Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Repairing Potholes: Funding in Spring Budget 2023

Thursday 20 April 2023 · 7 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The Government are investing more than 5 billion between 2020 and 2025 in highways maintenance, with an additional 200 million announced in the spring Budget.
  • The Minister urged the Labour Welsh Government to follow the UK Government's example by setting up a national pothole fund to address severe pothole problems in Wales.
  • Essex County Council is putting an additional 9 million into the repair of potholes on top of the Government funding.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Vicky Ford Con
Transport
Context

The MP is concerned about the adequacy of funding announced in the spring Budget 2023 for repairing potholes.

Question

What assessment he has made with Cabinet colleagues of the adequacy of the funding for repairing potholes announced in the spring Budget 2023?

Answer from Richard Holden

The Government are investing more than £5 billion between 2020 and 2025 in highways maintenance. On top of that, we are putting in another £200 million announced in the spring Budget, which will allow local communities to plan effectively for managing their roads, with enough money to fill millions of potholes, repair dozens of bridges and resurface roads right across the country.

Answered
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Q2 Simon Baynes
Transport
Context

The MP is urging the Welsh Government to follow the UK Government's example and set up a national pothole fund to address severe pothole problems.

Question

Would the Minister urge the Labour Welsh Government to follow the UK Government's example by setting up a national pothole fund to deal with the severe problems we have with potholes in my constituency of Clwyd South in areas such Rhos, Hanmer and Bronington and the Ceiriog valley?

Answer from Richard Holden

I thank my hon. Friend for his question, and I would indeed. While this is of course a matter for the Welsh Government, I am sure residents across Wales, and actually the tourism industry from the rest of the country as well, would appreciate the sort of additional investment into addressing potholes that the Chancellor has provided in England.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Setting up a national pothole fund for Wales was not directly addressed; instead emphasis on tourism benefits and comparison with English investment

How: Changes Subject To Tourism

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Q3 John Whittingdale Con Maldon
Local Government
Context

The MP is praising the Conservative-led Essex County Council for additional funding towards pothole repair and criticizes the Liberal Democrats.

Question

I can tell my hon. Friend that in Maldon also the repair of potholes is one of the top issues on the doorstep. Would he therefore congratulate the Conservative-led administration at Essex County Council, which is putting an additional £9 million into the repair of potholes on top of the Government funding, and is he surprised to learn that the Liberal Democrats voted against it?

Answer from Richard Holden

Well, Mr Speaker, sadly nothing surprises me when it comes to the Liberal Democrats. I would not be surprised to hear them claiming to do one thing but actually doing another, which is what they do regularly in my experience of local government. No doubt my right hon. Friend will ensure that his local residents are fully aware of any such political chicanery from his local council's political opponents.

Not addressed: Congratulating Essex County Council was not addressed; instead criticism towards Liberal Democrats

How: Criticizes Opposition

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Q4 Vicky Ford Con
Transport Local Government
Context

The MP is highlighting Liberal Democrats' negative stance on various road funding measures and questioning their priorities.

Question

It is shocking that Essex Lib Dems voted against more money to fix our potholes. Local Lib Dems also voted for the ultra-low emission zone charge in London, the zoning charge in Oxford, the congestion charge in Cambridge, and the parking charges at Chelmsford's Hylands. Does my hon. Friend agree that when it comes to local roads, local Lib Dems are much more likely to be flinging out fines than filling up potholes?

Answer from Richard Holden

I recently visited my hon. Friend in Chelmsford to see the excellent Conservative councillors there working hard on behalf of local residents, and the stats speak for themselves, with Conservative councils repairing around double the number of potholes when they are in charge, compared with Liberal Democrat-controlled councils.

Not addressed: Agreement not addressed; instead comparison between Conservative and Liberal Democrats' performance

How: Changes Subject To Comparing Performances

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Q5 Tim Farron Lib Dem Westmorland and Lonsdale
Transport Local Government
Context

The MP is questioning the reduction in real-term funding for highways despite government claims of increased investment.

Question

Thank you, Mr Speaker, how kind. It would be terrible—wouldn't it?—if the Government were claiming to be putting more money into potholes, when in reality in the past two years alone, there has been a £534 million reduction in real-terms funding for highways. I am convinced that local election voters in two weeks' time will make their decisions based on realities, rather than on bluster.

Answer from Richard Holden

As I pointed out in a previous answer, when it comes to councils repairing roads, it is about getting on with the job on the ground. Conservative councils repair on average twice as many potholes per council area as Lib Dem councils do. The recent Government announcement about ensuring that utility companies are properly held to account is also in the right direction.

Not addressed: Reduction in real-terms funding not addressed; instead emphasis on Conservative performance and policy announcements

How: Changes Subject To Conservative Achievements

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Q6 Jim Shannon DUP Strangford
Transport Northern Ireland
Context

The MP is requesting discussions with the Chancellor regarding pothole funding under Barnett consequentials.

Question

Let me take the focus away from Conservatives and Liberals, and focus it on my constituency if I can. I do that for a reason. In the past, the Government from Westminster have been helpful to the Northern Ireland Executive and to our road surfaces, and they have given us money for potholes under the Barnett consequentials. Ards and North Down Borough Council in my constituency has the worst potholes in Northern Ireland. Will the Minister hold discussions with the Chancellor to ensure that under the Barnett consequentials, we can get some help for potholes in my constituency?

Answer from Richard Holden

I will always be delighted to do so. I was recently in Northern Ireland and drove along some of its brand new roads. I was delighted to see that Northern Ireland is still investing in our highway infrastructure, unlike in Labour controlled Wales.

Not addressed: Discussion about pothole funding not addressed; instead emphasis on road investments in NI compared with Wales

How: Changes Subject To Comparing Investments

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Q7 Louise Haigh Lab Sheffield Heeley
Transport
Context

The question addresses the reduction in pothole repair budgets due to government cuts, specifically mentioning a £400 million cut by the Prime Minister while serving as Chancellor.

Question

Sometimes you just have to admire the brass neck of the Conservative party. As Chancellor, the Prime Minister personally slashed the pothole budget by £400 million, which is enough to fill 8 million potholes. Lined up side by side, that giant Tory pothole would stretch from here to John O'Groats and back again. Will the Minister accept that after 13 years, the British public see that our roads, like the Tories' excuses, are full of holes?

Answer from Richard Holden

The hon. Lady heard me have a go at the Lib Dems, because Tory councils have filled twice as many potholes. You will be surprised to learn, Mr Speaker, that Conservative councils have filled three times as many potholes as Labour councils, and with an extra £5 billion going in over the next five years, and an extra £200 million this year, I hope the hon. Lady will welcome the Government's investment in potholes.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The Minister did not address the specific question about acknowledging the impact of cutting the pothole budget by £400 million on road maintenance.

How: Changed Subject To Compare Conservative And Labour Councils

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