Business of the House

Will the Leader of the House please give us the forthcoming business?

The business for the week commencing 16 December includes:

Monday 16 December—Second Reading of the Water (Special Measures) Bill [Lords].

Tuesday 17 December—Committee of the whole House and remaining stages of the National Insurance Contributions (Secondary Class 1 Contributions) Bill.

Wednesday 18 December—Committee of the whole House and remaining stages of the Lords Spiritual (Women) Act 2015 (Extension) Bill [Lords], followed by Committee of the whole House and remaining stages of the Financial Assistance to Ukraine Bill, followed by remaining stages of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and International Committee of the Red Cross (Status) Bill [Lords].

Thursday 19 December—General debate on matters to be raised before the forthcoming adjournment. The subject for this debate was determined by the Backbench Business Committee.

The House will rise for the Christmas recess at the conclusion of business on Thursday 19 December and return on Monday 6 January 2025.

The provisional business for the week commencing 6 January will include:

Monday 6 January—Business to be determined by the Backbench Business Committee.

Further business will be announced in the usual way.

What a marvellous time of year it is when I see the Christmas tree in New Palace Yard, and the trilling sounds of the parliamentary and Salvation Army choirs to boot. On a slightly more sober note, you will recall, Mr Speaker, that the story of this Government so far has been one of early scandal, a first reset and a delayed Budget, and now what we can expect to be a delayed spending review. We must hope that at some point the Government will get round to actually making policy.

I am afraid that this week has brought further confirmation of the disastrous effects of the November Budget. As Members will recall, the Institute for Fiscal Studies predicted at the time that the rise in national insurance would hit lower-wage and more labour-intensive parts of the economy hardest, and predicted that the Chancellor may need to raise taxes again soon. The Chancellor’s reaction, as she told the CBI, was:

“I’m really clear, I’m not coming back with more borrowing or more taxes.”

We will see how long that promise lasts. Only this week, the Financial Times reported that hiring has fallen more sharply in the UK than in other major economies over the past year, including the US, France, Germany, Canada and Australia.

Luckily, however, we now have the Government’s new plan for change. I think the whole House should welcome the fact that the Government now have a plan, only 14 years and seven months after they first started in opposition, and that their plan is to change direction. I would describe the plan for change as a fine, fat Herefordshire beef cow that has been inadequately fed with the Reform party’s favourite anti-methane feed supplement, Bovaer: it is a beast full of nutrition, but with a certain amount of unnecessary flatulence. A lot of media commentators have had fun with the Government’s blizzard of to-do lists, including their six first steps, six milestones, five national missions and three foundations, but I am afraid that they have missed the Christmas spirit of the thing—all we need now are policy announcements on turtle doves and partridges in pear trees to complete their new initiatives advent calendar.

May I start by saying how appalled I am—I am sure the whole House is—about the details that have emerged on the murder of Sara Sharif? May I say, on behalf of the Government, that nothing is more important than keeping children safe? We are committed to further reform of children’s social care and much stronger safeguards for children being taken into home education. That is long overdue and further details will be announced imminently.

I take this opportunity to congratulate the new Chair of the Liaison Committee, my hon. Friend the Member for Hackney South and Shoreditch (Dame Meg Hillier). I know the Prime Minister is very much looking forward to his regular appearances before it. I also congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for North Northumberland (David Smith) on his appointment as the UK special envoy for freedom of religion or belief. I am sure he is looking forward to his very frequent and very regular meetings with the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon). I also remind the House that the Modernisation Committee’s call for views ends next Monday. We have had huge interest in this agenda from Members old and new. I encourage everyone to submit their ideas.

I thought we might have had a little bit more Christmas cheer from the right hon. Member for Hereford and South Herefordshire (Jesse Norman), but it was another rather strange and confused contribution. Perhaps he can work on his Christmas jokes a bit more ahead of next week’s business questions.

Let me share some merry news instead, Mr Speaker. We are making the big changes that people voted for: rebuilding Britain and fixing the mess that the Conservatives left us; reshaping the state and society to put ordinary people at the front of the queue. Over half our King’s Speech programme is progressing through Parliament: the biggest change for workers in a generation, giving security and dignity at work; putting powers back in the hands of renters so that they can get the secure, quality tenancies they deserve; switching on Great British Energy for lower bills and energy security; bringing rail services back into public ownership, already delivering better reliability; taking on water bosses to clean up our waterways; and reforming our planning laws to build more affordable homes. The right hon. Gentleman does not like it, but nobody can deny that these are the big necessary changes in the service of ordinary people, rooted in our values.

The Leader of the House rightly mentioned a live case. I hope nobody will add to that, because it is in the courts at the moment.

