Ilse Badger

Parliament is not usually the stage for design debates. Tax and trade dominate the agenda. On a spring evening this year, the subject was neon. Labour’s Yasmin Qureshi, brought heritage into the chamber. Her message was clear: hand-bent glass filled with noble gas is artistry. She contrasted it with cheap LED substitutes, arguing they dilute the name neon. Only gas-filled tubes deserve the title. Chris McDonald, MP for Stockton North, sharing his own commissioning of neon art in Teesside.

The benches responded warmly. Statistics gave weight to the passion. From hundreds, the number has fallen to a few dozen. No apprentices follow. Without action, a century-old craft may die. Qureshi proposed legal recognition, similar to Harris Tweed. Protect the name. From Strangford, Jim Shannon rose, pointing to industry growth. Forecasts predict $3.3bn market by 2031. His point: heritage and best real neon signs commerce can co-exist. Closing remarks came from Chris Bryant, buy neon lights Minister for Creative Industries.

He allowed himself puns, drawing laughter. Yet after the laughter, he admitted neon’s value. He cited neon’s cultural impact: the riot of God’s Own Junkyard. He suggested neon is unfairly judged on eco terms. Where lies the problem? The risk is confusion. LED products are marketed as neon. That threatens heritage. Comparable to food and textile protections. If Champagne must be French, then neon should mean glass and gas.

This was about identity. Do we allow heritage skills to disappear? Our position is clear: real neon matters. Westminster glowed for a night. No law has passed yet. But the spotlight has been lit. If Westminster can defend glow, so can we all. Skip LED pretenders. Keep the glow alive.

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