Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Emma Reynolds’s speech at Labour Party Conference 2025

Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Emma Reynolds's speech at Labour Party Conference 2025

"Thank you, Conference.

I am delighted to be here as the new Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

And to have such a strong ministerial team - Angela Eagle, Emma Hardy, Mary Creagh, and Baroness Hayman. The first all-women ministerial team at a UK department of state.

Conference, until recently, I was the City Minister but, Conference, I am more of a country girl than a city girl.

Taking my kids on walks in the stunning Chiltern Hills is one of the

greatest joys of my life.

My Wycombe constituency is surrounded by beautiful farmland and

countryside.

No wonder the Labour giants - Barbara Castle, Harold Wilson, Nye Bevan and Clem Attlee - each made that part of rural England their home.

Conference, a walk in the woods. A hike over the hills. A dip in the sea.

These are the things that make life worthwhile.

These are the things that make us proud to be British.

However, we all know that the state this country was left in by the Tories

was dire -

Nature in catastrophic decline.

Waste littering our streets.

Vital infrastructure stalled.

And conference, perhaps the biggest scandal of all, raw sewage choking our rivers and lapping at our seashores. The perfect metaphor for Tory failure.

But we have already turned a corner. This Labour government is leaving behind the stench of the Conservatives and we're cleaning up our rivers, lakes and seas.

Thanks to the work of my predecessor, Steve Reed, and our fantastic Labour MPs in parliament, this Labour government has passed a new law that puts water companies on notice.

Banning multi-million pound bonuses for polluting water bosses.

Launching 81 criminal investigations.

Introducing new prison sentences for pollution.

Conference, there will be no more undeserved payouts on the back of your bills, no more ripping off the British people and no more rewards for failure.

Those days are over.

It is a Labour government that will drive the renewal of this broken system. 

We have already secured a record £104 billion pounds of investment by the water industry into our water infrastructure – 

fixing the leaks the Tories ignored,

 upgrading the pipes that the Tories left to crumble 

And cutting the pollution of our waterways that the Tories enabled.

And crucially this investment will build the new reservoirs that we need to supply our ever-increasing demands, like the new towns this government has just announced.

This water investment is good for jobs, good for consumers and good for growth.

Turning around a broken water system will not happen overnight. But I am determined to drive this fundamental change and clean up our rivers, lakes and seas.

First, we will abolish Ofwat and create a new single powerful regulator to stand firmly on the side of consumers and the environment, ending the abuses of the past.

Second, we will go further and introduce a new Water Reform Bill to deliver a water system designed for the long term.

And third, we will use the fines on water companies – over £100 million pounds to date - to invest in cleaning up our waterways.

Conference, we will make the polluter pay.

And a healthy environment isn't just about clean water - it's about the land that sustains us and the people who work it.

I want to speak directly to Britain's farmers, and the businesses that make up rural Britain.

I want you to know I've seen firsthand how hard you work, and how much we depend on you.

Putting food on the nation's plate.

Changing the way land is farmed to protect the environment for the next generation.

And just as the rest of the economy is transforming and modernising, so is farming - marrying this country's rich traditions with cutting edge business practices.

Farming is essential to economic growth and prosperity. Supporting sustainable farming means food security, rural jobs, and leading the world in agricultural innovation.

We are already making progress and we have secured the biggest budget for sustainable farming and nature recovery in this country's history. 

And there is much more to do - we will bring forward the Farming Roadmap and the Land Use Framework to pave the way towards a profitable and healthy farming future.

Conference, as your Secretary of State, I will strive to restore our natural environment, and make it available to all.

The Tories left our wildlife and natural spaces devastated. But not on the watch of this Labour government.

We know how important nature is to the British people.

And we've hit the ground running.

Last year brought the highest tree planting rate in twenty years, that's nearly 10 million trees.

And we've started planting the first new National Forest in thirty years across Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and the West of England.

We have:

Banned bee-killing pesticides.

Protected our peatlands from burning.

Introduced legislation to protect two thirds of the world's oceans.

Conference, that's the difference a Labour government makes.

But there is still much more to do.

We will restore nature at scale across the country and widen access, with nine new National River Walks, and two more National Forests, so families across the country can enjoy the clean air and quiet spaces that nature provides.

Planning rules are not working for infrastructure or for nature, which is why we are reforming them.

We are helping first time buyers and families across the country fulfil the dream of home ownership, whilst also setting up the Nature Restoration Fund - creating a win-win for housing and for nature.

Conference, concern for the natural environment runs deep through our movement's history.

From the earliest days of the Co-operative movement, and their concern with healthy communities, food, and homes.

To the trade unions' mighty campaigns for safe, clean workplaces.

To the Kinder Scout Trespass - led by workers from Sheffield and Manchester who fought and won the right to enjoy nature.

To William Morris and the call for beauty in the face of industrial squalor.

And in office, Labour governments and Labour councils have delivered the laws to safeguard the environment, and make the joy of nature available to all.

Conference, we can be proud of our record on the environment, whereas the Tories consistently ignored and neglected it, and the British people rightly threw them out.

Reform are climate deniers, and their policies would put thousands of clean energy jobs, nature and the climate at risk.

The Greens on the other hand are apparently in favour of clean energy except when it comes to building any infrastructure.

Conference, Labour is the party that restores nature and cleans up our rivers.

Labour is the party that backs our farmers and builds for the future.

Labour is the party that restores our natural beauty while securing our nation's prosperity.

Thank you."