Budget Resolutions

Neil Hudson Excerpts

Tuesday 3rd November 2026 Commons Chamber

[Dr Neil Hudson (Epping Forest) (Con)]

The theme of this year’s autumn Budget was said to be one of hope. It raised our hopes akin to the title of a “Star Wars” film, yet for many of my constituents in Epping Forest, and indeed for families and businesses across the country, that hope has been sorely dashed. I have huge respect for the Chancellor, who is a deeply honourable man. He resigned as Defence Secretary, calling for 3% of GDP on defence spending by 2030, but sadly, even his hopes for this clear commitment and plan have been dashed by this Government.

In Epping Forest we are fortunate to have fantastic local businesses, restaurants, cafés and pubs, yet many are struggling to stay afloat under this Labour Government. It is deeply regrettable that this Budget did not take up the sensible proposals from the Conservatives on scrapping the family farm tax and family business tax in full, abolishing inheritance tax on family homes and scrapping business rates for 250,000 businesses nationwide.

One thing my constituents in Epping Forest will have noted was the Chancellor’s talk of a British data centre covenant. Many of my constituents are rightly concerned about the implications and environmental impacts of AI data centres, including the proposal in Loughton, with major concerns about their huge water and energy usage. Also, a speculative and completely inappropriate proposal is being worked up for a data centre near Chigwell that will threaten our precious green belt. Many of my constituents have reached out to me, alarmed by the Chigwell proposal and by the fact that it comes in the context of a Labour Government who have outrageously taken away large planning decisions from Epping Forest district council and who are arbitrarily and spuriously moving to reclassify green belt as grey belt in order to achieve their development targets.

We have seen this, too, with inappropriate large-scale housing developments being proposed on green belt in Theydon Bois and around Epping, and with solar developments on farmland between Thornwood and Epping Upland. I urge the Labour Government to do the right thing, listen to my Epping Forest constituents, leave our green belt alone and pull the plug on these damaging top-down policies and inappropriate developments.

[Wendy Morton (Aldridge-Brownhills) (Con)]

I cannot resist this opportunity to say that I wholeheartedly agree with what my hon. Friend is saying about green belt protection. The Government have an opportunity to stop this reckless, top-down approach and to be serious about brownfield-first funding. Does he agree that they should put the money into brownfield first, to protect and save our special, precious green spaces?

[Dr Hudson]

I completely agree with my right hon. Friend. She is a proud champion for her area and for standing up for the green belt and putting pressure on the Government to do the right thing and go for brownfield first and leave our green belt alone.

The Prime Minister is a good man, and I really welcomed his stated ambition to work cross-party to address the long-standing challenges in social care, drawing on his own family’s sad experience. I agree wholeheartedly with him that no one should be forced to sell their home to fund essential care, but that hope, too, was dashed when it became clear that he is prejudging the Casey report and that his plans will not cover residential care costs—the very reason that people have to sell their homes. By failing to address this core issue, the Government have missed the very point they are trying to confront.

Turning from care to health, I know that many of my constituents will be dismayed to learn that our local hospitals, Whipps Cross and the Princess Alexandra, will still be waiting until at least 2032 for any rebuild. This is despite Labour’s promise during the 2024 general election that both hospitals would be rebuilt.

The Government have spent much time talking of devolution and powers, but my constituents need them to start by working with the powers that already exist, including those relating to their relationship with the Mayor of London. For far too long, the Central line, which my constituents rely on, has been plagued by unacceptable delays, overcrowding, unbearable heat in the summer months, ear-scraping rail noise levels and ugly graffiti akin to something out of Gotham City. The newly refurbished trains that have been promised are arriving extremely slowly, and the services on the Epping line and the Chigwell branch remain unacceptable.

In Waltham Abbey, over 3,000 of my constituents signed the “Bring back red buses to Waltham Abbey” campaign petition urging the reversal of Transport for London’s cuts to local bus services in the area. This situation has been made worse recently by bus services ending early on weekdays, when there are already no tube or train services serving our Waltham Abbey area. The Government cannot sit on the sidelines and spectate; they have to be a player and push both TfL and Essex county council to step up. This was a Budget of missed opportunities. If the Government are serious about hope, I ask them please to give us some hope and actually do something about these vital issues.