of gulleys on surrounding streets) and I understand that an assessment is taking place as to whether the trash screen at the Briar Gardens culvert should be removed. 

A full flood investigation is now being led by NCC in line with their statutory processes. Although their Flood and Water Management team had already been working on proposals to better mitigate flooding in this area (as a result of the December 23rd-24th 2020 flooding event), there is recognition that their Flood Plan for the area, and its associated work, now needs accelerating and upscaling. I have committed to supporting NCC as they seek to secure the additional funding required to implement any recommended measures, as well as to engage with key local landowners.

I am also in the process of reconvening the Mid Norfolk Flood Partnership I previously established – and will ensure Attleborough is represented in those vital conversations.

Rest assured, I am determined to do everything I can to speak up for those affected in Attleborough, as well as those across Mid Norfolk.

UPDATE 25 October 2023

Storm Babet has reminded us again why we must continue to take flooding seriously.

Attleborough was one of several Mid Norfolk communities badly impacted, with severe flooding on Mill Lane, Norwich Road, Ferguson Way and other nearby streets. For some, it was the fourth time they had been flooded in 30 years – and the second time in just under three years. I appreciate, and share, the immense anger and frustration felt by those that have been forced to leave their homes as a result of the damage suffered this past weekend.

That’s why I held an emergency meeting today with Norfolk County Council and their Norfolk Strategic Flooding Alliance, Anglian Water and Breckland District Council to get to the bottom of what is causing the flooding at the watercourse and culvert on Mill Lane, as well as ensure that those with statutory flooding responsibilities come together and develop an urgent action plan.

While NCC began working on proposals to address flooding at this location in light of the December 2020 flooding, Storm Babet has brought into sharper focus the need to upscale and accelerate those proposals, and address other issues such as questions around which authority is responsible for the culvert and watercourse and therefore who should be maintaining them.

I had made clear that there needs to be:

  1. A proper plan for ensuring affected residents (and the wider community) are protected from further flooding this winter.
  2. An acceleration and upscaling of efforts to put in place a long term solution.
  3. A proper plan for who is going to be responsible for this culvert and watercourse in due course.
  4. Agreement on who is going to keep the culvert and watercourse clear NOW – while the longer term plan is being developed and implemented.

I am in close contact with local district councillors and a number of those worst affected by the flooding and am determined to help them work with key stakeholders to develop a solution.

We must see action. This must not be allowed to happen again. And residents should not be risking their own safety to try and keep this culvert clear during storms and heavy rainfall.

More widely, I will be reconvening the Mid Norfolk Flood Partnership I established as a result of the Winter 2020/21 flooding to help support those affected by Storm Babet and ensure our communities have the strongest possible voice heading into this autumn/winter.

Rest assured, I will continue to support councillors and residents in the days, weeks and months ahead.

To see my Flooding Update earlier this week, please click here

To find out more about my historic campaign work on flooding, please visit my campaign page here

17 January 2024
Accountability on the Horizon Scandal

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The Sub-Postmasters Bill must make adequate provision for serious critical prosecution, prison sentences and fines for those who actively conspired in:

  • False Prosecution of innocent sub-postmasters
  • Fraudulent receipt of monies
  • The Cover Up

Rest assured, I will continue to speak up for Mid Norfolk on this crucial issue.

(See more on my ‘Fighting For Our Local Post Offices’ campaign page here)

16 January 2024
A47 – Making Our Roads Fit For The 21st Century

Connectivity is vital for rural counties like our own. Without it, businesses and households are held back and unable to unlock their full potential – with access to vital public services and jobs much more difficult and prosperity stymied.

That’s why, throughout my time as local MP, I have campaigned hard to secure better road and rail infrastructure (see my detailed campaign pages here and here) – and why, as part of that work, I continue to be a strong advocate for dualling the A47.