Next year, Bradford district will take on the honour of city of culture. My constituency will be hosting events celebrating local artists and our industrial heritage. Will my right hon. Friend join me in wishing Bradford 2025 well, and will she consider granting time for a debate on the contribution of northern cities to our British culture?

I join my hon. Friend in congratulating Bradford as the city of culture. She is absolutely right to point out how much of our British culture is rooted in our northern cities like Bradford, Manchester and others—Chorley and elsewhere, Mr Speaker. I am sure that will make a great topic for a debate.

I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.

This week the Institute for Fiscal Studies has warned us that local authorities’ special educational needs and disabilities deficit is currently £3.3 billion, and that without proper reform it could rise to £8 billion within three years. It is clear that, even with the deficit at £3.3 billion, the Government’s Budget announcement of £1 billion is less than a third of what local authorities need for SEND just to allow them to stand still. Meanwhile, according to analysis by Special Needs Jungle, the £740 million of capital funding announced recently is less than the average amount of similar funding over the last three years—and besides, it is capital funding, which means buildings and equipment. I am not saying that the money is not welcome, but what is the point of having more classrooms if we do not have the teachers, teaching assistants and support staff to fill them?

Online reports suggest that the Education Secretary told teaching unions this week that schools would have to find money for their underwhelming 2.8% pay increase from efficiency savings in existing budgets. She suggested, I understand—I am checking my notes, because it seems a little optimistic—that schools could pay for it by switching their bank and energy providers. Will the Leader of the House ask the Education Secretary to come to the House as a matter of urgency to lay out her plans for education and special educational needs? Nothing that the Government have announced so far is going to make things better, and there are children’s lives at stake.

I thank the hon. Lady for raising the issue of special educational needs. She is entirely right: the crisis that was left in SEND support in our schools was appalling—it was one of the terrible legacies of the Conservative Government— and demand is higher than ever. This is one of the big issues facing the education sector, which is why in the Budget, as the hon. Lady rightly pointed out, we announced an extra £1 billion for SEND, the biggest uplift that it has received for many years. Of course, that will not solve all the problems overnight; it is a down payment on the work that we will do, and are already doing, to reform SEND and get the resources in, which is vital to our education sector.

The hon. Lady also raised the issue of teachers’ pay. I am proud that one of this Government’s first acts was to agree to the independent pay review body’s recommendation of the pay rise that they had long deserved, and we will continue to support our education sector in respect of all its needs.

This week some year 8 students from Ark Blake academy, in my constituency, wrote to me raising concerns about food security both globally and locally. They highlighted the impact of conflict on access to food, the unacceptable increase in the number of food banks in our country, and the shocking rise in the number of children skipping lunch because their family cannot afford it. Will the Leader of the House allow time for a debate on what the Government can do to improve access to food both here and at home, and will she join me in thanking the pupils from Ark Blake for raising these important issues?

I am delighted to join my hon. Friend in congratulating those pupils on raising the issue of food poverty, especially at a time of year when the people’s needs in relation to both food and presents—Christmas poverty—are so stark. We all see that in our constituencies. I am sure that this would make a very good topic for a debate, and I expect we will shortly hear from the Chair of the Backbench Business Committee.

I call the Chair of the Backbench Business Committee!

Your wish is my command.

In addition to the business that the Leader of the House has announced, on Tuesday 7 January, with your permission, Mr Speaker, there will be a debate in Westminster Hall on pay gaps in the workplace, and on Thursday 9 January, provided that that date is provided for us, there will be two debates, one on seizing frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine, and the other on the impact of food and diet on obesity—which will be quite appropriate after the Christmas festivities. May I urge colleagues who wish to participate in the pre-recess Adjournment debate next week to apply to you, Mr Speaker, to be put on the speakers list so that we know how many people are likely to want to speak?

Two years ago, on a cross-party basis, it was agreed to abolish the Vagrancy Act 1824. The only thing that was not provided was a commencement date. What is needed now is either a statutory instrument or further primary legislation to remove the Act from the statute book once and for all. There appears to be a dispute between the Home Office and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, which neither seems able to resolve. Will the Leader of the House arrange for a statement to be made on when such legislation will be introduced, so that those who are homeless on our streets will not face being arrested but instead will be assisted?

I thank the hon. Gentleman for announcing some of the forthcoming debates. After Christmas, I will probably very much need to attend the obesity debate—I do a mean Christmas gravy, which I am already looking forward to.

The hon. Gentleman mentions the important matter of a commencement provision for the repeal of the Vagrancy Act. He has done so much to bring about the changes that are needed, and I commend him for all his work. I will ensure that the Department has heard his question, and that an update is given to him and the House at the earliest opportunity.