Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Emma Hardy

Thursday 4th June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Does the Minister want to respond?

[Emma Hardy]

Further to that point of order, Mr Speaker. May I take this opportunity to apologise to the right hon. Gentleman for the lack of response? I will follow it up immediately with the Department. I am happy to meet him personally and will ensure that this happens within the next couple of weeks. I am sorry for the lack of response, which is not acceptable. We will make changes to put it right.

[Mr Speaker]

That completes questions to the Secretary of State.

Before we come to questions to the Solicitor General, I note that the Fordingbridge rape cases have been referred to the Court of Appeal. The matter is therefore sub judice. I am granting a limited waiver so that the case can be discussed, but Members should not speculate about sentencing issues, and they should not criticise judges, except on a substantive motion.

South East Water: Disruption of Supply

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Emma Hardy

Wednesday 3rd June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Emma Hardy]

I share the right hon. Gentleman’s outrage at the situation. He is quite right to say that one of the answers is the reservoir, which will take a long time to build, but this is not just about the reservoir. It is also about desalination plants, and the need for more urgent action to tackle leakage; too much water is lost through leakage. Across Government, we are looking at building standards for new homes and at how we can make homes more water-efficient, because this is a big problem. I hope that I can offer the right hon. Gentleman some reassurance by telling him that the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority has been doing some mapping to identify areas of the country that have more acute water shortage problems and what we need to resolve them.

I asked the company, “What are the actions you can take now?” There is no excuse for poor communication; that is something it can fix overnight. It can also improve its relationship with the local resilience forum. That does not cost any money. It can look at its bulk supply deal with Southern Water—that is another action it can take. It can accelerate its work on leakage reduction—that is another action it can take. Fundamentally, though, the right hon. Gentleman is quite right: the answer is building reservoirs and having greater water storage across our country. Quite frankly, I think it is that we have a situation where we complain about the drought all through the summer and complain about the rain all through the winter, yet have no way of storing that water. I am urgently trying to change that.

[Mr Speaker]

I remind everybody that this urgent question is about South East Water, not other water companies. I am sure that all questions will be linked to that subject.

--- Later in debate ---

[Emma Hardy]

I share my hon. Friend’s outrage at the situation. He has been a fantastic champion for his constituents in raising this matter with me a number of times. On the immediate action that South East Water can take, we have said to the company that it needs to be prepared for future hot weather during the summer. What is its resilience plan, what actions will it take and where can it identify immediate actions to take? The longer-term solution is greater water storage. Fundamentally, this company is a water-only company. It has one job—that is all—and that job is to supply water, and it is, quite frankly, astonishing that it is failing to do that at the moment.

My hon. Friend will be aware that South East Water is under investigation by Ofwat and the Drinking Water Inspectorate as to whether, because of its recent credit downgrade, its licence conditions have been broken—so serious actions are being taken against the company. I will, of course, update the House as soon as I hear more about the actions it will be taking in the immediate short term. I should also say that the CEO has offered his resignation and the chair has already resigned. There is an interim chair, and the CEO is currently there while the organisation looks to replace him.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

--- Later in debate ---

[Emma Hardy]

My hon. Friend makes a powerful point. As the White Paper set out:

“Where a water company might want to transition to a new ownership model, such as a not-for-profit, the regulator will develop a transparent process to assess whether a water company’s requested move to a new model should go ahead”.

We are looking at developing a transparent process, if that is something that the water company might want to consider.

My hon. Friend is absolutely right about increasing the customer voice. On day one when this Government came to power we announced new consumer boards for water companies. The Consumer Council for Water has covered the entire country, gathering together different people for customer panels. It has already held a customer panel in the South East Water area, so that customers can hold water company bosses to account—it works very much like a Select Committee hearing. I will share the report from that panel with the House. It is interesting that the No. 1 issue that came up for the water company to tackle was the lack of adequate communication. That does not require millions or billions of pounds spent on a reservoir—it just requires competence.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Emma Hardy

Thursday 5th February 2026 Commons Chamber

[Emma Hardy]

I join my hon. Friend in paying tribute to the fantastic work of the internal drainage boards in managing water levels, reducing flood risks and supporting communities, businesses and farmers alike. Of course, we are working hard on our statutory instrument. I am sorry that I cannot give him an exact date, but I can guarantee that it is something I am committed to doing.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.

Water Supplies: East Grinstead

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Emma Hardy

Monday 12th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Emma Hardy]

I thank my hon. Friend for the leadership that she showed in her constituency during the Christmas period. We had all hoped to have some time off, but she had to reopen her office to communicate with residents. She is right to say that we need to learn lessons. What frustrates me more than many other things is the fact that the same problems are being caused by the same companies when it comes to communicating clearly and adequately with residents and ensuring that they know who their vulnerable customers are. I want our forthcoming White Paper to consider whether we have all the powers that we need, but, as I have said, the Drinking Water Inspectorate will be conducting its own investigation of what happened in Tunbridge Wells over Christmas and what is happening currently, and I do not want to get ahead of that.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Emma Hardy

Thursday 13th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Emma Hardy]

I thank my hon. and learned Friend for the kind offer, although I might not take him up on an outdoor swim in November or December. This is a really important issue. We have pledged to halve sewage pollution by 2030 and bathing water sites are being prioritised for upgrades because we recognise how important they are for health, leisure and tourism. My hon. and learned Friend will be pleased to know that the local Environment Agency area director has agreed to meet him on this matter urgently; of course, I will be happy to meet him too.

[Mr Speaker]

Now for somebody who will take up the offer of a swim—Sir Roger Gale.

