UK-EU Customs Union

Lord Doyle Excerpts

Thursday 29th January 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Doyle (Lab) (Maiden Speech)]

My Lords, I rise for my maiden speech with a real sense of the responsibility that comes with joining a body so rich in experience, expertise and public service as your Lordships’ House. I thank Black Rod, the indefatigable doorkeepers, the police and security officers, the clerks and officials and everyone who has made me feel so welcome. I also thank my noble friends Lady Armstrong of Hill Top and Lord Liddell for their support and guidance, not only at my introduction but over many years, and I pay tribute to my fellow maiden speakers today.

I am profoundly grateful that my parents are here today. When I say that I would not be here without them, I do not just mean that scientifically. They taught me so much, above all that every single individual can make a difference, and when you are born into that way of being, it really is a gift. I also remember my sister Catherine, who we lost more than 30 years ago; we still miss her every single day. Catherine was born with Down syndrome and, although she did not live to see it, the progress that has been made in healthcare and opportunities and visibility for people living with Down really has been wonderful to witness.

My journey here began at the University of East Anglia, where I joined the Labour Club and met an inspiring dean of biology, Dr Ian Gibson, who was Labour’s candidate for Norwich North. One day, they asked for a volunteer press officer: cue awkward shoe-gazing around me, and then suddenly I found my hand in the air. Little did I know that I would spend the next three decades at the intersection of politics, media and public service. I may have worked for some famous names in that time, but the real privilege I have had has been helping to tell the stories of those who have been left out and left behind, both at home and abroad. I pay tribute to and thank all the colleagues I have worked with over those years, many of whom are now here in this House, including my noble friends Lord Kennedy of Southwark and Lady Smith of Basildon, who I thank for all their guidance and support thus far.

I also want to remember two former Members of this House in particular: Lord Gould of Brookwood and Baroness McDonagh, both of whom were remarkable inspirations for me.

I chose Great Barford for my introduction. It is where my sister and I were born. This is an exciting time for Bedfordshire, with East West Rail, the new Universal Studios theme park and, at Tempsford, a new town. I intend to champion these projects and more, because Britain needs to stop prevaricating and start building. Growth is not an abstract theory but an expression of our responsibility to future generations.

One of the privileges I had growing up in Bedfordshire was a fantastic free county youth music programme. The inspiring teaching gave me opportunities I could never have imagined, including the chance to sing at the Royal Albert Hall. Fortunately for the audience, I sang with several other hundred young people as well. But somewhere along the way, we seem to have lost the consensus that the arts, music, film, theatre and dance matter as an essential means of developing confident, creative and capable citizens. I very much hope that the Government’s curriculum review will mark a decisive turning point in rebuilding a shared understanding that creativity, culture and learning are key to what makes life worth living, as well as essential drivers of our national success.

It is my belief in the creative industries that made me so keen to make my maiden speech in this debate on our relations with Europe. There is much we can do to reduce self-defeating barriers post-Brexit. Take the example of touring artists and crews. For them, those barriers are not an abstract concept but lost work, lost income and lost opportunity. This does not have to be our reality. Let us fix the visa waiver programme, flex the 90-day rule for those touring and cut the costs to make moving equipment less expensive, which has also done such harm to our haulage industry. As Sir Elton John put it:

“It’s heartbreaking to see the hopes of Britain’s next generation of creative talent downtrodden and destroyed by bureaucracy and red tape”.


When I nervously collected my first parliamentary pass almost 30 years ago, I could not possibly have imagined that one day I would stand here as a Member of your Lordships’ House. I have learned so much over my career, but I have never lost sight of that simple lesson my parents taught me: that change is made by people and that the world does not improve by chance. Government matters because it gives individual effort collective backing. It allows values to be translated into action and hope into reality. As we consider our future relationship with Europe, we must recommit ourselves to the values we share: dignity, respect, democracy and the rule of law. Because even in these times—especially in these times—I believe that when we choose purpose over complacency and co-operation over conflict, progress is possible.