If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities. The questioner expresses concern over the effectiveness of levelling up policies in her constituency and criticises the lack of transparency and clarity around these initiatives.

A recent report and freedom of information requests have found that levelling up is failing the north-east. Our councils are forced to spend millions on preparing bids, there remains a lack of transparency in the Department's decision-making processes, and it is still completely unclear what levelling up means. It has always been an empty slogan, hasn't it?

It has been an exception year for Mirfield in Bloom, winning regional and national Britain in Bloom awards as well as being presented with the Queen's award for voluntary service. Will my hon. Friend join me in congratulating Christine Sykes, Ruth Edwards and the Mirfield in Bloom team on receiving recognition for their amazing work and does she agree that Britain in Bloom competitions are vital in transforming the visual appearance of our towns?

I welcome the Secretary of State to his place. He is the third Secretary of State I have had the pleasure of shadowing in the past 10 months and I wish him well for however long he remains in office. In an hour's time, it looks like his investment zones will be the only thing left of this bin fire of a Budget. Can he tell us what assessment he has made of the amount of growth they will generate by the end of 2024 and will it be enough to offset the £26 billion he and his friends have just added to people's mortgages?

Oh my word, the Secretary of State has not done an assessment, has he? This is literally the only policy that the Government have left and he has not checked whether it will work. He said a moment ago that this is the Treasury's money. It is not the Treasury's money that he is using for this experiment; it is our money, and they have not checked whether it will work.

Like the hon. Member for Wigan (Lisa Nandy), I wish my right hon. Friend longevity in his vital position. When will he announce the devolution deals with Suffolk and north-east England that were negotiated this summer?

Recently, I raised concerns about fracking being imposed on Scotland using the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020. The Business Secretary replied that that Act is the Koh-i-Noor jewel in the crown of the UK constitution—an unfortunate comparison given that the Koh-i-Noor was pillaged from India by the British. Then we heard a Tory MP suggest that fracking should go ahead in Scotland, instead of in her constituency. As the Secretary of State for Communities, will he make it clear to his Cabinet colleagues that there must be no move to impose fracking on communities in Scotland?

I appreciate that some elements in Government may insist that we need more powers to deal with aggressive beggars, but I gently suggest that we have such legislation, including the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014. Does the new Secretary of State therefore agree that we do not need clause 187, a placeholder clause, in the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill, and will he scrap it immediately?

Today, representatives of food poverty charities have delivered a petition to Downing Street. They are asking for urgent steps to prevent families from relying on charitable food aid to survive. I would like to meet the Minister to discuss our report and its recommendations with him.

As Blyth Valley is now at the heart of the renewable energy sector, I am pleased to inform the House that an £11 million STEM training centre is about to start construction. Does my hon. Friend agree that this has been achieved by having a Conservative Government, a Conservative-led county council and a local Conservative Member of Parliament?

Twelve percent of all homelessness applications in Liverpool stem from domestic abuse. Our self-contained apartments for women and children are always full, and plans to double their number will barely address the issue. What measures will the Minister take to protect survivors of domestic abuse from becoming homeless?

My hon. Friend will know that I have been advocating for new homes to be constructed according to the latest environmental standards, with which I have met previous Ministers in his Department. Will he meet me to ensure that houses are not just started but completed to these standards?

My hon. Friend will know that local councils like Hounslow have a statutory duty to assess and provide support for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children. On one day alone, 72 such children arrived in hotel accommodation in my borough. What discussions has the Department had with affected boroughs about the additional support they need to fulfill their statutory duty?

On investment zones, can I urge the Secretary of State to consider mixed-use zones that feature housing and pension fund investments similar to what is seen in the Netherlands?

Contrary to last week's pledge by the Prime Minister, the latest Chancellor has said he will cut public spending. Sheffield Council has lost £2.1 billion and its annual grant is worth £288 million less than it was 12 years ago. Local services have been decimated as a result. Will the Secretary of State press the new Chancellor not to make any further cuts to council funding?

In the Harrogate district, a local council has requested that three sites be considered as investment zones. All are existing commercial operations earmarked for future investment. Does my right hon. Friend agree that the understandable concerns about special protection landscape areas are not borne out by reality? Will he take this opportunity to reaffirm targets on biodiversity and net zero remain central to his Department?

Many families hosted a Ukrainian family nearly six months ago. Those arrangements are coming to an end, and there is a real danger that we are going to see a large number of Ukrainian families homeless this winter. The Government need to do far more than the response of the right hon. Member for Pendle (Andrew Stephenson) to a previous question. Can Ministers tell us what their strategic approach is to prevent us from having Ukrainian families on our streets this Christmas?

Doncaster Council has put forward three sites that will benefit from investment-zone status, with two in Don valley: Unity at Thorne and Doncaster Sheffield airport. Will the Minister meet me to discuss the merits of each of those proposals?

New research by the Disabilities Trust shows that 48% of homeless people have had a major brain injury, which may have led to their being homeless. Is it not time that we put to an end the situation where victims of crime or of a major accident end up losing everything? Will he answer that question and will he and his Department meet the Disabilities Trust and ensure that everything is done to bring that to an end?

How will my right hon. Friend ensure that affordable houses are built in rural Britain if the development size limit moves from nine to over 40?