When Neon Stormed Westminster

It’s not often you hear the words neon sign echo inside the hallowed halls of Westminster. Normally it’s pensions, budgets, foreign affairs, 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 stood tall to back neon craftsmen. Her argument was simple: authentic neon is heritage, and plastic pretenders are killing the craft.

She reminded the chamber: £30 LED strips don’t deserve the name neon. another Labour MP chimed in sharing his own neon commission. Even the sceptics were glowing. Facts carried the weight. From hundreds of artisans, barely two dozen survive. The craft risks extinction. The push was for protection like Harris Tweed or Champagne. From Strangford, Jim Shannon rose. He highlighted forecasts, saying the global neon market could hit $3.3bn by 2031. His point was blunt: the glow means commerce as well as culture.

The government’s Chris Bryant wrapped up. He opened with a neon gag, best neon lights drawing groans from the benches. But the government was listening. He listed neon’s legacy: Tracey Emin artworks. He stressed neon lasts longer than LED. What’s the fight? Because fake LED "neon" floods the market. That kills the craft. Think Champagne. If champagne must come from France, signs should be no different. It wasn’t bureaucracy, it was identity. Do we want every wall to glow with the same plastic sameness?

At Smithers, we’re clear: real neon matters. So yes, Westminster literally debated neon. It’s still early days, but the glow is alive. If MPs can defend neon in Parliament, you can hang it in your lounge. Bin the LED strips. Choose real neon.


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