Contributions
735 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDLevelling-up FundThe levelling-up agenda is broad and wide, but it does not take account of the levers that sit with the hon. Lady’s parent Government in Holyrood. Whether on welfare, drugs or…17 Oct 2022HANSARDInvestment ZonesMy right hon. Friend is exactly right: we need to avoid there being a hard border between England and Wales, and indeed between Scotland and England, on these questions. It is…17 Oct 2022HANSARDPrivate Renter SecurityWe understand the pressures that renters are facing with increasing rents and energy bills. That is why we have provided more than £37 billion of support this year to those who…17 Oct 2022HANSARDPrivate Renter SecurityWe will bring forward reforms for renters when parliamentary time allows. What I can say in reply to the hon. Gentleman’s point about housing benefit is that we recognise that it…17 Oct 2022HANSARDLevelling-up FundFond as I am of the hon. Gentleman, I will not give him the money directly, but we will deliver it by the end of the year.17 Oct 2022HANSARDPrivate Renter SecurityI can confirm that we will introduce the rental reform Bill in the course of this Parliament. That is a commitment that we have made and are determined to honour. I could not be…17 Oct 2022HANSARDPrivate Renter SecurityMy colleagues across the Government and I continue to keep rates under very close review. We have maintained the heightened rates that were introduced in April 2020. I very much…17 Oct 2022HANSARDLevelling-up FundRound 1 of the levelling-up fund saw a total £1.7 billion awarded to 85 lead applicants across 105 bids from the UK. Of this, my Department has awarded £1.24 billion, with £187…17 Oct 2022HANSARDLevelling-up FundMy hon. Friend is a fantastic advocate for Dover on so many issues. She will understand, I hope, that I cannot comment on the merits of specific bids while we are evaluating them,…17 Oct 2022HANSARDPrivate Renter SecurityMy hon. Friend is a consistent and effective advocate for the issues that affect rural constituencies such as North Devon, and I recognise—not least as a result of our…17 Oct 2022HANSARDInvestment ZonesI am terribly fond of the hon. Gentleman, as I hope he knows, but I am afraid he is just wrong in that summary of investment zones. There is no diminution of workers’ rights or…17 Oct 2022HANSARDLevelling-up FundI thank the hon. Gentleman for his reminder, but I need no reminder of the importance on the need for levelling up. That is indeed why my colleagues and I were elected in 2019,…17 Oct 2022HANSARDLevelling-up FundI am always happy to meet my hon. Friend, who is such a fantastic advocate for his constituency, which I think he has made iconic through his work. As I have just said to my hon.…17 Oct 2022HANSARDInvestment ZonesMy hon. Friend and his colleagues from north Wales have already been absolutely passionate advocates of the potential of investment zones to benefit their region. He is quite…17 Oct 2022HANSARDInvestment ZonesI am a convinced believer in the merits of freeports. Clearly, the final Government approval for some of those will go into place this autumn, and many are already operational. We…17 Oct 2022HANSARDTopical QuestionsThe hon. Gentleman makes a powerful case on this issue and I commit the Department to meeting to discuss it.17 Oct 2022HANSARDTopical QuestionsFracking will take place only where there is community consent.17 Oct 2022HANSARDLevelling-up FundI can absolutely defend our record on levelling up. There is a £4.8 billion levelling-up fund, which is transforming opportunities across this country. The hon. Member need only…17 Oct 2022HANSARDLevelling-up FundMy hon. Friend is exactly right: levelling up is all about pockets of need, wherever they occur in this country. I know that there are many pockets in the south of England that…17 Oct 2022HANSARDInvestment ZonesInvestment zones will turbocharge our plans for growth, spread opportunity and be transformational for towns and cities across the country. They will create new jobs and homes on…17 Oct 2022