Contributions
1,710 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARD Plan for NeighbourhoodsI greatly enjoyed my visit to Rugby. It took me more than an hour to realise that the great ovoid-shaped public art installations were rugby balls, hence the rugby pun. It was,…04 Mar 2025HANSARDPlan for NeighbourhoodsThis Government’s defining mission is growth, and we are determined that nowhere will be left behind in that pursuit. Over the last decades the impact of austerity and decline has…04 Mar 2025HANSARD Plan for NeighbourhoodsAbsolutely, we would want to see those boards meeting. I know from other areas where they have anticipated and set up their boards early that they have asked them to do other…04 Mar 2025HANSARD Plan for NeighbourhoodsI absolutely support the points my hon. Friend makes. I know the people of Knowsley are very proud of the communities that make up Knowsley. I was very pleased to visit recently…04 Mar 2025HANSARD Plan for NeighbourhoodsI totally agree. My hon. Friend has told me of the proud sense of identity in his community and the desire for the tools to enable them to shape their community, which is what we…04 Mar 2025HANSARD Plan for NeighbourhoodsYes, this is a really important point. Plans do take time to gear up, and there may not be a uniform spend of exactly £2 million every year. There may be some flexibilities, which…04 Mar 2025HANSARD Plan for NeighbourhoodsMy hon. Friend succinctly expresses the strength of feeling from colleagues today. As I say, we are going into a spending review phase, which may be a good moment for those…04 Mar 2025HANSARD Plan for NeighbourhoodsI know of Leigh’s great creativity, not least at the Spinners Mill, which my hon. Friend used to run. From our perspective, we want this to be a reset of the way in which central…04 Mar 2025HANSARD Plan for NeighbourhoodsI am aware of the history that my hon. Friend mentions. I hope that this will be a reboot moment for Hastings and a chance to get some of the benefit that the community…04 Mar 2025HANSARD Plan for NeighbourhoodsThe hon. Lady knows that I cannot run ahead of the spending review. Other funds are available, including through the enhanced local government settlement and the shared prosperity…04 Mar 2025HANSARD Plan for NeighbourhoodsI am grateful to the Chair of the Select Committee for those questions. I agree with what she said about competitive tendering; the quid pro quo is that the Government of the day…04 Mar 2025HANSARDBuilding Safety DocumentationI stress that the EWS1 form is an industry form rather than a fire safety one. If those buildings are in a Government scheme, any fire risk assessment will have been quality…03 Mar 2025HANSARDLevelling-up ProjectsDespite the difficult fiscal context, at the autumn Budget we provided stability for legacy levelling-up projects—now called local growth funding—prioritising expenditure on the…03 Mar 2025HANSARDLevelling-up ProjectsWe have been clear that for local growth funding we want to move away from the old model of competitive funding pots and beauty parades, which was short-term and based on central…03 Mar 2025HANSARDFire Safety: Local Authority PlanningI fondly remember—at least, I think I do —our consideration of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023. [ Interruption. ] The hon. Member for Mid Buckinghamshire (Greg Smith)…03 Mar 2025HANSARDBuilding Safety DocumentationIf the building is in one of the Government-backed schemes, such as the cladding safety scheme, the fire risk assessment will have been quality assured by the Government, which…03 Mar 2025HANSARDFire Safety: Local Authority PlanningBuilding regulations set fire safety standards for new developments, and building regulations and planning are, of course, a devolved matter. In England, developers submitting…03 Mar 2025HANSARDArbroath Town PlanMy officials and I continue to work with our counterparts, including in the Scotland Office and colleagues in the devolved Governments, to develop and deliver the reformed…03 Mar 2025HANSARDArbroath Town PlanThat is a very important point. We wanted to keep the promise made to the people of Arbroath, which is why I am very pleased that we have been able to do so through the long-term…03 Mar 2025HANSARDPenistone LineI thank my hon. Friend for raising these important points. I totally agree with him that improved connectivity is essential for places to thrive, and that is a point that Mayor…03 Mar 2025