Having grown up on my stepdad’s farm and previously worked as Parliamentary Officer for the NFU, I have always had a strong connection with our agricultural industries and the environment. Farming and all of its associated sectors play a key role in not only our Norfolk (and wider Eastern) economy, but also in the preservation and enhancement of our beautiful rural landscapes and way of life.

That’s why I have always strived to speak up for the sector, promote British standards and encourage a greener, cleaner, healthier society and model of life.

To keep up to date with all my work in this area, please visit my campaign page here.

George Freeman highlights the post-Brexit opportunity to liberate our entrepreneurs and our innovators from bureaucratic red tape. He also highlights the opportunity to strengthen the UK with innovation clusters in nutraceuticals, functional foods, satellites, robotics and AI around the country, including in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, and the need to use our aid, trade and security to fly the flag for the best food, AI and technology, and to make Britain a global hub of innovation.

George Freeman (Mid Norfolk) (Con)

I welcome the generalissimo to his place on the Front Bench. May I say what a pleasure it is to have been part of this project and to put on record our thanks to the civil servants in the Cabinet Office, led magnificently by Will Hayter? The team did a huge amount of work for us. Does my right hon. and learned Friend agree that there are three big messages from this? First, those who have insisted that there is not regulatory dividend from Brexit, other than rushing to the bottom and slashing standards, could not be more wrong. The approach we have set out here is that, liberated from an inevitably bureaucratic and slow-moving European framework, Britain can lead in setting the standards in clinical trials, AI and other fast-emerging sectors. I say that as a former Minister with responsibility for life sciences and the future of transport, and a former remainer. If we are going to go through this, as we are, let us make it an opportunity where we liberate our entrepreneurs and our innovators.

Secondly, does my right hon. and learned Friend agree that, crucially, there is a big message for levelling up? If we unlock those new sectors, it is not all about growth in Cambridge and Oxford. In nutraceuticals, functional foods, satellites, robotics and AI there are clusters around the country, including in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales. That strengthens the United Kingdom as a centre of innovation.

Thirdly, does my right hon. and learned Friend agree that, crucially, we need to make sure that this links to international trade; Britain putting in variable tariffs around our standards so that we use our aid, trade and security to fly the flag for the best food, AI and technology, and to make Britain a global hub of innovation?

Michael Ellis (The Paymaster General)

My hon. Friend could not be more right, if I can put it that way. Those who were naysayers and gainsayers, those who were so relentlessly negative, are clearly wrong. They now know they are in the wrong. They were saying that nothing could be done to improve this country’s position post Brexit. That is clearly wrong. Britain can lead the world. It is leading the world in many areas and will continue to do so under this Government. We are liberated and we are continuing to liberate our industries, trade and services from the shackles of bureaucracy. We will continue to do that, while at the same time, as he ably says, levelling up the whole of this country.

Hansard

One of my central missions since becoming an MP back in 2010 has been campaigning for the improvement of Norfolk’s infrastructure so as to ensure we can ‘Level Up’, ‘Build Back Better’ post-Covid and unlock our true economic potential. I was proud therefore when, alongside other Norfolk MPs and the A47 Alliance, we were able to secure the £300 million of funding for the dualling of the North Tuddenham-Easton stretch of the A47, for which construction is set to begin next year.

There is much work still to be done however, and I continue to work with partners to make the case for the full-dualling of the A47. Proper 21st century road infrastructure would not only improve road safety by widening unsafe single-carriage roads, but also foster economic growth by providing our residents with quick links to jobs in the growing green economy, and by opening up own innovative businesses and institutions, like the Norwich Research Park.

That’s why I was delighted to attend Baroness Vere’s RIS3 briefing for MPs today – at which the Government set out how it will determine its strategic vision and priorities for the country’s road network over the period 2025-2030, and outlining what objectives their multi-year investment plan will achieve.

Rest assured, I will continue to fight for the modern transport links that are vital for our region’s economic prosperity.

How do we help SMEs and households make Net Zero a reality?

