Business of the House

Tessa Munt Excerpts

Thursday 29th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I think I can speak for everyone across the House in thanking Lord McFall for his service and commitment to both Houses. He was a fine Whip and Minister in government and a truly tremendous parliamentarian. Alongside my hon. Friend, I wish Lord McFall and his wife Joan all the best for what is to come.

[Tessa Munt (Wells and Mendip Hills) (LD)]

It has been raining hard in my constituency and across the west country generally. I pay tribute to Somerset council, North Somerset council, the internal drainage board and the Environment Agency for their work. The land, however, is saturated. If one were to put the water in Somerset and the little bit of North Somerset that I represent end to end, it would flow from mid Somerset to Singapore. It is 8,000 miles-worth of waterway. Will the Leader of the House please ask his colleague with responsibility for planning and housing to insist that new housing is not built on the floodplain, because when Flood Re finishes in a few years’ time residents will be left high and dry with their insurance but certainly not in their homes?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I join the hon. Lady in paying tribute to everyone involved in dealing with what is a traumatic situation. As I said, we do have a need to build houses, but we need to build them in the right place and build them safely, so I will draw her remarks to the attention of the relevant Minister.

Business of the House

Tessa Munt Excerpts

Thursday 22nd January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising this important issue. He is a very keen campaigner on behalf of his constituents. There is an opportunity to raise it directly with Ministers during question time on Monday or perhaps to seek an Adjournment debate on the matter. His local authority funding has increased by 8.1%, so it is important that local schools are prioritised. I will also ensure that the relevant Minister hears his concerns.

[Tessa Munt (Wells and Mendip Hills) (LD)]

Changes to income tax reporting from April mean that childminders need to claim tax relief on specific purchases, rather than the current 10% wear and tear allowance. Deanne, one of my local childminders, points out that wear and tear is a daily reality for the few professionals who face very young children in the stages of potty training, sickness, and learning to eat with a spoon and fork and drink with an open cup. Those clients can put carpets and furniture through their paces! Could the Leader of the House speak to his Treasury colleagues about reinstating the wear and tear allowance or introducing an alternative mechanism to recognise the real costs of providing home- based childcare?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

The hon. Lady raises a very important matter. I give her a commitment that I will speak to my colleagues in the Treasury to see what further support we can give to people working in that sector.

Business of the House

Tessa Munt Excerpts

Thursday 11th December 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

My hon. Friend is a champion for the issue of child poverty, and I commend her for that. I agree with her about the vital community work that organisations such as the Annexe, Drumchapel LIFE and Kingsway Community Connections, among others, do in her constituency and many others. It is more than disappointing that at the very time that this Government are publishing the child poverty strategy, the SNP Government should act in the way that they have done. As she rightly points out, we have provided the Scottish Government with a record funding settlement. They have nowhere to hide on these matters.

[Tessa Munt (Wells and Mendip Hills) (LD)]

My constituent Ben has a friend who is in HMP Stocken, and he tells me that family and friends have been banned from sending books into the prison for several months. Can the Leader of the House ask his colleagues in the Ministry of Justice about the guidelines? I understand that they say that friends and families can send or hand in books—which are checked by security staff—irrespective of whether or not there are exceptional circumstances. Will he ensure that the rules are followed in all prisons, particularly when prisoners want to occupy themselves in a peaceable way and want to learn?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I will certainly find out from the relevant Department what the circumstances might be at the prison. Of course, we would all want the guidelines to state that prisoners have access to books, but I am not sure what the individual circumstances might be at the prison. I am not going to comment any further on that, but I will draw it to the attention of Ministers.

Business of the House

Tessa Munt Excerpts

Thursday 20th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

Interfaith relations are vital for strong and cohesive communities. Last week was Inter Faith Week, which is a chance for communities to come together and celebrate different faiths and beliefs. I will ensure that Ministers hear my hon. Friend’s concerns and, of course, I am always happy to meet him.