Back in September, I wrote a piece in the Dereham Times (see here – and below) explaining why we must get on and deliver long promised A47 improvements (including the dualling of the stretch between North Tuddenham-Easton and the Thickthorn Roundabout redesign) – making clear my belief that the latest legal challenge of Dr Andrew Boswell was against the best interests of our great county and its communities.

I firmly stand by those comments now – and am disappointed to see Dr Boswell’s campaign is being supported by eco-activists and environmentalists in London and the South who don’t have to live with the daily nightmare of A47 traffic jams, rat-running and accidents like TV presenter Chris Packham and Chair of the Climate Crisis Advisory Group Sir David King.

Each legal challenge delays these vital improvements further, while driving up costs and wasting taxpayers’ valuable money.

While I’m not a blind advocate of mass road building and fully recognise the importance of tackling climate change and the need also to improve alternative transport such as rail, cycling and walking, there is no doubt in my mind that A47 dualling is a longstanding requirement for the people of Norfolk – one we need to get on and deliver.

We must not allow eco-activists from London and the South to block these key infrastructure improvements.

Instead, as I outlined in my Dereham Times article, the A47 improvements must be embraced as part of a broader vision for our area that focusses on sustainable development done “The Norfolk Way”, attracting the growth and prosperity our communities need while also using proper planning to build in the cleaner, greener, healthier model of life that we all want to see.

Rest assured, I remain committed to working with the A47 Alliance, fellow Eastern MPs and other partners to fight for the delivery of these A47 improvements as soon as possible.

By prioritising 21st century transport and cycle routes alongside road improvement works, properly planning housing development so that area does not become a concrete barrier of short term house dumping, and continuing to pioneer the incredible innovation already underway locally at the likes of the Norwich Research Park, Hethel Engineering Centre and Hingham Business Park on things like land management, conservation and habitat enhancement, we can generate local prosperity, create high-skilled jobs and improve the quality of life of us all, while also working to ensure our beautiful county remains a place in which people want to live, work and visit.

We can have both. We don’t have to choose.

I will be following the ongoing High Court hearing relating to Dr Boswell’s legal challenge closely.

To learn more on my work to improve the A47 (including to secure full dualling of the A47 from East to West), please visit my ‘Making Our Roads Fit For the 21st Century’ campaign page here.

15 January 2024
Fighting For Our Local Post Offices

Our local post offices play a crucial role in our Mid Norfolk towns and villages. They are a hub in so many of our communities, bringing people together and providing vital services to households and businesses – services particularly depended upon by our most vulnerable and elderly. The importance of the service our local branches provide in a rural area like ours cannot be overstated.

That’s why I’ve always been a vocal supporter of, and campaigner for, our rural post office branches – and why I continue to advocate on their behalf and the communities that depend upon them.

Upon becoming the parliamentary candidate for Mid Norfolk in 2007, I first became aware of the Post Office Horizon Software Scandal – when several sub-postmasters contacted me for support. Ever since then, I have followed the situation closely and supported those living in Mid Norfolk who were affected – meeting them at constituency surgeries, making representations to ministers and raising their concerns in the House and as a Minister. (More details on this work can be found here)

Over the years, I’ve also done everything I can to speak up and lobby for the continued presence of local post office branches too – fighting for communities in the likes of Gressenhall, Beeston and Rocklands. Together, we’ve saved several vital rural branches – and ensured new premises could be found when High Street branches (such as the one in Watton) were set to close.

There always remains much more to do however. I remain committed to doing everything I can to protect these crucial services.

To learn about the work I have done to support our post offices and local communities over the years, visit my campaign page here.

15 January 2024
Supporting Market Town Success – Future Breckland Board

All of our market towns face the familiar challenge of balancing new growth and development with the needs of the communities living in, and around, them – all the while preserving the unique rural heritage and way of life that we all cherish, and that makes our part of the world such an attractive place to visit.

