Jake Berry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many businesses in (a) Rossendale and Darwen, (b) Lancashire and (c) the North West have (i) applied to and (ii) been successful in their application to the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme.
Jake Berry: The Government is not able to publish the full selection methodology at this time as it includes information that relates to the formulation and development of government policy which is still live and ongoing.
Jake Berry: The Government has committed to improving the assets of community value scheme which was introduced through the Localism Act 2011. As part of this, we will assess the overall the effectiveness of the regulations for local authorities, asset owners and voluntary and community groups to ensure that any legislation the Government introduces will meet our objective of supporting communities to...
Jake Berry: The manifesto committed to publishing an English Devolution White Paper in 2020. The Government is committed to empowering local places to drive local economic growth. The Queen’s Speech reconfirmed the Government’s commitment to an English Devolution White Paper, further details on which will be made available in due course.
Jake Berry: The Government has been supporting local authorities from the outset of the November flooding. The Flood Recovery Framework was swiftly activated, to ensure that local authorities could implement local recovery schemes. In partnership with BEIS, the framework provides funding for local authorities to help affected residents and businesses to recover from the flooding, as well as...
Jake Berry: Will the right hon. Gentleman give way?
Jake Berry: rose—
Jake Berry: I just wonder if I could recommend to the right hon. Gentleman’s reading the Government’s December 2018 fairer funding review consultation, in which we specifically deal with the point he has raised about differing council tax bases. So it is not correct to say that this is not dealt with in the fairer funding review. The relevant paragraph is 3.2.2 on page 50 of the December 2018...
Jake Berry: I hope you will bear with me a moment, Mr Speaker, because this is the first time that I have had the opportunity to speak in a debate with you in the Chair as Speaker. As the MP for an adjoining constituency and a fellow Lancastrian, I congratulate you on the amazing start you have made as Speaker. You have restored gravitas to the office of Speaker and you are doing an excellent job. I beg...
Jake Berry: Not at the moment. It is absolutely clear—
Jake Berry: I will give way in a moment. It is absolutely clear that only the Conservative party has a mandate to unite our nation as we move forward from a decade of recovery to a decade of renewal.
Jake Berry: With the greatest of pleasure, I give way to the hon. Lady.
Jake Berry: I am disappointed that the hon. Lady thinks I am the monkey.
Jake Berry: Well, I am not the organ grinder, as she has pointed out, so I must be the monkey. We have a broad team, and given that a lot of the claims made by the hon. Member for Denton and Reddish relate directly to the north of England, I think that as the Minister for the Northern Powerhouse I am the most appropriate Minister to respond to this debate.
Jake Berry: As my right hon. Friend knows, the fair funding review is under development, so we are unable to say today whether Hampshire will benefit more than any other area of the country, but his point about having a fair funding review that makes sure that we accurately reflect need throughout the country is absolutely right.
Jake Berry: I do agree. I wonder how much attention the hon. Member for Denton and Reddish pays to his horoscope, because that prediction that has as much accuracy as the figures he has gone through today. Of course, the LGA itself said—in what was an extraordinary intervention from its chairman—that the figures were based on an old formula. It acknowledged that a new formula was being worked on and...
Jake Berry: I will get on shortly to the issue of council tax referendum limits. We continue to engage with colleagues across our local government family, on both sides of the political divide. If we have not engaged directly with Gloucester yet, I will ensure that we do so as part of our discussions. Building on the mandate given in December to my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, I want to set out...
Jake Berry: I am sure the hon. Gentleman will welcome the recent discussions that have taken place with local authority leaders across Cumbria. I know that he has influence over his own local authorities, and I am heartened by the open-hearted and open-handed way in which they have approached those discussions. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has been clear that we should seek mayoral combined...
Jake Berry: I am very pleased that we are making such good progress in south Yorkshire. The hon. Gentleman and I, along with many colleagues across the House, welcome that. He is correct to say that mayoral combined authorities have retained their 100% business rate retention for next year. Following the successful pilots, including in areas such as Lancashire— the hon. Member for Blackburn (Kate...
Jake Berry: I suggest to the right hon. Member for North Durham (Mr Jones) that he read page 8 of the Order Paper. The Government’s amendment says that the Government will set out the devolution White Paper and mentions “the £3.6bn Towns Fund and eight Devolution Deals now agreed.” He is a very experienced Member of this House, so I am surprised that he has not yet learned to read the Order Paper...
