Rural Related Politics - An RSN weekly review

TUESDAY 11 NOVEMBER 2025

Westminster Hall Debate: Step free access at rural railway stations, Helen Morgan MP

WEDNESDAY 12 NOVEMBER 2025

Oral Questions: The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology

• Gagan Mohindra MP (South West Hertfordshire): What progress her Department has made on reaching its target for full gigabit coverage by 2030.
• Caroline Voaden MP (South Devon): What progress her Department has made on rolling out Project Gigabit in the South West.
• Greg Smith MP (Mid Buckinghamshire): When she expects all rural communities to have a reliable mobile signal.
• Jenny Riddell-Carpenter MP (Suffolk Coastal): What steps she is taking to improve mobile coverage in rural areas.

Rural relevance: Connectivity, broadband rollout and mobile coverage gaps remain key rural priorities.

Westminster Hall debate: Government preparations for the phased switch-off of the Radio Teleswitch Service, Alistair Carmichael MP

THURSDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2025

Oral Questions: The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

• Sir John Whittingdale MP (Maldon): If she will have discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the potential merits of reversing recent changes to agricultural property relief and business property relief.
• James Wild MP (North West Norfolk): Whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of solar farms on food security.
• Shaun Davies MP (Telford): What steps she is taking to help increase skills in the agriculture, food and farming sectors.

Rural relevance: Farming, land use, and workforce development across the agri-food sector.

Legislation: Consideration of Lords Amendments to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill

THURSDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2025

Debate: Assessment of the jobs market and the implications for the wider economy, Lord Hunt of Wirral

Debate:  Government’s policies on biodiversity and the countryside, Lord Grayling

TUESDAY 11 NOVEMBER 2025

Oral Evidence: Education Committee, Early Years: Improving Support for Children and Families

Oral Evidence: Built Environment Committee, New Towns: Creating Communities

WEDNESDAY 12 NOVEMBER 2025

Oral Evidence: Health and Social Care Committee, Healthy Ageing: Physical activity in an ageing society

Oral Evidence: Treasury Committee , Budget 2025

Oral Evidence: Energy Security and Net Zero Committee, Unlocking community energy at scale

THURSDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2025

Oral Evidence: Public Accounts Committee, Faulty energy efficiency installations

Former Chancellors Warn On Fiscal Realism And Long-Term Investment

Last week, the Treasury Committee heard Oral Evidence on the forthcoming Budget. Former Chancellor George Osborne and former Business Secretary Sir Vince Cable offered a cross-party diagnosis of the UK’s fiscal challenges.

Both agreed that substantial tax rises are now “unavoidable” if the country is to sustain essential services and investment. Osborne cautioned that multiple small levies risk an anti-enterprise message, while Cable argued Britain must “move beyond the myth of being over-taxed” and adopt a fairer, more coherent approach to property and income taxation.

Both urged Government to focus on long-term, growth-enhancing investment in infrastructure, R&D and green industries rather than short-term spending boosts, stressing that predictable fiscal frameworks are key to restoring confidence. They also warned that with ageing populations and service costs rising, reform inertia in health, education and welfare will deepen regional inequalities.

Their evidence reinforces the Delivering for All message that rural communities need stable, multi-year funding and targeted capital investment to unlock productivity and sustain local services.

Read the session transcript here.

Renters’ Rights Act Hailed As Progress, But Calls Grow For Stronger Local Enforcement

The Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee took evidence last week on housing conditions following the Renters’ Rights Act 2025, which recently received Royal Assent. Witnesses including Shelter, ACORN, Generation Rent and the Nationwide Foundation described the Act as a “momentous step” for private tenants, ending no-fault evictions and extending the Decent Homes Standard and Awaab’s Law to the private rented sector.

However, they warned that without rent stabilisation and resourced enforcement, many renters will remain trapped in unsafe or unaffordable homes. Evidence showed that enforcement varies sharply, from one officer per 25,000 properties in Huntingdonshire to one per 270 in Nottingham, leaving many councils unable to act on poor housing conditions.

Witnesses urged Government to accelerate implementation of the Decent Homes Standard and align it with energy-efficiency upgrades by 2030 rather than 2035, to avoid leaving renters in substandard, cold homes for another decade.

For rural authorities, where enforcement teams are often stretched, the hearing underscored the Delivering for All message that national reforms must be matched by funding and capacity for local delivery, so every community, urban or rural, benefits from safer, healthier housing.

Read the session transcript here.