That’s why, alongside my support for Breckland Council’s ‘Future Breckland Plan’ initiative (see more here and here), I was pleased to be involved in the latest ‘Future Breckland Board’ meeting today – hearing more from NCC about how the County Deal could see additional funding and support available to compliment the Future Breckland initiative, as well as similar initiatives being run by other district councils across the county.

I am delighted to continue playing my part in the conversation and look forward to supporting Breckland as they look to maximise the potential benefits these opportunities could provide. I also remain committed to driving forward my other campaigns and projects in each of our Breckland Market Towns – some of which includes:

  • ‘A Dereham Plan for Dereham People’ – Helping local stakeholders to develop a locally led Partnership that can support Breckland Council’s ‘Future Breckland Plan’ work for the town and help deliver its recommendations, while also pushing for other town improvements – particularly around the town centre (see more here)
  • Watton Community Banking Hub – Building on the fantastic progress to date (with a temporary hub now open) to get the Community Banking Hub into its permanent home on the Watton High Street (see more here)
  • Supporting Nationwide’s Banking Bill – Working with Nationwide and fellow rural MPs to support a Bill in the House that will enable providers, such as Nationwide, to provide more High Street services. With Nationwide the only provider currently committed to keeping local branches open, this Bill would be a gamechanger for those that rely on local banking services – especially the vulnerable, elderly and small businesses – and for Dereham and Attleborough High Streets (see more here)
  • Watton Digital and Creative Media Centre – Supporting the Wayland Chamber and Breckland Council as they work hard to develop a fantastic facility right on the Watton High Street that can boost local skills, provide recreation and give local businesses additional support
  • ATTCARE – Working with the ATTCARE team of volunteers to hold key stakeholders to account and ensure that, within the overall Town Plan, there is a proper plan to ensure the town has the health and social care provision it needs NOW, and as further development comes in the years to come (see here)
  • Attleborough High Street Post Office – Working with local councillors to push Post Office Ltd again to look for a suitable new location for a High Street Post Office branch in the town
  • Fair Funding Relief for Rural Areas – Launching a campaign to push the Chancellor and Treasury to go further to help hard-hit local businesses and self-employed who are the backbone of the long term prosperity of our High Streets and rural communities (see here)

…and more!

I look forward to continuing this vital work with local councillors, businesses, community groups and many others as we all look to ensure Breckland remains a thriving and vibrant place to live and work in, as well as visit.

To stay up to date on all of this work, please do regularly check my website for further updates.

15 January 2024
3 days to go! – Watton Neighbourhood Plan Referendum – HAVE YOUR SAY!

Building enough houses to make sure everyone in our area has the chance for a roof of their own, while also making sure we protect and enhance our rural landscape and way of community life is often a difficult balance.

That’s why I’ve long been a strong advocate of Localism and the importance of giving local communities and councils a greater say in how they grow and develop in the years to come – and why, throughout my time as local MP, I’ve supported many Mid Norfolk towns and villages as they go about developing their own Neighbourhood Plans.

Over the years, I have actively supported and encouraged Watton Town Council and the Neighbourhood Plan Steering Group as they have set about developing their own Neighbourhood Plan (meeting with members and attending the first public events way back in 2017 as I helped get the efforts underway – see here).

I am therefore delighted that the final draft Plan (the product of countless hours of hard work by the Steering Group, as well as considerable consultation feedback from local residents, businesses and other key community stakeholders) is now going to Referendum on Thursday 18th January 2024.

If YOU are based in Watton, please do take the time to have your say. The Referendum is a key part of the Neighbourhood Plan process and it’s vital local residents take the time to go along, vote and ensure their views are heard.

The Plan can be viewed in full on the Breckland website here (and below by clicking on the image).

I very much look forward to hearing the Referendum’s outcome. In the meantime, to stay up to date with all of my work on ‘Planning and Protecting Our Rural Landscapes and Heritage’, please visit my website here.

Watton Neighbourhood Plan