Alison Taylor MP: speeches

Speeches

• 2 Jun 2026 · Armed Forces Bill · Hansard source

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  Thank you, Mrs Cummins, for the opportunity to contribute to the debate. As an MP who represents the west coast of Scotland—a large part of my seat is on the River Clyde—I felt it was important to contribute to this debate. In my constituency, there are quite a number of serving and retired servicemembers, and we have many families who settled in the constituency to work in the war effort during the second world war. It is a constituency with strong connections to the armed forces, and the veterans charity Erskine was founded there in the former Erskine veterans hospital. The measures in the Bill will be welcomed across Great Britain. I was fortunate enough to join local service personnel to learn about the armed forces covenant shortly after my election and I have been greatly encouraged to learn of local employers signing it and embracing it. It is well past time that the Government did the same. I know, too, that the provisions on service family housing will be broadly welcomed across the country. I look forward to seeing the benefits of concerted efforts to improve housing for families in my constituency. Housing in our communities is so important, not just in providing a place to sleep, but for access to the local community, schools, health services and so on. Our communities are open and generous, and they appreciate the sacrifices made by service personnel. I look forward to welcoming more retired and serving service personnel to Paisley and Renfrewshire North.

• 13 May 2026 · Debate on the Address · Hansard source

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  I could not agree more. The Scottish Government have cut the budgets of local authorities in Scotland for the past 20 years. I like to go out and do litter picks, and we have some good litter-picking initiatives in Renfrewshire. I encourage everyone in the community to do that, because it at least makes people feel like they are making a difference. We build on strong foundations—strong Labour foundations—unlike the local cowboy who builds on quicksand. The Government’s programme will take time, but it will have positive effects for communities up and down the country, providing greater immediate support to help young people find the education and training opportunities that they need to fulfil their potential. The programme will also continue the promise of long-term economic growth based on strategic investment in housing and infrastructure. There is still a great deal to be done. Great British businesses, large and small, should be able to thrive under this Government, and helping them to overcome the obstacles and barriers that they face should always be part of our strategy for growth. Do not think for a minute, Madam Deputy Speaker, that that simply means agreeing with whatever business asks for. It means a realistic engagement with businesses, and an awareness of the pressures that they face. From my own experience of running a small business, I understand the choices that people make in starting and building their businesses. I know something of the struggles that they face to get money that is owed to them and to meet myriad costs, not least those of paying staff and suppliers. I welcome the changes proposed in respect of late payment and procurement to assist small business owners. I empathise with entrepreneurs who are working hard to build something and to employ people, and who are willing to take the risk to build a business. In my constituency, as in many others, small businesses are an important part of the local community, but building a successful business is predicated on much of the social fabric and infrastructure that we in the UK take for granted. We need transport infrastructure, and public transport for workers and customers. We need economic growth, and customers with the disposable income that enables them to buy our goods and services. Those things do not just happen by accident. The Gracious Speech makes clear this Government’s commitment to building a thriving economy, because people need that to do business, and so does society at large. The choice is not between “good for business” and “good for workers”; it is between “good for society” and long-term decline. On this side of the House, we want to build a future for everyone.

• 2 Feb 2026 · Tolled Crossings and Regional Connectivity · Hansard source

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  Does my hon. Friend agree that there would also be an environmental cost to not using the crossings, because vehicles have to travel longer distances, since usually the crossings present the straight and most direct route?

• 27 Jan 2026 · UK Bus Manufacturing · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under you, Dr Murrison. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Falkirk (Euan Stainbank) for leading on such a critical issue for his constituents. As of the third quarter of 2023, the UK manufactured only around 17% of UK buses, employing around 4,400 people while also supporting supply chains. That is undoubtedly an economic benefit, but it is also less harmful for our precious planet. Transporting large goods from as far away as China obviously has a detrimental environmental impact. Britain should be at the heart of manufacturing electric buses for our own use, driving forward the green transition to halt climate change. In my constituency, which covers part of Glasgow, improving air quality has undoubted health benefits. Driving change does not happen by accident; it needs a strategy, a plan, hard work and investment. The demand for electric buses will only continue to grow. I hope we can ensure that domestic demand is primarily met here. Alexander Dennis has faced significant issues over the last few years, and I hope they are temporary and resolvable. The future of bus manufacturing in the UK should be strong and positive, build on the existing manufacturing base and be supported by a strong domestic pipeline of orders. There is no shortage of existing sites for the expansion of bus manufacturing in Scotland. Bus manufacturing companies seeking new sites need look no further than the advanced manufacturing district for Scotland at Glasgow airport in my own constituency, which has an ample supply of land, access to the White Cart river for water, good motorway connections and a developer and a local authority poised to construct low-carbon buildings at a reasonable cost. Communities like mine in Paisley and Renfrewshire North need more and better buses, including slicker, smaller buses that can wind through our housing estates. The reliability and availability of buses and their routes comes up frequently on the doors of my constituency, particularly in Gallowhill, Ferguslie Park, Erskine, Renfrew, Penilee and Cardonald, where they are a lifeline to doctor’s appointments, work and seeing families and friends. My constituents need to know that more buses will be coming very soon.

