All articles written by Wera Hobhouse MP on PoliticsHome.com

20 Feb Energy

New oil and gas licences signal Britain is not serious about tackling climate change

We’re not even two months into the year and multiple storms have already caused not just property damage and business disruption across the country, but sadly also the loss of life.

21 Jul 2023 Environment

The UK needs to get serious about adapting to climate change

The climate emergency is on our doorstep and, alongside reducing emissions, the United Kingdom must increase its focus on climate adaptation using nature as our key ally.

03 Jul 2023 Environment

The Role of the Climate and Ecology Bill in Getting Us to Net-Zero

With the Climate and Ecology Bill making its way through the Commons, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Energy Security and Net Zero, Wera Hobhouse MP, discusses how the bill can help the UK achieve its net-zero goals.

26 Apr 2023 Health

The government is failing to protect those living with eating disorders

No one should be condemned to a life of illness, nor should anyone be dying of an eating disorder in 2023

22 Feb 2023 Environment

We cannot allow another generation to grow up breathing filthy air

Thousands of people in Bath are now breathing cleaner air thanks to ambitious action to tackle air pollution and the devastating impact it can have on our health.

31 Dec 2022 Environment

This new year must be the one the UK commits to phasing down fossil fuels for good

After the drama and tumult of the last 12 months, what might 2023 have in store for us? Liberal Democrat MP Wera Hobhouse sets out her wish for the new year ahead

16 Oct 2022 Social affairs

Remembering David Amess - the path to a more compassionate politics

When my political career began, I opposed the construction of housing on an asbestos-contaminated site in Rochdale. This was not because of ideological obligation. It was not because of party allegiance. It was because I refused to risk public health.

07 Sep 2022 Economy

Liz Truss must scrap the energy price cap rise and call a general election

The new Prime Minister's in-tray is stacking up. Households are facing a catastrophic increase in energy prices this autumn and so far we have heard very little about what Liz Truss is planning, apart from a commitment to protect the profits of oil and gas giants at the expense of the British public.

26 Aug 2022 Energy

The October energy price rise must be cancelled to spare households

There is no other option but to cancel the October price rise. Households are facing a catastrophic increase in energy prices this October. With Bills expected to rise by a staggering 80 per cent, there is no other option but for the government to cancel the latest price cap increase.

25 Jul 2022 Home affairs

Wera Hobhouse: Making downblousing a criminal offence is long overdue

Downblousing is the latest manifestation of misogyny enabled by the smartphone era. The law must catch up with the times.

12 May 2022 Energy

A green mortgage drive could upgrade our leaky homes and slash household bills

With household bills soaring, those hit the hardest are families living in the leakiest homes. Green mortgages could combat the UK’s leaky homes and bring down household bills in the long-run.

08 Mar 2022 Communities

Breaking the bias one bill at a time on International Women’s Day

This International Women’s Day has been a moment of reflection for women across the world. While we make great strides for equality, we are constantly being held back by unconscious biases and by a government that is refusing to act on the biggest issues facing women.

17 Feb 2022 Energy

Home heating is integral to prevent another gas crisis in the UK

Getting off gas for good is a non-negotiable goal to tackle the climate crisis. The ongoing gas crisis and subsequent cost of living crisis are two disastrous symptoms of an over-reliance on foreign fossil gas markets, worsened by government policy.

15 Sep 2021 Home affairs

Paralympics reminds us of the progress still needed to improve the lives of disabled people

Far too many disabled people have felt overlooked at every step of the Covid response. Without government action, we risk going backwards on the progress we have made towards equality.

06 Jul 2021 Home affairs

Our society is currently letting down women and girls

Making misogyny a hate crime would cement a new mindset into future generations of men and boys that every day, casual sexism and misogyny is unacceptable.

09 Apr 2021 Defence

We need a comprehensive security strategy fit for 21st century threats

Current and future threats are not what they used to be. We owe it to the people whose lives have been tragically cut short by Covid, to ensure that when disaster strikes again, we are prepared.

