Since day one in the job, the Prime Minister and I have [4D [K have been in lockstep in our determination to meet Britain's fiscal rules. [K This is the bedrock on which we build good growth and help give a bit of br [2D [K breathing space to families and businesses. We acted in the first week to c [1D [K cap bus fares, cut business rates for pubs, social clubs and live venues, a [1D [K and cut VAT on electricity bills. We have also announced further sanctions [K on Russia. We have changed procurement rules to back British jobs. We launc [5D [K launched a new plan for growth from places right across the UK and £100 mil [3D [K million to back British sovereign AI firms. This is a Labour Government who [3D [K who are determined to deliver good growth in every postcode and sound fisca [5D [K fiscal discipline.

I am disappointed that the hon. Gentleman did not recog [5D [K recognise that capping bus fares must be a benefit to his constituency in N [1D [K Norfolk and a benefit to passengers. Beyond that, let me take his contribut [9D [K contribution as an early Budget representation.

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her question. She r [1D [K raises a concern about the interaction between matured child trust funds an [2D [K and adult social care assessments. The financial assessment framework to wh [2D [K which she refers is a matter for the Department of Health and Social Care, [K but I am, of course, more than happy to facilitate a conversation with her [K and the relevant departmental Minister.

I welcome the new shadow Chancellor to his place and th [2D [K thank him for his words. I welcome him back to the Treasury brief—perhaps M [1D [K Members on the Government Benches will have more to say about that later. I [1D [K I echo his comments about the right hon. Member for Central Devon (Sir Mel [K Stride), who has played an important role in this House, including his cros [4D [K cross-party work during the pandemic as Chair of the Treasury Committee. We [2D [K We thank him for that as he steps down from the Front Bench. The shadow Cha [3D [K Chancellor takes reports in the paper and tries to make serious points in t [1D [K this House. We will set out our plans at the Budget to give families and bu [2D [K businesses a bit of breathing space, to back good growth in more places thr [3D [K throughout this country, and to rebuild confidence in strong British fiscal [6D [K fiscal discipline—something that was lost under the shadow Chancellor's Gov [3D [K Government.

The future of this country will be written in our growt [5D [K growth rates, after 14 years in which we had low growth, high debt and a Bu [2D [K Budget that crashed confidence in the British economy. Under this Governmen [9D [K Government, we have already seen a new way of generating growth in more pla [3D [K places across the country. Members have seen the way that we will reform th [2D [K the centre of Whitehall, so that we cut through slow decision making, with [K public leadership and control made accountable to the people. I made announ [6D [K announcements yesterday on the ways that we will go further to axe the thic [4D [K thicket of administration, to back fast-growth firms, and to change the way [3D [K way that we generate investment across the country.

My hon. Friend is an expert on those matters and is tot [3D [K totally right to point to the importance of looking at the demand side of t [1D [K the economy. The Chancellor and Prime Minister have focused on just that, f [1D [K for example, with the cut to VAT on electricity bills and the reinstatement [13D [K reinstatement of the £2 cap on bus fares for 2027. My hon. Friend will also [4D [K also support the big focus on the supply side that the Chancellor talked ab [2D [K about in his speech yesterday, improving the productive capacity of our eco [3D [K economy, so that we can build more homes, labs, transport and power.

Employment levels have risen since the general election, but the hon. Gentleman is absolutely right to highlight that too few young people are getting the chance to move into work and to participate in education. That is exactly what the Milburn report is looking at, and I hope the hon. Gentleman will feed into that. However, we are not waiting for that report; the Government are already acting. That is what the jobs guarantee is doing, and why businesses that employ young people on universal credit will receive £3,000. It is right that there is a moral as well as economic imperative to get young people into work.

Fiscal decisions are taken at the Budget, but I join my hon. Friend in urging the Welsh Government to consider extending the support that we have given to English pubs to pubs in Wales.

Decisions on fiscal matters are taken at the Budget [6D [K Budget, but I urge the hon. Gentleman to urge the Scottish Government to fo [2D [K follow the UK Government's example by providing support to pubs in Scotland [8D [K Scotland, too.