[Tessa Munt (Wells and Mendip Hills) (LD)]

I would like to return to the listed places of worship scheme. Although departmental policy is to keep grant funding records for seven years, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport uses grant records only for the last three years, since 2022, as only that data is considered reliable. The Leader of the House will know that slots for Backbench Business debates are taken until the next King’s Speech, and there is a massive queue for Westminster Hall and Adjournment debates. However, in hope and endless optimism, may I ask him for a debate about financial record keeping? Neither the Secretary of State nor the Treasury can possibly assess the value, importance and impact of schemes like this if they have no idea where the money has gone, because record keeping is so poor, it is inaccurate, or the records have been lost.

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I accept that the list of Backbench Business debates is long, but Adjournment debates are chosen frequently, and I encourage colleagues to request them and see where they get. The hon. Lady might wish to raise Treasury matters in the Budget debate; she does not need to wait for an Adjournment debate.

Business of the House

Tessa Munt Excerpts

Thursday 13th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

This is an important issue and a concerning situation, and I will draw it to the attention of the Chief Secretary to the Treasury. My hon. Friend may get an opportunity to raise the issue during the Budget debate, for which there will be a lot of time.

[Tessa Munt (Wells and Mendip Hills) (LD)]

Some of my constituents have had valuable property stolen from their homes during viewings, and have come to discover that the so-called potential buyers or tenants were not who they purported to be. Estate agents usually check the financial readiness and capacity of potential buyers and tenants, but can we have a debate on the need for estate agents to verify the names and addresses of the people they introduce to new properties, regardless of whether they will be accompanied to a viewing by the agent, so we can stop this brass-necked daylight robbery?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

The Government are looking at the whole subject of buying and selling houses, and this issue may be an interesting part of that. The hon. Lady may wish to write to the Minister about it.

Business of the House

Tessa Munt Excerpts

Thursday 30th October 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I will ensure that the Department for Business and Trade have heard my hon. Friend’s remarks. She may wish to seek a Backbench Business debate, or indeed an Adjournment debate, so that she can raise those matters, because of course they have been discussed for a long time and are topical, and I am sure will be of interest across the Chamber.

[Tessa Munt (Wells and Mendip Hills) (LD)]

My constituent John appealed his business rate demand 13 months ago as the rateable value on his office is incorrect. He tells me that the business rate appeal is taking between a year and 18 months. Will the Leader of the House ask the relevant Minister to improve the check and challenge system to support businesses through what can be a real barrier to survival, let alone the growth that the Government desire?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I will draw that individual case to the attention of the relevant Minister. I remind the hon. Member that we are committed to wider business rate reform and will be pushing ahead with that.

Business of the House

Tessa Munt Excerpts

Thursday 23rd October 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

My hon. Friend is a strong advocate for his area and rightly puts this in the context of not just his constituents’ frustrations but the importance of economic growth. I suggest he seeks a Backbench Business debate or an Adjournment debate, so that he can raise the concerns directly with a Minister.

[Tessa Munt (Wells and Mendip Hills) (LD)]

The Chinook Justice Campaign presented a petition to Downing Street this week asking for transparency about the Mull of Kintyre crash in 1994. The Ministry of Defence at Boscombe Down grounded these Boeing Chinooks before the flight, but the special forces pilots were blamed by the RAF, only to be exonerated fully and given a posthumous apology by the Defence Secretary in 2011. Can the Leader of the House press the Defence Secretary, the Justice Secretary and the Victims Minister, the hon. Member for Pontypridd (Alex Davies-Jones), to have compassion and meet the families, so that they can finally gain an understanding of what happened all those years ago?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I will draw that to the attention of my right hon. Friends. This is a serious matter that needs a serious response. It is a devastating situation for the families, so I will draw that to the attention of my right hon. Friends, as the hon. Lady requests.

