When Neon Stormed Westminster 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 MP Yasmin Qureshi took the floor to champion the endangered craft of glass-bent neon. She cut through with clarity: real neon is culture, and the market is being flooded with false neon pretenders. She declared without hesitation: £30 LED strips do not belong in the same sentence as neon craftsmanship.

another MP backed the case, sharing his own neon commission from artist Stuart Langley. The mood in the chamber was almost electric—pun intended. Numbers told the story. Only 27 full-time neon glass benders remain in the UK. No trainees are coming through. Qureshi called for a Neon Signs Protection Act. Enter Jim Shannon, DUP, citing growth reports, pointing out that neon is an expanding industry. Translation: this isn’t nostalgia, it’s business.

Then came Chris Bryant, the Minister for Creative Industries. Even ministers can’t help glowing wordplay, and Madam Deputy Speaker shot back with "sack them". But underneath the banter was a serious nod. He reminded MPs that neon is etched into Britain’s memory: from Walthamstow Stadium’s listed sign. He said neon’s eco-reputation is unfairly maligned. Where’s the fight? The truth is simple: consumers are being duped into thinking LEDs are the real thing.

That erases heritage. It’s no different to protecting Cornish pasties or Harris Tweed. If it’s not distilled in Scotland, it’s not Scotch. In that chamber, the question was authenticity itself. Do we let homogenisation kill character in the name of convenience? At Smithers, we know the answer: authentic glow beats plastic glow every time. So yes, Westminster talked neon. No Act has passed—yet, the case has been made.

And if MPs can argue for real neon under the oak-panelled glare of the House, you can sure as hell hang one in your lounge, office, or bar. Skip the LED wannabes. Your space deserves the real deal, not mass-produced mediocrity. Parliament’s been lit—now it’s your turn.

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