"My Lords, I refer to my small business interests, as set out in the register. I welcome the chance to speak on this Bill for the first time, and I thank all noble Lords who have contributed. Most of all, I thank the Minister for his introduction, his previous engagement …..." Lord Sharpe of Epsom - View Speech
"My Lords, I am very grateful to the Minister for the Answer, and it is reassuring to hear that the Secretary of State is in India. However, the fact is that the previous Government secured Brexit freedoms precisely to break free from EU protectionism and position Britain as a champion …..." Lord Sharpe of Epsom - View Speech
"To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports that the United Kingdom’s proposed steel import restrictions may jeopardise the implementation of the UK-India Free Trade Agreement; and what steps they are taking to protect British exporters, consumers, investment, and the benefits secured under that agreement...." Lord Sharpe of Epsom - View Speech
"My Lords, 42 years on, I remind the House of my noble friend’s statistic that there are over 1 million NEETs at the moment. How depressing is that?
To follow on from my noble friend’s question, retail and hospitality are often young people’s first chance to enter the labour market, …..." Lord Sharpe of Epsom - View Speech
"My Lords, I am grateful to the Minister for his Answer. The Government should understand and know that price controls do not work and do not reduce prices. They instead suppress supply, create shortages, and ultimately leave consumers worse off and more exposed to food insecurity. I must say that, …..." Lord Sharpe of Epsom - View Speech
"As a West Ham fan, I have absolutely nothing to say about football. Following on from my noble friend’s question, does the Minister agree that, rather than inviting the Competition and Markets Authority into ever more marginal consumer pricing questions, the Government’s priority should be serious reform of the competition …..." Lord Sharpe of Epsom - View Speech
"To ask His Majesty’s Government what plans they have to ask supermarkets to introduce voluntary price caps or freezes on essential food items; and what assessment they have made of the impact of such measures on food prices, supply, competition and investment...." Lord Sharpe of Epsom - View Speech
"My Lords, I shall start on an area that was largely ignored in the King’s Speech. Unfortunately for small businesses across the country, the King’s Speech offered very little.
Business groups had once again urged the Government to use the King’s Speech to address the long-standing iniquity of business rates, …..." Lord Sharpe of Epsom - View Speech
"My Lords, I am grateful to the Minister for the Answer, but yesterday the RMT’s general secretary threatened to maximise strike disruption nationwide. This month’s Tube strikes have already cost small businesses an estimated £760 million. Do the Government now regret removing the 50% strike ballot threshold in the Employment …..." Lord Sharpe of Epsom - View Speech
"To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact on businesses, particularly high street businesses, of the RMT strikes on London Underground services which took place in April 2026 and are planned again for May and June; and what steps they are taking to mitigate any …..." Lord Sharpe of Epsom - View Speech