Business of the House

Tessa Munt Excerpts

Thursday 4th September 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I certainly join my hon. Friend in congratulating that collective in her constituency, and I am always happy to get an invitation to a hospitality venue. I am well aware of the challenges for the hospitality sector relating to rising costs, access to staff, still dealing with covid repayments and so on. That is why the Government are supporting hospitality by taking action on business rates and on skills as well as in many other ways. I am sure that would make a good topic for a debate.

[Tessa Munt (Wells and Mendip Hills) (LD)]

The Environment Agency has issued notice of its permanent withdrawal from main river maintenance to riparian owners in Somerset and North Somerset. The Leader of the House and Ministers in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs will recall the devastation caused by flooding in 2012, 2013 and 2014. Regular maintenance is essential to allow floodwater to escape from what is a man-made landscape in the Somerset levels and moors. Will she ask the DEFRA Secretary to insist that the Environment Agency rescinds its withdrawal notices until such a time as locally all the flood risk management groups, the internal drainage board, the South West Association of Drainage Authorities and every interested party has a chance at least to meet, discuss and plan a sustainable and funded solution for the future, and that, importantly, it carries on maintaining the main rivers in the meantime? Winter is coming, and rainfall with it.

[Lucy Powell]

This is about the third complaint about the Environment Agency in today’s session, so perhaps colleagues should get together to try and get a broader debate on those issues. We have announced the largest programme on flooding in history, and we have our flood resilience taskforce, but the hon. Lady is right to say that all partners need to play their part. I will ensure she receives a proper response.

Business of the House

Tessa Munt Excerpts

Thursday 10th July 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

Well what a fine job Douglas Forteath did! I am sure he is incredibly proud of the fact that one of his former pupils is now a Member of Parliament. I absolutely join my hon. Friend in thanking Douglas for a great life of service and for teaching all his wonderful students over the years.

[Tessa Munt (Wells and Mendip Hills) (LD)]

Three weeks ago I asked about the long overdue final delivery plan for ME, and the Leader of the House rightly acknowledged the strength of feeling on this issue and referenced the NHS 10-year plan. The 10-year plan has now been published, but unfortunately it makes absolutely no mention of ME. The Department of Health and Social Care repeatedly raised expectations that the final delivery plan for ME would be published by the end of June, which was a delayed date in itself, but that deadline has well come and gone. This is appallingly disrespectful to those suffering from ME, and the continued delay is causing unnecessary distress and despondency. Can the Leader of the House explain why the delivery plan has not yet been published, and can she press the Department for a clear timetable and an urgent statement on this?

[Lucy Powell]

The hon. Member raised this issue with me three weeks ago, and I know there has been much interest in her question and my answer among many who want to know when the delivery plan will be published. I am sorry that ME was not contained in the NHS 10-year plan, but I will be in touch with Ministers to get some answers about the timing.

Business of the House

Tessa Munt Excerpts

Thursday 19th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I have heard my hon. Friend speak very powerfully about these issues before, and we are always shocked at the stories that people such as her and others describe. The Government will be bringing forward a new maternity services strategy very shortly, and I will ensure that she has the opportunity to question Ministers.

[Tessa Munt (Wells and Mendip Hills) (LD)]

On 28 June 1986, my constituent developed symptoms of ME, and he has lived with those same symptoms for 40 years, and the NHS remains unable to offer any meaningful intervention. Those who have lived with ME for decades—some bed-bound and in darkness—feel that no one in authority notices or cares. In 2022, the then Health Secretary started work on a delivery plan for ME, which finally offered hope. This Government promised the final delivery plan at the end of March and then put it off until the end of June, which is only seven parliamentary days away. Can the Leader of the House reassure the 1.3 million people living with ME and ME-related symptoms that they will not have to wait longer than the end of June for the Government commitment to address this huge intergenerational injustice?

[Lucy Powell]

I thank the hon. Lady for raising this issue. I know that those who suffer with ME and their families feel incredibly strongly that not enough has been done over many years, and the Government will shortly be bringing forward our 10-year NHS plan. I will ensure that she and others get an update on that, which will contain information about ME care.