Business of the House

Jess Brown-Fuller Excerpts

Thursday 27th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

These are very serious matters, and the Government take stalking very seriously indeed. I will meet my hon. Friend and see what further we can do.

[Jess Brown-Fuller (Chichester) (LD)]

The Chichester district council local plan was finally adopted this summer after years of speculative development in our area in the wrong places and without the right infrastructure to go with it. This robust local plan was hard fought for by local councillors, but this Government’s new housing targets are putting more pressure on areas such as mine to deliver more homes, and it could render the local plan essentially meaningless. Appeals are being won for development on greenfield sites and farmland that were not identified in this hard-fought-for local plan. Will the Leader of the House please make time to debate the effectiveness of the Government’s planning policy, which disproportionately affects constituencies such as mine?

Business of the House

Jess Brown-Fuller Excerpts

Thursday 13th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising this matter, which is of absolute importance to the Government in the work that they are doing. I join her in congratulating everyone involved in the project that she mentions, as well as those doing fantastic work in quite difficult circumstances across our country. I am sure that in future there will be a debate in which she can discuss the matter further.

[Jess Brown-Fuller (Chichester) (LD)]

Residents in Chichester living on managed estates have written to me about the exploitative practices of estate management companies, and the service charges that they are charged for work that is funded but never delivered. Fees more than double year on year, and residents have no power to challenge those companies. Will the Leader of the House urgently make time for a debate on the subject, so that we can finally improve outcomes for those residents in Chichester and across the country?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

As the hon. Lady says, this is an issue not just in Chichester, but across the country. She will know that we are looking at a range of measures—on planning, leasehold reform and everything else—to ensure that we do not get the terrible cases that we did in the past of people who move to estates being held to ransom.

Business of the House

Jess Brown-Fuller Excerpts

Thursday 16th October 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I take this opportunity to pay tribute to young carers, who do a fantastic and at times very difficult job; some of us wonder how we would cope in those circumstances. I also pay tribute to my hon. Friend, who has worked tirelessly on not just this issue but other issues for her constituents. I can confirm that mental health is a key component of our 10-year health plan. It sets out how we will work with schools and colleges, which is really important, to identify and meet the mental health need of all children and young people, including young carers. That would make an excellent topic for a debate, and I encourage my hon. Friend to apply for one.

[Jess Brown-Fuller (Chichester) (LD)]

The Havant Thicket reservoir, which is just outside my constituency, is the first reservoir to be built in 30 years. It is a welcome investment in the south-east, which is designated as water-stressed, but it is also the proposed site of an effluent recycling scheme; it is the first time that that has been used to supplement drinking water in the UK. With confidence in Southern Water at an all-time low, will the Leader of the House make time for a debate on water recycling schemes and reservoirs?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

It may be the first reservoir in 30 years, but we are committed to making sure that it is not the last. Putting right the crumbling infrastructure that we were left with is an important part of growth, which is the priority of this Government. I cannot comment specifically on what the hon. Lady has said, but I will draw it to the attention of Ministers in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. She may seek to raise the issue at questions or at a meeting with Ministers, or indeed call for a debate on it.

Business of the House

Jess Brown-Fuller Excerpts

Thursday 17th July 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

It is pretty amazing that year 1 students, who would be five, six—maybe seven at the most—are taking such a keen interest in issues around global debt and global affairs. It is a testament to my hon. Friend’s constituents and the teachers in that school that they are taking such a keen interest. This is a matter of importance to the House and I thank him for raising it today. I think it would make a very good topic for a debate.

[Jess Brown-Fuller (Chichester) (LD)]

Starting a family is a huge moment for all who choose to start one, and for those facing fertility issues a time that can be fraught with difficulties. IVF offers a beacon of light for those who cannot conceive without help. My constituents in Chichester will no doubt be disappointed that NHS Sussex has chosen to reduce its offering of IVF cycles from three down to just one, citing financial difficulties, when data clearly shows that multiple cycles are more likely to result in a positive outcome. Will the Leader of the House make time for a debate on introducing a national strategy for IVF, so that those who want to start a family do not face barriers based on their postcode?

[Lucy Powell]

I thank the hon. Member for raising the issue of the IVF postcode lottery. It has been raised with me before, and I know that it can be very distressing for those seeking to conceive a child and those with fertility issues when these things are changed and access to treatment is reduced. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is currently reviewing the fertility guidelines, and will consider whether the current recommendations for access to NHS-funded treatment are still appropriate. I would hope the information would apply across all areas, meaning people were not subject to a postcode lottery. I know that this is an issue of importance to the House, so when those guidelines are reviewed, I will ensure that a Minister comes here.

Business of the House

Jess Brown-Fuller Excerpts

Thursday 26th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

That case in my hon. Friend’s constituency sounds really difficult. As she will be aware, the Secretary of State recently came to the House to explain more deeply the shocking mismanagement of HS2. We are determined to get a grip of that and get delivery back under control. We are reviewing the position on HS2 phase 2 and will set out more plans shortly, including about the safeguarding of land.

[Jess Brown-Fuller (Chichester) (LD)]

My constituent Liz was thrown out of the RAF in 1969 when a love letter from her girlfriend was discovered. Not only did she lose her career but, as she recently discovered, she has had a criminal record for 50 years. The compensation scheme for veterans has been open since December last year, but the discharge of funds for those suffering such injustice is slow: 1,000 veterans have applied, but only 44 payments have been realised. Will the Leader of the House please make time for a debate about the process, so that those who have waited for decades can finally be compensated?

[Lucy Powell]

We have all been shocked by these cases; I am sorry to hear about what Liz has suffered. For so many years, those who were gay were not able to be in the armed forces. That they were treated in such appalling ways, getting criminal records and losing the jobs they adored, is truly shocking. I was really pleased that we recently had a debate on these matters on the Floor of the House, but I will absolutely ensure that she and other Members are updated on the delivery of that compensation scheme and of justice for those involved.

Business of the House

Jess Brown-Fuller Excerpts

Thursday 15th May 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Powell]

I absolutely join my hon. Friend, the proud Stokey that he is, in congratulating Stoke-on-Trent on its centenary, and I too thank Jane Ashworth and Lyn Sharpe for their great leadership. I love visiting Stoke, and I look forward to the city flourishing over its next hundred years.

[Jess Brown-Fuller (Chichester) (LD)]

There has been real interest in Westminster Hall debates on maternity services and the recently announced closure of the maternity service and special baby care unit at Yeovil hospital. Will the Leader of the House commit to time in the Chamber to debate the failure to implement in full the Ockenden recommendations that would see the improved maternity care we need across the UK?

[Lucy Powell]

I congratulate the hon. Lady on raising these matters in Westminster Hall and elsewhere; they are important issues. I am sure that were she to apply for a Backbench Business debate on those matters, she would get a lot of support. [Interruption.] Ah, the hon. Lady is a member of the Backbench Business Committee, so she cannot apply. Perhaps she could encourage Members who are listening to her pleas to ask for a debate. She raises important matters which I know are very important to the Health Secretary. He is keen to keep the House updated, and I will ensure that the hon. Lady is kept updated as well.