This is the question that the Norfolk Mag 7 group of entrepreneurs that I helped pull together are looking to answer.

That’s why I was delighted to bring Andrew Griffith MP, the Government’s Net Zero Business Champion, to meet the Mag 7 earlier this week and hear more about their vision for a ‘New Anglia Net Zero Pathfinder’.

The team have been busy working on proposals (aimed at helping not only their own sectors achieve Net Zero, but also everyday people and SMEs in general) and pitched their belief that the Road to Net Zero, while crucial if we are to address climate change and protect the environment, could also deliver strong and sustainable economic growth in the East – helping the region to ‘Level Up’ and ‘Build Back Better’ post-Covid.

Among the group’s proposals are a major study to gather the necessary data and identify the biggest Net Zero challenges and to help understand how best to address them – as well as initiatives to better educate us all on the small steps that we take each day that collectively make such a big difference.

I forward to continuing to support the Mag 7 team, and am delighted that Andrew saw so much promise in their work. Together, we hope to secure Government ‘Net Zero Pathfinder’ status for the project – which would help us drive to forward and help thousands of people move further along the Road to Net Zero.

I am proud to be supporting such an innovative and hard-working team of entrepreneurs, and will provide further updates in the weeks and months to come.

With a family background in farming and having experience as a Parliamentary Officer of the NFU, I know just how important it is for our farmers’ concerns to be heard locally and in Westminster. In the face of global climate change, it is vital to maintain open lines of communication with this hugely important sector in order to maintain the quality of our food and the productivity of the sector.

That’s why I was delighted to meet with local NFU representatives on Friday to talk all things farming. Our discussion ranged from issues about water usage rights and public rights of way, to more general concerns about the environment and the labour market.

My next step will be to ensure their voices and concerns are heard by Ministers and officials in Westminster, and I look forward to following up with them in the weeks and months ahead.

Rest assured, I will continue to fight for East Anglian farming here in Norfolk, and in Westminster.

Farming, food processing and haulage are three of the biggest sectors in Mid Norfolk and East Anglia as a whole.

That’s why I was keen to raise recent concerns about significant labour shortages in the pork and poultry sector to the Secretary of State for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, on behalf of Cranswick Country Foods and other local employers.

The sectors have seen a continued decline in their labour force since the end of June, with some businesses currently reporting 10-15% vacancies despite their efforts to make these jobs more attractive to domestic workers. These staff shortages have serious repercussions for businesses’ profitability and animal welfare standards. Certain businesses have already reported a 15% fall in production and, with Christmas demand around the corner, it is vital that we re-correct this trend if we are to avoid winter food shortages and price rises.

Local NFU representatives have recently reiterated many of these concerns to me, and I will therefore be writing for a third time to Ministers, and bending their ears in the corridors of Parliament, to ensure these issues are addressed.

As the hardwork continues in Westminster to put pressure on Ministers, their officials and the likes of National Grid, National GridESO and OFGEM as we look to ensure an Offshore Transmission Network is delivered as swiftly and comprehensively as possible, so too does the hardwork locally to ensure the communities that may be most affected by the offshore windfarm proposals are properly compensated for hosting this Nationally Significant Infrastructure.

That’s why I welcomed the opportunity last week to host a meeting with representatives of Necton Parish Council and Vattenfall UK to highlight local concerns that community benefits and compensation may only be looked at in the round of the county, leaving those communities worst affected disproportionately acknowledged in the package of benefits that will eventually be developed.

I was pleased therefore that, while they are looking at what they can do to boost skills and economic growth countywide should their proposals for the Norfolk Vangaurd and Norfolk Boreas be granted permission, Vattenfall accepted the principle that the towns and villages most directly affected must receive substantial community benefits as compensation. I am now working with Necton Parish Council and Vattenfall to develop a model by which proper community feedback on community benefits can be collected from local businesses and residents, and which can be rolled out across the county .

Rest assured, I will continue to do all I can ensure Necton, and many of the surrounding villages that will also be affected should these proposals go ahead, gets the fairest possible deal for hosting this infrastructure.