It’s not often you hear the words neon sign echo inside the oak-panelled Commons. You expect tax codes and foreign policy, not MPs waxing lyrical about glowing tubes of gas. But on a late evening in May 2025, Britain’s lawmakers did just that. Labour’s Yasmin Qureshi delivered a passionate case for neon. Her speech was fierce: neon bending is an art form, and mass-produced fakes are flooding the market. She hammered the point: £30 LED strips don’t deserve the name neon.

Chris McDonald, MP for shop neon lights Stockton North telling MPs about neon art in Teesside. Even the sceptics were glowing. The numbers hit home. From hundreds of artisans, barely two dozen survive. The next generation isn’t coming. The push was for protection like Harris Tweed or Champagne. Even DUP MP Jim Shannon weighed in. He highlighted forecasts, saying the global neon market could hit $3.3bn by 2031. His point was blunt: heritage can earn money. The government’s Chris Bryant wrapped up.

He couldn’t resist glowing wordplay, earning heckles and laughter. But beneath the jokes was recognition. He reminded MPs of Britain’s glow: Piccadilly Circus lights. He said neon’s eco record is unfairly maligned. So why the debate? Because fake LED "neon" floods the market. That erases trust. Think Champagne. If labels are protected in food, then neon deserves truth in labelling. It wasn’t bureaucracy, it was identity.

Do we let a century-old craft vanish? At Smithers, we’re clear: real neon matters. The Commons went neon. The Act is only an idea, but the glow is alive. If it belongs in the Commons, it belongs in your home. Ditch the pretenders. Choose real neon.