My hon. Friend is right that the Truss mini-Budget [K means that families with a new mortgage are now paying £600 a year more and [3D [K and the Government are paying more for our borrowing—money that we could be [2D [K be spending on schools and hospitals. The shadow Chancellor is the same man [3D [K man who at the weekend said that there were “lots of good things” in the Tr [2D [K Truss mini-Budget. With Labour, Britain is starting to turn the corner; it [K is clear that with a new shadow Chancellor, the Tories are turning back to [K Liz Truss.

I thank the hon. Lady for raising this important issue. [6D [K issue. I would be very happy to meet her.

I thank my hon. Friend for his question and congratulat [11D [K congratulate his wife on what is a significant achievement; I am sure the w [1D [K whole House is supporting her. He is absolutely right that we want to see m [1D [K more young people having the income, opportunities and purpose that work pr [2D [K provides, which is why it is welcome that employment is up. However, we do [K need to do more. We will keep providing national insurance relief for emplo [5D [K employees aged under 21 and apprentices under 25, and we are rolling out ou [2D [K our youth hubs, including in North Somerset.

We are improving funding for local government as a resu [4D [K result of the spending review, and I would be happy to meet the hon. Gentle [6D [K Gentleman to discuss that further. It is also obviously a question for the [K Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

I congratulate the organisation in my hon. Friend's con [3D [K constituency for successfully fundraising for two defibrillators. As she kn [2D [K knows, decisions on fiscal matters are taken at the Budget. She makes a pow [3D [K powerful case, but we have to evaluate whether VAT reliefs are passed on in [2D [K in full to consumers. That is one of the key considerations when taking dec [3D [K decisions of this sort.

We are providing a 20% cut in business rates for pubs in England. I urge the Scottish Government to do the same for Scottish pubs.

I want to be really clear about this: people who need in-person banking must be able to access essential services, including those in rural communities. That is exactly why I commissioned the independent review on access to banking services, which will gather data about current access to banking services. It is the Government’s intention for there to be a power in the Financial Services and Markets Bill to allow the Government to act on that review.

The difficult choices that we have had to make are why NHS waiting lists are falling in the hon. Gentleman’s constituency and why his own police chief constable said that
“increased officer numbers will enable us to further tackle issues such as antisocial behaviour, theft and drug-related crimes.”
The hon. Gentleman is a man who, unfortunately, on the day of the mini-Budget spoke up in this Chamber and said that it was a “vote of confidence” in the whole UK economy. The only regret he must have is not being more enthusiastic—otherwise he would be shadow Chancellor.

Fraud is the most common type of crime in this country, and its impact can be truly devastating for individuals and businesses. That is why this Government are committed to tackling it, including via the doubling of the economic crime levy. The Fisher review made a number of recommendations, including about the role of technology companies. We are considering those recommendations very thoroughly.

I can reassure the hon. Gentleman that I am working [7D [K working extremely closely with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland [K who, as he will know, is in discussions with all the parties in the Norther [7D [K Northern Ireland Executive. We need to make sure that a budget is set for N [1D [K Northern Ireland so that the Executive can continue to deliver vital local [K public services.

Indeed, the West Midlands Mayor, Richard Parker, is [2D [K is using the powers that he has, including recently by stepping in and taki [4D [K taking action to improve bus services across the west midlands. Yesterday h [1D [K he stepped in to provide support for the Jaguar Land Rover workers who may [K face redundancy and will certainly be well placed to get further jobs.

The right hon. Gentleman sets out the challenge facing the country in the long term. That is exactly why we have commissioned Alan Milburn and the Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Ham (Sir Stephen Timms) to do the reviews they are currently doing. When they produce them in the autumn, we will look at them and act on the recommendations.

I reassure my hon. Friend that I am working extremely closely with the Health Secretary and discussing overall levels of NHS spending—of course, the Department has the biggest budget across the Departments. The NHS is performing well, but I will take back the specifics that she mentioned.

I will indeed meet the hon. Member. The issues she [K identifies are exactly why we had a commitment in our manifesto to work wit [3D [K with industry to roll out 350 banking hubs over the course of the Parliamen [9D [K Parliament. We are well on track, with 282 banking hubs having already been [4D [K been announced, so we are running way ahead of schedule.

My hon. Friend is right to highlight the importance [10D [K importance of removing the low-value imports relief and levelling the playi [5D [K playing field with high streets. As she will know, my predecessor announced [9D [K announced in June that we are bringing forward the implementation of the me [2D [K measure to October 2028 to benefit high streets across the country as quick [5D [K quickly as possible.