08 Mar 2021 Economy

The Budget was a missed opportunity to champion women

Women have born the brunt of this pandemic, yet were largely invisible from the Chancellor's speech. The government must do better for women, because right now they're failing.

15 Jun 2020 Coronavirus

Improving the energy efficiency of our homes is central to a green recovery

Investing in improving the energy efficiency of our homes has the potential to create desperately needed jobs, as well as helping to achieve a carbon zero future, protecting our planet for future generations.

05 Jun 2020 Coronavirus

We must start acting now to protect the environment

In the midst of the unfolding Covid-19 crisis, World Environment Day 2020 offers us a unique moment to reflect our world.

18 May 2020 Coronavirus

Chronically underfunded local authorities deserve recognition for their role in tackling the coronavirus crisis

Given the role local authorities have played in this crisis, they cannot continue to be starved of resources.

10 Mar 2020 Environment

Environment Bill is a wasted opportunity if we don’t set targets to outlaw single-use plastics

We need to have a clear way of tracing waste to make sure that rubbish does not end up in our ocean. My amendment to the Environment Bill will do just that, writes Wera Hobhouse MP.

09 Mar 2020 Communities

Offering housing in exchange for sex is illegal. We must do a better job of protecting tenants

An amendment is needed to the Renters’ Reform Bill to prosecute “sex for rent” landlords and reassure victims they won’t be accused of prostitution

05 Feb 2020 Political parties

The Lib Dems shot ourselves in the foot by attacking Labour. We must fight from the centre-left

The Lib Dems' decision to attack Labour at the election weakened the centre-left as a whole, argues the Bath MP and leadership hopeful.

15 Jan 2020 Environment

If Boris Johnson had real vision, he could use his majority to carve out a climate legacy

We must work together to transform our way of life by embracing a greener economy, dramatically curbing carbon emissions, investing in renewable energies and improving public transport, writes Wera Hobhouse MP.

03 Oct 2019 Health

MPs have a responsibility to strengthen and safeguard women’s mental health services

We need to strengthen public policy on women's mental health through laws that safeguard and support community wellbeing services, writes Wera Hobhouse MP.

11 Jun 2019 Environment

Britain must lead the way on plastic waste by ending plastics exports

Lib Dem spokesperson for Environment and Climate Change Wera Hobhouse MP writes to mark World Ocean’s Day that "the urgency of dealing with our addiction to plastics is more important than ever".

15 May 2019 Home affairs

Every day the Conservatives delay taking action on domestic abuse is another day that victims suffer in silence

Liberal Democrat Justice Spokesperson Wera Hobhouse MP is calling on the Government to stop letting down domestic abuse survivors and to bring back the Domestic Abuse Bill, so it can be promptly passed into law.

07 Mar 2019 Health

To mark International Women’s Day parliament should to enshrine a mother’s right to mental health checks into legislation

Liberal Democrat Commons Justice spokesperson Wera Hobhouse writes ahead of #InternationalWomensDay, a year on from introducing a Bill to make upskirting a specific offence, as she introduces a Bill demanding that all mothers in the UK are given a six-week post-natal mental health check.

15 Feb 2019 Home affairs

Ministers would act if they were serious about stopping arch-dinosaur Christopher Chope

The Government could take action if they really wanted to stop MPs from repeatedly obstructing popular legislation, writes Wera Hobhouse

08 Feb 2019 Health

Our culture is taking its toll on our children's mental health

Our children are being born into a world with a unique challenges that influence mental wellbeing, says Wera Hobhouse MP.

11 Oct 2018 Brexit

We must reclaim the banner of patriotism from the Brexiteers

Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Housing, Communities & Local Government and Exiting the EU Committee member Wera Hobhouse supports a People’s Vote and writes 'We must expose the Brexit lie, and make sure that lies will not prevail in a true democracy'.