--- Later in debate ---

[Adam Thompson (Erewash) (Lab)]

T4. Much of Erewash is on a floodplain, so the Flood Re scheme is an enormous help to my constituents, particularly those who were catastrophically affected by Storm Babet in 2023. However, local businesses have told me that there is no similar scheme to support their properties. What steps is the Minister taking to support businesses that are struggling after severe flooding episodes?

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Emma Hardy)]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising that important issue. I share his concern about the ability of local businesses to recover from flood events. The Government are investing £10.5 billion to better protect 900,000 properties around the country. The flood resilience taskforce will look into what more can be done to support homes and businesses during the recovery period after flooding.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Emma Hardy

Thursday 4th September 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Minister, that is a tough one.

[Emma Hardy]

Unsurprisingly, I could not agree more. I thank my hon. Friend for his work to champion his community here in Parliament. The previous Government oversaw record levels of sewage pollution in our rivers, lakes and seas, but this Government have secured £104 billion of private investment to upgrade crumbling pipes and halve sewage pollution by 2030, so that communities can once again take pride in their rivers, lakes and seas.

[Ellie Chowns (North Herefordshire) (Green)]

As I have reminded Ministers on a number of occasions, tackling pollution in our rivers and seas requires us to address agricultural pollution as well as sewage pollution. I am disappointed not to hear the Minister mention that, but I like to come with solutions. I recently visited the Wyescapes landscape recovery project in my constituency, which is an innovative farmer-led project of 49 farmers protecting soil, reducing pollution, restoring nature and producing great-quality food. Will the Minister, or perhaps her colleague the Farming Minister, come to visit this innovative project to see how we can tackle river pollution and protect nature and food production?

[Mr Speaker]

Another Adjournment debate needed.

[Emma Hardy]

The hon. Lady raises a really important point. Agricultural pollution is incredibly serious, and this Government recognise that. We have updated the DEFRA statutory guidance for the farming rules for water, and I recently hosted a roundtable with farmers, environmental organisations and the water industry to bring the voices of stakeholders to the fore. We have committed to including a new regional element in the new regulator to ensure greater involvement in water planning. By moving to a catchment-based model for water systems planning, we can tackle all sources of pollution entering the waterways, including agricultural pollution.

I have a very keen interest in the River Wye; I went to see it last year, and it is absolutely beautiful. The hon. Lady will be well aware of the research project with £1 million of funding that we announced to look into all sources of pollution and what we can do to clean up this beautiful place in our country.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Emma Hardy

Thursday 19th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Emma Hardy)]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising this important issue. The Government are, of course, strongly committed to ensuring a high level of protection for human health and the environment. I am aware that the Environment Agency is investigating this matter, so I would be happy to meet my hon. Friend to discuss it in detail.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Emma Hardy

Thursday 8th May 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I am sure they have got a meeting already.

[Emma Hardy]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising this important issue, and I am sorry to hear about the issues his constituents are facing with flooding—I know at first hand how disruptive and awful flooding can be. As I am sure he knows, flooding is a devolved matter in Wales, but I would of course be happy to work with him and to facilitate the meeting that he requested.

[Emma Hardy]

The hon. Gentleman raises an important point. Of course, the national planning policy framework is clear that where development in areas at risk of flooding is necessary, local planning authorities and developers should ensure that the development is appropriately flood resilient and resistant, safe for the development’s lifetime and, importantly, will not increase flood risk elsewhere. We are also looking at other measures, such as sustainable urban drainage systems, to be included in planning as well.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Emma Hardy

Thursday 6th February 2025 Commons Chamber

[Emma Hardy]

I think I will be getting a lot of questions like this today, Mr Speaker. We will announce where the 31 projects will be by the end of March. We will also be looking at where we have had to put money into maintenance and upgrading defences. We were left with flood defences in their worst state on record because of a complete dereliction of duty by the previous Government, so we have had to prioritise maintenance as well as building new defences, but I am hoping that the hon. Gentleman will not have to wait too long.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the Chair of the Environmental Audit Committee.

--- Later in debate ---

[Emma Hardy]

My hon. Friend makes a persuasive case, as she has done at every oral question time we have had so far. She is right to highlight the fact that not only did the previous Government leave our defences in the worst state on record, but they failed to spend some of the money that had been allocated. This Government are having to deal with that, along with the many other issues we are cleaning up.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Emma Hardy

Thursday 14th November 2024 Commons Chamber

[Emma Hardy]

It is always a pleasure to work with my hon. Friend, and I know how passionately and well he campaigned for his community during the last floods, and how deeply the situation moved him. Of course I would be more than happy to continue to work with him.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the Chair of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and Emma Hardy

Thursday 12th September 2024 Commons Chamber

[Emma Hardy]

Those sound like wonderful farms to visit—I might even be tempted to pop in and see them myself. Our farming Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Cambridge (Daniel Zeichner), has done an incredible job, going up and down the country visiting many farmers and talking to stakeholders. As I am sure the hon. Lady will understand, anything involving the Budget is part of the spending review process, and answers will be given in due course.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Secretary of State.

--- Later in debate ---

[Emma Hardy]

I thank the hon. Lady—dare I say, my hon. Friend—for her question. Yes, it is good to remind ourselves that this is the time of harvest, when we should all be grateful and give thanks. In answer to her question, as a previous Chair of the Treasury Committee she knows that we cannot make comments on the Budget before it comes through. Like the Secretary of State, I do not wish to be in trouble with the Chancellor either.

[Mr Speaker]

Right, we come to Mike Amesbury—let us see if he gets in trouble.