Labour MP for Crewe and Nantwich
The subject of high streets is one that matters deeply in constituencies like Crewe and Nantwich, where the story of decline is slowly but surely being rewritten into one of renewal. For too long, our high streets were left behind. Fourteen years of Conservative government saw projects stall, shopfronts shuttered and absentee landlords allowed to hold back regeneration. In Crewe, the failed...
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. Conservative Members do not like it, but what I am articulating is the lived reality of my constituents and the impact of the Conservatives’ record on the economy while in government. The failure to tackle the root causes of decline was compounded by economic mismanagement that drove up construction costs and by the devastating loss of HS2, but I am...
My hon. Friend is absolutely right about restoring old buildings, and that is exactly what is taking place in Crewe. Alongside this, a rolling programme of cultural events from Crewe town council and the Crewe business improvement district is helping to make our town an early contender for this Government’s first town of culture award.
I am going to make some progress. Opportunity is exactly what the repurposing the high street grants delivered by our Labour council in Cheshire East has delivered. These are £30,000 grants for local entrepreneurs to renovate empty shop units, and they have empowered small and independent businesses to take risks, fill empty units and breathe new life into our town centre. They have...
Will the hon. Member give way?
Opposition Members spend a lot of time complaining about the difficult decisions taken by this Labour Government, so I wonder whether the Chancellor can remind them what we have been able to do for public services and infrastructure as a result of this Government’s revenue-raising policies.
I start by acknowledging a point that many Members across the House have made. Many of us would not defend the principle of stamp duty; indeed, if it did not already exist, it is hard to believe that we would invent it. However, that is not the question before us today. If we are to decide to abolish stamp duty, we must say how we will pay for it, and we have to justify that decision as a...
The hon. Member is right to point out that the Conservatives had 14 years in government. Now they are in opposition, they want to talk about all the magical savings that they could make. Why did they not do it when they were in government? It is too little, too late. As I was saying, if you decide that you want to do this, you have to tell us how you will pay for it, and justify that priority...
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has issued guidance that parking charges at NHS facilities are (a) equitable, (b) proportionate to the cost of (i) maintaining and (ii) improving parking facilities and (c) not to be used to subsidise clinical services.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support schools with provisions for wraparound care.
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to take steps to help incentivise the temporary use of vacant commercial spaces for (a) community-based and (b) start-up projects.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department is taking steps to help support male voice choirs.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help support people with epilepsy to monitor seizures.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has considered introducing voluntary pension-sharing orders in cases of life-changing events.
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department is taking steps to help support bereaved families with council tax owed following the sale of a property.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to ensure that schools do not use non-disclosure agreements to require teachers to take settlement agreements.
