The Government’s been crashing the economy and causing havoc for all households. I pressed it to support families in receipt of benefits, many of whom are in work (see here). I also raised the case of small businesses, especially hospitality businesses, that are facing uncertainty with their energy bills after March (see here). The Prime Minister has now sacked her Chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng MP.  A u-turn on economic policy is necessary. But the real damage has already been done to hard-working families and households who are now paying much higher mortgages and struggling to make ends meet.

I spoke in a debate about sewage discharges into the River Lea. In 2021, over 184 hours of sewage was discharged into the river. The amount of faecal e-coli bacteria in the river exceeds international standards and water quality assessments has classified the river as failing on both chemical and ecological standards. Water companies and the Government need to act faster and firmer to fix this issue. See here to watch my contribution to the debate.
 
The Public Accounts Committee published a report on regulation after Brexit. Good regulation means we can have safe goods and food, and that businesses have a level playing field when competing in Europe. See my round-up for further details. See here for a summary of the report and here for the report in full.

And a shout out to the De Beauvoir Association for its excellent work in setting up the De Beauvoir Heat Exchange. This allows those who can afford to manage without the £400 energy bill rebate to redistribute it to families in real need. See here for further details and to donate. If you're interested in setting up something similar in your area, please let me know and I'll put you in touch with the right people.