• 16 Dec 2025 · Finance (No. 2) Bill · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to contribute to this important debate. Members on both sides of the House have eloquently set out their views on the provisions of this Budget. From my own experience of running a small business, I empathise with entrepreneurs working hard to build something, to employ people and to be willing to take on the risk of building a business. In my constituency, as in many others, small businesses are an important part of the local community. Obviously, they provide a source of local employment. They make our high streets into destinations. Many of them lend their expertise to local charitable and social organisations in the community, including local sports teams and volunteer organisations. Paisley and Renfrewshire North benefits from the generosity of local businesses in lending expertise, making donations or providing sponsorship. This Budget provides a sure foundation for the services that our entrepreneurs need to establish their business. We need a firm foundation of laws, police to enforce them and courts to oversee the process. We need transport infrastructure and public transport by which workers and customers can get to work places or shops and deliveries can be made.

• 2 Sept 2025 · English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill · Hansard source

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  I draw the House’s attention to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests, which includes the fact that I remain a fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. My contribution is to assist the Secretary of State and the Government in ensuring that this important Bill will truly deliver on my right hon. Friend’s ambition for a transformative change in our communities—a vision that we share. Others in the House will want to articulate the advantages of devolving power and increasing strategic focus for the English regions, but I have expertise in commercial leases, so the House will forgive me for focusing on that one point. The Bill represents a crucial step in the vital work of promoting economic growth and opportunity for our communities. Our constituents will all have witnessed at first hand how the previous Government’s failure to promote growth and support economic activity has contributed to the decline in the wellbeing of our communities. I have spent 30 years in the commercial property industry and, as a result, numerous organisations and businesses have contacted me directly about the proposals to ban upwards-only rent reviews. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors is already working to make lease terms, including about rent reviews, more transparent. Since 2020, the “Code for leasing business premises, England and Wales, 1st edition”, which includes advice on rent reviews, has been in place for chartered surveyors to adhere to when advising both landlords and tenants. The proposal to implement by legislation a universal ban on clauses within commercial leases for the provision of upwards-only rent reviews creates uncertainty for the funding of property development. My concern is that this legislation would apply to all commercial properties, not just high street retail or small business properties. As currently drafted, the Government’s proposals would impact high street retail, as well as all other commercial sectors. The ambition to protect high street retail and small businesses, particularly in tough economic conditions, is certainly not to be underestimated, and nor is it unwelcome. There is a surplus of vacant, unsuitable, poorly configured and energy-hungry retail units crying out for regeneration in most towns across the United Kingdom, including in the towns of Paisley, Renfrew and Erskine in my constituency, but I do not believe that it is just upwards-only rent reviews that are preventing the regeneration of our towns and cities. With my professional background, I can help to improve this technical aspect of the Bill in order to prevent unintended consequences for the Government’s growth agenda. I understand the desire to support small businesses on our high streets and I understand the pressures faced by those businesses because of difficult trading conditions. Property development can be the foundation stone of economic growth in our regional economies. My experience is that new sustainable development, in the right place, can be transformative, a source of jobs and training in construction, and a source of employment and opportunity in operation. New transformative sustainable development adds vitality to an area, acting as a spur to further development and wider investment. I know that all Members will intuitively feel that upwards-only rent reviews are unfair, but that is a simplistic view. Among the earliest pioneers of upwards-only reviews were the Church of England’s Church Commissioners, who implemented them to ensure certainty of income for the Church and remain among the largest landowners in the country. My concern is that the well-intended focus on the genuine problems of small business and the high street could have unintended consequences for the broader property development sector. In closing, I encourage my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State to consider an amendment to the clause to ensure that it is focused where it is needed most, without impacting on all property sectors. I stand ready to help with that endeavour.