Topical Questions

Question

I welcome the comments that the Secretary of State has just made, but may I take him to task about some of the comments that he made earlier? He talked about having conversations with Hull City Council about transport. This comes after the Government's decade-long refusal to back the electrification of a line to Hull. It also comes after the exclusion of the northern Mayors in the decision to scrap the northern leg of HS2. Why should any of the people in Hull and East Riding—

Question

I have been running a “fair deal for new estates” campaign in my constituency to ensure that new estates are completed in a timely manner. I am talking about not just the housing, but the play areas, the planting, the drainage and the pavements. Will my hon. Friend meet me to discuss this campaign, which is important locally and is achieving progress for residents in Harrogate and Knaresborough?

Question

It is a pleasure to face the right hon. Gentleman for our first questions. I hope he enjoyed his party conference, cancelling a meat tax that nobody had planned, abolishing seven bins that do not exist and announcing that they would build a series of transport links that already do exist—not so much conference season as panto season. I shall keep my question to a problem that definitely does exist. One million families are waiting for social housing. How can he justify handing back to the Treasury billions of pounds that are desperately needed to tackle the housing crisis?

Question

The right hon. Gentleman just comes out with flannel—I think he is auditioning for panto season this afternoon. He can dress it up however he likes, but the truth is that he could not spend this vital funding quickly enough in the middle of a housing crisis. It is clear that the Prime Minister shares his disregard for struggling families. In his hour-long speech in Manchester, the Prime Minister did not mention housing a single time—not once—but the Housing Minister did tell conference that renters are not all weed-smoking gangsters, which I am sure the right hon. Gentleman knows all about, as he mentioned gangsters earlier today. Can the Secretary of State assure us that, despite the tone of those remarks, the Renters (Reform) Bill will not be scrapped before the King's Speech?

Question

Next year marks the 50th anniversary of the amazing Hope Centre in Northampton, which for 50 years has been turning the lives around of people who have been homeless, getting them into a home of their own and into a secure job. Will the Minister join me in congratulating all the staff and volunteers at that amazing charity?

Question

Antisemitism is abhorrent and hateful, and there must be meaningful legislation to protect Jewish people. I appreciate that the Department introduced the anti-boycott Bill to help to tackle that, but as the Minister may recall, in Committee the Bill was not supported by many human rights organisations and no Opposition amendments were accepted. We need to work on a cross-party basis, so will the Secretary of State and the Minister meet with me to discuss what support the SNP can provide to tackle the hatred of antisemitism?

Question

The new Levelling Up Minister has got off to a flying start by awarding £20 million to Barry in the Vale of Glamorgan. What reassurance can my hon. Friend give me that local priorities will determine how that money should be spent?

Question

Chester, like city centres up and down the country, as well as rural and coastal areas, is seeing rents going up and the supply of long-term private rented lets going down. What progress has been made in tackling the issue?

Question

My constituents at the Mill development in Ipswich have been living in a cruel form of limbo for over 10 years. What steps are the Government taking to support my residents?

Question

Local authorities are struggling to retrofit ageing rural council housing. What will the Minister do to avoid councils having to spend huge sums of money on positive input ventilation units?

Question

Is the Secretary of State able to provide an update on further housing-led regeneration plans for Bond Street and Revoe areas?

Question

Does the Government think it is possible to level up without reducing child poverty?

Question

Will the Minister meet me to discuss the issue of levelling-up funding for Berkeley?

Question

Since the Government first promised to scrap no-fault possession grounds 4 years ago, some 4,240 London households were evicted last year. When will the Government be bringing in the Renters (Reform) Bill?

Question

Will the Secretary of State visit Gillingham with me to ensure we get our fair share and allocation of resources?

Question

Since the Government first promised the Renters (Reform) Bill 4 years ago, over 10,000 Londoners have faced eviction threats. When will the Government bring in the Bill?

Question

As he is reforming the national planning policy framework and introducing a new infrastructure levy, how will my right hon. Friend ensure that our constituents get the doctors and dentists capacity that must go with new homes?